Technology in our Community

Computer Virus Season

2010-01-29T10:26:00.002-05:00

I've been seeing a lot of computer virus attacks in the last 2 weeks and I just want to remind everyone to make sure your antivirus software is updated and your web browser is also updated. Some of these viruses have been coming in through Internet Explorer so I recommend switching over to Mozilla Firefox (you can download their latest version at www.firefox.com) because it's a safer browser.

For those of you looking for a good FREE antivirus software I've been recommending the following:

AVG
Microsoft Security Essentials

And for cleaning out spyware, I really like Malwarebytes.

Hope these tips help you stay safe and virus free!

Robin

Apple's $499 laptop?

2010-01-28T08:45:00.002-05:00

Not quite a laptop but the iPad is close to being a laptop and at $499 it's the price point that Apple needed to be at to compete with the netbooks. Check out the video below. The book app looks pretty cool (flipping through pages with your fingers) and the virtual keyboard is similar to the size of a netbook's keyboard ... so for those of us who primarily use apps on the web (e.g. gmail, facebook, Akubo, etc.) this will be very interesting to try.

See the iPad Video

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-24T20:41:00.002-05:00

I would like to wish all my customers a very Happy Holidays filled with peace and blessings for the coming year. As I celebrate my 6th year of service in Howard County, I'm looking forward to another great year, with more new technologies in the marketplace and of course continuing my commitment of providing the best service that made Percworks what it is today.

Whatever you’re doing this season, enjoy yourselves and your families and thank you for being a part of the Percworks family.

Windows 7 First Impressions

2009-11-06T02:27:00.002-05:00

My first impression is so far so good! I admit there was some hesitation on my part to upgrade to Windows 7 only because in the past every upgrade made my computer slower, but everything I had read suggested that Windows 7 (unlike past releases of newer versions of Windows) was actually going to be faster than its predecessor (Vista). First I upgraded one of my desktops ... just to test it out and see if the upgrade would work ... took about an hour without any problems. That desktop didn't have much in it, so I wasn't worried if the upgrade didn't work. But my laptop has everything in it, and being right in the middle of project deadlines I usually wouldn't do a major upgrade like this. But just the other day after a Vista update caused my laptop to almost not start-up, and it also froze a few times, I decided it was time to do the upgrade.

I had ordered the family pack (good for 3 computers) upgrade from Microsoft for Windows 7 Home Premium so I stuck the 32-bit DVD in (they do send you the 32-bit and 64-bit versions). The upgrade took considerably longer (3 hours) than my desktop because I had more files and programs on my laptop. But after the few prompts I had to answer I basically just left it to run on its own while I played with the kids and put them to bed. When it was done I entered the product key and Windows 7 started-up successfully.

Only 1 device driver failed to upgrade. Windows 7 complained that it couldn't find the device driver for a PCI Memory Controller. So I looked it up on Google and found that it was referring to the Intel Turbo Memory booster. I did a search again on Google and found the Intel Turbo Memory Windows driver for Windows 7 at Lenovo's website.

I fired up my desktop email (Windows Live Mail), no problems there. I fired up Photoshop, Dreamweaver ... no problems as well! I did a couple fresh restarts just to see if it really is faster in restarting, and YES, it really is faster especially in bringing up your desktop. My Vista desktop was taking so long to come up but now Windows 7 brings it up considerably faster. And no freezing, so far!

Just a few months ago I was thinking of Microsoft as being in the same state as the American auto companies who fell way behind the Japanese (Apple in Microsoft's case) in terms of reliability and product design. I still think the Apple OS is superior if only because I've always been a fan of unix, but this upgrade experience does give Microsoft a chance in the battle.

Competition is great for consumers because it forces the players to be at the top of their game. Let's face it, it's not because Apple's OS is great that Microsoft got a wake-up call. Apple's OS X was released in 2001, the same year Windows XP was released. But Apple's market share was still minuscule then and people were still not buying Macs the same way they fly off the shelf today. Windows Vista came out in 2006, just when Apple's popularity started to really gain momentum, and more and more people realized it's not too hard (and not too expensive) to switch to a Mac.

