Monday, March 31, 2014

Download Game Battle Armada for Nokia 5800 N97 X6 5530 and N8

Battle Armada is a Java game for Symbian^3 and Symbian S60 5th edition based touch screen mobiles. Battle Armada is a shooter arcade game where the objective in every level is to shoot the aliens. In the year 2180, humans have founded settlements throughout the universe, but a mysterious space fleet threatens that peaceful existence.


Many have given their lives, and we have lost much because the aliens keep coming back bigger and better and stronger than before. But do not falter! So long as you can keep us funded, we can keep you upgraded! Fight your way through the alien armada, battle ace. No pressure...but you are our last hope!


Battle Armada game is developed by 3 Dynamics (Asia) Ltd. and it works with Nokia N8, E7, C6, C7, 5800 XpressMusic, N97, N97 Mini, X6, 5228, 5230, 5233, 5235 and 5530 XpressMusic. The version 1.0.0 of this game is available to download.

Game Battle Armada for Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and N97 (1.4 MB)
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Sunday, March 30, 2014

Download Application AnswerScreensaver for Nokia 5800 and N8

AnswerScreensaver or SlideAnswer is a nice application for Symbian^3 and Symbian S60 5th edition based touchscreen mobile phones from Nokia. Sometimes when a call comes in or we dial someone, we accidently hit "Mute", "End Call" or "Answer".


With AnswerScreensaver running on your mobile, you dont need to worry about this problem. AnswerScreensaver prevents accidental "End call", "Mute" and "Answer" during a phone call. You just need to slide up to cancel the screensaver, with smooth sliding animation.


There are various settings which you can use. The application is developed by Yuelongr. The application works with Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, N97, N97 Mini, X6, 5228, 5230, 5233, 5235, 5530 XpressMusic, N8, E7, C6 and C7. The version 1.0.0 of this app is available to download.

Application AnswerScreensaver for Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and N97 (69 KB)
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Saturday, March 29, 2014

Download Widget ALCulator for Nokia 5800 N97 X6 and N8

ALCulator is a widget based application for Symbian^3 and Symbian S605th edition based touchscreen smartphones from Nokia. With this application you can roughly approximate your blood alcohol concentration.


Huge variations from the calculated values are possible due to the things you eat, the medicaments you take and so on. Always remember: Dont drink and drive! And if you dont drive, still dont go over the top! Enjoy the party!


You enter and save your user profile and then select as many as you want from 19 different drinks and the application will show your BAC and it will also tell how long it will take you to dry-out. The interface is easy and smart.


The application is developed by Benjamin Butz. The application works with Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, N97, N97 Mini, X6, 5228, 5230, 5233, 5235, 5530 XpressMusic, N8, E7, C6 and C7. Download and install this widget on your phone.

Widget ALCulator for Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and N97 (332 KB)

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Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Flowers Dreams of Spring

Flowers - Fields of Europe Arrangement - Large

Dreams of Spring - Amazing flowers (Part4)

Hello, Everyone! Heres a presentation featuring a plethora of gorgeous flowers that may inspire us to dream of Spring!  My favorites among all of these gorgeous flowers are the ones at slides: 1, 7, 10, 15, 18, 22, 23, 24, 28, 29, 37, 41, 42, and 44. Enjoy!





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Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Researchers develop human prosthesis for balance unfortunately its not a tail

Human prosthesisTheres hope for those of us suffering from chronic imbalance as a result of staring too long at periodic tables and 20-sided dice. Its an implant developed by neuroscientists at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary.

The implant looks to off-set balance irregularities in the human vestibular system caused by trauma or disease affecting the gyroscopic function of the inner ear. A microprocessor converts signals received from a motion sensor worn on the head into electrical impulses. These are then sent to an electrode implanted into the inner ear. The first test will begin next week on a rhesus monkey. A move which evokes cries of "unfair" from us -- unlike nerds, monkeys already have excellent balance.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/31/researchers-develop-human-prosthesis-for-balance-unfortunately/
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SPIGEN Glas tR SLIM 9H Premium Tempered Glass for Sony Z1



Having not used tempered glass on a handset before I was keen to see how good and how much of a difference the experience is over and above a regular screen protector.

In this case, the Sony Z1 comes with a protector which applies very well and has impressive performance, after several months of use it didnt have many marks on but it did love finger prints. 

When the screen was off you could see the marks all over the show. Ive always just shrugged and thought thats part of the joy of owning a touch screen smartphone, sure you hear of screen protectors which use technology you never heard of to stop grubby mits marking your darling - but Im always skeptical to these claims.

Now the fitting of the screen isnt easy because the screen is so ridged, and after my first attempt I ended up with a bubble that just wouldnt go way, no matter how hard I tried it just remained. I had left the case on to give me guidance for placement and that was a good plan - position placing was easy. 

So after a second attempt it went on great, although a small bit of dust did get in just under the screen by the bottom bezel but to be honest it doesnt show on the screen so - who cares. 

