Monday 18 March 2013

Mashable: Latest 29 News Updates - including “Twitter's Jack Dorsey Wants to Be Mayor of New York — Someday”

Mashable: Latest 29 News Updates - including “Twitter's Jack Dorsey Wants to Be Mayor of New York — Someday”


Twitter's Jack Dorsey Wants to Be Mayor of New York — Someday

Posted: 18 Mar 2013 05:44 AM PDT

Dorsey
Feed-twFeed-fb

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey revealed in a 60 Minutes profile Sunday night that he would like to be mayor of New York — someday.

Dorsey didn't expand much on the thought and it doesn't appear that he's considering the current race for mayor caused by Michael Bloomberg's impending exit from the post on Jan. 1, 2014. "What I love about New York is just the electricity I feel right away," Dorsey told interviewer Lara Logan. "I mean just look at us in this station. There's just people walking everywhere and everyone." Dorsey, who currently resides in San Francisco, originally hails from Illinois

Sony Announces Xperia SP and Xperia L

Posted: 18 Mar 2013 03:41 AM PDT

Sony
Feed-twFeed-fb

Sony has launched two new Android smartphones — the Xperia SP and Xperia L.

The company's flagship phone for 2013, the Xperia Z, has been revealed in January, so what do these two devices bring to the table? Well, as one would expect, the Xperia SP and L are Sony Mobile's mid-range and camera-focused offerings, respectively

The Xperia SP sports a 4.6-inch, 720p screen, an 8-megapixel camera and a dual-core 1.7GHz Snapdragon processor

All of these are stuffed into a thin aluminum frame, which will be available in white, red and black colour variations.

The Xperia L offers what Sony calls the "perfect smartphone camera experience," with an 8-megapixel camera, HDR support, a dedicated camera key and Sony's "Exmor RS for mobile" tech which provides "vivid colors" and "stunning clarity," Sony claims

More Than 500,000 Google Reader Users Migrate to Feedly

Posted: 18 Mar 2013 12:49 AM PDT

Rip-google-reader
Feed-twFeed-fb

Feedly, a news aggregator which promised to make the migration from Google Reader — which is being shut down on July 1 — seamless, has already seen an influx of over 500,000 million Reader users

"More than 500,000 Google Reader users have joined the feedly community over the last 48 hours. We love passionate readers. Welcome on board," said Feedly on its official blog

And that's not all: Feedly's Twitter account is buzzing with activity, with new users asking about features and new versions of the software, and Feedly's iOS app has quickly become the top free app in Apple's App Store

The last 48 hours remind me of the night @louisgray helped us launch feedly. It is great to get so much feedback from users. Let’s improve.

— feedly (@feedly) March 17, 2013

CNN Reporter Labeled 'Rape Apologist' After Steubenville Comments

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 11:10 PM PDT

Cnn-reporter-poppy-harlow
Feed-twFeed-fb

A CNN segment on the Steubenville rape trial verdict sparked online backlash Sunday, including accusations that one of its reporters is a "rape apologist."

The outrage centered on an exchange between anchor Candy Crowley and reporter Poppy Harlow on CNN's State of the Union. After a judge found Trent Mays and Ma'Lik Richmond, two members of Steubenville High School's football team, guilty of raping a 16-year-old girl, Crowley told Harlow, "I cannot imagine having just watched this on the feed coming in. How emotional that must have been sitting in the courtroom."

Harlow, who was reporting from Steubenville, OH, responded as follows (click here for the entire transcript):

Image Toaster Prints Pictures on Your Breakfast

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 10:07 PM PDT

Toast
Feed-twFeed-fb

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You want to start off your morning well-fed and inspired, and what better way to do that than with a daily surprise in your food?

The Image Toaster brings some fun to your everyday routine by toasting a random Google image onto your bread. Connected to your computer via USB, the toaster searches the Internet for pictures related to the day's date and prints a six by six pixel image on the slice. Check out the video, above, for more

The smart toaster is made of a wooden frame (which might pose a little risk to burnt breakfasts), and uses a grid to determine which parts to toast. The product is still a prototype and designer Scott van Haastrecht hopes a future design will use Wi-Fi to connect

Newsroom Cutbacks Are Hurting Journalism, Study Shows

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 09:05 PM PDT

New-york-times-ebook
Feed-twFeed-fb

The tone of the Pew Research Center's latest annual State of the Media report, released Monday, is grim. The study found that U.S. newsrooms have cut their staff by about 30% since highs reached in 2000, and journalism is suffering as a result. At the same time, companies and other organizations are seizing opportunities to deliver their messages straight to the public — rather than through the media — with mixed results.

