MP3 Players in the Year 2000 Were Not So Good

This is the Creative Nomad Jukebox from the year 2000. It may have been shaped like a CD player to mentally ease technophobes, but it actually had a 6GB hard drive on board. And boy did we love it.

That's not to say that this thing was great—because it wasn't; not by today's standards. It had only a USB 1.1 connection, so uploading all 6GB worth of music took hours and hours. Imagine filling up a 1TB hard drive over a USB 2 connection today, if that gives you any idea of how long the process was. Oh, and it cost $420.

But you know what? It actually a pretty decent player for the year 2000. The 6GB is adequate even now (the lowest iPod Nano today has 8GB), and that 8GB of 5-minute skip protection was good enough for continuous music most of the time, except when you were off-roading or running away from cougars.

Hell, because it was so early in the MP3 player era, it even had extraneous features that were eventually ditched for cost cutting reasons because only a small portion of people used it. There was the stereo line input for recording, dual stereo output for 4-point surround sound as well as WAV and WMA support. Creative did do a good job with firmware support after the thing was released, actually adding functionality to the player when they could have just released a new hardware revision.

So yes, the Creative Nomad Jukebox was heavy, and lost in every way to any Android, Windows Mobile or Apple smartphone today in both price and feature set, but it was pretty damn good in the year 2000. [Product Page (Price dropped to $300 by 2001)]

Decades: where we revisit gadgets we loved from the start of the decade and see how they compare to what we use today.

Gizmodo. Dec 30, 2009.

Teacher killed by drink-driver, three injured

A secondary school teacher was killed early on Thursday morning after being hit by a car in Sau Mau Ping, a police spokeswoman said.
The incident happened at around 8am. A car driven by a 23-year-old man was travelling along Lee On Road in Sau Mau Ping, when the driver suddenly lost control and the car mounted the pavement.

A 44-year-old man named Chu Chi-shing – a secondary school teacher in Putonghua and Chinese history at Ning Po No 2 College – lost consciousness when he was hit by the car. Chu was certified dead by ambulancemen at the scene.

Three other people – a 38-year-old female pedestrian, a 22-year-old female passenger and the driver of the car – were also injured. They were sent to the Union Hospital for treatment.

The car was seriously damaged.

Police have arrested the 23-year-old driver for drink-driving, after alcohol levels in his blood were found to exceed the prescribed limit.

One eyewitness said the car was travelling at 80km to 90km per hour before it crashed.

Investigations by Special Investigation Team of Traffic Kowloon East are under way.

The police spokesman urged anyone who may have seen the incident or who has any information about it is urged to contact the investigating officers on 2305 7500.

The victim who died in the tragic accident was a discipline master – one who dealt with difficult students – for the school. Chu was on the way to join the school's Christmas party before he was hit by the car, said Wong King Hung – vice-principal of Ning Po No 2 College.

Speaking at a press conference, Wong described Chu as a responsible teacher who was highly respected.

“Chu was a popular teacher. After the accident, many students feel very upset and some have been to the scene to mourn. Many have written note cards to express their condolences,” he said.

School teachers and social workers provided counselling to Chu's immediate students and those who witnessed the fatal accident.

Wong appealed to the drivers not to drink alcohol before they drive.

SCMP. Dec 26, 2009.


Question for discussion:
As there have been several accidents caused by drink driving, do you think the government should increase the penalty?

HP camera 'can't see' black faces

A YouTube video suggesting that face recognition cameras installed in HP laptops cannot detect black faces has had over one million views.

The short movie, uploaded earlier this month, features "Black Desi" and his colleague "White Wanda".

When Wanda, a white woman, is in front of the screen, the camera zooms to her face and moves as she moves.

But when Desi, a black man, does the same, the camera does not respond by tracking him.

The clip is light-hearted in tone but is titled "HP computers are racist".

"HP has been informed of a potential issue with the facial-tracking software included on some of its systems, which appears to occur when insufficient foreground lighting is available," an HP spokesman told BBC News.

"We take this seriously and are looking into it with our partners."

BBC News. Dec 24, 2009.

Heavy snow blankets the north-eastern states of the US

The Telegraph.

Mini-Moscow on Sale for Just $3 Million

It took 300 people to construct a 400 square foot model of the USSR's capital city back in 1977. Today you can buy that super-detailed, scaled-down version of Moscow for a mere $3 million.

