The Inquisitr » Technology

Your Google PageRank may soon depend how fast your site loads – Why?

Steven Hodson — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:52:20 +0000

Google has been making a lot of news over the past while about how it wants to help speed up the web; and as nice as that might be it has gotten more than a few people wondering why.

This last week saw the announcement that the company was working on a new protocol that would sit on top of the standard HTTP protocol. The idea behind SPDY is to help reduce latency and make the overall page surfing experience a little faster.

Not long after that Google’s Matt Cutts has an interview with Mike McDonald from WebProNews were Matt lets the world know that Google is seriously looking at making the page load time a part of the algorithm used to calculate a web site’s PageRank. The idea being that the faster your site loads the better that will affect your overall score as calculated by Google and the better placement you’ll have in search results.

Interesting idea – except why is there this sudden concern with how fast pages load?

Granted we all have heard about how fanatical Google can be about page load times since the faster their pages load the more searches they can deliver. On the flip side however there is the time that it takes for the Google crawlers to index, and update, all that data out there. In this aspect of the search game they are often at the mercies of the designers of websites.

So if Google can get everyone to do everything they can to make their pages load faster it means that Google’s crawlers can do their job in the fraction of the time thus saving Google an incredible amount of money. Of course it benefits site owners as well to do what they can to increase page load speed but is Google’s rewarding faster loading sites with a better rank the right way to do this?

Douglas Karr from Marketing Tech Blog doesn’t think so and he goes as far as to suggest that this is leaning to being evil.

So, as one of the wealthiest companies in the world, Google is beginning to drop the hint… hard. Make your sites faster and we’ll reward you with better ranking. This is fantastic for companies with the infrastructure, capacity and resources… but what happens to the little guy? How does a small personal blog hosted on GoDaddy for a few dollars compete with a company hosted on a platform that costs thousands of dollars with loadsharing, caching, web acceleration or cloud technologies?

In my humble opinion, I think it leans the evil side. Let’s break it down:

The web is becoming more complex.

This requires Google to advance its technologies.

That costs Google more money.

The alternative is penalizing sites that perform slowly, requiring them to spend more and speed up their sites, reducing Google’s costs.

That doesn’t make good PR, though.

Instead, Google does it in under the auspices of enhancing the web experience.

It’s not about you and me. It’s about Google’s bottom line.

Personally I think Douglas makes a valid point and one well worth thinking about.

Bye-Bye Psystar it was nice knowing ya until Apple chewed you up and spat you out

Steven Hodson — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 23:21:42 +0000

Like we didn’t know that this wasn’t going to happen.

Yesterday, November 13, 2009, Apple won its expected victory over pain in the ass Psystar Corp. when Judge William Alsup agreed with Apple that the little company that wished it was did indeed violate Apple’s copyright and just for good measure the Digital Millennium Copyright Act as well.

Judge Alsup sidestepped Psystar’s claim that it was protected by the first sale doctrine, which generally gives the buyer of a protected work the right to resell it without the permission of, or any payment to, the copyright holder. The judge said first sale only applies to legal copies and that the way in which Psystar had modified the software to let it run on clones meant that the copies did not meet this standard. The judge rejected out of hand Psystar’s claims that it made legal use of Apple’s trademarks and that Apple has misued it copyrights.

Source: BusinessWeek – The Tech Beat

A hearing on remedies is scheduled for December 14 at which point the brothers behind Psystar had better be ready to kiss their financial asses good-bye.

We heard you like Boxee so we put your Boxee in a Box: Boxee Box confirmed

Kim LaCapria — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:52:04 +0000

Popular content streaming application Boxee confirmed plans this week to unveil a “Boxee Box” to streamline the process of using Boxee with your TV.

Boxee founder Avner Ronen announced a December 7th event in Brooklyn (holla!) where details of the device and mockups (like the one shown above) will be revealed. (You can RSVP to the event on the Boxee blog.) About the deal, Ronen says:

I am very happy to announce we have signed our first partnership with a CE company. At this point we can not say more about the partner or the specs of the device, but we can tell you we are working closely with them to make sure we deliver a great Boxee experience on it.

Ronen goes on to talk about forging the connection between computers/devices and TV, which remains a huge stumbling block for consumers who wish to use services like Hulu and Boxee. People constantly tell me to use them, but I rarely have the self control to put my laptop down and lack the initiative to hook my devices to my TV. A dedicated box is perfect for lazy consumers like myself that are interested in the service but not as keen of getting off our asses to access it.

