Tuesday, 18 June 2013
Tour the E3 Show Floor Through Google Glass
ToughWriter prototype brings color printing to the cockpit, we go hands-on
Microsoft Injects New Creative Tools Into Its Tiny Social Network
Cafelito
El momento humorístico del día va para You and your fucking coffee (Tú y tu jodido café), una divertida miniserie de humor que quizá sea por la temática, quizá por su simplicidad, te deja con una sonrisilla en la boca.
La idea básica son diferentes encarnaciones de lo que los científicos conocen como el efecto mariposa producidas por un tipo cualquiera que va y pide un café de la forma más amable posible. ¿Inocente, verdad?
Sus acciones provocan una secuencia de acontecimientos que conllevan –como dicen en MeFi que es por donde lo vi pasar– la destrucción completa de algunas vidas de la forma más absurda posible.
- You and your fucking coffee, cap. 1 + cap. 2 + cap. 3 [YouTube]
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/humor/cafelito.html
Homejoy Announces A Perks Program, So Companies Can Pay To Clean Their Employees' Homes
As startups compete for the best talent, Homejoy is announcing a way for companies to offer employees an additional perk — a clean home.
Home cleanings may not a standard perk yet, but they’re not an entirely new idea, either — last fall, The New York Times wrote that in Silicon Valley, “the employee perk is moving from the office to the home,” with both Evernote and the Stanford School of Medicine experimenting with offering housecleaning to their employees. That can be especially appealing when startups ask teams to work long hours, so they don’t have time to clean their homes themselves.
There are, of course, other cleaning services, but Growth Manager Jeffrey Pang said that as with the company’s consumer product, the goal of Homejoy’s perks program is to make the process as convenient as possible. The company works directly with office administrators to set up Homejoy accounts for employees. Then, when an employee logs in, they should see a credit for their monthly cleaning, and they schedule a cleaning just like any other user. They can also see user ratings for their cleaners, offer their own feedback, and all of that data is also fed into Homejoy’s analytics system.
Homejoy charges the same as it does in the consumer version, $20 an hour — that’s significantly cheaper than most other cleaning services.
Pang said he’s already been testing the program out with some tech companies, such as Heyzap, and he anticipated that it will be startups that are most willing to adopt the program. At the same time, he said larger companies that don’t want to offer this to all employees (at least not initially) could also use it on a more limited basis, for example as a perk for the employee of the month or for expectant mothers.
“I think other industries have been slower to adopt something like this, but I could see it becoming more and more popular outside of tech,” Pang said.
Homejoy is now available in 19 cities, including he San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Washington D.C. and Seattle. The perks program is available in all of those cities. The company is also promoting the program with a “dirtiest desk” contest, where people can submit a photo of, yes, their dirty desks. The winner will get a month of free home cleanings for their entire company — they’ll be selected via random drawing, but apparently getting people to like and tweet about your photo improves your chances.
Since I had Pang and Homejoy CEO and co-founder Adora Cheung on the phone, I also asked about something I’d been noticing as a Homejoy customer — so the wait times for a cleaning seem to be getting longer. (Maybe I was really just being a grumpy customer complaining about having to schedule cleanings several weeks in advance, but in my head, at least, it was a more substantive question about balancing supply and demand.)
“We want to bring on high quality cleaners as fast as possible but not so fast that bad cleaners who don’t clean well come through our system,” Cheung said. “We’ve gotten better in recent weeks. We’re trying to balance supply and demand as much as possible.”
Pang added that the Bay Area is the only region where Homejoy has experienced “wait time issues.”
Also, in case it wasn’t clear, Homejoy is a startup itself, having been incubated at Y Combinator and raised funding from Andreessen Horowitz and others.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/lY3LCT1lFYg/
Next3D's plan to bring recorded video to the Oculus Rift
Esta es la pinta que tiene un carguero espacial por dentro
Establecidas las pertinentes conexiones eléctricas y de datos entre la Estación Espacial Internacional y el ATV-4 Albert Einstein, comprobada que la unión entre ambas naves es estanca, y limipiada la atmósfera del interior de este de posibles partículas que se pudieran haber desprendido durante el lanzamiento, Luca Parmitano y Alexandr Misurkin entraron en su interior en la mañana del 18 de junio de 2013.
