Facebook already gave us insight into the volume of US government data requests that it receives; it’s broadening that scope today by posting its first-ever Global Government Requests Report. The chart reveals that agencies worldwide made at least 25, 607 data requests in the first six months of 2013, targeting a minimum of 37, 954 users. Nearly half of the demands (11, 000 to 12, 000) were from the US; as before, Facebook can’t be more specific unless it’s allowed greater transparency . While the report doesn’t address concerns regarding NSA surveillance , it does show that Facebook isn’t simply rubber-stamping government activity. The company has denied many or all of the requests from some countries, supporting the social network’s claims that it limits the scope of data probes when possible. Filed under: Internet , Facebook Comments Via: Bloomberg Source: Facebook

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Facebook posts first Global Government Requests Report

We caught the first Windows 8.1 (aka Blue ) news back in March , and after several betas and a preview , it’s been bundled off to manufacturers. That’s a mere five months from alpha code to gold master, a feat that Microsoft trumpeted as “an unparalleled level of collaboration” between customers and Windows product teams. Now, manufacturers will be able to ramp up their production lines with the new version in time for the holidays, as Redmond emphasized in its Blogging Windows post. Current Windows 8 owners will get the update for free , but all end users will have to hang on until the official October 18th release date. With a month and change left, though, it looks like all the ducks are in a row to herald the return of the tech world’s most infamous button . Filed under: Software , Microsoft Comments Source: Blogging Windows

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Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 to manufacturers ahead of October 18 launch

The story of scientific advancement is rarely one of leaps and bounds. More often than not it’s evolution over revolution , and the story of the so-called ytterbium atomic clock fits that bill perfectly. You may remember that in July researchers improved upon the standard, cesium-powered atomic clock model by using a network of lasers to trap and excite strontium ; instead of losing a second every few years, the Optical Lattice Clock only lost a second every three centuries. Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology made a pretty simple tweak to that model: replace the strontium with ytterbium and, voilà, another ten-fold increase in stability. Ten thousand of the rare-earth atoms are held in place, cooled to 10 microKelvin (just a few millionths of a degree above absolute zero) and excited by a laser “tick” 518 trillion times per second. Whereas the average cesium atomic clock must run for roughly five days to achieve its comparatively paltry level of consistency, the ytterbium clock reaches peak stability in just a single second. That stability doesn’t necessarily translate into accuracy, but chances are good that it will. That could could mean more accurate measurements of how gravity effects time and lead to improvements in accuracy for GPS or its future equivalents. The next steps are pretty clear, though hardly simple: to see how much farther the accuracy and stability can be pushed, then shrink the clock down to a size that could fit on a satellite or space ship. The one currently in use at the NIST is roughly the size of a large dinning room table. Filed under: Science , Alt Comments Via: AFP

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Scientists set new stabilty record with ytterbium atomic clock

There’s nothing quite like a 180 , and that’s what Pandora plans to pull as next month rolls in. The outfit’s 40-hour mobile listening limit, which was established back in February, will be history in September. The move was announced today by CFO Mike Herring, as he stated the following: “When we introduced the 40 hour mobile listening limit, we were confident that our scale — over 7 percent of total radio listening and Pandora’s number one ranking in most major markets — would allow us to take this action without impacting our key monetization initiatives in driving the disruption of the radio advertising market and driving our mobile advertising leadership. As our results have shown, the continued strong growth in our advertising revenue allowed us to cover the increased royalty costs with dollars left over to invest back into the business. With these tools in hand, and insight into how they work, we are resetting our levers in September. Notably, Pandora plans to eliminate the blanket 40-hour-per-month limit on free mobile listening effective September 1st. In the 6 months since we first implemented the free mobile listening limitation, we have gained critical insights into our user population that has given us greater control of our business. Because of these insights Pandora has implemented both other surgical levers to control content cost and new features that will allow for greater product usage.” It’s not clear why the the reversal is being made — be it uproar from loyal users or something else entirely — but those who found themselves perturbed by such a notion will have plenty to celebrate in just a few days. Filed under: Home Entertainment Comments Source: TechCrunch

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Pandora will remove 40-hour mobile listening limit next month

As the god of gods, Zeus has a tremendous list of assets at his disposal. A 3D printer that can also scan and transmit objects, however, has until now been out of reach. AIO Robotics is gearing up to introduce the Zeus of the modern world, an all-in-one machine that duplicates 3D objects , even when they’re not nearby. The device, which will make its Kickstarter debut on September 4th, will function in much the same way as a traditional all-in-one printer, with the obvious advantage of being able to create three-dimensional objects. Pricing has yet to be announced, but the creators expect Zeus to cost less than a Makerbot Replicator and Digitizer combo. It’s also forecasted to be “the most reliable and usable 3D printer so far, ” according to a RepRap forum post . Time will tell. Filed under: Household , Peripherals Comments Via: GigaOM Source: AIO Robotics , RepRap

