Tech News Blog

Giant video screen enters the record books

The world’s largest High Definition (HD) video screen has entered the Guinness Book of Records.

The giant four-sided screen has a surface area of 1058 sq m (11,400 sq ft) and hangs above the Dallas Cowboys’ football stadium in the US.

Its manufacturer, Mitsubishi Electric, says the video board is the size of 3,268 52 inch TV sets, and contains over 10m Light Emitting Didoes (LEDs).

It consists of four panels, which together weigh 600 tonnes (600,000kg).

"This is probably the most exciting project we’ve ever been involved with," said Mark Foster of Mistubish Electric. </p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Source:

dot.life
Arrests: US police show why and where on a map

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/0-2MkLUHOFg” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Attenborough’s classics wildlife encounters go online
Sir David Attenborough selects 50 of his most memorable natural history moments.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/aHC_QzKgW5I” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Yahoo’s new web portal goes live
By Tim Weber
Business editor, BBC News website

Internet giant Yahoo has relaunched its web portal, supported by a $100m global advertising campaign.

The company hopes the website refresh will boost both traffic and revenues.

Yahoo will also open its home page to rivals, allowing users to integrate third-party web services like Facebook or Hotmail into its portal.

Yahoo has been struggling to turn its position as the world’s most popular website into profits. The portal is the first move of new boss Carol Bartz.

From openness to profit

When Yahoo first announced its relaunch plans, many analysts derided the idea, arguing that most web users now ignore portals and use search engines to go directly to the page they want.

However, the vast majority of Yahoo’s customers still go to the portal first, insists Yahoo’s senior vice-president for Europe, Rich Riley. That also makes it the most attractive place for Yahoo to sell advertisements.

"Frontpage adverts are incredibly powerful," said Mr Riley, and can cost millions of dollar for a single day of global advertising.

At the same time, Yahoo believes that a new openness to rival brands will actually increase its profits.

The new "customisable applications" allow users to see a snapshot of their favourite websites and services within the Yahoo portal – whether it is a social networking site, a rival web mail service, or their favourite website.

This is supposed to make the Yahoo portal "stickier" and the centre of web users’ internet experience.

Fittingly, the advertising campaign has the catch phrase "It’s Y!ou", featuring the exclamation mark that is part of the Yahoo brand.

"The [new] home page is a powerful way to get a view into your life on the internet," said Mr Riley, quoting surveys that suggest that 60% of Yahoo users in the UK want a one-stop shop to organise their life on the internet.

In the United States and the United Kingdom, a majority of users have already been testing the new website, but from 23 September the new look will be the default worldwide.

"We expect more traffic, the number of unique users to go up… an increase in audience engagement and more repeat visits," which in turn will drive advertising income, said Mr Riley.

Partnerships

The new portal, however, also has an unprecedented number of links to non-Yahoo websites, potentially taking traffic away from Yahoo’s sprawling network of news, weather, finance, email, messaging, and picture services and more.

In the UK, for example, the Yahoo website features top headlines from the Telegraph, Guardian and Daily Mail newspapers.

Since the beta version of the Yahoo website was launched in the UK, Yahoo has become the second-largest source of online traffic to the newspaper’s website, said Mr Riley.

Yahoo is getting a share of the advertising revenue generated by this traffic to partners.

Ten focus markets

The $100m advertising campaign accompanying the relaunch is global, but will focus on 10 key markets: United States, United Kingdom, India, France, Brazil, South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Canada.

The strong emphasis on emerging markets reflects Yahoo’s belief that it is "where the next billion people are coming online", according to Mr Riley.

The portal’s relaunch is accompanied by an overhaul of the user interface of Yahoo’s search engine, which does not yet profit from Microsoft’s new search engine Bing.

The results page of Yahoo’s search engine will show not just the usual list of search results and sponsored links, but also a left-hand navigation that helps users to narrow down their search further.

In July, Microsoft and Yahoo agreed a deal that will see Yahoo’s websites use both Microsoft’s search technology and search advertising.

Yahoo in turn will become the sales team for banner advertising for both companies. However, the deal still awaits regulatory approval and is not expected to be finalised before spring 2010.

Unlike rival and erstwhile suitor Google, Yahoo has been struggling to turn its dominant position on the web into comparable profits.

During the three months to June, Yahoo made a mere $141m profit on revenues of $1.57bn.

