Previous Post: New-years-resolutions-and-goals
2008 Overall Goals (ie: Resolutions):
2008 Development Goals: I didn't really do well here, I guess I had too much fun outside enjoying the weather that Colorado has to offer. I really should Vox about some of that stuff, eh? Plus with the new job and a few trips I didn't take the time to research anything in particular. I hope that work actually lets me get back on schedule.
A N I M O T O asks you for some photos, a song, and it will
auto-magically create a really cool video photo show that even
analyzes the song's characteristics in order to create the specific
effects. It's been around for a while, but it just recently moved out
of the beta stage. 30-second clips can be created for free supporting
around 12 photos, but longer videos can be purchased lasting for the
duration of a given song (<10MB). You can upload your own photos,
and even music, or you can choose from a selection they provide.
Fireball Island was an awesome game created by Milton Bradley that I remember playing for a couple years before I had to sell it at our garage sale. It was a 3D board game where you tried to reach the crystal at the top of the mountain, and bring it back to safety before the other players did. Along the way you might get rolled over by fireballs (marbles) or knocked off bridges when the fireball destroyed it.
Apple announced the next version of the iPhone with the tag line "Twice as fast. Half the price." The new unannounced, but heavily rumored features are 3G (HSDPA), GPS, and MobileMe. The rest of the story is the new 2.0 version of the firmware that includes Enterprise features, support for 3rd party applications, and worldwide support (ie: 70+ languages). Thanks to MacRumorsLive I was able to read the keynote information through live streaming.
Price (Purchase Page)
The price with AT&T 2-year contract is now $199 for 8GB and $299 for 16GB, which should allow for a much wider adoption. I would consider getting one if it were $100 cheaper for the 16GB. I really think with a 2-year agreement, Apple should take their losses on the purchase of the phone, knowing they'll make it up due to their cut on the monthly fees in the required contract.
Features (Apple's Feature Page)
To quickly run over the features they include: 3G, GPS, Bluetooth, App Store, Exchange support, push contacts, push calendar, push email, instant contact search, VPN, WPA2, MobileMe, email attachments, additional languages, better email management, scientific calculator, and more. All software updates will be available to current iPhone users.
3rd Party Apps (App Store Info)
This will be the killer feature for sure. The new application support will be a great improvement. I'd love to test out development if only I could afford a new Mac right now, or if they supported development on Win/Linux. People have already been putting apps by hacking the phone. The interesting thing Apple decided to do was create a Push notification service that will allow the iPhone to connect only to apple to get notifications for ANY application, and will relay the information from the 3rd party to the iPhone user. This will allow IM to feel like it's running in the background, even though technically it is not. I believe this will be a great feature, and will as they claim keep stability and battery life in check.
MobileMe (MobileMe Info)
The last, but not least announcement was the upgrade to the service previously coined "Dot Mac". This service allows you to sync Email, Calendar, Contacts, Photos, and more across computers, the iPhone, and the Internet. They give you 20GB of space now to store everything. Finally this is a service that is almost complete enough to merit the price of $99/year. Apple touts it as Exchange for the Rest of us.
There is much more to be found on Apple's website, as well as many other sites. Check out TechMeme for the flood of information.
I have been absent without official leave (AWOL) for a while now, and while I think this has been beneficial to my well-being, I do feel sad I haven't been intriguing my fellow voxers with intellectual information as of late, while receiving lots in return. My pledge to you all and myself is to finish the handful of posts I have started, with possible changes to relevance, along with a few extra posts about the recent big company announements. Of course I plan to also continue posting links, which I don't count as posts. I will follow up the following 10 posts with a half-way point update to my new year's resolutions.
Posts to Finish
"That I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free.And I wont forget the men who died, who gave that right to me." - from God Bless the USA
HP announced in April 2008 that they had developed a switching memristor. This is supposedly an electronic device that falls under the fourth, previously unknown and now debated, fundamental circuit element. In 1971 a link between charge and flux was missing from the four fundamental electromagnetic quantities (charge, voltage, current, and magnetic flux), and the element that linked them was named "memristor", but was not developed.
It is an interesting technology due to the fact that it could create non-volitile memory that is both cheap and many can fit in a tiny space. Part of the discovery is due to the new capabilities with regard to nano-technology. The uses are not fully known, but it might never see the light of day due to the domination of the transistor and other non-volatile memory that already exists.
Basically a memristor is fundamental a charge-dependent resistance element. This means that the magnetic flux over the element is a function of the amount of charge that has passed through it, simply changes resistance as it is "(dis)charged". However, don't take my word for it, as I understand the subject, but have done no research. Instead take a look at some other reports:
I enjoyed the Golden Compass (or Northern Lights as it was previously called) all the way from opening page through to the end, and it had me excited to begin the second. There is dramatic character development, as well as lots of interesting and exciting action with definite plot twists along the way. Definitely a great start.
The subtle knife started out not directly where the first leaves off, but rather begins the tale of another child named Will. Quickly the storyline comes in sync with the first, and the exciting journey is whisked off to another world (literally). The story quickly builds to an even greater level in this book, but unfortunately for me is a sort of "to be continued" ending, and thus I now have the need to find time to finish the last book of the trilogy.
Overall the reasons I love this story are many. I love the incredibly interesting scientific and theological undertones and overtones that this series revolves around the soul, dark matter, and multiple parallel universes. The writer has a great ability to write for kids on the surface, while giving adults the ability to dive deeper into the substance of the content. I also love books where multiple plot paths are taken, thus causing an inherent need to read the next page or chapter.