Panasonic unveils Android Toughbook slate for Q4, sledgehammer sold seperately

Panasonic announces Toughbook tablet
Tired of handling your tablet with kid gloves? Go ahead, take them off — a Toughbook slate is heading your way. Strutting its stuff at InfoComm this week, Panasonic’s Android Toughbook tablet boasts a sunlight-friendly 10.1-inch multi-touch display, satellite-based GPS, full-shift battery life and optional 3G / 4G connectivity. Wrap it up in the same badass durability as its snowmobile-abused, tiger-gnawed brethren, and you’ve got a Android slab for the everyman. No specifics on pricing or release just yet, but feel free to hit up the press release after the break for a slew of feel-good factoids.

Continue reading Panasonic unveils Android Toughbook slate for Q4, sledgehammer sold seperately

Panasonic unveils Android Toughbook slate for Q4, sledgehammer sold seperately originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 14:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adobe Air bids adieu to Linux, shifts focus to mobile

Adobe Flash Platform and Linux

Well, Linux users, say goodbye to Air. Adobe has announced that version 2.7 will be your last official release and, going forward, you’ll have to rely on kind-hearted souls willing to fire up the Linux porting kit the company will be providing. Development teams will instead be focusing on the growing realm of mobile and improving Air support on iOS and Android, and likely bringing the browser-plus-flash app environment to webOS. With the world’s favorite open-source operating system holding steady at roughly one-percent of the desktop market it’s hard to take issue with the choice. Of course, it probably doesn’t help that Adobe has had trouble getting it to play nice with *nix — especially the 64-bit flavors. Besides, with Tweetdeck prepping a proper web-app, what do you need Air for anyway?

Adobe Air bids adieu to Linux, shifts focus to mobile originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 13:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android PSA: Stop Using Task Killer Apps – NOW

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Hello, friends. This is an Android Public Service Announcement regarding the overuse of “task killer” apps in the Android community. Almost everyone has experimented or used one of these apps at one point in their Android life. I wont judge you. In some cases, these apps might have been installed even without your knowledge. I know for a fact that reps at carrier retail stores will download and install these upon buying any of their Android phones. But why? It’s largely in part because of this HUGE misconception that Android needs these apps in order to run properly. But this couldn’t be further from the truth.

Lets start at the beginning. Everyone knows one of the main benefits with Android is the fact that it — unlike certain other OS’s, can run apps in the background. The more RAM you have installed on your phone, the more apps you can have open at one time for true multitasking and switching between apps. Its quite beautiful actually. This is one of the reasons RAM is such a highly sought after spec when comparing the many Android devices on the market.

I think you can ask any Android user what they hate most about their phone and they will almost always tell you, battery life. Most people know Android is definitely lacking in this department. Well, in an attempt to “think outside the box” a lot of people have come to the conclusion that the reason for the horrible battery life must be because of all those apps that are “running” around in the background. This the reason these misinformed reps install these Task Killer apps onto phones thinking they’re helping customers, when in fact, they’re not. First, Android doesn’t necessarily keep apps “running” in the background like a car for instance. Using gas/CPU even when they’re not being used. They way it works is Android will pause those apps until you return to them. If you don’t come back to the app for awhile, Android will eventually close the app altogether. This requires no intervention from the user what-so-ever.

The other misconception people have with Android and another reason for using a task killer is that they feel like it will some how make their phone perform faster. This has something to do with the thought that “freeing up RAM” is going to somehow make your phone speedier and quicker when doing everyday tasks (I used to believe this as well). But not so. First off, the purpose of RAM is to be used. If you’re not using the RAM, why do you even have it? Second, even when you close out those 20 apps in the background, 20 more will open up in their place. Like Bebe’s Kids. They don’t die, they multiply. Your resistance is futile. I mean, it’s not like Android will keep opening apps in the background until you’re completely out of RAM. That would cause your phone to completely freeze and lock up and wouldn’t make any sense. Android is smarter than that. Instead, it will begin closing the oldest apps still open in the background to make space for new ones. I mean think about it, do you have to manage the RAM on your home computer? No. It just works, right? Same with Android.

Is there a time and place for task killers? Sure. Even I use one from time to time. Just like your computer, there are those times when things go wrong. Sometimes an app can misbehave and become unresponsive. Or perhaps you changed some options in an app and it needs to be closed/killed/stopped so that it can be opened and refreshed. Or maybe you have a game that has gone rogue and really is, in fact, running in the background sucking CPU and RAM and causing your phone to run to a crawl. It’s only in these occasions that using a task manager is acceptable. Even then, for your average noob user, a simple reboot will solve these problems.

For the Android power users that like to monitor and micro-manage everything that goes on in their phone, yes, using a task manager is acceptable. Sometimes I use it to kill off a game that I know I wont be returning to and there’s no reason for it to be open in my background. But I’m anal like that. For your average soccer mom/girl-friend/grandma/Joe Schmo who is just blindly closing every app they can because they were told to, there really is no good reason for them to have these apps installed on their phone. More often than not, they’re going to do more harm than good and ruin their user experience with the phone. This will cause them to run to the iPhone where they don’t (and shouldn’t) have to worry about this sorta stuff. That was the point of this video. So with that. I am done here, folks. I hope this Public Service Announcement helped shed some light on a murky subject going on in the Android world. Now you know and knowing is half the battle. Now, go uninstall that task killer off your mom’s phone.

Google helps you manage your online identity, justify those vanity Alerts

You know that Google Alert you set up to ping you every time someone mentions your name on the internet? Don’t worry, that wasn’t self-centered or anything, you were just protecting your online identity. Google today is encouraging the growth of vanity Alerts with its “Me on the Web” feature, a new segment of Google Dashboard dedicated to managing your online identity and finding out what people are saying about you on the global bathroom wall that is the world wide web. The feature makes it easy to set up alerts with your personal information and includes links to tools for identity management and content removal, because the seven billion other people on this planet don’t need to know exactly what happened at your office’s last Christmas party.

Google helps you manage your online identity, justify those vanity Alerts originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 12:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

Inside Rogers Arena on Wednesday night, there was champagne in the Boston Bruins‘ dressing room and sullen faces for everyone wearing a Vancouver Canucks sweater after the home team’s Game 7 loss in the Stanley Cup Final.

In downtown Vancouver, it was anarchy.

Seventeen years after another Game 7 riot in the city, what began as a few random fires and incidents of vandalism by spectators became utter chaos, with looters stealing from local stores and police trying to clear the streets. From QMI:

Between 130 and 140 people were sent to hospital, including three people with stab wounds and two suffering trauma, while a number of others were treated in the courtyard of a downtown hospital for the effects of tear gas.

Most people were treated for tear gas and pepper spray effects, lacerations, facial trauma, substance abuse and head injuries, Alyssa Polinsky, spokeswoman for B.C. Ambulance, told QMI Agency Thursday morning.

There were no fatalities, but one person was in critical condition Thursday at St. Paul’s Hospital in downtown Vancouver. Polinsky could not confirm if it was the same person witnesses reported seeing jump off a viaduct.

Here are the scenes from the Vancouver riots:

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

The turning over of police vehicles was an early part of the unrest.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

Police began to mobilize to begin clearing the streets and were met with resistance.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

A man throws a chemical riot control agent back at police.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

Smoke could be seen rising from the city into the night.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

Gradually, the rioters turned their attention to breaking into local stores, including Hudson Bay and this Sears store.

From the Province:

Just after 11 p.m., in the aftermath of violence, the street was a deserted war zone. Very few businesses were left unscathed and sidewalks were littered with shattered glass.

One shoe store had virtually no merchandise left, while the London Drugs on Georgia and Granville, where alarms still blared, had its doors smashed in, and coat hangers and shoes strewn outside.

Unruly, booze-fuelled mobs also broke into Sears at Robson and Howe. One looter managed to break into Chapters bookstore, but apparently no one bothered entering.

Ugly brawls tinged with a racial element were seen breaking out on Granville Street as late as 11 p.m. and a police chopper circled the crowd overhead as police attempted to take control of the melee.

At a hastily-called press conference, Mayor Gregor Robertson said he was disappointed at tonight's "embarrassing" turn of events.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

A hockey stick is used outside of the ice.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

Fires spread to some buildings as well.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

The streets were covered in debris and small fires, from cars to trash cans.

Gallery: Shocking scenes from the Vancouver Game 7 riots

People lingered in the riot area well into the night.

Again, this was not all Vancouver Canucks fans, and the looting appeared to be the work of anarchists based on the local news reports. Many fans got caught up in the chaos and simply couldn’t find a safe passage home, due to street closures and interruptions in mass transit service.

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Microsoft VP says Windows 8 tablet UI was planned before iPad

Microsoft grabbed a lot of attention when it showed off its upcoming Windows 8 tablet UI. The new look for Microsoft will keep them relevant in the highly competitive tablet market and will also provide a solid foundation for future growth. But what if Microsoft had beat Apple to the…

Bruins win Stanley Cup

The Boston Bruins have won the Stanley Cup and they did it in grand fashion – a 4-0 Game 7 win in Vancouver over the Canucks on Wednesday.

