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140,000 apps strong, Handago keeps growingSection: Communications, Accessories, Smartphones, Mobile, Computers, Software / Applications  Quick, name the application store that has 140,000 apps, has 23,000 content partners and has facilitated over 100 million downloads with an average paid value of over $20? Give up? It’s Handago, or for you old Palm people, PalmCentral. Launched as PalmCentral ten years ago, Handago now supports 8 different operating systems. The company is celebrating their 10 year anniversary. Originally, PalmCentral supported PDA owners in their quest to download new applications. As times changed and smartphones took over, the name was changed to Handago and they currently support Palm OS, Windows Mobile and Pocket PC, Blackberry, Symbian, UIQ and most recently, Android.
I happen to be on the new site yesterday looking for an app that turns my Windows Mobile phone into a Wi-Fi hotspot. Simply let the site know what device you have and what applications you seek. The site is quite clean and worked well. To celebrate their anniversary, they are offering discounts when you spend over $30. See image above for details or click through to the site. Site:[Handago] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:02 pm Google planning Web Drive?Section: Communications, Email / IM, Web, Websites
Will this be Google’s Dropbox killer? Check back for more as it happens. Read [MacRumors Forums] Full Story » | Written by Indraneel Purohit for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 5:30 pm CrunchDeals: ‘Band of Brothers’ on Blu-ray for $34.99
Even the regular DVD set is $42.49, so if you have a Blu-ray player, this isn’t a bad pick-up at all. And if you haven’t seen the Band of Brothers series, it’s kind of one of those things you should watch just because. It’s really well done, in my humble opinion. Band of Brothers [Amazon.com] Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 3:00 pm Game news: Playing president; Wii dominates 2008 (AP)AP - Real news from the virtual world:Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:56 pm Don’t go to Circuit City for deals
I started this rant last night and kind of realized it didn’t make much sense. However, eagle-eyed reader SteveJabs headed down to CC and confirmed my suspicions: there are no deals to be had at Circuit City.
Here’s my take: Electronics pricing is flat. Although we may be in the worst depression since Vlad the Impaler began tearing the heads off of his fiscal enemies, electronics still cost the same. Online pricing has made running a big box store pointless. Maybe you’ll get some loss-leader deals at the front of the store - a DVD player for $50, for example - there is no reason for Best Buy to sell components. The liquidators can actually make more money selling online later than selling in stores. It’s this sort of rapacious behavior that got CC into this mess in the first place. I feel for the folks who worked at Circuit City, I really do. But there’s no reason to visit the store anymore, for deals or otherwise. Let it go away. There are plenty of places we can go for electronics where quality and price are at least on parity. Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:56 pm UPDATE 1-Lee Enterprises Q1 profit falls; cuts jobs by 10 pctJan 20 (Reuters) - Lee Enterprises Inc , which publishes 49 daily newspapers including the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, said its quarterly profit on a preliminary basis fell 69 percent and cut its staffing...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:53 pm Toshiba upgrades its NB-100 netbook
The first model (pictured) comes with a 64GB SSD and Windows Vista (which might not be a good idea at all) and will cost around $ 880. Vista enemies can choose the NB100H that continues to be equipped Windows XP and features a 160GB HDD, up 40GB compared to the first NB-100 (price: $ 770). As the original NB-100, both variations feature a 1,024×600 screen, an N270 CPU (1.60 Ghz), Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Wi-Fi and 1GB Ram. In Nippon, Toshiba will roll out the new netbooks later this month. But details regarding availability and pricing outside Japan are unknown at this point. Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:48 pm Bell offers retirement incentive to 1,500 unionized employeesMONTREAL - Bell Canada says it will offer a retirement incentive to about 1,500 qualifying employees represented by the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers' Union of Canada. The...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:41 pm Annoying rumor: Sirius XM price increases this spring
As if satellite radio fans, especially longtime XM ones, didn’t have enough to worry about, there’s a juicy rumor going around right now that suggests that Sirius XM prices are going to increase across the board. Ugh. The rumor started on the Digital Radio Central message board, from someone claiming to be an employee of Sirius XM’s Activations Department. The alleged hikes: • Online streaming will no longer be free (unless you’re a lifetime subscriber), instead it’ll be $2.99 for most packages, perhaps as much as $8.99 for the Mostly Music and Family Packs • Each additional radio tethered to your sub will cost $8.99 a month, up $2 from $6.99 a month Orbitcast’s own Deepthroats have confirmed price increase, though their numbers vary slightly. In any event, current subscribers will be able to “lock in” current prices (free online streaming, $6.99 per additional radio). What a terrific merger, right? Unwanted channel changes (and fan reaction), people losing their jobs on the XM side of things, price raises. This is not what I’m used to. Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:40 pm Hardwood and Leather MacBook Case Is Maybe Not So Practical [Laptops]Designer Rainer Spehl has crafted these less-than-practical MacBook cases out of hinged hardwood, with a supple leather lining. Puttin' holes in your bag and splinters in your fingers, but lookin'...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:40 pm The Web Braces For Inauguration Traffic1sockchuck writes "Web sites and social networks are scaling up for huge traffic during today's Inauguration. Photo sharing sites are expecting a surge in volume around the noontime swearing-in, while Twitter has doubled its capacity. Some net watchers say peak volume may not match the record levels seen on Election Night 2008 (as reported by Akamai's Net Usage Index). As noted yesterday, DC-area wireless networks are the most likely bottleneck for messaging and photo sharing. "Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:32 pm Music industry urged to embrace the Internet (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:31 pm Think Services' Game Developer Research Division Releases Groundbreaking Report on State of iPhone Game DevelopmentInaugural Report Aggregates Critical Pricing, Development, and Game Genre Data for the Largely Undocumented iPhone Game Software Market SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 20...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:31 pm The Open Group Gathers IT Thought-Leaders to Develop an Enterprise Perspective on Cloud Computing21st Architecture Practitioners Conference in San Diego Devotes Full Day to Enterprise Cloud Computing SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- The Open Group, a...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:30 pm PHD Technologies Names Joe Julian to Board of DirectorsMOUNT ARLINGTON, N.J., Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- PHD Technologies, provider of the leading esXpress VBA data protection solution for virtualized infrastructures, today announced...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:30 pm UPDATE 2-Forest Labs results beat views, shares riseNEW YORK, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Drugmaker Forest Laboratories Inc posted lower quarterly profit on Tuesday on charges for licensing new medicines, but operating results far exceeded analyst targets on lower-than-expected...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:28 pm Already bored with your sniper rifle? Howsabout an iPod mount?
