Month: May 2008

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Adobe Flash Player 10 prerelease available Now

Adobe-10

Adobe made a prerelease test version of the Flash 10 Player available. You can download an installer for Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux from the Adobe Labs Web site.

Among the new features in this edition of Flash Player are support for new 3D rendering effects, Adobe Pixel Blender filters, new drawing APIs, and an advanced text rendering engine. What’s more, Flash Player 10 has expanded use of hardware graphics acceleration, so Flash content should be a little snappier.

This is a testing version, you’re not likely to see any content that requires the new player in the wild just yet. But if you design or maintain Web pages yourself, it might be a good idea to give them a whirl with the beta player, just to make sure that all your old content still renders the way it should with the new version.
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It’s not yet clear, but Adobe is planning to make an announcement regarding the next version of Creative Suite on May 27, so we’ll know more then.

source:read
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Google Health beta service is officially Released

G-helthLike many of Google’s new services, Google Health is in beta, although officials said anyone can sign up for it and start entering their health data as we they promised earlier.

The public can go today to www.google.com/health and create profiles that include basic medical information such as existing medical conditions, allergies and any medicines being taken.

Google is one of several groups trying to “democratize” health care by allowing people to access and take control of their health records. Others include Microsoft, which announced its Health Vault initiative last year, WebMD and Revolution Health Group, founded by AOL co-founder Steve Case.

People who sign up at Google Health can also import medical records from U.S. pharmacies and medical facilities that have signed on as partners, which so far include Longs Drug Stores, Walgreens Pharmacy, the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and several others.
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Google Health will be linked to some extent to other Google services, which could potentially also raise privacy or security concerns. For example, if a user creates a list of doctors’ contact information, the group of contacts will automatically appear in their Gmail account.

“Google Health is all about pulling together documents from your doctor’s office, labs and pharmacies to provide a holistic picture of your health,” said Google Vice President Marissa Mayer, who was joined by health industry professionals to launch the project at a press conference at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California.

Concerns about privacy and security are seen as a big hurdle. Google says it will store health data in servers that are more secure than those it uses for other services. Users will be able to decide who has access to their records and to revoke that access at any time.

The service is available initially only in the U.S. Google is talking to partners in Europe and Asia, but the service is more complex than others it offers, because of the sensitivity of the data and the number of partners involved, so it will take more time to be rolled out in other parts of the world, he said.

source:read
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Touch Wall-Microsofts New Cheap Touchscreens

touch-wall

Bill Gates has demoed a vertical version of Microsoft’s coffee table computer, the Surface, at the company’s CEO summit.

Describing a future where cheap touchscreens will cover various surfaces in homes as well as offices, Gates said that he expects the technology to be “absolutely pervasive” in the near future.

Calling the Touch Wall, “new, risky and exciting”, Gates told attendees: “Our view is that all the surfaces – horizontal surfaces, vertical surfaces – will eventually have an inexpensive screen-display capability and software that sees what you’re doing there, so it’s completely interactive”, he told attendees at the summit.

Standing beside a 4 x 6ft screen, fitted with a camera to detect touch, Gates said that the technology is still at the research-and-development stage, but the company is using components of its interactivity at all levels, adding that he expects this technology to be affordable.
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“This kind of whiteboard, with a little bit of hardware advance over the next couple of years, will not be an expensive thing, and that’s why we’re saying that it will be absolutely pervasive,” Gates claimed.

watch the demo video
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPrfqdl55D0&NR=1

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Touch Screen BlackBerry Thunder in Q3

Thunder

BlackBerry makers plans to launch a touch-screen version of the wireless e-mail device in the third quarter as an answer to Apple Inc’s iPhone, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

RIM declined to comment on the report, stating that it does not comment on rumors and speculation. Earlier this week, rumored details of a touch-screen BlackBerry surfaced on the Internet.

The device, known as the Thunder, is to be sold through Verizon Wireless in the U.S. and Vodafone PLC abroad, the Journal reported on its Web site, citing people familiar with the matter.

In February, RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie said the company may bring out a touch-screen device if customers want it.

This week, Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM announced its BlackBerry Bold, a sleek smartphone with a keyboard aimed at its core base of business users.

Introducing a touch-screen BlackBerry would put RIM in more direct competition with Apple’s popular iPhone. In the past, Balsillie has dismissed concerns that the iPhone could pose a serious competitive threat.
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A touch-screen BlackBerry would also build on RIM’s continuing push into the broader retail market as it seeks to diversify its client base beyond the executives, lawyers and other professionals who have been its mainstay.

Update-1:-

According to the Boy Genius Report, the new handset will be RIM’s first true touchscreen phone, with just four physical buttons. The difference between a BlackBerry and an iPhone will be A keyboard. Once Apple ships the iPhone 2.0 software, with proper Exchange support and push email, the only real difference between the the handsets is the BlackBerry’s physical input. But it looks like RIM will be ditching it’s one advantage in a rumored new handset, the BlackBerry Thunder.

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Fedora 9 Sulphur Officially Released, Download it here

F9

Fedora 9 Sulphur released and it’s the most breathtaking version of the Fedora operating system. Not only does this release bring support for encrypted filesystems (implemented in the installer), but it’s also one of the best Fedora releases yet!

