Google's 15th birthday: 15 facts you probably didn't know

Today marks exactly 15 years since Google was incorporated by founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. To mark the occasion, following are the list of 15 things you probably didn't know about Google.

Originally known as BackRub, Google was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in a friend's garage while they were Ph.D. students at Stanford University. It has since grown to become the world's biggest search engine, and the name Google has become synonymous with search.

Facebook employees reveal the worst things about working for the social network

Facebook employees, including engineers and software developers, have criticised Mark Zuckerberg's allegedly "holier than thou" attitude and lack of professionalism at the company.

Earlier this year Facebook was voted the world's best employer but it seems that not all employees agree with this accolade.

Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch ‘launching next month’

Samsung will unveil its ‘Galaxy Gear’ smartwatch in Berlin on September 4, reports claim.

The South Korean giant hopes its new device, which it has already confirmed is in development, will give it a headstart against Apple. The iPhone-maker is claimed has 100 engineers working on their own watch.

Java is the world’s #1 programming language (again)

Java has reclaimed the No.1 spot of the TIOBE Index, ending C’s four month stay at the top of the programming rankings.

The TIOBE Programming Community Index ranks programming languages’ popularity by measuring the number of search engine results including Google, Bing, Youtube and Wikipedia. In the latest release, Java sneaked past C to retake top honours thanks to the addition of 16 new search engines to the calculations. The newcomers, added to improve validity according to TIOBE Managing Director Paul Jansen, includes websites from China, Japan and Brazil, as well as Reddit.

Windows 8.1 set for October general release

The latest version of Microsoft Windows, Windows 8.1, will not be available to the public until October, according to reports.

A preview version of the software has been available since June and Microsoft is almost ready to release Windows 8.1 to manufacturers.

iPhone 5S: September launch date reported

Apple is to launch the latest version of the iPhone at a special event on 10 September, according to reports.

The rumoured event may also see a plastic-cased ‘budget iPhone’ being unveiled, which is expected to be Apple’s next move in an attempt to break into emerging markets.

Apple patent win: Samsung banned from selling some phones in U.S.

The latest battle in the Apple vs. Samsung patent war came to a close Friday, with a trade agency ruling Apple the victor.

Apple  alleged that several Samsung products infringe on its patents. Apple originally filed this lawsuit against Samsung in 2011, and it's just one of dozens of ongoing patent lawsuits currently being waged between the tech titans across the globe.

How to Get Windows 8.1 on Your PC Now

If you've already got Windows 8 installed, it can be well worth your while to download the free preview version of Windows 8.1. New personalization and services improvements are among the many enhancements included in this widely anticipated update, which is expected to remedy many of the problems in its predecessor. Step 1? You guessed it: Make sure you have a recovery image.

It's no secret that Windows 8 has met with only a lukewarm reception, but life in the tech world moves quickly, and now Windows 8.1 is on the way.

Microsoft plan phone that knows when not to disturb you

A mobile phone that can automatically tell when you do not want to be disturbed is being developed by Microsoft.

Forgetting to turn off your mobile telephone before bed or during an important meeting may soon no longer be a problem.

Facebook to 'help prioritise posts in News Feed'

Facebook is expected to announce changes to the algorithms that control its News Feed at an event in California today

Facebook is expected to announce changes to its News Feed today, which could enable users to gain a better understanding of how to relegate updates from boring and distant acquaintances.

Apple Investigates After iPhone 5 User Dies

The technology giant said it was "deeply saddened" to learn of the death of the Chinese flight attendant who was electrocuted.

Apple is investigating claims that a woman was electrocuted while making a call on her iPhone 5 as it was recharging.

Cancer - A cure just got closer thanks to a tiny British company - and the result could change lives of millions

A single-storey workshop on a nondescript business park in Oxfordshire is not the sort of place where you would expect scientific revolutions to take place. But behind the white-painted walls of this small start-up company, scientists are talking about the impossible – a potential cure for cancer.

Apple's iPhone 5 is the most hated handset - while the majority of people love the Samsung Galaxy S4, study finds

The iPhone 5 was the most criticised handset on social networks

One in five comments about the phone were negative following its   launch

Samsung's Galaxy S4 received the least complaints on Twitter and blogs.

Exclusive: Mice with human chromosomes - the genetic breakthrough that could revolutionise medicine

Scientists have created genetically-engineered mice with artificial human chromosomes in every cell of their bodies, as part of a series of studies showing that it may be possible to treat genetic diseases with a radically new form of gene therapy.

Nokia Lumia 1020: the 41-megapixel Windows Phone

Nokia confirms the Lumia 1020, a cameraphone that offers 41-megapixel photos on the Windows Phone operating system.

