Thursday, September 16, 2004
South Korea IP World Leader...for Now
Did you know that South Korea is the most connected, high-speed Internet country in the world? The Globe and Mail recently reported that in The World's Most Connected Place:
Almost three of every four South Korean households had a high-speed Internet connection at the end of 2003, according to a June report by Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. That's double the No. 2 country, Canada, with 37 per cent of households, and more than three times the United States, with 23 per cent....
But there's a dark side, as well -- Internet addiction is a problem, particularly among young people. In one strange case, a 24-year-old man died playing computer games for 3½ days in a row in a PC baang, as Internet cafés are known. A survey this year cited by the Korea Herald indicated that almost half of the 582 students that responded considered themselves addicted to the Internet.
The government created the Centre for Internet Addiction and Counselling in 2002 to deal with the problem and, in June, it co-ordinated a countrywide campaign to encourage healthier Internet use.
It's likely only a matter of time before Canada follows suit. The Internet has certainly become more and more ubiquitous since its birth in 1969 as ARPANET.
This story also reminds me of an earlier blog posting some months back, Canada's Wired, in which I predicted that we may well be breeding a new generation of "info-addicts". One reader clearly thought the idea was ludricous and made a most salacious comment. Perhaps the prediction wasn't so outlandish after all...
Discuss
Almost three of every four South Korean households had a high-speed Internet connection at the end of 2003, according to a June report by Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. That's double the No. 2 country, Canada, with 37 per cent of households, and more than three times the United States, with 23 per cent....
But there's a dark side, as well -- Internet addiction is a problem, particularly among young people. In one strange case, a 24-year-old man died playing computer games for 3½ days in a row in a PC baang, as Internet cafés are known. A survey this year cited by the Korea Herald indicated that almost half of the 582 students that responded considered themselves addicted to the Internet.
The government created the Centre for Internet Addiction and Counselling in 2002 to deal with the problem and, in June, it co-ordinated a countrywide campaign to encourage healthier Internet use.
It's likely only a matter of time before Canada follows suit. The Internet has certainly become more and more ubiquitous since its birth in 1969 as ARPANET.
This story also reminds me of an earlier blog posting some months back, Canada's Wired, in which I predicted that we may well be breeding a new generation of "info-addicts". One reader clearly thought the idea was ludricous and made a most salacious comment. Perhaps the prediction wasn't so outlandish after all...
Discuss
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Culture Clash: Journalism and the Communal Ethos of the Blogosphere
According to the official release note, Into the Blogosphere: Rhetoric, Community, and Culture of Weblogs is an online, edited collection that "explores discursive, visual, social, and other communicative features of weblogs."
The essay, Culture Clash: Journalism and the Communal Ethos of the Blogosphere is a particularly insightful commentary on how blogging is gradually emerging as the "new journalism", challenging "old-timers" in the business to rethink traditional reporting practice as newspaper readers age and pass on and "their children and grandchildren, Generation Y’s 16- to 24-year-olds who spend $200 billion annually, want to interact with the news, not merely to passively receive it."
I must admit I fall into the aging category and cannot start my day without the daily newspaper which arrives at my doorstep at 6:00 a.m. every morning. Then again, even more so lately, I've noticed that the cover headlines no longer surprise since I've already "read them" on Google News the night before. Incentive to abandon print and switch completely to digital news? Not right now. And I suspect, as age brings on deteriorated eyesight, the urge to squint at a flickering screen will diminish even more. Yet the blogging itch remains as I type these words and anticipate more digi-reading. Perhaps there is a place for both print and digital media.
Discuss
The essay, Culture Clash: Journalism and the Communal Ethos of the Blogosphere is a particularly insightful commentary on how blogging is gradually emerging as the "new journalism", challenging "old-timers" in the business to rethink traditional reporting practice as newspaper readers age and pass on and "their children and grandchildren, Generation Y’s 16- to 24-year-olds who spend $200 billion annually, want to interact with the news, not merely to passively receive it."
I must admit I fall into the aging category and cannot start my day without the daily newspaper which arrives at my doorstep at 6:00 a.m. every morning. Then again, even more so lately, I've noticed that the cover headlines no longer surprise since I've already "read them" on Google News the night before. Incentive to abandon print and switch completely to digital news? Not right now. And I suspect, as age brings on deteriorated eyesight, the urge to squint at a flickering screen will diminish even more. Yet the blogging itch remains as I type these words and anticipate more digi-reading. Perhaps there is a place for both print and digital media.
