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HDTV Listings for November 21, 2008

by Richard Lawler, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 6:30PM

What we're watching tonight:

Ozzy and Little Steven Star in New 'World of Warcraft' TV Ads

by Evan Shamoon, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 5:09PM


Now that Blizzard has sold upwards of infinity units of its new 'World of Warcraft' (WoW) expansion, 'Wrath of the Lich King,' the company has unleashed a series of new ads starring some of pop culture's finest ambassadors.

The ads, both linked to after the jump, star Ozzy Ozbourne and Steve Van Zandt (he of both 'Sopranos' and E Street Band fame), respectively. They're both pretty entertaining, and a quick watch is a much better alternative than dedicating the next three years of your life to playing the game itself.

WoW now has more than 11 million subscribers, which is more than the population of Switzerland, Sweden, or Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Panama combined. [From: BigDownload]

YouTube Trying Out Live Streaming Concert on Web

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 4:19PM

YouTube to Try Out Live Streaming Concert
YouTube is getting ready to join the world of Webcasts, live Internet streaming shows that often come in the form of huge concert events.

YouTube Live will hit the Web streaming in real-time tomorrow, November 22, at 8 PM EST. It will feature a mix of celebrities and YouTube stars such as Esmee Denters, a Dutch singer who made her name by posting videos of herself singing pop tunes, and video blogger Katers17. The live event will take place in San Francisco with headliners Akon, Will.I.Am, and (strangely enough) the MythBusters, who we assume will be blowing stuff up live on stage. Sounds fun and dangerous.

YouTube is also asking for viewer feedback to help shape the show's content. Tay Zonday will be performing, but viewers will have to vote on a non-'Chocolate Rain' (he has other songs?) track for him to perform. They're also taking votes on "favorite political ad." Because nothing says fun like misleading attacks on a candidate after the campaign is over.

We're not exactly sure what YouTube and Google hope to accomplish with this dive into live streaming events, or exactly how they plan to pull of this, "part concert, part variety show and part party," without it just becoming complete chaos.

Certainly the strangest appearance may be from guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, whose cheesy wrap-around shades and shaved head look would fit right in with the parade of ridiculousness from the Beamz promo video. Hey, maybe the finale will be a Beamz orchestra. We can dream can't we? [From: News.Com.Au and YouTube]

Bras for Men an Online Bestseller in Japan

by Tim Stevens, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 3:23PM

Bras for Men Now Available in Japan
If you're the sort of man who has a certain penchant for lady's clothing, and we don't mean helping your wife or girlfriend find a pair of jeans at JC Penney, you may be interested in a hot new product currently available in Japan. It is, quite simply, a bra made for men, and if you like that you'll love the company's other products.

The bras are exclusively available at Rakuten's WishRoom Shop, a Japanese online retailer that sells all sorts of things but stocks an extensive selection of lingerie. In addition to the $30 bras, it also sells female-styled panties for men, catering to the Asian cross-dressing market. And quite a market it is, apparently; in just two weeks, 300 of the bras have been sold in black, pink, and white.

No word on an American release but, if you really want one, we're sure some importer out there would be happy to help. [From: Reuters]

Tell Your Friends to Google it Themselves

by Lee Bains, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 2:30PM




With the new Web page 'Let Me Google That for You,' you can finally demonstrate to your friends that they are just as capable of Googling something as you are, reports Download Squad.

As we've discussed before, the changes in social interaction brought on by the digital age require a new code of etiquette, of common courtesy. We've all, at some point, had a friend ask us a general question -- via e-mail or instant message -- that we can only answer after using Google. This is somewhat irritating, as our friend could have Googled their question just as easily as they asked it of us. It's the digital equivalent of your friend on the other end of the couch asking you to hand him the TV remote that's resting on the middle cushion.

Fortunately, you can now teach your friend how to pick up the remote his dang self. [From: Download Squad]

Long-Awaited Guns N' Roses Album Streamed for Free on MySpace

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 1:34PM

Chinese Democracy Streamed for Free on MySpaceYesterday at midnight (9 PM on the west coast), the public got its first listen (legal) to (cough...) 'Chinese Democracy.'

Though the first Guns N' Roses album in 17 years wont be available in stores till November 23, it can now be streamed for free on MySpace Music (must... bite... tongue...). The album has actually been making the rounds on BitTorrent for a while, and the first hints of it leaked back in August. But for many, this is the first time they'll be hearing any of the music since radio refuses to play the two crappy singles 'Chinese Democracy' and 'Better' (arggh! sorry).

