Booting Up: ’Tis the season of tablets

Welcome to the first holiday season that has a tablet for everyone, whether you're a buying for a novice or dealing with a stocking-stuffer budget.

Fitting in one hand and starting at $99 for the 8GB model, the Amazon Fire HD 6 has the distinction of being the first tablet that could serve as a stocking-stuffer. It's perfect for a child's first tablet experience. This durable, no-frills device has great battery life and the ability to handle up to six user accounts. Buyers should beware of any of the no-name tablets that boast $50 price tags. The Fire HD is the best bang-for-your-buck tablet, and spending less on one of the no-names could turn out to be a total waste of money.

If you're buying for someone who watches lots of TV and reads lots of books, again look to Amazon. The Fire HDX 8.9, at $379 for the 16GB version, is a solidly designed media device with the incredibly helpful Mayday button — with 24/7 access to live, impossibly chipper customer service professionals right on your tablet. That makes this the go-to tablet for tech novices. With all the media that Amazon Prime offers, not many people think of the Fire as a productivity tablet — and it's not. But the WPS Office software suite, compatible with Microsoft Office, is a nice bonus for anyone who has to review the occasional document or spreadsheet.

This year I'm also partial to the Google Nexus 9, a premium Android tablet running the new Lollipop operating system, starting at $399. A nice size that sits in between Google's 7-inch and 10-inch Nexus models, this is a perfectly sized powerhouse of technology that is light, slim and easy to hold. Its supreme graphics make this the choice for the gamer in your life.

Microsoft has come much closer this year to producing a device that can replace your tablet and your laptop, and that's why the Surface Pro 3 makes the list. The thinner, lighter design along with the usual Windows features secures its place as the best productivity tablet on the market, starting at a price that reflects its laptop alter-ego: $799. And that's without the keyboard type-cover. This is a great gift for overachieving high school seniors on their way to college. They can buy the type cover in the fall and have all the fun that a premium tablet allows until then.

And that brings us to the Cadillac of tablets: the iPad. Starting at $499 and going all the way up to $829 for the highest storage option and a cellular connectivity, the iPad Air 2 is almost offensively sleek, thin and fast. Apple got rid of the air gap between the screen and the actual display, making this gorgeous high-res screen one of the best reasons to buy the Air 2. If you're looking to win "best gift" this year and you're not on a tight budget, look no further. It will not disappoint.

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Sony's PlayStation store suffers suspected hack

TOKYO — Sony's online PlayStation store was inaccessible to users for part of Monday in the latest possible cyberattack on the electronics and entertainment company.

Sony Computer Entertainment in Tokyo said Monday the problem lasted two hours but has been fixed globally. It said the cause is under investigation, but there is no sign of any material being stolen.

Last week, the computer systems of Sony Pictures Entertainment were disrupted by a cyberattack and confidential information including unreleased movies was leaked on the Internet.

North Korea was among the suspects, but it has denied responsibility.

The FBI is investigating threatening emails sent to some employees of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and trying to identify the person or group responsible.

There was no indication of a link between the PlayStation and Sony Pictures incidents.

A hacker group calling itself Lizard Squad appeared to take responsibility for the attack on its Twitter account, tweeting "PSN Login #offline."

Earlier this year, Lizard Squad warned that explosives might be on a flight that included a Sony executive among its passengers, and claimed responsibility for a disruption to the PlayStation network. American Airlines diverted the domestic U.S. flight to a nearby airport.

In that incident, hackers orchestrated a so-called denial-of-service attack against Sony, which involved overwhelming the company's game network with fake visits so that legitimate users couldn't get through.

In 2011, hackers compromised the company's network including the personal data of 77 million user accounts. Since then, the company has repeatedly said its computer security has been upgraded.

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Yuri Kageyama on Twitter: https://twitter.com/yurikageyama

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New Delhi bans Uber after alleged rape by driver

NEW DELHI — The Indian capital on Monday banned taxi-booking service Uber after a woman accused one of its drivers of raping her.

Transport official Satish Mathur made the announcement as the 32-year-old suspect appeared in a New Delhi court.

The court ordered Shiv Kumar Yadav held for three days for police questioning over allegations that he raped the finance company employee after being hired to ferry her home from a dinner engagement on Friday night. The court also ordered Yadav's cellphone confiscated, according to Press Trust of India.

The case, almost two years after a young woman was fatally gang raped on a bus in the capital, has renewed national anger over sexual violence in India and demands for more effort to ensure women's safety.