Discuss
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Imagine Life without the World (Wide Web)
"Beware of the End of the World (Wide Web)," says Intel according to a recent Forbes.com news brief.
Come again?
You mean no more Internet? The information superhighway that has quickly driven most of us into data junkies?
Alas, the end is near according to industry heavyweights Intel, HP, Cisco and AT&T Corp who believe that the original infrastructure could collapse as traffic builds on the WWW and "millions of new computer users from developing nations begin to sign on."
Intel is working with industry consortium partners to help avoid this by introducing a layer of network services that will "overlay" the existing infrastructure and help cope with additional traffic better.
But are bumpy "tar pits" the answer to cracks in a highway? Or does a crumbling foundation need to be rebuilt from scratch in order to avoid future pitfalls? If you think about it, it wasn't too long ago that we lived without the Internet. Let me clarify that: If you're over 20, you know what I mean. Everyone else these days likely obtained their WWW driving license long before they learned how to speak.
Discuss
Come again?
You mean no more Internet? The information superhighway that has quickly driven most of us into data junkies?
Alas, the end is near according to industry heavyweights Intel, HP, Cisco and AT&T Corp who believe that the original infrastructure could collapse as traffic builds on the WWW and "millions of new computer users from developing nations begin to sign on."
Intel is working with industry consortium partners to help avoid this by introducing a layer of network services that will "overlay" the existing infrastructure and help cope with additional traffic better.
But are bumpy "tar pits" the answer to cracks in a highway? Or does a crumbling foundation need to be rebuilt from scratch in order to avoid future pitfalls? If you think about it, it wasn't too long ago that we lived without the Internet. Let me clarify that: If you're over 20, you know what I mean. Everyone else these days likely obtained their WWW driving license long before they learned how to speak.
Discuss
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Offshoring IT
According to today's Silicon.com special report on offshoring, based on a poll of 145 executives by Indian-based outsourcer Wipro, "over 30 per cent of companies are planning to offshore their IT infrastructure within the next 12 months and the same number are looking into the idea." Is this just a mad fad or the face of the future?
Discuss
Discuss
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
Top Resources for Tea Drinkers
Finally! "News about tea for tea drinkers worldwide"! Just for Tea Lovers is a neat blog and website that offers the latest, interesting news tidbits regarding tea and its applications. Check it out!
Discuss
Discuss
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
Finnair Checks-in on your Cell
The cellphone is increasingly becoming the "must-have accessory" for everyone from the trend-setting teenager to the jet-setting business traveller.
Starting in October, Finnair is launching a new program, open to the airline's Finnair Plus cardholders, that will allow passengers with only carry-on luggage to go directly to the departure gate after arriving at the airport.
How is this possible? What about navigating zigzag roped-off lines, standing, stopping, and standing again in interminably long queues for check-in?
All can be bypassed with Finnair's novel use of SMS, or Short Message Service, for check-in, which is being billed as "a first in international air travel" and "the first worldwide to work on all mobile phone models and all networks without charges."
As reported by Associated Press and Informationweek.com:
Once passengers have activated the service, they will automatically receive a check-in text message from Finnair before a flight with details, including the seat number. A passenger need only send a reply to confirm the seat assignment.
The text message service will apply to all international flights leaving from Helsinki and Stockholm.
Yet another reason to keep that cellphone charged all the time...
Discuss
Starting in October, Finnair is launching a new program, open to the airline's Finnair Plus cardholders, that will allow passengers with only carry-on luggage to go directly to the departure gate after arriving at the airport.
How is this possible? What about navigating zigzag roped-off lines, standing, stopping, and standing again in interminably long queues for check-in?
All can be bypassed with Finnair's novel use of SMS, or Short Message Service, for check-in, which is being billed as "a first in international air travel" and "the first worldwide to work on all mobile phone models and all networks without charges."
As reported by Associated Press and Informationweek.com:
Once passengers have activated the service, they will automatically receive a check-in text message from Finnair before a flight with details, including the seat number. A passenger need only send a reply to confirm the seat assignment.
The text message service will apply to all international flights leaving from Helsinki and Stockholm.
