The Technology Thread

[NickNitro]

They are trying to do this modular plug'n play design with PC desktops as well.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Amazon Buys Popular Digital Comics Platform Comixology

Amazon is buying Comixology, one of the major players in digital comics. This is huge acquisition for Amazon which revolutionized the way we consume regular books with the Kindle. Can it lend some of that mojo to the world of comics as well?

Comixology was founded in 2007, and distributes books by basically every publisher with its mobile apps for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Kindle Fire, as well as on your desktop.

Some people might get upset that Amazon is only further expanding its stranglehold over the world of publishing, but there's a good chance that the net effect for users would be at least a little positive if not neutral. Despite the digital strides comics have taken in recent years, the actual "books" part of the industry continues to struggle. If anything, Amazon could help the platform grow by using its reach to bring in more readers.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1917741&highlight=

Fitting news for the Hype

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Aereo to Add Chromecast Support for Ultimate TV Nerd Nirvana

What do you get when you combine Aereo's anytime, anywhere, broadcast-TV-via-internet cloud service with Google's Chromecast wonder-dongle? A confluence of TV gizmo delight—and that's exactly what Aereo announced today.

If you happen to live in one of the cities that supports Aereo, and you're a proud Chromecast owner, starting on May 29th you'll be able to use Aereo's Android app to record and cast broadcast TV via Chromecast. Yes, the segment of the population that uses both Aereo and Chromecast is probably very small (right now, Aereo only reaches the bigger cities in the eastern and midwestern parts of the U.S.). But for that little subset, this is some seriously good TV news.

I love my Chromecast

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

The Military Wants to Turn Its Drones into Flying Wi-Fi Hotspots

Not to be outdone by Facebook's vision of a drone internet, the military is whipping up unmanned aerial Wi-Fi hotspots of its own. Unused drones from the war in Iraq are getting a second life as part of DARPA's Mobile Hotspots program.

In remote areas where communication is critical, having your very own Wi-Fi drone circling overhead makes a big difference. The RA-7 Shadow drones DARPA has been retrofitting are much smaller than the deadlier and more infamous Predator drones. In fact, at just 11 feet long and 185 pounds, you have to be careful not to overload them with heavy internet equipment. War is Boring explains the details:

The trick, of course, is to fit the wireless equipment on the drone. DARPA researchers say they have developed small antennas operating on the millimeter wave band—that's extremely high frequency—as well as special amplifiers that can boost the signal while generating just half as much noise as regular amplifiers.
The pod with all this equipment comes out to about 20 pounds, and the drone itself can fly for nine hours at a time. Now it's up to DARPA to put it all together and make sure a Wi-Fi equipped drone actually works for troops on the ground. In the future, even drone armies could be Wi-Fi equipped.

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/c3dbc11da2a1

Well this is interesting

 

[KevanG]

"Now you can update your twitter account while under enemy fire." #oh**** #wegonnadie

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Volvo's Inflatable Child Seat Concept Fits in a Backpack

At one time the military actually tried to develop inflatable planes that were strong enough to fly, but easy to transport. Those never materialized, but the technology involved—a drop-stitch fabric that can be inflated to very high pressures—has enabled Volvo to create an inflatable child car seat that's just as safe as everything already on the market.

Using a built-in silent pump, the can be fully inflated in less than 40 seconds at the push of a button. It can be deflated the same way, and when folded down can easily squeeze into a backpack. Ask any parent who's had to lug a child's car seat when flying, and they'll tell you that's a brilliant innovation.

At just over eleven pounds the inflatable seat is a lot lighter as well. And the electronics that control the air pump are Bluetooth-enabled, which means that you could, at least in theory, inflate and deflate it from a smartphone app.

[YT]nBu12_xNb2E[/YT]

At the moment Volvo has no plans of making the seat a commercially available product. Right now it's mostly a proof-of-concept from the company's research labs. But it's a great idea, and hopefully there will be enough positive feedback for the company to actually make it a reality—after exhaustive testing, of course.

