Here's how it works: In Google Wave you create a wave and add people to it. Everyone on your wave can use richly formatted text, photos, gadgets, and even feeds from other sources on the web. They can insert a reply or edit the wave directly. It's concurrent rich-text editing, where you see on your screen nearly instantly what your fellow collaborators are typing in your wave. That means Google Wave is just as well suited for quick messages as for persistent content — it allows for both collaboration and communication. You can also use "playback" to rewind the wave and see how it evolved.
MacBook Pro firmware and iWork '09 get some update love - Ars Technica
The iWork update brings the software to version 9.0.2 and claims to improve
reliability when saving iWork applications and when playing
presentations more than once per session. Though we can't say we know
anyone who has tried to play a Keynote presentation more than once in a
single session, the update is still recommended for all iWork '09 users.
More interesting is the MacBook Pro Firmware Update 1.3, which is
recommended for users of 15- and 17-inch MacBook Pros of apparently any
kind (Apple did not specify which models). According to the
description, this update "adjusts fan behavior" when the machines are
under high workloads.
Windows 7 alluring, but XP is the migration X factor - Network World
The equation corporate IT pros will have to figure out is how long it will take to get all their XP desktops to Windows 7 before XP support runs out or before application vendors quit producing XP versions of upgrades or new software, which some predict could come as early as 2012.Gartner predicts that more than half of the corporate Windows user-base is skipping Vista and aiming at Windows 7.
While that means XP users won't have to tangle with Vista in name, it doesn't mean they will avoid the application compatibility issues that gave Vista a black eye right out of the blocks in November 2006. Windows 7 is built on the Vista code base.
"If you are on XP, Windows 7 isn't going to solve a lot of Vista's migration problems," says Brett Waldman, a research analyst for IDC. "Going from Vista to Windows 7 should be a much easier transition than XP to 7.
Hands-on: much to like in Hulu Desktop - Ars Technica
Hulu dropped a surprise on TV fans Thursday by introducing public beta of Hulu Desktop—desktop software for the Mac and Windows that works with the popular TV streaming site. The software finally removes Hulu from the Web browser in an official, Hulu-approved way and puts it into a very media-center-like format for browsing and watching your favorite shows. Though Hulu Desktop still keeps Hulu's offerings largely on the computer, it offers some flexibility in the watching experience.
To Bing or not to Bing? Hands on with Microsoft's new search - Ars Technica
Microsoft has unveiled Bing, the rebranding of its Live Search service. Ars takes Microsoft's latest attempt to grab search market share for a spin and discovers much to like—and some frustration.
Landmark study: DRM truly does make pirates out of us all - Ars Technica
do anticircumvention laws really prevent real people in the real world from doing real things with their content? Or are the complaints largely dreamed up by copyleft activists who would like nothing more than to see the term "intellectual property" disappear into the tentacled maw of Cthulhu?
According to the first empirical study of its kind in the UK, by Cambridge law professor Patricia Akester, it's the former. DRM is so rage-inducing, even to ordinary, legal users of content, that it can even drive the blind to download illegal electronic Bibles.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Big drop in global server sales
Sales of servers worldwide fell almost 25% in the first three months of 2009, against the same period a year earlier, according to market research firm IDC.
Global sales were $9.9 bn (£6.14 bn), IDC said, the lowest figure since the firm started monitoring the computer server market 12 years ago.
Dell was the vendor hardest hit, with server revenue falling 31.2%.
Novell sees 25 per cent growth in Linux sales - Software - iTnews Australia
Novell has reported a year-on-year fall in second-quarter revenue, but a small rise in profit as a result of a 25 per cent growth in Linux product sales.
The software provider achieved revenue of US$216m (A$271m), down from US$236m in the same period last year. Net income was up to US$16m from US$6m in 2008.
Sales from the firm’s Linux Platform Products group were up 25 per cen
Topsy: a search-engine whose results come from highly trafficked Twitter links - Boing Boing
Topsy, a new site that lets you search through what people are saying about things. Topsy sees the Internet as a stream of conversations between people. It ranks each search result based on how much people are talking about it, and the influence of the people discussing it.
Wikipedia bans Church of Scientology • The Register
In an unprecedented effort to crack down on self-serving edits, the Wikipedia supreme court has banned contributions from all IP addresses owned or operated by the Church of Scientology and its associates.
Closing out the longest-running court case in Wikiland history, the site’s Arbitration Committee voted 10 to 0 (with one abstention) in favor of the move, which takes effect immediately.
Microsoft loses NZ Windows government deal !!!
Microsoft has failed to renew a key government-wide purchasing deal for Windows, opening the door to greater use of open-source software - Microsoft could not give the purchasers what they wanted either in features, roadmap, or price
Asus and Microsoft join forces against Linux - Software - iTnews Australia
Microsoft and Asus have launched a marketing campaign to encourage netbook users to use Windows rather than Linux.
