BBC News - Technology
File-sharing sanctions 'unfair'Illegal file-sharers should be fined, rather than have their internet connection cut off, says the boss of BT.
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:18 pm
Hard drive evolution could hit XPHard drives are about to undergo one of the biggest format shifts in 30 years but it could cause problems for Windows XP users.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:29 am
Porn net domain name plan revivedA plan to create a .xxx net domain for adult content will be revisited three years after it was rejected by internet regulators.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:51 am
Nanotech 'fuse' for novel batteryA never-before-seen reaction in nanotubes could make for batteries that pack a mighty punch, say researchers.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:17 am
Games migrate to the social sideThe merging of social networks and games is set to dominate this year's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:25 am
Sony eyeing June launch of 3D TVElectronics giant Sony says its new 3D television will be on sale in Japan from June, with a cost of £2,600 for a 46-inch screen model.
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:42 am
Skynet satellite system extendedSkynet 5, the UK's single biggest space project, is to get a fourth satellite to up the bandwidth available to British forces.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:17 am
Facebook death 'lessons to learn'The home secretary says internet safety lessons must be learned after a convicted sex offender contacts and kills a teenager.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:48 am
US eases sanctions for freer webThe US eases sanctions on Iran, Cuba and Sudan to help further the use of internet services and support opposition groups.
» 8 Mar 2010, 10:25 am
Dotcom Crash10 years on from when the Nasdaq bubble burst
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:27 pm
Final FantasyCostumed fans queue for launch
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:53 am
CNet Tech News
Sun fended off Apple, Microsoft IP lawsuit threatsSteve Jobs personally threatened to sue Sun Microsystems, Jonathan Schwartz says. Sun warded off that and a Microsoft threat with its own patent portfolio.
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:25 am
Google Maps to add bike maps, directionsCyclists will be able to use Google Maps to plot directions around 150 U.S. cities when bike directions go live on Google later on Tuesday.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Lindsay Lohan sues E-Trade over Super Bowl spotThe troubled actress is suing E-Trade, claiming that it mocked her in one of its cute baby ads. She is asking for $100 million.
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:21 pm
How Epic fit the Unreal Engine into the iPhoneThe Unreal Engine 3 is on its way to the iPhone, though creators Epic Games have had to make some compromises to get there.
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:26 pm
Google announces business app store for Google AppsSoftware developers can cater to Google Apps customers through a new application store announced at Google's Campfire One event in Mountain View.
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:15 pm
Rock Band 3 confirmed for holidaysHarmonix and MTV Games are getting the band back together, with Electronic Arts handling distribution once more.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:52 pm
Online dating finally recognized by restaurant guideA new restaurant guide has a section specifically dedicated to the difficult area of online dating. Its author believes only certain very specific places are suitable for an online date.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:27 pm
Pink Floyd sues EMI over iTunes paymentsOne of the most imposing (and wealthiest) bands of all time sues EMI over online royalties. EMI is reportedly arguing that an album-unbundling ban applies only to physical products.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:59 pm
iPhone 4G: 25 most-wanted featuresApple's fourth-generation iPhone will most likely arrive in June. Here's a look at some of the feature and design upgrades we'd most like to see, including the odds of their implementation.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:42 pm
Cyberbullying hits LGBT youth especially hardOne in two lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender youth report being cyberbullied about their sexual identities, according to a new Iowa State survey of 444 youths.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:40 pm
McAfee: A million 'scareware' victims a daySecurity firm McAfee is warning consumers to beware of 'scareware' programs that appear to be antivirus software but are actually scams that can steal data and infect your computer.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:36 pm
CNN Tech News
At conference, iPhone games break outThis week's Game Developers Conference reinforces the iPhone's status as a top gaming platform. For the first time, the GDC advisory board is devoting an entire summit to Apple's smartphone.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:22 am
Driver: My Prius took me for a scary rideThe driver of a Toyota Prius says he was taken on a wild ride Monday after the car's accelerator became stuck, reaching speeds in excess of 90 mph on a winding, hilly portion of a southern California interstate.
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:32 am
Residents use social media to fight crime in MexicoRenewed violence in Mexican cities bordering Texas has ignited fear among nearby residents, some of whom have turned to social media despite cartels' efforts to limit information.
» 8 Mar 2010, 10:25 am
Social media at work -- ban or boon?Social media are, by definition, supposed to be a social experience. Make a profile and start connecting. Reach out to friends, old and new. Post a profile picture, and while you're at it upload a photo album of your trip to Greece so others can see and comment.
» 8 Mar 2010, 5:30 pm
Police: Couple raised virtual child, ignored real onePolice have arrested a South Korean couple whose toddler starved to death while they were raising a virtual child online, authorities said.
» 7 Mar 2010, 5:21 am
Plastic boat to set sail with environmental messageWhat do you get when you cross thousands of plastic water bottles with an adventure-loving entrepreneur? A boat, of course, designed to carry a team of scientists, adventurers and artists halfway around the world.
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:31 am
Green living with Ed Begley Jr.Actor Ed Begley Jr., best known for his roles in "St. Elsewhere", "The West Wing", "Best in Show" (he's also twice appeared on "The Simpsons") is the star of "Living with Ed".
» 7 Mar 2010, 9:35 pm
Apple's iPad to be released April 3Apple's eagerly anticipated iPad will be available in the United States on April 3, the company said Friday.
» 5 Mar 2010, 9:12 am
Why I'm banking on FacebookWe already connect with friends on Facebook to share photos, videos, text updates and Web links, but might we also use the service to exchange money?
» 4 Mar 2010, 2:25 pm
Time-lapse photos: Old trick is new againTime was, if you wanted to make a time-lapse film, first you had to build a machine.
» 5 Mar 2010, 3:04 pm
Digg - Tech Industry
Cisco's New Router To Delivers 322 Terabits per SecondCisco Systems, has announced the launch of a super-fast and effeciency-focused router technology which will be at the heart of "the next generation of the Internet".
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:10 pm
Jen-Hsun Huang is 'looking forward' to court date with IntelSometimes companies spar out their differences behind closed doors, and sometimes they have guys like Jen-Hsun Huang at their helms and the whole world gets to know how they feel and what they intend to do about it. He has taken a recent interview with Fortune magazine as an opportunity to eloquently lay out his side's case.
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:00 am
Facebook killer's monitoring referred to IPCCThe police force monitoring serial sex attacker Peter Chapman before he fled to kidnap, rape and murder Ashleigh Hall has referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:50 am
Dutch Pirate Party Joins Election RaceFollowing in the footsteps of the Swedes and Germans, the Dutch Pirate Party has decided to join the national elections being held this spring. The Pirate Party booked a surprising victory by scooping two seats in the European Parliament last year, but has yet to score its first elected seat in a national Parliament.
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:20 am
Court Maintains Ban on DVD Backup SoftwareJudge sides with MPAA in case against Real Network's RealDVD software that would allow consumers to make backup copies of purchased DVDs for personal use.
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:20 am
Sam Pitroda: "voting is going to go on cellphone" [VID]Sam Pitroda, adviser to the PM of India delivers his views on cell phone voting and how the paradigm of the classroom will change in the future. He also states the "internet is going to bring this whole idea of guru back."
» 8 Mar 2010, 7:40 pm
New Google Tool Visualizes Public Data in Animated ChartsGoogle has just launched Google Public Data Explorer. The new Google Labs tool offers a visual way to look at and analyze large public data sets on a variety of popular search topics.
» 8 Mar 2010, 2:10 pm
Has Play.com revealed the Apple iPad UK price?Play.com has been listed on Google Products as selling the Apple iPad for the UK price of £499 for the 16GB version and a whopping £699 for the bigger 64GB version.
» 8 Mar 2010, 2:00 pm
WTF?:Name your kid "Google Fiber" and get broadband InternetIt's an arms race around the country's quieter quarters to get Google to bring broadband Internet to their parts. Topeka, Kansas is so desperate, they are willing to rename the city "Google, Kansas." Gag.
» 8 Mar 2010, 12:50 pm
Four in five believe Web access a fundamental right - Yahoo!Four in five adults believe access to the Internet is a fundamental right -- with those feelings particularly strong in South Korea and China -- and half believe it should never be regulated, according to a global survey.
