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diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/MP3Realm.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/MP3Realm.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b115898 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/MP3Realm.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +[MP3Realm][1] is an new search engine focused on finding audio in MP3 format. There are several similar sites out there and it's also possible to use advanced search operators in Google and other search engines to achieve similar results, but MP3Realm has a few nice extra features.
MP3Realm allows you create m3u playlists out of your finds which can then be downloaded and streamed by popular audio software like Winamp. There are also playlist downloads for Windows Media Player.
MP3Realm can be searched by artist, title, genre or album. MP3Realm also index lyrics so you can get your words with your music. If you'd like to submit your own music files, you can submit urls to MP3Realm via an online form.
As for the legality of the search results, that depends. MP3Realm makes a point of saying they host no MP3 files, which might absolve them of responsibility. But Fox is [suing QuickSilverScreen][2] just for *linking* to copyright infringing materials, so who knows if MP3Realm will last. The Fox/QuickSilverScreen case has not been settled and legalities are so far rather confusing.
My search results on MP3Realm were mixed. A search for music from the band Wilco led me to some songs on the band's site, which presumably means they're legal and some other files where downloading them would probably constitute copyright infringement.
If you believe a file is under copyright, and to download it would infringe upon the copyright of the owner, then don't do it.
[1]: http://mp3realm.org/ "MP3Realm"
[2]: http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2006/12/is_simply_linki.html "Fox sues QuickSilverScreen"
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Michael Schmitz's logo evolves over time based on a number of factors related to the company, from the post:
>Looking for a suitable design solution, Mika soon learned about cellular automata, especially Conway's famous Game of Life, subject of many art pieces. His software basically follows the same rules in creating a dynamic logo for MPI-CBG in time, but the parameters are coupled to certain factors: number of employees = density, funding = speed, number of publications = activity. Different logos are being "bred" and then picked by fitness in relation to the parameters or voted for by the employees. Thus, every time the logo is displayed on a website as an animated icon or printed out on a letter, it reflects the current state of the lab as a living organism.
Could semi-intelligent, evolving designs be the wave of the future? The logo reminds me a little of designer Shaun Inman's [recently launched experiment Heap][3] where the archives of his blog fade in color as you go further back in time.
[1]: http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/009179.php "Evolving Logos"
[2]: http://www.mpi-cbg.de/ "Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics"
[3]: http://www.shauninman.com/post/about/the_heap/ "About Heap"
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However the Ecma approval was not unanimous, IBM cast a no vote, but was in the minority. IBM vice-president for open source and standards, Bob Sutor, [writes on his blog][3]:
>we think the OpenDocument Format ISO standard is vastly superior to the Open XML spec. ODF is what the world needs today to drive competition, innovation, and lower costs for customers. It is an example of a real open standard versus a vendor-dictated spec that documents proprietary products via XML. ODF is about the future, Open XML is about the past. We voted for the future.
One thing that's important to note is that in spite of what its name might imply, Microsoft's OpenXML is not an open source spec like ODF. OpenXML will be licensed for free, but given the size of the spec (over 4000 pages) and the fact that it eschews industry standard tools like SVG and MathML, it may be difficult for other vendors to implement.
IBM and others fear that difficult in implementing OpenXML will mean only Microsoft will fully support OpenXML with other vendors only using a subset of its features. Obviously such a situation would give Microsoft a distinct advantage in the marketplace.
So what does this mean for consumers? IBM's concerns, while they have some merit, may be unrealistic. Having two standardized formats means venders have more work to do in supporting both, but that hasn't seemed to hurt the graphics sector. After all any number of graphic software packages can read and write jpeg, gif and other standardized image file formats.
If OpenOffice ends up supporting the OpenXML format it may be a more formidable competitor.
For now Open XML will likely have a better shot at compatibility with existing documents, but in the long run ODF's more open approach may gain ground. Many vendors like Corel and Novell have already said they will support both.
[1]: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/061207/sfth087.html?.v=82 "Open XML press release"
[2]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/12/office_document.html "Monkey Bites on ODF"
[3]: http://www.sutor.com/newsite/blog-open/?p=1264 "Bob Sutor on OpenXML versus ODF"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/planck-logo.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/planck-logo.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..20244d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/planck-logo.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/reboot.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/reboot.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..623cc5a --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/reboot.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +<img alt="Any_key_3" title="Any_key_3" src="http://blog.wired.com/photos/uncategorized/any_key_2.jpg" border="0" style="float: right; margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" />TGIF. Here's your morning reboot, which we recommend pairing with a Central American bean of medium amber and crisp finish:
* More news on document formats: yesterday Microsoft's Open XML format (used by MS Office 2007) was [certified as a standard][1] by ECMA International. The certification means Open XML is on the fast track to ISO standardization, which will put the Open XML format on even footing with the [Open Document Format][9].
[1]: http://news.com.com/2100-1013_3-6141777.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-20&subj=news "CNet on MS Open XML standard"
[9]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/12/office_document.html "Monkey Bites on ODF"
* In other format news, according to Fox news China has announced a [third DVD format][2] to compete against Blue-Ray and HD-DVD. The new format, known as EVD, is part of China's efforts to create nationwide standards and cut down on outside dependence. EVD has actually been around since 2003, but hasn't caught on yet.