Fewer Resources = Poorer Quality Journalism

There are now less than 40,000 full-time employees working in news, the lowest since 1978, Pew found. The quality of journalism is consequently suffering, both on a national and local level. At Fox, CNN and MSNBC, where annual revenues continue to grow (albeit more slowly than in years past), daytime coverage of live events fell 30% from 2007, while interview segments — which don't require a full crew and correspondent, and can be scheduled ahead of time — rose 31%. CNN has cut the number of produced story segments in half. On local TV stations, story lengths have diminished, while easy-to-deliver topics such as sports, weather and traffic have grown to account for 40% of content.

'Monsters University' Plot Inconsistency Leaves Fans Puzzled

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 08:31 PM PDT

Monsters-university
Feed-twFeed-fb

Days after Pixar released a new trailer for its hotly anticipated flick Monsters University, fans are accusing the animation studio of overlooking a glaring plot inconsistency.

The computer-animated film is a prequel to 2001's Monsters, Inc. During a conversation between protagonists Mike and Sulley in the original, the former says, "You've been jealous of my good looks since the fourth grade, pal." However, Monsters University portrays the two best friends as having met at college.

Eagle-eyed fan Matt Gillan, who runs the blog Film Resolution, noticed the discrepancy, and posted it to YouTube

3D-Printed Gun Maker Gets Federal License to Sell Firearms

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 08:04 PM PDT

3d-printed-rifle
Feed-twFeed-fb

Defense Distributed, a project for open-sourced 3D-printable guns, obtained a federal license to manufacture and sell firearms. The organization made the announcement on its Facebook page Saturday with a picture of the license and a caption saying, "The work begins!"

With the approval from the U.S. Government, Defense Distributed head Cory Wilson can sell and transport the pieces they've been making, but is required to keep records of all production and transactions. The nonprofit has created prototypes over the past few months, including the most recent: a 3D-printed semi-automatic that fires more than 600 rounds

Flickr Adds Hashtags to iOS App

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 06:59 PM PDT

Flickr1
Feed-twFeed-fb

Flickr released an update to its iOS app on Saturday, adding hashtag support to the photo-sharing service's mobile platform

While Flickr has long used a tagging system to categorize pictures on the web, the term "tags" has been renamed to follow the ever-popular trend of hashtags. The app also introduced #FlickrFriday, where adding the hashtag let the user instantly participate in Flickr's weekly photo challenge

Much like Instagram, clicking a hashtag will take you to search results of relevant tagged photos. The addition is the latest in a series of changes after the company's integration with Twitter at the end of 2012. Other updates similar to Instagram included usernames using the @ symbol and retro-style filters

Watch 15 GoPro Cameras Add Bullet Time to Everyday Life

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 06:28 PM PDT

Gopro-array
Feed-twFeed-fb

An array of 15 GoPro cameras helped one amateur filmmaker slow life down with cool bullet-time effects.

Marc Donahue of Permagrin Films showed off his half-circle grouping of GoPro cameras that can simultaneously capture a shot, turning everyday images of people cooking or riding bikes into something out of The Matrix.

Donahue demonstrated the device through several videos on his YouTube channel. The ultraportable GoPros are synchronized to shoot around the subject to get a visually arresting wraparound effect.

But the technique isn't perfect, yet. In a YouTube comment, Donahue admitted that he is "making a cable" to help the cameras fire in closer succession, so footage will be smoother on future attempts.

10 Online Courses to Beef Up Your STEM Knowledge

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 05:29 PM PDT

Pencils
Feed-twFeed-fb

Looking to boost your STEM knowledge? If you're not interested, can't afford, or don't have the budget to go back to school, you're in luck.

There's a flourishing education landscape at your fingertips on the Internet. From courses for experts to beginners, free programs to paid sessions, there are options for all types of learners looking for a variety of skills.