Stunning, isn't it? Apparently every single of the itty-bitty windows in the model can be lit up and there are effects to simulate day and night time. I guess that it's not surprising that the electricity costs alone are making mini-Moscow enough of an expense to get pushed onto the auction block.

Engadget.

LED traffic lights don't melt snow and do cause accidents

A number of cold weather American states are reporting their dismay at finding out that LED traffic lights are so energy efficient that they do not produce enough excess heat to dissipate any snow that covers them. It turns out, perhaps in an homage to bad engineering everywhere, that the inefficiency of incandescent light bulbs was previously relied upon to keep traffic signals unimpeded. The new LEDs do not achieve the same effect, which has resulted in a few accidents and even a death being blamed on obstructed traffic lights. Feel free to apply palm to face now. It's not all gloomy, though, as the majority of people are said to treat a dysfunctional traffic light as a stop sign (how clever of them), and a tech fix is being worked on as we speak.

Engadget. Dec 17, 2009.

Border security guards kill -- literally kill -- a MacBook

A young American woman travels over to Jerusalem to meet some friends, see the sights, live the life. Overzealous border security officers ask her a bunch of questions, take issue with her answers, and a few well-placed bullets later she is allowed entry into the country with a somewhat altered MacBook in tow. So what can we all learn from this incident? Firstly, back up all the data you consider important; B, Israeli policemen don't mess about; and 3, distressed laptops look gorgeous no matter how they got there -- just look at the way the glass trackpad has wrinkled up from the force of the bullet penetrating near it, it's a borderline work of art. The young lady in question has been promised compensation, but lest you think this is a one one-off you can see pictures of an equally dead Dell at the Flickr link below. We've got a couple more close-ups of the ravaged MacBook after the break.

Engadget. Dec 16, 2009.

Nearly half of high schools to teach in English

16 schools using Chinese to switch completely from September The number of secondary schools teaching in English in Hong Kong will almost double in September when the changes to language instruction policy take effect, according to school profiles released by the government yesterday. Taking advantage of the latest changes in language policy, 16 schools which are now teaching in Chinese will switch to teaching entirely in English. Another 80 schools will adopt a mixed approach - using Chinese for humanities subjects but using English for science subjects. Seven schools will do the opposite by switching at least some classes from English to Chinese. This means 199 schools, or nearly half of the 402 secondary schools in Hong Kong, will be teaching fully or mainly in English. This is the second turnaround of the medium of instruction adopted in local schools. The government adopted the mother-tongue policy in 1998 when all but selected secondary schools were ordered to switch their medium of instruction to Chinese. At present, 110 schools teach entirely in English. In 2006, the authorities announced that schools could teach a class in English if 85 per cent of students in that class were in the top 40 per cent of their age group academically. Schools whose students learn mainly in Chinese could use English for up to a quarter of lesson time to promote "extended learning activities". The policy will start from Form One students in the next academic year. Many schools said they made the switch because of an appeal from parents. Ho Kit-to, principal of Shun Tak Fraternal Association Tam Pak Yu College in Tuen Mun, one of the 80 schools using the mixed approach, said: "Many schools, including us, made the switch because of the market or parents' demand." Dr Anson Yang, principal of King Ling College in Tseung Kwan O which will adopt blanket English-language teaching next year, said all parents, teachers and students were excited about the change. "I believe that students will just learn better," he said. Another school which will soon join the ranks of English-medium schools is Yuen Long Lutheran Secondary School, which has been teaching in Chinese for 50 years. Principal Belinda Chan Yuen-chau said: "Our students are quite ready for this and the school is well prepared." Yim Chin-ming, principal of TWGH Lo Kon Ting Memorial College in Yuen Long, said: "We have been waiting to switch back to English-medium since 1998. "Until the handover, we taught in English and the school never really wanted to switch to Chinese. Almost everyone in the school is delighted with the change." One father, Mr Yip, whose Primary Six son will be affected by the new policy when he starts secondary school next year, said he was confused by the new system. "We now have more choices. Most parents in this town want their children to learn English well and I am just one of those." Michael Tien Puk-sun, former chairman of the Standing Committee on Language Education and Research who is critical of the new policy, said: "These schools switching to English-medium teaching are the first nail in the coffin for mother-tonuge education. In the end, Chinese-medium teaching in junior secondary schools is going to be wiped out altogther." Seven English-medium schools will no longer be allowed to teach entirely in English. SCMP. Dec 15, 2009. As a Form 6 student, do you think it is a good idea for more secondary schools to switch to English as a medium of instruction?

