Tag Archives: Computers & Internet

Wireless Power Transmission: real available technology and marketing advantages

Wireless energy transmission for remote charging is one of the most strategic key factor for the development of a new generation of tech devices in the near future. Few years ago some futuristic thinkers forecasted the possibility of wireless energy transmission between far places. In particular the academic community was interested in energy transmission between the planet earth and orbiting satellites equipped with solar power stations.

This long range power transmission technology would radically change the energetic, economic and power equilibrium of our world but unfortunately, at the moment, this technology is not available.

On the contrary, near range power transmission is something near the corner.

After long researches an USA company is launching the first generation commercial version of a wireless power transmitter with ultrasound that will allow to recharge (for the moment) mobile phones in a range of 15 feet (4.5 meters) just using a special cover.

Fifteen feet are not a long range nor a medium one but the important thing is that it is contactless and that 15 feet start to be an interesting distance.

So interesting that a big coffee shop chain as Starbucks is considering to introduce these remote charging devices in all its shops.

In this way all the customers will be able to automatically and freely charge their mobile devices as soon as they enter into the coffee shop. A good added value considering how much energy our devices need when strongly used during the day. And consequently, for many people, a good reason to prefer a store to another one. A potentially viral added value as well as a magnetic marketing strategy!

Last but not least, it must be considered that the success of this kind of technology operations is determined by costs. At the moment it is not possible to find any information about prices for the mobile device covers at the end consumer side. If the end users price for covers will be high, the huge, positive effects of a partnership with a big player as Starbucks couldn’t be enough without some kind of tech fashion pivot.

Good luck uBeam! You have the right idea!

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References:

http://techcrunch.com/2015/04/26/kill-the-cord/#.qngqm6:i3dY

Creativeness vs. Big Data analytics: improvement or delay for human evolution?

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After more than one month of silence I would like to end this year with a simple thought about the interaction between technology and our society. I know that usually this blog has principally developed topics about Linux and Freeware but the “Christmas season” could be the right occasion for something different.

A recent post by Matthew Yglesias on Slate, focused my attention on the possibility that big data and “new” technologies could influence our society and personal creativeness in a strange, utilitaristic way.

In the above mentioned post, Matthew Yglesias describes some new possibilities, offered by big data, of deeply analyze the readers behaviour when they use e-readers. Some Yglesias’ examples let us know not only what kind of literature is the most popular today but also detailed analytics about the best number of pages that readers want when they read a certain type of book (e.g. biography or fiction).

These squeezed information drive to the possible next step: a writer could prefer to write a new book on the basis of quantitative marketing data instead of creativity.

In few words, we are potentially slowing the evolution of our knowledge curve because writers could prefer to pander “customers” behaviour and maximize earnings instead of spreading new ideas and theories that could be (sic! are) initially less profitable.

The Darwin “evolution by mistake” will be soon replaced by an utilitarian and transitive “involution by big data marketing analytics”?

It’s impossible to predict but, on the other hand, my hope is that big data marketing analytics will be used just as a tool to maximize and speed new ideas through readers than a mere earning factor to tame buyers.

Create a portable wifi hotspot using your Nokia mobile and Joikuspot Light

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It is not always possible to find a wi-fi hotspot everytime you need but now it is possible to create you own portable hotspot on the go. This week, in our Linux Page (in Spanish) we reviewed Joikuspot Light: an interesting software to create a wi-fi hotspot with your Nokia. The first thing you have to focus on your attention is your data plan on your mobile. In fact, if you have not a flat plan we really do not recommend to use Joikuspot because your mobile bill could be very expensive! For all the people with flat mobile plans we can affirm that Joikuspot Light is very easy to use and the connection are stable. In our tests we use a Nokia based on Symbian and we were able to surf the internet without any problem. To install it you can download the right version on the official website http://bit.ly/7I4zG8 and install it later on your phone or you could decide to send the link directly to your Nokia mobile using the “Send to phone for Free”. Enjoy it!

How to easily add a cool “MAC OS X” dock in your Linux: Cairo-Dock!

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Today, in our Linux Page (in Spanish) we have had a complete review about Cairo-Dock: a nice dock for Linux. Cairo-Doc is very easy to install and it has sophisticated graphic effects and it runs without installing compiz. The new Cairo-Dock version (1.5.5.4) has been released few weeks ago and it seems to have more features of the original MAC OS X dock. Personally I recommend the installation of Cairo-Dock to all that people who want to integrate a MAC OS X stylish dock in Linux without spending much time; in fact the .deb package allow you to install it in few minutes. I like this dock but, in my opinion, Cairo-Dock represents the best “second choice” after AWN (for more information about AWN, please, feel free to read our dedicated previous post).

How to add a cool “MAC OS X” dock in your Ubuntu: Avant Window Navigator (AWN)!

Security package (Rev. 1.2) for Ubuntu: antivirus, firewall and P2P stealth

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Last May, in our Linux Page (in Spanish), we posted some suggestions about a basic security package for Linux. After less than one year we are back on this topic also because more than something has changed. As you know, Linux is the safer OS you can use today: specific Linux viruses are few and malware is rare but with the increasing of users some threads are becoming real. For this reason, I strongly believe that nowadays a firewall, like Firestarter, is not enough and we all need also a good antivirus and Moblock: the program which allows to use the Peer Guardian lists on Ubuntu protecting your privacy. Today, in our Linux package we’ve posted a short updated manual where we explain how to install a firewall (Firestarter), an antivirus (ClamAV) and a P2P stealth (Moblock). We have tested all this software on a Ubuntu 7.10 without relevant problems; the combined use of this triplet is strongly recommended for people who desire to preserve their data and privacy. Read us!