Sometimes you want to take a picture of a thing, but there are times when you just want everything. So far, your options for comprehensive photospheres involve taking a whole crapton of pictures, or throwing some kind of crazy ball or something. This upcoming camera from Ricoh makes it a hell of a lot easier. “One button” easy. More »
Eleanor Kolchin was once a computer.
When she accepted her first full-time job in 1946, “computers” were people, not machines: As a programmer at Columbia University’s Watson Scientific Computing Laboratory , Kolchin helped astronomers make sense of the universe by operating sofa-sized calculating machines capable of little beyond basic arithmetic. She was Columbia Engineering Quarterly’s first-ever female contributor, and spent over two decades manning computers to complete astrophysics research at New York University.
Kolchin has long since traded the punched-card machines for an iPod — now one of her favorite gadgets — but she’s still programming, a full 66 years after getting her start. Kolchin runs the website for the Boca West Special Interest Club she belongs to and sends members their weekly e-newsletters. (“I was doing Web pages before anyone else was doing Web pages,” she says with a touch of pride, noting software from Webs.com makes it “as easy as pie.”)
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Ready to check out some more point-and-shoots? That’s great news! We’ve got a few more to share. The first two, the Coolpix S9500 and S9400, are nearly identical, save for a few key features. Appearance-wise, it’s difficult to distinguish between the two, especially when they’re powered off. Once you flip them on, however, you’ll probably notice the S9500’s whopping 22x zoom lens, compared to an 18x optic on the S9400. Both include 18.1-megapixel CMOS sensors and very crisp 3-inch OLED displays, while the higher-end S9500 ($350), which is likely to be the only US-bound model, adds built-in WiFi and GPS. Not to be overlooked, the S5200 includes a 16-megapixel CMOS sensor, a 3-inch VGA LCD, 6x optical zoom lens and WiFi for $180.
We caught up with all three compacts at Nikon’s CP+ booth this week, and we were quite impressed with the S9500 in particular. Despite the 22x zoom lens, the camera was very thin and light — it should be able to tuck into a pocket just fine. It included a premium finish, just like its slightly less capable sibling, the S9400, and performed very well during our hands-on. Both of these shooters have sharp OLED displays, which really looked fantastic, along with dedicated mode dials, though we were disappointed to see that Nikon omitted manual shooting options, in favor of some scene presets. The S5200, which was on display in red and blue, had a similar feel and finish, though it was quite a bit more compact, and lacked the OLED screen and mode dial. All of these models are set to ship later this month, but if you’re eager to learn more, you can check ’em out in our hands-on after the break.
Whole-wheat, organic, free-range — it seems every time we turn around, there’s a new, healthier food option available. Fretting over calories, protein, fat and carbohydrates in the grocery store leaves little room to think about the ethical consequences of our food choices. What’s best for one person’s diet doesn’t always line up with what’s best for a given community, and good-for-you foods aren’t always good-for-earth foods. In fact, some of our healthy favorites have some gnarly implications for Mother Earth and even other humans throughout the world. So we’re breaking down some of the well-known players to figure out the ethical issues involved, and offering an action plan for eating more kindly.
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A volcano erupting on its own is no big deal; they’re like earthquakes, no one cares unless it’s catastrophic. But to have four separate volcanic cones—each fed by separate magma sources—all erupting within 110 miles of one another simply doesn’t happen. Ever. This must be what witnessing Haley’s Comet was like. More »
An official iOS 6.1 untethered jailbreak is just around the corner. Come Super Bowl Sunday, iOS users will once again be able to jailbreak the latest firmware in order to open up a world of customization on their iOS devices. However, we haven’t seen an untethered jailbreak since Apple released iOS 5.1.1 back in May 2012, so it’s definitely been awhile since avid jailbreakers have had anything to do. With that said, we’ve decided to refresh your brain and help get you on the right track towards a successful jailbreak before it officially releases on Sunday. Here are a few things you should do before you dive in.
First off, make sure your iOS device is compatible with the iOS 6.1 jailbreak before you go any further. By this point, you might already know, but if not, a majority of iOS devices will be compatible. The ones that won’t be supported are the iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G, first- through third-generation iPod Touch, first-generation iPad, and the third-generation Apple TV.
If you’re still running iOS 5.1 and are jailbroken, it’s a good idea to make sure all of your Cydia tweaks are compatible with iOS 6.1 before you upgrade. Open up the Cydia app and start listing out the tweaks that you use, skimming through each tweak’s description to see if it’s compatible with iOS 6.1. Most of the time, the developer will mention some sort of warning if it’s not compatible.
