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We all know that voice recognition software exists having been created by companies like Apple, some of us thought that advanced technology would end at a computer recognizing words and responding to questions. However that is not the case. A company called Kimera Systems is developing a system that figuratively reads your mind. This isn't a software that literally reads what you are thinking and performs an action based on your thought since that would require an implant into your body. Rather, Kimera's system consisting of the Salience Engine and DigitalMe (or DMe) Smart Agents. The Salience Engine collects information from its users and uses this to understand human action better while the Smart Agents perform actions based on the user's preferences and the user's previous actions. For example, if a user sent out party invitations to friends and then went out to buy groceries, Kimera's system would automatically download a shopping app for the user because the system understands the user is going to the grocery store to buy select food items. This system, should it be implemented into future phones and devices could very well change society for the better and for worse. This system could make people's lives better by allowing decisions to be made by the system for the user so they can worry about other things while knowing Kimera's system will take care of tasks for them. This could negatively impact society though because since the system automatically makes decisions for the user, if they begin to rely on this system and lose their sense of judgement rendering them unable to decide without this system. Though automated technology is the dream of many, is an automated life really what we want? From this new technology Kimera is creating, other more advanced automated technologies could arise and eventually we could end up losing our humanity since everything we need to do is done for us by a computer. We would end up like the humans in the movie Wall-E who were

All of us either own a phone or want one, but which one is the right pick for you? Well your in luck because this article talks just about that. It compares the three operating systems that are making it big right now: Android, IOS, and Windows. In this comparison There are many discussions but in the end it comes down to a few points. First off all, there is the android. This system is making a huge impression even though the others have been around for longer. Overall this seems to be a phone who know more about technology and are really into customizing, and controlling their phone. Then there's is the iphone. This phone is popular with a large quantity of people and is famous for its app store. This phone is for those that want a simple phone that is used often for entertainment. Last but not least there is the Windows phone. Windows has been a computing big-shot for a long time and is growing even bigger with its new Windows 8 platform. Whats neat is that both the PC and the smartphone from windows will be running the same OS, which will really make things easier for those interested in connecting the 2 and etc. This phone is for those who are using windows and want their systems to connect, and for those who want a simple interface or those who often use Microsoft Office. In the end, all these systems are amazing and it's really up to your personal needs and preferences.

This article mentions the fact that Twitter now plans to update its mobile applications to introduce filters for photos allowing people to share altered images without having to use another source such as Instagram. Since most phones come with high-resolution cameras and many of the Twitter users use their phones this will be an easy way for people to edit and upload their photos. Especially with people or famous celebrities that use Instagram then share them on Twitter where more people follow them it will be easier and faster to just use Twitter for it all. This new idea has been hastened when Facebook bought Instagram. Twitter was thinking of buying a different photo service or application but when weighing out the cost they decided to just build their own filters. Twitter is also exploring the ability to upload and edit videos without using a third-party application like YouTube. This article has a lot to do with economics and the battle between two companies trying to get people to use their site and apps and not the other. In this case Twitter is really trying to become the most popular and important social networking site where people will be able to do anything on and it will be instant. They are changing what they once were to try to morph into Facebook because of the increasing popularity of Instagram and the fact that Facebook bought it.  I think personally that Twitter is making a good decision about the filter but i don't think twitter should add their own video player because it would change twitter and its purpose of being instant statements and pictures. YouTube is good at what they do and twitter should stay out of it. However with the whole idea of adding filters to Twitter you get the benefits of Instagram with the benefits of Twitter which might just keep them on top of Instagram.

Following Facebook's purchase of Instagram for almost $1 Billion in April 2012, it seems appropriate that Twitter would integrate something similar into their users' experience. 'Inside sources' say that Twitter is working on a photo-filter system that will be integrated directly in the site and mobile apps that hopes to bypass third-party services (such as Instagram.) While Instagram is a social network that focuses on social images with limited text, Twitter is renowned for its 140 character text-based updates with occasional images. An advantage of Twitter's supposed photo filtering system would be that there would most likely be a website equivalent to the mobile app, a problem that has plagued Instagram users who want a PC experience. As of now, there have been no official confirmations by Twitter, but the idea of a Twitter-exclusive photo sharing system seems interesting; although the market is currently saturated by Instagram, which can export images to other social networks, including Twitter. Legally, Facebook and Instagram may be able to take action against Twitter, depending on how similar their filtering system will be. This relates to eLifestyle and ICS20 because as social network users, we are always searching for ways to monetize our networks to one cohesive experience; another photo-sharing application seems arbitrary when there is already a capable system (Instagram.)