So I'm quite happy with my Windows 7 upgrade. I recommend it!

Lightroom 3 beta

2009-10-30T02:05:00.002-04:00

Lightroom 3 beta now available for download from http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/lightroom3

Beta is good until April 30, 2010.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom software is a digital darkroom and efficient assistant designed for serious amateur and professional photographers. With Lightroom, you can organize, enhance, and showcase your images all from one fast and nimble application that’s available on Macintosh and Windows® platforms.

* Manage your growing photo collection in a visual library that makes it quick and easy to organize, find, and select your images.
* Get the absolute best from every shot—whether raw, JPEG, or TIFF—using state-of-the-art nondestructive editing tools.
* And when you're ready, showcase your images with the impact they deserve using customizable print layouts, powerful slideshows, web gallery creation tools, and connection to online photo sharing sites (may require third-party plug-ins).

Space still available for How to Use your Digital Camera class

2009-09-23T08:24:00.002-04:00

Space is still available for my class "How to Use your Digital Camera" which starts tomorrow at the Columbia Art Center. Class will run for 3 Thursday evening sessions from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm.

In this introductory workshop, learn how to use your digital camera including transferring files to the computer, organizing the photo files and printing.

Thursdays, September 24-October 8, 6:30-8:30pm (3 sessions)
$60-Columbia residents/$70-non-Columbia residents

MacBook Pro Raffle tickets still available

2009-09-15T00:27:00.002-04:00

Raffle tickets are only $25 and we will only sell 100 tickets. You can purchase raffle tickets online at http://www.tapulanga.org/sharinghope2009.php.

Raffle drawing is on Sunday, Sept. 20 at Kahler Hall at the Sharing Hope benefit for Tapulanga Foundation.

Facebook, Twitter and other Social Media Classes at HoCo Library

2009-09-10T22:06:00.002-04:00

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, FriendFeed ... learn about these various social media tools at the Howard County Library this Fall.

Tweet, Tweet: All a Twitter About Twitter – Learn what Twitter is, how you can use it and how to follow someone. Discover several other social web applications that tie into Twitter.
Wednesday, September 23; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)

Facebook 101 – Introduction to this social networking site, including how to set up an account (Must have a valid email address.) Wednesday, September 30; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)
Facebook 102 – Learn more specifics about uploading photos, applications, privacy settings (Must have a valid email address.) Wednesday, October 7; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)

Flickr 101 – Learn how to use this popular photo-sharing site, as well as basic photography tips. (Must have a Yahoo account to attend class.) Thursday, October 15; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)
Flickr 102 – Learn how to use this popular photo-sharing site, as well as advanced photography tips. (Must have a Yahoo account to attend class.) Tuesday, October 27; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)

Social Web – Introduction to the world of the social web with demos of Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, Friendfeed, LinkedIn, and Facebook. Wednesday, October 28; 7:00 pm (Glenwood branch)

YouTube – Introduction and tour of the site. Thursday, October 29; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)
YouTube II - Hands-on class where you will earn how to upload your videos. (Must bring a short video, up to three minutes, on USB drive to upload in class.) Thursday, November 12; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)

LinkedIn – Learn about the social networking site LinkedIn and how you can use it professionally. Tuesday, November 17; 7:00 pm (Miller branch)

There's more info from the Howard County website.

Sell your house through a blog --- thanks David!

2009-04-24T23:35:00.002-04:00

David Hobby lends his blogging and photography expertise to the Real Estate world. See this blog site he created to help sell his house.

The pictures are beautiful as expected from David's expertise in lighting. Be sure to read more about how he created this site and the prep-work involved.

And if you live in Howard County, Maryland, be sure to check out our growing and active community of bloggers at hocoblogs. We now have close to 150 bloggers from all over Howard County blogging about various topics including community, politics, faith, tech, food, arts, and lots of various special topics and personal stories.