[2]: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,234877,00.html "China announces DVD format"
* Popular social news site [Digg][6] has [come under fire lately][3] because unscrupulous Internet marketers are paying users to promote stories and manipulate rankings. Of course the problem is not limited to Digg, but includes others like [Reddit][4] and [del.icio.us][5].
[3]: http://news.com.com/2100-1025_3-6140293.html "Digg under fire"
[4]: http://reddit.com/ "Reddit.com"
[5]: http://del.icio.us/ "del.icio.us"
[6]: http://www.digg.com/ "Digg"
* It hasn't even been released to the world yet and pirates have already released cracks for Windows Vista's copy protection. The [latest crack][7] uses Microsoft's yet-to-be-released volume licensing activation server.
[7]: http://apcmag.com/node/4769
* Microsoft's Zune MP3 player will be [Vista compatible *on June 30*. The lack of compatibility between the companies new MP3 player and much touted new operating system surprised many people. No word on why Zune users will have to wait six months for Vista support.
[8]: http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/7905/52/ "Zune/Vista compatibility coming June 30"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/statistics.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/statistics.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6080526 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/statistics.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +There are, as Mark Twain famously quipped, "three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."
That said, Yvo Schaap has done some [interesting statistical analysis][1] using Alexa's top 10,000 websites. The potential "damn lies" part of Schaap's analysis comes from his use of data from the controversial tracking site Alexa. Many have questioned the accuracy of Alexa's figures since its data collection relies on user-installed software.
Given that Alexa's user base if currently not that large, there may be some skewing of Schaaps initial data, but provided you take it all with the proverbial grain of salt, here's what he found:
* 10 percent of he top 10,000 websites are Adult oriented.
* The U.S. owns 44% of the top 10,000 websites
* 10 percent of all the homepages provide RSS feeds
* 6 percent of the homepages have Google ads
I find number three encouraging and number four helps to explain where Google's seemingly limitless revenue comes from.
But wait there's more, another batch of statistic from a [blog post at Compete.com][2] which Compete distilled into this nice graph:
Interestingly enough, though they're technically separate domains, if you were to combine Live.com, MSN.com and Microsoft.com, all of which are Microsoft properties, Microsoft would dominate the top twenty with 80 million hits.
The Compete post also points out some traffic shifts from this time last year. Adobe, Live.com, Wikipedia and YouTube are all newcomers to the top 20, while Expedia, Monster, Paypal and Weather.com have all moved off the list.
But lists aren't everything, as Compete notes, despite having fallen from the top 20, both Paypal and Weather.com have actually seen traffic increases.
For those that would like to know where and how these numbers are arrived at, Compete offers a [breakdown of the their methodology][4] and Schaap has released [the raw data][3] he used for your perusal.
[1]: http://www.yvoschaap.com/index.php/weblog/8_questions_about_the_web_you_always_wanted_answers_to/ "Yvo Schaap statistical analysis"
[2]: http://blog.compete.com/2006/12/07/top-20-most-popular-websites-unique-visitors-new-absent/ "Compete's list of the top twenty sites for October 2006"
[3]: http://www.yvoschaap.com/webanalyse/ "Yvo Schaap's raw data"
[4]: http://blog.compete.com/where-do-these-numbers-come-from/ "Compete - statical methodology"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/venice-logo.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/venice-logo.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..14e5570 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/venice-logo.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/veniceproject.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/veniceproject.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b9711fd --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Fri/veniceproject.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +We've been hearing rumblings about [The Venice Project][1] for a while now, and while nothing concrete has yet emerged, a [new interview][2] with founder Niklas Zennstrom in the USA Today claims it "could threaten the viability of network television."
To be clear, that's something the USA Today author writes, not a quote from Zennstrom, but there's so much hype surrounding The Venice Project Zennstrom doesn't need to make any outlandish claims.
According to the website, The Venice Project will be "launching a secure P2P streaming technology that allows content owners to bring TV-quality video and ease of use to a TV-sized audience mixed with all the wonders of the Internet."
All the content for this everything-you-always-wanted-and-more service will be provided directly by the content owners and will most likely support all the appropriate content protection and ownership restriction. I'm not going to speculate on a service that isn't yet public, but that sure sounds like DRM.
Internet video delivery is heating up, Azureus recently [launched an HD video download service][3], BitTorrent seems [poised to do the same][4] and then of course there's YouTube.
If The Venice Project has any hope of succeeding in the already crowded waters of internet video it needs to do what Zennstrom has done with Skype -- take existing technology and make it easier to use.
Still no word on when The Venice Project plans to go public, but you can fill out an application to join the [private beta testing][5].
[1]: http://www.theveniceproject.com/ "The Venice Project"
[2]: http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/technology/2006-12-06-zennstrom-internet-tv_x.htm "USA Today interview with Niklas Zennstrom"
[3]: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/software/0,72223-0.html?tw=wn_index_20 "Azureus launches HD download service"
[4]: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/internet/0,72272-0.html?tw=wn_index_3 "BitTorrent May Be Heading for TV Market"
[5]: https://www.theveniceproject.com/apply.html "The Venice Project Beta Test"
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AskCity mirrors Google Maps in appearance, but adds another column on the far left side of the screen that lets you flip between Businesses, Events, Movies, Directions and more. The layout and design of the site are clean and easy to use and there's a wealth of features without crowding the interface.
You can search for local listings in any category, whether you want to find a business, an event location, movie showtimes or just get directions, everything is kept on one simple page. AskCity trumps most other map providers by offering multipoint directions and walking as opposed to driving directions (of the others, only Yahoo offers similar features).
Like Google Maps, AskCity can show satellite or street maps and offer the option to overlay labels and other information in satellite view (refered to on AskCity as "aerial").
AskCity adds some nice features on top of what you've come to expect from online maps services, including the ability to draw, annotate, mark and save maps. At the bottom of each map panel is a toolbar with various drawing tools for annotating a map, you can then take a spanshot of your customized map or email a permalink to friends. In my testing the customized maps worked best in Firefox and IE.
You can also create your own markers on maps, just drag the marker tool to a location and AskCity will calculate the address and then you can search of things around that location.
While you're browsing through your search results AskCity provides links to send a listing to your phone via SMS or email, get directions, read reviews, search for nearby listings and more.
If you're searching for restaurants AskCity can narrow by cuisine or neighborhood and you can make reservations via OpenTable. Most events can be booked via Ticketmaster and movie listings provide purchase links to Fandango. Movie searches can also be narrowed by location or genre.
I've always been a big fan of Google Maps, but AskCity is a very impressive offering with a great feature set. I found it to be faster, easier to use and offer better results than Google Maps or other services. The three paned interface manages to pack a ton of tools into a single window without cluttering up the site or confusing users.
Combine the excellent features and search results with the ten plus years of reviews pulled in from CitySearch and AskCity may soon have other services scrambling to catch up.
[1]: http://city.ask.com/city "AskCity"
[2]: http://newyork.citysearch.com/ "CitySearch"
[3]: http://maps.google.com/ "Google Maps"
[4]: http://maps.yahoo.com/ "Yahoo Maps"
[5]: http://www.mapquest.com/ "Mapquest"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/elistening-logo.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/elistening-logo.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..250c86e --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/elistening-logo.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/elisteningpost.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/elisteningpost.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7431766 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/elisteningpost.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +Seems like everyday there's another service offering musicians a silver bullet for distributing their music to the masses. Today's offering comes from a new site [eListeningPost][1] which will give up to 94% of sales profits back to the band.
EListeningPost provides musicians with a way to distribute their music in "secure," limited-play formats via links or email. Customers can listen to a track up to five times before they need to buy it they want to continue listening. Artists can also chose to distribute a non-DRM version their songs.
EListeningPost also offers services to help artists manage mailing lists, track downloads and convert songs between formats.
But musicians take note, other than the clean, non-DRM MP3 option, none of eListeningPost's files will work on an iPod.
According to the site the fees are as follows:
* Onetime Setup Fee: US$45; UK£35; Euro €45; Canadian$55; Australian$65; Japanese Yen ¥6,800.
* Monthly Subscription Fee: US$9; UK£5; Euro €8; Canadian$10; Australian$12; Japanese Yen ¥1,200. Receive a FREE month for every referral you provide that signs up.
* Monthly Email and Contact Management Fee: FREE until January 15, 2007. US$5; UK£4; Euro €5; Canadian$6; Australian$6; Japanese Yen ¥900.
* Bandwidth cost per 10,000 downloads/previews (your first 10,000 previews are included with your setup fee): US$18; UK£10; Euro €15; Canadian$20; Australian$25; Japanese Yen ¥2,200.
We've looked at a few other music distribution channels in the past, see the Monkey Bite's review of [Snocap][2] and Listening Post's take on [Amie St.][3], and while eListeningPost may offer better percentages on sales, their set-up fees are steep for what you get and the over-reliance on DRM may put off some artists.
[1]: http://www.elisteningpost.com/ "EListeningpost"
[2]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/09/myspace_snocap_.html "Monkey Bites on Snocap and MySpace Music"
[3]: http://blog.wired.com/music/2006/11/amie_street_inc.html "Listening Post on Amie St."
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Tew's Million Dollar Homepage, which introduced the new concept of pixel advertising and earned him a cool million dollars in a few short months was unquestionable a novel and huge success. But can Tew repeat that success or has the novelty have worn off?
To his credit, the pixelotto project does add an interesting twist to the Million Dollar Homepage concept. This time around advertisers will pay two dollars a pixel and one lucky user will walk away with a million dollars for clicking the winning pixel, hence the lotto bit in the name.
According to early reports Tew is soliciting the same advertisers from Million Dollar Homepage to purchase advertising space on Pixelotto prior to tomorrow's public launch. The idea is apparently to give loyal customers the first shot at that prime pixel real estate in the center of the page.
With the chance at a million dollar pay-out driving users to view the advertisements, pixelotto could be even bigger than the Million Dollar Homepage. So, are you feeling lucky?
