computing

MONTREAL -- President Bush is backing a proposed law that would pull the plug on lawsuits alleging telephone companies illegally cooperated with the National Security Agency in its warrantless wiretap program.

We've written about this before, such as when the House Judiciary committee approved the measure last year as part of a bill to rework the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

At the time, last September, one backer of the measure said it would effectively "eliminate the 60 or more lawsuits filed because companies complied with government orders," such as the one brought by the Electronic Frontier … Read more

Oqo has started to ship a new model of its handheld Windows computer. Now all the company needs is customers.

The new computer, officially model 02, is a full-fledged Windows XP computer that comes with optional broadband wireless from Verizon or Sprint. It costs $1,499 and is available here..

The trick is that it fits into a person's hand, similar to those devices from Samsung or Taiwan's Hi Tech Computer Corp. (Hi Tech announced a handheld Vista-based computer this week.). Sony has a few in Japan.

Oqo, however, can lay claim to being in the market the … Read more

Motion Computing was going unveil its new LE1700 Core 2 Duo slate tablet PC to the world this morning, but thanks to some errant FCC documents, the blogosphere got wind of it a few days early.

The company is known for tablets aimed at industrial and hospital users--but with a Core 2 Duo CPU, built-in mobile broadband, and a 12.1-inch 1,400x1,050 screen that can switch between stylus and fingertip input--there's plenty of mainstream crossover appeal in the LE1700.

GottaBeMobile found a load of early details on the system on the FCC.gov Web site, but here … Read more

We've been logging some long work days of late--deadlines, you know--and the experience has given us the opportunity to make a few observations. First, most desks are just no good for geeks. In addition to the normal paper detritus, a mess of peripherals, accessories, and their attendant cords can quickly turn a desk into a disaster zone. Second, when you sit for a long time in the same desk chair, no matter how ergonomic your setup, your hip joints will threaten to fuse together in a permanent L shape.

The Milk Desk, though, looks to solve both those problems … Read more

According to a post on the Bugtraq newsgroup, Apple has a job listing for a security expert.

The winning candidate would "help provide guidance on security topics to all groups across Apple, and help teams design security into new cutting-edge features and technologies," and also "help analyze potential security issues and work with groups across Apple for timely resolution."

Apple has come under increased scrutiny by the criminal hacker communities in the last year, and the was the target of a January's "month of Apple bugs." In 2006, it issued more Mac OS security patches … Read more

We appreciated the "Easy Desk Aluminum" laptop stand because it suited our hopelessly slothful lifestyle, but we're not so sure about the "Ergopod 500" by Office Organix that's featured on Neatorama. It's not that we doubt its usefulness--as the company indicates, the setup can be used by bedridden individuals or others who can't use computers in any other position. What would concern us is the precarious-looking configuration of the equipment, as shown in this accompanying picture with the large monitor hanging over the guy's head. We wouldn't want to be … Read more

I got a chance to play around with OQO's new baby, the Model 02, at last night's SF Tech Sessions meet-up, and boy, is this gadget hot. Well, sort of. It was surprisingly not that hot considering it was smaller than a paperback book and running Windows Vista.

The Model 02 was announced a couple of weeks ago at CES, and the upgrades from the Model 01 are noticeable, especially the scroll sensor on the bottom right of the display, which makes browsing large Web pages like Crave a breeze. Its 800x480-pixel screen can handle a fair amount … Read more

Any modern homebuilder will tell you that the kitchen has increasingly become the most important gathering place in many houses, even more than a family or living room. New construction reflects that lifestyle change, often building computer hutches and other non-cooking facilities into the design, yet PC makers typically treat the room as an afterthought. (Water near the keyboard? Horrors!)

The "Icebox," however, is designed specifically for use in this ostensible danger zone. The wireless keyboard and remote are fully washable, according to Appliancist, but if you still don't want grubby little mitts all over them you … Read more

VMware showed off some of the fruits of its Fusion project to bring its virtualization software to Apple Computer's Intel-based Macs on Tuesday at the Macworld show in San Francisco.

The software lets Linux, Windows, Solaris and NetWare operating systems run in compartments called virtual machines on Apple systems, a feature handy for using software not available on Apple machines or for programmers or testers who need to use multiple products.

The final version of the software will ship in the summer, at which point VMware will announce prices, the company said. The beta version is freely downloadable from … Read more