Sony to charge a $9.99, not $5 monthly fee for multiplayer games on PS4, Nikkei ... - Financial Post

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p>Sony Corp plans to charge a monthly fee of US$9.99 in the United States and €6.99 euros in Europe for playing multiplayer online games on the upcoming PlayStation 4 (PS4) console scheduled to debut on November 15, the Nikkei business daily reported without citing sources.</p><br /><p>Sony announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June that it would begin charging a monthly fee to play games online, but then company President Jack Tretton said that the fee would be $5 per month.</p><br /><p>Multiplayer games can be played for free on PlayStation 3. Players must pay a fee on Microsoft’s rival Xbox 360 console and on the upcoming Xbox One console. Those fees are vary between about $7/month and $10/month depending on how long the user orders the service for.</p><br /><p>Sony plans to charge 500 yen ($5) a month for multiplayer games in Japan when the new console debuts in February, the Nikkei said. It is unclear if, perhaps, the Japanese Nikkei got the European and U.S. fees mixed up.</p><br /><p>© Thomson Reuters 2013</p><br /></div>

tech Sony to charge a $9.99, not $5 monthly fee for multiplayer games on PS4, Nikkei ... - Financial Post

Sony Corp plans to charge a monthly fee of US$9.99 in the United States and €6.99 euros in Europe for playing multiplayer online games on the upcoming PlayStation 4 (PS4) console scheduled to debut on November 15, the Nikkei business daily reported w…

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Google Drive updates for iOS with multiple-account support and cloud printing - tuaw.com

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div class='body'><br /><p class='c7'><img alt="" data-credit="Google Drive" data-mep="23332" src="http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/adam/62a2b1cc4e1b8df359a666e8a47c7869/drive.jpg"/> </p><br /><p>Google Drive has released a minor update for their iOS app that brings along some big features. The biggest addition is the arrival of Multiple Account Support. Finally you'll be able to switch between personal, work and other Google accounts with ease.</p><br /><p>Google Drive is also introducing Single Sign In, automatically signing you into other Google apps like YouTube, Google Maps and Chrome simply by signing into Google Drive. Finally, Drive now supports Google Cloud Print and AirPrint, as well as support for iOS 7.</p><br /><p>You can find the update now in the iTunes Store.</p><br /><br/><br />Share<br/> </div><br /><div class='body'> </div><br /></div>

tech Google Drive updates for iOS with multiple-account support and cloud printing - tuaw.com

Google Drive has released a minor update for their iOS app that brings along some big features. The biggest addition is the arrival of Multiple Account Support. Finally you'll be able to switch between personal, work and other Google accounts with e…

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Panasonic's massive 4K tablet said to arrive ... - CNET

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div style='width: 610px' class='cnet-image-div image-LARGE2 float-none'><img alt="" class="cnet-image" height="362" src="http://asset1.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/11/07/Panasonic_tablet_2_cropped_610x362.png" width="610"/> </div><br /><p>Panasonic's 20-inch 4K tablet, which was first showed off at CES, could be landing the US at the beginning of next year.</p><br /><p>Panasonic's Toughpad 4K UT-MB5 will go on sale in the US in January for a whopping $6,000, according to a report from Engadget. The Japanese company had already announced that the ultra HD slate would be available in Europe in November.</p><br /><p>The tablet has stunning 3,840x2,560-pixel resolution and, according to Panasonic, its IPS Alpha LCD panel accepts "10-point multi touch" and has "a unique natural handwriting pen option."</p><br /><p>The tablet runs on Windows 8.1 Pro and has an Intel Core i5 processor. It also comes with 8GB of RAM and has a 256GB solid state drive.</p><br /><div section='post.gallery' class='inline-slideshow'><br /><h4>Panasonic UT-MB5 is a monster of a 4K tablet (pictures)</h4><br /><div class='galleryCount'><span class='currentlyViewing'>1-2</span> of <span class='totalCount'>15</span> </div><br /><div class='scrollingArrows'><span class='arrowLeft'>Scroll Left</span> <span class='arrowRight'>Scroll Right</span> </div><br /><div class='galleryBody'><br /><ul class='slides'><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset0.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_104434_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset1.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_103151_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset0.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_103400_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset3.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_103047_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset3.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_103223_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset2.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_103347_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset0.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_102957_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset3.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_103443_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset1.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_104109_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset1.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_102914_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset0.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_102920_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset0.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_104328_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset3.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_104400_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset1.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_104332_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /><li><img height="157" src="http://asset1.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/09/06/20130906_104343_220x157.jpg" width="220"/> </li><br /></ul><br /></div><br /></div><br /></div>

tech Panasonic's massive 4K tablet said to arrive ... - CNET

Panasonic's 20-inch 4K tablet, which was first showed off at CES, could be landing the US at the beginning of next year.Panasonic's Toughpad 4K UT-MB5 will go on sale in the US in January for a whopping $6,000, according to a report from Engadget. T…

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Google's futuristic house showcases voice search app - Telegraph.co.uk

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div class='firstPar'><br /><p>Google has launched what it has described as its most-advanced voice search facility to date.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='secondPar'><br /><p>The new app is available on iOS from today, meaning most <strong>smartphone</strong> users in the UK will have access to it on their devices - with the exception of BlackBerry and some Windows phones.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='thirdPar'><br /><p>Google Voice Search aims to understand the context of requests, allowing follow-up questions to be asked on the same topic. This means someone asking about the current weather in Birmingham, for example, could then ask: "How do I get there?" - without reminding the device which city they are referring to.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='fourthPar'><br /><p>The answer will be given aloud on the smartphone if it is short and succinct.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='fifthPar'><br /><p>Google technology expert Michael Valvo said: "Whether you're plotting the easiest public transport route across London, trying to order a drink in Paris en Francais, or cheating at a pub quiz, Google is there to help you get the information you need, fast."</p><br /></div><br /><div class='body'><br /><p>Its other features include giving directions based on information from live traffic updates, and setting reminders based on a location, which could allow the user to be alerted to take the bins out when they get home, or to pick up a certain item when they get to their local supermarket.</p><br /><p>It will also allow smartphone users to ask <strong>Google</strong> to identify a song that is being played - and will then give the option of buying that song in the Google Play app.</p><br /><p>Google claim the new voice search is faster than its nearest rival, <strong>Apple's Siri facility</strong>, and also provides users with more detailed answers.</p><br /><p>Mr Valvo added: "This is Google's most advanced voice search ever, which is now available to the majority of smartphone users in the UK with the release day of the latest Google search app on iOS.</p><br /><p>"It has the ability to understand the context of a conversation and spoken directions that even take into account traffic conditions."</p><br /><p>The new features were showcased in central London in a specially-designed Google House, which demonstrated how the search could be used in different contexts, such as while in the kitchen or while planning a holiday.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='cl'> </div><br /></div>

tech Google's futuristic house showcases voice search app - Telegraph.co.uk

Google has launched what it has described as its most-advanced voice search facility to date.The new app is available on iOS from today, meaning most smartphone users in the UK will have access to it on their devices - with the exception of BlackBerr…

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Google's Barge: Interactive Space for Showcasing New Technologies - eWeek

