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Comcast settles class action suit on traffic blocking

As we close the book on 2009 and ready for 2010, a legal settlement takes us back to 2007 and 2008, when Comcast got into trouble with customers and the feds for throttling peer-to-peer traffic on its network.

Comcast has agreed to pay $16 million to end to a class action lawsuit alleging the broadband provider promised and advertised certain download and upload speeds, but blocked peer-to-peer traffic on its high-speed Internet network.

"Comcast denies these claims, but has revised its management of P2P and is settling to avoid the burden and cost of further litigation," according to … Read more

Take Android to task

Astrid may look unassuming when you first encounter it, but the free, open source task and to-do list-maker has customization settings beneath its skin. Type to add a new task. You can leave the note to self where it is, or select the entry to edit elements like importance settings, tags, notes, deadlines, recurring reminders, and alerts. We like being able to add tasks to Android's calendar, and that there's an option to sync with online reminder service Remember the Milk.

How-To: Installing and using open-source Unix software in OS X with Fink

Thanks to the "Darwin" underpinnings in OS X, Mac users can compile and run many useful open source projects that are available for Unix operating systems. These include everything from command-line tools and editors, to graphical desktop environments and games. While websites such as "Sourceforge" try to make it easy to access the latest versions of open source projects, the projects will still need to be compiled if a binary is not available. Usually this process is straightforward, but at times modifications to the source code and installation scripts may be required to get them running.… Read more

AT&T now has 'voice mail to text'

AT&T recently launched a service that will convert English and Spanish language voice mail to text. Powered by Nuance Communications, the service will then deliver the messages via SMS, e-mail, or both. You can then choose to respond, either by returning the call or replying via text or e-mail. The service costs $9.99 a month, on top of your existing plan, and you can still dial in to your voice mail as usual if you wish.

Disc image do-it-all

ISO images, also known as disc images, are archival files found on optical discs like CD-ROMs. Many software publishers support the ISO file standard (.iso), and most CD- and DVD-burning software only works with ISO images and their own image formats. If you have software, presentations, archives, or other data to burn onto optical discs, you'll need to convert files in a wide range of formats into ISO images. AnyToISO from CrystalIdea is just the tool. It converts a wide range of file formats into ISO images, including BIN, MDF, PDI, CDI, NRG, B5I, and IMG files. It supports … Read more

Create audio messages from song samples

Internet memes travel in waves. A fun site can lie dormant for years before suddenly being rediscovered.

The latest example I've found is Let Them Sing It For You, which has been around for years, but has been drawing new attention on blogs in the last couple of weeks. On Tuesday, I received my first personalized message through the service.

Created in 2003 by Eric Bunger, Let Them Sing It For You is a simple but fun Web application that lets you enter a text message, then translates the words into audio. The catch: it uses popular song snippets … Read more

Intel debuts text reader for the blind

Intel is doing its part to help people with sight or reading disabilities enjoy the written word.

The company announced on Tuesday the debut of the Intel Reader, a handheld text-to-speech device that can read any printed text aloud to those who are blind or have difficulties seeing or reading.

The Atom-powered device uses a high-resolution camera to capture images of any printed text, which it then converts into digital format to read out loud. The Reader can be used as a standalone device to snap pictures of text. But paired with Intel's Portable Capture Station, which can hold the Reader in place, the device can grab huge amounts of text, such as an entire book, according to Intel.

"We are proud to offer the Intel Reader as a tool for people who have trouble reading standard print so they can more easily access the information many of us take for granted every day, such as reading a job offer letter or even the menu at a restaurant," said Louis Burns, vice president and general manager of Intel's Digital Health Group, in a statement.

A check at some of the retailers selling the Intel Reader revealed its base price to be $1,499, with the Portable Capture Station an additional $399.

Weighing one pound, the Reader is the size of a paperback book. The tactile buttons and voice-operated menus that control the device have been designed so sightless people can use it, Intel said. Individuals with poor vision can also zoom in or out of the display and increase the font size of its text.… Read more

How to edit an MP3 audio file

Whether it's a two-hour Grateful Dead concert or a 45-minute DJ mix, we all have an MP3 in our music collection that gets skipped for being too long. Tragically, there's usually one or two great songs in these recordings that would otherwise be in heavy rotation if they weren't tied to such a tediously long file.

Well, today we're going to show you how to cut these songs loose by opening up and editing your MP3s in Audacity. The whole process is relatively painless, and if you set it up correctly, you can easily drag and … Read more

How to record streaming audio

Editors' note: (5/10/10) While the author herself did not experience any problems when this tutorial was originally posted, several MP3 My MP3 users have complained about malware and/or spyware included in the updated version of the software.

These days, there is a plethora of audio content available to stream over the Internet. Even traditional terrestrial radio often offers content streamed over the Web, diversifying the choices for how consumers can enjoy music and other audio. Although the legality is questionable, there are--and will always be--ways to record these streams. Streamed audio recordings for music are not going … Read more