Technology

Yes, I know you have been dying to see what the world of technology had to offer this past month, and I'm glad you were as the technology team and I have put up some fascinating articles that you will be glad to read. As always, we have our customary Web Watch and News in Brief. Stobbo is back on the newspaper crew, this time writing articles on his Web Browser Survey and Windows 3.0. And finally for this month's technology section we have USB Lifestyle and A Wifi Alternative both written by R Anderson. Be sure to enjoy all of these great articles, and I hope that you will anticipate next month's technology section even more!

- Topdog

News in Brief - By: Stobbo

Commission warns search engines over data

A European Commission advisory on data protection has warned that search engines should delete the search and other data which they hold about their users within six months. If the recommendation is accepted by the European Commission, which is likely, clashes will almost certainly occur between the commission and the big search engines: Google, Yahoo and MSN. MSN destroys or anonymize the data after 13 months while Google and Yahoo do after 18 months. The advisory has said that the companies data protection policies were not clear enough while Google says it policy 'strikes the right balance'.

Mobile phones to be allowed on EU planes

New European Commission rules allow mobile phones to be used on-board planes while in European airspace and above 3000 metres. The change in the rules follows six months of consultation by the European regulator; the service is expected to launch once the airlines who are participating have equipped their planes with the necessary equipment for mobile phones to work - this is expected to be ready by next month. A European telecommunications commissioner has warned that if the prices are to high it is unlikely that people will take advantage, and therefore sensible pricing is imperative.

$2.6m for pizza.com

Chris Clark, 43, sold his domain pizza.com for $2.6 million earlier this month. The US man bought the domain back in 1994 when the internet was in its infancy, he originally registered it to try and help him get a consulting contract with a pizza firm, and kept it after he closed his business in 2000 - costing only $20 per year to keep the domain. After hearing that vodka.com had been sold for $3m in 2006, he decided to see whether his domain would have a similar value. He now says that he regrets not buying more domains in the 1990s.

ISP's not internet police

The CEO of Carphone Warehouse, owners of one of Britain's biggest ISP's, TalkTalk has said it is not their job to be internet policemen. "Our position is very clear. We are the conduit that gives users access to the internet. We do not control the internet, nor do we control what our users do on the internet.", says Charles Dunstone, CEO of Carphone Warehouse. He also said that he will fight to protect the rights of his users. BPI (British Phonographic Industry), has said said that if ISP's do not help enforce piracy laws, the government will have to introduce legislation to make them.

Gates drops Windows 7 hint

At a Q&A sessions at a meeting of the Inter-American Development Bank, the Microsoft boss Bill Gates said that Windows 7 could be released "sometime in the next year or so". Later a Microsoft Spokesman said that the new version is scheduled to be released in 2010, and Mr Gates was talking about the first release, not the finished product which would be rolled out to the general public. No hints were dropped about possible new features which may come with Windows 7.

No plans for Blu-ray on Xbox 360

Microsoft have said that they have no plans to release a Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 360, instead the company will look into digital delivery which it believes is the future, and that physical media will have its place taken by digital downloads within the next few years. Microsoft recently stopped producing HD-DVD drives for the Xbox 360, after a decision by HD-DVD's creator to give victory to the opposing format: Blu-ray.

Paedophiles will be forced to inform authorities of their email address

Police in the UK will force paedophiles to disclose their email addresses, with the data then being passed on to social networking sites, as part of a strengthening of child safety measures on the internet. The Home Office admitted that they have not worked out exactly how it will work yet, however it hopes that this will help protect the growing number of children on the internet who use social networking site like MySpace, Facebook and Bebo.

Child safety is parents responsiblity too, says Facebook

Facebook, one of the largest social networking sites used by children, has accepted that they have an integral part to play in keeping children safe on the net, but they also have said that parents have a responsibility too. Chris Kelly, Chief Privacy Officer, Facebook, says “There are multiple layers of responsibility and the core for us is to provide the tools that will be effective at protecting kids.” A recent report by the UK Home Office has called on the social networking sites to take further steps in protecting the privacy of its young users and provide them with simpler ways to report inappropriate behaviour. Chris Kelly says that they (Facebook) are already doing this, and are always taking steps to protect their younger users.

Intel will release budget laptop in western markets

The huge chip-maker Intel, plans to release their budget laptop in the western markets. The Classmate PC currently sold in developing countries for $285 (£145), will possibly be sold in the western markets by Christmas. Although no official price has been released, however analysts believes it could cost as little as $500 (£250). The laptop will join the budget computing market and it is likely to face stiff competitor from other budget laptops like the Asus Eee PC and other similar devices. The Classmate PC doesn't use Windows XP as its standard operating system, although it is offered, instead Linux is the standard OS which drastically reduces the price of the device. Hardware wise, the Classmate PC is relatively low spec, with a low end Intel Celeron M processor and up to 512mb of RAM. The size of the laptop is 25cm x 20cm x 0.44cm, which is very small therefore it only has a 7" TFT screen. Despite the device having low specifications and being small in size, it would work very well as an ultra portable laptop which is used in a business or school environment.

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Web Watch - By: Stobbo

Radio Times
http://www.radiotimes.com/

Radio Times is a great site for anyone in the UK who watches TV. The site has a customizable TV guide, allowing you to select the channels which show up. Also your favourite programmes can be added to a programme list, on a one-off orrecurring basis. The programme list gives you a day by day look at your favourite programmes for the couple of weeks, meaning you'll never miss a programme again. The site also has a similar service for radio. Other features are Radio Times blogs and Radio Times forums - although they don't seem to be terribly active. Best of all, the Radio Times service is free!

CNET News
http://www.news.com/

CNET News provides you with all the latest Technology news, in considerable depth. Different sections of the website can suit your tastes in news. Other features of the site include a RSS feed of the news and a comments section on each article so you can discuss the article with fellow readers.

RetailMeNot
http://www.retailmenot.com/

A brilliant tool for anyone who shops online, RetailMeNot is a database of discount coupons. Type in the web address of your favourite online shop, and it'll return any coupon information it has related to the shop you put in. This could potentially save you quite a bit of money and is definitely worth bookmarking - you'll never know when it might come in handy!

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Web Browser Survey - By: Stobbo

Earlier this month I carried out a survey to find out which web browsers are used by Sal's Realm forum members. The question I put to 96 people was: Which web browser do you primarily use? Below are the results of the survey.

And to finish off, I have included Toungy's opinion on Internet Explorer/Mozilla Firefox.

"Internet Explorer is an amazing, well written and highly efficient web browser. Not only is it the industry standard for web developers, it is also the most advanced and easy to use web browser even for the least experienced among us. It really defines web browsers when it comes to general speed, design, security and integration. Plus, it is also the number one browser when it comes to standards in both CSS and JavaScript. Introducing original concepts such as tabs, quick bookmarks, RSS feeds and add-ons, the browser has made an enormous impact even on the products of the world's largest corporations. And it is completely open source, so everyone can help it grow!

Oh, did I say Internet Explorer? I meant Firefox. "

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Windows 3.0 - By: Stobbo

Windows 3.0 is an early version of the popular Windows operating system. May 22, will mark 18 years since Windows 3.0 was released on May 22 1990. The operating system was successor to Windows 2.1, with its main new features being some technical changes to improve memory management and a revamped user interface. Some of the programs which came pre-installed were the text editor Notepad, a word processor Write, a calculator and two games: Reversi and Solitaire. It was the first operating system produced by Microsoft which would come pre-installed on new computers. It was succeeded by Windows 3.1, released two years later.

The system requirements for Windows 3.0 were:

8086/8088 Processor
640Kb memory
6/7mb of free hard drive space



This is an image of the workspace which you would use in Windows 3.0. As you can see, it is an awful lot different to the current generation of operating systems. On the screen you can see the Clock, File Manager, Program Manager, Accessories Folder and the game Reversi. Below is a picture of the packaging which the operating system came in. Inside would be a floppy disk containing the operating system installation.

