Barnes & Noble's new Nook: The anti-iPad

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It's not an iPad, or even a Nook Color. But that's the whole point of Barnes & Noble's newest e-reader: it's not supposed to be.

FORTUNE -- Just six months after launching its well-received Android-based Nook Color tablet, Barnes and Noble (BKS) unveiled a major hardware update to the original e-ink-based Nook e-reader that cuts down on bulk, weight, and physical buttons.
Here's the important thing to note right off the bat about this new Nook: it doesn't have a color display like the iPad or the even the Nook Color. There isn't a full-fledged Web browser, email app, or really any third-party apps to speak of.
"Boring!" one Fortune reader complained about the Nook's launch last month. "An iPad does all this and about 1 zillion things more."
I initially agreed. I wouldn't say my iPad 2 3G does a zillion things in comparison, but it's much more versatile. So when I met with the B&N folks to pick up a review device, I was skeptical of its value and timing, particularly its arrival after Nook Color, a device I came to enjoy after the software update last March ironed out the major software kinks and added support for apps like email or one my favorite news curation readers, Pulse.
Some readers -- myself included -- don't want to give up the best features in their current e-readers for the tablet's shortcomings like comparatively shorter battery life and a display that can be tough to view outside. For us, there's the Nook: an unapologetic, laser-beam focused e-reader that does little else and doesn't bother to placate tablet proponents with so much as a full-fledged browser. But what it does do, it does exceptionally well, better than its nearest rival, the Kindle.
What's inside
At $139, the WiFi-only Nook sports a 6-inch touchscreen that marries infrared technology with a Pearl e-ink display to let users navigate with taps and swipes. It's backed up behind the scenes by an 800 MHZ Texas Instruments processor which the company says enables a much smoother reading experience, including quicker page transitions. All of that is housed in a soft, black, rubbererized plastic chassis measuring 5 inches by 6.5 inches by .47 inches  and weighs just under 7.5 ounces -- 35% lighter than the Nook first edition. There are six buttons, including recessed physical page flip buttons users can use if they prefer, and a home button. All that makes for an understated, sophisticated look that trumps the Yves Behar-designed Nook Color.
The Nook's biggest feature is one Barnes & Noble is particularly proud of, so much so they've dubbed the Nook the "Simple Touch Reader." By coupling infrared sensors with the e-ink screen, they've created one of the first dedicated e-readers that doesn't need a slew of physical buttons to get around. Many e-book readers will welcome the change because the tech actually works pretty well: there's little lag between the time you tap, swipe to flip a page, or type a letter, and when things happen onscreen. It's not as responsive as using as a color tablet, but the difference is negligible enough that users won't get frustrated. And as a result, it's easy to use the software-based keyboard.
So what you get here is the benefit that Amazon has been plugging all along with its Kindle -- reading in sunlight or on the beach -- with a responsive touchscreen, making it more intuitive to use than the first Nook or the Kindle.
Another benefit is the reduction of that film negative-like flashing effect we've come to associate with e-ink displays. Here, the company has come up with a neat little trick that it says reduces the effect by up to 80%: instead of having that happen every page, it happens every six pages. When you're reading an ebook, that claim proves true, but when you're navigating through the Home screen or looking for books in Barnes & Noble's online book store, it's not -- there's still a lot of flashing action. Luckily, screen transitions are quick enough it's not a major issue.

The Nook's new Home screen

On the software side, the Nook runs off a heavily modified version of Android 2.1. The only vestige of Android you'll likely recognize is the occasional Web browser window that pops up if you click on book embedded links.
The user interface (UI) is really all about the newly simplified proprietary software, which simplifies the Nook Color's UI even further. According to Jonathan Shar, the company's general manager for digital newsstand and emerging content, it's supposed to be so simple that users should only have to tap up to three times to get anywhere they want to go. And unless you're banging out the name of a title in a book search, that's pretty much true. There's a homescreen with three panels: a "Reading Now" area that displays what book users are currently reading and the number pages of left, "New Reads," or other ebooks in your library you haven't touched, and "What to Read Next," a social-focused section that displays what say, Facebook friends are reading. Alternatively, pressing the physical Nook button at the bottom, brings up a strip of icons that access the Home screen, your full library, the B&N shop, a search feature, and settings.
The last word
Releasing a black-and-white e-ink-based e-reader after a color screen e-reader tablet sounds counterintuitive, but I'm willing to bet the new Nook does well anyway, particularly with e-book readers who want a device that really excels at its purpose: reading. It's lighter and smaller than the iPad, so I don't have to prop it on my lap; it's got a display that doesn't strain my eyes during long periods, and battery life is pretty stellar. (I don't know about that two month claim, but after reading more than three hours a day on it since I got it last week, I've still got plenty of juice left.) And because of that touch screen and user interface, scooting through menus and even just flipping pages makes makes navigating a pleasure.
All that adds up to a win for Barnes & Noble, which has struggled recently with the closure of stores as reading has shifted towards digital faster than many analysts originally anticipated. The Nook won't make you forget about that iPad, but it will remind you that Apple's tablet has a ways before it can be everything to every user. Until then, or at least until Amazon answers B&N's rallying cry with a new Kindle of its own later this year, this new Nook will be the e-reader to beat.

Today's video gamer? It might not be who you think

A woman plays games at the Sony PlayStation booth at last week's Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.