Congratulations Bev Speed - Bronze Medal for Underwater Photography

2009-03-14T20:28:00.006-04:00

Congratulations to Bev Speed for winning another award for her beautiful underwater photography. There were 12,591 entries from 134 countries this year and Bev won the bronze medal for the super macro category for Underwater Photography Magazine.

The UnderwaterPhotography.com photo contest is the longest running and most prestigious contest online, or off. If you want to make a name for yourself it is THE place to do it.

One of the medals awarded is the reward for all the hard work underwater photographers put in chasing those great shots in far-flung destinations. It's the industry's most coveted prize because it says the winner succeeded in the most competitive environment there is, against the top talent of the moment.

Bev Speed - Super Macro - Bronze Medal

You can check out Bev's gallery over at SmugMug where she has underwater pictures from all over the world.

Lenovo Netbook first impression

2009-01-13T07:31:00.003-05:00

If you're in the market for a small and ultra-portable laptop, consider a netbook. These laptops are small, typically having a 9 or 10 inch screen, light (less than 3 lbs) and very affordable, starting at less than $300.

At that price I decided to get one to take with me on the road. It was a choice between a Dell Inspiron Mini or the Lenovo Ideapad S10. The Dell Inspiron Mini was my initial choice because they're very light (2.28 lbs.) and they were recently on sale at the Dell Outlet for $279. This would come with Windows XP, 8 GB solid state hard drive and 512 MB RAM. I almost hit the buy button when I decided to continue shopping around and went to the Lenovo site where I saw the Ideapad S10 which comes with a regular 80 GB hard drive, 10 inch screen and on sale at $349. After reading some reviews about both netbooks I decided to get the Lenovo (the reviews mentioned the Lenovo build felt more solid & durable and the larger hard drive was going to be worth it).

It arrived in 2 days and if I didn't see the shipping label from Lenovo, the size and weight of the box fooled me to think this was another book order from Amazon. After opening the box and attaching the battery I was up and running in minutes. Since this runs regular Windows XP, no surprises here. It recognized my wifi network immediately and I started browsing on Internet Explorer. I wanted to test out how slow (or fast) this computer really is with its Intel Atom processor. So I went to YouTube, Vimeo, Akubo, Picasa and it was fast. No problems at all. I also installed Skype (it has a built-in webcam), uninstalled Norton (replaced it with AVG) and installed MS Office (this I had to do through a flash drive because it doesn't have a CD/DVD drive).

At this point I was pretty impressed. The build feels solid and the fast performance doesn't feel compromising in any way. Of course I haven't tried loading up photoshop and I'm not sure I will, but looking at the task manager, the Intel Atom is a hyper-threading processor so you get some of the benefits of a dual-processor.

I also loaded up Rhapsody and Verizon VZAccess Manager. So last Saturday on the way up to PA, I plugged in my blackberry to the netbook via USB, fired up Verizon VZAccess Manager, connected to the internet, started Rhapsody, chose an album to play and connected an audio cord from the netbook to my car's Aux input and for the next hour and half driving up I-83 we were listening to music from my Rhapsody account, online, on the road. Pretty cool!

I will be taking this netbook on the road with me and my guess is when my clients see it, they will want one for themselves.

2009 Wish List

2009-01-02T20:06:00.001-05:00

My wish list for 2009.

- $500 Mac laptop
- Windows 7 is released on time (late 2009)
- Quad-core laptops from Dell
- Nikon releases an SLR to improve upon the D90 that allows zooming and focusing while taking videos
- Rhapsody on my Blackberry
- Touchscreen iMac/Macbook
- Carbonite releases feature to back up external drives
- Facebook merges with Linked-In so we only have to maintain 1 social network account
- Blackberry/iPhone synch for Akubo
- Wii 2
- VZAccess Manager official release for Linux with support for using my Blackberry as a modem

Last chance for Wii Raffle by Maryland AT Coop

2008-12-02T14:19:00.002-05:00

The Maryland AT (Assistive Technology) Coop is having a Wii raffle to be drawn on December 4 at 2pm. Tickets are $10/ticket; 3 for $25, 7 for $50. Click here to purchase tickets through the Maryland AT Coop website (pay by paypal or credit card).

