James Farrell
Latest from James Farrell
Emergency update from Microsoft: Out-of-cycle security for devastating Kerberos bug
Microsoft has just added one of two missing security updates that were part of the 14 critical patches released last week. Updates MS14-068 and MS14-075 were supposed to be released last Tuesday, but for some reason, possibly due to a fault in the patch, the two patches were held back. MS14-068 will address CVE-2014-6324, a Windows Kerberos ...
Tech giants push USA Freedom Act now, fearing Republican rejection next year
In an era where public concern over omnipresent and oppressive government surveillance is at an historical high, partly attributable to Edward Snowden’s National Security Agency (NSA) revelations, nine of the world’s biggest tech companies are fighting for the public’s right to internet freedom. The coalition, made-up of Microsoft, Google, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, AOL, Dropbox and Evernote, ...
Did cloud put Microsoft in second place for world’s most valuable company rank?
Microsoft now trails only Apple Inc. on the list of the world’s most valuable companies, having leaped-frogged Exxon Mobil Corp. The Redmond tech-giant, led by CEO Satya Nadella and his cloud first, mobile first vision, has seen its total market value rise to $410 billion, compared to Exxon’s $404 billion. Apple is still way out ...
Making movies with Microsoft’s new Lumia app: same…but different
“Making movies has never been easier,” says Microsoft in reference to its Movie Creator Beta app for Lumia phones, the Lumia 2520 tablet and Surface tablets running Windows 8.1. The new app works as an all-in-one basic editing suite in which users, or should we say auteurs, can splice video clips, insert images, add text ...
Critical threat to Windows users? Microsoft releases patch install
Users of Windows 2003/2008/2012, as well as Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, and Windows RT, could be under attack from a bug which Microsoft reported could “allow remote code execution if an attacker sends specially crafted packets to a Windows server.” Machines are vulnerable in the Secure Channel (Schannel) security package in Windows, says Microsoft, from threats that ...
A phone for every budget? First Lumia phone launched by Microsoft looks at low-cost buyers market
The first Lumia device has been officially launched today as the Lumia 535, a smartphone, which doesn’t offer much more than some of Microsoft’s Windows Phones, but is the first Lumia device available minus the Nokia brand. The phone offers two models, one with Dual SIM. Both are relatively cheap, and it seems they’re aimed ...
Microsoft guides the blind with bat-like tech
Navigating the cities of the world could soon become a lot easier for the millions of blind and visually impaired people thanks to Microsoft’s innovative navigational headset, which lets you hear your surroundings when seeing them is not possible. The product, which is still in its pilot stage, gives the visually impaired what Microsoft has ...
Opinion: Why Skype’s “magic” video translator is unlikely to beat Google Translate
When I first heard of Microsoft’s real-time voice translation app for Skype and CEO, Satya Nadella’s bold prediction to “imagine in the very near future technology allowing humans to bridge geographic and language boundaries,” I was moved by such a world-changing utterance. I was also curious, and a little skeptical: the translation tools already available, to ...
Breaking the language barrier: Microsoft seeks testers for real-time Skype video translator
Microsoft’s Skype Translator is ready for testing, and the Redmond, WA-based company is looking for applicants to try out the new product. The new feature will be an advance on previous translation tools of the past, which only translated text, supporting 51 languages. The new real-time translator will translate video conversations in real-time. Back in May at ...
A cloudy partnership? Microsoft and Dropbox tie the knot
Only days after Microsoft gave its Office 365 subscribers unlimited cloud storage, the Redmond company has now announced that it will be integrating Office with Dropbox Inc. The two competitors have collaborated on a move that will mean Office apps for Android and iOS will be synced with Dropbox’s storage. “Over the coming weeks, we’re ...
