Blog

×××

  • Google’s Eric Schmidt Urging PC Users to Dump Windows and ‘Get A Mac’

    // Gradly // Apple, blog, Cloud, Featured, Gadgets, google, Microsoft, News, Rants & Raves No Responses

    Some interesting tidbits from yesterday’s D9 Conference interviewing Google‘s chairman Eric Schmidt. Probably the most interesting one is that Google has “just renewed their Map and Search agreements with Apple”.

    In terms of platform war, Shmidt said there is, primarily, a gang of four that includes Google, Apple, Amazon and Facebook. Microsoft is not included. He explains, Microsoft is not driving the consumer revolution, they are focused on corporate and are doing so successfully, something that will likely continue for decades to come.

    When asked how consumers could be more secure, he claimed that Chrome was a more secure browser, using two factor Gmail authentication is key and users simply “could use a Mac instead of a PC”.

    When Google launched its cloud music offering, many were disappointed, the service was just a locker for music. When asked why Google failed at signing with record labels, Schmidt simply says, “I’ve just not been successful in doing that”.

  • Apple’s New Data Center is Now Visible on Google Maps

    // Gradly // Apple, blog, Cloud, Featured, google, News, Rants & Raves No Responses

    As noted by Fortune, Apple’s new mysterious data center in Maiden, North Carolina, is now visible entirely from Google Maps’ view. While this piece of information isn’t that interesting but the timing is. According to Fortune, Apple started allowing Google to display the data center in their Maps service soon after the official WWDC announcement yesterday.

    One of the mysteries surrounding the 500,000-square foot server farm Apple has famously constructed in a small North Carolina town called Maiden, besides its ultimate purpose, is why it didn’t show up on Google Earth.

    But if you asked Google Earth or Google Maps to show you the intersection of U.S. Route 321 and Startown Road, where the data center is located, the current satellite imagery stopped a few yards short of the construction site. West of Startown Road, there was, as recently as two weeks ago, nothing but woods and farmland and a bit of driveway that ended abruptly in the middle of a field.

    After Apple’s announcement Tuesday that Steve Jobs was ready to reveal iCloud, the “upcoming cloud services offering” presumably based in Maiden, N.C., we thought we’d give Google Maps another try.

    Lo and behold, there it was: A huge, white, nondescript building with a road leading in, a road leading out, and almost no employee parking.

    How was Apple able to keep Google from displaying this particular swath of satellite imagery? That’s still a mystery.

  • Captain America: The First Avengers New Character Posters

    // Gradly // blog, Featured, Movies, Poster, Rants & Raves, Superheroes, Trailer No Responses

    Paramount Pictures has released three new promo character posters for Joe Johnston‘s’ Captain America: The First Avengers featuring Red Skull, Captain America and Peggy Carter. Stay tuned for more posters and movie clips as the marvel movie approaching the release day, July 22nd. Watch the trailer here.

    Captain America: The First Avenger stars Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Tommy Lee Jones, Stanley Tucci, Haley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Dominic Cooper, Toby Jones and Neal McDonough.

    Official Synopsis:

    Born during the Great Depression, Steve Rogers grew up a frail youth in a poor family. Horrified by the newsreel footage of the Nazis in Europe, Rogers was inspired to enlist in the army. However, because of his frailty and sickness, he was rejected. Overhearing the boy’s earnest plea, General Chester Phillips offered Rogers the opportunity to take part in a special experiment… Operation: Rebirth. After weeks of tests, Rogers was at last administered the Super-Solider Serum and bombarded by ‘vita-rays.’ Steve Rogers emerged from the treatment with a body as perfect as a body can be and still be human. Rogers was then put through an intensive physical and tactical training program. Three months later, he was given his first assignment as Captain America. Armed with his indestructible shield and battle savvy, Captain America has continued his war against evil both as a sentinel of liberty and as leader of the Avengers.

    [Images by cinemarcado]

  • Titles and Release Dates Announced for Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit

    // Gradly // 3D, blog, Featured, LOTR, Movies, News No Responses

    New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures and MGM have announced the titles and release dates for Peter Jackson‘s upcoming two-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien‘s masterpiece “The Hobbit.” The first movie, titled The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, arriving in theaters on December 14th, 2012. The second movie, titled The Hobbit: There and Back Again, arriving in theaters on December 13th, 2013.

    Both movies are set in Middle-earth 60 years before J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. The adventure of “The Hobbit” follows the journey of Bilbo Baggins into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug.

    Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, and Martin Freeman, who just won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the BBC series “Sherlock,” takes on the central role of Bilbo Baggins. Also reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” movies are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Orlando Bloom as Legolas; Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; and Andy Serkis as Gollum. The ensemble cast also includes (in alphabetical order) Richard Armitage, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, Mike Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott, Jeffrey Thomas and Aidan Turner.

    The screenplays for “The Hobbit” films are by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson. both movies shot consecutively in digital 3D using the latest camera and stereo technology.