Tag: Apple

AT&T To Offer Wireless Service Sans Contract, The NY Times Gives A Simple Explanation of The DOJ v. Apple E-book Anti-Trust Case & New Apple TV Service Coming

Linda Reimer

AT&T To Offer Wireless Service Sans Contract:  AT&T has announced it will begin offering a new cell phone service later this month called AT&T Next. And the AT&T Next service will allow customers to purchase their cell phones without signing a contract and without putting money down on their phones. Instead customers will pay for their phones over time – a little bit each month; the price varying of course, depending upon which phone a customer buys and how much it costs. And the monthly charge for the phone will be added to the customer’s monthly bill for cell phone service.

Also of note, this new plan will allow customers to upgrade to a new phone after a year so people won’t be locked into a contract and will be able to upgrade their phone to a new one yearly if they wish.

I imagine this new plan will probably be very popular among those people who love new gadgets; because as cell phone technology has evolved and cell phones have become more sophisticated not everyone wants to upgrade their cell phone each year. Some cell phone users will be perfectly happy to use the same HD screen smart phone they already have for the next three or four years. However, for those of us that like to have the newest technology in our hands ASAP – this is a nice new option!

Here’s a link to a Wall Street Journal article on the new AT&T Next service titled “AT&T to Offer Option to Forgo Wireless Contract;”

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324348504578608663708960382.html

The NY Times Gives A Simple Explanation of The DOJ v. Apple E-book Anti-Trust Case: The New York Times offers a simple – and thus easy to understand – document that chronicles the recently concluded U.S. DOJ v. Apple Anti-Trust Suit over e-books – just FYI – here’s the link:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/07/10/technology/apple-ebook-opinion.html?ref=technology

New Apple TV Service Coming: Tech reporter Jessica Lessin broke an exclusive story yesterday – that Apple is negotiating with cable television companies to offers those who own Apple TV player access to live cable TV shows. In the near future Apple TV customers will be able to access live television content through a Premium service that will also allow them to skip ads. And Apple will actually pay the cable companies for the ads that consumers skip! And what you might wonder will Apple get out of this? I think the answer to that is to get more people using its Apple TV Player which is designed and the interface of the player created, maintained and updated by Apple. The more people get into the Apple ecosystem the more money Apple stands to make and cable companies which have been losing money on ads ever since DVRs came into vogue will profit by making money from the commercials including with live television programs whether Apple TV customers watch them or not.

It will be interesting to see what happens with this new and improved Apple TV service as I can see it taking off and becoming much more popular than an expensive large Apple HDTV might be as that would no doubt cost mega bucks. In contrast, an Apple TV player, which requires Wi-Fi, costs only $100.

Here’s the link to the Lessin article titled “Exclusive: Apple Pitches Ad-Skipping for New TV Service;”

http://jessicalessin.com/2013/07/15/exclusive-apple-pitches-ad-skipping-for-new-tv-service/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Gryta, Thomas. (2013, July 16). AT&T to Offer Option to Forgo Wireless Contract: Customers Get More Upgrades If They Pay Full Price for Phones. The Wall Street Journal. Online. Accessed July 16, 2013.

Key Excerpts From the Apple E-Books Ruling. (2013, July 10). The New York Times. Online. Accessed July 16, 2013.

Lessin, Jessica. (2013, July 15). Exclusive: Apple Pitches Ad-Skipping for New TV Service. Jessica Lessin. Online. Accessed July 16, 2013. 

Apple’s Chances On E-Book Appeal, Chromebooks Selling Well As Sales Of Most PCS Continue To Drop & Verzion Needs To Sell iPhones

Linda Reimer

Apple’s Chances On E-Book Appeal: As I’m sure most people already know Apple, which was the lone defendant in the U.S. Department of Justice e-book anti-trust lawsuit  came down on the losing side of the suite. The DOJ ruled that Apple did in fact collude with five major U.S. publishers to raise the price of e-books. The five published named in the suit were five of the largest publishers in the U.S. and they all settled the suit with the DOJ before the trail began leaving Apple as the lone losing defendant. Apple has said it will appeal the DOJ decision. And if you’re wondering what Apple’s chances of winning an appeal might be — the answer is apparently slim. I’m a librarian not a lawyer but I gather from what I’ve read that the DOJ ruling is that Apple engaged in anti-competitive behavior not that the company influenced the price of e-books per se. 

