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Taking any kind of photo at night isn't easy,
but especially when you're camera's pointed towards the heavens. When you want to start capturing
your star-gazing on film (or, er, memory card), check out Wired's How-To Wiki's guide to photographing the stars.Photo by
DJMcCrady.
At IDEO we’re all about building to think. Learning from books and websites and product
demos is cool, but we think the really good stuff comes when you get in there and start messing
around for real.
In the case of multi-touch interfaces, that meant building a system we could start prototyping
on. What we wanted was:
-a multi-touch display large enough to facilitate use by several people at once
-an API for flash that would let us quickly prototype multi-touch interfaces and applications
It took us about 5 weeks to get everything together. Kyle, one of our all-around gearheads, had
already been building a drafting-table-style FTIR system in his garage which helped kick-start
us.
Filed under: Meta
BD
As we head into the month that has both Octoberfest and Halloween we don't know whether to be
scared or to get our party on. Ok, we can do both. But first check out Big Download's highlights
from the past week:
Click above for high-res gallery of the Fiat 500 Abarth
Assetto Corse
With the revival of the Abarth tuning division, Fiat is serious about motorsports. They've been
racking up victories in the Intercontinental Rally Championship with the Punto, and have even
been sponsoring Valentino Rossi's MotoGP Yamaha. And to drive the point home, while the "esseesse" (read:
SS) version of the Cinquecento Abarth was the division's new reveal, it was this racing version,
called the Assetto Corse, that took center stage.
The
Assetto Corse is, of course, based on the same Fiat 500 that's been selling like adorable little
hotcakes in every market it's hit so far. But the cute factor is gone, replaced by big air
scoops, giant wings, roll cages and little scorpion badges everywhere. (And we do mean
everywhere.) The little racing car that could is packed with a 1.4-liter 16-valve turbocharged
four driving 190 hp through a six-speed shifter to the front set of 17" powder-coated white
alloys hiding 4-piston Brembo calipers. The interior has a full roll cage and racing bucket, and
an aggressive aero package sets the exterior apart from its street-bound progenitors. Check out
the hotness for yourself in the gallery below.
Sporting a brand new interface, dozens of fixes, enhanced hardware support, and brand new support
for the latest Eee models, Ubuntu Eee is better than ever. Check out the big improvements in Ubuntu
Eee 8.04.1 and how they will make your mobile computing more productive than ever!
In this GBM Shortcut, I take a quick look at Quicklook2, a feature that HP includes on the
HP2730p Elitebook Tablet PC that allows you to view your PIM data without having to fully
boot into Windows (Vista or XP).
Quicklook2 does not work in Sleep or Suspend modes which is a puzzler to me, but it does work if
your computer is in Hibernate mode or turned off. It isn’t actively grabbing data from your
PIM (in my case Outlook 2007) instead taking snapshots of your data as you configure it to. You
can choose to have it take a snapshot at times you specify, or when Outlook closes, or manually.
You can also choose which data (Calendar, Contacts, Inbox, Tasks) to have available or not.
Since I prefer to put my Tablet PC to sleep (that sounds deadly in a vague way) I rarely use
hibernate, or turn my computer off, so this is feature I don’t see myself using much. But
then that’s me and you might find it valuable.
The CEL light has been coming on since I bought it Sept 2007. It only happens when the engine is
completely cold and first startup and idling for over 2 minutes. It won't come on when the engine
is warm. The stomp test gives a 1222 code which translates to "Oxygen Sensor Lean/Rich Detect
(primary)". If the signal from the O2 sensor indicates a very lean or very rich mixture for more
than 10 seconds, then the computer generates this code. It could mean a faulty O2 sensor, or a
problem with another component.
Dans cette très belle interview du magazine ComputerWorld, le papa de C#, Anders Hejlsberg,
révèle plusieurs anecdotes et évoque le futur de C#. Il est notamment question
de la compétition avec Java, des choix de conception et des fonctionnalités
"manquées" : " 50% of the bugs that people run into today, coding with C# in our platform,
and the same is true of Java for that matter, are probably null reference exceptions. If we had had
a stronger type system that would allow you to say that ‘this parameter
may never be null, and you compiler please check that at every call, by doing static analysis of
the code’. Then we could have stamped out classes of bugs". A lire absolument.
