Amazon made flipping through books on Kindles and tablets easier
As useful (and as crazy-svelte) as e-readers can be, there’s something terribly satisfying about thumbing through a sheaf of processed plant matter with words on it. While you’ll never get the same sensory experience using a Kindle, Amazon at least tried to make it easier to skim through digital books, and you’ll get your chance to try it for yourself today. The feature’s called PageFlip, and it’s coming to Amazon’s Kindle app for iOS and Android, along with certain Kindle readers and Fire tablets by way of an automatic, over-the-air update.
PageFlip, in short, is basically the digital equivalent of sticking your thumb between two pages and scouting through the rest of a book looking for the juicy bits. If you’re using the Kindle app on a tablet or phone, tapping on a page gives you a zoomed-out view of that page, along with a progress bar along the bottom to mark your place in the book.
While you flick through the pages, a little window remains in the corner of the screen — that’s the page you just came from, and one tap brings you back to where you left off. If that doesn’t get you skimming through prose fast enough, there’s also a grid view option that shows off even more pages at once. Even better, page previews — be they big or packed into the grid — change on the fly when you fiddle with your margin, line spacing and typeface settings.
Getting PageFlip to work on Kindles was a little trickier, considering the differences in displays, refresh rates and touch sensitivity. Still, the concept scales to these more basic devices without much trouble — you’ll be able to pin pages and view the grid (albeit with less detail), and there is a pair of new shortcut buttons to help you jump between chapters. Simple enough, no?
I didn’t spend much time with PageFlip, but there was one thought I couldn’t shake while I was seeing it: this would be kind of amazing to have before you buy a book. After all, who among us Luddite bound-book readers doesn’t thumb through a tome before trudging up to the checkout line? When asked, a pair of Kindle product managers declined to answer directly; they mentioned the “Look Inside” feature on book listings has been “really helpful,” so I wouldn’t expect much more than that for a while. Speaking of book listings, I haven’t been able to find a book that isn’t PageFlip-enabled, though Amazon concedes that not every digital book they carry is compatible right now.
MIT: More collaboration is needed to fight disease
As anyone who follows science knows, a lot of the fields have blended together. Medical research is dependent on robotics and other technology, while computer engineers are building neural networks that mimic our brains. To get everyone working together, leading MIT scientists, including President Emerita Susan Hockfield and Nobel Prize winning geneticist Philip Sharphave, have drafted a paper called “Convergence: The Future of Health.” They believe the federal government, academia and industry must grasp the importance of overlapping research and fund it appropriately.
The reports focuses on three areas in need of convergence between disciplines: Brain disorders, infectious diseases and cancer research. Researchers in those fields need to collaborate with scientists and engineers who work on imaging, nanotechnology, regenerative engineering (prosthetics and organ transplants), and information technology. For instance, building artificial organs for transplants requires 3D printing expertise (below) that medical researchers don’t have. Similarly, optogenetics allows neurologists to change an animal’s behavior merely with light, but leans heavily on genetics and other fields.
Such collaboration, which the authors refer to as the “third revolution” in science, is already commonplace, of course. Doctors are working with geneticists to stamp out viruses and immune disorders via “synthetic biology,” and cancer researchers are using AI to improve patient diagnoses. However, coordinating such research is a big problem, especially for small, underfunded projects that could result in breakthroughs.
To help with that, the report makes several recommendations. Those include changing the way that grants are doled out to favor convergence, hiring researchers with expertise or knowledge of other disciples and creating PhD programs that allow students to design their own degrees across disciplines.
However, the main takeaway is that the US government must wade in. According to the authors, it must help create a working group that across disciplines with participation from the NIH, National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy and the FDA. That means that not only more participation from the feds, but more cash. “Convergence science has advanced across many fronts, from nanotechnology to regenerative tissue,” Sharp tells the MIT Review. “The funding allocated for convergence research in biomedical science is small and needs to be expanded.” For more, delve into the report.
Source: MIT
Adobe Photoshop adds Content-Aware Crop and font suggestions
Adobe usually announces significant updates to Creative Cloud every six months, and its delivering another right on schedule. While the changes are scattered across all of the apps in the company’s software subscription and its stock photo service, we’ll focus primarily on Photoshop. For its popular photo-editing app, Adobe is adding a Content-Aware Crop to the collection of smart design tools. Here, the software automatically fills in any gaps that are created when you either rotate and image or expand it beyond its original size. This new cropping option joins the handy Content-Aware Fill and other tools that make quick work of photo edits.
Photoshop’s Liquify tool, a feature that’s used to tweak facial features, is getting an update as well. It’s now “Face-Aware,” which means it’ll keep the subject’s face in proportion while you make those subtle adjustments. The application also has a new font-recognition tool that will not only identify licensed fonts, but it will suggest similar options that are available on your computer or through Adobe’s TypeKit service.
A notable chance across all Creative Cloud apps include the ability to set permissions for design assets in CreativeSync. This means that when you’re working with a team, you can determine who sees what rather than having all of the images, fonts and other files available to everyone inside the CC software. There are also new search filters to that you can narrow results to still photos, video, vectors and illustrations.
