Privacy-conscious users have sounded the alarm after it emerged the New Tab thumbnail feature in Firefox 13 is taking snapshots of the user's HTTPS session content. Consumers discovered the feature after opening a new tab only to be "greeted by my earlier online banking and webmail sessions complete with account numbers, balances, subject lines etc. This content is behind a secure login for a reason, they said.
Sony mentioned during CES 2012 that its Google TV-powered hardware would come to Europe this summer, and now it's official. Along with Google, it's announced preorders are available for the $200/£200/$199 NSZ-GS7 internet streaming set-top box in the US and UK showing a ship date of July 9th, Sony says it should hit stores July 22nd, with plans to launch in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico and Netherlands later this year.
Microsoft is dumping its Office Starter edition as Windows 8 and the next edition of the suite, dubbed Office 2013, near completion and release later this year and early next. The company blamed a bad user experience in Windows 8 for the move. Office Starter 2010, which Microsoft created in 2009, was the company's replacement for Microsoft Works, an entry-level application suite that had been offered to OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) for bundling with new PCs.
When Adobe shipped an update of its Flash Player earlier this month, reports began to emerge by Firefox users that something was not right. Some users reported issues on popular mostly Flash-driven websites such as YouTube, while others experienced crashes and freezes in the browser. Both Mozilla and Adobe offered troubleshooting tips for Firefox users who were affected by those issues.
It might not be the most exciting Microsoft-related news this week, but Skype for Windows Phone has been updated to version 1.2. Overall, it's a fairly minor update: the two marquee features are the ability to edit a number in the dial pad before you're connected and now every contact with at least one phone number will show in your contacts list. Of course, updates mean bug fixes, and Skype 1.2 is no different.
Microsoft is lifting the curtain to provide a preview of some of the software and hardware changes for its Windows Phone 8 operating system yesterday. NFC, dual- and quad-core support are all set, and Microsoft has shifted over to the NT kernel for Windows Phone 8 to make it even easier for developers to code for its mobile and desktop ecosystems. There's a new Wallet hub, deeper integration of Skype, and an updated Start Screen interface with support for small tiles.
On June 11 Apple announced a couple of Thunderbolt adapters to provide Ethernet and FireWire connectivity to Thunderbolt-based systems, and issued a driver update for OS X to provide software support for these adapters; however, for a number of users the update resulted in the inability to boot. Apple has reissued a fixed version of this update, which should install properly without any issues.
Mozilla added a new app to its Webmaker suite today, with the launch of Thimble — a tool designed to simplify website creation. Thimble, in its most basic form, is a visual HTML editor and tutorial that allows users to create and preview sites in real-time, using side-by-side editor and output panels. The app also alerts users whenever they make a coding error, providing simple explanations that underscore its focus on HTML novices, rather than veterans.
Microsoft - a company that traditionally has relied exclusively on its PC partners to provide hardware powered by its Windows operating system - is trying out a new business model with next Windows release. The company is going to offer two Microsoft-branded tablets of its own, both of which are branded as Microsoft Surface. Microsoft isn't actually manufacturing these new tablets itself - just as it doesn't actually make the Xbox or the now defunct Zune media player. But it will be putting the Microsoft name on these devices.
Mozilla is developing a new Web browser to challenge Safari on Apple's iPad. The organization behind the Firefox desktop Web browser is working on a new mobile browser called "Junior," according to a video presentation delivered by company's Product Design Strategy team. Junior is an iPad browser that makes browsing more fun, more ergonomic and re-thinks browser user experience from the ground up, the company said on an intro page to the presentation.