[WEB2] Are Blu-ray prices dropping faster than expected?
[WEB2] Kmart says it still supports Blu-ray
Although rumors have been swirling lately that Kmart has agreed to exclusively support the HD DVD format, they appear to be false. Not supporting HD DVD exclusively after all.(Credit: Kmart) When reached for comment, K-mart sent a rather defensive-sounding statement attributed to Jonathan Magasanik, vice president of home electronics for Sears Holdings, Kmart's parent company: "There have been numerous statements in the media (Wednesday), attributed to Toshiba, indicating exclusive suppo...
[WEB2] Microsoft in slip-up over Vista service pack
For a brief time Friday, it looked as if developers were going to be able to get their hands on a test version of the first Vista service pack, which is due for final release next year. Enthusiast site Neowin noticed a posting on Microsoft's MSDN developer site that promised developers could "Get the latest preview of Windows Vista SP1 on MSDN Subscriber Downloads." The site also said, "This new release of SP1 addresses reliability and performance issues, and provides support for new hardwa...
[WEB2] How not to reinvent media in the Digital Age
Associated Press chief Tom Curley knows journalism. He just doesn't have any idea how to save his profession from a rendezvous with irrelevance. Or at least it's not readily apparent to this former AP employee. During the course of a keynote speech delivered Thursday night at the annual Knight-Bagehot dinner, Curley did acknowledge that young people "don't prefer our traditional platforms and packaging." So far, so good. Unfortunately, I was hoping he would offer more than the usual...
[WEB2] SMS Texts: The way forward, especially in a natural disaster made easier on the iPhone
As already noted, I'm a big proponent of the SMS text message. So much so that I was willing to pay $.50 a text sent from Australia! But on a more serious note, there was a 5.6 earthquake here in the Bay Area on Tuesday night. I was at dinner and I thought my dinner date was shaking the table or that there was a washing machine somewhere that went awry. But no, it was a bona fide earthquake. While there was no damage and it was minor, we both got text messages from our friends as soon as it...
[WEB2] It's official: film and TV writers strike on Monday
TV and film writers will officially go on strike starting Monday at 12:01 PST, a spokeswoman for the Writers Guild of America said on Friday. As the weekend may bring more negotiating between the guild and the group representing film and TV producers, one of the main sticking points is Internet revenue, according to a story published Thursday in The Wall Street Journal. The writers want a share of ad revenue generated by online broadcasts of TV shows. Producers insist that the Web is more ...
[WEB2] Former President Clinton visits Microsoft
Former President Bill Clinton was at Microsoft's campus Friday as part of the company's celebration of the end of its charitable giving campaign. The effort brought in $72 million in individual and company donations (including software), a total that Clinton praised. Clinton, who just authored a book on giving, noted the role the Internet has played in making it easier to do charitable work, saying it "has changed the landscape of potential for private citizens doing public good...
[WEB2] Google to unveil 'Android' phone software
Google is ready to unveil a suite of software for mobile phones based on open-source technology, backed by some of the largest wireless industry companies in the world. The company is expected to hold a press conference on Monday to unveil the project, which is expected to incorporate software from the Linux world into a mobile platform code-named Android that's designed to run on phones, according to sources familiar with Google's plans. A software development kit for what's ...
[WEB2] At Wal-Mart, Black Friday comes early
It's happening again. If you thought one minute past midnight the day after Thanksgiving was too early to choke out your fellow shoppers in the name of a great deal, you were wrong. An Acer laptop will be one of the featured items offered at Black Friday-like prices Friday, November 2, in its stores.(Credit: Wal-Mart) Following last year's decision to offer a $398 laptop several weeks ahead of the traditional Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving), Wal-Mart is planning on slashing ...
[WEB2] Lightroom update for Leopard users on the way
An update to make Lightroom 1.2 fully compatible with Leopard Mac OS X 10.5 should be available mid-November, Adobe has announced. The company says photographers can continue using the photo management software in Leopard without too much issue, but stressed that the current version of Lightroom 1.2 is not fully compatible with Apple's new operating system. Adobe recommends that users refer to a list of known compatibility issues published on Adobe's Lightroom Journal Web site before decid...
[WEB2] Fisker Automotive trots out pictures of its sporty plug-in hybrid
We wrote about Fisker Automotive's sporty plug-in hybrid last week and now here is a picture. The company is planning to come to market in about 18 months with a high-performance, high-end plug-in hybrid sedan. The car will cost $80,000. It will go about 50 miles on a battery charge, which isn't far, but the car will also come with a built-in gas engine that exists primarily to charge the battery. With the charging capability, the car can go around 620 miles before conking, according to Henri...
