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Mt. Gox faces liquidation as recovery plans scrapped
A Japanese court-appointed administrator is now in control of Mt. Gox following an unsuccessful attempt to save the business. The Bitcoin exchange filed for bankruptcy in February after losing 850,000 Bitcoins, though it later found around a quarter of them. That's still a $340 million loss at current rates, but the company recently went back online and still held out hope for a sale of the business. Now the most likely outcome is liquidation, as the court declared any rehabilitation unrealistic. It added that it would probably now investigate CEO Mark Karpeles too -- who yesterday told a US judge he was unwilling to travel to the states and answer questions. The next step is to appoint a trustee and divvy up whatever's left amongst creditors (and lawyers).
Outlook Web App for Android will help your smartphone fit in at work
It's easy to find Android phones that can handle the Exchange-based email you often find in the workplace, but they don't always support all the latest features. That won't be a problem for much longer, though, as Microsoft has just revealed plans to bring Outlook Web App to Google's platform later this year. Much like its iOS counterpart from 2013, the Android release should let you take advantage of Office 365 technology that might not make it into third-party email software. The app may not be all that exciting by itself, but it could be the key to using your preferred phone for work instead of having to switch to company-approved hardware.
Walmart dips into trade-in market this month, selling used games in summer
The used game market just grew immensely, as Walmart announced plans today to begin taking video game trade-ins across the United States, putting itself in direct competition with GameStop. Starting March 26, those trading their games in at more than 3,100 Walmart stores will receive a gift card usable at any Walmart or Sam's Club location in exchange. All exchanged products are then "sent to be refurbished and made available for purchase in like-new condition starting this summer." The retailer will accept online trade-ins for all games, but will only allow in-store exchanges for hardware. Walmart provided an exchange rate calculator on its website to give customers an idea of trade-in values. As for functional hardware, when including all the accompanying cables and one controller, the Xbox One has a current trade-in value of $390, the PS4 is $375, the Wii U Deluxe is $120, a 3G-enabled Vita is $95 and 3DS XL is $105. Working copies of Grand Theft Auto 5 currently exchange at $27.72, Dead Rising 3 is $38, the PS4 version of NBA 2K14 is $35.42 and Super Mario 3D World is $38. [Image: Walmart]
Mt. Gox reportedly subpoenaed by the feds, CEO confirms leaked proposal was legit
The strange days of (former?) Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox continue. In a conversation with an industry consultant posted by Fox Business, its CEO Mark Karpeles confirmed that a PDF leaked by The Two Bit Idiot is "more or less" legitimate. According to Karpeles, it was a "bunch of proposals to deal with the issue at hand, not things that are actually planned and/or done." The Wall Street Journal reports its sources confirm that federal prosecutors sent a subpoena to Mt. Gox earlier this month, requiring it to preserve documents. Since the exchange turned out the lights last night, the price of Bitcoin has actually risen again, and is currently showing a buy price of $581 on Coinbase. While the digital currency itself seems to be moving on, what's next for Mt. Gox is unclear. Karpeles sent an email to Reuters indicating an official statement will come "soonish," -- not too soon, we expect, for those waiting to find out what's happened to their funds.
Nasdaq stops all trading due to systems issue, plans to reopen in a limited capacity soon (update: back online)
Well, this is rather peculiar. The Nasdaq stock market -- the entire Nasdaq, which lists major tech firms such as Apple and Facebook -- has temporarily suspended all trading due to a technical issue. The exchange sent an alert to traders at 12:14PM ET today announcing that it was halting all trading "until further notice," according to a New York Times report. Reuters is reporting that Nasdaq will reopen trading soon, but with a 5-minute quote period. The market will not be canceling open orders, however, so firms that don't want their orders processed once everything's up and running should cancel their orders manually now. It's not entirely clear what caused the issue, or how and when it will be resolved, but you better believe it's causing some commotion on Wall Street, and could impact traders for days and months to come. Update (2:28PM ET): CNBC and the Wall Street Journal are reporting that Nasdaq will resume limited trading beginning at 2:45PM ET. Update (2:32PM ET): CNBC is now reporting that trading will resume with just two securities at 2:45PM ET. Full trading will begin at 3:10PM ET. Update (3:28PM ET): It appears that trading has resumed as of 3:25PM ET. Update (5:47PM ET): One final tweet here from CNBC. Nasdaq is claiming that today's issues were resolved within 30 minutes. The remaining 2.5 hours were used to coordinate the re-opening. Update (6:29PM ET): Nasdaq has issued an official statement following today's market close. In part, it reads: "NASDAQ OMX will work with other exchanges that are members of the SIP to investigate the issues of today, and we will support any necessary steps to enhance the platform."