The campaign has kicked off with a web page entitled “It’s better with Windows” showing adverts for Windows and suggesting it is a better choice for use with Asus’ range of netbooks.
Asus confirmed to vnunet.com that the campaign was legitimate, saying: “As a hardware vendor we have to provide both operation systems for our consumers.”
However, some will see this as a thinly veiled attempt by Microsoft to protect its share in the growing netbook market. While the company is claiming that the vast majority of netbooks is shipping Windows nevertheless it appears worried by Linux.
The Bing Features Australia Won’t Be Getting | Lifehacker Australia
Microsoft’s uber-hyped new search engine Bing doesn’t go live down under until June 3, but we already know that many of the features being promoted won’t be available at launch in Australia, if ever.
We’re going to hold off on commenting in detail on Bing until there’s an actual product to test, but in its launch announcement Microsoft and NineMSN have already made it clear that several of its most-hyped aspects won’t feature in the Australian version when it first rolls out:
Over the next 12 months, additional localised features for Bing will be released into the Australian market. These features include Hot Spots, Categorised Search and Vertical Search Categories covering local, travel, health and shopping.
There’s no mention whatsoever of the Bing Cashback program for Aussies, so it seems safe to assume no money will be dribbling in that direction any time soon either.
Lifehacker - SugarSync Offers 2GB of Free Windows/Mac/Mobile Syncing - File Syncing
Windows/Mac/mobile: SugarSync, a previously paid-only syncing service that got quite a few shout-outs in our feature-by-feature online storage chart, now offers a free 2GB plan that keeps documents synced across Windows, Mac, and mobile platforms.
If you're familiar with Dropbox, our readers' favorite file syncing tool, you're going to think SugarSync's offerings are pretty familiar—2GB of free space, multi-system, cross-platform syncing, file explorer integration, web access with sharing and photo gallery powers, etc. There are, however, a few key differences, positive and negative, that set SugarSync apart:
* SugarSync lets you add folders anywhere on your system to be synchronized, while Dropbox sticks to a single-bin-for-everything mindset (although there's a symbolic link work-around for that)
* SugarSync's free accounts limit you to syncing two computers, while Dropbox seems unlimited.
* SugarSync has working clients for iPhones, BlackBerries, and Windows Mobile phones—some of which we've heard is on the way for Dropbox, but not released yet.
Other than that (and a lack of a Linux client), SugarSync seems like a pretty nifty way to keep files synchronized across systems, especially if you're a frequent mobile net user. The free plan software is free to download; better transfer speeds and more options start at $4.99 per month.
Microsoft "Project Natal" invents a better Wii - Boing Boing
Microsoft had a killer day today, revealing all sorts of updates to the Xbox 360, including full retail game downloads, 1080p live streaming of movies and TVs, and most notably "Project Natal", an attempt to beat the Nintendo Wii at its own game by creating a virtual reality interface that doesn't use control hardware at all, but instead does real-time motion capture using an array of cameras.
Open Source:
Spaz:
New open source, cross platform Twitter client, Spaz. Works on any platform that supports Adobe Air and includes inbuilt search powered by Summize, which is the service Twitter acquired to power it's own search functionality.
http://funkatron.com/spaz
News from Silvia Pfeiffer regarding open video:
"# YouTube are experimenting with the HTML5 video tag. The demo only works in HTML5 video capable browsers, such as Firefox 3.5, Safari, Opera, and the new Chrome, which leads me straight to the next news.
# The Google Chrome 3 browser now supports the HTML5 video tag. The linked release only supports MPEG encoded video, but that’s a big step forward.
# More importantly even, recently committed code adds Ogg Theora/Vorbis support to Google Chrome 3’s video tag! This is based on using ffmpeg at this stage, which needs some further work to e.g. gain Ogg Kate support. But this is great news for open media!"
From:
http://blog.gingertech.net/2009/06/02/dailymotion-using-ogg-and-oth...
Microsoft Silverlight versus Google Wave: Why Karma Matters
http://blogs.zoho.com/general/microsoft-silverlight-vs-google-wave-...
Melbourne community websites:
melbourne.dreamwidth.org - A Melbourne community maintained by Sarah. :)
http://lygon.upuralley.com/ - A Craig's list for Australia, but at the micro level. It's starting out focusing on the Lygon St precinct. Listings, recommendations and comments for living, working and playing in Lygon Street.
http://melbinnoir.com.au - Listings for the Melbourne music scene, including music reviews. Initial focus on jazz gigs and venues. Browse by genre, suburb or price range. Answer the question, what's on tonight.
http://chocrocks.wordpress.com/ - For Melbourne chocolate lovers - reviews, recipes and search for "chocolatiers by suburb".
EnhanceTV ATOM AWARDS 2009 - Home
the place where you will find all the information you need to know about the ATOM Awards…and more!
[...] See original here: Byte Into It – 3rd Jun 09 « Byte Into It – Computing and new … [...]
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