Billable.Me: Easily Bill Your Clients

Being a freelancer, I’ve tried many applications to help me produce effective and professional invoices for my clients. I’ve experimented with everything from Microsoft Word to other applications on Mac OS X and iOS. Recently, I have come across Billable, a web-based application for invoicing clients.

Billable allows you to easily create beautiful and… read more

Apple, Microsoft Spark Antitrust Investigation of Motorola in Europe

Two separate complaints filed by Apple and Microsoft accuse Motorola Mobility of overcharging for its products in Europe.

The European Union’s antitrust enforcers are investigating the charges, which Microsoft was the first to bring last month. The software giant says Motorola was charging exorbitant prices for its 2G and 3G patents,… read more

Social Network Built for Apartment Dwellers is a Renter’s Dream

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: RentSocial

Quick Pitch: RentSocial is a new social platform aiming to makeover the apartment hunt process…. read more

Jasmine Villegas Puts You In Her Music Video

Microsoft is showing off the power of HTML5 and Internet Explorer with an interactive music video for teen star Jasmine Villegas.

The IE team worked with creative agencies Digital Kitchen and Bradley and Montgomery to create an interactive HTML5-driven experience that pushes the boundaries of what HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3 can… read more

This Week in App News: 26 – 31 March 2012

This week has seen quite a few updates to popular Mac apps, such as iTunes and Safari as well as a sneak preview of some new upcoming Adobe software. As always, here’s Mac AppStorm’s weekly roundup of the goings-on in the world of Mac software.

Apple pushes updates for iTunes, Safari… read more

Shoptiques Lets You Shop Boutiques Like a Local

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Shoptiques

Quick Pitch: Shop local boutiques online.

Genius Idea: Brings an offline industry online; lets you shop by… read more

Invoicebus: Invoicing Made Simple

Anyone doing business with clients should be familiar with the dreaded invoice. Though they signify that you’re going to be paid at some point in the near future, something you would think would be a a good thing, if you have to deal with quite a few of them on… read more

Google Whips Up 3D Graphing Goodness in Search

Add one more thing to the list of fun stuff you can do directly from Google‘s search box: 3D Graph Plotting. And these aren’t just still 3D charts. They’re colorful and fully manipulable, all thanks to Google Chrome Browser’s support for WebGL.

According to a post in Google’s Inside Search… read more

RIM-sanity! Beyond the BlackBerry Bloodbath

In response to Research in Motion’s ugly quarterly earnings report, newly-minted CEO Thorsten Heins is shaking up the executive team.

Not only has Jim Ballsillie — RIM’s co-CEO until January — resigned from the board of directors, but the COO and CTO are gone too. The company continues to search… read more

Microsoft: Metro’s Not Just an Interface, It’s a Philosophy

Long-time Microsoft watchers like me are marveling at the company’s transformation. Slowly but surely, the siloed behemoth that once couldn’t get its desktop and mobile operating system teams to talk to each other is now starting to glide forward as one vast entity. The most visible refection of this sea… read more

Korrio: Safe Web Tool Helps Parents Manage Kids’ Sports Teams

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Korrio

Quick Pitch: An all-in-one planning and organizing solution for parents or coaches of youth athletes

Genius… read more

Introducing Tello — a Faster Way to Solve Customer Service Issues

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Tello

Quick Pitch: Review and talk to businesses about your experience from your smartphone or tablet

Genius… read more

Google Docs vs Microsoft’s SkyDrive Apps

The options for your word processing, presentation making and spreadsheet creation needs have expanded significantly with the advancements of technology, both in native and web-based apps. The apps you need for your business work and more are available now not only on traditional personal computers, but also on mobile devices and the… read more

Want HBO Go on Your Xbox? Better Check With Your Cable Provider

Just because HBO Go is now available on the Xbox 360 doesn’t mean every HBO customer will have the ability to use it.