[WEB2] Republican senator: Should taxpayers pay for illegal spying?
WASHINGTON--Despite demands from President Bush to shield telephone and Internet companies from surveillance-related lawsuits, key U.S. senators are reluctant to offer legal immunity. But they may force taxpayers to pick up the legal tab instead. Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), the co-chairmen of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said at a hearing here Wednesday that they still don't have enough information to decide whether it's wise to immunize any past ass...
[WEB2] Does Blu-ray Profile 1.1 make past players obsolete?
Today is the official end of the "grace period" for Blu-ray manufacturers, which means that all Blu-ray players released from now on must comply with Blu-ray Profile 1.1 (also known as Final Standard Profile and BD-Video Profile 1.1). Of course, that doesn't mean that Profile 1.0 Blu-ray players still can't be sold, and if you walk into your local electronics store over the next few months, you're likely to see both Profile 1.0 and Profile 1.1 Blu-ray players on the shelf. So what's the big diff...
[WEB2] EFF: Copyright owners think twice before pulling YouTube clips
Everybody knows that copyright owners can demand that YouTube and other Web sites remove unauthorized copies of their work under the law. But what happens when the owners of intellectual property err in their claims? On Wednesday, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a group that advocates for the rights of Internet users, issued six principles that copyright holders should consider before trying to remove a piece of content. EFF has represented several individuals who have seen t...
[WEB2] Hot deal: Mechanical severed head for $68
A real head-turner(Credit: FrightProps) Small children, folks of a delicate constitution, and persons suffering from PTSD: you may wish to stop reading now. Don't say I didn't warn you. Perfect for your next Halloween party or reenactment of the French Revolution, this utterly disgusting severed head hangs from the ceiling, rotating slowly to display all its festering glory. Choose from two: seriously nasty Severed Head #1 or completely repulsive Severed Head #2. Wickedly unwholesom...
[WEB2] Creating the world's largest corn maze
Matt and Mark Cooley have created the world's largest corn maze in the small agricultural town of Dixon, Calif., about 70 miles northeast of San Francisco. It is open to the public through at least November 5.(Credit: Matt Cooley) DIXON, Calif.--I am so vindicated. Yesterday, I spent several hours deep in the middle of the world's-largest corn maze, a creation of brothers Matt and Mark Cooley in this little agricultural town about 70 miles northeast of San Francisco. For much of my time...
[WEB2] Sony's Folding@home project gets Guinness record
PlayStation 3 users have been able to connect their consoles online to Stanford University's Folding@home project, allowing researchers to tap into the machines' substantial processing power as they study the effects of a process called protein folding on a series of serious diseases.(Credit: Folding@home) It's a small thing, but Sony got some good news today related to its troubled PlayStation 3 video game console. In fact, the system helped set a new Guinness World Record. The record w...
[WEB2] Throwing the book at cyberbullies
The school bully isn't necessarily that oversized, physically intimidating kid anymore. Humiliation by words has become just as popular--if not more so--as children's social lives have migrated online. Patricia Agatston, a licensed professional counselor and consultant on the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program; Robin Kowalski, professor of psychology at Clemson University; and Sue Limber, director of the Center on Youth Participation and Human Rights at Clemson University, have written a ...
[WEB2] Mac OS malware targets porn surfers
There's a new piece of malware out there targeting Mac users that takes advantage of the inclination to watch porn. Intego, a Mac security software company, issued an alert Wednesday warning Mac users of the OSX.RSPlug.A malware, which it describes as a Trojan horse. Those of you familiar with mythology recognize the reference, and OSX.RSPlug.A disguises itself as a video codec that would ensure whatever porn video you just stumbled upon will play on your Mac.(Credit: Intego) But to get infect...
[WEB2] Google launches privacy channel on YouTube
Google launched a privacy channel on YouTube Wednesday with videos explaining its privacy policies. The move comes on the eve of a two-day Federal Trade Commission-hosted town hall event on behavioral ad targeting to be held in Washington, D.C. In a Google video titled "Google Search Privacy: Plain and Simple," a Google support engineer draws on a whiteboard, explaining what type of information is collected by Google servers, such as IP address and cookie data, when you conduct a Google sear...