Hasta La Gadget!

China’s government and people have historically been friendly toward Linux, although not quite on the level of a new deal with Canonical. The country’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is teaming with Canonical to create Ubuntu Kylin, a variant of the regular Linux distribution that would serve as a reference point for local hardware and software developers. A Raring Ringtail-based build due this April should bring Chinese calendars, character input methods and quick access to relevant music services. Later Kylin releases should integrate Baidu mapping, mass transit information, Taobao shopping and a common slate of photo editing and system tools from WPS. The hope is to foster open source development in China as part of a five-year government growth plan — and, we suspect, get away from closed operating systems that Americans control.

Filed under: Software

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Via: The Register

Source: Canonical

We were rather heartbroken when Emblaze Mobile announced the premature death of its First Else project back in June 2010, with the culprit being “critical delays in deliveries;” so when we caught up with ex-CEO Amir Kupervas — who’s now running a startup called UIU — at MWC, we had to see if he had anything to add to the sad story. “It was ambitious for a small Israeli company to come into consumer electronics, build a brand and try to push it,” Kupervas emphasized. “When we started this project it wasn’t about ecosystem and apps and things like that. Eventually the iPhone came with its app store, and then Android came with its app store, and we were left behind.”

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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There you were, using that old and busted version of Google Chrome on your Windows or Linux-based PC, iOS or Android device, when Google decided to hook you up with an update, thus validating your previous assertion about Chrome’s old and busted-ness. “Hot dog!” you thought, “The Googleplex wants to give me more free stuff!” But what free stuff will you get? Chrome on iOS is moving to the big two five, adding long-press to the back button for exploring your recent history and a handful of other tweaks; its Android cousin is optimizing scrolling for your super fast fingas fingers. On the full computer side of things, both Windows and Linux are getting 25.0.1364.152, which adds the less thrilling “security and stability improvements along with a number of bug fixes.” Now that you’ve got that new hotness, you’re feeling pretty good, right? The future! We’re in it!

Filed under: Cellphones, Desktops, Handhelds, Laptops, Tablets, Software, Mobile, Google

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Source: Google (1), Google (2), Google (3)

The Raspberry Pi has been on sale for just over a year. Key distributor RS Components wants to celebrate the tiny computer’s first birthday with more than just a greeting card, though. It’s producing a limited edition Model B, the Blue Pi, with a blue circuit board and a suitably-hued case. The mini PC is guaranteed to stand out in any hobbyist project, provided it’s not hidden in a box. There’s only one catch: you can’t buy one. RSC is donating a batch to good causes, and only 1,000 are up for grabs in giveaways running between now and June. Those who make a convincing argument for Blue Pi ownership will accordingly be part of an exclusive club — and the envy of any Raspberry Pi owner who’s been bored with plain green.

Filed under: Misc

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Via: Raspberry Pi

Source: RS Components

A week ago, we learned about the Mycestro, a pointing device that, despite its unusual form, only has a humble goal: to replace your mouse. The Ego! Smartmouse on the other hand is quite the opposite. It looks like a traditional mouse, but it is much more than that. The question is, do we need a mouse that’s this smart?

Made by Laura Sapiens, the Ego! – no, no, no signore, it’s Ego! Put some life into it! – is a Bluetooth mouse that can be used both on a flat surface as well as on air. You can also use the Ego! to control your HTPC or other Bluetooth media players. It can also be used as a wireless flash drive. It can also be used to as a gesture-based gaming controller. It can also remember and automatically input your passwords for you. It can also vibrate to alert you of an appointment or a new email. If Old Spice were to design a mouse, they’d probably come up with an Ego! Except the Old Spice mouse would have a six-pack.

In order to perform all those tasks, the Ego! runs on Linux, has a 400MHz ARM9 CPU, a flash memory capacity of either 2GB or 4GB, a VGA camera, a touch sensor (in place of a scroll wheel), an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a compass, a vibration motor and an optical mouse sensor. It’s got nothing on my mouse though! My Logitizzech M305,000 is covered in luxurious duct tape and has a special right-click button – 60% of the time, it works every time.

Here’s another look at the non-mouse features of this mouse:

Laura Sapiens is currently raising funds for the Ego! Smartmouse on Kickstarter. Pledge at least £70 (~$106 USD) to get one.

But back to my original question: how many people need a mouse this smart? The gestures for managing windows for example – is that actually faster than just using the mouse the normal way? How often do you need to move a file and yourself as well to another workstation? Will the VGA camera be good for anything else other than that gimmicky pairing method?

I’m not saying the Ego! is a bad mouse. I’m just not that convinced that it should exist. Partly because it’s making my mouse feel bad.

[via Laura Sapiens via Digital Trends]