Hasta La Gadget!

Yes, we’ll admit that we borrowed that pun in the title. MooresCloud founder Mark Pesce’s Xzibit reference is still a very apt description of the Light, his company’s Linux-based LED lamp. The Australian team’s box-shaped illumination runs the open OS (including a LAMP web server stack) on an integrated mini PC with an accelerometer and WiFi. The relative power and networking provide obvious advantages for home automation that we’ve seen elsewhere, but it’s the sheer flexibility of a generalized, web-oriented platform that makes the difference: the Light can change colors based on photos or movement, sync light pulses to music and exploit a myriad of other tricks that should result from a future, web-based app store. When and how the Light launches will depend on a Kickstarter campaign to raise $700,000 AUD ($717,621 US) starting on October 16th, although the $99 AUD ($101 US) cost is just low enough that we could see ourselves open-sourcing a little more of the living room. At least, as long as we don’t have to recompile our lamp kernel before some evening reading.

Continue reading MooresCloud Light runs Linux, puts LAMP on your lamp (video)

Filed under: Household

MooresCloud Light runs Linux, puts LAMP on your lamp (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Oct 2012 10:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The World Wide Web Consortium might just be the United Nations of web development, as it’s bringing together some frequent enemies to fight for a common cause through WebPlatform.org. The collaboration will see Adobe, Apple, Facebook, Google, HP, Microsoft, Mozilla, Nokia and Opera pool educational resources to create a comprehensive, frequently updated guide to creating HTML5 and other content for the open web. The companies’ instructional oversight is just the start, however — visitors will have chats and forums to devise their own solutions, and they’ll even have a better than usual chance at influencing mid-development web standards. It may be some time before we’ll see the first fruits of the organization’s work, but we’re already happy to see technology companies set aside some of their differences.

Continue reading W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web (video)

Filed under: Internet, Apple, Microsoft, Nokia, Google, HP, Facebook

W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 03:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here’s a bit of web fun to liven up your weekend: a digital artist by the name of Pritesh Desai has recreated a fully functional first-generation iPod that you can play directly in your browser. In remembrance of Steve Jobs, Desai built the faux iPod using HTML5, CSS3, and a touch of jQuery. You can drag the click wheel around just like with the real deal, change the volume, hit play / pause and even skip tracks. Especially nice is the addition of Extras like the Clock and the Calendar. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to play any of your own tunes, but Desai had compiled a list of Creative Commons songs, so you can see how the player works. The next step is for someone to fill this up with hits of the early aughts (“Last Nite” by The Strokes, perhaps?) so you can truly travel back in time to the heydays of Windows XP and the Enron scandal.

Filed under: Misc

Dude recreates first-gen iPod in-browser, won’t put 1,000 songs in your pocket originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Oct 2012 15:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After concentrating on gaming and visual improvements in previous releases of Chrome, the browser’s latest focus appears to be in video engagement. The latest beta includes a PeerConnection API that lets developers create real-time video chat applications without a plug-in. This builds upon existing WebRTC integration with a new getUserMedia API that should result in higher-quality video, audio, and data communications. The Beta also bundles in track support for HTML5 video, letting developers add in subtitles, captions, and other metadata — the above photo, for example, is a screencap of a bike ride video enhanced with Google Map and Street View data. Another nice addition is a MediaSource API which adjusts video quality based on computer and network environments, which should put an end to those agonizing waits while the dancing inmate version of Gangnam Style buffers. Those interested can get their mitts on the new Chrome Beta today.

Filed under: Internet, Software

Chrome Beta adds video engagement APIs, promises higher-quality video chats sans plugin originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 03 Oct 2012 02:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The New York Times just launched an all-new HTML5 web app for the iPad, and it’s probably so that they can avoid Apple‘s in-app subscription fees, which is a steep 30%. The web app is available only to digital subscribers of NYTimes.com, as well as home-delivery subscribers who link their account for digital access.

The HTML5 web app is specifically tailored for the iPad and can be accessed through Safari by going to app.nytimes.com. Denise Warren, senior vice president and chief advertising officer of The New York Times Media Group, says that their subscribers “are interested in trying new ways of reading The Times across a variety of platforms,” and they’re “working constantly” to develop new and innovative products, so this new web app is just one way of demonstrating that.

There are several new features in the new web app, including a “Trending” section, which utilizes Twitter to see what the most popular news stories are. There’s also what’s called “Today’s Paper,” where readers can browse The New York Times just like they would an actual newspaper, as well as “Times Wire,” which gives you a constant, reverse-chronological feed of the latest articles, videos and slideshows.

To access the new web app, a digital subscription with Tablet access is required, which will cost you roughly $20 a month, but for a limited time you can get four weeks of access for only a dollar. Hopefully, we’ll see this HTML5 web app show up on other devices as well, like Android tablets and other iOS devices.

[via Business Wire]

The New York Times launches HTML5 web app for iPad is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
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