Thursday, August 31, 2006

Web2.0 Logo Creator by Alex P

Web2.0 Logo Creator by Alex P: " This is meant to be a parody of Web 2.0 Logos. While they are pretty cool, they are all kinda the same. It was created as a joke, not a serious logo maker. But feel free to use it to make a logo. :P"

Generated Image

Electronic Arts signs video game ad deals

CNET News.com: "Electronic Arts, the world's biggest video game publisher, said Thursday it had struck deals with two in-game advertising providers, taking its first steps into the online advertising business.
Redwood City, California-based EA said its agreement with Massive, which Microsoft bought earlier this year, will include up to four video games. The first of those will be 'Need for Speed: Carbon,' the latest iteration of its popular racing series due in late October.
Privately held IGA Worldwide will also deliver advertising in up to three EA games, starting with 'Battlefield 2142,' a futuristic combat game slated for release in mid-October. "

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

AT&T hack exposes 19,000 identities

Tech News on ZDNet: "AT&T on Tuesday said hackers broke into one of its computer systems and accessed personal data on thousands of customers who used its online store.
The information that was illegally accessed includes credit card numbers, AT&T said in a statement. The cyberattack affects about 19,000 customers who purchased equipment for high-speed DSL Internet connections through AT&T's Web site, the company said. "

Google: These books are free

CNET News.com: "Google Book Search now offers PDF files of scanned books that can be downloaded and printed for free, Google announced on Wednesday.
Readers can find the books by choosing the 'Full view books' option on the Google Book Search home page before they activate their search. Once they have chosen a book from the results page, a download button is clearly visible on the top-right corner of the page.
The PDFs are offered only for those books that fall into the public domain and are intended for personal use.
'We use very conservative rules to comply with international copyright laws,' Google spokeswoman Megan Lamb said."

What's Next, Ramen Noodles?

Wired News: "What if making ramen were like playing guitars?
Last weekend I was sitting on a stool in Sapporo's famous 'ramen alley' trying to decide what type of ramen dish to order for breakfast. I had just read an article in The New York Times reporting that the Recording Industry Association of America was threatening to sue websites that publish guitar music tablature, or tabs, alleging copyright infringement.
The article said that the RIAA considers tabs copyright-protected information. According to the recording industry, even incorrect tabs and tabs developed by users from listening to songs are its property as 'derivative works.'
I started thinking about what it would be like if there were an RIAA for ramen."

Google CEO joins Apple's board of directors

CNET News.com: "Google CEO Eric Schmidt is joining Apple Computer's board of directors, the computer maker said on Tuesday, creating a close tie between two of Silicon Valley's most iconic companies.
The addition of Schmidt to the board of Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple brings the total number of board members to eight, including Steve Jobs, Apple's co-founder and CEO, and Al Gore, former vice president of the United States.
Schmidt was elected at a board meeting held on Tuesday, an Apple representative said. Schmidt also sits on the board of directors of Mountain View, Calif.-based Google and Princeton University's board of trustees. "

Microsoft investigates leak of 'Office' videos

CNET News.com: "Software giant Microsoft said on Tuesday it was investigating how two in-house training videos made by British comedian Ricky Gervais, creator of 'The Office' television series, appeared on two Web sites.
The videos, which popped up on YouTube and Google Video this month, were commissioned by Microsoft in 2004 as 'a light-hearted way of getting our staff to think about the values they attach to working at Microsoft,' a company spokeswoman said.
The British series ended in 2003 with Gervais and co-writer Stephen Merchant saying there would be no further series."

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

On YouTube, Charges of Security Flaws

Washington Post

Michael De Kort was frustrated.

The 41-year-old Lockheed Martin engineer had complained to his bosses. He had told his story to government investigators. He had called congressmen.

But when no one seemed to be stepping up to correct what he saw as critical security flaws in a fleet of refurbished Coast Guard patrol boats, De Kort did just about the only thing left he could think of to get action: He made a video and posted it on YouTube.com.

"What I am going to tell you is going to seem preposterous," De Kort solemnly tells viewers near the outset of the 10-minute clip. Posted three weeks ago, the video describes what De Kort says are blind spots in the ship's security cameras, equipment that malfunctions in cold weather and other problems. "It may be very hard for you to believe that our government and the largest defense contractor in the world [are] capable of such alarming incompetence and can make ethical compromises as glaring as what I am going to describe." In response to De Kort's charges, a Coast Guard spokeswoman said the service has "taken the appropriate level of action." A spokeswoman for the contractors said the allegations were without merit.

A Web site normally reserved for goofy home-movie outtakes and Paris Hilton parodies may seem an odd place to blow the whistle on potential national security lapses that require complex technical explanations. But receiving millions of hits a day and carrying the intimacy of video, YouTube.com and other sites have become an alluring venue for insiders like De Kort who want to go directly to the public when they think no one within the system is listening.

"This is an excellent example of the democratization of the media, where everyone has access to the printing press of the 21st century," said Dina Kaplan, co-founder of Blip.tv, a site that hosts grass-roots television programming.

---- i say it's an excellent example of someone who should be charged with some kind of treason, etc... he's assisting drug smugglers and terrorists maybe? What happens if someone dies because of this knowledge? Wasn't he a government contractor? don't they have agreements?

The mobile Internet: Are we there yet?

Tech News on ZDNet: "After years of hype, wireless users in the United States are waiting for all the technology pieces to come together to make surfing the Internet from their handsets as easy as it is on their PCs at home.
So how close are we to simple and robust Web surfing from a cell phone?"

Yahoo revamps real-estate site | CNET News.com

Yahoo revamps real-estate site | CNET News.com: "Yahoo is set to unveil today, a revamped Yahoo Real Estate site that offers interactive maps, access to millions of home valuations, mortgage tools and access to specific information about neighborhoods from Yahoo Local. Yahoo Real Estate will also offer market snapshots that include average home prices, historical price trends, local mortgage interest rates and links to specific neighborhood information on Yahoo Answers.
In addition, Yahoo Search will have shortcuts to listings, mortgage rates and house valuations. Through an agreement Yahoo has with the Prudential, home buyers will be able to search Prudential Real Estate for information on property they see offline. "

Monday, August 28, 2006

Dallas Morning News Folk Move to D Magazine?

