Curve

Online photo editing has just taken a significant step closer to its computer-based predecessors: Picnik has added a curves editing feature.

Curves, one of the early killer features that drew people to Adobe Systems' Photoshop, lets people adjust in detail the distribution of light and dark tones in photographs. For example, it can be used to bring details out of shadowy murk or carefully increase contrast.

I didn't try out the feature: curves editing is reserved for those with premium accounts, which cost $24.95 a year. But it looks like it can edit red, green, and blue channels … Read more

Buried under the end-of-year industry buzz last week was a fairly significant announcement. Wi-Fi leader Aruba Networks and the HP ProCurve division joined the OpenSEA Alliance, a group dedicated to the development and adoption of a robust and reliable open-source 802.1X supplicant for secure access to network and other computing resources. Aruba and HP join existing members including technology vendors Extreme Networks, Identity Engines, Infoblox, Symantec, TippingPoint, and Trapeze Networks. The OpenSEA Alliance also includes Janet, the U.K.'s education and research network boasting 18 million users.

So what the heck is this all about? The 802.1X … Read more

Webware's Josh Lowensohn spends his days reviewing Web sites, while the rest of us get to play with an endless stream of newfangled gadgets. While most of the Crave and CNET reviews team have become jaded to the perpetual parade of gizmos coursing through our office, Josh greets each rare tech toy bestowed on him as if it were handed down by Santa himself. So when an unsolicited pair of Learning Curve Battle Wheels RC samurai appeared on Josh's desk, there was no way to avoid a full-scale battle royale. Lucky for me, I had my camera on … Read more

Today, AT&T announced the immediate availability of the RIM BlackBerry Curve 8310, which adds the mighty powers of integrated GPS to the original BlackBerry Curve. Priced at $199.99 with a two-year contract and after rebates, the 8310 is available in red or titanium and allows you to turn your smartphone into a personal navigation device with a location-based service like TeleNav GPS Navigator. This will allow you to get voice-guided turn-by-turn directions, 3D maps, local business search, and more, right on your handset; just be aware that TeleNav is an add-on service that costs $9.99 per … Read more

The graphic on this page, taken from a Wikipedia entry, shows the current ISO standard for something called equal loudness contours.

If you've studied audio production or audio equipment, you might have seen this or similar charts. (The earliest version, created in 1933, was known as the Fletcher-Munson curve, and recent studies have proven it was quite accurate.) But what does it mean?

The horizontal x-axis represents pitch, measured in Hertz (Hz), or vibrations per second. The lowest threshold of human hearing is around 20 Hz--that would be a very low bass note on a church organ. Human voices … Read more

Back in early May, we fell in love with AT&T's RIM BlackBerry Curve for its best-of-breed design and well-rounded feature set. Now, Research in Motion and T-Mobile have released another version and we've fallen in love all over again. The RIM BlackBerry 8320 keeps the same great form factor of the original Curve but you now get integrated Wi-Fi for Web browsing and making calls. You also get popular instant messaging clients, a 2-megapixel camera, and just solid performance all around. You can read all the juicy details in our full review and don't forget … Read more

AT&T may have scored the RIM BlackBerry 8820 last week, but we're thinking T-Mobile got the better deal with the just-announced RIM BlackBerry 8320, aka the BlackBerry Curve with Wi-Fi (Yahtzee!). Why? Well, first it has the same sleek design of the original Curve and a more spacious and easy-to-use QWERTY keyboard. You also get a 2-megapixel camera, whereas the BlackBerry 8820 is sans camera. Of course, the latter is definitely aimed more at the business set, whereas the BlackBerry 8320 will have more mass appeal. And what can we say about the addition of Wi-Fi? Yes, … Read more

The Boy Genius Report has two interesting tidbits today about some BlackBerry models that may be coming to a T-Mobile store near you. The first rumor is that there will be some new BlackBerry Pearls, but before you get too excited, the only different feature is the color of the phones. Apparently, the carrier will release a midnight blue, a red, and a gold version of the Pearl, all with a tentative release date of September 4. The other speculation is that T-Mobile will introduce the BlackBerry 8320 aka the BlackBerry Curve with Wi-Fi on September 24. From the picture, … Read more

After a less-than-favorable review of the Helio Ocean, I was berated by enough yaysayers to try it for a second run. Nope. To quote the great philosopher Bob Dylan, "It Ain't Me, Babe."

However, after seeing two good friends loving their BlackBerry 8300 (the Curve), I wanted to give it another shot. And to my surprise, I'm slowly getting comfortable with it. As I previously wrote, this BlackBerry, with a great camera, MP3 capability, and the world's best e-mail, has everything. The problem is a very tight keyboard. Well, I'm in the middle of … Read more