Friday, June 18, 2010

How to Set Up OpenID on Your Own Domain [How To]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5566470/how-to-set-up-openid-on-your-own-domain

open-id-bp-2.jpgOpenID is an open standard for logging onto various web services with a single digital identity. The tool puts your online identity back in your hands—and as it turns out, OpenID on your own domain is surprisingly easy.

For some reason I was under the mistaken impression that setting up an OpenID on my own domain, ginatrapani.org, would be a big hassle: that I'd have to host my own OpenID server software and that it would take all sorts of installation and maintenance BS to do so. I feel strongly about owning my identity online, mapping it to my nameplate domain, and actively choosing an authorizing party instead of just accepting the sign-in service du jour like Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, or Google.

Still, I never got set up with OpenID on ginatrapani.org because my perceived hassle factor was daunting. Instead, I used idproxy.net for my OpenID and put the domain setup on my "someday I have to do that" list. It meant that my OpenID was ginatrapani.idproxy.net instead of my own domain. Idproxy is a great service and I thank them for getting me started with OpenID; but still, I want my OpenID URL to be a domain name I own and control.

Turns out I was dead wrong about the hassle. Setting up OpenID capabilities on your own domain name is a two-lines-of-HTML affair, and it's finally done. (Thanks to Chris Messina for bringing me into the year 2006.) If you're interested in doing the same, here's what to know.

First, Google Profiles (and, it turns out, idproxy.net and ClaimID and a bunch of other OpenID providers) can work with your domain name, so all I have to do is add a few <link rel> tags to your HTML to get things working. Second, you can specify multiple OpenID providers, so if idproxy.net was down or Google Profiles was down, you can have a provider fallback. Sweet. Now, in the <head> tags of ginatrapani.org you will find the following:

 <link rel="openid2.provider" href="https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/ud?source=profiles" > <link rel="openid2.local_id" href="http://www.google.com/profiles/ginatrapani" >

That sets Google Profiles as the authorizing party for my OpenID, but my OpenID URL is ginatrapani.org. You can see my new OpenID in action right here; I signed into this very site with my new OpenID and posted a comment.

I'm not sure yet how to set Idproxy as my "fallback" provider just yet; if you know how to do that, post it up in the comments.

Thanks to the folks in this Stack Overflow thread for clearing up how to use Google Profiles as an OpenID provider and to Chris for a great discussion of OpenID, OAuth, and verifying identity on the web.

Smarterware is Lifehacker editor emeritus Gina Trapani's new home away from 'hacker. To get all of the latest from Smarterware, be sure to subscribe to the Smarterware RSS feed.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:28 AM

Imagine Toshiba's 128GB NAND Flash Memory In Your Next Phone [Memory]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5565944/imagine-toshibas-128gb-nand-flash-memory-in-your-next-phone

Imagine Toshiba's 128GB NAND Flash Memory In Your Next PhoneThey invented flash memory, so it's only fitting that Toshiba has now produced another world first for NAND memory: the first with 128GB of capacity. Just think what media you could store on your phone with that module.

It squishes 16 64Gb of NAND chips together, and should be shipping out to manufacturers this September. Will it be seen in phones anytime soon? iPods, even? [Toshiba via CrunchGear]

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Posted by Augustine at 12:27 AM

Japan's Space-Surfing Solar Sail Photographed For First Time [Space]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5566060/japans-space+surfing-solar-sail-photographed-for-first-time

Japan's Space-Surfing Solar Sail Photographed For First TimeGood news for the Little Japanese Solar Sail That Could, as the first images of the solar sail spread out in full deployment have been snapped. All is going according to plan, says the space agency, and "flying" looks possible.

Just last week the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency unfurled the solar sail in space, but it now needs to make tracks through space to prove that solar-powered travel is indeed possible. It works by reflecting solar radiation back at the sun, propelling (theoretically) the sail through space. IKAROS has been given five months to prove its worth in space, as it heads towards the planet Venus (for a bit of luuuurve, naturally). [JAXA via DiscoveryNews]

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Posted by Augustine at 12:26 AM

Droid 2: First Impressions [Motorola]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5566654/droid-2-first-impressions

Droid 2: First ImpressionsGizmodo reader Zack recently had a chance to play with Verizon's next offering, the Motorola Droid 2. He sent us his impressions, some details about the specs, and a few extra pictures.

Zack wrote:

I am a summer intern at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (NASA) this summer and today there was a tech show on the lab. There were a lot of cool new technologies along with booths for companies like Microsoft, Apple, Sprint, and Verizon.

