Elonka says: Handy URL to use when trying to troubleshoot things, or to ask someone to tell me their IP so that I can help figure out a connection problem.

I use it all the time.

What Is My IP Address? - IP Address Lookup

Sir Tim and colleagues at the World Wide Web consortium had looked at simple ways of branding websites - but concluded that a whole variety of different mechanisms was needed.

"I'm not a fan of giving a website a simple number like an IQ rating because like people they can vary in all kinds of different ways," he said. "So I'd be interested in different organisations labelling websites in different ways".

BBC NEWS | Berners-Lee wants to rate website trustworthiness

Google may take its battle for global domination to the high seas with the launch of its own “computer navy”. The company is considering deploying the supercomputers necessary to operate its internet search engines on barges anchored up to seven miles (11km) offshore.

The “water-based data centres” would use wave energy to power and cool their computers, reducing Google’s costs. Their offshore status would also mean the company would no longer have to pay property taxes on its data centres, which are sited across the world, including in Britain.

Combine dreams of floating jurisdiction free anarchist colonies with one of the worlds wealthiest corporations... An interesting idea of a science fiction book but I tend to agree with Hakim Bey that anarchy in the modern world only works in pockets that are small enough in both space and time to avoid the attention of society.

Google planning offshore water-based data centers

The IEEE working group that is putting the finishing touches on the 802.11n 100Mbps wireless LAN standard is about to launch a new project, for a 1Gbps WLAN standard.

That would mean gigabit Wi-Fi.

IEEE readies launch of gigabit Wi-Fi project - Network World

At a press conference this morning at the National Press club in Washington, the Space Solar Alliance for Future Energy (SSAFE) announced a milestone demonstration of the critical technology enabling SBSP:  long-distance, solar-powered wireless power transmission.

The Technology Liberation Front » A Major Milestone for Space-Based Solar Power (SBSP)

Threat Level accepted the $10,000 award for editor Kevin Poulsen's post that combined a voting widget and internet superstar Virgil Griffith's WikiScanner application that let  readers find and highlight the worst self-interested anonymous edits to Wikipedia entries. The judges found that the tool "finally inserts an air of accountability to those who edit the site to fit their own agendas."

Congrats on the one hand, but something seems wrong about Wired getting $10,000 for this blog post and Virgil getting nothing for writing the actual tool.

Wikipedia Sleuths Win Journalism Award for Wired.com | Threat Level from Wired.com

A Google-backed startup that analyzes customers' genetic makeup to predict health risks... has slashed the price on its personal DNA test... from $999 to $399.

...next-generation DNA analysis chips have made the process... significantly cheaper

This could lead to a significant increase in the use of genetic testing and a renewed focus on political questions about its use.

23andMe is also compiling databases of customers' genetic information to make available to researchers seeking new insights into those links.

The price cut will ideally mean an influx of new information that will speed discoveries in the lab...

23andMe slashes price on personal genetics test

UNIQLO has never been afraid to inovate the shopping experience (think: UT Loop, grid playground and the concept t-shirt store) but this time they are adding a robot to their stores. Yep, you read right a robot named Wakamaru. Designed by Toshiyuki Kita and engineered by Mitsubishi, the robot can make eye contact with you, have simple conversations and help you shop for some Japanese animation t-shirts. But there is a catch, the robot is being described as neither human nor machine. The only thing we can think of that fits that catagory is robocop, which could end up to be a huge PR problem for UNIQLO if anyone saw Robocop 3. Look for Wakamaru to make his/her first appearnce at the Soho store in NYC sometime in the second week of September.

UNIQLO’s Wakamaru - Josh Spear, Trendspotting

...when you've been fucking around with something for days trying to figure it out and finally the last part of the puzzle clicks into place and BAM! It works!

I love that moment. Particularly when it occurs at 7:24 PM on a Friday and I can go enjoy my weekend without this particular project hanging over my head.

Microsoft adds privacy tools to IE8
So-called porn mode tools to debut in IE8 Beta 2 this month
By Gregg Keizer, Computerworld
August 25, 2008

Microsoft Corp. today spelled out new privacy tools in Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) that some have dubbed "porn mode" in a nod to the most obvious use of a browser privacy mode.

A privacy advocate applauded the move, calling it a "great step forward," while rival browser builder Mozilla Corp. said it is working to add similar features to a future Firefox.

Slated to appear in IE8 Beta 2, which Microsoft former chairman Bill Gates promised will release this month, the three new tools share the "InPrivate" name, which Microsoft filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office several weeks ago.

The most intriguing tool, and the one that has prompted the porn mode label, was called InPrivate Browsing by Microsoft. When enabled, IE8 will not save browsing and searching history, cookies, form data and passwords; it also will automatically clear the browser cache at the end of the session.

Other new tools will include InPrivate Blocking and InPrivate Subscription, which notifies users of third-party content that can track browsing history and subscribe to lists of sites to block, respectively. Microsoft will also tweak its existing "Delete Browsing History" by adding an option to preserve bookmarked sites' cookies even when all others are erased.

Microsoft adds privacy tools to IE8