Yet another reason to keep that cellphone charged all the time...
Discuss
Thursday, September 02, 2004
Offshoring a Sure Thing?
"Don't shoot the messenger" advises Fran Foo, features editor of ZDNet Australia, regarding the recent debacle in offshoring hitting the medical community in the UK:
Facing an acute shortage of medical transcribers, eight hospitals in London decided to outsource transcription services. Instructions and letters were dictated into digital voice recorders and the files forwarded to a company called Omnimedical, which would then send the recordings to a team of transcribers in India.
....The mistakes in the transcriptions were so serious, it prompted the Association of Medical Secretaries to go public with spokesman Michael Fiennes citing several horrific examples in the Daily Mail: below knee amputation became "baloney amputation" and phlebitis (vein inflammation) left leg was changed to "flea bite his left leg".
Ouch! Cases like this certainly make you wonder if offshoring is really worth it. Notwithstanding, technology is cutting across cultural, linguistic and geographic boundaries, accelerating us towards a more global business marketplace. Are you ready?
For an excellent overview on the subject based on recent press clippings, check out the South Asian Journalists Association's regularly updated roundup on offshoring and decide for yourself.
Discuss
Facing an acute shortage of medical transcribers, eight hospitals in London decided to outsource transcription services. Instructions and letters were dictated into digital voice recorders and the files forwarded to a company called Omnimedical, which would then send the recordings to a team of transcribers in India.
....The mistakes in the transcriptions were so serious, it prompted the Association of Medical Secretaries to go public with spokesman Michael Fiennes citing several horrific examples in the Daily Mail: below knee amputation became "baloney amputation" and phlebitis (vein inflammation) left leg was changed to "flea bite his left leg".
Ouch! Cases like this certainly make you wonder if offshoring is really worth it. Notwithstanding, technology is cutting across cultural, linguistic and geographic boundaries, accelerating us towards a more global business marketplace. Are you ready?
For an excellent overview on the subject based on recent press clippings, check out the South Asian Journalists Association's regularly updated roundup on offshoring and decide for yourself.
Discuss
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Sushi Specs Take Over Prime Pencil Real Estate
Now here's a novel "comcultech" (just made that up for "communication/culture/technology") story reported by Ananova:
Imagine surprising your dinner party with a handy pair of chopsticks, tucked surreptitiously behind your ears. Only trouble is, if you're farsighted, you'll likely be chopping thin air than sushi. Still confused? Well the dinner conversation piece de resistance I'm referring to are the new pair of glasses, designed by a German company, that "come apart to double as chopsticks". If you have to see it to believe it, the Ananova story offers a compelling photo.
Fusion, function, and conversation fodder all rolled into cutting-edge frames! No more looking for lost pencils tucked abstractly behind the ear. Chopsticks anyone?
Discuss
Imagine surprising your dinner party with a handy pair of chopsticks, tucked surreptitiously behind your ears. Only trouble is, if you're farsighted, you'll likely be chopping thin air than sushi. Still confused? Well the dinner conversation piece de resistance I'm referring to are the new pair of glasses, designed by a German company, that "come apart to double as chopsticks". If you have to see it to believe it, the Ananova story offers a compelling photo.
Fusion, function, and conversation fodder all rolled into cutting-edge frames! No more looking for lost pencils tucked abstractly behind the ear. Chopsticks anyone?
Discuss
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Go Ahead...Ping my PAN!
According to the July 1st edition of the Economist, the latest "skinny on IT" is Microsoft's patent of the human body as a computer network:
US Patent 6,754,472, issued to the company on June 22nd, is for a “method and apparatus for transmitting power and data using the human body”.... As the patent puts it, “The physical resistance offered by the human body can be used in implementing a keypad or other input device as well as estimating distances between devices and device locations. In accordance with the present invention, by varying the distance on the skin between the contacts corresponding to different keys, different signal values can be generated representing different inputs.” In other words you can, in theory, type on your skin.
"Near field intrabody communication" is not a new concept, but with Microsoft's recent patent, a Personal Area Network (PAN) could evolve into reality in the near future.
It appears Western science is only beginning to tap into the Eastern wisdom of the sages, who have known for centuries that the human body is powered by divine energy (generated by the soul), as well as by physical energy (generated by the consumption and digestion of food, water and supplements) and even absorbed electricity.