Here’s an iPod mount for your trusty sniper rifle — sure, why the hell not? I mean, the life of a sniper is mostly waiting, right? Might as well catch an episode of The Office or play a quick game of Sim City while you’re waiting for your target to emerge from his super secret meeting inside some fancy hotel. Lest you think it’s all fun and games, Knights Armaments, the company that developed the mount, "contracted Runaway technologies to build an external ballistics calculator for the iPod Touch / iPhone named Bullet Flight," according to The Firearm Blog. “It is your standard ballistics application. You can set firearm / ammunition profiles, then call up the saved profile and enter your environment information, for example, distance, wind direction, elevation and temperature.” The iPod is side-mounted on an M110 sniper rifle using a tough-as-nails Otterbox case (see our review here) and the Bullet Fight application costs $11.99 from the App Store. [via Techmeme] Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:25 pm Qualcomm buys some Advanced Micro Devices assetsQualcomm Inc. said Tuesday it purchased some handheld graphics and multimedia technology assets from Advanced Micro Devices Inc. for $65 million in cash. Qualcomm expects the transactionSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:23 pm Microsoft's new AV program is the same price now as when it will ... - DailyTech
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:21 pm 1Cast Adds Breaking Video News Summaries to the iPhone and iPod TouchOne-Click Plays Summary of Top Breaking Political, Sports, Entertainment News on the iPhone and iPod Touch KIRKLAND, Wash., Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- 1Cast, the...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:21 pm Ask notI was talking with a good news exec who’s trying to build a new kind of local news product but it was only hours after I got off the phone that I figured out how I should have told him what he’s...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:20 pm Wii Overkill Hand Cannon Is Dirty Harry Approved [Peripherals]When I think shooting stuff, I think Clint Eastwood, a guy who would never carry the Wii Zapper into a room full of zombies. But he'd love the Overkill Hand Cannon, punks. Bundled with The House of...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:20 pm Carolina Snow Misses Washington, DC - AccuWeather.com
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:18 pm PSP gets a minor update
Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:15 pm The ecosystem of newsIf I were a communications prof, I’d make this study - which is to say I wish someone would: Take one day’s journalism in America and analyze critically what we have now so we know what we...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:15 pm Bell offers retirement incentive to unionized employeesMONTREAL, Quebec, Jan. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Bell Canada announced today it will offer a retirement incentive to approximately 1,500 qualifying employees represented by theSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:15 pm Open Text Recruiting Management for Microsoft SharePoint Simplifies and Automates Hiring ProcessesNative Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 Application Streamlines Complex Hiring Processes, Minimizes Time Required for Hiring Managers Involved in RecruitingSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:15 pm Obama Inauguration shines on Linux too with Moonlight - Ars Technica
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:12 pm Coffee Could Fuel You, and Your CarWill used coffee grounds be the next big thing in biofuels?Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:10 pm Ozone Levels: Now a Wintertime ConcernThe first-ever ozone alert during winter is noted near a natural gas field in Wyoming.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:10 pm Wristband battery charges your cell phoneSpotted on a The Raw Feed, a wristband battery to recharge your cell phone.Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:06 pm The Next Android SmartphoneHere in the U.S., your choices in phones running Google's new Android operating system have been limited. If you weren't a fan of the T-Mobile G1 form factor - a design best for heavy texters thanks to...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:04 pm Refurbished iPods cheaper in China (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:04 pm CelebrationI was a skeptic about Barack Obama, hearing emptiness in his words and fearing inexperience in his resume. No more. I was hoping to be proven wrong and so far it’s becoming clear that I was wrong...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:03 pm Open source developers ride the cloud (InfoWorld)InfoWorld - Nearly half of developers working on open source projects plan to offer applications as Web services offerings using cloud providers, according to results of an Evans Data open source development survey being released on Tuesday.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:00 pm Obama Wallpapers Inaugurate Your iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry, or Palm [Wallpaper]I have to say that some of these Obama wallpapers—created to celebrate the Presidential Inauguration—are incredibly naff, but others are actually quite cool looking. And hey, one day is one day....Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:00 pm Video: Obama inaugurated at LEGOlandSource: Boing Boing Gadgets | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:57 pm Logitech is in financial trouble, mass layoffs imminent
As people are struggling to make bills, cash available to spend on a $100+ keyboard isn’t available. Plus, with Circuit City now gone (we can say that now, right?) a major retailer isn’t available to pimp Logitech’s wares. Hopefully, Logitech can weather the storm as it always has been a staple in the PC arena and I know of one group of bloggers that would shut down in fits of rage without their Logitech mice and keyboards. Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:55 pm Tokyoflashs New Kisai Keisan WatchBy Andrew Liszewski Tokyoflash once again proves that if telling time is not your number one priority when it comes to designing a watch, you’ll never have to worry about running out of new ideas...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:53 pm Mobile carriers expect network strain on Inauguration Day - Mobile Burn
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:53 pm The In-Progress Plot To Kill Googletwitter writes "Four years after Steve Ballmer vowed to kill Google, Wired details Microsoft's, AT&T's, and big publishers' ongoing slog. The story is filled with astroturfers, lobbyists and others spending millions to manufacture FUD about privacy and monopoly in order to protect the obsolete business models of their patrons, who are mostly known for progress-halting monopoly and invasion of privacy. Their greatest coup to date was preventing Google from rescuing Yahoo."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:50 pm The SniPod Touch: When Apps Go Deadly [Apps]This official US Army M110 Sniper Rifle has all the necessary accouterments: long barrel, scope, and an iPod touch. You see, that iPod is running the program BulletFlight, available now from the App...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:45 pm DigiYumi: Xbox Live Real Life Security Issues - PC World
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:42 pm Morning tech deals highlights ⌦ Band of Brothers – I already own Band of Brothers on DVD, but Amazon has dropped the Blu-ray version to $35 today (from $100) and I've just bought it again. I was skeptical that there would be any real difference since BoB was only ever shown in SD on HBO, but from the reviews it sounds like it must have been shot on film, allowing for an HD resolution in Blu-ray.
It's one of my very favorite movies or television shows ever. I watch it at least a couple of times a year from start to finish. [Amazon] ⌦ All-in-one printer – Epson Stylus NX400 color photo all-in-one inkjet printer for $60, shipped. Seems like a nice little unit for the price. Normally sells for around $100. ⌦ Rolando – Ngmoco's Rolando game for the iPhone has been dropped to $6, down from the original $10 I paid and didn't regret one bit. It's a killer title and a load of fun to play and show off. [iTunes] ⌦ Pro Camcorder – Amazon is selling the Panasonic AG-HMC70PJ AVCHD 3CCD Flash Memory Camcorder for $1,204, shipped. That's about $700 off the price available from B&H, but I can't find anything out on the web to indicate if this is a good product or not. (Panasonic tends to make very nice camcorders all the way up to their professional models, but it's strange there appears to be no reviews out there on this model at all.) Still, 1080i recording, 12x optical zoom, SDHC support, XLR inputs, quarter-inch CCD, HDMI and BNC Component outputs — this is a heavy duty camera.) [Dealnews] ⌦ Stapleless Staper – With this $3 plastic tube you can staple up to three sheets of paper together without using a physical metal staple at all. [Dealnews] ⌦ Sonos Multi-Room – We may have thumped on Sonos a bit in the past, but for multi-room setups that want perfectly synced music, there's really not a better option — especially when paired with the new Sonos iPhone/touch controller application. Best Buy is selling a multi-room system with a ZonePlayer 80, 100, and a wireless controller for $500 with in-store pick-up. That's half-price; I wonder if there's a new package from Sonos in the works? (I haven't heard anything.) [Dealnews] ⌦ Mini Bluetooth Dongle – Tiny USB Bluetooth dongle for $3, perfect for a netbook and external mouse. [Dealnews] ⌦ R/C Cars – Today's Woot are the Excalibur Electronics Micro Zoomer desktop R/C cars in a 2-pack for $18, shipped. Photo: 1leve Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:41 pm Journalists Wanted: Earn Cash at Trend Hunter Today(TrendHunter.com) Have a knack for writing? A passion for discovering cool things? Trend Hunter will pay you to do just that! Not only does the site act as a platform for discovering the next big thing,...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:40 pm The lie of print advertising (followed by good news)First, the bad news: Ethan Zuckerman worries that the economics of print advertising in the past are unsustainable. And he’s right. Online has exposed the lie - the fraud, if you like; the fantasy,...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:37 pm Fujitsu offers world’s first waterproof cell phone with intergrated fingerprint security system
Fujitsu Japan has developed the F-01A [JP], the world’s first cell phone that’s waterproof and also features a security function utilizing fingerprint biometrics. In Nippon, it’s part of the line-up of NTT DoCoMo, the country’s biggest telecommunications company. The fingerprint technology is developed by AuthenTec, a provider of fingerprint sensors and solutions. The Symbian-based F-01A comes with a 3.2-inch VGA display (touchscreen), a 5.2-Mpixel camera with autofocus function, GPS (it also displays Google Street View images), a One-Seg digital TV tuner, an e-wallet function and microSDTM／microSDH slots. Users can use it underwater for about 30 minutes in up to one meter. The Fujitsu phone is already on sale in Japan where it’s available as part of DoCoMo’s PRIME series since November last year. But for some reason AuthenTec waited a long time to make the collaboration with Fujitsu official. Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:36 pm Google Android developer named Coupons Inc. tech chief - Bizjournals.com
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:35 pm The day I met Steve Jobs - New Straits Times
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:34 pm She’s Still Got a Crush on Obama [BoomTown]
Oh, BoomTown just had to. What with all the serious noting of the historical, societal and universal significance of the swearing-in of President-Elect Barack Obama in a few short hours, here’s some less important (but funnier) ruminating in the latest video from Obama Girl. (I also added a very good remix of it too.) The online phenom Obama Girl got her 15 minutes of fame with a viral video hit from the folks at BarelyPolitical.com, all about her crush on Obama when he was only a candidate. Good pick, as it looks like Obama Girl has got at least four more years of spoofing ahead of her. Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:30 pm Review: 5 days with Rovair's EVDO rental service Rovair rents out pre-activated wireless broadband modems. We used it for coverage of CES in Vegas. Apart from the general lack of available bandwidth at the modem-infested show, the service worked perfectly and we'll be sure to use it again.