Blue Planet 63 Light Years Away Looks Like Earth

An artist's impression of HD 189733b shows it would be a brilliant cobalt blue if seen from a short distance in space.

But although it looks cool astronomers say conditions there are hellish.

Addicted gamers are sweet on 'Candy Crush'

Julia Enright often plays at night while watching TV. Billy Byler plays in the airport while waiting for his flight. University student Breanna Reboca, a skilled multitasker, plays on her phone while walking to class.

Their addiction? "Candy Crush Saga," an easy-to-play, hard-to-master puzzle game that's seemingly ensnared everyone from your kids to your co-workers to your Aunt Sally. Launched last year, the game is now the most popular app on Facebook, where it has almost 32 million fans.

Scientists Just Built the Most Detailed 3D Brain Map in History

The human brain is an insanely complex organic computer, and though it still has plenty of secrets, we're now a little bit closer to figuring it all out. Building on a decade of research, an international team of neuroscientists have just put the final touches on the most sophisticated 3D map of the human brain that the world has ever seen.

Instagram finally gets video: is 15 seconds too much?

It an event at its Menlo Park headquarters on Thursday, Facebook announced Video on Instagram for iPhone and Android, which lets you shoot 15-second videos, apply filters, and share them to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and other sites.

Googles internet balloons offer remote areas web access

The project created by the same Google X team who made self-driving cars and Google Glass aims to bring internet to the two-thirds of the global population currently without web access.

Google has released 30 balloons above New Zealand in a project to bring internet to remote areas.

Samsung Ativ Q tablet runs both Windows 8 and Android

Samsung has unveiled a tablet that can switch between the Windows 8 and Android operating systems.

The Ativ Q has a 13.3in (33.8cm) screen that sits over a keyboard that can be folded out for typing or set to act as a stand. In addition it has a stylus.

It comes just over a fortnight after Asus unveiled its own laptop-tablet hybrid which also runs both Microsoft and Google's systems.

One analyst said he expected this to be a trend that other firms would follow.

Google Expert Tips: How to Find Anything Fast

The nice people at Google have invented multiple ways to make their core product --Internet search--even better. The tips and tricks below will help you improve the precision of the search results Google provides--and use far fewer keystrokes to get them.

Web inventor Berners-Lee warns forces are 'trying to take control'

Companies and governments “trying to take control of the internet” are undermining the founding principles of the web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee has warned.

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, says the internet is facing a “major” threat from “people who want to control it on the sly” Photo: PA

Solar storm could leave countries like the UK and USA without power 'for months'

The risk of a catastrophic solar storm that would leave countries including the United Kingdom and United States without electricity for days or even months will peak in 2015, a new report claims.

The study, a joint venture from researchers at Lloyd's of London and Atmospheric and Environmental Research (AER) in the United States, details a dystopian scenario where a shortage of electrical transformers would leave Western nations without electricity for months because of the time needed to build replacements.

Google patents eye tracking to unlock display screens

Google Glass wearers will only need a flicker of the eye to unlock their display screens under plans described in a Google patent for eye tracking.

The eye tracking system, a form of wearable technology, will allow anyone wearing the device to look at a moving object on the glasses' projected screen to unlock the display.

Google: Motorola's tattoos could replace passwords

Motorola’s forthcoming phones could use electronic tattoos or pills to identify users, it has been announced.

The technology, which aims to remove the need to enter passwords and replace them simply with a phone being close to a user’s body, was one of the suggestions Dennis Woodside, Motorola’s chief executive, California's D11 conference yesterday.

Windows 8: Start button returns with new 8.1 update

Microsoft has introduced the familiar ‘Start button’ to Windows 8 with a new update that also includes new search features.

The company had removed the Start Button, used by millions of users as their first point of access to all software, with the launch of Windows 8 in October. After customers complained about the software’s usability, in particular on devices without touchscreens, today it announced its return.

Wearable technology: a vision for the future

From Google Glass to athletes' suits that record their speed, the age of wearable technology is upon us, writes design expert Oliver Stokes.

Wearable technology is the big buzz area in consumer electronics today. Via rumours of Apple’s curved glass ‘smart watch’, fuelled again by Apple CEO Tim Cook’s recent interview at D11 and the vast amount of blog coverage surrounding Google Glass, it's certain that the age of ‘wearables’ is soon to be upon us.

Google Glass: facial recognition coming soon

The controversial Google Glass computer can now recognise who you are talking to thanks to a new ‘hack’.

The new software from Lamda Labs, who are based in San Francisco, raises the prospect of never forgetting a face again, and also of internet recommendations for who Google Glass wearers should meet at large social gatherings. It will launch to computer programmers in days.

Google can’t find the first webpage

The internet is seen as a repository for all the world’s information. Any answer is just a good search query away. But there is one thing nobody can find: the very first webpage.

