links for 2009-10-06

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"Overall, I think it will work but I don’t think it will herald an immediate shift from TV to Internet. This game is an oddity. But it will be closely watched, not just for the audience figures but what it tells us about the public appetite and aptitude for more online only sport. As for the public service debate? Yes, it would be nice if all England games were on terrestial TV for free. But I am not sure that a relatively meaningless game like this can really claim that kind of public service status". Not knocking Charlie specificaly here, but one thing nearly everybody talking about the 'relatively meaningless game' so far has failed to mention is that it is far from meaningless for the Ukraine - they need to win their last matches to pip Croatia to a play-off spot.

"The Daily Express claims that a 'wonder pill can lengthen your life by 25 years' and that researchers have found the key to the 'elixir of life'. Although the article contains bold claims and a picture of a woman taking a pill, no such pill exists". The NHS Choices website fails to add that should such a pill exist, once it was available on the NHS, the Express would run a scaremongering campaign trying to get it withdrawn as soon as one of the people taking it got a headache or died of an unrelated cause.

"The key takeaways aren't that surprising if you're a regular reader around here. The company kept defining itself as a newspaper company, not a news organization (or, better yet, a community builder). Everything it did was based on how it would impact the paper edition. The focus was not on competing with web properties and services, but on the other major newspaper in town, the Denver Post. Things got so bad that when the Columbine Massacre happened, the newsroom refused to give any news to the web people, because they were afraid that the Denver Post would 'steal' it." [via Joanna Geary]

"Our new custom RSS tool is intended for all Times readers — not just developers. It provides a simple way to query the Times Article Search API and a standard way to consume the results."

We're going to be having a London IA UXMas Party at the beginning of December to get us in the mood for the rest of the festive month. Get on over to the London IA site to register your interest in attending so we can work out venues and logistics.

All those hundreds and hundreds of forms I've filled in on the Internet over the years that ask for my date of birth, and only my broadband provider Be sent me a happy birthday email yesterday...