D Magazine : The Front Burner: "OPEN INVITATION TO DEPARTING DMN FOLK
I've had communication with a few people who have told me they are planning to leave the paper. But I'd like to throw it open to every soon-to-be-former Newser: drop me a note if you'd like to have a beer and talk about how you might contribute to D Magazine. "

- why not, right.. Belo (The Dallas Morning News) doesn't get it but I bet Wick does..

Dallasblog.com is the Dallas, Texas news blog and Dallas, Texas information source for the DFW Metroplex.

Dallasblog.com : "DallasBlog.com is intended to be the online alternative news and information source for the Greater Dallas area community. It is no slam at the city’s only daily newspaper to say that competing news sources make for a better community. It is no slam at the city’s many fine TV and radio stations to say they are a medium with time constraints. We expect to supplement, not replace, any of them.
Although we will use text, audio and video we will do things different than a newspaper or a TV or radio station. First, when we say this is the Blog of Dallas we mean we intend to invite Dallas to Blog here. Yes, we will have our own reporters – both full and part-time. We will have our own commentators too (We want to keep things stirred up). These folks will be called “affiliated Bloggers.”
Next, we will allow elected officials (and during election years duly filed candidates) to Blog-on any time they wish (unedited) to accuse, defend or propose. We will also allow leaders of civic, neighborhood, political, and other organizations to do the same. All they have to do is register with us to get a pass word. This doesn’t mean just commending on what other people say (anyone can do that anytime). It means they can say what’s on their mind as a full Blogger."

Snakes on a MySpace profile: the ugly consequences

CNET News.com: "General rule of thumb: If you own an illegal pet, you probably shouldn't put a picture of it on your MySpace profile. Unfortunately, no one told that to a man in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. His beloved 90-pound pet python, Isis, was confiscated last week by animal control authorities.
According to WCNC News, the owner--no name is given, but he goes by 'Smokey McBlunt' on MySpace--used his social networking page to showcase photos of himself with Isis around his neck. His neighbors caught wind of it, feared for their pets' (and their own) safety, and contacted the local animal control center. As it turns out, owning a 90-pound snake in that region isn't just scary--it's illegal. Isis was promptly whisked away to a Tennessee rescue center."

Fires stop with Apple and Dell, insists Sony

CNET News.com: "Sony and PC makers scrambled on Thursday to reassure customers that the latest battery recall involving Apple Computer would be the last.
Of course, that's exactly the same thing they said last week after Dell announced it was recalling 4.1 million batteries that could short-circuit and cause a fire. Just about every major PC company uses Sony's battery cells in a portion of their notebook batteries. Those cells have been the subject of intense scrutiny after Dell's recall was followed by Apple's Thursday "

New games turn up music, user control

CNET News.com: "In the spring, music executives at the E3 video game convention predicted music would take on a greater future role as the game market grows more sophisticated. This fall, that prediction seems poised to become reality.
As the pre-holiday game release schedule swings into high gear, titles expected to hit retail shelves in coming months will feature more songs--and more user control over them--than ever before.
For example, Electronic Arts' 'Madden NFL 07' football game this year features an all-time high of 35 songs, up from 21 in recent years. And that's just one of the smaller soundtracks. Large, open game-play video games like the 'Grand Theft Auto' series took the soundtrack concept to new heights with 'GTA: San Andreas' featuring a whopping 80 tracks that were later released on an eight-CD boxed set. This fall, two new games matching the 'GTA' game-play style will be released with soundtracks that dwarf that title in size and interactivity, heralding what many expect to be a standard feature of tomorrow's games. "

Google offers hosted communications apps

CNET News.com: "Starting Today, organizations will be able to offer members or employees Web-based e-mail, calendar, chat and Web page publishing hosted by Google for free.
Google plans to announce on Monday a beta version of Google Apps for Your Domain, which includes Gmail with 2 gigabytes of storage, Google Calendar, Google Talk and Page Creator.
The new service is an extension of Gmail for Your Domain, a service that Google launched in beta version in February. It allows organizations to use Gmail applications with their own e-mail address, instead of the '@gmail.com' domain. "

Google's foot in the office door

News.blog | CNET News.com: "Google is launching another attack on the corporate world, offering up a suite of business applications on Monday.
The suite includes Gmail with 2GB of storage, Google Calendar, Google Talk and Page Creator. It's an extension of a service the company launched in February that lets organizations use Gmail with their own e-mail address.
Google still makes most of its money from search-related advertising. But with beta versions of spreadsheet and word-processing programs in the works, it's clear the company is aiming for bigger markets."

- open office sucked at translating word documents I hope Google does a better job!

MySpace: The Magazine

Advertising Age - MediaWorks : "Hey MySpace kids: Want to read a magazine? If you answered yes, you may be in luck. MySpace is actively considering whether to launch an ink-on-paper magazine to complement its insanely popular and remarkably valued online property. The editorial mix would likely cover standout MySpace members and their interests, from music to their social scenes. "

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Apple recalls 1.8 million batteries

Tech News on ZDNet: "Because of a risk of fire, Apple Computer is recalling 1.8 million batteries that use Sony's battery cell technology, which also was at the root of Dell's historic recall last week.
The Mac maker's recall, while not as large as Dell's, affects users of its iBook G4 and PowerBook G4 laptop models sold between October 2003 and August 2006, according to the Consumer Products Safety Commission. Users are advised to remove the batteries immediately and store them in a safe place. "

SmartBiz.com: Small Business Resources - Converged Telecom Platform From Samsung BCS

SmartBiz.com: Small Business Resources - Converged Telecom Platform From Samsung BCS: "The OfficeServ 7400 from Samsung BCS is a converged telecommunications platform aimed at offices with as many as 500 users. The device supports wireless, wireline, traditional voice, VoIP and data networking, the company says. The platform employs an array of modules containing the applications and enabling the system to interface with the local-area network (LAN), wireless LAN and gigabit Ethernet backbone. The OfficeServ 7400 can be driven by power-over-Ethernet. "

Invasion of the Computer Snatchers

Washington Post: "In the six hours between crashing into bed and rolling out of it, the 21-year-old hacker has broken into nearly 2,000 personal computers around the globe. He slept while software he wrote scoured the Internet for vulnerable computers and infected them with viruses that turned them into slaves.
Now, with the smoke of his day's first Marlboro curling across the living room of his parents' brick rambler, the hacker known online as '0x80' (pronounced X-eighty) plops his wiry frame into a tan, weathered couch, sets his new laptop on the coffee table and punches in a series of commands. At his behest, the commandeered PCs will begin downloading and installing software that will bombard their users with advertisements for pornographic Web sites. After the installation, 0x80 orders the machines to search the Internet for other potential victims."

