> Historically, closed platforms are typically limited in terms of scale and are confined to niche markets,” the report said. “Apple has built is business out of carving its own niche, which means that while Apple could see success with devices like the iPad, other players are unlikely to be able to replicate its result simply by copying, Lin noted. via [appleinsider.com](http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/02/01/apples_itunes_advantage_keeps_acer_from_building_ipad_challenger.html)Copying Apple is a recipe for failure, in other words.…

via [news.bbc.co.uk](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8488751.stm)I thought the governments of Germany and France officially discouraging IE was big news. This is even bigger. Google phasing out support for IE 6 will certainly have an accelerating effect on IE’s demise. You can say that this is only IE 6 we’re talking about here, but once people have to download an alternative,…

> But Mr Evans said that calls to change browsers were “not very helpful”. > > “If you look at other browsers, it’s likely they will have other vulnerabilities,” he said. > > The vulnerability was found to be used in an attack on GoogleHe pointed to a report by security firm NSS Labs reportedly showing that IE8 provided better security against phishing and malware than other browsers. > > “We feel strongly that IE8 is most secure browser on the…

> **France has echoed calls by the German government for web users to find an alternative to Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) to protect security.** > > Certa, a government agency that oversees cyber threats, warned against using all versions of the web browser. via [news.bbc.co.uk](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8465038.stm)As I [suggested a few days ago](http://jcieplinski.posterous.com/german-government-the-first-to-officially-rec "Germany"), the official flogging of IE continues with France. Will England be next?…

> **The German government has warned web users to find an alternative browser to Internet Explorer to protect security.** > > The warning from the Federal Office for Information Security comes after Microsoft admitted IE was the weak link in recent attacks on Google’s systems. > > Microsoft says the security hole can be shut by setting the browser’s security zone to “high”, although this limits functionality and blocks many websites. > > However, German authorities say that even this would not make IE fully safe. via [news.bbc.co.uk](http://news.bbc.co.…