The Maryland A.T. Co-op is a great resource for Howard County families and organizations that need or are exploring the use of assistive technology products. The Co-op provides discounted purchasing and training opportunities to schools, agencies, organizations, and families.

AVG Online Backup powered by Carbonite

2008-12-01T19:52:00.002-05:00

AVG, the popular free antivirus product is now offering online backups. AVG's backup system is powered by Carbonite. I've been seeing Carbonite in various installations and my overall impression of it is good. Online backups are worry-free and very easy to use. They're not the fastest in terms of data recovery, but at $50/year it's cheap and worth it. I still recommend an external backup drive for quick recovery, but if you want something completely automatic and never want to worry about filling up your external drive, sign-up for online backup.

AVG's online backup is free for the first 2 Gigs, after that it's $50/year for unlimited space.

http://www.carbonite.com/avg/signup.aspx

Update on my 2008 wish list

2008-10-22T14:25:00.004-04:00

We're 10 months into 2008 and so far 4 out of 5 of my wish list items (from January 1st) have come true:
- $100 blackberry
- Facebook has grown up (sort of) ... they no longer assume they'll be the next advertising king.
- Norton Antivirus 2008 is a lot better ... it seems to not slow down your computer anymore.
- We're beyond 100 local Howard County bloggers on HocoBlogs (blogs are no longer on ezColumbia but on our partner site HocoBlogs).

What's close is internet TV as more and more episodes are starting to be shown online. The iPhone is down to $199. Emu did release non-beta Vista drivers but not for all their products. There are streaming radio apps for the iPhone now but not yet Rhapsody. No similar store to CompUSA yet in Columbia. We'll have to wait and see how much of a memory hog Windows 7 will be when it comes out next year. Probably no near-term chance of iPhone working on Verizon's network.

Here's a recap of my 2008 wish list.
- Apple's iPhone will work on Verizon's network
- a $100 iPhone
- a $100 Blackberry
- Internet TV
- 50 Meg download speeds at home
- Emu releases non-beta drivers for Vista
- Facebook grows up
- A more open and less cluttered system challenges Facebook
- Norton, McAfee, Trendmicro (and all the other bloated PC security software) release a security software that doesn't slow down your computer otherwise we'll continue using AVG.
- Microsoft announces that their next version of Windows will be Unix-based and doesn't need 2 Gigs of RAM to work well.
- Apple announces that they're developing the iRadio for cars (and I can use my Rhapsody subscription on the road).
- a store similar to CompUSA opens in Columbia
- 100 Howard County bloggers on ezColumbia (we're almost 50 bloggers today)

Creating PDFs from Office 2007

2008-09-04T19:57:00.003-04:00

This add-in is quite useful if you need to send your Office 2007 (Word, Excel, Powerpoint or even Publisher Files) in PDF format. I used to always use PDF995 but this add-in works seamlessly from Office 2007.

Office 2007 Add-in for Saving Files in PDF

This add-in only works from Office 2007 so if you're using an older version of Office, try PDF955. It works great and it works from any software including your web browser, email program, etc..

Finally: Digital video on an SLR

2008-08-27T12:57:00.002-04:00

Just saw this news today --- Breakthrough Nikon SLR shoots standard and HD video. I bought my digital SLR, a Nikon D70 exactly 4 years ago and since then Nikon has come out with at least 5 newer models from their D300 to their D40 and not one of them has interested me in upgrading until now. And the main reason I'm finally considering an upgrade is going to be the video capability.

I must confess, I hardly even use my digital SLR anymore. I use it for special portraits of my kids during Christmas time, but I mostly use my excellent Fuji point & shoot not only for shooting everyday photos but for shooting videos as well. I slid into using the digital video piece almost by accident. I've known about digital video on these point & shoot cameras for a long time but I've always found the quality wanting. But one afternoon I took a video of my daughter using the digital camera and when I viewed it on my 24-inch monitor I thought the quality was actually not bad, not bad at all. So I started using it more and after awhile I was ditching my Sony digital camcorder as well in favor of my excellent Fuji point & shoot (model is Finepix F20 --- same sensor as the renowned F30). And we love how we can upload the videos onto YouTube and share with our friends and family.

Here's a sample of our YouTube videos from my Fuji point & shoot (warning, there's singing involved in this video). YouTube compresses the video so the quality is not the greatest, but if you go to the YouTube page for this video , there's a *Watch in High Quality* link at the bottom of the video to see a better version of the clip.

The D90 can be the start of a new phase for digital camera owners because soon we can have access to a good digital SLR that can also shoot videos including High Definition clips. I'm looking forward to seeing some reviews before I jump in and make the purchase. When I make the purchase (whether it's the D90 or some other model) you'll see me posting some of those clips. I'll be comparing those clips to my Fuji point & shoot and see how they fare and see if it's going to be worth it for me to lug around an SLR on our trips or stick with my pocket size Fuji point & shoot.

Photoshop Express First Impressions

2008-03-29T17:00:00.001-04:00

Adobe launched Photoshop Express this past week. When they announced this effort about a year ago (March 2007), I was thinking it would be a web-based version of Photoshop. So today I signed up for an account. It's still in beta but there are already more than 17,000 galleries online including my lame attempt for a gallery I just put up a few minutes ago.

So what's the verdict? Disappointing!

This is not so much a web-based version of Photoshop but really more of an online gallery with some editing features. If you're looking for a web-based version of Photoshop, go to Splashup.com. Their web-based software features tools and layers that photoshop users will recognize.

If Adobe's focus for Photoshop Express is the online gallery, they need to do more than just offer a splashy way to show-off your pictures. Two things come to mind when I consider using an online photo gallery. Ease of use and the size and quality of the pictures on the slideshow. I first started using online photo galleries through Ofoto (now called Kodak Gallery) and Shutterfly. Although they were easy to use, their slideshow limited the display size of your photo. This has since changed with Shutterfly now allowing you to view your photos in full-screen mode, but Kodak Gallery still resizes your photo down in their slideshow. The full-screen slideshow was what prompted me to switch to using Picasa Web Albums then and today I'm still using it because it's easy to use and their slideshow looks great.

The slideshow on Photoshop Express has some layout options that Picasa doesn't offer. You can choose a single, strip, grid or ring layout and also choose between 2D or 3D effect. Although these features looked clever when I tried them out, I would probably just stick with the single layout mode. Plus the 3D effect gave me a headache after a few minutes of watching these pictures fly into the edges of my screen.

The one advantage that Photoshop Express gives you is the 2 Gig of free space. Picasa only gives you 1 Gig, but expect Google to bump that up as our pictures get larger and larger.

Web 3.0?

2008-03-13T03:45:00.002-04:00

We're just getting comfortable with Web 2.0 and now an article from Newsweek is suggesting the coming of Web 3.0. They're suggesting that web-content written/reviewed by experts (Revenge of the Experts) might be the new era that could be Web 3.0. I wonder what the experts think ... after all it took them awhile to agree on what Web 2.0 was really all about.

The gist of the article suggests that the public is getting tired of inaccurate and unregulated information on the internet and we need the experts to come back and give us trustworthy information again.

I think we need to step back and think about what this really means. Who are the experts? Some would say the professionals are the experts, but to me a professional only means someone who gets paid for what they do. But is the professional landscape designer better than my Aunt who genuinely loves gardening and blogs about her success in organic gardening? Is the professional computer programmer better than the college kid who spends countless evenings writing an operating system that he freely distributes to the world? There are lots of countless examples and I think the internet has allowed us to find these experts that traditional businesses, media and organizations may never define as experts. I certainly hope that whatever Web 3.0 turns out to be, these non-professional experts will continue to shine on the web.

