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Two pairs of self-propelled robots called Wave Gliders recently launched from San Francisco on a course that’ll see them collectively covering almost 38,000 miles of the Pacific. If they reach their destinations in Japan and Australia, they could set the world record for the longest distance traveled by an unmanned vehicle .
You may be aware of the growing controversy surrounding Carrier IQ, a piece of software found pre-installed on Sprint phones that, according to developers who have investigated, is capable of detecting, recording, and transmitting various user actions and inputs. Among the data CIQ potentially has access to are location, SMS, apps, and key presses. News of the software has been percolating for months on development forums, but when Trevor Eckhart recently summarized his findings, he found himself facing a cease and desist while Sprint vigorously denied the charges, saying “We do not and cannot look at the contents of messages, photos, videos, etc., using this tool.” The C&D was quickly retracted , but Eckhart has now released a video that seems to give the lie to both Sprint and Carrier IQ’s assurances. A step by step breakdown of the video, with code snippets, is available here. A couple grains of salt are suggested. First, while Eckhart has no reason to falsify this information, it’s possible that this debug log is not entirely accurate for technical reasons, or that the conclusions are only applicable to this handset or software …
Spotify has got a press conference coming up tomorrow, and besides the clue about the company heading in a “new direction”, we don’t really know what it’s going to be about. However the folks over at All Things D believe that the music streaming service is likely to announce “The ability to let third-party developers tap into Spotify’s music library and make it available to their own users – as long as those users are already paying Spotify for a premium account.” (more…) Spotify to allow 3rd party app access? , By Ubergizmo . Top Stories : Epic 4G Touch Review ,
Reports of the NHTSA’s Volt catching fire post crash-tests still got you down? Well, unless you’re the type who lingers for several weeks in the vicinity of your wrecked auto, there probably isn’t much to worry about. GM apparently feels the same way, as it’s began contacting all 5,329 owners to “reassure them” their gasoline-electric whips are safe to drive. Those who remain unconvinced can bug the General for a presumably non-electric loaner while the whole investigation sorts itself. Or if your name is Jay Leno , you could just choose one of the other hundred in your garage.
In my home office sits a 27-inch iMac with a secondary 24-inch LED Cinema Display attached to it. It’s a glorious vision of screen real estate. And yet, I dread using it. First world problem? It’s perhaps the definition of the term. But it’s true. I’m sitting here on a couch adjacent to my desk because I’d rather type this post on my MacBook Air. To be completely honest, I’d rather be using my iPad right now . But I must admit, it doesn’t come anywhere close to cutting it when it comes to typing more than a few dozen words. So for now, the MacBook Air exists as the pinnacle of personal computing in my eyes. And it appears that those eyes are about to widen a bit. The rumors which started as a trickle have now become a full-on stream . Apple appears to be gearing up to release a new 15-inch model in their thin laptop line. As of right now, the current MacBook Air models end at 13 inches. For many people, that doesn’t seem to be enough. Earlier today, …
Designer Joseph Dumary dreamed up this interpretation of the next Xbox console, which he calls the “Xbox Prestige.” It’s slightly curvier than the Xbox 360 Slim, suggesting it’s from the future. It also includes a built-in “KinectIn” sensor for menu navigation and to scan cards for purchased games — buy the card, put it in front of the system, and either download it or play it streaming. Inside the hypothetical console is a 2TB hard drive for storing those games, and a tuner for live TV. It is, in general, much nicer than the real system will be.
We forgive you if you’re already overwhelmed by Skyrim ’s ongoing notifications of new discoveries — there’s kind of a lot of stuff to do in Bethesda’s latest Elder Scrolls realm. But for the rest of you fearless wanderers, the un-overwhelmable , Gamebanshee.com has put together this highly detailed, totally printable map of Skyrim’s many, many locations. And if you should be so inclined to, say, print out a giant version of said map and adorn your wall with it, the cartographers responsible also have you covered (.ZIP link). If it weren’t already clear that you’ve still got plenty left to explore in Skyrim, this map should handily clarify that. Just look at all that tiny writing! Those are all places !