- welcome to the world wide web... visit lavasoft.com... download AdAware, everytime you get off the internet, me? I run it when i come in, at lunch and before I leave for the day. Then I run VirusScans overnight.. EVERY DAY. Yes, I'm on the internet everyday so therefore I must clean my machine, every day..... download Google toolbar, ditch the funny cursors and stupid smileys in email.... otherwise... this guys oWnz u

YouTube Offers Some Prime Online Real Estate

Washington Post: "Paris Hilton's face is shiny. The lighting is bad, and she's sitting against a yellow wall, filmed with what appears to be an amateur's video camera.
'Hey, YouTubers, it's Paris,' she says to the camera, followed by a clip of her latest video and an invitation to check out the 'Paris Hilton channel' on YouTube.com."

- HooRay!!!! More mindless drivel!!!! The Paris Hilton channel, check out the life of a completely spoiled selfish bitch. I'm not going to say she's not talented, the dance music remixes of her singles are pretty good... it's just, i've seen the simple life and I think i'd rather have a spike in my head.

A Broken Record Store

Washinton Post: "Tower Records, the iconic chain where generations of music lovers have gone to lose themselves in record-store reveries, is up for sale in bankruptcy court, forsaken by consumers who favor digital music and discounts at big-box superstores.
Tower represents a time when music had a different cultural status than it does today, as songs vie for attention with newer pastimes such as video games, Internet surfing and instant messaging. Its financial faltering -- this is its second bankruptcy filing since 2004 -- signals not only corporate problems but also a shift in how people shop and think about music in their lives."


- The same thing happened in Dallas to Bill's Records, now it's all the vinyl stores that cater to the HUGE Dallas DJ market that are living, Virgin Records in Mockingbird still does a good job because of it's location and staying up on current music trends, plus they have EVERYRTHING, even 12" singles.. Of course with MySpace profiles for artists like Paul Oakenfold, John Digweed and DJ RAP, as soon as they release a new album they send out a bulletin on where to click to buy it and usually is a download, why? because it's a direct to the artist payday.

AT& T Sues, Alleging Fraudulent Access to Customer Accounts

Washington Post: "AT&T Corp. on Wednesday filed suit in federal court to unmask and halt the actions of 25 people who allegedly posed as customers to gain unauthorized online access to private phone records.
Some 2,500 customers' records were stolen, AT&T alleges in its civil complaint. The affected customers have been notified and access to their online accounts frozen, the company said."

- If they hadn't outsourced their customer service department, they might nmot have this problem.

YouTube could be a steal at $1 billion

CNET News.com: "By agreeing to pay $65 million for Grouper--a profitless video-sharing company with negligible market share--Sony has helped establish a benchmark for other companies in the space and sent industry insiders speculating wildly about what market leader YouTube may be worth.
Sony's acquisition Wednesday of Grouper, which owns less than 1 percent of the online video market, begs a rather obvious question about its far larger rival YouTube, which owns 43 percent market share: If a company were to buy YouTube tomorrow, what would it have to pay?
'The viral video space is so hot right now; it's like Hansel from the movie 'Zoolander,'' said Aram Sinnreich, managing partner of RadarResearch. 'I wouldn't be surprised to see (online video market leader) YouTube receive a bid of $1 billion. Whether the company is worth it is another question.' "

Microsoft Strikes Ad Deal With Facebook Social Network

Advertising Age: "NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Following the lead of Google's search-advertising deal with MySpace, Microsoft has aligned itself with Facebook as the social network's exclusive provider of banner advertising and sponsored links. The deal gives a huge boost to Microsoft's AdCenter online ad platform, which has struggled to secure major distribution deals since its launch last year. "

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Fasten your seatbelts and no mobiles please

MSNBC.com: "LONDON - Overhead 'no smoking' signs will be replaced by 'no mobiles' messages on some planes next year when technology is introduced to make it safe for passengers to use mobile phones mid-flight.
Airlines are seeking ways to police potentially annoying on-board phone chat via symbols of a mobile phone crossed out, forcing passengers to switch off during take-off and designated 'night' periods.
The company developing the satellite technology for Airbus planes also said cabin crew would be able to remotely switch off phones or disable their voice function, allowing travelers to just use text messaging and email during quiet times."

AT&T sues over unauthorized access to customer data

CNET News.com: "AT&T has joined the fight to keep unauthorized data brokers from obtaining and selling its customers' calling records.
On Wednesday, the company's services division filed a lawsuit in U.S district court in San Antonio to block 25 unnamed 'John Doe' defendants who have allegedly pretended to be customers to gain access to account information.
AT&T said that the so-called data brokers had fraudulently obtained records for some 2,500 customers. The company said this information was used mainly in legal and domestic disputes. The company said that no driver's license numbers or sensitive financial data were accessible.
AT&T believes the lawsuit will help it identify the perpetrators by using e-mail addresses and Internet Protocol addresses. Once it identifies the data brokers, the company plans to seek an injunction as well as a return of profits earned from selling customer information."

Google to Japan: Try Gmail

CNET News.com: "Google, the world's biggest Internet search engine, said on Wednesday that it is opening the Japanese-language version of its e-mail service to anyone who wants to sign up. Japan is the third market after Australia and New Zealand in which the U.S. Internet conglomerate has allowed open access to Gmail, which it offers in more than 40 different languages. In other markets, sign-ups are limited to those who receive e-mail invitations from existing users or access it via mobile phones. "

- I'm doing GMail on my T-Mobile Sidekick 3, it works really well... Also when I search on Google via my T-Mobile Sidekick 3 the Google word is vertical instead of horizontal at the bottom... kinda cool...

Wireless Hospital Asset Tracking

InnerWireless: "Until now, wireless installations in hospitals have required separate and often dedicated infrastructures, leading to redundant costs, disruptions to patient care and inadequate wireless coverage. The result is an environment that is difficult to manage and does not easily adapt to demands for future technologies and applications.
But the Medical-grade Wireless Utility from InnerWireless allows hospitals to deploy a full range of wireless applications and devices for real-time clinical communications, monitoring and therapy, as well as wireless building services, on a unified, strategic wireless infrastructure. In addition, InnerWireless offers a portfolio of services to assist hospitals with the planning, deployment and management of their wireless environment to maximize the value of the Wireless Utility."

Brazil prosecutors aim to sue Google

CNET News.com: "Brazilian prosecutors asked a federal judge on Tuesday for permission to file a civil lawsuit against Google, alleging it was withholding user information required for a separate criminal investigation.
The prosecutors want Google to pay a $61 million fine and asked that if it refuses to comply with its information request, its Brazilian unit be dissolved.
In its request, the federal prosecutor's office in Sao Paulo alleges that several community pages on Google's popular social network site, Orkut, have been used to organize criminal activity and promote child pornography. "

IE patch carries security bug

CNET News.com: "There's more trouble with Microsoft's latest Internet Explorer patch: It introduces a serious new security flaw on some Windows systems.
The vulnerability could let miscreants hijack a Windows PC running IE 6 with Service Pack 1 and the MS06-042 update installed, Microsoft said in a security advisory published on Tuesday. The flaw lies in the way IE handles long Web addresses and could be exploited by luring users to specially crafted Web sites, according to the advisory. "

Microsoft puts cybersquatters on notice

CNET News.com: "Microsoft on Tuesday launched a new offensive against cybersquatters who allegedly gain illegal profits from thousands of Web sites, such as WindowsLiveTutorial.com and HaloChamp.com, that include the company's trademarked names.
Redmond filed three lawsuits in federal court this week claiming that some Web site operators have registered and operate hundreds of domain names with the sole purpose of reaping 'bad faith' profits and in violation of federal and state laws.
Two of the complaints, filed in Utah and California, name known individuals accused of running more than 400 such sites. A third 'John Doe' complaint is aimed at unmasking alleged cybersquatters, affiliated with 217 different domain names, who have paid privacy protection services to have their registration information shielded. "

Yahoo adds phishing shield

CNET News.com: "Yahoo is testing a new security feature that lets users customize their login page, a measure designed to thwart information-thieving phishing scams.
The feature requires people to create a unique 'sign-in seal' on a specific PC. This seal--a text message or photo--will be displayed on the Yahoo login page when visited with that computer, according to a description of the feature on Yahoo's Web site. "

Worm sparks rise in zombie PCs

CNET News.com: "Malicious code that exploits a recent Windows hole has led to significant growth in the number of hijacked PCs, according to messaging security company CipherTrust.
On Tuesday, CipherTrust reported a 23 percent growth in the total number of so-called zombie PCs it has detected. The jump is due to the spread of Mocbot worm variants, CipherTrust said. Mocbot, also known as Cuebot and Graweg, exploits a Windows security flaw for which Microsoft issued a patch with security bulletin MS06-040 on Aug. 8. "

Google defends Net neutrality regulations

CNET News.com: "ASPEN, Colo.--A Google executive said on Tuesday that entrepreneurs creating new start-ups could be thwarted unless Congress enacts extensive laws imposing Net neutrality regulations on broadband providers.
'I'm not worried so much about Google in this regard,' David Drummond, Google's general counsel, said at a 90-minute debate organized here by the Progress and Freedom Foundation. 'I'm worried about the small innovators at the edge of the networks.'
In the mid-1990s, when company founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin were creating what would become the world's most popular search engine, Drummond said they 'didn't think about who we had to talk to on the network to make sure users could use the Google search engine.' "

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Ad campaign targets crimes against children on Internet

Houston Chronicle: "DALLAS - A new series of public service announcements will help raise awareness about crimes against children involving the Internet by warning teen girls against posting images or information that would put them at risk, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Monday.
'Every day, these predators are looking for someone to hurt,' Gonzales told about the about 2,700 law enforcement officials from around the world at the 18th Annual Crimes Against Children Conference in Dallas. 'Every day, we must educate parents and children about the threat.'"

Alien Encounter: Alienware Calls on M/C/C

M/C/C to mastermind public relations program for leading manufacturer of high-performance PC technology

Dallas, Texas – Aug. 21, 2006 – When it comes to the computer gaming industry, Alienware Corporation, a leading manufacturer of high-performance PCs, has one of the most well-known and best-performing products in the galaxy. The company wanted to attack new markets, but outside of the gaming industry, Alienware remains relatively unknown, despite the machines’ performance capabilities. Through an extensive search process, Alienware selected M/C/C as its agency of record to build awareness and boost credibility in new markets.

“We built our business around gamers and the games they play, but the high-performance machines we’ve created can benefit a number of varied user groups,” Mark Vena, Vice President of Marketing for Alienware, said. “We brought in M/C/C to help us enhance our exposure and credibility as we pursue a leadership position in new markets.”

Founded in 1996 by avid gamers Nelson Gonzalez and Alex Aguila with a $13,000 initial investment, Alienware has grown to become the leading manufacturer of high-performance computer desktop, notebook, media center and professional systems in just 10 years. The company offers award-winning products that incorporate innovative components, superb engineering and unparalleled customer service to deliver the ultimate in performance and style.

It has been a busy time for Alienware, which has had several product releases in recent months, and an innovative PR strategy is crucial for the company’s numerous upcoming releases and appearances.

“Alienware has risen to the top of a very cool and innovative industry, and, therefore, the company has a wealth of experience with creativity and vision – two traits that we have in common,” said M/C/C President and Founder Mike Crawford. “Now, as we look to apply these qualities to new industries, M/C/C will be a valuable partner in Alienware’s mission to expand into new markets in original and imaginative ways.”

About M/C/C
Dallas-based M/C/C is a public relations firm and advertising agency exclusively serving the technology industry. M/C/C offers marketing, advertising, public relations, cyberactive services and research for customers ranging from growing start-ups to some of the world’s largest technology companies. Several of M/C/C’s clients are leaders in the technology industry, including CapRock Communications, L-3 Communications Infrared Products, NextiraOne (now Black Box Network Services) and SYSTIMAX Solutions. M/C/C’s Website can be accessed at www.mccom.com.

