Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook: 9/25/11 - 10/2/11

Friday, September 30, 2011

drag2share: Untapped Mobile Apps Let You Share Your Favorite Beers and Find New Ones [Downloads]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5845540/untapped-mobile-apps-let-you-share-your-favorite-beers-and-find-new-ones

Android and iOS: Untappd, the social network for beer lovers, is now available as a free download for Android and iOS. At its core Untappd is a beer rating and recommendation system. Using the service's searchable database of brews you can rate each beer you drink, add a comment, and upload a photo of the brew. The service will recommend similar beers based on your rankings and share your reviews with your contacts.

There is Twitter-like stream of your ratings and a location check-in feature showing you all the beer ratings submitted from your current location (which is a great way to make a decision when presented with a tap list full of breweries you are unfamiliar with). You will unlock badges as you rate beers and check-in at bars, but these features borrowed from other social networks take a back seat to the app's central focus of giving you a place to record which brews you love and which beers you are on the look-out for.

If you are a fan of the bourgeoning craft brew scene who has been looking for something to replace an Evernote notebook full of pictures of beer labels from your cell phone, then Untappd is a promising solution that knows beer is supposed to be social.

Untappd | iTunes App Store and Android Market

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drag2share: How Microsoft and Kapersky Labs Neutralized a Spam Botnet [Security]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5845448/this-is-how-microsoft-and-kapersky-labs-neutralized-a-spam-botnet

Botnets are feared not only for what they can do, but also for their resiliant nature (they're virtually impossible to completely disband). Still, Microsoft and Kapersky Labs teamed up recently to foil a particularly malevolent botnet called Kelihos. Here's how.

Kelihos is a botnet that, at its peak, was sending 4 billion spam messages a day. According to the security blog ThreatPost, the botnet wasn't so much shut down as it was "sinkholed." The botnet is still operational, but it's 100% controlled by Kapersky Labs (who, by the way, failed to receive recognition from Microsoft for their efforts). Botnets of course, function by infecting computers of random people with internet connections, then using those compromised machines to do their evil bidding over a private peer-to-peer network. Kapersky gained control of the botnet by getting the machines to talk to their servers more than the actual botnet servers.

This Monday, we started to propagate a special peer address. Very soon, this address became the most prevalent one in the botnet, resulting in the bots talking to our machine, and to our machine only. Experts call such an action sinkholing – bots communicate with a sinkhole instead of its real controllers. At the same time, we distributed a specially crafted list of job servers to replace the original one with the addresses mentioned before and prevent the bots from requesting commands. From this point on, the botnet could not be commanded anymore.

But here's the tricky part: since Kapersky can't shut down each individual infected computer, they can't shutdown the botnet. They think they could have the botnet push an update to every machine that would remove the infection and shutdown the network, but they say such a move is quite illegal. Oh well! [ThreatPost]

Image Credit: James Cridland/(CC BY 2.0)

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drag2share: Samsung announces the Series 7 all-in-one, its first desktop for the US market

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/30/samsung-announces-the-series-7-all-in-one-its-first-desktop-for/

There must be something in the water: first Toshiba decides to give this all-in-one thing a whirl and a few months later, Samsung's jumping on the bandwagon, too. The company just added a desktop to its Series 7 lineup, making it Sammy's first all-in-one for the US market. It'll be available in two configurations, but either way you're in for a 23-inch, 250-nit display with 1080p resolution and support for two-finger gestures. Other specs include four USB 2.0 ports built into the base (along with one of the 3.0 persuasion), a 1TB 7,200RPM hard drive, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, Bluetooth 3.0 and dual four-watt speakers. And, depending on which config you choose, you'll get either a 2.6GHz Core i3-2120T CPU and 6GB of RAM or a 2.7GHz Core i5-2390T processor with 8GB of memory. Sadly, both models cap the graphics off with Intel's integrated option, which means this may or may not be the right choice for game-loving Samsung fans. Look for them on October 10th for $999 and $1,199, depending on the model. Oddly, the company isn't issuing a press release until Monday (we'll update this post when we see it) but for now, skip past the break for one extra pic.

