Practical Technology

for practical people.

June 13, 2012
by sjvn01
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Skype jumps the shark: Seven alternative VoIP services

Hundreds of millions of people use Skype for its free voice over IP (VoIP) services every day. Indeed, Skype claims that in March 2012, 35-million people were all talking at the same time on the service. But, how many of them are going to stick with it when Microsoft, Skype’s owner, sticks ads in your face?

Microsoft announced that “While on a 1:1 audio call, users will see content that could spark additional topics of conversation that are relevant to Skype users and highlight unique and local brand experiences. So, you should think of Conversation Ads as a way for Skype to generate fun interactivity between your circle of friends and family and the brands you care about.” Oh yeah, I always like having an ad pop-up when I’m talking to a friend or co-worker.

Skype jumps the shark: Seven alternative VoIP services. More >

June 13, 2012
by sjvn01
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New Internet Top Level Domain BS ahead

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) recently opened the doors for yet more new top-level domains (TLDs). TLDs, which are part of the Domain Name System (DNS), such as .com and .net, are the last label of fully qualified domain names. These are used to give human readable addresses to the Internet’s cryptic IPv4 and IPv6 addresses. So far, so good. Now, for no really good reasons, ICANN plans on adding as many as two thousand new TLDs.

At $185,000 per application, ICANN has over 2,000 applications for such proposed new TLDs as .AARP. .AMERICANFAMILY, and .SEX. The delusion, excuse me, idea behind this is that there’s a pent up demand for more TLDs. I don’t think so.


New Internet Top Level Domain BS ahead. More >

June 12, 2012
by sjvn01
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451: Web censorship status code

Back in the early days of the Web, we set up Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) status messages to let people know what was going on with a Web server. Today, we still use 401 error messages for pages you’re not authorized to see, 403 pages for pages you can’t see even with authentication, and the ever popular 404 for Web pages that can’t be found. Now, with the rise of Internet censorship, Tim Bray is proposing a new HTTP code: 451, for Web servers and pages that are being censored,

Bray, a leading Google Android developer and co-creator of one of the first Web search engines, Open Text and XML, has proposed to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) that code 451 be used for, “when resource access is denied for legal reasons. This allows server operators to operate with greater transparency in circumstances where issues of law or public policy affect their operation. This transparency may be beneficial both to these operators and to end users.”

451: Web censorship status code. More >

June 12, 2012
by sjvn01
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Android already offers more than iOS 6, but…

There’s no doubt about it. Android, especially Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS), version 4.0, already offers more than what is coming in Apple’s forthcoming iOS 6. But, Android has its own flaws.

True, as Tom Henderson, principal researcher for ExtremeLabs and a colleague, told me, there’s a “Schwarzschild radius surrounding Apple. It’s not just a reality distortion field; it’s a whole new dimension. Inside, time slows and light never escapes– as time compresses to an amorphous mass.

“Coddled, stroked, and massaged,” Henderson continued, “Apple users start to sincerely believe the distortions regarding the economic life, the convenience, and the subtle beauties of their myriad products. Unknowingly, they sacrifice their time, their money, their privacy, and soon, their very souls. Comparing Apple with Android, the parallels to Syria and North Korea come to mind, despot-led personality cults.”

I wouldn’t go that far. While I prefer Android, I can enjoy using iOS devices as well. Besides, Android fans can be blind to its faults just as much as the most besotted Apple fan.

Android already offers more than iOS 6, but… More >

June 11, 2012
by sjvn01
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No new Apple TV for you, AirPlay Mirroring instead

Well, all the rumors about an Apple TV “TV” rather than just the set-top box we already know turned out to be false. New Macs? Sure. Bigger, better iOS? You betcha! What didn’t do though was announce a new Apple TV set or even an Apple TV software development kit (SDK) at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). Darn it! But, what they did announce was something that many Internet TV users might find just as nifty: AirPlay Mirroring.

AirPlay, as most of you know, is an Apple technology that’s been around since 2010. With iOS 4.03 or higher Apple devices you could stream video, audio, and pictures to AirPlay compatible equipment. For video that pretty much meant you could stream your iTunes video library via an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to second generation Apple TVs. AirPlay is great for playing your iTunes music collection throughout your house with Airport Express networked devices connected to my stereo equipment. I use it that way every day myself. But, while that’s nice, I was already streaming my video straight to my Apple TVs from my iTunes library, so AirPlay really didn’t matter much to my home video network. AirPlay Mirroring changes that.

No new Apple TV for you, AirPlay Mirroring instead. More >

June 10, 2012
by sjvn01
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First Linux Mint PCs go on sale

I love the Linux Mint desktop distribution. Lots of people love Mint. Mint’s my current favorite Linux desktop distribution. But, like most distributions, to run it, I had to install it myself. Now, Mint, in conjunction with CompuLab, is selling its first Mint-branded PCs.

True, you could buy a PC or laptop from ZaReason and a handful of other Linux PC vendors with Mint Linux, but the two mini-PCs that Mint and CompuLab are offering are the first to have Mint’s official blessing.


First Linux Mint PCs go on sale. More >