Windows 7 to arrive next year, says Bill Gates
on 20080406 at 12:23 AM.
http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/04/windows-7-to-arrive-next-year-says-bill-gates/
According to a “super-enthused” Bill Gates Windows 7 is apparently due “in the next year”. Surprising seeing as Vista hasn’t been out for terribly long.
A lot of people are naturally unhappy about this. They just got Vista and now they’re going to have to fork over money again next year for Windows 7? There have been a lot of complaints about Vista though to be fair there were a lot of complaints about XP when it first came out. The XP complaints were similar to the Vista complaints of now. Why switch from the familiar to an untested, prettier OZ?
Speculations! Bill Gates could just be talking about beta versions. Vista was a pretty big overhaul of the Windows OS, I don’t think Windows 7 will be another (but of course now that I’ve said so the ever changing world of information systems will probably prove me wrong if only just on principle). Windows 7 will likely be an extension of Vista, the way it should have been.
If I am wrong though and this is true it shows that Microsoft is probably not very committed to Vista. I haven’t switched to Vista yet but I think I’ll give it a pass (like I did WindowsME). I’m curious though, why the rush job on the next version of Windows? Appeasing shareholders supposedly is one reason but I hope that’s not it. And what’s going to happen to WinFS?
0 Comments
According to a “super-enthused” Bill Gates Windows 7 is apparently due “in the next year”. Surprising seeing as Vista hasn’t been out for terribly long.
A lot of people are naturally unhappy about this. They just got Vista and now they’re going to have to fork over money again next year for Windows 7? There have been a lot of complaints about Vista though to be fair there were a lot of complaints about XP when it first came out. The XP complaints were similar to the Vista complaints of now. Why switch from the familiar to an untested, prettier OZ?
Speculations! Bill Gates could just be talking about beta versions. Vista was a pretty big overhaul of the Windows OS, I don’t think Windows 7 will be another (but of course now that I’ve said so the ever changing world of information systems will probably prove me wrong if only just on principle). Windows 7 will likely be an extension of Vista, the way it should have been.
If I am wrong though and this is true it shows that Microsoft is probably not very committed to Vista. I haven’t switched to Vista yet but I think I’ll give it a pass (like I did WindowsME). I’m curious though, why the rush job on the next version of Windows? Appeasing shareholders supposedly is one reason but I hope that’s not it. And what’s going to happen to WinFS?
Facebook Apps That Are Crap
on at 12:15 AM.
http://digg.com/software/7_Facebook_Apps_that_are_Crap
I remember when Facebook was the more professional alternative to MySpace. Where you needed a college email address in order to register. The days were simple, a wall, find people in the same class as you. Now I'm constantly being bitten by vampires, zombies, werewolves, super poked, challenged to movie/music quizzes by friends, put up for sale, etc.
Really, one day I'll find out what it is that possesses my friends to slather catastrophes of applications all over their profile page when all I'm probably interested in is their wall/status/club/classes/NORMAL STUFF EH?
0 Comments
I remember when Facebook was the more professional alternative to MySpace. Where you needed a college email address in order to register. The days were simple, a wall, find people in the same class as you. Now I'm constantly being bitten by vampires, zombies, werewolves, super poked, challenged to movie/music quizzes by friends, put up for sale, etc.
Really, one day I'll find out what it is that possesses my friends to slather catastrophes of applications all over their profile page when all I'm probably interested in is their wall/status/club/classes/NORMAL STUFF EH?
Featured Download on Life Hacker
on at 12:08 AM.
Download Music from Your Friends' iTunes Libraries Over the Internet with Mojo.
Mojo is a free new application for Windows/Macs only that allows you to share any song in your iTunes library and download any song from your friend’s iTunes library over the internet. Your friends need to also have the application in order for you to get access to their iTunes library. What makes Mojo different is that not only do you get access to your friend’s music but you can also see his playlists, movies, tv shows, podcasts, audiobooks, and all the other good things that come along with iTunes. A perk is that Mojo detects songs that you already have.
Tried it for a bit on my Mac laptop (apparently the Windows version doesn’t support Internet sharing yet). Pretty nifty, especially for sharing music with college buddies at various schools (which happens to be what I tried it for). Online collaboration is a good thing otherwise.
A couple of things I’m not sure of is whether or not it works across platforms, how it handles DRM/purchased music (it appears red supposedly? And are not allowed). And of course, all the issues about illegal software/music/movies/etc. theft over the internet that was discussed in class comes up. And with this? You could be sticking a giant 8ft tall sign with blinking neon letters that read: “HEY RIAA, I’M OVER HERE” in your head. The debate on the issue of illegal P2P music sharing has always been big and around.
Another issue is that apparently your friends are able to browse and listen to your music without your permission sometimes, though it seems that restarting the program will pop up the “Do you accept this person?” dialogue. Of course, Mojo is in beta (for Windows at least) so problems aren’t surprising.
