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About 85 percent of Americans now own a cell phone, but most are using the gadgets for more than just making calls, according to a new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

The majority of adult Americans turn to their cell phone to take a picture (82 percent), send or receive text messages (80 percent), access the Internet (56 percent), and send or receive email (50 percent).

Cell phone photography is the most popular activity, Pew said, though it hasn’t seen the same type of growth in the past five years as some other features. As of 2010, 76 percent of people used their phone to snap pictures, a 6 percent increase in the la…………… continues on PC Magazine

November 27, 2012|By Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune reporter

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An increasing number of mobile device users are becoming more aware of their online privacy and are taking the initiative to remove or avoid apps from their smartphones and cell phones that demand large amounts of personal information to be used.

The trend shows that 54 percent of cell phone users who download apps have chosen not to install an app “when they discovered how much personal information they would need to share in order to use it,” according to a Sept. 5 “Privacy and Data Management on Mobile Devices” study conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project.

“Thirty percent of app users have uninstalled an app that was already on their cell phone because they learned it was collecting personal information that they didn’t wish to share,” according to the report, which was compiled based on results from a nationwide landline and mobile telephone survey of 2,254 adults between March 15 to April 3. The sample has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.

Cell phones users are also taking other steps to better protect their data and privacy, the study reported. Forty-one percent of cell owners back up the data on their phones, from photos to contacts and other files, in case their phone is ever broken or lost, whil…………… continues on eWeek

MEXICO CITY — Mexico is recounting votes cast at more than half its polling places during Sunday’s presidential election, the electoral body said Wednesday, as reports of vote-buying marred the apparent win of the former ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI.

Ballots from more than 54% of polling places will be recounted within 72 hours, the Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) said. The figure marks a huge increase over the 9% of ballots that were recounted in the long and contentious aftermath of the disputed 2006 election.

The recount began early Wednesday as part of the IFE’s normal procedure of validating results gathered from the institute’s 300 electoral districts. By law, ballots are recounted when a polling place shows irregularities, such as more votes cast than there are registered voters, a complete sweep by a single candidate or party, or a 1-percentage-point or smaller margin between first and second place.

Separately, the PRI is facing growing accusations that campaigns gave potential voters supermarket debit cards in exchange for their votes, among other allegati…………… continues on Los Angeles Times

(CBS/AP) LOS ANGELES – On the Fourth of July, the USS Iowa received a recognition befitting of its historic status.

The battleship was honored at a commissioning ceremony held on Wednesday in Los Angeles, CBS Los Angeles reported. It was docked at the Port of Los Angeles in June where it is now been transformed into a floating museum. The ship was towed from Northern California.

Among those in attendance at the rededication included Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. They were joined by hundreds of veterans and former USS Iowa crew members as well as a great-granddaughter of President Franklin Roosevelt.

Watch a “CBS This Morning” segment on the USS Iowa below:

One of the most powerful battleships of all time, the Iowa was built starting in 1940. After it was commissioned, the ship transported President Ro…………… continues on CBS News

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AT&T’s chief executive expects the industry to offer data-only cellphone plans within two years, potentially replacing cellphone minutes and text message counts with a single counter logging megabytes and gigabytes.

“In such a scenario, phone calls would be considered just another form of data,” the Associated Press notes in a recap of AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson’s remarks Friday morning in a New York conference hosted by investment firm Bernstein Global Wealth Management.

Already, services like Skype are replacing some traditional voice calls, and services like iMessage are replacing some text messaging. The AP notes that “phone companies still make most of their money from calling plans and texting, which use very little data.” The trend of carriers moving from unlimited plans to data caps isn’t a good one for customers, but whether moving to a data-only model would help or hurt consumers is hard to say until actual pricing and plans are revealed.

Light Reading also reported on Stephenson’s speech, saying that Stephenson “called data-only pricing plans inevitable as a response to revenues moving from voice to data. For consumers, these plans would let them rely on voice-over IP and o…………… continues on Ars Technica

If Knox County Schools issue an Apple iPad to each of the system’s 56,000 students i…………… continues on Knoxville News Sentinel

(RNN) – While no one can predict the future, history proves that people will virtually always choose a method that is more convenient, more efficient and more cost effective.

Cell phones seem to win that battle on all fronts. But does that mean that the landline phone is on a virtual deathbed?

This is the first of three stories in a series that explores the place of both cell phones and landline phones and how each will co-exist moving forward.

–

As cell phones become sharper and more powerful, so do people’s demand for their use.

