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Grey Wolf Taken Off Endangered ListAfter a comeback the grey wolf is no longer endangered and can be hunted in most states.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 7:45 pm Dr Pepper Artifact Points to Original FormulaAn old drugstore ledger now up for auction has a recipe for "D Peppers Pepsin Bitters."Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 6:25 pm BLOG: Larks vs. OwlsA brain study reveals differences between morning and evening types.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 6:05 pm Rome's 'Talking Statues' Get SanitizedStatues that have served as platforms for satirical Romans for centuries get a clean up.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 5:25 pm Swine Flu-Bound Mexicans Turn to WebMexicans start to tire of the virtual world amid a long swine flu-induced isolation.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 3:15 pm Supercontinent Set Stage for Worst ExtinctionErosion flowing off Pangea may choked seas and set the stage for mass extinction.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 2:00 pm Lizards Sunbathe for Vitamin DLizards and chameleons bask in the sun to stock up on vitamin D.Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 5 May 2009 | 1:13 pm The Shape of Things to Come, According to... YouEditor's note: we offer our long-term sponsors the opportunity to write 'Sponsor Posts' and tell their story. These posts are clearly marked as written by sponsors, but we also want them to be useful and...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 1:00 pm Mouse-Controlled PSP Proves That No Two Devices Are Safe From Forced Mating [Mods]This video show that, with enough hacking, you can control PSP games with a mouse. Incidentally, it also shows that you probably don't want to. [PSPFreak via NowhereElse]Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 12:40 pm Bell Helicopter Chooses Axiomatics for Entitlement ManagementKISTA, Sweden, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Axiomatics, the leading independent XACML authorization solution supplier, has been awarded a contract to deliver a new integrated...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:31 pm Mediacom Communications, Synacor Partner to Deliver Broadband Portal and Value-Added ServicesBUFFALO, N.Y., May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- href="http://www.synacor.com/">Synacor , a leader in enabling cross-platform delivery of content and services, announced today that it...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Encore to Release Still Life 2 - Sequel to Still LifeFollowing the worldwide success of Still Life, Encore is scheduled to release the hugely...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm RADWIN's Wireless Broadband Systems Deployed by Oil & Gas Company in RussiaRADWIN's Systems Connect Sites in Siberia; Operate in Extreme -45 Degree Temp and nLOS Conditions TEL AVIV, Israel, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- RADWIN (Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Spare Backup Signs Distribution Agreement with Griffith & Associates to Target the Financial IndustryGriffith to Market Spare's Business Data Migration and Backup Solutions PALM DESERT, Calif., May 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Spare Backup, Inc. (OTC Bulletin...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Kognitio Celebrates 20 Years of WX2 Data Warehousing PlatformContinuously Evolving Platform Has Paved the Way for Hardware-Agnostic Data Warehousing and Data Warehousing as a Service (DaaS) Since 1989 CHICAGO, May 5...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Panasonic's LivingInHD.com Adds Online Expertise to Demystify High Definition TechnologySite's Interactive New Features Help Novices and Experts Create, Use and Share HD Content LivingInHD.com Provides Useful Resource for Consumers as Digital...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm The Open Group Continues Global Expansion With New Franchise in ChinaChinese Enterprise Software Leader Kingdee will Provide Localized Access to The Open Group's Membership Products and TOGAF(TM) Services throughout China SAN...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Netflix Promotes Andrew Rendich to New Position of Chief Service and DVD Operations OfficerLOS GATOS, Calif., May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Netflix, Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX), the world's largest online movie rental service, today announced the promotion of Andrew Rendich to...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Altair Semiconductor Announces LTE Product RoadmapComprehensive LTE baseband and RF transceiver chipsets to be available in 2009 HOD HASHARON, Israel, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Altair Semiconductor, a fabless chip...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:30 pm Dareway: Unsafe at any speed
Spin around wildly! Fall off! Cause brain damage! You don’t have to be the Woz to have your own Segway knock off. This odd device - made for kids - lets you move forwards and back and even in circles. Has anyone seen these in real life? It looks really old but this is the first I’ve heard of it.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 12:20 pm Media Execs Get A Little Less Grouchy: Are Ads Creeping Back? [MediaMemo]
So says ad-tracking firm TNS Media Intelligence, which pegs the slump at 9.2 percent for the last three months of the year, compared to an overall drop of 4.1 percent for all of 2008. I’m sure that someone, somewhere, will get some benefit from knowing exactly how terrible the ad market was several months ago — we also know, for the record, that they were very bad during the first three months of 2009. But every media person I talk to is consumed with the state of the market right now — and what it might look like 6 months from now. The good news: Some of the people I’ve talked to recently actually have good news to report. Or at least, good news as measured by the standards of the “down 6 percent — or 20 percent — is the new flat” era. For instance, execs at big Internet publishers tell me they think the decline in display ad spending may have bottomed out at last quarter, which would bode well for restructuring efforts at wounded giants like Yahoo (YHOO) and Time Warner’s AOL (TWX). Cable executives are even more bullish, and some of them, like Viacom (VIA)CEO Philippe Daumuan, will even say so in public: “Signs over the last weeks have been encouraging,” he ventured during the company’s earnings call on Friday. Let’s be clear: Viacom’s US ad revenue dropped 9% in the last quarter. So “encouraging signs” doesn’t mean “roaring growth.” And some moribund industries, like the magazine business, are still moribund. And even this faint optimism may be nothing more than delusion fueled by the stock market’s recent run, or the hopes pegged to the notion that people have to start buying cars again, some day. Assuming the recession/depression lasts for another year or so, you can expect the ad market to really recover a good six months after that, since ads are a trailing indicator. But they do have to come back, some day. Right? Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 12:17 pm The Onion Bashes New Star Trek Movie for Being 'Fun, Watchable' [Space]We loved the new Star Trek movie, but as the Onion points out, many geeks won't. "If I wanted to see young, attractive people doing cool, exciting things, I'd go watch sports." It's hilarious. [ONN]...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 12:17 pm Review: `Patapon 2' leads parade of rhythm games (AP)AP - Thanks to "Dance Dance Revolution," "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band," music games have become an increasingly popular part of the video-game universe. But you don't need a plastic floor mat or a phony guitar to get your groove on.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 12:15 pm Blackberry takes the lead…for nowFROM APPLETELL - The numbers are in, and it looks like Apple has some serious competition for that top spot in the smart-phone market. The first quarter of 2009 (Jan - Mar) has seen the Blackberry Curve steal the top position from the iPhone 3G. Full Story » | Written by NEWS for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 5 May 2009 | 12:14 pm blackberry Flourishes In Expanding Smartphone Market - RedOrbit
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 12:09 pm First Look At Windows 7 On an Entry-Level Netbookdavidmwilliams sends in his IT Wire review of how Windows 7RC1 performs on an Acer Aspire One netbook. Summing up: it runs, it won't win any speed competitions, you won't want to play Crysis on it, and it's pretty OK for light-duty, everyday tasks. In related news, several readers have noted that Windows 7 RC1 is now available; one anonymous reader notes "This time, Microsoft was smart not to limit the time that it's available or the number of keys. It will be up for download until July, so there's lots of time to grab a copy."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 5 May 2009 | 12:08 pm Watchclocks: Studies in behavioral control
As you moved through the building carrying the clock you would have to fit each key into the watchclock. The clock then noted the time and location of each winding, ensuring that the watchman didn’t just bugger off and drink whiskey. From a mechanical perspective, it’s a pretty cool system. From a UI nerd perspective, its an example of a rails shooter or a “behavioral control:”
I’m going to get a kit put into my house so I can make the rounds between our two bathrooms during the day.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 12:02 pm Photos, details leaked on new Kindle - CNET News
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 12:01 pm OhGizmo Review: Eye-Fi Explore VideoAs we’ve mentioned to you before, the Eye-Fi card is really a pretty brilliant idea. Digital cameras are neat little gadgets, but getting all your awesome pics from your camera to the computer and...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 12:00 pm Windows 7 RC Released to the Masses - TrustedReviews
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 11:59 am CrunchDeals: 20% off a weird watch for Momma’s Day
To take advantage of the deal, just enter coupon code “LADYWATCHISMO” during checkout. You know mom will appreciate the fact that you’re frugal, and you bought her that Nixon Rayna.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 11:51 am Video: Maus fur der PSPSome German guy attached a PS2 mouse to a PSP and played Coded Arms.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 11:44 am New version of iTunes will control the PR0N apps The new version of the iPhone firmware and the new version of iTunes will include parental controls that allow Mom and Dad to restrict application content on the iPhone. Sadly, you can be absolutely certain that the average kid will be able crack these restrictions, but hey, Apple is trying.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 11:35 am New version of iTunes will control the PR0N apps
The new version of the iPhone firmware and the new version of iTunes will include parental controls that allow Mom and Dad to restrict application content on the iPhone. Sadly, you can be absolutely certain that the average kid will be able crack these restrictions, but hey, Apple is trying. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors
Source: MobileCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 11:34 am Fake Wooden Mac Netbook Causes Blog Cat-Fight
Snap! MacRumors got burned by this “9.5” Mac Netbook” when it didn’t bother reading the small print, and then came back with a rather bitchy retort. First, the truth. This is not a Mac Netbook. It’s not even a real computer. It is in fact a handmade, carved wood MacBook, complete with pencil details drawn onto the screen and shell, lovingly crafted by Kyle Buckner. It is quite fantastic, and clearly real-looking enough to fool the Mac Rumors folks, despite the rather tongue in cheek teaser posted by the Cult of Mac. Under the headline “Is THIS the New Apple Netbook???”, Lonnie Lazar wrote the following:
Mac Rumors then picked it up and responded thusly:
Then, when Cult of Mac posted the full gallery and explanation after having a little fun, Mac Rumors got all bent out of shape:
Mee-oow! Despite the cat fight, we’re sure everyone has made up now. As for the model itself? Gorgeous. In fact, I’d love a custom OS X pencil-drawn theme to run on my Wind Hackintosh. Possible Photo of 9.5” Mac Netbook? [Mac Rumors] Is THIS the New Apple Netbook??? [Cult of Mac] MacBook Art Project is a Labor of Love [Cult of Mac]
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 5 May 2009 | 11:33 am RIM CEO Confirms Storm 2 In the Vaguest Way He Can [Rim]RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie confirmed to Reuters that the company is planning a "next-generation" touch device, and that the original Storm was a "huge success." Well, at least "in terms of sales and...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 11:30 am Fallout 3: Broken Steel DLC released on Xbox 360 - Product Reviews
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 11:24 am Researchers take over botnet, grab 56,000 passwords an hour
Researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara, have published a report after taking over a massive botnet called Torpig aka Sinowal. The malware network was able to collect 56,000 passwords and hour as well as 70GB of financial and personal data. The researchers found that most users reused passwords for multiple sites and that the malware was able to steal credit card numbers and bank logins. They were able to control the system for ten days before the malware was updated. To crack the malware, the researchers noticed that the program would search for domains to attack. Sometimes the domains would be unregistered and the researchers registered those domains and masqueraded as a control node.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 11:22 am Windows 7 Release Candidate 1 now available for public downloadSection: Computers, Software / Applications  As expected, Windows 7 Release Candidate 1 has been made available to the public. What that means is anyone who may be interested is able to download, install and run Windows 7 and this version will not expire until June 1, 2010. That means you will get to use and run Windows free for a little over a year. A few things to keep in mind; while this version will not officially expire until June 1, 2010, Microsoft has added an annoyance that will begin as of March 1, 2010. According to the notes from Microsoft;
In other words, if you decide to install and run Windows 7 you may want to be prepared to install something else come March 1, 2010. Otherwise, it is free to use and enjoy, err I mean test. Also, keep in mind that when this trial period is over, you will have to reinstall another operating system (even another Windows 7) because you will not be able to upgrade past the RC. Finally, you don’t have to worry about not getting to that download first thing because unlike the previous beta that was limited and lots of people missed out on, this RC 1 version will be available for download through July 2009 and Microsoft will not be “limiting the number of product keys.” Sounds good, my install has already begun and will be hopefully be installed on my Eee PC a little later today. Go, get your download, why are you still reading this? Download [Windows 7] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 5 May 2009 | 11:09 am Ignore the Twitter Buyout Rumors: Here’s the Facts in Five Beyoncé-Madonna-Approved Steps [BoomTown]
Was it more than a month ago that the Google was rumored to be in “late-stage negotiations to acquire Twitter”? Not so much late-stage, I guess, with a gestation period that seems interminable (and BoomTown has been there, so can speak from experience about interminable pregnancies). In fact, I’m still waiting for the Google (GOOG) takeover news floated inaccurately back then to cross our desk at All Things Digital HQ, although it’s more likely Godot will show up first. So, I guess it should come as no surprise that it was time to fob yet another rumor that yet another moneybags of a company–this time, Apple (AAPL)–in “late-stage negotiations to buy Twitter.” You could set your broken-but-right-twice-a-day clock by it, in fact. But despite very serious interest in Twitter by every company that can afford considering such a thing, getting across that late-stage line would require major investors in the microblogging service to be involved and they are not as yet. In fact, both Twitter Co-founders Evan Williams and Biz Stone are in New York today to attend the 2009 “Time 100″ dinner, which fetes this year’s influential people honorees selected by the magazine. Which they are. So, if they are in serious talks with Apple, they better grab that award and head on home tout de suite. In point of fact, talks with Facebook last year were actually the only truly deep sale discussions that Twitter has been involved in and those went south. Oh, the very notion of Apple and Twitter is a Techmeme dream-ticket, sure to be chewed over for days on end. (I once considered doing a post that just said “AppleTwitterAppleTwitterAppleTwitter….” for 1,000 words to see how much idiotic traffic I would get.) But given it is too good to be true for now, rather than be on the edge of your seat about all these endless, alleged late-stage hijinks, here is a five-step list to cut out and keep when the rumors of “late-stage negotiations” with Microsoft (MSFT), News Corp. (NWS), Verizon (VZ), Yahoo (YHOO), Time Warner (TWX) online unit AOL, Comcast (CMCSA), Cisco (CSCO) and more inevitably show up next.
