Gmail outage blamed on capacity miscalculation

Gmail was down from about 12:30 p.m. PDT Tuesday to about 2:30 p.m. PDT, affecting millions of Gmail customers who depend on the service for everything from fantasy football roster updates to business-critical information. The problem was caused by a classic cascade in which servers became overwhelmed with traffic in rapid succession.

According to Google, the problem began when it took several Gmail servers offline for maintenance, a routine procedure that normally is transparent to users. However, the twist this time around was that Google had made some changes to the routers that direct Gmail traffic to servers in hopes of improving reliability, and those changes backfired.

Google fixed the problem by allocating traffic across the rest of its prodigious network, a luxury that it enjoys given the resources it has put in place to operate the world's leading search engine. But what's next? Google said it would focus on making sure that the request routers have sufficient headroom to handle future spikes in demand, as well as figuring out a way to make sure that problems in one sector can be isolated without bringing down the entire service. "We'll be hard at work over the next few weeks implementing these and other Gmail reliability improvements -- remains more than 99.9% available to all users, and we're committed to keeping events like today's notable for their rarity," Treynor wrote.

Motorola Unloads Good Technology After Just Two Years

Is Motorola shying away from its aspirations to compete with Research In Motion for business customers? That's what the sale of its Good Technology unit to Visto might suggest. Motorola bought the mobile messaging company just two years ago, but the company's fortunes have been on a steep decline since then, and it could be ready to refocus on the consumer market. Struggling mobile phone maker Motorola (NYSE: MOT) announced Tuesday that it will sell Good Technology -- its "push" email, calendar and contacts unit -- to Visto. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close at the end of the month, were not disclosed. The sale comes just a little more than two years after Motorola acquired Good Technology in an attempt to compete with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM) for a larger share of the business customer market. The sale of Good Technology is part of Motorola's strategy for turning around its flagging mobile device business by making it leaner and more focused on the consumer market. It also rids Motorola of a troublesome asset. In 2006, Visto sued Good Technology for infringing on patents associated with its push email and synchronization technology. Motorola's stock was up 3.58 percent to US$3.76 per share in mid-day trading on Tuesday.

Windows Washing: Microsoft Talks Up Tweaks Following Public Beta

Microsoft has detailed some of the changes it plans to make following its public beta of the Windows 7 OS. Meanwhile, remarks made by the president of a Taiwan laptop manufacturer suggested the final version of Windows 7 may arrive as soon as this fall. Vista, however, remains the company's flagship product, and as such it needs regular service. An SP2 release candidate has been made available to select parties.

With its big round of public beta testing out of the way, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is apparently moving quickly to the next milestone on the Windows 7 upgrade path. On Thursday, the company revealed some of the changes users can expect to see in the upcoming Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) -- possibly the penultimate stage prior to the release of a final product -- in its Engineering Windows 7 blog. Looking at feedback garnered during the first round of public beta testing, Microsoft has been working on incorporating some needed changes. "It should be no surprise, but the Release Candidate for Windows 7 will have quite a few changes, many under the hood, so to speak, but also many visible. The goal of having a fully functional Beta was to make sure we received reliable feedback and not a lot of 'hey this doesn't work at all' sorts of reports. This has allowed us to really focus on delivering a refined RC where the changes we made are all the reflection of feedback we have received," wrote Chaitanya Sareen, senior program manager at Microsoft.

