Use Google Translate to translate the French extract of Obamas Nobel Peace Price acceptance:
"Pour être franc, je ne pense pas mériter" de figurer au côté de tant de personnalités qui ont changé les choses et ont été distinguées par le comité Nobel, a souligné le président américain lors d'une déclaration depuis la Roseraie de la Maison Blanche.
I was surprised to get the following english translation:
"To be honest, I do not deserve" to be alongside so many personalities who have changed things and have been awarded the Nobel committee, said Bush during a statement from the Rose Garden at the White House .
It appears like Google has translated US President directly to Bush......... I stand to be corrected though
Friday, October 9, 2009
Friday, June 19, 2009
Netbooks Are Faster Now
Hybrid speed: NEC is releasing a new netbook that will utilize hybrid storage, the BL350 LaVie Light. The BL350 comes with both a standard 160-gigabyte hard disk drive and a more exotic 16-gigabyte solid-state drive. The idea of the hybrid approach is that by running the operating system and applications out of the SSD and using a larger capacity HDD for data storage you can boost the netbook's performance while keeping the costs down. This is because while SSDs work faster, they also cost much more than HDDs and speed is most important for running applications.
While NEC has addressed the memory issue, the other key speed bottlenecks remain in place. The BL350 has a standard 1.66-gigahertz Atom N280 chipset, good for economizing on power consumption but no speed demon, and the usual underwhelming 1 gigabyte of RAM. Beyond the processing innards, the BL350 comes with the new standard display for netbooks of a 10.1-inch screen with a 1024×600 resolution and Bluetooth. It has Windows XP home as the operating system. NEC provides an exceptional running time of up to 7.4 hours for a netbook of this screen size. It achieves this feat by employing a battery that sticks out prominently at the back of the otherwise sleek netbook.
To read full article click japantimes
While NEC has addressed the memory issue, the other key speed bottlenecks remain in place. The BL350 has a standard 1.66-gigahertz Atom N280 chipset, good for economizing on power consumption but no speed demon, and the usual underwhelming 1 gigabyte of RAM. Beyond the processing innards, the BL350 comes with the new standard display for netbooks of a 10.1-inch screen with a 1024×600 resolution and Bluetooth. It has Windows XP home as the operating system. NEC provides an exceptional running time of up to 7.4 hours for a netbook of this screen size. It achieves this feat by employing a battery that sticks out prominently at the back of the otherwise sleek netbook.
To read full article click japantimes
Sony Improves The PSP
Small game: Technology companies have an easy way of dealing with mistakes — don't admit them, just quietly stop using the failed innovation. Sony sticks to this dogma with the latest version of its PlayStation Portable gaming devices. Previously, Sony has used universal media discs, a kind of miniature DVD, as the preferred storage method for games and movies on the devices. But its new PSPgo, known formally as the PSP-N1000, relies on internal memory and memory cards for storage and can also download content via wireless. The key benefit of axing the UMD drive is that the PSPgo can be made smaller than its predecessors. It weighs just 158 grams compared to 260 grams for the previous model, the PSP 3000, itself deemed slimmer than the older PSPs. The new model also reduces its dimensions with a clever design change. Instead of having the control pad and other buttons arranged to the left and right of the screen, the PSPgo puts the controls on one panel with the screen on a separate panel above that slides up into position. The change makes the device much more pocketable.
Apart from the UMD switch and redesign of the controls, the PSPgo is similar to the rest of the PSP family, and can display photos and play music, as well as be used for playing games and watching movies. One reduction in ability is that the PSPgo has a 3.8-inch screen, rather than the 4.3-inch version of its PSP brethren. The PSPgo also has less internal memory than the 3000, opting for 16 gigabytes instead of 32, although the PSPgo has the advantage of using the more robust flash memory. The new model has support for Bluetooth, enabling such add-ons as Bluetooth headphones, and Memory Stick Micro memory cards. The PSPgo package will also include the Media Go software for downloading content such as games, videos and music.
To read full article click japantimes
Apart from the UMD switch and redesign of the controls, the PSPgo is similar to the rest of the PSP family, and can display photos and play music, as well as be used for playing games and watching movies. One reduction in ability is that the PSPgo has a 3.8-inch screen, rather than the 4.3-inch version of its PSP brethren. The PSPgo also has less internal memory than the 3000, opting for 16 gigabytes instead of 32, although the PSPgo has the advantage of using the more robust flash memory. The new model has support for Bluetooth, enabling such add-ons as Bluetooth headphones, and Memory Stick Micro memory cards. The PSPgo package will also include the Media Go software for downloading content such as games, videos and music.
To read full article click japantimes
Panasonic Builds 85-inch Full HD Plasma Display
Panasonic Corp on Wednesday announced the development of an 85-inch full high-definition (HD) plasma display designed for professional users. The new display will become available through business channels worldwide starting with Japan and the U.S. this fall.
Panasonic has led large-size high-quality display market globally, introducing the world’s largest 103-inch plasma display to the market in 2006. With the move toward digitization in the broadcasting and content industries as well as convergence of communications technologies, there are increasingly diversified demands for large-size flat-panel displays.
The 85-inch display, having a screen size equivalent to four 42-inch panels, incorporates Panasonic’s NeoPDP energy-efficient, double luminance technology. With a moving picture resolution of 1,080 lines and a stunning contrast ratio of 40,000:14 (max. 2,000,000:15)—both the world’s highest to date—the panel delivers blur-free, crisp, true-to-life images with deep, rich blacks. With a viewing area of 1,889 mm (W) x 1,062 mm (H), about the same size as commonly-used projection screens, it is big enough to show a person in full size when installed vertically. The display measures only 99 mm in thickness.
The large and thin plasma display not only delivers dynamic images, but is outfitted with many convenient features for professional uses. With LAN (PJLink) terminals, it supports LAN control that enables connection with other PJLink compatible imaging systems as well as remote control of the display and input signal check. The display also features Panasonic’s own Function Slots that let users to add up to three different terminal boards8) such as DVI and Dual Link HD-SDI, according to their needs.
To read article click japantoday
Panasonic has led large-size high-quality display market globally, introducing the world’s largest 103-inch plasma display to the market in 2006. With the move toward digitization in the broadcasting and content industries as well as convergence of communications technologies, there are increasingly diversified demands for large-size flat-panel displays.
The 85-inch display, having a screen size equivalent to four 42-inch panels, incorporates Panasonic’s NeoPDP energy-efficient, double luminance technology. With a moving picture resolution of 1,080 lines and a stunning contrast ratio of 40,000:14 (max. 2,000,000:15)—both the world’s highest to date—the panel delivers blur-free, crisp, true-to-life images with deep, rich blacks. With a viewing area of 1,889 mm (W) x 1,062 mm (H), about the same size as commonly-used projection screens, it is big enough to show a person in full size when installed vertically. The display measures only 99 mm in thickness.
The large and thin plasma display not only delivers dynamic images, but is outfitted with many convenient features for professional uses. With LAN (PJLink) terminals, it supports LAN control that enables connection with other PJLink compatible imaging systems as well as remote control of the display and input signal check. The display also features Panasonic’s own Function Slots that let users to add up to three different terminal boards8) such as DVI and Dual Link HD-SDI, according to their needs.
To read article click japantoday
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Microsoft's Plan For Your TV-Xbox
In a few years, you'll be able to interact with your television like you've never been able to before, says Marc Whitten, general manager of Xbox Live, Microsoft's online multiplayer and content service for its Xbox 360 console.
Xbox-360 Natal
Whitten spoke extensively about social networking on Xbox Live, Arcade games and the future of digital distribution.
"It has always been our ambition to create this community of people playing together and having these great experiences," he says. "We have 20 million people on the Xbox Live service, and 6 million people that return a day, and we saw this future that was possible, and what's cool now is that I think we're in that future. "
Facebook and Twitter functionality will be added to Xbox Live.
"Live is the largest social network in the living room and when we marry that with Facebook, it takes it to the next level, and starts to expand those social aspects well beyond gaming." (Last year Microsoft, owner of Xbox, paid US$240 million for a 1.6 per cent stake in Facebook.)
"Part of where we went last year with NXE (a new dashboard for Xbox) was about creating a system where we could add functionality and features at a much faster rate than before.
For example, Live's Movie on Demand service means 1080p high- definition movies can be streamed to an Xbox 360 console instead of relying on a download.
Live is much more about how to bring a living room alive and real friends together, whether in person or not.
A few days before E3 kicked off, Microsoft announced that the classic Nintendo 64 shooter game, Perfect Dark, was headed to Xbox Live Arcade, and while Whitten wasn't willing to spill too many beans on the modern reimagining of heroine Joanna Dark, he said, "The team is working on it, it's up and running, and it's already fun . . . it's going to be a great classic".
In August, Live will launch its Retail Games on Demand, at prices that will match retail. Thirty games will be offered, then a new game added weekly, and you can use a credit card as well as Microsoft points.
To read full article click stuff.co.nz
Xbox-360 Natal
Whitten spoke extensively about social networking on Xbox Live, Arcade games and the future of digital distribution.
"It has always been our ambition to create this community of people playing together and having these great experiences," he says. "We have 20 million people on the Xbox Live service, and 6 million people that return a day, and we saw this future that was possible, and what's cool now is that I think we're in that future. "
Facebook and Twitter functionality will be added to Xbox Live.
"Live is the largest social network in the living room and when we marry that with Facebook, it takes it to the next level, and starts to expand those social aspects well beyond gaming." (Last year Microsoft, owner of Xbox, paid US$240 million for a 1.6 per cent stake in Facebook.)
"Part of where we went last year with NXE (a new dashboard for Xbox) was about creating a system where we could add functionality and features at a much faster rate than before.
For example, Live's Movie on Demand service means 1080p high- definition movies can be streamed to an Xbox 360 console instead of relying on a download.
Live is much more about how to bring a living room alive and real friends together, whether in person or not.
A few days before E3 kicked off, Microsoft announced that the classic Nintendo 64 shooter game, Perfect Dark, was headed to Xbox Live Arcade, and while Whitten wasn't willing to spill too many beans on the modern reimagining of heroine Joanna Dark, he said, "The team is working on it, it's up and running, and it's already fun . . . it's going to be a great classic".
In August, Live will launch its Retail Games on Demand, at prices that will match retail. Thirty games will be offered, then a new game added weekly, and you can use a credit card as well as Microsoft points.
To read full article click stuff.co.nz
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Down-turn Reality Bites Internet as 1Q Ad Sales Fall 5 Pct
Internet advertising in the United States dropped 5 percent in the first quarter, marking the marketing medium's first downturn since 2002 when the Web was still recovering from the dot-com bust.
The data released Friday by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP provided another reminder of the widespread pain wrought by the longest U.S. recession since World War II.
But the Internet's financial backbone isn't sagging as badly as that of more established media like newspapers and broadcasters, where far more severe advertising losses have triggered massive layoffs, bankruptcy filings and doubts about whether their businesses will ever be the same again.
Advertising revenue has been drying up as more companies clamp down on their marketing budgets to save money during tough times. Traditionally big spenders like banks, automobile makers and dealers, department stores and real estate developers have been grappling with major crises that have forced some of them to merge with rivals or simply close their doors.
Even before the Internet recorded the first-quarter decline in ad revenue, sales have been slowing down after years of rapid growth.
U.S. advertisers spent $5.48 billion on search, display, video and other Internet ads during the first three months of the year, a decline from $5.77 billion during the same quarter last year.
The data released Friday by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP provided another reminder of the widespread pain wrought by the longest U.S. recession since World War II.
But the Internet's financial backbone isn't sagging as badly as that of more established media like newspapers and broadcasters, where far more severe advertising losses have triggered massive layoffs, bankruptcy filings and doubts about whether their businesses will ever be the same again.
Advertising revenue has been drying up as more companies clamp down on their marketing budgets to save money during tough times. Traditionally big spenders like banks, automobile makers and dealers, department stores and real estate developers have been grappling with major crises that have forced some of them to merge with rivals or simply close their doors.
Even before the Internet recorded the first-quarter decline in ad revenue, sales have been slowing down after years of rapid growth.
U.S. advertisers spent $5.48 billion on search, display, video and other Internet ads during the first three months of the year, a decline from $5.77 billion during the same quarter last year.