Revenge of the Experts

Unfiltered, Unedited News from CNN - iReport.com

2008-03-01T05:34:00.004-05:00

CNN is jumping on the community driven news bandwagon. They recently launched iReport.com which allows anyone in the world to upload news-related articles, videos and photos. The key element of this site is that CNN is NOT going to filter or edit any submission. CNN is relying on the community to be the watchdogs and any reader can flag a news article for review. This is similar to how Craigslist relies on the community to flag a posting and seems to work well considering they receive millions of postings a month that their 19-person staff (??? not sure if they broke the 20 staff mark yet) cannot possibly handle reviewing one-by-one.

CNN is saying they will scan the site for news they find important and relevant and those articles may show up on the main CNN.com site.

I think it's commendable for a traditional news organization to do this. Although considering how CNN started, they may not like to be called traditional. But they're big, and powerful and from most people's viewpoint, they are a traditional news organization. It seems that CNN is embracing community driven news without worrying too much that it may someday eclipse the ~~main~~ traditional CNN site in viewer traffic. The point is some traditional news organizations understand that they no longer have the monopoly of trust and the internet has made it possible for citizen journalists to be trustworthy as well.

Why Verizon FIOS Faster Upload Speed Matters

2008-02-29T00:38:00.003-05:00

One of the common questions to ponder these days is which of the two are better - Comcast or Verizon FIOS. I usually answer that technology-wise, Verizon FIOS is superior because technology advances allow fiber optic cables to carry more data at a faster and more efficient rate than copper cable ever will. But a more relevant reason to switch to Verizon FIOS is because they offer a plan that gives you the same upload speed as your download speed. Why does this matter and what is the difference between upload and download speeds?

When you're receiving email or watching a video over YouTube, you're downloading. When you're sending email or sending a video clip over to YouTube, you're uploading. A few years ago, most of us didn't care about upload speeds because the largest files we were sending were pictures and those were not even larger than a megabyte then. But today with larger megapixel cameras and video sharing sites like YouTube, we're starting to care about upload speeds.

Just to give you an idea how upload speeds matter, consider your Comcast service with 20 Mbps download speed but your upload speed is only 1.5 Mbps. So that 1 minute video clip (about 100 MB in size) you just took of your daughter sledding is going to take almost 10 minutes to send/upload to YouTube while on FIOS (if you have their 15 Mbps upload plan) it would only take about 55 seconds.

Note that this only mattes if you are doing some amount of uploads such as sending videos over to YouTube or sending your photos to web sharing sites like Flickr or the Kodak Gallery. If you're not doing any of these, chances are you'll be OK with Comcast and the standard FIOS packages that give you about the same upload speeds as Comcast. Last time I checked, the FIOS 15/15 internet access package costs about $65 compared to about $43 for their 5/2 (5 Mbps download, 2 Mbps upload) plan.

A Trip Down Tech Memory Lane

2008-02-28T16:02:00.003-05:00

Found myself enjoying this fun and nostalgic article (1988 vs. 2008: A Tech Retrospective) today on tech.msn.com. They looked back 20 years ago to common gadgets we now live with everyday. Here's a brief summary:

Laptops
- 20 years ago: 9 inch screen, weighed 14 lbs. and cost about $4,000
- Today: 14 inch screen, 4 lbs. and cost about $1,000

Home PCs
- 20 years ago: Tandy 80286 with 640KB RAM, floppy-drive (no hard drive) and 14-inch monitor (16 colors), for about $1,400
Today: HP dual-core desktop with 2 Gigs of RAM, 750 GB Hard drive, CD/DVD drive and 17-inch flat panel LCD (16.7 million colors) for about $1,000

Printers
- 20 years ago: $1,000 color dot-matric printer
- Today: $100 photo-quality inkjet printer

Modem
- 20 years ago: 2,400 baud for about $400
- Today: 38 Mbps for about $60

Internet Access
- 20 years ago: Compuserve, $47.50/hour for high-speed (9,600 baud) dial-up access. Low speed (up to 2,400 baud) was $12/hour.
- Today: 20 MB/sec for unlimited access for about $50/month (and you can wirelessly share with multiple computers at home)