It works like this: you tell Rovair the dates you need them for, then select the exact model you want. We opted for the broad compatibility of Novatel's U727 USB modems, but there's plenty to choose from. Rovair mails you the gear, which arrives on the specified date. When you're done, you use a pre-paid envelope to overnight it back to them. Staff were pleasant and personal whenever contacted. There are a few things to bear in mind. First, you're billed until the time the return envelope is scanned by the mail people. So it's best not to dump it in an airport mailbox, which might not be checked frequently or on weekends. Find a person to hand it to, like a FedEx worker, hotel concierge or clerk at Kinkos. Remember the stick's phone number, too. You'll need it in a pinch: Verizon's Access Manager download page is guarded by a form that requires it, and Sprint won't even talk to you if you don't know it. Finally, a WiMax offering is a must this year: EVDO used to be the secret to effective CES coverage, but now everyone's got it, it's as slow as dial-up! Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:29 pm “Other Mainframe Company” Files Complaint Against “Other Monopoly” [Digital Daily]
Damning accusations and ones that would seem to suggest that though it was conceived in the vaccuum tube-era, the consent decree that prevented IBM from tying hardware and software sales may not have been quite as obsolete IBM claimed. News of T3’s European complaint comes just days after the European Commission charged Microsoft (MSFT) with illegally tying its Internet Explorer Web browser to Windows. Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:28 pm Get Well Soon Steve [Voices]By Nitrozac and Snaggy
Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:20 pm Netbooks Confuse Computer Retailers - AHN
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:20 pm Redneck Chic Couture - Vivienne Westwood Brings the Farm to Milans Men for Fall 09 (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) While other designers are playing it safe in these times of economic crisis, Vivienne Westwood ignores the idea of going commercial with a rebellious redneck gone punk mens fall 2009...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:20 pm Video demo: Eee PC Touch UI
Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:17 pm Lego Obama Presidential Inauguration Brings Hope to Bricks Too [Inauguration]There's also hope and change in the land of the brick: Behold the Presidential inauguration of Barack Obama in Lego bricks, complete with every single character that will be at the Capitol, including...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:16 pm Belkin's President Apologizes For Faked Reviewsremove office writes "After I wrote about how Belkin's Amazon.com sales rep Mike Bayard had been paying for fake reviews of his company's products using Mechanical Turk, hundreds of readers across the Web expressed their outrage. As a result of the online outcry, Belkin's president Mark Reynoso has issued a statement apologizing and saying that 'this is an isolated incident' and that 'Belkin does not participate in, nor does it endorse, unethical practices like this.' Amazon moved swiftly to remove several reviews on Belkin products it believed were fraudulent. But now fresh evidence of astroturfing has surfaced, by the same Belkin executive."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:05 pm Eco-Friendly Shopping Totes - Wind Bags Are Sewn Using Wind-Generated Power (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Wind Bags recycles used feed and seed bags by crafting them into durable, reusable, attractive shopping and utility totes. The square bottom facilitates loading by making the bag easy...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:00 pm Today at Boing Boing Gadgets Today at Boing Boing Gadgets, we asked if Mike Arrington was the next Steve Jobs; helped you Change Back with our handy de-Appling guide, found benchmarks of the new OQO 2+, and wondered whether trying to rescue a Polaroid film factory was worth it.
John saw a lovely scrabble-tile computer keyboard, a robot horror show, and what can only be described as a steampunk Vader mask.
Joel spotted a wooden Vespa scooter, an SUV with machine guns, a beautiful motorcycle, and a Lego Delorean.
Mitch Altman completed his world tour of hackerspaces: read the whole series!
Rob completed his tour of the Circuit City liquidation sales and played with the new Tamagotchi Music Star.
There was a space invaders piggy bank, abandoned Soviet light houses, and "Oddage," a bizarre iPhone game.
Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:52 pm Apple's deal with the devil makes consumers pay - Inquirer
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:50 pm IBM Could Face Mainframe Antitrust Investigation in Europe (PC World)PC World - Florida mainframe manufacturer T3 Technologies has filed a formal complaint against IBM with the European Union's antitrust authority, it said Tuesday. In its complaint, T3 accuses IBM of refusing to sell its mainframe operating system to customers wanting to run it on computers made by T3.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:50 pm Jaguar Attacks Zoo KeeperA female zoo keeper is in critical condition after being attacked by a jaguar at the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo located about an hour outside Baltimore.Two jaguars were in quarantine Monday, after one of them was responsible for the attack.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:40 pm MusicShake Gets Jiggy With Revamped Website (And We Have Some Free Music For You)
MusicShake offers a free desktop application (unfortunately, Windows only for now) that lets users create personalized, professional sounding music using a variety of modules and pattern-combination methods, which is quite addictive once you get the hang of it (takes about 10 minutes and there are templates to help get you started). You can convert music you make to mp3 and download them to your computer, or convert them into a personalized ringtone. You can also show off music you create to your friends and place it in charts to promote your work to others. So far, there have been close to 50,000 music tracks created with the service, which can individually be purchased in the MusicShake store; revenues are split 50/50 with the creator. There’s also a subscription option that gives you a month of unlimited MP3 downloads and ringtones in exchange for 1,499 in “Shake Cash” (or $14.99). TechCrunch readers are in for a treat today: the first 1,000 readers to sign up for the service using the promotion code “PROMOTC” get access to 3 free mp3 downloads (worth $3.00 each). The new website comes with a redesigned UI and color scheme, and also adds a social layer on top of the online part of MusicShake: direct communication between members, a dedicated page that gives an overview of users’ profiles, forums, a way for registered users to build and share their own playlists etc. Music tracks created through MusicShake can also easily be shared via Facebook, Imeem, YouTube, and other communication channels. The service was launched in September 2007 at the TechCrunch40 conference - see video below - when the company was still based in South Korea. MusicShake has raised $3.5 million in two funding rounds.
Information provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware. Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:33 pm No Organic Cotton at the Green Ball - New York Times
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:21 pm Guest Blogger: Googling the Inauguration [Voices]By Bill Tancer, Guest Blogger, Digits, The Wall Street JournalBrowsing through the top 1,300 search terms in the U.S. that contained the word “inauguration” in the last four weeks provides unique insight into our Internet frame-of-mind surrounding the installation of our 44th President. Based on the Internet behavior of ten million Internet users captured by online research firm Hitwise, the most common category of searches containing the word “inauguration”, accounting for more than 22 percent of queries, are terms seeking general information about the upcoming ceremony. The most common question on searcher’s minds surrounds the date and time of President–elect Obama’s swearing in. With this weekend’s concert and upcoming ceremony, parades and inaugural balls, Internet searches reveal some confusion as to which event is the most historically significant. Outperforming historical (“George Washington’s Inauguration”) and educational (“Inauguration lesson plans”) search missions, Internet data reveals that Obama’s swearing in will not escape controversy. Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:15 pm Terry Pratchett Battles Alzheimer's With Retro-Futurist Headgear [Medicine]Legendary author Sir Terry Pratchett might have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's in the real world, but his prototype anti-dementia helmet looks like the stuff of science fiction. Designed by Dr...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:12 pm The Inauguration on Your iPhone [MediaMemo]
Live streaming site Ustream has rolled out its iPhone app, which promises to provide live coverage of the event to anyone using Wifi. Not really sure why you’d want to do this — there will be wall-to-wall coverage of the event on every television station, and as I noted yesterday, you won’t be able to boot up your Web browser without finding a live stream. Still, live video on your iPhone is cool — and will be genuinely useful in other settings. Can’t wait for today’s events to start? Try to sate your appetite with this live shot of the Capitol, which is coming to you from a camera set up at the Museum of the American Indian. The Ustream folks promise that the camera will zoom in on the podium during the inauguration ceremony, and that “we will attempt an audio feed as well.” Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 11:14 am CBS's 'Worst Week' Mistakes iPod for iPhone, Sends Nerdier Viewers into Convulsions [Goofs]'Worst Week' is apparently some kind of adapted British show about a guy whose life sucks, or something. I don't know. All I do know is that this guy's iPhone is not an iPhone. To add insult to...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 11:14 am Track Money For Groups with Scred’s MiniCorps - Invite codes
Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 11:09 am Kara Visits Sundance and Interviews Hurley, Hastings and Kilar [BoomTown]
Here’s a longish video BoomTown did over the weekend at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, the famous annual independent film gathering now taking place in Park City, Utah. I was there to moderate a panel on Saturday titled, “Where Do We Go From Here? Icons of the Digital Age.” It was a great session, with a lot of insights as to where things were headed in the online video space and how that would impact the movie industry. Main conclusion: Significantly. The trio of panelists were: Chad Hurley, the co-founder and CEO of the Google (GOOG) video service, YouTube; Jason Kilar, CEO of Hulu, the premium online video service that is a joint venture of News Corp. (NWS) and GE (GE) unit NBC Universal; and Reed Hastings, founder and CEO of Netflix (NFLX), the largest online DVD rental service, which has been moving into an ever wider range of distribution of movies on the Web. (News Corp. is the owner of Dow Jones and this Web site.) I did interviews with each of them, as well as a chat with my only indie celebrity friend, Jane Lynch, some scenes from the festival and an intro and outro from my own little stars, Louie and Alex Swisher. Here’s the video: Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 10:29 am Conficker Worm Could Create World's Biggest Botnetnk497 writes "The worm that's supposedly infected almost nine million PCs running Windows, dubbed Cornficker or Downadup, could lead to a massive botnet, security researchers have said. The worm initially spread to systems unpatched against MS08-067, but has since 'evolved and is now able to spread to patched computers through portable USB drives through brute-force password-guessing.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 10:18 am Metal 'Portraits' Make an Optical Illusion Out of Your Face [Weird]Sculptor Brian Cox has made a hobby out of turning people's faces into a real-life, stainless steel Rubin vase illusions. Novelty gifts, as a whole, now have a new standard for, well, novelty. At...Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 10:04 am BB Video: Shepard Fairey and the Obama Poster, on Inauguration Day
One year ago, Pesco blogged about a cool new "socialist-realist" style poster created by street artist Shepard Fairey for the Barack Obama presidential campaign (shown at left). Fast forward to today, January 20, 2009: the day Obama will be sworn in as President of the United States. Sean Bonner and I visited Shepard's art gallery in LA some weeks ago with Boing Boing's video team to talk with Shepard about how this image came to be. We also wanted to know what the past year has been like for the artist most of us here on the blog previously knew as "The Andre The Giant Has a Posse Guy." The moment we walked into the space, Shepard had picked up a call on his cellphone, was staring intently into space, and uttering a lot of thoughtful "mm-hmmms." When he hung up the phone, he turned to us and smiled. I asked who he'd been on the phone with, and he explained the call was from Obama's staff, telling him for the first time that an adaptation of this same poster would be used as the official inauguration poster. Inauguration day has come, and with it, the beginning of a new era in America. I don't know what this era will bring. I don't know what kind of president Obama will be. But I hope we achieve what Shepard's poster said: progress.
