Apple Outs Most Downloaded Free, Paid, and Grossing iOS Apps of 2014

Following its Best of 2014 iTunes Awards list earlier this month, which saw apps like Elevate - Brain Training and games like Threes! take the top honours in the US, Apple has released its Best of 2014 lists for the most popular apps of the year, in terms of downloads.

The Best of 2014 apps for the US are divided into iPhone and iPad downloads, further divided into top paid, top free and top grossing. Very visibly, games dominate all the lists, with only the top free apps list seeing more 'essential' apps like YouTube and Facebook rather than games.

Looking at Apple's Best of 2014 iPhone list of top paid apps in terms of downloads, we see the Heads Up! naming game taking the crown, followed by Minecraft - Pocket Edition sandbox-style survival game. The top five is rounded off by the Afterlight image editor app, the Plague Inc. epidemic simulation game, and finally, the Sleep Cycle alarm clock app. Of the top ten paid apps, six are games. You can see the full list at the end of the article.

Coming to the Best of 2014 iPhone list of top free apps, we see daily staples like Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram taking the top five spots, followed by Pandora Radio, Google Maps, Flipagram, Spotify Music and 2048 - with the last the only game on the list.

In the Best of 2014 iPad list of top paid apps, and we find the runner-up of the top paid iPhone apps at the head of the line: Minecraft - Pocket Edition. This is followed by the Cut the Rope 2 puzzle game, Heads Up! (which took the top-spot on the top paid iPhone apps list), The Room Two puzzle game, the Minecraft-style Survivalcraft game, Notability note-taking app, another Minecraft-variant - Terraria, the classic Plants vs. Zombies HD game, the Hide N Seek : Mini Game, and finally, Card Wars - Adventure Time. As you may have noted, only one app made it to the list - Notability - indicating iPad users really like their gaming.

Facebook Must Face Lawsuit Over Scanning of Users' Messages: Judge

Facebook Inc must face a class action lawsuit accusing it of violating its users' privacy by scanning the content of messages they send to other users for advertising purposes, a U.S. judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in Oakland, California, on Tuesday dismissed some state-law claims against the social media company but largely denied Facebook's bid to dismiss the lawsuit.

Facebook had argued that the alleged scanning of its users' messages was covered by an exception under the federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act for interceptions by service providers occurring in the ordinary course of business.

But Hamilton said Facebook had "not offered a sufficient explanation of how the challenged practice falls within the ordinary course of its business."

Neither Facebook nor a lawyer for the plaintiffs responded to a request for comment Wednesday. The lawsuit, filed in 2013, alleged that Facebook scanned the content of private messages sent between users for links to websites and would then count any links in a tally of "likes" of the pages. Those "likes" were then used to compile user profiles, which were then used for delivering targeted advertising to its users, the lawsuit said.

The complaint alleged that the scanning of the private messages violated the federal and California state law. According to Tuesday's ruling, Facebook ceased the practice at issue in October 2012. But the company said it still does some analysis of messages to protect against viruses and spam, the ruling said.

Ministry of External Affairs Most Popular on Social Media

As social media has emerged as a key communications tool, the Ministry of External Affairs has come on the top among various ministries and government departments in terms of its presence on digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google+.

On the micro-blogging site Twitter, Indian Diplomacy with its @IndianDiplomacy handle (the official account of India's Public Diplomacy, Ministry of External Affairs) has as many as 276,000 followers - larger than any other ministry. The other Twitter handle @MEAIndia, run by the ministry's official spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin, has 1,98,000 followers. Another handle related to this ministry, @CPVIndia (for consular, passport and visa issues), has close to 3,500 followers.

On the world's largest social networking platform, Facebook, External Affairs Ministry's official page has the highest number of likes (682,000) among all the ministries. The official YouTube channel of Indian Diplomacy has 16,500 subscribers and has clocked in 4.2 million views. The MEAIndia YouTube channel also has 6,100 subscribers and about 550,000 views so far.

