Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Racetrack in a briefcase

Racetrack in a briefcase 

...take it with you anywhere

What about that :)

The product is a completely self-contained go-kart game with two carts, a 2 metre track, two controllers, a stop watch and a 9V battery block for 5 hours gaming power. Pleese don't ask why it is being sold in such a gorgeous aluminium briefcase as that is their little secret.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Stepto’s account gets hacked on Xbox Live

If you thought that Sony is the only company thats having problems with hackers, guess again. It seems that Microsoft and Xbox Live have similar problem as well.
Hackers over the world are getting tired from constant banning, so they have chosen to take action, or at least one of them. A hacker that goes by the name of The Predator apparently had enough harassment from Xbox Live personnel, after being banned 35 times, The Predator decided to have revenge on the person that got him banned in the first place, and so the user – Stephen “Stepto” Toulouse became the victim.
For those of you who don’t know, Stephen “Stepto” Toulouse is Director of Policy ad Enforcement for Xbox Live and he’s in charge of banning hackers. After he banned The Predator 35 times, The Predator decided it’s time for revenge so he hacked Stepto’s account so he could teach him a lesson. Of course, this incident has been taken care of and Stepto got his account back in no time.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Gmail Motion- Write your E-mails with Body Movement

Gmail Motion- Write your E-mails with Body Movement


So many thing have changed over the years, computers are leaps and bounds ahead of what they were in the beginning, but since the advent of e-mail, the way it has been composed has stayed exactly the same, until now…
Google explains that the mouse and keyboard were invented before the Internet even existed. Since then, countless technological advancements have allowed for much more efficient human computer interaction. Why then do we continue to use outdated technology? Introducing Gmail Motion — now you can control Gmail with your body.
Gmail Motion uses your computer’s built-in webcam and Google’s patented spatial tracking technology to detect your movements and translate them into meaningful characters and commands. Movements are designed to be simple and intuitive for people of all skill levels.
First you need to familiarize yourself with some of the basic functionality of Gmail Motion using this printable guide of sample gestures. With it, you’ll be able to start writing and responding to emails – with your body – in no time.

Check out the video, or try the new Gmail Motion HERE.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

A Comic Book Lover's Guide to Going Digital

Top Stories: Friday, March 25, 2011

Whether you've been a diehard comic book fan for years or you just want to see what they're all about, you may find reading them digitally a better experience than on paper. Here's how to get started with digital comics. More »

Google Chrome 11 beta boasts speech to text

 

 

 

Google Chrome 11 beta boasts speech to text

On March 25, 2011, in Softwares and Tools, by Keenan
Google has given out Google Chrome 11 in it’s beta stage, at first we have noticed that they have a new logo. The new Google Chrome 11 also has speech-to-tech capabilities or so it says, which will be great for everyday users and also developers.
Continue reading »

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Sifteo Cubes take interactive gameplay to a new level

Sifteo Cubes are 1.5-inch gaming blocks with full color screens that respond to motion, an...
Earlier this month we featured some novel building blocks that help teach robotics to kids, and grew from a project at Carnegie Mellon University. Now it's MIT's turn, with the Sifteo Cubes – 1.5-inch gaming blocks sporting full color screens that respond to motion, and interact with the player and each other as they are moved around. Games and apps can be bought online and wirelessly transferred onto the cubes via an internet-connected computer or laptop. The current title catalog includes adult games, puzzles for kids, and challenges and games that people can play together. Read More

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

New battery technology may allow for complete recharging within minutes

A diagram of a lithium-ion battery constructed using Braun's nanostructured bicontinuous c...
Of all the criticisms of electric vehicles, probably the most commonly-heard is that their batteries take too long to recharge – after all, limited range wouldn’t be such a big deal if the cars could be juiced up while out and about, in just a few minutes. Well, while no one is promising anything, new batteries developed at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign do indeed look like they might be a step very much in the right direction. They are said to offer all the advantages of capacitors and batteries, in one unit. Read More

