If you’re a footy fan, then it’s fair to say you might have spent a fair amount of time this weekend shouting at a TV screen somewhere, am I right?

Let’s face it: the refs don’t know what they’re doing, the players are overpaid and pampered, so there’s a lot to shout about.

Now though, you can make your shouting count. This site is all bout voice controlled football.

No, I didn’t believe it either…?

www.speechsoccer.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Speech Soccer originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

The Royal British Legion's Poppy Appeal has called for the annual 2-minute silence to extend online this year.

The organisation has asked Twitter users to observe the 2-minutes' silence on Remembrance Day by sending no tweets during this period via its Twitter account.

The tweet "2 minute silence on Twitter 11:00am GMT on 11 November #2minutesilence RT plz" has been retweeted widely, suggesting the Twitterverse is happy to get behind the idea.

The 2009 Poppy Appeal - that helps fund the Royal British Legion's charity work with servicemen and their families - currently stands at ?1,266,920.

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Tags: Software Websites Online Twitter Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal

Poppy Appeal calls for Twitter silence on Remembrance Day originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:54:07 +0000

As The Flickr Collection by Getty Images has hit over 60,000 images, the site has announced a "formal Call for Artists".

This means that any of the 40 million-plus Flickr members can submit their work to be considered for the collection through the Call for Artists group on Flickr, rather than wait to have their image spotted by the Flickr team.
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There's detailed guidelines over on the group page, but basically all Flickr users can now submit 10 images "that represent what you consider to be the best of your work".

The Getty Images creative team will then evaluate submissions based on style, subject matter and technical skill and let sucessful members know if their images will get into the group for possible licensing.

Tags: Software Online Websites Flickr Getty Cameras

"Call for Artists" from The Flickr Collection by Getty Images originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:31:16 +0000

It’s Friday (thank goodness) and the end of another hard week.

Here’s a little musical treat for those of you who really appreciate that middle of the day feeling, which, on a Friday, always seems that little bit better.

We love lunch too. Dinner’s not too bad either….

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VIDEO OF THE DAY ? I Love Lunch originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0000

There is, apparently, a whole bunch of people out there who've never heard of eBay.

At least that’s what eBay themselves think, so they’ve set up this fashion trend spotting site in an attempt to attract style-conscious shoppers with money to burn.

Admittedly not the best timing, credit crunch and all that, but it’s a good place to pick up tips on what’s hot for the season, if nothing else.

www.theinsidesource.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Inside Source originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Yesterday we showed you the epic new ad from Guinness, but they're not the only people who know how to shoot spectacular ads.

We love this.

The Lying, the Witch and the Wardrobe maybe...?

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Wardrobe originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Google has put up another "Doodle" on its homepage above the iconic search box, depicting both Cookie Monster and Big Bird - depending on where in the world you're located.

Clicking the image links through to a search for Sesame Street, marking the 40th anniversary of the popular kids TV show. It follows another doodle recently celebrating Wallace and Gromit's 20th birthday.

Sesame Street debuted in November 1969 and still continues to this day, now in its 41st season. Celebrities regularly appear on the show, and Michelle Obama, the first lady of the United States, will be appearing at some point in the next year.

Tags: Software Websites Online Search engines Google Sesame Street

Google honours Sesame Street with doodle originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:41:06 +0000

Google has posted another of its infamous homepage "doodles" today celebrating the birthday of Wallace and Gromit.

Created by Nick Park, it seems the plasticine pair debuted on this day back in 1989 at an animation festival in Bristol.

20 years on and the pair are as popular as ever - and clearly popular in the Google offices too.

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Tags: Software Websites Online Search engines Google Wallace and Gromit

Google doodle celebrates Wallace & Gromit's birthday originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:01:17 +0000

Guinness ads are, quite simply, iconic.
They have created some of the most memorable, innovative and entertaining commercials, year after year for as long as this reporter has been able to legally enjoy their product.

This new ad, is described, by Guinness, as the most challenging they've ever done.

I think we can all see why.

It's breathtaking.

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Guinness ad originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Ever fancied a peek behind the scenes at Intel?

Sky have pulled it off and sent a roving reporter to San Fran to see what he can find out. These webisodes take a look at the next generation of Intel products.

And if this is what they’re happy to show us, imagine what the secret stuff is like…

intel.sky.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Intel Sky originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

What do you make of this?

If you're dodging UK taxes by squireling away untold millions in offshore slush finds, are you really going to worry too much about the tax man posting clips on YouTube in an effort to scare you into paying?

What next?

Tweets from the DVLA when you're caught speeding: "Ian's a naughty boy doing 31 in a 30 zone…"?

Pokes from the town hall when your council tax is due: "Yoo-hoo! Forgotten something?! LOL".

As for my untold millions, I'm still checking those Lotto numbers every week...

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Tax man originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0000

You’d like to think that the CWU and Royal Mail workers who are currently on strike might have a sense of humour about things.

Apparently not. They’re not too keen on this spoof game, according to some reports we’ve read. To them it's about as funny as, let's say, not getting your important mail, or your poor old Granny not getting her birthday card on time. Not funny at all, then.

But as they’re making our lives, and those of millions of other disgruntled (and post-less) Brits, a misery, we though we’d share it.

TNT and DHL will enjoy at least.

www.theroyalfail.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Royal Fail originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Putting the words "Lego" and "Rock Band" was always sure to grab our attention.

Here's the Final Countdown trailer in glorious HD.

Little plastic people really know how to rock out.

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Lego Rock Band originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0000

If there’s a worse job than having to iron a shirt on a Sunday night, I don’t know what it is. It’s that awful realisation that the weekend is over and you’re back to the daily grind.

The task is made more bearable if the shirt you’re ironing is a good one. Good shirts look, wear and, most importantly, press better than cheap ones.

If a good shirt is what you’re after, this is where you can look. You can make the shirt just as you like it and the materials and tailoring are top notch. Worth every penny.

Still a bugger to get the sleeves just right though…

www.shirtsmyway.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Shirts My Way originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

YouTube is littered with ghostly clips and some of them really are scary. Once you've trawled through the hoaxes and clearly doctored clips, there a few that stand out as being genuinely creepy.

I don't know what this shows, but it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Ghosts originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0000

The identities of the four dead celebrities a tabloid pyschic will try and contact in the world's first Twitter seance have been revealed.

The "Tweance", a paranormal publicity stunt for Hallowe'en, will see Jayne Wallace attempt to get in touch with pop star Michael Jackson, former Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain, playwright William Shakespeare and actor River Phoenix.

As voted for by over four thousand Twitter users, the dead celebs will be asked questions posed in tweets by the public, asked in a seance session by Wallace, who will then tweet the "answers".

Twitter users can follow the Tweance in real time today, Friday 30 October, until midnight.

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Hallowe'en Twitter Tweance celebs named originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:16:25 +0000

There are people who like movies and then there are movie fans.

This site is definitely aimed at the latter.

It's an interactive map of where the spectres and apparitions were seen in the classic ghoulish comedy Ghostbusters.

Go figure.

www.ironicsans.com/2006/04/the_ultimate_interactive_googl_1.html

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Ghostbusters map originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 10:45:00 +0000

Maybe it's not something to be proud of, but we love these Periodic Table of Videos clips.

This Halloween special shows you how to do something a little different - if you're that way inclined.
But, we wouldn't recommend trying any of these at home.

Our favourite line has to be: "liquid nitrogen is quite cold".

Quite cold?

Thanks for the tip!

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Hallowe'en science originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0000

I had a horrible experience the other day. I was at a mate's house and enough, ahem, "refreshment" had been consumed that we thought it would be good idea to get the Wii Fit out of the cupboard.

On I stepped and it went through the measurement process before I could start. I won't share the numbers, but when a video game tells you you're not as light as you used to be, it's time to do something about it.

That's why this is great for me. I can download fitness videos and sweat, wheeze, grunt and groan my way through them in the privacy of my own home. It's not a pretty sight - even the dog leaves the room…

But no pain, no gain, right?

www.thinqfitness.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - ThinQ Fitness originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Blinkx has launched a dedicated music area to its video search service. The section, called Blinkx Music, allows users to search through a 33,000 hours-strong catalogue of digital music from 10,000 artists.

Some of the content (about 20-25%, says the company) is hosted on Blinkx itself, through deals with SonyBMG, Universal, MTV and the Ministry of Sound. If the song you're after isn't there, though, then it'll redirect you to other sites like Yahoo Music.

Users who regularly publish video content can submit it to Blinkx via an rss feed, but there's no option to download the videos to your portable devices.?CEO and founder of Blinkx, Suranga Candratillake, said: "There are hundreds of thousands of music videos available on the Web today which makes it nearly impossible to navigate and find what you are looking for".