Once on, the screen protector shows its quality, its super sensitive and a far cry from the plastic of the default screenie - very happy with that. 

Finger print issues are greatly reduced, no idea how it works but it just doesnt mark - well nowhere near as easy thats for sure, munch on a bag of crisps (chips) and Im sure it would show up though after a few handfuls of Doritos.

The light passes though well and while the camera on the front is covered by the glass rather than a hole for it, it doesnt effect performance at all. The sensor in the top left works great too and not impacted, the only gripe would be while the edges are smoothed so it doesnt get chipped. The weakness here would be around the top sensor, I think it would be very unlucky you got a chip there but I guess it should be pointed out non the less.

The protector is premium thats for sure, a large enough improvement to warrant an investment but I guess only once your current one has started to let you down. Its super sensitive, and very clear, in fact you hardly notice its there post install; I highly recommend this item to protect your Z1. If you havent got a screen protector on right now, then seek this one out, high and low, and buy it. Make sure you have a case that has a screen lip on it to protect the glass though.

While we were very lucky to be sent one to try out, there is no stock of this Z1 version in the UK just yet. So you have to import but we hope to see this appear from Amazon soon - once we know we will post a link up here for you to buy.













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Monday, March 24, 2014

ThinkGreen Recycling Widget

CFL Recycling KitWaste Managements Think Green Widget

Todays widget is from Waste Management, a company that works with your business to re-think its resources in the effort to minimize waste while adding value. They do this with environmental solutions that create the possibility of saving money, and even making money, via recycling, re-using goods and re-introducing remnants back into production. Learn more about Waste Managment.

With this interactive widget from Waste Management we can learn how our recycling makes a positive impact on the environment. This widget can be shared on Facebook, Blogger and other platforms with three, simple steps (on their widget page) . Enjoy!




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Sunday, March 23, 2014

Armstrong 9320 dan Davis 9220 Ponsel BlackBerry Terbaru di Awal 2012

BlackBerry terbaru | BB 2012 | Armstrong (9320) | BlackBerry | Davis (9220) | Davis (9220) | RIM
Sebuah Roadmap 2012 RIM bocor dan kami menyimpulkan mereka akan memiliki dua perangkat BlackBerry Curve baru, BlackBerry Curve 9320, 9220. Kami juga mengetahui bahwa kode nama yang diberikan kedua smartphone terbaru RIM ini adalah Armstrong (9320) dan Davis (9220). Kita tahu bahwa Curve memiliki pasar yang sangat besar di Asia dan Afrika Timur, dan terutama Indonesia. Namun kami hingga kini belum memiliki bocoran mengenai hardware yang akan digunakan di kedua ponsel ini. Jadi tunggu saja kabar selanjutnya...
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iTunes Offers New iPod Games

Scrabble and a revised Mini Golf are both available for the newer models of iPods.

Each costs US$4.99 and can be played on third-generation iPod nanos, iPod classics and fifth-generation (video) iPods.

Mini Golf isnt truly a new game -- this is a reworked version of a game that EA previously released specifically for fifth-generation iPods, now capable of being played on newer iPod models as well. The game features three themed courses full of obstacles and shortcuts, and three game modes -- single player, pass n play and practice hole.

Scrabble, on the other hand, is a new addition to the iTunes Stores growing list of iPod games. Its an iPod-ready version of Hasbros popular crossword board game. Scrabble features multiple difficulty levels, different play styles (classic, pints and rounds), a zoom-in feature so you can see the board more closely, "pass n play" mode for up to four players, with customizable rules, tracking of games and score statistics, game tips and multiple audio tracks.

Source- http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,143238-c,games/article.html
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Saturday, March 22, 2014

Cool Computer Speakers JBL Spyro Speaker System

The JBL® Spyro™ 2.1-channel speaker system produces startlingly rich, authoritative sound — all from a miniature pair of flower-shaped satellite speakers and the small but mighty, domed aluminum Atlas™ subwoofer. The electronics automatically adjust equalization to improve stereo imaging for a vivid, three-dimensional soundstage. Play music cleanly and accurately at high volumes with minimal distortion. The one-touch controls remember your settings. Connect an iPod®, other MP3 player, computer or game console to the stereo mini jack. Each satellite is 3 1/2" diameter x 3 1/2" H; the subwoofer is 8" diameter x 5 1/2" H. Total weight 6 lbs.
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Friday, March 21, 2014

HP Photosmart A626

The A626 is very small and portable, much like the A526. Its black and light blue body stand 9.9 inches wide, 4.6 inches deep, and 5.2 inches tall, and weighs just 3.4 pounds. The entire front panel flips down to reveal four memory card slots and a PictBridge USB port; it also serves as the output tray. Opening the front panel also causes the input tray to pop open in the rear and the LCD to spring open from the top of the printer.

