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Begging to be de-Googled
 Given Google's insane depth and breadth, anything you do or say on the Web (or done and said about you) will live on forever - for better or ill.
It's the latter that's concerning many people as old embarrassing photos, information or opinions are forever linked with their name - usually high up in the results - and there's nothing they can do about it.
The New York Times looks at those who contact Google begging to be de-Googled and wipe the tarnish away from searches around their name. The paper takes a look at how some are trying to mitigate the damage, given they can't eliminate it entirely.
"The Web is the worst place to try to take control of something," said Larry Weber, the chief executive of W2 Group Inc., a marketing services company. "You'll drive yourself crazy trying to get things deleted."
Via The New York Times
Posted: June 03, 2005
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Apple to offer free iPod batteries
 The only big knock against Apple's formidable iPod is its battery life. The amount of juice it can carry degrades significantly over time, eventually it will croak and replacing it isn't as easy as swapping out four AAs.
The situation is even worse with first- and second-generation models, and vocal owners have cajoled Apple into making good on the shortcoming. Fruit Co. announced this week that it will give $50 vouchers and extended service warranties to as many as 2 million customers whose older iPods had batteries that needed to be replaced or didn't fully charge.
The settlement applies to consumers nationwide who bought versions of the digital music player through May 2004, and those eligible will be contacted by Apple. See, *this* is why you fill out those annoying warranty cards.
Via My Way News
Posted: June 03, 2005
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French blogger affects EU vote
 Much hay was made last fall concerning the role of bloggers and the presidential election. So much so that earlier this week we posted that the FEC is stepping in to create some rules for political bloggers.
Anyhoo, it appears political bloggers are having an impact across the shores, as well. BBC News reports that a French law professor played a big role in influencing his countrymen to vote against the proposed EU Constitution.
Etienne Chouard's anti-constitutional rant was distributed widely through France and his site attracted 25,000 hits per day.
Writes the Beeb: "Mr. Chouard, the teacher turned blogger, has become a folk hero for the 'Non' campaigners who rebelled against what they saw as an out of touch political elite. Fans posting to his blog have asked where they can send contributions to erect a statue of him in Marseille."
If any blogger gets a statue, we're moving to Mars.
Via BBC News
Posted: June 03, 2005
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Cell phones for toddlers
 How young is too young for a cell phone? That's a trick question, as apparently there is no such thing as too young.
Mike Elgan reports that a cell phone for toddlers introduced at CeBit, the i-Care Baby Bear (left), is now shipping courtesy of a Chinese manufacturer.
CellularNews.com reports: "The bear-shape designed phone features four speed dial keypad that sends pre-programmed messages and SOS side keypads for emergency cases" and is aimed at the 3- to 10-year-old set. They better mean 10-year-old girls, as I can't imagine any 10-year-old boy carrying around a brightly-colored bear phone. However, it would be funny to ask any child: "Are you gonna answer that bear or not?"
How long until there's an ultrasound picture of a happy fetus sporting a cell phone headset?
Via Waxy.org
Posted: June 03, 2005
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The silent PC movement
 For some who have the hearing of a bat, the hum of a computer is enough to drive them, well, batty. (Ed. - Ugh, nice one.)
The Wall Street Journal looks at the "quiet your damn fan" movement, people like Carl Bohne of St. Louis, an auto mechanic whose hobby is building super-stealthy PCs.
"His computers are packed with foam insulation, noise-damping filters and custom-sculpted hunks of copper that divert heat from the microcircuitry so the built-in fans won't have to work so hard," writes the WSJ.
Bohne constructs elaborate duct work - made out of anything, including a plastic cookie jar and clothes-dryer exhaust hose - in his PCs to keep them cool and the fans quiet.
Via Obscure Store
Posted: June 02, 2005
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FBI wants to uphold in-flight cell ban
 Those of us who hate obnoxious cell phone yammer aren't the only ones getting riled up about the possibility of in-flight cell phone use.
The FBI's unhappy, too, and told the Department of Homeland Security that striking down the cell ban could open a security loophole for terrorists.
"The proposal raises not only regulatory and technical/operational issues, but also important public safety and national security issues," say the Feds.
If cell use were allowed on flights, the FBI wants to be allowed to wiretap certain people's cell phones and also have eavesdropping regulations loosened. Privacy advocates are naturally unimpressed.
Via The Register
Posted: June 02, 2005
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Drunk-sensing steering wheel
 A Florida man has received a patent for a steering wheel that locks when it senses the driver is drunk.
Dennis Bellehumeur invented the $600 sensor, which tests the driver's skin to determine the blood alcohol content. It can be installed in a steering wheel or gloves and Bellehumeur hopes to complete testing this year.
A real estate agent and deli owner, Bellehumeur has spent 12 years working on the project after his then-teenage son drove drunk, hit a utility pole and suffered minor brain damage.
Via USA Today
Posted: June 02, 2005
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Gates runs for cover
 How did we miss this Microsoft TechEd course last year: "Defending Against Layer 8"?
Bring it Gates! Ha, ha!
