Oracle names ex-HP CEO Mark Hurd co-president (AP)

AP - Oracle Corp. has hired former Hewlett-Packard Co. CEO Mark Hurd to help lead the database software maker in a pivotal moment in Oracle's 33-year history as it tries to muscle in on more of HP's turf.

Former HP CEO named Oracle co-president (AFP)

AFP - Mark Hurd, who stepped down last month as chief executive of US computer titan Hewlett-Packard after a sexual harassment investigation, has been named co-president of US software giant Oracle.

Send HTML e-mail from your iPhone with MarkdownMail (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - If youâve ever wanted to spice up your iOS deviceâs e-mail messages with a little styled text, youâve run up against one of the limitations of Apple's mobile software. But if youâve got proficiency with the Markdown markup languageâinvented by Daring Fireballâs John Gruberâthen youâre in luck, thanks to Second Gearâs new MarkdownMail app.

Exploding Google Logo Means... What? (NewsFactor)

NewsFactor - If the measure of a good logo is that it is memorable, Google is setting new records. On the day after Labor Day, the search giant is featuring a new variation on its well-known name in which the logo breaks up and runs from your cursor -- and people are wondering why.

Nike releases new Nike+ GPS app for runners (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - Nike has releasedÂ Nike+ GPS, a new app for runners, in the App Store.Â As the name promises, this new appâs main advantage is live GPS tracking while you run. It can track your route and upload itâalong with the rest of your run dataâtoÂ Nikeplus.com,Â Nikeâs Web service and community for gadget-enabled runners.

Electronics stolen in weekend break-in

At 8:20 p.m. on Monday, a resident of the 500-block of Princess Avenue reported a break and enter to his apartment, which had occurred sometime over the past two days.

Japanese reporter tricked Afghan captors into using Twitter (AP)

AP - A Japanese journalist held hostage in Afghanistan for five months managed to send out a message via Twitter that he was alive when his captors asked him how to use a cell phone.

Ping attracts 1 million users in 48 hours (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - AppleÂ announced last week that more than one million users signed up forÂ Ping in the serviceâs first 48 hours of availability. Ping, as apparently a million of you already know, is the music-focused social network built intoÂ iTunes 10, which the company released just last week.

What the public can see at IFA electronics show

The Berlin show is for regular folks, not just industry insiders. About 230,000 attend to see the electronics products, some of them freshly announced. Originally posted at Deep Tech

Live Electronics Assembly Line Featured at Electronics Midwest

From Sept 28-30, 2010, each step in electronics assembly process will be on display and fully functioning on show floor at Electronics Midwest, produced by IPC and Canon Communications. EASi-Line enables attendees to follow product from screen printing to component mounting and then through reflow - all while learning about design, coordination of technical information and processes, equipment ...

Enterprise Products to buy Enterprise GP for $8 billion (Reuters)

Reuters - Midstream energy services provider Enterprise Products Partners LP said it would buy Enterprise GP Holdings LP for about $8.03 billion to reduce its capital costs and simplify its partnership structure.

NASA app HD is space exploration on your iPad (Appolicious)

Appolicious - Whether you are a space geek or not, you can't deny that space exploration is an interesting topic. Even when an astronaut simply goes out into space to fix something on the international space station, Americans are watching it on the television. With NASA's HD application for the iPad (free) you can stay on top of the latest NASA news and maybe learn something along the way. While the UI might not be the most intuitive, it is packed with information.

Announcing the 4th Annual Mashable Awards [Help Shape the Categories] (Mashable)

Mashable - Mashable is proud to present the fourth annual Mashable Awards (formerly known as Open Web Awards). The Mashable Awards celebrate major innovations and achievements in the digital and social media landscape by companies, people and projects via an open, multilingual, international, community-nominated voting platform. Millions of votes will be cast in 25 categories ranging from âBest New Gadgetâ to âBest Music Discovery Serviceâ to âMust-Follow Brand.â Following three months of competition, the Mashable Awards Gala will kick off the 2011 International CES convention week on January 6, 2011 at Cirque du Soleilâs Zumanity stage in Las Vegas. The venue capacity is 1,200+ and the event will be streamed live. Tickets are now on sale exclusively through Eventbrite. For sponsorship opportunities, please contact sponsorships at Mashable.

Macho Duke Nukem returns after a decade in limbo (AP)

AP - When Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. pulled the plug on the long-in-development "Duke Nukem Forever" last year, most observers in the video-game industry thought they'd seen the last of its titular hero.

