NSA gathered thousands of Americans' e-mails before court struck down program  —  The National Security Agency unlawfully gathered as many as tens of thousands of e-mails and other electronic communications between Americans as part of a now-discontinued collection program, according to a 2011 secret court opinion.

Disney's ESPN Holds Preliminary Talks for Web-Based TV  —  Walt Disney Co. (DIS)'s ESPN sports network has held preliminary talks to offer programming on a Web-based TV service like those proposed by Google Inc. (GOOG), Sony Corp. and Intel Corp. (INTC)  —  An Internet TV provider …

Yahoo, Foursquare In Talks Over Data Partnership  —  Foursquare sells a lot of ads, but the biggest upside for the location-sharing start-up may be in selling its data.  And sources say Yahoo is interested.  Foursquare, once criticized for not being able to figure out a business, may have finally struck gold deep in its data centers.

Yahoo #1 Web Property Again In US, First Time Since Early 2008 [Updated with comScore Statement]  —  ComScore just released its monthly Top 50 US Web properties list today.  I've generally stopped looking at this list.  But it was pointed out to me that Yahoo is back at number one.

Apple poaches Levi's Senior VP for U.S. Retail as search for chief continues  —  Apple has poached Enrique Atienza from Levi Strauss, a global clothing sales powerhouse, to become a top director for its U.S. Retail market, according to sources with knowledge of the hire.

Embedded Posts Now Available to Everyone  —  We introduced Embedded Posts in July to make it easy for publishers to add any public post from Facebook to their blog or web site.  Today, we're excited to make Embedded Posts available to everyone.  We've also added several enhancements based on feedback from our launch partners.

C is for Choices  —  I have to admit, it was a bit of a thrill breaking the news to the western world of the latest iPhone leak: … Still, it really wasn't anything new (although I did learn the reason for dual flash), and certainly nothing of strategic import. … So let's analyze.

Telepathy raises $5 million to develop Google Glass rival  —  The Silicon Valley startup uses the funding to hire new engineers for its wearable, programmable computing device.  —  CNET's Scott Stein wearing the prototype Telepathy One headset along with his regular glasses.

Linux Hackers Rebuild Internet From Silicon Valley Garage  —  Alex Polvi is living the great Silicon Valley archetype.  Together with some old school friends, he's piecing together a tech revolution from inside a two-car Palo Alto garage.  —  He's like Dave Packard or Steve Jobs or Sergey Brin — at least up to a point.

Millions stolen from US banks after ‘wire payment switch’ targeted  —  Three banks plundered with DDoS distraction.  —  Criminals have recently hijacked the wire payment switch at several US banks to steal millions from accounts, a security analyst says.  —  Gartner vice president Avivah Litan …

Google Glass finds fellow traveler in Field Trip  —  The Field Trip app for exploring and learning about your surroundings launches a Glassware app for a more hands-free approach to real-world discovery.  —  Self-guided smartphone tours just got a lot more hands-free, as the Field Trip app …

GM to Offer Smartphones Wireless Charging in 2014 Cars  —  General Motors Co. (GM), the largest U.S. automaker, will start offering wireless charging for smartphones in some vehicles next year, said Ran Poliakine, chief executive officer of Powermat Technologies Ltd.

Insight: At Apple, Tim Cook leads a quiet cultural revolution  —  (Reuters) - Shortly after signing on as chief operating officer at Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg was looking to connect with people in a similar role - No. 2 to a brilliant and passionate young founder.  She called Tim Cook.

Amid Executive Changes, HP Posts Declining Q3 Revenue Of $27.2B As Its PC Division Weakens  —  Today HP announced its third-quarter financial performance, including revenue of $27.2 billion, down 8 percent year over year.  The company earned $0.86 per share on a non-GAAP basis.

Orb Networks shuts down after being acquired by Qualcomm in May  —  Oakland, Calif.-based media streaming startup Orb Networks has been acquired by Qualcomm, and is now winding down its operations in the coming months.  A notice on Orb's home page, first spotted by Engadget …

Neighborhood network Nextdoor takes up residence on Android  —  Neighbors can now use their Android smartphones to exchange critical information, swap last-minute baking needs, and get police updates.  —  Bring on the muffin baskets.  Nextdoor, a private social network …

With $1M In New Funding, Betterfly Launches Live Video Platform Tailored To Online Learning  —  Chicago-based self-improvement startup Betterfly has been connecting teachers and students in real life for music lessons, relationship coaching, juggling instruction and just about anything you can imagine.

Facebook's quest for a more efficient mobile internet starts in its own backyard  —  It's funny that Facebook has suddenly found religion when it comes to making the mobile internet a more streamlined and less wasteful place.  Mobile data efficiency has hardly been its priority in developing its own apps in the past.