News

• Smartphone chips could replace server processors in HPC, researchers say

  Looking at historical trends and performance benchmarks, a team of researchers in Spain have concluded that smartphone chips could one day replace the more expensive and power-hungry x86 processors used in most of the world's top supercomputers.

• iPad 5 rumour rollup for the week ending May 23

  The hot air levels rose dramatically in the iOSphere this week on the strength of one laconic, six-paragraph posting about the expected weight of iPad 5.

• Google ready to start shipping Glass to #ifihadglass Explorers

  For the 8,000 or so people who signed up this spring to be Glass Explorers, your wait for the computerized eyeglasses may soon be over.

• Vanishing into thin [MacBook] Air: Shortages signal WWDC refresh

  Apple's lowest-priced MacBook Air was out of stock on Amazon.com as of Friday, hinting that rumors of a refresh in two weeks are on target.

• Oracle, managed services provider to settle suit over third-party support

  Oracle and managed services provider ServiceKey have come to a proposed settlement of an intellectual-property lawsuit Oracle filed against the company last year.

• Windows 8 Update: Microsoft sacks iPad in Windows 8 ad, joins forces with NFL

  A new ad from Microsoft mocks iPads by comparing them a unfavorably a to tablets running Windows 8, which receive live updates on their Start screens, run office apps, display two apps at a time and support Microsoft Office applications a things iPads don't do.

• 9 super useful subreddits network pros should follow

  Reddit is not just filled with pictures of cats and silly memes. Seriously. There's a lot of good content on the popular social news aggregator for network professionals whether you're focused on security, Windows, VoIP, IPv6 or a mixed bag.

• Hybrid public-private Cloud usage more widespread than you think

  Many times in discussions about Cloud computing, the hybrid Cloud – meaning a service that combines both off-site public Cloud and on-premises private Cloud computing resources – is thought of as being some nirvana state that will be the dominant architecture at some point in the future.

• IT weather forecast: Hurricanes with a chance of dead satellites

  NOAA is working to fix a broken weather satellite -- the one that watches the Atlantic Ocean -- even as it gears up for what's expected to be an above-normal year for hurricanes.

• Powerful thin clients may be alternative to PCs

  Thin clients introduced this week by Dell and Hewlett-Packard have faster processor than existing thin clients as well as high-definition graphics capabilities, so they could be alternatives to traditional PCs as computing continues moving to the cloud.

• Amazon Kindle Fire HD tablets to go on sale in 170 countries on June 13

  Amazon.com is expanding the distribution of its tablets in a big way with the Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire HD 8.9 now available for preorder in over 170 countries, and its Appstore open in nearly 200 countries.

• Windows 8.1 laptops with AMD's new chips to support wireless display

  Advanced Micro Devices hopes to regain share in the PC processor market with its upcoming chips based on the Jaguar core, which will bring console-like gaming and wireless displays to laptops with Windows 8 and its successor, Windows Blue.

• HP $399 touchscreen laptop breaks price barrier

  Hewlett-Packard has introduced a new wave of Envy and Pavilion thin and light laptops, including an 11.6-inch touchscreen model priced aggressively at US$399.

• HP's Envy Rove 20-inch 'tablet' tackles Windows 8 desktop PC woes

  Windows 8 has not found wide adoption among desktop users, so HP has announced a new portable all-in-one and lowered the price of touch PCs so users can take advantage of the operating system.

• AMD willing to embrace Android

  Advanced Micro Devices has opened the door to embrace Google's Android operating system, but said it would continue to focus on Windows with its upcoming tablet and laptop chips.