Microsoft’s Next OS To Be Called “Windows 7″. Seriously Jason Kincaid Mon, 13 Oct 2008 23:27:12 -0000
Microsoft has announced that the latest version of Windows, due in the next couple of years, will be called - drumroll please - Windows 7. It's about time Microsoft adopted a naming system that might actually make some sense to users, but I can't wait for hordes of customers to start asking if they somehow missed Windows 1 through 6.
Windows has had one of the most ridiculous naming schemes in the history of software. First there were logical (but ugly) version numbers, like the once commonplace "Windows 3.1". Then with the release of the overhauled Windows 95 the company adopted a naming system based on the year of release, which it continued until Windows 98.
Windows Me (perhaps the worst operating system I've ever used), sacrificed the scheme for a chance to be clever (it stood for "me" and the millennium at the same time!) Next up we hit Windows XP, which has served most of us reasonably well since 2001. It sounds sort of cool, it's catchy, and we have no idea what it means. Fine. RjDj Generates An Awesome, Trippy Soundtrack For Your Life Jason Kincaid Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:30:03 -0000
RjDj, a new iPhone application that was released earlier this week, is one of the coolest things I've seen released on the still fledgling platform. Download it now, if only to try it for a few minutes. You can download the full version for $2.99 here, or you can try out the free version (which only has one 'scene').
The application is difficult to describe and on paper it sounds sort of silly (see the video below for a convincing demonstration). Using the iPhone's built in microphone, the application listens for ambient noise which it then modifies and infuses into an automatically generated dynamic soundtrack. Each of the application's six different "scenes" has a different feel to it, with options like a trance-like beat that might fit in at a club and a track that is based entirely on percussion. Each track also treats the incoming audio differently - some tracks loop the input, while others distort it. More MashLogic Invites Available on InviteShare Mark Hendrickson Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:26:11 -0000
We've run out of our 500 pre-allotted beta invites for MashLogic, a new Firefox plugin that puts users in control of website links. But you can get one by putting your name down on InviteShare, where current MashLogic users are encouraged invite up to two people each.
Also check out David Cowan's post on the release of MashLogic. Cowan, a partner at Bessemer, describes the plugin as important for restoring Tim Berners-Lee's original vision for the web. AmEx Card Members, Vote Now And Help DonorsChoose Win $1.5 Million Erick Schonfeld Mon, 13 Oct 2008 21:59:08 -0000
Are you an American Express card holder? Then your vote can help provide supplies to 100,000 school children in the U.S. American Express is giving away $2.5 million to the top charities its members vote for, and DonorsChoose right now is in third place for the top $1.5 million prize. And it is only about 1,000 votes away from second place. There are about six hours left to vote. You can vote here for DonorsChoose, or go here to see all top 25 contenders. (Only AmEx members can vote).
We are participating in this year's DonorsChoose Blogger's Challenge, and the top three TechCrunch donors who give at least $1,000 will receive tickets to every TechCrunch event for the next year and a chance at a pitch session with angel investor Ron Conway. (More details here). But if you are have an AmEx account, you might do more good by simply voting.
DonorsChoose is an educational charity that lets you find and fund specific teacher's projects. If you want to fund a project directly, you can do so here through TechCrunch. For instance, for only $153 you can buy some Flip video cameras for a class of underprivileged students in Virginia. If you made money in today's market rally, you can afford it. And it is tax deductible. Can Twitter Authors Capture The Magic Of LonelyGirl15? Jason Kincaid Mon, 13 Oct 2008 20:19:51 -0000
Last year we ran a post introducing the idea of Twitter as a conduit for fiction when we wrote about Twittories, a series of crowdsourced stories comprised of 140 Twitter messages from up to 140 different people.
