Hasta La Gadget!

Hey now! VLC, the bestest fastest sweetest codec-iest easiest to usiest and every positive -est adjectie there is video player around, is now available (again) on iOS. If you’re looking to play videos on your iPhone and iPad, VLC is probably going to be your best bet.

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VLC is arguably one of the most popular media players in the world, thanks to the fact that it can play pretty much any file format that you can throw at it. After being removed from the iTunes App Store over two years ago, the VideoLAN team is set to bring the player back to iOS once again with the roll-out starting later tonight and continuing into tomorrow.

The app will be compatible with the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch running iOS 5.1 or higher. Along with the reunification, VLC will be bumping up the version number to an even 2.0 and will retain its open source prowess, with the app’s code being available online at some point tonight or tomorrow.

The app will be bi-licensed under both the Mozilla Public License Version 2, as well as the GNU General Public License Version 2 or later. What’s important to note here is that the app was originally removed back in 2011 because Apple’s App Store rules conflicted with parts of the GPL license. This time around, the Mozilla licensing is applied to avoid the issue from happening again.

VideoLAN teased the iOS icon for the VLC app today on Twitter, using the infamous VLC traffic cone on a field of orange. The icon also looks to be ready for iOS 7, as its design is flatter than the icon from a couple years ago. Furthermore, a VideoLAN developer teased a screenshot of some of the app’s details, which also notes a file size of just 9.9MB for the app.

Of course, iOS users who have jailbroken devices have been able to use a version of VLC for awhile now, but those who aren’t that risky have had the unfortunate experience of not being able to watch their favorite .MKV-formatted shows on their iOS device. A roll-out starting tonight will seem like an eternity of waiting for eager VLC users, but if you waited two years for the app’s return, you can certainly wait just a few hours longer.

UPDATE: As expected, VLC is now live in the iTunes App Store and is available for free.

VLC for iOS returning to App Store after two-year hiatus [UPDATE: it’s live] is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It’s not uncommon for media companies to send in DMCA takedown requests to Google in order to have it removed from search listings and indexing, but sometimes it can get a bit ridiculous. Case in point: HBO is demanding that Google remove a link to a torrent listing of a version of VLC, the popular open-source media player.

Okay, so it’s not rare when media companies request takedowns of torrent listings, because most of them contain copyrighted material. However, VLC is a completely free and open-source piece of software that has no copyrights, and since torrent sites themselves aren’t illegal, we’re not sure what HBO is getting at with this request in particular.

Copyright holders ask Google to remove millions of links every month. Just last month alone, media companies sent in almost 15 million URLs that they demanded be taken out of Google’s search results, proving that copyright holders are a persistent bunch, even to the point where they’re citing copyright infringement for things that don’t even have copyrights in the first place.

However, this could be a simple mistake on HBO’s part. We’re guessing these companies have computer bots that scour the internet for copyrighted material and then sends it into Google, so it wouldn’t be too surprising if these bots made a mistake every now and then, but this one is certainly a laughable mistake.

Unfortunately, we doubt that media companies will crack down on the number of false positives they come up with, seeing as how they seem to work off the notion that the more URLs they send Google’s way, the more chances they have at getting their copyrighted material taken off in search results, no matter how many mistakes they make.

VIA: TorrentFreak

HBO demands Google take down VLC torrent listing is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Yes, there’s a fleet of camera-equipped, remote-controlled blimps live-streaming a bird’s-eye view of Google I/O on YouTube, right now. It’s called Google AirShow and it’s taken over the airspace within Moscone Center. We briefly chatted with Chris Miller, a software engineer with AKQA (the company that put the dirigibles together for Google), about the technology used in each aircraft. It all begins with an off-the-shelf model airship that’s flown manually via standard a 2.4GHz radio. Each blimp is outfitted with a servo-controlled USB camera and 5GHz USB WiFi dongle which are both connected to a Raspberry Pi board running Debian, VLC and Python. A custom-designed Li-polymer battery system powers the on-board electronics. The webcam encodes video as motion-JPEG (720p, 30fps) and VLC generates a YouTube-compatible RTSP stream that’s broadcast over WiFi. Python’s used to pan the servo-controlled camera via the Raspberry Pi’s PWM output. The result is pretty awesome. But don’t just take our word for it — check out the gallery and source link below, then watch our hands-on video after the break.

Filed under: Cameras, Misc, Transportation, Internet, Alt, Google

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Source: I/O AirShow 2013

We’ve had a few looks at Edison2’s Very Light Car (VLC) project including its gasoline-powered X-Prize winning incarnation, but today’s EV looked a bit different. In an event at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI, CEO and founder Oliver Kuttner showed off the latest version of the vehicle, this time unskinned — while referencing similar body-less showcases of the Lamborghini Miura and Volkswagen Beetle — to show off the innovative suspension that contributes greatly to the car’s light weight. The in-wheel suspension units connect to single piece axles that bookend the car’s chassis and feature fewer contact points than traditional car suspension designs. Kuttner claims this technique will also feed back into conventional car bodies, opening up more space and taking weight out of future vehicles. Check after the break for more details about what’s changed and what’s next for Edison2, or dive into the gallery to take a look for yourself.

Filed under: Transportation

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