Author: JD Rucker

It’s the most exciting release by Microsoft in years. Windows 8 is actually making the Apple-loving blogosphere open their eyes and cheer out loud. Will it be successful? Will it come out too late? In the coming months we will see how this pans out, but for the first time in a long time, Microsoft is hot. You can see the entire keynote on BuildWindows, but here are the highlights. Below it is some of the feedback coming around the web. Windows 8 Makes Microsoft A Tablet Contender Against Android, Apple Windows 8 Running on ARM: 10 Reasons This Partnership Matters Windows 8 to offer built-in malware protection…

There are certain things that are made to be impossible in this world. One of them is breaking into Fort Knox. The security measures are so extreme, they’re almost comical. Nobody other than a large army could get beyond the first measures (and there are several beyond those). From 4-foot thick granite outer walls to 27-inch thick steel and concrete vaults, the fortress could withstand an atomic bomb. Everything has a backup, and most of the backups have a backup. Getting in is simply impossible. This infographic by our friends at CreditSesame shows just how tight the vault is. They also explore…

Last month, reports started circulating that Apple had lost another iPhone prototype in a bar. This time, it was an iPhone 5, the highly-anticipated next smartphone in the iPhone line. Comedian Conan O’Brien and his team put together a skit about Apple’s “response” to the person or people who currently have possession of the device. It is done very well in proper Apple video advertising style, only with the necessary injections of O’Brien humor. …

It proved that it could beat the best Jeopardy! champions in the world at their own game. Now, IBM’s Watson will try to help doctors make better medical decisions for their patients. WellPoint, Inc. and IBM announced an agreement today to develop and launch Watson-based medical solutions. It will be the first commercial applications of the IBM Watson technology. The program, which is scheduled to roll out next year, will begin by assisting nurses who manage complex patient cases. It will help the insurer to review treatment requests from medical providers. Stage two will put the technology…

The value of Yahoo! is fading. Where once there were green pastures, emptiness resides. The internet portal pioneer is losing relevance, traffic, revenue, credibility and CEOs. Most importantly, they’re losing value. Fast. Despite all of the negatives that have happened over the last 4 years, Yahoo! is still a huge company that, believe it or not, has a potentially strong future. That future is only bright if they do what they should have done three years ago – sell to Microsoft (or anyone else who is interested). Current value is in the traffic, not assets While many business and tech blogs are…

The digital age has been upon us for a while, but there are certain things that people simply prefer to do the old fashioned way. For many, holding an actual book in their hands is the key to their reading enjoyment. Have we reached a tipping point where e-readers are becoming more popular? Perhaps it’s not a tipping point yet, but it has achieved double-digits. 10% of American adults use some variation of electronic readers with another 12% saying they are likely to buy one in next 6 months. What does all of this say about our reading habits? GOOD tackles the question in this infographic. Click to enlarge….

Bill Gates and Microsoft had the right idea a decade ago when they first started releasing tablet PCs to the market. They were clunky, too expensive, and the company didn’t improve them over the years. As a result, they missed the flood when Apple turned the tablet valve to full blast a year and a half ago. Microsoft is ready to jump in, but is it too late? Next week, Steven Sinofsky, President of the Windows Division for Microsoft, is expected to show an early version of a tablet-enabled operating system code-named (wait for it) Windows 8. There was a lot of excitement when the first of a series of videos…

It’s a matter of class. Apple and Google have traveled different paths on their road to success. Both have overcome challenges that could have tanked most tech companies in their early (Google) and middle (Apple) days as companies. Both have had strong leadership – Steve Jobs at Apple and most of the executive team at Google – that has kept them on course despite the challenges. Both make good decisions and bad decisions, but it is in adversity that the the true heart of the companies come out. For Apple, they were on the edge of the abyss when they swallowed their pride and brought back Steve Jobs a few…

In the past, I have been critical of Michael Arrington, founder and former co-editor of Techcrunch, over several issues. I’ve questioned his journalistic integrity (even when he claims he’s not a journalist) and some of the conclusions that he has made in his writing (such as his asinine statement that Digg shouldn’t listen to its users so much; that advice didn’t turn out too well). Still, I have always admired his ability to say what he means and mean what he says, and through the whole Arrington/Huffington/AOLington debacle, he has been in the right. Particularly now. He isn’t asking much….

You don’t have to be a tech geek to know about apps. Just about anyone with a smartphone or a tablet has downloaded and installed apps onto their devices at one point or another. Some do it nearly every day. Gaming is the biggest category – we love our distractions – but business and productivity apps are starting to make a push and are being used by individuals and companies alike. This infographic by our friends at Intuit breaks down the boom of applications in the small business realm. As people become more accustomed to utilizing applications rather than websites and online resources, we can expect…