TELECOM Digest     Wed, 28 Sep 2005 16:30:00 EDT    Volume 24 : Issue 442

Inside This Issue:                             Editor: Patrick A. Townson

    Dell Goes Upscale With PCs For Gamers, Enthusiasts (Reuters News Wire)
    Apple: Small Number of Nanos Have Defects (Greg Sandoval)
    Google to Build New Campus at NASA Facility (Associated Press News Wire)
    Report: Ericsson Considering Bid for Marconi (USTelecom dailyLead)
    Connecticut Motorists Need to Talk Hands-Free Starting Now (Monty Solomon)
    Re: When Students Open Up - a Little Too Much (Lisa Hancock)

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and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest.  

----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Reuters News Wire <reuters@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Dell Goes Upscale With PCs For Gamers, Enthusiasts
Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:46:21 -0500


Dell Inc. is launching a line of upscale and more expensive computers
after aggressive price-cutting led to lower-than-expected revenue
growth last quarter.

The company on Wednesday is unveiling three high-powered desktop
computers and a notebook "aimed at tech enthusiasts, gamers and buyers
who prefer the best products, services and individualized support,"
Dell said in a statement.

The new XPS series computers start at $1,099 and a notebook version
starts at about $2,700. That compares with desktops selling for as low
as $299 on the company's Web site.

In addition, Dell is introducing its first high-definition
televisions, with a 50-inch model priced at $3,799 and a 32-inch at
$1,799.

The roll-out comes after the company in August reported second-quarter
revenue that rose less than analysts had expected.

Chief Executive Kevin Rollins at the time said prices for Dell's PCs
were "down more than we would have liked" but added that the industry
wasn't experiencing a pricing problem.

Dell is offering expanded services to customers who buy the new
products, making available "highly trained" agents assigned to
individual customers, according to the Round Rock, Texas, company's
statement. Customers can also get quick answers through online chats
with product advisors.

Asked about reports of rising consumer complaints recently, Rollins
said his company closely tracks such reports and its data show
customer service trends have been improving, not declining. Because
Dell sells an ever-greater number of PCs each year, the absolute
number of customer service complaints may be growing, but as a
percentage of the overall number of customers, Dell's customer service
continues to improve, he said.

Dell is scheduled to introduce the products Wednesday at a briefing in
New York City attended by Chairman Michael Dell.

Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

See more news headlines from USA Today right here:
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/othernews.html

------------------------------

From: Greg Sandoval <ap@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Apple: Small Number of IPod Nanos Have Defects
Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:47:52 -0500


By GREG SANDOVAL, AP Technology Writer

Display screens crack easily on a small number of iPod Nano digital
music players, Apple Computer Inc. acknowledged Wednesday, saying it
would replace flawed units.

Apple was responding to a flurry of complaints posted to online forums
and community sites about faulty screens on the Nano, the tiny music
player the company launched earlier this month to much fanfare. Most
of the complaints revolved around screen scratches that made the
displays difficult to read.

Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr said Apple had received few complaints and
the only real problem was cracked screens, which would be replaced.

"This is a real but minor issue that involved a vendor quality problem
in a small number of units," Neumayr said. "This has affected less
than one-tenth of 1 percent of the total iPod Nano units that we've
shipped. And it's not a design issue."

Customer service employees at three Best Buy stores and two Circuit
City locations in different parts of the country said Tuesday that
they had not received any complaints about the Nano screen.

Apple's response appeared to quell some of the anger about the faulty
screens.

A Web site called flawedmusicplayer.com, which had posted complaints
about Nano screens, removed them after Apple acknowledged the problem.

"I am very delighted to see Apple take this issue seriously,"
according to a note on the Web site. "Apple is admitting there was a
real issue. I got what I wanted: fixed iPod Nanos for the people who
deserve them."

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

Also see headlines and news at http://telecom-digest-org/td-extra/AP.html

------------------------------

From: Associated Press News Wire <ap@telecom-digest.org> 
Subject: Google to Build New Campus on Vacant NASA Property at Ames
Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:49:05 -0500


Google Inc. plans to build a 1 million-square-foot corporate campus on
a now-vacant site on NASA property in the heart of Silicon Valley,
according to a published report.

Google, the Internet's leading search company, is expected to build a
campus containing offices, houses and roads at the NASA Ames Research
Center in Mountain View, according to a report in the San Francisco
Chronicle, which cited unidentified sources.

"There is some land at Ames Research Center that could offer logical
expansion space for Google," company spokeswoman Lynn Fox said
Tuesday. She declined to comment directly on the building plans.

The company has scheduled an afternoon news conference with Google
Chief Executive Eric Schmidt and Scott Hubbard, director at NASA Ames,
a space research center since 1939 that has recently been cutting
staff as part of the agency's nationwide restructuring.

Rapid growth in Web advertising tied to online searches has fueled
Google's stellar performance in recent years. The company has $7
billion in cash from stock offerings and huge profits. It hired 10
employees each business day in the last quarter and has a global staff
of nearly 4,200.

The company is rapidly outgrowing its current office space, and plans
to keep its current five-building headquarters, dubbed the Googleplex,
nearby.  Some observers say the partnership between Google and NASA
Ames could create a new hub of technological innovation in Silicon
Valley, an area gutted by the technology bust.

Shares of Google fell $5.27, or 1.7 percent, to $308.67 in afternoon trading
on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 13:29:34 EDT
From: USTelecom dailyLead <ustelecom@dailylead.com>
Subject: Report: Ericsson Considering Bid for Marconi


USTelecom dailyLead
September 28, 2005
http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/uKvMatagCqhnfBGhhR

		TODAY'S HEADLINES
	
NEWS OF THE DAY
* Report: Ericsson considering bid for Marconi
BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH
* Wireless executives tout mobility vision
* RIM to use Intel chips
* Cingular picks RealNetworks for video
* EchoStar sees opportunity in Gulf Coast region
* Cisco offers new security products
* Qwest won't make another run at MCI
* Analysis: Telcos unlikely to see profits from TV soon
USTELECOM SPOTLIGHT
* Triple Play Technology - Today and What's NEXT, Tomorrow, Sept. 29
TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
* Asia to lead in WiMAX deployment, report says
REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE
* FCC extends VoIP 911 deadline again
* Do Not Call list comes under scrutiny

Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others.
http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/uKvMatagCqhnfBGhhR

Legal and Privacy information at
http://www.dailylead.com/about/privacy_legal.jsp

SmartBrief, Inc.
1100 H ST NW, Suite 1000
Washington, DC 20005

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 15:15:24 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
Subject: Connecticut Motorists Need to Talk 'Hands-Free' Starting Saturday


Verizon Wireless Reminds Consumers to Take Steps to Comply with New Law

WALLINGFORD, Conn., Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Motorists in Connecticut
have until this Saturday to get ready to comply with a new law
requiring drivers to use hands-free devices when talking on their
wireless phones. Starting October 1, 2005, motorists could face a $100
fine for talking on wireless phones without using hands-free devices.

Verizon Wireless reminds all wireless phone users to take steps now to
comply with the law. Similar laws are already in effect in New York,
New Jersey, Washington, D.C. and Chicago.

      - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=52023505

------------------------------

From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Re: When Students Open up - a Little Too Much; Colleges Cite Risks
Date: 28 Sep 2005 13:10:24 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com


Monty Solomon wrote:

> By Sarah Schweitzer, Globe Staff

> Last school year, Brandeis University junior Emily Aronoff tapped
> this sentiment into a computer: "I enjoy the festive greens."

> The reference to marijuana became part of her profile on facebook.com,

Is that really a euphemism for mj?  I would think it just referred to
decorative plants, like ferns or ivy.

> intended for viewing by other students.

In the interests of privacy and security, these websites should
require a logon and be restricted to members of the internal group,
ie, those affiliated with the university.

> Colleges and universities are increasingly taking steps to help
> students avoid pitfalls -- most critically, those that put students at
> risk for stalking and harassment.

In today's world, where college students are very e-savy, I'm quite
surprised they aren't aware of very basic principles of maintaining
privacy on-line.  Early on, people learned that whatever you type on a
computer can be made public.  Ollie North got nailed by PROFS backup
tapes, an early email system.  People learned the hard way that BBS
conversations could be risky.  

By college age, I would presume that they'd know not to give out their
real name/phone number/address in an open e-chat room, an unsolicited
email, or to a stranger they'd meet in a bar or on the street.  I'd
think they had gotten some creepy emails and messages.  Geez, even in
my day kids knew to be wary of strangers, even fellow college students
and to safeguard their privacy, and that was before the days of
publicized date rape of stalkers.  I went to college in the city and
right up front they gave us some security/safety tips.

I read in the papers some students put out blogs with blatant personal
stuff, like intimate details about their sex life, though I've never
seen such a site.  Indeed, I wonder, given the tendency of kids to
brag about the outrageous, if some of those sites are actually fiction
just to goof around and shock people.

Anyway, it seems strange to me that these kids would be so brazenly
open about such personal stuff.  In my day plenty of kids smoked pot
or slept around, but they were at least a little discrete about it,
and certainly didn't want their parents or school officials finding
out.

Could anyone familiar with the situation elaborate what's going on in
the collegiate online world?  Anyone actually seen these blatant
personal blog sites?

[public replies, please]

------------------------------


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End of TELECOM Digest V24 #442
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