Author: Fraser Lovatt

Fraser Lovatt has spent the last fifteen years working in publishing, TV and the Internet in various capacities, and believes that they will be seperate platforms for at least a while yet. His main interests at the moment are exploring where Linux is taking home entertainment and how technology is conferring technical skills on more and more people. Fraser Lovatt was born in the same year that 2001: A Space Odyssey was delighting and confusing people in the cinemas, and developed a lifelong love of technology as soon as he realised that things could be taken apart, sometimes put back together again, but mostly left in bits or made into something the original designer hadn't quite planned upon. At school he was definitely in the ZX Spectrum/Magpie/BMX camp, rather than the BBC Micro/Blue Peter/well-behaved group. This is all deeply ironic as he later went on to spend nine years working at the BBC. After a few years of working as a bookseller in Scotland, ("Back when it was actually a skilled profession" he'll tell anyone still listening), he moved to England for reasons he can't quite explain adequately to himself. After a couple of publishing jobs punctuated by sporadic bursts of travelling and photography came the aforementioned nine years at the BBC where he specialised in internet technologies and video. These days his primary interests are Java, Linux, videogames and pies - and if they're not candidates for convergence, then what is?

PocketSkype – Free Calls for WiFi PDA Owners

It’s PocketPC only for the time being, but the new version of Skype allows PDA owners with WiFi to make voice over IP (VoIP) calls when in the range of any hotspot. The original Skype application now has nearly 10 million users making free telephone calls over the internet, but it was felt that it was time to take the technology into the space where it will be most useful: mobile.

Niklas Zennstrom, creator of Skype said “While it’s very convenient to use Skype when they’re sitting in their office or at home, many people want to be mobile and want to be able to move around.”

PocketSkype FAQ

GMail in Trouble Already

Privacy International have complained to the UK Information Commissioner about Google’s GMail service – specifically the technology that scans incoming emails and incorporates targeted advertising.

Google says on the GMail site that the process is automated and no human ever reads subscribers’ emails.

Regardless of whether it reads the emails or not, Google will be able to harvest a huge amount of metrics relating to the demographic profile, shopping habits and social behaviour about every one of its GMail subscribers. This information will be tremendously valuable when sold to third parties, who will then know what adverts you’ve seen on any particular day, what links you follow and how active you are on the internet. Long gaps in logging in might even be a good indication of which time of year you prefer to go on holiday.

Privacy International are also not impressed by the following statement in GMail’s privacy statement: “Residual copies of email may remain on our systems, even after you have deleted them from your mailbox or after the termination of your account.” However, this statement is true of almost every email service in existence – free or otherwise.

The only person who is going to look out for your privacy on the internet is you: if you use a service, always assume that the provider can access everything you write, store or read on there – and also assume that groups outside the service can also access it, whether you intend to or not.

Privacy International

Microsoft and Sun Kiss and Make Up

It came as a surprise to many, but Sun and Microsoft agreed to a settlement to their long-running anti-trust dispute on Friday. The dispute was centred around Microsoft’s treatment of Sun’s Java programming language.

Microsoft has never liked Java, seeing it as a direct competitor with many of its own technologies such as ActiveX and C#. Microsoft support for Java was always patchy – MS’s own Java virtual machine was not strictly standard, and Java implementation and integration in Internet Explorer was troublesome. For a while Microsoft tried to divide the Java community with its own, not strictly compatible J++ language, but is now promoting C# as a substitute for Sun’s write-once-run-anywhere platform. Whilst C# is syntactically similar to Java, and has a remarkably similar API, it does not have many of the benefits of the Java platform, nor is it so widely supported.

However, it was J++ that angered Sun Microsystems – further inflamed when Microsoft declared that they would stop supporting Java, forcing users to download a VM if they wanted to run Java applets. It was this dispute that kicked off the EU’s case against Microsoft – and led to rulings relating to including better Java support in Windows and the uncoupling of Windows Media Player.