"Based on the success of blinkx Remote, our online TV guide, we recognized there was a need to help organize music videos and make them easily searchable on the Web. By leveraging our award-winning video search index, we built blinkx Music to help our users find their favourite music videos quickly, easily and in one place".

The service is live now at music.blinkx.com.

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Blinkx launches music video jukebox originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:36:16 +0000

Eyemags has announced that it's launching new functionality that'll allow users to "install" its pages onto their iPhones and iPod touches. The app will let users save pages from the Eyemags mobile website onto their homescreens, like they were applications, and then access that content even when offline.

Those applications can be built by a web developer and can include HTML5 standards. Eyemags is saying that this allows developers to bypass Apple's lengthy approvals process if they're just building simple applications, billing it as "the peoples' app store".

It's free to create apps at the time of writing, but from 16 November a charge will be levied on publishers. A larger charge can also be applied if you want your app to be built into a more traditional "native" iPhone application. To see Eyemags pages in action, try going to?http://eyemags.com/23 on your iPhone browser, or hit play on the video above.

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VIDEO: EyeMags launches iPhone functionality originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:13:57 +0000

We like the new PS3 ads. They're short, to the point, slightly irreverent and a great showcase for the product itself.

We particularly like this one. It's a bit edgier and we like edgy.

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - PS3 ad originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Free movies? Whole, completely free movies? Movies you've actually heard of, too?

Seems so, and if you like your flicks to be vintage, this is definitely for you. Classic movies streamed for nothing.

They don’t make ‘em like this any more?

www.classiccinemaonline.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Classic Cinema originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0000

When Spotify launched its API back in April with a great song and dance, much was made of the possibilities it could bring. Except that when it finally emerged, it turns out that you couldn't do very much with it. Many were disappointed, and Spotify's attentions turned to its mobile clients instead.

Now that the iPhone and Android apps are out in the wild, Spotify seems to have begun work on its APIs again. It's just released a Metadata API that'll allow programmers to query Spotify's vast library of music - just like searching in the client - but returning XML data that can then be output into a program or website.

It could be used for all kinds of applications, including a web interface for playing Spotify like the one run by We7, where you could search for artists or songs on a site and then get a Spotify link back. You could also build a script that automatically turns Spotify links on websites into artist and track titles.

There's a couple of limits, though - you can't query the API more than ten times per second, per IP address. And the terms and conditions have some pretty harsh language about what you call the tool you develop - it can't have the word "Spotify" in it, for starters.

You can grab the Metadata API from Spotify and start tinkering today. Let us know what you come up with.

Tags: Audio Spotify API Music Software Websites

Spotify launches Metadata API originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:55:06 +0000

Last.fm is reportedly preparing a push into video content, and the site is expanding into television, according to a report in Music Week. The online radio service, which was bought by US media giant CBS in 2007, is attempting to expand its brand globally.

The report claims that the initial offering is expected to launch in January and will be based around European music festival content. That could include partnering with existing festivals, or building bespoke events. We'd presume music videos would likely be involved somewhere along the line too, but it's not clear where.

Adding video to Last.fm's offering will both elevate it above its music-focused contemporaries, but also place it in competition with giants like YouTube and MySpace. However, whereas YouTube has often endured a rocky ride with the major labels, Last.fm has kept them onside so it remains to be seen whether the company can keep that special relationship intact once video content is in place too.

This is a breaking story, and we've asked Last.fm for comment and more detail. We'll update this post when we hear back.

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Tags: Home Cinema Audio Software Websites Online Lastfm Lasttv

Last.fm launches Last.tv originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:53:43 +0000

Imagine the Kinkaku-ji temple in Kyoto made out of Lego. Imagine the time and patience it would take.

Now imagine the Kinkaku-ji as a folding book. Made out of Lego.

My head throbs just thinking about it.

Awesome brickwork.

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Tags: Video Websites Software Online Lego

VIDEO OF THE DAY - Lego Kinkaku-ji originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0000

The world is full of talented people and the Internet has made it much easier for you to show the world what you've got. But, these days, that means there's a lot more competition for anything creative that people might want done.

That's what makes Talenthouse so special. It's a new place where you can browse through various projects and chip in with your particular creative input.

Whether it's film, fashion, photography, music, whatever, there's an outlet here if you've got what it takes.


www.talenthouse.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Talenthouse originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Facebook is a funny old creature and it does like to throw changes at its users faster than most. Well, good on Zuckerberg Inc for doing its best to keep up with the times - it's just a shame that for many it can cause a little confusion as to where to find all the bits and pieces that we've only just got used to. So, with today's little switch-aroo on the world's favourite social network, here's the Pocket-lint guide to News Feed and Live Feed, which to use and just where everything else has gone anyway.

News Feed

When you log in to Facebook and navigate to the home page, you'll find the real-time feed - the central column - looking a little different. It now comes in two different formats according to which words are highlighted at the top of the feed. The default setting will be News Feed and what company has done here is to bring back a couple of features that were lost last time around and make this into more of an overview of the activity in your social network

Instead of offering a chronological view of what's been going on, it presents users with what it thinks are the most interesting updates at the top of the list moving down to the least important ones at the bottom - if you really want to go back through that many years worth of notifications that is. That idea is that it offers a better overview of what's been going on and it works it all out with an algorithm which factors in how recent the update has been made, how many friends have liked it, how many have commented on it and how likely you are personally to interact with the news at all.

What's it best for?
Don't use the news feed option if you're the kind of person who sits on Facebook 24 hours a day. This isn't a blow-by-blow account of what's going on. The News Feed works best as a quick catch up tool. If you've either been away from the internet for a few days - heaven forbid - or perhaps for your first check of the day, or if you're not someone who uses Facebook on a daily basis, then this is the one for you. It's an excellent way of catching up on the important stuff quickly.

The downside is that the algorithm used to work out what should be at the top of the list is only as good as you are. If you never comment on other people's updates, then the system won't have a very good idea of what and who you like most, so the updates will pretty much come in the order of the time they came anyway. Otherwise, it works well.

Live Feed

Your other option is the Live Feed which is much more like the real-time stream used to be. Without ever having to manually refresh the page, the Live Feed offers all the updates of everyone in your network - no matter how large or small - with the latest appearing at the top of the list as it happens.

If you hit the options next to the updates on either feed, you can customise your streams to edit out and block anyone who you don't want to listen to. They won't be notified of the fact and you can always reinstate them in the Edit Options section any time you like.

What's it best for?
The Live Feed is the much more Twitter-like approach from Facebook. All the really big notifications will get lost of the pages just as quickly as the small stuff, so this is the option that's more for people who monitor their stream on a regular basis. If you just dip in and out once a day, then stick to the News Feed, but if you want a real-time chat-type minute-by-minute interaction, then the Live Feed is the one to use.

Are there any other changes?

Apart from these major shifts, the birthday notifications box is more in-depth than before and in a better place - not lost quite so far down the screen. Then other change is that the highlights box has been axed with the idea that its function is mostly served by the News Feed option. Coincidentally, it also frees up a nice bit of real estate above the fold in the top right corner where the company can render the sponsored ads.

Related links:

• News - Facebook makes more homepage changes
• News - Facebook touchscreen homepage launches
• News - Facebook has added music to its gift store
• Link - Pocket-lint Facebook page

Tags: Software Facebook Social networking Websites Online Features

The new Facebook feeds and which to use originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:07:11 +0000

Today marks a sad and entirely sentimental moment for the internet as the DIY website builder GeoCities disappears from the severs of the world. In the early days of the web they were an excellent way to make a corner of the virtual world your very own - no matter how bizarre and niche your passions were - in the mid days they became a frustration when searching with Google results bringing them up as largely useless sources of hard fact and now, they're just quite funny to look at because they're so very basic and remind us all how far we've come.

While you may not like GeoCities any more, while it may no longer have any purpose whatsoever, its removal from our screens is somewhat of a tragedy because were it a building or something of the real world rather than the virtual, it would be taken up and looked after by the National Trust or put in a museum where its cultural significance could be preserved. So, on the one hand this day is a mark of how far the internet has come and on the other of how far it has yet to go, and while we lack an international online body to look after this kind of virtual heritage, at least there are a few good, honest heavy geek fans out there and their tribute pages to this trailblazer that's beaten its last path. All tributes are, of course, under construction.

