Psy2k's Technology Corner

Web 2.0 logo guides!

2007-11-18T10:59:00.000+02:00

As web 2.0 logos are considered the shiny, bright logos that are all over the web these days. If you want to create yours easily, using adobe photoshop you can read this tutorial. If you are interested in learning how to make the web 2.0 reflection independent from the white background, you can create it using Adobe Illustrator using this guide. A video guide of the first tutorial is available here as well as a tutorial for a whisper box-bubble logo!

Why iconbuffet is a paradise for every designer!

2007-06-01T13:46:00.000+03:00

Iconbuffet is a social site where you can trade small icons (16x16, 24x24, 32x32 in various formats, called deliveries). Icons are served by iconbuffet chefs to iconbuffet users. Users then can send the icons to others using stamps. Its user recieves an amount of tokens per month (tokens is iconbuffet's virtual currency). Using tokens users can recieve deliveries. Deliveries are devided to categories (bronze, silver, gold, diamond) with a different token cost. Iconbuffer is free. There is VIP account though which offers more tokens per month. Sending sets that are accepted by others earn you points which is Iconbuffet's status system. If you would like to join the madness and you are a design lover or icon fanatic click here. It is so addictive like baseball cards and panini stickers. The great thing is that iconbuffet is community is extremely friendly, consisted of nice people who love design and icons.

Typpz: Online Printing Solutions

2007-05-29T09:26:00.000+03:00

Another online store came up in the online world. Typpz features business cards of all types and will be open in the near future. The cards are printing in high quality paper using digital printing technology and 1000 cards cost 100 euros. Shipping in every country is supported. Up too now you can order cards for petshops, but the collection will be filled soon. Card designs are very professional, featuring great photos and outstanding color layouts. Typpz runs also a blog, where you can find usefull tips about Photoshop, Web design, Illustrator and of course news about the Typpz Printing Solutions Online Store.

BBC in deal with Google and Youtube

2007-03-05T14:02:00.000+02:00

The BBC has struck a content deal with Youtube, the popular video sharing site owned by Google. There will be three BBC channels in Youtube, one for news and two for entertaintment which will broadcast small clips from BBC content. The three channels are: BBC, which will be a public service proposition with no advertising. The purpose of this channel is to drive traffic back to the BBC website by showing short clips of video diaries for example (the full version of the videos will be available for download in BBC's website). The second channel is BBC worldwide will show three to six minutes videos with famous programs from BBC's archives like Top Gear, Mighty Boosh and nature programs. This channel will carry advertises and will be available only in the UK. The last channel will be BBC News and will be launched later on this year, featuring 30 news clips per day and will be also available to non-UK subscribers using Real Network.

iPods to be used as flight data recorders

2007-03-05T13:06:00.000+02:00

Lopresti aircraft manufacturer announced that Apple iPod could be used as a flight data recorder (FDR) in its Fury Piston aircraft. The company says it plans the "full integration of the iPod into the Fury's avionics systems". iPod can act (with suitable software) as a hard disk, so it could easily become a "black box" in airplanes. According to the company: "The iPod becomes the first truly portable, personal flight recorder with a huge recording capacity. This is a watershed technology for aviation, and we are delighted to be the first to bring it to market." The Fury will prove the concept, but once certificated, the iPod FDR could be deployed on other light aircraft. iPod will work with a specific dock connector so it could act also as an audio recorder. iPod has a very simple and easy-to-use interface, is small and needs low power to work, which makes it a perfect solution for aviation systems.

Wordpress hacked

2007-03-03T10:53:00.000+02:00

The development team of Wordpress reported that there were some serious issues with Wordpress 2.1.1 packages that were downloaded in the last 3-4 days. According to a blog, an intruder has gained access to Wordpress servers and modified some files that are available for download. Nobody knows if it is completely true but the fact is that if you downloaded Wordpress in the last 4-5 days you were not downloading the official version but a modified one that includes a back-door. Wordpress development team declared the WP 2.1.1 version as dangerous and suggests to all users to update to version 2.1.2.

