Jailbreaking an iPhone allows users to use the device on other carriers aside from AT&T, the official wireless partner and sole distributor of the Apple Inc gadget.

When the iPhone has been unlocked, users can now also run other applications, on the device even those without approval by Apple.

Based on estimates by the FCC, there are at least one million users that have their iPhone unlocked. Though considered as illegal, no report or charges have been filed against an iPhone user to date.

But Apple stressed that jailbreaking an iPhone would cost the user the warranty and free services that comes with the device.

The world largest technology firm also fought hard to stop the legalization of “jailbreaking,” saying that the act of unlocking a contracted device is a form of copyright violation.

But the FCC dismissed Apple’s argument, saying that unlocking or jailbreaking an iPhone is merely an act of enhancing the inter-operability of the gadget, and was thus legitimate under fair-use rules.

The new FCC ruling is effective immediately. Users can now jailbreak or use unapproved applications to their iPhones without worrying of landing in jail.

Meanwhile, Apple and AT&T wireless remained silent over the new ruling.

According to reports, most of the wireless subscribers prefer to use the iPhone on T-Mobile networks rather being locked on AT&T. A large number of jailbreak iPhone, according to the reports, can be found overseas.

Meanwhile, the top programs or applications that users run on their iPhone include Safari ad-blocking apps, changing SMS interface, icon editing, and alternate keyboards. All of these applications were barred by Apple to be used in the device.

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The company made the announcement despite shaky market conditions in the technology sector, saying that the worst is finally over for the sector and bigger sales will be at hand in the comings months.

IBM also reported that its net income for the second quarter of this year has spiked up by nine percent ($3.39) billion, or roughly $2.65 per share. The figures have topped earlier analysts’ projection of $2.58 per share.

But the company said that its Q2 revenue has slipped by two percent to $23.7 billion, below the $24.2 billion analysts predicted.

The computer giant blamed the currency changes over the past three months, which cost at least $500 million worth of losses to the company. IBM said that experts, who have estimated the revenue projection, have failed to include the data in their calculations.

The currency value is important for IBM since most of its businesses were outside the United States, particularly Europe.

With the dollar-euro rate at its lowest, the computer giant gained less possible revenue when the euros were converted to greenbacks.

Also, despite the consistent positive forecasting by Wall Street, IBM also disclosed that the company shares dropped by four percent on Monday due to reductions in its services contract value.

IBM announced a 12 percent slip in the value of services contracts signed during the second quarter of 2010, costing to about $12.3 billion.

Meanwhile, other major players in the technology sector expressed belief that the economy will soon pick and more corporations will start to replace their old computer systems, which in turn could bring higher revenue for the tech firms.

Other Internet companies such as Google also shared the same view, citing the continued increase in the advertising revenue online.

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With the help of NASA, Microsoft was now able to produce high-definition 3-D images of objects and planets that can be found in the Milky Way and other galaxies.

One of the highly talked about image was the true color map of the entire Mars surface, taking online users to a “Total Recall” experience.

Microsoft also launched the first of its kind, high-resolution spherical sky map called the “TeraPixel,” which users can view using a virtual telescope.

TeraPixel, which is also under the WorldWide Telescope program, is the largest and clearest spherical image of the sky.

The image was made possible through Digitized Sky Survey, which is a collection of hundreds of thousands of images that were taken in a 50-year period by two survey telescopes on Earth.

The combination of the collected images gives users the spherical and panoramic view of the night skies, which would require 50,000 HD televisions to view.

Scientists at NASA expressed surprise to the outcome of the project, saying that they can now navigate through space using TeraPixel and make their own discoveries.

NASA’s chief technology officer for IT, Chris Kemp, said that the release of the two programs, Microsoft and the space agency have lowered the barrier in accessing the thrill of space.

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State Council Information Office director Wang Chen, in his address to the national legislature in April, has called for the extensive system that would require all Internet users to use their real names when going online or buying a mobile phone.

Chen said that the new registration system will allow the Chinese government to better manage the Internet and the content being provided by its users.

The Chinese government tried to remove the full context of Chen’s speech from its websites to avoid the watchful eyes of its critics. The media’s reporting on the issue was abruptly cut by the government.

However, a New York-based human rights group in China, which managed to obtain the original copy of the speech, expressed fear that the new proposal would make another row of human rights violations in the country, saying that they have found “an unexpurgated text and discrepancies” in the documents.

