Flying the world's fastest plane: behind the stick of the SR-71

[~Time Published March 07, 2014 at 10:12PM]

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Spencer Hall interviews former SR-71 Blackbird pilot Rick McCrary about what it's like to fly the world's fastest plane. Spoiler: It's terrifying.

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Weathered old HTC HD2 dresses up like a Nokia X

[~Time Published March 04, 2014 at 06:26PM]

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You may remember the HTC HD2 from posts such as “will it play Tekken 3?” and “wait, it runs Windows RT now?” Despite the handset’s age, a stalwart community keeps it relevant by getting anything and everything to run on the developer favorite. It’s only fitting, then, that the HD2 be one of the first to don Nokia’s heavily skinned version of Android, other than the unreleased X family, of course. That’s right: An XDA Developers forum member by the name of gilbert32 has apparently succeeded in porting some form of the Nokia X Android build onto a rather beat-up-looking HD2. We say succeeded, but while it looks the part and plays a booting sound when fired up, “everything else” is admittedly non-functional. Then again, if the goal was to show the HD2 still has legs after all this time, then mission accomplished, sir.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, HTC, Nokia

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Via: GSMArena

Source: XDA Developers

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Samsung’s KitKat update seems to remove benchmark-boosting “shenanigans”

[~Time Published March 04, 2014 at 05:52PM]

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Samsung's Android 4.4.2 update appears to correct the boosting behavior we encountered in 4.3.

Andrew Cunningham

When we reviewed Samsung's Galaxy Note 3 back in October, we noticed that it was doing something funny. Launching most benchmarking applications would kick the phone's CPU into overdrive, forcing all CPU cores to run at their maximum rated speeds for as long as the application was open. Maxing out the CPU frequencies threw a wrench in our standard suite of tests, inflating some benchmark scores by around 20 percent.

This wasn't the first time Samsung had been caught, um, "enhancing" the performance of its hardware—AnandTech had discovered similar CPU and GPU optimizations in the international version of the Galaxy S4 two months before. However, this was the first time we had seen it show up in the North American version of one of Samsung's phones. Even worse, as Samsung rolled the Android 4.3 update out to its older phones, other phones all began to exhibit the same behavior. Our AT&T Galaxy S III and Galaxy S4 didn't max out their CPUs under Android 4.1.2 and 4.2.2 (respectively), but they started to act just like the Note 3 after being updated. Not only were Samsung's benchmark boosting additions intentional, but they had become a "feature" baked into its branch of the Android tree.

We've changed our testing procedures to avoid this particular kind of benchmark boosting, and I was prepared to write it off as an annoying fact of life—after all, while benchmarks are useful as a way to determine the relative performance of a piece of hardware, they aren't the only factor (or even a particularly important factor) in most peoples' purchasing decisions. That was before I heard from John Poole, whose company Primate Labs develops the Geekbench CPU benchmark we use in most of our reviews. After working with Poole and the Primate Labs team for a few days, we can now say a lot more about just how Samsung was implementing the boosting "feature" in Android 4.3, and that it appears to be absent from the company's Android 4.4 update.

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NASA to admit that astronaut's suit leaked prior to near-drowning

[~Time Published February 26, 2014 at 12:21PM]

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NASA today will admit that the near-death of an astronaut during a spacewalk last year could have been avoided, according to a report from ABC News. In a report to be released Wednesday morning, NASA will acknowledge that astronaut Luca Parmitano's suit leaked on two occasions in July. The agency had previously only reported one leak, on July 16th, when Parmitano's suit helmet began filling up with water. Today's report will acknowledge that the suit leaked on July 9th, but news of the mishap never made it up NASA's chain of command.

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Update to Windows 8.1 coming this spring with more hardware options, benefits for non-touch users

[~Time Published February 23, 2014 at 11:29PM]

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We may be at a mobile show this week, but Microsoft is making some announcements on the Windows side. VP Joe Belfiore, at an event this afternoon, has announced that an update is coming to Windows 8.1 this Spring, which will offer more hardware options, benefits for non-touch users and some changes to the user interface. It brings support to devices at lower price points that have as little as 1GB of RAM and 16GB storage, enables app launching and switching via the taskbar and a new mouse user interface with new options for closing apps and right-clicking to get to the Start screen.

Despite the update’s attention on users of non-touch devices, Belfiore exclaimed: “we love touch, but we do want to make things better for people who don’t have touchscreens.” We’ll update the post as we hear more about this new update.

Filed under: Laptops, Tablets, Microsoft

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Ukrainian president leaves Kiev as parliament votes to remove him from power

[~Time Published February 22, 2014 at 06:12PM]

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Reports out of Ukraine suggest that president Viktor Yanukovych has left the capital of Kiev in the past day, heading for the eastern part of the country that has been a stronghold of support since he opted to strengthen relations with Russia rather than pursuing close ties with the European Union last year. The move prompted protests that have accelerated considerably in recent weeks, turning deadly as protestors battled government forces in the city. Over 70 people have been killed so far.