Apple's Next iPhone Crop To Face Competition
When Apple Inc. launched an updated iPhone at its annual gathering of software developers last June, its biggest competitor was the iPhone that Apple had introduced the year before.
That won't be the case at this year's conference, which opens Monday. Now the next version of Apple's touch-screen phone has to outdo a slew of rival gadgets _ including one that comes out this weekend _ that emulate or improve on some of the iPhone's best features.
Much is riding on Apple's ability to appear well ahead of its competitors. Apple's shares have jumped 73 percent since March because of high expectations for the iPhone. Just two years after entering the fray, Apple enjoys a 19.5 percent share of the smart phone market, according to IDC, and investors are betting on a continued run of success.
Last year, Apple used the conference to announce the iPhone 3G, and many Apple-watchers expect the Cupertino, California-based company to produce another version this time, and to reveal more about the new iPhone operating software it previewed in March.
To read full story click etaiwannews
That won't be the case at this year's conference, which opens Monday. Now the next version of Apple's touch-screen phone has to outdo a slew of rival gadgets _ including one that comes out this weekend _ that emulate or improve on some of the iPhone's best features.
Much is riding on Apple's ability to appear well ahead of its competitors. Apple's shares have jumped 73 percent since March because of high expectations for the iPhone. Just two years after entering the fray, Apple enjoys a 19.5 percent share of the smart phone market, according to IDC, and investors are betting on a continued run of success.
Last year, Apple used the conference to announce the iPhone 3G, and many Apple-watchers expect the Cupertino, California-based company to produce another version this time, and to reveal more about the new iPhone operating software it previewed in March.
To read full story click etaiwannews
Palm Pre To Reverse Declines - Sprint CEO
No doubt bolstered by positive reviews, Sprint Nextel Corp. CEO Dan Hesse said Saturday's release of Palm Inc.'s Pre smart phone represents a "coming out party" for Sprint as it seeks to reverse subscriber losses.
The Pre
The celebration might be cut short, though, if the wireless carrier can't keep up with the high demand it expects for the device.
Sprint, which will carry the Pre exclusively at least through the end of the year, lost 1.25 million of its valuable contracted subscribers during the first three months of the year _ even worse than the 1.1 million that fled to other wireless carriers in the fourth quarter.
Hesse said the Pre gives Sprint an opportunity to show off its competitive voice and data networks and service plans _ things that could help the company retain subscribers and lure new ones. He said Sprint has "vastly" improved its customer service and network performance.
"We are a very, very different company than we were 12 months ago," Hesse told a group of media, analysts and customers in New York on Friday, a day before the release of the Pre.
The Pre has a touch-screen and slide-out keyboard and will cost $200 with a two-year service plan and rebate. It also sports Palm's new operating system, webOS. Numerous early reviews, including one by The Associated Press, have been positive.
But while the phone may be easy to use, it could be hard to find. At an industry conference last month, Hesse said Sprint would not be heavily advertising the Pre early on because of expected shortages. Hesse said then that the Overland Park, Kansas-based carrier "won't be able to keep up with demand for the device in the early period of time."
To read full story click etaiwannews
The Pre
The celebration might be cut short, though, if the wireless carrier can't keep up with the high demand it expects for the device.
Sprint, which will carry the Pre exclusively at least through the end of the year, lost 1.25 million of its valuable contracted subscribers during the first three months of the year _ even worse than the 1.1 million that fled to other wireless carriers in the fourth quarter.
Hesse said the Pre gives Sprint an opportunity to show off its competitive voice and data networks and service plans _ things that could help the company retain subscribers and lure new ones. He said Sprint has "vastly" improved its customer service and network performance.
"We are a very, very different company than we were 12 months ago," Hesse told a group of media, analysts and customers in New York on Friday, a day before the release of the Pre.
The Pre has a touch-screen and slide-out keyboard and will cost $200 with a two-year service plan and rebate. It also sports Palm's new operating system, webOS. Numerous early reviews, including one by The Associated Press, have been positive.
But while the phone may be easy to use, it could be hard to find. At an industry conference last month, Hesse said Sprint would not be heavily advertising the Pre early on because of expected shortages. Hesse said then that the Overland Park, Kansas-based carrier "won't be able to keep up with demand for the device in the early period of time."
To read full story click etaiwannews
Friday, June 5, 2009
Asbestos + Smoking = Highest Cancer Risk
The link between cigarette smoke and asbestos illness has been highlighted by a new medical research project.
The research also extends to West Australia's Pilbarra region where another Aboriginal
community was exposed to significant levels of asbestos.
If one is exposed to asbestos they have a bigger risk of lung cancer and scaring on the lungs, but in combination with smoking, it's many, many more times likely to get lung cancer.
So it's the two together which are the deadly combo.
The research also extends to West Australia's Pilbarra region where another Aboriginal
community was exposed to significant levels of asbestos.
If one is exposed to asbestos they have a bigger risk of lung cancer and scaring on the lungs, but in combination with smoking, it's many, many more times likely to get lung cancer.
So it's the two together which are the deadly combo.
Prisoner Freed After 17 Years Thanks To DNA Evidence
Japanese officials freed a 62-year-old man from prison after more than 17 years following new DNA tests that indicated he was innocent of the crime for which he was jailed, the murder of a four-year-old girl.
Toshikazu Sugaya, a former bus driver for a kindergarten, smiled and waved from a car as he was taken from the prison near Tokyo, ending his time behind bars since his 1991 arrest.
Mr Sugaya was arrested in December 1991 for allegedly kidnapping a four-year-old girl from a pachinko game parlour in Ashikaga, north of Tokyo, in May 1990.
The girl's body was found in a nearby river bed the next day.
The bus driver was convicted and received a life term in 1993, a sentence last upheld in 2000, in part because an initial DNA test was found to have detected his bodily fluids on the dead girl's underwear.
Mr Sugaya's lawyers had demanded another DNA test, arguing that the forensic tests were unreliable in the early 1990s, and last December the Tokyo High Court ordered the second set of the genetic tests.
To read full article click abc
Toshikazu Sugaya, a former bus driver for a kindergarten, smiled and waved from a car as he was taken from the prison near Tokyo, ending his time behind bars since his 1991 arrest.
Mr Sugaya was arrested in December 1991 for allegedly kidnapping a four-year-old girl from a pachinko game parlour in Ashikaga, north of Tokyo, in May 1990.
The girl's body was found in a nearby river bed the next day.
The bus driver was convicted and received a life term in 1993, a sentence last upheld in 2000, in part because an initial DNA test was found to have detected his bodily fluids on the dead girl's underwear.
Mr Sugaya's lawyers had demanded another DNA test, arguing that the forensic tests were unreliable in the early 1990s, and last December the Tokyo High Court ordered the second set of the genetic tests.
To read full article click abc
It’s Now 'Google Squared'
Google, already the king of internet search, has rolled out an experimental new search product called Google Squared.
Google Squared does not provide a list of links to web pages, like with a traditional Google search, but presents information derived from a query in a spreadsheet-like grid called a square.
Users of google.com/squared can then build, modify and refine their square through further Web searches.
"Unlike a normal search engine, Google Squared doesn't find webpages about your topic - instead, it automatically fetches and organises facts from across the internet," Google said in a preview of the product last month.
Google Squared is experimental and the technology behind it "is by no means perfect".
Google Squared does not provide a list of links to web pages, like with a traditional Google search, but presents information derived from a query in a spreadsheet-like grid called a square.
Users of google.com/squared can then build, modify and refine their square through further Web searches.
"Unlike a normal search engine, Google Squared doesn't find webpages about your topic - instead, it automatically fetches and organises facts from across the internet," Google said in a preview of the product last month.
Google Squared is experimental and the technology behind it "is by no means perfect".
Anthony Doesburg Programs For iPhones
Apple launched its App Store, through which iPhone and iPod Touch programs are distributed, last July. In less than a year third-party developers like Casasanta have written more than 25,000 iPhone programs that have been downloaded more than one billion times.
Sometimes it's a controversial world as well. Apple vets applications before accepting them in the App Store (where it keeps 30 per cent of the program asking price, although many are free).
It will reject programs that compete with its own software, but imposes a non-disclosure agreement on developers whose work gets the thumbs down. And sometimes it just makes stupid judgments - such as approving Baby Shaker, which got the user to violently shake their phone to silence the sound of a crying baby. Baby Shaker survived a couple of days before Apple saw the light and withdrew it after an outcry from child welfare groups.
Casasanta made his Apple software debut long before the iPhone came along. His biggest claim to fame is iClip, a Mac application that makes copying and pasting much more useful by keeping a history of up to 99 copied items.
That means you can copy a succession of snippets of text or images without each new one overwriting the one before.
But Casasanta, also has a string of iPhone apps to his name. His company, Tap Tap Tap, created Where To?, which uses the iPhone's GPS and Google Maps to alert the user to nearby places to eat, banks, shops and all manner of other amenities.
To read full article click nzherald
Sometimes it's a controversial world as well. Apple vets applications before accepting them in the App Store (where it keeps 30 per cent of the program asking price, although many are free).
It will reject programs that compete with its own software, but imposes a non-disclosure agreement on developers whose work gets the thumbs down. And sometimes it just makes stupid judgments - such as approving Baby Shaker, which got the user to violently shake their phone to silence the sound of a crying baby. Baby Shaker survived a couple of days before Apple saw the light and withdrew it after an outcry from child welfare groups.
Casasanta made his Apple software debut long before the iPhone came along. His biggest claim to fame is iClip, a Mac application that makes copying and pasting much more useful by keeping a history of up to 99 copied items.
That means you can copy a succession of snippets of text or images without each new one overwriting the one before.
But Casasanta, also has a string of iPhone apps to his name. His company, Tap Tap Tap, created Where To?, which uses the iPhone's GPS and Google Maps to alert the user to nearby places to eat, banks, shops and all manner of other amenities.
To read full article click nzherald
Robot Probes 11,000 metres Ocean Depth
A robotic submersible called Nereus has reached the deepest-known part of the ocean.
Marine researchers in the US say Nereus spent 10 hours in the Challenger Deep abyss in the western Pacific.
At nearly 11,000 metres it is the deepest abyss on Earth, with pressures 1,000 times greater than at the surface.
Marine researchers in the US say Nereus spent 10 hours in the Challenger Deep abyss in the western Pacific.
At nearly 11,000 metres it is the deepest abyss on Earth, with pressures 1,000 times greater than at the surface.
China Will Soon Overtake The U.S. To Become World Technology Leader
A study of worldwide technological competitiveness carried out in Atlanta in January 2008 suggests that China may soon rival the United States as the principal driver of the world’s economy – a position the U.S. has held since the end of World War II. If that happens, it will mark the first time in nearly a century that two nations have competed for leadership as equals.
Chart shows change in technological standing for selected nations from 1993 to 2007.
The study’s indicators predict that China will soon pass the United States in the critical ability to develop basic science and technology, turn those developments into products and services – and then market them to the world. Though China is often seen as just a low-cost producer of manufactured goods, the new “High Tech Indicators” study done by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology clearly shows that the Asian powerhouse has much bigger aspirations.
Georgia Tech has been gathering the high tech indicators since the mid-1980s, when the concern was which country would be the “next Japan” as a competitive producer and exporter of technology products.
Georgia Tech’s “High Tech Indicators” study ranks 33 nations relative to one another on “technological standing,” an output factor that indicates each nation’s recent success in exporting high technology products. Four major input factors help build future technological standing: national orientation toward technological competitiveness, socioeconomic infrastructure, technological infrastructure and productive capacity. Each of the indicators is based on a combination of statistical data and expert opinions.
A chart showing change in the technological standing of the 33 nations is dominated by one feature – a long and continuous upward line that shows China moving from “in the weeds” to world technological leadership over the past 15 years.
China has really changed the world economic landscape in technology. Their low-cost manufacturing and focus on technology, combine with the increasing emphasis on research and development, the result won’t leave much room for other countries.”
To read full article click gatech
Chart shows change in technological standing for selected nations from 1993 to 2007.
The study’s indicators predict that China will soon pass the United States in the critical ability to develop basic science and technology, turn those developments into products and services – and then market them to the world. Though China is often seen as just a low-cost producer of manufactured goods, the new “High Tech Indicators” study done by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology clearly shows that the Asian powerhouse has much bigger aspirations.