(Special thanks to Q-Burns Abstract Message for graciously allowing us to use his music in these videos, including a remix of "Angel Soup" by Cold Hands, on Blunted Funk Records.) Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 10:02 am BB Video: Sean Bonner reports from Obama Inauguration in DC(Flash embed above, MP4 download is here.) Boing Boing pal Sean Bonner of Metroblogging and decades of internet troublemaking fame is in DC for the presidential inauguration, serving as our roving correspondent. He shot this impressionistic report of cool art, kitschy ephemera, and other wacky public displays of Obamamania. Included in this Boing Boing video episode: a peek inside Yosi Sergant's amazing Manifest Hope art show, including an amazing wire sculpture of Obama by Michael Murry. Also, a street installation in DC's Adams Morgan area, which invites passers-by to tell the president what they hope he'll do once he's sworn into office today. Below, click to view some of Sean's phonecam snapshots from the inauguration-eve party at the Manifest Hope show. Oh also? Apparently Barack Obama is your new bicycle after all.
Below, another piece from the Manifest Hope Show. "The Hopeful Hearts Club," a Sergeant Peppers/Beatles inspired piece by Michael Cuffe.
Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 9:33 am PSP Gets 5.03 Update [Psp Licker]The Sony PSP just got the 5.03 firmware update, which improves stability somewhere, somehow. Enjoy the photo of Jessica Chobot licking a PSP, because it's 1AM here. [PSP Blog via Kotaku]Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:40 am Ustream's iPhone Viewer App Now Live In Time For the Inauguration [Iphone Video]That Ustream viewer app we talked about is now live in the iPhone App Store, free for your downloading pleasure. Get it now to avoid disappointment tomorrow morning. [App Store]Source: Gizmodo | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:38 am T-Mobile G1 to be formally introduced in European countries by end of FebruarySection: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones
By the end of February, T-Mobile’s Android phone, the G1 will have been released in several more European countries. The G1 has already been introduced in Great Britain, so after February, it will have been introduced in a good part of Europe. Basically, if you subscribe to T-Mobile, or are planning to, and live in The Netherlands, Austria, or Czech Republic, you will have a chance to get the G1 by January 30th. Now, if you live in Germany, it will be launched on February 2nd. Lastly, by the end of February, Poland should receive the G1 as well. The interesting thing is Germany will be receiving the G1 with a 2 year contract for only a Euro (which translate to about $1.33! Otherwise, it costs 450 Euros without a plan, which is pretty expensive. It will be interesting to see how popular it becomes in Europe and how it compares to the popularity in the United States. Via [TalkAndroid] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:25 am Obama will defend telco spy immunityOver at Wired's Threat Level blog, reports that the incoming Obama administration will defend congressional legislation that protected American telecommunication companies from lawsuits over participation in the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program. Snip:That was the assessment Thursday by Eric Holder, President-elect Barack Obama's choice for attorney general, who made the statement during his confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee. A court challenge questioning the legality of the legislation is pending in U.S. District Court in San Francisco -- where the judge in the case wanted to know what the Obama administration's position was.Obama to Defend Telco Spy Immunity Previously: Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:14 am Beta Is Dead [Voices]By Blake Snow, Guest Blogger, GigaOmBeta, as it pertains to web sites, has seen better days. Not long ago, saying the word as part of your web development cycle could help land venture capital even faster than claiming “community,” “paradigm shift” or “disruptive technology.” Now, the term is dissipated and confusing. While the specific origin of its use is unknown, beta as a tagline was popularized by a Google with the release of Google News in 2002, and later, Gmail in 2004. From there, startups quickly followed suit. By 2006, it seemed like every new web site was “in beta.” When confronted about the phenomenon, Google co-founder Larry Page told investors, “It’s really a messaging and branding thing. If it’s on [Google News and Gmail] for five years, that’s fine.” Google News unceremoniously left beta a year later. Gmail, which is more reliable than most non-beta software, has yet to do so. Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:04 am Does Wired’s Drastic Weight Loss Point to Ill Health? [Voices]By Bobbie Johnson, Technology Correspondent, The GuardianMy, my, Wired magazine’s looking thin these days. Only a month or so ago I remember looking at a big fat dollop of paper, all health and bouncy. Today, however, when I went to get my post my first thought went something along the lines of “Wow, this feels really lightweight”. You might almost say it was gaunt. The next thing that popped into my brain was “why?”. Knowing the way the magazine industry works, with lead times of around three or four months, I had a little theory: the January issue of Wired was put together in September or October - in other words after the financial crisis. Was it the victim of the credit crunch? Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:03 am 37 Percent of P2P Users Say They’ll Ignore Disconnection Threats [Voices]By Nate Anderson, Senior Editor, Ars TechnicaThe success of “graduated response” programs in the US, UK, France, New Zealand, and elsewhere around the world may depend, in large part, on just how quickly file-sharers will buckle. If most will quit after a simple warning, the campaign to enlist ISPs (and back down on the mass legal threats) may be a huge success. But, if only draconian sanctions like disconnection are enough to “stop the swap,” the entire graduated response program could arouse critical opposition from the public and from lawmakers. The European Parliament, which has already considered the issue, has voted several times against such “three strikes” laws, largely due to the possibility of extreme sanctions such as Internet disconnection. Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:02 am Keep it Clean, Kids, Software’s Watching [Voices]By Dave Copeland, Boston Globe CorrespondentIt was the kind of incident that makes college athletic directors cringe. In November, shortly after Barack Obama was elected president, a second-string University of Texas football player posted a racist comment about Obama on his Facebook page. It was quickly followed by an apology: “Clearly I have made a mistake and apologized for it and will pay for it,” the student wrote on Facebook. “I received it as a text message from an acquaintance and immaturely put it up on Facebook in the light of the election.” But the damage was done, and the athlete lost his place on the team. These days, with sports-oriented gossip websites like Badjocks.com and Thedirty.com trolling athletes’ Facebook pages and MySpace profiles for comments like the one made by the Texas athlete, a few mouse clicks can end a student athlete’s career and damage a school’s reputation. Source: All Things Digital | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:01 am Daily Crunch: Inauguration Edition
Keyboard with Scrabble keys! Now I can die a happy man Source: CrunchGear | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:00 am Autonomy Named a "Best Channel Vendor" by Business Solutions MagazineCAMBRIDGE, England and SAN FRANCISCO, California, January 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Autonomy Corporation plc (LSE: AU.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 8:00 am Flickr Solves Pesky Issue Of Users Leaving Site When They Click Ads
That’s handy, because the advertiser is charged but the user never leaves the Flickr site (something only Facebook seems able to pull off). My guess is this is fixed by morning. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0 Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:54 am Sapiens Reports Repurchase of Convertible DebenturesCARY, North Carolina, January 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sapiens International Corporation N.V.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:48 am Customers Gaining Value from SAP and HP Alliance Focused on the MidmarketQuick Implementation and Scalability Proven with SAP(R) Business All-in-One Fast-Start Program WALLDORF, Germany, Jan.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:30 am A Waste Gasification Plant In a Truckwaderoush writes "There are plenty of waste-to-energy plants around the US, but most of them simply burn the waste, dumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Gasification technology, by contrast, converts nearly all of the waste into gases like hydrogen and carbon monoxide that can be used to run generators and furnaces. The problem is that most gasification facilities are factory-sized. Now a startup outside Boston has built a combination shredder-dryer-pelletizer-gasifier that fits into 30-by-8-by-8-foot shipping container. The so-called 'Green Energy Machine' can be backed up to a loading dock by truck, processing 3 tons of solid waste per day and putting out enough synthetic gas to run a 120-kilowatt generator or a 240-kilowatt-equivalent furnace. The makers say the machine can eliminate 540 tons of carbon emissions per year, in large part by reducing the amount of waste that goes to methane-generating landfills."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:29 am Samsung debuts new Blu-ray home theatersSection: Audio, Home Audio, Speakers, Video, DVD/DVR/Blu-ray, Trade Shows, CES