Ronen describes the uses the Boxee box is expected to have:

This will be the first connected device running Boxee, but the idea is to provide consumers with a way to get Boxee in their living rooms, no matter whether it’s on a Connected TV, game console, set-top box, BluRay player, computer, etc.

More details as they’re released.

Menq EasyPC E790 Wants You To Have A Netbook For $80

James Allen Johnson — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:42:33 +0000

The Menq EasyPC E790 is currently running Windows CE, but the company has announced plans to push out a Google Android update in the next month and at a very reasonable $80.

So what does $80 buy you these days? How about a 7 inch display that pushes out 800 x 480 pixels of resolution, a full qwerty keyboard and an all around netbook design. Sure the Samsung ARM926EJ-S3C2450 processor isn’t going to give you gaming power at your fingertips, but it’s enough to give users quick access to browse the web and open basic programs.

Future units are expected to carry an ARM Cortex A8 option for an extra $10-$20, which in our opinion is well worth the upgrade, especially considering that the price will still come in at under a Benjamin.

There’s no official word on when or where you’ll be able to pick up the Menq EasyPC E790. [SlashGear]

Here’s a video of the E790 in action:

Sgt. Pepper’s comes to The Beatles Rock Band next week

Chris Greenhough — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 02:30:28 +0000

What’s your favorite Beatles album? If you answered “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” we can almost certainly be friends.

Now we’re friends, want to come round my place and play Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band on some plastic instruments? Well you can’t. Not until next week, anyway. That’s when Sgt. Pepper’s will be hitting The Beatles: Rock Band, with the album pack including:

Fixing A Hole
She’s Leaving Home
Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite!
Within You Without You
When I’m Sixty-Four
Lovely Rita
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
A Day In The Life

That lot will join the other five Sgt. Pepper’s tracks that are already in the game, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “With A Little Help From My Friends,” “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds,” “Getting Better,” and “Good Morning Good Morning.”

This latest batch of Beatles downloadable content hits Xbox 360 on November 17, and PS3 and Wii on November 19. Each individual track – not that you’d want to miss any of these – will set you back $1.99, 160 MS Points, or 200 Wii Points. The whole album will cost $13.49, or 1080 MS Points.

[Via press release]

News Corp Dithers on Google Pullout While AP Asks For More Traffic

Duncan Riley — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 02:01:06 +0000

News Corp has indicated that its expected withdrawal from Google search results won’t be for months, while on the same day AP has met with Google asking for more traffic.

News Corp’s chief digital officer Jonathan Miller told the Monaco Media Forum that the withdrawal from Google’s search results will occur in “months and quarters – not weeks.” He went on to say that “the traffic which comes in from Google brings a consumer who more often than not read one article and then leaves the site. That is the least valuable of traffic to us… the economic impact is not as great as you might think. You can survive without it.”

Across the Atlantic, Tom Curley, president of the Associated Press, was reportedly ready to meet Friday with officials at Google about getting a better deal for links to AP stories provided by the search engine.

Curley wants Google to elevate the ranking of AP stories so they appear more prominently in search results. He also wants a cut of the revenue from ads Google runs alongside the top news stories. Curley claims that AP gets paid for less than 15 percent of its stories on the Web.

What does it say about News Corp’s stance when the main body owned by media outlets in the United State, the main cheerleader against new media is actually asking for more Google traffic, the same traffic that Murdoch and Miller say is worthless?

The delay to News Corp pulling out of Google once again proves that News Corp is all talk and no action when it comes to their constant attacks against the likes of Google. There’s ZERO technological basis for the delay because as we’ve repeated time and time again: one line in a Robots.txt file is all that’s required. If they had the courage of their convictions they’d be taking themselves out of Google not next week, not tomorrow, but today.

Part of this story from AHN under license.

Final Fantasy XIII dated for North America, Europe

Chris Greenhough — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:00:36 +0000

The biggest release of 2010? It might just be Final Fantasy XIII. And now, more than three years since it was first shown off, Square Enix has confirmed a North American and European release date for this most exquisite-looking RPG: March 9, 2010.

“We know that our fans have been eagerly awaiting the next installation of the franchise,” blabbered Square president and CEO John Yamamoto. “Final Fantasy XIII will exceed all expectations.”