I know this will make some parents very happy

 

[NickNitro]

Yeah "WiFi hotspots" so when you see drones flying around your town and don't have to use your Network Data to watch a ******** Youtube video, you won't realize nor care that they're actually monitoring us all.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

The all seeing camera that is attached is for test purposes only. Surely they would never use them to spy on us? haha

 

[Teelie]

The all seeing camera that is attached is for test purposes only. Surely they would never use them to spy on us? haha

No surely a government program wouldn't do that.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Ikea Just Bought a Wind Farm Big Enough To Power All Its U.S. Stores

It takes a lot of energy to keep the lights on as you greedily pile ¢59 kitchen dongles and weird cookies into that blue bag, which is why Ikea is making a push to offset its total energy consumption by 2020. This week, it took a big step towards doing so by buying a wind farm in Illinois.

Incredibly, Ikea's new southern Illinois farm, Hoopeston Wind, will produce 65 percent more energy than it even needs to power all of its U.S. stores and distribution centers. That's also enough to power 39,000 average Illinois homes, all thanks to the 49 turbines that, according to the Chicago Tribune, may each have its own incomprehensible Swedish name.

But the power produced at Hoopeston won't go directly to powering your local Ikea. The farm is far enough away that transporting the electricity to stores doesn't make sense. Instead, Ikea will sell the energy it makes—again, the idea is to offset the electricity it uses. It's all about hedging against rollercoaster fossil fuel prices. "All those stores in aggregate consume a lot of electricity,'' according to one energy analyst who spoke to the Trib, adding, "these are not small investments, these are long term business decisions."

That's exactly the same strategy that a handful of major technology companies, from Facebook to Microsoft, are already pursuing. There's a good chance that plenty of other companies will follow in their footsteps.

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/...merican-wind-energy-association-wind-projects

That's one way to cut down on your energy cost

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Report: Amazon Is Showing Off a 3D Smartphone That Could Hit This Year

We've been hearing about the rumored 3D Amazon phone forever, but it's never shown up. According to the WSJ, however, Amazon is getting ready to launch this phone this year.

The WSJ says that Amazon has been privately showing the phone to some people in Seattle and San Francisco. It will be announced in June, and ship in September. The new handset will feature a glasses-free 3D display.

Of course, the WSJ has reported a 3D Amazon phone before, and other very confident reports have turned out to be false. Even if it makes conceptual sense for Amazon to make a handset, don't believe a word of it until Mr. Bezos trots the phone out across the stage.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303873604579495940522902678?mg=reno64-wsj

If true that would be really cool

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Wild New ​Display Uses Fog As An Interactive 3D Screen

Engineers have built an interactive display using a tabletop system and mounted personal screens made of fog. Projectors light the fog for each user and a camera system monitors movements, allowing each person at the table to manipulate and share three-dimensional data.

A team at the University of Bristol in the UK say their device, called MisTable, is see-through and reach-through. Both fog screens and the table display can be manipulated by users.

"The personal screen provides direct line of sight and access to the different interaction spaces," said Sriram Subramanian, a professor of human-computer interaction. "Users can be aware of each other's actions and can easily switch between interacting with the personal screen to the tabletop surface or the interaction section. This allows users to break in or out of shared tasks and switch between individual and group work."

Compare this to the Displair, by Russian inventor Maxim Kamanin. See the MisTable video below.

[YT]Mm0c67nY6EE[/YT]

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2014/april/mistable.html

Closer and closer to the tech we see in movies

 

[KevanG]

And now we just need a snarky AI to run it.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Google Bought a Drone Company, Which Isn't At All Creepy, Nope

The Wall Street Journal has just confirmed that Google will be purchasing Titan Aerospace, the same high-altitude drone startup that Facebook had been in talks with earlier this year.

While we can't be sure yet what Google plans to do with its new high-flying toys, it's hard not to worry that, in addition to connecting the world over, this means a lot more potential information at Google's fingertips.

Google has said that their new drone team will get to business with the already established Project Loon, which plans to shoot high-altitude balloons off into the stratosphere to cover the world in a blanket of Wi-Fi. According to the Wall Street Journal, there's also potential for Titan to work with "another early-stage Google project that is developing an airborne wind turbine that it hopes will generate energy more efficiently."

Then comes the (potentially) creepy part; Titan's drones will run around collecting "real-time, high-resolution images of the Earth" in addition to supporting voice and data services. Which means major boons to its Google Maps division's already staggering wealth of information. The tradeoff? Potential internet speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second virtually anywhere you go.

