We were fans of the first version of Simplify Media’s iPhone client, which allows you to stream music from your computers or those of your friends to your iPhone or iPod touch, so we welcome with open arms (and ears) the news that Simplify Media on Wednesday released Simplify Music 2.0 (iTunes link).

Simplify Music 2.0 adds a few new features to the mix. Users can now search for artists, albums, and song titles across their entire shared music library–the results will show up no matter which machine the track is on (presuming, of course, they’re all running the free desktop client). In addition, you can also tag favorite songs either from your own library or your friends’, create playlists in the application while you’re on the go, and use the new scrub bar to easily jump around inside podcasts and audio books.

While 2.0 won’t fix some of the limitations of the application (the iPhone still doesn’t support background processes, so you won’t be able to listen while you’re doing other things on your device), other outside factors have changed in the interim: for example, since Apple has gotten rid of DRM-encoded tracks, you can now stream pretty much anything you buy from the iTunes Store.

The only downside I can see is that Simplify Music 2.0 will require an additional expenditure from owners of the original version: it’s on sale for $3 until May 14, when the price goes up to the $6. The 1.0 version of the app, now rebranded “Simplify,” is still available, and currently costs $4.

Rfid tag desing

In this process we explore ways in which RFID objects can be designed to balance various physical and digital qualities. This approach has illuminated opportunities and constraints in designing augmented objects that enriches the vocabulary around RFID for industrial and interaction designers where physical and visual material are essential elements.

Source and More :  www.nearfield.org

The Turkish representative, Hadise, will continue her offical promotion tour with her song, Crazy For You (Düm tek tek) at full pace as she tries to deliver a second Eurovision Song Contest victory for Turkey in Moscow this year.

After a successful promotion period in Malta, Hadise performed in the Greek national final, which was broadcast to the world by the ERT channel. During the live performances, she used the latest version of the song Crazy For You, the radio edit.

The promo tour is scheduled as follows,

* 1 March - Bosnia & Herzegovina (on song presentation show)
* 6 March - Amsterdam, The Netherlands
* 7 March - Frankfurt, Germany
* 18 March - Moscow, Russia
* 20 March - Stuttgart, Germany
* 27 March - Zurich, Switzerland
* 28 March - Paris, France
* 16 April - Sweden
* # April - Romania
* 17 April - Finland
* 1 May - Georgia
* 2 May - Azerbaijan

Hadise’s manager also added that they will also be trying to go to Portugal, Spain, Andorra, Montenegro, Bulgaria and FYR Macedonia, but confirmed dates are not yet in place.

For more information, stay tuned to EuroVisionary.

GeoVision Digital Video Surveillance System Directory Traversal Vulnerability

“Cheap DVRs produce poor quality video, period.  There is no free lunch when it comes to surveillance systems.  We replace cheap DVRs all the time.” says Eric Lawton, President and founder of Lawton media Services LLC.
Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) consist of two main types: Embedded DVRs or PC based systems.

Dejan Levaja has reported a vulnerability in GeoVision Digital Video Surveillance System, which can be exploited by malicious people to disclose sensitive information.

The vulnerability is caused due to an input validation error in the included HTTP server when processing GET requests. This can be exploited to read arbitrary files from an affected system via directory traversal attacks.

The vulnerability is reported in version 8.2. Prior versions may also be affected.

Embedded Hardware All-In One DVRs do not use a Windows operating system and contain no software at all on the hard disk(s). All application functions are contained (embedded) in firmware (software encoded on chips). These DVRs look like the VCRs of yesterday, except they do not have the litle door in the front for the VCR tape. Instead they have a CD tray for recording stored video.
These DVRs are also becoming popular in homes for recording TV shows. Most alarm companies and small dealers utilize this type of DVR since it is inexpensive and easy to install - mostly plug & play. The downside is that it’s features are limited (hard to review recorded inages), it’s storage fixed, and it’s picture quality is average (TV resolution).
When comparing embedded DVRs to PC based systems, always look at the viewing and recording specs. Real time viewing and recording of a single camera means that it will view and record what that camera sees at 30 frames per second (fps). Two cameras - 60 fps; three cameras - 90 fps; etc. all the way up to 16 cameras at 480 fps. The vast majority of embedded DVRs do not record at real time, and few view at real time. Why is that important? Do you want to miss something while looking at a jerky image?
Newer embedded DVRs are coming on the market that rival PC based system’s quality, but they cost as much or more right now.

PC based Digital Video Recorders are complete hardware/software computer-based systems incorporating video capture, video multiplexing, point-and-click video recording and playback, crystal-clear video display and remote video access via Internet and/or LAN. PC based DVRs are not simply a collection of computer hardware, however - they represent carefully selected hardware and software components which are proven to work well together in the demanding video processing environment. Software, hardware and firmware settings are carefully optimized to ensure maximum performance without problems. PC based DVRs can support multiple numbers of CCTV security cameras - from 4 to 32.
Microsoft Windows XP or Vista is provided as the operating system on our PC based DVRs. In addition, system restore software is also included on all systems. All software provided includes original CDs and manuals.