However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is way above all the ministries in terms of Facebook likes. On Twitter also, Prime Minister's Office has much larger number of followers. As on December 22, Modi had 26.3 million Facebook likes while his Twitter@narendramodi had 8.93 million followers. The official handle of the Prime Minister's Office @PMOIndia is followed by was followed by over 4.1 million people on Twitter.

Majority Online Shoppers in India Denied Warranty at Least Once: Survey

The next time you are purchasing a product online, make sure you enquire about its warranty and service eligibility.

According to a survey by MySmartPrice, a price comparison platform, among the people who claimed warranty on products bought online, a whopping 54 percent of them said that were denied warranty at least once.

As per the study, 55 percent of the respondents said warranty claim process took more than a month to complete whereas 45 percent of the respondents stated that the process of claiming warranty for a product online is usually completed within a week or two. MySmartPrice said that denying warranty and delay is due to the "conflict between service centres and respective brands, or because of lack of service centres in the complainant's location."

Commenting on the survey findings, MySmartPrice Co-Founder Sitakanta Ray said: "While it is heartening to see several brands take an online only approach, it is also disappointing to see some brands turning away customers who bought their product online for service." He further said: "To the few who do find the product defective, it is also important that both stores and brands work together to solve their issues."

The study draws insights from over 20,000 consumers who shopped through the MySmartPrice platform. It gauged shoppers concerns related to denial of warranty; need to claim warranty, and duration taken to claim the warranty.

PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Go Down; Hacker Group Takes Credit

Microsoft Corp's Xbox Live and Sony Corp's PlayStation Networks experienced user connection problems on Christmas Day, for which a hacker group claimed responsibility.

The group, called Lizard Squad, could not be reached for comment, and the companies did not give a reason for the connectivity issues. Both companies expected heavy use as people who received Microsoft Xbox players or Sony PlayStations on Christmas tried to hook up. The problems may have been exacerbated by Sony's decision to let consumers download the controversial movie "The Interview" through Xbox Video as well as other online sources.

"Are you having a rough time signing in to Xbox Live?," a service alert on the Microsoft product's website asked. "We're working to get this figured out right away. We appreciate your patience."

Two hours after the message was posted at 4:33 p.m. ET (21:33 GMT), the Xbox Live site said technicians were still "hard at work trying to reach a solution." As of 7:30 p.m. ET (0030 GMT), PlayStation Network was still offline, according to the device's status page.

"We are aware that some users are experiencing difficulty logging into the PSN," it said. "We will update this article with any changes that occur in regards to this issue. Thank you for your patience." Three Xbox platforms were affected by the service problem: Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Xbox on other devices, Microsoft's status website said.

MTNL Revamps Android App; Announces New Broadband and Prepaid Schemes

State-run telecom firm MTNL on Thursday announced the launch of the revamped version of its My MTNL Delhi mobile app for Android smartphones, with which customers can lodge service complaints, pay bills and book new connections.

Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launched the mobile app as part 'Good Governance Day' celebrations.

"MTNL launched an Android-based application, which will help in meeting objectives under Good Governance. Through this app, customer will be able to access MTNL services without need for visiting MTNL office," the state-owned company said in a statement.

A free one month broadband rental scheme and Jodi plan for prepaid customers of MTNL were also announced. Under the broadband offer, people buying MTNL broadband connection till January 26 will not have to first month rental for scheme priced at and below Rs. 999. Under the Jodi plan, MTNL announced that a prepaid customer can opt for one more MTNL prepaid number within same city.

Calls made between these two numbers will be charged Rs. 0.20 per minute as against Rs. 0.40 a minute otherwise. Under the Jodi scheme, STD calls cost Rs. 0.50 per minute.Jodi plan subscribers will also get free 100 minutes of local calls on MTNL network and 200MB of mobile Internet usage.

