Raise Your Marketing IQRaise Your Marketing IQ

In my last report from Physics@FOM, I will talk about something I am truly not competent to discuss: “Holography, ADS/CFT and the emergence of gravity.” I realize that I am not always the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I have never found myself so lost so quickly in a presentation. I think this comes from the difficulties in conveying some very new concepts by Erik Verlinde, who is still in the process of grappling with them himself. Nevertheless, let me try.

Holography, and anti de Sitter space/conformal field theory are two ways of describing the bending of space and the entropy associated with it. The two models are very closely related to each other. So close that, according to Wikipedia—the fount of all reliable knowledge—theorists can’t agree if they are the same or not. But the point about both is that they resolve the problem of unifying gravity with quantum mechanics by getting rid of gravity.

3D pictures are interesting, but they rely on glasses that alter the way your left and right eye perceive images. This cool 3D image-creation technique doesn’t require glasses but still produces a 3D illusion.

Click on the above image to see the animation effect.

Instead of taking two images and combining them into one with each image highlighted in red and blue—or cyan and magenta, or any other color used for anaglyph images—the two images are animated and “wiggle” back and forth, which creates the illusion of depth.

All you need to make an wiggle-stereoscopic image is two pictures taken from one location roughly four inches apart or so to mimic the positioning of the human eyes. You can combine the images in one of two ways. The most traditional way would be to make an animated GIF—check out previously reviewed GifNinja—although at the link below they show you how to use Javascript and two JPEG images to do it.

Have your own experience creating stereoscopic or other 3D images? Let’s hear about it in the comments.

There’s just no two ways about it: the integrated self-timer is easily one of the most amazing technologies to ever be invented. Yeah, we said it. Unfortunately, beeping for ten seconds while a shooter races to get in position isn’t always ideal or fun, and that’s where isharq comes in. His Arduino-based mod is amongst the most flexible out there for DSLRs, enabling it to morph from a basic laser trigger hack to something that senses heat, movement or sound (just to name a few) and then makes your camera react accordingly. As it stands, his setup triggers his DSLR to snap a shot whenever a laser beam is broken, and if you’re eager to see more, be sure to peek the in-action video just past the break. Oh, and the source link holds all the secrets to recreating something like this in your own laboratory.

[Thanks, Simon]

Continue reading DIY photog creates laser trigger for remote DSLR snapping

DIY photog creates laser trigger for remote DSLR snapping originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Photocritic  | Email this | Comments

Filed under: iTS, iTunes, Mac 101

Welcome back to Mac 101, our series of tips for new and novice Mac users.

iTunes gets easier to use with every update. One feature, however, has gotten lost in the changes. Artist Alerts lets you receive email notifications of new releases from your favorite artists, which is great. The trouble is that the link to tag an artist isn’t easy to find.

There are two ways receive alert updates from a given artist. First, navigate to that artist’s page (for example, here’s Paramore’s page). On the right hand side, you’ll see “Alert Me.” Click it, enter your account password and then click “OK.”

The other method is from an album page. Here’s the page for Paramore’s album Brand New Eyes. Scroll down a bit and you’ll see “Artist Alerts” under “More Paramore.”

To manage your alerts, click your account name in the upper right-hand corner. Once you’ve entered your password, a new window appears. Scroll down a bit and click “Manage My Alerts.” From there you can de-select certain artists or clear the entire list.

Have fun and spend less time checking up on your favorites manually.

TUAWMac 101: iTunes artist alerts originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Originally posted 2009-10-02 18:25:47. Republished by Old Post Promoter

Filed under: Accessories, Apple

There will be five Apple-branded iPad accessories available at launch. We already mentioned a few of them earlier, but here is the complete rundown (with official product photos):

iPad Keyboard Dock
The Keyboard Dock is a dock for charging your iPad, integrated with a full-size keyboard. The dock has a rear 30-pin connector, which lets you connect to an electrical outlet using a USB Power Adapter, sync to your computer, and use accessories like the Camera Connection Kit. And an audio jack lets you connect to a stereo or powered speakers. The dock will sell for $69.

iPad Case
The iPad Case not only protects the iPad, it can be used in various positions. So it’s easy to type, look at photos and slideshows, or watch movies. The Case comes with a picture frame stand, and will sell for $39.

iPad Dock
The iPad Dock lets you dock and charge iPad. The rear 30-pin connector lets you connect the iPad Dock to an electrical outlet using the USB Power Adapter, sync to your computer, and use accessories like the Camera Connection Kit. And an audio jack lets you connect to a stereo or powered speakers. The dock will come with the iPad or it’s available separately for $29.

iPad Camera Connection Kit
The Camera Connection Kit gives you two ways to import photos and videos from a digital camera. The Camera Connector lets you import your photos and videos to iPad using the camera’s USB cable. Or you can use the SD Card Reader to import photos and videos directly from the camera’s SD card.

iPad USB Power Adapter
The 10W USB Power Adapter lets you charge your iPad directly through an electrical outlet. And the 6 foot long power cable allows you to charge it from an even greater distance.

No doubt there will be plenty of third-party cases and accessories announced by the major vendors in the next few days/weeks. We’ll keep you updated on all the accessory news as we get it!

TUAWFive iPad accessories to be available at launch originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 27 Jan 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Let’s look back at the week that was in Microsoft news. Here were the top stories:

Microsoft finally open sources Windows 7 tool: Microsoft has finally open sourced its Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool, which it pulled from its servers over reports that it violated the GNU General Public License (GPL).

How to create a bootable Windows 7 USB flash drive: If you’re looking for a quicker way to install Windows 7 than via DVD, try installing it from a USB drive. This guide describes two ways to make a bootable Windows 7 USB drive.

Apple is supposedly planning to use its acquisition of online music service Lala to transform iTunes into a Web-based service, according to sources “briefed” on the strategy. Infrastructure and licensing hurdles must still be overcome, but if all goes according to plan, it may change they way we think about media ownership forever.

Lala currently offers two ways to buy music—10¢ buys the right to stream the song anytime from Lala’s servers, whereas a variable price—about 69¢-$1.29—gives you unlimited streaming as well as an mp3 download. Lala also allows users to stream songs they already own at no charge.

Filed under: TUAW Business

	Gigaware adapter brings HD Radio to iPod touch and iPhone for $80 Up until now, there have been just two ways to get HD Radio in a portable, handheld solution: buy a Zune HD, or opt for Insignia’s NS-HD01. As of today, Gigaware is changing all that…		New iMac and MacBook touchscreens debut, thanks to Troll Touch Troll Touch — the fun little company with the unfortunate name — have announced more of their award-winning analog resistive touch kits for 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMacs as well as unibody Macs…
	Gigabyte fixes iPhone sync issue with BIOS update The Intel P55 Express chipset snafu that caused iPhones to lose their syncing minds has now been remedied — at least by one motherboard maker.	Also of interest: Verizon takes another swing at AT&T, puts iPhone on the Island of Misfit Toys Nokia vs. Apple: the in-depth analysis

All above via Engadget

TUAWiMac touchscreens, iPod HD radio and iPhone sync issue fixed originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

While we’ve featured one or two ways to avoid crying while cutting onions in the past, this tip requires absolutely no preparation and should keep your eyes clear next time you’re cooking.

Photo by Jennifer Dickert.

Instead of going through a lot of trouble to avoid the waterworks, weblog Daily DIY says you can stop tears by merely putting your tongue on the roof of your mouth while you’re cutting. Whatever you do, though, don’t breathe through your nose—breathe through your mouth. You may look a little silly, but it barely requires any work on your part, and it’s sure to be a conversation starter with your dinner guests.

I couldn’t find any definitive information about this one, but a quick Google search shows that quite a few people swear by this solution. If any of you cooks out there get a chance to chop up some onions—or you already do this—give it a try and let us know how it goes in the comments.

Filed under: Multimedia, Software, Productivity

If you work in Photoshop, you’ve probably had designs which branched off from the original look, based on your own ideas or client feedback. This has, more than likely, resulted in multiple files with names like mockup1.psd, mockup1b.psd, mockup2.psd, etc. The solution would be what coders know as Version Control, something which allows you to “commit” any version of your project to a repository, letting you jump around from version to version, making changes without worrying about losing one of those branches you went off on as an experiment. Version control systems like Subversion and Git can do this for you, but there’s a learning curve and a certain amount of geekery required to make it work smoothly.

Timeline from PixelNovel aims to take the “geek” requirements out of using version control in Photoshop. Timeline goes beyond other options and uses a Subversion repository to store any revision of your progress while working on a Photoshop file. If you don’t know what Subversion is, that’s ok. Timeline simply shows you a row of previews of versions you’ve chosen to save, and you can jump back in time with a couple of clicks. Make a change, commit it, jump to a different version … all in a slick, minimal toolbar. You can add comments (a commit message for those already svn-savvy) to each revision, which is handy whether you’re working alone or collaborating.

Timeline offers two ways of handling the repositories necessary for it to function. The least geeky option is to use their hosted Subversion service, which provides easy-to-use collaboration options, a web interface and automatic backup. It’s available at a subscription fee, but signing up includes a copy of the plugin for free. Alternatively, you can host your own Subversion repository, which isn’t terribly difficult. This avoids both the hosting fee and (if you create a local repository on your own computer) the need to download your revisions from a host.

I spoke with the developers of Timeline about the potential for a Git version, and it’s something they’re looking into. For now, though, the Subversion plan is working quite well. If you frequently find yourself with a folder full of poorly-titled versions of a project, and flipping between them is getting to be a pain, it’s definitely something to consider. The plugin itself will cost you $60US and — if you choose the hosted route — an account runs $5US for 5GB of storage, or $20US for 25GB. TUAW readers can take advantage of a special offer, and get 20% off of either: use coupon tuaw1 for a standalone license, and tuaw2 for a 20% discount on a hosted option.

[Side note: For the Git-inclined, I've found that the previews in GitX combined with a few shell scripts can provide a decent (but less integrated and robust) versioning system for Photoshop and other graphics applications.]

TUAWTimeline: no-regret version control for Photoshop originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments