Consumers taking their time upgrading to Windows 8

Posted by Jim Bernstein

It seems that Windows 7 just recently got here but in fact it has been out since July of 2009 and Microsoft is wanting us to upgrade again even though we are just now getting used to our Windows 7 PCs. And most people are happy with their Windows 7 PCs and don’t like spending the time and money to upgrade already.

Well it seems as though most Windows users don’t have any immediate plans to upgrade to Windows 8 any time soon and in fact the latest Microsoft operating system is not getting the warm response Microsoft has hoped for. Windows 8 is designed to run on smartphones, tablets and PCs and shares the same interface between them which may be why many don’t want to upgrade. The new interface is drastically different than Windows 7 even though there are still some familiarities such as the Windows desktop and taskbar.

Antivirus firm Avast did a survey showing the less than stellar response to Windows 8 shown by the people surveyed. 6 out of 10 people surveyed were aware of the new Windows OS but only 9% said they would speed up the process to buy a new computer just to have Windows 8 and 70% decided to stick with what they had. In fact, many corporations are still rolling out Windows 7 to replace Windows XP computers in the office and other people in the survey said they will be switching to a Mac.

Microsoft reports over 1,000 Windows 8 compatible devices ready to go

Posted by David Bernstein

With Windows 8 due out any day now, PC and tablet manufacturers are getting their hardware ready to run the latest operating system from Microsoft. It’s hard to say for sure if Windows 8 will be a hit or a flop but hardware manufacturers are getting ready just in case. Microsoft CFO Peter Klein says that they have certified over 1,000 unique Windows 8 systems. In fact, Microsoft is coming out with their own $499 Windows 8 tablet which doesn’t sit will for other hardware manufacturers.

Microsoft needs Windows 8 to be successful since revenue is down thanks to slower PC sales because of the increased popularity of tablets. Their net income came in at $4.47 billion which is 22% lower than the $5.74 billion in the year ago quarter. Revenue was down 8% at $16 billion from last years$17.37 billion. But things may be looking up thanks to $800 million in presales of Windows 8 OS licenses. But with only 4000 Windows 8 apps they have a long way to go to catch up to Android and Apple.

Facebook will let you promote if you are willing to pay

Posted by Jim Bernstein

Just like most websites out there, Facebook is apparently looking for a way to make a buck to keep its investors happy. And many Facebook users are looking for ways to make sure everyone sees their super important and exciting posts. Now there is a way to satisfy both parties.

Facebook is rolling out a new feature that will allow users to promote to their friends for the right price, similar to how advertisers promote their businesses. This feature can be used to promote big events that you don’t want your friends to miss. Facebook has not released pricing on this new feature at the moment but it’s rumored to be around $7 for the promotion.

Normally your posts are shown in others feeds based on things such as how interesting or relevant it is to other users. But if you pay to promote a post it will get bumped up higher in your friends news feeds so they will be more likely to notice it. Facebook has been testing this feature in 20 countries so far and is bringing it to the U.S.

Iran shutting off Google and Gmail

Posted by David Bernstein

Apparently not everyone can enjoy the freedom of the internet when it comes to searching for news and other types of information. Most of us can look up whatever we want without having to worry about it being blocked or censored by big brother aka the government. Or at least we think that’s the way it is.

If you live in Iran then you are already being censored and filtered and there isn’t much you can do about it unless you are tech savvy and know the few ways to get around it. Now the Iranian government wants to block Google and Gmail most likely because they are upset about them allowing the mocking of Muhammad in a YouTube video among other videos they deem inappropriate.

Iran is pushing towards a "national Internet" which is meant to keep them separate from the rest of the world when it comes to what can and can’t be found online. Another reason for it may be to help them track dissent and take care of it when they find it. The official Islamic Republic News Agency stated earlier this year that "The Internet must not be given the authority to challenge national and ethical principles". Reporters Without Borders found that the Google blockage was effective in some parts of Iran while not in others. An interesting twist on the story is that Gmail is used by all local state run news agencies and Iranian universities so it will be interesting to see how this change affects the way they operate.

PCs no longer the top user of DRAM chips

Posted by David Bernstein

DRAM chips are used store short term information in personal computers, tablets and smartphones to help shorten the time it takes to process information. Until recently these chips were mostly used in PCs since they dominated the computing market.

Market research firm IHS iSuppli has just reported that only 49% of all new DRAM chips were used to make PCs in the second quarter. This is because of the rapid growth of smartphones and tablets taking over for many peoples computing needs. By the end of 2013, PCs are rumored to need around 42.8% of DRAM chip production with this number continuing to decline as these other devices take over market share.

DRAM chip manufacturers are focusing more of their energy making chips for smartphones and tablets to keep their production and sales levels high. But with Windows 8 coming out any day now we may see a rise in chips made for PCs again.

Oracle’s Java patch reveals new security hole

Posted by David Bernstein

Last week there was a security hole discovered in the latest Java update 1.7 that installed the Poison Ivy Remote Access Trojan on various computer systems. Many people were worried that Java wasn’t going to put out a fix any time soon and that the infection would begin to spread.

But now that Java finally came out with a patch for their previous update it seems as though the patch has revealed a new security hole that was not known about until now. Oracle was urging users to apply the update but a security expert from Security Explorations in Poland claims that all the issues were not fixed and that there are some new flaws that can be exploited thanks to this latest update.

Even though the patch offers many fixes that are necessary to make Java secure, it still needs more work. Hackers were able to use Java to send phishing emails to Amazon and Microsoft users. The emails looked legitimate but contained a hyperlink with a virus. Oracle has been alerted to this new issue and now we will have to wait again for the next patch and hope this time is complete.