Read a little. Learn a lot. • Tightly-written news, views and stuff • Follow us on TwitterBe a Facebook FanTumble us!

23 Mar 2010 10:54

tags

Biz: Dish Network makes an ad. So does DirecTV. Lawsuits ahoy!

  • The original commercial Dish Network’s main selling point? It’s cheaper, and it offers the same quality of product as DirecTV. It’s not nearly the same as, say, AT&T and Verizon’s competing maps, but it understandably might provoke a response from DirecTV.
  • The (supposed) rip-off And here’s that response! It’s honestly a more clever approach, using Alex Trebek in a Jeopardy-style game. However, if you listen about halfway through, you’ll hear the same kind of message as the original commercial in this clip, too. source

23 Mar 2010 10:44

tags

World: 88 years old, going to jail: Ex-Nazi sentenced for crimes

He has reason to look dejected. Heinrich Boere was sentenced to life in prison for the 1944 killing of Dutch citizens out of retaliation for resistance fighter attacks. source

23 Mar 2010 10:34

tags

Music: Good night, sweet WOXY: Great internet radio station in flux

  • A sad day for internet radio. WOXY, an internet station run by Future Sounds (which notably went from terrestrial to online-only), was forced to shut down live broadcasts today. While they could come back to life, it doesn’t sound super-promising based on the message left here. *sigh* If only they were charmed, like Pandora. source

23 Mar 2010 10:25

tags

Tech: Opera decides to have fun with their iPhone app’s uncertain state

  • Opera Mini for iPhone submitted today. When do you think Apple will approve it?
  • Opera’s official Twitter account, @opera • Regarding their playing with fire and submitting their Opera iPhone app, which would directly compete with Mobile Safari to some degree (though they’ve been careful to note the differences in speed and approach). Opera is being downright clever about this, creating a contest where people suggest when the app will be approved by Apple, and giving away an iPhone to the winner. Clever bastards. Might as well have fun with uncertainty. source

23 Mar 2010 10:19

tags

Tech, World: So, what can you get away with on China’s Internet, anyway?

  • no You can’t use
    sites like Twitter, Facebook, or many
    blogs, because they can spread info quickly.
  • yes Many English
    papers critical of
    China, including
    The New York Times, are easy to
    read in China.
  • yes Despite China
    making an effort to
    block porn on the
    mainland, many
    porn sites are fairly
    accessible.
  • yes People roam
    the Chinese
    interweb and
    get paid to make
    comments by
    China. source

23 Mar 2010 10:08

tags

World: The U.K. doesn’t think James Bond stuff funny when Israel does it

  • 27 suspects in the killing of Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, 26 of which used forged European or Australian passports
  • one unlucky Israeli diplomat just got kicked out of the U.K. for the country’s suspected role in the killing and forged passports source

23 Mar 2010 10:00

tags

Tech: The 3DS: Nintendo’s going third-dimensional with its next portable

  • No photos, just a press release. It’s secret. Nintendo has this way of pushing a new technology that’s never been tried in video games before and turning it into a smashing success. The latest? The 3DS, a backwards-compatible variant of the DS series which uses 3D screens. It could be super-interesting. source