Noticias de Blogs Asociados

December 29, 2007

SlashDot : Adobe Quietly Monitoring Software Use? henrypijames writes "For months, users of Adobe Creative Suite 3 have been wondering why some of the applications regularly connect to what looks like a private IP address but is actually a public domain address belonging to the web analytics company Omniture. Now allegations of user spying are getting louder, prompting Adobe Photoshop product manager John Nack to respond, though many remain unsatisfied with his explanation." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 09:39 PM

Engadget.com : German receives prototype Pleo, hacked up box Filed under: Robots After waiting for what seems like ages, we can imagine just how excited one would be to finally receive that beautiful brown shipping container with their very own Pleo tucked within. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on perspective) for one particular German, an unspecified retailer sent out what appears to be a prototype dino, complete with a pieced together box that once held a fax machine. Interestingly, it seems the lucky recipient is rather perturbed by the incident, but being the optimistic crew that we are, we'd actually hang on to this thing for bragging rights or discover its true value courtesy of eBay. Hit the read link for a few more shots. [Thanks, Jared C.]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 09:07 PM

Engadget.com : Reminder: win two round trip tickets on JetBlue + noise canceling headphones Filed under: Announcements, Transportation It's still not too late to win a pair of round trip tickets to any JetBlue destination, plus that pair of noise canceling headphones. You've got until New Years day to enter, but know we wouldn't trust ourselves with such a valuable task on that particular day, so just hit up the read link now for the contest rules and enter while you're still in possession of all your faculties.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 09:06 PM

SlashDot : Linux And Unix Devices Popular On Amazon's 'Best of '07' List christian.einfeldt writes "Computers and handheld devices running default GNU Linux or Unix OSes have swept Amazon's 'best of' list for 2007, according BusinessWire.com for 28 December 2007. Best selling computer? The Nokia Internet Tablet PC, running Linux. Best reviewed computer? The Apple MacBook Pro notebook PC. Most wished for computer? Asus Eee 4G-Galaxy 7-inch PC mobile Internet device, which comes with Xandros Linux pre-installed. And last, but not least, the most frequently gifted computer: The Apple MacBook notebook PC." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 08:41 PM

Engadget.com : Nintendo's DS overtakes PlayStation 2 in lifetime Japanese sales Filed under: Gaming We already knew Nintendo's DS was quite the popular handheld, and while the PSP recently overtook it in Japanese hardware sales, the most recent numbers show that the Big N's famed DS has actually rocketed above the mighty PlayStation 2 in lifetime sales (in Japan). Notably, the numbers do combine DS and DS Lite units, but there's no mention of how the systems stack up worldwide. Nevertheless, the feat is a fairly impressive one when you consider how much longer the PS2 has been available compared to the DS, and unless Sony somehow lightens the PS2 load even further and starts bundling them in with cereals, we doubt it will reclaim the top spot anytime soon. [Via DSFanboy, thanks J]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 08:32 PM

Engadget.com : Slew of Penryn laptops shown off from Acer, Sony and Fujitsu-Siemens Filed under: Laptops We already saw the Amilo Xi 2550 from Fujitsu-Siemens, but if you thought that was the only mobile Penryn-based lappie you'd see prior to January 6th, you've got another a few more things coming. Spotted over at Notebook Italia, we've got five new Acer Aspires (2920, 4920, 5920, 7720 and 9920), a pair of new Acer Travelmates (6492 and 6592G), a couple of Fujitsu-Siemens (the aforementioned Amilo Pi Amilo Xi 2550 and the 2428) and four new Sony VAIOs (FZ31, SZ71, CR31 and AR61) -- all of which will be housing that Penryn goodness when they launch. As you can imagine, there's far too many specs between the 13 new machines to cover in this space, but feel free to tag the links below for all the details on each. Read - Fujitsu-Siemens Read - Acer Aspires Read - Acer Travelmates Read - Sony VAIOs   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 08:05 PM

wired - tech news : Extreme Weather Is the Norm in 2007 Oddball weather is the norm in 2007. As the year draws to a close, it's shaping up to be the hottest year on record in the Northern Hemisphere. Most alarming to climate scientists, the Arctic, which serves as the world's refrigerator, dramatically warmed in 2007, shattering records for the amount of melting ice.

December 29, 2007 07:45 PM

wired - top news : Extreme Weather Is the Norm in 2007 Oddball weather is the norm in 2007. As the year draws to a close, it's shaping up to be the hottest year on record in the Northern Hemisphere. Most alarming to climate scientists, the Arctic, which serves as the world's refrigerator, dramatically warmed in 2007, shattering records for the amount of melting ice.

December 29, 2007 07:45 PM

SlashDot : Communities of Mutants Form as DNA Testing Grows GeneRegulator writes "The NY Times is running a story on communities that are forming around kids with rare genetic mutations. New technology that can scan chromosomes for small errors is being applied first to children with autism and other 'unexplained developmental delays.' It turns out that many of them have small deletions or duplications of DNA. Meanwhile, hundreds of little groups are forming around the banner of their children's shared mutations. As new research shows that many of us have small deletions and duplications of DNA that separate us from our parents, and that many of these "copy number variants" contribute to skills and senses, the families described in the story may presage the formation of all sorts of 'communities of the genetically rare' in the general population, not just amongst the developmentally delayed." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 07:31 PM

wired - top news : Ancient Baby Mammoth Lands in Japan The frozen carcass of a 37,000-year-old baby mammoth unearthed this summer in Siberia arrives in Japan for tests that researchers hope will shed new light on the internal structure of the ancient beasts.

December 29, 2007 07:30 PM

wired - tech news : Ancient Baby Mammoth Lands in Japan The frozen carcass of a 37,000-year-old baby mammoth unearthed this summer in Siberia arrives in Japan for tests that researchers hope will shed new light on the internal structure of the ancient beasts.

December 29, 2007 07:30 PM

News.com : New security rules for batteries on planes You might want to pack carefully for your next flight. Rules that take effect January 1 ban travelers from carrying loose lithium batteries in checked baggage.

December 29, 2007 07:24 PM

Engadget.com : Robotic artist does portraits, hoping to get into nudes Filed under: Robots A totally ingenious robotics researcher named Sylvain Calinon has created what might be the perfect storm of art and science -- a robot that can recognize and then draw portraits of human subjects. The bot, named HOAP-3, is able to distinguish a human face, take a still frame of that image, and then create a drawing by (robotic) hand based on what it sees. The demonstration is a part of designer Calinon's research into creating robots which can learn through imitation, or in scenarios where they must react to humans. Unfortunately for us fleshpiles, it's only a matter of time before this thing starts doing hilarious caricatures accentuating our worst features. Watch the robot work in the amazing video after the break, and check the read link for a lot more information on the HOAP-3 project. [Via technabob] Continue reading Robotic artist does portraits, hoping to get into nudes   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 07:02 PM

osdir : Netscape Navigator Project Dies Feb 1 2008 From the A Good Death dept.: Netscape Navigator, now owned by AOL, will no longer be supported after 1 February 2008, the company has said. In the mid-1990s the browser was used by more than 90% of the web population, but numbers have slipped to just 0.6%.

December 29, 2007 07:00 PM

wired - top news : Ivy League Universities Open Courses to All Online An MIT initiative called "OpenCourseWare" makes virtually all the school's courses available online for free, and more than 100 universities worldwide, including Johns Hopkins, Tufts and Notre Dame, are joining MIT in a consortium of schools promoting their own open courseware.

December 29, 2007 07:00 PM

wired - culture news : Ivy League Universities Open Courses to All Online An MIT initiative called "OpenCourseWare" makes virtually all the school's courses available online for free, and more than 100 universities worldwide, including Johns Hopkins, Tufts and Notre Dame, are joining MIT in a consortium of schools promoting their own open courseware.

December 29, 2007 07:00 PM

wired - tech news : Ivy League Universities Open Courses to All Online An MIT initiative called "OpenCourseWare" makes virtually all the school's courses available online for free, and more than 100 universities worldwide, including Johns Hopkins, Tufts and Notre Dame, are joining MIT in a consortium of schools promoting their own open courseware.

December 29, 2007 07:00 PM

SlashDot : Trekkie Sues Christie's for Fradulent Props Token_Internet_Girl passed us a link to an MSNBC article on a very disappointed Star Trek fan. Mr. Moustakis of NJ bought a poker visor he thought was worn by Data in Next Generation at a Christie's auction for some $6,000. When he brought it to a convention to have it signed, actor Brent Spiner explained that he'd already sold the well-known visor in a personal sale; like Senator Vreenak, Moustakis had been given a fake. "Christie's spokesman Rik Pike stood behind the authenticity of the auction and said the disgruntled buyer's case had no merit. The lawsuit, filed in state court in Manhattan, demands millions of dollars in punitive damages and a refund for the visor and two other items Moustakis bought at the 2006 auction." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 06:30 PM

Engadget.com : Images of Pentax's K200D DSLR surface? Filed under: Digital Cameras Just over a month ago, we got word that Pentax could be readying a pair of new DSLRs, and now it seems that we've been blessed with a plethora of shots of the K200D. 'Course, we suppose they could be doctored, but we just don't believe someone would spend that much time working up Pentax fakes, ya know? Regardless, feel free to hit the read link and check out what's probably the outfit's next shooter -- or some mighty fine 'shops, worst case scenario. [Via Photography Bay]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 06:05 PM

SlashDot : Writers Guild Members Look to Internet Distribution stevedcc writes "The Guardian is running an article about members of the Writer's Guild, still on strike, creating their own ventures to deliver content over the internet. The intention is to get their work to consumers while bypassing the movie studios. Their effort will include actors and directors, and it is not the first step they have taken to expand their interests during the strike. One particular project is said to include A-list talent, and will be released in roughly 50 daily segments before going to DVD. This is also relevant to the strike because, as the article states, 'at the core of the current dispute is the question of how to reimburse writers for work that is distributed on the internet.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 05:24 PM

Engadget.com : Venturer SHD7001 goes on sale in UK for 170 pounds Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment Right on cue, the Venturer SHD7001 HD DVD player has gone on sale via QVC UK, and while all the specs look exactly as we predicted they would, the price is a hair lower than we expected. Pegged at £169.92 ($338) -- or available for two easy payments of £84.96 -- this 1080i player comes packaged with Troy and Hulk, an HDMI cable and eligibility for five other free flicks. Notably, this is QVC's "Special Value" of the day, so there's a good chance that the price will increase after the unit's first 24 hours on sale, but at least those interested in a cheap HD DVD player (and located across the pond) can snap it up now and save a few pounds over the alternatives. [Via RegHardware]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 05:17 PM

Engadget.com : VidaBox's 10.4-inch vPad controls your home Filed under: Home Entertainment This one's been around the block for a bit, but it's just now managed to sneak up on us. The VidaBox vPad comes from the same firm offering up those swank CableCARD-equipped HTPCs, and this home controller shares that very same pizazz. The 10.4-inch tablet rocks a 1,024 x 768 resolution panel, integrated 802.11b WiFi, a built-in speaker and a rechargeable Li-ion good for around 2.5 hours. As expected, this unit enables owners to control multi-room audio, climate zones, security cameras, garage doors and WiFi-enabled toasters, we presume. 'Course, you'll need Mirage software for VidaBox control or your own home automation hardware to really take advantage of the vPad, and unfortunately, we've no pricing / release details to share just yet. [Thanks, JoeyChina]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 05:07 PM

SlashDot : Necessity of Dark Energy Questioned ttnuagmada points us to an article about scientist David Wiltshire's suggestion that theorized dark energy is not needed to describe the expansion of the universe. His work challenges assumptions made about the distribution of matter in the universe. Early solutions to general relativity were based on a "smooth distribution" of matter. Wiltshire's approach focuses on a "lumpy" dispersal, which more accurately fits data from modern studies. We have discussed other theories about dark energy in the past. Quoting: "Through observational projects like the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the 2 Degree Field survey, we now have a much better picture of the large-scale structure of the universe and we know that galaxies are not uniformly distributed. 'Rather, they are in clusters sprinkled thinly in filaments and "bubble walls" surrounding huge voids hundreds of millions of light-years across,' Wiltshire says. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 04:21 PM

Engadget.com : Half of US households own a digital television Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment We already learned that some 28-percent of US households were rocking at least one HDTV back in March, but now the Consumer Electronics Association has come forward with new figures showing that over half of American abodes are home to a digital television. According to revamped CEA projections, around 32 million DTV units will ship out next year, with 79-percent of those being HD sets. 'Course, the downside of this is that a good chunk of America still isn't prepared for the DTV cutover in 2009, but thanks to all the advertising that will likely be taking place over the next year and change, we'd say they've got plenty of time to get on board.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 04:09 PM

SlashDot : Jack Thompson Claiming Games Industry in Collusion with DoD mytrip brings us a Wired blog about Jack Thompson's recent press release, which claims an "unholy alliance" exists between the gaming industry and the U.S. Department of Defense. Game Politics also has a discussion of Thompson's main points. From Wired: "Jim Blank, the head of the modeling and simulation division of the U.S. Joint Forces Command, says that commercial games don't meet the demand of the military, adding, 'first-person shooter games really don't apply in this environment.' Blank's point is that game-like simulations are a valuable tool for training soldiers in situations that would be too expensive to simulate in reality." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 03:19 PM

Engadget.com : SNES CD development controller on eBay for a mint Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals Ah, eBay. Home to some of the rarest, most incredible devices known (and previously unknown) to man. On the docket today is a stupendously rare, unreleased development controller for use with the SNES CD dev kit. Yep, a unreleased controller for an unreleased system -- pretty much a collector's dream. Unfortunately, the controller alone won't do you very much good beyond hooking you up with unbelievable bragging rights, but unless you've got $2,999.99 (at least) to blow, the above picture is close as you'll get to this treasure. [Via NintendoWiiFanboy]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 03:03 PM

SlashDot : Solar Tree Bears Fruit Hugh Pickens writes "A prototype solar tree that recently went on display on a busy street in Vienna, Austria has passed a key test by providing light during the night-time even when the sun had been blocked by clouds for four days in a row. The branches of the solar tree were decorated with 10 solar lamps, each one powered by 36 solar cells. The tree included rechargeable batteries and electronic systems to measure the amount of light in the atmosphere and trigger the solar lamps to go on. 'Not just trees but other objects could be decorated with solar cells and so keep streets well lit at night time,' said Christina Werner from Cultural Project Management. Google uses a similar concept to light their parking lots with 3,000 solar panels that provide up to 10 percent of the Googleplex's power demand. We discussed Google's solar initiative last year." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 02:22 PM

Engadget.com : USB flash drive payment system hits South Korea Filed under: Misc. Gadgets We've definitely seen some outlandish attempts at improving or outright replacing the humble credit card, but South Koreans will soon be able pay for purchases using the most easy-to-lose system we've seen yet -- by inserting a special USB flash drive into a slot. The system, which is being rolled out by Shinhan Card and VIsa, also lets users pay for online purchases by sticking the drive into their computers' USB ports, and Shinhan is also rolling out new terminals that will enable contactless payments using the device as well. Of course, the drive itself is locked down tighter than a drum, but we still aren't convinced a bulky flash drive is a better option than phone-based or biometric payment systems. [Via The Raw Feed]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 01:56 PM

SlashDot : Florida Election Ballots to be Printed On-Demand davidwr writes "The St. Petersburg, FL, Times reports that Florida is going back to paper ballots, but with a twist. They are printing the ballots on-demand, right there at the polling booth. This isn't machine-assisted voting where a touch-screen fills in your printed ballot for you. It's just a way to save printing costs and reduce paper waste. 'Without ballot on demand, poll workers at 13 early Hillsborough voting sites would need to stockpile stacks of every possible ballot type. With ballot on demand, poll workers can print out a person's distinct ballot type when he or she arrives to vote.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 01:20 PM

Barrapunto : AOL da por finalizado el desarrollo de Netscape acortiz nos cuenta: «Leo en The Inquirer y en la BBC que AOL ha cancelado oficialmente el desarrollo de Netscape Navigator. Aunque todavía se podrán descargar versiones archivadas para nostálgicos, esto significa el punto final en la aventura de AOL para revivir a un viejo titán, el primer navegador web comercial, cuya vida en este súper cafeinado mundo TI ha alcanzado apenas 15 años.»

December 29, 2007 01:12 PM

Engadget.com : Sega Toys Brain Checker keeps you on your toes Filed under: Handhelds Though we don't believe this to be one of those "mind-controlled tech toys" Sega Toys was working on, it's pretty evident that it will give your mind a workout. From what we can tell, the Brain Checker is a standalone gizmo designed to stretch your mental muscles with a myriad puzzles, but most everything beyond that is lost in translation. We do know, however, that it can be had in Japan for around ¥5,775 ($51), but who knows if it'll make it's way to any other corners of the globe. [Via Technabob]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 12:15 PM

SlashDot : New Jersey Bars Sex Offenders From the Internet eldavojohn writes "New Jersey just passed legislation making it illegal for sex offenders to use the internet. NJ congresswoman Linda D. Greenstein said, 'When Megan's Law was enacted, few could envision a day when a sex offender hiding behind a fake screen name would be a mouse-click away from new and unwitting victims. Sex offenders cannot be given an opportunity to abuse the anonymity the Internet can provide as a means of opening a door to countless new potential victims.' While they still can search for jobs, this is a major expansion over the prior legislation which barred them from social networking sites like facebook or myspace." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 11:22 AM

Barrapunto : 50 años con Fortran Alginros nos cuenta: «Hace muchos años, cuando programar las máquinas que facilitaban el cálculo de científicos era un auténtico latazo, surgió la idea de crear un lenguaje que fuera más sencillo de comprender. De más alto nivel. Por ello,en 1954 un equipo de investigadores de IBM al frente de John Backus se lanzaron a la creación de Fortran y crearon el primer lenguaje de alto nivel. Con motivo de este 50 aniversario, he querido hacer un pequeño homenaje en mi blog que rememore este importante hecho para la computación. Supuso un antes y un después en los lenguajes de programación y por ello se merece todo nuesto respeto.» Recordemos que este año murió John Backus, su creador.

December 29, 2007 10:54 AM

Barrapunto : Publicada la LISI El Boletín Oficial del Estado publica hoy la Ley de Medidas de Impulso de la Sociedad de la Información (PDF), también conocida por LISI, que ha sido objeto de un amplio debate en la Red. La ley entrará en vigor de forma inmediata, salvo en lo relativo a: Las obligaciones de información sobre seguridad, que entrarán en vigor a los tres meses de la publicación en el BOE. La obligación de disponer de un medio de interlocución telemática para la prestación de servicios al público de especial trascendencia económica, que entrará en vigor a los doce meses. La posibilidad de sancionar con a arreglo a la LOPD determinados incumplimientos de la Ley de ordenación del comercio minorista.