[1]: http://www.milliondollarhomepage.com/ "Million Dollar Homepage"
[2]: http://www.pixelotto.com/ "Pixelotto.com"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/reboot.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/reboot.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f14ee53 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Mon/reboot.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +<img alt="Any_key_3" title="Any_key_3" src="http://blog.wired.com/photos/uncategorized/any_key_2.jpg" border="0" style="float: right; margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" />Greetings earthlings, here is your morning reboot:
* Yahoo has announced a new partnership with the new organization Reuters which will make it easier for the public to contribute photos and videos of news events. The rather suspiciously named "[You Witness][2]," will be accepting uploads starting tomorrow and will apparently cross post your images to Flickr.
* Last week a U.S. District Judge [ruled that the FBI could use cellphones to spy][3] on you. The technique works by remotely activating a mobile phone's microphone to record nearby conversations.
* [Ask city is a new local search][4] and maps tool from Ask.com. Future plans call for a mobile version as well.
* TiVoToGo's DRM has been [cracked by some industrious hackers][5]. TiVoToGo DRM locks your saved programs once they're transferred to your computer and restricts what you can do with your recordings. [via [BoingBoing][6]]
[1]: http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID=2006-12-04T114148Z_01_NAAD0401_RTRUKOC_0_US-YAHOO-REUTERS-EYEWITNESS.xml "Yahoo partners with Reuters"
[2]: http://news.yahoo.com/page/youwitnessnews "You Witness"
[3]: http://news.com.com/2100-1029_3-6140191.html "FBI spies via cellphones"
[4]: http://city.ask.com/city
[5]: http://www.alt.org/wiki/index.php/TiVoToGo
[6]: http://www.boingboing.net/2006/12/04/tivotogo_drm_cracked.html "BoingBoing on TiVoToGo Crack"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/bittorrent.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/bittorrent.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6a4a1d3 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/bittorrent.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +BitTorrent, Inc., will announce later today that it has acquired µTorrent, a lightweight and efficient implementation of the BitTorrent protocol. The official announcement will come this afternoon, but there are already [some posts from Bram Cohen][4], CEO and Co-Founder of BitTorrent, in the µTorrent Forums.
>BitTorrent has acquired µTorrent as it recognized the merits of µTorrent's exceptionally well-written codebase and robust user community. Bringing together µTorrent's efficient implementation and compelling UI with BitTorrent's expertise in networking protocols will significantly benefit the community with what we envision will be the best BitTorrent client.
We gave [µTorrent high marks][1] back in our [review of Bittorrent clients][2] for being lightweight and efficient. According to posts in the µTorrent forums, the new deal means, among other things, versions of µTorrent for Mac and Linux, although no timetable has been announced.
Cohen says, "Ludvig Strigeus, the developer of µTorrent, clearly put a significant amount of time into optimizing the client." Cohen went on to say, "BitTorrent recognizes µTorrent's exceptionally well-written codebase and robust user community." The FAQ claims that "bringing together BitTorrent expertise with µTorrent's elegance creates... what will be the best BitTorrent client hands-down."
For the time being the µTorrent client and website will remain and the client will continue to be freely available for download. The acquisition FAQ's go on to note that the µTorrent code base will remain closed source.
The merge means that many of BitTorrent Inc's patented delivery innovations will be rolled into the µTorrent client. While that's nice for users, the real reason for the deal may be that BitTorrent Inc, which just inked some deals with Hollywood, needs a lightweight codebase for potential mobile, television and other, non-PC markets.
In a [Wired Interview earlier this week][3], Cohen said, "We're working on making BitTorrent come preinstalled on many embedded devices, as one of the basic services they support in the same class as web browsers."
With the newly acquired lightweight µTorrent client, could BitTorrent-powered movie downloads be headed for a mobile device near you?
[1]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/10/best_of_bt_torr.html "Monkey Bites reviews µTorrent"
[2]: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,71979-0.html?tw=rss.index "Wired: The best of bittorrent"
[3]: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/internet/0,72222-0.html "Wired Talks to Bram Cohen"
[4]: http://forum.utorrent.com/viewtopic.php?id=17279 "Bram Cohen announces µTorrent acquisition"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog-logo.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog-logo.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d78af93 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog-logo.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog-widget-drag.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog-widget-drag.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ce63d35 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog-widget-drag.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..1dbfb2c --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/mog.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +A while back we looked at bunch of [music sharing and discovery sites][1]. Of course there's too many sites out there to get to them all, but I've been playing with [MOG.com][2] for a couple weeks now and decided it deserves a mention.
MOG is social networking site based around music. Like last.fm and others it offers a downloadable program (Mac and Windows) that can parse your music collection and display the data on your personal MOG page.
The functionality of the program mirrors that of similar offerings from last.fm and others, but Mog-o-matic supports an impressive array of jukebox software including iTunes, Windows Media Player, Winamp and many more.
Once the data is uploaded to the site fellow MOG users will be able to see your most frequently listened to songs in a top ten list. MOG also offers a number of widgets to display more targeted information about your listening habits, such as top albums by week and month. Note that there doesn't see to be a way to block listings, so while your friends on MOG may not know you were dancing naked at the time, they will know you put on that Warrant album.
MOG allows you customize your page with a number of skins and widgets using the "customize my MOG" page where you can also rearrange your page elements through a nice drag-and-drop interface. MOG offers a number of automatically updated widgets that pull data from your listening history as well as some manual widgets where you fill in the data yourself, such as, what shows you're going to or a list of your favorite clubs.