Researchers at CERN, the physics laboratory where the worldwide web was invented by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, are trying to save the earliest versions of the web.

After weeks of looking, they now say that the original webpage created in 1990 is missing. But they think it could remain on a computer disk, in the possession of an unknown technology enthusiast unaware they have a piece of history gathering dust on a bookshelf. The original page is thought to contain nothing more than text and a few links.

Ex-Nokia team makes rival smartphone Jolla

A company made up of former Nokia employees has shown off Jolla, a new smartphone with a custom operating system known as Sailfish.

World Cup 2014 To Use Bomb-Detecting Robots

Battle-tested robots have become the latest addition to Brazil's tough security line-up for next year's World Cup.

The govenment has bought a fleet of iRobot 510 Packbots - usually used to neutralise roadside bombs and to inspect buildings and people for traces of explosives.

The $7.2m (£4.74m) order will allow police to safely deal with any threats from a distance.

It is also the same robot that examined the car allegedly hijacked by the Boston Marathon bombings suspects.

Cosmic map reveals first evidence of other universes

SCIENTISTS believe they have found the first evidence that other universes exist.

The finding, based on data gathered by the European Space Agency’s Planck spacecraft, implies that our universe could be just one of billions — perhaps an infinite number.

Computers are about to take a quantum leap into the future

A Canadian company with substantial venture capital backing claims to have built a "quantum computer" that will ultimately solve problems beyond the power of conventional systems - and will demonstrate it over a live link next week.

Twitter, Facebook, Ebay to develop Google Glass apps

Google has announced a range of apps in development for its Glass headset, including social networks Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr and ecommerce website Ebay.

Google Glass, an eyeglass frame with a small panel over the left eye, searches the web, records video, and can relay email messages to the user.

The therapist in your pocket: App that can can turn your Android phone into a mobile mood tracker

A new app designed to track a person's mood throughout the day could turn your smartphone into a pocket therapist, researchers claim.

The free app developed by the University of Cambridge's Computer Laboratory takes advantage of the fact phones are increasingly capable of collecting information about where we are, how noisy our environment is, how much we are moving around and who we communicate with.

It will invisibly monitor data such as a user's calling and texting patterns to track their conversations and work out how they are feeling.

Using the phone's built-in global positioning system, accelerometer and microphone, it will develop a pattern of that person's habits, activities and routines.

International Space Station switches from Windows to Linux, for improved reliability

 The United Space Alliance, which manages the computers aboard the International Space Station in association with NASA, has announced that the Windows XP computers aboard the ISS have been switched to Linux. “We migrated key functions from Windows to Linux because we needed an operating system that was stable and reliable.”

'Animated Atoms' Star In World's Smallest Movie

Scientists have made the world's smallest ever stop-motion movie by manipulating individual atoms.

The one-minute video from the IBM team shows carbon monoxide molecules repeatedly rearranged to show a boy dancing, throwing a ball and bouncing on a trampoline.

You can now Skype from within a browser

Microsoft has finally decided to roll out web-based Skype calling. Over the coming weeks, users will be able to make Skype video and voice calls from within Outlook.com on their browsers.

When it rolled out the new Outlook.com email service last year, Microsoft promised Skype integration—it's just taken quite a long time to arrive. It's not as neat as you might hope, though: to use the service, you'll need to install a browser plugin that bridges Skype and Outlook.com.

How developers coded in 1985...

Programmer John Graham-Cumming tells a fascinating story about what coding was like back in 1985. Unlike today's programmers who wear hoodies, down energy drinks and use a paper thin computer, programmers in 1985 had to code by hand... with actual paper.

Ubuntu 13.04 released, sets the stage for Ubuntu on the smartphone and tablet

Canonical has released Ubuntu 13.04 Raring Ringtail, most likely the last release of Ubuntu that will primarily cater for laptop and desktop users. For Ubuntu 13.04, Canonical focused on tightening up the core of the OS and  polishing the Unity interface in preparation for Ubuntu’s smartphone and tablet debut, which is slated to occur in October with the release of version 13.10. There’s also the usual slew of package updates, a new Linux kernel, and a couple of new features, too.

Warning over bug in Android Viber chat app

“You cannot expect all developers to be experts in security. We have to make tools that make it easier for them”

Martin Borrett

Will the Kalq keyboard finally spell the end for qwerty?

Since the arrival of touchscreen tablets, our opposable thumbs have evolved to a whole new level of refinement. It has become second nature to pinch and swipe, slide and scroll: without knowing it, we have developed an intricate vocabulary of manual flourishes, a delicate finger ballet to conjure images and text across our screens.

Scientists on brink of HIV cure

Researchers believe that there will be a breakthrough in finding a cure for HIV “within months”.