Continue reading Samsung announces the Series 7 all-in-one, its first desktop for the US market

Filed under: Desktops

Samsung announces the Series 7 all-in-one, its first desktop for the US market originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 11:16:00 EDT. Please see our ter! ms for u se of feeds.

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drag2share: Sharp's Aquos 104SH monster phone hits Softbank next spring, colors it blue like an orange

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/30/sharps-aquos-104sh-monster-phone-hits-softbank-next-spring-col/

Softbank's on a roll -- doling out the updated mobile kit to lucky denizens of Japan. After treating us to news of Dell's dual-core beastie and Sharp's comparatively lower end Aquos 102SH, comes word of this true wireless brute -- the Aquos 104SH. Rocking a dual-core 1.5GHz TI OMAP4460 processor beneath a 4.5-inch 1280 x 720 HD LCD display, this handset's certainly no forward-looking specced slouch. Prospective owners can mark their calendars for a spring 2012 debut, at which point you'll get to enjoy speeds of up to 21Mbps down, useful for recording and uploading HD video on its 12.1 megapixel rear camera. Oh, and did we mention the device's loaded with tri-band GSM / WCDMA radios for that global roaming trip around the continents you've been putting off? We haven't yet seen pricing for Sharp's orange and blue (a Syracuse fan, we presume) wonder, so sit tight and wait for a future announcement.

Sharp's Aquos 104SH monster phone hits Softbank next spring, colors it blue like an orange originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 13:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Electronista | source

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drag2share: IBM's THINK Exhibit invades NYC, aims to inspire (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/30/ibms-think-exhibit-invades-nyc-aims-to-inspire-video/

Leaving the confines of a Manhattan apartment, Lincoln Center has the uncanny ability to make one feel dwarfed. Home to the performing arts and haunt to New York City's glitterati, the landmark received the IBM makeover as part of the company's THINK exhibit -- an interactive installation designed to weave the story of technology as it applies to the fabric of life, achievement and change.

The first thing that catches the eye is IBM's sparkling 123-foot long, 12-foot high LCD wall lining a tunnel leading into the bowels of the NYC landmark. The "living" wall thrives off the surrounding environment, visualizing traffic patterns and analyzing corresponding air quality from nearby Broadway. It also shows the solar potential of every rooftop in the city, financial transactions and the amount of water leaking from the main aqueduct. As the event's producer Lee Green simply put it, the idea behind the set up is to "delegate understanding" to "intrigue and inspire" even the least technologically-inclined.

Gallery: IBM THINK Exhibit NYC September 2011

Continue reading IBM's THINK Exhibit invades NYC, aims to inspire (video)

IBM's THINK Exhibit invades NYC, aims to inspire (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 14:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Turn a Lamp On and Off Just by Touching It with This DIY Tweak [DIY]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5845247/turn-a-lamp-on-and-off-just-by-touching-it-with-this-diy-tweak

Lamp switches can be kind of a pain—either you can't reach them comfortably, they break within a few months, or they just take a lot of force. With an inexpensive touch switch, you can turn any metal lamp on and off just by touching it with your finger.

DIY web site Instructables has a guide to hooking a touch switch up to your metal lamp, and it's a pretty cool tweak—not to mention surprisingly useful. The touch switch requires digging into the wiring of the lamp, but it shouldn't be too hard, even if you aren't an electronics guru—the tutorial on Instructables coupled with the touch switch's manual should be more than enough to get you set up. Hit the link to see more about how it works.

"Simple" Conversion of Metal Lamp to Use Touch Switch | Instructables

You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.

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drag2share: Is Digital Money the New Way to Buy Drugs? [Drugs]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5845229/is-digital-money-the-new-way-to-buy-drugs

I'm not gonna name names, but someone just mentioned paying for weed with a Square account. It'd be equally easy to use Paypal, Venmo, Bitcoin (RIP) or any of the myriad mobile payment systems that allow you to send money from your phone.

