রবিবার, ২ ফেব্রুয়ারি, ২০১৪
From humble to high tech, a slow cooker history
All of a sudden, everyone's a foodie. In the modern day culinary mess of sous-vide machines and high-end blenders, it's easy to forget the work-a-day slow cooker. But then at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, device-maker Belkin announced its plan to extend its Internet-connected WeMo product line to Jarden's small appliance lineup, including slow cooker staple CrockPot. We'll examine what it means to bring your slow cooker online when the Crock-Pot WeMo Smart Slow Cooker debuts this spring. For now, given that you might be using a more traditional model this weekend (and today also being the last day of Slow Cooker Month), it seems like a good time to consider the slow cooker's humble, delicious origins.
Evolution
Research makes case for home blood pressure monitoring
Public site reveals what Twitter Commerce could look like
Chrome fights back against settings hijackers
Google is taking aggressive steps to combat what it says is the No. 1 complaint in its Chrome browser: having your settings hijacked.
Related stories:Build with Chrome is a virtual Lego time-suck, but worth itThat was fast: Chrome Apps ready to go mobileSave data while translating in new iOS ChromeReversing course, Google rejects Adobe Web publishing techGoogle discards extensions that force feed users ads in ChromeThe company first took measures to address the problem in August when it introduced a "reset browser settings" button on the Settings page in Chrome, but that wasn't enough to fix things.
Now, Chrome will ask Windows users automatically via a pop-up if you want to reset your settings when it detects that they might've been changed without your permission. It will disable all extensions, themes, and Chrome Apps you have installed. It won't uninstall them, so you can still go back and manually reactivate them one at a time if you want.
The more aggressive reaction to unauthorized setting changes comes in response to what Linus Upson, vice president of engineering for Chrome, described in a blog post as "especially pernicious" hijackers who leave behind hidden processes that are designed to hijack your browser again after a short time.
"To make sure the reset option reaches everyone who might need it, Chrome will be prompting Windows users whose settings appear to have been changed if they'd like to restore their browser settings back to factory default," he wrote.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment. CNET will update the story when we hear back.
Topics: Desktop software Tags: pop-up, settings, browsers, reset, Google, ChromePopular antivirus tools for OS X tested, again
Recently Mac security researcher and analyst Thomas Reed put to the test a number of popular antivirus tools for OS X, to see which perform the best for detecting known malware threats for OS X. This effort follows similar assessments done by Reed in past years, but has been repeated to characterize the fluctuating nature of not only new malware threats, but also the effectiveness of scanning engines as they receive software updates and new malware definitions from their developers.
In his testing, Reed found that the top malware scanners for OS X include the following (in no particular order) which were able to detect over 95 percent of tested threats:
avast! Free Antivirus 8.0 F-Secure Anti-virus for Mac VirusBarrier 10.7.8 Avira Mac Security 2.0.1.105 ESET Cybersecurity 5.0.115.0 Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac 9.0.6 Kaspersky Security 14.0.1.46 Dr. Web Light 6.0.6Worthy of note here is that often acclaimed anti-malware tools such as the open source ClamXav, McAfee, and Symantec's iAntivirus, did not make it into this top tier set. Therefore, if you are looking for an anti-malware package to use, you might consider weighing those which perform well in tests like this, against the additional features they offer and recommendations by those who have used them.
Whether or not antivirus tools are recommended for OS X is a question that is still in a bit of flux. Hard-core Mac users often claim malware scanners offer more potential harm than good, especially given the relative lack of malware for OS X. However, this mentality butts heads with those who may not trust, or have, the abilities to avoid all potential avenues of attack on their systems.
In addition, often security tools will not only include anti-malware scanners, but also have firewalls, secure keyboard entry, and other routines that may sometimes be desired. In addition, some tools are relatively light-weight programs, while others use kernel extensions and background daemons, which may be more intrusive to the system and result in odd or unwanted behavior.
Regardless of what you choose, the most important aspect of a malware scanner is its ability to detect malware, and with results of testing such as that done by Reed, we can make better decisions by clearly distinguishing the top runners from the rest of the field.
Questions? Comments? Have a fix? Post them below or !
Be sure to check us out on Twitter and the CNET Mac forums.
Apple reportedly making push in mobile health
All signs point to Apple aiming to make a splash in mobile medical health.
The tech giant's so-called iWatch is said to be deep in development, with a heavy focus on mobile health and fitness tracking.And it's also been said that the long-rumored product could be announced by the end of this year.
Adding to the rumor mill's churn: Prominent Apple executives, including Senior Vice President of Operations Jeff Williams and Vice President of Software Technology Budd Tribble, met with the Food and Drug Association last month, according to the association's public calendar. The news was first reported Friday by The New York Times. The subject of the meeting, per the calendar, was "mobile medical applications."
