Adobe Had it Coming: The Long, Slow Goodbye of Mobile Flash

Flash is not dead yet, but it certainly is not gaining with this announcement.

Microsoft issues temporary fix for critical Windows hole - Win7 and XP

Trojans attacking Windows 7? Yep. And XP too......

A flaw in the Win32k TrueType font-parsing engine affected every version of Windows from XP throughWindows 7. The vulnerability is related to the spread of the Duqu malware, a Stuxnet-like Trojan infecting computers via a Word document. "An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could run arbitrary code in kernel mode," the advisory warned. "The attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights."

Earl

A few thoughts on the passing of Steve Jobs

First, we knew it was coming.  This man's life was Apple, he's been ill for years, and his stepping down meant he probably wasn't doing too well.  Not knowing him personally, I can only speak to his professional legacy.  He was a true innovator.  He was a visionary and created products that made my life happier.    Many kids started out with an Apple II at home and or at school.  He brought the GUI to home users. Whether you have an iPhone or not, the currently available smart phones are a direct result of the innovation of the iPhone.  The same thing goes for the touch tablet revolution started with the iPad.  His friends and family will miss him on a personal level.  We will miss his innovation and enthusiastic keynotes.  Yes, watching a Steve Jobs keynote was like watching someone sell ice to Alaskans, but with a sincerity and an enthusiasm that allowed you to forgive him for exaggerating just a little.  So RIP Steve Jobs.  I for one will miss you.  Ironically I'm wearing the right thing for the occasion.  It is a cool fall day and I'm wearing blue jeans and a black turtleneck.  It seems fitting.

Web Browser Grand Prix 7: Firefox 7, Chrome 14, Opera 11.51

I remember that there was a time, after the death of Netscape, that there was no great or even superior rival on the Windows side to IE. MS, though they denied it had been successful in quashing their most prominent rival. They won by integrating their browser so tightly into Windows that to this day it is pretty impossible not to use IE in some capacity at some time if you are a Windows user. This in spite of the MS malaise that allowed IE six to live on and on well past its prime.

So, today we have some real and viable browser choices. Tom's Hardware has tested those choices and announced a winner. Chrome is coming on so fast; but I don't want to give away the winner, even though it was by a nose, so I can't say more. Go read the article.

MagicJack app brings totally free calling to iOS | iPhone Atlas

If we were doing the show, I would definitely be checking this out for the app corner. The concept seems better than the execution right now, but the concept certainly is intriguing.

Microsoft kills Google Chrome with bad malware signature

Deleting the browser of one of your most successful rivals is a noteworthy oops. Hey if you are going to foul up, go really, really big.

IDC - Analyst Profile

I wondered about Bob O'Donnell in my previous post. Wonder no more. I'm glad to see him doing to well. Yes, this is the same person.

WTG, Bob!

Dell shrugs off harbingers of PC doom

I agree with this article. A tablet is a nice portable device, but it doesn't take the place of a desktop. In some instances it doesn't even take the place of a laptop. The PC is not dead.

Dell is certainly poised to be the winner here, but I personally wonder if Win 8 jeopardize that? Like Vista, if the OS is a flop (and it is poised to be unless we can fully turn of Metro on the desktop without crippling the OS) it will hurt MS Partners, too. Remember back when they offered an XP option when you bought a Vista machine? Companies like Dell had to do that or lose sales. Will they have to do that with Windows 8, too?

As a bonus, I wonder if the Bob O'Donnell in the article is the same guy we used to listen to together. I can't prove it, but I bet he is.

Well, read the article and see what you think.

Netflix goes from bad to worse

From the article: Netflix's woes took a strange twist on Sunday night, in an 11:59 p.m. EDT blog post by CEO Reed Hastings. "I messed up", he begins. Yeah, based on subscriber losses and punishing shareholders, Hasting puts it mildly. The gist is this: After jacking up the price of combined DVD rentals and streaming by an astonishing 60 percent, Hastings presents an unexpected solution: Netflix is splitting its streaming and DVD rental business into two operations.