Samsung making "rugged" Galaxy S4, 8-inch Galaxy tablet

You get the sense that Samsung wants to be everything to everyone. The Korean company makes smartphones and tablets in all shapes and sizes. It does high-end, it does low-end, and it even does mid-range. You name it, Sammy has either done it or is planning on doing it. So the next items on the agenda should be no surprise: a rugged, outdoorsy version of the Galaxy S 4, and an 8-inch Galaxy Tab.

Game of Thrones to air on Quickflix

Game of Thrones fans can now stream the TV show on almost every device through Australian streaming service, Quickflix.

NASA creates timelapse video showing three years of the sun in three minutes

EVERY day, every 12 seconds for the past three years NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory has taken a photo of the sun across 10 different wavelengths.

Breaking the cycle of kids' tablet troubles

TECH-crazed children as young as eight are being treated for back pain and chronic    headaches from overusing iPads and smartphones.

Borussia Dortmund Thrashed Real Madrid

Has the balance of power in European football shifted from Spain to Germany?? This question came in existence as Borussia Dortmund beat Real Madrid 4-1 in a very intense game. The Polish striker Robert Lewandowski  beacame the only player in the history of european football to have a hat-trick plus a goal against Real Madrid.

Burner disposable numbers come to Android

Ever wanted a disposable phone number without the cost of purchasing a disposable phone? Burner offers you that option.  You can now get “fake”phone numbers for your Android cell phone. The app was first offered for iPhones last summer.

Burner by Ad Hoc Labs is an app that is now available for Android phones and can be downloaded from Google Play. The app comes with one free “burner”.  As the website says, once you are done with the number, you burn it, deleting it from your phone.  It’s as if it never existed.

Google Street View now in 50 different countries

The search giant has just added Hungary and Lesotho to its list of Street View-enabled countries.

A new survey says that Samsung Galaxy is easier to use than an iPhone

You did indeed read that headline correctly.  A global “branding” company that specializes in “building world-class brands through elegantly simple, unexpectedly fresh strategies, stories and experiences” released a comparison of Samsung Galaxy and Apple iPhone. The survey questioned 400 people to come up with the results.

According to Talk Android, Siegel+Gale, a global branding company, has taken the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) principle as something of a company motto.  The company not only emphasizes simplicity for its clients but has created a Global Brand Simplicity Index which can be downloaded here. One of the outcomes from the company’s survey was that the Samsung Galaxy beat the Apple iPhone for simplicity and ease of use.

Apple: Newest victim of the law of large numbers

Tim Cook can't do much more than spin, but vague promises about cool products sometime in the future won't change the new reality on the ground.

Liverpool's Luis Suarez given 10-game ban for Branislav Ivanovic bite

Luis Suarez has given a 10-game ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic.

Chris Gayle scores fastest century in cricket history during IPL game

Chris Gayle has set a new record for the fastest century in the history of professional cricket with an astonishing ton off just 30 balls for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League, then went on to make the highest score ever seen in Twenty20, ending unbeaten with 175 off 66 balls.

EPL Transfer Rumours: 24 April 2013

Every day, some new transfer rumours begin to spread around. Some ridiculous, some improbable and some possible. Following are a few rumours regarding the top 6 clubs of the English Premier League.

Vertica Analytics Database:Session III ---> Learning Projections

The Power of Projections – Part 3

In Part I and Part II of this post, we introduced you to Vertica’s projections, and described how easy it is to interface with them directly via SQL or through our Database Designer™ tool.

Vertica Analytics Database:Session II ---> Learning Projections

The Power of Projections – Part 2

In Part I of this post, we introduced you to the simple concept of Vertica’s projections.  Now that you have an understanding of what they are, we wanted to go into more detail on how users interface with them, and introduce you to Vertica’s unique Database Designer tool.

Vertica Analytics Database:Session I ---> Learning Projections

The Power of Projections – Part 1

Many of us here at Vertica have been amazed and frankly flattered at how much FUD our competitors are putting out there regarding Vertica’s “projections”.  Having heard some incredibly inaccurate statements about them, we’ve decided to clarify what they are, how and why we have them, and the advantages they bring.

My Very First Blog

I don't know whether this gonna work for long or not. But, finally, I have started blogging. This was never on my interest list, nor I ever tried it with passion. But, now, i want to do this, and i want to do this coz I am finding it a best way to express myself. So, I want everyone of you to move along with me in this path of sharing and knowing the technology better. I will come up with all the latest news and technological information for you now on.......................

Bayern Munich 4-0 Barcelona

Bayern Munich Vs Barcelona: Some Moments Captured

Bayern Munich cemented their status as the growing power in European football by ruthlessly dismantling favourites Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final first leg.