Mother Earth Closes Down at Request of Google Earth

Gaia was an open source Earth imaging software, which as described in the developer’s own words, is “an attempt to reverse engineer famous Google Earth and implement its functionality in open, portable, customizable and extendable way.” One of the things that Gaia brought that Google Earth couldn’t was its availability on systems running OpenBSD, MorphOS, FreeBSD and some handheld systems.

Obviously, the words “reverse engineer” raised some red flags over at camp Google, and sparked a cease and desist order from Michael Jones, Chief Technologist of Google Earth, Maps and Local Search explaining that Gaia violated Google Earth’s terms of service.

From:  Daily Tech

Seven Things To Consider When Buying A PC

Chances are that you are contemplating the purchase of a brand new PC. You might not be aware of this yet, but over the next 12 months, you’ll face a monumental decision that will have a significant impact upon your business’ bottom line.

Why will you be making a new PC purchase in 2007? One of the biggest reasons is the pending release of Microsoft’s (nyse: MFT – news – people ) Windows Vista. This all-new version of the company’s venerable operating system will demand more power than systems running Windows XP.

The other big reason: PCs get old, and the last great wave of PC purchasing occurred three or four years ago. If you’re running a system that’s this old, it’s likely that you’re becoming increasingly frustrated with your jalopy’s sluggish boot times and overall performance. The fact is the more time you spend waiting for your PC to boot, launching applications and addressing crash bugs, the less time you spend getting things done.

That’s why you should consider the following seven issues. Bookmark this page or print it out so that when the time comes for you to buy a new PC, you’ll have some clear parameters for buying a machine that will make you happy for a long time.

1. Stick with Intel’s (nasdaq: INTC – news – people ) Core 2 Duo CPU Intel’s brand new processor–the Core 2 Duo–offers phenomenal performance. If you frequently multitask between several different applications or frequently work/play with audio or video, one of these processors will work great for you. Advanced Micro Devices’ (nyse: AMD – news – people ) X2 series of processors are solid and can be found for cheaper prices, but the Core 2 will make you happier for longer. For most small businesses, PCs with Intel’s E6300 or E6400 Core 2 will work.

2. Load Up on Memory Nothing will slow a system down more than not having enough memory. Insist on at least one gigabyte of RAM–and grab two gigabytes if you can afford it.

3. Think Hard-Drive Speed, Not Size Unless you use your work PC for storing and playing lots of audio/video files or frequently work with massive-size files, you don’t need a gigantic hard drive. Think speed instead of capacity. What does speed consist of at the hard drive level? Two things. First, you want a Serial ATA drive. Second, you want a drive that spins at either 7,500 revolutions per minute (rpm) or 10,000 rpm. A fast 250-gigabyte drive will work great for you.

4. Wait for Windows Vista? It is not necessary that you wait until the release of Windows Vista–everything I’ve read indicates that Microsoft’s new OS will offer a fairly easy upgrade route from Windows XP to Vista. The reality is that if you like Windows XP, you may not even want or need to upgrade to a new operating system for a few years. Smart small businesses will wait until Microsoft has fixed all the bugs and flaws before upgrading.

5. Invest in a Back-Up Drive If you don’t have a back-up solution, use this opportunity to buy a back-up drive. Maxtor and Western Digital (nyse: WDC – news – people ) both make excellent drives that offer both one-touch back-ups (meaning you press a button and the PC and drive automatically back-up specified files and folders) and the ability to schedule back-ups for certain times and dates.

 6. Get a Decent 3-D Video Card Fancy graphics cards aren’t just for games anymore. The Windows Vista interface will use 3-D graphics in an integral fashion. Even if you’re not going to upgrade to Windows Vista right away, you will some day. NVidia’s (nasdaq: NVDA – news – people ) GeForce 6800 series of 3-D cards will suffice.

 7. How Much for a Good System? You should be able to buy a great PC that will last three years or more for $1,500. This said, you can also find a very solid system for $1,000. Two thousand bucks will get you a tremendous system. Typically, you can find the best deals on new PCs right after the holidays.

By George Jones

Personal GPS – New Must Have Gadget?

While portable global positioning system (GPS) devices are hardly as ubiquitous as iPods, dropping prices and new features are starting to win over customers, from weekend hikers to people who are just tired of their lousy sense of direction.

The average selling price of portable GPS systems in the third quarter of this year was $616, according to data compiled by the NPD Group. While that still may be a little steep for some, consider that just a year earlier the average selling price was $863, reflecting an almost 30-percent drop. And that’s just the average price–half the handheld navigation gadgets sold last quarter cost less than $500.

Lower prices are translating to higher sales. Third quarter revenue of $100 million is expected to double in the fourth quarter of this year, making personal navigation “one of the fastest growing categories of any size,” according to Stephen Baker, NPD’s vice president of industry analysis. The Consumer Electronics Association, an industry group, predicts that 2.3 million GPS units will ship in the U.S. this year.

Why the sudden popularity of GPS systems? We’re not just getting lost more often, said Steve Koenig, an analyst with the CEA. Rather, as GPS devices come down to the sub-$500 level, he said, “there’s a whole strata of consumers who will say, ‘Yeah, that’s a good service.’” And, Koenig added, it’s one of those services that once experienced, many wonder how they ever did without.

Of course, it’s inevitable that technologies will become cheaper over time as manufacturers discover more cost-efficient ways to produce them. Portable consumer GPS systems have been around for more than 15 years, but are only now starting to become affordable. And NPD’s Baker said he expects the already diminished prices to drop even lower come Black Friday, the U.S. retail industry’s nickname for the day after Thanksgiving.

