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Will Your School-Agers Still Need Book Covers in Five Years?

E-books, man. They're infiltrating schools. Cushing Academy in Ashburnham, Conn., got rid of the 20,000 books in its school library, trading up to flatscreens, Kindles and computers only. And now that Google has paired with On Demand Books (the company that invented a book vending machine), schools could potentially serve up printed e-books in the public domain like cotton candy.

The Impossible Polaroid Returns

The Impossible Project - formed to "re-invent and re-start production of analog INTEGRAL FILM for vintage Polaroid cameras" - may have accomplished just that.

Parenting in a Digital World

You've seen the talk shows and heard the playgroup buzz: What the heck are we doing about the influence of social media, cell phones, games and other technology on our little angels?

Storytelling: When You Hear the Bell, Turn the Page

When my in-laws were packing up their house to move, my husband discovered a huge pile of story albums. I practically drooled over them -- but there was no record player in the house.

Tell Your Senators How Much You Love the Climate (And Win Some Awesome Prizes Too!)

Live Earth has just launched an awareness campaign, Love, The Climate,  to engage the public in environmental activism and contact their senators about supporting the Climate Bill. 

iPhone rants, raves and the Google Voice problem

by Denise at 4:00am Thu, 20 Aug 2009 under Technology & Web, iphone, Gadgets, Smart Phones, Google Voice
I'm one of those annoying iPhone users with a strong sense of entitlement. I admit it. I'm proud of it. But, it also makes me a little nervous.

Sony Readers Come Out Fighting

The fight is on! Sony Readers remain less expensive than the Amazon Kindle. Sony Readers are available in more countries the than Amazon Kindle. Recent moves from Sony and the additional promise of big announcements on August 25 are adding to the question of whether Sony Reader is going to be able to conquer the Amazon Kindle after all.

Tech Shopping for Back to School

Summer vacation is drawing to a close. States are announcing dates for tax-free back to school shopping. Parents are scrambling to find lists of required school supplies or to understand what it means if your child's new school is "completely computerized." It's time to go back to school. Since technology is invading every age group, let's look at what students need in terms of age. These are just my opinions, but here's what I think would work. As a disclaimer, I must add that every family will decide what they need based on their individual situations.

Cell phones: I love 'em, hate 'em, can't live without 'em. Darn it.

This is where I will thank the tech gods and goddesses for inventing cell phones that allow me to keep up with my teens and college age kids. While at the same time cursing those deities for creating cell phones because someone bought the 10 year old a cell phone plan with unlimited text messaging. The 10 year old has very few friends with cell phones or unlimited texting. I do not have time to text my day away, nor do I have unlimited texting. Stop the madness. And the extra charges on my cell phone bill.

What to Pack in Your Carry On

by Susan Wagner at 6:31am Sun, 19 Jul 2009 under Travel, Fashion, Gadgets
Let's face it: The airlines aren't doing much these days to make air travel easy. The most recent irritation is the fee to check luggage, which has upped the amount of carry on luggage people are dragging into the cabin with them. I'm not a carrier; I always check my bag, even if it costs me. In my mind, it's worth paying the fee to avoid wrestling my suitcase into the overhead compartment. I'm all about streamlining what I carry, particularly when I'm traveling.

Let's talk about BlogHer '09 Internet, shall we?

One week from now the Chicago Sheraton and Towers most definitely will know what's hitting them, as almost 1,500 (mostly) women bloggers check in...and log on.

Arizona State and others sued by National Federation of the Blind over Kindle DX use

A couple of months ago, I reported in Author Rights vs. Disability Rights about a lawsuit brought by the Authors Guild to prevent Amazon from allowing the Kindle 2's text to speech function unless compensation was given to the book's authors.