April 2009
25 posts
Flickr Hit Hard by Yahoo Layoffs →
Let’s hope this does not afflict daily operations of Flickr or bring it down altogether. In my case it’s more than 5.000 pictures I wouldn’t want to lose online. They are not my personal pictures but they are important to a number of people I work with.
Samsung Unveils its First Android Phone -... →
After HTC Samsung is the second handset manufacturer to actually roll out an Android-powered mobile phone. Although other manufacturers anounced plans to build Android phones they all have to come up with their first Android models. HTC’s G1 has already sold 1 million times up to now and their next model is under way.
Besides that we’ve seen the first Android netbooks. These are made...
WatchHow to teach these wacky kids
Marc Pesce offers some insight into the ways how modern technologies and media and the Net in particular change children. Here he is on comparable to Don Tappscott who describes the Net Generation. Digital citizenship has already begun and it is our job to prepare them how to use their power wisely. Used wrong new media can destroy a person and even the digital...
The Expresso Book Machine can print off any book... →
400.000 and soon 1 million books ready to be downloaded and printed literally within minutes. OnDemandBooks claim their “library quality paperbacks at low cost, identical to factory made books, printed direct from digital files for the reader in minutes, serving a radically decentralized world-wide multilingual marketplace” are the future. Right now this still does come at a price of...
Psyb0t Worming its Way into Home Routers |... →
A worm for DSL routers. Those ain’t no dumb little boxes any more. That’s what makes them vulnerable if you don’t use secure passwords.
“The “psyb0t” worm is believed to be the first piece of malware to...”
– Worm breeds botnet from home routers, modems • The Register
Child porn filtering agreement signed in Germany
Today five major internet service providers signed agreements with the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) to block access to sites containing child pornogaphy pictures or videos. Lists of sites to be blocked will be provided and updated by BKA. Citizen rights groups criticize that rather than blocking sites providers should take them down completely.
I think that creating these filter...
Exclusive Sneak Peek: Tweetie For The Mac →
Looks really interesting. Although I think Seesmic Desktop is great I don’t like that it’s an Adobe Air application. Tweetie is a genuine Mac application. I will definitely give it a try.
“The shutdown of Wikia Search, an attempt to apply Wikipedia-style ideas (ie,...”
– Read me first: Shutdown of Wikia Search proves empty rhetoric of collaboration, says Seth Finkelstein | Technology | The Guardian
I think there were two factors that doomed Wikia Search. First of all it’s gigantic undertaking and what’s more why should volunteers let themselves...
“Since we launched the DiggBar, we’ve received valuable feedback from the Digg...”
– Digg the Blog » Blog Archive » (Yet) Another DiggBar Update
Nice way to put it - “your concerns”. They simpy couldn’t get away with it. People were enraged, website owners as well as visitors.
“… there is an urgent need for a business model that allows quality...”
– Journalism Online: time to start paying for online news - Ars Technica
“For more than a century, advertisers have subsidized readers and viewers, and...”
– The Media Equation - Newspapers Begin to Push Back on the Web - NYTimes.com
Something will happen, that for sure. Not all papers will give up without a fight.
Many papers tried payed access to their news but eventually gave up because readers could get news for free everywhere. There is neverthess...
‘Hyperlocal’ Web Sites Deliver News Without... →
Last month I read about how Outside.in thinks it can save newspapers. They think tailoring news to neighbourhoods and selling focused ads is the solution. This NY Times article shows examples of companies that try this new business model.
I think people would be interested in news about their neighbourhood, part of the city, village, etc.. The problem though as outlined by Claire Caine Miller...
“However, for Twitter to be truly useful as a research tool, more people will...”
– Finding Utility in the Jumble of Twittered Thoughts - NYTimes.com
Twitter is growing more and more but still not really completely mainstream.
DiggBar blockers
Seems there are plenty of people out there who are far from digging the new DiggBar. So they look for ways how to simply block it. There is even a WordPress plugin - the Diggbarred Plugin.
TechCrunch Tablet getting closer to release →
Looks like the Crunchpad as someone named TechCrunch’s go at the web tablet market is nearing its release. Responses from the community are very positive. Pictures at the TechCrunch show pictures which were released early. The prototypes of packaging remind me of the way Apple does packaging.
I wonder if the Crunchpad will be available globally.
“The integration of sensors with social networks will lead to real-time data and...”
– When Sensors and Social Networks Mix - ReadWriteWeb
FORA.tv - Tim O'Reilly Talks Web 2.0 →
Some of his thoughts on how the internet changes and thereby changes the world.
Must read for fans of Wikipedia
Just finished reading The Wikipedia Revolution by Andrew Lih. I first heard about the book when I listened to an interview of Andrew Lih by David Weinberger at MediaBerkmann. The book offers a lot of insight into how Wikipedia started, where it originated, who has been involved, what the challenges have been and might be. Although I have created some entries myself I’ve never been involved...
“… in the 21st century where attention is the scarcest thing on the planet...”
– Stephen Heppell when he talks about Empowering Young Learners. He offers some interesting insights.
WatchJacek Utko asks, Can design save the newspaper? | Video on TED.com
Jacek Utko is a Polish newspaper designer thinks design can save newspapers. His work in eastern Europe proves his words.
“While it’s true that a netbook’s screen and keyboard are too small...”
– The Best Netbooks for Business - Reviews by PC Magazine
That’s what I’ve been telling people who asked me about netbooks, too. Netbooks are up to most tasks of office work or surfing the web, writing emails, chatting, video conferencing and more. At an affordable price you get a machine... 