I went over to the Verizon booth and was surprised to see a curious-looking phone next to regulars like Blackberries and the Droid Incredible. I picked up the phone and once I looked at it more closely I realized it was the Droid 2. I asked the representatives and they told me that they weren't sure exactly what the name was going to be, but that it was indeed the successor to the original Motorola Droid.

It felt really nice in my hand. It seems smoother than the original Droid. A lot more curves and less sharp edges. Held next to my original Droid, it seems exactly the same size The headphone jack, volume buttons, power/sleep button, and the Micro-USB port were all in the same place and pretty much exactly like the original. The camera button is also in the same place, but smaller and the same color as the volume buttons.

The camera on the back was a 5.0 megapixel, so I don't know why it isn't any better than the original Droid's. The camera was definitely faster though. It took a picture very quickly compared to the original. The whole device was a dark crome-like color instead of the original Droid's black. The soft keys were touch-sensitive at the bottom and were in a different order than on the original phone. It still had the Motorola and Verizon logos, as well as the "with Google."

Opening it up, the keyboard is definitely wider and has blue coloring instead of the gold from the original. I didn't see any gold on the entire thing actually. (No more Batman similarities!) I was happy to see that the directional pad was changed so that you have the four arrows—similar to a real computer keyboard. It's not easy to tell in the pictures, but it was nice that there was no lip on the right side when the phone was open. That combined with the wider keyboard made it easier to type on the device. My favorite part about the keyboard was the button for voice commands on the lower left. I have always wanted that on my Droid, so I'm glad to see it on the new one.

From what I have seen of the Droid X and the Ninjablur thing, this device was running the same skin on top of Android 2.1. When I asked about the software, the Verizon representatives told me that it most probably wouldn't be coming with that on it and would probably have Froyo (Android 2.2) plain (without any skin). She said that if it does come out with Android 2.1, it will gt updated very quickly.

The device was running 2.1 and it had 8GB of internal memory as well as an 8GB micro-SD card. The model number says A955 and on the bottom of the device it said "G4DR 4722," but I believe this is just because it is a demo device. The representative did tell me that it had a 1 Ghz processor, but she didnt say what kind.

The representative wouldn't tell me when it will be released, but she said in the next few weeks.

Zack's observations and impressions match what we've heard about the Droid 2 so far, but we'll get to get our own hands on the device soon.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:24 AM

OnLive Streaming Game Service Launches, First Year Free [Gaming]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5566680/onlive-streaming-game-service-launches-first-year-free

OnLive Streaming Game Service Launches, First Year FreeThe OnLive service which renders console and PC games in the cloud and then streams them to your PC or Mac has gone live today. And you can get the first year of OnLive membership for free.

Note that what you're getting for free is the OnLive membership—which is normally $4.95/month—and not the games. Prices for those will vary, but here are some of the titles you can look forward to:

Assassin's Creed 2, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction from Ubisoft; Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins from Electronic Arts; Batman: Arkham Asylum and Just Cause 2 from Square Enix; Borderlands, NBA 2K10 and MLB 2K10 from Take Two; Red Faction: Guerilla from THQ; Fear 2: Project Origin from Warner Bros. Interactive Games; and DiRT 2 from Codemasters along with other great games from publishers, both large and small, representing a wide range of genres.

You can read about what we thought about the service and games here first if you're not too eager to sign up just yet. [OnLive—Thanks, Jess!]

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Posted by Augustine at 12:24 AM

HTC Aria review

Source: http://mobile.engadget.com/2010/06/17/htc-aria-review/

It's sort of hard to believe, but AT&T finally has an Android phone worth paying attention to. Mind you, the AT&T compatible Nexus One is easily the best Googlephone on America's largest GSM operator, but this is the first one that the company has bothered to brand and sell on a subsidized plan within its own stores. Pundits could argue the reasons why forever, but considering that the carrier's doing all it can just to keep up with the demand for iPhones, it's hard to imagine that AT&T has been longing to pursue Android with reckless abandon. Believe it or not, it's been over 1.5 years since T-Mobile gave the world the first taste of a mobile OS that would soon rival (and surpass) the other options already on the table, but outside of the forgettable Backflip (and the nowhere-to-be-found Aero), there's been no Android to speak of on AT&T. HTC has somehow managed to break down the blue and orange walls, piercing the heart of a hardened operator and squeezing a delightful mid-range Android smartphone into a lineup that's about to be monumentally overshadowed by the iPhone 4. So, is the HTC Aria worth the $129.99 that you'll be forced to pay on a 2-year agreement when it ships on June 20th? Read on to find out.

