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Wednesday, 25 May 2011
Android 2.2 Tablet PC Camera-Flash 10.1-512MB DDRII 4GB NAND FLASH- M7003B (White)
Android 2.2 Tablet PC
| What makes this tablet PC stand out from these tablet PCs? It must be the super strong built-in games. 146 European and US hot console games onboard, support games downloading, thousands of games ... |
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Wednesday, 18 May 2011
Google IO Live Blog: Chrome and Chromebook (and Angry Birds on the Web)
It's Day Two at Google IO, Google's annual developer conference, and we're at Moscone Center ready to live-blog this morning's keynote.
Yesterday's keynote featured announcements about Android, Google Music, and Google movie-rentals, as well as news about extending the developer platform to include hardware via Google's Open Accessory API and Accessory Developer Kit.
What we didn't hear about was anything relating to Google's Chrome OS, and we're anticipating that will be the focus of today's keynote. Rumors are that Google will announce a $20/month Chrome notebook rental program aimed at students, but we're sure Google has more for us in store.
9:30 a.m.: Vic Gundotra takes the stage to welcome us to the second day of Google IO. He says that over 600,000 people tuned in yesterday to watch the keynote - "global enthusiasm."
9:32 a.m.: It's about the "open Web," says Gundotra as he introduces Sundar Pichai, Chrome's Senior VP
9:34 a.m.: There are now 160,000,000 active users - more than doubling since last year. Pichai chronicles what has happened over the last year with Chrome, adding a stable channel for Mac and Linux and rolling out releases every six weeks. This culminated this last week with the latest beta release of Chrome 12
9:36 a.m.: Pichai talks about the upcoming APIs in Chrome, and brings Ian Ellison-Taylor to the stage to talk about these new features:
- Speech support
- Translation
- Javascript speed
9:43 a.m.: What's next? GPU acceleration for the canvas and WebGL. The demo utilizes the famous aquarium from Microsoft which now can be filled with hundreds of fish without losing frame-rates.
9:48 a.m.: Emphasis is on speed. But "writing these applications only matter if you can reach users." Hence the launch of the Chrome Web store. Users are spending more time in the apps - about a 2x increase. And game developers are also seeing about 2.5x increase in transactions.
9:49 a.m.: As of today, Chrome Web Store opens to all users, in 41 different languages. Although this will open up usage, the challenge of monetization still exists. Vikas Gupta from the Google Payments team now joins the stage to discuss in-app payments.
9:51 a.m.: Graphic.ly demoed as an example. Graphic.ly wanted users to be able to read a comic before they actually make a purchase - something that's now possible with the API. Gupta demonstrates that it only takes a single line of code to be able to add this.
9:53 a.m.: Gupta stresses keeping it simple for developers to monetize things. This new Payments platform is priced at a flat fee of 5% - that means 95% of what customers spend in an app stay with the developer.
9:55 a.m.: Gaming capabilities on the Web: Rovio's Peter Vesterbacka from talks about the challenges and now the ability to bring Angry Birds to the Web. Angry Birds will now be on "the biggest platform that's out there" - the Web. "It's a very smooth, very nice Angry Birds experience," says Vesterbacka, who says this version of the game is built using WebGL. The Web version will use local storage so that you can play the complete game offline. There will also be exclusive levels for Chrome users, as well as "The Mighty Eagle" that users will be able to buy to help them clear levels. "Let's pop some pigs!" - in other words, the game is available in the Chrome store now.
10:04 a.m.: Aaron Koblin from the Google Creative Lab team announces Three Dreams of Black, showcasing the power of javascript and WebGL. (This is the team that did the Wilderness Downtown music experience last year.) "Painting with geometry." This project is open source, and there are a number of demoes and model viewers available showing how the team built the various pieces in the video. Keep your eyes out at ro.me
10:09 a.m.: People spend all their time on the Web, within a browser, "which was why we developed Chrome OS," says Pichai. "We wanted to rethink the entire experience and distill it down to nothing but the Web." Google says it's focusing on notebooks because that's where users are - Chromebooks.
10:10 a.m.: What's different about Chromebooks?
- Instant on
- Always connected
- All-day battery
- Access your stuff anywhere
- Gets better over time
- Security built in
10:13 a.m.: Cr-48 Pilot program has had over 1 million applicants. Pichai talks about the improvements on the devices: better support for Flash, for external devices. Kan Liu takes the stage to talk about Chrome OS's new file support functionalities - file attachments, music and video files, photos. New file extension APIs are built into the platform so that users will be able to have their files transferred easily to the cloud, no matter which apps they're using (such as Box.net)
10:23 a.m.: Addressing important use-cases for Chromebooks, such as using them offline. Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs will be available offline for users this summer.
10:24 a.m.: Showcasing various Chromebooks: from Samsung and Acer. There will be priced between $300-$500. They'll be available to order June 15 via a.m.azon and BestBuy in the U.S. Full jailbreaking capabilities.
