Though it hurts me deeply to ask you to leave our site—even momentarily—do yourself a favor and check out Neave Television, which is practically impossible to explain other than it’s an artistic exploration of flash graphics which is simultaneously cool, random, hilarious… and… and… crap. For a good example, just go here, and click “channel hop.” (Hope you didn’t have anything important to do today!)

For those who swore they’d wait to buy an iPhone until after they became more affordable… well, you’re going to have to dream up another excuse not to get one. Apple czar Steve Jobs introduced the new iPhone 3G today, and starting July 11, it’s gonna sell for $199.

That’s the 8 gigabyte model, with the 16 gigabyte version going for $299. The new iPhone also comes with faster internet, an (even) sleeker look, and GPS. Unfortunately, AT&T will remain the exclusive carrier, and they plan to jack up the price for their cheapest plan by ten bucks.

Here’s Job’s speech with plenty of pictures!

So that means I can sell my first generation to one of you guys for $400, and then buy two of the 3Gs… right?

While not exactly the new, improved search engine—and potential rival to Google—that is was initially rumored to be, new upstart Powerset launched its first product today, a search based on natural language rather than exact keyword match. According to Business Week:

What you notice immediately when searching on something, whether it’s in the form of a question or the usual keyword combinations, is that Powerset’s engine does in fact recognize the meaning of words. And that can make a huge difference in helping you find what you are really looking for.

Right now, for its Beta launch, Powerset is focusing solely on Wikipedia articles. An in-depth analysis has been posted at Searchengineland.com, explaining how Powerset works and how it parses information.

I understand almost none of it.

But… based on how Powerset finds information, and its cross-referencing capabilities, it really does seem like a better way to get information out of Wikipedia rather than Wikipedia’s own flimsy search engine. Try it here.

We’ll get to the Gossip Girl business in a sec! But first, a quick word about how you’ll be able (or unable, as the case may be) to watch it this season. Such talk involves iTunes, streaming media, Battlestar Galactica, and, naturally, Bit Torrent.

Forget about Bit Torrent being illegal—a bigger concern at this point is just how clumsy the thing is. Last year, I was easily able to download episodes of Battlestar Galactica from iTunes; for a reasonable (or reasonable enough, anyway) $1.99 an episode, one got a slick, quick, high-quality download. (There was also the nice feeling that you weren’t, you know, stealing.) Bit Torrent, on the other hand, is a time-consuming hassle that often results in shitty picture quality or broken files. It’s an option, sure, just not a very good one.

Man, I used to love iTunes—largely because it was an easy way to get my guilt-free Battlestar fix every week. But ever since NBC yanked all their stuff from the iTunes store (they reportedly wanted to charge $4.99 an episode, which Apple rightfully balked at), many have had to find other, non-iTunes ways of watching Battlestar or downloading The Office. (I can only suspect that the Pirate Bay is getting a whole lot more hits now than it was this time last year.)

It continues to befuddle me how consistently dumb corporations still are about online content. It’s a simple rule: If you offer what consumers want at a reasonable price and via an easy download system, most consumers will happily pay for it. But if you don’t do that, then they will have no problem whatsoever stealing it. At this point, you’d think it’d just make sense for companies like NBC to take whatever they can get from online sales—they might not have made much cash on iTunes, but they’re making a lot less now without it.

But okay. Digression. My initial point was that, once again, a big network has done yet another back-asswards thing involving the internet. Last year, Entertainment Weekly had a great story about how Gossip Girl got dismal ratings—but was still incredibly popular, thanks to iTunes and the CW’s decision to stream the episodes online. It was a refreshingly smart move by the CW—by acknowledging that the show’s target audience (12 year-old-girls and, uh, me) doesn’t watch TV on TV anymore, the CW ensured that a show that traditionally would’ve been quickly canceled instead became a huge hit. (Speaking of which: Gossip Girl’s season premiere is tonight! EEEEEEEEE!)

I just wanted to give a shout out to all my web developing homies via The SEO Rapper dropping some serious web knowledge. That’s how we do it in the cubicle.

As if Photoshop weren’t free already, Adobe has launched a free online version of the software that makes good bloggers into great ones. See here.

I’ve just been on the Photoshop Express website and apart from being freaked out by all the super-fast images on there, have decided it looks worth investigating. So, be off with you.

I like books—I like the look of them, the feel, the smell—and regardless of whatever “hoverboards” and “electronic pods” this oft-rumored “future” brings, you’ll have to pry my hard copies of books and newspapers and magazines and comics from my cold, dead hands. (Heh. So claims the kid typing a blog post, who just updated his Goodreads page.)

All that said, the Bits blog at the Times has an fascinating post on Amazon’s acquisition of Audible—and what it could mean for the Kindle reading device, and reading in general.

Steve Jobs said earlier this month that Amazon’s Kindle e-book reader was dead on arrival, since Americans have largely abandoned reading.

