Hasta La Gadget!

“The Cloud: is a term that most people have heard of, and many of us use cloud services daily. However, it’s fair to say many others are still using computing the old-fashion way. At times, it may sound like a marketing gimmick, but “cloud computing” is real and it can bring real value to just about everyone who has an internet connection whether it is on a computer, mobile devices and preferably all at the same time! In this article, we are looking at four critical aspect of your digital life that can be improved using cloud services: data access and organization, creative collaboration, data protection and gaming. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Facebook Graph Search: A Great Strategic Move, Ubergizmo Launches its Social Reader for Facebook,

If you’re ever in Las Vegas, New York, Beverly Hills, or Yountville, California you must stop by Bouchon Bakery and buy a batch of their French Macarons. They’re the tastiest damned thing you’ll ever eat. So when I saw that they were making flash drives that looked like these delectable pastries, I started drooling.

Yes, I know that I cannot eat a flash drive, but it doesn’t make these brightly-colored pucks look any less appetizing. PQI’s Macaron USB Flash Drives look just like my favorite tasty treat, so I’m not sure that I could resist trying to take a byte out of my flash memory. While you definitely won’t want to dip these in your afternoon tea, they are water-resistant, dust-resistant and shock-resistant, so they might hold up to my stomach acids for at least 10 seconds before disintegrating.

No word on where you can buy these yet, but I suppose that’s a good thing, as I wouldn’t want to end up in the ER getting my stomach pumped anyhow.

[via Far East Gizmos]

The desktop computer market is pretty much stagnant as more and more consumers move to notebooks, tablets, and smartphones as their primary devices. One of the bright spots in the desktop computer market continues to be the all-in-one computer or AIO. Most people are probably familiar with this sort machine that packs all the computer hardware in the same case as the display.

Dell has announced a new all-in-one computer that will be shipping on April 16 called the XPS 18. Dell claims the computer is their thinnest, lightest, and most versatile all-in-one ever offered. The computer will run Windows 8 and has an 18.4-inch capacitive touchscreen. That means users will be able to take advantage of all of the fancy touch-interaction that Windows 8 offers. It’s also designed to be portable – weighing in under 5 pounds – so you can lug it around your house and run it off of battery power if you’d like.

That 18.4-inch screen supports full 1080p HD resolution, and the machine will use Intel Core processors – of an as yet unspecified flavor. Dell says that the XPS 18 will be available in the US and select countries in Europe starting at $899.99(USD). It’s too bad the computer maker doesn’t say exactly what processor you get, how much RAM, and how much storage the base model offers. Those are rather key details, but we can assume will learn more closer to the launch date.

This past week the re-launch of the SimCity franchise was threatened with connectivity and crash problems galore – but according to the MAXIS label under EA Games, they’re almost in the clear. Speaking as General Manager for the MAXIS label this weekend for a widespread blast this morning, Lucy Bradshaw gave a tentative nearly-all-clear with an assurance that “the core problem with getting in and having a great SimCity experience is almost behind us.” Bradshaw also made it clear how much she appreciates those who have stuck with the development team in this hour of panic.

When you’re creating a video game that’s released to the public, there’s always a moment of panic – or heart-clobbering anticipation when the final software build has hit the market. When that moment is over, you’re generally allowed to sit back and watch the sales numbers grow (or pan) while you take a much-needed rest.

For the creators of the 2013 edition of SimCity, there was just about enough time to have a glass of lemonade before they were struck with a spit-take at customer complaints across the board. As the game is based largely online, connectivity problems reported by customers from across the country were not a welcome wake-up call for this game’s creators.

The good news is that all is nearly well at this point, with “tens of thousands of new players” joining the game every day according to Bradshaw. She’s spoken up on how humbling it’s been to see the amount of confidence the gaming community has shown in the developers behind the game given the problems it’s had thus far, and has thanked the public endlessly for that faith.

Our biggest fear was that people who love this franchise would be scared off by bad reviews about the connectivity issues.

