Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Report: Google to Unify Chat as a New Service Called Babble

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5991263/report-google-to-unify-chat-as-a-new-service-called-babble

Report: Google to Unify Chat as a New Service Called Babble Google Talk is great: lightweight and fast. But then, Google's also got G+ messenger, Hangout, and even Drive Chat. There are currently so many options across its different platforms that it can get confusing—but Google Babble is apparently set to end that, with one unified, cross-platform chat solution, which will span Android, iOS, BlackBerry, and the cloud.

According to multiple sources talking to Geek, Google's building a whole new service, fresh from the ground up, to unify messaging across Google's various platforms, as well as the likes of iOS and BlackBerry too.

Babble will apparently work in a similar, melded fashion to the best of Google's current chat implementations. You'll be able to dump images in there, fire-up video chat Hangout-style, and chat in a threaded, conversation-organised style.

There's no timescale attached to the report, although Geek says that we'll see more come Google I/O this year. We just hope that it'll blend the best of both worlds when it comes to apps on the mobile side. [Geek]

Our newest offspring Gizmodo UK is gobbling up the news in a different timezone, so check them out if you need another Giz fix.

Just Re-Stack and Twist This Lamp When You Get Bored of Its Design

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5991135/just-re+stack-and-twist-this-lamp-when-you-get-bored-of-its-design

Simply re-organizing a room is the easiest—and cheapest—way to give it a fresh look. And the same applies to this Babele layered wooden lamp created by a studio calling themselves Manifattura Italiana Design, or MID for short.

Like a glowing version of the Tower of Hanoi puzzle, the central support of the Babele lamp lights up and is visible through a gap on all of the stacking pieces that define the lamp's shape. When assembled 'properly' it looks like a traditional lamp complete with a shade, but you're welcome to easily re-stack the layers however you want if a more abstract look is what you're after. The only real puzzle here is how to get your hands on one since there's no indication MID is putting the lamp into production.

[MID via Design Milk]

Google Maps brings you to Everest, Kilimanjaro with all your toes intact

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/18/google-everest/

Living vicariously just got a bit more exciting. Google Maps had added some of the most famous (and highest) mountains in the world to Street View. The list includes Aconcagua, Kilimanjaro, Mount Elbrus and Everest Base Camp -- four members of the Seven Summits, letting you explore some of the of the highest points on Earth without the aide of a breathing apparatus. According to Google, the shots were captured with the help of a tripod and a fish-eye-sporting digital camera. All of the aforementioned mountains can be reached in the source link below -- or with the assistance of a good support team.

Filed under: Alt, Google

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Source: Google

Wacom announces the Cintiq 13HD: a 13-inch pen display with Pro Pen in tow for $999

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/19/wacom-announces-the-cintiq-13hd/

Sure, Wacom's Cintiq 24HD is an excellent piece of kit for design pros, but the unit is quite the behemoth and the 22-inch offering still requires a lot of desk space. There's no need to worry about that anymore, though, as the graphics peripheral outfit has outed the Cintiq 13HD: a 13-inch HD pen display with an adjustable stand and a retooled Pro Pen. Much like its larger siblings, the 13HD offers customizable ExpressKeys and Rocker Ring to keep that workflow as efficient as possible. The aforementioned stand can be situated flat or positioned at angles of 22, 35, and 50 degrees for that next Illustrator session. Details are scarce on the full list of improvements for the Pro Pen, but we do know that it sports 2,048 levels of sensitivity and tilt recognition to boot. If all of that sounds too good to resist, these bad boys will start shipping in early April with a price tag of $1,000 or £749.99 (incl. VAT). The full press release and a couple more snapshots await just past the break.

Gallery: Wacom Cintiq 13HD