Barack Obama
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DTV coupons begin flowing once more, waitlist should vanish in 3 weeks
For all of you still waiting for a little governmental assistance in buying that DTV converter box that you should've purchased months ago (we kid... a little), we've excellent news. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is overseeing the program, has announced that it has finally begun to ship $40 vouchers towards the purchase of these very boxes once more. The waitlist has grown some 4.1 million deep since the subsidy program ran dry back in January, but the agency is hoping to have that cleared within three weeks. Of course, you better not procrastinate on your second chance -- who knows how quickly the $650 million it has left will last.[Image courtesy of BreakItDownBlog]
Obama plays BrickBreaker ... on a military-grade smartphone
Bastion of hard news, Star Magazine, reports that President Obama may have an ulterior motive for wanting his (very fancy) smartphone: gaming. The article quotes a "confidante" who reveals Obama plays BrickBreaker on the device "to unwind," and that the freshly inaugurated leader does so "every night before bed." The President made news on the gaming front by bringing a Wii into the White House. Obama's high score in BrickBreaker is "around 15,000," according to Star Magazine's source. We hail to the chief, but he's got nothing on this guy.[Via GameCulture]
Stimulus bill seeks plan to ensure all Americans have broadband access
As we've seen in the decidedly botched digital TV transition, nothing involving government and technology is ever straightforward. With that in mind, let us present to you the most germane portion of the recently passed economic stimulus package with respect to gadgets and the overall nerd kingdom: $7.2 billion. That amount is what President Obama has set aside for "broadband grant and loan programs," though things get confusing right from the start. $4.7 billion will be distributed through a program run by the Commerce Department, while $2.5 billion is handed out by the Agriculture Department. In theory, at least, that latter chunk would go specifically to rural and underserved areas, but having one goal with two masters just seems like trouble waiting to happen. Oh, and then there's the mandate to the FCC that instructs it to create (within one year, mind you) a "national broadband plan to ensure that everyone in the US has broadband access." Granted, these aren't entirely unheard of -- Britain just did the same sort of thing a few weeks ago, and South Korea's already aiming at 1Gbps for all. We appreciate that the money's there, but only time will tell if leads to anything meaningful.
The original DTV transition: what could've been
Exactly one year ago today, we sat as prepared as ever to embrace the forthcoming world of digital TV. After February 17th, no longer would Americans have to suffer through yet another poor analog broadcast, and no longer would we have to wait for all that spectrum to be freed up for much more spectacular things. With just a year to go, we laid out a simple six-step program that would help confused TV watchers ensure that they would be ready on the seventeenth day of February, the year two-thousand and nine. Fast forward to this very moment, and confusion about the cutover is still rampant. In fact, the cutover hasn't even happened. Well, it sort of has. Ahh... see what we mean? Come along after the break, it gets crazier.
President Obama signs DTV delay bill into law
No way Obama was going to veto this after driving it all the way through Congress, but technically, the digital TV delay wasn't actually official until now. Late today, America's President signed his name onto the bill which will delay the digital TV transition from February 17th to June 12th, though a provision allows stations to switch over beforehand should they choose. In fact, hundreds of stations still plan to kill analog later this month, as they've been planning towards that date for years now. Honestly, we can't figure out what the purpose of this is. Unless there's more cash for the currently dry voucher program tucked away somewhere in that mind-bogglingly large "stimulus package," delaying the pain won't solve a thing. Though it will confuse the hell out of people, so there's that.
Street Fighter Online DLC includes 'Obama' skin
Online fighter Street Fighter Online: Mouse Generation is offering up some goodies in time for Valentine's Day. First up are some chocolate avatars for use in-game. We're not sure why you'd want one, but hey, that's your business.More interesting is a piece of DLC that provides players with an in-game character that bares resemblance to current U.S. President, Barack Obama. Titled the "YES WE CAN!" pack, this bit of DLC unlocks several different skins for fighters, including the already mentioned Obama clone. We'd ask about a John McCain skin as well, but that guy has already been beat up enough.[Via Kotaku]
Obama sets up 'Wii Station' for Super Bowl party
Well, to be clear, he probably didn't set it up, he probably has people for that (we hope). But whether he was plugging in RCAs or just waving his scepter at the help, new president Barack Obama was responsible for the best sentence we've read all day: "The New York Times reports Obama set up a 'Wii station' in the East Wing of the White House." The official West Wing video game console gets a permanent home? Obama is coming ever closer to usurping Bartlet as our favorite administration.Speaking of presidents of days gone by, we hear that before the games could officially begin, aides had to delete dozens of Imagine Constitutional Lawz and My English Coach save files left on the system by the previous administration. That's just what we heard, mind you.
Senate okays another digital TV transition delay
Just to make sure that the digital TV transition gets delayed, the US Senate has approved another measure to postpone the transition date until June 12 and sent it on its way to the House of Representatives. If the House's mere indication that the delay would go through didn't dash our hopes of analog-free airwaves next month, the quick-fire nature of this second bill certainly did. Essentially the same as the first proposal, this version with minor edits cleared the Senate unanimously. With the House in recess until next week, we'll have to wait for any movement, but it's looking like we'll be stuck with analog for a while longer. Hopefully, this whole mess will be resolved, because the longer it goes on, the more people will become confused, and maybe join the 22-percent of Americans who are planning to give up on TV altogether.