The home theater in a box market continues to grow. Their low entry price makes them even more attractive in the current economic climate. So it comes at as no surprise that Samsung introduced new Blu-ray HTIB offerings at CES. Each offers 1080p playback with the Blu-ray player, and virtual or real 5.1 audio. The HT-BD8200 is the first home theater sound bar equipped with a Blu-ray player and wireless subwoofer. At 2.6 inches deep, the BD8200 is designed for wall mounting, but still provides virtual 5.1 surround. Users can stream multimedia from the integrated Blu-ray player, USB port, a Bluetooth enabled media device, or through the included iPod dock. It networks via 802.11 b/g/n or USB dongle to stream Netflix or Pandora and is BD-Live (Profile 2.0) compatible. The HT-BD7200 is a 2.1 system with virtual 5.1 surround sound. The size of the system and its relatively small power rating (400W) make it ideal for an introductory system or for a smaller room. The speaker is constructed from kelp, as in seaweed, which Samsung says provides greater clarity than traditional paper cones. The BD7200 also connects to a b/g/n network, but with an optional USB dongle. Finally, the HT-BD1250 is the full 5.1 speaker array, offering Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio at an ear shattering 1000W. Like the BD7200, the speakers are made from kelp. The BD1250 (and BD7200) also features an improved amplifier engine that is supposed to reduce amp and power supply noise. It is fully b/g/n WiFi ready with an integrated transceiver. Pricing is not yet available for any of these systems, and Samsung will only say “the first half of 2009” when it comes to availability. Full Story » | Written by Chris Shore for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:21 am Apple now selling used products online in China (CNET)CNET - Apple announced Tuesday it has opened an online store selling used products in China in an effort to expand its business there, according to a Reuters report.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:05 am .tel Landrush to Start SoonNEW YORK, January 20 /PRNewswire/ -- With two weeks to go before Landrush for the innovative new top level domain .tel, trademark owners have a limited time to apply for their domains before applications for any domain open to all. Anyone will be able to buy a .tel domain from 3.00 p.m.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:00 am Domainmonster.com & Telnic Join Forces to Promote .tel at DOMAINfestNEW YORK, January 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Domainmonster.com and Telnic Limited, the registry operator for the new .tel top level domain today announced their joint sponsorship for the annual DOMAINfest Global 2009 conference in Hollywood later this month in advance of the public launch of .tel. Attracting domain industry "A-listers", DOMAINfest is a key milestone on the calendar for volume domain owners.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:00 am Online Directories buy Into .tel Domain OpportunityNEW YORK, January 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Telnic Limited (http://www.telnic.org), the registry operator for the new .tel top level domain, today welcomed strong interest from online directory service providers for .tel domains. Organizations that own trademarks from countries as diverse as the United States, France, South Africa, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom have applied for.tel domains including Yell.com, Yellow Pages, Les Pages Jaunes, Paginas Blancas, L annuaire and Les Pages Blanches. "Yellow page providers have clearly understood that the DNS is the ultimate database for managing and publishing live contact information globally," commented Khashayar Mahdavi, CEO for Telnic.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 7:00 am Samsung’s Blu-ray playersSection: Video, DVD/DVR/Blu-ray
Samsung unveiled several new Blu-ray models at the Consumer Electronics Show and plans to use these models to stay competitive in the multimedia device market. In addition to showcasing the world’s fist wall mountable Blu-Ray player, the BD-P4600, the corporation also introduced the high performance BD-P3600. One of the most impressive features of these new Samsung players is their wireless capabilities. Through a built in Wi-Fi connection, users can access video and music streaming services through providers like Netflix and Pandora. The players also have 1GB internal flash memory in order to access different features, like BD Live and Bonus View. Besides Wi-Fi, the players come with two open USB ports. The new Blu-Ray players promise many more great features, like great video playback, complete audio decoding, and quick loading times. With the HDMI connection, the players will have the ability to convert standard DVDs for clear playback. The BD-4600 will mount easily to the wall and measures only 1 1/2 inches thick to create a slick design. The models are expected to hit stores during the first half of the year. Site [Samsung] Full Story » | Written by Heather Wood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 6:33 am Facebook Grader For The Sad, Sad People Out There
Hubspot’s Facebook Grader will tell you your “reach and authority” on Facebook. My score is 90/100. The tool works by analyzing the number of friends you have, how important those friends are (whatever that means), how complete your profile is, how many wall posts you have and how many groups you belong to. It turns out I haven’t filled out much of my profile and there are some other things I’ve neglected to attend to, so I only get an A-. I can live with that, but there are others out there who seem to take issue with how the site ranks people. French entrepreneur Loic Le Meur is “outraged” that it doesn’t take into account that he has a fan page, for example (I find fan pages obnoxious myself), and gave him a score of only 97.6. C’est la vie. To sum up my opinion of this tool, it’s beyond useless. Not that I ever planned to, but the last thing I’ll ever do now is fill in more of my profile or join more groups. Maybe I can get that 90 down to 0. The company has a similar tool for Twitter. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0 Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 6:32 am Slave reunion photo from 1916 Baron von Aaron sez, "This is an incredible piece of history: it a photograph of former slaves taken in 1916. They're over 100 years old at the time the photo was taken. At the time of their birth the industrial revolution was in its infant stage."
Slaves Reunion: 1916
(Thanks, Baron von Aaron!) Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 6:21 am Gaiman on Poe: read him aloud!Barnes and Noble's published a new Edgar Allan Poe edition in honor of the man's bicentennial. Neil Gaiman wrote a great intro to the volume, with some sage advice for appreciating Poe -- read him aloud. Damn straight. Neil recommends the excellent Vincent Price/Basil Rathbone Poe CD set, and I second that advice. I named my kid after Poe(sy), I should know!Some Strangeness in the Proportion: The Exquisite Beauties of Edgar Allan Poe.
Previously:
Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 6:18 am Reputation as virtual propertyKyle sez, "Yale Law Journal is running a symposium on law and the virtual world, and one of the articles they've recently published is in exerpt form at their online space. There's an extended discussion of reputation as a form of property online, reminiscent of whuffie."I don't know that I'd call this "extended" -- more like an introduction to the topic with more questions raised than answered. But it's interesting stuff, nevertheless. Anonymous blogging and commentary, on the other hand, correspond to the virtual world economies describe above. The reputational property this type of activity generates exists only online, associated with virtual identities that generally are not connected to any real-world identities. What enables this division from the real-world reputational economy is anonymity, which permits bloggers—or even blog commenters—to gain online status, often at the expense of others, without risking their own real-world status. And as with the online and virtual world economies, challenging problems arise when the two reputational economies meet, as happens when anonymous posters (members of the virtual-world-style reputational economy) attack nonanonymous online profiles (members of the online reputational economy). From a practical standpoint, it is difficult, though not impossible, to identify anonymous online attackers, making redress rare. But from a more theoretical standpoint, it is difficult to replace, with currency or any other kind of “old” property, the reputational property they have lost.Reputation as Property in Virtual Economies by Joseph Blocher (Thanks, Kyle!) Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 6:07 am RPG monsters designed by fifth gradersTrask sez, "Arc Publishing used a class of 5th graders to create monsters for their role-playing game, "Monsters and Other Childish Things." There is a contest to give game attributes to the monsters and the best submission wins free artwork."Explore the Monsters (Thanks, Trask!) Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 5:57 am Kisai Keisan: Tokyoflash's bulbous LED watch Tokyoflash, purveyors of fine eye-candy for your wrist, has hit another homerun with their latest LED watch, the Kisai Keisan, which uses long convex lenses to diffuse the LEDs underneath, producing a striking effect. And lest you fear that this watch is uncharacteristically simple to read, fear not: "Simply touch the button and digits will appear in four vertical lines. Add the digits in each vertical line to read the time. The date is displayed in the same way after the time. The time and date can be accelerated by pressing button A again."
