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Submission + - Barnes & Noble Now Recruiting Windows 8 Engineers for New Nooks (the-digital-reader.com)

Submitted by Nate the greatest
Nate the greatest writes: Everyone is all excited today about the new B&N Nook HD and Nook HD+, a pair of beautiful Android tablets with 7" and 9" screens. But while we're all paying attention to the new gadgets B&N is already looking to the next generation. There's a new job posting on one of B&N's websites today. They're recruiting a new Director of Engineering for Windows 8. The new guy's job will be to work to integrate the nook platform with Widows 8 as well as Microsoft's other ecosystems. It's not completely clear yet what this means but one can always dream. MetroNook, anyone?

Comment Re:Irrelevance and mediocrity (Score 2) 112

by mbourgon (#41235895) Attached to: Leaked Photo Shows Touch-Screen BlackBerry 10 Phone

My one major complaint about the 9900 is the battery life. Even with wifi turned on (which, if you're in range of wifi all the time, lengthens battery life), I'm lucky if mine lasts 24 hours. Granted I get a crapload of mail, but it was really nice to charge 2-3 times a week.

That being said, the 9900 is pretty nice. The keyboard is big enough, screen resolution is nice, touchscreen is pretty nice, my only other complaint was they got rid of the "Reader" function in the web browser (but I guess that's what Readability/Instapaper is for). For work, with the nice keyboard, profiles, filters and the ability to set different rings for different events or different subjects/people depending on the situation, it's a lifesaver. I wouldn't mind a work iPhone - but without profiles, it's not worth it.
Microsoft

Submission + - Nathan Myhrvold, Do-Gooder

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Perturbed by a GigaOm item which likened him to 'Darth Vader doing some charity work as he completes the Death Star', Intellectual Ventures CEO Nathan Myhrvold talks about the goals of his 'Global Good'program and fires back at critics in an interview with GeekWire's Todd Bishop. The technology industry is a little too obsessed with 'sending little messages to each other and having fun on a social network' for Myhrvold, who hopes to tackle bigger problems like malaria, polio, and HIV with the help of funding from buddy Bill Gates. 'I don’t mean to call Zynga out in a negative way,' says Myhrvold, 'but is Zynga doing God’s work? Is Facebook doing God’s work? Even setting aside what God's work means, I think it’s pretty easy to say, those companies are doing wonderful things, but they are for-profit ventures. It’s either tools or toys for the rich.' BTW, if you're ready to do God's work, IV's looking for a Vice President, Global Good

Submission + - Clean up my work computer before I leave 2

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: I'm leaving my current job for a new one. I've been at this job for 10+ years so I'm sure there is tons of personal stuff stored on my machine. Since I can't take it with me does any one have a suggestions of tools or practices to clean off all of that data. I've already got my personal documents and files. I'm most worried about CC, debit card numbers and web site passwords I've used in browsers. Does clearing the cache, cookies, temp files do a good enough job? BTW it's a Windows 7 system if that makes a difference.
Hardware

Submission + - Nike's stroboscopic eyewear improves visual memory, hand-eye coordination (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
MrSeb
MrSeb writes: "Sports athletes in recent years have concentrated on making themselves stronger and faster (sometimes to their own detriment and sanctity of the sport — see Baseball, Steroids Era), but building muscle mass is only part of the equation. Nike, one of the biggest sponsors of sport, sees potential (and profit) in specialized eye gear designed to allow athletes to fine tune their sensory skills and “see their sport better” through the use of modern technology. To prove its point and draw attention to its Sparq Vapor Strobe sports glasses ($300), Nike commissioned a study at Duke’s Institute for Brain Sciences that focuses on “stroboscopic training” using Nike’s eyewear. Through the use of computer-generated memory tests, the study found that strobe eyewear can boost visual memory retention for up to 24 hours. The Sparq Vapor Strobe glasses works its sensory mojo by blocking or disrupting vision using a user-adjustable strobe or flicker effect (the glasses are made of curved plastic LCD lenses). By switching between clear and blocked vision, the glasses train the athlete’s brain to anticipate what’s coming when the eyes are blocked, Nike explains. This, in turn, leads to a hypersensitive ability to pick up on subtle motion cues, better visual information processing, and superior timing of motion. In real world terms, the glasses could improve hand-eye coordination, making it easier for a football player to make a tough catch. “This project takes a big step by showing that these improved perceptual abilities are driven, at least in part, by improvements in visual memory.” says Stephen Mitroff, a professor at Duke University."