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div readability='122.18068153959'><br /><p>Google, in a vague statement, says it is exploring using the barge as an interactive space to learn about new technology, but fails to acknowledge a second barge near Portland, Maine.</p><br />Google is still not saying much about a mysterious, four-story barge that it is developing in San Francisco Bay, but the company did release a very brief statement on Nov. 6 that unveiled a glimmer of information."Google Barge ... A floating data center? A wild party boat? A barge housing the last remaining dinosaur? Sadly, none of the above," according to a statement sent to <em>eWEEK</em> by a Google spokesperson in response to an email inquiry. "Although it's still early days and things may change, we're exploring using the barge as an interactive space where people can learn about new technology."Since late October, when the presence of two Google barges at opposite ends of the nation was first reported all over the Internet, the company has been very quiet about their intent. That, of course, inspired a flurry of attention and guesswork by pundits, news reporters and local officials about the barges. The barge Google is referring to in its statement is in San Francisco Bay, while a second barge in Maine's Portland Harbor apparently is not being discussed so far by Google.Heading the list of possible uses for the large floating platforms so far have been ideas such as floating, attention-gaining Google Glass stores or the locations for remote data centers that could be floated wherever they are needed. The floating Glass stores might be the best fit for some kind of "interactive space where people can learn about new technology," as described by Google. In San Francisco, KPIX TV 5 has been reporting that the four-story-tall collection of shipping containers is being created as a "floating marketing center, a kind of giant Apple store … for Google Glass," according to an Oct. 25 story. That report is in contrast to other theories about Google's plans, including that the barges are homes for data centers. KPIX reported that "Google hopes to tow the completed structure from [the former Navy base at] Treasure Island across the Bay to San Francisco's Fort Mason, where it would be anchored and open to the public."In the meantime, though, work has stopped on that plan because it turned out that Google didn't have a needed permit to build and float such a facility, according to the TV station. "Google has spent millions on this," a source close to the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission told KPIX. "But they can't park this barge on the waterfront without a permit, and they don't have one."So far, Google has been vague about the use of the vessel in its discussions with the Commission, KPIX reported. Google declined a request from <em>eWEEK</em> for further comment about the barges.The intrigue about the barges has inspired a parody page on Twitter, @GoogleBarge, which has been posting humorous speculative messages about the intent of the hush-hush barges. One message, posted Nov. 1, reads: "Keep calm and believe what your television says. I am nothing more than a party boat. Shall we play...?"In Portland, Maine, where the other Google barge is on the water in Portland Harbor, the Portland Press Herald reported on Oct. 26 that the two projects, on either side of the United States, are owned by the same company, By and Large LLC, based in Wilmington, Del., and appear to be linked. Experts contacted by the paper said they also buy into the data center theory. Google previously was granted a patent in 2009 for such structures, the paper reported.Google Glass, the company's vision for an eyewear-mounted computer, has been a topic of conversation among techies since news of it first arrived in 2012. The first early Google Glass units began shipping in April 2013 to developers who signed up at the June 2012 Google I/O conference to buy a set for $1,500 for testing and development. It was the hit of the conference, and Glass units for consumers are slated for release by the end of this year, according to an earlier Google report.</div><br /><p>${QSComments.incrementNestedCommentsCounter()} {{if QSComments.checkCommentsDepth()}} {{if _childComments}}</p><br /></div>

tech Google's Barge: Interactive Space for Showcasing New Technologies - eWeek

Google, in a vague statement, says it is exploring using the barge as an interactive space to learn about new technology, but fails to acknowledge a second barge near Portland, Maine.Google is still not saying much about a mysterious, four-story barg…

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Google Drive for iOS now supports multiple accounts, AirPrint and CloudPrint ... - Engadget

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p class='c1'><img alt="" data-credit="Google" data-mep="23296" src="http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/adam/4d1b5e6828c2c8d1e28145bd35a12867/Print_1.jpg"/> </p><br /><p>Not super thrilled with the prospect of using iCloud for your web storage needs? Google Drive presents an ever-improving alternative to Apple's in-house solution, and today's iOS app update brings a couple of new features into the fold. The app now supports multiple accounts, so you can access your personal, work, or alter ego GDrive files with ease. And, for those luddites who prefer holding an actual piece of paper instead of an iPad to do their document review, iOS users can now print as they please using either Apple's AirPrint or Google's CloudPrint protocol. Got it? Go get it.</p><br /></div>

tech Google Drive for iOS now supports multiple accounts, AirPrint and CloudPrint ... - Engadget

Not super thrilled with the prospect of using iCloud for your web storage needs? Google Drive presents an ever-improving alternative to Apple's in-house solution, and today's iOS app update brings a couple of new features into the fold. The app now …

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PS4 v Xbox One: Let the console wars begin - New Zealand Herald

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div readability='8' class='leadOut'><br /><p><b>The home gaming market is building towards its biggest battle yet. Chris Schulz asks around to find out where consumers should spend their gaming dollars.</b> </p><br /></div><br /><p>It seems like a simple equation. It's one or the other: either it's Xbox One or it's PlayStation 4.</p><br /><p>But it's not that simple - it's the biggest decision of gamers' lives and it has to be made within the next three weeks.</p><br /><p>That's because the gaming industry is gearing up towards the biggest flashpoint in its 20-year history, as Microsoft's Xbox One console is released in New Zealand on November 22, quickly followed by Sony's PlayStation 4 on November 29.</p><br /><p>It's the first time the home gaming console giants have gone head-to-head with their launch dates and technology commentator Peter Griffin says that direct competition makes it a great time to be a gamer.</p><br /><p>"There was quite a gap between the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 - people had either one and weren't able to invest in the other one," he says.</p><br /><p>"We've never seen the syncing up of their development schedules in this way. To be able to compare all the specs, the titles available and the backwards compatibility is a real advantage."</p><br /><p>Griffin owns both consoles but says he'll be investing in the PS4 first because of its ability to function as a home entertainment "hub" as well as a gaming machine.</p><br /><p>Prices, exclusive games and other options like iPhones and iPads will also come into consideration when consumers make their decision, he says.</p><br /><p>"On pure gaming, I think Xbox has the titles ... particularly first person shooters. Sony still has some major properties that will always do well ... and they've always been more innovative. It is a dilemma."</p><br /><p>Former <i>Herald</i> games editor Troy Rawhiti-Forbes agrees the consoles are neck-and-neck in terms of computing power, and says the decision may come down to which console - and which online subscription service - gamers have used in the past.</p><br /><p>"It's been a really hard decision to figure out where I put my launch-day dollar," he says.</p><br /><p>"It's partially a brand loyalty thing but values have really come to the fore this time, the way our privacy is taken care of and the way games look on high-end screens. A major consideration are the preferences for the online communities (Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network). It's very hard to move away from that community if you're invested and it works for you.</p><br /><p>"I'll end up with both, but you have to make a launch night decision ... it's the Xbox One by the stubbiest of noses."</p><br /><p>Dave Hine, PlayStation New Zealand's director of sales and marketing, believes the PS4 offers "incredible value for money" and points to its social networking capabilities, screen sharing abilities and an eclectic range of indie games as its biggest selling points.</p><br /><p>"We're offering the most powerful gaming console that has yet been developed, which will lead to richer and more immersive gaming than ever before," he says.</p><br /><p>"First and foremost, what gamers will appreciate is the price - $649 for a next-generation console, in comparison to when the PS3 launched [for $1200], is amazing for that technology."</p><br /><p>That's $100 less than what the Xbox One is retailing for - and that's enough of a sell for Xbox 360 diehard Ash Boyd, who's ready to make the switch to PlayStation 4.</p><br /><p>Boyd says his decision comes after Microsoft made a series of well-publicised blunders in the build-up to its launch day.</p><br /><p>"Xbox has lost its steam. The PlayStation 4 offers so much more in terms of money and visual quality. It gives me more bang for my buck."</p><br /><p>Boyd is particularly annoyed about Xbox's restrictions on backwards compatibility and game-swapping which it was forced to backtrack on after causing a fan outcry. "I felt it was bullying," he says.</p><br /><p>Xbox New Zealand head Steven Blackburn agrees the Xbox One has had an "interesting journey" but says console pre-sales are heading towards a bigger launch day than the Xbox 360.</p><br /><p>"It's a fantastic games machine. It's one of the best launch line-ups we've had for a day one console."</p><br /><p>He points to its upcoming range of titles - including first-person shooters like <i>Halo 5</i>, top-selling car racing franchise <i>Forza 5</i>, and exercise games like <i>Kinect Fitness</i> - as its biggest selling points.</p><br /><p>"The interesting challenge for us is how you have those conversations with multiple demographics who want different things from the same machine. When I look at it, the games line-up at launch and for the future, that's why I'd say Xbox is the number one choice."</p><br /><p>He would say that, but it's a view shared by <i>Herald</i> games contributor Siobhan Keogh, who says the consoles are "pretty even" at launch but believes the Xbox One's future holds more promises than the PS4.</p><br /><p>Delays to PlayStation 4 exclusive titles - like hyped racing game <i>Driveclub</i> - influenced her decision.</p><br /><p>"I'm probably going to buy an Xbox One before I buy a PS4 because the games just aren't there for me on the PS4. They're either indie games or stuff for kids which I'm not interested in. It's not about pricing. If there's nothing for me to play, I'm not going to buy it."</p><br /><p>Perhaps, as Griffin suggests, the best decision is to skip the midnight launches and wait a while.</p><br /><p>"Typically, what you'll see for console sales around Christmas is quite an attractive package. You might get the console plus three or four games and maybe they'll throw in an Xbox Live or PlayStation Plus subscription.</p><br /><p>"If you can hang on, there are always going to be more attractive deals in the New Year."</p><br /><p>HEAD TO HEAD</p><br /><p><strong>Playstation 4</strong><br/><br /><strong>Release date:</strong> November 29<br/><br /><strong>New Zealand price:</strong> $649.99<br/><br /><strong>Comes with:</strong> PS4 console, Dualshock controller, 500gb hard drive, headset, The PlayRoom (an interactive toybox)<br/><br /><strong>Exclusive games:</strong> <i>Knack</i>, <i>Killzone: Shadow Fall</i>, <i>Driveclub</i>, <i>Infamous: Second Son</i>, <i>Order 1866</i>.</p><br /><p><strong>XBox One</strong><br/><br /><strong>Release date:</strong> November 22<br/><br /><strong>New Zealand price:</strong> $749<br/><br /><strong>Comes with:</strong> The Day One edition includes the Xbox One console, Kinect sensor, Commemorative controller, <i>Fifa 14</i>.<br/><br /><strong>Exclusive games:</strong> <i>Halo 5</i>, <i>Dead Rising 3</i>, <i>Forza Motorsport 5</i>, <i>Ryse</i>, <i>Titanfall</i>.</p><br /><p><b>WIN: Thanks to Sony, PlayStation and <i>TimeOut</i> you could be the first in New Zealand to own a PlayStation 4! Click here for details and how to enter.</b> </p><br /><p><strong><i>Follow @nzherald_ent on Twitter for all the latest entertainment news.</i> </strong> </p><br /><p>- TimeOut</p><br /><span class='credits'>By Chris Schulz @chris__schulz <span class='hiddenTitle'>Email</span> Chris</span></div>