“Our companies will continue to compete hard, but this agreement creates a new basis for cooperation that will benefit the customers of both companies,” said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer of Microsoft in a statement, “This agreement recognizes that cutting edge R&D and intellectual property protection are the foundation for the growth and success of our industry. This is a positive step forward for both Sun and Microsoft, but the real winners are the customers and developers who rely on our products and innovations.”

Microsoft will pay Sun US$700 million (€578 million) to resolve the Java dispute, and a further US$900 million (€743 million) for patent issues. Both companies have agreed to pay each other royalties for the technologies that they license from one another, with Microsoft paying US$350 million (€289 million) up front.

Sun on the agreement

Vodafone and Warner Bros. Online in Wireless Distribution Deal

Vodafone and Warner Bros. Online have singed a deal to bring Warner Bros. branded content to mobile phones. There are no details over what brands will be exploited as yet, but WB have announced that they will be initially providing games, screensavers, alerts and other mobile applications, including video content.

Amongst others, WB have such valuable global brands as The Matrix, Friends and Harry Potter.

Details are currently scarce, but the agreement covers some 16 countries. Aside from being a revenue-earner, WB are hoping that the deal will bring increased exposure to its brands and help promote upcoming projects.

It seems the announcement is following the growing trend of content providers teaming up with distributors to leverage their brands in other arenas – similar to has already been witnessed with brand owners licensing brands to video game publishers, magazine houses and toy manufacturers. Expect many more of this sort of deal in future.

The press release

Sharp Introduce SL6000 PDA to US

Featuring IBM enterprise software to allow remote access to systems, the SL-6000 is a Linux-based PDA intended for enterprise users.

The SL-6000 is the latest addition to Sharp’s Zaurus range and they’re touting it as a complete laptop replacement. This focus on features, reliability and enterprise use is reflected in the price: US$700 (€578).

The PDA has a bright, four inch 640×480 (VGA) display, 802.11b WiFi and built-in slide out keyboard. Memory expansion is through CF and SD slots. The display is so good because it is one of the first to feature Sharp’s CD Silicon technology. This new display is said to make the best of both transmissive (back lit) and reflective (front lit) screen modes.

The PDA uses a 32 bit Linux kernel to enable true multitasking – users can send and receive data to different applications simultaneously, rather than making background programs dormant.

IBM WebSphere middleware allows users to connect securely to corporate networks, whether on site or connecting through a mobile phone link.

Amazon on the SL6000

World’s First Customised Multimedia Mobile

Emblaze Mobile of Israel have produced a new multimedia handset, and it’s the first time that a network provider, in this case Partner Communications, has had almost complete control over the specification of a mobile and it’s applications.

Considering that the Alpha 8 is Israel’s first attempt at a mobile phone, the handset is amongst some of the most sophisticated handsets out there. Designed by Emblaze in tandem with Partner, the phone is based around video and gaming functions – it can record 30 minutes of video, play Java games and play MP3s. The user interface is via a 2.2 inch TFT screen which displays 65,000 colours.

Partner Communications, which trades under the Orange brand in Israel are hoping to provide a video on demand portal for subscribers – the phone can play back video at up to 30 frames per second, and can record at 15.

Emblaze are hoping to take the phone to other world markets – notably Europe and Asia: “It’s Israeli-based and we are producing cellphones, but we are selling across the world. Our intent is not just to work with Partner in Israel. We are looking at big names and all the number one (mobile) operators in Europe. We are talking to each one and we are in various stages and hoping to close deals,” said Emblaze’s Doron Cohen.

Emblaze Mobile

Prince Makes New Album Ready for Download

Prince has opened at new online music store – and has declared it the “first artist-owned, independent download store of its kind.”

The diminutive funkster’s company said in a statement: “The creation of The Musicology Download Store underscores Prince’s understanding and commitment to the convergence of technology and music. Instead of relying on iTunes, Napster, Rhapsody, or any of the other corporate-run and owned music services filling the marketplace right now, Prince is building his own 99 cent pay-as-u-go service.”