» 8 Mar 2010, 10:50 am
Tech-support continues to disappointSymantec and McAfee are two top contenders when it comes to antivirus software. But one of them needs to re-educate its support technicians...again.
» 8 Mar 2010, 10:41 am
Engadget
MIT gurus use polyethylene to suck heat away from your next CPUMan, MIT is making all of these other places of higher learning look silly. For what seems like the fortieth time this month, scientists at the university have revealed yet another breakthrough that might just change the way we compute in the future. Polyethylene, which is about as common a polymer as they come, could very well become a vital part of the way your next processor is cooled, as MIT boffins have figured out how to cause said polymer to "conduct heat very efficiently in just one direction, unlike metals, which conduct equally well in all directions." If you're still struggling to figure out why this matters, have a listen at this: "this may make the new material especially useful for applications where it is important to draw he
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:26 am
Bluetooth Access Point brings text messaging, voice messaging, email to the friendly skiesWhether you covet your Irish friends' ability to make in-flight cellphone calls or value your aerial naps too much to care either way, you must admit that the promise of in-flight SMS, MMS, voice messaging, and text email is tantalizing. To this end, the kids at Asiq have announced a little something called the Bluetooth Access Point. This device uses the aircraft's satellite link to send data to your respective carrier, eliminates the need for a picocell, and boasts up to 3Mb/s speeds. Now let's see how quickly this bad boy gets approved for use! (Or not.) PR after the break.Continue reading Bluetooth Access Point brings text messaging, voice messaging, email to the friendly skiesBluetooth Access Point brings text messaging, voice messagin
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:19 pm
EA Sports introduces Active 2.0 at GDC, complete with sensors galoreBy and large, EA Sports' Season Opener event here at GDC was underwhelming, but one glimmer of newness did manage to shine through. Nearly a year after Active hit stores (video after the break) and encouraged Wii gamers to drop those unwanted pounds before hitting the soft sand in the summer, the company has announced that Active 2.0 (a working title) is currently in development for Wii, PS3, iPod touch and iPhone. We're told that a "new suite of fitness products" will be launching in the fall, with the Active 2.0 program delivering "true fitness results by featuring an innovative wireless control system powered by new leg and arm straps with motion sensors, a heart rate monitor to capture intensity and a new online hub to track and share w
» 9 Mar 2010, 10:04 pm
Leaked Dell Streak flyer shows multitude of color options, confirmed specificationsThere's no denying that the Mini 5 is real, but up until now, we've had to provide all of our own promotional material. At long last, it seems as if the suits in Round Rock are finally getting around to crafting the first advertisements for the upcoming slate, and while we knew about the 5-inch WVGA (800 x 480) touchscreen, 5 megapixel camera with autofocus and flash, capacitive touch front buttons, front-facing VGA camera (for video chatting) and the 30-pin docking connector, we weren't aware of Dell's plans to reveal a slew of vivacious color options. If this here flyer proves legitimate, we could eventually see the Mini 5 available in an array of premium finishes and hues (thanks, Design Studio!), and we're hoping for a few different spe
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:53 pm
Pentax gets official with 40 megapixel 645D medium format cameraWe had a hunch that Pentax was readying a 645 Digital, and sure enough, the company has come clean with that very camera today. The May-bound 40 megapixel 645D is a medium format beast, but unlike similar options from Hasselblad, this one won't actually destroy your hopes of sending four generations of offspring to college. Boasting a 44mm x 33mm sensor, a 3-inch rear LCD and a virtually indestructible chassis, this monster promises high res images that only pros can appreciate, and there's a pair of SD / SDHC card slots for those who love to surround themselves with options. You'll also get a newly designed 11-point AF sensor, a fresh dust removal system, 77-segment multi-pattern metering system and a battery good for around 800 images whe
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:38 pm
MSI starts shipping two 12.1-inch, AMD-powered Wind12 U230 netbooksIt sure took 'em long enough -- just over four months if you're keeping score -- but MSI has finally shipped its next-generation netbook. The AMD-powered Wind12 U230 has left the docks today in two distinct flavors (the U230-033 and U230-040), with both touting Windows 7 Home Premium, a 12.1-inch WXGA (1,366 x 768) display, ATI's Radeon HD3200 graphics, 2GB of RAM, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, a 6-cell battery and a 1.3 megapixel camera. The duo also features three USB sockets, VGA / HDMI outputs, an Ethernet port, audio in / out, a 4-in-1 card reader and a chassis that weighs in at 3.3 pounds. As for the differences? The former ships with an AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 under the hood and a 250GB HDD, while the latter sports an Athlon X2 L335 CPU and a 320GB
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:37 pm
Razer and Sixense distribute SDK and FPS shooter utility through SteamSurely you remember those Sixense motion controls that we caught lounging around at Razer's CES booth, right? Yeah. Today at the Game Developers Conference, both outfits have teamed up in order to distribute the Ultra-Precise Motion Controller SDK and FPS utility library via Steam, which should give devs the ability to create new games and port existing titles for use with the aforementioned sticks. We're told that these new tools will require "require virtually no knowledge of the inner workings of the controller," enabling coders to craft titles that take full advantage of the six degrees of freedom. Will this turn the PC into the next Wii? We kind of doubt it, but at least someone's looking out for non-console gamers who have a secret ob
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:55 pm
Motorola CLIQ XT hands-onWe know you've barely recovered from our Devour review, but Moto just threw another Blur-ified phone in our laps this afternoon - the CLIQ XT. We've been playing around with the Android 1.5-based, Flash Lite-supported, multitouch-capable handset for the last couple of hours -- but before we grace you with our first impressions, just a fair warning: we don't yet know the price of the new T-Mobile Android handset, though Motorola did promise us that it will hit shelves this month. With that said, hit the break for a quick rundown of our early thoughts. Gallery: Motorola CLIQ XT with MotoBlur hands-onContinue reading Motorola CLIQ XT hands-onMotorola CLIQ XT hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 21:10:00 EST. Please see
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:10 pm
Microsoft shows off XNA games running on Windows Phone, full 3D is a goAlright, we're going to be straight with you: you're not going to like this. See, Microsoft just showed us a pair of 3D games running on its ASUS Windows Phone prototype and built with its brand new XNA Game Studio 4.0, but wouldn't let us nab a single photo or video of the process. What we can tell you is that they exist, they work, and at least Microsoft tossed us some screenshots to wave in your face. The two titles are The Harvest (pictured), a good looking touch-controlled dungeon crawler with destructible environments, being developed by Luma Arcade; and Battle Punks, a less impressive one-on-one sword fighting Facebook game by Gravity Bear that's being ported over. We didn't get to see any full motion 3D camera moves, since Battle Pu
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:50 pm
Entelligence: Aiming high or another Mylo?Entelligence is a column by technology strategist and author Michael Gartenberg, a man whose desire for a delicious cup of coffee and a quality New York bagel is dwarfed only by his passion for tech. In these articles, he'll explore where our industry is and where it's going -- on both micro and macro levels -- with the unique wit and insight only he can provide. We heard a rumor last week that Sony was working on new handhelds to compete with devices like the iPad. It sounds like a great idea: a PSP with integrated telephony and e-book functionality could perhaps give everyone in the market a run for their money. But I'm a little skeptical -- Sony's Clié line once defined state-of-the-art PDA, but the company ceded the market to Palm l
