Monthly Archive for June, 2008

Windows Could Use a Rush of Fresh Air

Published
by
Graham
on June 30, 2008
in Computer News
. 1 Comment

From the New York Times:

Microsoft Windows has put on a lot of weight over the years.

Beginning as a thin veneer for older software code, it has become an obese monolith built on an ancient frame. Adding features, plugging security holes, fixing bugs, fixing the fixes that never worked properly, all while maintaining compatibility with older software and hardware — is there anything Windows doesn’t try to do?

Painfully visible are the inherent design deficiencies of a foundation that was never intended to support such weight. Windows seems to move an inch for every time that Mac OS X or Linux laps it.

The best solution to the multiple woes of Windows is starting over. Completely. Now.

Laptop Searches in Airports Draw Fire at Senate Hearing

Published
by
Graham
on June 26, 2008
in Computer News
. 0 Comments

From the New York Times:

Advocacy groups and some legal experts told Congress on Wednesday that it was unreasonable for federal officials to search the laptops of United States citizens when they re-enter the country from traveling abroad.

Civil rights groups have said certain ethnic groups have been selectively profiled in the searches by Border Patrol agents and customs officials who have the authority to inspect all luggage and cargo brought into the country without obtaining warrants or having probable cause.

Companies whose employees travel overseas have also criticized the inspections, saying that the search of electronic devices could hurt their businesses.

The federal government says the searches are necessary for national security and for legal action against people who bring illegal material into the country.

What’s Obscene? Google Could Have an Answer

Published
by
Graham
on June 24, 2008
in Computer News
. 0 Comments

From the New York Times:

Judges and jurors who must decide whether sexually explicit material is obscene are asked to use a local yardstick: does the material violate community standards?

That is often a tricky question because there is no simple, concrete way to gauge a community’s tastes and values.

The Internet may be changing that. In a novel approach, the defense in an obscenity trial in Florida plans to use publicly accessible Google search data to try to persuade jurors that their neighbors have broader interests than they might have thought.

Computers in use pass one billion mark

Published
by
Graham
on June 23, 2008
in Computer News
. 0 Comments

From the Globe and Mail:

The number of personal computers in use around the world has surpassed one billion, with strong growth in emerging markets set to double the number of PCs by early 2014, research firm Gartner said on Monday.

Mature markets accounted for 58 per cent of the first billion installed PCs, but would only account for about 30 per cent of the next billion, Gartner said.

“Rapid penetration in emerging markets is being driven by the explosive expansion of broadband and wireless connectivity, the continuing fall in PC average selling prices, and the general realisation that PCs are an indispensable tool for advancement,” George Shiffler, research director at Gartner, said.

Charging by the Byte to Curb Internet Traffic

Published
by
Graham
on June 18, 2008
in Computer News
. 0 Comments

From the New York Times:

Some people use the Internet simply to check e-mail and look up phone numbers. Others are online all day, downloading big video and music files.

For years, both kinds of Web surfers have paid the same price for access. But now three of the country’s largest Internet service providers are threatening to clamp down on their most active subscribers by placing monthly limits on their online activity.

One of them, Time Warner Cable, began a trial of “Internet metering” in one Texas city early this month, asking customers to select a monthly plan and pay surcharges when they exceed their bandwidth limit. The idea is that people who use the network more heavily should pay more, the way they do for water, electricity, or, in many cases, cellphone minutes.

e Boo Boos - Misspelled Items and Auctions on eBay

Published
by
Graham
on June 13, 2008
in Internet Tips
. 2 Comments

I heard about e Boo Boos from Pat, a co-worker:

e Boo Boos is a unique search tool used to hunt down misspelled auction items listed on eBay. eBay does not contain a spell checker and many auction items go unnoticed because nobody finds these items when searching using the correctly spelled word.

The Best Windows XP Tips, Tricks & Hacks

Published
by
Graham
on June 12, 2008
in Software Tips
. 0 Comments

PC Magazine has some tips for Windows XP:

We’re acutely aware of the fact that many of you are reluctant to make the move to Windows Vista . We understand—really. Why leave the comfort of your tried-but-true Windows XP ? So, whether you’re a die-hard XP user, or you’re just biding your time ’til Windows 7 arrives, we’re here to help. We’ve dug up our favorite Windows XP tips, tricks, and hacks just for you.

A digital offer ‘The Godfather’ can’t refuse

Published
by
Graham
on June 7, 2008
in Computer News
. 0 Comments

From CNet News:

How’s this for pressure? In the care of Daphne Dentz and her colleagues was a masterpiece of American filmmaking: The Godfather.

A year ago, Dentz was sitting in an editing bay with other members of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging (MPI). Also in the room was none other than the movie’s director, Francis Ford Coppola. He was there to observe as they set about digitally restoring his 35-year-old classic.

On a bank of computer monitors, The Godfather’s opening scene began to play; the melancholy trumpet; the now famous line: “I believe in America…,” and slowly forming out of the blackness is the face of a man seeking vengeance.

Stop everything. Coppola, a famous perfectionist, told the technicians: “I want his head to look like it’s floating in purgatory.”

An instruction like that from Coppola might have intimidated Dentz, MPI’s vice president of digital services, if she didn’t know MPI had the tools to give him what he wanted. Six years ago, Warner Bros. developed digital technologies designed to make copies of damaged or decaying film negatives and return the movies to their original viewing quality.

The Top 15 Vaporware Products of All Time

Published
by
Graham
on June 6, 2008
in Computer News
. 0 Comments

PC World has an article about the top products that were announced but never made it to production:

The tech industry has had more than its fair share of products that infamously failed to take off. Some fit the classic definition of vaporware, and were all hype and no substance. A few were simply too far ahead of their time. And others were merely victims of bad judgment about what users wanted. Here are the 15 best examples of products that never saw the light of day (at least in their originally intended form), plus some honorable mentions that we just couldn’t ignore.

Celebs and Tech: Odd Endorsements of the 80s

Published
by
Graham
on June 3, 2008
in Recommended Web Sites
. 0 Comments

PC World has a nice summary of celebrity endorsements of computer products from the 1980s:

When personal computers entered the mainstream in the 1980s, the American public was understandably uneasy. Most people didn’t know much about using a PC, or how to choose a good one. Where could they turn for advice? Marketers hoped they would turn to on-screen role models, heroes such as Alan Alda, Roger Moore, and William Shatner. Understandable, perhaps. But really, would you buy a computer on the advice of Dom DeLuise or wrestler “King Kong” Bundy?