Embracing 3-D Printers, Manufacturer Tells Customers to Print Their Own Replacement Parts

Embracing 3-D Printers, Manufacturer Tells Customers to Print Their Own Replacement Parts: Want a new part for your synthesizer? Need a replacement knob or dial? In a first, one company is telling its customers to just print their own.
It's a move that signifies a major step into a new commercial marketplace, where customers can buy products directly from companies for on-demand, at-home manufacturing.

Video: Chris Anderson on Desktop Manufacturing's 'Macintosh Moment'

Video: Chris Anderson on Desktop Manufacturing's 'Macintosh Moment': With the advent of affordable, advanced desktop 3-D printers like the Makerbot Replicator and Cubify's Cube, we're standing at the starting line of a manufacturing revolution. These tools, once reserved for top-level firms, give curious minds everywhere rapid prototyping capabilities for almost any type of project.

Stan Lee Recuperating After Pacemaker Surgery

Stan Lee Recuperating After Pacemaker Surgery: Ending speculation about his health following the abrupt cancellation of two appearances, Stan Lee announced this afternoon that he's recuperating after having a pacemaker implanted. "Your leader hath not deserted thee!” he wrote.

Four key trends changing digital journalism and society

Four key trends changing digital journalism and society: These projects are “part of an infrastructure that helps journalists better understand and serve their communities through data,” commented Chris Sopher, Knight Foundation Journalism Program Associate, in an interview last week. To apply a coding metaphor, the Knight Foundation is funding the creation of patches for the source code of society. This isn’t a new focus: in 2011, Knight chose to help build the newsroom stack, from editorial search engines to data cleaning tools.

Following are four themes that jumped out when I looked across the winners of the latest Knight News Challenge round.

Oops. Man mistakenly sexts entire contact list; lands in jail

Oops. Man mistakenly sexts entire contact list; lands in jail: Swimming teacher who wasn't au fait with the texting thing is initially sent to jail because the sexts went to two underage girls. But because they also went to his family, he is freed. Thanks, mom. [Read more]

"Simpsons" Vet Al Jean On Season 24, "Treehouse" and the Show's End

"Simpsons" Vet Al Jean On Season 24, "Treehouse" and the Show's End: Longtime "Simpsons" writer Al Jean discusses Sunday's season premiere, what to expect from "Treehouse of Horror XXIII," guest stars and what will happen to the promo ad in which Homer casts his vote for president.

What Makes Google's Maps So Good - NYTimes.com

What Makes Google's Maps So Good - NYTimes.com: What I realized is that mapping the world is a staggering, gigantic, vast, inconceivably huge and ambitious project. It represents years and years of hand-tuning and manual effort.

For really deep bass, you need a real subwoofer

For really deep bass, you need a real subwoofer: Nowadays most people want tiny speakers and subwoofers, and they can sound fine, but only big subs can rock the house! [Read more]

Facebook groups gets Dropbox fileshare option

Facebook groups gets Dropbox fileshare option: The two companies partner up to include easy access to the cloud-storage service. [Read more]

Hubble looks back 13.2 billion years in deepest view yet

Hubble looks back 13.2 billion years in deepest view yet: Combining images taken over the past 10 years in what amounts to a 2 million second time exposure, the Hubble Space Telescope has captured the deepest view of the universe yet achieved. [Read more]

Cable companies eye video game distribution, report says

Cable companies eye video game distribution, report says: AT&T, Verizon, and Time Warner Cable are all planning to deliver video games directly to their customers' televisions. [Read more]

8 things that (still) bug us in iOS 6

8 things that (still) bug us in iOS 6: Now that we’ve been living with iOS 6 for a while, we’ve realized (to our chagrin) that it still comes with a few quirks that bugged us in previous versions and still aren’t fixed. Herewith eight of the surviving features and flaws that bother Macworld editors the most.

