Apr 30

WrapUp: NASA’s Photoshop Process for Hubble Images, Bigger Windows 7 Taskbar Previews, and More

Posted in: amazon, Android, BlackBerry, maps, NASA, playbook, Today's Chili, windows 7, windows phone 7 series, WrapUp, Yahoo

This article was written on March 28, 2011 by CyberNet.

Welcome to the WrapUp by CyberNet. This is a collection of news stories, downloads, and tips that we have collected over the last few days, but never got around to writing about. Don’t forget to send in your own tips, or just leave a comment on this page if you think you’ve got something we should include.

–News–

Nasa photoshopNASA Demonstrates Photoshop Process for Hubble Images
Those jaw-dropping photos that come out of the Hubble Space Telescope takes hours for someone to assemble before they are posted for you to enjoy. The process involves combining images from Hubble (taken in grayscale), assigning colors to them, and repairing any artifacts that would detract from the overall beauty of the image. This video will give you some idea of what’s involved.

PlaybookBlackBerry Playbook Will Be Compatible with Android Apps
There were murmurs a few months ago of RIM introducing Android app compatibility on their Playbook tablet prior to its release in April, and it looks like those rumblings came to fruition with this official announcement.

Firefox downloadFirefox 4 Delivers 7.1M Downloads in First 24-hours
The big Firefox 4 release happened early last week, and it was met with success as 7.1 million people rushed to try out the new browser in the first 24-hours of availability. There were also another 3 million users that were running the release candidate, and were upgraded to the final version during the same time period.

Yahoo search directYahoo! Search Direct Provides a Better Search Experience
Yahoo! is working on a new way (currently in beta) to present users with results before they actually execute a search. In some of my brief tests I have to admit they did a nice job with the way you can get things like weather, sports scores, and many other tidbits of information as you are typing your query.

Windows phone updateWindows Phone 7 “NoDo” Update Released
Microsoft started rolling out the “NoDo” update for Windows Phone 7 that brings copy and paste, faster resume times, improved Marketplace search, and more to the Windows Phone platform.

Amazon app storeAmazon Launches Appstore for Android
Amazon’s new Android Appstore has a leg up on the competition because they will be offering a paid app every day for free, and will pay the chosen developers 20% of the normal retail price out of their own pocket.

Google voice sprintSprint Integrating with Google Voice
I was really happy to see that Google is now working directly with carriers to bring Google Voice to the masses, and they are starting with Sprint. Their direct integration, which will be rolling out soon, will let Sprint customers use their existing phone number with Google Voice without having to port the number over. Alternatively you can also replace your Sprint number with your Google Voice number.

Att logoAT&T to Acquire T-Mobile for $39 Billion
AT&T has officially confirmed that they will be acquiring T-Mobile USA for $39 billion. The deal is expected to close within the next year if all necessary approvals go through.

–Tips, Tutorials, and Reviews–

Windows 7 taskbar thumbnail sizeIncrease Windows 7 Taskbar Previews
Are the Windows 7 Taskbar thumbnails a little too small for you? This free (and portable) tool will let you increase the size to something a little more useful. Unfortunately the size is not customizable.

Spreadsheet filterGoogle Spreadsheets Adds Filtering
It has taken a little while, but Google Spreadsheets will finally let you filter columns of data. This is a feature that I use in large Excel spreadsheets all the time, and was frequently something I found Google Spreadsheets lacking. This could very well be the stepping stone that gets me entirely moved over to online document management.

Bing mall mapUse Bing Maps to View 148 Mall Maps
Have you ever gone to a mall and wondered where you should park to optimize your path from the car to that one store you are heading to? Bing has integrated 148 US mall maps directly into Bing Maps so that you can zoom into mall and see the actual store layout. You can then use that information to figure out where the best place is to park. It even works if you switch to a non-angled satellite view making it even easier to see exactly where the parking spots are.

Windows 7 ubuntuHow to Make Ubuntu Look Like Windows 7
This guide walks you through installing a Windows 7 theme on Ubuntu, and the end result looks pretty good.

Lifehacker podcastLifehacker Launches Free Video Podcast
Lifehacker rolled out a video podcast last week that serves as a nice way to see some of the tips they cover on the site demonstrated by their own staff.

