The machine is called the Acer Aspire 5738PG (inspirational, I know). The device uses a combination of hardware, software, and the same tried and true glasses to present a 3D effect. Again, with the glasses. PCPro demoed the product, and everything they’ve reported on sounds positive as of now:

“And it works well. I watched a number of nice-looking demos where futuristic planes flew through futuristic landscapes, monsters emerged threateningly from the screen at random moments, and, um, I looked at a 3D photo.

There are drawbacks. You need to have your head positioned carefully to see the 3D effects without ghosting – where every object seems to have the slightest of shadows – and you do look a bit of a fool. Just to prove it, that’s me looking a fool above.”

The 3D laptop releases later this month, to coincide with Windows 7.

[via: PCPro]

Apparently, others were wondering, too, thus eliciting a cataract of rumors and speculation.

The most direct clue to the crop circle mystery came from Google’s own Twitter message, which was equally cryptic: “51.327629, -0.5616088.” For those who stayed awake during high school science class, those numbers resemble geographical coordinates. The coordinates pinpoint a location in Surrey, England, specifically a point on Woodham Road in Woking, near ancient Horsell. And, if you were awake during high school literature class, you will recognize (ok, maybe not) that Horsell, England is the setting for H. G. Well’s classic sci-fi novel, The War of the Worlds, published in 1898.

Ok, so what does it all mean?

Some say that it is a premonition of alien abduction of earthlings. Um…or not. In fact, some Tweeters, whether mocking, deluded, or satirical, are claiming that Google is actually run by aliens. As cool as Google is, I’m afraid that I just don’t buy that theory. Sorry. Rejected.

Others, paranoid, notice that Google has systematically eliminated letters “o” and “l” in past doodles, which mean that only “e,” “g,” and “o.” are left. That spells EGO. And the significance is…? Most would say that’s reading too much into things.

The more straight-faced codebreakers are claiming that it is “almost certainly a viral marketing campaign teasing people ahead of some launch in a week or two.”

On another note, since next week marks the 143rd birthday of the revered author, H. G. Wells, so perhaps the crop circle doodle is simply paving the way for a bigger celebration of the event. What event that could possibly be is only game for greater rumors. Some say it’s a new Google product, service, a movie, or just about anything.

Since crop circles and flying saucers are considered to be “unexplained phenomenon,” the aura surrounding Google’s mysterious doodle is in perfect keeping with the nature of such events. So, as the rumors continue to rush on, unabated, don’t expect to find out anything conclusive until next week…or never.

Of particular interest to gamers was how and when they might see upgrades to their gaming consoles. Sony’s Playstation and Microsoft’s Xbox are growing older, and in the gaming world, are due for a facelift pretty soon.

However, that facelift may not come in the form of a brand new console, but rather in a stepped approach—improving the console slowly by degrees, rather than making an entirely new one. “I expected we’ll see a PlayStation 3.5 before we see a PlayStation 4 and an Xbox 560 before we see an Xbox 720,” he said.

Part of the challenge is dealing with the rise of mobile games. While developing games like Madden, Medal of Honor, and Guitar Hero take millions of dollars, months of labor, and hundreds of people, an iPhone game may take a few days of work by just one developer working from his parent’s basement.

So far, such “democratization of game development” is not a killer for mammoth companies like Electronic Arts. Rather, it gives promising talent an easy entrée into the industry where they can eventually join the ranks of serious game developers in bigger firms.

Making a game means lots of resources. When a game is designed, marketed, and eventually published, game corporations like Electronic Arts have to sell over a million copies to merely break even. A statistic like that stands in direct contrast to the free and easy turnaround of most mobile games.

And that is part of the saga of the delay in seeing new Playstations and Xboxes. The problem isn’t interest; the problem is the games themselves. Thankfully, gaming isn’t going away. Ever. But in order to enjoy the nascent form of next generation gaming, don’t wait for the Xbox 560. Go buy an iPhone.

Merriam-Webster defines evil simply enough - morally reprehensible or causing harm. I might be in over my head, but I have to disagree with their second definition. Causing harm is something we all do, I mean you can cause harm by being in an accident. It doesn’t make one evil, does it?

