Hasta La Gadget!

Just a few days after introducing its own Android-like OS, Baidu is now looking to expand its mobile reach to the hardware front, with the help of Dell. According to Reuters, the Chinese search giant has joined forces with the PC manufacturer to produce a line of tablets and smartphones within China, in the hopes of capitalizing on a market of more than 900 million mobile subscribers. A Dell spokeswoman declined to offer a launch date for the new line of products, but sources close to the matter say they could launch as early as November. Details on the devices remain equally opaque, though Dell seems intent on resurrecting its tablet / handset unit, following the demise of the Streak 5. “We have a partnership with Baidu and you know we have the Streak 5 tablet, so the partnership will be in that space,” the company’s rep explained, adding that future releases would involve Baidu’s mobile app platform, as well. Today’s announcement also comes after Dell’s Chinese sales grew by 22 percent during the first quarter of this year, though it remains to be seen whether or not this alliance will have much affect on a market currently dominated by Apple and Lenovo.

Baidu, Dell join forces to produce line of smartphones and tablets in China originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Sep 2011 06:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This article was written on January 19, 2006 by CyberNet.

If you always want to test those Microsoft products, like Windows Live Messenger or Windows Live Mail, then you might want to be one of the first to register for Microsoft Office Live! The beta version will be launched shortly (hopefully) and will allow users to manage the business application on a security-enhanced private Web site.

Register To Be A Microsoft Office Live Tester

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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We’ve already seen how awkward computers can be when they try to speak like humans, but researchers from North Carolina State and Georgia Tech have now developed a program that could make it easier to show them how it’s done. Their approach, outlined in a recently published paper, would allow developers to create natural language generation (NLG) systems twice as fast as currently possible. NLG technology is used in a wide array of applications (including video games and customer service centers), but producing these systems has traditionally required developers to enter massive amounts of data, vocabulary and templates — rules that computers use to develop coherent sentences. Lead author Karthik Narayan and his team, however, have created a program capable of learning how to use these templates on its own, thereby requiring developers to input only basic information about any given topic of conversation. As it learns how to speak, the software can also make automatic suggestions about which information should be added to its database, based on the conversation at hand. Narayan and his colleagues will present their study at this year’s Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment conference in October, but you can dig through it for yourself, at the link below.

New program makes it easier to turn your computer into a conversational chatterbox originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Sep 2011 01:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This article was written on July 29, 2008 by CyberNet.

It’s hard to believe that Microsoft is still working on XP so many years after it originally launched. Their latest work with the operating system involved making a version that worked well with the XO Laptop (One Laptop Per Child project). Over 40 engineers were involved with the project, and as Ryan mentioned back in December, their hardest task was to get the operating system on a small drive and writing drivers that would work with the laptops’ specialized hardware.

Those engineers completed the task, and as they say, a new Windows XP has gone gold! According to BetaNews, Microsoft wasn’t the only one who had work to do to get XP to work on the XO laptop, the OLPC organization had work as well. They say, “Microsoft spent a year modifying XP to ensure it would work on the XO laptops without problems. But OLPC had work to do as well, including boosting the memory and making hardware adjustments. The switch from Linux will increase the production costs of the XO from $188 to a little over $200. XP itself will cost $3 per each XO shipped.”

Unfortunately, for those who already bought the XO laptops, like all of the people who participated in the Give One – Get One program, they will not have the option of switching from Linux, which their computers came with, to XP. This is likely due to the hardware adjustments that were made so that the laptops could work with XP. Part of the reason that XP is such an attractive option is that many more people are familiar with it than they are Linux.

Windows on the XO laptop is expected sometime in September.

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Official Android updates

• The biggest update we saw this week was a widespread push of Android 2.3.3 to the Motorola Droid 2. This one is done OTA, so simply go into your settings menu and check for updates to see if it’s there. (thanks to everyone who sent this in)
• While we saw a rollout of Android 2.3 to a select few LG Optimus Ones in June, we’re hearing reports that the update’s now getting pushed out again to a few more regions. This refresh must be done manually through LG’s updater tool, so you’ll definitely want to check to see if your phone is one of the lucky recipients. [via PocketNow]
• US Cellular took to its Facebook Page to let customers know it’s working on revamping the Samsung Mesmerize to Gingerbread at some point, though no official date or timeframe was given aside from “as soon as possible.” [via AndroidCentral]
• HTC announced the arrival of Android 2.3 for the Thunderbolt and Droid Incredible this month, via its Facebook page. [via AndroidCommunity]
• In fact, some users have already reported getting Gingerbread for the Incredible, and we suspect the rollout will be complete no later than the end of the month, to fulfill the company’s promise. [via Phandroid]
• Gingerbread is in the plans for the Motorola Milestone 2, and according to the company the refresh will begin rolling out in early Q4. [via MyDailyGadget]
• The Samsung LC11 LTE mobile hotspot is getting a new build, EF07, that appears to improve its handling of multiple devices and congested WiFi locations. It also adds security patches and new protocols. [via Verizon]
• An update for the Droid 3 was apparently available to soak testers and leaked online, but was pulled from Motorola servers shortly thereafter. It appears to add video chat support in GTalk and adds a new radio that’s supposed to save battery life. The via link still has the update available for anyone interested. [via Droid-Life]

Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc hackery

• The root method used on most Motorola Android devices has been employed to root the Droid Bionic before it’s even been released. [via Droid-Life]
• LG has released the kernel source for its Gingerbread build of the Optimus S. [via AndroidCentral]
• The HTC Dev site expanded its support for the bootloader unlock tool this week, now encompassing all versions of the Sensation — including T-Mobile’s. [via AndroidCentral]

Other platforms

• SPB Shell 3.0 is now available for Symbian^3 devices. It brings a fresh 3D-style UI to the OS, and can be yours for $15. [via IntoMobile]

Updates already covered this week

• HP planning TouchPad OTA update for added functionality
• HTC Flyer Honeycomb ROM leaks
• Samsung Nexus S updated to 2.3.6, fixes voice search and breaks tethering

Refresh Roundup: week of August 29, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 04 Sep 2011 10:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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