Facebook Adds Timeline Option for Expecting a Baby

Sometimes it seems like half the females on Facebook are pregnant. It seems like every time I look at my profile there are various pictures of new babies or girls showing off their pregnant bellies. Facebook has now added a new Life Event for Timeline users.

The new Life Event is “Expecting a Baby.” The new feature should be available now and allows the user to upload photos and add the Expecting a Baby note to their Timeline. The feature also allows the user to specify the sex, the due date, and other details.

Users can also specify what friends are groups of friends can see the announcement. The new life event is available under the Family & Relationships subheading. Once you or your friends at the Expecting a Baby Life Event it will be noted and the Celebrations section of the Facebook homepage.

[geeky gadgets]

’4K’ Video: A Hope for Japan’s Electronics Makers?

Associated Press

Sony chief Sir Howard Stringer showed off the company’s new 

4K home projector during the 2012 International CES in Las Vegas earlier this year

These are dark days for the electronics industry in Japan. Sony Corp. isworking to regain its mojo(and profitability after four straight years in the red), while Sharp, which once ruled Japan’s television market, is now facing a cash crunch that has raised questions about its long-term future.

The opportunities to script a comeback also appear grim. Smartphones are dominated by Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co., the tablet market is ruled by Apple, and the television sector is a dog-fight that leaves nearly everyone awash in losses. So where can Japan Inc. turn to for a hope for brighter days?

One possibility is “4K” technology. The “4K” name refers to the number of horizontal pixels, about 4,000, in the image, which is four-times the resolution of today’s high-definition video. Projectors using 4K technology are already used in many movie theaters, allowing super-sharp images even on a massive screen.

Sony is a leader in 4K technology. It produces everything from the image sensors used in cameras that capture the ultra-high resolution videos to the 4K projectors that display the images. A Sony F65, the world’s first commercial camera that can take 4K video, is being used for the filming of “After Earth,” an upcoming science-fiction movie featuring Will Smith. It will be distributed by – yes you guessed it – Sony.

The company’s executives have said it is currently developing a 4K television although it will not be the first to market with one. Toshiba Corp. uses a 4K display in a glasses-free 3-D television it released last year, but the 55-inch model sells for about 780,000 yen, or about $10,000, in Tokyo.

Similar to how high-definition video helped to spur a new round of television sales, Sony and others are hoping that 4K may provide consumers with new incentive to upgrade their TVs.

Sony Chief Executive Kazuo Hirai has said one of his areas of focus will be to find ways to adapt the company’s most expensive technologies geared for business customers for consumer applications. This also means finding ways to reduce the price of the new technology to a level palatable to the mass market. Mr. Hirai has pointed to 4K as a prime example of his efforts.

Japan’s technology firms have tried this before. In 2010, Sony, Panasonic and others aggressively promoted 3-D displays with the hopes of revitalizing the television market. Even with the growing availability of 3-D movies, the technology received a lukewarm response from consumers. The lack of 3-D content and the need to wear special glasses stunted the growth potential of 3-D. While 4K will not require special glasses, it may need to overcome the same shortage of content problem as 3-D.

[WSJ]

Apple Extends Tablet Lead in Second Quarter

Apple extended its dominance in tablet computers, shipping nearly seven out of every 10 tablets in the second quarter, according to research firm IHS iSuppli.

A new model came out a few weeks before the April-June quarter began. Google’s challenger, the Nexus 7, didn’t start shipping until the third quarter.

Apple’s 69.6 percent share in the April-June quarter is up from about 58 percent in the first quarter. It’s the highest since the first quarter of last year, when Apple had 70 percent in a market with fewer competitors then.

Here are the top five manufacturers of tablets in the second quarter, as released by HIS iSuppli on Tuesday:

• Apple Inc., maker of the iPad, 17 million shipped worldwide, 69.6 percent share
• Samsung Electronics Co., maker of Galaxy line, 2.3 million, 9.2 percent.
• Amazon.com Inc., maker of Kindle Fire, 1 million, 4.2 percent
• AsusTek Computer Inc., maker of Transformer line, 688,000, 2.8 percent
• Barnes & Noble Inc., maker of Nook Tablet, 459,000, 1.9 percent
• Other, 3 million, 12.3 percent

Source: IHS iSuppli

Microsoft Reveals Windows RT Who's-Who and What's-What

Microsoft has shared its list of the OEMs gearing up to make the first wave of devices running Windows 8 RT, the version of the upcoming OS made for tablet devices. Notably absent from the list are PC megacorporation HP as well as Acer, which recently voiced its discontent over Microsoft's development of its own in-house tablet device.

Microsoft has announced that Asus, Lenovo, Samsung and Dell will unveil tablets based on Windows RT by the time it launches the operating system in October.

Each is developing a variety of form factors and peripherals, Microsoft said.

However, all their Windows RT products will have consistent fast and fluid touch interactions, long battery life and connected standby, the company said, adding that all are thin and light.

The Many Faces of Windows RT

Windows RT devices will range from ultra-thin products with high-resolution displays to all-in-one PCs with large touchscreen displays to high-power tower PCs fitted with multiple graphics cards and high-performance storage arrays, Microsoft said. They will be offered in a variety of price and feature combinations.

Pentagon helps build Meshworm reconnaissance robot

Engineers have created a robot that mimics a worm's movements - crawling along surfaces by contracting segments of its body.

The technique allows the machine to be made of soft materials so it can squeeze through tight spaces and mould its shape to rough terrain.

It can also absorb heavy blows without sustaining damage.

The Pentagon's Darpa research unit supported the Meshworm project, suggesting a potential military use.

Wall-E and R2-D2 brought to life: A story of innovation, collaboration and passion

If you see Wall-E or R2-D2 roaming around a children’s hospital ward or at a convention center, you’ll have to look hard to find Mike Senna or Michael McMaster.
Senna has been making the rounds online, celebrated for his creation of a Wall-E robot so real, you would think it had been plucked from the Pixar film like so much Disney magic. But Senna, and McMaster, didn’t spend two-and-a-half years creating the robot for the recognition.
“I don’t care about my recognition. I’m a geek,” said Senna during a phone conversation Friday. “We don’t feel good about getting all that recognition in public. So, I kind of hide away in the corners and operate.”
As if to further illustrate the sentiment, Senna made a point of mentioning McMaster, his fellow collaborator, who called on Senna to participate in the project. Senna lamented the fact that McMaster’s role in Wall-E’s creation has been missing from the story, which went viral last week, following a Yahoo video report.

Michael McMaster and Mike Senna's Wall-E robots interact with onlookers at Maker Faire 2012. (Amy Senna)

Google Translate can now read images of text

The newest version of the Google Translate app can now translate text from photos, according to Android Central. The image feature works with all languages available in Translate, and allows users to highlight the text they want to convert to another language.

In the app, users take a photo of their foreign blurb of choice, and then swipe their fingers to highlight the text in the photo that needs to be translated. Google sends the image off to its servers and gives the user back the translated phrase. It can't auto-detect what language it's trying to read, however—that's your job.

The new functionality is similar to an iOS app released in December 2010 called Word Lens, which can translate text picked up by the iPhone's camera. Word Lens could display the translated text right in the viewfinder itself, but is still restricted to only three language packs for translating to and from English (Spanish, Italian, and French), each of which cost $4.99.

The new Google Translate is available now in the Google Play store for Android phones running 2.3 Gingerbread or later.