Sci-Tech Today

Users Less Satisfied with Windows 8 than with Windows 7

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:48:07 -0500

How satisfied are customers with Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system? According to a new survey from the University of Michigan, not as satisfied as with Windows 7.

The 2013 survey, called the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), was conducted by Michigan's Ross School of Business and released Tuesday. It found Windows 8 scored 74, down a point from last year's survey and down four points from the company's record high in 2011 for Windows 7, when it achieved a 78. The Windows 7 score had been a bump up, following the flop known as Vista.

David VanAmburg, ACSI's Director, told news media that Windows 8 "did not give Microsoft a significant bump, as the release of Windows 7 did," although it didn't cause the kind of drop that Vista showed. The lowest score was a 69 in 2008, the second year that Vista was available. VanAmburg pointed out that Windows 8 performance next year will indicate if the satisfaction level has stabilized.

'Microsoft Messed Up'

PCs in general are going through a slump in sales, as smartphones and tablets boom. PC shipments have declined four quarters in a row, with a 14 percent drop in Q1 of this year.

Laura DiDio, an analyst with industry research firm Information Technology Intelligence Consulting, said that her research among businesses indicates satisfaction with the underlying functions of Windows 8, but not with its touchscreen emphasis.

She quoted one unnamed IT administrator at a leading university who said that "Microsoft messed up the execution by forcing people into touchscreen." The tile-based interface is optimized for touchscreens, although users can switch to the classic UI.

Another factor in the satisfaction level is whether there had been some need, which is being filled, to switch from an existing OS. DiDio cited a survey conducted by her company last fall, in which...

A Terabyte's the Limit Now at Yahoo's Flickr

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:18:38 -0500

Yahoo is making big moves across the board. On the heels of the billion-dollar Tumblr acquisition, Yahoo is beefing up storage on Flickr, its photo-sharing service, to 1 terabyte.

The idea is to allow users to share images in full resolution. With a terabyte, you could upload a photo every hour for 40 years and not use up all the space.

Yahoo is also offering a new design for Flickr that puts photos at the heart of the experience. A new Activity Feed combines friends' recent uploads with activity on your photos. The goal is to drive more on-page interaction.

"We completely rebuilt the photo stream to show off your photos in a seamless layout, and gave you room to express yourself with a customizable cover photo and high-res profile picture," said Flickr's Markus Spiering. "Our new photo experience displays images in as many pixels as possible, with all the context you need to easily chime in on the conversation around every image."

A Big Statement

Greg Sterling, principal analyst at Sterling Market Intelligence, said 1 terabyte is a big statement by Flickr, a bold attempt to get attention and reach new audiences. Flickr competes with several Web alternatives, including Google's Picasa, which increasingly is being integrated into Google+.

"The site has always been used by professional and amateur photographers but Yahoo is now trying to go after a much larger user base with the UI and storage changes," Sterling told us. By contrast, Google's Picasa Web Albums offer 1 GB of free storage for photos and videos.

The free upgrade also marks the ability to upload more video -- and longer video. Flickr now supports up to a full three minutes per video of 1080p HD quality.

Yahoo's Big Opportunity

On Monday, Yahoo pledged not to "screw up" Tumblr when it announced acquisition of the hip...

Oklahoma Tornadoes End Quiet Storm Season

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:05:35 -0500

The violent tornado outbreaks of the past several days, including the killer twister that hit Moore, Okla., on Monday, have shattered the calm of what had been a very quiet tornado season so far. More violent storms appear to be on the way for today.

As of a week ago, tornadoes had killed only three Americans in 2013, according to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla. But in the past week, 59 people have died in storms in Texas and Oklahoma. That number includes the 51 the Oklahoma state medical examiner's office said had died in the Moore tornado, but that number could rise as first responders continue to recover victims of Monday's twister.

As of Sunday, 304 tornadoes had been reported across the nation, far below the typical average of 714. Before this past week, an unusually cool spring helped to hold back the number of tornadoes, AccuWeather reported.

AccuWeather meteorologist Mike Smith said the USA had been "a month behind on temperatures this spring." He added that a lack of moisture has played a role.

In the past few days, though, the elements came together that provide the classic fuel for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms -- cool air from the north colliding with warm humid air in a clash over the Plains.

Unfortunately, additional severe thunderstorms are possible today as the system advances slowly to the East from eastern Texas northeastward to the Middle Mississippi Valley and southern Great Lakes, the Weather Channel reports.

"Very large hail, damaging wind gusts and a few tornadoes will be possible," the Storm Prediction Center forecast online. Cities at greatest risk for severe storms and tornadoes today include Shreveport, La., and Little Rock. Other cities at risk include Chicago, Dallas, Indianapolis and San Antonio.

The threat will lessen by Wednesday, but some storms are possible in the Ohio...

Study: Most Shipwrecks a Minor Pollution Threat

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:05:05 -0500

Shipwrecks lying deep off America's coasts are more often historical artifacts than present-day threats from leaking old oil tanks, a new federal report says.

