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TELECOM Digest Wed, 28 Sep 2005 16:30:00 EDT Volume 24 : Issue 442 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Dell Goes Upscale With PCs For Gamers, Enthusiasts (Reuters News Wire) Apple: Small Number of Nanos Have Defects (Greg Sandoval) Google to Build New Campus at NASA Facility (Associated Press News Wire) Report: Ericsson Considering Bid for Marconi (USTelecom dailyLead) Connecticut Motorists Need to Talk Hands-Free Starting Now (Monty Solomon) Re: When Students Open Up - a Little Too Much (Lisa Hancock) Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the Internet. All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. =========================== Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be sold or given away without explicit written consent. Chain letters, viruses, porn, spam, and miscellaneous junk are definitely unwelcome. We must fight spam for the same reason we fight crime: not because we are naive enough to believe that we will ever stamp it out, but because we do not want the kind of world that results when no one stands against crime. Geoffrey Welsh =========================== See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Reuters News Wire <reuters@telecom-digest.org> Subject: Dell Goes Upscale With PCs For Gamers, Enthusiasts Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:46:21 -0500 Dell Inc. is launching a line of upscale and more expensive computers after aggressive price-cutting led to lower-than-expected revenue growth last quarter. The company on Wednesday is unveiling three high-powered desktop computers and a notebook "aimed at tech enthusiasts, gamers and buyers who prefer the best products, services and individualized support," Dell said in a statement. The new XPS series computers start at $1,099 and a notebook version starts at about $2,700. That compares with desktops selling for as low as $299 on the company's Web site. In addition, Dell is introducing its first high-definition televisions, with a 50-inch model priced at $3,799 and a 32-inch at $1,799. The roll-out comes after the company in August reported second-quarter revenue that rose less than analysts had expected. Chief Executive Kevin Rollins at the time said prices for Dell's PCs were "down more than we would have liked" but added that the industry wasn't experiencing a pricing problem. Dell is offering expanded services to customers who buy the new products, making available "highly trained" agents assigned to individual customers, according to the Round Rock, Texas, company's statement. Customers can also get quick answers through online chats with product advisors. Asked about reports of rising consumer complaints recently, Rollins said his company closely tracks such reports and its data show customer service trends have been improving, not declining. Because Dell sells an ever-greater number of PCs each year, the absolute number of customer service complaints may be growing, but as a percentage of the overall number of customers, Dell's customer service continues to improve, he said. Dell is scheduled to introduce the products Wednesday at a briefing in New York City attended by Chairman Michael Dell. Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited. NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new articles daily. See more news headlines from USA Today right here: http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/othernews.html ------------------------------ From: Greg Sandoval <ap@telecom-digest.org> Subject: Apple: Small Number of IPod Nanos Have Defects Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:47:52 -0500 By GREG SANDOVAL, AP Technology Writer Display screens crack easily on a small number of iPod Nano digital music players, Apple Computer Inc. acknowledged Wednesday, saying it would replace flawed units. Apple was responding to a flurry of complaints posted to online forums and community sites about faulty screens on the Nano, the tiny music player the company launched earlier this month to much fanfare. Most of the complaints revolved around screen scratches that made the displays difficult to read. Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr said Apple had received few complaints and the only real problem was cracked screens, which would be replaced. "This is a real but minor issue that involved a vendor quality problem in a small number of units," Neumayr said. "This has affected less than one-tenth of 1 percent of the total iPod Nano units that we've shipped. And it's not a design issue." Customer service employees at three Best Buy stores and two Circuit City locations in different parts of the country said Tuesday that they had not received any complaints about the Nano screen. Apple's response appeared to quell some of the anger about the faulty screens. A Web site called flawedmusicplayer.com, which had posted complaints about Nano screens, removed them after Apple acknowledged the problem. "I am very delighted to see Apple take this issue seriously," according to a note on the Web site. "Apple is admitting there was a real issue. I got what I wanted: fixed iPod Nanos for the people who deserve them." Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new articles daily. Also see headlines and news at http://telecom-digest-org/td-extra/AP.html ------------------------------ From: Associated Press News Wire <ap@telecom-digest.org> Subject: Google to Build New Campus on Vacant NASA Property at Ames Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:49:05 -0500 Google Inc. plans to build a 1 million-square-foot corporate campus on a now-vacant site on NASA property in the heart of Silicon Valley, according to a published report. Google, the Internet's leading search company, is expected to build a campus containing offices, houses and roads at the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, which cited unidentified sources. "There is some land at Ames Research Center that could offer logical expansion space for Google," company spokeswoman Lynn Fox said Tuesday. She declined to comment directly on the building plans. The company has scheduled an afternoon news conference with Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt and Scott Hubbard, director at NASA Ames, a space research center since 1939 that has recently been cutting staff as part of the agency's nationwide restructuring. Rapid growth in Web advertising tied to online searches has fueled Google's stellar performance in recent years. The company has $7 billion in cash from stock offerings and huge profits. It hired 10 employees each business day in the last quarter and has a global staff of nearly 4,200. The company is rapidly outgrowing its current office space, and plans to keep its current five-building headquarters, dubbed the Googleplex, nearby. Some observers say the partnership between Google and NASA Ames could create a new hub of technological innovation in Silicon Valley, an area gutted by the technology bust. Shares of Google fell $5.27, or 1.7 percent, to $308.67 in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 13:29:34 EDT From: USTelecom dailyLead <ustelecom@dailylead.com> Subject: Report: Ericsson Considering Bid for Marconi USTelecom dailyLead September 28, 2005 http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/uKvMatagCqhnfBGhhR TODAY'S HEADLINES NEWS OF THE DAY * Report: Ericsson considering bid for Marconi BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH * Wireless executives tout mobility vision * RIM to use Intel chips * Cingular picks RealNetworks for video * EchoStar sees opportunity in Gulf Coast region * Cisco offers new security products * Qwest won't make another run at MCI * Analysis: Telcos unlikely to see profits from TV soon USTELECOM SPOTLIGHT * Triple Play Technology - Today and What's NEXT, Tomorrow, Sept. 29 TECHNOLOGY TRENDS * Asia to lead in WiMAX deployment, report says REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE * FCC extends VoIP 911 deadline again * Do Not Call list comes under scrutiny Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others. http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/uKvMatagCqhnfBGhhR Legal and Privacy information at http://www.dailylead.com/about/privacy_legal.jsp SmartBrief, Inc. 1100 H ST NW, Suite 1000 Washington, DC 20005 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 15:15:24 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> Subject: Connecticut Motorists Need to Talk 'Hands-Free' Starting Saturday Verizon Wireless Reminds Consumers to Take Steps to Comply with New Law WALLINGFORD, Conn., Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Motorists in Connecticut have until this Saturday to get ready to comply with a new law requiring drivers to use hands-free devices when talking on their wireless phones. Starting October 1, 2005, motorists could face a $100 fine for talking on wireless phones without using hands-free devices. Verizon Wireless reminds all wireless phone users to take steps now to comply with the law. Similar laws are already in effect in New York, New Jersey, Washington, D.C. and Chicago. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=52023505 ------------------------------ From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com Subject: Re: When Students Open up - a Little Too Much; Colleges Cite Risks Date: 28 Sep 2005 13:10:24 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com Monty Solomon wrote: > By Sarah Schweitzer, Globe Staff > Last school year, Brandeis University junior Emily Aronoff tapped > this sentiment into a computer: "I enjoy the festive greens." > The reference to marijuana became part of her profile on facebook.com, Is that really a euphemism for mj? I would think it just referred to decorative plants, like ferns or ivy. > intended for viewing by other students. In the interests of privacy and security, these websites should require a logon and be restricted to members of the internal group, ie, those affiliated with the university. > Colleges and universities are increasingly taking steps to help > students avoid pitfalls -- most critically, those that put students at > risk for stalking and harassment. In today's world, where college students are very e-savy, I'm quite surprised they aren't aware of very basic principles of maintaining privacy on-line. Early on, people learned that whatever you type on a computer can be made public. Ollie North got nailed by PROFS backup tapes, an early email system. People learned the hard way that BBS conversations could be risky. By college age, I would presume that they'd know not to give out their real name/phone number/address in an open e-chat room, an unsolicited email, or to a stranger they'd meet in a bar or on the street. I'd think they had gotten some creepy emails and messages. Geez, even in my day kids knew to be wary of strangers, even fellow college students and to safeguard their privacy, and that was before the days of publicized date rape of stalkers. I went to college in the city and right up front they gave us some security/safety tips. I read in the papers some students put out blogs with blatant personal stuff, like intimate details about their sex life, though I've never seen such a site. Indeed, I wonder, given the tendency of kids to brag about the outrageous, if some of those sites are actually fiction just to goof around and shock people. Anyway, it seems strange to me that these kids would be so brazenly open about such personal stuff. In my day plenty of kids smoked pot or slept around, but they were at least a little discrete about it, and certainly didn't want their parents or school officials finding out. Could anyone familiar with the situation elaborate what's going on in the collegiate online world? Anyone actually seen these blatant personal blog sites? [public replies, please] ------------------------------ TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly to telecomm- unications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, Yahoo Groups, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. 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