None of his Warner-era music, i.e. any of his greatest hits, are available for download from the site, and probably never will because he doesn’t have the distribution rights for them.

Files are in Windows Media 9 format, and are priced at the usual US$0.99 per track. Entriq are providing the back-end billing, transaction processing and metrics. “Managing a direct relationship between artist and fan base is a growing phenomenon, and Entriq is fortunate to be working with NPG Music Club, a leader in this area,” said Jan Steenkamp, chief executive officer of Entriq. “Through the Entriq solution, NPG Music Club was able to set the rules for accessing specific music and can be confident that all content is delivered securely, quickly and easily to music fans. Entriq is thrilled to be the backstage partner for delivery of Prince’s music directly and securely to fans.”

Prince, believed to be 5′ 2”, has sold music over the internet with varying success in the past: Crystal Ball was not available for download but could only be ordered from the site, and Xpectations was download only. Sales were modest.

We must say that we’re delighted he’s changed his name back from his previous wiggly icon – whilst the USB symbol was a close match, we felt it didn’t quite have the same sexy feel.

We’ve tried the site and find the interface somewhat baffling – some words perhaps, describing what you’re clicking on, or perhaps an indication of what can actually be clicked, might not go amiss. Then again, with our complete collection of Autechre recordings, perhaps we’re not the target audience here.

With thanks to Ian Edgar for additional information on Prince.

New Power Generation Music Club

Sharing Copyrighted Works in Canada is Legal

In a surprising setback to record labels, a judge in Canada has ruled that downloading copyrighted works from peer to peer networks such as Kazaa and Morpheus is legal. Recording industry bodies have enjoyed success in a variety of countries by suing individuals for downloading and uploading music files, so this ruling must have come as quite a shock.

The ruling is specific to Canada, but will have far wider implications especially when other countries’ legislative bodies look too their peers for guidance – however, courts in Canada have yet to decide if the uploading of copyrighted files is legal.

The decision was made when Canadian record labels began the process to sue 29 alleged file swappers – and were denied authorisation to identify them. The ruling is based on legislation in Canada that states that most copying for personal use is permitted – this is possible because there is a levy imposed on all blank tapes, CDs and MP3 players to make up for potential lost revenue.

News.com on the story

Google Launch GMail – Never Thow Any Email Away Again

With a gigabyte of storage behind every mailbox, Google are launching a new free email service, GMail, and naturally it has powerful searching facilities built in. Google hope that contextual ads inside messages will pay for the service and not put users off too much – they are not planning on using popups or banners.

Microsoft and Yahoo offer only a microscopic 4mb of storage with their basic accounts and don’t have anything like the same search functions – though advertising is kept to banners on their portal pages. One gigabye is enough to store about half a million plain text email messages a page long. Messages are threaded into conversation threads automatically, reducing the need for users to spend time sorting mail

Larry Page said “Gmail solves all of my communication needs. It’s fast and easy and has all the storage I need. And I can use it from anywhere. I love it!” Well, we’re glad he likes it.

Thankfully, the service provides a spam filter, so you need only store the things you want.

We’ve signed up for a test account – we’ll let you know how we get on.

All about GMail

Microsoft: Extensive VoIP Features in Windows CE 5.0

Microsoft are including better VoIP support in their next version of their popular embedded version of Windows – CE 5.0. CE is used in many devices such as touch screen phones and PDAs and so enhanced VoIP support makes a lot of sense and will lead to a lot of exciting applications.

CE 4.2 has some limited support for VoIP, but is mainly focussed on call control features like call forwarding. Amongst other new features, 5.0 will integrate with Microsoft Exchange Server contacts, so users will be able to see when another client is online. Importantly, the new OS will provide conference facilities and native WiFi support – ideal for enterprise use.

Also new is support for Direct3D Mobile, enabling developers to make greater use of graphical and media-intensive content.

Version 5.0 is due out in the summer, and we’ll be bringing you reviews of the OS when it appears.

Microsoft’s Windows CE 5.0 technology preview centre

Chris De Herrera’s Windows CE Website