This Chrome add-on lets you copy and erase text inside any image on the web
What would you say if we told you that it’s possible to copy, translate, edit and even erase the text inside any image you find on the internet? Well, you can, and it’s a lot easier than you might think. All it requires is a new browser extension, called Project Naptha, made by developer Kevin Kwok. It uses a number of optical character recognition (OCR) algorithms, including libraries developed by Microsoft and Google, which quickly build a model of text regions, words and letters from nearly any image.
Once installed, you simply hover your cursor over available image text and select it. Using its built-in tools, you can do a number of things: Firstly, you can copy your selection. This is great if you’ve been emailed a scanned document or a screenshot of an error message. For instance, instead of jotting things down and manually typing it back into to Google, you can simply copy and paste the output directly into your search bar. If an image includes text you don’t understand, Naptha also supports numerous translation services, allowing you to decode a previously unintelligible language (at least to you) on the fly. However, perhaps the extension’s most impressive feature is its ability to edit and remove text. Using a technique similar to Photoshop’s “Content-Aware Fill” feature called “inpainting,” Naptha captures each of the independent colours from regions around the text and intelligently fills the space where it used to be. It’s not perfect, but it certainly beats having to open a dedicated image editor.
Kwok says he’s consistently working on expanding the project, which will include bringing it to other browsers like Mozilla Firefox. Right now, not all images allow you to edit words within them, although the developer has said he hopes to include support for vertical text in the future. Project Naptha is available now for free via the official website or Google’s Chrome Web Store.
[Image credit: Wikimedia Commons]
Filed under: Internet, Software
Source: Project Naptha, Chrome Web Store
Shocker! Nobody uses Samsung bloatware
If you used a Samsung app recently it was possibly a mis-click, according to a Strategy Analytics survey of 250-plus Galaxy S3 and S4 users. While Samsung recently trumpeted 100 million users for ChatOn, for instance, the report said US users spent a mere six seconds per month on the app, compared to, say, 151 minutes on Instagram. The rest of the suite fared little better, with users spending no more than seven minutes per month on all its apps combined. By contrast, users stayed on Facebook for 11 hours and Google’s three most popular apps for 150 minutes on average. If accurate, that would be a stinging rebuke, given that Samsung’s apps are pre-installed on most of its devices and can’t be removed easily — unless, ironically, you’re in its home country.
Filed under: Software, Samsung
Via: WSJ
Source: Strategy Analytics
Google initiative will lease solar panels to consumers
Google has just announced another major investment in renewable energy — not to power its own vast data centers this time, but rather to bring cheaper electricity to the homes of ordinary Americans. Alongside solar cell manufacturer SunPower, the internet giant is starting a $250 million fund (including $100 million of its own cash) to buy up solar panels and then lease them back to American households. It promises the lease cost will be “typically lower” than a home’s regular electricity bills, but it has yet to provide specifics on the costs involved or exactly when the project is scheduled to get going. With solar panels steadily getting cheaper, it seems entirely probable that the partnership would recoup its investment over time, while still providing consumers with a financial incentive to go green.
Source: Google
Amazon bringing older HBO shows to Prime Instant Video members for free
HBO’s always been stingy about who gets to stream its cherished TV assets but on May 21st, some of the network’s vintage material will get a wider release. The company has signed a deal with Amazon to bring its classic shows, including The Sopranos, The Wire and Deadwood to Prime Instant Video members for free. If you’re waiting for newer fare — by which we mean Game of Thrones — you’ll be disappointed, but seasons of HBO’s other new shows, like True Blood and Veep will arrive roughly three years after their first broadcast. As part of the deal, HBO Go will launch as an app on Amazon’s Fire TV set-top box, which is due to land at some point towards the end of the year. In the meantime, however, you can prepare yourself for a May binge-a-thon by buying in plenty of snacks and bottled water.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Amazon
Source: Amazon
Google Street View now serves as your own personal time machine
In the seven years since Google launched Maps, it’s collected a ton of imaging and location data, which we’ve only been able to see in its most recent form. That’s about to change, however, after the company announced it’s opening all of that information up, allowing you to go back and see how much each of its locations have adapted during that period. Starting today, Google says it will begin rolling out the new future across its desktop Maps service, adding a new clock icon to Street View images. Once clicked, you can move a slider and select the different thumbnails of a location in a particular space in time. You’ll see skyscrapers go up, houses come down, or maybe even witness the rebuilding efforts of a community affected by a natural disaster. There’s no word on whether it’ll make its way beyond the desktop, so for now you’ll likely only be able to procrastinate from the comfort of your home computer or office.
Source: Google Lat Long
Viber Updates iOS App with Redesigned User Interface, Multiple Media Sharing [iOS Blog]
Popular messaging service Viber today updated its iOS app to version 4.2, bringing a redesigned user interface for iOS 7 in addition to various new features. The app now includes multiple media sharing that allows users to send multiple photos and videos at once, in addition to the ability to block users and send longer video messages. A cross platform typing indicator has also been added.
– Completely redesigned for iOS 7! The new look and feel is consistent with the aesthetic of iOS 7 that iPhone users have grown accustomed to.
– Multiple media sharing in one flow. No more back and forth media sharing! Now you can send and edit up to 10 photos and videos at a time!