Of course, this isn't Google's first foray into the world of smaller robotics firms. This newest acquisition brings its number up to 13. What's more, these aren't your consumer-size quadcopters we're talkin'. Titan is in the process of developing two "dragonfly-shaped" drones, the smaller of which is just a touch bigger than a Boeing 767.

Google and Google products (many of which are extremely useful!) already pervade what feels like every aspect of our lives, but if Titan's acquisition is anything to go by, this is just the beginning.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304117904579501701702936522

I really hope they stick with their motto "Don't Be Evil" in the future

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

This Indigenous Iranian UAV Is the Poor Man's Predator Drone

Iran's previous attempts at creating an indigenous UAV fleet have been rather, well, comical. However, with recent sightings of a this medium-altitude, long-endurance flyer in the skies over Damascus, Iran's drone program may have finally reached the big time.

Dubbed the Shahed 129 (or "Eye-Witness"), this Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) measures roughly 26 feet long with a 52 foot wingspan. It reportedly has the endurance to remain aloft for up to 24 hours with a range of between 1700 and 2700 km (1000-1700 miles), a top speed of around 87 mph, and a service ceiling of 24,000 feet. The UCAV also reportedly utilizes a way-point based autopilot system similar to Iran's Karrar UAV when operating beyond range of its ground station. It's also reportedly capable of carrying between four and eight Sadid missiles.

The Shahed made its debut at the Great Prophet 7 war games in 2012, entered full-scale production in September of last year, and is widely believed to be heavily influenced by the Israeli Hermes 450 UAV, though recent surveillance footage now suggests inspiration from the American MQ-1 Predator as well, given the Shahed's close resemblance to both platforms. The Iranian craft sports a nose clearly reminiscent of the Predator's while sporting a roof-mounted antenna.

This wouldn't be the first (or even third) time that the Iranians have tried to pass off reworked western designs as their own. The US military has not reported losing an MQ-1 over Iranian territory, but that doesn't mean the IRSAF couldn't have gotten its hands on illicit parts through other channels. Unfortunately for them, just because the Shahed 129 looks like a Predator, doesn't mean it will fly like one.

http://theaviationist.com/2014/04/11/shahed-modified-version/

Great, now Iran has somewhat functional drones

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Forget the Freezer, This Device Frosts a Beer Glass In Just 10 Seconds

When you want a frosty cold one, you usually don't have the time to wait for your pint glass to actually get frosty sitting in a fridge. So you probably settle for a less satisfying can or bottle—a compromise you'll never have to make again with this countertop glass frosting contraption.

The device connects to a CO2 tank or cylinder you'll have to provide yourself, and using an over-sized spout it fills a glass with a frosty blast that will have it chilled in about ten seconds. A triumvirate of AA batteries powers a set of blue LEDs that add to the freezing effect (but not the process) and the whole unit clamps to the edge of a bar or table to prevent it from blasting off—maybe.

The only downside is that in addition to the cost of topping off a CO2 tank ($20 plus $5 a refill) the unit itself will set you back a hefty $400. Which means that all of a sudden drinking from a can that was floating in a cooler minutes ago doesn't seem like such a hardship.

http://www.hammacher.com/Product/De...urce=Affiliate&utm_medium=CPA&utm_campaign=CJ

I'm all for any tech that gets me an ice cold brew as fast as possible

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

IRS Misses XP Deadline, Pays Microsoft Millions for Custom Support

The IRS isn't exactly known for playing fast and loose with deadlines—your deadlines, that is. But when it comes to its own, its apparently a lot more willing to take their chances. In this case, that means paying millions of dollars to keep running Windows XP long after the deadline has come and gone.

As we all know, Microsoft cut its support for XP on April 8, a date it drilled into our heads over, and over, and over again. Nevertheless, April 8 came and went with the IRS still having failed to update over half of its computers to Windows 7. Of course, with tax day less than 24 hours away, the IRS can't exactly risk leaving any part of its system vulnerable, so it'll fork over millions to Microsoft for custom security and support.

