Google dives headfirst into robotics with Boston Dynamics buy

Less than two weeks after reports circulated that Google has been buying up robotics companies for the past six months as part of an effort to develop its own robotics technology, the company said it's buying Boston Dynamics, one of the most well-known robotics companies in the world. Boston Dynamics confirmed to the IDG News Service this weekend that it is acquiring the company behind the four-legged rough-terrain traversing BigDog robot, as well as Atlas, a six-foot-tall, 330-pound robot designed to function much like a human. Atlas is the focus of a DARPA-sponsored robotics challenge later this week that will have 17 teams from the likes of Carnegie Mellon University and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory vying to create the best software to enable the robot to turn valves, use human tools, climb a ladder and even drive a car. And Boston Dynamics was at a robotics demonstration for the U.S. Army at Fort Benning in Georgia in October, showing off its BigDog robot. While the company declined to talk about its work there, officials did say they were under contract with DARPA, or the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Boston Dynamics showed off its BigDog robot, shown crouched down here, during a robotics demonstration at Fort Benning this fall. (Image: Sharon Gaudin) Now, Boston Dynamics, which works with industry as well as the U.S. military, will be part of Google. That's a bit of an odd pairing, according to Ezra Gottheil, an analyst for Technology Business Research. "I can usually figure some connection between Google's main business and their wilder acquisitions and projects, but this one is hard to figure," Gottheil told Computerworld. "The only thing I can figure is that they like to buy very smart people and very smart technologies. Certainly, there's a potential integration with the automobile stuff, but I still don't have a clue." For several years now, Google has been working to develop autonomous cars, logging thousands of miles on the road, getting the first license for a driverless car and even approaching major auto makers in Detroit as potential partners in their effort. For the last six months, Google has been buying robotics companies in an effort to develop technology that can be used in its manufacturing operation, which largely focuses on electronics assembly. Boston Dynamics will be the eighth robotics company acquired. "We are looking forward to this next chapter in robotics and in what we can accomplish as part of the Google team," Boston Dynamics co-founder Marc Raibert said in a statement. Zeus Kerravala, an analyst with ZK Research, noted that at first glance, this does seem like an odd purchase for Google, which is known for search, its highly popular Android platform, the Chromebook and Maps. But it's just an extension of their recent robotics interest. "Well, much of what Google does is experiment with stuff and that's what makes them Google," said Kerravala. "With Boston Dynamics, they get a bunch of robots in different shapes and sizes. And Google is just a company that's really out there and has deep pockets."nova 3 for iphone free educational puzzle for babies for ipod toddler animals game for ipad free ringtones for android mobile phone kitty birthday party time for ipod mega n64 emulator for android pako king dreamworks adventures for iphone how the grinch stole christmas for iphone face in hole free for iphone manager app for android mobile

Apple moves toward digital unity with Mountain Lion

Apple surprised the tech world last week by pulling the curtain back on its latest desktop/laptop operating system: OS X Mountain Lion. The final version will be released this summer, but the developer preview unveiled on Thursday shows that the upcoming OS picks up where OS X 10.7 -- code-named Lion -- left off. The coming update incorporates even more popular features from iOS, the software which runs the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The upgrade -- pricing not yet announced -- will be available only as a download from the Mac App Store. Apple won't sell it on disc or on a thumb drive, as it did with earlier versions of OS X. That's a change from past practice and gives Apple another way to showcase its fast-growing App Store. Another change: Apple execs quietly previewed Mountain Lion first with a select few journalists and bloggers. Their early-bird reports last week led to a sudden tsunami of information about Mountain Lion and what it offers: iOS-like Messages, Reminders, Notifications and Game Center, AirPlay Mirroring, and a new security effort called Gatekeeper. It was clear with the release of Lion last year that the Mac OS X and iOS feature sets were morphing; this year, that trend continues with Mountain Lion. The big question for users then becomes whether this melding of features works, whether the iOS-inspired apps and processes fit within the context of a desktop operating system. For better or worse, the future of Apple's desktop OS is full of iOS-esque flourishes, changes that reflect a new Apple way of thinking and indicate where Apple is going. iCloud integration The most important element of the new OS is deeper integration with iCloud, the collection of services that stores your data to Apple's servers automatically and then syncs that data across all your devices. On the iPhone and iPad, every photo, document, bookmark, contact -- everything -- gets backed up. And through iCloud, it gets automatically sent to all your Macs/PCs, iPhones or iPads. To put it another way, iCloud shifts the onus of keeping data organized and up to date on multiple devices from the user to the machine. It's invisible. And it just works. For example, if I see an app I like in the App Store, I can buy it and within a few moments that app is already on my iPhone, my iPads, and my various Macs. When I take a picture on my iPhone, by the time I fire up iPhoto on the Mac, it's already waiting in Photo Stream on all of my devices. iCloud makes living with multiple devices far easier because data is automatically dispensed across them all. Last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook reaffirmed that iCloud is not a strategy with a specific shelf life, but a core part of all future Apple products, just as the Digital Media Hub strategy motivated Apple decisions over last dozen years or so. While iCloud integration on the Mac is not yet as comprehensive as it is in the iDevice lineup, Mountain Lion moves closer to real integration with Apple's online services. The iCloud focus is apparent right away. After downloading and installing Mountain Lion, an iCloud login/sign up is one of the first things to greet you following a clean install. If you already have an iCloud account, your email, contacts, calendars, FaceTime info, Safari bookmarks and Reading List links are automatically configured. Once the Setup Assistant is complete, a virtual visit to the Mac App Store allows you to easily install any apps you've already bought.red stamp cards for ipod hills of glory wwii for android doraemon repair shop seasons for android baby names by nametrix for ipads how to free movies for ipad 2015 eye shadow makeup tutorials for android 200 vision illusions for iphone textfree with voice app for ipad pool billiards pro apk for android urban crime game free for ipad

Is Apple's OS X Mountain Lion on early-release track?