Previously:
Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 5:54 am Acer rolls out a new 23-inch monitorSection: Video, HDTV, Computers, Desktops
With the New Year in full swing and CES having wrapped up, the gadget industry is exploding with new items. This one comes from Acer in the form of a new 23-inch widescreen monitor aimed at home computer users. This release is shortly after Acer released two new LCD monitors geared for business users. The new Acer H233H 23-inch widescreen high-definition LCD display offers some nice features at an affordable price. Standout features include HD support with a 16:9 aspect ratio and a 1920x1080 resolution and two stereo speakers. The display also features SensorTouch technology, a touch-sensing solution. This clean-lined, non-flashy monitor has focused much of the attention on the display quality as opposed to trying to create a work of art. The Acer H233H comes complete with 1 HDMI, 1 DVI (HDCP), 1 VGA Input, Vesa 100MM Wall Mount, and is Energy Star compliant. Source: Press Release Full Story » | Written by Eric Brown for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 5:32 am Sandbridge Announces Certified BDTI Communications Benchmark (OFDM)(TM) Results for Its Sandblaster(R) SB3500TARRYTOWN, N.Y., Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Sandbridge Technologies, a leading fabless semiconductor company developing multimode baseband/multimedia processors for low-cost advanced mobile devices, announced today that Berkeley Design Technology, Inc.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 5:10 am Tech Publisher O'Reilly Slashes JobsAn anonymous reader writes "According to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, geeky tech publisher O'Reilly Media has slashed 14% of its workforce, or 31 people. Founder and tech pundit Tim O'Reilly comments on the layoffs by exhorting people to 'get more with less.' According to the article, 'Just this week... both tech giant Google and book retailer Barnes & Noble announced their first layoffs ever. Other publishing houses, including HarperCollins, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Random House, and Simon & Schuster have frozen salaries or cut jobs, or both.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 4:41 am Get rid of cables with wireless HD from MonsterSection: Video, Accessories, HDTV, Trade Shows, CES
Monster is closing in on the Holy Grail of HDTV, wireless distribution. And while their new distribution product isn’t wireless, it does allow you to stream HD throughout the house without running new wires, assuming your home is already wired for cable TV. The Wireless Digital Express HD from Monster, introduced at CES, consists of a transmitter and receiver that connect and transfer 1080p signals across the existing coax cable in the wall. Based on the idea of powerline distribution of data, the transmissions can travel 330 ft from any HD source. Inputs consist of two HDMI ports, two component, one composite video/S-video with audio, optical digital and coax digital. Outputs are coax digital, optical digital F-connector for coax, and three IR emitters. There is even a wireless solution for that wall mounted HDTV. The RX-1 receiver integrates into any Monster wall mount, continuing their theme of “no new wires.” No word yet on a release date, but look for it in the next few months. The price? $999 for the whole set. Read [Monster Press Release] Full Story » | Written by Chris Shore for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 4:23 am Today on Offworld Today on Offworld we watched: chiptune artist Leeni and her 8-bit pixel-kabuki video 'Underworld', someone beat Marble Madness in 2:30 with a peculiar flailing-palm technique while another performs feats of Tetris magic, and, while we were hanging around there anyway, played a round of YouTube Street Fighter.
We also saw fantastic Metroid, Zelda and Rock Band DIY jewelry, fantastic Swiss design-inspired remakes of classic game covers and a Left 4 Dead remake of a classic Beatles t-shirt, as well as the Game Boy's Super Mario Land etched on the case of an Eee PC.
Finally, we got word of new iPhone games coming from Rolando and Dr. Awesome publisher ngmoco, as well as a "Lemmings meets The Lost Vikings" superhero iPhone game from indie devs Infinite Ammo, and lost far too much of the day trying an online demo of the sci-fi followup to cult hit Puzzle Quest, Galactrix.Source: Boing Boing | 20 Jan 2009 | 4:16 am Pixsy Helps Publishers Monetize Video Embeds With ‘Premium Feed’
Pixsy, a company that specializes in licensing its image and video search platform to other businesses, has launched a new product called “Premium Feed” that allows publishers to embed clips that can be easily monetized into their sites. While there are a number of search engines that offer free video clips for embedding, it can be difficult for publishers to monetize these. Using Pixsy’s Premium Feed, publishers can search through video content that already has ads embedded (either as pre-rolls or overlays). Whenever they embed these clips into their websites, they will get a share of the revenues (the actual percentage varies depending on the publisher). All publishers looking to participate in the program have to go through Pixsy’s approval process, but CEO Chase Norlin says it takes as little as a week for new publishers to qualify. Norlin says that the Pixsy catalog now includes over 2 million clips in its Premium Feed, about half of which come from user generated content. To monetize this user generated content, Pixsy has partnered with a third-party company to perform image and audio transcription which can then be used to embed relevant AdSense Ads. The remaining portion of the Premium Feed comes from ‘professionally generated video’ - content providers who have already included advertising in their clips and are looking for a means to syndicate them. At launch Pixsy’s Premium Feed partners include Cooliris, a 3D-media browser plugin, as well as Ego TV.
Crunch Network: MobileCrunch Mobile Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily. Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 4:09 am Today on OffworldToday on Offworld we watched: chiptune artist Leeni and her 8-bit pixel-kabuki video 'Underworld', someone beat Marble Madness in 2:30 with a peculiar flailing-palm technique while another performs feats of Tetris magic, and, while we were hanging around there anyway, played a round of YouTube Street Fighter.
We also saw fantastic Metroid, Zelda and Rock Band DIY jewelry, fantastic Swiss design-inspired remakes of classic game covers and a Left 4 Dead remake of a classic Beatles t-shirt, as well as the Game Boy's Super Mario Land etched on the case of an Eee PC. Finally, we got word of new iPhone games coming from Rolando and Dr. Awesome publisher ngmoco, as well as a "Lemmings meets The Lost Vikings" superhero iPhone game from indie devs Infinite Ammo, and lost far too much of the day trying an online demo of the sci-fi followup to cult hit Puzzle Quest, Galactrix. Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 20 Jan 2009 | 4:04 am IBM Acquires Stake in China's Largest TV Maker (PC World)PC World - IBM's Chinese subsidiary last week acquired a stake worth US$15.8 million in Chinese television set maker Changhong Electric, according to a company filing at the Shanghai Stock Exchange.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 4:00 am New music services wow cellphone users (AFP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 20 Jan 2009 | 3:13 am Get surround sound without wiresSection: Audio, Home Audio, Trade Shows, CES
Jumping on the wireless bandwagon at CES, Acoustic Research announced their new Modular Wireless Speaker Conversion line. These modules allow you to turn any 5.1 or smaller speaker system into a wireless application. To solve the common problem with wireless speakers where the signal bounces off of objects in the room creating a lag in one or more speakers, Audiovox has developed what it calls “Diversity antennas” which uses error correction to ensure interference doesn’t disrupt the signals. Each of the six channels provides 16 bit audio at 60 digital watts. With each channel able to provide signals to six different speakers, the Modular Wireless Speaker Conversion system could be used as a whole house audio device, though there are better options. The 5.1 system starts at $600 and the two speaker set will go for $250 with add on modules also available. Like most products at CES, no official word on when these will be released. Company Site: [Acoustic Research] Full Story » | Written by Chris Shore for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 3:10 am Frost & Sullivan Finds Attractive Investment Opportunities in Chinese Test & Measurement MarketSINGAPORE, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The Chinese Test & Measurement industry has showed tremendous growth potential reflected not only in terms of revenue but also in technological advancements.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 3:06 am Yammer Raises $5 Million For Workgroup Micro-Messaging
Fifty thousand dollars will only go so far. As the winner of last year’s TechCrunch50, that’s how much workgroup micro-messaging service Yammer received in prize money. But Yammer has now raised a $5 million series A financing from the Founders Fund and Charles River Ventures, according to founder David Sacks. Yammer is a spinoff from genealogy site Geni, which also just received another $5 million from the same investors in a series C financing. The Founders Fund is a $220 million seed fund whose partners are mostly former execs from PayPal, where Sacks himself was the COO. The A round should help Yammer make more inroads into companies big and small. Yammer is an enterprise version of Twitter that helps people in companies keep up with what everyone else is doing. It works especially well with far-flung employees (we use it every day at TechCrunch). But many competitors have already sprung up, including Present.ly and WizeHive. And Twitter itself could easily move into the enterprise market simply by launching a groups feature, as it has done in Japan. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 3:00 am Visualizing Complex Data Sets?markmcb writes "A year ago my company began using SAP as its ERP system, and there is still a great deal of focus on cleaning up the 'master data' that ultimately drives everything the system does. The issue we face is that the master data set is gigantic and not easy to wrap one's mind around. As powerful as SAP is, I find it does little to aid with useful visualization of data. I recently employed a custom solution using Ruby and Graphviz to help build graphs of master data flow from manual extracts, but I'm wondering what other people are doing to get similar results. Have you found good out-of-the-box solutions in things like data warehouses, or is this just one of those situations where customization has to fill a gap?"Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:44 am Ustream’s Live Viewing App Hits iPhone App Store
…as long as you have a wifi connection that is. The application requires an open wifi connection to show video, but it works very well. Audio is solid, picture quality is good but with a low frame rate. And users can both read and leave comments in the chat stream. Get it here (iTunes link). We eagerly await the fraternal twin Ustream app that will let users broadcast their own video from the device as well. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors Source: TechCrunch | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:39 am Certicom granted permanent injunction restraining RIM take-over bidMISSISSAUGA, ON, Jan. 19, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Certicom Corp.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:25 am New feature allows you more control over Google search results
