We finished the import of all the historical stories from the previous PowerPage back end database. There are now over 8,000 stories in the database dating back to 1999 for your searching pleasure. The GUI for the search pages is still incomplete, so pardon the dust there for a while longer.
Thank you to Habi Jilani who wrote the converter from our Web Objects format to Movable Type.
We are in the process of searching for and importing the stories from the PowerPage lost years (1995-1999) and hope to have them imported an online to celebrate our tenth year anniversary of publishing in December.

“a wireless radio broadband data protocol being adopted by many CDMA mobile phone providers in Brazil, Japan, Korea, Israel, the United States, Australia and Canada as part of the cdma2000 standard. 1xEVDO is pronounced “One Ex-E:- Vee-Dee-Oh.” It is commonly referred in the industry as DO (Dee-Oh).
Compared to 1xRTT networks currently being used by operators, or the GPRS and EDGE networks employed by their GSM competitors, 1xEV-DO is significantly faster, providing access terminals with download speeds of up to 2.4 Mbit/s. Only terminals with 1xEV-DO chipsets can take advantage of the higher speeds.

Apple should be paying attention to this trend and needs to make sure that a broadband chipset (EVDO, GPRS or EDGE) is embedded on the new PowerBook motherboard. Don’t be the last vendor to include this functionality!

First it was the Panasonic Toughbook, then HP and Dell jumped on the bandwagon, now IBM/Lenovo have launched the new Z60t widescreen Z-Series ThinkPad – with a built-in EVDO modem (Verizon 1xEV-DO WWAN).
According to EVDO Wikipedia EVDO is:

“a wireless radio broadband data protocol being adopted by many CDMA mobile phone providers in Brazil, Japan, Korea, Israel, the United States, Australia and Canada as part of the cdma2000 standard. 1xEVDO is pronounced “One Ex-E:- Vee-Dee-Oh.” It is commonly referred in the industry as DO (Dee-Oh).
Compared to 1xRTT networks currently being used by operators, or the GPRS and EDGE networks employed by their GSM competitors, 1xEV-DO is significantly faster, providing access terminals with download speeds of up to 2.4 Mbit/s. Only terminals with 1xEV-DO chipsets can take advantage of the higher speeds.

Apple should be paying attention to this trend and needs to make sure that a broadband chipset (EVDO, GPRS or EDGE) is embedded on the new PowerBook motherboard. Don’t be the last vendor to include this functionality!