– Block list. Users can now block contacts they do not know and those that they do not wish to be contacted by. To learn more about managing your block list, click here.
– Send longer video messages. You can now send videos of up to three (3) minutes long.
– Typing indicator. Know when your contacts are typing a message to you on Android tablet, Linux, Mac, PC or Windows 8.
– Bug fixes.
According to the most recent statistics, Viber has over 105 million monthly active users and receives 550,000 sign ups daily. The service was acquired by Japanese Internet company Rakuten in February for $900 million, and launched a new desktop application for Mac and PC last February.
Viber is a free download for iOS devices and can be downloaded through App Store. [Direct Link]
OnePlus One officially unveiled as “2014 Flagship Killer”
After all the hype OnePlus has been building up around the OnePlus One, today they have officially unveiled the device along with it’s $299 price tag. The device, which is being marketed as a “2014 Flagship Killer”, will begin shipping in Q2.
The phone comes stacked with all the latest hardware an Android user could ask for and is available in 16GB for $299 or 64GB, yes 64GB, for only 50 bucks more. What an upgrade for only 50 bucks compared to other high-end smartphone manufacturers.
The OnePlus One will be available in black or white and will have different options for users to customize the back of their phones such as kevlar, denim, among others.
The rear camera is made by Sony and is packing 13 megapixels and a 5 megapixel front facing camera. OnePlus claims that the device can take excellent low light photos along with your standard day to day pictures.
The One will be running a modified version of Android, Cynogenmod, which has been revamped to feature customizable themes. Cynogemod has been a pioneer in customizing the Android experience, so we look forward to getting our hands on it and seeing what it has to offer.
Below is a list of specs for the device and you can also find additional information from OnePlus’ website. Tell us what you think in the comments below!
- 2.5GHZ Snapdragon 801 CPU
- 3GB of RAM
- 5.5-inch full HD display
- 16GB/64GB on board storage
- 13MP rear camera, 5MP front
- 3100mAh battery
- LTE
Source: OnePlus
The post OnePlus One officially unveiled as “2014 Flagship Killer” appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Hacker attacks on websites shot up 75 percent last quarter
Akami Technologies’ State of the Internet report for Q4 2013 has just arrived, and one stat stands out like a bad rash: DDoS (denial of service) attacks were up 75 percent over last quarter, and 23 percent from the year before. Most of the targets were enterprises, and Akami said that the likelihood of a repeat hack is one in three — a 35 percent bump over last year. Such numbers have no doubt fueled demand for services like Google’s Project Shield, which shelter businesses behind massive cloud servers that can easily absorb an onslaught. As for the countries of origin? The dubious winner of that prize (by far) was China with 43 percent of all attacks, followed by the US and Canada. The latter nation saw a not-very-polite 2500 percent bump in DDoS attacks over last year — hopefully not a trend.
Luckily, there were some positive internet stats to balance things out. Global internet penetration was up 3 percent over Q3, with overall speeds 5.5 percent higher. That equates to a worldwide average of 3.8Mbps, even though half the nations in the top ten saw small declines over last quarter. However, modest jumps in the US and Ireland meant that for the first time, the top ten fastest nations all had 10Mbps or higher internet speeds. The best of the best was unsurprisingly Korea, which clipped along at an average of 22.7Mbps.
Filed under: Internet
DoubleTwist’s latest Android tweak brings Google Play Music to Apple TV
Google’s mobile-streaming tech has a lot going for it, but listening to music stored in Mountain View’s cloud is still limited to a handful of home devices. AirPlay-compatible gadgets, however, are a probably a bit more common than the Nexus Q, Chromecast and Sonos systems are, and developer doubleTwist’s latest project acts as a bridge between the two ecosystems. The outfit recently released “AirPlay for Android,” which is exactly what it sounds like: the tweak open’s the search giant’s media-streaming to AirPlay devices. The rub is that your device running Google’s mobile OS has to be rooted for the hack to work. First, grab and install the aforementioned APK from the dev’s blog, launch Google Play Music (GPM) and hit the Cast button. From there, you need to grant root access to the app, force-stop it and then relaunch. Viola! AirPlay devices on your wireless network should populate the list of compatible targets.
Because this (like so many of doubleTwist’s other projects) is essentially a hack, the dev warns that you may have to force-close GPM now and again to sidestep Google’s restrictive whitelist for approved devices. DoubleTwist doesn’t say if AirPlay for Android will work for apps other than GPM, but given how Casting functions, we wouldn’t rule the possibility out.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Wireless, Mobile, Google
Source: doubleTwist
Kittyo looks after your cats so you don’t have to
What does the internet love more than cats? App-connected devices that let you feed and entertain the furry monsters when you’re out and about. Kittyo is a coffee maker-shaped device designed to do just that, packing a webcam, laser and a treat dispenser. That way, you can check your moggies are safe, keep ‘em entertained and drop pellets of kibble, even if you’re at the office or on holiday. The product launched on Kickstarter, naturally, where it’s already smashed its $30,000 target four times over. However, there’s still time to make a pledge and get the Kittyo for $120, versus the $180 you might expect to pay if you waited until the product goes on sale in November.
Filed under: Misc
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Kickstarter
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