(CNN) -- In the tech world, 2012 was the year of the reboot. Older, established tech companies such as Microsoft, Yahoo and Nintendo all tried to restart their brands with bold new products and fresh blood in the executive suites.
Facebook struggled with
its new life as a publicly traded company, and Instagram, the
photo-sharing network it acquired in April, was dragged along for the
ride.
There were inspiring
stories, such as the Internet coming together to protest anti-piracy
legislation. And there was darker news, like the Israeli military
live-tweeting its strikes against Gaza.
And as always, the
world's dominant and most closely watched tech company was all over the
news. Apple did a little bit of everything in 2012, from hit new
products (the iPad Mini) to high-profile failures (Apple Maps) to some
old-fashioned courtroom drama in its patent war with Samsung.
Here are our picks for the top 12 tech stories of 2012. What did we leave out? Let us know in the comment section below.
Windows 8 tablet can compete with iPad
Apple's map hiccups
Instagram users revolt over privacy
Former Facebook prez talks IPO mess
Microsoft's big push
This was the year
Microsoft took a big, bold and surprisingly fun step with a new version
of Windows, an updated mobile operating system and its very own iPad
rival.
The company, best known
for its efficient but stodgy desktop software, needed to do something
fresh to get customers' attention in 2012 and started with its flagship
product. Windows 8 is a complete overhaul of the Windows operating
system. Microsoft nixed the Start button and mixed a playful touchscreen
interface with a more traditional desktop experience that runs on
tablets, traditional computers, and hybrid machines.
The company also made a leap into the hardware market, releasing its first tablet, the Microsoft Surface, which ran a truncated version of the new Windows 8 operating system. And finally, there was Windows Phone 8, a major revamp of its smartphone operating system, which Microsoft hopes can compete with Apple's iOS and Google's Android.
It's still too soon to judge any of the new releases as successes or failures, but give Microsoft credit for taking chances.
SOPA backlash
In January, a pair of anti-piracy bills united the Internet in outrage.
The proposed legislation, the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, and the
Protect IP Act, or PIPA, would have restricted access to sites
associated with pirated content, including the search engines and ad
networks that do business with them.
The Internet cried
censorship, and on January 18 some of the most popular sites blacked out
their pages in protest. Reddit, Craigslist, Boing Boing, The Oatmeal,
the English-language version of Wikipedia and thousands of other sites
went dark. Even Google put a black censorship box over its logo. There
were also petitions and organized boycotts of companies that supported
the bills.
The protests worked, as
both SOPA and PIPA were shelved. It was an impressive demonstration of
the power of an organized Internet community.
Live-tweeting war
Violence and war have
long been documented on Twitter and other social networks -- typically
by journalists and by regular people on the ground (notably the
Pakistani witness to the 2011 raid that killed Osama bin Laden).
But in November, the
Israeli military took this concept to a new level. During its conflict
with Palestinian forces in Gaza, the Israel Defense Force tweeted
updates, including the news it had "eliminated" Hamas leader Ahmed
Jabari. The military arm of Hamas responded on Twitter with its own
provocations.
The back-and-forth between the warring sides signaled a jarring evolution in how war is broadcast in real time.
iPhone 5 and Apple Maps stumble
Every Apple hardware
release is a big news story, starting with rumors months in advance and
peaking with a well-oiled Apple press event, followed by usually glowing
reviews and huge sales numbers. But in 2012, Apple made a major misstep
when it released the iPhone 5 and its new operating system, iOS 6.
The company dropped the Google-powered maps that had come pre-installed on every iPhone since 2007. In its place, Apple introduced its own mapping app.
Apple Maps looked stunning, with 3-D graphics and neat features like
Flyover and turn-by-turn directions. All it was missing was transit
directions and accuracy -- the maps were riddled with mistaken locations
and outdated information.
The resulting criticism
inspired an apology from CEO Tim Cook and led to an executive shakeup at
Apple. Customers turned to third-party map apps until Google finally
released an iOS version of its popular maps in December.
Apple vs. Samsung
It was the biggest tech
trial of the year. Two of the top phone and tablet manufacturers went to
war when Apple accused Samsung of infringing on its iPad and iPhone patents
for a variety of tablets and smartphones. The drama culminated in a
federal jury trial over the summer that offered a rare peek into how
notoriously secretive Apple operates.
The story became huge
because of the large amount of money at stake and the implications that
its verdict would have on Samsung's business and the Android platform.
The jury decided in
Apple's favor, awarding the company just over $1 billion in damages. But
the case is far from over. Lawyers for both sides will continue
bickering over potential appeals for months and possibly years to come.
Facebook's botched IPO
It was the most
anticipated IPO of the year, and one of the largest ever for a tech
company. Social-media darling Facebook looked primed for a big public
opening: The company was valued at $104 billion, snapped up popular
photo-sharing app Instagram and was still growing.