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Anti-Piracy Group Will Take Pirate Bay Blocking Case to Supreme Court

[~Time Published February 22, 2014 at 01:15PM]

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Following a 2010 attempt by Dutch anti-piracy group BREIN to force local ISP Ziggo to block The Pirate Bay, rival ISP XS4ALL joined in the fight against the Hollywood-funded group. Initially a court decided that the ISPs wouldn’t have to block the site, but BREIN took the case to a full trial – and won.

On appeal the verdict swung in favor of the ISPs after they successfully argued that the blockade was ineffective and denied subscribers’ free access to information. January 28, 2014, marked a big day in the Netherlands for both The Pirate Bay and its millions of fans, despite neither party’s involvement in the just-completed legal proceedings.

BREIN, on the other hand, went away licking its wounds and contemplating its 326,000 euro ($445,000) legal bill. Neither ISP wasted time unblocking The Pirate Bay.

With the verdict handed down and The Pirate Bay unblocked, the next step in the battle, should there even be one, lay in BREIN’s hands.

Now, three weeks later, the anti-piracy group has signaled its intention to fight on, criticizing The Court of The Hague’s ruling that site blocking should be dismissed if it’s ineffective.

“That statement is at odds with the opinion of judges in other European countries on blocking and preempts the judgment of the highest European court which is expected shortly. BREIN’s claim is that service providers blocking access to illegal websites has already been assigned by the court,” the group said in a statement.

BREIN adds that it has already established a number of grounds for appeal and will take its case to the Supreme Court.

“Depending on the type of appeal it can take a year to eighteen months before a decision,” BREIN chief Tim Kuik told Tweakers. “Moreover, there are still questions for the European Court of Justice so it might take even longer.”

In the wake of the Ziggo and XS4ALL victory, UPC, the Netherlands’ second largest ISP, said that it had reached an agreement with BREIN over its blocking of The Pirate Bay. The company said it would suspend the block, pending the outcome of its own case with the anti-piracy group.

Commenting on that development Friday, Kuik said that only the Supreme Court can provide the final answers. Taking further legal action now makes no sense, he said, as it only “makes the lawyers richer.”

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and VPN services.

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Resolution or framerate? Consoles need to join PCs and give players a choice

[~Time Published February 21, 2014 at 10:39PM]

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This generation’s version of the console war may come down to resolution and framerate, at least if you listen to the endless bickering of fans on either side of the aisle.

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Microsoft rebrands Office Web Apps as Office Online because it’s an online version of Office

[~Time Published February 20, 2014 at 03:46PM]

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Use Office Web Apps much? Us neither, which is probably why Microsoft’s answer to Google Docs felt it needed a makeover. Following SkyDrive’s recent rebrand to OneDrive, Office Web Apps has received similar treatment, and now asks you to call it Office Online. Microsoft hopes this new title more accurately reflects what Web Apps was/is: an online version of Word, Powerpoint, Excel and others, free to SkyDrive OneDrive users. Furthermore, Office Online is now located at the convenient URL of Office.com, which should prompt a few more people to stumble across it and add it to their bookmarks. Otherwise, it’s the same Office-in-a-browser experience with real-time co-editing features, just with a heap of new document templates and a dropdown toolbar for selecting different apps on the fly. Now, go get your spreadsheet on — we need those TPS reports by lunch.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Microsoft

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Source: Microsoft (Office Blog), Office.com

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Facebook buys WhatsApp: the $16 billion quest to conquer messaging

[~Time Published February 20, 2014 at 03:35PM]

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Facebook shocked Silicon Valley and Wall Street alike in February 2014 when it announced it would acquire WhatsApp, a global mobile messaging app, for a staggering $16 billion, plus another $3 billion in options. But with a firm commitment not to advertise and to maintain its own stand alone product, WhatsApp has a murky path ahead as it begins its journey into the bowels of the Facebook empire. Follow all the latest news from one of the biggest deals in tech history so far.

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Twitter claims Venezuela is blocking its images to stifle protests

[~Time Published February 15, 2014 at 01:26PM]

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Venezuela’s government has been trying to silence protests over shortages of basic goods, and that crackdown appears to be extending into the digital realm as well. A Twitter spokesperson tells Engadget and Bloomberg that pictures on its social network are “currently blocked” for at least some users. The country hasn’t confirmed anything, but President Nicolas Maduro has already taken a TV station off the air after it showed unflattering protest footage (pictured here); this may be just a continuation of his policy. Whatever is taking place, Twitter is encouraging Venezuelans to sign up for text message updates to keep the news flowing. And locals can take comfort in knowing that government attempts to censor online content aren’t always effective at crushing dissent — if there’s enough demand for political change, it can happen.

[Image credit: Eduardo Massieu / NTN24, Twitter]

Filed under: Internet

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Source: Twitter Spanish (translated), Bloomberg

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Titanfall is the perfect game for people who are terrible at first-person shooters

[~Time Published February 14, 2014 at 08:44PM]

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Titanfall is a game that offers many advantages to people who aren’t very good at first-person shooters.