By Erica Ogg
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

SEM: Reviewing dayparting tactics

In June of 2006, paid-search advertisers worldwide let out a collective sigh of relief as Google AdWords introduced dayparting capabilities to its campaign management interface.  By enabling an easy way to control the specific days and times their ads would be running (as well as being able to adjust the maximum bids for those ads), Google advertisers would be able to optimize campaigns in a far more dynamic manner, promoting a more efficient spend of pay-per-click funds for organizations of all sizes and verticals.

Now that we have the option, it’s time to consider which dayparting tactics and strategies make the most sense for any given campaign.  For example, Google recommends that some advertisers may want to schedule their ads to run only during business hours, and others may want to raise maximum bids during high-traffic times of the day (lunchtime, for example, is typically a time of higher-than-average consumer purchases).  At first glance this seems logical enough, but will this truly contribute to overall campaign efficiency? Based on what I’ve seen, not necessarily.

Taking a look at three months worth of data representing campaigns across three different industries (retail, financial and travel) and sliced click and conversion data by the hour of the day (EST), here are some findings.

Get the full story at MediaPost

Social media drives e-commerce traffic

MySpace in September drew 82% of visits among the top 20 social networking sites, increasing its dominance of the Web’s fastest-growing category. Overall, one in 20 Internet visits went to social networking sites during the month–nearly double the proportion of traffic a year ago, according to a new report by research company Hitwise.
In addition to the continued growth of MySpace by 51% between March and September, other social sites making big gains in share of traffic include Bolt, up 271%; Bebo, 95%; Orkut, 63%; and Gaia Online, 41%. In terms of average session time, Gaia Online ranked first at 47:01, followed by CrushSpot (30:31); MySpace (30:22); Bebo (25:39); and Tagged (20:33).

The Hitwise study also revealed the impact that social sites have had in driving traffic to other industries on the Web. Shopping and classified sites, for instance, received 2.4% of their visits directly from MySpace in September–an 83% increase since March. Other consumer-oriented industries that received traffic from MySpace in that period include telecommunications, banks, and travel.

“Social networking has become such a significant force on the Web that users are integrating it into other daily Web activities,” said LeeAnn Prescott, director of research at Hitwise. “As MySpace grows, it’s showing up in the upstream and downstream [traffic] of other categories that you wouldn’t necessarily think would be related.

Get the full story at MediaPost

Careers at Lincoln Tech

Lincoln Tech
Melrose Park, Illinois Campus
8317 W. North Avenue
Melrose Park, IL 60160
Tel – 708 344 4700
http://www.LincolnTech.com

=    Established – 1946
=    Locations – 19 and online
=    Accredited – Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT); Licensed by the New York State Education Department
=    Degrees offered –  Certificates
=    Financial assistance – Loans and aid available

Lincoln Tech offers its students a variety of specialized programs in the areas of automotive and diesel, skilled trades, electronic engineering technology, business, health care and information technology. Each campus offers different specialties so check out what each of the locations has to offer. Get additional training with even more flexible scheduling through their online program.

You can find a Lincoln Tech campus in:

=    Illinois – Melrose Park
=    Indiana – Indianapolis
=    Maryland – Columbia
=    Massachusetts – Brockton, Lowell, Somerville,
=    New Jersey – Edison, Mount Laurel, Mahwah, Paramus, Union
=    New York – Queens
=    Pennsylvania – Allentown, Center City Philadelphia, NE Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania
=   Rhode Island – Lincoln
=   Texas – Grand Prairie

Lincoln Tech doesn’t stop at giving you the technical skills you need to excel in your chosen career. In addition to the hands-on training in their focused courses, industry-standard equipment and experienced instructors, Lincoln Tech offer their students and graduates career placement assistance. Getting you the job you deserve is Lincoln Tech’s main purpose.

Tech Degrees from ECPI College

ECPI College of Technology
(Virginia Beach Campus)
5555 Greenwich Road
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
Tel – 757 490 9090
Toll Free Tel (All Campuses)– 888 526 4654
http://www.ecpi.edu

• Locations – 14 and online
• Accredited – South Carolina Commission on Higher Education; State Council of Higher Education; Board of Governors of the University of North Carolina; North Carolina State Board of Community Colleges; Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
• Degrees offered – Diplomas, Associate’s, Bachelor’s
• Tuition assistance – Grants, student loans, and work-study as well as military and veteran tuition benefits available.

ECPI offers diplomas and associate degrees in technology, business, health sciences, and the culinary arts. Bachelor’s degrees in IT systems, web design, networking and security management, and simulation and game programming at select campuses. You have 14 different campuses to choose from across Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina as well as online.

ECPI offers a number of services to make education for its students as smooth and uncomplicated as possible. An online library helps you find the information you need after hours and online payment systems allow you to make extra or last-minute payments at your leisure. They sponsor an employer job post and offer a variety of career services to their students and alumni including job interviewing skills training, resume assistance and career counseling

Google promotes city guide type searches

Google “City Guide” type searches are being promoted at Google.com.

Searches by city name at Google.com yield SERPs featuring tourism related search refinement options.

Perhaps Google is considering a Google Tourism vertical or a Google Travel vertical.

Presently, a search on a city such as “Chicago” yields a SERP with a featured link to a Google Map of Chicago and six tourism related “refine results for Chicago” options:

- Dining guides
- Lodging guides
- Attractions
- Shopping
- Suggested itineraries
- Tours & day trips

Get the full story at ZDNet

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