While testing the brand new Xbox apps — which also include Comcast Xfinity/Streampix and MLB.TV — we were a little miffed to find that certain cable providers, including… read more

9 Best Free iPad Apps For Web Designers And Developers

At this time, we have come with another electrifying collection of some of the very astonishing iPad apps for web designers and developers. The iPad without a doubt is very helpful in particular for those people whose career are online designing, freelancing and others. We compiled this post especially for… read more

Nyan Cat Stars in iOS Adventure Game [VIDEO]

Nyan Cat will shortly turn one year old — and to celebrate, he’s speeding through another video game. The 8-bit animated feline stars in the kooky Nyan Cat Adventure, which recently landed in Apple’s App Store.

The meme-inspired $0.99 game has five modes and eight playable characters, including Nyan Cat dressed… read more

Social App Marries the Fun of Group Couponing with Check-Ins

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: JoynIn

Quick Pitch: JoynIn is a daily deals site that combines the things you love about Yelp,… read more

Despite Bing’s Rise, Google Still Dominates Search [INFOGRAPHIC]

The tussle for U.S. search dominance over the last few years has been interesting. Google has eaten Yahoo’s lunch for the better part of a decade, but Microsoft’s Bing engine, released in 2009, has crept steadily upward. While it serves nowhere near the volume Google does, it’s interesting to see… read more

First LTE Windows Phones Will Be Available April 8

The first LTE Windows Phones will officially be available April 8 in the form of the Nokia Lumia 900 and HTC Titan II.

Booth handsets were announced earlier this year at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January. The Lumia 900 will be the third smartphone released by Nokia in… read more

Getting to Grips with HTML5 Browser Compatibility

Over the past few years, HTML5 has gone from mythical creature to vivid reality and has taken its share of hits from skeptics and experts alike as to its readiness and viability. Now, in 2012, HTML5 is ready for use with all modern browsers, including IE9. It has… read more

Meet the $25 Musical Button Seducing Corporate America

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Quick Pitch: A stripped-down iPod-like device that plays the equivalent of a full album and retails for… read more

3 Key Metrics for Evaluating Your Mobile Ecommerce Site

Although the mobile web has become mainstream, not all websites have kept pace with the eager throngs of mobile shoppers.

After all, mobile traffic is projected to surpass desktop traffic by 2015 — the stakes couldn’t be higher for optimizing your site for mobile.

When a mobile user reaches your… read more

Microsoft Demonstrates Mind-Blowing 3D Desktop [VIDEO]

Take on look at the world of mobile devices — from multitouch smartphones and tablets to virtual assistants ready listen to your questions and give you answers — and you get the idea that the world of interfaces is changing fast. Desktop interfaces, however, are a different story

“Despite advances… read more

Angry Birds Space Is Headed to Windows Phone 7

It looks like Angry Birds Space will be making it to Windows Phone 7 after all. The game officially debuted Thursday on Android and iOS, however, Rovio indicated that it didn’t have plans to ever bring the game to Windows Phone 7.

“If you look at activations, Apple’s iOS and… read more

On Intern Sushi, Applicants Submit Videos Instead of Resumes

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Intern Sushi

Quick Pitch: Intern Sushi is a new way to find, apply for and manage internships… read more

Facebook Bought 750 Patents From IBM [REPORT]

The patent war between Facebook and Yahoo may be only just starting.

A new report says Facebook has acquired 750 patents from computer-systems giant IBM. The news comes shortly after Yahoo sued Facebook for patent infringement over 10 of its software patents.

A “person with knowledge of the transaction” tipped the… read more

Google Docs Improves Spell-Checker

Google Docs updated its spell-checker today and it didn’t use a old-fashioned dictionary to do it.

Instead, Google Docs will use the web. Documents will be checked for spelling errors and words that are contextually misused such as “see” and “sea” or the all-too-commonly missed “you’re” and “your.” Google Docs… read more

Improve Your Workflow By Eating Out – The Link Between Restaurants And Design Meetings

Let’s face it: when we eat out at a restaurant, we usually aren’t making the most logical choice on any front. Restaurants are quite a bit more expensive than cooking meals at home; they’re also less nutritious, less filling, and sometimes the quality of the food or the… read more

Say Goodbye to User Name and Password Logins, and Hello to ‘OneID’

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: OneID Inc.