Anyway, I doubt I will be keeping this application because if I ever wanted access to my friend’s music library I simply need to send them an email/instant message/text and ask. AIM has a similar feature that allows your friends to connect to you and check out what’s in your library (which can be whatever folder you set it to). As for legal issues, just because the law can’t keep up with technology doesn’t mean that technology should (or will) stop advancing, coughRIAAcough.
0 Comments
Mojo is a free new application for Windows/Macs only that allows you to share any song in your iTunes library and download any song from your friend’s iTunes library over the internet. Your friends need to also have the application in order for you to get access to their iTunes library. What makes Mojo different is that not only do you get access to your friend’s music but you can also see his playlists, movies, tv shows, podcasts, audiobooks, and all the other good things that come along with iTunes. A perk is that Mojo detects songs that you already have.
Tried it for a bit on my Mac laptop (apparently the Windows version doesn’t support Internet sharing yet). Pretty nifty, especially for sharing music with college buddies at various schools (which happens to be what I tried it for). Online collaboration is a good thing otherwise.
A couple of things I’m not sure of is whether or not it works across platforms, how it handles DRM/purchased music (it appears red supposedly? And are not allowed). And of course, all the issues about illegal software/music/movies/etc. theft over the internet that was discussed in class comes up. And with this? You could be sticking a giant 8ft tall sign with blinking neon letters that read: “HEY RIAA, I’M OVER HERE” in your head. The debate on the issue of illegal P2P music sharing has always been big and around.
Another issue is that apparently your friends are able to browse and listen to your music without your permission sometimes, though it seems that restarting the program will pop up the “Do you accept this person?” dialogue. Of course, Mojo is in beta (for Windows at least) so problems aren’t surprising.
Anyway, I doubt I will be keeping this application because if I ever wanted access to my friend’s music library I simply need to send them an email/instant message/text and ask. AIM has a similar feature that allows your friends to connect to you and check out what’s in your library (which can be whatever folder you set it to). As for legal issues, just because the law can’t keep up with technology doesn’t mean that technology should (or will) stop advancing, coughRIAAcough.
Powerset Will Launch In Coming Weeks
on 20080405 at 12:04 AM.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/04/05/powerset-will-launch-in-coming-weeks
Based in San Francisco, Powerset is apparently a new kind of search engine that will understand the natural language searches rather than keyword searching. It is due to launch in “coming weeks” according to Michael Arrington.
This sounds all sorts of awesome because what “natural language searches” means is that Powerset doesn’t do searches based just on keywords alone. Instead, it tries to understand the search phrase as a whole. The reviews have been mixed, Techcrunch commentors seem to like it enough. Crunchbase people have tried it and are disappointed.
I think it looks good, sounds good. But I could be getting ahead of myself seeing as I have yet to try it. But if it ends up delivering, then it could give Google a run for its money. It also sounds like a great opportunity for everyone, especially technological marketers to learn more about their targets.
0 Comments
Based in San Francisco, Powerset is apparently a new kind of search engine that will understand the natural language searches rather than keyword searching. It is due to launch in “coming weeks” according to Michael Arrington.
This sounds all sorts of awesome because what “natural language searches” means is that Powerset doesn’t do searches based just on keywords alone. Instead, it tries to understand the search phrase as a whole. The reviews have been mixed, Techcrunch commentors seem to like it enough. Crunchbase people have tried it and are disappointed.
I think it looks good, sounds good. But I could be getting ahead of myself seeing as I have yet to try it. But if it ends up delivering, then it could give Google a run for its money. It also sounds like a great opportunity for everyone, especially technological marketers to learn more about their targets.
Possibly The Most Ridiculous DMCA Take Down Yet
on 20080404 at 11:59 PM.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/04/05/possibly-the-most-ridiculous-dmca-take-down-yet
The anonymity of the internet can bring out the worst in people. You are bound to run into someting you don't like eventually. And what do you do if you find something you don't like on the Internet? You send a notice to the DMCA to get it taken down. Of course, because this is the internet, even the notices sent to the DMCA can be fake.
“Scorpio Music sent a letter to Yahoo (presumably a DMCA notice) that stated a video created by Loren Feldman infringed on copyrighted material they control. The alleged infringement is over the use of the YMCA song by the Village People.” (Michael Arrington)
The video though, doesn’t actually play the song anywhere in it. Instead, the issue is that a a puppet sings one line of the song. Actually, I watched the video (found here on YouTube) and the puppets never actually sing the song. They say the letters “YMCA” in a tune (that is not quite the same as the original). Its safe under fair use.
Yeah.
What.
Yahoo takes down the video and Feldman gets an email from them reminding him that they can terminate his account. Wow, excessive much?
What I want to know is how Yahoo processes DMCA notices. How do they check to see if a DMCA claim is valid?
Interesting how much criticism Yahoo has been getting lately. I would have thought that Yahoo would have started to take closer look at things before jumping all over DMCA notices and angering their users given the past circumstances with a certain Chinese blogger.
0 Comments
The anonymity of the internet can bring out the worst in people. You are bound to run into someting you don't like eventually. And what do you do if you find something you don't like on the Internet? You send a notice to the DMCA to get it taken down. Of course, because this is the internet, even the notices sent to the DMCA can be fake.