1.) Belle of the Geek Ball Everyone is indeed actually interested in buying Twitter and have each expressed a proper level of interest to the company’s execs–most especially, the over-contacted CEO Williams–about said interest. And, because this is America, a bid for Twitter could come at any time and in any amount. That’s why Apple has indeed said hello. Why Microsoft’s business development team has been busy formulating a valuation. Why Google’s M&A guy, David Lawee has called into its HQ many times with kind expressions of desire. And why News Corp. execs, including Rupert Murdoch himself, have murmured tweet nothings to the Twitter team. Please note: This is not the same thing as “late-stage negotiations.” Not at all, so don’t believe such things, as you will see this one coming down the pike for miles (see Step #4 below). If there ever were an Apple deal to be done, it would not be living in some tidy vacuum. For example, does one imagine Google CEO Eric Schmidt–who is on the Apple board, much to the FTC’s chagrin, it seems–would decline to enter the fray? Oh, he’d be up to his conflicted eyebrows in it at this point. (Full disclosure: ATD is also considering making a bid for Twitter, but only if I get to name who is called Chief Twit.) 2.) We Feel Pretty, Oh So Pretty Twitter’s Williams, as well as Stone, do not really want to sell just yet, given the huge traffic over the last year, goosed even further by the whole Oprah-Ashton Kutcher axis of Tweetvil. Twitter is growing and growing and growing. Does that mean it has peaked or is just crossing over into the mainstream? I would say the latter and so would its investors and execs. I have done a lot of reporting and have found that most of them would like a chance to ride this rocket ship and see if they can prevent it from being a shooting star, by figuring out some viable, innovative and lucrative business plan. “Twitter really could make a lot of money,” said one investor. “And we are not just making that up either.” Well, phew, because I have been a little worried about that.
3.) We’re Living in a Material World, and I Am a Material Girl That said, as Madonna sings, a pile of cash is a pile of cash and if anyone of the suitors makes a big move with $600 million or more in cash, it would be hard for Twitter to completely ignore such an offering. But, in any case, there will be no late-stage negotiations with one player. Instead, an epic free-for-all wrestling match to the death would break out among all of them, most especially Google and Microsoft. This will be great for me and all the other tech writers, as it will be ugly, competitive and tailor-made for breathless reporting. Google is the likely winner here, although Microsoft is quite intent of the possibilities of integrating Twitter technology with its business offerings too. Someone will, I can predict with certainty, lose an eye.
4.) All the Single Ladies…Cuz if You Liked It, Then You Should Have Put a Ring on It And, even with that kind of offer–which I would take in a New York minute, as would some Twitter investors–there is a sense when you talk to its founders and investors that they truly believe they are onto some very important interactive communications paradigm shift in the Internet arena with their start-up. I would have to agree, given that the real-time and status update concepts that Twitter has perfectly touched on is a very important one. Thus, Twitter would prefer to remain independent for now. Whether Twitter will prevail or not is never assured, but it would be really a shame if it gave up before the story was over.
5.) And They Lived Happily Ever After Let’s be honest: There is no real downside here for Twitter. If it turns out to be be a flash in the pan and it is not sold for big bucks, Twitter still has heralded in a very important new era in the digital industry. And, if it grows like crazy even more, better still. Also, Stone got to go on “The Colbert Report” and Williams on Oprah. Best of all, in a shameless plug, they will both be captive on stage with Walt Mossberg and I at the seventh D: All Things Digital conference in exactly three weeks today, where we can ask them about all this and more. So, I am thrilled too. Who says there are no happy endings? Until that D7 interview, here is my recent video one with Williams and Stone at Twitter’s funky San Francisco HQ:
Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 11:00 am Photos: Amazing X-Rayed Games Consoles
X-ray technician and Flickr member Reintji has combined his passions into a rather splendid peek inside the workings of game consoles. Presumably sliding the hardware into the x-ray machine between fracture victims, he offers a glimpse inside the old and the new, from NES to XBox 360. While the consoles themselves are moderately interesting, they’re all pretty similar — square boxes with a bunch of chips inside. The controllers, though, are where this ongoing project shines. The various joypads are instantly recognizable through their silhouettes and this makes the internal gubbins all the more fascinating. Above we have the iconic NES controller alongside the rather more complex N64 controller (to me the best controller ever made). Head to Reintji’s FLickr gallery to see the big versions, including the NES Zapper gun. X-Ray Funnies [Flickr via Geekologie]
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 5 May 2009 | 11:00 am Obama's tax plans raises high-tech hackles (AP)AP - President Barack Obama's plan to impose U.S. taxes on corporate America's overseas profits threatens to open a big crater in the financial statements of technology companies.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 10:57 am Time to Give Up That Apple Board Seat, Eric [Digital Daily]
He had a good run of it, but Google (GOOG) CEO Eric Schmidt’s stint as an Apple (AAPL) director may be coming to an end. Now that the Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether the close ties between Apple’s and Google’s boards of directors violates antitrust laws, Schmidt’s seat on the former’s board, which he’s held since August of 2006 seems more trouble than its worth. People briefed on the matter tell the New York Times that the FTC is concerned that Schmidt’s presence on Apple’s board–as well as that of Google director Arthur Levinson and Google advisors Bill Campbell and Al Gore–might lead to the conflicts of interest or unfair business practices. And that seems a reasonable concern, certainly those sorts of things sometimes occur when a coterie of people hold influence over several major firms simultaneously. While Google and Apple compete in a number of areas–browsers and mobile operating systems–the two have also worked together closely to bring a number of Google services to the iPhone. They also share a common enemy in Microsoft (MSFT). So it’s not surprising to hear that the FTC is raising an eyebrow over the companies cozy relationship. Especially, given its previous interest in Google and the opinions of U.S. antitrust chief Christine Varney, who recently described the company as a monopolist. Nor will it be surprising when Schmidt resigns from Apple’s board if this inquiry goes any further. That’s typically what happens in these situations when things start heading towards a longer investigation So, given the amount of antitrust scrutiny currently leveled at Google, it’s almost certainly what will happen here. Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 10:55 am Why XP mode is good: It runs stuff under XP
I’m down with Windows 7. I really am. It’s going to be a good, solid OS that will take us well into the next decade. Microsoft does this kind of thing every few years - they dump out a clinker (Windows ME) then amaze us all with something great (Windows XP). They’re not the richest company in the world because they’re dumb. They know what they’re doing. The folks at DownloadSquad, however, note that XP mode isn’t just an admission of defeat by Microsoft. It is, instead, it is a way to allow folks to run POS systems on new hardware. Fair enough. But it is a cop out. It’s a cop out on the part of IT departments, just as it should be, in that it allows them to sit on tested - but old - software while updating their junky old hardware. But why is the author so adamant that XP mode is a good thing? Of course it is. Anything that makes an IT guy’s life easier is a good thing. But this is a general purpose OS. Making the IT guys happy is a massive priority for Microsoft, sure, but I hope they also make us regular Joes happy as well. Incidentally, Vista will stop being supported in 2012. Sucks to be someone who likes Vista.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 10:54 am IBM to purchase software provider Exeros - Forbes
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 10:51 am Apple drives iPhone app developers to the brink - Register
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 10:42 am Myst for the iPhone: Now smaller, less groundbreakingWay back in the olden days, Myst was known colloquially as the “shiznit.” In 1993, a video game with rendered, ray-traced graphics that brought the reader through a magical world of Steampunk-inspired puzzles and mysteriously-worded letters from your uncle. The game was launched the same year as Doom and I assure you that Myst was on par with that proto-FPS in terms of popularity. Sadly, I missed most of the Myst but but I just downloaded the $5.99 iPhone app. Maybe I, too, will be able to wander aimlessly on an island. Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Source: MobileCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 10:41 am Alcatel-Lucent net loss widens in 1Q (AP)AP - Alcatel-Lucent's net loss widened in the first quarter as sales of both wireless and wireline communications gear continued to fall in all major global markets amid the global economic downturn.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 10:37 am Wolfram Alpha and Google Tested Head-To-Head: Whoever Wins, We Win [Obvious]Technology Review did something obvious with their access to Wolfram Alpha: they pitted the computational search engine against Google. The results? As we knew, Wolfram Alpha is no Big G. It's...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 10:35 am Google and Apple face antitrust probe - MSN Money
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 10:28 am Fogless Mirror for Lazy Bachelors
Sometimes simple is good, and when carrying out tiresome personal hygiene chores, simple is even better. Take shaving; do you really need to scrape your face every day over the sink, and then — as if that wasn’t bad enough — clean up afterwards? In my case, the answer is no. I buzz my face with a beard trimmer once a week whether I need it or not. Back in the 80s we called this “designer stubble”. These days it’s called “lazy”, and the prerogative of the home-worker. But today we have something for you, the inmate of a cubicle farm. It’s a fogless mirror so you can shave in the shower. Apparently this is better for your skin, but the real boon is that the shower does the cleaning for you. No tedious hair removal afterwards. The ACE For Men works by using an internal reservoir to keep the mirror as hot as the steamy air around it. You just fill it up before you begin and forget about it. Suction cups keep it on the wall and there’s a squeezy hook on which to hang your razor once done. All this time-saving for just $24. We like it so much we got to thinking about other specialist shower mirrors. The best is a fog-free, shoulder mounted “rear-view” safety mirror for use by showering prison inmates. Product page [Grooming Lounge via Uncrate]
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 5 May 2009 | 10:24 am Microsoft's Windows 7 Release Candidate Goes Public (PC World)PC World - The near-final version of Microsoft's next operating system, Windows 7, became available late Monday to the general public.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 10:20 am 'Star Wars' Sneakers - From Darth Vader Boots to Adidas 'Star Wars' Pack (VIDEO)(TrendHunter.com) The May the 4th be with you slogan has been celebrated in many ways online. At NiceKicks they have assembled a great little historic selection of the best 'Star Wars' sneakers in the...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 10:20 am The CrunchGear Remix Contest
Here’s your chance to win a Maschine from Native Instruments and other great prizes (see below). Download the tracks of the song This Town by Pandagod, make a remix and send it to remix at crunchgear dot com. There are no genre limitations so we encourage you to unleash your creativity. We will judge every single entry and select the best mixes. The winning songs will be professionally mastered by Online-Mastering.com and featured on CrunchGear.
You can download the tracks from Pandagod.com. Your email should include the following: Full name Address Your remix in MP3 format We will only accept remixes until the 25th of May. We prepared the tracks as loops because they are a lot smaller and easier to operate with. If you have no idea how to create a remix, download the loops and try Live 8 from Ableton. Get the 14-day trial version here. You can also try Sequel from Steinberg which is pretty easy to use. Drum tracks are not included because we want you guys to do them.
Hardware: My Passport Studio from Western Digital
Software:
Sequel 2 from Steinberg
For updates about the contest or if you’d like to ask a question, follow me on Twitter.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 10:17 am Casio announces new Edifice 3D Chronograph
Like most of Casio’s new timepieces, the 3D Chrono is not light on the features. It’s solar powered (and thus, eco-friendly) with a large rechargeable battery, automatically syncs with the atomic clock regardless of where you are in the world, and even tells the time! We’ll be getting one for review soon, and we will be following this up with an in-depth review at that later date. For now, we can tell you that it should be available at your favorite retailer, and expect the price to start at $450 MSRP.
