News
Google tweaks Gmail to challenge Facebook, Twitter
February 9, 2010 9:48 am | CommentsGoogle Inc injected social networking features into its popular Web email product as the world's No. 1 search engine seeks to fend off competition from Facebook and Twitter. Google introduced a new product dubbed Google Buzz on Tuesday that allows users to quickly share messages, Web links and photos with friends and colleagues directly within Gmail...
ADP names Symantec CEO to its board
February 9, 2010 9:01 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsAutomatic Data Processing Inc., the world's biggest payroll processor, has named Symantec Corp. CEO Enrique Salem to its board.Salem, 44, will become the 12th director on its board. Symantec is a computer security company known for its Norton antivirus software.Shares of ADP, based in Roseland,...
Spain's Telefonica may charge search engines
February 9, 2010 8:35 am | CommentsSpanish telecoms operator Telefonica says it is considering charging Internet search companies like Google and Yahoo for network use. Speaking Monday at a press conference in the northern city of Bilbao, President Cesar Alierta said companies like Google use a lot of network bandwidth for free, something which was lucky for them but not for Telefonica.
Scientists find gene variant link to aging cells
February 9, 2010 8:32 am | CommentsScientists have found specific genetic variants which may explain why some people age earlier than others and say their findings have important implications for understanding cancer and age-related diseases. Dutch and British researchers analyzed more than 500,000 genetic variations from human gene maps and found that people with particular variants near a gene called TERC were likely to be biologically older by 3 to 4 years.
Internet prompts the publishing itch in over-60s
February 9, 2010 8:26 am | CommentsThe Internet is helping older British readers rekindle a love of books and writing, and an overwhelming majority of senior citizens see the medium as a positive development, according to a survey. Some 31 percent of people over 60 are keen to go online to publish short stories and join book clubs, the survey by charity Booktrust in Britain found.
Electronic Arts shares dive on weak outlook
February 9, 2010 8:18 am | CommentsA disappointing outlook from Electronic Arts Inc. sent shares of the video game publisher sharply lower Monday, a sign that significant cost-cuts and layoffs have not ended the company's slump. The company, whose games include the popular "Madden" series and "Mass Effect 2," said Monday it narrowed its net loss in the last quarter even as game sales declined. It blamed the revenue falloff on having fewer titles than it did in the 2008 holiday period. EA also cited weak sales in Europe, which accounts for about a third of its revenue.
Zebra posts 4Q profit of $17.6 million
February 9, 2010 8:01 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsZebra Technologies Corp. made a profit in the fourth quarter, free of the one-time expenses that left it with a loss a year ago.The company, which makes bar code and plastic card printers, also offered a first-quarter forecast above Wall Street expectations.Its shares rose 7 cents to $27.41 in...
General Dynamics receives $253M Army contract
February 9, 2010 8:01 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsDefense contractor General Dynamics Corp. said Tuesday it received a $253 million contract from the U.S. Army to provide logistics support for the Stryker family of combat vehicles.The contract will fund spare parts, maintenance of a spare-parts warehouse, repair-parts distribution and...
Iran's resistance keeps up cat-and-mouse Web game
February 9, 2010 7:26 am | CommentsWith their paths through the Internet increasingly blocked by government filters, Nooshin and her fellow Iranian opposition-supporters say their information on planned protests now comes in emails. They say they don't know who sends them.
Google warns Chinese knock-off to stop using logo
February 9, 2010 7:24 am | CommentsGoogle Inc has sent a cease and desist letter to the operators of a Chinese search website whose logo bears a close resemblance to its own. Goojje's home page is adorned with a Google-styled logo and the familiar paw print logo of China's top home-grown search engine, Baidu Inc.
MySpace Music experiments with audio ads
February 9, 2010 7:06 am | CommentsHoping to boost revenue, MySpace Music has begun experimenting with audio advertisements that users must hear if they want to listen to music for free online. The 30-second ads began appearing last week when users listen to songs on artist profiles, album pages, playlists and pop-out players. They expand on a trial that began in December.
Google reduces fee to break Nexus One contract
February 9, 2010 7:02 am | CommentsGoogle Inc. is shaving $200 off the fee that it charges customers of its new Nexus One phone to break a service contract with T-Mobile, as federal regulators continue to probe such fees and the rationale for them. Google's "equipment recovery fee" applies to customers who break their two-year T-Mobile contract after a 14-day trial period and before 120 days.
New Findings on Hot Quark Soup Produced at RHIC
February 9, 2010 5:53 am | by Brookhaven National Laboratory | CommentsScientists from Brookhaven Lab and the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), the world’s largest particle accelerator dedicated to nuclear physics research, will present compelling new findings about the nature of the “perfect” liquid created in near-light-speed collisions of gold ions at RHIC.
Cognizant 4Q earnings jump 28 percent
February 9, 2010 5:01 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsCognizant Technology posted surprisingly large numbers for profit and revenue Tuesday and topped the fourth-quarter report with a 2010 outlook that exceeded most expectations as technology spending rebounds.Company shares rose $1.74, or 4 percent, to $45.48 in premarket trading.Cognizant...
Conn's 4th-quarter sales figure falls 31.7 percent
February 9, 2010 5:01 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsConn's Inc., a regional consumer electronics retailer, said Tuesday a key sales comparison fell 31.7 percent in the 4th quarter, hurt by the weak economy, lower demand and also tough comparisons from a year ago related to weather.Total revenue for the quarter ended Jan.31 fell 30 percent to...
