Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Monday, August 31, 2009

S4ve.as Makes File Sharing as Easy as Sharing a URL [Sharing]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/548uo2tvDGE/s4veas-makes-file-sharing-as-easy-as-sharing-a-url

Need to share a file quickly and without the hassle of setting up a file server or other dedicated connection between you and the recipient? S4ve.as makes transferring a file as simple as pasting a URL.

Visit the s4ve.as web site, select a file you want to share, upload that file, and you're given a URL. The URL is good for 24 hours from the time of creation. Anyone who visits it can download the file you've shared. You don't need to be online, the file is temporarily stored on the s4ve.as servers.

S4ve.as is a free service with no restrictions on the size of the file you can upload. Have a great solution for simple file sharing? Let's hear it in the comments.

Pingdom Uptime-Monitoring Service Now Offering Free Accounts [Site Tools]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/EQKKLCx4tAI/pingdom-uptime+monitoring-service-now-offering-free-accounts

The popular web site uptime-monitoring service Pingdom is now offering free accounts.

The free account provides monitoring for a single web site, 20 SMS alerts—you can purchase more if you need them—and unlimited email alerts. If you want to monitor multiple sites and have access to the advanced features you'll still need a premium account.

Check out the Pingdom site for additional information on free and premium accounts.

Pingdom [via Blogscoped]

Moonbell Creates "Beautiful" "Music" From the Lunar Surface [Music]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/GSYuL7OU4tk/moonbell-creates-beautiful-music-from-the-lunar-surface

Moonbell, a surprisingly complex MIDI composer and visualizer that draws inspiration from lunar topographical data, poses a pressing question: Are there songs hidden in the moon's jagged geography? The answer depends heavily on your definition of the word "songs."

Created in part by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, this animated web toy might not render the most appealing soundscapes straight away, but it gives you plenty of tools to at least try to coax notes out of two years of topographical data collected by the Kaguya moon orbiter. There are two playback modes: Orbit, which translates the altitudes along a fixed rotational path into sounds, sort of like a phonograph needle; and Free Scratch, which lets you plot a listening path along the moon's surface with your cursor. Both modes have a slew of MIDI instrument options, as well as adjustable speed.

Fiddle as I may, I couldn't really create anything that most people wold consider listenable—the only consistent aesthetic I could achieve was "Childhood Clown Nightmare"—but that's not the point: For a certain class of aspirational armchair astronauts, anything that brings us even a micrometer closer to experiencing space, the moon, or really, anything that isn't earth in a new way, is an unqualified, unconditional Good Thing. [Moonbell via Pink Tentacle]

Casio's Budget EXILIM Zoom ZZ-280 Records in 720p, EX-Z33 For $120 [Point-and-shoots]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/C2j0ufDRTnM/casios-budget-exilim-zoom-zz+280-records-in-720p-ex+z33-for-120

Casio released two budget EXILIM point-and-shoots this morning. The new $180 Zoom EX-Z280 packs a few higher end features, including 720p recording, while the $120 EX-Z33 is your basic shooter.

The 12.1 megapixel EXILIM Zoom EX-Z280, likes its name leads, has a wide-angle 26 mm 4X optical zoom lens. From the pictures it looks to have a nice compact body and comes with standard features including a CCD-shift image stabilization mechanism and face detection function. Casio is also touting its high-speed image processing CPU, which allows it to run its EXILIM Engine 4.0 on the camera itself (that includes editing abilities, etc.). It can also shoot 720p. All in all, not too bad for under $200.

A bit more basic, the 10.1 megapixel EXILIM EX-Z33 has a 3X optical zoom lens. Meant for the beginner, it features an easy mode and though it won't shoot 720p you can record some YouTube friendly 640 x 480 resolution video. You can snatch this guy up in the colors of the rainbow, including black, light pink, darker pink, silver and blue. [Casio]

HTC Touch Pro2 Launching On Sprint September 8th For $350 [Sprint]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Q5lQ8fqeda0/htc-touch-pro2-launching-on-sprint-september-8th-for-350

Sprint customers that were riding high on the possibility that the HTC Touch Pro2 would arrive on their network were shot back down to earth today as the official word reveals a September 8th release date for $350.

Don't worry guys, you are not alone. T-Mobile received the same abusive price treatment. Oh, and did I mention that this price was on a 2-year contract after a $100 mail in rebate? Even the earliest of adopters are likely to be put off on this one. [BusinessWire via BGR]

ASUS' Future Netbooks (Including Nvidia Ion and Multitouch Models) Forget XP, Run Windows 7 [NetBooks]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/WG3wKjEO4Po/asus-future-netbooks-including-nvidia-ion-and-multitouch-models-forget-xp-run-windows-7

Arrivederci Windows XP on netbooks? If you believe leaked road maps, ASUS will release a handful of new netbooks in the U.S. running Windows 7 (Starter and Home Premium editions) and a 12-inch Eee PC with Nvidia's Ion.

There was speculation that many netbook vendors wouldn't choose Windows 7 Starter because of its limitations, including the inability to change the wallpaper and run Areo, and opt to go with the similarly priced, yet outdated Windows XP. However it appears that ASUS is betting on Win 7.

According to the road map most of its upcoming 10-inch netbook line, which includes its 1005HA and 1008HA series will run Windows 7 Starter (which IMHO kinda sucks).

We have heard from a source that ASUS will focus on Windows 7 on netbooks and has been working with Microsoft to tweak the BIOS of the Eee PCs. That still won't fix Starter's limitations, however.

The roadmap also reveals that a $499 12-inch ASUS 1201N which will pack Nvidia's Ion solution (Intel's Atom N270 and GeForce 9400M graphics) and run Windows 7 Home Premium is set to release sometime in October. It will have a six-cell battery and a 250GB hard drive.

It also looks like ASUS will slap some multitouch on top of the Eee PC T91 and put on Windows 7 Home Premium.[Eee User Forum via NetbookNews]

Video: ASUS EeeTop PC ET2002T gets touched up

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/video-asus-eeetop-pc-et2002t-gets-touched-up/

We might already have all the specalicious details on the new EeeTops from ASUS, but it never hurts to see one in action, right? Taking center stage here is the voice-activated widgetry ASUS has added to its Windows 7 install, allowing you to check the weather, play music, and even initiate Skype calls solely via the awesomeness of your voice. Expected to retail at €599 in Europe, the 20-inch ET2002T definitely looks sleek, though its screen is glossy enough for the camera girl to wave at us surreptitiously a number of times. Check it out, but be warned, there's a small bit of salty language midway through, which is as inappropriate for the office as it is hilarious.

[Via Notebook Italia]

Continue reading Video: ASUS EeeTop PC ET2002T gets touched up

Filed under: Desktops

Video: ASUS EeeTop PC ET2002T gets touched up originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 03:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS debuting two ultrathin laptops with 45nm Intel Penryn chips next week?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/asus-debuting-two-ultrathin-laptops-with-45nm-intel-penryn-chips/

Those 45nm Intel Celeron 743 and SU2300 CPUs we've been seeing on spreadsheets and roadmaps may have found themselves a home with ASUS, if this DigiTimes report has any weight to it. According to the outlet, two new ultrathin portables powered by the aforementioned processors are set to launch on September 7th, with the first markets to get shipments being Taiwan, China, and Europe. Details are scarce beyond that and there's no mention of price, but we wouldn't be surprised to see it hit the $700 mark up to maybe even $1,000. Other sources say MSI and Acer will be making announcements of their own ultrathin laptops not too long after. September 7th is mighty soon, so part of us wonders if "launch" here is simply an unveiling, but in either case if there is something going on in a week, we can't imagine we'll get through the next few days without new factoids trickling out in the open.

Filed under: Laptops

ASUS debuting two ultrathin laptops with 45nm Intel Penryn chips next week? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 05:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nikon Coolpix S1000pj won't be with us until October, others also delayed

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/nikon-coolpix-s1000pj-wont-be-with-us-until-october-others-als/

Alas, our dream of rocking parties with the projector-packing s1000pj will have to wait an extra month. Turns out that demand for the shooter was so high that even Nikon, whose sole purpose in life is making imaging equipment, couldn't satiate it in time. The new dates for your calendar are October 23 for the 12.1 megapixel, 5x optical zoom S1000pj, and September 19 for its S70 and S570 brethren. The S70 switches out the projector for a 3.5-inch OLED multitouch screen, and should prove quite the attractive proposition in its own right, but for now all we can do is look admiringly from afar. Sigh.

[Via Impress]

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Nikon Coolpix S1000pj won't be with us until October, others also delayed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 06:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Santech LV1 is low voltage and low fat, but not low price

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/santech-lv1-is-low-voltage-and-low-fat-but-not-low-price/

Santech might not be the most familiar name around here, but the company has a bit of history in the mobile field, and its latest 13.3-inch effort definitely merits a second look. Coming in under that magical mental barrier of an inch in thickness and sporting an Intel CULV processor, it's slinky and (just) powerful enough to be called an ultraportable. Add in a claimed 12 hours of battery life, and the LV1 would seem like a viable competitor to Acer's Timeline series, but it falters on pricing, which -- once you add the 8-cell battery to the base unit of a SU3500 1.4GHz CPU, 2GB RAM and 160GB HDD -- is €701 ($1,003) after taxes, or €100 more than an almost identical Aspire 3810T from Acer.