Homestar Runner Tribute

A little on the merciless side with the "You're the 16th biggest moron ever" visitor counter is this tribute page from those of the Flash animated cartoon persuasion that are Homestar Runner and their GeoCities-style take on a tribute to The Cheat. (A tribute within a tribute; see what they did there?). There's an excellent use of poor quality photos; really bad, pointless and highly teen copy and the odd spelling mistake for good measure too. Very strong overuse of meaningless GIFs and a good few graphical errors for good measure. Also heart-warming to see the use of the "edgey" black background although points have to be deducted for the lack of a pattern on top. Overall, very good though. 4/5

xkcd tribute

The most publicised and, sadly, short-lived on the web is the reskin of the xkcd website probably just for the day. It may not have quite as much content as the other tributes but some very good work here with pretty much all of the bases covered. Fantastic black starred background with some nicely ill chosen areas of black text on top of it; really good scolling and blinking text and lots of visible html tags. What's most impressive here is the ease of which the GeoCities style has been incorporated with the day to day functional running of the xkcd site. Not sure what that says about their site normall then. 4/5

Andy's virtual GeoCities eTribute

The others were ace but the real heavyweight GeoCities tribute champion of the day has to be this one from FlashPoint Social Media. It represents just about everything that's wonderful and terrible with the 90s web builder in one go while representing just about every single internet meme from the era too. Some of the highlights include the Gangster's Paradise midi track on autoplay, the really big button that doesn't do anything and the fact that the "most awesome site in the world is best viewed with IE 4 at a minimum of 800 x 600 resolution set". Perhaps a slight loss of points for the whole thing being too perfect without any exposed code at all but it's still a seriously impressive piece of work. 5/5

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Related links:

• News - GeoCities to shut down on 26 October
• Link - The Cheat web page
• Link - xkcd
• Link - Andy's virtual GeoCities tribute

Tags: Software Online Websites GeoCities Yahoo Features

The best of the GeoCities tributes originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:53:49 +0000

11 years is a long time for any business. But this little clip from Google shows just how far they've come.

From small-time, self-confessed internet pattern obsessives to multi-billion dollar media empire.

Not bad, eh?

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Google story originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Facebook has made more changes to its homepage that go some way to undo recent tweaks by offering a more tailored version of the stream of info that users see.

The social networking site is now offering two views of News Feed: a summary view of the "most interesting" activity that's happened in the last day and a real-time view that shows what is happening right now.

"You will be able to catch up on what you may have missed while you were away from Facebook and then easily switch to the real-time stream when you want to see posts as soon as they're shared", says Facebook.

The "most interesting" things that happened in the last day are chosen on a variety of factors including how many friends have liked and commented on it and how likely you are to interact with that story.

As it suggests "Live Feed" lets users see what's happening right now, offering a more Twitter-esque view of happenings.

"Some of you may ask why we are changing the home page again. Like you, we know it can be disruptive when things are moved around, but we hope that these changes make Facebook a more valuable experience for you", says Facebook.

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Tags: Software Facebook Social networking Websites Online

Facebook makes more homepage changes originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:17:05 +0000

Most Monday mornings are a bit tough. You’ve had a couple of days to unwind and let your hair down when all of a sudden, it's over and you’re back to the grindstone.

How on earth are you supposed to be able to remember who has what in their morning brew?

Skinny decaff soya with a twist?

Long white Americano?

Earl Grey?

Builders' tea?

Just in time, this site pops up to help us all out.

Make mine a mocha. Large. No cream.

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www.officecuppa.co.uk

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Office Cuppa originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Netflix's CEO Reed Hastings has told journalists in a conference call that his company will be launching a streaming-only service, which will let users watch movies online without having to subscribe to the DVDs-by-mail part of the service that the company offers.

Most interestingly, the streaming-only option won't be available to US customers, where the service is based. Instead it'll be in an undisclosed international market. Hastings wouldn't say which one "for competitive reasons" - indicating that it could be a market with a similar service already on offer.

The service is slated to launch in late 2010 and start in just one location before opening up into more territories slowly. The movie industry is still very focused on physical products like DVDs, and Netflix may find it tricky to license its catalogue in other countries for that reason.

When we hear more about this project, and where it's going to be based, we'll be sure to let you know.

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Tags: Home Cinema Online Websites Netflix Movie downloads Media streaming

Netflix launching streaming service outside of US originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:59:46 +0100

Mozilla has announced an interesting project called Raindrop, which appears massively complicated on the surface but is actually quite a simple idea when you strip it free of buzzwords.

Mozilla (like Google, with its Wave platform) says that "email isn't fun any more". Instead, conversations are taking place all across the Web - in IM, Twitter, blog comment threads, Facebook, and other locations. Raindrop wants to aggregate all that in one place, and sort it so that the useful stuff comes straight to you.

Unimportant messages, like mailing lists, will be relegated to the background whereas the email from your mother telling you she's booked a family holiday to Barbados or the IM conversation from your girlfriend telling you that she's pregnant pops up front and central.

At the moment the project is at version 0.1, so it's only open to developers. You won't be able to download a client just yet, and the team's first task is to create an installer for the application. Still, it sounds like an interesting idea, and we'll keep an eye on it and we'll let you know when it's available to try.

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Tags: Software Online Websites Mozilla Email IM Twitter Video

Mozilla announces Raindrop communcations project originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:47:52 +0100

Yesterday it was the EOS 7D.

Today it’s the daddy. The new EOS 1D Mark IV is the jewel in the Canon crown and in the hands of Vincent Laforet it’s a truly spectacular piece of kit.

You may remember Laforet from when he shot the first HD with the 5D Mark II.

Well, things have moved on and in nocturne he’s showing off the 1D’s awesome HD video capabilities at ridiculously high ISO speeds.

Prepare to be dazzled.

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VIDEO OF THE DAY ? nocturne originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Online business cards supplier Moo.com has upgraded its cheapest option - the Minicards - so that they're now more flexible in design.

Previously, cards could only have an image on the front and text on the back, but now you can also add images to the back of the card, and there's far more choice when it comes to templates, colours, and fonts.

Moo will make you 100 minicards, each with a different picture on, for ?12, and they come in a Moo presentation case. You can also buy in bulk - if you buy 400 then you get a ?6 discount on your order.

They're available now from Moo.com.

Tags: Software Online Websites Moo

Moo launches new Minicard options originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:51:48 +0100

It’s a good time for Canon at the moment. Their cameras are reaching new heights of technical excellence, critical acclaim and above all usability. This gorgeous time-lapse film proves that second point perfectly.

San Fran-based snapper Philip Bloom set up an EOS 7D to take a shot every 20 seconds – on full auto.

The results are spectacular.

Nice work Mr Bloom – we look forward to seeing more.

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Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY ? 7D time lapse originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Remember those Facebook "gifts" that the social networking site used to push on you? They quietly disappeared in one of the various redesigns that have taken place on the site over the last year or so, but it looks like they're coming back.

The New York Times is reporting that companies will soon be able to add their own virtual items to the gift shop. Companies like American Greetings, SomeeCards and JibJab are already signed up, and LaLa will apparently be joining them according to a source quoted by the paper.

Once you buy a song you'll be able to embed it on a person's Facebook profile and then play it forever. For a dollar, the recipient gets the ability to download a track too - though it's not clear yet what format or audio quality the downloaded file will be in.

It's also not clear whether this will be limited to the United States or rolled out across the whole world. We'd guess the former for now, but if we hear anything different we'll update this post.

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Tags: Software Online Websites Facebook

Facebook has added music to its gift store originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:43:14 +0100

Flickr has launched "People in Photos", describing it as "a new feature that will help put a face to the Flickrverse enabling you to highlight people that you've photographed in a whole new way".

While the photo sharing site already offers the option to allow users to identify people in pics with text tags, this new feature takes a step towards Facebook functionality by tagging people with their Flickr username and adding a "people in this photo" info box.

This means that users will be able to search, or click through, for more photos of a certain person as well as see tagging action in the "Recent Activity" area in their account.

Along with the new features, Flickr has added privacy and notification settings that means users can choose who can add them in photos, which photos they are added to, or opt out of the feature completely.

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Tags: Software Websites Flickr Social networking

Flickr goes Facebook with "People in Photos" originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:32:18 +0100

MySpace has announced what it says is "the next phase" of its music offering with a wave of new products and tools now available to artists and fans.

As well as allowing users to buy music on iTunes in addition to Amazon MP3, the global rollout of a new "MySpace Music Video" experience has begun, while the "MySpace Artist Dashboard" - a free data and analytics tool for artists - has hit beta.

MySpace Music Videos launches with the boast of being one of the most comprehensive online collections of music videos available anywhere.

The MySpace Artist Dashboard offers detailed analytics about artist's content within the MySpace community offering trending data and info on song plays, profile views, friend count, and profile visitors.

