Technology News

Online Libraries Are Taking Off

Source: PC Magazine
August 8, 2008

NEW YORK (Reuters) - It may be about time to dig out that old library card. Hoping to draw back readers, libraries have vastly expanded their lists of digital books, music, and movies that can be downloaded by their patrons to a computer or MP3 playerand it doesn't cost a cent, unlike, say, media from Apple Inc's iTunes or Amazon.com Inc. In Phoenix, for instance, branches have banded together to create a digital library that currently has about 50,000 titles ...

Continue Reading...

Streaming Debate Videos on MySpace Election Site

Source: PC Magazine
August 7, 2008

With the Democratic and GOP conventions just weeks away, the presidential candidates are gearing up for the final few months of campaign madness. But with news of celebrity-themed campaign videos or controversial New Yorker covers saturating the cable news airwaves, what's the best way to get information about issues that will last longer than this week's news cycle? MySpace is hoping you'll say the upcoming debates. The social networking site has teamed up with the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) ...

Continue Reading...

Mozilla Looks Beyond Firefox with Aurora Browser

Source: PC Magazine
August 7, 2008

Firefox 3 still has that new browser smell, but that's not stopping the Mozilla Foundation from planning ahead for its next major move. The organization on Wednesday unveiled Aurora, a concept video touting the future of Web browsing. “Aurora is intended to serve as a springboard for an open discussion about how to evolve the user experience of the Web browser," according to Adaptive Path, a San Francisco-based design firm that is developing Aurora for Mozilla Labs. Adaptive Path will ...

Continue Reading...

Do You Google? Study Finds Search Engine Use Up

Source: PC Magazine
August 7, 2008

Good news for Google, Yahoo, MSN, and maybe even Cuil search engine use is on the rise, according to a report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project. While it may seem like everyone has Googled themselves, Twittered some inane tidbit about their day, or shared a little too much via Facebook status updates, some people apparently only use the Internet to send useless forwards and check the weather. The ranks of the Internet illiterate are dwindling, however. The ...

Continue Reading...

Google Launches Free Music Service in China

Source: PC Magazine
August 7, 2008

SHANGHAI - Google Inc has launched a music search service in China that will give users access to free downloads of licensed songs, while capturing advertising revenue for music providers in a market rife with piracy. The service poses a challenge to Baidu.com Inc, which dominates China's Internet search market but has, along with other Chinese search providers, faced lawsuits charging that it facilitates copyright violations through downloads of unlicensed music. Google said on Wednesday its service would initially let ...

Continue Reading...

Recording Pure Analog

Source: All About Jazz
August 7, 2008

Why do so many musicians, engineers and producers still prefer to make their recordings in the pure analog domain on magnetic tape? Well, it just sounds different than digital recording, and in many cases these subtle difference make the music feel better. Although the technical specifications of a good digital recording system appear better on paper than an analog tape system, it seems that some of the quirky characteristics of analog tape mimic how human hearing works and is just ...

Continue Reading...

Digital Recording with Logic Pro 8 Studio

Source: All About Jazz
August 6, 2008

New look, new view. Logic Pro 8, the heart of the studio, has undergone an extensive interface redesign.

There are cosmetic improvements throughout, but this isn't just a skin-deep upgrade: entire editing facilities have been streamlined or replaced, and a lot of Logic's strange terminology has been translated into standardized language. That may sound like bad news to existing users, but remarkably, Apple has managed to avoid sacrificing the application's core structure and functionality. Even long-time users may find themselves ...

Continue Reading...

Delta to Put WI-Fi on All Domestic Flights

Source: PC Magazine
August 6, 2008

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines Inc will soon start rolling out broadband Wi-Fi access for its entire domestic mainline fleet of more than 330 planes, the U.S. carrier said on Tuesday. The access will cost $9.95 on flights of three hours or less and $12.95 on flights of more than three hours. “Beginning this fall, our passengers will have the ability to stay connected when they travel with us throughout the continental United States," said Richard Anderson, Delta's ...

Continue Reading...