[Via Notebook Italia]

Filed under: Laptops

Santech LV1 is low voltage and low fat, but not low price originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 08:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS' Eee PC roadmap leaks: Ion-boasting netbooks, multitouch T91 coming soon?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/asus-eee-pc-roadmap-leaks-ion-boasting-netbooks-multitouch-t9/

If two slides leaked to the Eeeuser.com forum are to be believed, ASUS has some pretty interesting -- though not terrifically surprising -- netbooks on the horizon. The slides, which are apparently the company's roadmap for US products for the next two quarters, are chock full of refreshed product information. It looks like we're going to be seeing a brand new Eee PC, the 12-inch 1201N, which will bring NVIDIA's Ion platform to the line for the first time, with an Atom N270 CPU, 2GB RAM, a 250GB HDD, Bluetooth and 802.11n WiFi, running $499 for release in mid-October. Other than that, we can expect to see the 1005HA-P with the N280 processor and a 250GB HDD option running Windows 7 also arriving in October for $399, and the 1005HA-M with the N270 processor, a 250GB hard drive, and Windows 7 Starter Edition for $349. Finally, Netbook News is also reporting some new 1008HA models not listed on the slides, as well as a multitouch, Windows 7-running T91 convertible tablet with a 32GB SSD priced at $549. There's no timeline mentioned for this one, but we'll keep our ears to the ground expectantly. The other slide is after the break; hit the read link if you want the full details on each model.

[Via Netbook News]

Continue reading ASUS' Eee PC roadmap leaks: Ion-boasting netbooks, multitouch T91 coming soon?

Filed under: Laptops

ASUS' Eee PC roadmap leaks: Ion-boasting netbooks, multitouch T91 coming soon? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers developing OLEDs as cheap as newspapers?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/researchers-developing-oleds-as-cheap-as-newspapers/

Sure, it'll probably be a good while before you get your hands on an OLED TV, but don't lose heart, young gadget-head! Techno-wizards at the RIKEN center in Japan have concocted a new way to fashion OLEDs that eschews the standard spin-coated films for something called electrospray-deposited polymer films, incorporating "a novel dual-solvent concept" that makes the 'em "smoother than before, thereby enabling [...] superior devices." We'll skip a few details that don't mean anything to those of us who aren't Advanced Materials subscribers (hit the read link for more info) and get to the good stuff: Yutaka Yamagata, the guy who developed this technique, says it will lead to displays "manufactured as inexpensively as printing newspapers." Is that a promise, Yutaka? If so, we're holding you to it.

[Via OLED-Info]

Filed under: Displays

Researchers developing OLEDs as cheap as newspapers? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint follows T-Mobile's lead, wants $350 for HTC Touch Pro2

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/sprint-follows-t-mobiles-lead-wants-350-for-htc-touch-pro2/

We figured the suits over at T-Mobile USA were on some of that good stuff when they slapped an almost comical $350 (on contract) price tag on HTC's Touch Pro2, but evidently said "stuff" has made its way into the halls of Overland Park as well. After months of watching evidence mount, Sprint has finally come clean and admitted that HTC's EV-DO Rev. A-equipped superphone is coming to its network, and with it will come access to Sprint TV as well as NFL Mobile Live and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile apps. The smartphone will go on sale September 8th, though you'll have to pony up $349.99 (after a $100 mail-in rebate) in order to secure one on a two-year contract. We're all about that 3.6-inch WVGA tilting screen, but with Palm's Pre selling on this very network for a full $150 less, we're thinking this one won't appeal to many outside of the WinMo faithful.

Continue reading Sprint follows T-Mobile's lead, wants $350 for HTC Touch Pro2

Filed under: Cellphones

Sprint follows T-Mobile's lead, wants $350 for HTC Touch Pro2 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netbook sales growth doubles laptops in Q2 '09

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/netbook-sales-growth-doubles-laptops-in-q2-09/

While it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise given the fairly steady growth netbooks have seen since their inception as a product category, it's still pretty notable that they've apparently now managed to nearly double traditional laptops in sales growth during the second quarter of this year. That word comes from market research firm DisplaySearch, which found that netbook shipments grew an impressive 40% compared to the same quarter last year, as opposed to 22% for plain old laptops. As excitingly illustrated in the chart above, however, that still leaves netbooks (or "mini-notes") well behind laptops in terms of total shipments, although that seems almost certain to narrow considerably in the months and years ahead -- at least until the line between netbooks and laptops becomes so blurred that we just start calling everything "laptops" again.

Filed under: Laptops

Netbook sales growth doubles laptops in Q2 '09 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia's 32GB Alvin RM-559 hits FCC, Simon 561 and Theodore 563 nowhere to be found

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/31/nokias-32gb-alvin-rm-559-hits-fcc-simon-561-and-theodore-563-n/

Nokia's latest mystery device to hit the FCC, the RM-550 "Alvin," holds itself in some good company given the known specs. Its 32GB internal memory is matched only by Espoo's other flagship devices N97 and N900, and it's also got the same BL-5J battery as the aforementioned pseudo-MID. Throw in quad-band GSM, tri-band WCDMA, Bluetooth, and WiFi, and you've got our interests piqued. The confidentiality agreement of the filing gives no indication of when we might hear more details, but we're gonna go ahead and start preparing ourselves mentally for yet another resistive touchscreen.

[Via Unwired View; thanks, Me]

Filed under: Cellphones

Nokia's 32GB Alvin RM-559 hits FCC, Simon 561 and Theodore 563 nowhere to be found originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 19:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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