To find other listeners with similar tastes you can search using the browse features or use an automated search "find MOGs like me" which searches based on your listening habits. The browse page also allows you to search by zip code which means you can meet users in your area and get tips on local shows.
Overall MOG is a nice site, it's easy to use and has good range of listeners, but it lacks a killer feature to set it apart from the pack of similar services.
However, what it lacks in features, it makes up for in community. There are a ton of social network sites on the market, but few are as well-behaved and well-spoken as the members of MOG. The MOG community is one of the most mature and insightful that I've run across. There's nary a flame war or fan-boy post to be found, which was incredibly refreshing.
MOG also boast a number of active celebrity artists like David Lowery of Cracker and Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie who both regularly update their pages. If you're looking to discover new artists through streaming audio and other instant gratification tools, MOG may leave you wanting, but if you want to be part of an impressive and active community of music lovers MOG delivers.
[1]: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/internet/0,72182-0.html "Wired on music services"
[2]: http://mog.com/ "Mog.com"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/reboot b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/reboot new file mode 100644 index 0000000..41b3193 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Thu/reboot @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +<img alt="Any_key_3" title="Any_key_3" src="http://blog.wired.com/photos/uncategorized/any_key_2.jpg" border="0" style="float: right; margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" />The morning reboot:
* A new [report from environmental group Greenpeace][1] ranks Apple Computer last among top PC and cellphone makers for its lack of "green" policies and for contributing to adverse environmental effects.
[1]: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20061206/apple-greenpeace.htm
* Yahoo released its [top ten searches of 2006][4] and for the fifth year running Britney Spears is the most searched for person in the world. Yahoo eliminates porn terms, but otherwise claims the data is unmanipulated. Also check out the [interactive version of the results][3].
[3]: http://buzz.yahoo.com/topsearches2006/categories/ "Yahoo top searches by category"
[4]: http://buzz.yahoo.com/topsearches2006/lists/ "Yahoo Top searches of 2006"
* Yesterday and this morning have seen several stories proclaiming [the beginning of the end of DRM][6]. It would be nice if that were true, but reality is a little more mundane. A few record companies, most notably Britain's EMI, are [experimenting with non-DRM MP3 downloads][5]. In total there are probably less than a hundred tracks available, which hardly constitutes the end of DRM, but at least it's a small step in the right direction.
[5]: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/technology/16181982.htm
[6]: http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/7849/1023/ "ITWire"
* [A new version of OpenSUSE Linux][2] has been released. The release, which brings the distribution to version 10.2, features redesigned GNOME and KDE desktops and uses ext3 as the new default file system.
[2]: http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-announce/2006-12/msg00004.html "OpenSUSE announcement"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk-logo.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk-logo.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5e431bc --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk-logo.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..afc55ac --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6f4e204 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/downloadpunk.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +Downloadpunk is a newish music store that specializes in, natch, punk music. The selection is excellent including just about everything from the seminal punk label Discord Records.
The distribution of punk music has always made it an easy candidate for online dissemination since word of mouth has always fueled the scenes. Downloadpunk seems to have recognized this and skipped many of the social features other music sites are touting. Downloadpunk seems to operate on the premise that what punk fans want is an online record store, not an online community and download punk is a darn fine store.
All songs are in 192 bit encoding which should be fine for most punk bands. Users can choose between mp3 and WMA formats. When you sign up you have the option to chose a charity, and Downloadpunk donates 1% of sales to the charities listed on the site. Song prices range from $.79, to $.99. You can also download full albums which range in price from $7.99 to $9.99. Customers can preview a thirty second sample of each song before purchasing.
You can search Downloadpunk by Artist, Album Title, Record Label or Song Title or you can browse by filtering through the various Punk sub-genres. Unfortunately there's no tag-based searching and not much in the way of recommendations, but they again if you're part of the punk scene perhaps you don't need online recommendations.
And the best part? There's no craptastic DRM. Wouldn't be very punk if there was would it?
[1]: http://www.downloadpunk.com "downloadpunk.com"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/goodsearch.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/goodsearch.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5ba009b --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/goodsearch.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/goodsearch.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/goodsearch.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c6eeb06 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/goodsearch.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +It's been around for some time, but I just [ran across GoodSearch.com][1], a Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half of its ad revenue to charity. Each time a user searches GoodSearch.com, 50 percent of the advertising revenue is donated to a charity designated by the user.
To use GoodSearch, just enter the charity you want to support in the provided field, and then enter your search. You can change the designated charity as often as you like and there's even browser based toolbars available for download.
The results will be the same as those returned on Yahoo (a Google option would be nice), so you don't have to feel like you're missing anything in the results and you'll be helping the charity of your choice earn money.
GoodSearch can also be used to donate money to schools. There are currently over 23,000 charities and schools listed on the site.
Thanks to [LifeHacker][2] for pointing me to the site.
[1]: http://www.goodsearch.com/ "GoodSearch.com"
[2]: http://lifehacker.com/software/charity/support-charities-while-you-search-the-web-219330.php "LifeHacker on GoodSearch"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/ifilm.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/ifilm.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..938ee02 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/ifilm.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/ifilm.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/ifilm.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..60235d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/ifilm.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +Variety.com is reporting that Comedy Central video clips are now [readily available on Viacom-owned video site iFilm][1]. Previously Viacom [asked YouTube to take down clips][2] that contained Viacom owned content, which includes popular Comedy Central shows like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.
