Vista Sucks!

If you have been using Vista and it has been sucking, go to Live.com (run by Microsoft) and register your dis-satisfaction by searching for 'Vista Sucks'.

Phoenix Tech from Palm

Palm is preparing to release Foleo, a "email companion" that is essentially a subnotebook running Linux. It will cost around 500 dollars and weigh 2 and half pounds. The picture shows Foleo compared to a Treo and a Nokia Tablet. This product category has been pretty boring since the 90's and PC Magazine was big. Nowadays there are much smaller and more expensive mini PCs like the OQO.

But the Foleo does have some interesting software built in: including free software for remotely accessing your PC. Here's a snapshot of Foleo talking to Windows XP:


But overall its too expensive. Since it doesn't replace your notebook, its just a toy. And if you are just playing around, you might as well get Opera for Nintendo DS for 50 bucks.

Google's GPhone

A report filed by the analyst from Singapore claims to spill the dirt on Google's rumored GPhone. It will run Linux and be available in Spring 2008. The hardware will be outsourced to HTC and it will have a QWERTY keypad. The phone will have new a killer app: mobile advertising that pays for your phone calls.

Don't know if these details are accurate or final: but the phone specs don't live up to Google's reputation for creating revolutionary applications and services. HTC makes many phones for the asian market with QWERTY keypads and many have a surprisingly poor tactile response. The original GPhone will not be 3G, which will be a disappointment given that people will be buying the phone for Google's browser and web services.

However if Google figures out a new way of writing apps for the phone they could disrupt the exisitng market. Java or J2ME is standard for most phones but its not useful for writing anything other than poky games. Sun is now touting their new JavaFX mobile at JavaOne, but Google could steal the market from Sun by doing it right the first time.

'Phoenix' Mars Lander takes off

Phoenix tech from NASA: the 3rd attempt at a Mars lander will takeoff for Mars. In May 2008, the lander will arrive on the polar ice caps of the red planet. It will dig up samples of the ice and soil and search for complex organic molecules that could be signs of life on Mars.