Three workers depart AOL after privacy uproar

CNET News.com: "Two AOL employees have been fired, and its chief technology officer is resigning, after the release of Web search data from thousands of AOL members prompted widespread criticism of the company.
CTO Maureen Govern 'has decided to leave AOL effective immediately,' AOL Chief Executive Jon Miller wrote in an e-mail to employees dated Monday.
Govern could not be reached to comment. "

Now playing on the Net: War propaganda

CNET News.com: "Amid the home videos of dancing teens and sporting events on YouTube, a well-crafted, nine-minute video makes a direct appeal to Americans to oust the Bush administration.
'People of America, we wish to share with you our thoughts on the events we experienced,' says the narrator of 'Iraq--the truth?' The narrator claims to represent those opposing the U.S. in Iraq. 'Despite the madness we have endured we see no harm in presenting you with the criminal nature of your newly elected emperor.' "

Kevin Mitnick Web site hacked

CNET News.com: "Instead of the usual description of Kevin Mitnick, his consulting services and books, the famed hacker's Web site on Sunday displayed a vulgar message.
Online vandals, apparently operating from Pakistan, broke into the computer hosting Mitnick's Web site on Sunday and replaced his front page with one of their own. As a result, four Web addresses belonging to Mitnick, including KevinMitnick.com and MitnickSecurity.com, displayed an explicit message on Mitnick and hacking. "

Monday, August 21, 2006

Heads Roll in AOL Affair

Wired News: "AOL chief technology officer Maureen Govern, who oversaw the division responsible for accidentally releasing search data for more than a half a millions internet users, has resigned from the company, according to an internal company memorandum.
John McKinley, AOL's former CTO, will take over on an interim basis, according to the memo obtained by Reuters on Monday. Govern joined the company last September."

Carbon Dioxide Removal : BCCK Engineering

Carbon Dioxide Removal : BCCK Engineering specializes in Nitech nitrogen rejection and nitrogen removal, carbon dioxide extraction, helium extraction and helium recovery. BCCK - NGL Recovery, Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Extraction, Oxygen Removal. : "Carbon Dioxide Removal

Until now, high concentrations of CO2 in natural gas have prevented companies from fully capitalizing on their gas reserves. BCCK’s carbon dioxide plants not only rectify this problem with natural gas purification, but they also create an additional source of income for gas companies. By extracting carbon dioxide from gas, companies create both a marketable natural gas product and a highly pure CO2 product."

September 11th Memorial - David Seima Aoyama

Seima Aoyama, age 48.

Place killed: American Airlines Flight 11. Resident of Culver City, Calif. (USA). Special notes: Passenger.

Seima Aoyama will be honored by paisley amoeba at the blog paisley does dallas. This was the 2175th blogger to sign up for the 2,996 Tribute project.



September 11th Memorial: "David Seima Aoyama 48 Culver City , CA United States
He was one of the most peaceful people who believed in Non-Violence. He was a man on a mission for world wide and americana world peace. We will miss him deeply. - submitted: 10/12/2001 3:23:59 PM
. . . . . . .

My heart goes out to David Aoyama's Family See u on eagle peak Dave.
Christopher - submitted: 7/22/2002 5:36:48 PM
. . . . . . ."

September 11 Victims.com


more to be continued...

September 11th Memorial - David Seima Aoyama

Seima Aoyama, age 48.

Place killed: American Airlines Flight 11. Resident of Culver City, Calif. (USA). Special notes: Passenger.

Seima Aoyama will be honored by paisley amoeba at the blog paisley does dallas. This was the 2175th blogger to sign up for the 2,996 Tribute project.



September 11th Memorial: "David Seima Aoyama 48 Culver City , CA United States
He was one of the most peaceful people who believed in Non-Violence. He was a man on a mission for world wide and americana world peace. We will miss him deeply. - submitted: 10/12/2001 3:23:59 PM
. . . . . . .

My heart goes out to David Aoyama's Family See u on eagle peak Dave.
Christopher - submitted: 7/22/2002 5:36:48 PM
. . . . . . ."

Spetember 11 Victims.com


more to be continued...

Google welcomes Writely sign-ups

CNET News.com: "Five months after being bought by Google, the Writely online word-processing application is now open for anyone who wants to sign up and use it.
Writely has been closed to all but its existing members since its acquisition by search giant Google in March. But last Thursday, Google allowed anyone to join and make use of the hosted word-processing application. "

Pointing to Google is a risky business | News.blog | CNET News.com

News.blog | CNET News.com: "Pontiac is re-running its very strange ads in which it shares branding with Google. Last night I saw one that shows a screenshot of 'Pontiac' being typed onto Google, and a voiceover, 'For more, Google Pontiac.' [see ad on YouTube].
Isn't displaying, 'www.pontiac.com' enough? Apparently not for Pontiac, and it's a decent strategy if you want your potential customer to see the universe of links related to your product. Although in this case, Googling Pontiac gets you a lot of links unrelated to the cars. On the first page of Google results, you get links to the city of Pontiac, the Pontiac Grille in Philadelphia, and Lyle Lovett's album, 'Pontiac.' So I don't get the strategy. "

- well I think it's stupid... I said this the first time the ads ran during the super bowl...

I've been joking about slapping them in the face about this... I guess it's time I should...


So If you are searching for "Pontiac Dealers in Dallas Ft. Worth" and hit this page instead... Do you really want to buy a car from soemone that is soo stupid to leave your future up to chance? Because they thought it was a Good Idea to have someone "Google" Pontiac Dealers - Dallas - Ft. Worth.. and guess what by typing in Dallas Ft. Worth Pontiac dealers in google, you ended up here. so maybe let's say they use that same head bonehead reasoning on your car... guess what.. maybe you should buy a honda? just don't buy it from Bankston Honda/Nissan... Did you just Google Pontiac Dealers in Dallas Ft. Worth?

Washington Post launches 'blogroll' for traffic-hungry bloggers

News.blog | CNET News.com: "Hey, bloggers. Disappointed by the single-digit number on your FeedBurner tracker? Embarrassed about how few Technorati trackbacks you have? Don't worry. The Washington Post wants to be your friend.
Traditional media's forays into the online world, as we all know, have a tendency to be kind of awkward, and The Washington Post's has been no exception. (Case in point: the Ben Domenech kerfuffle.) But now the D.C. paper has announced a new program that aims to reach out to the further corners of the blogosphere--an advertising network in the form of a blogroll."

