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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Projectiondesign's Remote Light Source projector puts the lamp in a cool, faraway place

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/projectiondesigns-remote-light-source-projector-puts-the-lamp-i/

If you're gonna dedicate your life and livelihood to projectors, you'd better be able to deliver something beyond the same old, same old. That said, Projectiondesign -- who's offered up devices for "harsh environments" and 3D in the past -- has clearly outdone itself with the FR12 Remote Light Source (RLS) projector. This bad boy places the lamp and cooling fan in a rack-mounted enclosure, which you can then put someplace safely out of the way (and easily accessible). The light source is then free to be mounted on the ceiling somewhere, where it's fed images via 30m liquid light guide (similar to a fiber optic cable, but, you know, with liquid). No longer will you have to grab a ladder when it comes time to change a bulb! No word yet on price or availability, but you can expect to get all that at the big reveal during ISE 2010 this February.

Gallery: Projectiondesign FR12 Remote Light Source (RLS) projector

Projectiondesign's Remote Light Source projector puts the lamp in a cool, faraway place originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 13:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IBM opens up graphene bandgap, edges closer to commercialization

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/ibm-opens-up-graphene-bandgap-edges-closer-to-commercialization/

Graphene transistors have long been touted as the next big thing to deliver a true leap in electronics of all sorts, but there's been a few considerable limitations holding them back from fully replacing silicon. IBM now says it's managed to overcome one of the biggest hurdles, however, and has announced that it's been able to open a "bandgap" for graphene field-effect transistors (or FETs). As EETimes reports, that's important because while graphene does have a higher carrier mobility than silicon, it doesn't have a natural bandgap, which has so far kept the on-off ratio of graphene transistors far lower than their silicon counterparts. Of course, IBM insists that its still only just scratched the surface, and says that it's already hard at work on opening up an even wider bandgap, achieving even higher electric fields, further improving the on-off current ratios of graphene FETs.

IBM opens up graphene bandgap, edges closer to commercialization originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 13:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung's 3D Blu-ray player available for preorder on Amazon: $399

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/samsungs-3d-blu-ray-player-available-for-preorder-on-amazon-3/

It feels like we just left our shutter glasses behind at CES, but already a few of Samsung's new 2010 Blu-ray players (all featuring Internet@TV and Samsung Apps features) have popped up for preorders on Amazon, including the 3D playing BD-C6900. The company just announced 240HZ 3D LCDs have begun mass production and isn't waiting for the competition before diving in, issuing the first price we've seen for one of the new plays at a penny shy of $400. Moving down the line the super slim and woodgrain textured, but 2D only, BD-C7500 is also $399.99, while the speedy BD-C6500 and its promised 15 second bootup time is set for $299. The entry level and eco-focused BD-C5500 is still unpriced but instead of asking whether you can afford the price of a 3D Blu-ray player, ask yourself if you can afford not to own a Blu-ray player with a hole in the top. The answer should be obvious.

Gallery: Samsung BD-C6900 3D Blu-ray player

Samsung's 3D Blu-ray player available for preorder on Amazon: $399 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell Adamo falls to under $1,000 for the first time, tempts you mercilessly

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/dell-adamo-falls-to-under-1-000-for-the-first-time-tempts-you/

You know what's hard to resist? This. You know what else is difficult to turn a blind eye to? One of the sexiest machines Dell has ever made, at a price point that's below the all-important four figure mark. Starting today, the Adamo Admire is sporting an altogether sultry base price of $999, which nets you a 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, Windows 7 Home (64-bit), 2GB of DDR3 RAM and a 128GB solid state drive. If that's a little weak for your tastes, the upmarket Adamo Desire has also undergone a price reduction, enabling you to get a 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo chip, 4GB of memory, integrated mobile broadband and a 256GB SSD for $1,799 -- a full $500 less than it was in October. You're blowing it off like you just don't care, but you know you'll be back to visit that Source link when no one's looking. And the video after the jump, too.