In an IRS budget hearing last week, the Financial Services and General Government subcommittee chairman, Rep. Ander Crenshaw, was less than pleased:

Now we find out that you've been struggling to come up with $30 million to finish migrating to Windows 7, even though Microsoft announced in 2008 that it would stop supporting Windows XP past 2014. I know you probably wish you'd already done that.
Fortunately, the IRS claims that none of its "filing season system or other major business operating systems for taxpayers" currently run on any of their many outdated computers." It's hard not to enjoy the touch of irony. That is, until you remember that those fees are coming out of your tax dollars.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/arti...dline_will_spend_30M_to_upgrade_remaining_PCs

Your tax dollars at work folks, it's not like they had ample time to fix this or anything...

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

Glow-in-the-Dark Roads Finally Exist Outside of Hot Wheels

The concept of glow-in-the-dark roads is an incredibly simple piece of safety infrastructure that feels like it should have been implemented years ago. Finally, it has been—on the roads of the Netherlands

Back in 2012, Dutch design firms Studio Roosegaarde and Hejmans Infrastructure proposed the idea of roads painted with lines which would charge in the day then glow at night to make users aware of their position on the asphalt. If you were like us, you probably read the news and thought "yeah, but it'll be years before that becomes reality."

In fact, it's only taken two years for the initiative to go from concept to concrete fact. Now, a 500-meter stretch of the N329 highway in Oss features the lines—which are made by adding photo-luminescent powder into the road paint—that glow all night. And they deliver on their promise. According to a local news report, "it looks like you are driving through a fairytale." Which is, hopefully, a good thing.

Fully charged with sunlight, the lines glow for eight hours, though as yet there's no evidence to suggest how well they cope with wear 'n' tear. Indeed, there's no word on just how widely the lines will be rolled out, either—there are plans to expand, but it's not clear when or where.

The future of the roads looks even safer, too: there are plans to make the paint smart, so that it can allow communication with vehicles, and create road markings that can turn on and off to signal bad weather or upcoming hazards. For now, though, glowing roads will have to be enough to keep Dutch drivers a little safer.

http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2014-04/11/glow-in-the-dark-highway-launches

Why are we just not figuring out that this should be done in 2014? Seems like glow in the dark tech has been around for sometime now

 

[Teelie]

There are some limitations to it like if the streets are covered by snow or ice, if the days are overcast to the point the sun doesn't sufficiently charge the particles and natural paint erosion but I definitely like the concept.

 

[NickNitro]

Still have that tax return money laying around?

Google Glass Is Available to Everyone Today: How to Buy It

http://mashable.com/2014/04/15/google-glass-how-to-buy/?utm_cid=mash-com-fb-tech-link

 

[Teelie]

Only $1500 to look pretentious and rich.

 

[NickNitro]

People are getting beat up on the street wearing them. Someone stole someones and smashed it on the ground.........

People can be real ass holes

 

[BrollySupersj]

Only $1500 to look pretentious and rich.

And have ads shoved in your face.

 

[Teelie]

People are getting beat up on the street wearing them. Someone stole someones and smashed it on the ground.........

People can be real ass holes

That was in San Francisco where they have a real problem with tech companies and rising income levels driving out the lower income, and Google imparticular. Although that doesn't mean people won't mug you for them else where either.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

This Glass Toaster Costs $1,000—But It Can Cook Steak

It's fair to say, not all toasters are created equal. But the Bugatti Noun is a god amongst toasters, a futurist but elegant combination of glass and chrome that would stand out in any kitchen. And it does more than just toast.

Currently on display at the EuroCocina trade fair in Milan, this high-end kitchen appliance reinvents the toaster. Instead of using traditional heating elements, the Noun uses semiconductors embedded in glass to create perfectly browned toast. The design also enables it to cook pretty much anything else, as well, if you put it in a heat-resistant bag.

The electronic controls, which can be operated using a smartphone app, also enable you to control the precise temperature of the cooking environment. Clemente Bugatti—no relation to the luxury car company—showed off at the trade show by cooking shrimp and steak in the toaster.

This is hardly the first glass toaster design to pop up on the kitchenware circuit, but it looks like it will be the first one actually to make it to market. Bugatti is currently securing regulatory approval and says the toaster will go on sale in the United States next year. It will cost about $1,000.

http://www.psfk.com/2014/04/app-enabled-glass-toaster.html

Seems like an awesome way to cook stuff