Tags: Software Online Websites MySpace Social networking Audio Video on demand iTunes Amazon MP3

MySpace hits next phase of music offering originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:38:35 +0100

The party season fast approaches and we thought we'd give you the heads-up if you fancy turning your hand to the old cocktail shaker.

There’s nothing like mixing the perfect Margarita to show your social credentials and the Cocktail Internet databases is the place to brush up those skills.

Cheers.

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www.cocktaildb.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Cocktail DB originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Philips wants to help consumers get fit with the launch of Philips DirectLife, a new customised, interactive fitness program that is said to offer "a fun and simple solution to people eager to adopt a more active lifestyle".

DirectLife records daily movements via a wearable "Activity Monitor", info from which is then transferred to a PC via USB. Once uploaded to a personal web page, a record is kept of activity, and compared to targets. The program also offers an online "personal coach" to give advice, as well as stats, tips and activity ideas provided on the web page.

Philips DirectLife says this "monitoring, measuring and motivating... will lead to healthier everyday decisions and longer lasting, more active lifestyle changes".

DirectLife is now available for consumers in the States at www.philips.com/directlife for an initial fee of $99 plus shipping. After 4 month's free, the monthly cost is $12.50.

Related links:

• Link - DirectLife

Tags: Sports Fitness Philips Pedometers Online Websites Philips DirectLife

Philips DirectLife launches originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:14:58 +0100

Maybe it's just me, but I reckon these shots of the new Nasa spacecraft leaving the vehicle assembly plant are some of the most exciting I've seen in a while.

Bear with me.

I know nothing really happens, but this harks back to the heady days of Apollo and Sputnik: those tense moments when the space race was headline news across the globe. This is new, uncharted, dangerous stuff and I can't wait for lift-off.

Like I said: maybe it's just me...

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Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY - Ares 1-X originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Disney have done it again with a fantastic family movie.

Love those Mickey Mouse ears or hate them, there's no denying they can make a movie that appeals to all. Kids love them and there's usually enough near-the-knuckle jokes to keep the mums and dads from dozing off into their popcorn.

This little online game from Cineworld ties in nicely to Up. Sign up and get your friends and family to attach 'balloons' to your house. The house with the most balloons on 20 November wins.

www.cineworld.com/up

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Cineworld Up originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

You may think this isn't the best time of year to be telling you about a holiday site.

You'd be wrong - this is the perfect time of year to be thinking about some time off and this new site can help. Prices are always great at this time of year, so there's really no excuse.

It searches for the best deals on flights and hotels and offers travellers' reviews - some of them on video.

Getting away from it all just got easier

www.hotelly.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Hotelly originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

What will soon be the only wine to serve to the tech savvy at San Fran dinner parties? Twitter wine!

As part of a charity initiative the micro-blogging site has revealed it is to team up with Crushpad and Fledgling Wine to raise money for Room to Read, an organisation that helps to educate kids in "resource deprived" regions.

The wine - both a pinot noir and a chardonnay - will be sold for $20 a bottle, with $5 per bottle sold going to the charity, and will be served at various Tweetups.

Hit play on the video above to see Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, and others involved in the scheme, give you the low-down on the new plans.

Tags: Software Twitter Websites Wine Room to Read

VIDEO: Twitter to offer own-brand pinot noir originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 17:17:03 +0100

Computational knowledge engine Wolfram Alpha has announced the launch of the Wolfram Alpha Webservice API.

The paid-for release will mean that developers can now stick Wolfram Alpha results and data into websites and online publishing, desktop applications, on mobiles and in cloud computing applications.

Wolfram Alpha says such uses may include "researching cancer through computational biology, augmenting web and meta-web search with computed knowledge, enriching online journalism with interactive content, building artificial intelligence systems on our domain expertise, leveraging our data analysis for decision support, optimizing renewable-energy efficiency, and even determining the optimal temperature for draft beer based on the current weather conditions".

Developers can register now for an API account at a dedicated site, while the API is said to be the basis for a forthcoming Wolfram Alpha iPhone app - we will keep you posted.

Read

Tags: Software Websites Wolfram Alpha Search engines APIs Biz iPhone apps

Wolfram Alpha announces Webservice API originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:06:17 +0100

Everybody likes a bit of fun for a Friday.

Even those wacky dudes over at Intel it would seem.

Corporate self-deprecation is all the rage and this still makes us chuckle.

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Tags: Video Websites Software Online Intel Adverts

VIDEO OF THE DAY ? Intel jokes originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Foursquare, the location-based social network which launched in London recently, has rolled out its service in fifteen more cities, adding to the 21 already available to bring the total up to 36.

The cities added are all in the USA and Canada, and the full list runs: Baltimore, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Omaha, Pittsburgh, Raleigh-Durham, Richmond, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, St. Louis, Montreal and Toronto.

Foursquare challenges its users to "check in" at locations using GPS, describing itself as 50% friend-finder, 30% social cityguide and 20% nightlife game. The idea is that you discover new things while being aware of where your friends are. It comes as an app for the iPhone and Android platforms and a mobile site for other smartphones.

If you'd like to find out more, Pocket-lint has a guide to Foursquare, as well as a set of Foursquare tips from an addict.

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Tags: Software Websites Online Foursquare GPS software Social networking

Foursquare gets 15 more citites originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 10:01:12 +0100

Google has revealed plans to launch its own online ebook store, due to open its virtual doors in the first half of 2010.

Although the online giant is currently embroiled in legal wrangles over its Google Books book scanning project, it hasn't stopped it from announcing the new "Google Editions" scheme.

The store will initially offer around half a million ebooks in formats suitable for any device with a web browser.

While Google will host the ebooks and make them searchable, it's said consumers will be able to buy titles direct, or go through the likes of Amazon - a big player in the market thanks to its Kindle reader range, or Barnes & Noble which has ambitions to make it big.

Google has ruled out making hardware to go along with the launch of the content store - "We're not focused on a dedicated e-reader or device of any kind", Google's director of strategic partnerships told Reuters at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

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Tags: Software Websites Google ebooks Google Books Google Editions Amazon Kindle Barnes and Noble

Google Editions ebook store announced originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 09:34:02 +0100

Ah, Kodak. The very mention of the name conjures up misty-eye nostalgia for the days of grainy, flickery super 8 movies and making every shot count as you only had 24 exposures on a roll.

Things have moved on a bit for Kodak, and although you won’t see their name in a shop very often, their online digital imaging site just got a whole lot better.

They’ve spent time and money improving Gallery after feedback from their customers. They listened, they learned and they got to work making this a one-stop-shop for all your imaging needs, no matter where you live.

http://www.kodakgallery.com" target="_blank">www.kodakgallery.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Kodak Gallery originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Imagine giving birth to a digital SLR. Brings tears to your eyes.

Right, now we've got that hideous image out of the way, here's actually quite an revealing film from Canon. It talks about the, ahem, 'birth' of the EOS 7D - a fine piece of kit if the pre-release pre-production samples are any indication.

We can't wait.

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Tags: Video Websites Software Online Canon DSLR cameras

VIDEO OF THE DAY - Canon EOS 7D originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Following some tragic news regarding the negative side of Facebook, the social networking site has announced it has improved its process to better respond to offensive behaviour on the site.

In a blog post, Facebook says: "While only a small fraction of people on the site ever experience abuse such as bullying, harassment, unwanted contact or offensive behaviour from others, we're constantly improving our processes to better respond if you do have a problem".

Facebook says that after its users have provided them with "accurate and detailed information", via a new, more detailed form system, it will be able to "locate and remove abuse on the site as quickly and efficiently as possible".

Users can report abuse on the site by selecting the "Report" link located near photos, videos, notes or other content they find offensive or inappropriate, however, "keep in mind that we won't remove a photo or video just because it's unflattering", says Facebook.

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Tags: Software Websites Facebook Online Social networking

Facebook improves system to report offensive behaviour originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:24:03 +0100

As part of its plans to "partner with organizations that share our vision for positive global impact", Twitter has announced a partnership with Bharti Airtel, the largest mobile operator in India.

This team-up means a "huge population" of people can now send tweets at standard rates and receive tweets for free and sees Twitter available via phone to those that might not have broadband.

Twitter says "there are over one billion people with internet access on the planet but there are more than four billion people with mobile phones and Twitter can work on all of them because even the simplest of these devices feature SMS".

Those on the Airtel network can give Twitter a try by sending START to 53000.

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Tags: Software Websites Twitter Phones Bharti Airtel India SMS

Twitter announces Bharti Airtel text partnership originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:00:32 +0100

While other sites are writing reviews of Google Wave, we think it's a little unfair to judge Google's new communications tool so early, especially as it's only just stepped blinking out into the light of the web and already the hype bubble is bursting.

