Apple, Apple, Apple, $$$, $$$, $$$

Apple announces dividend and stock buyback
Fortune
Growth at Apple has not been a problem: The company is on pace to become the largest technology company in the world by revenue, and during the holiday season it posted the second-most profitable quarter by any corporation in US history.

As Cash Move Shows, Apple CEO Goes His Own Way
Wall Street Journal
By JESSICA E. VASCELLARO Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled plans Monday to share billions of dollars in profits with shareholders. Jessica Vascellaro stops by digits to weigh in on the company's future, and whether it's famed founder Steve Jobs would have ...

Linux and Android, together at last
CNET
The newest Linux kernel, version 3.3, includes code from Google's Android project. That should help both Android and other Linux-based projects. by Stephen Shankland March 19, 2012 8:59 AM PDT Follow @stshank Linux and Android are two closely linked ...

Mass Effect 3 Player Files FTC Complaint Over Game's Ending
PC Magazine
By Chloe Albanesius Bioware's Mass Effect 3 sold 890000 copies in its first 24 hours on the market, but not everyone is happy with the game's ending. One fan is reportedly so peeved that he filed a false advertising complaint with the Federal Trade ...

Gasoline price: Signs still point to a rise and to tight supplies
Los Angeles Times
By Ronald D. White Times Staff Writer The average retail price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the US continued to rise overnight while the price in California dropped by such a small amount that virtually no one will notice.

Los Angeles Times

Pew report: Teenage texting up, epic phone calls down
Los Angeles Times
By Deborah Netburn Los Angeles Times The summer after seventh grade, Danny Fleming and I spent an uninterrupted seven hours on the phone together -- our personal record. He had three-way calling, so we got some other people into the mix, but Danny and ...

Los Angeles Times

Original Einstein manuscripts to be posted online
The Associated Press
JERUSALEM (AP) — Albert Einstein's complete archives — from personal correspondence with half a dozen lovers to notebooks scribbled with his groundbreaking scientific research — are going online for the first time. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, ...

The world hacks NASA in International Space Apps Challenge
Ars Technica
By Curt Hopkins | Published March 19, 2012 2:28 PM An international code-a-thon is set to take place in April on seven continents. And in space. From April 21-23, the 48-hour International Space Apps Challenge (ISAC) will take place in tech hubs and ...

Pirate Bay plans sky-high flying proxy servers
Register
The Pirate Bay says it is planning a fleet of airborne servers to evade the attempts of anti-piracy forces to shut down their file-sharing service. And, no, it's not yet April Fools' Day. The team behind the site says that the falling cost of GPS and ...

Sprint shares fall after analyst downgrade
The Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of cellphone company Sprint Nextel Corp. fell Monday after a downgrade by an analyst, who noted that credit-default swaps imply a substantial risk of bankruptcy in the next few years. THE SPARK: Sanford Bernstein analyst Craig ...

The planetary pileups of popular solar system orbits
TG Daily
Some orbits are apparently more popular than others in young solar systems emerging around baby stars - which often results in "planet pileups" and "planet deserts." Sophisticated computer simulations have revealed a rather plausible explanation for a ...

TG Daily

Dell's Windows 8 Tablets Will Target iPad
eWeek
Dell's Windows 8 tablets will apparently leverage the company's experience in security and interoperability to challenge the iPad, according to an executive. Dell wants to pull an Apple in the tablet market. “We have a roadmap for tablets that we ...

Pew: Social Media Not Yet Driving News Traffic
Mashable
Article recommendations from your friends on Facebook and Twitter aren'ta major source of traffic for news websites, according to Pew's State of the Media 2012 report — but they have potential to become one. The annual release focuses on trends in the ...

Sales of the new iPad set new records, say Apple and AT&T
CNNMoney
By Philip Elmer-DeWitt March 19, 2012: 12:42 PM ET Trip Chowdhry of Global Equities Research stuck his neck out Sunday and pronounced sales of the new iPad "somewhat light." Relying on the number of hits on Chitika's ad network-- always a risk, ...

Researchers Question Security of In-App Ads
PC Magazine
By Chloe Albanesius In-app ads allow for free, "lite" versions of many of your favorite apps, but are those ad networks also peeking at your personal information? A new report from North Carolina State University researchers found "threats to security ...