The 4.8 inch LCD is a touch screen, mounted on movable panel so you can adjust the viewing angle.

Alongside the panel is a well for holding the stylus when youre using the printer and a slot to stash away the stylus when youre transporting the printer or putting it away after using it.

The touch screen works exactly like the one on the A826 and offers all the same menus. The major difference is that the thumbnail view lets you see only four images at a time (versus the nine images on the A826).

Otherwise, the process for viewing, selecting, and editing photos is exactly the same. (Please refer to the Features section of the A826s review for additional details.) Like the A526, the paper cant be stored within the body of the A626, so if you dont plan to use the printer for some time, you should remove the paper and store it in a folder or envelope so that it doesnt become coated with dust. (The A826 allows you to store paper inside the printers body.) The input tray can handle as many as 20 sheets of paper, up to 5x7 in size (the A526 can only handle 4 inch wide paper).

The ink and paper options for the A626 are the same as those for the A526 and A826. Replacing just the ink cartridge costs $20, and HP estimates that the cartridge can print as many as 55 4x6 photos. HP also offers an ink and paper package for $35 that includes 120 sheets of 4x6 paper and enough ink for that many photos. This works out to a per-print cost of 29 cents, in line with the competition.
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Three Great Eyes on Keplers Supernova Remnant

A View Through Three Great Eyes: Hubble, Spitzer and Chandra X-ray

This widget features a beautiful, color-rich image from the NASA Planetary Photo Journal Collection. It is a view of the expanding remains of a supernova, called Keplers supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including astronomer Johannes Kepler. The combined image unveils a bubble-shaped shroud of gas and dust that is 14 light-years wide and is expanding at 4 million miles per hour (2,000 kilometers per second). ~ NASA


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Thursday, March 20, 2014

Seitz 6×17 Digital Megapixel Camera

Seitz just made my jaw dropped with their new 160-megapixel monster, the Seitz 6×17 Digital with the Seitz D3 digital scan back. With its insane megapixel count, it creates cool 6-by-17 (7,500 x 21,250 pixels) panoramic images with every shot. And thanks to its blazing-fast processing power and gigabit Ethernet connection, each image is fed to a Mac Mini in under one second.
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Wednesday, March 19, 2014

24K Gold Bar USB Drive Worlds Most Luxurious Pen Drive

This is Gold INGOT USB Drive from Japan. This is not a really gold ingot but the memory inside carries 99.99 percent 24 karat pure gold leaf. If you ever dreamed of a golden USB memory stick, here’s one in front of your eyes. Made by I-O Data, the so-called Gold Ingot USB Memory [JP] offers 4GB capacity. The body is mainly made of Japanese wood and covered by a thin layer of gold. The USB drive is manufactured in alliance with Japanese company Hakuichi [JP] and weighs 15g. It can be used with Windows PCs and Apple Macs. This 24K gold bar USB stick is priced at $870 to be exact. It is available in either 4GB or 32GB varieties.
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Why battery tests suck



Smartphones have been with us for quite a while now, and back in the day when Android was young we all cursed the screen and video play back times. HTC back in 2010 were on a roll with their handhelds, remember the HTC Desire ?! Humm 1400 mAh battery in that bad boy and it was shocking, hardly any time to spend enjoying the (at the time) gorgeous screen.




Fast forward to 2013 and we are spending more time than ever on our phones, so wouldnt we have found a way to measure the battery life in real life conditions ?


One site will tout that its one hour of surfing, one hour of video and one hour of calling is enough to emulate real life, then they supply a final endurance rating, our issue here is I can think of people using their handsets to work in the train doing so much more. Using whatsapp, online dating, texting, reading the news, looking at pictures - all while listening to music. Wrap that up into a 90 min public transport torture ride and you get real life. No GPS is mentioned either, who has tried using their handset to get from A->B over a 2 hour drive, only to be notified by your handset is drinking more than its being topped up ?

Looking elsewhere another site, simply turns up the brightness and audio to 100% puts on wireless and drains the battery playing video. Thats just a video endurance test ?!

Only Motorola have addressed the issues from a hardware point of view and made their RAZR Maxx handsets to have decent battery life, however thats a few years old now and the new Ultra Maxx is stuck on a crappy provider in the US, which wont see the light of day else where.

The new Sony Xperia Z1 hasnt been subject to these tests just yet however one site claims the life of the battery is limited to just 5 hours of video playback, but what does that mean ?! Using the same tests the S4 lasts 11 hours which has 600mah less - really !? While this isnt a scientific tests it does raise questions about the testing which should be grouped into the same chip set maybe. Taking that a step further the LG G2 will last a good day, of heavy use however thats what we are told - not backed up in anyway. 

So while our handsets have evolved - the tests around the battery have been stuck in 2009 or even earlier. While the need for consistency is needed to have a clear and concise benchmark, its not keeping with the real world which has changed so fast. 

What is a good test ?! Ah thats the 1,000,000 mah question !


