This being said in Googleland, and having the privacy options clearly enough spelled out for me that I even understood what I was checking off when opting in or out of this or that, there is some news today/yesterday about this issue that everyone should understand. Verizon got bitch slapped once again in a PA state court, where a judge said their practice of either mailing the opt-out cards to their wireless subscribers "stinks", since it rarely seems to happen, or when it does it's written in so much legal jargon that Atty Gen Holder would re-open GITMO just for their executives. I don't use them, so surfed on over to their website to view the thing for myself, only to be told that the "page unavailable" was Of Course, the one I wanted.
On the same issue, but regarding different carrier sources, The Free Press came out with a story called "The End Of The Internet" as relates to DPI (Deep Packet Inspection) that has been such a hoary problem for the big broadband boys Cox Comm and Comcast recently. The report seems to assign a bit more of a rant than a factual arguement to an issue thats been ongoing for years now, but not all that many people have been paying attention until we all found out how badly the NSA has been intruding into our interwebs. But it's certainly more than worth a read for anyone who's not schooled on the subject of net neutrality.
The last big and most interesting news this week was again, Cisco Systems in the slurping up San Francisco's Pure Digital, a 100 person 8 year old tech company that makes the very popular Flip videocam. Already it has captured about 1/5th of market share, putting right in direct competetion with Sony and the other heavyweights. For $588 Million in stock the company is seemingly a bargain. And since Cisco is going to most certainly have even more server market to divvy up, both Dell and HP are spinning off separate divisions to deal with it. And Rackspace Rackables launched itself into the fray, not that they weren't there already, but their edge is cutting power consumption by up to 25% by using the Intel Atom @320 per rack with it's own fan, and an onborard Ac-Dc power conversion. Makes this market more watchable by the day. Even Intel itself said that by the year 2011 nearly one quarter of it's chips would be used exclusively for the server market. Now just WHY didn't I buy Intel stock back when it was selling at $4.00?? Oh, right, busfare.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Very Cool New Things
Happy St Patricks Day Everyone!!! Way Cool new shit coming out of Austin Texas this week, if you're not a geek and musik freak, then you don't know about the SXSW (South By South West) Festival that been happening there every year for quite some time now. Every tech company every heard of is here, from IBM and Apple, to little known guys like Xiam. It's an impressive display of technology, for cloud computing and servers, and handheld mobile computing. Let me just give TODAY'S news and it's verrrry interesting.
First off, Cisco Systems has announced it's going to be entering the server market, using Intel's Xeon chipsets, which is a total departure for a company that's known for it's router business. Great for them, more competion for HP is a good thing. Next came Quallcom's announcement that it's partnership with Xiam is going to launch a new mobile carrier service, taking demographic info from GPS and API's and offering adverting based on where you are at any given time and place. So if you're like in say Seattle, and there's a concert there, it'll tell you. BUT, not to be out done now, Google has this Thursday launched it's own Latitude service, which basically does the same thing. Both of course raise privacy concerns, and if one company really succeeds, market dominance. I personally am creeped out by my carrier knowing where the hell I am at all times. Sounds just too Huxley to me.
Along with all that there is Google's attack on the the telecom's (which I just LOVE!!) called GoogleVoice. It could revolutionize what we all know of as phone service. It can handle multiple phone calls on one phone number, work, home, cell, whatever. It allows you to route all calls to a easy to use Voice Mail system, using the Interwebs to handle the calls, even having a voice transcription service that route to your laptop!!!! It puts it in direct competion with Skype, an eBay division, so there will be bloodshed. Again, there is that nagging privacy thing, but hell, I'm posting this through a Google service, so how much can I bitch about it. I actually think of my gmail. in-box as the SAFE one, the one where the spam filter actually works. I'm more than happy with it. Let them take on ATT and the rest now. Let the blood flow. The telecoms all sold out our privacy with the FICA rules, so let them all die!!!! (You wouldn't guess that I'm Irish by this rant would ya???lol)
First off, Cisco Systems has announced it's going to be entering the server market, using Intel's Xeon chipsets, which is a total departure for a company that's known for it's router business. Great for them, more competion for HP is a good thing. Next came Quallcom's announcement that it's partnership with Xiam is going to launch a new mobile carrier service, taking demographic info from GPS and API's and offering adverting based on where you are at any given time and place. So if you're like in say Seattle, and there's a concert there, it'll tell you. BUT, not to be out done now, Google has this Thursday launched it's own Latitude service, which basically does the same thing. Both of course raise privacy concerns, and if one company really succeeds, market dominance. I personally am creeped out by my carrier knowing where the hell I am at all times. Sounds just too Huxley to me.
