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June 20th, 2009UncategorizedLots of people have pointed out that one of the massive downsides of an eBook device like the Kindle is that you don't actually own the books you bought. Unlike a real book, you can't share it with a friend, resell it or donate it to the local library. And, in some cases, you can lose access to books you thought you "owned," based on the whims of employees at Amazon deciding you somehow abused their system. One of the big controversies over the Kindle was the TTS feature, which the Authors Guild claimed (without a shred of legal evidence) violated its rights. The Authors Guild had no claim here. It doesn't violate performance rights, because reading aloud isn't a performance. It doesn't violate copyright, because there's no fixed copy made -- and if it did violate copyright, so would reading a book aloud. Yet, for no clear reason, Amazon caved in and agreed to take away this feature.
Mark alerts us to the news that, as of May 13th, Amazon began remotely disabling the feature for certain eBooks, including many popular titles. In other words, Amazon remotely took away a feature that you used to have. That doesn't happen with a physical book. Random House doesn't get to say "oh, wait, we're now taking away the ability to dog ear pages." I love the concept of eBooks, but it's quite troubling that you don't actually get ownership of the eBooks you're buying -- and that Amazon can, at its own discretion, suddenly take away valuable features from books you had already purchased.
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June 19th, 2009Uncategorized
Here’s a neat idea: use your iPhone to record an audio excerpt - something along the lines of “Captain’s Log, Stardate 43198.7. We’ve encountered a strange anomaly.” - and publish it on Twitter right away. TweetMic is an iPhone application that does exactly that; you can record high-quality audio excerpts - tweetcasts - and tweet them without ever having to type anything.
The interface is simple: click on “record,” talk (you don’t really have to talk, you can play an instrument, a lute, for example), click “publish” and that’s it. If you want to overwrite a tweetcast you’ve just recorded, hit record again. Your audio files can be as long as you want (and your iPhone’s memory permits), and they’re hosted on TweetMic’s servers, where you can find (and delete, if you like) them at any time. You can also navigate and listen to your published tweetcasts directly from your iPhone.
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June 18th, 2009UncategorizedVisa is testing a new type of credit card that's got additional security measures built in as a means of cutting down on "card not present" (CNP) fraud -- the fraudulent sales rung up using stolen credit-card numbers and the security codes that are normally printed on the cards. Visa's new cards have a small screen on the back that displays a six-digit code when the cardholder enters a PIN on the card's keypad, making it sound like Visa has basically built in a tiny version of something akin to the SecurID, a popular two-factor authentication device for corporate computer networks. The devices generate an additional one-time password using an algorithm synced with the system on the other end; the user enters this password when they attempt to log on, or in Visa's case, make a CNP transaction. If the passwords match, the transaction goes ahead. It sounds like a good way to cut down on CNP fraud, but is it just a way to try and gloss over the massive data leaks that see millions of credit-card numbers lost out into the world? It almost seems that if these new anti-fraud cards make it to market, the party line will be "the data leaks don't matter anymore" -- but criminals will still be able to obtain credit-card numbers and make fake cards with the stolen info (for card-present fraud). It might make criminals' lives a little more difficult, but it won't make credit-card fraud impossible. Raising the level of security on credit cards is, without question, a good thing. But unless it involves doing more to stop massive data leaks, it's not enough.
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June 17th, 2009Uncategorized
In their own words
“Read the content minus the design, advert and others; basically just the text.”
Why it might be a killer
This solution will save people’s time because they will get only the information they want.
What it does
Bookmarking your favorite sites is a good idea if you are looking forward to saving the main sources of information where you get your preferred content from.
This is an online resource that was created in order to give users this service: the possibility to bookmark their favorite content very simply.
In case you want to start using this solution you just need to register for a free account. You will not be required to enter any password or anything like that. However you will have to enter a name or email address: after you access the site, you will have the chance to drag a bookmarklet to your browser toolbar.
This system is very simple and easy to use. But, which is the main difference between this solution and other similar ones? That is a good question that should be answered right now.
Let’s say you visit a site you like and you want to read it only in text version. The only thing you have to do is to click the bookmarklet, highlight the text from the site and its content will be instantly added to your Alltextpaper page. Simple and clear, this is a solution that will save you time and more time.
Some questions
Is there any other service available?
Link: http://www.alltextpaper.com
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June 16th, 2009Uncategorized
In their own words
“This free Firefox AddOn brings soccer to your browser. Be up to date with over 200 leagues and cups from 60 countries: FootieFox informs you about every goal scored in real time.”
Why it might be a killer
This is going to be an attractive way to get all the information about the most popular sport in the world.
What it does
Football or Soccer, no matter how do you want to call it, this is the most popular game in the world. As you already know, there are thousands of matches played worldwide every weekend.
This site is an appealing option that will be very interesting and effective when it comes to getting the appropriate answers to your questions about Sunday’s football. This site will give you the chance to get the latest results in your Firefox browser.
One of the coolest things about this solution is the fact that it will provide users with the latest results and news about football in more than 200 leagues in 60 different countries. The site sends real time alerts whenever your team scores a goal.
Footiefox.com has an impressive database that has all the information you need about the wonderful world of football. This is going to be very attractive given the number of goals that are scored every weekend. Therefore if you want to know more about the Bundesliga, the Premier English League, the Serie A, the Liga and many other leagues, you will find it all at Footiefox.com.