Quick Pitch: Goodbye user names and passwords.

Genius Idea: OneID has created single-click login so users… read more

Mitt Romney Holds Google+ Hangout, Defends Microsoft

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney held his second Google+ Hangout on Tuesday, taking questions from supporters on a wide range of issues. Right off the bat, Romney was asked about how he would handle cybersecurity, digital intellectual property theft and software piracy.

“Both at the government level and the corporate level… read more

50+ Free Mac Apps for 2012

Let’s face it – buying a Mac isn’t cheap, but you can help justify some of that cost if you use only a few of these outstanding free Mac apps. I’ve included my favorite apps, from simple text editors to advanced publishing tools, which are available at no cost to… read more

Location-Based App Maps Nearby Bars, Food and Adventure

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Roamz

Quick Pitch: Roamz is a discovery mobile application that aims to help locals and travelers alike… read more

3 Ways Kevin Rose Could Improve Google+

Rick Bakas is the Founder of Bakas Media, a new media relations firm in San Francisco working with brands such as wine.com, ABC’s Bachelor Ben Flajnik, British Airways and Portalupi Winery. Rick is also VP of Marketing for mobile payments provider, Press Pay.

Now that Kevin Rose (and a handful of… read more

Microsoft Kills Dreams, Says No New Xbox in 2012

Gamers will be disappointed to learn that there is no plan to release a new console to replace the six-year-old Xbox 360 anytime soon, according to a statement from Microsoft.

With this year’s E3 less than three months away, many hoped Microsoft would use the platform to announce new hardware, as… read more

Thanks to Our Weekly Sponsor – xPlan

Our featured sponsor this week is xPlan, a powerful, friendly and attractive project management application.

Project management tools tend to be both complicated and expensive. If you’re a small business owner or are just new to this category in general, you need something that’s affordable and approachable without sacrificing important… read more

How to Make Your Tweets More Trustworthy [STUDY]

Ever feel like you tweet something important, but no one believes you?

A recent study shows you how to boost the credibility of your tweets, making people take them more seriously. And it’s not just marketing fluff; the study was conducted by researchers from Microsoft and Carnegie Mellon University.

Among… read more

Write: Lightweight Word-Processing Done Right

The word-processing app market is flooded with alternatives, most of them already very well established like the popular options of Pages or Microsoft Office’s Word. There’s even a whole other market for super simple or “distraction-free” word processors, which we’ve covered before.

However, there’s not really an in-between alternative. Something that… read more

New Facebook App Suite Turns Brand Pages Into Crowdsourcing Hubs

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Napkin Labs

Quick Pitch: Napkin Labs makes interactive marketing tools for Facebook.

Genius Idea: A suite of customized… read more

Hotel Booking Site Guestmob Uses Algorithms to Find Major Deals

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Guestmob

Quick Pitch: Guestmob uses advanced search algorithms to find discounted hotels in major U.S. cities.

Genius Idea:… read more

Acclaimed Technology Investor Roger McNamee Joins Mashable Connect as a Speaker

We’re pleased to announce that Roger McNamee, co-founder of Elevation Partners will be speaking at Mashable Connect, our signature conference.

Mashable’s largest conference, Mashable Connect, is returning to Orlando, FL from May 3-5, and this year we will explore the future of digital with some of the brightest minds in… read more

What You Need To Know to Start Making Your First Video Recording

Here’s the best bit. You have your new camcorder and you can’t wait to unpack the contents of the box and get started. It’s quite natural that you should wish to insert a blank tape or disk and hit the record button without hesitation.

Thanks to the digital video revolution, there’s… read more

Lenovo Plans to Be First to Make a Windows 8 Tablet [REPORT]

Windows 8 won’t be ready for consumers until fall, but that’s not stopping hardware makers from fighting to be first in line to build hardware for Microsoft’s new operating system.

Lenovo is planning to be the “first to market” with a Windows 8 tablet, The Verge reports.

