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Apple releases iTunes 10.3 with iCloud beta

Apple has released iTunes 10.3 (Download for Mac or Windows), which includes initial support for Apple's new iCloud features.

Officially unveiled at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference yesterday, iCloud is the company's upcoming replacement for MobileMe. While iCloud in its entirety will be available later this year, parts of it are being enabled sooner, including managing currently purchased items on multiple machines as well as previous purchases from the iTunes store.

The new release of iTunes comes with Automatic Download, a feature that ensures that all devices you have running iTunes are updated with music, apps, and … Read more

Music wars: Google vs. Amazon vs. Apple

Apple has finally entered the music-in-the-cloud arena with the introduction of iTunes on iCloud, making it a competitor to Google's Music Beta and Amazon.com's Cloud Player. Here, we compare all three services. We'll update and amend the chart below as we get more information.

New Opera beta tightens password security

Secure password synchronization, Speed Dial extensions, and an easier way to get Opera's developer's builds graduated from alpha to beta today, as the Norwegian browser maker upgraded its latest alpha to beta status. Opera 11.50 beta 1 (download for Windows, Mac, and Linux) adds the long-missing password syncing to Opera's syncing component, Opera Link, along another long-missing feature: the ability to customize the new tab landing page layout known as Speed Dial with extensions.

Opera revealed in a blog post at the beginning of May a simplified take on how the password security works. Basically, Opera … Read more

Tap That App: Vlingo Voice with InCar

Smartphones do all sorts of amazing things that make them useful in a driving situation, but their interfaces usually aren't optimized for operation at 65 mph. The screens are too small, the buttons are too hard to hit at arm's length, and the design of their applications often requires a user's full attention to read messages or input queries for search. Making matters worse, touching a phone (even one in a cradle) is of questionable legality in many areas. Vlingo Voice with InCar for Android aims to address all of these issues in one application.

Vlingo Voice … Read more

How to create a BitTorrent personal content channel

BitTorrent 8, released last week in beta, contains a sharp new feature that makes it easier than ever to create torrents of your personal files and share them with a personal group of friends or colleagues. The feature implementation isn't expected to change by the time that BitTorrent 8 graduates to its final version, so this How To ought to be viable for some time.

Once you've installed BitTorrent 8 beta (download), take a quick tour of some of the public content channels that come with the program. This part isn't essential, however, it's worth seeing … Read more

Chrysalis brings content distribution to BitTorrent

BitTorrent launched its next-generation torrent client in a public beta today, offering people a unique system for not just sharing content via torrents but also for socializing the experience and turning the tool into one with deep content discovery hooks. BitTorrent 8 beta (download) contains one enormous change from the alpha that launched in March: personal content channels, which streamline the torrent creation and sharing process to allow you to share high-quality versions of your homemade videos, audio, and photos with friends.

As announced at CES 2011, the implementation is unique to BitTorrent, and an integral part of its push … Read more

How to use Google Music Beta for Android

Google Music Beta launched, allowing you to upload your entire music library to the cloud. For now, the service is free, and songs you upload can be accessed on any computer or Android device (actually, it's iOS-compatible, too).

Invitations will roll out over the next few weeks, but the Android app is available for download immediately. Here's how to use it:

Request a Google Music account. You don't need one to use the Android app, but go to music.google.com/music/ and request an invite so you can upload your music library on to Google's … Read more

The 404 818: Where we get more competition through lotion signal (podcast)

Yesterday's Google I/O event announcements give us plenty of Android-related topics to discuss today. As if you needed another reason to fear Google, the company is asking you to invite them into your home with Project Tungsten, which could potentially control any electronic device from irrigation systems to game controllers and even lightbulbs.

Google also teased its new cloud-based music system and a 3.1 update to its Android operating system, but it's not all tech talk, though! Tune in for listener photo submissions for Jeff's Honeybadgers hockey team logo and a review of Fast Five!

The 404 Digest for Episode 818

Google I/O day one: Android is on top. Android.next: Honeycomb 3.1 now, Ice Cream Sandwich later. Google's unlicensed cloud-based music service arrives in beta. Brooklynbri and Kodzo's Honey Badger hockey team logos!

Episode 818 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more