The change of direction is driven by new chief executive Carol Bartz, who replaced co-founder Jerry Yang in January this year.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/dMDslty0A0c” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

BT offers solution for notspots

BT has announced a pilot of a new technology it hopes will allow UK homes currently not served by broadband to get access to faster speeds.

Broadband Enabling Technology (Bet) can provide between 1 and 2Mbps (megabit per second) broadband to homes currently struggling on dial-up.

With funding, BT said it could fulfill the government’s pledge to bring broadband to every home by 2012.

Up to three million homes in the UK are in so-called broadband "notspots".

Openreach, the BT spin-off responsible for the broadband network, has trialled the technology in Scotland and found it to be successful.

It will now extend that trial to eight other locations, including towns in Berkshire, the West Midlands, West Sussex and Norfolk.

PILOT LOCATIONS FOR BET

• Twyford, Berkshire
• Badsey, Worcestershire
• Llanfyllin, Powys
• Leyland, Lancashire
• Ponteland, Northumberland
• Wigton, Cumbria
• Horsham, West Sussex
• Wymondham, Norfolk
• Inverness Culloden, Scotland
• Dingwall, Scotland

Usually houses farther than 5km from their local telephone exchange are unable to get broadband but BET increases the range to 12km.

"We are really excited about the potential of Bet to extend broadband to the remaining not-spots," said John Small, managing director of service delivery at Openreach.

"We’re keen to work with local and regional authorities and other bodies with funding to discuss how the technology can be rolled out to their areas," he added.

Lindsey Annison is a long-time campaigner for better broadband. Living in Cumbria, she struggles to get a decent service.

She is not convinced that Bet will help her.

"It is not broadband and it is utterly useless for bringing 21st century communications to rural citizens and businesses of this country.

It is certainly not what an experienced telco should be offering as a solution for the current notspot problem," she said.

Ian Fogg, an analyst with Forrester, described Bet as "an evolution rather than a panacea, offering relatively modest download speeds" although the fact that it can also deliver up to 1Mbps upload speed was "better than a lot of current offers" he said. </p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/picpjLrwm3s” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Google turns page on news content
By Maggie Shiels
Technology reporter, BBC News, San Francisco

Google has unveiled a service called Fast Flip to let users consume news more quickly and boost the flagging fortunes of the news industry.

The search giant has been likened to a "parasite" for making money aggregating content it does not create.

The product is designed to mirror the way people literally flick through magazines and newspapers.

Google has teamed up with over 30 media providers including the BBC to provide what it calls a new reading experience.

"I don’t believe we are part of the problem. I believe we are part of the solution," Marissa Mayer, Google’s vice president of search told BBC News.

"We have tried to build platforms and tools that build a healthy rich eco-system online that is supportive of content. This is a new way of looking at content," Ms Mayer added.

Earlier this year, Wall Street Journal editor Robert Thomson called the search company and other aggregators such as Yahoo "parasites or tech tapeworms in the intestines of the internet".

The industry has been struggling with how to broaden the size of its online audience and how to make money from content it has long given away for free.

Last month, media mogul Rupert Murdoch said he hoped all of his major newspapers would be charging for online content by the end of June next year.

Making money

Fast flip works by imitating how a user would flip through a physical newspaper or magazine.

The service offers screen shots of the web pages containing relevant articles.

The articles are organised following a number of different criteria. For example, readers will be offered stories that have been popular all day, what their personal preference is or what has been recommended by friends.

Users who want to dig deeper into the article can click through to the publisher’s website.

To make money, Fast Flip also serves up contextual adverts around the screen shots.

Publishers who have signed up to provide content to the service will share in that revenue, proof said Ms Mayer that Google is keen to help the industry at a time when it is clearly struggling.

"We are excited to team with publishers and look at a new possibility for how people might consume news online and how to monetise it," said Ms Mayer.

Google admitted that there is no "magic bullet" to quickly solve the challenges the publishing industry faces but it added that "we believe encouraging readers to read more news is a necessary part of the solution."

Ms Mayer said the science behind this is simple.

"Advertising responds well when you have engaged users.

"If you have users that stay on the site for a long time and who do a lot of page views, all of those are good measurers because you will have a better chance to engage them with the ads and learn from their behaviour what type of ads to target," explained Ms Mayer.

