text stringlengths 0 2.94k |
|---|
With 13.5 cubic feet of trunk space, the TLX lands right in the middle of the pack. The BMW has the biggest boot in the bunch at 17 cubic feet, while S60 drivers make do with just 11.6 cubes. Interestingly, the Volvo is the broadest sedan at 80.3 inches -- about 5 inches wider than the Acura -- if wide bois are a thing... |
Mobile games come of age |
The BBC News website takes a look at how games on mobile phones are maturing. A brief round-up follows but you can skip straight to the reviews by clicking on the links below. |
If you think of Snake when some mentions "mobile games" then you could be in for a bit of a surprise. This is because mobile games have come a long way in a very short time. Even before Nokia's N-Gage game phone launched in late 2003, many mobile operators were realising that there was an audience looking for something... |
And given that many more people own handsets than own portable game playing gadgets such as the GameBoy it could be a very lucrative market. That audience includes commuters wanting something to fill their time on the way home, game fans looking for a bit of variety and hard core gamers who like to play every moment th... |
There are shoot-em-ups, adventure games, strategy titles and many novel games only found on handsets. Rarely now does an action movie launch without a mobile game tie-in. Increasingly such launches are all part of the promotional campaign for a film, understandable when you realise that a good game can rack up millions... |
The minimum technology specifications that phones should adhere to are getting more sophisticated which means that games are too. Now double key presses are possible making familiar tactics such as moving and strafing a real option. The processing power on handsets means that physics on mobile games is getting more con... |
TOO FAST TOO FURIOUS (DIGITAL BRIDGES) |
As soon as I start playing this I remember why I never play driving games - because I'm rubbish at them. No matter if I drive the car via joystick or keypad I just cannot get the hang of braking for corners or timing a rush to pass other drivers. The game rewards replay because to advance you have to complete every sec... |
FATAL FORCE (MACROSPACE) |
A futuristic shooter that lets you either play various deathmatch modes against your phone or run through a series of scenarios that involves killing aliens invading Earth. Graphics are a bit cartoon-like but only helps to make clear what is going on and levels are well laid out and encourage you to leap about explorin... |
California sets fines for spyware |
The makers of computer programs that secretly spy on what people do with their home PCs could face hefty fines in California. |
From 1 January, a new law is being introduced to protect computer users from software known as spyware. The legislation, which was approved by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, is designed to safeguard people from hackers and help protect their personal information. Spyware is considered by computer experts to be one of ... |
One form of spyware called adware has the ability to collect information on a computer user's web-surfing. It can result in people being bombarded with pop-up ads that are hard to close. In Washington, Congress has been debating four anti-spyware bills, but California is a step ahead. The state's Consumer Protection Ag... |
Web helps collect aid donations |
The web is helping aid agencies gather resources to help cope with the aftermath of the tsunami disaster. |
Many people are making donations via websites or going online to see how they can get involved with aid efforts. High-profile web portals such as Google, Yahoo, Ebay and Amazon are gathering links that lead people to aid and relief organisations. So many were visiting some aid-related sites that some webpages were stru... |
Telco BT stepped in to take over the secure payments on the DEC site and provided extra logistical support for phone and online appeals after it was initially crippled with online donations. It has also provided space in London's BT tower for one of the call centres dealing with donations. |
Some of the web's biggest firms are also helping to channel help by modifying their homepages to include links to aid agencies and organisations collecting resources. On its famously sparse homepage Google has placed a link that leads users to a list of sites where donations can be made. Among the 17 organisations list... |
Mobiles rack up 20 years of use |
Mobile phones in the UK are celebrating their 20th anniversary this weekend. |
Britain's first mobile phone call was made across the Vodafone network on 1 January 1985 by veteran comedian Ernie Wise. In the 20 years since that day, mobile phones have become an integral part of modern life and now almost 90% of Britons own a handset. Mobiles have become so popular that many people use their handse... |
The first ever call over a portable phone was made in 1973 in New York but it took 10 years for the first commercial mobile service to be launched. The UK was not far behind the rest of the world in setting up networks in 1985 that let people make calls while they walked. The first call was made from St Katherine's doc... |
"Despite that they were hugely popular in the mid-80s," he said. "They became a yuppy must-have and a status symbol among young wealthy business folk." This was also despite the fact that the phones used analogue radio signals to communicate which made them very easy to eavesdrop on. He said it took Vodafone almost nin... |
Blogs take on the mainstream |
Web logs or blogs are everywhere, with at least an estimated five million on the web and that number is set to grow. |
These online diaries come in many shapes and styles, ranging from people willing to sharing their views, pictures and links, to companies interested in another way of reaching their customers. But this year the focus has been on blogs which cast a critical eye over news events, often writing about issues ignored by the... |
The blogging movement has been building up for many years. |
Andrew Nachison, Director of the Media Center, a US-based think-tank that studies media, technology and society, highlights the US presidential race as a possible turning point for blogs. "You could look at that as a moment when audiences exercised a new form of power, to choose among many more sources of information t... |
Some parts of the so-called traditional media have expressed concerns about this emerging competitor, raising questions about the journalistic value of blogs. |
Others, like the French newspaper Le Monde, have applied a different strategy, offering blogs as part of its content. "I don't think the mission and role of journalism is threatened. It is in transition, as society itself is in transition," says Mr Nachison. However, he agrees with other experts like the linguist and p... |
It seems unlikely that we will end up living in a planet where every human is a blogger. |
But the current number of blogs is likely to keep on growing, in a web already overloaded with information. Blog analysis firm Technorati estimates the number of blogs in existence, the so-called blogosphere, has already exceeded five million, and is growing at exponential levels. Tools such as Google's Blogger, Movabl... |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.