October 10, 2008, 2:58 PM — The world's financial markets may be collapsing, but technology lives on -- for the moment, anyway. This week the feds arrested a suspect in the Sarah Palin e-mail hacking case, and both Steve Jobs and Windows XP got yet another lease on life. Also: new e-books, virtual worlds, and some truly wacky science. Are you up to speed on all things tech? Prove your geek street cred by acing this quiz. Correct answers are worth 10 points each, and no asking your artificial intelligence buddies for help. Ready?
1. Tennessee University student David Kernell has been charged with illegally accessing Sarah Palin's Yahoo e-mail account by changing her password. What new password did he allegedly choose?
a. Pitbull
b. Lipstick
c. Popcorn
d. Maverick
2. Steve Jobs did not have a heart attack last week, but some of Apple's shareholders probably did. Where did the bogus report of Jobs' nonexistent ailment appear?
a. Bloomberg.com
b. iReport.com
c. Wikileaks.org
d. Apple.com
3. Read any good e-books lately? Rumors are swirling Amazon is about to release an update to its Kindle e-book device. Which of the following is NOT one of the rumored changes?
a. Less clumsy keypad
b. Touchscreen
c. Joystick
d. Mini-USB charger
4. In a desperate attempt to wrest attention from the Kindle, Sony has resorted to publicity stunts. What did it do to promote its new e-book device, the Sony Reader PRS-700?
a. Offered a readers-for-guns exchange program in major U.S. cities
b. Planted someone in a New York City storefront
c. Taught Paris Hilton to read
d. Donated an electronic copy of My Pet Goat to the Bush presidential library
5. Harvard's Ig Nobel Awards for weird science were handed out late last week. Which of the following test groups did NOT snag an award?
a. Ovulating strippers
b. Contraceptive colas
c. Deceptively crispy potato chips
d. Jet-lagged hamsters
6. Microsoft has unveiled its own virtual world where Xbox users will be able to communicate via avatar. What is Microsoft calling its version of Second Life?
a. Third Life
b. Home
c. New Xbox Experience
d. Microsoft Virtual World Live for Xbox Premium Edition 1.0
7. Like a hyperactive child on a Red Bull bender, Google keeps churning out new ideas. Which of the following was NOT introduced at the Googleplex this week?
a. Click-to-buy buttons inside YouTube videos
b. A way to sneak AdSense ads into online games
c. Google Monetary Fund, for solving the global financial crisis
d. "Goggles" to keep you from e-mailing while under the influence
8. They no longer have The Wire, but they do have The Wireless. What American city is the first home for Sprint's new WiMax network?
a. Sandy, Utah
b. Baltimore, Md.
c. Bon Temps, La.
d. North Caldwell, N.J.
9. "I was not involved in any of the operational decisions about the Windows Vista Capable program. I was not involved in establishing the requirements computers must satisfy to qualify for the Windows Vista Capable program. I was not involved in formulating any marketing strategy or any public messaging surrounding the Windows Vista Capable program." Which uninvolved Microsoftie said it?
a. William H. Gates
b. Steve Ballmer
c. Jim Allchin
d. Robert Scoble
10. Take the number of copies of RealNetworks' RealDVD software sold before a judge pulled the plug this week, rounded to the nearest thousand. Multiply by the number of contenders for the Loebner Prize given to software that successfully mimics human conversation, and then divide by the number of months Microsoft has extended its "XP downgrade" program for unhappy Vista users. Toss that into the airlock and close the pod bay doors, HAL. What do you get?
a. 3,000
b. 30,000
c. 300,000
d. 3
Answer key
Now that you know how you scored, you probably want to know why. Check out the answers below for the gory details. And be sure to return next week for another news quiz, ripped straight from the tech headlines.
Question 1: What password was chosen by Sarah Palin's e-mail snoop?
10 points
c. Popcorn
Kernell is facing a five-year felony rap for allegedly breaking into one of the would-be veep's Yahoo accounts. But according to some legal experts, he's guilty at most of a misdemeanor under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, as well as some really obvious passwording. I mean: Popcorn -- Kernell? Please.
Question 2: Which site reported Steve Jobs' fictional heart problems?
