Daily News Courier

Bopha victims still homeless

Two months ago, on December 4, Super Typhoon Bopha made landfall in the Philippines packing winds of 160 mph (260 km/h).

Should we still fear al Qaeda?

Peter Bergen says the evidence shows al Qaeda and its affiliates are on the run, unable to seriously threaten the West.

Android 4.0 and higher nears 50-percent adoption, 2.3 still the largest share

Right on schedule, the Android Developers Dashboard has reported the share of devices running each version of Android as of February 4, 2013. These numbers are measured based on the number of users accessing Google Play within a 14 day period, which is a great indication of devices being actively used. As you can see in the chart above, Android 4.0 and higher is nearing the 50-percent mark, at 42.6-percent currently. Gingerbread is still holding down the top spot at 45.6-percent, but we're nearing the point where device running Gingerbread will be overtaken by versions with the new design language.

As you'll see in the graph after the break, the share of Gingerbread devices is slowly but surely decreasing, making way for a notably quick Jelly Bean advancement. Jelly Bean (both 4.1 and 4.2) total up to 13.6-percent of devices, surely helped by the success of the Nexus 7 and notable updates to popular devices like the Galaxy S3.

Source: Android Developers Dashboard

read more

Device Tests Drugs on a Tumor That’s Still in the Body

Presage’s device would allow oncologists to test potentially harmful compounds in tiny amounts before giving patients a full dose.

A device that injects different drugs into tumors to test their efficacy could soon help doctors tailor treatment regimens to a patient’s cancer.

Jelly Bean still rolling out to Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, 7″ model now joins the fun

The Jelly Bean (Android 4.1.1) update for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 that started back in early December is still rolling out across the globe, and users of the 7-inch model in the Americas are now reporting an OTA as well.

Early in the fall of 2012 we saw an update roadmap from Samsung that included the Tab 2, so we shouldn't be surprised that it's here. We have no idea of the mechanics behind Samsung's update schedule, but  we hope that the rest of the world will see the Jelly Bean update in short order. To check for your own update, look in the settings under "About tablet" or use Samsung Kies' update tool. As 4.1.1 brings much smoother performance and great new features like Google Now, this is one update you won't want to skip.

Via: Android Central forums. Thanks, Salvador!

The U.N. Isn’t Regulating the Internet–but Governments Still Exert Control

A vote on new International Telecommunications Regulations means no change in terms of control over the Internet

Is the U.N. now somehow regulating the Internet now that its International Telecommunications Union

Android Central 119: Things that are not phones (but still excite us)

Thing 1: We review Samsung things that are not phones

• Samsung Muse review: The S Pebble cometh
• Samsung Galaxy Camera initial photo and video samples

Thing 2: Updates galore

• Verizon Galaxy S3 gets Jelly Bean starting Dec. 14
• EVO 4G LTE – Jelly Bean update – NOW!!!
• International Galaxy Note 2 models get Android 4.1.2 update with new TouchWiz features
• Facebook finally releases a native Android app
• Youtube app updated with new 10-inch tablet layout
• Instagram update brings new filter, performance improvements
• Official Twitter app updated with photo filters

Thing 3: Other stuff

• Verizon Galaxy Note 2 bootloader unlock now available
• Nexus 4 factory images, binaries disappear from Google site
• The best Android smartphones on U.S. carriers [late 2012]
• Samsung reminds us that new things are coming at CES 2013
• The 2012 Android Central Awards – voting is now open!

iPads Are Still the Most Wanted Gadget for Young and Old Alike

MacRumors reports today on the results of a new survey from Nielsen that looks into what gadgets kids are interested in buying in the next six months, with the stats broken down in terms of age. In the ?Kids aged 6-12, U.S.? age group the iPad came out on top with 48%, some way ahead of Nintendo?s new Wii U console, which polled 39%. The rest of the top five in this age group was totally Apple dominated, with 36% equally wanting an iPod touch and an iPad mini, and 33% wanting an iPhone. A sizeable 29% said that they wanted a tablet other than an iPad, however, which will please all the other tablet manufacturers out there! Nielsen also polled kids aged 13+, and found that the top five was a little different, with the iPad still coming out on top, but only with 21%. In second place was [a] computer, with 19%, tablet computer other than iPad was third, with 18%, the Wii U was fourth, with 17%, and the iPhone was fifth with 14%.

MacRumors also reports that in their own survey of adult buying intentions over the coming holiday season, Reuters found that one third of consumers in the US were considering buying a tablet, with the iPad coming out on top with 25%.

Source: Kids and Adults Want iPads More Than Anything Else This Holiday Season – Mac Rumors

Can Apple Still Innovate on a Shoestring?

Apple is increasing its spending on R&D, but is still far short of its competitors.

In 1998, Steve Jobs told Fortune:

Rumored HTC Facebook phone gets codename, reportedly still on the cards

You could be forgiven for not remembering the HTC ChaCha and HTC Salsa. HTC's first-gen Facebook phones failed to make much of an impact when they were released in mid-2011. But apparently that hasn't deterred the manufacturer or the social giant, as fresh rumors are emerging today of another Facebook phone in the works, slated for a 2013 launch.

UK tech blog Pocket-Lint reports via sources in HTC's native Taiwan that the phone in question currently goes by the codename "HTC Opera UL." The device is reportedly an OEM phone, meaning one manufactured by HTC specifically for Facebook (in the same way the Nexus One was HTC-manufactured but Google-branded). Recently-posted Nenamark benchmarks for the device suggest it'll run a 1.4GHz dual-core processor of some description, with an Adreno 305 GPU, Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean and a 720p display. It's worth noting that earlier leaks have suggested this may be a forked version of Android, rather than a Google-approved build.

Today's reports echo a story from Bloomberg which appeared a few months back. That report suggested that a "modified" version of Android would be used in a HTC-built Facebook phone that'd be released in 2013, after delays prevented a late 2012 launch.

Pocket-Lint's report says that the "Opera UL" has indeed been delayed, though it's not clear whether this refers to the original delay to 2013, or whether additional setbacks have pushed it back even further.

Is a fully-integrated Facebook experience still a major selling point for a mobile device? Let us know what you think down in the comments.

Source: Pocket-Lint