Tech Stream
Posts Tagged ‘ china’
Tech Stream 041
26 February 2010
Listen and download: MP3
E-Waste: Discarded PC cases in a dump in Guiyu, China. Photo by Bert Van Dijk from Flickr.
In the Tech Stream this week we look at a new UN report into the management of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) in developing countries. We also hear from two sides of the nanotechnology debate. Do we really understand the implications of the developments in this science, and are the proper regulations in place? There’s more on mobile telco Digicel’s expansion in the Pacific with its new license to operate in French Polynesia… and finally Bajo reviews the film-noir video game Heavy Rain. More details after the jump or follow the MP3 link above to start listening to the program.
Tech Stream 036
22 January 2010
Listen and download: MP3
Flowers lay on a sign at the entrance to Google’s China headquarters in Beijing’s university district. Photo by Josh Chin from Flickr.
We’ll be looking forward, on this the first Tech Stream radio program of 2010, at the gadgets, technology trends and ideas set to dominate over the next twelve months. We also wrap up some of the news around Google rethinking its strategy in China, which may involve it pulling out of the country altogether, and find out why governments in Europe are advising their citizens to abandon Microsoft’s popular web browser. Follow the MP3 link above to hear the program or continue on for more…
Tech Stream 025
7 August 2009
Listen and download: MP3
Hacking in China, the internet in the Pacific, Microsoft and Yahoo cut a deal and updates to the Wii controller. Its all in the Tech Stream this week. You can hear the latest program with the MP3 link at the top of this story or to the right and keep reading for the full lowdown…
Tech Stream 020
3 July 2009
Listen and download: MP3
Micro-USB connectors, already in use for charging some mobile phones, are set to become a standard for all.
We heard back in February that the worldwide mobile industry had at last decided on the connection format for a universal charger compatible with all mobile phones. Its good news for you and me because we don’t have to keep an assortment of chargers on hand, or get a new type when we upgrade our phone. But its even better news for the environment, with less of this kind of electronic waste finding its way into landfill.
That’s coming up in the Tech Stream today, plus the future of e-books and publishing in the digital age… and the intersection between virtual and real economies. Full details after the jump.
Virtual Concerns in China and Australia
3 July 2009
Listen and download: MP3
Inhabitants of Second Life, spending time on ABC Island. Image from Flickr by Gary Hayes.
We were augmenting our realities last week, adding layers of virtual information and computer generated objects to the real world around us. But this week we’re digging deeper on a couple of stories involving online virtual worlds – places like Second Life – and games like World of Warcraft.
It seemed that Australia’s proposed ISP-level internet filtering regime could impact upon “unclassified” virtual spaces and internet games. And some new laws were introduced in China this week aimed at stopping the flow of virtual money into the real world economy. Initial reports suggested that it might effect the practice of gold-farming in games like WoW, but it seems that’s not quite the case.
For more on both of these issues I spoke with David Holloway, editor of Metaverse Journal, a virtual worlds news site. He kicked off with his thoughts on China’s new policy toward virtual currency and you can hear our entire conversation from the MP3 link at the top of this story. There’s also more after the jump…
Tech Stream 019
26 June 2009
Listen and download: MP3
QR coded jewelry – photo from Flickr by Fluid Forms.
We’re blurring the lines between the virtual and the physical this week in the Tech Stream. We’ll be speaking about augmented reality with Christy Dena, a cross-media researcher and Professor Bruce Thomas from the Wearable Computer Lab at the University of South Australia.
This leads us into a discussion on Quick Response or “QR” Codes which are being used in advertising as well as augmented reality games. Antony McGregor Dey from QMCodes and Mobile Mondays Melbourne will get us up to speed with this new way to link a physical-world object with something in an online or virtual environment.
We’ll also have a report from Connect Asia’s David Wang on how the Chinese Government is cracking down on pornography online and accusing search engines like Google of disseminating pornographic content within China.
And finally Bajo joins us from Good Game to review the latest Ghostbusters video game.
You can listen to the full Tech Stream program with the MP3 link above or the “Listen Now” link on the right. Feel free to comment on any of these stories or suggest something we can follow up in future programs. You can also subscribe to the podcast too!
Broadband growth driven by Asia
18 June 2009
The ICT expo CommunicAsia is taking place in Singapore this week and their daily newsbrief (pdf link) has some interesting stats on the growth of broadband take up in the region. Their figures indicate that broadband lines topped 429.2 million globally as of the end of the first quarter of 2009 with most of that growth being driven by Asia.
Cracks appear in China’s Green Dam
16 June 2009
It seems having the most sophisticated internet filtering and blocking system in the world is simply not enough for the authorities in China. Now they are seeking to implement a more thorough and universal solution at the user-end which they say is aimed at blocking access to pornographic and violence-oriented websites. But of course it’s being viewed, both inside and outside China, as a bid at mass censorship and a threat to personal privacy. More after the jump…
Tech Stream 016
5 June 2009
Listen and download: MP3
Electronic waste waiting to be recycled. Photo from Flickr by Eric Dykstra.
We’re marking World Environment Day in the Tech Stream this week. Jeff Angel, Executive Director of the Total Environment Centre tells us about Australia’s new electronic waste recycling scheme. Janet Leslie from Canon Australia explains their e-waste initiatives and ‘green’ calculators. And Elanto Wijayono from Green Map Indonesia introduces us to Open Green Maps – a set of online tools to help communities map natural, cultural and sustainable resources in their area.
But we kick off the program with the blocking of websites like Twitter and Flickr in China this week. Thursday was the 20th anniversary of the Chinese military’s bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square. Myself and Steve Holland from Connect Asia speak with a local Twitter user as well as Jeremy Goldkorn from Danwei.org and Beijing-based technology observer Kaiser Kuo. Radio Australia News Online also has a great feature on the anniversary. Lastly, technology journalist Adam Turner has the lowdown on Google Wave.
The entire program can be heard from the MP3 link at the top, and you can subscribe to the podcast with the link on the right. Feel free to leave a comment below on any of the content in the Tech Stream this week.
Social web blocked in China
3 June 2009
China is blocking access to social networking and social media websites ahead of the 20th anniversary of a bloody crackdown in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. Sites like Twitter, Hotmail and Flickr were blocked on Tuesday and Microsoft also reported that access was blocked to their new Bing search engine.
The story is being covered today by Radio Australia News who report that internet users filled chatrooms with protest after access to Twitter was denied on Tuesday. And Reuters reports that “Access to video-sharing site YouTube, owned by Google, has been blocked in China since March, after overseas Tibetan groups posted graphic footage of China’s crackdown on protests by Tibetans in 2008.”
The Tech Dynasty blog on CNET Asia also covered the blocks yesterday and says that “anyone in China who spends any amount of time online has weathered these blocks before” and so has recommended some good sites to overcome them. There are also unconfirmed reports on Twitter that the #gfw (great firewall of China) has been removed from the ‘trending topics’ section. We’ll have more in the Tech Stream program, on Radio Australia news and on our own Tech Stream twitter feed.
UPDATE 05/06/2009: Connect Asia covered this on Thursday morning, you can hear Steve Holland’s story from this link, and ABC News Online provided excellent coverage of the anniversary.