Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Monday, November 12, 2007

Tree-inspired PC wins Dyson design award

from Engadget by Evan Blass

One of the main arguments that Windows users offer during those habitual debates with Macheads is that PC boxes are much easier to upgrade; instead of buying a new machine every year, you can simply swap out components ad hoc. Well a graduate of Ireland's National College of Art and Design imagines taking this convenience a step further, with a tree-shaped rig -- known as Cultivate - the Sustainable Living Computer -- whose CPU, RAM, hard drive, and other swappable parts extend from the motherboard-packing "trunk" inside removable "branches." Designer Laura Caulwell won a cool €2,000 $2,929) for her concept, and also earned the right to compete for January's annual International James Dyson Award in Australia, which offers up £15,000 ($31,476) in prizes.

[Via The Register, photo courtesy of Electric News]

Know Your Rights: Does T-Mobile really own magenta?

from Engadget by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Cellphones, Features

Know Your Rights is Engadget's new technology law series, written by our own totally punk copyright attorney Nilay Patel. In it we'll try to answer some fundamental tech-law questions to help you stay out of trouble in this brave new world. Disclaimer: Although this post was written by an attorney, it is not meant as legal advice or analysis and should not be taken as such.

Hey, does T-Mobile really own magenta? I was just about to redesign my blog, and that was going to be the main color.

Really? Maybe T-Mo should sue you.

Come on, I've been hearing this everywhere. 1265 Diggs can't be wrong.

Well, they're not wrong, they're just less than right. T-Mobile's disclaimers certainly do say that "the magenta color" is a T-Mobile trademark.

So there you go! That's so stupid! The system is broken! Everyone is corrupt! How can a corporation own a color?! I've already skipped down and begun flaming!

Chill out, Sparky. T-Mobile doesn't "own" anything here, least of all a color. That's the part everyone seems to have missed. T-Mobile has what appears to be a German trademark on that specific magenta color (RAL 4010, specifically) as it relates to their branding, but that doesn't really affect the average consumer.

Besides, this isn't some radical new development. Lot of other companies have registered color trademarks -- Owens-Corning has a trademark on the use of pink for insulation, Tiffany & Co. has a trademark on that certain blue color it uses for jewelry boxes, and UPS has a trademark on brown. Interesting you haven't seen UPS suing Microsoft over that itty-bitty Zune thing, no?

Continue reading Know Your Rights: Does T-Mobile really own magenta?

New helmet allows fighter pilots to peer through the jet

from Engadget by Darren Murph

Filed under: Wearables

No, the headgear in the photo above wasn't some unused prototype created for The Terminator; rather, it's a snazzy new helmet designed to give fighter pilots a better look at their surroundings. Within the tinted faceplate are two projectors which sync up with plane-mounted cameras and display images from the outside for the pilot to view. Essentially, this enables the operator to view high-resolution images (yes, even at night) of areas previously imperceptible without a warplane constructed entirely of plexiglass, and onboard sensors make sure that the imagery reflects exactly where the pilot is looking at any given moment. Furthermore, computerized systems can even feed in "essential flight and combat data on to the display," as well as target symbols of friendlies / enemies. The new visual system is apparently just one amenity on the oh-so-sophisticated Joint Strike Fighter, which the British are planning to pay £66 million ($139 million) apiece for after it hits the production line.

Motorola prepping Palm OS-based Q2 for Sprint?

from Engadget by Chris Ziegler

Palm began life as a software company (anyone remember bailing out their Newton's testy handwriting recognition by installing Graffiti?), and who the heck knows -- perhaps a software company again it will be. Okay, okay, it's way too early to be sounding the death knell on Palm's hardware operations, but let's be honest, wouldn't a Motorola Q9 running Palm OS instead of Windows Mobile make for an absolutely fabulous device (read: Treo / Centro killer) for the Palm OS faithful? We think so, and this Sprint promotional site makes mention of a "Q2" that, by all appearances, seems to be the aforementioned Palm-based Q9. We can't verify the legitimacy of this thing for a couple reasons: one, we've heard nary a peep about a Q2 on Sprint's or Motorola's roadmaps, and two, this same site makes no mention of the Q9c, a device that we do know is coming to Sprint in the next few weeks. Who knows, maybe this is all some well-executed ruse by a Sprint staffer -- but if not, we say kudos to Moto, Sprint, and Palm (and ACCESS, for that matter) for putting together what may be the best Palm handset on the market come the holidays.

