Google has launched a free advertising in-kind grants program for registered charities in the U.S., and plans to offer it to other countries soon. Eligible agencies can apply for free 'AdWords' to raise funds or awareness using Google's very successful context-based advertising.

Google Grants “has awarded AdWords advertising to hundreds of non-profit groups whose missions range from animal welfare to literacy, from supporting homeless children to promoting HIV education.”

To ask when it will be available in Canada, check out their program details.

AMD has launched a low-cost internet appliance that aims to close the digital divide between rich and poor countries. It is a simple computer based on Microsoft's pocket-PC software, designed to be extremely easy to use and costing under $250 US including a monitor and keyboard. It can handle word processing, email, internet access and many other common functions. It's about the size of a kleenex box and a friendly green colour.

Here are some more details from InternetNews: “The device also comes with 128MB of RAM, a 3 1/2 internal disk drive with 10GB capacity, four USB ports, a monitor and a keyboard. AMD said its PIC operates using Microsoft's Windows CE kernel with XP extender so that users can access XP-based applications. Initially, the PIC will only be available through Internet service providers (ISP) and only in India, Mexico, China, Russia and Brazil for a suggested price of $249 with the 15″ VGA monitor and $185 without. The ISPs would also be responsible for service and support. AMD said the offer could eventually be extended to North American and European markets.”

Several web newsgroups have pointed out that the computer would be even cheaper if it used open source software instead of Microsoft. This looks like a noble effort, though. It would be nice if some nonprofits could test it out with low income communities in North America to see if it met their needs. Previous efforts have failed because users don't like compromising with crummy computers. This model looks as though it might be simple and functional enough to work.

The Register reports on a subscription service that makes web sites accessible to people with disabilities or even to people using other browsers and operating systems.  The service is called WiderWeb. A web site that has subscribed to the service will have a button on the home page that says 'Click here for an accessible version'. When a visitor to the web site clicks on the button, WiderWeb sends the page to its own gateway and translates it on the fly into an accessible version.  The pages are customized to the users' requests. WiderWeb's site suggest that the service is useful in several situations:

* For interim solutions while a site redesign is being carried out.
* Where a site is assembled from pages including third party content.
* For very small companies who cannot afford consultant reviews and recoding.
* For Intranet access by disabled employees, where you may not be able to change the underlying code.

This approach would especially useful for instant web accessibility improvements. Unfortunately, the service is based in the UK and the price is not stated on the web. Further, I wasn't able to find a demonstration; I'm particularly curious about how they deal with blank images (alt-tags), which are the biggest problem in web accessibility.