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See what the world searched for in 2012 with Google’s 2012 Zeitgeist
With last year now almost a week behind us, it’s easy to forget all the big things that happened over the course of 2012. With many things good, bad and even great, 2012 was a year of many accomplishments as well as many losses.
Google’s 2012 Zeitgeist is a great [...]
Read More »Google reenabling Maps access on Windows Phone, one day after removing it
Well, that didn’t take very long. Around 24 hours after Windows Phone users began reporting that they been blocked from accessing Google Maps when using Internet Explorer on their phones, Google says that they’re now going to fix that.
“We periodically test Google Maps compatibility with mobile browsers to make
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These are the original Android mascot designs — and they are very creepy
When you see the Android logo these days, it’s instantly recognizable. Maybe not as recognizable yet as the Windows or Apple logo yet since those have been around for much longer, but you know what I mean. It’s cute, simple and even iconic.
So what comes to mind when you [...]
Read More »Google no longer warning Chinese citizens about potential censorship
When performing searches on Google’s Hong Kong-based site, Google warns users about potential censorship by displaying a message. The message would usually tell the user that searching for that particular term may “temporarily break your connection to Google” and that “This interruption is outside Google’s control,” due to the results [...]
Read More »Windows Phone users no longer able to access Google Maps on the web
According to numerous reports from Windows Phone users, they are no longer able to access Google Maps on their phone. Instead, when attempting to load the web version of Google Maps, they are redirected to the main page of Google.
When asked about the issue, Google issued this statement to [...]
Read More »Google Chairman Eric Schmidt going to North Korea on private trip
Google Chairman Eric Schmidt is planning to make a trip this month to a very interesting destination — North Korea. Reports reveal that he’ll be making the trip with former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson but not details about their exact itinerary have been made public.
North Korea is of [...]
Read More »Pakistan lifts Youtube ban for three minutes
When a blasphemous video of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) began circulating and inciting riots last year, Pakistan’s government decided to ban Youtube altogether. The government decided to lift the ban a few days ago, only to reinstate it after three minutes. Why, that’s not even enough time to watch Gangnam [...]
Read More »New Year’s resolutions for 2013 by tech companies and CEOs [Comic]
![New Year’s resolutions for 2013 by tech companies and CEOs [Comic]](http://cdn.dottech.org/media/2012/12/2013_resolutions_tech_companies-290x160.jpg)
2013 is — quite literally — around the corner. Indeed, a few hours from now the world will slowly start to move from 2012 and rollover to 2013, starting in the East first and then eventually ending with the West. If you were a major tech company, or the CEO [...]
Read More »Google extends free phone calls to US and Canada numbers (via Gmail and Google Voice) until the end of 2013
One very underrated feature of Gmail that doesn’t get much publicity is the fact that you make domestic phone calls in US and Canada, completely for free. Google announced this feature back in 2010 and has extended it every year since then. 2013 looks to be no different as an [...]
Read More »Samsung is suing Apple in South Korea over Notification Center
This one was just waiting to happen. Why? When Apple first introduced its “Notification Center” along with iOS 5, many longtime Android users noted that Apple outright copied Google’s implementation. Now that one of Google’s notification patents has been granted, it looks like Samsung is taking advantage of that opportunity.[...]
Read More »Google and Motorola to take on Apple and Samsung with the ‘X Phone’
While Google has had its hands on designing devices through its Nexus line of phones and tablets, the company has never leveraged their acquisition of Motorola to the extent of outright building and designing a phone from the ground up. The Wall Street Journal reports that this might be changing [...]
Read More »Personalities of Google, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook and more summarized in one comic [Comic]
![Personalities of Google, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook and more summarized in one comic [Comic]](http://cdn.dottech.org/media/2012/12/tech_company_personalities_comic-290x160.png)
In the past we have seen various criticisms of tech companies, ranging from how Google, Microsoft, Apple, Oracle, Facebook, etc. apologize when they make a mistake to how the same tech companies market their products. Today we have a comic to share with you from the same artist, Manu Cornet. [...]
