09:11 AM by Alexander Turcic in E-Book General | News

Rather than wait for the official translated version, hundreds of eager Harry Potter fans from Germany have bought an English copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and translated the book into German themselves.

Only 45 hours and 22 minutes after the English book had hit stores, the "Blitzübersetzung", or draft translation, of Harry Potter und der Halbblutprinz was complete. Under the rules of the collective, only those who contribute by translating or proofreading may see the final translated version. The official German edition of the sixth Harry Potter is due to be published by Carlsen Verlag on 01 October.

The community site has managed to avoid being shut down by the publishers because it claims a "private" status as a member forum and promises not to sell or distribute the translations beyond its circle. Clearly, this does not guarantee that one member could potentially leak the translated book onto a new Internet site - as if by magic.

08:13 AM by Alexander Turcic in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Resco released Resco Radio V1.0, an audio player for Pocket PC dedicated to streaming internet radio broadcasts. The player supports MP3 and Ogg Vorbis, is capable of storing the streams in MP3 format, and includes a scheduler for recording broadcasts while you are away.

Until now I've used the free GSPlayer for streaming Internet audio, but I'll make sure to give Resco Radio a spin. Resco does some fine Pocket PC software!

Thanks to Shaun from PDA247 for the great find.

03:09 PM by Alexander Turcic in E-Book General | Deals and Resources (No...

Free Software for Busy People is a book written by Dr. Mohammad Al-Ubaydli, in which the author explains why ordinary people will benefit from open source and exactly how to make the switch. The book is available as a $24.99 paperback or as a free download (PDF).

[via Download Squad]

02:51 PM by Alexander Turcic in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

True, we are still not even close to the penny, but PalmSource stock (symbol: PSRC) made a dangerous dive last Wednesday undercutting for the first time the $8 mark (see screenshot).

A few weeks ago, former PalmSource CEO David Nagel announced that he was planning to throw 116,388 PSRC shares on the market. Perhaps this is not a big deal as the sale would only amount to a total value of less than USD 1m at current stock price. On the other hand, it might not be a comforting signal to investors if the former CEO of a company is so hasty in selling his stocks. Surely he cannot be that much in need of cash considering that he has made roughly USD 10m in the past 3-1/2 years through sign-on bonuses, salaries, other bonuses, severances and stock sale proceeds.

02:06 PM by Alexander Turcic in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

According to Rich Hall from Pocket PC Mag, the next fifth version of Windows Mobile to be released as the first ROM upgrades next month represents a "significant upgrade," for three reasons:

First, they [Microsoft] wanted to improve end user’s productivity by giving them faster access to information and better productivity tools. Second, they want to enhance the user’s multimedia experience and give them more options to use media to personalize their devices. Finally, they wanted to make it easier for manufacturers to build, brand, and differentiate the Windows Mobile devices they create.

[via PalmAddicts]

04:08 AM by Alexander Turcic in Miscellaneous | Lounge

The oracle of research firm Gartner reveals that mobile phone sales will surpass one billion handsets a year by 2009. It also said that smartphones are the fastest-growing category, with sales expected to exceed 200 million devices in 2008. Read more over at PalmAddicts here and here, summarized by PA newcomers Joshua Burdick and Paul Biba.

11:37 PM by Bob Russell in Miscellaneous | Lounge

Engadget is reporting on the upcoming official name from Microsoft for Longhorn... "So there’s been some buzz on this and now it’s looking confirmed by a few insider sources — the official name for the new Microsoft Longhorn operating system is going to be Windows Vista. As in “a view into the distance” which surely refers to the prolonged development timeline of the OS (ouch, we had to.). Look for the official announcement tomorrow morning." Also see story at ActiveNetwork.

My question is how it will affect future handheld computers running full Windows OS like the OQO. They are on Model 1, and Model 2 is surely just around the corner. But up against the much greater hardware demands of Vista/Longhorn, I wonder if they might not be forced to either accept XP for a number of years, or if they will make a jump to Linux. Hopefully they will at least ensure that it can perform decently. Nothing like a really slow handheld to frustrate a user.

07:40 PM by Alexander Turcic in E-Book General | News

I am not joking. Apparently some half-witted folks with a self-destructive urge are selling the illegal e-book of the new Harry Potter on eBay (in case the items are already removed - which, if not, I am sure will happen any time soon - see attached screenshot). Some ludicrous quotes:

On purchasing this e-book you also purchase the right to resell it to others. These FULL RESELL RIGHTS allow you to resell this e-book to others, whilst you retain the profit.

You cannot go wrong with this price. The real hardcover book is going for 15.00 USD and up!!

Why buy the Hard cover collection? Its the same thing here. Put it on disc and you will have it forever.

Note to All: This e-book is available in the public domain.

Don't miss out on the opportunity to get this book instantly, cheaper and quicker than in retail stores!

You are absolutely FREE TO PRINT AND REPRODUCE/DISTRIBUTE this e-book. This gives you the ability to have a hard copy to hand.

After purchasing, you will receive your e-book via e-mail. Unlike some sellers, we don’t charge an administration fee or a postage fee!

Whatever is their problem, death wish or not, this is NOT the way to convince Rowling and her conglomerate of lawyers to publish legal e-books for sale!

Or perhaps it is? DRM to the rescue! I would've never thought that this would come out of my mouth. Of course I was just kidding...