random fluff

Seems like time to trade in my iPAQ 3955

Fri, 10 Oct 2003 16:41:08 GMT

Dell Axim X3 To Launch October 15. "The Round Rock, Texas-based company will introduce its Axim X3 in a press conference scheduled for this coming Wednesday, it said in an e-mail Thursday. The new handheld, which Dell has said will be thinner and lighter than its current device, the Axim X5, will be the first Dell handheld to come with wireless capabilities. Documents the Federal Communications Commission issued this month suggest that Dell will market two versions of the Axim X3--one with wireless and one without. The more expensive of the two will likely cost about $325. It is expected to include a faster processor and 802.11 wireless connectivity. The Axim X3 without wireless connectivity is expected to cost about $200. " You can already see pictures of it on Dell's site with a "Coming Soon" caption. [Pocket PC Thoughts]

Trillian is connected to Yahoo IM again

Fri, 10 Oct 2003 09:06:34 GMT

Thank you, Cerulean! How about those IM standards? The FCC did a nice job when it considered the AOL Time/Warner merger. The only thing they asked for was for AOL to join an industry effort at standardizing IM protocols. Three years later were still doing this nonsense . . . Trillian connects with Yahoo yet again. Cerulean Studios' popular instant-messaging software releases a new patch that should allow its users to regain connectivity with Yahoo Messenger. [CNET News.com - Front Door]

If you can't beat em . . . sue em!

Fri, 10 Oct 2003 09:03:46 GMT

Student faces suit over key to CD locks. Antipiracy technology developer SunnComm says it will likely sue Princeton student who showed how to break its CD copy protection by pushing the Shift key. [CNET News.com - Front Door]

Parents sue over use of WiFi in schools

Fri, 10 Oct 2003 09:02:55 GMT

Parents sue school district for Wi-Fi use. Parents of students take action against an Illinois school district for using Wi-Fi in classrooms, claiming that exposure to the low-level radio waves may damage students' health. [CNET News.com - Front Door]

Parking fines hit £165m a year

Wed, 08 Oct 2003 01:20:31 GMT

According to the BBC: Parking fines hit £165m a year. Motorists paid £165 million in parking fines last year because a lack of spaces forced them to park illegally, a survey has shown. Now, doing a little math here . . . there are a little more than 40 million adults between the ages of 18 and 65 in England. Supposing that 80% of those people actually drive cars, the 165 million pounds sterling is divided between about 32 million people. That would mean parking fines of about $8.50 for every driver on an annual basis. That doesn't seem like news to someone who recently paid $75 in parking tickets. [BBC News | News Front Page | UK Edition]

Microsoft, Amazon parner on Web services

Wed, 08 Oct 2003 00:30:01 GMT

This is all very interesting: Microsoft, Amazon partner on Web services. "Microsoft and Amazon.com will launch a service this quarter that will enable users of Microsoft Office System applications to access Amazon products and data without a Web browser." But! What we really want is for Microsoft to partner on information services . . . not commercial services. I can imagine a link between InfoPath and RSS feeds that would make it possible for a office worker to type in a phrase on a web form and get leveraged information from throughout the web in return. Add a Googleish scoring system and you would have a real "information product" as a web service. [Computerworld News]

What's in a name?

Tue, 07 Oct 2003 18:24:47 GMT

Why do my friends call the British cut rate air carrier named "EasyJet" SleasyJet? I thought EasyJet was just fine on a recent trip to Liverpool. Discount air travel boom continues. Business: The boom in low-cost air travel shows little sign of easing, according to figures released by two major players in the sector today. [Guardian Unlimited]

Does this scale?

Tue, 07 Oct 2003 18:19:27 GMT

Here's my unsophisticated question: does this mean that any country can invade or attack another country -- and expect the tacit approval of the US government -- as long as they do so in the interests of "combating terrorism?" If a country thought that the United States sponsored terrorism (no hard evidence needed, apparently) they have the right to "defend themselves?" Bush Tells Israel It Has the Right to Defend Itself [New York Times: International News]

Please! Stop it!

Tue, 07 Oct 2003 18:14:09 GMT

Please! Stop it! The visitor wants control of the online experience. Putting it in the hands of Disney is a non-starter. 'Datacasting' Refuses to Die. Disney and Microsoft resurrect the decades-old technology -- labeled a bust in the '80s and again during the dot-com era -- to offer services such as on-demand movies and smart wristwatches. By Elisa Batista. [Wired News]

Is Losing the World Cup the End of the World?

Tue, 07 Oct 2003 18:12:11 GMT

The United States women's side lost an interesting game to Germany over the weekend. The 11-year-old female soccer player in my family wasn't engaged with the tournament; instead she was focused on something else: playing on her own team. Cup Defeat Reflects End of Era for U.S.. Not only did this 2003 World Cup end prematurely for the Americans, but also perhaps a groundbreaking era. By Jere Longman. [New York Times: Sports]