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12:35 PM ET, January 28, 2009

Techmeme

 Top Items: 
Amy-Mae Elliott / Pocket-lint.co.uk:
Acer smartphone launch confirmed … “Are you ready to join Acer's launch into the world of mobile communications?”  —  So asks an invite that's just dropped into Pocket-lint's inbox this morning, confirming rumours the company are to launch a smartphone.  —  Due to be unveiled on February 16 …
RELATED:
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Some Things Need To Change  —  Yesterday as I was leaving the DLD Conference in Munich, Germany someone walked up to me and quite deliberately spat in my face.  Before I even understood what was happening, he veered off into the crowd, just another dark head in a dark suit.
Andy Palay / Gmail Blog:
New in Labs: Offline Gmail  —  Web-based email is great because you can check it from any computer, but there's one little catch: it's inherently limited by your internet connection.  From public WiFi to smartphones equipped with 3G, from mobile broadband cards to fledgling in-flight wireless on airplanes …
Larry Dignan / Between the Lines:
AT&T: 1.9 million iPhones activated  —  AT&T said Wednesday that it activated 1.9 million iPhone 3Gs in the fourth quarter with 40 percent of those activations representing new customers.  —  In the back half of 2008, AT&T activated more than 4.3 million iPhones (statement).
RELATED:
Roberto Baldwin / Mac|Life all:
iPhoto's Faces Recognizes Cats  —  A huge disappointment for pet owners, was word that iPhoto's newest feature, Faces, wouldn't recognize animals according to Apple employees on the show floor.  We even did a few tests at Macworld Expo with images they had of the dog Luce.
Cox Communications:
Congestion Management FAQs  —  In February, Cox will begin testing a new method of managing traffic on our high-speed Internet network in our Kansas and Arkansas markets.  During the occasional times the network is congested, this new technology automatically ensures that all time-sensitive Internet traffic …
RELATED:
Peter Svensson / Associated Press:
Cox to test new way to handle Internet congestion
Discussion: BetaNews
Markcuban / blog maverick:
The Great Internet Video Lie  —  Internet Video.  Its the salvation for content creators everywhere.  Its the end to dependence on the big bad meanies, the cable and satellite companies.  Right ?  Hell no. The concept that “over the top” video creates a valid business alternative …
Claire Cain Miller / Bits:
Maybe We Should Call Them Venture Pessimists  —  Venture capitalists need a healthy dose of optimism to do their jobs — betting millions of dollars on young ideas and hoping they turn in to the next big thing.  —  These days, though, that optimism is in short supply.
Discussion: /Message and Industry Standard
Josh Lowensohn / Webware.com:
Which HD video Web service is the best?  —  Around this time last year we put together a comparison of various video sites to determine which ones had the best overall quality and user experience.  Since then, high-definition-capable digital cameras and camcorders have taken off …
Discussion: Mac|Life all
Nilay Patel / Engadget:
Apple vs. Palm: the in-depth analysis  —  Apple and Palm kicked a lot of dirt at each other last week — acting Apple CEO Tim Cook flatly told analysts that “We will not stand for people ripping off our IP” when asked specifically about competition like the Palm Pre, and Palm responded …
Dan Moren / Macworld:
iPhone push notifications: dead and buried, or waiting in the wings?  —  Apple's no stranger to missing a deadline or two, nor is the company averse to pushing back products a few weeks or months when they need more time.  But less common are products that disappear entirely into the world-devouring maw …
Discussion: The iPhone Blog and Macworld
Matt Buchanan / Gizmodo:
T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 8900 First Impressions  —  After the BlackBerry Bold's epically delayed launch on AT&T and the Storm's epically borked launch everywhere, RIM needs 2009 to be better than 2008.  The T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 8900 is a good way to start.
Discussion: ChannelWeb, Electronista and Crave
Jason Kincaid / TechCrunch:
Report: Click Fraud At Record High  —  17.1% of all clickthroughs on web advertising are the result of click fraud - the act of clicking on a web ad to artificially increase its click-through rate - according to the latest report from Click Forensics, a company that specializes in monitoring and preventing internet crime.