Georgia Tech has been gathering the high tech indicators since the mid-1980s, when the concern was which country would be the “next Japan” as a competitive producer and exporter of technology products.
Georgia Tech’s “High Tech Indicators” study ranks 33 nations relative to one another on “technological standing,” an output factor that indicates each nation’s recent success in exporting high technology products. Four major input factors help build future technological standing: national orientation toward technological competitiveness, socioeconomic infrastructure, technological infrastructure and productive capacity. Each of the indicators is based on a combination of statistical data and expert opinions.
A chart showing change in the technological standing of the 33 nations is dominated by one feature – a long and continuous upward line that shows China moving from “in the weeds” to world technological leadership over the past 15 years.
China has really changed the world economic landscape in technology. Their low-cost manufacturing and focus on technology, combine with the increasing emphasis on research and development, the result won’t leave much room for other countries.”
To read full article click gatech
Thursday, June 4, 2009
iPhones Camera’s With Zoom Function
Although the iPhone has many features to offer, it lacks one particularly handy tool, a zoom lens for its camera.
App Store now has a zoom facility, which is used by moving a slider on the screen to the desired magnification and touch the camera picture. You can position the slider along any border of the screen, and photos save to your photo album.
Camera Zoom works like other digital zooms, basically by blowing up just a portion of the picture you see in the viewfinder. That does mean that the more you zoom, the worse the picture gets. Your shots will get a noisy grain and slightly distorted colors as you approach maximum magnification. That noise becomes more pronounced in lower-light photos.
Parrot MKi9200 For iPhone Users
The MKi9200 is an exceptional car kit, especially for iPhone owners. Excellent audio quality, voice recognition technology and the ability to connect to a wide range of music sources make this an all-round winner.
Parrot MKi9200
In addition to providing hands-free calling via your car's speakers, it connects to a range of music devices - including iPods, iPhones, USB keys, MP3 players, A2DP Bluetooth devices and anything featuring a standard line-in jack.
Although it may sound complicated at first, the MKi9200 is a pretty simple device. It consists of five main components - an amplifier that is installed inside your dashboard, an external dual microphone, a 2.4” colour display, an iPod/USB/line-in cable, and a wireless remote control.
The MKi9200 needs to be installed by a professional. User needs to pair their Bluetooth phone to the unit. It automatically powers on when you start your car.
The critical component of the MKi9200 is the amplifier - this allows the unit to bypass your car stereo if a call comes in.
For making calls and answering calls, voice recognition technology is present.
It comes with a music cable designed to adapt to a number of digital and analog music players. Firmware upgrades can be performed by downloading the latest firmware from Parrot's Web site onto a USB key, where it can then be loaded onto the unit in your car.
Parrot MKi9200
In addition to providing hands-free calling via your car's speakers, it connects to a range of music devices - including iPods, iPhones, USB keys, MP3 players, A2DP Bluetooth devices and anything featuring a standard line-in jack.
Although it may sound complicated at first, the MKi9200 is a pretty simple device. It consists of five main components - an amplifier that is installed inside your dashboard, an external dual microphone, a 2.4” colour display, an iPod/USB/line-in cable, and a wireless remote control.
The MKi9200 needs to be installed by a professional. User needs to pair their Bluetooth phone to the unit. It automatically powers on when you start your car.
The critical component of the MKi9200 is the amplifier - this allows the unit to bypass your car stereo if a call comes in.
For making calls and answering calls, voice recognition technology is present.
It comes with a music cable designed to adapt to a number of digital and analog music players. Firmware upgrades can be performed by downloading the latest firmware from Parrot's Web site onto a USB key, where it can then be loaded onto the unit in your car.
Phone Scam Asking For Credit Card Details
Police are investigating a new type of scam that operates a fake bank call centre using an Australian phone number.
The call centre has automated computer voices to dupe callers into providing their credit card numbers.
It is linked to a large email scam, or phishing, campaign that imitates official messages from the Commonwealth Bank.
The phone number, which appears to be based in NSW, has been sent via email, SMS, or voicemail, the Commonwealth Bank said.
The scam traits are email requests for private information or to collect prizes/rewards; poor grammar and punctuation; non-Australian voice recordings, unusual or unrecognisable email or phone details and embedded Web Links/email address ‘click throughs’
The call centre has automated computer voices to dupe callers into providing their credit card numbers.
It is linked to a large email scam, or phishing, campaign that imitates official messages from the Commonwealth Bank.
The phone number, which appears to be based in NSW, has been sent via email, SMS, or voicemail, the Commonwealth Bank said.
The scam traits are email requests for private information or to collect prizes/rewards; poor grammar and punctuation; non-Australian voice recordings, unusual or unrecognisable email or phone details and embedded Web Links/email address ‘click throughs’
Intel To Buy Software Vendor Wind River
Intel Corp. on Thursday said it will buy Wind River Systems Inc. for about 884 million U.S. dollars in a deal which is aimed to boost Intel's capabilities in embedded systems and mobile devices.
Intel said it has agreed to acquire all outstanding Wind River common stock for 11.5 dollars per share in cash and the transaction is expected to close this summer.
Intel's strategy is to grow its processor and software presence into embedded systems and mobile handheld devices.
Founded in 1981, Wind River is a leading software vendor in embedded devices. The company is now headquartered in Alameda, California, and has over 1,600 employees worldwide.
Intel said it has agreed to acquire all outstanding Wind River common stock for 11.5 dollars per share in cash and the transaction is expected to close this summer.
Intel's strategy is to grow its processor and software presence into embedded systems and mobile handheld devices.
Founded in 1981, Wind River is a leading software vendor in embedded devices. The company is now headquartered in Alameda, California, and has over 1,600 employees worldwide.
Cell Phone Elbow Caused By Too Much Cell Phone Use
Cell phone use has become more popular in the world, and almost anywhere there are people holding their cell phones to talk. But American orthopedic specialists have found that talking too much holding a cell phone can lead to "cell phone elbow."
Donna Malloy, a 66-year-old American lady, said she noticed the numbness in her hands when she spoke on her cell phone for hours. She started dropping things in her left hand and it was hard for her to do any needlework. She thought she was turning old and falling apart.
But when she went to see a doctor, she was told she had a "cell phone elbow," also called cubital tunnel syndrome, and the doctor suggested a surgery.
After the surgery, Malloy said her hands "are fine now, It doesn't bother me." She still talks on her cell phone, but she uses a blue-tooth headset.
Constant cell phone use could stress out the ulnar nerves, which travels through the forearm and branches into the hand, said Dr. Leon Benson, an orthopedic surgeon and spokesman for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, according to the Health Day News.
"Repetitive, sustained stretching of the nerve is like stepping on a garden hose," said Dr. Peter J. Evans, director of the Cleveland Clinic's Hand and Upper Extremity Center.
"With the hose, you're blocking the flow of water. With the elbow, you're blocking the blood flow to the nerve, which causes it to misfire and short circuit," said Evans.
"The more you bend it, the more it stretches. It diminishes the blood supply, and the blood is not flowing through the nerves," he said.
While the nerves are designed for stretching, "it's not normal to be in a position to be stretched for an hour," Benson added.
The first symptoms patients often notice include numbness, tingling or aching in the forearm and hand, a pain similar to hitting the "funny bone."
As symptoms progress, they can include a loss of muscle strength, coordination and mobility that can make writing and typing difficult. In chronic, untreated cases, the ring finger and pinky can become clawed, Evans and colleagues note in a report in the May issue of the Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine.
Doctors said people who have the cell phone elbow can feel weakness in their hands and have difficulty opening jars or playing musical instruments.
"It could impede your typing ability, your writing ability," Evans said. "People get very unintelligible writing if it gets severe."
Though there are no solid figures on how many people have cell phone elbow, hand specialists say the incidence is increasing along with the 3.3 billion cell phone service contracts active worldwide, Evans said.
"Cubital tunnel is the second most common compression syndrome we see," said Heather Turkopp, an occupational therapist and certified hand specialist at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan.
Tukopp said most people who get cubital tunnel syndrome are middle-aged or older. Women get cubital tunnel syndrome more often than men.
Although the precise reasons are unknown, women may be more susceptible due to hormonal fluctuations or their anatomy, Evans said.
However, too much cell phone use isn't the only cause of cubital tunnel syndrome, according to doctors. Other causes may include sleeping with the elbows bent and tucked up into the chest, sitting at a desk with the elbows flexed at an angle greater than 90 degrees and driving with your elbow propped on the window for extended periods.
In most cases, minor lifestyle changes can help alleviate symptoms, including using a hands-free headset for the cell phone. If sleep position is the problem, an elbow pad to keep the arm straighter at night can help, doctors said.
To read full article click xinhuanet
Donna Malloy, a 66-year-old American lady, said she noticed the numbness in her hands when she spoke on her cell phone for hours. She started dropping things in her left hand and it was hard for her to do any needlework. She thought she was turning old and falling apart.
But when she went to see a doctor, she was told she had a "cell phone elbow," also called cubital tunnel syndrome, and the doctor suggested a surgery.
After the surgery, Malloy said her hands "are fine now, It doesn't bother me." She still talks on her cell phone, but she uses a blue-tooth headset.
Constant cell phone use could stress out the ulnar nerves, which travels through the forearm and branches into the hand, said Dr. Leon Benson, an orthopedic surgeon and spokesman for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, according to the Health Day News.
"Repetitive, sustained stretching of the nerve is like stepping on a garden hose," said Dr. Peter J. Evans, director of the Cleveland Clinic's Hand and Upper Extremity Center.
"With the hose, you're blocking the flow of water. With the elbow, you're blocking the blood flow to the nerve, which causes it to misfire and short circuit," said Evans.
"The more you bend it, the more it stretches. It diminishes the blood supply, and the blood is not flowing through the nerves," he said.
While the nerves are designed for stretching, "it's not normal to be in a position to be stretched for an hour," Benson added.
The first symptoms patients often notice include numbness, tingling or aching in the forearm and hand, a pain similar to hitting the "funny bone."
As symptoms progress, they can include a loss of muscle strength, coordination and mobility that can make writing and typing difficult. In chronic, untreated cases, the ring finger and pinky can become clawed, Evans and colleagues note in a report in the May issue of the Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine.
Doctors said people who have the cell phone elbow can feel weakness in their hands and have difficulty opening jars or playing musical instruments.
"It could impede your typing ability, your writing ability," Evans said. "People get very unintelligible writing if it gets severe."
Though there are no solid figures on how many people have cell phone elbow, hand specialists say the incidence is increasing along with the 3.3 billion cell phone service contracts active worldwide, Evans said.
"Cubital tunnel is the second most common compression syndrome we see," said Heather Turkopp, an occupational therapist and certified hand specialist at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan.
Tukopp said most people who get cubital tunnel syndrome are middle-aged or older. Women get cubital tunnel syndrome more often than men.
Although the precise reasons are unknown, women may be more susceptible due to hormonal fluctuations or their anatomy, Evans said.
However, too much cell phone use isn't the only cause of cubital tunnel syndrome, according to doctors. Other causes may include sleeping with the elbows bent and tucked up into the chest, sitting at a desk with the elbows flexed at an angle greater than 90 degrees and driving with your elbow propped on the window for extended periods.
In most cases, minor lifestyle changes can help alleviate symptoms, including using a hands-free headset for the cell phone. If sleep position is the problem, an elbow pad to keep the arm straighter at night can help, doctors said.
To read full article click xinhuanet
Send & Receive Email Postcards With Sony Bravia TV’s
Sony‘s new Bravia Postcard service for cellphones sends virtual message cards from Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot and Walkman phones to net-connected Bravia TV sets.
It’s a service for the non-emailers. It is free and allows recipients at home to reply to friends or family mailing in snaps and text using the Bravia remote handset.
So far the service is only offered in Japan. The TV needs to be connected to a LAN, then set up to get a service-specific @tv.life-x.jp email address to which phone users send their snaps. A popup notification will indicate the arrival of the postcard.
It’s a service for the non-emailers. It is free and allows recipients at home to reply to friends or family mailing in snaps and text using the Bravia remote handset.