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Kickstarter-bound Zeus copy machine prints, scans and faxes 3D objects

Facebook and several other companies announced the Internet.org initiative tonight to bring connectivity to 5 billion people, but how are they going to do it? As laid out in the Facebook founder’s “Is Connectivity A Human Right?” plan, it includes some technological changes. One main issue is delivering data more efficiently, and making sure apps use less of it. First on the chopping block is Facebook’s own app, which used an average of 12MB of data earlier this year but the company thinks it can cut to 1MB per day “simply by improving data usage.” Beyond that, more savings are possible if Facebook offers a variant with fewer photos in developing countries. Other methods for using less data include caching and data compression, with the former already in use on its featurephone app , and the latter something partners like Opera have a lot of experience in. In the future, Zuckerberg speculates users could even download stories or photos from nearby friends using technology like WiFi Direct. All of this is done with the aim of reducing the bandwidth needed for basic internet services, thereby making access “affordable and available” to more people. Hit the source link for more details on the hows and whys, we’ll be expecting our more efficient social network any day now. Filed under: Internet , Mobile , Facebook Comments Source: Is Connectivity A Human Right? (PDF) , Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)

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Zuckerberg’s Internet.org plan includes more efficient apps, starting with Facebook

Netflix’s Watch Instantly streaming service in the US started with the same queue-based experience users were familiar with from its disc-by-mail rentals for bookmarking titles to watch later, but internationally the option has never existed. Now the experience is changing everywhere, as Netflix replaces the old queues with “My List.” Outside the US subscribers will notice the biggest change, as they’re able to curate their own viewing lists instead of relying solely on search or the service’s automatically generated genre lists. Otherwise the selection process is mostly the same as we’ve come to expect, with a “+ My List” button single click adding it to the list of up to 500 items in each user’s profile. My List should pop up on individual accounts over the next couple of weeks, check after the break for a breakdown of all the incoming changes. Filed under: Home Entertainment , HD Comments Source: Netflix Blog

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Netflix’s new ‘My List’ replaces queues, lets users worldwide bookmark their favorites

It’s safe to say Google took the world by surprise when it introduced its Project Loon . But, some were disappointed that it was done so far away from home — at least at first. Now, the company has announced that it’s ready to more openly test out the high-flying internet service in California, with research flights due to take place around The Golden State’s Central Valley. Google says it’s seeking people in the area “who are willing to have a Loon internet antenna installed on their house or small business building to help test the strength of the Loon internet connection.” For those interested in helping out the cause (and why not!), you’ll need to fill out the survey located at the source below — the Project Loon team notes that those selected to participate will be contacted directly. Filed under: Misc , Internet , Google Comments Source: Project Loon (Google+)

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Google to test Project Loon in California’s Central Valley, begins taking participant applications

Those with a hearty level of respect for beta builds have been enjoying these spoils for weeks now, but Google has today seen fit to push Chrome 29 and a refreshed Chrome for Android out to rest of us. Effective right now, Chrome 29 users on the desktop will see “improvements to omnibox suggestions based on the recency of websites visited, resulting in more timely and contextually relevant suggestions.” Interestingly, Google has also added a “Reset browser settings” option for those who end up going a bit overboard with extensions; thankfully, waving the aforesaid white flag won’t impact your themes, apps or bookmarks. On the mobile front, Chrome on Android is being updated with improved scrolling and startup performance, as well as WebRTC support that will enable video conversation directly in the browser without a plugin. Yeah, we thought you’d dig that. Filed under: Internet , Software , Mobile , Google Comments Source: Google Chrome Blog , Google Play Store

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Chrome 29 brings more intelligent omnibox suggestions, while Android users nab WebRTC support

This September, Apple’s expected to flip the switch on iTunes Radio , the music service announced at WWDC in June. But how exactly will Cupertino fund its pricey new streaming venture? Ads, and lots of them — according to AdAge , Apple will serve up an audio advertisement every 15 minutes, while video ads will play every hour, and only at times that users are likely to be looking at the display, such as right after hitting play or jumping to a new song. McDonald’s, Nissan, Pepsi and Procter & Gamble are all on board as launch advertisers, with each deal bringing many millions of dollars in revenue. Only free users will have to deal with frequent disturbances, however. Users paying $25 per year for an iTunes Match subscription will have ad-free access to Radio, letting them stream tunes continuously without interruption. Filed under: Home Entertainment , Internet , Apple Comments Source: AdAge

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iTunes Radio reportedly launching next month with audio ads every 15 minutes, video once an hour