Much of the pre-release coverage consisted of breathy reports about how Wave was going to revolutionise communications. According to blog posts from the people who snuck into the developer preview of the service, we would all be dumping email and IM wholesale within minutes of getting an invite to this shiny multicoloured Googlegasmic utopia.

The reality was less impressive. When most people activated their Google Wave invitations they opened their browsers to a barren wasteland, because they didn't know anyone else on the service. They waved with themselves for a minute or two, before closing their browser bitterly disappointed. Some discovered "Public waves" - which are waves available to anyone, but were then overwhelmed with too many messages, too quickly.

At that point, the hype bubble burst and scathing articles and tweets proliferated about how Wave was pointless. But over the last few weeks, more users have trickled onto the service and most people will now know one or two others who are using it.

At the time of writing, Google Wave consists of four panes. There's an inbox, a pane to view selected waves in, a contacts bar (which lists any of your Google Contacts that are in the test program, as well as anyone you've invited) and a navigation bar. All can be collapsed into a space at the top of the screen where they become a drop-down menu instead.

You can save searches for particular subjects, as well as file things into folders (GMail's tagging functionality is still present too, but at the bottom of individual waves). There's a settings menu, too, though that's currently empty. There's currently a few extensions available - weather, maps and a poll gadget.?

So what's the reality? The answer, happily, is both. Google Wave in its current state is an impotent, stunted, stub of a web service, which is functional at best, and buggy at worst. But it's also the future. Consider the state of Twitter in 2007 - it was just a website with little messages that people pushed out via SMS. No one was terribly impressed.

But then it opened up its platform. It put out an API. It let other applications interface with it. The simplest examples were desktop and mobile apps that meant that you didn't have to visit the Twitter website to find out what was going on. Instead, you could have little notifications that popped-up as necessary when things happened.

Gradually, as a result of these "extensions" to Twitter, its popularity started to rocket. The same thing will likely happen to Wave. While it might, for now, be a strange communications tool that sits awkwardly between email and instant messaging, it has the potential - as a platform - to really improve communications on the web, for a number of reasons.

Firstly, it can be used both actively and passively. You can ignore a Wave from your boss about why your project's late, like you would an email, while still gossiping with your friend about last night's Strictly Come Dancing, like you would in IM. But it takes the best bits of both, and chops out the worst bits.

It's better than IM because all history is saved, searchable and taggable. You can also add new people into the conversation very easily without them missing anything that's already been said. It's better than email because response can be instant - so instant you can see people typing (though that's more of a gimmick than a useful feature), and all messages about a subject are grouped into one thread, rather than filling up your inbox as multiple people reply.

Tools could roll out that - for example - automatically add in Spotify links to songs when you're talking about them, or allow some users more control over a Wave than others have, or even that let you integrate voice and video chat into waves, and use speech-to-text engines to automatically transcribe conversations for future annotation.

Verdict:

The possibilities are endless and so, therefore, are the possibilities of Google Wave. What it needs most now is to be made stable and opened up. Once developers can access the API and anyone can freely sign up, and when there's desktop notifiers for Wave, people will begin to see its true potential.

Tags: Software Online Google Google Wave Websites

Google Wave - First Look originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 09:00:00 +0100

Technorati's had a facelift (yes, another one.)

But this time they've added in some really useful stuff if wallowing in the murky waters of the blogosphere is your thing.

Check it out. As they say...

www.technorati.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Technorati originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

MOG has announced that it'll shortly be launching a music streaming service. The website, which since 2006 has offered a music-oriented community and blogging platform will be rolling out the subscription-funded "All Access" scheme by the end of November.

It'll cost $5 per month for access to a catalogue of 5 million tracks from all four major labels and a host of independents. There'll also be a free trial offer, but unlike Spotify there's no ad-supported free option. A desktop version will be arriving "some time before Thanksgiving", and there will be iPhone and BlackBerry apps in time, too.

Bloggers who're signed up with MOG will get free access to the service to help promote it, and there's also talk of social features - users will be able to see what other people are streaming. Like other services, there'll be playlist creation and the ability to discover music that you don't already know.

What's not clear is how the service will differentiate itself from Napster, Rhapsody, and the soon-to-launch-in-the-US Spotify. Perhaps it'll be the network's ability to pull in content from its contributor blogs, but whether the content from those blogs will be strong enough remains to be seen.

When the service launches we'll bring you a full low-down.

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Tags: Audio MOG Websites Media streaming Online Music

MOG readies $5 music subscription originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:32:06 +0100

If you’ve ever wondered what goes through other people heads, here’s one just for you.

Mystery Google is a fascinating social experiment shedding light on the cultural and sociological currents upon which we are all floating – you could say a direct link straight into the zeitgeist.

Or, it’s a bit of a laugh.

Search for something and you don’t get your results, you get the previous person’s

Not suitable for work, as they say.

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www.mysterygoogle.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Mystery Google originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Those crazy Swedes, eh? They make the safest cars in the world and probably the most frustrating furniture (why is there always one bolt missing?).

They also make musical staircases. Yep, you read that right: musical staircases.

In an effort to make more people use the stairs, they've made the stairs more fun.

We're all for it. Chopsticks anyone?

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Piano stairs originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

The world's first online seance will take place this Hallowe'en via micro-blogging site Twitter, and predictably, it's been dubbed a "tweance".

Dead celebs are the target for the session and Twitter users can nominate expired stars as well as send in questions they'd like asked.

Jayne Wallace, a "top psychic" recently used by The Sun to supposedly contact the spirit of Jade Goody, will conduct the tweance.

The contact with the deceased stars - questions asked and presumably "answers" - will be tweeted between 10am and 12pm on Friday 30 October at twitter.com/tweance.

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Tags: Software Twitter Websites Social networking Tweance

Twitter "tweance" to take place on Hallowe'en originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 10:22:32 +0100

It's safe to say that Wave, Google's new communications tool, hasn't received the rapturous reception it might have expected.

It's been suggested that perhaps it is a little, well, "busy" is one word.

"Confusing" is another. "Muddled" works too.

It hasn't taken somebody long to come up with a unique way of showing it either.

Have your say today.

www.Easiertounderstandthanwave.com

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Easiertounderstandthanwave originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Here's an interesting game you can play at the office.

Run through this clip of the top 100 YouTube hits and see how many people know them all.

You'll soon find out who has way too much time on their hands

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VIDEO OF THE DAY - Top 100 originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:00:00 +0100

Ah, the power of a good ad campaign.

Dixons is a name that we thought had gone forever – you don’t see their branches on the high street any more, but here they are, still doing what they always have.

Dixons is one of the biggest names in electrical retailing and this new online store is as good as any you might want to visit.

Their ads are top notch though.

www.dixons.co.uk

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Dixons originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Take a bassoon.

Add it to an electric guitar.

Throw in a little bit of a piano and a drum machine.

Then plug the whole lot into an Apple Mac and see what happens?

If it’s anything like the Eigenharp, you’re onto a winner.

This extraordinary instrument is British-made and sounds like just about anything you want it to.

As demonstrated here.

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Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY ? Bond on the Eigenharp originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Watching them legally and at a decent screen resolution is though.

OK, so you have to tolerate a few seconds of advertising before your videos start rolling.

But then you don’t have a team of burly coppers kicking your door in and confiscating your computer either.

Progress indeed.

http://www.muzu.tv target=">www.muzu.tv

?If you have a website that you want to tell us about email us via the http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/info/contactus.phtml">>feedback form.

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WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Muzu originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

It's being reported that Twitter is currently in mega-money talks with Microsoft and Google, discussing using Twitter content in searches separately with each search giant.

All Things D reports: "According to sources familiar with the situation - Twitter is in advanced talks with Microsoft and Google separately about striking data-mining deals, in which the companies would license a full feed from the microblogging service that could then be integrated into the results of their competing search engines".

Microsoft's Bing already encompasses some Twitter content in its results while Google recently announced Hot Trends that offers real-time results for popular search terms, so it's a little unclear at this stage what the talks may result in.

All Thing D's sources say "a number of scenarios are being discussed to compensate Twitter for its huge and potentially valuable trove of real-time and content-sharing information, generated from the data stream of billions of tweets from its 54 million monthly users".

We will keep you posted.

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Tags: Software Websites Twitter Google Microsoft Biz Rumours Search engines Social networking

Twitter in talks with Microsoft, Google originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 18:00:50 +0100

You may have heard this morning that foursquare is launching in the UK. And if you haven't, shame on you for not having Pocket-lint open all day. If you don't know what foursquare is on the other hand, then that's a whole lot more forgiveable seeing as the service only started in March this year at the SXSW technology, music and film extravaganza. So, for the majority of us...

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What is foursquare?