It’s powered by the latest and greatest Linux kernel, version 2.6.25, Fedora 9 Sulphur brings you ext4 support, a filesystem that’s more scalable and performs much better than ext3. Although it is considered to work better than ext3, it is still under development and not enabled by default, with some features that are not fully completed. Moreover, Fedora 9 doesn’t bring you a fully ext4-compatible version of e2fsprogs, although this utility can create filesystems mountable by ext4.

Download Fedora 9 and enjoy a very nice Linux distribution, right now from here.

I always recommend having an empty hard drive for a Linux installation  and you must have a minimum of 10 GB free space for the Fedora installation.

For this installation, use the Install DVD, because it contains all the software you’ll ever need. However, the DVD edition has about 3 GB in size and, if you don’t have the necessary bandwidth to download it, then we strongly recommend you get one of the KDE or the GNOME Live CD editions. Burn it on a blank disc with your favorite CD/DVD burning application, then insert the disc in the optical drive of the computer on which you want to install Fedora and boot from it. You’ll be presented with a very nice Fedora GRUB splash and some options. At this stage, we simply suggest you press Enter, and wait for the system to load. And follow the screen messages.
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And, before you reach the Fedora desktop, you must do a one-time general system configuration. That’s it! Now log in to your new Linux operating system and enjoy the breathtaking Fedora 9 Linux distribution!

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Swisscom deal with Apple may offer 3G iPhone

iphone 3G

The iPhone international roll-out the news that Swisscom will offer the iPhone in Switzerland.

Although the official statement from the telecoms co was brief, merely confirming a deal had been done with Apple. Local news sources are filling in the gaps by claiming the carrier will get the unconfirmed 3G model.

Newspaper Le Matin is claiming that the version for sale in Switzerland will boast video-conferencing, mobile television and GPS and will go on sale in June.
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Since the announcement Swisscom’s website has leaked pricing for the 3G 16GB model that will apparently be available in silver, but the 32GB offering will come in silver, black and white.

source:read
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Googles New Free Vidnik V0.13.0 Video Application.

Vidnik

Google released Vidnik, a new application they’re offering as part of their Google Mac apps. It’s a simple program for using the built-in camera on your Mac to create movies and upload them to YouTube. It’s free to download and use the first release of Vidnik, version 0.13.0 .

Vidnik is useful for creating video diaries, or to produce a video comment you can attach to an existing YouTube video. It works with the iSight webcam built in to MacBook Pros and MacBooks, and also works with many FireWire and USB-based video cameras that are Mac compatible, according to the developer.

The application lets you record a video clip, trim it, add some title, description and other information, then click the upload button. You can also drag movies you’ve created in other applications into Vidnik’s interface, which will allow you to upload them, as well.
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Vidnik also lets you use other video applications to manipulate the videos you’ve created in Vidnik, if you want to add effects or other enhancements.

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Motorola RAZR V9 Ferrari Limited Edition soon

V9-ferrari

Motorola is still managing to hook up with the big names like Ferrari and apparently launch a few Limited Edition handsets with the renowned car maker.

The MOTO Z8 Edition was launched at the end of last year and this souped up RIZR Ferrari colored handset came also included videos, wallpapers and ringtones as well as a rather generous pre-registration to the official Ferrari website.

MOTO’s latest, it seems, is the RAZR V9 that will also bear the famous Prancing Horse, and come with a lamb-skin case that will have the Ferrari logo. The handset’s specs won’t be any different. Some of the features include a 2MP camera, Bluetooth with A2DP, MicroSD card support and a secondary 2-inch semi-touch sensitive, external display.
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These darn Limited Editions cost a bundle. No price has been officially pinned to the handset yet.

source:read
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New Silver-zinc Battery provides longer Battery Life for Laptops & Mobiles

Battery

Silver-zinc batteries pack more energy than lithium-ion batteries, giving laptops 40 percent more run time, according to Dueber. If a laptop runs for two hours with a lithium-ion battery, it should run for closer to three hours with a silver-zinc battery.

The batteries will be available in consumer and business laptops from major PC makers starting in August, according to Ross Dueber, the CEO of ZPower, although he declined to name any of the vendors on Thursday.

The battery’s water-based chemistry also makes it nonflammable, compared to lithium-ion, which uses dimethyl carbonate, a flammable liquid. Cells can go off “like firecrackers” in lithium-ion batteries.

It also remains to be seen if silver-zinc batteries can compete on price, since lithium-ion is relatively cheap. The silver-zinc batteries contain silver, which can be expensive.
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Samsung P960 world first DVB-H mobile TV phone.

P960

The 3G HSDPA mobile is said to be the world’s first DVB-H mobile TV phone that supports both of European mobile TV standards.

P900

These are Digital Video Broadcast – Convergence of Broadcast and Mobile Service (DVB-CBMS), which has now been endorsed by European authorities, and Open Mobile Alliance Mobile Broadcast Service Enabler Suite (OMA-BCAST).

The Electronic Service Guide (ESG) provides an on-screen TV guide and there’s also a Picture in Picture (PIP) facility that allows users to view two channels at once.

The time-shifting feature shifts TV program schedules when a show is interrupted by incoming calls.
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And Samsung has teamed up with Bang & Olufsen to offer “a professional quality audio experience”.

The phone’s battery supports up to 5 hours of TV watching time.

source:read