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:23 pm
Does Android dream of DIY cushions?With the estate of Philip K. Dick up in arms over the slightest commercial reference to his published works, we may come to regret the above headline. But it's worth the risk to bring more attention to this lovely, handcrafted Android pillow. Covered in fleece and filled with fluffy polyester for a texture that creator Craftsquatch describes as "firm yet springy," the cuddly 12-inch square, made-to-order cushion can be yours for $20 before shipping. If only it came with dessert.Does Android dream of DIY cushions? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink Technabob | Craftsquatch (Etsy) | Email this | Comments
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:44 pm
Gizmodo
How to Look Like a Gadget Lover Without Buying Any Real Electronics [Wtf]12 Full Color Printed VHS Video Boxes: $9. Full Scale Plastic Washer and Dryer Set: $139. 2 Piece 20" Wide Screen LCD Style Computer Package: $49. Outfitting your entire home with prop gadgets: Probably a bad idea. If you're like me and ever looked at one of those prop TVs in a store and wondered how much they go for, then the mystery is finally over. You can seek out Props By IDM, a company who sells such fake gadgets, and price check. [Props by IDM via Boing Boing]
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:35 am
What Would You Stick Under A Scanning Electron Microscope? [Qotd]Here's some tasty-looking hard candy. And here's that same tasty-looking hard candy scanned by an SEM. Tuns out that there's a company offering to stick almost anything under an electron microscope and we can't help but wonder: What to pick? SEM Elemental Analysis company ASPEX is offering this great service where people can submit their own samples to be viewed under a scanning electron microscope. They even post results—like these—on the site: gawkerGallery(5489644,4,''); Now, back to the big question: What would you want to see scanned by an SEM? [Aspex via Maria Popova]
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:06 pm
First Walking Lego Mecha Is Looking for Lego Godzilla [Lego]Lego biped robots are a dime a dozen, even while some look pretty sweet. This one is special: It's the first walking Lego robot. And, unlike your usual feet-dragging toy robots, it actually walks by raising its feet. This is definitely not easy to do with Lego or any other material. Maybe this guy should start thinking about building a Big Dog. [Flickr via Brothers Brick]
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
ExiTool: A More Practical Approach To Escaping Your Automobile [Multitools]Here are a few things you don't have time to do when your car plunges into an icy lake: remove a Leatherman multitool from your glove compartment; unfold it; cut through your seatbelt; refold it; smash through your window. Thankfully there's the ExiTool, a clever little gadget that attaches to your seat belt for quick access when your shit goes "glug, glug, glug." It includes a high-carbon stainless steel slicer, a tungsten carbide smasher, and, just for good measure, an LED light. Sure, having an open blade attached to your seat belt all the time isn't ideal, but it's definitely more ideal than being trapped in your car at the bottom of some murky body of water. The ExiTool will be available soon for $27, so if you're the type of person th
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:20 pm
Pluto Fanboys Hate Mail [Science]If I were Neil deGrasse Tyson—host of the Pluto Files and director of the Hayden Planetarium—I wouldn't be able to sleep at night. Not after reading the hate mail from thousands of outraged American kids. The kids wrote to de Grasse Tyson demanding an explanation about why scientists changed Pluto's classification from planet into a Kuiper Belt object. The Natural History Museum also retired it from their Solar System model, which logically got a lot of kids reaching for their pellet guns. Neil, they may sound sweet, but they are vicious, those beasts. [PBS]
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:40 pm
Zinnet's Brite-View LinkE Streams Content to Four Devices Over Powerline Networks [Zinnet]Sometimes Wi-Fi just doesn't do the trick when streaming something to several devices. Zinnet's Brite-View LinkE system will cover you there by allowing you to stream things over a powerline network to four ethernet devices and at up to 200Mbps. It's pretty simple: You plug an ethernet bridge into a wall outlet and connect it to a modem. Then you plug the four-port ethernet switch into another wall outlet and tada! You're able to stream content. The kit's even a pretty decent deal at $90, especially compared to $150-$170 kits. [PR Newswire via Engadget]
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:20 pm
The Google App Marketplace: Doing It All in the Cloud [Google]We just finished watching Google's live announcement of the launch of the Google App Marketplace. Keep reading for information on what they're offering users and developers. Oh, and know that the Marketplace is live today. Updating. The event is called "Google Campfire One" and it's all about how easy it will be to create, set up, and install apps using Google's App Marketplace. It appears that the big focus is on how everything—apps and existing Google products—will work together seamlessly and allow for all your tools and data to sit in the cloud. Right now the appeal is for business applications, but the potential seems incredible. The first portion of the announcement is about what developers will give and get in this whole deal. G
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:12 pm
This Happens to Me Every F*cking Single Day [Cartoon]Some days, it happens two or three times. I bet that you and most of your friends and family find themselves in the same situation too. [Loldwell]
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:40 pm
Nexus Scooter Carry-On: The Most Fun Way to Get Arrested In an Airport [Concepts]For every time you've brought a scooter to the airport and wished it fit into the overhead compartment, I give you the Nexus: a battery-powered scooter that folds into a luggage-sized case. The TSA will love this. Nexus is a concept designed by Francisco Lupin, and if it were either for a) sale or b) not guaranteed to get me arrested, I'd own one already. Its two electric engines run on four 12V batteries, and can achieve speeds of up to 15 km/h. It'll last two hours on one charge, though if you make it two minutes before being tackled by bored security personnel you deserve some kind of special award. [Tuvie via Dvice]
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 pm
Glowing Three-Inch Heels: The Adult Version of Light-Up Sneakers [Geek Fashion]As a kid I had a pair of Barbie sneakers that lit up with every step. Sadly those aren't made in adult shoe sizes, so I'll have to settle for something like these slinky illuminated heels. These shoes came from the minds of Rodarte, a two-sister design team, and are a beautiful example of how wearable tech can be integrated into our lives and into our three-inch heels. gawkerGallery(5489433,3,''); Now can someone tell me where I can get a pair? [High Snobette via Fashion In Tech]
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:20 pm
Playstation 3 First Console With HD Movies From All 6 Major Studios [Sony]Wow. The PS3 is getting HD purchases and rentals from all six major studios. A quick search turns up that Xbox is missing Fox and, duh, Sony. It's nice that Sony isn't handicapping the Playstation 3 in order to protect its blu-ray business.Sony's got deals with Fox, Disney, Paramount, Itself, Universal and Warner. I'm impressed. Now I just have to remember my login for PS network. From Movie Theater to Home Theater: PlayStation(R)Network Delivers High Definition Movies From Six Major Movie Studios in the United States PlayStation(R)3 Computer Entertainment System First to Have High Definition Movies for Purchase from All Major Studios FOSTER CITY, Calif., March 9 /PRNewswire/ — Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) today announced t
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:14 pm
Mashable!