Zynga Is In Talks To Buy “Draw Something” Maker OMGPOP
TechCrunch
Zynga is in talks to acquire OMGPOP, the maker of massive hit Draw Something, according to a source with direct knowledge of the discussions. Talks are still in an earlier stage and it's my understanding that there may be other Japanese buyers that are...

NetZero Launches 'Free' Wireless Broadband
PC Magazine
By Mark Hachman NetZero said Monday that it has entered the market for a "free" wireless broadband service - at least until a year is up. NetZero will offer a pair of plans, ranging from the "free" 1-Mbit connection up to a $49.95, 10-Mbit connection, ...

Canabalt HD, other indie iOS games debut on Android with new Humble Bundle
Gamasutra
by Eric Caoili [Console/PC, Smartphone/Tablet, Business] Organizers for the Humble Indie Bundle have debuted new Android versions for several popular iOS games, including Adam Saltsman's iOS/online hit Canabalt HD, with its latest pay-what-you-want ...

Gamasutra

In Virtual World, Phone Game Controls You!
Discovery News
Social control can be done in lots of ways: laws, advertising, culture and peer pressure. Now we can put gaming and mobile phones on the list. John Rula, a graduate student in engineering at northwestern University, and Fabian Bustamante, ...

Video Game Stocks: Microsoft to Delay New Xbox to at Least 2013
DailyFinance
By Rebecca Lipman, Kapitall, The Motley Fool Posted 2:27PM 03/19/12 Investing Microsoft (NAS: MSFT) has announced its follow-up console to the Xbox 360 will be delayed to next year, or perhaps early 2014, in order to add more time and life to their ...

Apple Sued By Chinese Authors For Pirating App Store Books
The Mac Observer
In what some may consider a hilarious twist of fate, a group of Chinese writers have filed suit against Apple, claiming that the Cupertino-based company is selling unlicensed copies of their books via its App Store, according to the Associated Press.

The Mac Observer

Analysis Confirms iPad Display Really Is One Of The Best Ever Made
TechCrunch
It shouldn't come as any surprise when someone says that this year's display, or phone, or what have you, is the best ever. After all, improving the category is what companies strive to do, right? So Apple's claim (on Samsung's behalf, really) that the ...

TechCrunch

NASA Launching 5 Rockets in 5 Minutes This Week: How to Watch
Space.com
by Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist A quintuple rocket launch that promises to put on a spectacular, but brief, overnight light show of luminescent vapor trails in the skies above the US East Coast tonight, weather permitting.

Study: Viking explorers carried stowaway mice
CBS News
(Livescience.com) Between the eighth and 10th centuries, Vikings were exploring and spreading into Greenland, Iceland and Newfoundland. Now, a new study finds that these notoriously fierce people brought with them some fluffy stowaways: house mice.

CBS News

EA announces server shutdown for 14 games, citing dwindling player numbers
Ars Technica
By Andrew Groen | Published March 19, 2012 12:50 PM Electronic Arts announced today that they will be shutting down the online servers for over a dozen titles, including some games that are less than two years old and one, EA Sports MMA, that actually ...

Ars Technica

Computer program places 141st in national tournament
TG Daily
It's not quite IBM's Watson, but Dr. Fill performed decently at a national crossword tournament. Dr. Fill is the name of a computer program designed by one Matthew Ginsberg, with the goal of being able to understand English context and play-on-word ...

Samsung opens up the Ice Cream Sandwich
Register
By Bill Ray • Get more from this author Samsung has posted the source code for its Ice Cream Sandwich, Android version 4 for the Galaxy SII, opening the way for hackers to create their own Android spin. The release follows three iterations of ...

Vernal equinox 2012: Spring -- time to stand a raw egg on its end
Los Angeles Times
By Amy Hubbard The vernal equinox, or spring equinox, is one of two times during the year when the length of day and the length of night are just about equal. And when this happens, the egg balancers and broom standers come out of the woodwork.

Throttling Victor Claims His Prize From AT&T
New York Times (blog)
By BRIAN X. CHEN | March 19, 2012, 2:59 pm J. Emilio Flores for The New York TimesMatt Spaccarelli successfully sued AT&T in small-claims court because it slowed down his cellphone, but said there is no permanent remedy.