December 29, 2007 10:28 AM

Engadget.com : Tata Motors' $2,500 1-Lakh car gets detailed Filed under: Transportation Remember that uber-cheap, almost entirely plastic car that India's Tata Motors was working up? Turns out, the still codenamed 1-Lakh automobile is expected to launch in mid-2008 and get around 15 miles-per-liter, which should give the Maruti 800 some serious competition in the budget car arena. According to R. A. Mashelkar, a nonexecutive director on Tata Motors' board, it should provide ample room in "both the front and rear" for a six-foot individual, and he also noted that a "new kind of welding" would be used instead of bolts in a variety of locations on the motorcar. Still, there's just something about the idea of riding in a brand new $2,500 vehicle that doesn't sit well with us -- probably something to do with the dearth of safety features, but who knows.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 10:22 AM

SlashDot : The Death of High Fidelity Ponca City, We Love You writes "Rolling Stone has an interesting story on how record producers alter the way they mix albums to compensate for the limitations of MP3 sound. Much of the information left out during MP3 compression is at the very high and low ends, which is why some MP3s sound flat. Without enough low end, 'you don't get the punch anymore. It decreases the punch of the kick drum and how the speaker gets pushed when the guitarist plays a power chord.' The inner ear automatically compresses blasts of high volume to protect itself, so we associate compression with loudness. After a few minutes, constant loudness grows fatiguing to the brain. Though few listeners realize this consciously, many feel an urge to skip to another song." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 09:21 AM

Engadget.com : iPhone firmware 1.1.3 leaked? Filed under: Cellphones Looks like there may have been a possible leak of the next version of Apple's iPhone firmware, 1.1.3. According to Gear Live, it can now handle SMS to multiple recipients, the springboard (home screen) supports reordered icons and pagination (as well as web bookmarks), and Google maps gets hybrid view and that nifty cell-based location system. If this is all Steve plans to announce iPhone-wise at Macworld next month, we think there will be more than a few disappointed iPhone users out there. Then again, home screen pagination would kind of imply an SDK to make use of all those slots, so maybe the real news is under the hood. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 09:03 AM

Engadget.com : Netscape finally bows out, browsers no longer supported Filed under: Misc. Gadgets Although Netscape was once a mighty pioneer in the world of internet browsers, it didn't take long for Microsoft's Internet Explorer to overtake it and squash its dreams of market dominance. Granted, we highly (and we stress "highly") doubt any viewers reading this now are relying on Netscape Navigator as their primary browser, but seeing it finally bow out is a bit surreal. According to a post on the Netscape Blog, support (and subsequent updates) for it will no longer be provided by AOL (disclosure: AOL is our parent company's parent) after February 1, 2008. Sure, old versions will still be available for those who just hate to move on, but the team is suggesting that any remaining Netscape users (a show of hands, anyone?) make the leap to Firefox, and they even point you in the direction of a Netscape theme should you find yourself uncomfortable with change. Rest in peace, dear Netscape -- it's about time that last heap of dirt was finally flung. [Via BlogRunner]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 08:09 AM

SlashDot : Snortable Drug 'Replaces' Sleep For Monkeys In Trials sporkme writes "A DARPA-funded research project at UCLA has wrapped up a set of animal trials testing the effects of inhalation of the brain chemical orexin A, a deficiency of which is a characteristic of narcolepsy. Monkeys were deprived of sleep, and then given a shot of the compound. 'The study ... found orexin A not only restored monkeys' cognitive abilities but made their brains look "awake" in PET scans. Siegel said that orexin A is unique in that it only had an impact on sleepy monkeys, not alert ones, and that it is 'specific in reversing the effects of sleepiness' without other impacts on the brain.' Researchers seem cautious to bill the treatment as a replacement for sleep, as it is not clear that adjusting brain chemistry could have the same physical benefits of real sleep in the long run. The drug is aimed at replacing amphetamines used by drowsy long-haul military pilots, but there would no doubt be large demand for such a remedy thanks to its apparent lack of side-effects." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 07:43 AM

Engadget.com : Virtual doormen becoming more ubiquitous Filed under: Misc. Gadgets Amazingly enough, virtual doormen aren't exactly new, but it seems that they're becoming entirely more ubiquitous (and accepted) in today's society. Increasingly, more and more apartment dwellers are coming home to voices in the wall rather than a physical life form, but virtual doormen can still let tenants into their room, allow deliveries to be made and keep disgruntled in-laws out. As you'd expect, these firms rely primarily on an internet connection, a webcam and a couple of microphones, and while typical services can range from "$10,000 to $70,000 for installation and $6,000 to $30,000 in annual maintenance," that still beats the $250,000 or so it would purportedly take for a small building to be staffed with full-time, on-site doormen. The next evolutionary step? Androids answering the buzz, and subsequent hacks to gain entry into any room you please. [Via ChipChick]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 06:48 AM

SlashDot : Intelligent Software Agents - Are We Ready? Anti-Luddite writes In an article on the Internet Evolution site, analyst Tom Nolle discusses the potential of 'Intelligent Software Agent (ISA)' technology. He points to specific types such as 'search assistant ISAs,' which will inevitably flop before their potential is realized. He speaks favorably of the 'mobile ISA' which he says, 'involves dispatching mobile agents from one computer and delivering them to a remote computer for execution.' While hailing the potential of this new generation of agent technology, Nolle seems skeptical about our ability to prepare for and handle its emergence, particularly because of flaws in the agent research community." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 05:33 AM

Engadget.com : Crapgadget: USB donut, cube speakers, rose microphone, terrible PMPs Filed under: Misc. Gadgets The lull before the craptacular gadget storm that is CES continues this week, but nothing will ever stop our inbox from filling up with hastily-designed and poorly-implemented gadgets. That's right, it's another edition of our newest running series, Crapgadget, in which tedium is lightly battered and fried to a crisp, delicious rage. Enjoy the crap out of this, okay? We nearly gouged our eyes out in the making. Read - Strawberry Donut USB flash drive: Direct quote from the website: "everything you desire in the ear of customized flash storage solutions." Yep, anyone who pays $50 for this thing is definitely getting something in the ear. Read - Tiny USB cube speaker: How else to annoy everyone around you, while still remaining unable to hear anything? [Via Technabob] Read - Venus JXD305 PMP: Take one part iPhone, two parts HTC, and one part miniSD-only storage and stir -- voila, not quite KIRF enough. [Via PMP Today] Read - Rose USB Microphone: Too cheap to spring for a Jawbone and real roses? Why not go for the rare combined epic fail? Read - AMV-format only PMP: Finally, a generic Chinese PMP that allows us to watch all of our AMV-format video on the go. Our dreams are now reality. [Via PMP Today]   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 04:33 AM

Engadget.com : Returned DAP gets resold with loads of porn Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video We've seen returned / resold DAPs (among other things) ruin celebrations before, but we're inclined to say that this episode is a tad more disheartening than receiving a couple of rock-filled iPod boxes. Reportedly, an unspecified MP3 player purchased in a Tennessee Wal-Mart was wrapped and given as a Christmas present to a 10-year old daughter, but upon connecting said player to a computer, heaps of pornographic material and explicit songs were discovered. According to a Wally World spokesperson, stores aren't supposed to "return opened packages to the sales floor," but given that it already happened, the matter will purportedly be "investigated." [Via TGDaily]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 03:31 AM

SlashDot : Microsoft Deprecating Some OOXML Functionality christian.einfeldt writes "According to open standards advocate Russell Ossendryver, Microsoft will be deprecating certain functionality in its Microsoft Office Open XML specification. Ossendryver says the move is an attempt to quiet critics of the specification in the run up to the crucial February ISO vote. The Microsoft-led industry standards group formally offering OOXML confirms in a 21 December 2007 announcement that issues related to the 'leap year bug', VML, compatibility settings such as 'AutoSpaceLikeWord95' and others will be 'extracted from the main specification and relocated to an independent annex in DIS 29500 for deprecated functionality.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 03:28 AM

Engadget.com : Sony offering free PlayStation 3 with HDTV purchase Filed under: Gaming, HDTV That's right, babies. We've seen Sony play this hand in other parts of our great big world, and now the S-gang is bringing this sweet bacon on home... er, to the States. According to a promotion we've caught wind of, if you get yourself approved for the Sony Visa, then promptly purchase a Sony HDTV at the Sony Rewards store (out of a pool of models from the BRAVIA and SXRD lines), the good folks at Sony will throw a free PlayStation 3 your way. Of course, there's a few hoops you have to jump through, the deal ends on December 31st, and obviously you'll need a half-decent credit score, but if the suits approve your transaction, this is a pretty solid deal. Hit the read link for all the info -- just make sure you read the fine print. [Thanks, Stephen]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 02:28 AM

Engadget.com : Marantz announces VP-11S2 1080p DLP projector Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment Marantz is jumping back into the display pool for 2008, announcing the new VP-11S2 model 1080p DLP projector. Compared to last year's VP-11S1H, this model adds a second HDMI 1.3 input, and Texas Instrument's DarkChip4 chipset, boosting it up to 800 lumens of brightness and a 12,000:1 contrast ratio. No price was released, but considering the previous models hover in the $15,000 price range, we expect no less quality -- or cost -- from this one either.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 02:05 AM

osdir : Debian GNU/Linux Etch 4.0 Update From the Original Ubuntu dept.: The Debian project is pleased to announce the second update of its stable distribution Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 (codename etch). This update mainly adds corrections for security problems to the stable release, along with a few adjustment to serious problems.

December 29, 2007 02:00 AM

SlashDot : RIAA-fighting Maine Law Professor Speaks Out NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "In an interview with Jon Newton of p2pnet, Prof. Deirdre Smith of the University of Maine says that 'our students are enthusiastic about being directly connected to a case with a national scope and significance'. The UM Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic is the first law school legal clinic in the U.S. to have taken on the RIAA, to have the opportunity for hands-on experience fighting the RIAA's effort to rewrite copyright law. Smith went on to say that the case is probably one of the first intellectual property cases the clinic has ever taken on, and that if it proceeds further, she expects to also 'draw on the considerable expertise in IP among members of our faculty and the Maine Center for Law and Innovation, another program of the Law School'. " Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 29, 2007 01:29 AM

Engadget.com : Arizona, New York, Washington, and Vermont all pledge to beef up ID security Filed under: Misc. Gadgets It's been a while since we've heard anything about the much-hated Real ID unified RFID national identification card, but that doesn't mean the Department of Homeland Security has been sitting still: New York, Arizona, Washington, and Vermont all agreed earlier this month to beef up the security of driver's licenses to comply with DHS' new Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. WHTI is the same fun law that requires US citizens carry a passport to travel to Canada and Mexico, and while it's not clear if it requires RFID licenses for states to comply, eWeek is reporting that both New York and Washington are headed towards including the tags anyway. Given the immense backlash Real ID came under for similar schemes, it'll be interesting to see how WHTI plays out -- but you can bet we're holding onto the janky laminated driver's license we got in college as long as we can. [Via Autoblog]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 29, 2007 01:02 AM

Barrapunto : China bloquea la entrada de películas estadounidenses Dicen en el Variety del 5 de diciembre que China está bloqueando deliberadamente la entrada de películas de Hollywood por razones diplomáticas y económicas hasta después del Año Nuevo chino en febrero o incluso mayo. China mantiene una cuota para la importación de 20 películas extranjeras. En el lucrativo mes de diciembre la China Films Group Corporation suele evitar que haya competencia para el producto nacional, pero parece que esto es más serio. Es difícil saber qué pasa exactamente porque no es necesario que el bloqueo sea publicado formalmente para que exista y puede levantarse súbitamente. Variety especula que la causa puede ser ofensas diplomáticas percibidas por los chinos o la presión de los estudios contra la piratería en China. Puede que el bloqueo se levante cuando las ediciones piratas hayan quitado espectadores o cuando la gente esté distraída con los juegos olímpicos de Pekín.

December 29, 2007 12:02 AM

December 28, 2007

Engadget.com : New Tesla CEO takes it upon himself to explain Roadster delays Filed under: Transportation We've already had a pretty good idea of the reasons for delays with Tesla Motors' all-electric Roadster vehicle, but it looks like the company's new CEO, Ze'ev Drori, is now trying to set the record straight himself, with him recently posting a fairly lengthy letter addressing the matter on the company's blog. That letter is apparently the very same one that was sent to buyers of the car earlier this month and, as you might have guessed if you've been following this thing as closely as we have, it pegs most of the blame on the car's transmission troubles. As we previously reported, that has forced Tesla to ship the roadster with a temporary transmission, which is apparently slower than the final version, but assuredly safe. Drori also confirms that the company will begin full production of the vehicle in the spring of 2008, and that while they plan to ramp up production throughout the year, he admits that some of the initial run of cars won't be in the hands of customers until early 2009. Among other things, he also attempted to clarify some of the confusion over those initial EPA range targets,saying that the lab that conducted the tests "made a small error in the testing procedure," resulting in an overstated range figure. According to Drori, the revised figures now stand at 221 miles per charge, although he says the real world figures are actually as high as 267 miles per charge in "slow city driving," or 165 miles in aggressive highway driving. Those looking for more details can get the full explanation from the man himself by hitting up the read link below. [Via CNET News.com]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 11:59 PM

SlashDot : Apple Stores Demonstrate That Retail Still Lives WheezyJoe writes "Maybe OS X Leopard has its problems, but the New York Times seems to think Apple has designed the ideal techie retail store. A policy that encourages lingering, with dozens of fully functioning computers, iPods and iPhones for visitors to try, even for hours on end (one patron wrote a manuscript entirely at the store) has 'given some stores, especially those in urban neighborhoods, the feel of a community center ... Meanwhile, the Sony flagship store on West 56th Street, a few blocks from Apple's Fifth Avenue store, has the hush of a mausoleum. And being inside the long and narrow blue-toned Nokia store on 57th Street feels a bit like being inside an aquarium. The high-end Samsung Experience showroom, its nuevo tech music on full blast one recent morning, was nearly empty.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 11:41 PM

Engadget.com : How would you change the OLPC XO? Filed under: Features, Laptops Don't adjust your screens folks, as this actually isn't a year-end case of déjà vu. Rather, we're looking to give you an(other) imaginary shot at tweaking the OLPC XO now that it has moved beyond the initiative phase and been productized for the general consumer. In case you've been parked squarely under a rock for the last few months, you should know that the XO's journey through production has been quite a lengthy one, and while a few countries have made substantial bulk purchases to inject these machines into their respective school systems, we're interested in seeing how the average joe / jane located in a developed nation sees things. Needless to say, One Laptop Per Child's "Give One, Get One" program has been quite the success, and by now, we're confident that some of you have already received your own. 'Course, we're sure there's at least a few of you that chose this over that other low-cost laptop (and many that chose it over this), and we're curious to know how you'd improve the newly commercialized XO now that it actually has a rival. Yeah, we too would love an even skimpier price tag, but beyond that, what hardware / software changes would you like to see on the next version? Could you stand to have a few more megabytes of RAM? Still yearning for dual-boot capability out of the box? How's about a design scheme that doesn't involve opaque white and bright green? As stated, we're well aware that these things weren't designed with LAN partiers in mind, but now that NickNeg is offering 'em up to these very citizens -- not to mention every other type of user in North America -- why not toss out a few suggestions for making it more suitable for you?   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 11:30 PM

Engadget.com : WiBrain's B1 UMPC hits the FCC, every branch on the ugly tree Filed under: Handhelds We're not sure what else there is to know about the WiBrain B1 UMPC -- we've seen it hands-on, unboxed, and even slightly redesigned -- but true gadget pr0n connoisseurs crave only the sweet nectar of FCC reports, and it looks like today is your special Friday. Yep, there it is, and there's not much of the way in details we didn't already have -- except now you can tear up over both the beautifully ugly lines of this thing and the massively boring RF test results.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 11:17 PM

Engadget.com : Kodak and Matsushita settle patent dispute Filed under: Digital Cameras After just a few months of legal wrangling, Kodak and Matsushita have settled their patent lawsuit, originally brought by Kodak due to Matsushita's alleged infringement of a number of digital camera-related patents. The two companies have agreed to cross-license each other's patents, but it's not all sharing and cupcakes -- the agreement is "royalty-bearing to Kodak," according to documents filed with the SEC. That was fast -- guess Kodak's new strategy of aggressively enforcing its IP portfolio is working out after all.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 10:48 PM

News.com : SCO Group gets the boot from Nasdaq The SCO Group shares are removed from the Nasdaq market after the company loses its appeal about the issue.

December 28, 2007 10:38 PM

SlashDot : CES Scorecard 2007 - What Came True; What Didn't narramissic writes "In the race for Consumer Electronics Show (CES) headlines, companies parade new, hot, and not-quite-ready-for-primetime products while keynote speakers rev things up with predictions for the year ahead. An ITworld article runs down the list of who stuck their necks out too far in 2007, starting with Sharp's monster 108-inch LCD. 'The set represented the biggest flat-panel TV developed -- a title it still holds today -- and came without a price but with the promise of availability during 2007. But wealthy consumers are still waiting. Sharp said recently that it is still working on plans for a commercial launch for the TV set.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 10:33 PM

Engadget.com : Xbox Live: still experiencing technical difficulties Filed under: Gaming We're starting to think Xbox Live's holiday strategy was modeled after Newtonian physics: what goes up must come down. Although the Live support site shows the service as being "up and running", apparently users are still experiencing intermittent issues, sometimes more dramatic than those officially listed. We don't know about you, but even though only some of us on we were able to get on, even they have been seeing a lot of stalling and freezing -- and the unlucky ones are just completely shut out of Live. How are things going out there? Any XBL issues of which to speak? P.S. -Microsoft, congrats on the great holiday season. You obviously sold a TON of Xbox 360s and Live service contracts. Now be a doll. Give everyone a week (or, say, a month) of free Live service for the ugliness over vacation, ok? These people paid for their service when the other guys offer it up for free. Read - Live support site: still having problems Read - Our post about problems from last weekend Read - Our other post about outages on Christmas day Update: Our broham Major Nelson says the Live engineers have identified a fix for the issues and things are on their way to being back on the up and up. Hopefully this time for good!   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 10:31 PM

wired - tech news : Netscape Browser to Die a Quiet Death in February 2008 The original browser from the earliest days of the web will cease to be in February, AOL says. After playing second fiddle to Microsoft and being eclipsed by its offspring Firefox, the Netscape browser will be killed off by parent company AOL, which purchased the brand in 1999.

December 28, 2007 10:30 PM

wired - top news : Netscape Browser to Die a Quiet Death in February 2008 The original browser from the earliest days of the web will cease to be in February, AOL says. After playing second fiddle to Microsoft and being eclipsed by its offspring Firefox, the Netscape browser will be killed off by parent company AOL, which purchased the brand in 1999.

December 28, 2007 10:30 PM

Engadget.com : More info on Fusion's ioDrive, the PCIe card with massive flash storage Filed under: Storage You may remember the lovable yet rascally ioDrive PCIe card from Fusion which we told you about back in the sun-drenched, salad days of September. Well, we've gotten a few more details on the "SAN in the palm of your hand," and we thought we'd share. As you'll recall, the card is meant to deliver very high, sustained read / write speeds, allowing the ioDrive to perform "nearly a thousand times faster than any existing disk drive." Well, the good folks at Fusion have now given the system a price -- the card starts at $2,400 -- and offered up some fresh info, like that the ioDrive is NAND flash-based, will support multiple terabytes of virtual memory, and has access rates on par with DRAM. Which is real fast. Hit the link for a lot more info, and don't be afraid to peruse the company's .pdf data sheet.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 10:19 PM

Engadget.com : Nintendo Wii fully hacked for native homebrew Filed under: Gaming The homebrew scene hasn't gotten a whole lot accomplished with this latest round of home consoles -- which isn't surprising given the difficulty of the task and lack of incentives to succeed. Especially with the PS3 shipping with Linux compatibility, the Wii boasting VLC, and the 360 being such a chore to hack and keep hacked, there's really not much of a point. The Wii was compromised pretty early on to be able to play burned discs and GameCube homebrew such as Linux, but until now Nintendo has managed to isolate Wii hardware such as the extra horsepower of the console and wireless connectivity from hackers. But the walls are coming down. Some hackers from Germany have just showed off their fully hacked Wii at the 24th Annual Chaos Communication Congress. Nothing fancy is running yet, all they've achieved so far is a proof of concept that they've bypassed the Wii's protection with some encryption codes they swiped from the Wii's memory. Apparently a bootable Linux DVD is on the way, and we can't wait to see what homebrew coders manage to pull off with that Wiimote pointed where it belongs. [Via WiiNintendo]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 10:02 PM

Engadget.com : Apple to unveil rentals from even more studios at Macworld? Filed under: Portable Video You know it's close to Macworld when even the New York Times is slinging rumors with the best of 'em, and the Gray Lady is reporting today that Apple has deals in place with several studios for iTunes rentals -- not just Fox, like we'd been hearing. Of course, it wouldn't be an Apple rumor unless it somehow managed to make something as mundane as renting a movie sound like a super-classified state secret, and the NYT says that while it got the info from people "familiar with the negotiations," they weren't "authorized" to name the companies involved. We'd obviously expect Disney to have an interest, since Steve's on the board -- but as with all these rumors, only time will tell.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 09:47 PM

SlashDot : AOL to Shut Down Netscape Support/Development Kelson writes "After years of trying to figure out what to do with it, AOL is officially discontinuing the Netscape browser. In the four and a half years after they dismantled the development team and spun off the Mozilla Foundation as a lost cause, only to see Firefox take off, AOL has tried twice to reinvent Netscape. There was the chimera-like Netscape 8, which used both Mozilla's and IE's rendering engines, and just months ago they released Netscape 9, trying to ride the social networking wave. AOL will release security fixes through February 1, 2008, after which the browser will officially be dead. For the "nostalgic," they suggest using Firefox and installing a Netscape theme." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 09:42 PM

Barrapunto : Conociendo GDB, la herramienta GNU de depuración Leandro nos cuenta: «DRK Open Source Software publicó su primer documento completamente en español. Se trata de una introducción muy pragmática a la utilización de GDB como herramienta de depuración de software en C y C++. Así continúa renovando su esfuerzo por promover el el uso y la creación software libre. Esfuerzo que tuvo sus orígenes en el año 2002 y se materializaba como la publicación de aplicaciones para plataforma Windows con licencias GPL.»

December 28, 2007 09:21 PM

wired - tech news : The Aerocivic: Ugly as Sin, But Hey -- It Gets 95 MPG This homemade car won't win any beauty contests, but with fuel economy this good, who cares?

December 28, 2007 09:20 PM

wired - top news : The Aerocivic: Ugly as Sin, But Hey -- It Gets 95 MPG This homemade car won't win any beauty contests, but with fuel economy this good, who cares?

December 28, 2007 09:20 PM

Engadget.com : QKfone G998 rocks Benz logo, GPS chip and loads of ugly Filed under: Cellphones Quite honestly, it's hard to know where to start with this one. Should we bash on the totally unlicensed Mercedes-Benz logo curiously adorning the front? Or should we begin by trying to put into words just how hideous this device truly is? The QKfone G998 is reportedly a GPS-equipped handset with a built-in microSD expansion slot, a 2-megapixel camera, an internal (2.8-inch) and external (1.8-inch) display and a world map plastered on the back for an extra dash of classiness. Apparently, the phone sports tri-band GSM connectivity, Bluetooth 2.0 and a full-fledged media player to keep you occupied when not hiding this thing away from public sight. No word on a price, but trust us, it's for the best. [Via PMPToday]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 09:15 PM

Engadget.com : DOT bans checked, loose lithium batteries on flights Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Transportation If you've been feeling like you didn't already have enough zany and / or pointless Department of Transportation rules to abide by, you're in luck! Starting January 1st, 2008, you can no longer pack "loose lithium batteries" into your checked luggage on flights. If your battery is attached to a device -- or is packed into a plastic bag -- you're okay. According to the report, "Common consumer electronics such as travel cameras, cell phones, and most laptop computers are still allowed in carry-on and checked luggage," though, "The rule limits individuals to bringing only two extended-life spare rechargeable lithium batteries, such as laptop and professional audio/video/camera equipment lithium batteries in carry-on baggage." The new ban is related to lithium batteries' propensity to explode, and not due to any terrorism concerns. We're not sure what they're getting at with that plastic bag rule, but this should make everyone's already complicated travel plans just slightly more annoying. [Via Gadling, image by rbrwr]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 08:41 PM

Engadget.com : MPillow promises to relax you with light and sound Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Portable Audio This one looks to still be a good deal away from showing up at a store near you, but if a group of designers have their way, their so-called MPillow could one day be working its magic to lull you to sleep (although it will have quite a bit of competition on the high-tech pillow front). Helping it stand out are some built-in wireless capabilities that'll let you stream MP3s from your PC or pull some presumably relaxing sounds off the MPillow servers, as well as some soothing lighting that changes color and intensity along with the music. As you can no doubt guess, however, there's no indication that the pillow is actually headed for commercialization, so you'll just have to make do with some of the current music-playing pillows for the time being, or not.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 08:33 PM

wired - tech news : Cronenberg Drifts From Tech Horror, but Shocks Remain In an age of readily available "snuff porn," director David Cronenberg trades his sci-fi-tinged terrors for more everyday, earthly nightmares.

December 28, 2007 08:30 PM

wired - top news : Cronenberg Drifts From Tech Horror, but Shocks Remain In an age of readily available "snuff porn," director David Cronenberg trades his sci-fi-tinged terrors for more everyday, earthly nightmares.

December 28, 2007 08:30 PM

News.com : CEA announces 2008 CES celeb lineup Headliners include Mary J. Bligs, David Ortiz, Danica Patrick, members of Black Eyed Peas, Train, and others.

December 28, 2007 08:27 PM

SlashDot : TSA Limits Lithium Batteries on Airplanes yali writes "The U.S. Transportation and Security Administration has issued new rules limiting travel with lithium batteries. As of January 1, no spare lithium batteries are allowed in checked luggage. Batteries carried in the cabin are subject to limitations on per-battery and total lithium content, and spare batteries must have the terminals covered. If you're returning home from the holidays with new toys, be sure to check out the new restrictions before you pack." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 08:26 PM

Barrapunto : no me acuerdo de como se llama una peli y quisiera pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «es una peli que salio en la tele hace como 3 años: va sobre un chico que va a competir en una carrera de motos y entrenando se rompe una rodilla entonces su hermana melliza decide cortarse el pelo y hacerse pasar por el.se enamora de un amigo de su hermano pero el piensa que es su amigo y luego gana la carrera pero descubren que es una chica y todo se complicn . al final le dan el premio por ser la primera chica que gana una carrera de motos y esque competia mejor que el hermano. el chico see hizo su novio y fin . por favor si alguien save el nombre de la pelicula que me llame a 6123456789 creo que se titulaba algo de riesgo estremo»

December 28, 2007 08:21 PM

SlashDot : Annals of Improbable Research Goes Free Online prostoalex writes "The Annals of Improbable Research, a scientific publication that hosts the annual Ig Nobel awards, has decided to offer its publication free online, News.com reports. According to the journal Web site, visitors can view HTML articles with low-res images or download low-res PDFs for free. High-resolution PDFs and 'traditional on-the-toilet-readable paper-and-ink' issues are still available for a subscription fee." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 07:41 PM

News.com : AOL deep-sixes Netscape browser It's mostly a formality at this point, but AOL is dropping support for its Netscape Web browser on February 1.

December 28, 2007 07:24 PM

Engadget.com : LCD manufacturer set to introduce 18.4-inch displays Filed under: Displays Look, the LCD monitor market is hot. How hot, you ask? Well let's just say that panel manufacturer Chunghwa Picture Tubes (or CPT) has decided to circumvent the battle for ultimate supremacy in the 19-inch market by creating a totally new size of monitor: an 18.4-inch widescreen display. The new size will feature a 16:9 aspect ratio, 1366 x 768 resolution, a contrast ratio of 1000:1, and a response time of 5ms. The benefit of the slightly smaller size is that the cost to consumers will be lower than its 19-inch brethren, thereby giving CPT a cleaner shot a some market share. The first company to bite on the new size is Acer, which will be using the new panels in a Quanta-made laptop set to hit Europe in the second half of 2008.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 07:22 PM

News.com : Record ownership for digital TVs CEA says majority of U.S. households now have at least one digital television.

December 28, 2007 07:13 PM

Engadget.com : A-Data whips up a 64GB SSD Filed under: Storage We've seen a number of large-capacity SSDs, but 64GB seems like the current sweet spot, and A-Data's aiming to fill it out with a quartet of new 1.8-inch and 2.5-inch PATA and SATA drives. That's pretty much it on the outside -- it is just a big flash drive, after all -- but don't worry, there's plenty of sexy once you actually get an SSD inside your machine. [Via PC Launches]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 06:48 PM

wired - top news : From Cellphone to Sell Phone: Can the Marketers Be Stopped? All that stands between you and seeing your cellphone turned into a conduit for endless sales-pitch intrusions is your mobile provider, who, for now at least, is skittish about violating any privacy laws. That could change, however.

December 28, 2007 06:45 PM

wired - tech news : From Cellphone to Sell Phone: Can the Marketers Be Stopped? All that stands between you and seeing your cellphone turned into a conduit for endless sales-pitch intrusions is your mobile provider, who, for now at least, is skittish about violating any privacy laws. That could change, however.

December 28, 2007 06:45 PM

Engadget.com : Intel's newest gaming platform, Skulltrail Filed under: Desktops, Gaming Intel seems like it's going to be making a bigger push at gamers with the launch of Penryn, and HotHardware managed to score some deets on the company's upcoming "Skulltrail" platform, which is built-around server-class hardware reconfigured for gaming. The new mobo pictured here supports dual quad-core Penryn Xeon processors, SLI graphics, and four PCI Express x16 slots, as well as two standard PCI slots. You're also looking at a whopping six internal SATA ports, dual eSATA ports, six USB ports, a lone FireWire port, and Gigabit Ethernet. That's quite a foundation for a gaming rig -- let's just hope pricing is at least pretend reasonable, eh?   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 06:39 PM

SlashDot : Wal-Mart Closes Online Movie Download Service eldavojohn writes "A year after opening its movie download service, Wal-Mart has abandoned the endeavor. They claim this is a result of HP's decision to stop supporting its video download store software. The article also notes that, unlike iTunes, Wal-Mart offered variable pricing which attracted a lot of studios. 'The world's largest retailer instead turned its rental service over to Netflix Inc. Wal-Mart still operates a music download service and continues to sell CDs and DVDs at retail stores and over the Internet for shipping by mail.' Is this evidence of the strength of unified pricing in media downloads or just another company being squished by the giant Netflix & Apple?" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 06:34 PM

News.com : Kodak settles patent suit with Matsushita Under the settlement, the companies are cross-licensing each others' patents, and Matsushita is paying royalties, Eastman Kodak says.

December 28, 2007 06:31 PM

Engadget.com : Nikon D60 gets rumored, set to replace the D40x? Filed under: Digital Cameras Ready for another go on the Nikon rumor carousel? Apparently, the mythical D60 could be next in line to replace the D40x (pictured), but of course, all of this should be taken with a copious amount of salt for the time being. Based on rumors suggesting that the D60 is coming next Spring (by the same fellow who called the D3, purportedly), combined with reports that the D40x is at the end of its own rope, we're left to believe that Nikon may be swapping the latter out and replacing it with the prior. Hit the links below for the beginning of what's sure to be a long road to denial / confirmation. [Via Photography Bay] Read - End of D40x production? Read - D60 on the horizon?   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 06:30 PM

Engadget.com : Kindle easter eggs: Google Maps cell-based location, picture viewer, and more Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds Apparently, Amazon's wondrous e-book reader, the Kindle, has more than meets the eye -- not unlike some fictional, alien, robotic characters which shall not be named. Users of the device have been plumbing its depths, and have uncovered a handful of easter eggs which will make current owners extra happy, and might push potential buyers over the edge. Amongst the hidden features are access to Google Maps coupled with CDMA-based location-finding, which also allows you to quickly locate nearby gas stations and restaurants (as well as your own custom searches). In addition to the GMaps integration, the Kindle also comes equipped with a hidden picture viewer and slideshow functionality, the ability to snap a screenshot, a clock quick-look, plus everyone's favorite time-wasting game: Minesweeper. Hit the read link to learn all about the unrevealed guts of the innocent little reader. [Via interface]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 06:22 PM

News.com : Windows Home Server bug corrupts files Microsoft is researching a fix for a bug in Windows Home Server that could corrupt some files saved with certain applications.

December 28, 2007 06:21 PM

Barrapunto : Doy contraseñas de hotmail, gmail, yohoo etc pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «HOla amigos doy contraseñas ok mas contactos a javito19088017@hotmail.com si tu novia te engaña o si alguien te abuso ya no se salva te estare esperando» Esto me recuerda que los barrapunteros tenemos una puerta histórica en el centro de Madrid que estamos vendiendo barata, porque nos tenemos que mudar. Atenderemos todas las ofertas, incluso de trueques.

December 28, 2007 06:17 PM

Engadget.com : Eee PC hacked for internal 3G HSDPA Filed under: Laptops, Wireless This one's definitely not for anyone concerned with warranties and whatnot, but those looking to expand their Eee PC's wireless capabilities without resorting any unsightly adapters may want to check out the latest how-to from jkmobile, which gives you the rundown on adding internal 3G HSDPA to the diminutive laptop. That, as you might have guessed, involves a fair bit of slicing and soldering, not to mention disassembling a standard 3G HSDPA modem (a ZadaCOM 3G+ HSDPA, in this case). The process is apparently further eased if you have just the right Eee PC model, as the 8G's 8GB SSD drive takes up too much room, and the earlier 4G models require some additional cutting to squeeze the modem in. Hit up the read link below for pics of the whole process and a video of the hack in action. [Thanks, C.K. Sample]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 05:59 PM

News.com : Upgrade timing demotes KDE variant of Ubuntu Linux Only GNOME-based Ubuntu will get Canonical's long-term support, because KDE 3.5 is too old, and 4.0 is not mature enough yet to use in Kubuntu.

December 28, 2007 05:56 PM

Engadget.com : Boy killed by texting driver Filed under: Cellphones, Transportation According to a report from the Boston Globe, a man claims that he was typing a text message into his cellphone when he lost control of his SUV and fatally struck a 13-year-old boy on a bicycle. In a stark and sad reminder of the cause for recent laws put into effect governing texting / phoning while driving, it appears the man was so distracted that he didn't even realize what had happened until later that night. Ironically, the friend of the boy who had been walking with him attempted to call 911 on his phone, but was unable to get through. The driver is being charged with motor vehicle homicide, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, and driving without a license. A tragic story -- and unfortunately not the first we've seen -- but hopefully a cautionary tale for anyone who regularly juggles driving and texting. Don't.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 05:28 PM

SlashDot : Panasonic To Ship Form Factor-Standard Blu-ray Drive Lucas123 writes "Panasonic plans to unveil the thinnest Blu-ray Disc drive made yet at the upcoming CES show. The drive is 9.5mm high, which allows it to fit into standard laptop form factors instead of requiring manufacturers to redesign systems to fit high-def DVD players as they've been doing. 'Panasonic has already begun offering samples of the drives to laptop makers with the hope that the companies will build it into new PCs.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 05:24 PM

Barrapunto : Nueva teoria para el radio y energia cuantizada joven investigador nos cuenta: «SIMPLEMENTE COMUNICAR QUE PRONTAMENTE PODRE DAR A CONOCER UNA NUEVA HERRAMIENTA ,PARA LA INVESTIGACION DE TODAS LAS RAMAS CIENCIAS PRACTICAS Y TEORICAS, GRACIAS A ELLA PUDE CONFIRMAR DE QUE EL RADIO A TOMICO ESTA CUANTIZADO IGUAL QUE LA ENERGIA. Y LOGRE DESCUBRIR UNA ECUACION QUE RELACIONANA LA ENERGIA Y RADIOS DE TAL CUANTIZACION,ENTRE ATOMOS ISOELECTRONICOS.»

December 28, 2007 05:15 PM

Engadget.com : Fujitsu leaks a second Penryn laptop, this time with Blu-ray Filed under: Laptops Rumor has it that mobile variants of Penryn will officially hit on January 6th, but Fujitsu-Siemens isn't having any of that embargo nonsense -- it's already gone and shown off the 12.1-inch LOOX R, and now we've got the 17-inch Amilo Xi 2550. Unlike the LOOX R, this bad boy is confirmed to be running a 45nm 2.5 GHz T9300 Core 2 Duo, as well as Radeon HD2700 graphics, 2GB of RAM, 2 RAID 0 / 1 250GB drives, 1GB of flash turbo memory, and a dual-layer burner / Blu-ray player. No word on ship date, but we're seeing prices of €1644 ($2415) get thrown around.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 04:56 PM

News.com : Tesla CEO blogs explanations Info on changes and delays for the electric sports car reiterated on Tesla blog as a follow-up to town hall meeting.

