Spotlight Features

File-Sharing's Cloudy Future

Last month Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom, who is facing charges in the United States for engaging in digital piracy, announced that he would relocate a new version of his site, Me.ga, outside the United States. The belief was that this would free him from coming under fire by U.S. law enforcement, b...

The line between TVs and computers is increasingly blurring, with TVs becoming smarter and more connected than ever. As interactive, Web-connected appliances, smart TVs have search and navigation capabilities, can interact with tablets and smartphones, and offer access to downloadable apps. In short...

Wireless carriers are putting more energy into prepaid. It's a normal evolution. As quality phones became cheaper, prepaid brands like Sprint's Boost and Virgin Mobile have been able to offer better phones -- even a selection of smartphones, including the iPhone. Those better products, along with th...

Many people know it's a bad idea to open attachments in email received from strangers, but relatively few know they need to take the same precautions when clicking links on social media sites and even VoIP service Skype. In recent weeks, cybercriminals have been targeting individuals through Skype, ...

The in-flight entertainment sphere has expanded far beyond showing movies on hard-to-see overhead screens. Passengers want constant availability of media, entertainment and connectedness wherever they happen to be, and in-flight systems are simply trying to keep up with that demand. "Consumers have ...

Online gaming is big business, and one of the fastest-growing segments of the online game market is casual gaming -- simple games that can be played on websites, through social media sites like Facebook, or on mobile devices. "The casual games appeal to a broad market because they don't involve an e...

The mouse may be running scared. That's the kind with buttons and scroll wheel -- not the tailed, furry variety that elephants are afraid of. How long has the mouse got? Way back in the dark slate ages of 2008, Gartner analyst Steve Prentice made a startling prophecy based on his observations of mul...

Remember Charlie? YouTube isn't just about cat videos and basement productions anymore. Charlie's a big boy now, and YouTube has been growing up too. The site has evolved into a full-fledged social media platform, and entertainment companies and other businesses have begun to take note. "In a world ...

There is no denying that serious cyclists adopt some very specific forms of fashion. The jerseys and shorts are tight-fitting to reduce drag, gloves are worn both to provide padding while gripping the handlebars and to protect hands during a crash, and shoes are a fashion statement all of their own....

Today nearly all professional road cyclists have one thing in common: They almost all ride bikes with carbon fiber frames. This space-age material, which is one of the most popular composites in the sporting goods industry, has many features that it make it a popular choice. It is lightweight and ea...

There will be no shortage of two-wheeled vehicles at next week's Interbike trade show in Las Vegas. The largest bicycle trade show in North America remains very much about pedal power, but in addition to the high-end Tour de France-worthy road bikes, go-over-anything mountain bikes, and hipster- and...

The fires raging across western U.S. states this summer, at times plowing through residences and other structures, might have gotten you thinking: "What if?" That is, what if one of my buildings were destroyed in the 44-square mile California Pondorosa fire in August, which leveled more than 80 stru...

For years, satellite communications devices like satphones and data terminals have been out of reach of the average consumer. Access to voice calls and Internet in remote locales, where mobile phone networks are unavailable, have only been possible for military, media, mining, government and other ...

Just after 11 p.m. on Aug. 15, 1977, while pointing toward the constellation Sagittarius, Ohio State University's Big Ear radio telescope picked up a mysterious transmission that would very soon make history. For 72 seconds, the Big Ear was able to listen to that signal, which has since come to be k...

The tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 highlighted two phenomena common in disasters: Network communications tower sites were destroyed, and network traffic overwhelmed systems. Power failures cut off the Internet, and in New York, debris raining down onto ground-based i...

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