Tweet Defense – Fight Zombies With the Power of TwitterWe’ve seen many, many iterations of the popular tower defense games over the years, but this one has a special meaning for all you Twitter fans out there.Based on a tried and true concept, Tweet Defense is an iPhone game that lets you fight zombies with various tower defense units, but with a social twist: it grabs your various Twitter stats – number of followers, friends and tweets – and calculates bonuses to your defense based on them. It’s like an infinite time sink which connects two enormous time wasters – Twitter and tower defense. In other words, it’s beautiful.Get Tweet Defense for $0.99 from the App Store.Tags: iphone, tweet defense, twitter
» 10 Mar 2010, 1:39 am
MySpace Co-Presidents Reveal Company’s Plan for the Future [INTERVIEW]We had a chance to step into MySpace HQ for a chat with new Co-Presidents Jason Hirschhorn and Mike Jones, who preside over the News Corp.-owned social network from a shared desk in Beverly Hills. The joint office speaks to how closely Hirschhorn and Jones are working together to create a unified vision of the future for the lately struggling MySpace, whose former CEO Owen Van Natta exited the company after only 9 months in the hot seat.Hirschhorn describes MySpace as a site that “lacked focus” as he and Jones were getting up to speed and learning about the business. He sees the pair’s role as instilling that much-needed focus as well as driving a re-imagination of the site from both a user interface perspective and in the development
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:44 pm
Phonebooth Free: An Alternative to Google Voice for Small BusinessesIn November, Phonebooth.com released the beta version of Phonebooth OnDemand, which is a full-featured phone service that lives in the cloud, but can communicate with both cellular phones and IP desk and conference phones. Today, that service — which costs $20 a month per user — is becoming generally available. Phonebooth.com is also leveraging its own private VoIP network to launch Phonebooth Free, a free version of its hosted phone system, which is very similar to Google Voice but aimed at small businesses.Phonebooth.com is a product from Bandwidth.com. While Bandwidth.com might not be as well-known as players like Comcast, Verizon and Cisco, in the business VoIP space it’s a pretty big player. Bandwidth.com has its own VoIP network
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:15 pm
Appboy Gets a New Design, iPhone App and Best Buy PartnershipBack in October we wrote about Appboy, a social network for mobile app developers and users. Since launching, Appboy has continued to evolve into a community for both developers and users to find and rate apps, as well as submit ideas for new mobile applications. Appboy has just rolled out a big update to its site which improves the design, adds stronger integration with Facebook and Twitter, and makes it easy to keep up with what your favorite app developers are doing. The site has also launched a new companion iPhone application and started a new partnership with Best Buy Mobile.New Look and FeelThe Appboy Profile pages have been given a total facelift. Now, in addition to displaying your user activity and favorite apps, users can link th
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:48 pm
Google Launches the Google Apps MarketplaceToday at the Google’s Campfire One event at the company’s headquarters in Mountain View the Internet search giant is launching its new app store for business, known as the Google Apps Marketplace.Last week, we broke the story that Google Apps Marketplace would launch today, reporting that it would be an app store integrated within Google Apps that would allow third-party developers to sell software directly to Google’s business consumers.Now, with developers gathered at the Googleplex, we’re about to learn how Google Apps Marketplace works and, more importantly, which apps are going to be available at launch.My live notes from the event are below:Google Apps Marketplace: The Details- Note: you can watch the live stream of Google Cam
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:05 pm
Twitter Takes on Phishing with New Security FeaturesSpam and phishing have been ongoing problems at Twitter for some time, and tonight the company announced that it is stepping up its efforts to stop them with some new features, described as being able to “detect, intercept, and prevent the spread of bad links.”In a blog post, Twitter writes that the protection works by “routing all links submitted to Twitter through this new service … even if a bad link is already sent out in an email notification and somebody clicks on it, we’ll be able keep that user safe.”How exactly they do that, we’re not sure, but Twitter notes that you’ll start seeing short links using its own “twt.tl” URL shortener in direct messages and email notifications. As users who have been victimized by
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:53 pm
Watch Out, Topeka: Greenville, SC, Also Wants to be Googletown, USAGoogle’s call for medium-sized cities to pilot its high-speed broadband network has attracted the marketing wit of another locale: Greenville, South Carolina.Citizens of Greenville have launched the “We Are Feeling Lucky” campaign –- an obvious play on Google’s “I’m Feeling Lucky” button — an effort that will culminate in citizens trying to form “the world’s first and longest human Google chain.” Glowsticks will apparently be involved in the event, scheduled to take place on the evening of March 20.The site makes heavy use of Google products and services — likely not a coincidence — in getting its message across. There’s also a social media component, with “We Are Feeling Lucky” having a YouTube channel f
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:19 pm
HOW TO: Prepare for Disasters Using Social MediaMollie Vandor is the Product Manager for Ranker.com and Media Director for Girls in Tech LA. You can find her on Twitter and on her blog, where she writes about the web, the world and what it’s like to be a geek chic chick.Earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes — lately, it seems like there’s a new natural disaster wreaking havoc on poor planet Earth every week. From our television sets to our Twitter streams, it’s impossible to ignore the devastation these disasters leave behind. And, no matter where you’re watching from, it’s hard not to feel just a little bit helpless in the face of such colossal catastrophes.But when it comes to natural disasters, modern technology is making it easier than ever to take control by creating your ow
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:48 pm
Lindsay Lohan Sues E-Trade Claiming Baby Ad Is a Parody of Her [VIDEO]The Super Bowl may be long over, but Brand Battle 2010 continues to rage on, as yet another commercial is bit by the controversy bug — this time one of those adorable spots from E-Trade featuring a talking baby named “Lindsay.”According to the New York Post, actress Lindsay Lohan is suing the investment site on the grounds that the man-eating, substance-abusing baby in the commercial is based on her.Lohan’s lawyer, Stephanie Ovadia, is asking that the commercial be taken off the air and every copy of the offending spot be rounded up (which could now be more difficult given today’s coverage). The actress is also asking for $100 million.According to Ovadia: “Many celebrities are known by one name only, and E-Trade is using that kn
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:30 pm
Hulu Gets 400 Hours of NFL VideoHulu struck a deal to host content from The NFL Network in January, including eight shows and highlights from every team in the National Football League. The network has been adding new content to the site ever since, and this week Hulu has posted an impressive 400 hours of NFL-related videos.Fierce Online Video reports that Hulu plans to add 600 more hours before the next football season starts.Sports enthusiasts are seeing a big boom in web video coverage; the NCAA college basketball league just launched a website that streams shareable clips from countless March Madness plays.Meanwhile, Hulu is likely hoping deals like this one will — in tandem with its own in-house reality show If I Can Dream — help make up for the loss of two of it
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:12 pm
On Android, MySpace Reigns SupremeDespite CEO drama, plummeting traffic and even declining mobile website usage, MySpace Mobile for Android is the most popular social app in the Android Market and the third most popular downloaded application overall.While Facebook might dominate social networking apps on the iPhone, Facebook for Android leaves much to be desired. It’s not as bad as it was six months ago, but it still pales in comparison to the offerings for BlackBerry — let alone the iPhone.MySpace Mobile for Android on the other hand, integrates itself extremely well within the Google ecosystem and the Android platform. You can even update your status via voice, using a widget available in the MySpace app.AndroidStats, a site that tracks the rankings in the Android M
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:53 pm
MSNBC - Tech and Science
The dark side of digital ‘love’Despite many upbeat tales of online matchups or romantic reunions through Facebook or e-mail, there are plenty of cautionary tales. They don't have the high-profile, TMZ-appeal of Tiger Woods' case, but are more devastating to the victims.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:43 am
112 best free downloads, sites and servicesWant to correct Windows problems, make your PC or mobile phone more capable, and get things done faster online — all without opening your wallet? Check out these 112 incredibly useful, incredibly free downloads, sites, and services.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:43 am
Video: ‘God Of War III’ is over-the-top funThe game is bigger, more polished, and more thrilling then the previous games. Msnbc.com's Todd Kenreck gives it an 8 out of 10. (msnbc.com)
» 8 Mar 2010, 1:45 pm
Chile quake moves city 10 feetThe violent temblor — the fifth most powerful quake ever measured — shifted other parts of South America as well, from the southern tip of the continent to northern Brazil.
» 9 Mar 2010, 10:00 am
Cisco says new router 12x faster than rivals'Cisco Systems Inc, introduced a new router that it says will handle Internet traffic 12 times faster than rival products, as it looks to compete with rivals such as Juniper Networks Inc.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:39 pm
SpaceX aborts rocket engine testSpace Exploration Technologies aborted a test firing of its Falcon 9 rocket on Tuesday, in what was to be a key milestone in its quest to fly cargo -- and eventually astronauts -- to the International Space Station.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:37 pm
Robots to help repair aging water pipesRobots are great for going where humans can't, and the cramped confines of municipal water pipes are the perfect example. A new initiative is working on building robots that can access and repair aging water pipes from the inside.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:21 pm
New worm species found in Great Barrier ReefFour newly identified worm species, including one that sports an unusual green color, have been found wriggling in the sands of the Great Barrier Reef.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:00 pm
Professors banish laptops from classroomsProfessors have banned laptops from their classrooms at George Washington University, American University, the College of William and Mary and the University of Virginia, among many others.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:47 pm
U.S. sits on rare supply of tech-crucial mineralsUntapped reserves include deposits of both "light" and "heavy" rare earths — families of minerals that help make everything from TV displays to magnets in hybrid electric motors.
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:31 pm
U.S.-born panda leaves quarantine in ChinaAfter a month in quarantine, American-born panda Tai Shan paced around his new home in southwest China as he was put on public display Tuesday for the first time since his much-anticipated arrival in the country.