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Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Google Cloud SQL now Generally Available with an SLA 500GB databases and encryption

Google Cloud SQL is a fully managed MySQL service hosted on Google Cloud Platform, providing a database backbone for applications running on Google App Engine or Google Compute Engine. Today, we are announcing Cloud SQL is generally available (GA), now with: encryption of customer data, a 99.95% uptime SLA, and support for databases up to 500GB in size.



Secure Encrypted Data

Cloud SQL data is now automatically encrypted. This adds to the existing security and reliability features, including:


  • Customer data, including in database tables and temporary files, is automatically stored encrypted (with encryption of backups coming soon).

  • All Cloud SQL traffic on Google’s internal networks is encrypted.

  • External connections can be encrypted using SSL.

  • All hosts and Google App Engine applications connecting to your instance must be explicitly authorized.

  • MySQL user grants can be used to control access at the database, table, or even column level.

  • Data is replicated multiple times in multiple locations.

  • Scheduled backups are automatically taken by default.


Larger databases

All Cloud SQL instances can now store up to 500GB, from our smallest D0 instance costing just $0.025 per hour up to D32 instances with 16GB of RAM. Your data is replicated multiple times in multiple zones and automatically backed up, all included in the price of the service. And you only pay for the storage that you actually use, so you don’t need to reserve this storage in advance.



SLA for availability

Replicated storage means we can guarantee 99.95% availability of the service. And because even a reduced service is not acceptable for many applications, we have set a high bar for availability: for example, we regard a single minute of just 20% connection failure as a downtime. See the SLA for more details.



Developer traction

Cloud SQL has seen some great developer traction, with a range of businesses relying on it for core applications:


  • Costco uses Google Compute Engine and Cloud SQL to run public e-commerce sites. As Don Burdick, Senior Vice President of Global Ecommerce at Costco, says, “Costco is the worlds leading membership club warehouse with annual sales exceeding $100B. As part of our philosophy to keep costs down and pass savings on to our members, in June 2013 we implemented our ecommerce site for Mexico on Google Cloud Platform. The site has been operational since October 2013 and the Google Cloud Platform performance has exceeded our expectations. As a result of this projects success, were currently migrating the website of one of our other countries to Google Cloud Platform.”

  • LiveHive is a social selling application used by 25,000+ sales professionals. Fritz Mueller, Vice President of Products says, "We found Googles Cloud SQL service to be an ideal combination of performance and convenience. Performance is key to us because we provide our customers with real-time data about their sales execution. With Googles Cloud SQL, we focus on building the functionality our customers want without worrying about reliability, scalability and upgrades."

  • Ocado manages logistics and e-commerce for some of the largest supermarkets in the UK. General Manager James Donkin says, “Were excited about the flexibility Cloud SQL brings to support quick development cycles that foster innovation, while scaling easily when required.”

  • Mark Kornfilt, co-founder of Live video streaming platform Livestream, said “Thanks to Google App Engine and Cloud SQL, we were able to go from a new product concept to its launch in less than two months. This allows us to focus on building the product instead of worrying about operations, and provides all the tools needed to build a robust, reliable and scalable web app out of the box.”




Try it now

Learn more about Google Cloud SQL and try it now here.



-Posted by Joe Faith, Product Manager
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Monday, March 17, 2014

Dashing through the snow with NORAD and Google

(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog and Lat Long Blog)

Every Christmas Eve, children all over the world ask themselves—and their parents—questions about Santa’s magical journey. How does Santa visit so many children in one night? Will he eat the cookies I left out? How does he fit all those presents into his sleigh? These childhood mysteries are part of what makes the Santa tradition so special.

There’s one timeless question that we’re proud to say we can help answer: Where in the world is Santa at this very moment? Thanks in part to recent advances in warp-speed GPS technology and some very clever elves (elveneering?) NORAD Tracks Santa is once again prepped and ready to go.

Starting tomorrow, December 24 at 2:00am EST, visit www.noradsanta.org to follow Santa as he journeys around the world delivering presents to children in more than 200 countries and territories. There are a few different ways to find the jolly old man in his unmistakable red suit over the course of the day, so feel free to track him using any of the following methods:
  • See Santa on a Google Map: On your home computer or laptop, visit www.noradsanta.org and choose your preferred language. You’ll see a large Google Map on the page displaying Santa’s current location and his next stop. Click the video icons to watch “Santa Cam” videos, and click the gift icons to learn more about each city.

  • Watch Santa fly with the Google Earth Plug-in: From www.noradsanta.org, click on the link Track Santa in Google Earth. Youll see Santa steering his sleigh right on the webpage. If you dont have the Google Earth plug-in, you can get ready by downloading it ahead of time.

  • Follow Santa on your phone: Track Santa from your mobile phone by opening Google Maps for mobile and searching for [santa]. Or, visit m.noradsanta.org on your phone’s browser.

