The AnswerBank Articles

What is BT doing to push the expansion of broadband in the UK I understand that there has been a slow uptake from consumers.

Asks Owen A. There has been a slow uptake of broadband services by consumers in the UK because installation has been expensive (approximately 150 at the beginning of 2002) with high monthly rental00:00 Mon 15th Apr 2002

Is there an Internet site that enables you find friends around the world

Asks Stella A. There is a new site that has recently launched called World Friends. It works in a similar way to the incredibly popular Friends Reunited site, with the added ability of enabling you00:00 Mon 15th Apr 2002

Do you know of any websites where I can find free translations of languages

Asks monica A. There are numerous websites that translate text - two of the most popular are http://www.freetranslation.com and http://babelfish.altavista.com. Both sites are easy to use for rapid,00:00 Mon 01st Apr 2002

What are Mira Tablets

Asks Jake A. Mira "tablets" are Microsoft's new portable computers, with flat LCD screen's, that are designed to be used in any room in the house - basically as a remote screen for your PC that is00:00 Mon 01st Apr 2002

What exactly is GPS

Asks Miranda A. GPS stands for Global Positioning System and refers to a worldwide navigation system of 24 satellites that orbit the earth and coordinate with ground receivers to pinpoint exact00:00 Mon 01st Apr 2002

When can I expect the price of digital radio receivers to come down

Asks Peter Smith A. Prices are unlikely to fall for another two years - as the industry is still (relatively) in its infancy and although the BBC pioneered research and development into digital radio00:00 Mon 25th Mar 2002

Why are Rupert Murdoch and the NDS Group at the centre of a piracy scandal involving some of Europe s biggest media groups

Asks kelvin A. The row is centred on allegations made by the giant French pay-TV operator Canal Plus (on 12 March 2002) that the NDS Group (owned by Murdoch's News Corporation) had helped viewers00:00 Mon 25th Mar 2002

What is a webring

Asks paddy A. A webring is a group of websites that have been linked together because they share a common link, usually their subject matter e.g. an Xbox gaming ring would feature about 20 sites all00:00 Mon 18th Mar 2002

What is so good about the new Apple iMac computers

Asks Justine A. The new Apple iMac's have been in the press since the beginning of 2002 as they look completely different from their previous models - they are all-in-one computers with flat panel00:00 Mon 18th Mar 2002

Why has delivery of the new Apple iMac s been delayed in the UK

Asks katiecuth A. There has been no official word from Apple over the reported delays on the new all-in-one iMac computer, but there have been several press reports that have speculated on the cause00:00 Mon 18th Mar 2002

Is it true that someone recently got caught shoplifting computer software using a Macintosh iPod

Asks spidermonkey A. Yes, this story was first reported in Wired magazine on 28th February and then picked up by many newswires and national newspapers thereafter - and it made news because it is one00:00 Mon 11th Mar 2002

What precisely is a weblog and how would I go about setting one up

Asks Lord Panda A. A weblog is a website that can contain personal, newsworthy or non-commercial information. The information is usually organised in a dated log (chronological) format - in a similar00:00 Mon 11th Mar 2002

What is Bookshare

Asks panda A. Bookshare is a new literary resource or online library available on the Internet, which provides the capacity for thousands of new books to be downloaded in digital formats. The service00:00 Mon 11th Mar 2002

Can you recommend a good search engine

Asks Madeline A. Some of the most popular search engines include the following: Google Google has become increasingly popular since it launched a couple of years ago - especially as it now boasts00:00 Mon 04th Mar 2002

What is Brightmail, is it a type of email or is it an email provider

Asks Madeline A. Brightmail is neither of the above. It is computer software that protects email from the likes of spam, viruses, junk mail etc. or as Brightmail puts it, it "provides advanced00:00 Mon 04th Mar 2002

Is it possible to send an email via telephone

Asks JacksonC A. Yes, it is possible if you have an Amstrad emailer plus phone. Q. What is this A. It is basically a digital telephone, with a keypad and a screen attached to it - which allows you00:00 Mon 04th Mar 2002

What is the Warhol worm

Asks esme A. The Warhol worm is a new virus that first hit users of Microsoft's Instant Messenger at the beginning of February. It directed users to a website identified in an email link as00:00 Mon 25th Feb 2002

What is XML

Asks marmalade A. XML stands for Extensible Markup Language. It is similar in principle to hypertext markup language (HTML) in tagging information to appear on web pages. However, where HTML's00:00 Mon 25th Feb 2002

I need a new, portable mini disc player - can anyone recommend a decent one

Asks Daniel A. Although you don't hear so much of mini-disc players these days - it's hard to get past the hype of CD and DVD players - there are quite a few good ones on the market. It really00:00 Mon 25th Feb 2002

Why is BT in hot water over hypertext links

Asks simonteller A. BT are not exactly in hot water, but rather hot under the collar, over the whole subject of hypertext. It began a court battle in the US this week (on Monday, 11th February 2002)00:00 Mon 18th Feb 2002