NewsScan Daily, 19 December 2003 ("Above The Fold")

NewsScan Daily, 19 December 2003 ("Above The Fold")
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"ABOVE THE FOLD"
        Global Internet Use Limited by Language, Illiteracy
        Real Problems for Microsoft
        New York, Microsoft Target Spammers
        Appeals Court Strikes Down RIAA Strongarm Tactics
        Sony Sets the Pace with Jogging Robot

FEATURES
        Flash Card
        Honorary Subscriber: William Booth

GLOBAL INTERNET USE LIMITED BY LANGUAGE, ILLITERACY
According to the International Telecommunication Union, about 70% of the 
world's Internet users live in countries that make up only 16% of the 
world's population -- statistics that reinforce complaints aired at last 
week's U.N World Summit on the Information Society that despite the 
Internet's global reach, most of the material is inaccessible to the vast 
non-English-speaking population of the world. And while international 
development efforts have included linking villages and schools in 
developing nations to the Internet, once people are connected, there must 
be compelling information available in native languages and in accordance 
with local customs. "Getting the technology into people's hands is one 
thing. Getting people to use it is key," says Daniel Wagner, director of 
the University of Pennsylvania's International Literacy Institute. The 
solution involves more than just translating Web sites into other 
languages. To address the problem of population illiteracy, South Africa is 
developing speech recognition, text-to-speech and other voice technologies, 
starting with Zulu. Bulgaria, South Korea and other countries are producing 
government sites in native languages. And the Canadian government is 
looking at adapting its internal search engine to include materials in 
Inuktitut, the Inuit language, as well as French and English. "The point is 
to produce more content that is useful," says Bernardo Sorj, an advisor to 
Brazilian urban assistance group Viva Rio. "If people go on the Internet 
and do not find good content for themselves, then they go to pornography." 
(AP 19 Dec 2003)
http://apnews.excite.com/article/20031219/D7VH9OPO0.html

REAL PROBLEMS FOR MICROSOFT
RealNetworks has hit Microsoft with a $1-billion lawsuit, charging the 
software giant with illegally using its Windows monopoly to promote its own 
Windows Media software to the detriment of other digital media rivals. The 
complaint accuses Microsoft of using its "monopoly power to restrict how PC 
makers install competing media players while forcing every Windows user to 
take Microsoft's media player, whether they want it or not." The suit seeks 
damages of $1 billion or more to compensate for "substantial lost revenue 
and business for RealNetworks" and seeks injunctive relief to prevent 
"further illegal conduct" by Microsoft. RealNetworks says its suit is 
complementary to the European Commission's ongoing investigation of 
Microsoft's allegedly monopolistic business practices in Europe and added 
that it is cooperating in that effort. At the same time, Burst.com has just 
filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Microsoft alleging it illegally 
incorporated Burst.com technology in the latest version of Windows Media. 
Meanwhile, Microsoft critics say the RealNetworks lawsuit illustrates just 
how ineffective the government's remedies have been, following the 
settlement of the Justice Department's antitrust case. A small group of 
states have challenged that settlement and are still pursuing tougher 
measures. (CNet News.com 18 Dec 2003)
http://news.com.com/2100-1025-5129316.html?tag=nefd_hed

NEW YORK, MICROSOFT TARGET SPAMMERS
New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has filed a civil lawsuit against 
three top spam firms, threatening to seek penalties so large it would drive 
the companies out of business: "We will drive them into bankruptcy. 
Therefore, others will not come into the marketplace because they will see 
there is no viable business model here." The companies under fire are 
OptInRealBig, of Westminster, Co.; Synergy6, a New York marketing firm; and 
Delta Seven, a Dallas mailing company whose co-owner has already filed for 
bankruptcy protection. In addition to spewing spam, prosecutors have 
accused Delta Seven of obscuring the messages' origin by breaking into 
computers owned by others -- including an elementary school in Korea and 
the Kuwaiti ministry of finance -- to send the mail. Meanwhile, Microsoft 
has jumped on the anti-spam bandwagon with its own suit filed in Washington 
State seeking $18.8 million in damages caused by overloading its Hotmail 
service with junk e-mail. "Any money that is left over after the attorney 
general's suit, we will happily go after," says Microsoft general counsel 
Bradford L. Smith. (New York Times 19 Dec 2003)
http://partners.nytimes.com/2003/12/19/technology/19spam.html

