07 May 2013

QWERTY keyboards and Telegraph operators

The QWERTY keyboard--we're all telegraph operators now--

The Lies You've Been Told About the Origin of the QWERTY Keyboard - Alexis C. Madrigal - The Atlantic: "The researchers tracked the evolution of the typewriter keyboard alongside a record of its early professional users. They conclude that the mechanics of the typewriter did not influence the keyboard design. Rather, the QWERTY system emerged as a result of how the first typewriters were being used. Early adopters and beta-testers included telegraph operators who needed to quickly transcribe messages. However, the operators found the alphabetical arrangement to be confusing and inefficient for translating morse code. The Kyoto paper suggests that the typewriter keyboard evolved over several years as a direct result of input provided by these telegraph operators."

Accessories No Longer Tethered to Apple
New York Times
Other phone makers like Samsung and tablet-computing device makers like Amazonhave become strong alternatives in the eyes of gadget shoppers. And Apple itself provided an opening for competitors when it changed the way its phones connect to other ...

New York Times

EU Rules Against Patent Play by Google's Motorola Unit
New York Times (blog)
BRUSSELS — The European Commission on Monday made a preliminary antitrust finding againstGoogle's Motorola Mobility, saying it had abused its dominance in wireless communications patents in seeking an injunction against Apple in Germany. Bits ...

Barnes & Noble teams up with Google to revive Nook tablet sales
Salt Lake Tribune
Barnes & Noble has upgraded the tablets in a bid to reinvigorate sales and last year brought onMicrosoft, the largest software maker, as an investor and partner to help promote Nook digital books via the Windows 8 operating system. Sales at the Nook ...

Elkin asks Google to rethink 'Palestine' tagline
Jerusalem Post
Google spokesman Nathan Tyler told the BBC last week, “We're changing the name 'Palestinian Territories' to 'Palestine' across our products. We consult a number of sources and authorities when naming countries. In this case, we are following the lead ...

Amazon launches Android app store in China
Reuters
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc launched an Android application store that offers paid apps in China, beating Google Inc, as the online retailer seeks to increase the amount of digital content it offers in the world's largest mobile phone market ...

Google Now: Is It Magic, or Just Plain Creepy?
Businessweek
One of the reasons I decided to make the switch from an iPhone to an Android phone—in addition to the freedom it allowed me from Apple's (AAPL) walled garden—was that I was interested in tryingGoogle's (GOOG) version of “augmented reality” search, ...

Apple, Microsoft Challenged By Streaming Software Plan
InformationWeek
If you publish a game that runs in a Web browser, you don't have to pay Apple, Google, Microsoft, or any app store owner. You don't have to seek approval if the content is controversial. Writing polished, commercially viable games using Web ...

Amazon leaks evidence of first smaller, cheaper Windows 8 tablet
Computerworld
The Iconia's single USB port, however, could be used to store music, photographs and documents on a flash drive. Amazon's specifications list did not note a MicroSD card slot. Even with smaller tablets like the Iconia running Windows 8, Microsoft has ...

Preston Gralla: Microsoft's smartwatch: Been there, didn't do that
Computerworld
Why is Microsoft following and not leading? One reason is that there's a disconnect between its substantial research capabilities and its product development efforts. Microsoft far outspends Appleand Google on research and development -- its $9.4 ...

Google set to unveil subscriptions for specialist YouTube videos
CNN International
(Financial Times) -- Google is on the verge of unveiling an à la carte subscription service for some of YouTube's specialist video channels, to finance a broader range of content and add a second revenue stream to the digital video market leader. The ...

Saturday Night Live Takes On Google Glass | TechCrunch
By Greg Kumparak
Aaaand the Google Glass jokes have officially gone mainstream. Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update — the bit that long ago became the best reason to tune into SNL — took on Glass last night… and, well, they kind of nailed it. Starring the ...
TechCrunch

Switched On: On iOS, Now is Google's time - Engadget
By Ross Rubin
In addition to Google's heritage being web-based (some of its early rationale for Android was to ensure that it wouldn't be locked out of Microsoft's then-ascending position in the smartphone space), it now has its own Chrome OS that is little more than a window into optimized ... Much has changed between Apple and Google since the stalemate around Google Voice, an app that, at least in theory, could have done so much towards winning Google's allegiance on the mobile phone.
Engadget RSS Feed

Amazon Leaks the World's First Small-Screen Windows 8 Tablet
By Jamie Condliffe
Rumors have swirled recently suggesting that a new breed of small Windows 8 tablets would soon appear in the wild. Now, Amazon has managed to accidentally leak the first tablet of its kind.
Gizmodo

Apple Leaps to #6 in Latest Fortune 500 Rankings - Mac Rumors
By Eric Slivka
Also, this past year has seen a lot of CEO Tim Cook having to apologize -- once in September for the failure of Apple's maps app, and then to Chinese consumers this April for slow repair services -- this in a market that Cook said this past January would be Apple's largest. Still, when every executive ....Google Glass will soon gain stronger interoperability with iPhones, allowing iPhone-owning Glass wearers to access text messages and navigation on the device. Currently, only Android ...
MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors...

Google Glass, the beginning of wearable surveillance - CNN.com
Michael Chertoff says imagine wearing the equivalent of a drone on your head everyday. Scary, isn't it?
www.cnn.com/2013/05/01/opinion/chertoff-wearable-devices

Endangered green sea turtles restart flourishing
French Tribune
Endangered green sea turtles are making comeback in protected waters from Melbourne to the Florida Keys, thanks to intense conservation efforts. Marine scientists have found that female green sea turtles along Florida's east as well as southwest coasts are ...

French Tribune

17-Year Cicadas to Swarm from Georgia to New York - VOA
Voice of America
HAMDEN, CONNECTICUT — Colossal numbers of cicadas, unhurriedly growing underground since 1996, are about to emerge along much of the U.S. East Coast to begin passionately singing and mating as their remarkable life cycle restarts. This year ...

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