The 'cloud' gets crowded with the Times entering the scene
The latest entry in two rapidly expanding fields -- cloud computing and Adobe AIR applications -- comes from an unusual source this morning: The New York Times.
This morning, The New York Times officially launched its public beta of a new service called ShifD, aimed at allowing users to share content via PCs, phones and other mobile devices.
Xbox 360 HD DVD drive gets the axe
Stopping short of saying it would produce a external Blu-ray drive, Microsoft has discontinued the accessory.
Those who had purchased the drive would still be eligible for warranty and product support. But as many suspected, the Redmond company gave a hat tip to streaming media as the way of the future.
New Japanese satellite could boost Internet speeds
Over the weekend, the Japanese counterpart to NASA successfully launched "Kizuna" (Winds), an experimental satellite that will be able to offer high-speed Internet access to users in 20 countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) expects Kizuna to be the first step towards creating a powerful space-based telecommunications network.
Pakistan YouTube incident adds to international outage
After a two hour stretch yesterday of refusing service to YouTube users across the globe, the Google-owned site said Pakistan is to blame.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority ordered ISPs to re-route traffic away from a specific YouTube URL pointing to a trailer for Dutch Politician Geert Wilders' anti-Islamic video.
Yahoo employees could come home to Microsoft, leaving assets behind
The man who would most likely lead Yahoo after a Microsoft acquisition, should that take place, wrote an FAQ on Friday ostensibly directed at his own employees, but actually -- and quite obviously -- meant to appease Yahoo's.
"The industry needs a more compelling alternative in search and online advertising," wrote Microsoft Platforms and Services Division President Kevin Johnson, in a memo directed to his own staff but publicly released by Microsoft over the weekend.
Sony loses longtime software development exec
Phil Harrison will step down from his position at Sony at the end of the month in order to "tackle new challenges in the video game industry."
Although details of what exactly Harrison plans to do post-Sony are not confirmed, Sony said current game chief Kazuo Hirai will assume the management of SCE's software development group in addition to his current duties.
Electronic Arts presses on with Take-Two takeover
EA is pressing on with its efforts to acquire its rival, Take-Two, saying that its offer is likely the best one the smaller company will get.
EA has already sent two offers to the company, both of which have been turned down by the Take-Two's board. Its next step will be to release the details of the proposal to generate some grassroots shareholder support for its efforts.
Adobe turns up the heat on AIR with new Flex IDE
The challenge before the big development tools vendors is to build a Web applications platform that's as "open" as is feasible, up to the point where the vendor needs to monetize it to make its investment pay off. Today, it's Adobe's turn.
The race is "on," to borrow the watchword from Adobe's marketing campaign launched this morning, between Adobe and Microsoft to determine whether a graphical, boundary-crossing runtime platform is preferable for delivering applications over the Internet to a Web browser. Microsoft's entry in this field is Silverlight, which leverages the graphical library already in Windows. Adobe's entry is AIR, which has its own leverage -- the near ubiquity of Flash video on the Web.
Dialog: After HD DVD, whither Toshiba?
A multinational, multi-talented, highly diversified technology producer doesn't simply wither away just because it loses one battle -- even a loss as big as HD DVD. But depending on how it chooses to stick around, will Toshiba find itself redeemed? Or liable?
When a minor professional sports league finds it can't compete with the majors, it disbands and goes away. When a television network can't profit from its productions, it ceases operations and follows in the long wake pioneered by the DuMont Network. When a presidential candidate loses, he often fades into the backwoods of history...and fast.
In place of GPS, a new iPhone app tries Twitter
The Unofficial Apple Blog has posted a program for the iPhone which enlists the help of Twitter to alert the user -- or someone else -- of the global coordinates of a properly-enabled device.
The command-line program obtains the location of the cell tower nearest to the iPhone, in latitude and longitude through Google Maps.
In Portland, Oregon, another city-wide Wi-Fi network bites the dust
In the latest of a lengthening string of failures in city-wide wireless projects across the US, MetroFi of Mountain View, CA has reportedly stopped work on a project in Portland, Oregon.
After installing 590 functional wireless access points (APs) in Portland, MetroFi has asked the city to provide $9 million in public funds to finish the job with an additional 2,000-or-so APs.
Microsoft's Sync parts cost Ford about $30
While a complete teardown analysis has yet to be made available, iSuppli said Friday that the six major semiconductors within the Microsoft-developed system only cost the automaker about $27.80 per vehicle.
That price comes in far below any of Ford's competitors, whose estimated expenditures per vehicle are as high as $800 for similar systems. As an option, Sync is priced at $395 and available on most Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury models.
US Cellular joins the ranks of carriers with unlimited calling plans
US Cellular is the latest mobile phone service provider to introduce an unlimited national calling plan, as the company officially introduced a $99 plan that will soon be available to its six million users in 26 states.
In addition to the $99 unlimited national calling plan, US Cellular also announced a $14.95 unlimited text messaging plan as well as a $9.95 unlimited data package plan.
Facebook's UK unique users post an unexpected drop
The latest market research from the UK indicates Facebook is facing its first decline in unique visitors, after seventeen straight months of growth.
According to Nielsen Online, the number of British Facebook users fell from 8.9 million users last December to 8.5 million in January. This could signal a trend that users in the United Kingdom are moving to other services as many schools and companies ban the site from user access.
With Pi buy, EMC fights Microsoft for space on the Internet cloud
Unlikely as it seems, Microsoft and storage vendor EMC Corp. are colliding on cloud computing. EMC today acquired Pi Corp., a start-up developing a novel form of PIM software. Along with the deal, EMC got a former Microsoft exec.
Microsoft's cloud computing initiative will be getting new and potentially powerful rivalry from EMC Corp. with buyout of the still somewhat mysterious software start-up Pi Corp., and the naming of Pi's founder -- former top Microsoft executive Paul Maritz -- as head of EMC's forthcoming Cloud Infrastructure and Services Division.
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