BusyCal adds long-anticipated Exchange compatibility
It's a big day for Exchange users; one of the best Mac calendar applications, BusyCal, has just been updated to support Microsoft's enterprise collaboration technology. Version 2.5 is available in the Mac App Store now, as a free upgrade for existing users or US$29.99 for new licensees. The new version supports Office 365, full sharing privileges, public calendars, free / busy time, tasks and more. Of course, the new build is still compatible with both iCloud and Google Calendar hosted scheduling. Mac users who work with Microsoft Exchange calendars may sometimes feel like they just have to make the best of a challenging situation. Microsoft's own Office client, Outlook 2011, works well, but doesn't necessarily deliver that "born on Mac" experience we crave; Apple's Calendar (formerly iCal) may feel right, but compatibility hiccups can drag down your calendar productivity. Even the popular Fantastical app relies on one of those full-featured calendars for syncing. Back in the day, the original BusyCal application (up through version 1.6) worked with Sync Services and iCal / Calendar to deliver Exchange functionality to happy users. Unfortunately, as Apple's underlying synchronization technology was deprecated (not to mention being creaky and buggy for quite a while), BusyMac founders John Chaffee and Dave Riggle made the tough choice in BusyCal 2 to abandon Sync Services and restructure the app around the supportable cloud calendaring technologies. A number of features had to be left on the editing floor in that change, including publishing calendars local-to-Google and crossover LAN sync with cloud calendars. (I was personally irked about that shift, as I was apparently one of a small number of BusyCal 1.x customers successfully using the product to replicate my work Exchange calendar to a Google calendar so that my spouse would be able to track my comings and goings.) Chaffee and Riggle have been working on Mac calendar apps for a long time; they were behind the remarkably capable Now Up-to-Date networked scheduling app that debuted on Mac OS 7 in the early 1990s. It's great to see their current product still evolving and responding to the needs of the Mac community. You can read more about BusyCal, and get a full rundown of using the app for sharing and collaboration, in the free BusyCal Take Control e-book by Joe Kissel.
Microsoft explains Outlook.com outage, provides long-term fixes
It may have taken three days, but Microsoft has officially resolved its Outlook.com outage -- and it has both explanations and long-term solutions for affected email users. Trouble began with the failure of a caching service for Exchange ActiveSync. The resulting deluge of reconnection attempts promptly overwhelmed company servers; a slow recovery was necessary to avoid another meltdown, Microsoft says. To prevent repeat incidents, the tech giant is both upgrading its network capacity and implementing a more elegant error handling system. While the fixes likely come too late for some users, they suggest that Microsoft has learned a hard lesson about the fragility of online services.
Samsung and AT&T exchanging water-damaged Galaxy S4 Active handsets (update: confirmed)
Bummed because your Galaxy S4 Active didn't hold up as advertised while you were swimming laps? Well, it seems like Samsung and AT&T may be offering a solution: a chance to exchange those water-logged handsets. Thanks to a tipster, Phone Arena has learned that the swap will take place, but only for handsets purchased directly from the carrier or its retail shops. That's right, even if the smartphone in question's Liquid Damage Indicator (LDI) has turned positive, it's still covered. Those who have suffered physical damage, though, will still be forced to consult the usual channels for a replacement. We've reached out to AT&T for confirmation and we'll be sure to update here once we catch a reply. Update: AT&T has confirmed to us that the exchange program exists, but we're still awaiting details on how exactly consumers will be able to make the swap.
Outlook Web App comes to iOS devices in native form
It hasn't been hard to get Exchange support on iOS devices, but there's some for whom third-party apps and web clients just won't do. Microsoft has them covered today -- it just repackaged the Outlook Web App as a pair of native iOS releases. Both OWA for iPad and OWA for iPhone deliver email, calendar and contacts to Office 365 subscribers with access to Exchange Online. The developer is quick to note that this isn't a recreation of the Windows Phone environment, and there are a few elements borrowed from Outlook's web version. Still, we see a few reasons to give OWA a try: the native iOS software sends push notifications, takes voice commands, and supports both passcodes as well as remote wipes. Between the new apps and Office for iPhone, it's clear that iOS users are now welcome in Microsoft's world.