Sheriff: Roseburg man neglected 68 cats

Sheriff: Roseburg man neglected 68 cats:

The Douglas County Sheriff's Office says a Roseburg man is behind bars, after they seized 68 cats from his property.

From Cheetah Spots to Kitty's Stripes: The Genetics of Cat Coats

From Cheetah Spots to Kitty's Stripes: The Genetics of Cat Coats: After years of studying how cats get their color, researchers have pinpointed an elusive gene underlying spots on cheetahs, stripes in house cats and patterns across the feline world. "It's something we've been curious about for a long time," said geneticist Stephen O'Brien of the National Cancer Institute. "We've known just three genes were involved, but nobody knew what the genes were."

Apple updates Cards, GarageBand, iPhoto, iMovie, Keynote for iOS

Apple updates Cards, GarageBand, iPhoto, iMovie, Keynote for iOS: When Apple makes it rain, it makes it pour. In addition to releasing iOS 6 and OS X 10.8.2, the company updated a homescreen’s worth of its own iOS apps on Wednesday, including Cards, iPhoto, GarageBand, iMovie, and Keynote.

Review: Refined iOS 6 highlighted by stunning Maps overhaul

Review: Refined iOS 6 highlighted by stunning Maps overhaul: Following on the heels of the massive update that was iOS 5, iOS 6 might seem like merely a modest update. But that doesn’t make it insignificant by any means: A key app has received a substantial overhaul in this latest update, Apple has added an intriguing new—if yet unproven—built-in app, and the company has even, for the first time, removed a piece of software present since the iPhone’s launch.

In addition, plenty of iOS’s features have been updated and refined, and user interface conventions have been tweaked across the entire OS. Apple’s also put an emphasis on rolling out certain features to both its mobile and desktop operating systems—Facebook integration, Mail VIPs, etc.—ushering in a new era of giving the two platforms parity when it makes sense to do so.

Five years after its debut, iOS 5 was already a mature operating system, a stable foundation upon which to build. With all that Apple had already added to it, you might have wondered what was next for the mobile operating system. As it turns out, there's plenty.

Hands on with iOS 6: Siri

Hands on with iOS 6: Siri: Your favorite virtual assistant now knows a lot more than it ever did before. Beyond merely knowing answers to more kinds of questions, Siri in iOS 6 gains new functionality, simplifies some common tasks, and provides more useful results, too. And, for the first time, Siri in iOS 6 works on the iPad as well—provided the iPad in question is a third-generation model or newer.

Hands on with iOS 6: Installation

Hands on with iOS 6: Installation: iOS 6 arrives today, and eager users everywhere are getting ready to upgrade their devices. If you’re concerned about the upgrade process, or simply want to know all your setup options before making the big switch, let us help you upgrade your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad to iOS 6 with this step-by-step guide.

At XOXO, a Counterculture Kickstarts Itself

At XOXO, a Counterculture Kickstarts Itself: The XOXO conference in Portland, Oregon marked a turning point for indie online creatives.

Steve Jobs's seven key decisions

Steve Jobs's seven key decisions: When Steve Jobs officially returned to Apple 15 years ago, it marked a moment of rebirth for the ailing company. Within eight months (September 17, 1997, to be exact), he assumed the mantle of Interim CEO (later abbreviated to “iCEO” for cuteness) and executed a stark and keen strategy to save Apple from oblivion.

Almost a year after his untimely passing, it's a good time to look back at seven key moves Jobs made to right the Apple ship during his early days as iCEO.

Oregon minimum wage increasing to $8.95

Oregon minimum wage increasing to $8.95:

Oregon’s minimum wage will climb to $8.95 per hour next year.

The iPad goes back to school

The iPad goes back to school: When Dr. Martin Ringle introduced the then-new iPad to Oregon’s Reed College in the fall of 2010, he was more than a little cautious. After all, he had seen educational-technology trends come and go—he even had an old Apple Newton gathering dust in a drawer somewhere.

