http://www.mikmuk.com/internet.php RSS Daily Internet Computer Technologies News Headlines Breaking News mikmuk.com timestamp http://www.financeblogger.de/wp-content/themes/landzilla-1_2/images/rss.gif Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62889.html It was 1986 when John Snyder, then managing a Florida animal-control facility, saw his first microchip. He thought it was The Solution when it came to lost pets. "We thought it was 'Star Wars,' really cool," said Snyder, now vice president, companion animals, for the Humane Society of the United States. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62918.html There are some games that play well when you are alone, and there are some that beg for another player before any fun can be had. EA Mobile's "Scrabble" nicely falls into the former category, while its version of "Yahtzee" for the iPod is smack in the middle of the latter. In "Yahtzee," you roll five dice up to three times and attempt to match one of 13 scoring categories. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62882.html Typically, new technologies tend to promise more than they deliver. That has not been the case with Web services, which are being integrated into just about every new e-commerce application. "Support for Web services has come from application vendors, application development tool suppliers and middleware vendors," said Jason Bloomberg, a managing partner with market research firm ZapThink. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62929.html The software as a service trend is revolutionizing the call center industry, as companies of all sizes are now discovering the advantages of going with hosted versus on-premise solutions. With SaaS for the call center, applications are hosted on a shared platform in a data center and delivered to the agents via the Internet or dedicated network. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62891.html Last November, Procter & Gamble's Vidal Sassoon launched with much fanfare its first hair salon in China's virtual world. There was even a virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony. However, today the VS salon in HiPiHi, China's oldest and largest virtual world, sits mostly empty save for the occasional visitor. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/62891.html Last November, Procter & Gamble's Vidal Sassoon launched with much fanfare its first hair salon in China's virtual world. There was even a virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony. However, today the VS salon in HiPiHi, China's oldest and largest virtual world, sits mostly empty save for the occasional visitor. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287141346/javaone_day_1_report_rocking.html Report from the opening and first day of JavaOne including videos. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287141347/multiple_file_upload_with_ruby_on_rails_and_filec.html I just found a multiple file upload script here, and a rewrite for the use with the nice file_column plugin. There was a conflict with the mootools not playing well with prototype used by default in every Ruby on Rails application. So I’ve done a rewrite of the first version of this script. Of course there are other (newer) file upload plugins like attachment_fu, but they do not have the functionality I need. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287141348/interview_jfugue_goes_hip_hop.html A new release of JFugue API was announced last week. Its author, Dave Koelle, is at JavaOne and here he talks about the API and some of its hidden treasures. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287141349/javaone_g1_garbage_collector.html The Sun Hotspot guys have been working on a new garbage collector to replace CMS called G1. This presentation went over the differences between the old CMS and the new G1 collectors and also included some perspective from a guy at the Chicago Board of Options Exchange who has been beta testing it. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287365376/using_gridview_to_display_images_from_database.html In ASP.Net 1.x days Datagrid is one of the most common control that is used to display a table of data. With the introduction of ASP.Net 2.0 we have Gridview in the place of Datagrid while the Datagrid control is still supported. With the introduction of Gridview we can prevent some of the standard code we will repeat for edit, update, delete, sort etc Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287354958/is_your_javascript_library_standards_compliant.html One of the things JavaScript libraries like jQuery, Dojo, and YUI can do for you is add support for features in the latest Web standards long before they are built into browsers. But are some libraries going too far? Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287287158/hanss_swan_song.html Sun loses another senior developer and the Swing team lose another to Abobe Flex. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287287159/java_swingbuilder_latest_updates_on_binding_swing.html Latest updates on bean binding, SwingWorker integration for long running methods and bean validations. Java SwingBuilder is an attempt to bring dynamic language-type productivity to Java Swing UI development by defining the layout/event wiring/binding in a separate YAML file and leaving the Java class to focus on pure business-side code. Inspired by Groovy SwingBuilder, Ruby on Rails (YAML) and GTK+ libGlade. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287194291/desktop_integration_with_java_6.html Java 6 tries hard to make Java applications easier to integrate in the desktop environment of various platforms. One of such welcome attempts is the new java.awt.Desktop class adapted from JDIC (JDesktop Integration Components). Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287169661/delphi_jumps_ship_welcome_embarcadero.html As you probably know by now, Delphi has a new owner. After 25 years of Borland Turbo Pascal and later Borland Delphi, after the Inprise fiasco and Borland ALM focus (a fiasco, as well?), two years after the announcement that Borland was trying to sell its IDE tools, at last we know what lies ahead. And the future looks brighter than it was a few days ago... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287475703/what_is_java_good_at.html Java was the language designed for us to figure out what was going wrong at compile time not run time. We were supposed to be able to not have to worry about the things that tripped us up in the days of C. I'm not opposed to metaprogramming and not having to catch exceptions and not having to write a ton of template code -- but I'm not sure that Java, the language, should change to accommodate all of these ideas. Also, did we learn nothing from the EJB wars about what can be added to a spec and why? Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287475704/thinking_in_language.html A couple of folks have taken me to task over some of the things I said... or didn't say... in my last blog piece. So, in no particular order, let's discuss. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287465414/javascript_string_performance_an_analysis.html Recently I was writing a “tips and tricks” blog post that was going to focus on the idea that it is better to use an object as a “string buffer”; the idea was that by passing this object around to various functions and pushing string fragments into it, you can get better performance from a JavaScript engine. My friend and colleague Alex Russell challenged me to show him hard data supporting this hypothesis—and the results were quite eye-opening! Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287365375/aspnet_ajax_best_practices.html While we develop AJAX applications, we often carelessly ignore giving up bad practices, which cause effects which are not so significantly visible when the site is not so large in volume. But, it’s often severe performance issue when it is the case for sites that make heavy use of AJAX technologies such as Pageflakes, NetVibes etc. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ZDNetBlogs/~3/287267864/ In the northern lattitudes the boreal forests of North America are losing their evergreens. Scientists say the mountain pine beetle is thriving due to the warmer winters. In turn beetles are killing large numbers of trees in Canadian forests. Previous beetle attacks have occurred in the Canadian forests but this is the worst yet. Warmer climate is being blamed. Worse yet, the dead and dying trees may turn the boreal forest from a carbon sink into a source of yet more carbon dioxide that will go into the atmosphere, adding to the greenhouse gas effect, thus contributing to further atmospheric warming. In warmer climates there is a population reduction among many species of amphibia. One tropical frog species is especially...