If you didn’t already know, Final Fantasy XIII will be simultaneously flashing its well-oiled RPG buttocks on both the PS3 and Xbox 360, a development that would be almost unimaginable five years ago.

Square also sent out a huge press release, detailing the game’s features, its tangled backstory and, uh, Leona Lewis. Here it is:

——————————–

Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of Square Enix interactive entertainment products in North America announced today the highly anticipated street date for FINAL FANTASY XIII. This latest project in the multi-platinum FINAL FANTASY series promises to be intensely compelling and will be available for both the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft on March 9, 2010.

FINAL FANTASY XIII marks the dawning of a new era for the celebrated franchise, bringing the series to multiple hi-definition consoles simultaneously for the first time in its history. Expanding upon the rich tradition of the series, Producer Kitase Yoshinori (FINAL FANTASY VII, X, X-2), Director Motomu Toriyama (FINAL FANTASY VII, X, X-2), character designer Tetsuya Nomura (FINAL FANTASY V, VI, VII, VIII, X) and art director Isamu Kamikokuryo (FINAL FANASY X, XII) combine their creative vision to deliver the latest masterpiece in the FINAL FANTASY universe. Additionally, Masashi Hamauzu (FINAL FANTASY X, DIRGE of CERBERUS -FINAL FANTASY VII-) presents a sweeping soundtrack while movie director Takeshi Nozue (FINAL FANTASY VII ADVENT CHILDREN) and his team of artists adorn the game with seamless cinematic sequences of unparalleled caliber.

“We know that our fans have been eagerly awaiting the next installation of the franchise – FINAL FANTASY XIII will exceed all expectations,” said John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix, Inc. “Coming simultaneously to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 for the first time, FINAL FANTASY XIII will be available to all players who are looking for the most immersive gaming experience of 2010.”

Multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter Leona Lewis has come on board with Square Enix to provide the theme song for FINAL FANTASY XIII. The song is entitled “My Hands,” and is featured on her highly-anticipated second album ECHO (J Records/Syco Music) set for release on November 17th. Leona Lewis took the music world by storm with her 2008 6x platinum debut album Spirit which features her chart topping, biggest selling single of 2008 “Bleeding Love,” and mega-hit “Better In Time.”

“When Square Enix approached Leona about including her song, “My Hands,” in FINAL FANTASY XIII, she was honored to be partnered with such an iconic and groundbreaking video game series,” said Tom Corson, EVP/GM, RCA Music Group. “Leona is a natural fit with the game’s powerful themes and strong female protagonist. We’re delighted to be part of this effort, bringing great musical artistry to FINAL FANTASY XIII which is a riveting and dynamic gaming experience.”

Introducing new worlds, memorable characters and extraordinary stories with each new installment, the FINAL FANTASY series has continued to reinvent itself over the last two decades and has shipped over 85 million copies worldwide. The series is defined by a constant evolution, offering nothing less than the finest creative vision, graphical quality and gameplay system of its generation with every installment, and FINAL FANTASY XIII will be no exception to its legacy.

Story

Cocoon — a utopia in the sky. Its inhabitants believed their world a paradise. Under the Sanctum’s rule, Cocoon had long known peace and prosperity.

Mankind was blessed by its protectors, the benevolent fal’Cie, and believed that tranquil days would continue forever. Their tranquility was shattered with the discovery of one hostile fal’Cie. The moment that fal’Cie from Pulse — the feared and detested lowerworld — awoke from its slumber, peace on Cocoon came to an end.

Fal’Cie curse humans, turning them into magic-wielding servants. They become l’Cie — chosen of the fal’Cie. Those branded with the mark of a l’Cie carry the burden of either fulfilling their Focus or facing a fate harsher than death itself.

A prayer for redemption. A wish to protect the world. A promise to challenge destiny.

After thirteen days of fates intertwined, the battle begins.

In FINAL FANTASY XIII, players will embark on a journey through the cityworld of Cocoon and the outerworld of Pulse, encountering and fighting alongside a diverse group of allies. Execute powerful attacks with weapons and magic, and summon the enigmatic Eidolons with an evolved Active Time Battle system. Experience seamless transitions between real-time gameplay and in-game cinematics. Do you have the courage to face your destiny?

Features

Take Part in a Gaming Experience that Sets New Standards – The first in the series developed for a simultaneous release on multiple high-definition consoles, FINAL FANTASY XIII pushes new boundaries in cinematic presentation, sound and gameplay.