With Gmail Offline, Google's Package Is Almost Too Good to Pass Up

Recently, Google began experimenting with a way to make Gmail accessible offline. Download an applet, get yourself synced up, and suddenly you're able to write and read stored mail even when you have no Web access. It's not perfect, but setup is generally smooth and it works well, writes reviewer Jack Germain. After a year in development and testing, Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) last month added an offline mail client to provide local access to mail folders when there is no Internet connection.Gmail Offline is still experimental and limited to synchronizing a maximum of 10,000 messages. It does not yet provide offline access to other Google features such as Calendar and Documents, but that capability is rumored to be in the works. It is not yet a perfect solution, but it does work rather well.Gmail Offline makes using the free, Web-based email service more efficient and useful. It solves the nagging problem of not having access to data stored in email folders. Until now, the absence of an offline mail reader has been a major reason for not using Web-based services like Google as a primary email delivery system.The ability to continue work tasks regardless of Internet access puts Google in the forefront of the free Web-based email providers. The addition of the offline email component leaves me with no compelling reason to use other Web-based products such as Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) Mail, Windows Live (aka Hotmail or Messenger Live) or Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) Outlook, which is an offline email application.Until Gmail, with its ample gigabytes of online storage, I couldn't see much use for Web-based email in general. However, working on numerous computers in several locations, I can use Web-based email to centralize my email activity. Google's calendar and document storage, along with its latest feature of offline email access, makes the package almost too good to pass up.

The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic

While it may not be Nokia's first touchscreen phone (anyone out there remember the 7710?), the 5800 XpressMusic is certainly the first to come out of Finland with a mainstream appeal. What we've alternately known as the "Tube" throughout much of its development cycle is the first production device to run S60 5th Edition -- the fourth major overhaul of Nokia's ubiquitous smartphone platform since 2002 and the first to support fingers, styli, and high-res displays. Speaking of high-res displays, the 5800 comes equipped with an impressive 3.2-inch 640 x 360 resistive touchscreen to go along with its 3.2-megapixel autofocus cam, Carl Zeiss optics, dual LED flash, GPS, WiFi, 3.5mm jack, and a microSD slot with support for 16GB cards. It'll be available in three versions -- European HSDPA, North American HSDPA, and GSM only -- and ships this quarter in black, red, and blue for €279 (about $392) unlocked with an 8GB card thrown in for good measure.

"What iPhone did was to bring the touch element to a multi-media converged device. Since we are already the leader in converged devices in India, Nokia 5800 will be a revolutionary launch from our stable. Our touchscreen bet will have the latest features and will be packed with music." said Nokia India's MD, D Shivakumar.

The price is competitive and plays a crucial part for Nokia to gain a foothold in the touchscreen market as most high end phones like iPhone, Samsung Omnia are priced above 30k.

Microsoft Zune (second generation, 80GB, black)

Product Summary The good: The 80GB Microsoft Zune MP3 player features a 3.2-inch glass LCD; a user-friendly interface; exceptional navigation control; audio and video podcast support; a superlative FM radio with RBDS information; wireless syncing and sharing; high-quality earphones; revamped Zune Marketplace PC software; Zune Pass subscription music support; good audio quality; and a built-in composite-video output. The bad: The Zune is a PC-only device that requires its own software and still does not support older WMA-DRM9 music files; Zune Marketplace does not offer TV or movie downloads; the USB connection is proprietary; no Wi-Fi music streaming; and the EQ feature has been removed. The bottom line: The Zune has blossomed from an ugly duckling into a worthy iPod alternative. Specifications: Device type: Digital player / radio ; Digital player supported digital audio standards: WMA , WMAPro , Audible , MP3 , AAC ; Digital storage media capacity: 80 GB ; Price range: $162.96 - $399.99

Tornado-detecting dual-iPhone alarm clock

Taking a page from the boombox trend of the 1980s, iPod-docking alarm clocks are taking on an absurd amount of features in an effort to stand out from the herd. Case in point: the iLuv iMM183, a dual-dock alarm clock capable of charging two iPhones or iPods. This little bedside beauty comes with a remote control, FM radio, EQ control, aux input, and last but not least--an NOAA emergency alert system with localized weather warnings. Aside from the emergency/weather alert display, you're basically looking at the same iLuv iMM173 we saw last year. Still, the list of iPhone-supported alarm clocks is pitifully short and if you're a two iPhone family living in a hurricane zone, the iLuv has you covered.