The Daily Reel refines Web video search

CNET News.com: "Carson Daly has signed on as a contributor to The Daily Reel, an online video publication from film producer Jamie Patricof and publishing executive Jeffrey Stern designed to help entertainment professionals narrow their Web video searches for undiscovered talent. 'Half Nelson' producer Patricof and former Details magazine president and publisher Stern will oversee the site, which uses a team of editors to distill the best content from more than 250 video sites, including YouTube, Google Video, Ifilm and Atom Entertainment. It also provides detailed production notes and filmmaker contact information. "

Nuance turns text into speech

CNET News.com: "Nuance Communications' PDF software has had a makeover.
The company plans to release ScanSoft PDF Converter Professional 4, a would-be competitor to Adobe Systems' Acrobat, on Tuesday. The software is designed to create and convert PDF files.
The new version includes a text-to-speech feature that uses Nuance's RealSpeak technology to convert PDF documents into WAV audio files. The files, which can be used for podcasts, are read in a male voice. There are plans to provide downloads of other types of voice, said Chris Strammiello, the director of product management at Nuance, which also makes speech recognition software."

Friday, August 18, 2006

Helium Recovery

Helium Recovery : BCCK Engineering: "In today's gas market, helium generates substantial revenue even in relatively small volumes. Depending on the purity of the product and the location of production, helium values start at $50 per MSCF. To create additional revenue from your natural gas processing, BCCK provides stand-alone helium extraction units, or we can integrate helium extraction capability in your Nitech™ system. Either way, you’ll add minimal equipment and help maximize your profits – by producing crude-grade helium that’s ready for transport and sale. For larger applications, BCCK can provide helium product upgrades to near 99.99% purity and provide the required liquefier equipment to ensure maximum revenue to the producer. "

Casting Net For Better Airfares

Wired News: "You board your flight to Chicago, $600 ticket in hand, and do a quick survey of the people sitting around you. Turns out 13D paid only $300 for her flight, while 14E shelled out nearly $1,000 for his. It's a reality of air travel that infuriates passengers, but now several new travel websites are promising to demystify the seemingly nonsensical world of airline ticket pricing."

Spying an intelligent search engine

CNET News.com: "No one argues that Google has revolutionized Web search, but some technologists promise a new age of search tools that are much more powerful with advances in artificial intelligence.
Search is like oxygen for many people now, and considering Google's breakthroughs in Web document analysis, supercomputing and Internet advertising, it can be easy to think this is as good as it gets. But some entrepreneurs in artificial intelligence (AI) say that Google is not the end of history. Rather, its techniques are a baseline of where we're headed next."

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Microsoft hires McAfee antivirus veteran

CNET News.com: "Antivirus veteran Vincent Gullotto will join industry newcomer Microsoft.
Vincent Gullotto Gullotto, former head of McAfee's Antivirus and Vulnerability Emergency Response Team, AVERT, will be general manager of Security Research & Response at Microsoft, a representative for the software giant said Wednesday.
'Microsoft is very excited that Vincent Gullotto will be joining Microsoft,' the representative said. 'We look forward to working with him in his new role.' Microsoft did not provide any other details about Gullotto's hiring."

Federal judge orders halt to NSA spy program

Tech News on ZDNet: "The warrantless Internet and telephone surveillance program authorized by the Bush administration violates the U.S. Constitution and must cease immediately, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
The landmark decision makes U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor in Detroit the first judge to strike down the National Security Agency's once-secret program. The American Civil Liberties Union had filed suit against the government, claiming the program 'ran roughshod' over the constitutional rights of millions of Americans and ran afoul of federal wiretapping law. "

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Worm duo tries to hijack Windows PCs

CNET News.com: "Two worms based on a recently disclosed Windows flaw have been unleashed, but the attacks so far don't appear to be widespread, security experts said.
The pair of worms surfaced over the weekend, several security companies said in alerts. The malicious software tries to hijack the computer for use in a network of commandeered PCs that can be remotely controlled, popularly called a botnet. The worms also can communicate via AOL's Instant Messenger and may be able to spread via the service.
'This is run-of-the-mill malicious software,' said Don DeBolt, director of the Security Advisor group at CA, formerly known as Computer Associates. 'The malware purveyors are simply packaging their old wares with the new exploit.' "

Update aims for a friendlier Blogger

Update aims for a friendlier Blogger: "Blogger, a self-publishing platform owned by Google, released on Tuesday a beta with features such as tagging, friends-only posts, and templates designed to be easier to use.
The site has long been a fixture of the self-publishing world. But now that blogging has become a genuine cultural phenomenon, Blogger has had some catching up to do.
The beta, or test version, has three major components:
• Blogs now feature labeling, which is more generically known as tagging. This means people can categorize their posts with keywords in the same manner of Flickr or Delicious.
• Posts can be 'locked' and viewable only by readers whom the blog owner designates.
• Some drag-and-drop capabilities have been added to Blogger's template-editing functions--previously only controllable "

Google Talk marks first year with upgrade

CNET News.com: "Google Talk, which is celebrating its first birthday with an upgrade, will let people easily transfer files and leave other people voice mail beginning Wednesday.
Now people who use the instant messaging and voice chat service will be able to click a 'send file' button, choose which document, photo or other file to send, and transmit it through a chat window as a thumbnail that can be displayed in full size.
People also can leave each other voice mail by either initiating a call that is then unanswered or without initiating a call and going straight into voice mail. Users of Gmail, Google's e-mail service, can play the voice mail without having to download anything. But people who use other e-mail software will have to download the MP3 voice mail attachment to hear it."

Microsoft patch can cause IE trouble

CNET News.com: "Microsoft's security update from Aug. 8 to Internet Explorer is causing browser trouble for some systems.
After people apply the MS06-042 update, rated 'critical' by Microsoft, IE may crash when certain Web sites are viewed, the company said in a notice on its customer support Web site. The problem affects IE 6 with Service Pack 1 on Windows XP and Windows 2000 systems, it said.
'Microsoft has identified an issue with the security update MS06-042,' the company said in a statement Tuesday. It plans to re-release the bulletin and patch on Aug. 22 for all affected users. "

Friday, August 11, 2006

Planes Remain Vulnerable Targets

Wired News: "The next terrorist attack could be carried out by airline passengers who hide bomb ingredients in hair gel or baby milk bottles and assemble their weapon in a locked restroom, security experts warn.
The announcement Thursday of a foiled plot to blow up jetliners flying from London to the U.S. using explosives hidden in hand luggage could be the opening of a new chapter in air travel, they said: hours-long security checks, visual inspections of prescription drugs, bans on everyday items.
Bomb experts and troubleshooters for airline security interviewed by The Associated Press said mobile phones, computers, wrist watches or anything else with a battery should be prohibited from flights."

Officials probe Lieberman site crash - Security

Security - MSNBC.com: "HARTFORD, Conn. - U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman's campaign Web site remained offline Thursday, and federal and state authorities were investigating why it crashed on the eve of this week's defeat in a high-profile primary.
The site, Joe2006.com, appeared to have suffered from a so-called 'denial of service' attack, in which computers overwhelm a site with fake traffic, preventing real visitors from getting through or, in this case, causing it to crash, said Richard M. Smith, an Internet security consultant in Brookline, Mass."

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Google: We won't sell music

CNET News.com: "The Internet search giant used a keynote slot at the annual NARM (National Association of Recording Merchandisers) conference to quash rumors of a so-called 'Gtunes' store--much to the delight of retailers attending the confab.
'We are not going to be selling music,' Chris Sacca, head of business development for Google, said in a Thursday address to music merchants and distributors during the August 2-5 event in Kissimmee, Fla. "

Google pledges $900 million for MySpace honors

CNET News.com: "Google has won a highly prized deal with MySpace.com to serve Web search and advertising listings to the nearly 100 million members of the News Corp.-owned social network, besting rival Yahoo in the bid.
On Monday, MySpace parent company Fox Interactive Media said it had entered into a pact with Google that spans three years and nine months and gives the search giant exclusive rights to provide Web search results and sponsored links across MySpace. Google also will power search and ads for other Fox Interactive properties including RottenTomatoes.com and Scout.com. FoxSports, which is aligned with Microsoft's MSN, is not part of the deal. "

There's a blog born every half second

CNET News.com: "Every second two new blogs are created.
According to recent statistics from blog-tracking site Technorati, the blogosphere has doubled every six months for the last three years. That's 175,000 new blogs per day worldwide. Technorati added its 50 millionth blog on July 31, 2006.
The site's State of the Blogosphere report is released every three months by Technorati CEO Dave Sifry. Sifry has been tracking the blogosphere since 2002, and even he's surprised at the tremendous rate of growth for this quarter."

Homeland Security: Fix your Windows

CNET News.com: "In a rare alert, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has urged Windows users to plug a potential worm hole in the Microsoft operating system.
The agency, which also runs the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT), sent out a news release on Wednesday recommending that people apply Microsoft's MS06-040 patch as quickly as possible. The software maker released the 'critical' fix Tuesday as part of its monthly patch cycle.
'Users are encouraged to avoid delay in applying this security patch,' the Department of Homeland Security said in the statement. The patch fixes a serious flaw that, if exploited, could enable an attacker to remotely take complete control of an affected system, the agency said. "

Coal Mine Methane Extraction

BCCK Engineering: Coal Mine Methane Extraction
To reduce the risks of coal mine explosions and environmental impact, BCCK has developed a process to extract methane from mines and remove contaminants such as nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide and water, making it ready for use. Instead of venting the methane from the mine into the atmosphere, the processed or “enriched” methane is used as fuel for mine equipment or sold to gas pipelines for additional revenue. In other words, coal mine methane processing helps mining companies increase profitability while increasing safety and environmental responsibility. Everybody wins."

AOL gaffe draws Capitol Hill rebuke

CNET News.com: "AOL's recent privacy gaffe that exposed user search histories may breathe new life into a proposal to slap strict rules on what data Internet companies may collect.
Rep. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, said Wednesday that AOL's disclosure of the search habits of more than 650,000 of its users demonstrates that new laws are necessary. AOL has apologized for the disclosure.
'We must stop companies from unnecessarily storing the building blocks of American citizens' private lives,' Markey said. "

Viacom's MTV to buy Atom Entertainment

CNET News.com: "Viacom's MTV Networks on Wednesday said it would buy Internet video and games company Atom Entertainment for $200 million amid a rush by big media companies to compete with upstart online video leader YouTube.com.
MTV Networks hopes to grow its main audience of young viewers with Atom's portfolio of online videos created by Internet users, short independent films and casual online games, said Chairman and Chief Executive Judy McGrath."

US goes to highest flight alert

tvnz.co.nz: "The US government raised the security alert on passenger planes to its highest level for the first time on Thursday after Britain said it had foiled a plot to blow up flights to the United States.
The US Department of Homeland Security said it was taking an unprecedented step by raising the threat level for commercial flights originating in the United Kingdom to 'severe,' or red.
The threat level for all other commercial aircraft operating in or destined for the United States would be raised to 'high,' or orange, from 'elevated,' or yellow, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a statement.
The threat level for the country as a whole remained at yellow, according to the department's Web site.
Homeland Security took immediate steps that included barring passengers from carrying liquids, including beverages, hair gels and lotions, on planes. It said travellers in both countries should expect long delays.
A British police source said the plot was believed to involve a 'liquid chemical' device.
'Over the last few hours, British authorities have arrested a significant number of extremists engaged in a substantial plot to destroy multiple passenger aircraft flying from the United Kingdom to the United States,' the statement released by the DHS press office said.
British police said they had thwarted a plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight between Britain and the United States and were holding 21 people in connection with the plot. The arrests were made in the London and Birmingham areas.
In response, Britain's security services raised its threat level to 'critical' from 'severe,' the highest of its five ratings, suggesting 'an attack is expected imminently.'
'Currently, there is no indication ... of plotting within the U"

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

In-Building Wireless Network Infrastructure

InnerWireless

In-Building Wireless Network Infrastructure : Active RFID : Wireless Hosptial, Wireless Hospital Networks : In Building Wireless : In-Building Wireless : InnerWireless does in building wireless by providing wireless antenna distribution systems and wireless infrastructure for wireless networks providing wireless coverage in hospitals and in commercial buildings using distributed antenna systems for Wireless LANs - WLANs - using the 802.11, 802.11a, 802.11g, 802.11b, 802.11abg specifications. By using in-building or indoor wireless in hospitals, they can utilize active RFID tracking systems for hospital equipment asset management. Also works well with RFLS, WiFi, RFID, DAS.

