IT Trends :: Thursday, March 23, 2006
IT NEWS
Blind Tech Exec Knocks Down Walls for the Disabled
Many of today's personal gadgets require screens, preventing some people from enjoying new technology. The chair of A-technic, Chris Mairs, wants to change that. Looking at issues for the blind, Mairs points out that for every technological advance, such as talking books or online shopping, there are also accessibility roadblocks. (New York Times)
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Google to Offer Online Access to Books
After being sued by the Association of American Publishers and the Authors Guild, the search engine giant is looking for ways to offer books other than public domain texts. If the controversial plan proceeds, Google will use books belonging to the libraries of Harvard University, Oxford University, Stanford University, and the University of Michigan. (Information Week)
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African Colleges Are Merging Into Internet Fast Lane
Internet access for African universities can cost up to $10,000 per month, while American institutions might only pay $100 per month. Now six major foundations in the United States have committed to the Bandwidth Initiative, a program to increase Mozambique's Eduardo Mondlane
University's bandwidth. (Chicago Tribune)
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Study Says Chips in ID Tags Are Vulnerable to Viruses
No, not "wetware" viruses, but instead those chips some thought too simple to be susceptible to computer viruses turn out to be not so well protected. A group of European computer researchers have demonstrated that it is possible to insert a software virus into radio frequency identification tags. (New York Times)
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