Hasta La Gadget!

After going after podcast software makers, a patent troll may now be going after individual podcasters in an attempt to get licensing money. While many claim the patent system is broken, and President Obama recently called for a reform, it may not come fast enough for some in the podcasting community.

It’s okay to have a Pavlovian response to your ringtone. That’s what your phone conditions you to do. Sure, you might not be salivating, but your pulse quickens and you reach for your phone. The problem with this involuntary reflex starts when someone else has your ringtone, and if you’re using a stock iPhone ringtone, that happens all the time. More »

(Credit: Microsoft)

Leaked from today’s 404 episode:

– Discussion: Are you spoiling a movie for yourself by listening to the soundtrack before watching the movie? Inspired by Clint Mansell’s new “Stoker” score available to stream.

– Discussion: Which programs are still shown in standard definition?

– The New York Times warns against sitting at work.

Bathroom break video: Rollerman

Ep. 1217: Where it’s kind of hot in these rhinos

Episode 1,217

Listen Now: Download Today’s Podcast[Read more]

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Earlier today, we reported that Samsung allegedly hired the UK judge that forced Apple to publicly apologize over patent infringement that it committed against the Korean-based company, saying that the judge, Sir Robin Jacob, could help the company out with its lawsuit with Ericsson due to his patent expertise. However, Samsung has denied that they were involved with hiring Jacob.

Samsung says that “Sir Robin Jacob is not a legal representative of Samsung Electronics,” but he is now a contractor for “a law firm that represents Samsung Electronics in its case against Ericsson.” In other words, Jacob doesn’t work for Samsung, and he had no interaction with Samsung during the hiring process. He was merely hired by the law firm that represents Samsung.

Jacob is now a retired judge, but his expertise will no doubt prove useful for any law firm or company he works for. However, it’s possible that his patent expertise was one of the main reasons he was hired by this law firm, and that his main duties in this law firm will be working with Samsung, which in turn is about as close as you can get to working for a company without actually being an employee of theirs.

Obviously, we already know what side Jacob is one as far as the battle between Apple and Samsung, so there’s no doubt that Jacob would be a good fit in representing Samsung in any future court battles, but it may still shake a few feathers from competitors, including Apple. However, we’ll have to wait and see what Jacob’s roll will be in the coming future.

Samsung denies any involvement in UK judge recruitment is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
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If you’ve navigated your way to the majority of Google-owned properties like Gmail, Google Drive or just Google.com, then you’ve probably noticed the black navigation bar that is prominently displayed at the top of the page. Considering how visually appealing the majority of Google’s properties are, their black navigation bar has been an eyesore since it was introduced two years ago.

Google is reportedly testing a new version of its Google.com homepage that gets rid of the black navigation bar. The way users would navigate through Google’s services would be by clicking a grid icon. If the tests go well, Google plans to roll out the improved navigation to all users.

This isn’t the first time Google has attempted to ditch its black navigation bar as they moved its list of services into a drop-down menu that came down from the Google logo. The test method was scrapped six weeks later due to users finding the new design made it harder to find Google’s additional services.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Woman Allows Internet To Name Her Baby For $5,000, China Expanding 4M Broadband Coverage To 70% Internet Users,