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ARS TECHNICA: Surprise! Walmart’s unlimited iPhone 5 data plan not so unlimited - 1/20/13

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When Walmart announced earlier this month that it would begin selling the iPhone 5 with a surprisingly affordable $45-per-month, unlimited everything plan, there was much rejoicing. After all, you could never get away with paying that little per month for such attractive benefits—particularly, unlimited data—on a contract through AT&T or Verizon. But as usual, what seems too good to be true probably is—the "unlimited" data plan offered by Walmart's Straight Talk is actually limited, with some serious bandwidth throttling if the company thinks you've gone too far past your limit.

When Walmart announced earlier this month that it would begin selling the iPhone 5 with a surprisingly affordable $45-per-month, unlimited everything plan, there was much rejoicing. After all, you could never get away with paying that little per month for such attractive benefits—particularly, unlimited data—on a contract through AT&T or Verizon. But as usual, what seems too good to be true probably is—the "unlimited" data plan offered by Walmart's Straight Talk is actually limited, with some serious bandwidth throttling if the company thinks you've gone too far past your limit.

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ARS TECHNICA: Ford AppLink opens floodgates to in-car iOS, Android, and BlackBerry apps - 1/19/1

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"It's open, it's global, it's live, let's hack!" says Ford's John Eliss, global technologist for connected services. Ford has been leading the way in networking its cars and encouraging app developers to give Ford vehicles an edge in the increasingly technology-obsessed motor industry. So Wired.co.uk travelled to Detroit for the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) to try them out.

"It's open, it's global, it's live, let's hack!" says Ford's John Eliss, global technologist for connected services. Ford has been leading the way in networking its cars and encouraging app developers to give Ford vehicles an edge in the increasingly technology-obsessed motor industry. So Wired.co.uk travelled to Detroit for the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) to try them out.

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MACWORLD: Straight Talk and Walmart offer iPhone unlimited plan, financing deal - 1/19/13

(7,812 Views)


If the words “unlimited,” “iPhone,” and “no contract” are a few of your favorite things, then Straight Talk Wireless is ready to make your day. Starting on Friday, January 11, the carrier will be offering the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5 on its $45 per month unlimited plan.

If the words “unlimited,” “iPhone,” and “no contract” are a few of your favorite things, then Straight Talk Wireless is ready to make your day. Starting on Friday, January 11, the carrier will be offering the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5 on its $45 per month unlimited plan.

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ARS TECHNICA: Google Music and Amazon Cloud Player take on iTunes Match. Who wins? - 1/20/13

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We've all been there: you've rushed out the door and realized you've forgotten to sync your phone. You were really looking forward to listening to that new album on the way to work, but now you'll have to settle for talk radio, or worse, an album you've already played out.

The introduction of cloud music storage makes this small problem an issue of the past. With services like iTunes Match, you can simply purchase or upload an album and have it available on all your iOS devices in an instant for $24.99 a year. As an added bonus, you can also save space on your hard drive by permanently storing all of that music on Apple's servers, which helps if you're downsizing to smaller computers with flash storage or hopping from computer to computer without a permanent place to keep your music. Cloud storage is now an essential component for music libraries, and although it hasn't completely eliminated the need for hard drives and local libraries, it's certainly made it easier for users with mobile lifestyles.

We've all been there: you've rushed out the door and realized you've forgotten to sync your phone. You were really looking forward to listening to that new album on the way to work, but now you'll have to settle for talk radio, or worse, an album you've already played out.

The introduction of cloud music storage makes this small problem an issue of the past. With services like iTunes Match, you can simply purchase or upload an album and have it available on all your iOS devices in an instant for $24.99 a year. As an added bonus, you can also save space on your hard drive by permanently storing all of that music on Apple's servers, which helps if you're downsizing to smaller computers with flash storage or hopping from computer to computer without a permanent place to keep your music. Cloud storage is now an essential component for music libraries, and although it hasn't completely eliminated the need for hard drives and local libraries, it's certainly made it easier for users with mobile lifestyles.

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TB: Aaron Swartz, Who Helped Free Information, Is Dead - 1/15/13

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The coder, activist, and open-access advocate Aaron Swartz died 11 January 2013 by his own hand. From the age of 13, when he won a prize given to youth who created non-commercial Web sites that were “useful, educational, and collaborative,” Swartz dedicated his life to writing code and sites that allowed information to flow more freely and advocating successfully against efforts to restrict access.

The coder, activist, and open-access advocate Aaron Swartz died 11 January 2013 by his own hand. From the age of 13, when he won a prize given to youth who created non-commercial Web sites that were “useful, educational, and collaborative,” Swartz dedicated his life to writing code and sites that allowed information to flow more freely and advocating successfully against efforts to restrict access.

