Why the ‘start’ button is not yet ready for history’s recycle bin
Why you would click a button labelled “start” to turn something off has never been entirely clear.
But for hundreds of millions of PC users, the start button in the bottom left corner of the Windows screen has been an invaluable navigation tool – which is why Microsoft looks to be on the verge of reversing course over Windows 8 and bringing it back. Read more
Strike one up for the humble firewall, veteran of network security software.
McAfee, the 25-year-old security software maker founded by John McAfee and bought by Intel in 2011, has made a conditional offer for Finland’s Stonesoft, which makes military-grade firewalls for securing networks. Read more
Interesting commentary from around the Web on the tech story that made headlines this week.
Only a lucky group of applicants was selected to participate in testing the Explorer version of Google Glass. As early reviews started to trickle out this week, so too did a growing backlash against the “glassholes”.
While the elite of the tech world may be smitten – like Robert Scoble, who wrote he’s never taking his Google Glass off – others weren’t as easily impressed by the breakthrough in wearable computing, comparing it to overhyped tech toys such as the Segway and pocket protectors. Read more
Will.i.am flows on Silicon Valley
Will.i.am, the futuristic frontman of The Black Eyed Peas, established his Silicon Valley bona fides long ago.
The “technology obsessed” rapper made a viral video for Barack Obama in 2008, sent his music back from Mars via the Curiosity rover, and is Intel’s “director of creative innovation.” He drives an all-electric Tesla, is partnering with Steve Jobs’ widow, Laurene Powell Jobs, and markets a $300 high-tech iPhone case.
But in a song on his poorly-reviewed new album #willpower, will.i.am takes his infatuation with startup culture to another level.
Called “Geekin’”, the track begins with a thudding chorus in which he repeats: “Get my geek on, get my, get my geek on.” Read more
The six-month search is over. Intel’s board has picked Brian Krzanich, current chief operating officer, as the chip maker’s new chief executive, replacing Paul Otellini who left Intel after 8 years, Reuters has reported.
As Chris Nuttall wrote at the time of Mr Otellini’s exit, Mr Krzanich was an early favourite for the top job. He was promoted to chief operating officer in January last year, a role occupied by Craig Barrett, Mr Otellini’s predecessor, before he took the top job. As executive vice-president, Mr Krzanich already occupied the most senior role below the chief executive. Read more
LinkedIn has long been seen as the ugly duckling of social networks, but now it’s starting to preen its feathers. The site is now allowing users to add photos, presentations and graphics to their profiles, creating a “unique professional story” that is rather more glamorous than just a few lines of text.
“Will the resume be displaced?” is how LinkedIn bills the feature. It is trying to do for the CV what Facebook once did for the college yearbook. There’s no particular reason why someone’s career should appear online as it would on a printed page. Read more
The rise of the chat apps continues. Japan’s Line now has 150m registered users, up from 100m at the beginning of this year, Asahi reports. That’s pretty impressive growth.
The volume of messages sent using apps such as Line, Tencent’s Wechat and Apple’s iMessage have already outstripped traditional texting at the end last year, and will double the volume of SMS by the end of the year. Whatsapp, which says it has 200m monthly active users, is as big as Twitter. Read more
Andreessen Horowitz is helping to put Silicon Prairie on the map of wanna-be tech hubs with its latest investment in the Des Moines, Iowa-based start-up, Dwolla.
The young internet payment network attracted $16.5m in a Series C round, led by Andreessen, with previous investors Village Ventures, Thrive Capital, and Union Square Ventures joining.
While setting up shop in the mid-western United States leaves the company far away from the investors and talent pools on the West and East Coasts, there are benefits to building a business in a less saturated market. Read more
Shares in Sina Corp, the Nasdaq-listed Chinese online media group, rose nearly 21 per cent during trading on Monday after the company said it had agreed to sell 18 per cent of Weibo, its Twitter-like micro-blogging service, to Alibaba Group for $586m. The two came close to a similar deal five months ago. Now they have tied the knot.
Martin Sorrell to Big Media: Stop being complacent about digital
There was a major disconnect on display at the FT’s Digital Media conference in London on Thursday morning.
Jeff Bewkes of Time Warner and Thomas Rabe of Bertelsmann made it sound as though any-time, any-place access to media was ushering in a golden age comparable to the birth of broadcasting. But Sir Martin Sorrell of WPP had a wake-up call: Big Media is being complacent, and the real impact of companies like Google and Facebook has yet to be felt. Read more
| About this blog | Blog guide |
Richard Waters has headed the FT's San Francisco bureau since 2002 and covers Google and Microsoft, among other things. A former New York bureau chief for the FT, he is intrigued by Silicon Valley's unique financial and business culture, and is looking forward to covering his second Tech Bust.
Chris Nuttall has been online and messing around with computers for more than 20 years and since 2004 has reported from the FT's San Francisco bureau on semiconductors, video games, consumer electronics and all things interwebby.
Maija Palmer has been writing about technology for the FT since 1999 and is fascinated by cybercrime, privacy and all the other issues of the information society. Based in London, she covers European tech companies and hopes that they won't all get acquired by American rivals.
Robin Kwong is the FT's technology, media and telecoms page editor in London. Formerly he was the Taipei correspondent and wrote about the companies that manufacture the vast majority of the world's computers and gadgets. He is interested in the intricacies of the technology supply chain and how China is increasingly changing the tech landscape.
Tim Bradshaw is the FT's digital media correspondent, and has just moved from London to join our team in San Francisco. He has covered start-ups such as Twitter and Spotify, as well as the online ambitions of more established media companies, such as the BBC iPlayer. He also covers the advertising, marketing and video-game industries. Tim has been writing about technology, business and finance since 2003.
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