Google to release Picasa beta for Mac

Google plans to release on Monday a beta version of Picasa for Mac OS X, helping Apple fans catch up to Windows and Linux users already employing the free tool for editing, cataloging, and uploading photos. The Mac version largely matches the features in Picasa 3 for Windows, said Jason Cook, Picasa's marketing manager. Though the company has been scrambling to include some secondary features such as geotagging and the ability to get photos printed, the core abilities of Picasa are present, he said. Picasa lets people edit and print photos, create collages and movies, and add labels, star ratings, and tags. More significantly, given Google's cloud-computing focus, it also lets people upload their images to the company's online Picasa Web Albums site where images can be shared. Google acquired Picasa in 2004. "We have many Mac users," Cook said, though declining to offer any estimates, "and we think they'll be excited about this. It makes the Picasa Web Albums experience better." Online photo sites are great for several reasons, but problems can arise when people manage separate and different set of images. They often upload only a selection of photos on a PC, for example. Sometimes people upload images to an online site that never make it to the PC. And sometimes people add tags, captions, and titles online but not to the versions on their computers. Picasa takes one important step in dealing with this potential rat's nest: when a person edits a photo on the PC, Picasa updates the version stored online. The reverse isn't true, though, but bidirectional synchronization is "something we're thinking about," Cook said. "We want to make sync as useful as possible." Synchronization with the Mac's bundled iPhoto software is another area where people should tread carefully, though Picasa offers cautionary alerts to try to avert any trouble, Cook said. Picasa for the Mac doesn't interfere with iPhoto, he said, but for example when a person uses Picasa to edit a photo, iPhoto still shows the original, which Picasa preserves. And Picasa will read ratings and tags from iPhoto, but not vice-versa.

Apple to expand DRM-free music, new pricing

Apple has cut deals that will finally enable iTunes to offer songs free of copy protection software from the three largest music labels, according to two sources close to the negotiations. In exchange, Apple has agreed to become more flexible on pricing, the sources said. Under the terms of the deal, song prices will be broken down into three categories--older songs from the catalog, midline songs (newer songs that aren't big hits), and current hits--said one of the sources. Apple has offered songs free of digital rights management protections from EMI for more than a year. But EMI accounts for less than 10 percent of music sold in the U.S.; these new deals will expand iTunes' DRM-free library to include songs from the other three major labels (Sony BMG, Universal, and Warner Music).

Apple and the music labels have also apparently come to terms on over-the-air downloads, according to a source. That would allow iPhone owners to download songs to their mobile devices via cell networks and without the aid of Wi-Fi. Apple, which closed the deals last week, could announce the agreements as early as Tuesday at the Macworld Conference and Expo in San Francisco. Apple did not respond to requests for comment. DRM-free songs are something that many iTunes users have requested for some time. However, the celebration over their appearance at the country's largest music retailer may be overshadowed by increased prices on some hit songs, which might be seen by some as an Apple surrender on pricing. Apple fans have long applauded the company for holding the line on pricing despite loud complaints from the major music labels. The good news is that the price of catalog music is falling to 79 cents per song. The labels will get an opportunity to price some hit songs for more than 99 cents but eventually those songs will drop to 79 cents, according to one source. Before iTunes users get too worked up, they should remember that song prices at iTunes haven't increased in five years. According to the Consumer Price Index, a 99-cent song in 2002 would be worth $1.17 today. Not only will new music downloads be free of copy-protection software, but Apple and the labels will begin removing DRM from music already available in the iTunes Store, the source said. However, it's unclear what will happen to songs that have already been purchased.

New HP ultraportable first to use AMD Neo chip

Another Netbook? No, not exactly. Hewlett-Packard's new Pavilion dv2 is an ultraportable, thank you. And the new Athlon Neo silicon inside from Advanced Micro Devices will try to prove that point. AMD is introducing new chips at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that target the no-man's land between Netbooks and notebooks. Typically, these designs are referred to as ultraportables--the most salient examples being Apple's MacBook Air, the Toshiba Portege, and the Sony Vaio TT series. So what makes AMD's platform different? In one word, price. Ultraportables fall into the boutique category of laptops: very stylish, very slim, very light--and very expensive. Usually ranging between $1,500 and $3,000. HP's notebook with Athlon Neo silicon cuts the price in half. The Pavilion dv2 will start at $699 and top out at $899 for standard configurations.