10 points
b. iReport.com
CNN's "citizen journalism" site got gamed by an anonymous poster using the handle "johntw." The report was barely live for an hour, but that was good enough for a 10-point dip in Apple's share price -- and an ongoing investigation by the SEC into possible stock manipulation.
Question 3: Which new feature isn't coming to the Kindle 2, according to the rumor mill?
10 points
b. Touchscreen
That feature would belong to Sony's new e-book device, the PRS-700. The rest is all per one of the "ninjas" at the Boy Genius Report blog. Amazon said that despite the copious photos at Boy Genius, there is no new Kindle on its way -- this year, at least. Move along folks, nothing to see here.
Question 4: What is Sony doing to grab attention for its nearly remaindered e-book Reader?
10 points
b. Planted someone in a New York City storefront
Memory expert David Farrow's got a comfy chair, a reading lamp, and a lot of Sony e-books to carry him through the end of National Book Month. Good thing, because he's stuck in the window of an electronics store in midtown Manhattan through Halloween. The stunt is designed to promote literacy in schools -- and, possibly, squatting in storefronts.
Question 5: Which eminently worthy research subjects did not qualify for a 2008 Ig Nobel Prize?
10 points
d. Jet-lagged hamsters
Scientists won 2008 Ig Nobel Prizes for determining whether exotic dancers earn better tips while ovulating (they do); if Coke is an effective spermicide (it is and it isn't, depending on the researcher); and if you can fool people into thinking potato chips are crispier by making them sound crunchier (you can). The hamsters, who were given Viagra in an attempt to cure jet lag, are winners from the 2007 Ig Nobles. So, two questions: (1) Can you really get grants to research this stuff? and (2) Where do we sign up?
Question 6: What's Microsoft calling its virtual world for Xboxers?
10 points
c. New Xbox Experience
At the Tokyo Game Show, Microsoft unveiled its oh-so-euphonious Xbox metaverse to compete with Sony's "Home" and Google's "Lively." To paraphrase Will Rogers, I never metaverse I didn't like. Until now.
Question 7: What has Google not thought of ... yet?
10 points
c. Google Monetary Fund, for solving the global financial crisis
The rest is all true. AdSense for Games will let game publishers make a little money while you're wasting time at work. YouTubers will be able to click on a music video and buy that track from iTunes or Amazon's music store. (No, we don't think the "Numa Numa" video will be one of them. "Chocolate Rain," maybe.) Sending Gmail in the wee wee hours? Mail Goggles will make you solve simple math problems to make sure you're sober enough to send. That, or Google has gotten a six-month head start on its April Fools' jokes. It's so hard to tell these days.
Question 8: In what HBO-friendly city has Sprint unveiled its Xohm WiMax network?
10 points
b. Baltimore, Md.
Xohm (rhymes with "foam") rolled out in Crabtown at the end of September, but was unofficially unveiled this week. So far, so good -- but you know McNulty will eventually get in there and screw everything up. (Apologies to non-Wire fans who have no idea what I'm talking about.)
Question 9: Who wasn't involved in any way, shape, or form with Windows Vista Capable?
10 points
b. Steve Ballmer
Ballmer's statement was in response to attorneys who would very much like to involve him in the Windows Vista Capable class-action suit. Guess we'll see how well the Sergeant Schultz "I know nothink" defense works. If only Ballmer were so hands-off with the rest of Microsoft's creations.
Question 10: What's RealDVD copies times AI programs divided by XP reprieves?
10 points
a. 3,000
RealNetworks sold about 3,000 copies of its DVD copying software before a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting further sales, pending a full hearing on DMCA issues. Six "artificial conversational entities" are vying for the $100,000 Loebner Prize, awarded to AI software that can pass an Instant Messaging Turing Test by fooling someone into thinking it's a human being (the prize has yet to be claimed). Microsoft has given a six-month reprieve to Vista-leery business users, who can now purchase new "Vista" machines and automatically downgrade them to XP through July 2009. So 3,000 * 6 / 6 = 3,000. So simple even a computer could figure it out. Tune in next week for another artificially intelligent quiz.