Drive a Mini on Google Maps

Mini Maps on FacebookMini Maps is a great driving game for Facebook that lets you race anywhere in the world on Google Maps. You can race on tracks created by other players, competing against the best track times or even race against others by inviting your Facebook friends to play. Alternatively you can create your own tracks, set the best time and challenge others to try and beat you.The game has some great features. Visibility is affected by the local time, so, for example, if you log into San Francisco at night, you are going to be driving with the assistance of your headlamps. Unlike most Google Maps based driving games this one actually features collision detection. There’s no off road driving here – you will have to stick to those roads. The game also lets you select from a number of Mini models and even lets you customise the look of your car. ________________

IBM turns 100, brags about bench pressing more than companies half its age

IBM is quite possibly the only tech company around that might have genuine difficulty whittling a list of its industry defining contributions down to a mere 100. And it’s an impressively diverse collection at that, including the floppy disk, the social security system, the Apollo space missions, and the UPC barcode. All of this self-congratulation is not without cause, of course. IBM was born 100 years ago today in Endicott, New York, as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company, a merger between three companies, all peddling different technologies. That diversity has helped define IBM from its inception, and has offered a sense of flexibility, making it possible to keep in step with technology’s ever-quickening pace for a century.

In 1944, the company helped usher in modern computing with the room-sized Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator, and 37 years later, it played an important role in defining the era of home computing with the much more manageable IBM Personal Computer. In 1997, IBM introduced a machine that beat the world’s reigning chess champion, and earlier this year, it created one that trounced two of the greatest players in Jeopardy history. These days, when the company is not building machines dedicated to outsmarting mankind, it’s looking to promote sustainable development through its Smarter Planet program. So, happy centennial, Big Blue, and here’s to 100 more, assuming your super-smart machines don’t enslave us all in the meantime.

IBM turns 100, brags about bench pressing more than companies half its age originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 08:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Riots erupt in Vancouver after Canucks loss

Riot police fired tear gas, pepper spray and flash bombs in Vancouver Wednesday night to try to disperse rioters who set cars on fire, looted and taunted police officers after the Canucks’ 4-0 Stanley Cup final loss to the Boston Bruins.

Lenovo ThinkPad tablet coming in summer with Android, Windows slate later in the year

So we already know Lenovo has designs on bringing the LePad westwards in the form of the IdeaPad K1, but now the company’s also revealed plans to deliver a Think-branded Android slate to the market, at some point later this summer. That 10-inch device will strive to serve professionals’ needs, coming with a stylus for signature capture, and will be followed by an identically sized Windows tablet by the end of the year. Lenovo COO Rory Reid has changed his tune, having previously said there’d be no Windows 7 slates, but he does seem fully cognizant of the difficulty his company faces in breaking through in this rapidly saturating market. He notes that the experience is being tailored to a high standard and that “we only have one opportunity to make that first good impression.” For more info on what this new ThinkPad pad might look like, check out the previous leaks of purported specs and a Lenovo roadmap that identified it before this official confirmation.

Lenovo ThinkPad tablet coming in summer with Android, Windows slate later in the year originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 07:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dual-screen LG Android phone shows up in the wild, poses more questions than it answers

A little shindig held by Orange in the UK has unearthed a T-Mobile-branded LG device that we’ve never seen before. It features a display of moderate size and resolution, which slides up to reveal a split QWERTY keyboard and yet another color display. The hidden visualizer is apparently used as an app-launching shortcut repository, though other details remain frustratingly light. Kineto Wireless were the company to bring this unannounced LG handset to the party, along with a bunch of others intended for the US market, and the rep on hand dropped the name Flip II to the Pocket-lint sleuths. There’s also the possibility that what we’re eyeing is the LG Maxx Q, which has popped up on a recently leaked T-Mo USA roadmap, though that Android 1.6 wallpaper could mean that this is just an aged prototype that never saw the light of retail day. Which would be a darn shame, if you ask us. Give the source link a bash for more pictures.

Dual-screen LG Android phone shows up in the wild, poses more questions than it answers originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 06:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This up to 1000 years old snow has metamorphosed into highly…

This up to 1000 years old snow has metamorphosed into highly pressurized glacier ice that contains almost no air bubbles. Thus it absorbs the visible light despite the scattered shortest blue fraction, giving it its distinct deep blue waved appearance. This cavity in the glacier ice formed as a result of a glacial mill, or moulin.

Rain and meltwater on the glacier surface is channelled into streams that enter the glacier at crevices. The waterfall melts a hole into the glacier while the ponded water drains towards lower elevations by forming long ice caves with an outlet at the terminus of the glacier. The fine grained sediments in the water along with wind blown sediments cause the frozen meltwater stream to appear in a muddy colour while the top of the cave exhibits the deep blue colour.

Due to the fast movement of the glacier of about 1 m per day over uneven terrain this ice cave cracked up at its end into a deep vertical crevice, called cerrac. This causes the indirect daylight to enter the ice cave from both ends resulting in homogeneous lighting of the ice tunnel.