ICANN allows new domain extensions

Bad or good news?

How about seeing sites on the World Wide Web with domain names like “search.goog” or “live.msft”? ICANN voted unanimously to allow new domain extensions, each of which would cost a company hundreds of thousands of dollars to set up and maintain.

The high cost will also mean that you won’t be likely to see “frederick.ding” or “yourfirstname.somethingelse” on the Web anytime soon; however, if some reputable agency registers the “.ding” top-level domain, then ordinary people may be able to purchase a second-level domain from the company, as it becomes the registrar for that extension.

I wonder how long it’s going to take before the Internet crashes.

(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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SJA Mobile & FBI Launch SMS Tipline

SJA Mobile today jointly announced with the FBI’s Washington D.C Field Office and Metropolitan Police an initiative which will enable D.C-area citizens to anonymously report crime tips via a novel new medium -– SMS. SMS, or “text messaging,” has up until now never been used before as a medium for crime tips.

Citizens in the D.C area can report a crime or homeland security tip by sending a text message with the tip to the number 50411. The 5-digit number to text to is called a “Short Code.” Currently the service is available on all major wireless carriers, along with several Tier 2 carriers.

SJA Mobile is in talks expand the service to several other major cities.

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It’s good to see that law enforcement agencies are finally embracing technology. I have several things to say about this:

• Danger on the road?
• What’s faster?
• What took them so long?

Danger on the road?

Research shows that text messaging while driving is more dangerous than talking on the cell phone while driving, since one needs to use one’s fingers and attention to send a text message. Though not everyone sending in a tip is going to be doing it on the road, I believe that encouraging SMS could lead to (at least) a few incidents on the streets.

What’s faster?

Do you text message faster, or do you talk faster? In another comparison, do you type (on a computer keyboard) faster than you can speak? I believe that one’s voice can contribute a greater amount of information in a shorter amount of time.

However, if the FBI or Homeland Security isn’t equipped to handle a large volume of calls at the same time — for instance, not enough operators — then SMS allows them to receive a large volume and go through that pile in sequence as it piles up.

Unfortunately, that also increases the likelihood that important tips are queued. I hope they use some smart filtering/searching technology (Google, perhaps?) that will allow them to see urgent tips more quickly.

What took them so long?

Why did it take so many years for law enforcement to finally embrace this sort of technology? It’s fortunate that SJA Mobile finally made it happen.

This post is brought to you by our friends at SJA Mobile.

(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Yahoo! Mail to be improved

Yahoo! is about to add two more domain names to the form when you register for a Yahoo! Mail account: “rocketmail.com” and “ymail.com” (the second of which also goes directly to the Yahoo! Mail interface). This is being done in hopes that people will use Yahoo! Mail — still the world’s leading free e-mail service, with 2 million more users than Hotmail/Windows Live Mail and more than double the number of Gmail users.

Get away from those pesky and immature usernames, and grab a more decent e-mail address from Yahoo! starting 4 PM today.

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Skype’s Unlimited US & Canada Plan

This is one of the best plans I have ever known about. I have previously recommended Vbuzzer, a Canadian company offering competitive pricing (and generally good quality). But nothing compares to Skype — for two simple reasons. Firstly, it is a decentralized peer-to-peer network, and secondly, they are more reputable (not to mention owned by eBay).

The offer you see above can’t be matched by Vbuzzer’s $2.26/month outgoing plan. The reliability is much better on Skype, and the destination can be anywhere in Canada or the US, which makes it particularly useful for Canadians with a large contact list in long-distance locations.

You don’t even need to be calling from the US or Canada; you could travel overseas and call your relatives in North America on the same plan. (Now, why wouldn’t they be using Skype?) Skype To Go is also included, which lets you use PSTN access numbers to make long distance calls on your Skype account, just like phone cards.

Now, there’s just one condition: “unlimited” is really “virtually unlimited”, because it would be somewhat unjust to be using Skype’s PC-to-phone calling 24/7/365. Thus, they’ve imposed a soft “fair usage” limitation of 10,000 minutes per month.

Don’t be disappointed. Look what 10,000 minutes really means:

Unless you’re replacing your landline with Skype and talking for hours on end, the “Unlimited US & Canada” plan is perfect for your long distance needs.

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Choose VistaPrint

VistaPrint offers a wide array of printing services, from business cards, to personalized sticky notes (like Post-Its), to rubber stamps, and more. Our kind friends at VistaPrint also offer free products, such as customized pens and their flagship product, their business cards.

Regardless of whether you are moving, and want to send out some moving announcements, or have other mass printing needs, VistaPrint is there for anything you need. Even non-printing services/products are offered, like the customized rubber stamps.

One of the best things about VistaPrint’s many products is that they are full colour; that means you’re not forced to make your print tinted in one colour. It’s more than possible to add a photo on the full colour side, too; this is especially useful for business cards.

VistaPrint isn’t just for business-related matters, either; you can get photo calendars for as low as $6.99. They even have customized T-shirts!

When I recommend VistaPrint, I’m not just talking about their free business cards or their free customized pen. Just about all of their services produce reputable results. A small note: you will be charged shipping and processing fees for all orders, including the free products.

One small thing which prevents me from using it often is that they don’t accept PayPal. When they add support for it, I will be a returning customer.

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iTunes movies now in Canada

Finally! More than 1200 titles are now available for rent or purchase on iTunes for users living in Canada. I have previously expressed frustration that a great deal of technological services are available in the U.S. and not Canada, but Apple is finally (somewhat) addressing the Canadian crowd.

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