Today is a day that will go down in history — or is it infamy? At 6 p.m. you’ll be able to buy the Apple iPhone, the cellphone and computer and music player and more that will change the world! (At least that’s what Apple wants you to believe.)

The marketing engines have been working overtime at Apple. I first heard about the iPhone more than a year ago. Sure, it looks good; that’s a given. But what makes the darn thing so cool is the “look Ma, no buttons” factor. You do everything by touch.

My prediction is that we are about five to 10 years away from a time of no more keyboards or mice. Everything will use touch screens or touch pads. We’ll be like people in the movie Minority Report; they wired up their fingers and moved through computerized interactive environments with fluidity and grace. Like them, we ‘ll put on some classical music and be conducting on our computers.

I’m looking forward to it. Think of all the people saved from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Between the iPhone and Microsoft Surface, the days of keystrokes and mouse clicks are fading fast. I only have two questions now: What will we call the new “syndrome” caused by touch screen usage? And will it be covered by workman’s comp?

Reuters cites stats that ring a proverbial death knell for traditional TV.

CBS and ABC are the second and third networks to reach their lowest levels since Nielsen’s introduction of “people meters” set-top devices during the 1987-88 season. NBC already had its worst week this month thanks to low-rated Stanley Cup hockey finals.

Does anyone watch anymore?

The atrocities in Darfur have attained a profound level of immediacy and impact. Until recently, events of this magnitude — incomprehensibly brutal as they might be — received a few seconds mention on a nightly news broadcast, or a couple column inches buried deep in the morning paper.

Today, using readily available Internet innovations, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and Google Earth are are presenting the Sudanese crisis with unflinching detail that demands global response.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has joined with Google in an unprecedented online mapping initiative. Crisis in Darfur enables more than 200 million Google Earth users worldwide to visualize and better understand the genocide currently unfolding in Darfur, Sudan.

Wired magazine provides this in-depth profile of the project, which notes that it is proving so effective as a source of information for improved crisis response that it is being embraced by the international aid community:

The initial concept was the brainchild of Michael Graham . . . [who] had an “aha!” moment when Google Earth was released in June 2005. He quickly saw the software’s potential to help humanitarian teams spread information about evolving crises more rapidly.

Unshakable proof that today’s technology is about much more than video games.

Click here for information on how you can contribute to humanitarian efforts in Darfur.

If you missed Morning Edition during your a.m. commute, you missed NYT tech writer David Pogue reviewing his iPhone (one of only two in pre-release circulation). Plenty of praise for the glass-surfaced interface, and more than a bit of venom for the sputtering AT&T network on which it operates.
Pinch the cord? You’ll have to listen . . .

WaPo has again successfully meshed its print presence with richer interactive content available only online. The cover feature of today’s Health section profiles the DC Blast, an under-16 girls soccer team (full disclosure: they’re coached by my neighbor and friend Ian Oliver) traveling to Africa to spread the gospel of footy and help African girls understand the realities of AIDS/HIV.

In terms of content, it’s riveting example of cultural exchange; it terms of media, it represents an ideal balance of print and pixel.

Lusting after that hot new iPhone, but feeling tied down by that old ball-and-chain cell phone contract? PC World gives some tips on how to dump your former long-term contract for the latest model, without losing your shirt in cell-imony payments.

And hey, even if you don’t want to shell out for an iPhone, maybe you wouldn’t mind getting a high-end smartphone at a deep discount. In that case, says the article, why not take make other people’s iPhone lust your gain?

Or, y’know, there’s always solution three: You buy ME an iPhone and new cell carrier contract.

(Okay, so solution three wasn’t in the article. But I’d say it’s the way to go.)

The Microsoft Surface has been building buzz — and generating its fair share of sarcasm.

This vid skewers the Surface fairly well (rated PG-13):

It also serves up an acerbic critique of our increasingly tech-centric culture, which (according to this parody) is leaving genuine human interaction in the dust.
You can check out the original Surface intro vid in this previous IA post.

Last week Apple released the Safari 3 Public Beta—and for the first time it’s not just designed for the Mac faithful, but for Windows users, too.

So now the big question is:  Why would PC users have any interest in running it, when they already have IE, Firefox, and Opera?

Well, Apple’s choosing to answer that question by claiming Safari’s faster than all three of those browsers. Whereas, non-Apple reviewers I’ve been reading since the Beta release seem to be mixed as to whether the browser is living up to that speed claim.

But I see another huge advantage to PC users that seems more important than speed—at least, more important for those of us who design web-based interfaces for a living—or even who simply have corporate or personal websites we want to get maximum traffic flow to. And that advantage is that finally, we have a quick and easy way to test how that website is going to look and run on Safari.

That’s right, no more having to call up a Mac-using friend or associate and ask for screenshots. And even better—though I’m sure Apple won’t be happy at this suggestion—no need to run out and buy a Mac to do testing. This can add up to significant time and expense saved to a PC-based business. (I don’t want to get all technical on you here, but if you want a more in-depth techie explanation, check out Christopher Heng’s article over on thesitewizard.com.)

Of course, in the past many saved that time and expense by simply NOT testing on Safari at all, and letting the Mac users fend for themselves. But that’s not really the optimal solution if we want to draw in every customer and every learner out there. With this new release, our options just got a lot better and easier.

So, what say you? Safari for Windows—big advantage or totally unnecessary? Will you be adding it to your programs list?

The mayor of Sao Paulo, Brazil has made advertising illegal in his city. No posters. No bus sides. No flyers. Nada. Zip. Scratch. Bupkus.

Note to self: Sao Paulo needs social network sponsors.