May 29th, 2003
On Monday, June 2, the Federal Communications Commission will vote in a closed-door session on whether to continue dismantling the anti-monopolization rules that have protected alternative news sources and locally owned radio and television stations since the 1940s. David Batstone illustrates in his commentary below how this threatens individual expression and even the practice of democracy itself.
You can send a message to the FCC here. You can also read all about these new proposed regulations and the issues surrounding them here. (Thanks Josh for the forward)
May 19th, 2003
This is one of the first articles I've seen about the coming new age of consumer photography based around devices that aren't cameras. The Digital Journalist digs into the coming revolution in photography for both the professional and the consumer market in relation to the camera phone.
Photography means many things to many people at many times. It?s a means of communicating at its core. People use photos to visually communicate with others about a vacation, a bike ride, a news event, a celebrity, or about your ?totaled? car to the insurance company. The process of visually ommunicating is in for a drastic shift due to the arrival of cell phone cameras.
Professional photographers and consumers around the world have finally started to realize the benefits of making pictures digitally but it?s not going to compare to how wireless photography will revolutionize how people make, share, sell and communicate with pictures.
Nowadays, people around the world don?t leave their homes without their designer cell phones unlike with cameras. Professional photographers usually carry their cameras around everyday but there are times even they leave the house without their camera ? but all take their cellular phones.
I had been waiting to get my first cell phone camera for years. Professional photographers say they are overwhelmed with the tools of their trade which need to be totted around like; a laptop, PDA, 2-4 camera bodies, lenses, flashes, film, batteries, smart cards, power cords, adaptors, satellite phones, back up hard drives, etc.
Carrying a combined cellular phone and camera is a totally different mindset than meandering around making pictures with a typical camera. (Digital Journalist)
I know my camera phone has really changed the way I take photos. I think the next big step is the megapixel camera phone with good quality images. At that point low-end consumer camera makers might want to start re-thinking their strategies.
May 16th, 2003
****1/4 stars. In terms of pure entertainment value this film is about as good as it gets.
BTW make sure you stay for the trailer of the Matrix Revolutions after the ending credits.
May 13th, 2003
This little bit of the future comes from Gozmodo:
Another new Bluetooth gadget today: a Bluetooth GPS receiver from PalmTop. The TomTom Navigator Bluetooth GPS is designed for use with Pocket PCs, but will also work with laptops and a few Bluetooth-enabled cellphones like Sony Ericsson's P800 and Nokia's 7650 and 3650. These Bluetooth GPS receivers are great because you don't have to actually connect them to your PDA, and instead just carry it around in a bag or leave it somewhere in your car.
How cool is this. Combining to of the most promising new technologies into one piece. And this is just the beginning… wait until both bluetooth and GPS becomes miniaturized.
May 10th, 2003
I'm at a local Starbuck right now and I have to say this T-Mobile Hotspot thing is pretty slick. While it's fairly expensive for the pay as you go crowd if you have an exsisting T-Mobile account it's only $19.99 for unlimited connections. That's fairly compelling for business travelers.
May 6th, 2003
[Update] The New York Times has a great article about this new M$ release: Apple Tweaks Microsoft Over a New Computer
While no one can argue with Windows dominance on the desktops of the world Apple has consistantly beat MS to the punch with innovation after innovation. Now comes word that Microsoft is looking to create a new type of computer (from the Inquirer.net)
NOT CONTENT with just borrowing software ideas and then buying a 20% stake in the company to get rid of outstanding lawsuits, Microsoft has decided that Apple's basic business plan is nice enough to nick too. They've ganged up with HP to start turning PCs into Apple clones.
You can find the full story over at The Seattle Times but, as with so many American news pieces, the real story is closer to the end than the beginning. After years of watching it do what it does so well, Microsoft has decided that Apple's co-ordination of developing machines with the software they'll run is just what the industry needs.
Louis Kim told The Seattle Times that the new systems were designed for functionality and not for fashion. That has to be a direct stab at Apple's renown for producing stylish machines. But it almost certainly backfires as it is an effective admission that HP and Microsoft were only capable of getting one out of two right.