“It doesn’t matter how good or bad the product is, the fact is that people don’t read anymore,” he said. “Forty percent of the people in the U.S. read one book or less last year. The whole conception is flawed at the top because people don’t read anymore.”

Now Amazon wants the naysayers like Mr. Jobs to listen up–-literally.

On Thursday it said that it had agreed to buy Audible, the Web’s largest provider of downloadable audiobooks, for $300 million. Amazon isn’t saying much about what it will do with the company, but bringing audiobooks directly to its Web site and to the Kindle is the obvious first step.

What comes after that? How about a service that allows you to seamlessly switch from reading a book on your digital device to listening to the same book read aloud as you get in the car, or if your eyes are tired, or if you simply want to hear a crucial scene acted out? And then to switch back to the printed page?

Full entry here.

As of this week, my upstairs neighbor has pulled up his stakes and moved, thereby abolishing the sweet deal we had wherein I get to use his wireless internet and I don’t complain that our communal washer and dryer are hooked up to my electric bill. So until a new wifi-havin’ neighbor moves in, I am up poop creek without a paddle as far as internettin’ at home on my weekend nights (partay!).

There are lots of coffee shops in my ‘hood during the days and evenings with wifi, but I’m specifically looking for a place I can go on a Friday night that’s open at least until midnight, and won’t be so cacophonous and crazy that I’ll have to worry about either not having anyplace to sit down, or having some staggering drunk spill beer on my keyboard on their way to the blasting jukebox. (That’s not to say I don’t want to go to a bar, just want to avoid the whole “Friday night, fuck or fight” crowd.)

Is there such a thing in inner SE, specifically? Or have I found something I really want that Portland can’t give me… yet?

This is a bit odd…

So unless you are this guy, you know that Apple just launched a new laptop, the ridiculously slim MacBook Air. The thinnovative (their world, not mine) laptop is supposedly able to slide into a standard manila envelope.

That is where local musician YACHT (his mom calls him Jona Bechtolt) and his special lady friend, Claire L. Evans, come into the picture. The two launched their own model of carrying case for the MacBook Air, it’s called AirMail, and it has taken off, so to speak. Their basic looking case has generated tons of press here, here, here, oh, and here as well.

I’d gladly test out AirMail on my new MacBook Air, but sadly I do not have one. The Mercury makes me work on this laptop.

So how did Bechtolt and Evans celebrate their newfound success in the world of Apple accessories? Like anyone else would, they moved to Marfa, Texas. There, Bechtolt is “working on two new albums over the next two months. Then we come home to Portland before touring more.”

When laptop musicians makes laptop bags, End Hits is all over it.

Fox’s DVD PR people just sent me a press release about how selected Twentieth Century Fox DVDs will now include a “Free Copy of Movie for iTunes.” The news just broke at Macworld, where Steve Jobs also talked about the sleek MacBook Air and introduced iTunes movie rentals, yet steadfastly refused to introduce an iPhone that I can actually afford. Thanks for nothing, jerk.

Here’s Fox’s spin on the whole “digital copy” deal (which unfortunately launches with yet another execrable Family Guy DVD). I guess I like the idea of this—if I were buying a Fox DVD already, it’d be a nice sort of bonus, I suppose. I sure as hell wouldn’t spend $20 to get a new Fox DVD just ‘cause now I could also watch the film on my iPod, though. Then again, with discount DVD sites and used DVDs, I have a hard time justifying dropping $20 on almost any new DVD.

Twentieth Century Fox & Apple Introduce iTunes Digital Copy

DVDs Include Free Copy of Movie for iTunes

MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 15 — Twentieth Century Fox and Apple today announced Digital Copy for iTunes, which provides customers who purchase a DVD with an additional Digital Copy of the movie. Just like movies purchased from the iTunes Store, an iTunes Digital Copy can effortlessly be transferred to iTunes and then viewed on a PC or Mac, iPod with video, iPhone or on Apple TV. The first DVD to make its debut with iTunes Digital Copy is the Special Edition DVD premiere of the Family Guy “Star Wars” parody, “Family Guy Presents: Blue Harvest,” which is being released in stores today. Fox and Apple are planning to deliver many more DVDs with iTunes Digital Copy this year.

“One of the most requested features DVD buyers have been asking for is the ability to get the movies they bought into their iTunes library,” said Jim Gianopulos, chairman and chief executive officer of Fox Filmed Entertainment. “We’re thrilled to offer such an incredibly simple way for our customers to get even more out of their DVD purchase, and we look forward to releasing many more DVDs this year with iTunes Digital Copy.”

“Now movie fans can easily transfer a free copy of the movie they purchase on DVD into iTunes,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “DVDs containing an iTunes Digital Copy allow movie fans to get a copy of their movie which can be viewed on a computer, iPod, iPhone or on Apple TV.”

Press release continues after the jump.