[Thanks, Ben and Ryan]

Continue reading Dell Adamo falls to under $1,000 for the first time, tempts you mercilessly

Dell Adamo falls to under $1,000 for the first time, tempts you mercilessly originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adobe Responds to the iPad's Lack of Flash [Flash]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/bW5qgzfQLj4/adobe-responds-to-the-ipads-lack-of-flash

As you're probably aware, the Apple iPad, like the iPhone and iPod Touch, doesn't support Flash. Apple has its reasons for this, but clearly Adobe isn't happy about it. Here's their response.

It looks like Apple is continuing to impose restrictions on their devices that limit both content publishers and consumers. Unlike many other ebook readers using the ePub file format, consumers will not be able to access ePub content with Apple's DRM technology on devices made by other manufacturers. And without Flash support, iPad users will not be able to access the full range of web content, including over 70% of games and 75% of video on the web.

If I want to use the iPad to connect to Disney, Hulu, Miniclip, Farmville, ESPN, Kongregate, or JibJab — not to mention the millions of other sites on the web — I'll be out of luck.

Adobe and more than 50 of our partners in the Open Screen Project are working to enable developers and content publishers to deliver to any device, so that consumers have open access to their favorite interactive media, content, and applications across platform, regardless of the device that people choose to use.

The main arguments against Flash running on the iPad are that it's a resource hog and a security risk. Both true! Hopefully the web is moving away from relying on Flash for videos and ugly menus, with HTML5 acting as a more-than-adequate replacement. But we're not there yet. While I can appreciate the fact that Apple is trying to keep the iPad more stable by not including Flash, the fact that it kills off most online gaming and video streaming in the process makes the tradeoff questionable. [Adobe]

Apple's A4 chip is ARM Cortex A9 with an ARM Mali GPU?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/apples-a4-is-an-arm-based-system-on-a-chip-a-la-tegra-2/

For some of us, amid all the hubbub about revolutions and whatnot yesterday, the most significant announcement on hand was Apple's supposedly custom A4 CPU. Alas, in the cold and brutal light of the morning after, we're hearing that it is in fact a system-on-a-chip driven by a Cortex-A9 MPCore CPU "identical" to the one found inside NVIDIA's Tegra 2, while besting the iPhone 3GS significantly with its 1GHz speed and multicore architecture. The A4 is composed of that Cortex barnburner, an integrated memory controller, and the Mali 50-series GPU, making it an all ARM affair -- though we still don't know how much Apple and PA Semi did in terms of arranging and integrating those components within the silicon. While still not 100 percent confirmed, it would seem there were no revolutions on the iPad's processing front -- just a rebranded bit of well engineered hardware.

Apple's A4 chip is ARM Cortex A9 with an ARM Mali GPU? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 04:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Panasonic's geotagging DMC-ZS7 compact superzoom gets handled

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/panasonics-geotagging-dmc-zs7-compact-superzoom-gets-handled/

Panasonic's geotagging DMC-ZS7 superzoom compact gets handled

It's been just a few days since Panasonic took the wraps off its update to the DMC-ZS3 that we liked so very much, the new DMC-ZS7, and Zumo Blog has been already given the opportunity to take a few pictures of one in the wild. The changes here are mostly evolutionary, with the same impressive 25 - 300mm 12x zoom lens on the front and the same AVCHD Lite 720p recording mode. New, though, is a GPS module nestled on top, capable of automatically tagging your photos, the SD slot can now accept SDXC cards, and it looks like the mode dial has been moved to a more natural position left of the shutter release. Still no word on price, but expect this one not to fall far from its predecessor's $399 MSRP.

Filed under: GPS

Panasonic's geotagging DMC-ZS7 compact superzoom gets handled originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cypress demos 14-inch TrueTouch capacitive multitouch screen

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/cypress-demos-14-inch-truetouch-capacitive-multitouch-screen/

How big can tablets get? Pretty big, according to the folks at Cypress Semiconductor, who say their new new TrueTouch technology can be applied to capacitive screens ranging from seven to seventeen inches, all of which will have full multitouch support. To drive that point home, the company has now shown off a 14-inch "tablet-sized" prototype screen, which is able to recognize unlimited finger touches, and could potentially also find its way into laptops or convertible tablets (it's already Windows 7 certified). Of course, there's no word on any actual products using the screens just yet, but you can get an idea of what might be in store by checking out the video after the break.

