Instant Messaging thru Wi-Fi.  Smart Mobs reports that Trepia provides a new networking tool that lets you access a location-based list of other nearby WiFi users.  So if you are sitting at the cafe and you see a desirable member of the opposite sex (and he/she is using a computer with Wi-Fi) you can send a message and “make… Continue reading Instant Messaging thru Wi-Fi

  The Textbook Oligarchs  Everyone claims to want ardently that US students get a better education.  But the dynamics of a struggle between an oligopsony and an oligopsony has got in the way, The oligopoly is the textbook publishing industry. Four companies together own 70% of the textbook market. They are Harcourt (a division of Reed Elsevier), Houghton-Mifflin,… Continue reading   The Textbook Oligarchs

 Everyone claims to want ardently that US students get a better education.  But the dynamics of a struggle between an oligopsony and an oligopsony

ThreadsML.org.  ThreadsML. Yay, David Weinberger has put up the ThreadsML web site. Discussions around ThreadsML, and hard work on getting QT Pro… [Blur Circle] If you're into the future of conversations – then come on over and check out the posts, Wiki and on-going development of a new data structure for interchangeable threads and APIs… Continue reading ThreadsML.org

Libraries, playlists and shows. Wi-Fi Home Media Networks. This editorial from Patrick Houston at ZDNet provides good analysis on the challenges in creating a standard for PC – CE media convergence.  He talks about several emerging products based on Intel's Digital Media Adapter (DMA) reference design, which provides a standard approach for moving media between… Continue reading Libraries, playlists and shows

Toronto Star, Canada –TheStar.com – Everyday life tracked by society's prying eye. Privacy vanishing with surveillance Ordinary actions leave a digital trail The Star kicks off a three-day series on privacy today by documenting a work week in the life of the Besharats, a typical Canadian family with roots in Toronto that stretch back 30 years. Their… Continue reading TheStar.com – Everyday life tracked by society's prying eye

Charlie Munger's Worldly Wisdom. Buffett's right-hand man on Berkshire Hathaway, how to get rich, and more. [The Motley Fool]

Feds Doing More Secret Searches. The growing number of secret searches and wiretaps by federal investigators has privacy advocates up in arms about the impact on civil liberties. The use of such measures jumped 30 percent in 2002, according to a recent report. By Julia Scheeres. [Wired News]

North Chadderton School.  North Chadderton School: 'Make no mistake, this wonderful phenomenon known as Open-Source, has enabled schools such as North Chadderton, to develop resources that would have taken years to put together, by traditional, html page-by-page, approach. It is now done by using a combination of  PHP scripting  and MySQL databases, again provided by… Continue reading North Chadderton School

Microsoft Admits Passport Security Flaw. Microsoft acknowledged a security flaw in its popular Internet Passport service that left 200 million consumer accounts vulnerable to hackers. By The Associated Press. [New York Times: Technology]

Gateway to Expand Line, Remodel Stores. Gateway said it will vastly expand its offerings in consumer electronics and remodel its 192 stores this year. By The Associated Press. [New York Times: Technology]