TypePad

The people at Six Apart (the husband and wife team Ben and Mena G. Trott) are launching TypePad, a consumer friendly verison of their (user unfriendly) Moveable Type blogging software.

"TypePad is an upcoming hosted service providing powerful tools for creating full-featured weblogs. Built in response to the needs of webloggers, online diarists and writers, TypePad harnesses the power of Six Apart's popular Movable Type personal publishing system into a turnkey service, suitable for beginners and experts alike."

As TypePad is not released until May it's to early to say if it will becom an interesting option for the average blogger or not. The mind share of Blogger.com is huge and combined with that of its owner, Google, any competitor must be prep'd for a long and hard battle.

According to Ben Hammersley at The Guardian, TypePad's strength lays in its set of features. Personally I'm curious to see how TypePad manages its Moveable Type heritage and what pricing models will be on offer.

Palm Products - Tungsten C Handheld

Today Palm Inc. finally released a PDA with built in Wi-fi. Why did it take so long? A decline in PDA sales stifling innovation might be the culprit, but then again, the company also managed to release a new Zire (consumer) PDA with a built-in camera and othet goodies this week. Weak corporate sales? If so, you bet they are weak if you refuse to put out a product that incorporates 802.11b capabilities.

Either way, lets hope the demand turns in to sales as the Palm OS fan community needs and deserves a Wi-Fi enabled device.

Update: Unfortunately my blog provider, Blogger.com, is having some server issues today. All of my archives might not currently be available. Sorry.

Zinio.com

I'm trying out a piece of software called Zinio Reader. In short, it lets you flip through the pages of your favorite magazines just as you would in real life.

My trial did not get off to a good start. The Zinio site asked me to register two separate e-mail addresses to allow access to the demo file (a recent issue of MacWorld-US edition)! Unfortunately, the site then informed me that there was no file to download. I had to contact customer service (quick reply, even during Easter was impressive) to be able to download the magazine.

Unless you have a high spec machine, the Zinio-ed magazine pages will turn slowly and it will take a second or three extra before they come in to focus. Secondly, to be able to read the text and enjoy the full-spread effect of a magazine on your laptop you need at least a 15" or 17" screen. On my 12" iBook, I had to either constantly scroll up and down, or zoom in and out.

The people at Zinio, and the magazines that publish in this format, need to do a better job of explaining why I should want to read my favorite magz' in this manner. Mobility and access are not good enough reasons. But I do like the fact that Zinio allows me to easily archive my magazines.

I'll award Zinio Reader 2 out of 5 for having impressive customer service and for offering good publications.

T-Mobile, Kinko's hook up for hot spots | CNET News.com

Finally, Wi-fi is coming to Kinko's. T-Mobile are un-wiring 1100 Kinko's stores for a Q4 2003 roll out.

Report: Apple may buy Universal Music | CNET News.com

This makes sense. Apple has moved towards becoming a digital media company for some time. And after all, Limp Bizkit are said to be Mac fans so they'll probably support the rumoured deal.

Updated: On Wednesday 4/15/03 Apple denied any interest in buying Universal.

Chain won't use ID chips / Retailer pulls high-tech plan

I have a high degree of respect for privacy advocates. But sometimes I don't know wether to laugh or cry. The storm that errupted over Benetton's planned use of RFID chips in their clothes as a way of tracking inventory is just plain silly.

"Some privacy advocates have voiced concerns that the chips would follow shoppers home, possibly tracking their movements if the radio signal is powerful enough, transmitting personal information without consent. " (San Francisco Chronicle).

Oh get real, please! Does anyone really think that companies or governments would invest in hard ware and manpower to scan public places and/or neighborhoods to track customer movements? There are more pressing concerns relating to privacy that need attention from passionate people. Attacking the use of RFIS because it might, potentially (and in this case it REALLY is a strectch), be used the wrong way is just...plain silly!

Think Secret - New iPod design with dock, 30GB model due by month's end

According to the people at ThinkSecret Apple looks set to launch its much awaited music service at the same time as it upgrades the iPod range with a 30GB model.

No word yet on which, if any, new or upgraded software will be included.

Wired Magazine Issue 11.05 UNWIRED

The "Unwired" special report runs as a supplement to Wired 11.05. Some features are very basic and of limited use to people with high levels of knowledge and industry involvement. On the other hand, it's good to be reminded about the basics.

Get a few extra copies and distribute them to people that need to get up to speed on Wi-fi.

Disconnects on Wi-Fi and cell phones- Tech News - CNET.com

It is 30 years since the first cell phone call was placed. Martin Cooper, the inventor of the cell phone, talks to Ben Charny of CNET News about a host of issues including why it's so hard to send SMS messages in the US and why he too thinks Wi-fi is "wonderfull".

UpMyStreet » The real-life guide to your neighbourhood

One of the most usefull websites ever launched has run out of cash and is looking for a buyer. UK's UpMyStreet provides "street by street information on local schools, MPs, crime rates and house prices" (Guardian).

Who should buy UpMyStreet? The site would be a good complement to the BBC's "Where I Live" section.

Guardian Unlimited | Online | All features great and small

According to Neil McIntosh of The Guardian handheld computers are facing extinction from a new generation of smart phones.

I strongly disagree.

What most journalists don't cover in their articles, and McIntosh is no exception, is the level of functionality that PDAs offer over smart phones. Back-up features etc. are also usually ignored.

The key, how ever, is not what the media writes on the topic of personal information management. It is the industry belief that PDAs and cell phones make perfect bed fellows. They don't, not in their current form. We need to stop trying to combine everything in a single device. Phone + camera is a good idea as images can help in communicating. Phone + PDA with spread sheet tools etc...no.

Telia Homerun

Telia, the formerly state owned Swedish telecomms operator, have got it right when it comes to Wi-fi pricing in its HomeRun business unit. Three plans, three price levels. That's it. No per-minute mayhem or sub-standard sub-plans.

HomeRun also offers European roaming in partnership with a host of telco's including BT (UK) and Italy's Megabeam.