In a nutshell, it's a location service-based social network-come-game. What it does in effect is to tell you where your friends are and add a little fun to going out in the evening. It's like Google Lattitude meets a little bit of Facebook, a touch of Twitter, a dash of Qype and even a twist of World of Warcraft. And if that's not a cocktail for hopeless addiction, then we're not sure what is.

How does it work?

The whole system is based around what is known as "checking-in". You check-in from bars and restaurants and any kind of nightspot or watering hole, perhaps with a little message about where you are and what you're doing - all very brief - and the system will then register what you're up to. People who you're friends with will then get pinged a message to let them know your whereabouts and activities, and the idea is that they can then join you if they fancy or just be pleased that you're out having a good time. From the other side of things, if you're out on your own somewhere, suddenly mateless in town or stuck at home and bored, you can see where everyone's at and get yourself down to the party. All pretty simple. The other two things you can do are create a to-do-list of places you've always wanted to go and add to a Top 12 list of your recommendations for other people.

And what about the game?

The clever, or clever-er, part is that you get points for checking-in. The idea is that it encourages you to do so, which then gets the system running and propagates the idea and the fun even further. It's all rather new, even for the developers, and much of the system is still evolving but, at the moment, you get a point for checking in, you get five points if it happens to be from a place you've never checked-in from before; a further point if it's the second, third, fourth etc place of the evening; and another still for checking-in multiple nights in a row, you old booze hound, you. You can only get points for checking-in outside of work hours - presumably to prevent potential mass job loss and alcoholism - but you're always eligible for the five discovery points no matter what time of day it is.

Naturally, the points aren't good for anything other than bragging rights but that's currency a-plenty with a leader board on the site with the top users. Also, if you check-in from the same place more times and more regularly than anyone else, then you might find yourself crowned Mayor of that gaff on the site - an honour that many may try to wrestle from you but then, that's part of the fun. You'll probably begin as rivals and end up the next week amassing 50 points together on some all night bender.

You can also earn badges as you check-in which is where the parallel of World of Warcraft and its Achievements system lies. Firstly, there are badges for the number of times you've checked-in to new establishments from Newbie up to Superstar, plus all sorts of random and more cryptic titles to earn. Word has it that this is where the real addiction lies, especially with the team working on and taking suggestions for all sorts of new badges.

The really clever part

That's basically the fun side of foursquare and what you'll appreciate as a user, but while all this is going on, the owners of the service are also gathering some very considerable review and guide data for all the best spots in a whole bunch of major cities all over the world. It's the kind of user-generated content that Qype specialises in but in a much less in-depth way. What foursquare then decides to do with that is up to the business but there's certainly plenty of commercial scope, if only for the desire of new bars and restaurants to get themselves listed or even to have a badge made just for them.

How do I start?

Like all social networks, just head to the foursquare site and sign up with a free and very brief profile which will ask you for your mobile phone number so it can ping you. Then add a photo and find your friends.

Can anyone use it?

Well, yes and no. Firstly, the system has to be city specific, so there are different networks for a number of different locations. If there doesn't happen to be one in your location then, it's not going to work for you. So far you can play in: Amsterdam, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas / Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis / St. Paul, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington, DC and now London as well. You'll need a mobile phone to check-in from and a decent SMS package on your price plan or, better still, there's an app for Android, iPhone and soon ones for BlackBerry and the Palm Pre too.

Related links:

• News - Foursquare launches for London

Tags: Software Websites Online Foursquare GPS software Social networking Quick Guide

What is Foursquare? originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:45:54 +0100

Coke is launching a "worldwide social networking experiment", otherwise known as a publicity stunt, to help people find their doppelgangers.

With the laughably tenuous link that "if Coke Zero has Coke's taste, isn't it possible someone out there has your face?", the fizzy pop giant is creating a database of faces to match up look-a-likies.

Hit play now to see Coke's teaser ad for the service, which is due to go live as a Facebook app soon.

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Tags: Software Websites Facebook Coke Advertising Video

VIDEO: Coke using Facebook to find your evil twin originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:32:10 +0100

Foursquare has announced that it's launching its location-based social networking game in London.

The service, which awards points and badges for experiencing things in certain locations, is popular in the States but relatively unknown on this side of the Atlantic.

Apps to play are available for iPhone and Android, and there's a web interface for other devices.

Over here, the only other city where the service is available is Amsterdam. London has a reputation for being open to social services, so Foursquare could do well in the town. Particularly as there's plenty to see and do in the capital.

Meanwhile, the company has also attracted investment from Digg foundeer Kevin Rose. He announced that he was involved in the service at the Future of Web Apps conference which co-incidentally was also held in London.

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Related links:

• News - Twitter tests new geolocation features

Tags: Software Websites Online Foursquare GPS software Social networking

Foursquare launches for London originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:19:05 +0100

Yahoo has sent an email to users giving final notice of the closure of its GeoCities service, shutting the door and turning off the lights on an early chapter in the history of the Internet. The site will be closing on 26 October, and from that date onward websites will no longer appear on the Web and users will have no access to their accounts.

GeoCities was the place where many people hosted their first website, as it provided easy-to-use tools rather than forcing people to work in HTML. It was also free, though ad-supported. Yahoo picked it up for $3.65 billion at the peak of the dot com bubble in January 1999, though the site then became gradually obsolete as it became easier to host websites manually.

In April, Yahoo announced the site's closure, and stopped accepting new registrations. The company has now given users a final notice that the site is closing, encouraging them to download their pages to their computer, or switch over to Yahoo! Web Hosting. The company reminds users that all GeoCities content will be deleted after 26 Oct.

Did you have a GeoCities site? How long has it been since you visited one? Let us know in the comments.

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Related links:

• News - Yahoo pulls plug on GeoCities

Tags: Software Online Websites GeoCities Yahoo

GeoCities to shut down on 26 October originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:03:12 +0100

We're not quite sure how bored you’d need to be to set up a website which shows off all the Google 'doodle' banners that appear from time to time. Especially as it something that Google already do themselves.

But, we're quite glad somebody was that bored, because it's actually pretty cool to see what people around the world get to see on their homescreens whenever something significant grabs the attention of the Google team.

Much like reality TV, it’s pointless but strangely intriguing.

www.doodlesource.com

If you have a website that you want to tell us about email us via the feedback form.

Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Doodle Source originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Google is attempting to explain away the serious privacy concerns its Street View photo-mapping service raises with a super-cute video.

Worried about your property being available to be viewed online by anyone? Don't be - just look at the sweet little camera snapping the pics.

Bothered by your personal privacy being invaded by a mega corporation with a fleet of camera-equipped cars? Don't worry - cutesy camera is blocking out faces with a fountain pen - aaw!

Tags: Software Websites Google Street View GPS software Video

VIDEO: Google explains Street View privacy with cute animation originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:38:27 +0100

We're not massive fans of manufactured pop music here at Pocket-lint Towers, but there's something really fascinating about this online quest to reach the top of the charts.

I'm not sure just how tongue in cheek most of this is. I get the impression that these four cheeky chappies are playing it straight and in the process are creating car crash comedy gold.

Whatever happens, this is all for Children in Need and is certainly a bit different. Good luck to you guys.

If you've seen a video online that you want to tell us about email us via the feedback form.

Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY - Chartjackers originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Netizens landing on Google's homepage today will see yet another of the search engine's famous "doodles", this time celebrating the humble barcode.

With Google's logo turned into its barcode equivalent, clicking on the graphic goes through to a search about barcodes, with the significance being that today is the 57th anniversary of the official patent for the barcode.

The barcode was invented in the States back in the Forties with US inventors Norman Woodland and Bernard Silver being granted the patent in 1952.

Tags: Software Websites Online Google Google doodles Barcodes

Google doodle celebrates barcode anniversary originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 09:56:48 +0100

Sarah Beeny must be delighted. Finally there’s a place on the Web that isn’t obsessed with her, shall we say ‘stature’…?

But that’s not too surprising (the site, not her ‘stature’) as it’s Sarah’s own new site for buying and selling property.

And impressive it is too (still talking about the site…)

You can buy and sell houses without the intervention of those tiresome estate agents polluting your mind with doublespeak and exaggeration.

Magnificent. The site, I mean….

www.tepilo.com

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Tepilo originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Google appears to be testing a new interface for its front page for some users. Its famous word count limit of 28 has been reduced to zero with a page that hides everything except for the logo and search box until you move your mouse across it.

There's two versions that have been spotted - one with the "Google Search" and "I'm Feeling Lucky" buttons, and one without. The latter is depicted in the video above. Google appears to just be testing the page with a handful of users, so if you can't see it, then that'll be why.

