Category Archives: Business

Question for TN 78th candidates: Internet access

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You can imagine the lasting economic damage that would have been incurred if similar legislation had prevented CEMC from borrowing to roll out electricity in the 1940′s. This is a textbook case of rent-seeking behavior on the part of private ISP’s and regulatory capture on the part of the legislature, and was no doubt passed based both on some mixture of ideology unrestrained by real-world results, and private ISP’s increasing their political donations that year by a factor of 100 (as Upton Sinclair bitterly mused, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.”)

via Question for TN 78th candidates: Internet access | Mathew Binkley’s Blog.

He also has an interesting comment on slashdot.

Microsoft inks patent deal with service provider using Linux servers

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For the past couple of years, Microsoft has been on a tear of signing up Android and Chome OS device makers to license publicly unspecified Microsoft patents that Microsoft claims are infringed upon by Google’s operating systems.

via Microsoft inks patent deal with service provider using Linux servers | ZDNet.

In 2010, Amazon.com signed a patent-licensing deal with Microsoft involving Linux (upon which the Kindle e-reader is based). Novell, TomTom, Fuji Xerox and Samsung also have signed Linux-focused patent deals with Microsoft. But Amdocs isn’t selling Linux-based hardware; it is just running Linux on servers in its own datacenters (best I can tell).

Bold plan: opening 1,000 MHz of federal spectrum to WiFi-style sharing

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An advisory council to President Obama today said the US should identify 1,000 MHz of government-controlled spectrum and share it with private industry to meet the country’s growing need for wireless broadband.

via Bold plan: opening 1,000 MHz of federal spectrum to WiFi-style sharing | Ars Technica.

There’s a tag on this blog called monopolistic practices.  This article describes something exactly opposite of that.

VPN Services | GoTrusted.com

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GoTrusted is the leading provider of Internet security, identity protection and private browsing. GoTrusted turns any free public Wi-Fi into an encrypted and firewalled hotspot for your computer or device. Browse in private, unblock websites, view video from your home country, send and receive email, and use social media securely when on GoTrusted. Unlike other ‘ad-based’ privacy or proxy software, GoTrusted’s VPN service network is fast without security compromising ads. GoTrusted is easy to install and use, with no advanced computer knowledge or confusing settings required. With GoTrusted, know your privacy is always protected wherever you connect.

Via VPN Services | GoTrusted.com.

AOL Gets Small With Outdoor Micro Data Centers

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What might the outer limit for modular data centers look like? It could resemble the micro data center prototype unveiled this week by AOL. The rack-sized enclosure, which will live outdoors, is the first step in AOL’s ambitious plan to reshape its infrastructure using small, unmanned IT facilities that can be managed remotely.

via AOL Gets Small With Outdoor Micro Data Centers » Data Center Knowledge.

Telefonica Shows Off Firefox OS Prototype, Reveals Plans

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Telefonica has shown a prototype phone using Firefox OS, the new open  HTML5-based operating system from Mozilla, and explained its reasons for adopting a fledgling OS in the face of huge competition from iPhone and Android.

Firefox OS will let the operator balance its “strategic dependence on Android” and allow for the creation of cheaper devices that offer the same user experience, claimed Telefonica Digital chairman and CEO Matthew Key, at an event in London.

via Telefonica Shows Off Firefox OS Prototype, Reveals Plans | TechWeekEurope UK.

Apple Shutting Down iWork.com July 31

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Apple’s shift to iCloud continues with all due haste. On the heels of shutting down MobileMe, its previous-generation cloud platform, the company has announced that the iWork.com public beta will end on July 31, 2012.

As of that date, “you will no longer be able to access your documents on the iWork.com site or view them on the Web,” reads Apple’s note on the matter, followed by a recommendation that anyone with documents on iWork download them to the desktop. Apple, ever conscious of those tiny details, also included a link in the note to a support article titled, “How to save your documents to a computer.”

via Apple Shutting Down iWork.com July 31.