Rumors
Rumors in Technology, Current Events, Business and Local Events
John He Is
Just too funny to not pass along…
Hey Comcast… Get stuffed!
Looks like the BitTorrent folks are at it again and have developed a workaround to blocking by Comcast. This is the same old story that always has the exact same ending, you can’t beat the hackers. Period. Be it Comcast, Microsoft, DirectTV or any large company that attempts to create technology to keep people out, there will always be many more people trying to get in..and frankly, some of them are, and always will be, smarter and more resourceful than your people.
From the blog posting:
BitTorrent throttling is not a new phenomenon, ISPs have been doing it for years. When the first ISPs started to throttle BitTorrent traffic most BitTorrent clients introduced a countermeasure, namely, protocol header encryption. This was the beginning of an ongoing cat and mouse game between ISPs and BitTorrent client developers, which is about to enter new level.
Unfortunately, protocol header encryption doesn’t help against more aggressive forms of BitTorrent interference, like the Sandvine application used by Comcast. A new extension to the BitTorrent protocol is needed to stay ahead of the ISPs, and that is exactly what is happening right now.
In the immortal words of David Byrne of The Talking Heads.. “Same as it ever was…”
As someone who tries to take full advantage of the many new, better and legal ways to download electronic content from the industry, there is still much that is not available. This is extremely frustrating. However, the industry needs to focus attention on making content more readily available, with healthy competition to keep prices in check. The ISP’s (i.e. Comcast) need to focus on keeping their tubes big enough to cover what they have advertised and sold to us in the first place. Marketing types need to fully comprehend the meaning of the word unlimited and throughput before they are allowed to willy nilly advertise such silliness at what now is claimed to be unsustainable pricing.
Frankly, it sounds more like building shareholder value to me, but I’ve been called cynical for less.
Sphere: Related ContentRIP: HD-DVD and Spore for Mac will rock your universe
Yet another final nail has been driven into the HD-DVD casket and frankly, I could care less. BluRay is emerging as the clear winner in this pointless format war reminiscent of the old VHS vs. Betamax wars. Just in time for well-done electronic distribution to kick the snot out of it. Well done, Sony!
From the article:
The nation’s largest retailer said Friday it has decided to sell only Blu-ray DVDs and hardware in its 4,000 U.S. stores and no longer carry rival HD DVD offerings.
The announcement comes five days after Netflix Inc. said it will stop carrying rentals in Toshiba Corp.’s HD DVD format and instead go exclusively with the rival Sony Corp. technology favored by five major movie studios.
In Mac related gaming news, the fine folks over at MacLife have sit down with Spore creator, Will Wright. I am looking forward to this release and hope it won’t suck the hours away from my life like some other games.
Sphere: Related ContentFree open source virtualization software for the Mac
It looks like there is finally some open source competition to Parallels Desktop and VMWare’s Fusion…innotek GHmB’s VirtualBox has arrived. Considerably smaller in footprint and with a end-user price point that will make the others scramble, VirtualBox provides a low cost alternative to running Windows/Linux virtual machines on your Mac. Ars Technica (Love those guys!) has a good article with some of the current limitations and features detailed.
From the article:
VirtualBox is an excellent alternative the two more well-known options, and for personal use comes in at an unbeatable price: free. With Sun’s Tuesday announcement that they have acquired innotek, the company could suddenly become a force in the Mac VM market.
Since I maintain a Windows XP laptop next to my Mac Pro, I haven’t found a whole lot of use for visualization of this type. However, if you are trying to win a corporate platform battle, this may be one more feather in your cap to prove there is not much downside to running Mac’s…even in the Enterprise.
Sphere: Related ContentNews Corp joins the fight for Yahoo
The Financial Times is reporting that Rupert Murdoch of News Corp. may be going after Yahoo.
From the article
News Corp has been in talks about merging its MySpace social network and other online sites with Yahoo in exchange for a substantial stake in the web portal, according to a person familiar with the matter.
My take is that you never bet against Microsoft. However, how much value is truly left in Yahoo? The combination of MySpace and Yahoo makes sense in some ways. However, make no mistake, if this would occur..it would relegate Yahoo to the bottom of the Internet social heap. Who really even uses MySpace anymore?
Wired claims it is Yahoo who is courting News Corp to fend off Microsoft.
Sphere: Related ContentApple TV HD quality compared to Blu-Ray and Cable HD
The folks over at iLounge have done a preliminary comparison between Apple TV, Blu-Ray and Cable HD picture quality. I’m surprised the Apple TV fared so well and can’t wait to try it out for myself. The update finally came through last night and so far I like what I see.