Hey guys I was trying the new nano on a Apple store and i really liked the music. I noticed I could
check the music name on settings but for some reason I'm not being able to google any information
on those music.
I think I read "whirled beats" from Stuart Dubey? anyone with more info?
Chapter 17 part 1 (With Joe and Leslie and Nick) Joe:(sees Nick walk through the door)Is she
okay? Nick:Yeah she said she was okay and would talk to you tomorrow Joe:(disappointed)Oh.....she
say anything else?? Nick:Well she said she REALLY likes you but is REALLY mad at you cause you
kissed Kenzie back Joe:(After he said that Lana really likes him he stopped listening to what
Nick said after that)She likes me??? Leslie:You really are dumber than you look arent you
Nick:Yes he is...putting popocorn in an oven....Psh thats about a dumb as it gets Joe:Oh shut
up.....But i really like her too.....and she likes me back....WHY DIDNT ANYONE TELL ME
THIS?!?!?!?!?!?!? Leslie:We thought you were smart enough to figure out that by yourself but
obviously we were wrong Joe:I am smart i have a solid C+ Average in every class Leslie:Oh yeah
your smart.....Im mean Lana acts DUMBER than you and she has a A+ average and shes only been
there 2 days and youve been here 2 years Joe:So...... Leslie:Nevermind Nick:So are we going to
have dinner or what?? Joe:Heck yes we are we reserved we are going to eat (So they eat and finish
and go home) (Leslie just walked in the door) Leslie:LANA...LANA Lana:(runs down the stairs)Yeah?
Leslie:Are you okay i mean after everything that happened to you tonight?? Lana:Yeah i think imma
fogive him because well she is an ex girlfriend and if i was his ex girlfriend then i would want
him back too i proabably wouldnt kiss him but id still want him back so yeah im good ow about you
and Nick?? Leslie:You know he seemed like a totally different guy tonight Lana:Yeah he did i mean
he actually talked to me and helped me choose to forgive Joe Leslie:He did?...Wow hes changed
since i first met him 2 days ago(laughs) Lana:Yeah i hope he doesnt go back the way he used to be
Joe told me the reason hes like that Leslie:Yeah Nick told me i feel kinda bad for him Lana:Yeah
his parent proabably miss him a loy Leslie:Yeah well imma go to bed goodnight Lana:Okay goodnight
i think imma eat somthing and go to be sincei didnt eat at the restarunt Leslie:Okay goodnight
(Lana eats goes to sleep and then wakes up the next day to someone screaming so she walks down
the stairs rubbing her eyes) Lana:Leslie why did yo-(Takes her hands off her eyes and sees a girl
she rubs her eyes again)AMANDA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(hugs her)What are you doing here in California youre
supposed to be in Michigan arent you?? Amanda:Well.... Sorry Short in 2 parts STUPID
YOUTUBE!!!!!! Hey sorry didnt post yester day church, and visited my aunts new adopted baby just
got out of the hospital bc it was primiture(sp?) and only weighs 4 1/2 lbs but is home...Also
check out minorityofone1984's series i read it all yestrdy and its like nothing ive ever read b4
thats why I LOVE IT!!!:D Thanks
Category: Entertainment
Released: Sep 29, 2008
Price: $2.99
Description:
Now you can have a globe in the palm of your hand. Pocket Globe is an accurate and stunning 3D
model of the Earth. You can spin it, rotate it up and down, and even zoom in to see fine detail.
Pocket Globe is also customizable, allowing you to place pins anywhere on the globe just like a
traditional map. Put pins where
you�ve
been, where
you�d
like to go, or where friends and family or contacts live. Featuring 5 different maps of the Earth.
See country, capital, and major city names clearly on the Political Globe. Or see a beautiful model
of the Earth as seen from space on the Satellite Globe (cloud cover has been removed to allow you
to see all land masses). See the beauty of Earth after sundown when it is aglow with city lights.
Check out the radiation that the Earth is emitting back into space on the Long Wave Radiation
Globe. Or see the amount of solar energy being reflected from the Earth during the Summer Solstice.
How to use Pocket Globe: -To ROTATE planet in any direction, simply drag finger -To SPIN globe,
drag finger quickly and release (can spin at any speed and when zoomed in or out) -To ZOOM IN and
OUT, use two-finger pinch gestures -CHANGE MAPS or ADD PINS by hitting the Options button at the
bottom of the screen (options will disappear automatically when you zoom in) -After selecting a
pin, double tap any globe to add a pin to it. Click done when finished adding pins. To remove a
pin, simply double tap it. Be amazed by Pocket Globe today!
