Global News

Google debuts knowledge project Google has kicked off a project to create an authoritative store of information about any and every topic. The search giant has already started inviting people to write about the subject on which they are known to be an expert. Google said it would not act as editor for the project but will provide the tools and infrastructure for the pages. Many experts see the initiative as an attack on the widely used Wikipedia communal encyclopaedia. Writing about the project on the official Google blog, Udi Manber, one of the heads of engineering at the search firm, said it was all about sharing useful knowledge. By indexing the Web, Google strives to make information more easily accessible. By getting respected authors to write about their specialism Google hopes to start putting some of that information in better order. The system will centre around authored articles created with a tool Google has dubbed "knol" - the word denotes a unit of knowledge - that will make webpages with a distinctive livery to identify them as authoritative. The knol pages will get search rankings to reflect their usefulness. Knols will also come with tools that readers can use to rate the information, add comments, suggest edits or additional content.

Censors battle for Manhunt 2 ban British censors are seeking a judicial review to block the sale of controversial video game Manhunt 2. Developer, Rockstar won a hearing at the Video Appeals Committee to have a ban on the title lifted but the British Board of Film Classification said that decision was based on an incorrect interpretation of the Video Recordings Act. The game was first banned in June, as was a revised version of the game which was presented to the BBFC in October. The VAC judgement, if allowed to stand, would have fundamental implications with regard to all the Board's decisions, including those turning upon questions of unacceptable levels of violence, the BBFC said in a statement. When the game was first refused certification, effectively banning it, David Cooke, director of the BBFC, said the game featured unremitting bleakness and callousness of tone. The title has become one of the most controversial games in recent times. At the VAC appeal hearing, Fred Hasson, president of developer association Tiga, said he was surprised at how tame [the title was] compared to some very graphical scenes seen in other games which have received certification.