Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Software

iPhone 3.0 Firmware Taking Better Pictures than 2.2.1?

11:40PM May 5, 2009 | Mark Wilson

The iPhone’s camera resolution leaves much to be desired, but there’s more to image quality than just resolution. And according to one series of tests, the firmware 3.0 is taking better photos than its predecessor.

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What Does @ Really Mean?

11:20PM May 5, 2009 | Jesus Diaz

You use it every single day. In English it’s called the “at sign.” The Italians call it “snail.” The Spaniards, “arroba.” The Slavs, “monkey.” But what did @ really mean 473 years ago?

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Software

FileMaker’s Bento iPhone Application

11:00PM May 5, 2009 | Andi Wang

FileMaker has just announced a new Bento application for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Touted as an all in one tool, Bento is a Mac-styled, condensed database in your pocket.

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Science

The Orion Project: A Hotel-Sized Nuclear Spaceship

10:56PM May 5, 2009 | Brian Lam

Here’s a classic TED talk by George Dyson, where he shares his father Freeman’s notes on reclassified Project Orion: A cold war spaceship as large as a Marriott hotel powered by 20 kiloton nukes.

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Gaming

Mouse-Controlled PSP Proves That No Two Devices Are Safe From Forced Mating

10:40PM May 5, 2009 | John Herrman

This video shows that, with enough hacking, you can control PSP games with a PS/2 trackball mouse. Incidentally, it also shows that you probably don’t want to. [PSPFreak via NowhereElse]

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Entertainment

The Onion Bashes New Star Trek Movie for Being ‘Fun, Watchable’

10:17PM May 5, 2009 | Mark Wilson

We loved the new Star Trek movie, but as the Onion points out, many geeks won’t. “If I wanted to see young, attractive people doing cool, exciting things, I’d go watch sports.” It’s hilarious. [ONN]

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Software

Windows 7 RC1 Isn’t Quite As Free As You’d Hope

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9:41PM May 5, 2009 | Nick Broughall

If you were hoping to bludge off the free Windows 7 RC1 download until next June before deciding whether or not to upgrade, you’re probably going to reconsider that decision come next March, when the OS starts shutting down your PC every two hours. More »


Mobile

RIM CEO Confirms Storm 2 In the Vaguest Way He Can

9:30PM May 5, 2009 | John Herrman

RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie confirmed to Reuters that the company is planning a “next-generation” touch device, and that the original Storm was a “huge success.” Well, at least “in terms of sales and adoption.”

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Online

Wolfram Alpha and Google Tested Head-To-Head: Whoever Wins, We Win

8:35PM May 5, 2009 | John Herrman

Technology Review did something obvious with their access to Wolfram Alpha: they plotted the computational search engine against Google. The results? As we knew, Wolfram Alpha is no Big G. It’s completely different, and awesome.

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Mobile

HTC ‘Android Hero’ Handset Snapped (It’s the Chinniest of Them All)

7:05PM May 5, 2009 | John Herrman

Remember that weird, pink, angular ‘Android Hero’ handset that HTC semi-leaked back in January? Well, here it is, in the flesh plastic.

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