  • Subscribe to his YouTube channel: Santa’s home on YouTube is at http://www.youtube.com/noradtrackssanta. That’s where you can find videos from his journey throughout the night.

  • Get real-time information about Santa’s location: Use Google’s Realtime Search to get updates from social networks, news and micro-blogs like Twitter at @noradsanta, and keep up with news about his journey on this Facebook page.
For any techie questions you might have, we’ve also put together some helpful tips and tricks about all the cool ways you can experience Santa’s journey. Now that you know how to follow Saint Nick on Christmas Eve, it’s our tradition to tell the story of how this all started...

NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence Command) first began to track Santa in 1955 when a misprinted advertisement in a Sears & Roebuck catalogue mistakenly led callers expecting a Santa-hotline to the NORAD commander-in-chiefs telephone. Embracing the spirit of the season, NORAD used its satellite and radar capabilities to offer callers sleigh-location updates, and has tracked Santas whereabouts on Christmas Eve ever since. Then in 2004, Google started tracking Santa on Google Earth as a 20% project, which in 2007 grew into a partnership with NORAD, adding the mapping technology of Google Maps and Google Earth to the NORAD experience. Over the years, other Google teams have also joined in the holiday fun (YouTube, Google Voice’s www.SendACallFromSanta.com and Google SketchUp).

As we approach this year’s Christmas Eve adventure, Santa was able to take a break from the preparations to visit the New York Stock Exchange this past Monday. His helpful elves kept everything at the North Pole on schedule while folks from Google and NORAD attended the Closing Bell ceremony, and stood alongside Santa from Macy’s going over last minute details about tomorrow’s big ride.

Santa with NORAD, Google and members of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation (that’s me, the tall guy in the back row clapping)

So don’t forget to visit www.noradsanta.org tomorrow morning starting at 2:00am EST when Santa embarks on his flight. From all of us here at Google, happy holidays and here’s to a very happy New Year!


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Sunday, March 16, 2014

Get your mobile application backed by the cloud with the Mobile Backend Starter

(cross-posted on the Android Developers Blog)



Many of the best mobile app experiences are powered by services in the cloud. However, running your own servers can detract from focusing on your client experience. Google App Engine has long been a fantastic platform for mobile developers such as Pulse and SongPop. Now with the Mobile Backend Starter, weve made it even easier for you to get started with App Engine.

Mobile Backend Starter

Mobile Backend Starter is a one-click deployable, complete mobile backend that allows you to reap the benefits of a cloud backend with none of the headaches. It provides a ready-to-deploy, general purpose cloud backend and a general purpose client-side framework for Android.



Mobile Backend Starter gives you everything you need to rapidly set up a backend for your app, without needing to write any backend code. It includes a server that stores your data with App Engine and a client library and sample app for Android that make it easy to access that data. You can also add support for Google Cloud Messaging (GCM) and continuous queries that notify your app of events you are interested in. To keep users data secure, Mobile Backend Starter also includes built-in support for Google Authentication.







Features of Mobile Backend Starter include:

  • Cloud data storage: Users change devices and increasingly use multiple devices. Store any amount of data per user in the cloud to be accessed from anywhere.

  • Pub/Sub messaging: Send messages from one device, to any or all other devices. You can easily use 1:1 and 1:many messaging as well as broadcasting. This feature is useful for various applications including social apps, forums, chat, gaming, and group collaborations.

  • Push notifications: Data updated on one device is automatically available on all devices with GCM for Android.

  • Continuous queries: Create queries that run continuously on the server, automatically feeding updates to the client. These queries are powered by Prospective Search.

  • Google authentication and authorization: Keep data isolated per user or shared among users.

  • Free to get started, scales effortlessly with your needs: You can start by handling hundreds of users for free, then grow to any scale.

Quick setup and integration

You can setup and run the Mobile Backend Starter in just a few steps:

  1. First, go to the http://cloud.google.com/console, and create a project. Then click deploy.


  2. Click on settings to go to the admin panel for your new backend.  Under "Authentication / Authoirzation" select "Open (for development use only)" and save the changes.


  3. Next, download the Android client project and open it up in your Android IDE. Locate the Consts.java file and set the PROJECT_ID to the Project ID you created in the Google Cloud Console.


  4. Now just build and run the Android application and you have a cloud enabled Android application


Check out the complete docs for details on setup and to find out how to enable authentication, send push notifications, and use standing queries.



The best part is you can download the complete source code of the backend on GitHub and customize it to meet your needs.

See Mobile Backend Starter in action at Google I/O

To see Mobile Backend Starter in action, check out our talk at Google I/O 2013 (embedded below) called "From Nothing to Nirvana in Minutes: Cloud Backend for Your Android Application." The talk shows how to use Mobile Backend Starter to create a new backend server and integrate it with an Android app via Google Cloud Endpoints and the Google Plugin for Eclipse.







