Episode 1122

AT&T announced they're going to help San Francisco and New York with data coverage, but then blamed the children for all their bandwidth problems. We also take Facebook to task for their privacy handling. Nothing new there. And is the Apple Tablet coming in the spring? Will it be $1000?
==Stories Covered==
Facebook details new privacy settings
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10411418-2.html
… where the default setting is “everyone”
http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/20091209/facebook-rolls-out-new-privacy-settings-encourages-users-to-abandon-privacy/
Apple tablet set for spring launch?
http://brainstormtech.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2009/12/09/apple-tablet-set-for-spring-launch/
Two Major Publishers To Hold Back E-Books
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704825504574584372263227740.html
AT&T moves closer to usage-based fees for data
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9142012/AT_T_moves_closer_to_usage_based_fees_for_data?taxonomyId=1
AT&T to New York and San Francisco: We're Working on It
http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/12/09/att-to-new-york-and-san-francisco-were-working-on-it/
The iPhone Finally Gets Live Video Streaming With Ustream Live Broadcaster
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/12/09/iphone-live-streaming-ustream/
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/2763580
The Droid Has Been Rooted -- Now What?
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/12/droid-unlocked/
EA CEO: “I Think Of Pirates As A Marketplace”
http://kotaku.com/5421466/ea-ceo-i-think-of-pirates-as-a-marketplace
US No Longer Leading the World In Spam
http://news.slashdot.org/story/09/12/08/2042253/US-No-Longer-Leading-the-World-In-Spam
AOL Time Warner splits after near 10-year marriage
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8403302.stm
Freaky Norwegian sky circles causing a ruckus
http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3238877&userid=0&perpage=40&pagenumber=1
http://www.vgtv.no/?id=27553
==Voicemail==
James Carroll on the Amazon Shoppes in the High Street
==Emails==
Hey BOL
In episode 1120 you guys discussed the possibility of an Amazon retail store or pick-up delivery service, and was surprised you guys failed to mention that, if Amazon were to open a physical retail store, this would force them to charge tax on all products, whether it be in-store or online. Don’t keep your hopes up for this service, as paying taxes on amazon would downplay the service.
Keep up the good work,
Eric
----
Ok, so the Joojoo looks like an interesting piece of hardware. I’m not really excited about such a single-purpose device, but what if they put Chrome on it? I may be missing some details here, but isn’t Chrome almost custom written for a device like this? Maybe if Chrome got some really useful extensions once it was released, and the Joojoo can run it well, then the Joojoo could be a little more useful.
Of course I love the show.
Garret
----
Hey Buzzers,
First off, let me say that I too thought that QR codes were a tad silly
when I first blogged about the QR iPhone app. After learning about how
they are used, though, I definitely gained some appreciation. Here are
some examples you may find meaningful:
- QR codes are widely used in Japan, slapped all over all kinds of items
and attached to posters (big enough, you could snap them from a sizable
distance?).
- Added information about food products could be encoded. Maybe a
program could scan in each item as you buy it and help you manage a diet.
- Essentially any info that could be encoded in an RFID tag could also
be put into QR. The upside? Most phones have a camera, few have an RF
reader.
In the few organic experiences I have had with this technology I have
found it to be at least interesting, if not useful, and I would
absolutely love to see shops start posting up little “Google Me”
stickers in the windows. Especially places that are harder to nail down
on manual searches.
Love the show!
Jimmy the Microbiologist
----
Buzz,
I think it’s interesting that the NY Times and the Washington Post are going in the opposite direction as the WSJ to actually encourage Google to aggregate their content in a more presentable way for web browsers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/08/AR2009120802319_pf.html
Google, Washington Post and N.Y. Times create news tool
==After The Credits==