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:31 am
ReadWriteWeb
Delicious Chrome Extension Early Beta Now AvailableBookmarking service Delicious has just rolled out a Google Chrome browser extension. Like other Chrome extensions we love to play with, this one is lightweight, fast and useful. There's no bulky sidebar here. Bookmarks can be created and saved with a miniscule "TAG" button and they can be searched from Chrome's excellent omnibar. So, do you think this will prompt loyal Delicious users - many of whom had been holding out on Chrome in favor of Firefox - to switch to Google Chrome entirely? Sponsor This is what the button and simple form for bookmarking a page look like:
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:46 pm
Open Thread: Should Social Media Experts Be Required to Know Their Tech?Social media gurus: We all know one. If you're lucky, you know only one. They are the attendees of tech parties, the "Twitter consultants," the armchair generals of the Internet, and their numbers grow by the day. Yet most of them couldn't distinguish a line of code from a badly punctuated haiku.tweetmeme_url = 'http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/open_thread_should_social_media.php';tweetmeme_source = 'rww'; What's to be done with the social media experts? Accept that their blathering may contain some wisdom? Or require technical exams for all Twitter users with more than 1,000 followers? You decide! And make the NMDs among us take our "technical" quiz. Sponsor There is always grave danger when amateurs turn overnight into experts. Thi
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:20 pm
Phonebooth Launches Free Google Voice Alternative for Startups and Small BusinessesPhonebooth.com, a VOIP service for individuals and small businesses, just launched a free version of its service. Phonebooth, just like Google Voice and Ribbit Mobile, provides its users with a free local phone number that can be forwarded to any cell phone and landline. Phonebooth also offers voicemail transcriptions. What makes it stand out from it competitors, however, is that it offers an auto attendant feature that allows you to route callers to different employees. Sponsor It's worth noting that Bandwidth.com, the company behind Phonebooth, has been providing infrastructure services to other VOIP services, including Voxeo and Yext, for more than three years. The company's VOIP network delivered almost 4 billion minutes in 2009. Bandw
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:01 pm
SXSW 2010 for Web Celeb StalkersA ReadWriteWeb Guide OMG! Kevin Rose just touched my shirt! Don't lie - we know you get butterflies at the thought of bumping into iJustine or Robert Scoble at a tech conference. We've pulled together a nice little cheat sheet just for you, friends. tweetmeme_url = 'http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/sxsw_2010_for_web_celeb_stalkers.php';tweetmeme_source = 'rww';Whether you want a simple handshake, and autograph on your iPhone or a chance to pitch your idea for the Next Big Web App, here's ten places, panels and parties where you can track down the Internet famous at SXSW 2010. Don't forget to leave your tips in the comments! Sponsor This is part of a series of ReadWriteWeb guides to SXSW Interactive 2010. If this guide isn't your cup
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:56 pm
Google Launches Apps Marketplace for the EnterpriseGoogle launched an application marketplace today comprised of services from third-party providers that integrate with the Google Apps ecosystem. The news has been anticipated for some time. In particular, it shows how much Google is embracing open-standards and leveraging its search and Google Apps platform to attract third-party developers. Sponsor Google made the announcement at its Google Campfire One event tonight. The emphasis Google is putting on the enterprise is apparent in how much attention the company put into the event. Over and over we heard that Google passed the 25 million customer mark over the weekend. It is that mark that Google is using as its hook for attracting developers to its platform. Developers will be charged $
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:00 pm
Twitter to Save Us From Ourselves & Phishing; More Is Needed to Make Innovation Safe & ViableIt never ceases to amaze me how many high-tech industry elites get ensnared in every Twitter phishing attack. (See our November story 7 High-Tech Twitter Users Who Fell for Phishing Scams) This evening Twitter announced that a new program will intercept links sent out by Direct Message and through email, checking to make sure they are safe. Phishing prevention is no small matter. Twitter's is a good move but a lot more is needed all over the web. If we want a transactional developer ecosystem of distributed identity and portable user data, there are both user education and technical changes that need to be made. Sponsor I don't mean to be pedantic about this, but here's my take on the subject. It's only because there is a big develop
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:12 pm
There is No Perfect VP of Sales and MarketingSales and marketing are not the same thing. It's true they both deal with relationship management and it's true that neither of these job descriptions require hardcore engineering, but just because they're both in the realm of words over code does not mean that they are the same. At the risk of muddling your mind with HR jargon, the core competencies of a marketer are very different from those of a sales person. Surprisingly, many startup CEOs insist on hiring for a VP of Sales and Marketing position. Sponsor If you're the VP of sales and marketing for your company, this article is not about how you aren't doing your job properly. In fact, it's about how you're doing the job of two separate people and shouldn't be. Interwest investor Bruc
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:00 pm
Stickybits: Portal to Another Dimension or Graffiti for Nerds?Seth Goldstein comes up with a lot of ideas. Some of them work and some of them don't. He was one of the original backers of Del.icio.us (bought by Yahoo), Etherpad (bought by Google) and Bit.ly (huge via Twitter). He was also President of the short-lived Attention Trust and built a browser plug-in that allowed people to track, manage and sell on the Chicago Board of Trade futures in their browsing history and other online attention data. That didn't work out so well, though it was a very interesting idea. Two years ago he raised $10m, built an advertising network called SocialMedia.com and then sold it off a big chunk of it in November. Goldstein's latest idea may be one of his most interesting yet. He's co-founded a company called
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:05 pm
Put.io Turns Torrents Into Streams [Invites]It's services like Put.io that are behind why Google executives argue desktops will be irrelevant in three years, why Steve Ballmer says Microsoft is betting the bank on the cloud, and why storage stats for the newest gadget are becoming less and less important.Everything is going to the cloud. Does it often feel like a waste of time to download something just to watch it once and then delete it? Then Don't. Use Put.io. Put simply, Put.io fetches files from the Internet and allows you to either store them there or immediately stream them. Sponsor Put.io can get files from bittorrent, FTP, direct download and rapidshare, as well as from standard websites. It can even automatically keep up with downloads, pulling links from an RSS feed. Wh
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:05 pm
For European Startups, New €6 Million Seed Fund Is A Step In the Right DirectionEarly stage startups in Europe will be the primary beneficiaries of a new €6 million seed fund just announced by Berlin-based Team Europe Ventures. In the past we've talked about Europe's entrepreneurial woes, most notably a dearth of seed funding due to having a culture largely averse to taking risks financially. This new fund is a good step towards changing that trend and keeping more startups from looking for funding elsewhere. Sponsor The €6 million fund (over $8 million) will provide up to €500,000 to early stage startups in the Internet and mobile Internet spaces over the next three years. Team Europe plans to selectively choose four to five startups each year to receive the funding, rather than quickly spreading the wealth aro
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:00 pm
Network as a Service: Open Source Enables Efficient Cloud HostingTo keep up with the growth of cloud computing and virtualization, networks keep evolving. But unlike Twitter's Trending Topics, IT budgets don't scale up. In fact one of the major initiatives in many IT shops is creatively reduce their own expense. To get to a scalable cloud infrastructure where costs are contained, it sounds like the network industry is going to see a time where a "Linux" arrives on the scene. An open source alternative to building networks may disrupt the networking landscape and give network admins an open source network operating system. Sponsor Virtualization: It's in the Network Too Distributing workload across machines, storage, and environments has required networks to be smarter than ever. Now, the network
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:30 am
techcrunch
The Yahoo Cycling Team Is Going To Love This New Google Maps FeatureYahoo is backing a cycling team. I don't know why — but they're doing it. And today their passion got a little boost: from Google. Google is announcing tomorrow at the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC that Google Maps will now include biking directions in the U.S. Apparently, this was the most-requested feature for the service, as some 57 million Americans ride bikes.
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:44 am
Quote Of The Day: MySpace Co-President? “Hell, Yeah”Jon [Miller] came to us and said, `Would you like to be co-presidents?' We said, `Hell yeah.' We didn't have to move our desks," -- Former MySpace Chief Product Officer Jason Hirschhorn's reaction to the abrupt firing of his boss and his promotion to co-president of MySpace.
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:18 am
More Talent Walks Out The Door At MySpace: Three Key Employees Go To GravityMore bad news for an already bullet-riddled MySpace: three key employees have left the company to join Gravity, a cross-town startup founded by former MySpace COO Amit Kapur, SVP Steve Pearman and SVP Jim Benedetto. We covered Gravity's launch in December 2009. The three MySpacer's are Chief Software Architect Chris Bissell (we previously reported Bissell's resignation), Chief Systems Architect Dan Farino and Development Manager Robbie Coleman.