From the article:
Sphere: Related ContentIf you’re using a TV without the ability to display 1080p video—especially if you don’t have a receiver capable of decoding the Blu-Ray Disc’s DTS-HD signal—an Apple TV rental will be an almost complete substitute for renting the Blu-Ray.
New slim Lenovo X300 to compete with Apple Air
The march of technology never ceases and the competition for small, ultra-portable laptops just got hotter. IBM Lenovo will release a direct competitor to the Apple Air that is based on a 13″ screen and full-sized keyboard.
From the article:
Sporting the traditional ThinkPad black slab design, the X300 isn’t as skinny or sexy as the Apple, but it’s still very slender and attractive, at under an inch thick. Also, unlike the Apple, most of the ThinkPad’s configurations are a bit heavier than the 3-pound weight that traditionally denotes a subnotebook.
Unfortunately, this laptop will not boot OS X natively. 
More IRL/CCWS rumors
Looks like the talks are continuing between Tony George and CCWS officials. The Indianapolis Star reports that one of the biggest hurdles may be closer to a settlement.
From the article:
The IRL was seeking permission for alternatives to its April 19 race at the Honda-owned Twin Ring Motegi circuit as it tried to alleviate a potential scheduling conflict with Champ Car’s Long Beach (Calif.) Grand Prix, to be held on April 20.
The options include moving the Japan race to August, the end of the season or postponing it for a year.
Let’s hope they can get it done!
Sphere: Related ContentWhat the animals are REALLY thinking
Just…funny.. Probably NSFW as there are tons of f-bombs dropped.
Sphere: Related ContentWriters Strike is over!?!
The NY Times is reporting that a tentative deal has been struck to end the writers strike that begin on Nov 5, 2007. It has also been reported that writers may be back to work as early as Monday of next week.
From the article:
Word of the tentative deal came Saturday in an early morning e-mail message to members of the Writers Guild of America West and the Writers Guild of America East. The deal was to be reviewed by members at previously scheduled mass meetings here and in New York later in the day.
Yea! Reality TV sucks and I’m ready for some new episodes of my favorite shows. I hope the writers won a much better deal than the one they had before the strike.
UPDATE: It looks like one issue remains to be solved.. streaming content.
Sphere: Related ContentYahoo rejects Microsoft’s offer
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Yahoo has rejected Microsoft’s offer of $31 per share ($44.6 Billion US Dollars).
The article also says that Yahoo has taken preventative “poison pill” measures to fend off more hostile takeover attempts.
The decision to reject the offer signals that Yahoo’s board is digging in its heels for what could be a long takeover battle. The company is unlikely to consider any offer below $40 per share, the person said.
Looks like this won’t be decided anytime soon. The Yahoo as we have known will probably change as they do everything they can to build value and justify this decision to shareholders.. Who else will come calling at over $56 billion dollars? What are they holding out for… Facebook money?
Google is offering to help Yahoo thwart Microsoft’s advances.
Sphere: Related ContentIRL & Champ Car, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G
This is some of the best news I’ve heard in a LONG time.
The Indy Racing League (IRL) and Champ Car World Series (CCWS) may finally be getting back together.
Robin Miller from the Speed TV channel is reporting that Tony George and the powers that be within CCWS are closer than ever to a reconciliation. This has me excited for many reasons, but one that stands out is the competition factor. NASCAR has become the premier racing league in many people’s eyes because of the close competition between teams. A IRL/CCWS merger would create that same depth of competition and raise the level of racing even higher than it already is.
For us die-hard open wheel racing fan, this is exciting news! Open wheel racing is SO much more exciting to watch than a bunch of station wagon’s turning left every few hundred feet lined up like a freight train.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed!
From the article:
It also means young stars Graham Rahal and Marco Andretti can now race on the same track along with Justin Wilson and Dan Wheldon while veterans Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan and Paul Tracy would be reunited.
“I think we’d all be happy if we’re back together and the fans would be happy to see all the best drivers in one race,” said Tracy, the 2003 CART champion who hasn’t competed at Indy since his controversial second place finish in 2002.
More from the Indianapolis Star.
Sphere: Related ContentInformation Architecture Summit - Miami, April 10-14, 2008
This is something that I would like to attend. As always, my work schedule will probably not allow it.
Information Architecture Summit
Tips for Google Mail (gmail) users
Excellent set of links and tips for Google Mail power users.
2009 NFL Super Bowl Odds
The Colts are 6-1 favorites, with the Patriots being 2-1 fav’s. The poor NY Giants get NO respect.
NY Times - 2009 NFL Super Bowl Odds
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