Continue reading Cypress demos 14-inch TrueTouch capacitive multitouch screen

Cypress demos 14-inch TrueTouch capacitive multitouch screen originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 12:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SOCIAL MEDIA NYC: Feb 3rd 4-6p Navigating Social Media in Healthcare & Pharma ONLY A FEW SPACES LEFT - http://bit.ly/7mzMK0

How Do I Speed Up Hundreds of Audio Files? [Ask Lifehacker]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/XwjGXC1GORM/how-do-i-speed-up-hundreds-of-audio-files

Dear Lifehacker,
I have unabridged Asimov audiobooks that are great, but read at a mind-wrenchingly slow pace. I can boost an MP3's speed 20 percent using Audacity, but I have around 250 MP3s. How can I process these files all at once?

Signed,
Sped-Up Sci-Fi Fan

Dear Sped-Up,

If you were a command line geek, or knew one who owed you a favor, speeding up all of your audiobooks at once would probably be a five-minute affair. That said, it's not that difficult to set up a "Chain" in Audacity (which runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux) that you can apply to multiple files from inside the program.

You already know the effect you want to apply to all your MP3s: a 20 percent "speed" increase, where pitch and tempo are sped up at the same time and no correction is applied, as if you were just playing a tape faster. Most folks would go for "ChangeTempo" instead, because a ChangeSpeed on a normal narrator sounds pretty Alvin & The Chipmunks. Still, you described your audiobook narrator as "mind-wrenchingly slow." Let's set this speed-up as a chain by hitting the File menu in Audacity and selecting "Edit Chains"—it's down near the bottom of the menu.

Update: If you don't see "Edit Chains" in your File menu, you may need to upgrade to the latest Beta release, as opposed to Stable.

You'll get a new window with two "chains" pre-loaded as examples. Hit the "Add" button in the lower left, give your new "chain" a name like "Asimov Audiobook Speed-Up," and hit OK. You'll notice that there's a single command listed for your new chain in the right-hand window, but it's just an empty "END" command. Double-click that command, or hit "Add." You'll get a pop-up window asking you to select a command and edit its parameters.

Click on the image below for a larger view.

I double-clicked "Change Speed" in the commands window, and it auto-filled the fields above with the basic command line operation to run a speed change on files. It's set to 0 percent, however, which won't do us much good. Hit "Edit Parameters," and you'll get a slider and numeric input you can use to set a percentage for the speed-up or slow down. You can use the automatic vinyl conversion tools if you were copying a 33 1/3 record to some other format, but we already know our number, 20 percent, and we'll stick with that. I'm not sure how the Preview button is supposed to work, but let's just leave it alone. Hit OK, hit OK back at the command chooser, and OK once more at the Edit Chains box, where you can see your one-line Asimov Audiobook Speed-Up chain.

Back in Audacity, close any files you happen to have open for editing. Hit the File menu and select "Apply Chain," and in the dialog that pops up, select your Asimov chain and click the "Apply to Files" button. Choose the audio files you want to run through your speed wringer. Audacity isn't the A-number-One most stable program I've ever used, so I'd recommend running around 10 files at a time through your chain—then again, maybe you can plug in 30 files at a time and just deal with the crashes when they happen, since it processes them one at a time anyways.

Audacity will run through your files and convert them, one by one, and show you its progress. Not every Audacity command can be plugged into a "chain," but speed change just so happens to be one of the lucky ones.

Good luck with your listening,
Lifehacker

P.S. — We truly do appreciate the smiling coincidence of devising an automation process for the preeminent author of robotic-based fiction.

DÃ©jÃ Click Lets You Record and Automate Browsing Activities [Downloads]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/2nYaybCm4U0/dejaclick-lets-you-record-and-automate-browsing-activities

Firefox: If you've ever been annoyed by having to do repetitive actions on a web site with no way to automate them, DéjàClick can help. Record and play back browser-based actions with DéjàClick and skip tedious future clicks.