I mean, think about it: As long as you don't put some idiotic note on your account like "drugs," virtual currency would be a really easy way for drug dealers to take one very dangerous aspect of trafficking out of the equation—as long as they took some precautions.

So have you ever bought drugs using a mobile payment system? Is this a really tired scheme that a innocent lad like me just hadn't ever heard of? Let us know in the poll.

Have you ever bought drugs with virtual currency?

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drag2share: iPhone 5 to have 21Mbps HSPA+ data? China Unicom says so

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/iphone-5-to-have-21mbps-hspa-data-china-unicom-says-so/

We know that Apple won't be unveiling its next superphone for a few more days, but we may have a tasty tidbit about the iPhone 5 ahead of schedule. So the story goes, China Unicom's Deputy Director Huang Wenlian was making a presentation at Macworld Asia, and stated that the new iPhone would utilize the company's HSPA+ 21Mbps network. Now, we aren't saying it's a sure thing, but it appears that Tim Cook could deliver a handset with thrice the data speeds of its predecessor next week. Fingers crossed, ya'll.

Update: We removed the original picture at the request of PC Watch. It was a presentation slide showing a timeline of iPhone models, with a simple line drawing in place of the iPhone 5 and a mention of HSPA+ 21Mbps underneath.

iPhone 5 to have 21Mbps HSPA+ data? China Unicom says so originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 12:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Electronista | source

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PC Watch (Japanese) | Email this | Comments

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drag2share: Softbank takes Dell Streak Pro 101DL by the hand, plans January 2012 coming out party (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/softbank-takes-dell-streak-pro-101dl-by-the-hand-plans-january/

Dell Streak Pro 101DL. Just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? Clumsy naming aside, this power-laden handset's just been officially outed by Japanese carrier Softbank, where'll it bow sometime next January. So, what sort of mobile media tour de force can you look forward to early next year? Try a 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED Plus display vividly showcasing a skinned version of the now ubiquitous Android 2.3, all running atop a dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm MSM8260 processor. There's also the usual array of WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS and dual cameras on board (1.3 megapixel front-facing / 8 megapixel rear), with planned support for Dell's SyncUp cloud storage in the works. Of course, the phone delivers up to 14Mbps down via the network's WCDMA 2100MHz frequency, but you globe-trotting folk can always take advantage of the included quad-band GSM / WCDMA radios. As with all things pre-released, certain specs can still change before the ringing in of our new year. Let's just keep our toes crossed that one of those potential alterations is a frozen mobile OS dessert. Get a gander of the coming soon gadget in the videos after the break.

[Thanks, Babak]

Continue reading Softbank takes Dell Streak Pro 101DL by the hand, plans January 2012 coming out party (video)

Softbank takes Dell Streak Pro 101DL by the hand, plans January 2012 coming out party (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 12:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TechCrunch | source

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drag2share: HTC Holiday hits the FCC, ready to deliver AT&T's LTE to 3-percent of Americans

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/htc-holiday-hits-the-fcc-ready-to-deliver-atandts-lte-to-3-perce/

HTC Holiday at the FCC

We're not sure how much longer it'll be before the tiny fraction of Americans that can take advantage of AT&T's LTE network will actually be able to put the HTC Holiday in their hands, but we imagine it won't be too much longer. It looks like the dual-core super-phone just stopped by the FCC to have its radio checked out, and we're happy to report the PH39100 came out unscathed. Though photos and specific branding were missing from the filing, we're pretty confident that this 1700/2100/700 LTE device from HTC is, in fact, the Holiday. We're also certain that Ma Bell is working like mad to get this 4.5-inch beast out the door real soon. Hit up the source link if you're into things like RF exposure reports and label placement diagrams.

