Time is not far when a computer shall have equal ability by 2020 as man has today. It shall share the knowledge with human being instantly in a conversation, debate and many other fields. It shall also be able to overcome aging and disease problems and a human being could live for a longer and healthy life. It shall construct a ‘post human’ world, wherein second, intelligent entity is expected to exist beside people.
American computer Guru Ray Kurzweil has envisioned a new advancement that indicates that computers might have a “matching human intellect by the 2020s.”
The intellectual abilities that PCs would incorporate would help the world to resolve some of the most significant intractable problems of the 21st century.
Ray drew his envisage after noticing the computer chips that have doubled the power and keep enhancing its energy every half-century. He expects in the next half of the century, 32 times more technical progress will be observed.
Computers, which are developed by 2D chips made of silicon, are now in the process of using 3D chips with vastly improved performances. These three-dimensional chips could be made from biological molecules to reduce the size of the chips as compared to metal-based computer chips.
It is also believed that computation, communication, biological technologies as well as human knowledge have improved at a much faster pace and continue to increase the capacity, bandwidth as well as performance as time processes.
“Three-dimensional, molecular computing will provide the hardware for human-level ‘strong artificial intelligence’ by the 2020s. The more important software insights will be gained in part from the reverse engineering of the human brain, a process well under way. Already, two dozen regions of the human brain have been modeled and simulated,” predicted leading scientific futurologist Ray Kurzweil.
Ray also forecasts, “We are understanding disease and aging processes as information processes, and are gaining the tools to re-program them. Within two decades, we will be in a position to stop and reverse the progression of disease and aging resulting in dramatic gains in health and longevity.”
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Torvalds gives props to Microsoft for sharing
Linus Torvalds, leader of the Linux kernel project that's among the best-known open-source threats to Windows, has words of praise for Microsoft's announcement last week that it would share some previously hard-to-get technology with open-source programmers.
"I may make fun of Microsoft occasionally, and yeah, I think they do stupid things at times, but I think this one was a step in the right direction," Torvalds said in an e-mail.
"Could it have been even more? Sure. But give them credit for at least seeming to open up a little, even if it probably was at least partially pushed upon them by the EU rulings."
Torvalds' opinion goes right down the middle of the mixed reactions various people in the open-source software area had to the news.
Some praised Microsoft for making it easier for programmers to get access to technology such as communication protocols and file formats, and to get their software to work better with Microsoft's; others griped about Microsoft's continued desire for open-source companies to obtain patent licenses.
Torvalds isn't in the castigation camp. "Does it mean people should trust and love them? No," he said. "But I also don't see the point in flaming them over what is clearly at least an incremental improvement."
"I may make fun of Microsoft occasionally, and yeah, I think they do stupid things at times, but I think this one was a step in the right direction," Torvalds said in an e-mail.
"Could it have been even more? Sure. But give them credit for at least seeming to open up a little, even if it probably was at least partially pushed upon them by the EU rulings."
Torvalds' opinion goes right down the middle of the mixed reactions various people in the open-source software area had to the news.
Some praised Microsoft for making it easier for programmers to get access to technology such as communication protocols and file formats, and to get their software to work better with Microsoft's; others griped about Microsoft's continued desire for open-source companies to obtain patent licenses.
Torvalds isn't in the castigation camp. "Does it mean people should trust and love them? No," he said. "But I also don't see the point in flaming them over what is clearly at least an incremental improvement."
Sunday, February 17, 2008
MMGs from RCom, CanvasM
Reliance Communications (RCom), along with CanvasM Technologies (a Tech Mahindra-Motorola Joint Venture), has introduced multi-player mobile games for its customers in India. Multi-player mobile games (MMGs) enable gamers compete with other mobile- and PC- gamers who happen to be playing the same game. MMGs have other features like: lobby chat, messenger chat, game chat, score posting, profile, allowing users to invite others to play games.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
HTC Shows Off the P3470
Yet another phone with promise unveiled at the World Mobile Congress; the quad-band P3470 from HTC, will set "a new standard in affordable smart phone, GPS-based devices," according to the company.
The highlights of the phone are GPS navigation, a touch-screen, and long battery life (what's claimed is 350 minutes of talk time and up to 240 hours of standby time).
This is a Windows Mobile 6 device; the display is a 2.8-inches QVGA TFT LCD touch-screen. TomTom Navigator 6 is included for navigation, but the company says the supplied software could vary depending on the country. Incidentally, there's a GPS antenna connector so one can hook it up to an external antenna for better reception.
A 1GB microSD card is supplied with the phone; it has 256MB of Flash and 128MB of internal memory. Then there's a 2 mega pixels camera and Bluetooth 2.0. Interestingly, there's no 3G or Wi-Fi.
The P3470 will be made available in some European countries later this month, and will be priced at about $650.
The highlights of the phone are GPS navigation, a touch-screen, and long battery life (what's claimed is 350 minutes of talk time and up to 240 hours of standby time).
This is a Windows Mobile 6 device; the display is a 2.8-inches QVGA TFT LCD touch-screen. TomTom Navigator 6 is included for navigation, but the company says the supplied software could vary depending on the country. Incidentally, there's a GPS antenna connector so one can hook it up to an external antenna for better reception.