December 28, 2007 04:52 PM

Barrapunto : saber direccion enhelsinki pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Me gustaria conocer direcciones en helsinki de las nuevas religiones por ejemplo la iglesia de la cienciologia pues creo que todas estas religiones ayudan a las personas que tienen pequenos problemas y se encuentran solas. gracias por la informacion» De verdad que me gustaría que esta pobre alma nos hubiera escrito en broma.

December 28, 2007 04:48 PM

SlashDot : Domains May Disappear After Search Ponca City, We Love You writes "Daily Domainer has a story alleging that there may be a leak that allows domain tasters to intercept, analyze and register your domain ideas in minutes. 'Every time you do a whois search with any service, you run a risk of losing your domain,' says one industry insider. ICANN's Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC ) has not been able to find hard evidence of Domain Name Front Running but they have issued an advisory (pdf) for people to come forward with hard evidence it is happening. Here is how domain name research theft crimes can occur and some tips to avoiding being a victim." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 04:36 PM

Engadget.com : Art Lebedev kills us with Optimus Tactus keyboard concept Filed under: Displays, Peripherals Yeah, you thought the Optimus Maximus was the holy grail of keyboarding -- then you saw the Optimus Tactus, a giant touch sensor display tablet keyboard that could do all the sorts of crazy stuff the Maximus can't even touch, like playing movies and being a gigantic color swatch. That is, if it weren't a concept. (Then again, the Maximus started out as a concept as well just a couple of years back, so who knows.) The only thing we don't get: the name. Tactus? Touch-sensitive doesn't exactly shout tactility to us, but since it's all just theoretical at this point, maybe by the time keyboards like this exist we'll all be typing on shape-shifting tactile membranes overlaid on touchscreens. That is, if Apple's patents haven't already blocked everyone else off from going there. Gallery: Optimus Tactus   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 04:13 PM

Engadget.com : Phenom upgrade poses problems for AM2 motherboard users Filed under: Desktops It looks like AMD users hoping to pop one of those speedy new Phenom processors into their old AM2 motherboard for a bit of a boost could be in for some trouble, at least according to the folks at Tom's Hardware, who recently put the processor to the test with ten different mobos. After their usual thorough testing, they found that the processor didn't work well at all with eight out of the ten motherboards, despite earlier promises by AMD to the contrary, and the other two had problems of their own even after a BIOS update. That left them with no other recommendation than to tell folks to hold on to their good 'ol Athlon 64 X2, at least until AMD lets loose the so-called Phenom B3 stepping processor in the second quarter of next year, which should iron out all the bugs, and give motherboard manufacturers time to get their act together as well. [Thanks, Mack Swift]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 04:12 PM

Engadget.com : Amazon's "Best of 2007" topped by Wii, a few surprises Filed under: Misc. Gadgets Certain winners on Amazon's "Best of 2007" list of could've been seen coming a mile away, but in the top sales category we were just a little surprised to see the Canon PowerShot A570 IS topping the list of electronics, and Nokia's Internet Tablet topping out computers (unclear if that counts as the N800 or N810 or both). The Wii naturally held top honors for video games. "Most-loved" included Garmin's nuvi 350 under electronics, the MacBook Pro under computers, Leopard in software and Wii under video games. Wish lists were dominated by the 3rd-gen 4GB iPod nano, Asus EEE PC and the Wii, while top gifts included that same nano, as well as the MacBook and Super Mario Galaxy.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 03:41 PM

SlashDot : Chinese Government Sued Over Dog Height Censorship Googling Yourself writes "More than 30,000 censors are employed in China to monitor the Internet, so it was no surprise when censors deleted a posting by Chen Yuhua protesting Beijing municipal government's regulations barring any dog over 14 inches high and restricting each family to only one dog. The surprise (reports the Washington Post) was when Chen studied China's civil code and marched into court with a lawsuit, only the second time that a Chinese citizen has gone to court over party censorship. 'I was very careful to follow the correct procedure,' Chen said in an interview, while pointing at the official legal manual on his dining room table. On December 14 Chen was told by clerks that the district court, after referring to higher-level judges for advice, had decided to reject the case. The next step, Chen said, is an appeal to the Supreme Court." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 03:35 PM

Engadget.com : Bluetooth headset helps foil Wendy's robbery Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Wireless An armed robbery at a Columbus, Ohio Wendy's restaurant on Wednesday morning was thwarted mid-progress, partly due to an employee's Bluetooth headset automatically answering a call because of the robber screaming at her to do just the opposite. We've all learned to live with the wonky voice command features in our headsets and handsets, but on this occasion it actually turned out to be a benefit, as 35-year-old Keith Allen Sturgill's screams to NOT pick up an incoming call actually opened the connection, while the parolee and his three hostages waited for the safe to unlock before customers arrived . The caller, a friend of the employee who worked at a nearby bank, heard the screaming and called police, who were eventually able to talk Sturgill into surrendering -- but not before he had "rammed the gun to his own forehead until he bled," as you can see from his mugshot. Luckily for the habitual offender, he'll soon be back in a familiar place where neither cellphones nor their many accessories will bother him for a very long time. [Via UPI]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 03:02 PM

wired - top news : Wal-Mart Gives Up Movie Downloads, Keeps CDs, DVDs The retailer turns its download service, which accounts for roughly 40 percent of all DVD sales, over to Netflix after its software provider, Hewlett-Packard, discontinues its own merchant-store service.

December 28, 2007 02:50 PM

wired - tech news : Wal-Mart Gives Up Movie Downloads, Keeps CDs, DVDs The retailer turns its download service, which accounts for roughly 40 percent of all DVD sales, over to Netflix after its software provider, Hewlett-Packard, discontinues its own merchant-store service.

December 28, 2007 02:50 PM

wired - business news : Wal-Mart Gives Up Movie Downloads, Keeps CDs, DVDs The retailer turns its download service, which accounts for roughly 40 percent of all DVD sales, over to Netflix after its software provider, Hewlett-Packard, discontinues its own merchant-store service.

December 28, 2007 02:50 PM

wired - top news : Hollywood's Year Marked by Writers' Strike, iPhone and Very Poor Taste If the writers' strike defined 2007 in the "world of moving image," the appearance of the iPhone changed its nature while the public thirst for cheesy pop scandal cannot be slaked. These are among AFI's significant moments of the year.

December 28, 2007 02:40 PM

wired - tech news : Hollywood's Year Marked by Writers' Strike, iPhone and Very Poor Taste If the writers' strike defined 2007 in the "world of moving image," the appearance of the iPhone changed its nature while the public thirst for cheesy pop scandal cannot be slaked. These are among AFI's significant moments of the year.

December 28, 2007 02:40 PM

SlashDot : PC Mag Slams Cheap Wal-Mart Linux Desktop An anonymous reader writes "PC Magazine reviews the $200 Linux desktop wonder sold by Wal-Mart. This desktop sold out quickly and has been cited as proof that consumers are tired of the Windows tax and ready for Linux. Not so according to PC Magazine, which gave the gPC a 1.5 star rating." Previous discussions we've had about system reviews were realistic but not quite so harsh; is this just nitpicking or is the 'shiny' starting to wear off of the cheap Linux PC concept? Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 02:37 PM

Engadget.com : Creative-built TAG Heuer USB headset outed by FCC Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Wireless We have no idea why luxury watch and occasional cellphone maker TAG Heuer would be getting into the PC peripherals game, yet according to an FCC filing we got our hands on, the 150-year-old Swiss watchmaker has a Creative Labs-built USB headset in the pipeline. And although this wireless unit is branded TAG and developed by Creative, the actual cans themselves will likely be sold by Listen To Believe (LTB) Audio, another accessories company with very similar products. Either way, what you're getting here is reportedly "the world [sic] first digital wireless headset that delivers high-quality 2.0-channel stereo audio with extra sound clarity and soft, deep bass effects," according to the manual. That's certainly a lot of caveats, so we'll have to wait for an actual product launch to really see what's what.   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 02:25 PM

News.com : Microsoft opens up its security work Software giant is taking the covers off its security intelligence. About time.

December 28, 2007 02:13 PM

Barrapunto : Amazon venderá música sin... ¿"protección de derechos"? pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Que Amazon vaya a vender música en MP3 sin DRM no es una noticia nueva, aunque algunos diarios de tirada nacional hayan dado la noticia ayer. Sin embargo me ha sorprendido el titular de 20 Minutos: "Amazon.com venderá canciones de Warner Music en MP3 y sin protección de derechos". Al leer el titular, pensé poco mas o menos que Amazon iba a vender las canciones sin pagar a nadie. ¿De dónde sacan que no incluir DRM o sistemas anticopia es no proteger los derechos de los autores? ¿Está funcionando la intoxicación de SGAE y afines sobre lo que son los derechos de autor? Por suerte el resto de diarios han dado la noticia de forma menos tendenciosa.»

December 28, 2007 02:05 PM

SlashDot : Hospitals Look to a Nuclear Tool to Fight Cancer The feed points us to a NYTimes article about hospitals using particle accelerators to treat cancer. While expensive, proponents say that the proton beams generated by the accelerators are more precise than conventional X-ray radiation therapy. This results in fewer side effects and reduced irradiation of surrounding tissue. The technology's critics say that the cost is not justified by a measurable increase in the level of care given to the patients. Nevertheless, this is an excellent example of "pure scientific research" leading to a useful, unrelated technique. From the NYTimes: "Tumors in or near the eye, for instance, can be eradicated by protons without destroying vision or irradiating the brain. Protons are also valuable for treating tumors in brains, necks and spines, and tumors in children, who are especially sensitive to the side effects of radiation." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 01:18 PM

Engadget.com : GPS baby Jesus stolen again, found across the street Filed under: GPS Maybe next year they can just spring for an RFID baby Jesus. The folks in Florida noticed that their GPS-equipped baby Jesus we mentioned the other day was missing from his nativity, and fired up the old GPS tracker. Turns out they didn't have to look far: baby Jesus had been swiped Wednesday night and brought to a house across the street from the nativity. Deputies showed up at the door Thursday morning and hauled off the 18-year-old female culprit with a charge of grand theft. The statue is valued at $800, while the GPS system rings up at $400, and the girl is currently in jail with bail set at $3,500. Are we feeling a brand new sort of holiday tradition coming on? We think yes. [Via TG Daily]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 01:05 PM

Barrapunto : los murcianos estan "podridos" pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Los murcianos estan "podridos": los murcianos consumen en medicamentos una media equivalente al gasto medio de españa. NOTA DEL PUBLICADOR: ¿publicaran esta noticia los editores de barrapunto poniendo de manifiesto el derroche en algunas comunidades? ¿veis porque los catalanes no les parece bien lo que reciben de españa?» Éste se olvidó de poner el enlace a la noticia, y no sé a cuál se referiría, porque La Verdad dice que el consumo medio per cápita de medicamentos en Murcia es el mismo que el del total de España. Están sesgados. Si queréis saber más sobre en qué Murcia es lo más. Si os da más rabia otra comunidad, no tenéis más que cambiar la búsqueda en Google.

December 28, 2007 12:47 PM

Barrapunto : ''MIRA ESTO'' pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: SOY UN POBRETON MANDENMEN ALGO

December 28, 2007 12:43 PM

Barrapunto : 'Benchmark' de javascript en navegadores web lisandro101 nos cuenta: «Leo en Java Hispano, que Jeff Atwood de Coding Horror ha realizado un benchmark de la implementación de javascript de las últimas versiones de los navegadores más usados actualmente: Opera 9.5, Safari 3, Explorer 7 y Firefox 2 (no sé por qué no lo realizó sobre Firefox 3 beta 2). Para ello, utilizó un nuevo benchmark lanzado por Apple llamado SunSpider que se basa en código "real", o sea, código que normalmente es usado en aplicaciones web. En los resultados del benchmark, Opera 9.5 tuvo el mejor rendimiento y le sigue Safari (ejecutándose sobre Windows).»

December 28, 2007 12:17 PM

News.com : Year in review: Google gets even more ambitious The search giant gets into the phone business, with an eye on prime wireless real estate, and works toward a takeover of ad specialist DoubleClick.

December 28, 2007 12:00 PM

Barrapunto : ¿Cómo coleccionar procesadores? spok nos cuenta: «Hace algún tiempo me aficioné a coleccionar procesadores viejos, antiguos, normalmente en eBay. El problema es que los precios son desorbitados, aparte de los chachullos típicos de eBay (un Intel 4004 por 1500 euros o un 8080 por 400, supuestamente exclusivo, pero si buscas te encuentras con que no lo son tanto). He descubierto hace poco algunos suministradores de material viejo, normalmente en USA. El problema es que no aceptan pedidos de menos de 250 o 300 dólares, aunque cada procesador te pudiera salir a 5 o 10 euros. ¿Existe alguna asociación de coleccionistas de hardware en España? ¿Alguna asociación de retrocomputación? ¿Algún grupo con el que se pudieran hacer grandes pedidos que luego salieran a muy poquito para cada uno? ¿Hay algún mercado de "coleccionismo" informático?»

December 28, 2007 11:40 AM

Barrapunto : Base de datos libre de los proyectos abiertos de la fuente pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Un recurso conducido nueva comunidad para el software abierto de la fuente. Intentar comenzar una página sobre tu proyecto preferido, syndicating un blog para un asunto, u hojeando a través de la gente de las etiquetas han agregado a los proyectos o a las páginas. contiene la información y las noticias sobre millares de proyectos abiertos y de gente de la fuente están agregando constantemente la materia nueva fresca.»

December 28, 2007 11:33 AM

SlashDot : Connecticut Governor Seeks to Protect Personal Data Online Technical Writing Geek alerts us to a report that Connecticut governor Jodi Rell has begun to develop legislation to create an "opt-out" registry to prevent the distribution of personal information on the internet. The registry would be analogous to the "Do Not Call" list. This comes after Rell received many complaints about the availability of personal data from directory assistance sites such as WhitePages and 411.com. While Rell understands that the "sites are breaking no law by gathering and disseminating this information," the legislation will add to the work she has done to re-evaluate the disposition of private data. Where do we draw the line between free speech and privacy in the information age? From the Journal Inquirer: "'Privacy concerns are constantly evolving,' Rell said. 'We must not only keep up with them but do our best to stay ahead of the curve.' Rell said she will ask state agencies to review private information about residents that the state collects, manages, and distributes." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 11:00 AM

Engadget.com : Nokia E90 meets maker courtesy of 12 gauge shotgun Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds We think the emphatic "For Parts ONLY" in the description of this well-loved E90's eBay auction pretty much says it all. [Via Just Another Mobile Phone Blog]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 10:01 AM

SlashDot : Japanese Government to Regulate Online Communication Chris Salzberg writes "The Japanese government made major moves this month toward legislating extensive regulation over online communication. In a series of little-publicized meetings, two distinct government ministries pushed ahead with regulation in three major areas of online communication: web content, mobile phone access, and file sharing. Content regulation will cover anything on the web, including personal blogs and web pages. Upcoming mandatory filtering of mobile phone access is targeted at users under age 18, and will cover chat rooms, forums, bulletin boards and social networking services. File sharing legislation will initially target illegal downloads, but, according to critics, may ultimately broaden to include streaming media from sites such as YouTube." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 08:42 AM

Barrapunto : solo quiero saber sobre este articulo pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «el almacenamiento de datos cientificamente hablando tenemos que saber a donde nos yeba, o es decir donde bamos con este.por que desde haces muchos años barias personas no saben lo que es esto llamado el procesadorr y para que cirbe.»

December 28, 2007 07:23 AM

Engadget.com : Reminder: get in your nominations for the 2007 Engadget Awards! Filed under: Announcements Just in case you missed it: we're in the process of collecting nominations for the 2007 Engadget Awards, and we're asking for your nominations! If you've never seen a gadget in a Stella McCartney gown break down in tears thanking its development team on live national television, well, it's really something to behold -- don't deprive your favorite devices the opportunity.   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 07:06 AM

Barrapunto : Firefox, muerte y destrucción pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Como se os ocurra anunciar que ha salido la actualización 1.5.0.4 de firefox, algo de lo que se van a dar cuenta todos sus usuarios en menos de 5 dias, sin antes mencionar la salida de KDE 3.5.3, voy a Madrid, Barcelona o donde coño que os encontréis y os quemo los servidores. Entonces barrapunto si que no será lo que era. No va a sobrevivir ni el apache.»

December 28, 2007 06:44 AM

SlashDot : Researchers Explore Quantum Dot Based NVRAM I Don't Believe in Imaginary Property brings us an article describing the possibility of a new type of non-volatile storage based on quantum dot technology. So far, researchers in Germany have achieved 10ns access times and 0.7Hz refresh rates. Their calculations predict that the access time could be maintained for up to a million years. We have discussed other technologies based on quantum dots, such as solar panels and information teleportation. From the Ars Technica article: "Quantum dots can do this because there is more design freedom in setting them up. Normal flash memory relies on the huge potential barrier created by a silicon oxide layer. However, to get electrons across that barrier when writing data to a flash cell requires a lot of energy, energy that destroys the silicon oxide layer. Quantum dots, in contrast, have tunable properties, so the barrier can be kept low." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 06:20 AM

SlashDot : Apple and Fox Set to Announce Movie Rental Deal mudimba writes "Apple and Twentieth Century Fox are about to announce a deal that will allow users to rent Fox movies over iTunes. The deal will allow people to download movies that will only play for a limited amount of time. 'Pali Research analyst Stacey Widlitz said the deal follows a trend of Hollywood studios selling directly to consumers and cutting out the middleman. "It's just a sign the studios feel ... that another distribution channel is where they are choosing to go, and incrementally it hurts Blockbuster and Netflix," Widlitz said.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 05:26 AM

wired - tech news : Wired Magazine's 10 Favorite Photos From 2007 Of all the many images that appear in Wired magazine, here are 10 that stand out as the photo editors look back at year's end.

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - tech news : What's Inside: Nair Hair Remover, Feel the Burn! Find out what goes in to hair-removal cream, Nair. You may be surprised ...

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : Vote for the Sexiest Geeks of 2007 Wired News nominates the sexiest geeks of 2007. Vote and submit your own nominees!

