NEW DELHI—Google Inc. told Indian regulators in a confidential February memo that the nation's tough proposed restrictions on Internet content could present serious problems for the company and others hoping to tap a promising growth market. The regulations were enacted last month little-changed despite Google's input. Google's concerns, laid out in a memo reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, add to criticism from civil rights advocates who say the new rules amount to a crackdown on free speech on the Web.
In the memo, Google said regulations on Internet companies "play a crucial role in determining how free a medium of communication the Internet will be for the world's peoples, especially the millions of Indians who are increasingly making use of it in their everyday lives."
Among other things, the rules require websites to remove objectionable content including anything "grossly harmful" or "harassing." They require Internet service providers and social-networking sites to offer terms-of-service agreements with users that bar certain types of content. The websites also are responsible for removing content that goes out of bounds within 36 hours of being notified by government authorities.
A spokesman for India's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology said the agency conducted a thorough review of public comments on a draft of the rules. The spokesman said the agency will issue a "clarification" soon to address concerns free-speech advocates have raised in recent weeks.
A Google spokeswoman declined to comment on the new rules.
Internet companies broadly see India as a potentially massive market. Estimates differ, but industry groups already say India is one of the world's top Internet markets, with a user base of between 80 million to 100 million people. In a study last year, boutique investment bank Caris & Co. predicted India will have 180 million to 200 million Internet users by 2015.
Google's under-the-radar lobbying effort in India offers a sharp contrast to the high-profile and public approach the company took in China last year when it protested censorship of it search service. Google wound up redirecting Chinese users to an uncensored version of its Web search in Hong Kong.
India presented a different situation. There isn't the same kind of outright censorship or widespread blocking of sites as in China, but companies like Google face demands from police and government authorities to remove content deemed offensive, such as material that disparages leading politicians or religious figures.
A person familiar with the company's thinking said Google was unhappy that the final Indian rules didn't address its concerns but believes the new regulatory framework is still an improvement from earlier, when it faced takedown requests with no specific guidelines on what content was considered out of bounds.
Apar Gupta, a New Delhi-based attorney and cyber law expert who submitted his own complaint about the draft rules, said the government made only "cursory changes" based on input from outside parties. "This wasn't an open, consultative process. The changes between the finalized version and the initial draft weren't explained," he said, and the final rules were quietly published on a government Web site with no announcement.
Google's Orkut social networking site had about 14 million visitors in March, making it India's sixth most popular site, according to ViziSense, a company that tracks online metrics in India. Facebook Inc.'s service is the third most visited site with 35.2 million users in March. A Facebook India spokeswoman couldn't be reached for comment.
Internet companies have made no public statements about the regulations thus far, but Google and some others submitted confidential comments on the draft rules in the weeks leading up to their enactment. The spokesman for India's communications ministry said the government would keep correspondence with companies confidential but that the companies were free to offer public feedback on the new rules.
Google's memo shows that the company sought changes aimed at limiting its potential liability for hosting objectionable content posted by third parties. For example, the company wanted to eliminate a section of the draft rules that outlawed specific categories of content and replace it with a more general ban on material that "violates any law for the time being in force." The final rules banned any material that is "grossly harmful, harassing, blasphemous" as well as anything "ethnically objectionable" or "disparaging" or that "impersonate(s) another person."
The company argued that such specific categories are "too prescriptive" and may not be illegal under any Indian statute.
Google also said it was "troubled" by a provision that said an Internet company "shall not itself host or publish or edit or store" banned categories of content. Google argued that this wording could expose the company to liability for material posted by third parties, potentially causing it "great harm" and contradicting the Information Technology Act of 2008, the law on which the new regulations are based. Regulators slightly tweaked that provision but didn't strike it from the final rules.
Google sought to remove a provision in the rules that said an Internet company must take down objectionable content after "obtaining actual knowledge by itself" of the material or being notified by government authorities.
The company wanted to change the provision so that companies don't have responsibilities to decide what content is legal or illegal but rather need to respond to a written notice from "a court of law or other legally empowered public authority." The final rules made a minor tweak to the draft wording but didn't take Google's suggestion.
In its memo, also commended India for putting in place the 2008 law, saying it was "a step forward in advancing the cause of protecting the future of the Internet economy."
Source: WSJ.com
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Google to launch online music service?
NEW YORK: Internet giant Google could launch an online music service as early as Tuesday to rival Amazon's "cloud" service, which allows users to store digital music online, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said on Monday that Google, like Amazon, has yet to secure licenses from the major record companies, and would limit users to a "streaming mode" to prevent piracy.
The new service, expected to be announced at an annual developers conference in San Francisco, would initially be launched in a testing phase, only becoming accessible to the public at a later date, the Journal said.
The newspaper also reported that Apple is currently in talks with major record companies to launch a far more ambitious service than either that offered by Amazon or the new service planned by Google.