Este es el vídeo de lo que se encontraron, con todo perfectamente colocado en su sitio, aunque para mi que lo que buscaban eran las tabletas de chocolate.
Dado que hay algunas dudas de que algunas de las bolsas en las que están empaquetadas las cosas puedan haberse contaminado con moho o bacterias Luca y Alensandr instalaron un purificador en el cono posterior del ATV, la parte más alejada de la escotilla que lo comunica con la EEI, y lo dejarán en marcha durante unas horas antes de volver a entrar en el Albert Einstein.
La escotilla de acceso a la EEI vista desde el interior del simulador de ATV del Centro de Entrenamiento de Astronautas de la ESA en Colonia - ESA
A partir de ahí toca ir descargando cosas, empezando por la bomba de agua para el laboratorio Columbus, que con 90 kilos de peso es el ítem más pesado de este envío.
Está previsto además usar los motores del Albert Einstein ya durante el miércoles 19 para una primera maniobra de aumento de altura de la órbita de la Estación.
Al atracar en uno de los extremos de la Estación los ATV pueden usar sus motores para acelerarla y así hacer subir su órbita
Luego habrá que interrumpir las labores de descarga temporalmente, pues hay que cerrar las escotillas de nuevo por si hubiera algún problema durante el paseo espacial previsto para el lunes 24, ya que el ATV tiene que estar en configuración de desatraque por si hubiera algún problema de despresurización en el módulo Zvezda en el que está atracado durante el paseo espacial en cuestión.
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/ciencia/esta-es-la-pinta-que-tiene-un-carguero-espacial-por-dentro.html
Forget jetliners, the Paris Air Show means war (video)
FBI deputy director claims intelligence programs foiled NYC subway and NYSE bombings, among others
Rounds updates video chat app, lets users browse the web together (video)
Engadget Giveaway: win one of two ChromeBook Pixels, courtesy of Gogo!
Huawei Ascend P6 hands-on (video)
NASA picks eight astronaut trainees that may go to asteroids and Mars (video)
Obvious-Backed Lift Brings Its Smart Goal-Tracking And Self Improvement App To The Browser And Mobile Web
Back in August, Lift launched the first rendition of its snappy-looking iPhone app that aims to help people build healthy habits and achieve their goals. Initially incubated and seed funded by Obvious Corp., the hybrid accelerator and seed vehicle created by Twitter co-founders Ev Williams and Biz Stone and early Twitter VP Jason Goldman, the startup added $2.5 million from Spark Capital, SV Angel and Adam Ludwin from RRE, among others, in November.
Today, Tony Stubblebine, Jon Crosby and team are making their goal-tracking app available to everyone by bringing it to the browser. Up until now, Lift has been iPhone-only, but beginning today, users will be able to sign up for an account and use the app across Windows and Android phones.
The browser version of Lift includes many of the same features that have been available on mobile, including tracking, streaks, graphs, progress and community support, as Stubblebine explained in a blog post this morning.
As we’ve written previously, Lift is among a new set of startups experimenting with the best ways to present behavioral design on mobile — to “find the right incentivization and motivation structures” that can help people better achieve their goals.
Many companies have opted to take a health-centric approach to activity tracking, offering monetary rewards or social graph-leveraged peer pressure to help people unlock healthier lifestyles. Using methods inspired by the Quantified Self Movement’s penchant for data tracking, psychology and behavioral research — along with cheerleading and positive support from its community — Lift is taking a more general approach.
It’s not intended to just be a health-tracking app, although it works in many health-related contexts by helping users keep track of say, the number of push ups they managed in any given week. The team doesn’t want Lift just to be a “tracker” in the same way that many Quantified Self enthusiasts have come to see health trackers as a system bereft of intelligence where users can simply keep tabs and notes about what people do on a daily basis.
And, rather than simply being a habit tracker, which sounds like another chore that people have to suffer through, and because it’s not automatic or daily — the focus of many habit trackers. Instead, users can create or join existing “habits,” using the app to record those habits when and if they meet them. All activity on the app is public, and users can offer support to others (and receive it in kind) when goals are reached.
The idea is to make it simple to record your progress for any and all of your regular habits or activities and get pushed along by the positive reinforcement of community applause. As Lift sucks in more data on your aspirations and progress, it populates groups of charts and graphs with that data, giving users a visual sense of just how well (or not) they’ve been doing when it comes to sticking to their goals.