(CNN) -- At 37, Lisa Sharp is comfortable calling herself a video-game junkie. But that wasn't always the case.
"I was the typical high-school girl who always watched the guys play and never picked up a console until well after college," she said.
Then, one day, the cable was out, so she grabbed a controller for her roommate's Nintendo 64. The rest is pixelated history.
Now, she and her husband have an old Nintendo 64 of their own. And a GameCube. And a PlayStation 2. And a Wii. And, as of last Christmas, a PlayStation 3.
"It relaxes me," said the Atlanta resident, whose favorites include the "Legend of Zelda" and "Final Fantasy" series. "My job gets a little bit crazy at times, so it's nice to go slash and bang stuff around."
As a mom who works in the finance department at Georgia Tech, Sharp hardly fits the stereotype of the avid video gamer -- that teenage or 20-something guy in the basement grinding out hours on his console or PC.
And that's part of a story that those in the video-gaming world already know: thanks partly to games on new platforms such as Facebook, smartphones and tablets, gaming is more popular than ever. Some observers even see parallels to the early-'80s arcade heyday, when games such as "Pac-Man" became mainstream phenomenons.
Last year, video-game software and hardware raked in more than $25 billion, according to the Entertainment Software Association, a gaming industry trade group. Compare that with the $7.3 billion the association reported in 2004, and it's not hard to see what's happening.
"I still think we have a lot of growth to go, even though we're at the highest point ever of people playing video games," said Tal Blevins, vice president of games content at IGN Entertainment. "As we have grown up with video games, it's just become a normal part of society.
"Video games did seem weird to our parents when we were young. But now, we're the old fogies, and it doesn't even phase us."
The massive growth of the past few years, evidenced at last week's Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, has moved on two tracks.
The 'blockbusters'
The first is the swelling mainstream popularity of so-called "hardcore" gaming titles, the detailed, immersive and artfully rendered games that take even the most devout players hundreds of hours to complete (longer, if they opt for multiplayer challenges that can last forever).
Last year's "Call of Duty: Black Ops" didn't just break video-game records. Selling 5.6 million copies in 24 hours and grossing $650 million in its first five days, it was the biggest entertainment opening of all time -- bigger than "Titanic," "Avatar" and every other Hollywood blockbuster.
The previous record holder? "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," which grossed $550 million in the same five-day span. By comparison, "Avatar" grossed $77 million in its opening weekend.
"They've become blockbusters in the way we traditionally talk about something at the cinema," said Rich Taylor, a senior vice president with the Entertainment Software Association. "If you look at the dollars and cents compared to the blockbusters coming out of Hollywood and the publishing world ... (video games) are the ones that are knocking it out of the park."
The rise of the social game
But the industry has also made massive strides on a second front. The recent explosion of so-called casual gaming has brought new populations into the fold and threatens to forever blur the distinction between "gamer" and "non-gamer."
Nintendo's Wii, with its motion-based controllers, unleashed a flood of family-friendly party games when it was released in 2006. It quickly became the most popular gaming console in the world and was followed last year by Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Move motion systems.
But the bigger advance might be happening on smartphone screens and Facebook pages.
Zynga, the makers of the alternately addictive or infuriating FarmVille, is worth an estimated $14.5 billion and expected to make its initial stock offering in the near future.
And versions of "Angry Birds," the addictive mobile game by Rovio, recently reached a staggering 250 million downloads on multiple platforms, from the iPhone and iPad to Google's Chrome browser.
"Mobile, and the iPhone in particular, is creating a so-much more casual and mainstream audience," said Dave Castelnuevo, co-creator of "Pocket God," a perennial app-store favorite that has been downloaded more than 4.5 million times since debuting in 2009. "They're not your hardcore gamers. My wife can't quit 'Angry Birds,' and she's never picked up an Xbox joystick."
The numbers definitely show a growing gamer base.
According to ESA's statistics, the average video-game player last year was 37 years old (like Sharp). That's up from 30 in 2004.
Forty-two percent of players were women. And nearly half (47%) of the online games people reported playing could be categorized as "casual" -- puzzles, trivia, board games, card games and the like.
More "hardcore" titles will always be in demand and "the industry has answered that bell time and time again," Taylor said. "But it's an industry that has expectations beyond just that audience. Any more, if it has a screen, it's going to have games."
The rift
Among diehard video-game enthusiasts, the rise of casual games has caused resentment in some quarters. On CNN Tech, any passing mention of FarmVille brings waves of fury in the comments section.
A story from E3 on mobile favorite "Fruit Ninja" coming to Microsoft's Xbox Kinect system prompted angry responses. Among them: "E3 is currently going on and THIS is the crap that mainstream media decides to write to the public about? How about talking about real games rather than app crap."
"I think sometimes, a lot of the people who are in the old-school mentality of hardcore gaming feel a little threatened with what's been happening over the past two or three years because it was, to them, almost this secret world," IGN's Blevins said. "It's like a 'We don't want you in our clubhouse' mentality."
At E3, Nintendo's world president Satoru Iwata talked with CNN about the rift as he promoted the upcoming Wii U, which Nintendo hopes will appeal to avid and casual gamers. He said that if tension between the two groups continues, it could be dangerous for the industry.
"Many people in this industry tend to categorize our customers into two groups -- one is the core gamer and the other is casual gamers. They somehow say that these two groups will never mix or overlap ... " Iwata said through a translator. "If we maintain that kind of wall or psychological barrier separating the two groups, someday I'm afraid that the culture of video games will be diminished."
Coming together?
Many observers say that, as gaming's growth continues, it's just a matter of time before those barriers fall.
"I consider myself a 'good game' gamer," said Taylor. "I play the games that are high quality, that entertain me. I play first-person shooters. I play sports games. I play 'Little Big Planet.' I play 'Angry Birds.' I play a lot of 'Scrabble.' I don't sit there and say 'I'm a hardcore gamer so I only play these titles.' I don't go to the store and see the hardcore-gaming section."
Castelnuevo, whose "Pocket God" franchise has branched out into toys, comics and cartoons, agrees.
"I think it's all growing," he said. "The 13-year-old males (who play "Pocket God") also play Xbox. They also play Nintendo DS. They love Mario and Batman and 'Bioshock.' "
Blevins also sees the divide getting thinner and says that, one day, even the term "gamer" may be outdated.

