Daily Dispatch: Pew looks at the rise of Apps Culture; Google Engineer fired for accessing user data

In today's Digital Dispatch:

Browsers Get a Face-Lift (WSJ)

...With the latest generation of products, browser makers such as Microsoft, Google Inc. and Mozilla Corp. are focusing on a capability called "hardware acceleration," in which the browsers harness modern computers' graphics processors to deliver pages with richer, more fluid animations and video.

The Rise of Apps Culture (Pew Internet)

...Some 35% of U.S. adults have software applications or "apps" on their phones, yet only 24% of adults use those apps. Many adults who have apps on their phones, particularly older adults, do not use them, and 11% of cell owners are not sure if their phone is equipped with apps.

This Is The Second Time A Google Engineer Has Been Fired For Accessing User Data (TechCrunch)

...Google has just confirmed that it fired one of its engineers for violating internal security policies, effectively confirming a Gawker report that detailed how former employee David Barksdale had used his clearance to access private data of multiple people, including four minors.

A Google Health update (Official Google Blog)

...You can even create custom trackers for other things that you want to monitor like daily sleep, exercise, pregnancy or even how many cups of coffee you drink a day.

Twitter Aims to Duplicate YouTube's Success (ReadWriteWeb)

Yesterday Twitter announced a major redesign of its homepage. The new twitter.com is designed to make it easier for mainstream people to consume content on Twitter. "You don't have to tweet," said Twitter co-founder Evan Williams at the press gathering yesterday, "any more than you have to make a webpage to use the Web."

Looxcie, A Futuristic Wearable Bluetooth Camcorder (WIRED)

...The camera then runs continuously and buffers up to five hours of video. If something cool happens, you hit a button and it sends the last 30 seconds via Bluetooth to a companion app on your Android phone, from where you can edit and upload it.

Consumer Group Points Out That IP Laws Are Often Anti-Consumer And Need To Be Fixed (techdirt)

...Copyright and patent laws "are often misused" for reasons that have "more to do with limiting competition and preventing consumers from making innovative uses of their products" than they do with stopping piracy, global consumer advocacy group Consumers International plans to tell a UN internet meeting today....

Fill ‘er up: self-serve tanks bring wine to French supermarkets (Dr. Vino)

...Bring your own resealable bottles, Poland Spring containers, jerrycans, whatever. Or you can get one at the store. Select your grade (red, white, or rosé). Pump. Print receipt.

About Digital Dirk's Dispatches
Dirk Klingner, our technology-trend watcher, sifts through hundreds of blog posts and news articles daily to bring you the Digital Dispatch—a compilation of the most important and interesting tech news for consumers. If you have a tip on a story you want to share, leave a comment below.