But you put your faith in us.  You bought the game with the understanding that we’d quickly fix the server issues.  For that support – that incredible commitment from our fans — we are deeply grateful.  As the general manager of Maxis, I want you to know that we cherish your faith in us, and the love you’ve shown for this franchise.

Thank you very much.

Have a peek at the timeline below to see the whole SimCity 2013 story as it’s rolled out over the past week and be sure to let us know how your experience is when you pick the game up yourself this week!

[via EA Games]

SimCity creators ask for faith as problems “almost” over is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If there’s one thing the internet has taught the business universe over its relatively short lifetime, it’s that information is valuable – so valuable, in fact, that there’s an industry built around securing digital information of all types. This week we’ve had the opportunity to speak with a company with a 16-year history in this market: IntraLinks. They’ve let us know what they do to provide a forward-thinking model for file and information sharing and collaboration in the future, complete with the ability to kick out what they call the “oops moment” when you’ve shared something by mistake – or if a file goes rogue.

IntraLinks was founded by security specialists in the banking world and created for the security of investment banking, strategic transactions, and large multi-million deals. The Company’s platform was created to secure – and continue to secure – the sharing of non-public information. IntraLinks’s SVP of Product Marketing Wade Callison let us know the extent of their business in basic terms: “$19 trillion dollars in financial transactions and services have floated across our cloud over the course of the existence of the company.” 

That’s one whole heck of a lot of cash.

The company makes it their business to be the trusted third party between companies that want to connect securely. They do this with a scalable technology that has handled everything from Life Sciences clinical trials to investor reports. They’ve done so well that Gartner has rated IntraLinks as the leading vendor in the Team Platforms and Social Software Suites category based on revenue for the 6th year in a row.

“How does one “UNshare” a file?”

The Company’s newest product, IntraLinks VIA, launched last month and includes two major features that’ll allow it to be future ready and secure for the next generation. One of these features is a “Snapchat for the Enterprise”, the other – the ability to “UNshare” Your Files.

The “Snapchat for the Enterprise” function will allow you to set a self-destruct expiration date for your files, thus allowing you to keep a close eye on what’s visible to who and for how long. This as well as the UNshare feature work hand-in-hand to keep your files under your control.

UNshare is a feature that’s relatively new to the digital universe, appearing at first to be impossible due to the extremely fluid nature of the web and computers in general. However, IntraLinks VIA employs Information Rights Management with every document you share, allowing you to remotely revoke access to files at any time. 

““If it’s something I’d rather you not forward, I’ll make it more difficult for you to forward.””

As Callison made clear: “The key is that the amount of control you need to put in place should reflect the sensitivity of the transaction. If it’s something I’d rather you not forward, I’ll make it more difficult for you to forward.” Digital watermarks in files shared with IntraLinks VIA apply themselves based on the location of the file, the name of the computer, the name of the person downloading the file, the time, the date, and more.

You’ll be able to set multiple passwords for the same file that only work on single machines. You’ll be able to block printing, block screen capture, block copy and paste – with many more controls on the way soon. 

IntraLinks is currently looking at integration with a few vendors and a few key partners right this minute, aiming in the end to erase that crucial step between product availability and customers actually using the product. Taking away barriers for adoption for new users is a key point in getting them to proactively use the product’s features. Callison let us know that VIA’s mix of intuitive user interfaces and the deep security features under the hood are tackling this challenge. He said, “If you try to be another service that people need to think about to use, they’re not going to. Making the product an organic part of a user’s workflow is important.”

IntraLinks also aims to be a vendor that’s able to work with any company, pushing past the struggles that technology and security compliance present across the globe (and even inside companies themselves). With IntraLinks VIA, professional groups will be able to work with an extra layer of guidance and expertise that enterprise companies wouldn’t otherwise have. And with that, we’ll be share-friendly safe once more – and sooner rather than later!

IntraLinks VIA introduces the “UNshare” for information security is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.