High-tech immigration reform--will Washington dither and kill the Golden Goose?

Silicon Valley wants voice in high-tech immigration reform - SiliconValley.com: "Technology-focused immigration has reshaped Silicon Valley diversity and boosted its economic output, but for years the tech world has clamored for upgrading U.S. visa laws enacted when the World Wide Web was still a lab project. The flaring immigration debate on Capitol Hill is inspiring hope of reform. . . . "The valley will only hold this allure for a limited period of time. Gold rushes happen and disappear," said Rust, 29, who struggled to shift from a temporary work visa to permanent U.S. residency and now runs an emerging telecommunications firm. This year may bring a rare opening for immigration legislation that could again shape the Bay Area's high-tech economy, and Silicon Valley figures big and small are raising their voices. Everyone from Rust to Marissa Mayer, the CEO of Yahoo (YHOO), has been flying to Washington, D.C., in recent days to offer suggestions to President Barack Obama and congressional leaders. Nearly 23 years have passed since America's last major shift in legal immigration, a 1990 law that added employment-based visas including a temporary one -- the H-1B for highly skilled workers -- to the pathways into the United States. Compare our partisan dithering to Canada, Rust says. It announced a new visa targeting startup entrepreneurs last month, and his native United Kingdom launched its foreign entrepreneur magnet in 2011, beating Americans to an idea first introduced but never passed. "The only reason the valley has held on to this (success) for so long is because of the glut of talent here," said Rust, "and it's unlikely that will hold if we continue to be almost malicious in our behavior toward immigrants.". . . . "

Wolverton: Microsoft's Surface Pro tablet is a pricey disappointment - SiliconValley.com: "For those eager to embrace the tablet era but who need to keep a foot in the PC past, Microsoft's new Surface Windows 8 Pro would seem to be the perfect device. It's a tablet that runs a full version of the latest Microsoft Windows operating system. It has a touch screen that takes advantage of Windows' new tile-based interface and can run the new touch-centric Windows apps. And it also has a version of the traditional Windows desktop interface and can run all your old Windows programs. But instead of being the ideal computer for the post-PC era, the Surface Pro is a pricey, unsatisfactory gadget that's not well suited for any of its potential uses."

Windows Phone Exec Tweets From Android Smartphone
InformationWeek
Microsoft's Joe Belfiore caused a minor flap over the weekend when he published a tweet from anAndroid smartphone. Joe Belfiore, who runs the team that designs Microsoft's Windows Phoneplatform, shared his excitement about the Nokia Lumia 620 over ...

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ZDNet
It's been more than four months since Apple introduced iOS 6, but for many iPhone and iPad users Wi-Fi problems are still lingering on and new network problems have appeared with the 6.1 upgrade. iOS61 Due to Wi-Fi, 3G, and Exchange problems you may ...

ZDNet

Get an HTC Droid DNA smartphone for $49.99
CNET
Both are staples of Android phones, and among the reasons buyers choose them instead of iPhones. Et tu, HTC? Et tu? If you can live with those shortcomings, this is a great deal on what's universally regarded on a killer smartphone. Hit the comments ...

HTC M7 may debut as HTC One
CNET (blog)
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40% of BlackBerry 10 apps are repackaged Android APKs
IntoMobile
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Google Chrome Blog: The HP Pavilion 14 Chromebook
It's an exciting time in computing. Now more than ever, you have so many choices when it comes to software, hardware and services. With Chromebooks, people ...
chrome.blogspot.com/.../the-hp-pavilion-14-chromebook.html

HTC Battles Tough Smartphone Market

Wall Street Journal (blog)
HTC has come a long way down from 2010, when it was the top seller of Androidphones in the U.S. and considered a hip brand because of its early adoption of the Windows and Android operating systems. Now it's being squeezed by Samsung and Apple in ...

Microsoft and Huawei of China to Unite to Sell Low-Cost Windows Smartphones ...
New York Times
A month later, Microsoft said sales of Windows phones over the holidays were five times those of a year ago. Combined, Google's Android and Apple's iOS operating systems run about seven in 10 smartphones worldwide, with BlackBerry at 15 percent. But by ...

Smartphone, Tablet Stats Climb Worldwide
MediaPost Communications
europe, mobile, tablet. Smartphone penetration across the world's top 19 digital markets will double by 2015 to nearly 72%. During the same period, adoption of Internet-enabled TV sets will climb to 9% from 6.6%. Adoption of tablets and Internet ...

Asus unveils MeMO Pad Smart Android tablet
Telecompaper (subscription)
Asus has announced MeMO Pad Smart, a 10.1-inch Android 4.1 tablet with an NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor available for USD 299. Asus has also announced the Folio Key, an optional wrap-around protective cover for the MeMO Pad Smart that ...

Why Apple iOS-Driven Smartwatch Makes Sense
InformationWeek
The papers suggest the device will feature curved glass, will run Apple's iOS platform and will be compatible with the iPhone. It's about time. ... Sony and Motorola also both have smartwatches that work in conjunction with their Android smartphones ...

App Deals: iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows Phone
Lifehacker Australia
App Deals: iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows Phone. Angus Kidman Today 9:30 AM. Share Discuss Bookmark. A new week with newly-discounted apps. Prices go back up without warning, so be quick! This is a hand-picked selection of the best discounted ...

Windows Apps on Android, Android on BlackBerry, and an Ubuntu Phone
InfoQ.com
While most Android apps still support this version of the platform, that won't last for much longer. Another problem is that the Android developer has to be convinced that it is worth his time to submit the application to BlackBerry World, the ...

Nexus 4 Commercial Google Now - Business Insider
By Kevin Smith
REVIEW: Microsoft's New Tablet, The Surface Pro ... Google's New Commercial Shows OffAndroid's Superior Siri Competitor. Kevin Smith | Feb. 11, 2013 ... Google debuted a new ad for itsNexus 4 smartphone during the Grammys last night.
Business Insider

Google Nexus 10 Tablet - Android Forums at AndroidCentral.com
Google Nexus 10 Tablet - Everything you need to know about the Google Nexus 10 tablet.
forums.androidcentral.com/google-nexus-10-tablet/

Kindle Fire Top Android Tablet
iProgrammer
For example, I Programmer's own analytics show the Nexus 7 as the top Android tablet closely followed by the Galaxy Nexus with the Kindle Fire hardly registering at less than 0.1% of the Nexus7 traffic. It could be that Kindle Fire users aren't ...
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