Hands on: Apple's new EarPods headphones

Hands on: Apple's new EarPods headphones: Most people who end up with a pair of EarPods will have received them bundled with another Apple product. While some of them will opt for better sound through third-party headphones, many (most?) will happily listen to the EarPods, never realizing they’re getting a much-improved listening experience compared to Apple’s previous toss-ins.

If you don’t have a set of EarPods, are they worth spending $29 for? In the world of headphones, $29 is fairly inexpensive, and if you’re simply looking to upgrade from existing Apple earbuds, or to replace a lost or broken set, I can recommend the EarPods—they’re easily worth their retail price (which puts them far ahead of the company’s previous models). Whether you want to spend a little more for even better sound is another question. We’ll be updating this article with more-thorough impressions of sound quality after we’ve spent more time with the EarPods.

Black Lagoon - Rasta Blasta

Check out this video on Hulu:

Another reason I like this, I think, (besides showing that the toughest SOB on Earth is a Japanese businessman) is that these South China Sea pirates drink nothing but Heineken and smoke nothing but American Spirit cigarettes. 

 

Click here to watch

Black Lagoon - Rasta Blasta S. 1 : Ep. 8 (23:51) | TV-MA The Black Lagoon is hired to transport a young hostage whose wealthy family is in trouble with a South American drug cartel. The crew is growing uneasy with the mission - it seems violence is ...

Meet the all-new Apple EarPods (with video) – MacDailyNews - Welcome Home

Meet the all-new Apple EarPods (with video) – MacDailyNews - Welcome Home: At the same time Apple designers were trying to define an ideal earbud shape, Apple sound engineers — acousticians — were focused on improving sound quality. First, they established a target sound for the Apple EarPods. That target: a person sitting in a room listening to high-quality speakers.

'Social Voting' Really Does Rock the Vote

'Social Voting' Really Does Rock the Vote: Brace yourself for a tidal wave of Facebook campaigning before November's U.S. presidential election. A study of 61 million Facebook users finds that using online social networks to urge people to vote has a much stronger effect on their voting behavior than spamming them with information via television ads or phone calls.

Mountain Lion Dictation tricks

Mountain Lion Dictation tricks: Macworld staff writer Lex Friedman shows off some tricks you can use to get the most out of the Dictation voice transcription technology built into Mountain Lion.

Survey: Wireless contracts can deter smartphone upgrades

Survey: Wireless contracts can deter smartphone upgrades: Consumers upgrade to new smartphones when contracts expire rather than pay high out-of-contract costs.

Apple's Ping to cease operation Sep. 30

Apple's Ping to cease operation Sep. 30: Apple's Ping music social network will close its virtual doors at the end of the month, according to a message posted on the service.


Macworld 9/12/12 4:32 PM Dan Moren

The iPhone 5: My First Impressions

The iPhone 5: My First Impressions: Bigger screen, longer battery life, more sophisticated camera, better sound. Overall, Apple seems to have put its focus on the important things you want in an app phone.

How to set up iCloud services in Snow Leopard

How to set up iCloud services in Snow Leopard: While Apple's iCloud services are officially supported only in OS X 10.7 Lion or later, you can get some working in Snow Leopard.
[Read more]

Apple Event - Sept. 12, 2012 - New iPhone

SUMMARY: iPhone 5: Smaller, but with a bigger screen. More radios, longer-lasting battery, better camera. FaceTime over cellular. Better mikes and speakers. New connector, with adaptor.

IOS 6: Better maps, with navigation. Better Mail. Passbook. Shared photo streams. Siri's been updated.

Your choice of colors: Black or white.

Dramatically simpler iTunes. Simplified user interface, play media from iCloud, new media player, up next, and the redesigned iTunes Store. Available in late October.

Update on the iPod.

X X X

Get ready for alphabet soup:

Now has GPRS, EDGE, EV-DO, HSPA, and added HSPA+, DC-HSDPA, and yes, LTE.

One baseband chip for voice and data, and a single radio chip.

Brand new processor is next. Apple A6. Compared to A5 is 2x faster at CPU, 2x faster at graphics. It's also 22% smaller, freeing up more space and making it more energy efficient.

Faster app launching, saving images, load music app, viewing attachments in keynotes, ~2x performance across board.

8 megapixel sensor, 3264x2448, backside illuminated, hybrid IR filter, five-element lens, and a fast f/2.4 aperture. 25% smaller.

Panorama.

Improved video as well. 1080p HD video, improved video stabilization, face detection for up to 10 faces, and you can take photos while you're recording video. Camera on front is now FaceTime HD 720p HD camera with backside illumination, and FaceTime over cellular.

You can use them for noise cancellation and improving voice recognition. Speaker improved as well. Five magnets in the transducer, better frequency response, and 20% smaller while sounding better. Earpiece is now noise-canceling as well, removing surrounding noise.

Time for the connector evolve. New connector is called Lightning. "So now we have Thunderbolt and Lightning."

Modern connector. All-digital, 8-signal design, adaptive interface, improved durability. Reversible, so easier to use, and it's 80% smaller.

Maps now has vector-based maps that are speedy, 100 million points of interest in a search engine. Beautiful 3D turn-by-turn directions, use a cinematic camera angle to fly you around corners. Footprints of buildings are correct.

Passbook is next. This is the way to collect all your passes in one place: movie tickets, airline boarding pass, coupon, store card with a balance, ticket for a concert, a ticket for a baseball game.

SIRI

You can launch apps by talking to your phone.

Tap make reservation, and it'll take you to Open Table.

Facebook integration.

Those are just a few of the new features in iOS 6. There's much more: Facebook integration throughout the OS, great enhancements to Phone app like automated SMS or iMessage back when you can't answer the phone, FaceTime works over cellular data network. Great enhancements for accessibility, including Single App Mode. Only 10 of the more than 200 new features in iOS 6.

iPhone 5 comes in all-black design with slate back, but there's a white iPhone as well, glass is white, got a bright silver aluminum finish.

Same prices at the 4S. $199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB, and $399 for 64GB, along with 2-year carrier contract.

Pre-orders start on September 14, and ships one week later in US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore.

IO6: iPhone 4S, 4, 3GS, new iPad, iPad 2, or fourth-generation iPad on September 19.

MUSIC:

Some exciting changes with both iPod and iTunes.

iTunes: Today, announcing a brand new version. Dramatically simpler, with iCloud built right in.

iPod: Nano, Touch.

EarPods.

Picasa 3.9.11.6 - Organize, edit, and share your photos.. (Free)

Picasa 3.9.11.6 - Organize, edit, and share your photos.. (Free): Picasa and Picasa Web Albums allows you to organize, edit, and upload your photos to the Web from your computer in quick, simple steps. Arrange your photos into folders and albums and erase their blemishes using powerful editing tools in Picasa. Then use Picasa Web Albums to share those perfected photos online with family, friends, and the world.

Who Killed the Liberal Arts? | The Weekly Standard

Who Killed the Liberal Arts? | The Weekly Standard: The loss of prestige of the liberal arts is part of the general crisis of higher education in the United States. The crisis begins in economics. Larger numbers of Americans start college, but roughly a third never finish—more women finish, interestingly, than do men. With the economic slump of recent years, benefactions to colleges are down, as are federal and state grants, thus forcing tuition costs up, in public as well as in private institutions. Inflation is greater in the realm of higher education than in any other public sphere. Complaints about the high cost of education at private colleges—fees of $50,000 and $55,000 a year are commonly mentioned—are heard everywhere. A great number of students leave college with enormous student-loan debt, which is higher than either national credit card or automobile credit debt. Because of the expense of traditional liberal arts colleges, greater numbers of the young go to one or another form of commuter college, usually for vocational training.

