(Credit:
Screenshot by Bonnie Cha/CNET)
On Thursday, Palm made its new browser-based mobile development platform available to all developers as a public beta. Dubbed Project Ares, developers can now create programs for Palm WebOS simply by firing up their browser (Firefox, Safari, and Chrome are supported) and signing into their account where they will then have access to all the tools they need to build apps.
Project Ares includes such features as:
- Drag-and-drop interface builder, code editor, visual debugger, and log viewer
- Access to full library of Mojo UI widgets
- Push-button project and scene creation
- Drag-and-drop file upload
- SMS and MMS messaging delivery is improved
- Ability to run apps directly on the WebOS emulator or device
Palm's believes that the future of mobile will be built on the Web and hopes that Project Ares will open the door to more developers creating apps for WebOS. Of course, one of the criticisms about the OS and Palm's current devices, the Palm Pre and Palm Pixi, has been the sparse app catalog, but it's been making progress. Hopefully, Project Ares will speed things along just a bit more.
To find more information on Project Ares or to sign up, you can check out Palm's Web site.
We couldn't record today's Podcast without spending a little time on Gizmodo's big unveiling of Microsoft's secret tablet PC. The blog is reporting that even though our first inclination is to call it a tablet, it's really more of a booklet, with two 7-inch(ish) screens with multitouch, a 3MP camera on the back, and a fancy stylus for clicking, writing, dragging, and drawing. In typical 404 fashion, we have to poke fun at the fact that while a long plastic pen is very innovative, we wish it had fully functioning voice recognition, but as we've seen from the Google iPhone app, that technology will likely never be perfected. In the meantime, it looks like the Microsoft booklet will materialize before the fabled Apple tablet.
Speaking of Apple, Wilson and I are very psyched for Google to finally release push e-mail support on Google Sync for the iPhone. This means there will always be a connection to Google's servers to keep your mailbox up to date. There's no additional application necessary, just head to m.google.com/sync from your computer and follow these instructions.
If you're a long-time 404 listener, you'll remember a few months back when my iPhone camera stopped working and the Apple Genius at the store told me that my phone had somehow been submerged in water, judging by the indication on the external water sensor. Well as it turns out, that liquid sensor is a filthy liar. There are actually two liquid sensors on the phone, an internal and an external, which more often than not, tell contradicting stories. If a Genius sees the external one is triggered, the official Apple protocol tells them to report that the warranty is now void and Apple is no longer responsible for fixing the damaged phone. More importantly, the protocol says not to open iPhones and check the internal sensor. If you've had a similar experience, we want to hear about it, but you should also head back to the Apple store and ask them to open up the phone and double-check it. Who knows, you might leave with a brand-new iPhone.
EPISODE 430
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Image Credit: Gizmodo ... Read more
This is an artist conception of the Ares I rocket.
(Credit: NASA)According to a report at MediaFlux, NASA has had a successful preliminary design review of the Ares I rocket, which will be responsible for taking its Orion crew into orbit in 2015. The review was conducted by a team of more than 1,100 specialists at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
It was the final step of the design process of the Ares I and according to NASA, was the first critical milestone in more than 35 years of a U.S. rocket responsible for carrying astronauts into space.
This was the first in a long series of reviews to come. NASA uses these reviews to correct all (or as many as possible) of the problems that may appear along the way to completion. When you're dealing with vehicles that have to propel astronauts from the Earth and into the cold silent blackness of space, 1,100 specialists looking over your work is probably a good idea.
The Ares I is part of NASA's Constellation Program, which is a new generation of spacecraft meant to replace the Space Shuttle. In August, NASA was forced to delay a proposed launch of Ares from 2013 to 2015.
Lest you be mistaken, Asus makes full-size systems, too. In addition to introducing its Eee Box SFF PC at Computex today along with adding WiMAX to its Eee PC minilaptop, Asus had its first gaming desktop on display along with its G70 gaming laptop.
Ready for war: the Asus Ares Gaming PC.
(Credit: Asus)The Ares Gaming PC serves up the expected high-end components, including an Intel Core 2 Extreme CPU, up to 8GB of DDR3 memory, and support for either Nvidia Quad SLI or ATI CrossfireX graphics. It'll carry up to 4TB of drive space and keeps all its parts running smoothly with a liquid-cooling system. As for the case itself, Asus claims the design "draws upon ancient and modern armor concepts from both Eastern and Western cultures for a uniquely designed upper faceplate." I'd say it looks vaguely similar to Alienware's tried-and-true design. Though the Ares was seen earlier this year at CeBIT, Asus still isn't talking price or availability; I'll update this post should my query to Asus be met with any concrete figures or dates.
The Asus G70's secondary display must be located above the keyboard.
(Credit: Asus)The Asus G70 desktop is a Noah's Ark of a laptop, including dual-core Core 2 Duo or Extreme CPU, dual Nvidia GeForce 8700M GT graphics cards, and two 320GB hard drives. Continuing this theme is a dual-screen setup, a dual-mode touchpad that offers media controls, two cooling fans, and double the number of stereo speakers for a total of four. About the dual screens: The primary display is your typical 17-inch 1,920x1,200 affair, which is paired with a secondary display that lets you monitor system status and e-mail without leaving Liberty City. Asus had other G series laptops at Computex--the G50 and the G71--that will offer GeForce 9700M GT graphics when they're released in Q3.
The G70's touchpad mouses, scrolls, plays, and pauses.
(Credit: Asus)
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