One symptom and a dose of paranoia fuels cyberchondriacs

Do you search the Internet for solutions to almost every single problem you encounter? Before you become defensive or feel bad, let me confess that I do. From distinguishing flowers from weeds in my garden, to troubleshooting my pool vacuum, to diagnosing my aches and pains, Google is equivalent to Target… it’s a one-stop-shop. And according to a recent poll, there are a lot of people who use the Internet to determine their medical health status. Take a look at this story from News.com: “Fixated on health sites? Join the cyberchondriacs.”

Girls in Tech host Women in Venture Capital panel discussion

Adriana Gascoigne, co-founder of Girls in Tech (GIT), dropped me a line the other day, letting me know that GIT is having a function on August 8 in San Francisco. While I’m personally not able to attend, those of you who are close or in the Bay Area may want to check it out.

Here are the details:

“Women in Venture Capital,” a GIT panel discussion
Wednesday, August 8, 2007 6:30 pm PT - 9:00 pm PT
Porter Novelli - 550 Third Street
San Francisco, CA 94107

What can you expect to learn at GIT’s Women in VC event?

• How to raise funding for your technology startup
• How to take a company from idea phase to build-out
• Where to find out more about local resources for entrepreneurs

Who are the panelists?

• Trae Vassallo, Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield, Byers (http://tinyurl.com/2pqap2)
• Jennifer Fonstad, Draper, Fisher, Jurvetson (http://tinyurl.com/3859q7)
• Eve Phillips, Greylock Partners (http://tinyurl.com/2qbzzf)
• Maha Ibrahim, Canaan Partners (http://tinyurl.com/32kuq9)
• Moderator: Joanna Glasner, Sr. Editor, Thomson Financial

Mistletoe SlimLine: In-line, gigabit network appliance

Mistletoe Technologies has announced the company’s newest products set, the Mistletoe SlimLine series of network appliance.

If you recall, Mistletoe Technologies were the folks who developed the industry’s first complete network and security system-on-chip (SoC) with features such as VPN, firewall, traffic management, as well as denial of service prevention (DoS) applications entirely in silicon

Flying the very friendly open-source skies on America’s newest airline

Virgin Atlantic, America’s newest air carrier and possibly the geekiest, launches Wednesday with flights from Los Angeles (LAX) to San Francisco (SFO) and SFO to New York (JFK) on new and uniquely equipped Airbus aircraft. JFK-LAX flights begin later this month, SFO-Washington-Dulles (IAD) next month, and SFO-Las Vegas (LAS) and LAX-IAD follow in October.

Its IT department shops for IT talent on Craigslist and builds an eclectic mix of infrastructure, with Microsoft’s Great Plains replacing what would typically be run by Oracle in an enterprise of its size, and it uses open-source software for spam filtering and network load balancing. Virgin Atlantic also distributes from-home customer service reps and outsources the development of its Aires reservation system to a software firm on the Subcontinent.

Passengers on this discounted airline enjoy time-of-day mood lighting, recline in Recarro seats, have Linux-based in-flight entertainment with video-on-demand, a unique in-flight chat program (text to a buddy or to all onboard?), order food and beverage from seatback consoles that also run open-source games (yes, even Doom), USB and Ethernet ports at every seat, and two AC power sockets per row.

Does the added e-glitz enhance your desire for low-price air fare?

Share USB 2.0 devices over your LAN

Weary of running a desktop just to keep USB devices online or of connecting them to your wireless laptop by entangling cables? Keyspan has upgraded its three-year-old USB Server design with its new USB 2.0 Server, which connects a pair of USB 2.0 ports (with half an amp of power on each port for peripherals) to a 10/100 Ethernet LAN.

Bi-directional communication allows print job, paper, and ink or toner remote monitoring of a connected printer. A hard disk could be added to serve as a basic NAS system. Connecting devices over a LAN eliminates problems caused by the standard 10 meter (33 feet) USB cable distance limits. USB audio/video equipment and USB hubs are not yet supported, but both PCs and Macs can use the server to connect to peripherals.

This joins IOgear’s multi-function USB server to a very short list of USB-LAN adapters that permit a broad variety of devices.

Is sharing USB devices important to your office?

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