Bob Caswell – Page 14 – Media consumer, tech enthusiast, and gamer

Netflix Chooses Blu-ray, Big Blow to Any Chance of an HD DVD Comeback

February 11, 2008August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 8 Comments

Netflix Notwithstanding the price slashing Toshiba has been doing (HD DVD player with 7 movies for $129 compared to Blu-ray players starting in the $300’s), Netflix choosing to drop HD DVD by year’s end in favor of Blu-ray exclusivity is quite the blow to the HD DVD crowd. Thanks a lot, Netflix. Give me an online streaming experience in HD by year’s end, and you’re forgiven. See below for full text of the email going out to any Netflix HD DVD users:

Media, Netflix, Tech News, Web 2.0

Bad Form: Companies Still Send Passwords via Email

February 11, 2008 Bob Caswell 89 Comments

Let’s face it; we all reuse the same password for login accounts all over the Internet. At best, some of us create a few passwords through which we rotate.

So why is it that some companies still insist on sending me my password via email right after I create my online account? The reason I have a password in the first place is so that it doesn’t flow back and forth openly in cyberspace only to reside peacefully on multiple mail servers.

Internet, Privacy, Web 2.0

Yahoo Board to Reject Microsoft Bid: Wants More or Help from Google

February 9, 2008August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 20 Comments

Microsoft Yahoo The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) just broke the story that Yahoo’s board plans to reject Microsoft $44.6 billion offer, citing our favorite source: “a person familiar with the situation.” Apparently, $31 per share “massively undervalues” Yahoo, according to the same source. The logic is that the offer doesn’t take into account risks Yahoo would go through (that is, if regulators overturned the deal) by entering into an agreement with Microsoft.

Accordingly, Yahoo’s board will send a letter to Microsoft on Monday explaining the situation. This article comes just hours after another WSJ article quotes several investment bankers who basically say that “investors have lost confidence in Yahoo management’s ability to reverse the company’s fortunes on its own.” Nevertheless, here’s Yahoo’s reasoning for rejecting the offer:

Google, Internet, Microsoft, Tech News, Web 2.0, Yahoo

What’s Your Google / Microsoft / Yahoo Usage Breakdown?

February 8, 2008August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 7 Comments

Microsoft Yahoo Given the rumor that today is the day for Yahoo to speak on the pending Microsoft take over, I thought I’d revisit the question I originally asked a year ago. Of the big three, what services do you use from each?

But first, I feel compelled to point out that at this same time last year, Google was being cited as Yahoo’s major obstacle. Now, of course, a partnership with Google is Yahoo’s theoretical last chance at avoiding Microsoft as its new owner.

Google, Internet, Just For Fun, Microsoft, Web 2.0, Yahoo

Search 1.0: Search Engines Still Lack Simple Features

February 4, 2008July 13, 2008 Bob Caswell 10 Comments

I have a sister who, over the weekend, pointed out a major shortcoming of search engines. It’s so obvious that I’m not sure why I didn’t think of it first. And keep in mind that this is my sister, which arguably boosts the creditability of this anecdotal story. That is, this isn’t some nerd’s dream come true; rather, she’s fairly representative of “regular” people trying to utilize the Internet practically. So here it is:

Why can’t you organize your results by date? And why don’t the search results themselves include the date each entry was published/updated?

Google, Internet, Microsoft, Web 2.0, Yahoo

2008 Super Bowl Ads: Watch Them Online on Hulu or AOL

February 2, 2008 Bob Caswell 4 Comments

I admit it; I’m really not into football but am one of those that tend to tune into the Super Bowl mostly to check out the commercials. I’m not alone, apparently.

TiVo, the company known for its digital video recorder by the same name, usually makes it so that consumers can record TV minus the commercials. But last year Todd Juenger, TiVo’s vice president and general manager of audience research and measurement, explained how it was actually the commercials themselves that consumers were watching:

Media, Tech News, Web 2.0

Breaking: Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion for Yahoo

February 1, 2008August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 11 Comments

Microsoft Yahoo The rumors of this kind of deal have been around for a while but never seemed to materialize. Microsoft will hold a conference call to discuss the details of the proposal, though CEO Steve Ballmer has already laid it out pretty clearly in his public letter to Yahoo (see below for full text). One aspect of the letter to note:

“Depending on the nature of your response, Microsoft reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo!’s shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal.”

Internet, Microsoft, Tech News, Web 2.0, Yahoo

Organized Crime Targeting Apple Computers for the First Time

January 31, 2008July 14, 2008 Bob Caswell 82 Comments

Apple Logo While it’s nothing new for organized crime to focus on phishing and identity theft, Windows-based computers have traditionally taken the brunt of most attacks. So much so, in fact, that plenty of my Apple friends claimed it as yet another reason to switch to the below-the-radar Mac. Too bad, then, that a report out last week shows that the end of 2007 was the beginning of “financially-motivated” organized crime targeting Apple computers.

Is this good news or bad? After all, it could be taken as a sign of Apple’s success. Macs finally appear to be popular enough that cybercriminals care. However you frame it, check out this call to arms of sorts from Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos (the firm responsible for this report):

Apple, Internet, Privacy, Tech News