WebCogito » Technology

Avengers Unite!

Jean Valjean — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 18:56:53 +0000

The dream of generations of comic-book fans came true as Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans), Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) gathered together on the stage along with writer/director Joss Whedon. The Avengers, assembled at last!

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Written by Jean Valjean

New fan-made King’s Quest game, The Silver Lining, to be released.

Jean Valjean — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:20:00 +0000

The original games were incredibly popular in the 1980s and early 1990s, combining the traditional text adventure format with basic graphics and music. Created by fans who had the intention of giving the game away for free, The Silver Lining caught the attention of Activision’s legal team who issued the developers with a cease and desist order. After negotiations, the C&D [cease and desist] has been officially rescinded, and Phoenix Online has been granted a non-commercial license to release The Silver Lining!

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Written by Jean Valjean

HDMI could be replaced by HDBaseT soon.

Jean Valjean — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:19:09 +0000

HDMI’s short-lived reign over the TV cable racks could soon be over, thanks to a new usurper that combines several connections into a single, standard network cable. Designed by a coalition of consumer electronics manufacturers, including Sony, Samsung, LG and Valens, HDBaseT promises to not only carry video and audio signals, but also provide a network connection, a USB signal and even electricity using a single cable.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Carolina Ayala would rather die in a hurricane than miss the premiere of “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”

Jean Valjean — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 13:51:26 +0000

From the Brownsville Herald:

Despite a possible hurricane bearing down, Brownsville residents wanting a fix of vampires and werewolves lined up at the Cinemark Theater Tuesday for tickets to “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,” which premiered at midnight.
Carolina Ayala, 22, brushed off concerns about Alex, the season’s first named storm, coming ashore with a vengeance.

“I can die happy if I saw the movie,” she said.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Google annoys its users with background image

Jean Valjean — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 14:20:43 +0000

Imagine my surprise this morning when I loaded my browser to my favorite homepage, http://www.google.com, and instead of the fast, minimalistic page with just a search box, I got a shadowed Google image, with a sloooooowly fading-in background.
Now my homepage is black, with some huge image covering my entire browser.
HA! But there’s a link on the bottom left for options! Surely there I can disable this, and return my homepage to the snappy search box to which I’m accustomed. Err… no.

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I can change the image. To another image. But not disable.
A Baltimore newspaper blog post incorrectly described this as Google giving users the “option” of a background image. This is incorrect. This is NOT an option.

Google: This sucks.

And I’m not the only one that thinks so.

According to Google’s own Trends tool, “remove google background” is the SECOND trendiest search on its engine right now, behind only “blackhawks parade” (the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup last night).

Google, your users are trying to tell you something.

FIX FOR THE GOOGLE BACKGROUND IMAGE: If you set your homepage (or links or however you get to google) to https://www.google.com with an “httpS” rather than “http”, you don’t get the background image forced on you. For now. Who knows how long before Google decides to force another “option” on us.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Why I’m going to fire AT&T

Jean Valjean — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 01:32:14 +0000

(actually, it’s been dozens already, but since this is the first post about it, this starts at one).

Reason #1: 18 minutes on hold before a live person picked up. And all this time, a recorder telling me that I could fix most of my issues if I just rebooted my modem and my PC.

This is not the first time. AT&T Has the absolute worst phone support ever.

And their account people go home at 5 PM SHARP. So you either have the option of calling during work hours, or be screwed.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Osama Bin Laden is worried about Global Warming, blames Bush

Jean Valjean — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 14:51:07 +0000

‘Bin Laden’ blames US for global warming:

A new message said to be from al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has blamed global warming on the US and other big industrial nations.

The tape criticises the administration of former US President George W Bush for not ratifying the Kyoto Protocol on combating climate change.

“Bush the son, and the [US] Congress before him, rejected this agreement only to satisfy the big companies.”

Well, it seems that Bin Laden and Al Gore agree on something.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Microsoft Announces Zune HD for Fall 2009

Jean Valjean — Wed, 27 May 2009 18:14:13 +0000

Microsoft, still not giving up on its Zune platform, just verified rumors that had been swirling around for months: there will be a new version of the Zune player, this time with touch screen capability, HD Radio tuning, and HD Video output.Â The specs point out a 3.3-inch, 480 x 272 OLED capacitive touchscreen display, built-in WiFi, and web browsing.Â Full Press Release afterÂ the jump.

Zune HD

Microsoft Announces the Expansion of the Zune Entertainment Service to New Platform and Markets; Confirms New Zune HD Portable Media Player

Premium Zune digital entertainment service to be available internationally on Xbox LIVE.

REDMOND, Wash. – May 26, 2009 – Microsoft Corp. today announced the evolution of Zune, the company’s end-to-end music and entertainment service, to a new platform and new markets. Zune will extend its video service to Xbox LIVE internationally this fall. This marks an important development in the Zune strategy and brings the Zune brand to more than 17 million international Xbox LIVE subscribers. In addition, Microsoft confirmed the next generation of the Zune portable media player, Zune HD. Available in the U.S. this fall, Zune HD is the first portable media player that combines a built-in HD Radio receiver, high-definition (HD) video output capabilities, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) touch screen, Wi-Fi and an Internet browser.

