Author: Connor Livingston

What many have believed for a long time has been confirmed. “Blue Army”, a Chinese military unit of highly-skilled hackers, exists as a cyberwarfare powerhouse to protect attacks on Chinese government technology systems. With funding in the “tens of millions of dollars” and boasting 30+ soldiers, Blue Army poses a threat to countries across the globe as the increasingly aggressive Chinese government moves to stake its claim as a powerhouse online and off. As with so many other things that China is able to dominate, it’s a matter of size and population according to a former PLA general. “It is…

The same technology used in 3D postcards and glasses-free 3D televisions is being used by a Japanese research group at the University of Electro-Communications to develop flooring designed to guide pedestrians to the right. The flooring would “trick” the mind into walking towards the right by sending visual cues. These cues would, in theory, affect the optical aspect of our perceived balance. In crowded walking areas such as train stations and malls, this type of flooring could help the flow of traffic by adding order to the mass of people using it. “The images on the sheets laid on the floor beneath…

Print is dead. It isn’t dying. There is no chance of a resurrection. It’s done. Gone. Save the trees! Or is it? While many still believe that technology will save all, there’s still something that can be said about picking up a newspaper and reading long-form articles or books without the use of electricity (other than lighting in the room). While there may never be a need or ability for print media to make a full recovery, there will (likely) always be a need to chop down more trees and squeeze for squids for their ink. Thanks to our friends at GetSatisfaction, we can compare newspapers, magazines,…

Necomimi, a mashup of the Japanese words for cat and ear, is a new device that lets you express yourself visually through your thoughts. The ears, which you wear on your head, are connected to a strap that touches your forehead. By reading the electric impulses in your mind, the device attempts to express your current mental state through the position of the ears. When concentrating, the ears spring up. When you relax, the ears droop. They can also read other emotional states and move back and forth to match. While the practical use of the device is purely aesthetic, the technology itself has applications….

We all know that new tech gadgets are more expensive in the beginning when demand and expenses could bring a higher  price. With hard drives, it’s amazing to see just how expensive they are versus how much they used to be. Take a look at three shining examples of how 10- and 15-MBs looked in the past both in physical form as well as cost. Could you imagine paying that kind of money to get 10-MBs? Neither could I. Today, they’re much cheaper: …but they weren’t always that small… …and they weren’t always inexpensive. …

If you’re an active Sony Playstation network user, you’re aware that it was “game over” last week as hackers made their way into the network and made off with a ton of your personal data. Sony has said that they are not certain whether sensitive credit card data was taken. According to discussions in underground hacker forums, the hackers got your numbers. Comments in these forums, which are being monitored by security researchers, reportedly claim that the hacked database included customer names, addresses, usernames, passwords and up to 2.2 million credit card numbers. The hackers hope to…

If there’s one major complaint that almost every tech company in the world has to deal with from time to time, it’s tech support. When you have upset people with problems having to jump through the hoops often associated with putting in a customers service request, the results are often quite negative. Having the right people in place is always a challenge, as the pay is normally at the low end in the tech world while the skill required is often high. This infographic by our friends at ZenDesk can be used as a roadmap when looking for that exact right person to represent your company on the phone and via…

It was bound to happen sooner or later, and it appears that Apple is making preparations for the eventual T-Mobile iPhone 4. A report by BGR says that a T-Mobile-enabled iPhone prototype has been leaked with some interesting feature speculation. It is possibly utilizing the A5 chip like the one in the fabled iPhone 4S, according to 9to5Mac.  The prototype is dubbed “N94″ following the Verizon “N92.” Here are some leaked images courtesy of BGR: …

Say what you will about the impartiality of judges and the recent ruling to not expand on the Winklevoss twins’ settlement with Facebook. Their characters, played by Armie Hammer in The Social Network, hurt their image in the court of public opinion. As with any level of impartiality, this likely had an effect on the ruling and may stick the twins with a “mere” $65 million in cash and shares. In the movie, they were depicted as having the original idea for Facebook in their startup, ConnectU. While this would seem to position them properly to receive higher compensation, they were depicted as vindictive,…

The parody amongst technology companies continues to make everyone look like everyone else. Brands persist, but services and products seem to blend into each other. Everyone is starting to offer what everyone else has. This comic from JoyofTech puts it all into perspective for us. Who is going to be in social? Who will be a player in search. This guy wants to be like that guy, but this other guy is already looking like something else. It’s a mess. As humorous as it all seems, it’s starting to become a reality. …