Troubled ATV files complaint over TVB

Troubled terrestrial broadcaster ATV has lodged its first complaint of unfair competition with the Broadcasting Authority, against its rival in the free-to-air television market, TVB.
On Monday, Linus Cheung Wing-lam resigned as chairman and a director of ATV, after a dispute emerged between its two big stakeholders - Taiwanese snack-food tycoon Tsai Eng-meng and the family of Mingly Corp chairman Payson Cha Mou-sing.

ATV's production, administration and public relations vice-president, Ip Ka-po, yesterday said the complaint filed by the broadcaster on Thursday made five main allegations, including some against RTHK.

Ip said TVB had been monopolising the talent pool by signing contracts with actors and singers barring them from making appearances in Hong Kong except with TVB. He said that even actors who had signed the "one-show" annual contract, which guarantees an actor only one half-hour segment of television a year, could not appear on other television stations.

Ip added that ATV even had to re-dub imported dramas it aired if they had been dubbed using TVB actors.

ATV also suspected that TVB had been offering large discounts to advertising clients, discouraging them from placing adverts on ATV, Ip said.

ATV accused public broadcaster RTHK of facilitating unfair competition by TVB against ATV. Ip said RTHK's popular public affairs programme Hong Kong Connection, which has a 30-year history, has never made any appearance on ATV, and RTHK had never explained why. Further, RTHK never let ATV be the first to broadcast its annual music awards show, because singers appearing on the show had contracts with TVB, he said.

The Broadcasting Authority acknowledged that it had received ATV's complaint, and said it would be processed in accordance with the Broadcasting Authority Ordinance.

TVB said it welcomed ATV filing complaints. A TVB spokesman hoped the authority's investigation would clear the air, saying TVB would co-operate with it.

However, Tsang Sing-ming, TVB's deputy controller of external affairs, defended the dominant broadcaster, saying that contracts signed between artists and TVB were willingly agreed by both parties, and it was normal for TVB to lay down clauses protecting its interests.

When it came to advertising, Tsang said, clients requested the best package. And if clients could not afford to place adverts on multiple channels, they might stick to the most effective channel.

When asked about ATV's allegations, an RTHK spokesman said it had been in close contact with ATV to ensure that programmes of various genres could appear on ATV.

The Broadcasting Ordinance prohibits anti-competitive conduct and abuse of dominance.

Despite this, ATV's complaints might not hold up, said Dr Cheuk Pak-tong, head of Baptist University's cinema and television department. ATV should try to do a good job before accusing others, he said.

"It changes management every few years; its financial status is not healthy; its shareholders are fighting with each other. How can the staff feel secure and do a good job to produce quality programmes?" he said.

Cheuk added that the government should listen to the public, and consider action against ATV's licensee status. "If they can't do a good job, maybe they should give the licence to other, capable people," he said.

Samson Tam Wai-ho, chairman of the Legislative Council's information technology and broadcasting panel, said ATV would also be able to file complaints to the panel if the panel later felt that the Broadcasting Authority did not handle the complaint effectively.

SCMP. Dec 12, 2009.

Kao gets special royal treatment at Nobel awards ceremony

Physicist Dr Charles Kao Kuen received his Nobel prize from Sweden's King Carl Gustaf with a special honour.

Because he suffers from Alzheimer's disease, the physicist did not have to approach the king to receive his medal and award.

Instead the king came to him, leaving the podium and walking down to the stage where the beaming "father of fibre optics" walked forward a few confident paces to meet him and shook his hand firmly.

The special arrangement was made by the organisers because of doubts whether the Shanghai-born, 76-year-old retired head of Hong Kong's Chinese University could negotiate the full distance to the podium, where the other laureates were to receive their prizes.

Various parts of the ritual including bowing to and shaking hands with the king, bowing to past prize winners seated on the stage, and to the 1,500-strong audience, were all dispensed with.