Now it seems that some individual authors are exploring using Twitter as an alternative to the traditional novel. Professional author and freelance writer Nikki Katz has launched her own story called MyLifeIn140 - the tale of a "sixteen-year-old fictional character who learns that she can change her world around her, all by editing photos in her Yearbook room." Flash Web Editor Wix Raises $3.5 Million, Shows Signs of Early Growth Erick Schonfeld Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:48:53 -0000
Today, Wix announced that it raised a $3.5 million series B round From Mangrove Capital Partners and Bessemer Venture Partners. The Israeli startup offers a Web-based Flash editor for making artful widgets and Websites, but without losing any SEO juice. (I've embedded two examples below).
The service has been showing some healthy growth since it launched in public beta last June. Co-CEO Allon Bloch tells me that Wix just crossed the 200,000-user mark, and is adding between 2,000 and 3,000 a day. These users are creating 2,000 new Web pages and widgets every day (the split is about 75/25 in favor of full-blown Web pages on MySpace and elsewhere).
In September, says Bloch, Wix content across the Web generated 20 million pageviews, up from 13 million in August.
Inhope - Internet Hotline Providers - Providing contact details and resources for reporting online child abuse in many countries around the world.
Meta Description: [ INHOPE - The Association of Internet Hotline Providers ]
Be Safe Online - Internet Safety advice for parents, teachers and responsible adults. Encourages child safety through careful online behaviour.
Meta Description: [ Advice and guidance on internet safety for parents, teachers and responsible adults. Encourages safe behaviour online by children and adults. Raises awareness of safety and security problems with the Web, Email, Chat, Newsgroups, Filesharing, etc. ]
Be Web Aware - Tutorial and tips for parents on the benefits and risks of being on the Internet.
Meta Description: [ Information and tips for parents on how to help young people enjoy the benefits and manage the risks of being on the Internet ]
Child Safety FAQ - Frequently asked questions (FAQ) about child safety on the internet.
Child Safety on the Information Highway - Put out by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, this document outlines how parents can best protect their children while still allowing them use of the Internet.
Child Safety-Net - Promotes Child Safety-Net book. Site also has newsletter backissues and links, relating to protection of children online.
Meta Description: [ How to protect your children from harm online! Learn how and when to install Internet filters and parental controls. ]
Childoscope - Organisation promoting integrated European policies on missing and sexually exploited children. An initiative of Child Focus (Belgium).
Children Online - Offers a variety of presentations and programs for schools, students and parents, on subjects such as online safety issues and solutions, and online harassment. Also offers short safety video excerpts for download.
Meta Description: [ Web site dedicated to understanding the lives & behaviors of children online; built to support work with schools, children and parents on issues surrounding children & the Internet. ]
Children's Internet Protection Act - A bill (S.97) before the US Congress (19 January 1999) to require schools to introduce filtering software for school computers.
Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) FAQ - Crucial legal, technical, and strategic information about the Children's Internet Protection Act.
Meta Description: [ Wisconsin schools welcome teachers from Japan
, ]
500Children's Safe Internet - Protected internet software for all ages, comprising controlled access browser, safe search engine and game -styled interface. Monthly fee based.
Meta Description: [ Children's Safe Internet is a complete children's Internet access service that provides a fully-secure and age-appropriate educational and collaborative environment for children ages 3 to 14. Complete safety, security and all the good internet content for specific age groups, without any dangerou... ]
Childrens safety education foundation - Aims to promote and further the personal safety, social, health and citizenship education of children and young people, by providing safety-related educational materials.
Meta Description: [ Childrens Safety Books from The Childrens Safety Education Foundation. Promoting personal safety for children in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Childrens safety news and resources for Teachers, Parents and Children ]
404ChildSafetyExperts - Articles and recommended reading about online safety topics.
Meta Description: [ ChildSafetyExperts.com educates parents about their children's safety. Our Child Safety Experts provide info and tips on baby safety, car safety, food safety, home safety, online safety, pet safety, school safety and toy safety ]
CleanMyMailbox - Service providing web-based parental control of the email coming into children's mailboxes.
Meta Description: [ CleanMyMailbox is a server side anti-spam email filtering solution that will filter unwanted email from POP mailboxes multiple times per hour. ]
Content Purity - Free online tool designed to check computer for objectionable content.