HTC's Touch Cruise with GPS gets official

from Engadget by Thomas Ricker

HTC just went live with their Touch Cruise. "Touch" as in that TouchFLO interface, "Cruise" as in GPS-enabled. The third addition to HTC's Touch lineup packs HSDPA, WiFi, Bluetooth, a 3 megapixel camera, microSD expansion, and a 2.8-inch touch-screen lying on top of a Windows Mobile 6 foundation. Oh, and it's loaded with TomTom Navigator 6 software to make the most of that GPS receiver. Yup, ~~everything~~ mostly what we thought it would be. Available this month from European retailers or SIM-free direct from HTC.

Update: We're still digging but HTC was a bit unkind by not providing specific country launch information or supported radio bands. At the moment, this looks like Europe-only.

Gallery: HTC's Touch Cruise with GPS gets official

Friday, November 09, 2007

Google gas pumps: the savior of lost men

from Engadget by Thomas Ricker

Soon, you will never have to admit that you're lost and suffer the humiliation of asking for directions. Google is expected to announce a partnership today with Gilbarco Veeder-Root, to include Google's mapping service on 3,500 Internet enabled gasoline pumps across the US. The maps will be available on the pump's small screen giving motorists the ability to scroll through local landmarks, hotels, restaurants, and hospitals to the bemusement of the guy waiting behind you. The pump will even print directions. The service is said to be ad-free but will offer coupons -- that sounds a lot like advertising to us. Look for the gPumps to arrive courtesy of that Encore S rig pictured above.

SlySoft's latest AnyDVD beta cracks BD+

from Engadget by Darren Murph

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Regardless of what those oh-so-knowledgeable analysts had to say, we all knew this day was coming. Yep, that highly-touted, totally "impenetrable" copy protection technology known as BD+ has officially been brought to its knees, and it's not at all surprising to hear that we have SlySoft to thank. The AnyDVD 6.1.9.6 beta has quite a comical change log too, and aside from noting that users now have the ability to backup their BD+ movies and watch titles sans the need for HDCP-compliant equipment, it also includes a candid note to Twentieth Century Fox informing the studio that its prior assumptions about BD+'s effectiveness were apparently incorrect. You know the drill, hit the read link below to try 'er out. [Thanks, Aaron]

Water Pistol Umbrella Makes the Rain a Hell of a Lot More Fun [Brilliance]

from Gizmodo by adam frucci

Holy crap, this is the coolest umbrella I've ever seen. It's got a little funnel at the top that sends rain water down the handle into the water pistol grip at the bottom. It'll keep you dry and give you the opportunity to get others wet at the same time. It appears to be just a concept at the moment, but someone needs to make some phone calls and get it into production right now. I'm not kidding, go. Now. Check a picture of it in action after the jump.

[Product Page via NotCot.org]

Cyber-Rain XCI Waters Your Lawn When The Internet Commands It [Going Green]

from Gizmodo by Sean Fallon

I love green technology, especially when it doesn't involve me lifting so much as a finger. With the Cyber-Rain XCI, you can take control of your sprinkler system across eight zones and help conserve water and a little cash at the same time. Via a wireless connection with your PC, the Cyber-Rain can make adjustments to scheduled watering times using current weather data.

If the forecast looks like rain, the unit is smart enough to suspend operations. It can even optimize its schedule based on the changing seasons. And the best part is that it isn't as expensive as you might expect. If you already have an irrigation system in place, Cyber-Rain can be added for only $295. So it may actually pay for itself in a short amount of time. [Product Page via GTW via Sci Fi Tech]

Facebook’s New Ad Platform Illegal?

from TechCrunch by Duncan Riley

We've already seen a backlash against Facebook's Social Ads platform, however something far more serious may get in the way of Mark Zuckerberg's quest for social networking domination.

According to the NY Times, Facebook's Social Ad platform may be illegal in New York under a 100 year old privacy law that states that "any person whose name, portrait, picture, or voice is used within this state for advertising purposes or for the purposes of trade without the written consent first obtained" can sue for damages, and doing so is a criminal misdemeanor.

