The sad truth is that dialing 911 for emergencies has been in need of a major overhaul for quite some time, and from a technological standpoint isn’t only dated — it’s highly inefficient. If you place a call from a mobile device, for example, call centers are reportedly unable to do something as basic as
The End of Paper? How to Save a Copy of Every Book Ever Published
You know it’s coming. At some point, we’ll finally bid adieu to our beloved stacks and shelves of tree-ware. Borders, as you know, is well along in process of liquidating its company assets. I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan—basically Borders ground zero, where a stupefying three company bookstores are shuttering.
Analysts are looking …
Playing ‘The Witness’: Hands-On with the Next Game from the Creator of ‘Braid’
Three years ago, Braid came out and changed people’s perceptions of what video games–especially independently developed ones–could be. The time-manipulating platformer gave players an experience that channeled the ephemeral nature of selective memory and the sting of lost love. Braid became a bona fide hit on the Xbox 360, thanks to …
TechnologizerTechnologizer
Will We Live to See an End to Copy Protection?
For this week’s Technologizer column over at TIME.com, I said a few words in defense of the beleaguered set of technologies known as physical media. One of the points I bring up: Much digital media, including stuff like Kindle books and movies from Amazon, Apple, and others, is locked up with copy protection. I don’t object to that …
HP TouchPad Now $400 for Good, 7-inch Version Hits FCC
HP’s new TouchPad tablet saw a $50 price cut about a month after it was released. A few days later, HP announced a weekend promotion that brought the price down another $50. Now, the $100 price cut has been made permanent, pegging the tablet’s starting price at $400, per Engadget.
This is a smart, aggressive move by HP as it …
How 3D Mapping Tech Could Be Used to Tow Icebergs to Drought Areas
If you’re going to risk towing 7 million tons of ice across the Atlantic Ocean to quench the thirst of drought-stricken communities, you better have a plan. Enterprising engineer Georges Mougin, 86, is using digital imaging to map the best possible routes to get the massive freshwater deposits 3,400 miles from Newfoundland to the thirsty …
Nintendo Outs ‘Flame Red’ 3DS, Walmart Drops Price Early
If you haven’t snatched up a 3DS yet (if not, we wouldn’t blame you, given the dearth of interesting games) Nintendo’s sweetening its upcoming price drop with a ‘Flame Red’ version. If red’s your thing—as opposed to “Aqua Blue” and “Cosmo Black”—Nintendo says it plans to offer the alternative color from September 9th, shortly after …
California Now Reports Prisoner Facebook Accounts for Deletion
First off, did you know the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has its own daily newspaper? It’s called CDCR Today and it’s a wonderful read! Actually it’s a blog and it’s not daily but, hey, sometimes ideas start small and then snowball into major media empires.
After Eight Years, Walmart to Abandon MP3 Downloads
If you’ve been buying your MP3s from Walmart, I have some bad news for you: You won’t be able to continue doing so after August 28th (Well, bad news and also a question: Why were you buying MP3s from Walmart?).
The retail giant has sent notice to distribution and licensing partners announcing that it will close its Download Store …
Can Taylor Lautner Change On-Demand Video with ‘Abduction’?
Finally, one studio seems to have realized that no one really wants to pay $30 to watch a movie on-demand, even if it is available a couple of months after being released in theaters. Lionsgate may be planning to offer Abduction, a thriller starring Twilight wolfboy Taylor Lautner, on VoD three months after theater release for just …
Why Wait for the iPhone 5? The ‘HiPhone 5’ Is Already Here!
Know what’s humbling? To realize I can’t read Chinese. It’s very hard!
If you’ve been waiting patiently for the iPhone 5 and you’ve decided that enough is, indeed, enough, there’s hope! While the rest of your dopey friends argue about whether the new iPhone will come out in August, September, October or at all, you could be busy …
App of the Week: Facebook Messenger
This is kind of cheating. I know most App of the Week features are typically intended to shine new light on smaller guys, but this week’s app might end up being too major to pass up.
So what makes Facebook’s new group Messenger app better than other messenger services like WhatsApp, or even Google+’s Huddle feature?
Nothing, …