The Google Chrome EULA debacle: Whose content is it, anyway?
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Yesterday, Google made some quick changes to the terms of service for its new Chrome Web browser beta, to alleviate users' fears of misuse of their data. But how many other similar EULAs cast suspicion on the services they cover?
Amazon Video on Demand leaves beta
Amazon's Video On Demand, which began beta testing in July, was officially released in its working form yesterday.
Movie, TV, and Web-exclusive content can now be streamed or downloaded using Amazon Video On Demand. While downloading still requires the Amazon Unbox Video Player, it does make purchased content available for later viewing on PCs, portable devices, as well as media center-connected Xbox 360s. Sony Bravia Internet Video Link and certain TiVo boxes will also enable customers to peruse and purchase Amazon Videos On Demand directly on their TVs.
East coast iPhone 3G users report data service outages
11:04 am EST September 4, 2008 - After iPhone 3G customers were informed yesterday by AT&T at about 10:30 am yesterday that a problem affecting their 3G data use had been resolved, an AT&T spokesperson informed Reuters that it had resolved the issue at about noon yesterday.
AT&T spokesperson Mark Siegel told Reuters that the telco had traced the problem to "a routing issue in the way data is routed to and from wireless devices," though no further information on the cause was revealed.
Sony recalls hazardous Vaio notebooks
Sony this morning announced the recall of certain Vaio TZ series notebooks after a number of consumers reported overheating, with one even resulting in minor burns.
The notebooks, according to Sony, contain "irregularly positioned wires near the computer's hinge and/or a dislodged screw inside the hinge [that] can cause a short circuit and overheating."
TiVo debuts a super-sized 1 terabyte HD DVR
One day after announcing its new DirecTV deal, the DVR manufacturer announced its highest capacity HD DVR yet, with the ability to record up to 150 hours of high-definition programming.
Appropriately named the TiVo HD XL, the new device's storage capacity at "basic quality" is about 1,350 hours, and at "best quality" about 332 hours. These are estimates based on information disclosed to BetaNews by TiVo; and as current TiVo users may point out, few users prefer to record at "basic quality."
Microsoft extends Xbox 360 price cut to the US
With the unmistakable thunder of another shoe dropping, Microsoft announced Wednesday evening that it is dropping the prices of its three Xbox 360 bundles -- the Arcade, "Console," and Elite -- in the US.
The basic 256 MB "Arcade" game console package drops to the $199.99 mark, in a new pricing initiative that begins this Friday. The 20 GB hard drive unit sinks in price to $299.99, and the Elite 120 GB model drops to $399.99.
Analysts: Cable broadband growing faster than telcos and DSL
The current growth of DSL in the US remains less compelling than that of broadband cable, say the latest industry surveys. What may be more compelling, though, is that cable is now overtaking telcos.
Four years ago, only 20 percent of US homes subscribed to a broadband service, compared to 57 percent this year, according to a recent report by Leichtman Research Group (LRG) entitled "Broadband Access & Service in the Home 2008."
Linden Labs' Second Life adds VoIP client
At the Virtual Worlds conference in Los Angeles this week, entrepreneurs have gathered to discuss the big business that online worlds have become. Linden Labs' successful Second Life received some noteworthy "fourth wall breakers" today.
Linden Labs and Vivox partnered to create SLim, a messaging client scaled to the massively multiplayer world. SLim is a discrete VoIP/IM client that is meant to run alongside the Second Life viewer. It can complement onscreen interactions, or it can communicate with others not necessarily running the Second Life application.
Xperia emulator featured in new Sony Ericsson SDK
In what could conceivably become a serious alternative to alternatives swayed by the allure of Apple's iPhone, Sony Ericsson released today its SDK for developers of applications for its Xperia X1, which is still due for availability this month.
Since the Xperia is a Windows Mobile phone, its applications will be programmable using Microsoft Visual Studio. However, the phone's key features are exclusive to the Xperia, including slidable "panels" that represent miniature, running applications. Unlike the iPhone's sliding icons, these can literally be active programs, providing some form of useful information nearly all the time, in spaces just smaller than that of a postage stamp.
Samsung backs out of Symbian, Nokia buys its stake
Samsung has agreed to sell its stake in Symbian to Nokia for a reported $410 million this week, pushing Nokia ever closer to total ownership.
In early 2003, Symbian announced that Samsung had joined the likes of Ericsson, Matsushita, Motorola, Nokia, Psion, and Siemens as a 5% shareholder in the company and its eponymous mobile operating system. At the time of Samsung's entry as a shareholder and on Symbian's supervisory board, Nokia held a 19% stake in the company, equal to Ericsson and Motorola.
Nokia ships its N96 everywhere but North America
Despite the delays predicted by some analysts, Nokia is now shipping the N96 smartphone to most areas of the world, although North American release looks likely to wait until the fourth quarter, as originally expected.
In a statement today, Nokia confirmed that the N96 -- a phone equipped with support for live TV reception -- is now shipping in Europe, the Asia Pacific, China, the Middle East, and Africa, with unlocked models selling for €550 ($794.50 USD) before taxes and subsidies.
Review: The first Google Chrome beta
Companies to add IT jobs in Q4 despite the slow economy
More CIOs plan to increase rather than decrease their IT staffing levels from October through December 2008, according to a survey of companies' CIOs in multiple major US cities, released today.
If you're looking for an IT job, the transportation industry, the Middle Atlantic States, help desk/tech support, network management, and Windows administration are all potential hot spots, according to Robert Half's latest Technology IT Hiring Index and Skills Report.
Commodore introduces its own 10-inch netbook
The brand had already been through a line of high-end gaming PCs, however the familiar logo will make it onto a line of netbooks later this year.
Commodore is showing off the UMMD 8010/F at the IFA 2008 electronics show, held this week in Berlin. The device will have a 10" inch screen, and the base model will include a 1.6 GHz Via C7-M processor, 1 GB of RAM, and an 80 GB hard drive.
Google adds facial recognition to Picasa photo sharing
Download Picasa for Windows 3.0 Build 57.19 Beta from FileForum now.
In launching the public beta of Picasa 3 this week, Google also updated its online Picasa Web Albums space with facial recognition.
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