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May 03, 2024
 

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CYBERIA

LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jul 12, 2000
I-mode uber Alles
A small cheer could be heard recently when it was announced that NTT DoCoMo would add English-language content to the menus of its i-mode cell phones. It went official July 3, and, well, the selection wasn't that big of a surprise. In fact, some of it had already been available in previous months (and on competitors' handsets).
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jul 5, 2000
The tyranny of the square
When talking to Ted Nelson, strap in tight. It's quite a ride. Trained as a philosopher and film director, he is equal parts visionary and crank. Many consider him to be one of the fathers of the World Wide Web. He coined the word "hypertext" in 1965, but he has become a scathing critic of the Web and the form it has assumed. "HTML is the dumbing down of hypertext," he complained last week during a chat. "It's a one-way tunnel, an amusement park slide."
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jun 28, 2000
All thumbs
In past columns, I've expressed my support for those people you've probably seen silently staring at their cell-phone screens, furiously typing away or intently scrolling. I recently joined their growing number. I think of it as a test drive; others might call it an occupational hazard. At any rate, I wanted to see what this wireless world is all about, and NTT DoCoMo's i-mode seemed like the quickest ticket. (I know it's not the only game in town, but the voluminous i-mode content makes DoCoMo king).
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jun 21, 2000
Seeing red
Red has long been the color of choice for companies venturing into the digital domain; that's red as in ink, and that choice has been by necessity.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jun 14, 2000
Gateways to synergy
Every time I visit a particular convenience store, I wince at the repeated announcement of its Web site: "Eichi chi chi pi koron surashu surashu daburyu daburyu daburyu dotto . . . " It is supposed to be such a cutting-edge play, but it only reminds me of how clumsy the analog world can be, and of how far it is from the digital domain.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jun 7, 2000
Chip off the new block
Bill Gates has argued throughout the U.S. government's antitrust suit against his company that Microsoft had to be aggressive because the slightest hesitation or complacency would jeopardize its status. Technology is moving so fast, he claims, that his empire could collapse tomorrow.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
May 31, 2000
The Net impact of giving
Last week I looked at the power of bulk buying that is being unleashed on Web sites such as Mercata and Mobshop. I genuinely like the concept, particularly because I like new models of e-commerce that push the Web's potential. If the aggregated consumer trend takes off like eBay, the wired consumer might come out a winner. Still, though, I was nagged by something. Was it the obsession with getting the lowest price possible? Nah, there is nothing wrong with a bargain. Maybe it was the sight of virtual hordes clamoring for the same DVD player, or perhaps the pressure of "buy now or lose the chance of a lifetime" that made me queasy.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
May 24, 2000
Shopping with the herd
We track the tickers of global auctions. We flock to comparative shopping sites seeking the deal of the century. We sign up for sweepstakes galore and even occasionally invite vendors into our in-boxes to inform us of their latest discounts.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
May 17, 2000
Pride and prejudices
Time to update the mental computers. Recent news bytes oblige us to abandon some long-held ideas about the Internet. Reality 2000 looks like this.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
May 10, 2000
Sea of love
Ponder, if you will, these two recent headlines:
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
May 3, 2000
Eyes front
It's that time again. Time to talk about time. I'll try to be brief, since there is so little time for a chat. Or for much anything else.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Apr 19, 2000
E-nough already
Ahh, a blast of sanity from Scandinavia. The Swedish government recently announced that the Patent and Registration Office would no longer allow companies to register with the suffix .com in their names. And no se., www. or @ marks either.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Apr 12, 2000
Just browsing?
It used to be so simple. You had Eudora for your e-mail and your tiny Mosaic browser for trolling through text-only university archives and contemplating the bright future of the World! Wide! Web!
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Apr 5, 2000
Endangered species
Cassandra will always be with us. I don't mean whiners pining for a simpler time, halcyon days, community, blah blah blah. No, I mean voices warning of future dangers visible to anyone with the foresight, intelligence and time to follow a thought to its logical conclusion.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Mar 29, 2000
Get Shorty
For many of us living in Japan, the Academy Awards ceremony serves as a reminder of where we are in the bigger scheme of things: behind the curve. We often haven't seen many of the nominated or winning films, some won't be here for another year, and others might not come at all. This is a distribution matter, and an explanation of it (if there even is one) is beyond the scope of this column. Suffice it to say, the Japanese market is a crucial one, and Japanese distributors tend to be extremely cautious with their release schedules. (Then again, I'll never understand the logic behind Christmas films in August.)
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Mar 22, 2000
Won't be fooled again
When asked about the dot-com economy, Tim Dyson was succinct and acid -- almost contemptuous. "There's only one metric," he said. "Stock price."
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Mar 15, 2000
Seeds of knowledge
Welcome to the digital revolution, where we crunch numbers, process information and mine data. Maybe we don't get grease under our fingernails, but one wonders how far we've progressed beyond the industrial revolution. Though the metallic cling-clang of factories is rare, isn't there something familiar about the whir of copy machines, the churn of CPUs and the click-clack of fingers typing?
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Mar 8, 2000
The check's in the e-mail
My wallet bulges, but it isn't because of money. No, it is a hefty critter because it's stuffed with train passes, metro passes, telephone cards, bank cards, credit cards, ID cards, point cards for individual stores, video store cards, meishi from people and restaurants, and random scraps of paper littered with notes.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Mar 1, 2000
Take this job ...
I like my job. I even enjoy going to the office -- most days. That's why I'll probably continue the trudge to Tamachi, even though this job is one of the most suited to telecommuting.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Feb 23, 2000
Private eyes
On the Net and off, personal data is a currency, an entity that can be bought, sold, bartered and, yes, stolen. Ideally, this information connects companies with potential clients and consumers with products and services. Ads with the precision of surgical airstrikes are swell for advertisers, but on the flip side are personalized services that can actually make online life easier. If the maitre d' knows your face and your preferences, he can make sure that your meal will be enjoyable. Because Web sites can't see your face (and wouldn't recognize it even if they did), they employ various methods of recognition. One of these is known as a cookie file.
Weak yen fattens tourist wallets in Japan
People visit the Ameya Yokocho market in Tokyo's Ueno district during the Golden Week holiday on Tuesday.
Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with rivals China and Russia
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in Syracuse, New York, on April 25.
Number of vacant homes in Japan hits record high of 9 million
A vacant house in Tokyo is seen demolished in January 2020.
Saudi Arabia steps up Gaza-related arrests as Israel ties edge closer
The arrests for Gaza-related posts indicate Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s regime will take a hard line against citizens not toeing the line when it comes to normalizing ties with Israel.
'So hot you can't breathe': Extreme heat hits the Philippines
A pedestrian cools himself with a folding hand fan as he waits for a ride along a road in Manila on Wednesday, as extreme heat hit the Philippines.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

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