While 87 of the ships -- most sunk during World War II by German submarines -- have the potential to leak tens of millions of gallons of oil, the report issued Monday concludes that "the scope of the problem is much more manageable than initially feared."

"Our coastlines are not littered with `ticking time bombs,'" government scientists wrote. They note that only six of the 87 are likely to be serious enough to be disasters to local economies and coastlines, the report said.

Still the wrecks are hulking reminders of lost lives in war and the environmental mess of oil, especially to Frank Terry, who experienced them firsthand.

The first of two German torpedoes hit the oil tanker ship W.D. Anderson as it steamed along the Florida coast one late February night in 1942. Terry ran to the side, hurled himself over the railing and into the water. His boat was in flames and the 23-year-old was swimming for his life.

"I just wanted to get out of there," he recalled Monday from his home in Parkesburg, Pennsylvania Days after the sinking 15 miles off southeast Florida, Terry wrote in an account for The Associated Press: "I saw the ship go up in flames while I raced from death as the burning oil spread over the water."

He bumped into dead bodies in the tainted water. A spotlight bore down on him. He figured it was the German U-boat, so he ducked. But he had to come back up to breathe. American voices yelled to him and American arms tried to pull him aboard. But Terry was coated in oil and he slipped away from rescue at first.

Eventually, Terry was hauled...

After a Decade, Global AIDS Program Looks Ahead

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:05:20 -0500

The decade-old law that transformed the battle against HIV and AIDS in developing countries is at a crossroads. The dream of future generations freed from epidemic is running up against an era of economic recovery and harsh budget cuts.

The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief grew out of an unlikely partnership between President George W. Bush and lawmakers led by the Congressional Black Caucus. It has come to represent what Washington can do when it puts politics aside -- and what America can do to make the world a better place.

President Barack Obama, speaking at the recent dedication of Bush's presidential library, praised the compassion Bush showed in "helping to save millions of lives and reminding people in some of the poorest corners of the globe that America cares."

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said of Bush in a statement that "while many events may distinguish his presidency, his devotion to combatting the scourge of HIV/AIDS will certainly define his legacy."

The AIDS program's future, however, is uncertain. Obama has upped the stakes, speaking in his State of the Union address this year of "realizing the promise of an AIDS-free generation." But funding for the relief plan's bilateral efforts has dipped in recent years and it's doubtful that Congress, in its current budget-cutting mood, will reverse that trend when the current five-year program expires later this year.

The AIDS program is also trying to find a balance between its goals of reaching more people with its prevention and treatment programs and turning over more responsibility to the host nations where it operates.

"This has been an incredible achievement," said Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., a senior Congressional Black Caucus member who played major roles both in passing the original 2003 act and its 2008 renewal that significantly increased funding for AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis treatment...

Salesforce.com Wants To Overhaul Corporate Marketing

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:53:55 -0500

Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff built a technology company worth $27 billion on the back of a very simple slogan: "No Software."

Benioff's idea of selling business applications as a pay-as-you-go Internet service -- rather than shrink-wrapped bundles with hefty up-front fees -- helped Salesforce.com steal business from Microsoft, SAP and Oracle for nearly a decade.

Now the San Francisco-based company is hoping to find more growth in another big idea.

This week, Salesforce.com will release its quarterly results, and Wall Street is expecting revenue growth of 28%, to $888 million. For the full year, the company forecast a revenue target of almost $4 billion, a 27% annual rise.

To get there, the company is espousing a philosophy that could be called, "No Marketing," though that's not a phrase Benioff has used.

Like "No Software," it's a conceit, because Salesforce.com does sell software to corporate customers, just as those large businesses still market to their own consumers.

But it's an apt phrase, because just as the company changed how software is sold, it now wants to transform how Corporate America thinks about marketing.

As Benioff said about his customers in a February conference call, "In each and every case they are redefining how they connect their company with their customers."

The idea is to make a company so customer-focused that the traditional boundaries between advertising, marketing and customer service become obsolete.

However you describe it, investors have so far liked the sound of it.

Salesforce.com shares are up more than 30% in the past 12 months and have more than doubled during the last three years, far outpacing the gains of the broader market for tech stocks.

Salesforce.com's main focus has been selling products and tools that help businesses keep track of their customers, software known as customer relationship management, or CRM.

Large companies have embraced it, and Salesforce.com reported sales growth of...

Andrew Mason 'Taking Care of Business' with Music

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:51:52 -0500

Former Groupon CEO Andrew Mason is diving into several new ventures, including indulging his inner rock star with an album of "motivational business music."

Mason said Thursday on his blog that he recently spent a week in Los Angeles and recorded a collection of seven songs called "Hardly Workin'."

Mason said he wants to present business wisdom to younger people and that the songs will help them understand ideas that are critical to becoming productive and effective employees. He said many of Groupon's employees are young and many didn't have much familiarity with business, and didn't want to read books on the subject.

Mason plans to start a new company in the fall. He didn't disclose details but said he'll be moving to San Francisco from Chicago. He also said he is taking an advisory position at Y Combinator, a selective incubator program that supports development of entrepreneurial companies. Mason said he will spend one day every week at the firm's offices and will advise new startups.