Meta Description: [ Free Internet software to provide content watch on your computer. ]
COPA Commission - Information and resources about the Child Online Protection Act.
CyberAngels - Comprehensive resource focusing on Safety matters. Offers guidance for parents, and provides information and solutions to common internet safety issues.
CyberCop Guide - A downloadable ebook about Internet child safety. Written by a police detective, it teaches parents to protect their children from becoming a victim, or from victimizing others while on the Internet.
Family Guardian - Provides filtered web access. Client is installed on the user's computer and all traffic is redirected through the FamGuard servers, content is analyzed and filtered or blocked before delivery.
Family Internet - Resources and tips to keep your family safe. From About.com.
Meta Description: [ Family computing is more complicated than ever with hardware and software choices, internet safety and a variety of website options. About.com can help you navigate all of the choices to make the right decisions for your family. ]
500FreedomISP Foundation - Child advocacy organization, initiating education programs for parents.
GetNetWise.org - A public service brought by Internet industry corporations and public interest organizations to help insure that families have safe, constructive, educational and entertaining online experiences.
i-SAFE America, Inc. - Incorporates classroom curriculum with dynamic community outreach to empower students, teachers, parents, law enforcement, and concerned adults to make the Internet a safer place.
IM-Age - Software for monitoring children's instant messaging usage on services such as Yahoo, AOL and MSN.
Meta Description: [ IM-Age Software Inc. offers enterprise solutions to ensure security, compliance and productivity for public. ]
InSafe - Frozen site of the European Union's The Safer Internet Exchange project. News, press releases and links concerning Internet safety.
Inspect Your Gadgets - Workshops, Seminars and Speeches designed to raise the awareness of the dangers to children and families of the Internet and emerging technologies and provide practical home strategies for parents.
Internet Filters.net - A list of internet filtering products and comparison data for parents and teachers.
Meta Description: [ Various software tools for preventing access to unwanted online material ]
Keep Your Kids Safe on the Internet - Companion site to the book 'Keep Your Kids Safe on the Internet'. Easy-to-understand guide shows parents how to protect their kids from pedophiles, pornography, pop-ups, viruses and spyware.
Meta Description: [ The companion web site for the bestselling Internet Safety book Keep Your Kids Safe on the Internet. The site provides parents with tips on how they can keep their kids safe from pedophiles, inappropriate content, spam, spyware and more. ]
Kid Innovation - Razzul is a kid-friendly browser, offering access to pre-approved sites and spam-free email. Parents can also review their child's internet usage and communications.
Meta Description: [ Razzul for Windows XP only, provides kids ages 3-12 lots of games and activities while in a safe online environment. Instant free download. ]
Kid Safe Mail - Child safe email experience without spam, pornography or viruses.
Meta Description: [ Kid Safe Mail provides kids email accounts that are safe from spam and unsuitable content by providing parents with parental controls, spam filters, virus scanning and content filtering. ]
Kid Smart - Practical online safety advice for teachers and parents, with lesson plans, online activities and resources.
Meta Description: [ Kidsmart is an Internet safety awareness programme for schools. ]
KidDefense.org - Police officers providing online safety information for children and parents. Includes details of baiting techniques used by online predators.
Meta Description: [ A Community Service Site providing free child safety information to parents and children. ]
KidMail - Filtered email service, offering graphical mail tools for youngsters. Parents have control over incoming messages, mail from unknown senders can be quarantined.
Meta Description: [ Kidmail is fun, playful email sofware for children. The KidMail.net service is accessible via AOL, Earthlink, MSN, and nearly all dial-up, DSL, and broadband Internet providers. KidMail.net service also protects with Microsoft Outlook, IncrediMail, and other popular e-mail software for teenagers ]
KidRocket - Kid-safe web browser works by limiting access to just a small collection of hand-picked educational and fun sites. Simple but effective, offered as freeware.
