XplanaZine

Here’s our take on news that matters for Monday, April 3. Today’s theme is virtual is good, and here are a some links to headlines about technology that is changing the way we live and learn.

• Gaming — It looks like Halo 3 will be coming out in spring, 2007. Like some people, all I ever do in this game is fall down and get run over. For everyone else, however, 2007 will be your dream come true.
• Blogging, mediacasting, and online creations — For some, the best thing about podcasting is that it means never having to go to church again but still being able to call yourself religious. According to this article, some churches are dealing with dwindling attendance numbers by putting sermons and services online as podcasts for their congregants’ listening pleasure and convenience.

• Handhelds – Nuance is set to launch its new speech recognition software for handheld devices. The company claims the same 99% accuracy rating that it boasts for its desktop software. Also, it seems that one of the most popular trends in Japan is watching TV on-the -go via cell phone. Stores are having difficulty keeping TV-capable phones in stock. Fasten you seatbelts! Finally, it seems that mobile marketing is finally poised to take off. “According to
  href=”http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?1003897″ target=”_blank”>emarketer, a survey by Marketing Sherpa found that mobile tied with video in the top spot in a list of tactics that marketers would like to experiment with. This beats RSS, blogs and podcasting, for instance”
• Social Networks – Normally I wouldn’t even bother with an idea like this but my attitude has been turned somewhat while watching my son play around on Hive7 this past weekend. So with that in mind, let me mention Meez , a site that lets you create your own 3D avatar identity. An important trend to keep up with is the proliferation of Epinon sites. These services, like MyPickList , allow users to display their favorite products on their blogs and get paid.
• Technology Talks — It seems that South Korea has plans to put a robot in every house by 2020. We’re not certain yet whether or not this is an evolution of the “chicken in every pot” theme.