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Prizefight: Apple iPad 4th generation vs. Google Nexus 10

Apple's fourth-generation iPad takes on Google's Nexus 10 in another battle between two mortal enemies. The full-size tablet market isn't going anywhere anytime soon, so which one is your top pick?

Apple's latest iPad brings exactly the same design, with the new Lightning port and the power of the iTunes and App Store ecosystem. The Google Nexus 10 brings one of the most feature-packed 10-inch tablets on the market, a screen that bests the iPad's Retina Display, and solid support from the Google Play store.

Which tablet are you picking as your Prizefight champion? Cast … Read more

Gmail goes down briefly for both consumers and enterprise users

Last updated: 11:30 a.m. PT

Gmail went down briefly this morning before quickly popping back up.

Twitter users took to their accounts to tell the world that the e-mail program wasn't connecting. It appeared that both the consumer version for "gmail.com" accounts wasn't working, as well as corporate e-mail systems that use Gmail as their e-mail platform.

It's not clear what might have caused the outage, but it appeared to be quite widespread. About five to ten minutes after the outage, however, Gmail came back, and is now operating fine.

Update 9:… Read more

Google saves $2B in taxes by sheltering $10B in revenue in Bermuda

Google avoided about $2 billion in global income taxes last year by shifting $9.8 billion in revenue into a Bermuda shell company, Bloomberg reported.

That level is almost double the total from three years ago, Bloomberg said, citing a November 21 regulatory filing by a Google subsidiary in the Netherlands. And it allowed Google to cut its overall tax rate almost in half.

Google's action -- moving about 80 percent of its total pretax profit from 2011 to tax-free Bermuda -- isn't illegal. On the contrary, many companies have taken similar steps in recent years to avoid … Read more

Ada Lovelace, early computer whiz, gets Doodle love

Today's Google Doodle honors the birth of a computer visionary who believed such machines could be more than just number crunchers.

Born December 10, 1815, Ada Lovelace is perhaps best known for her contributions toward Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine, Designed but never actually built until 1991, the Analytical Engine is in many ways one of the ancestors of today's computer systems.

A mathematician and writer, Lovelace took on the task of first translating and then expanding upon an article describing the Analytical Engine. Her notes contains what some people think of as early computer progams or algorithms, … Read more

Google, Facebook ask court to reject patents on abstract ideas

As patent spats continue to command much of the tech world's attention and corporate resources, a group of prominent companies is taking a stand against a practice it sees as hobbling innovation.

Google, Facebook, Zynga and five other tech giants filed an amicus brief with the U.S. State Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Friday, asking the court to reject the patents central to a lawsuit between two financial institutions. CLS Bank has sued Alice Corp. for allegedly infringing on four patents covering a computerized method of having a third-party hold funds in escrow on behalf … Read more

Android's Google Now services headed for Chrome, too

It looks like Chrome users, not just Android users, will get access to Google Now, the search giant's technology for bringing weather reports, trip departure reminders, birthday alerts, nearby restaurant reviews, and more to the attention of Android users.

Google's Chrome team added a "skeleton for Google Now for Chrome" to the Google browser yesterday, an early step in a larger project to show Google Now notifications in Chrome.

Google Now integration into Chrome gives Google a new way to connect people closely to online services that Google judges to be relevant depending on time and … Read more

Apple and Google making joint bid for Kodak patents, report says

Apple and Google might be opponents competing for smartphone and tablet customers, but according to a Bloomberg report they have joined forces to acquire Eastman Kodak's 1,000 imaging patents for more than $500 million. The Wall Street Journal first reported on the possible alliance in August. Previously, the Journal reported that Apple and Google were each leading separate consortiums to purchase the patents in the range of $150 million to $250 million.

Eastman Kodak, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January, needs to sell the patents to help pay down a $950 … Read more

Add Twitter results back to Google search in Chrome

Quite some time ago, Twitter discontinued the ability to see tweets when you did a search through Google. The tweets were actually useful, because you could see who was talking about whatever you searched for, as well as gather additional information.

If you want to add the Twitter results back to Google search, you can do so with a simple extension. Just install a copy of HashPlug for your Chrome Web browser.

This extension will add the Twitter results into a small column to the right of your search results. The column updates with live tweets, but if you … Read more

Manhunt for John McAfee comes to an end (week in review)

The weeks-long hunt for software pioneer turned fugitive John McAfee ended this week with his arrest in Guatemala.

McAfee, who was sought by police in connection with a shooting in Belize, was arrested by Guatemalan police for allegedly entering the country illegally. The 67-year-old founder of the company that bears his name apparently entered Guatemala to seek asylum from officials in Belize, who have been pursuing him for the past few weeks in connection with the shooting death of his neighbor.

The Guatemalan government denied the asylum request of the tech-entrepreneur-turned-fugitive yesterday, opening the door for the eccentric millionaire's … Read more