A 1GB microSD card is supplied with the phone; it has 256MB of Flash and 128MB of internal memory. Then there's a 2 mega pixels camera and Bluetooth 2.0. Interestingly, there's no 3G or Wi-Fi.
The P3470 will be made available in some European countries later this month, and will be priced at about $650.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Apple: No Time Machine Airport Extreme fix for you.
Disappointed Mac users today confirmed that Apple Inc.'s latest Leopard update does not let them back up with Time Machine to drives plugged into an Airport Extreme router.
"On 10.5.2, my [AirPort] Disk is NOT available to Time Machine," reported a user named Jespes on an Apple support forum. "I can access the [disk] from the Finder, but Time Machine doesn't see it." Others on that thread, and elsewhere on Apple's forums, echoed Jespes' findings.
Last month, some users had held out hope that Apple would make Leopard's Time Machine backup application compatible with the AirPort Extreme's AirPort Disk, a feature that lets users attach an external USB drive to the router and access that disk via the wireless network. The hope had been fueled by rumors on several Apple enthusiast sites that a fix was among the scores slated for the 10.5.2 upgrade.
People who bought AirPort Extreme Base Stations before Leopard's October 2007 release were particularly incensed when CEO Steve Jobs introduced the Time Capsule backup appliance at Macworld Expo last month. Before Leopard's launch, Apple had said that Time Machine would work with AirPort drives.
Time Capsule, essentially an AirPort Extreme wedded to a 500GB or 1TB drive, fills the niche that Apple originally said would be served by the Time Machine-AirPort Extreme combination. Time Capsule is scheduled to ship this month in two models, priced at $299 and $499.
After Time Capsule's introduction, users rued their purchases of AirPort Extreme, calling themselves "one of the suckers" and saying "I feel like I been had."
Some still hope for an eventual fix that would make their AirPort Extreme-USB drive setups the equivalent of Time Capsule, and noted that a patch might come in the form of a firmware update to the router. On a different support thread, for example, someone using the alias "dchao99" said, "10.5.2 OS X update is not going to fix all the bugs between the Mac and AEBS [AirPort Extreme Base Station]. Because the 7.2.1 firmware on AEBS is also buggy. And we are still waiting for the AEBS update."
The Leopard update did, however, include several other improvements to Time Machine, the most visible of which added a menu bar option for the backup program. Apple's list of 10.5.2 enhancements also spelled out multiple changes to the AirPort wireless technology, including improved connection reliability.
"On 10.5.2, my [AirPort] Disk is NOT available to Time Machine," reported a user named Jespes on an Apple support forum. "I can access the [disk] from the Finder, but Time Machine doesn't see it." Others on that thread, and elsewhere on Apple's forums, echoed Jespes' findings.
Last month, some users had held out hope that Apple would make Leopard's Time Machine backup application compatible with the AirPort Extreme's AirPort Disk, a feature that lets users attach an external USB drive to the router and access that disk via the wireless network. The hope had been fueled by rumors on several Apple enthusiast sites that a fix was among the scores slated for the 10.5.2 upgrade.
People who bought AirPort Extreme Base Stations before Leopard's October 2007 release were particularly incensed when CEO Steve Jobs introduced the Time Capsule backup appliance at Macworld Expo last month. Before Leopard's launch, Apple had said that Time Machine would work with AirPort drives.
Time Capsule, essentially an AirPort Extreme wedded to a 500GB or 1TB drive, fills the niche that Apple originally said would be served by the Time Machine-AirPort Extreme combination. Time Capsule is scheduled to ship this month in two models, priced at $299 and $499.
After Time Capsule's introduction, users rued their purchases of AirPort Extreme, calling themselves "one of the suckers" and saying "I feel like I been had."
Some still hope for an eventual fix that would make their AirPort Extreme-USB drive setups the equivalent of Time Capsule, and noted that a patch might come in the form of a firmware update to the router. On a different support thread, for example, someone using the alias "dchao99" said, "10.5.2 OS X update is not going to fix all the bugs between the Mac and AEBS [AirPort Extreme Base Station]. Because the 7.2.1 firmware on AEBS is also buggy. And we are still waiting for the AEBS update."
The Leopard update did, however, include several other improvements to Time Machine, the most visible of which added a menu bar option for the backup program. Apple's list of 10.5.2 enhancements also spelled out multiple changes to the AirPort wireless technology, including improved connection reliability.
Wireless G Router For Broadband
India-based networking company D-Link has rolled out the DIR-300, an entry-level Wireless G router for home and small office users, in the Indian market. By simply connecting the DIR-300 to a cable or a DSL modem, one can share a broadband internet connection with numerous computers.
D-Link’s DIR-300 router incorporates stateful Packet Inspection along with firewall functions to protect the users’ network from malicious attacks. This router also brings in good news for parents who want to keep a track on their child’s internet usage, as its scheduling parental control allows them to have more flexible control on their child’s internet activity. The new Wireless G router enables users to share the web via wired as well as wireless connection.
Based on the 802.11g standard, the DIR-300 router is backward compatible with 802.11b. Wireless encryptions such as WEP, WPA and WPA2 are supported to make certain that the data gets securely transmitted over the wireless network. In addition, the bundle also packs in a quick router setup wizard utility to assist users in setting up the unit for their networks and online with the help of a few clicks.
Key feature of the D-Link DIR-300 Wireless G Router include:
Smart Qos
SPI Firewall Protection
Wi-Fi Protected setup
Advanced Scheduling and User Level Control
WPA (TKIP) and WPA2 (AES) Support
Supports VPN Pass through
Interactive Install Guide
UPnPT Support
Window Vista certified
Xbox live certified
The D-Link DIR-300 entry-level Wireless G router for home and small office users is available in India at around Rs. 2625/- (excluding taxes).
D-Link’s DIR-300 router incorporates stateful Packet Inspection along with firewall functions to protect the users’ network from malicious attacks. This router also brings in good news for parents who want to keep a track on their child’s internet usage, as its scheduling parental control allows them to have more flexible control on their child’s internet activity. The new Wireless G router enables users to share the web via wired as well as wireless connection.
Based on the 802.11g standard, the DIR-300 router is backward compatible with 802.11b. Wireless encryptions such as WEP, WPA and WPA2 are supported to make certain that the data gets securely transmitted over the wireless network. In addition, the bundle also packs in a quick router setup wizard utility to assist users in setting up the unit for their networks and online with the help of a few clicks.
Key feature of the D-Link DIR-300 Wireless G Router include:
Smart Qos
SPI Firewall Protection
Wi-Fi Protected setup
Advanced Scheduling and User Level Control
WPA (TKIP) and WPA2 (AES) Support
Supports VPN Pass through
Interactive Install Guide
UPnPT Support
Window Vista certified
Xbox live certified
The D-Link DIR-300 entry-level Wireless G router for home and small office users is available in India at around Rs. 2625/- (excluding taxes).
BioShock comes to cell phones
The architect of BioShock, IG Fun LLC has announced that it has go the rights to a mobile game version of BioShock, which is one of the most critically acclaimed first-person shooters in the history of video gaming. The game's genius lies, amongst other things, in its mix of atmosphere, narrative, pace, level design, RPG elements and moral-based gameplay.
The company’s decision to bring BioShock to cell phones is a curious one, but it will be interesting to see how IG Fun tackles BioShock's trademark visuals and marvelous soundtrack, to say nothing of the fast-paced, plasmid-fueled combat.
According to IG Fun, transferring all of this (BioShock) successfully to mobile while managing to retain the game's essence is a challenge, undoubtedly, though one that isn't impossible.
Sean Malatesta, IG Fun's CEO, said, "We're trying to do great things and BioShock on mobile promises to offer a whole new gaming experience and unmatched excitement amongst mobile gamers the world over."
"BioShock is a special game in its genre; it brings an element of conflicting morals which has an impact on the storyline, and, among other things, on the difficulty of the game itself," he said.
The company has assured that it will squeeze the game into cell phones successfully, but it hasn’t revealed the release date yet.
The company’s decision to bring BioShock to cell phones is a curious one, but it will be interesting to see how IG Fun tackles BioShock's trademark visuals and marvelous soundtrack, to say nothing of the fast-paced, plasmid-fueled combat.
According to IG Fun, transferring all of this (BioShock) successfully to mobile while managing to retain the game's essence is a challenge, undoubtedly, though one that isn't impossible.
Sean Malatesta, IG Fun's CEO, said, "We're trying to do great things and BioShock on mobile promises to offer a whole new gaming experience and unmatched excitement amongst mobile gamers the world over."
"BioShock is a special game in its genre; it brings an element of conflicting morals which has an impact on the storyline, and, among other things, on the difficulty of the game itself," he said.
The company has assured that it will squeeze the game into cell phones successfully, but it hasn’t revealed the release date yet.
MacBook Air
MacBook Air
Mumbai, Feb 13: Information Technology major Apple launched the world`s thinnest notebook Macbook Air for the travelling executives. "We have built the world`s thinnest notebook without sacrificing a full-size keyboard or a 13-inch display," Apple Product Marketing Manager, Portables and Wireless, Asia Pacific, Angeline Tan told reporters here on Tuesday. Macbook Air measures 0.16 inches at its thinnest point, while its maximum height of 0.76 inches is less than the thinnest point on "competing notebooks". It has a 13.3-inch led-backlit widescreen display, a fullsize and backlit keyboard, a built-in isight video camera for video conferencing, and a trackpad with multi-touch gesture support. "Macbook Air is powered by a 1.6 ghz Intel core 2 duo processor with 4mb l2 cache, and includes 2gb of memory, 80gb 1.8-inch hard drive and the latest 802.11n wi-fi technology with five hour battery life and bluetooth," Tan said. The users of this notebook model can buy the companion Macbook Air Superdrive, an external drive designed for it. "Powered by a USB port, the external drive eliminates nee to carry a separate power adapter. There is no need for an optical drive now that the users can wirelessly backup files with time capsule and access the optical drives on remote PCS to wirelessly install software applications on Macbook Air," she said.
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