These questions and conditions lead me to ponder, can anyone be truly evil? Bringsjord states his thoughts on the matter,

To be truly evil, someone must have sought to do harm by planning to commit some morally wrong action with no prompting from others (whether this person successfully executes his or her plan is beside the point). The evil person must have tried to carry out this plan with the hope of “causing considerable harm to others,” Bringsjord says. Finally, “and most importantly,” he adds, if this evil person were willing to analyze his or her reasons for wanting to commit this morally wrong action, these reasons would either prove to be incoherent, or they would reveal that the evil person knew he or she was doing something wrong and regarded the harm caused as a good thing.

The experiment that Bringsjord conducted to help find the mysteries behind evil was called “E”. The character was given a physical shaped, and they began testing E to see how he would respond to certain situations. They programmed him with evil based AI, in which they took a situation of evil from a piece of literature and made E believe he was the person responsible. The situation was that a group of parents had given a pistol to their distraught son who killed himself. They led E to believe he was the parents.

Once the AI was scripted, they interviewed E to try and discern the logical reasoning behind his actions. He had but one cold, and calculated answer - “The boy wanted a gun, E had a gun, so E gave the boy the gun.”

Luckily, Bringsjord is keeping ‘E’ under tight lock and key. You can imagine if this AI was ever used for the wrong reason. I’d say something along the lines of ‘Wargames’ perhaps. All of this studying of his work has led me to a roadblock. Can you truly create something evil in AI? Without understanding on a completely human level, can AI discern what is harm and what is not? Or is it all just numbers and code?

[via: ScientificAmerican]

The software the BBC used controlled 22,000 computers, causing them to send out spam to two email accounts set up specifically for the demonstration. It also used the botnet to launch a DDoS attack against a site owned by security vendor Prevx, with the site owner’s consent.

The question is, did the BBC break the law? They don’t think so. In fact, their response to the blogosphere discussions http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/03/13/bbc_botnet_analysis/comments about the televised experiment focused on how they believed they had managed to educate Internet users on the benefits of PC security. http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/BBC-Responds-to-Botnet-Controversy

Struan Robertson, a technology lawyer with Pinsent Masons, and editor of OUT-LAW.COM, thinks otherwise.

“The BBC appears to have broken the Computer Misuse Act by causing 22,000 computers to send spam. It does not matter that the emails were sent to the BBC’s own accounts and criminal intent is not necessary to establish an offence of unauthorized access to a computer,” he said, reports OUT-LAW.COM. http://www.out-law.com//default.aspx?page=9863

“The Act requires that a computer has been made to perform a function with intent to secure access to any program or data on the computer. Using the botnet to send an email is likely to satisfy that requirement. It also requires that the access is unauthorized – which the BBC appears to acknowledge. It does not matter that the BBC’s intent was not criminal or that someone else created the botnet in the first place.”

Machines can be compromised simply by visiting an infected website or opening an email containing a virus as an attachment and, according to TRACE, a quarter of all machines are part of a botnet. Protecting a machine with anti-virus software is the first line of defense however Prevx CEO Mel Morris believes that the security industry isn’t doing enough in this field. http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/7.96800#1504549

Tron in a way is like Metropolis. There are so many elements used in Tron that seemed so ahead of their time. Again, there were technologies seen in the movie that no one had even dreamed of using yet. The internet, 3D gaming as I mentioned before. Along with the technologies there were messages concerning A.I., and the power that computers could obtain.

Fast forward to 2009, and now we have an official trailer for the Tron sequel — Tron Legacy. It really is quite amazing looking, and judging from the effects alone will be a movie to keep an eye on.

Jivox is no stranger to prestigious awards. American Business Awards handed them a “Best New Company” ribbon, TiE50 nodded their hat this year, Red Herring gave them a spot on the top 100 list, and SiliconIndia called them one of the Top 10 most promising technology firms.

How did Jivox do it? In the highly competitive technology marketing industry few companies rise like Jivox has done. It boils down to 4 things.

A Good Idea
It starts with a brainchild, but a brainchild that offers something that is rewarding to the customer. “Video content is the best way to connect with customers online,” says Jivox’s CEO, Diaz Nesamoney who founded the company with that simple statement guiding him.