Facebook unsurprisingly are suggesting this isn't the case, arguing that William McGeveran, the professor at the University of Minnesota Law School who came to the illegality conclusion, is taking the law too broadly. Facebook say that it would be difficult for someone used in these ads to argue against the use given they will have already identified themselves publicly, implying consent.

Whilst the lawyers can sort out the legality of Facebook's advertising program now, the real risk for Facebook is that given the growing backlash certain jurisdictions may enact laws that outlaw Facebook's program. Concern about privacy online isn't new; who doesn't remember the Government mudslinging when Google launched Gmail. The question is whether States or even the United States Government will care enough to do something about it. The chances are unlikely; law makers are far too busy trying to pass laws that would see the US Government sue Bit Torrent users to care about the privacy of those very users, but you never know.

Apple posts iPod touch 1.1.2 update -- already hacked

from Engadget by Thomas Ricker

As you'd expect, Apple has released version 1.1.2 of the iPod touch firmware hot on the jailbreak-breaking heels of its iPhone update. Early reports on MacRumors indicate a new "Add Event" functionality in the Calendar -- something that should have been included in v 1.0. Anyone else getting dirty with the firmware who wants to share changes? We'll keep you updated of course as this and the iPhone 1.1.2 status develops.

Update: Whoa, TUAW's in-house hacker -- Erica Sadun -- is reporting that v1.1.2 is already hacked on the iPod touch. That bodes well for opening up your new UK and German iPhone, eh readers? Oh, and that's a screenshot up there -- proof of the deed since that functionality is only available from your friendly third party development community.

Download - iPod1,1_1.1.2_3B48b_Restore.ipsw, 158MB

iPod Touch 1.1.2 Firmware Kinda Out [Apple]

from Gizmodo by Brian Lam

MacRumors is reporting that the iPod Touch firmware is out for some via iTunes, and it's main improvement is the added ability to create calendar appointments. Apple previously called this a bug, but in my opinion its more likely that Apple heard the complaints and added the functionality back. (The image shows old firmware's calendar.)[MacRumors]

HOWTO make a speaker out of a magnet, a cup, legos and wire

from Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

This homebrew speaker was hacked together from some legos, wire, magnets and a plastic cup -- according to the build-log, it "performs very well"!

I didn't expect a high quality of the sound from this made-from-scratch speaker but it performs very well, better than I expected.

A speaker is just a magnet, a coil, frame and a cone or any material that can make the air vibrate. Here is the bill of materials that I used to build this speaker:

# List of materials 1 Magnet (neodymium magnet works great) # 1 Business card # Wire 32 or 34 AWG (you may use 30AWG) # Paper bond # Tape # Glue # Scissors # Ballpoint pen # Lego bricks or wood. # Ruler.

Blockbuster Planning In-Store Movie Download Kiosks [Backwards]

from Gizmodo by Matt Buchanan

Blockbuster really is falling back hard on its B&M outlets, so hard they're missing half the point of digital distribution, which is not having to drive to the store to grab a movie. Part of their revival plan is to install kiosks at B&M stores where you can download movies straight to your portable media player. Awesome! Except that I have one of those at my house: a computer.

I wouldn't really call having to trudge all the way to a Blockbuster location to jack my iPod or whatever player into a big blue box to download a movie "bypassing the need for...transferring videos from a computer." It takes the worst aspect of each form of distribution—leaving your easy chair and middling quality video that's not easy to throw up on my TV—and combines them into one totally not ideal experience. Better idea on Blockbuster's part: integrating MovieLink's direct download store with the Blockbuster site and services. That's the way digital distribution is supposed to work. If I come to your store, I expect to walk out with a piece of shiny plastic. [Electronista, Flickr]

Eee PC heads to the desktop in 2008

from Engadget by Thomas Ricker

Like your Eee PC do ya? Good, how about a desktop version to go with it? With the unexpected success of their new ultra-portable, Asus is looking to RAZR that momentum with a desktop version of the Eee PC. Jonathan Tseng, Asus president of marketing, says that the new Eee -- Easy to learn, Easy to play, Easy to Work -- will launch in 2008. Good news for us consumers but likely unwelcome tattle for Redmond. As you may have noticed, the recent onslaught of low-cost, low-powered, low-priced (Lll?) PCs are all Linux-happy slabs in order to avoid those heavy Microsoft licensing fees .

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