Continue reading HTC Aria review

HTC Aria review ! original ly appeared on Engadget Mobile on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 11:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:22 AM

Samsung Captivate is AT&T's version of the Galaxy S, launching 'in the coming months'

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/samsung-captivate-is-atandts-version-of-the-galaxy-s-launching/

So much for the "AT&T refuses to release high-end Android devices" conspiracy theory, eh? T-Mobile had been widely pegged as Samsung's launch partner for the Galaxy S in the States, but AT&T stole its thunder this morning by announcing the Captivate featuring a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, Android 2.1, 7.2Mbps HSPA, and a 1GHz Hummingbird processor. If it sounds more or less like the European Galaxy S, well, your intuitions are spot-on -- AT&T actually describes the Captivate as "a Galaxy S smartphone." As for media, you can expect a 5 megapixel camera with 720p recording, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and 16GB of onboard storage combined with support for external storage for a total of up to 32GB; you also have 802.11n WiFi and a variety of built-in apps (some of which you'll want, others you won't) like Swype and AT&T Navigator. Unfortunately, this is a little while out yet -- AT&T is only saying that it'll launch "in the coming months" for an undisclosed price -- but we're at least stoked that AT&T's finally fully entrenched in the Android superphone game. Follow the break for the full press release.

Continue reading Samsung Captivate is AT&T's version of the Galaxy S, launching 'in the coming months'

Samsung Captivate is AT&T's version of the Galaxy S, launching 'in the coming months' originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 12:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceAT&T  | Email this | Comments

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Posted by Augustine at 12:22 AM

Check out our Dell Streak hub!

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/check-out-our-dell-streak-hub/

This one's been around quite a long time, but we've finally managed to cobble together just about all the knowledge we could dig up about the Dell Streak into one delicious, beautiful hub. Make sure you check it out.

Check out our Dell Streak hub! originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 12:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:22 AM

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480M reviewed: fastest mobile GPU to date

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/nvidia-geforce-gtx-480m-reviewed-fastest-mobile-gpu-to-date/

It's one thing to have a product called the world's fastest on paper, but it's another thing entirely to have the benchmarks confirm it. NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 480M has been swooned over for months now, but it just recently hit the hardcore review sites in a big way. Frankly, there's not a whole lot to say about the thing at this point: it's simply the fastest mobile GPU to date, with Hot Hardware finding it to be "significantly faster in nearly all gaming benchmarks," with just one title showing the Mobility Radeon HD 5870 as the champ by only a few frames. If you've been searching for the fastest mobile GPU in town, you're wasting your time looking any harder; 'course, all of that power consumes an insane level of energy, so true road warriors will certainly want to look elsewhere. Critics pointed out that energy consumption and excess heat were real issues, though both of those are easily overlooked when you're able to take a beastly laptop to a LAN party rather than your desktop. Give those links below a visit if you still need proof.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480M reviewed: fastest mobile GPU to date originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 13:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceHot Hardware, Notebook Check  | Email this | Comments

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Posted by Augustine at 12:22 AM

Toshiba busts out the Mini NB250 netbook, drops price on NB305

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/toshiba-busts-out-the-mini-nb250-netbook/

Toshiba's just not stopping with the laptops this week, and has now outed the 10.1-inch Mini NB250 netbook, while also refreshing the Mini NB305 with an Intel Atom N455 processor. The new Mini NB250 boasts a typical 1,024 x 600 resolution backlit LED, a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N455 CPU, integrated GMA 3150 graphics, 1GB of DDR3 RAM, and a 250GB hard drive. It's also packing three USB ports, a multicard reader and a webcam, plus 802.11 b/g/n wireless, Ethernet and Bluetooth. It comes with a three-cell battery standard, but there's an optional six-cell which will purportedly get you around eight and a half hours of life. The NB250 doesn't have a nicely coated chiclet keyboard like the Mini NB305, but for $299 we won't complain. Truthfully, the NB305 continues to be our fave netbook, especially now that Tosh has dropped the price down to $379. We've got some hands-on shots below and the full press release after the break.