HTC Holiday hits the FCC, ready to deliver AT&T's LTE to 3-percent of Americans originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 13:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Dell confirms XPS 14z will go on sale in the US in the 'coming weeks'

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/dell-confirms-xps-14z-will-go-on-sale-in-the-us-in-the-coming-w/

Remember that XPS 14z Dell teased at IFA? Yeah, well, it's arriving soon. As in, "the coming weeks" soon. The company just confirmed it's on the cusp of shipping here in the states, and while the outfit stopped short of giving a starting price, it's good and ready to talk specs. As we reported last month, it has the same industrial design as its big brother, the XPS 15z, and we're told it, too, measures less than an inch thick (0.9 inches, to be precise). With the 14-incher, though, you'll enjoy LG's Shuriken display, which means we have one narrow bezel to look forward to. Look for it with a Core i5-2430M or Core i7-2640M CPU, NVIDIA Optimus graphics, a slot-loading optical drive, USB 3.0 and a starting weight of 4.36 pounds (that's 4.12 pounds if you upgrade to an SSD). You heard the company -- we'll get the full spill in a few weeks -- but for now, skip past the break for another sneak peak.

Update: You want dimensions? We've got 'em. The XPS 14z measures 13.19 x 9.21 x 0.9 inches (335 x 234 x 23mm).

Continue reading Dell confirms XPS 14z will go on sale in the US in the 'coming weeks'

Dell confirms XPS 14z will go on sale in the US in the 'coming weeks' originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 15:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Seven-inch Huawei tablet headed to T-Mobile, priced at $200 on contract?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/seven-inch-huawei-tablet-headed-to-t-mobile-priced-at-200-on-c/

It looks like T-Mobile is getting a seven-inch stablemate for the incoming Galaxy Tab 10.1. According to these shots from TmoNews, Huawei's dual-core MediaPad will arrive in magenta clothing, though branding is limited to a few apps and an additional press shot, included after the break. Aside from a 1280 x 800 IPS display and 4G goodness, details remain sketchy, though pricing is expected to be around $200 with a two-year agreement. No word either when it'll go on sale, but if Huawei's earlier promises of end-of-year availability apply to carrier-branded versions, you can expect to get your hands on it at some (vague) point between now and 2012.

Continue reading Seven-inch Huawei tablet headed to T-Mobile, priced at $200 on contract?

Seven-inch Huawei tablet headed to T-Mobile, priced at $200 on contract? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 17:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Adidas builds intelligent soccer cleats that can outwit even Joey Barton

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/adidas-builds-intelligent-soccer-cleats-that-can-outwit-even-joe/

Impoverished ~~football~~ soccer clubs, with their massive stadiums, billionaire owners and millionaire star players have it awful hard, you know. If a club wanted a statistical analysis of the team's movements over the 90 minutes (more if Sir Alex Ferguson is involved) then it needs to spend big on a ProZone statistics system. That's all due to change, thanks to Adidas' new adizero f50 miCoach -- an "intelligent football boot" that includes a space for the miCoach Speed Cell, a tracking device that works like a souped-up Nike+iPod. The chip records your speed, sprint times, distance, step and stride rates, stores it for up to seven hours and pushes it over WiFi or USB to the device of your choice. You'll be able to share your stats online with friends via Facebook and compare them to pros like diminutive pitchman Lionel Messi, diminutive Welshman Gareth Bale and the, ah, not-so-diminutive Emmanuel Adebayor. A pair of boots, Speed Cell and dongle will require your bank account to shrink to the tune of €245 ($330) and will hit the stores in November -- just in time for you to sit indoors during the snowy January transfer window.

Gallery: Adidas adizero f50 Powered by miCoach

Continue reading Adidas builds intelligent soccer cleats that can outwit even Joey Barton

Adidas builds intelligent soccer cleats that can outwit even Joey Barton originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 20:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Intel to acquire Telmap, dole out easy to implement location APIs to AppUp developers

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/intel-to-aquire-telmap-dole-out-easy-to-implement-location-apis/

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/29/intel-to-aquire-telmap-dole-out-easy-to-implement-location-apis/

In case you weren't watching, Intel's Elements 2011 Keynote slipped in a sly acquisition announcement: the firm recently signed a deal to absorb Telmap, an Israel-based outfit whose location platform is the backbone of countless navigation apps. Intel's Peter Biddle says the navigation firm is to become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Intel, and will help AppUp developers pack their apps with unique location capabilities via Telmap's standardized APIs. Biddle wraps it up simply enough: "New advanced capabilities with just a few lines of code." Details on the deal are scarce, but hit the source link below to see Biddle's full statement in Intel's AppUp wrap-up.

