] oogle, the operator of the Web's leading search engine,
] has bought Pyra Labs, the creator of software for
] publishing Weblogs, a form of hyperlinked online journal
] that has become an increasingly popular way to distribute
] and collect information on the Web.
] Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the move was
] hailed by users of Weblogs, commonly called blogs, as a
] watershed moment for the fledgling communications medium,
] sometimes dismissed as too narrowband and self-involved
] to have a significant cultural impact.
] "People will start taking it seriously," said Matthew
] Haughey, creator of Metafilter, a widely read Weblog, and
] a former employee of Pyra. "If it's linked to off of
] Google, you're not going to have to explain what a Weblog
] is to people anymore."

Google Deal Ties Company to Weblogs

] Blogging is also changing the way people get their news,
] and the way the media is presenting it.
] When former House Majority Leader Trent Lott gave his
] controversial speech at Sen. Strom Thurmond's 100th
] birthday party, the story was largely ignored in the
] mainstream press. But political blogs such as
] www.talkingpointsmemo.com jumped on it, turning it into a
] national story. Traditional media outlets took notice of
] how the story got out.
] Now many newspapers and other news outlets are promoting
] news "blogs" by their reporters and columnists.

Have a personal story to tell? Become a Blogger

] LONDON (Reuters) - Minimalist Internet search engine
] Google (news - external web site) was voted "brand of the
] year" by branding junkies on Tuesday, proving once again
] that less is more as it pipped giants such as Coca-Cola
] and Starbucks to the top slot.

Yahoo! News - Google Top Apple, Coke in Branding Poll

] Weblogs are going Googling.
] Google, which runs the Web's premier search site, has
] purchased Pyra Labs, a San Francisco company that created
] some of the earliest technology for writing weblogs, the
] increasingly popular personal and opinion journals.
] The Thursday buyout is a huge boost to an enormously
] diverse genre of online publishing -- also known as
] ``blogging'' -- that has begun to change the equations of
] online news and information.
] Weblogs are frequently updated, with items appearing in
] reverse chronological order (the most recent postings
] appear first). Typically, they include links to other
] pages on the Internet, and the topics range from
] technology to politics to just about anything you can
] name. Many weblogs invite feedback through discussion
] postings, and weblogs often point to other weblogs in an
] ecosystem of news, opinions and ideas.

Mercury News | 02/16/2003 | Dan Gillmor: Google buys Pyra in big boost for blogging

] Weblogs are going Googling.
] Google, which runs the Web's premier search site, has
] purchased Pyra Labs, a San Francisco company that created
] some of the earliest technology for writing weblogs, the
] increasingly popular personal and opinion journals.
] The buyout is a huge boost to an enormously diverse genre
] of online publishing that has begun to change the
] equations of online news and information. Weblogs are
] frequently updated, with items appearing in reverse
] chronological order (the most recent postings appear
] first). Typically they include links to other pages on
] the Internet, and the topics range from technology to
] politics to just about anything you can name. Many
] weblogs invite feedback through discussion postings, and
] weblogs often point to other weblogs in an ecosystem of
] news, opinions and ideas.
] "I couldn't be more excited about this," said Evan
] Williams, founder of Pyra, a company that has had its
] share of struggles. He wouldn't discuss terms of the
] deal, which he said was signed on Thursday, when we spoke
] Saturday. But he did say it gives Pyra the "resources to
] build on the vision I've been working on for years."

Silicon Valley - Dan Gillmor's eJournal - Google Buys Pyra: Blogging Goes Big-Time

] A weblog (or "blog") is a web site of personal or
] non-commercial origin that is updated on a daily basis,
] or at least frequently, with new information about a
] particular subject or range of subjects. The information
] can be written by the site owner, parsed from other web
] sites or other sources, or contributed by users.
]
] Weblogs are usually devoted to one or several subjects or
] themes, usually of topical interest, and, in general, can
] be thought of as developing commentaries, individual or
] collective on their particular themes. A weblog may
] consist of the recorded ideas, personal insights, a
] dairy, or it can be a complex collaboration open to
] anyone.

WWLTV.com | New Orleans | Digital Gumbo

] Mobile phone hardware makers are likely to discuss a
] looming competitive threat from Intel, Microsoft and a
] host of Asian electronics companies when executives
] gather in the south of France next week.

Yahoo! News - Mobile Makers Face New Rivals in Tough Market

] LAS VEGAS -- The consumer electronics industry is in
] search of a spark to reignite growth, but there was
] little evidence of that here at the industry's 2003 trade
] show.
]
] Philips' Gottfried Dutine shows off the company's
] iPronto, a $1,700 "smart display" tablet that shows how
] electronics manufacturers think people will take control
] of digital entertainment at home. The iPronto has a
] 6.4-inch touch screen LDC displaying menus for
] controlling the TV, surfing the Web, playing MP3s on a
] home stereo and wirelessly controlling lights and
] security cameras.
] Gary Shapiro, chairman of the Consumer Electronics
] Association, tried to put a positive spin on his
] projection that consumer electronics product sales in the
] United States would reach $99.5 billion this year, up 3.5
] percent over 2002. But such growth looks anemic,
] considering sales last year were up only 3.7 percent over
] 2001 -- a far cry from the techno-boom of the 1990s.

washingtonpost.com: Consumer Electronics Show Photo Essay

] PADERBORN, Germany -- When Wincor Nixdorf Inc. holds its
] annual Wincor World exhibition at its headquarters here,
] new products are usually the focus. This year's show was
] no exception. Held Jan. 28-30, it attracted more than
] 6,000 people from 40 countries.
] In the self-service category, a retail technology that
] has been a hit in America topped Wincor's list of new
] ideas for Europe.
] Wincor plans to develop self-checkout solutions for
] European markets in cooperation with retail
] organizations. A first prototype of the system, named
] "Beetle/iSCAN" was featured here.
] The finished self-checkout products are scheduled to ship
] in 2004, according to Wincor. With more than 16,000
] installations in the United States, self-checkout
] technology has been widely used in American grocery and
] retail stores since 2001.

Kiosk news - Wincor World Showcases Self-Checkout, Personal Shopping Assistant

] HEN Ronald L. Jones, an engineer and inventor, traveled
] from his home in Los Angeles to the Consumer Electronics
] Show in Las Vegas three years ago to seek backers for his
] product ideas, he was down to his last $800, and
] determined to make the trip fruitful.
] A mutual acquaintance set up a meeting with a business
] developer, Mark A. Bush, that turned into an all-night
] conversation about technology and opportunity. "I saw
] this brilliant guy with this big heart," Mr. Bush said.
] But while Mr. Jones was a whiz with printed circuits, he
] had made less time for business plans or legal documents.
] "A lot of people took advantage of Ron's ideas," Mr. Bush
] said. "I said, man, we've got to get your paperwork so no
] one can steal your stuff."

Getting Game Boy to Play Their Tune