The UK Technology Summit 2003 has added more names to its list of speakers. I'm not able to attend, but if I was I would lend an ear to Mike Lynch, CEO of Autonomy and David Levin from Symbian.
List of other events that might be worth your time.
Good story on how "businesses move to clear up clogged networks, security risks and legal liability".
Hollywood is blaming bad box office performances for movies like Charlie's Angels Full Throttle and Gigli on...text messaging!
"The problem, they say, is teenagers who instant message their friends with their verdict on new films - sometimes while they are still in the cinema watching - and so scuppering carefully crafted marketing campaigns designed to lure audiences out to a big movie on its opening weekend."
Now that's good entertainment! ;)
More on this story from LA Times.
Another small sign that Netflix might be heading for online pop cultural stardom beyond its intentions just like eBay.
After the t-shirts, the name checking (by a rap artist, not sure who but the song plays frequently on radio here in the San Francisco Bay Area) and occasional fan sites comes this piece of software. Netflix Fanatic lets users (running Mac OS X 10.2 or above) re-order their Netflix rental queue, search it, look up their full rental history etc. Pretty cool and a true celebration of tech and movie geekiness!
"Users have to upgrade to the latest versions of MSN or Windows Messenger by Oct. 15 or they will no longer be able to log on, Microsoft spokesman Sean Sundwall said. The upgrade is required because of "security issues" with the older versions of the Messenger clients, he said, declining to specify those issues."
Upgrading and not being backwards compatible is rarely a problem when it comes to free software. I'm just curious exactly why MS is making this move. I'm sure we'll find out over the next few days.
"Besides those older Messenger clients, the move also affects IM software such as Trillian, Imici and Odigo that allow users to consolidate multiple IM accounts in one client, Sundwall said."
According to this story MS is "interested in interoperating with all third parties". I hope they take this opportunity to make it happen. Everyone, I repeat _everyone_, will be a winner when the different IM applications (from Yahoo, AOL etc) are able to connect to each other. But that's another story (and one that I have covered in columns for both CIO Sweden and Irish Times) for another time.
"Affordable and compact digital cameras are being snapped up by Europeans, according to new figures. More than double the number of digital cameras were sold in western Europe in 2002 than the previous year, said research group IDC."
Interesting read on digital imaging and how cell phones are, according to one quote, helping to fule camera sales.
Is "one" the new "i", previously known as the new "e"? RealPlayer became RealOne, now Palm Inc will be known as PalmOne.
The new US PalmOne site
Oh how annoying! PKWare, based in Wisconsin, have released a new version of their compression utility PKZip. Unfortunately "the new version and a subsequent update include advanced security features that--for now--are exclusive to PKWare."
This would be ok weren't they still using the .zip extension!
WinZip, the company behind the most popular Zip utility, have now released a new version of their software. "The WinZip update includes similar security extensions, but they're based on different encryption keys that are incompatible with PKWare's format."
The problem is that PKZip won't give WinZip access to its encryption scheme (WinZip gives other developers access to their scheme).
In other words, incompability and confussion is on the horizon for .zip. The solution: either replace .zip with another extension to indicate the enhanced security (and incompability) or start sharing some crucial encryption information.
Darryl Lovato at Aladdin Systems nails it when he says " "They've broken the only thing Zip still had going for it, which was ultimate compatibility".
It'll be interesting to see how all of this unfolds.
In the article on CNET News Amy Wohl, an independent tech analyst, claims that the .zip format might be obsolotete because of the demise of floppy disks. "Wohl said that much of the value of the Zip format had rested on the ability to shrink files so they could fit on a floppy disk. With recordable CD disks and USB (universal serial bus) drives close to rendering floppies obsolete, "a lot of the reason for using .zip...has sort of evaporated".
I disagree. I'd say that other uses for Zip have long since overtaken its original use. Zip-ing files before e-mailing them is crucial when the recepient has a small-ish mailbox. Zip-ing is also widely used when offering files for downloads from websites. Plus, it's a great way to protect a file from getting corrupted in transit.
The concept of Extreme Programming, or XP, has been a factor in the world of programming for a few years. In the September issue of Wired, Martha Baer takes a look at XP and how it is moving from the fringes in to the main stream. And what the non-devoted have to say about it all.
I also like the May 2002 Salon piece on XP.
More on XP (both for and against):
Extreme Programming: A gentle introduction
Yahoo! Groups ; extreprogramming
Martin Fowler on XP
Extreme Programming explained: What we really think of XP.
The TypePad Preview release went live yesterday.
Looking at the comparison chart I can't help but think that even the basic option is overloaded. A person new to blogging (and yes the $4.95/m "Basic" package is intended for them) will most likely feel a tad overwhelmed by the features and tech lingo.
(Yes yes I know that saying _anything_ even remotely negative about TypePad right now is a major faux pas over here on the West Coast , but I'll take my chanses.)
On the other hand, more experinced bloggers will love the options and features. But probably not the price. I find $14.95/month to be a bit steep even for the "Pro" option.
My previous postings on TypePad:
TypePad - Thursday, May 29, 2003
TypePad - Wednesday, April 23, 2003
A good piece of software from SweetCocoa.
"LapCop 2 will automatically detect when [a Mac] has been stolen and goes into 'alarm mode.' When it's connected using a modem, Ethernet or wireless network, it sends the stealth e-mail."
No news in this story for IT pros. But it's a good piece to direct less informed friends and associates to who want to read about businesses using IM. Btw, who'd thought burger flippers Carl's Jr were IM/EIM fans?
Orvet Digital
About Jaan Orvet
Disclaimer
Copyright © 1995-2007 Orvet Digital, LLC
Subscribe