Here’s a link to an All Things D article on the subject titled “Apple’s Chances of an E-Book Ruling Appeal Are Lousy, Say Legal Experts:”

http://allthingsd.com/20130710/apples-chances-on-an-e-book-ruling-appeal-are-lousy-say-legal-scholars/

Chromebooks Selling Well As Sales Of Most PCS Continue To Drop: I came across an interesting ZDNet article today that discusses the fact that although PC sales in general continue to lose ground to tablet sales — there is one portion of the PC market that is growing and that part of the market is made up of laptops that are selling for under $300. Some of the super cheap laptops are running Windows 8 but 20 – 25% of that under $300 market each month is made up of Google Chromebooks. 

And I can understand why! 

We have a Google Chromebook at the library. It is the $249 Chromebook and offers users a basic, reasonably speedy computing experience. If you have Wi-Fi or access to Wi-Fi and use the web for the majority of your PC tasks than a Chromebook isn’t a bad computer to purchase as a second computer or an entry level computer for someone (you do need to have access to Wi-Fi). Stop by the library sometime and you can try it out!

Here’s a link to the ZDNet article titled “Chromebooks a Bright Spot in the Dark PC Market:” 

http://www.zdnet.com/chromebooks-a-bright-spot-in-the-dark-pc-market-7000017964/

Verizon Needs To Sell iPhones: I came across an article today titled “Verizon May Need to Sell $23.5 Billion Worth of iPhones by End of the Year” and thought I’d share the link because it seems Verizon made a deal with Apple in 2010 to sell a certain number of iPhones and they haven’t sold enough of them just yet — which may translate into the fact that Verizon may sell some iPhones at lower prices or as part of a more desirable-then-usual cell phone deals later this year. So if you’re in the market for a new iPhone in the fall you may want to check out the Verizon site before buying a new phone!

Here’ the link to the article:

http://allthingsd.com/20130711/verizon-needs-to-sell-23-5-billion-worth-of-iphones-by-the-end-of-the-year/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Paczkowski, John. (2013, July 10). Apple’s Chances of an E-Book Ruling Appeal Are Lousy, Say Legal Scholars. All Things D. Online. Accessed July 11, 2013. 

http://allthingsd.com/20130710/apples-chances-on-an-e-book-ruling-appeal-are-lousy-say-legal-scholars/

Paczkowski, John. (2013, July 11). Verizon Needs to Sell 23.5 Billion Worth of iPhones by the End of the Year. All Things D. Online. Accessed July 11, 2013. 

http://allthingsd.com/20130711/verizon-needs-to-sell-23-5-billion-worth-of-iphones-by-the-end-of-the-year/

Vaughan-Nichols, Stephen. (2013, July 11). Chromebooks a Bright Spot in the Dark PC Market. ZD Net. Online. Accessed July 11, 2013. 

http://www.zdnet.com/chromebooks-a-bright-spot-in-the-dark-pc-market-7000017964/

 

 

 

DOJ Rules Against Apple in Anti-Trust Suit, Improved Google Maps App & iOS 7 Upgrade Changes

Linda Reimer

DOJ Rules Against Apple in Anti-Trust Suit: The U.S. Department of Justice has ruled against Apple in the DOJ v. Apple anti-trust suit that alleged that Apple colluded with several major U.S. publishers in 2010 to force the number 1 seller of e-books in the U.S., Amazon, to accept what is called an Agency Model of pricing e-books. The term Agency Model basically means that publishers set the price of all their e-books instead of the e-book sellers and thus all e-book sellers that wish to sell e-books by publishers using the Agency Model must charge consumers whatever price the publishers set for their e-books to be allowed to sell them.

The DOJ has stated during the case that the Agency Model was adopted by Apple and five of the largest publishers in the U.S.* (all of the so-called Big Six publishers sans Random House) in response to Amazon undercutting other e-book sellers and in fact frequently selling e-books for a loss in order to sell more of its exceptionally popular Kindle e-readers. And indeed just after the Agency Model was implemented prices of most new e-books listed on Amazon went up a couple of dollars each, generally from $9.99 to $12.99, seeming just about overnight and just at the same time Apple was unveiling its first generation iPad which of course allowed iPad purchasers to buy e-books through Apple’s iBooks Store via the Agency Model pricing.