Each one of us is a walking, solar panel unit, if we but knew it.
Discuss
US Patent 6,754,472, issued to the company on June 22nd, is for a “method and apparatus for transmitting power and data using the human body”.... As the patent puts it, “The physical resistance offered by the human body can be used in implementing a keypad or other input device as well as estimating distances between devices and device locations. In accordance with the present invention, by varying the distance on the skin between the contacts corresponding to different keys, different signal values can be generated representing different inputs.” In other words you can, in theory, type on your skin.
"Near field intrabody communication" is not a new concept, but with Microsoft's recent patent, a Personal Area Network (PAN) could evolve into reality in the near future.
It appears Western science is only beginning to tap into the Eastern wisdom of the sages, who have known for centuries that the human body is powered by divine energy (generated by the soul), as well as by physical energy (generated by the consumption and digestion of food, water and supplements) and even absorbed electricity.
Each one of us is a walking, solar panel unit, if we but knew it.
Discuss
Monday, December 29, 2003
Emerging Diversity in the Blogosphere
Will blogging bring us closer together, facilitating constructive dialogue, or will it tear humanity further apart, accentuating our cultural differences?
Is this global village emerging in the blogosphere expanding our collective consciousness, or merely shrinking us further into our individual, pre-existing biases?
Those of you who have been following my blog will know by now that I am researching the answers to these questions.
Preliminary findings (as presented recently to an astute gathering of McLuhanites at the University of Toronto) indicate there is more than meets the eye in a superficial Google search on the blogosphere:
Emerging Diversity in the Blogosphere: Some examples
Allison Kaplan Sommer – An Unsealed Room [leads to links to Jewish blogs]
Al-Muhajaba’s Islamic Blogs
Blogs x Iranians
Sinosplice – The Web’s Definitive China Blog List
Sulekha – Indian Blogs [recent addition to list]
Weblog Services for Diverse Users in the Blogosphere
diaryhub.com – Blogging for Thai users
Persianblog.com – The first Weblog service for Persian users
Blogalization – Translation tool
Blog Directories
By location:
Blogmatrix – 84,169 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
Blogwise – 11,331 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
Globe of Blogs – 9,217 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
By location and language:
Eatonweb Portal – 15,192 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
Blog Popularity Ranking Websites
By language: (English, French, Italian, German, Spanish)
Bloogz – World Wide Blog
Spanish only:
Bitacoras.net
Bitacoras.com
Italian only: (also developing international blog aggregator)
Blog Notes
More leads are more than welcome. Let's discuss.
Discuss
Is this global village emerging in the blogosphere expanding our collective consciousness, or merely shrinking us further into our individual, pre-existing biases?
Those of you who have been following my blog will know by now that I am researching the answers to these questions.
Preliminary findings (as presented recently to an astute gathering of McLuhanites at the University of Toronto) indicate there is more than meets the eye in a superficial Google search on the blogosphere:
Emerging Diversity in the Blogosphere: Some examples
Allison Kaplan Sommer – An Unsealed Room [leads to links to Jewish blogs]
Al-Muhajaba’s Islamic Blogs
Blogs x Iranians
Sinosplice – The Web’s Definitive China Blog List
Sulekha – Indian Blogs [recent addition to list]
Weblog Services for Diverse Users in the Blogosphere
diaryhub.com – Blogging for Thai users
Persianblog.com – The first Weblog service for Persian users
Blogalization – Translation tool
Blog Directories
By location:
Blogmatrix – 84,169 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
Blogwise – 11,331 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
Globe of Blogs – 9,217 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
By location and language:
Eatonweb Portal – 15,192 sites listed as of December 10, 2003
Blog Popularity Ranking Websites
By language: (English, French, Italian, German, Spanish)
Bloogz – World Wide Blog
Spanish only:
Bitacoras.net
Bitacoras.com
Italian only: (also developing international blog aggregator)
Blog Notes
More leads are more than welcome. Let's discuss.
Discuss
Friday, December 12, 2003
Indian Blogosphere
You know those Google ads at the top of this page? They're pretty smart. Don't discount them.
Thanks to one ad, discovered Sulekha, which claims to be the most popular Indian blogging site in the world, among other achievements.
