A year after IPO, Facebook aims to be ad colossus

By BARBARA ORTUTAY

It was supposed to be our IPO, the people's public offering.

Silicon Valley-area hub becomes factory town

By MARTHA MENDOZA

In a busy factory, machinists move sheets of aluminum roll in the back door to be molded, stamped, twisted and notched into high-tech electric cars that sell for more than $60,000 each.

Report: Yahoo nearing $1.1B acquisition of Tumblr

Yahoo may be on the verge of closing its biggest acquisition during the 10-month reign of CEO Marissa Mayer as she tries to attract more traffic and advertisers to the Internet company's website and mobile applications.

'Sonic' video games coming to Nintendo

By DERRIK J. LANG

Sonic the Hedgehog is rolling with Nintendo.

Ex-Groupon CEO working 9 to 5 on business album

By MARLEY SEAMAN

Former Groupon CEO Andrew Mason is diving into several new ventures, including indulging his inner rock star with an album of "motivational business music."

Review: Toshiba brings high-res screen to Windows

By PETER SVENSSON

Last year, Apple added a visually stunning option to its MacBooks: screens with ultra-high resolution. These "Retina" displays reveal four times as much detail as any Windows laptop screen ... until now. Toshiba just released a new laptop lin…

Syrian hackers compromise FT blog, Twitter feeds

By RAPHAEL SATTER

A clutch of Twitter accounts and a blog maintained by the Financial Times were hacked Friday, the latest in a series of cyberattacks claimed by the Syrian Electronic Army, a pro-government group which has regularly targeted media organization…

Canada trying to lure Silicon Valley tech workers

The Canadian government has launched an aggressive campaign to lure Silicon Valley tech workers frustrated by U.S. visa policies northward, just as Congress wrestles with a long-sought overhaul of America's immigration system.

Google challenger in Vietnam redirecting queries

By CHRIS BRUMMITT

A Russian-financed search engine seeking to challenge Google's dominance in Vietnam is redirecting queries for some politically sensitive terms to the American company's search engine, apparently as a way of avoiding government anger or legal…

Dell's dismal 1Q illuminates PC maker's challenges

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

Dell's financial decay worsened during its latest quarter as the company slashed its personal computer prices in response to the growing popularity of smartphones and tablets.

Sector Snap: Makers of computer networking gear

Investors snapped up the stocks of companies that make computer networking gear Thursday after industry leader Cisco Systems Inc.'s latest quarterly earnings raised hope that business is picking up after a long stretch of lackluster demand.

INFLUENCE GAME: Tech, labor spar on immigration

By ANNE FLAHERTY

To the U.S. technology industry, there's a dramatic shortfall in the number of Americans skilled in computer programming and engineering that is hampering business. To unions and some Democrats, it's more sinister: The push by Facebook's Mark…

UK court jails 4 Lulzsec hackers for cyberattacks

By SYLVIA HUI

Four young computer hackers who masterminded cyberattacks on targets from the CIA to Sony Pictures and Rupert Murdoch's News International were sentenced to up to 32 months in prison on Thursday.

Lawmakers accuse Google of dishonesty over taxes

By RAPHAEL SATTER

U.K. lawmakers subjected search giant Google to blistering criticism Thursday, accusing the U.S. Internet company of playing games with Britain's tax rules to avoid paying what it owed.

Apple says App Store hit 50 billion downloads

Apple says its customers have downloaded more than 50 billon applications from its App Store since its launch in 2008.

New Zealand's top court takes Kim Dotcom appeal

New Zealand's highest court ruled Thursday that it will hear an appeal by Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom and three colleagues as they seek to avoid extradition to the United States.

Google's products dig deeper into people's lives

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

For Google CEO Larry Page, happiness is a warm computer.

Google boosts photo offerings to rival Facebook

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

Google is digging deeper into its technology toolkit to turn its social networking service into a more formidable threat to Facebook, sprucing up its photo features at a time when sharing snapshots online and on mobile gadgets is growing more…

Highlights: music, maps, photo, other Google tools

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE and ANICK JESDANUN

Google used its annual conference for software developers to unveil several new products, services and features. They include enhancements for online games, maps, search, music and photos and are meant to help the company cement its role in p…

Google's music plan part of fresh wave of upgrades

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE and RYAN NAKASHIMA

Google Inc. unveiled a streaming music service called All Access that blends songs users have already uploaded to their online libraries with millions of other tracks. Google made it available in the U.S. Wednesday for $8 a month to early bir…

Cisco 3Q net income rises 14 percent

Cisco's net income jumped 14 percent in the latest quarter as revenue at all four of its divisions rose for the first time in a year and a half.

Google unveils maps, photo, music features

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

Google's sixth annual conference for software developers opened Wednesday with a chance for the company to showcase its latest services. Announcements included new features for online games, maps and search, a new music-streaming service and …

Warner Bros. shuffles deck as top TV exec leaves

Hollywood studio Warner Bros. is shuffling its executive ranks as top TV executive Bruce Rosenblum leaves.

Netflix trading at pre-plunge levels

Netflix shares are trading at levels not seen since 2011 when it lost hundreds of thousands of customers after hiking prices for people who wanted continued access to DVDs as well as its streaming service.

Experts: Smartphones another avenue for hackers

By TONY WINTON

Smartphones are increasingly popular not only with consumers, but also with thieves who see the devices as another way to tap into bank accounts and other sensitive information, experts say.

