Online book publisher Lulu.com is promoting Robert Bernocco's sci-fi tome, which he wrote on his Nokia 6630 mobile phone while commuting to and from work by train in Italy. According to a press release, the author penned the book, "Compagni di Viaggo" ("Fellow Travelers") in straightforward Italian, not text-messaging shorthand, by dividing the manuscript into small paragraphs saved to the handheld. He later downloaded the passages to his home computer for editing. It took him 17 weeks to write. Lulu.com, founded by Canadian technology entrepreneur Bob Young, is touting Bernocco's work as the triumph of technology and will over the time constraints of modern life.

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The gap between IT leaders' interests in "green" technology and its actual deployment is large – but that doesn't mean technology pros are bluffing, says Info-Tech Research Group. The London ON-based analysis firm figures the spread is simply a matter of timing. "It can be attributed to the fact that the adoption curve for green strategies is still fairly immature," says senior research analyst Nauman Haque. "We'll see this gap start to close as the payback on green investments is proven among early adopters." Info-Tech's 2007 Green Index indicates that a quarter of IT leaders are "very" or "extremely" concerned about energy efficiency and environmental responsibility, but just 9% say the technologies they use are environmentally friendly.

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Two pre-paid telecommunications service companies are joining forces. SelectCore has reached an agreement to acquire Canquest Communications, a privately held company based in Chatham ON with annual revenue of more than $25 million. "This is an accretive acquisition that completes the picture of SelectCore becoming a fully integrated pre-paid telecommunications provider," David Parkes, SelectCore's chair of the board said in a news release.

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Virgin Mobile USA's Sugar Mama program, where subscribers get free airtime in exchange for watching ads on their handsets, is seeing about 1,000 new customers per day since the company introduced the program about a year ago. It's not yet clear whether the program will come to Canada, but advertisers here should be pushing for the service. Pepsi, Xbox and the American Legacy Foundation's national youth smoking prevention program were original advertisers. Jive Records, Levi Strauss, New Balance and Sony Pictures among others are jumping on board. 

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