British Telecom is claiming billions of dollars of damages from Google in a lawsuit filed in the US which says that the Android mobile operating system infringes a number of the telecoms company's key patents.
The lawsuit, filed in the state of Delaware in the US, relates to six patents which BT says are infringed by the Google Maps, Google Music, location-based advertising and Android Market products on Android.
If successful, the suit could mean that Google or mobile handset makers will have to pay BT royalties on each Android handset in use and which they produce.
That could be expensive: Android is presently the most successful smartphone platform in the world, with its handsets making more than 40% of sales, equating to more than 40m produced every quarter. Google recently said that more than 500,000 Android devices are activated every day.
BT's move – which could also be repeated in Europe – means that Google is now fending off lawsuits against Android from six large publicly-traded companies, according to Florian Müller, an independent expert who follows the twists and turns of international patent litigation. BT joins Apple. Oracle, Microsoft, eBay and Gemalto, a digital security company.
A BT spokesman told the Guardian: "BT can confirm that it has commenced legal proceedings against Google by filing a claim with the US District Court of Delaware for patent infringement.
"The patents in question relate to technologies which underpin location-based services, navigation and guidance information and personalised access to services and content. BT's constant investment in innovation has seen it develop a large portfolio of patents which are valuable corporate assets."
A Google spokesman said: "We believe these claims are without merit, and we will defend vigorously against them."
In the filing, BT cites a number of US patents which were applied for and, apart from one, awarded in the 1990s which it says Android is infringing. BT has a long history in the mobile business, having been one of the original providers of mobile phone services with the Cellnet joint venture in the UK in the 1980s.
Müller says: "Android already had more than enough intellectual problems anyway. Now Google faces one more large organisation that believes its rights are infringed. BT probably wants to continue to be able to do business with all mobile device makers and therefore decided to sue Google itself."
Google is fending off multiple lawsuits relating to Android, while a number of handset makers including HTC and Samsung have yielded to patent claims by Microsoft against Android and are paying a per-handset fee for every one they make.
Many of the alleged infringements made by Android would also seem to apply to Apple's iPhone and iPad mobile devices – such as the "Busuioc Patent", which detects whether a mobile device is connected to a cellular or Wi-Fi network and allows streaming dependent on that.
Apple's iTunes Match service, launched in the US earlier this year and last Friday in the UK, also detects what sort of connection the device has before allowing file uploads or downloads. It is not known whether Apple has licensed use of the systems from BT, or whether BT has decided they do not infringe its patents, or whether litigation is pending.
BT points in the lawsuit to its large patent portfolio, from research at its Adastral Park centre near Ipswich, and that it has a portfolio of more than 10,000 patents.
The new lawsuit marks a return to attempts by BT to monetise its patent portfolio over web use.
In 2000 it asserted a patent claim in the US against Prodigy, one of the biggest internet service providers, claiming a patent on the hyperlink – the method by which people follow links between pages on the web. But embarrassingly for BT the claim was rejected when a judge said that no jury could find that the patent was infringed.
Thursday 22 December 2011
Friday 16 December 2011
Apple launches iTunes Match in Britain
iTunes Match, which was announced by Apple in June, was launched in the US last month.
For £21.99 a year users can back-up their iTunes library to Apple's cloud servers and download songs to their iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Songs that Apple can 'match' to its iTunes catalogue are automatically added to iCloud, without needing to be uploaded.
Users need only upload those songs that aren't available from iTunes. That feature, which required negotiation with record labels, makes Apple's service faster than rival services from Amazon and Google, neither of which has yet launched in Britain.
Robert Ashcroft, chief executive of PRS for Music, said: "We issued our first licence for a cloud music locker service in 2010 and are proud to be the first copyright collecting society to license Apple’s new, cloud-based services. We welcome these enhancements to the way in which people can enjoy their digital music collections and look forward to the prospect of their generating further growth in the sales of music through the iTunes store and increase royalties to the creators we represent."
iTunes Match songs are available in high quality - 256 kilobits per second - even if the user's original was in a lower quality. The service is limited to a maximum of 25,000 songs and a total of 10 synced devices.
The service was announced at Apple's WWDC event in San Francisco last June. Steve Jobs, the late Apple chief executive, said iCloud was the company's “next big insight”
For £21.99 a year users can back-up their iTunes library to Apple's cloud servers and download songs to their iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Songs that Apple can 'match' to its iTunes catalogue are automatically added to iCloud, without needing to be uploaded.
Users need only upload those songs that aren't available from iTunes. That feature, which required negotiation with record labels, makes Apple's service faster than rival services from Amazon and Google, neither of which has yet launched in Britain.
Robert Ashcroft, chief executive of PRS for Music, said: "We issued our first licence for a cloud music locker service in 2010 and are proud to be the first copyright collecting society to license Apple’s new, cloud-based services. We welcome these enhancements to the way in which people can enjoy their digital music collections and look forward to the prospect of their generating further growth in the sales of music through the iTunes store and increase royalties to the creators we represent."
iTunes Match songs are available in high quality - 256 kilobits per second - even if the user's original was in a lower quality. The service is limited to a maximum of 25,000 songs and a total of 10 synced devices.
The service was announced at Apple's WWDC event in San Francisco last June. Steve Jobs, the late Apple chief executive, said iCloud was the company's “next big insight”
Tuesday 13 December 2011
Google Offers Gripping View of Japanese Devastation Via Street Views
http://www.pcworld.com/article/246131/google_offers_gripping_view_of_japanese_devastation_via_street_views.html
Wednesday 7 December 2011
Microsoft Windows app store announced
In a move that follows Apple, which successfully launched its Mac App Store in January, Microsoft confirmed that it will launch a Windows Store to provide applications for Windows 8 computers.
Developers will be able to submit their apps to the store from late February next year. Apps can be free but the minimum price for those that charge will be $1.49. Microsoft will take a 30 per cent commission from app sales - a percentage that has become the standard as app stores have launched for mobile and desktop apps. If an app generates more than $20,000, Microsoft will drop its commission to 20 per cent.
The company said it was offering a more flexible system for developers than rival stores.
"Ensuring the visibility of apps and the efficiency and fluidity of app discovery became the fundamental building block of our Store design," said Ted Dworkin, partner program manager for the Windows Store, in a blogpost.
To aid discoverability, Windows Store apps will be indexed by search engines and developers can link from their website directly to their app by inserting a line of code.
Microsoft will charge a commission for applications that use its in-app purchase system but companies are free to use their own payment system without paying commission to Microsoft.
The company showed The Daily Telegraph's Windows 8 app as an example of an app that can use its own subscription system.
Windows 8 is expected to be released in beta form by the end of February. Microsoft has not confirmed a date for the full release of the new operating system but it is thought that it will be available before the end of 2012.
Developers will be able to submit their apps to the store from late February next year. Apps can be free but the minimum price for those that charge will be $1.49. Microsoft will take a 30 per cent commission from app sales - a percentage that has become the standard as app stores have launched for mobile and desktop apps. If an app generates more than $20,000, Microsoft will drop its commission to 20 per cent.
The company said it was offering a more flexible system for developers than rival stores.
"Ensuring the visibility of apps and the efficiency and fluidity of app discovery became the fundamental building block of our Store design," said Ted Dworkin, partner program manager for the Windows Store, in a blogpost.
To aid discoverability, Windows Store apps will be indexed by search engines and developers can link from their website directly to their app by inserting a line of code.
Microsoft will charge a commission for applications that use its in-app purchase system but companies are free to use their own payment system without paying commission to Microsoft.
The company showed The Daily Telegraph's Windows 8 app as an example of an app that can use its own subscription system.
Windows 8 is expected to be released in beta form by the end of February. Microsoft has not confirmed a date for the full release of the new operating system but it is thought that it will be available before the end of 2012.
Wednesday 30 November 2011
Mark Zuckerberg: Facebook founder admits 'bunch of mistakes' amid privacy u-turn
Writing in a rare blog post, the social network site's founder and chief executive said he “founded Facebook on the idea that people want to share and connect with people in their lives, but to do this everyone needs complete control over who they share with at all times”.
But he added that while overall the site had a good history of being open about privacy, "I am the first to admit that we have made a bunch of mistakes".
He also admitted that the site's executives "can always do better" on the controversial issue.
His comments came after the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accused Facebook of systematically invading user privacy on seven specific counts, including when the social network had changed settings to make more of its users' information publicly visible.
The new plan to settle the compaints marks a major step on the social network’s road to its initial public offering, which had been widely expected to value the company at $100 billion.
Facebook will now be “required to obtain consumers’ affirmative express consent before enacting changes that override their privacy preferences”.
This will effectively make all major future privacy control changes opt in. Facebook must also submit to privacy audits every 2 years for the next 20 years, stop any access to content on deactivated accounts, and present its policies on privacy or security of user data more clearly.
Although new settings can apparently be added without requiring users to opt in, new services will now require users to explicitly give their consent if they are to take part. Facebook Places, for example, which allows users to check-in online to physical locations, was cited as an example of a service that Facebook would not now be able to turn on for all users without their consent.
Zuckerberg conceded that the site had made major mistakes with users’ privacy, citing the launch of the ‘Beacon’ system which showed users’ friends their shopping habits, and the company’s previous changes to privacy policies.
He claimed, however, that “When I built the first version of Facebook, almost nobody I knew wanted a public page on the internet. That seemed scary. But as long as they could make their page private, they felt safe sharing with their friends online. Control was key”.
Zuckerberg put the social network’s success down to making it “easy for people to feel comfortable sharing things about their real lives”.
“Overall, I think we have a good history of providing transparency and control over who can see your information,” he wrote.
"That said, I'm the first to admit that we've made a bunch of mistakes. In particular, I think that a small number of high profile mistakes, like Beacon four years ago and poor execution as we transitioned our privacy model two years ago, have often overshadowed much of the good work we've done.
"I also understand that many people are just naturally skeptical of what it means for hundreds of millions of people to share so much personal information online, especially using any one service."
He added: "Even if our record on privacy were perfect, I think many people would still rightfully question how their information was protected. It's important for people to think about this, and not one day goes by when I don't think about what it means for us to be the stewards of this community and their trust.
Facebook has always been committed to being transparent about the information you have stored with us – and we have led the internet in building tools to give people the ability to see and control what they share.
"But we can also always do better. I'm committed to making Facebook the leader in transparency and control around privacy."
The new agreement with the FTC “means we're making a clear and formal long-term commitment to do the things we've always tried to do and planned to keep doing - giving you tools to control who can see your information and then making sure only those people you intend can see it”, Zuckerberg said.
The social network will now also have two Chief Privacy Officers; former lawyer Erin Egan will be responsible for Policy, while Michael Richter will become Chief Privacy Officer, Products. Richter is currently Facebook's Chief Privacy Counsel.
Overall, the changes are set to alter Facebook’s development of new products, as well as its attitude to users. FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said ”Facebook’s innovation does not have to come at the expense of consumer privacy. The FTC action will ensure it will not.”
The proposals will now be put to a 30-day consultation period. They are likely to meet the majority of the concerns raised be European privacy regulators, although those issues remain unresolved.
But he added that while overall the site had a good history of being open about privacy, "I am the first to admit that we have made a bunch of mistakes".
He also admitted that the site's executives "can always do better" on the controversial issue.
His comments came after the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accused Facebook of systematically invading user privacy on seven specific counts, including when the social network had changed settings to make more of its users' information publicly visible.
The new plan to settle the compaints marks a major step on the social network’s road to its initial public offering, which had been widely expected to value the company at $100 billion.
Facebook will now be “required to obtain consumers’ affirmative express consent before enacting changes that override their privacy preferences”.
This will effectively make all major future privacy control changes opt in. Facebook must also submit to privacy audits every 2 years for the next 20 years, stop any access to content on deactivated accounts, and present its policies on privacy or security of user data more clearly.
Although new settings can apparently be added without requiring users to opt in, new services will now require users to explicitly give their consent if they are to take part. Facebook Places, for example, which allows users to check-in online to physical locations, was cited as an example of a service that Facebook would not now be able to turn on for all users without their consent.
Zuckerberg conceded that the site had made major mistakes with users’ privacy, citing the launch of the ‘Beacon’ system which showed users’ friends their shopping habits, and the company’s previous changes to privacy policies.
He claimed, however, that “When I built the first version of Facebook, almost nobody I knew wanted a public page on the internet. That seemed scary. But as long as they could make their page private, they felt safe sharing with their friends online. Control was key”.
Zuckerberg put the social network’s success down to making it “easy for people to feel comfortable sharing things about their real lives”.
“Overall, I think we have a good history of providing transparency and control over who can see your information,” he wrote.
"That said, I'm the first to admit that we've made a bunch of mistakes. In particular, I think that a small number of high profile mistakes, like Beacon four years ago and poor execution as we transitioned our privacy model two years ago, have often overshadowed much of the good work we've done.
"I also understand that many people are just naturally skeptical of what it means for hundreds of millions of people to share so much personal information online, especially using any one service."
He added: "Even if our record on privacy were perfect, I think many people would still rightfully question how their information was protected. It's important for people to think about this, and not one day goes by when I don't think about what it means for us to be the stewards of this community and their trust.
Facebook has always been committed to being transparent about the information you have stored with us – and we have led the internet in building tools to give people the ability to see and control what they share.
"But we can also always do better. I'm committed to making Facebook the leader in transparency and control around privacy."
The new agreement with the FTC “means we're making a clear and formal long-term commitment to do the things we've always tried to do and planned to keep doing - giving you tools to control who can see your information and then making sure only those people you intend can see it”, Zuckerberg said.
The social network will now also have two Chief Privacy Officers; former lawyer Erin Egan will be responsible for Policy, while Michael Richter will become Chief Privacy Officer, Products. Richter is currently Facebook's Chief Privacy Counsel.
Overall, the changes are set to alter Facebook’s development of new products, as well as its attitude to users. FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said ”Facebook’s innovation does not have to come at the expense of consumer privacy. The FTC action will ensure it will not.”
The proposals will now be put to a 30-day consultation period. They are likely to meet the majority of the concerns raised be European privacy regulators, although those issues remain unresolved.
Monday 28 November 2011
Friday 25 November 2011
Nokia: The giant with its fingers crossed (The Independent)
Finnish firm Nokia still sells more phones than anyone – but after being outwitted by Apple and co, the firm's future rests on the success of a new model.
Remember Nokia? Before Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone in January 2007, the Finnish firm bestrode the handheld mobile device market like a colossus. There's at least half a chance you owned one of its phones, given that Nokia was regularly responsible for five of the top 10 handsets sold in the UK in any financial quarter.
Its devices were simple, with intuitive keypads that became as familiar as the qwerty keyboard. They were reliable: a dropped phone rarely cracked, and a dropped call rarely occurred. They were ubiquitous: someone in your office always had a Nokia charger when you needed one. The Nokia 3210 sold 160 million units, the Nokia 1100 250 million. In some parts of the world, "Nokia" means mobile phone, just as "Hoover" means vacuum cleaner.
Over the past five years, however, the company has been edged out of the top end of the market by Apple, and out of the mid-market by phones using Google's Android operating system (OS); in the business bracket, it was buried by BlackBerry. Nokia has lost more than £53bn since 2007 and watched its market value fall by 75 per cent.
Mike Butcher, editor of TechCrunch Europe, describes the contrast between Nokia and its rivals vividly. "Steve Jobs launching iPhone was incredible to watch," he says. "He'd stand up there like he was the fifth Beatle and unveil an amazing, sinuous mobile smartphone. Then you'd go to a Nokia event and they'd launch a phone called something like the ZX27493."
In February, Nokia's CEO, Stephen Elop, wrote a now-notorious memo to his staff, in which he recounted the parable of a man standing on a burning oil platform in the North Sea. "He could stand on the platform, and inevitably be consumed by the burning flames," the email read. "Or, he could plunge 30 metres into the freezing waters. The man was standing upon a 'burning platform', and he needed to make a choice... Nokia, our platform is burning."
Elop's leap into the choppy waters consisted of 4,000 job cuts and a "strategic alliance" with Microsoft to produce new devices using the software giant's Windows Phone OS. This led, in turn, to the launch of the phone on which Nokia's hopes now rest: the Lumia 800, which reached stores yesterday. At £366 per handset, the Lumia 800 is a sleek, high-spec device designed to compete with the likes of the iPhone, the Samsung Galaxy or the HTC Sensation.
It syncs your contacts directly to Facebook, links remotely to your Xbox, and has a decent Nokia-built maps application. The Lumia 710 (£235) is being launched simultaneously with the mid-market in mind. Both phones run not on Nokia's own smartphone OS, Symbian, but on Windows Phone 7.5 Mango. When Nokia launched the Lumia at its Nokia World event last month, it was described as "the first real Windows phone".
Nokia remains the world's biggest mobile phone manufacturer, and in fact its devices last year outsold the iPhone globally by almost two to one. But the Finnish firm's global share of phone sales last year fell below 30 per cent for the first time. In the developing world, it now has to contend with cheap Chinese knock-offs. In the developed world, it is struggling against the cultural tide.
