The latest iOS update has certainly seen its fair share of bugs and vulnerabilities. First, there were problems with users connecting to and syncing with Microsoft Exchange servers, and now there’s the lockscreen exploit that allows people to dig into your contacts and photos. However, it’s rumored that an update to fix these issues will come as early as next week.
According to German website iPhone-Ticker, Apple is preparing to release iOS 6.1.2 sometime early next week to address the bugs and other issues that they said they would be fixing, but the German site is claiming that the update will land sometime before February 21, according to the information it has received from various carriers.
While we’re taking this with a grain of salt, it certainly makes sense that Apple is planning to push out a quick update soon, and iPhone-Ticker even ended up accurately predicting the launch of iOS 6.1.1 through its same sources earlier this month. So if the same holds true, we should be seeing yet another small update head our way next week.
Perhaps the bug that got the most attention was the lockscreen vulnerability that, with a few clever tap moves, allows breachers access to the owner’s contacts and any personal information that the owner has for each contact. Plus, by editing a contact and changing the contact’s picture, you can access all of the owner’s photos in their library.
The University College London now has a computer that is said to never crash. We’ve all experienced it: computers do crash, so what makes this particular one impervious to crash events? To explain that, let’s look at why computer crash to start with: at the highest (and simplest) level, computer programs are a linear sequence of instructions, that are executed in order. If for some reason, the execution stops (divide by zero, memory access fault…), that particular program will crash. Usually the Operating System (OS) can recover from that, and terminate that crashed task. Sometime, the crash takes out the OS itself too (that’s the BSOD or Blue Screen of Death on Windows, and of course other systems experience that too from time to time). (more…)
It’s not like we didn’t have ample warning, so by now anyone wanting to try out the new Ubuntu smartphone OS should have gotten hold of a Galaxy Nexus to be their test device. Still don’t have one? Then you’ll be pleased to know that a Nexus 4 will actually serve just as well, and you have six days to get equipped. The Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview will be made public on February 21st alongside the open source code and all the tools necessary to flash those two devices.
The official aim is to help devs and enthusiasts learn the platform and start building software for it, whether for core functions or for when a full third-party app store eventually goes live. The bigger picture is that, by the time Ubuntu 13.10 launches in October, an app written in this platform’s Qt/QML lingo should be able to run on any Ubuntu device — whether it be a PC, TV, tablet or smartphone — with no porting required. Rest assured that we have a couple of Nexii at the ready and we fully intend to give this newcomer a thorough hazing / write-up as soon as possible.
The rogue-like space sim FTL: Faster Than Light is a game that may not have existed if not for Kickstarter and the backers that funded its developer Subset Games. How appropriate – and perilous – is it that the fate of its merchandise should also be decided by the support of the masses?
The FTL: Faster Than Light LEGO set was conceptualized by Crashsanders and GlenBricker. It started when Crashsanders built a LEGO version of the starter ship Kestrel and posted it on the FTL forums. It was received warmly and not shot down by Rebels, so Crashsanders put together a proposal on LEGO Cuusoo. Aside from the Kestrel, his proposal includes the Engi Stealth Cruiser, the Mantis Cruiser as well as minifigs of the game’s races. It seems like he’ll design more ships as more people vote for the proposal.
I know that the game absolutely hates our guts and always wants us to fail, but come on, admit it: you love it anyway. So vote for it on LEGO Cuusoo! Otherwise I’ll board your house and set fire to your Oxygen systems. Subset Games itself supports the proposal. Although instead of supporting proposals I wish they’d spend their time porting FTL to tablets. Come on guys, you’re guaranteed make millions. Or at least $9.99.
When Apple released the iPhone in 2007, they released iPhone OS (later known as iOS) with it. The device and the operating system necessitated each other. The two were birthed into the world together on the same stage. More »
Not ready to hand over Rs 21,500 (about $400) for a Samsung Galaxy Grand in India? Xolo seems to be counting on it, at least according to the company’s comprehensive PowerPoint — the vehicle of choice for this week’s A1000 smartphone launch. The Rs 14,999 (about $275) Jelly Bean handset packs specs similar to those offered with the Samsung flavor, such as an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 1.2MP shooter on the front, a dual-core 1GHz MT 6577 processor, one gig of RAM and a 2,100 mAh battery pack. Both smartphones include 5-inch displays, though the A1000 offers a 720p IPS panel, compared to an 800 x 480 TFT display on the Galaxy. There’s 4GB of built-in storage (expandable to 32GB), Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11b/g/n and compatibility with 900/1800MHz GSM bands, along with 2100MHz HSPA. Sound like a perfect fit? Folks in India should be able to pick one up beginning today.
Canadian astronaut and current commander of the International Space Station Chris Hadfield will be answering all your hankering questions on Reddit come Sunday, February 17 starting at 4 pm ET. Hadfield will be hosting an AMA (“Ask Me Anything”), in which popular figures and interesting subjects answer all sorts of questions from Redditors.