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USB Lifestyle - By: R Anderson

USB Appliances

USB or Universal Serial Bus is a highly successful technology for connecting computer accessories to the computer. In addition to allowing data to be transferred USB also is able to provide a small amount of power to devices. USB is used to connect a large group of things to the computer; the most common are keyboards, mice, scanners, mp3 players, and lots of other basic computer accessories. It has been adapted to support some slightly more interesting products. Many of these products are very useful. They are extraordinary in the fact that they perform the function they are supposed to well but are able to run off the very small power that the USB port supplies.

The product that started the rush of low power efficient appliances was the USB Mini-Fridge. The Mini-Fridge is designed exactly like a normal fridge complete with door but is designed to only hold one pop. The Mini-Fridge operates off of 5 Volts of power that is supplied by the computer through the USB port. Following the Mini-Fridge’s example several household and office appliances would be released in miniature, these included a Mini-File Shredder/letter opener which other than it’s small tank size functions perfectly as any other shredder. And a radio which in addition to tuning in to AM or FM radio will connect to your MP3 player, it also works as a bedside lamp and air freshener. The most common low power appliance you will see is either a fan or lamp. Well neither is as powerful as there full size counterparts they do work as well or better than the average small flashlight or mini-fan.

All of the appliances above serve a useful purpose. But like all technologies there are plenty of things that serve no purpose other than the fact that they’re fun. The first example of this is the USB Missile Launcher. That’s right a missile launcher powered entirely by your USB port. You simply plug it in, install some software and you control the aim of the missile launcher from your computer. Next is the Mini-RC car, the Mini-RC car is radio controlled from your computer; it charges in minutes and gives you complete control exactly like any other radio controlled car. The final product is the Dancing Robot. This serves no purpose other than the fact that it looks cool. This robot will synchronize its dance and lights with whatever song you’re playing.

The conclusion that I reach is that these types of products are extremely promising. All of these products have to be extremely efficient because they must run on very little power. If these things can be extended on a larger scale and run on normal power lines rather than USB ports; it would significantly reduce the power usage of appliances such as refrigerators which take up a significant part of the energy usage of a house.

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A WiFi Alternative - By: R Anderson

Want something like wireless internet in your apartment or house without having to worry about somebody hacking your connection? Well the product for you is here. Late in 2007 Actiontec Inc. unveiled Megaplug AV, an alternative to Wi-Fi. What Megaplug does is make the power lines inside your house act like any other internet connection allowing computers to access the internet and behave like a normal network.

Megaplug is extremely easy to set up. It consists of plugging an adapter into electrical outlets near the computers and connecting the computers to the adapter with Ethernet cords (included in the package).

The speed of the connection is remarkable. Actiontec Inc. says speeds of up to 200 megabits per second (Mbps) are possible although that is a theoretical maximum which isn't going to be achieved in a home environment. Also it is protected with a 128-bit AES encryption which has never been broken. It needs the encryption on the off chance that you live in an apartment and somebody buys an adapter and plugs it into the shared power lines to try to steal your internet.

However no product is perfect and Megaplug has its share of problems. First of all it is only available for Windows 2000, XP, and Vista so neither Mac nor Linux users can use it. Also you must have a router and the TCP/IP Network Protocol installed. Then Megaplug only works in the U.S. unless you have a special converter because of the difference between North American and other countries electrical outlets. However there are nearly identical products for the UK like Novatech PowerLine. The biggest roadblock is the price tag, it costs 170$ for two adapters and two Ethernet cords.

There are some alternatives though. An 85 Mbps version is offered by the same company for 100$ and a similar 100 Mbps version is offered by Linksys for 150$.

Personally I think that this technology is very promising but it’s going to take a few more years for the cost to come down to a level where it can become a mass market item.

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