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 10:00 am Foolish Stunts for Sunglasses - Ray-Ban Guy Rolls Around Streets in Yarn Ball (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Lets put a guy in a huge yarn ball and let him roll about the streets of San Francisco to promote our sunglasses. Brilliant. Make sure you prepare the check for the traffic violation...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 10:00 am China's Chips to Power Blade Servers This Year (PC World)PC World - Blade servers based on microprocessors designed in China will power a supercomputer prototype to be revealed by a government-backed Chinese firm in September, the company said Tuesday.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 9:50 am 3D HD Projection - Obscura Creates Fantastic Urban Light Shows (VIDEO)(TrendHunter.com) Obscura Digital used seven perfectly-mapped HD projectors to make downtown San Francisco look like a live 3D video game. The flexibility of Obsuras software made the setup of this monolithic...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 9:40 am Even Grandma Is Twittering Now ... Using a Pen and PaperTROY, N.Y., May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- There are a dizzying array of options to stay connected: email, Facebook, and Twitter just to name a few. All this communication still often leaves out one very important person ... your not so tech-savvy mother.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 9:20 am Sensual Animalistic Editorials - Dazed & Confused Gets Leopard Sexy in 'R' (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Animals, and leopards in particular, prove to be a great source of inspiration for fashion editorials these days. Dazed & Confused magazine pays homage to these sexy creatures...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 9:19 am Apple notebooks lauded - TG Daily
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 9:05 am HTC 'Android Hero' Handset Snapped (It's the Chinniest of Them All) [Rumor]Remember that weird, pink, angular 'Android Hero' handset that HTC semi-leaked back in January? Well, here it is, in the flesh plastic. The Hero adheres to the HTC Android phone conventions (read:...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 9:05 am GTA and Hilton Family of Hotels Sign Global Distribution DealBEVERLY HILLS, Calif., and LONDON, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- GTA by Travelport, a global travel wholesaler today announced that they have signed a distribution agreement with Hilton Hotels Corporation to further strengthen their strategic relationship. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090505/NY10626LOGO ) The distribution agreement provides GTA's thousands of tour operator and travel agency customers increased property choice with access to a broader range of room and rate types available at most of Hilton Family of Hotels' 3,200 hotels and more than 400,000 rooms in 77 countries and territories worldwide.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 9:00 am NIN iPhone App Rejected Because Of Explicit MusicBy Chris Scott Barr One of the things I love the most about my iPhone is the access to all of the great (and not-so-great) programs in the App Store. Unfortunately there happen to be a lot of good apps...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 8:49 am Sap Cap Has A Little Something Extra Hidden InsideBy Chris Scott Barr There are definitely times when one really doesn’t feel safe. Like when you’re walking down a dark street on the wrong side of town, or when you find that you’re sitting...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 8:47 am MediaTalkUSA podcast is upThe second edition of the Guardian MediaTalkUSA podcast is up, with On the Media’s Brooke Gladstone and The New York Times’ David Carr having at it, plus interviews with Craig Newmark and Portfolio...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 8:44 am HTC Touch Pro2 FCC filing confirms T-Mobile USA 3G AWS - SlashGear
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 8:35 am McAfee Sites Vulnerable To XSS AttackAn anonymous reader notes that this weekend, ReadWriteWeb discovered a security hole on several McAfee sites, which lets any attacker piggyback on the company's reputation and brand in order to distribute malware, Trojans, or anything else. The submitter adds an ironic coda to McAfee's epic fail: "In the 'how to HTML Injection' section, the author provided the four steps needed to execute a simple, no-brainer injection, but unfortunately, exposed a hole in NY Times website when they republished the article. While the author changed the offending text to an image, the Times is still using the original story which redirects directly to ReadWriteWeb [via XSS]." From the RWW post: "During tests this weekend, we discovered the company who claims to 'keep you safe from identity theft, credit card fraud...' has several cross-site scripting vulnerabilities and provides the bad guys with a brilliant — albeit ironic — launching pad from which to unleash their attacks."Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 5 May 2009 | 8:31 am PROGNOSIS Partners With Avaya to Provide Voice Quality Monitoring to Avaya CustomersSYDNEY, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Integrated Research - the makers of PROGNOSIS - today announced a global distribution agreement with Avaya Inc to provide PROGNOSIS voice quality monitoring solutions to Avaya customers worldwide, delivering a comprehensive end-to-end solution for deploying and managing IP telephony. From 4 May 2009, every Avaya Communications Manager customer will receive a free license for PROGNOSIS VoIP Monitor which provides the global Avaya community instant access to the leading monitoring solution for their IP telephony environments. Integrated Research CEO, Mark Brayan was enthusiastic about the new partnership.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:27 am Particle Roars Out Of Stealth With Three New Products, And Justin Timberlakes BlessingIt isn't often that we hear about a startup looking to build things that are "massively small". But today a new startup called Particle is coming out of stealth with that mantra, along with a handful...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 5 May 2009 | 8:26 am ‘Particle’ Roars Out Of Stealth With Three New Products, And Justin Timberlake’s Blessing
It isn’t often that we hear about a startup looking to build things that are “massively small”. But today a new startup called Particle is coming out of stealth with that mantra, along with a handful of bite-sized new products that seem to fit the bill nicely. The company is also bringing with it an interesting source of funding, with musician Justin Timberlake as its lead investor (Timberlake isn’t new to Silicon Valley - his past investments include Tapulous). The first service to launch today is called Robo.to, which is meant to serve as a ‘digital calling card’. In some senses the service is like a mix between Google Profiles and Ping.fm, offering a single hub for all of your online presences and social activity, from which you can broadcast your status updates to multiple services. Visitors to your profile can quickly see how many Twitter followers you have, your latest Flickr photos, your current location (assuming you’ve plotted it), and links to your other online presences. The site also prominently features a spot for a ‘video avatar’ - a brief video clip that’s meant to take the place of traditional emoticons or static photos, which you can broadcast to a number of popular online services. It’s a neat concept, reminiscent of the moving photographs from Harry Potter (for an example see the video below, or Timberlake’s profile here). And while it may not catch on with everyone, I suspect it could prove popular with younger crowds. The site is also very mobile friendly (note the narrow width), and plays nice with the iPhone out the gate. The second service is Crush3r, an Evite competitor that allows users to send out invitations to their friends. While not particularly novel, the service is well designed with very little clutter. Each invitation is also highly customizable, with a checklist of options for each module that you’d like to be included with the invitation (options include videos, a list of other guests, and items that the invitee should bring). Like I said, it’s nothing revolutionary, but it seems like a great alternative to some of the bloated sites like Evite that many of us have been trying to move away from for years. Finally, there’s p0p, which is a sort of scrapbook for listing your favorite sites, books, and media content into lists, which can then be shared with friends. After building these lists, users can then share them as blog embeds or via social networks. And as your friends join, it can be used as a recommendation engine. At this point it isn’t exactly clear what Particle’s vision is with its products - they obviously seem to be pretty disjointed, though they’ve all been well designed and are quite polished. CEO Rey Flemings says that there is a grand plan; we’ll just have to wait a few more months to see it. And even if the grand scheme doesn’t come to fruition, at least they’re hedging their bets across three fairly discrete spaces.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Source: TechCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 8:26 am Twitter Mania: Google Got Shut Down. Apple Rumors Heat Up.
Google tried to buy it but was rebuffed by Twitter CEO Evan Williams, says a source with knowledge of the talks. Today, though, rumors popped up that Apple may be looking to buy Twitter. “Apple is in late stage negotiations to buy Twitter and is hoping to announce it at WWDC in June,” said a normally reliable source this evening, adding that the purchase price would be $700 million in cash. The trouble is we’ve checked with other sources who claim to know nothing about any Apple negotiations. If these discussions are happening, Twitter is keeping them very quiet indeed. We would have passed on reporting this rumor at all, but other press is now picking it up. Twitter is strongly signaling that it doesn’t want to sell at any price right now. The founders took significant money off the table in the last round valuing Twitter at $250 million, we’ve heard, and are aligned with investors to see Twitter through to the end. And frankly that’s probably the best thing for the Internet. I wrote in an earlier post that I’d like to see Twitter spread its wings a little longer and see what it can become. It’ll be hard to do that as a subsidiary of Google, Apple, or anyone else for that matter. If Twitter wants to stay independent that’s just fine with me. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors
Source: TechCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 8:21 am Nokia E71x Now Available on AT&T for $99 [Nokia]How AT&T's prospective carriage of the handsome-but-not-beautiful, capable-but-not-amazing Nokia E71x spawned so many rumors and leaks is beyond me, but it's all over now. $99 AR on a two-year...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 8:14 am Turkcell Filed its Annual Report on Form 20-F for the Year Ended December 31, 2008ISTANBUL, May 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Turkcell (NYSE: TKC, ISE: TCELL), the leading provider of mobile communications in Turkey, announced today that it has filed its Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2008 with the SEC on April 30, 2009.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:05 am Google: 'rough' Talks Ahead on Privacy With Korea (PC World)PC World - The South Korean government could force Google to block access to its YouTube Web site in an ongoing dispute over user privacy, Google's deputy counsel said Monday.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 8:00 am KIDO'Z v 1.0 Redefines Internet Safety for ChildrenKIDO'Z v 1.0 is the first International computer operating system built for small children.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:00 am Autonomy Unveils Powerful Expertise Location Capability for iManage Universal Search SolutionCAMBRIDGE, England and SAN FRANCISCO, May 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Autonomy Corporation plc (LSE: AU.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:00 am Telnic Limited Nominated for World Technology AwardNEW YORK, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- The World Technology Network (WTN - http://www.wtn.net) announced today that Telnic Limited (http://www.telnic.org), the registry operator for the new communications-focused top level domain .tel, has been selected as a nominee for a 2009 World Technology Award in the Communications Technology category. The World Technology Awards are presented by the WTN, in association with TIME magazine, Fortune magazine, and Science magazine, amongst others. James P.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:00 am Tower Semiconductor Announces First Quarter 2009 Financial Results Conference CallMIGDAL HAEMEK, Israel, May 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tower Semiconductor (Nasdaq: TSEM; TASE: TSEM), a pure-play independent specialty foundry, will hold a conference call to discuss its first quarter 2009 financial results on Thursday, May 14, 2009, at 10:00 a.m.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:00 am Investors Increasingly Lured by the Eastern European Electronic Manufacturing Services Market's Potential, Finds Frost & SullivanLONDON, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Investors in electronic manufacturing services (EMS) are no longer confining themselves to Asia, as Eastern Europe - with its impressive gross domestic product (GDP) growth and low rates of inflation and population expansion - is emerging as an investor-friendly destination.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 8:00 am Steve Ballmer Visits Silicon Valley, Yahoo Search Deal Rumors Buzz
Much of this may have to do with the fact that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is in Silicon Valley, and has been at least since the weekend. He’s speaking at an event Wednesday night, which explains the trip. But instead of just jetting in and out, he’s come days early. Why? Who knows, but that’s plenty of information to start the rumor mill going. Our direct sources are telling us that discussions are progressing, as they have been for some time, but that major deal terms still need to be worked out. One source said not to expect a deal in the next few weeks. Ever since Google was forced to bail on their own Yahoo search deal, some sort of alliance with Microsoft was inevitable. Well, inevitable just as soon as Yahoo got their CEO situation under control. Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Source: TechCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 7:44 am hi5 Adds Chat, With A Social Twist
Social network hi5 is launching an instant messaging service, hi5 IM, adding real-time interaction for users. hi5 IM, which is similar to Facebook Chat, Facebook’s instant messaging feature, shows users which friends within their network are online and runs directly in any hi5 user’s browser. In addition to one-on-one chat, users can change their status, write updates, post profile comments, and share photos through hi5 IM. It appears that the social network is looking to amp its “entertainment features” to gain more users and is also focusing on engaging users though casual gaming and micro-payments. Hi5 also recently partnered with Paymo to power mobile payments for virtual goods. The social network is hoping that real-time chat will compliment casual games, and interaction with other content on the social network. hi5 IM also enables users to share and express their emotions through animated hi5 “star” emoticons. The star, derived from the hi5 logo, represents a variety of virtual gestures and emotions, such as sad, happy, laughing, crying, playing dead, angry and shy. Last month, the self-described “world’s leading social entertainment web site,” got a new CEO, Bill Gossman, formerly the CEO of the online advertising service Audience Science. And at the end of March, the social network hi5 cut a large percentage of its staff following the failure of a new round of funding to materialize. With nearly 60 million active users, hi5 has a good sized audience, but it’s long been far behind the big boys in the social networking space, MySpace and Facebook. Facebook is the most popular social network worldwide with 294.7 million unique visitors, with MySpace coming in second with 125.7 million unique visitors. hi5 gets about 63 million monthly unique visits worldwide but only 3.7 million of those are from the U.S., according to ComScore’s March stats. And a good chunk of ts audience is in countries where it is hard to attract advertisers, Crunch Network: MobileCrunch Mobile Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
Source: TechCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 7:15 am Twitter.co.uk - The Tale of a Forgotten Domain [Voices]Ever been to Twitter.co.uk by mistake? You’re one of about 3,000 people who do exactly that every day - and that might not be a problem for Twitter if it actually owned the domain twitter.co.uk. Instead, it is owned by software developer Steve Crawford, who bought it in 2005 - before Twitter was even a twinkle in Jack Dorsey’s eye. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 7:05 am Newspapers Build Digital Portfolios [Voices]Myth: newspapers stuck their heads in the sand and just hoped the internet would go away. Reality: Newspapers took some of the biggest, earliest swings on the web, most turned out to be misses, and then got steamrolled by Google (GOOG) just like everyone else. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 7:04 am YouTube: Placement Police [Voices]In recent months, YouTube has set off some jangled nerves among several of its more popular content producers. The company issued written notifications to several producers who have inked branded integration deals directly with advertisers, gently reminding them that according to its Terms of Service, users are not to post commercial videos on YouTube without permission. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 7:03 am Mini-Links to Web Sites Are Multiplying [Voices]If you have spent any time on the Internet in the last few months, chances are you have clicked on a shortened link Web address. URL shorteners, which abbreviate unwieldy Web addresses into bite-size links, have been around for years. The most popular service, TinyURL.com, was started in 2002 by a unicyclist named Kevin Gilbertson. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 7:02 am Social Media: The Ashton Kutcher Effect [Voices]Where celebrities go, fans follow. The truism applies as much in social media as in the real world, David Karp noticed after famous artists began using his blogging service Tumblr. As a result, encouraging celebrities to set up accounts on the site has become “absolutely part of our road map and our business plan,” Karp says. In fact, he recently hired a full-time employee to help high-profile users design and manage their blogs. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 5 May 2009 | 7:01 am Epson's New ImageWay Partner Program Helps Value-Added Resellers Boost Success in Projector SalesLONG BEACH, Calif., May 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Epson America, Inc. today announced its ImageWay(SM) Partner Program, a new channel partner initiative designed specifically for Value-Added Resellers (VARs).Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 5 May 2009 | 7:00 am MarketRiders Promises Steady Returns Through The Magic of Exchange-Traded Funds
If you think you can beat the stock market, don’t bother reading this post. This post is about a startup that wants to make investing boring and predictable, which is something most of the investing public could use right now. MarketRiders has actually been in beta for about a year, and now it is ready to be tested by a broader group of investors. The idea is simple: If you get your asset allocation right and eliminate management fees, you can boost your returns and outperform nearly every actively traded fund over the long haul. Mitch Tuchman, the founder of MarketRiders and a former hedge fund manager, studied the investment strategies of big university endowments like Yale’s. He learned that 80 to 90 percent of returns within any given year come from being in the right asset class (stocks, bonds, real estate, commodities, emerging markets), not from stock picking or market timing. The trick to steady returns is to try to mimic the market, not beat it, through exposure to broad asset classes. “Wall Street is the biggest fleecing machine in the world,” says Tuchman. “It is selling investors on the idea that if you give this manager money he will give you a better return than the market.”
A better strategy, he thinks, is simply to buy a variety of exchange-traded funds which index different markets and then periodically re-balance your portfolio. Rebalancing means trimming back the (inflated) winners and buying the (cheap) losers, which requires discipline and emotional detachment. MarketRiders helps you come up with an asset allocation strategy appropriate to your age and investment goals, suggests ETFs to buy, and then sends you rebalancing alerts whenever necessary. ETFs have very low fees, which help overall returns. You still need to take the suggestions and place orders with your broker—a detail which introduces some friction into the process. But once you have your account set up, it tracks everything automatically. Still, for the $9.95/month MarketRiders is asking, it could at least hook up with your brokerage account and do the re-balancing automatically. Nevertheless, Tuchman is on a mission: “I am trying to save people from the biggest con game in the country right now.” If you feel comfortable taking an active role in managing your own money and can attend to it on a regular basis, you can give MarketRiders a free try for a month. You can click on the image below to see a screenshot showing a typical portfolio, along with the alert levels (red means sell, green means buy).
Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors
Source: TechCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 6:28 am Muppet-themed art based on R. Crumb's "Cheap Thrills" cover
Marc Palm, did a swell job with this muppet themed tribute to R. Crumb's cover for Janis Joplin's "Cheap Thrills" LP. For this show [Muppet Rawk II group show at Ouch My Eye Gallery] artists had to take an existing rock album cover and re-image it with Jim Henson's Muppets. You could use any Muppet and it the art had to be 12" x 12".Cheap Thrills with Muppets Rawk Previously:
Drew Friedman paints Robert Crumb presenting Cheap Thrills album cover to Janis Joplin
Trent Reznor compares Apple to Wal-Mart - CNET News
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 5 May 2009 | 6:03 am Windows 7 RC 1 hits a bit early
What’s new? I don’t know, it isn’t finished downloading yet. Why don’t you ask again in the morning?
Source: CrunchGear | 5 May 2009 | 6:02 am Mia Farrow nine days into three week hunger strike for Darfur
Mia Farrow is on a hunger strike to support Darfur refugees and has been posting videos on her YouTube channel. The LA Times reports that 75 other people so far have pledged on Farrows site to either fast for three weeks or eat the same kind of rations the refugees are eating. Gabriel Stauring, who helped organize the site, expressed concern for Farrow, with whom he said he'd traveled to Darfur last summer. "You’ve seen Mia’s size," he said. "There’s no way she can go that long without doing permanent damage. We want to convince her that if we have somebody else that is famous and that would draw attention, that she should stop." Stauring suggested that more recognizable names might be joining the effort soon.Mia Farrow hits day nine of online hunger strike for Darfur Source: Boing Boing | 5 May 2009 | 6:02 am "Apple Netbook" Student Project Is a Pencil-Drawn Beauty [Apple]This little project has been making the rounds as the "new Apple netbook," which, unfortunately, is way off. But the truth is pretty cool anyway: It's a beautiful pencil-drawn, wooden model. Student...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 5:35 am Federal Trade Commission Investigating the Apple-Google Relationship [Antitrust]The FTC has begun an investigation into possible antitrust violations caused by the often close relationship between two of our favorite companies, Apple and Google. But they look so nice together!...Source: Gizmodo | 5 May 2009 | 5:15 am Short vid about small operators who are coping with econopocalypseHoward Rheingold sez, "Aaron Stapley and Sarah Castelblanco made this video (featuring interviews with me, among others) about the way lone wolves and small operators are able to leverage their creative work with tools and methods. The video was originally inspired by this BB post by Cory about how BB readers are coping with the econopocalype."
Muscle Up!
(Thanks, Howard!) Watchclocks: an early device for controlling usersHere's a good explanation of the workings of the "watchclock," a device carried by watchmen in order to allow their employers to check up on their patrolling. It's one of the earliest examples of a sophisticated device intended to control the behavior of its user.Who Watches the Watchman? (via Kottke) Source: Boing Boing | 5 May 2009 | 5:08 am Woman accuses cop neighbor of forging "Come get all my stuff for free" ad on CraigslistA woman in Mansfield, TX spent a day chasing off aggressive bargain-hunters who were responding to a Craigslist posting offering her tetherball and and basketball hoop for free. The ad had allegedly been placed by her neighbor, a cop who didn't like having them visible next door. By the end of the day, the bargain-seekers had managed to make off with both.Sherry Johnson Huwitt was standing at her kitchen window in her bathrobe shortly before dawn a couple of weeks ago when two strangers pulled up and started loading the portable basketball goal from the side of her house into a truck.Mansfield woman says Arlington officer offered her possessions on Craigslist without her consent (via Consumerist) Source: Boing Boing | 5 May 2009 | 5:05 am Soy-Based Toner Cartridges?Jon.Laslow writes "I'm getting a lot of pressure from managers to switch to soy-based toner cartridges for our laser printers because they are 'greener.' The problem is, the only information I can find on them is from sales pitches; and the reviews all seem to be user testimonials. Do you have any experience soy-based printing products? Did you have any issues with them, and how was the print quality?"Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 5 May 2009 | 5:02 am Don't tase me bro automatonJon Haddock's latest hand-cranked automaton reenacts the infamous "Don't Tase Me Bro" with adorable mechanical figurines. Andrew Meyer (Don't Tase Me Bro) (via Make)
Previously:
Source: Boing Boing | 5 May 2009 | 5:01 am New Amazon Kindle Details Emerge The mystery behind what Amazon will announce on Wednesday has taken another twist. The WSJ is reporting that Amazon will, indeed, announce a University textbook specific model with a larger screen at the press conference later this week. So where did this come from and what else can we expect?
One Lev Gonick from Case Western Reserve University has confirmed that Amazon will be providing the university with larger screen Kindles next school year. And Arthur Sulzberger Jr., New York Times Co. Chairman is said to be sharing the stage with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos at the event on Wednesday which quasi-confirms the rumors of a newspaper specific Kindle.
Source: TechCrunch | 5 May 2009 | 4:18 am Recession forces new focus in e-commerce marketing (AP)AP - Online retailers are shifting their marketing from traditional advertising to less expensive tools like Facebook.com and Twitter and e-mail as they seek market share or just work to retain customers, according to an industry study being released Tuesday.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 5 May 2009 | 4:01 am Wired.com Video: High-Tech Cellist Plays Strings, Bow and MacBookAvant-gardist Zoe Keating, who fuses technology and classical music, gives Wired.com a preview of her forthcoming CD.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 5 May 2009 | 4:00 am Gesture Controls Make Sony E-Reader Easy to HandleThe slick touchscreen and clean menus make the PRS-700 easy to befriend.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 5 May 2009 | 4:00 am Gesture Controls Make Sony E-Reader Easy to HandleThe slick touchscreen and clean menus make the PRS-700 easy to befriend.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 5 May 2009 | 4:00 am Jargon Watch: Meta-Meta, Kenken, Micromagician, PatternicityMeta-meta n. A puzzle solved by combining the solutions to multiple metapuzzles (brainteasers made up of several other puzzles). Often the culmination of puzzle hunts organized by Microsoft or MIT. KenKen n. A new numerical logic puzzle from Japan that, unlike sudoku, requires players to do arithmetic. Loosely translated as "cleverness squared," KenKen was invented by a teacher who wanted students to enjoy practicing math. Micromagician n. A magician who performs sleight-of-hand tricks with coins, cards, cups, and occasionally cutlery. Vegas-style illusions may be hot, but among prestidigitators, micromagic remains the truest test of skill. Patternicity n. The tendency to find patterns where there are none. According to a recent study, evolution favors patternicity because it's safer to detect a false threat than to ignore a real one and become a bogeyman's lunch meat. — Jonathon Keats (jargon@wired.com)
Source: Wired Top Stories | 5 May 2009 | 4:00 am May 5, 1809: Hats Off to First U.S. Woman Patent-HolderMary Kies, a black American, patents an improved method for weaving straw with silk or thread.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 5 May 2009 | 4:00 am Energy of the Future: Igniting a Star With |
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LIVERMORE, California – It may look like one of Michael Bay's Transformers, but this mass of machinery could soon be the birthplace of a baby star right here on Earth.
Using 192 separate lasers and a 400-foot-long series of amplifiers and filters, scientists at Lawrence Livermore's National Ignition Facility (NIF) hope to create a self-sustaining fusion reaction like the ones in the sun or the explosion of a nuclear bomb — only on a much smaller scale.
Sci-fi-inspired End of Days jokes may follow this historic undertaking like they did for CERN's Large Hadron Collider, but the science behind this advanced laser system is profoundly serious.
"Completion of the NIF construction project is a major milestone for the NIF team, for the nation and the world," said Edward Moses, the facility's principal associate director for NIF and photon science. "We are well on our way to achieving what we set out to do — controlled nuclear fusion and energy gain for the first time ever in a laboratory setting."
The hope is that this reaction will release more energy than the lasers put into the target isotopes and perhaps redefine the global energy crisis in the process.
Wired.com visited the National Ignition Facility just as the final lasers were coming on line. Read on for a virtual tour of one of the most sophisticated scientific facilities on the planet.
Here in the enormous target chamber, the 192 laser beams enter the blue, 33-foot-in-diameter vacuum chamber (the blue hemisphere in the top photo connected to the metallic arms) where they will collide with a target roughly the size of a peppercorn.
The beams start out in a different part of the facility as lower powered infrared light, similar to what's inside your DVD player. Next, the lasers pass through a complex series of amplifiers, filters and mirrors (much of which you'll see later on in the gallery) in order to become powerful and precise enough to create self-sustaining fusion.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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Smaller than a BB, the beryllium sphere containing the radioactive hydrogen isotopes, deuterium and tritium, will be bombarded with x-rays generated by the system's 192 lasers.
The trick to fusion is getting enough energy to fuse two nuclei together — in this case, the nuclei of hydrogen. Because the forces keeping the nuclei apart are so strong, the task requires extremely complex engineering and an insane amount of power.
For example, right before the beams enter the vacuum chamber which contains the target pebble pictured above, the lasers are converted to ultraviolet light by huge synthetic crystals. Once inside the chamber the beams enter a jellybean-sized reflective shell called a hohlraum (German for "hollow room") where the energy of the beams generates high power x-rays. Theoretically, the x-rays will be powerful enough to create enough heat and pressure to overcome the electromagnetic force that keeps the isotopes' nuclei separate, and the nuclei will fuse.
Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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Atop the target chamber pictured on the first page is a crane and airlock hatch for lowering equipment into the vacuum chamber.
If the experiment works it will be a precursor to the power plant of the future and improve scientists' understanding of the forces in our universe. In a time when conventional nuclear tests are banned, it could also provide valuable insight into the inner workings of nuclear weapons.
One laser beam feeds into the Precision Diagnostic System, which allows the laser to be sampled to make sure it is working properly before entering the target chamber.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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As seen from the laser bay overlook, NIF's Laser Bay 2 stretches over 400 feet into the distance where lasers are amplified and filtered on their way to the target chamber.
Three previous laser fusion systems have been built in the past 35 years at Livermore Lab, none of which produced enough energy to reach fusion. The first, Janus, went online in 1974. It created 10 joules of energy. The next experiment, in 1977, was a laser system known as Shiva, which achieved 10,000 joules.
Finally, in 1984, a project named Nova produced 30,000 joules, and it was the first time its creators actually believed there was a chance of fusion. This newest system by the NIF team is expected to create 1.8 million joules of ultraviolet energy, which scientists hypothesize will create a baby star in Livermore with positive power output.
NIF contains more than 3,000 chunks of neodymium-doped phosphate amplifier glass — basically a material that increases the power of the laser beams used in the fusion experiment when energized by giant flashlamps. These amplifier glass slabs are hidden away inside airtight enclosures throughout the laser bay (above).