Apple spokesmen still insist they did nothing wrong in negotiation with publishers and agreeing to use the Agency Model to sell e-books via the iBooks Store and have said they will appeal the verdict which probably will translate into the case going before the Supreme Court.

So I’m sure we haven’t heard the last of this case!

Here’s a link to a Reuters article on the subject, titled Judge rules Apple conspired to raise prices on e-books, which offers more information on the subject:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/10/us-apple-ebooks-idUSBRE9690GE20130710

And another article on the same subject from the New York Times titled “Judge Rules Against Apple in E-Books Trial”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/11/technology/judge-rules-against-apple-in-e-books-trial.html?ref=technology&_r=0

Improved Google Maps App: New York Times Tech guru David Pogue offers an article today on the new and improved Google Maps app for Android and iOS (Apple) devices. The new apps offer a speedier performance and better information on places – in fact Pogue glowingly notes of the improved apps that “Half the time, you don’t even need navigation instructions; you just use Google Maps as the world’s smartest Yellow Pages, to find a nearby restaurant, movie theater, drugstore or whatever;” and I think Pogue’s recommendation just about sums it up! If you’ve got an app device Google Maps is an indispensable tool!

Here’s a link to the Pogue column on the New York Times site:

http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/10/an-improved-google-maps-app-for-apple-and-android-devices/?ref=technology

iOS 7 Upgrade Changes: Every so often I say something about versions of iOS or Android and someone says to me – “What does that mean?”—and basically what the terms iOS and Android refer to is the stuff that makes the smartphones or tablets produced by Apple and a variety of Android tablet and smartphone makers, including Google, run. So an iOS upgrade means that Apple has, or as in this case is going to, improve the running system (aka mobile operating system) of its iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch models. And Apple usually unveils some neat extra bells and whistles functions – some extra icing on the cake if you will – with their upgrades so this fall when Apple upgrades its mobile iOS software to iOS 7 you should find some new features and a new look for your mobile Apple devices. The new Apple iOS is supposed to appear to have a flat type of more modern look than previous iOS versions and today word came that Apple is also changing the default text font for their mobile devices to Helvetica Neue from Helvetica Light so that too will make iPhones and iPads displays look just a bit different this fall!

Here’s a link to a CNET article on the subject titled “iOS 7 swaps skinny font for thicker one in typographic U-turn;”

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/software/ios-7-swaps-skinny-font-for-thicker-one-in-typographic-u-turn-50011685/

And a second link to a Mashable video on the subject that offers a broader scope of information titled “Apple Releases iOS 7 Beta 3 and Other News You Need to Know:”

http://mashable.com/2013/07/09/apple-ios7-brief/

 

Have a great day!

Linda R.

*All the publishers settled the DOJ charges out of court before the anti-trust trial began.

References

Chen, Brian., & Bosman, Julie. (2013, July 10). Judge Rules Against Apple in E-Books Trial. New York Times. Online. Accessed July 10, 2013.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/11/technology/judge-rules-against-apple-in-e-books-trial.html?ref=technology&_r=0

Pogue, David. (2013, July 10). A Better Google Maps App for Apple and Android Devices. New York Times. Online. Accessed July 10, 2013.

http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/10/an-improved-google-maps-app-for-apple-and-android-devices/?ref=technology

Raymond, Nate., & Stempel, Jonathan. (2013, July 10). Judge rules Apple conspired to raise prices on e-books. Reuters. Online. Accessed July 10, 2013. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/10/us-apple-ebooks-idUSBRE9690GE20130710

Schroeder, Stan. (2013, July 9). Apple Releases iOS 7 Beta 3 and Other News You Need to Know. Mashable. Online. Accessed July 10, 2013. http://mashable.com/2013/07/09/apple-ios7-brief/

Driverless Cars & The Impact On Municipal Revenues & Apple Offers Free Apps As The App Store Turns 5

Linda Reimer

Driverless Cars & The Impact On Municipal Revenues:  I mentioned in yesterdays’ blog posting that there was a cool article in the New York Time on the evolution of driverless cars and today the author of that article – Nick Bilton – offers another article that discusses how driverless smart car technology will greatly decrease the number of traffic and parking tickets issued in cities and how, correspondingly, this will greatly decrease municipal revenue for big cities. Bilton notes that in Washington, D.C. on average that “six parking tickets are issued every minute of a normal workday. That is about 5,300 tickets on each of those days. Those slips of paper have added up to $80 million in parking fines a year;” – Wow! $80 million a year is quite a big source of income! No doubt municipalities will find new ways to generate more revenue for their cities when driverless smart cars become mainstream items– but I find the article interesting because I honestly had no idea that parking and traffic tickets generated that much revenue and because I can see a day coming when some people that don’t drive a great deal won’t necessarily need a car.