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Microsoft IE9 is being downloaded 27 times per second


Microsoft IE9 is being downloaded 27 times per second


Those who thought that Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is dead check this out. Microsoft released the latest version of their Internet browser and in the first twenty four hours, it was downloaded about 2.35 million times. Beta version was downloaded just one million times in the first day after it was released. For IE9 final version, there were 27 downloads every second or 98,000 downloads every hour. Internet Explorer senior director, Ryan Gavin, thanked everyone around the world for such enthusiastic reception on IE blog.
The numbers of IE9 aren’t really as impressive as compared to the other browsers. For instance, Mozilla Firefox 3.5 version was downloaded a million times within a few hours when it was released in 2009. Also, the earlier version, Mozilla Firefox 3.0 was downloaded eight million times within the first 24 hours of its release.
The new and updated version of Internet Explorer now comes with HTML5, do-not-track function which is built-in and the UI too has been improved. You can download it from BeautyoftheWeb.com. IE9 will be facing stiff competition from Mozilla Firefox. There will be new Firefox 4 version released on 22nd of March.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Google enables site blocking for its users

Not a while ago, Google released a Chrome extension that allows its users to block certain sites from showing up on their search results. This was a great extension, but now, Google has decided to add a blocking feature without any additional extension needed to all of its users.

This extension works great, but it was limited only to Chrome users, therefore, Google decided to add support for all users using their service, no matter what browser they are using. Now in order to block useless sites from your search results you don’t need Chrome browser or any apps. You just need to find a site that you wish to block in your search results and click the ‘Block all’, and you’ll never see that site in your results again. This feature is great, since you’ll be able to block harmful or spam sites from your search results, but there’s a single requirement. In order to use this feature, you’ll have to have to be signed in to Google, and have a Google account.

Read more: Google enables site blocking for its users | GadgetLite - Latest gadgets and technology news http://www.gadgetlite.com/2011/03/17/google-enables-site-blocking-users/#ixzz1Gxb9mx9k
Brought to you by GadgetLite.com

White Print identifies anonymous email senders by analyzing writing patterns

Email is one of the fastest ways of communication nowadays, but as you know, email is often used by cyber-criminals for all sorts of illegal purposes. Although email provides a certain amount of anonymity, researchers have found a way to ‘ID’ anonymous email senders.

Researchers from Concordia University with Benjamin Fung as their leader, have found a way to identify anonymous email senders with a 80% to 90% accuracy. In order to ID the sender, they analyze the unique writing patterns such as the style, grammar, and spelling using the special algorithm called White Print. According to them, White Print can tell them about the sender’s age and even education. In addition, they have tested White Print with 200,000 emails from 10 subjects and they’ve got 80% to 90% successful identifications.This looks like a revolutionary method, this is one of those examples where I never thought a machine could outsmart the human brain, but will it be enough to identify cyber criminals? Only time will tell.

Read more: White Print identifies anonymous email senders by analyzing writing patterns | GadgetLite - Latest gadgets and technology news http://www.gadgetlite.com/2011/03/18/white-print-identifies-anonymous/#ixzz1GxahvVXs
Brought to you by GadgetLite.com

Monday, March 14, 2011

Internet Explorer 9 arriving on Monday

Internet Explorer 9 arriving on Monday

On March 11, 2011, in Softwares and Tools, by Mike Jefferson
It seems that we’ll see Internet Explorer 9 sooner than we think, according to the latest news. After the release candidate of Internet Explorer 9 launched lately, Microsoft has now announced some news about the final release of IE9.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Freedom i-Connex Mini White [REVIEW]

Freedom i-Connex Mini White [REVIEW]

