Tech & Innovation
News, opinions and advice on technology development and the state of innovation.
Protecting your computer from nasty viruses [and cute dancing teddy bears…]
As anyone who’s had the flu knows, viruses are no walk in the park. Then spare a thought for your poor old computer, which may be at risk of picking up bugs from other infected systems and passing them on – if you haven’t protected it.
Nix pesky cyber spies [leaving your computer unshaken and unstirred…]
For the regular Joes and Josephinas amongst us, encounters with 007-style super-spies or shifty-eyed, trench-coated baddies aren't part of our day-to-day lives. But if you’re the proud owner of a computer, you do need to be vigilant for cyber spyware.
Revolutionary GiFi technology to receive $1.4M from Commercialisation Australia
Senator Kim Carr, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, has announced that NICTA will receive $1.42 million to fund GiFi, a high-speed gigabit wireless transmission technology. These funds will be granted to Nitero, a company created by NICTA researchers, which will further develop GiFi and put in the market.
Could the Khan Academy’s video-based learning transform Australia’s schools?
Would Salman Khan's revolutionary approach to learning work in Australia's schools? The former hedge fund analyst's web-based Khan Academy wants to turn education inside out. At its heart, it bring the lectures home and moves the homework to the classroom.
Social media: Why won’t scientists engage? Fear of sock puppets?
Scientists are used to coping with complexity, but when what they publicly talk about is subject to polarisation along political lines, debate can get very messy. In April, a group of science communicators gathered in Brisbane to talk about the dangers and opportunities inherent in the use of social media. As Matthew da Silva reports, many of them are still learning the ropes of productive online communication.
Powering wheelchairs with brain waves earns third spot in Anthill SMART 100
At the University of Technology, Sydney, Professor Hung Nguyen and his research team are developing a system operates a wheelchair with nothing but brain waves. The tech can be revolutionary for people with severe disabilities. It earned position No. 3 in this year's Anthill SMART 100.
Will crowd-funding save the Australian arts industry? Anything’s Pozible…
Crowd-funding, while nothing new globally, is still in its infancy in Oz. Provided it can remain on the good side of Australia’s consumer protection laws, it has the potential to go gangbusters in traditionally underfunded segments, like the arts.
What are you doing to master online marketing?
The past 12 months was filled with jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring watershed moments in the exciting but frustratingly fragmented world of online marketing. In 2010, did you let the future slip by or did you embrace the world's largest marketplace? Did your website under-achieve or over-deliver? Do you even have a website?
Can a TiVo-like service on the Web save the radio industry?
Contrary to the Buggles' dire prediction, video did not kill the radio star. But the Internet has certainly made radio question its mortality. Into the breach steps a website that allows users to record hundreds of radio programs, just like TiVo. Is this legal? DAR.fm says its on the right side of legal precedent, at least in the U.S. Will it catch on? Heh. Stay tuned.
Deployable sewer system wins runner-up spot in Anthill SMART 100
An NSW-based company, Flovac, has developed a deployable sewage treatment system that could answer the health need of military encampments and emergency refugee camps. The products earned the runner-up spot in Anthill's SMART 100.
A stylish bid to wean Australians off bottled water takes top spot in Anthill’s...
Gretha Oost has the heart of an environmentalist and the mind of a marketer. She pondered Australians' propensity to drink water from bottles when, by and large, water from their taps are perfectly safe. Her solution earned top honors in Anthill's SMART 100 for 2011.
Anthill’s SMART 100: Readers’ Choice Revealed (2011)
The Readers’ Choice Index was created to provide an opportunity for Anthill readers to vote on SMART 100 applications. At the conclusion of the Readers’ Choice component, we promised to tally up the results and create an Index according to the votes of our readers. What we didn't expect to receive was a lesson in social media marketing.
Anthill’s SMART 100: Winners Revealed (2011)
In true Anthillian style, the SMART 100 is an ever-evolving, ever-improving experiment. Designed to encourage, promote and support innovation in Australia, it identifies and ranks new Australian innovations by applying a combination of crowdsourcing, collaboration and common-sense. Yes, it's time to reveal the SMART 100, 2011.
Laptop battery-saving tips to keep you unleashed longer
Ah, beloved laptop. When it’s good, it’s great. But when you run into challenges – like a drained battery while you’re on the go – you realise who really holds all the power in the relationship. (See what we did there? Power. Clever, eh?)
Innovation: Australia is screwed without it. Really, really screwed.
The vast majority of the people working in Australian businesses believe they're being innovative. However, the nation's Bureau of Labor Statistics says that only 40% of business actually are. As this call-to-arms video posits, it appears someone is lying.
Aussies to spend $5.8 billion on digital games over the next four years
According to a new report, Australians will spend $5.8 billion in the digital gaming industry over the next four years. The study also reports the several short comings of the Australian gaming industry and gives advice to overcome them.
The NBN is here! (Kinda.) NSW city gets trial run with the new broadband
A few select iiNet customers in New South Wales have become the first in mainland Australia to connect to the NBN, in what the Labor Government and ISPs alike hope is a sign of good news to come. After reports of successful connections from residents in the city of Armidale, NSW in April, iiNet made its NBN launch official this past week at a ceremony showcasing the benefits of superfast download speeds. Let the rollout begin!
Do you need a dedicated server? Test your business against Intel’s 8-point checklist.
Every business wants to get more done in less time, right? Even the smallest of businesses can benefit from a dedicated server. It offers greater security and tees up your tech so you’re ready and raring for that big ol' growth spurt that’s just around the corner. And, as luck would have it, a server based on an Intel Xeon processor provides an intelligent solution to today’s business IT challenges… What are the chances, eh?
Group buying is a fad (Just don’t tell James Packer)
When any organisation or industry grows rapidly, as many of the group buying companies have already done (Spreets acquired over 500,000 email addresses from a nation of 20 million in less than 10 months), it's hard not to wonder whether the growth is sustainable. Naturally, every market has a ceiling. Doesn't it? Perhaps not.
See a timeline of the $77 million PlayStation network hack [INFOGRAPHIC]
Hackers' security breach of Sony's PlayStation network ranks among one of the worst online attacks in history, according to Australia-based ComparisonFinder, which put together a timeline of the hack that cost Sony about $1.25 billion. Check out this awesome infographic.