Hard Drives
- 20 years ago: 150 MB for almost $5,000
- Today: 500 MB for about $200, 1 TB for about $360

Cell phones
- 20 years ago: Analog, weighed 28 ounces and cost $2,500
- Today: Digital, weighs less than 5 ounces and cost about $100 (ofte FREE upon sign-up)

It's amazing how far we've come in 20 years. Just imagine what the next 20 years will bring us. Prices will probably not go down much more on some devices because as Dell learned last year, you can't continue selling computers for less than cost and still expect to make a profit. But at today's prices, most of these devices are simply affordable to the general public unlike 20 years ago when not anyone can just plunk down $2,500 for a cell phone. And note that I didn't even show inflation-adjusted prices here, so that $2,500 cell phone is really $4,300 in today's dollars.

Satellite Internet Making a Comeback?

2008-02-27T02:50:00.003-05:00

A few years ago, I worked with some satellite companies in the area and another one in the West Coast. Some of them were trying to break into the internet space and one of them had a product out in the market. But the latency issues made the user-experience wanting. The concept was great in terms of span and coverage and although the cost was going to be high there were some good arguments that satellite would provide coverage where terrestrial (e.g. cable, dsl, fiber) products were missing.

But then the bubble burst and the failure of Iridium wasn't good publicity for all satellite companies no matter how different their business models were, so most of us thought we'll just have to wait until fiber covered all the corners of the globe.

And lo-and-behold, just the other day Japan announces a satellite for high-speed access. And the speed they're hoping to achieve --- are you ready for this? --- 1.2 GB/second. That's about 100x faster than your typical Comcast and Verizon access, so that's very fast. Those HD movies coming down the pipe can be downloaded in less than a minute, instead of hours.

So maybe there's hope for satellite after all. It does make sense especially for some places in Southeast Asia where the terrestrial landscape is composed of islands and laying fiber across those islands is more challenging than being included in the satellite's coverage.

eBay sellers strike next week

2008-02-16T12:04:00.003-05:00

After the hollywood strike, we now get an eBay seller strike. Sellers on eBay are going on strike next week to protest a change in fees, feedback and search policies. It wasn't too long ago that eBay was considered a lock-in for longevity and their business competition was floundering. But in the recent year, more and more smaller, niche sites are closing in and making for good competition.

This threat to eBay's business can actually be good for eBay's long term prospects. Competition can push a business to do better. Competition can also serve as a wake-up call to businesses that are no longer as exciting and innovative.

eBay is also big enough to buy out smaller competitors like StubHub which was a smart investment for eBay considering how successful the ticket selling site had become. The recent resignation of eBay's CEO is a signal that eBay is ready to chart a new course after almost 10 years of comfortably being the largest *store* in the world.

Just to round out some of the threats to eBay, Amazon is the surprise sleeper hit. While eBay was enjoying its comfortable leadership status all these years, Amazon was busy building out its technology infrastructure and now they're not only positioned to take on eBay's business, they are also becoming a force in the web services arena --- see Amazon Web Services.

Also hear from long-time eBay sellers who have switched to other services to sell their wares --- eBay backlash: 5 sellers who ditched it.

Zero Heating Cost

2008-02-16T08:31:00.004-05:00

I've been reading about the Rocky Mountain Institute recently and how their energy efficient design going back to the 80s cuts their heating cost to almost $0. We're up in the mountains this weekend and it's close to zero degrees outside. The house we're staying in is fully heated and warm inside thanks to propane gas heating. This house doesn't have air-conditioning because the summers here are mild and the fresh mountain air and the breeze is enough to cool the house on a hot summer day. The orientation of the house faces the south, so it's already suited to receive the sun's heat from mid-day till the mid-afternoon to collect the heat.

Take a photo tour of the Rocky Mountain Institute building.

And here's an article from MSN about these green buildings.