Digital TV transition delay bill fails to pass in House
In an absolutely shocking move, the United States House of Representatives has failed to pass the digital TV transition delay bill that was all but certain to fly through just days ago. The bill needed two-thirds of the votes of the House under "special rules adopted for the vote," and reportedly, the vote was just 258 to 168 in favor of changing the date. As it stands, an estimated 6.5 million Americans are not yet prepared for the switch -- which is now back on track for February 17th -- and the money well for government-issued vouchers has ran dry. Honestly, we're elated to hear the news. The February date has been blasted from the rooftops for years now, and changing it this late in the game would wreak all kinds of havoc in the industry, not to mention instill even more confusion. Soon-to-be-vacated airwaves, we're ready for you.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Microsoft's Randy Siegel equates using a BlackBerry with sending data to Canada
Whoa, Nelly! There's a 74.6 percent chance that Microsoft's Randy Siegel will never, ever live this down. After finding that newly inaugurated president Barack Obama could keep his BlackBerry, Mr. Siegel -- who is an enterprise mobile strategist that works on federal government projects -- was quoted as saying the following about using a device whose creator is based in Canada: "You would be sending your data outside the country; we wouldn't want the casual musings or official communications of the most important person in the world being intercepted by others." Everyone get that? Owning a RIM device means that every bit and byte you send and receive is being carefully monitored by Canucks up in the Great White North, regardless of your hometown or carrier. Thanks for the laughs, Randy -- we needed 'em today.[Via RCRWireless]
Senate okays digital TV transition delay to June 12th
We knew it was bound to happen, and sure enough, it's happening. For the millions of Americans still waiting for their $40 voucher before buying one of those newfangled DTV converter boxes, the US Senate has just given its stamp of approval on providing them a four month reprieve as it attempts to get its act together. Oddly, there's no mention of Congress looking for new sources of funding, though we are told that consumers holding expired coupons can now request new ones. We suspect more details will flow out on all of this soon, but for now, you can bank on the digital TV transition -- originally scheduled to go down on February 17th -- now occurring on June 12th. Until it changes again, of course.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Gigapan Imager used to craft 1,474 megapixel image of Obama's inauguration
In theory, at least, we already knew that the Gigapan Imager was capable of some amazing things. This, friends, is proof. David Bergman strapped the device and his Canon G10 onto a rail at Barack Obama's inauguration and snapped 220 images. After giving his MacBook Pro 6.5 hours to compile a two gigabyte image, he hosted it up on his website for people to zoom around on. We'll caution you -- you can easy kill a few hours checking out faces and such if you end up visiting the read link, but it's totally worth it.[Via Gadling]
NASA electric lunar rover struts its stuff for the President
For the Inaugural Parade, NASA astronauts greeted our new President in the style befitting such an august organization (and one that'll take all the funding they can get) by trotting out their Small Pressurized Rover. Hopefully by 2012 this thing will be spending less time cruising around Washington DC and more time on the lunar surface, where it can support two intrepid explorers for up to two weeks at a time. It sure looks cramped, but man, what a view! Check out some video of the thing in action -- in the nation's capital and in the wild -- after the break.[Via Billionaire Boys Club]
Digital TV transition postponement all but certain
We're actually having a hard time believing this ourselves, but word on the street has it that the Senate is "on the verge of passing a bill that would delay until June the date when TV stations must broadcast in all-digital format." Without Congressional action, all TV stations will switch off their analog signals on February 17th -- a date that has been blasted out to the general populace for years now. The issue is that millions of Americans are currently on a waiting list for one of those $40 vouchers, and evidently it'll take a few more months to get additional funding and clear the backlog. It's expected that the new switchover date will soon become June 12th, and you can find all the fine print just down there in the read link.[Via TVWeek, thanks Vanbrothers]
Confirmed: Obama gets his BlackBerry, no Sectera Edge in sight
At Robert Gibbs' first press conference as President Obama's Press Secretary, the most important and heated debate of our time has been put to rest. According to Gibbs, Obama will be able to keep his BlackBerry, though only a limited number of senior staff and personal contacts will have access to his email address, and the data on the handheld will be subject to the Presidential Records Act. There was no mention of the NSA or the Sectera Edge, though he does mention some enhanced security. In Gibbs' words:"The President has a BlackBerry through a compromise that allows him to stay in touch with senior staff and a small group of personal friends in a way that use will be limited and the security is enhanced to ensure his ability to communicate, but to do so effectively and to do so in a way that's protected."Finally, a clear indication that for the first time in the 21st century, the President of the United States will act like it's the 21st century. You can watch it all go down in the video after the break -- just crank it to about 45:30. Now, on to this economic stuff we keep hearing about...[Thanks, Vipul]
Dear Mainstream Media: Obama's new phone might not be a BlackBerry, might not be a phone, and he might not be getting it