So far the service is only offered in Japan. The TV needs to be connected to a LAN, then set up to get a service-specific @tv.life-x.jp email address to which phone users send their snaps. A popup notification will indicate the arrival of the postcard.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Sony Ericsson Launches New Handsets
Sony Ericsson said Thursday it will launch three new handsets on the market early in the fourth quarter, unveiling details of new products designed to help stall a slump in mobile phone sales.
One of the products, the Satio, is a renamed version of the Idou phone that the Swedish-Japanese company originally announced at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
It will be joined by two other new handsets, the Aino and the Yari, as part of the company’s strategy to beef up its line of products that merge communication and entertainment.
The Satio has a 12 megapixel camera, free access to Hollywood movies and a touch-screen keypad, while the Yari is handsfree gaming focused, and the Aino concentrates on music and videos.
“This is a new Sony Ericsson you see before you today,” Steve Walker, vice president of marketing, Sony Ericsson Mobile, said at the launch in London. “It’s taking all the things we have become ... and taking a big step beyond.”
Sony Ericsson, the world’s fourth-largest maker of mobile phones, has been struggling amid a wider downturn in mobile phone sales.
Overall handset sales fell 8.5% in the first quarter of this year, according to research firm Gartner Inc. “Mid-market” phones—traditionally Sony Ericsson’s turf—suffered the steepest decline.
In contrast, demand for so-called smartphones such as the iPhone and Nokia’s 5800 is growing, with sales forecast to lift some 27% this year. The new Satio also is a smartphone.
Sony Ericsson posted a 293 million euro loss in the first quarter as demand for its handsets fell by around 35 percent, which the company attributed to the global financial crisis.
One of the products, the Satio, is a renamed version of the Idou phone that the Swedish-Japanese company originally announced at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
It will be joined by two other new handsets, the Aino and the Yari, as part of the company’s strategy to beef up its line of products that merge communication and entertainment.
The Satio has a 12 megapixel camera, free access to Hollywood movies and a touch-screen keypad, while the Yari is handsfree gaming focused, and the Aino concentrates on music and videos.
“This is a new Sony Ericsson you see before you today,” Steve Walker, vice president of marketing, Sony Ericsson Mobile, said at the launch in London. “It’s taking all the things we have become ... and taking a big step beyond.”
Sony Ericsson, the world’s fourth-largest maker of mobile phones, has been struggling amid a wider downturn in mobile phone sales.
Overall handset sales fell 8.5% in the first quarter of this year, according to research firm Gartner Inc. “Mid-market” phones—traditionally Sony Ericsson’s turf—suffered the steepest decline.
In contrast, demand for so-called smartphones such as the iPhone and Nokia’s 5800 is growing, with sales forecast to lift some 27% this year. The new Satio also is a smartphone.
Sony Ericsson posted a 293 million euro loss in the first quarter as demand for its handsets fell by around 35 percent, which the company attributed to the global financial crisis.
Sony To Bring Game Division Back To Profit
Sony Corp’s newly appointed corporate executive officer in charge of game and network businesses, Kazuo Hirai, said Thursday that one of the company’s ‘‘major missions’’ will be to bring its money-losing game division back into profit at an early timing through cost-cutting efforts and expansion of its network services. ‘‘We need to quickly bring our PlayStation business on a break-even level and later to profitability,’’ Hirai, also president of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, said.
The 48-year-old Hirai is one of the four young executives appointed in April by Sony’s Welsh-born chief executive Howard Stringer in a radical management reshuffle carried out to speed up restructuring measures as the Japanese electronics giant sank deeply into the red. Sony’s game division logged an operating loss of about 58.5 billion yen in the 2008 business year ended in March, marking its third straight year of red ink. The company as a whole logged its biggest-ever group operating loss of nearly 230 billion yen.
But Hirai refused to comment on rumors that the company is planning to lower the price of its PlayStation 3 game console in autumn, only saying prices will be determined by ‘‘market developments.’’
To read full story click japantoday
The 48-year-old Hirai is one of the four young executives appointed in April by Sony’s Welsh-born chief executive Howard Stringer in a radical management reshuffle carried out to speed up restructuring measures as the Japanese electronics giant sank deeply into the red. Sony’s game division logged an operating loss of about 58.5 billion yen in the 2008 business year ended in March, marking its third straight year of red ink. The company as a whole logged its biggest-ever group operating loss of nearly 230 billion yen.
But Hirai refused to comment on rumors that the company is planning to lower the price of its PlayStation 3 game console in autumn, only saying prices will be determined by ‘‘market developments.’’
To read full story click japantoday
'Beautiful Women Clock' Now An iPhone Touch Application!
Phiria Design this week debuted its popular service known as “Bijin Tokei” (“Beautiful Women Clock”) as an iPhone or iPod touch application that can be downloaded through the AppStore. Known as “Bijin Tokei for iPhone,” this application is the renewed version of the original service, with a number of useful functions that are sure to get “Bijin Tokei” fans excited.
The original “Bijin Tokei” has been available through its official website, as a Google gadget, and as an application for blogs, and has constantly been on the top of the gadget rankings, confirmed by the fact that it is downloaded by 2,000 people every day. It is a clock that shows a picture of a different “beautiful woman” for every four minutes throughout the day showing a total of about 360 women and a grand total of 1,440 pictures. These “beautiful women” were asked to model on the streets of downtown areas such as Shibuya and Harajuku.
For the “Bijin Tokei for iPhone,” pictures of an additional 120 women or so were shot on the streets, and functions have been added that allow you to set an alarm so that you may be alerted when your favorite “beautiful woman” comes up as well as download pictures of “beautiful women” that you find particularly appealing so that you may set it as your wallpaper.
With its catchphrase of “Add an essence of beautiful women to your daily life,” Phiria Design said it is looking forward to expanding its service even more, such as by changing the “beautiful women” theme to a “Bidanshi” or “beautiful men” theme or to a pet theme, and devising a night version and a global version of the clock. These different services will be available for download in the near future.
To read full article click japantoday
The original “Bijin Tokei” has been available through its official website, as a Google gadget, and as an application for blogs, and has constantly been on the top of the gadget rankings, confirmed by the fact that it is downloaded by 2,000 people every day. It is a clock that shows a picture of a different “beautiful woman” for every four minutes throughout the day showing a total of about 360 women and a grand total of 1,440 pictures. These “beautiful women” were asked to model on the streets of downtown areas such as Shibuya and Harajuku.
For the “Bijin Tokei for iPhone,” pictures of an additional 120 women or so were shot on the streets, and functions have been added that allow you to set an alarm so that you may be alerted when your favorite “beautiful woman” comes up as well as download pictures of “beautiful women” that you find particularly appealing so that you may set it as your wallpaper.
With its catchphrase of “Add an essence of beautiful women to your daily life,” Phiria Design said it is looking forward to expanding its service even more, such as by changing the “beautiful women” theme to a “Bidanshi” or “beautiful men” theme or to a pet theme, and devising a night version and a global version of the clock. These different services will be available for download in the near future.
To read full article click japantoday
Panasonic Cell Phones For Google Android O/S From 2010
Panasonic Corp’s cell phone handset-making unit is considering developing a handset that uses Google’s Android operating system and re-entering overseas markets in or after the fiscal year starting April 2010.
In Japan, NTT DoCoMo plans to sell handsets using the Android operating system as early as next month to compete with Apple Inc’s iPhone offered by Softbank. The DoCoMo handset, equipped with a touch screen, is priced between 25,000 yen and 30,000 yen with the company’s two-year installment plan.
To read article click japantoday
In Japan, NTT DoCoMo plans to sell handsets using the Android operating system as early as next month to compete with Apple Inc’s iPhone offered by Softbank. The DoCoMo handset, equipped with a touch screen, is priced between 25,000 yen and 30,000 yen with the company’s two-year installment plan.
To read article click japantoday
Friday, May 29, 2009
Nokia E75 Power Smartphone Features.
Nokia E51 is a solid yet stylishly compact handset with a standard alphanumeric keypad, while the E71 and the more affordable E63, have a large square screen and qwerty keyboard.
With the new E75, Nokia has borrowed a little from each of them while adding some new twists to the mobile mix. Foremost is the new Nokia Messaging service, which delivers BlackBerry-style email.
This works across a refreshingly broad range of email services from web-based email such as Google and Windows Live Hotmail, plus ISPs including BigPond, OptusNet, iiNet and Internode. Nokia has streamlined the set-up process for all these so that there's minimal pain - you need only enter your email address and password.
Adding an account from your company's exchange server or a different ISP is more complex but the result is the same - instant delivery of messages to your mobile phone as soon as they hit the mail server.
The email software itself is much improved over Nokia's previous efforts, although there's no single integrated view of emails - each account gets its own inbox. And while you can have as many as 10 of these, the E75's home screen shows only two of those: the ones designated as your primary and secondary accounts.
Dealing with message attachments sent via email is a bit hit-and-miss. PDF files and Excel spreadsheets were easily viewed but some Word documents came through with odd formatting - such as every word in bold-face red type - while others were almost illegible, even though they used Microsoft's long-standing DOC format.
Downloading a free update to the E75's QuickOffice software enabled viewing of Word documents in the Office 2007 format but didn't resolve the other issues. We'd suggest testing the E75 with your own office software and the most commonly emailed documents before you sign on the dotted line.
Another unique trait of the E75 is that it sports both alphanumeric and qwerty keyboards. Hold it vertically and it's just like any candy-bar phone, although the 1.5cm profile and 140g weight belie the sheer heft of the robust stainless-steel chassis.
Swing the E75 into a horizontal position and a full qwerty keypad slides out, while the 6cm display, navigation button and shortcut menus all automatically reorient into landscape mode.
The keys are flat, large and well spaced but perhaps too much so - bashing out emails on the compact and slightly cambered keyboard of the E71 or BlackBerry Bold proved much faster.
The web browser can not match Apple's iPhone.
The rest of the E75's features lean towards being par for a high-end smartphone: high-speed 3G and Next G (it's also compatible with 3's dual-network Mega 3 service), Wi-Fi and an inbuilt GPS receiver. Creature comforts for downtime include a capable music player with a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, support for Nokia's N-Gage mobile games and an FM radio.
The battery has to be charged daily.
Article credit stuff.co.nz
With the new E75, Nokia has borrowed a little from each of them while adding some new twists to the mobile mix. Foremost is the new Nokia Messaging service, which delivers BlackBerry-style email.
This works across a refreshingly broad range of email services from web-based email such as Google and Windows Live Hotmail, plus ISPs including BigPond, OptusNet, iiNet and Internode. Nokia has streamlined the set-up process for all these so that there's minimal pain - you need only enter your email address and password.
Adding an account from your company's exchange server or a different ISP is more complex but the result is the same - instant delivery of messages to your mobile phone as soon as they hit the mail server.
The email software itself is much improved over Nokia's previous efforts, although there's no single integrated view of emails - each account gets its own inbox. And while you can have as many as 10 of these, the E75's home screen shows only two of those: the ones designated as your primary and secondary accounts.
Dealing with message attachments sent via email is a bit hit-and-miss. PDF files and Excel spreadsheets were easily viewed but some Word documents came through with odd formatting - such as every word in bold-face red type - while others were almost illegible, even though they used Microsoft's long-standing DOC format.
Downloading a free update to the E75's QuickOffice software enabled viewing of Word documents in the Office 2007 format but didn't resolve the other issues. We'd suggest testing the E75 with your own office software and the most commonly emailed documents before you sign on the dotted line.
Another unique trait of the E75 is that it sports both alphanumeric and qwerty keyboards. Hold it vertically and it's just like any candy-bar phone, although the 1.5cm profile and 140g weight belie the sheer heft of the robust stainless-steel chassis.
Swing the E75 into a horizontal position and a full qwerty keypad slides out, while the 6cm display, navigation button and shortcut menus all automatically reorient into landscape mode.
The keys are flat, large and well spaced but perhaps too much so - bashing out emails on the compact and slightly cambered keyboard of the E71 or BlackBerry Bold proved much faster.
The web browser can not match Apple's iPhone.
The rest of the E75's features lean towards being par for a high-end smartphone: high-speed 3G and Next G (it's also compatible with 3's dual-network Mega 3 service), Wi-Fi and an inbuilt GPS receiver. Creature comforts for downtime include a capable music player with a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, support for Nokia's N-Gage mobile games and an FM radio.
The battery has to be charged daily.
Article credit stuff.co.nz
Palm Pre Connects With iTunes Software & Store.
NEW YORK - Palm says that its much-awaited new smart phone, the Pre, can connect to Apple's iTunes software and download music and photos just as if it were an iPod or iPhone.
The feature might be unique for a device not made by Apple, though third-party software is available that lets some digital music players masquerade as iPods in iTunes.
Palm's new phone goes on sale in America on June 6, with Sprint Nextel as the exclusive launch carrier. It will be US$200 with a two-year contract and a rebate, competing with Apple's iPhone in the market for high-end smart phones.
Jon Rubinstein, Palm's executive chairman and former Apple executive, said he didn't worry about objections from his former employer.
"We're trying to make customers happy," he said at The Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference in Carlsbad, California, where he offered a demonstration. "It's a great feature."
An Apple spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Also Thursday, the chief executive of Verizon Wireless, Lowell McAdam, said his company will carry the Pre within six months, although a Sprint Nextel spokesman said Sprint will be the exclusive carrier until at least the end of the year.
Palm's Rubinstein declined to comment.
Article credit New Zealand Herald
The feature might be unique for a device not made by Apple, though third-party software is available that lets some digital music players masquerade as iPods in iTunes.
Palm's new phone goes on sale in America on June 6, with Sprint Nextel as the exclusive launch carrier. It will be US$200 with a two-year contract and a rebate, competing with Apple's iPhone in the market for high-end smart phones.
Jon Rubinstein, Palm's executive chairman and former Apple executive, said he didn't worry about objections from his former employer.
"We're trying to make customers happy," he said at The Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference in Carlsbad, California, where he offered a demonstration. "It's a great feature."
An Apple spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Also Thursday, the chief executive of Verizon Wireless, Lowell McAdam, said his company will carry the Pre within six months, although a Sprint Nextel spokesman said Sprint will be the exclusive carrier until at least the end of the year.
Palm's Rubinstein declined to comment.
Article credit New Zealand Herald
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Tech World Plummet Affects Silicon Valley.
LOS GATOS, California - The $1.6 million Bugatti crouches in the showroom, flanked by Lamborghinis, Bentleys and a Rolls-Royce, all polished to a shimmer. The nearby potted plants, however, are dusty and wilting. With super-luxury car sales here just half of what they used to be, they had to cut something.
"We wash our own windows now, take care of the plants ourselves," says Ryan Dohogne, general manager of Silicon Valley Auto Group. Although they haven't laid anyone off, yet, Dohogne said they're saving everywhere they can.
Eight kilometres away, former indoor plant specialist Michael A. Jones is having what he calls "a humbling experience" at a non-profit food pantry, choosing dented cans of corn and tuna, a crunched box of Rice Krispies and some soon-to-expire milk to supplement his food stamps.
Jones used to gross US$12,000 a month as an indoor horticulturist for high tech companies, restaurants and car dealerships, although not Silicon Valley Auto Group. Then "everyone cut back all at once and we had to shut down," he said. "It happened fast."
Very fast. In fact, nowhere in the US has the bust arrived more abruptly.
The Associated Press Economic Stress Index, a month-by-month analysis of foreclosure, bankruptcy and unemployment rates in more than 3,000 US counties, shows that last year, as the national economy tanked, high tech economic centres from California's Silicon Valley to North Carolina's Research Triangle were apparently "recession-proof" with increasing jobs and stable housing prices.
Then everything changed. When previously invested funds petered out, there was no new capital. Bankruptcies, foreclosures and unemployment in high tech regions spiked, and are now at some of the highest levels in the country.
For example:
- Santa Clara County, home to Silicon Valley, saw bankruptcies soar 59 per cent in the past 12 months, and projections are that they're still climbing;
- North Carolina's unemployment has doubled since early 2008 to a record 10.7 per cent, with close to 200,000 jobs lost in the state, 20 per cent of those in Research Triangle, a high tech hot spot near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel
To read full article click nzherald.co.nz
"We wash our own windows now, take care of the plants ourselves," says Ryan Dohogne, general manager of Silicon Valley Auto Group. Although they haven't laid anyone off, yet, Dohogne said they're saving everywhere they can.
Eight kilometres away, former indoor plant specialist Michael A. Jones is having what he calls "a humbling experience" at a non-profit food pantry, choosing dented cans of corn and tuna, a crunched box of Rice Krispies and some soon-to-expire milk to supplement his food stamps.
Jones used to gross US$12,000 a month as an indoor horticulturist for high tech companies, restaurants and car dealerships, although not Silicon Valley Auto Group. Then "everyone cut back all at once and we had to shut down," he said. "It happened fast."
Very fast. In fact, nowhere in the US has the bust arrived more abruptly.
The Associated Press Economic Stress Index, a month-by-month analysis of foreclosure, bankruptcy and unemployment rates in more than 3,000 US counties, shows that last year, as the national economy tanked, high tech economic centres from California's Silicon Valley to North Carolina's Research Triangle were apparently "recession-proof" with increasing jobs and stable housing prices.
Then everything changed. When previously invested funds petered out, there was no new capital. Bankruptcies, foreclosures and unemployment in high tech regions spiked, and are now at some of the highest levels in the country.
For example:
- Santa Clara County, home to Silicon Valley, saw bankruptcies soar 59 per cent in the past 12 months, and projections are that they're still climbing;
- North Carolina's unemployment has doubled since early 2008 to a record 10.7 per cent, with close to 200,000 jobs lost in the state, 20 per cent of those in Research Triangle, a high tech hot spot near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel
To read full article click nzherald.co.nz
Nokia To Launch Online Software Ovi Store.
NOKIA has started rolling out its much-anticipated online software and content store, Ovi Store, as it aims to follow the success of Apple's App Store.
Nokia said it had started moving Ovi Store to production servers, preparing for the global commercial launch, and the store was opened to users of a few of its phone models in Australia and Singapore yesterday.
Nokia has promised to open the store globally this week.
The Apple App Store has proved extremely popular, with one billion applications downloaded in less than a year. Rivals including Vodafone, Nokia and Microsoft now want a piece of the pie.
However, analysts say firms will likely struggle to match the success of Apple's store when creating their own stores, hampered by technical issues, a lack of applications and increased competition.
"Nokia's Ovi store is a step in the right direction but Apple is still the king of the hill when it comes to selling applications," said Ben Wood, research director at CCS Insight.
To read full article click news.com.au
Nokia said it had started moving Ovi Store to production servers, preparing for the global commercial launch, and the store was opened to users of a few of its phone models in Australia and Singapore yesterday.
Nokia has promised to open the store globally this week.
The Apple App Store has proved extremely popular, with one billion applications downloaded in less than a year. Rivals including Vodafone, Nokia and Microsoft now want a piece of the pie.
However, analysts say firms will likely struggle to match the success of Apple's store when creating their own stores, hampered by technical issues, a lack of applications and increased competition.
"Nokia's Ovi store is a step in the right direction but Apple is still the king of the hill when it comes to selling applications," said Ben Wood, research director at CCS Insight.
To read full article click news.com.au
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Wolfram Alpha Is Good Mainly For Scientific Use.
Wolfram Alpha is a genius piece of software, but won't make sense out of everything.
The launched and hyped Wolfram Alpha is the brainchild of the American-based, Eton and Oxford-educated Dr Stephen Wolfram, a boy-genius physicist who got his PhD by the time he was 20 and who is the founder of the computational engine Mathematica.
It was described in The Independent on Sunday as "the biggest internet revolution for a generation".
In contrast with the internet trawling Google, Wolfram Alpha has aggregated and curated huge amounts of data from offline scientific sources. It's what Harvard University law professor Jonathan Zittrain calls a "computable almanac", designed to juxtapose data in myriad ways. Wolfram Alpha is a computational engine.
It does not have much value for non-scientific users.
The launched and hyped Wolfram Alpha is the brainchild of the American-based, Eton and Oxford-educated Dr Stephen Wolfram, a boy-genius physicist who got his PhD by the time he was 20 and who is the founder of the computational engine Mathematica.
It was described in The Independent on Sunday as "the biggest internet revolution for a generation".
In contrast with the internet trawling Google, Wolfram Alpha has aggregated and curated huge amounts of data from offline scientific sources. It's what Harvard University law professor Jonathan Zittrain calls a "computable almanac", designed to juxtapose data in myriad ways. Wolfram Alpha is a computational engine.
It does not have much value for non-scientific users.
10 Million DNI Electronic Identity Cards For Spain Residents.
The cards have been issued to citizens by the National Police and give recepients access to a range of services directly from home, besides offering the latest technology, security and confidentiality.
The new cards allow Spaniards to do their tax returns, see their employment history, get an electronic doctors prescription, and check their driving licence points, and all from home without any queuing. A simple USB adaptor connects the card to their home computer.
Experts from other countries are now studying the Spanish example of the DNIe, that has made Spain a world pioneer in terms of the number of citizens with electronic signature.
The system has cost 341 million €.
The new cards allow Spaniards to do their tax returns, see their employment history, get an electronic doctors prescription, and check their driving licence points, and all from home without any queuing. A simple USB adaptor connects the card to their home computer.
Experts from other countries are now studying the Spanish example of the DNIe, that has made Spain a world pioneer in terms of the number of citizens with electronic signature.
The system has cost 341 million €.
Its Wind Turbines Now For Samsung Heavy
Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world's second-largest shipyard, plans to make wind turbines in a market estimated at US$74 billion by 2020 to counter a slump in vessel orders.
Wind turbine generator
The technology to make the key component for power turbines is similar to the one used for ship propellers, Samsung Heavy said. Wind power may account for 12 percent of global energy consumption in 2020, it said.
The company, which reported 10.7 trillion won of sales last year, received a letter of intent from Cielo Wind Power LP of the U.S. to provide three 2.5-megawatt wind turbines. The first will be delivered in 2010 and the remaining two the next year, Samsung Heavy said.
Wind turbine generator
The technology to make the key component for power turbines is similar to the one used for ship propellers, Samsung Heavy said. Wind power may account for 12 percent of global energy consumption in 2020, it said.
The company, which reported 10.7 trillion won of sales last year, received a letter of intent from Cielo Wind Power LP of the U.S. to provide three 2.5-megawatt wind turbines. The first will be delivered in 2010 and the remaining two the next year, Samsung Heavy said.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
GPS System May Black-out By 2010
THE US Government has warned that the worldwide network of satellites that makes up the Global Positioning System could fail by next year, affecting millions of people around the globe.
Many depend on the satellite navigation network to beam precise directions from A to B into users' cars or on their mobile phones.
But mismanagement and a lack of investment means the 20-year-old system could lead consumers into nothing but trouble.
The first replacement satellite was supposed to be launched into space in 2007, but won't be ready until November – nearly three years too late.
And it is unclear whether the satellites in orbit will be able to keep the system running until their replacements arrive.
The satnav system could begin to fail as early as next year, according to a US Government Accountability Office study.
One in three motorists is already being sent the wrong way by satnav.
This failure could open the door to systems funded by other countries, such as Europe's Galileo network
To read full article click news.com.au
Many depend on the satellite navigation network to beam precise directions from A to B into users' cars or on their mobile phones.
But mismanagement and a lack of investment means the 20-year-old system could lead consumers into nothing but trouble.
The first replacement satellite was supposed to be launched into space in 2007, but won't be ready until November – nearly three years too late.
And it is unclear whether the satellites in orbit will be able to keep the system running until their replacements arrive.
The satnav system could begin to fail as early as next year, according to a US Government Accountability Office study.
One in three motorists is already being sent the wrong way by satnav.
This failure could open the door to systems funded by other countries, such as Europe's Galileo network
To read full article click news.com.au
China To U.S. Military - We Are Not Hackers
There is no way hackers - including those from China - can access top-secret data by penetrating the firewalls of military or government networks, an acclaimed Internet scientist said yesterday.
Professor Fang Binxing, former director of the national computer network emergency response team, said there is no scientific basis to blame either China's military or the government for hacking other nations' networks because most of them are "out of reach".
The foreign media, quoting insiders in overseas intelligence services, have recently claimed that hackers, who appeared to be based in China, had repeatedly infiltrated military networks and government computers in more than 100 countries.
"Networks containing sensitive intelligence are impenetrable, because normally the militaries isolate their networks completely from the public domain to prevent hacking," said the specialist on Internet security who is also an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
"If there have been cases of key intelligence being stolen, I believe there would have been undercover agents within the organizations facilitating the theft you cannot simply do it with computer technology," he added.
Fang Xingdong, a Beijing-based Internet technology expert, said China has become a staging post for hackers worldwide, who use the country's network security vulnerability to launch attacks on other countries.
"Hackers often use computers based in China as their 'springboard'. That makes it confusing even for the US military," he told China Daily.
According to an Internet security report released on April 15 by Symantec, the California-based anti-virus software maker, about 71 percent of the computers hacked in the Asia-Pacific region are based in China, which has a cyber population of 300 million.
At the same time, 38 percent of hacking attempts worldwide originate in the US, compared with 13 percent in China, the report said.
"The US military is picking on China because it wants to make its claims appear more plausible," Fang Binxing said.
The Wall Street Journal quoted US intelligence sources as saying in late March that hackers based in China had stolen data from the Pentagon's US$300 billion Joint Strike Fighter project, and also infiltrated the US state power grid.
The Journal quoted former US officials as saying the attacks seemed to have originated in China, although it noted it was difficult to be absolutely sure.
Canadian-based researchers have also claimed that a cyber spy network based mainly in China hacked into classified documents from government and private organizations in 103 countries, including the computers of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan exiles.
To read full article click chinanews
Professor Fang Binxing, former director of the national computer network emergency response team, said there is no scientific basis to blame either China's military or the government for hacking other nations' networks because most of them are "out of reach".
The foreign media, quoting insiders in overseas intelligence services, have recently claimed that hackers, who appeared to be based in China, had repeatedly infiltrated military networks and government computers in more than 100 countries.
"Networks containing sensitive intelligence are impenetrable, because normally the militaries isolate their networks completely from the public domain to prevent hacking," said the specialist on Internet security who is also an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
"If there have been cases of key intelligence being stolen, I believe there would have been undercover agents within the organizations facilitating the theft you cannot simply do it with computer technology," he added.
Fang Xingdong, a Beijing-based Internet technology expert, said China has become a staging post for hackers worldwide, who use the country's network security vulnerability to launch attacks on other countries.
"Hackers often use computers based in China as their 'springboard'. That makes it confusing even for the US military," he told China Daily.
According to an Internet security report released on April 15 by Symantec, the California-based anti-virus software maker, about 71 percent of the computers hacked in the Asia-Pacific region are based in China, which has a cyber population of 300 million.
At the same time, 38 percent of hacking attempts worldwide originate in the US, compared with 13 percent in China, the report said.
"The US military is picking on China because it wants to make its claims appear more plausible," Fang Binxing said.
The Wall Street Journal quoted US intelligence sources as saying in late March that hackers based in China had stolen data from the Pentagon's US$300 billion Joint Strike Fighter project, and also infiltrated the US state power grid.
The Journal quoted former US officials as saying the attacks seemed to have originated in China, although it noted it was difficult to be absolutely sure.
Canadian-based researchers have also claimed that a cyber spy network based mainly in China hacked into classified documents from government and private organizations in 103 countries, including the computers of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan exiles.
To read full article click chinanews
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Single DVD That Will Store 2000 Movies
SCIENTISTS have unveiled new DVD technology that stores data in five dimensions, making it possible to pack more than 2000 movies onto a single disc.
A team of researchers at the Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia, have used nanotechnology to boost the storage potential nearly 10,000-fold compared to standard DVDs, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature.
"We were able to show how nanostructured material can be incorporated onto a disc in order to increase data capacity, without increasing the physical size of the disc,'' said Min Gu, who led the team.
Discs currently have three spatial dimensions. By using gold nanorods Gu and colleagues were able to add two additional dimensions, one based on the colour spectrum, and the other on polarisation.
To read full article click news.com.au
A team of researchers at the Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia, have used nanotechnology to boost the storage potential nearly 10,000-fold compared to standard DVDs, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature.
"We were able to show how nanostructured material can be incorporated onto a disc in order to increase data capacity, without increasing the physical size of the disc,'' said Min Gu, who led the team.
Discs currently have three spatial dimensions. By using gold nanorods Gu and colleagues were able to add two additional dimensions, one based on the colour spectrum, and the other on polarisation.
To read full article click news.com.au
Pre Palm To Be Released In US In June
NEW YORK - Sprint Nextel plans to start selling Palm's much anticipated new smart phone, the Pre, on June 6 for $200.
The device could give Palm a much-needed boost in sales and help Sprint stop the defection of subscribers to other wireless carriers.
The price - which requires a new two-year service and data plan and a $100 mail-in rebate - and the launch date are both close to what industry watchers were expecting.
The Pre, which looks like an iPhone but sports a slide-out keyboard in addition to a touch screen, is seen as Palm's chance of reversing a long slide and taking on newer smart phones like the iPhone and BlackBerry.
In its fiscal third quarter, which ended in late February, Sunnyvale, California-based Palm reported its loss widened as sales of its phones fell 42 per cent year over year to 482,000.
Meanwhile, Overland Park, Kansas-based Sprint lost 1.25 million of its valuable contracted subscribers in the first three months of the year, even worse than the drop of 1.1 million in the fourth quarter.
Article by AP
Music Download Programmer Sued By Record Companies In Spain.
MADRID - Record companies went to court yesterday claiming $17.58 million from a Spaniard they claim profited from computer programs he designed to allow free music downloads from the internet.
The Promusicae association of Spanish record firms and branches of international companies Emi, Sony, Universal and Warner are suing Pablo Soto 30, for what they allege is unfair competition.
Soto designed three popular file-sharing programs for internet users to download music for free. He admits he earned a living from the programs but denies committing any offense.
Spanish courts have repeatedly ruled that free music downloading is not illegal if it is not for commercial use. People in Spain cover the alleged losses made by music companies and artists by paying a special tax on CDs, pen drives and mobile phones.
Article by Ap
The Promusicae association of Spanish record firms and branches of international companies Emi, Sony, Universal and Warner are suing Pablo Soto 30, for what they allege is unfair competition.
Soto designed three popular file-sharing programs for internet users to download music for free. He admits he earned a living from the programs but denies committing any offense.
Spanish courts have repeatedly ruled that free music downloading is not illegal if it is not for commercial use. People in Spain cover the alleged losses made by music companies and artists by paying a special tax on CDs, pen drives and mobile phones.
Article by Ap
Intel’s Appeal Against EU’s Fine Uphill Battle.
SANTA CLARA - Intel's top lawyer says that fighting the European Union's record $1.45 billion antitrust fine will be an "uphill battle."
Bruce Sewell, general counsel for the world's No. 1 computer microprocessor maker, said at the company's annual shareholder meeting that Intel expects European courts to show deference to the EU's decision.
Even so, he said Intel plans to appeal last week's ruling.
It punishes Intel for allegedly selling some of its chips below the cost of making them, and paying retailers and computer makers not to use chips from rival Advanced Micro Devices. Intel has denied the charges.
Sewell said: "We have our work cut out for us, but I'm hopeful we can overturn this."
Article by Ap
Erase Raw Street-Level Images-Google told
A data protection official for Germany said that Google had yet to meet a key request that photos gathered for its panoramic mapping service be erased after they are sent to the United States for processing.
Johannes Caspar, the head of the Hamburg regional office for data protection, said that although Google made a 13-page response to other requests, the US company didn't make a guarantee on deleting the raw images after the faces, license plates and other information are scrambled or otherwise rendered unrecognisable.
"We consider this to be highly problematic," Caspar said in a telephone interview.
Google's Street View mapping service offers detailed street-level images. Since launching in 2007, it has expanded to more than 100 cities worldwide but has faced privacy complaints from many individuals and institutions that have been photographed. Complaints have emanated from Greece, the Pentagon, a small English village, Japan and now from Germany.
Caspar's said he expected his office would meet with Google to discuss the matter before deciding on any further action.
To read full article click NZHerald
Johannes Caspar, the head of the Hamburg regional office for data protection, said that although Google made a 13-page response to other requests, the US company didn't make a guarantee on deleting the raw images after the faces, license plates and other information are scrambled or otherwise rendered unrecognisable.
"We consider this to be highly problematic," Caspar said in a telephone interview.
Google's Street View mapping service offers detailed street-level images. Since launching in 2007, it has expanded to more than 100 cities worldwide but has faced privacy complaints from many individuals and institutions that have been photographed. Complaints have emanated from Greece, the Pentagon, a small English village, Japan and now from Germany.
Caspar's said he expected his office would meet with Google to discuss the matter before deciding on any further action.
To read full article click NZHerald
Google Language Translation Added To Gmail
The New Zealand Herald reported that the internet search giant Google today announced their intention to combine two of their most used products in an attempt to do their bit to bring the world together.
'Message Translation' combines the popular Google Translate service, which can convert text and web pages from and to any of 41 languages, with Gmail, the company's webmail service which boasts more than 113 million users worldwide.
Allowing users to conduct conversations with each exchange translated into the relevant language is hoped to enable international communication for Gmail users, and is just one of the many weird and wonderful Gmail plugins available to try out through the experimental "Gmail labs" service.
Google has already launched services including the option to dissuade drunk emailing by making users answer a maths puzzle before they can send an email, and another to hold messages for a short period before sending so that users can change their mind should they have sent something they may later regret, as well as a variety of others designed to make the service customisable.
Enabling global conversations of this kind has been on the agenda of the search giant over the last few months, after the company also made available a translation function for comments on blogs for users logged into Google Friend Connect.
The 'Message Translate' service has been made available worldwide
'Message Translation' combines the popular Google Translate service, which can convert text and web pages from and to any of 41 languages, with Gmail, the company's webmail service which boasts more than 113 million users worldwide.
Allowing users to conduct conversations with each exchange translated into the relevant language is hoped to enable international communication for Gmail users, and is just one of the many weird and wonderful Gmail plugins available to try out through the experimental "Gmail labs" service.
Google has already launched services including the option to dissuade drunk emailing by making users answer a maths puzzle before they can send an email, and another to hold messages for a short period before sending so that users can change their mind should they have sent something they may later regret, as well as a variety of others designed to make the service customisable.
Enabling global conversations of this kind has been on the agenda of the search giant over the last few months, after the company also made available a translation function for comments on blogs for users logged into Google Friend Connect.
The 'Message Translate' service has been made available worldwide
First China-Assembled Airbus A320 Test Flight Successful
TIANJIN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- After four hours' flight, the first China-assembled Airbus A320 aircraft landed smoothly at Tianjin Binhai International Airport at 2:56 p.m. Monday, a symbol of successful test flight.
Image credit:chinaview.cn
The aircraft will be delivered to Dragon Aviation Leasing in June from the Airbus Delivery Center in Tianjin and will be operated by Sichuan Airlines.
Image credit:chinaview.cn
The aircraft will be delivered to Dragon Aviation Leasing in June from the Airbus Delivery Center in Tianjin and will be operated by Sichuan Airlines.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Hitachi Unveils 4,500W/kg lithium-ion cell For Eco-Friendly Cars
Tokyo, May 19, 2009 --- Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE:HIT / TSE:6501,hereinafter Hitachi) today announced that Hitachi, Ltd. and Hitachi Vehicle Energy, Ltd. which develops and manufactures lithium-ion batteries for automotive applications, such as hybrid electric vehicles, have developed a lithium-ion battery having the world's highest power density of 4,500W/kg, 1.7 times the output of the company's mass-produced, automotive lithium-ion batteries. Sampling of the new battery by domestic and overseas car manufacturers will start in the fall.
To reduce internal resistance, the battery employs a new manganese cathode and an original Hitachi battery structure, in such as thinner electrodes, power collection method and effective configurations to achieve the world's highest output.
In recent years, lithium-ion batteries have been used for many consumer product applications, including mobile telephones, notebook PCs and digital cameras. For the same energy density, a lithium-ion battery has about half the volume and weight of a nickel hydrogen battery, and about one-third the volume and weight of a lead battery. This makes the lithium-ion battery a small, light, high-energy-density secondary battery that is attracting attention for its applicability to hybrid and electric vehicles.