"The right question"

Ms Mayer told TechCrunch 50, a conference aimed at start up companies, that Google co-founder Larry Page asked why the web was not more like a magazine, allowing users to flip from screen to screen seamlessly.

Attendees were told that one reason had to do with media rich content that takes time to load – five to ten seconds.

"Imagine if it took that long to flip a magazine page," said Krishna Bharat, a distinguished engineer at Google who led the creation of the Google news service.

"We wanted to bring the advantages of print media, the speed and hands-on control you get with a newspaper or magazine, and combine that with the technical advantages of the internet. We wanted the best of both worlds," said Mr Bharat.

Ms Mayer revealed that initially they thought a solution to the problem posed by Mr Page was "a decade away."

She explained that Google has long been trying to harness increased speed "shaving a millisecond here and another millisecond there".

But Ms Mayer said that the success of Fast Flip was down to having a specific problem to solve.

"A big part of innovation is having the right goal and asking the right question," she said.

Initially Fast Flip will concentrate on audiences in the US. The BBC is the only UK-based media outlet to have a presence on the site due largely to its popularity in America.

Other publishers involved include Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, Popular Mechanics, Slate, Salon, the New York Times, the Washington Post and ProPublica.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/aTfKEOn6a7k” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Rising numbers of British women turn to modelling on the internet
The recession is to blame for an increase in women signing up to be webcam models say industry insiders.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/fXOecIMn6vs” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Smart car
By Maggie Shiels
Technology reporter, BBC News, San Francisco

The Ford motor company has harnessed technology from the F22 fighter jet as part of its bid to make its new Taurus "America’s smartest full-sized sedan".

Radar devices are aimed at helping avoid crashes by sounding an alarm and flashing red lights when the driver gets too close to another car.

This hi-tech gadget is just one of a host being used by Ford to revive what was once the company’s top seller.

"This is game changing for safety," said Ford’s safety head Steve Kozak.

"The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in the US put out a report last year saying if every vehicle in the US were equipped with this forward collision warning system, we’d save about 7,000 lives a year," Mr Kozak told BBC News.

Ford came to San Francisco as part of a 100-city tour to let journalists dive under the hood of the $30,000 (£18,000) car and give them access to a host of lead engineers.

Open source

The Taurus was discontinued after more than 20 years amid slumping sales and competition from Japanese carmakers but has been re-invented as part of a mission to redefine the company.

Ford was one of the few carmakers not to take bailout money from the government or file for bankruptcy, but it has struggled in recent years announcing record losses of $14.6bn (9bn) in 2008.

Radar is also located on the rear bumper of the Taurus to help prevent rear-end crashes, and warn drivers when they drift out of their lanes or if cars are in their blind spots.

Ford said the F22 radar technology which they took and built upon was all open source.

"F22 fighter jets use this advanced radar that can read down the road and identify everything from trees to people," said Pete Reyes, Ford’s chief engineer for the 2010 Taurus.

"We then added our own Ford algorithms to determine whether or not objects are a ‘vehicle target’.

Then it monitors the vehicle target and always knows your position relative to those vehicle targets," explained Mr Reyes.

Teen safety

Ford says its vehicle features technological innovations which are not available all together in one car in its bracket.

These include a voice-activated navigation system, multi-contour seats that massage the driver to prevent tiredness, a surround-sound system and a technology called MyKey.

With car accidents being cited as the leading cause of death for teenagers, MyKey is aimed at parents who want to control some of their children’s driving behaviour.

When the car is started with MyKey, top speeds can be limited to 80mph (130kph) and chimes can be set to sound as the car goes above 45mph.

If the young driver does not put on their seat belt, another chime rings and – possibly more importantly to teens – the sound system will not start until the driver and passenger have buckled up.

Auto journalist Carey Russ sounded a note of caution.

"Too much safety equipment can lull people into thinking they don’t need to pay attention and lead them to believe that if they do crash they will be safe."

"As technology is changing our lives with cell phones, media players, PCs and the internet, we are applying all of that to the car," said Ford director of electronics Jim Buczkowski.

"This is about the democratisation of technology and in the Taurus we are combining the features and technology that customers want."

Jon Alain Guzik, editor-in-chief of DriverSide.com said "As the consumer gets a lot more enthusiastic about technology and as technology starts mediating our lives a little more, we will see more of this filter down into the less expensive cars.

"Ford’s value proposition here is impressive – it’s BMW technology at a Ford price."