DéjàClick is a Firefox extension offered by AlertSite, a company that specializes in software designed to monitor web sites and alert the site owners if specified processes are not occurring properly—essentially using automated script "robots" to go test out things like the search function and the checkout process. DéjàClick is their free offering for non-commercial use to allow users to record their own browsing and play it back to automate processes later on.

Any time there is an instance where you have to actually interact with the browser—as opposed to using a bookmark to jump somewhere in a site or a login tool—you can use DéjàClick to record yourself performing the actions and store that recording as a script. Every time you visit that site or interface again you can execute that script and save yourself the hassle. Check out the company site here or visit the link below to grab the extension.

DéjàClick [via MakeUseOf]

AutoHotkey AutoInclude Organizes, Consolidates Your AHK Workflow [Autohotkey]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/EmOu8gdrRyc/autohotkey-autoinclude-organizes-consolidates-your-ahk-workflow

Ed note: We love AutoHotkey around Lifehacker HQ due to its powerful Windows tweaking skills, so we were thrilled when Reader Scott Rippey wrote in with this extremely smart script for managing your AHK scripts.

I'm ashamed to say that this is my first contribution to Lifehacker. I say "ashamed" because I've been taking and taking, and I haven't given anything in return! So I thought it was high-time I contributed my most helpful AutoHotkey script. I call it "AutoInclude".

There are 2 problems that it solves: first, as an avid reader of Lifehacker, and a huge user of AHK, I come across dozens of GREAT scripts that I want to incorporate into my own "main script", but it can be quite a hassle combining them all into a single AHK file. Take a look at all these scripts:

Second, I use AHK on my Work PC, my laptop, and my Media Center — and I have different AHK needs for each of these locations, but I still want some AHK code to be shared across the board.

My AutoInclude script scans a list of folders for *.ahk, and creates a temporary AHK file that "#Include"s them all, and then executes the temporary file. It allows me to keep all my scripts VERY organized, allows me to determine which scripts are appropriate for each computer, and lets me edit my scripts very easily! Finally, I put all my AutoHotkey scripts into a Live-Mesh-Synchronized folder and share it across all my PC's.

On each PC, I modify the top of the file to only include the folders that apply to that system (such as All, XP, and Tablet, versus All, Dual Monitor, and Work) and I comment out the rest:

Finally, when I run the script, I only have a single AHK process running! I love it.

The only thing that is tricky is the fact that "#Include"ing a bunch of files can cause possible issues if the script needs an "Auto-Execute" section. The solution is as follows:

If a script needs to auto-execute, then the first line of the file should be the comment "; Auto-Execute", followed by the auto-execute code as usual, and there MUST be a "Return" before any other code or hot-keys. The AutoInclude script will put a label in front of the "#Include" statement, and will call a GoSub to that label, thereby auto-executing it!

Take a look at the auto-generated script:

You can download my AutoHotkey AutoInclude script here.

Thanks Scott! Want to get your feet wet with AHK? Take a look at our beginner's guide to turning any action into a keyboard shortcut with AutoHotkey.

Ben Color Capture Finds the Perfect Paint Color Match with iPhone Pics [Downloads]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/gLky18KNi_0/ben-color-capture-finds-the-perfect-paint-color-match-with-iphone-pics

iPhone only: How do you know if the color you want so much for your kitchen renovation is sea foam green or surf green? Let the Ben Color Capture App for iPhone help you figure it out.

Inspiration strikes at the strangest times. You'll search for the perfect paint color for weeks, only to stumble across it splashed on the side of a city bus advertisement as you're heading to lunch. Whip out your iPhone, snap a pic, then fire up the Ben app. Open up the picture you just took, tap anywhere on the image that displays the color you like, and the app will name the closest match available in a Benjamin Moore paint color. Alternatively, you can use a picture you've already got stored in your camera roll.

A store locator feature lets you know the nearest place that stocks Benjamin Moore paint, so you can run right over and grab some. Once you've settled on a paint color you like, the app also clues you in on what other colors will compliment your selection and keep you from making eye-burning choices like purple walls with fuchsia trim.