APPEALS COURT STRIKES DOWN RIAA STRONGARM TACTICS
A U.S. appeals court has ruled that the strongarm tactics used by the 
Recording Industry Association of America to track down music downloaders 
are illegal. The RIAA had sought to force Internet service providers, 
including Verizon, to divulge the names of subscribers suspected of 
downloading copyrighted music files without permission. Verizon argued that 
existing copyright law does not give the recording industry the authority 
to enforce its subpoenas and said the RIAA's actions violated Verizon 
customers' privacy. A lower court had earlier upheld the RIAA's actions, 
but this latest ruling sided with Verizon: "In sum, we agree with Verizon 
that [the 1998 copyright law] does not by its terms authorize the subpoenas 
issued here," wrote Chief Judge Douglas Ginsburg. (Reuters/CNN.com 19 Dec 2003)
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/12/19/music.download.reut/index.html

SONY SETS THE PACE WITH JOGGING ROBOT
The latest version of Sony's Qrio robot, previously known as the SDR, can 
jog along at a top speed of 14 meters per minute -- a function that's been 
difficult to engineer as both of the robot's feet must be off the ground at 
the same time. The robot was already capable of walking, climbing a shallow 
slope, kicking a ball and dancing, but this latest feat took three years of 
work to accomplish. "As humans we find running and walking extremely easy. 
But for a humanoid robot to run and walk may not sound that exciting, but 
please remember what a big surprise it was when the first bipedal robots 
walked," says Sony executive VP Toshi Doi. (BBC News 19 Dec 2003)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3330183.stm

*****

FLASH CARD
      "As people grow up, they change brands." (Al Ries)

HONORARY SUBSCRIBER: WILLIAM BOOTH
      Today's Honorary Subscriber is the English evangelist William Booth 
(1829-1912), who in 1865 founded the Salvation Army as a Christian mission 
that would grow to be the international organization present today in most 
of the world's countries.
      Today the Salvation Army is well known and widely respected as a 
charitable institution that helps the needy and provides rehabilitative 
services to social outcasts of every description. Such was not always the 
case. At the beginning, the Salvation Army "campaigns" waged against sin 
and social disorder were sometimes met with ridicule and even with violent 
physical attacks. However, the obvious good works of the Salvation Army 
eventually led to a changed public opinion. Ridicule and opposition were 
replaced by widespread sympathy and generous financial support.
      Booth was born in. Nottingham, England. As a boy he was apprenticed 
to a pawnbroker. As early as age 15, following a dramatic religious 
conversion experience, Booth became a revivalist preacher, along with his 
wife and partner Catherine. His preaching included proposals to remedy 
pauperism and vice by means of: homes for the homeless; training centers to 
prepare emigrants for oversea colonies; rescue homes for fallen women; 
homes for released prisoners; legal aid for the poor; and practical help 
for the alcoholic. In advance of his times, he realized that alcoholics 
must be aided rather than condemned.
      During his lifetime Booth's small band of original followers swelled 
to an army of thousands. In 1905, the English nation's respect for the 
Salvation Army was clearly stated by the extended tour Booth made across 
England, where the mayors and business leaders of the many towns he visited 
warmly greeted him. The operations of the Army were extended in 1880 to the 
United States, in 1881 to Australia, and later to the European continent, 
to India, to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), and elsewhere.

See 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0764227602/qid=1071843944/newsscancom/ref=nosim 
for "William & Catherine: The Legacy of the Booths: Founders of the 
Salvation Army" -- or look for it in your favorite library. (We donate all 
revenue from our book recommendations to adult literacy programs.)

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