Dictionary may not be printed

August 30, 2010
By calhoun
Dictionary may not be printed

Oxford University Press, the publisher behind the Oxford English Dictionary has stated that no decisions have been made about the format of the 3rd Edition of the Dictionary, which has been worked on since 1989.

However comments by the CEO unveil that there is doubts that the latest revision of the dictionary will never be printed. Reference books for many look impressive in shelves. So how can that effect be achieved when every book known becomes a mere 2MB file in the Downloads folder of a user account?

Despite facing a rising challange as a bookpublisher from the likes of the iPad and Amazon’s Kindle the standard version of the dictionary that comes in a single volume edition is likely to stay on the book shop shelves for another 30 years. Oxford has already taken advantage of the Internet stream where the dictionary is available online for a fixed annual fee.

References
The Gaurdian
The Telegraph

Top 5 Things to not Microwave

August 30, 2010
By calhoun

Telsa Coil Style Bulb

The tesla coil is designed to produce high voltage, high current, high frequency ac electricity. It doesn’t sound like something that is a good idea to microwave.

Giant Electra Bulbs

Next up on the list is the Giant Electra Bulb as the video shows, it makes an impressive amount of noise and looks really cool.

Giant Mercury Light Bulbs

Another style of light bulb, equipped with some impressive colours.

Soap

Should be kept for cleaning instead.

Classics – CDs

The classics, microwaving CDs relatively sure way of erasing data.

Commodore 64 back on shelfs

August 29, 2010
By calhoun
Commodore 64 back on shelfs

The Commodore 64 which became the best selling computer ever built in the world is due to make a remarkable return to the shelves. The all in one enclosed computer system is being retrofitted by Commodore USA.

  • Intel Atom 525 CPU
  • 4GB DDR3 Memory
  • 1TB Hard Drive
  • Optional BluRay Drive

The new PC64 as it has been re branded will come with the Commodore 64 case with everything built into a keyboard shaped computer system. However with the specs detailed above, it will weigh in with a lot more punch than the original. The new one will be around about 1,800 times more powerful than the C-64.

It has been suggested that they should include an emulator for the original C64 software and a license to use them entirely legaly. Given that the original owner has filed for bankruptcy many years ago it is a possibility that  this is feasible. However given the current corporate climate of suing everyone it is unlikely that will be the case to the disappointment of many no doubt.

References
ZDNet

Police Departments Closed for Business

August 29, 2010
By calhoun
Police Departments Closed for Business

Budget cuts are likely to see the loss of 2,800 police officers in Scotland. Officials at the Parliament in Edinburgh stated that the achievement of 1000 new Officers has been a major success whilst trying to avoid that that means in their time in power they have actually lost 1,800 officers if this plan goes ahead. Despite citing that front line services are a priority. Surely the police are a front line service?

The cuts are on scales that it means the loss of the entire Central, Northen and Tayside Police forces.Having looked at the official statistics, crime does not seem to have dropped at all in the last few years. Indeed with these kind of cuts, it will put the overall Scottish Police at levels well below what it has been in many years.

References
The Scottish Goverment
BBC News

iPhone wont be tested for greenness

August 28, 2010
By calhoun
iPhone wont be tested for greenness

In a green initiative by the mobile industry, ranking phones by how environmentally friendly they are, Apple has refused to participate.

Many other phones have been ranked, with Sony Ericsson’s Elm ranking at position number 1. Several phones weigh in on joint second place.

The survey requires that the manufacturer answer a set of 63 questions about the phone’s efficiency, manufacturer and a number of other points in order to establish how environmentally friendly it really is.

It seems it is not a straight foward process, the Elm mentioend above won its first place on the basis of eliminating the need of additional devices; GPS, MP3 Player and obviously it has phone capabilities.

My Suspicion is that Apple know that their phone is nowhere near an environmentally friendly or electrically efficient. Since they have refused to participate in this. A survey for O2 however was conducted which states that a major factor for mobile phone purchasing was the need of the phone to be environmentally sustainable.

References
Guardian

Microsoft Sues … everbody?

August 28, 2010
By calhoun

Paul Allen , a share holder to several hundred million shares and former partner in Microsoft having set up the company with Bill gates is attempting to pretty much the entire IT industry. Google, AOL, Apple, Facebook, Staples, Office Depot are facing the court room.

The move by the former exec at Microsoft seems to have the ring of a desperate man clinging onto every last ditch hope of earning a few extra quid before going bust. In his position as chairman of Charter Communications and Chairman of Vulcan suspicions must be running high about closure. He’s likely wanting to do this just to bring in some cash to keep the house charter communications filed for bankruptcy late last year. Investments under Vulcan do not look overly encouraging either.

The whole situation entirely brings back to memory SCO. Whom after trying to sue everyone also filed for bankruptcy.

References
FT.com