News

Posted on Friday, October 02, 2009 @ 10:52:34 CEST

Perplexed by the mystery of Nikon's Coolpix S1000pj projector camera? Like the puzzle of free energy or Google Wave, it's a quandary that has perplexed researchers and common folk alike for decades (or at least a few months). It looks we can now finally lay this particular quandary to rest, however, as leading scientific journal Tech-On! has finally revealed how something can be both a camera and a projector at the same time. It turns out the key is a new L-shaped projector module developed by Nikon itself, which is just the right size to fit inside the camera alongside some repositioned optical components, and some new heat control measures that keep the whole thing from getting too toasty. Still skeptical? Hit up the read link below for a closer look and some additional details.

Posted on Thursday, October 01, 2009 @ 21:48:58 CEST

Twitter is trying out a new feature designed to make it easier for users to group the people they follow by organizing them into lists.

Nick Kallen, manager of Twitter's Lists project, said in a blog post Wednesday night that the company is testing the new feature (see image, below) with a small subset of users. The Lists could organize the people you follow into groups of, say, friends, colleagues, industry luminaries and celebrities.

While the lists can be made private, Kallen said they're public by default, allowing other users to subscribe to any of your lists that they're interested in.

Posted on Thursday, October 01, 2009 @ 21:46:25 CEST

So not free upgrade The free Windows 7 upgrades that Microsoft has promised buyers of new PCs powered by Vista are not always free, a consumer watchdog Web site said today.

"To me, whether it's $12.99 or $17.03, the charges are all outrageous," said Edgar Dworsky, the editor of Consumerworld.org and Mouseprint.org. "It's just a single disc they're sending, and with media mail rates, it costs just over a dollar to mail." Last June, Microsoft kicked off a marketing campaign dubbed "Windows 7 Upgrade Option Program" to keep PCs sales ticking. The program, a rerun of a similar deal in 2006 before Windows Vista's launch, gives people who buy a PC equipped with Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, or Ultimate a free or nearly-free upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium, Professional, or Ultimate once the new operating system ships Oct. 22.

Posted on Thursday, October 01, 2009 @ 21:37:37 CEST

Nvidia has developed a next-generation graphics processor code-named Fermi, and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang demoed some of the first working Fermi silicon at Nvidia's GPU Technology Conference in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday.

"Fermi is a radically different way of designing GPUs," Jen-Hsun said following his keynote to open the GPU Technology Conference. Nvidia hosted a similar, more gaming-oriented event called Nvision last year but changed the name of the conference and tightened the focus on GPU-based parallel and cloud computing this time around.

Posted on Wednesday, September 30, 2009 @ 16:24:18 CEST

A tiny little beta leak earlier this month let BlackBerry-toting Mac fans knew that something good was coming in the near future, and now we know it's very near indeed (though a bit later than expected). On October 2 RIM will release BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac, specifically at 1:00pm EST. That means instead of wrapping up your busy work-week being productive you can instead spend the afternoon fighting long download queues and playing around getting this app configured -- for purely work-related purposes of course, like syncing with iCal, Address Book, and automatically backing up contacts. Just don't tell your boss you'll also be able to sync your iTunes collection to your handset, including album art, something that should make Pre-owning Bob down the hall a little jealous. Again, the fun starts Friday afternoon at 1:00 EST. Clear your calendars accordingly.

Posted on Tuesday, September 29, 2009 @ 23:39:40 CEST

Google Inc.'s highly anticipated communication and collaboration tool - Google Wave - is one big step closer to its first customer shipment.

The company is inviting about 100,000 users and developers to preview the new technology, Lars Rasmussen, an engineering manager, and Stephanie Hannon, a group product manager at Google, said in a blog post today. The users and developers will get the invitations tomorrow, they said in the post.

The Google bloggers acknowledged that Google Wave, which was unveiled this past May, still isn't yet ready for prime time. But, they added, the developers are now ready to get some feedback on the current iteration of the tool.

Posted on Tuesday, September 29, 2009 @ 23:19:45 CEST

Well, it's not the fifty bucks that OEMs are said to be paying for a copy of Windows on the average PC, but the pricing for individual OEM copies of Windows 7 has now finally been revealed by the folks at Newegg and, as expected, it's still a good deal cheaper than the full retail price. Things start at just $99.99 (after a $10 discount) for a full version of Windows 7 Home Premium (compared to $199 retail), and move up to $134.99 for the OEM Professional edition, and $174.99 for the Ultimate edition (also after a pre-order discount that's good until October 20th). Of course, there are a few limitations if you decide to go the OEM route yourself (like not being able to transfer the license between PCs, and a complete lack of an upgrade option), but we're guessing that extra $100+ back in your pocket will more than make up for those drawbacks with plenty of folks.