tech PS4 v Xbox One: Let the console wars begin - New Zealand Herald

The home gaming market is building towards its biggest battle yet. Chris Schulz asks around to find out where consumers should spend their gaming dollars. It seems like a simple equation. It's one or the other: either it's Xbox One or it's PlayStatio…

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Google Voice now supports MMS forwarding from T-Mobile customers - Mobile Burn

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><table readability='2' width='100%'><br /><tr readability='4'><br /><td width='100%'><span>Sponsored links, if any, appear in green.</span> </td><br /><td> </td><br /></tr><br /></table><br /><p>Google Voice still doesn't support MMS natively, so the photos sent by friends and family of an infant relative or an item that they want to show before purchasing cannot be seen. Google today announced a workaround that makes it possible when messages are sent from T-Mobile customers.</p><br /><p>Though the Google Voice app cannot display MMS, it can forward the photo to a Gmail account and then notify the user that the message can be viewed there. Sprint introduced similar functionality in 2010, and T-Mobile customers now have the same opportunity. To be clear, you do not need to be a T-Mobile customer to receive MMS forwarding with Google Voice. Anyone can access that feature; the only way for MMS to forward to Gmail properly is for the sender to be a T-Mobile or Sprint customer.</p><br /><p>Google's Alex Wiesen states that the company hopes to standardize MMS by adding support through Hangouts, but this will be the way that it works in the meantime.</p><br />source: Google+ (Alex Wiesen), via: Phandroid</div>

tech Google Voice now supports MMS forwarding from T-Mobile customers - Mobile Burn

Sponsored links, if any, appear in green. Google Voice still doesn't support MMS natively, so the photos sent by friends and family of an infant relative or an item that they want to show before purchasing cannot be seen. Google today announced a wo…

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Microsoft CEO Candidate Elop Said to Mull Windows Shift - Bloomberg

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p>Stephen Elop, a candidate to replace Steve Ballmer as Microsoft Corp.’s chief executive officer, would consider breaking with decades of tradition by focusing the company’s strategy around making the popular Office software programs like Word, Excel and PowerPoint available on a broad variety of smartphones and tablets, including those made by Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Google Inc., said three people with knowledge of his thinking.</p><br /><p>Elop would probably move away from Microsoft’s strategy of using these programs to drive demand for its flagship Windows operating system on personal computers and mobile devices, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the 49-year-old executive hasn’t finalized or publicly discussed his analysis of the business. Most of Microsoft’s software has been tied to running on Windows.</p><br /><p>Microsoft became the world’s largest software provider under Ballmer and co-founder Bill Gates by making Windows-based PCs running Office applications an industry standard. When the Redmond, Washington-based company failed to come up with hit Windows-based phones and tablets, that left it with little role in the mobile market. Its refusal to adapt Office for Apple and devices based on Google’s Android operating system hasn’t helped its software usage.</p><br /><p>As he formulates some broad strategic outlines for Microsoft, Elop is drawing on his years as CEO of Nokia Oyj (NOK1V), where he showed he wasn’t wedded to homegrown software by canceling the company’s then-dominant Symbian phone software in 2010, said the people. He is also leaning on his previous experience as a Microsoft executive, where as head of the Office division he pushed the company to enhance and find new ways to sell the software, said the people.</p><br /><h2>CEO Search</h2><br /><p>Microsoft, which is shifting from software to focus on hardware and services, is searching for a new CEO after Ballmer said in August that he would retire within a year. Elop and Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally are among the external candidates in the interview process, as are three insiders -- strategy chief Tony Bates, enterprise software chief Satya Nadella and chief operating officer Kevin Turner -- people with knowledge of the process have said.</p><br /><p>Doug Dawson, a spokesman for Nokia, declined to comment or to grant an interview with Elop. Frank Shaw, a spokesman for Microsoft, didn’t immediately have a comment.</p><br /><h2>Joining Microsoft</h2><br /><p>Elop is set to join Microsoft after agreeing to sell Nokia’s handset business to the software maker for $7.2 billion in September. He resigned as Nokia’s CEO when the sale was announced, and said he would become head of a new Microsoft devices unit responsible for hardware such as the Surface tablet and Xbox game console.</p><br /><p>Elop’s assumption is that Microsoft could create more value by maximizing sales of Office rather than by using it to prop up sales of Windows-based devices, said two of the people with knowledge of his thinking. Market-research firm Gartner Inc. projects PC shipments will fall 11 percent this year.</p><br /><p>Microsoft (MSFT)’s Windows division reported that revenue rose 4.6 percent to $19.2 billion in the latest fiscal year, which ended June 30. The unit that includes Office and other corporate software products saw sales rise 2.5 percent to $24.7 billion. Microsoft scrapped that reporting structure for the current fiscal year and now reports earnings based on devices and software for consumers as well as enterprises.</p><br /><h2>More Focus</h2><br /><p>Besides emphasizing Office, Elop would be prepared to sell or shut down major businesses to sharpen the company’s focus, the people said. He would consider ending Microsoft’s costly effort to take on Google with its Bing search engine, and would also consider selling healthy businesses such as the Xbox game console if he determined they weren’t critical to the company’s strategy, the people said.</p><br /><p>Earlier this week, investors drove Microsoft shares to their highest price since mid-2000, after Nomura Holdings Inc. analyst Rick Sherlund said the sale of Bing and Xbox, along with other moves, could lift fiscal 2015 earnings by 40 percent.</p><br /><p>“Microsoft is trying to do too much, and these assets add no clear value to the overall business,” wrote Sherlund, who added that he thought Mulally was most likely to get the nod to replace Ballmer.</p><br /><p>During his earlier tenure as a senior Microsoft executive, Elop cut a deal to offer Office on Nokia’s Symbian phone software. In 2010, Microsoft added free, scaled-down versions of programs such as Word and PowerPoint that anyone could access via the Web -- a controversial move given that Office is Microsoft’s largest and among its most profitable business.</p><br /><p>He also oversaw the development of Office 365, a hosted version of the suite for customers who prefer to pay an annual subscription for Web access rather than buying the software outright.</p><br /><h2>Nokia Pointers</h2><br /><p>At Nokia, Elop cut 40,000 jobs and reduced operating expenses by 50 percent. While Microsoft doesn’t face the same cost constraints, Elop would probably impose job cuts and belt-tightening to create smaller teams, said the people.</p><br /><p>Elop’s Nokia efforts also point to his focus on what a customer can do with a product rather than on its underlying operating system, said the people with knowledge of Elop’s thinking. In 2011, Elop discontinued Symbian, which was pervasive, yet was fast losing share to Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. Instead, he forged a partnership with Microsoft to develop phones based on Windows Phone software as he said it offered the best chance for Nokia to make unique devices.</p><br /><p>Another clue to Elop’s thinking comes from his handling of Nokia’s mapping and location-tracking software, which is considered a valuable asset, said the people. Rather than use the software to differentiate Nokia’s phones with features such as reliable turn-by-turn driving instructions, he made it into a standalone software business called Here. The product now powers the location services in some Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) devices.</p><br /><p>To contact the reporters on this story: Peter Burrows in San Francisco at pburrows@bloomberg.net; Dina Bass in Seattle at dbass2@bloomberg.net</p><br /><p>To contact the editor responsible for this story: Pui-Wing Tam at ptam13@bloomberg.net</p><br /><div readability='37' class='story_inline assets clearfix story_inline attachments image thumbnail item_container video decoratable'><br /><div class='thumbnail_container'><img alt="Buffett: Zero Chance of Gates Back as Microsoft CEO" class="small_img img_keep_size" src="http://www.bloomberg.com/image/iAP9nf9VE9tE.jpg"/><br /><p><span class='duration'>0:34</span> </p><br /></div><br /><p class='caption'>Oct. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Warren Buffett, the billionaire chairman and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., says Bill Gates's focus on philanthropy means there is "zero" chance the Microsoft Corp. co-founder will return to the company as CEO. Buffett speaks with Betty Liu on Bloomberg Television's In the Loop." (This is an excerpt from the interview. Source: Bloomberg)</p><br /></div><br /></div>

tech Microsoft CEO Candidate Elop Said to Mull Windows Shift - Bloomberg

Stephen Elop, a candidate to replace Steve Ballmer as Microsoft Corp.’s chief executive officer, would consider breaking with decades of tradition by focusing the company’s strategy around making the popular Office software programs like Word, Excel …

