Daily Bits

Frankfurt Book Fair: Bridging Lit and Tech

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From October 6 to October 10, residents of Frankfurt and the surrounding areas will be treated to one of the biggest (if not the biggest) happenings in the world of literature: The Frankfurt Book Fair.

While the breadth of the Frankfurt Book Fair is something to marvel at by itself, this year’s special “feature” just might draw more than hundreds of thousands of participants and visitors. The organizers are touting the book fair as what the bridge between literature and technology. This development has long been expected, especially with electronic formats gaining more acceptance.

Frankfurt SPARKS is the digital initiative of the event. From the web site:

“Frankfurt SPARKS is dedicated to facilitating the future of both publishing and technology by providing opportunities for people to meet and discuss new business strategies, partnerships and cooperations, and to figure out how to move forward together.”

With a literature event as big as the Frankfurt Book Fair (guests include Ken Follett, Jonathan Franzen, and two German Nobel Prize winners!) highlighting electronic formats, it is quite safe to say that technology will be becoming more and more part of the reading experience, isn’t it?

There are lots more in store for visitors who are interested in expanding their horizons beyond traditional print. From StoryDrive – the Conference (speakers include people from Nintendo and Walt Disney Studios) to Hot Spots, you’ll definitely get your share of technology and literature mixed together.

Needless to say, how I am wishing that I could go to this book fair. Maybe next time.

Photo credit: austinevan

Tricorder in Real Life

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If you think Star Trek’s tricorder is still just a figment of imagination, then you are definitely wrong. Things sci-fi are fast becoming reality everyday, and the medical tricorder is one of those things. (Yup, I can’t help but write about something eerily reminiscent of those good old Star Trek days.)

In Star Trek, all the doctor has to do to diagnose diseases is to hold the medical tricorder in front of a person, wave it around as if doing voodoo, and wait for the diagnosis.

GE’s Vscan, which came out early this year, is an ultrasound-imaging device that is only the size of a smartphone. The handheld device obviously will not diagnose all kinds of disease, but it is a step towards handheld diagnostic equipment. It can help measure and analyse data relating to abdominal issues and even more critical things, like cardiac issues.

Physicians are quite enthusiastic about the device, since it does help a lot in early diagnosis. Instead of having to schedule their patients for ultrasound, they can already perform it wherever they may be, whether that be in a clinic or in an accident site. It is also very handy, weighing less than 3 pounds, and has a battery life of more than 1 hour. It has its own battery charging station and can be connected to a printer and other add-ons via its USB port.

The VScan is available in the market for only $7,900. (Yeah right, ONLY!) Definitely not a toy to be bought for mere amusement, but well worth it for doctors, especially those that are part of emergency response teams and those located in remote areas.

Santa Can’t Deliver Nintendo 3DS This Year

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Come on now, you’re not really surprised are you?  After all, most – if not all – electronics manufacturers do experience delays every now and then.  Sony and Microsoft are pretty much the same way – why not Nintendo?

Anyhow, news about the Nintendo 3Ds has been going around for a while now, which, of course, has excited many a Nintendo fan.  The improved version of the Nintendo handheld gaming console promises a 3D experience to every gamer without having the neeed for 3D glasses.  Now isn’t that something?

Unfortunately, Nintendo just announced that we are not going to see the new console by Christmas.  This is, of course, a disappointment to the fans who have been dreaming of getting a new portable gaming device from Santa this year.  On a more practical note, this move also means big losses for Nintendo.  But who cares about their losses when you can’t have your wish for the holidays?

There’s not much that you can do about it, though, except to wait for March if you’re in the United Kingdom – and the rest of Europe.  If you’re in Japan, then the wait is a bit shorter, as the console will be released by February.  The reason for the delay?

Satoru Iwata, Nintendo president says: “At first we thought it would be desirable to launch the 3DS within the year, so we made our forecasts on that basis. At this point it is clear that if we launch within the year, we will not be able to supply enough units.”

Whether or not it’s the real reason, you might want to save some of your Christmas money for February or March, whichever the case may be.

No Firefox for the iPhone

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Firefox lovers who are also iPhone users  might have been yearning for the day that a “real” version of the popular browser would be available for the Apple device.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen any time soon – if it will even happen, actually.

Yesterday, Mozilla once again announced that it is NOT going to come up with a full fledged version of Firefox for the iPhone.  Instead, it is simply going to continue working on Firefox Home, which is already in existence for the iOS.  Firefox Home is technically not a browser but is a bookmarking and tab synchronization technology.  In a blog post yesterday, ragavan puts an end to speculation that there just might be Firefox for the iPhone:

No Firefox Browser for the iPhone

We are working to bring as much of your Firefox experience as possible to Firefox Home. People have asked about adding more browser-like features to Firefox Home, but there are technical and logistical restrictions that make it difficult, if not impossible, to build the full Firefox browser for the iPhone. We are focused on building Firefox Home as a rich, cloud-based application and making it a valuable product that people will continue to love and use.

iPhone users will also get more features from Firefox Home including password synchronization (I can just imagine how many people will find this useful!) and more connectivity to social networking sites (of course, that is a must these days).  If you want to download Firefox Home (lucky iPhone user you), you can find it in the iTunes App Store.

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit

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Can’t get enough of speed? Of course, the average person (READ: you and I) may never get to experience what the boys at the Singapore GP experienced over the last weekend, but good thing we have the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and PC to provide vicarious gaming experiences. Come the 26th of October, we are going to be treated to something that just might whet our virtual appetites – Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, from Electronic Arts and Criterion Studios.

Not that the game is anything like the F1 races, but it has been touted as THE game that will bring back some life into the Need for Speed Franchise, which has seen a decline in the recent years. The question is: will this new release really make the franchise more interesting to players?

Here’s one video (of several) which will show you what is in store for us in the next month:

You have to admit – that is pretty impressive. I also have read that the game will not be too focused on the storyline, but instead highlight the fact that cops and players have to perform as best they can to level up. I like how simple that is, without the complication of plots that seem to be a tad too put on. Maybe it’s just me, but when storylines are not excellently crafted, it’s better not to have much of one at all?

In any case, for those in Europe, the game will be released a little later – November 19. In the meantime, enjoy the video and get ready to satisfy (and increase) your need for speed!

Internet Surveillance in America’s Future?

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Talk about Big Brother. As if the capability to run (legal) wiretaps weren’t enough, the United States government is now aiming to set in place systems that would allow them to (legally) wiretap electronic communication such as e-mail and Facebook messages! What the Congress wants is that if the government sends a provider a wiretap order, they should be able to provide the required information.

The implications are huge. Bottom line: anything you send online (whether you’re using a wired connection or a wireless one) can be retrieved and reviewed.

Of course, the average person should not have anything to hide (aside from potentially embarrassing private messages), but the idea that the government can take a look at private information/communication if it wishes is not something that people will welcome any time soon. From a technical point of view, this proposition also poses a lot of risks. According to James X. Dempsey, Vice President of the Center for Democracy and Technology, the government is “asking for the authority to redesign services that take advantage of the unique, and now pervasive, architecture of the Internet. They basically want to turn back the clock and make Internet services function the way that the telephone system used to function.”

The underlying reason for the government’s plan is that the Internet is being used as a venue for communication by terrorists and other individuals/groups that are threats to society. If they have the ability to monitor and scrutinize this venue, then the world might just be safer for it. While this is indeed a serious concern, I am not so sure that wiretapping is the best solution. The system might just open up a whole new can of worms.

What do you think?