From Space to SOPA: 10 Tech Triumphs of 2012

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Rovers, particles, and skydiving from the edge of space. And that was just the beginning. Earlier this week, GeekWire documented our favorite lowlights of 2012 with our list of biggest Tech Debacles of the Year. Now it’s time for the highlights, starting with a series of breakthroughs and accomplishments at the intersection of technology and… Read More…

SOPA is a lobotomy, Google’s cutbacks are heartless … and other fun quotes of the week

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The best observations, quotes, comments and zingers we heard this week. “There’s a fundamental difference between people who want to see the Internet and say — ‘Let’s lobotomize and censor parts of it because we need to control it’ —  and those like us who see the Internet as a method of growing the economy… Read More…

GeekWire Radio: Summify, Picnik, SOPA, PIPA — and doing good with your old PC

Charles Brennick of InterConnection with one of the group's $149 refurbished laptops for low-income households.

What happens when big tech companies acquire your favorite online services? Increasingly it seems, they shut ‘em down. At least, that was the case this past week with two of our favorites, Summify and Picnik. We lament their impending demise as we recap the week’s tech news on this week’s GeekWire radio show and podcast, along… Read More…

Facing pressure from tech giants, politicians postpone PIPA and SOPA votes

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Just three days after the blackout of Wikipedia and other sites, U.S. legislators have postponed votes on the Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act. “In light of recent events, I have decided to postpone Tuesday’s vote on the PROTECT IP Act #PIPA,” wrote Reid on his Twitter account. In a follow-up Tweet, Reid added:… Read More…

Bring on the nerds! Jon Stewart’s hilarious look at the SOPA fight

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The Stop Online Piracy Act certainly has generated plenty of controversy in recent days, highlighted by the Wednesday blackouts of sites such as Wikipedia and Cheezburger Network. Well, you can only imagine the fun that comedian Jon Stewart had with that topic, taking on some of the lunacy around the political fight. My favorite line… Read More…

Seattle snow storm stops SOPA protest in its tracks

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For the past few days, Seattle’s Zachary Cohn has been spending his days and nights planning for a January 18th rally to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act. But one thing got in the way: the weather. An epic snowstorm, which arrived in the Seattle area early Wednesday morning and has already dumped several inches on… Read More…

Just in time for SOPA: Clever ‘Grassroutes’ service automates Congressional contacts

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Sites around the web today are calling on users to contact their Congressional representatives to voice opposition to the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act. Under normal circumstances, there’s an extra step or two between that call-to-action and the actual call — requiring the users to find their representatives’ contact information and,… Read More…

And so it begins: Wikipedia turns off the lights and Google blacks out logo in SOPA protest

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Sorry students, journalists, Internet researchers and just about everyone else looking for a tidbit of information related to, well, just about anything: Wikipedia is now officially dark. “For over a decade, we have spent millions of hours building the largest encyclopedia in human history,” according to a message on the site. “Right now, the U.S…. Read More…

Amazon: We dislike piracy, but ‘strongly oppose’ SOPA

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Amazon.com will not be blacking out its Web site tomorrow in protest of the Stop Online Piracy Act as Cheezburger and Wikipedia plan to do. But the Seattle online retailer still thinks the legislation is flawed. SOPA and PIPA, also known as the Protect IP Act, would allow copyright holders to shut down Web sites accused of… Read More…