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Banking on software, services and cost controls, International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), the No. 2 computer company, is expected to report improved second-quarter earnings despite a decline in revenue.

Second-quarter earnings season heads into full swing next week. The results will provide guidance on how much the global slowdown is affecting U.S. companies.

Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL), the No. 1 database developer, said it will acquire Involver, a five-year-old social media software developer, its third sector acquisition in three months.

The late King Hussein of Jordan titled his autobiography ?Uneasy Lies the Head.? That could be the title Thorsten Heins, CEO of Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM), the ailing BlackBerry developer, could use for his book, too.

As investors await second-quarter earnings from leading technology companies, several warning signs indicate that save for special cases, it won?t be a blow-out.

Consider BlackBerry developer Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM): is it in a ?death spiral? or a tarnished diamond that with better management can be revived for a bright future?

Since its May 17 pricing at $38 a share, the stunning collapse in the value of Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) the No. 1 social networking site has made history ? for its sheer size and magnitude.The IPO market remains weak.

Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, may introduce a smaller version of the iPad to compete with products from Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), the No. 1 search engine, and Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN), the No. 1 e-retailer and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), reports said.

Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), the No. 3 PC maker, said it would acquire Quest Software (Nasdaq: QSFT) for $2.4 billion, topping a bid by private equity firms working with its CEO.

Now that we?ve passed through the first half of 2012, it?s time to reflect on some technology events and anticipate what might be ahead. Maybe we can make a few predictions.

Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, has posted a $2.6 million bond with a U.S. district court to enforce an injunction against its supplier and rival Samsung Electronics (Seoul: 005930).

The Supreme Court?s ruling to uphold the Affordable Health Care Act will likely benefit the technology industry, from computer services providers like Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) to medical electronics makers like Agilent Technologies (NYSE: A).

Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL), the largest company on earth by stock-market value, again took the top spot in Barron's annual survey of corporate respect.

Troubled BlackBerry developer Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM), once the king of the smartphone hill with business, is scheduled to report first-quarter results after Thursday?s close.

Padmasree Warrior, the veteran chief technology officer for Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO), the No. 1 provider of Internet equipment, will now also run the company?s strategy office.

Apple wants to protect us from Big Brother, and it has invented a useful clone making technology to do so. The patent, which is designed to throw government agencies and businesses off the scent of individual, private citizens, describes a unique method to help users keep their personal information hidden in cyberspace by creating false clones of personal information, which are stored and executed via your iCloud ID.

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), the world's biggest software company, said it will acquire Yammer, a social network specialist, for $1.2 billion, to battle Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) and Google (Nasdaq: GOOG).

Cyberdefense specialists in the U.S. and Israel collaborated on the so-called ?Flame? malware that caused havoc with Iran?s nuclear reactors, a top engineer has said.

Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, has won a small victory in its battle against rival and supplier Samsung Electronics (Seoul: 005930).

International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), the No. 2 computer maker, ranks first among supercomputer makers in the 2012 rankings compiled by U.S. and German experts.

Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL), the No. 1 database developer, reported full-year revenue rose 4 percent to $37.2 billion -- with revenue from the Cloud, or Internet-based computing, reaching a record $1 billion.

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), the world's biggest software company, introduced its first tablet, Surface, to battle Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) in the tablet sector

Despite the clamor around Facebook (Nasdaq: FB), the No. 1 social networking site, the real king of the social networking sector is International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), a new survey by IDC found.

Are U.S. technology companies fast-growing enterprises or are they banks? In a time when banks are enduring federal ?stress tests? of their ability to withstand a crisis, the tech sector seems to be rolling in money.

So the financial crisis, Europe's inability to act in a big way to address its fiscal issues, and endless partisan bickering in Washington between Democrats and Republicans have prompted you to swear off stocks? Well, one school of thought argues, Panicking never made anyone a dime.

After 28 years, Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), the No. 3 computer company, plans to pay shareholders a small dividend, 8 cents a quarter. Later this year, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, will resume paying dividends after 17 years.

Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), the No. 3 computer maker, announced its first quarterly dividend of 8 cents a share as a way to reduce some of its $17.2 billion cash pile.

By making the Internet universal and ubiquitous, though, technology also eroded corporate control. No longer will International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) or Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) completely control everything in their networks, despite their networks of worldwide data centers.

Speculation swirls that the current smartphone leader may be buying onetime mobile phones king.