Read More »Difference between how Apple, Microsoft, Google, IBM, Oracle, and HP market their products [Comic]
![Difference between how Apple, Microsoft, Google, IBM, Oracle, and HP market their products [Comic]](http://cdn.dottech.org/media/2012/12/tech_company_market-290x160.png)
Manu Cornet is an artist that likes to criticize. As we have seen in his previous comics, Cornet loves making fun of tech companies… especially Apple and Microsoft (which is not surprising because Cornet works for Google, a rival to Apple and Microsoft). There is even a comic poking fun [...]
Read More »Google Maps on iOS is downloaded 10 million times in less than 48 hours
There was no question that there was a huge demand for Google Maps to return to the iPhone, and Google has announced just how many iOS users were itching for a proper maps solution. Google’s recently released Google Maps for iPhone was downloaded over 10 million times in less than [...]
Read More »Google is now reporting false DMCA takedown requests
In an effort to improve transparency, Google began publishing reports on the DMCA takedown requests it receives. According to Google, removal requests are now up from 250,000 weekly in May, to 2.5 million requests weekly today. Unfortunately for copyright holders and their never-ending battle against piracy, not all these requests [...]
Read More »Google does some ‘winter cleaning’, retires features and services you may or may not miss
Google is doing some winter cleaning, according to its official blog, but instead of snow, we have features and services being swept. Perhaps the most notable casualty of the bunch being shut down is Google Sync, a service that allowed users to sync Google’s Mail, Contacts and Calendar through Microsoft’s [...]
Read More »iPhone users rejoice — Google Maps is officially back on iOS, available now in App Store
A day after I tell Google “pretty please”, they answer! Although I’m pretty sure I’m only one of the many who were waiting for this day to come, today marks the return of Google Maps to iOS. The app has just been released to the app store and is available [...]
Read More »Google’s Eric Schmidt believes Android is winning the war against Apple
In an interview with Bloomberg, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt has made comments that should stir up fanboy wars all over. Despite all the different players, it’s pretty safe to say that it all comes down to Android versus Apple — a battle that Eric Schmidt believes Google is winning.
This
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The problem with DRM protected content [Comic]
![The problem with DRM protected content [Comic]](http://cdn.dottech.org/media/2012/12/apple_google_amazon_app_stores-290x160.png)
DRM (digital rights management) is an umbrella term used to described methods used by entertainment producers, software producers, etc. to protect their content from being pirated. The problem with DRM content is, well, you cannot share it with others. I’m not talking about the inability to pirate it to others [...]
Read More »Google chairman Eric Schmidt says it is “extremely curious” why Apple does not sue Google
Last week Google chairman Eric Schmidt sat down with Wall Street Journal for an interview on all things Mountain View. When asked if Apple and Google have any plans to settle the patent disputes going on between Apple and Android manufacturers, Schmidt responded with a coy we-are-always-talking-about-it but was also [...]
Read More »Samsung ad mocking iSheep is the most popular tech ad for 2012
Remember that ad Samsung ran earlier this year mocking iPhone 5 fans for standing in line for a smartphone when “the next big thing” (aka Galaxy S III) is already here? Yeah, well, according to Visible Measures (a video advertising firm) that ad is the most popular tech ad for [...]
Read More »Apple and Google are joining forces to buy $500 million Kodak patents
Back in July we reported Apple and Microsoft were teaming up against Google, Samsung, and other Android manufacturers to buy Kodak patents. Turns out that no longer holds true.
According to a Bloomberg report, Apple and Google are joining forces to put forth a bid to purchase Kodak’s imaging patent [...]
Read More »How Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Oracle, and RIM apologize after they screw up [Comic]
![How Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Oracle, and RIM apologize after they screw up [Comic]](http://cdn.dottech.org/media/2012/12/tech_company_apologies_comic-290x160.png)
People are humans. Humans make mistakes. Companies are not human, but they are comprised of humans who, as you know, make mistakes. (Unless you live in Japan in which case there may be more robots at your company than humans.) When Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Oracle, and RIM make mistakes, [...]
