Oracle defends CEO Larry Ellison s pay

Oracle is facing a potential shareholder revolt against a compensation formula that has consistently made its billionaire co-founder, Larry Ellison, one of the best-paid CEOs in the world. 

The business software maker staunchly defended Ellison's pay in a letter sent to shareholder activist firm CtW Investment Group in an effort to rally support for its board of directors before the 11 members stand for re-election at Oracle's annual meeting on October 31. 

Indian tablet market revenues to touch dollar 2 billion in 2013, Study

Buoyed by growing preference for tablets in education and enterprise sectors, the Indian tablet PC market is expected to cross $2 billion in revenues this year, global research firm TechSci Research said.

"The acceptance and usage of tablet PCs in various sectors will contribute to the market growth and it is expected that India Tablet PC market will cross $2 billion revenues by the end of 2013," the firm said in a report.

Increasing usage and preference for tablets in the education sector, private enterprises and growing demand from the smartphone and laptop users would drive the market for tablet PC over the coming years, it added.

Wipro s global head of infrastructure business quits

Anand Sankaran, global head of Wipro's infrastructure services business, the company's second largest service line, has quit.

"Wipro confirms that after a sterling career of over 24 years with Wipro, Anand Sankaran, currently senior vice president for Global Infrastructure Services and Wipro Infotech, has decided to pursue a career outside of Wipro," the company said in a statement in reaction to media reports about Sankaran's exit on Thursday .

Wipro did not specify the reason for the exit of Sankaran, who joined the company in 1989. Sankaran also headed Wipro's business in India, Middle East and Africa.

Apple acknowledges iMessage glitch

Apple fans who updated their smartphones to iOS7 are reportedly facing issues while sending or receiving messages through iMessage feature. 

Apple's Trudy Muller said that the company is aware of the issue affecting a fraction of a percent of their iMessage users, and they will have a fix available in an upcoming software update. 

Muller further asked users to refer to the troubleshooting documents or contact AppleCare to help resolve their issue, ABC News reports. 

Google search making people forgetful, Report

The internet is fast eroding people's memories of world-changing events in history, making them more forgetful as they increasingly bank upon Google to provide the information, a new UK study has found.

The study of 2,000 adults found less than half of people surveyed could name the year when Princess Diana died, even though it happened as recently as 1997.

Many respondents did not even know the year in which the terror attacks on the World Trade Center took place while many others were clueless about when the Berlin Wall fell, the 'Metro' reported.

Indian BPOs big opportunity in Obamacare

As US President Barack Obama's new health insurance plan takes effect this month, Indian outsourcers handling customer care for insurers there are expecting a big boost in business. 

These BPOs are betting on confused customers jamming phone lines and cluttering inboxes seeking clarity on what kind of health coverage they are eligible for, what they need to do to sign up and how much it will cost them. 

The landmark overhaul nicknamed Obamacare, which brings an additional 30 million Americans into the health insurance net, is already being targeted by Indian IT services companies, such as Cognizant, Infosys, HCL Technologies and Wipro, who are vying to build parts of the technology backbone of online health exchanges that link customers to insurance plans. 

LG G2 review, Good phone, but novelty missing

LG G2 is the newest entrant in the overcrowded smartphone market of India. It is undoubtedly among the best of the lot and can easily take on -- and in some cases even beat -- today's most popular handsets, such as Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One and Apple iPhone 5.

Available at a starting price of approximately Rs 40,000 in the market, this phone also has the design and specs that measure up to justify the price tag.

Besides, the three (Back, Home and App Switcher/Options) on-screen keys for navigation, LG G2 has three small, well-designed hardware keys at the back (right below the camera lens). This makes the unit "more ergonomically optimized", claims LG. But the prospective buyers must know if this is a novel innovation, or just a designer quirk that would affect the routine usage.

Review, Kindle Fire HDX tablet

Amazon's new Kindle Fire HDX tablet resembles Google's Nexus 7 in many ways - from its light weight to its sharp display. Both tablets run a version of Google's Android operating system, and they even have the same starting price of $229. 

The similarities end when you turn them on. 

Amazon.com modifies Android so much that it no longer resembles Android. The company calls it Fire OS 3.0, or Mojito. Amazon's services are front and center on the Fire, and Google's are nowhere to be found. It's the other way around on the Nexus 7 and other Android devices. For a day or two, I even forgot the Kindle Fire can do much more. 

Google acquires Indian led company Flutter

Google has acquired gesture recognition startup Flutter. The San-Fancisco-based company is founded by Navneet Dalal and Mehul Nariyawala of Indian origin.