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New Nokia Lumia 1520 device available at Microsoft retail stores - Wall Street Journal

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div readability='117'><br /><pre><br />Preorder available today for new Nokia Lumia 1520. <br /> <br /></pre><br /><p>REDMOND, Wash., Nov. 8, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Preorders for the new Nokia Lumia 1520 will be offered at all Microsoft retail store locations, as well as through http://www.MicrosoftStore.com, the company announced today. The Lumia 1520 is available for preorder immediately, and will hit store shelves and the online store Nov. 22. Customers who preorder a Nokia Lumia 1520 before Nov. 22, 2013 at Microsoft retail store locations, as well as through http://www.MicrosoftStore.com, will receive a $50 Microsoft Store app card, a free flip cover valued at $39.99, in addition to the $20 app card provided by Nokia, and a free download of "Halo: Spartan Assault" for Windows Phone. Customers who purchase the Lumia 1520 at Microsoft retail store locations, as well as through http://www.MicrosoftStore.com on or after Nov. 22 will receive a $50 Microsoft Store app card, in addition to the $20 app card provided by Nokia and a free download of "Halo: Spartan Assault" for Windows Phone.*</p><br /><p>(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)</p><br /><p>"Our stores celebrate personal choice, so we're happy to offer our customers the ability to purchase the exciting new Nokia Lumia 1520 device through Microsoft retail stores," said Kelly Soligon, senior director, Marketing and Experiences for Microsoft retail stores. "Microsoft retail store customers not only get access to this great new Windows Phone from Nokia, but they can also have a chance to customize it from top to bottom and receive a complimentary, personalized setup session with a Microsoft retail store associate."</p><br /><p>Launched in October at the Nokia World event in Abu Dhabi, the Nokia Lumia 1520 is a 6-inch, full-HD smartphone with a quad-core processor and a 20-megapixel PureView camera sensor. Powered by the latest version of Windows Phone 8, the Lumia 1520 comes with Live Tiles, which let you pin your favorite people, apps and more to your Start Screen for updates you care about and a phone that is uniquely yours. Windows Phone 8 also offers more than 175,000 apps and games with new titles like Instagram, Vine and Mint coming soon. More information on the Nokia Lumia 1520 device is available on the Windows Phone Blog.</p><br /><p>The Nokia Lumia 1520 will be available for $199 for new AT&T customers or existing customers eligible for an upgrade with a two-year agreement. The Lumia 1520 will initially be available in black, red and white, with yellow to become available later this year.</p><br /><p>The Microsoft retail store offers a range of best-in-class choices to fit anyone's needs and budgets, with a mission to help customers get the most choice, value and service with their technology investments. The stores offer a curated assortment of selected products, including Windows 8.1 PCs, tablets, Windows Phones, Kinect for Xbox 360, Microsoft Office 365 and more.</p><br /><p>Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.</p><br /><p>* Offers are not valid on prior orders or purchases; cannot be combined with other offers, transferred, or otherwise redeemed for cash or gift cards. Taxes may apply. Microsoft reserves the right to cancel, change or suspend offers at any time without notice. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Microsoft Store $50 App Card and Flip Cover: Available in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Flip cover available Nov. 8--21 or while supplies last; limited quantities and colors available. App Card available until Dec. 21. A $25 preorder deposit required. Customer will pay remaining balance for phone at redemption. App Card and flip cover will be received at time of redemption. Pre-order must be redeemed prior to Dec. 21, 2013. Limit five per customer. Halo Download: Offer good only in the U.S. from Nov. 22, 2013 through Jan. 9, 2014, to AT&T customers who have purchased a Lumia 1520. Limit one free download per phone. Download must be completed on or before Jan. 9, 2014. "Halo: Spartan Assault" requires users to sign into Xbox with a Microsoft account to play.</p><br /><p>SOURCE Microsoft</p><br /><p>/CONTACT: Rapid Response Team, Waggener Edstrom Worldwide, (503) 443-7070, rrt@waggeneredstrom.com</p><br /></div><br /><p>The Wall Street Journal news department was not involved in the creation of this content.</p><br /></div>

tech New Nokia Lumia 1520 device available at Microsoft retail stores - Wall Street Journal

Preorder available today for new Nokia Lumia 1520. REDMOND, Wash., Nov. 8, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Preorders for the new Nokia Lumia 1520 will be offered at all Microsoft retail store locations, as well as through http://www.MicrosoftStore.com, the com…

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Microsoft culls list of CEO candidates - Computerworld

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><h2>Reuters reports that the list includes more outsiders than insiders</h2><br /><div style='padding:15px 0px 10px 10px; float:right; clear:right;'><br /><div class='padtop10'> </div><br /></div><br /><p><b>November 6, 2013</b> (Computerworld)</p><br /><p id='first_paragraph'>Microsoft has shortened its list of CEO candidates to a minimum of eight, including five outsiders and three current executives, according to the Reuters news service.</p><br /><p>The four names revealed by sources to Reuters, however, have all been previously mentioned as among the possible replacements for outgoing chief executive Steve Ballmer, who in late August abruptly announced his impending retirement.</p><br /><p>Among the outsiders that have made the short list, said the news service, are Ford Motor CEO Alan Mulally and former Nokia chief Stephen Elop, who stepped down from the Finnish company's top spot when Microsoft announced its intent to acquire the firm's handset business and license its patents for $7.2 billion.</p><br /><p>Elop continues to work at Nokia as the head of its devices division, but will rejoin Microsoft in early 2014, assuming government regulators clear the purchase.</p><br /><p>Insiders Tony Bates, who leads Microsoft's business development and evangelism, and Satya Nadella, the head of the Cloud and Enterprise group, were those named of the "at least three" in-house candidates to make the cut.</p><br /><p>At one time or another, all four men have been floated as Ballmer's successor, with Mulally and Elop touted as leading candidates.</p><br /><p>None of those named by Reuters were dark horses, in that they all have connections to Microsoft, have worked there or currently serve as executives. Mulally, for example, advised Ballmer on the latter's corporate reorganization plans, which Microsoft unveiled in July.</p><br /><p>The Reuters story was one of the first in several weeks that has leaked details of discussions of the Microsoft board of directors, which will select the new CEO. The most recent before yesterday was a piece by Bloomberg nearly a month ago that claimed the board wanted to wrap up its search before the end of the year.</p><br /><p>Microsoft is not working under a tight deadline -- in August the company said Ballmer would remain as CEO for as long as 12 months -- but financial analysts have urged the Redmond, Wash. technology giant to act quickly to shorten the period of uncertainty about the new leader's direction.</p><br /><p>One possible time pressure point comes from Microsoft's decision to add a new board member in January under an agreement with ValueAct Capital, an activist shareholder that had been pressing for changes. In return for the board seat and other considerations, ValueAct has made several promises, including not to conduct a proxy fight and not to "disparage the Company ... or any of its current or former officers or directors."</p><br /><p>The addition of an outsider to the board could complicate matters if, as some believe, Ballmer and co-founder and current chairman Bill Gates push for someone who will continue the strategic pivot to a devices-and-services strategy, which has detractors.</p><br /><p>Industry analysts have urged Microsoft to choose someone not connected to the company, in large part because they believe only an outsider can sufficiently shake up the firm.</p><br /><p>According to Reuters, although the board has narrowed the go-to list, it may be several more months before it appoints a new CEO.</p><br /><p>Microsoft remains extremely profitable, with revenue in the quarter ending Sept. 30 of $18.5 billion, up 16% from the same period in 2012. Net income of $5.2 billion was up about 17%.</p><br /><p><i><b>Gregg Keizer</b> covers Microsoft, security issues, Apple, Web browsers and general technology breaking news for</i> Computerworld<i>. Follow Gregg on Twitter at @gkeizer, or subscribe to Gregg's RSS feed . His email address is gkeizer@computerworld.com.</i> </p><br /></div>

tech Microsoft culls list of CEO candidates - Computerworld

Reuters reports that the list includes more outsiders than insiders November 6, 2013 (Computerworld)Microsoft has shortened its list of CEO candidates to a minimum of eight, including five outsiders and three current executives, according to the Reut…