‘Driver focused’

One of the other technologies Ford touted was its EcoBoost Turbo charger which adds another 101 HP (horse power) to a 249HP engine while still meeting the government’s fuel efficiency requirements.

The Taurus 2010 will average 17mpg in the city and 25mpg on the motorway, on a par with the competition, according to the consumer auto site Edmund.com.

"The turbo charger simply means is if you have a V6 engine it will deliver the power of a V8 with the fuel economy of a V6," said Mr Reyes.

Ford also demonstrated the self-park technology on its Lincoln brand.

Using sensors, the car will find a parking space and reverse park. The driver takes their hands off the steering wheel but still operates the accelerator and the brake.

Charles Donaldson of Autofastracks.com was impressed by his test drive.

"It’s a very intelligent system," he said. "It knew where the parking space was and certainly made parallel parking much easier than I have found it in the past."

As well as highlighting its technological advances and touring around the country, he company is using Facebook and Twitter to get out the message that "Ford is back".

"The Taurus 2010 is a statement about where Ford is going," said Mr Reyes.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/3tqVtLUMheE” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Facebook strips down to Lite site

The world’s biggest social networking site has launched a slimmed down version for people with slow or poor internet connections.

Facebook has said the Lite site will be faster and simpler because it offers fewer services than the main site.

Initially it is meant to support users in developing countries and where bandwidth constraints make the current version too slow to use.

At the moment it is only available in India and the US.

The company said around 70% of its more than 250 million users are from outside America. Countries in Southeast Asia and Europe are seeing a massive increase in growth where fast internet connections are more common.

News that Facebook was testing the Lite site was first leaked in August.

"Twitter-like"

The options on Facebook Lite are limited to letting users write on their wall, post photos and videos, view events and browse other people’s profiles. There are no apps or special boxes.

"It appears, at a quick glance, to be a better site for Facebook newbie’s or for anyone who finds the current site overwhelming and noisy," said Rafe Needleman at technology website CNET.

"The new layout feels almost Twitter-like."

Terence O’Brien at Switched.com gave the slimmed down version of what he called "ol’ blue" the thumbs up because it "strips away distractions".

"The simple site loads noticeably faster, is easier to navigate, and is much easier on the eyes thanks to the lack of people sending you "virtual booze" or asking you to join their "vampire fraternity."

"The new layout seems like a direct challenge to Twitter, which can attribute much of its success to is simplicity and portability," said Mr O’Brien.

"Worldwide rollout"

Many industry watchers said they believe that even users with good internet connections may well flock to Facebook Lite because of its new look and ease of use.

"That is what some US users are planning to do," said Eric Eldon of InsideFacebook.com

"Indeed the reaction from US users has prompted Facebook to release it intentionally for US users, something it hadn’t previously planned on doing."

Mr Eldon said he believed a "worldwide rollout doesn’t seem too far away".

Facebook has acknowledged this is a possibility in a statement on the site which said the firm was "working on translating Lite into other languages".

So far those who have posted comments on Facebook seem to like the company’s new Lite approach.

"It’s good to see Facebook listening to their users, " wrote one user.

Another said: "Facebook Lite should be great for college campuses like mine that are hung up on bandwidth."

Having no third party apps on the site also garnered a fair amount of support.

"The no-apps thing is killer. There’s nothing about them I’ll miss," noted one user, while another said: "Whatever you do, please, PLEASE do not allow the quizzes, games, or apps to ruin this pristine version of Facebook."

Anyone who switches to Facebook Lite and does not like it can switch back to the fuller version of the site. </p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/hC-KYK3w8-o” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source:

Jobs returns to Apple limelight

Apple boss Steve Jobs has made his first public appearance after almost a year of cancer treatment, at a product launch in San Francisco.

Mr Jobs’ last major public appearance was in October 2008, unveiling a new MacBook, since when he has been absent because of ill health.

Earlier this year, Mr Jobs had a liver transplant in a Tennessee hospital.

Apple is thought to be ready to update its range of iPods, amid speculation over the future of the iPod Classic.

Mr Jobs won a standing ovation as he walked on stage, after which he thanked the young man who donated his liver, and urged the audience all to become organ donors. </p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/bbcnewstechnologyfullfeed/~4/r1Pdqw7LIeM” height=”1″ width=”1″/>
Source: