Hasta La Gadget!

Autodesk has really decided to embrace the DIY community recently. First the company launched 123D, a free design tool for hobbyists, now it’s snatched up Instructables, an online repository for everything from quadrocopter plans to bruschetta recipes. There’s no need for amateur inventors out there to worry about the acquisition, though — it doesn’t sound like much will be changing at the site. Makers will still own the copyright to their creations and the brand will be keeping its focus on user submitted projects, but the site’s blog does promise that improvements are on the way thanks to the deeper pockets of its new owner. Most of the finer details of the purchase are still unclear, but there’s some more info in the PR after the break.

Continue reading Autodesk adds DIY site Instructables to its stable

Autodesk adds DIY site Instructables to its stable originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Aug 2011 12:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This article was written on June 24, 2008 by CyberNet.

Nokia has ponied up and bought a large chunk of Symbian that they didn’t already own, which equates to another 52%. For those of you unfamiliar with Symbian it is the software platform that powers the Nokia devices, and one analyst estimates that Nokia paid close to $250 million a year in licensing fees for it. While $410 million sounds like a lot you have to look at the money they will be saving due to the acquisition.

What makes the deal really interesting is the fact that Nokia will be open sourcing bits and pieces of the Symbian OS over the next few years, and by that time the entire OS will be open source. Both Sony Ericsson and Motorola have already announced that they will be contributors, which could mean that the development of the Symbian OS will continue at a rapid pace. The newly established Symbian Foundation will serve as a hub for the royalty-free open source project, but an annual membership of $1,500 is required.

It will be interesting to see whether this will become an even more attractive operating system for manufacturers over the upcoming Google Android. Both will now be open source and royalty-free, but will manufacturers choose the less mature Google Android platform? At this point innovation has probably never been more important for Google, and they need to have some selling points to compensate for its lacking in maturity.

Nokia Press Release [via Engadget]

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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Reuters is reporting a bit of board room activity in Japan this morning, which could, by the end of today, result in Ricoh purchasing the Pentax brand and camera business from current owner and proprietor Hoya Corporation. The global news agency points out that Hoya’s initial acquisition of Pentax, back in 2007, was primarily motivated by its eagerness to acquire Pentax’s medical technology, and although the company’s had a slew of strong products since then, it probably makes sense for Hoya to pass the digicam work on to someone who might feel more invested in it. For its part, Ricoh also has a well respected line of digital compacts, but lacks the DSLR lineage and experience that Pentax brings. Provided this deal goes through as rumored, and Reuters has three sources who say it’s imminent, the only question we’ve got to ponder is whether the Pentax naming will take over for Ricoh’s slightly less recognizable branding or vice versa.

Update: That was quick! Hoya has confirmed the sale. Thanks, Ben! It is as reported earlier: Hoya will hang on to the rights to manufacture and develop products for the medical field, while Ricoh is gobbling up the Pentax Imaging Systems products with a view to expanding its presence in the consumer digital camera market.

Official: Ricoh set to acquire Pentax camera brand and business, get serious about digital imaging originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 02:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In what may be an interesting development for the future of Google TV, the folks at Mountain View have purchased SageTV. The HTPC software has been doing its media center thing on multiple platforms since 2002, and according to a note on its homepage the developers “believe our ideas will reach an even larger audience of users worldwide on many different products, platforms and services.” While there’s no word on exactly what Google has planned, SageTV has long included DVR and placeshifting features that the Google TV product lacks by itself. The bad news for current users is that the store links on SageTV’s page have suddenly stopped working, so hopefully you snagged the software already if you’re interested. If your main question is “What is SageTV?” check out a demo video created by user jaredduq that is embedded after the break.

[Thanks, Jason, screenshot courtesy GeekTonic]

Continue reading SageTV HTPC software acquired by Google, next stop Google TV?

SageTV HTPC software acquired by Google, next stop Google TV? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 18 Jun 2011 19:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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News of Garmin’s plans to acquire Navigon leaked out earlier this month, but we now have official word that the GPS giant will bring the smaller German company under its wing beginning in late July. Pending regulatory approval, the deal would have Navigon, one of the largest GPS brands in Europe, functioning as a subsidiary of Garmin, which has a much stronger presence in North America. The companies were unable to reveal any financial information, though previous estimates priced the deal in the “mid-double-digit million” Euro range. Navigon says it’s not ready to share any details concerning the acquisition, but we’re unlikely to see major effects in the US, where the company has smartphone apps but hasn’t sold dedicated GPS devices in several years.

Continue reading Garmin to purchase Navigon, plans to complete acquisition by late July

Garmin to purchase Navigon, plans to complete acquisition by late July originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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