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An Illustrated Guide on How to Survive Falling Through Ice by The Art of Manliness

[~Time Published February 14, 2014 at 01:13AM]

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Falling through the ice can be a dangerous prospect for the unprepared, and even then it’s not exactly recommended. The Art of Manliness and Ted Slampyak have produced an illustrated guide on what to do after falling through ice that goes over basic tips and tricks on how to survive like resisting the urge to pull straight up out of the water.

image via The Art of Manliness

via The High Definite



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Star Wars | df2.jpg

[~Time Published February 14, 2014 at 12:27AM]

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'Science' publisher is launching a free-to-read journal

[~Time Published February 13, 2014 at 12:28AM]

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One of the most prestigious scientific publishers is launching a new journal that will be open for everyone to read. Titled Science Advances, it will be the first open-access journal from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the nonprofit publisher behind Science — a journal generally considered to be among the very best in its field. The new publication will debut early next year and cover a broad scope of disciplines, and AAAS plans to broaden Science's scope as well to allow both journals to serve an increasingly broad audience.

Where the two journals will differ distinctly is their publication process. While both journals will make use of peer review and employ editors, Science will continue to publish...

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Europe pushes for a less US-dominated internet

[~Time Published February 13, 2014 at 12:23AM]

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The European Union is more than a little jittery about a US-centric internet after learning the extent of the country’s mass surveillance. Accordingly, the European Commission has proposed a whole host of measures that would shift control to the international community. It wants a firm schedule for globalizing internet infrastructure, more power for the Internet Governance Forum, fewer conflicts between countries’ internet laws and a venue for improving transparency policies. The regulator doesn’t want to give too much clout to any one group, though — Commission VP Neelie Kroes prefers a “multi-stakeholder” approach that lets innovators move at their own pace. The proposal still needs support from both the Council of the EU and the European Parliament before it can take effect, but it could give Europe a united front when it’s pushing for changes in internet policy.

[Image credit: The Council of the European Union]

Filed under: Internet

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Via: Reuters

Source: European Union

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Klout, controversial service that measured online 'influence,' reportedly being acquired for $100 million

[~Time Published February 12, 2014 at 07:25PM]

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Klout, a San Francisco startup that quantified people's online influence by assigning it a Klout score, has reportedly been acquired by Lithium Technologies for $100 million. It seemed the service was struggling to build a successful business, and in fact founder and CEO Joe Fernandez blogged publicly about his trials and tribulations. Six days ago Klout launched a major redesign of its website that shifted the focus towards helping users improve their scores, but it seems that the final result was a sale and soft landing.

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Calling all dragon-slayers … (small request and notion)

[~Time Published February 12, 2014 at 06:30PM]

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[text extracted with OneNote! Nice tool.. not flowless do..]

"l am quite sure most of vou have seen the rather large green dragon that has been flyinq over northeast OKC for the better part of a week.

I am looking for someone to:

• Lure said dragon away from OKC to a more rural area.

• Force said dragon to land in rural area.

• Slay sald dragon in whatever way you see fit.

No pay, dragon slaying is its own reward. Please note that I am not talking about the red dragon that

frequents the area from time to time. He and I have an agreement."

(via Twitter / sc_mo: Calling all dragon-slayers …)



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Make ‘business connections’ with Virgin America’s new in-flight social network ;)

[~Time Published February 12, 2014 at 06:28PM]

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Haven’t had much luck buying alluring strangers a drink on your last few Virgin America flights? What you need, my friend, is a service to expand your circle of potential prospects and make the in-flight connection you deserve. At least that’s what the airline must be thinking with its announcement of the “first-ever” in-flight social network, developed with Gogo Wifi and the Here on Biz geo-location app.

Once you’ve downloaded Here on Biz from the App Store (sorry, no Android types need apply) and connect through Gogo, the service lets you register via Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter to contact fellow travelers at the gate, on your plane and even on other Virgin America flights. But don’t think the social network is all about helping you get lucky at 35,000 feet (the sexy skies are the furthest thing from Richard Branson’s mind, after all); Virgin America says the service is targeted at business travelers who want to “take advantage of downtime in-flight to build or renew their professional connections.” It’s unclear, though, whether Virgin will claim rights to any startup ideas hatched on board.

Filed under: Transportation, Internet

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Source: Virgin America, Here on Biz (iTunes)

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China's first moon rover is broken beyond repair

[~Time Published February 12, 2014 at 06:13PM]

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The journey is over for China's moon rover. China's state news agency is reporting today that the country's space agency has not been able to restore function to the Jade Rabbit rover, which suffered a mechanical malfunction late last month. The rover initially malfunctioned as it was preparing for the two-week lunar night, a period where it would be exposed to extreme cold temperatures and be unable to receive solar power. It likely failed to enter its hibernation mode, exposing critical components to environmental hazards for the past two weeks.

New Scientist reports that China's space agency would have been unable to communicate with its rover during the lunar night, meaning it wasn't able to attempt to reconnect with Jade Rabbit...

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[update: Jade Rabbit is upgraded to half dead now]

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