“This only shows that Beijing is wary that its push for tighter information control to its people,” the group said in its China Rights Forum magazine.

China’s move, according to the group, will plug all the loopholes in its existing Internet control called “The Great Firewall” by limiting anonymous access to contents or comments online.

It will be recalled that the tight Internet control by the Chinese government led to row with online giant Google.

But the due to the large consumer and advertising potential of the country, Google was forced to vow down to the Chinese, allowing it to resume operations in the mainland after months of absence.

Despite the pervasive censorship and stricter controls online, China’s online population continued to grow with over 400 million active users, the largest in the world. Also, China has over 233 million mobile Internet users.

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Dubbed as WordPress version 3.0, the new software hosts more than 2, 700 upgrades, which include 1, 217 bugs fix. At least 218 volunteers have provided the software upgrades for the 13th version of the software.

Research and consulting firm Real Story Group analyst Adriaan Bloem said that WordPress has now become the “most capable” blogging platform on the Internet, citing the most notable upgrade in the website’s feature – the multi-task blogging capability.

Real Story group, a company that specializes in content management software, said that with the addition of the WordPress MU, administrators can now run multiple blogs simultaneously.

“MU has been integrated into the main version of WordPress ensures that it should be easier to deploy,” Bloem noted.

Bloem believe that the addition of the MU capability to the main WordPress website has now put it directly ahead of its rival MovableType, which has long offered the multiple blogs.

“Despite MovableType’s long history of running multiple blogs, many of the online users still prefer WordPress because of its user-friendly interface. And with the addition of the MU, WordPress has overtaken MovableType in the race for blogging supremacy,” Bloem added.

It was learned that WordPress run on PHP platform, which is much easier to use than the Perl Language platform of MovableType.

WordPress users can now define whether their articles will go to certain categories such as products, models, and other specification they will require – through the website’s custom post capability.

Prior to the implementation of the custom post, WordPress user content were often limited to just blogs.

“The custom post types will further help establish WordPress as a good candidate for managing an entire Web site’s content, in addition to just the blogs,” Bloem added.

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Starbucks hopes to take back lucrative share of the restaurant business from its rivals like McDonald’s Corp. and other coffee chains that have long used free Wi-Fi connection to attract customers.

This time, Starbucks takes one step further by giving customers free Wi-Fi access, which will include special news networks and entertainment contents.

The Starbucks Digital Network was done in partnership with Yahoo, giving customers free access to online news websites like the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Patch and USA Today as well as free music downloads on Apple iTune Stores.

Previously, Starbucks offered only two hours of free Internet access to each user everyday.

The company started implementing the earlier Wi-Fi scheme based on its study, which showed that customers login on the Internet in an average of one hour on each visit to Starbucks stores. Meanwhile, Smartphone users use Wi-Fi access on an average of 15 minutes.

The coffee giant hopes to extend its quarterly gains, which has been slumped for the past 13 quarters due to the recession and rapid expansion plans.

Starbucks also hopes to take back major market shares from McDonald’s, which has offered unlimited Wi-Fi access to some 11, 5000 stores. The coffee giant lost major clientele to McDonald’s due to its McCafe chain.

Following the announcement, Starbucks shares jumped by 1.5 percent or 41 cents ($27.56) during midday trading on Monday.

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In a statement, San Francisco-based security firm Lookout said that the viruswas planted in video games designed for Smartphones such as “3D Anti-Terrorist” and “PDA Poker Art.”

“The worst part is that these games were available on websites that provides legitimate software for cell phones and Smartphones,” Lookout chief executive John Hering said.

Hering, citing the results of their investigations, said that the mobile video games are usually bundled with malicious software (malwares), which are designed to automatically dial premium rate telephone services in different countries like Italy, Somalia, and Spain.

“Our investigations also showed that many of the unwitting victims were charged hundred or sometimes thousands of dollars in a month,” he said.

“Most of them did not even have a clue that their phones were infected by the virus. Not until they receive their phone bills with hundreds of dollars worth of premium-rate services,” he added.

Hering also disclosed the identity of the virus developers, saying that they were also the programmers of the telephone services.

With the boom in the use of the Apple iPhone, Google Android, and Research in Motion Blackberry, the official said that Smartphone users have become the favorite target of these hackers because the technology was relatively new and still has several loopholes in the software design.