Latest Sony PlayStation 3 Firmware Blocks PSJailbreak? (PC World)

PC World - Never mind court injunctions that block sales of a hardware-based PS3 hack designed to let users play pirated games, Sony may already be running interference at the source.

Social Good Summit: Tackling Global Challenges with Social Media (Mashable)

Mashable - Mashable is proud to be partnering with the UN Foundation, 92Y, Livestream.com, CNN and a host of teams and organizations to produce a unique opportunity to make UN Week accessible to the public -- both online and offline.

SWALCO schedules electronics collection

The Solid Waste Agency of Lake County will hold a two-day collection of household electronics, including computer equipment, home electronics, appliances and other electronic items.The collection is one of several scheduled for fall and will take place at the Lake County Division of Transportation facility, 600 W. Winchester Road, Libertyville, from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Sept ...

Electronics disposal service looks to make city greener

More than a truckload's worth of old and non-functional electronics were recycled Aug. 4 in the city hall parking lot. Allen residents helped make the city a little greener this month at the city's quarterly electronic waste collection in the city hall parking lot Aug. 4.

Samsung Electronics May Use Google’s Android Software in TVs

Samsung Electronics Co. , the world’s largest television maker, said it may equip its TVs with Google Inc. software, and compete with Sony Corp . in offering sets that surf the Web and double as computers.

Samsung Electronics Expects to Meet TV Sales Target for 2010

Samsung Electronics Co. is on track to meet to its 2010 sales target for televisions, said Yoon Boo Keun, the company’s TV business chief. Yoon, who was speaking to reporters in Seoul today, also said Samsung is considering using Google Inc.’s Android operating system in its televisions.

Google Proposes $8.5 Mln Buzz Lawsuit Settlement (Digital Trends)

Digital Trends - Internet giant Google has proposed paying some $8.5 million to settle a lawsuit over privacy violations that occurred when it launched its Buzz social networking service earlier this year. Some 30 percent of the proposed settlement money would go towards legal fees associated with the case, $2,500 each would go to the seven Gmail users who brought the suit, and the remainder would be split amongst organizations that promote online privacy and privacy education. Google admits no wrongdoing in the settlement, which still must be approved by a judge.

Taiwan's HTC: iPhone's `quiet' challenger (AP)

AP - East Asia is the world's electronics factory, yet unless they are Japanese, producers are largely anonymous. Now HTC Corp., a Taiwanese maker of smart phones, is moving out of the shadows and trying to establish its own brand name as it competes with Apple's iPhone.

Samsung Electronics May Raise Investment Budget to $25.5 Billion Next Year

Samsung Electronics Co. may invest 30 trillion won ($26 billion) next year, the company said in an email, confirming a comment by Chief Executive Officer Choi Gee Sung reported by the Korea Economic Daily today.

1 'censored' bar won't stop online prostitution (AP)

AP - Craiglist's "adult services" section has been shut down in the U.S., but prostitution on the Internet is alive and well — even, quite possibly, on Craigslist.

Samsung Electronics Considers More Record Spending In '11

LG Electronics Aims to Increase LCD Television Sales by 40 Percent in 2011

LG Electronics Inc. , the world’s second-biggest maker of liquid-crystal-display televisions, plans to increase LCD TV sales by about 40 percent next year, as lower prices boost demand.

Texas opens inquiry into Google search rankings (AP)

AP - Google Inc.'s methods for recommending websites are being reviewed by Texas' attorney general in an investigation spurred by complaints that the company has abused its power as the Internet's dominant search engine.

Apple Browsing Share Tops Linux, Android Steals Share Everywhere (PC World)

PC World - More people browsed the Internet last month with a device running Apple's mobile operating system, iOS, than used Linux to do so. That's a first for Apple, according to NetMarketShare, a firm that produces metrics on the market share of browsers, operating systems and search engines.

Add hip-hop to 'Rock Band' thanks to Snoop Dogg (AP)

AP - Rap and rock will collide once again — this time in a video game.

Take-Two posts profit, raises outlook (Reuters)

Reuters - Video game maker Take-Two Interactive Inc on Thursday smashed Wall Street expectations for its fiscal third quarter and raised its forecast for the current fourth quarter, citing strong sales for its "Red Dead Redemption" title.