Adam Stevenson / Ars Technica:
Logic circuits that program themselves: memristors in action  —  Integrated circuits incorporating memristors are able to successfully perform logic operations and dynamically reprogram themselves, opening the door for learning devices.  —  Scanning electron image of an integrated circuit  —  NASA
Discussion: pnas.org
Greg Sandoval / CNET News:
Sources: AT&T, Comcast may help RIAA foil piracy  —  CNET staff writer Marguerite Reardon co-authored this report.  —  AT&T and Comcast, two of the nation's largest Internet service providers, are expected to be among a group of ISPs that will cooperate with the music industry …
Discussion: Coolfer and Electronista
Erica Sadun / Ars Technica:
Android app uproar sparks debate over open app store model  —  An Android Marketplace application has been accused of attacking files.  Ars looks at the matter and concludes that there may be more smoke than fire in this case.  —  An Android Market application has become the center …
Steven Musil / CNET News:
Movie channel to go live on Web before TV debut  —  A premium movie channel backed by a trio of studios is expected to debut as an on-demand Web site months before its traditional TV launch.  —  The consortium of MGM, Paramount Pictures, and Lions Gate announced Tuesday at the NATPE television conference …
Brian Kissel / OpenID:
PayPal joins OpenID Foundation Board as we enter 2009  —  Building on the momentum from last year, the OpenID Foundation is pleased to announce the addition of PayPal as a sustaining corporate member of the Board.  PayPal selected Andrew Nash, Sr. Director of Information Risk Management …
Christopher Rhoads / Wall Street Journal:
Kyrgyzstan Knocked Offline  —  A Russian “cyber-militia” has effectively knocked the central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan offline in recent days, according to an Internet security expert, in the latest apparent example of geopolitical tensions playing out on the Web.
Sydney Morning Herald:
Netbooks hit right spot for schoolchildren  —  Dell's Inspiron Mini 9 netbook.  —  Asher Moses  —  Sales of netbooks in Australia have exploded, with the mini low-cost computers now accounting for more than one in 10 laptop and desktop PCs sold - no mean feat considering they've been around for just over a year.
Discussion: Liliputing and Gadget Lab
InfoWorld:
Cloud computing shapes up as big trend for 2009  —  It is still early in the year, but cloud computing already is shaping up as a key trend for 2009.  —  At SoftwareAG's Cloud Computing Innovation Day in Santa Clara, Calif., on Tuesday,? executives from companies including Software AG …
Sarah Lacy / Business Week:
Is the Unique User an Endangered Species?  —  The games Silicon Valley people play to gain more social networking pals are threatening this vital Internet metric  —  If I've learned anything in 10 years of covering entrepreneurs, it's that they love to cheat.
Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat:
Will Intel let Jen-Hsun Huang spread graphics beyond PCs?  —  Nvidia chief executive Jen-Hsun Huang is on a mission to get graphics chips into everything from handheld computers to smart phones.  In a dinner with reporters on Monday night, the head of the Santa Clara, Calif.-based graphics chip maker …
Discussion: Digits
 
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 More Items: 
Timothy B. Lee / Ars Technica:
Ctrl-Z: a return to the Supreme Court's software patent ban?
Darryl K. Taft / eWeek:
Layoffs to Continue at IBM, Sources Say
Discussion: insideHPC and Digital Daily
John Dowdell / jd/adobe:
A Video Tale  —  Once upon a time there was a sad little digital video file.
Tameka Kee / paidContent.org:
Search Ad Firm WordStream Gets $4 Million First Round; New CEO
Discussion: VentureBeat and Xconomy
 Earlier Items: 
Todd Bishop / TechFlash:
Florida firm stakes out Microsoft, offering jobs to worried workers
Nate Anderson / Ars Technica:
2006 AOL search data snafu spawns “I Love Alaska” short films
BBC:
UK will not legislate on piracy
Discussion: bit-tech.net and AppScout
Harry Wallop / Telegraph:
Sony launches world's thinnest OLED TV
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Online Health Consolidation Continues: HealthCentral Buys Wellsphere
Discussion: paidContent.org and Pulse2