As well as high-visibility advertising, Nokia is staging the UK's largest "4D" light and music event in history on the Thames. On the evening of 28 November, the Millbank area of central London will be plunged into darkness, and the Millbank Tower transformed into a canvas for a spectacular 4D projection and a performance by Canadian producer/DJ Deadmau5.
"A flagship device would normally demand about £5m of investment in its promotion," one industry insider estimates. "We're seeing maybe four times that spent on the Lumia 800."
"Mobile phones quickly became less about the device itself than about the ecosystem of applications," Mike Butcher explains. "As soon as the iPhone and the App Store launched, there was a huge proliferation of applications: clever map apps, bus timetables, you name it. Nokia was blind-sided. Their device strategy was totally scattered. They ended up with three different operating systems, their Ovi apps store didn't work properly, they didn't have a good mapping app, which was a big deal on the iPhone."
Google's Android OS compounded Nokia's woes. The company opened its own shop opposite the Apple Store in Regent Street in 2008, but failed to win over an indifferent public. It closed after less than two years.
Network operators want Nokia and the Lumia to succeed, to keep the mobile market competitive. Microsoft wants it to succeed, so Windows Phone can compete with Android and Apple. When Windows 8 launches next year, it will bring with it yet more advanced handsets for Windows Phone. "I saw the roster of devices that are coming out," says John Nichols, Nokia UK's marketing boss, "and it was one of the greatest days of my career."
The Lumia already boasts plenty of pre-orders, and the tech blogs have given it great write-ups. Gizmodo calls it "by far the best Windows Phone you can buy". Jack Kent, a mobile media analyst at IHS Screen Digest, agrees. "One phone won't turn things around," he says, "but it's the start of a comeback."
Remember Nokia? Before Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone in January 2007, the Finnish firm bestrode the handheld mobile device market like a colossus. There's at least half a chance you owned one of its phones, given that Nokia was regularly responsible for five of the top 10 handsets sold in the UK in any financial quarter.
Its devices were simple, with intuitive keypads that became as familiar as the qwerty keyboard. They were reliable: a dropped phone rarely cracked, and a dropped call rarely occurred. They were ubiquitous: someone in your office always had a Nokia charger when you needed one. The Nokia 3210 sold 160 million units, the Nokia 1100 250 million. In some parts of the world, "Nokia" means mobile phone, just as "Hoover" means vacuum cleaner.
Over the past five years, however, the company has been edged out of the top end of the market by Apple, and out of the mid-market by phones using Google's Android operating system (OS); in the business bracket, it was buried by BlackBerry. Nokia has lost more than £53bn since 2007 and watched its market value fall by 75 per cent.
Mike Butcher, editor of TechCrunch Europe, describes the contrast between Nokia and its rivals vividly. "Steve Jobs launching iPhone was incredible to watch," he says. "He'd stand up there like he was the fifth Beatle and unveil an amazing, sinuous mobile smartphone. Then you'd go to a Nokia event and they'd launch a phone called something like the ZX27493."
In February, Nokia's CEO, Stephen Elop, wrote a now-notorious memo to his staff, in which he recounted the parable of a man standing on a burning oil platform in the North Sea. "He could stand on the platform, and inevitably be consumed by the burning flames," the email read. "Or, he could plunge 30 metres into the freezing waters. The man was standing upon a 'burning platform', and he needed to make a choice... Nokia, our platform is burning."
Elop's leap into the choppy waters consisted of 4,000 job cuts and a "strategic alliance" with Microsoft to produce new devices using the software giant's Windows Phone OS. This led, in turn, to the launch of the phone on which Nokia's hopes now rest: the Lumia 800, which reached stores yesterday. At £366 per handset, the Lumia 800 is a sleek, high-spec device designed to compete with the likes of the iPhone, the Samsung Galaxy or the HTC Sensation.
It syncs your contacts directly to Facebook, links remotely to your Xbox, and has a decent Nokia-built maps application. The Lumia 710 (£235) is being launched simultaneously with the mid-market in mind. Both phones run not on Nokia's own smartphone OS, Symbian, but on Windows Phone 7.5 Mango. When Nokia launched the Lumia at its Nokia World event last month, it was described as "the first real Windows phone".
Nokia remains the world's biggest mobile phone manufacturer, and in fact its devices last year outsold the iPhone globally by almost two to one. But the Finnish firm's global share of phone sales last year fell below 30 per cent for the first time. In the developing world, it now has to contend with cheap Chinese knock-offs. In the developed world, it is struggling against the cultural tide.
As well as high-visibility advertising, Nokia is staging the UK's largest "4D" light and music event in history on the Thames. On the evening of 28 November, the Millbank area of central London will be plunged into darkness, and the Millbank Tower transformed into a canvas for a spectacular 4D projection and a performance by Canadian producer/DJ Deadmau5.
"A flagship device would normally demand about £5m of investment in its promotion," one industry insider estimates. "We're seeing maybe four times that spent on the Lumia 800."
"Mobile phones quickly became less about the device itself than about the ecosystem of applications," Mike Butcher explains. "As soon as the iPhone and the App Store launched, there was a huge proliferation of applications: clever map apps, bus timetables, you name it. Nokia was blind-sided. Their device strategy was totally scattered. They ended up with three different operating systems, their Ovi apps store didn't work properly, they didn't have a good mapping app, which was a big deal on the iPhone."
Google's Android OS compounded Nokia's woes. The company opened its own shop opposite the Apple Store in Regent Street in 2008, but failed to win over an indifferent public. It closed after less than two years.
Network operators want Nokia and the Lumia to succeed, to keep the mobile market competitive. Microsoft wants it to succeed, so Windows Phone can compete with Android and Apple. When Windows 8 launches next year, it will bring with it yet more advanced handsets for Windows Phone. "I saw the roster of devices that are coming out," says John Nichols, Nokia UK's marketing boss, "and it was one of the greatest days of my career."
The Lumia already boasts plenty of pre-orders, and the tech blogs have given it great write-ups. Gizmodo calls it "by far the best Windows Phone you can buy". Jack Kent, a mobile media analyst at IHS Screen Digest, agrees. "One phone won't turn things around," he says, "but it's the start of a comeback."
Wednesday 23 November 2011
Wednesday 16 November 2011
Scientists boost battery strength with small holes
Batteries for phones and laptops could soon recharge ten times faster and hold a charge ten times larger than current technology allows.
Scientists at Northwestern University in the US have changed the materials in lithium-ion batteries to boost their abilities.
One change involves poking millions of minuscule holes in the battery.
Batteries built using the novel technique could be in the shops within five years, estimate the scientists.
Fast movers
A mobile phone battery built using the Northwestern techniques would charge from flat in 15 minutes and last a week before needing a recharge.
The density and movement of lithium ions are key to the process.
Dr Harold Kung and his team at Northwestern said they have found a way to cram more of the ions in and to speed up their movement by altering the materials used to manufacture a battery.
The maximum charge has been boosted by replacing sheets of silicon with tiny clusters of the substance to increase the amount of lithium ions a battery can hold on to.
The recharging speed has been accelerated using a chemical oxidation process which drills small holes - just 20-40 nanometers wide - in the atom-thick sheets of graphene that batteries are made of.
This helps lithium ions move and find a place to be stored much faster.
The downside is that the recharging and power gains fall off sharply after a battery has been charged about 150 times.
"Even after 150 charges, which would be one year or more of operation, the battery is still five times more effective than lithium-ion batteries on the market today," said lead scientist Prof Harold Kung from the chemical and biological engineering department at Northwestern.
So far, the work done by the team has concentrated on making improvements to anodes - where the current flows into the batteries when they are providing power.
The group now plans to study the cathode - where the current flows out - to make further improvements.
A paper detailing the work of Prof Kung and his co-workers has been published in the journal Advanced Energy Materials.
Scientists at Northwestern University in the US have changed the materials in lithium-ion batteries to boost their abilities.
One change involves poking millions of minuscule holes in the battery.
Batteries built using the novel technique could be in the shops within five years, estimate the scientists.
Fast movers
A mobile phone battery built using the Northwestern techniques would charge from flat in 15 minutes and last a week before needing a recharge.
The density and movement of lithium ions are key to the process.
Dr Harold Kung and his team at Northwestern said they have found a way to cram more of the ions in and to speed up their movement by altering the materials used to manufacture a battery.
The maximum charge has been boosted by replacing sheets of silicon with tiny clusters of the substance to increase the amount of lithium ions a battery can hold on to.
The recharging speed has been accelerated using a chemical oxidation process which drills small holes - just 20-40 nanometers wide - in the atom-thick sheets of graphene that batteries are made of.
This helps lithium ions move and find a place to be stored much faster.
The downside is that the recharging and power gains fall off sharply after a battery has been charged about 150 times.
"Even after 150 charges, which would be one year or more of operation, the battery is still five times more effective than lithium-ion batteries on the market today," said lead scientist Prof Harold Kung from the chemical and biological engineering department at Northwestern.
So far, the work done by the team has concentrated on making improvements to anodes - where the current flows into the batteries when they are providing power.
The group now plans to study the cathode - where the current flows out - to make further improvements.
A paper detailing the work of Prof Kung and his co-workers has been published in the journal Advanced Energy Materials.
Monday 14 November 2011
Google Music store ‘missing Sony and Warner’
Invitations to the US event, which is taking place this Wednesday 16 November, have gone out to journalists and industry executives,
Google is understood to have only signed one deal with Universal Music Group, which has just acquired EMI, to provide music for its download store.
According to technology site CNET, executives from the label will be present at the event this week. However, Sony Music and Warner Music are understood to have not yet signed.
Negotiations between the remaining two major labels and Google are continuing as the music industry is keen for a new service to rival Apple’s iTunes.
Google declined to comment.
The download store is expected to be US-only at launch but will gradually roll out to the UK and other territories.
Google is trying to ensure that it can offer its Android mobile users a full movie and music offering.
A few weeks ago Google announced a movie rental service for UK Android users.
Google is understood to have only signed one deal with Universal Music Group, which has just acquired EMI, to provide music for its download store.
According to technology site CNET, executives from the label will be present at the event this week. However, Sony Music and Warner Music are understood to have not yet signed.
Negotiations between the remaining two major labels and Google are continuing as the music industry is keen for a new service to rival Apple’s iTunes.
Google declined to comment.
The download store is expected to be US-only at launch but will gradually roll out to the UK and other territories.
Google is trying to ensure that it can offer its Android mobile users a full movie and music offering.
A few weeks ago Google announced a movie rental service for UK Android users.
Saturday 12 November 2011
Friday 11 November 2011
Facebook will be forced to get approval from its 800million users before exposing profiles
Facebook is close to a settlement with U.S. federal regulators that would require the internet giant to obtain approval from its 800million users before making changes that expose their profiles to a wider audience.
Currently, Facebook can alter elements of the site which it believes will improve the social network and then leaves it to users to reset anything they don't like - a process known as 'opting out'.
However, if an agreement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is approved, the firm would have to get explicit consent from each of its users before changing its privacy settings, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Citing unnamed sources who were familiar with the situation, the Journal said Facebook has agreed to make the changes to resolve a two-year investigation by the FTC.
Companies introducing a feature or service generally prefer an 'opt out' system because fewer people take the steps required to get out of the changes.
The FTC opened its probe into Facebook after the website made changes that automatically showed users' names, pictures, hometowns and other personal information available for anyone to see.
That upset people who had deliberately programmed their privacy settings to confine that information to a specific group of friends or family.
As part of its proposed settlement, Facebook would also submit to government reviews of its privacy practices for 20 years, according to the Journal.
The audits are similar to the scrutiny that Google agreed to undergo earlier this year.
That agreement settled an FTC investigation into Google's handling of people's personal information in February 2010 when it launched a service called Buzz to counter Facebook.
Buzz exposed the email contacts of unwitting users, a breach that the FTC considered to be a deceptive practice. Google is now in the process of closing Buzz to focus on another social network called Plus that debuted in June.
Speaking earlier this week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he believes the website's changes over the past year have given users greater control over their privacy.
He said: 'I think we're going to need to keep on making it easier and easier, but that's our mission, right?'
'I mean, we have to do that because now, if people feel like they don't have control over how they're sharing things, then we're failing them.'
Read more http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2060262/Facebook-forced-approval-800million-users-exposing-profiles.html?ITO=1490
Currently, Facebook can alter elements of the site which it believes will improve the social network and then leaves it to users to reset anything they don't like - a process known as 'opting out'.
However, if an agreement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is approved, the firm would have to get explicit consent from each of its users before changing its privacy settings, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Citing unnamed sources who were familiar with the situation, the Journal said Facebook has agreed to make the changes to resolve a two-year investigation by the FTC.
Companies introducing a feature or service generally prefer an 'opt out' system because fewer people take the steps required to get out of the changes.
The FTC opened its probe into Facebook after the website made changes that automatically showed users' names, pictures, hometowns and other personal information available for anyone to see.
That upset people who had deliberately programmed their privacy settings to confine that information to a specific group of friends or family.
As part of its proposed settlement, Facebook would also submit to government reviews of its privacy practices for 20 years, according to the Journal.
The audits are similar to the scrutiny that Google agreed to undergo earlier this year.
That agreement settled an FTC investigation into Google's handling of people's personal information in February 2010 when it launched a service called Buzz to counter Facebook.
Buzz exposed the email contacts of unwitting users, a breach that the FTC considered to be a deceptive practice. Google is now in the process of closing Buzz to focus on another social network called Plus that debuted in June.
Speaking earlier this week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he believes the website's changes over the past year have given users greater control over their privacy.
He said: 'I think we're going to need to keep on making it easier and easier, but that's our mission, right?'
'I mean, we have to do that because now, if people feel like they don't have control over how they're sharing things, then we're failing them.'
Read more http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2060262/Facebook-forced-approval-800million-users-exposing-profiles.html?ITO=1490
Sunday 30 October 2011
Samsung surges past Apple in smartphones, upbeat on Q4
(Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co overtook Apple Inc as the world's top smartphone maker in the July-September period with a 44 percent jump in shipments, and forecast strong sales in the current quarter in a clear warning to its rivals.
Samsung (005930.KS) only entered the smartphone market in earnest last year, but its sales have skyrocketed thanks to a sleek production system that rapidly brings new products to market. Apple (AAPL.O) introduced its first iPhone in 2007.
"In the handset division, Samsung has no real rival models to challenge its products except for the iPhone 4S. Apple and Samsung will continue to dominate the market in the fourth quarter," said Kim Hyun-joong, a fund manager at Midas Asset Management, which owns Samsung shares.
Profits from the South Korean firm's telecoms division, announced on Friday, more than doubled from a year ago to a record 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion) and accounted for 60 percent of Samsung's total profit, offsetting a plunge in earnings from its bread-and-butter memory chips.
Shipments of smartphones jumped 44 percent from the preceding quarter to 27.8 million units, up nearly four times from a year ago, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.
Apple's iPhone sales shrank by 16 percent to 17.1 million units in the third quarter. Samsung had 23.8 percent of the global smartphone market in the third quarter, 9 points higher than Apple. Samsung's flagship Galaxy line of products is powered by Google's (GOOG.O) Android software.
Apple sold fewer phones in the third quarter, missing street expectations for the first time in year, as customers held off buying iPhones until the October launch of the latest version.
Samsung shares were up 1.6 percent by 0500 GMT (1 a.m. EDT), versus a 0.6 percent gain in the wider market .KS11.
The world's biggest technology firm by revenue reported a 4.25 trillion won operating profit for the July-September quarter, broadly in line with its earlier estimate of 4.2 trillion won.
That was down from 4.9 trillion won a year ago but up from 3.8 trillion won in the preceding quarter.
Samsung said its fourth-quarter earnings could be better than the third, boosted by one-off gains from its $1.4 billion sale of its hard disk drive business to Seagate Technology (STX.O).
"I am cautiously optimistic on the fourth quarter outlook at this point," Robert Yi, head of Samsung's investor relations, told analysts.
"Looking ahead into the fourth quarter, when industry demand is traditionally at its peak, Samsung expects sales of mobile devices to remain strong and flat-panel TV shipments to increase," the company added in an earnings statement.
Apple, whose iPhone sales account for nearly half the firm's total sales, reported a 40 percent gross margin, or the percentage of sales left after subtracting the cost of goods sold. Samsung's phone division reported a 16.9 percent operating margin, which further takes account of marketing costs.
Nevertheless, Samsung faces challenges as the new iPhone introduced earlier this month is notching up strong sales.
Nokia is also fighting back with its first phones based on Microsoft's (MSFT.O) Windows software. And Sony Corp (6758.T) announced on Thursday it would take full ownership of its mobile venture, Sony Ericsson, in a bid to exploit its music and video library.
Samsung on Thursday announced the launch of its Galaxy Note mobile device, adding to the flagship Galaxy lineup of products. The device, powered by Android, will square off against a series of new models released by Apple, Nokia and HTC Corp (2498.TW).
The iPhone, introduced in 2007 with the touchscreen template now adopted by its rivals, is still the gold standard in the smartphone market.
Samsung may not have come up with the concept, but it has adopted Apple's breakthrough smartphone idea perhaps better than any other handset maker. It tries to offer the Apple experience at a better price with better functionality.
"Samsung's rise has been driven by a blend of elegant hardware designs, popular Android services, memorable sub-brands and extensive global distribution," said Alex Spektor at Strategy Analytics.