The dv2, at 3.8 pounds, is slightly heavier than ultraportables that typically weigh between 2.5 and 3 pounds. It is 0.9-inches thick, slightly thicker than more expensive ultraportables like the MacBook Air. But the Pavilion dv2 will pack features such as an AMD-ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3410 separate (discrete) graphics chip, a relatively large hard disk drive (HP lists drives up to 500GB), and a 12.1-inch LED screen. Features that differentiate it from Netbooks and put it squarely into ultraportable territory. AMD Athlon Neo silicon details(Credit: AMD) The dv2 will also come with WWAN (Wireless Wide Area Network) options as well as standard Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Bahr Mahony, AMD's manager of mobile products, said in an interview that one of the few ultraportables available today with discrete graphics is the MacBook Air, but this starts at a whopping $1,800. (The Air uses Nvidia's GeForce 9400M graphics and Intel's Core 2 Duo low-voltage processors.) The Athlon Neo platform can handle 1080p HD playback and a "casual" gaming experience with realistic 3D graphics, using the optional ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3410 graphics chip. AMD's Athlon Neo processor--formerly code-named "Huron" under the platform codename "Yukon"--runs at 1.6GHz and has a power envelope of 15 watts, comparable to Intel ULV (Ultra Low Voltage) Core 2 Duo processors that power ultraportables today. AMD's Neo does fall short in one respect, however. Currently it is only single-core, whereas Intel ULV processors are dual-core at a comparable power envelope, and, moreover, typically integrate 6MB level-2 cache memory to boost performance. AMD's Neo has only 512K of cache memory. A dual-core chip, code-named "Conesus," will come in the second half of this year, according to AMD's Mahoney. The first HP Pavilion dv2 ultrathin notebook is expected to be available from HP in the second quarter.

Lenovo Unveils Giant Two-Headed Laptop( ThinkPad W700)

Lenovo's latest behemoth notebook PC sports two monitors -- a 10.6-inch screen slides out of a 17-inch screen for dual-monitor multitasking. Weighing in at 11 pounds, the W700ds makes for a tough schlep, but it pack a big hardware punch for those who need workstation power that's more easily transported from one spot to another than a full-blown workstation.

As gadget makers gear up to show their wares at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Shows (CES) in Las Vegas, Chinese hardware maker Lenovo debuted a host of new laptop PCs, the most striking of which offers users a dual-screen configuration. The ThinkPad W700ds features a 17-inch primary screen with a 10.6-inch slide-out secondary screen. It is the first mobile workstation with two built-in displays, according to Lenovo, and will enable users accustomed to working with two monitors the ability to operate in a mobile environment. Prices start at $3,663. Along with the dual screen ThinkPad, Lenovo also unveiled three new Y Series laptops ranging in size from a 16-inch model to a 14-inch notebook, priced between US$829 and $1,199. Lenovo also gave its S10 netbook a makeover, adding new multimedia and networking features. The newly outfitted S10 retails for $350. Rounding out the new PCs is the IdeaCentre A600 desktop, which includes an Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) Core 2 Duo processor, optional ATI (Nasdaq: ATYT) graphics card and a hard drive with up to 1 terabyte of storage . Available in April, the desktops start at $1,000.

The ThinkPad W700ds is not just about the displays, however. The mobile workstation also includes optional features such as Intel's mobile quad core and extreme processors, dual hard drives with RAID (redundant array of independent drives) configurations and Nvidia's Quadro FX mobile graphics hardware. It includes up to 8 GB of high-speed DDR3 memory as well as a choice of solid state drive storage or traditional hard disk drives with up to 960 GB of storage. On the multimedia end, the system offers an optional DVD disk drive and high-speed UDMA (Ultra Direct Memory Access) compact flash reader, support for Dual Link DVI, Display Port and VGA, a 7-in-1 multicard reader and five USB ports. Connectivity options include WiFi with select models offering WiMax support. Security-wise, the dual screen laptop includes an optional fingerprint reader and hard drives with full-disk encryption.

