Online Games... Social Centers!

From CNN.com
NEW YORK (Reuters) -- Video games involving multiple players serve as informal gathering places akin to old-time pubs and coffee shops, and can thereby boost the players' social connections, researchers argue in a new study.

In their report, Constance Steinkuehler of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Dmitri Williams of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign question the perception that kids who play computer games are isolating themselves, at least when they are playing so-called massively multiplayer online games (MMOs).

"By providing spaces for social interaction and relationships beyond the workplace and home, MMOs have the capacity to function as one form of a new 'third space' for informal sociability," Steinkuehler and Williams write.

While such sociability won't offer "deep emotional support," they add, it has the benefit of exposing players to a wide range of viewpoints and a more diverse social environment.

Read the full article here!

The iBreath

File this under: “Strange iPod Accessories.” The iBreath connects to any Ipod and detects “your blood alchohol content level, accurate to within 0.01 BAC.” Plus, it doubles as an FM wireless transmitter. Pricing and availability have not yet been announced.

Just fold out the BAC blow wand and exhale into it for a full 5 seconds. 5 seconds later, this jail-saving gizmo let’s you know if you’re safe to drive. It even houses a timer that can be set from 1 minute up to 4 hours in order to remind you when it’s time for the next test

Can Email Get You Fired?

From MSN.Com
Misusing e-mail or browsing the wrong sites can cost you your job.

Tasha Newitt was aware her employer, the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, had a policy restricting personal use of work computers, but she believed it focused on Web surfing, not e-mail. Nonetheless, she was careful to use her work e-mail primarily for professional matters. So she was stunned when the agency fired her after finding 418 personal e-mail messages received over a period of five months (or about 5 per workday) on her PC.

Newitt isn't alone: Increasingly, managers are cracking down on employee Internet activity by drafting strict usage policies--and enforcing them through use of software that monitors surfing, examines e-mail, and restricts the sites an employee can browse to.

Read the full article here.

Dell XPS 700 Reviewed By PC Magazine!

The Dell XPS 700 ($3,700 direct, $4,760 with 24-inch LCD widescreen monitor and 5.1 speakers) replaces the XPS 600 as Dell's flagship gaming desktop and, on the outside, it looks great. Instead of a gussied-up workstation case, the XPS 700 sports a brand-new, sculpted aluminum case and even more LEDs. It's certainly more attractive than the older XPS, Alienware Area 51, and Alienware Aurora models, and is arguably more attractive than the new Alienware desktops as well. If you're an enthusiast who likes to install upgrades yourself, but still have reservations about building your own desktop, this is the system for you—as long as its locked Core 2 Duo processor or the fact that it's not as fast as some of its peers doesn't bother you.
Read the Dell XPS 700 full review here.

Opening Remarks

There are two blogs born every second. Well, in this half-second, a new blog is arising.

This is the technocrunch -- a whirlwind look into today's technology and computers for those of us who (like myself) love the news without all of the junk associated with it. It's news without hype; words without flourish; and all-in-all a good place to discuss what's going on with the world of technology, without all of the technical mumbo jumbo.

Technology affects everything around us. It's my job to educate those who need to know, and if you're breathing, you need to know.

Welcome to the TechnoCrunch.