While neither of those shows is completely gone from YouTube the clips have become somewhat scarce and are uploaded less frequently than previously.
Comedy Central hasn't publicized the iFilm partnership, but Variety.com reports that "iFilm is receiving numerous three-minute clips from the two shows that add up to most, if not all, of an episode the day after it airs."
iFilm also boast a fair amount of other Viacom owned content such as clips from MTV's The Real World and Wondershowzen.
IFilm lacks the current popularity of YouTube, but the site does have an official partnership with Viacom, something YouTube thus far lacks, and may gain some ground thanks to Viacom-owned content, which makes me wonder why iFilm isn't shouting this one from the mountaintops.
[1]: http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117954999.html?categoryid=14&cs=1
[2]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/10/youtubes_copyri.html "Monkey Bites on Viacom and YouTube"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb-new.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb-new.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c67f249 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb-new.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb-old.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb-old.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6f8e806 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb-old.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..abba17e --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdb.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdbfacelift.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdbfacelift.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7ba090e --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/imdbfacelift.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +The [Internet Movie Database (IMDB) has redesigned][1] and now looks less like it's trapped 1998. The site appears to have undergone a fairly significant facelift overnight.
The IMDB has a long way to go before it can claim to be web 2.0, but the new design is at least easier on the eyes and seems to load a little faster. The IMDB could have benefitted from some collapsing menus or tabs, but the new design elements are primarily visual and not functionality overhauls.
Regrettable some of the new design could even be considered a step backwards in terms of functionality. The new homepage is significantly longer and several of the small top-ten link boxes are gone.
The new design does move the IMDB toward a more standards based layout, which for the most part eschews tables in favor of more semantic markup. As a poster at the [digg article where I discovered the redesign][2] points out, there are some funny bits in the new code, such as the CSS selector #nb15iesux.
[1]: http://www.imdb.com/ "The Internet Movie Database"
[2]: http://digg.com/design/IMDB_Gets_a_Face_Lift
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/myspace sex offenders.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/myspace sex offenders.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..edcd9fe --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/myspace sex offenders.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +MySpace said today that it will begin offering a new technology to [identify and remove convicted sex offenders][1] from the site.
The project will partner MySpace with [Sentinel Tech][3] to built Sentinel Safe, a new technology which will enable MySpace to identify and delete profiles of registered sex offenders.
Because of MySpace's popularity with young users, the sex offender problem has plagued the site for some time and has lead to growing concern about how to address the problem. Wired's own [Kevin Poulsen wrote a program months ago][2] that had reasonable success in tracking down offenders.
The new technology, called Sentinel Safe, will draw on state and federal databases to find registered sex offenders. Interestingly enough, MySpace claims that this is first time anyone has collated data from the 46 individual state tracking systems into one national database.
If that claim is true, then the new technology may have appeal beyond MySpace as well.
Unfortunately, the ease with which users create fake identities on MySpace means the new technology will be only partly effective, since it can only find sex offenders that sign up under their real name.
To combat that issue MySpace has asked Congress to introduce e-mail registration legislation. under the proposed legislation sex offenders would have to register email addresses or face parole violations.
Also note that the new technology applies only to registered sex offenders in the United States, though MySpace says it is looking into similar programs for Europe and Asia.
[1]: http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=internetNews&storyid=2006-12-05T172807Z_01_N05296258_RTRUKOC_0_US-NEWSCORP-MYSPACE.xml&src=rss
[2]: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/1,71948-0.html "Kevin Poulsen on MySpace sex offenders"
[3]: http://sentryweb.com/ "Sentinal Tech"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/office.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/office.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..96af5d2 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/office.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +The International Organization for Standardization, which oversees files formats and other standards information, [published the official specs for the Open Document Format][1] last week. The ODF file format is an XML-based format for text, spreadsheet, database, and presentation files created by office applications.
The idea behind ODF is to provide a way for any office program on any platform to share documents with any other office program. OpenOffice.org already saves files in ODF format and Google's web-based office apps support it as well.
Even Microsoft has grudgingly acknowledged the format and plans to release plugins for MS Office 2007 which will allow users to read and write ODF files.
In related news, Novell has announced that its version of OpenOffice.org [will support Microsoft's proprietary document format][2], the confusingly named Open XML (which is not "open" in sense of open source as its name might imply).
Novell also plans to release the code to the open source community so that all versions of OpenOffice.org *could* support the MS format if they wanted.
While it would be nice to see Microsoft adopt the ODF file format for MS Office, at least for the time being the Novel announcement means OpenOffice.org users will be able to trade documents with MS Office users.
Even if Microsoft never moves to using the ODF format by default, these two announcements are still a win for users as enhanced cross-platform capabilities will benefit nearly everyone.
The new version of Novell's OpenOffice.org does not have an official release date yet. Office 2007 [will be available to consumers January 30th][3].