Now what would be really nice is if they listed a running ticker on how many bloggers are hosted by Sulekha daily, which at a cursory glance at the site, doesn't appear to exist. Would be good to know for my research on the diverse microspheres living within the global blogosphere. More on some preliminary findings to be posted shortly....
Discuss
Thanks to one ad, discovered Sulekha, which claims to be the most popular Indian blogging site in the world, among other achievements.
Now what would be really nice is if they listed a running ticker on how many bloggers are hosted by Sulekha daily, which at a cursory glance at the site, doesn't appear to exist. Would be good to know for my research on the diverse microspheres living within the global blogosphere. More on some preliminary findings to be posted shortly....
Discuss
Monday, December 08, 2003
Web Searching: Set Your Sights on SiteLines
A few years ago, I attended a seminar conducted by Rita Vine at a conference in Montreal...or was it Vancouver? Anyways, she had some intriguing insights to share about effective web searching using search engine tools. Somehow got subscribed to her e-newsletter, and just the other day, clicked on one of the "More" links to discover that lo and behold, she's now blogging her tips at SiteLines! Smart lady. Thanks Rita.
Discuss
Discuss
Friday, November 21, 2003
The Next Media-Savvy Generation
CBC.ca reports that 75% of Canadian kids watch TV everyday according to a recent study conducted by ERIN Research for the Canadian Teachers' Federation, with money from the National Crime Prevention Centre at Justice Canada. No surprise there.
756 students in Grades 3 to 10 from 37 school boards across the country participated in the survey, representing 122 public schools in all provinces and territories. Students from urban and rural areas, French and English backgrounds, and public and Catholic school districts were surveyed.
The survey was conducted last spring. The margin of error is 1.3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
What does shock me however, from their findings, is that a whopping 48% of Canadian children have their own television set and 26% have their own computer and Internet connection! We're talking about kids between the ages of 8-15 here! Talk about being media-savvy!
Discuss
756 students in Grades 3 to 10 from 37 school boards across the country participated in the survey, representing 122 public schools in all provinces and territories. Students from urban and rural areas, French and English backgrounds, and public and Catholic school districts were surveyed.
The survey was conducted last spring. The margin of error is 1.3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
What does shock me however, from their findings, is that a whopping 48% of Canadian children have their own television set and 26% have their own computer and Internet connection! We're talking about kids between the ages of 8-15 here! Talk about being media-savvy!
Discuss
Thursday, November 20, 2003
Sick of Spam!?
Brad Stone's recent Newsweek magazine article on Soaking in Spam profiles a 32-year-old "spamperneur" who is proud of contributing towards more than 50% of email today attributed to spam. (Many thanks to Derrick for this tip). From a marketing and cost-analysis perspective, I understand the motivation. After that, I am tempted to start cursing...
Matthew Fordahl's recent Associated Press story on Spammers Now Clogging Blogs, Cell Phones unfortunately rings too close to home.
For the past few weeks, my cell has been terrorized by repeated calls from the same phone number. A quick Google search revealed that I am not the only one. Back in August this year, Lightly Toasted blogs about 888-682-4288, receives several comments, and discusses his reaction.
Aside from complaining to my cell phone provider, demanding a refund for money wasted on this number (?), and having it blocked, am wondering what my other options are. Suggestions? Have since learned it is illegal in Canada to spam cell phones... wonder if this is true as it would be good to know what our rights are.
In the meantime, by blogging about it, hopefully, any other unsuspecting recipients will be more aware and can take solace in knowing they are not alone. Agree with Howard Rheingold's concern about such new forms of spam freezing the revolution of public discourse through always-on communciation in its tracks. Perhaps, however, we can use the same technology (cell, IM, blog comments) to expose intrusive spam and halt it in its tracks. Or maybe I'm dreaming...
Discuss
Matthew Fordahl's recent Associated Press story on Spammers Now Clogging Blogs, Cell Phones unfortunately rings too close to home.
For the past few weeks, my cell has been terrorized by repeated calls from the same phone number. A quick Google search revealed that I am not the only one. Back in August this year, Lightly Toasted blogs about 888-682-4288, receives several comments, and discusses his reaction.
Aside from complaining to my cell phone provider, demanding a refund for money wasted on this number (?), and having it blocked, am wondering what my other options are. Suggestions? Have since learned it is illegal in Canada to spam cell phones... wonder if this is true as it would be good to know what our rights are.