“Scorpio Music sent a letter to Yahoo (presumably a DMCA notice) that stated a video created by Loren Feldman infringed on copyrighted material they control. The alleged infringement is over the use of the YMCA song by the Village People.” (Michael Arrington)
The video though, doesn’t actually play the song anywhere in it. Instead, the issue is that a a puppet sings one line of the song. Actually, I watched the video (found here on YouTube) and the puppets never actually sing the song. They say the letters “YMCA” in a tune (that is not quite the same as the original). Its safe under fair use.
Yeah.
What.
Yahoo takes down the video and Feldman gets an email from them reminding him that they can terminate his account. Wow, excessive much?
What I want to know is how Yahoo processes DMCA notices. How do they check to see if a DMCA claim is valid?
Interesting how much criticism Yahoo has been getting lately. I would have thought that Yahoo would have started to take closer look at things before jumping all over DMCA notices and angering their users given the past circumstances with a certain Chinese blogger.
Yahoo Can't Find the Pirate Bay
on 20080218 at 6:17 PM.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/18/yahoo-cant-find-the-pirate-bay
Why don't you just move yourself to China, Yahoo?
The Pirate Bay is one of many large BitTorrent tracker indexes and known well in the online file sharing community. The Pirate Bay allows users to search for and download torent files which contain the information necessary for users to then download the data files from other users. This includes torrents to unlicensed copies of copyrighted material.
It apparently depends on what you mean by Yahoo!
Different countries have different search engine result pages, just like how information on Falun Gong will come up on US googles, the actual Pirate Bay website will come up on Yahoo!Canada where as if I went to Yahoo.com while on SFSU campus the first result is a wikipedia entry about The Pirate Bay. Comments are reporting that its not only filtered in the US though, places like Denmark, Japan, Toronto, Sweden, Israel, Spain...
Not only is Yahoo blocking the actual Pirate Bay site from turning up on the results page the registration confirmation email from The Priate Bay won't reach your yahoo.com account either if that is the email you tried to register with.
On the other hand though, those who argue that the people who use The Pirate Bay probably don't find it via yahoo search have a point. People who don't know the url to The Pirate Bay probably likely don't care/use it. If you type in things like 'pirate' and 'torrent' you would still get websites that mention The Pirate Bay and what it is. There's still some information there, it is only the site's direct url that's been blocked. But is this the first step you take to the authoritarian web?
0 Comments
Why don't you just move yourself to China, Yahoo?
The Pirate Bay is one of many large BitTorrent tracker indexes and known well in the online file sharing community. The Pirate Bay allows users to search for and download torent files which contain the information necessary for users to then download the data files from other users. This includes torrents to unlicensed copies of copyrighted material.
It apparently depends on what you mean by Yahoo!
Different countries have different search engine result pages, just like how information on Falun Gong will come up on US googles, the actual Pirate Bay website will come up on Yahoo!Canada where as if I went to Yahoo.com while on SFSU campus the first result is a wikipedia entry about The Pirate Bay. Comments are reporting that its not only filtered in the US though, places like Denmark, Japan, Toronto, Sweden, Israel, Spain...
Not only is Yahoo blocking the actual Pirate Bay site from turning up on the results page the registration confirmation email from The Priate Bay won't reach your yahoo.com account either if that is the email you tried to register with.
On the other hand though, those who argue that the people who use The Pirate Bay probably don't find it via yahoo search have a point. People who don't know the url to The Pirate Bay probably likely don't care/use it. If you type in things like 'pirate' and 'torrent' you would still get websites that mention The Pirate Bay and what it is. There's still some information there, it is only the site's direct url that's been blocked. But is this the first step you take to the authoritarian web?
on Innovation
on 20080204 at 5:49 PM.
'Innovation In a Flash' Is a Myth
http://science.slashdot.org/science/08/02/04/0759258.shtml
The article looks at the origins of new ideas, and attempts to dispel the myth behind that suddenly hopping out of bed in the middle of the night ah-ha! moment.
Innovation always involves using stuff other people have made. To focus on that one light bulb suddenly going off is missing the point. No one suddenly creates changes, the process is always incremental. Everything is the result of a gathering collection of other things come together.
For example, in order to get an iPod, Apple needed someone to create .mp3s and mp3 players. In order to get mp3s we had to have mpeg-1's and on the list goes.
0 Comments
http://science.slashdot.org/science/08/02/04/0759258.shtml
An anonymous reader writes:
"A New York Times article spells out what most of us probably already knew: real innovation takes lots of time and hard work to come to fruition."
-- from slashdot
The article looks at the origins of new ideas, and attempts to dispel the myth behind that suddenly hopping out of bed in the middle of the night ah-ha! moment.
Innovation always involves using stuff other people have made. To focus on that one light bulb suddenly going off is missing the point. No one suddenly creates changes, the process is always incremental. Everything is the result of a gathering collection of other things come together.
For example, in order to get an iPod, Apple needed someone to create .mp3s and mp3 players. In order to get mp3s we had to have mpeg-1's and on the list goes.
