China Responds To Google's Pull Out Threat

In a response that is typical of the Chinese government, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said China welcomed foreign Internet companies to operate within their country but that those offering online services must do so “in accordance with the law.” At a news conference Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Jiang Yu, did not directly address Google’s complaints about censorship and cyberattacks, but simply stated, “China’s Internet is open.”

Wang Chen, the information director for the State Council of China was more direct saying in an interview posted on the agency’s Web site "China’s Internet is entering an important stage of development, confronting both rare opportunities and severe challenges,” he said. “Internet media must always make nurturing positive, progressive mainstream opinion an important duty.”

Source: nytimes.com

On The Official Google Blog the company states it's new approach in dealing with the country.

Google Threatens To Pull Out Of China

After cyber attacks on the gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists and other Chinese dissidents, Google has raised the stakes threatening to pull it's operations from China. The attacks were "very organized" and "clearly targeted" according to Google spokesman David Drummond, chief legal officer at Google.

Drummond Says that the means of the attack where not Google related but rather phishing schemes that obtained user information and originated in December from China. Being careful not to implicate the Chinese government Drummond says "we simply cannot continue to operate a filtered or censored search engine..."

Check out the CNBC interview.

The Gadgets That Wowed'em At CES

The Globe and Mail has compiled a list of the hot gadgets from CES in Las Vegas and as expected there is a lot of 3-D action but what I didn't expect was a reborn Polaroid Instant camera! Also on the list is the Mint floor cleaning robot, tv on the iPhone, wireless charging, and a game controlling glove from Iron Will Innovations. Seems to me there must have been a lot of wow and equally as much deja vu going on in Vegas. Everything old is new again...

Update: For more on the Polaroid visit http://www.the-impossible-project.com/

Sci-Fi Shows That Deserve Resurrection

Awhile ago Wired brought us a list of 10 science fiction shows ready for an upgrade in an article entitled “Reboot This! 10 Sci-Fi TV Shows Ready for Upgrade.” Not surprisingly many fans of Sci-Fi and obviously readers of Wired chimed in with shows that were left off of that list. Wired has now published a list of reader's choices in "Reboot These Sci-Fi Shows Next, Wired Readers Plead."

Taking a hard look at the list and I agree... how could you have missed Firefly, Space 1999, Max Headroom and Thunderbirds? The Greatest American Hero we can do without... Check out the list, any thing you think was missed?

3-D TV Making Noise At CES

The big TV manufactures are all at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) demoing or promising televisions that "have three-dimension-enabled televisions, providing the same sort of immersive high-definition depth found in movies such as the box-office blockbuster Avatar."

There is so much hype that Sony chief executive Howard Stringer has said, "This whole thing is turning into the CES 3-D show." While Avatar producer Jon Landau said "3-D is not about gags coming off the screen, it’s about creating an immersive experience," he said. "It heightens the experience, it becomes a voyeuristic experience."

"It’s not just smoke and mirrors. It’s real," said Yoshi Yamada, North American chief executive for Panasonic.

Sort of makes you wonder if that HDTV purchase was a good idea or if next Boxing Day might have been a better option? I'll save my comments until I can actually see how the products preform. Besides, how much content is available and do we really want to watch everything in 3-D? Perhaps the makers of Gravol will be the big winner? Time to buy some shares...

New Floor Cleaning Robot To Take On iRobot's Scooba

If you've followed Great Big Geek for a while you'll know that I have a love for iRobot, in fact I own 2 Roomba vacuum cleaning robots and a Scooba floor mopping robot... they save me a lot of time and effort and do a great job in the process. From CES comes a new challenger to the robotic home appliance market - "Mint".

Mint is a sexy little robot from Evolution Robotics. The big differences seem to be:

1. It's shape, square vs. the iRobot round products;
2. The use of a Swiffer duster pad vs. iRobot's Clorox solution or vinegar; and
3. A systemic cleaning pattern vs. iRobot's wandering - multiple pass method.

If anyone at Evolution Robotics is listening.... I'd love to get my hands on one to do a comparison/review!

Check out the Cnet video from CES:

Google's Got A Phone For That!

The technology world is not very good at keeping secrets, and much to nobody's surprise Google announced it's very own smartphone yesterday. The Nexus One Phone will of course be running on it's Android operating system and will incorporate features that didn't exist in previous versions of Android phones, such as pinch functionality.

According to the Official Google Blog: "Manufactured by HTC, the Nexus One features dynamic noise suppression from Audience, Inc., a large 3.7" OLED display for deep contrast and brilliant colors and a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon™ chipset for blazing speeds. Running on Android 2.1, the newest version of Eclair, the software includes innovations like a voice-enabled keyboard so you can speak into any text field, fun Live Wallpapers, a 3D photo gallery for richer media experiences and lots more. Of course, it also comes with a host of popular Google applications, including Gmail, Google Voice and Google Maps Navigation."

You can have a closer look at the features of the device by visiting Google's online store for the Nexus One at www.google.com/phone. Unfortunately for many of us the phone is limited to a few markets at the moment, Canada is not one of them... sigh!

E-readers, Tablets, and Mobile Devices To Be Center Stage At CES

Speculation has it that the focus of most new gadgets at this years Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas will be on E-readers, mobile devices, and touch screens. You might want to sprinkle a bit of 3d TV in there as well. The show which gets underway on Wednesday may also feature connectivity according to one analyst: “People are getting tired of very specific classes [of devices],” said technology analyst Carmi Levy. “Hardware will begin to take a back seat to connectivity and the services you can layer on that hardware. What [consumers] would rather do is avoid four or five devices, and just buy one device that does it all.”

Sources: The Globe and Mail and CBC

Getting In Touch With Local Government

Want to draw attention to that pothole on your street or the unsightly mess in a neighbors yard? SeeClickFix.com may be just the site you are looking for? The service allows you to report a problem in your community which is then plotted on a Google map and the proper authorities are notified on your behalf.

According to the New York Times "Users can comment on the issue or label it resolved. Government agencies can post on the site to respond to residents, and journalists can use the site to communicate with readers and see which issues are most pressing to people."

Seems like an idea that is long overdue.

What 007 Wants For Christmas

If you are a car buff or a fan of the James Bond franchise, you'll have no doubt become accustomed to the Aston Martin. Just in time for Mr. Bond's Christmas list is the new Aston Martin Carbon Black Special Editions. According to Uncrate the new finish will be available for several models from the manufacturer and is designed to give different appearances under differing conditions.

Follow the link above to find out that the cars feature "Lightweight seats formed from Carbon Fibre and Kevlar saving 17 kg over the standard seat also feature together with Piano black facia trim, centre stack and centre console, anodised black tread plates and unique sill plaques build on the carbon theme. The Aston Martin 700w Premium Audio System is delivered as standard in the V12 Vantage while the DBS boasts the Bang & Olufsen Beosound DBS audio system as standard."