Read More »Dumb DMCA: Movie producers ask Google to take down links to their own websites, legitimate sources to purchase content, and film reviews
We have seen examples of dumb DMCA takedown requests before, such as the requests Microsoft sent to Google in July of this year. But movie studios asking Google to take down links to their own websites and/or websites that contain legitimate copies of movies and TV shows probably takes the [...]
Read More »Why are reviews on Play Store by “A Google User”? Are they fakes? [dotTech Explains]
You may have noticed something peculiar happening to reviews for apps, games, movies, TV shows, books, songs, and magazine reviews on Google Play Store: most of the reviews are now by “A Google User” instead of a specific person. Why is this? Are those fake reviews? They aren’t, actually.
You [...]
Read More »You can now send up to 10GB attachments in Gmail, thanks to new Google Drive integration
With features like forgotten attachments reminder, threaded discussions, etc., not very many people will argue if you tout the superiority of Gmail over rival emailing services. And today Google has improved Gmail — by integrating it with Google Drive.
Google Drive is Google’s cloud storage service the search giant launched [...]
Read More »How to enable 4G LTE on Nexus 4 [Guide]
Google may not advertise 4G LTE as a feature on the Nexus 4 but, as dotTech has already shown you, Nexus 4 does indeed have a 4G LTE chip built into the phone. As it turns out, it is possible to enable/turn on/use 4G LTE on the Nexus 4. This [...]
Read More »This is Google’s proposal for stopping patent trolls and fixing the patent system
With all the recent and on-going lawsuits between major tech companies, there has been a lot of discussion regarding patents — the patents themselves, the patent system in the US, and those that simply seek monetary gain by abusing this system. The latter are what we call “patent trolls”, individuals [...]
Read More »Fake Apple apps appear on Play Store, attempt to fool Android users but get pulled
Would you want Apple apps like iPhoto, iMovie, Garage Band and iWork suite on your Android advice? I know I wouldn’t mind would probably even pay for apps, assuming they are quality.
One malicious “developer” clearly thinks the same and decided to take advantage of the unsuspecting by releasing fake [...]
Read More »Malware targeting Windows does damage in a novel way — using Google Docs
Backdoor.Makadoc — a trojan that has been floating in the wild for a while now, attacking Windows, and has recently been updated to target Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 — is a clever piece of malware. What makes this malware clever, you ask? Simply the way it goes about [...]
Read More »Google and Bing autocomplete show how much people dislike Windows 8
Google and Bing both have an ‘autocomplete’ feature that attempts to predict what you want to search for. The predictions provided by Google and Bing depend on two factors: what other users searched for and your past search history, if you are logged in. If you head over to Google [...]
Read More »Nexus 4 has an LTE chip built-in — so why doesn’t it support LTE?
iFixit has got their hands on a Nexus 4 and took it apart. Most of what they found was expected: NFC, battery, GSM/EDGE chips, processor, etc. One thing, however, did surprise — an LTE chip.
According to the iFixit teardown, the motherboard of the Nexus 4 comes with a Qualcomm [...]
Read More »Android dominates China with over 90 percent of the smartphone market
To say that Google’s Android phones are a hit in China might be understating it, with news from Analysys International surfacing that Android-equipped smartphones have surpassed the 90 percent mark in the crucial market of China. This is even higher than Android’s 75% global marketshare.
With that kind of dominance, [...]
Read More »How to root Samsung Galaxy Nexus (GSM, Verizon, Sprint) and install ClockworkMod recovery [Guide]
Let me don’t waste your precious time making you read things you might already be aware of. Read on to find how you can get your Samsung Galaxy Nexus rooted, while you would also be unlocking the bootloader of your device and installing ClockworkMod (for GSM and Verizon versions) or [...]
How to root Nexus 10 and install ClockworkMod Recovery on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean [Guide]
![How to root Nexus 10 and install ClockworkMod Recovery on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean [Guide]](http://cdn.dottech.org/media/2012/11/nexus_10_3-290x160.png)
You have a shiny new Nexus 10 on your hands. Want to unlock its full potential? Then you need root — and this guide shows you exactly how to root your Nexus 10!
Disclaimer: This guide is intended as a helpful “how to”. Ashraf and dotTech are not responsible for [...]
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