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Exclusive: The American Who Designed the PlayStation 4 and Remade Sony - Wired

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div id='container'><br /><div class='row padding-top-extra padding-bottom'><br /><p><img src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2013/11/20131029-MARK-CERNY-0125_edit.jpg"/> </p><br /><p class='caption'>Mark Cerny, the lead systems architect of the PlayStation 4 | <img class="photo-icon" src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2013/11/photo_icon4.jpg"/> </p><br /><noscript><br /><p><img class="photo-icon" src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2013/11/photo_icon4.jpg"/> </p><br /></noscript> Ariel Zambelich</div><br /><div class='row'><br /><p>TOKYO — Shuhei Yoshida still remembers the call that convinced him Sony needed to change.</p><br /><p>It was the late spring of 2006, and Yoshida was rushing to make his deadlines for the unveiling of Sony’s next big bet on the future of home video games, the PlayStation 3. He had worked on various PlayStations for more than a decade and was now one of the execs in charge of developing games for the new console. He was a software guy. But the call came from someone on the company’s hardware team, someone who helped build the PS3 itself.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='row'><br /><div class='col-5'><br /><p class='small-quotes padding-small'>Read More About the Playstation 4:</p><br /><p class='smaller-quotes padding-small'>See What’s Inside the PlayStation 4 With These Exclusive Photos.</p><br /><p class='smaller-quotes padding-small'>Why Gamers (And Developers) Will Love the PlayStation 4 .</p><br /><p class='smaller-quotes padding-small'>Watch Our Exclusive Teardown of the PlayStation 4.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='col-7'><br /><p>When Yoshida picked up the phone, the caller told him that the console’s game controller, the DualShock 3, would include a motion sensor. That was news to Yoshida. And then the voice on the other end of the line told him to prepare a motion-sensing game for the unveiling, which would happen on stage at the annual E3 game and entertainment conference in Los Angeles.</p><br /><p>“This was two or three weeks before the show,” remembers Yoshida, sitting inside his office at Sony’s Tokyo headquarters, a wall of PlayStation games stacked behind him. “I said: ‘What?!!’”</p><br /></div><br /></div><br /><div class='row'><br /><p>Yoshida and his team did produce a game for the keynote, frantically rejiggering a flight combat title they were developing called <em>Warhawk</em>. But, not too surprisingly, the demo was a complete mess — and a sign of things to come. The PS3 launched with only 12 game titles, and most didn’t take full advantage of its Cell microprocessor, a complicated if high-powered component that, much like the controller, was designed without much input from anyone outside a small team of hardware engineers.</p><br /><p>In the months to come, other developers were slow to embrace the PS3 as well, and this problem, coupled with the PS3′s hefty $600 price tag, made for a rocky start for the new machine. When the PS3 launched, according to most estimates, Sony controlled about 70 percent of the console market. Seven years later, it’s on even terms with Microsoft, whose Xbox 360 outsold the PS3 in the U.S. for 32 consecutive months.</p><br /><p>But the PlayStation 4 is different.</p><br /><p>With Yoshida giving his stamp of approval, Sony went so far as to hire a game maker — a software guy — to oversee the hardware design of its fourth generation console, due to reach stores in the US and Canada on November 15. The new PlayStation boss, Mark Cerny, is one of the world’s most storied game designers. In other words, he’s as software as you can get. In the early ’80s, at the age of 17, he went to work for Atari Games, making his name with the arcade classic <em>Marble Madness</em>, and he later made big waves in the console universe overseeing the development of PlayStation games such as <em>Crash Bandicoot</em> and <em>Spyro the Dragon</em>.</p><br /></div><br /><div class='row padding-top padding-bottom no-margin'><br /><p><img src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2013/11/20131017-JAPAN-0362_edit.jpg"/> </p><br /><p class='caption'>Sony senior vice president Masayasu Ito places the PS4 on a stand for a portrait with other members of the PS4 engineering team | <img class="photo-icon" src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2013/11/photo_icon4.jpg"/> </p><br /><noscript><br /><p><img class="photo-icon" src="http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2013/11/photo_icon4.jpg"/> </p><br /></noscript> Ariel Zambelich</div><br /><div class='row'><br /><p>He is, to say the least, an unconventional choice for the role. Cerny himself calls the arrangement “beyond unusual” and “crazy.” It’s not just that he’s a software guy running a hardware project. He’s an American who makes his home in Los Angeles, 5,500 miles from Sony’s Tokyo headquarters and the all-Japanese engineering team charged with putting the new console together. But Sony needed someone who could serve as a voice for the game makers and game players of the world. It needed someone who could bring a more egalitarian ethos to the development of the new PlayStation. It needed someone who could right the wrongs of the PS3. And Cerny offered all those things.</p><br /><p>“When PlayStation 3 wrapped, we all started to do post-mortems. It was pretty brutal, frankly,” Cerny remembers, saying it was “very, very difficult” for software designers to build games for the console. “I just couldn’t stop thinking that maybe there was a different path. Maybe there was a hardware that could be made where it would be natural to make the games.”</p><br /><p>In fashioning the PS4, he and his team pulled in opinions from across the world, tapping the expertise of the 16 game design studios owned by Sony and another 16 outside the company — something that would have never would have happened under the old PlayStation regime.¹ The result is a much cheaper console that makes life as easy as possible for game makers. Its retail price is just under $400 — $100 less than the new Xbox One — and thanks to its relatively simple design, the console is launching alongside a slate of 22 new game titles, including a PS4 exclusive called <em>Knack</em>, directed by Cerny himself. Another eight to 10 titles are set to arrive before the end of the year.</p><br /><p>Cerny’s new role is just one indication that this is a new Sony, a Sony intent on opening up its development process and building its game gear in a way that better anticipates what the gaming world wants. It’s a change driven by necessity. Since the launch of the PS3 seven years ago, the gaming world has become a very different place. Consoles now have to compete with all sorts of other game platforms, including personal computers, smartphones, and tablets — not to mention the web. To be sure, Sony has to keep pace with its hardware, but all the high-fidelity graphical capability in the world won’t help if they can’t offer gamers <em>games</em>.</p><br /><p>“Game partners are going to be as crucial as any of the particulars of the hardware,” says Scott Steinberg, a game industry consultant and pundit. “Cerny’s roots go back 30 or 40 years, and he understands what’s going on here. This isn’t just a technical play.”</p><br /><p class='no-margin padding-top medium wired-black brandon'>Our Man In Tokyo</p><br /><p class='no-margin'>Mark Cerny first walked into Sony’s Tokyo headquarters in 1993. He grew up in Berkeley, California, not far from Silicon Valley, but in the late ’80s, after leaving Atari, he spent three and half years living in Japan, working at Sega on games such as <em>Missile Defense 3-D</em> and <em>Shooting Gallery</em>. During the time, he learned to speak, write, and read the language, and at a friend’s wedding, he even met the Japanese woman he would ultimately marry. By 1993, he had moved back to Northern California and joined another game outfit, Crystal Dynamics. But thanks to his Japanese connections, when he caught wind of the first PlayStation, then under development, he landed a meeting with Sony.</p><br /><p>At the time, Sony was offering PlayStation software development kits — a set of tools for building new games — to a few select designers, but only in Japan. But Cerny talked his way into a kit for Crystal Dynamics, in part because he could read and sign the Japanese contract. The Sony exec who handed him the contract, after meeting him for the first time that day, was Shu Yoshida. “Crystal Dynamics became the first non-Japanese development group to work on the PlayStation,” Yoshida says. It was the beginning of a long relationship between Cerny and the Japanese electronics giant. He went on to build games not only for the original PlayStation but also its successor, the PlayStation 2. On the PlayStation 3, he was “embedded” with the hardware team as it build the console, to get a feel for the new hardware — though he didn’t have a say in particulars of the design.</p><br /><div class='row padding-top padding-bottom no-margin'><iframe allowtransparency='true' mozallowfullscreen='' webkitallowfullscreen='' allowfullscreen='' frameborder='0' src='http://player.cnevids.com/embed/52783cea4ffb609de6000002/5176e86968f9da6db1000025' height='440' width='650'>[embedded content]</iframe> </div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><div class='contextly-widget' id='linker_widget'> </div><br /><p><strong>Pages:</strong> 1 2 3 View All</p><br /></div>

tech Exclusive: The American Who Designed the PlayStation 4 and Remade Sony - Wired