Google adds traffic data to Google Maps

2007-03-01T12:35:00.000+02:00

Google added traffic data to Google Maps from yesterday. Data are now available only for the USA but it is planned to offer data for other countries ine the near future. This feature is very important as Google Maps are nowadays used by many drivers and they are embeded in lot of mobile phones (including iPhone) and other palm and pocket pc devices. Traffic data are real-time and there are three indications: red which means that you will be stucked in traffic, yellow medium traffic and green for low or no traffic.

Web based Photoshop by Adobe?

2007-03-01T12:06:00.000+02:00

User nowdays enjoy really fast connections to the Internet with high bandwitch lines, which has lead to the development of many web-based applications. Following the line, Adobe is planning to release an online version of Photoshop until August 2007. The online Photoshop will bring new customers to Adobe. There will be a free entry level version with the basic tools only and a professional version for the experts. After Google, Adobe enters the online application area. An online video mixing tool, called Adobe Remix is set to launch soon and it will give a taste of what we should wait for from Adobe in the next months.

Pageflakes grow up!

2007-02-28T01:29:00.000+02:00

Personalised homepage pageflakes will offer 10000 flakes (widgets) from next month. Pageflakes uses AJAX and you can put on your homepage anything you want: weather forecasts, feeds, calculator, calendar, games, news, music player, video player and much more. Personally I use pageflakes and I can do anything that comes up to my mind. Google search is also provided. You can build many homepages and view which you want with a single click (the operation is simple, like changing tabs in firefox) if you have so many flakes and one pages goes to long. Flakes include rss feeds from famous sites, but you can add also your feeds by entering the feed adress or by importing an opml file. I found really usefull the notes flake and the to-do-list, alongside with the google maps and music player widget (which looks like an ipod). Up to now pageflakes work only with gmail, so if you want be able to view your mail if you do not use a google mail account. The interface is available to five languages up to now and more will be probably added. Personally I prefer pageflakes to google personalised homepage bicause of the interface and the number of widgets. It seems that it has become a passion to use a personalised homepage. It is like having a digital newspaper with up-to-date contect 24/7.

Delay in Apple TV shipping

2007-02-27T13:53:00.000+02:00

Apple announced that there will be a delay in Apple TV shipping. Apple TV will be available in USA in March and a couple of months later to Europe. Apple fans cannot wait for this gadget (as it happens with iPhone) as it was announced in Macworld 2007. Apple TV supports HD video streaming (720p) and carries many output connectors like digital audio, component and of course HDMI for 720p High Definition. It communicates with WiFi (802.11b/n) with your computer and it streams video straight from the Internet using iTunes. You can also save your videos to its hard drive (40GB) and of course connect the device to your home theater audio system for surround sound. Apple TV comes with a nice, easy-to-use remote control (similar to the one from iMacs). The synchronization option is really usefull, as Apple TV updates automatically its contents when you manage your lists in iTunes. Its price is $299. If you want to enjoy the device's full video quality, you need a HDTV that supports 16:9 widescreen format and has an HDMI input. Apple TV is small and stylish and is a perfect way to build your home entertaintment system as it can play -beside video- songs (up to 9.000 songs to its hard drive) straight from your computer's hard drive. It can display photos too in .png, .tiff, .bmp, .jpeg, .gif format.

Apple will switch to Windows Vista?

2007-02-26T15:17:00.000+02:00

There are several information that Apple is planning to stop the development of MacOS X in 2010 and that Apple Macs will use Windows Vista from 2008 and on (1 year after Vista's release). MacOS costs to Apple as much money as Windows devlopment costs to Microsoft but without the same income. There will be a special version of Windows Vista for Macs (probably after the release of the first service pack) with an interface similar to MacOS. That sounds strange but strange sounded also some years before the fact that Apple would ever use Intel's CPUs. Already many users managed to install Windows on Macs and also make a dual-boot system. Steve Jobs has been mentioning for years now that Apple is a hardware company. It should also considered that Apple had serious financial problems when their product line was based on Macs with MacOS, which were solved with the launch of iPod and iTunes (which bring much more money to Apple than its other hardware and software). The problem is how Apple Mac fans will react if Apple will finally make the switch to Windows Vista (the third and more serious switch by Apple after the change of cpus from Motorola to IBM PowerPC and then from PowerPC to Intel Core). If this switch finally occurs, it will be one the bigger changes in computer history. Many users though (including me), like the idea of a personal computer with the ease of Windows (programs, games, compatibility with almost anyone) and the design of a Mac computer (stylish, quality).