Note: The description above is the official one supplied by the application
developer and does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of this site or its staff.
Sporting a brand new interface, dozens of fixes, enhanced hardware support, and brand new support
for the latest Eee models, Ubuntu Eee is better than ever. Check out the big improvements in Ubuntu
Eee 8.04.1 and how they will make your mobile computing more productive than ever!
[link] [more]
A scenic sunset at Bangladesh's Cox’s Bazar sea beach by Nari Jibon blogger Nilufa
Anne.
Why did you start your personal blog in 2003 and what was the reason you chose to write
in English?
I was in Dhaka then, and I read a story in a local newspaper about the famous Iraqi blogger
Salam Pax, who was writing an online diary
about the Iraq war and the effect it was having on his everyday life. I started reading his blog
and also came across some other interesting blogs.
This inspired me to start my own blog sometime in April 2003. At first I could not figure what to
write. But I soon found out from the other blogs that there are huge misconceptions about
Bangladesh, mainly due to the absence of Bangladeshi voices on the Internet. And I found my
focus: topics on Bangladesh and following the Bangladeshi blogosphere.
In those days Bangla Unicode was only in the development stage so I could not blog in Bangla (as
the reader had to have the same Bangla software/fonts I used). My focus was to communicate with
the world, so English was the ready choice.
How did you first hear about Global Voices?
I probably first came across the site because my blog was being linked by Global Voices. I was
already doing small roundups in my blog and guest-blogging in a couple of regional ones.
Then in July 2005 I received a mail from Global Voices co-founder Rebecca MacKinnon : “We
find that we've been linking to you quite frequently over at Global Voices and would love to know
a little more about you…” She requested me to post on Global Voices.
I was thrilled to write for Global Voices, and the rest is history.
What is your most memorable blogging experience?
I've have a lot of interesting experiences. I remember in April 2004 I traveled to Sri Lanka and
blogged about it. I remember how desperate I was to find an Internet-connected PC to upload my
pictures and post my daily report. This urge makes one a passionate blogger.
I also get my share of amusements from the comments in my blog posts. I wrote about the national
ID card implementation process in Bangladesh, and sometimes I still receive comments from people
who have specific queries like “My ID is lost. Please tell me how can I get a new
one.”
What persuaded you to start Global Voices in Bangla?
Bangla-blogging is relatively a new phenomenon. It really took off in December 2005 when a Bangla
blogging platform was launched, breaking all technical barriers (it's now the largest). Bangla is
spoken by 230 million people in the world, but because of absence of a unified Bangla computing
platform (unicode) hundreds of Bangla online sites/publications in Bangladesh and India are not
searchable and there is really a shortage of quality, Bangla content on the web.
That is why I was interested in translating Global Voices content in my mother tongue. I knew
that soon, more and more people would have access to the Internet, and I wanted them to be
introduced to blogs around the world in their own language. We have 15 translators on board but
only 4-5 are regulars. I hope we we will be able to find additional enthusiastic volunteers to
join the team.
The only thing you need to do now to read Bangla fonts is set your browser's character encoding
to Unicode (utf8). Earlier you needed to download at least one unicode Bangla font, but now most
recent operating systems come with everything pre-installed. Check here if you face problems either typing
or reading Bangla fonts (http://bn.globalvoicesonline.org/bangla-settings/).
What have you learned about citizen media through your writing about the Rising Voices
projects?
I enjoy following the developments of the various Rising Voices grantees. I come from a
developing country myself and can relate to many of the challenges they face, like getting
connected to the Internet, or just to be able to sit in front of a computer. I still hear from
bloggers back home that sometimes they open a web page, and it takes so much time to load, they
can grab a cup of tea and finish it while they wait. But these people are still passionate to
blog, and this is true for participants in every Rising Voices project, whether in
Madagascar, Kenya or Dhaka. Highlighting their efforts makes me realize more and more, that what
we are doing is right.
What do you feel are some of the most important developments in Bangla citizen media in
the past year?
The first one was the Bangla blogging platform I discussed above. Now we have 4-5 platforms with
thousands of users and many, many readers, and they have a growing competition between them. The
blogs on other multilingual platforms like Blogger, Wordpress etc. are also coming up.