Imagine if in our area – Corning, NY (population about 10,000) we could summon a driverless car whenever we needed one to take us to work, home again, to the grocery store or the mall and we might not have to make car payments or pay for auto insurance or auto maintained because we might share these cars with other members of our local community

Most people don’t spend hours a day driving – some people do of course have a long commute and for them it is another story – but many people live and work within the same town and if they could quickly and easily get around their local region then maybe we could share cars,  cut down on pollution and cut our cost of living by eliminating having to pay for and maintain a car.

Granted car enthusiasts who love to drive might just want to own their own cars anyway – I’m betting they will – but for some people having access to community owned self- driving (and no doubt at some point self-cleaning) smart cars will increase they ability to get around town and allow them to keep a few extra dollars in their budgets.

Here’s a link to the Bilton article titled “The Money Side of Driverless Cars”

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/09/the-end-of-parking-tickets-drivers-and-car-insurance/?ref=technology

Apple Offers Free Apps As The App Store Turns 5: Apple’s App Store has just turned 5 and to celebrate they are offering some apps for free for a limited time. There is a section in the store titled “5 Years of the App Store” and the free apps include games like “Infinity Blade II,” and “Tiny Wings HD” and other apps like “How to Cook Everything” and “Traktor DJ.” So if you have an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch you might want to check out the free apps!

Here’s a link to a Verge article on the subject titled “Top iOS apps and games go free ahead of App Store’s fifth anniversary:”

http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/8/4502810/ios-apps-and-games-go-free-five-years-after-app-store-launched

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Bilton, Nick. (2013, July 9). The Money Side of Driverless Cars. New York Times. Online. Accessed July 9, 2013.  http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/09/the-end-of-parking-tickets-drivers-and-car-insurance/?ref=technology

Byford, Sam. (2013, July 8). Top iOS apps and games go free ahead of App Store’s fifth anniversary. The Verge. Online. Accessed July 9, 2013. http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/8/4502810/ios-apps-and-games-go-free-five-years-after-app-store-launched

 

New Search Box On Library Homepage & Microsoft Games Coming To iOS & Android

Linda Reimer

New Search Box On Library Homepage: If you’ve ever wanted to search the library’s website – now you can! There is a new search box, powered by Google, on the library’s homepage found at SSCLIBRARY.ORG so if you want to search our website for a subject like “Young Adult” for YA programs “tech” for tech programs “ or “writing” or “writer” to see programs that focusing on writing like our cool Young Adult and Adult Writer’s groups you can! You can also sort the results by relevance or date. This is a cool new feature of our online library which incidentally includes a Calendar of library events (click on the Calendar link) a number of credible databases (click on the Research link to see more) and the e-books and electronic audio books, albums and videos found in the STLS Digital Catalog (which you can access by clicking on the STLS Digital Catalog link).

So check out the library’s homepage for more information – here’s the link:

http://ssclibrary.org/index.html

Microsoft Games Coming To iOS & Android: A number of tech news sources have reported today that Microsoft is working on deals that would bring many of its games to Apple (iOS) and Android mobile devices (i.e. tablets & smartphones). The details haven’t of course been revealed but the specific game mentioned as one of the first to be offered is “Age of Empires” which is one of my favorite Microsoft Games! And I hope — should the deals come to fruition — to also be able to engage in the role playing game “Fate” on my iPad in the near future – Of course if they want to release a version of “Fate” that I can play on my iMac – I’d love that too!

So just FYI if you have some favorite Microsoft games you’ve previously played on your desktop, laptop or Xbox you may in the near future be able to play those same games on your smartphone or tablet!