Citing a “source,” the… read more

Former Facebook PR Head Shares Strategy for Successful Launches [VIDEO]

The Leaders in Digital Series is supported by Samsung. Follow Samsung USA on Google+ and Twitter, and like them on Facebook.

As Facebook’s first PR director, Brandee Barker dealt with everything from the launch of News Feed to the Beacon controversy to huge rounds of investment.

Since leaving… read more

Microsoft Augmented Reality Concept Fuses Virtual World with Reality [VIDEO]

Microsoft researchers have created a new augmented reality concept by improving how virtual simulations react in the physical world.

The Kinect sensor is used in a process called Kinect Fusion, which allows projections of objects to react to different surfaces. Kinect Fusion is possible with the Beamatron — a… read more

Sorenson Squeeze 8

Video Compression and Publishing Suite

If you work with video, chances are that Sorenson Squeeze is one of your go-to items for compression and, as the hardware improves, it makes sense that the software moves forward with it. Sorenson Squeeze 8 brings performance without limiting you to making videos anchored… read more

Weekly Poll: How Quickly Would You Try Out a Brand New Browser?

How Quickly Would You Try Out a Brand New Browser?

Around 3.5 years ago, the world started buzzing about a new web browser: Google Chrome. Google had sponsored Mozilla Firefox for years, and much of the world was still browsing on Microsoft Internet Explorer 6. Chrome came out first on… read more

Wifarer Offers Turn-by-Turn Directions Inside Large Venues

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Wifarer

Quick Pitch: Indoor positioning technology app guides users through large venues.

Genius Idea: Wifarer is partnering… read more

Apple Subpoenaed By FTC in Google Antitrust Investigation [REPORT]

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has subpoenaed Apple to gather more information for its investigation into Google’s business practices, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The agency is especially interested in the agreements that made Google the preferred search engine in Safari for iPhone and iPad, according to Bloomberg’s anonymous… read more

Market Yourself Visually With VisualCV

For the modern career seeker, having a visually compelling résumé is important. This importance is magnified for anyone with a career involving multimedia in any form. Whether you are a graphic designer, video editor, or writer, having a simple way to provide a resume and basic portfolio in one simple… read more

iPhone App Proves Your Musical Coolness

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Tastemaker

Quick Pitch: Users place bets on undiscovered bands and their favorite artists in this social… read more

Google Confirms It’s Working on Chrome for Windows 8

Google says it’s working on a version of Chrome that will run in the Metro environment. The news follows the revelation that Mozilla is building Firefox for Metro as well.

A Google spokesperson told Mashable that the new version of Chrome would be based on the desktop browser (as opposed to… read more

Yes, You Will Be Able to Ditch Internet Explorer in Windows 8

If you’re reading this on a PC, it’s probably on Google Chrome or Firefox — the two most popular browsers on Windows that Mashable readers use. It’s a telling example about how most tech-savvy Windows users don’t use the default browser on their machines, Internet Explorer. But how’s that going… read more

QR Codes and Microsoft Tags: New Promotion Generation

MS TAG PRO and CONS

Feature
Pro
Cons

CMYK colors
More attractive
More expensive to be printed

Small footprint
Less invasive, more info in smaller area to cover
Not really useful, particularly if displayed on screen, posters or billboards

New technology
Appealing and visual based
Less supported

The content is on MS servers
More detailed metrics
You can change the content whenever you… read more

49 New Digital Media Resources You May Have Missed

This has been quite a week in digital culture. Between Apple‘s revealing of the new iPad and the beginning of the 2012 SXSW Interactive Festival in Austin, Texas, Mashable has a multitude of new digital media resources for you. Don’t worry if you’ve fallen behind — here’s our weekly features… read more

How Cut the Rope Made it to Windows 8 Consumer Preview Edition

Cut the Rope is one of those $0.99, ridiculously entertaining and addictive games/physics lessons on the iPad and iPhone. The app, which involves candy, a rope, a hungry green blob and your ability to both hit the floating stars and feed the blob, has been downloaded more than 60… read more