"You don't say 'I'm a movie-er' or 'I'm a book-er,' " he said. "Video games are now just another form of entertainment. There was once a little bit of that stigma -- the lonely kid in the basement. It's very different these days."

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Online radio firm Pandora floats for $2.6bn in New York

Pandora lost $1.8m in its most recent full year

The US internet radio service Pandora Media rose sharply on its debut on the New York Stock Exchange, before falling back.

The firm, which has yet to make a profit, had an offering price of $16 (£9.76) a share.
It rose as high as $26 a share on Wednesday before settling down to around $18.75.
The share price values the company at about $3bn, which is well above the current value of AOL, for example.
Pandora is the latest in a series of high-profile internet share sales, with LinkedIn already having floated and Groupon planning a listing.
LinkedIn has a market capitalisation of about $7bn.
Facebook is also expected to launch on the stock market in the next year.
Pandora started out as a music recommendation service called Savage Beast Technologies in 2000.
It changed its name in 2005 when it launched an internet radio service, which allows users to create custom radio stations by specifying which artists and genres they want to hear.
It has 94 million registered users and makes most of its money through advertising.

Sainsbury's says sales 'solid' in tough market

Sainsbury's has seen modest sales growth

Supermarket group Sainsbury's has reported "solid" sales growth for the past three months in what it describes as a "tough consumer environment".

Like-for-like sales - which ignore the effect of new stores - excluding fuel rose 1.9% in the 12 weeks to 11 June.
The retailer said it had benefited from Easter shopping, good spring weather and the royal wedding.
But it said higher fuel costs were reducing the amount of money people have available to spend.
The company's budget range - Basics - is its fastest growing brand.
Sainsbury's also saw strong growth in its smaller convenience store business, which grew by 20%.
"We've delivered a solid sales performance, in line with our expectations, in spite of the continued tough consumer environment," said Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King.
Sainsbury's first quarter sales figures in its trading update included VAT. On Tuesday, comparable figures from Tesco showed a 1% rise in UK sales for the 13 weeks to 28 May.
Excluding VAT, Tesco's UK sales were down 0.1%. Sainsbury's told the BBC that when VAT was excluded its sales were up 0.9%.
Upbeat mood Sainsbury's said that sales of clothing and non-food items grew faster than food.
It said that trading conditions remained "very competitive, reflecting the challenging economic backdrop".
"We expect this to be the case throughout the year," it added.
Richard Hunter, head of UK equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers, said: "The update has narrowly missed estimates, but the company itself was noticeably upbeat about the latest performance.
"In particular, management was at pains to point out that its non-food offerings grew faster than food and, indeed, ahead of the Tesco number yesterday - albeit that Sainsbury is coming from a lower base."

Zara-owner Inditex's profits rise on global expansion

Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, was spotted wearing a Zara dress after her wedding

The world's largest clothes retailer, Inditex, has reported rising profits as its global expansion continues.

The owner of the Zara fashion chain said net profits for the period from February to the end of April were up 10% on the same period last year at 332m euros ($475m; £292m).
Inditex said it opened 110 stores in 29 different countries during the quarter, including its first store in Australia.
The company had a total of 5,154 stores by the end of April.
Zara has had its profile boosted after Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, was pictured in a Zara dress.
Inditex also announced plans to expand its online business, selling Zara clothes online in North America.
Diversification The results come as many clothing retailers are struggling with rising costs and reduced demand in developed markets.

Global expansion has offset weakness in Inditex's home market of Spain

"It's one of the most diversified clothing retailers which gives it a greater stability. You have to put that in context of the fact that its home market, Spain is so weak," said Mike Dennis, a retail analyst at MF Global.
At the same time, analysts say the company has benefited from manufacturing more of its clothes in Spain and North Africa than its rivals, so it has not been exposed to rising wage costs in Asia.
"The wage inflation in Asia creates the issue of moving your supply to a same-cost or lower-cost manufacturing plant inland in China, or to another market, I'm sure there is a cost to doing that," added Mr Dennis.
Also on Wednesday, rival fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz said that its like-for-like sales were up 2% in May from a year earlier.
The world's second largest clothes retailer said turnover in the quarter hit 27.6bn crowns ($4.36bn; £2.7bn).

Vince Power announces intention to float

Prince will headline this year's Hop Farm Music Festival

Music Festivals, a new live music venture from promoter Vince Power, has announced its intention to float on the alternative investment market (AIM).

The firm said it had raised £6.5m, and will own two established music festivals - the UK's Hop Farm Festival in Kent and Benicassim in Spain.
Mr Power founded music promotion firm Mean Fiddler in 1982, which oversaw some of the largest summer festivals.
Music Festivals plans to start trading on 28 June.
In a statement on Tuesday, the company said it proposed to exercise call options to acquire five businesses which own and operate music festivals.
In addition to Hop Farm and Benicassim, it will wholly own the Feis Festival in Finsbury Park, and the rights to a classical music festival and a pop music festival both located in the south-east of England.
Festivals brought in £864m to the UK economy last year, according to figures from UK Music.