Freedom i-Connex Mini White
Freedom i-Connex Mini is a mini bluetooth keyboard compatible with iPhone 4 and other similar smartphones. This mini bluetooth keyboard is a QWERTY keyboard and has got dedicated keys for the Apple iPhone 4.
If you are one of those people who think that the on-screen keyboard isn’t easy to use, i-Connex mini solves your problem. The design of the keyboard is good and the new white color makes it look even better.
Features -
The features of this keyboard are similar (or almost same) as the Freedom i-Connex Mini Bluetooth Keyboard Black.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Inflight Wi-Fi hits more turbulence

Inflight Wi-Fi hits more turbulence

Inflight WiFi.jpg (Image: Mark Horn/The Image Bank/Getty)
Inflight Wi-Fi and cellphone services - which transmit low power microwave radio signals within an aircraft's fuselage - have already been criticised by security engineers for providing a ready means for terrorists to remotely detonate explosives. Now the technology has been found to be interfering with flight critical electronics too.
This latest finding was made by Boeing while testing inflight Wi-Fi equipment for use on its next generation 737 twin-engined aircraft. The Seattle-based plane maker found that a certain type of new, brighter cockpit display made by Honeywell of Torrance, California, could go blank when an inflight wireless system, made by Aircell of Itasca, Illinois, was used nearby.
"Blanking of the display units was reported during electromagnetic interference certification testing of wireless broadband systems (Wi-Fi) on various 737NG airplanes," Boeing said in a statement issued today.
The firm adds it has not delivered any aircraft using the technology and will not activate any passenger Wi-Fi systems in future planes across its whole range of aircraft until Honeywell has made its new displays Wi-Fi proof.
In 2000, the British Civil Aviation Authority borrowed a couple of airliners - a Boeing 737 from British Airways and a 747 from Virgin Atlantic - and generated simulated GSM cellphone signals in them. As New Scientist reported, they found that avionics equipment in the cockpit were susceptible to high levels of interference - the first "scientific proof" there was an issue, said the CAA.
Commercial pressures to allow lucrative wireless services on board, however, led to the development of electromagnetic shielding standards for avionics equipment, designed to ensure that emerging portable electronic devices like smartphones and laptops using 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity did not cause problems.
It was while testing to the US Federal Aviation Administration's relevant standard that Boeing found the Aircell system interfering with the new "phase three" Honeywell multifunction cockpit displays, which are brighter then their predecessors.
The interference happened at Wi-Fi signal levels that are higher than is normally emitted by phones and laptops, Boeing says, but it is quite possible for consumer equipment not to perform to specification and kick out too much power - so no chances could be taken.
"We have identified a fix and are working to ensure that temporary blanking does not occur when displays are exposed to elevated levels of electrical energy," a Honeywell spokesman told New Scientist.
Whatever the issue here, it has to be sorted fast. There should be no way that technology as trivial as an inflight entertainment system should threaten flight safety. The industry has already learned this lesson the hard way: a fire in passenger video wiring caused the crash of Swissair 111 off Nova Scotia, Canada, in September 1998, killing 229 people.
The FAA is on the case. "We are aware of some issues involving interference between Honeywell flight displays and in-flight Wi-Fi that surfaced during certification testing," says Les Dorr, FAA spokesman. "We are currently working with both manufacturers to examine the technical data and test results. After a thorough review,we will consider if further safety action is necessary."

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Intel fixed Sandy Bridge Defect


intelIntel Sandy Bridge Processor with new 32 nanometer technology faced an issue with SATA port few weeks ago. Due to which supplies were suspended of Intel Sandy Bridge Processor. But sources claim now that Intel have proposed a solution that has removed the defect without any problem so again now supplies of Intel Sandy Bridge Processor is continued.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Group chatting coming to Facebook?

If you like to chat with your friends on Facebook, but hate to keep several opened tabs while chatting you’ll be pleased to know that grouped chat might be coming to Facebook soon enough.


It seems that Facebook is trying to become a proper communication platform rather than just a social network, and after adding the video chat support, group chat seems like a logical solution. You probably don’t know, but group messaging service for iOS, Beluga, has been purchased by Facebook and it has taken over the application and the development team.
Facebook plans to keep this service operational, but it appears that Facebook is trying to implant the group chatting technology to the Facebook’s messaging system. As we said in the beginning, Facebook is trying to become a communication platform so this move was largely expected.

