Geek Linkage: How Do PC Components Age?

Did you know that the guts to your PC and gadgets actually age? An IEEE Spectrum article provides the details.

Source: http://feeds.pcworld.com/click.phdo?i=68fc60710661f9b80b5bfe8eac31d793

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"That's What She Said" Software Recognizes Pervy Double Entendres Automatically [Republished]

Steve Carell's final episode of The Office aired last night, and without him, we're left with a hole in our lives where those "that's what she said" jokes (hereby referred to as TWSS jokes) should be. Luckily, a couple of computer scientists have created some software that recognizes the opportunity to make a TWSS joke in the midst of natural language. It sounds like a huge effort, but definitely has the potential to fill that hole. (That one was a gimme.) More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Gj1IiJ6UNcw/thats-what-she-said-software-recognizes-pervy-double-entendres-automatically

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Super Roasting Coffee With 600 Mirrors and a Giant Ball of Fire in the Sky [Coffee]

A not atypical coffee roaster, like an old-school Probat favored by Stumptown, looks like this (or this). Not a small machine. Unless you compare it to Dave Hartkop's Helios 4, a solar-powered coffee roaster. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/9vGDWrqxXao/super-roasting-coffee-with-600-mirrors-and-a-giant-ball-of-fire-in-the-sky

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Google demands veto on OEM Android changes, stretches definition of 'open source'

Google, according to reports from "a dozen executives working at key companies in the Android ecosystem" is finally locking down the open source and easily-fragmented Android operating system.

As it currently stands, Google hands over the 'final' code for each version of Android, and OEMs and developers then spend some time customizing the OS to fit their hardware, and to create a unique and marketable flavor. That's all set to change, however.

Over the last few months, according to several people familiar with the matter, Android licensees such as HTC, Motorola and Facebook, have been asked to sign 'non-fragmentation clauses.' This new contract caveat will give Google the right to review and pass judgment on all changes to the Android OS. Two executives at Facebook say that they're unhappy that Google gets to review its changes to Android -- which is understandable, given Facebook and Google are direct competitors -- and there have also been allegations that Google is preventing some Verizon devices from shipping because they include Microsoft's Bing instead of Google search.

Continue reading Google demands veto on OEM Android changes, stretches definition of 'open source'

Google demands veto on OEM Android changes, stretches definition of 'open source' originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 07:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/31/google-demands-veto-on-android-changes-stretches-definition-of/

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April 28, 1940: BMW Sweeps Mille Miglia

BMW has long hailed itself as building "the ultimate driving machine," and never was that more true than when the company thoroughly dominated the 1940 Mille Miglia.

Source: http://www.wired.com/thisdayintech/2011/04/0428bmw-sweeps-mille-miglia/

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Allowing You to Become Even MORE of a Hermit

I actually saw one of these in action at my company and thought I’d share with others who are trapped in a cube farm just like in a bad Dilbert strip. It reminded me of a Shoji screen presented on all the chic home-improvement shows, but a Modular Privacy Wall is meant for The Office.� [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2011/04/29/allowing-you-to-become-even-more-of-a-hermit/

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Thermaltake's Level 10 GT enclosure gets reviewed, deemed more practical than its predecessor

If you've never heard the words "form over function" used to describe a computer case, you must've missed Thermaltake's Level 10 last year. Sure, it made us do a double take with its BMW-designed, super modular chassis, but its 50-pound weight and $750 price made it an impractical choice for a sizable chunk of the enthusiast crowd. Almost a year later, The Tech Report has gotten its hands on its successor, the $270 Level 10 GT, and deemed it much more fit for real-world use. This time, the company decompartmentalized the 3.5-inch hard drive bays -- all while adding an extra 5.25-inch bay and making room for an external 2.5-incher. Nonetheless, the GT isn't without imperfections -- the reviewer found a few spots where the build quality was lacking. If you've had your eye on one of these, we highly recommend perusing the extremely thorough review at the source link.

