Apple Computer warned on Tuesday that some of its latest iPods have shipped with a Windows virus. The company said that a small number of video iPods made after Sept. 12 included the RavMonE virus. It said it has seen fewer than 25 reports of the problem, which it said does not affect other models of the media player, nor does it affect Macs.
A report in the middlebrow Mail on Sunday entitled "iPod City" features photos and first-hand accounts from inside factories operated by Foxconn, a company contracted by Apple to assemble millions of iPods by hand. According to the report (paraphrased here by Macworld UK), Foxconn's giant Longhua plant employs 200,000 workers, who work 15-hour days but are paid just $50 a month -- miserable even by China's standards. It claims they work and live in the plant, in dormitories housing 100 people, and outside visitors are forbidden.
Turn em down and turn em off. Thats the advice of Dean Garstecki, a Northwestern University audiologist and professor, when it comes to using those ever-present earbuds favored by iPod and MP3 music listeners everywhere.
A recent study in the journal Pediatrics found 61 percent of teens said they had experienced ringing in their ears or other hearing problems. Only 14 percent said they used ear protection. Fligor recommends you keep your listening level to 80 decibels or less -- on a one to 10 scale, that's about a six. Anything above that -- limit your time listening to avoid damage.