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ZDNetBlogs/~4/287267864" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ZDNetBlogs/~3/287255723/ Remember my theory about 10.5.2 causing poor audio quality in Skype? I pretty much convinced that 10.5.2 is the culprit, but there's another theory floating around out there – that it's related to USB ports. The problem manifested itself most recently in the MacBreak Weekly podcast (episode 88) where Andy Ihnatko and Alex Lindsay sound like Cylons. They attribute the poor Skype audio to a lack of USB power – apparently, not all USB ports are created equally. Their consensus is that the Skype problem is a symptom of being plugged into an under-powered USB port. It seems that only the front USB port on the MacBook offers a full powered, full speed bus. On the MacBook Pro the...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ZDNetBlogs/~4/287255723" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ZDNetBlogs/~3/287192611/ When you need all the processing power your Mac can provide, it's good to eliminate distractions. That's where Elgebar Studios's Freeze Frame and now Bokeh, its Leopard-only successor, comes to the rescue. The $17 Bokeh software lets users target a single application that's running processor-intensive tasks and tells the Mac to put on hold other processes. For example, when you're going to apply an filter to a big image , you don't want Mail to start sorting your overly-packed mailbox, or have a widget checking of your stock portfolio. The author Geoff Pado says customers can save time with the program: Bokeh is for people who have software with big needs. When your Mac is clogged with lots of extra...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ZDNetBlogs/~4/287192611" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356396 The ClearDelta System Collector Service, our windows based SNMP poller allows you to quickly setup and monitor your critical network devices, such as servers, routers, firewalls, switches, workstations, network printers and more. Installation is a mere 20 seconds or under. Service types are either or . Our Free service supports most of the CDSC capabilities while our Premium service supports all of the CDSC capabilities. The CDSC requires a registerd ClearDelta account. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356395 WeBuilder is revolutionary all-in-one Web code editor that enables you to edit HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, ASP, Ruby and other web documents within single program. Clean and convenient interface, quick startup, true flexibility, and powerful features allow you to create and edit HTML, CSS, JavaScript, VBScript, WML, PHP, ASP, ASP.Net, SSI, Ruby, Perl code faster and easier than ever, while integrated tools enable you to validate, reuse, navigate and deploy your code in an efficient and sophisticated manner. Familiar interface allows to jumpstart, as all the essential features are right at their place. Templates, code snippets, wizards and other tools allow you to complete the job much faster.Version 9 introduces SFTP support, greatly improved text editor with matching and missing HTML tag and bracket highlighting, improved auto complete, improved Ruby editing features and other major improvements. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356394 L-Ceps Personaltrainer Arabic is designed for learners without or with little previous knowledge of the Arabic language. The comprehensive program contains 30 lessons and is comparable to 1-2 years of teaching. The lessons are covering the complete spectrum of traveling & social life, at home, at work, body & mind and nature. There are 5 special lessons with a focus on common phrases and dialogues. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356393 L-Ceps Personaltrainer Japanese is designed for learners without or with little previous knowledge of the Japanese language. The comprehensive program contains 30 lessons and is comparable to 1-2 years of teaching. The lessons are covering the complete spectrum of traveling & social life, at home, at work, body & mind and nature. There are 5 special lessons with a focus on common phrases and dialogues. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356392 L-Ceps Personaltrainer Vietnamese is designed for learners without or with little previous knowledge of the Vietnamese language. The comprehensive program contains 30 lessons and is comparable to 1-2 years of teaching. The lessons are covering the complete spectrum of traveling & social life, at home, at work, body & mind and nature. There are 5 special lessons with a focus on common phrases and dialogues. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356391 L-Ceps Personaltrainer Thai is designed for learners without or with little previous knowledge of the Thai language. The comprehensive program contains 30 lessons and is comparable to 1-2 years of teaching. The lessons are covering the complete spectrum of traveling & social life, at home, at work, body & mind and nature. There are 5 special lessons with a focus on common phrases and dialogues. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356390 L-Ceps Personaltrainer Tagalog (Filipino) is designed for learners without or with little previous knowledge of the Tagalog language. The comprehensive program contains 30 lessons and is comparable to 1-2 years of teaching. The lessons are covering the complete spectrum of traveling & social life, at home, at work, body & mind and nature. There are 5 special lessons with a focus on common phrases and dialogues. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356389 L-Ceps Personaltrainer Chinese (Mandarin) is designed for learners without or with little previous knowledge of the Chinese language. The comprehensive program contains 30 lessons and is comparable to 1-2 years of teaching. The lessons are covering the complete spectrum of traveling & social life, at home, at work, body & mind and nature. There are 5 special lessons with a focus on common phrases and dialogues. This version is the first release on CNET Download.com. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356404 Provides user audit, access, Internet and system security for any computer running Windows 2000, 2003, XP, and Vista. User security is group based and Meets requirements outlined in NISPOM, Chapter 8, as well as Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPPA. Stand-alone, or multi-system network use. Restrict access to file system, including removable media (USB, flash, etc.) on the fly. Restrict printer access in any application. Active Password Monitoring. Version 5.08.0505 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356403 Photo Crop Editor is an interactive photo crop software for selecting and cropping an object in a picture or photograph from its background. The result can then be placed on a different background to create a new picture. Photo crop editor works even if foreground and background colors are similar. Photo crop editor consisting of three steps: object marking: the object of interest can be quickly identified by marking quick mouse strokes, using left-click for foreground and right-click for background, then program lookups object boundary automatically; boundary editing: boundary can be edited directly in this refinement step; background change: crop the object and place it on a new background, the object can be resized, rotated and placed on any position of new background, and it is easy to change background as any photo or color. Then the result could be saved as new image file or printed out.Version 1.15 supports moving selection by dragging mouse. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356402 Photo Collage is a collage maker that is capable of creating photo collages, desktop wallpaper, CD and DVD covers, and miscellaneous Web graphics. You can select a favorite photo as background, arrange multiple photos on the paper, then apply operations to them, such as rotating, resizing, adding frame, changing position, and changing overlay order, and merging them into background with mask templates. This collage maker does not reduce a photo's pixels when it resizes and rotates photo, this ensures high quality of your printed collage. Its feature of arranging multiple photos on a paper lets you save expensive paper, because you can print many photos on a paper.Version 2.04 enhances photo cropping function and fixes bugs of creating a new collage. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356400 Makeup FX is an e-book that delivers detailed, step-by-step instructions to create many makeup and special effects suitable for halloween, theatre, motion picture, and live-action roleplay. It has an user-friendly interface, is easy to use, and is educational. The ingredients for each makeup and effect are cheap and safe. Version 1.5 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, and bug fixes. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356399 Home Daycare Plus is the ultimate tool for running and managing any Daycare business. Whether you are operating a Daycare center out of your home, or a professional running a Daycare facility; Home Day Care Plus + is what caregivers all over have been waiting for. Home Day Care Plus looks great, feels great and performs everything you need it to from managing customer accounts, invoicing and billing, monitoring care givers, children, immunizations and much more. All of this in a beautifully sculpted environment with easy on the eye colors, excellent user ability and a fun look and feel! With a registered copy, users will also receive full, automatic and realtime live updates; meaning you are always up to date. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356398 HelpBeam is a web-based remote support service that provides a simple way for support technicians to quickly resolve online PC support requests through remote access. All the customer must do is visit the HelpBeam web site and download a small application. The support technician can then view, control and transfer files in real time on their machine. Here are some key features of HelpBeam: Very Simple to Use, Remote Desktop View, Remote Keyboard and Mouse Control, No installation necessary, 128 bit SSL encryption, Connect in Seconds, Firewall Friendly,Browser Based, Connect From Anywhere.Version 1.1 is now a hosted service. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://downloads.zdnet.com/abstract.aspx?docid=356397 Ziggy Games is a simple, free way to play the best 1,000+ fun online games, watch movies, TV shows, and fun videos. You can also listen to live streaming radio. With Ziggy Games you can enjoy the top free state-of-the-art flash games, HD movies & TV shows, streamed live to your PC. Ziggy Games lets you watch over 2000+ movie & TV channels, listen over 1000+ live radio stations and play over 1000+ fun online games all free on your PC. Ziggy Games allows the user to play games without having to experience the annoyances of a Web sites (like slow-loading pages and pop-up ads). No additional equipment required. Ziggy Games support all major game types. Ziggy Games is very efficient and easy to use. We let anyone become a game broadcaster without with the new add your own game stream feature. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://techdirt.com/articles/20080508/1942211069.shtml Copyright and patent law is supposed to act as incentives for the creation of new content or inventions. Yet, as we've pointed out recently, there's little economic evidence that it does so. Instead, the evidence suggests that stronger intellectual property laws seem to come <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080313/031128532.shtml">after the fact</a>. In other words, when there is little IP protection, there is often quite a bit of creation and invention -- and then those that did that creation and invention decide that they want to protect it retrospectively. That's not the purpose of IP law, but it's what seems to happen. And, look no further than China to see it happening again. China, of course, is notorious as a haven for intellectual property infringement, which (not surprisingly) has resulted in <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20050504/1041227.shtml">business model innovation</a>. However, now that China is hosting the Olympics, it's <a href="http://jamesfallows.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/05/the_horror.php" target="_new">suddenly worried about making sure the video of the games will be copied in an unauthorized manner</a> (found via <a href="http://www.againstmonopoly.org/index.php?perm=695">Against Monopoly</a>). Note the obvious irony. You can walk around malls in parts of China and buy any kind of unauthorized software, music and movies for next to nothing... but when it comes to China's own content, suddenly copyright is a big deal. And, of course, it wasn't copyright that acted as the <i>incentive</i> for China to host and show the Olympics -- but now the country is using it to <i>protect</i> the content. Copyright is being used for protectionism, not as an incentive. <br /><br /> <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080508/1942211069.shtml">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080508/1942211069.shtml#comments">Comments</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/article.php?sid=20080508/1942211069&op=sharethis">Email This Story</a> <br /> <br style="clear: both;"/> <img alt="" style="border: 0; height:1px; width:1px;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?i=5b078641ba6e0c5089ddf070e8c06d79" height="1" width="1"/> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=5b078641ba6e0c5089ddf070e8c06d79" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?a=c0vsIh"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?i=c0vsIh" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techdirt/feed/~4/287171892" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/1327371075.shtml While it is a bit troubling that the Department of Homeland Security has had some computer security problems recently, it's difficult to see exactly how that's solved by legislation. But, of course, to politicians with a legislative hammer, every little problem looks like a nail. Thus, we've got politicians proposing cybersecurity legislation that <a href="http://www.securityfocus.com/brief/736?ref=rss" target="_new">would require Homeland Security to decrease the number of successful cybersecurity attacks against its network</a>. While that's certainly an admirable goal, it's not as if DHS was purposely letting the attacks go through before, and will suddenly shape up just because of this new law. <center><script type="text/javascript" src="http://washingtonwatch.com/info/widget.php?id=200510940"></script></center> <br /><br /> <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/1327371075.shtml">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/1327371075.shtml#comments">Comments</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/article.php?sid=20080509/1327371075&op=sharethis">Email This Story</a> <br /> <br style="clear: both;"/> <img alt="" style="border: 0; height:1px; width:1px;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?i=7831ff5c73ef5194e535ccd6b8ac92f3" height="1" width="1"/> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=7831ff5c73ef5194e535ccd6b8ac92f3" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?a=xd0Nkh"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?i=xd0Nkh" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techdirt/feed/~4/287143265" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/1244161074.shtml While many people are familiar with copyright issues concerning things like music, movies and software online, there's another community that also has been quite active: <a href="http://www.redhat.com/magazine/026dec06/features/knitting/">the knitting community</a>. For a few years now there's been an ongoing battle between hobbyist knitters who have uploaded patterns that others feel are infringing on their copyrights. Now it appears that issue is touching on the tech/sci-fi community as well. <a href="http://www.boingboing.net/2008/05/09/bbc-sends-legal-thre.html">Boing Boing</a> points us to the news that a fan of the famed BBC show <i>Dr. Who</i> had created some knitting patterns of his own that would enable anyone to knit various characters from the show. This isn't a case where he was uploading someone else's patterns -- but he had created his own. The BBC, however, flipped out and <a href="http://www.openrightsgroup.org/2008/05/08/bbc-removes-doctor-who-fans-knitting-patterns-from-the-web/" target="_new">told him to remove all such knitting patterns as they infringed on the BBC's copyrights and trademarks</a>. This seems like yet another case of overly aggressive enforcement of intellectual property rights because someone <i>can</i>, not because it's a good idea. <br /><br /> It's nearly impossible to see how a fan getting people to knit versions of <i>Dr. Who</i> characters somehow diminishes the rights of the BBC. All it's doing is enabling fans (who are also into knitting) to express their fandom. If anything, the BBC should be <i>encouraging</i> this kind of fan support, rather than trying to stifle it and shut it down. It's stunning that after all these years, people still don't realize that helping fans express their feelings towards something is a <i>good thing</i>, rather than infringement. <br /><br /> <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/1244161074.shtml">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/1244161074.shtml#comments">Comments</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/article.php?sid=20080509/1244161074&op=sharethis">Email