March 2011

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After 40 Million Downloads, Microsoft Launches Internet Explorer 9

15 March 2011 2:08 AM

After 40 Million Downloads, Microsoft Launches Internet Explorer 9

After months of beta testing, has finally released the final version of Internet Explorer 9 to the masses.

Microsoft debuted the new browser at a launch event at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas. Dean Hachamovitch, the corporate vice president of Internet Explorer, told the story of how Microsoft built IE9 from scratch.

Microsoft launched the IE9 beta last year to generally positive reviews. Last month, Microsoft unveiled the IE9 release candidate. In total, the IE9 Beta and release code have already been downloaded more than 40 million times.

IE9 is not just an update to IE8, but a complete rebuild of Microsoft’s popular but maligned browser. It boasts radical speed and graphics improvements, thanks to its increased adherence to web standards and use of hardware acceleration. On stage, Hachamovitch touted its advanced support for HTML5 and its UI improvements. Everything from the back button to the taskbar has been revamped.

Microsoft is also touting IE9′s security features. Hachamovitch outlined the company’s take on privacy earlier this year at CES. IE9 includes tracking protection (its implementation of the “Do Not Track” list) and stronger filters against malware.

The final version of Internet Explorer 9 will be available for download at midnight ET/9:00 PM PT at beautyoftheweb.com.

source mashable.com

Microsoft Starts Countdown For IE6

7 March 2011 12:09 AM

With Internet Explorer 9 nearing launch and developers clamoring for HTML 5, the software maker is hoping the countdown will quicken the browser’s extinction.

Slideshow: Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 Beta Revealed

Microsoft has launched a countdown site to track what the software maker hopes is a sooner-than-later death for the 10-year-old Internet Explorer 6.

With IE 9 near completion, Microsoft said Friday its time for IE 6 fans to say bye bye to the trusted friend that clings to life despite being superseded by three generations of the Web browser. “C’mon IE6, it’s time for a modern Web, so nice knowing you and all that but … buhbye,” Steve Clayton, director of cloud strategy for Microsoft, said in the company’s blog.

Microsoft’s IE 6 Countdown site says 12% of worldwide Web users were surfing with the old brows as of the end of February. Asia is where the browser is used the most. China leads with more than 34% of Internet users still on IE 6.

Microsoft plans to continue with the countdown until IE 6 usage follows below 1%. A year ago, 21% of Web users were on the outdated browser.

Web site developers face the biggest problems in having IE 6 on life support. With so many people still using the browser, they have to continue to support it with older technology, while also programming with new technology for the younger browsers. Microsoft said IE 6 is one of the biggest hurdles developers face while trying to move the rest of the Web to HTML 5, the latest of the core markup language for Web sites. Among the best features of the new technology is the ability to play video on a page without the need for proprietary plug-ins.

Microsoft is also hot to get IE 6 users to upgrade to IE 9. The release candidate of the new browser shipped in February, marking the final milestone before it is officially released this year.

Microsoft is hoping IE 9 will reverse Internet Explorer’s slipping market share. In February 2009, IE’s various versions accounted for a collective 70% of the market. Today, they represent about 56%. The browser’s main rival for years has been Mozilla Firefox. More recently, Google Chrome has been gobbling up share.

Maintaining a dominant position is important to Microsoft because it means greater influence with developers.

Now in its fifth year, Web 2.0 Expo is for the builders of the next-generation Web: designers, developers, entrepreneurs, marketers, and business strategists. It happens March 28-31 in San Francisco. Register now.

Tragic last voyage of a titan of the sea: 45ft whale dies after being washed up on Kent beach

4 March 2011 5:39 PM

In its prime it would have majestically patrolled the waters as one of the world’s largest creatures.

But yesterday this stranded sperm whale cut a tragic sight, lying partially submerged in the sticky wet sand of the Kent coast.

The 45ft mammal was spotted at Pegwell Bay near Ramsgate in the morning. Rescuers were called, but experts later confirmed the creature had died. Thanet Council faces the task of removing the corpse.

Tragic: A Kent Coastguard and a police officer next to the dead body of a sperm whale, showing the scale of the 45ft-long mammal at Pegwell Bay in Kent
Tragic A Kent Coastguard and a police officer next to the dead body of a sperm whale, showing the scale of the 45ft-long mammal at Pegwell Bay in Kent.

Whale beachings are rarely explained. Scientists attribute them to natural and environmental factors such as rough weather, weakness due to old age, hunting too close to shore and navigation errors.
The public have shown great interest in the corpse but are advised to stay away from the beached whale due to health risks related to bacteria and its odour, a spokesman for the Maritime and Coastal Agency said.

“Our advice is to stay away as much as possible. It could be dangerous due to bacteria and it will probably get quite smelly,’ he said.’As the tide was on the flood, the advice was to leave it to see what happened when the water flooded around it.’It now appears to be completely expired.”


