BRUCEB NEWS
Chatting With AI: Synthetic Empathy
A lot of people talk to their AI buddies as if they have little friends that live in their phones. It doesn’t come naturally to me. I’ve been using ChatGPT and Gemini as if they are amazing upgrades to Google search. It doesn’t occur to me to open my phone for a…
NETFLIX AND THE FUTURE OF MOVIES
It’s easy to imagine movies on demand, streamed to your television over the Internet. Unfortunately, there’s also reason to think that it will be many years before…
PHISHING
A momentary lapse led a client to respond to an e-mail from Wells Fargo, clicking on a link and filling in account information on the login page. The message wasn’t from…
REMOTE SUPPORT FROM DELL
Dell’s image has been slipping. Tech support has been rocky for more than a few of my clients (and abysmal for computers purchased from Dell’s Home division, which…
THE NEED FOR CELLULAR DATA PLANS
There are three Treo models (the Palm-based 650 and 750p and the Windows Mobile-based 700w), plus the Motorola Q, that are appealing combinations of cell phone and PDA. The Treos…
THE FAILURE OF SONY CONNECT
Recently I wrote some notes about Sony’s record of failure in developing consumer electronics and music products. Here’s the story behind the collapse of the Sony…
ANTIVIRUS SHAKEUP
Microsoft’s integrated security software, Windows Live OneCare, got its official release today and will be available on CD starting tomorrow. This doesn’t mean…
URGE MUSIC AND THE SMALL PRINT
The Urge music service, an iTunes competitor jointly sponsored by Microsoft and MTV, is supposed to be one of the major selling points of the new Windows Media Player 11. When I…
WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER 11
Another week, another beta release from Microsoft. Windows Media Center 11 is the latest program getting a bunch of attention from the media – here’s Paul Thurrott…
INTERNET EXPLORER 7 BETA – FOLLOWUP
After a week, I’ve uninstalled the IE7 beta. There were no big problems, just a feeling that things weren’t quite right – some pages that wouldn’t display…
INTERNET EXPLORER 7.0 BETA 2
Microsoft feels reasonably confident that Internet Explorer 7.0 Beta 2 (available for download here) is stable enough for end users to try; in fact, they’re providing free…
NY TIMES: WHY THE WORLD DOESN’T NEED HIGH-DEF DVDs
The New York Times has summarized the reasons to be cynical as high-definition DVD players hit the market. “Just contemplating the rise of a new DVD format is enough to…
DISCLAIMER FOR THE INTERNET
A particularly thorough disclaimer for a rock climbing site inspired attorney David Canton to adapt it into a disclaimer for the Internet. WARNING Business is unpredictable and…
THE RETURN OF FREE NAPSTER
After the death of the file sharing program, the Napster brand was revived for an online music web site. There’s been speculation that it was struggling to survive in a…
3G WIRELESS NETWORKS
There’s new wireless technology that might represent a true step forward for some people – with a hefty price tag attached, of course. The cell phone carriers are…
VIRAL VIDEOS
The hot tech topic of the day is “viral videos,” a term invented to describe the links circulated by e-mail to short online movies. Out of nowhere, Chris Bliss’…