10:27 a.m.: Businesses and schools: IT infrastructure complicated. Upgrades are costly. Emphasis on laptops, not desktops - which can bring security challenges when devices move in and out of firewall. But companies are moving to the cloud, says Pichai. Google has partnered with Citrix and VMware for virtualization. According to a Google survey, companies said that with the combination of virtualization and Web apps, they can move 75% of their users to Chromebooks.
10:32 a.m.: Working to develop a Web-based console from which IT administrators can manage users' apps and policies. Software and hardware packaged together - Chromebooks for Business that will be $28 per user per month. "Software and hardware as a service."
10:33 a.m.: School usage: "We want to make it possible for every student to have a computer." $20 per user per month for schools. These will be available, like consumers, starting June 15.
10:37 a.m.: Every Google IO attendee will get a Chromebook. (Do you hate me for live-blogging that? Sorry)
Online Only News Site Wins Top Pulitzer Prize For Reporting
Online Only News Site Wins Top Pulitzer Prize For Reporting
The debate about the legitimacy of news bloggers has been settled. ProPublica, a web-based independent investigative news organization, has received the Pulitzer Prize for its reporting on Wall Street leading to the financial crisis.
The judges praised the way journalists Jesse Eisinger and Jake Bernstein used online tools "to help explain the complex subject to lay readers," the UK Guardian reported. ProPublica shared a Pulitzer last year but the story had appeared in the New York Times Magazine.
"We at ProPublica are delighted by this award, and deeply honoured," wrote Paul Steiger, editor in chief. "This year's prize is the first for a group of stories not published in print."
In 2004 a CBS News reporter Dick Meyer wrote:
"Big plans and big claims are to be expected from folks 'pajama-clad or not' who are dabbling with new technology and new modalities of public expression. As a retired mainstream media ("MSM") journalist and thus a double-dinosaur -- I don't begrudge these knights of the blog-table their grandiose dreams. But I worked on a school paper when I was a kid and I owned a CB radio when I lived in Texas. And what I saw in the blogosphere on Nov. 2 was more reminiscent of that school paper or a "Breaker, breaker 19" gabfest on CB than anything approaching journalism".
Apart from the childish nature of Meyer's rant, Dick was displaying dinosaur perception. By that year there were many solid bloggers writing news and editorials, his news organization may have been fighting it - but they knew there was value. "60 Minutes" would eventually embrace this new technology to the point of creating their own iPad app.
True many bloggers are commentators, but I disagree with Jessica Gottlieb who is a well-read blogger herself when she states:
"Bloggers have immense value as we offer commentary, opinion and enlightenment. What we don't offer is balanced reporting, and we certainly don't adhere to journalistic standards. I am not saying that bloggers don't have value, or that bloggers don't break stories, but even the best bloggers with the best of intentions are more akin to columnists than to reporters."
There are many balanced reporters writing for websites that deserve to be called journalists. As Danny Sullivan stated "Dammit, I'm A Journalist, Not A Blogger: Time For Online Journalists To Unite". I agree with his view that "I'm a journalist, not a blogger. I use a blog platform to publish, but that doesn't make me a second class citizen in the journalism world."
Last year a New Jersey judge ruled that a blogger was not covered by the state's shield law protecting unveiling sources. The US Senate has tried to pass bills to that effect for many years but they have been vetoed.
So congratulations ProPublica your Pulitzer has helped the perception of "bloggers" and may soon be used as an example in the fight for proper recognition.
Why I Requested an Apple iPad 2 from Rutgers University
Why I Requested an Apple iPad 2 from Rutgers University
Last year, I made a few waves when I posted, "Why I Returned the Apple iPad Tablet to Rutgers University." Now, I'm requesting an Apple iPad 2 to use to teach my Social Media Marketing and Digital Marketing courses in the Rutgers Mini-MBA program. So, have I changed my mind, or has the iPad changed to become what I had in mind all along?
The Rutgers Center for Management Development (CMD) had supplied all the students in both courses with their own free Apple iPads, which contained pre-loaded instructional materials. The participants in both courses liked their iPads.
More importantly, they liked the courses, as the video clip below shows.
But when I was finished teaching the courses, I returned the iPad that I'd had been loaned to the Rutgers Center for Management Development.
Now, I didn't return the iPad to Rutgers because I hated it. And I didn't mind being asked to test Apple's bleeding edge technology.
But in its initial incarnation, I thought the iPad was "a left-handed teaching tool." It was on the brink of the verge of the edge of replacing my laptop, but it wasn't quite there at that point in time.
Still, the iPad showed a lot of promise and developers were starting to launch some killer apps. So, I was just waiting before giving it a second chance.
Now, I'm ready to do that.
