Looks as though peer-to-peer file sharing network Kazaa is pulling a Napster and joining the side of the angels. After legal battles with the International Federation of the Phonographic Industries (IFPI)—think the RIAA writ large—the producers of the software, Sharman Networks, have agreed to alter the software to prevent illicit materials from being traded and Kazaa will become a legitimate music download service. Furthermore, they've agreed to pay in excess of $100 million worth of damages to the recording industry.
Well, I'm glad we got that taken care of. That ought to close up the matter of piracy on the digital seas. Seriously though, I wonder if Kazaa will have any more success at the transition than Napster has had. At least some of the IFPI's personnel seem to get that this is only part of the problem:
The IFPI calculates that the global traffic in illegal CDs is worth $4.5 billion (£2.4 billion), down $100m from 2004.Systemic piracy like counterfeiting will do far more damage to the recording industry than downloaders across the country watching X-Men 3. Really, downloading X-Men 3 is its own punishment.The IFPI points the finger at China as the largest producer of pirate discs. It says that 85% of discs produced in the country are illegal.
[via Slashdot]
As long as we're talking kitchen gadgets, I have something to show you that will change your life. Seriously. Are you ready?
Individual cupcake holders. Yes? Yes. Because there's nothing—nothing—worse than saving your delectable dessert until the very end of your noonday meal and then realizing that its transport in a brown paper bag has rendered it totally and utterly unsalvageable. Now that's tragic.
But the Cup-a-Cake individual cupcake holder can prevent such travesties. Simply insert your cupcake and snap closed. $3 and it comes in blue, pink, or green from The Container Store. I cannot wait to give it a whirl with one of my friend's awesome penguin cupcakes (for which no real penguins were harmed).
[via popgadget]
I'm not exactly sure how I know I need an Egg Cuber, but I'm pretty sure that I do. For one thing, it's only $3. For another, it has the perfect name. I mean, come on: this sucker cubes eggs like nobody's business.
And when I brought up that page, it suggested I might also enjoy this 3-in-1 egg slicer. Why, thank you, I would enjoy having my eggs evenly sliced. How do they know these things? Must be magic.
Great, now I'm craving eggs.
[via Shiny Shiny]
I was wondering the other day if Apple had fired the guy who wrote their amusing documentation, but I think I found him. Apparently, he's taken up writing Nintendo's press releases. How do I know? Well, read the first paragraph of their most recent missive:
The fourth quarter of 2006 will herald a new era for Nintendo with the launch of its remarkable new Wii™ home video game system. But that's not what this news item is about! How could that be, you ask? Perhaps the secret to the launch information for Wii is somehow encoded in the text of this news item. You might want to pore over it for a few hours before staying up all night to debate phraseology and comma placement with your friends online. Or maybe it's all just a scam to get you to read the other games we have launching this fall. One of the two.That said, some members of the web's gaming community think they have indeed cracked Nintendo's code:
Gaming Target was one of the first to figure it out, noticing that at least one new game was being released every Monday in the fourth quarter except for October 2, November 20, and November 27.Mark your calendars for 10/2/06, then (in America, anyway). Meanwhile, we'll be scrutinizing our copy of The Last Supper for further insight.November 27 is after Black Friday, the traditional hottest shopping day of the year, so it can be discounted. November 20 is after the launch of the PlayStation 3, which seems unlikely given Nintendo's desire to get a jump on its old rival. This leaves October 2 as the most likely launch date for both the Nintendo Wii and the new Zelda.
The Walit is one of those ideas where you wonder why nobody came up with it sooner. If you've ever had to hunt around in your wallet in the dark for the right card, or the correct denomination of currency, you're probably a candidate for the Walit.
When you open up this leather bi-fold wallet, the internal electroluminescent strip glows a soothing blue, allowing you to see exactly what it is you're doing. Even better, it's powered by replaceable watch battery, so you don't have to throw the whole wallet away when the light dies.
Though they appear to be sold out now, I'm sure the popularity will drive them back into stock. They're running £14.95, or a little under $28. And for those of you who were wondering what to get for Christmas..eh? Ehhhhh?
[via Gizmodo]
I don't know what's gotten into Motorola today, but it's like they've opened the bomb bay doors and dropped a payload of telephony into our laps. We'd previously discussed both the forthcoming RAZR 2 (Canary) and RAZR Slider (Capri), both of which have been officially announced today, along with the RAZR MAXX (pictured).
Canary, officially named the Motorola KRZR (Krazer?) boasts a tri-band GSM plus EDGE chip or CDMA with EVDO, a 2 megapixel camera, a 176x220 screen, microSD slot, stereo Bluetooth audio, and is a full centimeter less wide than the RAZR.
Meanwhile, Capri (now known as Motorola RIZR) has the same features for the most part, with dimension at 45.5x105.5x16mm.
Finally, the RAZR MAXX has a 3.5G HSDPA high speed connection (Cingular's the only HSDPA provider in the US, so that's where this is probably heading), with a 2 megapixel camera and a VGA camera, that can apparently be used for video conferencing. You'll also find illuminated play/pause, forward, and back buttons on the phone's lid for listening to music (50MB internal memory, plus the microSD slot). Finally, there's a 120x160 pixel screen and it's a wee bit bigger than the original RAZR.
Whew. That's a lot of phonage. Maybe it's time for me to think about upgrading.
Talk about a waste of space. Samsung is releasing 40" and 46" LCD displays that come with an embedded version of Windows XP. In theory, these are mostly for use as signage; they can display slideshows or videos on their own, no central server required.
For those who love running the numbers, they have a 1366x768 resolution, 8ms response time, 700:1 contrast and 500cd/m2 max brightness. They're out now, though no pricepoint has been mentioned (the previous, XP-free editions ran $8,950 for the 46" and $6,750 for the 40", so I'm guessing these will be more).
It seems to me, however, that these suckers are just asking for a giant Blue Screen of Death. Why the heck would anybody embed Windows in a perfectly good LCD display.
[via Engadget]
There's a version of Monopoly for everything. Your hometown, your college, space. About the only one I haven't found is an official Microsoft Monopoly set (perhaps they hide them in the company store on the Redmond campus). But regardless of the theme, the central tenets of the game have remained largely the same since its inception.
Until now. An edition being released in the UK, France, and Germany will be the first version of Monopoly to forego paper money in favor of plastic. A deal struck with credit card company Visa has plastered their name on an electronic card reader included with the new version. The game includes electronic cards onto which balances are credit or debited. No word yet on a US release.
Spiffy I suppose, but so much for building arithmetic skills. Within a few decades, I guess that paper currency would seem quaint and obsolete anyways. And now the arguing over who gets to be banker will be about who gets to play with the little keypad, instead of keeping all the little bills in line.
[via Ars Technica]
