Wentwo Rthffen's blog

Your Last Best Hope When Your Plane Catches on Fire [Monster Machines]

So you're sitting on the runway, waiting to taxi, when suddenly it hits you, "Funny, airplanes don't normally smell like burning." Then the panic hits. Don't worry, if your airport has a Colet K/R40 Jaguar, you'll probably be fine. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/hM5ESUmsgKs/your-last-best-hope-when-your-plane-catches-on-fire

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British royal family announces iOS and Android wedding app

To celebrate the imminent marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Royal Collection will release an Android an iOS app that chronicles the last seven royal marriages, including Queen Victoria's marriage to Prince Albert in 1840.

Ironically, the app won't actually feature anything to do with William and Kate's marriage -- rather, it will focus on the "tradition, splendor and romance" that are intrinsic to British royal marriages. "[The app] will share the stories of past royal weddings and offer a wealth of historical context for the ceremony on April 29."

Unfortunately, the app, which has been lumbered with the fantastically creative name of 'Royal App,' won't be available until April 18 -- just 11 days before Kate's big day. It won't be free, either: it'll cost the rather princely sum of £1.79, or three of your Tea Party-loving dollars. The money will go to the Royal Collection, though, which is a good cause!

British royal family announces iOS and Android wedding app originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/05/british-royal-family-announces-ios-and-android-wedding-app/

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Square Exec Bets Against the Web: Mobile Apps Must Go Native

Keith Rabois of mobile-payments startup Square says going 'native' -- or using devices with apps made specifically for one platform -- is crucial when launching an application on a mobile device.

Source: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/07/square-mobile-native-rabois/

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Ballmer: Microsoft will launch Xbox Music this fall (update: not true)

Steve Ballmer revealed a new service yesterday that should be, ahem, music to your ears when it starts spinning this fall. During Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference in Los Angeles, the Windows chief mentioned Xbox Music -- a MS-branded music streaming service, with over 11 million songs and Kinect compatibility. That last feature will let you shout your music selections across the room, and could result in some pretty gnarly sibling battles whenever music tastes don't match. Unlike the console's current last.fm offering, we can only hope that Music will support multitasking, allowing you to settle those musical differences in the virtual boxing ring as the beat goes on, rather than on the living room floor.

Update: The Business Insider editor who reported the quote tweeted a correction and updated the article, explaining "No new Xbox Music service coming this fall. Just voice command to existing service. 'Xbox. Music.' Correction posted."

Ballmer: Microsoft will launch Xbox Music this fall (update: not true) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 15:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Joystiq  |  Business Insider, Twitter (correction)  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/fso9_8b6x5I/

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Netflix officially separates DVD, streaming pricing; $15.98 and up for both

Netflix hadn't hinted at any upcoming plans to change the services it offers, but NewTeeVee spotted an unadvertised DVD-only plan on its site a few days ago, and an anonymous tipster from within the company indicates that's just the start. The DVD.Netflix.com page offers unlimited DVDs by mail, per month (one at a time) for $7.99, which slots it between the standard DVD & streaming combo plans and a $4.99 offering that gives just two DVDs per month. According to the tipster we spoke to, Netflix is planning to change its pricing entirely, by also implementing a streaming only plan with no discs for $7.99, and jacking up the minimum pricetag for combined services to $15.98 from the current $9.99 it has charged since November. They indicated the change would take place tomorrow night around 9 p.m., with customers notified by email and no plans to grandfather any of the old pricing setups along. With aggressive expansion plans pressing forward and its costs to acquire content rising sharply, hiking the price by 50 percent on many of its 20 million+ subscribers could be the easiest way to make the numbers add up, it could be just those subscribers who are left to determine exactly what Watch Instantly streaming (or DVD access) is worth to them.

Update: Just that fast, Netflix has officially announced these changes to its pricing plans. Just like our information indicated, DVD only or streaming only unlimited plans are available for $7.99 each per month, or $15.98 together. Existing members can float on their current plans until September 1st but new members will see these rates effective immediately. According to a post on the official blog, the change replaces the DVD plan's existence as a $2 surcharge over streaming and from now on it will no longer unlimited discs and streaming as a single package. Two discs at a time will cost $11.99 by themselves now, but there's no mention of higher plans just yet. Fans of the plastic platter should be at least a bit encouraged however, as there's a new team devoted solely to that service -- here's hoping they can get the stagnant Blu-ray catalog refreshed.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Continue reading Netflix officially separates DVD, streaming pricing; $15.98 and up for both

Netflix officially separates DVD, streaming pricing; $15.98 and up for both originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 13:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Hacking Netflix  |  DVD.netflix.com, Netflix Blog  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/07/12/netflix-dvd-only-unlimited-plan-appears-price-for-streaming-and/

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How Secure is My Password lets you know just that

We've all heard it before; you need to select a lengthy password, one that's hard to guess. Not a dictionary word. And it has to have some capital letters in it too, and some digits, and a symbol or two won't hurt either.