Meta Description: [ KidRocket Kid Safe web browser for kids, a safe and secure web blocker, internet filter for kids. Your child can safely surf the internet with Kidrocket, the free web browser, internet filter, web blocker for kids. Free download. ]
KidSplorer - Web browser protecting kids by only allowing access to pre-approved sites, offers additional parental control such as scheduled access times.
Meta Description: [ KidSplorer web browser for children - parental control, block, filter web sites ]
Kidz Privacy - Educates kids, parents, and businesses about the privacy rights of children online. Site provided by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
KIKS - Keeping Internet Kids Safe - A small collection of articles about online safety topics, as well as some links, and newsletter archives.
KinderMail - Software solution to protect your child from unsolicited, offensive email.
Meta Description: [ KinderMail is e-mail client sofware created specifically for children with the intent of shielding them from unsolicited, junk, and potentially offensive e-mail (SPAM). Children will love the attractive, fun, and easy to use interface, while parents can feel secure in having full control over w... ]
Max - Provides a service to filter a range of online activities including web, chat, email, instant messaging and file-sharing.
Meta Description: [ ? ]
Net Family News - A weekly electronic news service to inform and educate parents, families and caregivers of children who spend time online.
Meta Description: [ Net news for families and educators - THE source for kids' safe, constructive use of the Internet and technology ]
404NetAlert - NetAlert's objective is to promote a safer Internet experience, particularly for young people and their families. An independent community advisory body established in late 1999 by the Australian government.
Meta Description: [ NetAlert - Australia's Internet Safety Advisory Body providing practical advice on internet filters, Chatting Online, Instant Messaging, Cyber Bullying, Internet Security, Scams, Identity Theft, Cyber Stalking, Child Protection, parental control, internet safety, parental controls, filtering, int... ]
NetIDme - Online real time personal identification system for use within chat clients or internet chat rooms to protect the identities of children on the internet.
Meta Description: [ NetIDme members can use their verified digital identity to; identify themselves online, access age restricted goods or services, and sign-in to NetIDme partner sites ]
NetProtector - Hardware solution designed to prevent modem access to the internet when parental supervision is not possible, by means of a key-lockable switch.
Meta Description: [ Home page of NetProtector ]
NetSafeKids - Companion site of The National Academies report, Youth, Pornography, and the Internet
Meta Description: [ Protecting your child from Internet pornography and sexual predators online. Advice and strategies on types and sources of sexually explicit content, how inappropriate material can reach children and teens, the threat of cyberstalking, the pros and cons of technological tools, and other issues in... ]
NetSmartz - Educational resource from the National Center for Missing Exploited Children. Discusses various internet safety topics.
Operation SafetyNet - The Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force provides information to help protect families from the dangers of Internet child sexual exploitation.
Parenthood Web - Child Safety on the Information Superhighway.
ProtectKids.com - Substantial resource related to making the internet a safer place for children. Contains information, reports, articles, and useful links.
Meta Description: [ Kids Online: Protecting Your Children in Cyberspace. ]
ProtectKids.org - Provides cases, statistics, and solutions dealing with dangers to children on the Internet.
Meta Description: [ Provides cases, statistics, and solutions for parental control and child safety on the Internet. ]
PsychPage Family Resources - Links to several software products aimed at protecting children online, and blocking objectionable web sites. Includes a few links to larger related sites.
500Safe Children's Internet - Content controlled browser for children ages 3-14 with online safety pledge.
Meta Description: [ Children's Safe Internet provides parental control software, parental control internet software and computer parental controls. Try it out today! ]
Safe Surfin' Central - Site dedicated to educating children of all ages and parents in the processes of safe Internet usage.
Safe2Read Supervised Children's Email - A parent controlled, supervised kids email service for younger children. Childrens email can be sent using webmail or an email client and parents can manage the supervision from their regular email address or the web.
Meta Description: [ Internet Safety - Email for Kids - Safe2Read -
Safe, supervised email for children. Safe kid email account. Supervised email for parents who care.