"Samsung has demonstrated that it is possible, at least in the short term, to differentiate and grow by using the Android ecosystem."
Q4 SEEN BETTER THAN Q3
Profits from Samsung's chip business more than halved to 1.59 trillion won, but the division held up well as its relatively high exposure to lucrative mobile chips helped the firm offset a sharp plunge in prices of commodity computer memory chips.
Samsung was the sole profitable firm among major global dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chip makers in the third quarter.
Second-ranked computer memory chip maker Hynix Semiconductor (000660.KS) and Japan's Elpida Memory (6665.T) swung to deep losses as prices of DRAM chips used in PCs tumbled about 50 percent in the third quarter.
Samsung's chip business is also benefiting from strong demand for mobile processor chips used in Apple's iPhone and iPad tablet as well as its own Galaxy smartphones.
Samsung expected demand for PCs to remain weak in the fourth quarter because of weak seasonality, while demand for mobile devices and servers will be relatively strong.
"I see some signs that chip prices have hit bottom as inventories are running out. However, we don't yet know when the industry is going to pick up since macroeconomic uncertainties overshadow the demand outlook," said Park Hyun, an analyst at Tong Yang Securities.
Samsung's display business posted losses for a third consecutive quarter on weak demand for TVs and PCs.
But losses narrowed from the previous quarter, helped by strong earnings from the OLED display, which is widely expected to replace LCD as the next-generation flat-screen in mobile devices and TVs.
($1 = 1,115.250 Korean won)
(Additional reporting by Ju-min Park and Jungyoun Park; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner, Miyoung Kim and Dean Yates)
Samsung (005930.KS) only entered the smartphone market in earnest last year, but its sales have skyrocketed thanks to a sleek production system that rapidly brings new products to market. Apple (AAPL.O) introduced its first iPhone in 2007.
"In the handset division, Samsung has no real rival models to challenge its products except for the iPhone 4S. Apple and Samsung will continue to dominate the market in the fourth quarter," said Kim Hyun-joong, a fund manager at Midas Asset Management, which owns Samsung shares.
Profits from the South Korean firm's telecoms division, announced on Friday, more than doubled from a year ago to a record 2.5 trillion won ($2.2 billion) and accounted for 60 percent of Samsung's total profit, offsetting a plunge in earnings from its bread-and-butter memory chips.
Shipments of smartphones jumped 44 percent from the preceding quarter to 27.8 million units, up nearly four times from a year ago, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.
Apple's iPhone sales shrank by 16 percent to 17.1 million units in the third quarter. Samsung had 23.8 percent of the global smartphone market in the third quarter, 9 points higher than Apple. Samsung's flagship Galaxy line of products is powered by Google's (GOOG.O) Android software.
Apple sold fewer phones in the third quarter, missing street expectations for the first time in year, as customers held off buying iPhones until the October launch of the latest version.
Samsung shares were up 1.6 percent by 0500 GMT (1 a.m. EDT), versus a 0.6 percent gain in the wider market .KS11.
The world's biggest technology firm by revenue reported a 4.25 trillion won operating profit for the July-September quarter, broadly in line with its earlier estimate of 4.2 trillion won.
That was down from 4.9 trillion won a year ago but up from 3.8 trillion won in the preceding quarter.
Samsung said its fourth-quarter earnings could be better than the third, boosted by one-off gains from its $1.4 billion sale of its hard disk drive business to Seagate Technology (STX.O).
"I am cautiously optimistic on the fourth quarter outlook at this point," Robert Yi, head of Samsung's investor relations, told analysts.
"Looking ahead into the fourth quarter, when industry demand is traditionally at its peak, Samsung expects sales of mobile devices to remain strong and flat-panel TV shipments to increase," the company added in an earnings statement.
Apple, whose iPhone sales account for nearly half the firm's total sales, reported a 40 percent gross margin, or the percentage of sales left after subtracting the cost of goods sold. Samsung's phone division reported a 16.9 percent operating margin, which further takes account of marketing costs.
Nevertheless, Samsung faces challenges as the new iPhone introduced earlier this month is notching up strong sales.
Nokia is also fighting back with its first phones based on Microsoft's (MSFT.O) Windows software. And Sony Corp (6758.T) announced on Thursday it would take full ownership of its mobile venture, Sony Ericsson, in a bid to exploit its music and video library.
Samsung on Thursday announced the launch of its Galaxy Note mobile device, adding to the flagship Galaxy lineup of products. The device, powered by Android, will square off against a series of new models released by Apple, Nokia and HTC Corp (2498.TW).
The iPhone, introduced in 2007 with the touchscreen template now adopted by its rivals, is still the gold standard in the smartphone market.
Samsung may not have come up with the concept, but it has adopted Apple's breakthrough smartphone idea perhaps better than any other handset maker. It tries to offer the Apple experience at a better price with better functionality.
"Samsung's rise has been driven by a blend of elegant hardware designs, popular Android services, memorable sub-brands and extensive global distribution," said Alex Spektor at Strategy Analytics.
"Samsung has demonstrated that it is possible, at least in the short term, to differentiate and grow by using the Android ecosystem."
Q4 SEEN BETTER THAN Q3
Profits from Samsung's chip business more than halved to 1.59 trillion won, but the division held up well as its relatively high exposure to lucrative mobile chips helped the firm offset a sharp plunge in prices of commodity computer memory chips.
Samsung was the sole profitable firm among major global dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chip makers in the third quarter.
Second-ranked computer memory chip maker Hynix Semiconductor (000660.KS) and Japan's Elpida Memory (6665.T) swung to deep losses as prices of DRAM chips used in PCs tumbled about 50 percent in the third quarter.
Samsung's chip business is also benefiting from strong demand for mobile processor chips used in Apple's iPhone and iPad tablet as well as its own Galaxy smartphones.
Samsung expected demand for PCs to remain weak in the fourth quarter because of weak seasonality, while demand for mobile devices and servers will be relatively strong.
"I see some signs that chip prices have hit bottom as inventories are running out. However, we don't yet know when the industry is going to pick up since macroeconomic uncertainties overshadow the demand outlook," said Park Hyun, an analyst at Tong Yang Securities.
Samsung's display business posted losses for a third consecutive quarter on weak demand for TVs and PCs.
But losses narrowed from the previous quarter, helped by strong earnings from the OLED display, which is widely expected to replace LCD as the next-generation flat-screen in mobile devices and TVs.
($1 = 1,115.250 Korean won)
(Additional reporting by Ju-min Park and Jungyoun Park; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner, Miyoung Kim and Dean Yates)
GoldenEye 007: Reloaded trailer evokes both N64 and Call of Duty
http://beefjack.com/news/goldeneye-007-reloaded-trailer-evokes-both-n64-and-call-of-duty/
Friday 21 October 2011
Sunday 25 September 2011
Monday 19 September 2011
Friday 16 September 2011
Facebook beats phone for a fifth of Britons
The majority of people aged between 25 and 34 said they preferred contacting to their friends and family online instead of speaking to them directly, according to a survey by TalkTalk, the broadband provider. The research also indicated that the landline phone has been comprehensively overtaken by mobiles. Nearly 40% said they preferred using their mobile phone to communicate, compared to 22% who liked to use their landlines.
BT earned ten per cent less from fixed voice calls last year, while revenues from land lines fell by £300 million overall, according to data from Ofcom, the Communications regulator. Earnings by mobile phone networks rose by £200 million.
The average amount of money earned per fixed line has now been falling for two years in a row, according to Ofcom. Overall, the number of fixed line connections in the UK is also falling, as younger people increasingly opt for mobile phones and mobile broadband. The total volume of fixed line phone calls fell 20 per cent between 2005 and 2010.
A total of 10.7 million Britons still ‘phone home’ once a week, while the majority of parents used their landlines to call children who had left home. Many, however, were concerned about making calls to mobile phones because they considered it to be too expensive.
Women were twice as likely to talk to their mothers every day as they were there fathers, and twice as likely to text sisters than brothers.
The survey, which interviewed more than 2,000 subjects, also found that people used smartphones 2.7 times per week to talk to colleagues, and 2.6 times per week to talk to friends. One in 20 men said they email their colleagues every hour.
One recent survey suggested that 72 per cent of people would prefer to lose their wallet than their mobile phone.
Though mobile phone technology dates back to the 1940s, the first mobile phone call in Britain did not happen until January 1985, and they started to take off until the 1990s when digital technology was introduced, which allowed text messaging.
BT earned ten per cent less from fixed voice calls last year, while revenues from land lines fell by £300 million overall, according to data from Ofcom, the Communications regulator. Earnings by mobile phone networks rose by £200 million.
The average amount of money earned per fixed line has now been falling for two years in a row, according to Ofcom. Overall, the number of fixed line connections in the UK is also falling, as younger people increasingly opt for mobile phones and mobile broadband. The total volume of fixed line phone calls fell 20 per cent between 2005 and 2010.
A total of 10.7 million Britons still ‘phone home’ once a week, while the majority of parents used their landlines to call children who had left home. Many, however, were concerned about making calls to mobile phones because they considered it to be too expensive.
Women were twice as likely to talk to their mothers every day as they were there fathers, and twice as likely to text sisters than brothers.
The survey, which interviewed more than 2,000 subjects, also found that people used smartphones 2.7 times per week to talk to colleagues, and 2.6 times per week to talk to friends. One in 20 men said they email their colleagues every hour.
One recent survey suggested that 72 per cent of people would prefer to lose their wallet than their mobile phone.
Though mobile phone technology dates back to the 1940s, the first mobile phone call in Britain did not happen until January 1985, and they started to take off until the 1990s when digital technology was introduced, which allowed text messaging.
Monday 12 September 2011
Amazon 'to launch book rental service'
The service, which is expected to only be available in the US at first, would see customers pay an annual fee for access to a library of ebooks, writes The Wall Street Journal.
Amazon was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.
Publishers are understood to be having mixed reactions to the concept, which has proved to be a successful model for digital movie rentals, as proven by the popular US film service, Netflix.
Amazon is believed to have offered book publishers a large fee for joining the service. However, the negotiations are said to still be in their early stages. The Seattle-based technology company, which is expected to imminently launch a tablet device to rival Apple’s iPad, has also said that the digital ebook library would feature older titles and be accessible to those who pay for $79 a year for Amazon Prime, the service which allows people unlimited two-day shipping and films and TV shows on demand.
One US publishing executive told The Wall Street Journal: “What it [the digital book rental service] would do is downgrade the value of the book business.”
Digital book rental services already exist, with sites like booksfree.com and bookswim.com having been live for some time. However, these services send out the physical books to their customers, rather than just offering limited ebook acces
Amazon was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.
Publishers are understood to be having mixed reactions to the concept, which has proved to be a successful model for digital movie rentals, as proven by the popular US film service, Netflix.
Amazon is believed to have offered book publishers a large fee for joining the service. However, the negotiations are said to still be in their early stages. The Seattle-based technology company, which is expected to imminently launch a tablet device to rival Apple’s iPad, has also said that the digital ebook library would feature older titles and be accessible to those who pay for $79 a year for Amazon Prime, the service which allows people unlimited two-day shipping and films and TV shows on demand.
One US publishing executive told The Wall Street Journal: “What it [the digital book rental service] would do is downgrade the value of the book business.”
Digital book rental services already exist, with sites like booksfree.com and bookswim.com having been live for some time. However, these services send out the physical books to their customers, rather than just offering limited ebook acces
Tuesday 6 September 2011
Saturday 13 August 2011
Thursday 11 August 2011
Monday 1 August 2011
iPhone app brings Roman London to life
(http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/innovation/07/29/roman.london.app/index.html?hpt=te_bn7) London (CNN) -- The Romans may have left Britain in the 5th century A.D., but they left their mark on the country after nearly four centuries of occupation.
The settlement of Londinium, now the thriving city of London, was built by the Romans around the middle of the first century A.D., and is one of the enduring legacies of the Roman invasion.
Some sites, such as the ruins of the ancient roman wall, are still standing but much of the city's ancient history remains buried. Now, a new -- and free -- application for iPhone and iPad is unearthing Roman London and bringing it back to life virtually.
The app, called Streetmusuem:Londinium, is a joint venture from the London Museum of Archaeology and the TV channel History.
With the app, users can hold up their phone around London and activate video vignettes of Roman scenes against the modern backdrop using an augmented reality feature.
They can virtually excavate a patch of soil by rubbing their fingers on the screen to reveal items from the Museum of London's core collection as well as bring up key information about the items.
Roy Stephenson is Head of Archaeological Collections and Archive at the Museum of London and was responsible for creating content for the app.
"I really want people to absorb history, that there's more to it than the museum or gallery," he said.
"If you walk down the street, you're in it, you're in the historic landscape, and it's all around you," he continued.
His hope is that users will be intrigued to further explore the items in the museum's collection.
"It's a minor representative of all the stuff that we have in the collection, the pinnacle of the iceberg," he said.
The History channel was responsible for filming the vignettes of Roman life, using professional actors and so-called "re-enactors" to act out scenes of ancient Romans shopping, worshipping and fighting.
Steven Allen from the History channel was tasked with recreating nine Roman scenes, sets and cast. "We knew where the forum was, we knew where they made pottery, we knew where they duelled, so we had to work out how to illustrate these," he explained.
In a scene at the London forum, he said, a market vendor tries to sell a stale fish to a customer, who then throws it at a banker walking past; in another scene at the old roman wall, a guard is caught slacking off by his superior.
"They fit in with a younger audience we're aiming for, injecting some humor into the scenarios," he added.
Streetmuseum: Londinium was developed from a previous app which used open source software and augmented reality to superimpose images of historic London over the contemporary vista, seen through the camera view on an iPhone.
"(It was) like a time tunnel looking back, allowing you to compare old with new," explained Kevin Brown from creative agency Brothers and Sisters, who developed the app for the Museum of London.
The innovations to the new app, he said, include the video vignettes, as well as a map of Roman London overlaid on a Google map of the city now, with a slider to increase or decrease the transparency of the Roman map.
Soundscapes can be activated, giving a sense of what the Roman streets might have sounded like, in addition to the vignettes.
The excavation feature is also new, as is a walking tour marked on the Google map of London that starts at the museum and moves through the city to key Roman sites, giving users, according to Brown, "a very tailored, curated experience."
Stephenson of the Museum of London explained that the majority of sites are located in the centre of the city but that he included at least one item of interest in each of the 33 boroughs in London.
So if you wanted to extend the tour to Croydon in South London, for example, the app would show you where a stash of Roman gold coins was once discovered; or, further north in Highgate, where an ancient pottery kiln was unearthed.
"(It's really) an educational resource," said Brown.
"If you knew nothing about Roman London and you spent 20 or 30 minutes with the app, you'd gen up pretty quickly," he continued.
The settlement of Londinium, now the thriving city of London, was built by the Romans around the middle of the first century A.D., and is one of the enduring legacies of the Roman invasion.
Some sites, such as the ruins of the ancient roman wall, are still standing but much of the city's ancient history remains buried. Now, a new -- and free -- application for iPhone and iPad is unearthing Roman London and bringing it back to life virtually.
The app, called Streetmusuem:Londinium, is a joint venture from the London Museum of Archaeology and the TV channel History.
With the app, users can hold up their phone around London and activate video vignettes of Roman scenes against the modern backdrop using an augmented reality feature.
They can virtually excavate a patch of soil by rubbing their fingers on the screen to reveal items from the Museum of London's core collection as well as bring up key information about the items.
Roy Stephenson is Head of Archaeological Collections and Archive at the Museum of London and was responsible for creating content for the app.
"I really want people to absorb history, that there's more to it than the museum or gallery," he said.
"If you walk down the street, you're in it, you're in the historic landscape, and it's all around you," he continued.
His hope is that users will be intrigued to further explore the items in the museum's collection.
"It's a minor representative of all the stuff that we have in the collection, the pinnacle of the iceberg," he said.
The History channel was responsible for filming the vignettes of Roman life, using professional actors and so-called "re-enactors" to act out scenes of ancient Romans shopping, worshipping and fighting.
Steven Allen from the History channel was tasked with recreating nine Roman scenes, sets and cast. "We knew where the forum was, we knew where they made pottery, we knew where they duelled, so we had to work out how to illustrate these," he explained.
In a scene at the London forum, he said, a market vendor tries to sell a stale fish to a customer, who then throws it at a banker walking past; in another scene at the old roman wall, a guard is caught slacking off by his superior.
"They fit in with a younger audience we're aiming for, injecting some humor into the scenarios," he added.
Streetmuseum: Londinium was developed from a previous app which used open source software and augmented reality to superimpose images of historic London over the contemporary vista, seen through the camera view on an iPhone.
"(It was) like a time tunnel looking back, allowing you to compare old with new," explained Kevin Brown from creative agency Brothers and Sisters, who developed the app for the Museum of London.
The innovations to the new app, he said, include the video vignettes, as well as a map of Roman London overlaid on a Google map of the city now, with a slider to increase or decrease the transparency of the Roman map.
Soundscapes can be activated, giving a sense of what the Roman streets might have sounded like, in addition to the vignettes.