Don't get too attached, because it's entirely possible that the test will never see a mainstream rollout. Do you like it? Do you hate it? Why? Share your thoughts on the great disappearing act in the comments.

Update: This appears (no pun intended) to be showing up for UK users now, too, complete with barcode Google logo.

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Related links:

• News - Google adds the word "privacy" to homepage
• News - Google UK homepage changes to US style

Tags: Software Websites Online Google Video

VIDEO: Google tests fading homepage originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:48:57 +0100

Wow. Is it just me, or are game trailers getting to be as good, if not better, than movie trailers?

You'd think that the shoot 'em up genre would be exhausted by now, but this new offering boasts such incredible graphics, it's almost like being part of a Ridley Scott movie.

Awesome stuff.

If you've seen a video online that you want to tell us about email us? via the feed back form.

Tags: Video Websites Software Online Gaming

VIDEO OF THE DAY - Modern Warfare 2 trailer originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Toshiba are having a bit of a golden age at the moment.

Their mobile offering, the TG01, is grabbing headlines all over the place, their laptops are selling well and their TVs regularly come top in user tests, especially since they brought us the simply magnificent Dolby Volume which evens out the advertisers’ dreaded shouty volume spikes.

In this new blog they talk about everything that’s going on.

But do corporate blogs work? Not too sure about that in most cases, but at least Toshiba aren’t ramming this one down people’s throats – its only marketing is word of mouth and web searches.

Oh, and people like us telling you about it.

www.toshibalife.com

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Toshiba LIfe originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Nokia has added a new feature to its Ovi Maps service that will allow users to find points of interest, but also to make contributions themselves. It's called "Good Things".

The idea is that locals know an area best, and allowing them to recommend great restaurants, hidden-away locations and other nifty little things that people who "aren't from round 'ere" might not know.

Earlier in the year, Nokia Interactive's head of sales - John Stoneman - laid the philosophical groundwork for the move, explaining how to monetise such an application:

"If users are just trying to find a route from A to B then advertisers will have to be fairly serendipitous to be able to guess what will interest them as they pass, or they're going to have to bombard them with so many ads that they will become frustrated - which will result in a bad user experience".

Good Things will be available in 25 countries, and should be launched on mobile handsets and on the Web imminently.

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Related links:

• News - Nokia updates Ovi Maps with 3D vector graphics and an API
• Link - Ovi Maps - Good Things

Tags: Phones Mobile phone apps Websites Nokia Ovi Google

Good Things added to Nokia's Ovi Maps originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:12:25 +0100

A long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away etc?) there was a useful little digital imaging app called Picasa.

It was innovative at the time, allowing users to upload and share their photos with anybody they pleased.

Now, every other site on the web seems to do something similar, so it's good to see that the team at Google (who gobbled up Picasa a while back) have not rested on their laurels.

The new version is packed with useful and clever little features and this video takes us through the highlights.

If you've seen a video online that you want to tell us about email us via the feed back form.

Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY - Picasa 3.5 originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Twitter is testing a geolocation system that automatically detects and marks where users are Tweeting from. The feature is opt-in, so if you're concerned about privacy then you can turn it off.

Interestingly, however, it'll be available to third party developers - so if you're a regular tweeter then it should be relatively easy for someone to knock together a mashup that tracks your movements on a map.

Some users have reported that red pin-shaped dots are appearing on a map alongside their tweets - though many are also placed off the coast of Ghana at 00 latitude and 00 longitude - this is likely to be a result of the service being unable to detect their location.

A Twitter staff member, Raffi Krikorian, announced the development by saying: "As some of you may have already noticed, we've started going through the first steps to get the geolocation API out our door. There are a few more steps in the process that i want to share with all of you".

"There will also always be a tag in the status object regardless of whether there is a location attached to the tweet or not. If there is no location, then the tag will be empty. If there is a location, then the tag will be populated".

The new feature isn't far off a full release, Krikorian says: "We've deployed for internal testing, and soon we'll be turning this on for the general audience".

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Related links:

• News - UK Court serves writ via Twitter

Tags: Software Car And GPS Websites Twitter Online GPS software Social networking

Twitter tests new geolocation features originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:24:15 +0100

As well as upside-down English and pirate, Facebook is now available in the mother of all romance tongues, Latin.

In a blog post, the social networking site says: "Most of the time when we stumble upon a Latin phrase, it's etched in stone: carved in the hallways of universities, chiselled on facades of government buildings or carefully imprinted in cathedral foyers and churchyards. The language seems almost immovable. Yet beginning today, Latin - the staid and reliable language - springs to life on Facebook".

Now users can select to answer "quid cogitas?", rather than "what's on your mind?", keep their charta up to date and, of course, connect with their amici.

Azeri, Faroese, Georgian and Nepali also join the 70 plus languages that Facebook is available in.

Those who want to change their account settings to see the site displayed in the dead language need to go to Facebook's language drop-down menu and select it there.

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Tags: Software Facebook Websites Social networking

Facebook now available in Latin originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 10:31:16 +0100

The latest fad in the world of weight loss is Twitter-based, as an app that's designed to work with the micro-blogging site is making headline news.

Tweet What You Eat is an online food diary that integrates with Twitter, broadcasting to all what it is you've just stuffed into your mouth, on a real-time basis.

With the thinking behind it to shame people into eating less, or at least eating more healthily, it also offers info on food, including calorie counts.

If you thought that some folk's Twitter chat could not get any more dull, expect an explosion of "museli 340 calories" and "half a Milky Way 130 calories" soon as celebs are helping to promote the diet with Twitter-lover Stephen Fry said to have lost 6 stone in 6 months.

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Related links:

• Link - TweetWhatYouEat.com

Tags: Software Websites Twitter Tweet What You Eat

Twitter aids weight loss originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 09:32:24 +0100

Next year, the Glastonbury Festival turns 40, and let's face it, it's looking pretty good for its age.

It's the festival that all the others try to out do, and for one reason or another, they never quite manage it.

If you fancy a ticket to the 2010 birthday party, you'd better be quick. The box office opened yesterday so today's the day.

www.glastonburyfestival.co.uk

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Glasto originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

It's been well over a year since UK broadcaster Sky officially announced plans to create an unlimited music service, and it's only now just about to go into a limited beta testing phase.

Called "Sky Songs", there's a website up and running now with a "coming soon" banner claiming it will offer "a new way to discover music" but provides no timescale as to when it will be publicly available.

Since Sky's plans were revealed in July 2008, the online music market has changed considerably with the UK launch of Spotify making streaming a more popular choice. In the same time period the similar service We7 has hit 2 million users.

Sky had previously said that for a monthly subscription fee, users would be able to download tracks to listen to later and "to own forever" with tracks said to work on any MP3-compatible device, including iPods, MP3 players and mobile phones, which suggested the songs would be DRM-free.

We do know Sky's offering will be made up of a catalogue of more than 4 million songs from all of the major labels as well as over 100 independents.

How much Sky plans to charge, how usable the site is, and just how unlimited those unlimited claims turn out to be will all be crucial to the success of Sky Songs, especially considering its delayed entry to the market. We will keep you posted.

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Related links:

• News - Sky announces plans for unlimited music download site

Tags: Audio Sky Sky Songs Music downloads Websites Spotify We7 Media streaming

Unlimited music service Sky Songs hits beta originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:30:19 +0100

A UK court has ordered that an injunction be delivered via Twitter, in a move that's being seen as a landmark legal first. The writ is being issued against an anonymous Tweeter who's squatting on the @blaneysblarney account and impersonating Donal Blaney - the owner of a firm of solicitors.

The Tweeter in question will be served the writ by the high court the next time they access the service. Andre Walker from the firm, Griffin Law, said: "Whoever they are, they will be told to stop posting, to remove previous posts and to identify themselves to the High Court via a web link form".

The barrister who won the injunction, Matthew Richardson, said: "People have to learn that they can no longer hide behind the cloak of anonymity the Internet provides and break the law with impunity".

Twitter is working on premium offerings on its site where users will be able to pay to have their account verified, after which a seal will appear on their profile, indicating that they're the real deal.

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Related links:

• News - Courtney Love sues Guitar Hero publishers over Cobain likeness

Tags: Software Online Websites Twitter

UK Court serves writ via Twitter originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:17:10 +0100

As more live online television becomes available, employees who use such services at their workplace could be putting their employers at risk of a big fine.

The BBC reports that businesses are being warned they could be breaking the law if staff watch live TV on their computers when the firm does not have a TV licence.

Although if you watch live TV on a mobile, portable media player or laptop out and about you are covered by your home TV licence, once the device you're watching TV on is plugged in, the onus is on the premises.

This means that anyone watching live TV (not catch-up services like the iPlayer) could be risking their employers facing a fine of up to ?1000.

