Business

Microsoft responds to YouTube demands, ‘more than happy’ to include ads if Google allows it

As reported on The Verge. By Tom Warren Following Google’s demands for Microsoft to remove its Windows Phone YouTube app, Microsoft has responded saying it’s happy to include advertising. Google sent a cease and desist letter to Microsoft recently, with concerns that the Windows Phone YouTube app does not display ads. “We’d be more than happy to include advertising but need Google to provide us access to the necessary APIs,” says a Microsoft spokesperson. Microsoft appears to…

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Application Business

PayPal’s Cash For Registers Tries To Outdo Square And Groupon With Its Own Bid To Rule The Register

As reported on TechCrunch. by INGRID LUNDEN PayPal today announced Cash for Registers to encourage merchants to switch to PayPal-powered point-of-sale solutions. The program is part of the payment giant’s bid to be the kingpin among local merchants looking for lower-cost ways of accepting credit card payments. The announcement comes on the same day that Square launched Stand to complement its Square register product on iPad tablets and Groupon expanded and rebranded its mobile point-of-sale solution asBreadcrumb. In exchange for local…

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Google

Google’s Products Are Just By-Products Of Its Quest For Tomorrow

As reported on TechCrunch. by JOSH CONSTINE Google isn’t about search, apps or devices. Those are just vehicles, and there’s no destination. That’s because Larry Page’s Google is on an unending pursuit of the future, not just next quarter’s earnings. The scattershot of projects Google revealed today at I/O had just one unifying factor: They further that pursuit, or empower the curiosity of others. Google is lucky. It takes a lot of fuel to shoot for the moon. Fuel…

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Business

Samsung estimated to make 95 percent of Android device profits.

As reported on Engadget. By Jon Fingas Yes, we all know that Android has the prevailing device market share right now, but which companies in that group are actually making money? According to Strategy Analytics’ estimates for Q1, it’s Samsung… and virtually no one else. With $5.1 billion of Samsung’s $7.9 billion operating profit last quarter believed to have come from Android, the Korean firm reportedly accounted for 94.7 percent of Android’s hardware profit engine. The only other company that…

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Application Google

Redesigned Google Maps hands-on: vector-based, more personal and coming soon to mobile

As reported on Engadget. By Darren Murph According to Bernhard Seefeld, product management director at Google Maps, “this is the most significant overhaul of Maps since it launched in 2005.” We sat down with both Seefeld as well as Jonah Jones — lead designer of Google Maps — following a marathon keynote to kick off Google I/O. Their slice of the event centered around the desktop refresh of Google Maps, but there’s actually a lot more to be excited about…

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Google

Google Play Music All Access: Android / US-only rollout is just the start

As reported on Engadget. By Darren Murph Nearly two years ago to the day, Google introduced Music Beta at I/O 2011. But in reality, it was little more than a gigantic cloud to store 20,000 of your favorite tracks. Despite a plethora of rumors that the search giant would beat Spotify to the punch by launching a subscription-based music service in the United States, we got a digital locker that has done little to distract most listeners…

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Entertainment

Light up your Converse All-Stars with Adafruit’s DIY tutorial (video)

As reported on Engadget. By Melissa Grey If you missed out on the L.A. Lights craze of the early ’90s, fear not — there’s hope for you yet. Adafruit’s DIY enhancement for Converse All-Stars takes customized kicksto a whole new level with the science of electroluminescence. To light up the star on your Chucks, all you need is a pair of EL panels, tiny inverters (like a coincell or AAA battery type), some common household tools and…

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Military

What Torture Charges? Special Ops Chief Says Afghan Relations Are ‘Great’

As reported on Wired. BY NOAH SHACHTMAN Adm. William McRaven at a ceremony in 2011. Photo: DoD   It’s been a brutal few days in Afghanistan. On Sunday, the local government accused an American special operator of torturing an Afghan civilian.  On Monday, the Hamid Karzai administration insisted that U.S. warplanes killed 17 women and children. Then, on Tuesday, three more U.S. troops were killed by an improvised bomb, bringing the total to 17 slain in this awful month alone.…

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Entertainment Review

‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ review: boldly going back to the future

As reported on The Verge. By Bryan Bishop J.J. Abrams’ latest keeps looking back when it could be forging ahead In 2009 J.J. Abrams reimagined Star Trek, turning Gene Roddenberry’s near-utopian vision into a high-octane summer action ride. Rather than simply creating a prequel, however, Abrams opted to fork the Trek universe with a bit of time travel trickery and some heavy lifting from Leonard Nimoy. The result was a massive hit that set the stage for a new…

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Google

I/O 2013: One Google, Under Page, With Unification And Usability For All

As reported on TechCrunch. by DREW OLANOFF This is the evening before Google’s I/O developer conference and there’s already been quite a bit of chatter about what the company will announce and share at the conference. One important thing to note is that there will only be one keynote this year, a mega three-hour session where Google will talk to the attendees about all of the important things that have happened over the past year and what to…

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