The Treo Zombies

Faintly distracting, but ultimately unsatisfying, ad for the new Treo, where people walk across an intersection doing different things depending on what feature of the Treo the ad is pumping. I have a couple of questions: Why do none of these people ever look left and right before crossing the road? Why is there no … Read more

Phone as Beacon

The idea that your cellphone may become a beacon of your availability took one small step closer yesterday, although you’d be forgiven for not noticing amid all the post-turkey bloat. The theory is this. Cellphones have gotten smarter, but they still miss one vital ingredient that computer users have had for years: presence. Anyone using … Read more

Wire Mesh and Lost Souls

You have to love the Internet. It brings you into contact with all sorts of unusual people, the likes of which I haven’t encountered since my days of being driven by tuk-tuk around the sois of 1980s Bangkok. Here’s Linda, for example, who just asked to be my buddy on Skype, introducing herself thus: Me! … Read more

VOX Rocks (Not)

Unless you’re a real masochist, I wouldn’t bother installing the latest add-on for Skype, VoxLib (Windows only, sorry). It’s a nice idea, insofaras I can understand it, but it sure messes up your system. VOX in theory allows you to make Skype (and SkypeOut) calls via any telephone. It gets complicated, and it certainly didn’t … Read more