2011

TUCSON, Ariz.--It may seem like creating a top-animated movie has become a simpler process with the advent of computer graphics. Yet in a talk here at Techonomy 2011, DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg shared details that show just how tedious the work remains--even today.

"An expert animator can do about three seconds of animation in a week," said Katzenberg, who was interviewed today by moderator David Kirkpatrick.

Even more challenging is that the designers are working largely in the dark, unable for hours to see, for instance, how exactly a character's leg moves during a dance scene. … Read more

A showdown is brewing in the realm of bicycle-riding robots. Murata Boy, the balance-beam daredevil, has competition in the form of a brash young upstart.

Primer-V2 is the brainchild of Masahiko Yamaguchi, aka Dr. Guero, a hobbyist who thrilled visitors to the recent iRex 2011 robot trade show here in Tokyo.

The bot is being touted as the first cyber-cyclist that can maintain its balance simply by moving the handlebars. … Read more

TUSCON, Ariz.--It's not the kind of business model one expects to hear from a startup, especially one now valued by the private markets at $8 billion.

But when Jack Dorsey, the creator and executive chairman of Twitter, was asked about Twitter's business model, he said it was hardly thought out.

"The business model is focused around serendipity," said Dorsey, who spoke with moderator David Kirkpatrick on Sunday at Techonomy 2011.

It's hard to imagine that answer will silence the Twitter skeptics.

Twitter, for now, is about growth and, according to Dorsey, engagement. While growth … Read more

Nissan's Pivo 3 EV concept is a futuristic three-seater that expands on the Pivo and Pivo 2. The driver sits in the center position of the Pivo 3 EV, which allows for better visibility. However, the concept car has some rather innovative features to make driving and charging easier.

According to Nissan, the Pivo 3 EV features technology called Automated Valet Parking (AVP), which allows the driver to find a parking spot without driving around and around a parking garage. With AVP, the Pivo 3 EV can also charge itself and return to its driver when called by smartphone.… Read more

Are you ready? Black Friday 2011, the day that U.S. retailers and thrifty consumers have been waiting for all year, is just around the corner.

Whether you're looking for a $2 toaster or a $200 laptop, you're going to need a plan of attack to help you succeed. Here are a few sites that will help you develop and carry out your strategy this year:

FatWallet FatWallet has been around a long time and is a popular destination for deal hunters. It maintains a Black Friday section each year, to help you sort out all the deals. … Read more

TOKYO--Robots were out in force in Tokyo today as the International Robot Exhibition (iRex) kicked off with sophisticated humanoid industrial robots thrilling visitors.

With nearly 300 companies and groups taking part, iRex 2011 has the usual large-footprint booths by major robot makers like Fanuc and Yaskawa. With the power shortages that followed the March 11 earthquake and tsunamis, energy savings is a prominent theme, as it was at the Ceatec 2011 high-tech show here last month.

Particularly awesome was a demo of Nextage industrial robots by Kawada Industries, known for its work on the HRP series of humanoids as well as its mainline of bridge building.

The 20 kg (44 pound) assembly-line droid has six-jointed arms as well as cameras in its eyes and hands. It was also shown off at iRex 2009, though sales began recently. It's expected to use the same tools as humans while working in production cells; a research version called Hiro is also available. … Read more

The 2011 SEMA Show has come to a close, but I've still got an SD card full of photos of the hundreds of wild rides displayed there.

With that in mind, I've rounded up 130 photos of some of the hottest rides found on the floor of the SEMA Show. The cars have been split into four bite-size categories for quick navigation.

There were plenty of Asian imports to be found, with styles ranging from VIP to street tuner to race ready. This was the first year that I was able to check out the anime-inspired Itasha style … Read more

Over the next two days, I will be at the Streaming Media West Conference in Los Angeles, getting schooled in the fast-moving world that is online video.

Old-media bigwigs and new-media luminaries will abound, talking about stuff like the emergence of platforms, the evolution of entertainment, the pivoting of strategies, and, of course, the corporate battles that underlie all of the above. Meanwhile, hordes of software vendors will be promoting their latest technology in hopes of becoming the next big thing.

Perhaps at the crux of it all will be mobile software, which will surely be on display at the … Read more

Ford has announced an update to its much-criticized car tech interface, previously plagued by slow performance and cluttered screens.

Ford came out with its new MyFord Touch interface on the 2011 Edge last year. This interface featured LCDs on the instrument cluster showing navigation, phone, audio, and trip data, along with a big center touch screen allowing control over these different car tech functions. But the touch-screen interface came under much criticism by CNET and others for its slow performance and cluttered displays.

Today, Ford showed off an update to the system intended to address its various problems. According to … Read more