In interviews with reporters this week, Chinese officials have said they want to begin cooperating with the U.S. in space, including becoming a contributing member of the International Space Station project.
From the Associated Press:
“We hope to take part in activities related to the International Space Station,” Li Xueyong, a vice minister of science and technology. “If I am not mistaken, this program has 16 countries currently involved and we hope to be the 17th partner.”
Given all the recent talk about war in space, not to mention the real thing on the ground, this seems like a no-brainer. The old cold war days are gone.
U.S. concerns about working with a communist dictatorship, as the AP puts it here, are laughable. Particularly given the severely tarnished democratic credentials of Russia, a primary partner in the International Space Station.
China is growing as a power in space, with the capability to launch manned missions, blast satellites out of orbit, and plans to launch a lunar mission soon.
Officials there are now saying that first lunar probe will launch later this month, putting it hard on the heels of Japan’s Kaguya orbiter.
It would be foolish to try to keep China isolated in space. Cooperation there may not be a perfect recipe for eternal peace, but it’s a whole lot better than the kind of saber (or laser?) rattling that’s led to space-war planning on both sides.
Posted in Geekipedia + News + Technology | 
The price is unconfirmed, but Orange, the exclusive carrier of the iPhone in France, will have to offer an unlocked version of Apple’s device to comply with French law.
According to Orange’s French website, the company is obligated to sell an unlocked version of any handset which is also sold as part of a subscription package.
The International Herald Tribune reports on the law “passed in 1998 barring network operators from locking new devices to a network for more than six months”.
It’s unlikely that even Apple will be able to squirm out of this, so expect a libere iPhone sometime next year.
It looks like France could become the hub for GodPhone exports (expensive, $560 exports, but exports nonetheless.)
Posted in Apple + Technology + Toys & Gadgets + Wireless |
Napster is re-inventing itself yet again as it attempts to compete with iTunes and others in the online music business.
The new Napster 4.0 sees the company ditching its desktop application in favor of an browser-based client in an effort to expand its market.
That should be good news for Mac and Linux users who have, until 4.0, been locked out of Napster’s Windows-only model.
Napster’s service will remain subscription-based, with prices at $10 to $15 a month. You can still listen to samples for free, but you’ll only get 30 seconds worth.
The new web-based player sits in a pop-up window and behaves more or less like clients from Last.fm or Pandora.
The web-based client means you can access your music from a wider range of devices — at the very least you can fire it up from any computer.
Christopher Allen, chief operating officer at Napster, tells Reuters:
“with this new platform Napster can easily be integrated into consumer electronics devices or integrated into other Web sites such as social networking sites.”
Is Napster headed for your Facebook page? Certainly sounds like it, though no further details have been announced.
Napster claims around 770,000 subscribers, but lags far behind industry leader iTunes and with Amazon now in the digital downloads game, the market is increasingly crowded.
Napster tries to offer the best of both worlds — allowing streaming audio in the new web-client and subscription-based downloads but clearly most people seem to prefer the iTunes/Amazon buy-single-tracks model.
Posted in Geekery + Music + Software + Technology |
According to research by the Consumer Electronics Association, sales of consumer electronics are expected to top $22 billion this holiday season, with video game systems topping the list of gifts people intend to give to others.
Though consumers are expected to cut down on expenses like home decorations and travel, they’ll still be spending plenty on gifts.
Not surprisingly, video games made the top five most wanted items for teens, along with clothes, computers, MP3 players, and cell phones.
Adults who were hoping to get some kind of electronic gizmo for the holidays put game systems on their wish list beside MP3 players, laptops, TVs, and digital cameras.
Posted in Gaming + Technology + Toys & Gadgets |
A new add-on for the RTS title World in Conflict will allow players with Vista and DirectX 10 to broadcast their WiC matches, TV-style.
You can use pre-set or follow cameras and even some telestration if you want to point out something especially fascinating to your viewers.
You’ll also be able to create a movie of the broadcast, to share later with friends and loved ones. The free broadcast tool should be available some time today from Sierra.
Hopefully, developer Massive will make up for delaying the 360 version of World in Conflict by using the extra time to include this new recording feature. It’s the least they can do.
Posted in Gaming + Software + Technology |
In the U.S., the iPhone trademark is owned by Cisco. Apple chose to work out a deal with them and avoided legal torpedoes.
Apple did manage to get the trademark elsewhere, with filings in Singapore and Australia bearing fruit.
In Canada, however, the mark has long been owned by Comwave, a telecoms company in Ontario.
Apple tried and failed to register the name there—but Comwave, unlike Cisco, won’t play ball on sharing the name.
“The force they put into marketing would quickly make the brand Apple’s and not ours. Co-existence is not possible.”
-Yuval Barzakay – Comwave president
Source: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Yuval Barzakay added that it would effectively be hijacked by any such agreement:
What he’s saying, of course, is that is that everything has its price, but only if you want to buy it and he’s right.
Can you see Apple renaming the iPhone, or missing out on a market the size of California?
Posted in Apple + Technology + Toys & Gadgets + Wireless |