Soon a popular Bangla news daily from Bangladesh will be introducing blogging services and others
will follow suit. The Bangladeshi government has declared that it will install computers and
Internet connections in almost 10,000 schools across the country. I think we will soon see an
explosion of blogging in Bangla.
In South Asia as a whole, do you think citizen media has had any impact on people's
attitudes or understanding of cultural and political differences?
Yes of course. We had different developments in the blogospheres in those countries but more or
less the people have come to know about the power of blogging.
The Pakistani blogosphere has shown their diversity and openness breaking through the stereotypes
portrayed in the media. The Indian blogosphere is so huge and its regional language blogosphere
are growing to emphasize the country's multicultural, multi ethnic heritage. In Bangladesh, where
the traditional media ignore blogs and are more prone to self-censorship to protect themselves,
the bloggers have broken all barriers to voice their opinion fearlessly and some journalists now
prefer blogs to publish their investigative reporting.
It also is fascinating to get perspectives from the bloggers about the Sri Lanka's ethnic
disputes, Nepal's journey towards democracy, Bhutanese culture, and Maldivians opposition to
their long serving President.
The traditional media of these countries often follow the politics of acrimony which sometime
augment nationalism and hatred between these countries. You just need to look at a common
incident (e.g. the border dispute in India and Pakistan) and follow the newspaper coverage of
both the countries, and you see how skewed the reports are. The bloggers are bridging the gap by
adding a human touch to the issues, and are in fact creating more friends than enemies between
those countries.
Photo of Rezwan above, was taken by Jen Brea and is shared under a
Creative Commons license.
Two words: “KA” and “ZAR”! Who doesn’t love Kevin Plunder?
If you’re new around here, check out the ground
rules to these posts. Now let’s get to it!
Ka-Zar #14. “Revolution” by Mark Waid (writer), Andy Kubert (penciler),
Jesse Delperdang (inker), Todd Klein (letterer), and Joe Rosas (colorist). “Ka-Zar the
Savage” by Christopher Priest (writer), Kenny Martinez (penciler), Anibal Rodriguez
(inker), Dave Sharpe (letterer), and Chris Sotomayor (colorist). Published by Marvel, June 1998.
As much as I appreciated the recaps Marvel put in the beginning of their comics back in the late
Nineties, I have to admit they’re a bit daunting if you were a brand new reader. I’m
used to the silliness of comics, but let’s take a look at how Marvel recaps what has come
before this, the final Waid/Kubert issue of Ka-Zar:
Following the destruction of the Savage Land’s Terraformer, Shanna absorbed the alien
machine’s power, making her the sole source of sustenance for the hidden jungle. Ka-Zar
enlisted the aid of the High Evolutionary, thinking he might be able to help Shanna through her
transformation to “goddess” and back to normal again.
However, the High Evolutionary became fascinated by Shanna’s evolution. As he’s
helped her learn to control her newfound powers, the two have grown close, leaving Ka-Zar out in
the cold. The Evolutionary plans to use his extensive technological means to create a new Earth
in a pocket dimension, offering Shanna the chance to become its “mother earth.”
Growing ever more distrustful of the Evolutionary’s intentions with Shanna, Ka-Zar
ransacked the scientist’s subterranean lab in hopes of finding something to aid him in his
inevitable battle to win back Shanna. Not really sure of what he was looking for, Ka-Zar stole
the Evolutionary’s sample of Isotope E.
When the Evolutionary arrogantly infused Matthew with a small portion of Shanna’s power,
Ka-Zar attacked him. Unfazed, the Evolutionary told him he couldn’t come with Shanna and
him to the new world unless he agreed to take a back seat to his relationship with Shanna. Faced
with this ultimatum, Ka-Zar finally realized how desperate his situation is, bringing us to the
present …
Phew! I mean, it’s certainly handy, and allows us to pick up this book fully aware of
what’s going on (Matthew is Ka-Zar and Shanna’s son, by the way), but someone who has
never read a comic before might chuckle. Even if you accept the prehistoric jungle in Antarctica,
you might trip up over the “Terraformer” and the “new Earth in a pocket
dimension” or even the High Evolutionary himself. But let’s say you get past that.
Now you’re up to speed! So what goes on in the issue itself?