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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Technicians work on the beam tubes inside the laser bay that carry the lasers into the switchyard. From there they are redirected and aligned before entering the target chamber.
Throughout the entire NIF facility, emergency shutdown panels listing the status of the laser (using both text and light) provide a level of safety for the hapless scientist or technician who happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time before a firing of the lasers.
Fiber optic strands (yellow cables and trough) feed low-powered laser light into the power amplifiers. There, they will be amplified by powerful strobes as they pass through synthetic neodymium-doped phosphate glass (the pink glass pictured on page 4).
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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The power amplifiers hidden by the metallic covers on the ceiling contain the glass slabs which greatly increase the power of the laser. Just before the laser enters the amplifier glass, flashlamps pump energy into the glass, which is then picked up by the laser beam.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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Deformable mirrors hidden away above the silver covers on the ceiling are used to shape the beam's wavefront and compensate for any flaws before it enters the switchyard. Each mirror uses 39 actuators to change the shape of the mirror's surface and correct the beam. The wires you see here are used to control the mirror actuators.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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The Lower Preamplifiers amplify, shape and smooth the laser beams before sending them off to the main and power amplifiers.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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The power amplifiers and other components are transported and installed using a stand-alone, portable cleanroom, like the ones used to assemble microchips.
Each power amplifier is assembled in a nearby cleanroom and transported into place in the beam line by robot transporters, similar to those Wal-Mart uses to stock their wares.
A technician calibrates a power amplifier before it is placed into the beamline.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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The main control room looks similar to NASA's mission control for a reason: it was modeled after it. Instead of launching rockets into outer space, NIF will be attempting to bring the power of the stars — nuclear fusion – to Earth with lasers.
The control center for the beam source, known as the master oscillator room, looks similar to a server farm, but instead of computers, racks of laser equipment fill the room. Like the network your internet provider uses, the beams travel through optical fibers on their way to the power amplifiers.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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The NIF lasers start out in relatively small, low-powered and boring boxes (below and on the edge of the optic bench at right). The lasers are solid state and not much different than a standard laser pointer, albeit a different wavelength — infrared instead of visible.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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High-power flashlamps, like the one in your camera but super-sized, are used to excite the lasers. Each beam starts out about as strong as the one in your laser pointer, but all together they end up pumping out 500 terawatts in two billionths of a second — roughly 500 times the entire peak power output of the United States.
This is possible because the lab's giant bank of capacitors stores up a reservoir of energy. The bank is also quite dangerous — while the capacitors are charged, the room that holds them is on lockdown due to the risk of high voltage arcing and potentially injuring any visitors.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
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Like a scene out of Half-Life, the exterior of the NIF facility belies the history-making science conducted within.
Photos: Dave Bullock/Wired.com
Follow Dave Bullock on Twitter and on his blog
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Certain TV shows have a naming convention for their titles. For example, 24 names its episodes after the hour the show occurs (e.g., "Day 2—9:00 A.M. –10:00 A.M"). Here are the titles of 12 episodes from current TV series, but each show is listed using the naming convention of another show from the list. Can you name all 12 series?
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Mark Rosewater is the head designer for a trading card game called Magic: the Gathering. He created the Magic: the Puzzling style of logic puzzle, a book of which was published in 1996.
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After nearly five million downloads of its Windows PC client, CrossLoop brings its screen-sharing app and growing pro-am computer support community to the Mac (download here, for Intel Macs running OS X 10.4 or higher). CrossLoop is a peer-to-peer screen sharing app that lets a remote IT specialist or a friend take over your computer to fix a problem or give you a tutorial.
Since its launch in November, 2006, more than 100 million minutes worth of sessions have been shared through the service, with shared minutes growing at a 210 percent annual rate. It took CrossLoop 132 days to reach its first one million minutes of shared screen time. Now, its members are sharing one million minutes every four days. The vast majority of the help sessions on CrossLoop are done for free, but 14,414 semi-professional “helpers” charge for their services, collecting about $55 to $60 per session. For instance, for $50 you can get help switching from a PC to a Mac. CrossLoop takes a 15 percent cut of all the paid sessions for hosting a directory of helpers, providing the software, keeping track of session lengths, and handling the payments.
Peer-to-peer product support will grow in popularity over time (see Fixya). If consumers can find someone on CrossLoop who can fix their computer faster and cheaper than someone at the local computer repair shop, it is a no-brainer. Of course, if the computer is completely dead or you can’t get on the Internet, CrossLoop won’t do you any good. But there are plenty of other times when you just need a little guidance from your family’s designated tech support expert, or are even willing to pay someone who actually knows what they are doing.
Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors
Mark Kleiman says,
Last year U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia gave a public speech questioning the need for more privacy protections.This year a Fordham University law professor teaching a course on privacy gave his class the project of turning up publicly available information on Scalia.
The fifteen-page dossier completely flipped Scalia out.
"It seems that Professor Reidenberg successfully created an active learning environment where his students took control and learned the subject in a way they will not soon forget."
Read: Fordham Law Class Collects Personal Info About Scalia; Supreme Ct. Justice Is Steamed.
Snip: His class turned in a 15-page dossier that included not only Scalia's home address, home phone number and home value, but his food and movie preferences, his wife's personal e-mail address and photos of his grandchildren, reports Above the Law.If you are interested in following this story, including a discussion of privacy and ethical considerations, here is a link to a blog which provides further detail.
Read: Justice Scalia's Dossier: Interesting Issues about Privacy and Ethics
Photographs by Nicola "Okin" Frioli: SWINE FLU - MEXICO CITY. (Thanks, Antinous, and anonymous BB commenter)
Source: Boing Boing | 5 May 2009 | 2:54 am
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Above: Somalian Pirates We, Eric "Fatbeard" Cartman's song about how great the pirate biz is (South Park).
In related news, NPR contributor Chana Joffe-Walt produced a great piece for Planet Money which analyzes the economic model behind the (real) pirates of Somalia (and other locales.)
[I]ssues of criminality and the potential for violence aside, a closer look at the "business model" of piracy reveals that the plan makes economic sense. A piracy operation begins, as with any other start-up business, with venture capital.Listen: PLANET MONEY - Behind The Business Plan Of Pirates Inc.J. Peter Pham at James Madison University says piracy financiers are usually ethnic Somali businessmen who live outside the country and who typically call a relative in Somalia and suggest they launch a piracy business. The investor will offer $250,000 or more in seed money, while the relative goes shopping.
"You'll need some speedboats; you'll need some weapons; you also need some intelligence because you can't troll the Indian Ocean, a million square miles, looking for merchant vessels," says Pham, adding that the pirates also need food for the voyage -- "a caterer." Yes, a caterer.
"Think of it as everything you would need to go into the cruise ship business," Pham says. "Everything that you would need to run a cruise ship line, short of the entertainment, you need to run a piracy operation."
Here's a link to a new tumblog that collects photos of delicious, healing hospital meals from around the world. (Thanks, Reno!).
Recently, BoomTown reported that talks between Microsoft and Yahoo had gotten “hot and heavy.”
That mood seems to be continuing, as many sources close to the situation on both sides said that the pair are coming ever closer to a search and advertising partnership deal.
Said one source: “It’s closer than it has ever been…we’re finally talking about the how rather than the if.”
“It’s meaningful,” added another source. “The fact that there is even progress and engagement, after so many failed attempts between us, says a lot.”
Indeed, it remains a good sign that there seems to be a lot of engagement between the two sides of late and some sources think a deal could even be struck within the next few weeks.
As I also reported last week, the latest idea is one in which Yahoo (YHOO) would take over both search and display advertising sales and Microsoft (MSFT) would run the tech for both behind the scenes.
It’s not clear if a trading of other assets–such as content–or an investment in Yahoo by Microsoft is being considered too.
In any case, any such deal would be a major shift for both companies in their business focus and would also tether them tightly together.
Many think they need to be, given that Google (GOOG) overwhelmingly dominates the lucrative search market. Yahoo is strong in display, although that market has been harder hit in the recent economic downturn.
But whether or not Yahoo and Microsoft can come to a partnership agreement–given the deep complexities of the situation, the wariness over controlling key technologies and tense past history between them–is a big if, of course.
Still, sources on both sides seem more positive than ever before.
Microsoft execs, for their part, report that new Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz is much more straightforward to work with than former CEO Jerry Yang.
And, Yahoo’s side seems convinced that Microsoft appears more willing to make a deal happen and is more flexible on terms than in previous encounters.
Both sides are using very small teams to discuss that possible partnership, mostly in Silicon Valley. Some of the Redmond, Wa.-based Microsoft team, in fact, is in the Bay area now.
Sources said those involved on the Microsoft side include: Digital head Qi Lu, a former Yahoo tech star; top M&A and strategy exec Charles Songhurst; Online Audience Business SVP Yusuf Mehdi; and several others.
On the Yahoo side: North America EVP Hilary Schneider, who leads the efforts; General Counsel Michael Callahan; top Yahoo ad operations techie Mark Morrissey, who was key to its revival of the Panama ad system and has recently been leading product development on its new ad platform; Finance SVP and Chief Treasury Officer Mike Gupta; and Products EVP and CTO Ari Balogh, although he is more in the background.
Of course, the only two execs who will matter, if these teams finally manage to hash out details, is Yahoo’s Bartz and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, as well the both companies’ boards.
Interestingly, Ballmer is slated to be at Stanford University’s Memorial Auditorium, giving a lecture on innovation and entrepreneurship, as part of the Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders Seminar on Wednesday afternoon.
Whether Ballmer is seeing Bartz on this trip or not is not clear.
But he has to as some point. The approval of a deal–which could be struck soon, if terms can be reached–will be entirely their call.
[Postcard image courtesy of CarbonClothing on Zazzle.com.]
A lot of people use Google Reader as their primary RSS feed reader, so you’d think its social features would be extremely popular. But they’re really kind of lame, and extremely underpowered. And Google knows this, that’s why it’s continually shifting the way it presents the social elements. The latest change today allows users to more easily find and share with friends of friends. That is to say, if you have a friend sharing an item with you, and another one of their friends comments on it, you can now get access to that friend.
This idea isn’t really anything new, in fact, FriendFeed (aka the primary source of Facebook’s innovations these days), has been doing something similar for a couple of years now. The reason for doing this is obvious: If you don’t have a lot of friends on a service, the friend of a friend element pipes more content into your stream to make things more active, and thus, more appealing to use. But FriendFeed is doing this much better than Google Reader is, so far.
Trying the new functionality out, it seems a bit weird that I would be asked if I want to share my updates with a certain person who I probably don’t know. Instead, wouldn’t it be better to have the option to see their updates? Of course, Google Reader doesn’t work that way. Following its snafus when it first ventured into social sharing, the company made it awfully hard to share stuff. So whereas you can subscribe to anyone on FriendFeed (at least anyone that has an open feed, just like on Twitter), to see items on Google Reader, they have to share stuff with you. The problem with this is that most people don’t care to take the time to explicitly set their sharing settings to include all those people that may want to be included.
And there’s another problem with Google Reader’s social aspirations. The product from a sharing standpoint is extremely clunky. Sharing is tucked away in its own drop down menu, something which I routinely find is just about my last item to visit (and is normally relegated under the “Mark all as read” umbrella). The problem here is that all of my individual friends’ names are listed below the “Friends’ shared items” banner, so I keep it minimized to avoid clutter. I also keep it minimized because rarely do my friends ever comment on items. And if they do happen to, it’s even rarer that another person will comment as well, giving you — get this — a conversation. That’s something that FriendFeed does extremely well. Google Reader? Not so much.
It was smart of Google to tie the Google Reader profile into the newly emphasized Google Profiles — this is something we’re going to see more of across all its properties, no doubt. But what Google Reader really needs is some way to spur social usage. It needs either a main page where the most shared/most talked about items are listed, that gives you a rundown of who shared what. It sort of has a recommended area, with its “cool” feed, which shares popular items across the Google Reader ecosystem, but that’s far from social.
Or maybe it should add a list comments you leave on shared items to your main Google Profile. This would be a micro-blog of sorts with your take on stories. Of course, that would require that you allow anyone to see your shared items, which is something, again, you cannot do within Google Reader. But oddly, you can see others’ shared items if you know their public Shared Item page URL (which is a bunch of ugly numbers and letters and should be turned into their Google Profile name as well, if Google is going to go in that direction). It’s really quite a confusing mess.
As I noted, a ton of people use Google Reader as a primary way to go through items on the web. It seems natural that this would be a powerful social tool as well, but Google has effectively made it one of the most closed social networks around. It’s closed and its clunky. That just reeks of inactivity.
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Japan already has the most advanced cell phone infrastructure in the world and it seems it will get even better and faster in the very near future. The country’s four major cell phone carriers (NTT, KDDI, SoftBank and Emobile) say they intend to invest a total of $10 billion into 3.9-generation cell phone services.
DealBase.com, an online database devoted to aggregating hotel deals and packages, has secured $1 million in Series A funding from angel investors including Russ Siegelman, a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers; Bob Zipp, managing director of Amicus Capital; and Josh Hannah, general partner at Matrix Partners and former CEO of eHow.com.
Launched in November 2008, DealBase crawls the web to create a database of hotel deals, special offers and packages, which currently number more than 22,000 deals, from over 3,500 sources, adding up to $4,660,093 in total savings on the site. The online travel industry is a competitive market chock full of sites that find consumer deals for travel, which makes the popularity contest incredibly tough. Expedia, Kayak, Travelzoo and others all offer packages and deals through their platforms and have a dedicated user base.