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - tech news : Vote for the Sexiest Geeks of 2007 Wired News nominates the sexiest geeks of 2007. Vote and submit your own nominees!

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : Wired Magazine's 10 Favorite Photos From 2007 Of all the many images that appear in Wired magazine, here are 10 that stand out as the photo editors look back at year's end.

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - tech news : The Software That Will Take Digital F/X to the Next Level of Awesome Explosions. Storms. Waves. CGI ace Jos Stam is creating a physics machine that can make special effects look absolutely, completely real.

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : What's Inside: Nair Hair Remover, Feel the Burn! Find out what goes in to hair-removal cream, Nair. You may be surprised ...

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - culture news : Wired Magazine's 10 Favorite Photos From 2007 Of all the many images that appear in Wired magazine, here are 10 that stand out as the photo editors look back at year's end.

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - culture news : Vote for the Sexiest Geeks of 2007 Wired News nominates the sexiest geeks of 2007. Vote and submit your own nominees!

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : The Software That Will Take Digital F/X to the Next Level of Awesome Explosions. Storms. Waves. CGI ace Jos Stam is creating a physics machine that can make special effects look absolutely, completely real.

December 28, 2007 05:00 AM

Barrapunto : Pero Taco pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «lkfjkcbk,chchcklkuykjdsfkljfyjrdñlljkgfdkjhfjkfdkh dfñlkljkjfclk.ñlñdkfflcxifgioppocfgfiñ`plfiùfdol` ptouipoty `rfioitfg +uiopoitupiupotpppppppppppppppppppppppppfkkgkhkklk ktrf+``rtjioipuñll,jhjvcñlñlñllkpgkjñlfioklkluilkñ ñlkk.glkklgt..gkg.g,.,kg,mg.klklkhyhddfkgdsmkofdkj fdjl,mklfdklklkjjk,.mklmchjixv,.mm,.xcvklmcvxm,vcx m,..mcxvxcvm,.m,lñcxv,cxv,.vckjlkldjfkjlgfklmfgmkl klgh.ggbjk,.fgklklgf.lmnkfgmn mn» Este es sólo un ejemplo de algunas de las noticias más absurdas que nos mandan algunos, sin duda bajo los influjos de la droja en el colacao. Durante el día os pondremos más, todas ellas verdaderas, ninguna mandada con espíritu de 28 de Diciembre, y sólo editadas para proteger a los inocentes.

December 28, 2007 04:58 AM

Engadget.com : Uniden to unveil new MapTrax GPS with integrated radar detector at CES Filed under: GPS Uniden's released a couple different low-key MapTrax GPS units, like the GPS-352 pictured here, but the company's been cranking out popular radar detectors for years now -- so it makes sense that we'll be seeing updated MapTrax units at CES with built-in fuzzbusters. The new MapTrax line will feature six different 3.5- and 4.3-inch units with NAVTEQ maps and 2GB of internal memory, and Uniden says four models will include integrated Bluetooth. Sadly, there aren't any official pictures yet, but you know we'll be all over these things at CES.   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 04:37 AM

Barrapunto : posicionamiento web Jason nos cuenta: «Soy estudiante y me he tenido que apuntar a un concurso de posicionmiento web. Siendo sincero, no tengo ni idea de como hacerlo, pero me juego un punto y medio de mi nota para la asignatura de tecnología de la información. Espero que alguien que lea este articulo me pueda ayudar y guiar con algún truco para posicionar mi blog. Gracias a todos los que aporteis vuestra ayuda. Mi blog es http://por.falta.de.morro.no.es/» Lo único que he cambiado en esta noticia son los URLs. Si alguien tiene el dominio no.es, ahora es su oportunidad de crear un subdomino enlazado desde barrapunto.

December 28, 2007 04:36 AM

SlashDot : Google Apps Slow to Replace Competition ericatcw brings us a Computerworld article about how businesses are still hesitant to switch to Google Apps as an alternative to Microsoft Office. While a Google spokesman claims "millions of active users", only "several thousand organizations" have paid for the Premier service, which was launched earlier this year. From Computerworld: "'If we deploy it correctly, Google Docs can replace some [of] our Office apps -- but not all of them,' said Les Sease, IT director of Prudential Carolina Real Estate in North Charleston, South Carolina. Sease would like to switch everyone over completely to Google Apps. But first he would like to see better synchronization between Google Apps and mobile devices, shared online file storage similar to that of Apple Inc.'s .Mac, as well as a simple desktop publishing tool similar to Microsoft Publisher." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 03:59 AM

SlashDot : Microsoft Opens Its Security Research Cookbooks greg65535 writes "Today Microsoft launched a blog about the internals of their IT security research and patch development process. There are already some posts that you will not find in the official security bulletins or KB articles. One of the posts says, 'We periodically identify workarounds or mitigations like this that we can't use for official guidance because they're either too nuanced or have some exception cases. When we discover something potentially useful but are uncomfortable listing it in the bulletin, we'll do our best to describe it here in this blog.' It looks like Microsoft is making an effort to become more 'open' in the area of security research and communication." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 02:31 AM

wired - tech news : Top of the Swaps: P2P's Most-Traded Movies, TV and Songs of 2007 Who was tops on the file-trading circuit in 2007? To find out, Wired News and BigChampagne teamed up to compile the lists of the most-traded movies, music and TV shows among the peer-to-peer underground.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : The Year in Online Video 2007 Freaks, geeks and beats make for a bumper crop of visual artistry, harvested by your friendly internet meme farmers. Take a look at 12 of the year's most amusingly embeddable videos.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : Top of the Swaps: P2P's Most-Traded Movies, TV and Songs of 2007 Who was tops on the file-trading circuit in 2007? To find out, Wired News and BigChampagne teamed up to compile the lists of the most-traded movies, music and TV shows among the peer-to-peer underground.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : The Year in Online Video 2007 Freaks, geeks and beats make for a bumper crop of visual artistry, harvested by your friendly internet meme farmers. Take a look at 12 of the year's most amusingly embeddable videos.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : Dec. 28, 1973: Endangered Species Get a Helping Hand Public consciousness leads to the most sweeping environmental protection legislation in U.S. history.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : Snorting a Brain Chemical Could Replace Sleep Scientists are reporting that a nasal spray of a key brain hormone cures sleepiness in sleep-deprived monkeys. With no apparent side effects, the hormone might be a promising sleep-replacement drug.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : Snorting a Brain Chemical Could Replace Sleep Scientists are reporting that a nasal spray of a key brain hormone cures sleepiness in sleep-deprived monkeys. With no apparent side effects, the hormone might be a promising sleep-replacement drug.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : Dec. 28, 1973: Endangered Species Get a Helping Hand Public consciousness leads to the most sweeping environmental protection legislation in U.S. history.

December 28, 2007 02:00 AM

Engadget.com : Wal-Mart shuts down video downloads after a year in service Filed under: Portable Video Sounds like the video download game isn't as easy as the biggies make it out to be. Wal-Mart, whose download store has been open all of a year and a couple of weeks is already shutting down, apparently abandoning the effort after its tech partner HP discontinued whatever technology it was running the thing. Bonus for (former) Wal-Mart Video Downloads though: according to the FAQ, all downloaded videos are users' to keep, and no one's bound to keep the Wal-Mart Video Download Manager on their machine anymore. Of course, it's still DRMed to hell, so short of stripping the copy protection, you'll only be able to play "your" purchased videos with the machine on which you bought it -- and nothing else. [Via Reuters]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 01:57 AM

Engadget.com : Inspiron 1525 hits Dell's Australian site with pricing Filed under: Laptops The Inspiron 1525 was supposed to hit sometime in "mid-December," and although that didn't happen, it looks like it still managed to squeak into the oh-oh-seven -- Dell's Australian site just put up a bunch of pages detailing the new machine. The 15.4-inch machine doesn't come packing a ton of surprises -- 2GHz T7250 Core 2 Duo, X3100 integrated graphics, 2GB of RAM, 160GB or storage, and WiFi -- but it's at least kinda cheap, at AU$1399 ($1228). The site lists an Australian ship date of January 9th, so we'd imagine we'll be seeing these hit the States relatively soon. Just don't tell anyone who scored a 1520 for Christmas, dig?   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 01:31 AM

Engadget.com : Polaroid unveils 7-inch XSJ-00750M digital photo frame Filed under: Digital Cameras, Displays Just as soon as Digital Foci introduced a trio of digital photo frames, along comes Polaroid with a 7-incher of its own. The XSJ-00750M rocks a 480 x 234 widescreen panel, 400:1 contrast ratio, 250 cd/m2 brightness, USB 2.0 connectivity and a multicard reader that handles SD, MMC, CF, MS, MSPro and MSDuo. Aside from sifting through your JPEG collection, it also plays back MP3 files, and just in case you've got a thing for varying colors, you'll be delighted to know that this one comes with black, white and wood colored frames. Grab one next month (if you're in Japan, that is) for ¥17,000 ($149). [Via FarEastGizmos]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 01:04 AM

SlashDot : Warner Music Group Drops DRM for Amazon SirLurksAlot sends us to Ars Technica for an article about the Warner Music Group's decision to allow DRM-free music downloads through Amazon. This reversal of Warner's former position has been underway for some time, and it boosts the number of DRM-free songs available from Amazon to 2.9 million. Quoting: "Warner's announcement says nothing about offering its content through other services such as iTunes, and represents the music industry's attempt to make life a bit more difficult for Apple after all the years in which the company held the keys to music's digital kingdom. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 28, 2007 12:58 AM

Engadget.com : Call center software can re-route angry callers Filed under: Misc. Gadgets We've already seen call center software that can determine the age and gender of callers, but a Japanese company called Digital Technologies says its developing software that will take actions based on the emotions of the person on the line. The data is used to rank people on a 1-10 scale of happy to displeased, but it's not clear if the system springs into action after you connect to a real person or if it starts while you try to navigate voice menus -- because if our experiences with Amtrak's "Julie" automated voice agent are any guide, you might as well just rank everyone as "angry" and be done with it. [Image by Armend Krasniqi]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 28, 2007 12:07 AM

December 27, 2007

wired - tech news : Why I Canceled All My Music Subscriptions With Warner Music ditching DRM, Listening Post blogger Eliot Van Buskirk decides to do the same. But leaving Napster and Rhapsody isn't as easy is it should be.

December 27, 2007 11:30 PM

wired - top news : Why I Canceled All My Music Subscriptions With Warner Music ditching DRM, Listening Post blogger Eliot Van Buskirk decides to do the same. But leaving Napster and Rhapsody isn't as easy is it should be.

December 27, 2007 11:30 PM

SlashDot : First Reflected Light From an Exoplanet Seen Roland Piquepaille writes "European astronomers have for the first time ever been able to detect and monitor the visible light that is scattered in the atmosphere of an exoplanet. Designated HD 189733b, also known as a 'hot Jupiter,' orbits a star slightly cooler and less massive than the Sun about 60 light-years from Earth. According to a Zurich news release, 'Polarization technique focuses limelight,' the researchers used 'techniques similar to how Polaroid sunglasses filter away reflected sunlight to reduce glare. They also directly traced the orbit of the planet, a feat of visualization not possible using indirect methods.' The team thinks that their findings are opening new opportunities for exploring physical conditions on exoplanets." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 11:26 PM

News.com : Google's privacy faux pas with Reader Google blasted for opt-out sharing feature in Google Reader just like Facebook was criticized for Beacon ad service.

December 27, 2007 11:20 PM

Engadget.com : Digital Foci rolling out trio of new digital photo frames Filed under: Digital Cameras, Displays Some nine months after Digital Foci unveiled the IMT-062, the firm is gearing up for CES 2008 with a trio of newcomers (entire family shown). Up first is the revamped Image Moments 6 (IMT-063), which sports a 5.7-inch 640 x 480 LED-backlit panel, a two-tone polished chrome finish and built-in stereo speakers. Moving on up, we've got the Image Moments 8 (IMT-083), which ups the ante with a 800 x 600 resolution panel and a 500:1 contrast ratio, and just in case that's not enough screen real estate for you, there's the 15-inch IMT-153, which packs a XGA (1,024 x 768) resolution, 700:1 contrast ratio, an AV input, interchangeable frame / mat and VESA mountability. The trifecta includes 200MB of storage, USB 2.0 connectivity and a multicard reader that handles a smorgasbord of formats, and all three should be available in March for $149, $199 and $399, respectively.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 11:16 PM

SlashDot : Data Storage Predictions for 2008 Lucas123 writes "IDC just released its predictions for 2008 with regards to data storage trends. Its research shows, among other things, a greater adoption of online backup and archiving services, the 'prevalent' use of full-disk encryption in the data center, and mainstream adoption of solid-state disk drives due to falling prices. From the story: 'There are very simple situations and application scenarios where solid-state disks will be worth the risk. It does promise some great potential benefit in terms of I/O ... [and] solid state will make a significant impact on reducing heat from spindle usage in server blade deployments and to boost functionality in mobile devices.' According to IDC, storage capacity is exploding at a rate of almost 60% per year." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 10:40 PM

Engadget.com : Derailing the Apple touchscreen UMPC fantasy Filed under: Handhelds, Laptops So, if you've been paying any attention to tech news over the past few days, you have probably seen an Apple UMPC rumor floating around. The cats behind these latest whisperings seem to be super-duper whizzes with Photoshop and possess pretty active imaginations. Apparently, when they heard that people were speculating on a new type of touchscreen Apple device, they decided to whip up a couple of specs, the not-so-tasty image above, and a dust cloud of hype based off of a post made on a personal -- yet largely unread -- Apple news blog. It seems to have worked, save for one small problem: there isn't one verifiable or reliable piece of information in the whole thing. Maybe Steve Jobs will see the mock-up and decide to make this thing for real so we can all get a sweet new device -- but really just so the rumor-starters in question won't be proven wrong.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 10:36 PM

wired - political news : Surveillance and Crime Move the Needle in Threat Level's Guide to 2007 It was the year a Mr. Smith senator took away phone companies' Get Out Of Jail Free cards, Ron Paul fans put their money where their mouths are, and technology-laced murder and piracy trials unfolded before rapt, and sometimes angry, jurors.

December 27, 2007 10:30 PM

wired - top news : Surveillance and Crime Move the Needle in Threat Level's Guide to 2007 It was the year a Mr. Smith senator took away phone companies' Get Out Of Jail Free cards, Ron Paul fans put their money where their mouths are, and technology-laced murder and piracy trials unfolded before rapt, and sometimes angry, jurors.

December 27, 2007 10:30 PM

wired - tech news : Surveillance and Crime Move the Needle in Threat Level's Guide to 2007 It was the year a Mr. Smith senator took away phone companies' Get Out Of Jail Free cards, Ron Paul fans put their money where their mouths are, and technology-laced murder and piracy trials unfolded before rapt, and sometimes angry, jurors.

December 27, 2007 10:30 PM

News.com : RIM seeks patent for angled BlackBerry keyboard BlackBerry nation might get turned on its side if RIM ever brings the angled keyboard described in a recent patent application to the market.

December 27, 2007 10:15 PM

Engadget.com : Hacao's Classmate PC starts shipping in Vietnam Filed under: Laptops We haven't heard all that much from the Classmate PC front lately (at least compared to the OLPC and Eee PC), but it looks like Intel's education-friendly laptop is gaining a bit of ground of its own, with Hacao's take on it now shipping in Vietnam. Students receiving that version of the laptop will get Hacao's own customized Linux distribution (based on Puppy Linux) for an OS, along with the usual 900MHz Celeron processor, 256MB of RAM, 1GB of Flash storage, and a 7-inch WVGA -- plus built-in WiFi, but, as Linux Devices points out, none of the OLPC's fancy mesh networking technology. What's more, it seems that this version won't be entirely limited to students, with it also available in Vietnamese computer stores for $340 (a slight premium over the $250 apiece it'll cost schools that buy 'em). [Photo courtesy of DesktopLinux]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 10:03 PM

wired - tech news : MySpace Memorials Pay Tribute to Tiger's Victim, Carlos Sousa Jr. Friends still reeling from the mauling death of Carlos Sousa Jr. at the San Francisco Zoo memorialize their lost loved one online.

December 27, 2007 10:00 PM

wired - top news : MySpace Memorials Pay Tribute to Tiger's Victim, Carlos Sousa Jr. Friends still reeling from the mauling death of Carlos Sousa Jr. at the San Francisco Zoo memorialize their lost loved one online.

December 27, 2007 10:00 PM

SlashDot : Apple Patents 'Buy Stuff Wirelessly, Skip Lines' Tech An anonymous reader writes "Apple is looking to patent a process that will save customers the hassle of waiting to order a cup of coffee at a local Starbucks. Even better: The technology would let you jump the line of those ordering in person. 'Customers might tap a button to order their favorite drink, say a double-shot mocha, as they stroll up to the nearest coffee shop. When the drink is ready go to, the device--such as an iPhone--would chime or blink to let the thirsty one know it's time to scoop up the order at the counter. The patent puts Apple's partnership with Starbucks in a new light. The technology promises to morph Apple from the business of simply selling gadgets and music and movies that can be played on those devices into an intermediary in all kinds of exchanges.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 09:36 PM

Engadget.com : Oscar race sees DVD screeners leaked, players phased out Filed under: Home Entertainment It looks like the movie industry's reliance on DRM has hit a few stumbling blocks in this year's Oscar race, with a number of DVD screeners leaked onto BitTorrent and the movie industry's oft-despised DRM-friendly DVD player now getting phased out after just a few years of service. The player, the S-View, was developed by Dolby subsidiary Cinea in the hope of preventing those aforementioned screeners from leaking out, but it's been met with virtually nothing but complaints since its introduction, with its large size and lack of user-friendliness the main points of contention. That apparently leaves good 'ol watermarking as the main means of protecting DVD screeners which, as mentioned earlier, certainly doesn't keep them from leaking out altogether, but at least lets studios track 'em back to the source.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 09:30 PM

wired - tech news : As Caucuses Near, Iowa Bloggers Enjoy Their Day in the Sun Local bloggers now play a key role in influencing national media. Their blogs have become prime sites to watch as the 2008 presidential campaign gets hot.

December 27, 2007 09:00 PM

wired - political news : As Caucuses Near, Iowa Bloggers Enjoy Their Day in the Sun Local bloggers now play a key role in influencing national media. Their blogs have become prime sites to watch as the 2008 presidential campaign gets hot.

December 27, 2007 09:00 PM

wired - top news : As Caucuses Near, Iowa Bloggers Enjoy Their Day in the Sun Local bloggers now play a key role in influencing national media. Their blogs have become prime sites to watch as the 2008 presidential campaign gets hot.

