Noteworthy News From the World of High Tech

Firefox Version 3 - Latest word from Mozilla is that the final version of this popular web browser will be available in late June. It is actually ready now and you can download it, but Mozilla is waiting for the makers of their most popular add-on's to come out with new versions of their products that will work with Firefox 3. My favorite add-on's such as FoxMarks and Tabs Mix Plus are not yet available for V.3. The add-on's are what really make Firefox special as a browser. V.3 is faster, uses less memory, and has a few great new features that I have written about here before.

Google Docs - Google Docs and Spreadsheets has a handy new view that Microsoft Word has had for years. When flipped on you can see what your writing will look like on a virtual page, so when you print it out you won't be surprised that your term paper or novel is shorter or longer than you anticipated.

Twitter Tweeks - Am enjoying using Twitter to write mini-blogs (140 characters max) and to follow other Twits. But, the huge success of the service is causing problems. During peak hours, it is too overloaded and goes down. Twitter has received a large injection of cash and will update the infrastructure to handle their popularity...but it will take time.

Blu-Ray Sales - The HD Blu-Ray DVD player may have won the battle for dominance in the next generation of DVD players, but did it lose the war? Statistic show that ever since it was announced they were the winner, sales have tanked badly. From January to February - sales were down 40%. And that was after they won the war with HD-DVD. The reason...prices are still steep (around $300 for the cheapest Blu Ray...and there aren't that many Blu-Ray disks available. But probably the most important is that even with an HDTV, regular DVD players still look good. The newest generation of DVD players also have a way to scale-up their images to fit HDTV's...and those sell for about $75 and up. Read more here.

Netflix Direct to your TV - NetFlix, the excellent on-line DVD rental business, has been offering free viewing of over 5,000 films for no additional charge above their monthly subscription fee. Up until this week, those free movies could only be viewed on your computer. Now, for $100, you can buy a set-top box that will put the movies right on your TV set...still with no additional charges. The good news is that you get unlimited amount of movies for no additional charges. The bad news is that the picture quality is not as good as a DVD and there is no surround sound. See the review on the CNET Web site.

Good Article - Thinking about moving up to a Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR) camera. Here is an in-depth article on CNET you might find interesting.

Another Good Article - PC Magazine recently posted an article on Broadband in America...talking about all the different options to receive fast Internet services. It includes DSL, Cable, and fiber optics to the home. I found it interesting and recommend it for reading. About half of the U.S. is now connected via broadband, but we are only ranked 25th in the world. Korea, for instance, has 89% connected to broadband. But, we are about the cheapest on cost per kilobyte.

Search the Universe - Microsoft has released a new, free software that enables users to explore the universe with impressive content from the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory Center, and other famed ground- and space-based telescopes. Colorful nebulae, distant galaxies, black holes, and radiation clouds are all accessible from your desktop with a few clicks. The software has been released for free in honor of Jim Gray, a Microsoft researcher who was lost at sea last year. Have been to busy to try it out, but it sounds just great. Here is a download link.

Personal Rant - This is the price you pay me to write these blogs - I get to blow off steam sometimes. I drove home last night from a day in the Leavenworth area. Susan called and asked me to stop in Wenatchee to pick up dinner. I suggested fried chicken as that is something we only eat maybe twice a year. Stopped at Kentucky Fried Chicken in East Wenatchee. There I discovered that 8 pieces of chicken costs $21. What a rip off!! I turned around and walked out, thinking that KFC must have been acquired by an oil company. Drove three blocks to Fred Meyer and got 8 pieces of chicken for $6. And their chicken is good. Goodbye KFC forever. I know prices are on the rise everywhere because of the high transportation costs, but that is just ridiculous.