Nitech™ Nitrogen Rejection Unit

Nitech™ Nitrogen Rejection Unit: Nitech™ Nitrogen Rejection Unit

BCCK’s Nitech NRU technology allows natural gas companies to recover once-bypassed reserves profitably, regardless of nitrogen gas concentrations. Also, when implemented in the mining industry, the Nitech process is instrumental in reducing the levels of methane within coal mines.

The Nitech process is an economical, effective and highly efficient way to remove excess nitrogen from gas streams. While most nitrogen removal systems are economical only for volumes of gas 30 MMSCFD or larger, Nitech removes high concentrations of nitrogen from as little as 3 MMSCFD. The Nitech process works equally well in larger applications – even with inlet gas flow at 250 MMSCFD or higher. "

Google calls click fraud estimates overblown

CNET News.com: "SAN JOSE, Calif.--Google is fighting back against what it says are exaggerations in industry estimates of click fraud in its bread-and-butter pay-per-click advertising system.
In a report released Tuesday, the search giant disputes claims made by third-party companies that sell services designed to combat fraudulent clicks--clicks that aren't from legitimate Web surfers seeking information from a given ad. Those companies have estimated that the proportion of advertisers paying for fraudulent clicks is as high as 35 percent.
But in a report titled 'How Fictitious Clicks Occur in Third-Party Click Fraud Audit Reports,' Google says the figures are often inflated because the companies are counting clicks that were never made on Google AdWords advertisements. (Google's 17-page report can be accessed on the company's Inside AdWords Blog.) "

Monday, August 07, 2006

Google, MTV ink ad-backed video deal

CNET News.com: "Viacom's MTV Networks has agreed to distribute clips from its cable networks over Google's advertising network, in a test of what could become a new economic model for Web-based video delivery, the companies said Sunday.
The project, a year in the making, marks the first time Google will distribute ad-supported videos across its AdSense network from a major programming provider. The ad-supported video distribution project will begin testing later in August.
Google's AdSense network currently handles primarily text and graphical-oriented brand advertising. The MTV trial, if successful, would highlight the progress Google is making in evolving beyond its reliance on delivering Web-based text ads from which it derives most of its revenue and profit. "

Privacy uproar over AOL search data

News.blog | CNET News.com: "Search engines have in their databases a vast amount of information about consumers. And that data is very appealing to all sorts of people, from researchers to marketers to the government.
That's why bloggers were in an uproar over the weekend after a research arm of AOL released a massive database of user queries--three months worth of search terms from 500,000 of the company's users. The goal was to provide a data set for search engine researchers.
The data was anonymized, and did not mention and specific users by name. And it appears AOL took the data down after complaints began flowing. But the very fact of its availability had privacy advocates enraged."

Friday, August 04, 2006

AOL: You've got free e-mail

CNET News.com: "Time Warner on Wednesday announced it will give away e-mail, software and other Web services for free to high-speed Internet users in a bid to boost online advertising sales. "

Google, Yahoo, others team against click fraud

CNET News.com: "After numerous class action lawsuits and criticism from advertisers, the major Web search companies announced on Wednesday plans to work together with two industry groups to quantify click fraud.
Click fraud occurs when online ads are intentionally clicked on, either by Web sites who get paid for hosting the ads or by companies trying to deplete the ad budgets of rivals so they can buy the search keywords themselves and steal the business. "

MSN Spaces struggles on launch

CNET News.com: "The upgrade to Microsoft's Windows Live Spaces blogging and social-networking service has been a study in what can go wrong with a launch.
According to the official Spaces blog, the first 12 hours after the launch were beset by poor performance problems, including issues related to e-mail publishing, statistics pages not working and emoticons from previous Spaces versions not working.
'We know we disappointed a bunch of you with the issues we had in our rollout last night,' wrote 'Greg' on the official Spaces blog Tuesday. 'We planned long and hard for this release and unfortunately, it was one of those gotchas that only showed up once we were in production.'
The blog entry went on to assure Spaces users that its team was on top of the problems and that feedback was invited."

Dozen Windows, Office updates coming next week

CNET News.com
Microsoft has 12 security bulletins in store for next Tuesday that address both Windows and Office issues.

Ten Windows bulletins will be released for Windows and two for Office as part of Microsoft's monthly patching schedule. Specific details on the types of issues that the bulletins address were not available, but at least one update for each product is considered critical and some will require a restart, Microsoft said in a notice posted on its Web site.

Blog feeds may carry security risk

CNET News.com: "LAS VEGAS--Reading blogs via popular RSS or Atom feeds may expose computer users to hacker attacks, a security expert warns.
Attackers could insert malicious JavaScript in content that is transferred to subscribers of data feeds that use the popular RSS (Really Simple Syndication) or Atom formats, Bob Auger, a security engineer with Web security company SPI Dynamics, said Thursday in a presentation at the Black Hat security event here.
The problem doesn't affect only blogs--any kind of information feed using any kind of format could potentially be used to transmit malicious content to a subscriber, Auger said. People, for example, subscribe to mailing lists and news Web sites via RSS, he said, noting 'this is about the entire concept of Web feeds.' "

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

The Complete List: 1,200 Top U.S. Schools - Newsweek America's Best High Schools

MSNBC.com: "Public schools are ranked according to a ratio, devised by Jay Mathews, that is the number of Advanced Placement and/or International Baccalaureate tests taken by all students at a school in 2005 divided by the number of graduating seniors. All of the schools on the list have an index of at least 1.000; they are in the top 5 percent of public schools measured this way. If you have 2005 data showing that your school should be on this list, please contact Mathews at challenge@washpost.com. We'll expand the list to include new schools that qualify, and that will cause the ranks of many schools to drop."

Black Hat with a Vista twist

CNET News.com: "This year, Black Hat is not just about breaking and entering.
The annual security conference traditionally focuses on hunting for bugs and attacking computer systems. At the 2006 event this week, however, an entire track will be devoted to the security--rather than the insecurity--of Windows Vista and Internet Explorer 7. The series of sessions will be hosted by Microsoft, a major sponsor of the event this year. "