Mark Cerny, the lead systems architect of the PlayStation 4 | Ariel ZambelichTOKYO — Shuhei Yoshida still remembers the call that convinced him Sony needed to change.It was the late spring of 2006, and Yoshida was rushing to make his deadlines fo…

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Microsoft's CEO short list falls short - CNET

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p>Microsoft has reportedly narrowed its CEO short list to about five people and all of them are far from perfect. It's unclear how they'll navigate the company.</p><br /><p>According to Reuters, Microsoft has the following candidates in mind to replace CEO Steve Ballmer. This list isn't much different from what Mary Jo Foley reported weeks ago. What this list shows -- if anything -- is that Microsoft isn't exactly thinking outside the box for leadership. Here's the short version:</p><br /><div style='width: 200px' class='cnet-image-div image-REGULAR float-right'><img alt="" class="cnet-image" height="246" src="http://asset2.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/11/06/mulally-200x246.png" width="200"/><br /><p class='image-caption'>Alan Mulally</p><br /></div><br /><b>Ford Motor CEO Alan Mulally</b>. Mulally is by far the most seasoned executive in the running. If Mulally took over at Microsoft he can say he ran three American icon companies: Boeing, Ford, and Microsoft. That's quite a feat. But Mulally has a few trouble spots. First, he's not from the software industry. On one hand, that reality means he brings in fresh eyes. The downside is there might be a long learning curve. Mulally does know culture and large companies fairly well.<br /><p>Age could be another issue for Mulally, but that worry would be offset by experience for many. Mulally is a generation behind Chairman Bill Gates and Ballmer. He has reached the age in which the US federal government considers appropriate to receive retirement benefits and is three years past the mandatory retirement age of tech peer Intel.</p><br /><p>Perhaps the biggest issue is that Mulally, a friend of Ballmer's, may be locked into a device strategy many analysts and investors question. Would Mulally break up Microsoft if it made sense?</p><br /><p><b>Former Nokia CEO Stephen Elop.</b> If Elop was named Microsoft CEO, it would likely be viewed as a major disappointment. Maybe Elop wouldn't deserve that reaction, but perception is reality. Elop didn't save Nokia by any stretch. Elop, an alum of the software giant, represents more of the same for Microsoft and wouldn't be considered much of a visionary.</p><br /><p><b>Skype CEO Tony Bates.</b> Bates would be an interesting choice. With his Skype experience, Bates at least represents a more futuristic view of Microsoft. One issue is that Microsoft is a massive company and resembles a conglomerate in many respects. Could Bates manage something as large and complicated as Microsoft? Perhaps. Bates was head of Cisco's enterprise unit before joining Skype. I'd rate Bates as the best consensus pick for the Microsoft CEO gig.</p><br /><p><b>Satya Nadella, Microsoft's cloud and enterprise chief.</b> Nadella would be an interesting pick because his unit represents the future of Microsoft. Like Bates, it's unclear whether Nadella could manage the sprawling software giant. Nadella could bring a new vision to Microsoft and may not be locked into a device strategy. And because Nadella sits in the enterprise unit, he would know how it feels to be Microsoft's cash cow and used to fund projects formed due to Google and Apple envy. Nadella could be persuaded that a breakup makes sense.</p><br /><p><b>CSC CEO Mike Lawrie.</b> Lawrie is a turnaround artist, but he doesn't fit the bill with Microsoft. Simply put, Microsoft isn't flawed enough for a turnaround person. Microsoft is far from a wreck, and a turnaround artist would probably be frustrated. The risk of blowing up the company to try something new is too great. After all, Microsoft rakes in a lot of dough.</p><br /><p>In the end, Microsoft's short list is a bit flawed, but frankly it may not matter. If any new CEO is locked into Ballmer's device strategy and hamstrung by Gates when it comes to being a visionary, the chances for success from big bets is slim anyway.</p><br /><p><i>This story originally appeared as "Microsoft's CEO short list: So flawed" on ZDNet.</i> </p><br /></div>

tech Microsoft's CEO short list falls short - CNET

Microsoft has reportedly narrowed its CEO short list to about five people and all of them are far from perfect. It's unclear how they'll navigate the company.According to Reuters, Microsoft has the following candidates in mind to replace CEO Steve Ba…

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Google Doodle serves up an ink blot test - USA TODAY

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tech Google Doodle serves up an ink blot test - USA TODAY

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Google barge mystery unfurled - San Francisco Chronicle

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p>The barge portion of the Google barge mystery is only half the story - when completed, the full package is envisioned to be an "unprecedented artistic structure," sporting a dozen or so gigantic sails, to be moored for a month at a time at sites around the bay.</p><br /><p>Documents submitted to the Port of San Francisco show that the barge's creators have big plans for the bulky box now docked at Treasure Island.</p><br /><p>When it's done, the barge's backers say, the 50-foot-tall, 250-foot-long structure made of recycled shipping containers will be flanked by sails "reminiscent of fish fins, which will remind visitors that they are on a seaworthy vessel."</p><br /><p>"The structure will stand out," the team says, in what is probably an understatement.</p><br /><p>By and Large LLC, which submitted the barge documents, refers to the vessel as a "studio" and "temporary technology exhibit space." It says its goal is to "drive visitation to the waterfront."</p><br /><p>The barge's exhibit space, it says, will be for "local organizations to engage with guests and gain visibility in a unique way."</p><br /><p>"We envisioned this space with community in mind," By and Large says, "a surprising environment that is accessible to all and inspires conversation about how everything is connected - shorebirds, me, you, the sea, the fog and much more."</p><br /><p>Exactly who is By and Large? That's a little unclear, but it's reported to be firmly connected to Google. Some have noted that it looks like a play on the word "barge."</p><br /><p>Google has been largely closemouthed about its waterborne behemoth. After rumors circulated that it was going to be a showroom, a floating data center that could be used in the event of a natural disaster, or perhaps a big party boat, the company issued a statement Wednesday calling it an "interactive space where people can learn about new technology."</p><br /><p>Asked to comment Thursday on the planning documents, which we obtained from the port under the Freedom of Information Act, Google officials sent us the same brief statement they issued a day before.</p><br /><p>Whatever it is, the barge's backers expect it to draw 1,000 visitors a day as it sails from spot to spot around San Francisco Bay. Among the envisioned mooring sites are Piers 30-32 and other San Francisco docks, Fort Mason, Angel Island, Redwood City and Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond.</p><br /><p>The idea is to stay at each spot for a month. Eventually, the barge would sail off to San Diego and other West Coast ports.</p><br /><p>San Francisco Port spokeswoman <strong>Renee Dunn Martin</strong> said the pitch, which By and Large submitted in September, was "part of a preliminary proposal. They haven't come back to us with anything concrete."</p><br /><p>Talks appear to have stalled over the glacial permit-approval process before the Bay Conservation and Development Commission.</p><br /><p>As for the sails - By and Large says that in addition to reminding people they're on a boat, they would "provide shade and shelter to guests." They would be lowered in bad weather. One artist's rendering submitted to the port appears to show the sails lit up at night.</p><br /><p>"We believe this curious and visually stunning structure will be a welcome addition to the waterfront, an experience unlike any other," the proposal says.</p><br /><p>The design was drawn up by a pair of internationally known architectural firms: the San Francisco outfit Gensler, whose projects include Terminal 2 at San Francisco International Airport, and LOT-EK of New York.</p><br /><p>And don't even think about taking any souvenirs off the barge. It would be equipped with 50-plus security cameras.</p><br /><p>"The artistic structure combines innovative architecture with a bit of nautical whimsy," the proposal says, "creating a surprising environment that inspires conversation, community and 'a-ha' moments."</p><br /><p>From the looks of things, it certainly will.</p><br /><p class='dtlcomment'>San Francisco Chronicle columnists Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross appear Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Matier can be seen on the KPIX-TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or e-mail matierandross@sfchronicle.com.</p><br /></div>

tech Google barge mystery unfurled - San Francisco Chronicle

The barge portion of the Google barge mystery is only half the story - when completed, the full package is envisioned to be an "unprecedented artistic structure," sporting a dozen or so gigantic sails, to be moored for a month at a time at sites arou…