If you're planning on doing some repainting, there's really no reason not to grab this handy and free little app.

The ben® Color Capture™ app for iPhone [via DIY Life]

Enable Firefox's Secret Mousewheel Scrolling Acceleration [Firefox Tips]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/_YtqnV-xqaI/enable-firefoxs-secret-mousewheel-scrolling-acceleration

Windows only: If you are accustomed to scrolling quickly through long documents, there's a secret Firefox 3.6 config setting that allows you to enable acceleration, which will scroll more quickly based on how many times you've scrolled.

To tweak the acceleration for yourself, head into Firefox's about:config page, and then filter by mousewheel.acceleration to find the two settings that apply—the mousewheel.acceleration.start setting actually enables acceleration by setting the number of times you need to scroll your mouse before the acceleration kicks in, while the mousewheel.acceleration.factor setting specifies how much acceleration to apply.

The new mouse wheel acceleration feature is disabled by default in Firefox 3.6 because it can conflict with your mouse drivers, especially if you've enabled faster scrolling in the Mouse panel in Control Panel, but you can tweak the setting either way. It's not a setting that everybody will want to apply, but if you're unhappy with the current Firefox scrolling, you can play around with the settings to figure out your preferred level of acceleration. It only works in Firefox 3.6 on Windows, and make sure to hit the link for a full explanation on how it works.

Faster! Accelerate Firefox 3.6 page scrolling [Mozilla Links via Life Rocks 2.0]

8 Things That Suck About the iPad [Dissenting Opinion]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Rd_y7uwogPE/8-things-that-suck-about-the-ipad

A lot of people at Gizmodo are psyched about the iPad. Not me! My god, am I underwhelmed by it. It has some absolutely backbreaking failures that will make buying one the last thing I would want to do. Updated

Big, Ugly Bezel
Have you seen the bezel on this thing?! It's huge! I know you don't want to accidentally input a command when your thumb is holding it, but come on.

No Multitasking
This is a backbreaker. If this is supposed to be a replacement for netbooks, how can it possibly not have multitasking? Are you saying I can't listen to Pandora while writing a document? I can't have my Twitter app open at the same time as my browser? I can't have AIM open at the same time as my email? Are you kidding me? This alone guarantees that I will not buy this product.

No Cameras
No front facing camera is one thing. But no back facing camera either? Why the hell not? I can't imagine what the downside was for including at least one camera. Could this thing not handle video iChat?

Touch Keyboard
So much for Apple revolutionizing tablet inputs; this is the same big, ugly touchscreen keyboard we've seen on other tablets, and unless you're lying on the couch with your knees propping it up, it'll be awkward to use.

No HDMI Out
Want to watch those nice HD videos you downloaded from iTunes on your TV? Too damned bad! If you were truly loyal, you'd just buy an AppleTV already.

The Name iPad
Get ready for Maxi pad jokes, and lots of 'em!

No Flash
No Flash is annoying but not a dealbreaker on the iPhone and iPod Touch. On something that's supposed to be closer to a netbook or laptop? It will leave huge, gaping holes in websites. I hope you don't care about streaming video! God knows not many casual internet users do. Oh wait, nevermind, they all do.

Adapters, Adapters, Adapters
So much for those smooth lines. If you want to plug anything into this, such as a digital camera, you need all sorts of ugly adapters. You need an adapter for USB for god's sake.

Update: Why stop at 8? Here are more things we are discovering that suck about the iPad.

It's Not Widescreen
Widescreen movies look lousy on this thing thanks to its 4:3 screen, according to Blam, who checked out some of Star Trek on one. It's like owning a 4:3 TV all over again!

Doesn't Support T-Mobile 3G
Sure, it's "unlocked." But it won't work on T-Mobile, and it uses microSIMs that literally no one else uses.

A Closed App Ecosystem
The iPad only runs apps from the App Store. The same App Store that is notorious for banning apps for no real reason, such as Google Voice. Sure, netbooks might not have touchscreens, but you can install whatever software you'd like on them. Want to run a different browser on your iPad? Too bad!

[This post does not necessarily reflect the opinions of others at Gizmodo]

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