John Lister

Internet phone and video chat service Skype is to begin carrying limited advertising. It comes as figures show the company is failing to convert enough free Skype accounts to paid Skype accounts. In short, Skype allows users to digitally telephone ... another Skype user's computer using a microphone or webcam, and is completely free to do so. Other premium Skype services are available (but cost a fee), including: using the PC to call a landline or cellphone long distance, or using group video calling and various business services. As of early 2009, more than 40 million different people used Skype ... (view more)

Hard drive manufacturer Seagate has launched a 3 terabyte (TB) internal hard drive. It's the first drive of its kind (and size) that can work smoothly with Windows XP. For the record, 3 TB is equivalent to 3,000 GB (gigabytes), which is an awful lot ... of information. 2.1 TB Size Limitation Imposed in the 1980s By default, Windows XP and earlier systems have an internal limitation that can only read hard drives that are smaller than 2.1TB. That's because of a decision in the early 1980s to place a limit on what's known as the logical block address, which is the system that decides where to ... (view more)

A New York senator has called for major US Internet sites to offer all of their web pages in secure mode. Charles Schumer says the move would help protect against theft of data through public WiFi networks. The request involves the hypertext ... transfer protocol, which is the technical system used for transferring data between a website and a user, and vice versa. The protocol is available in two forms: standard (in which page addresses begin with http://) and secure (in which page addresses begin with https://). Secure Browser Sessions Encrypted, Denoted by Padlock In a secure connection, which ... (view more)

A new feature in Internet Explorer is a major boost for Microsoft's web browser "Tracking Protection" system. The feature, which will debut in Internet Explorer 9 , is a response to calls by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for Internet to make it ... easier for users to opt out of being tracked online . The FTC doesn't want sites to ditch all tracking activities, but rather desires site visitors to have the power to prevent their details being passed on to third parties. This is most relevant with advertising; for example, if a company wants to display an advertisement based around the ... (view more)

Google has restored access to email for around 40,000 customers whose accounts were mistakenly wiped clean this past Sunday. It says the delay in sorting the problem was because it had to restore from a physical back-up. The problem began on Sunday ... afternoon when some customers found either they were unable to access their Gmail accounts, or that the accounts appeared as if they were open. That is to say, there were no messages whatsoever in the archive, except for a welcome message from Google. Google said it was working on the problem and noted that in cases where users were unable to log- ... (view more)

A Facebook "relationship notifier" application -- originally designed as a joke -- has proven to be a major hit. The app, which lets users know when a Facebook user changes their relationship status, has been downloaded more than 100,000 times. The ... app works in a simple manner: you click a list to confirm which of your existing friends you want to track, and then you receive an email whenever their listed relationship status changes. Facebook Users Love 'Breakup Notifier' Aptly named "Breakup Notifier", the Facebook app notifies you if a "friend" on your list changes their ... (view more)

As of February 22nd, 2011, Microsoft is officially in the process of rolling out Windows 7 Service Pack 1 to all Windows 7 users via the Windows Update (automatic) feature, as well as through Microsoft's website. Why a Windows Service Pack is ... Imperative In general, a Windows Service Pack is a method of bringing together multiple changes to the operating system. Windows 7 Service Pack 1 ("SP1") is a single download (also available on DVD) that includes all major and minor security and bug fixes since the original release of Windows 7, up to the last software update made available ... (view more)

Libya has followed Egypt's lead in restricting Internet access. But the operators of a service that helps foreign companies take advantage of the country's domain code says it will be unaffected. As with Egypt, the Internet crackdown is associated ... with anti-government protests. And as with Egypt, the measures mean all traffic into and out of the country appears to have been completely blocked. Internet Blocking: a Form of Curfew However, there is one key difference: the Egyptian incident involved net access going down and then not returning for several days, apparently after officials decided ... (view more)

A government agency intends to extend a rural phone subsidy program to cover high-speed Internet. It comes as the agency's chairman warns that as many as 24 million Americans may have no access to broadband whatsoever. The debate involves the ... Universal Service Fund, a scheme set up in 1997 to provide every home in the country with telephone service. Phone operators forward a portion of their revenue to the fund, which is used to subsidize phone service in areas where operators couldn't otherwise charge reasonable rates and still make a profit. (Source: washingtonpost.com ) The fund also ... (view more)

Republican Congress members have taken the first step in blocking the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from enforcing net neutrality rules. But the political landscape means the final outcome is far from clear. The move follows a hearing by ... the House of Representatives committee that questioned all five FCC members about their decision in December to issue controversial guidelines attempting to enforce net neutrality (the principle that all lawful Internet traffic should be treated equally). (Source: pcworld.com ) With Republican politicians unimpressed by the evidence given by the ... (view more)