Greek debt fears put French bank ratings on review

BNP Paribas is one of the banks that may be affected

Ratings agency Moody's has warned it may downgrade the credit rating of three French banks because of their exposure to Greek debt.

Credit Agricole, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale all face a possible downgrade because they could face losses on a Greek default.
Credit ratings are a measure of how likely a company or country is to repay its debts.
Moody's has already downgraded the credit ratings of eight Greek banks.
European leaders have yet to agree on the terms of a second bail-out for Greece.
On Wednesday, the country is expected to see another wave of general strikes against austerity measures.
In a statement, Moody's said: "Today's actions reflect Moody's concerns about these banks' exposures to the Greek economy."
Societe Generale and Credit Agricole both hold majority stakes in Greek banks.
BNP Paribas does not have a stake in a Greek bank, but Moody's estimates that it held about 5bn euros (£4.4bn, $7.2bn) of Greek government debt as of December 2010.

Nokia and Apple settle patent dispute

 

Nokia claimed some technology in the iPad infringed its patents

Nokia and Apple have agreed a technology licensing agreement that ends the long-running legal dispute between the two firms.

"The agreement will result in settlement of all patent litigation between the companies," Nokia said.
Nokia sued Apple for patent infringements in 2009 and extended the action in December last year.
Apple had countersued, accusing Nokia of infringing its patents.
Nokia said Apple had agreed a one-off payment, the value of which was not disclosed, and ongoing royalties to use its technologies.
Apple said the deal covered both companies' patents.
Counter claims

What this story really shows once again is how one phone, the iPhone, has proved the undoing of a company whose dominance seemed unassailable just four years ago”

Rory Cellan-Jones Technology correspondent, BBC News

"We are very pleased to have Apple join the growing number of Nokia licensees," said Nokia's chief executive Stephen Elop.

"This settlement demonstrates Nokia's industry-leading patent portfolio and enables us to focus on further licensing opportunities in the mobile communications market."
Apple said the two firms had agreed to "drop all of our current lawsuits and enter into a licence covering some of each other's patents, but not the majority of the innovations that make the iPhone unique".
"We're glad to put this behind us and get back to focusing on our respective businesses."
'Positive news' Nokia's various claims against Apple included alleged patent infringements of touch interfaces, caller ID, display illumination, and 3G and wi-fi technology.
Apple had also claimed that Nokia had infringed many of its patents.
Both sides had always denied each other's claims.
"This is the first positive news from Nokia for a long time. They can both focus on their businesses now, and the dispute was settled to Nokia's advantage," said Mikael Rautanen at research group Inderes in Helsinki.
At the end of last month, Nokia said it expected sales and profit margins for the current quarter to be well below its previous forecasts.
The company has been struggling to reposition itself in the rapidly-growing smartphone sector, where it is trying to make up ground lost to competitors such as Apple's iPhone and phones using Google's Android operating system.

Wealth management firms warned by FSA

The regulator is worried that client money is at risk from sloppy investment practices

Firms that manage investments for rich people have been warned they are failing to invest client money properly.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has found evidence that many "wealth management" firms may be exposing their customers to too much risk.
The regulator has written to 260 firms, telling them to ensure their clients' investment portfolios are suitable.
The FSA said a recent review had found "significant, widespread failings".
"We have recently reviewed the suitability of client portfolios in a sample of firms in the wealth management industry," the FSA said in a letter to the chief executives of the registered firms.
"We have identified significant, widespread failings, which we are concerned may also be prevalent in firms outside our sample."
Some of the firms are divisions of big banks and some are independent businesses.
The letter is a warning to the industry to get its house in order.
The FSA looked at a selection of 16 firms to see if the clients' investment portfolios had been managed in line with their "knowledge and experience, financial situation and investment objectives".
The review of records at 16 firms found that:

• 14 had exposed their customers to high, or medium-high, risk of loss, because of unsuitable investments, or investments whose suitability it was not possible to judge
• of the client files examined, 79% had a "high risk of unsuitability", or the suitability could not be decided
• of the files examined, 67% of the investments were not in line with either the firm's own investment model, the client's willingness to accept risky investments, or the client's own investment aims.

The firms that were scrutinised are being followed up by the FSA and some have put in place plans to bring their customers' portfolios back in line.
The FSA said it was especially worried about poor record keeping at the wealth management firms, which meant they did not have basic know-your-client information, or records of the personal financial situations of their clients.
It had also found that investment portfolios did not match the clients' stated willingness to take risk, or to their personal investment objectives.
"These findings give rise to concerns that there is an unacceptable risk of customers of wealth management firms experiencing unfavourable outcomes," the FSA said.
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) said it had received 1,148 complaints about portfolio management in 2010-11, which was 10% more than in the previous year.
About two-thirds of those complaints are currently being decided in favour of the complainant.

Alibaba splits Taobao, China's biggest retail website

As China's internet penetration increases, Taobao's popularity and reach is expected to grow further

Chinese internet giant Alibaba has announced that it is reorganizing one of its websites, Taobao, into three separate units.