Kodak to Launch Its First Android Smartphone at CES 2015

Kodak, a camera-making firm that recently emerged from bankruptcy, has now announced its plans to launch a new range of Android smartphones with "best-in-class image management software and features."

While the first smartphone is set to launch during at CES 2015 event next month in Las Vegas, other "Android-powered mobile devices", including a 4G handset, a tablet and a connected camera, will eventually arrive during the second half of 2015. The camera-maker says the smartphones are aimed at consumezrs who want a "high-end experience" but are uncomfortable with complicated devices.

The company promises a "great design and UI". Kodak has collaborated with British firm Bullit that will make most of the components of the smartphone. The firm is also known for making rugged CAT-branded smartphones. The details on the Kodak Android smartphone's design and specifications are scarce for now, but it's apparent the focus of the handset will be the camera and imaging capabilities.

Kodak has added that the upcoming smartphones and tablets "will come preloaded with bespoke image capture, management and sharing features to offer a rich user experience." Also, the devices will feature remote management software to guide family members and friends through various functions. With the launch of a camera-focused Android smartphone, Kodak looks set to join Samsung (with its Galaxy S4 Zoom and Galaxy K zoom) and Panasonic, which in September launched its Android-powered camera-phone, the Lumix DMC-CM1. Other camera manufacturers, including Nikon, have launched Android-based cameras in the past.

LG Partners Mercedes-Benz to Develop Camera System for Driverless Cars

LG and Mercedes-Benz, two renowned brands in the gadgets and automobiles market, have collaborated to create a stereo camera system that will be used in future driverless cars.

As a part of the collaboration, the German automobile maker will be licensing parts of its 6D Vision technology to LG. LG too, will work on improving its existing Advanced Driver Assistance Systems or ADAS technologies, and says it is transferring technologies from its home entertainment and mobile communications businesses into its automotive component business - LG Vehicle Components Company.

LG added that its ADAS technologies currently include Forward-looking Single and Stereo Camera Systems for Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Lane Keeping Assist (LKA), Traffic Sign Recognition (TSR), High Beam Assist (HBA), and Pedestrian and Bicyclist Protection.

They also include Driver State Monitoring Systems, which will keep a track of driver's biometric state, attention or drowsiness level, and eye position, apart from Surround View Monitoring Systems, which will help the driver with parking movements. "Mercedes-Benz is the ideal partner for LG as both companies share a vision of how ADAS technologies can improve the wellbeing and lives of all consumers," said Woo-jong Lee, president and CEO of the LG Vehicle Components Company at the time of announcement. "As the automobile evolves from a mechanical to an electronic system, LG will be in the perfect position to contribute its experience to the exciting automotive industry."

Now, Google Glass Apps to Help Children With Autism

A US-based start-up is developing Google Glass apps as well as hardware add-ons that can help autistic kids learn social and communication skills while at the same time providing feedback to caregivers. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based startup called Brain Power was founded by neuroscientist Ned T Sahin, who did his graduate training at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Since the autism disorder spectrum is so wide, Brain Power is initially focusing on children with moderate to high-functioning autism, though it hopes to extend its apps' capabilities to other kids as well, TechCrunch reported. So far, 200 people have signed up for Brain Power's beta programme, which will be conducted in three stages next year, and include research conducted under the protocols of Harvard Medical School by Brain Power's team members.

Sahin believes Google Glass is ideal for helping kids with autism because it has an accelerometer chip that enables head gestures, which Brain Power uses to track when kids look or don't look at their parents, as well as stereotypy, or the repetitive movements that many people with autism make.

"In this way, we can provide numerical, objective, repeatable assessment of a child's current behaviours, as well as progress over time," Sahin said.

South Korea Extends Cyber-Attack Emergency System for Nuclear Plants

South Korea's nuclear operator and the energy ministry will keep emergency teams on stand-by to the end of this year in case of any cyber-attacks on nuclear plants as threatened by a hacker. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, part of state-run utility Korea Electric Power Corp, said on Monday that its computer systems had been hacked but only non-critical data had been stolen, and operations were not at risk.

