del.icio.us links for October 27, 2007

Archive of del.icio.us links

1. College Students Decline Text-Message Warnings – NPR.Org

   Students are not rushing to sign up for cell phone text alerts. After the Virginia Tech shootings last spring, many campuses felt this was the answer to keeping their students alert to danger, but students don’t share their concerns.

2. Some Leopard upgraders see ‘blue screen of death’ – ComputerWorld.Com

   Frustrated users who rebooted to the install DVD then upgraded a second time using the “Archive and Install” option reported success, and no lingering blue screen after restart. Or manually uninstalled APE (Application Enhancer).

3. You’ll Never Think About “Energy Savings” The Same Way Again – TreeHugger.Com

   “Energy Savings,” a design-as-art statement that changes a standard light switch from consumption to conservation. It gives new meaning to the term “energy savings,” and make for a very interesting piggy banks.

4. Blimps Are Cool, But Peak Helium May Deter Development – GroovyGreen.Com

   a 1996 federal law that mandates sale of the federal helium reserve by 2015, they’ve warned that once the reserve-which supplies some 40% of domestic needs and 35% of worldwide requirements-is sold off, it can never be replaced.”

13 more articles after the Jump

1. Pick up trucks: Gate down or up for the best fuel efficiency? – EnergyRefuge.Com

   How did Mythbusters determine this? They drove two pick up trucks: one with the gate up and one with the gate down. Both had the same amount of gas and the one with the gate up went about 30 miles further on the same tank of gas.

2. Walk This Way: Path Embedded Solar LED Lighting – TreeHugger.Com

   Two to eight light emitting diodes (LEDs) encased in polycarbonate resin are combined with a small photovolatic cell to power the lights for up to about 15 hours after an 8 hour charge in sunlight. Energy is stored via capacitor technology.

3. Electric Vehicle Retailer Protests Proposed Congestion Charge Changes – TreeHugger.Com

   GoinGreen are concerned about the proposals to extend vehicles exempt from the charge to emissions band B. GoinGreen argues that this move is unwise as it fails to distinguish between low-emission and zero-emission options.

4. Hybrid scooter hi-tech miser – Mercury – The Voice of Tasmania – News.Com.Au

   The hybrid uses 35 per cent less fuel than the petrol-only machine it is based on, resulting in 1.7 litres per 100km. A regenerative braking system captures energy when the front brakes are applied and feeds it back into the battery.

5. Installation of the Year 2007 – Home Entertainment – HedMag.Com

   “It is pretty incredible how much went into this four-bedroom house,” Griffith comments. “We ended up doing about $3.4 million worth of audio, video, and automation. The lead installer, practically lived on this site for about five years.”

6. Homeland Security slams FEMA for staging fake wildfire news conference – USAToday.Com

   Instead of waiting for outsiders to come, the P.R. people just turned on the cameras and tossed softballs to their boss. (A philosophical question: If the press doesn’t come to your press conference did you really hold a press conference?)

7. 98 Percent of UK Stolen Phones are Blocked by Networks Within 48 Hours – Wired.Com

   800,000 people had a phone stolen last year in the UK (the report doesn’t give a figure for actual handsets stolen). In April it became an offence to offer to or agree to (or offer or agree for a third party to) re-programme a mobile phone.

8. Apple Fan Goes From YouTube to Prime Time on Epicenter – Wired.Com

   Rather than send him a cease-and-desist letter, Apple bought his ad, flew him out to Los Angeles to reshoot it in high def, and will be broadcasting it during the World Series this weekend. THAT’S how you love your customers.

9. 10 Tips for a Successful Meeting With The Boss – DumbLittleMan.Com

   Maybe you work one-on-one with the head honcho every day or perhaps you only get a face-to-face on rare occasions. Whenever you get the chance to have a meeting with the big guns, it’s best to make it as productive as possible.

10. 250 mbps Internet Through Existing Copper Wires, Alright John! – UberReview.Com

    By eliminating the interference, it is possible to boost the speed. What is even more interesting about the technology is that it is software based. It would simply require installation in telephone exchanges and into existing modems.

11. New Wetpaint Wiki Ads Inspired by Mac vs PC Ads – DigitalInspiration

    Wetpaint, a free Wiki hosting service targeted towards the non-geeky crowd, have launched a series of short video ads that compare the features available in a standard wiki vis-a-vis the Wetpaint wiki. Videos available via this site.

12. Advertising With Flyers On Facebook – Do The Ads Bring Traffic ? – DigitalInspiration

    Facebook Flyers Pro – This is a CPC ad program of Facebook where you pay only for the clicks. Flyers Pro The ads made around 800 impressions on Facebook and the number of visitor clicks received was five (CTR = 0.6%).

13. Google Warnings For Adult Blogs Hosted on Blogger – LabNol.Org

    Blogger content policy does allow Blogspot blogs to host images and videos that may contain adult content but the owner is then expected to allow only private access to his blog. If readers flag the blog, Google will show a interstitial warning.