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Wednesday, September 18, 2013

How To Switch Off Apple's iPhone Tracking System In iOS 7 (AAPL)

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-switch-off-idfa-iphone-tracking-in-ios-7-2013-6

angry iphone sad woman question

Apple introduced a couple of new things for advertisers in its upcoming iPhone operating system update, iOS 7.

First, it forced more advertisers to use its iPhone tracking system, IDFA (sometimes called IFA), which stands for ID for Advertisers.

Second, it rearranged the settings on your iPhone so that it's actually easier to switch off the tracking if you don't want advertisers to get your personal data.

Most people don't even know their iPhones track what they do and send that data to advertisers. And Apple makes the iPhone and iOS 7 with tracking in a default "on" position.

If you want to switch it off, here's what you have to do.

Go to the settings app on your iPhone. Now tap on the section labeled "Privacy." (This is actually a big change for Apple. In iOS 6, the tracking options were not under "Privacy," they were under "General" — where most people were unlikely to see them.)

Next tap on the section labeled "Advertising."

This brings up the "Limit Ad Tracking" option. Move the slider button to "on." Yes, it's confusing: To switch ad tracking off, you have to move the "Limit Ad Tracking" to on. Advertisers love this counterintuitive mechanism because most people either don't touch it — in which case tracking is on by default — or they get the on/off decision wrong, leaving the tracking on when they've switched it to off.

Here's a visual walk-through.

1. Go to Settings and hit "Privacy":

IDFA ios 7

2. Next tap on "Advertising":

IDFA ios 7

3. Finally, switch "Limit Ad Tracking" to the "on" position:

IDFA ios 7

SEE ALSO: Apple Wants More Advertisers To Use Its iPhone Tracking System

SEE ALSO: Apple Has Quietly Started Tracking iPhone Users Again, And It's Tricky To Opt Out

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drag2share: iPhone 5s review

source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/17/iphone-5s-review/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi

Forward-thinking. It's ironic that Apple's marketing slogan for the iPhone 5s invites us to look ahead to the future when, from the outside, the device looks like a carbon copy of last year's model, the iPhone 5. But just like any other odd-year iPhone -- the "S" version, if you will -- the 5s plays the Transformers card by offering more than meets the eye, with a few key improvements on the inside.

Though it's easy to dismiss this handset as iterative, the 5s is the first smartphone with full 64-bit support and a capacitive fingerprint sensor, and it also ships with a fresh, revamped version of iOS. This might not matter to folks who were content with the status quo, but it matters a lot to Apple -- and to the company's future as well -- especially if the company wants to fend off an increasingly fierce pack of competitors. But is a "forward-thinking" phone worth the investment today? %Gallery-slideshow85056%

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drag2share: Google invites iOS users to experience data compression with Chrome

source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/17/google-ios-chrome-data-compression/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi

Like it or not, thinking about every megabyte is essential for smartphone owners hoping to keep their monthly usage from topping whatever tier they've purchased. The nasty, unbecoming world of data caps isn't changing in the near-term, and Google knows it. Following in the footsteps of Opera, the outfit's Chrome browser for iOS is evidently equipped with a data compression feature that's engineered to save precious bytes when browsing via mobile. This technology has existed for some time, but it's just now being rolled out en masse to those with an iPhone. We're told that it "compresses and minimizes HTML, JavaScript and CSS resources, removing unnecessary whitespace, comments and other metadata not essential to rendering the pages," which can reduce data usage by up to 50 percent on certain sites. So, Apple -- thinking about tossing something similar under the hood of Mobile Safari?

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drag2share: Tesla's 'autopilot' car project targets 90 percent of miles driven, three years from now

source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/17/teslas-autopilot-car-project-targets-90-percent-of-miles-driv/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has discussed the company's ambitions to build a self-driving car on more than one occasion, and now he's revealed a bit more about its plans. After reports today about a job listing for an Advanced Driver Assistance Systems Controls Engineer, he spoke to the Financial Times and confirmed the company is working on a form of autopilot in-house. Expressing his opinion that fully autonomous cars may be a bit too difficult to achieve right now, he said Tesla "should be able to do 90 per cent of miles driven within three years." Other major car companies -- Mercedes, GM, Volvo and Continental, just to name a few -- have projects for either full or partial car self-control, but they're still under development for reasons both technical and legal. Also hanging in the balance is Google's autonomous car project, although from Musk's statements it appears Tesla h as decided to go its own way on the technology. The three year target is an ambitious one, but we'll put this one somewhere between Iron Man and Hyperloop on the Musk scale.

