are we Google pawns? April 18, 2010

It’s pretty difficult to fully get your head around the epic scale of the ongoing battle between Microsoft, Google and Apple. Ridiculous sums of money at stake, entire business strategies hanging in the air and umpteen routes to a delicate balance between success or failure hang in the balance.

It’s not so much the size of these businesses, in the 90’s monopolisation was defined in the dictionary as ‘Microsoft’. Where there was a computer there was Microsoft.

And then along came Apple, they conquered music, revolutionised mobile phones (sorry to all the blackberry/ HTC/ Android phone lovers), I might be so bold as to say they made the computer industry sexy (gasp). However Apple only really dominate (controversial I know) closed information appliances with lots of third-party apps.

And then there’s Google, all roads lead to the internet, and the internet is pretty much Google.

So are we all just pawns in Google’s worldwide game of chess? Discuss…

speccy 6 eyes April 17, 2010

So the long awaited 3D TV is on the horizon with anticipated launch dates any time soon (samsung have a 10 day count down on their site as of today)

So what’s the hype all about? The first reviews are in and according to critics the idea is relatively positive and this is really the biggest thing since high definition. Park the flat picture, there’s an incredible depth to the image that sucks you into the drama making you feel a part of it, if you’ve seen Avatar you’ll have an idea of what the effects will be like (although developers are promising that this will be easier on the eye so you won’t get the headache that comes with it – bonus).

You’re looking at around £2-3k for something along the lines of a 50 inch Panasonic TC – P50VT20 but that comes with just one pair of active shutter glasses so everyone else gets the 2D version (unless you fork out an extra £100-£150 for each extra anticipated guest).

The main drawback at the moment is there’s very little 3D content available. Some TV’s will be accompanied by a smart 3D processor, able to take 2D content and convert it to 3D. This doesn’t deliver the clarity that you experience watching a 3D Blu-ray movie but it will mean you can take a step towards the 3D experience, unfortunately though most current experiences will be run from a demo disc… soooo how long until they’re a living room essential?

Aliens revolt against digital TV April 16, 2010

Okay, so you’re probably wondering what on earth aliens find revolting about digital TV…?

Well, I was reading an article recently about SETI (the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) and their ongoing conquest to prove that we are not alone. Fascinating in itself, but what really grabbed my attention is the fact that they blamed digital television for being the reason that aliens couldn’t find us and have a theory that, for similar reasons, we can’t find the aliens.

I thought this was quite interesting so dug a little deeper and thought I would share my findings with you all.

The problem is that digital TV is making Earth invisible.

The process for converting analogue to digital offers more stability, as it is less vulnerable to noise. This means that, whilst we’re happy because we get a nice viewing experience at home, it does make life very difficult for the aliens trying to find us.

In the world of analogue, a digital transmission looks like noise, and radio astronomers have to filter out noise to locate signals indicative of extra-terrestrial life. However, with the complexity of digital signal processing (DSP) to measure or filter continuous real-world analogue signals, this noise is getting crowded and indistinguishable. So, whilst sticking astronomers on a lunar observatory on the moon may help us look for ET, the Digital Switchover could be making it harder for ET to find us.

So, if you don’t want aliens to land on Earth, keep watching digital TV!