Best of the Week #213

It’s time for our best news of this week. We have a lot of graphic and web design, a bit of architecture, ads, tech news, awesome reads and other crazy stuff! So take a look at the links we’ve selected for your inspiration and to keep you updated about what’s… read more

TweetStarGame a Modern Database for Modern Sports

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Quick Pitch: A one-stop, constantly updating database of social media’s most influential athletes in different sports and… read more

How Windows 8 Tablets Could Seriously Challenge the iPad

Now that the new iPad has been revealed, everyone’s chiming in on whether it’s a disappointing incremental upgrade or a fantastic breakthrough. None of that matters to its success, of course. If every single previous iPhone and iPad product launch is any indication, Apple is going to sell truckloads of… read more

How To Do Keyword Research (What You Need to Know?)

Search-engine optimization (SEO) is a main ingredient in website upkeep and an inescapable part of online marketing. The process of keyword research is vital to good SEO. Keyword-stuffing used to be the master card in terms of SEO, but those days are gone. Keyword research still carries weight, and website… read more

Uberlife Makes Hanging Out Offline Easier

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Uberlife

Quick Pitch: Uberlife lets users create real-world hangouts, share them instantly with their social networks and… read more

New Site Helps You Control Google Search Results for Your Name

Potential employers, clients and dates are all Googling your name. BrandYourself, a new website launching Thursday, helps make sure they find what you want them to.

The website guides you in search optimizing the links you want to push up in Google results for your name.

Here’s how it works: You choose… read more

New Gtrot Could Be the Pinterest for Happenings In Your City

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Gtrot

Quick Pitch: Utilize your social network to explore your city.

Genius Idea: Gtrot is being re-launched at… read more

Smashing Email Newsletter Turns Two Years Old: Comment and Win!

Two years ago, we launched the Smashing Email Newsletter. Today, we’d like to reflect on some of the greatest newsletter articles of the past year and celebrate this anniversary with our 100,000 readers with a fabulous book giveaway!

Back then, we planned to launch the Smashing Newsletter only if we had… read more

Social Network Links Professionals With Free Lunch

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: GetLunched.com

Quick Pitch: GetLunched.com is a new way to make professional connections over lunch.

Genius Idea: Everyone loves… read more

Weekly Poll: Microsoft Office or iWork?

Microsoft Office or iWork?

Nothing gets the week started off right like a good old fashioned Microsoft vs. Apple debate. Once upon a time these were a staple in the Mac user’s daily life but these days we focus much more on Google and Android as a major threat than… read more

Is a Retina Screen on the iPad 3 Overkill?

When Apple raises the curtain on its big show this Wednesday, it’ll unveil the iPad 3, which will almost certainly have a retina display that features a pixel count of 2,048 x 1,536 — a truly amazing spec for a tablet. But is such a high-resolution screen really necessary?

Yes,… read more

Take a First Look at ‘Halo 4′ [VIDEO]

Prepare to indulge in some Halo 4 hotness. Fans are getting a closer look at the game, thanks to leaked screenshots and a brand new developer’s diary that shows glimpses at actual gameplay.

Halo 4 is slated to hit the Xbox 360 in time for Holiday 2012. It’s also the first… read more

7 Steps to Learning Freelance Web Development

So you want to become a freelance web developer. Maybe you’re already a front-end developer and want to dig deeper into web applications, or maybe you’re a copy wiz and are eyeing the countless developer positions out there. Either way, it’s an entirely new skill you’ll be picking up…. read more

Movable Ink Serves Live Content in Your Email

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Movable Ink

Quick Pitch: Insert live-updating and device-specific content into your emails.

Genius Idea: Improves the relevance and… read more

Must See: Windows 8 Running on an 82-inch Touchscreen

One of the highlights of this week’s Windows 8 Consumer Preview event was when Microsoft Windows lead Steve Sinofsky turned a giant HD display into the world’s largest touchscreen, Windows 8 “computer.”

OK, he didn’t actually transform anything when he unveiled Windows 8 Consumer Preview during Mobile World Congress… read more

Buy or Sell Forgotten Deals On CoupFlip

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: CoupFlip

Quick Pitch: Buy and sell Groupon and LivingSocial vouchers.