Many of use know about pirating, and some even do it. So far we thought that it was an easy way to get things with little ways of getting caught; this however is going to change. A knew security system is in development and bound to be out within the next 2 months that will catch those who pirate, and if numerous warnings are ignored; they will be prosecuted. This program watches popular sites such as bittorent and tracks the ip address of those who download illegal content. Then it sends warnings and if those are ignored, you will be tracked and investigated. Overall I believe this software will help stop pirating, but it will be met with huge opposition because most people wont be willing to give up their access to free movies, music, software, etc. Also this raises a privacy issue, but as this security system only tracks your IP, its not much of a problem compared to other tracking systems out there. To conclude, I believe the future of this system is filled with huge debates and maybe even battles.

This article talks about a new tablet line from Microsoft called "Surface". It is supposed to go with the new Windows 8 operating system which is supposed to be a more touch and mobile friendly system. At an event in LA Steve Ballmer showed 2 versions of Surface.  One is running Windows 8 Pro the other Windows RT. Each tablet comes with a stand and magnetically attachable covers to allow the tablet to be like a laptop. The type cover has a keyboard and trackpad, while the touch cover is a thinner keyboard cover that comes in many colours and has an accelerometer to let the system know when it's folded to deactivate the keyboard. Both have a 10.6-inch display. The RT version is 9.3mm thick and weights 673g while the Windows 8 Pro is 13.55mm thick and weighs 903g. Only the RT comes with productivity software like Office Home and Student pre-loaded. This release ties in with portable computing because it is an all new portable tablet that is from Microsoft. It also ties in with their new operating system that goes hand in hand with this tablet. It is something with a new innovative style and can be used in various ways as a laptop or tablet. It also ties in with economics and the whole Apple vs. Microsoft competition. Microsoft has created an "even better" version of the iPad. Now instead of going for the iPad people that like PC's and working with them can make the choice to use the Surface tablet which once again puts Microsoft and Apple in competition with one another for sales. All in all this is a great new tablet and I think it is great for all those Windows users that can get their hands on a new tablet from Microsoft.  It will be interesting to see if this new technology will blow up compared to the iPad and now the iPad Mini.

This new Ford has the latest version of its infontainment system "SYNC with MyFord Touch." SYNC is voice-activated technology which connects your smartphone and MP3 player to your car's dashboard and steering wheel. It launched in 2007 and now there are 4 million Ford cars in North America with SYNC. The latest evolution is called MyFord Touch, a fully integrated "cabin tech" system. Ford has not only been a leader in car infotainment systems, it has also adopted the software paradigm of iterative upgrades. At the end of last year it announced free upgrades for MyFord. This relates to the course because it shows how technology is getting better and better.

For a service that had such an artificially high demand, the tech industry has not really capitalized on Video Chat. When Apple unveiled their video chat service 'FaceTime' in June of 2010, many thought that this would become the primary standardized service used by all. In practice, FaceTime is a clunky system that is evidently less productive and convenient than just vocal or text communication. So why hasn't video conferencing taken off as the industry had hoped? The answer is most likely because there is no standardized system and the market is too saturated; Polycom Inc. hopes to adress this issue by introducing a Universal Video Chat in early 2013. The product (called RealPresence CloudAxis) monetizes all of your contacts from Skype, Facebook, Google Talk and other apps into one place - all hosted on a web browser. This is a very ambitious task and if it delivers on what Polycom says (with the "same security and reliability as enterprise systems"), then there may be some validity to the video conference service. This relates to Privacy and Security because when monetizing a group of services, there is a chance for data leak and possible identity theft; Polycom promises to adress all security issues in order to make a safe and immersive experience for its users. This relates to eLifestyle because companies and their consumers have been trying for the past years to create a universal video chat service that actually worked in order to establish a multi-faceted social network: it might be too early to tell if Polycom has something that will fulfill the needs of consumers. This relates to ICS20 because as a class, we are no stranger to multiple accounts that often times serve the same purpose. As consumers, we hope for a streamlined service that can connect all of our multiple accounts into one place, preferably on a browser. It will be hard for Polycom, both legally and economically, to convince all of these pre-existing video chat developers to allow Polycom to