No details on the price or the terms of the deal have been released.

Flutter develops gesture recognition technology that controls popular apps like YouTube, Pandora and Netflix via webcam.

LG to launch curved screen smartphone in Nov

Curved screen smartphones seem to be the next big thing in the technology world. Close on the heels of Samsung announcing its curved smartphone, comes the news that its south Korean rival LG too plans to launch a curved screen smartphone in November.

According to media reports, LG is working on a 6-inch curved smartphone being dubbed as theG Flex, which the company plans to bring launch next month. The phone is speculated to have an OLED display and use LG's new Plastic OLED (POLED) technology.

Facebook to offer free Wi Fi in hotels

Cisco Systems and Facebook said they will work with big businesses such as hotels and retailers to provide free wireless internet access to consumers who sign in using a Facebook log-in. 

The companies have been testing the concept with smaller businesses for about a year but will work together to support bigger companies that want to improve customer loyalty or learn more about their customers through offering free Wi-Fi. 

Google Nexus 5 launch date leaked

Speculations about the upcomingGoogle Nexus smartphone are rife, with almost all specifications of the device leaked by various sources. The upcoming device -- likely to be called Nexus 5 -- is expected to be showcased by the internet giant soon, accompanied by the newest version of Android named KitKat.

The latest rumour about the Nexus 5 comes courtesy technology website AndroidSAS, which claims that the smartphone will be unveiled on October 30. Google launched the current Nexus phone in October last year as well.

Apple iPhone 5S motion sensor fault detected

Since the iPhone 5S landed in the hands of new owners a few weeks ago, there have been reports that on-board sensors like the gyroscope, compass, and accelerometer haven't been working properly on some devices. We've confirmed the new iPhone's failings on our own.

We tested two iPhone 5S units running the latest version of iOS 7 against the iPhone 5, as well as against real-world measuring tools to find out if the new iPhone's sensors are off, and if they are, by how much. In most cases, we used the iPhone's built-in iOS 7 apps for measurements, working under the assumption that Apple would properly calibrate its hardware to work with the software of its own design. We were wrong.

Nokia taking Lumia 1020 pre orders at Rs 49,999

Nokia India recently hosted an event to showcase the Lumia 1020, the WP8-powered smartphone with a 41MP rear camera. However, it disappointed attendees and gadget lovers by not disclosing the price of the smartphone.

The wait is over, as the company has started taking bookings for Lumia 1020 on its official website. Nokia Lumia 1020 is available for pre-orders at a price of Rs 49,999. The listing says that the phone will be released by the third week of this month, though the company has earlier said that it will hit the stores on October 11.

Android KitKat images leaked, reveal new features

Screenshots of Google's next version of Android OS 4.4 KitKat have allegedly leaked online. Tech website Gadget Helpline has posted screenshots of a Nexus 4 running Android 4.4.

Reports suggest Google is not giving a major redesign to Android 4.4 KitKat. It may look lot like Android Jelly Bean, except for the palette colour scheme.

As per the screen grabs, white seems to be the dominant colour in the new OS version. The notification buttons appear white, not blue. White colour is also prominently featured in the Dialer app. There are also reports that the animations in Android KitKat are smoother and 'subtler' compared to those of its predecessors.

Windows Phone coming to HTC Android phones

Despite buying Nokia's mobile phone arm, Microsoft is trying to push itsWindows Phone mobile operating system on devices made by other manufacturers. The company is reportedly in talks with Taiwanese company HTC to provide Windows Phone as an option on phones powered by Android.

The software giant is offering to waive off the licensing it levies for using its mobile OS in HTC's Android smartphones, reports Bloomberg. Terry Myerson, head of Microsoft's operating systems unit, asked HTC last month to load Windows Phone as a second option, it says. However, these are only preliminary talks and a decision is yet to be made, say Bloomberg's sources.

10 most popular tweets

Billions of messages are fired off weekly at Twitter, with some of them capturing defining moments in history or in the evolution of the San Francisco-based firm.

Below a sampling of ten memorable tweets since the Twitter era began.

"just setting up my twttr" @jack March 2006 Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey sent the first tweet, an automated message saying "just setting up my twttr." That same day he sent the first live tweet, "inviting coworkers."

Instagram photos of food can ruin your appetite, Study

Instagram users, you may want to stop taking so many pictures of your food!

Looking at too many pictures of food can actually make it less enjoyable to eat, according to a new study.

Researchers from Brigham Young University (BYU) found that if your friends are taking pictures of everything they eat and posting it on Instagram or Pinterest it may be ruining your appetite by making you feel like you've already experienced eating that food.