Technology

Near field communications (NFC) has taken far longer to get established than originally hoped for, but its fervent backers anticipate a breakthrough next year. In this respect, it shares the birth pangs of technologies such as Bluetooth and WiFi, which travelled from hype to hope, then disappointment, before becoming established.

What seems to be a compelling and simple idea – consumers touching their mobiles to pay for coffee, travel on the bus, download coupons or pass information on to friends – is proving unexpectedly difficult to bring to market.

Cloud computing is all the rage in the IT industry these days, but there's still plenty of confusion about how cloud applications work and what kind of long-term impact they will have on business technology.

In this article we'll take a look at six common misconceptions IT pros and users have about cloud apps, related to performance, security, management, cost and the long-term effect on IT staffing.

Researchers are paving the way for the future of micro-computing, using DNA (the building blocks of life) to build smaller-than-ever computer chips. These chips will be able to amass far superior amounts of circuitry compared to traditional silicon for only a fraction of the size, and their potential speed is unrivalled to silicon.

Every man, woman and child on the planet using micro-blogging site Twitter for a century. For many people that may sound like a vision of hell, but for watchers of the tremendous growth of digital communications it is a neat way of presenting the sheer scale of the so-called digital universe.

Wednesday's recall of the 2003 Sequoia marks the third computer-related recall for Toyota Motor this year.

The Japanese car company announced a recall of 50,000 Sequoia 2003 model year SUVs to address problems with the Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) System. If not fixed, some vehicles may not accelerate as quickly as the driver expects, Toyota said.

And earlier this month, Toyota said it would recall 9,400 Lexus GX 460 SUVs to correct a stability control system problem that could lead to a loss of control, which Consumer Reports designated as a "Don't Buy: Safety Risk."

When Julie Sidder's daughters were younger, her diaper bag was filled with coloring books, crayons, storybooks and little games in case one of them became restless.

Now that Sidder's kids are 4 and 7, the diaper bag is gone, but the need for entertainment -- especially in restaurants -- is not, which is why two-thirds of the apps on Sidder's iPhone are for her children.

"People have always brought toys, or something to entertain their child, into restaurants and stores," says the mom, who lives in West Bloomfield, Michigan. "Now we just have better technology."

We all know what buzz is: It's noise. And here at InfoWorld, one of our self-appointed tasks is to extract the signal from that noise, to separate the stuff valuable to IT professionals from that which is popularly considered a big deal.

While some large enterprises have moved their IT infrastructure to a third-party managed service to save costs, small firms -- especially startups -- have come to rely on cloud services to cut initial outlays and help them focus on the core services and products.

One in five European citizens has admitted to being unaware of whether their personal data is being held ‘in the cloud'.

Research released by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) also showed that 60 per cent of people in Germany, France, Poland, Spain and the UK are confused over where their online data is stored. The European Cyber Security Awareness Day, held earlier this week in Brussels, was designed as a ‘unique opportunity to improve understanding of emerging information security developments and the challenges created by an increasingly connected world'.

More and more implantable devices, like pacemakers or defibrillators, are turning to wireless signals as a means to communicate with external devices, but in doing so they open themselves to security breaches. Several solutions are in the works that tackle this problem by upping device defenses, but by piling on security measures, yet another risk emerges: that at a critical time an authorized physician might not be able to access the device.