F*@K me! Nominet may block 'offensive' words in domain names
You know how the internet is meant to be one of the few remaining forums in which you’re free to speak your mind? That could be set to change in a slightly concerning way. You might think that if you have your own website you're free to say pretty much whatever you want (legality providing), but the UK's domain name registry, Nominet is looking into the possibility of blocking offensive words from domain names.
Perhaps the first question to ask here, is "who decides what is offensive?", and Nominet is not only reviewing its domain registration policy but also asking for input from the public. In its review document, Nominet explains that until now it has "intentionally taken a non-restrictive approach to the words and phrases that may be used in a domain name". The organization goes on to say that it has not "made any value judgement as to the use to which domains are put, or whether they might be offensive or in poor taste" but cites the Republic of Ireland and China as examples of countries in which some restrictions are in place.
Google celebrates the music of The Clash
I once spent a fun evening drinking in an LA hotel bar with the Sex Pistols. It was the 90s and the iconic group had reformed for a series of lucrative gigs and were in the city for rehearsals. John Lydon was in excellent form, as always.
Despite being the best known of the seventies punk bands, The Sex Pistols were never my favorite group -- I always preferred The Clash (with The Damned close behind). I told Lydon this and he laughed and spat on the floor. He spent a lot of that evening spitting on the floor, and my shoes.
Google+ adds author attribution and embedded posts
Google+ is a great social media service for people to interact with friends and strangers alike. However, much like fellow social media sites Facebook and Twitter, it also serves as a great tool for bloggers and writers.
Yesterday, Google announced that it is bolstering its social media service with new features aimed at authors of blogs and news sites -- author attribution and embedded posts.
Stream torrents, IPTV, HTTP streams and more with ROX Player
ROX Player is a compact, lightweight and entirely free media player, which supports all the main audio and video formats, without having to clutter your system with codecs, filters or anything else.
Yes, we know -- that’s not the most compelling of program descriptions. ROX Player does stand out rather more in its web support, though, with the ability to stream files via HTTP, IPTV, and even BitTorrent.
Installing Windows 8.1 -- Easy, but potentially very time consuming
As soon as Microsoft announced it was making Windows 8.1 RTM available to IT professionals I logged into my MSDN account and started downloading the ISO for it. The size of the file varies depending on the edition you download -- approx. 3,537MB for the x64 version, and 2,643MB for the x86 release.
You can install Windows 8.1 from directly inside Windows 8/Windows 8.1 Preview. Just launch the setup.exe inside the ISO and windows will prepare the files and launch the installer. It’s all plain sailing at this point.
Skype Pre-Release for Windows 8.1 rolls out
Its no secret that a lot is changing in the 8.1 update of Microsoft's operating system, which suddenly rolled out today for those with a subscription to Technet or MSDN. Aside from a new, and less functional Start button, the software giant was said to be adding Skype integration as well.
Today the pre-release version of that communications service also has surfaced. "We’re thrilled to share this preview with you so you can experience for yourself the first-ever, fully integrated Skype on any Windows 8.1 device", says Skype's Ana Guzik.
Roku brings video streaming to Android
So, you got that new Android phone that's capable of taking HD video, but your friends and family really do not care to watch your cinematography skills on a five-inch screen. The good news is that you may just have a certain streaming set-top box sitting right in your living room that can solve your woes.
Today Roku announces the latest update to its Android app, bringing along a feature that the company had previously added to the iOS version of the service.
Five things I hate about Android
Android is my mobile operating system of choice. While I am unhappy with the new KitKat name for 4.4, I still generally enjoy the OS very much. I like that Android uses the Linux Kernel and is more open than iOS.
However, there are five aspects of the operating system that I simply hate or find unnecessary. Read on for my choices, which like all good lists, are presented in reverse order...
Developers and IT professionals can download Windows 8.1 NOW
Two weeks ago I wrote a piece called Microsoft, if you want apps for Windows 8.1, don’t piss off developers in which I expressed disbelief that Microsoft wasn’t making the RTM build of Windows 8.1 available to app creators. Microsoft’s plan was to only release the RTM to hardware makers, which seemed a crazy decision.