The Rutgers Mini-MBA Program will be offering an accelerated Social Media Marketing course during the week of June 6-12, and an accelerated Digital Marketing course during the week of July 11-15. And Rutgers CMD will be providing each student in both courses with instructional materials and business case studies pre-loaded on a new Apple iPad 2.
And as one of the faculty members who will be teaching classes in both courses, I want to use an Apple iPad 2.
Why now? Because the iPad 2 is significantly better than the initial iPad.
Walt Mossberg of AllThingsD says, says, "The iPad 2 moves the goal posts, by being slimmer and lighter, boosting speed and power, and holding its price advantages, available apps and battery life. As of now, I can comfortably recommend it as the best tablet for average consumers."
David Pogue of The New York Times says, "You can now connect the iPad to a hi-def TV, thanks to a single H.D.M.I. adapter ($40) that carries both audio and hi-def video. What you see on the TV mirrors whatever is on the iPad, which makes it a great setup for teaching, slide shows, presentations, YouTube and movies. It works automatically and effortlessly."
And Tim Gideon of PCMag.com says: "The clear standout in the ever-widening sea of tablets, the Apple iPad 2 brings a slimmer design, faster processing, dual cameras, and FaceTime video chat to a tablet that already had a leg up on the competition."
Plus, there are now 65,000 apps for the iPad. Among the ones that I plan to use in class are:
- Flipboard, which gives my students a way to flip through the news, photos, and updates that their friends are sharing on Facebook, Twitter, Google Reader, and Flickr, enabling them to see all their social media in a magazine layout that's easy to scan and fun to read.
- OmniGraffle, which enables my students to create diagrams, process charts, website wireframes, and other designs with the ease of Multi-Touch on the iPad.
- iMovie, which enables my students in my Video Marketing class to turn the HD video they shoot on their iPads into a masterpiece worthy of the red carpet.
- Keynote, which enables my students to create presentations with custom graphic styles, elegantly designed themes, stunning animations and effects, and powerful features designed for the iPad.
- Pages, which has everything my students need to put their words into beautiful documents, including Apple-designed templates and easy-to-use formatting tools.
With these apps, I can use an Apple iPad 2 with either my left or right hand to teach my Social Media Marketing and Digital Marketing courses at Rutgers this summer.
So, have I changed my mind, or has the iPad changed to become what I had in mind all along?
Women Sue Google for $50M Over Android User Tracking by Danny Goodwin
Women Sue Google for $50M Over Android User Tracking
Following news last week that Android devices track and store your location, two women are suing Google for $50 million and trying to force Google to stop selling devices with the tracking software. The class action lawsuit was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Detroit, Michigan.
Google admitted to collecting some anonymized information from people who opt-in to using GPS, but the plaintiffs, Julie Brown and Kayla Molaski, don't like it and don't approve. In the complaint, their lawyer says Android users are "at serous risk of privacy invasions, including stalking," the Detroit News reported.
Google News Adds News Near You for Mobile, Custom Homepage Settings
Google News Adds News Near You for Mobile, Custom Homepage Settings
Android and iPhone users who visit Google News can now opt-in to see more headlines featuring location-based news. Google News has also added a couple new personalization settings.
Google News Near You
First-time visitors will be greeted by a pop-up asking if you want to share your geographic location. Clicking yes will introduce the new “News near you” section to the bottom (you can move it wherever you want by going to the personalization page).
To turn off the feature, click “Hide” or turn off the “Enable location” section of your mobile browser settings.
News Refresh & Sources
Google News announced it now gives you the option of opting out of an automatic refresh every 15 minutes. Click on the gear icon, select “News Settings,” and uncheck the box next to “Automatically reload the page every fifteen minutes.
You can also hide content from blogs and press releases. Again, click on the gear icon, select “News Settings,” and choose from Google’s four options (None, Fewer, Normal, More)
Blekko Now Powers RSS
Blekko Now Powers RSS Searches on Flipboard
Blekko made more moves in the search space today, announcing a partnership with Flipboard the app for iPad. Blekko will now power the social magazine's keyword searches.
Flipboard, one of the most popular apps on iPad, prides itself on bringing its users' social links and media in one place, with a unified, magazine-like feel, helping people share content across social networks in one app. For the partnership, Blekko developed a specific API for Flipboard users with quality content from RSS and social feeds and offer Flipboard users direct access to the best feeds online.
This is not Blekko's first foray into social. Last month, Blekko announced the inclusion of Facebook comments into results pages. Add the slashtag /facebook to any Blekko search query and you can see the entire news stream of your connected Facebook account.
Blekko teamed up with DuckDuckGo last year, helping to bolster usage. Their anti-spam stance and recent respect for user privacy shows they are serious about creating a quality user experience. Blekko tells Search Engine Watch the Flipboard API is part of their ongoing efforts to weed out the spam from their users' search experience.
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