Taobao operates China's biggest online shopping site, hosting 30,000 online stores.
About 53,00 items are sold on the Taobao website every minute.
Alibaba said it is splitting the website into Taobao Marketplace, Taobao Mall and and eTao which will focus on different types of business.
The restructuring will see Taobao Marketplace concentrate on consumer-to-consumer business, while Taobao Mall will specialise in business-to-consumer transactions.
The company said eTao will be a product search engine designed to make it easier for consumers to find goods and services offered by all e-retailers.
"We believe this move will benefit our customers, as each of the three companies will be able to focus on its own unique consumer experience," the company said in a statement.
IPO speculation The tremendous success of Taobao has fuelled speculation in recent times about a potential listing of the company.
However, Alibaba said that the decision to split the company was a clear indication that it was not planning any such move.
"The decision to split Taobao into three companies makes abundantly clear what we have been saying for years, there is no Taobao IPO [initial public offering]," said Alibaba spokesman John Spelich.

Samsonite shares fall 10% on Hong Kong trading debut

 

Samsonite, founded in Denver, Colorado, in 1910, is the latest upmarket company to list in Hong Kong

Samsonite shares have tumbled on their debut at the Hong Hong stock exchange on investor concern about the strength of the global economic recovery.

Its shares fell by as much as 10% in early morning trade to HK$12.96 from an offer price of HK$14.50
The upmarket luggage firm had raised $1.25bn (£771m) via an initial public offering (IPO).
Samsonite is the latest big brand to list in Hong Kong in order to tap into the lucrative Chinese market.
The Italian fashion house Prada is due to price its IPO on Friday and make its trading debut on June 24.
Tough times However, recent IPOs have struggled.
Samsonite's fall comes even thought it priced its flotation at the lower end of a proposed range.
Earlier this month Australian mining company Resourcehouse dropped its Hong Kong IPO plans because of a poor response from investors.
Meanwhile, companies including MGM China and commodities trader Glencore have also had muted debuts on the stock exchange.
Analysts said that investor's appetite has been blunted.
"Of course you have to attribute that to the weak sentiment in the market and in the meantime people won't be too interested in IPOs," said Alex Wong of Ample Finance Group.
Debt payment Despite the poor debut, the money raised by the flotation will allow Samsonite's owners - private equity group CVC and Royal Bank of Scotland - to pay off debt.
CVC bought Samsonite in 2007 for $1.7bn at the height of the credit boom.
But the company struggled when travel was hit by the financial crisis and Royal Bank of Scotland ended up taking a 30% stake as part of a debt restructuring.
The company is betting on growth in Asia, where leisure travel is becoming increasingly affordable.
Samsonite was founded by US trunk maker Jesse Shwayder in Denver, Colorado, in 1910.
One of his first cases was called Samson, after the biblical figure known for his strength, and was designed to withstand the hardships of travelling through America's West.

Hewlett Packard sues Oracle over Itanium chip dispute

The Itanium chip is at the heart of the latest dispute between HP and Oracle

Hewlett Packard (HP) is suing Oracle over a chip dispute in the latest clash between the two former allies.

The lawsuit accuses Oracle of behaving illegally in deciding that future versions of its database software will not support one line of HP servers.
The servers use an Itanium chip that Oracle insists is being phased out.
HP claim that Oracle's decision to stop the support will hurt its clients - Oracle has denied the claims, calling the lawsuit "malicious and meritless".
Relations between the two companies have deteriorated in the past year.
HP's former boss, Mark Hurd, joined Oracle almost a year ago.
HP had then threatened court action, claiming that Oracle would "exploit the knowledge of HP's strengths and weaknesses" as a result of hiring Mr Hurd.
'Strong-arm tactics'

Bill Wohl Hewlett Packard

The current dispute is the result of a combination of factors.

It centres around the future of the Itanium chip manufactured by Intel and the growing rivalry between the two companies in the field of server hardware market.
In March, Oracle announced that its database software would no longer support HP servers that use the chip.
It said it had evidence that Intel was planning to phase out the product, hence it did not plan to provide software that supports the processor - something Intel has denied.
But Oracle said in a statement that: "Intel's plans to end-of-life Itanium will be revealed in court".
HP says Oracle's real concern is to try to force customers to buy the Sun Microsystems servers manufactured by it.
The company claimed Oracle was using "strong-arm tactics to coerce customers into replacing their HP servers with Sun servers they do not want".
HP said it had sent a legal notice to Oracle last week, but a lack of response from Oracle had left it with no choice but to take legal action against its former ally.
"The silence from Oracle is deafening. We are very disappointed it has come to this," said Bill Wohl of HP.

McCartney stashes his extraordinary library in the cloud

Remastered deluxe upgrades of Paul McCartney's solo albums, "McCartney" and "McCartney II," arrive Tuesday.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Former Beatle Paul McCartney's legendary work being exhaustively digitized by HP
• McCartney kicks off U.S. tour with consecutive headlining dates in July
• McCartney is revisiting tape loops and found sounds in a forthcoming project

RELATED TOPICS

• Electronic Music
• Hewlett-Packard Company
• Paul McCartney
• The Beatles
• Pop and Rock Music