Friday, March 4, 2011

73% of Brits have played games on their mobile

73% of Brits have played games on their mobile

73 of Brits have played games on their mobilePlaying videogames on a mobile phone is becoming increasingly popular in the UK, with 73% of Brits having played one at least once.

The survey, which questioned 2,425 people in the UK and US, also found that the mobile phone is quickly becoming a more popular gaming device than PCs and gaming consoles, such as the PlayStation 3.

Dennis Ryan, executive vice president of worldwide publishing at gaming firm PopCap - which commissioned the survey, said: “As more people purchase smartphones and the entire process of finding, purchasing and playing mobile games becomes as simple as browsing the internet, the mobile games market is going to accelerate even more.

50% of all mobile phone owners questioned in the survey said the amount of time they spent playing games on their phones has increased in the past year. Smartphone owners tend to play the most games, the survey found, with 83% having played one in the past seven days.

The survey also found that:

    * Around 23% of a mobile phone owner’s time is now spent playing videogames, on average
    * Playing videogames has become a “regular” activity for 73% of mobile phone owners
    * Smartphone owners tend to purchase more games online than those with less advanced phones.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Google improves security with two-step verification

If you’re using Gmail and other great web services that Google Offers you might be concerned about your privacy and safety, but recently, Google decided to increase its security with two-step verification for its users.

Google and Facebook interested in buying Twitter

 
That’s right, Twitter might get sold, and the two main competitors that are interested in Twitter’s purchase are Google and Facebook – hardly surprising. It seems that both companies had their low level takeover talks with Twitter’s staff, and according to the Wall Street Journal, it seems that Twitter will be sold for $10 billion.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Browser battle: Google Chrome vs Opera, Firefox and IE tests


The ongoing internet browser war welcomes its new contestant: famous internet giant Google just released beta version of its upcoming internet browser, which is called Chrome. In the year 2006, person from Google said that they have no plans for releasing their own browser. Recent events show that this was not true. As said in 33-paged presentation, made like a comic book, Google Chrome is very different from any popular browser. It use WebKit engine (same as Safari's), and it was written from scratch to work flawlessly with complex content like JavaScript and modern web applications.

Features that make Chrome distinguish itself from monsters like Mozilla Firefox or Opera are simple but truly amazing. First, every tab is an independed process. This makes memory management a lot easier, eliminates the reasons for memory leakage. Each tab is on its own - if one tab crashes there will be no impact on other tabs. This is very useful feature, because if you are working with many tabs at once, you may lose important information if entire browser goes down. Second, it has revolutionary JavaScript engine, which is made to work even faster than in the fastest browsers. Multithreaded page loading is another key to success, because it is very disturbing to wait with a blank screen for some JavaScripts to load: now all elements are loaded simultaneously, not one after another. In the built-in task manager you can see what tab eats more memory or CPU time than others, and effectively manage your tabs to reduce unneeded memory or CPU usage.

However, let's make an experiment and see, if this new browser from Google is faster than its famous competitors - Opera, Firefox and IE. We installed all of these browsers, and made them through some simple tests to see, which one will be faster. All browsers are freshly installed, without plugins or other add-ons which can influence on their work. The configuration of our test machine is: AMD Athlon x2 64, 2GB RAM, Windows Vista x86.