Genius Idea: Somewhere between 20% and 40%… read more

Windows 8 Consumer Preview: How Would You Change It? [OPEN THREAD]

Now that the Windows 8 Consumer Preview is available, we want to know what you think.

Mashable’s Pete Pachal and Lance Ulanoff have already spent some hands-on time with Windows 8 Consumer Preview, detailing their thoughts on the new interface changes, as well as Microsoft’s greater mission of offering both a… read more

Ads Worth Spreading: TED Announces Winners of 2012 Marketing Challenge

CANAL+ – The Bear

… read more

When Does It Make Sense to Outsource Your Software Development?

Michael Schneider is CEO of Mobile Roadie, the leading self-service mobile app platform. With more than 16 million users, Mobile Roadie powers over 3,000 apps for some of the world’s most popular artists and brands.

You don’t need to own app development software — you just think you do.



Often a business… read more

Gravity Personalizes Websites Based on Your Interests

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Gravity

Quick Pitch: Personalize website homepages for each viewer through interest graphing technology

Genius Idea: Websites using Gravity… read more

Mobile World Congress: A View From Inside [PICS]

Crowded House

It was a packed house on the Mobile World Congress show floor.

Click here to view this gallery.

BARCELONA:… read more

Don’t Want Your Video to Become a Viral Sensation? Givit Controls Who Sees It

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Givit

Quick Pitch: Givit is private video sharing made easy.

Genius Idea: Desktop and mobile apps designed to… read more

Mozilla Marketplace: The One-Stop-Shop App Store for All Devices?

If you had to pick a device that either had any native app you wanted other than a browser, or one that only had a browser and no other offline apps, which would you pick? Chances are, you’d pick the device with a browser. The internet’s a great place for… read more

This Calendar Fills Itself Based on What You Like

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: UPlanMe

Quick Pitch: UPlanMe is an online notification system that filters upcoming events and specials… read more

Google: 850,000 Android Devices Activated Every Day

To ring in the first day of Mobile World Congress, Google revealed some new statistics about how far its Android mobile operating system has come. Close to a million Android devices are activated every day, the company says, and there are now 450,000 apps in the Android Market.

The news comes… read more

This Week in App News: 20 – 26 February 2012

This week’s news isn’t quite as populated as last week’s because, as you all know, Mountain Lion made its first developer preview debut last week. However, there was some special news during the week including the Growl developers’ response to Apple’s latest operating system. You see, Growl was once a… read more

Has Apple Lost Its Outsider Status?

Despite operating within the profit-driven world of consumer technology, Apple has often maintained a distinctly rebellious public persona. Launched by two former telephone hackers Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak (in addition to Ronald Wayne), Apple forged their own path by ignoring the status quo and offering such innovations as the… read more

The social stuff is not for Google, Microsoft and Apple

The social stuff is not for Google, Microsoft and Apple

read more

34 New Digital Media Resources You May Have Missed

This year’s Mobile World Congress is fast approaching — are you caught up on all of Mashable‘s digital media resources? If not, don’t fret. Here’s our convenient and comprehensive weekly features roundup.

This week we have a list of free Android apps you’ll use every day, tips for reaching voters successfully… read more

Gogobot is Like Pinterest for Your Travels

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Gogobot

Quick Pitch: A travel planning site sourcing recommendations from your social network.

Genius Idea: Gogobot is… read more

UrbanSitter Helps You Find and Book Babysitters Online

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: UrbanSitter

Quick Pitch: Find a babysitter through your friends and others’ recommendations.

Genius Idea: As any parent well… read more

Tell Location-Based, Multimedia-Rich Stories With Moveable Feast

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: read more

Mobile World Congress: A Preview of My Barcelona Adventure

Barcelona is Spain’s second largest city and, arguably, its most cosmopolitan. The busy port city is home to the Picasso Museum and a thrilling collection of Day-Glo colored Antoni Gaudi buildings that curve and weave toward the sky. At least this is what I’ve read and seen on sites like… read more

How to Fix Microsoft With Marketing

Alex Goldfayn’s new book is called Evangelist Marketing: What Apple Amazon and Netflix Understand About Their Customers (That Your Company Probably Doesn’t). He is CEO of the Evangelist Marketing Institute, a marketing consultancy with clients that include T-Mobile, TiVo and Logitech.