A spokesperson for the TV licence body told the BBC: "You need a licence if you are watching programmes as they are broadcast. At a business, the same rules apply".

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Tags: Home Cinema iPlayer BBC TV licence Biz Software Websites Online

Businesses get TV licence warning originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 10:04:06 +0100

If you're still paying full price for anything these days its time you got with the programme.

This isn't the only site offering discount codes for online retailers, but we reckon it's the most reliable - more of the offers we checked out were valid here than at some of the others we've used.

Still struggling to find a catch with these sites. There has to be one, doesn't there??

www.promotionalcodes.org.uk

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY - promotionalcodes originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Twitter has announced on its official blog that it'll be launching a new feature soon called "Lists". This allows you to create lists of Twitter users within a certain subset like, for example, Pocket-lint's Top 100 UK Tech Tweeters list.

Lists are viewable by the public by default, though it's possible to make them private, and any lists you create are linked from your profile - other users can then subscribe to them. Twitter's aiming for this to be a way to discover new users.

The functionality will be available in the Twitter API soon, too. That's due in "a few days", according to the company, and will mean that Lists will start showing up in third party Twitter clients. The functionality is still in limited testing, though, so won't be available yet on all accounts.

Twitter says it created the feature "because of the frequent requests we received from people who were looking for a better way to organize information on Twitter". Sounds interesting - we'll let you know when it launches publicly.

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Related links:

• News - No Twitter ads planned before 2010
• News - The Top 100 UK tech folk to follow on Twitter

Tags: Software Websites Online Twitter

Twitter announces Lists functionality originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:01:09 +0100

Just in time for those of you who are super-organised and like to do your Christmas shopping early, here's something a little different.

Buying that perfect present is always tough, but with Misi you might find just what you need.

It's an online marketplace for artisans and crafty types wanting to sell their handmade wares.

Some of it is truly beautiful stuff made by clearly very talented people.
But then some of it is the kind of stuff you'd be too embarrassed to give to even the most worthy of charity shops, made by people who clearly shouldn't be left unsupervised with anything sharp.

Happy shopping.

www.misi.co.uk

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Misi originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

That cat is back.

Simon's Cat returns to our desktops in another new adventure.

We can't get enough of this feisty little feline.

If you've seen a video online that you want to tell us about email us via the feedback form.

Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY ? Hot Spot originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100

If things at Google HQ are running according to plan, then invites for Google Wave should be going out around now. The company told the BBC that it plans to open the service to 100,000 beta testers from 1600BST on 30 September.

Each of those invited will get five invites to pass out to their friends (or put on eBay, where they'll not doubt fetch a respectable sum). It'll work in any browser except IE6, which isn't compatible with HTML5 - however you'll be able to install Google's "Chrome Frame" to get it working in the browser - something Microsoft has advised against.

Google Wave is billed as a "communication and collaboration tool" by its creator Lars Rasmussen. It puts conversations in "the cloud", he says, and includes functions like real-time typing and conversations being more accuratedly threaded and able to be "played back" at a later date".

We'll bring you a full hands-on first look of Google Wave as soon as possible.

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Related links:

• News - Google Wave approaches public beta
• News - Microsoft warns of Chrome Frame security flaws

Tags: Software Google Websites Online Google Wave Email

Google Wave invites now available originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:00:00 +0100

Disney has made a big move into the ebook market in the States with the launch of Disney Digital Books.

A new subscription-based website, families can access more than 500 interactive, electronic replicas of Disney books for $79.95 a year, but only on the PC.

As far as the kids go, the books are aimed at children aged between 3 and 12, with books offered that are read aloud with music, as well as titles designed for kids to read alone.

Disney is said to have "digital aspirations" to make the content downloadable to phones and other devices, such as ebook readers, in the future, but for now will focus on the site.

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Related links:

• Link - Disney Digital Books

Tags: Dad Disney Books Websites Online ebooks

Disney Digital Books site launches for kids originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:28:59 +0100

Snow leopard. Two words you'll have heard a lot about recently no doubt. Mac users will be singing its praises and PC users will be shrugging indifferently and wondering what all the fuss is about.

Whatever your stance, here's one of the finest pieces of wildlife film ever made (Sir David Attenborough rated this as the best ever).

It's the first time an entire snow leopard hunt was captured on film and was only possible since the advent of HD technology - it was filmed from the other side of the valley.

If you like this, check out Website of the Day today.

If you've seen a video online that you want to tell us about email us via the feedback form.

Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY ? Snow Leopard originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100

In the States and in Japan, Google users can take advantage of a new Google search feature that the search engine says "will help you stay in touch with the latest trends on the web".

Google's "Hot Trends", which lists the fastest rising searches on the web at any given hour, now ranks such trends in a top 100 within search results.

When users search Google.com and the query matches one of the top 100 fastest-rising search terms, Google shows a graph at the bottom of page, with links to further info.

"We hope it will help you keep up with everything there's to know about the latest trends online", says Google.

Commentators, meanwhile are suggesting it's an attempt to stay real-time relevant in the face of competition from Twitter.

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Tags: Software Websites Google Search engines Online

Google makes real-time move with Hot Trends originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:57:09 +0100

Regular readers will know I'm a fan of the BBC. It makes me all patriotic to know that we have one of the finest broadcasters on the planet and, as I've said before, nobody does wildlife filming like the Beeb.

Sir David Attenborough is the quintessential presenter when it comes to flora and fauna and this archive relives some of the best moments of his long and illustrious career.

I've already spent hours on this site, and I'll be spending hours more too.
I reckon you might too.

www.bbc.co.uk/wildlifefinder

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY ? Wildlife Finder originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:00:00 +0100

If there's a better person than Somegreybloke to explain what Facebook is actually for, then we don't know who it is.

This is absolutely priceless

If you've seen a video online that you want to tell us about email us via the feed back form.

Tags: Video Websites Software Online

VIDEO OF THE DAY ? what Facebook is for originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:00:00 +0100

Jude Law is a transvestite.

That might've grabbed your attention, and with good reason.

Sally Potter's Rage is a movie-making phenomenon. Not only does she get Mr. Law to dress up as a sex kitten siren, she manages to assemble a stellar cast of contemporary cinema talent, make an extraordinary ensemble movie and then (horror of horrors) give it away for nothing.

To say it's turned the film industry on its head is something of an understatement.

Grab it online or on your mobile.

www.ragethemovie.com

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Tags: WebsiteOfTheDay Websites Software Online

WEBSITE OF THE DAY - Rage originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Google Wave - the company's attempt to combine IM, email, and sharing functionality into an open-source communications platform - will be rolling out to the first lot of beta testers on 30 September. If you'd like to know more, hit play on the video above for a 10-minute abridged version of the hour-and-twenty-minute demo video from earlier in the year.

As previously reported on Pocket-lint, Google wrote in a blog post back in July: "We plan to start extending the Google Wave preview beyond developers on September 30th. This will take place on wave.google.com rather than the separate 'sandbox' instance we are currently using, and we plan to involve about 100,000 users".

If you want to be one of those 100,000, then it's probably a good idea to head over to wave.google.com pretty sharpish, and volunteer to sell your soul by clicking the "Let me know when it's ready" box and volunteering to do as much as they ask you to in terms of reporting bugs.

We'll let you know when Wave goes live, and we'll keep you informed of its progress, so keep an eye on Pocket-lint or our RSS feed.

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Related links:

• News - Google Wave gets beta launch date

Tags: Software Google Websites Online Google Wave Email Video

Google Wave approaches public beta originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:20:38 +0100

Twitter has revealed it has completed a new round of funding, but it's the amount the funding values the social networking site at that's making headlines.

Two anonymous sources have told Bloomberg that the amount Twitter has received is $100 million, and adds up to a 10% stake. This therefore means that the investors see Twitter's overall value as $1 billion.

Twitter has confirmed the investments, and the names of the companies in a blog post, but makes no mention of amount, other than it is "significant". From Twitter's Evan Williams:

"There's a lot of talk today about our financing. Yesterday we closed a significant round of funding with a group of investment firms that we're excited to publicly thank: Insight Venture Partners, T. Rowe Price, Institutional Venture Partners, Spark Capital, Benchmark Capital, and Morgan Stanley".

"It's interesting to see, almost 10 years since we had the first Internet bubble, that we've now got billion-dollar valuations on companies that haven't defined how they're going to monetize their traffic", David Garrity, principal at GVA Research LLC in New York commented to Bloomberg.

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Related links:

• Link - Twitter

Tags: Software Websites Online Twitter Biz

New Twitter funding values company at $1 billion originally appeared on Pocket-lint on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:49:04 +0100