–Downloads–

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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Apr 29

The $2 Billion Dark-Matter-Hunting Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer [Monster Machines]

Posted in: NASA, science, space, Today's Chili, top

Whenever NASA launches its next-to-last space shuttle, the Endeavour—hopefully two days from now—it’ll be hauling an appropriately epic payload: the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer. More »

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Apr 28

NASA collects proposals for space fueling stations

Posted in: NASA, space, Today's Chili

Sometimes rocket science is actually, you know, rocket science. Getting to the moon was tough enough, but deep space exploration poses all manner of additional concerns — like getting back home alive, for one thing. And then there’s the issue of fuel, something long distance trips require a lot of — but stocking up on here on Earth means potential weight problems at launch. One proposal offered up in the past is space-based fueling stations conveniently located in key spots on the way to a distant destinations like the Moon, Mars, and asteroids. NASA is collecting proposals that can demonstrate the validity of such a plan, including the ability to store liquid oxygen and hydrogen, transfer it, and have a ship approach for fueling. If you think you’ve got your bases covered — and can keep it under $200 million — you’ve got until May 31st at 11:59 PM EST to hand over a proposal.

NASA collects proposals for space fueling stations originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Apr 2011 09:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 26

SETI suspends search for alien life, E.T. weeps in the silent dark of space

Posted in: NASA, research, space, Today's Chili
Our progress toward intergalactic fellowship has suffered another blow, as SETI suspended operations of its Allen Telescope Array. Funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, the array is a collection of radio dishes that scan the skies for signs of life; now it’ll be in “hibernation” mode until 2013, when the institute’s new round of funding begins. SETI hopes to raise $5 million to bring the Array back online before then, while it continues to use other telescopes around the world, including the Hubble Space Telescope. The budget woes are especially bitter given the number of recently identified alien planets – NASA’s Kepler mission found 1,235. If any of them are broadcasting the next Wow! signal, let’s hope it doesn’t fall on deaf earthling ears.

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SETI suspends search for alien life, E.T. weeps in the silent dark of space originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Apr 2011 20:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 25

Elon Musk says SpaceX will send a man to space in three years, Mars within the next two decades

Posted in: NASA, space, Today's Chili, video

Elon Musk has never been one to shy from making bold predictions, which is why we’re not surprised to hear that he has high hopes for the future of space travel. In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, the SpaceX founder said his company will “probably” put a man in space within the next three years, in the hopes of sending passengers to Mars within the next ten to 20 years. Earlier this month, Musk’s company unveiled plans for the “world’s most powerful rocket,” the Falcon Heavy, just a few weeks before receiving $75 million from NASA to help spur the development of its commercial spaceflight projects. Musk, it seems, is approaching these projects with an almost sacred sense of duty. “A future where humanity is out there exploring stars is an incredibly exciting future, and inspiring,” he explained, “and that’s what we’re trying to help make happen.” Head on past the break to see the full interview (space talk begins around the 13:00 mark).

Continue reading Elon Musk says SpaceX will send a man to space in three years, Mars within the next two decades

Elon Musk says SpaceX will send a man to space in three years, Mars within the next two decades originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Apr 2011 13:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 19

NASA awards $270 million to SpaceX and other commercial spaceflight ventures

Posted in: launch, money, NASA, space, Today's Chili

NASA has given its seal of approval (and a lot of money) to SpaceX and three other private companies, as part of its Commercial Crew Development (CCDev2) initiative — a program designed to spur the development of U.S. commercial spaceflight. The agency awarded a total of $270 million to the four lucky winners, with Boeing receiving $92.3 million to help develop its CST-100 capsule design, and the Sierra Nevada Corporation garnering $80 million, which will go toward its shuttle-like Dream Chaser craft. The smallest prize ($22 million) went to Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, which is reportedly looking to create a cone-shaped craft capable of carrying crew members into the abyss. And then, of course, there’s SpaceX, the proud recipient of a cool $75 million in NASA funds. The California-based company has already successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule, and is currently working on the Falcon Heavy — a 22-story craft heralded as the “world’s most powerful rocket.” NASA’s extra dough should give a little boost to SpaceX’s projects, but the funds are contingent upon improvements in Dragon’s crew-carrying capacities, to be carried out over the next year. If all goes well, we may see one of these companies launch an intergalactic ‘taxi’ service by the middle of the decade. Saddle up!