RIM unveils cheaper BlackBerry

By KYLE HIGHTOWER and ROB GILLIES

Research In Motion Ltd. unveiled a lower-cost BlackBerry aimed at consumers in emerging markets, stepping up its efforts to regain market share lost to Apple's iPhone and Android devices powered by Google's software.

Google CEO discloses 'rare' vocal cord problem

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

Google CEO Larry Page has disclosed a problem with his vocal cords that makes it difficult for him to speak and breathe occasionally, but he says he remains fit enough to keep running the Internet's most influential company.

US judge in Ore. dismisses movie pirating lawsuit

A federal judge has dismissed a movie company's Internet piracy complaint against 34 Oregonians, saying the company was unfairly using the court's subpoena power in a "reverse class-action suit" to save on legal expenses and possibly to intim…

Hedge fund boss Loeb lobbies for breakup of Sony

By YURI KAGEYAMA and RYAN NAKASHIMA

The U.S. hedge fund manager renowned for shaking up Yahoo Inc. has set his sights on Sony Corp., proposing that the Japanese electronics giant spin off up to 20 percent of its movie, TV and music division and use the money to strengthen its a…

Nicole Richie gets candid in new AOL web series

By ALICIA RANCILIO

As the Twitterverse expands with millions of users, it can be hard to have a unique voice. Nicole Richie doesn't have that problem.

TV-over-Internet service hits Atlanta next month

By ANICK JESDANUN

Aereo, the startup that offers live television broadcasts over the Internet starting at $8 a month, said it will start service in the Atlanta market on June 17, following an expansion to Boston on Wednesday.

Update to address Windows 8 confusion will be free

By ANICK JESDANUN

A planned Windows 8 update to address complaints and confusion with Microsoft's new operating system will be made available for free this year, the company said Tuesday.

Big 4 cellphone carriers unite on anti-texting ads

By PETER SVENSSON

The country's four biggest cellphone companies are set to launch their first joint advertising campaign against texting while driving, uniting behind AT&T's "It Can Wait" slogan to blanket TV and radio this summer.

Nokia unveils metallic smartphone, stock tumbles

Nokia Corp. on Tuesday unveiled its first Lumia smartphone with a metal cover, low-light camera features and new social network apps. But the new model failed to impress investors, who sent the company's stock down more than 5 percent.

Microsoft embraces a Google service for a change

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

Microsoft's disdain for Google doesn't extend to all of its rival's products.

German court orders changes to Google search hints

By FRANK JORDANS

Google Inc. must respect requests to remove autocomplete entries from its search bar in Germany if they are defamatory, a German court ruled Tuesday.

Sharp reshuffles management after record loss

By ELAINE KURTENBACH

Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp. named a new president Tuesday, reshuffling its top management to help restore profitability after reporting a record loss.

Dell board committee seeks more info on Icahn plan

By TOM MURPHY

Dell board members say they need more details from investor Carl Icahn if he wants them to seriously consider his latest challenge to Michael Dell's $24.4 billion plan to take the computer maker private.

GM says supercomputers to keep recalls in check

By TOM KRISHER

General Motors Co. says a new supercomputing data center and a fledgling shift to bring software development in-house should help it limit the size of future safety recalls.

LinkedIn looks to build on its impressive resume

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

LinkedIn and Facebook will celebrate the anniversaries of their IPOs just a few days apart this week. But their experiences as publicly traded companies couldn't be more different.

Project aims to track big city carbon footprints

By ALICIA CHANG

Every time Los Angeles exhales, odd-looking gadgets anchored in the mountains above the city trace the invisible puffs of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases that waft skyward.

Laser technology shaves time off bacteria turnaround

Vanessa Renderman vanessa.renderman@nwi.com, (219) 933-3244

Scientists at a local laboratory say a new piece of technology there can identify bacteria a day earlier than traditional methods.

Bloodless bank heist impressed cybercrime experts

By COLLEEN LONG and MARTHA MENDOZA

A bloodless bank heist that netted more than $45 million has left even cybercrime experts impressed by the technical sophistication, if not the virtue, of the con artists who pulled off a remarkable internationally organized attack.

Panasonic reports big loss but forecasts profit

By MALCOLM FOSTER

Japanese consumer electronics giant Panasonic Corp. on Friday reported a near-record net loss of 754 billion yen ($7.5 billion) for the fiscal year through March due to restructuring costs and slumping sales, but predicted a return to the bla…

More than just a mother, now she's your 'friend'

By MARTHA MENDOZA

Josh Knoller, a young professional in New York City, spent years refusing his mother's "Friend Request" on Facebook before, eventually, "caving in." Today they have an agreement: she'll try not to make embarrassing comments, and he can delete…

Wash. officials say state courts office was hacked

By RACHEL LA CORTE

The Washington state Administrative Office of the Courts was hacked sometime between last fall and February, and up to 160,000 Social Security numbers and 1 million driver's license numbers may have been accessed during the data breach of its…

YouTube's new pay channels go from campy to kids

By RYAN NAKASHIMA

Roger Corman's campy B movies, children's shows like "Sesame Street" and "Inspector Gadget," and inspirational monologues by celebrities _ these are among the offerings on 30 channels that will soon require a paid monthly subscription on YouTube.

AT&T launches prepaid cellphone business

AT&T is launching a prepaid cellphone service _ Aio Wireless.

Dish chair dares Softbank to raise bid for Sprint

By PETER SVENSSON

The chairman of satellite broadcaster Dish Network Corp., which is trying to buy Sprint Nextel Corp., is daring Sprint's other suitor to raise its bid.