Along with all that there is Google's attack on the the telecom's (which I just LOVE!!) called GoogleVoice. It could revolutionize what we all know of as phone service. It can handle multiple phone calls on one phone number, work, home, cell, whatever. It allows you to route all calls to a easy to use Voice Mail system, using the Interwebs to handle the calls, even having a voice transcription service that route to your laptop!!!! It puts it in direct competion with Skype, an eBay division, so there will be bloodshed. Again, there is that nagging privacy thing, but hell, I'm posting this through a Google service, so how much can I bitch about it. I actually think of my gmail. in-box as the SAFE one, the one where the spam filter actually works. I'm more than happy with it. Let them take on ATT and the rest now. Let the blood flow. The telecoms all sold out our privacy with the FICA rules, so let them all die!!!! (You wouldn't guess that I'm Irish by this rant would ya???lol)
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Haven't Had Much To Say.....Till Now
This piece today is dedicated to the two peace officers slain in Northern Ireland last week. My family is partly from the Belfast area, so I feel a kinship with them all, Catholic and Protestant. The wife of one of the slain officers, Kate Carroll said it best, "If they hope to solve Northern Ireland's land disputes, this is all they'll get, a six foot piece of earth in the ground" I've been a confirmed athiest all my adult life, but I want to say "God Bless You Mrs Carroll, from the bottom of my heart" I had thought that once the Sinn Fein had control of the government of No. Ireland, "The Troubles" would cease. Slim hope that. It was heartening to see so many Catholics and Protestants march together in harmony at the funerals. Thounsands attended, Amazing Grace was sung by the Catholic choir, another Protestant hymn by theirs. I don't beleive that this event will lead to revived violence, but I don't live there. I hope any readers there will write and tell me the skinny. You're all in my thoughts if not my prayers.
Had enough of the Jon Stewart grand CNBC bash?? I had to pull it up on the Comedy Central site just for s & g, and Jon really is more knowledgeable able finance than one would think. He did get some truly good shots in, and his opponent had no come backs. I've never watched "Fast Money" or anything on CNBC at all, never having that kind of dough. His guest appeared on Martha Stewart (Convicted Tax Felon??) prior to his appear on the Daily Show, and pounded the crap out of some pie dough, Marth egging him on that it was Jon. THAT was funny! She's really funny when she doesn't try to be.
What's up with the Obama administration?? They seem to have some kind of Bush Fetish. Everytime I read the NY Times or the HuffPo or Whatever, Obama is backing down on one more thing. Next he'll be drilling for oil on the White House lawn. As a devout leftist, I am getting very impatient about GITMO, Abu Grahib, the restoration of civil rights for all people, the excess of power of the excutive branch, the story goes on and on and on, All the abuses of the criminal Bush admininistration seem to just be absorbed by the the current one. But should we expect better? We the People, gave the Bushies those powers. It's our own damn fault. And until we get the ACLU and other groups to do their jobs and sue the goverment for access, we'll get nowhere. One woman sued to have her husband released from GITMO, and they won't even admit that he's there. Still. NOW! After seven years. The ACLU knows he's there. They've seen him, interviewed him. But that doesn't COUNT!! Unless the government says you're there, you're not.. Fucking Crazy. Today Obama said he would not call them "enemy combatanats", but still would not let them go. You can call them "Banana Slingers" for all the difference it makes. Put them on trial, see whose guilty or not. Or courts system may be overburdened, buit I think we could handle the couple hundred there. And in the other "Secret Prisons" the term that makes my stomach do flops. Just Do It Obama! Get It Over With and get On with The Business of Running the Country!
Well, enough rant for today. I want to end in a peaceful mode, not that there's some nice world/trance music on Pandora. Blessings to you all in Northern Ireland, you have my heart, and my name.
Had enough of the Jon Stewart grand CNBC bash?? I had to pull it up on the Comedy Central site just for s & g, and Jon really is more knowledgeable able finance than one would think. He did get some truly good shots in, and his opponent had no come backs. I've never watched "Fast Money" or anything on CNBC at all, never having that kind of dough. His guest appeared on Martha Stewart (Convicted Tax Felon??) prior to his appear on the Daily Show, and pounded the crap out of some pie dough, Marth egging him on that it was Jon. THAT was funny! She's really funny when she doesn't try to be.
What's up with the Obama administration?? They seem to have some kind of Bush Fetish. Everytime I read the NY Times or the HuffPo or Whatever, Obama is backing down on one more thing. Next he'll be drilling for oil on the White House lawn. As a devout leftist, I am getting very impatient about GITMO, Abu Grahib, the restoration of civil rights for all people, the excess of power of the excutive branch, the story goes on and on and on, All the abuses of the criminal Bush admininistration seem to just be absorbed by the the current one. But should we expect better? We the People, gave the Bushies those powers. It's our own damn fault. And until we get the ACLU and other groups to do their jobs and sue the goverment for access, we'll get nowhere. One woman sued to have her husband released from GITMO, and they won't even admit that he's there. Still. NOW! After seven years. The ACLU knows he's there. They've seen him, interviewed him. But that doesn't COUNT!! Unless the government says you're there, you're not.. Fucking Crazy. Today Obama said he would not call them "enemy combatanats", but still would not let them go. You can call them "Banana Slingers" for all the difference it makes. Put them on trial, see whose guilty or not. Or courts system may be overburdened, buit I think we could handle the couple hundred there. And in the other "Secret Prisons" the term that makes my stomach do flops. Just Do It Obama! Get It Over With and get On with The Business of Running the Country!
Well, enough rant for today. I want to end in a peaceful mode, not that there's some nice world/trance music on Pandora. Blessings to you all in Northern Ireland, you have my heart, and my name.
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