Tag archive: New Orleans

Speaking at Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans, company chief executive Steve Ballmer seemed remarkably calm about the prospect of competition from Google’s announced Chrome operating system. "I don't know if they can't make up their mind or what the problem is over there. The last time I checked you don't need two client operating systems." He’s referring, of course, to… Read More

During his keynote at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans, Microsoft COO Kevin Turner revealed that the Redmond software giant plans to open a series of retail stores this fall—and that some of them will be located quote close to existing Apple Stores. Although Turner did not reveal any specific store locations, opening dates, or any details of what the stores would be like, the timeframe for launching the… Read More

At its Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans today, Microsoft formally announced Microsoft Office 2010, along with 2010 versions of Sharepoint server, Visio, and Project. But perhaps the biggest news of the Office 2010 announcement is that the Redmond software giant plans to go head-to-head with Google in offering lightweight, browser-based versions of its mainstream productivity applications that can be used from anywhere a user can… Read More

Though few hard drives on the market can even come close to the current 3 Gb/s speed limit on the Serial ATA (SATA) standard, Seagate and AMD are marching forward with a new standard that’s purportedly twice as fast. Both companies demonstrated drives that used the new 6 GB/s standard at a conference on Monday in New Orleans. Normally, drive hardware acts as the biggest limitation on speed, with the SATA standard acting only a… Read More

In recent years, researchers have become increasingly curious about how the electronics in portable media players might interact with embedded electronic devices like pacemakers and implanted defibrillators. Although iPods, Bluetooth headsets, and other devices have generally been found not to cause problems with these devices, new research suggests that headphones—you know, the very things people use with iPods and portable media… Read More

Cable operator Cox Communications has had its eye on wireless services for a while, putting a substantial amount of money into spectrum licenses in the 700 MHz band the FCC auctioned off earlier this year and which will become available once analog TV shuts off in the United States. Since then, Cox has bought up between $500 and $550 million in wireless capacity in its cable markets—New Orleans, San Diego, Omaha, Las Vegas, Kansas,… Read More

It wasn't very long ago that Internet provider Earthlink was hot-to-trot for municipal Wi-Fi efforts, famously putting its money where its mouth was an bidding to build-out wireless Internet capabilities in a variety of city centers, pledging to make Wi-Fi Internet access affordable, and perhaps make up the cost of operating and maintaining the network in advertising, high-end services, and premium access plans. But when the nirvana… Read More

There’s a new P2P network coming. But it won’t be file-sharing this time. The new iCare network, invented by a pair of UC Berkeley students, will make for a much faster flow of disaster relief in the United States.   Anand Kulkarni and Ephrat Bitton, both working on their PhDs,were inspired by Hurricane Katrina and its nightmare aftermath. Communications were virtually impossible, and the logistics of relief became a nightmare… Read More

While most of us seek Internet privacy for simple peace of mind, for some people it can be a matter of protecting themselves from serious harm. The Safety Net Project announced Friday that it would host a three-day conference in New Orleans to address the privacy issues confronting victims of domestic abuse on the Internet. According to the Project’s release, technology can be helpful to women in abusive relations for finding support… Read More

Mobile phone operator Verizon Wireless has flipped the switch on what it surely hopes will be a major new revenue channel as it rolls out high-speed wireless technologies: V Cast Mobile TV, the first commercial mobile television service in the United States. Developed by Qualcom's MediaFlo gorup, the service is available only in a limited number of markets in 20 states and only works with the $199 Samsung SCH-U620 handset, but… Read More

Marriott International announced today thatit plans to roll out high-definition digital televisions and digital “plug-in panels” for guests' digital devices. The high-tech amenities will appear in Marriott Hotels & Resorts, JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts, and Renaissance Hotels & Resorts throughout the U.S. and Canada. The company expects the rollout will be 25 percent complete and encompass 40,000 rooms by the… Read More

Even as storms were buffeting Europe, email messages bearing the Small.DAM Trojan horse begin pummeling email servers and inboxes around the world, claiming to carry details of the storm's rampage. The email messages, many bearing the subject “”230 dead as storm batters Europe,” could leave unprotected computers vulnerable to attack or takeover by spammers. When opened, the attachment—which could arrive under a… Read More

After installing video surveillance cameras around the city, Chicago's murder rate plummeted to levels unseen in forty years. Now the police are hoping to cut crime not only by watching, but also by listening. When a shot rings out, the city's new technology recognizes the gun's report within a two-block radius, directs the camera in the general direction, and dials 911. Crime fighting joins the 21st century.… Read More

The new 24-hour channel, featuring a wide variety of music, live broadcasts of Buffett's concerts and other unique programs, will debut this summer. Jimmy Buffett launched Radio Margaritaville in 1998 as an Internet-only channel, which will still be available at http://www.radiomargaritaville.com/.  Now, for the first time, Jimmy Buffett fans across America can hear the channel in their cars, on their boats andon the go by becoming… Read More

“Motorola executives said the only reason for canceling the product launch (of the Apple/Motorola iPod phone) was a timing dispute between Apple and Motorola. While Motorola is well known for publicizing phones that won't hit the market for months, Motorola mobile phone division president Ron Garriques told reporters at a trade show in New Orleans last week that Apple's ”perspective is that you launch a product… Read More