160 mln seeked health information online
The number of online users seeking health information on the Web has soared to about 160 mln in 2006, a 37% rise over two years. Cyberchondriacs now represent 84% of all online adults, up from in 2006's 80%, and 72% in 2005, Harris Interactive said. 70 mln people have access to basic Personal Health Records. But when Aetna and the Financial Planning Association surveyed more than 2,100 adults 18 and older, 64% said they do not know or are unsure about what a PHR is. Among the group of Americans who are familiar with PHRs, 83% acknowledge that the online record personalizes their experience with their health care provider, but only 11% currently use one to keep track of their medical and health history.

Attention shifts to paid media
A study finds that U.S. consumers are increasingly shifting their attention away from traditional, advertising-supported media in favor of entertainment such as the Internet, video games and cable TV, which consumers pay for. As a result, the boom in online advertising is expected to continue, with all Internet advertising spending — including ads on websites of traditional media outlets — overtaking print newspaper advertising in 2010 as the largest advertising category, according to a report released Tuesday by Veronis Suhler Stevenson, a media investment firm. From 2001 to 2006, the average amount of time spent by the typical consumer on paid media has jumped 19.8%. Over the same period, overall time spent with traditional or ad-supported media — such as broadcast television, radio and newspapers — declined 6.3%, the study found. The study expects total Internet advertising to grow an average of 21% through 2011, including online-only outlets such as Yahoo and Google as well as digital revenues from traditional media outlets such as newspaper publishers and TV broadcasters.

SpiralFrog launches first ad-supported music site
Earlier this year, SpiralFrog looked like a goner after infighting triggered an executive exodus. But the company that made a splash last summer by promising to offer free, ad-supported music is finally ready to launch. Founder Joe Mohen confirmed that SpiralFrog has quietly invited a select number of users to test a beta version of the site. Mohen said SpiralFrog will offer 700,000 songs at launch and be the first ad-supported site to offer video for download. He estimated that SpiralFrog will be ready for a public launch sometime before the end of the year. "We're offering a high quality music experience free to consumers and supported by advertisers," Mohen said. "We think the primary reason to use the site will be to discover new music." SpiralFrog burst onto the music scene by presenting a possible solution to piracy. Music would be offered free to anyone willing to sit through some advertising. The pitch to users was: no more worries about music-industry lawsuits or spyware. Though the company had yet to launch or earn a penny, the media jumped all over the story. But then SpiralFrog missed its December launch date. Soon after, CEO Robin Kent walked out following a rift with Mohen and the board. Kent's executive team soon followed and to many observers, SpiralFrog's free-music model looked like a failed experiment. Eight months later, Mohen said that the site is ready to compete.

Wireless USB will help cut the cords
Get ready to be perplexed: There's yet another kind of wireless in town. Dell and Lenovo plan to launch the first mainstream laptops equipped with Wireless USB in the next few months. The technology allows electronics, such as a PC and a printer, to communicate without cables. Sound familiar? Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, WiMax and several other wireless technologies all do essentially the same thing: They use radio waves to send bits of data through the air. The difference is that Wireless USB can transmit bigger chunks of information at a time. It's fast enough to easily stream a movie from a PC to a TV. Or it can send a huge document from a PC to a printer in seconds. Most other kinds of wireless, such as Wi-Fi, are slower. The catch: Wireless USB works well only at distances of up to about 30 feet. The Wireless USB name may be a bit confusing, since most PCs already have USB (universal serial bus) connections. These are the paper-clip-size ports usually found on the side or back of a computer. They're used to plug in digital cameras, music players and other electronics. Wireless USB is designed to eventually replace these corded connections. Much of the underlying technology behind USB and Wireless USB is the same — one version just uses wires and one sends information through the air.

Driving, Texting Don’t Mix
91% of Americans believe sending text messages while driving is as dangerous as driving after having a couple of drinks, but 57% admit to doing it, a poll released yesterday said. 89% of respondents believe texting while driving is dangerous and should be outlawed. Even so, 66% of the adults surveyed who drive and use text messaging told pollsters they had read text messages or e-mails while driving. 57% admitted to sending them. The state of Washington in May passed the first ban in the United States on texting while driving and at least six other states including New York, California and Florida are considering similar legislation. The survey found that men and women sent text messages while driving at equal rates but that the young did so more frequently. 64% of those who admitted to sending text messages while driving were aged 18 to 34 while 6% were 55 or older.