With impending disasters raging alone the coastal regions and the always possibility of power outages. One sometimes re-thinks what one has in case of a situation like such.
I quickly did a search and found some nice items. Please Note: This list is no way exhaustive (I’m sure with more time, one could find even better stuff).
To start off… in case of a power outage one needs the ability to hear what the outside agencies and local authorities are doing and what directions need to be headed, the FREEPLAY PLUS RADIO($109.95) is a great start and yes it is a hand cranked AM/FM/short-wave Radio… you virtually don’t even need electricity! With a hand crank AND solar panel this gadget can really get you through some tough times! Not to be over looked is the fact it has a optional AC adapter and NiHM rechargeable battery. Oh, it also has a built in flashlight as well!
Within this category of “hand-cranked” radios is two more less expensive items… the ETON FR300 Emergency Radio($59.95) and the DYNAMO Wind-up Radio & Flashlight($29.95). The ETON has a built in flashlight, NiMH battery, NOAA weather-band (2-13 channels), and will accept AA batteries and a AC Adapter. Even recharges your cell-phone! The DYNAMO on the other hand is very simple but if your strapped to a budget then get this one… hand-crank and solar powered! Radio and flashlight combined makes this guy the bare minimum to have! Optional AC Adapter.
Next, if you need to communicate and all phone lines and cell towers are down… get some 2-way radios. A great set is the Motorola TALKABOUT SX700R, at $74.95 a pair they have a 12 mile range and the ability to pick up NOAA radio. Included is two battery charging stations. Not all 2-way radios are created equal, the price ranges from $29.95-$99.95 pending brand and features.
If you need better and bigger solutions check out the alternative power section at CCRANE.com. Most notably is the XANTREC XPower Powerpack 1500, you can run a refrigerator or a laptop with this puppy! Or check out this humble little solar battery charger. For more versatility try the Bruton Solar Roll, expensive but offers more options. Additionally, here’s a nice alternative for when your cell phone goes dead, the SOS Charger (19.95). It’s a hand-crank charger… splendid idea and a pratical variation of this technology! The company site states that 3 minutes of cranking will get you enough power to make a emergency call.
The next item I thought is handy is the POGO RYW-LX. This little device is great because foremost it touts itself as a RADIO FIRST and a MP3 player second. And during power outages a radio is all you need sometimes. With a built in speaker, internal MIC, SD/MMC slot that supports 1gig (internal memory as well of 128mb), line-in, li-polymer battery and so much more this lil’ fella is a perfect piece of hardware. Just slighly bigger than a crdeit card the LX allows you to record radio directly or from any audio source. And my thought on this was, if you are listening to evacuation instructiions why not record it so you do not get lost! The industrial design is heavily influenced by the iPod so one may think this is another quick imitator… but as I previously mentioned, the LX is designed as a RADIO and then all the other goodies tacked on. An additional nice facet is the fact it has a USB slot, so it will play nicely with your Mac! One draw back however is if there is a power shortage then your in a pinch. The LX takes one of those odd ball battery packs like a cordless phone. You can no doubt find a back up at Staples but when in a pinch with no electricity you’ll have to use this sparingly since other more common batteries off the shelf will not do. To designers of such electronics: I may be wrong but I feel that making the battery bay to accept AA & AAA batteries and then have the Li-Polymery battery pack rest inside that would be the ultimate versatile electronic device for emergency situations! Jump to the vendors site.
And, as just reported by Jason O’Grady, Griffin is shipping the iFM, for iPod owners this little add-on will give you FM/AM radio and the ability to record it.
SIDENOTE: As a avid backpacker I always keep dry goods (Backpackers Pantry, Cliff Bars) around, a trusty back-packing stove (MSR Dragonfly, OPTIMUS Nova, Primus MultiFuel… these are multi-fuel and not tied to any propriatory fuel or butane canisters) to cook with, a head lamp, pair of 2-way radios, battery charger (w/car adapter), a Leatherman SuperTool, mini-first aid kit and a hand-pump water purifier(MSR). Granted it all sounds a bit extremist… but if I am traveling by car this stuff packs quickly in a backpack and is no burden at all!

The Kyocera KR1 EVDO Router allows you to insert a Verizon or Sprint EVDO card and access the EVDO via WiFi/Airport OR Ethernet. This $200 device is great for allowing devices that do not have a PCMCIA slot (iBook, PowerBook 12, iMac, etc.) to access high speed wireless broadband (which they couldn?t access affordably before this product). This router also allows desktop computers to access highspeed wireless internet via the built-in 4 port Ethernet hub.
More information, including product pictures, and screen shots is available at EVDOInfo.com.

Computerworld is reporting that Dell and HP will offer laptops early next year that will include embedded radios for accessing Verizon’s EVDO wireless data network. Readers of this site know that Apple has been experimenting with a tri-radio (WiFi, Bluetooth, GSM/GPRS) PowerBook for some time now and may finally release it in 2006.

In the past, we had television. Then there were computers. Then there was cable TV. Then there was a cable modem for the computer. Does anyone see a basic connection here and then a disconnect? For at least two years now I’ve been trying to get Apple (or anybody I can get to listen), to finally tie the two technologies together. The silence has been deafening.
A cable TV tuner should be built into the Macintosh. This delivers two technologies at one fell swoop: 1) a TV tuner built-in 2) A cable-modem built-in. TV tuners have been tried before, with many chips and discreet components, and were only marginally good performers because of the lack of a decent computer to attach it to and because networking systems had not evolved very far from “where’s the dial-up phone number?”
That was then, and this is now. Most Apples can run almost anything you throw at them, with fair efficiency; so displaying TV shouldn’t be a big deal. Networking is now a far cry from what it used to be. Cable modems dominates with 70% of high speed Interent connections and broadband has become not only a technical no-brainer, but is now cheap enough for a high percentage of Internet users.
The type of modem argument has been with us for a long time. Telephone modems had their day, but Apple in their infinite wisdom decided on the K56flex modem standard instead of the X2 protocol – and that was when K56flex only had 57% of the marketplace. Here we are today with a clear and dominant favorite (+/- 70%) for cable modems, and no cable TV tuner chips in Apple computers (or any others for that matter). In the old days, this would have cost serious money, but today those chipsets have be very inexpensive at the manufacturing level.
This is not a waste of time, and will finally come into its own, once the electronics gets added to the motherboard. I’m saying it now, and have been saying it for some time. Now the ball is in Apple’s court. First company to the finish line wins. Perhaps Apple needs to take a meeting with their friends at Motorola or Scientific Atlanta to see if this is viable? Or have they already and ruled it out?