“The Zune music player is an integral part of the overall Zune experience, and we’re proud to be growing and extending our offering beyond the device,” said Enrique Rodriguez, corporate vice president of the Microsoft TV, Video and Music Business Group. “Delivering on Microsoft’s connected entertainment vision, this news marks a turning point for Zune as it brings cross-platform experiences and premium video content to living rooms around the world.”

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Zune will be a premium partner in the Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace, bringing an exciting catalog of TV and film to the platform. Zune will occupy the first slot within the Xbox user interface in the Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace, exposing the Zune brand experience to millions of new consumers for the first time. At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) next week, attendees will see firsthand how Zune integrates into Xbox LIVE to create a game-changing entertainment experience.

Introducing Zune HD

Zune HD is the next iteration of the Zune device family and brings a new level of listening and viewing experiences to the portable media player category.

Zune HD comes with a built-in HD Radio receiver so users can listen to higher-quality sound than traditional radio on the go. Users also will have access to the additional song and artist data broadcast by HD Radio stations as well as additional channels from their favorite stations multicasting in HD. If you don’t like the song playing on your station’s HD channel, switch to its HD2 or HD3 channels for additional programming.
The bright OLED touch screen interface allows users to flip through music, movies and other content with ease, and the 16:9 widescreen format display (480×272 resolution) offers a premium viewing experience on the go.
The HD-compatible output lets Zune HD customers playback supported HD video files from the device through a premium high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) audiovisual docking station (sold separately) direct to an HD TV in 720p.*
Zune HD will include a full-screen Internet browser optimized for multitouch functionality.
Zune HD is Wi-Fi enabled, allowing for instant streaming to the device from the more than 5 million-track Zune music store.

More information on Zune and related images is available at http://www.zune.net/press and http://www.zune.net/ZuneHD.

About Zune

Zune is Microsoft’s music and entertainment brand that provides an integrated digital entertainment experience. The Zune platform includes a line of portable digital media players, elegant software, the Zune Marketplace online store, Zune Pass music subscription service, and the Zune Social online music community, created to help people discover more music. Zune is part of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division and supports the company’s software-based services vision to help drive innovation in the digital entertainment space. More information can be found online at http://www.zune.net/en-us/press.

About Xbox LIVE

Xbox LIVE connects more than 17 million members across 26 countries to each other and the entertainment they love. Home of more content from one remote than can be found from any device connected to the television, Xbox LIVE is also a unified online social network bringing friends together, no matter where they are – in the living room or across the world. More information and Xbox LIVE membership can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live.

About Microsoft

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Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

* Supported 720p HD video files play on the device, downscaled to fit the screen at 480 x 272 – not HD resolution. Zune HD and AV Dock, and an HDTV (all sold separately) are required to view video at HD resolution.

HD Radioâ„¢ and the HD Radio logo are proprietary trademarks of iBiquity Digital Corp.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Bankrupt companies making 39 mpg autos. Are we nuts?

Jean Valjean — Sat, 23 May 2009 03:38:21 +0000

At the end of his Rose Garden explanation yesterday of the new U.S. fuel-efficiency standards, President Obama remarked on the good that can be accomplished when we are “working together.” The President may be getting ahead of himself. Watching the unlikely coalition arrayed behind him as Mr. Obama committed the U.S. to an astonishing passenger-car mileage average of 39 miles per gallon by 2016, it looks truer to say we are merely standing together in this adventure, for better or worse.

Mr. Obama’s fleet-mileage partners yesterday included the two auto companies that have fallen into his arms, Chrysler and GM, still-independent Ford, the major foreign manufacturers, United Auto Workers chief Ron Gettelfinger, and beaming representatives from the Sierra Club, Environmental Defense Fund and the Union of Concerned Scientists.

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We wish these folks luck “working together” with the Obama auto-design team. One thing seems certain by 2016: Taxpayers will be paying Detroit to make the cars Americans don’t want, and then they will pay again either through (trust us) a gas tax or with a purchase subsidy. Even the French must think we’re nuts.

Read the full story at the Wall Street Journal.

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Written by Jean Valjean

Eco-sailors rescued by oil tanker

Jean Valjean — Fri, 08 May 2009 13:21:06 +0000

An expedition team which set sail from Plymouth on a 5,000-mile carbon emission-free trip to Greenland have been rescued by an oil tanker. Space Chimps dvd download Mighty Aphrodite movie

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The expedition was followed by up to 40 schools across the UK to promote climate change awareness.

But atrocious weather dogged their journey after 27 April, culminating with the rescue on 1 May after the boat was temporarily capsized three times by the wind.Hood of Horror full movie

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Written by Jean Valjean