Friday, October 3, 2003 A brighter outlook for handheld screens? Japanese company Omron develops a technology that it says makes handheld screens brighter and clearer while consuming less power. [CNET News.com] 7:47:14 AM    comment [] Bad news for bookstores: instantly check Amazon prices with a cameraphone I'm not sure who decided that this is a nightmare for B&N. I look at it more like a good dose of competition. I can check to see if the book I'm looking for is a good deal and then also weigh the advantage of taking the book home with me as I'm standing there looking at it or waiting until I get home and ordering it on-line. It appears to be a no brainer to me. This is Barnes & Noble's worst nightmare: a company called NeoMedia has new application for Nokia cameraphones called PaperClick that let's you walk into any bookstore, take a picture of any book's ISBN, and automatically get its pricing information from Amazon. It's bad news for any bookstore, but something like this is especially troublesome for independent booksellers who are having a hard enough time competing with Amazon as it is. Will bookstores be the next places to ban cameraphones? Read [Via PicturePhoning.com]... [Gizmodo] 6:01:20 AM    comment [] Charrette Center This week's featured content is the portal of community-based urban design at CharretteCenter.net. The site includes resources and articles, all carrying Creative Commons licenses, to help the planning and construction of future urban areas. [Creative Commons: weblog] 5:54:40 AM    comment [] Toyota Says Hybrids Can Be Cheap So who is the first Auto Rental Company that will feature a fleet of these for the traveling public? It appears to me that there is a niche market here that someone needs to jump on. The Japanese auto giant gives reporters a sneak peek at its Prius production line, saying the fast-selling, fuel-saving gasoline-electric vehicles can be manufactured cost-effectively. [Wired News] 5:49:13 AM    comment []