Microsoft’s stock price today is approximately half of what it… read more

BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0: Much Better, Yet Not Good Enough

Installing PlayBook 2 on PlayBook 1

Click here to view this gallery.

Blackberry Playbook 2.0, which arrived earlier this… read more

Use Online RSVP Tool to Help Your Party Make A Splash

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Splash

Quick Pitch: Splash offers a simple way for event planners to manage and share events with… read more

Microsoft Accuses Motorola of Being a Patent Bully [VIDEO]

Irony, thy name is patent law. Microsoft filed a complaint with the European Commission against Motorola for aggressively asserting its patents, charging that Motorola ignored commitments it made to support industry standards. The filing comes shortly after Apple registered a similar complaint.

In a post titled “Google: Please Don’t Kill… read more

Apple Investigator Has His Doubts About Nightline’s Foxconn Report [INTERVIEW]

ABC’s Nightline offered viewers a rare glimpse inside the Foxconn plants that produce Apple products Tuesday night.

Apple has faced increased criticism concerning the working conditions within its factories. Fair-labor and human-rights groups have petitioned Apple to change its policies. And much of the credit for that goes to monologuist… read more

Apple, Google and Other App Sellers Cut Privacy Deal with California

Your favorite mobile apps should soon be making it a lot more clear when they intend to use your data.

The Attorney General of California, Kamala D. Harris, announced Wednesday a deal with Amazon, Apple, Google, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft and Research in Motion; the companies agreed to strengthen privacy protection for… read more

Microsoft Channels ’80s Hit ‘Moonlighting’ in Latest Jab Against Google [VIDEO]

Remember the TV show Moonlighting? Microsoft is hoping you do. Otherwise, you won’t get the main joke behind it’s latest smear against Google.

“Googlighting,” from Microsoft’s Office 365 unit, presents Google as an ill-prepared, smug salesman trying to convince a Cybill Shepherd type to use the company’s cloud collaboration… read more

Office for iPad: Why It Would Make Sense for Microsoft

If the rumors are to be believed, Microsoft is on the verge of releasing a version of Office for the iPad.

While an iOS version of Office may have seemed unthinkable a couple of years ago, it could be a key weapon in Microsoft’s fight against Google Docs, Google’s free… read more

5 Ground-Breaking Competitions for Innovative Youth

Adora Svitak is author of three books — Flying Fingers, Dancing Fingers and Yang in Disguise. She is one of the TED Conference’s youngest speakers and the curator of youth event TEDxRedmond. Since age 7 she has been drumming up excitement about reading and writing among fellow students.

“To win the… read more

Finger-Friendly Design: Ideal Mobile Touchscreen Target Sizes

In darts, hitting the bulls-eye is harder to do than hitting any other part of the dartboard. This is because the bullseye is the smallest target. This same principle can also apply to touch targets on mobile devices.

Smaller touch targets are harder for users to hit than larger ones. When you’re designing… read more

Free Photoshop Alternatives For Editing Photos

Photoshop has been the darling of the design industry for decades. It’s a fantastic program that has led the way since the release of Photoshop 1 on the Mac way back in 1990.

However, not everyone can, or wants to, pay the $699 that Photoshop costs. Thankfully there are a… read more

Android 5 è in arrivo: ma Android 4 che fine ha fatto?

Potrebbe arrivare in estate o addirittura prima. La versione 5 del sistema operativo mobile di casa Google, nome in codice Jelly Bean, potrebbe spiazzare tutti quanti e relegare il suo predecessore, Ice Cream Sandwich, ad una sfortunata comparsata. Peggio di quanto abbia fatto Microsoft a suo tempo con Windows… read more