NEW YORK : Internet giant Google has emerged as the world's best multinational company to work for, followed by software developer SAS Institute and network storage provider NetApp in the second and third place, respectively.    Software giant Microsoft was ranked fourth by human resources consultancy 'Great Place to Work Institute', which has compiled a list of 25 such companies.    There is no India-based company in this list and all 25 firms are either American or European.    Others in the top 10 include W L Gore & Associates, which was ranked 5th on the list, followed by personal and household goods maker Kimberly-Clark (6th), ho

We all know that we need to use strong passwords on websites. In fact, a different password for every site you frequent is wise.   Good Web security hygiene creates two problems, however. First, you have to remember all those different passwords. Second, if you lose your smartphone, your many passwords may be at risk.   But there are various password manager apps meant to solve those problems. The best-known password manager app is 1Password by AgileBits. This app keeps your many Web site passwords, for your bank and so on, safely locked up. It also can keep track of other data like passport details, addresses and more.   The app has a plain yet attractive interfac

Samsung today announced the launch of the new Galaxy 10.1 tablet in India. The tablet priced at Rs 49,990 made its debut at IFA event (held in Germany) in September.    Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 features a 10.1-inch 2560x1600p Super Clear LCD display. The tablet runs on 1.9GHz Exynos 5 Octa processor and has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage.    The 3G-enabled tablet run on Android 4.3 and has 8220 mAh battery. The tablet also packs a S-Pen stylus. It will compete against the likes of Sony Xperia Tablet Z, Apple iPads and HP SlateBook X2.    Galaxy 10.1 launch in India comes on the day Apple is set to refresh its iPad lineup at an event in San Francisco

NEW YORK : For the third month in a row, more Americans visited Yahoo's websites than Google's, according to comScore's internet traffic data for September.    The research firm said Yahoo's websites had 197.8 million unique US visitors last month, while Google's had 191.4 million. Yahoo was ahead of Google in July and August, too. The last time that Yahoo was ahead of Google before that was in May 2011.    That said, Yahoo is still far behind Google in making money from the people who visit its websites. Research firm eMarketer estimates that Google will generate $38.83 billion in worldwide digital ad revenue this year, more than any other com

NEW YORK: Microsoft has pulled a Windows update from its website after it caused problems on some customers' devices.    The company didn't give details about the problems but says it's investigating. It removed the RT 8.1 update from the Windows Store during the weekend.    In place of the update, Microsoft posted an apology for the problem and said it's trying to resolve the situation quickly. The company says it will give updates as soon as possible. It says the problem affected only a limited number of users.    The company says RT 8.1 is an operating system for tablets and light, thin personal computers. It only runs built-in app

BHUBANESWAR: What do fifteen-year-olds do in their spare time? Play video games and surf the net? Pratik Mohapatra is slightly different. This Class X Odisha boy from Bangalore has developed an app that people can use to send distress calls in an emergency. The app, 'Emergency Hub', is available on Windows and Android phones and has been widely accepted by users.   Emergency Hub has the telephone numbers of various emergency services and can connect you to them at a touch whenever you're in distress.   So what made Pratik think of developing such an app?   "After the Delhi gang rape case created an uproar across the country, I thought to mysel

NEW DELHI: Indian smartphone manufacturer Micromax, whose CEO has resigned recently, is readying a new top-end model called Canvas Turbo. The company is said to be working on this device to take on the likes of Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One, LG G2 and Sony Xperia Z1.   Tech website MMXNewscaster has leaked specifications of this upcoming device.   According to an image released by MMXNewscaster, the upcoming Canvas Turbo will have a 5-inch screen with Full HD (1920x1080p) resolution. All top end smartphones today have flagship models with Full HD displays. The image also shows a 5MP front camera and dual-sim functionality. The volume rocker and power/lock key are placed on the

NEW DELHI: Just two days ahead of the Nokia World Event, the company has accidentally revealed the specifications of its upcoming top-end phablet. Nokia China has listed the Lumia 1520, which will be biggest handset in the smartphone maker's portfolio after launch, on its official Tmall store, an online marketplace.   According to the listing by Nokia China, the upcoming Lumia 1520 will have a 6-inch display, 20MP PureView camera and quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset. This phablet will cost 4,999 yuan ($819), according to the listing. These specifications are in line with previous speculation about the device.   Other rumoured specifications of the Lumia 1520 are Full HD

SAN FRANCISCO: Apple is expected to rev up its iPad line as the tablet market heats up with competition from devices powered by software from Google and Microsoft.   Analysts agree that iPads will star at an invitation-only event being held in San Francisco on the cusp of the prime year-end holiday shopping season.   "Job One for Apple is to get something out there on the large-size iPad that gets people excited, then obviously from a specification focus, the Mini needs to catch up with what everybody else has done," NPD analyst Stephen Baker told AFP.   "There are a lot of other things happening in that large-size tablet space and there is a huge am

NEW DELHI: Acer has brought in its new tablet, the Iconia W4 tablet, an upgrade of the Iconia W3 model. The new tablet is faster and lighter than its predecessor and has a better screen. It is also the first device from Acer to run on Microsoft's latest Windows 8.1 operating system.    Iconia W4's 8-inch IPS display has 1280x800p resolution and features Zero Gap touch technology and 170-degree viewing angles. It is powered by Intel's new 1.8GHz BayTrail processor and offers storage options of 32GB and 64GB; it also supports microSD card up to 32GB. Connectivity options in the tablet include Wi-Fi, microUSB, microHDMI and Bluetooth 4.0.    The new Acer