Nintendo is shutting down servers that support online play for the Wii and DS on May 30th. No longer will you be able to enjoy popular titles on said systems like pokemon, or mariokart, to its fullest. Playing with others is a big part of the enjoyment of a game, and communities for these games will likely collapse when the wifi deteonation comes. So, with the apparent loss of a large gaming group, why IS nintendo shutting down their servers for these two systems? Nintendo is looking for people to upgrade to the superior counterparts: the 3DS and WiiU. Similar games that shaped the online Wii community are coming out later this year for the WiiU. Nintendo did not officially say that the reason for the server shutdown was just a marketing ploy. It is speculated however, running a server shouldn't be a big problem for a tech giant like Nintendo... IMO, even with titles successors, sometimes you just want to relax by playing an old game on a system you already own. Variety is key.

This is article is all about running a second operating system in a virtual machine or dual boot. Choosing between this two methods is up to you, because  you need to think which better for your particular needs.Both have pros and cons, but are better suited to specific situations. Dual booting is great for games and other Long stints in an operating system while virtualization is great for running that one program, or testing out a new OS.

This article discusses the options of running an OS within an OS for example a VMware image of Apple Mac OS X 10.7 Lion running on a Windows based machine within the VMware software package. It discusses the issues of performance when you use another OS within a host OS and how the processor has to utilise and manage its resources within the both OS's for it to run, so therefore the virtual OS will be very laggy and unresponsive if it has to utilise a lot of resources and if it has a lot of programs and processes open simultaneously. While Dual booting is great if you own a Apple Mac due to the fact that not many games can run on the Mac environment because of the need of most games require the Microsoft DirectX 10 codec or higher for example CRYSIS 2  which is only available to windows machines for it to function properly. This therefore is relevant to my course due to the fact that it discusses many software package limitations and also hardware limitations which can get in the way of what you want to achieve for example VMware .ISO file of Apple Mac OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion running on an Acer Aspire 5247.  

This article talks about facebook for PS VIta update. The new version 1.01 has some new decent new functionality such as uploading images to your news feed, you can also tag images and enjoy any of the system languages of the device while you do so. This new update is useful because PS Vita camera is like useless when you can't upload your pics from your PS vita to facebook. I was disappointed with the facebook app for the vita because it sucks and it is pain to use but I think this will be the start to change the system of the facebook app in PS Vita. 

The hugely anticipated Windows 8 operating system by Microsoft has aired its first ad today. Microsoft is reportedly spending a huge amount of money on advertising Windows 8 along with the new Microsoft Tablet, called the "Surface." Microsoft is holding a special media launch for Surface and Windows 8 on October 25. Furthermore, a number of stores will open at midnight October 26 to sell Windows 8 PCs and Tablets. I think that in order for the new tablet Microsoft is releasing to be successful and sell out to customers, they should start advertising it way more. I haven't even heard of it until reading this article, and with so many other tablets on the market, what makes this one so special? The fact that it runs on Windows 8 is simply not enough to sell the "Surface" in large amounts. Windows 8 will probably become very successful, as Microsoft is a trusted company when it comes to operating systems, and many people worldwide use different versions of Windows. In conclusion, i would focus more on advertising the new tablet rather than Windows 8, and airing these advertisements in as many places around the world as possible to attract worldwide customers.

This article describes how scientists are working to create new top off the line security. As we've seen in many sci-fi movies ; there is such a thing as eye scanners. they have existed for sometime now, but they have been primitive and worked just by using the iris of your eye. This could be faked easily by someone just taking a picture of your eye and simply holding it to the screen. This new technology however is a lot more sophisticated. It uses your eyes "fixations" and "saccades" to determine if it is really you. Fixations is how your eye behaves when it is still and saccades is how your eye behaves when it is moving from point to point. This new technology is a breakthrough in security, as it is virtually impossible to fake. no more stolen passwords, or hacked systems. Now unless its really you, the system wont let the person in. THis is extremely important as it prevents theft, hacking, and many other problems. To conclude, this technology is extremely important to our security and will greatly contribute to our future