The government rushed through legislation last year to double prison terms for rape to 20 years and to criminalize voyeurism, stalking and the trafficking of women. But activists say much more needs to be done, including better educating youths and adding basic infrastructure such as street lights and public bathrooms.

The CEO of San Francisco-based Uber, Travis Kalanick, said the company would do "everything to bring the perpetrator to justice and to support the victim and her family in her recovery."

He also sought to deflect some of the blame on to officials, saying the company would work with the government to establish clear background checks that are "currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs."

It was not immediately clear if Uber itself performed any background check, nor was it clear whether Yadav would even have been flagged. Police told Press Trust of India they were working to verify Yadav's claims that he had been acquitted of rape charges in 2011, after spending seven months in jail. PTI did not give any further details or name the police source.

The New Delhi ban is a blow for Uber, which has courted acclamation and controversy around the world with a service based on hailing taxis from a smartphone app. It has faced restrictions in other countries after licensed taxi operators claimed the service was competing unfairly.

The service, which uses private cars rather than licensed cabs, promises a quicker response time that is often less than 10 minutes. Drivers respond using their own Uber-provided smartphones mounted on the dashboard and follow a GPS map to an exact location.

Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the government "strongly condemns this dastardly act" and pledged justice in the case.

He said the 26-year-old victim had fallen asleep during the ride home. When she woke up, she found the car parked in a secluded place. The driver then threatened her, raped her and then took her home around 1 a.m. Saturday.

Police arrested the driver Sunday night in his hometown of Mathura, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) from the capital, after he had abandoned the Uber-registered car and fled New Delhi. The car has been brought to Delhi for forensic examination, Singh told parliament.

Dozens of angry protesters rallied outside the home minister's house on Monday morning to demand more action to ensure women's safety. Police detained several people who were part of another anti-violence protest group that burned an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in front of his political party's headquarters.

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Associated Press writers Nirmala George and Chonchui Ngashangva contributed to this report.

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Markets weighed down by Asia growth concerns

LONDON — Soft Chinese trade figures combined with news that Japan's recession is deeper than initially thought to weigh on most global stock markets on Monday. Oil prices resumed their slide, too, falling to five year lows.

KEEPING SCORE: In Europe, France's CAC 40 was down 0.8 percent at 4,387, while Germany's DAX fell 0.6 percent to 10,034. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was 0.8 percent lower at 6,691. Wall Street was poised for a subdued opening with Dow futures and the broader S&P 500 futures down 0.3 percent.

ASIA FOCUS: Developments in Asia are the main focus in markets. From China, the world's number 2 economy, there was disappointment that export growth slumped last month and imports unexpectedly contracted. Both developments reinforce growth concerns. However Chinese stocks jumped as investors hope the government will dole out more stimulus. Meanwhile, in Japan, figures showed that the world's No. 3 economy shrank 1.9 percent in the July-September period.

ANALYST TAKE: "An implosion in Chinese trade data and a bigger than expected Japanese contraction in the third quarter demonstrate the constraints that Asia's two largest economies are putting on global growth," said Jasper Lawler, market analyst at CMC Markets.

OIL PRICE IMPACT: The prospect of weaker growth in Asia put further pressure on oil prices. The benchmark New York rate was down $1.62 at $64.22 a barrel. Meanwhile, Brent crude, which is used to price oil sold on international markets, dropped $2.01 to $67.04. Both prices are at their lowest levels since 2009.

US JOBS: The concerns over China and Japan have offset the growing optimism over the state of the U.S. economy. Figures last Friday showed that U.S. employers added 321,000 jobs last month in the biggest burst of hiring in nearly three years. It's the latest round of upbeat data on the world's biggest economy that reinforces expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next year.

ASIA'S DAY: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 edged up 0.1 percent to close at 17,935.64. South Korea's Kospi dipped 0.4 percent to 1,978.95 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.2 percent to 24,047.67. The Shanghai Composite in mainland China broke through the psychological 3,000 barrier, soaring 2.8 percent to 3,020.26, a level it hasn't closed at since April 2011. The index is up 25 percent in the past month.

CURRENCIES: The dollar was having a mixed day. The euro was down 0.2 percent at $1.2258 while the dollar fell 0.3 percent to 121.09 yen.

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Markets weighed down by Asia growth concerns

LONDON — Soft Chinese trade figures combined with news that Japan's recession is deeper than initially thought to weigh on most global stock markets on Monday. Oil prices resumed their slide, too, falling to five year lows.

