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Brazil's copyright law forbids using DRM to block fair useA UN treaty called the WIPO Copyright Treaty requires countries to pass laws protecting "software locks" (also called DRM or TPM). Countries around the world have adopted the treaty in different ways: in the US, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act prohibits all circumvention of software locks, even when they don't protect copyright (for example, it would be illegal to for me to break the DRM on a Kindle to access my own novels, were they sold with Kindle DRM).Brazil has just created the best-ever implementation of WCT. In Brazil's version of the law, you can break DRM without breaking the law, provided you're not also committing a copyright violation. And what's more, any rightsholder who adds a DRM that restricts things that are allowed by Brazilian copyright laws ("fair dealing" or "fair use") faces a fine. It's a fine and balanced approach to copyright law: your software locks have the power of law where they act to uphold the law. When they take away rights the law gives, they are themselves illegal. §1º. The same sanction applies, without prejudice to other sanctions set forth by law, to whom, through whatever means:Brazil's Approach on Anti-Circumvention: Penalties For Hindering Fair Dealing
 Source: Boing Boing | 10 Jul 2010 | 4:15 am British envoy says regrets offence over cleric blog (Reuters)Reuters - Britain's ambassador to Lebanon said she regretted any offence caused by her blog praising Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, an early spiritual mentor of Hezbollah who died on Sunday.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 10 Jul 2010 | 3:31 am Midnight at Linden LabMidnight at Linden Lab. No particular meaning, other than tonight it was 'round Midnight when I happened to walk past Linden Lab.Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 3:21 am After a Decade, Digital Radio Still an Also-Ran In UKbeschra writes "Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB) was developed as early as 1981. After launching in the UK 10 years ago, only 24% of listeners listen on DAB. The article credits a good part of the delay to the fact that the technology was largely developed under the Europe-wide Eureka 147 research project. How does government vs. commercial development help or hinder acceptance of new technology? From the article: '[analyst Grant Goddard says] "If Nokia develop something, they'll be bringing out the handsets before you know it," he says. "Because DAB was a pan-European development, you had to have agreement from all sides before you could do anything. That meant progress was extremely slow." But this alone did not account for the hold-up. The sheer complexity of introducing and regulating the system was also a major factor, Mr Goddard adds."'
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2010 | 3:07 am Glossy Ceramic Jewelry - Etienne Perret Jewelry Masters the Art of Mixing Clay and Gems (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Goldsmith Etienne Perret has experimented with ceramics for twenty years. The new Etienne Perret Jewelry collection features a masterful technique in which glossy, highly-polished ceramic...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 2:31 am Bedazzled Air Filters - The Luxury Swarovski-Studded Hyla Air Purifier and Room Cleaning System(TrendHunter.com) Everyone knows that if you are rich, the air you breathe is just that much better than that which sustains ordinary folk. The Hyla Air Purifier will help keep the environment that surrounds...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 2:01 am iPad Magicians - This Video of iPad Street Magic is Mind-Bending (VIDEO)(TrendHunter.com) This YouTube video of a magician performing some incredible iPad street magic is incredible. The man performs some incredible illusions, all using the Apple iPad, stunning onlookers...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 1:41 am Apple Opens Shanghai Store to Spur Sales in China - BusinessWeek
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 10 Jul 2010 | 1:22 am Apple Fanboy Hubs - The Spoof Apple Friend Bar Means Diehards Will Always Have a Buddy (VIDEO)(TrendHunter.com) The Onion has created a clever parody that highlights the all-new Apple friend bar, which serves as a friendly face within Apple retail stores for people to talk to. The idea is that...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 1:11 am Headphone Harnesses - The Uplink Audio Strap System is for Athletic Audiophiles (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) The Uplink Audio Strap System may be the headphone of the future for athletes and outdoorsmen. This harness is designed to let you listen to music or talk on your phone without clogging...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 12:51 am YouTube Leanback: Hands On - BusinessWeek
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 10 Jul 2010 | 12:46 am Solar eclipse predicted at same time as World Cup final - CNN
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 10 Jul 2010 | 12:37 am Personal Fast Food Soundtracks - Burger King Introduces 'Musical Showers' in Tokyo (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Let's clarify one thing: When I refer to 'Musical Showers' in Burger King restaurants, it doesn't mean they will be offering actual showers for their customers. Instead, they will be...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 10 Jul 2010 | 12:20 am When Telemarketers Harass Telecoms Companiesfarnz writes "Andrews & Arnold, a small telecoms company in the UK, have recently been hit with an outbreak of illegal junk calls. Unlike larger firms, they've come up with an innovative response — assign 4 million numbers to play recordings to the telemarketers, put them on the UK's Do-Not-Call list and see what happens. Thus far, the record is over 3 minutes before a telemarketer works out what's going on." The sound quality (and the satisfying humor) of the recording gets better as it goes on.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 10 Jul 2010 | 12:06 am Surreal Tropical Paintings - Abbey McCulloch's 'Cabin Fever' is Inspired by Retro Flight Attendants (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) I'm absolutely in love with Abbey McCulloch's work. Creating paintings unlike any I've seen before, she captivated me before I even began browsing through her latest collection, 'Cabin...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:50 pm Judge slashes downloading penalty - Boston Globe
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:36 pm Razor-Sharp Rides - The Egochine B by Paolo De Giusti Looks Inspired by Men's Shavers (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) Looking at the Egochine B concept, I can't help but be skeptical about it. Let's face it, the vehicle looks more like a razor than a car. Perhaps I should give designer Paolo De Giusti...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:20 pm Bolted Industrial Rings - The Martine Ali Fall/Winter 2010 Jewelry Collection is Edgy (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) I've hardly been the type of girl that can pull off any sort of punk rock kind of fashion, but the Martine Ali Fall/Winter 2010 jewelry collection is slowly swaying me to believe otherwise...Source: RSS feed - channel BNBlogTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:50 pm HTC has no reason to enter tablet market just yetSection: Business News, Computers, Mobile Computers  Since HTC has already made its niche in the smartphone market by combining Android with excellent hardware, the next logical progression is the tablet market. For HTC fans, it looks like your favorite company does not plan on creating any Android oriented tablet device in the immediate future. Eric Lin, the company’s global PR, says without a compelling feature and that one awesome hook, their Android tablet would get lost in a sea of other mediocre Android tablets. Here are his exact words on the matter:
Lin makes a lot of sense, and it’s nice to see HTC not creating a tablet just so they can say “oh, we have an Android tablet available, too.” Instead, they are actually looking to create a standout tablet that appeals to many people. HTC has always been known as a company driven by quality and it’s reassuring to see HTC regard the tablet market with the same mentality. Via [Pocket-Lint] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:39 pm Boston judge cuts penalty in song-sharing case (AP)AP - A federal judge on Friday drastically trimmed a $675,000 verdict against a Boston University graduate student who was found liable for illegally downloading and sharing 30 songs online, saying the jury damage award against a person who gained no financial benefit from his copyright infringement is "unconstitutionally excessive."Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:32 pm Google Found Guilty of Australian Privacy Breachschliz writes "The Australian Privacy Commissioner has found Google guilty of breaching the country's Privacy Act when it collected unsecured WiFi payload data with its Street View vehicles. While the Commissioner could not penalize the company, Google agreed to publish an apology on its Australian blog, and work more closely with her during the next three years. Globally, Google is said to have collected some 600 GB of data transmitted over public WiFi networks. In May, the company put its high-definition Australian Street View plans on hold to audit its processes."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:06 pm Garminfone drops to $130Section: Communications, Smartphones  Price drops on brand new phones usually aren’t good. A price drop just a few weeks after launch is even worse. We’ve seen it happen with the Kin phones, and we all know how that turned out. Now it looks to be happening to the Garminfone. When the Garminfone was released last month, T-Mobile priced the phone at $200 after a $50 mail-in rebate. Today T-Mobile has slashed that price down to $130 after a $50 rebate. That almost still seems like too much for the device in some aspects. Yes, it has Garmin GPS software, but all Android devices have Google Navigation that can do the same thing. On T-Mobile it runs up against the myTouch 3G Slide, which runs a more recent version fo Android and has a physical keyboard. On other carriers there’s phone like the Droid X, iPhone 4 and the EVO 4G. That’s not even getting into all those Samsung Galaxy X smartphones. Things don’t look good for Asus and it’s first phone. Maybe the company’s next phone will ship with more up-to-date hardware and software. Read [Electronista] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:22 pm NASA's Plutonium Supply Dwindling; ESA To Helpastroengine writes "NASA's stockpile of the plutonium isotope Pu-238 is at a critical level, causing concern that there won't be enough fuel for future deep space missions. Pellets of Pu-238 are used inside radioisotope thermoelectric generators (or RTGs) to generate electricity for space probes traveling beyond the orbit of Mars — solar energy is too weak for solar arrays at these distances. Blocked by a contract dispute with Russia to supply Pu-238 and the US Department of Energy that has not been granted funds to produce more of the isotope, NASA lacks enough of the radioisotope to fuel the future joint NASA-ESA mission to Europa. However, the head of the European Space Agency (ESA) has announced that they have plans to commence a new nuclear energy program to alleviate the situation."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:03 pm Twitter Changes Tweet Storage Strategy, Confirms Realtime Analytics Product
It’s been believed for some time that analytics would eventually be a part of Twitter’s monetization strategy, but they’ve never said much about it beyond vague statements about it being one potential idea. ReadWriteWeb’s Marshall Kirkpatrick dug up some evidence that it would be launching soon (which we also believe to be the case) two days ago. And in this post tonight, Twitter’s Ryan King writes the following, “Our analytics, operations and infrastructure teams are working on a system that uses cassandra for large-scale real time analytics for use both internally and externally.” Yep, large-scale realtime analytics — externally. But the bigger news may be the shift Twitter is making in the way it had stated it would be storing tweets. Previously, Twitter was intending to use this Cassandra system for tweet storage (dumping MySQL in favor of it), but that’s not going to be the case anymore — at least for now. “This is a change in strategy,” King notes. He goes on, “Instead we’re going to continue to maintain our existing Mysql-based storage. We believe that this isn’t the time to make large scale migration to a new technology.“ I’m assuming the time isn’t right for the migration because Twitter has been dealing with uptime issues as they face levels of traffic that they’ve never seen before (thanks in part to the World Cup — which ends on Sunday). We have a query into Twitter about that. Cassandra is an open source Apache project to create a “highly scalable second generation distributed database.” It was originally open-sourced by Facebook back in 2008. King notes that the system will continued to be a key part of many of Twitter’s newer large scale projects, such as their geolocation places database, data mining for data used in top tweets and trends, and the aforementioned analytics. “We’re investing in Cassandra every day. It’ll be with us for a long time and our usage of it will only grow,” he concludes. Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 8:40 pm Google introduces rich text signatures to GmailSection: Communications, Email / IM, Web, Websites, Google
In order to create a signature with links and/or pictures, Gmail users have employed Greasemonkey scripts, various browser plugins, or canned responses. Many people want this as a standard feature in Gmail, but the Google engineers have been slow to respond. However, we can get rid of all those scripts, plugins, and canned responses because last night Google announced users can now create their own rich text signatures right in Gmail under settings. Gmail users can format text, insert links, and insert pictures to make the best personalized signature possible. In addition, if you use many email addresses through Gmail, you can create a separate signature for each. For instance, you may choose to put your work cell phone and work address under your work email, but home address and personal cell number personal home email address. Unfortunately, rich text signatures are not compatible with mobile phones nor any older version of Gmail at this time. Via [Gmail Blog] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 8:12 pm Could I interest the gentleman in a $121,000 gold iPad?
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:41 pm First Wii Party gameplay: it’s like Mario Party Lite, if that’s possible
I don’t know, guys. I’m about ready to jump ship and just be satisfied with playing old Zelda games for the rest of my life.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:21 pm Verizon shipped 170 Droid X’s early?Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones  We just heard the reason Verizon shipped a few Motorola Droid X smartphones early was because of a system error. According to reports, only a few customers actually received the Droid X early, but it turns out many customers should have received a Droid X. Droid-Life managed to obtain an internal doc over at Verizon which says 170 Droid X devices were shipped to customers ahead of time. While Verizon continues to investigate the cause and reason for early shipment, Big Red hopes customers will not activate their phone because “all of the proper network provisions…will not be in place until the official launch date.” I find it kind of funny that Verizon shipped 1/3 of all the Microsoft Kins sold in the form of the Droid X by accident. I doubt any more Droid X devices will be sold ahead of launch since Verizon is well-aware of the current situation. Via [Droid-Life] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:03 pm The Periodic Table of Swearing Click for super grande. The guys at Modern Toss made this as a poster. Sadly, they're all sold out for now. I hope they make more!
(via @timoreilly, @gnat and @templesmith) Roi de France Henri IV, avec lightsaber
Actually, that’s not all. I would just like to say that if you, the people of the world, decide to immortalize me with a statue after I leave this plane of existence (or before), feel free to add the lightsaber right off the bat. [via NotCot]
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:54 pm More than 27,000 abandoned oil and gas wells waiting to leak in Gulf of Mexico An Associated Press investigation shows that there are more than 27,000 abandoned oil and gas wells in the hard rock beneath the Gulf of Mexico, and the constellation of aging wells has been ignored for decades. "No one—not industry, not government—is checking to see if they are leaking." The oldest was abandoned in the late 1940s.
Found at Costco: Corry's Slug and Snail Death
Dean and I found this slug and snail poison at Costco today while shopping for the Boing Boing picnic tomorrow. Source: Boing Boing | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:42 pm Dubai airports nix full-body scanners "out of respect for privacy of individuals and personal freedom" Full-body scanners will not be used in Dubai airports because the systems "contradict Islam, and out of respect for the privacy of individuals and their personal freedom," said the head of the Dubai police force airport security division, in a Dubai newspaper. Brigadier Pilot Ahmad Mohammad Bin Thani added, "The scanners will be replaced with other inspection systems that reserve travellers' privacy." (@adamshostack via @ioerror)
Source: Boing Boing | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:37 pm TechCrunch TV: Speaking Of… Detroit, Featuring Scott and Jay Adelson
I’ve met a lot of engineers and entrepreneurs from Detroit and there’s an underlying vibe that resonates from all of them: a specific attitude or work ethic – possibly left over from the automotive industry – that either causes them to try to work harder than their fathers or go against the grain trying to figure out how they can live life to its fullest. As Jay Adelson takes his first break from work in 20 years, we get to time travel with him go back to the land of Henry Ford (the ultimate Detroit entrepreneur) to see where people like Jay come from. Interviewing Jay (founder of Equinix, Revision3 and CEO of Digg for five years) with his brother Scott was a real treat, because we don’t often get to see the family that surrounds the entrepreneur. With the exception of Ron Conway, who works with his sons, family is often under represented in the entrepreneurial story. One point Jay makes in the extended version of the interview (which we’ll publish later) is that there are amazing entrepreneurs coming from the midwest that lack the same support structure you see in cities like San Francisco, New York, etc. Although, there’s no solution offered quite yet, he proposes that instead of people yearning to get away, some of these companies may start sprouting up. As Jay says, there is a bouquet of Kevin Roses in the Midwest waiting to get funded. (Watch Episode One of Speaking Of… With Cyan Banister – featuring RockJazz pianist Eric Lewis – here.) Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:35 pm NSA supposedly planning to spy on US networks, denies report - Ars Technica
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:33 pm Hey, Congress! Google Could Have Sniffed Your Wi-Fi - Wired News
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:29 pm Next iPod Touch: 7 Must-Haves (PC World)PC World - If the latest Apple rumor is true, a new iPod Touch should arrive in September. U.K. retailer John Henry says we can expect an iPhone 4-inspired device with a front-facing camera, video chat, and a gyroscope.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:28 pm China renews Google's license, free speech advocates debate principled engagement The government of China this week decided to renew Google's web license. The official Google announcement is here, and background on the story at Wired News, Reuters, and Washington Post. Rebecca MacKinnon has this analysis: While a number of commentators are interpreting this as a "climbdown" or "wimp out" by Google, I don't understand how they have reached that conclusion. As I pointed out last week, the only thing that has changed since March is that after typing "google.cn" into the browser's address bar and hitting "return," users have to make one extra click before reaching the uncensored google.com.hk. While the google.cn page now includes links to music, translation, and shopping services, the search box you see there on the page is just a static image that takes you immediately to google.com.hk as soon as you click on it. If you have grade school literacy in Chinese it's extremely obvious from looking at that page that if you want to search anything other than music or shopping you can simply click through to google.com.hk. I don't see how adding the extra click prevents users of Google's general search from using the service any more than the direct redirection from google.cn to google.com.hk which Google implemented in March. Of course, if you are searching from inside China and don't know that you can add an "s" to the "http:" in the address box and avail yourself of the "https" encrypted function that make your searches invisible to the Chinese network operators, searches on politically sensitive terms will get blocked by the Great Firewall. But that has been true since the redirection began. It hasn't changed. So Google's change implemented last week has no substantive impact on what Chinese Internet users can or cannot access via google.cn.On Google's license renewal and principled engagement (rconversation)
Source: Boing Boing | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:13 pm Google: 'We did not follow Apple into phone market' - Register
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:05 pm Microsoft Applies For Page-Turn Animation Patenteldavojohn writes "Ever seeking to out innovate their competition, Microsoft has applied for a patent on animating page flips in devices like the Nook or Kindle. The application summary reads 'One or more pages are displayed on a touch display. A page-turning gesture directed to a displayed page is recognized. Responsive to such recognition, a virtual page turn is displayed on the touch display. The virtual page turn actively follows the page-turning gesture. The virtual page turn curls a lifted portion of the page to progressively reveal a back side of the page while progressively revealing a front side of a subsequent page. A lifted portion of the page is given an increased transparency that allows the back side of the page to be viewed through the front side of the page. A page-flipping gesture quickly flips two or more pages.' Maybe you've seen this before?"
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:02 pm U.S. Cellular begins selling the Samsung AcclaimSection: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones
Back in late June, U.S. Cellular was gearing up to launch its first Android smartphone in the form of the Samsung Acclaim on July 9. Well, today is July 9 and U.S. Cellular is, indeed, selling the Samsung Acclaim right on cue. The Acclaim is selling for $99.95 after a $70 MIR on a new two year agreement, but there is also a buy one get one free offer going on for a limited time. The Samsung Acclaim features a 3.2 inch HVGA touch screen, slideout QWERTY keyboard, operates on Android 2.1, 3MP camera, full HTML browser, WiFi, and Bluetooth Connectivity. In addition, it comes loaded with a 4GB microSD card that can be expandable. The following is a list of preloaded apps:
Any Samsung Acclaim purchase requires a data plan and U.S. Cellular offers two different data plans. One is for $30 which includes email and web data. The other for $55 includes a modem service in addition to the email and web. If you are eligible for an upgrade on U.S. Cellular, then you may want to consider the new Android phone as it is a solid mid-range device. Via [U.S. Cellular] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:59 pm Photog detained by cops and BP security guard in Texas A freelance photographer who was taking pictures of a BP refinery in Texas was detained by a BP security official, local police and a man claiming to be with the Department of Homeland Security, according to nonprofit news org ProPublica. The photographer was working on a story about multiple large toxic releases at the BP refinery which happened just before the big Gulf oil blowout. From NBC News: The photographer, Lance Rosenfield, said he was confronted by the officials shortly after arriving in Texas City, Texas, to work on a story that is part of an ongoing collaboration between PBS and ProPublica.Photographer detained by police, BP employee near refinery (NBC Field Notes)
Image: The BP refinery in Texas City, one of the largest in the country, is nearly two square miles. (Lance Rosenfield)
Terrorist Sorcerers Are Coming To Rape Our Cars, warns Florida senate candidate Link, and the other Link. Also, alternate NSFW link. (via @DrewAtHitFix)
More like this. To do in LA: Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz of "Look Around You," live! Boing Boing folks in Los Angeles, here's one not to miss: On Tuesday July 20, at 11:00pm, at UCB Theater in Hollywood, a "Look Around You DVD Screening & Q & A" evening with Robert Popper & Peter Serafinowicz. The Look Around You DVD will be released in the USA that same night, and it's about goddamned time. That series is one of my favorite things ever! More about the LA event: Come and witness the nonsensical wonders of science as Robert Popper (South Park, Peep Show) & Peter Serafinowicz (Couples Retreat, Shaun of the Dead) present an audio/visual presentation of handpicked episodes from their BAFTA nominated comedy series Look Around You (Season One), on the day of its DVD release. The critically acclaimed series, which first premiered on BBC AMERICA and currently airs on Adult Swim, guides us through a series of madcap science experiments. In Season One, viewers observe a colony of ants build an igloo, find out the largest number in the world and more.Again, tickets are released today, Friday July 9. The password is "thants." (thanks, Richard Metzger!)
Source: Boing Boing | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:36 pm Even absent, Apple's Jobs a big player at Sun Valley (Reuters)Reuters - Apple Inc boss Steve Jobs was a no-show at an annual pow-wow of media and technology moguls in Sun Valley. But he was far from forgotten.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:36 pm Even absent, Apple's Jobs a big player at Sun ValleySUN VALLEY, Idaho (Reuters) - Apple Inc boss Steve Jobs was a no-show at an annual pow-wow of media and technology moguls in Sun Valley. But he was far from forgotten.Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:36 pm T-Mobile Vibrant coming a bit early: July 15th
Maybe it’s to head off the Droid X menace (not to mention the other Galaxy models), or maybe they just got things done a little quicker than expected and want to push it out the door. We’ll never know. I mean, unless somebody tells us.
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:19 pm Internet Censorship Arms Race Gets New Weapon From Georgia Techcoondoggie writes "Trying to get out in front of what they call a censorship arms race, a team of researchers has come up with technology that lets users exchange messages through heavily censored networks in countries such as China and North Korea in hidden channels via user-generated content sites such as Twitter or Flickr. Researchers with the Georgia Tech School of Computer Science will demo the technology known as Collage for the first time at next month's Usenix security conference and ideally have a working package the public can download by the end of August."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:10 pm Google’s Open Spot Makes Parking A Breeze, Assuming Everyone Turns Into A Good Samaritan
The service is really straightforward: fire up the Android application (it doesn’t look like there’s a web-based version yet), and you’ll see a map with nearby open parking spots marked with colored dots. These spots were placed by other users, who are supposed to hit the app’s ‘Mark a Spot’ button when they leave a crowded parking lot or happen to see an open spot as they walk by. The color of each available spot is tied to how long ago it was marked by another user — a spot that’s 10-20 minutes old will look yellow, while a spot marked within the last five minutes will be bright red. After 20 minutes spots are removed from the map. You’re able to see parking spots within a .9 mile radius of your current location. That’s all well and good, but there isn’t a major incentive to actually mark spots yet. Google is employing a basic karma system to reward users when they share an available spot, but karma doesn’t actually award any bonuses in terms of making it easier to find parking — it’s just there to make you feel good. That said, if Google gets creative with the system (perhaps by adding a leader board), then that might provide sufficient incentive to get people using this. I’m not particularly optimistic, but here’s to hoping it works. Of course, even if a ton of people really do start marking their spots, it won’t necessarily be much help — in crowded cities, many spots are only available for a few seconds. In case you were thinking of making parking even more of a hassle than it already is by adding fake spots, don’t bother (please). While parking submissions are anonymous, the Open Spot FAQ says that Google has ways to monitor for so-called ‘griefers’ and can make sure they aren’t leaving multiple fake parking spots. Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:02 pm Want some 3G to go along with that DS or PSP? (Ben Patterson)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:52 pm Photoshopped Cosplayers
If we're going to have unrealistic and oppressive standards of beauty, we may as well base them on inherently dysmorphic cartoons.
Gallery [ajanlo.kapu.hu]
Source: Boing Boing | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:49 pm Google With Chinese Characteristics - Wall Street Journal
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:44 pm YouTube announces 4k support, that’s 4x more than 1080pSection: Web, Online Music/Video, Google
To view this when you select the resolution, choose “Original” rather than “480p.” Also, as you might imagine, these videos are pretty hard to come by considering the film producer has to have a camera capable of shooting at this resolution, so Youtube has gone ahead and compiled a playlist of the few supported videos that are out now. YouTube let’s you know that view the 4k videos you must either be very patient or have a killer internet connection. But my question is, who will have the patience to upload any video at this resolution? Read [The Official YouTube Blog] Full Story » | Written by Hunter Clarke for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:41 pm Tiny Apple touchscreen leaked, but what is it for?FROM APPLETELL - A mystery Apple touchscreen smaller than any we’ve seen before has popped up online. Could it be a redesigned iPod with touch controls, or maybe a new kind of mouse/touchpad? Full Story » | Written by NEWS for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:33 pm What Nokia Must Do To Stay Relevant In Mobilesnydeq writes "Mikael Ricknäs reports how Nokia can turn around its three-year slide in the mobile market — one that has transformed the company's iconic N95 into a distant memory given the pace of innovation at Apple and around Android. Completely underestimating the impact of the iPhone, Nokia took too long to realize that Symbian's lack of touch capabilities would hinder its ability to compete in the smartphone market. Moreover, the company's move to open source the OS has significantly slowed down Symbian's development, according to analysts, leaving Nokia with both a lack of support from other vendors and a platform on which competitors can keep a close eye. Meanwhile, developer interest in Nokia's Ovi app store is nearly nonexistent. 'Nokia's problems are still fixable but the window is closing. I am not optimistic that they will be fixed in 2010 because there isn't much time left; if they aren't fixed in 2011, Nokia will be in big trouble.'"
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:26 pm Update: 1000Memories Co-Founders On TechCrunch NOWThis morning, we covered the debut of 1000Memories, a Y Combinator backed startup that helps family and friends memorialize loved ones online. The company was started by three friends, Brett Huneycutt and Jonathan Good, formerly of Mckinsey, and Rudy Adler, a former employee of ad agency Wieden + Kennedy. Adler and Huneycutt dropped by our studios for our latest episode of TechCrunch NOW, to discuss the challenges of their business model and the theory behind the site’s design. See video above. The founders cobbled together the first draft of the site in roughly one month, with a few goals in mind: create a sleek design that does not distract from the person’s story and offer the product for free. The founders say 1000Memories will always be free and sans advertising, but they plan to roll out optional products for purchase soon, like framed photographs and memory books. Huneycutt also responded to commenters from Arrington’s post, who wondered what would happen to the content if the business went belly-up: “I think if someone takes the time to create a memorial site for their loved one, they want to make sure that their photos and their memories are there forever, so along those lines we are making a personal pledge never to erase anyone’s data or content… if things do go wrong, we will never erase it and we’ll make sure to get people their data back.” Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:25 pm World of Warcraft Creator Blizzard Caves on Real-Name Plan [Voices]By Nick Wingfield, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal After feeling the wrath of World of Warcraft gamers for days, Blizzard Entertainment says it’s abandoning a plan that would have exposed the real identities of people who play its popular online games on the company’s discussion forums. In a post on those same discussion forums Friday, Blizzard CEO and co-founder Mike Morhaime said the company has “been constantly monitoring the feedback you’ve given us, as well as internally discussing your concerns about the use of real names on our forums.” “As a result of those discussions, we’ve decided at this time that real names will not be required for posting on official Blizzard forums,” Morhaime wrote. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:23 pm AT&T Recovery Exercise to Simulate San Jose Network DisasterSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:12 pm AT&T Recovery Exercise to Simulate San Jose Network DisasterSAN JOSE, Calif., July 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Communications is always a top priority in the drama that unfolds when natural or manmade disaster strikes and puts lives, property and business assets at risk. With that in mind, AT&T*, working with local officials and business leaders, will be conducting a full-scale disaster recovery simulation - a Network Disaster Recovery exercise - in San Jose from July 7 to July 16 near the Doubletree Hotel. "This is the third visit to California by the AT&T Network Disaster Recovery Team in the last couple of years. This shows the commitment that AT&T has made to the State and our desire to be prepared and ready to assist local and state emergency responders when a disaster strikes," said Ken McNeely, President of AT&T California. "We know how vital communications are in the event of an emergency and exercises like this in San Jose help prepare us to respond when needed." AT&T's 2010 Business Continuity Study found that many local Bay Area businesses are prepared for disasters and several are investing in additional technology. Eighty-one percent of San Francisco/San Ramon companies that responded have business continuity plans and 79 percent are planning to invest in new technologies this year. Some additional local results from the study include: A majority of companies (58%) provide employees access to social networking tools, and 82 percent are concerned about the increasing use of this technology and its impact on security threats.Similarly, 76 percent are concerned about the increasing use of mobile networks and devices and their impact on security threats.A vast majority (73%) indicate they have special arrangements for communicating with key executives, while 77 percent have e-mail or text messaging capabilities to reach employees.Seven out of 10 (69%) San Francisco/San Ramon businesses have systems in place that enable most employees to work from remote locations, and almost half (45%) have automated calling systems to reach employees by telephone or cell phone outside of work.The AT&T NDR exercise simulates the loss of network operations due to manmade or natural disaster. This week, 17 semi-tractor trailers rolled into San Jose, each with essential networking technology for creating a temporary central network office. A crew of more than 60 permanent and volunteer NDR team members will assemble and turn up the central network office, first using satellite communications and a satellite COLT (cell on light truck). The exercise tests and refines the team's speed and efficiency in restoring wired and wireline network operations in the event of an actual disaster. Essential to AT&T's own comprehensive business continuity plan, the San Jose NDR exercise will feature more than 25 disaster recovery trailers and vehicles, including emergency communications vehicles, and a variety of smaller utility and support trailers, as well as a search-and-rescue dog team demonstration. "We live and work in a connected world, where a local manmade or natural disaster could have effects on productivity and progress at a global scale," said Mark Francis, Vice President - Global Network Operations Center, AT&T. "AT&T's NDR activities and team are vital to helping to ensure our wireline and wireless networks experience minimal downtime in the event of an emergency. It's our commitment to our customers' safety, their businesses' sustainability and continued innovation and possibility." During the past 15 years, AT&T has invested more than $500 million in its NDR program, which includes specially trained managers, engineers and technicians from across the United States, as well as a fleet of more than 300 self-contained equipment trailers and support vehicles that house the same equipment and components as an AT&T data-routing or voice-switching center. In 2008, AT&T announced that its NDR organization had consolidated wireless, wired and backbone network recovery capabilities, enabling AT&T to bring an integrated approach to disaster recovery that helps ensure the flow of both wireless and wired communications during times of need. And, more recently, AT&T announced that in conjunction with the North Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Education and Research Center at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (NC OSHERC), it has developed an industry-first certification program for telecom hazardous materials specialists. Eleven members of AT&T's NDR team were the first to receive this certification, which was awarded to them at AT&T's NDR exercise in New Orleans in March 2010. More information on AT&T's NDR program is available at www.att.com/ndr. For more information on Business Continuity Services that AT&T provides, go to http://www.business.att.com/enterprise/Family/business-continuity-enterprise/business-continuity-enterprise/ . Study Methodology The AT&T 2010 Business Continuity Study results are based on an online survey of 108 Information Technology (IT) executives in the San Francisco/San Ramon metropolitan area. The study was conducted by e-Rewards Market Research with companies having total revenues of more than $25 million (except for state/local government participants) in the San Francisco/San Ramon DMA (Designated Market Area). Surveys were obtained between March 5 and March 12, 2010. *AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc. About AT&T AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates - AT&T operating companies - are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. AT&T offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse(SM) and AT&T | DIRECTV(SM) brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T's Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations are known for their leadership in directory publishing and advertising sales. In 2009, AT&T again ranked No. 1 in the telecommunications industry on FORTUNE® magazine's list of the World's Most Admired Companies. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com. This AT&T news release and other announcements are available at http://www.att.com/newsroom and as part of an RSS feed at www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter at @ATTNews. Find us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ATT to discover more about our consumer and wireless services or at www.facebook.com/ATTSmallBiz to discover more about our small business services. © 2010 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. 3G service not available in all areas. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. SOURCE AT&T Inc.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:12 pm New Zealand activist vows to continue anti-whaling fightAnti-whaling activist Peter Bethune returned to New Zealand on Saturday, vowing he would never give up his fight to stop Japanese whaling. Bethune was deported from Japan after receivingSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:10 pm Could I interest the gentleman in a bespoke toy car?
If you have $65 to spend and you want a Pinewood Derby racer that will literally outlive you and most of your descendants, drop over to this website and press the Buy Now button.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:10 pm 2000-2010 Global Electronic Technology, Inc. (GET) / OrbitalPay, LLC Celebrates Its 10th AnniversaryCYPRESS, Calif., July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Electronic Technology, Inc. (GET)- a premier credit card processor and sister company of OrbitalPay, LLC- celebrated its 10th birthday on June 1st, 2010. A decade ago, Founder and Chief Executive Officer Steven H. Bryson had a vision for a new company that held itself to the highest standard of excellence through its ability to provide merchants with superior customer service and truly progressive technical prowess. Today, that vision is very much a reality. For the past 10 years, GET has been providing quality products and services as well as maintaining a robust ISO relations program. In addition, GET maintains two payment gateways in order to offer comprehensive and specialized payment solutions that meet the needs of both e-commerce and retail merchants. This ability to cater to a vast array of merchants supported by a strong operations and customer service team, propelled GET to the forefront of the merchant services industry. "What started out 10 years ago as a one-man operation has grown into a sustainable business that has exceeded everyone's expectations," said Bryson. "Through our commitment to provide world-class customer service coupled with leading-edge technology, we are able to anticipate our merchants' needs, and by helping them grow, we grow. I believe that is one of the reasons we have been so successful. We are extremely proud of this milestone, and grateful to all of our friends and merchants who made this accomplishment possible. The past 10 years have been significant, and we look forward to the next 10 years with our current partners and merchants as well as forging new relationships." Global Electronic Technology, Inc.'s corporate culture of "service" extends beyond its merchants to include those in need in an effort to give back to the community through relief and charitable endeavors. "I've always focused on humanitarian and philanthropic projects as a way to give back to communities we serve and people in need," Bryson stated. "This has allowed myself along with my GET Team to participate in volunteer activities on a large scale, such as helping to deliver 16,000 Thanksgiving dinners to a local homeless shelter for the past two years." Along with his Blues record label, I55 Productions LLC, Bryson also created the Never Forgotten Foundation, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit charitable organization that focuses on providing unconditional resources and aid to the world's poverty-stricken and impoverished population as well as a multitude of relief efforts for various philanthropic causes. About Global Electronic Technology, Inc. (GET): Global Electronic Technology, Inc. (GET) is a leading technology provider of end-to-end payment processing solutions, including virtual terminal, payment gateway, shopping cart, on-line ACH, loyalty and gift card programs. Founded in 2000 by Steven H. Bryson and currently privately-owned, GET had grown to epitomize the word "global," by offering state-of-the-art payment processing product and services to diversified industries, extending from retail to internet-based transactions in the worldwide payment industry. For more information about GET's products and services, please visit www.gettrx.com or call (888) 775-1500. About OrbitalPay, LLC: OrbitalPay, LLC is an innovative payment solution that offers online billing solutions for web-based companies in e-commerce, retail and small businesses. The added benefits include web traffic analysis, market coaching for low-volume merchants, low-fee structure, feature-rich gateway services, integrated cascading billing and affiliate tools, risk management for high-risk vendors, MPA3 certified, and credit card fraud prevention. OrbitalPay, LLC provides secure transaction services and offers industry innovative fraud-scrubbing for merchant accounts from the premiere hybrid PSP. For more information, please visit www.orbitalpay.com or call (888) 776-8801. SOURCE Global Electronic Technology, Inc.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:10 pm Whitestar(R) and MAPSearch(R) Establish Strategic Marketing PartnershipSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:08 pm Brazil's indigenous people still victims of abuse: reportBrazil's indigenous are still dealt abuse by police and landowners, crowded out of their homelands by vast public works and lack proper nutrition and health care, a religious group reportedSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:01 pm So Hot Right Now: Top 10 Gadgetell posts for the week of July 04, 2010Section: Haven’t caught all of the Gadgetell news this week? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!
Full Story » | Written by NEWS for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:00 pm Black Hole Emits a 1,000-Light-Year-Wide Gas BubblePhrostyMcByte writes "12 million light-years away, in the outer spiral of galaxy NGC 7793, a bubble of hot gas approximately 1,000 light-years in diameter can be found shooting out of a black hole — one of the most powerful jets of energy ever seen. (Abstract available at Nature.) The bubble has been growing for approximately 200,000 years, and is expanding at around 1,000,000 kilometers per hour."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:59 pm Google wins permission to keep website in China (AP)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:54 pm Hack Exposes Pirate Bay User Datatsu doh nimh writes "A group of hackers from Argentina recently broke into the database for thepiratebay.org, the Internet's largest torrent search engine, exposing user names, Internet addresses, and (MD5) hashed password data on more than 4 million users, according to Brian Krebs. He interviewed the leader of the group, Ch Russo, who said they briefly considered what the information would be worth to the RIAA and MPAA before going public with the breach. From the story: 'Probably these groups would be very interested in this information, but we are not [trying] to sell it,' Russo said. 'Instead we wanted to tell people that their information may not be so well protected.'"
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:42 pm Blizzard Sounds the Retreat on Real Forum Names - PC Magazine
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:40 pm Wipro Limited to Announce Results for First Quarter Ended June 30, 2010 on July 23, 2010Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:40 pm Wipro Limited to Announce Results for First Quarter Ended June 30, 2010 on July 23, 2010BANGALORE, India and EAST BRUNSWICK, New Jersey, July 9, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT), the leading provider of IT services globally, will announce results for the first quarter ended June 30, 2010 on Friday, July 23, 2010 (late night, Friday, July 23, 2010, US Eastern Time). The results will be available in the Investors section of the company's website at http://www.wipro.com. At 02:00 PM IST* (4:30 AM US Eastern time) following the results announcement, Mr. Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro, and the senior management will discuss the company's performance for the quarter & answer questions sent by 10.30 AM IST* (01:00 AM US Eastern time) to the email ID: rajendra.shreemal@wipro.com. The phone numbers to dial in for this conference call are: Time 02.00 PM- IST* (4.30 AM-ET#) Primary Access Toll Number (+91-22)6629-0047 Standby Toll Number (+91-22)3065-0047 Bangalore Toll Number 080-3940-3977 US Toll Free Number 1-866-746-2133 UK Toll Free Number 0-808-101-1573 No pass-code required Wipro will also hold a conference call later that day for US and European analysts at 6:45 PM IST* (9:15 AM US Eastern time). To participate in the conference call, please dial the following numbers: Time 6.45 PM- IST* (9.15 AM-ET#) US / UK / Europe / Listen only Mode International Primary Access Toll Number: (+91-22)6629-0047 US / Canada: (888)713-5994 Standby Toll Number: (+91-22)3065-0047 International: (763)488-9145 Bangalore Toll Number: 080-3940-3977 No pass-code required * Indian Standard Time, # US Eastern Time Please dial the number five to ten minutes ahead of schedule. The operator will provide instructions on asking questions before and during the call. You may also send your questions for the evening conference call by e-mail to sridhar.ramasubbu@wipro.com The audio from the conference calls will be available online through a web-cast and can be accessed in the Investors section of the company's website at http://www.wipro.com. The replay of these calls will be available 2 hours after the end of each call on following numbers: 02.00 PM IST* Call Playback Numbers: Phone Number Pass-code / Replay Dates Conference ID India Toll (+91-22)3065-1212 Access Code: 23-July-2010 to 94776# 22-August 2010 (+91-80)3940-3988 US Toll Free 1-877-344-7529 Access Code: 23-July-2010 to 94776# 22-August 2010 International Toll +1-412-317-0088 Access Code: 23-July-2010 to 94776# 22-August 2010 6.30 PM IST* Call Playback Numbers: Phone Number Pass-code / Replay Dates Conference ID India Toll (+91-22)3065-1212 Playback Id: 23-July-2010 to 947765# 22-August 2010 (+91-80)3940-3988 US Toll Free 1-877-344-7529 Access Code: 23-July-2010 to 947765# 22-August 2010 International +1-412-317-0088 Access Code: 23-July-2010 to Toll 947765# 22-August 2010 About Wipro Limited (NYSE:WIT) Wipro provides comprehensive IT solutions and services, including systems integration, Information Systems outsourcing, package implementation, software application development and maintenance, and research and development services to corporations globally. Wipro Limited is the first PCMM Level 5 and SEI CMM Level 5 certified IT Services Company globally. Wipro's Global IT Services business was recently assessed at Level 5 for CMMI V 1.2 across offshore and onsite development centers. Wipro also has a strong presence in niche market segments of Infrastructure Engineering, and Consumer Products & Lighting. Wipro's ADS's are listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and its equity shares are listed in India on the Stock Exchange - Mumbai, and the National Stock Exchange. For more information, please visit our websites at http://www.wipro.com, http://www.wiprocorporate.com and http://www.wipro.in Contact: Sridhar Ramasubbu, Wipro Limited, +1-408-242-6285. SOURCE Wipro LimitedSource: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:40 pm Verizon concedes an error allowed customers to receive Droid X earlySection: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones
Two days ago we reported that a few lucky customers happened to receive the Motorola Droid X ahead of time because the customer service rep placed an order when he/she was not supposed to. A Verizon customer (name unknown) contacted a Verizon customer service rep and found out the only reason people received the Droid X was because of a “system error.” In fact, Verizon is not even going to activate the Droid X’s received ahead of time until launch day on July 15. However, Droid-Life is reporting that some people already activated their Droid X which makes me wonder how much Roy, the Verizon customer service rep, actually knows about this situation. The full email can be read below:
I guess those who managed to place a Droid X order a week ahead of launch and managed to activate it are really lucky. Via [Droid-Life] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:35 pm Virtual Servers, Real Growth (Investor's Business Daily)Investor's Business Daily - If you follow tech industry trends, you've probably heard of cloud computing, an increasingly popular approach of delivering technology resources over the Internet rather than from on-site computer systems.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:31 pm It Keeps You Runnin': The Best Hydration-Bottle PacksRunning doesn't mean anything if you're running on empty. That's why a hydration-bottle pack can mean the difference between crossing the finish line and collapsing on the pavement.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:30 pm It Keeps You Runnin': The Best Hydration-Bottle PacksRunning doesn't mean anything if you're running on empty. That's why a hydration-bottle pack can mean the difference between crossing the finish line and collapsing on the pavement.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:30 pm Sony Europe exec: 3D Blu-ray on PS3 in September, lots more to come
But it’s not like they rolled out all the new features at once; while some 3D demos are being rolled out with a smaller-scale update, the big stuff is coming later in the year. SCEE’s Mick Hocking confirmed that 3D Blu-ray support will be coming in September, and after that, support for 3D pictures and home movies. I guess they were serious about that ten-year plan. The PS3 is a better deal every month, while the Wii and the 360, despite accessories and revisions, only seem to get older. Other than those key announcements, there wasn’t much else in the talk but a bunch of fluff about how 3D makes things great. On that point I have to disagree. 3D doesn’t make games better; good game designers make games that make 3D worthwhile. It’s a meaningful difference. [via Engadget]
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:29 pm Flash Sales Site Beyond The Rack Raises $12 Million To Take On Gilt
Similar to Gilt Groupe, HauteLook and Ideeli, Beyond the Rack is a members-only shopping site that offers steeply discounted (from 50 to 70 percent) on designer brand clothes, accessories and other goods. The site says that its revenue growing over 30 percent per month and currently has 1.5 million members, doubling its userbase from six months ago. Beyond The Rack launches up to eight new sales events every day, with each event only lasting a few days. The model has done fairly well in the space, with similar sites seeing rapid growth. There’s the rumored acquisition of European sample sale site Vente-Privee by Amazon for an estimated $3.01 billion. And sample sale sites Gilt and Ideeli have recently raised large amounts of funding. While the flash sales space is full of worthy competitors, clearly there is room for a number of sites to operate. Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:28 pm Caped Crusaders Face Jell-O Shots in Superhero CrawlA wicked assortment of costumed crime-fighters and their masked nemeses band together for an annual booze-up blowout in Reno, Nevada. A top-secret interview with the Drunken Justice League reveals plans for debauchery in "The Biggest Little Metropolis in the World."
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:15 pm CenturyLink Schedules Second Quarter 2010 Earnings Conference CallSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:11 pm Lawsuit Advances Claiming AT&T iPhone Monopoly
Judge James Ware of the U.S. District court for the Northern District of California on Thursday granted class certification of plaintiffs’ antitrust claims seeking damages and injunctive relief for the complaint titled “Apple & ATTM Antitrust Litigation.” In an interview Friday with Wired.com, Mark Rifkin, lead counsel representing the plaintiffs of the suit, highlighted that the terms of AT&T’s two-year customer contract say that customers have the option to terminate whenever they wish for a fee to switch to another carrier. By only offering the iPhone on one carrier, iPhone customers are still essentially locked in despite having the termination option, the suit argues. “The court has allowed [multiple] plaintiffs to represent 20 million consumers who have been forced to use AT&T for iPhone voice and data service, despite an agreement that allows them to terminate at any time and presumably switch carriers,” Rifkin said. Ever since the introduction of the iPhone in 2007, AT&T has been the exclusive carrier of the handset in the United States. Neither Apple nor AT&T have disclosed official details of their exclusive agreement to carry the iPhone. Originally filed in 2007, the class-action lawsuit alleged that Apple and AT&T had illegally exerted a monopoly by telling customers their iPhone contract was two years long when in actuality the companies’ exclusivity agreement was for an indefinite, undisclosed amount of time. That means even after iPhone customers’ two-year contracts have expired, they still don’t have the option of switching to another carrier because AT&T is still Apple’s only U.S. partner. However, earlier statements made by Apple’s legal team noted it was publicly reported in a USA Today article that the agreement was five years long, as first discovered by Engadget, which implied that AT&T would be the exclusive carrier of the iPhone from 2007 to 2012. In a response filed by Apple’s legal team in 2008, Apple claimed the allegations of monopoly were contrived. “[T]here was widespread disclosure of [AT&T's] five-year exclusivity and no suggestion by Apple or anyone else that iPhones would become unlocked after two years,” Apple said in a response. “Moreover, it is sheer speculation – and illogical – that failing to disclose the five-year exclusivity term would produce monopoly power.” Apple and AT&T declined to comment on the latest developments of the class-action suit. “We’re not going to discuss pending litigation,” an Apple spokeswoman told Wired.com. Court document [pdf] See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:08 pm Trend Micro(TM) Enterprise Security for Endpoints Receives Five Stars and Best Buy Award From SC MagazineSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:07 pm Loopt Hits 4 Million Users, Propelled By iOS 4 And Android
Loopt was one of the first location-based services to get a lot of hype — even getting on stage at the Apple event first talking about the App Store way back when. But as we’ve noted numerous times, they started out at a disadvantage because the iPhone didn’t allow third-party apps to run in the background. And that was Loopt’s model, continuous location updates. But with iOS 4, the iPhone does finally allow for that functionality — and specially for background location. And Loopt is benefiting from it. Daily sessions are up 60% from just prior to iOS 4 being release, founder Sam Altman tells us. Both background location and the proximity alerts are pushing this growth — as well as the latest version of the app, 3.0, in general. Altman says that daily active users is in the hundreds of thousands. Altman also credits Loopt’s usage surge to being featured in markets where Android phones are quickly gaining popularity. And the biggest surge is thanks to the fact that Loopt is now preloaded on almost all MetroPCS phones. “We’re finally seeing real Android growth,” Altman says. Loopt pivoted last year to allow for check-ins when it was clear that the model was taking off. But the latest version marries the two ideas. The latest iPhone version allows you to check-in at a venue and keep your live location active for up to 24 hours so that friends can see as you move on the Loopt map. For some people that’s extremely creepy. For others, it’s the future of location. You can find Loopt 3.0 in the App Store here as a free download. You can also search the Android Market for it. Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:05 pm The Return Of The Blimp . . . As A Green Cargo Carrier
It is not as far-fetched as it sounds. Companies like Lockheed Martin and Boeing have been developing blimps for some time, both for cargo transport and for military operations. Boeing is working with Canada’s SkyHook International on the JHL-40 or “Jess Heavy Lifter”, a helium-filled airship with helicopter rotor systems that will help lift up attached cargo. The blimp will be designed to carry 40 tons as far as 200 miles before needing to refuel, or 800 miles without cargo and could be in the air by 2014 (assuming it doesn’t get mothballed or canceled before then, as several similar projects have in the past). Blimps are unlikely to replace most airships, since they travel rather slowly. They could be used, however, to help transport goods to and from remote regions. Some models could have lifts for attaching and removing cargo without touching down, which could enable them to bring goods or humanitarian aid to areas without accessible roads or airports. Other uses for the Heavy Lifter could be slightly ironic. Boeing and SkyHook plan to target the logging, mining and energy industries, offering a way to be greener by reducing their need to build roads in isolated areas. It will be interesting to see how these blimps perform. If they succeed, some parts of the world could start looking like a more peaceful version of one of those old airship films.
     
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:01 pm RIAA's Tenenbaum Verdict Cut From $675k To $67.5kNewYorkCountryLawyer writes "In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the Court has reduced the jury's award from $675,000, or $22,500 per infringed work, to $67,500, or $2,250 per infringed work, on due process grounds, holding that the jury's award was unconstitutionally excessive. In a 64-page decision (PDF), District Judge Nancy Gertner ruled that the Gore, Campbell, and Williams line of cases was applicable to determining the constitutionality of statutory damages awards, that statutory damages must bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages, and that the usual statutory damages award in even more egregious commercial cases is from 2 to 6 times the actual damages. However, after concluding that the actual damages in this case were ~ $1 per infringed work, she entered a judgment for 2,250 times that amount. Go figure." That $2,250 per infringed work figure should look familiar from Jammie Thomas-Rassett's reduced damages judgment — $54,000 for 24 songs.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:01 pm Carrier Ethernet Switch/Router Market Heading Toward Nearly $3 Billion by 2014, Heavy Reading ReportsSource: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:00 pm Facebook Will Shift Its Online Sales To Third Parties (NewsFactor)NewsFactor - Facebook said Thursday it will close its online gift shop, where subscribers could purchase virtual cards and other gifts to send to other Facebook members. Though Facebook will close its operation on Aug. 1, the social-networking site said it will continue offering items for sale to subscribers through third-party providers.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:54 pm Galaxy Beam Projector Phone Looks Worth the Wait (PC World)PC World - Smartphones are getting smarter every day, but a built-in Pico projector is the smartest addition to a cell phone so far, especially for any company that provides instructor-led training, product demos, or sales presentations. Imagine showing up at a conference with your company's sales demo, armed with a pocket-sized device that projects a 50-inch presentation onto the wall. That's cool and efficient.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:53 pm Patent holder sues smart phone makers over patents (AP)AP - The patent-holding company that won a settlement of more than $600 million from the maker of the BlackBerry said Friday it has sued six other companies in the smart phone industry.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:36 pm Summary Box: Patent holder sues phone makersTHE HISTORY: NTP is the same company that won a patent settlement of more than $600 million from BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. THE FUTURE: Changes in court practices have...Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsTech | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:33 pm Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Unveils The New-Look TechCrunch!
Truth be told, we felt a bit bad for Gilbert. He’s had a rough 24 hours. Yesterday, at a nationally televised press conference, he found out his star player, LeBron James, was booking it to Miami to play with D-Wade and Chris Bosh — a move that left Gilbert clearly pissed off. But we’re here to offer him a consolation prize. We now have a version of TechCrunch in his favorite font, Comic Sans! Yes, okay, Techmeme did it first, but we wanted to show our support as well. It seems that the web can’t get enough of Comic Sans. Or at least, get enough of taking shots at the hideous font. Over 12 hours after we first wrote about it, the font is still a top trending topic on Twitter. And yes, still ahead of even “LeBron James.” Meanwhile, our post has gotten some massive mainstream media love with CNN, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and others all weighing in on the hot topic. In fact, the CNN story on the faux pas was even the most popular story on the entire site earlier today. Joked Twitter user Audrey Watter earlier, “perhaps if BP had issued press statements in Comic Sans, we’d still be talking about the oil spill, eh?“ So this is our thank you to you, Dan Gilbert. Thank you for writing your rant in a font that cannot be ignored. And we’re sorry about the LeBron thing. P.S. Every page on TechCrunch will now work in Comic Sans if you simply append “?lebronified” to the end of the URL. Or, if you’re feeling really adventurous, try “?LEBRONIFIED”.
     
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:30 pm KEMET Announces Dates for the 2010 Annual Shareholders' Meeting and June 2010 Quarter Earnings ReleaseGREENVILLE, S.C., July 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- KEMET Corporation (NYSE Amex: KEM), will hold its 2010 Annual Shareholders' Meeting on July 28, 2010, at 10:30 a.m. EDT, at the Westin Poinsett Hotel, 120 South Main Street, Greenville, South Carolina. On July 28, 2010, the Company will release earnings for the June 2010 quarter and will hold a conference call to discuss the earnings release at 9:00 a.m. EDT on that date. The call will last approximately one hour. To access the call via telephone, participants in the United States should dial 1-800-416-8033, and participants outside the United States should dial 1-706-643-0979. Participants should reference "KEMET Corporation" and Conference ID #86129498. Participants can view a corresponding presentation from the KEMET website at www.kemet.com by clicking on the first quarter conference call link in the Investor Relations section of the website. The presentation will be available immediately prior to the beginning of the call. Following management's comments, there will be an opportunity for questions. In conjunction with the conference call, there will be a simultaneous live broadcast over the internet that can be accessed at http://www.kemet.com/ir. A replay of the conference call will be available until midnight, August 11, 2010, through the same link. Also available in the Investor Relations section of the website is additional company information and a link to subscribe to KEMET news and financial releases. About KEMET KEMET Corporation (NYSE Amex: KEM), applies world-class service and quality to deliver industry-leading, high-performance capacitance solutions to its customers around the world. KEMET offers the world's most complete line of surface-mount and through-hole capacitor technologies across tantalum, ceramic, film, aluminum, electrolytic, and paper dielectrics. Additional information about KEMET can be found at http://www.kemet.com. CAUTIONARY STATEMENT ON FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS Certain statements included herein contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws about KEMET Corporation's (the "Company") financial condition and results of operations that are based on management's current expectations, estimates and projections about the markets, in which the Company operates, as well as management's beliefs and assumptions. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," variations of such words and other similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, which are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in, or implied by, such forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect management's judgment only as of the date hereof. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly any of these forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise. Factors that may cause actual outcome and results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements include, but are not necessarily limited to the following: (i) continued uncertainty of the economy which could impact the Company's ability to realize operating plans; (ii) adverse economic conditions which could cause further reevaluation and the write down of long-lived assets; (iii) an increase in the cost or a decrease in the availability of the Company's principal raw materials; (iv) changes in the competitive environment; (v) uncertainty of the timing of customer product qualifications in heavily regulated industries; (vi) economic, political, or regulatory changes in the countries in which the Company operates; (vii) difficulties, delays or unexpected costs in completing the Company's restructuring plan; (viii) the ability to attract, train and retain effective employees and management; (ix) the ability to develop innovative products to maintain customer relationships; (x) the impact of environmental issues, laws, and regulations; (xi) volatility of financial and credit markets which would affect the Company's access to capital; (xii) exposure to foreign exchange gains and losses; (xiii) the need to reduce costs to offset downward price trends; (xiv) potential limitation on use of net operating losses to offset possible future taxable income; (xv) dilution as a result of the issuance of the warrant held by K Equity, LLC; and (xvi) exercise of the warrant by K Equity, LLC, which could result in the existence of a controlling stockholder. Other risks and uncertainties may be described from time to time in the Company's other reports and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Contact: William M. Lowe, Jr. Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer williamlowe@KEMET.com 864-963-6484 SOURCE KEMET CorporationSource: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:30 pm You Don't Won't Bring Me (Virtual) Flowers Anymore [Voices]By Beth Callaghan As of August 1, there will be no more virtual flowers or birthday cakes available through Facebook. According to Jared Morgenstern, product manager for games and credits, the company has decided to close the Gift Shop in order to focus its efforts on improving other core products. Third-party applications will remain available for users who want to send gifts. Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:15 pm I’d buy it: the tiny Apple mystery touchscreen as a new Shuffle
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:12 pm Light Pollution: A Growing Problem for WildlifeArtificial lights may stave off our fear of the dark, but they also spell trouble for animals that rely on darkness to find food or migrate.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:08 pm New Cap Could Seal Well as Relief Drilling ContinuesIf the containment cap fails, engineers are hopeful relief wells will do the trick. Find out how the two wells work here.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:50 pm Fortune names Steve Jobs and Jony Ive as smartest CEO and designer, and I agree
Congratulations to Steve and Jony. In all honestly, these guys really are incredibly smart and good at their jobs, but their being honored at this moment of all moments is just a little rich.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:50 pm Hey, Congress! Google Could Have Sniffed Your Wi-FiConsumer Watchdog sniffed the open, unencrypted Wi-Fi at the residence of Rep. Jane Harman, ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. The group is attempting to encourage congressional scrutiny of Google's Wi-Fi sniffing.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:45 pm Remembering the 2,500 page Real ID freakout on Blizzard’s official forums
In loving memory of the greatest message board thread in the history of the Internet: the nearly 2,500 page monster discussing the now-rescinded plan to use real names on the Blizzard message board. May the server it’s hosted on be donated to the Library of Congress.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:30 pm Farmers To Get Rice-Growing Advice Via Text MessagesFarmers in the "texting capital" of the world—the Philippines—will soon have nutrient management advice tailored specifically to their rice crops delivered to their mobile phones.Dr. Roland Buresh, part of the International Rice Research (IRRI) team that has joined the Philippine Department of Agriculture to establish the system, says that after responding to a series of simple questions about their rice paddy, farmers would receive an automated text reply recommending what amounts, sources, and timings of fertilizer are needed for profitable rice production in their paddy.In Rice Today July–September 2010, Buresh explains the technology and what they hope to achieve.In Cambodia, farmers are further advancing technology adoption of mechanical harvesters and dryers, better storage techniques, among other postharvest technologies. In this issue, we hear how the technologies are spreading and being embraced by Cambodian rice farmers to reduce labor, save money and time, and improve the quantity and quality of grain available at the end of the day.Rice Today also delves deeper into the controversial topic of "land grabs" for rice production, exploring the potential benefits and downsides to this approach to increasing global rice production.Land grabs will also be one of the themes at the 3rd International Rice Congress 2010 (IRC2010), which will be held in Hanoi, Vietnam, 8-12 November 2010. IRC2010 is the world's largest gathering of rice scientists, researchers, and technology experts and is expected to attract thousands of international delegates. IRC2010 follows the Africa Rice Congress 2010, held in Mali in March this year—Rice Today reports on the Congress and its recommendations to boost Africa's rice sector, including a "Marshall Plan" for capacity building.Aside from being IRRI's 50th anniversary year, 2010 is also the International Year of Biodiversity. Rice Today explores the challenges farmers face in finding the perfect biodiversity balance in their paddies to minimize losses due to pests and weeds, reduce labor, supply additional food sources, and deliver ecosystem services such as nectar for bees.Just keeping up production in the MERCOSUR (Southern Common Market) region of South America responsible for 85% of the continent's rice production is a challenge this season, with adverse weather conditions causing production to drop an average of 8% since last season. The weather is also upsetting North American rice production, where rains in California are predicted to reduce the crop there.Despite changes in rice production, "In the last few months, global rice prices have fallen by more than 25%," according to Dr. Sam Mohanty. In his Rice Today article, Mohanty provides some insights into the market and the ongoing need to boost rice yields by 1.2-1.5% every year to ensure food security in Asia.To help understand changes in rice production, IRRI's mapping team, led by Dr. Andy Nelson, has published a map of rice-growing regions in South Asia for this season. They will compare maps from different years to identify new rice production areas and areas where rice is replaced by other land uses.And, in a final farewell, this issue's Pioneer interview is with Dr. Michael Jackson—who recently retired from IRRI after 19 years. He joined IRRI to lead the International Rice Genebank where he applied scientific best practice and harnessed the skills of staff to build the Genebank into one of the world's best. He then applied his "systematic way of doing business" to improve project and contract management, and donor relations. ---On the Net:International Rice Research InstituteSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:23 pm Flemish Researchers Provide The First Experimental Evidence Of Dynamic Allostery In Protein RegulationPublication in top journal thanks to brand-new NMR CenterThe brand-new Jean Jeener Bio-NMR Center at the VIB Department of Molecular and Cellular Interactions, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, has already played a role in a scientific breakthrough that made it into the leading science journal Cell. Thanks to NMR technology, it is possible to determine the dynamic structure of proteins. So Flemish scientists put it to use to find out how the activity of certain proteins involved in the stress physiology of bacteria is regulated. This is a first in every way.Proteins, major players in the bodyProteins play a major role in the billions of processes that occur in the body, including the development of muscle and skin, the digestion of food, the growth of cells and the generation of human emotions. Our cells continuously produce proteins, but how these complex molecules exactly function is by and large not well understood.Not only the chemical composition but also the spatial structure of proteins is important for the performance of their functions. The ways in which they fold and unfold in three-dimensional space help determine the function of the molecules. So, without detailed knowledge about their structure, our understanding of their function usually remains partial. However, studying the spatial structure of proteins is anything but easy.Determination of protein structure necessary for understanding functionNMR is a promising technique for determining the structure of proteins in solution. Unlike X-ray diffraction – long the standard for determining the structure of proteins – NMR equipment can provide dynamic structure information. Even vibrations and rotations of molecules on an atomic scale can be visualized. The Bio-NMR center at the VIB Department of Molecular and Cellular Interactions, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, only opened May 7, 2010, but its 600-MHz and 800-MHz spectrometers have already helped produce a first article in a top journal.First experimental evidence of dynamic allostery in protein regulation thanks to NMRRegulation of gene transcription is a mechanism that allows cells to adapt to rapidly changing environmental conditions. In prokaryotes, genes are typically clustered in operons with each operon being regulated as an entity. The toxin-antitoxin (TA) system, which plays a role in stress, is one instance of this process.Abel Garcia-Pino and his colleagues study the Phd-Doc toxin-antitoxin operon of P1 bacteriophages (small viruses) under the leadership of Remy Loris. Until now, no one has been able to explain the regulatory mechanism of this system at the molecular level. Hence, these VIB researchers are the first to demonstrate that, when Doc binds to the intrinsically unfolded C-terminus of Phd, it structures the DNA-binding domain of Phd. This type of communication process between two protein domains is called allostery. Already in the sixties allostery was generally assumed to be an important regulation mechanism in enzymes and Monod even called it the second secret of life (the first one being the genetic code). Several years ago, allostery between intrinsically unfolded protein domains became accepted, based on theoretical models, but now it has been experimentally demonstrated for the first time. The regulation mechanism presented here is new and probably also applies to other genes.The NMR technology is the only technology that can detect and quantify folding and conformational changes in proteins while simultaneously providing detailed structural information. Besides its applications in fundamental biology, NMR is also a promising technology for the identification of therapeutic drugs. ---On the Net:VIB (the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology)CellSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:21 pm Micrel Schedules Second Quarter 2010 Earnings Release and Conference CallSAN JOSE, Calif., July 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Micrel Inc. (Nasdaq: MCRL), an industry leader in high performance analog and high-speed mixed signal solutions, will announce financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2010 after the market closes on Thursday, July 22, 2010. The Company will host a conference call at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time (1:30 p.m. Pacific time) on July 22, 2010. Chief Executive Officer Raymond Zinn and Chief Financial Officer Ray Wallin will present an overview of the second quarter 2010 financial results, discuss current business conditions and then respond to questions. The call is available, live, to any interested party on a listen only basis by dialing (877) 941-0844. For international callers, please dial (480) 629-9645. Interested callers should dial in at least five minutes before the scheduled start time and ask to be connected to the Micrel, Incorporated Conference Call. A live webcast will also be available through www.investorcalendar.com. An audio replay of the conference call will be available through July 29, 2010, by dialing (800) 406-7325 or (303) 590-3030 and entering access code number 4329561. The webcast replay will also be available on the Company's website at: www.micrel.com. About Micrel Micrel Inc. is a leading global manufacturer of high performance analog and high-speed mixed signal solutions. The Company's products include advanced mixed-signal, analog and power semiconductors; high performance communication, clock management, Ethernet switch and physical layer transceiver ICs. Company customers include leading manufacturers of enterprise, consumer, industrial, mobile, telecommunications, automotive, and computer products. Corporation headquarters and state-of-the-art wafer fabrication facilities are located in San Jose, CA, with regional sales and support offices and advanced technology design centers situated throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. In addition, the Company maintains an extensive network of distributors and sales representatives worldwide. SOURCE Micrel Inc.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:21 pm Biofuels Sustainability: JRC Designs Methodology To Calculate Carbon Stock ChangesA key tool is the JRC's methodology to quantify changes to the amount of carbon in soils and biomass when land use changes as a result of biofuels production. This is an important factor in the sustainability assessment. The methodology follows the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines for national greenhouse gas inventories and is supported by comprehensive global data collected by the JRC. The methodology was the basis for the Commission decision on the guidelines for the calculation of land carbon stocks.The new system, adopted in June by the European Commission, encourages industry, governments and NGOs to set up voluntary certification schemes for all types of biofuels. It will help to ensure that all biofuels (including those imported into the EU) are sustainable and deliver high greenhouse gas (GHG) savings, at least 35% when compared to fossil fuels. It also excludes specific land categories, such as primary forests, wetlands, peatlands and areas with high diversity.The JRC provided extensive technical and scientific support to the Commission Directive and Communications. This included designing practical measures and procedures for calculating the GHG emissions of various options for producing biofuels and bioliquids. The accompanying global data layers on climate regions and soil types have also been developed by the JRC, following IPCC specifications.The standard methodology and the carbon stock coefficients together with the data layers will enable economic operators to determine what changes in land carbon stocks might arise from the conversion of land for biofuels production.The calculation of default values for GHG savings is a complex procedure, which must take into consideration a number of parameters such as the type of fertiliser or pesticide used when growing biofuels, the fuel used by agricultural vehicles (tractors) or the distance to the processing plant and users.Other JRC contributions included: * Calculating the typical and default values for GHG savings (Annex V of the Directive 2009/28/EC "on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources"); * Adapting and updating the list of pathways to technical and scientific progresses; * Selecting the most scientifically appropriate data sources; * Providing technical answers and support to third parties on the assessment of GHG emissions and on the values specified in the Directive.BackgroundThe package adopted on 10 June 2010 by the European Commission, in support of the 2009/28/EC Directive, provided for: * Sustainable biofuel certificates: The Commission encourages industry, governments and NGOs to set up 'voluntary schemes' to certify biofuel sustainability and explains the standards these must meet to gain EU recognition. One of the main criteria is that they have independent auditors which check the whole production chain, from the farmer and the mill, via the trader, to the fuel supplier who delivers petrol or diesel to the filling station. The Communication sets standards requiring this auditing to be reliable and fraud-resistant. * Protecting untouched nature: The Communication establishes that biofuels should not be made from raw materials from tropical forests or recently deforested areas, drained peatland, wetland or highly biodiverse areas. It also provides guidelines for the assessment, making clear for instance that the conversion of a forest to a palm oil plantation would fall foul of the sustainability requirements. * The promotion of biofuels with high greenhouse gas savings: The Communication reiterates that EU countries have to meet binding national targets for renewable energy and that only those biofuels with high greenhouse gas savings count towards those targets. It also explains how to calculate those savings. Biofuels must deliver greenhouse gas savings of at least 35% compared to fossil fuels, rising to 50% in 2017 and to 60%, for biofuels from new plants, in 2018.---On the Net:European Commission Joint Research CentreSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:17 pm Patent ‘Troll’ Sues Apple, Google Over Wireless E-mail
A patent holder on Friday announced it has sued Apple, Google and other major tech companies for allegedly infringing patents on wireless e-mail delivery. NTP, a business that solely manages patents related to wireless e-mail technologies, said it was suing Apple, Google, HTC Corp, LG Electronics, Microsoft Corporation and Motorola, alleging that they were unfairly using NTP’s intellectual property. “Use of NTP’s intellectual property without a license is just plain unfair to NTP and its licensees,” said Donald E. Stout, NTP’s co-founder. “Unfortunately, litigation is our only means of ensuring the inventor of the fundamental technology on which wireless email is based, Tom Campana, and NTP shareholders are recognized, and are fairly and reasonably compensated for their innovative work and investment. We took the necessary action to protect our intellectual property.” NTP is known for taking similar action against Research in Motion over wireless e-mail technology. The two parties in 2006 reached a settlement in which RIM agreed to pay $612 million to NTP. Though NTP claims it is protecting its intellectual property, it does not itself produce or offer any wireless e-mail software or services, meaning it does not practice its own patents. In addition to RIM, NTP has also fired legal shells at Palm, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint and AT&T. Some observers have labeled NTP a “patent troll.” See Also:
Photo: caribb/Flickr 
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:16 pm T-Mobile drops price of GarminFone to $129
Quickly now, quickly. T-Mobile has reduced the price of the new Garmin phone to $129 (that’s including rebate). This isn’t exactly surprising given that the phone is trying to survive in an iPhone and Froyo world. So if you were ever on the fence for the little guy, well, no time like the present.
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:15 pm New Group of Moons Found Orbiting SaturnCurious how planets can form from disks of gas and dust? Well, the rings of Saturn are serving scientists as a living laboratory to better understand the process.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:14 pm Poof! After Wireless, the Computer Mouse Turns Invisible
In a magic trick that only geeks can pull off, researchers at MIT have found a method to let users click and scroll exactly the same way they would with a computer mouse, without the device actually being there. Cup your palm, move it around on a table and a cursor on the screen hovers. Tap on the table like you would click a real mouse, and the computer responds. It’s one step beyond cordless. It’s an invisible mouse. The project, called “Mouseless,” uses an infrared laser beam and camera to track the movements of the palm and fingers and translate them into computer commands. “Like many other projects in the past, including the Nintendo Power Glove and the Fingerworks iGesture Pad, this attempts to see how we can use new technology to control old technology,” says Daniel Wigdor, a user experience architect for Microsoft who hasn’t worked directly on the project. “It’s just an intermediate step to where we want to be.” Though new user interfaces such as touchscreens and voice recognition systems have become popular, the two-button mouse still reigns among computer users. Many technology experts think the precision pointing that a cursor offers is extremely difficult to replicate through technologies such as touch and speech. Last week Intel CTO Justin Rattner said though Intel research labs is working on new touchscreen ideas, the mouse and keyboard combination is unlikely to be replaced in everyday computing for a long time. In the case of the Mouseless project, the infrared laser and camera are embedded in the computer. When a user cups their hand as if a physical mouse was present under their palm, the laser beam lights up the hand that is in contact with the table. The infrared camera detects this and interprets the movements. A working prototype of the Mouseless system costs approximately $20 to build, says Pranav Mistry, who is leading the project. Mistry is one of the star researchers in the area of creating new user experiences. He previously developed the “Sixth Sense” project, a wearable gestural interface that lets users wave their hands in front of them and interact with maps and other virtual objects — much like Tom Cruise in Minority Report. The Mouseless idea is not as big a breakthrough as Sixth Sense. Though it is fun, it is difficult to see a real-world case for getting rid of hardware while keeping interaction the same. User interfaces are going beyond the point-and-click interaction that the computer mouse demands. And mouse hardware itself is cheap, so there’s not much of a cost saving here. Check out this fun, partly animated video to what the Mouseless can really do and how it works: Photo: Mouseless Project See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:14 pm Poof! After Going Wireless, the Computer Mouse Turns InvisibleAn MIT professor is working on a project called "Mouseless" that creates the feeling of using a mouse even when one is not present. The projects tracks hand gestures of a user and translates it into commands for the computer.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:14 pm Who’s on Crack in tech: 7.09.10Section: Communications, Computers, Gadgets / Other, Features, Originals, Columns, Who's On Crack
What’s the most common phrase heard around the Gadgetell newsroom? Is it “I love Apple?”, “that’s cool!” or “sweet!” ? Answer: none of them, it’s “they are on crack”. This week we see more than the usual share of illegal narcotics being passed around. Let’s pick up the trail: Get these pants with a 2-year contract?
Pants with strings from American OutfittersWhat goes together better than pants and mobile phones? American Outfitters believes the match is made in pants heaven with their new program. Our Robert Nelson wrote this up: “head on over to American Eagle, try on a pair of AE jeans and receive the instructions on how to claim your free phone upon exiting the dressing room. And no, a purchase is not required.” While you may go into the fitting room hoping pants fit, you may come out with a 2-year contract. A look at the phones and the choices will surprise you, there’s BlackBerry, Android devices and more. Something sounds suspicious. So I cruised over to internet cellphone powerbroker LetsTalk.com and found many of the same deals without having to don a pair of pants. Take the HTC Aria - offered at AT&T’s website for $129.99 but free from American Outfitters and free from LetsTalk.com. I found the same for the LG Ally, Moto Cliq and Backflip. But with the BlackBerry 8650 was different - free at American Outfitters but $49.99 over at LetsTalk. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for getting into someone’s pants for a good mobile phone deal, it pays to look around before you jump into them.
iTunes hacked and jackedThis past weekend, a Vietnamese developer hacked 400 iTunes accounts in an effort to boost his ebook app in popularity. Despite racking up fraudulent charges, accessing users accounts and threatening to harm iTunes reputation, Apple sat idly by. Our Sue Walsh raged at Apple: “Really Apple? This is no big deal? Just like the iPhone 4 reception issues and iOS battery killing issues are no big deal? This is a company that needs to wake up fast before they find their reputation beyond repair.” I think Apple’s attitude reflects it’s iTunes product. While regaled for having a sizable billing relationship with captive customers, it’s showing it’s age. Take the icon for example (or is it iCon?). A musical note on a CD. At least I think it is CD. It’s one of those artifacts iTunes help drive the nails into physical media’s coffin. The very product that has put CDs in the ground, bears it’s image on it’s icon. Is it Apple being smug? Kind of a, “na-na-na”? No, it’s Apple hasn’t gotten around to thinking about what to do with it, much like the iTunes name itself. The store now sells so much more than music (the tunes part) as it now sells TV shows, movies, apps, and automobiles. Nope, that’s wrong, they are not in autos, yet. Their icon shows the backward thinking that seems to be indicative of Apple’s customer service attitude.
Giant sucking sound said to be softwareOur software sucks. That is the theme of the week if you are an iPhone owner. Both AT&T and Apple this week pointed to two separate instances where their woes were caused simply because the software sucks. AT&T blamed slow network speeds on software. Our Natesh Sood tells us, “AT&T came out with a statement claiming the significant drop in upload speeds is because of a software defect with Alcatel-Lucent’s equipment.” Translation, our software sucks. Apple also said it’s got software issues. Appletell’s Kirk Hiner reports on Apple’s statement on iPhone 4 reception issues, “for the vast majority of users who have not been troubled by this issue, this software update will only make your bars more accurate. For those who have had concerns, we apologize for any anxiety we may have caused.” Translation: our software sucks. Are we finally at the point where we’ve got hardware dialed in and it’s now the software that is falling behind? Has improvements and capital investment to make hardware production (mainly in Asia) surpassed the clever software we thought we had? Check out this book intro from David Platt:
Software certainly isn’t infallible and is the easier of the two (hardware and software) to fix with an update. Are we relying on these updates too much? It looks like Apple and AT&T are; or is just an easy scapegoat? I have that sneaking suspicion that it’s the scapegoat.
Queen gets a BlackBerryThis is my favorite image of the week. A lowly subject (kinda, right?) handing over a fresh-from-the-line BlackBerry to the Queen of England. If you look closely, the worker hands it off in a way that she expects the Queen might try to eat it. It’s like when you let a baby hold keys. Our Hunter Clarke explains, “while everyone in America was celebrating the 4th of July, the Queen of England was getting her geek on at a tour of Research in Motion. And, after being shown around by RIM founder and Co-CEO Mike Lazaridis (and after receiving one awesome lab coat), she was presented with a brand new White Blackberry Bold 9700.” Show of hands: who thinks she kept the lab coat? I know I would have. I bet she did, right after she tried to take a bit out of the 9700. Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article » Source: Gadgetell | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:14 pm Poof! After Going Wireless, the Computer Mouse Turns InvisibleAn MIT professor is working on a project called "Mouseless" that creates the feeling of using a mouse even when one is not present. The projects tracks hand gestures of a user and translates it into commands for the computer.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:14 pm Mathematical Formula Predicts Clear Favorite For The FIFA World CupA sophisticated new analysis of team tactics predicts a Spanish win in Sunday's FIFA World Cup final and also shows why England were beaten by Germany.Mathematicians and football supporters Dr Javier López Peña and Dr Hugo Touchette from Queen Mary, University of London have collected ball passing data from all of the FIFA World Cup games and analyzed it to reveal the nations' different styles of play.Using the mathematical technique called Graph Theory, they have revealed the gaping holes in England's tactics against Germany game and made predictions about the Netherlands-Spain final that could rival the psychic octopus.For each national side, Drs López Peña and Touchette have drawn up a 'network' of passes between players throughout the tournament and analyzed how these networks compare between teams. Dr Touchette explains: "Each player in the network is given a score called centrality which measures how vital they are to the network. The higher the centrality score, the bigger the impact if that player wasn't there. This method is most commonly used to make computer networks more robust, but it can also be used to plan football strategy."Graph Theory is used to analyze different types of networks, most commonly to investigate computer networks - such as the internet - and to model what would happen if different parts of the networks were suddenly removed. This type of research, which takes place in Queen Mary's School of Mathematical Sciences, can make computer networks more robust and less susceptible to disruption.The Netherlands-Spain predictionThe networks reveal Spanish players have made a strikingly high number of passes this tournament, almost 40 per cent more than Germany and twice as many as the Dutch. "The team relies on swift passes that are well distributed among all players, especially between those playing mid-field," said Dr López Peña.David Villa, the tournament's highest goal scorer, has received an average of 37 passes per game, more than any other forward from all the teams. Dr López Peña said: "Villa's performance has been impressive compared with Fernando Torres, who has not scored any goals this tournament. This was reflected in the successful Spanish tactics, with Torres only receiving an average of 13 passes per match, and 37 to Villa."Conversely, the Dutch gameplay is clearly offensive, involving a very low number of passes between players, most of which are aimed at the strikers. Dr López Peña said: "The low number of passes shows the Dutch prefer quick attacks and counterstrikes rather than intricate playing. Their goals are often scored from set pieces such as free kicks and they use their physical presence to beat their opponents."The England-Germany matchThe analysis shows the English squad to have a balanced line-up with no single player more important than the team as a whole. Dr López Peña said: "The good midfield work of Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Barry doesn't appear to transfer very well to the forwards, with Wayne Rooney receiving on average three times more passes than Jermain Defoe. This makes the English attack very predictable and easily stoppable by blocking Rooney, who is usually forced to give the ball back to Gerrard."The German network appears even more balanced than the English one, with a higher number of passes, suggesting more circulation of the ball. "Particularly relevant are the passes between Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger and most of the German attacks are built up from the defenders. Mesut Oezil makes good work connecting both sides of the field on the attack, making the German offensive game very effective and hard to defend against. The key player in the German strategy remains Schweinsteiger, who was effectively blocked by the Spanish midfielders' characteristic fast circulation in their semi-final defeat," said Dr López Peña.---On the Net:University of LondonSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:11 pm Russian Subs Could Potentially Cap Oil LeakThe captain of one of two Russian-owned submarines said that the vessels would be able to cap the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. The captain was speaking as two of the subs started a campaign of exploration at the bottom of Lake Baikal in Siberia. He said that there was still time for the subs to help BP with the environmental disaster. The subs are searching for gas hydrates on the bed of Baikal. Hydrates are a potential alternative fuel source. Yevgenii Chernyaev told BBC News that the problem had to be addressed at the highest level. Two oval-shaped submersibles have recently started their third season of exploration in Baikal, which is the world's deepest lake. Anatoly Sagalevich of Russia's Shirshov Institute of Oceanology told BBC News that he had an informal conversation with a BP representative asking if Mirs would be able to help stop the leak. However, he said there was no official request and no real discussions about the situation. A BP spokesman told BBC that the company had not had any formal contact with the Russians. "We've had over 120,000 people come up with ideas," he said in an e-mail."We are looking through all of these to see which are viable. If [the Russians] want to contact us (or may have done so through some other channel), we can evaluate their idea."Oil has been leaking from a damaged well in the Gulf of Mexico since the Deepwater Horizon exploded and sank in April. Although BP says it is now able to gather about 10,000 barrels of oil a day, using a device that siphons oil up to surface ships, thousands of barrels of oil continue to gush daily from the ocean floor. The U.S. administration has already called the oil spill the worst environmental disaster in history. Chernyaev told BBC that his team had held numerous discussions about the oil spill in the Gulf and the Russians would be ready to help out, but only if it was done properly. The captain underlined that the subs were probably the only deep-sea vessels in the world capable of stopping the leak. "Our subs are unique. There are two of them and they can submerge and work simultaneously. Also, they are powerful enough to work with any other additional equipment.""There are only four vessels in the world that can go down to 6,000m - the Mirs, French Nautile and Japanese Shinkai. The Mirs are known to be the best, and we have a very experienced team of specialists," he told BBC.However, Chernyaev said that such an operation would have a chance of succeeding only if BP or the U.S. government asked the Russian government to join efforts to stop the leak. "It should all be decided on the government level. Asking [Anatoly] Sagalevich [of Russia's Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, which owns the subs] to simply bring the Mirs over is nonsense. Even though we're able to go to much greater depths than where the damaged well is located, we wouldn't be able to do much on our own.""We need a team of international specialists and we have to know all the details and probably even build a special device to attach to the subs, and all this needs time," Chernyaev told BBC.He explained that the subs had already worked in much harsher conditions, such as the Arctic. The submarine's pilot also added that the Russians were very surprised that BP and the U.S. government had not asked them for help from the beginning. "And we would not refuse to help, even though for us it would be very complicated, especially right now, when we're already working on Baikal. But it doesn't look like anyone seriously wants our help," he added.Chernyaev was one of the pilots on the first manned descent to the seabed under the geographic North Pole. The expedition was widely reported as a bid to further Moscow's territorial claims in the Arctic. The two submarines started their third season of exploration in Lake Baikal on July 1. The teams found reserves of gas hydrates on the lake bed over the last two expeditions. Baikal is the only freshwater basin where gas hydrates are found in its sediments. Scientists say that the depth of the lake and extremely low temperatures of water near the lake bed is both help gas hydrates form at depths exceeding about 1,150 feet. The current expedition aims to obtain important data about these findings. It is also hopping to discover new life forms, which might be unique to the lake. The lake holds one-fifth of the planet's fresh water and many unique species of plants and animals.Image Courtesy L. Murphy/NOAA---On the Net:Shirshov Institute of OceanologyBPGovernment Response WebsiteSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:10 pm Brainware and OPEX Partner to Deliver Scan-to-Post AutomationASHBURN, Va. and MOORESTOWN, N.J., July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Brainware, Inc., the leading provider of intelligent data capture and enterprise search solutions, announced today that it has entered into a new partnership with OPEX Corporation, a recognized global technology leader in high-speed mailroom automation and document imaging. The companies have formed this partnership to deliver a combined solution capable of streamlining the entire "paper-to-post" process -- drastically reducing the time and labor demands associated with manually processing documents of any type. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100524/PH09476LOGO ) (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100524/PH09476LOGO ) Despite promises of a "paperless" future, research shows that more than 70% of business documents remain paper-based, and the cost of receiving, sorting, delivering, storing, processing, and retrieving each of those documents can far exceed $20 each. By implementing a combined OPEX and Brainware Distiller(TM) solution, companies can streamline the entire document processing cycle, including reducing the tedious and expensive steps of removing the documents from envelopes or file folders, prepping those documents for scanning, and then actually performing the scanning operation. The net result of this solution is that related documents, envelopes and transactions can be kept together and handled a minimum number of times, allowing these items to be quickly and easily routed and processed through companies' Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Customer Support, Legal departments, and others -- all while delivering the unparalleled touchless pass rates, instant visibility, reduced cycle times, and error reduction for which Distiller is known. "OPEX recognizes that customers wish to purchase integrated business solutions comprised of best-in-class hardware and software to solve real day-to-day business problems," said Mark Smith, OPEX's Director of Product Planning. "The combination of OPEX hardware and Brainware software allows customers to reap ROI benefits from the entire capture process, achieving an even greater level of automation, process control, and business value." "This partnership highlights how effectively Brainware is able to expand the benefits of its unmatched Distiller solution into the broad mailroom automation market, offering clients a more comprehensive, start-to-finish solution," says Blaine Owens, Vice President of Enterprise Solutions at Brainware. "We now have two of the finest solutions available, working together to maximize efficiency from document receipt to posted transaction, with very little need for manual interference." About Brainware Brainware, Inc. is an innovative provider of intelligent data capture and enterprise search solutions that help Global 2000 companies eliminate costly manual data entry, rapidly process large volumes of documents and retrieve data from across the enterprise. Its solutions were built from the ground up to manage unstructured data without templates, exact definitions, taxonomies or indexing. Headquartered in Ashburn, Virginia, Brainware maintains global sales and support operations through its North American, U.K. and European offices. Brainware customers include Airbus, Alcon, Alltel, Amgen, Anadarko, BB&T, , British American Tobacco, Continental Airlines, CORT, Gardner Denver, Halliburton, Her Majesty's Prison Service, Johns Manville, JohnsonDiversey, Kimberly-Clark, KPMG, NHS/Steria, Newell Rubbermaid, Phillip Morris International Service Center Europe, Reynolds & Reynolds, Rockwell Automation, Shell, Southern Company, Sun Chemical, The Bank of New York Mellon/SourceNet, TriZetto, and many others. For more information, please visit www.brainware.com. About OPEX Corporation OPEX Corporation is a recognized global technology leader in document imaging and high-speed mailroom automation. Since 1973, OPEX systems have provided performance enhancing workflow solutions and cost-effective results to thousands of organizations worldwide. Today, OPEX systems are installed in financial services, healthcare, government, non-profit, utility, service bureau, insurance, telecommunications, and university/educational marketplaces around the world. For more information visit, www.opex.com. SOURCE Brainware, Inc.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:10 pm The Firefly intro re-imaged as an ’80s-era showYeah, this is probably the best thing you’ll see on the Internet today — maybe this weekend. It’s that good. You’ll appreciate it even if you haven’t seen one episode of Firefly. Fun fact: I’ve only seen the series premier for some reason I can’t explain.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:00 pm Twitter Grabs a Google, White House Vet For International [Voices]By Beth Callaghan Katie Stanton, a veteran of Google, the White House and the State Department, is headed to Twitter in August to drive international operations and business strategy as VP of International. She’ll report directly to COO Dick Costolo. Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:59 pm How Apple Dominates (In Slides)What makes Apple tick? How is it that it came back from the dead to surpass both Google and Microsoft in market cap? French consulting firm faberNovel takes a stab at explaining Apple’s success and its strategy against its two main rivals in the SlideShare above. (In the past, faberNovel has created similar slideshows about Google). The 48-slide presentation, titles “Apple: 8 Easy Steps To Beat Microsoft (And Google),” boils Apple’s strategy down to eight steps including “the arrogance of simplicity” (Step 1) to customer lock-in (Step 3), selling at a premium (Step 4), cross-selling products (Step 5), and, of course, think different (Step 7). Much of this is not new information, but seeing it all in a detailed slide presentation helps put Apple’s various moves in context. Apple starts by stripping away complexity from computing products, paring down features in favor of making their products more effortless to master. Apple locks in customers by controlling every aspect of a product through vertical integration. For instance, it doesn’t make much money from iTunes, but that is how it keeps customers coming back. It makes its money from hardware, which it sells at a premium. It has been able to increase its gross margins from 23 percent in 2001 to 40 percent last year. Over that time period, it went from a niche, high-end computer maker to a consumer electronics company. But its iPods, iPhones, and iPads bring new consumers into the Mac fold and drive sales of Mac computers, which of course work better with all of its other devices. The iPod, iPhone, and now the iPad are what drive mainstream adoption for Apple and have propelled it to become the powerhouse it is today.
The part of the presentation which is the most insightful is when it illustrates the thinking behind Apple’s emerging cloud strategy. While iTunes in the cloud is a foregone conclusion, that might just be the first wisp of an entirely new product strategy. When Apple started to make other devices such as the iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV, they were designed to connect to the Mac as the digital hub syncing and managing all of these devices and others like digital cameras. These began as media creation and consumption devices, but then evolved into communications devices in their own right. Applications were the glue that connected these devices to the computer hub.
But now we are entering the post-PC era with the iPhone and the iPad, depending on the Mac as a central, orchestrating digital hub no longer makes any sense. iPhones and iPads are powerful computers in their own right. The new hub is the cloud, which can manage many more devices and offer much more powerful computing experiences (“speech recognition, unlimited storage”) than any personal computer. Google is already all about the cloud. Microsoft is moving in that direction, and so will Apple. The new glue tying its devices to the cloud will be iTunes and MobileMe, which faberNovel predicts Apple will make free because of its strategic potential to lock customers into the Apple universe. Instead of syncing your devices to your computer, MobileMe syncs them to the cloud. And why store all of your songs and movies on your computer, when you can stream them from iTunes in the cloud? (That is why Apple bought Lala). There is unlimited storage, it is all in one place accessible from any device, and Apple can start charging subscription fees for streaming music and movies. Throw your photos up there too as an extra backup while you are at it.
     
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:53 pm Yahoo Media Chief Jimmy Pitaro Talks About the Upshot of Content's Future [BoomTown]
Whilst in Santa Monica, Calif., this week, BoomTown stopped in at the YahooPlex for a quick chat with the Internet giant’s Jimmy Pitaro, who is VP of media. The focus was a high-profile blog called The Upshot, Yahoo’s effort to delve deeper into the new push to determine content selections based on search. While some consider such efforts as a “democratizing” of the news, others are more concerned about relying on algorithms to determine the best coverage and the implications for a society guided by its own searches. That has not stopped the trend from growing, with companies such as Demand Media using freelancers to create millions of articles. Yahoo recently bought a competitor, Associated Content, to jump into the game. The Upshot is a little different, essentially using analysis of popular search words or topics to inform the news staff. Articles are then produced for the Yahoo blog based on this audience data, on a wider range of coverage than the more typical how-to articles produced using this method. In this video, Pitaro dismissed worries that Yahoo (YHOO) coverage would be guided solely by a formula for user-driven, advertiser-coddling, money-making-only content, but it is clear the idea of using search as an editorial tool is the wave of the future as far as Yahoo is concerned. Here’s the interview: [ See post to watch video ] Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:43 pm YouTube Fund Will Fertilize Budding Talent [Voices]By John Murrell Looking to grow more, and higher quality, original content, YouTube has created a $5 million Partner Grant Program and will invite up to 100 of its most promising contributors to apply for some seed money to step up their game. Some of that money might go toward the equipment needed to produce videos in 4K, a higher-than-high-def resolution supported by YouTube as of today. Mind you, the ideal screen size for 4096p is 25 feet. Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:42 pm Brawny Neanderthals, Walking Fish and More: Editor's PicksAbove, you'll see some of the top images of the week. Click on each one to explore the story behind it. If you were too busy powering your air conditioner this week to turn on your computer, here's a list ...Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:36 pm Impartial Woz prefers iPhone over Android
Says Woz:
I whole-heartedly agree with this sentiment. Technology for its own sake is pretty useless: technology should improve our lives, and the best devices are those the seamlessly integrate into our everyday lives. And the wild success of the iPod and the iPhone are clear examples that love for a product will result in repeat sales. But let’s not pretend that Woz is an impartial judge of technology: he’s still an Apple employee and investor, so his opinions may be a bit colored. (The title of this post was ironic, you see?) I do take some exception with Woz’s praise for the iPhone. Since updating to IOS 4, my iPhone 3G has experienced more crashes than in the entire time I’ve owned the phone. I’ve heard a number of similar complaints from other iPhone 3G users, too. The calendar is nigh unusable because it takes so long to load. I’ve had the mail application bomb out at least half a dozen times. Everything feels slower and less responsive. I’m certainly not loving my iPhone very much any more.
Source: CrunchGear | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:30 pm Dark Matter May Be Building Up Inside SunThe sun could be a net for dark matter, a new study suggests. If dark matter takes a certain form, it could build up in a way that would be observable from Earth.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:30 pm Google and China Agree on a FictionChina says Google can keep its Chinese license, while Google says it's not censoring any more in China. It's all a convenient fiction, based on a clickable image of a search engine — a fascinating compromise.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:30 pm Coalition Forms To Fight Comcast, NBC DealThe Coalition for Competition in Media launched a campaign on Thursday opposing television giant Comcast's purchase of entertainment titan NBC Universal. The 21 members of the coalition urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Justice Department to reject the deal, saying it poses "serious threats" to consumers and "fair competition in the media market." The coalition includes the Bloomberg news agency, the National Organization for Women, the Writers Guild of America, the National Consumers League, the National Telecommunications Cooperative Association, the National Coalition of African American Owned Media and others. The FCC and Justice Department are currently reviewing the deal, which calls for General Electric to sell 51 percent of its NBC Universal stake to Comcast. The acquisition of NBC Universal would give Comcast a media and entertainment empire to rival that of The Walt Disney Co. Comcast's cable television and Internet operations would combine with NBC Universal's vast stable of news, movie and television programming, creating an unparalleled marriage of distribution and content. According to the coalition, the deal would "give Comcast unprecedented power nationally and in local cable markets around the country.""If you are a local business that wants to advertise, you have to do business with Comcast and pay the prices Comcast demands," it said."If you are a cable customer, you either pay Comcast's prices or risk losing content that Comcast could make exclusive.""It's far too much power for one cable company. Given the serious threat Comcast's plans pose to consumers and fair competition in the media market, the FCC and Justice Department must act to use their authority to protect the public interest," the coalition said.NBC's cable and broadcast television holdings include NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox, CNBC, MSNBC, The Weather Channel, Bravo and Spanish-language broadcast network Telemundo.Comcast operates several television channels already, including: Style Network, the Golf Channel and E! Entertainment Television. A group of Congress members have expressed concern about the deal and the House of Representatives Subcommittee of Communications, Technology and the Internet was holding a hearing about the deal in Chicago on Thursday.---On the Net:ComcastNBC UniversalFCCSource: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:28 pm Exclusive: Want More Followers? Twitter May Help You Buy Some. [MediaMemo]
People familiar with the company’s plans say it has been discussing yet another revenue generator: Think of it as a “Promoted Tweeter” product, which highlights specific user accounts, designed to bump up follower counts. My sources weren’t sure about the business model behind the product, which may be because Twitter itself doesn’t know yet. Some obvious possibilities: Twitter could charge users based on the number of followers they acquired, or simply based on the exposure their Twitter accounts received. Twitter wouldn’t acknowledge plans for the product at all. Here’s spokesman Sean Garrett, via email: “We will eventually have full suites of both promoted and commercial products. All the components of these two buckets of product have yet to be determined. Some are currently being tested publicly now. Some will be tested soon. Some are just ideas that we are broaching externally for feedback.” If Twitter does move forward with its plans, it would represent a change in philosophy for the company, which has generally frowned on third-party companies that promise to build up follower counts–even though Twitter itself promotes specific accounts for free, via a modified version of its “suggested user list.” But TweetUp, a prominent and well-funded new start-up, has its own follower-building offering, so perhaps that has caught Twitter’s eye. My sources say Twitter has discussed using the yet-to-be-named product both on its own Web site as well as third party clients. That would track with other Twitter revenue projects, like “Promoted Tweets,” its play on Google’s (GOOG) AdWords, and “Promoted Trends,” which it just recently launched on its own site but plans on moving to third-party apps as well. The biggest question: What, exactly, is the value of a Twitter follower? Twitter’s original “suggested user list” effectively granted a select group of users with follower counts of a million or more. But it’s clear that the majority of those followers, who signed up when they opened accounts, tend not to pay much attention. A smaller, but much more engaged, audience of Twitter readers can be much more valuable. But figuring out how to price that will be a work in progress. Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:25 pm Awesome Vader Project Puts the 'Art' in 'Darth'With 100 artists unleashing their talents on the Sith Lord's unmistakably menacing helmet, the Star Wars baddie turns into an invigorating blank slate. The Force is strong with this one.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:25 pm YouTube Announces Partner Grants Program, Support For 4K Video Resolution
In a blog post, YouTube writes that the goal of the Grants program “is to act as a catalyst by infusing additional funds into the production budgets of a small group of YouTube partners who are at the forefront of innovation” and says that these funds will be serving as “an advance against the partner’s future revenue share”. Here how the program works:
As for the 4K video resolution support, it’s really big: YouTube says that the ideal screen size for 4K video is 25 feet. Not to mention that the cameras needed to record in 4K resolution are quite expensive. So yes, this might be a little overkill for your average consumer recording, but it’s clear that it could definitely have professional applications. YouTube also notes that if you want to watch a video shot at 4K you’ll need a very fast broadband connection. All of this is clearly meant to help YouTube boost the amount of original, high-quality content on the site (in other words, it is growing beyond the 10 minute clips of cats on Roombas that are its bread-and-butter). According to a report in AdAge, YouTube “envisions someone directing the money toward a short film or to increase their current level of production on YouTube”. It sounds like the only restriction is that the primary mode of distribution for these videos has to be YouTube. Information provided by CrunchBase      
Source: TechCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:04 pm Judge Guts Whopping RIAA File Sharing VerdictA federal judge is gutting a jury verdict in the second recording industry file-sharing lawsuit to go to trial against an individual. The Boston judge reduced the $675,000 verdict to $67,500 for 30 songs. The Recording Industry Association of America vowed an appeal.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 pm DIY: How to Install a Pixel Qi Display in Your Netbook
If you are willing to take a screwdriver to your computer, Pixel Qi’s low-power displays that can switch between color LCD and black-and-white screens could be in your netbook. The 10.1-inch displays available through makershed.com look like standard LCD screens inside the room. But take them outside and they turn into low-power e-paper like display. Pixel Qi first showed the screens in January at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The display called 3Qi operates in three modes: a full-color LCD transmissive mode; a low-power, sunlight-readable, reflective e-paper mode; and a transflective mode that makes the LCD display visible in sunlight. Pixel Qi has started selling the displays directly to consumers though the company is also working with with PC manufacturers. For now, Pixel Qi says it can guarantee the compatibility of the displays, which cost $275 each, with only two models of netbooks–the Samsung N130 and Lenovo S10. But the screen works in most other models, says the company. Swapping out existing netbooks screens for those from Pixel Qi is a simple DIY tweak, says Pixel Qi founder Mary Lou Jepsen. “Changing the screen of your netbook is easy, the process takes about 5-10 minutes using a small screwdriver. It’s simple,” she wrote on her blog. Users have to remove the front plastic bezel of the existing display in their netbook, unlatch the screen, plug Pixel Qi’s display in its place and snap on the screws. But if you like to see what the process really is like, check out this video from Make magazine. The 10-minute long video shows how to remove the display off an Acer Aspire One netbook. Seems like this will be a breeze to do at home and the results should be worth it. Pixel Qi screens consume 80 percent less power in the reflective e-paper-like mode, says Jepsen. See Also:
Photo: Pixel Qi screen/Priya Ganapati [via Ubergizmo via Liliputing] 
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:59 am QOTD: Jobs "Rewriting History" of Apple-Google Phone Fight, Says Page [Digital Daily]QOTD: Jobs “Rewriting History” of Apple-Google Phone Fight, Says Page [Digital Daily]
Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:36 am What's the Fastest You've Driven?We can't all do 268 in a Bugatti Veyron, but many of us would like to. Tell us how close you've come.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:21 am Prevent Memory LossWhether you're losing your keys or memories of your youth, memory loss can be slowed or prevented through mental and physical exercise.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:20 am As NASA's Plutonium Supply Dwindles, ESA Eyes Nuclear Energy ProgramNASA is running low on plutonium, an issue that is causing growing concern for future outer solar system missions. Will Europe step in to alleviate concern for the supply of this valuable energy resource?Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:18 am Zillow to Power Much of Yahoo Real Estate Listings [Voices]By Beth Callaghan Yahoo Real Estate and Zillow.com announced that the four-year-old Seattle company will power listings of homes for sale and other local real estate advertising for Yahoo. It’s the latest in a series of moves by Yahoo to lower costs through strategic partnerships with outside companies. In the last 18 months, Carol Bartz has farmed out the company’s search engine to Microsoft and its online dating service to Match.com. Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:12 am What Caused a Mammoth Holocaust?One of the last remaining wooly mammoth populations may have experienced a sudden die-off.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:12 am Fact: iPhone 4 takes 23 percent longer to charge via USB than via electrical outlet
Well look at this. The iPhone 4 takes an average of 23 percent longer to charge while charging via USB than it does while charging via a standard electrical outlet. Now, of course, this isn’t exactly breaking news in the traditional sense of the phrase—I’d be shocked if you didn’t know, or at least suspect, that it takes longer to charge via USB than via an outlet. In dollars and cents, that means the iPhone 4 takes an extra 30 minutes to charge via USB. And there’s this handy chart. The more you know, folks. The more you know. [via iClarified]
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:00 am Top Korean Bank Uses the Power of Teradata to Support Award-Winning 'Customer First' InitiativeSEOUL, Korea, July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Teradata Corporation (NYSE: TDC), the world's largest company solely focused on data warehousing and enterprise analytics, announced that Standard Chartered First Bank (SCFB) has won the Grand Prize at the '2010 Customer Centric Management Awards' event, organized by the CRM Council of The Foundation of Korean Information Industries. This prestigious award was earned by SCFB for its new 'Customer First' strategic initiative, which has helped transform the bank from a product-centered business model to a customer-centered model. The bank's Teradata Relationship Manager software was recognized by the CRM Council as a significant technology driver for the winning initiative. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090909/TERADATALOGO ) (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090909/TERADATALOGO ) Teradata Relationship Manager (TRM) is a highly-ranked customer relationship management software portfolio that combines powerful analytical functions with marketing automation technology to drive timely and relevant interaction with customers. SCFB's award was based on the rollout of a company-wide 'Customer First' program over the year 2009. The program introduced dramatic new customer-centered processes, product packages and services to create 'one-to-one' customer experiences and relationships. The data-driven approach included customer satisfaction surveys focused around individual preferences and intentions. SCFB saw quickly-rising satisfaction rates over the program rollout. Increased customer interaction and feedback were key in driving improved loyalty. During the program, Standard Chartered First Bank launched DREAM PACK, a revolutionary financial product set customizable to individual customer needs. The 'Customer First' approach grew further momentum in early 2010 with employee workshops and commitments to customer service. To heighten customer focus across the business, a unique customer Help Desk was established - one where banking executives receive customer feedback and issues first-hand, and take immediate action for resolution. "The goal of Standard Chartered First Bank is to become a bank that customers would recommend to their family, friends, and co-workers," said Ahn Hyun-Hee, Standard Chartered First Bank marketing analysis executive. "We're determining the NPS (Net Promoter Score) and documenting customer experiences throughout our business, expanding customer support and strengthening customer relationships. We're making every effort to meet all that is promised in our Customer Charter." Hyun-Hee continued: "By implementing Teradata's advanced solution and its capabilities, we can stay in communication with our customers and in turn, set strategies focused on customer needs, optimize sales, and solidify our brand as a customer-centered business." "Teradata is honored that Standard Chartered First Bank, a leader in the industry, was selected the grand prize winner for its world-class CRM business model using our TRM solution," said Teradata Korea President Yoon Moon-Seok. "Standard Chartered First Bank has always had a strong commitment to providing attractive and compelling products and services to its growing customer base. This award also shows how strongly that the company's customer management strategy, Teradata's CRM technology, and business growth are all interrelated." In its seventh year, the annual Customer Relationship Management Awards are given to companies in Korea that pursue a customer-centric approach through CRM, raise competitiveness, and become exemplary in the industry. The award was presented June 22. Relevant News Links! Read more about Teradata in banking in Europe, Malaysia, China, and the United States.See a hot podcast on the RBC (Canada) Teradata-driven event-based marketing program.Read the latest on Teradata Profitability Analytics being deployed at Banco Galicia.Read about Teradata Data warehousing success at St. George Bank in Australia.Get more detail on Teradata's wide range of data-driven solutions for Financial Services.About Teradata Teradata Corporation (NYSE: TDC) is the world's largest company solely focused on raising intelligence and achieving enterprise agility through its database software, enterprise data warehousing, data warehouse appliances, consulting, and enterprise analytics. Visit Teradata on the web at www.teradata.com. Teradata is a trademark or registered trademark of Teradata Corporation in the United States and other countries. SOURCE Teradata CorporationSource: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 11:00 am LabTech to Exhibit at Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference ExpoTOLEDO, Ohio, July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- LabTech Software, a powerful Remote Monitoring, Management (RMM) and Automation solution, today announced that it will be showcasing its innovative LabTech 2010 software at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) in Booth No. 242 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington D.C. July 12-15. An exhibitor at the five-day partner event, LabTech is demonstrating their new LabTech 2010 software that features an HTTP connection, faster deployment, data views, a new Tray, and improved invoices and PSA reports. LabTech released the 2010 software as the next step in empowering the MSP community to increased profitability and unmatched automation and will be offering a show special on the software for visitors of their booth. Visitors purchasing a 100 or larger agents pack will receive 25 agents free. Exhibit visitors will also have the opportunity to meet the founders of LabTech, CEO Matt Nachtrab and Drew McCullum, and will be entered in a drawing to win a 32" Samsung TV. "Visitors to our booth will gain firsthand knowledge of our newest technologies by watching live demos of the new LabTech 2010 release showcasing ConnectWise integration," said Nachtrab. "Based on our partners' feedback we have put our expertise to work in improving the security and flexibility of our LabTech software which we will exhibit for WPC participants." LabTech's affordable, agent-based solution quickly transforms solution providers into managed service providers. As the only RMM solution that emulates what technicians do in the field, providers can become NOC technicians in 15 minutes. Partners can purchase the number of agents they need to start, and add as they grow. And rather than having to individually manage each customer, the LabTech integration empowers MSPs with the ability to manage customers together as a group or type, i.e. all Exchange servers across multiple customers can be managed as a single 'Exchange' group, alleviating a major pain point felt by many service providers. WPC is an annual gathering for thousands of Microsoft partners from more than 100 countries to learn about Microsoft's roadmap for the upcoming year, network and build connections, share best practices, experience the latest product innovations, learn new skills and techniques and explore the infinite opportunities with Microsoft's cloud computing strategy. More information about the event is available at http://digitalwpc.com/ Follow LabTech www.LabTechSoftware.com/Twitter www.LabTechSoftware.com/Facebook About LabTech Software LabTech is the only Managed Service tool for remote monitoring, management, and automation developed by a managed service provider (MSP) for MSPs. Their affordable, agent-based solution so closely emulates what technicians do in the field that the techs can provide the same support remotely. Because LabTech understands how to manage a growing MSP business, they make it easier to procure their software and allow partners to add agents as they grow. For more information please visit www.LabTechSoftware.com. CONTACT AGENCY: Mark Smith JPR Communications 818-884-8282 marks@jprcom.com Skype: jprmark SOURCE LabTech SoftwareSource: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:50 am New Heart Rate Formula Sets Lower Max for WomenResearchersSource: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:38 am MKS Instruments Announces Second Quarter 2010 Earnings Conference CallANDOVER, Mass., July 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MKS Instruments, Inc. (Nasdaq: MKSI), a global provider of technologies that enable advanced processes and improve productivity, today announced that it will release second quarter 2010 financial results after market close on Wednesday, July 21, 2010. A conference call with management will follow at 4:30 p.m. (Eastern Time). The call will be broadcast live and available for replay at www.mksinstruments.com. Dial-in numbers are (800) 762-8779 for domestic callers and (480) 629-9771 for international callers. A telephone replay can be accessed for one week at (303) 590-3030, pass code 4317832#. MKS Instruments, Inc. is a leading, global provider of technologies to power, control, deliver, monitor, measure and analyze advanced processes in high growth applications. Our primary served markets are manufacturers of capital equipment for thin film applications including semiconductor devices, flat panel displays, light emitting diodes (LEDs), solar cells, data storage media and coatings, as well as medical equipment; energy generation and environmental monitoring processes; biopharm and other industrial manufacturing; and university, government and industrial research laboratories. SOURCE MKS Instruments, Inc.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:10 am Real men drop-test the iPhone bumper caseAre you a manly man? Do you wish to test your iPhone case or at least understand the potential damage it can survive? No. You are not. That’s why this video exists. I’m currently using some Case-Mate silicone cases, which work well enough. What have you guys found that works?
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:07 am 'Psychic' Octopus Predicts Spain to WinThe eight-legged oracle has become a World Cup sensation after correctly predicting all six of Germany's games.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 10:00 am Mojoceratops: Dinosaur Named For Its Flamboyant FrillWhen Nicholas Longrich discovered a new dinosaur species with a heart-shaped frill on its head, he wanted to come up with a name just as flamboyant as the dinosaur's appearance. Over a few beers with fellow paleontologists one night, he blurted out the first thing that came to mind: Mojoceratops."It was just a joke, but then everyone stopped and looked at each other and said, ‘Wait — that actually sounds cool,' " said Longrich, a postdoctoral associate at Yale University. "I tried to come up with serious names after that, but Mojoceratops just sort of stuck."With the publication of Longrich's paper describing his find in the Journal of Paleontology, the name is now official.The dinosaur is one of more than a dozen species belonging to the chasmosaurine ceratopsid family, which are defined by elaborate frills on their skulls. A plant eater about the size of a hippopotamus, Mojoceratops appeared about 75 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous — 10 million years earlier than its well-known cousin, the Triceratops. The species, which is related to another dinosaur in Texas, is found only in Canada's Alberta and Saskatchewan provinces and was short-lived, having survived for only about one million years.It was only after coming up with the unusual name that Longrich looked into its etymology. Surprisingly, he found that it was a perfect fit for the species, which sported a flamboyant, heart-shaped frill on its head."I discovered that ‘mojo' is an early 20th-century African-American term meaning a magic charm or talisman, often used to attract members of the opposite sex," he said. "This dinosaur probably used its frill to attract mates, so the name made sense." The full name is Mojoceratops perifania, with "perifania" meaning pride in Greek. (The other part of the name mojoceratops follows the convention of other related species, with "ceras" being Greek for horn and "ops" being Greek for face.)While all ceratopsids have frills on the tops of their skulls, "Mojoceratops is the most ostentatious," Longrich said, adding that their frill is also the most heart-shaped of all the related species.Longrich got his first clue that he might have found a new species at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, where he was studying the dinosaur fossil collection in 2008. There, he found a distinctive frill that didn't match anything previously known. Later, while sketching the skull of another specimen on display, which was thought to be a species called Chasmosaurus, he noticed the skull was identical to the one on the specimen next to it."I realized the skull on the supposed Chasmosaurus must have been a reconstruction," he explained. When he studied the front of the skull, Longrich noticed some differences from the typical Chasmosaurus, including longer horns than usual. Trips to other museums in Western Canada turned up more examples that didn't fit with the rest of the known species. "The fossils didn't look like anything we'd seen before. They just looked wrong," he said.Finding yet another previously unknown large dinosaur species that comes from Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta, Canada-which boasts the world's most diverse dinosaur fauna-was somewhat surprising, Longrich said, because the fossils have been studied for such a long time already. "So far, we really have no good explanation for why there are so many dinosaurs in the area and just how they managed to coexist," he said.All in all, Longrich turned up eight partial skulls of the new species, which now boasts a name with just as much flair as its unusually shaped head."You're supposed to use Latin and Greek names, but this just seemed more fun," Longrich said. "You can do good science and still have some fun, too. So why not?"DOI: 10.1666/09-114.1---Image Caption: Longrich named the newly discovered dinosaur species Mojoceratops after its flamboyant, heart-shaped skull. (Photo: Nicholas Longrich)---On the Net:Journal of PaleontologyYale UniversitySource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:55 am Why Change Your Own Genes When You Can Borrow Someone Else's?University of Rochester biologist documents novel form of adaptation through natural selection in the journal 'Science'It has been a basic principle of evolution for more than a century that plants and animals can adapt genetically in ways that help them better survive and reproduce.Now, in a paper to be published in the journal Science, University of Rochester biologist John Jaenike and colleagues document a clear example of a new mechanism for evolution. In previous well documented cases of evolution, traits that increase an animal's ability to survive and reproduce are conferred by favorable genes, which the animal passes on to its offspring. Jaenike's team has chronicled a striking example of a bacteria infecting an animal, giving the animal a reproductive advantage, and being passed from mother to children. This symbiotic relationship between host animal and bacteria gives the host animal a readymade defense against a hazard in its environment and thus has spread through the population by natural selection, the way a favorable gene would.Jaenike provides the first substantial report of this effect in the wild in his paper "Adaptation via Symbiosis: Recent Spread of a Drosophila Defensive Symbiont," but he says it may be a common phenomenon that has been happening undetected in many different organisms for ages. Aside from shedding light on an important evolutionary mechanism, his findings could aid in developing methods that use defensive bacteria to stave off diseases in humans.Jaenike studied a species of fly, Drosophila neotestacea, which is rendered sterile by a parasitic worm called a nematode, one of the most abundant, diverse, and destructive parasites of plants and animals in the world. Nematodes invade female flies when they are young by burrowing through their skin and prevent them from producing eggs once they mature. However, when a female fly is also infected with a bacteria species called Spiroplasma, the nematodes grow poorly and no longer sterilize the flies, Jaenike found. He also discovered that, as a result of the Spiroplasma's beneficial impact, the bacteria have been spreading across North America and rapidly increasing in frequency in flies as they are passed from mother to offspring. Testing preserved flies from the early 1980s, Jaenike found that the helpful bacteria were present in only about 10% of flies in the eastern United States. By 2008, the frequency of Spiroplasma infection had jumped to about 80%."These flies were really getting clobbered by nematodes in the 1980s, and it's just remarkable to see how much better they are doing today. The spread of Spiroplasma makes me wonder how much rapid evolutionary action is going on beneath the surface of everything we see out there," Jaenike said.He reasoned that the substantial increase in Spiroplasma infection was an evolutionary response to the recent colonization of North America by nematodes. As the nematodes invaded the continent, the bacteria proved to be a convenient and potent defense against the nematodes' sterilizing effect. Now, the majority of flies in eastern North America carry the bacteria, and the bacterial infection appears to be spreading west. Without any mutation in their own genes, the flies have rapidly developed a defense against an extremely harmful parasite simply by co-opting another organism and passing it on from generation to generation."This is a beautiful case showing that the main reason these Spiroplasma are present in these flies is for their defensive role," said Nancy Moran, the Fleming Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale University. Moran studies the role of defensive symbionts in aphids. "These heritable symbionts are a way for an animal host to acquire a new defense very quickly. One way to get a truly novel defense is to get a whole organism rather than mutating your own genes that aren't that diverse to begin with."Jaenike's work could also have implications for disease control. Nematodes carry and transmit severe human diseases, including river blindness and elephantiasis. By uncovering the first evidence of a natural, bacterial defense against nematodes, Jaenike's work could pave the way for novel methods of nematode control. He plans to investigate that prospect further.Jaenike's coauthors on the paper are Robert Unckless and Lisa Boelio from the University of Rochester, and Steve Perlman and Sarah Cockburn from the University of Victoria in British Columbia. The work was funded by the National Science Foundation. ---Image 1: Microscope image of parasitic nematode and its offspring dissected from drosophila fly by University of Rochester biologist John Jaenike June 21, 2010. Jaenike finds that nematodes have a more difficult time growing and developing in black flies that are infected with a type of bacteria called Spiroplasma. Being infected with Spiroplasma is advantageous for the black flies if the nematodes reduce the survival or reproduction of the flies, and this, in turn, encourages the natural spread of Spiroplasma. Credit: J. Adam Fenster, University of Rochester Image 2: Microscope image of drosophila fly with parasitic nematode and its offspring dissected by University of Rochester biologist John Jaenike June 21, 2010. Jaenike finds that nematodes have a more difficult time growing and developing in black flies that are infected with a type of bacteria called Spiroplasma. Being infected with Spiroplasma is advantageous for the black flies if the nematodes reduce the survival or reproduction of the flies, and this, in turn, encourages the natural spread of Spiroplasma. Credit: J. Adam Fenster, University of Rochester---On the Net:University of RochesterScienceSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:40 am Wall Street Yawns at Google's China Deal [MediaMemo]“We view this news as a non-event,” writes J.P. Morgan analyst Dick Wei. Wall Street seems to agree, more or less; it has pushed Google shares up a modest two percent in a flat market. More from Wei: “We maintain our view that Google is likely to gradually lose market share in China, with an inferior search experience.” Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:38 am Sediment Composition Affected Strength Of Sumatran EarthquakeInternational research team studied differences between 2004 and 2005 quakesSumatra experiences frequent seismic activity because it is located near the boundary of two of Earth's tectonic plates. Earthquakes occur at 'subduction zones,' such as the one west of Indonesia, when one tectonic plate is forced under another--or subducts. Instead of sliding across one another smoothly, the plates stick, and energy builds up until they finally slip or 'rupture', releasing that stored energy as an earthquake.These earthquakes can generate tsunamis when the seafloor moves up or down rapidly. But why do some earthquakes, such as the 2004 Sumatra "Boxing Day Tsunami", create large hazards, while others do not?Three months after the catastrophic December 2004 earthquake and tsunami events, another strong, albeit smaller, quake occurred immediately to the south, but this earthquake triggered only a local tsunami."Many people wondered why the 2004 quake was so large," said Sean Gulick, a geophysicist from the University of Texas at Austin. "Perhaps a more interesting question is: why wasn't it larger? Why did the rupture occur as two events instead of one large one?"With support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Gulick joined an international research team to try to figure out why there were two quakes, and what made them so different. Working aboard the research vessel Sonne, the scientists used seismic instruments to study layers of sediment beneath the seafloor with sound waves.The researchers found that the fault surface where the two tectonic plates meet, called a décollement, has different properties in the two earthquake rupture regions. In the southern part of the 2004 area, the décollement imaging results show a bright reflection, while the décollement in the 2005 area does not. This difference in the images suggests changes in the composition of the rocks--or the fault itself--between the rupture areas. These characteristics may partially explain why the areas did not rupture together and may also contribute to differences in the tsunamis produced by both events.Scientists believe this difference in composition, combined with several other factors, resulted in the fault slipping over a much wider part of the margin and farther seaward in the 2004 event. They suspect that because more earth moved, more of the seafloor moved and more water was displaced, resulting in a larger tsunami.Compared to similar studies of other subduction zones around the world, the team believes the region of the 2004 Sumatra earthquake is very unusual, and that tsunami hazards may be particularly high in this area.The results of their study appear in the July 9 edition of the journal Science. The paper's lead author is Simon Dean, of the University of Southampton (UK). Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin (US), the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (Indonesia), and the Indonesia Institute for Sciences also contributed to the work.---Image Caption: Researchers found differences between the rocks in the regions where the 2004 and 2005 Sumatran earthquakes occurred. In the southern part of the region where the 2004 earthquake occurred, the earthquake rupture began closer to shore and did not reach as far seaward. Comparatively, the 2005 earthquake ruptured farther seaward beneath a thick wedge of compacted sedimentary rocks. These differences help explain why the 2004 earthquake and ensuing tsunami were more severe than subsequent events in 2005. Credit: Nicolle Rager Fuller, National Science Foundation---On the Net:National Science FoundationUniversity of Texas at AustinScienceSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:35 am With Facebook Gifts demise, Credits are maturing - CNET