(WIRED) -- From his legendary work with the Beatles to his extensive solo career, now being exhaustively digitized by Hewlett-Packard, Paul McCartney has had technocultural innovation on the brain.
"You certainly find a younger generation discovering and remixing stuff that I did, and making it all fresh again," the perpetually productive McCartney told Wired.com by phone in the long and winding interview below. "I love the idea that what I did then can still be relevant now."
The 69-year-old McCartney has made that process much easier by being consistently ahead of the cultural curve.
Although he penned immortal Beatles lullabies like "Yesterday" and "Hey Jude," his tape loops on "Tomorrow Never Knows" and unhinged noise on "Helter Skelter" influenced hip-hop, heavy metal, horror and more.
McCartney, who kicks off a U.S. tour with consecutive headlining dates at Yankees Stadium in July, has also become the first superstar to completely digitize his mammoth solo library, according to Hewlett-Packard, which is running the ambitious project.
WIRED: McCartney brings 'Tomorrow Never Knows' back to the future
Over the next three years, HP will compress more than a million McCartney tracks, clips, photos, reviews, experiments and ephemera into a cloud-based collection the musician can access from anywhere in the world. That is light-years ahead of digging out old tapes from beneath his studio in England and literally baking them to reverse physical deterioration.
"That amazed me when I heard that one," McCartney told Wired.com. "We've actually got to bake my old tapes before we can play them? It's a bit like the steam engine, you know. A bit old-fashioned."
Although McCartney himself has been slammed for being old-fashioned on hits like "Silly Love Songs," he's also been routinely, and unfairly, slammed for the opposite.

We’ve actually got to bake my old tapes before we can play them? It’s a bit like the steam engine, you know.
--Paul McCartney

His solo albums, "McCartney" and "McCartney II", whose remastered deluxe upgrades arrive Tuesday, were respectively blamed for breaking up the Beatles and heretically mucking about with electronic music.
Yet the solo records have a sense of prescience to them. "McCartney" was a "non-corporate" response to the Beatles' suffocating insulation and turmoil, as well as an early example of home-based music production now ubiquitous in our age of GarageBand, McCartney said.
Meanwhile, "McCartney II's" love of sequencers and synthesizers merged dance and pop music into a defiant hybrid that tipped its hat to stellar but obscure bands like Sparks while providing an early sonic antecedent of horny G-funk ("Darkroom") and crossover R&B.
(How many MTV and VH1 viewers know that popular soul trio TLC bit McCartney's rhyme "Waterfalls" on the way to the big time?)
The groundbreaking video for "Coming Up" even featured sci-fi McCartney clones called The Plastic Macs, a nod to his nickname as well as John Lennon's solo outfits Plastic Ono Band and The Dirty Mac.
While logging more than 50 years of work, McCartney has always had one foot in the future, even as some around him have complained that he is locked in "Yesterday." Of course, they simply haven't done their research.
Today, award-winning director Jack McCoy is channeling obscure tunes from McCartney's electronic music project "The Fireman" and "McCartney II" into captivating surf films and YouTube videos. (Check out McCartney and McCoy's brand new short film "Blue Sway" here.)
And, as Wired.com reported last week, McCartney is revisiting tape loops and found sounds in a forthcoming project utilizing the same machines used on "Tomorrow Never Knows."
We chatted with McCartney about his time-warping influence, the Beatles, "McCartney" and "McCartney II's" bleeding edges and why his titanic digital library has nothing to fear from WikiLeaks.
Wired.com: Coming on the heels of the Beatles' breakup, McCartney seems to be one of the early instances of an artist taking control of his production and making an album mostly at home.
Paul McCartney: It was a combination of things that led me to do that. Obviously, the band was breaking up, which meant that I didn't have anyone to make the music with. So I had the alternative of putting together a band quickly, or taking it in another direction, which is what I decided to do.
Also, that period of my life was one where I was going against the corporate mentality, which didn't fit for me with the music I loved and wanted to make. The Beatles were with a label and had a studio, but once the band broke up I wanted to go in another direction. So I got a machine identical to the one we were using in the studio, a few mics and started work.
Wired.com: What was the corporate mentality that you were rebelling against at the time?
McCartney: When I was with the Beatles, everything was taken care of. Someone would even buy my Christmas tree for me. But suddenly I got with Linda, and things changed. We didn't want to do that; we wanted to get a bit more real.
So I decided that I was going to buy my own Christmas tree and make my own album in the living room. It was all part of my thought process. It turned out to be something that was quite innovative, although I didn't think of that implication at the time.
Wired.com: It's been said before, but I think it bears repeating that all of the Beatles albums were made on four-track and later eight-track machines. Which is nearly inconceivable, but nevertheless empowering, in our current era where artists can make polished albums with way more tracks pretty much anywhere on their laptops.
McCartney: Yeah, exactly. It is a great thing. And you have to think about where the Beatles were coming from. We were listening to great records from Sun Studio, which had very primitive recording systems.
Music from Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard tended to be made in quite funky little studios, but it was that sound that attracted us. Since it came from a weird little place, it tended to have a cool little sound.
WIRED: Rock Band tunes we're ready to rock, five we'll miss
And we all had our favorite places in the house where we practiced our guitar. My favorite was in the toilet, because it had good acoustics. When John and I first started playing and writing together, there was a little vestibule on the front of his house which had a good little sound.

I was going against the corporate mentality, which didn't fit for me with the music I loved and wanted to make.
--Paul McCartney

