What I would describe as curious and worrisome news out of the UK is circulating the blogosphere these days. That is because the UK government is considering a new internet model where websites would be rated (similar to how movies are already), and those which contain offensive or otherwise inappropriate material would not be shown. In other-words: censorship. I firmly believe that if no laws are being broken, that the internet should remain a free place for information to be shared.

Now that’s not to say the UK government has bad intentions, in fact, quite the opposite. They are clearly trying to protect minors from unwelcome and non-age appropriate material. However, in my opinion, the internet is not for kids, but rather adults. It should be up to the parents of web-using minors to police what their children do online, and install the necessary safeguards in order to protect them from dangerous websites. Or, you know, they could tell their children to go outside and play.

As for teenagers, somehow I think there are a lot more dangerous places for them to be hanging out than the internet. Rather than censoring everyone, why don’t we go back to teaching our kids common sense, and responsibility?

                                                    
On a recent call to Cox about a billing issue I was having I stumbled across a very interesting finding: Cox is already implementing data transfer caps. The rep on the phone told me about it, and acted like it was no big deal. Intrigued, I looked into this further and found some interesting insights.

more…

Paul’s Soapbox is a regular feature of TechConsumer where I sound off on various tech topics/products that I’m interested in (or hate). This is just my $.02, so consider yourself warned. This week’s subjects are all over the place: DRM, “3G” Wireless, and Playstation Home.

more…

                                                    
I know this will seem like another “me too” post after the well publicized Comcast story at TechCrunch, but I actually wrote about 95% of this a couple of weeks ago, mostly while I was on hold with “tech” “support.” I was going to wait until the issue was resolved, but I’ve decided to post it now. This is my story of how Comcast took over the cable services of my lowly regional cable provider, and how bad things can get worse. Read the rest after the jump.

more…

                                                    
Good ol’ Michael Arrington of TechCrunch had an interesting weekend in which he learned how to minimize the classic ISP runaround (i.e., the customer service you get when your Internet stops working). He had 36 hours of downtime before, as he puts it, he lost his cool and posted to Twitter this message: “I am going to expend significant energy over the next three weeks trashing comcast.”

more…

This past week a national cable and high-speed Internet provider by the name of Charter Communications accidentally deleted all the contents of 14,000 active email accounts. A spokeswoman for the company explained that there is no way for them to retrieve anything that was erased. The spokeswoman offered this explanation and apology:

“We really are sincerely sorry for having had this happen and do apologize to all those folks who were affected by the error… During this maintenance we erroneously deleted active accounts along with the others. It’s never happened before. They are taking steps to make sure it never happens again.”

more…

                                                    
It hasn’t even been two days since Marion explained how World of Warcraft could teach us a thing or two on education, but the Chinese government apparently is not convinced of the benefits. Beginning April 15, gamers in China under the age of 18 will receive only half the normal "points" if they play for more than three hours in a day. National game companies have been given three months to implement the system fully. And there’s even talks of the regulation extending to any western games (such as World of Warcraft) played in China.
more…

The apartment complex I live in forces me to use whatever Internet connection the whole complex is on. Since I moved here last year, it’s been a local provider until that company went bankrupt. Service stopped on January 25. Not to worry, the apartment complex switched to using Verizon DSL. But that service went live on March 22.

I’m back in school getting my MBA while running TechConsumer. Here’s my story of doing both without Internet at home:

more…

The Wall Street Journal (this article now free) has an interesting piece on the coming amenities for travelers in the sky. U.S. airlines plan to offer in-flight Internet connections within 12 months. Think of it as the airplane cabin becoming a WiFi “hotspot.” Carriers will begin making announcements within a few months, and service will begin early next year.

Using your cellphone in the air, on the other hand, may take longer to be implemented. This is mostly due to strong consumer opposition. Apparently, most of us (Americans, at least) don’t want chatty cellphone neighbors while flying.

more…

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Number (ICANN), the group in charge of setting Internet addressing guidelines, shot down a proposal to give adult websites their own “.xxx” domain. Apparently, certain groups from both the adult-entertainment industry and various religions (first time working together?) weren’t in favor.

more…