Google is making some adjustments to its search engine in order to further obliterate the competition. The new feature, Preferred Sites, will allow users to give their preferences in order to have their search results match their tastes. For example, if you know that you rely on Gadgetell for all the latest technology news and reviews, you can add them as a preferred site to Google. Once you add in preferred websites, you’ll find the label “My preferred site” at the bottom of your search results. Preferred Sites is simple to use and only requires a Google account. You must first sign in to your Google account and then edit your preferences through the Google preferences page. You can manually add sites or take one of the suggestions provided by Google. The feature also has a remove option if you want to change your preferred sites. The Preferred Sites feature is still in the experimental stages, so Google is inviting users to provide them with feedback in order to better improve the feature. Read [Google] Full Story » | Written by Heather Wood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 2:17 am Appletell reviews AirDrives headphones for iPhoneFROM APPLETELL - Headphones are dangerous. Your ears are more delicate than you’d like to admit, and in-ear headphones aren’t doing anything to help the problem. AirDrives for iPhone are here to address the issue. MORE » Full Story » | Written by NEWS for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 20 Jan 2009 | 1:14 am First Earth-Sized Exoplanet May Have Been FoundAdam Korbitz writes "New Scientist is reporting the extrasolar planet MOA-2007-BLG-192Lb — whose discovery was announced just last summer — may actually be the first truly Earth-sized exoplanet to be identified. A new analysis suggests the planet weighs less than half the original estimate of 3.3 Earth masses; the new estimate pegs the planet's size at 1.4 Earth masses. The planet orbits a small red dwarf star, some 3,000 light-years from here, at an orbital distance of 0.62 astronomical units, about the same distance as Venus from our sun. One significance of the planet's discovery is that it points to the probable ubiquity of smaller terrestrial planets in somewhat Earth-like orbits around red dwarf stars, the oldest and most numerous stars in the galaxy. Here is a video report from the discoverers."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 20 Jan 2009 | 12:48 am Building Linux Applications With JavaScriptcrankymonkey writes "The GNOME desktop environment could soon gain support for building and extending applications with JavaScript thanks to an experimental new project called Seed. Ars Technica has written a detailed tutorial about Seed with several code examples. The article demonstrates how to make a GTK+ application for Linux with JavaScript and explains how Seed could influence the future of GNOME development. In some ways, it's an evolution of the strategy that was pioneered long ago by GNU with embedded Scheme. Ars Technica concludes: 'The availability of a desktop-wide embeddable scripting language for application extension and plugin writing will enable users to add lots of rich new functionality to the environment. As this technology matures and it becomes more tightly integrated with other language frameworks such as Vala, it could change the way that GNOME programmers approach application development. JavaScript could be used as high-level glue for user interface manipulation and rapid prototyping while Vala or C are used for performance-sensitive tasks.'"Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 19 Jan 2009 | 11:59 pm GoodGuide And Geni Land New Funding
PEHub has reported a handful of new unannounced funding rounds based on recent SEC filings. Included among them are ancestry site Geni, which raised $5 million in Series C funding with investors including Charles River Ventures and Founders Fund. Geni’s team, which includes former PayPal exec David Sacks, is also behind TechCrunch50 winner Yammer, a Twitter-like service for businesses. We’ve reached out to Geni to confirm the news and will update this post once we do. Update: Sacks has confirmed that Geni raised the $5 million round, and has also told us that Yammer has raised a $5 million Series A round. Also included in the report is GoodGuide’s Series A round of $3.73 million with investors including Draper Fisher Jurvetson and New Enterprise Associates. GoodGuide, another TechCrunch50 company, is building a database of consumer products that gauges how ‘good’ they are with respect to safety, the environment, and the community. The news was confirmed by VentureBeat. Other investments reported include a $6 million round for Return Path with investors including Union Square Ventures, Mobius Venture Capital, Sutter Hill Ventures and Western Technology Investments. For more, check out the PEHub story. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors Source: TechCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 11:09 pm Twingly Launches Microblogging Search Engine
Swedish search engine Twingly is launching just that - a new microblogging search tool - today. Use it to search a variety of sites - Twitter, Jaiku, Identi.ca, Bleeper.de, Bloggy.se and Pownce archives (since the service is now dead). They’re calling it the worlds first federated microblog search. This is a one stop shop to do searches across multiple microblogging sites at once, not just Twitter or other individual services via their own search products. Friendfeed integration is “on the way” says CEO Martin Källström. Users can also create keyword alerts accessed via RSS or email. We previously covered Twingly a year ago when they previewed a Europe-focused blog search engine. The company has raised €1 million in funding. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0 Source: TechCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 11:06 pm EC Considering Removing Internet Explorer From WindowsItsabouttime writes "In a preliminary ruling, the European Commission told Microsoft that linking Internet Explorer to its dominant Windows operating system violates EC rules. The EC's ruling was triggered by a complaint from IE rival Opera. Microsoft could seek to offer a Windows version without IE, as it did in the EC's 2004 ruling on Windows Media Player."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 19 Jan 2009 | 11:04 pm Exar Corporation's Fiscal 2009 Third Quarter Financial Results Conference Call ScheduledFREMONT, Calif., Jan. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Exar Corporation (Nasdaq: EXAR) will hold its fiscal 2009 third quarter financial results conference call on January 29, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. PST/4:30 p.m. EST.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 19 Jan 2009 | 10:54 pm RIM’s BlackBerry Application Storefront now accepting submissions
“Bring us your innovative genius,” says RIM. The BlackBerry App store is slated for a spring launch (exact date has not been confirmed) and RIM announced today that they’ve sent notice to their developers to begin submitting applications. Let’s just hope the devs haven’t flown the coop in anticipation for Palm’s webOS. Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware. Source: MobileCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 10:44 pm The Day That WasSoundclip, a tiny plastic scoop to direct iPhone sound ($8) ⌁ An investor buys Republic Windows factory to build new efficient windowpanes ⌁ Acer's 10-inch netbook, shades of the Xbox 360 ⌁ AMD cut 1,100 staffers ⌁ "SkyBox", "SkyMarket" are Microsoft's rumored MobileMe, App Store equivalent for Windows Mobile ⌁ Hanging out with Alan Kay, god ⌁ Would Apple make a 15-inch MacBook Air? ⌁ Obama keeps his BlackBerry, but must use a monster for official business ⌁ Belkin employee was buying good reviews via Mechanical Turk ⌁ The next Puzzle Quest teased, playable online ⌁ For the first time, the Toyota Prius has a cash incentive ⌁ Ugly "Bone" is a better garage creeper ($200ish) ⌁ Crecente turns even parenting into pageviews with a LEGO Sonic ⌁ Kill-A-Watt + Twitter == Tweet-a-watt ⌁ There are those into retro batteries ⌁ Another Vaio P review, this time from Akihabara News ⌁ Speaker found in carton of milk ⌁ CrunchGear looking for an iPhone writer ⌁ Belkin paid for positive reviews. Aim high, Wasilla Xbox Craigslist seller
Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:54 pm Obaba, the "handsome black man face have a hidden camera" belt buckle
If I'm not mistaken, this is a spy camera hidden in a belt buckle that is supposed to be carved in the shape of Barack Obama in profile. It's a bit difficult to discern: it's called the "Obaba" buckle, for one, which might not be the same as "Obama"; then again, it is described as a "handsome black man face have a hidden camera". I think it's safe to say this is supposed to be our president. With a camera for a face. I can't actually find it in the Ajoka.com store where it is listed, which is a pity. As the worst bit of Obama-related junk I've seen so far, I sort of want to own it show my grandkids how stupid we were in the olden days, too. [via Red Ferret] Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:46 pm Descent Into Dumb iPhone Apps: Now You Can Have Your Own iGirl
It was inevitable that sooner or later someone would create a virtual girl that lonely men can download to their iPhones and call their own. Today, the iGirl app (iTunes link) from Resistor Productions debuted in the iTunes Store. After recently passing 15,000 apps and 500 million downloads, what’s left? The iGirl is a female avatar trapped in your iPhone. You can make her dance or shake, change her clothes, ethnicity, and even what language she speaks. (No, she doesn’t take her clothes off—this is Apple). The app doesn’t exactly rise to the level of a Tamagotchi experience (no virtual care or feeding required). It’s just a dumb app for guys that costs $1.99 a pop. I’m sure it will quickly become a best seller. If you want to save your money, you can watch a video demo here. Seems like it would get old after the second or third time. A much better app is Wobble, which lets you take a photo and make any body part wobble (NSFW video embedded below). The $0.99 app sold 3,420 copies its first two days in the App Store, according to its developer. Here are a couple iGirl screenshots:
And here’s the Wobble video (warning: video contains shaking-boobs effect).
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0 Source: TechCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:44 pm An hour with Tamagotchi Music Star Tamagotchi is back! Again! One came in the mail from Bandai. Here are my thoughts, bearing in mind that I have not played with one for 10 years.
1. They're are better games than they used to be. This latest iteration of the toy is themed on a rock career: raise your sprog and train it to sing or play instruments. There's a bunch of subgames of the sort children obsess over, but won't likely please anyone used to more sophisticated fare. It is, at least, much better than the original, which amounted to playing "Tapper with Turds" in very slow motion. 2. You can apparently link Tamas for vs. play. 3. You can also pause it. The originals lacked this facility, meaning that even a few hours distraction could result in your digital pet's death by starvation, or toxic shock from swimming in its own excrement. You know, as if there were some sort of child-rearing point to be made. 4. The display is still very low-tech, black-on-gray LCD as befits the watch battery that must power it. 5. It's cheap, tiny fun for kids 8 and up: good for shutting the little things up for a few hours without having to fork out for a Nintendo DS game. Product Page [Bandai USA] Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:33 pm 85% of people: “Them phones is too hard to use!”
