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AP Technology NewsBrief at 7:52 a.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) China wants PCs to come with anti-porn softwareBEIJING (AP) _ China wants all personal computers sold domestically to come with software that blocks online pornography, one of the developers said Monday, potentially giving the government another avenue to control Internet use. The software, called "Green Dam-Youth Escort," targets online porn by preventing computers from accessing sites with pornographic pictures or language, Zhang Chenmin, general manager of Jinhui Computer System Engineering Co., told The Associated Press. Jinhui, based in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan in central China, was compiling a database of the blocked sites. New site promotes journalists as individual brandsNEW YORK (AP) _ First came bylines for once-anonymous journalists. Then came their photos, particularly as news shifted online, and blogs began to carry mug shots of their writers. Now, the journalist is about to continue that evolution from off-stage to center stage as a new Web site promotes the concept of the "entrepreneurial journalist." Japan explores using cell phones to stop pandemicsTOKYO (AP) _ A few months from now, a highly contagious disease will spread through a Japanese elementary school. The epidemic will start with several unwitting children, who will infect others as they attend classes and wander the halls. If nothing is done, it will quickly gain momentum and rip through the student body, then jump to parents and others in the community. But officials will attempt to stymie the disease and save the school _ using mobile phones. Apple's next iPhone crop must fight off more pestsWhen Apple Inc. launched an updated iPhone at its annual gathering of software developers last June, its biggest competitor was the iPhone that Apple had introduced the year before. That won't be the case at this year's conference, which opens Monday. Now the next version of Apple's touch-screen phone has to outdo a slew of rival gadgets _ including one that comes out this weekend _ that emulate or improve on some of the iPhone's best features. Reality bites Internet as 1Q ad sales fall 5 pctSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Internet advertising in the United States dropped 5 percent in the first quarter, marking the marketing medium's first downturn since 2002 when the Web was still recovering from the dot-com bust. The data released Friday by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP provided another reminder of the widespread pain wrought by the longest U.S. recession since World War II. NYPD looking at futuristic weapons technologyNEW YORK (AP) _ The New York Police Department is looking into adapting futuristic technology that would allow officers' guns to recognize one another in an effort to avoid the type of friendly fire incident that left a cop dead last week. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly asked his inner circle to compile a list of department initiatives that would help prevent confrontations between fellow officers. Omar J. Edwards, 25, was killed May 28 as he chased a burglary suspect. Edwards had just left work and was dressed in street clothes and had his service weapon drawn. Three plainclothes detectives came upon the scene. When Edwards turned after Officer Andrew Dunton yelled for him to stop, he was shot, according to the NYPD. Sprint CEO: Palm Pre is `coming out party'NEW YORK (AP) _ No doubt bolstered by positive reviews, Sprint Nextel Corp. CEO Dan Hesse said Saturday's release of Palm Inc.'s Pre smart phone represents a "coming out party" for Sprint as it seeks to reverse subscriber losses. The celebration might be cut short, though, if the wireless carrier can't keep up with the high demand it expects for the device. Web site tracks policy changes at popular sitesA new Web site unveiled Thursday will track policies imposed by popular Internet sites such as Facebook and Google, hoping to help users spot potentially harmful changes. TOSBack.org, the brainchild of privacy advocacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation, will track terms of service modifications within hours of an update. Review: Dazzling Palm software beats the iPhoneNEW YORK (AP) _ Move over, iPhone. You've had two years on top of the smart phone world. Now there's a touch-screen phone with better software: the Palm Pre. In a remarkable achievement, Palm Inc., a company that was something of a has-been, has come up with a phone operating system that is more powerful, elegant and user-friendly. The Pre, which goes on sale Saturday for $200 (after a mail-in rebate) at Sprint stores, makes it easier to do more things on the go. FTC shuts allegedly rogue Internet providerSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ The federal government has severed the Internet connection of a company accused of helping criminals serve up a "witches' brew" of nasty content online, from computer viruses to child pornography. It's likely to be just a short-lived victory in the fight against cybercrime, though, since bad guys are very good at getting back online quickly. Experts mull over lessons from plane crashLONDON (AP) _ The mysterious disappearance of an Air France jet this week while flying over the Atlantic in fierce thunderstorms is stirring a debate about whether new technologies and procedures are needed to prevent similar tragedies in the future. Experts say it's going to be hard to build a better plane than the Airbus A330 that plunged into the ocean Sunday, killing all 228 aboard. But they see room for improvement in other technological areas that could help boost safety. Baseball manager Tony La Russa sues TwitterST. LOUIS (AP) _ St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa is suing the social-networking site Twitter, claiming an unauthorized page that used his name to make light of drunken driving and two Cardinals pitchers who died damaged his reputation and caused emotional distress. The suit filed last month in the Superior Court of California in San Francisco seeks unspecified damages. Armstrong announces birth of son on TwitterAUSTIN, Texas (AP) _ Why wait for France? Lance Armstrong can pop that bottle of champagne now. He announced the birth of son Max during a break between the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France next month. Max is Armstrong's fourth child. Electronic Arts stages fake protest of game at E3LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Electronic Arts has been playing games with attendees of the nation's biggest video-game trade show. The game publisher hired a group of nearly 20 people to stand outside the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles on Wednesday and appear to protest the upcoming EA game "Dante's Inferno." EA spokeswoman Holly Rockwood says the stunt was arranged by a viral marketing agency hired by EA. Sony becomes 2nd label on Vevo music video siteLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Recording company Sony Music Entertainment has joined Vevo, an online music video site due to launch this year with the backing of Universal Music Group and YouTube. The music unit of Sony Corp. will take an equity stake in the venture. The other two major recording companies, Warner Music Group Corp. and EMI Group PLC, are also in talks on joining. (c) 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |