Geekly Update - 12 December 2012
Is it true that Comcast and Verizon can spy on you through your TV set top box? Would you pay $35,500 to watch a classic Superman movie in your living room? And whew... what's that AWFUL smell coming from your search engine? Get answers to these burning questions, and the scoop on the latest tech news, in this edition of the Geekly Update. It's guaranteed to make you 146% smarter, read on... |
The AskBobRankin Geekly Update
“Bing: Powered by Poo?” Human waste will provide methane gas for a fuel cell powering Microsoft’s new data center in Cheyenne, Wyoming. No word on what Microsoft is actually doing with these umm, raw materials, but a Microsoft rep called the project "really refreshing."
Want to watch movies at home the same day they’re released to theaters, legally? Prima Cinema has the solution, and it costs only $35,000 plus $500 per movie.
"I'd like to have an argument please..." Too bad, because AT&T is rolling out personalized video bills to wireless customers. You get an email with a link to a 3.5 minute animated explanation of your bill, and you can’t argue back.
The first nine “Superman” cartoons, produced by Fleischer Studios from 1941 to 1942, are utterly awesome! Warner Bros. has posted digitally remastered copies of these Superman classics on YouTube.
“Taking creepy to a whole new level...” Verizon has applied for a patent on a set-top box that monitors your TV viewing area, allowing better targeting of ads based on who’s watching and what they’re doing. Comcast and Google already have similar patents. Sleep well, Citizen.
Google has agreed to pay $17 million for BufferBox, a temporary storage locker firm based in Canada. This is not cloud storage, but a physical storage locker to which your online purchases are delivered. Users receive a PIN via email that unlocks the storage locker one time. Great for the homeless, the anonymous, and people who don’t want to wait at home for the FedEx guy.
Not a sports fan? Tough, you’re paying for sports anyway. The average American household’s cable or satellite TV bill is $98 per month, and nearly half of that is for sports channels that leagues require TV providers to deliver to all subscribers.
Love at first flight: Meet At The Aiport is a dating site for single travelers. Just enter the usual profile info and your flight details; the site will try to match you with someone on the same flight.
Then there’s LaughMatch, where you don’t have to fill out tedious surveys. Just watch a few videos and vote for the ones that make you laugh. Then get matched with other users whose sense of humor matches yours.
And another one bites the dust: Sony will end production of cassette tape recorder/players in 2013. Ramp up your eBay business!
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This article was posted by Bob Rankin on 12 Dec 2012
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Article information: AskBobRankin -- Geekly Update - 12 December 2012 (Posted: 12 Dec 2012)
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Most recent comments on "Geekly Update - 12 December 2012"
Posted by:
Seabat
12 Dec 2012
As for the spying set-top boxes, I don't worry about them, and I don't worry about paying for cable sports. I cut the cable and satellite 3 years ago. Now when I want crap, I get it over the air, which is seldom. My wife and I spend an average of about 4-6 hours a week in front of the fancy flat panel.
Posted by:
Raymond Combs
12 Dec 2012
"Verizon has applied for a patent on a set-top box that monitors your TV viewing area, allowing better targeting of ads based on who’s watching and what they’re doing. Comcast and Google already have similar patents."
I'd like some information on these "similar patents", since the Verizon patent was rejected a week ago! My Comcast DVR has no video INPUT to "see" what I am doing!
EDITOR'S NOTE: Your *current* set-top box has no built-in spy camera. But seriously, I can't believe this could actually be tolerated by consumers. "That's funny, why are ALL the ads on TV for reverse mortgages and denture cream?"