So, if picture quality and system flexibility are important to your application, we recommend PC based systems.

Microsoft came out with Zune to compete with the iPod, added a couple of features, and proved to be one giant money sink for Microsoft. After a 54 percent decline in sales in the most recent quarter, John Paczkowski rightfully dubs it: Zune to be forgotten. It’s the same story with the BlackBerry Storm. What was supposed to be a hurricane has so far turned out to be a mild tropical disturbance. The Wall Street Journal says the Storm is off to a bumpy start, and has sold about 500,000 devices in its first quarter.

Now if Research in Motion (and Verizon) were smart, they would have tried to do something incredibly different with their BlackBerry Storm. Instead they spent $100 million on marketing a product that got panned by critics, was buggy enough for customers to complain and more importantly, turned out to be nothing more than a wannabe iPhone. The problem most touchscreen phones face is that they will always be compared to Apple’s iPhone and for a myriad of reasons will fall short of expectations. It happened before in the music player market — where the iPod, with its ease of use and elegant design set, itself on a higher pedestal.

And when it comes to touchscreen phones, iPhone occupies a similar top spot. Don’t get me wrong: The iPhone is by no means perfect, and at least twice a day I curse the device and AT&T’s network. But the Storm is even worse — enough for me to touch the screen, wait and scream.

I often write about companies forgetting to play to their own strengths and instead trying to follow others. Storm (and Zune) are good examples of this corporate disease. Why does RIM need to have a touchscreen device? Just because Steve Jobs tweaked Verizon’s nose? Verizon and RIM would have been better served if they had built a device that had touch capabilities but really played to RIM’s strengths — keyboards, multitasking and security.I love the BlackBerry Bold. It’s almost perfect for someone like me who gets a massive amount of email, loves to IM on the go and likes to Twitter all the time. Marry it to a great browsing experience and pack in better battery life and an awesome radio — and it would clean up in the smartphone market.

Meanwhile, I’m looking to trade in the Bold for the new T-Mobile 8900 Curve!

The reason why the shelter does this is because the shelter wants to return as many stray dogs as possible. At our local shelter, they have to kill an average of 500 dogs and cats every month because of overcrowding. Any dog or cat that they can return to its owner is one less animal they have to kill. Tags on collars can get lost or mangled. The microchip can’t get lost and will last for decades. And it is so small about the size of a grain of rice that the dog doesn’t even know it is there.

The technology behind these chips is fascinating. They are called Radio Frequency Identification, or RFID, chips. Sealed inside a tiny glass cylinder is an even tinier radio transmitter along with an incredibly small computer. The computer contains the unique ID number. It sends the number to the radio transmitter, which broadcasts it to the scanner. Obviously this tiny radio is not very powerful, so the scanner has to be just an inch or two away for it to pick up the transmission. But it is a transmission nonetheless. So the scanner picks up the radio’s signal, decodes the number and displays it.

But where do the computer and radio transmitter get their power? There is no battery embedded in the dog’s neck. This is the ingenious part of an RFID chip. The scanner actually sends out a fluctuating magnetic field into the dog. The RFID chip contains another antenna that picks up this magnetic energy and converts it into electricity. This electricity then powers the computer and radio transmitter. So the dog’s chip is sitting there, doing nothing, until a scanner comes along. The scanner provides the chip with the wireless power it needs to send out its unique ID number. Then the chip goes dormant once again.

Source and More : www.southernillinoisan.com

Windows 7 Beta now Ready for Download

If you’ve been out of the loop for the past couple of days, it might interest you to know that Microsoft has made available a public beta version of their upcoming operating system, Windows 7. You can download a copy by clicking here and installation is pretty easy. Just burn the Windows 7 image to a DVD, boot up from the DVD discand run the installation .

So, if you’re already raring to give Microsoft’s latest OS a try, then by all means download it now and tell us how it goes for you.

Source and More : RFID News | RFID Robot

“Inflation is at a two-year low but that’s not the way it feels for those of us shopping for groceries,” said Avery Shenfeld, senior economist at CIBC World Markets.

The cost of food rose 7.3% in 2008, inching up 0.3% in December for a fourteenth straight month of increase, Statistics Canada figures showed Friday. Marking the sharpest increase was the cost of fresh vegetables, which were 26.9% higher than in December last year. Other notable increases included a 18.9% rise in fruit prices, a 12.4% increase in bakery product prices, a 6% rise in the cost of dairy products and a 5.5% increase in meat prices.

Source and More : www.financialpost.com

At least 11 adults were killed in separate incidents in Spain and France as gales buffeted the region for a second day, cutting power, disrupting flights and blocking roads. Forest fires, one caused by felled power lines, raged in Spain.

In the sports centre disaster, winds of more than 100 km (62 miles) per hour, ripped the metal roof off a building next to a baseball court in Sant Boi, causing the breeze block walls to collapse inwards.

Source and More : http://uk.reuters.com