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/Obama_s_new_phone_isn_t_a_BlackBerry_might_not_be_a_phone'; This morning we've been barraged with tips alerting us to the news that President Obama has won his struggle to keep his (apparently deeply loved) BlackBerry -- a device which has historically been verboten in the White House due to security concerns. Unfortunately for the mainstream media outlets, a little conflation here and a little lack of fact-checking there does not a BlackBerry make. Just about everyone -- straight up to CNN and the AP -- are sourcing a post by Marc Ambinder in the Atlantic stating that Obama is "going to get his blackberry [sic]," though the actual news may be far different. Ambinder seems to be conflating two stories which he doesn't source at all, one saying that the NSA will jack-up Obama's BlackBerry with some kind of "super-encryption package," and the other stating that the President will get a Sectera Edge -- an NSA approved (but not issued) device we reported he might be getting last week. Here's the news in the exact (confusing) wording Ambinder uses:On Monday, a government agency that the Obama administration -- but that is probably the National Security Agency -- added to a standard blackberry a super-encryption package.... and Obama WILL be able to use it ... still for routine and personal messages.With few exceptions, government Blackberries aren't designed for encryption that protects messages above the "SECRET" status, so it's not clear whether Obama is getting something new and special. The exception: the Sectera Edge from General Dynamics, which allows for TOP SECRET voice conversations.The problem is that Ambinder (and the mainstream media) doesn't seem to know the difference between some NSA smartphone and an actual RIM BlackBerry... and there's a big difference. Of course, we won't tell MSM (or even solo bloggers) how to do their job, but we think there's some serious air-clearing called for here. We have yet to hear official word on what, if any, device Obama will be using in the White House, and recombining two separate pieces of information that may not be related (or fully understood) seems lazy at best, and dangerous at worst.Read - Obama Will Get His BlackberryRead - Obama 'to get spy-proof smartphone'Read - No decision on whether Obama will keep BlackBerryRead - Obama thinks he can keep his BlackBerry
Inauguration Day overloads cellular networks, but not tremendously so
We can't see how this is shocking to anyone who has tried to make or receive a phone call on New Year's Eve (right around midnight, in particular), but cellular networks in the Metro DC area were pretty much bombarded yesterday. The inauguration of America's 44th president brought most networks to their knees, though most carriers reported that interruptions were relatively minimal. AT&T made sure to bump its 3G capacity by 80 percent and its 2G capacity by 69 percent along the parade route, and while a spokesperson did admit that it experienced "some congestion" during the events, customers were generally able to get through. In all honesty, we expected reports to be much more negative than this given the incredible amount of people shoved into one place, so we suppose a round of golf claps is in order for the carriers responsible for anticipating the surge.[Image courtesy of Zimbio]
Missed the Inauguration? Xbox Live has you covered
For politically minded gamers connected to Xbox Live, Microsoft has made some of yesterday's inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America available to watch online. Found in the Spotlight area of the NXE, the Presidential section features videos of Barack Obama and Joe Biden's swearing in, musical performances and even select, and extremely topical, TV Shows and Movies for those who catch the political entertainment bug. Nothing like watching Mars Attacks! starring Michael J. Fox to celebrate a historical moment in American history! Wait, wha? But seriously, if you're down with history check out The Presidents, a History Channel documentary available in pieces in the Presidential section of the Marketplace.[via Joystiq]
Obama sported bulletproof suit for inaugural proceedings?
Apparently, the Photosynth glitching and iPhone-like GPS blip on CNN weren't the only high tech actions in play at President Obama's inauguration yesterday. According to one of our favorite daily reads, Officer.com, the Prez was wearing "bullet-resistant clothing," which experts (and sci-fi fanatics) are taking to mean a bullet-proof suit. The folks over at Slate speculate that he might have been adorned in an outfit manufactured by MIguel Caballero, a Colombian company that specializes in bullet-resistant gear like leather jackets, windbreakers, and yes... ruffled tuxedo shirts. We'd like to imagine that stuffed into the pocket of that handsome outfit he was sporting was a Kevlar handkerchief -- but listen up Obama: Sasha and Malia are not going to be down with that bulletproof backpack.Update: VBS.tv went down to Colombia and actually tested out Caballero's wares -- check out a video after the break.[Via Wired]
Obama inauguration takes the Spotlight on Xbox Live
Log into Xbox Live tonight and the first thing you'll see is ... a photo of President Obama from today's inauguration. Indeed, the spotlight of the Spotlight channel is today's ceremony, including video of Obama and Vice President Joe Biden being sworn into office, the 44th President's inaugural speech and more.Even the Movies and TV Shows categories have taken on the theme, featuring the likes of The West Wing and -- wait a second -- Mars Attacks? Yes, the Tim Burton camp-fest is inexplicably among the inaugural offerings. In any event, it makes sense that Microsoft would make a rather big deal about today's momentous occasion, having already urged users to Rock the Vote and conducted an informal election survey last fall (which now-President Obama and his running mate handily won).[Thanks, Clayton]