In the meantime, by blogging about it, hopefully, any other unsuspecting recipients will be more aware and can take solace in knowing they are not alone. Agree with Howard Rheingold's concern about such new forms of spam freezing the revolution of public discourse through always-on communciation in its tracks. Perhaps, however, we can use the same technology (cell, IM, blog comments) to expose intrusive spam and halt it in its tracks. Or maybe I'm dreaming...
Discuss
Friday, November 07, 2003
Want to Hear Something New? Pick up the Phone
According to a recent University of California at Berkeley study, 18 million terabytes of new information flowed through electronic channels in 2002. A terabyte is a unit of computer data storage equal to a million megabytes, or roughly the text content of a million books. Newly created information is distributed in four storage media – print, film, magnetic, and optical – and seen or heard in four information flows – telephone, radio and TV, and the Internet. Guess which medium is the most preferred for transmitting new information 98% of the time?
If you guessed the telephone, you're right. Here's the breakdown:
* 17.3 million terabytes ----> Telephone calls
* 400,000 terabytes ---------> Email
* 73,500 terabytes -----------> original Radio and TV broadcasts
* 170 terabytes ---------------> the Web
There's lots of other goodies uncovered in this extensive study which I will refer to from time to time here. For now, if you'll excuse me, I think I hear the phone ringing...
Discuss
If you guessed the telephone, you're right. Here's the breakdown:
* 17.3 million terabytes ----> Telephone calls
* 400,000 terabytes ---------> Email
* 73,500 terabytes -----------> original Radio and TV broadcasts
* 170 terabytes ---------------> the Web
There's lots of other goodies uncovered in this extensive study which I will refer to from time to time here. For now, if you'll excuse me, I think I hear the phone ringing...
Discuss
Thursday, November 06, 2003
Just a Little "Tea-ed" Off
Ananova reports today:
A man who tried to hijack a car in Massachusetts had hot tea poured over him by the female driver.
Mark Corkery was also hit with a mug after jumping into Jean Ridino's Mercedes-Benz in Mashpee.
The 32-year-old was trying to get away from the scene of an accident involving his own vehicle and a Jeep.
The Jeep lost its fuel tank in the impact.
Ridino, 57, said: "I said, 'Get out of my damn car now'. He never even bled. I thought he was a robot.''
Corkery was quickly arrested but tried to escape by smashing a window in a police car. Mashpee police Chief Maurice Cooper said: "He had a bad day. It was a comedy of errors on his part.''
Corkery's being held on $10,000 (about £6,000) bail after appearing in Falmouth District Court, reports the Boston Herald.
Pity. The spilled tea of course...
Discuss
A man who tried to hijack a car in Massachusetts had hot tea poured over him by the female driver.
Mark Corkery was also hit with a mug after jumping into Jean Ridino's Mercedes-Benz in Mashpee.
The 32-year-old was trying to get away from the scene of an accident involving his own vehicle and a Jeep.
The Jeep lost its fuel tank in the impact.
Ridino, 57, said: "I said, 'Get out of my damn car now'. He never even bled. I thought he was a robot.''
Corkery was quickly arrested but tried to escape by smashing a window in a police car. Mashpee police Chief Maurice Cooper said: "He had a bad day. It was a comedy of errors on his part.''
Corkery's being held on $10,000 (about £6,000) bail after appearing in Falmouth District Court, reports the Boston Herald.
Pity. The spilled tea of course...
Discuss
Wednesday, November 05, 2003
Blogosphere: McLuhan's Global Village?
As a communications specialist, my research interest lies in the interplay between communication, culture and technology. The emergence of the blogosphere as a social, political, and cultural phenomenon, in particular, intrigues me. Even the term "blogosphere" is still a very new addition to our lexicon, thanks to William Quick who coined the term on January 1, 2002 at 12:54 a.m in his Daily Pundit blog.
I intend to research, document and examine diverse voices emerging in the blogosphere from all parts of the world, based on a survey of blogs listed at Brigitte Eaton's eatonweb portal and other sources. Many thanks to Mindy and to Nui for helping me to embark on this journey with their innocent leads on diverse blogging. Additional leads are most welcome.
Will blogging bring us closer together, facilitating constructive dialogue, or will it tear humanity further apart, accentuating our cultural differences? Is this global village emerging in the blogosphere expanding our collective consciousness, or merely shrinking us further into our individual, pre-existing biases?
