crisis

Retelling history, 140 characters at a time

Spoiler alert: The Cuban Missile Crisis ended without the United States and the Soviet Union launching even a single nuclear weapon, and the Allies won World War II.

You're no doubt well aware of those ultimate outcomes, but what if you don't remember, or never knew, the myriad individual moments, big and small, that led to those famous conclusions? There are plenty of thick history books you could pick up, but maybe you're someone who wants a more dramatic sense of what happened -- even, perhaps, to feel like you're right in the thick of the drama.

To be sure, there's no time machine that can take you back to London during The Blitz, or to the White House Situation Room as JFK stood firm against belligerent military leaders wanting to engage the Soviets over surreptitiously putting nukes in Cuba. But these days, in little 140-character snippets, many of those moments are being played out for the whole world to see. And if you close your eyes, you can almost imagine you're there. … Read more

Track Hurricane Isaac in a Google map

The Google Crisis Response team has built a Hurricane Isaac Google map that provides a great deal of information and help for those experiencing Isaac's moderately powerful Category 1 intensity, capable of 95 mph wind speeds, heavy rain, and flooding from dangerous storm surge.

Compatible with nearly all modern Web browsers (including Android and iOS), the interactive map provides a clear look at the path of the storm, as well as the latest warnings for residents of impacted cities and counties. The dynamic map offers many helpful options, including the ability to display current radar and cloud imagery, evacuation routes, and active shelter/recovery center locations. … Read more

'Crisis' malware targets VMware virtual machines

Security researchers have discovered a single piece of malware that is capable of spreading to four different platform environments, including Windows, Mac OSX, VMware virtual machines, and Windows Mobile devices.

First uncovered last month by security company Integro, Crisis was originally described as a Mac Trojan capable of intercepting e-mails and instant messages and tracking Web sites visited. Additional scrutiny by Symantec has found that the malware targets both OSX and Windows users with executable files for both operating systems.

Crisis is distributed using social engineering techniques designed to trick users into installing a JAR, or Java archive, file masquerading … Read more

New OSX/Crisis malware found for OS X 10.6 and 10.7

A new script-based malware threat for OS X has been uncovered by security company Intego. The malware, called OSX/Crisis, has so far not been found "in the wild," but it has the potential to do harm.

Apparently the threat only runs on OS X 10.6 and 10.7 machines, and while it does not require a password to install, if a password is provided then the mode of infection changes. Most of the installed files are randomly named, though in all cases the malware appears to install a file called "appleHID" in the /Library/… Read more

Dear Marissa: Please save these 3 Yahoo projects

Dear Marissa Mayer,

It's too late to save Delicious, the social platform that Yahoo acquired in 2005 and sold in 2010. But please don't make the same mistake and allow Yahoo to slough off these other strong properties that Yahoo has had for years. They mean more to users, and could mean much more to Yahoo itself, than might be obvious at first glance.

1. Flickr Talk about owning a market and then letting it evaporate. Flickr was at one time the premier photo storage and sharing site among engaged photo buffs. It had features no other photo … Read more

Thank you, Marissa Mayer. Now don't mess this up

commentary I am going to make you uncomfortable. I'm going to make myself uncomfortable. I'm going to talk about the intersection of leadership, gender, motherhood, and personality. More specifically, I'd like to talk about Marissa Mayer, who is a new breed of woman in technology and business and -- as a pregnant CEO -- a role model of the highest order.

I've been lucky enough to meet Mayer, the newly appointed Yahoo CEO and hopeful savior, twice. The first time made a lasting impression. I had just been promoted to editor-in-chief of CNET Reviews, and I … Read more

Levinsohn's status uncertain at Yahoo after Mayer appointment

Ross Levinsohn, Yahoo's former interim CEO, has found himself in a difficult employment situation in the wake of Marissa Mayer's appointment to lead the Web pioneer.

Levinsohn, who filled in as the company's chief for two months after Yahoo's board of directors booted Scott Thompson for padding his resume, was considered a front-runner for the job until the board tapped Mayer, a key vice president at Google, for the position today.

Yahoo has not made an official statement on Levinsohn's status with the company. CNET has contacted Yahoo for comment and will update this report … Read more

Marissa Mayer won't be immediately replaced at Google

Google has no immediate plans to replace Marissa Mayer, who was named Yahoo's chief executive today.

Mayer's duties as Google's VP of local, maps, and localization services will be picked up by members of her team, sources with knowledge of the organization told All Things D. Her former lieutenants will now report to Jeff Huber, Google's SVP of commerce and local, the sources said.

Google declined to comment on the report.

Mayer, Google's first female engineer and the No. 20 employee hired overall, announced her departure today for the top job at struggling Web pioneer … Read more

Google's Marissa Mayer becomes Yahoo CEO

Yahoo has named Marissa Mayer, one of Google's top execs, as its next CEO, ending a hunt that began after Scott Thompson was forced out in May for padding his resume. Ross Levinsohn, who has been the interim CEO, had been considered the top candidate for the job.

"I am honored and delighted to lead Yahoo, one of the internet's premier destinations for more than 700 million users," Mayer said in a statement. "I look forward to working with the company's dedicated employees to bring innovative products, content, and personalized experiences to users and … Read more

Yahoo calls off patent battle with Facebook

As expected, Yahoo is dropping its patent lawsuit against Facebook and engaging with the social network in a new partnership.

Yahoo originally filed a lawsuit in March at the U.S. District Court in San Jose, arguing that "Facebook's entire social network model" was based on patented Yahoo technology. Facebook struck back with a countersuit in April over 10 more patents.

The truce comes comes as Yahoo is getting close to naming a permanent replacement for its former CEO, Scott Thompson, whose 4-month tenure at the beleaguered search giant came to an abrupt end after it was … Read more