I like to think of it this way: You know when you make all those brave New Years Resolutions about how you’re going to get in shape and be a better son/daughter/husband/wife/sister/brother/mother/father, stay in touch with friends, be kinder to animals and re-tweet Rip’s articles more regularly? Well, usually, those resolutions are attacked with gusto for about a week before life gets in the way and one month later, you’ve driven by the gym once.
Lift is the app that helps you keep track of all those life goals and remind yourself how close you are to getting there. As Stubblebine writes: “You can’t change what you don’t measure and tracking your progress is the first step toward achievement.” And the second step, going beyond goal tracking, is to make the community foundation deep enough that it becomes a legitimate source of answers, accountability and positive support.
In terms of what Lift is launching today, beyond progress and quick tracking, Lift for the Web includes a “Me” tab that allows users to view trend charts in bar form among others. [See below.]
Lift for the Web is also a product of responsive design, meaning that its optimized for mobile use as well, adjusting in size to work with the format and screen type of any mobile device, phone or tablet.
In terms of what’s up next: Lift says that a native Android version of the app isn’t quite ready yet, but it’s on the way. In terms of features, Lift is also testing “expert guidance and accountability in the form of groups,” which Stubblebine says one can think of like “training plans.”
Skeptical? For more about the “Science of Lift,” find it here. But, with its responsive design, Lift (at the very least) keeps the bar high in terms of the clean look and appeal of its simplicity. The team is taking great care not to just create another blunt instrument for health tracking, as seen by the “intelligent” push notification system it launched late last year (care of Matthew Panzarino of TNW), and its user experience is all the better for it.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/Zp2RmP8pYnw/
Huawei Ascend P6 announced: 6.18mm thickness, 4.7-inch 720p display
T-Mobile to offer Sony Xperia Z as a US exclusive in the 'coming weeks'
TCL launches 5-inch 1080p idol X S950 smartphone with ultra-thin bezel, $280 price
Samsung to livestream its Galaxy and ATIV 'premiere' event
Displair proyecta imágenes en el aire y permite interactuar con ellas
Displair proyecta la imagen en una pantalla formada por una niebla muy fina, formada por diminutas gotas de agua, que se combina con el reconocimiento de gestos del usuario utilizando cámaras y sensores de infrarrojos.
Festival del humor #1: En este caso el término vaporware no es necesariamente peyorativo.
Festival del humor #2: El efecto brazo de gorila... en la niebla.
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/tecnologia/displair-es-una-pantalla-interactiva-que-proyecta-la-imagen-en-el-aire.html
Comprueban que el agua estancada durante más de mil millones de años sabe a rayos
Desde el departamento de Todo por la Ciencia:
En The Atlantic, Confirmed: 1-Billion-Year-Old Water Tastes 'Terrible' ,
El agua encontrada ha estado atrapada a 2,5 km bajo la superficie de la Tierra durante mucho tiempo. ¿Durante cuánto? Según los análisis los científicos creen que esa agua ha estado ahí atrapada [dentro de minerales] al menos 1000 millones de años y tal vez más, hasta 2600 millones de años —un poco menos de la edad de las rocas que la contenían. Durante casi la mitad de la totalidad de la existencia de la Tierra esa agua ha permanecido ahí atrapada y aislada de la atmósfera.
La particularidad de esta agua no está en su antigüedad que es similar a la del resto del agua que hay en el planeta incluyendo la que sale por el grifo —se trata siempre la misma—, sino en que al parecer ha permanecido todo ese tiempo ahí atrapada, fuera del ciclo del agua.
Así que esa agua no se ha filtrado ni se ha evaporado ni se ha precipitado en forma de lluvia en al menos los últimos 1000 millones de años.
En Los Angeles Times, How does world's oldest water taste? 'Terrible' la investigadora Barbara Sherwood Lolla de la Universidad de Toronto la describe como,
Es más viscosa que el agua del grifo, similar al caramelo líquido (...) admito que la he probado en más de una ocasión. Tiene un sabor terrible, mucho más salada que el agua del mar.
Deliciosa agua mineral precámbrica.