A day before the presentation ceremony, Kao's wife of 50 years, Gwen Wong May-wan, after delivering a speech at Stockholm University on behalf of her husband, hinted to media he might receive the prize in person.

Kao, who had been in Stockholm with his wife and children since Saturday said excitedly to the press on Wednesday in a rare complete sentence in English: "The only thing you have to do is practice."

Hours before the ceremony his wife said he did well in rehearsal. Kao won the physics prize for what the Nobel jury said were his "groundbreaking achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibres for optical communication, that has shaped the foundations of today's networked societies".

The award comes with a cash prize of 10 million Swedish kronor (HK$10.8 million), of which Kao will receive half. Two American co-winners of the prize, Willard Boyle and George Smith - for their pioneering work on semiconductors and digital imaging - will split the other half.

It was the third time Kao had received an honour from the Swedish king, after winning the Ericsson Prize in 1979 and becoming a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences in 1988.

SCMP. Dec 11, 2009.

Insane Pics Inside Amazon UK's Distribution Center (before Christmas)

It's 'Manic Monday' and shoppers are expected to spend £17million an hour today over the internet. The total outlay will hit £417million in just 24 hours, making it the busiest web shopping day of the year. Sales are expected to peak between 1pm and 2pm when office staff log on from work. Another hectic period will have occured this morning when mothers got home after dropping their children off at school. And the biggest-selling items? They're expected to be Apple iPod Touch, Wii fit, Scalextric and LCD TVs.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1233766/Santas-little-helper-Todays-busiest-online-shopping-day-year-So-ready-biggest-grotto-Lapland.html#ixzz0ZGsvr2PU

Fake fingerprints

A Chinese woman managed to enter Japan illegally by having plastic surgery to alter her fingerprints, thus fooling immigration controls, police claim.

Lin Rong, 27, had previously been deported from Japan for overstaying her visa. She was only discovered when she was arrested on separate charges.

Tokyo police said she had paid $15,000 (£9,000) to have the surgery in China.

It is Japan's first case of alleged biometric fraud, but police believe the practice may be widespread.

Japanese police suspect Chinese brokers of taking huge sums to modify fingerprints surgically.

Local media reports said Ms Lin had undergone surgery to swap the fingerprints from her right and left hands.

Skin patches on her thumbs and index fingers were removed and then re-grafted on to the matching digits of the opposite hand.

Japanese newspapers said police had noticed that Ms Lin's fingers had unnatural scars when she was arrested last month for allegedly faking a marriage to a Japanese man.

The apparent ability of illegal migration networks to break through hi-tech controls suggests that other countries who fingerprint visitors could be equally vulnerable - not least the United States, according to BBC Asia analyst Andre Vornic.

BBC News. Dec 7, 2009.

BMX hero set to strike commercial gold

Hong Kong's first Games winner has marketers salivating over the possibilities

When Steven Wong clinched gold for Hong Kong in the men's BMX final of the East Asian Games yesterday, it wasn't just the spectators who were thrilled.
The marketing industry suddenly found themselves with their own coveted prize - a young, hip sports star they could use to sell everything from sodas to running shoes.

Many brands have already approached the 21-year-old to offer sponsorship and product endorsement deals.

Banks and insurance companies have also expressed an interest in recruiting Wong as an adviser for their internal sports programmes.

With more sponsors, Wong will have access to better training and more events, giving him a chance to climb to a level of sports celebrity that only a handful in the city have reached before.

"Hong Kong previously did not have any young and stylish sports icons. He will be one," said Daniel Chan Yan-nang, director of Action House International, a local sports marketing consultant. "Teenagers will see him as an idol."

Part of that appeal lies in the sport itself. BMX racing is young, emerging into the mainstream largely in the 1980s. Most of the sport's followers are in North America, but Wong's win will boost its profile in Hong Kong.

He couldn't have asked for a better platform: Wong was the flag bearer for the Hong Kong team in the opening ceremony last night.

"To marketers, visibility is essential in choosing a brand spokesperson," Chan said.

He said Wong was interested in getting sponsors for future competitions in Europe and North America. Only when he did well in these races would he have a shot at the 2012 London Olympics, Chan said.

With a Chinese father and a Belgian mother, Wong can barely speak Cantonese - save to introduce himself.