New York Times (blog)

Microsoft: Our apps are really coming to Azure! Eventually, maybe
GigaOm
By Barb Darrow Mar. 19, 2012, 10:48am PT 1 Comment As of today, none of Microsoft's major applications are hosted on the company's Windows Azure cloud. On Monday, the company said that the Azure version of its Dynamics NAV enterprise resource planning ...

GigaOm

Microsoft Discusses Internet Explorer 10 Metro Development
DABCC.com
If you consider that the browser is the heart of any device experience these days, it should come as no surprise that Microsoft has put forth 110 percent when it comes to building out Internet Explorer 10 for Windows 8 Metro.

Mobile technology, smart strategies help drive Citrix
MiamiHerald.com
Innovations in mobile technology and a smart acquisition strategy contributed to the South Florida tech company's strong earnings growth and global expansion. The goal is to help people work and play — from anywhere. Here is a small sampling of ...

Report: Tablets Helping Improve News Consumption
ABC News
Mobile technology appears to be increasing the public appetite for news but it's far from clear whether the news industry will profit from that, a study issued Monday concluded. The Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, ...

Tech companies 'control the future of news'
Forbes
Meanwhile, the report says, tech companies like Facebook and Google “are using personal data collected over the internet to direct ads to specific consumers to a far greater degree than ever before – and to a far greater degree than most news ...

Pew: Tablets increase news consumption, not necessarily profits
Kansas City Star
By DAVID BAUDER AP Television Writer Mobile technology appears to be increasing the public appetite for news but it's far from clear whether the news industry will profit from that, a study issued Monday concluded. The Pew Research Center's Project for ...

Recon Technology Introduces Baker Hughes Frac-Point(TM) System to Sinopec
MarketWatch (press release)
BEIJING, March 19, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Recon Technology, Ltd (UTD:RCON) , a Chinese non-state-owned oil and gas automation services provider (the "Company"), announced today that one of its variable interest entities, Beijing BHD Petroleum ...

Technology and Financial Consulting Services Firms Join NetSuite Solution ...
MarketWatch (press release)
SAN MATEO, Calif., March 19, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- NetSuite Inc. (NYSE:N) , the industry's leading provider of cloud-based financials / ERP software suites, today announced the latest technology and financial consulting services firms to join ...

InRule Technology® Previews InRule® for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 at ...
MarketWatch (press release)
CHICAGO, Mar 19, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- InRule Technology, a Business Rule Management System provider for Microsoft, previewed InRule® for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 today at Convergence 2012, in Houston, TX. InRule® for Microsoft Dynamics CRM is ...

Comverse Technology, Inc. Announces Changes to the Verint Systems Board of ...
MarketWatch (press release)
NEW YORK, Mar 19, 2012 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) -- Comverse Technology, Inc. ("CTI") (NASDAQ:CMVT) , a global leader in BSS, mobile Internet and value-added services, today announced that three members of CTI's management have resigned from the Board ...

SquareTwo Financial Tech Team Launches Proprietary System to Drive Company's ...
MarketWatch (press release)
"This new technology is one of the most important factors separating our company from the competition, and our talented information technology team deserves all of the credit for its development and implementation." The company's IT team is lead by ...

GSA South Carolina: Chicago Tech Awarded GSA, Will Service Federal Agencies
MarketWatch (press release)
To companies that depend on Technology to empower their business, Chicago Tech is a partner that delivers IT and Telecom Asset Management, freeing them from the complexity of managing technology. Specializing in high tech equipment, Chicago Tech also ...

BioShaft Water Technology Wins Multiple Orders in the Middle East
MarketWatch (press release)
LAKE FOREST, Calif., Mar 19, 2012 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) -- BioShaft Water TechnologyInc. (OBB:BSHF) has been awarded several strategic industrial and domestic contracts to install its innovative wastewater treatment and recycling systems in the ...

China Tech: Will Higher Dividends Sweeten Tencent's Stock?
Forbes
Doug Young lives in Shanghai and writes about tech investment in China for Techonomy and atwww.youngchinabiz.com. Since everyone else is focusing on the rapidly slowing growth in the latest quarterly results from leading Internet company Tencent ...

