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Your Digital Trail, And How It Can Be ­sed Against You
From ACM News

Your Digital Trail, And How It Can Be ­sed Against You

While the collection of private information by the National Security Agency is under scrutiny worldwide, a remarkable amount of your digital trail is also available...

Why Free Software Is More Important Now Than Ever Before
From ACM Opinion

Why Free Software Is More Important Now Than Ever Before

It is now 30 years since I launched the campaign for freedom in computing, that is, for software to be free or "libre" (we use that word to emphasize that we're...

In Search of Planetary Intelligence
From ACM Opinion

In Search of Planetary Intelligence

It is said that Mahatma Gandhi, when asked about Western civilization, remarked, "I think it would be a good idea."

Why I'll Never Ditch My Blackberry
From ACM Opinion

Why I'll Never Ditch My Blackberry

My BlackBerry is my lifeline.

Large Patent Holders Hate This Reform Proposal. That’s a Good Sign.
From ACM Opinion

Large Patent Holders Hate This Reform Proposal. That’s a Good Sign.

The fight over patent reform has turned into a two-front war.

The Fatal Mistake That Doomed Blackberry
From ACM Opinion

The Fatal Mistake That Doomed Blackberry

Beleaguered gadgetmaker BlackBerry said on Monday that it's signed a tentative agreement to be purchased by a group led by Canadian holding company Fairfax Financial...

Lost to the Ages
From ACM Opinion

Lost to the Ages

You are standing on a dock beside the jutting masts and crow's nest of a sunken ship, water lapping calmly under your feet.

Does Digital Age Overcomplicate Design?
From ACM Opinion

Does Digital Age Overcomplicate Design?

There is a scene in the television series "Boss" in which the mayor of Chicago, played by Kelsey Grammer, is discovered by his wife washing bed sheets by hand at...

Apple: The 64-Bit Question
From ACM News

Apple: The 64-Bit Question

There's been an interesting sideshow in tech land since Apple unveiled the iPhone 5S last week: Does having the first 64-bitmicroprocessor in a phone mean anything...

Civics For a Digital Age
From ACM Opinion

Civics For a Digital Age

Over half of the world’s population lives in urban environments, and that number is rapidly growing according to the World Health Organization.

To Boldly Go Nowhere, For Now
From ACM Opinion

To Boldly Go Nowhere, For Now

On Aug. 20, NASA's administrator formally welcomed the newest candidates of the astronaut corpsand released a space exploration roadmap that includes robotic and...

The New National Identity Is What Smartphone You Prefer, and Nobody's Quite Sure Why
From ACM Opinion

The New National Identity Is What Smartphone You Prefer, and Nobody's Quite Sure Why

In a fascinating note at Asymco, mobile analyst and ex-Nokian Horace Dediu details how people's taste in smartphones varies from place to place:

Behold! Jonathan Ive's Apple
From ACM Opinion

Behold! Jonathan Ive's Apple

Apple is today releasing the much-anticipated iOS 7, and with it, the biggest overhaul of its mobile operating system since it debuted in 2007 with the original...

Ios 7, Thoroughly Reviewed
From ACM Opinion

Ios 7, Thoroughly Reviewed

When we reviewed iOS 6 a year ago, we called it a "spit-and-polish" release and stand by that assessment today.

The 'legalization' of China’s Internet Crackdown
From ACM Opinion

The 'legalization' of China’s Internet Crackdown

Internet usage—especially microblogging on Sina Weibo, China’s largest Twitter-like social media site—is presenting new challenges and new attempts to meet them...

Cryptographers Have an Ethics Problem
From ACM Opinion

Cryptographers Have an Ethics Problem

Last week, I visited the MIT computer science department looking for a very famous cryptographer.

How Robots Can Trick You Into Loving Them
From ACM Opinion

How Robots Can Trick You Into Loving Them

I like to think of my Roomba as cute and industrious.

If 'e.t.' Finds Voyager 1, Will It Phone Earth?
From ACM Opinion

If 'e.t.' Finds Voyager 1, Will It Phone Earth?

In 1519, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan launched the expedition that completed the first circumnavigation of the globe. And so humanity learned the full...

Grand Theft Auto V Lives ­p to Hype, Steals Its Car, Sets House on Fire
From ACM Opinion

Grand Theft Auto V Lives ­p to Hype, Steals Its Car, Sets House on Fire

I'm trying to put into words how difficult a situation it is attempting to summarize my thoughts on a game that I've only been playing for two weeks when I know...

The Message Voyager 1 Carries For Alien Civilizations
From ACM Opinion

The Message Voyager 1 Carries For Alien Civilizations

The year was 1977.
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