Tag: internet

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Facebook’s money machine posts $4.99bn profits – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

While #DeleteFacebook has been trending strongly on the internet for a couple of weeks since the Cambridge Analytica personal data-raping scandal broke, the ensuing fallout doesn’t appear to have immediately impacted upon Facebook’s bottom line. The social media piranha/pariah has reported a gargantuan 63 per cent increase in profits in the first quarter of 2018, with 2.2 billion monthly active users – up 13 per cent year on year. The improper handling of data of 87 million Facebook users by Cambridge Analytica did nothing to stop the social media site posting $4.99 billion in quarterly net income on sales of … Continue reading Facebook’s money machine posts $4.99bn profits – an annotated infographic

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Australia red-flags Huawei’s Chinese undersea cable project – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

An undersea cable project by China’s Huawei, aimed at delivering internet to the Solomon Islands, has been banned from connecting to Australia’s broadband network on the advice of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO). Instead, Canberra will majority-fund the US$85 to $100 million project. The plan, which was to connect the Solomons and Papua New Guinea to Sydney via a 4,500-kilometre submarine fibre optic cable laid by a U.S.-British firm, had the backing of the Asian Development Bank for a $23 million loan. But in July 2016, the Solomons government abruptly switched to a subsidiary of Chinese telecom giant Huawei. … Continue reading Australia red-flags Huawei’s Chinese undersea cable project – an annotated infographic

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Nominet and Microsoft to bring broadband to rural Africa – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

Nominet and Microsoft have announced a partnership to deliver broadband across the African continent, using Nominet’s TV white space database and dynamic spectrum-management technology, along with Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform, to bring low-cost terrestrial wireless broadband internet to remote and rural communities. Advances in TV white space broadband technology have allowed disused TV channels to be repurposed as wireless internet connections. E&T was at the recent IoT launch event for this Nominet and Microsoft collaboration. You can read that story in full on the E&T web site.  There’s a video and everything. Click on the graphic for an expanded view. Continue reading Nominet and Microsoft to bring broadband to rural Africa – an annotated infographic

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Book review: Head in the Cloud: The Power of Knowledge in the Age of Google – William Poundstone

E&T magazine

It is often cited that we are living in an information age. Gone are the days of trawling through text books and library archives to find the material to complete your latest homework assignment. The internet possesses all the information you could ever need – and then some. Pick up your smart phone or connect to your computer and you have a wealth of data available at your fingertips. While it’s true that it is incredibly easy to look up facts on Google, it’s not so easy to remember any of them. Some have argued that having such a wealth … Continue reading Book review: Head in the Cloud: The Power of Knowledge in the Age of Google – William Poundstone

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Astronaut vs sailor – who’s better connected? – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

  A nice Friday afternoon infographic supplied by our friends at Media works and Global Navigation Solutions, illustrating the connectivity woes of sailors at sea. All you land-lovers should feel thankful you are never far from a reliable WiFi signal, some people aren’t so lucky. Using findings from the 2015 Crew Connectivity Survey and information from NASA and The Atlantic, the piece details just how well connected sailors are – the answer being a resounding ‘not very’. Continue reading Astronaut vs sailor – who’s better connected? – an annotated infographic

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#Google rolls out high-speed WiFi to India’s train stations – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

Here’s a high-tech counterpoint to the traditional Westerner’s view of Indian train travel, a picture of thousands of smiling brown faces crowded into – and onto – antiquated rolling stock, bodies sprawled over the rooftop, hanging off the sides of the train, enjoying the subcontinent sunshine, while a splendidly uniformed buffet car representative tiptoes delicately amongst the huddled masses, offering tea and samosas. From now on, those huddled masses might also be wielding smartphones, laptops and iPads and surfing the information superhighway, as we used to call the internet back in the last century. Google is collaborating with Indian Railways … Continue reading #Google rolls out high-speed WiFi to India’s train stations – an annotated infographic

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#NetflixNights go global as video streaming services pushes in to Australasia – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

Good news for all red-eyed, telly-addicted, insomniac, pop culture vultures down under. Just months after pushing its service further across Europe, Netflix has announced that it will launch its video streaming service in Australia and New Zealand in 2015. Despite reservations periodically expressed about the quality of the Netflix service from some people – such as the limited breadth of titles on offer and the speed of streaming – this has apparently done little to stop the precipitously upward trajectory of its user base and share price. Since the company’s IPO in 2002, when shares traded at a modest $15, … Continue reading #NetflixNights go global as video streaming services pushes in to Australasia – an annotated infographic

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#Google Android Wear smartwatch news – wearable technology continues apace – an annotated infographic

E&T magazine

Ahead of Google’s annual techfest shindig, Google I/O, later this month, we hear tell of something called Android Wear, the operating system of the company’s smartwatch. Google is expected to demonstrate the Android Wear smartwatch OS at the technology conference in San Francisco. Working closely with technology partner Motorola – which already has its own smartwatch, the Moto 360 – the Android Wear smartwatch is expected to do all the hip tricks, like voice control, touch screen, messaging, internet browsing, changeable fascias. Funny how there’s no mention of its timekeeping abilities! Naturally, there can be no discussion of a Google … Continue reading #Google Android Wear smartwatch news – wearable technology continues apace – an annotated infographic

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Facebook share price IPO – an annotated graphic

E&T magazine

Aside from a salutary lesson in investing in something intangible, in something that doesn’t actually exist – i.e. investing in digital “air” – the continuing slide of Facebook’s share price is also an illuminating glimpse in to the nefarious world of high finance, wherein the efficacy or otherwise of your product or service is almost an irrelevance, its future prosperity and stability inexorably tied to the whims and proclivities of a worldwide network of financially cavalier gamblers. Ah well, Zuckerberg has had a pretty good ride thus far and still isn’t short of a few quid today, regardless of having … Continue reading Facebook share price IPO – an annotated graphic

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Facebook IPO – an annotated graphic

E&T magazine

Far be it from us to comment on the true value of Facebook – it being one of those baffling interweb phenomena that doesn’t actually output any kind of tangible product and will almost certainly be considerably less significant in 5-10 years’ time –  but as its much-anticipated IPO draws near, it seemed an opportune moment to reflect on the big numbers attached to a company that has the world’s investors frothing at the mouth for a piece of the action. Our mild cynicism and detached bemusement aside, a company the size of Facebook apparently having a debt of “Zero” … Continue reading Facebook IPO – an annotated graphic