Discuss
I intend to research, document and examine diverse voices emerging in the blogosphere from all parts of the world, based on a survey of blogs listed at Brigitte Eaton's eatonweb portal and other sources. Many thanks to Mindy and to Nui for helping me to embark on this journey with their innocent leads on diverse blogging. Additional leads are most welcome.
Will blogging bring us closer together, facilitating constructive dialogue, or will it tear humanity further apart, accentuating our cultural differences? Is this global village emerging in the blogosphere expanding our collective consciousness, or merely shrinking us further into our individual, pre-existing biases?
Discuss
Tuesday, November 04, 2003
ElectAura-Net: Future Human Network?
According to Technology Research News:
Researchers from NTT Docomo Multimedia Labs and NTT Microsystem Integration Labs in Japan have demonstrated a 10-megabits-per-second indoor network that uses human bodies as portable ethernet cables.
The network, dubbed ElectAura-Net, is wireless, but instead of using radio waves, infrared light, or microwaves to transmit information it uses a combination of the electric field that emanates from humans and a similar field emanating from special floor tiles....
The system could eventually provide high-speed wireless communications among portable electronic devices whose positions constantly change. "The main aim of the system is to provide [a] new indoor communication infrastructure for [the] coming wearable and ubiquitous [computing] era," said Masaaki Fukumoto, a researcher at NTT Docomo Multimedia Labs.
With intrabody communication on the horizon, it may just be a matter of time before we can symbiotically communicate with others in a personal area network.
Who ever said there's no such thing as an aura? Mental note to self: Pay more attention now in yoga class to all that talk about chakras and energy. Human beings do transmit "electricity"....
Discuss
Researchers from NTT Docomo Multimedia Labs and NTT Microsystem Integration Labs in Japan have demonstrated a 10-megabits-per-second indoor network that uses human bodies as portable ethernet cables.
The network, dubbed ElectAura-Net, is wireless, but instead of using radio waves, infrared light, or microwaves to transmit information it uses a combination of the electric field that emanates from humans and a similar field emanating from special floor tiles....
The system could eventually provide high-speed wireless communications among portable electronic devices whose positions constantly change. "The main aim of the system is to provide [a] new indoor communication infrastructure for [the] coming wearable and ubiquitous [computing] era," said Masaaki Fukumoto, a researcher at NTT Docomo Multimedia Labs.
With intrabody communication on the horizon, it may just be a matter of time before we can symbiotically communicate with others in a personal area network.
Who ever said there's no such thing as an aura? Mental note to self: Pay more attention now in yoga class to all that talk about chakras and energy. Human beings do transmit "electricity"....
Discuss
Monday, November 03, 2003
Microsoft and Google: Let the Dance Begin
According to the New York Times:
Google, the highflying Silicon Valley Web search company, recently began holding meetings with bankers in preparation for its highly anticipated initial public offering as it was still engaged in meetings of another kind: exploring a partnership or even a merger with Microsoft.
Egad! Not another Netscape fiasco. Makes me think of big fish and little fish...first Google "eats" Blogger and now Microsoft may "eat" Google....let's hope Google fares better in the IPO world.
Discuss
Google, the highflying Silicon Valley Web search company, recently began holding meetings with bankers in preparation for its highly anticipated initial public offering as it was still engaged in meetings of another kind: exploring a partnership or even a merger with Microsoft.
Egad! Not another Netscape fiasco. Makes me think of big fish and little fish...first Google "eats" Blogger and now Microsoft may "eat" Google....let's hope Google fares better in the IPO world.
Discuss
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
Evolution of the Internet: Happy Birthday ARPANET (precursor Internet)!
"Lo" and behold... 34 years ago, two Honeywell computers made first contact, paving the way for the "Information Age".
On October 29, 1969, at 10:30 p.m., UCLA engineering professor Leonard Kleinrock and student Charley Kline attempted to send a message from one Honeywell computer to a similar unit 600 kilometres away at Stanford Research Institute in Palo Alto. The connection speed was 50 kb/s.
The first message was supposed to be the word "login," but the system crashed as they typed in the letter "g." The first message, then, was "lo." Although it was a bumpy – if not prophetic – beginning, the researchers were able to complete the message one hour later.
