Gordon posted a new HDR photo and it looks great. Meanwhile, he also found an app that utilizes the content aware image resizing concept that was demonstrated a few months ago.
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Amazon Kindle - First Impressions
Thursday, November 22, 2007
I bought a Kindle on Monday (see Amazon, CNet). It arrived on Tuesday. Here are my impressions.
- At $400, it is more expensive than the Sony EReader, but the Kindle has wireless (free EVDO) access to the Amazon store so you can buy books while you are away from your computer and start reading them in a few minutes.
- You can send email to your kindle with attachments. In my experience, so far, the experimental PDF conversion (10 cents per document) works really well and even keeps links.
- As expected, the electronic ink is much more relaxing to gaze at than a computer screen.
- The delay caused by refreshing the screen when you turn pages is not too much of a disruption if you are reading every word. However, it makes skimming impossible. For this reason, I don’t think I’ll be able to read my RSS feeds on the Kindle, only articles, books, etc.
- It is oddly shaped, yes, but it’s light and comfortable to hold.
- I’ve only read a portion of a book so far, but I’ll report back here when I’ve completed it. So far, it’s great.
- I haven’t used the clipping, annotating and highlighting features, yet, but I’m glad they are there.
- You can download samples of any book in the Kindle store (90,000+). This is great for reading the first chapter of books you are interested in at your leisure (not at a book store). If you choose to purchase, you can do so while reading the sample and have the full book in a couple of minutes.
- I’ve already used the browser with Wikipedia several times. I think that’s going to be a hit with a lot of people.
- I do wish that more text could fit on the screen and that the screen itself had a frontlight for reading in the dark.
Seashore for OS X
Thursday, November 22, 2007
I spent some time this morning trying various free and inexpensive OS X image editors. I tried the GIMP, but it lagged a lot and then crashed. I tried ImageWell (which seems great), but it didn’t have the kind of selection tool I wanted. I tried Live Quartz and enjoyed it, but it also did not have the selection tool I was looking for.
Finally, I tried Seashore. Seashore is a custom build of the GIMP with a Cocoa front end and a smaller set of functionality. It had the selection tool I was looking for and works great!
Using Seashore, I made a silhouette of Doctor Who’s TARDIS for my blog header.
Win a Nokia N810 Internet Tablet!
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
TabletBlog is running a contest: The best response to ThoughtFix’s video will win one of Nokia’s new N810 Internet Tablets. Entries are due by 11/16, so HURRY! Reggie, Jonathan, ThoughtFix and I will be judging.
The Latest
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Work has been extremely busy, causing me to be extremely quiet on the blogging and email fronts. Here’s a quick catch-up:
Family
Charlie and Samantha are taking swimming classes and Samantha is playing Volleyball now! Beth and I took the family on two (short) trips this summer - the Grand Canyon+Sedona first and then a trip to Disneyland. Both a lot of fun! OH, and Kyria, my older sister, made me an excellent scarf (patterned after the one worn by Tom Baker in season 12 of Doctor Who) - it’s awesome!!
Homestead
We’re working on several cool projects at Homestead and we’ve recently brought a lot of great new talent on board. Our customers are happier than ever and they have a lot to look forward to later this year and next.
Games
I played and finished Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and Portal. Very fun, fairly short games. Portal exceeded my expectations and delivered a unique experience that I’ll never forget. Bravo!
Gadgets
I’m jazzed to see the new Nokia n810. I’ve been a believer in the internet tablets (770, n800) for a while now, but recently I’ve been bugged that they don’t fit in your pocket. The n810 fixes all that by being just a little bigger than an iPhone. Imagine a Nintendo DS Lite MINUS the top screen/speaker assembly - that’s the size of the new n810. Wifi, 800×480, GPS, Slide-out-Keyboard, smooth youtube - IN YOUR POCKET. It’s unbelievable. Looks like Nokia really found the sweet spot with the new device. More from ThoughtFix and Atmasphere. Specs at Engadget.