KEEPING SCORE: In Europe, France's CAC 40 was down 0.8 percent at 4,387, while Germany's DAX fell 0.6 percent to 10,034. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was 0.8 percent lower at 6,691. Wall Street was poised for a subdued opening with Dow futures and the broader S&P 500 futures down 0.3 percent.

ASIA FOCUS: Developments in Asia are the main focus in markets. From China, the world's number 2 economy, there was disappointment that export growth slumped last month and imports unexpectedly contracted. Both developments reinforce growth concerns. However Chinese stocks jumped as investors hope the government will dole out more stimulus. Meanwhile, in Japan, figures showed that the world's No. 3 economy shrank 1.9 percent in the July-September period.

ANALYST TAKE: "An implosion in Chinese trade data and a bigger than expected Japanese contraction in the third quarter demonstrate the constraints that Asia's two largest economies are putting on global growth," said Jasper Lawler, market analyst at CMC Markets.

OIL PRICE IMPACT: The prospect of weaker growth in Asia put further pressure on oil prices. The benchmark New York rate was down $1.62 at $64.22 a barrel. Meanwhile, Brent crude, which is used to price oil sold on international markets, dropped $2.01 to $67.04. Both prices are at their lowest levels since 2009.

US JOBS: The concerns over China and Japan have offset the growing optimism over the state of the U.S. economy. Figures last Friday showed that U.S. employers added 321,000 jobs last month in the biggest burst of hiring in nearly three years. It's the latest round of upbeat data on the world's biggest economy that reinforces expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next year.

ASIA'S DAY: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 edged up 0.1 percent to close at 17,935.64. South Korea's Kospi dipped 0.4 percent to 1,978.95 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.2 percent to 24,047.67. The Shanghai Composite in mainland China broke through the psychological 3,000 barrier, soaring 2.8 percent to 3,020.26, a level it hasn't closed at since April 2011. The index is up 25 percent in the past month.

CURRENCIES: The dollar was having a mixed day. The euro was down 0.2 percent at $1.2258 while the dollar fell 0.3 percent to 121.09 yen.

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Clearing up shifting opinions on transmission fluid

I recently purchased a 2008 Chevy Equinox with 81,000 miles. It has the non-GM Aisin AF33 five-speed transmission. The owner's manual states to use only T-IV automatic transmission fluid. I pointed this out to the shop when I had the transmission fluid changed. However, they used a machine to flush out the used T-IV fluid and replaced it with Dexron VI fluid. They told me that using Dexron VI is not a problem, but I read on several Internet blogs and forums that using Dexron VI can damage this transmission. I asked two Chevy dealers, an independent garage and another transmission shop and I'm getting conflicting information. I would appreciate it if you could get to the bottom of this.

Hey, if it's on the Internet it must be true, right? The T-IV automatic transmission fluid meets industry specification JWS3309. Here are several automatic transmission fluids that are listed as suitable for T-IV applications: Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc ATF, Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF, Castrol Trans-Max Synthetic ATF, Quaker State Ultimate Synthetic Multi-vehicle ATF, Pennzoil Multi-Vehicle Automatic Transmission Fluid — to name just a few. Mobil ATF 3309 is a JWS3309-spec transmission fluid engineered for this application.

Like you, I found conflicting information on Dexron VI compatibility with JWS3309-spec Type T-IV fluid. Part of the issue is Dexron VI's "backward compatibility," meaning it is suitable for transmissions using previous Dexron ATFs. Aisin specifically recommends against using Dexron III in the T-IV transmission.

Remember this: Transmission manufacturers do not manufacture or produce their own lubricants. Oil companies do. I believe we can trust the product information on specific lubricants and their compatibility with specific vehicle components. So as long as the fluid used to refill your transmission meets the JWS3309 specification — no worries.

My 1986 Corvette is doing some weird things. The other night after parking the car, a few minutes later I heard a strange noise in the garage. It was the electric radio antenna going up and down on its own. I had turned off the radio and the keys were in my pocket. How could the antenna motor still be running?

My first guess would be a stuck antenna motor relay, which is located under the lip at the back of the rear hatch on the left side. Perhaps water intruded from the hatch opening into the relay and caused it to rust and stick.

GM service bulletin No. 882099A from 1988 says a power interruption to the radio with the ignition on can cause the power antenna to malfunction, typically ending up stuck in the up position.