The excavation feature is also new, as is a walking tour marked on the Google map of London that starts at the museum and moves through the city to key Roman sites, giving users, according to Brown, "a very tailored, curated experience."
Stephenson of the Museum of London explained that the majority of sites are located in the centre of the city but that he included at least one item of interest in each of the 33 boroughs in London.
So if you wanted to extend the tour to Croydon in South London, for example, the app would show you where a stash of Roman gold coins was once discovered; or, further north in Highgate, where an ancient pottery kiln was unearthed.
"(It's really) an educational resource," said Brown.
"If you knew nothing about Roman London and you spent 20 or 30 minutes with the app, you'd gen up pretty quickly," he continued.
Sunday 31 July 2011
Saturday 30 July 2011
Thursday 14 July 2011
Amazon to launch touchscreen tablet, report says
(CNN) -- Amazon, the online retailer that ignited demand for electronic readers with its Kindle, might be entering the increasingly crowded tablet computer market.
Citing unnamed sources, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Amazon will introduce a color touchscreen tablet before October that will compete with Apple's popular iPad and other similar devices.
People familiar with the product told the Journal that it will have a 9-inch screen and run on Google's Android operating system. It won't have a camera, they said.
The device will go beyond the Kindle in allowing customers to play movies, music and other content -- books, too -- downloaded from Amazon.com, the Journal reported. Amazon reportedly isn't developing the product itself, unlike the Kindle, but instead will outsource production to an Asian manufacturer.
Amazon did not immediately return a request for comment.
Rumors about Amazon making a tablet have been swirling for almost a year. Some reports have said the Seattle-based company is partnering with South Korean manufacturer Samsung, which will build the device.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos hasn't exactly doused the speculation. Asked by Consumer Reports in May about the possibility of Amazon launching a multipurpose tablet device, Bezos said to stay tuned.
Reaction was swift Wednesday afternoon in the blogosphere, which seemed to accept the Journal report as fact.
"The lack of a camera is disappointing, but it may be a sign that Amazon is positioning its tablet as more of a competitor to Barnes and Noble's wildly successful Nook Color, a hybrid tablet/e-reader that retails for just $250," wrote Devindra Hardawar in VentureBeat.
"The fall is going to be very interesting. There's a reason Apple wants to get another iPad out there before the end of the year," TechCrunch's MG Siegler wrote on his personal blog.
Wednesday's Journal report also said Amazon will also release two updated versions of its Kindle e-reader in the third quarter of this year: a touch-screen device and an improved but cheaper adaptation of the current Kindle.
Citing unnamed sources, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Amazon will introduce a color touchscreen tablet before October that will compete with Apple's popular iPad and other similar devices.
People familiar with the product told the Journal that it will have a 9-inch screen and run on Google's Android operating system. It won't have a camera, they said.
The device will go beyond the Kindle in allowing customers to play movies, music and other content -- books, too -- downloaded from Amazon.com, the Journal reported. Amazon reportedly isn't developing the product itself, unlike the Kindle, but instead will outsource production to an Asian manufacturer.
Amazon did not immediately return a request for comment.
Rumors about Amazon making a tablet have been swirling for almost a year. Some reports have said the Seattle-based company is partnering with South Korean manufacturer Samsung, which will build the device.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos hasn't exactly doused the speculation. Asked by Consumer Reports in May about the possibility of Amazon launching a multipurpose tablet device, Bezos said to stay tuned.
Reaction was swift Wednesday afternoon in the blogosphere, which seemed to accept the Journal report as fact.
"The lack of a camera is disappointing, but it may be a sign that Amazon is positioning its tablet as more of a competitor to Barnes and Noble's wildly successful Nook Color, a hybrid tablet/e-reader that retails for just $250," wrote Devindra Hardawar in VentureBeat.
"The fall is going to be very interesting. There's a reason Apple wants to get another iPad out there before the end of the year," TechCrunch's MG Siegler wrote on his personal blog.
Wednesday's Journal report also said Amazon will also release two updated versions of its Kindle e-reader in the third quarter of this year: a touch-screen device and an improved but cheaper adaptation of the current Kindle.
Monday 4 July 2011
Apple's iOS operating system beats main rival Google Android in online security rankings
(Daily Mail - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2009583/Apples-iOS-operating-beats-main-rival-Google-Android-online-security-rankings.html?ITO=1490) Apple's iOS mobile operating system is more secure against hackers and other online threats than its main rival, Google's Android, a new study has found. And both are more secure than PCs.
Chief among the findings from computer security specialist Symantec is that while the most popular mobile platforms in use today were designed with security in mind, these provisions are not always sufficient.
The iPhone developed by Apple is limited to running software that is Apple approved, which may be frustrating but has security benefits
Safety first: The iPhone developed by Apple is limited to running software that is Apple approved, which may be frustrating but has security benefits
Siân John, Symantec's UK security strategist, said that both Apple i devices and Android phones are open to many established attacks even though 'mobile devices have more security baked in'
But the security features of Apple’s software, which powers the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, are better implemented than those of Android.
Complicating matters, today's mobile devices are increasingly being connected to and synchronized with third party and desktop-based services
* Smartphone and laptop users who connect to Wi-Fi in public 'risk having their credit card details stolen'
* A gadget James Bond would be proud of: Motorola mobile is the first smartphone to operate using fingerprint recognition
While offering improved security over traditional desktop-based operating systems, both iOS and Android are still vulnerable to many existing categories of attacks.
iOS's security model offers strong protection against traditional malware, primarily due to Apple's rigorous app certification process and their developer certification process, which vets the identity of each software author and weeds out attackers.
Google, which owns and helped develop the Andoid operating system, has opted for a less rigorous certification model, permitting any software developer to create and release apps anonymously, without inspection.
This lack of certification has arguably led to today's increasing volume of Android-specific malware.
Android-based mobile phone
Rival: The Android-based mobile phone strengthened Google's hand in the growing smartphone market, but the open approach to software development can cause security problems
Users of both Android and iOS devices regularly synchronize their devices with third-party cloud services such as web-based calendars and with their home desktop computers.
This can expose sensitive business data stored on these devices to outsiders.
So-called 'jailbroken' devices, which have Apple's systems bypassed so as to run non-vetted software or devices whose security has been disabled, offer attractive targets for attackers since these devices are every bit as vulnerable as traditional PCs.
John added: 'The main danger still comes from people leaving devices on a train or on the back seat of a taxi rather than malware, but that's not to say malware isn't a problem.'
Carey Nachenberg Chief Architect at Symantec Security Technology and Response said: 'While more secure than traditional PCs, these platforms are still vulnerable to many traditional attacks.
'Moreover, enterprise employees are increasingly using unmanaged, personal devices to access sensitive enterprise resources, and then connecting these devices to thirrd-party services outside of the governance of the enterprise, potentially exposing key assets to attackers.'
Chief among the findings from computer security specialist Symantec is that while the most popular mobile platforms in use today were designed with security in mind, these provisions are not always sufficient.
The iPhone developed by Apple is limited to running software that is Apple approved, which may be frustrating but has security benefits
Safety first: The iPhone developed by Apple is limited to running software that is Apple approved, which may be frustrating but has security benefits
Siân John, Symantec's UK security strategist, said that both Apple i devices and Android phones are open to many established attacks even though 'mobile devices have more security baked in'
But the security features of Apple’s software, which powers the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, are better implemented than those of Android.
Complicating matters, today's mobile devices are increasingly being connected to and synchronized with third party and desktop-based services
* Smartphone and laptop users who connect to Wi-Fi in public 'risk having their credit card details stolen'
* A gadget James Bond would be proud of: Motorola mobile is the first smartphone to operate using fingerprint recognition
While offering improved security over traditional desktop-based operating systems, both iOS and Android are still vulnerable to many existing categories of attacks.
iOS's security model offers strong protection against traditional malware, primarily due to Apple's rigorous app certification process and their developer certification process, which vets the identity of each software author and weeds out attackers.
Google, which owns and helped develop the Andoid operating system, has opted for a less rigorous certification model, permitting any software developer to create and release apps anonymously, without inspection.
This lack of certification has arguably led to today's increasing volume of Android-specific malware.
Android-based mobile phone
Rival: The Android-based mobile phone strengthened Google's hand in the growing smartphone market, but the open approach to software development can cause security problems
Users of both Android and iOS devices regularly synchronize their devices with third-party cloud services such as web-based calendars and with their home desktop computers.
This can expose sensitive business data stored on these devices to outsiders.
So-called 'jailbroken' devices, which have Apple's systems bypassed so as to run non-vetted software or devices whose security has been disabled, offer attractive targets for attackers since these devices are every bit as vulnerable as traditional PCs.
John added: 'The main danger still comes from people leaving devices on a train or on the back seat of a taxi rather than malware, but that's not to say malware isn't a problem.'
Carey Nachenberg Chief Architect at Symantec Security Technology and Response said: 'While more secure than traditional PCs, these platforms are still vulnerable to many traditional attacks.
'Moreover, enterprise employees are increasingly using unmanaged, personal devices to access sensitive enterprise resources, and then connecting these devices to thirrd-party services outside of the governance of the enterprise, potentially exposing key assets to attackers.'
Thursday 30 June 2011
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Tuesday 28 June 2011
More Americans buying e-readers than tablets, study says
(CNN) -- Ads touting Apple's iPad seem to be everywhere, but e-readers such as Amazon.com's Kindle and Barnes & Noble's Nook are actually more popular with consumers, according to a new report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project.
Last winter, tablets had a slight market lead. According to Pew, as of that time, 7% of U.S. adults owned a tablet computer (such as the iPad or Motorola Mobility's Xoom), while only 6% owned an e-reader device.
But that picture soon changed drastically. By May, 12% of U.S. adults owned an e-reader, while tablet ownership expanded only to 8%. (Note: the margin of error on this survey is 2%, but that would not challenge the market lead of e-readers.)
This is not an either-or technology choice. Pew noted that 3% of adults own both devices. Specifically, 9% own an e-reader but not a tablet, and 5% own a tablet but not an e-reader.
Apple has sold more than 25 million iPads and has a dominant share of the tablet market. Amazon and Barnes & Noble don't disclose sales of their e-reader devices. Citi analyst Mark Mahaney forecasts that Amazon could sell 17.5 million Kindles in this year alone.
Who's buying e-readers? According to Pew, Hispanics (who appear to be leading other U.S. ethnic demographics generally in embracing mobile technology), adults under age 65, college graduates, parents, and people in households earning less than $75,000 per year are especially likely to own e-readers.
Also: "There was considerable growth in e-reader ownership between November 2010 and May 2011 among college graduates, one-fifth of whom now own these devices," Pew reports. This is interesting, since Insider Higher Ed, an industry trade publication, recently reported that after a slow start, the market for electronic college textbooks experienced a surge this spring.
Who's buying tablets? Pew reports that from November 2010 to May, the largest increases in tablet ownership have been among men, Hispanics, people with at least some college education and household incomes of $30,000 or more. But the very highest increases in tablet ownership were seen among Hispanic adults and households earning at least $75,000 annually.
Why are e-readers more popular than tablets?
Based on device specifications alone, tablets would seem to offer greater consumer appeal, since you can do far more with a tablet than an e-reader. A tablet is an e-reader plus a video screen plus a game player plus a web browser plus ... .
E-readers typically limit users to buying, downloading, reading and annotating books. Furthermore, most e-readers still feature a black-and-white e-ink display and lack touchscreens. (Though, the new Nook has the latter.)
But price may play a key role. Right now you can buy a brand new Amazon Kindle for as little as $114, with free Wi-Fi access -- and Amazon has reportedly hinted that some day the Kindle might be given away for free. You can get the simplest Barnes & Noble Nook for $139. (Can't decide? Consumer Reports gave the Nook slightly better marks than the Kindle.)
In contrast, the least expensive iPad 2 costs $499. If you want 3G data access, the entry-level model costs $629. (New or used first-generation iPads are sold for less.) Adding to the total price, two wireless carriers offer prepaid or month-to-month data services: Verizon's iPad data plans start at $20 a month; and AT&T's plans start at $15 a month.
The BlackBerry Playbook costs $499. Many Android tablets also sell for that price, although the Asus Eee Pad starts at $400.
There's a fuzzy line between e-readers and tablets. Most notably, the $249 Nook Color, which features a touchscreen, advanced Web browser and Wi-Fi chip, is actually a modified Android tablet. The blog Tech Republic explains how to hack the Nook Color to operate as a full-feature Android tablet.
Of course, second-hand, refurbished or older-model e-readers and tablets of all types are widely sold via eBay, Craigslist, and discount vendors for considerably lower prices.
E-readers and tablets are still very much emerging markets.
"Both e-book reader and tablet computer adoption levels among U.S. adults are still well below that of other tech devices that have been on the market longer," according to the Pew report. "Cell phones are far and away the most popular digital device among U.S. adults today, followed by desktop and laptop computers, DVRs, and MP3 players."
For some additional perspective on mobile technology, Pew writes: "This survey marks the first time that laptop computers are as popular as desktop computers."
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Amy Gahran.
Last winter, tablets had a slight market lead. According to Pew, as of that time, 7% of U.S. adults owned a tablet computer (such as the iPad or Motorola Mobility's Xoom), while only 6% owned an e-reader device.
But that picture soon changed drastically. By May, 12% of U.S. adults owned an e-reader, while tablet ownership expanded only to 8%. (Note: the margin of error on this survey is 2%, but that would not challenge the market lead of e-readers.)
This is not an either-or technology choice. Pew noted that 3% of adults own both devices. Specifically, 9% own an e-reader but not a tablet, and 5% own a tablet but not an e-reader.
Apple has sold more than 25 million iPads and has a dominant share of the tablet market. Amazon and Barnes & Noble don't disclose sales of their e-reader devices. Citi analyst Mark Mahaney forecasts that Amazon could sell 17.5 million Kindles in this year alone.
Who's buying e-readers? According to Pew, Hispanics (who appear to be leading other U.S. ethnic demographics generally in embracing mobile technology), adults under age 65, college graduates, parents, and people in households earning less than $75,000 per year are especially likely to own e-readers.
Also: "There was considerable growth in e-reader ownership between November 2010 and May 2011 among college graduates, one-fifth of whom now own these devices," Pew reports. This is interesting, since Insider Higher Ed, an industry trade publication, recently reported that after a slow start, the market for electronic college textbooks experienced a surge this spring.
Who's buying tablets? Pew reports that from November 2010 to May, the largest increases in tablet ownership have been among men, Hispanics, people with at least some college education and household incomes of $30,000 or more. But the very highest increases in tablet ownership were seen among Hispanic adults and households earning at least $75,000 annually.
Why are e-readers more popular than tablets?
Based on device specifications alone, tablets would seem to offer greater consumer appeal, since you can do far more with a tablet than an e-reader. A tablet is an e-reader plus a video screen plus a game player plus a web browser plus ... .
E-readers typically limit users to buying, downloading, reading and annotating books. Furthermore, most e-readers still feature a black-and-white e-ink display and lack touchscreens. (Though, the new Nook has the latter.)
But price may play a key role. Right now you can buy a brand new Amazon Kindle for as little as $114, with free Wi-Fi access -- and Amazon has reportedly hinted that some day the Kindle might be given away for free. You can get the simplest Barnes & Noble Nook for $139. (Can't decide? Consumer Reports gave the Nook slightly better marks than the Kindle.)
In contrast, the least expensive iPad 2 costs $499. If you want 3G data access, the entry-level model costs $629. (New or used first-generation iPads are sold for less.) Adding to the total price, two wireless carriers offer prepaid or month-to-month data services: Verizon's iPad data plans start at $20 a month; and AT&T's plans start at $15 a month.
The BlackBerry Playbook costs $499. Many Android tablets also sell for that price, although the Asus Eee Pad starts at $400.
There's a fuzzy line between e-readers and tablets. Most notably, the $249 Nook Color, which features a touchscreen, advanced Web browser and Wi-Fi chip, is actually a modified Android tablet. The blog Tech Republic explains how to hack the Nook Color to operate as a full-feature Android tablet.
Of course, second-hand, refurbished or older-model e-readers and tablets of all types are widely sold via eBay, Craigslist, and discount vendors for considerably lower prices.
E-readers and tablets are still very much emerging markets.
"Both e-book reader and tablet computer adoption levels among U.S. adults are still well below that of other tech devices that have been on the market longer," according to the Pew report. "Cell phones are far and away the most popular digital device among U.S. adults today, followed by desktop and laptop computers, DVRs, and MP3 players."
For some additional perspective on mobile technology, Pew writes: "This survey marks the first time that laptop computers are as popular as desktop computers."
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Amy Gahran.
Wednesday 22 June 2011
iPhone accounts for two thirds of UK connected app users
(Guardian Tech) Should mobile app developers be putting more effort into porting their apps to Symbian smartphones? There's a large existing install base, and while Nokia is planning to phase out the OS over the next couple of years, the company claims it will sell another 150 million Symbian devices during that time.
New figures released by industry body the GSMA tell another story, however. According to its Mobile Media Metrics report, compiled together with comScore, Symbian accounted for just 1% of connected application users in the UK in April.