NASA awards $270 million to SpaceX and other commercial spaceflight ventures originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Apr 2011 16:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 15

The Crazy Design of NASA’s New Mars Rover [Video]

Posted in: NASA, space, Today's Chili, top

Nasa is getting ready to throw a Mini Cooper-sized mobile science lab up into space. Curiosity, as the rover is affectionately called, is headed toward Mars with a payload of lasers and mass spectrometers and multi-million dollar robotic drills—basically all the stuff needed to prove fourth planet conditions are capable of supporting microbial life… conditions depending, of course. But in order for Curiosity to even get the chance at an alien discovery, it can’t show up dressed as a multi-million dollar fireball. More »

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Apr 13

NASA animation depicts Curiosity’s soft landing on Mars, courtesy of a ‘sky crane’ (video)

Posted in: NASA, space, Today's Chili, video

Sending a rover to a distant planet is no small feat, so we might as well make the landing even more spectacular, right? That’s exactly what NASA has in mind for its Curiosity Mars rover, albeit for more practical reasons. Launching in late 2011 and expected to land on Mars in August 2012, this mobile laboratory will see a unique descent after entering the Martian atmosphere: there’ll be the usual separation from the heatshield and backshell, but at about 380 seconds into the entry, the rover will be gently lowered down by wire from a “sky crane,” as opposed to taking a leap of faith. Once the landing is complete, the hovering sky crane will then detach from the rover and fly off for a dramatic disposal — let’s just hope it won’t hit the now-dormant Spirit. See for yourself in the video above.

NASA animation depicts Curiosity’s soft landing on Mars, courtesy of a ‘sky crane’ (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 20:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 13

Microsoft’s Kinect navigates the universe thanks to Windows SDK (video)

Posted in: kinect, maps, Microsoft, NASA, Today's Chili, video


Microsoft’s WorldWide Telescope — a collaboration with NASA that explores high-resolution photos and 3D renders of the cosmos — was already pretty cool, but Redmond upped the ante to incredible with the addition of a Kinect depth camera at MIX 11. Using a piece of software created with the company’s upcoming Kinect SDK for Windows, Microsoft gave us a virtual tour of Earth and the surrounding stars, guided by a deep-voiced narrator holding the whole world in his hands. Of course, you’d already know that if you watched the video above, so what are you waiting for? Oh, and we’ve got more MIX video on the way, so stay tuned.

Myriam Joire contributed to this report.

Microsoft’s Kinect navigates the universe thanks to Windows SDK (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 11

Panasonic’s AG-3DA1 camera will shoot 3D video, Robonaut vlogs on the International Space Station

Posted in: 1080p, camcorder, camera, NASA, Panasonic, space, Today's Chili

NASA’s Robonaut 2 is something of a celebrity around these parts, owing to his dashing good looks and insatiable appetite for publicity, which can now be put to good use with a new toy the landlubbers are sending his way: a professional 3D camera. The human-aiding robot that presently calls the International Space Station home will soon be joined by Panasonic’s AG-3DA1, a full 1080p 3D video recorder with twin lenses and dual 2 megapixel 3MOS sensors. Panasonic is also loading up the next Space Shuttle Atlantis flight to the ISS (scheduled for June 28th) with 25.5-inch 3D LCD monitors and rugged Toughbook laptops to help with documenting proceedings aboard the research vessel. The new shooter costs a whopping $21,000, and though it’s not clear whether NASA paid for it or Panasonic just decided to be charitable, the space agency should have the cash to splash after deciding to shelve the James Cameron-approved project to slap a zoom-equipped 3D imager on its next Mars rover. We’re just wondering if the human world is quite ready for 3D video blogs from its favorite robotic astronaut.

Continue reading Panasonic’s AG-3DA1 camera will shoot 3D video, Robonaut vlogs on the International Space Station

Panasonic’s AG-3DA1 camera will shoot 3D video, Robonaut vlogs on the International Space Station originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 11:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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