A Customer-Shaped Product
If the “customer is always right,” then why not just let them do their thing, and pay you for it? You will consult, provide insight, guide them along, and deliver the final package, but allow them to shape their dream. After all, it’s their product you’re marketing. They know their product best. Therefore, they follow Jivox’s grade-school simple model—three steps. First, they create the ad; second, point out their target audience; finally, launch the campaign. When dealing with the customers, simplicity and ease of service is key, something that Jivox excels at.

An Economic Win-Win Solution
In the end it’s about revenue—but not just revenue for Jivox. The company crafted a model which puts their credibility on the line, and invites users to challenge their trustworthiness…for free. Advertising is only productive when it generates customers. Therefore, Jivox devised a model whereby their customers would only pay them if their online video ad is viewed. Pretty simple, but very powerful.

Smart Advertising
Jivox, as a marketing and advertising firm, knows what marketing and advertising is all about. They don’t let anything slip through the cracks when it comes to advertising. Their 800 websites garner traffic, their stellar product compels word-of-mouth referrals, and their networking web spans Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. They even have an easy survey that they kindly ask you to fill out as you browse away from the site.

The reasons for the reward are apparent after understanding those four core principles. Thankfully, those are principles that any firm can leverage to their own advantage.

Perhaps we can all take a step back and really look at the situation. While doing this, perhaps we can take a cue from Spain and how the situation is being handled there. In numerous cases, the judges are falling on the side of the sites in question. In this article, from TorrentFreak, we can learn of the reasoning behind the court’s decisions,

“The Coalition quickly backtracked, suggesting they would accept some type of throttling instead, but that fell largely on deaf ears too. Then new Coalition president Aldo Olcese said that the solution would be to go after the country’s 200 torrent sites instead, but this could also prove problematic. Time and again Spanish courts have ruled that sites that link to infringing content are not illegal, providing profits aren’t made directly from any infringement.”

Of course the organization that is trying to protect the copyrights (SGAE), didn’t take this lying down. They’re now trying to intercede against these sites with a more creative approach. Instead of relying on courts, they’re going after the sites privately. In doing so, they can file an injuction against the site and have it closed so its legality can go before a court.

In one such case, the SGAE lost again as the judge ruled in favor of the website. Here’s what the judge had to say,

P2P networks, as a mere transmission of data between Internet users, do not violate, in principle, any right protected by Intellectual Property Law,” said Raul N. García Orejudo, a judge in Barcelona. Although some activities are barred, those do not concern P2P he said, noting that there has to be a presumption of innocence.

Along with ruling on P2P networks, the courts also addressed the act of uploading and downloading copyrighted material using these sites. Basically, the belief is that if you’re using the community websites for copying and sharing files then it’s not an act of “reproduction”. Meaning that no one benefits monetarily from the sharing. However if an actual website hosts the data, then it’s different because there’s profit based on ads and so forth.

I for one am shocked at the stance of the courts in Spain. Not in a bad way, but to hear a different perspective regarding downloading, and P2P networks is a breath of fresh air.

Somewhere a rumor began that Windows Mobile customers may be able to return purchased apps that they decide that they don’t want. Here’s how it supposedly works. Users may purchase the app, but must do so directly through the Windows Marketplace for Mobile. The user then has twenty-four hours within which to decide if the app is worth keeping or returning. Essentially, the “return policy” allows customers to try the app free for a while, the only downside being you have to pay if you keep trying it for more than a day. Pretty innocuous. However, like any return policy, users will probably find a way to abuse it.

The Windows Marketplace for Mobile should start on opening day with 600 apps. Most users will probably never use 600 apps in their life, but compared to Apple’s staggering tens of thousands of available apps, and even Android’s offering of thousands, 600 feels small.

Windows Mobile began a viral marketing campaign to solicit apps for Windows Marketplace for Mobile. They are inviting developers to “bring your best ideas…use familiar development tools and technologies to create global market opportunities.” The interface seems streamlined, organized, and comprehensive with a three-step develop, test, and distribute pattern that may be effective in luring enterprising developers.