Experience the Unity of Speed and Strategy with the Ultimate Active Time Battle system. The familiar system has evolved, granting players the freedom of executing numerous commands in a single turn with the multi-slot ATB gauge. Whether inputting singular commands in each slot for consecutive attacks, or expending multiple slots at once to activate a devastating blow, it’s up to the players to respond effectively to the battle conditions at hand.

Adapt to the Ever-Changing Tide of Battle with Paradigms – A brand-new game mechanic enabling players to assign roles to their party members at any time during battle, shifting between combat paradigms. Consisting of various combinations of the game’s six roles, ranging from Commando, the offensive specialist, to Medic, the quintessential healer, paradigms allow players to respond and adapt instantly to any given situation to turn the tide and seize victory.

Witness the Battle Scene Transform with an All-New Summon System – Introducing Gestalt Mode, a powerful dimension of the summon system that elevates the action to a whole new level. In Gestalt Mode, characters and their transformed Eidolons fight as one, dealing massive damage to enemies through simple button commands.

Delve into an Emotional Experience – An immersive storyline connects players to an intriguing cast of characters. Will they have the strength to confront their cursed fates, or will destiny prevail over all that they believe in?

——————————–

[Via press release]

The $9,000 gold-plated, diamond-encrusted PlayStation 3

Chris Greenhough — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 23:44:06 +0000

If you’re a shallow, cliché-ridden tit and also rich, do I have the console for you.

The gadget modders at Computer Choppers have gone and dipped some PlayStation 3 Slims in gold, sprinkled a few diamonds on them, and are now selling them for $9,000 a pop. You can choose to have either an 18kt gold “PS3″ logo with white diamonds, or a platinum, diamond-encrusted logo.

These fully functioning consoles come with a limited lifetime warranty, and are pretty exclusive: only FIVE will ever be made.

[Computer Choppers, via VGB]

PhoneSuit Primo Battery Pack Debuts For iPhone And iPod Devices

James Allen Johnson — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:44:40 +0000

PhoneSuit has just announced their newest gadget, the Primo battery pack, a simple bottom loaded battery that delivers 800mAh of power via a lithium-ion battery pack.

The Primo Battery Pack offers 45 additional iPod Nano audio playback minutes and 3 hours of talk time on 3G networks for both the iPhone 3G and 3GS models.

The unit, as pictured above, features a front-loaded LED battery charge meter and a miniUSB port for quick attachment to your devices.

The pack is now on pre-order for $35 and will officially release on November 23rd.

New Moon Volvo Contest: What drives Edward, phase 4

Kim LaCapria — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:23:14 +0000

Volvo launched a contest tie-in with the second Twilight movie New Moon, “What drives Edward?”

Twilight fans who participate in the contest can win premiere tickets and a new Volvo. A lot of fans are having trouble with “What drives Edward, phase 4,” and a question on Yahoo Answers points to a video that seemingly helps. (Die hard fans: Stephenie Meyer is appearing on Oprah today to promote New Moon.)

Below, a video of the “what drives Edward, phase 4″ part of the challenge. I’m not playing, so tell me in the comments, does it work?

Is there a way to see who views your Facebook? No.

Kim LaCapria — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:28:09 +0000

One of the most commonly asked questions about the reigning king of social networking sites is “is there a way to see who views your Facebook?”

Ironically, most people who want this information would probably want their covert Facebook checking-up exposed. (And your college boyfriend’s wife would probably hate you more.) But similarly, people always want to know who’s checking out their Facebook profile, and will add apps or do other things via status update and the like to reveal this juicy information.

Don’t add any more apps to clutter your friends’ live feeds, and don’t bother with any other schemes promising to show you who views your Facebook profile. Facebook itself confirms that no apps or third-parties can tell you this, no matter how many cows you chase out of friends’ paddocks.

Facebook does not allow users to track profile views or see statistics on how often a particular piece of content has been viewed and by whom without your consent.

If an Application claims to provide this functionality, you can report an application for abuse by going to the application’s About page and clicking “Report Application” at the bottom of the page, or by clicking “Report” at the bottom of any canvas page within the application.

Facebook flat out says seeing who viewed your Facebook profile is un-possible:

Facebook currently does not provide an application that allows users to track profile views or statistics on the views of any specific user content. Third party developers, however, may offer applications that provide some of this functionality. Please keep a few things in mind for these applications:

Applications CANNOT track profile visits for users who simply go to another person’s profile; Facebook has made this technically impossible.

