rights

Future of the Nintendo 3DS now up in the air

Today's rumors of Nintendo entertaining the idea of adding a right thumbstick accessory to the 3DS are troubling at the very least. First, let me definitively say this: a right thumbstick attachment will not save the 3DS.

Unfortunately this bit of news sounds to me like an unwise gut reaction of a company very desperate to right the 3DS ship. But the thumbstick chatter isn't all that the latest rumors have suggested. Further rumblings seem to indicate that Nintendo is working on a completely redesigned unit that will stray away from what's now widely regarded as a 3D gimmick.

Let's also not ignore the other ramifications should Nintendo actually go through with this. By completely redesigning the system, Nintendo would be turning its back on the loyal early adopters who have already purchased the system (pre and post price drop), not to mention the developers who pledged their support from the start as well. In the short term it will almost certainly have an immediate impact on current sales; who would want to buy a 3DS after reading today's rumors?… Read more

CTIA weighs challenge to revised SF cell phone law

Just when you thought the legal battles between the CTIA and the city of San Francisco were over, it appears that the fight may continue.

In an interview today, a spokesman for the wireless industry's trade group told CNET that the organization is strongly considering challenging a new city law that requires San Francisco retailers to post informational notices that cell phones emit radiofrequency (RF) energy and offer fact sheets to consumers who request them.

John Walls, CTIA's vice president for public affairs, refused to say exactly what legal recourse the group is considering, but that it is … Read more

Context menu customizer

Context menus, often called pop-up menus, keep functionality high and clutter low in operating systems like Windows. RBSoft's Right Click Enhancer bundles five free tools for customizing context menus. My Computer Manager adds nondeleting files or folders to My Computer or the Control Panel, while Right Click Tweaker adds up to 10 entries to context menus. Send To Manager let us add new destinations to the Send To command, and Right Click Shortcuts Creator adds shortcuts to files and folders to context menus. The Right Click Cascading Menu Creator is a little bit more sophisticated than the other tools. … Read more

Viacom, Time Warner Cable suspend iPad app litigation

MTV and Comedy Central fans may soon be able to get that programming through the Time Warner Cable iPad after all.

Viacom, which owns MTV and Comedy Central, and Time Warner Cable have put their legal fight over whether Viacom content can be viewed through the iPad app on hold, according to a story in The Wall Street Journal. Viacom filed a lawsuit against Time Warner Cable in April, shortly after the cable operator launched its new iPad app allowing cable TV subscribers to watch programming available via their cable package on their iPads while in their home.

The companies … Read more

Cell phone radiation and the law that died

The strange tale of San Francisco's "Right to Know" ordinance finally came to an end last week when city officials permanently shelved the legislation in its current form. Indeed, it was a quiet end to a groundbreaking law that drew not only worldwide interest, but also the fervent opposition of the wireless industry.

Passed almost a year ago, the ordinance would have required cell phone retailers to display a cell phone's Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) at the point of sale and make available consumer information materials on cell phone radiation. The law (PDF) was the first … Read more

San Francisco officials discuss CTIA lawsuit in closed-door meeting

Minutes after they gave preliminary approval to a payroll tax break to keep tech companies like Twitter in San Francisco, the city's Board of Supervisors used a closed-door meeting yesterday to discuss a lawsuit by the CTIA. The board also decided not to disclose what it discussed during the session.

It was the second time in three weeks that the board had met privately with City Attorney Dennis Herrera's office to discuss the CTIA's suit over the city's Right-to-Know ordinance (PDF). Passed last June, the legislation requires cell phone retailers to display the Specific Absorption Rate (… Read more

The 404 786: Where we would really appreciate the tour (podcast)

The 404 Digest for Episode 786

Jeff spent all weekend making socially awkward penguin memes. A picture tour of the CNET office. Everything you need to know about Firefox 4. Setting the record straight costs celebrities $1,000 a year. European Union proposes legislation for "right to be forgotten." New app shields you from annoying celebrity news.

Morgan Freeman gaming box art from Eddy and Jason. The Oatmeal comic submissions by Justin, Attariq, and Cameron (pictured).

Episode 786 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

White House pushes for online privacy bill of rights

The White House is urging Congress to enact a new "privacy bill of rights" that would provide clearer guidelines to online users and businesses about the collecting of personal information over the Internet.

Speaking in Washington yesterday at a special hearing devoted to online consumer privacy, Assistant Commerce Secretary Lawrence Strickling acknowledged that the ability to store information about customers helps make online companies more efficient. But he said that consumers are growing increasingly uneasy about how their personal information is being collected and used.

With the lengthy privacy policies now offered by Web sites proving confusing and … Read more

How to set up your new MacBook

Because Apple computers are so intuitive, you may be overlooking some simple but helpful settings. A few tweaks to your security settings, dock, Finder, and keyboard are really all it takes to make your MacBook even easier to use than it already is.

If you're a first-time MacBook owner, this how-to will introduce you to your computer's security settings and help you enable a few of your Mac's most useful features.

So before you say, "Hey, there's no right-click on MacBooks?!" walk through the following tips:

Rev up security settings. Go to System Preferences &… Read more

Will Hollywood's 'UltraViolet' plan replace the DVD?

A group of stakeholders in the entertainment industry are poised to make a important sales pitch to consumers concerning the way they buy and watch movies and TV shows.

Warner Bros. Entertainment, Netflix, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, and Best Buy are among the members of a consortium called the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem, or DECE, which has come up with a set of standards and specifications designed to make approved digital content playable on certified devices. DECE calls the technology UltraViolet.

DECE announced this evening at the 2011 CES in Las Vegas that it expects companies that have licensed UltraViolet to begin … Read more