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Pocket Web Viewer …and nothing else!

While everyone wants to be able to surf from wherever they happen to be, I have a feeling that PocketSurfer isn’t the solution most of us are looking for.

On the pro side, the screen is an decent size and the speed optimization seems useful. Using a phone you (likely) already have for the communications is a nice modular concept, and allowing either Bluetooth or a cable connection should give the company a wide potential user base.

On the con side, the keyboard looks pretty iffy, and you have no local storage, which, however unnecessary it may be for many surfing, will put many people off. For one, it means you won’t be able to cache valuable information for use in places where your phone won’t work. Battery life of just 4-6 hours is also pretty poor compared with modern laptops, but perhaps carrying extra (proprietary?) batteries is an option. Finally, you must subscribe to their ISP (on top of cell phone charges) in order for this device to work.

At US$200 a pop, I could get a pretty decent PDA, so I think I’ll keep looking…

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FCC rules in favor of Internet Tivo Sharing

Looks like FCC has cleared the way for you to share your 10 Seasons of Tivo’d “Frazier” legally!

“The new technology would allow subscribers to download those broadcasts to their computers and then send copies of recorded shows to their offices, homes, or to different rooms within a home. A recording could also be sent to a few friends as long as they’re on the subscriber’s registered account.”

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The Retro Encabulator

[Ed Note: This video is hysterical. I like how it sorta starts reasoanble and then progressively decays into complete technobabble. -Gareth]

For a number of years work has been proceeding in order to bring
perfection to the crudely conceived idea of a machine that would not
only supply inverse reactive current for use in unilateral phase
detractors, but would also be capable of automatically synchronizing
cardinal grammeters. Check out this fascinating video on the topic. I think I need one for my data center.

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Happy SysAdmin Day, Tim!

Hey, did you know that today is SysAdmin Appreciation Day? Well, it is, and we owe a high-bandwith pipe’s worth o’ gratitude to OUR guy, Tim Tate, a.k.a. Tatertot, a.k.a. Timmy Tuner, a.k.a. the Potentato.

Thanks for all of the great VOLUNTEER work on Street Tech, Tim. You r00l!

[And readers: Don’t blame Tim for the site downtime. That part ain’t his fault and we ain’t ‘preciatin’ those whose fault it is (no offense or nothin’). You just ain’t getting the bouquet o’ red roses.]

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Make: It’s ReadyMade for geeks

Street Tech pal Mark Frauenfelder and O’Reilly Networks have just announced a new magazine they’re launching in early 2005. Make: will concentrate on DIY projects using technology. The first issue will have articles on kite aerial photography, a homemade steadycam, and other cool projects. I can’t wait.

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New iPod Announced

Apple is announcing a new iPod, the fourth generation of the wildly popular device that still reigns the hard-drive based MP3 category. The new device reportedly is a tad thinner, and is exactly the same design but for the scroll wheel (which is similar to that introduced on the mini iPod, and eliminates the need for the four play buttons, aka the “Click Wheel”), but will have 50% more playback time (with better power management) and will cost $100 less for both the 40 Gb and 20 Gb models (now $400 and $300 respectively). Details are sketchy, but the Apple store is currently under reconstruction, so the new models are expected to be for sale later today.

News of the new iPod broke as a Newsweek magazine cover and article on the topic leaked late yesterday on sources like MacRumors and Engadget.

Update: The store is now open, the new iPods are available for sale. the 15 Gb iPod is no longer available, and the 20 Gb model doesn’t come with the docking cradle anymore. The new units are now chargable by either Firewire or USB 2.0 too. Other updates include tweaks to the firmware, which allow easier access to the “shuffle” function, the creation of multiple on-the-go playlists, and adjustable playback speed for audio books.

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Custom Bionic Implants Manufactured While You Wait

PC Magazine is reporting about two new sites which, like online DIY publishing houses, places power in your hands previously only available to corporations and rich hobbyists. eMachineShop and Pad2Pad will manufacture machine parts and circuit boards, respectively, to your exact specifications. You design them on your desktop using their specialized software and in a few days your new custom components will be in your hands. How cool is that?

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Attention: Comic Book Geeks!

The Simpsons’ Comic Book Guy sez: “Best Pre-Chapter 11 Appeal EVER!”

OPEN LETTER – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Alternative Comics needs your help!
Please buy our books from your local comic book
store to help Alternative Comics survive!

Dear Comics Fans:

I’m Jeff Mason making a direct appeal to you, our faithful readers, in a time of serious financial difficulty. If you could find a way to buy some of our books listed below, you would greatly help in our time of financial crisis. Please check off the books you want below and then buy these books from your favorite retailer. You can also use the checklist in the back of your copy of Alternative Comics #2 that was given out by your local comic book store on Free Comic Book Day. If your retailer does not stock our comics and books, they can use this form below as a way to order our in stock titles form any of our distributors.

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Hunky Dory Cory

Our pal Cory Doctorow’s novel Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom has just won the Locus Award for Best First Novel. Congrats, Cory!

Cory writes on his e-list:
The Locus Award is based on a popular poll of readers of the trade mag, a larger group than even the Hugo voters, making it the largest beauty contest in the field. I couldn’t be any happier: thanks everyone! Hope to see you at the World Science Fiction Convention in Boston, where the award will be presented.

http://locusmag.com/