Apple's iOS took a 65% share, with Android accounting for 31%, and other platforms (BlackBerry, Windows Mobile/Phone, webOS and feature phones) taking a 3% share.
The analysis is based on the same principles as the research we reported on last week: comScore's data is based on apps that connect to the Internet over an operator network, so they don't include non-connected downloadable games. In other words, Symbian users who are downloading and playing games on their phones won't be counted for the purposes of this survey.
comScore provided Apps Blog with some separate figures from its MobiLens research, showing device market share for smartphones in the UK in April. According to those figures, 27.6% of smartphone users were on iPhone that month, 24.7% on Android, 23.6% on Symbian, 18.1% on BlackBerry and 3.8% on Windows Mobile or Windows Phone 7 devices.
Compare the two pieces of research, and you see iPhone is hugely over-indexing in terms of connected app usage, Android is doing pretty well, but Symbian – 23.6% of active smartphones but a mere 1% of connected app users – hardly presents an appealing prospect to developers making those connected apps.
Caveats? Just a few. The figures don't tell us much about the addressable market in the UK for people using non-connected apps. They don't tell us anything about countries elsewhere in the world where Symbian may be a more viable platform for these applications.
Meanwhile, we're puzzled at the poor share for BlackBerry given the popularity of mail and BBM messaging on RIM's devices – we suspect that these apps may not be registering with comScore due to the technical details of the BlackBerry platform.
Even so, when next wondering why so many developers appear to have iOS tunnel vision, the Mobile Media Metrics figures for the UK provide valuable context. To put it bluntly, according to these stats, there are more than 5.7 million iPhone owners using connected apps in the UK, versus 2.7 million Android users and 119,000 Symbian users.
It's not just about how many devices have been sold, but about how many of those people are actively downloading and using apps. And how many are willing to pay for them, of course, but that's another piece of research in the making.
New figures released by industry body the GSMA tell another story, however. According to its Mobile Media Metrics report, compiled together with comScore, Symbian accounted for just 1% of connected application users in the UK in April.
Apple's iOS took a 65% share, with Android accounting for 31%, and other platforms (BlackBerry, Windows Mobile/Phone, webOS and feature phones) taking a 3% share.
The analysis is based on the same principles as the research we reported on last week: comScore's data is based on apps that connect to the Internet over an operator network, so they don't include non-connected downloadable games. In other words, Symbian users who are downloading and playing games on their phones won't be counted for the purposes of this survey.
comScore provided Apps Blog with some separate figures from its MobiLens research, showing device market share for smartphones in the UK in April. According to those figures, 27.6% of smartphone users were on iPhone that month, 24.7% on Android, 23.6% on Symbian, 18.1% on BlackBerry and 3.8% on Windows Mobile or Windows Phone 7 devices.
Compare the two pieces of research, and you see iPhone is hugely over-indexing in terms of connected app usage, Android is doing pretty well, but Symbian – 23.6% of active smartphones but a mere 1% of connected app users – hardly presents an appealing prospect to developers making those connected apps.
Caveats? Just a few. The figures don't tell us much about the addressable market in the UK for people using non-connected apps. They don't tell us anything about countries elsewhere in the world where Symbian may be a more viable platform for these applications.
Meanwhile, we're puzzled at the poor share for BlackBerry given the popularity of mail and BBM messaging on RIM's devices – we suspect that these apps may not be registering with comScore due to the technical details of the BlackBerry platform.
Even so, when next wondering why so many developers appear to have iOS tunnel vision, the Mobile Media Metrics figures for the UK provide valuable context. To put it bluntly, according to these stats, there are more than 5.7 million iPhone owners using connected apps in the UK, versus 2.7 million Android users and 119,000 Symbian users.
It's not just about how many devices have been sold, but about how many of those people are actively downloading and using apps. And how many are willing to pay for them, of course, but that's another piece of research in the making.
Tuesday 21 June 2011
Twitter is the new Facebook
(CNN) -- Following a whirlwind week and a half of product announcements, you can throw Twitter's attempts to differentiate itself as an "information network" out the window -- there is little doubt the company is now entrenched in serious competition with Facebook for the much grander social networking crown.
After announcing that it would finally be bringing native photo and video sharing to its service on June 1, Twitter's biggest product win to-date came on Tuesday, when Apple announced that iOS 5 would include deep Twitter integration.
That means that the 200 million plus people with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices (or at least the tens of millions able to upgrade to iOS 5) will have the ability to do things like post photos, videos and links to Twitter with a single tap.
Application developers will also be able to add this type of functionality to their iOS applications, further accelerating the impact of the partnership.
In summarizing the significance of that, my Mashable colleague Jennifer Van Grove wrote, "[Twitter] will soon be the social layer of iOS, enabling users to turn individual actions such as snapping a photo or reading an article into instant social activities."
For Facebook, who has long positioned itself as the social graph of the Web (and in turn mobile), that's a big blow.
Sure, application developers can still build Facebook integration into their iOS apps, but by making Twitter the default in apps like Camera, Safari and YouTube, Apple has dictated where millions of pieces of content will invariably flow.
At the same time, by adding native photo and video sharing and moving people over to its own Web and client experiences, Twitter is positioned like never before to capitalize on that content and keep people on its site, and in turn challenge Facebook where it dominates like no other: Engagement.
At the start of this year, Hitwise reported that the average Facebook user spends an impressive four hours and 35 minutes per month on the site, more than any other property on the Web, and more than double the average Twitter user's monthly two hours and 12 minutes.
But now that Twitter is turning itself into a social network, that could soon change. Instead of creating and consuming photos and videos on third-party sites -- something that's already hugely popular on Twitter and is Facebook's No. 1 time sink -- users will be doing it on Twitter.com.
Add to that the fact that Twitter now owns the most popular third-party client (TweetDeck) and has been systematically eating away at the ecosystem it enabled, and the numbers quickly add up.
The icing on the cake, of course, is the iOS tie-up, which for now gives Twitter priority seating over Facebook with tens of millions of highly engaged mobile users.
Granted, Facebook could also do a deal with Apple before iOS 5 rolls out this fall, but it's unclear what kind of relationship those companies have following last year's contentious split over Ping.
For the moment, Twitter's iOS win is a symbolic victory over Facebook that signals the company's growing ambitions as a social network.
In the long-run, however, it could very much be the partnership that helps move Twitter from Facebook's distant cousin to its arch rival.
After announcing that it would finally be bringing native photo and video sharing to its service on June 1, Twitter's biggest product win to-date came on Tuesday, when Apple announced that iOS 5 would include deep Twitter integration.
That means that the 200 million plus people with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices (or at least the tens of millions able to upgrade to iOS 5) will have the ability to do things like post photos, videos and links to Twitter with a single tap.
Application developers will also be able to add this type of functionality to their iOS applications, further accelerating the impact of the partnership.
In summarizing the significance of that, my Mashable colleague Jennifer Van Grove wrote, "[Twitter] will soon be the social layer of iOS, enabling users to turn individual actions such as snapping a photo or reading an article into instant social activities."
For Facebook, who has long positioned itself as the social graph of the Web (and in turn mobile), that's a big blow.
Sure, application developers can still build Facebook integration into their iOS apps, but by making Twitter the default in apps like Camera, Safari and YouTube, Apple has dictated where millions of pieces of content will invariably flow.
At the same time, by adding native photo and video sharing and moving people over to its own Web and client experiences, Twitter is positioned like never before to capitalize on that content and keep people on its site, and in turn challenge Facebook where it dominates like no other: Engagement.
At the start of this year, Hitwise reported that the average Facebook user spends an impressive four hours and 35 minutes per month on the site, more than any other property on the Web, and more than double the average Twitter user's monthly two hours and 12 minutes.
But now that Twitter is turning itself into a social network, that could soon change. Instead of creating and consuming photos and videos on third-party sites -- something that's already hugely popular on Twitter and is Facebook's No. 1 time sink -- users will be doing it on Twitter.com.
Add to that the fact that Twitter now owns the most popular third-party client (TweetDeck) and has been systematically eating away at the ecosystem it enabled, and the numbers quickly add up.
The icing on the cake, of course, is the iOS tie-up, which for now gives Twitter priority seating over Facebook with tens of millions of highly engaged mobile users.
Granted, Facebook could also do a deal with Apple before iOS 5 rolls out this fall, but it's unclear what kind of relationship those companies have following last year's contentious split over Ping.
For the moment, Twitter's iOS win is a symbolic victory over Facebook that signals the company's growing ambitions as a social network.
In the long-run, however, it could very much be the partnership that helps move Twitter from Facebook's distant cousin to its arch rival.
Monday 20 June 2011
(techradar) Details of Facebook's music dashboard are revealed
Facebook - close to facing the music
Facebook's upcoming music service looks likely to launch with the help of a number of big name streaming partners, it has been revealed.
This is according to GigaOm, which rounded up everything it knows about the music platform; including rumours that Spotify won't be the only partnership in Facebook's musical endeavour.
Although just what partnerships will be involved is not yet known, it is thought that a potential release date for the service will be at Facebook's f8 conference in August.
What is known is how the music service will work. Facebook is looking to integrate music into the site's normal homepage and use a tab for music, which will be situated under the other tabs currently on the left-hand side of the page, like Places, Pages and Games.
Click on this tab and a music dashboard will appear. To play the tracks you want to, you just use the playback button at the bottom of the Facebook page.
Get connected
It seems like the whole service relies on Facebook Connect – so you have to Connect with whichever music service you want for it to work through the Facebook page.
On the music dashboard, there will be recommended songs, other songs your friends are listening to. You will also be able to see what all your other friends are listening too at any particular time – and presumably mock them if a bit of Blue ends up on their digital stereo.
Facebook has remained tight-lipped over its music service, so expect more rumour and speculation to come in dribs and drabs.
The idea to mix music with social is an intriguing one – as we have seen with Ping, it doesn't always work. But unlike Apple who tried to bring the social to the music, Facebook is bringing music to the social, something which is a much easier prospect.
Read more: http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/details-of-facebook-s-music-dashboard-are-revealed-968262#ixzz1PoBVkpyz
Facebook's upcoming music service looks likely to launch with the help of a number of big name streaming partners, it has been revealed.
This is according to GigaOm, which rounded up everything it knows about the music platform; including rumours that Spotify won't be the only partnership in Facebook's musical endeavour.
Although just what partnerships will be involved is not yet known, it is thought that a potential release date for the service will be at Facebook's f8 conference in August.
What is known is how the music service will work. Facebook is looking to integrate music into the site's normal homepage and use a tab for music, which will be situated under the other tabs currently on the left-hand side of the page, like Places, Pages and Games.
Click on this tab and a music dashboard will appear. To play the tracks you want to, you just use the playback button at the bottom of the Facebook page.
Get connected
It seems like the whole service relies on Facebook Connect – so you have to Connect with whichever music service you want for it to work through the Facebook page.
On the music dashboard, there will be recommended songs, other songs your friends are listening to. You will also be able to see what all your other friends are listening too at any particular time – and presumably mock them if a bit of Blue ends up on their digital stereo.
Facebook has remained tight-lipped over its music service, so expect more rumour and speculation to come in dribs and drabs.
The idea to mix music with social is an intriguing one – as we have seen with Ping, it doesn't always work. But unlike Apple who tried to bring the social to the music, Facebook is bringing music to the social, something which is a much easier prospect.
Read more: http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/details-of-facebook-s-music-dashboard-are-revealed-968262#ixzz1PoBVkpyz
Thursday 16 June 2011
Apple 'Planning To Ban iPhone Videos At Gigs' (SKY TECH)
Apple 'Planning To Ban iPhone Videos At Gigs'
1:39pm UK, Thursday June 16, 2011
Recording your favourite band at a concert or festival could soon be a thing of the past, if Apple gets its way.
People using mobile phones at a concert
Phones are often used to video performances
Patent plans filed by the corporation in late 2009 have come to light, showing plans to automatically shut off iPhone cameras if they are held aloft.
The Californian company's plans reveal that infra-red sensors would detect when a person is filming and would disable the camera.
In the patent, Apple describes "using the camera to capture a second image that includes an infrared signal with encoded data".
The phone would then determine whether that encoded data contains a disable command, and, if necessary, "disable a record function", or introduce a compulsory watermark.
In the same patent application, Apple outlines other ways the infra-red emitter could operate to the benefit of users.
A man looks at an iPhone at the Apple store in New York May 23, 2011. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS)
The use of infra-red might not be limited to concerts
One example cited is in museums.
A transmitter could be located next to a museum exhibit and its infra-red signal could include data that represents information about it, appearing automatically on the iPhone.
Apple also make it clear that there could be a future in retail environment for the software.
James Holland, editor of technology site electricpig.co.uk, said implementing such an idea would be a 'long way off'.
"Apple's plan is ingenious, and I can see why some music venues and artists would like it, especially if it stops bootlegging, but on the other hand many clubs and bars survive on word of mouth. To stop people taking photos to post to Twitter and Facebook would be lunacy.
"A patent is just an expression of an idea, and no guarantee Apple's actually building it into the iPhone.
"Implementing that sort of protection for a venue would be a large undertaking.
"Enough infra-red light, carrying a coded signal to switch off cameras, visible from every angle around the stage - that's not something you'd take lightly, and since Apple would surely charge for the equipment a venue would need, it's a long way off yet."
1:39pm UK, Thursday June 16, 2011
Recording your favourite band at a concert or festival could soon be a thing of the past, if Apple gets its way.
People using mobile phones at a concert
Phones are often used to video performances
Patent plans filed by the corporation in late 2009 have come to light, showing plans to automatically shut off iPhone cameras if they are held aloft.
The Californian company's plans reveal that infra-red sensors would detect when a person is filming and would disable the camera.
In the patent, Apple describes "using the camera to capture a second image that includes an infrared signal with encoded data".
The phone would then determine whether that encoded data contains a disable command, and, if necessary, "disable a record function", or introduce a compulsory watermark.
In the same patent application, Apple outlines other ways the infra-red emitter could operate to the benefit of users.
A man looks at an iPhone at the Apple store in New York May 23, 2011. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS)
The use of infra-red might not be limited to concerts
One example cited is in museums.
A transmitter could be located next to a museum exhibit and its infra-red signal could include data that represents information about it, appearing automatically on the iPhone.
Apple also make it clear that there could be a future in retail environment for the software.
James Holland, editor of technology site electricpig.co.uk, said implementing such an idea would be a 'long way off'.
"Apple's plan is ingenious, and I can see why some music venues and artists would like it, especially if it stops bootlegging, but on the other hand many clubs and bars survive on word of mouth. To stop people taking photos to post to Twitter and Facebook would be lunacy.
"A patent is just an expression of an idea, and no guarantee Apple's actually building it into the iPhone.
"Implementing that sort of protection for a venue would be a large undertaking.
"Enough infra-red light, carrying a coded signal to switch off cameras, visible from every angle around the stage - that's not something you'd take lightly, and since Apple would surely charge for the equipment a venue would need, it's a long way off yet."
Thursday 9 June 2011
Wednesday 8 June 2011
Tuesday 7 June 2011
Sony seeks to change the subject with launch of Playstation Vita
Los Angeles (CNN) -- After weeks of headlines about the outage of its hacker-compromised online gaming system, Sony on Monday looked to change the conversation with Playstation Vita, a machine they say will "revolutionize" handheld game play.
The gaming system, which will be available by this year's holiday season, marries advances in portable gaming with the Playstation's longstanding gaming pedigree, said Sony president of consumer products Kazuo Hirai.
"Playstation Vita will revolutionize the portable entertainment experience," he said. "It is an experience you really need to see and feel to believe."
The Vita was unveiled as part of Sony's presentation on the eve of the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, which officially begins Tuesday.
The device will have a 5-inch touch screen and feature front and back-mounted cameras and touch pads in addition to a pair of mounted joysticks. The system will let players use any, or all, of those controls during a game.
With more than 80 titles already in development, according to Sony, the Vita will offer cross-platform play, letting players continue some games between the Vita and the Playstation or, in some cases, even play multiplayer games against others using either a Vita or Playstation.
The Wi-Fi only version will sell for $249 and a 3G model, with exclusive AT&T service, will be $299.
The Vita, which Sony had been calling the NGP (next-generation portable) before its official unveiling, marks the company's biggest advance in the handheld gaming space since it introduced the Sony PSP in 2006.
It doesn't feature 3D gaming, like rival Nintendo's 3DS, which was rolled out at last year's E3. But Hirai teased that the dual cameras will be used in another emerging video-game space -- augmented reality.
"With Playstation Vita, the whole world really is in play," he said.
John Davidson, of gaming website GameSpot, liked what he saw of the Vita after an early look, calling its visual fidelity "remarkable."
"Definitely closer to handheld 'HD' experience than previous handhelds," he said in an email to CNN.
Jack Tretton, president of Sony Computer Entertainment of America, didn't waste time Monday addressing the hacker-caused outage that had the Playstation Network down for the better part of a month for most players.
He called it the "elephant in the room" and thanked gamers for staying loyal during the down time.
"You are the lifeblood of this company. Without you there is no Playstation," Tretton said. "I want to apologize, both personally and on behalf of the company, for any anxiety we caused you.
"I know we took you away from what you enjoy most ... and it is you that causes us both to be humble and amazed at the amount of dedication and support you continue to give to the Playstation brand."