Continue reading Toshiba busts out the Mini NB250 netbook, drops price on NB305

Toshiba busts out the Mini NB250 netbook, drops price on NB305 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 14:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourcePitch Engine  | Email this | Comments

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Posted by Augustine at 12:22 AM

iPhone 4 to have 512MB of RAM, double the 3GS and iPad?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/iphone-4-to-have-512mb-of-ram-double-the-3gs-and-ipad/

Apple has traditionally been -- how shall we put it -- cagey with revealing memory and CPU specifics of its mobile devices, but MacRumors is today reporting its discovery that the fourth-gen iPhone's RAM apportionment will be a very healthy 512MB. We've heard similar rumblings from reliable sources of our own. What it means is that iPhone 4 users can look forward to not only the same processor (though potentially at a lower speed) as their iPad compatriots, but also double the memory allowance. Of course, this will hardly be the first handset to offer half a gig for the OS to dance inside, but at least Apple's keeping up with the times. Wouldn't wanna disappoint all those pre-orderers now, would we?

iPhone 4 to have 512MB of RAM, double the 3GS and iPad? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 15:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:21 AM

HTC Legend with North American 3G now available unlocked

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/htc-legend-with-north-american-3g-now-available-unlocked/

Sure, the Desire's coming to a handful of regional American carriers later this year, but what if you want the smaller, sleeker, more aluminum-clad Legend? Well, there aren't any carrier-branded options in the States -- but it seems that a number of unlocked units with US 3G bands are starting to ooze out of the cracks. Negri Electronics has an 850 / 1900MHz 3G Legend in its store for a shade under $500, which means you're not getting much of a discount over the more powerful 850 / 1900MHz version of the Nexus One -- but you are getting a pretty sweet unibody shell and an optical d-pad. Any takers?

HTC Legend with North American 3G now available unlocked originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 18:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PocketNow.com  |  sourceNegri Electronics  | Email this | Comments

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Posted by Augustine at 12:20 AM

Check out our NVIDIA Optimus hub!

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/check-out-our-nvidia-optimus-hub/

If you're really, really into NVIDIA's Optimus switchable graphics (like some people around here) then you'll certainly want to hit up our brand new hub, which features all the products we've reviewed and all the things we know about our favorite topic.

Check out our NVIDIA Optimus hub! originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 20:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:20 AM

Droid 2 (or whatever it's called) for Verizon breaks cover once again

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/droid-2-breaks-cover-once-again/

Nothing new here, but at this point, Motorola's delicious duo of fresh Android phones for Verizon is leaking like... well, like a leaky faucet, we suppose. We've already got the full scoop on the keyboardless 4.3-inch Droid X -- a beast ready to take on sworn enemies from HTC like the EVO 4G and the Droid Incredible -- and we've seen plenty of details on the so-called Droid 2, too. The latter appears destined to replace the original Droid with a better keyboard layout and ever-so-gently refined ergonomics, but the latest leak from a Gizmodo tipster confirms that the cam's still 5 megapixels and it's currently running Android 2.1 atop Moto's new-look Blur (interestingly, the "Droid 2" name couldn't be confirmed). Apparently it's set for release in the "next few weeks," which would line up with rumors we've heard in the past of a launch windows somewhere between July and August -- so here's the real question: X or 2?

Droid 2 (or whatever it's called) for Verizon breaks cover once again originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 23:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceGizmodo  | Email this | Comments

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Posted by Augustine at 12:20 AM

Acer comes clean with new Aspire One availability and pricing

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/acer-comes-clean-with-new-aspire-one-availability-and-pricing/

We've pretty much known about all of these Acer netbooks that are officially being announced today, but their very tempting price tags are definitely new to us. First up is the 11.6-inch Aspire One 721 and 10.1-inch 521, both of which we checked out last month. While the duo are powered by the same AMD Athlon II Neo K125 processors and ATI Radeon HD 4225 graphics, the 721 will start at $429.99 while the 521 at $349.99. And let's not forget that, unlike Intel Atom powered netbooks, they sport HDMI ports and claim to be "HD capable." Speaking of Intel netbooks, Acer's got those in store too -- the 10-inch, Atom powered Aspire One D260 and 533 will also be available later this month. The D620 packs an Atom N450 processor, 1GB of RAM and a three-cell battery for $298. On the flip side, the $330 Aspire One 533 has a slightly faster N475 processor, a 250GB hard drive and a six-cell battery. Enticing, right? The full press release is after the break, but hopefully we'll be able to assist you in choosing one of these with some full reviews soon.

Continue reading Acer comes clean with new Aspire One availability and pricing

Acer comes clean with new Aspire One availability and pricing originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Posted by Augustine at 12:20 AM

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