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Blue eyes, blonde hair, short sexy skirt. Yup, it's INTERNET EXPLORER'S official ... - Register

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p class='wptl top'>Disaster recovery protection level self-assessment</p><br /><p><strong class='trailer'>Video</strong> Microsoft has come up with a new way to market Internet Explorer to Asian customers, and it's a major departure from the kinds of ad campaigns we're used to seeing from Redmond here in the West.</p><br /><div class='CaptionedImage Center'><img alt="Inori Aizawa, the 'personification of IE'" height="212" src="http://regmedia.co.uk/2013/11/08/inori_1.jpg" title="Inori Aizawa, the 'personification of IE'" width="535"/><br /><p>Here she is, Miss Internet Explorer</p><br /></div><br /><div class='article_side_content not_moved adu'><noscript><br /><p><img alt="" src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/6978/reg_bootnotes/front&sz=300x250|300x600&tile=3&c=33UnyZRKwQrMsAAFUi77kAAANI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26unitname%3Dwww_top_mpu%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0"/> </p><br /></noscript> </div><br /><p>Meet Inori Aizawa, Microsoft's latest spokeswoman. Or spokesgirl? Or spokes ... cartoon? Then again, maybe even "spokes" is the wrong word, because Inori doesn't always say all that much.</p><br /><p>Inori is an anime character, created by animation studio CACANi on behalf of Microsoft Singapore for a special video that will screen at this year's Anime Festival Asia in Singapore this weekend.</p><br /><p>Inori's design is typical of many young female anime icons. She has big blue eyes, lots of curly hair, and she wears a suspiciously short blue dress. But the main difference between Inori and all of the other Sailor-Moon-alikes is that Inori's outfit includes conspicuously placed Microsoft and Internet Explorer logos, because Inori is, we are told, "an anime personification for Internet Explorer."</p><br /><p>That persona is more than skin-deep, too. Here's an early post from Inori's Facebook page – yes, she has a Facebook page – by way of introduction:</p><br /><blockquote><br /><p>When I was younger, I used to be a clumsy, slow and awkward girl.</p><br /><p>However, just like the story of ugly duckling, people told me that I have really matured and changed over the years. I feel confident in my abilities now, and I'm eager to show you what I can do.</p><br /><p>Why don't you get to know me a little better?</p><br /></blockquote><br /><p>Sound like any web browser you know?</p><br /><p>Most of what Inori does, however, seems to involve less HTML rendering and more jumping around and shooting lasers from her hands.</p><br /><p>In her wordless debut teaser video that was released to the web on Thursday, a cloaked Inori is seen running through a decrepit cityscape while being chased by malevolent robots. Just when we think they've gotten the better of her, she transforms into her magical IE form and sets them straight with a few zaps.</p><br /><div class='CaptionedImage Center'><iframe width='535' src='//www.youtube.com/embed/BHTUlF7NA2o?rel=0' height='301' frameborder='0' allowfullscreen=''>[embedded content]</iframe><br /><p>Pretty much sums up our experience from every time we've used IE</p><br /></div><br /><p>In a closing scene, we see Inori at home in her room, surrounded by the ordinary things that girls like. She has her cat, a couple of dolls, her computer ... and if you look carefully, you'll spot a Surface tablet, what looks like a Nokia phone, and even a W3C standards manual.</p><br /><p>Lest you think this is just some practical joke, or an elaborate work of fan-fiction by deranged IE users, think again. One shortcut to Inori's Facebook page is through the domain internetexplorertan.com. A whois lookup on that domain reveals its owner as one Microsoft Corporation of One Microsoft Way, Redmond, Washington.</p><br /><div class='CaptionedImage Center'><img alt="Inori Aizawa at home" height="301" src="http://regmedia.co.uk/2013/11/08/inori_2.jpg" title="Inori Aizawa at home" width="535"/><br /><p>When she's at home, Inori sure does love Microsoft products. And CSS.</p><br /></div><br /><p>And there's more. If you're really, really taken with Inori – and if you are, we don't want to know – Microsoft plans to release a special version of Internet Explorer with a custom Inori skin. As of Thursday, however, download links were still pending – but she has a SkyDrive full of goodies for you, while you wait. ®</p><br /><p class='wptl btm'>The business case for a multi-tenant, cloud-based Recovery-as-a-Service solution</p><br /></div>

tech Blue eyes, blonde hair, short sexy skirt. Yup, it's INTERNET EXPLORER'S official ... - Register

Disaster recovery protection level self-assessmentVideo Microsoft has come up with a new way to market Internet Explorer to Asian customers, and it's a major departure from the kinds of ad campaigns we're used to seeing from Redmond here in the West.…

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Google Voice now supports MMS messages from T-Mobile users - Engadget

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p class='image-container c1'><img alt="Google Voice now supports MMS messages from T-Mobile users" data-credit="AOL" data-mep="23560" src="http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/adam/8347b7167d6a31b1dbc4ed42923c0934/Google-voice.jpg"/> </p><br /><p>Your friends on Sprint aren't the only ones that can flood your Google Voice number with MMS messages anymore -- now, even your T-Mobile pals can, too. Google's Nikhyl Singhal recently mentioned that Mountain View's been working on Voice MMS integration, so it's no surprise that another telcom's followed so quickly after The Now Network. Unfortunately, the process is nowhere near seamless: you don't actually get images, clips or whatever MMS file people send on your Voice account. Instead you get an SMS notification that a multimedia message was sent to your Gmail as an attachment. There's no word on whether the feature will follow for users on Verizon, AT&T and other carriers, but for now, you can always introduce friends and family to third-party messaging apps.</p><br /></div>

tech Google Voice now supports MMS messages from T-Mobile users - Engadget

Your friends on Sprint aren't the only ones that can flood your Google Voice number with MMS messages anymore -- now, even your T-Mobile pals can, too. Google's Nikhyl Singhal recently mentioned that Mountain View's been working on Voice MMS integra…

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Google Is Banning All Chrome Add-Ons That Don't Come From Its Chrome Web ... - San Francisco Chronicle

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><img alt="samsung chrome netbook" border="0" class="c14" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/4dbaba354bd7c8ee51050000-480-/chrome-samsung.jpg" width="480"/> </p><br /><p>In the name of fighting bad guy hackers, Google on Thursday said it will not allow its Windows Chrome browser to run any add-ons unless they are downloaded from its own Chrome Web store.</p><br /><p>Unsanctioned add-ons will be banned beginning in January.</p><br /><p>Add-ons, which are also called extensions, are little apps that add extra functions to the browser. For instance, they can let you post stuff from the Web to your social media accounts or create to-do lists, etc.</p><br /><p>Sometimes a cloud service will offer an add-on and let you install it right from its own web page. This will be forbidden. However, enterprise departments will still be able to install add-ons through their own enterprise tools, Google said.</p><br /><p>This comes on top of a new feature Google added last week that will let you reset your browser completely, including wiping out all add-ons you've downloaded. That way, if you think you've downloaded an evil one, you can get rid of it.</p><br /><p>There's been some jaded comments across the Internet about the banned add-ons. Some people are saying that Google will ban add-ons it doesn't like, like ones that let people download YouTube videos. We'll see.</p><br /><p>PC World's Brad Chacos also points out that Google doesn't store add-ons for free.</p><br /><p class='c15'>Developers who want to include their Chrome Web Store have to pay a $5 registration fee—and if your Chrome Web Store-hosted app or extension generates income, Google will take a 5 percent cut of the revenue.</p><br /><p>Still, many PC users could find that they like the trade-off: less choice for more security.</p><br /><p>Join the conversation about this story »</p><br /><p><strong>See Also:</strong> </p><br /></div>

tech Google Is Banning All Chrome Add-Ons That Don't Come From Its Chrome Web ... - San Francisco Chronicle

In the name of fighting bad guy hackers, Google on Thursday said it will not allow its Windows Chrome browser to run any add-ons unless they are downloaded from its own Chrome Web store.Unsanctioned add-ons will be banned beginning in January.Add-on…

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Kindle HDX Aims At iPad Air - InformationWeek