Noting the weeks of negative headlines, he jokingly said "you're welcome" to members of the media. He said that more than 90 percent of users have returned to the online network, which saw its online store returned last week.
Sony also kept up the push for 3-D gaming Monday by taking on what's been considered one of the key stumbling blocks to its success: Price.
Acknowledging that the cost of 3-D television remains prohibitive for many gamers, Tretton announced that Sony will be making a Playstation-branded 3-D console that will sell, along with a set of 3-D glasses and the upcoming 3-D game "Resistance 3," for $499.
The 24-inch console, which can also be used to watch 3-D movies and television, offers a split-screen mode for multi-player gaming.
"We know that gaming is going to drive 3-D adoption," Tretton said.
Among the upcoming games Sony featured, the two that got the most attention were "Uncharted: Drake's Deception" and "Bioshock: Infinite."
Both will be available for the Playstation and Vita.
The gaming system, which will be available by this year's holiday season, marries advances in portable gaming with the Playstation's longstanding gaming pedigree, said Sony president of consumer products Kazuo Hirai.
"Playstation Vita will revolutionize the portable entertainment experience," he said. "It is an experience you really need to see and feel to believe."
The Vita was unveiled as part of Sony's presentation on the eve of the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, which officially begins Tuesday.
The device will have a 5-inch touch screen and feature front and back-mounted cameras and touch pads in addition to a pair of mounted joysticks. The system will let players use any, or all, of those controls during a game.
With more than 80 titles already in development, according to Sony, the Vita will offer cross-platform play, letting players continue some games between the Vita and the Playstation or, in some cases, even play multiplayer games against others using either a Vita or Playstation.
The Wi-Fi only version will sell for $249 and a 3G model, with exclusive AT&T service, will be $299.
The Vita, which Sony had been calling the NGP (next-generation portable) before its official unveiling, marks the company's biggest advance in the handheld gaming space since it introduced the Sony PSP in 2006.
It doesn't feature 3D gaming, like rival Nintendo's 3DS, which was rolled out at last year's E3. But Hirai teased that the dual cameras will be used in another emerging video-game space -- augmented reality.
"With Playstation Vita, the whole world really is in play," he said.
John Davidson, of gaming website GameSpot, liked what he saw of the Vita after an early look, calling its visual fidelity "remarkable."
"Definitely closer to handheld 'HD' experience than previous handhelds," he said in an email to CNN.
Jack Tretton, president of Sony Computer Entertainment of America, didn't waste time Monday addressing the hacker-caused outage that had the Playstation Network down for the better part of a month for most players.
He called it the "elephant in the room" and thanked gamers for staying loyal during the down time.
"You are the lifeblood of this company. Without you there is no Playstation," Tretton said. "I want to apologize, both personally and on behalf of the company, for any anxiety we caused you.
"I know we took you away from what you enjoy most ... and it is you that causes us both to be humble and amazed at the amount of dedication and support you continue to give to the Playstation brand."
Noting the weeks of negative headlines, he jokingly said "you're welcome" to members of the media. He said that more than 90 percent of users have returned to the online network, which saw its online store returned last week.
Sony also kept up the push for 3-D gaming Monday by taking on what's been considered one of the key stumbling blocks to its success: Price.
Acknowledging that the cost of 3-D television remains prohibitive for many gamers, Tretton announced that Sony will be making a Playstation-branded 3-D console that will sell, along with a set of 3-D glasses and the upcoming 3-D game "Resistance 3," for $499.
The 24-inch console, which can also be used to watch 3-D movies and television, offers a split-screen mode for multi-player gaming.
"We know that gaming is going to drive 3-D adoption," Tretton said.
Among the upcoming games Sony featured, the two that got the most attention were "Uncharted: Drake's Deception" and "Bioshock: Infinite."
Both will be available for the Playstation and Vita.
Saturday 4 June 2011
Thursday 2 June 2011
Tuesday 31 May 2011
10 fascinating Facebook facts -- and what they say about us
(CNN) -- A study released this week revealed that 47% of Facebook users have swear words on their pages. A survey last week, meanwhile, showed that undergraduate men who talk about alcohol on Facebook tend to have more friends.
Whether it's our level of tolerance for swearing or the link between alcohol and bonding with friends, these Facebook studies provide intriguing insights into our online behaviors.
And yet I'd argue that Facebook surveys have a more fundamental role. With more than 600 million people actively using Facebook, these studies in fact provide a deeper understanding of our evolving cultural norms: our values, our morals and our changing relationships between one another.
Don't believe me? Here are some fascinating Facebook facts that just might serve as a peek into our 21st-century values.
1. 56% of Americans think it's irresponsible to friend your boss on Facebook
A survey released in February 2010 showed the majority of Americans don't find it socially acceptable to be Facebook friends with their boss. The study of 1,000 people by Liberty Mutual's Responsibility Project suggests that despite an increasing overlap between our work and home lives, we continue to value a separation between the two.
Meanwhile, 62% of those surveyed said it's wrong for a manager to befriend an employee on Facebook. And yet 76% of respondents said it was acceptable to befriend a peer on Facebook, suggesting what we truly value is that our work be judged on its merits rather than getting ahead based on personal relationships.
2. Facebook links about sex are shared 90% more than average
Facebook confirms the adage: Sex sells. From February until May 2010, social media scientist Dan Zarrella processed 12,000 links to news sites and blogs. He discovered that links about sex were 90% more likely to be shared on Facebook than any other subject matter.
He also discovered that links with positive sentiment were more likely to be shared on Facebook than those with negative viewpoints.
3. People in Facebook relationships are happier than single people
In February 2010, Facebook marked Valentine's Day by comparing the relationship status of its users to their happiness -- this was surmised based on the level of positive or negative sentiment in the user's Facebook updates.
The result: Those in relationships were found to be slightly happier than single people. Those who were married or engaged were also happier than single people on average.
However, Facebook users in an "open relationship" -- where the partners are not exclusive to one another -- were significantly less happy than single people. Monogamy, it seems, makes us happy.
4. 21% of people would break up via Facebook
A June 2010 survey of 1,000 Facebook users -- 70% of whom were male -- found that 25% had been "dumped" via Facebook (via their significant other updating his or her relationship status).
Twenty-one percent of those surveyed said they would end a relationship by changing their Facebook relationship statuses to "single." While worrisome, the survey does show the majority of people do not split up via Facebook.
For this uncomfortable task, it seems, we still turn to more personal forms of communication. This particular study also appears to suffer from a little male bias -- a July 2010 survey found that 9% of women have initiated a breakup via Facebook, versus 24% of men.
5. 85% of women are annoyed by their Facebook friends
For women on Facebook, friends can sometimes be irritating. In a March study conducted by Eversave, 85% admitted to having been annoyed by their Facebook friends. Of these annoyances, the most cited was "complaining all the time" (63%).
Other pet peeves included "sharing unsolicited political views" (42%) and "bragging about seemingly perfect lives" (32%).
While I've yet to see a similar survey focused on men, it's probably safe to assume these feelings are universal: Our friends are a source of joy and occasional irritation.
6. 25% of households with a Facebook account don't use privacy controls
A June 2010 survey from Consumer Reports stated that "in one of four households with a Facebook account, users weren't aware of or didn't choose to use the service's privacy controls."
While Consumer Reports chose to interpret this finding in a negative light, I'd propose a contrary view: Seventy-five percent of households did take the time to understand Facebook's privacy controls, suggesting that privacy remains important to our society.
The same study stated that "Twenty-six percent of Facebook users with children had potentially exposed them to predators by posting the children's photos and names."
Again, the positive view would be that 74% of Facebook users with children did not post their photos and names -- suggesting that we value privacy.
7. 48% of parents friend their kids on Facebook
On the question of whether it's OK to friend your kids on Facebook, parents are roughly split down the middle -- 48% have chosen to do so. Respondents in a May 2010 survey by Retrevo admitted that this could be "awkward at times."
Parents were also asked about the minimum age at which their children should be allowed to sign up for Facebook or MySpace. Twenty-six percent of parents replied "over 18," 36% said "16 to 18," 30% said "13 to 15" and 8% said "under 13."
Opinions may be changing rapidly, however. A Consumer Reports survey released this month says the majority of parents of kids 10 and under "seemed largely unconcerned by their children's use" of Facebook.
8. 47% of Facebook users have profanity on their walls
As previously mentioned, a new study by the reputation management service Reppler has found that 47% of Facebook users have swear words on their walls, with these profanities being posted by a friend 56% of the time.
In other words: Nearly half of Facebook users are comfortable with swearing. The most common profanity on Facebook? No prizes for guessing: It's the "F-word."
9. 48% of people say they look at their ex's Facebook profile too often
In a January study by YouTango, 48% of respondents said they look at their ex's Facebook or other social-networking profile too often. The statistic illustrates one danger of social-networking profiles -- ex-partners are more accessible than ever.
But the survey also points to a degree of self-awareness among the respondents. While new technologies provide new temptations, it seems that many of us are able to control these behaviors.
10. 36% of under-35s check Facebook, Twitter or texts after sex
An October 2009 study by Retrevo suggested that social networks are becoming an increasingly important part of young people's lives. Among under-35s, 36% admitted to "tweeting, texting and checking Facebook after sex." Forty percent of respondents admitted to doing so while driving, 64% said they do so at work, and 65% use these communication channels while on vacation.
Here, we might conclude that the next generation is driving society into a less desirable direction: a world in which digital devices are never put down, even in the most inappropriate of situations.
And yet if Facebook is our guide, I'd say our cultural norms have remained intact. We continue to value professionalism. We find great rewards in human relationships -- and most of us try to exit them honorably.
On the whole, we continue to value privacy. We try to look out for our kids. And as we have been since time immemorial, we continue to be fascinated by sex -- after which we go straight to Facebook to find out what our exes are up to.
Whether it's our level of tolerance for swearing or the link between alcohol and bonding with friends, these Facebook studies provide intriguing insights into our online behaviors.
And yet I'd argue that Facebook surveys have a more fundamental role. With more than 600 million people actively using Facebook, these studies in fact provide a deeper understanding of our evolving cultural norms: our values, our morals and our changing relationships between one another.
Don't believe me? Here are some fascinating Facebook facts that just might serve as a peek into our 21st-century values.
1. 56% of Americans think it's irresponsible to friend your boss on Facebook
A survey released in February 2010 showed the majority of Americans don't find it socially acceptable to be Facebook friends with their boss. The study of 1,000 people by Liberty Mutual's Responsibility Project suggests that despite an increasing overlap between our work and home lives, we continue to value a separation between the two.
Meanwhile, 62% of those surveyed said it's wrong for a manager to befriend an employee on Facebook. And yet 76% of respondents said it was acceptable to befriend a peer on Facebook, suggesting what we truly value is that our work be judged on its merits rather than getting ahead based on personal relationships.
2. Facebook links about sex are shared 90% more than average
Facebook confirms the adage: Sex sells. From February until May 2010, social media scientist Dan Zarrella processed 12,000 links to news sites and blogs. He discovered that links about sex were 90% more likely to be shared on Facebook than any other subject matter.
He also discovered that links with positive sentiment were more likely to be shared on Facebook than those with negative viewpoints.
3. People in Facebook relationships are happier than single people
In February 2010, Facebook marked Valentine's Day by comparing the relationship status of its users to their happiness -- this was surmised based on the level of positive or negative sentiment in the user's Facebook updates.
The result: Those in relationships were found to be slightly happier than single people. Those who were married or engaged were also happier than single people on average.
However, Facebook users in an "open relationship" -- where the partners are not exclusive to one another -- were significantly less happy than single people. Monogamy, it seems, makes us happy.
4. 21% of people would break up via Facebook
A June 2010 survey of 1,000 Facebook users -- 70% of whom were male -- found that 25% had been "dumped" via Facebook (via their significant other updating his or her relationship status).
Twenty-one percent of those surveyed said they would end a relationship by changing their Facebook relationship statuses to "single." While worrisome, the survey does show the majority of people do not split up via Facebook.
For this uncomfortable task, it seems, we still turn to more personal forms of communication. This particular study also appears to suffer from a little male bias -- a July 2010 survey found that 9% of women have initiated a breakup via Facebook, versus 24% of men.
5. 85% of women are annoyed by their Facebook friends
For women on Facebook, friends can sometimes be irritating. In a March study conducted by Eversave, 85% admitted to having been annoyed by their Facebook friends. Of these annoyances, the most cited was "complaining all the time" (63%).
Other pet peeves included "sharing unsolicited political views" (42%) and "bragging about seemingly perfect lives" (32%).
While I've yet to see a similar survey focused on men, it's probably safe to assume these feelings are universal: Our friends are a source of joy and occasional irritation.
6. 25% of households with a Facebook account don't use privacy controls
A June 2010 survey from Consumer Reports stated that "in one of four households with a Facebook account, users weren't aware of or didn't choose to use the service's privacy controls."
While Consumer Reports chose to interpret this finding in a negative light, I'd propose a contrary view: Seventy-five percent of households did take the time to understand Facebook's privacy controls, suggesting that privacy remains important to our society.
The same study stated that "Twenty-six percent of Facebook users with children had potentially exposed them to predators by posting the children's photos and names."
Again, the positive view would be that 74% of Facebook users with children did not post their photos and names -- suggesting that we value privacy.
7. 48% of parents friend their kids on Facebook
On the question of whether it's OK to friend your kids on Facebook, parents are roughly split down the middle -- 48% have chosen to do so. Respondents in a May 2010 survey by Retrevo admitted that this could be "awkward at times."
Parents were also asked about the minimum age at which their children should be allowed to sign up for Facebook or MySpace. Twenty-six percent of parents replied "over 18," 36% said "16 to 18," 30% said "13 to 15" and 8% said "under 13."
Opinions may be changing rapidly, however. A Consumer Reports survey released this month says the majority of parents of kids 10 and under "seemed largely unconcerned by their children's use" of Facebook.
8. 47% of Facebook users have profanity on their walls
As previously mentioned, a new study by the reputation management service Reppler has found that 47% of Facebook users have swear words on their walls, with these profanities being posted by a friend 56% of the time.
In other words: Nearly half of Facebook users are comfortable with swearing. The most common profanity on Facebook? No prizes for guessing: It's the "F-word."
9. 48% of people say they look at their ex's Facebook profile too often
In a January study by YouTango, 48% of respondents said they look at their ex's Facebook or other social-networking profile too often. The statistic illustrates one danger of social-networking profiles -- ex-partners are more accessible than ever.
But the survey also points to a degree of self-awareness among the respondents. While new technologies provide new temptations, it seems that many of us are able to control these behaviors.
10. 36% of under-35s check Facebook, Twitter or texts after sex
An October 2009 study by Retrevo suggested that social networks are becoming an increasingly important part of young people's lives. Among under-35s, 36% admitted to "tweeting, texting and checking Facebook after sex." Forty percent of respondents admitted to doing so while driving, 64% said they do so at work, and 65% use these communication channels while on vacation.
Here, we might conclude that the next generation is driving society into a less desirable direction: a world in which digital devices are never put down, even in the most inappropriate of situations.
And yet if Facebook is our guide, I'd say our cultural norms have remained intact. We continue to value professionalism. We find great rewards in human relationships -- and most of us try to exit them honorably.
On the whole, we continue to value privacy. We try to look out for our kids. And as we have been since time immemorial, we continue to be fascinated by sex -- after which we go straight to Facebook to find out what our exes are up to.
Research shows ways to make iPad apps more user-friendly
Editor's note: Amy Gahran writes about mobile tech for CNN.com. She is a San Francisco Bay Area writer and media consultant whose blog, Contentious.com, explores how people communicate in the online age.
(CNN) -- There's a learning curve for every new consumer technology -- both for people who use the device and for makers of software or services that run on it. This has definitely been the case for Apple's iPad, which hit the market just over a year ago.
According to new research from Nielsen Norman Group (NNG), the usability of iPad apps and of Web sites displayed on this device have improved substantially in the past year. In particular, "apps have become more consistent and standardized, making them easier to use," NNG said.
But there's still plenty of room for improvement.
NNG brought in 16 people with at least two months' experience using the iPad and systematically tested how they interacted with 26 iPad apps and six Web sites.
Here's what they learned, based on users' feedback, preferences and complaints:
Touchable areas are often too small, too close, not easy enough to discern.
Often, text content is big enough to read, but links in the text are too small to tap easily. Similarly, sites and apps that have too many touchable areas too close together increase the risk of touching the wrong one.
This leads to navigational accidents, which can be especially vexing in iPad apps that lack a "back" button. Also, many touchable areas don't look obviously touchable, so users tend to miss them.
Similarly, "swipe ambiguity plagued users when multiple items on the same screen could be swiped. Carousels often caused this usability problem in apps that also relied on swiping to move between pages. Many users couldn't turn the page because they swiped in the wrong spot. Their typical conclusion? The app is broken."
iPad users dislike typing on the touchpad.
This presents a variety of issues, including that fewer iPad users are likely to go through a registration process that requires lots of onscreen typing. This may partly explain why the iPad has a reputation at being not so great for media creation. "(iPad use is) heavily dominated by media consumption, except for the small amount of production involved in responding to e-mails."