“Slogging,” the practice of sending your SMS to a public SMS log, and of reading people?s personal, private, and distinctly odd messages, is becoming rather popular.
Personal and private SMS messages are on display at Treasuremytext.com offering a unique view into mobile messaging. Users are publishing their messages to the SMS log for all to see.
Some messages are cute, well wishing, a view into a happy world of happy texters. Some of the SMS stored are funny, some are factual, some are also downright filthy . The SMS log comes with a warning, and also a search box. If you have a few moments to spare and feel like a good laugh, just enter your search term and it?s bound to have been used in countless cheeky texts! (Use your imagination).
The project offers a glimpse in to the real life of the mobile world. And it?s a weird one!

Mac Information contacted Microsoft this week to find out when they expected to ship their update to Entourage 2004. Since Tiger was released on April 29th 2005, we had expected that an update would be released for Office 2004 users to make Entourage compatible with iSync.
UK PR manager for Microsoft, Lucy Fairbrass, stated that “we expect to deliver sync services support during the first half of 2006.” She also stated that “as with Spotlight, we continue to strive towards providing our customers with the latest Mac OS technologies”.
More info->
http://www.macinformation.com/pages/news/05-09/entourage-isync.html

Have you noticed that when you “update” a product these days, you have to be on your guard lest the vendor slip in a “downgrade”? Like when Apple “updated” iTunes to reduce the number of burns you could make from the music you bought from the iTunes Music Store?
Well, here’s another reminder of how “updates” can hurt you. As reported in the PVRBlog, the latest TiVo OS “update” causes some TiVos to start popping up red copyright warning flags on certain saved programs (including the Simpsons), threatening to automatically erase programs after a certain number of days. These restrictions are part of TiVo’s move, as reported last year, to lockdown and auto-erase content that is marked by broadcasters with Macrovision (a technology originally intended to befuddle analog VCRs, but now also being used as a flag to mark analog video for copy restrictions).
It looks like it was a glitch on TiVo’s end this time. Only pay-per-view and “premium channel” (i.e., HBO) programs were supposed to be Macrovisioned. (In fact, section 1201(k)(2) of the Copyright Act forbids broadcasters from putting Macrovision on any other programs.)
Of course, the fact that it was a glitch this time is should be no comfort to TiVo owners. When you bought your TiVo, you could record and keep the Sopranos, or Six Feet Under, or that exclusive boxing match. Thanks to the “updates” to your TiVo, now that capability can be taken away from you at the broadcaster’s whim.
It’s a good reminder that, in an age when Hollywood is calling the DRM shots and technology companies acquiesce, “updates” may no longer be your friend.
PVRBlog breaking of the story
The original version of this piece online

TuneBox’s micro drivers and efficient amplified speakers generate a powerful, dynamic sound, with unexpected clarity and great highs and lows.
TuneBox keeps the shuffle’s clickwheel controls up front within easy reach. Though it’s designed to visually complement the iPod shuffle, TuneBox delivers great sound from any MP3 player or other audio device that uses the standard 3.5mm stereo jack.

I’m a big fan of iPod boom boxes, they’re great for the beach, boat, garage, whatever. Most of them are designed for the white iPod though, what’s a punk with an iPod shuffle to do? Griffin Technology has got your answer bunky – the TuneBox.
Griffin’s US$39.99 TuneBox is a small boombox for the iPod shuffle that also charges your shuffle’s battery while it’s playing. At less than 4 square inches, TuneBox delivers impressive sound for such a small package.

TuneBox’s micro drivers and efficient amplified speakers generate a powerful, dynamic sound, with unexpected clarity and great highs and lows.
TuneBox keeps the shuffle’s clickwheel controls up front within easy reach. Though it’s designed to visually complement the iPod shuffle, TuneBox delivers great sound from any MP3 player or other audio device that uses the standard 3.5mm stereo jack.