Take-Two posts 3Q profit, revenue soars (AP)

AP - Video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. posted better-than-expected results for its fiscal third quarter Thursday, reversing a loss as revenue more than tripled thanks to largely to strong sales of "Red Dead Redemption."

Sony Shows Prototypes of a Planned 3-D VAIO Laptop (NewsFactor)

NewsFactor - A laptop computer with 3-D video and games. Sony, hoping that could be the Next Big Thing, showed prototypes Wednesday of an upcoming VAIO 3-D laptop at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, Germany, and announced plans to launch a 3-D TV channel.

Gameworld: Tween players impacting online game development (Reuters)

Reuters - A booming market of tweens is changing the landscape of online games.

Summary Box: Vivendi raises outlook despite 2Q dip (AP)

AP - RESULTS: French media company Vivendi SA said second-quarter profit fell 3.5 percent due to fewer music releases from artists like Eminem and Lady Gaga. But it raised its full-year outlook as it expects strong results from video games and mobile services in emerging markets.

PlayStation 3 Will Be Ready for 3D by October (PC World)

PC World - PlayStation 3 owners will finally be able to watch movies in 3D by October, Sony CEO Howard Stringer promised during his speech Wednesday at the Internationale Funkaustellung (IFA) trade show in Berlin.

iOS 4.1's Game Center to hit iPhone next week (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - On Wednesday, Apple announced that multiplayer games on your iPhone and iPod touch will never be the same. At a press event, Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the companyâs highly-anticipated Game Center. As part of the iOS 4.1 update, Game Center will be available as a free download next week.

Sony Unveils Cloud-Based Qriocity Music Service for PS3, HDTVs (PC Magazine)

PC Magazine - Sony on Wednesday announced an unlimited, cloud-based music service that will initially be accessible via PlayStation gaming consoles and other Web-connected devices.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 D-Pad Update: Something Old, Something New (PC World)

PC World - For gamers who've griped about the Xbox 360's leveled down d-pad, Microsoft's telling old-school controller fans 'have it your way'. In fact: Have it both ways.

New `Metroid' game strong on plot, short on action (AP)

AP - Followers of the "Metroid" game series from Nintendo are bound to covet the latest offering, "Metroid: Other M," while those new to the series will likely find it a bit stale.

Report: Sony to Unveil Music, Video Subscription Service (PC Magazine)

PC Magazine - Sony is reportedly prepping a music and video subscription service that would initially provide access to content through its PlayStation gaming consoles.

Vivendi raises outlook despite dip in net profit (AP)

AP - French media company Vivendi SA said Wednesday that net income fell 3.5 percent in the second quarter due to fewer music releases from artists like Eminem and Lady Gaga, but it raised its full-year outlook as it expects strong results from video games and mobile services in emerging markets.

Madden NFL Makes Its Debut on Facebook (Mashable)

Mashable - Electronic Arts' wildly successful Madden NFL franchise has made the leap from the Xbox to Facebook.

Electronic Arts brings 'Madden' to Facebook (AP)

AP - Electronic Arts is bringing its popular "Madden" football game to Facebook. "Madden NFL Superstars" launches as a free application Tuesday.

Microsoft hiking Xbox Live subscription prices (AP)

AP - Microsoft is raising subscription prices for its popular Xbox Live Gold online gaming service in the U.S. and three other countries.

Microsoft Unveils New Xbox 360 Wireless Controller (PC Magazine)

PC Magazine - Microsoft on Tuesday unveiled a new wireless Xbox 360 controller, which features a new D-pad that transforms from a plus to a disc.

Microsoft: Xbox 360 S The Best Box We've Ever Built (PC World)

PC World - It's smaller, shinier, and back in black: Microsoft's new Xbox 360 took many by surprise at E3 this June, though some of us had speculated for months that a 'slim' model was in the works.

Able to unplug from work while you’re on vacation? (Ben Patterson)

Ben Patterson - Fighting the urge to check your work e-mail while you’re on holiday doesn’t exactly qualify as the worst problem in the world; after all, it’s pretty nice to have a job at all in this tough economy, right? Then again, the pressure to hang onto a job seems to be driving more and more connected workers to stay plugged in even while they’re trying to tune out.

Mobile users still wary of being found, survey says (Ben Patterson)

Ben Patterson - Feel the need to "check in" on Foursquare or Facebook every time you saunter into a restaurant, browse the goods at your neighborhood grocery store, or cram into a rock concert? Well, if you, you’re still in the minority — and you’re also probably a guy below 40 — according to the latest research.