You know the story is complicated when the first page shows Ka-Zar and Zabu (his friend the
sabretooth) contemplating Isotope E and Waid recaps again! We get eight narrative panels, as
Ka-Zar tells us that the H. E. has stolen his wife and son, “thrust” them “up
the evolutionary ladder” and linked them “to an extra-dimensional force that fills
them with godlike power.” We also learn that Isotope E is a “radioactive genebomb
that could, if unwrapped, catapult [him] to Shanna’s level … and beyond.” How?
How dare you ask! It’s a comic book, man! Ka-Zar has to decide if he will use Isotope E to
fight back. Meanwhile, H. E. has “modified” some Savage Land creatures, and
they’re building the Terraformer anew. H. E. tells Shanna that Ka-Zar rejected his
invitation to join them in the pocket dimension, but we’re fairly certain he’s lying.
He’s wearing purple armor - of course he’s lying! We see Ka-Zar talking to various
humanoid creatures in panels dropped in between the H. E.’s conversation with Shanna. H. E.
then shows Shanna what the Terraformer does: it creates the MATTER MATRIX (you
must say this with suitable portentousness), which will take them to the new Earth and the next
evolutionary step. They will become “beings of sublime energy,” and will be
“recreated” on a distant world, where Shanna will “be at one with the land, the
sea, the sky!” Shanna is suddenly hesitant, because while the power H. E. is offering is
“intoxicating,” she doesn’t want to lose her humanity. As H. E. explains that
this is no longer her world, Ka-Zar shows up. Shanna runs to him, but H. E.’s modified
creatures block her path. He tries to explain how much he needs her, but Ka-Zar interrupts and
gives him one more chance to give up. H. E., foolishly, asks him if he has “anything to
fear from a bunch of angry savages,” and Kubert gives us a bad-ass splash page with Ka-Zar
saying “Yes” and the Savage Land forces arrayed behind him. What’s the
bad-assest thing about it? Kevin’s hair:
The Savage Landers attack en masse, but Shanna gets dragged away by H. E.’s creatures
before Ka-Zar can get to her. Shanna realizes that her new powers addled her mind, and now she
really wants to stay with him. It’s probably the hair! Ka-Zar claims that H. E.’s
belief that they’re all just “dumb brutes” will be his downfall. He hops on a
pteranodon and attacks H. E., but our villain “modifies” a dragonfly so it’s
huge, and he hops on for an aerial battle! As they fight, H. E. starts to admire Ka-Zar, but our
hero knows it’s only a matter of time before he’s defeated. At that moment, Zabu
brings him a package, and when he opens it, it’s Isotope E! Damn, that’s cold! H. E.
freaks out, because it will make Ka-Zar as evolved as he is. I guess. Ka-Zar says he’ll
“crack” the box open and “spread Isotope E to the four winds,” which will
evolve everyone on Earth to H. E.’s level. Given that that seems to be H. E.’s modus
operandi, what’s the big deal? For some reason, H. E. caves, saying he’ll let Shanna
and Matthew leave if only Ka-Zar gives him the isotope back. Before Ka-Zar can, however, his
steed bucks him and he drops like a stone. H. E. catches the isotope, and Shanna tries to soften
the soil to break Ka-Zar’s fall. But it’s not enough!
So we reach the true crux of the issue. H. E., wracked with guilt, offers to “evolve”
Ka-Zar somehow so he can survive. Shanna is having none of this:
She wants to save Ka-Zar using that weird native medicine, like “naja root” and
“bark from the Haruka tree.” H. E. wants to use fancy “powers,” but
Shanna has come to realize that “there’s no greater sin than tampering with the
natural order.” She wants to save him as a human being, because that’s what he would
want. If Ka-Zar had cancer, Shanna would probably want to save him by leeching him and chanting
over his body! She demands that H. E. transfer her power back to the Terraformer, so he does,
reluctantly. She also tells the Savage Landers that they should accept Ka-Zar as their king once
more when he wakes up. Screw those democratic reforms! Three panels later, Ka-Zar wakes up.
)
and reject those that you are not interested in
(
)
Taking any kind of photo at night isn't easy,
but especially when you're camera's pointed towards the heavens. When you want to start capturing
your star-gazing on film (or, er, memory card), check out Wired's How-To Wiki's guide to 
Category: Entertainment