Once you know which tweaks will and won’t work, decide at that point whether or not it’s worth it to upgrade, and be sure to keep in mind if iOS 6’s new features are also worth it. If any of the new features introduced in iOS 6 aren’t personally pleasing to you, it might be a good idea to just stick with iOS 5.1 anyway if you have an older iOS device.
If you’ve made it this far, then we’re assuming you’re ready to upgrade to iOS 6.1 and jailbreak your device. Go ahead and update through iTunes — DO NOT update OTA. One of the dev team members confirmed that the OTA iOS 6.1 update will have some issues with jailbreaking. Once you’re updated, you’ll then want to make sure you have an up-to-date backup using iCloud or iTunes. Not only will this backup save your butt when the jailbreak goes wrong, but it’ll also be useful when you need to restore apps and settings back to your device after you jailbreak. You’ll also want a backup of all your Cydia packages if you’re currently jailbroken, for which OpenBackup is perfect for this. Make sure you backup these Cydia tweaks before you upgrade to iOS 6.1, because you’ll lose your jailbreak once you update.
Once the iOS 6.1 jailbreak hits, you’ll then want to decide whether to do a clean jailbreak install, or jailbreak your device while keeping all your apps and settings intact. A fresh install will be quicker, and it’s a great way to start with a clean slate if you have a ton of clutter, but you can also use those backups to restore apps, settings, and Cydia tweaks. On the other hand, jailbreaking with your apps and settings intact takes longer, but you won’t need to restore any backups if everything goes smoothly. Be sure to decide which route you want to go before you start the process.
The Evad3rs dev team plans to release the iOS 6.1 untethered jailbreak sometime on Sunday. We’re not sure what time exactly the jailbreak will become available, but we’ll make an announcement when the time comes. You can head to the dev team’s website now and read through the FAQ and other notices they have posted. Hopefully, we’ll see the jailbreak earlier in the day before the Super Bowl, that way we can enjoy the game with our brand-new jailbroken devices, but we’ll simply have to wait and see. However, thanks to your preparations, you’ll be ready to go right away.
iOS 6.1 jailbreak arriving Sunday, here’s how to prepare is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Great news for those who can’t get enough of the Crawley family—Amazon cut a deal with PBS that will bring the British period drama to Prime Instant Video exclusively. So later this year, Netflix will lose Downton. Which is exactly what Lord Grantham has grappled with in the series. More »
Just as it had promised, Netflix today released its original series House of Cards to its many, many subscribers. There’s more good news, however, as the the streaming giant’s giving those without the necessary account credentials a chance to see what the show is all about, giving non-paid users access to the very first episode at no cost. Meanwhile, those who shell out the monthly fee will be able to catch all 13 episodes of House of Cards in one go, with Netflix obviously taking a different approach than what we’re accustomed to seeing in new series from the likes of HBO or Showtime. Naturally, should folks like what they see from Kevin Spacey, Kate Mara and the rest of the cast, they’ll have to sign up for the service in order to keep up with the story — which, we’d say, is exactly what Netflix wishes for. Have some time to spare? Then hit that source link below to watch the House of Cards premiere (that’s assuming you haven’t done so already, of course).
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD
Via: AllThingsD
Source: Netflix
As we enter February of 2013 we’re finding ourselves inundated with news about gun violence in the USA with special focus on school shootings and how this all relates to video games – and today one gun manufacturer has made one perfectly clear connection between the two. Not a connection between gun violence in the shooting of human beings and video games, or between this man’s firearms and the murder of innocent victims, but between his business and the video game industry. In one simple affirmation, Ralph Vaughn of Barrett Rifles has shown how cash flows from one to the other.
Speaking with Eurogamer about his lovely invention of the M82, various assault rifles, and sniper rifles alike, Barret made it clear that video games that feature firearms with brand names on them have to pay the creators of those firearms a cash sum. Just as it is with video games that show racing cars or shoes with the Adidas logo on them, cash must flow in one direction or the other. It’s much more rare that a simple no-cash agreement will appear between the makers of the video game and the company that holds the rights to the products used in said video game.
The fact that Barrett has worked with companies came first, “yes, we’ve worked with companies to send our sniper rifles into video games.” Simple enough, but which games are we talking about here? Pushed with this question from Eurogamer once again, Barrett said, “Which ones? Our license agreement prohibits us from mentioning a company by name. [but] you are welcome to check out the Call of Duty series.” The video you’re seeing below comes from Piston2x and shows the intense detail included in the Call of Duty series and – perhaps more importantly – how important the actual real-world gun is to those playing the game.
Also of from Eurogamer comes a quote from Martin Hollis, director and producer of the original most awesome multi-player shooter ever made, GoldenEye. He makes it clear that back when the game was released they were told they’d have to remove the names of the guns from the final product likely due to the amount of work they’d have had to do to get licenses back in that transitional time. “I assumed novelists and filmmakers have no compulsion to license”, he noted, “I was not pleased [we had to remove the real names] because it would decrease the realism, or at least the verisimilitude.” Such things are still considered in video games today.
