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Google's upcoming Chrome operating system - a new OS that will arrive on netbook computers later this year. It is also going to offer a feature 'chromoting' - a remote desktop app for your new cloud computer that Google engineers have dubbed, reports The New York Times.
We're adding new capabilities all the time. With this functionality (unofficially named chromoting), Chrome OS will not only be a great platform for running modern web apps, but will also enable you to access legacy PC applications right within the browser.
In Google's case, the technology would be used to run so-called legacy applications that Chrome OS does not support. By legacy, Google means any application that doesn't run in a Web browser like Google Chrome, which serves as the basis of the new Internet-only OS, also called Chrome.
It includes the Adobe Creative Suite, perhaps, whose flagship program Photoshop is top among designers. Or maybe the full Microsoft Office suite, whose desktop programs are still more feature-rich than Google's online Docs service. Perhaps as a new competitor to desktop and notebook computer operating systems like Microsoft Windows and Apple's OSX instead of just a netbook alternative.
Then again, the world is turning to lightweight computing. So much can be done online these days. As Apple CEO Steve Jobs recently said at the D8 conference, we're entering a 'post-PC' era, referring to the eventual phase out of the personal computer in favor of lighter, more thin client-esque platforms like, of course, Apple's new iPad tablet computer.
Wipro joins the PC bandwagon along with Apple's iPad, with the introduction of its product under E.go lifestyle series, designed for the Indian market. The tablet PC comes with a keyboard unlike other tablet PCs, reports Tanuja, from Financial Business Chronicle.
The product, which has a 10" LED touchscreen with a 1.3 megapixel webcam, swivel base and weighs 1.2 kg, is based on the Intel Atom processor N270 and supports Windows 7. It is Bluetooth, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n and 3G SIM ready.
Acer is already in the Indian market with a tablet PC. HP, Asus have announced their intention of launching tablet PCs. And Hyderabad-based Notion Ink is planning to come out with its Adam Tablet.
Ashok Tripathy, Head-Systems & Technology division, Infrastructure Availability Services, Wipro Infotech, told that there is a lot of customer interest for the tablet PC which has just been launched. "We expect traction for the product going forward and are targeting enterprises, educational institutions and individual consumers," he said, declining to mention any sales target.
Wipro has competitively priced its tablet PC at Rs. 30,000. It is being manufactured at the firm's Kotdwar facility.
Toshiba has launched a dual-screened mini notebook PC that can be used as an e-book reader, adding to competition for the likes of Apple Corp's iPad and Amazon.com's Kindle.
The new gadget, which can be used like a conventional clam-style notebook PC with a software keyboard, or turned 90 degrees for use as an e-book reader, will go on sale in Japan in late August and later in Europe, the United States and other markets.
Toshiba unveiled the Libretto W100 at a lavish event in Tokyo that also marked a quarter century since it launched the world's first laptop in 1985, though its personal computer division made an 8.8 billion yen ($97 million) loss in the year to March 2010. The company expects its PC division to break even in the year to March 2011.
The new touch-screen gadget, which also faces potential competition from Sony Corp will not shake up the e-book reader market at this point, because the company has yet to draw up any agreements with content providers. But executives were keen to emphasise that the Libretto, which they expect to retail for about 120,000 yen ($1,320) in Japan, compared with $489 for the larger of Amazon's Kindle devices, or $499 for the cheapest iPad, offers more than a passive "consumption" experience.
"Apple's iPad is probably creating a new market in terms of consuming information, browsing and reading books," Masahiko Fukakushi, president and CEO of Toshiba's digital products and network unit, told reporters. "But when it comes to creation or production ... what we have been doing still has a lot of value. We want to continue to do both."
Toshiba is the world's fourth biggest notebook PC vendor after HP, Acer and Dell. Industry-wide shipments of notebook computers jumped 43 per cent in the January-March quarter, their highest year-on-year growth in eight years, according to industry tracker Gartner. Toshiba is targeting global PC shipments of 25 million units in in the year to March 2011.
Cow dung may soon be used as a source of energy to power computers in the near future as the researchers at HP are developing datacenters that can be powered on energy generated from cow dung.
The company has released a study called "Design of Farm Waste-Driven Supply Side Infrastructure for Data Centers" that draws attention to biogas energy created from cow dung. The company plans to build datacentres on dairy farms where they would be hooked up to power plants fueled by waste.
Planet Green explained the process of transforming cow manure to biofuel called biogas. In this process, manure is first collected from the cows, and put under an anaerobic digestion process, releasing methane gas. This gas can be used as natural gas or diesel fuel in generators that produce electricity.
It apparently takes 10,000 cows to produce enough manure to power a small computer center for a bank.
One cow produces enough waste every day to power the televisions in three typical households. However, around 10,000 cows would be needed to produce enough to run a typical data center and meet the energy needs of the farm.
With a price tag of Rs. 31900, Research in Motion (RIM) has launched the 3G-enabled Blackberry Bold 9700 smartphone in the Indian market. However, the company is doubtful if folks other than REAL hardcore BlackBerry fans or corporate users would ever think about buying this one - especially when they have the likes of the Sony Ericsson Satio, the Droid, the Xperia X10 and the Motorola Milestone and the likes at a similar price range.
It features the new BlackBerry optical trackpad and also comes with a faster 624MHz processor, which would enable zippier performance. It has a large 2.44-inch screen capable of a high 480x360 pixel resolution, at the front and 256MB of onboard memory - expandable with the addition of a microSD card. Another superlative feature is its superior media player which also offer support for 3G HSDPA networks.
Apart from these features, at the rear, is the decent 3.2 megapixel camera that should be able to take decent images. The camera is also capable of recording videos. To help the users in low light conditions, there is an LED flash too at the rear. It has a 1500 mAh battery that is rated to power the phone for 6 hours if you talk continuously.
Micromax will launch the IIFA Edition of its Q55 handset at the upcoming IIFA Award function held in Sri Lanka on June 5.The latest edition of the mobile known as the Q55 Bling, comes entrenched with Swarovski Elements and IIFA insignia on the back of the phone. Micromax's Q55 is a dual band phone (not dual SIM!) and boasts of a 262K color QVGA (320x240 pixels) display, 2.4-inches across. It also has a slide out QWERTY keypad and a decent 2.0 MP camera. The phone is social networking friendly and comes with an integrated Facebook app as well as Opera Mini.
"The device comes embedded with Swarovski Elements and IIFA insignia on the back of the phone. The special edition device also comes loaded with IIFA content including video of the previous IIFA editions," said Vikas Jain, Business Director, Micromax.
The Q55 is an existing handset from Micromox's growing portfolio of products. As for the features, the Q55 is a rather odd looking handset. he phone supports Bluetooth and is fully EDGE/GPRS/WAP/MMS compatible and has 10MB of internal memory and a slot for microSD cards as well. The Li-ion battery is rated at (850mAh) and gives a talk time of up to 1-4 hours and a standby time of up to 180 hours.
The phone is also ready to be sold in Sri Lanka where Micromax has tied up with Sri Lankan operator Dialog. Users in Sri Lanka will get a Dialog SIM with the handset. In India, the phone will be available starting June 3 and will cost Rs. 5,500 which amazingly is the same price at which the original Q55 retails.
Engineering students Elad Kuperberg and Einav Tasa of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel have developed an optical radar system that can help blind people move around obstacles.
The radar system incorporates a computer, two video cameras and a scanning light source to warn the blind of obstacles with audible alerts. "This optical radar device is not only user friendly, but unlike the other solutions it allows the blind to have the use of both of their hands," said Professor Shlomi Arnon, who guided the students in their project.
The system detects obstacles - even those overhead - by scanning the depth of its surroundings, taken from two different angles - similar to that of the human eye. The device was shown for the first time last week as part of the annual conference of projects in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