Here is a link to a Slashgear article on the subject titled “Age of Empires coming to iOS and Android: first of many Microsoft titles:”

http://www.slashgear.com/age-of-empires-coming-to-ios-and-android-first-of-many-microsoft-titles-24287767/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Burns, Chris. (2013, June 24). Age of Empires coming to iOS and Android: first of many Microsoft titles http://www.slashgear.com/age-of-empires-coming-to-ios-and-android-first-of-many-microsoft-titles-24287767/

Barnes & Noble: Nook Apps For PC & Mac Discontinued /Promotes Snap Nook Books & Apple’s New Mission Statement

Linda Reimer

Barnes & Noble: Nook Apps For PC & Mac Discontinued/ Promotes Snap Nook Books: Barnes & Noble has finally discontinued supporting its Nook apps for PCs and Macs. Now you can read your B&N Nook e-books through the web browser on your PC or Mac instead of having to download the Nook software.

Here’s a link to an engadget article on the subject titled “Barnes and Noble axes Nook PC, Mac apps, directs you to Nook for Web instead:”

http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/11/barnes-noble-nook-for-pc-mac/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

Barnes & Noble is also promoting their “Snap” e-books which are like the Kindle shorts e-books Amazon offers – they are short e-books and can be read in one sitting or in a snap! These short books are frequently written by popular authors like Lee Child and Craig Johnson so they are solid works of short fiction designed for the busy life style – or you can see them simply as a means to introducing readers to an author whose works they are not familiar with at a cheaper than full-length book price – as most Snaps and Shorts costs under $3.

Here’s a link to a Verge article on the subject tilted “Barnes & Noble tries to draw in readers with exclusive Nook Snaps ebooks:”

http://www.theverge.com/2013/6/6/4402486/barnes-noble-tries-to-draw-in-readers-with-exclusive-nook-snaps-ebooks

Apple’s New Mission Statement: Apple came out with new mission statement yesterday; their mission is to simplify and perfect their products so those products delight their customers.

Here a link to an All Things D article that gives you the low down on this lofty subject – it is titled “Apple’s Declaration of Values: Simplify, Perfect, Delight;”

http://allthingsd.com/20130611/apples-declaration-of-values-simplify-perfect-delight/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Cooper, Daniel. (2013, June 11). Barnes and Noble axes Nook PC, Mac apps, directs you to Nook for Web instead. Engadget. Online. Accessed June 11, 2013.

Paczkowski, John. (2013, June 11). Apple’s Declaration of Values: Simplify, Perfect, Delight. All Things D. Online. Accessed June 11, 2013.

Roberts, (2013, June 11). Barnes & Noble tries to draw in readers with exclusive Nook Snaps ebooks. The Verge. Online. Accessed June 11, 2013. 

Apple’s WWDC Keynote Address Highpoints & New Xbox Coming In November

Linda Reimer

Apple’s WWDC Keynote Address Highpoints: Apple kicked off its annual World Wide Developers Conference today and Apple CEO Tim Cook gave the keynote address with assistance from several other upper level Apple staff members. Among the highlights of information relayed in the keynote address include the fact that this fall Apple will update their mobile device operating software to iOS7 which will give iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch models a whole new, fresh and more modern look, the fact that Apple is debuting an Internet radio service called iRadio to compete with Pandora Internet Radio and that SIRI, Apple’s digital assistant for newer iPads, iPods and iPhones will get an update to include better integration and the ability to choose different voices for the personal assistant.

Here’s a link a CNET overview of the iOS7 updated features:

http://reviews.cnet.com/apple-ios-7/

A second link that features a slideshow showing the way  iOS7 will look on the iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch:

http://reviews.cnet.com/2300-3671_7-10017110.html

And third link to a report on the updates coming for SIRI Apple’s voice activated personal assistant:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57588315-37/apples-siri-gets-new-voices-display-and-actions/

New Xbox Coming In November: Microsoft announced today, and I’m sure not coincidentally since Apple was releasing some big news today – Microsoft thought they’d try and steal some of Apple’s proverbial thunder but I digress… Microsoft announced that their new Xbox gaming console will be released in November and cost $499.

