Will Microsoft Name Its CEO Before the New Year? Weary Employees Hope for Even Sooner. (Poll)

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth — and a new leader.

Is Marissa Mayer’s Year-Old Employee Review System at Yahoo Finally Taking Aim at Underperformers?

It’s like a bell curve on geek steroids.

Your iTunes Collection, Displayed as a Solar System

The Cooper-Hewitt Museum is showcasing an artifact that isn’t even tangible: An open-sourced app called Planetary that’s meant to be an “evolving piece of design.”
planetary_screen

Exclusive: Microsoft’s Xbox Head Don Mattrick Leaving to Take Top Role — Possibly CEO — At Zynga

A very big hire for the troubled online gaming giant.

LivingSocial Hack Update: Investigation Ongoing, While Emails Out to 50 Million Users

On the bright side … actually, there is no bright side.

Voices

CBOE Staff Knew of Problems in Advance

CBOE Holdings Inc. technology staff knew of software issues in the hours before the largest U.S. options exchange suffered a three-hour outage, according to people briefed on discussions among CBOE officials.

LivingSocial Hacked — More Than 50 Million Customer Names, Emails, Birthdates and Encrypted Passwords Accessed (Internal Memo)

Another cyber-attack in a long line of worrisome incursions.

News Byte

Belly Now Aims Its Loyalty Platform at National Enterprise Businesses

Chicago-based Belly said it was rolling out its customer loyalty and marketing platform to larger national enterprise clients. The startup has been aimed at the consumer market and smaller businesses since its launch in 2011, focused on increasing customer engagement, driving repeat business and helping attract new customers. Belly said it has been working with 40 national chains representing more than 500 current locations, using a system that includes a tech platform, an in-store tablet, analytics and marketing, as well as helping clients do email campaigns, social media integration and other mobile marketing.

Interview: Bill Gates Talks About Tech Innovations for Vaccines Ahead of Global Confab

Solve this: One child every 20 seconds dies from a disease that could have been prevented by an existing vaccine.

Nest Labs Hatches New Thermostat