I'm betting on the relay.

I drive only around 3,000-4,000 miles a year. In the past I have done oil changes twice a year based on Acura's severe driving conditions recommendation. I now have a 2014 Acura TL that has a computer that tells me when an oil change is due. At the moment it says my oil is still 80 percent good, and I have been driving since the end of April and have only put 1,700 miles on the car. Should I continue to do oil changes twice a year or wait until the car computer tells me it's time?

My Alldata database shows Acura's recommended oil change intervals at 7,500 miles under normal conditions and 3,750 miles under severe conditions. Why not simplify the issue and change oil and filter once per year? That's what I do with my low-annual-mileage vehicles.

Is there anything I can spray on my brake rotors for rust protection when vehicles are stored for six months?

I spray Deep Creep on the brake rotors of my stored vehicles. Any light aerosol lubricant should do the job of protecting the rotors from serious rust for six-month storage. To satisfy the worrywarts reading this, flush and clean the rotors with aerosol brake cleaner before driving again.

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The Ticker

Merck in talks to buy Lexington's Cubist

Merck & Co. is in talks to acquire Lexington-based Cubist Pharmaceuticals Inc., a maker of antibiotics, in a deal valued at more than $7 billion, a person familiar with the matter said.

Merck would pay about $100 a share, and an agreement could be announced as early as next week, the person said. An offer in that range would represent a 
34 percent premium over Cubist's closing share price Friday.

Cubist has said it plans to introduce four new drugs by 2020 to combat bacterial infections that are resistant to other treatments because of overuse.

TUESDAY

• Commerce Department releases wholesale trade inventories for October.
• Labor Department releases job openings and labor turnover survey for October.

L The Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston has announced the appointment of Eva Respini, left, as Barbara Lee Chief Curator. Respini is currently curator in the Department of Photography at The Museum of Modern Art, where she organized the critically acclaimed retrospectives of Cindy Sherman and Robert Heinecken. She will assume her new position at the ICA in March 2015.

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Expert: Expect more TV programming blackouts

TV viewers in Boston should get used to programming blackouts caused by showdowns between networks and cable and satellite providers, a local expert says, as CBS and TV provider Dish Network announced yesterday they had reached an agreement that ends a dispute that affected thousands of Hub customers.

"We're likely to see more, rather than fewer, of these play out over time," said Daniel Lyons, a Boston College law and telecommunications professor.

The fees that providers pay networks to rebroadcast their copyrighted content, Lyons said, has become increasingly important for their bottom line due to thinning subscriber numbers.

"Cable companies are more price sensitive than they used to be," he said.

In the latest dispute, CBS had blocked Dish from carrying the local channels of CBS-owned TV stations for about 12 hours starting around 7 p.m. Friday. The 18 markets affected included New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas, Boston and Miami.

In a joint statement yesterday, the companies said they had ended their skirmish by reaching a deal that will allow Dish to carry CBS-owned TV stations nationwide as well as various cable channels.

"We are pleased to continue delivering CBS programming to our customers while expanding their digital access to Showtime content through Showtime Anytime," Warren Schlichting, a Dish senior vice president, said in a statement.

Ray Hopkins, president of television networks distribution for CBS, said the deal met the company's economic and strategic objectives.

"We look forward to having Dish as a valued partner for many years to come," he said.

The brief blackout was the latest skirmish between television companies that are seeking higher payments for their programming and the cable and satellite companies that distribute the programming and say the higher programming costs will lead to higher bills for their customers. Verizon and Cox Media Group, the owner of Fox 25, settled a similar dispute last week after Verizon Fios customers lost access to the Fox channel for several days.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Mortgage-lending restrictions are finally easing

WASHINGTON — When it comes to buying a house, are you in the "no way I could possibly qualify" category? Not enough cash in the bank for a down payment or closing costs? Credit scores good, but not great? So much deferred student loan debt that you assume any lender would slam the door?

Join the crowd. Large numbers of Americans feel the same, in part because they read and hear that qualifying standards for mortgages are the strictest they've been in decades. A study based on a statistical sample of potential homebuyers conducted earlier in the year by the mortgage company loanDepot found that nearly 60 percent of people who say they want to buy a home aren't pursuing it because they think there's just no point — they are convinced their applications would be rejected. Three-quarters of them, however, concede that they haven't done a thing to check out current lender requirements.