What makes DealBase’s site slightly more unique is its “Deal Analyzer” functionality that compares deal prices to regular prices, and then rates the deal for travelers so they can determine if they’re getting a good deal or not. Sam Shank, founder of DealBase, says that 15 percent of deals on the site have negative savings. But Microsoft-owned Farecast, a travel site focused in finding deals for hotels and air travel, also has a feature that measures how well-priced the hotel is compared to its original pricing and other hotels. The main difference is that Farecast doesn’t limit its search to just deals and packages while DealBase only lists deals and special promotions for hotels.
Shank also maintains that since DealBase lets any hotels post advertisements for free, with no advertising deals, the process is transparent and hotels have more of an incentive in the current economy to post a deal for free. Currently, DealBase features over 500 deals for New York City Hotels while Travelzoo lists only 7 deals. Expedia also features nearly 500 deals for hotels in New York. If DealBase’s database has the same reach and information of more established sites like Expedia, that could be a good sign.
Shank’s previous startup, TravelPost, was one of the larger hotel review sites in the US and was acquired by SideStep, a comprehensive travel deal search engine. SideStep was then acquired by competitor Kayak in December 2007 for $180 million.
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
SMSGupShup, a Twitter-like service in India, is getting a ton of buzz over here in the U.S., too. In an interview with CEO Beerud Sheth now says the service now has 20 million users (and that’s without an appearance on Oprah), nearly all of which are in India. That’s up from 7 million late last year.
The service can only be accessed via SMS, which works just fine for India’s 400 million mobile phone users (there are just 40 million broadband Internet users, Sheth says). Users sign up and use the service all via text messages. They never need to visit the website at all.
The service’s main variable costs are fees for text messages, and Sheth says that they’ve had to implement caps to keep costs under control. But as the service grows, says Sheth, they are able to negotiate much better pricing. Already SMSGupShup accounts for 400 million monthly text messages, around “5%-6%” of the total Indian market.
Three months ago the service added advertising to messages. Three months in and they’re making $150,000/month in revenue. Not bad for a SMS-based service.
The full video interview is below. Thanks to Robert Scoble who participated briefly in the interview.
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Section: Business News, Communications, Smartphones, Gadgets / Other, GPS/Navigation
The economy has just claimed another company. No, it’s not an automobile company, but it is a GPS one. In North America, GPSs have recently become all the rage, leading many companies to design innovative devices performing many useful functions. Just from what I’ve read and heard, Navigon has created some good GPSs in the past, and they are well known for free lifetime updates. However, the economy has forced them to restructure their company, and they have decided to pull out of North America.
If you own a Navigon GPS, don’t get frustrated because they will keep their Chicago office around to take care of their customers. Even though they are, essentially, calling it quits in the States, there is a good chance they will enter the world of smartphone apps—most notably, the iPhone and its vast App Store.
With the new 3.0 software, the iPhone is capable of turn-by-turn directions, which could be a key factor if Navigon decides to gamble on the App Store. I use the word gamble here because they can’t be sure whether or not they will profit from this venture. They have to imagine other major GPS companies to attempt an iPhone app as well. Moreover, will people be interested in purchasing a GPS app if they already have a standalone or car unit?
In addition, you may remember a month ago, I contacted Navigon, TomTom, and Garmin to see if they had anything doing for the iPhone. Navigon said the iPhone was seen as “potential opportunity”. As of now, Navigon has only stated that they are looking to increase their presence in the Smartphone department, But, I, for one, hope they at least take a look at the iPhone and their options.
Via [GPS Business News]
Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
Here’s more extraordinary video of Susan Boyle, the Scottish singing sensation.
The unknown 47-year-old is seen below in new online videos, unearthed by Scotland’s Daily Record, shot at 1984 competition at Fir Park Social Club in Motherwell.
She is 22 years old in these videos, but sings “I Don’t Know How to Love Him and “The Way We Were,” just as well as she did recently on “Britain’s Got Talent,” with the emotion and depth of someone of great insight.
BoomTown has obviously been deeply moved by Boyle’s voice–and I don’t even much like any of these weepy-sappy songs she is performing–but is mostly in shock that this talented woman has remained so undiscovered until now.
Thank goodness for viral online video.
The “Way We Were” video already has almost three million views. And the first video of her recent performance of “I Dreamed a Dream” has gotten almost 52 million views.
Here are the new ones:
Zoe Keating makes entrancing, hauntingly beautiful music using a traditional French cello, a MacBook, and an arsenal of audio-crunching software and scripts.
“My music is the fusion of information architecture and classical music,” Keating says in this Wired.com video. “The way that you problem-solve in the world of technology … really lends itself to problem-solving with the kind of music that I do.”
She’s one of a growing group of musicians who use computers to record snippets of music as they play. The computer records these snippets and then plays them back in loops, allowing Keating to create complex, layered compositions.
Keating, who was an information architect during the dot-com boom, sees work of making her music as similar to that of planning and building websites: In both cases, she says, she’s building large structures out of simple building blocks.
“It’s really neat when you build up all these little, small things, you can make something that is otherworldly,” Keating says.
A Keating performance is the audio equivalent of watching a bricklayer build a house: Her compositions start out simply, but as they progress, she adds successive layers of sound, stacking and removing them to create music that without computers would require a dozen musicians or more.
She makes it all happen using a MacBook Pro running Ableton Live and SuperLooper. She controls the computer primarily with her feet, tapping on a bank of 10 MIDI foot pedals near her chair. The pedals activate custom AppleScripts she has created, which in turn control the audio software, enabling her to create and play back sometimes dozens of simultaneous loops.
Wired.com visited Keating’s Bay Area studio to find out how she makes her music, what technology she uses, and whether becoming super-popular on Twitter (where she posts as @zoecello) has changed her life.
If you want to know more, you can watch the longer, director’s cut version of Wired.com’s Zoe Keating interview (playing time: 10 minutes 15 seconds). We also have a bonus video below: Zoe Keating performing a new composition, “Escape Artist.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Section: Communications, Mobile, Web, Web 2.0
As more and more cases of swine flu are reported across the country, interest in telecommuting has started to grow. Many businesses are considering telework as a way to protect their employees from getting infected. Should the outbreak reach epidemic levels, telecommuting could become a critical necessity.
Companies that have solid telework plans in place are in good shape, says Chuck Wilsker, president and CEO of The Telework Coalition in Washington, D.C. Those that aren’t prepared to have employees work offsite may find operations at a standstill if the swine flu threat were to escalate to the point of widespread absenteeism or building closures. “This is a really lousy economic time for businesses to have to go cold turkey and not be able to carry on,” Wilsker says.
Research firm Gartner says companies should have a plan in place that would address workplace absenteeism of 40% or more. Still experts say, businesses and employees should be concerned and planning, not panicking. Once a telework plan is put in place it should be tested to insure it will work as intended and address all the needs of workers and employers alike.
Telecommuting takes adjustment and may be hard on those who thrive on watercooler talk and office politics, as well as on those who lack the self discipline to work effectively under little or no supervision. That’s why communication is so important, and now is the time to start. Waiting until an epidemic or pandemic hits is far too late.
Read [PCWorld]
Full Story » | Written by Sue Walsh for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
AP - Despite a widening net loss, Sprint Nextel Corp. finally got some good news in its long recovery Monday, as a big surge in "prepaid" customers offset another nightmarish drop in valuable subscribers who sign annual contracts.
Getting Google Apps to work properly on a BlackBerry smartphone has never been the easiest process. Take Gmail, for example: you could use POP or IMAP, but it won’t sync the read status of each message. That’s no big deal, until you go absolutely insane from a status light that never, ever stops blinking. Now you’re stuck using the Gmail for BlackBerry app. Want your BlackBerry to automatically sync your Google Calendar? You’ll need Google Sync.
These standalone applications may be reasonable solutions for individuals and small businesses, but installing, configuring, and managing it all just isn’t feasible for those companies with hundreds or thousands of employees all expecting their IT department to just make things work. Fortunately, the whole process is about to get a lot easier. This evening Google is announcing the upcoming availability of the Google Apps Connector for BlackBerry Enterprise Server, which allows for proper access to Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts through the default, built-in BlackBerry applications.
Once installed into any BlackBerry Enterprise Server for Microsoft Exchange box, IT managers can add users and apply policies just as they would for any other account. Google Apps Connector handles the Gmail, Calendar, and Contact syncing, and BES handles the data exactly as if it were talking to Exchange. No more going handset by handset installing and configuring all of these standalone apps.
Of course, you probably don’t care about what this means for the IT guys. Those guys are smug, smell sort of strange, and haven’t fixed that printer that’s been jammed up for two weeks. What’s in mean to you?
All of it will roll right into the BlackBerry apps you’re already used to using, without installing and configuring a bunch of standalone apps.
Alas, this solution doesn’t come without its limitations. There are certain things that the built-in apps just can’t do, such as Gmail conversations, labels, and full search. For those, you’ll still have to turn to the Gmail application.
Google is currently beta testing Apps Connector with “select companies and universities”, with free availability to all Premier/Education customers come July.
Crunch Network: TechCrunch obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile
Sure, those on T-Mobile have been able to get their hands on a BlackBerry Curve 8900 for a few months now, but that should not stop us AT&T users from being happy that we will soon be able to get it without switching carriers. Yup, AT&T has recently offered up a nice press release announcing the “early summer” availability of the Curve 8900. Sounds good, of course they left out one important detail—the price.
Otherwise, the Curve 8900 that will be wearing the AT&T logo will have the same features as we have seen on the T-Mobile version. In other words, it’s a pretty nicely spec’d handset and one that was described as being the “thinnest, full-QWERTY BlackBerry smartphone yet.” However, just to offer a quick refresher, the Curve 8900 features a 480 x 360 display, Wi-Fi, GPS, a 3.2-megapixel webcam, and a microSD card slot that can handle cards up to 16GB in size.
The one drawback here, and the reason that many will still choose the Bold is the lack of 3G support on the Curve 8900. Of course, that does not make it a bad phone, however speaking as someone who has been on 3G for a while, let’s just say that I would not want to go back. Additionally, the Curve 8900 will also come with free Wi-Fi at any of AT&T’s 20,000 hotspots, that is assuming you have an unlimited data plan. Anyway, while AT&T has made it official, the wait continues for availability.
Read [PR Newswire]
Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Amazon is almost certain to announce a large-screen Kindle on Wednesday.
In the world of e-book readers, that’s huge. But if Apple fulfills expectations and releases a tablet-style computer later this year, it’s going to render the Kindle — no matter what screen size — almost instantly moot.
Amazon’s Kindle is far and away the most popular e-book reader; Amazon probably sold half a million last year and may sell a million Kindle 2’s this year. Yet the Kindle’s 6-inch screen, while impressively readable and crisp, is only slightly larger than a 3″ x 5″ index card. That’s why many magazine and newspaper publishers are excited about the prospect of a larger Kindle — let’s call it the “Kindle XL.” Even if it’s not as large as Plastic Logic’s promised 8.5″ x 11″ screen (due in early 2010), a larger screen would provide lots more room to display the day’s news, attractively laid-out feature stories, and, of course, advertisements.
Textbook publishers — who may be Amazon’s true target market, if the speculations of our own Charlie Sorrel as well as Om Malik are correct — may have even more to be happy about. The $9.8 billion textbook market is a prime example of the slowness, stupidity and waste of paper publishing. Plus, students would welcome the chance to ditch backbreaking tonnage and carry a thin, lightweight e-book reader instead. Amortized over the four or five years of a typical college education, even a $500 or $600 reader would be a reasonable expense. UPDATE 3:30pm Pacific: According to the Wall Street Journal, six universities will be offering their students e-textbooks on the large-screen Kindle.
But all this pales in comparison with what an Apple tablet could do. Rumors earlier this year suggested that Apple is working on a larger version of the iPhone with a 9 or 10-inch touchscreen, rather than a tablet-style MacBook. More recently, BusinessWeek cited anonymous sources suggesting that Apple and Verizon would soon release an iPhone-like “media pad” with a larger screen.
Imagine that the “media pad” includes a screen two to four times the size of the iPhone’s 3.5-inch (2″ x 3″) screen, Wi-Fi connectivity, the ability to run software from the App Store and a full web browser.
The usefulness of a device like that would instantly trump that of any e-book reader, even if the battery life is poor and the screen less readable than an e-ink screen. That’s because a simple, easy-to-use tablet would be able to do anything the e-book reader could (display the text of books using an app like Stanza, which Amazon recently acquired) plus it would have access to 40,000 apps and billions of web pages. Its screen would be able to display color, and it would undoubtedly let you access e-mail, IM and other apps that people want.
By contrast, e-book readers are good at basically one thing: Storing and displaying monochrome text and simple graphics. While the Kindle 2 has a web browser, it’s all but useless for even the most basic web activities.
Make no mistake: There are many more people who would be interested in a general-purpose tablet than in an e-book reader. Sure, the majority of them would probably use it to download bikini photos of Evangeline Lilly while watching Lost on the big screen instead of re-reading Proust.