Mason did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Technology media Web site TechCrunch said it had confirmed with Mason that he was serious about the album.

Mason founded Groupon, an online deals site. He was fired as CEO in February. The move had been anticipated for months, given concerns about the company's financial and stock performance.

A Year After IPO, Facebook Seeks 'Ad Colossus' Status

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:48:13 -0500

It was supposed to be our IPO, the people's public offering. Facebook, the brainchild of a young CEO who sauntered into Wall Street meetings in a hoodie, was going to be bigger than Amazon, bigger than McDonald's, bigger than Coca-Cola. And it was all made possible by our friendships, photos and family ties.

Then came the IPO, and it flopped. Facebook's stock finished its first day of trading just 23 cents higher than its $38 IPO price. It hasn't been that high since.

Even amid the hype and excitement surrounding Facebook's May 18 stock market debut a year ago, there were looming doubts. Investors wondered whether the social network could increase advertising revenue without alienating users, especially those using smartphones and tablet computers.

The worries intensified just days before the IPO when General Motors said it would stop paying for advertisements on the site. The symbolic exit cast a shroud over Facebook that still exists. Facebook's market value is $63 billion, some two-thirds of what it was the morning it first began trading. At around $27 per share, the company's stock is down roughly 30 percent from its IPO price. Meanwhile, the Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 27 percent over the same period.

Despite its disappointing stock market performance, the company has delivered strong financial results. Net income increased 7 percent to $219 million in the most recent quarter, compared with the previous year, and revenue was up 38 percent to $1.46 billion.

The world's biggest online social network has also kept growing to 1.1 billion users. Some 665 million people check in every day to share photos, comment on news articles and play games. Millions of people around the world who don't own a computer use Facebook, in Malawi, Malaysia and Martinique.

And much has changed at Facebook in a year. The company's...

Two Vegas Men Charged: Teen Was Killed for His iPad

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:47:15 -0500

Two men have been arrested in the killing of a teenage boy over an iPad in Las Vegas, police said Sunday. Jacob Dismont, 18, and Michael Solid, 21, were booked Saturday into the Clark County jail on charges of open murder, robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery.

According to investigators, Marcos Arenas, 15, was walking down a street with the iPad on Thursday when a passenger got out of a vehicle and tried to steal the device from him.

Dismont is accused of trying to wrest the tablet away and dragging Arenas toward the SUV when the youth wouldn't let go of the device. After Dismont re-entered the vehicle and Solid sped away, the teen was dragged until he fell. The vehicle ran over Arenas and he died at a hospital.

"I think both the public and police department share the same sentiment that this was a senseless act of violence," police spokesman Bill Cassell told The Associated Press.

The suspects succeeded in making off with the device, officers said, but it was not immediately recovered.

Ivan Arenas said he bought the iPad for his son less than two months ago. The family has never had a lot, the father said, and his son valued everything he had.

"For him to lose his life over an iPad, it's just not fair," Ivan Arenas told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "Never in my life would I imagine that me buying my kid an iPad for his birthday would end up with him getting run over."

Similar thefts of iPads, IPhones and other Apple devices have become so widespread nationwide that the crime has earned the nickname, "Apple picking," Cassell said.

"This is a nationwide phenomenon where thieves are targeting individuals who are carrying them," he said.

Police urge victims of such crimes to always let go of the devices.

According to investigators,...

Supersized Takeout: Seamless and GrubHub Join Forces

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:46:05 -0500

Rival online takeout services Seamless North America and GrubHub on Monday announced plans to combine and create a new company covering more than 20,000 restaurants in 500 cities across the U.S.

Financial terms were not disclosed and it's unclear what the combined company will be called. GrubHub CEO Matt Maloney will become CEO, while Seamless CEO Jonathan Zabusky will serve as president, the companies said in a joint statement.

Brian McAndrews, an independent director on the Seamless board, will serve as chairman. Both New York-based Seamless and Chicago-based GrubHub will have significant representation on the new company's board.

The combined company's name and marketing brands will be determined following regulatory approval, the companies said.

Online takeout ordering services work by contracting with restaurants, mostly in large metropolitan areas, to list themselves on the Web sites. Diners can search the menus, along with reviews posted by diners, to find the food they want and then order and pay online. In addition to Web sites, both companies offer smartphone and tablet apps geared toward diners on the go.

"We are excited to combine the strengths of these two dynamic organizations in an industry that is rapidly gaining traction," Maloney said in a statement. "We believe the merger will enhance the products we are able to offer both our diners and restaurants."

Maloney, who co-founded GrubHub Inc. in 2004, said that by combining their complementary restaurant and diner networks the new company will be well positioned for continued growth in what's become a huge market.

The services appeal to diners by eliminating the need for a kitchen drawer of takeout menus, while also helping them discover new pickup and delivery options in their neighborhoods. Meanwhile, restaurants can benefit from new business and don't have to deal with as many phone orders, which can be labor intensive and prone to error.

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