Adobe Premiere Pro, the company’s video-editing app, continues to add on the VR-related tools. This time the software gets a “field of view” preview mode to check progress on that immersive content. In After Effects, you can now match an animated character’s speech and movement with a real-life actor thanks to the Character Animator Preview. For Illustrator users, expect to easily export assets and artboards in multiple formats and resolutions with one click, rather than having to save separate files individually. All of the above updates are available now in Creative Cloud for subscribers, included in the cost of the software plan. Those prices are set at $10/month for the photography option (Lightroom and Photoshop only) and $50/month for the full suite of apps.
Microsoft trashes Chrome’s battery life
Your choice of web browser can have a tremendous effect on your laptop’s battery life, and Microsoft is determined to prove that its Edge browser the most efficient of them all… at Google’s expense, of course. The crew in Redmond has posted battery tests showing that Edge lasted longer in web video playback and standardized surfing tests than any other browser (including Opera in low-power mode), and over 3 hours longer than Chrome in the video test. And this is with the current version of Windows 10, Microsoft notes. Edge in Windows’ Anniversary Update should be downright miserly thanks to lower resource usage and tighter restrictions on Flash.
Of course, it’s a wise idea to take this (and any other company-run benchmark) with a grain of salt. Most people don’t spend all day watching Netflix on the web, and Microsoft doesn’t mention exactly how long the browsers lasted in the generic browsing test. Also, it conducted the tests on Surface Books. Your mileage is likely to vary with third-party hardware. The company does point to lower overall power consumption based on data from “millions” of Windows 10 PCs, but that will only tell you so much about your own experience.
Still, it’s no secret that Chrome is relatively power-hungry. Google’s attempts to improve Chrome’s battery efficiency have only gone so far, and it’s practically common wisdom that you use another browser if you need an extra hour or two of runtime. It’s just important to remember that Microsoft has a strong incentive to trash talk Chrome, and that battery life isn’t always the most important factor.
Via: The Verge
Source: Windows Experience Blog
Here’s the cable industry’s counter offer to fix TV boxes
Earlier this year the FCC voted on a plan to fix crappy cable boxes. Dubbed “Unlock the Box,” the plan would make cable companies open up their services for use on boxes made by other companies. Now, after a few months of complaining and poking holes in the FCC plan, the cable companies have a proposal of their own. Their offer consists of an “industry-wide commitment” to create HTML5-based apps for third party devices like phones, tablets and connected TV boxes. It was presented this week by representatives for the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), AT&T/DirecTV, Comcast and others.
That way customers could watch TV without leasing equipment, while content providers would stay happy because things like DRM, advertising and channel lineups would remain consistent. The app will be provided free of charge to makers of these third party devices, and would work with universal search features, however viewing of the content would only be possible within the app itself. You can check out the framework of their offer in a letter here (PDF), and a spokesman for FCC chairman Tom Wheeler said he is waiting for more details to see if it meets all of the goals.
Of course, leaving the software in the cable industry’s hands means there’s no assurance the apps will be any good, which could put us right back in the same place. Also, it’s a five year commitment (with the potential for renewal), with two years to roll the apps out. A group called INCOMPAS (that counts Google, Level 3, Netflix and TiVo among its members) issued a statement (PDF) in response saying the cable-backed plan is an attempt to “delay negotiations.” The FCC’s plan already has support from the president, but a compromise offer could make for easier going — the only question now is if it will actually help consumers who haven’t chosen to cut the cord.
97-80 06-17-2016 NCTA, AT&T-DIRECTV, Comcast, and Charter
Via: Fierce Cable
Source: FCC
Android apps are now available on Chrome OS
The ASUS Chromebook Flip is the first Chrome OS device to get Android Apps after Google announced the feature at its I/O conference in May. If you own that device and are willing to download an early alpha version of Chrome OS 53, the Google Play store icon will appear on the desktop. According to Google’s François Beaufort, the build should also bring Android apps to the 2015 Chromebook Pixel and Acer Chromebook R11. However, some Reddit user say that the Play Store isn’t yet working on those devices.
Google first revealed that Chrome OS would get Android apps back in 2014, so the feature has obviously taken a long time to implement. The company recently showed a demo (above) to give you an idea as to how it would work. The takeaway is that it’s probably best to have a touchscreen and reasonably powerful machine. Android apps will benefit Chrome OS users enormously, letting them easily swap files and work offline.
For now, the laptop acts like Android 6.01 and only works with tablet apps. Reddit users say there are minor bugs with the accelerometer and racing games, but generally report that it’s working well considering it’s still a developer build. However, users who rely on their Chromebooks should wait until at least the beta software comes in about a month. Other devices will get Android apps “later in 2016,” according to Google — for a complete list, check here.