[1]: http://www.iso.org/iso/en/CatalogueDetailPage.CatalogueDetail?CSNUMBER=43485&scopelist=PROGRAMME "ISO ODF docs"
[3]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/11/windows_vista_i.html "Monkey Bites on Office 2007 release dates"
[2]: http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20061205/tc_pcworld/128079 "Novell to support Open XML format"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/reboot.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/reboot.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..18db635 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Tues/reboot.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +<img alt="Any_key_3" title="Any_key_3" src="http://blog.wired.com/photos/uncategorized/any_key_2.jpg" border="0" style="float: right; margin: 0px 0px 5px 5px;" />The news, and lots of it. Your morning reboot:
* Microsoft has [announced a new suite of tools for designers][1], as well as a preview of the much touted "Flash killer," Microsoft Interactive Designer, which now goes by the name Expression Blend. Expression Blend, along with the other three programs, are intended to compete with offerings from rival Adobe. The new software will be available in the second quarter of 2007.
[1]: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/061204/sfm044.html?.v=73 "Microsoft Expression Software"
* According to the [Proximity website][2], Apple has [acquired the video and audio software publisher][3]. Few details are available but I would expect to see the software rolled into Apple media editing products like Aperture.
[2]: http://www.proximitygroup.com/ "Proximity Group"
[3]: http://www.macworld.co.uk/procreative/news/index.cfm?newsid=16659&pagtype=allchandate "Macworld on Apple/Proximity deal"
* Speaking of Apple, rumors are swirling this morning about the possibility of an [ultra-thin ultra-light MacBook Pro][4]. Pure conjecture as of yet. And to add to the Mac rumor fest [Toshiba has announced a new 100 gig 1.8 hard drive][11], can new larger iPod by far behind?
[4]: http://www.macscoop.com/articles/2006/11/17/sources-confirm-plans-for-a-smaller-ultra-thin-form-factored-macbook-pro "Macscoop on Apple rumors"
[11]: http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/12/05/toshiba_intros_100gb_hdd/ "New Toshiba Drive"
* Following the [BitTorrent company's announcement last week][5], bittorrent client [Azureus has announced version 3.0][6] and an accompanying site called [Zudeo][7]. One more small step in bittorrents struggle to legitimize itself.
[5]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/11/bittorrent_cuts.html "Monkey Bites on BitTorrent announcement"
[6]: http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061204-8348.html "Azureus announcement"
[7]: http://www.zudeo.com/az-web/Index.html "Zudeo"
* The Halo 3 beta [officially opened for new registrations][8] yesterday. Be sure to check out the [system requirements][9] before you get to excited.
[8]: http://www.cinemablend.com/games/Halo-3-Beta-Registration-Begins-Today-1893.html "Halo registration opens"
[9]: http://www.halo3.com/ "Halo 3"
* And finally our thought and prayers are with James Kim. For those that haven't heard, the CNet editor's [wife and two daughters were found safe yesterday][10], but the search for Kim continues.
[10]: http://news.com.com/CNET+editors+wife%2C+daughters+found+search+continues/2100-1028_3-6140676.html?tag=cnetfd.mt "James Kim still missing"
\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Wed/accessibility.jpg b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Wed/accessibility.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4cf5d4e --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Wed/accessibility.jpg diff --git a/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Wed/accessibility.txt b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Wed/accessibility.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..ca31262 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/published/Webmonkey/Monkey_Bites/2006/12.04.06/Wed/accessibility.txt @@ -0,0 +1 @@ +Most of the web is off limits to disabled persons. According to a U.N study, conducted by the British technology firm [Nomensa][1], 97 percent of websites [fail to meet the minimum level of web accessibility][4].
The survey looked at 100 popular sites in twenty different countries and tested them against the [Web Content Accessibility Guidelines][2], the international guidelines for web accessibility.
While that's a pretty daunting statistic, and a dismal failure, the survey also outlined many of the problem areas and suggests most would be fairly easy to remedy.
The most common stumbling block was Javascript, which many so-called web 2.0 sites rely on for their graphical wiz-bang features.
followed closely by a lack of alternative text for images. Screen readers and other assistive devices rely on the <code>alt</code> descriptions in <code>img</code> tags to "show" visually impaired users the graphics on a page.
Another problem the survey touches on was the use of poorly contrasting color combinations, which make Web pages difficult to read for people with visual impairment like color blindness.
Looks like [Jakob Nielson][3] needs to write another book.
And the three success stories? The only websites that met all the minimum standards were the German chancellor's website, the Spanish government website, and the British prime minister's website. The only question is how those three sites ended up in a list of the internet's most popular.
[1]: http://www.nomensa.com/ "Nomensa.com"
[4]: http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID=2006-12-05T224424Z_01_N05332044_RTRIDST_0_OUKIN-UK-INTERNET-DISABLED.XML&WTmodLoc=TechInternet-C1-Headline-9 "Reuters on UN Study"
[3]: http://www.useit.com/ "Jakob Nielson on web standards and accessibility"
[2]: http://www.w3.org/WAI/ "W3C guidelines for web accessibility"
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The Acrobat line of products now includes Reader, Elements, Standard, and Pro versions ranging in price from free for Reader to $449 US for the Pro version. Early 2007 will see the release of a fifth version, 3D, which features CAD and other 3D imaging integration.
