TechLifeBlogged

Tags: bill, gates, microsoft, windows, vista, video, daily, show, stewart

Stonehenge has always been a place of intrigue for me. I've been there once and hope to have a chance to go again. There's just something interesting about a place that science has been struggling to figure out for thousands of years.
Today, Time Magazine has an article about a second site nearby Stonehenge.

British archaeologists have uncovered an extensive Neolithic settlement not two miles away that was possibly once home to hundreds of people. They have also unearthed a physical link between that settlement and Stonehenge: a 4,500-year-old stone avenue runs between the settlement at Durrington Walls and the nearby River Avon. Since a similar avenue was unearthed in the 1960s linking the river to Stonehenge, researchers believe ancient Brits almost certainly traveled between the two sites, both carbon-dated to 2,600-2,500 B.C. "We knew these were from broadly the same period, but the idea that it forms a single integrated complex is quite new," says Julian Thomas, a director of the project and an archaeologist at the University of Manchester. "It completely changes our understanding of Stonehenge."

Cool stuff. More from National Geographic
Tags: time magazine, stonehenge, woodhenge, neolithic, england, archaeology

Whenever you receive a spreadsheet or a document in Gmail, you will see a link next to the "Download" link that says "Open as a Google document." Clicking that will import the attachment automatically into Docs & Spreadsheets and added to your personal document list where you can search for it later.
Nice timing on the eve of Office '07.
Tags: google, email, docs, spreadsheets, integration, web2

I'm gonna agree with Doc Searls on this one. I hate those pop up Snap link popups.
Tags: snap links

Feeds Plus Add-on: Is a free IE7 add-on that adds notification to the RSS reading experience in IE.
Tags: ie7, rss, reader, notification, aggregation

I just wrote up a guide to what you need to consider before you do the upgrade:
Vista Horizons: Windows Vista upgrade purchase Quick start guide
Tags: microsoft, windows, vista, upgrade, how to, guide

Reuters: 20th Century Fox served YouTube with a subpoena Wednesday demanding the Google-owned viral video site disclose the identity of a user who uploaded copies of entire recent episodes of primetime series "24" and "The Simpsons."

Ya know, I don't watch that show any more. Maybe if I saw a clip I might get excited about it again and tune in, perhaps even view the interstitial ads.
How does a clip that might help build community and drive viewers hurt Fox?
Tags: fox, old media, youtube, on line, video, clip

TechCrunch: Silicon Valley based Trusted ID, which launched IDFreeze last year to help protect people from identity theft, released their second product this evening - Stolen ID Search.
Tags: identity, internet, security, fraud

Tags: humor, blogging

Get started or find out more about Microsoft Robotics Studio
Visual Basic Express Edition 2005
.NET Framework 2.0
.NET Framework 2.0 Software Development Kit (SDK)
Learn About Microsoft Robotics Studio
Channel 9 Interviews the Microsoft Robotics Group
Feedback
Home Page
News Group
Team Blog 

Lanched a year ago, New Horizons, the fastest spacecraft ever launched, is due to pass Jupiter on February 28. Lots of animation available on NASAs New Horizons Web Site.
Tags: nasa, jupiter, new horizons, mission

Drugs make even spiders bad

Tags: drugs, spiders, video, youtube, humor

A camera phone with GPS smart enough to shove the coordinates into the exif data of the pictures would be very cool. You could then send them to friends so they could see what you are seeing and then drive right to the party via a mashup with map service du jour.
Tags: camera, phone, gps

New info out this morning on Windows Vista pricing and discounts for home users with multiple computers.
Windows Vista Pricing: Family Discount and Anytime Upgrade
Tags: microsoft, windows, vista, pricing

Lifehacker has a nice article on helping ensure your privacy in Firefox.
Tags: privacy, firefox, mozilla, browser, security

FoxNews: The co-founders of the Internet telephone service Skype unveiled the brand name and details of their latest project Tuesday: a new Internet-based television service called Joost.
Tags: skype, joost, iptv, tv

Click to Play

arstechnica: Canadian politicians are set to introduce a tough new copyright bill that will outlaw the circumvention of DRM schemes but might not contain any "fair use" provisions for Canadian consumers.
Tags: Canada, drm, fair use, copyright

I've been meaning to write this up for a long time. Having just passed a year of owning this device I thought I'd post my thoughts about it.
Christmas '05 I was given a Archos Gmini402 20 GB Multimedia Player. It's been over a year now and I still use it every day. Mostly I used it for podcasts and it syncs with Windows Media Player 10 or (and the mode I prefer) you can switch it to USB hard disk mode and simply drag and drop files to it like any other USB device. I like to use it with Microsoft Sync Toy to keep the files in sync.
The case that comes with the device is lame. I picked up a Lowepro Rezo 50 Camera Bag that fits it perfectly and has a pocket for the ear buds.
There are 2 wonderful features the shouldn't be over looked if you are considering one of these:
1. It can be a USB host. In a nutshell, that means you can plug your camera, card reader or other USB 2.0 device and copy that data right onto the Archos. If you want to pack light and not bring a laptop, this is the way to go. On a recent trip I was able to dump pictures form the cameras every night and free up the cards for the next day.
2. It comes with all you need for video out. There is a little adapter that doubles as an external mic adapter in addition to a cable with RCA plugs that you can then plug into your TV and view video right from the device. This works better than you would think.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the huge (in my opinion) error on Archos' part. The batteries are recharged via an included power adapter. Yep, not the USB port of your computer. So lame. newmp3technology.com sells "every Archos product imaginable". I bought a cable from them that plugs into USB and charges the device. A solution that is smaller to carry than the wall charger but still shouldn't be necessary.
If you are thinking about getting a video iPod you might want to consider an Archos. There are ones with much bigger screens but this one is great for what I need.
Gizmodo put up this YouTube video of the 402 with Camcorder which came out a couple months after I got mine. Other than the camera there have the same features. I'd get the camcorder next time if I had the choice. Sure the video isn't like having a dedicated camcorder but having an always-with-me video camera would be very cool.

Tags: review, archos, gmini, 402, gmini402, usb, video, podcasts

The iPhone. Can we talk about something else now? How about a moratorium until June when it is supposed to come out?
Quote of the day:
"CES is like walking into Los Angeles circa Bladerunner. Except its a bit lighter and no acid rain." - Ethan Kaplan
Tags: apple, iphone, ces, ces2007

Monty Python with Legos
Tags: video, humor, lego

Gmail has a cool search operator called has:attachment. Enter that into Gmail's search engine will give you every email attachment you've ever received in Gmail. You can also refine your search such as, from:gbush has:attachment. This will give you all the mail from anyone with the email prefix gbush that contains an attachment.
If this is something you are liable to do often, create yourself a filter in Gmail to automatically tag new mail the the tag 'Attachments' and then you'll have one-click access to all mail containing attachments.
Tags: gmail, productivity, find, search, attachment
[via:lifehacker]

Note: Nice product placement there Pirillo & Fitz
Tags: humor

You know, I don't talk about phones much on this blog because, well, I could care less. I'm not in a position where I get to, or can afford to, play with a bunch of different phones. When I see them on Engadget or something I usually just move along because, see above.
I haven't been paying much attention to the whole iPhone deal. Another smart phone with more gadgets than I can afford. Additionally, hype is hype and I've got enough of that from other angles of my tech life.
It's here now. Carried by Cingular (now AT&T)and, pending FCC granting what ever they grant, you'll be able to get it from AT&T or the Apple Store in June.
Engadget has pics from the MacWorld Keynote and, I must say, wow. I look forward to reviews of this thing but it sure is pretty. The resolution alone is worth a look.
Engadget coverage of the MacWorld Keynote

Tags: apple, iphone, macworld, telephone, at&t, cingular, smartphone

Padres jersey #19, retired here, hanging in Cooperstown.
Congratulations Tony Gwynn! First time on the ballot is the charm.
Hits: 3141
Avg: .338
Tags: san diego, padres, sports, baseball, mlb, hall of fame

The Ag, is a new service from Time magazine. Each day a human, in Wales, summarizes the most important stories from daily newspapers and blogs around the world and posts it. You can also get it via a feed.
Tags: rss, time magazine, the ag
[via: the rss blog]

Looks like CES day 1 is winding down. Here's what I've found cool in compution, audio/video and robots:
Computing
* Startup Jump-Starts Wireless Power - Startup eCoupled Technologies is unveiling at CES 2007 a new wireless charging technology that could make standard wall chargers as old fashioned as the Model T. [via]
* Hourglass shaped laptop sleeves -  Built NY has laptop sleeeves made with 5mm wetsuit grade neoprene and a patent pending hourglass shape, the covers come in 12, 15, and 17-inch models. The bags can be ordered online in blue, black, and stripes at prices that start at $29.99. Stripes, which I wouldn't buy anyway, are an extra $3. Huh? [via]
* Engadget has everything you need to know about Windows Home Server I mentioned yesterday. A lot of geeks are saying ho-hum but I'm thinking this is going to be pretty cool if it is what I understand it to be. If a central point with lots of storage can simply suck down and back up anything attached to it's network that would be cool. And if all that it requires is simple turn-key plug and play then they have winner on their hands.
From Engadget:
# The client software, which is installable only on Windows PCs (duh) monitors PC health, manages backups, and supports full disk images and versions. If your computer crashes hard you can pop in an restore CD and it'll pull the disk image over the network.
# Your WHS device gets registered with your Windows Live account and is made easily-findable by authorized parties (i.e. you and anyone you designate) while on the go. You can even connect to it via Live and pipe a Remote Desktop connection to a PC on your home network through this Home-finding Live feature.
Audio/Video
* Sanyo is updating its HD camcorder to Xacti HD2. I never used the HD1 but it did look pretty cool. Hopefully this one has video stabilization.
* i-Catching Projector (for iPods of course) -Dock your iPod in the ViewSonic PJ258D ViewDock Projector, and show your video files on any convenient screen or wall.[via]
* Panasonic is focusing on plasma technology. Surprising with all the talk of other types of tvs lately. I have a Toshiba plasma and wouldn't trade it for anything. Exceptional viewing angles is what sold me.
* SanDisk’s Sansa View - Sansa View is an 8GB flash player withat 4-inch screen. It is also capable of 1080i output! [via]
Robots and Toys
* UBOT is a robot vacuum AND a robo-mop. Are robo-vacs old news? Not in Korea. The UBOT only went on sale recently, and is a combo device that sucks dust off your floor, sweeps AND wet mops it in a single pass.[via]
* iRobot Unveils Create Robot - New kit gives hobbyists, educators and more the tools to program and remake Roomba-like robot. The Create is basically like the Roomba with out the vacuum part. [via]

Previous article in the series: What's Hot: CES Preview Day
Tags: ces, 2007, ces2007

The audio is a little choppy but it's still cool.

Video: Vanishing Point Vegas @ 6:30

Video: Vanishing Point Vegas @ 6:30 bonus
Tags: vanishingpoint, ces, ces2007
[via]

If you downloaded my OPML files or linked to any of the RSS feeds I've been maintaining for CES you might want to check back often because I've been updating the page.
Blogs and Podcasts For Keeping Up on CES News
Tags: ces, 2007, ces2007, rss

So preview days are over. CES officially starts tomorrow. Still, lots of stuff happened today. Here's what I've found to be cool:
Bloghaus is a cool spot put together and hosted by John Furrier and Robert Scoble of Podtech and funded by Seagate. It is a site for bloggers and pod/video casters to get their work done and do some socializing as well. It is a suite at the Bellagio. Reports are that people are getting pretty good download and upload speeds. [via]

Computing
* Microsoft Home Server. Details on this are still kinda sketchy. I'm sure it will be all over the news shortly. It appears to be an expanable, central organization and storage point for all your data and media files. There is a site called www.stopdigitalamnesia.com [via] Microsoft Channel 10 has video of the product.
Audio/Video
* Duracell PowerFM iPod Battery & Radio Brick looks like a pretty nice idea. the $79 Duracell PowerFM package is a simple lithium-ion battery expander for your iPod nano or video. Doubles your ipod battery life and includes and integrated FM transmitter. Additionally, there is a pass through doc and headphone jack that let you use chargers and docking stations while keeping the ipod connected to the battery. [via]
* Apple, Microsoft To Unveil Media Servers
Forget about iPod versus Zune. As popular as portable music devices are, they no longer represent the cutting edge of the digital music market today.
* JVC Unveils Hard-Drive-based and miniDV Tape Camcorders
JVC updated its camera line with a slew of new camcorders, which include both standard definition and high definition models.
* Logitec has an update to their Harmony remote line. The Harmony 1000 will be like the Harmony 880  with the addition of a 3.5 inch touch screen. Rechargable and can be programmed by connecting via USB to PC or Mac.
Robots and Toys
* Bioloids, robots designed for education of the principles of robotics. The kits contain a main controller, a servo-module dynamixel, a sensor module, SMPS, NiMH rechargeable batteries, a software CD, and a manual. Look like a great little toy to get kids of all ages into robotics.[via]
* Spyke Wi-Fi Spy Robot introduced by MECCANO in the United States under the ERECTOR brand. Spyke reminds of of Number 5 from the movie Short Circuit. [via]
* Blade Runner Recon to helicopter. Made by Interactive Toy Concepts. It has a video camera built in that can store video locally to be uploaded later or broadcast it to a little 2.2 inch screen in the remote control. [via]
* Wow Wee Unveils Robopanda
Cute, but not cuddly robot will be the company's most charming and interactive part of its 2007 line.
Tags: ces, 2007, ces2007

I've been using Newshutch for a long time as my RSS reader of choice. Sadly, this weekend, they have been having DNS issues and I haven't been able to get to the site. Very oddly, I so happened to have dumped my Newshutch feeds to OPML in advance of the weekend and was able to get up and running on Google Reader which I've been wanting to check out and see if it has improved since it started. Thank goodness, CES without RSS would be a complete drag.
Lessons here:
1. Backups should include more than just your hardware. Export your feeds from time to time just in case. Might want to make sure all your contacts aren't just listed in Gmail either.
2. If the underpinnings of Web 2.0 break you could be SOL.
As for Newshutch, I hope they get things worked out. It still is a great reader.
Tags: newshutch, dns, rss

Andy McCaskey from Slashdotreview is over at CES asking the question that I've been wanting to ask for a long time.
So for, at the press preview, Andy has been looking at various devices from Netgear, which he says will be debuting wireless phones that work with Skype, and Torian which has a little wireless Internet radio device that looks pretty cool. No on has answered the question other than to dodge it and move on.
Here's the thing. If you travel at all and try to use wireless you'll encounter splash screens. Most of the time these are just so you can acknowledge you are about to enter and open network. Other times, like at home or work, you need to enter a WEP key or some other password. If these devices have no browser, how to you get attached to the network?
Keep asking the question, Andy.
Tags: wireless, wifi, wep, splashscreen, eula

There is an interesting new site called News At Seven. News at Seven automatically generates a virtual newscast pulled from stories, images, videos and blogs all linked by a common news topic.
From the About page:

News at Seven is an automatic system that crafts daily news shows. It finds the news you are interested in; edits it; finds relevant images, videos, and external opinions; and then presents it all using a virtual news team working in a virtual studio. News at Seven is a uniquely compelling experience that can present traditional news--augmented with supplemental images, videos, and opinions from the blogosphere—all without human intervention.

News At Seven is a product of Northwestern University's Intelligent Information Laboratory.
Tags: news, videocast, podcast, northwestern, nwu, rss, news at seven

If you use Google Reader for your feed reading you might want to check out this big guide:
Get More From Google Reader Guide
There are tips for Mac users, IE users and Firefox users. Just about everyone should find something useful in there to take their news reading to the next level beyond vanilla.
Tags: how to, tips, reading, rss, feeds, google

CNet: Hitachi Global Storage Technologies said on Thursday that it will come out with a 3.5-inch-diameter 1 terabyte drive for desktops in the first quarter, then follow up in the second quarter with 3.5-inch terabyte drives for digital video recorders, bundled with software called Audio-Visual Storage Manager for easier retrieval of data, and corporate storage systems.
Tags: hdd, terabyte, disk, drive

Schedules being what they are I can't make it the the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show next week in Las Vegas.  I have put together a list of blogs and podcasts to help keep up with events as they unfold. This is a great way to get a feel for what's going on rather than just read the news later on.

Below are the lists separated in groups. Below the lists are links to OPML files that you can use to import into your feed readers and podcatchers rather than adding them one by one.

If I've missed your favorite blog or podcast let me know and I'll try to get it added right away. I'm trying to keep the links only to those that will be on site.

CES Feeds - Blogs
[RSS] All about Microsoft
[RSS] Ask Dave Taylor!
[RSS] Bryan Starbuck
[RSS] Ed Bott's Windows Expertise
[RSS] Geek News Central
[RSS] istartedsomething
[RSS] Jake Ludington - Mediablab
[RSS] MSTechToday
[RSS] Scripting News
[RSS] Windows Connected
Update: Fri, 05 Jan 2007 14:58:08 GMT adding:
[RSS] blackrimglasses.com
[RSS] buzznovation
Update: Sat, 06 Jan 2007 05:53:40 GMT adding:
[RSS] Clarkezone: James Clarke's Weblog Weblog
Update: Mon, 08 Jan 2007 08:03:29 GMT adding:
[RSS] Gear Live
[RSS] Eric Rice - Official Site
[RSS] LIVEdigitally by Jeremy Toeman

CES Feeds - Audio/Video
[RSS] Buzz Out Loud from CNET
[RSS] The Chris Pirillo Show
[RSS] Geek News Central Podcast
[RSS] Slashdot Review
Update: Mon, 08 Jan 2007 08:03:29 GMT adding:
[RSS] Gear Live

OPML Files:
Blog Feeds
AV Feeds
ALL Feeds
Tags: ces, 2007, ces2007, blog, podcast, audio, video, rss, opml

Mr. Neighborly's Humble Little Ruby Book is a comprehensive and charmingly written guide to the Ruby programming language. The online version is free.
Tags: ruby, guide, how to, programming

News.com: LG's dual-format high-definition disc player will be launched in the United States in early 2007, the company said in a statement. It did not provide further details.
Tags: lg, dvd, blu-ray, hddvd, hd, high definition

eWeek: Big Blue is now offering updated versions of Lotus Notes for Windows, Linux and Mac operating systems, and the company said it will offer a major upgrade in 2007.
Notes 7.0.2 will be the first version that is compatible with both Intel-based and PowerPC-based Macintosh desktops and notebooks.
Tags: lotus, notes, domino, email, calendar, database, ibm, apple, macintosh

Avis is putting WiFi hotspots provided by a company called AutoNet into their rental cars starting in March. For an extra $11 a day you can surf the net from your car. Speeds of 400 kbps to 1 mbps will be provided by cell towers.
Tags: wifi, avis, rental car, travel, isp, internet
via: Gizmodo