And that all fits with this idea that keeping it real, funky and non-corporate. I just think that somehow found its way into the excitement of the records.
Wired.com: The lo-fi rock genre of the '80s onward had that same vibe, going for raw takes and sounds rather than massive studio productions.
McCartney: Yeah, I think I was reacting against the same thing that people were to react against later.
Wired.com: What do you think about home recording's evolution?
McCartney: I think it's a great thing, and a buzz. It ties in with what I was doing on McCartney and McCartney II, by allowing you to just get on with having your ideas and not having to cope with being in a social situation. Which is a double-edged sword:
Sometimes it's a great thing to hang out with a band like the Beatles. But it's not always great, especially during times when it's argumentative or you wish you were somewhere else where you could be yourself a bit more.
The bottom line, which I'm very happy about, is you still have to make great music, no matter how you make it. The Beatles went from two-track to four-track to eight-track to 16-track, but it didn't really matter which we used because we still had to have great songs.
I mean, Beck's "Loser" was done in his bedroom. And I'm sure there were thousands of people making tracks in their bedroom, but they weren't anywhere near as cool.
Wired.com: Speaking of cool, how are you feeling about HP not only digitizing your entire solo vault, but also being able to access it from anywhere in the world?
McCartney: That's also a great thing, particularly when you've been at it as long as I have, because you accumulate so much. I have a large basement at my studio in England where I store all my post-Beatles stuff.
I've got all the old tapes, so if I want to mix them again like I'm doing with these remastered reissues, we've got to find the tape and actually bake it, because the oxide comes off.
Wired.com: Next up, cooking with Paul McCartney!
McCartney: That amazed me when I heard that one. We've actually got to bake my old tapes before we can play them? It's a bit like the steam engine, you know. A bit old-fashioned. Being able to access it at the press of the button is much better, which is why I was happy when Hewlett-Packard came along and offered to sponsor my concerts.
I'm always looking for a sponsor I can get behind. My last sponsor was Lexus, because I was into the hybrid cars, which were just then arriving on the scene. Once it was put to me that Hewlett-Packard would digitize my library as part of the deal, I was in.
Wired.com: I read that your library has over a million items in it. How long is digitizing all of that going to take?
McCartney: They're going to take the next three years. At the end of that time, all I am going to have to do is press a button from anywhere in the world. If I want to access Wings' 1976 world tour, I'll get it, which is pretty amazing.
Wired.com: Unless I'm mistaken, you're the first artist to do this. At least, Hewlett-Packard says you are.
McCartney: I think so. You know, I'm not a great keeper of records, so someone can tell you that rather than me. But I think it is true.
Either way, it works for both of us. I get my library digitized so I and my office staff can have immediate access, and HP gets a flagship leader for this whole process. No doubt they are going to put this together for other people and say, "Hey, we did it for Paul, you want it?" We both win.

WikiLeaks is a double-edged sword.
--Paul McCartney

Wired.com: The first thing that came to mind when I read about it was security.
McCartney: You and me both. I don't want Mr. Wiki getting in there, you know? [Laughs] But they've assured me. As I say, they're developing this not just for me, but for banks and others, so the security has to be red-hot. But watch this space. We'll find out, won't we?
Wired.com: I'm guessing Mr. Wiki is WikiLeaks. What do you think about that site?
McCartney: Well, again, WikiLeaks is a double-edged sword. It's really great that we find out about the truth behind some of these state secrets, which the public could never find out. Anyone researching or writing articles on these things would never be able to see them, and if they did there would be injunctions. So freedom of information is essentially a great thing.
But the thing that has been mentioned against WikiLeaks, which I can see, is that if you've got people who are in an aid situation and they start getting hit, that's a danger. There are probably some good reasons to keep some information private.
WIRED: 'Let it Be's' recombined reality bites
But I suppose on a general freedom-of-information level, there seem to be some good things about it. It certainly makes everyone watch what they do. And it's a good thing if it makes everyone more honest. But the good thing is that it's not my field of expertise.
Wired.com: Well, from what I know of WikiLeaks, I'd say your digital library is safe.
McCartney: Yeah, that's the thing. They don't want me. That's good.
Wired.com: Let's jump to "McCartney II," which was a bit heretical for its time given all the electronic music it had on it. But I think that side of your career is under-reported, from the tape loops on "Tomorrow Never Knows" to The Fireman, whose last album, "Electric Arguments," was brilliant.
McCartney: I think what happens, and it happens to everyone, is that people tend to sort of get an image. Stuff floats to the top of the water, you know? And some of the stuff that I do, and I've been interested in, just doesn't float up to the top.
Wired.com: Your loops on "Tomorrow Never Knows" sequenced the genes for electronic music in pop and hop.
McCartney: A great thing is that I've got a project coming up now, which I'm really excited about, which has led me to get back into tape loops. I did similar experiments on McCartney, using wine glasses on tracks like "Glasses," or sequencers and synthesizers on tracks like "Temporary Secretary" for "McCartney II."
I got a shout a couple years ago about a DJ in Brighton who's playing the hell out of that record. So you certainly find a younger generation discovering and remixing stuff that I did, and making it all fresh again.
Which is great for me; I love the idea that what I did then can still be relevant now. That's one of the interesting things about these reissues. Now you've got people listening to material like "Check My Machine" or "Secret Friend."
Because the recording techniques were funky and not normal. Like you say, I've always done stuff like that, which has been a lesser-known part of my career. And naturally so, because let's face it: "Hey Jude" and "Let It Be" are going to attract attention.
Wired.com: I believe that might be a colossal understatement.
McCartney: But I do love that other side, and the great thing is that it informs my other work. If I get all that off my chest and do the funky stuff, that's a great thing. I like the way it crosses over and finds its way into other stuff I'm doing. But besides all of that, it keeps the whole thing fresh for me.
Wired.com: How so?
McCartney: It means I never reach a point in music where I go, "Oh God, been there, done that." It's always, like, "Whoa." Like right now, I'm parked outside the rehearsal studios where we are in L.A., and I'm really excited to get in there to plug in my guitar and work on a couple songs.
That's what it's all about. You don't have that, you know, then you ain't got nothing,

Apps for socially awkward people

If you're bad at networking, try an app that helps those who need a little greasing to get socially fluid.

