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Comment Dell FireAThon and Apple HindenBook (Score 1) 339

by malia8888 (#24669115) Attached to: Japan Demands Probe of iPod Nano Flameouts
The source has usually been the lithium battery powering the device.

I am not sure if the Dell and Apple laptops had lithium batteries but it does appear that the industry is going to have to look at the flammability of batteries in laptops and MP3 players. Either better batteries or asbestos skivvies. Wait, trying to remember--there is something wrong with asbestos, too??
Cellphones

Novels Composed on Cellphones Topping Japanese Best Seller Lists 81

Posted by Zonk from the tiny-text-long-tail dept.
An anonymous reader writes "The New York Times has up an article examining the rise of blogs/novels that make the transition to published books. Recent Japanese best-seller lists have been heavy with these texts, many of them actually written on cellphones for a cellphone reading audience. Commentators note the popularity of this form of literature coincides with cell providers moving to unlimited data packages. 'The affordability of cellphones coincided with the coming of age of a generation of Japanese for whom cellphones, more than personal computers, had been an integral part of their lives since junior high school. So they read the novels on their cellphones, even though the same Web sites were also accessible by computer. They punched out text messages with their thumbs with blinding speed, and used expressions and emoticons, like smilies and musical notes, whose nuances were lost on anyone over the age of 25.'"
Networking

Personal Weather Stations Helping With Weather Forecasting 72

Posted by Zonk from the forecast-your-own-nipper dept.
Weather Storm writes "Weather information from thousands of personal weather stations are being used for weather forecasting by several private and government agencies, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Citizens Weather Observation Program (CWOP) was created by a few amateur radio operators experimenting with transmitting weather data with packet radios, but it has expanded to include Internet-only weather stations as well. As of September 2007, nearly 5,000 stations worldwide reported weather data regularly to CWOP's FindU database. The weather data is forwarded every 15 minutes to NOAA's Meteorological Assimilation Data Ingest System (MADIS), checked for temporary and spatial consistency, than utilized by computer forecast models and internal forecast verification programs. In a Febuary 2007 report (PDF) DHS listed CWOP as a national assets to the 'BioWatch' Network, stating that data from personal weather stations could be useful in weather forecasts for hazardous releases. In 2007, the FindU server received 422,262,687 weather reports which is a 29.5% increase over 2006." The personal weather stations certainly come in stylish shapes.
Input Devices

Use Your Cellphone as a 3D Mouse 77

Posted by Zonk from the remember-when-they-weighed-like-twenty-pounds dept.
Roland Piquepaille writes "In recent years, we've started to use our cellphones not only for placing calls or exchanging messages. Now, we take pictures, read our e-mails, listen to music or watch TV. But, according to New Scientist, UK researchers are going further with a prototype software that turns your cellphone into a 3-D mouse. The phone is connected to your computer via Bluetooth. And you control the image on the screen by rotating or moving your phone. As says one of the researchers, 'it feels like a much more natural way to interact and exchange data.' The technology might first be used in shopping malls to buy movie tickets or to interact with advertising displays."
Microsoft

Microsoft Threatens Startups Over Account Info 156

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the strong-arm-of-the-law dept.
HangingChad writes "According to Fortune, there are reports that Microsoft is trying to strong arm startups to give preferential treatment to MSN Messenger and are using account information as leverage. 'If the company wants to offer other IM services (from Yahoo, Google or AOL, say), Messenger must get top billing. And if the startup wants to offer any other IM service, it must pay Microsoft 25 cents a user per year for a site license.' Of course, if the company is willing to use Messenger exclusively 'fee will be discounted 100 percent.' Getting detailed information is difficult as many of the companies being approached are afraid of reprisals."
User Journal

Journal Journal: New Blogs

Journal by tfl
Not that ANYONE reads this, but I've setup a new blog at http://securitybiz.blog.co.uk
User Journal

Journal Journal: Starting at slashdot

Journal by tfl
So this is the first entry at slashdot.

My blog is at http://tfl09.blogspot.com Enjoy

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