Archive: September 09, 2007 - September 15, 2007
Tech-PR Trinkets
One of the stranger customs in technology public relations is sending random tchotchkes to accompany a press release. The idea is to ensure that the news sticks in your mind, since the text of the release often fails to do that on its own. Take the contents of the plain...
By Rob Pegoraro | September 14, 2007; 9:33 AM ET | Comments (6)
A New Outlook on Office Software
There's a set way to review Microsoft Office competitors: Open up a bunch of Office files in the competing software to see if they look just like they did in Office, then create a set of files in the competitor and verify that they look identical in Office. Finally, verify...
By Rob Pegoraro | September 13, 2007; 11:37 AM ET | Comments (36)
A No-Paper Newspaper
Some coworkers and I were discussing The Future Of The Newspaper yesterday (a cheery topic--no, really), and one asked what sort of electronic device we might want to read "the paper" on. I mentioned the first thing to come to mind--the "Newspad" described in Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space...
By Rob Pegoraro | September 12, 2007; 9:34 AM ET | Comments (21)
"URL" Considered Harmful
The subject of computing vocabulary seems a hot topic around here--Friday's posting about whether "USB flash drive" is the correct term has now drawn 65 comments, explaining what people in such locales as Argentina, England, Poland, Tanzania and a U.S. Army base in Iraq have called the things. So I'm...
By Rob Pegoraro | September 11, 2007; 10:04 AM ET | Comments (28)
Reprogram Your Run (or Ride)
If you're a runner or a cyclist in the D.C. area, your workouts are about to get a lot easier provided the weather forecast isn't lying: Tomorrow should bring an end to 90-degree heat, at least for this week. But while it's still the usual hazzymuggyscorching mess, you can benefit...
By Rob Pegoraro | September 10, 2007; 11:41 AM ET | Comments (11)