Deutsche Borse to open Cloud Exchange, treat computing as a commodity
Bitcoin fans are familiar with using cloud computing to generate a commodity -- but what would happen if cloud computing was the commodity? The Deutsche Börse should find out when it opens its newly-unveiled Cloud Exchange in the first quarter of 2014. The independent market will let organizations buy remote computing and storage in respective 8GB and 1TB blocks, with traders agreeing on when and where the number crunching takes place. Theoretically, this creates a neutral, competitive space for exchanging server power: buyers can easily spot the best value, while sellers can efficiently offload their unused cycles. Whether or not the Cloud Exchange works that way in practice, we're just hoping that it isn't as volatile as an old-fashioned stock exchange. [Image credit: Dontworry, Wikipedia]
Mt.Gox Bitcoin exchange freezes US dollar withdrawals for two weeks
It's easy to see that the Bitcoin market is under stress when there's rising overall activity and tighter oversight. However, it's now so hectic that the Mt. Gox exchange has trouble fulfilling even basic transactions -- and the institution is freezing US dollar withdrawals for two weeks to keep things in check. Mt. Gox's team will use the downtime to upgrade its trading system and (hopefully) address the heavy workload. Deposits and transfers in American currency should still be good to go. Let's just hope that Mt. Gox manages smoother transitions in the future -- after all, not everyone can afford to leave their money in limbo during a tech refresh.
iOS 6.1.2 now available (updated)
Apple has released iOS 6.1.2 which, according to Apple, "Fixes an Exchange calendar bug that could result in increased network activity and reduced battery life." Check for software updates on your Apple device to find it. Update: Ars Technica says that the 6.1.2 update has fixed the Exchange calendar bug, but did not resolve the passcode unlock bug we reported on last week.
Apple pushes iOS 6.1.2 with Exchange bug fix
Apple said it was working on a solution for the Exchange bug in iOS 6.1, and that's what it delivered: iOS 6.1.2 has appeared for all devices to address the calendar flaw. The release is targeted and doesn't appear to fix much if anything else, but we'll keep our ears to the ground for more. For now, check for an update in iTunes or on-device to cure at least some of your iOS gear's recent battery woes.
Apple says iOS 6.1 Exchange bug fix is coming
Apple has published a support article letting users know that an iOS 6.1 bug fix is coming that will correct Exchange server issues users have been having. In the support article Apple details the symptoms of the bug: When you respond to an exception to a recurring calendar event with a Microsoft Exchange account on a device running iOS 6.1, the device may begin to generate excessive communication with Microsoft Exchange Server. You may notice increased network activity or reduced battery life on the iOS device. This extra network activity will be shown in the logs on Exchange Server and it may lead to the server blocking the iOS device. This can occur with iOS 6.1 and Microsoft Exchange 2010 SP1 or later, or Microsoft Exchange Online (Office365). * An exception is a change to a single instance of a repeating calendar event. Apple goes on to say that it has identified a fix for the issue, which will come in a future software update. Until then, Apple says users can take the following steps to temporarily fix the bug: If you do experience the symptoms described above, disable then re-enable the Exchange calendar on your iOS device using the steps below. Go to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars Select the Exchange account from your Accounts list. Turn the switch for Calendars to OFF. Wait ten seconds. Turn the switch for Calendars back to ON.
Apple says iOS 6.1 Exchange bug will be zapped in 'upcoming release'
Apple's iOS and Microsoft Exchange Server have been cronies for quite awhile now, but since iOS 6 there's been some issues. The latest rift is a version 6.1 recurring calendar event bug that causes "excessive communication" if you respond to an exception error. Cupertino's identified the problem and says a fix is incoming, though it didn't specify exactly when -- and iOS 6.1.1 just hit devices to fix network connectivity issues, so it may not be imminent. Meanwhile, Apple advises that you not respond to the exception and to disable, then enable any Exchange calendars that run amok -- which should keep you BYOD-ing in the interim.
Google to continue offering Exchange ActiveSync support on Windows Phones through July 31st
Today is the day that Google has been planning to shut off its support for Exchange ActiveSync, but it appears that the company has had a slight change of heart. Google has confirmed that it will allow Windows Phones to access Google Sync services for an additional six months, ending on July 31st. This move will allow Microsoft a little extra breathing room, giving the company more time to determine how to best resolve the concern that will affect countless Gmail fans that currently use Windows Phone as their primary driver; according to a blog post (linked below), Microsoft has indeed confirmed that it's working on building CalDAV and CardDAV support into Windows Phone. We reached out to Google and received this confirmation: "As announced last year, our plan is to end support for new device connections using Google Sync starting January 30, 2013. With the launch of CardDAV, it's now possible to build a seamless sync experience using open protocols (IMAP, CalDAV and CardDAV) for Gmail, Google Calendar and Contacts. We'll start rolling out this change as planned across all platforms but will continue to support Google Sync for Windows Phone until July 31, 2013."