Here’s a link to PC Magazine article on the subject simply titled Xbox One Coming in November for $499:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2420201,00.asp

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Apple’s iOS 7 gets a new look and several new features. CNET. Online. Accessed June 10, 2013.  http://reviews.cnet.com/apple-ios-7/

Greenwald, Walt. (2013, June 10). Xbox One Coming in November for $499. PC Mag. Online.  http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2420201,00.asp

Smoother, Cleaner, Flater. CNET . Online. Accessed June 10, 2013.                               http://reviews.cnet.com/2300-3671_7-10017110.html

Tam, Donna. (2013, June 10). Apple’s Siri gets new voices, display and actions: The digital assistant has some new tricks, including car and music integrations. CNET. Online. Accessed June 10, 2013. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57588315-37/apples-siri-gets-new-voices-display-and-actions/

 

High Tech Glasses For The Visually Impaired, Update On The DOJ v. Apple E-Book Case, Amazon Brings Back Kindle DX, Cornell’s New Technology School & Librarian & Blogger David Lee King’s Tale On A Recent E-Book Conference

Linda Reimer

Wow talk about your tech news for the day! The cool tech articles I came across today were many! And the ones I selected to highlight on this blog discuss new high tech Google Glass-like eye glasses that will allow the visually impaired to read, an update on the Department of Justice v. Apple e-book anti-trust case, the fact that Amazon has at least for now brought back their 9.7” e-ink Kindle DX, Cornell’s got a new high tech technology school and Librarian and Blogger David Lee King offers his input on a recent e-book conference he attended that had publishers’ representatives, OverDrive staff (OverDrive is a library e-book vendor) and librarian professionals on hand.

High Tech Glasses For The Visually Impaired: A new Israeli company called OrCam has developed a pair of high tech eye glasses that will scan and read aloud text that the wearer passes in front of the glasses — allowing people that have macular degeneration or other vision impaired conditions to be able to essential have a narrator read things for them where every they go!

The New York Times offers an article on OrCam and the new high tech glasses titled “Device From Israeli Start-Up Gives the Visually Impaired a Way to Read:”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/04/science/israeli-start-up-gives-visually-impaired-a-way-to-read.html?ref=technology&_r=0

Update On The DOJ v. Apple E-Book Case: Reuters reports that the alleged alliance between Apple and five of the largest publishers in the U.S. was not a harmonious one and that there is evidence that Apple and the publishers were trying to force the media giant and e-book seller Amazon to accept publisher’s prices for e-books. Here is a link to a that Reuter’s article which offers a more in-depth report on the case so far:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/06/us-apple-ebooks-trial-idUSBRE95500U20130606

Amazon Brings Back Kindle DX: The tech site The Verge reports that Amazon’s Kindle DX which hasn’t been seen listed on the Amazon site for sale since last fall – is back! The Kindle DX is the 9.7” e-ink e-reader – so it is the same size as an iPad but features the e-ink technology so you can read an e-book on the DX outside – at the lake, at the beach or just in your back yard and there won’t be any glare from the screen as there is with a e-reading devices that has a color screen. The Kindle DX sells for $299.

And here’s a link to The Verge article itself titled “Amazon brings back long dormant Kindle DX, says it’s ‘excited’ to do so;”

http://www.theverge.com/2013/6/5/4399144/amazon-brings-back-long-dormant-kindle-dx

Cornell’s New Technology School: Cornell which won New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s contest to create a great new science & technology school has done so! The new school which is located on New York City’s Roosevelt Island is a huge space donated by Google for the project that is filled with cutting edge technology. The school which offers a one year master’s degree in computer science opened earlier this year and had eight students enrolled in its beta program this term. The school gives us a glance at what computer science schools of the future may be like.

Here’s a link to a New York Times article on the school titled “Building a Better Tech School” which offers more information on the subject:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/14/education/edlife/cornell-nyc-tech-planned-for-roosevelt-island-starts-up-in-chelsea.html?ref=technology

Librarian & Blogger David Lee King’s Take On A Recent E-Book Conference: Librarian and blogger David Lee King recently attended and e-book conference that featured representatives from major publishers in the U.S., from the library e-book vendors in the U.S. (namely OverDrive which is the vendor used by the Southern Tier Library System) and library professionals. David Lee paints a picture of publisher representatives that don’t seem to have been in a public library since they went to school and are under the mistaken impression that it is easy for patrons to download their e-books and keep them forever – which is not the case! Here’s the link to the David Lee King posting (from his blog) which is titled “Ebooks in Libraries – #BEA2013:”

http://www.davidleeking.com/2013/06/06/ebooks-in-libraries-bea2013/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+davidleeking+%28David+Lee+King%29#.UbD1Fec4vTo

And a link to an article he recommended titled “BEA Panel Suggests Publishers Still Clueless about Library E-Books and Piracy:”

http://www.teleread.com/ebooks/bea-panel-suggests-publishers-still-clueless-about-library-e-books-and-piracy/

And on a completely un-tech related note if by any chance there are any veterans who fought on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944, who read this article today – hats off to you for helping free Europe from Nazi control and thus keeping our world a free one. Thank you!