December 27, 2007 09:00 PM

Barrapunto : Un regalo de más de 10 millones de euros para la SGAE Un pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Según recoge la Asociación de Internautas, el canon que la SGAE ingresará el próximo año por copias y reproducciones de música "copyleft" (autónomos) ajenos a esa entidad (y a los que por tanto no repartirá ni un euro) será superior a los 10 millones de euros, según los cálculos realizados por AMI (Asociación de Música en Internet). Fuera de la SGAE también existe una creación intelectual que proteger. Hay más de cuatro millones de músicos que no están registrados en la SGAE ni en ninguna otra entidad de gestión colectiva, a los que el canon les perjudica. A los sitios web que ofrecen música copyleft acceden desde España más de un millón de personas, que pagan por reproducir y copiar música cuyos derechos no están cedidos a la SGAE.» Puede leerse la nota de prensa de la AMI, que es la fuente original.

December 27, 2007 08:50 PM

Engadget.com : Windows Home Server bug corrupts files Filed under: Media PCs, Storage Looks like we've got a definitive answer to "How would you change Windows Home Server?" -- make it so it doesn't corrupt data. Microsoft has just posted a Knowledge Base document saying that it's confirmed WHS corrupts various files when saved to the server by certain apps. The bug affects several MS apps, including Money, Outlook 2007, Vista Photo Gallery, Live Photo Gallery, and SyncToy, but it also hits Quicken, Quickbooks, and -- fatally for a media server -- BitTorrent clients. Microsoft says it's working on a fix, but that in the meantime, you should avoid using WHS with these apps. [Via Computerworld, thanks Tanner E.]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 08:50 PM

SlashDot : Is the Dell XPS One Better than the Apple iMac? An anonymous reader writes "The Apple iMac is probably the standard all-in-one desktop computer. Great operating system, built-in software and design around solid, but pretty normal, hardware guts. According to Walter Mossberg, there's a new kid in town that not only matches it but is 'sightly ahead': the Dell XPS One. His latest review is already causing the usual suspects to weigh in. Mossberg says it is a better machine, but Vista and its built-in software make it inferior than Apple iMac's Leopard and iLife suite. Would you choose the better hardware of the Dell XPS One -which is more expensive- or the elegant design and software of the Apple iMac?" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 08:33 PM

News.com : Appeals court rules against Google in patent suit Court sends patent suit back to lower court in case over Google's AutoLink toolbar feature.

December 27, 2007 08:09 PM

osdir : Ruby 1.9.0 From the Jewelry for the Holidays dept.: Hi, We are happy to announce of the release of the 1.9.0 the development release. ... We hope this helps you to enjoy hacking. Happy Holidays. matz.

December 27, 2007 08:00 PM

Barrapunto : ¿Podría un astrónomo extraterrestre hallar la Tierra con un telescopio? bigoc nos cuenta: «[Vía Slashdot] Ya hemos descubierto más de 270 exoplanetas. Pero si astrónomos extraterrestres estuviesen buscando vida fuera de sus mundos, ¿qué verían en el nuestro? ¿Podrían deducir que nuestro mundo es apto para la vida? Según un grupo de astrónomos, "tan sólo podrían ver a la Tierra como un único píxel. "Pero eso sería suficiente para ellos para poder identificar nuestro planeta como uno que podría contener nubes y océanos de agua líquida". Fuente en inglés, en EurekAlert.»

December 27, 2007 07:57 PM

News.com : Chinese court dismisses trademark suit against Google Court finds that Google China began using the name "Gu Ge" before Beijing-based company registered it, according to a translated report.

December 27, 2007 07:47 PM

SlashDot : Report Says 36.4% of World's Computers Infringe on IP I Don't Believe in Imaginary Property writes "According to a new report by Digital Music News, 36.4% of the world's computers have LimeWire installed. Given their claim that filling an iPod legally would cost about $40,000, they're pretty sure that most of those computers are infringing upon at least a few imaginary property rights. BitTorrent shouldn't feel left out, though. BitTorrent actually uses more bandwidth, but the article suggests that this is because it is used to share larger files, like movies." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 07:31 PM

wired - tech news : Warner Music Group Sells DRM-Free MP3s on Amazon.com Another major label strips digital rights management restrictions from its songs to partner with the world's biggest e-tailer.

December 27, 2007 07:30 PM

wired - top news : Warner Music Group Sells DRM-Free MP3s on Amazon.com Another major label strips digital rights management restrictions from its songs to partner with the world's biggest e-tailer.

December 27, 2007 07:30 PM

Engadget.com : Kid gets phone book instead of PS3 for Xmas Filed under: Gaming It's certainly not the first time we've seen someone open the box to a pricey gadget only to find their hopes and dreams dashed by some unscrupulous individual that's swiped the device and replaced it by something similarly weighted but decidedly cheaper, but it just wouldn't be the holidays if we didn't bring you another account of the same wrong-doings happening again. This latest one comes to us from Thousand Oaks, California where one kid opened the box to the PlayStation 3 he got for Christmas and found a phone book in its place of his desired console. What's more, the PS3 wasn't bought on eBay or out of someone's trunk as you might expect, but at the local EB Games, where the kid's parents are apparently now doing their best to get things sorted out. [Via Digg]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 07:29 PM

wired - tech news : Crocodile Hunter Widow Turns Attention to Whale Research Terri Irwin, the widow of TV "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin, announces that a whale watching program she started in honor of her late husband will expand into scientific research in 2008. She hopes the non-lethal research of whales in Antarctic waters will show Japan's scientific whale kill is a sham.

December 27, 2007 07:00 PM

wired - top news : Crocodile Hunter Widow Turns Attention to Whale Research Terri Irwin, the widow of TV "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin, announces that a whale watching program she started in honor of her late husband will expand into scientific research in 2008. She hopes the non-lethal research of whales in Antarctic waters will show Japan's scientific whale kill is a sham.

December 27, 2007 07:00 PM

Barrapunto : Actualización de Debian 4 estable napmaniak nos cuenta: «Ya tenemos disponible la segunda actualización 4.0r2 de Debian estable desde ayer en los servidores FTP Debian. Estas revisiones solo suelen corregir problemas de seguridad o bugs de los paquetes ya existentes, pero no aportan programas nuevos ni nuevas funcionalidades ¿Seguís prefiriendo Debian o sois todos ya ubunteros?» Ya está disponible la nota oficial, con los detalles de esta revisión (que no nueva versión).

December 27, 2007 06:38 PM

SlashDot : WTO Awards Caribbean Country Right to Ignore US Copyright The WTO's recent ruling on Antigua's complaint against the US over the banning of online gambling resulted in a payment to the island nation much less than they asked for. It appears, though, that this payment was just part of the WTO's compensation package for Antigua/Barbuda. Via Kotaku, the Hollywood Reporter notes that the Caribbean country can now freely ignore US copyright laws - legally. This dispensation is apparently limited to some $21 million a year. "The WTO often takes decisions awarding trade compensation in cases where one nation's policies are found to break its rules. But this is only the second time the compensation lets one country violate intellectual property laws. In this case, Antigua will -- in theory -- be allowed to distribute copies of American DVDs, CDs and games and software with impunity. 'That has only been done once before and is, I believe, a very potent weapon,' Antigua's lawyer Mark Mendel said. 'I hope that the United States government will now see the wisdom in reaching some accommodation with Antigua over this dispute.'" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 06:25 PM

Engadget.com : Samsung's P720, F490 make their video debut Filed under: Cellphones Samsung's new P720 and F490 handsets already made themselves known at a recent press event in the Ukraine but, given that we unfortunately couldn't make the trek there ourselves, we didn't exactly get that great a look at 'em. Now thanks to the folks at Mobile-Notes, however, we've got some better pics of each of the handsets, along with a video that shows them off from every angle (check it out after the break). In case you missed the original announcement, the P720 and F490 pack 3 and 5-megapixel cameras respectively, along with dual SIM card slots on the former and a 432 x 240 touchscreen on the former. Both will also be available in the first half of next year, with the F490 trickling out sometime in the first quarter for $600, and the P720 following in Q2 for $500. [Via Unwired View] Continue reading Samsung's P720, F490 make their video debut   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 06:19 PM

News.com : Reports: Apple, Fox planning movie rental service iTunes users might soon be able to download Fox movies, and Apple could also be ready to reverse its stance on licensing its FairPlay DRM, according to reports.

December 27, 2007 06:02 PM

Engadget.com : Fujitsu quits the display business The rough-and-tumble economics of the display business claimed another victim today, as Fujitsu announced that it will exit the market in March. We hadn't seen a lot from the company's Aviamo line of plasmas since they first debuted in 2006, and it looks like there's a reason -- according to the short press release issued by Fujitsu today, "the pricing and profitability of this segment has compressed beyond the point which our company could realize a satisfactory return on investment." Hmmm, that explains why it spun off Shinoda Plasma a while back, no? Fujitsu says it will continue to sell displays in Japan and provide service and support to customers for the foreseeable future, but that what it really wants to do is paint "concentrate...on our core business of heating and ventilation equipment." You keep living that dream, guys. [Thanks, Bruce S.]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 05:46 PM

Engadget.com : Mossberg impressed by Dell's XPS One Filed under: Desktops Turns out PC Mag wasn't the only one fairly impressed by Dell's entry into the all-in-one desktop arena, Unkie Walt is officially a fan, and while he won't be giving up his iMac anytime soon, he had some warm things to say about the computer and Dell's design direction in general. In fact, as far as actual hardware goes, Walt found plenty of things he likes better about the XPS One than Apple's iMac, like the built-in memory card slots, TV tuner, back-lit touch controls and standard wireless keyboard and mouse. Still, Dell's base configuration loses out on power and price to the iMac, and Mossberg still recommends Leopard over Vista, but this seems to be Dell at the top of the heap when it comes to PC all-in-ones -- and a far sight ahead of the Mossberg-panned Gateway One. [Thanks, webon]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 05:42 PM

SlashDot : eBay vs. Romania's Online Scammers spinctrl links to an interesting story in the L.A. Times about the cloak-and-daggerism of fighting online scams in Romania, summing it up like this: "The country is the top source of auction site scams. One company is trying to do something about it, with increasing collaboration from local law enforcement over recent years. Ebay has sent over equipment and a team to help the authorities combat this form of cyber crime, which is run with all the organization of an industrial-scale business." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 05:15 PM

Engadget.com : Palm Foleo: the exclusive first and final hands-on Filed under: Cellphones, Features, Handhelds The irony is so thick we're almost drowning in it, but we had to see this thing through to the end. Back in 2005 we got a once in a lifetime scoop -- the Treo 700w -- that proved once and for all Palm was doing non-Palm OS devices. Then, earlier this year, we were there when Jeff Hawkins announced the ill-fated Foleo at D5. We got the first ever hands-on of the thing, and eventually wrote a letter to Palm which not only prompted a public response from CEO Ed Colligan, but that many attributed as a cause of the Foleo's death. And lucky us (we think?), we managed to snag one of the few Foleos ever produced. We'll be writing a brief post-mortem review of the thing shortly, but for now just enjoy some images of the hardware and software -- and let us know if there's anything in particular about the Foleo you've just got to know! Gallery: Palm Foleo: the exclusive first and final hands-on (hardware) Gallery: Palm Foleo: the exclusive first and final hands-on (software)   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 05:09 PM

News.com : Ig Nobel Prize publisher to go free online Internet version of The Annals of Improbable Research Journal, which chronicles unusual research projects and hosts a related awards ceremony, will be free.

December 27, 2007 05:00 PM

Engadget.com : Amazon starts dishing out DRM-free Warner Music MP3s Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video We're not sure if Amazon's forthcoming DRM-less Super Bowl promotion has anything to do with it or not, but the company has just announced that its finally brought Warner Music Group into its MP3 fold, with a slew of music from the label now available for download without any of those pesky restrictions. According to Dow Jones, the pair also plan to offer other "digital music products," including album bundles with exclusive tracks, although details are few and far between beyond that. Still no word from Sony BMG on its intentions to go DRM-free (with Amazon or anyone else), but it sure looks like things are increasingly stacking up against them.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 04:45 PM

Engadget.com : Panasonic whittles thinnest Blu-ray drive for laptops down to 9.5mm Filed under: HDTV, Laptops, Storage While certain notable holdouts have yet to even announce HD disc-based products, it looks like the rest of modern civilization is getting ready to move the discs to an even slimmer set of laptops. Panasonic's latest burner for laptops is down to a mere 9.5mm thick, easily besting the company's previous 12.7mm Blu-ray drives. The drive can read and write Blu-ray discs at 2x, and supports DVD and CD read / write functions aplenty. Toshiba is on record claiming that HD DVD burners can be slimmed down to 7mm and will eventually be besting Blu-ray in this category, but so far only DVD has gone that slim. Panasonic will debut the new drive next month at CES.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 04:17 PM

SlashDot : Windows Home Server Corrupts Files crustymonkey points out a ComputerWorld article which says that "Microsoft Corp. has warned Windows Home Server users not to edit files stored on their backup systems with several of its programs, including Vista Photo Gallery and Office's OneNote and Outlook, as well as files generated by popular finance software such as Quicken and QuickBooks." Crustymonkey asks Don't back up your files to Windows Home Server, as recommended by Microsoft themselves? I'm not exactly what the point is in having a home server if you can't back up files on it." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 04:13 PM

wired - tech news : 35 MPG Standard Will Kill the Muscle Car? Uh-huh. Sure Some people are whining that the newly adopted 35-mpg fuel-economy standard will kill the muscle car. Don't bet on it. Meeting an average doesn't mean every car has to be average.

December 27, 2007 04:00 PM

wired - top news : 35 MPG Standard Will Kill the Muscle Car? Uh-huh. Sure Some people are whining that the newly adopted 35-mpg fuel-economy standard will kill the muscle car. Don't bet on it. Meeting an average doesn't mean every car has to be average.

December 27, 2007 04:00 PM

Engadget.com : FBI rolling out digital billboards in 20 cities Filed under: Displays Employing public signage in the pursuit of suspects is probably about as old as criminology itself, so it's no surprise to see the FBI leveraging the latest technology to erect some of the largest, most versatile wanted posters in history. Thanks to a partnership with advertising giant Clear Channel Outdoor, the G-men will deploy some 150 digital billboards -- capable of displaying fugitives, missing children, or public safety info in real-time -- to 20 major cities around the country, following a successful trial launched in Philadelphia in September. So if you're planning on committing a felony in Des Moines, Iowa or Akron, Ohio soon, better get it done quick, lest your ugly mug become the talk of the car pool during your morning commute. List of all the lucky cities after the break. [Via Slashdot] Continue reading FBI rolling out digital billboards in 20 cities   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 03:57 PM

wired - top news : Ring-a-Ding-Ding: Bell Stole Idea for Phone, Book Says If author Seth Schulman is right, maybe it should have been called Ma Gray. The journalist argues that Bell got a look at Elisha Gray's patent application for what would become the telephone and then simply ripped him off.

December 27, 2007 03:40 PM

wired - tech news : Ring-a-Ding-Ding: Bell Stole Idea for Phone, Book Says If author Seth Schulman is right, maybe it should have been called Ma Gray. The journalist argues that Bell got a look at Elisha Gray's patent application for what would become the telephone and then simply ripped him off.

December 27, 2007 03:40 PM

Engadget.com : Angry drivers torching traffic cameras in England Filed under: Robots, Transportation Apparently, the Luddite tradition of machine breaking is alive and well in its country of origin. According to a report, a group calling itself MAD -- or Motorists Against Detection -- have taken to setting autonomous traffic cameras ablaze across the United Kingdom, and are detailing their exploits on a website (of course). The group's "PR" claims they have been active since 2000, and have destroyed over 1000 roadside cameras. Says the group's leader, Capt. Gatso, "The vigilante anti-speed camera group have announced a summer of MADness which will see them target for destruction all speed cameras in the UK. It's now going to be a period of zero tolerance against all speed cameras." The gang of disgruntled drivers also plans a day of action called "National Cover-Up Your Number Plates Day." Guy Fawkes would be proud. [Thanks, Anand]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 03:37 PM

News.com : Golf Channel to add high-tech tracking Radar technology of Denmark-based company Interactive Sports Games, or ISG, to provide 3D data on players and golf ball movement to viewers.

