Continue reading »]]> How are you saying good-bye to 2009 tonight? Sleeping like any other day? Dinner with friends? Clubbing with strangers? Counting down with Dick Clark (or is it Ryan Seacrest now)? Here at SoftwareNewsDaily, we wanted to say farewell by reminiscing our top 10 technology news stories of 2009. When I say “our” top 10 stories, I suppose it’s really more “my” top 10 stories. That’s okay, I don’t mind dominating the office opinion; they’ll agree with me. Counting down to the number one story, here are “our” picks.

10. Obama stimulates IT
An avid techie, Obama creates stimulus packages to adopt various IT practices. Embrace change.

9. Bing
Cashback shopping, flashy and colorful interface for search – Powerhouses Microsoft and Yahoo team together to bring a new search. Bing ups the ante and brings a better competition to Google search.

8.Tablet computers and netbooks
My mom has one. Apple seems to be in the works towards creating one. They are the must-have accessory for the modern, swanky professional on the go, I’d say. They are just going to get more popular.

7. Windows 7 blows Windows Vista out of the water
Windows XP users finally have a reason to upgrade their systems.

6. iPhones are given a bit more competition with the Droid
I once heard a rumor that Verizon was originally approached to offer the iPhone. Were they waiting for the Droid all along? They’ve certainly put on a fierce campaign with the new Motorola phone. For weeks, I had thought it was an upcoming blockbuster film. Here’s one of the many commercials.

5. Bill Gates retires
Okay, so technically he stepped away from the reigns in 2008, but I honestly had no idea until just a couple of weeks ago. So it’s news to me in 2009! Ha, I know. I know.

4. Social media explosion
Although Twitter started back in 2006, more celebrities and other users jumped on board causing social media to explode and almost become a necessity in the workplace. Was this blog a result? Hm…

3. Google announces it’s own operating system: Chromium OS
I’m telling you! Google is going to dominate the world. It’s just a matter of time.

2. Switch to digital television
It was pushed back a bit, but it eventually happened this summer. I can’t decide if I like it or hate it. As someone without cable TV, it’s been easier to pick up better signals with the transition. But, as someone without cable TV and DVR, I can’t really utilize my VCR to record missed shows anymore. I suppose that’s why there’s Hulu…

1. The Birth of SoftwareNewsDaily.com
This article would not exist otherwise. This has to be the most important tech news of the year! Muwahahaha.

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Nuance has released another mobile application for iPhone, Dragon Search. Powered by their popular Dragon NaturallySpeaking software, the app lets you search the web just by saying the words. It’s the “fast, easy, and smart way to search online content on your iPhone using your voice,” declares Nuance. Voice your search and receive results from engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing, YouTube, Twitter and iTunes. Their top five reasons for getting it?

• Most convenient way to search on your iPhone
• Amazingly accurate
• Up to five times faster than typing
• Easy to use
• Safer and more productive while you are out and about

And the best reason that’s not mentioned? It’s a free download (at least for now). Download either Dragon Dictation or Dragon Search at the Dragon Mobile Apps site; it’s also available through iTunes.

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Yahoo and Microsoft will couple against alpha-male search engine Google. After several years of negotiations, offers, withdrawals, and hesitations, the companies finally worked out a 10-year deal in July of this year. Google was required to pay no upfront dowry, and eventually have full access to Yahoo’s search power for use in new search engine Bing.

As expected, the proposition has been met with much scrutiny from the Justice Department and antitrust regulators. Microsoft and Yahoo together hold only about a quarter of the search market in Google’s great shadow. All eyes are on two companies now as they work out the details. And we can only hope their union will not be as rocky as their courtship.

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