We look forward to hearing your questions and learning about the amazing applications you have built. You can find us lurking on the Cloud Endpoints StackOverflow forum.



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Get bus and train directions on the go with Google Maps for mobile

Joe Hughes, Software Engineer

Ever since Google Maps added public transportation directions for San Francisco, its been a lot easier for me to figure out which buses and trains will get me where Im going around town, so that todays gas prices take less of a toll on my wallet. Even so, Ive often found myself wishing that I had an easy way to get transit directions while Im out and about.

Enter the new version of Google Maps for mobile. This version (2.2) allows you to get transit directions in all the same places as the web version of Google Maps, including Chicago, the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Vancouver, and over 40 other cities in North America.

This version of Google Maps for mobile even has a few tricks not yet available on the desktop version of Google Maps. For instance, you can find the last transit trips of the day (to figure out how late you can stay at the party) and more easily browse through earlier or later trips. The My Location feature, available on most phones, also makes it easier to set the start point of your journey.

To see how the transit feature of Google Maps for mobile works, take a look at this quick video walkthrough with my co-worker Ryan:


This version of Google Maps for mobile also includes a bunch of other goodies, like faster searching on BlackBerry devices and star ratings for businesses. Its currently available for BlackBerry devices and many other Java-based phones. To download it to your phone visit http://www.google.com/gmm from your phones web browser or on the desktop.

Were working to bring public transit directions to Google Maps on other devices, so stay tuned!
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Saturday, March 15, 2014

It’s Not A High Speed Police Chase Until Deep Fryers Come Flying Out Of The Escape Vehicle


You might’ve think you’ve heard about an intense, high-speed police chase, but you’d be wrong. Or at least you thought you knew what intense was, before reading that one particular police showdown had deep fryers flying out the back of a suspect’s truck. Deep fryers! Flying!


It’s too much excitement to bear on a Friday, but let’s forge ahead, shall we?


KHOU.com has the story out of Houston, where four men were allegedly part of a team that burgled a kitchen supply store late Wednesday night. Perhaps there was a dire need for cutlery or a lot of fried chicken, because witnesses say the men were loading equipment into a U-Haul truck at the front of the store.


By the time cops showed up on the scene, the getaway vehicle was already going about the business of getting away, and the suspects refused to pull over. Instead, the chase was on.


Things soon got of control, as high-speed chases often do, and the driver of the truck smashed into a traffic light, a bus stop and a fire hydrant. Somewhere along the way, the truck’s rear door came open, launching several deep fryers willy-nilly onto the street.


Police caught up with the suspects after the crash, sending all four suspects running. Two of the men were eventually arrested and charged with serious injury to an instrument that brings delight via deep-fried goodness. Only the first seven words in that sentence are true.


Stolen deep fryers fly from truck during HPD chase [KHOU.com]


/

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist
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Friday, March 14, 2014

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Now Available on Google Compute Engine

Todays guest post comes from Michael Miller, Vice President of Global Alliances and Marketing at SUSE. In this post, Michael describes SUSEs integration with Google Compute Engine.



We’re happy to bring SUSE Linux Enterprise Server to Google Compute Engine for all machine instance types. We’re committed to delivering products that offer the performance, reliability, security and scalability that development teams and IT operations groups require when moving to the cloud.



One of our key focus areas from the beginning that has only escalated in importance is the delivery of the most scalable operating system possible. Using SUSE Linux Enterprise Server on Google Compute Engine gives users access to an operating system that is certified with 4,096 logical CPUs and 64 TiB of RAM and contains the OFED Stack for low-latency, inter-machine communication. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server also ships with the XFS file system and Btrfs, a more resilient file system with improved scalability and data integrity.



With more than 10,000 applications from over 1,500 ISVs certified on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, we believe that running SUSE on Google Compute Engine will offer customers a highly resilient infrastructure for building and running their workloads in a public cloud environment. We also include a comprehensive software developer kit (SDK) with SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. The SDK includes versioning tools (git, subversion), Perl, Python, PHP and Ruby on Rails and helps make SUSE Linux Enterprise Server an ideal platform for Google Compute Engine users to develop and test new applications. And to simplify the deployment, configuration and administration of workloads on Google Compute Engine, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server also includes an integrated suite of management tools (YaST, AutoYaST, Zypp and a small footprint CIM broker).



Whether developing new applications or bringing existing workloads, this is just some of the innovation that SUSE Linux Enterprise Server will offer Google Compute Engine users.



-Contributed by Michael Miller, Vice President of Global Alliances and Marketing, SUSE
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Micromax Canvas Turbo Mini and Bolt A71 launched in India

The Micromax Canvas Turbo Mini and Bolt A71, previously listed on the companys website, have now been launched, available via Micromaxs online store.

The Micromax Canvas Turbo Mini and Micromax Bolt A71 have been priced at Rs. 14,490 and Rs. 6,750 respectively. The listing on Micromax online store notes that both the smartphones can be delivered in 7 to 10 business days.