But if the PC and smartphone industries are any guide, people will opt for a well-designed multipurpose device over a special-purpose gadget every time, even if the latter does a few things much better. Already, there are more people reading e-books on the iPhone using Stanza alone (more than one million) than on the Kindle.
We don’t know whether Apple will release a tablet or not. But if it does, its sales will make the Kindle’s million units look like a rounding error.
See Also:
Illustration of an imaginary iPhone tablet: Flickr/vernhart
Folks, just wanted to keep you abreast on pricing for the 3G Sidekick LX (2009) from T-Mobile. It was originally slated to be $200 after a MIR, but that only applies to existing T-Mobile customers. New customers will have to fork over $250 for the new hotness. That is all.
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Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Google has released two nifty applications for Google Latitude, a feature launched through Google Mobile Maps that allows you to broadcast your location to select friends, family, and colleagues based on the coordinates of your cell phone (via GPS or otherwise). Google says that since Latitude's launch, users expressed interest in sharing their location with people who are not their Latitude friends. The two apps rolled out today allow users to do this.
Google Talk location status automatically updates your Google Talk or Gmail chat status message with your Latitude location. The application will automatically update your status message to your current city as you move, and anyone who can chat with you will be able to see this location status. Your current city is shared with all of your Google Talk or Gmail Chat contacts even if you hide from certain "friends" in Google Latitude.
The 2009 Wireless Enterprise Symposium for BlackBerry Users hasn’t even officially started yet, but news from the event has already started making its way out. The BlackBerry Partners Fund has just announced their second annual BlackBerry Developers Challenge, offering up a hefty cash prize to the developer who brings the best BlackBerry app and business plan to the table.
The contest is similar to last years, though the prizes and focus have changed. Where as entries into the last event were split amongst 5 categories (Games, Multimedia, Productivity, Web, and Enterprise), it seems that all of this year’s entries will be competing against each other regardless of category. The winner will be selected based on “both the application submitted and its supporting business plan.”
Last year’s winners (Poynt by Multiplied Media, Nobex Radio Companion by Nobex Technologies, and Strands Social Player by Strands Inc) got the opportunity to pitch their application to the BlackBerry Partners Fund for up to $150,000 in investment opportunities. This time around, one winner will take home $25,000 cash and a package worth $25,000 including mentoring sessions with RIM, BlackBerry Partner Fund investment opportunities, and an Alliance membership. Additionally, this year’s challenge will have 1 runner up who takes home $10,000 in cash.
More contest rules and details will be revealed when submissions open up on June 1st, 2009. The winner will be announced at the BlackBerry Developers Conference in November. Anyone with a working BlackBerry application can enter, as long as they’ve received no more than $1 million of outside investment.
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Section: Communications, Smartphones
RIM (Research In Motion) made multiple announcements today about upcoming projects at the Wireless Enterprise Symposium held in Florida. Most of the announcements had to do with new solutions for professionals that use BlackBerry devices. The highlights include the release of their new BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 and BlackBerry Mobile Voice System Server.
With the new version of the BlackBerry Enterprise, the main adjustment involves additional support features, including advanced IT admin functions and streamlined smartphone controls. The 5.0 version was awarded a certificate for Common Criteria Evaluation Assurance Level 4+ for recognition of its high security level. The new BlackBerry Mobile Voice System will be for the Cisco Unified Communications Manager version 6.1 or higher. This server will allow for on site and remote control over corporate voice systems.
Additional announcements made by RIM include the company’s alliance with HP to make additional business mobility products. Also, a new push application programming interface will allow developers to offer real time applications, like news and weather coverage.
Site: [RIM]
Full Story » | Written by Heather Wood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
If you’re a staunch pessimist like me, people who seem to always be walking on sunshine weird you out. Fortunately, a new iPhone application called Daily Downer should drag those bright-eyed Pollyannas down to your bleak reality.
The app contains a collection of horrible, depressing facts about the world superimposed onto photos of cute furry animals. Think facts along the lines of, “By the age of 65 the average American will have spent nearly nine years of their life watching TV,” or “The average American eats at McDonalds more than 1,800 times in their life.” Tapping the “Refresh” button loads a new fact and adorable animal.
I don’t know about you guys, but I cracked up for a good two minutes while playing with this app: I’m a fan of satire and puppies. It’s available for $1 through the App Store.
Download Link [iTunes via KRAPPS]
Vehicle meets bookshelf in the Easy Rider, a piece of furniture by German designer Nils Holger Moorman made of plywood, a tire, and a felt red cushion. So, you can be lounging around in your living room reading a book or playing with your iPhone, and if you need a glass of water you can just drive yourself to the kitchen. And if you're bored with the book you're reading, you can reach down and pick up a new one.
Nils Holger Moorman's main page via Dezeen
Section: Web, Web 2.0, Web Apps, Websites, Features, Originals
As just about everybody knows, Twitter is fast becoming one of the biggest social networks out there. Heck, even Ashton and CNN were apparently battling it out to be top tweeter. And given that Twitter limits you to just 140 characters, you have to make each one count. As a result, you see lots of shorthand and acronyms in Twitter-land. Some are ones you are probably pretty familiar with if you’ve already been using some kind of IM (that would be “Instant Messenger”), some, maybe not.
In which case, sure is a good thing you’ve got us to help decipher that Twitter-code, huh? Don’t worry, in no time, you’ll be tweeting like a crazybird (Uh…if that’s a good thing).
Some of the most often used phrases and acronyms you’ll probably be seeing on Twitter and what they mean are as follows:
@ - Added before any username to send a message to that person ex. @iyaz Hey iyaz! That writer of yours jodie really rocks!
#topic - This is to add a hashtag to your tweet. (It adds more context and metadata kind of like tags on flickr)
AFAIK - As Far As I Know
b/c - because
BR - Best Regard
bt- about
BTW - By The Way
DM - Direct Message (this is a private message, and won’t appear in the public forums)
EM - Email
EMA - Email Address
FAIL - Describes a business or product that isn’t working. (ie APPLE FAIL)
FAVRD - To vote for a tweet to appear on the internet site textism.
FB - Facebook (ya know…that other social networking site??)
FTF - Face to Face (this is done IRL)
FTL - For the Loss (not good obviously)
FTW - For the Win (an expression of recommendation)
HT - Hat Tip (to give credit)
IMHO - In My Humble Opinion
IRL - In Real Life (yes, some people step away from their computers, believe it or not)
j/k - just kidding
JSYK - Just So You Know
JV - Joint Venture
LMK - Let Me Know
OH - Overheard (this is a quotation of someone else’s remarks)
PRT - This one can be used two ways. First up…Partial ReTweet (this has been edited from the original, for size or other reasons) OR Please ReTweet (as in please forward to your tweet friends/followers)
RT - ReTweeting or forwarding the original tweet.
TMB - Tweet Me Back
twemes - lets you follow tags without following a specific account
YMMV - Your Mileage May Vary (means what you experience may be different than what I experience)
YW - You’re Welcome
So there you go. AFAIK, 30 of the acronyms most commonly used on Twitter, then again, YMMV. IMHO, these will help though. If so, EM or comment me and LMK! And don’t forget to to check gadgetell out on twitter while you’re busy showing off all the new tweeting skills. BR!!
Full Story » | Written by Jodie Andrefski for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
We have absolutely no idea what’s going on with all those shady black boxes in this leaked T-mobile Android roadmap, so the whole things a little iffy to us.
CellPhoneSignal posted the image originally, though it only showed the Samsung Houdini and G2 launch dates you see up above. Just a few hours later, TmoToday posted the image with one more box uncovered, revealing the supposed G1 v.2 “Bigfoot”.
Perhaps we’re crazy, but we’re getting the feeling that those images might just be placeholders. The dates seem plenty reasonable, but come on - look at the G1 v.2. Calling it similar to the Helio Ocean 2 would be an understatement.
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Photos by Recycloop
A Dutch architecture firm built this crazy building facade out of old stainless steel kitchen sinks held together with wire, scaffolding, and waterproof boards. It was last seen making its rounds of parks in the Netherlands, and can double as a rainwater storage tank.
2012 Architecten main page via NotCot
A cool new way to keep tabletop plants in the house without the hassle of fallen leaves: Domsai, or little light-bulb-shaped bipedal plant-people with ceramic legs and a variation of plant-heads by Italian artist Matteo Cibic. The artist imagines they could double as virtual pets, Tamagochis that don't whine if you don't play with it.
Matteo Cibic [via Cool Hunting]
Oh, inventory systems. You’re the source of countless pre-release confirmations, open to anyone with a polo bearing the proper logo.
T-mobile hasn’t (officially) confirmed the HTC Magic was heading to their shelves, but it’s been pretty much undeniable for the past few weeks. Now, according to this leaked shot obtained by TmoNews, it’s already in the inventory system.
That’s all fine and dandy, but there’s some bad news. You remember that T-mobile survey that was weighing opinions on 3 possible names for the HTC Magic just a few weeks ago? They picked the worst one. HTC G3, T-Mobile Genius, whatever - those would have been fine. But “myTouch”? Seriously? Look, T-Mobile: Apple doesn’t call the iPod Touch the “iTouch” for a very specific reason. On the upside, it looks like HTC might have snuck in an extra color for T-Mo: Merlot. Everyone will think you’re super classy until you start talking about “myTouch”. Then you’ll just be creepy.
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What was once rumored is now fact. AT&T will indeed get the BlackBerry Curve 8900 sometime in the “early summer.” The price still hasn’t been revealed, but it can’t be much more than what other BlackBerrys go for.
And yeah, it looks just like T-Mobile’s 8900, which, again, isn’t a bad thing.
AT&T is throwing in a few bonuses, though. Should you sign up for an unlimited data, AT&T will give you free AT&T Wi-Fi access at its 20,000 or so locations. (Remeber: the 8900 supports 802.11 b/g.) So that’s neat!
Other than that, it’s the same thing you’d expect: it’s a “world phone,” so you can use it overseas (but mind the roaming charges—best to just find a local SIM while you’re abroad); built-in GPS with AT&T Navigator turn-by-turn directions; support for microSD/SDHC memory cards up to 32GB; and so on. It’s a BlackBerry, you know what you’re getting.
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Skooba Design's latest $130 Checkthrough messenger bag features an easy-to-access window that supposedly allows for quick perusal by the TSA. We're big fans of this concept, but as Skooba even points out:
...in all instances, screening personnel always have the right to require laptop removal, secondary screening, or any other measures deemed necessary to ensure travel security.
Well, yeah.
[via The Gadgeteer]
Nine Inch Nails' first iPhone app "nin: access" launched a few weeks ago, but was recently rejected for violating the no-obscene/pornographic/offensive/defamatory-content section of the iPhone SDK agreement.
Frontman Trent Reznor explained via tweet:
Apple rejects the NIN iPhone update because it contains objectionable content. The objectionable content referenced is "The Downward Spiral"
Much of that album's lyrics are NSFW, so Apple's position makes sense.
Wait. No it doesn't.
Reznor posted an official rebuttal to the NIN forum. Here's the core of his argument (warning: he drops the f-bomb):
You can buy The Downward Fucking Spiral on iTunes, but you can't allow an iPhone app that may have a song with a bad word somewhere in it... Hey Apple, I just got some SPAM about fucking hot asian teens THROUGH YOUR MAIL PROGRAM. I just saw two guys having explicit anal sex right there in Safari! On my iPhone!
Apple: 0
Reznor: 1
[via Pitchfork]
Section: Apple, Audio, Communications, Smartphones
It shouldn’t surprise anyone who didn’t already know that Apple rules over the iPhone/iPod touch App Store with an iron fist. There have been several stories of Apps that got rejected for ridiculous reasons, or even some that were approved then taken down, like the Shaken Baby app. However, not all of these apps have had Trent Reznor and an army of Nine Inch Nails fans to complain about it.
Over the weekend Reznor posted his thoughts on the app rejection on the nin.com forums. He pasted in the first post the email from Apple that claimed the app was rejected because of the objectionable material of “The Downward Spiral.” The Downward Spiral is actually nowhere to be found on the app, and the update was meant to fix a bug that made it not work for international users. The only place The Downward Spiral is available through the app is through a streaming podcast that the app accesses. The song and album are actually available on the iTunes Music Store, although it carries and explicit tag.
Trent Reznor used the situation to rant about his issues with censorship in places like the App Store and Wal-Mart. His argument against Apple [Editor’s note: the content of the quote has been altered to remove swear words]:
You can buy The Downward F**king Spiral on iTunes, but you can’t allow an iPhone app that may have a song with a bad word somewhere in it. Geez, what if someone in the forum in our app says F**K or C**T? I suppose that also falls into indecent material. Hey Apple, I just got some SPAM about f**king hot asian teens THROUGH YOUR MAIL PROGRAM. . . .
There’s really no better way to say it. Later in the discussion Reznor explains his love for Apple products, and explains why NIN chose to release and app on the iPhone and not, say, Android. Part of his reasoning is his well known Apple loyalty, though something has to be said as well for the popularity and ease of use for new users of the iPhone.
Perhaps with enough people complaining about it, Apple will one day change its App Store policies, or at least make them more clear. If nothing else, it needs to find a way for adults to find apps that they may want that aren’t PG or PG-13. Imagine how much an App that simply streamed South Park episodes from South Park Studios, but it can’t because South park is probably “objectionable material.” Maybe something like an explicit tag? It apparently works on the iTunes Music Store. Some of us would like to see actual mature apps on the platform, and not just what Apple says we can handle.