December 27, 2007 03:24 PM

SlashDot : SCO Receives Nasdaq's Delisting Notice An anonymous reader writes "This somewhat amusing press release of sorts tells us one of those things we've all been waiting a while for. SCO(X) has announced that 'it received a Nasdaq Staff Determination letter on December 21, 2007 indicating that as a result of having filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, the Nasdaq Listing Qualifications Panel has determined to delist the company's securities from the Nasdaq Stock Market and will suspend trading of the securities effective at the open of business on Thursday, December 27, 2007.' PJ at Groklaw has surmised that with effectively zero cash resources left, Novell doesn't stand to get much more than SCO's furniture, if even that. Ding dong, is the wicked witch finally dead yet?" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 03:17 PM

Engadget.com : Cowon's N3 player packs DMB, GPS, 7-inch touchscreen Filed under: GPS, Portable Audio, Portable Video Cowon has really been tossing out a lot of winners of late, and if this N3 is any indication, there seems to be no stopping the DAP manufacturer at this point. While the N3 doesn't look to be headed for US shores in the immediate future -- thanks to that pesky built-in DMB tuner -- it does seem to have all the codec goodies and design refinement of its older siblings. The player is a followup to the N2, with a 800 x 480 7-inch touchscreen, 600MHz Alchemy AU processor, dual SDHC slots (but no built-in memory), and GPS. Software is based on Windows CE 5.0. No word on price or release date, but hopefully we'll be finding out more next month at CES.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 03:16 PM

Engadget.com : TG's LLUON Crystal reminds us that mini PCs can be sexy, too Filed under: Desktops Sure, manufacturers are stuffing all sorts of great components into inconceivably small cases these days, but all that cramming has still left plenty of room for ugly of late. TG has been honing its skinny desktop form factor for a few years now, and seems to have it down to a science with the latest TG LLUON Crystal. Specs are only so-so, running up to a Core 2 Duo T7200 processor at 2GHz, 2GB of RAM, a 500GB HDD, DVD burner, GeForce 8400 GS graphics and a bit of 802.11g, and the 1,399,000 won pricetag (about $1,490 US) is hardly a steal for this amount of power, but we're just glad that ugly spell is over -- and unsurprised it took a South Korean company to do the trick. [Via Akihabara]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 02:56 PM

Engadget.com : Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S730 compact shooter pre-announced for CES Filed under: Digital Cameras Sony's got a new basic camera in the works to flesh out its line of compacts. The Cyber-shot DSC-S730 brings 7.2 megapixels of resolution, a 2.4-inch LCD, ISO 1250 and 3x zoom. The high-ish ISO is ostensibly there to fight camera shake, but we'd rather Sony sprang for some image stabilization -- we get the basic specs, but why not toss in some extra silicon to sweeten the package? As it stands, we'll need a bit more info before we can really differentiate this new camera from Sony's DSC-S700 from last year, but we'll be finding out soon enough when Sony debuts the S730 in January. So far only a Europe launch is confirmed. [Via Akihabara]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 02:34 PM

Barrapunto : ¿Estás prevenido por si un día te roban el portátil? En una nueva entrada de mi blog titulada "¿Piensas en si un día te roban el portátil?" trato de hacer reflexionar a los lectores sobre si están bien preparados ante un eventual robo de su portátil con sus datos más o menos confidenciales de su actividad profesional o personal. La entrada trata de enfatizar la importancia del backup en una máquina o dispositivo remoto, del cifrado de los datos o del sistema de ficheros, así como de las posibilidades que el fabricante puede haber puesto a nuestra disposición en forma de contraseña para encender el ordenador o para arrancar el disco duro (power-on password y hard-disk password) o en forma de chip TPM. Asimismo, se plantea una solución basada en usar DynDNS (inspirada en aquella noticia de El ordenador que se la jugó a su ladrón) para, si el ladrón comete la imprudencia de conectar el portátil a Internet, tener una posibilidad de geolocalizarlo por IP y adjuntar dicha información a la denuncia pertinente. El asunto es: ¿se tomaría la policía la molestia de contactar con el ISP sólo por localizar un portátil de +/- 1000 euros? Espero que resulte interesante pero que no le resulte útil a nadie ;-)

December 27, 2007 02:24 PM

SlashDot : Alexander Graham Bell - Patent Thief? DynaSoar writes "MSNBC is carrying an AP article reviewing a book, due out January 7, that claims to show definitive evidence that Bell stole the essential idea for telephony from Elisha Gray. Author Seth Shulman shows that Bell's notebooks contain false starts, and then after a 12-day gap during which he visited the US Patent Office, suddenly show an entirely different design, very similar to Gray's design for multiplexing Morse code signals. Shulman claims that Bell copied the design from Gray's patent application and was improperly given credit for earlier submission, with the help of a corrupt patent examiner and aggressive lawyers. Shulman also claims that fear of being found out is the reason Bell distanced himself from the company that carried his name. And if Gray Telephone doesn't seem to roll off the tongue, Shulman also noted that both of them were two decades behind the German inventor Johann Philipp Reis, who produced the first working telephony system." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 02:20 PM

SlashDot : Black Hole Fires at Neighboring Galaxy StarCraft 2 writes "This composite image shows the jet from a black hole at the center of a galaxy striking the edge of another galaxy, the first time such an interaction has been found. In the image, it is clearly seen how the jet from the main galaxy on the lower left is striking its companion galaxy to the upper right. The jet impacts the companion galaxy at its edge and is then disrupted and deflected, much like how a stream of water from a hose will splay out after hitting a wall at an angle. The composite image was made by combining data from Chandra, Hubble and several other systems." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 01:27 PM

Engadget.com : Sony's 1080p VPL-VW40 projector set for January release Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment Feeling a bit bummed that Santa didn't deliver that swank new front projector you'd been asking pleading for? Trust us, it's for the best. Apparently, Sony is looking to release its VPL-VW40 to the masses at the end of January, and judging by the specs, it looks an awful lot like the discontinued VPL-VW50 -- save for the price. The BRAVIA SXRD PJ sports a 1080p native resolution, 15,000:1 contrast ratio, a 12-bit Panel Drive Full Digital Chassis and an ARC-F lens. Additionally, you'll find a couple of HDMI ports, VGA, RS-232 and composite / S-Video / component jacks. Granted, there's no little birdie giving us the inside scoop, but we'd bet that Sony gives this thing its fair share of floor space at CES -- particularly the oh-so-tempting $2,999.99 price tag. [Thanks, Jordan]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 01:27 PM

Barrapunto : Publicado RubyStack, con soporte para Apache 2.2 bitjazz nos cuenta: «El equipo de BitNami acaba de lanzar la última versión de RubyStack, una distribución libre de Ruby on Rails para Windows (próximamente para Linux y OS X). Consiste en un programa que se encarga de instalar y configurar Apache, Ruby, Rails y MySQL, además de numerosas extensiones, como ImageMagick o Mongrel. También hay instaladores de otras aplicaciones de Ruby, como Redmine y un foro en castellano.»

December 27, 2007 01:18 PM

SlashDot : FBI to Put Criminals Up in Lights coondoggie writes "The FBI today said it wants to install 150 digital billboards in 20 major U.S. cities in the next few weeks to show fugitive mug shots, missing people and high-priority security messages from the big bureau. The billboards will let the FBI highlight those people it is looking for the most: violent criminals, kidnap victims, missing kids, bank robbers, even terrorists, the FBI said in a release. And the billboards will be able to be updated largely in real-time — right after a crime is committed, a child is taken, or an attack is launched. Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Miami will be among those cities provided with the new billboards." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 12:52 PM

Engadget.com : Shiro readies trio of ho hum PMPs Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video We'll spare you the obvious here -- we're quite aware that Shiro's VJ (pictured) looks an awful lot like something else -- but nevertheless, the outfit is hoping that its forthcoming trio of portable media players can somehow get traction in the overly saturated market. The aforementioned VJ reportedly rocks a 2.4-inch 320 x 240 resolution display, up to 8GB of internal storage space, a microSD expansion slot, built-in microphone for voice recording, an FM radio, up to 20 hours of music playback (5 hours of video) and support for MP3, WMA, WAV, BMP and JPEG files. As for the MR, look for similar features in a smaller (2-inch display) package with a maximum capacity of 4GB, while the MD boasts an even tinier screen (1.8-inch) and a fair bit less battery life. Regrettably, no pricing details were mentioned, but we get the feeling Shiro will be saving those tidbits for CES. [Via Wired]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 12:40 PM

News.com : Year in review: Social networking gets its geek on The Web phenomenon began a new phase with the debut of developer platforms like Facebook's that gave sites both tech cred and popular appeal.

December 27, 2007 12:00 PM

News.com : Year in review: Car tech gets political Fears of an energy crisis and safety concerns lead to new fuel-saving tech and automation features.

December 27, 2007 12:00 PM

News.com : Photos: From airborne ops to laser gunship The C-130, born in the 1950s, is still going strong as it adapts to the high-tech era and takes on an endless array of missions.

December 27, 2007 12:00 PM

Barrapunto : En enero saldrá a la venta el primer tablet para Mac pobrecito hablador nos cuenta: «Enero (dentro de apenas unos pocos días) parece ser el mes elegido para que salga al mercado, por fin, el primer tablet para Mac. Desarrollado por la empresa Axiotron, dispondrá de un procesador Intel Core 2 Duo de 2.0 a 2.2 GHz, desde 1GB de memoria RAM DDR2 hasta 4GB a elegir, o una pantalla Wide de 13.3 pulgadas con tecnología AnyView. Como no podía ser menos, vendrá con el nuevo sistema operativo Mac OS X Leopard 10.5, y al parecer, estará definitivamente disponible el día 8 de enero.»

December 27, 2007 10:48 AM

Barrapunto : ¿Qué te gustaría mejorar o arreglar en KDE? Acabo de enviar un par de comentarios a un fallo de Kdevelop que lleva varios años pendiente, y he visto el sistema de votación que tienen montado para decidir qué sugerencias y fallos son más importantes. En resumen, un usuario puede repartir 100 puntos entre cuantos informes de fallo o sugerencias quieras, pero no más de 20 puntos por fallo. Imagino que otros usuarios tendrán más puntos que otros. Yo acabo de añadir mis votos, además del fallo de parseado que comento arriba, para que el corrector ortográfico interactivo identifique automáticamente el idioma de cada texto, que KDM use el lector de huellas dactilares, que Kmail soporte el comando IDLE de IMAP, ahorrando tráfico de red y tiempo de los usuarios, y que Konqueror muestre MathML correctamente, para no tener que arrancar Firefox cuando leo ciertas páginas con matemáticas. Una carta un poco friki para los Reyes Magos.

December 27, 2007 10:46 AM

Engadget.com : Xbox 360 Devil May Cry 4 bundle hitting Japan in January Filed under: Gaming For all you Devil May Cry fanatics out there (wait -- are there Devil May Cry fanatics out there?) you're about to get a super-special, unicorn explosion from Microsoft. That's right, babies, it's the Devil May Cry special edition Xbox 360. Actually, it's more like a bundle of the boring, old, non-special (though HDMI equipped) Xbox 360, coupled with the brand-spanking-new Devil May Cry 4, where the Devil, crying, and the possibility of crying meet for a fourth -- but probably not final -- time. Right now it's looking like a Japanese-only deal, but you never know when something this gooey will drip over to these shores. Available January 31st for ¥37,800 (or about $330).   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 09:45 AM

SlashDot : NYPD To Replace Motor Fleet With Electric Scooters XueCast writes "A few days ago, the New York Police Department (NYPD ), one of the largest police forces in the United States of America, announced that they are planning to make New York greener by replacing their gasoline motorcycle fleet with the super-quiet and energy efficient electric scooters from Vectrix. NYPD said that they will first road test four electric scooters from the Rhode Island-based electric vehicle manufacturer next month, and if the road test is a success, NYPD said that they plan to order more electric scooters from Vectrix to replace their less-than-green motorcycle fleet." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 09:18 AM

Engadget.com : Sony officially quits rear-projection TV production Filed under: HDTV Remember how we told you that Sony, like so many others, is quitting the rear-projection TV business? Well, they finally decided to officially announce as much today, stating that come February its three RPTV plants would quit production of the sets and the company would focus its energy henceforth on LCD and OLED (huge surprise there). Don't let the door-of-obsolecense hit your ass on the way out, RPTV.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 08:07 AM

Engadget.com : Japan's AMEDIA shows off 18 new devices for the visually impaired A trade show held in Japan recently called AMEDIA showed off 18 new products aimed at helping the visually impaired better utilize technology. Among the devices on offer were an adaptive Braille display, which can convert text from a PC screen into the hand-read alphabet in real time, the REHA Vision "Color Talk," a handheld scanner which can recognize 220 colors and speak them to the user, and what appears to be GW Micro's VoiceSense PDA (here being employed to help those with visual impairments in the IT sector). The collection of gadgets clearly illustrates the kind of time and energy being put into making modern technology more accessible to everyone. Hit the read link for a (translated) tour of the show.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 07:43 AM

SlashDot : Australia Scraps National ID Plan IPU = Imaginary Property Unicorn writes "The proposed Australian 'Access Card', a universal ID that would be required for any Australian wishing to use Medicare, Centrelink, the Child Support Agency, or Veterans' Affairs, has been scrapped by the incoming Rudd Labor Government. The card would have contained an RFID tag with the person's name, date of birth, gender, address, signature, card number, card expiration date, and Medicare number, but there were also provisions to add more personal data later on. It seems that Rudd Labor is not eager to copy the American REAL ID Act." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 06:10 AM

wired - business news : Vote on The Tech Trends That Will Change Your Business in 2008 What technology trends will reshape the face of business in 2008? Wired News picks five trends that will rock your world -- and invites you to vote on them or nominate your own.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - culture news : What's Wired This Month: Cat Powers' Jukebox, JJ Abrams Top-Secret Cloverfield, Y: The Last Man on Earth Cat Power covers stripped-down take on classics like "New York, New York." Cloverfield's plot may be about grotesque creatures on a rampage through Manhattan, but who cares if we're wrong? And, the fate of Yorick Brown, the last man on Earth, will be revealed in the climax of Y: The Last Man.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - tech news : Vote on The Tech Trends That Will Change Your Business in 2008 What technology trends will reshape the face of business in 2008? Wired News picks five trends that will rock your world -- and invites you to vote on them or nominate your own.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : What's Wired This Month: Cat Powers' Jukebox, JJ Abrams Top-Secret Cloverfield, Y: The Last Man on Earth Cat Power covers stripped-down take on classics like "New York, New York." Cloverfield's plot may be about grotesque creatures on a rampage through Manhattan, but who cares if we're wrong? And, the fate of Yorick Brown, the last man on Earth, will be revealed in the climax of Y: The Last Man.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : Secret Websites, Coded Messages: The New World of Immersive Games The future of advertising isn't writing better slogans or using cool photography or video. It's creating interactive stories people can explore over their phones, on the web, maybe even through a flash drive hidden in a bathroom. It's a new art form. Just ask Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - tech news : Secret Websites, Coded Messages: The New World of Immersive Games The future of advertising isn't writing better slogans or using cool photography or video. It's creating interactive stories people can explore over their phones, on the web, maybe even through a flash drive hidden in a bathroom. It's a new art form. Just ask Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - tech news : What's Wired This Month: Cat Powers' Jukebox, JJ Abrams Top-Secret Cloverfield, Y: The Last Man on Earth Cat Power covers stripped-down take on classics like "New York, New York." Cloverfield's plot may be about grotesque creatures on a rampage through Manhattan, but who cares if we're wrong? And, the fate of Yorick Brown, the last man on Earth, will be revealed in the climax of Y: The Last Man.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

wired - top news : Vote on The Tech Trends That Will Change Your Business in 2008 What technology trends will reshape the face of business in 2008? Wired News picks five trends that will rock your world -- and invites you to vote on them or nominate your own.

December 27, 2007 05:00 AM

Engadget.com : Apple, Fox join hands in iTunes movie rental deal Filed under: Laptops Right on cue, it's being reported that Apple and Fox have indeed (finally) agreed on an iTunes movie deal, and while details are admittedly scant at the moment, chances are Stevie J. will get to the nitty gritty come Macworld. What we do know, however, is that the alleged partnership will enable iTunes users to rent new Fox DVD releases and keep them around "for a limited time," though pricing figures weren't speculated upon. Additionally, it sounds like Fox will be spreading its digital file inclusion from select titles to all flicks, giving DVD purchasers a FairPlay protected file that can easily be transferred (read: without third-party transcoding software) to a computer and / or iPod for later viewing. As expected, both firms declined to comment on the reports, but all the minutiae you can stand will likely start flowing in just a few weeks. [Via paidContent]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 04:43 AM

SlashDot : Government Makes NIH Research Open Access TaeKwonDood writes "Let's give some credit to the government when they do something right; in this case freeing $29 billion of taxpayer money in NIH research to actual taxpayers. Within one year after peer review, NIH-funded research has to be made freely available on PubMed. A Democratic Congress passed it and a Republican president signed it. This is a tremendous asset to researchers who don't want to have to duplicate research or pay fees for every journal out there. Those media companies getting rich selling journals, like the ACS, don't like it, but everyone else will." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 04:07 AM

Engadget.com : Talking e-book reader coming next year Filed under: Misc. Gadgets Watch your back, Kindle. According to reports, an Iranian inventor named Ramin Sedighi has created a "talking" e-book, which utilizes a stylus that can be moved across words and then pronounce them out loud. The system can also apparently "explain" pictures, though it's unclear whether or not it uses image recognition or some type of embedded data. The device includes a USB port, audio out, the aforementioned stylus, 512MB of memory, and an SD card slot. The laptop-sized unit is aimed at educational applications for children 4 through 16, and will be available sometime in early 2008. No word on manufacturer or pricing. [Via The Raw Feed]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 02:31 AM

News.com : Former tech CEO dies in Panama plane crash Former president and CEO of what was once the world's largest group e-mail provider, dies in crash with daughter.

December 27, 2007 02:26 AM

SlashDot : Web Ads Work Better Than TV Ads Fohootville, We Hate You writes "According to a new study, Internet advertisements work better than television advertisements. Internet video watchers were reported to be 47 percent more "engaged" by the advertising they watched than were traditional TV viewers. The report does not mention whether pornographic internet advertisements were included in the study." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 02:05 AM

wired - top news : Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of 2007 Wired News names the top 10 scientific discoveries of 2007.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of 2007 Wired News names the top 10 scientific discoveries of 2007.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - culture news : Wired Picks Its 10 Favorite 2007 Illustrations Each year, we publish oodles of images with our magazine stories. Here are 10 of our favorite illustrations from 2007.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : Dec. 27, 1831: Beagle Sets Sail With a Very Special Passenger Charles Darwin begins his fateful voyage, the effects of which will shake the Kansas State Board of Education to its foundations almost two centuries later.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : Dec. 27, 1831: Beagle Sets Sail With a Very Special Passenger Charles Darwin begins his fateful voyage, the effects of which will shake the Kansas State Board of Education to its foundations almost two centuries later.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : Bliss in a Box: Professor iPod Tells How iPods Insulate City Dwellers Michael Bull, the English academician whose study of Apple's music players has earned him the title "Professor iPod," sees the gadgets as critical components of life in a busy modern world.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : Wired Picks Its 10 Favorite 2007 Illustrations Each year, we publish oodles of images with our magazine stories. Here are 10 of our favorite illustrations from 2007.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : The 10 Best Gadget Ads of 2007

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - top news : Bliss in a Box: Professor iPod Tells How iPods Insulate City Dwellers Michael Bull, the English academician whose study of Apple's music players has earned him the title "Professor iPod," sees the gadgets as critical components of life in a busy modern world.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : Wired Picks Its 10 Favorite 2007 Illustrations Each year, we publish oodles of images with our magazine stories. Here are 10 of our favorite illustrations from 2007.

