Megaupload closure hits legitimate users

January 23rd, 2012

Following Megaupload being temporarily shut down, it now looks like many other file sharing websites are shutting down world wide due to a US Government led crackdown on piracy.

Unfortunately this is hitting legitimate users of these websites who are now unable to access their files.

Steve Su, an academic in Perth was caught out by the closure of Megaupload.

“It’s like confiscating everyone’s mobile phone because terrorists used them,” he said. “I don’t think it’s correct to penalise the technology because, based on that logic, shouldn’t the internet be taken down, as this is how people infringe copyright?”

You can read more over at theage.com.au


Biggest ever online shopping spree

January 19th, 2012

PayPal has revealed the Christmas period was Australia’s busiest ever for online shopping.

PayPal did not announce much much money was spent, but did say there was double-digit growth in the amount of online transactions over the Christmas period compared to 2011.

PayPal spokesman Adrian Christie said today “It’s been the biggest online Christmas for transaction volume,”

“The week commencing December 5 (2011) was the biggest week we’ve seen at PayPal Australia in regards to processing secure payments.”

Mr Christie said roughly 70% of online purchases were made with Australian stores.

You can read more over at the Sydney Morning Herald.


Google releases year in review video

December 16th, 2011

Google has sorted through the years most popular search terms and come up a video capturing everything we were interested in in 2011.

Check out the video below.


Useful keyboard shortcuts

December 2nd, 2011

In light of a recent Google survey which found 1 in 10 users don’t know what CTRL – F does, theage.com.au has come up with a list of handy keyboard shortcuts.

Before I list some of them, you may be wondering what CTRL – F does. It’s used to search for text on a page. Give it a go now by searching for a word on this blog post.

“CTRL-C: to copy text

CTRL-V: to paste text

CTRL-Z: to undo a command

SHIFT-CTRL-Z: to redo the command above”

If you’re using a Mac, use the Apple command key instead of CTRL.

For a full list of handy shortcuts, check out theage.com.au

 


Samsung smartphones outsell Apple

November 2nd, 2011

Analyst estimates show Apple sold 17.1 million iPhones in the third quarter of the financial year, 3 million less than expected. Samsung shipped almost 10 million more smartphones, with 27 million sold.

This is the first time Samsung has shipped more smartphones than usual smartphone sales leader, Apple.

You can read more at theage.com.au

How to deal with email overload

October 19th, 2011

The Age has some tips on how to better deal with email overload in your inbox, something a lot of us are very familar with.

Personally, I use a few different email accounts.

One I use solely for work, and I don’t use or publish it anywhere away from the work environment.

One I use for family and friends.

Lastly, I have an account I use when signing up to websites, or if a company needs my email. Generally this is where emails of no importance end up!

You can check out all the tips by clicking here.

 


Strong demand for iPhone 4S

October 11th, 2011

There has been strong demand for the Apple iPhone 4S, with upwards of 1 million pre orders of the device in the USA.

You can read more at theage.com.au


Microsoft bug inadvertently removes Google Chrome browser from PCs

October 4th, 2011

Due to a bug in Microsoft Security Essentials, Google Chrome was incorrectly identified as malware, with the security software removing it leaving users without a copy of the browser on their PC.

The bug has since been fixed and Google Chrome is no longer being removed.

You can read more over at theage.com.au


Facebook denies tracking users

September 28th, 2011

Earlier in the week, Nik Cubrilovic, an Australian technologist, claimed Facebook was using cookies to track what users were doing, even after they had logged out of Facebook.

However, Facebook has released a written statement, saying:

“Facebook does not track users across the web. Instead, we use cookies on social plug-ins to personalise content (e.g. show you what your friends liked), to help maintain and improve what we do (e.g. measure click-through rate), or for safety and security (e.g. keeping underage kids from trying to sign up with a different age). No information we receive when you see a social plug-in is used to target ads, we delete or anonymise this information within 90 days, and we never sell your information.”

You can read more over at theage.com.au


iPhone 5 to be unveiled October 4?

September 23rd, 2011

A report from AllThingsD’s John Paczkowski, citing anonymous sources, claims the iPhone 5 is set to be unveiled on the 4th of October, US time.

A spokesman from Apple declined to comment on the rumour.

You can read more at theage.com.au