That's a handy set of rules to keep in mind, but How Secure is My Password helps us understand why they're important.

It's basically like a full-screen version of one of those password-strength meters websites sometimes use. But instead of showing you a bar going from "weak" to "strong", it shows you an estimation of how long your password would take to crack. That's a much more visceral way to understand why your password is strong.

For example, when I entered "rabbit", it came back with "your password is one of the 500 most common passwords. It could be cracked almost instantly". "rabbit5" would take two hours, "$rabbit5" would take 38 days, and "$rabbitZ5" would take 237 years. It's quite enlightening to see what a difference three simple characters can make.

How Secure is My Password lets you know just that originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/05/how-secure-is-my-password-lets-you-know-just-that/

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Take a Stunning Five Day Cruise in Just Five Minutes [Video]

It takes the Norwegian Coastal Express 134 hours to get from Bergen to Kirkenes, a journey that's filled with lush islands, plush sunrises, and hushed twilights. With this remarkable time-lapse video, it'll take you five minutes. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/QSz-TxQmGMM/take-a-stunning-five-day-cruise-in-just-five-minutes

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DARwin-OP, CHARLI-2 humanoids make history at RoboCup 2011, 'U-S-A!' chants ensue (video)

While most American sports fans were busy celebrating a World Cup victory over Brazil this weekend, an indubitably more compelling soccer tournament was drawing to a close in Istanbul -- site of RoboCup 2011. Virginia Tech's Team DARwin made history at this year's event, becoming the first US squad to bring home top honors in both the Kid Size and Adult Size competitions. The petite DARwin-OP humanoid danced circles around the lightweight class, while the five-foot CHARLI-2 demoralized Robo Erectus in the big boys' final with a last-minute penalty kick. In its international debut, the CHARLI-2 (pictured, in a moment of Zen, on the right) also earned the vaunted Louis Vuitton Humanoid Cup, ending a nine-year period dominated by teams from Germany and Japan. These programmed Peles may not the most graceful of strikers, but RoboCup organizers remain convinced that autonomous bots will be able to compete with human athletes by 2050 -- which might just give us enough time to develop a taste for soccer. Dribble past the break to see Team DARwin in action, along with an extra clip from the BBC.

Continue reading DARwin-OP, CHARLI-2 humanoids make history at RoboCup 2011, 'U-S-A!' chants ensue (video)

DARwin-OP, CHARLI-2 humanoids make history at RoboCup 2011, 'U-S-A!' chants ensue (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 14:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Plastic Pals  |  Virginia Tech News  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/m-2tBT5Tkhg/

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Libra for Android helps you track your weight using The Hacker's Diet system

I'm getting fat; that's what you see on the screenshot to the right -- my gradual move from chubby to portly. But never mind the numbers, look at the pretty graph!

If you've ever read The Hacker's Diet, this graph should be instantly recognizable. Each point shows the weight for a given day, while the trend line lets you see if you're gaining or losing weight.

When I use my "main" PC, I have a homebrew solution for creating and maintaining this graph. But I've had to find a temporary solution for Android, and Libra is it.

It's a beautifully simple app, very true to the spirit of The Hacker's Diet. You can create a shortcut on your homescreen that brings you right into the data entry screen, so you just tap the shortcut every morning, feed in your weight for the day and hit OK, and then you get to see your progress (or lack thereof) on the graph.

The app remembers the previous day's weigh-in, which makes it easy to enter today's weight (as they're usually not too different). The graph is zoomable and scrollable, and most importantly, you can export the data to CSV so you're not locked into the app.

If you ever need to track your weight using an Android device for any period of time, Libra is one excellent solution.

Libra for Android helps you track your weight using The Hacker's Diet system originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/31/libra-for-android-helps-you-track-your-weight-using-the-hackers/

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Can the BlackBerry RIMPIRE strike back against iPhone?

Nixon went to China. Reagan went to the Berlin Wall. Moses went to pharaoh. Now our own Mr. Michaluk has gone to Waterloo, the “Cupertino of Canada” as he calls it — the BlackBerry mothership. Ostensibly there for the RIM shareholder event — and perhaps to break, Mission Impossible style, into their labs and liberate [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/09vqeMIofBA/

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