Micromax finally introduced the Canvas Turbo Mini, which was listed on the companys site recently, but without pricing and availability details. The Micromax Bolt A71 however, was spotted earlier this month at an e-commerce website with a price tag of Rs. 6,750.


The Micromax Canvas Turbo Mini is the mini-variant of the companys first full-HD display smartphone, the Micromax Canvas Turbo, launched in October last year.


The Micromax Canvas Turbo Mini (A200) features a 4.7-inch (720x1280 pixels) HD IPS display. It is a dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) device, which runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box. The official listing of the smartphone notes that the device supports one regular SIM, and one Micro-SIM.


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The Canvas Turbo Mini is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6582 processor with 1GB of RAM. It features 4GB of inbuilt storage, which is further expandable up to 32GB via microSD card. It sports an 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, while there is a secondary 5-megapixel front-facing camera also onboard.


On the connectivity front, the Canvas Turbo Mini features 3G, Wi-Fi, Micro-USB, and Bluetooth. The yet-to-be-announced Micromax Canvas Turbo Mini packs an 1800mAh battery, which according to the listing, delivers up to 6.5 hours of talktime and up to 180 hours of standby time on 2G network. The smartphone also comes with some preloaded apps such as games (Bubble X Slice and Catch a Mouse), Kingsoft, Hike, Opera Mini and M! Live.


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The Micromax Bolt A71 on the other hand runs Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and is a dual-SIM phablet with support for GSM+GSM. It features a 5-inch WVGA (480x800 pixels) display, and is powered by a 1GHz ARM Cortex-A5 processor along with 512MB of RAM.


The Bolt A71 sports a 2-megapixel fixed-focus rear camera accompanied by an LED flash and also includes a VGA front-facing camera. It comes with 512MB of inbuilt storage, which can be expanded up to 32GB with the help of a microSD card. The Micromax Bolt A71 packs a 2000mAh battery, which as per the companys online listing can deliver up to 5 hours of talktime and up to 200 hours standby time. Connectivity options on the phablet include Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPRS, EDGE, GPS/ AGPS and 3G. The Micromax Bolt A71 measures 148.9x78.6x10mm.




Mobiles launched in January 2014

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Thursday, March 13, 2014

1 6 times the graphics performance boost! First test on Android Kit Kat 4 4


Translated by Google

No conference, along with Nexus 5 Google Play simultaneously in nine countries shelves, Android 4.4 coming this way, so low-key than ever. Before Nestle KitKat chocolate bars a brand name, this naming system is Android and won the Nestle cooperation negotiations. This is also the newly named Jelly Bean 4.1,4.2,4.3 three generations later, also means that Android 4.4 will be many new changes.

Rockchip RK3026 dual core, quad-core chip manufacturer RK3188 program, such as Lenovo, Toshiba, Asus, five elements, PIPO, the original road and many other brands have announced upcoming Android 4.4 upgrade. The author through special channels, to get a good Android 4.4 system has been installed in the domestic flat-panel engineering prototype, we go and savor the taste of the chocolate bar.


1. Full of feeling good
Compared to the previous Android system, the relatively large changes in 4.4. First, the status bar and virtual buttons into a transparent state, and to maintain a faint gradient effect. A place close to the border around the black edges designed background (very fine), the center gradually diverge transparent. Virtual button white vacuum, so beautiful and eye-catching mix. The default is three: back, home, task manager. Screenshot open in the settings themselves. I think this program has two advantages: ① reduce light leakage around the sense of the display, ② certain procedures to better vision without being blocked toolbar.


4.4 drawer, leaving only the icon of all programs, cancel the first two generations of the drawer? Actually no, but for a place only. Long press on the desktop, out of the secondary menu. Which encompasses: wallpaper, widgets, settings.


Rather strange that not all settings set, but named "Search and sticky notes" of the project, specifically the four items pictured above. Another long press the desktop, but also to switch between desktops primary and secondary pages, easy management page.

In the unlock screen, retains the graphical unlock, face unlock, etc. and of course the most common slide to unlock. Android 4.2 touch sliding unlock wave does not change, there is a small tool to unlock the interface which can be customized. Whether or unlock the interface into the system can open the drop-down menu: Message Bar + set the bar.

We have seen, because it is testing the prototype, I think the system is also the initial commissioning, it is normal that some are not perfect. For example, the system language is English, after trying to find out is to adjust to Simplified Chinese, indicating that Android 4.4 is the inclusion of the Chinese package.

After adjusting for the very familiar look again relevant information. The version number is displayed rk30sdk-eng 4.4 ...... prove that the firmware from Rockchip chip solution provider. 


2. The built-in domestic non-castrated complete Google+.
Only one pre-installed software, I later added a pea pod, search dogs and other software, barely reached two, so the number is not that much. When installing pea pod is connected to pc via data cable, auto safety up the middle will be prompted to first open usb debugging, allowing unknown programs and other "international practice" did agree to. Enter the pea pods in a little problem: Although Android 4.4 is included Chinese, Chinese can also be displayed, but only the English input method, therefore it downloaded Sogou input method.

Google+ will integrate Googles online products as the basis for a complete social network. In order for service is different from Facebook, Google will bet on one aspect: better privacy management, which is the soft underbelly of Facebook; course, in the past, Googles privacy but also weaknesses.
Google+ friends and acquaintances of the center point of the "circle (Circles)", the user can organize contacts in different circles, such as family members, colleagues, university students, etc., and share photos in a small circle, video, and other information.


Comes with a google erth panoramic maps from the Earth began to zoom into specific locations. Recommended a number of Chinese tourist cities in the options, feel the general effect.

3. The application of surprises and more personalized features a very avantgarde look

Support low-power sensor support Pacer pedometer, exercise anytime, anywhere. 4.4 system in this regard is to spend some thought. I think this feature will definitely be more small plates. I also tried it out of curiosity. Playing basketball together before a buddy childs Tyrant gold basketball shoes can be docked, so after analyzing the data, such as: How many times jump, the highest number of cm, ran a number of meters, the number of calories consumed. After Android users can enjoy the same, and the use of very low threshold.


The system comes with a music player too times, only to achieve "out loud" requirement, so I downloaded every day sounds. Whether in the interface, EQ settings, be far better than the former sort finishing.

The most important is not the problem, Android 4.4 improved, increased lock screen album art display and playback controls. As the figure above, it becomes unlocked four directions, {after} the front left and right to control one, it controls the pause (play), so that in case it does not unlock the direct control of the music played.

Everyday sounds with dynamic replacement cover (album cover all wake up the screen every time replacement, even if the same song in a dynamic transformation), as well as the lyrics scroll, really beautiful and practical.

4. Android office no longer tasteless

Picture browsing and playing the same songs, all with a lot of settings, edit. 4.4 added a new document processing software: Quickoffice. DTG commonly used than before on a more refined features, making it possible to commercially Android. Integrated interface contains WORD, EXCEL, PPT.



In the usual work and study, the use of the Android platform to better processing documents, spreadsheets, regardless of location space constraints. Into an additional 4.4 also supports wireless cloud print (documents, images, web pages) to add storage access framework functions, user management file.

In the camera, the 4.4 also made some fine-tuning. Panoramic photographs, video summed together. The shutter is a large round blue screen buttons, eye-catching and easy to operate. Advanced settings collections in the right shutter.

Another method to open the advanced settings are: single finger press the space in the camera interface. At this point the pop option, further sliding through the fingers, the direction of bias which option opens. There are location, countdown, picture size, shooting mode options.

The domestic flat, with a quad-core Rockchip RK3188 product, browse the web, as well as 1080P decoding playback, the effect is very smooth, rapid response.

Android 4.4 also made a multimedia optimization, support for screen recording capabilities, support for low-power audio processing, up to 60 hours of music playback time, improve 50% WiFi Display compatible Miracast certification. Often I actually experience the music playback time is indeed very impressive, than in the past similar products, fully raised several orders of magnitude, great power optimization.

5. Summary
In fact, the most fundamental optimized Android 4.4, in fact, that from now on be known as the worlds most fluent system, it can run smoothly on low 512M memory, the use of ART replace Dalvik, improve application speed. RenderScript computing optimization, enhance graphics rendering capability of 1.6 times.

According to media reports, Rockchip RK3026 dual-core chips for OEM manufacturers, overall shipments of its products in 2013 is over 200 million units. "Compatible" The biggest feature will allow the low-end tablet becomes vibrant. For the end consumer is concerned, you can more easily get good Android experience. In addition, Google recently re-released Android 4.4.1 upgrade new message, be significantly improved for the camera, although when used in flat products is unknown, but I believe the OEM so will quickly follow, let us look forward to it again.
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Google Maps For iPhone 5 and iOS6

Finally, the long wait to enjoy excellent and accurate maps on iPhone 5 and iOS 6 is now over.
The big G has finally released their popular Google maps for iPhone 5 and iOS 6 devices.
This can be downloaded from the App Store and its of course free.
Since the removal of Google maps from iOS 6 by Apple and replaced with its own offering, there had been criticism from every side due to inaccurate destination that it provides.
Well, finally, those on iOS 6 and iPhone 5 can now enjoy accurate and well established mapping app of Google Maps.
Its features are as awesome as you would expect from the big G mapping app.
It has voice guided navigation
Turn by turn navigation
Local Search
Street view
Transit view and more

The truth is, no matter how much Apple try to polish their Map app, it wont be as robust and reliable as the Google maps.

So, head over to the App Store and get yourself the Google maps that will take you to your destinations safely.
Its only available for iPhone at the moment and will be available for iPad users soon.
Download here








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