Firstly, the interface was always just god-awful on the flip phones and candybars that I had, plus you couldn’t customize it beyond trading out a couple icons for your main screen. Second, it was never clear what would cost me money. Warnings popped up occasionally saying “this might cost extra!” or I’d find myself charged 45 cents for a PIX message later on. So I just gave up and used it as a phone, kind of like a huge amount of people out there.
Do you know of any phones that do that? I don’t! When I put mp3s onto my microSD card, my little Samsung sure didn’t ask “would you like to set one as a ringtone?” No. This “anticipation” of users he speaks of isn’t some processor-bound limitation. It’s a UI thing, and we could have had good UIs years ago, but carriers have been pushing us toward buying their crappy ringtones and sending expensive text messages for so long that they didn’t think of how to improve the user experience. It’s certainly one of the reasons the iPhone has become so successful, even though it employs many of the same restrictions: it feels like it’s doing what you want, not like it’s letting you pick from 3 options. Anyway, rant over. The poll sure shows how frustrated people are with phones these days, but the reasons for that frustration aren’t just by-the-by. They’ve been cultured for years and I don’t think anyone has asked a consumer once what would be better. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0 Source: MobileCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:30 pm Scientists say global warming realA wide range of Earth scientists say humans contribute significantly to global warming, suggests a poll conducted by the University of Illinois at Chicago. The poll should dispel doubts by some that a consensus about global warming exists among scientists, said Peter Doran, a University ofSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:23 pm The Light Fantastic
Author Terry Pratchett wears an experimental helmet that directs infrared bursts into his brain to promote cell growth in an attempt to halt the onset of Alzheimer's. [Daily Mail] Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:02 pm Snowmobiles compete for 'green' titleTeams of U.S.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 9:01 pm Traffic stopper name after squidA new device to stop fleeing drivers was modeled after and named for the ocean squid, says the U.S.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:59 pm Frogs At Risk Of Being ‘Eaten To Extinction’While reports of global warming, disease and a changing habitat endangering amphibians are familiar, conservationists are now warning that frogs might be in danger of being eaten to extinction.According to a report in New Scientist, gastronomic demand is reducing regional populations of amphibians to the point of no return.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:57 pm Why are things so heavy in the future? The only question: What took so long? [Flickr/Legohaulic via Brothers Brick]Source: Boing Boing Gadgets | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:56 pm University Of Leicester Joins Climate Change Study At Wildlife ParkImage Caption: Panorama view of Luvuvhu and Limpopo rivers at Crookes Corner in Pafuri triangle. Courtesy WikipediaSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:32 pm Wilkins Ice Shelf On Borrowed TimeA large ice shelf is near collapse in Antarctica, held together only by a small strip of ice as global warming continues to alter the map of the frozen continent."We've come to the Wilkins Ice Shelf to see its final death throes," glaciologist David Vaughan of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) told Reuters after his red Twin Otter plane landed near the shelf’s narrowest section."It really could go at any minute," he said, adding that the ice bridge could linger weeks or months.The large, flat-topped ice shelf extends 65 ft.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:15 pm Government Stops Illegal Logging In The CongoGovenrment officials said on Monday that logging must stop on nearly 13 million hectares of forest in the Democratic Republic of Congo, after a government review canceled nearly 60 percent of the vast country's timber contracts.The Congo is home to the second largest tropical forest in the world after the Amazon.A long-delayed review of 156 logging deals aimed at stamping out corruption in the sector and enforcing minimum legal and environmental standards has finally been completed, Reuters reported.The Congo Basin is suffering severe environmental damage due to logging, mining and land clearance for farming, which accounts for more than a quarter of the world's tropical forest, at a rate of over 800,000 hectares a year—an area roughly the size of Massachusetts.A panel of government ministers backed by the World Bank found that only 65 timber deals were viable.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:05 pm Cosmic dust forming around starBritish astronomers say cosmic dust was partially created by the gradual death of carbon stars and not just from stars that exploded. The astronomers have been watching cosmic dust form around a dying star in a nearby galaxy, similar to the primitive galaxies that formed soon after the big bang, said a release from the Science and Technology Facilities Council, which funded the study. The newly observed dust formation was found around the carbon star MAG 29, located 280,000 light years away in a small galaxy known as the Sculptor Dwarf. Cosmic dust is the building block for the formation of planets and life throughout the universe.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 8:02 pm Swiss Company Offers Paper HomesA Swiss company known as The Wall AG, has created a $5,000, 390 square foot modular home.This house is marketed towards third-world towns, for long-term refugees. The Universal World House can be transported and used almost anywhere. It is light, easily assembled, environmentally friendly, earthquake-proof and extremely cheap.The Universal World House is crafted out of a resin-soaked cellulose, made from recycled paper, shaped into honeycomb walls, which provide structural integrity and insulation for the home. It also comes outfitted for plumbing and boarding facilities of up to 8 residents.The home's inventor, Gerd Niemoeller, says that the paper house weighs just 1,763lb, which is lighter than a VW Golf. “Without the foundation block, the whole house actually weighs in at about 400kg,” says the design engineer.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 19 Jan 2009 | 7:29 pm Those Windows Mobile 6.5 screenshots might be real. Maybe. We still say that they look too crappy and fake to be real, but the same folks who broke the SkyBox/SkyLine/SkyMarket story this morning are saying that they’re at least partially legit. According to them, the shots (which first leaked out back in November) are conceptual images for Windows Mobile 6.5’s new “Honeycomb” theme. So it’s a concept shot for a work-in-progress? Sure, we’ll believe that. But next time, WinMo theme designers, it’s probably not a good idea to use icons from a competing company’s operating system (See the “Today” house icon, which is straight out of OS X.) We’ll see how much of these concepts make their way into the final products, presumably at Mobile World Congress next month. Crunch Network: TechCrunch obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies Source: MobileCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 6:20 pm Fashionable(?) wristband charges your phone
Get right outta town, I would actually use this. It’s a somewhat unassuming wristband (looks like it’s made of rubber) that serves double duty as an emergency charger for your small devices. Read the rest of this entry >> Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors Source: MobileCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 6:20 pm Microsoft to challenge MobileMe and App Store next month?
Mobile World Congress is still almost a month away, and the rumors of who’s doing what are already starting to heat up. According to Neowin, Microsoft is prepping a series of “Sky” branded products purposed with taking on Apple’s MobileMe and App Store offerings. SkyBox: Over-the-air syncing of contacts, SMS, email, calendar items, and pictures. SkyLine: The enterprise version of SkyBox, presumably with group device administration and the like. SkyMarket: There are many thousands of applications for Windows Mobile - but finding them is a pain. SkyMarket is purportedly Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s App Store, Google’s Android Market, and the countless other on-device application distribution centers that have sprung up in the last year. Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware. Source: MobileCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 5:44 pm The G1 to land in more European countries on the wings of a lie
T-Mobile is set to bring the G1 to more even more counties. Germany and Poland will be the first counties outside of the US and England to receive the Android-based phone with a launch of February 2nd, 2009. Eventually though, Netherlands, Czech Republic and Austria will all have the phone from the region’s T-Mobile branch. Pricing for every region, except Germany, haven’t been announced yet. Germans, however, will be able to pick up the G1 for 1 Euro with a two year contract. All of this is pretty mundane expect for a statement from T-Mobile’s Chief Executive Hamid Akhavan. Click through for the utter lie.
WHAT?!?! The most successful phone ever? What? ROFL. Erroneous, my friends. Erroneous. It is widely known that iPhone is the most successful phone after dethroning the Motorola RAZR. In fact, I have only seen one G1 in the hands of a non-gadget blogger. Ever. Granted, T-Mobile probably had a great G1 launch thanks in part to the tech blogging crowd, but until some solid numbers are produced that prove the G1 is “the most success phone ever sold in the United States,” I will call Mr. Hamid Akhavan a big, fat liar. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0 Source: MobileCrunch | 19 Jan 2009 | 4:54 pm
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A MacRumors forums poster recently found a curious right-click menu item in the Mac version of Google’s Picasa. As pictured, under the “Move to Collection” header is a selection entitled “Google Web Drive.“ It may well have been Google who had kickstarted the realm of Internet storage when they launched Gmail back in 2004. This, for the first time, proved that a mass amount (1GB was very big at the time) of data could be stored online. Gmail users have been begging for a way to use the service to hoard their files, and numerous third party solutions have even been created.
If you’re looking to round out your Blu-ray collection, you could do much worse than the six-disc Band of Brothers series for the low, low price of 
Toshiba in Japan plans to upgrade their 8.9-inch NB-100 netbook, which is also available in the US and Europe, starting this month. The company has developed 
It’s been nearly 8 years since the U.S. Department of Justice agreed to dissolve 
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Yahoo needs all the revenue help it can get these days, which is why it’s odd that subsidiary Flickr hasn’t been serving ads properly for a day or so and apparently no one at the company has noticed. A reader writes in to point out that if you click on any of the ads that appear on the site when you do a search (try 
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