In order to be tracked by an application, you will need to specifically agree to allow the application to track your actions.

Adding an application that provides this functionality is purely optional. If you do not want to participate, please do not add the application to your account.

So if your curiosity stems from not wanting to be tracked, be selective about which apps you add. None of which can show you who’s looking at your Facebook profile.

[Image]

Chrome OS to launch within the week?

Kim LaCapria — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:51:55 +0000

After several spurious sightings in the wild, rumors intensified this morning that the hotly anticipated Google Chrome OS might be released within the week.

Google said earlier in 2009 that the open source operating system would be available “later this year.” A mid-to-late November launch would make sense, but don’t get too excited yet. It’s expected that the code will be opened to developers, and that it’s not going to be something you can install on your netbook just yet. Essential functions and details like driver support will ostensibly be forthcoming, and the Chrome OS likely won’t be usable out of the box for average schmohawks right away.

As all the information surrounding the Chrome OS release this week is rumor/speculation at this point, the nature of the possible impending release is up in the air- plus scant details surrounding the Chrome OS and an abundance of fake information have made users even more curious, fueling chatter. According to PC World, there is a chance that the alleged version allegedly set for this week (supposedly) could be a stripped down version most users could test run and use for basic functions. Either way, we’ll update details of the possible launch as soon as they become available.

Samsung Behold II Arrives At T-Mobile On November 18th

James Allen Johnson — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:29:16 +0000

T-Mobile USA today announced the official November 18th release date for the Samsung Behold II, the companies next phone to feature the Google Android OS.

The Behold II features 3G data speeds and WiFi for easy connectivity, while also becoming the first T-Mobile sponsored device to feature a 3.2-inch AMOLED screen. The smartphone also features a 5MP camera with autofocus, zoom, flash, five shooting modes and video recording capabilities

Samsung has also integrated their “Cube Menu” which gives fast access to music, photos, videos, web surfing, YouTube and Amazon MP3 music download.

“With its first-rate multimedia capabilities front and center, the Samsung Behold II adds an exclamation point to T-Mobile’s already impressive Android lineup for the holidays,” said Wendy Piñero-DePencier, vice president, brand and calendar marketing, T-Mobile USA. “The combination of 3G speeds, its high-resolution touch-screen, and access to loads of entertainment features is sure to make the Behold II into a holiday hit.”

The Android-powered phone also features the Samsung TouchWiz user interface with its moveable widgets and one-touch access to commonly used features and applications.

Users will also be able to take advantage of Google services directly from their phone, including Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube and Google Talk, while of course downloading applications and games from the Android Market as they see fit.

Business users will also find some handy options via the Samsung Behold II such as personal and corporate e-mail abilities with Exchange ActiveSync.

The Behold II also features built-in GPS, Bluetooth 2.1 + A2DP, visual voicemail, and MicroSDHC card support that can provide up to 16GB, although a 2GB microSD card comes standard with the device.

T-Mobile has stated that the smartphone will be ready for sale at nationwide T-Mobile retail stores and through T-Mobile.com beginning November 18th, 2009.

Dell Officially Announces Mini 3 Smartphone, Forgets To Mention Specs

James Allen Johnson — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:35:38 +0000

Dell has officially announced the arrival of their Mini 3 Google Android Based Smartphone, the companies first foray into the Smartphone market dominated by Apple, Research In Motion (Blackberry) and Google Android Smartphones.

According to Dell the touchscreen enabled device will be available in various regions around the world and will be customized to take advantage of those regions 3G frequencies. Dell has however announced that China will only receive Edge service, while the device in that region will use the OPhone interface and OPhone App Store.

Unfortunately, Dell has yet to give up the devices full spec list, what we know at this point is that it carries a 3MP camera and a display with 640×360 pixels of resolution.

According to Electronista, the first arrivals of the device will come to China Mobile before the end of November, with Brazil’s Claro network set to receive the units before the end of 2009 and the U.S. Slate for AT&T and Verizon early next year. Various other providers will also receive the Mini 3 at some point, including Vodafone, Maxis, M1 and Starhub.

The Dell Mini 3 is a drastic departure from the non-phone capable Dell Axim line which Dell discontinued in 2007. It’s also a departure from those devices Windows Mobile operating system.

Just one question for Dell, how do you debut a phone that’s shipping in the next couple of weeks and then proceed to leave out a spec sheet?

Louis Gray Grows Some Balls and Starts His Own Startup

Duncan Riley — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 05:53:42 +0000

Louis Gray, one of the smartest guys in Silicon Valley is leaving the corporate teet and is launching his own startup. (Note, the headline is tongue in cheek.)

Louis has joined with a group of unnamed others to form Paladin Advisors Group, “a strategic advisory firm for startups and enterprise companies who are looking for guidance in their marketing, public relations, sales processes, customer influence, Web and social media.”

Louis has taken the role of Managing Director of New Media, a role for which he is eminently qualified.

Louis refers to Paladin as a stealth startup, which is probably fair given their home page is currently offering an ad for “seeking Filipino Women?” He will be extending what he has already done on the side in helping and advising new startups on the finer points of not failing.

Louis and I didn’t get off to the best of starts when he broke into the Silicon Valley scene a couple of years back, but I’ve since come to appreciate him as being one of the most switched on, clever guys working in the space. If I had to say I’m disappointed, it’s only because I would have loved to have seen him doing a full blown tech startup, but none the less this position ideally suits his skills, and I have no doubt that it will do exceptionally well.

Image via Steven Hodson

Twitter In Trouble? I Smell Trolling At 100 Virtual Paces

Duncan Riley — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 05:19:23 +0000

There’s lies, damn lies and statistics, but when it comes to using online stats to attack Twitter, it’s not just a case of damn lies, but epic trolling.

Stats are out today from comScore and Compete for October, and depending on which one you believe traffic to Twitter declined 8% or 2.2% respectively. Depending on which interpretation you read, this is a sign that Twitter is in “trouble” or as Mashable more fairly puts it, that Twitter has “flatlined.”

A drop from the shiniest, buzziest startup of 2009 naturally makes for a great tale, which added with a dash of trolling no doubt makes it good for those writing it page view wise. But there is a flaw in using page views to Twitter.com as a gauge of usage for the site: a sizable portion of users never hit Twitter.com to use Twitter.

Depending on the stats month to month (and source to source,) roughly 15% through to as high as 40% of users connect to Twitter using third party services. To that you also need to consider that new users are more likely to use Twitter.com directly (not knowing about third party services), until after some time looking at or switching to third party tools (in this case, the Oprah spike.) Look no further than the popularity of iPhone Twitter clients as evidence that there’s a strong market for third party Twitter clients, even if pinning down exact numbers may be an abject lesson in guessing in itself.

Third party tools aside, it’s important to consider that the stats used to justify Twitter being in trouble are primarily based on US users (Compete exclusively, comScore mostly.) It’s easy for an American writer to presume that nothing important happens outside of the United States, but Twitter is not playing from the same handbook. The proof can be found in the under-reported announcements Twitter has made over the last few months as it has rolled out SMS support in places like India and Indonesia. Even if comScore was tracking either country, they wouldn’t be tracking SMS use of Twitter, where as Twitter clearly sees SMS as a growth tool in countries where data isn’t as affordable, or readily available particularly over mobile networks.

Twitter has always been secretive about its usage numbers, but we can get a rough idea about how popular it might be outside the United States through Alexa (yeah, I know it’s not accurate, but Alexa offers better non-US stats than most of the others.)

According to Alexa, Twitter.com is ranked in the Top 100 sites online (so not including SMS) in the following ntn-highly ranked countries for data access: South Africa (9), India (11), Philippines (12) Pakistan (14) and Brazil (18.)

If Twitter was in trouble, they’d need to clock something a lot bigger than a 2.2%-8% decline on Twitter.com to balance their growth outside of the United States and other Western nations.

It’s clear that looking at the bigger picture that Ev, Biz and the team are heading in the right direction when it comes to making Twitter a truly global service, and that the stats in this case don’t provide a full and true picture.

Dell Inspiron Zino HD Gets Revealed, Launches On November 26th

James Allen Johnson — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 03:06:56 +0000

The Dell Inspiron Zino HD, the companies attempt at competing against the Mac Mini is now available for sale in a variety of colors, all wrapped up in a very tiny size (7.75 x 7.75 x 3.5 inches).