In case you want to get more information about this site, you can do it at En.Footiefox.com.
Some questions
Is there any information about minor divisions?
Link: http://en.footiefox.com
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June 15th, 2009Uncategorized
In their own words
“Blerp allows you to start discussions right on top of your favorite websites. Unlike typical web comments, you are in full control. You can post on any webpage you choose, regardless of whether they permit user feedback. You can also share your blerps with your friends. In this way, blerping becomes a social experience, where you can track what your friends are saying all across the web, and they can follow your conversations and join in at any time.”
Why it might be a killer
It is an interesting way to exchange information with others and turn the web into something akin to a live wire.
What it does
Blerp is a new and interesting service that will let anybody annotate the web. The use of such a service is that it makes user interaction possible everywhere - even in those sites that do not allow users to participate or post feedback in any way. It could be said that Blerp transforms the WWW into a great and open forum where everybody can express himself.
This form of expression is not limited to just plain text - far from it, you can make rich comments featuring videos and pictures alongside the text, or upload just an image or a video as the comment itself. After all, an image can truly paint a thousand words.
As it is only natural, you can follow your friends and see what they are blerping about. If you happen to find a discussion that takes your fancy, you can climb aboard whenever you wish and discuss the best sites with them.
As a service, this is quite well-executed and easy to get to grips with. I have said it many times before, but I am afraid that I just will have to repeat myself: anything that has a social aura to it proves to do well, or at least make some waves. Having put it to the test, I think Blerp will achieve both aims.
Some questions
Is this service provided free of charge? If so, will it always be free?
Link: http://www.blerp.com
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June 14th, 2009UncategorizedIf you are looking into arranging a second-to-none trip but your budget is weighing you down, then chances are this website will be just what you need to get through. Essentially, it is an online search engine that will let you come across flight and hotel sales alongside vacation packages. All you have to do is specify the point you are departing from along with the date you intend to set off, and hit the “Find Sales” button.
Alternatively, you can have a look at the hottest destinations right now, and you can also browse through a section that highlights the most popular vacation sales as of late. In every case, you can learn about the featured destinations not only through photographs but you can also read weather information alongside a full list of the features and amenities of each hotel.
On the whole, quite a convenient service for those after a memorable vacation either in North America or the Caribbean. If that applies to you, simply pay it a visit and chances are you will start packing up your bags before you imagined.
In their own words
“The best sales and offers from your city!”
Why it might be a killer
Any person who is considering making a travel somewhere and who has to keep an eye on his budget will appreciate such a service being available.
Some questions
Are other destinations covered besides the ones mentioned above?
Link: http://www.voyij.com
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June 13th, 2009Uncategorized
Android phones: WeFi, the social-style free Wi-Fi finder, has released a free app to the Android Market that can automatically connect your phone to the strongest, free hotspot, saving you quite a few clicks.It's similar to how the previously mentioned Windows version works. As WeFi users travel and use the firm's software/toolbar/phone apps to connect to Wi-Fi spots, the signal strength and ease of access is reported back to WeFi. The potential for dodgy data collection remains, but the app for Android does seem to make it much easier to just grab a signal at the airport and be on your way, as opposed to opening a system menu (or even an app like Useful Switchers), turning on Wi-Fi, choosing a connection, waiting to see if it's free-but-actually-paid or requiring a click-through web page, and so on. The WeFi app even appears to have some background capability to auto-start your Wi-Fi and connect to a good spot when it's in range.
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June 12th, 2009Uncategorized
I’ve played a lot of games on Facebook over the past couple years and many of them have been absolutely horrendous. Once in a while a great one comes along though and Farmtown appears to be just that. Over the past few weeks Farmtown has jumped in traffic to become one of the top 15 largest Facebook applications. What’s even more impressive is that 50 percent of those visitors keep coming back every single day.
It’s a rare game that is able to retain 50 percent of their users and I can understand why Farmtown is able to do that. The idea behind Farmtown is that users are given their own farm in which they can plow their fields, plant seeds, harvest crops (to sell), raise animals, and essentially build an entire farm from scratch. The game is somewhat addictive and best of all, if you’d like to know when your crops are ready for harvesting you can turn on email alerts to get notified.Farmtown also presents a basic virtual world in which users can interact with other users in real-time. Want to just chat with other users to discuss strategies? Head on over to the local Inn. Want to hire some helping hands for your farm? Go to the marketplace to find some people who can help. It’s a fairly basic game but it can quickly become addictive as you strive to earn more money to build up your farm.
So far in the game I’ve only grown rice, grapes, potatoes, and tomatoes. And yes, my tomatoes bring all the girls to the yard. If you try out the game, make sure that you don’t grow grapes if you don’t plan on checking back every couple hours because the crops go bad quickly. As you progress through the game new challenges will appear, such as crows that eat your crops.
Thankfully you can purchase a scarecrow to make sure the crows never come around. I’m honestly not quite sure what a lot of the other items are for since I’ve only spent a day trying out the game but I’m warning you that the game can quickly become addictive. If you are looking for a good way to waste some time, check out the Farmtown application.
Farmtown Farm Screenshot
Farmtown Inn Screenshot
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June 11th, 2009Uncategorized
Facebook is censoring private messages between its users, preventing them from sharing links from The Pirate Bay file-sharing site. Civil liberties lawyers say it could violate the law, but Facebook says its no different than blocking spam.