The article, by Anita Li, is an infographic on the evolution of Windows Operating Systems from 1985 and Windows users, as well as popular technology and software at the time of each release. The 1985 description depicts a generic male figure hunching over the machine-block Windows 1.0, with the subtext "Won't it explode if I press this button?" This highlights what a large impact the first computers and operating systems might have had - people possibly were afraid of pressing any buttons in fear that the the hulking brick might explode. But as we know, technology advances, and people adapt. The infographic shows the housings becoming smaller as hardware becomes more compact, and OSs become more advanced. It also illustrates the "first Internet experience" along with Windows 98, Google with Windows 2000, Skype and Solitaire with Windows XP, Facebook and the XBox for Windows Vista, and Twitter for Windows 7. The users also change, where Windows was generally used by adults in offices, it is presently used by a younger age group of teenagers for social networking and the like. As it was made out to be, I find this infographic very interesting. It shows a stark contrast between the first computers and computers today. Not only does it show the evolution of Windows OSs and its  users, it also illustrates the evolution of technology and how society has developed around it. Computers have become much more portable with the laptop, and their versatility is unmatched. Ultimately this infographic is an advertisement for the 2012 release of Windows 8 (dubbed "Thinner. Lighter. Faster."), but it does generate some thought, letting the mind ponder about past, present, and future technologies, and how society has and will adapt to the constant change. 

In a sort of infographic craze.. : http://visual.ly/

This article is about a new infrared technology that will let firemen see through flames. This was a new study in Italy and researchers have created a system that cuts through smoke with infrared lasers. The lasers bounce off of anything such as people and go back through an imager to show the firefighters a 3D view of everything around them. The current infrared camera monitors that firefighters use can easily be blinded by thick smoke and flames because they have a lens that must zoom in on light. The new system will let firefighters see them in holograph form. This product still has to be refined but once it is it can help save many lives. This is an example of security because many more people will be more secure and safe when this product comes out.

Early in the afternoon today, a clever developer managed to sneak a Game Boy Advance emulator into an innocent looking app named "Awesome Baby Names". The secret emulator is activated by a series of taps on the touchscreen inside of the app. Once it is activated you can play your classic gba games just like you did in 2005. Apple was quick to catch this security breach as it was only in the App Store for twenty something minutes, but in that time many people including myself managed to download the app. This kind of sneaky activity from developers happens very seldom, but when something is smuggled into the App Store, it is usually very important. As stated in the article, it is a very easy process to unlock the emulator from the app, but getting the games and the BIOS onto the iPhone is the hard part. You must first download a program that lets you access the phone's file directory, then you must find the app's directory and drop the relevant BIOS and game files there. I chose the portable computing tag for this article because it deals with mobile technology and exploiting it to run handheld gaming software. This idea is not knew and has been around for a long time, but the idea of hiding the identity of apps and smuggling them into the App Store is a new idea. Apple is updating their security daily, but clearly couldn't spot this "child naming app" and make it out for the emulator that it was. I chose the privacy and security tag because Apple has a high priority for the security of their ecosystem and operating system, but clever people can still find ways to bypass this and get unidentified files into the operating system. I believe that Apple must keep a close eye on how they approve future apps into the app store because one day we may see cydia disguised as a senseless app make its way into the app store. If this happens, Apple with really have some explaining to do!    

This article is about a new company chosen by FIFA called GoalControl. This company's goal is to clarify goals and prevent incorrect judging of offside rules.This company plans to use cameras to capture the goals so that an assistant coach won't be relied on. Their camera and software system, will be used to judge goal line decisions at this summer's Confederations Cup in Brazil and,maybe next year's World Cup. GoalControl's system involves 14 cameras with seven trained on each goal. In Brazil, the cameras will be attached to the catwalks beneath each stadium's lights and will constantly take full frame,color pictures( 500 per minute) to determine the ball's location at every point in the game. Computers will continually scan the images, and when the ball is seen to have crossed the goal line, a signal will be sent to the referee's watch causing it to vibrate and alert him that a goal should be awarded.GoalControl will cost roughly $260,000 per stadium to install in Brazil. This new technology is positive influence to the soccer world. It will provide teams with their rightful goals and prevent confusion and false calls. It will also be more accurate since assistant referees and referees will not have to determine the situation, but can refer back to the tapings. This new technology is also a negative influence because two different referees may interpret the tapings differently causing more confusion.