Posted on Monday, September 28, 2009 @ 14:07:52 CEST

While we've been hearing about a possible fall update to the iMac line, including Blu-ray options, for a couple of weeks now, the online rumor mill has now consigned itself to expecting new MacBook laptops as well. And not just any laptops, but the mythical, long-awaited, low-cost MacBooks that true believers hope will usher in a new age of Apple-based computing for those who find laptops over $1,000 to be out of reach.

Posted on Saturday, September 26, 2009 @ 00:27:09 CEST

Google's recent release of Google Chrome Frame wasn't entirely expected, though that's not to say it wasn't welcome. Some people questioned the usefulness of it, whilst others were overjoyed. Regardless of public opinion, it was to be expected that Microsoft wouldn't be entirely pleased about the whole idea, and they've just given their official thoughts on the software, according to the lads at Ars Technica.
To give you a quick overview of Google Chrome Frame, the aim is for it to give Internet Explorer the rendering and javascript engines of the Chrome browser, which is of benefit to web developers and obviously users also.

Posted on Saturday, September 26, 2009 @ 00:20:39 CEST

After revamping its high-end computing solutions and potentially dallying with a touch-screen tablet, Apple may be turning its attention back to its low-end MacBook.

According to a new report, Apple may be preparing to update its white polycarbonate MacBook, the low-cost option in its notebook family. AppleInsider reports that one of its sources saw the white shells that became the calling card of the $999 notebook.

But Apple may not be stopping there, with a potential refresh of the iMac all-in-one computer potentially getting an update this year as well, according to AppleInsider.

Posted on Thursday, September 24, 2009 @ 16:54:37 CEST

Ever read something online and really felt you had something to add to it -- or maybe felt it was really lame and wanted to say so? A new Google tool called Sidewiki will let you do that.

Google launched the new Web comment and annotation system Wednesday. Google Sidewiki allows Web surfers to post and read comments about Web page content and ranks posted comments according to their usefulness.

The idea is that readers can add their own knowledge and expertise to Web sites or provide helpful criticism when appropriate.

Posted on Thursday, September 24, 2009 @ 15:55:35 CEST

Linux Intel has expanded the scope of Linux-based Moblin by porting the OS from netbooks to mobile devices and desktops, where it could compete with Microsoft's Windows OS.

The company introduced a beta version of Moblin 2.1 at the Intel Developer Forum being held in San Francisco. The new version of the OS now builds in capabilities like native touchscreen input and gesture support, new user interface features, and support for more hardware drivers. It also includes incremental upgrades that expand the usability of the OS.

Posted on Monday, September 21, 2009 @ 11:22:39 CEST

Adobe Adobe Systems on Monday will introduce the first two services in a planned line of cloud-based services intended to enhance deployment of Web applications.Called Adobe Flash Platform Services, the platform features online, hosted services to enable Flash developers to add capabilities to Web applications using a cost-efficient deployment model, Adobe said. The first service, Adobe Flash Platform Services for Distribution, available Monday, enables advertisers and content publishers to monetize applications across social networks, desktops, and mobile devices.

Posted on Sunday, September 20, 2009 @ 17:29:42 CEST

Microsoft took on rival Apple head on this week in the education market with a special offer for students to purchase Windows 7 for $30, about the same price as Apple's competing Mac OS X Snow Leopard.
Microsoft is promoting the offer, which runs through January 3, 2010, on a special Win741.com Web site, where students can buy the upcoming operating system as long as they provide a valid student e-mail address. The offer applies to Home Premium and Professional versions of Windows 7.

The Windows 7 special offer comes as Apple makes a push to grab share from Microsoft with Snow Leopard pricing aimed at undercutting Microsoft for the first time ever. Indeed, Apple, which released Snow Leopard on August 28, has gone to great lengths to price its products at a premium compared to Microsoft. Nevertheless, here are five reasons why Windows 7 is a better deal for students than Snow Leopard.

Posted on Sunday, September 20, 2009 @ 17:26:20 CEST

People are snapping up new desktop and laptop PCs long before the launch of Windows 7, a sign of strong demand in the market, analysts say. Demand for PCs improved in July and August, which is "something special, because the expectation was that many people would delay purchases until after Windows 7 came out in October," said Manish Nigam, head of technology research in Asia for Credit Suisse, at a technology conference in Taipei.

Consumers often wait until after the launch of a major new operating system to buy a new PC for fear of having to pay for the upgrade and to avoid the hassle of loading the new software themselves. This time, strong marketing of free or discounted Windows 7 upgrades for new PC buyers -- ahead of the official launch of the OS on Oct. 22 -- appears to have worked.