Hasta La Gadget!

This article was written on November 16, 2007 by CyberNet.

YouTube has nearly mastered the whole concept of video sharing in its current form, so the next step is to improve what they have to offer something even better. There’s always room for improvement no matter what you’re doing! The obvious improvement for YouTube would be to offer high-quality videos which according co-founder Steve Chen, we should see within three months. This announcement was made at the NewTeeVee conference that was held on Wednesday where Om Malik and Liz Gannes sat down to chat with him. I know what most of you are thinking… “hooray!” or “finally!” It’s about time, isn’t it? Some sites are reporting that YouTube will be offering HD content, but according to Liz Gannes there was no mention of HD whatsoever.

Most people upload videos where the quality is much better than what YouTube can support right now. YouTube down-grades the quality of videos and converts them to Flash, no matter what format they were uploaded in.  As broadband Internet makes its way into more homes, there’s no reason why they couldn’t up the quality so that viewers have a better experience. The only downside is that with a higher quality video, high buffer times could potentially drive people away if they had a slow connection. Not to worry — YouTube knows this which is why they say they’re working on a player that would detect a user’s Internet connection to determine if they could be served a higher-quality video.

So, get ready for a better viewing experience with a new player over at YouTube. 3 months to go and counting…

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This article was written on August 11, 2011 by CyberNet.

A lot of reviews for browsers reference a lot of performance and standards compatibility tests, such as the SunSpider or Acid3 tests. There is another test available to help you figure out how well your browser supports HTML5 already. The site is HTML5Test.com and scores the browser out of a possible 450 points.

The problem is that the HTML5 specifications hasn’t been finalized and so browser makers don’t have a full set of standards to work off of yet. Many of them are already working hard at incorporating many of the special elements for audio, video, forms, geolocation, WebGL, storage, and more.

My screenshot above is from the four major Windows browsers, and Chrome takes the cake with a score of 328 while Internet Explorer is lagging behind (duh) with a score of 141. It’s exciting to see Chrome so far out in the lead because that means other browsers like Opera and Firefox will definitely push hard to catch up.

Visit HTML5Test.com

Copyright © 2013 CyberNetNews.com

This article was written on February 21, 2007 by CyberNet.

Today Skype announced their latest version of Skype for Windows. It’s a beta version, and according to the announcement, you should expect a few bugs here and there.  The download can be found here.Probably the biggest addition to this beta is their new feature called SkypeFind, a listing of business and recommendations.

Essentially it’s like another local directory with reviews and comments that are contributed by people who use Skype. Speaking to GigaOm, Sten Tamkivi – General Manager of E-commerce says:

“Recommendations from people on your Skype contact list will “bubble up” to the top of SkypeFind lists.  It will be influenced by the people you already trust.”

Skype users will be able to add and edit the listings, but also leave comments in them, with one comment permitted from each user per listing. The entire system places all of the work into the hands of Skype users. 

According to Skype executives, they say that this is a “natural next step.” But, it almost seems like they’re getting in on the “local listings’ a little bit late.  Google and Yahoo have their local services, but then there’s also services like Yelp which offer comprehensive guides as well.

There are already several hundred listings available, and you can expect that once word gets around, it will continue to get more. Hopefully Skype users will find enough value in it to contribute to it, and use it.

Copyright © 2013 CyberNetNews.com

This article was written on August 31, 2007 by CyberNet.

Happy Blog Day! I’ve had this marked on my calendar for a few weeks now, and it’s hard to believe that it’s already here. So what is Blog Day?

It’s essentially a day where bloggers celebrate other bloggers. The goal is to have everyone recommend 5 new blogs that can be introduced to your readers. I thought it sounded like a lot of fun, and so we decided to play along.

Note: We’re refraining from mentioning a lot of the mainstream blogs such as Download Squad and Lifehacker.

1. Kyle’s Cove – A great personal blog that covers both technology news and blogging tips. There’s always some fun conversations going on over there in the comments.
2. Firefox Facts – If you’re a Firefox fan then this site is a must. There are tips regularly being posted, and extensions are being uncovered that I didn’t even know existed.
3. Inspect My Gadget – I’ve only been subscribed to this feed a short time, but it’s already revealed some great software. I think this one is going to be a keeper.
4. How-To Geek – He frequently posts tutorials on performing things you may not have realized you can do with your computer. Tips are provided for Mac’s, Linux, and Windows, but a majority of the focus is on Vista and Ubuntu.
5. Freeware Genius – This is an amazing source of freeware. There are a few apps reviewed every week, and if you love free software this site will surely turn up some good stuff.

So go ahead and spread the word about Blog Day 2007! Still wanting to discover some more sites? Checkout what everyone else has posted, and drop a link to your own Blog Day 2007 posts in the comments (or just create a list in the comments). I look forward to seeing what sites everyone has to recommend.

Copyright © 2013 CyberNetNews.com

This article was written on June 12, 2006 by CyberNet.

Sometimes it is hard to find those great songs that you want to download but Russian music site AllOfMP3.com is trying to make it easier for you. This isn’t just your classic “Top Selling Albums” list that sites always provide. This list goes back in history to give you some of the best albums that money can buy (and it doesn’t take much to buy songs from here).

For those people that are not familiar with AllOfMP3 then you probably haven’t been keeping track of the news. The RIAA has been trying to shut them down for offering songs at about $0.10 per song, which is 10% of what Apple charges for songs. AllOfMP3 has remained alive because they have complied with Russian laws and claim to pay the proper royalties to the artists.

Even if you don’t want to buy the songs from them it is still interesting to view the list they came up with. Head over and check it out, it is like going through a time machine!

AllOfMP3 Greatest 500 Albums List

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