Karthik.K's Random Thoughts!
I go by the saying: "No Sacrifice, No Victory!"
The One week iPhone app development project just went live!
Feb 8th
iPhone developer Sahil Lavingia has begun his project of building an iPhone app in one week as you watch. This will be a really great opportunity for newbie iPhone App Developers to learn about the exact process to develop an iPhone App in “ONE WEEEKKK”. I salute Sahil Lavingia for taking up this task.
OneWeekApp.com is the place where he is posting his progress and screenshots and videos of him developing the app. He is also posting notes about his work.
He calls this application “Dayta”. This app will serve you a great purpose in your daily life. It will help you maintain your weight, Kill-to-death ratio and infact its a virtual gym master, which will help you by providing tips and daily workout to burn your calories. I;m eagerly following Sahil. And expecting his app to be completed in a week.
I will be posting regular feeds about his progress here. Stay tuned!!
Thank you Sahil! 
Nokia Diagnostics Tool to Test and Troubleshoot Mobile Devices
Feb 8th
Nokia, one of the world leader in mobile phone market is now testing its new Diagnostics tool. This tool will help you out diagnose your Nokia phone in a very simple way, helping you to find out what the problem is. This is going to help people in a great way, to find problems themselves rather than to pay some currency to the service guy. This pretty tool will help you troubleshoot the problems yourself.
The utility comprises of five major tests namely Network Coverage, Internet Connectivity, Battery Charger as well as Loudspeaker and Earpiece tests. As the name implies, Network Coverage test will able to detect current network coverage such as GSM, CDMA or etc with current receiver signal strength as well as roaming status. Whereas Internet Connectivity test will able to help users to test and configure access point’ settings for seamless internet browsing with wizard support. And the rest of tests are mainly focused on system hardware and drivers components. For instances, users will be able to check if the charging function is working, confirm earpiece and loudspeaker functionality before deciding to dissect for spare part change or send to service center for replacement.
Even though the simple application may not comprehensive enough to cover every aspects of failure, but you may still find its usefulness and good thing is, it is totally free for download and use. Currently Nokia Diagnostics is compatible to S60 fifth generation devices such as Nokia N97 mini, N97, 5800, 5530 and Nokia development team is looking to add S60 third generation support to benefit wider group of users. Since it is still in beta version, Nokia Beta Labs appreciates all the feedback and bugs found to make it a more robust utility in next release.
I’m infact waiting for the app to be compatible with Nokia 5300. Utilize the comments section of the blog to share your views.
[Via My Digital Life]
Bacteria powered robots are on the way!
Feb 8th
New ways of powering robots are being designed, one of which involves the use of swimming bacteria to propel miniature gears. The shape of the gears influence the bacteria and make them move in a type of rotary motion, which can generate enough energy to power small robots. Changing the oxygen level within the area where the bacteria are kept, or the suspension fluid, can be used to control the speed of the gears. This is because the bacteria depend on oxygen to survive, and the more of it is available, the faster they are going to move.
These bio-powered machines are the result of research by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and Northwestern University, Evanston. Their goal is to further develop and explore the possibility of using bacteria and other microorganisms to power hybrid biochemical systems.
The special type of bacteria used in the experiment is called Bacillus subtilies, which at first appeared to make random motions when placed in the suspension fluid, but then started latching on to the gears and turning them into a singular direction. As the image at the top shows, different models of gears turned at different speeds, and depended on the amount of bacteria, which was directly influenced by the O2 levels. When connected together, the gears were rotated in opposite directions by the bacteria, generating a steady supply of motion and power.
The discovery can be used not only as a possible energy source for micro-machines, but as a natural means to repair damage. The bacteria are alive and possess nutrients and qualities belonging to skin tissue, which is able to adapt to the environment and heal itself, to a certain extent. The next step is designing the robots that will be able to harness this potential.
[Source]
Robonaut 2 – The Humanoid from NASA
Feb 8th
NASA may be facing some serious budgetary cuts on many of their projects, but their Robonaut program in partnership with General Motors is going strong 10 years after the first robot was built. The second generation Robonaut 2 humanoid robot designed for assisting astronauts in space was recently revealed to the public and I have to admit that it looks great.
Robonaut is only half a humanoid robot because it does not have legs; however, it is blessed with a state-of-the-art upper body including a pair of powerful arms and dexterous hands (both are nicely demonstrated in the video at the end of this article.) Even though the first generation robot was the results of a partnership between NASA and DARPA, the latest prototype is the result of a collaboration between NASA and GM; the latter hope that by contributing to this program they will be able to develop technologies that can help make driving and operating a manufacturing plant safer.
