As we wait for the Supreme Court's decision in the MGM/Grokster case, Brad Hutchings wants to preserve some of the grey areas in copyright. Y'all don't fight too much while I'm at ICS next week. [Hack the Planet]

 

8:34:47 AM    

 

Brief: Oracle buys information search and retrieval software. Oracle is building up its search capabilities and said it will incorporate some of TripleHop's search software into its products. [Computerworld News]

 

8:33:21 AM    

 

700,000 download Beethoven. Nearly 700 thousand Radio 3 listeners download Beethoven's first five symphonies. [BBC News | Technology | UK Edition]

 

8:32:32 AM    

 

How Skype and Kazaa changed the net. Niklas Zennström, Kazaa and Skype co-founder, talks to the BBC about the impact of the two programs. [BBC News | Technology | UK Edition]

 

8:30:39 AM    

 

A pro camera that amateurs can afford. Digital SLR cameras keep getting cheaper. Nikon's latest, the D50, brings SLR quality into the $750 price range. [CNET News.com]

 

8:29:59 AM    

 

After College, What Type of Jobs Should One Seek?. Sushant Bhatia asks: "I'm coming to the end of my Masters degree, and I'm on the prowl for jobs. However, there are so many types out there it's just overwhelming for someone who's never had to go through the job-hunting process before. So, what should I do? Should I go for a full-time, contract, half-time, or something else? Also, what kind of position should a person with a Master's in Computer Science be looking for (other than dish washer)? I've been looking at senior software developer positions, but is that too high up the ladder for someone 'fresh' to cope with? My current manager (research lab) says that 'You should always find a job that is above your skill level so that you can learn and be challenged.' I think he's right, but is that something Slashdot readers agree with? What was your job coming out of university?" [Slashdot]

 

8:29:06 AM    

 

Beginner's Guide to Linux Distros. Martin writes "TipMonkies has a nice overview of various Linux distros for those of you with little time to research each distro yourself. The article also discusses some of the advantages/disadvantages of each distro." From the article: "SUSE- The 'U' is hard and the 'E' is soft. Almost like the word sue with an S on the end. SUSE is the other big commercial distro. It was when it was still it's own company in Germany, and now even bigger since being purchased by Novell." [Slashdot]

 

8:26:36 AM    

 

Digital Clock as Thin as Paper. Elitist_Phoenix writes "Citizen Watch has created a clock that is Paper thin! This unique design is enabled by E Ink Imaging Film. In addition to the fact that no backlighting is required, the display also has an inherently stable memory effect which requires no power to maintain an image - both of which drastically increase the battery life. The result is 1/100 the power consumption of traditional display options. Citizen Watch Co. and T.I.C.-Citizen Co. have not yet announced a launch date for this product, but it is expected to be commercialized in Japan in 2005."[Slashdot]

 

8:25:38 AM    

 

Intel builds all-in-one wireless radio package.

Researchers at Intel have figured out how to integrate all the elements needed to connect to wireless local area networks into a compact package, the company is expected to announce Friday at The VLSI Symposium in Japan.

Many companies have already built Wi-Fi chips that support the 802.11a/b/g standards, but those products require several other chips built onto the motherboard in order to connect to wireless networks.

Intel has now integrated components such as power amplifiers onto a single piece of silicon. It has also built connections from the amplifiers to external radio antennas on a single transceiver package, connections that used to be made with multiple pieces of silicon located outside the package, said Howard High, an Intel spokesman. A transceiver is a chip that can both transmit and receive signals.

The device currently supports 802.11a/b/g, but it should have enough bandwidth to also support the forthcoming 802.11n standard, High said. Intel believes the integrated design will help customers build cheaper and more power efficient devices, he said.

In order to build this package, Intel researchers had to solve several problems presented by an integrated design. For example, they had to figure out how to keep the power amplifier from interfering with the radio signal, High said.

By eliminating as many discrete chips as possible, Intel was able to reduce the power consumption of the package and lower the cost of building wireless networking technology into a notebook, mobile phone, or personal digital assistant, Intel researchers said in a paper outlining their accomplishment.

Intel will showcase the prototype at the 2005 VLSI Symposium, an annual conference highlighting advances in semiconductor research. Intel, IBM, Advanced Micro Devices, Freescale Semiconductor, Nvidia, and many other chip companies have presented research at the conference, which ends Saturday.

[InfoWorld: Top News]

8:22:59 AM