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><span id='articleBody'> </span><br /><div readability='32' class='inlineStoryImage inlineStoryImageRight'><span id='articleBody'><img alt="20 Great Ideas To Steal In 2013" class="img175" src="http://twimgs.com/informationweek/galleries/automated/1041/Collageslide_tn.jpg" title="20 Great Ideas To Steal In 2013"/><br/> </span><br /><p><span id='articleBody'>20 Great Ideas To Steal In 2013</span> </p><br /><span id='articleBody'><span class='inlinelargerView'>(click image for larger view)</span> </span> </div><br />Amazon.com has started shipping the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9. The tablet, which Amazon bills as a device custom-built for entertainment, goes head-to-head with Apple's iPad Air. It breaks new ground for tablets with its "Mayday" help-desk function, which should result in fewer people providing IT support services for their family and friends this holiday season.<br /><p>Amazon's tablet doesn't shirk on specs or features. The tablet has an 8.9-inch screen with 2560 by 1600 pixels, giving it a pixel density of 339 ppi. That's nearly unparalleled for a tablet of this size. It has more than 4 million pixels. It goes far beyond the full HD spec, which has just over 2 million pixels. The Apple iPad Air has a 9.7-inch screen with 2048 x 1536 pixels. According to Amazon, the HDX screen features dynamic image contrast, which optimizes the color of each pixel based on the amount of surrounding light. The result is better outdoor viewing.</p><br /><div class='article-resources wrap'><br clear='all'/><br /><h3 class='articleResourcesHeader'>More Hardware Insights</h3><br /><h3>Webcasts</h3><br />More <span>>></span><br /><h3>White Papers</h3><br />More <span>>></span><br /><h3>Reports</h3><br />More <span>>></span> </div><br /><p>The Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 "has leapfrogged into the best performing tablet display that we have ever tested, significantly out-performing the iPad Air in brightness, screen reflectance, and high ambient light contrast, plus a first place finish in the very challenging category of absolute color accuracy," said DisplayMate Technologies' Raymond Soneira.</p><br /><p>Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800 processor powers the HDX. It has four cores rated at 2.2 GHz each and is paired with 2 GB of RAM and an Adreno 330 GPU for improved gaming. Apple's A7/M7 processor combo runs two cores at 1.4 GHz each and it has 1 GB of RAM. Though the HDX has a pixel-rich screen and fast processor, the device offers 12 hours of battery life when surfing the Web, about two hours longer than the battery life offered by most competing tablets, including the iPad Air.</p><br /><p>As far as content is concerned, Amazon's tablets go toe-to-toe with Apple. Amazon has a huge cloud-based content library, including music, movies, television shows, books and magazines. The Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 is able to access all this, in addition to Android applications.</p><br /><p>One place the HDX has a significant advantage over the iPad Air is price. It costs $379. It jumps up to $479 if you add LTE 4G or more storage. The iPad Air starts at $499. Adding storage costs extra, as does LTE. The HDX costs less than the iPad Mini with Retina Display, too, which starts at $399 (on sale later this month).</p><br /><p>Another advantage is the Mayday function. With Mayday, a help desk is never more than a screen press away. Amazon is offering free, 24/7 video chats with support personnel, who will help users troubleshoot problems or explain how things work. Apple of course has the Genius Bar at its retail stores, but they require appointments and people have to actually leave their house to get the help they need.</p><br /><p>Early reviews of the HDX praised its great screen, epic battery life and light-and-comfortable design. The iPad Air is no slouch, but Amazon has fielded a worthy competitor in the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9.</p><br /><p><em>There's no single migration path to the next generation of enterprise communications and collaboration systems and services, and Enterprise Connect delivers what you need to evaluate all the options. Register today and learn about the full range of platforms, services and applications that comprise modern communications and collaboration systems. Register with code MPIWK and save $200 on the entire event and Tuesday-Thursday conference passes or for a Free Expo pass. It happens in Orlando, Fla., March 17-19.</em><br clear='all'/> </p><br /></div>

tech Kindle HDX Aims At iPad Air - InformationWeek

20 Great Ideas To Steal In 2013 (click image for larger view) Amazon.com has started shipping the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9. The tablet, which Amazon bills as a device custom-built for entertainment, goes head-to-head with Apple's iPad Air. It breaks ne…

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Google Barge to feature sails, be temporary exhibit space - CNET

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><div class='cnet-image-div image-REGULAR float-none c3'><img alt="" class="cnet-image" height="359" src="http://asset2.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/11/07/Screen_shot_2013-11-07_at_7.56.06_PM.png" width="618"/><br /><p class='image-caption'>An artist's rendering of the so-called Google Barge, featuring large sails.</p><br /><span class='image-credit'>(Credit: LLC,By and Large)</span> </div><br /><p>The once-mysterious Google Barge is becoming less and less so every day.</p><br /><p>A new report from The San Francisco Chronicle suggests that the large structure currently under construction in San Francisco Bay is intended to be a large exhibition space, covered in sails, and meant to be docked in various places around the bay for a month or so at a time, and then set sail for other cities on the West Coast.</p><br /><p>The Chronicle's report is based on documents it received from the Port of San Francisco, which were also provided to CNET by CBS' San Francisco affiliate KPIX. CBS is the parent company of CNET. The documents show detailed plans for the barge-based structure, which CNET was first to connect to Google.</p><br /><p>CNET had previously requested information about the project from the Port of San Francisco, but was told the agency had none.</p><br /><p>According to the Chronicle, which received the documents via a Freedom of Information Act request, the structure's builder went into some details about what it was supposed to be:</p><br /><blockquote><br /><p>When it's done, the barge's backers say, the 50-foot-tall, 250-foot-long structure made of recycled shipping containers will be flanked by sails "reminiscent of fish fins, which will remind visitors that they are on a seaworthy vessel."</p><br /><p>"The structure will stand out," the team says, in what is probably an understatement.</p><br /><p>By and Large LLC, which submitted the barge documents, refers to the vessel as a "studio" and "temporary technology exhibit space." It says its goal is to "drive visitation to the waterfront."</p><br /><p>The barge's exhibit space, it says, will be for "local organizations to engage with guests and gain visibility in a unique way."</p><br /><p>"We envisioned this space with community in mind," By and Large says, "a surprising environment that is accessible to all and inspires conversation about how everything is connected -- shorebirds, me, you, the sea, the fog and much more."</p><br /></blockquote><br /><p>On Wednesday, Google spoke publicly for the first time about what has become known widely as "Google barge:" "Google Barge ... A floating data center? A wild party boat? A barge housing the last remaining dinosaur? Sadly, none of the above," Google said in a statement. "Although it's still early days and things may change, we're exploring using the barge as an interactive space where people can learn about new technology."</p><br /><p>The Chronicle's story doesn't address the ultimate purpose of a second Google barge that is currently located in Portland, Maine. But it is safe to assume that Google had very much the same goal in mind for that structure.</p><br /><p>Oddly, though Google has confirmed its connection to the project -- as have at least two public agencies, the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) and the National Park Service -- there is no mention of Google in the documents.</p><br /><p>Called the "San Francisco Studio" in the documents, the floating building was originally expected to be serving it finished purpose from November 2013 through November 2014. That time frame has clearly been abandoned, however, as the Google Barge sits, covered in scaffolding and dark netting, alongside Pier 1 on Treasure Island.</p><br /><div class='cnet-image-div image-REGULAR float-none c4'><img alt="" class="cnet-image" height="408" src="http://asset0.cbsistatic.com/cnwk.1d/i/tim2/2013/11/07/Screen_shot_2013-11-07_at_7.56.24_PM_1.png" width="604"/><br /><p class='image-caption'>An artist's rendering of the interior of the Google Barge exhibition space.</p><br /><span class='image-credit'>(Credit: LLC,By and Large)</span> </div><br /><p>Interestingly, the documents suggest that the barge would be moved between several San Francisco locations, and that it was believed that those spots had "already been permitted for the mooring of vessels and that no additional BCDC permitting would be required."</p><br /><p>But Larry Goldzpan, BCDC's executive director, told CNET last week that the agency had not issued any permits to Google for the project, and that it wouldn't until it was convinced that the barge would not be considered "fill in the bay," a term meaning a vessel moored there for too long.</p><br /><p>The documents do suggest BCDC permitting might be required for some locations, but the agency was clear that it had given no permission at all.</p><br /><p>In any case, Google must be hoping that it can one day unveil the finished product -- which has also been reported as an invite-only showroom for Google X products and projects. In the documents, the structure is said to be made from recycled shipping containers providing 13,726 square feet of space, and that it will feature three stories of public space, including two levels for technology demonstrations, and a fourth floor roof and deck space.</p><br /></div>

tech Google Barge to feature sails, be temporary exhibit space - CNET

An artist's rendering of the so-called Google Barge, featuring large sails.(Credit: LLC,By and Large) The once-mysterious Google Barge is becoming less and less so every day.A new report from The San Francisco Chronicle suggests that the large struct…

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