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YOUTUBE: How to open and clean a wireless Apple Mighty Mouse - 10/5/11

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A really in-depth, up close, hi-res, take-apart tutorial on opening, cleaning and closing a dirty wireless Apple Mighty Mouse. In English. This is the way to do it after you've tried cleaning the ball from the outside 100 times. You'll need a Phillips screwdriver in the size 00 ( THAT'S ZERO ZERO). Save your mouse from the scrap heap. Buy dirty ones cheap and fix them. Recycle. It's the right thing to do.

A really in-depth, up close, hi-res, take-apart tutorial on opening, cleaning and closing a dirty wireless Apple Mighty Mouse. In English. This is the way to do it after you've tried cleaning the ball from the outside 100 times. You'll need a Phillips screwdriver in the size 00 ( THAT'S ZERO ZERO). Save your mouse from the scrap heap. Buy dirty ones cheap and fix them. Recycle. It's the right thing to do.

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ARS TECHNICA: "Marketplace Fairness Act" could force Amazon to collect sales tax - 11/9/11

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Ten Senators, led by Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mike Enzi (R-WY), and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), this morning introduced a new Internet sales tax bill called the "Marketplace Fairness Act." The bill gives states broad authority to require that online sellers like Amazon collect and remit state sales taxes so that online and offline retailers all operate under the same rules.

Ten Senators, led by Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mike Enzi (R-WY), and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), this morning introduced a new Internet sales tax bill called the "Marketplace Fairness Act." The bill gives states broad authority to require that online sellers like Amazon collect and remit state sales taxes so that online and offline retailers all operate under the same rules.

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CRACKED: 8 Unexpected Downsides of the Switch to E-books Read more: 8 Unexpected Downsides of t

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As e-book sales overtake paper-book sales, it seems like everybody is crying and wringing their hands about what it means -- serious, society-changing ramifications like the end of ownership, or ease of piracy, or environmental impact, or whether it makes things easier or harder for publishers or aspiring authors.
Like most important issues, those are boring. What are some effects of going to an all e-book world that haven't been talked to death? I dug around and tried to find some e-book ramifications that would appeal to the type of people who spend more time preparing for a zombie apocalypse than like, unemployment, or retirement, or something. You know, realists.


As e-book sales overtake paper-book sales, it seems like everybody is crying and wringing their hands about what it means -- serious, society-changing ramifications like the end of ownership, or ease of piracy, or environmental impact, or whether it makes things easier or harder for publishers or aspiring authors.
Like most important issues, those are boring. What are some effects of going to an all e-book world that haven't been talked to death? I dug around and tried to find some e-book ramifications that would appeal to the type of people who spend more time preparing for a zombie apocalypse than like, unemployment, or retirement, or something. You know, realists.


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TidBITS: Thoughts on — and of — a Computer Science Major - 3/6/13

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Like many others, I entered college from a high school where students were rewarded with good grades for memorizing and regurgitating the correct answers. I was great at that and always received above-average grades. I learned what was required from textbooks and was tested on it. There was no guessing as to what resources or subject matter to study. Alas, while my grades may have helped me get into college, high school otherwise didn’t do much to prepare me for the University of Virginia.

Like many others, I entered college from a high school where students were rewarded with good grades for memorizing and regurgitating the correct answers. I was great at that and always received above-average grades. I learned what was required from textbooks and was tested on it. There was no guessing as to what resources or subject matter to study. Alas, while my grades may have helped me get into college, high school otherwise didn’t do much to prepare me for the University of Virginia.

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ARS TECHNICA: Where’s my Knight Rider 2000? A MyFord Touch owner’s lament - 3/18/13

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In early February, I bought a 2013 Ford Escape equipped with MyFord Touch. In many ways, the system, which was developed jointly by Ford and Microsoft, is a driver's best friend. But best friends can be idiosyncratic sometimes, and they occasionally drive you nuts—especially when they argue with your other best friends (like your smart phone). These friends occasionally stop talking to each other, and one might even interrupt calls to your mom because they've decided it's time to perform "routine maintenance."

In early February, I bought a 2013 Ford Escape equipped with MyFord Touch. In many ways, the system, which was developed jointly by Ford and Microsoft, is a driver's best friend. But best friends can be idiosyncratic sometimes, and they occasionally drive you nuts—especially when they argue with your other best friends (like your smart phone). These friends occasionally stop talking to each other, and one might even interrupt calls to your mom because they've decided it's time to perform "routine maintenance."

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