Software
OS X Leopard looks GREAT, particularly the Time Machine versioned backup system. Nine more days! And the (better-late-than-never) iPhone SDK is coming in February. I’m really enjoying Apple’s products lately.
TV
Kitchen Nightmares is the only series I’m really attached to right now. Heroes has a lot to make up for after last season’s disappointing finale. Probably won’t be very excited about TV until the next seasons of Lost, Doctor Who, Life on Mars and Battlestar Galactica arrive.
Next Nokia Internet Tablet will have a slide keyboard and GPS. Wow!
Sunday, September 30, 2007
ThoughtFix gets the Nokia scoop AGAIN. Nice move!
Microsoft SideWinder Mouse
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Update: Bought a Sidewinder this weekend and it is wonderful! I find myself actually using thumb buttons for once. Also, the mouse is wide and comfortable. It’s nice to see that the container for the weights and alternative feet holds the cord really well. The cord holding feature was clearly not just an afterthought - the holder has a substantial amount of additional heft beyond the mouse weights.
I’m looking forward to the new Microsoft Sidewinder mouse. Not just for gaming, but because of the optimal placement of the thumb buttons. Most mice put the thumb buttons ‘out of the way’, forcing you to reach to press them. The Sidewinder thumb buttons are positioned at your thumb’s resting position, similar to how the left and right buttons are positioned under your fingers.
I’m also looking forward to the competition this represents for logitech. I’m a huge fan of the logitech mice (I own several, including the mx510, the vx nano, and the mx revolution), but I’d love to see even more innovation.
New Rolly Video
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Diginfo has a new video of the Sony Rolly (due later this month). I’m still shocked that noone has built a homebrew version of the Rolly, yet, with Lego Mindstorms.
Sony Rolly Announced
Sunday, September 9, 2007
$350 US, available only in Japan (9/29/07).
Engadget’s notes here. Videos here. Original post and commercial here. Update: Akihabara News has a hands on video.
1GB of audio storage and can stream from bluetooth devices which support A2DP. Clever UI - hold the Rolly vertically, twist the top wheel to change the song. Twist the bottom wheel to change the volume. Moves, spins, moves its flippers to the music. Can be choreographed.
It does not seem to be programmable. However, if it can be controlled at a very granular level in real time via bluetooth, it may not need to be in order to be a basic robotics platform. Time will tell.
When I first read about the Rolly, I started pricing out how to builid something comparable using a Nintendo DS, a Palm TX or a Nokia Internet Tablet as the guts. All seem doable, for less than the cost of the Rolly (if you already have one of those devices), but they will be bigger, uglier and less durable than the Rolly. Still, a solution based on one of those devices would be much more programmable and would have a wifi connection.
Extreme Onslaught for Slot 1 DS Flash Cards
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
OK, OK, OK. You can stop asking for a version of Extreme Onslaught that works on Slot 1 DS Flash Cards. Here it is!! Thanks for testing it Kris!
9.05.07
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
The rumors for tomorrow’s Apple event have been swirling for a few weeks, as they do before most Apple events.
Normally, I’m not sure whether or not to believe the rumors the day before, but today I’m really excited. The rumors, especially the new nano, the wireless/touchscreen ipod video, and the wireless itunes music store all seem like they are due.
Meanwhile, I’m really hoping for a software update for the iPhone (EXCHANGE PUSH, PLEASE).
Sony Rolly
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
The wait has just begun. We saw the first (viral) video of it last week.
The wait is almost over. Word has it that there is a Rolly release party in Japan on the 10th.
So what is it? A Wii for music? The new (tiny) Aibo platform? I’ll try to remain objective, but I’m loving it. The speaker caps controlled by solenoids (or servos or electromagnets), the speakers, the rgb strips, the dual independent wheels and the potential for robot choreography are all pretty slick.
Great so far…
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
I’m halfway through Bioshock on the PC (widescreenmod!) and William Gibson’s new book, Spook Country. Both are great so far.
I’m also really enjoying this season of Eureka!