The Web browser has its limits.
It's good for simpler tasks, not so good for complex tasks. NNG's advice: "If your service requires substantial interaction, consider an app instead of a site."
In contrast, simpler tasks tend to work well in the iPad browser: "In our testing, a few tasks were performed both on the Web and using an application. In these cases, our participants were always successful on the Web. A third of the corresponding tasks that involved apps ended in failure." Usually, this was because the Web site contained more information than the app, or the app design was confusing.
NNG noted: "Whenever apps lack features, users quit them for the websites."
Use of screen space is inefficient.
"Many apps use the (relatively) big iPad screen inefficiently: the screen contains little information, and users have to take extra actions to get to the content."
Also, "Popovers are frequent culprits for underutilizing (screen) space. Too often we see relevant content crammed in a small popover window, while all the other space underneath remains unused."
People prefer landscape mode, barely.
"Slightly more users mentioned that they preferred the landscape (horizontal) orientation for the iPad. A seemingly related factor was whether they were using an iPad cover; those who did mentioned that they often propped their iPad up in landscape orientation."
One problem NNG noted was that some iPad apps handle navigation differently depending on orientation: "For instance, they use horizontal navigation in landscape and use vertical navigation in portrait." This can confuse users.
Some apps even offer different content depending on orientation. For instance, BBC News' app lists different sections in landscape and in portrait orientation. This is especially likely to confuse or annoy users, since users are more likely to switch orientations in a single session while in magazine or news apps.
iPad users are more leisurely about kill time.
"Killing time is the other major use for smartphones, and that is shared with the iPad. ... (However,) the uses are slightly different. The time that is usually available on the smartphone is much shorter and more fragmented than the one available on the iPad.
"On the smartphone, users may look for a quick article to kill the three minutes of waiting for the train; once on the train, they may take out the iPad for the hour it takes them to ride home. As one user put it: 'I am not in a rush when I use this device.' "
Die, splash screens, die.
"We thought we had driven a stake through splash screens many years ago and eradicated them from the Web, but apparently splash screens are super-vampires that can haunt users from beyond the grave. Several new iPad apps have long introductory segments that might be entertaining the first time, but soon wear out their welcome. Bad on sites, bad in apps. Don't."
(CNN) -- There's a learning curve for every new consumer technology -- both for people who use the device and for makers of software or services that run on it. This has definitely been the case for Apple's iPad, which hit the market just over a year ago.
According to new research from Nielsen Norman Group (NNG), the usability of iPad apps and of Web sites displayed on this device have improved substantially in the past year. In particular, "apps have become more consistent and standardized, making them easier to use," NNG said.
But there's still plenty of room for improvement.
NNG brought in 16 people with at least two months' experience using the iPad and systematically tested how they interacted with 26 iPad apps and six Web sites.
Here's what they learned, based on users' feedback, preferences and complaints:
Touchable areas are often too small, too close, not easy enough to discern.
Often, text content is big enough to read, but links in the text are too small to tap easily. Similarly, sites and apps that have too many touchable areas too close together increase the risk of touching the wrong one.
This leads to navigational accidents, which can be especially vexing in iPad apps that lack a "back" button. Also, many touchable areas don't look obviously touchable, so users tend to miss them.
Similarly, "swipe ambiguity plagued users when multiple items on the same screen could be swiped. Carousels often caused this usability problem in apps that also relied on swiping to move between pages. Many users couldn't turn the page because they swiped in the wrong spot. Their typical conclusion? The app is broken."
iPad users dislike typing on the touchpad.
This presents a variety of issues, including that fewer iPad users are likely to go through a registration process that requires lots of onscreen typing. This may partly explain why the iPad has a reputation at being not so great for media creation. "(iPad use is) heavily dominated by media consumption, except for the small amount of production involved in responding to e-mails."
The Web browser has its limits.
It's good for simpler tasks, not so good for complex tasks. NNG's advice: "If your service requires substantial interaction, consider an app instead of a site."
In contrast, simpler tasks tend to work well in the iPad browser: "In our testing, a few tasks were performed both on the Web and using an application. In these cases, our participants were always successful on the Web. A third of the corresponding tasks that involved apps ended in failure." Usually, this was because the Web site contained more information than the app, or the app design was confusing.
NNG noted: "Whenever apps lack features, users quit them for the websites."
Use of screen space is inefficient.
"Many apps use the (relatively) big iPad screen inefficiently: the screen contains little information, and users have to take extra actions to get to the content."
Also, "Popovers are frequent culprits for underutilizing (screen) space. Too often we see relevant content crammed in a small popover window, while all the other space underneath remains unused."
People prefer landscape mode, barely.
"Slightly more users mentioned that they preferred the landscape (horizontal) orientation for the iPad. A seemingly related factor was whether they were using an iPad cover; those who did mentioned that they often propped their iPad up in landscape orientation."
One problem NNG noted was that some iPad apps handle navigation differently depending on orientation: "For instance, they use horizontal navigation in landscape and use vertical navigation in portrait." This can confuse users.
Some apps even offer different content depending on orientation. For instance, BBC News' app lists different sections in landscape and in portrait orientation. This is especially likely to confuse or annoy users, since users are more likely to switch orientations in a single session while in magazine or news apps.
iPad users are more leisurely about kill time.
"Killing time is the other major use for smartphones, and that is shared with the iPad. ... (However,) the uses are slightly different. The time that is usually available on the smartphone is much shorter and more fragmented than the one available on the iPad.
"On the smartphone, users may look for a quick article to kill the three minutes of waiting for the train; once on the train, they may take out the iPad for the hour it takes them to ride home. As one user put it: 'I am not in a rush when I use this device.' "
Die, splash screens, die.
"We thought we had driven a stake through splash screens many years ago and eradicated them from the Web, but apparently splash screens are super-vampires that can haunt users from beyond the grave. Several new iPad apps have long introductory segments that might be entertaining the first time, but soon wear out their welcome. Bad on sites, bad in apps. Don't."
Thursday 26 May 2011
Google Expects the Online Advertising Market to Grow
According to reports, Google has no doubt that online advertising is here to stay. Not only is it here to stay, but it is going to continue to grow. The vice president of display advertising at Google, Neal Mohan, says that display advertising is actually influencing the way people search.
Mohan went on to say that the digital display sector is currently a $24 billion market. However, he feels that it has so much more room to grow. In fact, he thinks that this sector can easily reach $200 billion a year. Now he understands that this is a long way to go, but he said that the opportunity is clearly there.
Of course, other companies are not prepared to give Google all the glory. In fact, some marketing groups, like WPP, are currently watching the digital display industry very closely. To WPP, online advertising has been the best way to offset ever declining sales of offline advertising. However, since WPP is attempting to really make a name with online advertising, it sees Google as a friend and an enemy. The chief executive of WPP, Sir Martin Sorrell, said that Google is a “frenemy” to his company. He said that Google is a threat, but it also helps represent a lot of opportunity as well.
However, others were not as nice to Google as Martin was. In fact, former ITV chief executive Michael Grade had nothing nice to say about Google at all. In fact, he went on to say that Google is nothing more than a parasite. However, Mr Mohan came to Google’s aid and defended the company against this strong criticism. He said that Google is in the technology sector, not the media business sector. He said that Google, in no way, owns inventory; they are not a media company. Mohan said that Google can not execute unless advertisers buy into the system and adopt it.
Mohan did not stop there. He said that Google, by helping to grow the digital display market, can help give media companies a “leg up.” Overall, the whole company does feel like there is a tremendous opportunity here. This is not just an opportunity for Google, but for the whole media industry.
Of course, it is hard for some companies to want to get on board with Google – mostly because Google has already grown so big. Google is one of those companies that has its hands in a ton of different markets, and it is doing it successfully. A lot of other companies find this kind of thing intimidating.
The real question for Google is: Where does it go from here? With the success of Android, the company has successfully made it’s way into the operating system industry. Does Google plan on expanding this? Will people someday see Google operating systems on home computers? Only time will tell.
Mohan went on to say that the digital display sector is currently a $24 billion market. However, he feels that it has so much more room to grow. In fact, he thinks that this sector can easily reach $200 billion a year. Now he understands that this is a long way to go, but he said that the opportunity is clearly there.
Of course, other companies are not prepared to give Google all the glory. In fact, some marketing groups, like WPP, are currently watching the digital display industry very closely. To WPP, online advertising has been the best way to offset ever declining sales of offline advertising. However, since WPP is attempting to really make a name with online advertising, it sees Google as a friend and an enemy. The chief executive of WPP, Sir Martin Sorrell, said that Google is a “frenemy” to his company. He said that Google is a threat, but it also helps represent a lot of opportunity as well.
However, others were not as nice to Google as Martin was. In fact, former ITV chief executive Michael Grade had nothing nice to say about Google at all. In fact, he went on to say that Google is nothing more than a parasite. However, Mr Mohan came to Google’s aid and defended the company against this strong criticism. He said that Google is in the technology sector, not the media business sector. He said that Google, in no way, owns inventory; they are not a media company. Mohan said that Google can not execute unless advertisers buy into the system and adopt it.
Mohan did not stop there. He said that Google, by helping to grow the digital display market, can help give media companies a “leg up.” Overall, the whole company does feel like there is a tremendous opportunity here. This is not just an opportunity for Google, but for the whole media industry.
Of course, it is hard for some companies to want to get on board with Google – mostly because Google has already grown so big. Google is one of those companies that has its hands in a ton of different markets, and it is doing it successfully. A lot of other companies find this kind of thing intimidating.
The real question for Google is: Where does it go from here? With the success of Android, the company has successfully made it’s way into the operating system industry. Does Google plan on expanding this? Will people someday see Google operating systems on home computers? Only time will tell.
Wednesday 25 May 2011
Watch Out, Nook: Amazon Launches $164 Kindle 3G With Ads
(MASHABLE) Watch out, Nook: Amazon has just launched a 3G version of its ad-supported Kindle for $164.
The new device, officially called the Kindle 3G With Special Offers, is almost identical to the $114 ad-supported Wi-Fi Kindle except for the addition of 3G functionality. The device is a 6-inch device that displays the occasional advertisement. In return, users get special offers and a $25 discount on the Kindle 3G’s $189 price tag. In a statement, Amazon Kindle director Jay Marine called it “the lowest price for any 3G ereader.”
The special deals associated with the 3G Kindle are similar to the Wi-Fi version. Some of the special offers Amazon will launch “in the coming weeks” include $10 for a $20 Amazon gift card, 20% discounts on 200 HDTVs, and $1 for select Kindle books.
The announcement of the Kindle 3G With Special Offers comes just hours after Barnes & Noble unveiled its $139 touchscreen Nook, a Wi-Fi-only ereader device that is lighter than the Kindle and boasts two months of battery life. Barnes & Noble also claims that it controls 25% of the ebook market, something that can’t be sitting well with Amazon
The new device, officially called the Kindle 3G With Special Offers, is almost identical to the $114 ad-supported Wi-Fi Kindle except for the addition of 3G functionality. The device is a 6-inch device that displays the occasional advertisement. In return, users get special offers and a $25 discount on the Kindle 3G’s $189 price tag. In a statement, Amazon Kindle director Jay Marine called it “the lowest price for any 3G ereader.”
The special deals associated with the 3G Kindle are similar to the Wi-Fi version. Some of the special offers Amazon will launch “in the coming weeks” include $10 for a $20 Amazon gift card, 20% discounts on 200 HDTVs, and $1 for select Kindle books.
The announcement of the Kindle 3G With Special Offers comes just hours after Barnes & Noble unveiled its $139 touchscreen Nook, a Wi-Fi-only ereader device that is lighter than the Kindle and boasts two months of battery life. Barnes & Noble also claims that it controls 25% of the ebook market, something that can’t be sitting well with Amazon
Thursday 19 May 2011
Apple readying Web music service, report says
(CNN) -- Apple has dominated digital music sales for years with its iTunes store, which allows shoppers to download songs and other content.
Now it's looking increasingly likely that the leading tech company will enter the growing music-streaming market as well.
Apple has signed a cloud-music licensing agreement with EMI Music and is close to completing deals with two other music labels, according to a report by tech news site CNET, citing multiple music industry sources.
Such a product would throw Apple into direct competition with Amazon and Google, both of which recently launched cloud-based music streaming services of their own. Such services store songs on Web servers, where they are accessible from any device with an Internet connection, instead of on a user's hard drive.
Apple signed a similar licensing deal with Warner Music last month. Its negotiations with Sony Music Group and Universal Music Group, the remaining of the four major labels, could be wrapped up as early as next week, CNET reports.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment by CNN.
Record labels, seeking to maintain revenue in the struggling music industry, have maintained that streaming music requires a license that is separate from offering songs for sale. But both Amazon and Google launched their cloud-based services without any licensing deals in place.
By cooperating with the music industry on licensing songs, Apple would stake out a different position from its rivals. This could give an Apple music-streaming product a leg up on the competition, writes MG Siegler for TechCrunch:
"So the labels, which for the better part of a decade now have been looking for someone, anyone to help counter Apple's power in their business, is turning right back to Apple when they need help. And Apple will obviously gladly welcome them with open arms. After all, with these licenses, Apple will have secured the cloud music high ground despite being the last to launch," he writes.
"Think about it. With these agreements, Apple is likely going to be able to do the one thing that is absolutely crucial for cloud music to take off: offer library syncing without uploading.
"In other words, Apple now likely be able to do what Lala (the company Apple bought in late 2009 and subsequently shut down) was able to do: scan your hard drive for songs and let you play those songs from their servers without having to upload them yourself."
Google's Music Beta, announced earlier this month, lets users upload their music to Google's servers and migrate their playlists and data from iTunes. The music player can be accessed from a Web browser as well as from an Android phone or tablet, and users can add up to 20,000 songs for free.
That followed Amazon's launch in March of its rival Cloud Player, which lets consumers upload their music to Amazon's servers and play them via the Web or Android. Users are given 5 GB of free storage but must pay for additional space.
Now it's looking increasingly likely that the leading tech company will enter the growing music-streaming market as well.
Apple has signed a cloud-music licensing agreement with EMI Music and is close to completing deals with two other music labels, according to a report by tech news site CNET, citing multiple music industry sources.
Such a product would throw Apple into direct competition with Amazon and Google, both of which recently launched cloud-based music streaming services of their own. Such services store songs on Web servers, where they are accessible from any device with an Internet connection, instead of on a user's hard drive.
Apple signed a similar licensing deal with Warner Music last month. Its negotiations with Sony Music Group and Universal Music Group, the remaining of the four major labels, could be wrapped up as early as next week, CNET reports.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment by CNN.
Record labels, seeking to maintain revenue in the struggling music industry, have maintained that streaming music requires a license that is separate from offering songs for sale. But both Amazon and Google launched their cloud-based services without any licensing deals in place.
By cooperating with the music industry on licensing songs, Apple would stake out a different position from its rivals. This could give an Apple music-streaming product a leg up on the competition, writes MG Siegler for TechCrunch:
"So the labels, which for the better part of a decade now have been looking for someone, anyone to help counter Apple's power in their business, is turning right back to Apple when they need help. And Apple will obviously gladly welcome them with open arms. After all, with these licenses, Apple will have secured the cloud music high ground despite being the last to launch," he writes.
"Think about it. With these agreements, Apple is likely going to be able to do the one thing that is absolutely crucial for cloud music to take off: offer library syncing without uploading.
"In other words, Apple now likely be able to do what Lala (the company Apple bought in late 2009 and subsequently shut down) was able to do: scan your hard drive for songs and let you play those songs from their servers without having to upload them yourself."
Google's Music Beta, announced earlier this month, lets users upload their music to Google's servers and migrate their playlists and data from iTunes. The music player can be accessed from a Web browser as well as from an Android phone or tablet, and users can add up to 20,000 songs for free.
That followed Amazon's launch in March of its rival Cloud Player, which lets consumers upload their music to Amazon's servers and play them via the Web or Android. Users are given 5 GB of free storage but must pay for additional space.
Wednesday 18 May 2011
Monday 16 May 2011
Sunday 15 May 2011
Monday 9 May 2011
t Brightly Colored Bird Feathers Inspire New Kind of Laser
A new kind of laser captures light just like some colorful bird feathers. The device mimics the nanoscale structure of colorful feathers to make high-intensity laser light with almost any color.
Lasers work by trapping light in or near a material that can emit more photons with the same wavelength, or color. Incoming photons excite the atoms in the material, and make them spit out more identical photons. But to get enough photons for a bright beam of laser light, the photons need to hang around in the material for a long time.
One way to buy time for photons is by forcing them to bounce back and forth. Traditional lasers do this by bouncing the photons between two mirrors. In recent years, physicists have built lasers from slabs of specialized glass with air holes drilled in them. Light can get trapped on a particular path between the holes, and bounce around long enough to make laser light.
Physicists have tried arranging the holes in both tightly ordered and completely random patterns. But both of those options had drawbacks — ordered lasers only work at one wavelength and are expensive to build, and random lasers aren’t very efficient.
Physicist Hui Cao of Yale and colleagues tried something in between: an arrangement of holes that looks random from afar but has pockets of order up close. This is similar to the setup of air pockets in bird feathers.
