Microsoft's Hotmail Active Views -- a vetted interactive email solution

Email as we know it is a fairly static beast; you get text, and maybe some links and images, but that's about it. After all, allowing email to run code within your email client or browser could be mighty risky.

On the other hand, there's lots to be gained by "interactive email." Imagine receiving a form, which you can fill-in right from within an email message; or getting a search widget that you can use right from within the message to get the exact content you're interested in.

That's what Microsoft's new Active Views for Hotmail tries to do. Microsoft has taken a bunch of enterprise partners, starting with Orbitz and Monster.com, and allowed them to run code right from within your email. Since the partners (and email content) are carefully vetted by Microsoft, potential security concerns are kept to a minimum allowing users to enjoy the power of interactive forms and search widgets without the danger of hidden malicious code.

As the platform grows, more and more enterprises will be able to send interactive email. However, being a Hotmail-only prospect (at least for now), and since it's mainly useful for large advertisers, it is uncertain whether Interactive Views will gain much traction. Still, it's an interesting experiment. Just in case you're still at a loss as to what Active Views actually is, Microsoft's kindly made a video explaining the whole thing, which we've included after the break.

Continue reading Microsoft's Hotmail Active Views -- a vetted interactive email solution

Microsoft's Hotmail Active Views -- a vetted interactive email solution originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 17 Dec 2010 04:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2010/12/17/microsofts-hotmail-active-views-a-vetted-interactive-email-s/

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Sears Enters the Movie Download Arena with Alphaline Entertainment

Sears has launched a new entertainment download service called Alphaline Entertainment. �The new service is powered by RoxioNow, and offers purchase and rental of movies and TV shows. �Sears is already selling a line of televisions, DVD, and Blu-ray players that are Alphaline-enabled. �Sears also says that many internet-enabled devices you currently have may be [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2010/12/30/sears-enters-the-movie-download-arena-with-alphaline-entertainment/

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Skype?s New App Brings Video Chat To The iPhone, iPad And iPod Touch

We've been hearing reports that Skype is debuting a mobile video chat service and D-Day has arrived. The company is launching a brand new version of its iPhone app that includes the ability to turn on video in any Skype chat. The beauty of the app is that it brings free video calling to iPhone 3G devices, iPad and iPod Touch, all of which couldn't run Apple's video calling feature Facetime (the feature only works with iPhone 4 devices and Mac computers). Of course, iPad owners won't be able to initiate a video call, but these users can receive any video chats from contacts.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/Jrt6KjGJ220/

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The best (or worst) security breaches of 2010

Very soon now -- probably in a year or two -- once everyone carries a smartphone, there won't be any discernible difference between our offline flesh-and-blood body and our online persona. That's not to say that real-life face-to-face interaction will slither into the abyss -- far from it! -- but we are reaching a stage where almost anything can be done online.

This obviously raises security concerns. If I can transfer money out of my bank account with just a name and password, so can you. That isn't to say that online security is worse than offline, however. SSL-encrypted communications are infinitely more secure than banking over the phone, or speaking in hushed tones in a brick-and-mortar bank. Passwords are a lot more secure than merely providing a 4-digit PIN or a mother's maiden name, too.

The actual problem is databases, or centralized repositories of information. It's no good having a password to your account if a nefarious types hacks a bank and takes all of the accounts. Likewise, putting your bag in a locker doesn't help if someone lifts the entire block of lockers into a truck and drives off.

2010 was a bad year for digital security breaches, and it won't get better until every organization and institution hires a security specialist and puts proper safeguards in place. This post, then, is dedicated to the organizations and institutions that left the barn door open in 2010 -- shame on you!

Continue reading The best (or worst) security breaches of 2010

The best (or worst) security breaches of 2010 originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 29 Dec 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2010/12/29/best-or-worst-security-breaches-of-2010/

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Feeding Your E-book Habit: Borrowing From the Library

Sony Touch, Daily Edition, and Pocket Readers So you�received�a shiny new e-book reader for Christmas, now you need something to read. Most have an easy way to purchase books from a custom book store, and offer some free samples or public domain books. As a long-time e-book user I wanted to share a number of [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2010/12/26/e-book_borrowing/

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CrunchGear Week in Review: Training Edition

Here are some of last week’s stories on CrunchGear: Five Days of Festivus Contest: Win $500 To Spend On Presents TDK?s Retro-Futuristic Boomboxes Look Sweet Gift Guide: The 10 Worst Toys Of The Season If This Model Train Was Much Bigger, They?d Just Call It A Train Nooka?s Zub Zayu, Another Tasteful Abstact Wristwatch Five [...]

Source: http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/12/06/week-in-review-training/

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AllMyApps is a sexy download store for Windows

The Mac App Store is coming next month, but Windows users have a similar store they can enjoy right now. AllMyApps has just launched in beta, and it's ready to help you find, install, and share loads of great free (and eventually paid) software.

Apps are grouped by category such as utilities, security, office, video, and communication and you'll find just about every must-have free Windows app you can imagine in the AllMyApps catalog. Favorites like Firefox, Chrome, Skype, Dropbox, 7-zip, and Microsoft Security Essentials are all there for the downloading. The only one of my core apps I found absent was Sugarsync -- all of my other required apps are listed.

Program detail pages include basic information about their functionality, screenshots, relevant tweets, and other useful tidbits like the app's current version, number of downloads, and file size.

Continue reading AllMyApps is a sexy download store for Windows

AllMyApps is a sexy download store for Windows originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2010/12/16/allmyapps-is-a-sexy-download-store-for-windows/

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