Here’s a handful of interesting tech stories from around the web for Monday, May 21.
Microsoft Launches Socl Social Network: A Look Inside [Marketing Land]
Congrats, Mark Zuckerberg. You went public on Friday, got married on Saturday and now as a special present from part-owner and best partner Microsoft have a new social network to contend with: Microsoft’s So.cl. But don’t worry too much.
Alibaba in talks to raise $2.3 billion equity for Yahoo deal: sources [Reuters]
Entrepreneur Jack Ma is buying back up to half of a 40 percent stake in his Alibaba Group from Yahoo for $7.1 billion, in a deal that moves the Chinese e-commerce leader closer to a public listing.
Nexus Smartphones: Who Wins, Who Loses if Google Launches Android 5.0 in Multiple Handsets? [Wired]
There are four major groups that would be affected by a “Let’s Give a Nexus to Everyone” plan. Let’s explore how each of them might experience the policy shift.
‘jOBS’ Movie to Film in Los Altos Garage Where Apple Began [PC Magazine]
There’s something strange about the thought of Hollywood reconstructing Steve Jobs’ early Los Altos, California home on a backlot somewhere in Southern California.
Customs slowly letting HTC handsets into the US, can’t say which ones [Engadget]
Still waiting for your HTC handset to make its way through customs? Ratchet your hopes just a smidge higher, because the company says it’s making progress.
Cable companies expand free Wi-Fi [CNET]
Five of the nation’s largest cable companies are partnering to allow their subscribers free access to each others’ Wi-Fi hot spots in cities across the U.S.
Voyager Mobile, a 22-Year-Old’s Cellphone Start-Up, Launches After Delay [All Things D]
An attack on his Web site pushed things out a few days, but John Mardini says Voyager Mobile is now ready to take orders for cut-rate cellphone service.
Amazon poised to get a cut of California sales taxes [L.A. Times]
Eager to host Amazon warehouses and receive a cut of the tax on sales to customers statewide, two California cities are offering Amazon most of the tax money they stand to gain.
Apple iPhone charger teardown: quality in a tiny expensive package [Ken Shirriff]
Disassembling Apple’s diminutive inch-cube iPhone charger reveals a technologically advanced flyback switching power supply that goes beyond the typical charger.
Windows 8 Release Preview- RIP, Aero (2003-2012) [SuperSite For Windows]
Microsoft quietly revealed this week that it will kill off the Aero glass interface in Windows 8 and replace it with a flat, Metro-like Explorer that’s more in line with the company’s current design mantra.
Recently on Techland: