Standards and specs | UWB | A house divided 01/27/2005
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Standards and specs | UWB | A house divided: “The work on ultrawideband, or UWB, standards has been going on for a while. The technology has been in use for decades. It was considered a military secret early on, because it has applications such as ‘spotting stealth planes’ and ‘looking through walls.’ However, the broader demands of commerce are coming into play. Discussions of UWB as a consumer technology don’t go back as far, but there are IEEE meetings on the topic going back at least to 1998. The 802.15.3a working group, specifically working on an ultrawideband standard, was authorized in 2002. “
Silicon Valley Watcher: Scoop! Google to provide A… 01/22/2005
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Silicon Valley Watcher: Scoop! Google to provide AdWords API to Advertisers: “Google is about to announce technology that will allow its advertisers unprecedented levels of control over when, where, and who can view their advertising on Google search pages and those of Google partner web sites.
For the first time, the search giant will provide its advertisers with an application programming interface (API), which will enable them to link their computer systems with Google and control parts of the mammoth Google ad delivery system. The API will allow advertisers to self-administer the delivery, the timing and the price they will pay for their text ads.
This raises the bar in the online advertising market as Google turns to technology to try and outwit and pull ahead of media savvy competitors such as Kanoodle and others. Kanoodle says its average click-through revenue is twice as much as that of Google’s because it gives online publishers greater control over what types of advertising is displayed, at which times, and is better matched to page content or search terms. “
PBS | I, Cringely | Mini Me: The New Mac Mini is All About Movies 01/22/2005
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Cell Architecture Explained: Introduction 01/21/2005
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Cell Architecture Explained: Introduction: “Designed for the PlayStation 3, Sony, Toshiba and IBM’s new ‘Cell processor’ promises seemingly obscene computing capabilities for what will rapidly become a very low price. In these articles I look at what the Cell architecture is, then I go on to look at the profound implications this new chip has, not for the games market, but for the entire computer industry. Has the PC finally met it’s match?
To date the details disclosed by the STI group (Sony, Toshiba, IBM) have been very vague to say the least. Except that is for the patent application which describes the system in minute detail. Unfortunately this is very difficult to read so the details haven’t made it out into general circulation even in the technical community.”
The Ward-O-Matic | The Polar Express: A Virtual Train Wreck 01/19/2005
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The Ward-O-Matic: The Polar Express: A Virtual Train Wreck (conclusion): “In my opinion it’s always been a fallacy, the notion that human characters have to look photo-realistic in CG. You can do so much more with stylized human characters. Audiences innately know how humans move and gravity works, so if a human character doesn’t feel right, they’ll feel something’s wrong. But if the weight works for stylized characters, the audience doesn’t question it – like the Dwarfs in SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, which were so cartoony and stylized. In THE INCREDIBLES, the characters are cartoony heroes but they can be hurt and they have this family dynamic that makes them believable.’ Ralph Eggleston, Artistic Director for THE INCREDIBLES”
Globes | UAV flocks to be operated against terrorists 01/18/2005
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Globes [online] – UAV flocks to be operated against terrorists “Kivelevitch and Gurfil have developed an algorithm for indentifying and destroying targets in hostile territory, based on natural movements of flocks, such as storks, wasps, and ants. They have created a flock of coordinated UAVs, which do not collide with each other, and which work as a team. “A flock of UAVs can perform a given mission better than one UAV,” Gurfil explains. “Communications between the members of the flock are sophisticated, not complicated, which enables even a flock of dozens of UAVs to function effectively.” ‘
The TrueTalk Blog: Rules Sets Create Systems; Systems Creat Outcomes 01/17/2005
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The TrueTalk Blog: Rules Sets Create Systems; Systems Create Outcomes: “At first blush, we think that rules are designed to exercise control over the actions of those subject to them. And, that’s certainly true. But think about rules in games. While they’re established to control behavior, at a deeper level they’re designed to create a world, a place within which the game can be played. Rule sets enable/encourage some actions and disable/discourage others; rule sets make some things easy, other things hard; reward some behaviors, punish others. Rule sets, then, create systems”
Wired 13.01: The BitTorrent Effect: "Paradoxically… 01/16/2005
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Wired 13.01: The BitTorrent Effect: “Paradoxically, BitTorrent’s architecture means that the more popular the file is the faster it downloads – because more people are pitching in. Better yet, it’s a virtuous cycle. Users download and share at the same time; as soon as someone receives even a single piece of Fokkers, his computer immediately begins offering it to others. The more files you’re willing to share, the faster any individual torrent downloads to your computer. This prevents people from leeching, a classic P2P problem in which too many people download files and refuse to upload, creating a drain on the system. ‘Give and ye shall receive’ became Cohen’s motto, which he printed on T-shirts and sold to supporters.”
Slashdot | Avalon Preview Released for XP 01/16/2005
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Slashdot | Avalon Preview Released for XP: “CliffH writes ‘For those that want to play with a preview release of Avalon (the November Community Technology Preview) and the SDK, head on over to this page and download to your heart’s delight. It is 261MB and is already going slow so be warned.’ “
Marginal Revolution: In defense of Wikipedia 01/14/2005
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Marginal Revolution: In defense of Wikipedia: “Wikipedia has come under increasing criticism lately, for instance read here. The core problem is simple: for most entries, anyone can write anything. How can you trust the results? For that matter, what does the Nash equilibrium look like?
But this critique misses the comparative advantage of Wikipedia. Entries tend to be link-rich, and the ongoing debate and revisions refresh and improve the links. Think of Wikipedia as hiring someone to do search engine work for you, not just Google but the other brands as well. They then report back with the best links. Wikipedia brings you this service for free.”
this is too good a name for a band! | tin whisker 01/10/2005
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this is too good a name for a band:tin whisker – a Whatis.com definition: “
tin whisker
A tin whisker is a single crystal of tin that grows spontaneously from a tinned surface, a phenomenon that poses problems for manufacturers who would prefer using tin rather than lead for interconnections. As electronics manufacturers seek to make electronic interconnections lead-free, many “
What is Machinima? | The Machinima FAQ: "Machinima… 01/07/2005
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What is Machinima? | The Machinima FAQ: “Machinima (muh-sheen-eh-mah) is filmmaking within a real-time, 3D virtual environment.
In an expanded definition, it is the convergence of filmmaking, animation and game development. Machinima is real world filmmaking techniques applied within an interactive virtual space where characters and events can be either controlled by humans, scripts or artificial intelligence. “
The Long Tail | The "Pro-Am" Revolution 01/05/2005
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The Long Tail | The “Pro-Am” Revolution: “The ‘Pro-Am’ Revolution
One of the big difference between the head and the tail of producers is that the further you are in the tail the more likely you are to have to keep your day job. And that’s okay. The distinction between ‘professional’ producers and ‘amateurs’ is blurring and may in fact be ultimately irrelevant. We make not just what we’re paid to make, but also what want to make. Both can have value. Once, with high barriers to marketplace entry, only the professional work found an audience. But now those barriers are dropping. “
Abracadabra… ��� Map it!��� 01/05/2005
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Abracadabra… ��� Map it!���: “at memory from this basic and survival point of view, we quickly realise that memory is not just a matter of recalling shopping lists and information for exams – it is literally a matter of life and death. It is for this reason that all cultures throughout history have devoted large amounts of their time and energy to making sure that there �memory systems� were both excellent and improving.
From simple color-codings and marks on rocks, to rhymes that helped people remember the location of things that were important, the memory systems of planet Earth grew.”
Ken Kutaragi, Cell and Playstation 3 | www.japaninc.com 01/05/2005
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http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/index.html?list=jin&issue=275:
“Ken Kutaragi, the brains behind the PlayStation games consoles, believes that the chip — codenamed ‘cell’ — will give future video games machines the power to animate figures as realistically and smoothly as Golem in the Lord of the Rings, or the CGI hero in the recent film version of The Hulk.
The chip, he said, means that within a few years the genres of film and video games will ‘fused and become indistinguishable.’”
Forbes.com: Cheap Jet Update: "Bill Lear, in 1964,… 01/04/2005
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Forbes.com: Cheap Jet Update: “Bill Lear, in 1964, was the last entrepreneur to build, certify and sell a business jet–the Learjet. During the years stretching between Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The Aviator no other little startup company has matched this feat. Plans and attempts–or what mockers like to call paper airplanes–have numbered in the hundreds. Flying high and fast has always attracted dreamers, but no other entrepreneur has pulled off what Lear did 41 years ago.”
Forbes.com | Rob Wherry On Health Care IT 01/04/2005
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Forbes.com: Rob Wherry On Health Care IT: “The Watch List
Ron Ponder and WellPoint-Anthem: Ponder is chief information officer at the United States’ leading health care benefits provider. Ponder was the genius behind FedEx’s (nyse: FDX – news – people ) original IT systems. He moved on to Sprint (nyse: FON – news – people ) and AT&T (nyse: T – news – people ), and now he’s been given carte blanche by WellPoint Chairman Leonard Schaeffer to design systems to cut massive amounts of paperwork out of the company’s bottom line. If he does it, WellPoint will be the darling of the industry.”
