Work out your carbon netprint

Friday, October 10th, 2008

IT accounts for a shocking 2% of worldwide carbon emissions – that’s the same as aviation. While your desktop might be relatively frugal, it’s just the tip of the slowly-melting iceberg. Right now I’m using GMail, Bloglines, my work email, a forum which lives on a server in London and Slashdot – I’m using power all over the world. Take into account all the networking gear sitting in the middle, and the true energy usage of my PC could be astronomical.

Maybe we need to start thinking about our carbon netprint (it seems like as good a phrase as any) when we look at our carbon footprint; do you really need that Facebook, MySpace or Bebo account? It’s not just actively using these services that consumes power; a MySpace account sitting idle, not accessed for months, still requires power to store – and more than you may think. (more…)

Pimp, my watch

Wednesday, October 8th, 2008

We’re including a Christmas gift guide in the upcoming issue of PC Pro, and I’m writing a page on watches. That means that my desk is littered with all sorts of mobile phone, GPS, Bluetooth and generally pretty cool watches. And, yes, I have tried wearing them all at once.

This one is my current favourite – the Pimp P2 Pusher from TokyoFlash. A terrible name, but a superbly impractical design. It doesn’t tell the time with archaic hands, or even numerical digits, but with LEDs.

The left-hand vertical column represents hours – five are illuminated here, and the 60 other LEDs represent the minutes past that hour. You can easily count blocks of five at a time, as each horizontal row is marked off along the right. In the picture above the time is five minutes past five. It takes a little getting used to, but it keeps the mind active. Or something.

I’ve been getting a bit of stick for wearing it in the office, even from our esteemed editor, Tim Danton, in this week’s podcast, but that’s probably just jealousy.

No-scratch-otherness: an important buying consideration

Wednesday, October 8th, 2008

I was chatting to a friend last night who happens to purchase and install hundreds of desktops in a very large company, which shall remain nameless. He was explaining just how this particular company, which has hundreds of employees on one site alone, chooses hardware.

It’s not down to budget or hardware, as you might expect – as long as they come in at around £350 they’re fine, he says, for what’s demanded of them, whatever the internal specification. Far more important are the needs of the IT department itself, and that comes down to the shape of the case.

What’s needed is “great stability and no scratch-each-otherness” when piled on top of each other, says my friend. When big bundles of computers come in they’re piled up on a desk where they’re given a standard disk image, transferred to a trolley and taken all over the site to users. Most cases don’t stand up well to this abuse, but he’s found one that does, and it has become the backbone of the organisation, all because of its “no scratch-each-otherness”.

It’s interesting that buying decisions can be made on the basis of something manufacturers may never have considered.

Baylis revolutionises wind-up media player

Monday, October 6th, 2008

On the right is Baylis’ original wind-up Eco Media Player, which we’ve reviewed before here on Pro. On the left is its replacement, the Eco Media Revolution, which we haven’t.

You may notice that they’re the same size, which is a bit of a disappointment; a self-proclaiming revolutionary update could do with taking up a bit less pocket space, I think. Nevertheless, it’s still perfectly portable – just not as much as my non wind-up MP3 player is.

The wind-up handle is also exactly the same, and we got a similar charge from using it: crank like crazy for five minutes and you will get the majority of the way through a short album, while you rest your aching hand.

The software, though, looks like it’s come on a long way, which is a relief, although it’s still infuriatingly complicated to use and in need of yet another dollop of refinement. Keep your eyes peeled for a full review coming soon…

Why eBook readers need a few more years yet

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

I’m reviewing the BeBook eBook reader at the moment, and it’s already wound me up – after just an hour’s use. That’s not good; reading is supposed to be fun.

Unlike a traditional book, where I can turn a page with a quick, well-practiced swish of the thumb and forefinger, I instead need to press a plasticky little button and wait two seconds while the screen panics for a second or two, before finally delivering the next few hundred words. It’s not a pleasant experience, and I’ve already learned to hit the next-page button at the start of the final sentence, so as to minimise plot-destroying gaps in flow. (more…)

Do tech journalists have any friends?

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

We got talking in the office yesterday about Facebook, and social networking in general, about how the younger generation has a different set of standards on privacy. The youth of today…

We all have different ways of handling our profile pages; I won’t upload embarrassing pictures or let people swear on my Wall, while some others here (Bayon) are happy to talk in ways that would make a sailor blush, for all to see. (more…)

Flip brings Mino, disappointment to the UK

Monday, September 29th, 2008

As far as camcorders go, the YouTube generation is less worried about image quality, manual features and editing tools than the average person. They’re far too preoccupied with over-sharing personal issues with hundreds of thousands of strangers online. That’s precisely why the Flip range of cameras has taken off so impressively quickly. (more…)

China: no source code, no sales

Wednesday, September 24th, 2008

China is apparently considering demanding source code from hardware manufacturers, and banning the sale of products from companies that don’t comply. It’s being called an “obligatory accreditation system for IT security products,” but to me it sounds more like a worrying ultimatum.

This would be a drastic move for any Government, but manufacturers are extremely worried about giving such information to China in particular because of its, shall we say, lax attitude to copyright and patent law. In fact, MI5 has even gone so far as to warn UK companies in the past about the threat of Chinese hackers going after trade secrets.

Many products available for sale in the country bear a striking resemblance to Western products, and lawsuits have been filed in the past with varying levels of success, so tight security seems to be a better method of protecting IP than litigation. Under the new rules this strategy could be impossible.

The implications of this are bigger than you may think. On my recent trip to Korea to visit Samsung I was surprised to find out that a lot of consumer devices are physically identical. Samsung makes the same panels for its own televisions as it does under licence for Sony, for example, but the software that controls it is proprietary, and accounts for a lot of the picture quality. The code is far more sensitive than the hardware.

The future’s here, and it’s quite retro

Wednesday, September 24th, 2008

I just got back after a couple of days off work to find two mobile phone watches have landed on my desk. That’s right – mobile phones, in a watch. Watches that are mobile phones. It’s official, the future is here, and it’s come in the form of a chunky plastic wrist accessory.

What next for Pro? Jet-packs? Flying cars? Meals in a pill? Who knows. All I can tell you is that I was running up and down Tottenham Court road at lunch pretending I was the Hoff in Knight Rider.

This particular one that I’m testing today, which strangely came with no product or manufacturer’s name but can be bought here, has Bluetooth, quad-band operation, video recording and an MP3 player, all controlled by a tiny, tiny touchscreen. Keep an eye out in PC Pro for the full reviews.

Does London even need free Wi-Fi?

Wednesday, September 24th, 2008

Boris Johnson made headlines today after appearing on BBC London radio saying that he hopes to roll-out WiFi coverage to the entire city. What a noble aim, considering the importance of the internet today and the fact that not everyone can afford the cost of home connections. It’s precisely the sort of thing that can win support in the short term, but it’s never going to happen.

“They’ve done it in other parts of the world; why on earth can’t we do it?” he asked.

Because it will cost a fortune, Boris, that’s why. An investment in infrastructure that big would cost millions, hundreds of millions. There’s little point in it, either, as 3G mobile broadband continues to fall in price. Londoners won’t be happy paying for a costly organised network in extra taxes when £10 per month per person could solve the problem instantly. Just look at the animosity towards the ever-increasing Olympic budget if you need proof.

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