DIGITAL DIVIDE
Virtual People Help Bridge Digital Divide
Bhutan Gets a Taste of Windows
INTERNET
Internet Privacy: The Danger of Good Intentions
Survey: Half of Japan's Population Online
A Shift Registers in Willingness to Pay for Internet Content
South African Govt 'Hijacking the Internet,' Say Critics
DIGITAL DIVIDE
VIRTUAL PEOPLE HELP BRIDGE DIGITAL DIVIDE
Computerized avatars may soon be helping residents of London find out about
government benefits how to gain access to them. The avatars, which are
currently being tested, will provide a human face and voice to the Web. This
is especially important to the people who either do not have the computer
skills to use complicated Web forms or are uncomfortable with a "machine"
interface. For the time being, users will have to ask questions and respond
to the avatar's voice by typing. Eventually, it is hoped that people will be
able to talk directly to the avatar. The project is being developed in three
European cities with partial funding by the European Commission.
[SOURCE: BBC News]
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/2163652.stm)
BHUTAN GETS A TASTE OF WINDOWS
For the citizens of Bhutan, computer connectivity in their native language,
Dzongkha, has been a remote dream. But now, fonts for around 4,500 Dzongkha
words, letters, characters and religious symbols have been developed for a
Bhutanese version of Microsoft Windows. The new Windows operating system
represents the first time the language will be displayed in a standard way
on a PC. Currently, there are at least seven different Dzongkha computer
systems in Bhutan, all using different character codes and all incompatible
with each other. The new fonts, based on characters drawn by Bhutanese
calligraphy artists and monks, will allow the creation of digital libraries
and applications in Dzongkha. The Orient Foundation, Dzongkha Development
Commission and Microsoft have collaborated on the project with major funding
from the Swiss Development Corporation.
[SOURCE: BBC News]
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/2164186.stm)
INTERNET
INTERNET PRIVACY: THE DANGER OF GOOD INTENTIONS
(Commentary) A lot of attention has been focused this year on passing
legislation to deal with privacy issues posed by new technology. Senator
Fritz Hollings' Online Privacy Protection Act is one piece of legislation
that misunderstands why privacy protection is needed. Policymakers will
achieve little by singling out the online world because technological
progress makes data sharing virtually effortless. Rather than passing
legislation that targets just online privacy issues, policymakers should
take a careful approach to information collection as a whole.
[SOURCE: ZDNet, AUTHOR: Sumir Meghani]
(http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1107-947161.html)
SURVEY: HALF OF JAPAN'S POPULATION ONLINE
According to a Japanese government survey, nearly half of Japan's population
now uses the Internet via computers, cell phones or other devices. The
number of Internet users totals 56 million. The most common use of the
Internet is to exchange emails (64.8 percent), followed by searches for free
coupons and shopping information (45.9 percent). In 2001, Japan ranked 16th
in the world for Internet users. The United States, by comparison, ranked
fourth with 166 million users.
[SOURCE: USA Today, AUTHOR: Associated Press Online]
(http://www.usatoday.com/tech/webguide/internetlife/2002-08-01-japan-net_x.h
tm)
A SHIFT REGISTERS IN WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR INTERNET CONTENT
According to a survey released by the Online Publishers Association,
Internet users are beginning to show more willingness to pay for content
online, such as subscribing to news sites or paying fees to send e-greeting
cards. Extrapolating the online transactions of 1.1 million consumers, the
survey found that consumers spent $675 million for digital goods and
services in 2001 -- nearly double the $350 million they spent the year
earlier. But the survey also shows that a relative handful of businesses
benefit from these purchases, and that advertising remains the overwhelming
source of income for supporting digital content. The survey found that of
the 1,700 sites charging for content, the top 50 sites drew 85 percent of
the revenue. A big chunk of the spending accrued to business and financial
news sites. "It's where people need information the fastest that influences
their livelihood," said Michael A. Zimbalist, executive director of the
Online Publishers Association.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Matt Richtel]
(http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/01/technology/01ONLI.html)
SOUTH AFRICAN GOVT 'HIJACKING THE INTERNET,' SAY CRITICS
South Africa's Internet professionals have accused the government of trying
to hijack the Web. The professionals -- who include Internet service
providers and lawyers -- have petitioned President Thabo Mbeki not to sign a
new bill that would allow the government to take control of the registration
and administration of internet domains, and give it free access to
information stored on the Web. "We are opposed to creating a huge
bureaucracy to control an industry that has been fine as it is," said Edwin
Thompson, co-chairman of South Africa's Internet Service Providers
Association, "and we have said that this amounts to hijacking the
cyberspace."
[SOURCE: BBC]
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2164227.stm)
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