Apple hires Yves Saint Laurent CEO Paul Deneve

It appears that Apple will soon be taking tips from a fashion insider.

The tech giant officially annouced that it hired Paul Deneve -- the former CEO of luxury fashion goods company Yves Saint Laurent -- to work on "special projects," according to Bloomberg.

"We're thrilled to welcome Paul Deneve to Apple," Apple told Bloomberg. "He'll be working on special projects as a vice president reporting directly to Tim Cook."

Earlier Tuesday, AppleInsider reported on a tip it received that Deneve had been hired. The news source speculated that Deneve may be … Read more

AT&T iPad hacker appeals conviction

A security researcher who was convicted of accessing a non-password protected portion of AT&T's Web site and sentenced to more than three years in prison has appealed his conviction.

Andrew Auernheimer, who goes by the nickname "Weev," was convicted by a federal jury last year of hacking and sentenced to 41 months in prison for exploiting a security hole on AT&T's servers to obtain the e-mail addresses of more than 100,000 iPad users.

Auernheimer and co-defendant Daniel Spitler were arrested and charged in January 2011 after they created a script to … Read more

A slim, simple receiver without frills

AV receivers can be intimidating, with their giant metal chassis and overwhelming back panels. The Marantz NR1403 ($400) seems like a reaction to that, with a slimline design and sparse back panel that's decidedly different than your typical mainstream AV receiver's. There are sacrifices made in the spirit of simplification, most notably the lack of any networking capability, which rules out gee-whiz features like smartphone control and integrated streaming services. On the other hand, it's well-stocked with HDMI connectivity for the price, offering up six inputs, including a front-panel port. And despite the small size, its sound … Read more

As Facebook gets serious about stickers, creator says so long

Just a little more than a year after joining Facebook, Sophie Xie, the product and art designer behind Facebook's expanding sticker initiative, has left the company, CNET has confirmed.

Xie started the Facebook hackathon project that turned into Facebook stickers, the character-driven emoticons that people can send in private messages on mobile and now Web. The silly digital adhesives, initially released in April, are a very serious initiative for Facebook as it tries to make its messaging products appeal to younger audiences who are migrating to WhatsApp, Kik, Line, and other single-purchase apps.

Prior to Facebook, Xie worked as … Read more

New York becomes first U.S. city to get unique Web domain

It appears a new domain landgrab has begun, kicking off with New York City becoming the first place in the U.S. to get its own top-level domain: .nyc.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the news Tuesday, saying this new URL will greatly help residents and businesses establish themselves as true New Yorkers.

"Having our own unique, top-level domain -- .nyc -- puts New York City at the forefront of the digital landscape and creates new opportunities for our small businesses," Mayor Bloomberg said in a statement. "They'll now be able to identify themselves … Read more

State AGs blast Google over YouTube ads for illicit products

The attorneys general for Nebraska and Oklahoma have criticized Google for allegedly profiting from ads tied to YouTube videos that promote illicit activities.

In a letter (PDF) to Google general counsel Kent Walker, Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning and Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt asked the Web giant to describe how much money it generates from ads related to illegal sales of prescription drugs and counterfeit merchandise and the steps it was taking to curb the practice.

"As we understand the process, video producers are asked prior to posting whether they will allow YouTube to host advertising with the … Read more

Text input management may affect authentication

When using your Mac there may be times when you might need to input a password or two, either for a local service like authenticating a system settings change, or a Web-based one such as logging into a banking Web site. While these services ought to accept your passwords just fine, if you have a third-party text management program installed, you might run into troubles with how some passwords are handled.

For example, such errors may show in which passwords are accepted just fine in system authentication prompts, but when you supply passwords in the OS X Terminal, they may … Read more

Review: Discover the power of mobile Internet with ClockworkMod Tether

ClockworkMod Tether effectively allows users to access the data connection on their Android device through a USB connection and use it for a mobile Internet connection. While many similar applications exist, this one is superior because of its stability and effectiveness. Unfortunately, the free version places a 20MB limit on data transfers after the 14-day free trial. Unlimited access is granted following the upgrade to the Premium version.

Installation of this application goes easy, but some users may experience difficulties if their computer currently doesn't have an Internet connection. The user first needs to download the Android application to … Read more

U.S. airport-security agency fills Instagram feed with photos of guns and grenades

Short on good Instagram feeds to follow? Well, the Transportation Security Administration certainly has a colorful new account.

Peppered with images of Bowie knifes, handguns, grenades, and more, this account specifically features "prohibited items found at TSA checkpoints."

The TSA recently opened its Instagram account and posted its first photo on Saturday. The inaugural image is a collage of fireworks with the statement "#Fireworks don't fly. (On planes)." One of the photos in the collage also shows brass knuckles.

Other images in the feed include a bayonet and throwing knife discovered at the Long Beach … Read more