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22 Mar 2010 15:55

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Tech, World: Google gets around China, moves searches to Hong Kong

  • We believe this new approach of providing uncensored search in simplified Chinese from Google.com.hk  is a sensible solution to the challenges we’ve faced—it’s entirely legal and will meaningfully increase access to information for people in China.
  • Google Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer David Drummond • Regarding the company’s final decision on handling the China problem. There’s a very good chance that China will censor the search engine on the mainland after this, but you can at least say they tried very hard to have it both ways. This is a win for human rights. Unfortunately, it may not be a win that does Chinese citizens a whole lot of good. Is it better to be unable to give uncensored information, or willfully censor by the rules of a country that is willing to make people drive long distances just to check e-mail? source

22 Mar 2010 13:26

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Tech: Palm’s luck may be lacking, but they now have AT&T on their side

  • bad Underdog smartphone maker Palm is still doing rotten with its stock price and, with the Pre’s lacking success, could die eventually.
  • good On the plus side, they just added another carrier. AT&T has the iPhone AND Pre Plus. Is it time to upgrade, iPhone fans? source

22 Mar 2010 10:54

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Tech, World: Google and China are just about done with each other

  • Now Google suddenly wants to break its promise, and if it’s not satisfied it will criticize China for a worsening of the investment environment. This is entirely unreasonable. What has changed is not China’s investment environment. It is Google itself.
  • Chinese official media source Xinhua • Regarding Google’s decision to move out of the Chinese market (a decision reported by the Financial Times today but not formally announced). To a degree, they’re totally correct. Yeah, Google changed. They decided that they couldn’t do censorship anymore, and were optimistic they could get China to bend for them. Not so much. source

19 Mar 2010 17:12

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Tech: What if you could take a pill to stop damage from smoking?

  • good New research suggests a protein, GM-CSF, controls lung damage from smoking and can be turned off with the use of a pill.
  • bad The effects (for now) have only been tested short-term. Also, there’s still no cure for cancer, so it’s not a perfect solution. source

18 Mar 2010 22:39

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Tech: Mashable’s Pete Cashmore unveils more details on the new Digg

  • Curation, personalization, centralization – Digg wants to be your hub again. For a couple of years, Digg was THE place to go to hear what’s hot, as well as a solid way to drive traffic to your site. Nowadays, it’s a total niche and it’s hard to get your articles noticed in the abyss. Facebook (especially) and Twitter work way better. Mashable’s Pete Cashmore, in his column for CNN, talks a little more about Digg, whose new social buttons his site is testing. It sounds like Digg’s at least trying to get their mojo back. But will it work? Let’s just say we’re excited to see it. source

18 Mar 2010 22:28

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Tech: Jerry York: Who is that guy honored on Apple’s front page?

  • Seems like he’s considered a legend at Apple. Jerome York, a member of Apple’s Board of Directors, died today. It was important enough to knock the iPad off the company’s front page. The venture capitalist and former CFO of Chrysler got his start in the auto industry before moving to computers. At one point he was CEO of Micro Warehouse, a now-bankrupt computer company. We wish Apple the best in this tough time. source

18 Mar 2010 10:26

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Tech: HTC isn’t taking that whole Apple lawsuit thing lying down

  • HTC strongly advocates intellectual property protection and will continue to respect other innovators and their technologies as we have always done, but we will continue to embrace competition through our own innovation as a healthy way for consumers to get the best mobile experience possible.
  • HTC Chief Executive Officer Peter Chou • Regarding the lawsuit that Apple filed against it. They’re not backing down, which is probably a good move on their part. If anything, though, Google should figure out a way to help them, seeing as it’s, again, a proxy war. HTC notes that it’s made 50 smartphones since 2002, so they know a thing or two about innovation in the market. source
 

18 Mar 2010 10:04

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Tech: Google’s making a TV? Hey, why the heck not?

  • They’ll be conspiring with Intel and Sony on the project. Google’s ready to take itself (and the rest of the Web) into your living room with the still-under-wraps project. Much like everything else they do, the plan is the make the platform open using Android OS. They also plan on working with Logitech to come up with a tiny keyboard for the remote (which could be awesome or lame – jury’s still out). Either way, this makes the comparably underpowered Apple TV seem like last year’s news. source

17 Mar 2010 22:06

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Tech: Your iPhone probably made some Chinese factory worker sick

  • It would be good for the people who use those phones so happily to consider the sacrifice we made.
  • A 21-year-old former factory worker • Talking about the hell that she and others have been through personally because of poor conditions at a factory which she worked, which specialized in Apple and Nokia phones. The factory was using a toxic chemical, n-hexane, a fast-drying cleaning solvent which they didn’t have the proper permits to use and made the workers gradually sick. First it was nothing, then they felt tired, then their fingers went weak, then they fainted. The thousand-screen-a-day quota added up. Some have had to stay in a hospital for eight months. Holy crap. source

17 Mar 2010 10:41

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Tech: Oops. Someone forgot to register “Nexus One” as a trademark

  • The U.S. Patent and trademark Office denied Google’s mark. Seems Google was so busy selling its powerful cell phone online only (and hurting its bottom line) that they forgot to come up with a name that wasn’t registered by someone else. In the case of the Nexus One, Integra Telecom registered a similar name a year before Google released the phone. Google can appeal the decision, pay Integra Telecom money or (our favorite) change the name of the phone. All in all, a lot of fun, undesirable options. source