Source: Sci/Tech - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:28 am Antiquities Dealer Tied to Stolen Shakespeare TextA British man has been found guilty of handling stolen goods following the theft of a Shakespeare manuscript.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:15 am Asian Consumers Boost Gadget Sales [Voices]By Ellen Sheng, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal Move aside American consumer. Asian consumers, particularly Chinese, are the ones buying up consumer electronics these days. Tech companies are enjoying stronger-than-expected demand for things like laptop computers, smartphones and LCD TVs thanks in part to Asian consumers. While markets and tech companies are bracing for a drop-off in European consumer demand, Asian consumers remain shop-happy. China, not the U.S., is poised to be the biggest consumer of LCD TVs this year, fund managers say. According to market researcher DisplaySearch Chinese LCD TV sales are on track to grow 35 percent this year. Japan has also been a surprisingly hot market, as consumers upgrade to newer, energy-efficient LCD TV models – shipments in Japan are expected to rise 36 percent this year, three times faster than other developed markets like North America and Western Europe. Read the rest of this post on the original site Source: All Things Digital | 9 Jul 2010 | 9:03 am Barnes & Noble Updates E-Reader App with Landscape View, Brightness Control
Barnes and Noble has updated its iPad e-reader app, and it has fixed many of the oddities that made me describe it as “adequate” back in May. The biggest changes are in the reading interface. You can now dim the display from within the app, just like you can in iBooks and Instapaper. Brightness is one of my biggest niggles with the iPad in general: I’m forever heading over to the settings app to tweak it. There should be an always-available shortcut. Anyhow, in the B&N e-reader, it’s fixed. Next is the behavior in landscape orientation, which now sows a two-page spread instead of just going wide. Other fixes are welcome but not really essential. You can now delete samples from within the app; there is “improved” support for periodicals, syncing purchases, bookmarks and notes is quicker and there are the obligatory bug-fixes. I’m losing count of e-reader/bookstore apps for the iPad now. We have Kindle, B&N, Kobo, iBooks, Borders (or is that Kobo?). I kind of like that I can get content from any of these without having to buy a whole bunch of e-readers. On the other hand, it’s a pain to have to jump between them. Imagine having to use different music apps depending on where you bought the MP3. B&N e-reader [iTunes. Thanks, Brittany!] See Also: 
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 8:37 am How to install Android on most Windows Mobile phones
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 8:10 am Travel Photo Guides: an app to help you take great photos in our national parks
The apps are targeted to specific national parks, and provide a plethora of popular and gorgeous photo spots: waterfalls, geysers, etc. Each location features multiple photos of that location, taken by professional photographers at different times of the day and night. Each photo in the app provides you with the details of the photo: ISO, f/stop, exposure time, lens, and the relative time of day the shot was taken. The photos are all geolocated, allowing you to plan travel itineraries so that you can recreate these photos on your own.
Each of the Travel Photo Guide applications is free to download and install, so that you can try it out to see if you like it. The trial lasts 30 days, and interestingly does not work inside the park it details. They check your coordinates when you launch the app to make sure you’re not using the trial inside the park. Also, the trial version includes only a single photo of each location included in the app.
You can unlock the full version, which will work inside the target park and provide a lot more photos of each specific location inside the park, for $9.99 through an in-app purchase. As it was explained to me, this satisfies users’ desire to have a try-before-you-buy option while sidestepping the development overhead of maintaining a free Lite version and the full version of the app. Says Jeff Elias, one of the brains behind the app:
The apps provide a pretty comprehensive suite of camera setting suggestions in order to help you get great photos: depth of field calculator, focus finder, exposure suggestions for different conditions, even a High Dynamic Range calculator.
And now here’s a funny little story for you. A lot of the stuff that gets reviewed on MobileCrunch is pitched to us by PR companies: we try our best to stay ahead of the curve and bring you interesting new content on our own, but the reality is that there are far more apps out there than we could ever discover on our own. The Travel Photo Guides app came to my attention when one of the developers entered into a CrunchGear contest. He flubbed his entry, and against my better judgement I sent him an email telling him to read the full content rules and try submitting again. This led to a brief email exchange, which finally led to him telling me about their apps clearing the App Store approval process. There’s no moral to this story, really: I just enjoy these kinds of serendipitous moments.
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:30 am Eclipse Draws Tourists to Easter IslandAstronomers deemed the mysterious island the best place to witness Sunday's alignment of the sun, Earth and moon.Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:29 am Report: Fujitsu develops its first Android phone
And we have yet another cell phone maker joining the Android bandwagon. Various Japanese media, for example Sankei Digital [JP], are reporting that Fujitsu is currently working on an Android-based smartphone. Details are scarce at this point, but Fujitsu is planning to market the device to the 55 million mobile subscribers NTT Doccomo has first (Docomo is Japan’s biggest cell phone carrier). It will be Fujitsu’s first Android phone and is expected to hit stores next year. Currently, the company doesn’t have any smartphones in its line-up (even though it’s often hard to spot significant differences between so-called smartphones and the normal feature phones that are available here in Japan). Fujitsu is planning to bring the Android phone to markets outside Japan as well. The company was in the news just last month, when it announced plans to merge cell phone operations with Toshiba as early as October this year. The picture above shows one of the last “smartphones” Fujitsu manufactured, the FOMA F1100 that the company introduced back in 2007.
Source: MobileCrunch | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:12 am Archaeologists Unearth Double Tomb In EgyptEgyptian archaeologists unveiled a newly-unearthed double tomb on Thursday, which contained vivid wall paintings in the ancient necropolis of Saqqara. They are hoping the find will be the start of uncovering a huge cemetery in the area. The double tomb includes two false doors with colorful paintings showing the two people entombed there, a father and a son who served as heads of the royal scribes, said Abdel-Hakim Karar, a top archaeologist at Saqqara. Karar told The Associated Press (AP) that the “colors of the false door are fresh as if it was painted yesterday.” He said that humidity destroyed the sarcophagus of the father, Shendwas, while the tomb of his son, Khonsu, was robbed by ancient thieves. Also inscribed on the father’s false door was the name of Pepi II, whose 90-year reign is believed to be the longest of the pharaohs. The inscription puts the date of the double tomb at around the 6th dynasty, during the age of the pyramids, the beginning of the decline of the Old Kingdom. The new discovery is “the most distinguished tombs ever found from the Old Kingdom,” Egypt’s chief of antiquities, Zahi Hawass told AP. He added that if the area is excavated it could reveal the largest cemetery of ancient Egypt. A single shaft from the surface led down to the father’s tomb, from which a side passage led to the tomb of his son. Hawass noted the tombs also contained a handful of duck-shaped artifacts and a small obelisk made of limestone. Such obelisks were often buried with the dead in the 5th and 6th dynasties to show their veneration for the sun god, Ra. “These artifacts were found at the end of the burial shaft,” at 60 feet depth, “but we covered it up,” Hawass told reporters. So far six tombs have been unearthed dating back to the end of the Old Kingdom since digging in the area began three years ago, said Karar. Work began on the double tomb five weeks ago. The tombs lie just west of the Step Pyramid of King Djoser, which is surrounded by a large burial ground. The burial site contains tombs from Egypt’s earliest times up through Roman times. ---Image 1: False door of the tomb of Shendwa (Photo: Sandro Vannini)Image 2: Offering vessels and obelisk found in the tomb of Shendwa (Photo: Jennifer Willoughby)---On the Net:Zahi Hawass Press ReleaseSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:05 am IF Mode Folding Bike for $2,500
If you buy this IF Mode folding bike, you’ll be glad that it packs up small and can be safely stowed in a corner, because it costs $2,500. For that, though, you get a bike that rides like a proper, full-sized bicycle, avoiding the tiny wheels that can make folders like the Brompton feel unsafe to newcomers. The wheels on the IF are a full 28-inches, and the single-sided hub-connection lets them squeeze up together when folder making for a skinny package. Talking of folding, the designer, Mark Sanders, says that it uses a “single-action automatic fold” which does everything in one go, from collapsing the frame and handlebars to swinging the wheels around. When in use, the bike works like any other. It has a chain (hidden in that tube), a pair of disk brakes and two-speed gears shifted with a heel-switch on the bottom-bracket. Apart from the slick design, its hard to see where your money is going here: after all, for the same price you could pick up a Vespa or other gas-scooter. It’s heavy, too, weighing in at 32-pounds (14.7 kg). The bike is aimed at commuters, but if I was commuting further than the distance between bed and desk (and sometimes not even that far) then I’d find an old beater road-bike and strip it down to a single-speed. It’ll weigh nothing, it will never go wrong and with the right (ugly) paint job and a big ‘ol lock, nobody will steal it either. Available now, in cream or black. IF-Mode: An Engineering and Design Masterpiece [Babygeared via Uncrate] See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:04 am Scientists Dig Up Saber-Tooth Cat In AustraliaThe remains of a strange, prehistoric saber-tooth cat have been unearthed in an ancient former rainforest in Australia, scientists said Thursday. Paleontologist Henk Godthelp, who led the discovery, said this is the first time the carnivore had been seen in Australia. He called the find an exciting and unique discovery. The animal is “sort of like a native cat with a broad flattish head with large canines,” said Godthelp. “It's an animal we don't think we've seen before up at Riversleigh so it was quite a nice find for us,” he told AFP. Riversleigh, in the north-eastern state of Queensland, was a prehistoric rainforest which is now a popular spot for fossil hunters, where animals were trapped and ossified in its lime-rich pools. In the past 35 years, the region has been a popular hunting ground for paleontologists. Species such as carnivorous kangaroos, gigantic flightless birds and ancient platypus are among the most unusual finds. Tree-dwelling crocodiles and primitive koalas and wombats have also been found. Many of the thousands of species discovered in Riversleigh have “never been seen anywhere else in Australia” and the world, said Godthelp, adding that the skull of the newly found cat was small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. The World Heritage site also has one of the world’s richest mammal deposits from the Oligo-Miocene era, from 15 to 25 million years ago. There are as many as 200 separate lime pools spread out over a 30 square mile region. Scientists will now use acid to dissolve the huge chunk of rock which contained the skull, in the hope of finding the remains of its body. ---Image Caption: Close up view of a saber tooth cat head on display at the American Natural History Museum, New York. Credit: Wikipedia---On the Net:University of New South WalesSource: RedOrbit News - Science | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:00 am Droptext Adds Dropbox Text Editing to iOS
Dropbox, the free cloud-storage and kinda-backup service, is awesome. One of its best features is to let you share all the documents on your computer with your iPad, iPhone, Android device and soon, your BlackBerry. It would seem, then, to be the perfect way to work around Apple’s excruciating file-transfers for the iPad. There’s just one catch: you can’t actually edit your files. Droptext fixes this. The application, from developer Kevin Smith, does one thing: It connects to your online Dropbox and lets you edit text files. Up until now, you have had to open the file in a separate application and then try to save it back, somehow, into the original Dropbox folder as a copy. That, or you need to buy one of the capable but ugly and expensive office apps like Office HD. Smith’s app is dead simple. Once you have signed into your Dropbox account, you can browse files and folders. Anything that is editable has an icon. Tap that icon and the document opens in edit view. Tap “Save” to save. That’s it. Any plain text file can be opened, from TXT through PHP, HTML and M. RTF and Word docs cannot be viewed or edited, however. You can also create and delete files, although to actually send them anywhere you’ll need to fire up a different Dropbox-aware application. In my short testing, Droptext crashed on me several times. The iTunes store page promises “bug fixes” as “coming soon”. The biggest draw of this app is the price, though. At just $1, it’s worth having the 2.9MB app around for when you need it. Dropbox Anywhere [Dropbox] See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 6:28 am Fring Brings Video Calling Over 3G to iPhone 4
Apple’s FaceTime app for the iPhone has one huge advantage over every other video-calling app: it is built in to every iPhone 4. Any other application requires not just you, the nerd of the family, to download it, but the person on the other end, too. And trust me, they won’t. If your friends are all geeks, though, then Fring is worth a shot: It not only allows two-way video chat over 3G, it also supports Skype and now, with iOS4, it will listen for incoming calls in the background. It also plays nice with Fring on other platforms, so you can make video calls to Android and S60 phones, too. Somewhat oddly, Fring also adds a social media stream in the form of Facebook and Twitter updates, but its the 3G video-calling that is the killer app here – if you can convince your Mom to install it (and go through the mind-bogglingly frustrating sign-up process). Fring gets one thing dead right, though: it’s free. Available now. 2-Way Video Calls to All Mobile Phones [Fring] Fring [iTunes] See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:21 am Bendy Bike Wraps Around Poles
The bendable bike has the top and down-tubes replaced by segmented sections, similar in appearance to an armored cable-lock. A ratchet mechanism on the seat-tube cranks the segments tight, stiffening the frame so it can be ridden. It’s kind of neat, but you’ll still have to carry a lock to secure the bicycle after wrapping it around a pole, and the weight of the complex frame along the bulk of the crank-arm probably outweigh the extra locks they will be replacing. I’d also worry about vandalism. An already-damaged bike seems to attract kicks and damage faster than an untouched one, and when locked up Kevin’s design looks like it has already received a beating. That’s not to say the bendy bike wouldn’t be useful: It would be easy to fit into a corner of a small apartment, and easy to squeeze around the corners of a tight stairwell. The incredible ‘bendy bicycle’ [Daily Mail] Industrial Design student is New Designer of the Year runner-up [De Montfort University] See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:53 am Likea: The Cardboard Fake Leica
The Likea camera is like a Leica camera. Specifically, the Likea MPH is a stripped down version of Leica’s already frill-less MP rangefinder. How stripped down? Try these anti-specs:
It is also $20, and made from cardboard. The MPH is in fact just a pinhole camera, although so sparsely equipped is the kit that it doesn’t even include the pinhole: you will have to cut your own from a soda-can. One thing it does share with every real Leica ever made is the sensor: it uses the exact-same 35mm film as the legendary German rangefinders have always used. Loading this film isn’t quite as easy as it might seem. There is no mechanism, so you’ll need an old, empty film canister and a paper clip. Into these you will wind the exposed film one inaccurate frame at a time. This kit looks like great fun, although you could just as easily make your own. There’s one other trick that you might like to play. A small digicam would slide inside this “replica” pretty easily, giving you a digital fake-Leica for just a few dollars. Likea product page [Likea Camera via Leica Rumors] See Also:
Source: Wired: Gadget Lab | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:30 am
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