It is safe to say they have helped shape the world’s culture.

The technology that people can hold in the palm of their hand has made immediate impacts on the economy, media, entertainment and even the family structure.

Asking people younger than 30 to imagine the world without cell phones would be akin to asking people older than 50 to imagine the world without the Vietnam War.

Findings listed in the National Health Interview Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show a gradual drift toward dropping home phones, or landlines.

Between 2006 and 2009, the number of people who had landlines and no cell phones decreased by half. Between 2009 and 2009, those with cell phones and no landline…………… continues on KLTV

SOUTHINGTON, Conn. — Authorities say a Connecticut man accidentally dialed 911 from his cellphone while stealing about 700 pounds of scrap metals.

Police say the 46-year-old man was arrested after the robbery from a Southington merchant.

WFSB-TV reports he was charged Thursday with third-degree criminal trespassing and sixth-degree larceny. He was released on bond and is scheduled to appear in court April 2.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Palestinian terrorists continued to launch rockets and mortar shells at southern Israel early Tuesday morning despite a senior Egyptian security official saying that Israel and terrorist factions in the Gaza Strip had agreed to an Egyptian-brokered truce.

The Egyptian security official told Reuters on Tuesday that both sides had “agreed to end the current operations”, with Israel giving an unusual undertaking to “stop assassinations”, and an overall agreement “to begin a comprehensive and mutual calm.”

The agreement was set to take effect at 1 a.m. local time (2300 GMT). There was no immediate comment from either side on the agreement.

Despite the announcement, a mortar shell fired from the Gaza Strip landed in Ashkelon Regional Council early Tuesday morning and a Kassam rocket exploded in open territories near Sha’ar Hanegev Council.

No injuries were reported and no damage was caused.

Israel…………… continues on Jerusalem Post

Djokovic, Sharapova win at Indian Wells

By BETH HARRIS, AP Sports Writer – 9 minutes ago 

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Top-ranked Novak Djokovic defeated Kevin Anderson 6-2, 6-3 to reach the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open on Monday, while American men had mixed results, with No. 8 Mardy Fish and Andy Roddick knocked out and John Isner winning.

Djokovic broke Anderson’s serve once in each set playing in the heat of the day at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, where he won in 2008 and last year when the Serb claimed three Grand Slam titles and went 70-6. Djokovic successfully defended his Australian Open title to open the year.

Anderson, the 29th seed from South Africa who won last week’s tournament in Delray Beach, Fla., managed one break in the first set. Five games went to deuce, including five deuces before Djokovic held to lead 3-2 in the first. Djokovic beat Anderson in straight sets for the fourth straight time.

“He’s very aggressive on the return games,” Djokovic said. “He has a great serve, as you can imagine for his height, so I had to return well, I had to just be patient, and wait for my chances. I haven’t served well in the opening set, but then it all came down to his service games. I served well and put a lot of pressure on him and returned really, real…………… continues on The Associated Press

Cellular phone towers, once the object of scorn by parents and residents, may be allowed on more public school campuses in Palm Beach County.

A citizens group is recommending the removal of a school district ban on cell towers. It says they no longer are community eyesores, and more significantly, there’s no known direct link to health dangers that used to make people panic at the thought of them.

Adding to the argument for adding cell towers at schools is this: 75 percent of teens own mobile phones, and even 20 percent of elementary school kids use them, according to one study highlighted by school district officials.

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WASHINGTON –  For all the criticism and new legal bans, texting by drivers just keeps increasing, especially among younger motorists.

About half of American drivers between 21 and 24 say they’ve thumbed messages or emailed from the driver’s seat. And what’s more, many drivers don’t think it’s dangerous when they do it — only when others do.

A national survey, the first government study of its kind on distracted driving, and other data released Thursday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration underscore the difficulty authorities face in discouraging texting and cellphone talking while driving.

At any given moment last year on America’s streets and highways, nearly one in every 100 car drivers was texting, emailing, surfing the Web or otherwise using a hand-held electronic device, the safety administration said. And those activities spiked 50 percent over the previous year, even as states rush to ban the practic…………… continues on Fox News

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg criticized a prominent New York City congressman on Thursday for asking the Justice Department to investigate reports of police misconduct at the Occupy Wall Street protests in Lower Manhattan.

Responding to questions from reporters, Mr. Bloomberg ridiculed the call this week by the congressman, Jerrold Nadler, for the investigation. “If he would spend more time getting us homeland security money, maybe…………… continues on New York Times