Friday, February 29, 2008

Show #71



[Download Show #71 as MP3]

News
  • First Comcast Blocks the Internet, now they block the public!
    • In recent months cable and Internet companies like Comcast, AT&T and Verizon have repeatedly been caught blocking, filtering, and spying on consumers' Internet activities. The FCC responded to the thousands of people who expressed their outrage over the anti-competitive practices by holding this hearing in Boston, Massachusetts.
    • Hundreds of concerned citizens arrived to speak out on the importance of an open Internet. Many took the day off from work — standing outside in the Boston cold — to see the FCC Commissioners. But when they reach the door, they’re told they couldn’t come in.
    • The size of the crowd was evidence that many Americans don’t want giant corporations like Comcast and Verzion to decide what we can do and where we can go on the Internet.
    • While there wasn't an "open mic" at the event, the SaveTheInternet coalition was on hand to video tape comments from concerned citizens to send the FCC.
    • However, for many people who showed up on time for the hearing, they didn't get the opportunity to participate because Comcast paid people to fill the room, stack it in their favor,
    • More than 100 people who arrived at the appointed time for the hearing were turned away by campus police because the room was already full.

    • The Cambridge hearing is part of the FCC’s ongoing investigation into Comcast’s blocking of Internet traffic. But there’s much more at stake. We are at a critical juncture, where it will be decided whether we have a closed Internet controlled by a small handful of giant corporations, or an open Internet controlled by the people who use it.

    • Comcast wants the former — to dictate which Web sites and services go fast, slow or don’t load at all. And they’re backed by the other would-be gatekeepers at AT&T, Verizon and Time Warner.

    • Tell the FCC to stop Comcast from blocking Internet traffic and to permanently protect Net Neutrality: http://www.savetheinternet.com/comcast.php

  • Email to HD DVD subscribers of Netflix
    • As you may have heard, most of the major movie studios have recently decided to release their high-definition movies exclusively in the Blu-ray format. In order to provide the best selection of high-definition titles for our members, we have decided to go exclusively with Blu-ray as well.
    • While we will continue to make our current selection of HD DVD titles available to you for the next several months, we will not be adding additional HD DVD titles or reordering replacements.
    • Toward the end of February, HD DVDs in your Saved Queue will automatically be changed to standard definition DVDs. Then toward the end of this year, all HD DVDs in your Queue will be changed to standard definition DVDs. Don't worry, we will contact you before this happens.
  • Sony's (SNE) Head of Software Game Development to Resign
    • Phil Harrison, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, the game software development arm of Sony's videogame division, will resign on February 29
    • With the company for 15 years, leaving to "tackle new challenges in the video game industry"
  • Wubi/Hardy Heron Ubuntu 8.04 alpha 5
    • One of the most significant new features added in alpha 5 is support for Wubi, a new installation mechanism that makes it easier for Ubuntu and Windows to coexist on the same computer. Wubi provides a complete Ubuntu installer that can be run in Windows from the Ubuntu Live CD. It installs Ubuntu into a folder on the Windows file system and sets up a boot menu so that users can choose between Windows and Ubuntu when the computer starts.
    • Unlike a regular dual-boot configuration, Wubi doesn't require users to create a partition on their hard drives for Ubuntu. When Ubuntu is installed with Wubi, it can be uninstalled directly from the Add/Remove Programs utility in Windows.
  • Electronic Arts Denied
    • Well that was the articile title from Digg
    • Take-Two Interactive Software, the company that currently has Rockstar Games under its wing, has rejected Electronic Arts' offers to be bought out.
    • Not one to miss out on a gaming industry trend as hot as corporate synergy, Electronic Arts recently proposed an acquisition of Take-Two Interactive Software for $26 a share (nearly a 63 percent premium to their current stock value) -- for a grand total of approximately $2 billion.
  • Toll Road / High Occupancy Vehicle Lane (HOV) Camera
    • Not far from where I live they are putting in a new center lane that will feature both a variable priced tollway as well as an HOV lane, they're calling them managed lanes
    • New roadside cameras will be able to tell if you're abusing the HOV lane by measuring the amount of bodily fluid in the car
    • Sounds gross, but how cool is that, a camera that reads bodily fluid
  • Stream Movies to your XBox 360 from Netflix?
    • A survey was sent out (I didn't get one, and I'm an interested party)
    • There is already a MyNetflix plugin for Windows Vista Media Center PCs that turns the Media Center into a streaming frontend for the Netflix Watch Now interface
    • But what would you say if you could stream Netflix's Watch Now movies directly to your 360 at no additional charge? Would you be happy, or really happy?
  • DivX's Stage6 will close its doors February 28th
    • There was a clear need for a service that would offer a true high-quality video experience online because other video destinations on the Internet simply weren't providing that to users. A gap existed, and Stage6 arrived to fill it.
    • Stage6 began as an experiment, with the mission of empowering content creators and viewers to discover a new kind of online video experience.
    • Last year they kicked off an "effort to explore stragetic alternatives to Stage6" -- which is a fancy way of saying they'd decided it would have to be sold, spun into a private company, or shut down
Web Picks
  • Prosper.com - Prosper is a site where you can lend people money for an interest rate you set the minimum to and bid in increments of $50 to $25,000 on loan listings you select. If you're on the borrowing side, you can list how much you want to borrow and set your maximum interest rate, and lenders can compete for the loan by lowering their offered interest rate. Lenders can easily check the borrowers' credit grade to assess their risk.
  • Manage Your Online Reputation
  • Mozy - Backup data to the Internet
    • Home
      • Now Unlimited @ $5/mo
      • Previously: 5GB $1.95/mo, 30GB $4.95/mo, 60GB $9.95/mo (yearly gets you 1 month free)
    • Pro
      • $4/mo for each computer + $0.50/GB
    • Windows 2000, XP, and Vista, and Mac OS X 10.4

Gamer's Corner

Geek Out
  • Netvibes Ginger
    • Announced originally to be turned on in mid-February for everyone, its still coming
    • The interface in use is very similar to the Netvibes you may already be using however...
      • There's more of a social aspect to it, a public page, either from a "personal" or "business" POV
      • Adding new modules is easier and has a search interface tied in rather than going to Eco all the time
      • Not all modules transfer properly, but many do, and the interface feels faster
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