Adobe, who controls the industry-standard Portable Document Format (PDF), is pushing the collaborative side of off the so-called office 2.0 arena. The new Acrobat reader opens with a dialog asking if you want to "go beyond Adobe Reader." The link then loads a full tutorial and overview of Adobe's sharing and online PDF creation tool, Adobe Acrobat Connect.
The new Reader features a vastly simplified toolbar. Gone are the multitude of toolbars and palettes that used to open by default when viewing a PDF file. Even better, Reader now offers user customizable toolbars, a feature I hope to see in other Adobe products.
Other new features include the ability to create PDF documents from any application that prints, including one-button creation from Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Adobe Reader also sports a new option to let you fill and submit forms, save data and digitally sign documents.
Those forms can be created using the full versions of the Acrobat family and then sent out and anyone with Reader who can then fill in and digitally sign the documents.
The a new comments feature allows for online (and off) comments within the document space (see the screenshots below).
Another prominent feature (one of the few default buttons on the toolbar) is the "Start Meeting" button which will launch Adobe Acrobat Connect. Connect, the Adobe-hosted software, provides real-time online collaboration through Adobe Flash Player.
My testing revealed a couple glaring negatives, first the Mac installer has no uninstall and what's worse, if you run the installer a second time it will simply reinstall the program. I don't know if the Windows installer is any smarter, but Adobe certainly could have done better.
Interestingly, instead of going the Universal Binary route Adobe has actually released two separate versions of its Acrobat Line for Macs, one for Intel Macs and one for older PowerPC models.
Overall the new suite is impressive and the redesign elements and user customization features bode well for Adobe's other programs which are expected to be updated some time next year.
[1]: http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Reader/8.0/index.html
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Live Search Books will offer full text searches of scanned books, but for the time being the collection is limited to public domain works from the British Library, the University of California and the University of Toronto.
Microsoft says they will be adding copyrighted books in the future, but only those submitted by publishers or authors. This differs from Google who has scanned everything in the participating libraries' collections, but only offers full text searches of public domain books.
Thus far several publishers and authors have sued Google, as has the US Authors Guild, Microsoft apparently wishes to avoid the lawsuits.
So far the searching is very limited with no advanced options or search operators available but hopefully that will change as the beta progress. If you find something you'd like to save or print Live Search Books offer PDF files for download including a link to download the entire book.
So far the site does not appear to support the Safari Browser but Firefox and IE work just fine.
Microsoft also announced the addition of medical content to the Windows Live Academic Search. Academic Search is a full texts search of journals for institutions that subscribe to them. Today's additions reported quadruple the amount of medical information in Academic Search.
[1]: http://search.live.com/results.aspx?q=&scope=books
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The converters are free and Windows only.
Mac users and others those that don't have any version of MS office may want to try using
[Docx-Converter][2]. Docx-Converter is a free online document conversion service that will pull the readable text out of a .docx file and save it as plain text.
Obviously since the tile Docx-Converter generates is plain text, its far from ideal, but until the Mac converters arrive in Spring, it may be the only option available.
[1]: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=941B3470-3AE9-4AEE-8F43-C6BB74CD1466 "download Microsoft Office Compatibility pack"
[2]: http://docx-converter.com/ "Docx-Converter"
[3]: http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2006/12/office_document.html "Monkey Bites on Office Document Formats"
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* Adobe has [released version 8 of their popular Acrobat Reader software][7]. Among the [list of new features][8] are web-based collaboration (via Connect), shared reviews, enhanced search options and more.
[7]: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html "Adobe releases Acrobat Reader 8"
[8]: http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Reader/8.0/WS00E809B7-1119-4416-8731-033B20B684B3.html "Reader 8 new features"
* According to a new study, [cell phones *do not* cause cancer][1]. The studied 400,000 Danish cellular users, some of whom were tracked for two decades, and concluded that mobile phone usage did not increase the risk of cancer.
[1]: http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyid=2006-12-06T152620Z_01_N05280092_RTRUKOC_0_US-CANCER-CELLPHONES.xml&src=rss "Cell Phones don't cause cancer"
* [MySpace is reportedly in talks with Cingular][2] to put the popular social network on Cingular phones. The deal would give the millions of MySpace users mobile access to the site, but so far there are no details on pricing or features. And there's no risk of cancer.
[2]: http://news.yahoo.com/s/fool/20061205/bs_fool_fool/116534248119 "MySpace to go wireless"
* A serious [new flaw has been found in Microsoft Word][3] that allows an attack to excute malicious code when an infected Word file is opened. So far there's no patch and Microsoft recommends that you excercise caution when opening files from unknown or untrusted parties. See the above link for a list of effected versions.
[3]: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/929433.mspx "Zero day attack"
* Microsoft is [releasing Live Search Books today][4], a competitor to Google Book Search. The service is in beta at the moment and only available via a browser, but in the future MS plans to integrate Live Search Books in the the rest of Live Search.
[4]: http://news.com.com/2100-1038_3-6141162.html "Live Search"
* Yahoo has undergone a serious executive shuffle/shakedown. Check out the Epicenter Blog for [some analysis][5] [on the changes][6].
[5]: http://blog.wired.com/business/2006/12/more_on_yahoo.html
[6]: http://blog.wired.com/business/2006/12/even_more_on_ya.html
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