But here's some good news for these folks: Changes are underway in the mortgage market that could give you a better shot at qualifying. Start with recent policy shifts at giant mortgage investors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two dominant funding sources for new loans. Late in November, both companies announced procedural changes that should encourage lenders to be less fearful that the mortgages they approve will be subject to costly "buy back" demands if borrowers go delinquent.

In a buy back, an investor such as Fannie Mae requires the lender who originated the mortgage to repurchase it because of alleged defects in underwriting that ultimately led to the borrower's non-payments. To avoid buy backs, lenders in recent years not only have ratcheted up their underwriting requirements, but have added extra fees — so-called "overlays" — that are designed to compensate them for losses on loans to borrowers who have below-average credit scores, small down payments and minimal assets in reserve.

Though the technical details of the recent changes would glaze most consumers' eyeballs, their intended net effect is important. They tell lenders: OK guys, you can loosen up a little on mortgage applicants, give some breaks on credit scores and other criteria that you wouldn't have previously. David Lowman, a Freddie Mac executive vice president, was explicit about the desired end result. The policy revisions "should encourage 'lenders' to serve a broader range of qualified borrowers," he said. His counterpart at Fannie Mae, Andrew Bon Salle, said he expected lenders to make "mortgages available to more borrowers."

Another big change in the wings: Fannie and Freddie plan to resume lending to buyers who can make down payments as low as 3 percent. Currently their minimum is 5 percent down. The Federal Housing Administration requires 3.5 percent down payment, but its insurance premiums often make its loans more expensive than Fannie's and Freddie's. So cutting the minimum back to just 3 percent could prove helpful for many cash-short borrowers, even if the two companies impose other requirements such as pre-purchase financial counseling.

Lenders and private mortgage insurers strongly support Fannie's and Freddie's recent moves to open the lid on the credit box a little wider. They want to make more mortgages, especially to qualified first-timers, but don't want to be penalized for doing so.

Major insurers such as MGIC are telling realty agents, banks and personal-financial advisers that they should get the word out to consumers who are sitting on the sidelines. Borrowers need to know that gifts can cover 100 percent of their down payment. They need to know that minimum credit score standards may no longer be as high as they feared. The average FICO score for all types of closed loans during October was 726, not the widely assumed 750-760, according to the software firm Ellie Mae. At FHA, the average for successful purchasers was just 683 during the same month. Vance Edwards, marketing program manager for MGIC, the large home loan insurer, said "there are many 'people' who can now afford to buy a home and qualify for a mortgage, but simply don't realize it."

The message here: Getting a mortgage can still be tough — you still have to be able to make the payments — but there is an easing process underway that you shouldn't ignore.

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NKorea denies Sony hack, calls it 'righteous deed'

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea released a statement Sunday that clearly relished a cyberattack on Sony Pictures, which is producing an upcoming film that depicts an assassination plot against Pyongyang's supreme leader.

While denying responsibility for an attack last week that disrupted Sony's computer system and spewed confidential information onto the Internet, an unidentified spokesman for the North's powerful National Defense Commission acknowledged that it "might be a righteous deed of the supporters and sympathizers" of the North's call for the world to turn out in a "just struggle" against U.S. imperialism.

"We do not know where in America the Sony Pictures is situated and for what wrongdoings it became the target of the attack, nor (do) we feel the need to know about it," the statement carried in state media said. "But what we clearly know is that the Sony Pictures is the very one which was going to produce a film abetting a terrorist act while hurting the dignity of the supreme leadership of" North Korea.

North Korea has built a cult of personality around the Kim family, which has ruled for three generations, and sees any outside criticism or mockery of its leader as an attack on its sovereignty. It recently opened fire on anti-Pyongyang propaganda balloons that North Korean defectors in the South were floating across the border into the North.

The Sony movie in question, "The Interview," is a comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, and its plot concerns an attempt on the life of leader Kim Jong Un.

Pyongyang is not amused.

The statement said the North's enemies, the United States and South Korea, had "groundlessly linked the hacking attack with" Pyongyang, but the denial also included a threat.

The United States should know that "there are a great number of supporters and sympathizers with (North Korea) all over the world as well as the 'champions of peace' who attacked the Sony Pictures," the statement said. "The righteous reaction will get stronger to smash the evil doings."

Some cybersecurity experts say they've found striking similarities between the code used in the hack of Sony Pictures Entertainment and attacks blamed on North Korea that targeted South Korean companies and government agencies last year.

Experts are divided, however, over the likelihood that North Korea or independent hackers were involved.

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