We don’t know of much about the technical details of the new robot. All we know is that NASA envisions robots like this working next to human astronauts in space. The first generation Robonaut was designed for remote controled use; it is not clear if the new robot can function autonomously. In the below video researchers from NASA and GM introduce Robonaut 2.
[Source: NASA]
Free Upgrade to Office 2010 from Office 2007 (Technology Guarantee Program)
Feb 7th
We all know that the much awaited Microsoft Office 2010 is ready to hit the software market very soon. As a mark of this step, its now in its RTM stage. The Rumor is that Office 2010 will be officially released to manufacturing on April 2010, while Microsoft promises that Office 2010 will hit the retail stores on June 2010.
To avoid affecting sales of Office 2007 in the immediate months waiting for imminent release of Office 2010, Microsoft looks set to offer Office 2010 Technology Guarantee Program, similar to Windows 7 Upgrade Options and Windows Vista Technology Guarantee Program, which provides free upgrade to Office 2010 when it’s officially released to GA (general availability) for newly purchased Office 2007.
According to a blog post (has since been deleted, but still accessible via Google Cache) by Charles Van Heusen, a Microsoft’s Technology Specialist on Microsoft U.S. Partner Community (ts2community.com), Microsoft Office 2010 Technology Guarantee Program will allow customer who buys qualifying Office 2007 product (with or without a new PC) from an authorized reseller between March 5 – September 30, 2010 to download and receive the corresponding Office 2010 for free, complete with activation product key. The retail prices of Office 2010 has also been revealed.
Good news is that end-user doesn’t have to worry about whether the PC can run Office 2010 after upgrading, as Office 2010 system requirements generally is the same for both Office 2007 and Office 2010. Which means the computer that can run Office 2007 can run Office 2010 too.
Generally, customers who intend to take advantage of the free Office 2010 upgrade program has to do the following:
Purchase or buy a qualifying Office 2007 product (with or without a new PC) from an authorized reseller between March 5 – September 30, 2010.
Install and activate Office 2007 by September 30, 2010.
Request the free upgrade to Office 2010 by October 31, 2010.
Office 2010 can be downloaded for free when it’s generally available, or customers can order a DVD for a fee.
The qualifying Office 2007 suite products and the corresponding free upgrade path to Office 2010 suite SKU:
Office Home and Student 2007 -> Office Home & Student 2010
Office Standard 2007 -> Office Home and Business 2010
Office Small Business 2007 -> Office Professional 2010
Office Professional 2007 -> Office Professional 2010
Microsoft Publisher 2007 -> Microsoft Publisher 2010
In addition, the free Office 2010 upgrade product key must be requested by October 31, 2010 using the activated Office 2007 product Key and dated sales receipt. And, only one Office 2010 product per qualifying Office 2007 purchase, and the free upgrade licenses is limited to a maximum of twenty-five upgrades per person.
Thanks to My Digital Life for the info.
15 Fantastic Finds on the Google Code Repository
Feb 7th
Google Code Repository is a section of Google that, just like SourceForge, allows developers to upload their code for others to use under license. The repository was launched in 2006 and after searching through its archives, I found a number of interesting scripts and other goodies that would be an asset in any website owner/website builder’s arsenal.
All the code examples below are free to download and use. They’re released under a GPL, BSD, MIT or Creative Commons license.
1. Twotiny
This is a great series of tiny icons created by Paul Jarvis at twothirty. There’s a jumble of various-sized icons for everyday web design use and they also come in their Photoshop source files. These three-layered images are easy to manipulate because of the included Photoshop files, so they are amazingly versatile for all purposes.
Touch Mouse turns your iPhone and iPod touch into the remote of your device
Feb 7th
Logitech’s new app Touch Mouse is a good option for those who have a Home Theater PC set or simply want o control their computer from a distance. This app is really a good option to turn your iPhone or iPod Touch into a wireless trackpad or keyboard.
You can point, click, scroll and type in any application in your Mac or a PC. With this app you will get two-finger scrolling possibility, keyboard with modified keys, on-screen text display while typing etc. The app will work by means of WI-FI from any place in your house and you won’t need any additional equipment, but you will need to download the Touch Mouse Server software from www.logitech.com/touchmouse and install it on your Mac or PC. Thus your iPhone or iPod will be able to find your computer and communicate with it. Besides your Mac will require OS X 10.4 or higher and PC – Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7.
The Touch Mouse can really make you feel comfortable allowing you o control devices from your coach or bed.
One more good news is that the app is free to download at the App Stores.
(Via Apple iPhone Blog.)
