ZDNet Blogs

Samsung, Sony in Wi-Fi Photo Frame Shootout

Sean Portnoy — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:03:14 PDT

One of the big holiday gifts over the last couple of years, digital photo frames are a convenient way to show off photos that might otherwise languish on your hard drive. But a lot of them are sold by no-name companies at budget prices with limited feature sets. Other manufacturers like Kodak and D-Link figured out a great way to improve the device is by building in Wi-Fi, which opens up a lot more sources to display photos from than a memory card or the frame's internal memory, whether it's from your PC or online. Now, the heavy hitters are joining the fray, as Samsung and Sony have announced new Wi-Fi-enabled frames that will be available this fall. Samsung is...

102 Minutes That Changed America: "Mesh" reporting comes of age

Jason Perlow — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 19:50:53 PDT

This week, in commemoration of the 7th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the History Channel is releasing an unusual documentary, entitled "102 Minutes That Changed America". If you are a DIRECTV subscriber and have access to their On Demand service, you can actually download the program to your DVRs now. If not, you'll want to set your TiVo's or tune in at Thursday, September 11, 9PM EST or Friday September 12, at 1am EST. This is a show you absolutely do not want to miss. Click on the "Read the rest of this entry" link below for more. There have been numerous documentaries and specials about 9/11, but none of them have been as gripping...

Flipping the switch saves The Planet about $140K annually

Heather Clancy — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 19:45:58 PDT

The results of The Planet's "lights out" pilot are in: By adopting a workday-hours lights-on policy and shutting off the lights after hours, the hosting company is saving roughly $140,000 per year across its six data centers in Houston and Dallas. The reduction in annual energy consumption achieved through this policy was about 1.4 million kilowatt hours. Aside from lights, all heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems are scheduled to run from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Engineers working swing or graveyard shifts in certain zones of the building can switch on lamps as necessary. The rest have been programmed to switch on and off as mandated by the company's schedule. The Planet also has rigged motion-sensor lighting to work in...

What do you want me to cover at TechCrunch50?

Andrew Mager — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 16:40:12 PDT

I'll be on the floor of the San Francisco Design Center this week, trying to liveblog the events of TechCrunch50. The list of companies for Day 1 will be released at 6:30 a.m. PST on each day of the conference. Send me an email or post in the Talkback below and let me know which startups you want to know more about.

Apple workers setting up for Tuesday's iPod announcement

Andrew Mager — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 14:06:31 PDT

Workers have spent over a day tying down a new banner on Yebra Buena Center for the Arts right next to Moscone. I saw some big trucks with Apple security unloading on 3rd St., right next to the venue. The first leaked photo of the new iPod was published last night. MacRumors also published another picture I snapped yesterday.

Media bias and vaccine compliance

Dana Blankenhorn — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 11:50:35 PDT

Reporters have been hyping a 1998 study by Dr. Andrew Wakefield, claiming a link between vaccines and autism. Pediatrics found a direct link between the hype and non-compliance.

1,500 ships to fight climate change?

Roland Piquepaille — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 09:58:29 PDT

According to UK and U.S. researchers, it should be possible to fight the global warming effects associated with an increase of dioxide levels by using autonomous cloud-seeding ships to spray salt water into the air. This project would require the deployment of a worldwide fleet of 1,500 unmanned ships to cool the Earth even if the level of carbon dioxide doubled. These 300-tonne ships 'would be powered by the wind, but would not use conventional sails. Instead they would be fitted with a number of 20 m-high, 2.5 m-diameter cylinders known as Flettner rotors. The researchers estimate that such ships would cost between £1m and £2m each. This translates to a US$2.65 to 5.3 billion total cost for the ships...

Looking forward to 2018, let's hear your predictions

Garett Rogers — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 09:02:26 PDT

Google is now officially 10 years old, an impressive notion considering their rapid dominance over any and all things that get in their way. Even Microsoft is shaking in their boots, 10 years ago people would have laughed that off as mpossible. The fact that Google has risen so fast should be enough to make Google themselves nervous about the future -- let's see what we can come up with as far as predictions go (I'll post here, you post in the comments). Browser Landscape Google's recent foray into the internet browser space will unsettle Internet Explorer and Firefox. Google will creep up to a modest 10% market share, but remain relatively steady there. The reason it will stay at...

To Boldly Go Where No Search Engine Has Gone Before

Jason Perlow — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 08:04:03 PDT

Google's new Imaging Satellite aboard a Boeing Delta II Rocket. Source: GeoEye I don't know what it is about rockets, but I don't know a single man, hetero or gay, who isn't extremely turned on or even intimidated by them. I've never seen a space launch in person, but Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page are now members of a very exclusive club that have seen one up close and personal. This weekend, Google launched its own imaging satellite, on top of a Boeing Defense Systems Delta II booster rocket, in partnership with GeoEye, the space imagery company which already provides data to Google for Google Earth and Google Maps using its existing IKONOS and ORBVIEW satellites. Click...

Iceberg: cuts code, evolves your enterprise

Zack Whittaker — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 07:48:25 PDT

This is a dual post written and posted simultaneously. For the perspective of how Iceberg this benefits student, check the post over at iGeneration. Some bits are the same and used in both entries; ain't easy posting the same thing for different audiences. A few weeks ago when I was trying to distract my ever marathon-running mind with the death of a close friend, I spoke to Wayne Byrne - a brilliant and inspiring young chap from the shining streets of Ireland. We spoke for the best part of 2 hours, and he talked me through this software. As I wrote over on t'other blog, Iceberg is basically a platform which takes on a similar look to SharePoint, without being...