Safe2read allows you to allocate everyone in your family their own email
account,
with a level of supervision appropriate to their age.
You need t... ]
SafeKids - Contains information about the dangers of children using the internet. Rules, advice, and tips relating to child security and the web.
Saferinternet - European project aiming to promote safer use of the internet, including resources and activities for parents and kids in a variety of European languages.
Meta Description: [ Internet safety information for parents and children. ]
SaferNet Roadshow - Aims to provide awareness and education through community events in the UK and Europe.
SafeTeens.Com - A guide to teen safety on the Internet.
Snitch - Parental control software that uses smart algorithms to detect and remove obscene images, movies, and inappropriate internet activity.
Meta Description: [ Snitch Parental Control Software which automatically checks your comtputer for adult material ]
SoftEyes - Monitor and limit computer use by a schedule. See everything, web, e-mail, chat, and instant messages both on and off the Internet.
Meta Description: [ SoftEyes records everything displayed on the computer screen, including games, web pages, e-mail, chat rooms and instant messages. SoftEyes controls computer usage times and visually plays back up to one year of activity. SoftEyes is easy to install, use and is compatible with all major blocking... ]
404Sofweb - Advice for schools on child safety on the internet, and acceptable use policies.
Meta Description: [ SOFWeb is the Victorian Department of Education's intelligent signpost to the Internet and learning technologies for students, teachers, school leaders, school administrators, parents and the school community. ]
Staysafe.org - Educational site intended to help consumers understand both the positive aspects of the Internet as well as how to manage a variety of safety and security issues that exist online.
SurfBuddies - Child Safe internet access product designed with total child internet safety in mind.
Meta Description: [ SurfBuddies specializes in the creation of Child Safe internet access products. Our products are designed with total child internet safety in mind. Just as important is the fact that they are fun and easy for a child to use. ]
Surfing Safely for Children - Page of hints and tips concerning safe internet usage for children, including pointers for parents.
Technology Inventory - Teaches parents what tools are available for choosing and filtering online content for their children.
Teenangels - A site featuring the work and activities of a group of teenage online safety ambassadors who educate others about internet safety.
The Police Notebook - A law enforcement site promoting safety and crime prevention for kids.
Meta Description: [ The Police Notebook - Law Enforcement Internet site to promote safety and crime prevention information. ]
Web Wise Kids - Teaching children how to make their online experience safe, using an educational CD-Rom game.
Meta Description: [ Web Wise Kids---the online resource educating parents, communities and kids about Internet safety. About WWK and how you can prevent online predatory behavior., Internet safety tips, Child Internet safety, Internet safety for teen, Internet safety games, Internet safety for kids, Internet safety ... ]
Web2mailjunior - Parent controlled email account for children. Remote access for checking that childrens' email remains free of inappropriate images and spam. Can be accessed through standard POP clients, eg. Outlook, Eudora etc.
Meta Description: [ eZpZemail provides parental control email and parent control chat
combined with online parental control, child Internet filter and kid protection on the Internet Works
great with parental control software for kids and family Internet security. Good for schools and library Internet filtering ]
WiredKids, Online Safety For Kids and Teens - A variety of online safety information, as well as online offline projects involving organizations like Disney. Aimed at both adults and children.
Meta Description: [ WiredKids, the ultimate online safety project for kids, tweens and teens. ]
Wise Kids - Works with communities, libraries, youth organisations, local education authorities, schools and businesses throughout Wales and elsewhere, to raise awareness of positive and safe Internet use.
Meta Description: [ WISE KIDS: Promoting Positive and Safe Internet Use. The aim of WISE KIDS is to work with young people, parents, communities groups, librarians, youth organisations, local education authorities, schools and businesses throughout Wales and elsewhere, to raise awareness of positive and safe Inter... ]
ZooBuh - Email service for families, with a range of parental control features.
Meta Description: [ Zoobuh is safe email for kids and families. Internet Safety, Email for kids, Email for Families. Parents can control and monitor their children's activities giving them peace of mind and confidence. ]