Apple may release OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion earlier than expected, according to a report by a popular blog and clues found within the release dates of the three developer previews of the new operating system. On Tuesday, AppleInsider, citing an unnamed source, said that Apple's European arm was training new staff to answer queries about Mountain Lion. In the past, Apple has limited the training window, possibly to avoid leaks from the new staff about undisclosed features. AppleInsider speculated that the staff hiring and training may mean Apple will debut Mountain Lion at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), which opens June 11 in San Francisco. The release dates for Mountain Lion's developer previews also may hint at early availability. Apple has shipped three OS X 10.8 developer-only previews so far, on Feb. 16, March 16 and most recently, April 18. Those dates are ahead of the schedule Apple set last year when it fed developers a stream of previews for OS X 10.7, aka Lion, which went on sale July 20, 2011. Mountain Lion's trio of previews were 8, 15 and 25 days earlier than the first three Lion previews: The former is now more than three weeks ahead of the latter's 2011 timetable. If Apple keeps to the established pace and seeds one more preview to developers -- Lion offered four last year, then a so-called "gold master" build before hitting the Mac App Store -- Mountain Lion would go on sale June 25, with the gold master ready June 6. That last date may be a tad early, as Apple opens WWDC the following week. It seems improbable that the company would preempt a ready-for-sale announcement at WWDC by releasing a gold master of OS X 10.8 several days earlier, entailing a risk that the news would leak. Also in play are expected refreshes of Apple's computers. Most experts assume Apple will unveil new iMac desktops and MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops this quarter and next with Intel's Ivy Bridge architecture. Ivy Bridge is Intel's third-generation design of the Core clan, and the first to use a 22-nanometer manufacturing process. Quad-core Ivy Bridge processors are now available to computer makers (Insider, registration required), and dual-core siblings will be ready to ship in the next few months, Intel has said. The iMac would seem the logical line to get Ivy Bridge first: All models of the desktop now rely on Intel second-generation quad-core chips -- unlike the MacBook families, where some models use dual-core processors -- and the iMac is the longest in the tooth. Apple last refreshed the iMac May 3, 2011. If Apple uses WWDC to reveal new iMacs -- or any other systems -- it would be to its advantage if they were preloaded with Mountain Lion, not Lion. Using the newest operating system would appease customers, some who will complain if Mountain Lion launches just after they purchase a new machine. It would also reduce the company's fulfillment costs if, as expected, Apple announces Mountain Lion's release date at WWDC, then includes any Macs sold subsequently in a free upgrade program. Apple has used the WWDC keynote -- the one part of the conference that's open to non-developers -- to pull the sheet off new Macs, although the last time it did was 2009.hover chat formerly ninja sms for android weather hd free for ipod casio scientific calculator for android sonic the hedgehog for android free speedy uploader for facebook for iphones digify share files privately for android tropical photo frames for ipad photo frames editor for android yahoo mail for android 2.3.6 lync 2013 for windows 10

Mac users left wondering if OS X Snow Leopard's retired

Apple's refusal to put into writing its operating system support policy leaves Snow Leopard users wondering whether their copy of OS X has been retired, security experts said today. The question "Is Snow Leopard retired?" went legitimate as soon as Apple launched OS X Mountain Lion last week. That's because Apple has always dropped security update support for one edition around the time it has two newer in play. If the current OS X is dubbed "n," then "n-2" support ends at the debut of "n." In other words, patches are provided only to the newest OS X and the one immediately preceding it. With Mountain Lion's debut last Wednesday, that informal policy -- Apple has never put its support practices on paper or its website -- means the two editions that will receive patches are OS X 10.7, aka 2011's Lion, and the brand new 10.8, or Mountain Lion. Apple last shipped a Snow Leopard security update in May 2012. "I would expect that Snow Leopard is toast," said Chet Wisniewski, senior security adviser at Sophos, when asked today of his expectations. "They seem to apply that 'n-2' rule [of no security updates] somewhat universally, even when it doesn't make sense." Apple has held to the n-2 rule, although the timing of an edition's final update has varied. Last year, Apple shipped the last OS X-wide security update for Leopard (n-2), the edition released in Oct. 2007, on June 23, 2011, almost a month before the launch of Lion (n). OS X Tiger (n-2), which appeared in April 2005, received a final security update on Sept. 10, 2009, 12 days after Snow Leopard (n) shipped. Prior to that, Panther (n-2), or OS X 10.3, got its final update two-and-a-half weeks after the debut of Leopard (n), while OS X 10.2, aka Jaguar (n-2), saw its last patch three months before the launch of Tiger (n). An edition's retirement isn't comprehensive. Apple has typically delivered separate security updates for four components: iTunes, Java, QuickTime and Safari for several months beyond the cut-off.Bf server emu zip rc mod for minecraft 1 5 2 fujing web camera driver youtube videos as mp4 flv google chrome kundli lite full version windows 7 securecrt 64 bit full rtl 8187 driver patch for omnipeek hidden beauty danto the transfiguration of the commonplace dragon knight 4 3d blender nlite addons s polish