Bin Laden raid live-blogged (week in review)
Pakistani Twitter users unwittingly describe raid in progress, while Sony grapples with security headache. Also: Intel goes 3D.
Twitter was where many people got news of the death of Osama bin Laden, but it was also unwittingly an excellent venue to follow the raid as it happened.
Speculation that American special forces had killed Osama bin Laden, perhaps the most wanted man in the world, first began to trickle out when the White House communications director posted on Twitter that President Obama planned to address the nation Sunday evening. A onetime chief of staff for former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld was credited for the Twitter scoop when he posted this note: "So I'm told by a reputable person they have killed Osama Bin Laden. Hot damn."
• Republican's tweet first from government with bin Laden news
But even before U.S. special forces succeeded in their mission, Twitter users were recording the events as they were unfolding, not knowing precisely what they were describing. Sohaib Athar, who describes himself as a 30-ish independent software consultant, was in Abbottabad, Pakistan, as U.S. special forces stormed bin Laden's mansion. Athar heard the helicopters used during the raid. He shared updates live on Twitter, according to the microblogging service's timestamps.
More headlines
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• Complete PSN breach coverage
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New chips based on the 22-nanometer designs will run at a lower voltage and with lower power leakage, in an effort to improve both performance and energy efficiency.
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• How apps stay on top in the App Store
LastPass forcing members to change passwords
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Also of note
• TiVo, EchoStar case ends with $500 million payout
• Lawsuit accuses Apple, others of fixing worker pay
• Report: Wireless carriers rethink mobile payments
• AT&T makes broadband data caps official