Related postsWhen Apple fanboys watch a keynote -- the truthLenovo CEO aims for Motorola to dust Apple and SamsungIHS cautious about Apple's push for large iPadApple, the biggest loser in the Google-Motorola-Lenovo dealFuture iPhones, iPads could be more touch sensitive The Times also said, citing unnamed sources, that Kevin Lynch, the company's vice president of technology, is involved in creating software for the watch, and that SVP of Technology Bob Mansfield has also been looking at health-related tech to connect to the iPhone.Separately, 9to5Mac says iOS 8 will have a strong health component, including an app code-named "Healthbook." The app will have the ability to track things like the number of steps taken by a user, calories burned, and weight gained or lost, and record record blood pressure, hydration, and glucose levels, according to the report. The new features notably step on the offerings of Nike and Fitbit, already popular on the platform.
Also tellingly, the company has reportedly made some key hires in the space. MacRumors said Apple hired away Michael O'Reilly from his post as chief medical officer at Masimo Corporation, an Irvine, Calif.-based medical technology company.
Apple hasn't yet responded to a request for comment, but we'll update this post if we hear back.
Topics: Apps, Rumors, iOS Tags: iWatch, Apple, Nike, mobile health, FitbitVerizon uses Super Bowl to show off LTE broadcast video
Verizon Wireless is testing out its cellular video service, called multicast, and will broadcast the Super Bowl over its network on Sunday.
The only catch is the trial is extremely limited -- in fact limited to a single room inside Verizon's Power House, a temporary installation set up in Manhattan's Bryant Park.
Related storiesVerizon's Power House embraces Super Bowl madness (pictures)FCC votes to begin testing an overhaul of US phone system The 404 1,416: Where some developers just want to watch the world burn (podcast)Apple's iPhone 'shortfall'? Blame Verizon, AT&TVodafone shareholders OK deal to sell Verizon WirelessIt's an extremely small scale test, but gives you a glimpse into the kind of service Verizon wants to offer later this year. As all of the US carriers begin to approach parity with their LTE networks, companies such as Verizon are looking for these kinds of services to set themselves apart, while creating a potential new revenue stream.
CNET got a chance to check out the service, and the video quality does look pretty good. The "multicast LTE" room featured a handful of Samsung Galaxy Note 3 units tethered to a flat-screen television and already getting feeds from the NFL Network. You could watch a single live feed, or switch to four screens that juggled the live feed with three other on-demand videos.
Multicast LTE, as its name implies, is a service that rides over the LTE network, pushing out the same video feed to multiple devices, rather than a single phone or tablet. Because its a single, one-way broadcast feed, it is far more efficient than the current method of delivering video, which is sent to a single person based on their request. Because people aren't constantly pinging the network for different streams of video, Verizon could see some of the congested lifted on its network.
Because it is a single feed, there is higher picture quality, lower latency, and no buffering when the video is loaded up.
The service is still a little ways away. Parissa Pandkhou, director of mobile video delivery for Verizon Wireless, said she expects the work on the network upgrades, which includes a mix of software and physical boxes, to conclude around the third quarter. It's still unclear when the service would actually be rolled out to subscribers.
Verizon is working on signing up media partners, although it has at least one: the NFL's new digital network, NFL Now, will in some way incorporate multicast to Verizon customers sometime after it launches in the summer. That deal's not a huge surprise, with Verizon a key sponsor of the NFL and a marquee media partner for NFL Now.
Car companies have approached Verizon about incorporating a potential dongle into their vehicles that would be able to pick up multicast signals. Media companies have also checked out the technology.
There are also a few technical hurdles. Not every phone is compatible with the service, most notably the iPhone. Pandkhou noted that multicast uses a standards-based technology that would allow all vendors to incorporate software that's compatible with the service. She expressed confidence that a broad array of devices would be compatible at launch, noting Verizon was talking to every vendor, including Apple.
Think of multicast as the next generation of several failed attempts to bring broadcast video to the wireless world. Think Qualcomm's MediaFlo or the broadcasters' little-used service, Dyle, the notion of live video on your cellphone has generally been rejected by consumers. Verizon thinks things will be different this time, with more devices and a higher level of video quality hopefully attracting users. Beyond "live" broadcasts, multicast can also handle on-demand videos that are already being streamed.
The network efficiency angle might also be appealing, as the video service eats up a lot less data than traditional mobile streaming, critical at a time when customers are watching how much data they consumer. There's a chance that the data may not count against a customer's allotment at all, depending on how the business agreements are structured with media partners.
Verizon's Power House
Paper and the craft of securing Facebook's future
Facebook will enter its second decade by starting over entirely.
The new beginning comes courtesy of Paper, a standalone iPhone application for reading and writing the news, which will launch February 3, the eve of Facebook's 10-year anniversary.