Intel to acquire Telmap, dole out easy to implement location APIs to AppUp developers originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 23:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Jkkmobile | source

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drag2share: Galaxy cluster research supports Einstein's Theory of Relativity on a cosmic level

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/30/galaxy-cluster-research-supports-einsteins-theory-of-relativity/

In one small win for Einstein, one giant win for mankind, scientists at the Niels Bohr Institute have proved his General Theory of Relativity on a cosmic scale through their research of large galaxy clusters. Accordingly, the clusters -- which are the largest known gravity-bound objects -- have such a strong pull that they should cause light to "redshift," or proportionally increase in wavelength, shifting towards the red end of the visible spectrum. To test it, researchers measured beams from 8,000 clusters, revealing that they do indeed cause a change in light's wavelength, supporting Einstein's theory to a T. One good turn deserves another, right Albert? Armchair cosmologists can hop on over to the source link to learn more.

Galaxy cluster research supports Einstein's Theory of Relativity on a cosmic level originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 02:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Tango releases video calling on PCs, we go hands-on (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/30/tango-releases-video-calling-on-pcs-we-go-hands-on-video/

It's been exactly a year since Tango's free video calling service hit iOS and Android smartphones, and the startup is marking its anniversary with another big release: Tango for PCs. We had a chance to catch up with CTO Eric Setton and the crew, and gave Tango's latest a test-run -- let's just say it's been a very good year for these guys. Earlier this month, Microsoft teased Tango as the harbinger of video calling for Mango, and, since its debut, the outfit's drawn in over 23 million users. So how did Tango fare in its move from the handset to the desktop? We'd say it's a smooth transition -- perhaps too smooth. Check out our first impressions after the break.

Continue reading Tango releases video calling on PCs, we go hands-on (video)

Tango releases video calling on PCs, we go hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 08:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thursday, September 29, 2011

drag2share: The Panasonic Lumix Phone 101P Might Not Suck at Being a Camera or a Phone [Android]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5845043/the-panasonic-lumix-phone-101p-might-not-suck-at-being-a-camera-or-a-phone

Oh Japan, why do you always get the coolest stuff first? This phone looks amazing. It's like a Panasonic Lumix camera and an Android phone had a baby. And it's waterproof? Gimme now.

This thing is going to pack a 13.2MP CMOS Lumix sensor. In case you don't know, the image sensors in Lumix cameras are pretty great. It's also going to have a 4-inch QHD LCD screen with 960×540 resolution and a 1Ghz TI OMAP4430 dual-core processor. It's waterproof, like all gadgets should be (though we don't know how waterproof yet), it runs Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) with some Lumix camera software on top (like their pretty terrific Intelligent Auto), and what the hell, let's throw NFC in there so you'll be able to use it as a digital wallet. Oh, and it's thin, at just 9.8mm. AND it's got a camera button. Holy crap I want this thing.

Traditionally, the cameras on phones have been not so great, and it's no wonder; trying to smash a camera into something as thin as a phone creates a ton of challenges and severely limits the size of the image sensor and the lens. No camera phone will ever replace your SLR, but if Panasonic gets this right, they might just be able to replace your point-and-shoot. As someone who hates having several large items in his pockets, I'm really rooting for them to knock this one out of the park.

No mention of pricing or if this will be available stateside (or anywhere outside of Japan). Come on Pani, bring this one over here. Pretty please? [TechCrunch]

You can keep up with Brent Rose, the author of this post, on Google+ or Twitter.

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