Articles in ‘misc’

• Online TV set to change the way we watch

  by Webfusion in misc on April 7th, 2011 Post a comment

  Already with 24/7 TV channels, plus live pause, record and scan decoder boxes, the way we watch TV has changed beyond recognition from even just 10 years ago, but the biggest change is yet to come, and in fact is very nearly upon us.

  The Wall Street Journal this week reported that YouTube is to develop its own original content. With Google set to invest $100 million as part of a site redesign around channels based on categories. Rumours suggest that 20 premium channels will eventually feature 5 to 10 hours of professionally-produced original programming a week, with other existing content being used to create other channels.
  
  By the end of the year expect to see the first signs of this coming to fruition with Hollywood film companies being touted as some of the suppliers in a move that mirrors reports that Netflix plans a similar move towards original content for its online video site.

  Online TV has been touted for years but until now the technology has not necessarily been affordable to support it. Now with superfast broadband becoming more common and more TV sets being shipped with built-in internet or WiFi connection, the concept is pretty much accessible to all.

  Can online TV take over from traditional suppliers?

• Connecting on the road

  by Webfusion in misc, Tech News on March 25th, 2011 Post a comment

  Those of you old enough to remember 80s TV show KnightRider will recall that KITT was the car of the future that every young kid – and big kid – wanted when they grew up. Yet, other than sat nav, the talking car has never really appeared – until now.

  In our hyper-connected world, where household appliances are even wired to the internet and we apparently tweet more in the bathroom than any other place in the house, yet the car – our chosen form of transport – is one of the least connected places in our lives, until now.

  BMW has developed a prototype system that allows drivers to compose full-text e-mails and text messages using voice commands. Using speech-recognition algorithms, drivers, as well as passengers can dictate original messages from over a million recognized words in the database. Not rocket science we know but this appears to be the first dictation software developed with car voice activation in mind.

  The system, claims BMW, allows you to compose e-mails with the same ease that you would have with a PC in an office. No taking your eyes off of the road or using your hands and clear enough recognition to make it all worthwhile. Even on a long drive you could technically respond to an e-mail dictating your response and using voice commands to edit including delete, move, or replace. Imagine how much more productive the daily commute would become.

  BMW suggest the system could be sold as an option on production models within three years as the first of a a new wave of voice-activated ideas including full internet search somewhere further along the plan.

  Distracted driving was to partial blame in the deaths of 5474 people and 448,000 injuries in car or motorcycle crashes on U.S. roads and streets, according to the , National Center for Statistics and Analysis but many safety campaigners wonder whether hands-free voice-activated systems are any safer than the existing pushing of buttons. Technically concentrating on the item you are dictating means your full attention is nto on the road which still leaves you distracted.

  Yet, in the longer-term – and the technology is already part of the way there – we all expect cars to virtually drive themselves to their pre-programmed destination anyway, with the minimum of driver intervention, at which time dictating lengthy tomes would be a regular time-waster for the average driver. The technology is there and expect it to be put to useone way or another over the next few years.

  Would you buy a car simply because it had the ability to dictate mail?

   

• Keeping students connected

  by Webfusion in Business trends, misc, Tech News on March 9th, 2011 1 Comment

  Figures are constantly bombarding us about the uptake of new technology amongst the youth of today and just why marketeers need to take notice and advantage of that.

  The Government announcement today adds credence to that. In a time of austerity the Federal Communications Commission is to roll out $9million of funding to help schools extend wireless internet connections beyond the classroom.

  Initially to fund just 20 pilot projects around the country, the funding will pay for wireless broadband connections for laptops, smart phones and other mobile devices to encourage students to stay connected when the school bell rings.

  The scheme ‘Learning On-the-Go’ aims to reach nearly 35,000 students across 14 states in the 2011-2012 school year.

• How 1990s man saw the internet

  by Webfusion in misc on February 25th, 2011 Post a comment

  Back in 1994 the internet was in it’s infancy and it is doubtful anybody could forsee the way we currently use it.

  It was all dial-up beeps and clicks: “The inter-connected network of networks”.

  For those who remember the age, this video will bring a smile at how we all swooned at the possibilities of ‘instantly and electronically’ doing every day things. For those of a younger age, it will educate and amaze that 17 years ago it was important that you “Make sure you tell your dealer that you’ll be using it to connect to the internet”. This is a unique compilation of news reports, commercials and instructional videos from the early days of the Internet.

  Oh, and the hefty paperback ‘Internet Yellow Pages’ book – can you imagine how large that would need to be now, just for your town?

  Enjoy.