Read [NIN Forums]
Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
Poor cyclists. Not only do they sustain indignity every time a car parks in a bike lane, or a moronic taxi passenger flings open a door in their path, the poppets have to brave their journeys to a soundtrack of car horns and abuse shouted by other, less civilized road-goers.
Podio, a neat, handlebar-mounted MP3 player from Japan, aims to ease their pain. Here’s what it does, scooped directly from the product page, itself rendered in beautifully sonorous Japlish:
Moreover, mounted by a special bracket over a bike handlebar,Podio Audio is transformed into a bike audio, and from then on, bike hiking is not mere exercising, but also an enjoyable melodious tour.
Product page [Mini-Speaker]
How do you fit a full-sized keyboard into a netbook? Acer is achieving this seemingly impossible feat by simply making it bigger. But not that much bigger: The new Aspire One 751 has an 11.6-inch screen, only slightly bigger than the standard 10-inches but also not far off the magic 12” of Apple’s beloved 12” PowerBook of old.
And it’s not a bad idea. The Register, Britain’s cheeky-chappy of tech, has a video showing the sleek new machine and the larger size doesn’t seem to kill the portability. In fact, those extra inches bring a few other advantages along with the (obviously) bigger screen and keyboard.
The battery is larger, too. Acer claims five hours for the standard and nine hours for the optional six-cell. Even with the power-optimization of the latest netbooks, that’s pretty good. Remember that the gen. 1 Wind has less than two hours on a three-cell.
Another bonus is that, with the extra area, the internals can be spread thinner and the 751 has a very slim body because of it. From then on, things remain resolutely standard, with the usual three USB ports split over the two sides, a card reader, Atom processor, 160GB hard drive and a gig of RAM.
It’s an interesting move. Spiritually, this is clearly a netbook but physically it pushes the boundaries of the category while still keeping a good price. The notbook will be on sale this month in five candy colors for £380 ($570, but expect it to be less in the US).
Acer 11.6in notebook-not-netbook demo’d on camera [El Reg]
Recently on Offworld, guest blogger Tom Armitage counters developer claims that X-Men Origins: Wolverine is "the movie game that finally, does not suck" with a lengthy look at 2004 Xbox hit The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay, freshly revamped for the Xbox 360, and his weekend game of choice.
Elsewhere we saw more Spore for the iPhone, this time a free, open-source third-party creature browser built on top of Maxis' Spore API, the latest 'feelgood' trailer for Brütal Legend, Double Fine's Jack-Black-starring 3D adventure through the Age of Rock, and the first video of Gaijin's latest retro-futurist WiiWare game, the more rotely rhythmic Bit.Trip: Core.
We also saw Sony adding more demoscene legends to its PlayStation Network downloadables, as .produkkt, creators of 96k first-person-shooter .kkreiger, unveil their elephant-headed, glistening dolphin, faux-Domo-kun starring .deTuned (above). Indie auteur Cactus also showed off the first geometric platforming of his "game about killing everything you love," and Earthbound got its first custom vinyl toys.
Finally, the day's quick-hit 'one shot's: seeing Super Mario from Mario's perspective, a peek and poke into the aged sketchbook and design documents of an Atari 800XL/LE programmer, Katamari Damacy meets Shadow of the Colossus, and Princess Peach falls down the Dig Dug hole.
Apple’s popular iPhone invigorated the smartphone market, and recent rumors about the handset’s possible expansion to Verizon are renewing debate over which U.S. carrier offers the highest quality service.
It’s difficult to say whose network is best: Each carrier advertises itself as the speediest and most reliable. Consumer experiences with each network vary on a case-by-case basis; some AT&T customers swear their network is the worst, while a number of Verizon users are preaching that theirs is superb — and vice versa. Customers on the smaller U.S. networks, T-Mobile and Sprint, are just as inconsistent in terms of satisfaction.
As of 2008, over 20 million U.S. homes rely solely on mobile phones for telecom communication, according to research company Nielsen. Therefore, it’s clear that in recent years the value of a high-quality, efficient cellphone connection has grown tremendously for the everyday consumer. A missed or dropped call can potentially ruin a relationship, cost job seekers career opportunities or simply create a persistent annoyance.
A carrier’s network performance is a dealbreaking factor for consumers shopping for a smartphone, whether it’s the iPhone, the HTC G1, or a BlackBerry Storm. Just which cellphone network is the best? Or better yet, which carrier is best for you in your particular area? In August, Wired.com conducted a global study to investigate the iPhone 3G’s network issues, which concluded that connection problems were tied to AT&T rather than the handset itself. Following up on that survey, Wired.com is inviting every 3G smartphone user in the United States to participate in a study to determine which carrier is the best overall in the country.
The process involves running a data speed test on your browser-equipped smartphone, followed by plotting your results on an interactive map with your computer. Ultimately, consumers will be able to view the results on the map to see how well each carrier performs in different parts of the country.
Follow the instructions below to complete the test, which will take about five minutes.
1. Ensure Wi-Fi is turned off and 3G is enabled on your smartphone (not the slower EDGE connection).
2. Load your smartphone’s browser and visit http://inetworktest.com/wired.*
3. The test will run automatically as the page loads. When it’s done loading, tap your carrier (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile or Sprint), and your results will appear.
4. On your computer screen, scroll to the ZeeMap at the top of this article and click the Add button. Fill in the Location and Details fields (see screenshots below for examples). For “General Satisfaction” rate your satisfaction on a scale from 1 to 5 — low satisfaction to high satisfaction, respectively.
5. Click Submit to complete the survey. Your entry should look similar to the example in the screenshot below.
*JavaScript must be enabled to run the data test page. Some BlackBerry devices have JavaScript turned off by default. See these instructions to learn how to turn JavaScript on for BlackBerry devices.
And then you’re done. After a week of collecting data, Wired.com will compile the results and highlight noteworthy conclusions about each carrier.
We strongly encourage smartphone owners to complete the test: The more participants, the better the conclusions we can reach. E-mail your questions or concerns about the test to BChen [at] Wired [dot] com, or add them in the comments section below.
Wired.com would like to extend a special thanks to Ben Reubenstein of Xcellent Creations, who designed the 3G data test for this study. iPhone and iPod Touch owners interested in learning more about data performance on their devices can download the iNetwork app for $1 through the App Store.
See Also:
Section: Communications, Mobile, Computers, Mobile Computers, Gadgets / Other, Green, Lifestyle
Today, Amazon delivered invites to an event being held at the New York Times former headquarters in the City. Amazon doesn’t hold a lot of these, so speculation is something new is coming. This new thing is purported to be the savior of the flailing newspaper world. Even better, it might actually work.
The idea isn’t new. In fact, Kindle owners can digitally subscribe to newspapers right now at reasonable rates. Just how many take advantage of this is kept secret by Amazon. Many e-ink readers are scheduled to make it to market by year’s end. Amazon looks to get a jump on them.
The economics make solid sense. By getting the newspaper companies out of the paper and printing business, they’ll be able to deliver their content with very little overhead. The newspapers would be saving millions of dollars. Think of the recycling plants not getting all that paper each week.
But who is the customer? No longer can Fido fetch the paper. No longer will neighbors take delight in seeing me in my pajamas, scampering to the end of my driveway for a paper that is probably soaked. Will my non-techie neighbors make the switch? Can they comprehend that this little box magically has tomorrow’s paper already inside it?
The answers on adoption lies with one question: Is the price right? I’ve mentioned before that I believe the Kindle ought to be free, and charge for content. Providing would-be customers with the means to buy from you seems like a no-brainer. Take the savings from not having to print and deliver paper, and use it to subsidize the device from Amazon with a two year commitment to subscribe to the NY Times. Easy enough right?
A simple App Store of sorts that the device hooks up to can show off other titles where Amazon gets a cut would round out the picture for Amazon. Using the model of the cell phone world, Amazon could even charge a small monthly fee for connectivity if they wanted more. I still believe consumers would go for it, provided there was no cost up front.
Only by lowering the entry costs to consumers will an e-reader take over for paper and print. Make it easy, simple and impressive and customers will make the move. Charge $100+ and we’ll have forgotten about this next week.
Source: [NY Times]
Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
Wired's following up on its iPhone 3G bandwidth map with a repeat that includes every smartphone, carrier and network in the United States. All you have to do is hit a URL with your phone's browser: http://inetworktest.com/wired.
Writes Wired's Brian Chen:
The test will automatically run and users will get their results. Then, like last time, we ask them to plot their data on an interactive Zeemap. Of course, we're going to need even more participants than last time...
This will be great for holding carriers' feet to the fire when it comes to shabby coverage in certain cities. I get about 1.5 Mbps from Sprint Evdo Rev. A here in Pittsburgh: not bad!
I live in an old house, which means it is full of old, old plumbing, most of which doesn’t work very well. This is why I want the PermaFLOW, a replacement sink-trap which both shows you the problem and offers a solution, all at once.
First, you will get a build-up of goop and foreign objects in your sink drain. The PermaFLOW is made from clear plastic, not just because it makes for a nice show, but because it means you can see what and where the blockage is. Second, a built-in unblocker means you can clear the pipe with a simple twist of a knob — way easier than chemicals, bendy wire brushes or, worse, calling out the plumber.
Take a look at the comparison page to see many other real and perceived advantages of this ABS U-bend. One of these “advantages” actually turns out to be anything but. While other solutions are “Largely Made in China”, the PermaFLOW is “Made in the USA”. This patriotism obviously doesn’t guarantee better build quality, but it does mean a higher price — around $60 online.
Now, if they made one of these for our decrepit, antique toilet, I’d buy one, made in the US of A or not.
Product page [PF Waterworks via Core77]
The name of Ani Niow's SteamVibe suggests. Catching sight of the thing itself sends an eyebrow heaven-ward. Finally, the name of the Flickr set sweeps away any remaining ambiguity: steampunk vibrator.
You're probably asking, does it really work? the answer is you betcha. its been proven to work (and vibrate) off of compressed air, I'm seeking a more powerful boiler than my pressure cooker so I can actually run it off of steam so please let me know if you know of one.
More photos, and details of its construction, are at The Lady Cartoonist: "[It's] machined out of a solid hunk of stainless steel (no easy task), and fitted with the world's itty-bittiest Tesla Turbine."
A steampunk robot penis machined in similar fashion to current-gen MacBooks? I think someone divided the Internet by zero.
steampunk vibrator [Ani's Flickr]
Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile
It looks like we are getting a little closer to seeing the launch of the highly anticipated Palm Pre. According to a recent posting over on the Sprint Gurus user forums training is scheduled to begin very soon. In fact, it is just a few days away now on May 6. It looks like the classes are also going to be highly guarded, and the students employees will be required to hand over all phones, cameras, iPods, etc. before entering.
“As I’m sure you are already aware, the details of the Pre phone have been a closely guarded secret, and we’re proud of that. We’re excited to have reached a point where we can now share with you the details you need to know to support the product. However, this does not mean that our level of security has changed. In fact, we’re asking you to join the ranks of people who will keep the secret.”
“Before we end this training course, please remember that you signed a non-disclosure agreement at the beginning of class today. It is important to not share what you have learned here today with anyone until the Pre phone launches and we begin supporting customers. If customers or friends ask about the phone, direct them to www.sprint.com/palmpre or the Palm Website (www.palm.com) for the latest information.”
They will also, as noted in the above quote, be required to sign a NDA. Another item to note from these training classes is that each session will include one Palm pre setup and only five students, which should be good for their hands on time, which will hopefully mean that these employees will be able to effectively talk about, suggest and in-turn sell the Palm pre once it is available.
So, what does this mean for all of us who are simply waiting for a release to get some hands on time? Nothing really because a release date still has not been made official. It does however suggest that we are getting closer to finding out that information. Now, let’s just hope that a release date follows soon, and if nothing else that some employees feel the need to leak some goodies from their classes. Of course, if any Sprint employee is reading this, feel free to send anything my way.
Read [Sprint Gurus] Via [PreThinking]
Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
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Here’s some non-news: Ad spending dropped dramatically at the end of 2008.
If you’ve ever wandered around an older building you’ll notice something that looks like an ashtray bolted to the wall. These ashtrays, which usually say something like “Watch Station,” once held keys to wind up a watchclock, a mechanical wonder that forced the night watchman to make his rounds through the building under mechanical supervision.
Who says mom doesn’t appreciate a nice time piece too. Just in time for Mother’s Day, 
Casio has announced the latest addition to their Edifice line, the 3D Chronograph. This new arrival features one of Casio’s latest design features, the see-through complication. This provides a rather unique appearance for a watch already loaded with features.
Twitter! Whether you use it or not, or understand it or not, it’s the hottest thing in Silicon Valley right now. It’s brought up in every conversation. And no wonder - the service has exploded to somewhere north of 25 million users and has been growing by 40% a week since that 
It started early Monday morning with Yahoo’ers chattering that the long awaited Microsoft search deal, 
The key, literally, to the watchclock system is that the watchman is required to "clock in" at a series of perhaps a dozen or more checkpoints throughout the premises. Positioned at each checkpoint is a unique, coded key nestled in a little steel box and secured by a small chain. Each keybox is permanently and discreetly installed in strategically-placed nooks and crannies throughout the building, for example in a broom closet or behind a stairway.
