Technology

As if crazy drivers gabbing on their cell phones wasn't enough of an irritation on the road, imagine those same people being able to check their email while behind the wheel. If it sounds like a demented fantasy, think again. Microsoft and Ford are ... reportedly set to announce a joint partnership that will place Windows-based computers in Ford cars. The car PCs will run on software currently being referred to as Sync. In addition to email, Sync will feature hands-free cell phone capabilities, music and media downloads, and automatic navigation updates. The latter features are, of course, just ... (view more)

"Look me in the eye." That old cliche is often said to get someone to tell the truth. But technology tends to eliminate that face-to-face (and eye-to-eye) contact. Therefore, it is logical to conclude that the use of technology -- such as text ... messaging or email -- makes it easier for people to lie. Well, that has now been officially confirmed: by 72 Point, a poll company based in the United Kingdom. (Source: pcmag.com ) 72 Point conducted its study on behalf of Friends Provident PLC, a British financial services group. (Source: cbc.ca ) According to the survey, nearly 75 percent of the poll- ... (view more)

Accenture, a technology consulting company, is in the process of developing a system called "The Virtual Family Dinner" that hopes to restore the value and importance of having a shared family meal. The system hopes to target the elderly, mostly ... widows and widowers, who reside on their own and live with limited human contact. With The Virtual Family Dinner, families can come together around a virtual table and share a family meal as if they were both in the same room. (Source: usatoday.com ) The concept is much more appealing than a standard telephone call. For instance, if an elderly woman ... (view more)

YouTube provides a vast and diverse library of pop culture videos, while offering a stage for those individuals who wish to perform before an international audience. And, there is little doubt that YouTube.com is one of the most frequently visited ... websites in North America. YouTube has always functioned as an entertainment outlet...until now. In Hamilton Ontario, police have capitalized on the popular media service as a modern way to fight crime. Officials hope to target a young demographic who use YouTube as a way to stay connected with current events. Officers are specifically looking for ... (view more)

If you borrow a cell phone in Europe or Asia these days, you just might realize that you are looking into the future of mobile technology. Clouds that float across the phone to indicate low signal strength, the face of a friend circling around the ... screen to indicate that they had just called, or a photo of a city skyline at night to indicate that the sun had just set are all a part of the latest technological craze to sweep through these two continents. These innovations comprise a new form of presentation technology that allows users to access and manipulate the applications of their phone ... (view more)

Verizon Wireless has secured the exclusive rights to provide the popular video service YouTube to their cell phone customers. The move marks the first venture for YouTube outside of their online community. The only inconvenience appears to be that ... consumers must now pay for the cellular version of the service. While the YouTube website offers free unlimited video content, the cellular version will require a $15-a-month subscription to the Verizon option package known as VCast. (Source: technology.canoe.ca ) While the online version offers a seemingly endless video library, the VCast ... (view more)

Motorola Inc. has announced the acquisition of Good Technology Inc., the primary software producers of what is considered to be a major rival of BlackBerry handheld devices. The move accentuates Motorola's attempt to expand its popular cell phone ... division in an effort to meet high consumer demands for other electronic devices. Good Technology, a privately held firm that provides software for the Palm Treo, will join the Motorola mobile devices unit, which has already developed an established reputation due to the increasing popularity of the Razr camera phone. (Source: technology.canoe.ca ) ... (view more)

As technology leaps forward with new operating systems (Vista), and home entertainment hardware (Playstation 3, Blu-ray, HD-DVD), we often forget about the environmental realities behind such massive production. In many cases, manufacturing these ... wares can prove extremely costly to Mother Nature, although at least one prominent American electronics company is pledging to do something about that fact. Hewlett Packard, or HP, recently pledged to drastically reduce its own greenhouse gas emissions. HP's announcement is all a part of its joint initiative with environmental watchdog WWF (World ... (view more)

"It looks and feels like Gmail on the desktop." That's the proclamation made by Google product manager Tony Hsieh on the company's new Gmail mobile phone application. Hsieh compares the new mobile Gmail so favorably to its desktop cousin because ... it's a standalone application that doesn't operate through a browser. It can run on any cell phone with Java service. As a result, the new service "promises computer-like response times for viewing email," according to Reuters. (Source: pcmag.com ) Google lists the following features for its mobile service on Gmail's login page: It has the same Gmail ... (view more)

Seven of the world's leading electronics makers have joined forces to produce a cable-free system that hopes to unite televisions with other electronic equipment, revolutionizing the world of wireless connectivity. LG Electronics, Matsushita ... Electric Industrial [Panasonic], NEC, Samsung Electronics, Sony, Toshiba and SiBEAM (an up-and-coming electronics company) have come together to supply end-users with a product that possesses high-definition signal quality without the presence of a physical plug. (Source: iht.com ) In what is being billed as the Wireless HD Consortium, televisions will ... (view more)