We scoured the web to find top curricula in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), all of which you can take from the comfort of your home

There's a Corner on the Internet For Every Wine Drinker

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 05:05 PM PDT

Wine-cat-take-4
Feed-twFeed-fb

Unlike the latest gadget, wine is not launched in intervals, with updates from 5 to 5S, or PS3 to PS4. It's not the latest iteration, but rather, the old wine that is better. Instead of coming from heavily marketed brands, good wine often comes from tiny wineries in California with little to no mainstream name recognitionBy definition, mass producing wine lowers its quality

Enjoying wine is also an expensive sport. To add insult to tragedy, the ability to enjoy the more expensive wine is an acquired taste. Madeline Puckette, a certified sommelier who runs wine education site Wine Folly explains that as a wine drinker develops his or her palate, preferences will veer towards the more complex Old World wines

How to Build a Winning March Madness Bracket Online

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 04:30 PM PDT

Kentuckygetty
Feed-twFeed-fb

Selection Sunday is done and the 2013 March Madness bracket is set. Here come three weeks of legendary performances, fantastic finishes — and the alternating agony and ecstacy of predictions gone right or wrong

But before the games begin, hardcore and casual sports fans alike are faced with some important decisions: how to research, build and manage a winning March Madness bracket

With that in mind, we've got a quick and helpful — but by no means comprehensive — rundown of some helpful online bracket tools

Yahoo Fantasy Sports offers a few different options. You can create a group with friends to track who makes the best predictions, enter a massive, open Facebook challenge or match your own picks against sports stars Chris Paul, Alex Morgan and Rob Dyrdek. Or, if you're hardcore, you can just do all three. A Facebook partnership also lets you publish brackets to your profile to compare with friends in other pools

Who Wins? Iron Man or Shaq's Steel?

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 03:57 PM PDT

Iron-man-versus-steel
Feed-twFeed-fb

AUSTIN — In the 1997 superhero action movie Steel, Shaquille O'Neal played the armor-clad title character who along with his arsenal of weapons tries to obliterate criminals. But what if instead of fighting bad guys, Steel had to battle the modern-day Iron Man? Mashable asked Shaq to theoretically pit the heroes against each other in a fictitious epic showdown.

"Iron Man has me because he has better technology," Shaq said at South by Southwest.

"But if I would have had the same technology as Iron Man, I'd kick his ass."

"But if I would have had the same technology as Iron Man, I'd kick his ass."

Top 5 Apps for Kids This Week

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 03:31 PM PDT

Kidsapp
Feed-twFeed-fb

Chris Crowell is a veteran kindergarten teacher and contributing editor to Children's Technology Review, a web-based archive of articles and reviews on apps, technology toys and video games.

Nothing grabs children's attention like the unknown, and this week's apps will pique your little one's interest with themes like zombies and space. Throw some math and science into the mix to stretch those young minds. Click through the gallery to see which apps to download this week.

Children's Technology Review shared these five top apps for kids with us from their comprehensive monthly database of kid-tested reviews. The site covers everything from math and counting to reading and phonics. Download a free issue of CTR here.

This Soccer Ball Doubles As a Portable Generator

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 03:05 PM PDT

Soccket
Feed-twFeed-fb

In poverty-stricken areas, residents with limited resources often have to wait years for electricity to reach their area. One organization aims to address the real-world issue with Soccket, a soccer ball that harnesses energy

Soccket stores the kinetic energy built up while you play using a pendulum-like mechanism. Thirty minutes of kicking around can power an LED lamp for three hours. Check out the video, above, to see how it works

The ball is slightly heavier a standard soccer ball but doesn't need to be inflated, nor does it puncture in rough terrain. Its exterior is made of water-resistant foam and comes with a single bulb lamp

Grumpy Cat Wears Costumes to Hide From Fans

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 02:35 PM PDT

Joaquin-phoenix-thumb
Feed-twFeed-fb

Al Gore and Elon Musk couldn't compete with the SXSWi buzz generated by Grumpy Cat. Not that the grouchy feline cares.

Grumpy Cat didn't raise a whisker when you waited two hours in the rain to see her sleep. And don't even try to impress her by calling her your spirit meme. She's over it.

To escape the catarazzi's prying cameras, Grumpy Cat has invested in a wardrobe that disguises her sour face in celebrity-inspired looks. Take a flip through the gallery above to see Grumpy's cutest attempts at celebrity impersonations

Zelda Saves Link in This Fan Hack of 'Legend of Zelda'

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 02:20 PM PDT

Zelda-kicks-butt2
Feed-twFeed-fb

What would happen if Princess Zelda was the one to save Hyrule, and adventurer Link was trapped in one room waiting to be rescued?

That's the question a fan hack of a Legend of Zelda ROM asks. Professional animator Kenna W. changed the sprites for the ROM of the decades-old, 8-bit NES game so that Princess Zelda was the hero of the story, playable through the campaign, instead of just being the titular character of the series.

Kenna said in her blog she was inspired by last week's story of a father who modded Donkey Kong so the princess Pauline would save Mario.

"I wished I had someone who could have done that for me. Then I remembered. I'm an adult now. If he could work it out, I could too," she wrote.

New 'Game of Thrones' Trailer Promises More Violent Third Season

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 02:00 PM PDT

Daenerys-targaryn
Feed-twFeed-fb

With exactly two weeks to go until the third season of HBO's fantasy drama Game of Thrones premieres, fans are being tantalized with another minute-long trailer.

The newest Game of Thrones trailer, entitled "The Beast," starts with a quote from exiled knight Jorah Mormont's saying "There's a beast in every man. It stirs when you put a sword in his hand," alluding to the violence to come in the third season.

The upcoming season of Game of Thrones is based on the third book of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series.

In the trailer, we're treated with many shots of fan-favorite characters, including Daenerys Targaryen, Jon Snow, and a worse-for-the-wear Tyrion Lannister.

Why Leprechauns Shouldn't Use Social Media

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 01:40 PM PDT

Leprechaun-foursquare-thumb
Feed-twFeed-fb

Leprechauns Using Foursquare

Social media can be a risky thing for magical creatures. Look out for "End of the Rainbow" check-ins in your Foursquare feed this St. Patrick's Day.

Comic written and illustrated by Jerry King.

Click here to view this gallery

10 Disappointing Dogs That Sound Like Cats

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 01:19 PM PDT

Dogsthatsoundlikecats
Feed-twFeed-fb

Dogs are dogs. They pee up things, sniff butts, chase squirrels, bury bones and bark, right? That's how things should be, but we have uncovered some disturbing footage on YouTube — of dogs that sound like cats

Whether it's dogs purring, meowing or otherwise making kitty conversation, we think these clips will shock you to your very core

Take a look through our video gallery of meowing mutts above. In the comments section below, please share your disappointment at just how low these crummy canines have sunk

Image courtesy of Flickr, Brandon Cripps

Keep Your Laptop Running Smoothly With These Simple Tricks

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 12:33 PM PDT

Laptop1
Feed-twFeed-fb

Your laptop has a life expectancy. Like it or not, sooner or later that stylish piece of machinery will age into a wheezing, old fossil

If you find yourself experiencing separation anxiety, however, there are a few easy steps you can take to prolong your laptop's life. For instance, make sure it runs longer and smoother by refraining from running your battery down to empty, and by not running too many programs at once

Let the helpful folks at Hack College show you how in the video above.

Homepage image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, Matthew Bowden

Viral Video Recap: Must-Watch Memes of the Week

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 12:19 PM PDT

Crazycat
Feed-twFeed-fb

Who else would win the Internet this week aside from cats? Our favorite felines will have you glued to the screen in a compilation of "Best Cats of 2013," but they're not to be outdone by the web's latest rising star: seals

Watch some cute seal pups slip and slide on a surfboard as they try their hardest to catch some waves. In another video, cats showcase their limitless arsenal of entertaining talents with musical children's toys, small spaces and love of making other animals their slaves

The Slow Mo Guys use a tuning fork to splash things up and a rap battle of epic proportions ensues between Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla to determine which inventor brought the best tech to the world

Google Glass vs. Apple's iWatch

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 11:56 AM PDT

1815mashablethumb
Feed-twFeed-fb

Google Glass vs. Apple iWatch

Tech rivals Google and Apple both have exciting projects making headlinesProject Glass, Google's effort to create augmented reality glasses, should be available by the end of this year, while the iWatch, still considered an "alleged" Apple experiment, is expected to be profitable.

In this Sunday Comic, our friends Nitrozac and Snaggy at The Joy of Tech illustrate the race to win over consumers' wallets. Which device do you think will win?

Comic illustration provided by The Joy of Tech. Published with permission; all rights reserved.