In 2000, the Hitachi Group used its extensive technological and manufacturing capabilities in fields ranging from materials to battery control systems, to develop and mass-produce the world's first safe, high-performance, long-operating-life lithium-ion battery for automotive applications.
A second-generation lithium-ion battery with an power density of 2,600 W/kg that currently is being delivered for automotive and railway applications, is the world's only mass-produced lithium-ion battery for on-board applications. Up to this point, a total of some 600,000 cells have been delivered, mainly to car manufacturers and railway companies.
Moreover, development of a third-generation lithium-ion battery having an even higher power density (3,000 W/kg) has already been completed, and will go into mass-production in 2010, with deliveries scheduled to begin the same year.
To read full article click hitachi.com
To reduce internal resistance, the battery employs a new manganese cathode and an original Hitachi battery structure, in such as thinner electrodes, power collection method and effective configurations to achieve the world's highest output.
In recent years, lithium-ion batteries have been used for many consumer product applications, including mobile telephones, notebook PCs and digital cameras. For the same energy density, a lithium-ion battery has about half the volume and weight of a nickel hydrogen battery, and about one-third the volume and weight of a lead battery. This makes the lithium-ion battery a small, light, high-energy-density secondary battery that is attracting attention for its applicability to hybrid and electric vehicles.
In 2000, the Hitachi Group used its extensive technological and manufacturing capabilities in fields ranging from materials to battery control systems, to develop and mass-produce the world's first safe, high-performance, long-operating-life lithium-ion battery for automotive applications.
A second-generation lithium-ion battery with an power density of 2,600 W/kg that currently is being delivered for automotive and railway applications, is the world's only mass-produced lithium-ion battery for on-board applications. Up to this point, a total of some 600,000 cells have been delivered, mainly to car manufacturers and railway companies.
Moreover, development of a third-generation lithium-ion battery having an even higher power density (3,000 W/kg) has already been completed, and will go into mass-production in 2010, with deliveries scheduled to begin the same year.
To read full article click hitachi.com
Power And Enhance Your Netbook By Getting A Stand.
Century, a Japanese gadget innovator is offering a Netbook Stand, the CNBS-WT/ODD. The stand is comprised of a netbook cooler and a DVD burner. The cooling fan is built on the left side and is raised up for best effect. The Stand has space under its lid for an extra 2.5-inch SATA hard drive or solid state drive. To connect, a netbook is placed on top of the stand and connected via a USB cable, the fan is then powered up and the DVD drive is ready for use. The Netbook Stand has two extra USB sockets.
The stand weighs 524gms, thus ideally it would be better to keep it for use at home or in the office to provide a netbook with more punch.
The stand works only with Windows XP or Vista and not with Linux, the system used in many netbooks.
Century’s Netbook Stand is on sale for approximately US$ 100
To read full article click century.co.jp
The stand weighs 524gms, thus ideally it would be better to keep it for use at home or in the office to provide a netbook with more punch.
The stand works only with Windows XP or Vista and not with Linux, the system used in many netbooks.
Century’s Netbook Stand is on sale for approximately US$ 100
To read full article click century.co.jp
Japan's 1st Google cell phone Unveiled By NTT DoCoMo
Japan’s top mobile phone carrier NTT DoCoMo Inc rolled out its new summer lineup of mobile phone handsets on Tuesday, introducing Japan’s first mobile phone to use popular Internet search engine Google Inc’s free Android operating system.
Smaller rival Softbank Mobile Corp the same day unveiled an equally eclectic lineup of mobile phone handsets for the summer season, including one able to recharge using solar energy and another designed by Giorgio Armani.
The two mobile phone carries, both based in Tokyo, took the wraps off their latest mobile phone handsets as they continue their efforts to attract customers with appealing, multifunctional handsets at a time when sales of mobile phone handsets are sluggish amid the nation’s economic slowdown.
In unveiling his company’s summer lineup, DoCoMo President Ryuji Yamada said his firm is striving to offer ‘‘appealing’’ mobile phones and stop slackening consumption in its mobile phone handsets.
‘‘Our new handsets have various new features that are aimed to make functions more user-friendly and applicable to our users’ lifestyles,’’ Yamada said.
To read full article click japantoday
Smaller rival Softbank Mobile Corp the same day unveiled an equally eclectic lineup of mobile phone handsets for the summer season, including one able to recharge using solar energy and another designed by Giorgio Armani.
The two mobile phone carries, both based in Tokyo, took the wraps off their latest mobile phone handsets as they continue their efforts to attract customers with appealing, multifunctional handsets at a time when sales of mobile phone handsets are sluggish amid the nation’s economic slowdown.
In unveiling his company’s summer lineup, DoCoMo President Ryuji Yamada said his firm is striving to offer ‘‘appealing’’ mobile phones and stop slackening consumption in its mobile phone handsets.
‘‘Our new handsets have various new features that are aimed to make functions more user-friendly and applicable to our users’ lifestyles,’’ Yamada said.
To read full article click japantoday
Apples iPod Nano Overheating Cases Reported.
On Friday, May 15, the Japanese Ministry of Industry called for attention from iPod users as they reported the 18th case of an iPod nano gadget overheating.
In this last case, sparks flew off while an iPod nano MA004J/A was being recharged. Part of the music player's button was damaged but there were no injuries.
iPod nano is a product of Apple Inc. of the United States.
To get full article click newsonjapan
In this last case, sparks flew off while an iPod nano MA004J/A was being recharged. Part of the music player's button was damaged but there were no injuries.
iPod nano is a product of Apple Inc. of the United States.
To get full article click newsonjapan
Got A Weird Name? Facebook May Purge You.
Alicia Istanbul woke up one recent Wednesday to find herself locked out of the Facebook account she opened in 2007, one Facebook suddenly deemed fake.
The stay-at-home mom was cut off not only from her 330 friends, including many she had no other way of contacting, but also from the pages she had set up for the jewelry design business she runs from her Atlanta-area home.
Although Istanbul understands why Facebook insists on having real people behind real names for every account, she wonders why the online hangout didn't simply ask before acting.
To read full article click yahootech
The stay-at-home mom was cut off not only from her 330 friends, including many she had no other way of contacting, but also from the pages she had set up for the jewelry design business she runs from her Atlanta-area home.
Although Istanbul understands why Facebook insists on having real people behind real names for every account, she wonders why the online hangout didn't simply ask before acting.
To read full article click yahootech
Monday, May 18, 2009
Technology To Monitor Vulnerable Persons.
A project in the south of France is applying digital technology to give freedom to hospital patients and the vulnerable. 
Project Gerhome, run by the French centre for construction research (CSTB), fits out houses with sensors monitoring almost all the activity that goes on inside the walls.
The wealth of data being gathered could mean, for instance, that the sensors can work out whether residents are eating normally.
From electricity consumption, movement, to chair and bed occupation, the aim is to determine a resident's "normal" behaviour.
"Based on the activity of the equipment we can realise what is the real activity of the person, in the sense of the daily activity," said Alain Anfosso, from CSTB Gerhome.
"The interest of this analysis of sensors is to understand if the activity is normal," he said.
The system can detect the slight changes in natural rhythms that can give doctors and carers early warning of possible trouble ahead.
"Some kinds of evolutions such as sleeping periods, for instance, can be a sign of
some kind of weakness," he said.
He added that many factors were taken into account, including changing sleep patterns and meals varying with each season.
Software used to analyse raw data can tell if someone is in trouble, if they can bend or stretch normally, or if they are changing their usual routine.
To read full story click BBC
Project Gerhome, run by the French centre for construction research (CSTB), fits out houses with sensors monitoring almost all the activity that goes on inside the walls.
The wealth of data being gathered could mean, for instance, that the sensors can work out whether residents are eating normally.
From electricity consumption, movement, to chair and bed occupation, the aim is to determine a resident's "normal" behaviour.
"Based on the activity of the equipment we can realise what is the real activity of the person, in the sense of the daily activity," said Alain Anfosso, from CSTB Gerhome.
"The interest of this analysis of sensors is to understand if the activity is normal," he said.
The system can detect the slight changes in natural rhythms that can give doctors and carers early warning of possible trouble ahead.
"Some kinds of evolutions such as sleeping periods, for instance, can be a sign of
some kind of weakness," he said.
He added that many factors were taken into account, including changing sleep patterns and meals varying with each season.
Software used to analyse raw data can tell if someone is in trouble, if they can bend or stretch normally, or if they are changing their usual routine.
To read full story click BBC
Spotify To Get Mobile And Get To U.S.
Online music service Spotify is hoping to launch a mobile version and expand to the US by the end of the year.
The streaming service, which lets fans listen to more than three million tracks legally and for free, has gained more than a million users in the UK. Spotify was
created in Sweden and is available in the UK, Norway, Finland, France and Spain.
Speaking about the plan to go mobile, Spotify founder Daniel Ek said: "We want to be everywhere. We won't only do one device."
But fans would have to pay to put Spotify in their pockets, he revealed.
The web-based service is currently free to users who accept adverts between their songs. A subscription option, which costs £9.99 a month in the UK, banishes the ads.
Read full story on BBCNews
The streaming service, which lets fans listen to more than three million tracks legally and for free, has gained more than a million users in the UK. Spotify was
created in Sweden and is available in the UK, Norway, Finland, France and Spain.
Speaking about the plan to go mobile, Spotify founder Daniel Ek said: "We want to be everywhere. We won't only do one device."
But fans would have to pay to put Spotify in their pockets, he revealed.
The web-based service is currently free to users who accept adverts between their songs. A subscription option, which costs £9.99 a month in the UK, banishes the ads.
Read full story on BBCNews
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Video Games Sales Plummet
Market analysts have failed in their prediction once again. Most analysts had predicted that the video game industry is recession proof and will not be affected by the current down turn, but statistics indicate that in the US only, video game sales in April 2009 were $1 billion, 17 percent lower than in April 2008, according to NPD, the market research firm.
Software sales fell 23 percent, while sales of hardware (consoles and hand-held players) dropped 8 percent. Hardware sales would have fared much worse had it not been for the release of Nintendo’s new DSi hand-held device.
The 17% drop recorded in April’09 is significant since Easter week-end, which turns out historically to be a big weekend for video game sales fell in April this year, but did not provide a boost to April’09 sales. NPD insist that the drop is not as bad as it appears since April’09 is being compared to April’08, a month which recorded a gain of 50% from the April’07 figure.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Human Error Caused Google Search Fault
The problems experienced by Google's search service users last Saturday was caused by human error, as was disclosed by Marissa Mayer, vice president, search products and user experience, on the Official Google Blog.
For a short period on Saturday, all search results were flagged as potentially harmful.
Image:BBC News
"We will carefully investigate this incident and put more robust file checks in place to prevent it from happening again," Ms Mayer wrote.
For a short period on Saturday, all search results were flagged as potentially harmful.
Image:BBC News
"We will carefully investigate this incident and put more robust file checks in place to prevent it from happening again," Ms Mayer wrote.
Saya The Robot Takes On Teaching Now.
In Tokyo, a humanoid robot named "Saya" took a fifth grade class in Kudan Elementary School as a demonstration on May 7, 2009.
Saya the teacher doesn't mind it the students tease, poke or pinch her or if they play in class.
Credit:Sankei
Saya, a life-like female started her career as a robot receptionist and was then re-programmed to teach.
Professor Hiroshi Kobayashi of Tokyo University of Science, who built Saya, told Reuters "we are not looking at making something that will take over from teachers, but rather our main reason for building this robot is to use new technology to teach children about technology".
But Saya may be able to help in schools where there is a shortage of teachers, he added. Saya can speak different languages and make facial expressions of happiness, surprise, anger, disgust and fear with motors inside her face.
Saya the teacher doesn't mind it the students tease, poke or pinch her or if they play in class.
Credit:Sankei
Saya, a life-like female started her career as a robot receptionist and was then re-programmed to teach.
Professor Hiroshi Kobayashi of Tokyo University of Science, who built Saya, told Reuters "we are not looking at making something that will take over from teachers, but rather our main reason for building this robot is to use new technology to teach children about technology".
But Saya may be able to help in schools where there is a shortage of teachers, he added. Saya can speak different languages and make facial expressions of happiness, surprise, anger, disgust and fear with motors inside her face.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Vizio Zooms Past Sony In Flat Panel TV sales in U.S.