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Zoho Docs for desktop syncs files on your PC with the cloud, brings offline editing

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/18/zoho-docs-for-desktop/

You've likely been taking advantage of Zoho's mobile apps and the service's Google Drive integration if you use its office suite. Well, now the company has also released a Zoho Docs for desktop client that syncs files saved on its cloud with a Mac, Windows or Linux computer. It also works in reverse, so files saved on your PC will sync with the cloud -- even documents edited offline, now that the feature's been added, will sync once you connect to the internet. While you can cherry-pick folders to synchronize, it's also possible to set up the client to update all your Zoho documents in all connected devices simultaneously. That includes workspaces you share with teammates, which instantly reflect the changes anyone in the group makes. We're sure faithful Google Drive users won't even bat an eyelash at this update, but those who still use Zoho Docs extensively can click the source link to download the client for free.

Filed under: Internet

Source: Zoho Blog, Zoho Support

YouTube's mobile apps will add true offline viewing in November

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/18/youtube-mobile-apps-offline-viewing-november/

YouTube's Android app added the ability to watch precached videos (while still online) last summer, but Google's video streaming unit isn't stopping there. A post tonight on its Partners & Creators informed video makers that viewing of stored videos with no internet connection is coming soon. According to the blog the feature is coming to its mobile apps -- following up on the recent updates on Android and iOS -- in November, and will let viewers store videos for disconnected viewing for a "short time." We don't know if that consists of minutes, hours or days at a time but we'll keep an eye out for more details -- perhaps this is what the team that used to work on video responses has been up to.

Filed under: Internet, Mobile, Google

Source: YouTube Creators Blog

BlackBerry Z30 official: 5-inch Super AMOLED display, 1.7GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro, 2,880mAh battery and BB 10.2

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/18/blackberry-z30-official/

If you were paying attention to the late summer leaks, then the BlackBerry above won't strike you as a surprise. That's because it's the newly announced BlackBerry Z30, the official successor to the all-touch Z10, and it matches up quite closely to what we've already seen. The Z30 is the company's first smartphone to ship with version 10.2 of the BB 10 OS (yes, the naming scheme is a bit confusing) and arrives with a larger 5-inch, 1,280 x 720 Super AMOLED display. The device's pixel density of 295ppi may pale in comparison to the more diminutive Z10's 356ppi, but its internals are a different matter.

The Z30 takes a modest spec step up with a dual-core 1.7GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro (paired with 2GB RAM) and Adreno 320 GPU, putting its performance somewhat on par with the Nexus 4 and Moto X (sans the X8). There's also a beefier 2,880mAh battery inside, which the company claims is a first for its product line and, this time around, it's integrated (read: non-removable). In terms of dimensions, the Z30 comes in with nearly the same silhouette as its predecessor (9.4mm vs 9.3mm), but is substantially taller and wider at 140.7mm x 72mm owing to that 5-inch display. Internal storage remains at 16GB, but users will have the option of augmenting that via microSD. And, as for radios, the Z30 will support 4G LTE (exact bands haven't been specified), dual-band WiFi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC. The Z30's camera setup appears mostly similar to the Z10's, with a 2-megapixel front facer capable of 720p video and an 8-megapixel rear module with an f2.2 lens that captures video in 1080p. %Gallery-slideshow85069%

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Blackberry

drag2share: 'Infinity Blade III' hits the App Store ahead of iOS 7 release

source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/18/infinity-blade-iii-available-iphone-ipad-ipod-touch/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi

After almost a two-year wait, a new Infinity Blade game has hit the App Store. Chair Entertainment's Infinity Blade III ($6.99/£4.99), the third and final chapter in the Apple-exclusive trilogy, has been designed to get the most from the iPhone 5s' new 64-bit architecture. Available as a universal app (supported by devices running iOS 6.0 and up), the game features new rendering effects, including depth of field, blur and full-screen vignettes, utilizing the same tap-to-move controls from the previous two instalments. If the cancelation of Infinity Blade Dungeons left a dragon-shaped hole in ! your lif e, today's release might just fill it until the next season of Game of Thrones.

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Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Here's The 'Star Trek Command Center' That NSA Chief Keith Alexander Used To Woo Politicians

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-us-army-star-trek-command-center-2013-9

star trek nsa

An extensive profile of NSA Chief Keith Alexander by Shane Harris of Foreign Policy mentions an "Information Dominance Center" in Fort Belvoir, Virginia that was designed to look like the 'Starship Enterprise' spacecraft from Star Trek.

As commanding general of U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) from 2001 to 2003, Alexander oversaw the Trekkie setup and used it to woo policymakers.

From Foreign Policy:

... Alexander brought many of his future allies down to Fort Belvoir for a tour of his base of operations, a facility known as the Information Dominance Center. It had been designed by a Hollywood set designer to mimic the bridge of the Starship Enterprise from Star Trek, complete with chrome panels, computer stations, a huge TV monitor on the forward wall, and doors that made a "whoosh" sound when they slid open and closed. Lawmakers and other important officials took turns sitting in a leather "captain 's chair" in the center of the room and watched as Alexander, a lover of science-fiction movies, showed off his data tools on the big screen.