Dump Google Reader for Feedly, All the Cool Kids Are Doing It

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 11:22 AM PDT

Feedly
Feed-twFeed-fb

The news that Google is shutting down Google Reader on July 1 of this year shook the Internet to its core this week. For many, it is the go-to feed aggregator that made looking deep into the heart of the online world possible from one window, and the news of its demise has us wondering what we'll do next. What next? How about dumping Google Reader and switching to Feedly? In fact, a half-million people already switched in only two days.

Having a sudden influx of 500,000 new users can be a lot to handle for any site, but Feedly seems willing to meet the challenges needed to greet lost Googlers with open arms. In a blog post, a Feedly blogger said the company is committed to keeping the site up and running despite the big jump in numbers.

Klipsch Bluetooth Headphones Offer Super Sound From 40 Ft. Away

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 10:59 AM PDT

Klipsch-thumbnail
Feed-twFeed-fb

High-end Klipsch took its time getting into the crowded wireless headphone market. It's there now with its on-ear set of Image One Bluetooth Headphones ($250). But was it worth the wait? Let's find out.

As I removed the Klipsch headphones from their packaging, I was impressed by their unusually small size. The earcups are slightly larger than most ears, but not so small that they'll let lots of extraneous sound through. They're sized just right.

Klipsch Image One Bluetooth Headphones

On my oversized head, the headphones weren't too tight a fit. Each of the extra-cushy earcups were pressing firmly against my ears

Even after an hour, I'm happy to say, they passed my comfort test with aplomb, never giving me that tired and overheated feeling I get from many headphones.

RIP Google Reader and Other Top Comments

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 10:38 AM PDT

Said-yavuz
Feed-twFeed-fb

When Google announced it would discontinue its Google Reader at the beginning of July, the web feed's loyal fan base was stunned. Reactions to the announcement were heartfelt; Mashable's Chris Taylor wrote an article called "Hey Google, We Still Love Reader" that was part op-ed, part love-letter; Todd Wasserman suggested Yahoo jump on the opportunity to create its own RSS news reader; someone even went so far as to submit a petition to President Obama asking him to save Reader. While none of these attempts have yielded results thus far, our readers found solace together as they commiserated in our comments section

Watch Justin Timberlake's Hilarious Moments From 'Timberweek'

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 09:45 AM PDT

Justin-timberlake
Feed-twFeed-fb

Justin Timberlake reunited with his late-night BFF, Jimmy Fallon, for five nights of music and comic mayhem in "Timberweek." Following his fifth return to Saturday Night Live, Timberlake appeared on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon for a week-long stint

Whether he's donning geeky braces in a summer camp skit or crooning the latest single from his highly-anticipated album, Timberlake is definitely a crowd-pleaser

The singer brought sexy back yet again with a barbershop quartet rendition of his 2006 hit. Dressed in less-than-charming multi-colored suits, Timberlake and the "Ragtime Gals" gave us a version that might just be better than the original

‘Angry Birds Toons’ Now Showing on an iDevice Near You

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 09:29 AM PDT

Angry-birds-toons
Feed-twFeed-fb

Late last month, Rovio announced it would be launching Angry Birds Toons, a new animated series based on the company's hugely popular Angry Birds franchise. Then just last week, it announced the series would be landing in a familiar place, namely, on iOS through the existing Angry Birds apps

Rovio also said the series would premiere today, March 17. And sure enough, Angry Birds Toons can now be watched on your iDevice through a dedicated video channel within the Angry Birds apps.

Presumably, all you need to view Angry Birds Toons is any of the latest versions of the original Angry Birds, Angry Birds Seasons, Angry Birds Rio, Angry Birds Space, and Angry Birds Star Wars for iPhone and iPad.

The 17 Worst Things About St. Patrick's Day

Posted: 17 Mar 2013 08:58 AM PDT

Worst-st-patricks-day
Feed-twFeed-fb

It's St. Patrick's Day, which means thousands of people will celebrate the patron saint of Ireland

How does one celebrate the man who brought Catholicism to the Emerald Isle? A 24-hour drinking fest, wearing plastic beads, clover-shaped sunglasses, and donning scantily clad green attire or graphic t-shirts that falsely advertise your faux Irish roots.

SEE ALSO: 20 Most-Shared Guinness Ads on YouTube

For some, St. Patrick's Day is like Christmas. There is nothing wrong with celebrating your heritage, but most people would prefer it didn't involve barfing in the street.

Here are 17 other things that make St. Patrick's Day the worst.


Back to the top