Source: François Beaufort (G+)
Microsoft partners with a legal weed startup
Microsoft is going into the legal marijuana business by teaming with a weed financing startup called “Kind,” according to the New York Times. The two companies will create Azure-powered cloud apps that track plants from “seed to sale,” helping legal dealers comply with laws. The decision to enter the trade was probably not taken lightly by Microsoft, as most corporations still won’t touch it with a ten-foot bong. However, the software giant is based in Washington state, where it’s perfectly legal to sell pot, and sees the potential for profits.
“We do think there will be significant growth,” Microsoft’s Kimberly Nelson tells the NYT. “As the industry is regulated, there will be more transactions, and we believe there will be more sophisticated requirements and tools down the road.” Twenty-five states in the US have legalized pot, either for medical or recreational use, and five more are voting this year to approve it, including California and Nevada. That’s created a kind of (Acapulco) gold rush in Silicon Valley, with startups sprouting everywhere.
The software giant is based in Washington state, where it’s perfectly legal to sell pot, and sees the potential for profits.
However, corporate America still sees weed as a turnoff — it’s been difficult for legal pot dealers to get loans from banks, for example. To push it into the mainstream, businesses will need to ensure they comply with laws so that the industry doesn’t become a bad scene. “The goal of this relationship is to leverage each company’s resources to provide state, county, and municipalities with purpose built solutions for [cannabis seed to sale] technology,” Kind said.
Facebook makes it easier to start a conversation in Messenger
After adding SMS messages to the Android version of the app earlier this week, Facebook tweaked its Messenger UI to get you sending messages faster. Underneath the list of recent messages, you’ll now see a collection of your favorite contacts so you can get chatting quickly. The app will also show you birthdays like the social network’s site and core app does, making light work of sending someone a note. That useful list of who’s online is there as well, tucked down below the aforementioned messages and groups of contacts. With these changes, it should be even easier to send one of Facebook’s new emoji when the time comes.
Source: Facebook
There’s more money in on-demand taxis than going to Mars
NASA’s annual budget for the 2015 fiscal year is $18.5 billion, a figure that you should bear in mind when we talk about the ride-hailing app business. It’s because Didi Chuxing, more commonly known as the Uber of China, is now worth $28 billion, or 1.5 2016 NASAs. The ride-hailing service you only know about because Apple invested in it has recently closed yet another funding round. This time, it’s convinced investors to pump a further $7.3 billion into its war chest, setting itself up nicely for the transportation arms race that’s to come.
In the other corner is Uber, which is now valued at $62.5 billion (or 3.37 NASAs) and has also spent this month adding to its war fund. On June 1st, it secured $3.5 billion in cash from Saudi Arabia in what’s being called the largest single investment made into a private company. Now, the firm is looking to raise a further $2 billion in long-term loans, putting its estimated cash hoard at around $10.5 billion. That’s a lot of moolah for a service that lets you hail a ride when you’ve spent too long in the bar.
All of this cash is going to be spent pursuing a single goal, which is to make sure that whenever you want a ride, it’s with one of these two. Both will likely attempt to hire more drivers, cut ride fees and generally make sure that nobody else can compete with them. The Guardian reports that, when Uber wanted to “conquer” London, it handed out a £99 ($140) a week stipend to encourage drivers to ditch their current employer. Cynics might also add that Uber’s (alleged) playbook of dirty tricks, previously used to undermine Lyft, could also get trotted out again.
The goal here is dominance in China, with a booming population, sheer size and money makes it a worthy prize for the winner. Uber’s Chinese division has raised $1.2 billion in funding on its own, although that’s dwarfed by the size of Didi’s new fighting fund. Oh, and it’s also worth noting that this battle is a proxy war that’s being fought by the tech industry’s biggest names. After all, Uber is backed by Baidu, Google Ventures and Microsoft, while Didi is bankrolled by Alibaba, Tencent and Apple. Imagine how hotly-contested this battle will get when self-driving cars, a passion for many of these businesses, finally hit the streets.
Source: WSJ, Ft
Apple will only let you remove iOS 10 apps, not delete them
Apple confirmed that it’s giving you the power to drop native mobile apps on iOS 10 when it published an official support page detailing the feature for beta testers. What that page didn’t mention is that you can’t really delete stock apps, you can only remove them from your home screen. When you delete a stock application on iOS 10, it loses its configurations and purges any data you gave it. However, its binary file will remain in your system even if you can’t see its icon anymore, the company’s SVP of software engineering told Apple blogger John Gruber.
While that might not be good enough for people who have a seething hatred for stock iOS applications, it likely won’t have any effect on the way you use your device. Apple points that its pre-loaded apps use less than 150MB and don’t take up a big part of your storage space. That said, you’ll still need to redownload them from the App Store — Cupertino made them available on iTunes for this purpose — if you change your mind.
By the way, Apple’s support page also gives you the rundown on some possible complications when you remove certain programs. For instance, if you try to remove the Watch app while it’s paired with a smartwatch, iOS will prompt you to unpair it first. You can’t use the Music app with CarPlay if you drop it, and stock and weather notifications won’t pop up anymore if you choose to get rid of them.
Source: Apple, John Gruber
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