Amazon unveiled a service in late March that allows users to store their digital music online and play it on a computer or an Android device. With Cloud Drive and Cloud Player, users can upload digital music, photos, videos and documents to Amazon servers and access the files through Web browsers or phones and tablet computers running Google's Android software.
Music bought from Amazon.com or Apple's iTunes or from a personal collection is held in a digital "music locker" on the Internet and can be accessed from computers running Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari or Chrome Web browsers. -The News
Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said on Monday that Google, like Amazon, has yet to secure licenses from the major record companies, and would limit users to a "streaming mode" to prevent piracy.
The new service, expected to be announced at an annual developers conference in San Francisco, would initially be launched in a testing phase, only becoming accessible to the public at a later date, the Journal said.
The newspaper also reported that Apple is currently in talks with major record companies to launch a far more ambitious service than either that offered by Amazon or the new service planned by Google.
Amazon unveiled a service in late March that allows users to store their digital music online and play it on a computer or an Android device. With Cloud Drive and Cloud Player, users can upload digital music, photos, videos and documents to Amazon servers and access the files through Web browsers or phones and tablet computers running Google's Android software.
Music bought from Amazon.com or Apple's iTunes or from a personal collection is held in a digital "music locker" on the Internet and can be accessed from computers running Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari or Chrome Web browsers. -The News
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
FiiK electric skateboard has ABS braking system
Sometimes you come across a product that makes you sit back and go "FiiK". You have seen electric skateboards, off road skateboards, even all terrain boards, but a combination of fun, technology, design and street cred has always been elusive. Two brothers on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia have managed to meld these elements together with their electricskateboards.
your credit card will be charged the annual membership fee of $77.
The company is called FiiK "Future Is In Knowledge", a nod to their ongoing design refinement which began over 10 years ago with a small two stroke motor strapped to a plank of wood. The product has evolved into a skateboard with a magnetic motor, a digital wireless throttle control system, ABS braking system and a ton of urban chic.
There are a number of different Fiik boards to cater for different types of riders and terrain. According to Fusionskate, an authorized retailer of FiiK, the most popular board is the retro styled, red striped "Street Surfer" and it is easy to see why. This board produces high speeds on the black top with a maximum speed of 37 km/h (23 mph). It has aluminum rimmed, off road pneumatic tires with plenty of grip allowing you to take the board places a traditional skateboard can only dream about, such as tearing up grassy embankments and surfing the hard packed sand at the beach.
The board can also be equipped with super heavy duty tires – larger tires with grippy oversized tread to tackle dry dirt tracks and mulchy off road terrain. The board has an optional lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery giving you a range of around 30 km (22 miles) or 1.5 hours of runtime. A short wheelbase allows tighter turns, while the hardwood deck is concave for better traction while on board.
FiiK manufacture a range of other boards with a variety of deck shapes and more traditional poly-urethane wheels geared towards the street and skatepark. These boards have smaller and lighter battery packs with a short wheelbase for maneuverability. Others have a long wheelbase giving a surfing or snowboarding sensation with a deeper concave deck to give greater control while carving up the road. There is also a range for younger children, light enough to carry on public transport and to use as a regular skateboard if the battery runs flat.
How do you stop this Fiiking thing
The electric skateboards are all controlled by a handgun like device using digital wireless technology. There are 3 speed settings to allow for all skill levels, and the ability to limit the top speed for novice riders. Incorporating a stepless throttle control, the rider pulls the trigger towards them to start moving and away from them to slow down and stop. All the FiiK boards have an ABS braking system to allow the rider to slow down without the wheels locking and potentially throwing the rider off.
The FiiK battery
The FiiK electric skateboards have a sealed lead acid battery as standard that can be upgraded to a more expensive lithium iron phosphate pack. Sealed lead acid batteries are a cost effective solution that can deliver great acceleration and torque when fully charged but they do have limitations compared to LiFePO4. There are large differences in weight and size – in regards to the FiiK lithium batteries, 3.8 kg (8.4 lb) compared to 13 kg (28.6 lb) and the lithium batteries are over four times smaller.
Other benefits are an extended run time, more torque, faster acceleration and a longer lifespan – 2,000 recharges compared to 500 with no charge memory problems. There is a quick charger in development that promises to drop the charging time from flat currently at 5 to 6 hours down to under 2 hours.
The FiiK Street Surfer with lithium iron phosphate battery retails for US$1600.
Source: gizmag
your credit card will be charged the annual membership fee of $77.
The company is called FiiK "Future Is In Knowledge", a nod to their ongoing design refinement which began over 10 years ago with a small two stroke motor strapped to a plank of wood. The product has evolved into a skateboard with a magnetic motor, a digital wireless throttle control system, ABS braking system and a ton of urban chic.