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/ciencia/comprueban-agua-atrapada-mil-millones-anos-sabe-a-rayos.html
World War Z 'Mega Ticket' trial brings early screenings, bonuses for $50
Ad Giant WPP Takes Stake In Muzy, A Mobile Microblogging Startup With 20M Users
Advertising giant WPP is taking another step into the world of startup investments, this time specifically in mobile and social media. WPP Ventures, an investment arm of WPP digital, today announced a stake in Muzy, a social media platform arranged in a Pinterest-style grid layout that lets users incorporate links to images, games, text and more, which they then share with their friends, or with the world at large. The site, in some regards, has flown under the radar, but it has some 20 million users and is adding 1 million each month. Terms of the investment were not disclosed but we are trying to find out.
That growth, however, and the facts that Muzy is social and mobile, are three possible reasons for why WPP took an interest in the site.
Muzy, founded in 2011 and based in San Francisco, was founded by Andrew Chen (CEO) and Matt Rubens (CTO). Chen had also held positions at Mohr Davidow Ventures and Revenue Science, while Rubens, an engineer, has worked at Amazon.com, among other places. According to a release, the company will be using the funding to staff up — it currently employs less than 10 people — and “build out the suite of creative publishing tools for the Muzy platform.” At the moment, when you go to the site, you can choose from some 50 widgets to publish content into your page. It’s this app-within-app facility that sets Muzy apart from other platforms focused on content creation and self-expression, and could be one way for the company to differentiate longer term.
It could also be a way for WPP to potentially look at ways of monetizing. You can imagine, for example, widgets or channels getting sponsored by brands, not to mention pages themselves. In an age where users are getting increasingly desensitized to display advertising online, you can see how new formats like these will continue to be tested out as ways of getting users to engage with marketing (as a way, also, of financing sites like these).
WPP has developed something of a track record in making strategic investments into digital, specifically mobile and other emerging areas, as a way of shoring up against larger trends in the industry away from more traditional forms of media like print.
Following where the consumer masses (and their eyeballs) are going, WPP has taken stakes in e-commerce sites like MySupermarket ($10 million in April 2012); and more straight media plays, such as yesterday’s news, a stake in Fullscreen (undisclosed amount). Perhaps the biggest of these for a long time will be the company’s acquisition of digital agency AKQA (June 2012, reportedly at a $550 million valuation).
It’s the AKQA deal that has provided the engine to today’s news around Muzy. The investment is being led by WPP Ventures, a Silicon Valley-based operation for WPP’s bigger investment efforts. WPP Ventures is being led by president Tom Bedecarré, who is also chairman of AKQA.
WPP, one of the world’s very biggest ad agencies, says that in 2012 its digital revenues were over $5 billion, some 33% of its total revenues of $16.5 billion. It’s long been pursuing a target of getting 40% of its revenues coming from digital by 2018.
We have reached out to WPP and Muzy for more details and will update this post as we learn more.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/Htj7pfO4lxo/
AMD details first ARM-based server chip: up to 16 helpings of Cortex-A57 clocked at 2GHz
Raspbmc's June build brings a slew of tweaks: cloud backups and more coming in July
Nintendo 3DS update adds save backups, new StreetPass game store
HTC Desire 200 goes official: 3.5 inches of low-end Android with Beats Audio and 5MP camera
LG Optimus G Pro tops 1 million sales in South Korea
Un producto en spray altamente repelente al agua y a otros líquidos
La gente de NuncaSeMoja (traducción literal de su apropiado nombre en inglés: NeverWet) va a empezar a comercializar entre el gran público este producto repelente al agua. Como puede verse en el vídeo parece se comporta por un lado de forma gozosa estilo Blandi Blub y si se utiliza como spray sobre materiales convencionales como tejidos o dispositivos electrónicos, los vuelve repelentes al agua hasta límites insospechados.
Atención a las demostraciones de 01:40 en adelante, especialmente 2:50 y su aplicación tecnológica sobre teléfonos móviles y cacharritos similares a partir de 03:30.
El invento es de hace un par de años pero según cuentan estaban terminando la versión comercial y buscando la financiación adecuada, que hay conseguido a través de la empresa Rust-Oleum. Dicen que quieren que sea algo así como «el 3-en-1 de los próximos 100 años».
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/gadgets/spray-repelente-agua.html