access

Survey: 40 percent in U.S. have no broadband

Many of us take broadband Internet access for granted. But a new government survey paints a different picture of the nation.

In a survey of more than 100,000 people in more than 50,000 households across the U.S., 40 percent reported no broadband or high-speed access to the Internet, while 30 percent said they have no Internet access at all.

Sponsored by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and conducted by the Census Bureau, the survey found that most of those interviewed said they either don't need broadband or find it too expensive. Some said they … Read more

The 404 Podcast 517: Where we're huge in Japan

Japanese pop star Leah Dizon joins the guys on today's episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast, and Mark Licea also joins the fun to talk about his personal history with the international sensation.

It's not every day we get a chance to interview a Japanese pop star, so when we found out that Mark Licea of CNET's The Green Show grew up with host/model/singer Leah Dizon, we booked her right away. Mark hangs out in the studio as well and we get the inside scoop on their childhood friendship, Leah's rise to fame in the States and abroad, and Japan's advanced technology that makes our iPhone look like the Jitterbug.

In the second half of the show, Wilson tells us a strange story about a man who claims that a booty call cell phone ruined his life. Apparently a Canadian woman found a series of lewd photo messages on her boyfriend's phone. After she confronted him about the pictures, the guy blamed Virgin Mobile for selling him a used phone with preloaded media. Nothing fishy here...

We also can't ignore the big news of the day: Google is testing out its new Internet service that promises speeds of 1Gbps. The fiber-optic network is set to humiliate Verizon FiOS, but at a more "competitive price," whatever that means. If you want Google to test out the service in your home town, you can sign up online anytime before March 26.

Thanks to Leah Dizon for chatting with us today! Check out her Web site and buy her music! Also, be sure to send your Valentine's Day questions to the404(at)cnet[dot]com, because the girls of Sugar Rock Catwalk will be in the studio tomorrow to offer tips on how to impress your boo bear this Sunday!

EPISODE 517 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

FCC closes cable programming loophole

The Federal Communications Commission Wednesday voted to close a "loophole" that allowed cable operators to withhold local sports programming from competitors.

In a 4-1 vote, the commissioners ended the "terrestrial loophole," which prevents satellite TV providers and new TV providers, such as AT&T and Verizon Communications, from offering some live sports channels in certain areas of the country. These companies say they have had a competitive disadvantage, because they have not been able to offer this content.

Cable companies are required by federal law to offer access to channels that they own to competitors … Read more

Gateway to Google

A vast improvement on its BlackBerry predecessor, Google Mobile App is primarily a search app that also serves as a portal to other Google Web apps. It's anchored by a search bar, with a string of icons marching along the top. Click one to download or launch native Google apps like Gmail and maps, or to jump to mobile Web sites for the panoply of Google apps.

Warmly welcomed are autocomplete search suggestions, the capability to scroll through search history, and the capability to edit a misspelled search term and begin a new search. A My Location feature that … Read more

D-Link unveils superfast, compact wireless-N access point

LAS VEGAS--If you want to upgrade your wired network to wireless-N, you probably want to wait for the newest access point from D-Link.

The company unveiled at CES 2010 its most powerful consumer access point ever, the D-Link Rush (DAP-1560) wireless-N access point.

According to D-Link, the DAP-1560 will bring home networking to a new level of performance for those who demand the fastest streaming of high-definition content, such as movies, HD video, and photos. The new access point features a 4x4 antenna design that helps boost the power of any existing router with up to 600Mbps wireless speed and … Read more

New VoxOx features help even old cell phones

While Google Voice and Skype get most of the VoIP attention because they're, well, Google and Skype, VoxOx appears committed to making them work for their reputations. Announced in Las Vegas for CES, VoxOx's Personal Assistant 2 is the latest update to the sub-features that provide inbound call management as part of the full VoxOx program.

From Southern California-based TelCentris, VoxOx for Windows and Mac is a free desktop multi-protocol program that supports standard instant messaging, social networking, and Voice over Internet Protocol. The upgraded Personal Assistant features focus on remote access, and that's really the killer … Read more

Quickly access your camera--David's iPhone tip of the week

Increasingly, iPhone users have replaced their point-and-shoot cameras with the iPhones' built-in shooter. If you find yourself frequently reaching for your iPhone to capture a fleeting moment, you may want to reassign your buttons to make launching the camera faster. Here's how:

1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone by tapping its icon. 2. Tap General. 3. Tap Home. 4. Tap Camera. 5. Turn Off iPod Controls.

Note: Step 5 prevents the display of iPod controls while music plays when you double-tap the home button.

Now, when you double-tap the Home button, you will go straight to the … Read more

Web accessibility no longer an afterthought

Yahoo's Victor Tsaran knows how much time Web designers spend agonizing over color and font-width choices when laying out an application. So when he started Yahoo's accessibility push two years ago, he had a tough time arousing sympathy for engineers grousing about how much extra time was needed to create accessibility features.

Fortunately for Tsaran, Yahoo's accessibility manager, he's running into that problem less and less. Web designers are starting to take accessibility as seriously as button placement or heading layout when they develop their products, improving the Web experience not only for people like Tsaran--who … Read more

Password issues? You may need to reset your keychain

Occasionally users will encounter password issues that Keychain Access cannot repair using Keychain First Aid. In these cases, users can reset their keychain. Resetting your keychain can also help if you cannot remember your original keychain password. Keep in mind that resetting your keychain archives your original passwords and starts a new keychain.… Read more

MOG looks and sounds good, but has big gaps

MOG offered me a free trial to its subscription-based streaming music service, MOG All Access, which launched on Tuesday. The service costs five bucks a month, and gives you unlimited on-demand streams of more than six million songs from all four major labels and plenty of indies. The site is trying to differentiate itself from competitors like Rhapsody and Napster with high-quality streams--all songs are 320kbps MP3s--and some fairly sophisticated music discovery features, like playlists posted by musicians (David Byrne got the featured spot on the day of launch) and other fans with similar tastes to yours ("Moggers like … Read more