NASA App is Free on Apple App Store

"Making NASA more accessible to the public is a high priority for the agency," said Gale Allen, director of Strategic Integration and Management for NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate in Washington. "Tools like this allow us to provide users easy access to NASA information and progress at a fast pace."

The NASA App collects, customizes and delivers an extensive selection of dynamically updated information, images and videos from various onlineNASA sources. Users can access NASA countdown clocks, the NASA Image of the Day, Astronomy Image of the Day, online videos, NASA's many Twitter feeds and other information. It delivers NASA content in a clear and intuitive way by making full use of the iPhone and iPod touch features, including the Multi-Touch user interface. The New Media Team atNASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., developed the application.

The NASA App also allows users to track the current positions of the International Space Station and other spacecraft currently orbiting Earth in three views: a map with borders and labels, visible satellite imagery, or satellite overlaid with country borders and labels.

"We're excited to deliver a wide range of up-to-the-minute NASA content to iPhone and iPod touch users," said Gary Martin, director of the New Ventures and Communications Directorate at Ames. "TheNASA App provides an easy and interesting way for the public to experience space exploration."
Source: tech2

Windows 7 - The Missing Features

We already did the definitive review of Windows 7, and without a doubt, it is a great OS. But there are a few features that were initially promised that are missing from the final release.

WinFS
We’ve been waiting for this one since the early days of Vista’s development, but it’s still not here. Microsoft’s new WinFS file system was supposed to use a huge database that could recognize data attributes to speed up searching and correlating different kinds of information, rather than relying solely on folder structures as we currently know them. Development continues but it’s still not ready for primetime.

Accelerators
Just like the ill-fated Smart Tags in Microsoft Office, Accelerators allow you to select text in any program and then add it to a calendar, translate, spell check, search online with Live Search, get directions using Live Maps, send by Live Mail, etc. Maybe they were too invasive or maybe Microsoft was afraid of criticism because of their close ties with their own online services.

Guest Mode
Early demos showed a Guest Mode which basically let administrators freeze the state of an account on a PC so that no changes to files or system settings were retained when guests use it. The computer’s hard drives were locked down and even files they save were wiped out when a new session begins. Without explanation, this feature is missing in the final release.

Ultimate Extras
After Vista’s promised Ultimate Extras failed to materialize, the concept has been dropped for Windows 7 Ultimate.

Windows Live programs
With the coming of the Windows Live suite of downloadable programs, regular fixtures like Windows Mail, Movie Maker and Messenger are no longer preinstalled by default. You can install whatever you like by visiting www.download.live.com.

The Pirate Bay in the Courtroom Again

The three founders of The Pirate Bay have been hit by a Dutch court a with new order, to remove copyright material links. This is regarding Netherlands-based music and film makers. The trio could face fines of up to $9m (£5.5m)

In retort, the defendants dispute some of the evidence presented by music and film copyright protection body. The current owner of The Pirate Bay is a Seychelles-based company called Riversella Ltd. In April, they were found guilty of breaking copyright law and were sentenced to a year in jail and ordered to pay $4.5m USD (£2.8m) in damages to a coalition of media firms. Sourced from BBC
Source: tech2

Sony Walkman NWZ-S544 PMP

Good Audio quality Decent battery life Lightweight in a sleek design

Display is not scratch resistant Video conversion takes awhile

The latest Sony Walkman player to hit the streets is the NWZ-S544 PMP. As usual Sony has incorporated a rather funky touch into the device, but looks aren’t everything as we’ve clearly seen with so many other devices over time. So how did this one fare? This is what I think.

Form Factor
The S544 comes with a 2.4-inch TFT LCD that sports a 240 x 320 pixel resolution. No different than your average mobile handset. The display isn’t scratch resistant, I found out the hard way. After a few days of putting and pulling it from my pockets and bag the screen and plastic like body seemed visible with wear and tear. Although the build quality was a bit of an issue in this sense, the design itself is quite attractive. Its slim lines and simple navigation system make it easy to use and carry around. Of course you’ll have to find some as sleek and sexy to carry it around in if you want to keep it scratch-free.