The company and the ministry set up emergency teams on Wednesday after a hacker demanded the shutdown of three reactors by Thursday, threatening, in Twitter messages, "destruction" if not.

"Even though Christmas Day, that the one making the cyber-threat had mentioned, has passed, we will make utmost efforts against cyber-threats by running the emergency system to the end of this year," the Energy Ministry said in a statement.

South Korea is seeking the cooperation of Chinese authorities in an investigation into the cyber-attack on its nuclear power plant operator after tracing multiple Internet addresses involved to a Chinese city near North Korea, a prosecution official said on Wednesday. The official close to the investigation said his team had not ruled out the involvement of North Korea in the attack but there was also no indication to believe it was involved. North Korea remains technically at war with the South.

Facebook Apologises After 'Year in Review' Stirs Up Bad Memories for Some Users

Facebook has apologised for the grief its "Year in Review" app caused some of its users while dishing out good memories along with the bad ones. The social working site compiled a "Year in Review" video for every user, allowing them to reminisce over the highlights of the past year as calculated by Facebook's algorithm.

While some people's highlights included a wedding or a trip, others contained more devastating highlights like the death of a loved one, Jezebel reported.Writer and web design consultant Eric Meyer wrote a poignant response to the "Year in Review" app after viewing the picture of his daughter, who died of brain cancer earlier this year, in his news feed.

In reply to this, Jonathan Gheller, product manager for the app at Facebook, apologised for the pain the app caused.

Twitter Back Online After Limited Blackout

Twitter was back online Monday following a partial outage which the company said was due to a bug.

"Some users were unable to sign in to Twitter. This issue was due to a bug in our front end code, which has been patched," the California-based company posted from the US West Coast late Sunday.Users reported problems on the Twitter application for Android and iPhone smartphones, while tweets on the computer application TweetDeck were showing up as having been posted a year ago.

"We apologize for any inconvenience," Twitter said of the irregularities, which occurred from 4:00 pm to 9:25 pm in the California time zone (0000 GMT to 0525 GMT Monday).

"Something is technically wrong," the microblogging service's welcome page had said during the blockage. "Thanks for noticing-we're going to fix it up and have things back to normal soon."

Twitter claimed 284 million active users at the end of September.The partial outage comes approximately a month after Sony Pictures was hit by a sophisticated hacking attack that stole massive amounts of data from its servers.

Facebook Adopts Worker-Friendly Management Techniques: Report

To effectively shape its overwhelmingly young workforce into future leaders, the social networking site Facebook has adopted a set of somewhat unconventional management techniques.

The new guidelines cater to employees' thirst for freedom as well as their aversion to inertia and top-down leadership, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The recommendations involve a conversational management style, whereby even entry-level employees would be encouraged to question the manager's decisions, and offer their own solutions and feedback. The manager-employee relationship from now on would not be based on giving orders on one side and executing them on the other.

In addition, superiors would be tasked with making it easier for employees to achieve their individual goals. Facebook would also encourage employees to routinely change roles within the company based on their strengths and career objectives.

Google's Gmail Blocked in China, Claims Speech Advocacy Group

Google Inc's Gmail was blocked in China after months of disruptions to the world's biggest email service, with an anti-censorship advocate suggesting the Great Firewall was to blame. Large numbers of Gmail web addresses were cut off in China on Friday, said GreatFire.org, a China-based freedom of speech advocacy group. Users said the service was still down on Monday.

"I think the government is just trying to further eliminate Google's presence in China and even weaken its market overseas," said a member of GreatFire.org, who uses a pseudonym.

"Imagine if Gmail users might not get through to Chinese clients. Many people outside China might be forced to switch away from Gmail."

Google's own Transparency Report, which shows real-time traffic to Google services, displayed a sharp drop-off in traffic to Gmail from China on Friday. "We've checked and there's nothing wrong on our end," a Singapore-based spokesman for Google said in an email.