"Everybody wanted to sit in the chair at least once to pretend he was Jean-Luc Pic! ard, " says a retired officer in charge of VIP visits.

Glenn Greenwald of The Guardian found what appears to be photographs of the 10,740 square foot headquarters on the website of DBI Architects, Inc. (which is "currently experiencing a high volume of traffic").

The brochure reportedly boasts that "the prominently positioned chair provides the commanding officer an uninterrupted field of vision to a 22'-0" wide projection screen."

star terk nsa

SEE ALSO: An Obscure 'Evil Genius' Engineer Was Instrumental To the NSA's Expansion

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Eton's New Boost Turbines Double (or Quadruple) Your Battery Life

Source: http://gizmodo.com/etons-new-boost-turbines-double-or-quadruple-your-ba-1279891344

Eton's New Boost Turbines Double (or Quadruple) Your Battery Life

Unless you own a RAZR MAXX, chances are good that your phone's battery is going to die by the end of the day. So you can either gird yourself for another fun-filled bus ride staring out the window or you can get the one of Eton's three new Boost Turbine backup batteries.

ASUS' new PadFone Infinity unveiled with Snapdragon 800, microSD slot and design tweaks

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/17/the-new-padfone-infinity-snapdragon-800/

Just as promised, today ASUS has made its new PadFone Infinity official in Taipei, and there are definitely no surprises in the specs. The main update here is obviously the 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 SoC, along with the addition of a microSD slot plus a secondary microphone for noise cancellation. Unsurprisingly, the internal storage options have been lowered to 16GB and 32GB, which is understandable with that new storage expansion capability.

One very subtle change that we missed in the leaks is the new diamond cut on the metallic backside, which gives the phone a more premium and solid look than the original version. To accompany that, the new PadFone Infinity comes in two new color options: "Titanium Black" and "Platinum White."

The software has also been given a gentle facelift, courtesy of a more consistent design language throughout the system -- from the simplified icons to the UI of some of the built-in Android apps. Since this is based on Android 4.2 instead of 4.1 out of the box, we should also see some performance boost as well. The good news for existing users is that the original PadFone Infinity will also receive this update, but there's no time frame for the roll-out just yet. %Gallery-slideshow84453%

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile, ASUS

Fujifilm's X-A1 mirrorless ILC arriving this month with 16.3-megapixel APS-C sensor, $600 price

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/17/fujifilm-x-a1-mirrorless-entry-level-ilc-camera/

Fujifilm is swelling its retro-tastic line of X-Series cameras with the X-A1, an entry level model for wannabe photojournalists worldwide. The shooter comes with a 16.3-megapixel APS-C CMOS, although be warned that this isn't the X-Trans sensor that made the X-Pro 1 and X-M1 so alluring -- that's been reserved for the high-end. Instead, you'll get wireless image transfer, a 3-inch 920k-dot tilting LCD and five film simulation modes. Video-wise, the unit will shoot 1080p clips at 30fps, capturing sound with its built-in stereo microphone. The retail package will come with a f/3.5-5.6 24-76mm equivalent kit lens with optical image stabilization, and will set you back $600 when it lands later this month.

Filed under: Cameras

drag2share: The 5 Most Dangerous Celebrities To Search For Online

source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/8CR59qUlCS4/lily-collins-tops-list-of-most-dangerous-celebrities-to-search-online-2013-9

Lily Collins

NEW YORK (AP) — If you're curious about Lily Collins and head to the Internet to find out, beware — McAfee has ranked the actress as the most dangerous celeb to search for online.

Collins— who starred in movies such as "Mirror, Mirror" and "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" — posed the biggest risk of landing on a malicious site, according the computer security company; last year Emma Watson topped the list.

Female celebrities were the overwhelming lure to malware; Avril Lavigne, Sandra Bullock, Kathy Griffin and Zoe Saldana rounded out the top five; "Mad Men" star Jon Hamm was the only man in the top 10.

A person could be led to malware after doing a general search and clicking on dubious links, but risks increased when searchers added phrases like "free apps" or "nude photos."

Copyright (2013) Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Article: How Intel will bring a “good enough” tablet to the US market by Christmas—for less than $100

Intel is about to do something that would have seemed crazy under previous CEOs: the company will start competing at the lowest end of the microprocessor market. This is a company that built its reputation, and its manufacturing infrastructure—hugely expensive and unique among makers of microproc...

http://qz.com /124393/intel-100-tablet-by-christmas/

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Article: Privacy breach or public safety? Teens' Facebook posts monitored by school district

GLENDALE, Calif. (AP) - A Southern California school district is trying to stop cyberbullying and a host of other teenage ills by monitoring the public posts students make on social media outlets in a program that has stirred debate about what privacy rights teenage students have when they fire u...

http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/privacy-breach-or-public-safety-teens-facebook-posts-monitored-school-8C11167659

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