Submission + - JCPenney to Eliminate Cashiers in Favor of Mobile and Self-Checkouts (businessinsider.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: JCPenney CEO Ron Johnson (formerly of Apple) plant to eliminate traditional cashiers from retail locations in favor of Moble and Self-Checkouts by the end of 2013. The stores will be "100 percent RFID (radio frequency identification) and wi-fi enabled."

Comment Re:No, just the mediocre handset industry. (Score 1) 278

by mbourgon (#40491335) Attached to: Does RIM's "Huge Loss" Signal Wider Handset Market Deterioration?

If it becomes available in time. I own a bold, a 9900. Released in August, it took 3 additional months before AT&T (in my experience, a frequented-by-business carrier) had it. It doesn't sound like much, but there was pretty much no reason for it to be delayed. Free money left on the table; we had at least 3 people migrate to iPhones in that time.
Apple

Submission + - Dvorak blames Apple for his '07 call to kill the iPhone in its cradle (networkworld.com)

Submitted by
netbuzz
netbuzz writes: "Longtime tech pundit John Dvorak wasn’t the only one to predict that the iPhone would fail prior to Apple’s public release of the device on June 29, 2007, but he may have pushed the most chips into the center of the table with a column that carried this headline: "Apple should pull the plug on the iPhone ... Company risks its reputation in competitive business." Five years and a technological revolution later, Network World asked Dvorak – and seven others who called the iPhone’s future wrong – to explain their miscalculations. A few tried putting lipstick on the pig, a few simply copped to blowing it, and Dvorak devoted 500 words to laying the blame on Apple — and what he sees as a lapdog press corps – for making him speculate about a device he hadn’t held. “When I actually got to see the phone I was enthralled like everyone else,” he writes, “and regretted getting screwed over by the Apple ‘machine.’”

Full Dvorak at "Link to Original Source"

All 8 explanations here:

http://www.networkworld.com/slideshow/53912"

Comment What plans? (Score 1) 2

Everybody is basically trying to come up with something that meets/beats/comes-close-to the iPad, and figure a way to charge the same as the iPad. Hardly rocket science. DESIGNING something comparable is hard, yes, but it's pretty much known what everyone's plans are.

Then again, I think Cringely's right - the Surface is pure vaporware (at this point, at least), and the only reason it was shown was to avoid being a has-been after the Google tablet gets announced.

But hey, the keyboard's interesting, at least. But does it fold? (And if not, where's it sit when you have the tablet open for media consumption? I'm honestly curious, since it did look promising.

Comment $50? Kidding, right? (Score 1) 1

by mbourgon (#40298391) Attached to: Ask Slashdot : Best Headphones, Earbuds, Earphones...etc?

Sorry, but $50 barely buys you anything. Cheap earbuds would isolate but sound like crap (even the $100 shure/etymotics/ultimate ears aren't what I'd call "excellent"), and the only sub-50$ cans I'd ever recommend are the Koss Porta Pros (and I can't vouch for the newer ones). The Grado SR60s are quite good for the price, but last I looked they're $80, and they have less than no isolation. (For me that's a plus).

For $100, I've heard Sennheiser HD518 ($115) are good. I use the Grado SR-80s ($100) and am very happy (but make sure they either have the full-foam covering over the cans, or buy the foam covers from the SR-60s).

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