Stranded Whale beachings are rarely explained, although scientists attribute them, amongst other things, to old age and navigation errors.

Tragic last voyage of a titan of the sea: 45ft whale dies after being washed up on Kent beach.Grim discovery The huge whale was found dead early yesterday morning on the Kent coast.

A Thanet District Council spokeswoman said it was seeking advice from the Institute of Zoology to determine how best to move it but they were currently being hampered by the high tide.
A Kent Police spokeswoman said yesterday an officer was on the scene and authorities were also liaising with experts at London’s Natural History Museum, who may be called in to take samples of the sperm whale’s jawbone.

Like dolphins, sperm whales can carry tuberculosis and lung disease and so the public would be well advised to stay away from the corpse. Incidences of whales of this size washing up on the Kent coast are rare, a Kent Coastguard spokesman confirmed.

Tragic last voyage of a titan of the sea: 45ft whale dies after being washed up on Kent beachFailed attempt Animal experts waited for low tide to try and rescue the whale which sadly died.
Tragic last voyage of a titan of the sea: 45ft whale dies after being washed up on Kent beachWashed up The sperm whale was discovered dead on the beach at Pegwell Bay near Ramsgate.

The iPad 2

3 March 2011 4:23 PM

The iPad 2

Apple has just made its second-generation iPad official! It features a 1GHz dual-core A5 chip and, finally, cameras, both on the front and rear. The new CPU is said to be up to twice as fast, with graphics performance up to nine times better than on the original iPad, while power requirements have been kept the same. Battery life is, consequently, unaltered, with Apple promising 10 hours. Pricing, too, has been left unchanged, starting at $499 for a 16GB WiFi-only iPad 2 and stretching up to $829 for a WiFi + 3G SKU with 64GB of storage. The new tablet will come with an HDMI output capable of 1080p — which will set you back $39 for the requisite dongle, called an Apple Digital AV Adapter — but there will sadly be no rumblings of Thunderbolt connectivity here. What you will get is an enlarged speaker grille on the back, as expected, and the same 1024 x 768 resolution and IPS LCD screen technology as on the original iPad.

Update from Engadget: We’ve gotten our first hands-on with the iPad 2 and, boy oh boy, it’s fast! – awesome.

The iPad 2

720p video recording at 30fps will be on tap from the rear-facing camera, which can also do a 5x digital zoom if you’re into that kind of thing, whereas the front-facing imager will record at a more modest VGA resolution, also at 30fps.

There’s a new cover for the device, which is best defined by Steve Jobs himself: “We designed the case right alongside the product. It’s not a case — it’s a cover.” Basically, it’s a magnetic flap that protects the front and automatically wakes and puts the device to sleep according to whether it’s open or closed. Guess we know what that proximity sensor was about now. These Smart Covers will cost $39 in plastic or $69 if you opt for leather.

The iPad 2 is 33 percent thinner than its predecessor, at a mind-melting 8.8mm, and a little lighter at just over 600g, while paintjob options have been expanded: you’ll get a choice between white and black. It’ll be available on both AT&T and Verizon, and all variants start shipping on March 11th. Apple Retail Stores will start sales at the unusual hour of 5PM, which will probably make online pre-orders the fastest way to get yours.

The iPad 2

In terms of new software, Apple’s launching iOS 4.3 alongside the new iPad and bringing with it much improved Safari performance as well as FaceTime, Photo Booth, iMovie and GarageBand (the latter two costing $4.99 a piece) apps specifically for the newly camera-enriched iPad. Personal Hotspot capabilities are also arriving in the latest version of the OS, but they’ll be exclusive to the iPhone 4, so you won’t be able to share your 3G iPad’s connection. The minimum compatible version of iTunes for the new iPad 2 will be the freshly released 10.2.

The iPad 2

Justin Bieber’s Hair Sells for $40,668 on eBay

2 March 2011 7:38 PM

Justin Bieber’s Hair Sells for $40,668 on eBay (post)

Records, nail polish, movie tickets, hair: it’s official, Justin Bieber can sell anything. A lock of his freshly-chopped tresses, which he’d gifted to Ellen DeGeneres in a signed box the day after his much-buzzed-about cut, was put to auction on eBay last week, and today, sold for a whopping $40,668. The entire sum will be donated to animal rescue organization The Gentle Barn Foundation, per DeGeneres, and the winning bidder will get to meet the teen superstar the next time he appears on The Ellen Show. Bieber and DeGeneres shared a few silly Tweets leading up to his talk show appearance last week, with the host asking the singer to bring her a “surprise” when he visited. After receiving Bieber’s hair, DeGeneres immediately put it on eBay, and within an hour the bid was already up to $10,000. No word on who Wednesday’s winning bidder was just yet, but no doubt that today there’s one less lonely girl out there. –Kate Hogan

have your say in the comments below. ..If i could get $40,668 for my hair i’ll be selling it all!