New iPod Nano: The review

2007-02-26T12:05:00.000+02:00

The question that came up to my mind when I got the new iPod nano is how one of the best mp3 players around could become better? Apple proved that it can. The new nano has better structure than its predessesor. It is made from alluminium which means that you will not have problem with your fingerprints like you had with the 1st generation nano.
Its screen is a very nice suprise. It is 40% brighter than the first gen nano's display and is perfect under the daylight. The capacity has raised too and now varies from 2-8GB which means that you can carry from 450-1500 tracks ripped in cd quality. The battery manages power much better in this ipod nano and lasts for 22-24 hours continuous music playback.
The click wheel was said that was difficult to use and lacked of accurasy. Apple heard iPod fans and in 2nd gen nano the click wheel is more accurate and is perfectly working.
Music tranfer is very easy using iTunes. Apple gave the new nano a very usefull search engine. Now it a piece of cake to search through your track lists: You scroll the click wheel to write letters, press the middle button and the results are on the screen.

New nano comes with 4 pre-installed games: Solitaire, Brick, Parasuting and Music quiz. The games are a little bit difficult to play, because for example in Solitaire the cards are too small and the click wheel is not the best way to make fast and accurate moves in games like Brick. It is a minor disadvantage though as ipod nano is a mp3 player and not a portable game console.

New Nano comes with the new Apple's speakers, which offer better and louder sound quality, with much better bass sound. The hold button is on the top and the dock port is on the bottom, alongside with the jack port for the speakers. I would prefer the jack port on the top like in iPod.
iPod nano can operate also as a usb flash drive, which means that you can transfer any data you like. Photos can be saved too and its screen displays them perfectly. New Nano package is small and contains the mp3 player, speakers, the cable which is used for charging and music transfer, two stickers, a dock adaptor and manuals. It comes in several colours: the 2GB is offered in silver, the 4GB in silver, pink, blue, green and the 8GB in black only. A red version is also available in limited edition in 4GB and 8GB and some of the money you pay when you purchase will be offered to people who suffer from AIDS.
In general Apple managed to make the new iPod Nano better in all points which means that it seems perfect until the 3rd generation nano.

Updated to new Blogger

2007-02-25T10:39:00.000+02:00

The blog finally made the switch to the new version of blogger! So we have Psy2k's Technology Corner v2.0! The template is wordpress style and I think that it makes the information more easy to read as it has a white background. From now on the blog will be updated in a regular basis, so stay tuned. In a while all posts will be given labels for the ease of searching.

Search for Google Video and Youtube

2007-01-27T10:48:00.000+02:00

From now on (as you may have noticed), when you make a search for a video in Google Video you will see also results from Youtube and if you click on them, you will be automatically redirected to Youtube. Google Video will be not only a video database, but an entire video search engine and that is a challenge, because video and other flash files cannot be indexed by regular search engines.

Sun and Intel

2007-01-26T07:02:00.000+02:00

Sun and Intel announced their strategic alliance. Intel will support Sun's operating system Solaris as a mainstream operating system and a perfect solution for company and business environment and will also support Java, Netbeans and OpenSolaris communities. On the other hand Sun will release a new series of computers (including workstations and servers) that will be built on Intel Xeon processors (single, dual or quad core) and will be running Solaris, Linux or Windows. There will be probably a version of Intel's core platform specialized for Solaris (as it happened with core processors for Apple Macs). That will give Sun's users very powerfull systems with maximum compatibility and extremely high performance.

PS3 will be in Europe on March 23rd

2007-01-26T06:56:00.000+02:00

Sony announced that Playstation 3 will be available in Europe on March 23rd. Firstly it will be available only the 60GB edition and it will cost €599. Sony also announced 30 titles that will be shipped will PS3 (including a high definition version of Gran Turismo and Call of Duty 3). Some games will be available for download via Playstation Network. On March, PS3 will be available also in Africa, Meddle East, Australia and every country that uses PAL video.

iPhone is here

2007-01-10T02:20:00.000+02:00

Apple announced officialy iPhone. Rumors about apple's ipod phone were around the internet for a long time now. iPhone has a 3.5 inch touch screen display 320x480 resolution and runs MacOS X operating system. It is quad band so it can work with most of the GSM systems around the globe. It has 4-8GB memory, a 2.0 Megapixel camera and supports Wi-Fi. It's dimensions are 115x61x11.6mm and weights 135gr.

ASUS Commando mobo for gamers

2006-12-22T01:27:00.000+02:00

ASUS anounced its new mobo in the R.O.G. (Republic of Gamers) family. The new motherboard is based on P965 Express chipset, supports up to 8GB DDR2 RAM memory, two PCI-Express x16 slots and can operate with multiple core CPUs. The FSB on this mobo can be up to 2,280Mhz and the memory frequency up to 1,300Mhz. It also has an LCD monitors that shows the posto codes, so the user is able to see what is damaged or when he needs to reset the CMOS memory.

First patch for Microsoft Zune

2006-12-20T17:27:00.000+02:00

Microsoft's mp3 player Zune has not being released yet around the world and the first patch for its software is already out. This patch offers Zune compatibility with Windows Vista (Microsoft released a product without being compatible with the forthcoming operating system!), easier installation and also fixes some security and stability bugs. The fact that a patch is needed for Zune to operate under Windows Vista environment, shows that Microsoft shipped the product earlier than it was expected. In the near future when Zune will be available to every country, we will be able to say if it is competitive to ipod or not.

ATI launches 512-bit memory interface!

2006-12-19T02:53:00.000+02:00

Ati's next graphics processor chip with codename R600 (competitive to Nvidia 8800) will have a 512-bit external memory interface and it will be equiped with GDDR4 RAM memory with 1,2Ghz frequency. That means that Ati's new card will have up to 153GB/sec bandwitch. Geforce 8800GTX has a 384-bit memory interface with 86GB/sec bandwitch. Cards with R600 will be available in the first half of 2007.

Sony is proud for PS3

2006-12-18T19:01:00.000+02:00

Ryoji Chubachi, Sony's CEO announced that Playstation 3 is selling as it was expected and that there will be possibly more than 2 million PS3 consoles sold before the end of 2006. Sony wanted to have 2 million PS3s available on PS3's realase but a problem with the Blu-Ray driver caused Sony to postpone PS3 shipping in Europe. The new console will be available in Europe in March 2007 and up to then 6 million PS3s will have been sold in USA and Japan. The price of PS3 is high (€500-€600) but it offers your ticket to the High-Definition world.

Opera 9.10 available

2006-12-18T15:40:00.000+02:00

Opera software released today the new version of Opera browser 9.10. The new version improves stability and security, handles better access keys to Web pages with frames, has an improved anti-phishing filter and provides better support and management for rss and atom feeds. Also some crashes that occured in version 9.02 with Gmail and Google maps are now fixed. You can download Opera 9.10 here. The browser is available in various languages right now and more language files are expected soon. Versions for Mac, Windows, Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD and BeOS are available as usual.

Adobe Photoshop CS3 beta

2006-12-15T14:58:00.000+02:00

Adobe released on Friday the first public beta version of the forthcoming Adobe Photoshop CS3. This beta version enhances a pre-release version of the new Adobe Bridge and the all new Adobe Device Central which helps users to create pictures for devices with small screens (like PDAs and mobile phones). Adobe Photoshop CS3 is available for Mac (universal), Windows XP and Windows Vista.

Thunderbird 2 alpha version

2006-12-15T02:26:00.000+02:00

The new version of Mozilla's email client Thunderbird is now available in alpha version here. The download is recommended only to developers and testers. Thunderbird 2 offers a new Windows Installer, Tags in emails, new ways for email alerts and extension systems update system for more security and stability.

Skype 3 is out!

2006-12-14T19:29:00.000+02:00

The 3rd version of the most famous VoIP and instant messaging program is released. You can download the new Skype 3 from Skype's website. The interface is almost the same as in version 2, but this version is more stable and offers you the option to search the web with google toolbar (which you can install optionally). You can have conference calls with up to four persons at the same time. The other features are the same the well known ones like SkypeIn (which offers others to call you on your pc using their phones), free calls between Skype users and of course SkypeOUT and VoiceMail.