Have a great day!

Linda R.

References

Markoff, John. (2013, June 3). Device From Israeli Start-Up Gives the Visually Impaired a Way to Read. New York Times. Online. Accessed June 6, 2013.

Meadows, Chris. (2013, June 4). BEA Panel Suggests Publishers Still Clueless about Library E-Books and Piracy. Teleread. Online. Accessed June 6, 2013.

Perez-Pena, Richard. (2013, April 13). Building a Better Tech School. The New York Times. Online. Accessed June 6, 2013.

Raymond, Nate. (2013, June 5). Publishers gave Amazon “ultimatum” over e-book pricing: executive. Reuters. Online. Accessed June 6, 2013.

Robertson, Adi. (2013, June 5). Amazon brings back long dormant Kindle DX, says it’s ‘excited’ to do so. The Verge. Online. Accessed June 6, 2013.

 

 

Apple News: iRadio, DOJ E-Book Case Begins & Upcoming World Wide Developer’s Conference

Linda Reimer

Most the hot tech news today is really all about Apple! Apple’s rumored to shortly be announced streaming music subscription service iRadio, the U.S. Department of Justice anti-trust lawsuit against Apple for allegedly conspiring with publishers to set higher e-book prices and Apple’s upcoming World Wide Developer’s Conference which will be held next week and during which Apple is known for announcing some new service and/or product.

So basically here’s the Apple news for today!

iRadio: Apple has been long rumored to be working on a streaming music subscription service like Spotify and Pandora. And CNET reports that Apple has reached a deal with the Warner Music group to stream their music titles which leads to speculation that Apple will announce a launch date for their iRadio service at their World Wide Developer’s Conference next week.

Here’s a link to a CNET article on the subject titled “Apple reaches iRadio deal with Warner Music Suggesting WWDC launch:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57587243-93/apple-reaches-iradio-deal-with-warner-music-suggesting-wwdc-launch/

DOJ E-Book Case Begins: Apple was one of the companies, along with five of the Big Six Publishers (the largest six publishers in the U.S.) to be investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice for e-book price fixing via an anti-trust lawsuit. The five publishers Hachette, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Penguin and Macmillan all settled the suite with the DOJ out of court but Apple spokesman insist Apple did not conspire with the previously mentioned publishers to set e-book prices and eliminate competition – particularly competition from the super e-book seller Amazon.

Here’s a link to an article on the subject that offers more in-depth information titled “Trial on E-Book Price-Fixing Puts Apple in Spotlight:”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/03/technology/e-book-antitrust-case-against-apple-to-begin.html?ref=technology

Upcoming World Wide Developer’s Conference: Apple’s World Wide Developer’s Conference, which is popular with app makers for obvious reasons, kicks off next Monday, June 10. Apple CEO Tim Cook will give the keynote address at the WWDC and the tech rumor mill is buzzing with ideas as to what new products and/or services Apple will announce during the keynote address. One of the hotly rumored items is some new version of the Apple TV streaming player but other items may include new features of iOS 7 (the next generation of Apple’s mobile operating software for iPhone, iPad & iPod Touch), new SIRI (Apple’s voice activated assistant on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad) and more. We’ll have to wait until next week to know for sure of course but in the meantime we can speculate!

Here’s a link to an App Advice article titled “WWDC 2013 Countdown One More Thing Apple Should Announce June 10,” that talks about WWDC and the possibility of some type of new Apple TV device:

http://appadvice.com/appnn/2013/06/wwdc-2013-countdown-one-more-thing-apple-should-announce-june-10

And a link to a TechCrunch artilce titled “What To Watch For At WWDC 2013: More Freedom For Developers” that speculates perhaps Apple will allow app developers a bit more freedom in what types of apps and app options Apple will allow in its app store:

http://techcrunch.com/2013/06/02/what-to-watch-for-at-wwdc-2013-more-freedom-for-developers/

Have a great day!

Linda R.

P.S. And don’t forget if you just bought, or received as a gift a new tablet, e-reader, PC or other tech item and would like to know more about how to use it — you can make an appointment at the library for a free On-On-One tech session and a member of our tech team will show you the digital ropes! Call the Reference Desk at: 607-936-3713 to make an appointment! Did I mention it is a free service the library offers? It is! 

References

Chen, Brian. & Bosman, Julie. (2013, June 2). Trial on E-Book Price-Fixing Puts Apple in Spotlight. New York Times. Online.

Etherington, Darrell. (2013, June 2). What To Watch For At WWDC 2013: More Freedom For Developers. TechCrunch. Online.

Gamet, Jeff. (2013, June 3). DOJ Ebook Price Fixing Trial Against Apple Starts Today. The Mac Observer. Online.  http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/doj-ebook-price-fixing-trial-against-apple-starts-today

Miller, Matthew. (2013, June 3). Apple works out deal with Warner Music; iRadio at WWDC likely. ZDNet. Online. http://www.zdnet.com/apple-works-out-deal-with-warner-music-iradio-at-wwdc-likely-7000016241/

Sloan, Paul. (2013, June 2). Apple reaches iRadio deal with Warner Music, Suggesting WWDC launch. CNET. Online.

Strange, Adario. (2013, June 3). Report: Warner Signs On for Apple iRadio Service. PC Mag. Online. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2419821,00.asp

Wolfe, Brian. (2013, June 3). WWDC 2013 Countdown: One More Thing Apple Should Announce June 10. App Advice. Online.

The New Battle For Your TV, Voice Commands & Internet Connecting Glasses (Like Google Glass) May Be Mainstream Within Three Years

Linda Reimer

It has been super swamped today in library land thus a shorter than usual Tech Talk posting!

However, I have come across three cool articles I wanted to share!

  1. The New Battle For Your TV: New online/streaming consoles are coming Microsoft and Sony (Xbox One & PlayStation 4) later this year that will have more bells and whistles and do their best to merge the best of streaming boxes like the Roku player and Apple TV with gaming consoles like the Xbox and PlayStation. The tech site The Verge has a neat article on this very subject titled “With Xbox One and PlayStation 4, Microsoft and Sony rekindle the war for your TV” – here’s the link:

http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/21/4351892/xbox-one-playstation-4-comparison-sony-microsoft-next-generation

  1. Voice Commands: Both Apple and Android tablets and smartphones now have the capability for you to enter voice commands (i.e. Apple’s Siri) and according to CNET this year may just be the year this technology becomes mainstream and integrated into our daily lives.

Here’s a link to the CNET article titled “2013 Is The Year Of The Voice Command:”

http://news.cnet.com/8301-33617_3-57585521-276/2013-is-the-year-of-the-voice-command/

  1. Internet Connecting Glasses (Like Google Glass) May Be Mainstream Within Three Years: And the tech site Slash Gear offers an article on Internet connecting glasses like Google Glass – the article speculates that within three years this technology, like the voice command technology, will become mainstream and be integrated into our daily lives.

The Slash Gear article is called “Wearables like Glass and Flex could be a $50bn industry in 3 years” – here’s the link:

http://www.slashgear.com/wearables-like-glass-and-flex-could-be-a-50bn-industry-in-3-years-21282924/

 

Have a great day!

Linda

References

Davis, Chris. (2013, May 21). Wearables like Glass and Flex could be a $50bn industry in 3 years. Slash Gear. Online.

Parr, Ben. (2013, May 21). 2013 is the year of the voice command: Thanks to Google, Apple, Microsoft, Nuance and a few other tech giants, voice recognition has reached a place where it’s consumer ready. CNET. Online.

Welch, Chris. (2013, May 21). With Xbox One and PlayStation 4, Microsoft and Sony rekindle the war for your TV. The Verge. Online.

 

P.S. And don’t forget if you just bought, or received as a gift a new tablet, e-reader, PC or other tech item and would like to know more about how to use it — you can make an appointment at the library for a free On-On-One tech session and a member of our tech team will show you the digital ropes! Call the Reference Desk at: 607-936-3713 to make an appointment! Did I mention it is a free service the library offers? It is!