Could online gaming power Google’s social networking platform?

Google is reportedly building a social networking service that could potentially pose a serious challenge to Facebook. Although little is known about the platform, it seems likely that online gaming will play a pivotal role in ensuring the success of “Google Me.”

According to the Wall Street Journal, Google has asked a number of industry heavyweights – including Playdom, EA’s Playfish and Zynga – to offer their games on the upcoming service.

Amir Efrati of the WSJ explained that Google’s foray into the social gaming world highlighted the company’s “latest attempt” to capture users and advertising dollars which are “increasingly flowing” to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. 

“For social-game developers, a successful Google offering would mean they wouldn’t be so heavily dependent on Facebook, where the vast majority of users access the games,” wrote Efrati.

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Thecus® Networked Video Recording Solutions NVR devices offer unparalleled performance, features and capacity

07/26/2010 – Today, Thecus® Technology, a leader in digital storage solutions, is proud to announce a completely new lineup of Thecus® Networked Video Recording (NVR) systems. Engineered to deliver lightning-quick performance, robust features and massive storage capacity, Thecus® NVR systems are the number one choice for users who require a powerful yet flexible video recording and surveillance solution.

Thecus® NVR solutions are actually multiple devices in one: a network video recorder, a real-time monitoring system, and a networked storage unit. Available in desktop and rackmount form factors, businesses have the flexibility to choose the configuration they require to meet their specific needs. Each Th

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Mobiola Headset iPhone App Lets You Record Skype Calls

The Mobiola Headset app for the iPhone offers a simple and easy option to record VoIP calls. It turns your iPhone into a mobile headset for your desktop PC too.

The app’s idea is pretty simple: your iPhone becomes a mobile headset (and recorder) for VoIP calls made on your Mac or PC. The way it works is that you download the Mobiola Headset app on your iPhone and Mobiola’s desktop application on your desktop and connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network to link up. Then, fire up a Skype call and hit the big red record-o button on the app (well, warn the caller you’re recording them too) and voila, you’ll get saved audio files of your call.

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Citibank customers may have exposed info through iPhone app

Citigroup issued a warning today noting that there were some security loopholes in its mobile banking iPhone app, and also released an update that patches the hole.

Citi said that the app saved personal information about users, such as security codes, account imformation, and transaction details, to a remote file on the iPhone’s internal memory. That data could then have been accessed by any third party that had access to the phone.

That data was also transferred to the user’s PC every time the iPhone was synced up.

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AMD iMacs, dodeca-core MacPros and 27-inch Cinema Display due tomorrow?

A well-known blogger with deep connections at Apple has followed-up on the last week’s rumor related to imminent iMac and Mac Pro refreshes, adding the company will also introduce a new 27-inch Cinema Display.

According to Daring Fireball’s John Gruber, Apple will release the updated hardware tomorrow, July 27, 2010. Advertising a new podcast series in a blog post on his site, Gruber dropped the following hint:

We’ll have much to talk about, what with the new Mac Pros (finally, right?), speed-bump iMacs, and the gorgeous new 16:9 27-inch Cinema Display that Apple might hypothetically release tomorrow.

It was revealed last week that both iMac shipments and Mac Pro supplies are running low across the channel, with third-party resellers nodding at new SKUs. New M

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