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:11 pm
Comscore Study: Social Gamers Want Marketing Offers For CurrencyA new study by Comscore will be released on Wednesday that may give hope to social gaming startups trying to monetize users. 35% of the survey respondents said that they engage in "marketing actions" to earn virtual currency (such as watching a video, filling out a survey, etc.), and 53% said they be willing to consider marketing action for currency if given the choice. The study was conducted by Comscore, sponsored by Offerpal, and included responses from 799 Comscore panelists who play games on social networks at least once per month. 54% of panelists play games at least daily. This is good news for game developers who've had their monetization choices somewhat fenced in over the last few months. Gamers 25-34 are the most likely to ear
» 9 Mar 2010, 10:44 pm
In The SXSW Location War, Loopt Hopes The Correct Weapon Is EventsWith SXSW starting Friday in Austin, Texas, every location-based service out there is right now finalizing updates that they hope will be the one that gets them used more than all the others. Loopt, is betting on events integration. The latest version of the app, due to hit the App Store tomorrow will feature a new Pulse tab. Here you'll find events populated from a ton of sources including the live music tracker SonicLiving (SXSW is first and foremost a music event, after all) and most notably, Facebook. This pre-population is important, because it means the events will already be in the system so users won't have to do anything other than share it with friends, or check-in if they're going. The feature also uses you current location to s
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:11 pm
Google Apps Marketplace: Instantly Connect Your App To 25 Million Users, Profit.Business to business software can be a tough sell. Online B2B can be even a harder sell. While there is certainly money to be made, unless you're one of the big players, the likelihood you're going to succeed is pretty small. Starting today, Google is taking their roll as one of the big players and extending a platform to boost some smaller players. Tonight, Google has unveiled their Google Apps Marketplace. This is an app store for enterprise apps in the cloud. Using a set of APIs, these third-party apps can deeply integrate their products within Google Apps, which already some 25 million people are using. And that also includes over 2 million businesses ranging from startups, to small businesses, to Fortune 500 companies. For customers,
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:00 pm
Web-Based Productivity Suite Zoho Finds A Place In The Google Apps MarketplaceZoho, a web-based productivity suite that was called a "fake Office" by a Microsoft VP, is announcing a significant partnership with Google today. The startup will be a launch partner for Google's recently launched Google Apps Marketplace, which allows vendors to sell applications that compliment Google Apps. Here are our notes from the announcement. Zoho will be integrating two of its over 20 business applications - Zoho CRM and Zoho Projects with Google Apps. So starting today, Google Apps users will be able to add on-demand CRM app Zoho CRM and project management software Zoho Projects into Google Apps. While Zoho has previously rolled out the ability log-in to its applications via your Google Apps IDs, the two applications have been s
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:59 pm
Socialwok Takes A Stroll In The Google Apps MarketplaceTonight, Google launched its Google Apps Marketplace, an online storefront for Apps products and services. Here are our notes from the announcement. And of course, the marketplace is launching with a number of pilot partners (50 to be exact). One of those partners happens to be recently launched Socialwok, a product that ads a social layer to Gmail and other Google products. At last year's TechCrunch50 conference, Socialwok made a big splash, winning the award for best demopit startup and launching its enterprise-friendly, FriendFeed-like layer for Google Apps. The web-based application was praised for launching a social network that wrapped around the very unsocial Google Apps. And the startup just launched a gadget to allow users access a
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:59 pm
MetaLab Accuses Mozilla Of Plagiarizing Its Design (Updated)Andrew Wilkinson of MetaLab has just written a blog post accusing Mozilla of plagiarizing the design of its FlightDeck editor. To make matters worse, Wilkinson says that MetaLab actually bid on creating the design for FlightDeck months ago, but was turned down by Mozilla. While Wilkinson is understandably upset, at this point,it looks like the plagiarized image is just a mockup on the Mozilla wiki — not the actual product (though it's obviously still in bad taste). We've reached out to Mozilla for a comment. You can see a screenshot comparison from Wilkinson's blog post below. Update: Here's a comment from Mozilla, stating that the copy-and-paste design was a proof of concept:
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:39 pm
Live: Google Apps Marketplace Launches At Google Campfire OneTonight, Google is hosting one of their Campfire One events at their headquarters in Mountain View, CA. They're using the event to launch their new Google Apps Marketplace. This is the app store that business applications can use to reach the more than 25 million people and 2 million business that use Google Apps for their domains. Here are the links to our extended coverage on the Google Apps Marketplace: Google Apps Marketplace: Instantly Connect Your App To 25 Million Users, Profit. Socialwok Takes A Stroll In The Google Apps Marketplace Web-Based Productivity Suite Zoho Finds A Place In The Google Apps Marketplace Below, find our live notes from the event.
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:04 pm
Amazon Wields $25 Gift Certificates To Pacify Frustrated Comic Book FansOver the last few days, a strange situation has been brewing between Amazon and a sizable number of comic book fans. On March 7, Bleeding Cool broke the news of an apparent Amazon sale featuring high quality hardcover Marvel graphic novels at bargain-basement prices of $14.99, when their retail prices were more along the lines of $125. Alas, it turned out to be a pricing error. Amazon could have simply canceled the orders (which is common practice for online retailers), but instead, it tried to do right by its users and said it would honor some of the orders. Except it didn't actually have enough books in stock to do what it promised, leading to another wave of frustration from the comics fans. Now Amazon is looking to smooth things ov
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:36 pm
TechNewsWorld
New Cisco Router Boasts Breakneck SpeedsCisco Systems announced on Tuesday the CRS-3 Carrier Routing System, a new Internet networking architecture that is designed with the huge growth of video transmission, mobile devices and new online services in mind. The Cisco CRS-3 provides more than 12 times the traffic capacity of the nearest competing system, according to John Chambers, chairman and CEO of Cisco Systems.
» 9 Mar 2010, 3:19 pm
HP Flashes a Few Slate DetailsSometime later this year, HP will release its Slate tablet PC device. What we know now is that it will run Windows 7 as well as Adobe Flash and Air, according to information revealed by an HP executive. However, it appears that the company is attempting to be quite selective about how and when it doles out further details on the device.
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:12 pm
Two Can Play at the Wired War GameAs the United States military increases the use of robots like unmanned drones in battle, it increases the danger that our enemies will take and adapt the technology to use against us, according to Peter Warren Singer, senior fellow and director of the 21st Century Defense Initiative at the Brookings Institution.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 am
Valve Opens Pipeline for Mac GamingValve one of the largest distributors of online games, has announced that it will make its Steam online gaming service and proprietary gaming engine, Source, available on the Mac. The service, Steamworks for the Mac, comes equipped with Steam Play, a feature that allows play on either a PC or Mac at no additional charge.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:09 am
New Project Puts Open Source Spin on Data Center DesignA new industry group hopes to improve the design and construction of data centers through the application of open source principles. Dubbed the "Open Source Data Center Initiative," the group was formed last week by GreenM3 along with the University of Missouri and ARG Investments.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 am
The iPad's Cruel TeaserApple debuted its first TV ads for the iPad during the Academy Awards television broadcast on Sunday, doing what Apple does best: showing us dozens of things we can do with an iPad in just a few seconds, all to the tune of some hip music we've never really listened to before. Yet these ads are like walking into a restaurant where the menu doesn't arrive -- we're hungry and salivating.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 am
Energizer Jolts PCs With MalwareIf you're using Energizer's Duo USB battery charger software to monitor your battery charging status, it's probably a good idea to shut it down and uninstall it pronto. The software designed to work with the Duo contains a backdoor Trojan that lets unauthorized users access a PC remotely, among other things.
» 8 Mar 2010, 11:48 am
Security and Privacy? Forget About ItAs the Obama administration grapples with the thorny issue of beefing up the United States' cybersecurity infrastructure, and as security experts warn of impending cyberwarfare, a debate is raging over how much surveillance is enough. One of the biggest problems about implementing cybersecurity is that it involves a measure of surveillance, and the line between surveillance and snooping is razor thin.
» 8 Mar 2010, 9:32 am
Google's Long-Term Prognosis: Death by CEOLast week I was asked to comment on a study of CEOs. It found that young ones do better than old ones do, which kind of pissed me off. At the same time, like a lot of folks in my business, I've been looking back at the lessons learned from Steve Jobs, who is kind of the CEO gold standard, and comparing him to Eric Schmidt, who appears to be the most highly paid empty suit since John Sculley.
» 8 Mar 2010, 5:00 am
Microsoft and the Incredible 'Internet Usage Tax'It's not often that Linux Girl is struck speechless by some tidbit of news in the tech world, but every once in a while it happens. Last week, it happened. Amid all the high-level discussion of Internet security at the RSA Conference 2010 in San Francisco, Microsoft's Scott Charney actually suggested a government tax to help the company improve Windows security.
