News (34)

Google quietly updates Chrome

Search giant Google has quietly begun releasing a hastily prepared update to its Chrome browser to fix some security problems. Read more »

'Spammy' social network apps on the way out: Google

Developers of social networking sites are considering sharing blacklists of annoying and 'spammy' applications with each other in an effort to prevent users from switching off Web 2.0 technology. Read more »

Facebook on the decline as 'virus' apps take hold

Privacy problems and propagation of "virus-like" applications has led to a marked decline in the use of Facebook's developer platform, according to industry analysts Ovum. Read more »

Has Windows Vista's UAC feature failed Microsoft?

Experts agree that Microsoft's Windows Vista is relatively well-protected but its security features — such as User Account Control (UAC) — have been highlighted by security experts as one reason why the operating system is far less popular than its predecessor, Windows XP. Read more »

Microsoft, OLPC tie the knot after virility test

The One Laptop Per Child project and Microsoft announced Thursday that indeed the XO laptop will be available in both Linux and Windows varieties. The companies plan to sell a Windows-powered XO in five or six countries starting next month, with a broader release in August or September. Read more »

Adobe guru hired to make Windows chic

Mark Hamburg, Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom programming guru, will be leading work to give Microsoft Windows a sleeker, chicer user interface. Read more »

Tool shoves 'annoying' Vista security feature aside

Software developers claim they have created a tool to bypass User Account Control — an "annoying" security feature in Windows Vista, according to Microsoft executives. Read more »

Microsoft: Vista UAC designed to 'annoy users'

A Microsoft manager has said one of the security features in Vista was deliberately designed to "annoy users" in order to put pressure on third-party software makers to make their applications more secure. Read more »

Counting down to the iPhone SDK

While Australia waits for the iPhone, time is quickly closing in on the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the iPhone, one that could signal just how far Apple can take its maiden voyage into the smartphone world. Read more »

Getting ready for the Python breakage

If Google starts behaving oddly later this year, it might not be due to too many YouTube videos of Britney Spears losing it or a stealth attack by Microsoft's minions, but because of a forthcoming change to the Python programming language. Read more »

Features (60)

Vista is sunk

It's not really a mid-life crisis, not really. But eighteen months after Vista appeared - and eighteen months before Windows 7 - Vista has bought a metaphoric red sports car and a new pair of tight jeans, and is getting ready to go on the pull. Read more »

10 ways to explain things more effectively

In the course of your work, you may sometimes need to explain technical concepts to your customers. Having them understand you is important not only for technical reasons, but also to ensure customer satisfaction. Read more »

Developing real-time applications with Java RTS 2.0

Java Real-Time System (RTS) 2.0 is Sun's fully compliant implementation of the industry standard set of extensions for the Java platform. It helps you set process priorities according to importance (this is typically not supported in Java software applications). Read more »

Specify who can log in via OpenSSH

The OpenSSH suite of tools, developed by the OpenBSD Project, includes popular programs that serve many uses. This popularity combined with ssh availability as both server and client on just about every OS makes it no wonder that ssh has been the target of common attacks. Read more »

Top 10 reasons to avoid IT salespeople

Like the rest of us, salespeople and consultants are only doing their job -- but why do they have to be quite so annoying? Read more »

10 things you can do to get a promotion

Very few people hire on with any company or organisation with the intention of remaining indefinitely at the position for which they were hired. The thought of asking for advancement is usually pretty frightening, but these tips will help you be more prepared. Read more »

Interview: The importance of being Erlang

He's one of the few developers in Australia with experience working in Erlang, the functional programming language which is gaining fans for its handling of parallel processing and creating distributed systems. We sat down with Andre Pang to see what all the fuss was about. Read more »

HTML Shop of Horrors: Blink Tag

Today's bad tag is the blink tag. Designed to gain attention, it only gained the annoyance of visitors. Read more »

HTML Shop of Horrors: Marquee Tag

Today's exhibit is a subject of intense hatred and a figure of derision -- the marquee tag Read more »

Pop-up windows: Know the difference

Pop-up windows were a positive component in the beginning. Created long before tabbed browsers, their purpose was to present information without interfering with the current browser window... Read more »

Video (3)

Honesty, WWIII and other minor annoyances -- Club Builder

On this week's Club Builder we look at some local scientists who have made a break through in fibre throughput, a group of local lads win big in Paris and we hand out our first Honesty Award. Read more »

Why Vista UAC can't stop malware: Microsoft

User Account Control (UAC), the 'annoying' security feature in Windows Vista, will not stop malware from infecting PCs, according Roger Grimes, a member of Microsoft's software security team. Read more »

Vista's annoyance was planned?!!? -- Club Builder

We shouldn't be surprised that Vista's security prompts were designed to be annoying. We also look at the new security paradigm and how playing dumb can help defend piracy. Read more »

Blog (17)

Startup Camp Sydney: The review

[blogs:bootstrappr] -- Three new Australian technology start-ups, uTag, TrafficHawk.com.au and LinkViz, were conceived and launched over the weekend in a lightning initiative dubbed "Startup Camp Sydney". Read more »

Repent Open Sourcerers

Staff [blogs:syslog] -- The Anglican Diocese in Sydney is moving away from Microsoft technologies, Access and ActiveX provide another way for remote code execution and a local Aussie team wins the Imagine Cup. All that and more in this week's Roundup. Read more »

Do browsers need a Universal Edit Button?

Brendon Chase [blogs:codemonkeybusiness] -- As websites allow more user generated content do browsers need a way to better inform users that pages are editable? Read more »

One ID to rule them all

Lana Kovacevic [blogs:webanatomy] -- OpenID is an open-source mechanism enabling you to use a single online identity to log-in to different websites that support OpenID. Read more »

Google to allow third party code in Gmail?

Brendon Chase [blogs:codemonkeybusiness] -- According to executives from the company, Google are preparing to open Gmail to developers outside the Googleplex labs. Read more »

Confessions of an accessibility sadist

Chris Duckett [blogs:betaliving] -- If your mouse dies because of a software update, most people would rollback the update -- a small minority will continue to move forward regardless. All in the name of science and testing the world of accessibility. Read more »

How useful is OpenSocial?

Staff [blogs:syslog] -- This week's coverage was all over the local MySpace developer launch, we took a look at Google's AppEngine, had more videos than we knew what to do with and can someone put us out of our misery buy Yahoo already! Read more »

Warning: ads to get more annoying

Staff [blogs:syslog] -- The addition of high definition video and VoIP within Flash will allows developers to create new user experiences and it's coming to a banner ad near you in all its H.264 and vocal glory. Read more »

Is that $500 million in your wallet?

Staff [blogs:syslog] -- Have we officially returned to the silly season of the late 1990s? If not, there was a momentous step closer taken this week. Read more »

Is facesquatting becoming a problem?

Brendon Chase [blogs:codemonkeybusiness] -- Could name squatting on Facebook applications become a new litigious area for the Web? Read more »

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  • Staff Microsoft prescribes more REST

    Details have begun to emerge about the next versions of Visual Studio and Windows Server this week -- and the message from Redmond is to REST up Read more »

    -- posted by Staff

  • Chris Duckett .NET looks to REST

    With news that REST will play a big part in the next version of the .NET Framework, it is timely to take a look at ADO.NET. Read more »

    -- posted by Chris Duckett

  • Renai LeMay Spellr.us needs a new dictionary

    One of the only Australian start-ups to present at the recent round of conferences in the US was Sydney-based spellr.us, which has launched a Web-based tool to check and monitor websites for spelling mistakes. Read more »

    -- posted by Renai LeMay

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