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

wired - tech news : The 10 Best Gadget Ads of 2007

December 27, 2007 02:00 AM

Engadget.com : Is Axiotron's ModBook actually about to ship? For a device which has lived solely in the hearts and minds of hopeful buyers for such a long time, the ModBook has certainly seen its fair share of news. The latest dispatch comes in the form of a letter from the "Other World Computing Team," marketers for the Axiotron-made tablet Mac, detailing expected shipment dates and new configuration options which are being made available. If you believe what you read, actual ModBook hardware will be shipping to buyers starting January 11th -- of course, they've been claiming a ship date for about a year, so we recommend you take this one with a hefty grain of you-know-what.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 27, 2007 12:33 AM

SlashDot : IBM's Five Predictions for the Future StonyandCher writes "IBM has released its second annual set of 'Next Five in Five' predictions. The company's crystal ball also revealed that the long-simmering trend toward "smart energy" devices will proliferate wildly. "Dishwashers, air conditioners, house lights, and more will be connected directly to a 'smart' electric grid, making it possible to turn them on and off using your cell phone or any Web browser," a company statement asserts." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 27, 2007 12:32 AM

December 26, 2007

SlashDot : How Would You Design Your Dream Office? An anonymous reader writes "My company is building a new office. As the local IT Guy, I've been asked to design my new office from the ground up. If you were given the opportunity to design your dream office, what features would you include? What things would you try to avoid? I get to determine absolutely everything. The catch? I have to share my office space with all the network equipment. Just 4 standard racks, and all your basic telephone and network wiring. Can anyone help me get started? I have no idea where to even begin." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 26, 2007 11:15 PM

Engadget.com : Everex gPC gets reviewed, thrashed Filed under: Desktops Just because something sells out, that doesn't mean that it's up to snuff. Substantiating said claim is the Everex gPC, which recently did an outstanding job of frustrating and disappointing reviewers at PCMag. Put simply, the gPC was found to be aggravatingly underpowered, and was deemed "one of those PCs you buy as a gift for the holidays and return to the store in January." Additionally, the crew stated that it really functioned best (read: only) as a web-based PC, and while we're sure the operating system will strike people differently depending on their level of computer literacy, these reviewers found a myriad reasons to pile on the hate. Overall, the 1.5 out of 5 rating essentially speaks for itself, but if you're curious to see how a desktop could be slammed this hard, feel free to hit the read link and take a gander.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 10:44 PM

Barrapunto : La historia secreta de Silicon Valley Es bien conocido el papel central que tuvo la Universidad de Stanford en el nacimiento de Silicon Valley. Mucho menos conocido es sin embargo el papel que jugó la tecnología empleada en la Segunda Guerra Mundial, en la Guerra de Korea y durante la Guerra Fría, en la involucración de Stanford en el sector de la tecnología electrónica y en el nacimiento y desarrollo del valle del silicio. La Historia Secreta de Silicon Valley es el título que da Steve Blank, fundador de varias empresas del valle y profesor de Berkeley, Stanford y Columbia, a su charla, impartida en los seminarios de los empleados de Google. Steve Blank cuenta cómo comenzó todo al terminar la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Es poco conocido que durante la guerra Alemania desplegó en Europa una sofisticada red de defensa aérea dotada, entre otras medidas tecnológicas, de radares en tierra y a bordo de aviones, y de centros de control de tráfico aéreo que permitían a la flota aérea alemana interceptar las masivas oleadas de bombarderos que se desplegaron tras la entrada de EE.UU. en la contienda. (... continúa)

December 26, 2007 10:43 PM

News.com : Underexposed blog: Links of the day Copyrighting the pyramids...ActivePerl 5.10...4x6 prints for 9 cents...Sony Alpha A700 firmware...customers who appreciate lower-megapixel Fujifilm F30/31 cameras

December 26, 2007 10:08 PM

Barrapunto : Rusia lanza tres satélites para reactivar su sistema de GPS Earl Hickey nos cuenta: «Leo en El Mundo, que Rusia ha lanzado tres nuevos satélites para activar su sistema, que competirá con GPS y Galileo. En realidad para ser correctos debería decir que para reactivar el casi difundo GPS Glonass, herencia de la Unión Soviética. Al contar también con un modo civil, pronto quizá veremos GPS "tribanda", que usen al mismo tiempo GPS NAVSTAR, GPS Galileo y GPS Glonass. También es un signo de la reconstrucción rusa en materias estratégicas, que va mas allá de simples declaraciones o maniobras militares.»

December 26, 2007 09:56 PM

Engadget.com : sQuba, the driving, diving concept car from Rinspeed Filed under: Transportation Our old friends at Swiss tuning, restoration, and general ride-pimping expert Rinspeed are back with perhaps their most ambitious project to date: a fully-submersible concept car dubbed the sQuba that's equally at home on the road or under the sea. Set to be unveiled next March at the Geneva Motor Show, the multi-faceted, electric motor-powered vehicle reminds us somewhat of the Gibbs Aquada and Hydra Spyder, except the sQuba is actually able to dive and navigate up to ten meters underwater thanks to jet drives in the bow and propellers in the stern. A self-contained, on-board system inside the carbon nanotube-based body structure provides occupants with fresh air while submerged, although the engineers probably let down more than a few folks by omitting a weapons system of any kind. No release date yet -- or even production plans -- for this one-off supercar, which, might we be so bold to suggest, would make a hell of a better-looking crime-fighter than you, Mr. Knight Industries Three Thousand. Bigger pics in the gallery below... Gallery: sQuba, the driving, diving concept car from Rinspeed [Via gizmag]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 09:50 PM

SlashDot : Information Overload Predicted Problem of the Year for 2008 Wired is reporting that information overload is being predicted by some analysts as the problem of the year for 2008. "'It's too much information. It's too many interruptions. It's too much lost time,' Basex chief analyst Jonathan Spira declared. 'It's always too much of a good thing.' Information overload isn't exactly new, but Spira said the problem has grown as technology increases societal expectations for instantaneous response. And more information available, he said, also means more time wasted looking for the right information, whether in an old e-mail or through a search engine." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 26, 2007 09:47 PM

wired - top news : Apple Stock Breaks the $200 Barrier for First Time Riding the tide of its popular iPhone and a new line of iPods, Apple shares hit the nice round number before dropping back a few cents. The Wall Street boys are bullish.

December 26, 2007 09:40 PM

wired - tech news : Apple Stock Breaks the $200 Barrier for First Time Riding the tide of its popular iPhone and a new line of iPods, Apple shares hit the nice round number before dropping back a few cents. The Wall Street boys are bullish.

December 26, 2007 09:40 PM

wired - business news : Apple Stock Breaks the $200 Barrier for First Time Riding the tide of its popular iPhone and a new line of iPods, Apple shares hit the nice round number before dropping back a few cents. The Wall Street boys are bullish.

December 26, 2007 09:40 PM

News.com : First Perl revamp in five years released Perl 5.10, the first revamp of the quick-and-dirty open-source programming language project in five years, pilfers some features from Perl 6.

December 26, 2007 09:29 PM

Engadget.com : ATP's GPS Photo Finder geotags your pix OTG Filed under: Digital Cameras, GPS If you're heavy into geotagging -- and we think you are -- you may want to look into an interesting new product from ATP (no relation to the multifunctional nucleotide of the same name) called the GPS Photo Finder, a unique device which automatically tags your digital pictures with latitude and longitude, without the need for a PC nearby. The little rectangular box works by reading SD, MMC or Memory Stick data and then tagging pictures on the media with location coordinates (as long as your camera is synced to the clock of the Photo Finder). The internal 128MB of memory allows for roughly 550 hours of tracking, and the pictures / GPS data can be read by any application capable of handling geotagged images (such as Picasa). The device is scheduled for mass release in the first quarter of 2008, no word on price right now. [Via Coolest Gadgets]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 09:11 PM

SlashDot : Russian GPS Alternative Near Completion Russia has successfully launched another round of GLONASS satellites bringing the grand total to 18 of the navigational units online. "The GPS competitor -- first begun in the Soviet era and only recently revived after years of post-collapse neglect -- is now theoretically capable of providing coverage to the entire Russian territory, with First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov claiming that the first compatible consumer devices will be available in the middle of next year. By 2010 Russia plans to open the system up to outside nations as well, contributing to an eventual three- or even four-system global market" Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 26, 2007 08:17 PM

Engadget.com : Reminder: Phosphor E Ink watch giveaways almost closed! Filed under: Announcements, Wearables We know you want to be the envy of all your friends and colleagues by sporting one of the trio of Phosphor e-ink watches we're giving away, so if you haven't entered already, consider this a friendly reminder that the clock is ticking on all three contests. Entering is as easy as leaving a comment, so just make sure to read the rules and then throw your hat into the ring. Reminder: You can only enter once per giveaway (up to three times total). Read - Phosphor E Ink watch giveaway (part 1), closes tonight Read - Phosphor E Ink watch giveaway (part 2), closes Thursday night Read - Phosphor E Ink watch giveaway (part 3), closes Friday night   Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 07:55 PM

Barrapunto : Apache Software Foundation anuncia la ApacheCon 2008 europea ToniATMallorca nos cuenta: «La Apache Software Foundation ha anunciado la próxima celebración en Ámsterdam (Países Bajos), entre el 7 y el 11 de abril, de la versión europea del ApacheCon. Allí podremos conocer y aprender más del mundo Apache, por unos módicos, digamos, mil euritos si estamos de suerte y nos hacen descuento ;).» La agenda de conferencias ya está disponible.

December 26, 2007 07:48 PM

wired - tech news : Biodiesel Boat Uses Human Fat for Circumnavigation Two New Zealand men hope to circle the globe in record time with a boat fueled by biodiesel -- including human fat extracted by liposuction.

December 26, 2007 07:30 PM

wired - top news : Biodiesel Boat Uses Human Fat for Circumnavigation Two New Zealand men hope to circle the globe in record time with a boat fueled by biodiesel -- including human fat extracted by liposuction.

December 26, 2007 07:30 PM

Engadget.com : Hello Kitty gets Swarovski-studded again on the NEC LaVie G laptop Filed under: Laptops When you really love Hello Kitty, it's safe to say that one of anything featuring her image is never enough. If you know what we mean, you may want to check into the latest high-end entry in the canon: the NEC LaVie G Hello Kitty edition -- a follow-up to this Summer's LaVie -- once again featuring images of the ubiquitous cat studded in breathtaking Swarovski crystals. Underneath the glitz you'll find a 15.4-inch WXGA display, an AMD Turion CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 120GB hard drive, plus a DVD+RW and a handful of USB ports which will allow you to plug in your Hello Kitty flash drives and the like. Right now this sweet puppy kitty is only available in Japan, and will run you around ¥210,000 ($1,840) -- but we don't think that will stop you.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 07:22 PM

wired - tech news : Book Argues That Bell Stole Phone Idea A new book claims Alexander Graham Bell -- aided by aggressive lawyers and a corrupt patent examiner -- got an improper peek at patent documents and stole ideas for the telephone from a rival, Elisha Gray.

December 26, 2007 07:00 PM

wired - top news : Book Argues That Bell Stole Phone Idea A new book claims Alexander Graham Bell -- aided by aggressive lawyers and a corrupt patent examiner -- got an improper peek at patent documents and stole ideas for the telephone from a rival, Elisha Gray.

December 26, 2007 07:00 PM

wired - business news : Book Argues That Bell Stole Phone Idea A new book claims Alexander Graham Bell -- aided by aggressive lawyers and a corrupt patent examiner -- got an improper peek at patent documents and stole ideas for the telephone from a rival, Elisha Gray.

December 26, 2007 07:00 PM

SlashDot : The Afterlife Is Expensive for Digital Movies A new study shows that storing the digital master record of a film costs much more than storing archival prints. "To store a digital master record of a movie costs about $12,514 a year, versus the $1,059 it costs to keep a conventional film master. Much worse, to keep the enormous swarm of data produced when a picture is 'born digital' -- that is, produced using all-electronic processes, rather than relying wholly or partially on film -- pushes the cost of preservation to $208,569 a year, vastly higher than the $486 it costs to toss the equivalent camera negatives, audio recordings, on-set photographs and annotated scripts of an all-film production into the cold-storage vault." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 26, 2007 06:46 PM

Engadget.com : Wii bowler beats real bowler in senior videogame tourney Filed under: Gaming Proving once again that athleticism and real-world experience have little bearing on the outcome of Wii Sports matches, a 79-year-old bowler was defeated by an 84-year-old who'd only recently picked up the game -- virtually -- in their retirement community's latest Nintendo tournament. Obviously a popular pastime among the senior crowd, playing Wii has gotten so big at the 3000-resident Riderwood complex in Montgomery County, Maryland that semi-regular tournies are held in the various events, with underdog Nancy Davies (not pictured) upsetting previous champ Hal Winters (also not pictured) in the most recent excitement-filled Bowling final. When asked to comment on the 202 to 182 stunner, the few other folks who were both awake at the time and able to remember the action agreed that the match was surely one for the record books. [Via TG Daily]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 06:38 PM

News.com : Convert Firefox into a text-only browser The free Web Developer Toolbar from Chris Pedericks makes it easy to view and print only the text on a Web page.

December 26, 2007 06:12 PM

Engadget.com : XM and Warner settle, it's a Festivus miracle! Filed under: Portable Audio Well, not really miraculous -- this was totally and completely expected when we saw XM and Universal kiss and make up a couple weeks ago -- but now XM and Warner Music Group have finally found some common ground over the XM Pioneer Inno player song recording issue. The terms of the settlement are undisclosed, but we're sure they include stipulations of heavy DRM and various feats of strength.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 05:50 PM

News.com : Financing cut for flash-memory venture from Intel and allies Intel, STMicroelectronics postpone the establishment of Numonyx, a flash memory supplier, and the joint venture's debt financing is cut by about half.

December 26, 2007 05:48 PM

Engadget.com : Earth Trek's 2-in-1 mult-card reader has a USB twist Filed under: Digital Cameras, Storage We've been bored by the entirely too utilitarian concept of multi-card readers ever since they were hosting our SmartMedia and xD cards, but Earth Trek seems to have revitalized the concept for 2008. The 2-in-1 rotary multi-card reader has a patented swiveling USB 2.0 connector to let you come at it from all angles -- not exactly going to revolutionize your memory card experience, but a nice touch. The reader also includes a plug and adaptors for charging your phone, which seems random but useful. No word on price or availability.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 05:19 PM

SlashDot : Microsoft Complains About Google's Monopoly Abuse I Don't Believe in Imaginary Property writes "Frustrated at the FTC's blessing of the Google/Doubleclick merger, Microsoft is complaining to the EU. Its latest filings detail how the merger would give Google a stranglehold on the advertising industry. While these complaints aren't new, the diagram [PDF] Microsoft created gives you an interesting look at the sort of competition Microsoft fears from Google." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 26, 2007 05:18 PM

News.com : 'Before the Music Dies,' a documentary This interesting film focuses on the sad state of the music business.

December 26, 2007 05:09 PM

News.com : Chinese chipmaker licenses IBM's 45nm tech IBM has licensed technology for making 45-nanometer chips to Shanghai-based Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation.

December 26, 2007 05:08 PM

Barrapunto : Egipto quiere el copyright de las pirámides Cuando uno aún tiene mal cuerpo por el tema del canon, veo en Slashdot que Egipto quiere el copyright de las pirámides. Cuentan en la noticia que Egipto quiere hacer una ley que le permita reclamar el pago de royalties por la reproducción de edificios históricos. Obviamente, reclamar royalties por edificios de más de 3000 años crearía un delirante antecedente. Lo peor es que, viendo el panorama, seguro que hay ya muchas "cabezas pensantes" que se frotan las manos pensando que algo así siga adelante. Al final, pagaremos royalties por tener hijos... Ojalá me equivoque. Nota de la editora: Dejando aparte ya cuestiones como si es al gobierno egipcio a quién debería pertenecer el copyright de las pirámides, lo cierto es que ya existen edificios cuyas imágenes están protegidas por copyright, como el Atomium de Bruselas, o la iluminación de la Torre Eiffel. Al paso que vamos, acabaremos viendo cosas tan ridículas como que un cirujano plástico reclame los derechos de imagen sobre la parte del cuerpo de un actor o actriz que haya modificado, o que el instalador de la cocina de tu casa quiera cobrar una licencia de uso por ella. El tema es sacarnos "la pasta" como sea. ¿Por qué iban a tener más derechos unos que otros para explotar la gallina de los huevos de oro?

December 26, 2007 04:58 PM

Engadget.com : Russian GPS alternative near completion, Putin and dog celebrate Filed under: GPS Russia has announced the successful launch of three additional GLONASS navigation satellites on Christmas Day, bringing the total number of functional units to 18, and reportedly scaring the beejezus out of Santa and his reindeer during liftoff. The GPS competitor -- first begun in the Soviet era and only recently revived after years of post-collapse neglect -- is now theoretically capable of providing coverage to the entire Russian territory, with First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov claiming that the first compatible consumer devices will be available in the middle of next year. By 2010 Russia plans to open the system up to outside nations as well, contributing to an eventual three- or even four-system global market, and ensuring that President and Man of the Year Vladimir Putin will finally achieve his stated goal of being able to pinpoint his treasured black lab Koni anywhere in the world.   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 04:29 PM

News.com : Red Hat exec: New CEO has open-source cred Michael Tiemann, a Red Hat executive with years of open-source experience, says soon-to-be-CEO Jim Whitehurst understands the open-source movement.

December 26, 2007 04:17 PM

SlashDot : Top Solid State Disks and TB Drives Reviewed Lucas123 writes "Computerworld has reviewed six of the latest hard disk drives, including 32GB and 64GB solid state disks, a low-energy consumption 'green' drive and several terabyte-size drives. With the exception of capacity, the solid state disk drives appear to beat spinning disk in every category, from CPU utilization, energy consumption and read/writes. The Samsung SSD drive was the most impressive, with a read speed of 100MB/sec and write speed of 80 MB/sec, compared to an average 59MB/sec and 60MB/sec read/write speed for a traditional hard drive." Read more of this story at Slashdot.

December 26, 2007 04:12 PM

Engadget.com : Buy a 1080p BRAVIA and Sony Australia will toss in a PS3 for free Filed under: Displays, Gaming, HDTV, Home Entertainment It looks like we're going to have to postpone our move to South Korea momentarily as we jet over to Australia and clean 'em out of PS3s. Sony Australia is giving away a free 40GB PS3 with every 1080p TV purchase in the XBR, X or W BRAVIA series of LCDs. The 40-inch W series starts at AU$2,999, while the 40GB PS3 retails for $699 kangaroo bucks, so it really is a hefty discount. Who's to say if this is a desperate move by Sony to sell more TVs, PS3s, PS3 games or Blu-ray discs, but whatever the reason we're not complaining. The offer lasts until January 28th. [Via CNET; thanks Toby]   Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

December 26, 2007 03:59 PM

wired - tech news : Press Release Pledges China to Renewable Energy But few practical steps are being taken to move China's burgeoning economy away its heavy dependence on fossil fuels.

December 26, 2007 03:45 PM

wired - top news : Press Release Pledges China to Renewable Energy But few practical steps are being taken to move China's burgeoning economy away its heavy dependence on fossil fuels.

December 26, 2007 03:45 PM

Engadget.com : JVC gives HP-FX500 earbuds the classy wooden touch Filed under: Peripherals, Portable Audio So you like wooden headphones, and you're down with JVC's offerings, but you don