My thoughts are summed up as this: In other news, CEO attempts to put lipstick on a pig...

5 deal-breaking flaws in Windows 8

I agree with this article. I absolutely love Window 7. In fact I talk about it little, not because it is bad, but because it is trouble free. It works. So I'm not in anti-MS mode. I live in a world that happily accommodates both iOS and Windows.

Now MS wants to enter the brave "old" world (after all the iPad is 1.5 years old) and has tacked a touchscreen interface on the front of what still looks like Win 7, sort of. It is a jarring and unpleasant experience. I read through the comments on this article and I laughed then I got to the one that simply asked "Microsoft Bob 2?". That nails it. If not Bob then consider this. If Vista was Me 2, maybe this is Me 3?

There is still time MS. Please reconsider and give us the choice to bypass Metro entirely. Make it a touch-tablet option. You can do it MS. Don't shoot yourself in the foot again.

If you are wondering I did download and run the Win 8 preview on Virtual Box (a virtual machine). So I have tried it. I'm sticking with 7 unless this silliness is sorted out.

Metro-style Internet Explorer 10 ditches Flash, plugins

"The rationale is a familiar one: plugin-based content shortens battery life, and comes with security, reliability, and privacy problems. Sites that currently depend on the capabilities provided by Flash or Silverlight should switch to HTML5."

Will Ballmer Kick Off Windows 8 Consumer Beta at CES?

Well Folks MS is going to do it again - a new OS both for your Smartphine and Desktop/laptop and one for the Server too! I can't wait. Didnt Apple just do this?

Michael Hart

I never knew his name, but his is an amazing story. He started the eBook revolution by typing the Declaration of Independence. What he started became Project Gutenberg. He passed away on September 6.

Remembering 9/11

The On Computers family joins the entire USA and world in remembering the victims, survivors, and families of 9/11 on the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attack. At some point during the day, please take a moment to remember and reflect.

Remembering Dr. Rick

Jayna, Sue and I had the privilege of attending the memorial service for Dr. Rick in Stockton, CA yesterday. We carried you there in our hearts. Rick's brother Ron specifically mentioned us as Rick's friends. We will remember him.

Photos from the AlaskaJoe Memorial

Rob_Bakersfield has been gracious enough to share with us all the pictures he took at the memorial. He has posted them on Flickr.

Hackers acquire Google certificate, could hijack Gmail accounts

There is a lot of speculation as to who or how this was done. One thing is sure, the certificate has been revoked. Now we just need to get the updates.

Links from the Gregg Zone

Been a while since I ran across anything I felt strongly enough about to feel the need to pass on, I will try to change that as I adjust to this new format. Anyway when I saw this I thought this needs some attention. http://www.youtube.com

After months of blackouts, Web access returns to Libya

From CNN:
- If residents of a chaotic Tripoli were still awake in the early-morning hours Monday, they may have read this:
"Welcome to all our brothers & sisters from inside Tripoli on Twitter... Internet returns to them first time in a long time! #Feb17 #Libya."

Download.com wraps downloads in bloatware, lies about motivations

From the article:

Cnet knows that there’s something wrong with what they’re doing, and they’re trying to deceive developers and users. On the Upload.com FAQ, there’s a note posted to let developers know why the bundling is taking place: “for the users.” Yes, Cnet thinks we’re clueless enough to believe that their motivation is really to provide users with a less painful download and installation process. Because opt-out toolbars and homepage changes make software setup less annoying."

Because it is not infrequent to download an update to some tried and true freeware from Download.com it is important to know this. I certainly do not want any software wrapped with Cnet crapware. Frankly, I'd rather have a system with micropayments for clean downloads if that is what it takes. I understand that someone pays for "free" downloads, but in this case the cost is way too high.