competition

IE8 coming in 2009, but will it be late to the Firefox party?

CNET's Ina Fried reports that Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 won't surface until 2009. With a release candidate not scheduled until the first quarter of 2009, the final release won't hit until the second (or possibly even the third) quarter. Microsoft released a beta of IE8 back in March 2008. Roughly a year later, we should see the full release in action.

By that time, will anyone care?

Yes, Microsoft continues to dominate the browser market with 71.3 percent market share, according to Net Applications, so, the majority of Internet users will continue to use IE. But … Read more

Scottish I-Ball rolls to success

A new launchable, wireless projectile camera from Scotland gives troops 360-degree, high-quality, real-time video coverage whether in flight or rolling on the floor.

The I-Ball can be tossed into a room, fired from a grenade launcher or even a mortar, and its advanced image stabilization technology will still deliver a steady picture and easy to see "high-value" video, according to creator Edinburgh-based company Dreampact. The grenade-size, wireless camera will allow the redcoats to have a quick peek before entering a room or cresting a ridge--basically providing the services of a miniature unmanned vehicle, but without the noisy engine.… Read more

Facebook invites members to vote in developer competition

Facebook members can now vote on the second round of finalists for its FBFund seed funding competition, which will give out a total of $225,000 to five grand prize winners. The 25 companies currently in the running have already pocketed $25,000 apiece for the applications they have proposed for Facebook's third-party developer platform.

This is the second annual FBFund competition, but the first one in which members have been able to vote on their favorite apps. They can vote once per day, and can watch promotional "commercials" about what each one of them does. Voting … Read more

YouTube and Pulitzer Center look for best video journalists

Google is working with a titan of traditional journalism to help promote citizen journalism.

YouTube announced Monday that it has partnered with the Pulitzer Center to create a journalism contest designed to unearth the best news videographers.

Contestants have until October 5 to submit news clips three-minutes long or less that must focus on stories largely overlooked or ignored by traditional media. The Pulitzer Center will judge the competition and plans to trim the contestants down to 10 finalists following the initial round.

YouTube viewers will eventually choose the winner.

The winner will receive a $10,000 grant for travel … Read more

Author Estrin sees U.S. research as 'eroded,' 'unstable'

Unlike most first-time authors, Judy Estrin was guaranteed an audience from the moment she decided to put pen to paper.

With one of Silicon Valley's more renowned resumes, Estrin helped launch seven companies in a career spanning two and a half decades.

So it was that she decided to offer her own policy prescriptions on the myriad economic challenges facing the United States.

The problem with so many books of this genre is that most are boring beyond belief. It's hard to believe these same former executives forged successful careers by spouting the kind of mind-bending platitudes they … Read more

Running robots sprint for the win

Just as the Beijing Olympics were winding down, radio-controlled robots were going head-to-head in a sports event of their own--the annual Robot Athletic Meet in Tokyo's Akihabara district, which is known as a hub for anime and gadgets. In the photo above, two bots compete in a 2-meter dash. Fifteen bipedal robots took part in last weekend's athletic meet, which was organized by Tsukumo, a maker of robot kits and products.

The 404 162: Where Michael Phelps can swim faster than we can run

On today's show: Heroic and controversial news from the 2008 Summer Olympics, Michael Phelps dominates the competition, Chinese gymnasts gettin' shady wit it, child abuse in the form of gymnastics training, the great bigfoot unveiling, Favre team traitor trading, Hawaii Five-0 remake, and submission from our 404 GoAnimate competition!

I know that we've talked almost nonstop about the Olympics this week, but we have to considering all the crazy controversy going on this year. I actually can't remember the last time I've heard so much news about the Olympics that didn't have to do directly … Read more

OLPC, or why you can't copyright ideas

I have to agree with Mike Masnick's contention that Nicholas Negroponte is way off base in arguing that Intel and Microsoft are to blame for the One Laptop Per Child's problems. Whatever Microsoft's problems, a fervent desire to compete is not one of them. Ditto for Intel. According to Masnick:

While the idea behind creating a super cheap, super durable useful computer for children in developing nations is good, Negroponte has always approached the idea as one where only he should be allowed to see that vision through. When other companies decided it might be a good … Read more

Microsoft tries to battle free with cheap. It won't work

Microsoft, making the same mistake that Oracle made a few years ago with its low-end Oracle 10g Express Edition database, has decided that the best way to hold off open source nipping at its heels is to create a portfolio of low-end, cheap products.

It won't work. Microsoft provides compelling value, but this is not it. "Crappy but cheap" is not a compelling value proposition against open source, which already has an array of software that fits that model (just as there's lots of cheap but crappy proprietary software out there already).

Microsoft gets it right in its annual report: … Read more