Tech Mahindra approached Satyam for merger - report

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian software services firm Tech Mahindra Ltd has approached embattled rival Satyam Computer Services for an all-share merger, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday, sending shares in both companies higher. Tech Mahindra, a unit of Indian tractor and utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra, is looking for a deal that could involve gaining control of the combined entity, the newspaper said, citing an unnamed person with knowledge of the development. "Anything that offers strategic value to Tech Mahindra would be of interest to the group," it quoted an unnamed executive of Mahindra & Mahindra as saying. The paper also reported a fund manager had said Tech Mahindra was in touch with Satyam's bankers Merrill Lynch. Analysts said a merger would help Tech Mahindra, which is now focused on the telecoms sector. "It would mean a broadening of its business model," said a technology analyst at brokerage Pioneer Intermediaries. Shares in Tech Mahindra rose 9.6 percent to 310.80 rupees by 0500 GMT, while shares in Satyam were trading up 4.25 percent at 174 rupees on hopes of deal, despite a denial from Tech Mahindra. The vice chairman and managing director of Tech Mahindra said the company had not approached Satyam or its merchant bankers with a merger proposal. "It is pure fiction at this point in time," Vineet Nayyar told Reuters.

USB LIGHT FOR YOUR LAPTOP/ PC

Main Features :- Usb Light For Laptop, Pc, Notebooks Convert A Usb Port On Your Laptop Into A Source Of Light. Airplanes Or Trains, Waiting Lounges And Even Car Or Taxis In Your City Wont Wailt You Anymore. Unique In Shape, The Usb Light Plugs Into A Usb Port Of Your Laptop Or Desktop Computer To Provide A Steady Bright Liht : Without Draining Your Battery Powered By The Usb Port On Your Laptop, Be The Envy Of Colleagues In Car Or Your Travelling Companions On The Train As You Casually Plug This Little Gem In And Enjoy The Bright Light. It Does Not Need Batteries Or Power Socket For Powering On : Minimal Battery Drain, It Uses Less Than Five Minutes Per Hour Of Notebook Battery Charge. The Flexible Power Cord Allows The Light To Be Pointed In Any Direction And Coil Up Tightly When Not In Use. This Is Also A Great Gift For The Computerholic Or Serial Surfer In Your Life : They Get A Funky Gadget. The High Quality, Long Life & Led Will Last For Years. Simple To Use ,The Flexible Spring Neck Lets You Position It In The Angle That You Would Like To. It Is Composed Of White Led As The Light Source. Small, Compact And Feather-light, The Usb Light Goes Anywhere And Fits Easily Inside Your Laptop Case. Features And Benefits : No Batteries, Powered By Usb Port Switch : free Design With Virtually Nothing To Break Flexible Neck Precisely Directs Light Beam Minimal Power Consumption For All : day Light System Requirements : Usb Port Dimensions 2.6"L X 11.0"H X 0.5"W

The New MSI Wind U100 Laptop

MSI U100 netbook dojangdoen personalized features of the wind has been released. NetBook 1GB of RAM, of 10.2 - inch display (1024 × 600), a 120-gigabyte HDD, and Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition and 3 - cell battery, 1.6GHz Intel, CPU, and the atoms are provided.

New Mobile Phones - 2009 Craze

A mobile phone , a.k.a mobile, wireless, cellular phone, cell phone or hand phone, has been evolving rapidly since its conception by Martin Cooper who made the first call on a handheld mobile phone on April 3, 1973. Every year mobile phone manufacturers will compete against each other to bring out the best in features and looks to capture the ever growing market of consumers. Anyways, below are the coolest mobile phones, in my opinion, available in 2008 that are worth your attention and maybe, your money too. They are arranged in no particular order.

- Samsung Instinct :

- Samsung Glyde :

- HTC Touch Diamond :