What do you think, gamers, are you more apt to play a game in the guns have real-world names attached to them? And those of you who didn’t realize purchasing a video game could send cash to arms manufacturers – what’s your opinion of the situation now?
[Image via Cod4Source]
Fact: Gun manufacturers make money from SOME video games is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
U.K. startup onefinestay — which has attracted backing to the tune of $15.9 million from Index Ventures, PROfounders Capital, Canaan Partners and David Magliano – has been using some of that cash to develop a keyless entry system to make it easier for homeowners to manage comings and goings.
onefinestay is best described as an upscale Airbnb — its business relies on convincing high-end homeowners in London and New York to rent out their city abodes when they’re away. But convincing well-heeled types to let strangers sleep in the four-poster sounds like an uphill task. The startup had signed up 1,000 homeowners as of December, doubling the number of homes on its books in July 2012 — a growth rate that’s best described as steady but slow.
It’s clearly hoping to remove a few more barriers to potential home hosts — not to mention offering them a bit of a carrot — in the form of some cutting edge digital convenience. That and reducing the number of physical keys it has to manage (noting on its website that “onefinestay manages what is known in polite society as ‘one heck of a lot of keys’”).
So enter stage left onefinestay’s keyless lock system Sherlock, which it is currently offering to install in hosts’ houses for free during a trial period. onefinestay CEO and co-founder Greg Marsh told TechCrunch the startup has been developing the patent pending technology for more than two years. “We’ve conducted extensive field tests across a range of homes of onefinestay members in London — including the CEO’s.”
“Some hosts are naturally concerned about making copies of their keys,” he added. “Clearly, one of the major advantages of Sherlock is that it significantly improves the security for homeowners when they work with onefinestay.”
The promo video for Sherlock (see below) talks up the benefits in terms of no more wasting precious time sitting in waiting for the plumber or the delivery man — by allowing users to lock and unlock their door via an app or by sending a text message. Of course the super rich aren’t going to be doing any of that hanging around anyway — they’ll have staff for such drudgery and/or live in a managed apartment with a concierge — but there’s doubtless a swathe of high end homeowners that onefinestay wants to woo who still have to push and pull their own door hinges.
onefinestay’s keyless entry system also allows users to distribute single or multiple use virtual keys to friends or trusted individuals — so they can gain entry without needing to be given a physical key.
But why is onefinestay getting into the entry system making business itself? There are already smart keyless entry systems on the market and in development — Lockitron‘s Kickstarter springs to mind — but Marsh said that after evaluating what was out there the company decided it needed to build its own offering that does not require users to change all their locks (hardly convenient) and which also addresses the problem of unlocking multiple doors, so that homeowners who live in so-called ‘walk-ups’ aren’t excluded from using it.
“We extensively researched other solutions before committing to develop our own, and remain open to working with other vendors to offer a complete solution. However nothing out there today solves the whole problem. Most existing systems — including unsurprisingly the ones being sold by major lock companies — require people to change their locks (and sometimes keys),” said Marsh.
“While that’s not a problem if you live in a townhouse, the large majority of city inhabitants live in apartment buildings and walk-ups, and don’t have a doorman. That means that they have two front doors — a building door and an apartment door. Have you ever tried persuading all your neighbours and/or your building management company to let you change your building door locks, or install a device into the common areas of your building? That’s a tough sell!”
onefinestay’s keyless entry system does not require new locks to be installed (or new keys used), or a device to be attached over existing locks — it uses a wall-mounted box installed inside the user’s home close to the door to connect to the apartment’s door entry system, and to onefinestay’s servers to authenticate the unlock/lock request. If there’s no door entry system in the building, Marsh says the system can still be installed — by swapping out the standard strike for a “conventional electric strike component”.
There are still a minority of doors that aren’t compatible though — but 95 per cent are, according to onefinestay’s calculations. ”We’ve been testing Sherlock in a range of buildings with positive results, and are now starting to roll it out to onefinestay hosts in London,” Marsh added.
As part of its customer service offering the startup currently meets every onefinestay guest on arrival, but Marsh said he can envisage Sherlock helping it to be freed up from some of these face-to-face interactions in future — “possibly having trusted or repeat onefinestay guests use Sherlock to enter a home so that there is never a need to give guests physical keys”.
Beyond reducing key-based complexity, potentially cutting some customer face-time and paving the way to grow the number of home hosts on its book, the startup said it might end up selling Sherlock as a standalone product in future — hence the patent pending — “if all goes well”.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