Editor's note: Brenna Ehrlich and Andrea Bartz are the sarcastic brains behind humor blog and book Stuff Hipsters Hate. When they're not trolling Brooklyn for new material, Ehrlich works as an associate editor at Mashable.com and Bartz is news editor at Psychology Today.

(CNN) -- It's a verifiable fact that the Internet is basically for three things: porn, cats and awkward people (and any ensuing combination of the three).
Yes, the Web is a haven for the socially awkward. But we've got good news for those of you who habitually consort with corners at social functions and have a penny loafer permanently lodged in your mouth: That very same Internet is chock-full of tools designed to help you out in the real world as well.
In the past, such people were forced to resort to copious amounts of alcohol and/or therapy (always a wonderful combination) to get through basic social exchanges, but thanks to the many and varied wonders of the Web -- in all of its portable iterations -- they now can fake some fairly convincing social competence.
If you are among that huddled mass of shoe-gazers and heavy sighers, read on -- unless, you know, you're otherwise engaged with one of the Internet's other uses. In which case, er, see you in a few.
If you're remiss at casting a net when networking...
We see you there, professional person at a networking event, clutching the edge of the bar like a child at her first recital clinging to the lip of the piano. The condensation from your whiskey glass is dampening your hand, making you worry that should someone clasp your fingers in a handshake, they would think you're an unusually sweaty person.
Oh, great, now you really are sweating. Yup, you should probably just go home and resign yourself to the fact that you will never get ahead, and that the world is not, in fact, your oyster -- it's just an empty shell.
Before you go all Sylvia Plath on us, you might want to check out Sonar, an iPhone app that launched in May to help those of us who need a little greasing to get socially fluid. Basically, the app connects to several of your social networks (Foursquare, Twitter and Facebook), so that when you check into a location, you can see all the people there, as well as what mutual friends you have on the Book of Faces and "That Twittering Thing."
Then, when you scan the room, you won't see a sea of faces waiting to judge you, but friends of friends (or at least acquaintances). From there, you can introduce yourself with confidence as "John's friend," or "Mary's co-worker." We would, however, avoid: "We both follow Yanni on Twitter!" That's awkward for everyone involved.
If your opening lines frequently get crossed...
Bars are changeable beasts. One night, the dance floor is littered with beautiful specimens, the evening's denouement involving you and one of its denizens making out in the mists of the requisite fog machine.
The next, the drinking hole in question is empty, save for one dude in a deep V-neck T-shirt held together with safety pins, drawling on and on about how "Vegas is the most culturally rich city in the world."
Enter SceneTap, an upcoming iPhone app that will tell you -- in real time -- how many people are at a bar, what the girl-to-guy ratio is, and the age range. The app will also include forums in which barhoppers can rate establishments and converse directly with the bar itself about the scene, as well as get info about deals.
Rather creepily, the app will garner age and gender data via cameras in a selection of registered bars, but, hey, Facebook is already using facial recognition to auto-tag snaps, so you might as well just submit to your voyeuristic, digital overlords already.
While you're waiting for SceneTap to hit the, well, scene, you can check out Assisted Serendipity, a Foursquare plugin that alerts you when the guy-to-girl ratio at your drinking spot of choice has adjusted to your favor. Or you could just leave it up to fate. Sadly, however, there's no app for that.
You're not a sharp-dressed wo/man...
Your entire closet is residing among your tangled bedsheets and you're close to rending cloth like a man in mourning. You have 15 minutes to get ready, and you can't attend this event naked -- it's not that kind of party. What's a body to do?
Well, if the garments littering your king aren't all sweatpants and T-shirts from local eateries ("I Got Crabs at Marco's Shack!"), might we suggest crowdsourcing your look? Go Try It On is a website and iPhone app that lets you gather real-time feedback about what's gracing your body. Just upload a snap and let the masses -- or a private group of friends -- decide if you're fit to go outside.
And if you are of the sweatpants and novelty T persuasion (and don't currently work as a stand-up comic) there's always Hendricks Park, a Skype-powered personal shopping service.

Basically, you pay a fashion consultant -- one who you'll never have to meet in person -- to send you clothing. No leaving the house required. Still, we do suggest firing up one of the aforementioned apps after receiving your bounty of vestments -- or you'll just be one well-dressed agoraphobe.

Unlocked iPhone 4 now available in the U.S.

Unlocked iPhone 4s are now on sale in the U.S. in both black and white. The device is nearly the same as its predecessor.

(Ars Technica) -- After offering an unlocked version of the iPhone overseas for some time, Apple has finally begun selling an unlocked version of the GSM iPhone 4 in the U.S.
Rumors had been building over the last several days that Apple was preparing to add such an item to its inventory system sooner than later, and those rumors came to fruition early Tuesday morning.
The unlocked 16GB iPhone 4 is now available directly from Apple for $649, with the 32GB model going for $749. (Bet you're hankerin' for those subsidized phones again!)
Unlocked iPhone 4s are available in both black and white and the device is otherwise the same as the AT&T-locked iPhone 4 that many of us are already familiar with.
Aside from being beneficial for travel -- GSM is essentially the world standard when it comes to cell phones and travelers will be able to use the device on other GSM networks outside of the U.S. -- an unlocked version of the phone means that users can upgrade without committing to a new contract with AT&T.

T-Mobile in the U.S. also offers a GSM network that partially works with the iPhone 4, but those who take unlocked phones over to that network won't be able to use T-Mobile's 3G -- the device works with T-Mobile's EDGE only.