Certain brightly colored birds, like kingfishers or parrots, have feathers embedded with a not-quite-random arrangement of air pockets. Wavelengths of light that are related to the distance between the air pockets get scattered and built up more than others, giving the feathers their characteristic colors.
“After we learned this, we said, ‘Oh, that’s a smart idea!’” Cao said. “Can we use this to improve our lasers? Maybe we can use short-range order to enhance light confinement and make lasing more efficient.”
Cao’s team drilled holes in a 190-nanometer-thin sheet of gallium arsenide, a special sort of plastic that transmits light efficiently and is commonly used in optics. The holes were spaced between 235 and 275 nanometers apart. The plastic included a layer of equally spaced quantum dots, which emit lots of light when struck with one photon. When light entered the plastic, the physicists reasoned, it should bounce around between the holes long enough to make the quantum dots produce enough photons to start lasing.
When the researchers lit up the tiny wafer, it produced laser light with wavelengths of about 1,000 nanometers, in the near-infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum. It was much more efficient than random lasers. The researchers also found that they could change the wavelength of the laser light by changing the spacing between the holes.
“Just like the birds, who can tune their short-range order to get different color from their feathers. We can do the same thing,” Cao said.
Cao doesn’t have any particular applications in mind for this tunable, efficient laser. But she points out that by giving up on long-range order, her laser is much cheaper and easier to build than previous models.
“We can have control, and it doesn’t have to be perfect,” she said. “That’s what we learned from nature.”
Cao and colleagues are now trying to use actual bird feathers as a template. They hope to embed tiny semiconductors in the air holes and dissolve away the keratin that holds them together. This might be an easier way to make lasers with extremely short wavelengths, in the blue or ultraviolet range.
It might be even more interesting to figure out how the birds build their feathers in the first place, said biologist Matt Shawkey of the University of Akron in Ohio.
“Birds seem to do it very cheaply. They have thousands of these feathers,” he said. “If you can get these things to build themselves, taking the painstaking process out, then you’d barely have to put any energy and time into it. It would be really cool to see which parameters the birds are changing to get these feathers to self-assemble.”
(WIRED.COM)
Lasers work by trapping light in or near a material that can emit more photons with the same wavelength, or color. Incoming photons excite the atoms in the material, and make them spit out more identical photons. But to get enough photons for a bright beam of laser light, the photons need to hang around in the material for a long time.
One way to buy time for photons is by forcing them to bounce back and forth. Traditional lasers do this by bouncing the photons between two mirrors. In recent years, physicists have built lasers from slabs of specialized glass with air holes drilled in them. Light can get trapped on a particular path between the holes, and bounce around long enough to make laser light.
Physicists have tried arranging the holes in both tightly ordered and completely random patterns. But both of those options had drawbacks — ordered lasers only work at one wavelength and are expensive to build, and random lasers aren’t very efficient.
Physicist Hui Cao of Yale and colleagues tried something in between: an arrangement of holes that looks random from afar but has pockets of order up close. This is similar to the setup of air pockets in bird feathers.
Certain brightly colored birds, like kingfishers or parrots, have feathers embedded with a not-quite-random arrangement of air pockets. Wavelengths of light that are related to the distance between the air pockets get scattered and built up more than others, giving the feathers their characteristic colors.
“After we learned this, we said, ‘Oh, that’s a smart idea!’” Cao said. “Can we use this to improve our lasers? Maybe we can use short-range order to enhance light confinement and make lasing more efficient.”
Cao’s team drilled holes in a 190-nanometer-thin sheet of gallium arsenide, a special sort of plastic that transmits light efficiently and is commonly used in optics. The holes were spaced between 235 and 275 nanometers apart. The plastic included a layer of equally spaced quantum dots, which emit lots of light when struck with one photon. When light entered the plastic, the physicists reasoned, it should bounce around between the holes long enough to make the quantum dots produce enough photons to start lasing.
When the researchers lit up the tiny wafer, it produced laser light with wavelengths of about 1,000 nanometers, in the near-infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum. It was much more efficient than random lasers. The researchers also found that they could change the wavelength of the laser light by changing the spacing between the holes.
“Just like the birds, who can tune their short-range order to get different color from their feathers. We can do the same thing,” Cao said.
Cao doesn’t have any particular applications in mind for this tunable, efficient laser. But she points out that by giving up on long-range order, her laser is much cheaper and easier to build than previous models.
“We can have control, and it doesn’t have to be perfect,” she said. “That’s what we learned from nature.”
Cao and colleagues are now trying to use actual bird feathers as a template. They hope to embed tiny semiconductors in the air holes and dissolve away the keratin that holds them together. This might be an easier way to make lasers with extremely short wavelengths, in the blue or ultraviolet range.
It might be even more interesting to figure out how the birds build their feathers in the first place, said biologist Matt Shawkey of the University of Akron in Ohio.
“Birds seem to do it very cheaply. They have thousands of these feathers,” he said. “If you can get these things to build themselves, taking the painstaking process out, then you’d barely have to put any energy and time into it. It would be really cool to see which parameters the birds are changing to get these feathers to self-assemble.”
(WIRED.COM)
Wednesday 27 April 2011
Sony dives into tablet race
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Sony is diving into the tablet race, announcing Tuesday that is working on two gadgets that will hit the market this fall.
One of the tablets, code-named S1, will be a flat slate with a 9.4-inch screen, just a touch smaller than Apple's iPad.
Its S2 tablet will be more unusual, with two 5.5-inch displays and a folding design. The displays can be combined into one large viewing surface or used separately.
Both tablets will support Wi-Fi and 3G and 4G wireless networks, and will run on Google's (GOOG, Fortune 500) Android operating system.
Sony didn't offer a precise timeline for its tablets' release, saying only that they will be available globally in "fall 2011." It also didn't give any details about pricing for either tablet.
Sony, which said at January's Consumer Electronics Show that it was working on a tablet but offered few specifics, joins a long list of dozens of electronics makers struggling to catch up to Apple's giant head start.
So far, few of those efforts have impressed. Research in Motion's (RIMM) PlayBook debuted this month to lackluster reviews, while Motorola's (MMI) pioneering Xoom -- the first to run Google's tablet-optimized "Honeycomb" version of Android -- has sold sluggishly.
Meanwhile, Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) has sold nearly 20 million iPads since launching the device a year ago.
A fresh wave of rivals will hit the market later this year, including HP's TouchPad, one of the few tablets built around an operating system other than Android. HP (HPQ, Fortune 500) is using its own webOS, which HP inherited when it bought Palm, as the foundation of its tablet development.
Sony (SNE) went for the relative safety of Android, but it promises that its S1 and S2 will stand out from the pack. The S1 will have an "off-center" form factor designed for easy gripping, while the dual-screen S2 borrows its design inspiration from popular portable gaming devices like Nintendo's DS.
Sony also plans to integrate its Sony Reader e-book software and build in home-entertainment features. The S1 tablet will be able to serve as a universal remote control and transfer content like videos and music to compatible television and wireless speaker systems. To top of page
One of the tablets, code-named S1, will be a flat slate with a 9.4-inch screen, just a touch smaller than Apple's iPad.
Its S2 tablet will be more unusual, with two 5.5-inch displays and a folding design. The displays can be combined into one large viewing surface or used separately.
Both tablets will support Wi-Fi and 3G and 4G wireless networks, and will run on Google's (GOOG, Fortune 500) Android operating system.
Sony didn't offer a precise timeline for its tablets' release, saying only that they will be available globally in "fall 2011." It also didn't give any details about pricing for either tablet.
Sony, which said at January's Consumer Electronics Show that it was working on a tablet but offered few specifics, joins a long list of dozens of electronics makers struggling to catch up to Apple's giant head start.
So far, few of those efforts have impressed. Research in Motion's (RIMM) PlayBook debuted this month to lackluster reviews, while Motorola's (MMI) pioneering Xoom -- the first to run Google's tablet-optimized "Honeycomb" version of Android -- has sold sluggishly.
Meanwhile, Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) has sold nearly 20 million iPads since launching the device a year ago.
A fresh wave of rivals will hit the market later this year, including HP's TouchPad, one of the few tablets built around an operating system other than Android. HP (HPQ, Fortune 500) is using its own webOS, which HP inherited when it bought Palm, as the foundation of its tablet development.
Sony (SNE) went for the relative safety of Android, but it promises that its S1 and S2 will stand out from the pack. The S1 will have an "off-center" form factor designed for easy gripping, while the dual-screen S2 borrows its design inspiration from popular portable gaming devices like Nintendo's DS.
Sony also plans to integrate its Sony Reader e-book software and build in home-entertainment features. The S1 tablet will be able to serve as a universal remote control and transfer content like videos and music to compatible television and wireless speaker systems. To top of page
Tuesday 26 April 2011
Wednesday 20 April 2011
Creative SEO
Great website - some fantastic insights into the world of creative SEO - Well worth a read :-)
http://www.james-kinloch.com/search/label/Digital%20PR#
http://www.james-kinloch.com/search/label/Digital%20PR#
Tuesday 19 April 2011
Facebook Courts Ad Agencies With New Site
(MASHABLE) In an attempt to build relationships in the advertising industry, Facebook revealed Facebook Studio, a “place to celebrate innovation, creativity and effectiveness” on the platform.
“We’ve heard from agencies, brands and the marketing community that you want examples and thought-starters for creativity and innovation on Facebook,” reads an introduction to the site. “We’ve built this site to provide a place where you can come to be inspired and showcase your work.”
In practice, the site is a place to introduce recent work. The more “Likes” the work receives, the more likely it is to be promoted in Facebook’s Spotlight, a permanent collection. Facebook also plans to give awards for the best work awards.
Other features of the site include a learning lab, an agency directory and a “what’s new” section that details new product launches, trends and resources.
The effort comes as Facebook’s relationship with agencies has been somewhat strained by the platform’s arcane system for buying ads. A handful of firms, including Blinq Media and AdParlor, have acted as intermediaries to smooth out the process.
Facebook reps could not be reached for comment on Facebook Studio.
“We’ve heard from agencies, brands and the marketing community that you want examples and thought-starters for creativity and innovation on Facebook,” reads an introduction to the site. “We’ve built this site to provide a place where you can come to be inspired and showcase your work.”
In practice, the site is a place to introduce recent work. The more “Likes” the work receives, the more likely it is to be promoted in Facebook’s Spotlight, a permanent collection. Facebook also plans to give awards for the best work awards.
Other features of the site include a learning lab, an agency directory and a “what’s new” section that details new product launches, trends and resources.
The effort comes as Facebook’s relationship with agencies has been somewhat strained by the platform’s arcane system for buying ads. A handful of firms, including Blinq Media and AdParlor, have acted as intermediaries to smooth out the process.
Facebook reps could not be reached for comment on Facebook Studio.
Saturday 16 April 2011
Friday 15 April 2011
Thursday 14 April 2011
A hot new feature for gadgets: built-in ads?
(CNN) -- Seeing ads on portable devices is nothing new. Open a smartphone app, and you're likely to get hit with ads on the screen. Same for mobile browsers.
But Amazon, maker of the popular Kindle e-reader, took this concept to an entirely new level on Monday when it announced a new version of the Kindle that is $25 cheaper and has inescapable advertisements built into the machine.
Think of an smartphone that requires its owner to watch ads as a screensaver, a TV that makes you watch an ad in order to turn it on or a gadget that requires you to learn about some used car special in order to access new features.
This could be the future if the $114 ad-embedded Kindle takes off.
The Kindle ads don't show up in the books a person loads on the device. Instead, they're built into the framework of the gadget itself, showing up as screen savers and at the bottom of the device's home screen.
"Special offers and sponsored screensavers display on the Kindle screensaver and on the bottom of the home screen -- they don't interrupt reading," Amazon says on its website.
The device, on pre-order now, ships May 3. It connects to the internet with a Wi-Fi connection instead of a cellular data network, making it similar to its predecessor except in the ads and the price. The Wi-Fi-only Kindle without ads is $139.
Although the idea seems new, this apparently isn't the first attempt by a gadget maker to put ads on the device instead of attached to media.
Apple, whose iPad competes with the Kindle as a device for reading digital books, filed a patent application in 2008 that would allow it to embed advertisements directly in several of its popular gadgets.
The New York Times, which reported on this development in 2009, notes that, as with all patents, it's unclear whether the Apple idea will really show up in products.
"The technology can freeze the device until the user clicks a button or answers a test question to demonstrate that he or she has dutifully noticed the commercial message," the Times wrote. "Because this technology would be embedded in the innermost core of the device, the ads could appear on the screen at any time, no matter what one is doing."
Reaction to Amazon's ad-Kindle has been mixed in the tech blogosphere.
The hardware-as-ad ideas is a good one, but the Kindle's price didn't drop enough to make it worth the tradeoff, writes Erik Sherman at the site BNET.
"At one time, ads would probably have come across as annoyance-ware. However, things have changed. People are used to seeing ads in browsers. Watch television and there are all those annoying come-ons for other shows that play in the bottom left corner of the screen even while the current program is running. Play a DVD movie and you have all those trailers for other films.
"Consumers are probably desensitized enough that many could consider having ads play for lower-priced products. That could open doors to expand adoption of new types of devices."
Seeing ads on a screensaver or on the home screen is fine, as long as the ads don't invade the digital book themselves, writes MG Siegler at TechCrunch.
"When I first read the new that Amazon would begin selling an ad-supported Kindle, my heart sank. This is the beginning of the end, I thought," he writes.
He says the price drop needs to be bigger, though.
"I would bet that many people would gladly accept a Kindle with get this -- two ads -- running simultaneously on the home screen if it meant a $99 Kindle."
Many users of an Amazon message board are upset about the idea of ads on the device they use to read.
"No other electronic device I own comes with ads. If it's not a book I don't want to see it on the screen, Amazon," says one commenter.
Others take a more tempered view:
"If you think about it, a lot of books (paperbacks at least) already come with advertising at the end of the book for other books. If the ad was at the end of the book then I wouldn't really care. If it were injected into the middle of the book, I would care a great deal since that would be extremely annoying," wrote another commenter on the message board.
But Amazon, maker of the popular Kindle e-reader, took this concept to an entirely new level on Monday when it announced a new version of the Kindle that is $25 cheaper and has inescapable advertisements built into the machine.
Think of an smartphone that requires its owner to watch ads as a screensaver, a TV that makes you watch an ad in order to turn it on or a gadget that requires you to learn about some used car special in order to access new features.
This could be the future if the $114 ad-embedded Kindle takes off.
The Kindle ads don't show up in the books a person loads on the device. Instead, they're built into the framework of the gadget itself, showing up as screen savers and at the bottom of the device's home screen.
"Special offers and sponsored screensavers display on the Kindle screensaver and on the bottom of the home screen -- they don't interrupt reading," Amazon says on its website.
The device, on pre-order now, ships May 3. It connects to the internet with a Wi-Fi connection instead of a cellular data network, making it similar to its predecessor except in the ads and the price. The Wi-Fi-only Kindle without ads is $139.
Although the idea seems new, this apparently isn't the first attempt by a gadget maker to put ads on the device instead of attached to media.
Apple, whose iPad competes with the Kindle as a device for reading digital books, filed a patent application in 2008 that would allow it to embed advertisements directly in several of its popular gadgets.
The New York Times, which reported on this development in 2009, notes that, as with all patents, it's unclear whether the Apple idea will really show up in products.
"The technology can freeze the device until the user clicks a button or answers a test question to demonstrate that he or she has dutifully noticed the commercial message," the Times wrote. "Because this technology would be embedded in the innermost core of the device, the ads could appear on the screen at any time, no matter what one is doing."
Reaction to Amazon's ad-Kindle has been mixed in the tech blogosphere.
The hardware-as-ad ideas is a good one, but the Kindle's price didn't drop enough to make it worth the tradeoff, writes Erik Sherman at the site BNET.
"At one time, ads would probably have come across as annoyance-ware. However, things have changed. People are used to seeing ads in browsers. Watch television and there are all those annoying come-ons for other shows that play in the bottom left corner of the screen even while the current program is running. Play a DVD movie and you have all those trailers for other films.
"Consumers are probably desensitized enough that many could consider having ads play for lower-priced products. That could open doors to expand adoption of new types of devices."
Seeing ads on a screensaver or on the home screen is fine, as long as the ads don't invade the digital book themselves, writes MG Siegler at TechCrunch.
"When I first read the new that Amazon would begin selling an ad-supported Kindle, my heart sank. This is the beginning of the end, I thought," he writes.
He says the price drop needs to be bigger, though.
"I would bet that many people would gladly accept a Kindle with get this -- two ads -- running simultaneously on the home screen if it meant a $99 Kindle."
Many users of an Amazon message board are upset about the idea of ads on the device they use to read.
"No other electronic device I own comes with ads. If it's not a book I don't want to see it on the screen, Amazon," says one commenter.
Others take a more tempered view:
"If you think about it, a lot of books (paperbacks at least) already come with advertising at the end of the book for other books. If the ad was at the end of the book then I wouldn't really care. If it were injected into the middle of the book, I would care a great deal since that would be extremely annoying," wrote another commenter on the message board.
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