This Story</a> <br /> <br style="clear: both;"/> <img alt="" style="border: 0; height:1px; width:1px;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?i=59f6753bcda9c1e85146c322e58406f1" height="1" width="1"/> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=59f6753bcda9c1e85146c322e58406f1" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?a=Nq5Yth"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?i=Nq5Yth" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techdirt/feed/~4/287241884" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/0305071072.shtml While it looks like the <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080416/021024859.shtml">attempt</a> to get Rick Frenkel, better known as the "Patent Troll Tracker" into court on a separate patent-related dispute has gone <a href="http://thepriorart.typepad.com/the_prior_art/2008/05/scott-harris-la.html">nowhere</a>, there's an interesting side dispute as part of this that touches on the age-old debate concerning the border of blogging and journalism. Frenkel told the court that since the Troll Tracker blog was a side project, not an effort of Cisco, and since he was, effectively, a journalist in writing it, he could not be compelled to testify since it "would result in a serious detriment to Frenkel's future ability to gather and disseminate news." <br /><br /> However, Frenkel's nemesis, patent attorney Ray Niro responded by scoffing at these claims, and ticking off <a href="http://thepriorart.typepad.com/the_prior_art/2008/05/is-the-patent-t.html" target="_new">the reasons why Frenkel should not be considered a journalist</a>. Unfortunately, in doing so, Niro displays a rather profound ignorance concerning what it means to be a journalist (one would hope that his work with patent hoarders is not so sloppy). In the link above, Joe Mullin does a good job picking apart Niro's points, but let's take a closer look. <b>First</b>, Niro says Frenkel is not a journalist because he's unqualified: <blockquote> "Frenkel has no degree in journalism; no professional training as a reporter; and has never been employed as a reporter or journalist." </blockquote> If that's a requirement to be a journalist these days, then an awful lot of folks doing serious journalism work wouldn't be considered journalists either. There are no professional requirements to be a journalist. <b>Second</b>, Niro claims that Frenkel wasn't very nice in his posts, highlighting the Troll Tracker's rather amusing "haiku" contests, that tended to make fun of patent hoarders and (sometimes) Niro. Of course, there's nothing in engaging with your readers with amusing haiku contests that makes you any less of a journalist. <b>Third</b>, Niro says that since Cisco was Frenkel's employer, he's clearly not a journalist but something of a corporate mouthpiece. Of course, there's little evidence to suggest that Frenkel was doing anything on behalf of Cisco, but more importantly, (as Mullins points out) biased reporting doesn't disqualify you from being a journalist. If it did, how many "journalists" would still be around? And <b>fourth</b>, Niro claims that Frenkel was guilty of various journalistic ethics violations, such as writing anonymously (someone better alert the Economist) and not revealing his sources (always knew that Woodward and Bernstein weren't <i>real</i> journalists). <br /><br /> The simple fact is that you don't need a degree or a certificate to be a journalist these days. You just need to report the news -- and no one can deny that Frenkel did that. In fact, he was much more of a journalist than many "official" journalists these days in that he reported on news that wasn't getting covered anywhere else and did some pretty hefty investigative work on some to try to work out the details behind some of the patent hoarding company <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20071127/015820.shtml">shell games</a>. In fact, since he took down his site, the type of news he reported has been sadly missing from the discussions on patent law and patent reform. On that note, it's probably also worth pointing out that Frenkel said in his own filing on the case that he's planning to <a href="http://thepriorart.typepad.com/the_prior_art/2008/05/patent-troll-tr.html">return to blogging</a> at some point in the future. <br /><br /> <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/0305071072.shtml">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/articles/20080509/0305071072.shtml#comments">Comments</a> | <a href="http://techdirt.com/article.php?sid=20080509/0305071072&op=sharethis">Email This Story</a> <br /> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=73ce0f1b76b8387200e301be43e68b6a"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=73ce0f1b76b8387200e301be43e68b6a"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=73ce0f1b76b8387200e301be43e68b6a" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?a=Qr8gTh"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~f/techdirt/feed?i=Qr8gTh" border="0"></img></a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techdirt/feed/~4/287206300" height="1" width="1"/> Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/05/09/facebook_to_let_users_carry_profiles_with_them?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Technology+stories Facebook Inc. is loosening its grip on millions of personal profiles to allow inhabitants of its popular Internet hangout to transplant the information and applications to other Web sites. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/05/09/apple_agrees_to_settle_ipod_lawsuit?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Technology+stories Apple Inc. has agreed to settle a pair of class-action lawsuits in Canada alleging it misled customers about the staying power of their iPods, the latest courtroom truce over the dwindling battery life of early generations of the device. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/05/09/earnings_roundup_delphi_iomega?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Technology+stories Auto parts maker Delphi Corp. reported Friday that it lost more money in the first quarter than it did a year ago, but that an expanded credit line will still allow it to emerge intact from bankruptcy protection. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/05/10/ebays_paypal_rule_in_australia_draws_fire?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Technology+stories EBay Inc. is exploring whether to require customers to use its online payment service PayPal, a move that has angered users and prompted antitrust scrutiny in Australia, where a PayPal-only rule takes effect next month. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/05/09/dell_procurement_exec_retires?rss_id=Boston+Globe+--+Technology+stories An executive at Dell Inc. who led the slumping computer maker's procurement efforts and managed its relationships with suppliers has left the company, Dell said late Friday. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Scienceroll/~3/286790352/ Web 2.0 101 (My MD Journey): Videos about RSS, wikis, podcast or blogs: Telemedicine could eradicate many expensive ED visits (huliq.com): A community-wide study in upstate New York found that nearly 28 percent of all visits to the pediatric emergency department could have been replaced with a more cost-effective Internet doctor’s “visit,” or telemedicine, according to investigators [...] Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59680 A Democratic congressional candidate abruptly dropped out of the race Wednesday and said a former campaign worker was linked to an Internet smear aimed at a rival. <p> Jake Metcalfe said he had known nothing about a scheme to redirect Internet users searching for fellow Democrat Ethan Berkowitz to bogus sites intended to harm Berkowitz's candidacy. But he added, "It appears that a former campaign worker was involved in these acts, and I condemn them." <p> Metcalfe, former chairman of the Democratic Party in Alaska, said he takes responsibility and apologized to Berkowitz on Wednesday. <p> The disputed Web sites contained variations of Berkowitz's name but were not associated with the candidate's campaign. When users clicked on the Web sites, they were directed to pages that attempted to portray Berkowitz as a privileged California liberal or to gay cultural sites in San Francisco. <p> "I made a mistake by not taking these allegations more seriously from the beginning," Metcalfe said. <p> Berkowitz said Wednesday it is time to move past the Web site flap. Married with two children, he has roots in San Francisco but has lived since 1990 in Alaska, where he has served as a prosecutor and legislator. <p> "I think it's time to close a chapter and go back to what we should have been doing all along, which is talking about the direction the state is taking," Berkowitz said. <p> Metcalfe's former campaign manager, Dana Krawchuk, claimed that his political adviser Bill Scannell talked about such a scheme last year in front of her and Metcalfe. <p> Scannell has denied establishing the fake Web sites but he resigned last week, saying the allegations were hurting Metcalfe. <p> Metcalfe said Wednesday he had not determined that Scannell was behind the ruse. <p> "I've talked to Bill. Bill denies it's him, but the evidence shows he may have had something to do with it," Metcalfe said. <p> Metcalfe said he... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59678 Scientists said they have mapped the genetic makeup of the platypus -- one of nature's strangest-looking animals with the beak of a duck, a mammal's fur and snake-like venom. <p> The researchers, whose analysis of the platypus' genome was published Thursday in the journal Nature, said it could help explain how mammals, including humans, evolved from reptiles millions of years ago. <p> The platypus is classed as a mammal because it has fur and feeds its young with milk. It flaps a beaver-like tail. But it also has bird and reptile features -- a duck-like beak and webbed feet, and lives mostly underwater. Males have venom-filled spurs on their heels. <p> "At first glance, the platypus appears as if it was the result of an evolutionary accident," said Francis S. Collins, director of the U.S. National Human Genome Research Institute, which funded the study. <p> "But as weird as this animal looks, its genome sequence is priceless for understanding how mammalian biological processes evolved," Collins said in a statement. <p> The research showed the animal's multifaceted features are reflected in its DNA with a mix of genes that crosses different classifications of animals, said Jenny Graves, an Australian National University genomics expert who co-wrote the paper. <p> The platypus is an early example of reptiles' evolution into mammals, but unlike other evolving mammals, the platypus retained characteristics of snakes and lizards, including the pain-causing poison that males can use to ward off mating rivals, Graves said. <p> More than 100 scientists from the United States, Australia, Japan and other nations took part in research. Their work added to the growing list of animals whose genetic makeup has been unraveled. <p> By comparing platypus genes to those of humans and other mammals, scientists hope to fill in gaps in knowledge about mammals' evolution and to better identify certain species' specific traits. <p> Des Cooper, an evolutionary biologist at the... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59677 It's hard to believe Google Inc. actually looked vulnerable just two months ago. The Internet search leader's stock had plummeted 45 percent from its peak. And its two biggest rivals, Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc., appeared poised to combine forces and launch a double-barreled attack. <p> But as Google holds its annual shareholders meeting Thursday, the company looks stronger than ever. Its stock is hot again and Microsoft has scrapped its plans to buy Yahoo, with Google playing the spoiler's role. <p> "Google is winning again. What a surprise," said Canaccord Adams analyst Colin Gillis. "If you want to invest in the Internet space, where else do you want to be but Google?" <p> More investors have been coming to that conclusion since last month, when Google's stellar first-quarter results cast aside concerns that the drooping U.S. economy would depress the online advertising spending that generates most of the company's profit. <p> Google shares have surged 29 percent since the first-quarter report, regaining a little more than half of the $100 billion in shareholder wealth that evaporated as the stock plunged from an all-time high of $747 last November to a 52-week low of $412 in mid-March. <p> Meanwhile, Microsoft and Yahoo are again trying to figure out how to lessen Google's dominance of Internet search and advertising. <p> Microsoft hoped to throw Google for a loop by buying Yahoo for $47.5 billion. Unnerved by the threat, Google worked behind the scenes with Yahoo to thwart Microsoft's unsolicited takeover attempt. <p> The counterattack now has Yahoo considering a deal that would allow Google to sell some of the ads displayed alongside the search results on Yahoo's Web site. The alliance, which has already been tested in a two-week trial, will likely hinge on whether the two companies can persuade antitrust regulators the partnership wouldn't undermine competition in the ad market. <p> Even if a Google-Yahoo pact... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59707 Having conquered much of planet Earth, Microsoft is turning at least some of its attention to the sky. WorldWide Telescope (WWT), a free tool that allows users to explore images of the night sky, will become available at the end of this month. <p> WWT, developed by Microsoft Research Labs using the company's Visual Experience Engine, enables a home PC to become an engine for exploring the galaxies. It utilizes terabytes of images and data from telescopes worldwide and from the Hubble orbiting telescope. <p> <subhead> 'An Observatory on Your Desktop' </subhead> <p> In a speech at a conference in Jakarta Friday, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates told news media that the software "takes very complex data gathered over many years from many telescopes" and makes it accessible to a desktop user. He described it as "an observatory on your desktop." <p> The WWT project was designed to be ready for 2009, which is the 400th anniversary of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei's first public observations of space, using a simple telescope. <p> According to news reports, the project holds information on more than 300 million stellar systems. Some astronomers have said they expect the project to have as much of an impact on the way we view the universe as did the view conveyed by Galileo. For instance, schoolchildren will be able to devise their own visual tours of the universe as classroom projects. <p> Much of the interaction will make disparate images seem as if they are part of a single set of images. According to news reports, the user can zoom into sections of the sky by clicking on the images, which come from some of the largest Earth-bound telescopes as well as spacecraft. The software stitches together the images into a virtual sky. <p> There will also be commentaries, such as downloadable podcasts from leading astronomers and researchers that expand on the... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59701 The Myanmar junta's stubborn refusal to let in foreign aid workers has not stopped donors -- from billionaire Bill Gates to a little-known British travel company -- from opening their wallets. <p> The aid includes a luxury river cruise liner loaned by the travel company to a charity for transporting relief material, and 25,000 shoes sent by a U.S-based group for the survivors of Saturday's devastating cyclone that left more than 60,000 people dead or missing. <p> The Gates Foundation donated US$3 million (EU1.94 million) for emergency relief efforts in Myanmar, and will provide software to help reunite family members separated in the cyclone, Gates, the Microsoft chairman, told The Associated Press on Friday. <p> The funds were transferred to the aid agencies Mercy Corps, Worldvision and Care "so they can go in there and help as quickly as possible," Gates said. <p> Gates' donation is about as much as the total money pledged by the U.S. government -- US$3.25 million (EU2.11 million). But Myanmar's military government has refused to allow U.S. relief planes to fly in. It also refuses to give visas to U.N. experts who want to assess the damage and manage logistics. <p> As of Thursday, the U.N. had recorded donations to Myanmar relief totaling US$25 million (EU16.23 million) from 28 nations, the European Union and charities. An additional US$25 million (EU16.23 million) has been pledged by donors. <p> The figure jumped Friday with the Gates Foundation's pledge and another US$10 million (EU6.49 million) that Japan promised to give through international organizations such as the United Nations Children's Fund, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the World Food Program. <p> Irrawaddy Flotilla Company, a British company that operates river cruises on the Irrawaddy river in Myanmar, said it was handing over one of its luxury liners to British charity Merlin. <p> "I think we all feel that this... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59700 The United States is offering to help China in its fight against a viral infection that has killed 34 children, including two reported Friday, and sickened thousands of others. <p> U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt is making a previously scheduled trip to Beijing next week and plans to discuss health issues with Chinese officials, with the outbreaks of hand, foot and mouth disease expected to feature prominently, U.S. Embassy spokesman Susan Stevenson said. <p> The scope and volume of infections brings to mind the SARS epidemic of 2003, when China was criticized internationally for trying to conceal the emergence of the disease. American health experts have previously helped with the epidemiology of infectious diseases like SARS. <p> Chinese officials have said the outbreaks will not affect the Beijing Olympics in August. Preparations already have been marred by unrest in Tibet and demonstrations against China's human rights record during the Olympic torch relay around the world. <p> The latest deaths occurred in the hardest-hit central province of Anhui, where 22 children have died of hand, foot and mouth disease, the provincial health bureau said on its Web site. <p> It said serious cases, however, were on the decline in Fuyang city, the site of the most infections and where the first wave of outbreaks was recorded. <p> As of Friday, the number of reported cases countrywide jumped to 27,499, a 10 percent increase from the 24,932 reported a day earlier, the official Xinhua News Agency said. Cases have cropped up from Guangdong province in the south to Jilin province in the northeast, along with major cities like Beijing and Shanghai. <p> Health experts have said they expect the number of reported infections to rise as a result of a Ministry of Health order this week requiring health care providers to report infections within 24 hours. The disease is expected to peak in... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59684 More than 200 million children worldwide under age 5 do not get basic health care, leading to nearly 10 million deaths annually from treatable ailments like diarrhea and pneumonia, a U.S.-based charity said Wednesday. <p> Nearly all of the deaths occur in the developing world, with poor children facing twice the risk of dying compared to richer children, according to Save the Children's global report. <p> Sweden, Norway and Iceland top the ranking in terms of well-being for mothers and children in 146 countries surveyed, while Nigeria ranks last. <p> Eight out of 10 bottom-ranked countries are in sub-Saharan Africa, where four out of five mothers are likely to lose a child in their lifetime, Save the Children said. <p> The top three among the 55 developing countries ranked in the survey are the Philippines, Peru and South Africa -- all surveyed for the first time. Indonesia and Turkmenistan tied for fourth. <p> Laos, Yemen, Chad, Somalia and Ethiopia were found doing the worst among developing countries, the report said. <p> Through a number of health initiatives, including access to oral rehydration to treat diarrhea, the Philippines has nearly cut its child death rate in half since 1990, said David Oot, Save the Children's associate vice president. <p> Today, more than 75 percent of Filipino children with diarrhea receive rehydration therapy, compared with 15 percent of Ethiopian children, he said. <p> An alarming number of countries are failing to provide the most basic health services that would save lives, with 30 percent of children in developing countries not getting basic health intervention such as prenatal care, skilled assistance during birth, immunizations and treatment for diarrhea and pneumonia. <p> Wide disparities in health care for the poorest and best-off children are seen even in the highest-ranked countries, the report said. <p> In the Philippines and Peru, for example, the poorest children are 3.2 times more likely to go without essential health... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59683 China has made it mandatory for health care providers to report all cases of a viral illness that has sickened thousands of young children across the country, as the death toll rose Wednesday to 28. <p> So far there have been 15,799 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease this year, the official Xinhua News Agency said, cropping up in areas ranging from the tropical island province of Hainan in the south to Jilin province in the northeast and Yunnan province in the southwest. <p> The number and scope of cases in recent years, along with the need for increased surveillance, prompted the Health Ministry to enforce the new reporting rules, spokesman Mao Qun'an said. <p> "This demonstrates our commitment to people's health," Mao said at a rare news conference held jointly with the World Health Organization. <p> Under the mandate that took effect Tuesday, health care providers need to report cases to the ministry within 24 hours. <p> Hand, foot and mouth disease spreads through contact with saliva, feces, fluid secreted from blisters or mucus from the nose and throat. There is no vaccine or specific treatment, but most children affected by the disease typically recover quickly without problems. It is unrelated to the foot and mouth disease that affects livestock. <p> The rocketing number of cases burgeoning across a large area of China brings up parallels with the Communist leadership's handling of previous infectious outbreaks, especially that of SARS in 2003. <p> Government attempts to conceal the emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome -- a new disease at the time -- contributed to its spread, ultimately causing 774 deaths worldwide and forcing Beijing to apologize amid international criticism. <p> Xinhua reported this week that 10 people had been punished for failing to properly tackle hand, foot and mouth in the hard-hit central province of Anhui, where 22 children have died. Mao said they had... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59682 Sprint Nextel Corp. has finally rounded up the financial backing it needs to build a faster wireless network. But for consumers and the electronics industry, speed may be the least important thing about the new network. <p> Though specifics are scant, everything points to the new network breaking with the current model of the U.S. wireless industry, where carriers both operate the service and sell the devices that use it. <p> Right now, when you buy a Sprint phone, you use it on the Sprint network, and Sprint picks the applications, like TV services, that come with the phone. <p> Sprint has indicated the new network will be run on an "open access" basis, where anyone with a compatible device can connect it. <p> If everything works well, this could lead to a proliferation of cell phones, Web tablets, computers, TV set-top boxes, GPS devices and gadgets we haven't even dreamt of. Manufacturers will be free to make gadgets that can ride on the network, without striking a deal with the carrier first. <p> Rather than buying a cell phone with a monthly minute plan, you could be buying a device that gives you unlimited use of voice-over-Internet services like eBay Inc.'s Skype. <p> "That's the real power of having this open access -- it unleashes innovation," said Bob Williams, who tracks telecommunications for the Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports. <p> For example, Nokia Corp., not Sprint, will be selling the first portable gadget that's likely to be available for the network. It's a Web tablet that looks like an oversize iPhone and costs about $500. <p> You'll buy it without a contract, and when the WiMAX network is available, the device will tell you, much like a laptop will alert you when Wi-Fi is available. You'll then have the option to sign up for an Internet plan through the Web browser. <p> There could be... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=59681 Computer attacks typically don't inflict physical pain on their victims. <p> But in a rare example of an attack apparently motivated by malice rather than money, hackers recently bombarded the Epilepsy Foundation's Web site with hundreds of pictures and links to pages with rapidly flashing images. <p> The breach triggered severe migraines and near-seizure reactions in some site visitors who viewed the images. People with photosensitive epilepsy can get seizures when they're exposed to flickering images, a response also caused by some video games and cartoons. <p> The attack happened when hackers exploited a security hole in the foundation's publishing software that allowed them to quickly make numerous posts and overwhelm the site's support forums. <p> Within the hackers' posts were small flashing pictures and links -- masquerading as helpful -- to pages that exploded with kaleidoscopic images pulsating with different colors. <p> "They were out to create seizures," said Ken Lowenberg, senior director of Web and print publishing for the foundation. <p> He said legitimate users are no longer able to post animated images to the support forum or create direct links to other sites, and it is now moderated around the clock. He said the FBI is investigating the breach. <p> Security experts said the attack highlights the dangers of Web sites giving visitors great freedom to post content to different parts of the site. <p> In another recent attack, hackers exploited a simple coding vulnerability in Sen. Barack Obama's Web site to redirect users visiting the community blogs section to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's official campaign site. <p> The hackers who infiltrated the Epilepsy Foundation's site didn't appear to care about profit. The harmful pages didn't appear to try to push down code that would allow the hacker to gain control of the victims' computers, for instance. <p> "I count this in the same category of teenagers who think it's funny to put a cat in... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62942.html Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have suggested building a supercomputer based on low-power embedded microprocessors to improve global climate change predictions. Using the embedded microprocessor technology used in mobile phones, iPods and other consumer electronic devices, the boffins propose a cost-effective machine for running complex computational models. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62933.html Verizon announced the latest addition to its line of touch-screen mobile phones Thursday. The Glyde from Samsung, available Friday, offers many features that have gained popularity following the introduction of Apple's iPhone. The Glyde joins the LG Voyager and Venus and the Samsung Instinct in a growing list of handsets with more user-friendly touch-screen interfaces. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62936.html A new type of Trojan horse malware application is hiding inside fake MP3 media files, infecting approximately 500,000 consumer PCs, McAfee Avert Labs reported. The nefarious files have been delivered primarily on peer-to-peer networks during the last several days. The trojan, known as "Downloader-UA.h," was added to McAfee's DAT files about a week ago. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62943.html Gas prices are setting record highs, homeowners are facing foreclosure, the dollar's slipping further down a black hole, and the credit industry is collapsing. These are frustrating times -- and perhaps that's partly why "Grand Theft Auto IV" just set some new records for video game sales. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62945.html Late last month and early this month, Starbucks customers who were packing iPhones reportedly discovered free AT&T WiFi Internet access at some of the coffee shops. All iPhone users had to do was enter in their valid AT&T iPhone phone number, and boom, free WiFi access to the world. Then AT&T mysteriously cut off the access. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62932.html Three interesting topics were kicked around in Apple-minded blogs this week. Entirely unsurprisingly, survey results show that Apple tech support kicks butt in the PC industry at large. Also, AT&T is forbidding vacation time to hapless iPhone salespeople, and it appears Macs have gotten a foot in the door at work. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/62930.html Taking on the likes of Adobe and Microsoft, Sun Microsystems on Tuesday unveiled its new JavaFX family of products for building rich Internet applications. Based on Sun's longstanding Java platform, JavaFX includes a runtime and a tools suite that Web scripters, designers and developers can use to quickly build and deliver rich interactive applications for desktop, mobile devices, TV and other platforms. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62937.html Google's top executives on Thursday expressed hope that the Internet search leader will be able to form a potentially lucrative advertising partnership with Yahoo -- a deal that would lower the odds of Microsoft renewing its attempts to buy Yahoo. "We have been talking to Yahoo, and we are very excited to be working with them," Google cofounder Sergey Brin told reporters before the company's annual shareholders meeting. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62940.html Clear Channel Communications, a major radio and outdoor advertising company, reported higher first-quarter earnings Friday on asset sales but operating results were flat, reflecting weak demand for radio advertising. The San Antonio, Texas-based company is battling its lenders in court as it tries to go private, and says it's not sure when the $19.5 billion deal will close, if at all. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62938.html Facebook, the world's second-largest social networking Web site, is adding more than 40 new safeguards to protect young users from sexual predators and cyber-bullies under an agreement with officials nationwide that was announced Thursday. The measures include banning convicted sex offenders from the site and limiting older users' ability to contact subscribers under 18. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62931.html In a move sure to renew debate over how broadband access should be sold, Comcast is reportedly mulling a cap on how much data a customer buying its basic high-speed Internet access package can use each month. Comcast, the No. 2 provider of high-speed Web access in the U.S., would establish a preset monthly data usage level and then charge a fee for users who exceed that level. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62951.html The state of Texas may be the latest to take a bite out of Amazon's bottom line by assessing sales taxes on past purchases by state residents. Texas tax officials are reviewing the taxable status of Amazon purchases after an inquiry from the <i>Dallas Morning News</i>, which asked why the e-tailer appeared not to be collecting sales taxes from Lone Star State buyers. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62946.html The long-running debate over net neutrality took another turn Thursday when two lawmakers introduced a bill that would make it a violation of antitrust law for broadband providers to discriminate against different types of content in routing traffic on their networks. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62944.html Electronics retailer Circuit City Stores will allow Blockbuster and its largest shareholder, Carl Icahn, to look into the company's finances in connection with the video rental company's proposed buyout offer. Circuit City also revealed that it has hired Goldman Sachs to help the company look into strategic alternatives to build its shareholder value. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62939.html The long list of companies Microsoft might acquire post-Microhoo includes such outr� possibilities as Netflix, Cisco and Salesforce.com. Facebook is also on that list -- but its potential as a Microsoft acquisition target is beginning to look less unlikely. In fact, it's looking downright plausible. Rumor has it Microsoft has already approached the social networking site about a possible sale. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62943.html Gas prices are setting record highs, homeowners are facing foreclosure, the dollar's slipping further down a black hole, and the credit industry is collapsing. These are frustrating times -- and perhaps that's partly why "Grand Theft Auto IV" just set some new records for video game sales. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62935.html Attention! We're listening! Seeking competitive advantage and profitability through good relations with the social media, the B2B world has energetically embraced the grand online colloquy known as the two-way talk-back "conversation." Online social media platforms are now in play in the B2B relationships that organizations have with their vendors, suppliers, partners and contractors. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.ecommercetimes.com/rsstory/62934.html If you could clone your best agent hundreds or thousands of times over, you could ensure that each and every customer calling your contact center receives the same high-quality, friendly and informed response. In reality, natural language speech self-service is probably the closest and best alternative to delivering cost-effective and customer-friendly service. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/62930.html Taking on the likes of Adobe and Microsoft, Sun Microsystems on Tuesday unveiled its new JavaFX family of products for building rich Internet applications. Based on Sun's longstanding Java platform, JavaFX includes a runtime and a tools suite that Web scripters, designers and developers can use to quickly build and deliver rich interactive applications for desktop, mobile devices, TV and other platforms. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/62950.html MySpace has forged agreements with other popular Internet sites -- Yahoo, eBay, Photobucket and Twitter -- to permit MySpace users to migrate their data. Profiles, videos and friend networks are among the content that can be ported. They can then access the partner sites using their MySpace user names and passwords. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/62948.html HP has unveiled an initiative allowing academic institutions to collaborate with HP Labs in joint research through an open and competitive process. The HP Labs Innovation Research Program invites colleges, universities and research institutions around the world to submit proposals related to current research. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/62943.html Gas prices are setting record highs, homeowners are facing foreclosure, the dollar's slipping further down a black hole, and the credit industry is collapsing. These are frustrating times -- and perhaps that's partly why "Grand Theft Auto IV" just set some new records for video game sales. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://toonboom.com/kids/ Flip Boom is the leading animation software solution for kids of all ages. Flip Boom's easy to use animation toolset for children and schools works with QuickTime and the iPod, and runs on Mac OS X. Winner of the 2008 Parents' Choice Gold Award, Flip Boom is a fun and creative solution for developing quality animations quickly. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/security/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20080509/tc_pcworld/145703 PC World - Security researchers have developed a new type of malicious rootkit software that hides itself in an obscure part of a... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/security/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/cmp/20080509/tc_cmp/207601046 TechWeb - <a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/cmp/tc_cmp/storytext/207601046/27404833/SIG=131d9s0s7/*http://www.informationweek.com/;jsessionid=JKBHWLNDZZFXUQSNDLRCKHSCJUNN2JVN?cid=feed-yahoo-news">InformationWeek</a> - Google has slashed the cost of its security service by 40% and added an optional protection feature for public Wi-Fi users in its continued efforts to lure businesses to Google Apps. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286920788/prototype_and_jquery_2.html Since I discovered it a few years ago, I've been a big Prototype fan. It's simple, and gets the job done with a minimum of fuss. It's not without warts, of course. I still occasionally forget to put 'new' in front of Ajax.Request, and some of the Ruby-like methods share their lineage's arcane naming. When it was new, it was the best thing around, and while it now has competitors, it's certainly not lagging behind. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287003243/linear_programming.html Linear programming is a general technique for solving a huge family of optimization problems. It's incredibly useful for scheduling, resource allocation, economic planning, financial portfolio management, and a ton of of other, similar things. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287003244/do_you_reset_your_web_design.html They've been around for a while now: reset style sheets. They're becoming more commonplace among web designers, and even Yahoo is using a reset stylesheet of their own in their development. There are a few different viewpoints and opinions on the use of reset stylesheets, though. Do you reset? Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286995298/openofficeorg_3_is_near.html Do you really need an introduction for OpenOffice.org? Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286995299/yahoo_answers_powered_by_symfony.html Yahoo! used symfony to redevelop another project. This time symfony was used as part of the foundation for Yahoo! Answers. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286990148/an_inconvenient_truth_a_global_software_crisis.html Every project manager or project sponser would love to have a model that churned out the probability of a project succeeding or failing. We may never achieve such precise quantification of project success, but there are definitely some red flags that will alert you. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286990149/exceptional_java_less_than_perfect_exceptions_hie.html As I said before, I am a supporter of checked exceptions in Java. I think they are a great idea that supports serious software development in the real world. I also think Java’s huge success can be attributed in part to checked exceptions. But this doesn’t mean I like everything about how the Java’s exception handling system was implemented. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286979134/why_is_it_so_fing_difficult_to_buy_visual_studio.html I remember going through something like this with Visual Studio 2005 but back then I've swallowed my pride and called my local "pusher" and got the VS2005 all fashioned way. Now, 3 years later, I want to buy Visual Studio 2008. Let's see how this goes... Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286960561/sun_juggles_love_of_code_with_need_for_cash.html Ian Murdock, Sun vice president of developer and community marketing, and Marten Mickos, head of Sun's database group, used CommunityOne to outline Sun's ideals on recent acquisition MySQL, OpenSolaris and NetBeans. At the same time they explained Sun's attempts to monetize them. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286952793/securestring_in_net_20.html There are some disadvantages in using string if we want to store some important information’s like password, credit card numbers, bank pins, etc for some manipulations. The following list will help you understand it better. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/286931095/guide_to_the_semantic_web.html The Semantic Web is a web of data. There is lots of data we all use every day, and it’s not part of the web. I can see my bank statements on the web, and my photographs, and I can see my appointments in a calendar. But can I see my photos in a calendar to see what I was doing when I took them? Can I see bank statement lines in a calendar? Why not? Because we don't have a web of data. Because data is controlled by applications, and each application keeps it to itself. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287102708/springsource_application_platform_bundle_reposito.html Viewpoint on Spring S2AP and OBR announcements from OSGi Alliance's senior architect Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287082789/hibernate_understanding_lazy_fetching.html When working with Hibernate, it is *critical* to understand lazy associations, as they can be your best friend, but if you don't treat them right, they can be your worst enemy. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287082790/the_netbeans_ruby_ide_you_thought_rails_developme.html One of the powerful features added to the NetBeans IDE 6 was support for Ruby, JRuby, and Ruby on Rails. The Ruby programming language has become popular with a growing number of developers because of its simplicity and its productivity features. As is the case for the Java programming language, Ruby is object-oriented, although in Ruby everything is an object -- even what are called primitives in the Java language. Ruby is also open-source and has a large and active community. Ruby's creator, Yukihiro Matsumoto, known to the Ruby world as "Matz", intended the language not only to be easy to use and highly productive, but also fun. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287074173/practice_of_writing_excellent_code_by_pete_goodli.html Tries to hightlight Code Monkeys chapter in this book. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287070203/a_new_look_for_zebra_striped_tables.html After reading A List Apart's article about if zebra striping (Link) makes any significant impact on speed/accessibility, I thought I would knock a quick demo up of taking zebra striping a step further using the mouseover event of jQuery, to me this appears to speed up scanning of the data. Sun, 11 May 2008 00:00:00 +0200 http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/287060698/the_jvm_is_great_but.html Much of the interest in dynamic languages like Groovy, JRuby, and Scala comes from running on the JVM. That lets them leverage the tremendous R&D that's gone into JVM performance and stability. It also opens up the universe of Java libraries and frameworks. And yet, much of my work deals with the 80% of cost that comes after the development project is done. I deal with the rest of the software's lifetime. The end of development is the beginning of the software's life. Throughout that life, many of the biggest, toughest problems exist around and between the JVM's: Scalability, stability, interoperability, and adaptability.