Launch time

Launch time is not very important parameter, but it influences the overall pleasure of usage. We were very impressed by Chrome launch time, it easily overdone almost every browser except IE, which launch time was almost completely the same. Let's see whole result table:




IE1 sec
Firefox2 sec
Opera 3 sec
Chrome1 sec


JavaScript speed

There already exist some JavaScript browser speed tests, so we tried this one to see, what speed will have new JavaScript engine from Google. The results were interesting and amazing: while Opera handled this test in about 600 milliseconds, Chrome did it in 350! According to the sheet published on that page, Opera results was fastest that any other browser, and Chrome overdone them easily. However, we believe that there are no ultimate tests, and each and every test may have its own winners. We tried to make our own JS test, to be sure that this test is not optimized for special browser. The task was a simple JavaScript below:

var t = new Date().getTime();
for(i = 0; i<10000000; i++){};
var t1 = new Date();.getTime();
document.write(«Time for executing: „+(t1-t)/1000 + sec.);

We launched it from our local server to eliminate the risk of internet connection influencing the results. So, the testing time begins.

Results for 1 page:

Unfortunately, Internet Explorer was out of the competition, because it didn't want to handle our simple script, asking every time to disable page scenarios. Firefox, Chrome and Opera handled it correctly, but in different time. So, the results are:



Firefox3.6 sec
Opera 5.7 sec
Chrome0.3 sec(!)

It is amazing how fast Chrome is compared to leading browsers! But let's try to make this task more complex and open 5 instances of this test page to see, how browsers will handle multithreading.

Results for 5 simultaneously started pages:




Firefox18 sec (when JS was executed in one tab, all interface buttons were blocked, so we opened pages one after another)
Opera 27 sec
Chrome0.3 sec(!!!)


Almost unbelievable results, which show that Chrome's JavaScript engine is truly advanced and powerful. It made through this simple test many times faster than its competitors, Firefox and Opera. However, tests will never show a real situation, so we wanted to make a simple usage test and see, how efficient will be Chrome's memory management. We opened 5 tabs simultaneously, five heavy loaded pages in each browser. All browsers was tested on one set of pages, so they are all in one conditions.

Memory usage on 5 tabs right from the start:





IE60 MB
Firefox64.4 MB
Opera 52.2 MB
Chrome75.4 MB


At the first glance, Chrome is eating more memory that its rivals, but let's look on this results after 10 minutes of intensive usage:

Memory usage on 5 tabs after 10 min of intensive surfing:





IE96 MB
Firefox109.8 MB
Opera 96.6 MB
Chrome84.1 MB


Results are not such amazing as speed, but they show that Chrome's multithreaded tab handling, while eating more from the start, wins after some intensive usage.

All these test clearly show us, that new browser from Google is truly revolutionary and very interesting. It is now only on Beta stage, so the result may even improve after time. Of course, it lacks some advanced features that Opera or Firefox have, but let's hope that all of them will be implemented in the final release. Google made a wise choice for keeping its browser open-source, so all the improvements done in the Chrome can be used by other developers in their browsers. It is early to tell, will it have bigger popularity that nowadays leaders, but it is clear that this browser will not pass out unnoticed. Developers say that final version will be released for all operating systems, including Linux and MacOS, and even on the final stage it will remain fully open-source.

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Skype Recovers From Significant Outage

The worst outage in Skype's seven-year history ended Thursday morning after a technical glitch plunged it into darkness most of Wednesday.
Millions of users of the Internet-phone service weren't able to make video and audio calls, and exchange instant messages Wednesday —Skype's most prolonged service interruption since it went down one day in 2007. Then, however, it had far fewer members.
By noon Eastern time Thursday, things had improved. Skype has "seen evidence of a significant increase in the number of people online," Skype spokesman Peter Parkes says.
Skype is estimating 17 million people, about 80% to 85% of its normal traffic this time of day, are using the service now.
"The root cause was software," Skype CEO Tony Bates said in a phone interview Thursday. "We had to temporarily bring in some dedicated servers and shift resources to get back online."
Bates said Skype will offer users credits for the service interruption. Though highly unlikely, he did not rule out the possibility the service was the victim of a malicious digital attack.
"We are really apologetic for what happened," says Bates, who took over as CEO just eight weeks ago.

Android will soon become better at backing up your data

  And An APK teardown of the Google Play Services app, version   26.32.31 beta   reveals some interesting details about phone backups. It h...