Outlook.com hits 25 million users, gets an Android app to call its own
Microsoft launched Outlook.com as much to lure Gmail users as to cast off some of its Hotmail baggage, and there's signs the strategies might be working. About 25 million are frequently using Outlook.com four months into its fledgling existence, with a third of total users being curious Gmail fans; neither figure will challenge the webmail status quo, but they reflect how far the service has come since the 10 million of the first two weeks. The company is marking the occasion with faster archiving, more shortcuts and more color themes in the web client. For some, though, the real reason to celebrate may be a dedicated Outlook.com app for Android. While it's not revolutionary (there's clear traces of the Hotmail app), it provides an avenue for Exchange-based messaging on a platform where access still isn't guaranteed. We're not expecting legions to switch to Outlook.com just for these updates, especially not among an Android contingent that has Gmail almost as a matter of course; Microsoft might not mind if the upgrades at least keep existing converts from drifting back.
Microsoft's going to make it pricier to bring your iOS device to work
When you can't beat 'em in the tablet and smartphone market, license 'em. That seems to be the tactic that Microsoft will begin using on December 1, 2012 when it starts charging more for user client-access licenses. Many companies are now embracing the BYOD (bring your own device) model, allowing employees to bring their own tablets, smartphones or laptops to work. According to a post on Business Insider, businesses that use Microsoft enterprise software like SharePoint pay for the part that runs on the server and also for the number of clients that are using the software. Companies with more employees pay more than those with fewer people on staff. There are two kinds of client access licenses (CALs) that enterprises can buy: a "Device CAL" that covers each device, and a "User CAL" that covers all devices that a particular employee uses. For companies using the BYOD model, User CALs were a pretty good deal. Well, that's what Microsoft is going to start charging more for on December 1, raising the price of a User CAL by 15 percent. It should be noted that the higher price also pertains to Windows phones and laptops and Surface tablets, although Business Insider does point out that better deals are probably available from Microsoft for an all-Windows environment. The enterprise software affected includes Microsoft Exchange, Project Server, SharePoint Server, Visual Studio Team Foundation Server and multiple CALs for Windows Server.
Some Apple stores offering exchanges on iPads purchased in the last 30 days
We get it, some of you are feeling a little burned by the iPad update today. It was only about eight months ago that Apple's slate was last refreshed with the stunning Retina display, now its gotten a subtle, but hardly negligible spec bump. If you're having a little bit of buyer's remorse and only made the plunge in the last 30 days, you might be in luck. According to CNET, at least one Apple store (the Stockton Street branch in San Francisco) is offering a free upgrade to a fourth-gen iPad for those that picked up the 9.7-inch tablet in the last month. However, a manager at the 5th Ave shop in NYC told us this isn't a company-wide policy. Instead its up to individual stores to decide whether or not to offer the extended exchange period, or simply stick with the standard 14-day return policy. We called a few locations and most don't appear to be willing to make the trade, though the branch in the Mall at Millenia in Orlando, FL is playing ball. We can't guarantee success, but it can't hurt to give your local shop a call.
Buyer's remorse on 3rd-gen iPad? Check with your Apple Store
It's all sunshine and Lightning for everyone who loves new Apple hardware -- except for those cranky not-so-few who bought a full-size third generation iPad (Retina) in the run-up to today's announcements. Although some late rumors suggested a revamp to the iPad mini's big brother would include the new interface port and upgraded internals, that's cold comfort now if you really had your heart set on having the latest and greatest for more than a few short months. There might be some wiggle room, however, if you bought your third-generation iPad in the last month and you feel like exchanging for a fourth-generation model. CNet is citing the experience of a few readers who were able to get AppleCare confirmation of a 30-day return window (the usual no-questions-asked-if-it's-undamaged return policy is 14 days after purchase). Reporter Sharon Vaknin says that the Stockton Street Apple Store in San Francisco is waiving the 14-day policy -- but that might be a discretionary change that is only available at certain stores. We've emailed Apple for comment, as this store-by-store exchange policy (if that's what's going on) seems a bit flaky and unfair. If you're still inside the 14-day margin, you should be able to exchange up for the current model if you want to, keeping in mind that your docks and accessories won't be directly compatible. If you're between 15 and 30 days, call your local store or AppleCare and see what they say. [via 9to5Mac]