Posted: June 02, 2005
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Doctor sells exam answers on eBay
 You know, you really can get everything on eBay. A Florida doctor has lost his certification after the American Board of Surgery discovered he sold answers to the surgery certification exam via the online auction site.
Authorities say Craig Edward Amshel failed the test in 2002, then paid $100 to review his failed test, alone, at ABS offices. Test review was an option for those who failed, but now has been revoked after Amshel's stunt. After "reviewing" his test, Amshel put answers to 86 questions up for bid on eBay and sold several sets for $180 to $300. The complete test has 290 questions.
Amshel, who was a rectal specialist before losing his certification, admitted to copyright violation and will pay $36,000 so the board can create a new test. Amshel is also appealing his lost certification.
"He didn't believe what he was doing was wrong," said David R. Dearden, Amshel's attorney. "He's a young surgeon just getting started, well-regarded, and just trying to put this behind him."
Via USA Today
Posted: June 01, 2005
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New rules for political bloggers?
 Political blogs played a significant role in the 2004 presidential election, so much so the Federal Election Commission is ready to lay down some law.
The FEC has drafted rules that would put blogs into the television category, which "require[s] that paid political advertisements on the Internet declare who funded the ad, as television spots do," according to the AP.
Similar disclaimers would also be required on political Web sites and e-mail distributed to more than 500 people. The agency is also considering a requirement in which bloggers would have to disclose whether they received money from a candidate or are being paid for writing the blog.
The proposed rules would only affect blogs that accept money from candidates or political action groups.
Via Drudge Report
Posted: June 01, 2005
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'Net tune topples Coldplay
 If you think it's impressive Billboard Magazine launched a chart tracking the hottest ring tones, you'll be floored that a ring tone has now hit the mainstream British music charts.
"Crazy Frog Axel F" was created by a group of strangers collaborating over the 'Net and is based on - get this - "an imitation of the sound of a Swedish moped." Two German club disc jockeys took the ring tone and combined it with the instrumental "Axel F" (from 1984's "Beverly Hills Cop") to create the song that is now outselling super-hot alternative darlings, Coldplay.
Via New York Times
Posted: June 01, 2005
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Japan bans video game
 A region of Japan has prohibited the sale of popular video game "Grand Theft Auto III" saying its violence is harmful to minors and could provoke violence.
Kanagawa prefecture officials slapped a "harmful" rating on the violent video game, which means it cannot be sold or rented to anyone under 18.
If they don't like GTA III, they definitely won't like its successor, "GTA: San Andreas."
Halfway across the world, Illinois lawmakers passed a bill last week that would ban outright the sale of all violent or sexually explicit video games to minors.
Via My Way News
Posted: June 01, 2005
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New contest starts today
 Doesn't that look easier than jotting down your shopping list the 'ol legacy way? Of course not, which is why we need you to devise what's going on in this tranquil scene.
Send your best captions to layer8@nww.com by end of day Friday to win exclusive Layer 8 swag.
Posted: May 31, 2005
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Latest contest winner
The tragic after-effects of the latest wireless threat, the Medusa worm . . .
Entrants really brought the heat this week, with references to Star Wars, Gates, Harry Potter, Asimov and one of the worst '80s movies ever. Tremendous. Yet Ron Enderland whupped all comers with his use of Greek mythology and wins our latest tilt.
Click below to read some excellent runners-up, and come back later today for the start of the next round.
Go on, read the whole thing ...
Posted: May 31, 2005
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Device shuts up your coworkers
 God bless Danny Hillis, as he could become the savoir of those of us who dwell in Cubeland (or Paper-Thin Walls OfficeLand).
Hillis and his company, Applied Minds, have created Babble, a device that attaches to a phone and turns a person's conversation into, well, babble. Or as The New York Times writes a "muffled cacophony to anyone within earshot." Yeah, they would describe it as such.
Anyway, the device is a sound processor/speaker setup that scrambles and multiples the voices in its range. That means you don't have to be subjected to Coworker A fighting with her mother or the prurient details of Coworker B's hot date last night.
While the current telephone model will be available in June, one that applies the same technology to open office space is also in the works.
Via The New York Times
Posted: May 31, 2005
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GPS panties
 Wanna get your friends? Send them the link for Forget-Me-Not Panties, which "will monitor the location of your daughter, wife or girlfriend 24 hours a day, and can even monitor their heart rate and body temperature."
It's sure to raise the blood pressure of any woman or privacy nut, and could incapacitate a female privacy nut.
Sure, it's a joke, but a pretty good one, complete with nerd diagram of the technology in use.
Via The Register
Posted: May 31, 2005
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Parent use 'Net to monitor kids' lunch
You think your boss is a micromanager? Be lucky you're not a kid in Marietta, Ga., where parents can now monitor online what their kids buy for lunch.
According to the AP, three school districts in the Atlanta area last week became the first in the country to offer monitoring via an electronic lunch payment system called Mealpay.com.
Parent can log in and see exactly how their children spent their lunch money.
"A parent could give a child $20 and within two days that money's gone. This allows them to see if they bought chips," said program director Tina Bennett.
Frito Lay - the hidden enemy.
Via My Way News
Posted: May 31, 2005
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