» 8 Mar 2010, 5:00 am
Aperture's Makeover Delights PhotogsThe new features in Apple's makeover of its image editing and archiving program Aperture appear to be a hit among photographers, even though the initial release of the application was so flawed an upgrade had to be released within two weeks of its launch. Aperture 3.0 ($199) has more than two hundred new features.
» 8 Mar 2010, 5:00 am
TechRadar
BT boss hits out at government's online piracy plansThe boss of BT has criticised the government's plans to cut-off persistent illegal file-sharers from their internet accounts, suggesting that fining them would be a far more progressive option.British Telecom's chief exec, Ian Livingston, has teamed up with a number of other key industry figures and written a letter to the Financial Times urging that changes be made to the Digital Economy Bill. Unnatural justicePlans to cut off filesharers go against what Mr Livingston refers to as 'natural justice' and instead he wants to see those accused of filesharing either pay a fine or fight their case in a court of law.ISPs will no doubt see this as a preferable option to the current suggestions in the Digital Economy Bill, which, if ratified, will
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:56 am
Google Apps Marketplace launchesGoogle has officially announced Google Apps Marketplace – hoping to build an ecosystem that allows businesses that use its paid-for Google Apps services to find and purchase a wide range of cloud software tools developed by specialists. One of the key reasons behind Microsoft's success over the years has been its flourishing ecosystem, and with Apple's App Store revolutionising both the mobile phone market third-party software market places, it makes sense for Google to attempt to bring the two concepts closer. "We've found that when businesses begin to experience the benefits of cloud computing, they want more," explains Google. Wider variety"We're often asked when we'll offer a wider variety of business applications — from accounting
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:33 am
Britons spending nearly £200m on MMOsBritish gamers spent nearly £200 million on MMOs like World of Warcraft according to the latest research. The Today's Gamers MMO Focus Report by TNS and Gamesindustry.com suggests that 1.5 million people in the UK spend an average of £10.50 a month on massively multiplayer online games. The total of £195 million is more than Germany (£165m) and France (£145m) but a drop in the ocean compared to the US – where $3.8 billion (£2.55bn) was spent. Subs, micro-payments and cheatingAround £79 million, 41 per cent of the total was spent in monthly subscriptions, £16 million in annual subscriptions and £24 million on buying games and expansion packs. Micro-payments accounted for £38 million, the same amount spent by people buying up virt
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:13 am
Google adds wiki-like features to Google Street ViewGoogle is to give users of Street View the chance to edit the service to make it that little bit more accurate.An 'edit marker' feature has been added, which would allow you to change where businesses are.So, if you look at Street View and find that the marker for a shop or pub nearby you isn't quite right, then you can lift it up and change its location."Sometimes you may find a place in Google Maps that isn't quite positioned where it should be," says the blog."Let's say you know that your favourite pizzeria is near the corner but the marker for it appears further down the block. You want all hungry pizza-cravers to be able to find this great spot, so you want to make sure the marker leads them directly to the storefront."Move markerThe b
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:36 am
Exclusive: Dell insists that Adamo XPS is 'still available'Dell has explained to TechRadar why its Adamo XPS laptop is increasingly difficult to get hold off, insisting that the 'engineering marvel' should be considered a special edition.According to the company, reports that the XPS had been axed just three months after launch are not entirely accurate, with Dell insisting that the high-end laptop should not have been considered a normal piece of stock, but a limited release. Dell also confirmed that most of the supply of the laptop 'has been accounted for' and people still keen to buy one will need to look hard. Selected stores "In the UK, Adamo XPS will continue to be offered through select John Lewis stores and on johnlewis.com," said Dell's statement. "The Adamo XPS is an engineering marvel an
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:47 am
Sony announces 3D glasses and emitter priceSony has unveiled the prices of its 3D glasses and emitter package – an add-on which will make the latest batch of Sony Bravias 3D Ready.Sony's latest Bravia TVs will be 3D compatible but only one of these will be 3D Ready, and that is the LX900.The LX900 is Sony's flagship model of the company's Monolithic range, one which will have an emitter inside. The television will also come with two Sony active-shutter glasses.The active shutter glasses can also be bought separately, although this is currently available in Japan.3D add-onsEach pair of glasses will set you back 12,000 Yen, which is around £90. Even though this is around about the price that we thought for the specs, it does mean that a family of four will have to fork out an extra
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:17 am
Two per cent rise for UK TV licence feeThe television licence fee will go up by three pounds, with Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw laying a Parliamentary order to approve the increase from next month. The rise in the licence fee, is just the latest in a six-year plan approved back in January 2007, but arrives in an inevitable storm of criticism and brings the cost of a colour television licence to £145.50.The Department for Culture Media and Sport argue that the January inflation figure stood at 3.5 per cent, which means that the £3, or two per cent, rise is actually below the increase to cost of living. Hard timesBut with the country still reeling from the economic crash, and government departmental cuts, the increase has drawn disapproval. The whole idea of a licence fee rema
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:30 am
SXSWi 2010: South by South West Interactive 2010: what to look forward toThe 'Interactive' part of the annual South by South West conference in Austin, Texas kicks off this Friday.Known as SXSWi, and running through until Tuesday 16 March, the event brings together web designers, developers, content creators and more, to share ideas, network, announce new products and services, and then hang out in the evenings over barbeque and beer.The conference features around 200 panels and evening events covering subjects such as social media, interface design, real-time web and much more. The evenings see parties such as the Bigg Digg Shindigg, events hosted by Microsoft, Mozilla and Mashable, and a tonne of film showings, since the SXSW Film Conference and Festival runs at the same time.TechRadar will be reporting from S
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:16 am
Predicted sales for Nexus One reduced by 70%Google's plan to release its own mobile phone - the Nexus One - seems to have backfired as sales estimates have been slashed.Such was the hype around the search giant's own phone that some analysts predicted that the Nexus One would sell 3.5m units in its first year.But the lack of marketing around the phone (coupled with the fact the HTC Desire is essentially the same device with greater functionality) means that investment bank Goldman Sachs has dramatically reduced its estimates."We previously estimated that Google might sell 3.5 million Nexus One units in 2010," said the firm, according to ZDNet.Disappointing data"Initial data-points were disappointing, possibly due to limited marketing and customer service challenges. Flurry estimated
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:43 am
Exclusive: LG Cookie Fresh GS290 gets UK release dateLG has announced the new Cookie Fresh GS290, another budget mobile phone to appeal to the masses.We brought you news of this phone last week, when it was first shown off at CeBIT - and now it's been made official, which may not be the right way round for a new release.But the good news is we've managed to sniff out a UK release date - it will be landing on our frosty shores at the start of April.The LG Cookie Fresh will sport some basic specs - we're talking no 3G and a 2MP camera bolted on the back.All about the mediaHowever, there is a three-inch touchscreen and social networking integration to get excited about, and the UI seems to be large and easy to use.And media is also catered for - despite likely coming with a sub £100 price tag,
» 9 Mar 2010, 4:35 am
TechWeb
White House Plans Innovation Prize PlatformThe government plans to release a Web-based platform for federal agencies to use prizes and challenges to crowdsource innovative approaches to government problems.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:35 pm
Down To Business: Electronic Healthcare Won't Be DeniedObstacles abound, no doubt. But three huge constituents will demand it: government, large providers -- and the customers who will benefit.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:30 pm
Sony Sets Aggressive 3D TV TargetIf the company hits its sales goals -- 2.5 million 3-D televisions and 67% more TVs overall -- its TV business will be profitable for the first time in seven years.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:11 pm
VA Halts Access To EHR SystemThe administration is addressing a bug that caused its VistAWeb e-health records system to return incomplete data.
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:46 pm
Microsoft Fixes Eight Bugs, Warns Of IE Zero-DayA light Patch Tuesday brings word of a new zero-day vulnerability in Internet Explorer 6 and 7.
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:39 pm
Cisco Unveils Next Gen Carrier RouterThe $90,000 CSR-3 switch is positioned as a flagship enterprise product capable of handling high demand for video on 100G networks.