Fortunately, Microsoft has once again listened to the complaints and performed one of its frequent U-turns, announcing that developers and IT professionals will now be able to get their hands on the Windows 8.1 and Windows 8.1 Pro RTM builds early -- from today in fact.
DeepSound lets you hide confidential documents inside audio CD tracks
When you need to send confidential documents to someone else steganography can be an effective technique. Use SteganPEG to embed your files inside JPEGs, say, then just email them as normal, and casual observers will see only normal pictures. They’ll never realize your hidden data is inside.
And at first glance, DeepSound seems to carry out much the same function, but with audio files. Point the program at a WAV or FLAC file, hide a few personal documents inside, and you’re done: the audio files will still play just as before, and only someone who knows the secret will be able to extract your hidden content.
Seagate wants to stick a spinning hard disk in your tablet
The best and fastest computer upgrade I ever made was when I went from a hard-disk to a solid-state drive. It greatly improved my boot speed and overall performance. However, with great speed came a great decrease in storage space. At the time, I had gone from a 2TB HDD to a 90GB SSD.
However, sometimes storage is preferable over speed, in which case a spinning HDD is more cost effective. Seagate, realizing an opportunity in this respect, today announces the 500GB Ultra Mobile HDD for tablets. According to the company, the drive is "designed exclusively for mobile devices. Integrated with the Seagate Mobile Enablement Kit which includes Seagate’s Dynamic Data Driver software technology, the new storage solution delivers up to 7-times the storage capacity of a traditional 64GB tablet with the same power, performance and reliability of a flash device".
IObit Driver Booster for Windows lets you easily update your system drivers
IObit has launched IObit Driver Booster 1.0 FINAL for PCs running Windows XP or later. The driver update tool exits beta and splits into two editions: the Free build allows users to check for and update their drivers, but throttles download speeds.
Upgrading to the PRO version comes with the promise of up to 300 per cent faster update speeds as well as better technical support.
Sony announces game-changing PlayStation Vita TV
In 1994, Nintendo released the Super Game Boy; a special SNES cartridge that allowed Game Boy games to be played on the SNES (and in turn, a TV). Basically, the device turned mobile games into home console games. At the time, it was revolutionary; not everyone could afford both a Game Boy and a SNES. Not only did it expand the game library for SNES owners, it also gave Nintendo a new channel to monetize Game Boy Games -- a win for both the company and its users.
Today, Sony announces a device that follows in the footsteps of the Super Game Boy, called PlayStation Vita TV. The company describes it as "a new entertainment system within the PlayStation family that will allow users to easily access video services, games and various content on their TV at home".
Now your public Facebook posts could appear on the news!
Facebook is making it easier for news outlets such as BskyB, CNN and NBC to integrate conversations from the social network into their broadcasts. Using the Public Feed API, broadcasters are now able to display a real-time feed of posts that contain a specific word. Considering that, according to Facebook's own figures, last week's kick-off of the new NFL season resulted in over 20 million likes, comments and shares, that's a lot of data to be dealing with.
There is also the new Keyword Insights API which can be used to determine how many posts mentioned a particular term in a specified timeframe. But the API goes further than this, also making it possible to filter results -- allegedly anonymously -- based on gender, age and location. At the moment both of these APIs are only being made available to a limited number of partners, but the list is certain to grow over time.
IT professionals need to become 'hunter harvesters'
Chief information officers are increasingly looking at enterprise architecture in order to drive their digital strategy according the latest research by analysts Gartner. The company's 2013 CEO and Senior Executive Survey reveals that 52 percent of respondents said their organizations have a digital strategy.
"Senior business executives are challenging CIOs and their IT organizations to be at the front of digital strategy, identifying innovative new business models and technologies, and getting more business value out of each technology investment," says Marcus Blosch, research vice president. "Enterprise architects can provide unique capabilities to help CIOs develop a new agenda for 'hunting and harvesting' in a digital world".
Most Commented Stories
BetaNews, your source for breaking tech news, reviews, and in-depth reporting since 1998.
© 1998-2025 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. About Us - Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy - Sitemap.