Dirt in the Sky: The Filth of Flying
The percentage of on-time flights fell to 74.5% in July from 76.4% a year earlier, according to FlightStats.com. Summer thunderstorms have been to blame, as have technical glitches like the Federal Aviation Administration computer snafu on June 8. Because of delays and rebookings, planes can remain in circulation past their scheduled cleaning. Still, the airlines say their schedules for cleaning aircraft haven't changed this summer despite the rampant delays. JetBlue Airways Corp. says its planes undergo a "maximum deep clean" once a month, same as before, a process that includes a thorough cleaning of the lavatories and galleys, vacuuming of carpets and cleaning of seats, seat trays and side walls. Southwest Airlines says its deep-cleaning cycle is 30 days, too. American Airlines says it also keeps a 30-day average. Continental Airlines, like many airlines, says its planes also undergo an overnight cleaning, which includes replacement of soiled pillows and blankets, vacuuming of cabin floors and cleaning of lavatories and passenger seating areas. Between flights, though, the cleaning tends to be cursory. American says that it picks up trash and cleans seat-back pouches between flights, but that it doesn't wipe down tray tables or vacuum while at the gate unless there's an obvious mess that must be addressed. ATA Airlines also says it doesn't wipe down tray tables between flights unless there's a clear need because of the limited ground time. And cleaning schedules and corporate policies don't seem to be enough to allay customer concerns. American says that it's in the process of refurbishing many of its aircraft, having found that customers perceive worn interiors to be unclean, even if they're actually spic-and-span. Bored fliers are also complaining that often the much-touted in-flight entertainment systems that play movies and TV shows are turned off while planes are stuck on the ground. Delta says its flight attendants can turn on the devices while on the ground. American says that its video entertainment is usually turned on during the flight but can be activated during a ground delay. Cathay Pacific Airways says that because of licensing agreements, sometimes programming can be viewed only while airborne. JetBlue, however, says its TV and satellite radio programming is available at all times except during safety briefings. Travelers have also been griping about a lack of air-conditioning while planes are on the tarmac -- even after delays stretch for hours. Airlines blame the problem on a breakdown of a plane's auxiliary power unit.

Pakistan, Venezuela among most unstable
Pakistan, Venezuela and Nigeria are among the most unstable emerging markets and rank the lowest on Eurasia Group's Global Political Risk Index, a political stability ranking for 24 emerging markets. The top three most stable countries are Hungary, South Korea and Poland, according to the group's scores on the Global Political Risk Index for August. Tailored toward emerging markets investors, the index is produced by Eurasia Group and distributed in partnership with Citi Private Bank. The index is based on 20 indicators in four equally weighted categories: government, society, security and economy, which are combined into a single country score on a scale from zero to 100. The higher the score, the more stable the country. Once again leading the ranking, Hungary has a score of 79, followed by South Korea with 76, Poland with 72, Bulgaria with 70 and Brazil with 69. With a score of 66, Turkey is also among the stable emerging markets, since the recent parliamentary elections brought some measure of political stability after months of turmoil. Pakistan is the most unstable country with a composite score of 46. Oil-rich Nigeria is the second most unstable country with a score of 50, though analysts at the Eurasia Group see President Umaru Yar'Adua's recent efforts to fight corruption as encouraging. Also at the bottom of the ranking are Venezuela with a score of 50, Iran with 51, Colombia with 56 and Saudi Arabia with 56.

Camp to cure internet "addicts"
The experimental 10-day program would accept youngsters aged between 14 - 22 once they had undergone a psychological test and evaluation. About 2.6 million - or 13%- of China's 20 million internet users under 18 were classed as addicts, it said. The 40 youngsters at the summer camp would be treated for depression, fear, unwillingness to interact with others, panic and agitation. It would appear to be offering a softer option than the internet Addiction Treatment Centre near Beijing which uses a blend of therapy and military drills to treat children addicted to online games, internet pornography and cybersex. Concerned by a number of high-profile internet-related deaths and juvenile crime, the government is now taking steps to stem internet addictions by banning new internet cafes and mulling restrictions on violent computer games. According to government figures, there are currently 113,000 internet cafes and bars in China.

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