And as a graduate of journalism school I especially appreciated this sentence: "Everyone who has ever worked on a newspaper knows that what one learns in four years in journalism school can be acquired in less than two months working on a newspaper."

On Ezra Pound in Italy | Open Letters Monthly - an Arts and Literature Review

On Ezra Pound in Italy | Open Letters Monthly - an Arts and Literature Review: From 1962 to his death in 1972, Pound stayed with Olga often spending the winters in Rapallo and the summers in Venice. His mood remained pessimistic, and he started to believe that his life had been a series of blunders. He told an Italian journalist, Grazia Levi, “I spoil everything I touch. I have always blundered. … All my life I believed I knew nothing, yes, knew nothing. And so words became devoid of meaning.” In October 1967 he told Allen Ginsberg in Rapallo that his poetry was, “A mess … my writing, stupidity and ignorance all the way through,” and told him later in Venice, “… I found after seventy years that I was not a lunatic but a moron … I should have been able to do better…”

This 9/11 Commemorates the Zombie War on Terror

This 9/11 Commemorates the Zombie War on Terror: Eleven years after 9/11, Osama is dead and the U.S. continually boasts about how weak al-Qaida is now. In a rational world, as the emergency receded, so too would the government's wartime footing. In the world we actually live in, the war on terrorism is more like a zombie, lurching forward thoughtlessly on instinct and stimulus-response. Welcome to the Zombie War on Terror.

TechHive: Google Drive gets iOS update

TechHive: Google Drive gets iOS update: Google has unveiled updates to its Google Drive app for iOS (as well as for Android), a revamp that makes the service a richer competitor to other online storage offerings.

James Gunn Has "Twisted Take" On Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy"

James Gunn Has "Twisted Take" On Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy": Joss Whedon has endorsed James Gunn's vision for "Guardians of the Galaxy," saying, "He is so off the wall, and so crazy, but so smart, such a craftsman and he builds from his heart. He loves the raccoon."

Tracking School Children With RFID Tags? It's All About the Benjamins | Threat Level | Wired.com

Tracking School Children With RFID Tags? It's All About the Benjamins | Threat Level | Wired.com: And it appears that the educational move to Big Brother-style monitoring is motivated mainly by money, despite privacy and health concerns.

Two schools at the Northside Independent School District in San Antonio began issuing the RFID-chip-laden student-body cards when classes began last Monday. Like most state-financed schools, their budgets are tied to average daily attendance. If a student is not in his seat during morning roll call, the district doesn’t receive daily funding for that pupil, because the school has no way of knowing for sure if the student is there.

But with the RFID tracking, students not at their desk but tracked on campus are counted as being in school that day, and the district receives its daily allotment for that student.

Review: MoneyWiz a sleek personal finance Mac app

Review: MoneyWiz a sleek personal finance Mac app: Between easy imports, fast wireless syncing and a sleek and polished look throughout, MoneyWiz is a top choice in the Mac personal finance field.

Apple Issues Invitations for Media Event on September 12

Apple Issues Invitations for Media Event on September 12: The Loop reports that Apple has just sent out invitations for a media event scheduled for next week Wednesday, September 12. The event will be held at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco and is scheduled to begin at 10:00 AM Pacific / 1:00 PM Eastern. The tagline on the invitation is simply "It's almost here."

Editing Word documents on an iPad

Editing Word documents on an iPad: Even though there's no iPad version of Word, you can read and edit Word documents on your iPad if you're willing to accept a few compromises. Joe Kissell shows you how.

Run Office on your iPad

Run Office on your iPad: Want to edit Microsoft Office documents on your iPad and file compatibility is your top concern? These services let your iPad run the Windows version of Microsoft Office remotely.

Smartphone battery life: 2 problems, 4 fixes (Smartphones Unlocked) | Dialed In - CNET Blogs

Smartphone battery life: 2 problems, 4 fixes (Smartphones Unlocked) | Dialed In - CNET Blogs: All told, a Prieto battery is projected to last 10 full hours and completely charge in five minutes.