tombrennan.org

Even though any new product has a glitch or two Apple must have seen this one coming.  There is a court case in class action status that alleges the battery of of the iPhone is a problem.

Specifically in the lawsuit the plaintiffs did not know that iPhone battery was sealed and soldered into the device.  It also claims that the iPhone battery can only be charged 300 times.  That would make an annual purchase of a battery a must.  Since the battery is “hard wired” inot the unit the consumer cannot replace on their own.

If you are without a phone while Apple replaces the battery on yours they’ll charge you $29.95 for a loaner.  The battery alone is reported to be about 1/5 the cost of the phone.  That adds up on an annual basis.

The suit also alleges that it is difficult to find information on Apple’s website on the replacement process.

written by tom

Honda has developed a car that runs on diesel fuel and get more miles to the gallon that a hybrid.  The car maker says that the car runs on “clean” diesel and expects it to be in the US by 2010.  The new car gets about 63 miles a gallon while looking and driving like a Honda Accord.

The car can run on regular diesel fuel, which is commonly found at gas stations.  It can also run on biodiesel, a form of fuel made with vegetable oil or other fats.  With that in mind, it would be a cleaner car than the Prius.

Honda showed the car off earlier in the month at a trade show. The show was in California, where the state has passed strict bills limiting fuel emissions.  It is also a very big market for “cleaner cars”.

written by tom

I just went over to simpsonizeme.com.   Here’s what I came up with…

written by tom

It looks like a college is taking a stand against the RIAA.  Although The University of Kentucky has been tightened their rules on students downloading copyrighted music and movies they do not plan on forwarding the RIAA’s request for the names of 14 students who are accused of music piracy.

This is not the trend for universities around the country.  Many colleges forward the letters to the “offending” students who the RIAA claims get music for free or at a drastically reduced rate.  Some colleges cite concerns over students’ privacy, but decide to comply with the RIAA anyway.

written by tom

Yesterday two US Senators called for the implementation of a method of filtering technologies to protect children on the internet.  This was discussed in a Senate hearing where civil liberties groups were not invited.

Daniel Inouye, a Democrat from Hawaii and Ted Stevens, Repbulican from Alaska both called for ways to set up technologies to filter out illegal materials for the sake of children.  They said that the internet is a dangerous place and that parents cannot protect children by themselves.
Senator Inyoue said, “While filtering and monitoring technologies help parents to screen out offensive content and to monitor their child’s online activities, the use of these technologies is far from universal and may not be fool-proof in keeping kids away from adult material.  In that context, we must evaluate our current efforts to combat child pornography and consider what further measures may be needed to stop the spread of such illegal material over high-speed broadband connections.”

Ted Stevens of the Internet is a series of tubes fame followed up with, “Given the increasingly important role of the Internet in education and commerce, it differs from other media like TV and cable because parents cannot prevent their children from using the Internet altogether.  The headlines continue to tell us of children who are victimized online. While the issues are difficult, I believe Congress has an important role to play to ensure that the protections available in other parts of our society find their way to the Internet.”

The FCC was called to find ways to identify ways that industry can filter out child pornography to help parents protect their kids.  This may also include monitoring software as well.

Usually the way any law works is that lawmakers say, “We’re doing it for the kids”.  Shortly thereafter the is call to do this for criminals, so the kids are safe.  After that it gets imposed on everyone.  Why are people making these types of statements when (in Stevens case) they really don’t know what the hell the internet is, let alone make laws about it.  There are ways to protect your kids while online already in place.  You just need to be a savvy enough parent to protect your kids.  If you’re not, just pull the plug on the computer. 

written by tom