Mother always said, 'if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.' [From: TechCrunch]

Contraband Cell Phones on the Rise in Prisons

by Lee Bains, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 12:45PM



Contraband cell phones are showing up in prisons at alarming rates, according to USA Today.

Last year, South Carolinian authorities discovered more than 1,000 phones in the state's prisons, while Californian authorities confiscated 1,400. These extremely high numbers are largely due, corrections officers suspect, to a new method of smuggling, whereby smugglers use a sort of "launcher" to rocket the phones over prison walls.

Inmates have used the smuggled phones to call in threats to their former victims, coordinate further smuggling, plan escape attempts and, in at least one case, relentlessly seek pardon from a state senator.

While implementing cell signal-blocking technology could solve these prisons' problems outright, a current federal law prevents them from doing so. Some of the states, though, are willing to try out their luck; South Carolina plans to host a jamming-technology demonstration today. [From: USA Today]

Obama Loads His Team With 'World of Warcraft' Fan and Bloggers

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 12:02PM


Despite the looming possibility that incoming president Barack Obama may have to give up e-mail, there is still strong expectation that an Obama administration will be sensitive to technology issues. One of those reasons is his continued appointment of people with deep connections to cyber culture.

Obama's latest appointment is Tom Daschle as head of Health and Human Services (we thought that job would have gone to Dean). Daschle is a former blogger, though he doesn't appear to have had much dedication to the idea of blogging -- the blog only reveals two entries about his travels through South Dakota.

Other appointees are much more active though. Peter Orszag, who has been tapped to head the Office of Management and Budget, is an avid blogger (though he keeps comments on his posts turned off). Heading up his FCC transition team are Susan Crawford and Kevin Werbach, grizzled veterans of the Net Neutrality battle. Both keep active blogs, and Webach even gets down with Twitter. There is even good news for gamers: Werbach is very active on 'World of Warcraft.' He belongs to a pair of guilds in the virtual world that consist mainly of academics and the tech elite.

What exactly this means for the policy of the incoming administration remains to be seen, but we're sure they'll be much more sensitive to the needs the tech industry and netizens than the Bush administration has been. [From: Silicon Alley Insider, and GigaOm]

iPhone Update Brings Google Street View and Podcast Downloads

by Thomas Ricker, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 11:20AMBreaking News


It's here. Google Street View and over the air Podcast downloads from iTunes. Yup, public transit and walking directions too and the ability to share your location via email. Bug fixes, Safari enhancements, the ability to toggle auto-text correction, and plenty more... just like we heard in the pre-rumor run-up. Now get outta here, your iTunes update awaits.

Update: Added some screenshots of the most notable new features after the break. The Street View implementation seems solid though we miss the compass feature found on T-Mobile's G1. Also, the real-estate saved by moving the Google search field next to the URL field in Mobile Safari is a welcome and obvious change. As to auto-correction, well, that's personal taste. Tipster Vizcaya also noticed that Apple added a new option to rate an App when you delete it from your phone. You can also view multiple screenshots of applications available in the App Store.

Update 2: The other big update, Podcast downloads, works just as you'd hope and should further promote the spontaneous isolation we all crave. A few shots of that added after the break.

[Thanks Gustavo and badburro]

Continue reading iPhone Update Brings Google Street View and Podcast Downloads

Teen Streams His Own Suicide Live on Web

by Tim Stevens, posted Nov 21st 2008 at 10:44AM

19 Year Old Streams Suicide Live on InternetWe've covered no shortage of Internet-related suicides, particularly the epidemic of student deaths in Wales, but we haven't seen anything like this before. On Wednesday, 19-year-old Abraham K. Biggs chose to end his life with an overdose of pills, and also chose to stream his death live on Justin.tv -- apparently while being encouraged by members of the bodybuilding.com forum.

Viewers of the stream watched and commented until Biggs appeared to no longer be breathing, then called police. In the live video stream, police were seen to storm the house before covering the camera. Unfortunately, they were too late to save Biggs, who in his suicide note indicated "I hate myself and I hate living." While it seems Biggs was intent on taking his life, online or off, we're certainly hoping his choice of making it known doesn't start a new trend. [From: NewTeeVee]

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