He was born in Belgium and grew up there, but in his youth visited Hong Kong to see family.

He has been spending more time in the city lately.

An athlete does not have to have a Hong Kong passport to represent the city in the Games.

Wong is likely to spend even more time in the city since the construction of the BMX Park at Kwai Chung - built with a grant of HK$20 million from the Hong Kong Jockey Club - will allow him more opportunities to train.

Wong grew up a soccer fan and BMX did not enter his life until he turned 12, when his father gave him a second-hand bicycle.

Before capturing yesterday's gold, he was already a four-time Asian BMX champion.

Wong is expected to shine for years to come as BMX riders can still be in top form when they reach 30.

Chinese University marketing professor Leo Sin Yat-ming said Wong was on the path to becoming a rising star.

"People will definitely remember him after making headlines today," he said.

Asked whether Wong would face a language barrier, Sin said: "The fact that he does not speak Chinese might make him look even more stylish."

The professor said Wong would be the ideal person to promote "young" products, such as soft drinks, gym shoes and sportx equipment.

He said Wong also interested marketers because he was cheaper to sponsor than Olympic gold-winning windsurfer Lee Lai-shan and Asian champion cyclist Wong Kam-po.

"Some might want to invest in him before he gets famous," Sin said.

SCMP. Dec 6, 2009.

Man Builds Detailed Model Cars From Discarded Aluminum Cans

Meet Sandy Sanderson from New Zealand. Needing something to keep himself occupied after breaking his wrist in a motorcycle accident, he started building amazing model cars from discarded aluminum cans. His incredibly intricate work below.

Sandy's something of a renaissance man; draftsman, guitar player, teacher, motorcyclist, instrument maker and model builder. When he was in a motorcycle accident which shattered his wrist and put him out of action for a while, he needed something to do. While finishing a canned beverage he thought of model airplanes he'd seen made from cans and thought why not make cars out of the same material? And thus was born the CanCar. The "Coriba Climax" below is his first effort and while impressive in its own right you see the cars keep getting more and more technically detailed with each successive build. Very cool hobby Mr. Sanderson, and talk about a unique (though somewhat spendy) Christmas present opportunity.

Jalopnik.

Inflation rates by country

Japanese fishing trawler sunk by giant jellyfish

A 10-ton fishing boat has been sunk by gigantic jellyfish off eastern Japan.



The trawler, the Diasan Shinsho-maru, capsized off Chiba`as its three-man crew was trying to haul in a net containing dozens of huge Nomura's jellyfish.


Each of the jellyfish can weigh up to 200 kg and waters around Japan have been inundated with the creatures this year. Experts believe weather and water conditions in the breeding grounds, off the coast of China, have been ideal for the jellyfish in recent months.


The crew of the fishing boat was thrown into the sea when the vessel capsized, but the three men were rescued by another trawler, according to the Mainichi newspaper. The local Coast Guard office reported that the weather was clear and the sea was calm at the time of the accident.

One of the largest jellyfish in the world, the species can grow up to 2 meters in diameter. The last time Japan was invaded on a similar scale, in the summer of 2005, the jellyfish damaged nets, rendered fish inedible with their toxic stings and even caused injuries to fishermen.

Relatively little is known about Nomura's jellyfish, such as why some years see thousands of the creatures floating across the Sea of Japan on the Tsushima Current, but last year there were virtually no sightings. In 2007, there were 15,500 reports of damage to fishing equipment caused by the creatures.

Experts believe that one contributing factor to the jellyfish becoming more frequent visitors to Japanese waters may be a decline in the number of predators, which include sea turtles and certain species of fish.

The Telegraph. Nov 2, 2009.

Solar-powered FM Radio

Flexio is this really awesome radio that’s solar powered and portable. I’m willing to overlook the “only one fixed FM channel” stand for the cute little paper packaging it comes in. I’m sure the dynamics of manufacturing this are going to be reasonable, because one can even use it for promotions and gifts…like ask someone to advertise on its package. The innovative factor comes from the flexible speaker & flexible solar cell. It’s designed to be used within the station-waves range, but could be modified to receive internet radio via WiFi or WiMax.


Designers: Wu Kun-chia, Wang Shih-ju, Chen Ming-daw & Liou Chang-ho

Yanko Design. Nov 30, 2009.