ICANN considers single-letter domains

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) will chart a course for single-letter Web addresses as early as this weekend, when the ICANN board meets in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Forbes.com reports that although Internet domain names may be getting longer or more complex as Web sites squeeze into the crowded ".com" address space, most single-letter names like "a.com" and "b.com" remain unused.

Single-letter names under ".com," ".net" and ".org" were set aside in 1993 as engineers grew concerned about their ability to meet the expected explosion in demand for domain names. However, the address database has grown to hold millions of names without trouble, so ICANN may be willing to let go of the reserved single-letter names.

Microsoft has extended its range of hosting services, with the new Microsoft Solution for Hosted Messaging and Collaboration version 3.5, reports CNET News.

The solution allows service providers to offer small and midsize businesses what Microsoft terms "enterprise-quality" e-mail, calendaring, contacts, real-time collaboration and mobility capabilities.

The product is aimed at companies with between 10 and 250 users, and will be offered by telecommunications companies and other service providers, Microsoft said.

Singapore scientists looking for ways to transmit the sense of touch over the Internet have devised a vibration jacket for chickens and are thinking about children`s pyjamas with electronics for cyberspace hugs, reports Reuters.

A wireless jacket for chickens or other pets can be controlled with a computer and gives the animal the feeling of being touched by its owner, said researchers at Nanyang Technological University.

The next step would be to use the same concept to transmit hugs over the Internet, it said.

The new generation of video game consoles to be released this year and in 2006 will all have parental control mechanisms, reports CBC.ca.

These controls allow parents to restrict access to games they consider inappropriate for their children.

Sony has become the latest of the video game console makers to announce parental control on its PlayStation 3, to be released next year, while Microsoft has already placed parental controls in its new Xbox 360, which debuted last week.