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San Francisco's Bay Bridge keeps its computer-controlled lights
The 25,000 computer-driven LED lights on San Francisco's Bay Bridge were only meant to be part of a two-year art project, but it looks like they'll eventually become a permanent (and frankly, rather pretty) part of the landscape. The non-profit behind the lights, Illuminate the Arts, has raised the $4 million necessary to both cover the costs of new gear and reinstall the lights after they're taken down during cable maintenance. From then on, transportation authority Caltrans will pay the $250,000 a year it takes to keep the illumination running. There will be a period where the bridge will go dark, but it should resume shining in January 2016 -- conveniently, just ahead of the influx of tourists attending Super Bowl 50. Not all San Franciscans are fans of the installation (they argue that it's out of sync with the region), but these LEDs are here to stay. [Image credit: Chris Marra, Flickr]
Yahoo's San Francisco billboard closing up shop after more than a decade
Oh, 1999. Simpler times, those. IT departments were frantically prepping for Y2K, Jeff Bezos (or his head, at least) was named Time's "Person of the Year" and the tech bubble was getting ready to burst at the seams. That same year, the lights on Yahoo's "A nice place to stay on the internet" billboard turned on for the first time on the highway leading to the Bay Bridge. Those lights, which have seen their share of ups and downs for internet companies, will be turned off for the last time in the coming weeks. Clear Channel confirmed that there will, indeed, be vacancy in that space come next month.
