ITBusiness Elsewhere is a collection of links to other technology news stories around the world.
Canada sucks at spam production
The Register
Ever wonder where
spam comes from? No, it’s not from a can. Not this kind, anyway. Apparently, the majority (56 per cent) of the solicitations you get to increase various body size parts originate in the U.S., at least according to researchers at antivirus firm Sophos. Canada, like usual, comes in a distant second at 6.8 per cent, followed by China and Hong Kong.
To: God@aol.com
Globetechnology.com/AP
God is so far away, it seems. In fact, until recently, if you are Jewish and want to send God a note, maybe solicit a little peace on earth or at least some better weather, you had to go stick a note in the cracks of the Western wall in Jerusalem, AP reports. Now, all you have to do is go online, drop God an e-mail, and someone will take it to the Wall on your behalf. Or you can always fax it in.
C U L8R
Reuters/Yahoo!
Guess what? U R fired. That was the SMS message a South Korea credit card company issued to 161 employees via cell phone text message after negotiations with striking unionized workers broke down. According to the company spokesperson, the company had no other way of contacting the workers.
Bet you didn’t count on these odds
CNN.com
And you thought computer viruses were a nuisance. Turns out hackers have found other ways to employ their skill –- by blackmailing online bookmakers. According to the story, the hackers threaten to shut down sites mainly used by U.S. online gamblers if they don’t pay the requested amount in blackmail.
Sounds like hocus-pocus
Wired.com
Ever wondered how personal music devices are changing society? No? Michael Bull has. He’s even written a book about it, titled “”Sounding out the City: Personal Stereos and the Management of Everyday Life.”” According to Wired, Bull calls the book the “”definitive treatment”” of the impact of the Sony Walkman and its descendants.
One world, one love. Wait. No, two worlds . . .
BBC News
Those Yanks. They’re not content with conquering space and going to Mars and all that. Now they’ve created a second Earth. No worries, though: this one’s virtual. It is being created for the U.S. Army by a gaming company to help the U.S. plan for future conflicts. Word has it several countries are being designed with stashes of hidden weapons of mass destruction.
Robo-receptionist
CNN.com
Think you can’t be replaced because you can dish good gossip while you fetch the boss his or her morning coffee? Guess again. Carnegie Mellon University has hired a new secretary called Valerie. She’s a lot like other receptionists, in that she answers the phone and talks about her dream of being a lounge star, except she’s a robot, and not just in that snide sense either.
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