Vizio Inc., a California based company, manufacturers of high quality HDTV’s and monitors to amazing sound products and accessories such as cables, mounts, and remotes, has elbowed out Sony Corporation to grab second place in the North American flat panel TV market last quarter, as reported by a U.S. research firm Display Search.
The report put the rankings as follows for Samsung, Vizio & Sony respectively (Qtr 1'2009 - 18.2%, 17.9%, 13.2%) and (Qtr 4'2008 - 20.4%, 12.3%, 14.2%)
Vizio recorded similar increase in the liquid crystal display TV, from 12.8% to 18.9%.
Vizio has strong alignment with mass merchant and warehouse club retailers. They stepped up production of flat panel televisions in Taiwan, for sale to discount chains, when Sony and Samsung curbed shipments to prevent excessive discount sales from eroding their profit margins. Some of Vizio’s distributors are Wal-Mart, Costco, Sam’s Club, BJ’s Wholesale, Sears, Circuit City, Dell and Target stores.
In 2008, they launched Full High Definition 1080p Plasma flat panel televisions and the first true consumer High Definition 32” plasma display at breakthrough price points. They also solved the solution of offering 120Hz Smooth Motion technology processing in LCD panels to the consumer electronics market that exceed the expectations of consumers and industry analysts alike at prices unmatched by competitors. They also offer wireless surround sound solutions with Dolby Digital 5.1 technology, and partnerships with SRS Labs (California) to create home theater audio within its products.
Vizio Inc. offers a one-year limited warranty on products, followed by a 4 year added repair/replacement service together with power surge, remote control cover and onsite repair service. It also offers lifetime telephone technical support. This long term support confirms Vizio’s commitment to their "Where Vision Meets Value," slogan.
Intel Receives Record Smack From The European Commission
First it was a 497m euros fine on Microsoft for abuse of dominant market position, now its 1.06bn euros against Intel for anti-competitive practice.
The EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said that Intel influenced the market by offering rebates but with conditions that there was no fair chance for competitors to get in the market, thus curtailing competition and consumers ended up paying too much at the end of the day. Intel took advantage of their dominant position having a more than 70% share of the market. She also stated that rebates with certain conditions are not allowed and that the judgment is meant to convey the message that fair competition means that your are not blocking market or innovation.
The Commission found that between 2002 and 2007, Intel had paid manufacturers and a retailer to favor its chips over those of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD).
The Commission said that Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo and NEC had been given hidden rebates if they only used Intel chips. It also found that Media Saturn, which owns Europe's biggest consumer electronics retailer Media Market, had been given money so that it would only sell computers containing Intel chips.
Intel is facing antitrust infringement decisions against it in Japan, Korea, and the EU, while the US authorities are investigating Intel as well.
Intel has announced that it will appeal against the verdict.
Emue Card by Visa is a Leap Towards Combating Credit Card Fraud.
image credit bbc news
In two of my previous articles Transacting Online? Watch Out For Peeping Toms and Cyber Security-Is There Real Danger Looming, I wrote about the dangers of transacting online. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the U.S.A. according to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission). The danger is so real, yet the requirement to transact online so crucial, thus we are left with no alternative but to fight cyber-crime.
For on the till transactions, where the card user is present with their credit card at the service provision point, credit cards are equipped with the chip and the user enters the secret pin number and a signature, these three together with the hologram provide some security.
For away from the till transactions (internet, phone or mail order), all that is required to transact at present is the 16-digit code, the credit card expiry date and the three digit security code number at the back of the card. If any person captures this information online by hacking or by nicking the actual card or cards details, the card owner may suffer loss if the card is not block immediately.
To reduce instances of card-not-present (CNP) crime, Visa is testing a credit card dubbed Emue with a built-in display.
The Emue Card generates and displays a unique four digit code each time it is used. The generation of the four digit code is activated by entering a secret pin number.
The card is currently being tried out by 500 employees of Deloitte with the aim of assessing the technology by the end of the year. After the trial period, the card needs to be globally compatible: that means creating embossed characters for mechanical swipes, a magnetic strip for systems that require a signature, the fixed three digit security code and now the unique four figure code. The global credit card infrastructure will certainly require an update to accommodate the extra features. This development will enhance the security of CNP transactions.
To read the whole article click BBC News
Friday, May 8, 2009
Dell Computers Discount Coupons and Discount Deals
Save some money on your next Dell computer purchase by using Dell Computer discount coupons. Follow the instructions in each Dell Coupon post and make big savings.
Some of the deals which have no Dell discount Coupons have instant savings deals. Click through the supplied product link and the discount will automatically appear when you reach your shopping cart on the Dell website.
Dell Computers are manufacturers of worldwide reputable brands which include XPS, Inspiron and Studio desktop PC’s and laptops, New Adamo and Latitude laptops brands, Studio XPS desktop PC’s and Dell Printers and Inks.
To get your Coupon in the USA click Dell USA Discount Coupons;
To get your coupons in the UK click Dell UK Discount Coupons
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Garmin Nuvi 855 GPS Navigation System Model 0100071530 is High-Tech
Minimize road network surprises with with Garmin nüvi 855 GPS System. This GPS has voice-activated navigation, it guides user to the proper lane and gives junction and road signs display. It also comes with wide screen display, has preloaded maps and ability to add maps. It is also sunlight readable, gives driving direction photos, 3D maps & 3D building views.
Under emergency locator voice prompt ‘where am I’ or a tap, it gives details of position, closest hospitals, police stations, fuel stations, nearest address and intersection. It is also FM traffic compatible,
Besides it does not fall short of entertainment and other extras tools, including MP3 player, audio book player, JPEG picture viewer, FM transmitter, custom POI’s, touch screen, currency converters, Garmin Games, Garmin security lock and world travel clock.
To get the whole range of features and specifications click ABT.com
Transacting Online? Watch Out For Peeping Toms
Here is an extract from a report filed by CyberInsecure.com on 5th May 2009.
Security researchers have managed to infiltrate the Torpig botnet, a feat that allowed them to gain important new insights into one of the world’s most notorious zombie networks by collecting an astounding 70 GB worth of data stolen in just 10 days.
During that time, Torpig bots stole more than 8,300 credentials used to login to 410 different financial institutions, according to the research team from the University of California at Santa Barbara. More than 21 percent of the accounts belonged to PayPal users. Overall, a total of almost 298,000 unique credentials were intercepted from more than 52,000 infected machines.
Get the full report on CyberInsecure.com
If the mentioned report is anything to go by, drastic action needs to be taken to salvage these convenient facilities that we enjoy everyday.
Precautionary measures need to be put in place by individuals, service providers and by the agencies charged with the responsibility of dealing with cyber crime.
To find some tips on how you can safeguard yourself click Cyber Security Tips
Security researchers have managed to infiltrate the Torpig botnet, a feat that allowed them to gain important new insights into one of the world’s most notorious zombie networks by collecting an astounding 70 GB worth of data stolen in just 10 days.
During that time, Torpig bots stole more than 8,300 credentials used to login to 410 different financial institutions, according to the research team from the University of California at Santa Barbara. More than 21 percent of the accounts belonged to PayPal users. Overall, a total of almost 298,000 unique credentials were intercepted from more than 52,000 infected machines.
Get the full report on CyberInsecure.com
If the mentioned report is anything to go by, drastic action needs to be taken to salvage these convenient facilities that we enjoy everyday.
Precautionary measures need to be put in place by individuals, service providers and by the agencies charged with the responsibility of dealing with cyber crime.
To find some tips on how you can safeguard yourself click Cyber Security Tips
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Cyber Security-Is there real danger looming?
Credit BBC News
Our lives and daily activities revolve around computers and the Internet these days. We use computers to communicate through emails and other computer based audio & video conferencing facilities. Our telephone systems, both fixed and cellphones are supported by computer systems. The entertainment industry both video and audio entertainment, the transport industry, navigation functions are also run using computer systems. Shopping is what it is today due to online stores and the use of credit cards. Most of our banking activities and transactions can be done online. Medical data and equipment are supported by the very computer systems. A lot of our information is stored in computers either in our homes, offices or elsewhere, and Cyber Security involves protecting that information by preventing, detecting, and responding to attacks on these very systems.
The risks facing this very essential support system range from viruses erasing an entire system, hackers accessing ones system and altering files, or altering files remotely through other work-stations. There is also the danger of leakage of sensitive information like security information, bank account access codes and credit-card information.
In February 2009, President Obama ordered a cyber security audit and review of the online security of government IT system be conducted to check for vulnerabilities
Mr. John Brennan, assistant to the president for counter-terrorism and homeland security said
"The president is confident that we can protect our nation's critical cyber infrastructure while at the same time adhering to the rule of law and safeguarding privacy rights and civil liberties."
Rick Howard, director of intelligence at managed security services firm iDefense, welcomed the move by Obama.
"Cyber warfare is now a real threat," he added. "Russian hackers, individually and grouped into cartels, are good at attacking an opposing government’s infrastructure in campaigns of annoyance and frustration."
Going by the frequency of reports on cyber Insecurity featured daily in various Medias, the threat appears to be increasing by the day. History will testify that the tempo of alerts and warnings preceding any attack tends to rise to a crescendo just before the attack is launched. Unless an offensive crackdown on the individuals and cartels involved in cyber crimes is launched, then we should brace up for the worst. A few of the reports appearing in the news on 5th April are sited below: -
CyberInsecure.com
A report by CyberInsecure.com released on 5th May 2009, revealed that Torpig Botnet Hijacking, a zombie network revealed 70GB of stolen credit cards and passwords, all these stolen in ten days only. The information included more than 8,300 credentials used to log in to 410 different financial institutions, according to the research team from the University of California at Santa Barbara. More than 21 percent of the accounts belonged to PayPal users. Overall, a total of almost 298,000 unique credentials were intercepted from more than 52,000 infected machines.
One of the secrets behind the unusually large haul is Torpig’s ability to siphon credentials from a large number of computer programs. After wrapping its tentacles around Mozilla Thunderbird, Microsoft Outlook, Skype, ICQ, and 26 other applications, Torpig constantly monitors every keystroke entered into them. Every 20 minutes, the malware automatically uploads new data to servers controlled by the authors. Because the software runs at such a low level, it is able to intercept passwords before they may be encrypted by secure sockets layer or other programs. To read the whole story click Cyberinsecure.
FedaralComputerWeek
Malicious cyber activity has grown more prevalent and sophisticated during the past year and threats come from organized crime groups, terrorist organizations and foreign governments, according to a senior FBI official.
The increase in activity and sophistication poses a criminal and national security threat and has raised concerns from the government, the private sector and the country's overseas partners, Shawn Henry, an assistant director of the FBI who runs its Cyber Division, told reporters today. Henry said the current threats involve denying access to networks, compromising or changing data to affect its integrity and the theft of data. To read the whole story click FCW.
BBC News/Technology
Twelve million computers have been hijacked by cyber-criminals and detected by security vendor McAfee since January’09, the firm has said. It reports there has been a 50% increase in the number of detected so-called "zombie" computers since 2008. The true number of newly hijacked PCs is likely to be higher than those detected by McAfee alone. The figures come as a report from Deloitte said a global approach to cyber-security was needed.
"Doing nothing is not an option," said Deloitte's Greg Pellegrino. Everything that depended on cyberspace face unprecedented risks, said Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (DTT). "This issue is moving so quickly, and with so much at stake economically and in terms of safety and security for people, we don't have 100 years to figure this out," explained Mr Pellegrino, who is a global public sector industry leader at DTT.
McAfee also revealed that the United States now hosted the world's largest percentage of infected computers at 18% with China a not too distant second with just over 13%. To read the whole story click BBC News
Other cyber crime related reports carried by the BBC News are listed below: -
29 Apr 09 | Technology US cyber-security 'embarrassing'
05 May 09 | Technology US needs 'digital warfare force'
21 Apr 09 | Technology Call to rally against cyber crime
09 Apr 09 | Technology Spies 'infiltrate US power grid'
09 Dec 08 | Business Downturn 'boosting cyber-crime'
16 Apr 09 | Spam 'produces 17m tons of CO2'
In the BBC News report, Mr Pellegrino, the global public sector industry leader at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (DTT) warned "Not only do we have to take action; we don't have enough time,"
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