But then an array of problems and misjudgments led to a botched IPO
in May, and the company's stock plummeted. The initial offer price of
$38 was too high, too many shares were issued, its opening day was
marred by Nasdaq's technical glitches, and underwriter Morgan Stanley
was fined for improperly influencing share sales.
The stock price dropped
significantly, hitting a low of $17.55 on September 4. Facebook is still
struggling to recover some of its early-2012 luster.
The Instagram boom
Instagram started out
scrappy two years ago as a fun little app for sharing sepia-shaded
photos with friends. But when its user base skyrocketed, Facebook bought it for $1 billion in cash and shares of Facebook stock. That amount later dropped to $735 million as the value of Facebook shares plummeted.
By September, Instagram
had more than 100 million users. The app capped off its big year with a
rite of passage for social networks: a bungled update to its terms of
service that sparked user outrage and led to a hasty backtrack by
founder Kevin Systrom.
Instagram's challenge
for 2013 is to figure out how to grow its free service into a business
that makes money so that Facebook can begin to get its money's worth.
Megaupload and Kim Dotcom
The Megaupload case
would have been mildly interesting on its own. A popular file-sharing
company and its various sites were shut down by the F.B.I for piracy.
But when Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom was arrested in January at his lavish New Zealand estate, he went from unknown entrepreneur to a flamboyantly rich cult hero.
Dotcom (he legally
changed his last name from Schmitz in 2005) did what any self-respecting
boy video-game nerd would do with millions of dollars. He bought a
yacht, helicopter, luxury cars and motorcycles. He lived with his model
wife in a $24 million rented mansion in New Zealand where he spent hours
playing "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3," earning a spot as the
top-ranked player in the world.
But after Dotcom was
jailed and his assets were seized, he slowly emerged as a leader for
Internet freedom activists who thought he was unfairly targeted. He's
still fighting the charges and using his newfound fame to launch new
projects. His current plans include a new file-sharing site that
encrypts all its files, and a streaming music service called Megabox.
Mid-sized tablets take off
It was the rare case of Apple following a trend instead of setting it. Apple introduced its 7.9-inch iPad Mini in October to take on its new rivals in the tablet market: cheaper 7-inch devices from Google and Amazon.
While the Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 were only selling modestly compared
to the iPad, Apple quickly recognized the growing demand for a smaller,
more portable device.
The iPad Mini proved
especially notable because Apple's late CEO, Steve Jobs, famously stated
a 7-inch tablet would never make it in the market because it was "too
big to compete with a smartphone; too small to compete with an iPad."
This may have been one of those rare cases in which Jobs was wrong.
Nintendo launches Wii U
In November, Nintendo
released a new version of its popular Wii game console, which while
groundbreaking when launched in 2006 was badly in need of a refresh.
The Wii U's most novel feature is a touchscreen
tablet controller called a GamePad, which communicates with the main
console. Inside the tablet are motion control sensors, speakers, a
camera, buttons and other bells and whistles -- all of which the gamer
uses to interact with what's happening on the larger screen.
It's a bold move for the
company and brings a new perspective to console gaming, although the
Wii U has received mixed reviews so far.
Yahoo hires Marissa Mayer
Aging Internet giant Yahoo was facing slumping revenues and internal strife in July when it hired Google exec Marissa Mayer
as its new chief executive. The hire made headlines for many reasons:
Mayer was a bold choice that showed Yahoo was serious about shaking
things up. She was also young, a Silicon Valley power player, and a
woman who was expecting her first child.
There was much media
hand-wringing over her pregnancy, with some pundits wondering aloud
whether Mayer could juggle a newborn baby and a demanding new job. Many
saw her as a role model for working mothers.
But when the news
settled, the real question returned: Could Mayer save the floundering
Yahoo? So far she has shaken up Yahoo's executive team, given employee
morale a much-needed boost and begun to improve the company's mobile
offerings, including a stunning new Flickr app.
It will take a while to
properly gauge her impact, but investors seem optimistic. Yahoo's stock
price has risen $4 a share since her hiring was announced.
Tech's role in the presidential election
Technology issues such as net neutrality weren't discussed much during the 2012 presidential election, but tech played a huge role in rallying supporters and getting out the vote.
President Obama, arguably the most tech-savvy of U.S. presidents, went
on Google Plus and Reddit to take questions from voters.
And both his campaign
and that of his GOP challenger, Mitt Romney, sent social media messages
almost daily in attempts to sway media reports and public opinion.
But the most impressive
use of tech took place behind the scenes, where both sides used new and
powerful computer databases to target voters. The Romney campaign's
get-out-the-vote program, called Orca, suffered technical glitches on
Election Day and was perceived to have been outflanked by Obama campaign
software which compiled massive amounts of data on voters and
dispatched volunteers to pinpoint locations across the country.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/27/tech/web/top-tech-stories-2012/index.html?hpt=te_r1
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