Metaphorically, Paper is the 2014 version of Facebook, unencumbered by the rigid walls erected over the past 10 years, yet supported by the foundation of 1.23 billion people.
More literally, Paper presents News Feed's standbys -- photos, videos, and articles -- in new formats designed for enjoyment on smartphones. The app also comes with newspaperlike sections such as sports, entertainment, food, and even cute (for adorable animal pics) that you can add to your personalized zine to gather news on the topics you care about.
Back to the lab
The app is the first of several singular applications to be developed and released by Facebook Creative Labs. The unit is a startup-like group separated from the operational strictures that come along with a company of Facebook's size. The team has been granted, by none other than CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the freedom to do its own thing so that people like Product Manager Michael Reckhow and Product Designer Mike Matas can come up with radically different ideas.
The team checks in with Zuckerberg for guidance, of course, but the group mostly answers to its individual creative whims.
The company's 10-year anniversary seems as good an opportunity as any to trot out Creative Labs and set the tone for what's to come in the years ahead.
Recomposing Facebook With Paper, Facebook has deconstructed the network into little bits and put a few of the pieces back together to make something else entirely. As a standalone app, the ad-free Paper can only hurt Facebook if it becomes so popular that people dramatically cut back on their usage of the main app, where Facebook needs a large audience to make money from ads.
The reconstruction effort started with cosmetic surgery to the tools that pump blood into Facebook's most-viewed body part: News Feed. News Feed is the source for all that is happening in your network, but it's not exactly designed for elegant storytelling.
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What headphone buyers need to know, Part 1
I get a lot of reader emails seeking recommendations for headphones, and sometimes they'll ask about two very different types of designs. For example, "What should I buy, Sennheiser's on-ear Momentum or the AKG K 712 'phones?" In that case there's no obvious "better" headphone, because they are two radically different types of headphones. The Sennheiser is an on-ear, closed-back design, and the AKG K 712 is a much larger over-the-ear, open-back headphone. It's like asking "What's better, a Ford F-150 Raptor truck or a Porsche 911 Turbo sports car? They both go fast, but serve very different kinds of drivers. "Best," isn't the right question, it's more about what's the right one for you.
There are many types of headphones, and if you understand the pros and cons of each before you go shopping you'll make a more informed buying decision. Closed- vs. open-back headphones for example, serve different needs. To get a handle on how they differ I spoke with two engineers, Sennheiser's Axel Grell and AKG's Philipp Schuster, and they were a big help. Today I'll cover on- and over-the-ear headphones, tomorrow we'll look at open- and closed-back 'phones.
On-ear 'phones' ear pads rest on the outer ear; over-the-ear models' have larger ear pads that encircle the ears. Grell said that over-the-ear headphones produce more spacious and natural imaging than on-ear models. That's because over-the-ear headphones have larger ear cups which position the drivers further away from the ears, so more sound reflects off the folds of the outer ear. Which is closer to the way we hear sound from speakers. On-ears focus sound directly into the ear canal, so it's a less "natural" way to hear stereo sound. Over-the-ear headphones sound more spacious and expansive than on-ear headphones.
When it comes to bass power Grell and Schuster saw no clear cut advantage for either design type. Bass oomph depends on the specifics of each design, and how effectively the headphones' ear pads seal. If you wear glasses their side temples may adversely affect over-the-ear headphones' seal, and bass response will suffer. Glasses pose less of a problem for on-ear designs. Schuster reminded me that everyone's heads and ears are shaped differently, so the ability of a given headphone to achieve a tight seal varies from person to person.
Most on-ears are optimized for on-the-go users, so their designers focus on making smaller headphones, and that sometimes requires the use of smaller drivers. That approach will limit the amount of bass the headphone can produce. So with headphones size does matter, and a preference for smaller size trumps comfort and sound quality for most buyers.
Over-the-ear headphones are more comfortable to wear for extended periods of time, because instead of having ear pads pressing directly on the outer ears, over-the-ears' pads surround the outer ear. On-ears' "clamping" against the ears' pressure tends to be higher, and they will probably make your ears hotter and sweatier than over-the-ear models. Of course, the specifics of each headphone's design come into play, but I almost always find over-the-ear models more comfortable.
Over-the-ears' biggest drawback is size, they're larger than on-ear headphones. I like the larger soundstage over-the-ear headphones produce, but some listeners prefer the more immediate/present sound of on-ears. Schuster recommends over-the-ears for sound quality and comfort, but over-the-ears are less portable.
Most on-ear headphones are closed-back designs, but over-the-ear models can be either open- or closed-back. I'll cover their pros and cons on tomorrow's blog. I wrote about how ear buds and in-ear headphones differ on a previous blog.
Topics: Tips, Audio/MP3, iPod, High-End Audio, Sound Tags: over the ear headphones, How-to, circumaural headphones supraaural headphones, how to buy headphones, Headphones, on-ear headphones