» 9 Mar 2010, 12:21 pm
Union Bank to Manage Op Risk Using OpenPagesBank plans to use OpenPages platform to build program to measure and manage operational risk and calculate capital requirements.
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:49 am
Global CIO: BMC CEO On Rogue Clouds, OracleCEO Bob Beauchamp talks trends in data centers and IT management.
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:35 am
Microsoft Unveils MSN RedesignRevamped home page features a more prominent Bing search engine and direct integration with Facebook.
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:17 am
Newegg Axes Supplier Over Fake Intel ChipsSome Core i7 processors received from the supplier were counterfeit, online retailer says.
» 9 Mar 2010, 11:00 am
Mariposa Botnet Malware Found On Vodaphone HTC MagicThe phone was bought by an employee of Panda Security, who spotted the malware.
» 9 Mar 2010, 10:57 am
Washington Post - Tech News
Second Life's virtual money can become real-life cashDana Moore sells rain. He sells a lot of it, for about a buck per reusable storm.
» 7 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Cable firms seek FCC help in fee disputesSeveral major cable companies and a public interest group asked the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday to intervene in disputes over transmission fees to prevent broadcasters from withholding signals from subscribers.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Iran blocking foreign, domestic Web sites to curb anti-government activistsTEHRAN -- The bearded blogger stood before an effigy of an Islamic warrior towering over the letters "WWW."
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Wide Web of diversions gets laptops evicted from lecture hallsOn a windy morning in downtown Washington, a hundred Georgetown Law students gathered in a hall for David Cole's lecture on democracy and coercion. The desks were cluttered with books, Thermoses and half-eaten muffins.
» 8 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Security gaps exploited in grade scandal remain, may be difficult to closeMontgomery County school officials have not yet closed gaps in their computer system that allowed students at a high-performing Potomac high school to change dozens of grades using a device that can be bought from Amazon.com for $69. And other school systems, including Fairfax County, remain just as...
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Video Vault, cult movie rental favorite, to close in AprilAnother video rental store might have been content to boast a "Horror" section, but Alexandria's Video Vault always catered to far more specialized tastes.
» 8 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Billionaire Bubble: Ten players in the local tech scene look back, a decade later, at the frenzied days of theTen players from the local technology scene look back at the Internet boom and bust.
» 6 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Samsung, Panasonic start selling 3-D TVs this weekSamsung and Panasonic will start selling 3-D TVs in U.S. stores this week. This inaugurates what all TV makers hope is the era of 3-D viewing in the living room.
» 9 Mar 2010, 8:30 am
At Play: Kickstarter is a Web site for the starving artistBaltimore-based director Matt Porterfield was overjoyed to find out that his latest film was accepted by the Berlin Film Festival. But there was one not-so-trivial problem: He didn't have any money to finish the editing and sound work.
» 6 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Help File: Don't press F1 on the Web in Windows XP; a shortcut to iTunes Plus upgradesQ: I heard what sounds like an urban legend -- that you shouldn't hit the F1 key if a Web site tells you to. Is that true?
» 6 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Toyota demo counters claim of electronic acceleration glitchEmbattled Japanese auto giant Toyota launched a broad counter-attack on Monday aimed at refuting research that suggests electronics may be at the heart of runaway acceleration problems that have led the automaker to recall more than 6 million vehicles.
» 8 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Wired News
Google Maps Finally Adds Bike RoutesWith a click of a mouse, cyclists can get the quickest, and flattest, route between Point A and Point B.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:01 pm
March 10, 2000: Pop Goes the Nasdaq!The Nasdaq begins its spectacular collapse, signaling the end of the dot-com boom.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:00 pm
Veil Lifts on Apple's Secret Plan to Control UniverseThe recently unveiled secret agreement that Apple makes iPhone developers sign supports what many have suspected all along: Apple is trying to control the universe.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 pm
Texters Should Park the Car, Take the BusTaking public transit wouldn't just decrease our carbon footprint — it'd also end all that fiddling with the phone while driving, an insanely dangerous problem.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 pm
Bottled Wind Could Be as Constant as CoalHuge projects that would store wind energy by compressing air in abandoned mines and porous sandstone are gaining steam in the Midwest.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 pm
10 Years After: A Look Back at the Dot-Com Boom and BustThe Nasdaq peaked at 5,049 on March 10, 2000, then it promptly nosedived and hasn't come near that level since. Here’s a look at the era that launched — and crushed — a million dreams.
» 9 Mar 2010, 5:00 pm
Review: Science Trips Out on Music in 'The Heart Is a Drum Machine'Through interviews with a brainy crop of musicians and scientists, a new documentary probes the connection between body, mind and music.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:32 pm
Broadcast Video From Your MobileYou're carrying around a video camera in your pocket (it's that thing attached to your mobile phone) so be prepared and learn how to start streaming video to the web at a moment's notice.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:30 pm
Oldest Known Flying 'Car' Up for AuctionIt's from 1934, and it doesn't look like a car, and it doesn't look like it would fly.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:15 pm
Hot Property Sex.com on Auction BlockIt’s a sadly familiar story from the high-flying market of the past few years: Speculator thinks values will continue to go up, up, up. Overbids for a hot property. Can’t keep up with the payments. Lender is forced to foreclose. Only this isn’t about real estate — it’s about the most expensive domain name in the history of the internet: sex.com.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:10 pm
Storyboard: Extreme-Test War StoriesFrom blasting body armor to testing the limits of a satellite tracker, the Wired magazine team talks about putting survival products through the real-world wringer.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:46 pm
Yahoo! News - Technology
Samsung, Panasonic start selling 3-D TVs this week
(AP)AP - Want to be the first one on your block with a 3-D television? It will cost you about $3,000.
» 9 Mar 2010, 2:07 pm
Google opens Web store for business applications
(AP)AP - Google Inc. will sell the online services of other business software makers in an effort to fill its own product gaps and persuade more companies to rely on applications piped over the Internet.
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:58 pm
MySpace outlines makeover after exec shake up
(AP)AP - Long-ago lapped by Facebook in popularity and with fast-growing Twitter on its tail, social networking site MySpace is planning a series of updates over the next months that will link its users' posts to those sites more easily and carve out its niche as an entertainment hub more clearly.
» 9 Mar 2010, 7:33 pm
Google adds bike lane with latest mapping feature
(AP)AP - Google Inc. is adding a bike lane with its latest online mapping option.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:07 pm
On latest guitar game, players strum real strings
(AP)AP - An upcoming musical video game lets players strum a real six-string electric guitar instead of tapping buttons on a fake instrument.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:30 pm
`Nobel of computing' goes to early PC designer
(AP)AP - A Microsoft Corp. researcher won the $250,000 Turing Award, one of technology's most coveted prizes, on Tuesday for his work helping design and build what is widely considered the first modern personal computer.
» 9 Mar 2010, 1:08 pm
Google opens virtual shop for business software
(AFP)AFP - Google opened an online shop for business software hosted as services in the Internet "cloud."
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:09 am
Street Fighter IV arrives in the App Store
(Macworld.com)Macworld.com - Students of the hadouken have a new venue to test their fighting mettle: Street Fighter IV launched Wednesday for the iPhone and iPod touch. This seminal arcade fighter brings high-end graphics, complex combos, and a memorable cast of characters to the mobile platform.
» 10 Mar 2010, 12:06 am
Man stabbed with meat thermometer at movie in CA
(AP)AP - Authorities say a man was stabbed in the neck with a meat thermometer after asking a woman to silence her cell phone during a screening of the film "Shutter Island" at a Southern California movie theater.
» 9 Mar 2010, 6:18 pm
Sony, Samsung Join Campaign To Push 3-D TV Sets
(NewsFactor)NewsFactor - On the heels of the big 3-D television presence at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, Sony and Samsung are joining Panasonic, LG Electronics, and others in promoting the new technology. On Tuesday, Sony said it is aiming for 10 percent of its TV sales within the next year to be 3-D models, and Samsung announced a range of HDTV sets and Blu-ray players will ship later this month.
» 9 Mar 2010, 10:29 am
"Logorama" duo take aim at "Ghost Recon" videogame
(Reuters)Reuters - The directors behind the Oscar-winning animated short "Logorama," are moving into the live-action world -- but they aren't going Hollywood just yet.
» 9 Mar 2010, 9:52 pm