This article is basically about physcist developing a system in witch they use the suns energy to destroy or redirect asteroids from space. The earth at this period of time can easily be destroyed but a random asteroid from outer space. Asteroids are roughly the size of five football flieds long. The earth has recently dodged two asteroid threats on its own but may not be so lucky in the future. This is why Physicists Philip Lubin of University of California, Santa Barbara and Gary Hughes of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo started working on the DE-STAR proposal a year ago. Directed Energy Solar Targeting of Asteroids, an exploRation (DE-STAR). This system will use the suns solar energy to power a laser beam that can be used to shoot to destroy or redirect future asteroids that have been predicted to come and are a threat to human survival. For example asteroid 2012 DA14-a medium sized, 150 ft (50 m) rock weighing 143,000 tons-was closing in on us. They knew that it would miss us too, by 17,200 miles (27,700 km

Space rocks as much as 100 feet wide are estimated to hit a hundred years or so. But, there are rare " killer asteroids" that can wipe out a city the size of Moscow and kill 30,000 in an instant. But the university of Hawaii's new meteor tracking systems come online, we'll be able to forecast meteor strikes as accurately as predicting when a blizzard is coming.  This device is known as ATLAS ( Asteroid terrestrial-impact Last Alert System). This device consists of a pair of observatories located about 60 miles apart, each equipped with four, 10-inch telescopes with 100 MP cameras. Together, these observatories would scan the sky 2 times a night. The telescope may be very small  but will be sensitive enough to spot and estimate an incoming threat in the exact location and time.  This project started since 2012 but got a a jump start with a $5 million grant by NASA.

In the recent weeks, it seems to be the societal trend to chastise Apple Inc. for their mistakes, the most recent of them being their native iOS 6 'Maps' application. Earlier in the week, CEO Tim Cook published a letter on the Apple website apologizing for the poor quality of the app, saying that "At Apple, we strive to make world-class products that deliver the best experience possible to our customers. With the launch of our new Maps last week, we fell short on this commitment." However, this is not a first for Apple admitting their mistakes and apologizing; one example is in June of 2012, Bob Mansfield (SVP) expressed remorse for Apple's withdrawal of the EPEAT rating system, which ensured the company met an eco-friendly standard. They later recanted their actions and went back on to the rating system. Many people attribute Apple's recent downfall to the shift of power from Steve Jobs to Tim Cook. Apple has also come to fire for their general decreasing of employees per Apple store to increase profitability, their standalone podcast app and ultimately the widely regarded inadequate 'Siri', supposedly improved in iOS6. This relates to the tag 'eLifestyle' because when Apple limits the users experience by introducing faulty software and refuses to adress things because of pride, evidently the customers suffer. This relates to 'Environment' because of Apple's debacle with the EPEAT, and society's increasing desire for products that are eco-friendly, and Apple's supposed "higher environmental standards" that they operate under. Legally, Apple has actively been taking and giving lawsuits over the past years, including Samsung and Adobe (a lawsuit directly following Steve Jobs' choice to abandon flash on iOS devices.) From an economics standpoint, Apple seems to be making all the wrong choices, being that they abandon things that work (e.g. Google Maps, third-party podcast apps, EPEAT) and tries to 'reinvent the wheel' and many people argue that without the direction o

On October 29 Google unveiled its new tablet the Nexus 10. This is Google's first 10 inch Nexus device and it runs on an Android 4.2 Jelly Bean Google's newest mobile system, also it comes with some new cutting edge hardware you ever seen in an Android tablet. Google has priced its new tablet at $399 to compete with the other new tablets such as Microsoft Surface, iPad 4th generation, and Kindle Fire HD. The Nexus 10 has a 2560 x 1600 pixel Super PLS display at 300ppi and has a denser display screen than other competitors. The Nexus 10 runs on an ARM Cortex-A15 processor and quad-core Mali T604 graphics processing unit. It has a 5 megapixel rear camera and a 1.9 megapixel front camera. The Nexus's new software has a new user account option that lets multiple users customize the tablet to their own needs without disrupting other users that may have access to it. The only bad thing it lacks the proper apps for a tablet that are available to Android. It is eLifestyle because a lot of people have been waiting for this new tablet and it's different than the latest tablets. It's portable computing because it runs on the new Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and Google's latest mobile system. Has a bigger screen and it will compete very well with the other companies.