David Lidsky's Blog, page 3349
January 27, 2014
Hyundai Goes For Goofy Laughs And Sweet Smiles For The Super Bowl
The carmaker takes Big Bang Theory's Johnny Galecki and some feel-good parenting humor to the big game.
As car brands in the Super Bowl go, Hyundai's had a pretty good run. You could argue it started back in 2009--as consumers were reeling from the financial crisis and the South Korean automaker stepped in with a tagline for the times, promising "if you lose your income in the next year, you can return it with no impact on your credit."
The NSA Can Reportedly Gobble Up User Data From Angry Birds
A joint report between the New York Times and ProPublica claims that U.S. and British spy agencies can gather user data through mobile apps.
The National Security Agency has already demonstrated that it is willing to go to comical lengths to collect data from targets, even if that means lacing up hydra armor to spy on potential threats in World of Warcraft. Now, a new batch of documents suggest its surveillance capabilities aren't just limited to desktop platforms: The NSA and its British counterpart reportedly have the ability to hoover up mobile data from titles like Angry Birds, too.
Tesla's Supercharger Network Now Goes Coast To Coast
With 71 charging stations installed in North America, coverage now extends to 80% of the U.S. population.
A cross-country road trip in a Tesla is now a reality. The electric car maker has expanded its network of Superchargers from coast to coast, according to CEO Elon Musk.
January 24, 2014
Microsoft Creates A 20-Gigapixel "Where's Waldo?" Of Seattle
With Gigapixel ArtZoom, you can explore a panorama of Seattle, searching for the artists, performers, and eccentrics who give the city its vibrant life.
On a blustery day in October last year, a team of computer vision scientists from the Microsoft Research Interactive Visual Media Group huddled together on a rooftop beneath the Space Needle. They were there to take 2,400 digital photographs of Seattle, which they planned to stitch together into a 20-billion-pixel panorama, using Microsoft's advanced computer imaging technology, then turn into a living Where's Waldo? of Seattle's dynamic art scene.
NeXT Cofounder George Crow Reflects On Engineering The First Macintosh
"Speaking as a user, I wish they would come out with something new. They've pretty much just been refining products since Steve died."
George Crow was part of the original Macintosh team, working alongside Steve Jobs at Apple, then later went on to cofound NeXT with Jobs before returning to his Apple stomping grounds in 1998. He retired barely eight years ago and recalls Macintosh's early days and the current state of computing hardware.
How Steve Jobs Almost Put A Little Man In Every Mac
It was one of Jobs's most whimsical ideas: a mysterious cartoon character that would live inside each Macintosh computer. Then, the grim practical reality of early computing set in. This is the legend of Mr. Macintosh.
In February, 1982, a manic Steve Jobs bounded into the office of Andy Hertzfeld, the primary software architect of Apple's top-secret next gen computer, the Mac (which celebrates its 30th birthday today). Wild-eyed and obviously excited, the 27-year-old Jobs waved his hands around his head and shouted, "Mr. Macintosh! We've got to have Mr. Macintosh!"
Photos: The Opportunity Rover's 10 Years On Mars
Remarkably, this Martian rover is still chugging along.
Ten years ago, the Opportunity rover landed on Mars. What started out as a three-month mission has remarkably stretched into a decade.
Uber Admits To Aggressively Trying To Steal Rival's Drivers
Black car app Gett said it was inundated with more than 100 orders and cancellations by more than a dozen of Uber employees over three days last week.
Key to Uber's continued success has been reliability, and that means always getting more drivers on the road. The e-hailing startup has used several tactics to achieve this, including its controversial surge-price policy during periods of high demand, preferential car financing rates for qualified drivers, and according to one on-demand black car rival, the disruption of competitor services to poach drivers.
The Weird, Hyper-Incentivized World Of "Bug Bounties"
Hackers can be your company's greatest resource. Here's how to harness their power without inviting actual attacks.
When Brazilian computer security expert Reginald Silva found a security hole in Facebook's servers, he quickly let the company know. And Facebook didn't just thank him--the social networking giant paid him a $33,500 reward, what the company said in a blog post is the largest single payout yet in its ongoing bug bounty program.
How Facebook's Mobile Ad Network Could (Finally) Upend A Backwards Industry
By understanding our tastes and habits, Facebook could steal billions of dollars in ads from traditional media and get Madison Avenue out of the stone age.
Facebook has never been a company lacking in foolish ambition--witness Facebook Home, Beacon, Places, and other monumental undertakings. But Facebook has shown restraint in one area: opening up its rich demographic data to third-party publishers.
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