The mini sized desktops feature an AMD Athlon Neo X2 6850e 1.8GHz processor, storage up to 1TB and the ability to cram the tiny unit full of 8GB of RAM. The units also include an optical drive and the ATI Radeon HD 4330 graphics card.

The Zino HD also offers great connectivity options with WiFi b/g, gigabit ethernet, four USB 2.0 ports, two eSata ports and an HDMI output. Users can also take advantage of the gadgets 4-in-1 memory card slot, a VGA out port and several audio in and out connections.

Entry level versions of the system start at $229 but lack DVD burners and most of the memory found on the higher end options which can end up costing up to $929 with an option Blu-Ray player.

The units start shipping on November 26th so get your order(s) in today. [HotHardware]

Banned Xbox sets headed to an auction site near you

Steven Hodson — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:41:15 +0000

Yesterday Kim reported here about the big ban hammer that Microsoft had dropped on about 600, 000 users that either had modded systems or pirated games. It turns out that those bans are permanent leaving those banned users with Xboxes that are next to useless – especially when it comes to online play.

Well word late today via Matt Peckham at PC World is that there has been a dramatic rise in the number of Xboxes showing up on Craigslist and eBay. Prices for these next to useless consoles range from a buck to well over the retail price and often includes a full raft of games and other goodies to entice buyers.

There is also an apparent “want to buy” market for the banned systems but in most cases as with this one they are looking for more than just the box for their money.

“I’m looking to buy one of the newly banned X-Box 360’s,” adding that it needs “to come with some new games such as Modern Warfare 2 and what not.”

I can see the logic of doing that especially if you had no plans whatsoever of playing online. Hmm .. maybe this would be a good time to actually get a console.

Mario and Luigi on the run after beating up NY cabbie, robbing gold coins

Chris Greenhough — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:22:38 +0000

New footage of Nintendo’s Mario and Luigi assaulting a cab driver has sent shockwaves through the Mushroom Kingdom.

Or, to be more accurate (if I must), a pair of scumbags dressed as the Nintendo duo beat up and robbed cash from a 48-year-old taxi driver after an altercation inside the cab. For once, a link between videogames and violent crime that can be proven.

The incident occurred on Hallowe’en night at the Great Kills, NY gas station, and police are now keeping an eye out for the criminals, who escaped on a pair of strategically parked Yoshis.

A third man dressed in a tuxedo is also wanted, though he rather spoils the whole Mario/Luigi angle. So let’s ignore him.

[NY Daily News, via Kotaku]

Apparently Fwix Has Invented Revenue Sharing With Bloggers

Duncan Riley — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 01:17:46 +0000

Hyperlocal news startup Fwix is one of the smart new breed of hyperlocal players finally making a go in a fabled yet long unprofitable space, and yet apparently story telling now extends to their latest payment idea.

According to a story in the Wall Street Journal, Fwix is “going where Google and other giants haven’t: sharing revenue with the people who write the news” by “agreeing to split revenue with the people who write the local information.”

It gets better: from the CEO: “One of the things I want to change in the industry is how we pay people that are producing the content.”

Yes, apparently this revenue sharing thing is new and radical, a massive shift in what has been done before, because revenue sharing is such a amazing idea that it has never been tried before.

Except that it’s one of the oldest payment models in blogging and has been used by every one from two man blogs through to huge concerns for years. I should know, I was a co-founder of a VC backed blog network that was founded in 2005 exclusively on revenue sharing for…wait for it…bloggers.

The sarcasm aside and the obvious lack of research from the Wall Street Journal, the original Fwix release doesn’t actually claim credit for revenue sharing. Somewhere between the release and the Wall Street Journal, the interesting part was overlooked until later in the article: Fwix’s new AdWire service is not just rev sharing with their bloggers (nothing new), but with sites that embed their widgets and send them traffic as well.

I can’t recall having previously seen rev share applied to people running widgets before, although widgets used for advertising purposes (with money changing hands) isn’t new. I’d give a review of the widgets except for two things: Fwix has perhaps the most detail-less info pages I’ve ever seen for a service like this, and every site they claim is running the widgets don’t show the widgets when I visit them. On the last point I’m thinking geotargeting, given there’s a dirty great big blank space on The DailyKos where I’d presume there would normally be an ad…or in this case, the Fwix widget.

To be fair to Fwix, it’s more likely that the Wall Street Journal is following in the proud tradition of its parent company with sloppy reporting, but likewise the record could have been corrected.