Category Archives: Technology

Bill Gates on Chrome OS, Natal

This week Bill Gates sat down with CNET for an engaging interview about physics lectures that Gates is releasing for the public to view for free.  The Richard Feynman lectures are very interesting; they “take notions such as gravity and explain how they work and the broad implications they have in understanding the ways of the universe.”  Although this is quite intriguing, the tech-related goodness forms near the end of the interview when Gates is asked to spill his thoughts on Google’s latest announcement concerning their Chrome OS.

Gates: “…there’s many, many forms of Linux operating systems out there, and packaged in different ways, and booted in different ways. So I don’t know anything in particular about what Google is doing. But, in some ways I’m surprised people are acting like there’s something new. I mean, you’ve got Android running on netbooks; it’s got a browser in it. In any case, you should make them be concrete about what they’re doing. It is kind of a typical thing. When Google is doing anything it gets this–the more vague they are, the more interesting it is.”

Later Gates is asked about his views on the current state of Microsoft, a company he left in the midst of a Vista crisis and a potential Windows 7 comeback.  Gates says he recently visited the MS Cambridge labs and sees a bright future for Project Natal.  Interestly, he lets on that the Natal camera technology will cover more than video games with the Xbox 360; it will evolve the computer interface as well.  Exciting stuff.  Brilliant man.  Click the source link above to read the interview in its entirety.

Guitar Hero 5 Tracklist (so far)

Guitar Hero 5 is just around the corner, and the final tracklist is slowly but surely leaking out into existence.  IGN has compiled the tracks that have been announced.  The tracks listed below  were just announced today.  The game will have 85 tracks by 83 artists.  Peek after the break for the complete tracklist (so far).  Guitar Hero 5 is expected to release on September 1st.  Take a look!

New Additions
Attack! Attack! UK – “You And Me”
Bon Jovi – “You Give Love A Bad Name”
Darker My Love – “Blue Day”
The Duke Spirit – “Send A Little Love Token”
Elton John – “Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)”
Face To Face – “Disconnected”
Garbage – “Only Happy When It Rains”
Kaiser Chiefs – “Never Miss A Beat”
Kiss – “Shout It Out Loud”
Love and Rockets – “Mirror People”
My Morning Jacket – “One Big Holiday”
Nirvana – “Lithium (Live)”
The Police – “So Lonely”
Rammstein – “Du Hast”
The Rolling Stones – “Sympathy For The Devil”
Sonic Youth – “Incinerate”
Screaming Trees – “Nearly Lost You”
Sublime – “What I Got”
The Sword – “Maiden, Mother & Crone”
Thin Lizzy – “Jailbreak”
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – “American Girl”
The White Stripes – “Blue Orchid” Continue reading Guitar Hero 5 Tracklist (so far)

Apple tablet/netbook rumors back in full force

The whispers of a Apple tablet/netbook device began in March.  The rumors of such a device have been newly rejuvenated today by China Times:

“Taiwan’s high-tech supply chain companies said Apple will debut its first netbook in October; Apple will pose itself to tackle the Christmas shopping season. Three corporations – Foxconn, Wintek, Dynapack have received direct orders from Apple…Because Apple will adopt touch screen technology on its netbooks, Apple will not target low-end consumers, avoiding direct competition with Acer, Asus, as well as their less-than-500-dollars netbooks. Apple’s netbook (or a “tablet” as many call it,) will probably be sold at around $800 USD each.”

The device will purportedly have a 9.7 inch screen.  Anaylists and comsumers alike beleive the aforementioned Apple device will either be an over-sized iPod touch/iPhone-type product running the mobile version of Mac OS X or an entirely new hardware that resembles current netbook-like mini laptops and/or a tablet ‘slate’ device.  Whatever the case may be, I am glad to see the rumor mill turning as well slowly but surely reach the end of the summer and enter Q4, the time when Apple annually updates its iPod and Mac product line.

*Note: The image above is a mockup (read: not real).

[Via Gizmodo; Engadget]

Slim Booth Babe

“Spotted at the International Stationery and Office Supply Fair, this eye-catching digital signage system consists of a 0.3-millimeter-thick high-luminance rear-projection film (Vikuiti Rear Projection Film developed by 3M) applied to a 3-millimeter-thick glass substrate cut into the shape of a woman.”  In other words, it is a virtual person, a technology I see heading in the wrong direction, especially under these circumstances.  I do not want to see booth babes turning into flat-chested monitor projections!

[Via KanyeBlog]

Students create ingenious HP ad with synchronized printers

“Two students at London’s Kingston University pulled off a mesmerizing synchronized printing routine with a stable of HP printers.”  Keep in mind, they were “just one spool error away from a blinding fit of rage.”

“Present an idea which promotes HP Workstations ability to bring to life anything the creative mind can conceive.”  Filmed, edited and directed by Matt Robinson and Tom Wrigglesworth.

[Via Gizmodo; Vimeo]

Sony Ericsson readying for battle

With the Apple iPhone, HTC G1 (the “Google phone”), and Blackberry devices taking over the smartphone industry by storm (no pun intended, Blackberry), it’s time for Sony Ericsson (SE) to step up to the plate and offer a sleek device with updated hardware and a state-of-the-art user interface.  And from the looks of it, it seems as if SE has done just that with their new handset code-named Rachael.  Although the actual images of the cell phone may be artist rendering (or fakes for all we know), the user interface revealed in the embedded video above is very real and very exciting.  The SE Rachael will run of Google’s Android open-source platform, with its own customized user interface layered on top.  The polished UI seems to include a “unified messaging interface that displays Facebook, Twitter, email, SMS, and calls all from one screen.”  Now all we can do is wait patiently for SE to officially announce the new handset and sleek UI; they better do this quickly because smartphone platforms like the iPhone are not slowing down their progress anytime soon.  Look after the break (click “more…”) for images of the Rachael device. Continue reading Sony Ericsson readying for battle