Create Your Own Cross-Platform Backup Server

Soon we’re all gonna need something like this….

Lifehacker:

“Backing up your data on a regular basis is important, and turning a
spare computer into a backup server is often the best way to make sure
it gets done. But most methods require either a good deal of
command-line learning or serve only one operating system. Not with
Restore, a free, open-source backup system that can install or run from
a live CD, work with any OS, and operate through a simple browser-based
interface. Today I’ll demonstrate backing up a Windows laptop to an
older desktop, but you’ll see how Restore can be easily molded to fit
just about any home backup needs.”

LINK TO FULL ARTICLE

Record companies don’t share money extorted from file-sharing fans with artists

Why does this not surprise me?

Boing Boing: “The record industry has sued over 20,000 music fans to “protect
artists’ copyrights.” But they haven’t turned over any of the money to
artists (of course, they never forked over any of the money from
my.mp3.com, Grokster, Napster, etc).

A contingent of prominent artist managers claims that little to none of
that money has trickled down to their clients. They are now considering
legal action.

“Artist managers and lawyers have been wondering for months when
their artists will see money from the copyright settlements and how it
will be accounted for,” said lawyer John Branca, who has represented
Korn, Don Henley, and The Rolling Stones, among others.
“Some of them are even talking about filing lawsuits if they don’t get
paid soon.”

LINK

(via /.)

New Iron Man Trailer - Now More Rockin’

OK, now I’m even more pumped…

i09: “Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow have an even spicier relationship in Iron Man
than we’d expected, judging from this newly released trailer. And the
use of AC/DC lets us know this movie will have big balls. (Sorry,
couldn’t resist.) More importantly, the new trailer gives us a way
clearer sense of the movie’s arc.

We get a nice clear view of the three phases of Iron Man armor
in the movie: crude, medium crude, and shiny. Also, we’ll definitely
get the full storyline from the comics about Tony Stark’s pride, and
then remorse, about being a weapons maker. It looks as though his
change of heart is what turns his mentor Obadiah Stane into his
arch-enemy Ironmonger.”

LINK TO PAGE WITH TRAILER

Trism: iPhone/Touch Accelerometer Game

For those that don’t know, the “Accelerometer” is the chip in the iPhone that can sense which way the device is turned…this looks badarse:

3G iPhone rumored to be Infineon-powered, hitting “mid-year”

Engadget:

“Hold the presses: Apple may be releasing a new iPhone
this year… with 3G! Crazy, we know. The latest iteration of this
rumor comes to us courtesy of UBS analysts, who say Infineon will
likely be building chips for the phone — they’re powering the current iPhone,
so no real surprise there. UBS is also betting on a mid-year 3G iPhone
launch, and thinks that EDGE production will ramp down early so Apple
gets a chance to clean out inventories. We’ve got a good feeling about
this one, guys.”

Add Better Sleep to Your MacBook with SmartSleep

Lifehacker:

“Mac OS X only: Freeware application SmartSleep adds a preference pane
to your Mac laptop’s system preferences to enhance the usefulness of
your Mac’s sleep states. It does so by dynamically adjusting the type
of sleep state your MacBook will use based on your battery life. For
example, as long as your Mac’s battery has more than a 20% charge or 20
minutes remaining, SmartSleep will tell your Mac to sleep but not
hibernate. This will sleep your laptop very quickly, but it will also
keep your data in your RAM, which means your battery will still be
draining slightly while you’re sleeping. Below 20% will switch to sleep
and hibernate mode, which saves your system state to the hard drive,
thereby preserving more battery. Last, if you’re at under 5%,
SmartSleep will hibernate only. SmartSleep is freeware, Mac OS X only.”

SmartSleep [via Download Squad]

E-book concept combines leather and multi-touch

Now this i like…still need a color screen for graphic novels tho…

Engadget:

“It’s likely that the Kindle’s popularity
is going to spawn a whole slew of e-books vying for the eyes of
readers. A concept from a student named Nedzad Mujcinovic at Monash
University could very well stoke the fires of competition if his Livre
ever makes it to store shelves. The system uses an e-ink screen
overlaid with a touch surface, thus forgoing the multitudinous buttons
of the Kindle for an ultra-simple, gesture-based input scheme. Pages
can be turned by sliding your finger from corner to corner, though
double- and triple-finger gestures will advance the book by ten and 50
pages, respectively. Most notable for real book fans is the inclusion
of a leather stitched cover, meant to evoke the look and feel of the
device’s analog counterpart. Amazon’s designers would be wise to, uh… take a page from Nedzad’s book for the Kindle 2.”

Man Stabs 2 People at Movie Theater during “The Signal”

Saw this in Atlanta, and didn’t stab anyone…

Digg: “In Orange County, CA, a nearly empty theater Sunday night became a
crime scene when two men watching the Sundance raved-about gruesome
horror movie, The Signal, got stabbed by another man who fled through
the back doors.”

Create a Wii-Friendly Home Page with Wii Browser

Lifehacker:

“Want to create an easy-to-navigate home page for the broswer on your
Wii or any other? Wii Browser, a free page creation tool, lets you
create a page full of big, easy-to-click links to set as your homepage.
You can also easily edit or rearrange your links from inside your
Opera-powered Wii browser, as the site uses a number-based passkey
system instead of requiring a login/password, which can get a bit
tedious with a Wiimote-controlled keyboard. The main value here is in
being able to edit your links from your computer browser rather than
through slow screen typing, but it also gives you a Wii-friendly page
you can browse to from any system. For another Wii homepage idea, check
out Google’s Wii-formatted Reader.”

Wii Browser [via eHub]

Eyeborg Lets Color-Blind Artist Paint in Color

Neatorama:

“Neil Harbisson is a color-blind artist who can now paint - in color
- thanks to a cybernetic device called the Eyeborg which converts 360
colors into different sounds:

As an art student at Dartington College of Arts in
Devon, he painted only in black and white because that is all he saw.
But three years ago he met Adam Montandon, a cybernetics expert who
came to give a lecture at the college.

After the talk, Montandon was told of Harbisson’s condition and
he took up the challenge of solving the problem, enabling Harbisson to
paint in colour. The artist suffers from achromatopsia – or complete
congenital colour blindness.

Montandon decided to harness the way in which different colours
reflect light at different frequencies, with light vibrating fastest
from violet and slowest from red.

The first device fitted to Harbisson’s head was fairly
primitive, letting him “hear” only six colours. His current model is
far more sophisticated, giving him access to 360 colours.

Montandon created the Eyeborg system, manufactured by HMC
Interactive, the design company in Plymouth that he co-founded. It is a
head-mounted digital camera that reads the colours directly in front of
it. The camera is connected to a laptop computer, carried in a
backpack, which slows down the frequency of light waves to the
frequency of sound waves. The computer then sends the “sound” of each
colour to an earpiece worn by Harbisson. Montandon expects the system
eventually to be as small as an MP3 player.”

LINK