Tech Brief
In Tech Brief today: Babyberry, Batman and the return of the great AC/DC debate.
• You may have noticed . For those undecided on - or, indeed, uninterested in - the iPad, comedians David Mitchell and Robert Webb present you with an alternative: The "BabyBerry" [some language not safe for work]. In the words of one delighted reviewer:
"It's got a cracking 64Gb memory - which is more than can be said for my real baby."
• Actor Adam West, aka TV's original Batman, has been waxing lyrical about gaming, :
"In the same way a painting allows us to gaze upon the faces and souls of people from another age, or a book permits us to linger on the thoughts of great figures from history and fiction, videogames can expand our awareness of the world as it is, was, or might be. The medium is still in its infancy, but read this again in a few years and see if this prediction hasn't come true: as videogaming grows, we will grow."
Well, that's one way of looking at the four hours you've just spent charging about killing the residents of a virtual world.
• Staying with gaming, server containing the stolen account credentials of 44 million online gamers.
If you think your secret life as Zorro the Destroyer isn't worth much hard cash, think again - Symantec says an established World of Warcraft login can fetch up to $28,000. You probably wouldn't be able to get your hands on that cash legitimately:
"It's worth noting that the actual buying and selling of accounts is typically banned by many online gaming and hosting sites, as evidenced by the terms of their EULAs."
• Word reaches Tech Brief that, approximately a million years after the world settled on alternating rather than direct electric current in sockets, DC is enjoying a bit of a revival in the world of data centres. :
"In 2006 we participated with Lawrence Berkley Lab in a study of power for the datacenter. The published, peer- reviewed findings are that you save an astounding 28% over the current North American AC power distribution practices by using DC."
There may be hope for Betamax yet.
• Google has launched its own trading floor :
"The plan is to keep the war chest growing safely and ready to be deployed should the right mergers-and-acquisitions opportunities arise."
MacMillan says the traders themselves are well looked after in an office space which includes a climbing wall, massage chairs and murals of tropical sunsets. All that's missing is the margaritas.
If you want to suggest links or stories for Tech Brief, you can send them to on , tag them bbctechbrief on or e-mail them to techbrief@bbc.co.uk.
Links in full
• Madeleine Brettingham | Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Comedy | The Babyberry
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