Info-Tech Research Group Names Testuff an Emerging Player in the Software Test ...
MarketWatch (press release)
Info-Tech Research Group conducted a market evaluation of eight leading software test management (STM) companies. For this Vendor Landscape, Info-Tech focused on those vendors that have a strong market presence and/or have reputation presence among ...

Apple's dividend, buyback head up tech activity
MarketWatch
By Rex Crum, MarketWatch SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Apple Inc. took the tech-sector spotlight Monday as the most-valuable company in the world announced a new dividend payout and stock buyback plan. Before the market opened, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL ...

Technology may be eroding pilot skills
Chicago Tribune
Jon Hilkevitch: Getting Around Bio | E-mail | Recent columns But as the technologyhas advanced, automation has made it easy for pilots to become overdependence on the autopilot system, which is not infallible in terms of the risk of providing false...

Chicago Tribune

27 percent of Americans get news via mobile
msnbc.com
While technology may be adding to the appeal of traditional news, technology intermediaries are capturing even more of the digital revenue pie. In 2011, five technology giants (Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo and AOL) generated 68 percent of all ...

Pre-caffeine tech: Mobile news, weird 2012!
msnbc.com
Facebook, iPhone, Twitter and Wii. Technology evolves at the speed of light. Msnbc.com's techreporters look at the gadgets, games and innovations changing our world. That fella you bump into on the street with his eyes glued to his smartphone may just ...

Oracle's fiscal 3Q to provide gauge on technology
Boston.com
SAN FRANCISCO—Oracle's latest quarterly earnings should provide a peak at just how confident companies have become in the economy by their willingness to spend money on newtechnology. WHAT TO WATCH FOR: The report, due out after the stock market ...

Apple to pay dividend, start stock buybacks
Boston.com
By Peter Svensson AP Technology Writer / March 19, 2012 NEW YORK—Apple Inc. is finally using its $98 billion cash hoard to reward shareholders, saying it's instituting both a dividend and share buyback program. Investors' expectation that Apple would ...

Boston.com

Is a Tech Revival Happening on the TSX Venture Exchange?
Sacramento Bee
On February 10th, for instance, four of the top ten volume traders on the TSX Venture Exchange were technology related, including the top three traders. So who are these previously little-known issues that are now trading millions of shares?

Mobile Boosts News Audience, But Tech Cos. Grab Ad Revs
MediaPost Communications
by Mark Walsh, 1 minutes ago The spread of mobile technology has been a boon for news consumption, bolstering the appeal of traditional news brands and even expanding long-form journalism. More than a quarter of Americans (27%) get news on mobile ...

Tech Test Drive: 7-inch tablets
San Jose Mercury News
By CNet.com With roughly half the screen area of 10-inch tablets like the iPad, 7-inch tablets offer a smaller, more convenient size. Paperback-like dimensions also make them a natural fit for e-books. Find the right one for you.

Infrax Systems (IFXY) Announces Final Record Date and Dividend Rate for ...
MarketWatch (press release)
The change in the dividend rate was based on the completed internal valuation of LockwoodTechnology and an estimated IPO price range of $1 to $3 per share (price not guaranteed; it is based on market condition, Lockwood's revenue, and investor demand) ...

Friends Don't Let Friends Overuse Technology
MarketWatch (press release)
The organization recently spread its message to many of society's greatest technology addicts at Austin's 2012 SXSW Interactive Festival. There, Reboot organized an official SXSW Interactive panel, "Tech Detox, Can You Survive a Day without Technology?

Comm-Works Opens The Experience Center, a Business Technology Showcase
MarketWatch (press release)
MINNEAPOLIS, Mar 19, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Comm-Works, a global technology integrator for multi-site organizations, recently opened The Experience Center, a 1000-square-foot space within its headquarters for clients to explore an expanding array of ...

Emerging Markets for High Tech Ideas
By Scott Shane
While markets for technology remain a very tiny share of all economic activity – the World International Patent Organization (WIPO) reports that they totaled approximately 1/3 of 1 percent of world GDP in 2009 – they are growing very rapidly.
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