There are a number of different Fiik boards to cater for different types of riders and terrain. According to Fusionskate, an authorized retailer of FiiK, the most popular board is the retro styled, red striped "Street Surfer" and it is easy to see why. This board produces high speeds on the black top with a maximum speed of 37 km/h (23 mph). It has aluminum rimmed, off road pneumatic tires with plenty of grip allowing you to take the board places a traditional skateboard can only dream about, such as tearing up grassy embankments and surfing the hard packed sand at the beach.
The board can also be equipped with super heavy duty tires – larger tires with grippy oversized tread to tackle dry dirt tracks and mulchy off road terrain. The board has an optional lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery giving you a range of around 30 km (22 miles) or 1.5 hours of runtime. A short wheelbase allows tighter turns, while the hardwood deck is concave for better traction while on board.
FiiK manufacture a range of other boards with a variety of deck shapes and more traditional poly-urethane wheels geared towards the street and skatepark. These boards have smaller and lighter battery packs with a short wheelbase for maneuverability. Others have a long wheelbase giving a surfing or snowboarding sensation with a deeper concave deck to give greater control while carving up the road. There is also a range for younger children, light enough to carry on public transport and to use as a regular skateboard if the battery runs flat.
How do you stop this Fiiking thing
The electric skateboards are all controlled by a handgun like device using digital wireless technology. There are 3 speed settings to allow for all skill levels, and the ability to limit the top speed for novice riders. Incorporating a stepless throttle control, the rider pulls the trigger towards them to start moving and away from them to slow down and stop. All the FiiK boards have an ABS braking system to allow the rider to slow down without the wheels locking and potentially throwing the rider off.
The FiiK battery
The FiiK electric skateboards have a sealed lead acid battery as standard that can be upgraded to a more expensive lithium iron phosphate pack. Sealed lead acid batteries are a cost effective solution that can deliver great acceleration and torque when fully charged but they do have limitations compared to LiFePO4. There are large differences in weight and size – in regards to the FiiK lithium batteries, 3.8 kg (8.4 lb) compared to 13 kg (28.6 lb) and the lithium batteries are over four times smaller.
Other benefits are an extended run time, more torque, faster acceleration and a longer lifespan – 2,000 recharges compared to 500 with no charge memory problems. There is a quick charger in development that promises to drop the charging time from flat currently at 5 to 6 hours down to under 2 hours.
The FiiK Street Surfer with lithium iron phosphate battery retails for US$1600.
Source: gizmag
Beauty of Swat Valley - Mahudand Lake
Mahudand Lake ("Lake of Fishes") is a lake about 40 km from Kalam, in Pakistan's upper Ushu Valley. It is accessible with a four-wheel drive vehicle, and is a good location for fishing. This valley lies in the North of Kalam, is famous not only among nature lovers, and escapists but also the exotic trout fish hunters. The valley can be accessed through an un-metalled road from Kalam in a four by four (4x4) vehicle.
After driving for about four to five hours from the vast valley of kalam, you will enter the wonderful and spectacular valley of Mahodand where the small lakes, towering trees and sprawling pastures welcome you. The valley is long and wide and touches Chitral boundary in the extreme North. There is proper track through which trekkers can either reach Shandoor Top or Gazar in Chitral. Several spectacular waterfalls reinforce the beauty of the valley. They are of different lengths and sizes. The greater the size, the greater the sound that echoes throughout the valley.
In a nutshell, Mahodand valley is a process and artistic gift of nature for those who love nature, meditate and identify their creator through His creation. The spectacular landscapes, the canopy of tall cedar trees, the vast pastures, the roaring waterfalls, the shimmering lakes, the sky touching mountains, and the exotic fragrance of wild flowers and herbs leave such strong imprints on the mind that the visitor is always in search of other opportunity to become one with nature again.
Mahudand Lake Gallery
After driving for about four to five hours from the vast valley of kalam, you will enter the wonderful and spectacular valley of Mahodand where the small lakes, towering trees and sprawling pastures welcome you. The valley is long and wide and touches Chitral boundary in the extreme North. There is proper track through which trekkers can either reach Shandoor Top or Gazar in Chitral. Several spectacular waterfalls reinforce the beauty of the valley. They are of different lengths and sizes. The greater the size, the greater the sound that echoes throughout the valley.
In a nutshell, Mahodand valley is a process and artistic gift of nature for those who love nature, meditate and identify their creator through His creation. The spectacular landscapes, the canopy of tall cedar trees, the vast pastures, the roaring waterfalls, the shimmering lakes, the sky touching mountains, and the exotic fragrance of wild flowers and herbs leave such strong imprints on the mind that the visitor is always in search of other opportunity to become one with nature again.
Mahudand Lake Gallery
Wateen USB Drivers Download
Now Wateen USB Drivers are available to download for the first time. And the good news is that you don't need to visit franchise for drivers any more. Simply Go to the link pasted below and click on DOWNLOAD NOW to get the software for the Wateen USB.
Wateen USB software
Wateen USB software
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