Internet

The Do Not Track proposal seems to be causing confusion and frustration among some W3C members charged with approving it.

Once ratified, the DNT policy would require advertisers and other third parties to turn off tracking for Internet users whose browser settings specifically restrict it.

The push for DNT has already created a chasm between advertisers, who naturally want the policy to be as lean as possible, and privacy advocates, who want tough standards.

Browser makers have also been caught in the furor. Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari, and Internet Explorer already include DNT settings. But Microsoft has caused waves by … Read more

Anyone with at least $3 million to spare may be able to own a 1954 letter written by Albert Einstein.

Up for auction on eBay starting today, the letter was written by Einstein a year before his death and sent to Eric Gutkind in response to Gutkind's book "Choose Life: The Biblical Call to Revolt." As such, it offers a revealing look into the scientist's private and unadulterated attitude toward religion and his own Jewish heritage.

"The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a … Read more

What if every time someone watched online porn, God didn't kill a kitten but instead donated money to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals?

That's more or less the idea behind Come4.org (though the co-founders' concerns range far beyond just kittens). Come4 is a would-be free, nonprofit, crowd-sourced porn site that's trying to get off the ground with the help of Kickstarter-like funding site Ulule. Come4 would link porn videos to specific social causes, channeling money to a cause whenever someone watched a clip. … Read more

The golden age of LOLcats is upon us. All those irritating and occasionally awesome captioned pictures of kitties are digging their claws even deeper into the soft, sockless, and vulnerable flesh of our pop culture with a new reality show premiering on Bravo in about a month.

"LOLwork" is a comedic documentary-style show that keeps tabs on the goings-on around the Seattle offices of Ben Huh's time-wasting (or productivity-boosting, depending on your choice of studies) empire, the Cheezburger Network.… Read more

Google has revved up its mobile Maps Web app through the addition of Street View.

As of today, users who launch Google's Maps site on their mobile device can see and navigate a Street View angle of different spots around the world.

Enabling Street View requires just a tap.

After launching the Maps app, enter the city, landmark, or other destination that you want to see. The site highlights the location and its surrounding area. Tap on the person icon that appears in the lower right corner. If the location is Street View-enabled, a separate tab opens in your … Read more

The New York Times is testing the mobile waters with a new Web site optimized for the iPad.

Created using HTML5 and formatted for the iPad, the new mobile Web app is designed to supplement the paper's print edition and Web site. The app is available to subscribers of the Web site and to home delivery customers who link their accounts with one of the digital access options.

Unlike the Times Web site, which delivers stories in a traditional format, the app presents the news in a variety of different views.

The Trending section displays the top 25 trending … Read more

Gangnam Style is neither ganglike, nor Vietnamese.

It's more of a Korean Macarena for those who think cocktails should be green and jackets should be white.

And yet it has become immensely popular. It seems only some understand that it is meant to be just a little satirical.

Indeed The Verge breathlessly tells me that PSY's Gangnam Style video has become the most liked video ever on YouTube. Yes, ever. Yes, the most liked.

Not only has this video enjoyed almost 243 million views at the time of writing, but it has been adorned with more than 2.… Read more

Users of the iPad, the iPhone, and Android devices will all spot a few changes the next time they fire up their Twitter app.

Unveiled today, Twitter's iPad app offers a new design that moves the Home, Connect, Discover, and Me categories to the left of the screen. You can now expand a tweet simply by tapping on it to quickly view its summary, and any linked photos or videos. Tapping on a link in a tweet smoothly opens it to reveal the linked Web page.

The Me page has adopted a slicker and cleaner look. The top of … Read more

Skype may be taking new look and feel cues from the Windows 8 interface formerly known as Metro.

New client versions of Skype are in the works with a few notable enhancements, The Verge reports. One such is a new UI that borrows from the Windows 8 interface. Skype is now testing this change, but could take it a few steps further in future releases, according to The Verge.

Also reportedly new to Skype: a video messaging feature that lets users send prerecorded videos, which their contacts can then view when they hop online.

In 2008, Microsoft beta tested a … Read more