Google Bike Directions Point to Google Maps as Key Search Tool

Google’s addition of biking directions and bike trail data to Google Maps March 9 is one more example of the search engine giant’s increased emphasis on connecting users to information.

Intel Previews Six-Core ‘Gulftown’ PC Processor

At the Game Developers Conference, Intel showed off its Core i7-980X Extreme Edition, the chip makers first six-core CPU for consumers. Codenamed “Gulftown,” the Core i7-980X comes with more cores and computing threads, and a larger L3 cache, than the current i7-975, and all at the same price.

10 Tech Certifications Every IT Pro Needs to Know

Dice has assembled a working list of technology certifications that are in demand right now in 2010.

T-Mobile webConnect Accesses Super-Fast HSPA+

The T-Mobile webConnect Rocket USB Laptop Stick, arriving March 14, will offer access to T-Mobiles super-fast HSPA+ network which is only available in Philadelphia right now. T-Mobile is expected to roll out more deployments during the next few months.

Data Center World 2010 Puts Spotlight on IT Efficiency

More than 800 enterprise IT managers, C-level executives, facilities managers and vendor representatives were out in force this week at AFCOM’s Data Center World 2010 in Nashville, Tenn. Mostly those decision-making IT veterans were there for two reasons: to find out how to run their systems more effectively with an eye toward saving power and money. To that end, there were dozens of study sessions ranging from the all-encompassing The Data Center Energy Crisis to the very specialized, such as The Three-Source Static Switch: Taking Redundancy to the Next Level.

10 Reasons Why Security Problems Persist at Microsoft

News Analysis: As much as Microsoft would like security problems to just go away, they won’t. The chances of Microsoft eliminating most of the software flaws that invite new attacks are slim to nil

Twitter Fights Phishing, Malware With Link Scanning Service

Twitter has announced it will begin scanning links posted by users to thwart phishing attacks and the spread of malware on the site. – Twitter has announced plans to route all links through a scanner in a bid to boost security and weed out malicious activity. The move follows a partnership announced in November between URL shortening service Bit.ly and security companies VeriSign, Websense and Sophos.

IT Spending in 2010 Will Rise Slightly: Ovum

There will be an uptick in IT spending in 2010, but those budgets that do grow will increase by only 1 to 5 percent, according to Ovum. The bulk of CIOs in an Ovum survey said they expect their budgets to remain flat after the recession-ravaged 2009. – Dont expect IT spending to increase too much in 2010, according to research firm Ovum.

FTC Slams LifeLock With $11 Million Fine

In one of the largest FTC-state coordinated settlements on record, LifeLock and its principals will be barred from making deceptive claims and required to take more stringent measures to safeguard the personal information they collect from customers. – LifeLock, which has extensively advertised its identity theft protection services on television, agreed to pay $11 million Feb.

Seeding Security into the Cloud

The RSA conference seeks to use lessons from single-tenant data centers to build security into cloud computing infrastructures. – The RSA conference, held in San Francisco during the week of March 1, sought to catch the cloud computing wave, while the expo show floor was packed to the gills with vendors wheeling and dealing primarily in products that relate to the well-known problems of today.