And so the ARPANET (the term internet was not coined until 1982) was born.
CBC.ca offers a neat timeline on the evolution of the Internet along with related links.
Discuss
On October 29, 1969, at 10:30 p.m., UCLA engineering professor Leonard Kleinrock and student Charley Kline attempted to send a message from one Honeywell computer to a similar unit 600 kilometres away at Stanford Research Institute in Palo Alto. The connection speed was 50 kb/s.
The first message was supposed to be the word "login," but the system crashed as they typed in the letter "g." The first message, then, was "lo." Although it was a bumpy – if not prophetic – beginning, the researchers were able to complete the message one hour later.
And so the ARPANET (the term internet was not coined until 1982) was born.
CBC.ca offers a neat timeline on the evolution of the Internet along with related links.
Discuss
Monday, October 27, 2003
Is There Such a Thing as a Typical Blogger?
Hong Kong's "Big White Guy" is not your typical blogger out of 4+ million bloggers in the blogosphere. In a story about Randall van der Woning and his bigwhiteguy blog, CNN.com reports today:
There are over 4 million blogs on the net, more than half run by teenagers. Research group Perseus says the typical blog is written by a teenage girl who updates it about twice a month.
Sites such as Diaryland and Blogspot make it easy for anyone to launch one. Even AOL is hosting web logs, a sign that this trend has hit the big time.
There are predictions the net will be littered with 5 million blogs by the end of the year.
But unlike www.bigwhiteguy.com most of them will be little seen, if not abandoned. At least two thirds of the blogs out there today have not been updated in months.
"the big time"? "littered"? "seen"? "out there"? Folks, you "saw" it here first...making it on AOL means you've hit the big time. If you're "reading" this, it means you've somehow managed to "cut through the litter" and find me. Congratulations! "Out here", we call this land the "blogosphere"....wonder who coined that term actually...
Now if the journalist who wrote this piece had any sense of the powerful mechanics of blogging, they would have "littered" the article with pertinent links to Perseus, Diaryland, Blogspot, and AOL's blogging site for the benefit of the bloggers who will read this article and have the urge to find out more. But wait a minute, wouldn't that appear as shameless, free advertising? Don't want that in an objective journalistic piece. Funny though, how in j-blogging, linking is expected as part of Blogging 101, and not viewed as free advertising, even though, technically, the j-blog's audience is as worldwide on the web as an online article.
Interesting also, how Perseus' findings suggest that the typical blogger communicator is young and female, which appear to corroborate Bernie Hogan's finding that most people who communicate online are young, and women appear to comprise more of the group that talks online (from an examination of differential communication usage based on the National Geographic World Internet Survey 2001).
Discuss
There are over 4 million blogs on the net, more than half run by teenagers. Research group Perseus says the typical blog is written by a teenage girl who updates it about twice a month.
Sites such as Diaryland and Blogspot make it easy for anyone to launch one. Even AOL is hosting web logs, a sign that this trend has hit the big time.
There are predictions the net will be littered with 5 million blogs by the end of the year.
But unlike www.bigwhiteguy.com most of them will be little seen, if not abandoned. At least two thirds of the blogs out there today have not been updated in months.
"the big time"? "littered"? "seen"? "out there"? Folks, you "saw" it here first...making it on AOL means you've hit the big time. If you're "reading" this, it means you've somehow managed to "cut through the litter" and find me. Congratulations! "Out here", we call this land the "blogosphere"....wonder who coined that term actually...
Now if the journalist who wrote this piece had any sense of the powerful mechanics of blogging, they would have "littered" the article with pertinent links to Perseus, Diaryland, Blogspot, and AOL's blogging site for the benefit of the bloggers who will read this article and have the urge to find out more. But wait a minute, wouldn't that appear as shameless, free advertising? Don't want that in an objective journalistic piece. Funny though, how in j-blogging, linking is expected as part of Blogging 101, and not viewed as free advertising, even though, technically, the j-blog's audience is as worldwide on the web as an online article.
Interesting also, how Perseus' findings suggest that the typical blogger communicator is young and female, which appear to corroborate Bernie Hogan's finding that most people who communicate online are young, and women appear to comprise more of the group that talks online (from an examination of differential communication usage based on the National Geographic World Internet Survey 2001).
Discuss