On one side are the volume control buttons followed by a switch for opting to use headphones or the built-in Digital Linear Phase Speaker System that feature Virtual Bass and Linear Phase Correction. In lay terms they’re just a bunch of fancy words to explain you can play music though the loudspeakers that have good tone quality but aren’t overly loud but loud enough to bug the heck out of anyone communing with you. Just below those is the screen lock slider. The S544 uses a proprietary adapter for USB/Charging. It’s located at the bottom near the 3.5mm earphone socket and the built-in microphone. The bundled Sony earphones are great but if you do have a better set, use them.

It’s a great looking player that comes in an interesting range of colors. For those of you who want to make sure that the player remains in pristine condition, I suggest using a mobile phone scratch guard for the display.

Features and Performance
Interface
Sony’s proprietary UI has always worked well with their PMPs. I particularly like the quick access menu that’s available with all the features that allow you to access all necessary settings required for each function. With the simple five way nav-pad and ‘Option’ and ‘Back’ buttons it’s easy to navigate and maneuver through. The Search function is also quite helpful for locating specific music easily. Not having an accelerometer to automatically switch orientation for landscape images or videos means you have to worry about a couple of extra button presses sometimes, but that’s ok.

source: tech2

Airtel Launches Mobile Comics Portal

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel Sunday announced the launch of India's first-ever mobile comics portal on its mobile entertainment portal Airtel Live.

The service can be accessed on GPRS-enabled handsets (GPRS or general packet radio service is a type of wireless communication service).

"More than a third of Airtel customers in India have GPRS-enabled handsets and with the mobile becoming the one-stop device for all entertainment needs, comics would be a much sought after addition to our existing services on Airtel Live," said Saleem Mobhani, Bharti Airtel's head of mobile entertainment.

The comics portal will provide subscribers with access to more than 300 Indian and international comic characters - from Popeye to the local Nagaraj.

Customers will be charged Rs.10 per week for 10 comic strips, which is inclusive of data charges, Mobhani said.

Complete Windows 7 Guide : Part 1 – About and Version

Windows 7 is Microsoft’s latest version of its Windows operating system. Unlike its predecessor, Vista, Windows 7 offers incremental upgrades and is aimed at ensuring maximum compatibility with applications and hardware already supported in Vista. As mentioned in the Preface, Microsoft’s key agenda regarding Windows 7 is to lure back many of the Windows XP users who skipped Vista. Windows 7 offers significant performance improvements over its predecessors—most notably Windows Vista and Windows XP. It is still based on the Vista kernel, but comes
with substantial performance improvements and a redesigned Windows shell, a new taskbar, and a less-annoying User Account Control (UAC) system.

There are also improvements in networking, in particular the introduction of a home network system known as HomeGroup. This chapter walks you through the different versions of Windows 7 available, followed by an overview of the installation process. We will then take a look at some of the new features in Windows 7 before we get into them in detail in subsequent
chapters.

Versions of Windows 7
With Windows Vista, Microsoft released multiple editions of its operating system with the intention of targeting different segments of its user base with different features at different price points. However, this approach wasn’t well received, as it confused the market; many users urged Microsoft to come up with one simple, all-encompassing version of the operating system.
With Windows 7, Microsoft still has many editions. However, Microsoft is expected to focus its marketing effort on just two editions—Home Premium and Professional— just as it did with Windows XP. Here is a list of the available editions, in ascending order, from least to most advanced:

Starter Edition
A lightweight edition for netbook computers. Netbooks are low-powered computers specifically designed for lightweight tasks such as web browsing and emailing. In this edition, Windows 7 will lack more advanced features such as Media Center, Aero Glass, fast user switching, multiple-monitor support, DVD playback, and multitouch support. This edition is geared toward replacing Windows XP on inexpensive computers such as netbooks, a market that is currently dominated by Windows XP. This edition will likely be available only as a preinstallation by OEMs.

Home Basic
This edition is designated for emerging markets only; it is for customers who are looking for an inexpensive entry-level Windows experience (limited Aero support, no features such as Windows Media Center or multitouch support).

Home Premium

This edition is designed for home users and will include features like Media Center, multitouch support, the Aero Glass UI, and so on.

Professional
This edition is designed for home workers and small businesses, and will include features like advanced network backup and the Encrypting File System.
Enterprise
Includes everything that Professional includes and adds BitLocker protection. It will have the option to encrypt USB flash drives and external hard disks. It also includes DirectAccess, which allows remote workers to access a company network securely without using a VPN, and federated search.
Ultimate
Includes all the features available in Windows 7.

See the Pics Below for Full Comparison of Windows 7 Version