Sought for comment, Microsoft Corp said that they were unaware of the new viruses that have been plaguing its clients.

“As always, Microsoft continues to encourage customers to follow all of the steps of the ‘Protect Your Computer’ guidance of enabling a firewall, applying all software updates and installing anti-virus and anti-spyware software,” the company added.

Microsoft said customers should visit http://www.microsoft.com/protect/ for guidance on protection from viruses.

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“It is good news that we finally have an operating system to unite behind. Android is an operating system that has gained a tremendous amount of momentum all over the world,” Huang said.

The official said that Android-based tablet computers will be one of the highlights in the annual Computex Show, which will be held in Taiwan.

“Most of the manufacturers and other hardware makers are expected to come up with Android-based prototypes since it is the ideal software to use in tablet computers,” he said, adding that Windows OS is not the best choice for such hardware.

“Microsoft Windows OS is too heavy and too full-featured for a tablet computer or a smartbook,” he added.

Smartbook is a term used to describe low-cost laptops containing processors designed by Arm instead of x86 chips from Intel or Advanced Micro Devices.

Originally designed for Smartphones and other smaller devices of similar size, Android has gained the trust of major computer makers.

One of the best example is Acer, one of the largest computer manufacturers in the world, which has released an Android-operated version of its popular Aspire One netbook.

“Android has become the fastest growing mobile operating system in the world and, in fact, it has surpassed the iPhone in terms of growth and in terms of users,” the CEO said.

Huang, however, refused to comment on issues that Nvidia has vested interest in pushing for the development of Android-based tablet computers. According to reports, the company has been pushing for the Android OS since it will benefit majorly in the hype with its Arm-based processor called Tegra 2.

Tegra 2 is specifically designed for tablet PCs, and Android OS.

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The company said that the new Apple App will be offered to millions of iPhone users for free only until the end of the year.

“Skype-to-Skype calls over Wi-Fi networks will be free of charge while Skype-to-Skype calls over 3G will be offered for free until the end of the year,” the company said in a statement.

However, the company said that it is yet to study the amount of charging to Skype users.

“Apple iPhone users may be charged additional fees by their wireless operators for the use of 3G networks and data traffic. So they’ll have to make sure that they discuss their mobile phone plan, the terms and conditions, with their operators to be allowed to use IP telephony,” Skype added in the statement.

The company said that the new Skype App will allow iPhone, iPod Touch (3rd generation), and iPad users to make calls to other users using Skype technology.

But the company said that iPod users may have to buy the compatible headset and microphone to be able to talk with the person on the other line. It is also limited to Wi-Fi Skype calls since it is no 3G-capable.

Other Symbian-based Smartphones can also download the free Skype App. The company also said that they are now working on Android version of the application.

The Skype software application works by allowing users to make voice calls over the Internet.

Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system.

Skype has also become popular for its additional features which include instant messaging, file transfer, and video conferencing.

Skype Limited, the company that operates Skype, was founded in 2003 by Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis with headquarters in Luxembourg.

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In United States alone, Apple was able to sell more than 1.4 million units of iPad despite restrictions in the demographic launching of the 10-inch tablet computer. Major Apple Stores also run out of units to be sold due to record-high demand.

According to reports, Apple was forced to push back the global launching of the iPad due to limited units and continued rise in demand in the US.

But with the release of the iPad in Japan, Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, and Great Britain, the company was able to pump up immediately its sales to more than two million units.

The highly-anticipated iPad tablet computer was said to have revolutionize the entire industry, threatening to eat out even the netbook sector.

Many of the technology experts believe that the advertising technique used by Apple and its chief executive Steve Jobs, has a lot to do with the hype for the product. Jobs is considered as one of the best buzz builder in the technology world, considering the success of the iPhone, iPad, and the Macbook line.

In a statement following the worldwide release, Jobs said that Apple fans can now enjoy the features of the iPad as much as the company did when it first launched the product a month ago in California.

He also asked for the people’s patience due to the delay in the delivery of the product, saying that they are doing everything that they can to meet the deadlines.

In July, the company will launch the iPad in nine other countries including Belgium, Ireland, Netherlands, and Austria.

With this, Apple is expecting its sales to go higher than what they have earlier predicted and keep the No.1 spot in the technology industry.

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