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WE BUY AT LEAST FOUR newspapers on Sundays but that may change as our need for technology news seems to be unfulfilled inside the Sunday Tribune. Nonetheless, there is plenty of content offered up by the mainstream papers today and I rambled for eight minutes about main points arising from my reading of the news under a clear blue sky in South Tipperary.
Identity Theft Easy Ride for College. Sabrina Rubin Erdely explains in The Observer Magazine how Jocelyn Kirsch and Ed Anderton (pictured) went to the best parties, dined in the best restaurants, and splashed their credit cards from Paris to the Caribbean. [1] It wasn't their money. The easy living flowed from a series of identity thefts, something that has become a talking point in Ireland lately. [9] [2] Ireland needs to discuss identity threat and key loggers like Spector software (PC Magazine's Editor's Choice)
More Sunday technology news below the break.
Travel Joys. Really good news comes from Air France where initial tests reveal the on-board mobile phone calling system totally sucks. [3] Get put on a secondary screening list like my wife and you'll enjoy a full body scan at JFK Airport. [4] The security officer who brings Ruth through the SmartCheck system won't see beneath her clothes but a colleague located around the corner will have the view to decide whether she is a threat to the security of the USA.
Multimedia in the Knowledge Economy. A local paper gives a few inches to the new four-year honours degree programme that we launched [6] in Tipperary Institute while berating the Irish Development Authority on the front page [5] for not doing enough to attract foreign direct investment into the area. The IDA have a tough challenge because their national strategy is to focus attention on areas with hubs and gateways under the National Spatial Strategy. Neither Thurles nor Clonmel, the locations of the two campuses of TippInst, fit that model.
Lustworthy. Looking at the Test Bench [7], we lust for the Sony Vaio VGC-LT2S (€1,640) or the HP TouchSmart IQ790 (€1,135) , both widely available in Ireland.
Safe Haven for Information. Years ago, I thought the US offered a haven for free speech online. I no longer think that's the case but Dave Cochrane, founder and moderator of Politics.ie moved his controversial discussion board from Ireland to the USA in order to create "a buffer between himself and any solicitors who might want to pursue him." [8] But the records still show that his DNS records are hosted in Ireland and his residence remains in the Republic of Ireland a judge could order the DNS turned off and a demand could be placed in his hands here in Ireland. I don't see how hosting a website outside of the country while still maintaining host controls inside the country guarantees continuity of service. But maybe I don't have the whole picture. Personally, I would just host my stuff in Ireland with a trustworthy provider like Blacknight because I know they don't mess with stuff when demanded by posers until they consult with their clients.
The Nobody Scenario. Leading brain scientist Susan Greenfield predicts our teen generation is headed for a sort of mass loss of personal identity. She calls it the Nobody Scenario. It's as if all that young grey matter is being scorched and defoliated by a kind of cognitive Agent Orange. [10] This idea may be part of the discussion during the day-long Internet Experience in Education conference and workshops set for Thurles on Thursday 22 May 2008.
Social Networking for Teens. Big consumer brands, such as McDonald's and General Motors, have embraced things like blogs, podcasting and social networking. Brands that have been early adopters include Tayto (Mr Tayto has a Facebook page), recycling organisation Repak (has a Bebo campaign) and mobile operator 3 (uses a MySpace presence). [11]
Technology Helps Food Grow. Although you would not expect the eco crowd to embrace a basic gene construct that would make potatoes resistant to blight. Europe has the expertise but is thwarted by gangs of men and women who trash GM crop research fields. These individuals display the attitude of a privileged elite who think there will be no problem feeding tomorrow's growing population. [12]
Apple Does More Than the iPhone. "Wall Street made an interesting discovery last week," writes John Naughton. [13] "Apple, the iPod and mobile phone company, also makes computers." Apple enjoyed soaring revenue and sales last quarter, thanks to the sales of its computers. And helped along by the disappointing performance of Microsoft Vista on PCs. That said, you won't be able to run Photoshop CS on Apple's Leopard Operating System so if you jump to Apple, be ready to continue on the upgrade treadmill.
1. Sabrina Rubin Erdely -- "The year of living fabulously" in The Obsever Magazine, 27 April 2008.
2. Mark Paul -- "Stop identity thieves trading on your name" in The Sunday Times, 27 April 2008.
3. David Wickers -- "I'm on the hello? Hello?" in The Sunday Times Travel supplement, 27 April 2008.
4. Conor McMorrow -- "Irish travelers to bare all as JFK introduces X-Ray scanners" in the Sunday Tribune, 27 April 2008.
5. Noel Dundon -- "IDA North Tipp Jobs Strategy Blasted"on the front page of the Tipperary Star, 26 April 2008.
6. Yvonne Doyle -- "Creative Multimedia Course at TI" buried inside the Tipperary Star, 26 April 2008.
7. Mark Harris -- "Upgrade from geek to chic" in The Sunday Times InGear supplement, 27 April 2008.
8. Catherine O'Mahony -- "Online row forces website move" in The Sunday Business Post, 27 April 2008.
9. Caoimhe Daly -- "Security should be banks' main priority" in The Sunday Business Post, 27 April 2008.
10. John Cornwell -- "It's a No Brainer" in The Sunday Times Magazine, 27 April 2008.
11. Catherine O' Mahony -- "Setting sights on the Bebo Generation" in The Sunday Business Post, 27 April 2008.
12. Robin McKie -- "As the world begins to starve it's time to take GM seriously" in TheObserver, 27 April 2008.
13. John Naughton -- "The iPod firm makes computers too? That's amazing" in TheObserver, 27 April 2008.
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