Thermaltake's Level 10 GT enclosure gets reviewed, deemed more practical than its predecessor originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Apr 2011 20:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/29/thermaltakes-level-10-gt-enclosure-gets-reviewed-deemed-more-p/

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Torus is an impressive 3D Tetris game powered by HTML5

As far as Tetris goes, most variations look quite similar. You're usually looking at a "wall" of bricks directly from the front. Torus takes that notion and throws it away; as you might have guessed from the name (or screenshot), this Tetris clone is played on a ring-like 3D surface.

You rotate the ring itself with the arrow keys, while a Tetris-like piece slowly (excruciatingly slowly, in fact) descends from the top. As soon as you make a solid line, it disappears.

Not all pieces are Tetris-like; some of them wouldn't really work with a regular Tetris game but are a good fit for Torus' 3D format.

Torus is ideal for playing at the office, because it has absolutely no soundtrack. The game is dead-quiet. It's also very very slow (slow enough for me to mention it twice in one post) so you can safely look away for a moment and then keep playing. Also, as soon as the game loses focus, it automatically pauses.

Bottom line: It's an impressive demo of the power of HTML5; if it were a bit faster, it would have some serious addictive potential.

Torus is an impressive 3D Tetris game powered by HTML5 originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/17/torus-is-an-impressive-3d-tetris-game-powered-by-html5/

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Hands on With Sonos and AirPlay

Sonos, purveyors of multi-room music systems, recently made some interesting announcements. Along with the unveiling of a free controller app for the Android...

Source: http://feeds.pcworld.com/click.phdo?i=e2b2f61cfbb0115acc0eeb5a2220b064

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Motorola Xoom software update brings SSL and Widevine DRM, no LTE quite yet (update: pulled)

Seems like Verizon, Motorola and Google are on a bit of a security bent -- the latest update for the Motorola Xoom lets you take a far more leisurely tour of the internet's walled gardens. There's a WPA-PSK security fix to allow choice users into your mobile hotspot, SSL for secure web browsing, Google's Widevine DRM for viewing locked online video content and HDCP for piping it to your TV. Of course, there's no mention of the Xoom feature we're truly waiting for, but we'll happily take our Bluetooth mouse support and POP3 email in the meanwhile. Droid-Life reports that this HMJ07B update will start hitting Xooms later today, but Verizon's still got a month to make good on those LTE promises.

Update: We're not quite sure what happened, but Droid-Life discovered that Verizon's update-detailing PDF has been pulled, so it's probably better to not expect an OTA upgrade later this afternoon.

[Thanks, K]

Motorola Xoom software update brings SSL and Widevine DRM, no LTE quite yet (update: pulled) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Apr 2011 17:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/28/motorola-xoom-software-update-brings-ssl-and-widevine-drm-no-lt/

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April 26, 1812: Birth of Krupp, the ?Cannon King?

1812: Alfred Krupp is born in Essen, Germany.
While the Krupp Konzern has always manufactured machinery and machine components from high-grade cast steel, the company is best known for producing perhaps the finest artillery ever seen in warfare.
It was Alfred Krupp, a staunch patriot at a time when Germany was struggling toward unification, who set the [...]

Source: http://www.wired.com/thisdayintech/2011/04/0426alfred-krupp-birthday-germany-cannon-king/

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Prague to host world's most powerful laser

To us, Prague will always be the Eastern European capital of roast duck, potato dumplings and tasty, cheap pilsner. But come 2015, the former Soviet Bloc city will also become home to the world's most powerful laser, as part of the European Union's Extreme Light Infrastructure project. According to plans released by the European Commission, the laser will produce peak power in the exawatt range (equivalent to one trillion megawatts). So, for a very small fraction of a second, the beam will generate one million times more power than the entire U.S. electric grid. Believe it or not, that's plenty of time to conduct experiments that could reveal new cancer treatments and ways to deal with nuclear waste. Breakthroughs in either category would be incredible for the €700 million (about $1 billion) project, which also includes future plans to build two similar lasers, and a third that's twice as powerful the Prague installation -- roughly the same current draw as an HTC Thunderbolt.

[Image courtesy of Instructables]

Prague to host world's most powerful laser originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Apr 2011 21:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/zuKuFegc7_Q/

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