] "Michael Posner, executive director of the Lawyers
] Committee for Human Rights, citing as an example Mr.
] Kissinger's role in the secret bombing of Cambodia.
] "People in this country need reassurance that they are
] getting the truth and that issues of our security are
] being publicly vetted. It sends a troubling signal that
] this is the person who is going to lead this effort.""

I think this guy is just plain too controversial to be responsible for something like this.

Kissinger Returning to Political Stage With 9/11 Post

You are selected to wear the watch for two weeks. The watch takes a four-second "fingerprint" of ambient sound every minute. At the end, the watch is returned and the fingerprints are matched to determine exactly what you watched and listened to.

The software behind this system appears similar to that of Shazam, which Tom blogged in early November.

Tracking Moves Offline

A couple articles with some thoughts about ubiquitous computing's erosion of personal time. It used to be that having a cellphone was a status symbol because in meant that you were needed. Now its an anti-status symbol. Its an electronic dog collar. It means you are a workhorse, and you are available when others want you to be. Advances in communication technology are primarily being used to eliminate the boundries we place between our jobs and our personal lives.

Wi-Fi News: Eroding Personal Time

] "What about rumors of OS X on Intel?
]
] Marklar is even more of a going concern than ever. Contrary to
] circulating rumors, it is not meant to be a Power PC exit
] strategy. Rather, it is intended to be offered to X86
] users when Apple sees market conditions being fit for it.
] What it means by this is regarding Intel's Lagrande
] technology, and Microsoft's Palladium technology. Apple
] intends on releasing OS X on Intel, when consumer
] dissatisfaction falls to an all time low for Microsoft
] when users become restricted to what they can do on their
] PC's due to Lagrande and Palladium."

Mac rumor site gets inside dope which lends credence to my theory posted here a few days ago.

Mac Rumors: Apple RoadMap Past and Future

] "Our grand reopening is planned for Nov 30th, 2002."

Some streams are available now... :)

SomaFM BACK ON THE AIR!!

A Sunday NYT article provides URLs for several "switch" parodies, including the switch-to-Canada ad discussed here recently.

Apple's Quirky Ads Evoke Parodies of Themselves

] "Inherited status is making a comeback."

NYT: The Sons Also Rise

] "Once upon a time, computer users felt obliged to upgrade
] their machines on a regular basis. But sales of the
] desktop PC itself have been basically flat for a couple
] of years now."

The PC industry is becoming similar to the automotive industry. They were close to this point in 1993/4, but the internet, and high definition multi-media provided a dramatic new capability set that needed to be supported, and things moved forward. They are going to stagnate again. None of the ideas at the computer companies are going to be nearly as compelling as something like the net, because those ideas are based on what these people need to sell rather then what customers actually want to do.

People will cross-grade because they need to escape DRM, or they may upgrade to something capable of doing digital video editing IF bandwidth and costs improve to make this accessable to the consumer for daily life sort of media work.

In short, we've got what we need. We need to figure out how to use it.

PCs: Is New for You? (TechNews.com)

] "While Apple officially says it does not condone hauling
] off and smacking someone in the middle of an
] anti-Macintosh screed, the company has quietly launched a
] "Mac Smack" promotion. Anyone who is written up by his or
] her company for smacking someone mouthing off about the
] Mac will receive $50 off toward products at the Apple
] Store."

Onion like Mac rumor site...

Crazy Apple Rumors Site

] "It's wrong because it's a crime."

This is quite an essay. First the guy presents three reasons that people don't think copying an MP3 is morally equivelent to stealing a CD. None of them are the real reason. (Are these people really so stupid that they don't GET this.) Instead, he lists the reasons why people don't like the media industry. He simply claims that these reasons are unfounded. He gives the media industry credit for the VCR. I guess he doesn't recall their fighting tooth and nail to ban VCRs. He claims the media industry isn't really negotiating for every dollar. I guess he didn't read Hillery Rosen when she said "this is about money."

Then, he basically admits, that the media industry is using its political influence to hold the entire technology industry and the economy in general hostage, until they get what they want.

Then he delivers a threat: Do what we want or you can't have your economy back.

I hope they booed him off stage. But, knowing the kind of people that usually show up for Comdex, they probably applauded, because thats what they were supposed to do.

News Corp's Peter Chernin on 'the problem with stealing.'