Hadfield announced that he would be hosting his own AMA via Twitter earlier today. Hadfield, who launched into space back in December in a Russian Soyuz capsule along with two others is currently commanding the ISS. He also served as Mission Specialist on two Space Shuttle flights in 1995 and 2001.
If you’re not quite familiar with Hadfield, he was the one who got to speak with Star Trek actor William Shatner a few days ago about being in space and the risk one poses when jetting off outside the atmosphere. The two also discussed the future of the space program, as well as the progression it’s been taking the past several decades.
If you can’t make it for Hadfield’s Reddit AMA, don’t worry. The ISS will actually be hosting a Google+ Hangout on February 22, where astronauts Kevin Ford, Tom Marshburn, and Chris Hadfield will answer viewer questions live. As with the Reddit AMA, users will be able to submit questions to the astronauts in the Google+ Hangout.
It’s never fun when it finally comes time to clean that grill. The residue has been building up for months, and you have no choice but to whip out the steel brush, pull off the grate, and literally get your hands dirty. But how about if you could get a cute little circular robot pal to do it for you? Enter Grillbot. More »
This morning a meteorite has broken up over central Russia in a shockwave blast that lit up the sky and caused damage to the bodies of 500 citizens nearby. Though this news bit may seem like science fiction from the latest blockbuster apocalypse movie, it’s the real deal. According to reports from the region, this former chunk of space debris was right around the size of a sports utility vehicle before it shattered entering the Earth’s atmosphere.
Another much larger mass is passing by the Earth today in what asteroid expert Richard Binzel of MIT notes is almost certainly an unrelated incident. This larger asteroid conglomeration called 2012 DA14 is closer in size to a 13-story-sized building and will be passing by the Earth nearly 24 hours after the Russian mass. 2012 DA14 will pass within 17,000 miles of our planet at right around 2:24 PM EST today, February 15th, 2013.
According to Binzel speaking with USA Today, “we just have the incredible coincidence of this happening just before the asteroid flies by.” The Russian meteorite entered Earth’s atmosphere and bits crash landed across Chelyabinsk. This little beast has been estimated at entering the atmosphere at 33,000 mph and has been captured, believe it or not, in a collection of home-made videos filmed by citizens around the area. Have a peek at a couple here:
Above: Here you’ll hear the shockwave – or multiple shocks, that is – along with the dust left by the material entering the atmosphere.
Above: In this vehicle dash-based camera capture you’ll see the meteor enter the vehicle’s line of view, light up the sky, and continue its journey downward in a lovely arc.
Astronomers will be attempting to recover the bits of matter left by the Russian meteor for study as soon as possible. According to a Rueters report, citizens like Viktor Prokofiev saw the heavenly body enter the atmosphere clearly: “I was driving to work, it was quite dark, but it suddenly became as bright as if it was day. I felt like I was blinded by headlights.”
Above: Security camera footage shows meteor lighting up the sky.
Head of the Emergencies Ministry in Chelyabinsk Yuri Burenko spoke up as well, noting the rarity of this type of situation happening in Russia: “There have never been any cases of meteorites breaking up at such a low level over Russia before.” This same Emergencies Ministry described the event as a “meteor shower in the form of fireballs” but made it clear that “background radiation levels were normal.”
At this very moment final estimates for the amount of damage and injuries are not to be had, but according to Rueters, more than 500 people have been “hurt.” We’ll be checking back throughout the day with updates – stay tuned to SlashGear for more.
UPDATE 10:36 AM CST: The Washington Post now reports that 1,000 people have been injured by the blast.
UPDATE 10:45 AM CST: New home video surfaces (seen below). According to local news group Pravda a partial evacuation was conducted in Chelyabinsk and the police were set to high alert. A “Fortress” plan was enacted and “all vital facilities of the city were taken under additional protection.” It’s also been reported the the area is “currently” being inspected by three aircraft and 20,000 EMERCOM personnel. EMERCOM is Russia’s Ministry for Emergency Situations.
UPDATE 10:50 AM CST: Another video with the first major sonic boom surfaces.
UPDATE 11:00 AM CST: A video has surfaced showing the initial boom with glass breaking in nearby buildings – a must see!
You never want to experience it, but whenever a pedestrian is involved in a collision with a car, his or her head can often suffer grave injuries due to a collision with hard elements underneath the hood, such as the engine block. To reduce the number of such impacts, some auto-makers (like Nissan and Toyota) have introduced the Pop-up Hood concept, which raises the hood to create more space away from the engine block (after taking into account the deformation of the hood due to the collision with the pedestrian’s head). This of course, requires that the collision is properly detected to start with.
That’s where Denso comes in with this new pressure sensor that is to be installed where the front bumper is. It is equipped with sensors that can detect where in the front of the vehicle the collision is happening. Previous designs used acceleration sensors that were not as effective. This is probably the last line of defense that could prevent serious, if not fatal, injuries to a pedestrian. So far, those new sensors have been spotted in the Toyota Crown Hybrid, which is available in Japan.
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