WASHINGTON: Security researchers at Quarkslab have reportedly revealed that tech giant Apple can read the encrypted content sent through its iMessage service, if it wants.   Quarkslab said that as claimed by Apple that there is end-to-end encryption in iMessage service, the issue is with the key infrastructure and the tech company can change a key anytime it wants and thus gain access to the content.   According to ABC News, the research lab revealed how Apple uses well-known algorithms in its cryptography, and how the company uses the same servers and Push protocol as other services and because the tech giant can control the system, it can very well change it and access th

NEW DELHI: State-run BSNL has launched special tariff vouchers (STVs) wherein its customers would get over 75% cheaper rates for making international calls.   The public sector firm has launched STVs in the range for Rs 23 to Rs 41 for prepaid customers whereas postpaid users have to pay a fixed monthly charge (FMC) of Rs 20 to Rs 40 to avail the cheaper rates.   The company has divided the countries into four groups. "BSNL is providing its customers the cheapest international call rates. It has launched STVs, which are offering ISD calls rates similar to the normal calls," the company said in a statement.   With a STV of Rs 41, prepaid customers can call

WASHINGTON: A team of computer scientists have developed a software program that watches a user's movements and gives spoken feedback on what to change to accurately complete a yoga pose.    The program, called Eyes-Free Yoga, uses Microsoft Kinect software to track body movements and offer auditory feedback in real time for six yoga poses, including Warrior I and II, Tree and Chair poses.    Project lead Kyle Rector, a UW doctoral student in computer science and engineering wrote programming code that instructs the Kinect to read a user's body angles, then gives verbal feedback on how to adjust his or her arms, legs, neck or back to complete the pose.&nbs

Bangalore has many taglines, some may call it as the Air-Conditioned City or some call it the City Of Gardens, but as far I can recall, I have always heard of Bangalore as the silicon valley of India. This also maybe because all the well know IT companies have big and plush offices in this city with the highest manpower. My purpose to visit the city was totally different though. I mean it's nice to know that many of my techie friends work in some of those high rise offices in the city, however the sole intention of my visit to Bangalore was to explore the city to the core and see what makes this city such a popular metro and so lucrative for business.   How to get there &nbs

PUNE: Indian IT major Infosys will recruit more than 8,000 employees in Pune over the next six months as part of its expansion plans for which it getting an additional 150 acres in the city. Infosys already employs over 15,000 IT professionals at its existing facilities in the city.   "We will shortly begin operations at our new building in Hinjewadi Phase-II. We are looking at growth across verticals, like finance, insurance, banking, energy, retail and manufacturing, for which we will hire nearly 4,200 software professionals across all forms of expertise. We also plan to hire an equal number of heads again around March when our third facility becomes functional," Pravin

BEIJING: Chinese scientists have successfully developed a new cheaper way of getting connected to internet by using signals sent through light bulbs instead of radio frequencies as in Wi-Fi, a move expected to radically change process of online connectivity.    Four computers can be connected to internet through one- watt LED bulb using light as a carrier instead of traditional radio frequencies, as in Wi-Fi, said Chi Nan, an information technology professor with Shanghai's Fudan University.    Under the new discovery dubbed as 'Li-Fi', a light bulb with embedded microchips can produce data rates as fast as 150 megabits per second, which is speedier th

NEW DELHI: Sony India has launched its Xperia C phablet in India, bringing yet another rival of the popular Samsung Galaxy Grand in the market. This device has a 5-inch screen, Android 4.2, dual-sim functionality and a quad-core processor and has been priced at Rs 21,490.   Xperia C will compete against the likes of Samsung Galaxy Grand, Micromax Canvas 4 and the upcoming LG Optimus G Pro Lite.   The new Xperia C has a TFT display with 960x540p resolution and has the Omnibalance design that Sony uses in its top-end smartphones. This phone comes with 4GB internal storage, microSD support up to 32GB, 1GB RAM and runs on a 1.2GHz quad-core Mediatek processor.   On the

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook Inc removed a restriction for users under 18 that previously limited who could see their online postings from photos to musings on the world-wide social network.   The No.1 online social network said that teenagers would now be able to manually alter the setting and share information with the public. Until now, a teenager's postings on Facebook were only viewable to their friends, and to the friends of their friends.   However, Facebook said on Wednesday the default setting when teens do share information on the 1.15 billion user network would go out to a narrower group of people.   "Teens are among the savviest people using of soci

NEW DELHI: The number of social media users are expected to grow 17% to reach 91 million in urban India by December 2013, on the back of rising internet penetration due to increasing affordability of smartphones and availability of cost effective data plans.    The number of social media users in urban India reached 78 million by June 2013, a report by IAMAI and IMRB International said.    "The report estimates that the number of social media users by October 2013 will be 86 million and by December 2013, will be 91 million, showing an overall growth of 17% since June 2013," it said.    It said Facebook is the leading website accessed by 96%

PUNE: Microsoft India has announced the launch of Imagine Cup 2014, inviting applications from student software developers.    Currently in its twelfth year, Imagine Cup is a global student technology programme and competition that provides opportunities for students across all disciplines to team up and use their creativity, passion and knowledge of technology to create applications, games and integrated solutions that can change the way we live, work, and play.    Registration for the Imagine Cup is now open on www.imaginecup.com with a chance for outstanding ideas to compete at Seattle, US, where the worldwide finals will be held next year, and win a grand priz