Blind man will drive a car tomorrow

No, you don't need to stay off the streets. For one, Mark Riccobono will be driving on a closed-circuit course at Daytona International Speedway. But the bigger reason is that Riccobono, despite being legally blind, should be perfectly safe behind the wheel of Ford's new blind-accessible vehicle.
It's the result of years of hard work since the National Federation of the Blind called for a car that blind people could drive back in the mid-2000s.

The NFB Blind Driver Challenge has found a winner with Virginia Tech and its Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory. They created a way to use "nonvisual interface technologies" allowing a person with no sense of sight - but all other faculties in check - to drive.
It's now ready for the world to see, as Riccobono will drive a Ford Escape hybrid equipped with the new technology tomorrow at Daytona International Speedway. It'll be part of the pre-race activities for the Rolex 24 event.
"I have been blind since the age of five, so I never got to try for a driver's license or drive a car without another person telling me which way to steer.  The NFB's leadership in the Blind Driver Challenge™ has taken something almost everyone believed was an impossible dream and turned it into reality.  I am looking forward to getting behind the wheel and demonstrating to the world that being blind does not prevent me from engaging in any activity I choose as long as I am able to get the information I need.  This will be a truly historic occasion for my blind brothers and sisters and for America, and I am humbled and proud to be part of it," said Riccobono in a statement.
The NFB is beaming with pride over the accomplishment. The group's president Dr. Marc Maurer said, "Capacity, imagination, and determination are all that is needed, and blind people have all of these qualities."


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Is Free Public Wi-Fi Safe?

y a Swords

If you work remotely or travel a lot for your job, you probably take advantage of free public Wi-Fi often. Unfortunately, that probably means you’re regularly opening up your devices and your data to serious security threats. And if you’re a heavy user of cloud services, which often store your data on a remote server rather than your computer, Wi-Fi security is even more crucial.
Most people these days have password-protected networks at home, so it’s unlikely that anybody is able to snoop on your data as it passes between your device and your router. But when you’re surfing the Web via a free public Wi-Fi at a cafe, library or airport, you should be suspicious of everyone, says technology consultant Leo Notenboom of Ask-Leo.com. “It’s trivially easy for any of them to be watching your unencrypted information flying by.”
Here’s what you need to know to stay safe next time you’re surfing on a free public Wi-Fi connection.
Free Public Wi-Fi Tip No. 1: Turn on your firewall.
The cafe might use firewall software to protect your computer from outside attacks, but that doesn’t protect you from other people surfing around the same Wi-Fi network inside the cafe. Be sure your computer’s firewall is turned on.



Free Public Wi-Fi Tip No. 2: Protect your smartphone or tablet.
If your smartphone or tablet connects to Wi-Fi networks, require it to ask your permission before joining any network. A lot of people never change the default network name, so if you logged on to your friend’s “linksys” network, your device will remember that and could automatically join any network of the same name in the future -- unless you tell it to ask your permission first.

Free Public Wi-Fi Tip No. 3: Use strong encryption.
Encryption works by disguising data that your computer wirelessly sends to a router. Without it, that person sitting near you at the cafe could use special software to intercept and see all the data that travels back and forth between your device and the router. And that means everything: emails, passwords and things you search for. That’s why it’s imperative, says Notenboom, to use encrypted sites when possible.
How do you know when a site offers encryption? Instead of “http” at the beginning of the address, you’ll see “https.” You’ll also see a little padlock icon in your browser window, usually on the bottom right.
What else should you consider encrypting?

• Your email. If you use a locally installed email program such as Outlook or Entourage, you can protect your mail and passwords by using something called SSL (secure sockets layer) on each of your accounts. This encrypts all your data when you send and receive email. Not all email providers allow the use of SSL, though, so check your provider’s help page.
• Your Facebook and Twitter pages. Facebook and Twitter recently began offering encrypted sessions; just go into your account settings and find the option that says “Always use https.”

• Your Google search. If you think the keywords you’re searching could be embarrassing or you prefer to keep your privacy, try the secure version of Google search. Instead of going to Google.com, do all of your searching at Encrypted.Google.com.

• Everything. Consider a VPN service. VPN stands for virtual private network and encrypts everything you send and receive. You can download free mobile VPN software from such a site as Hotspot Shield and everything -- instant messages, passwords, emails and websites -- will be virtually impenetrable to prying eyes whenever you’re using a free public Wi-Fi connection. Or if your employer offers its own VPN, always connect to it through your computer or mobile device.

“That guy in the corner of Starbucks with his laptop -- do you trust him with your private data?” asks Notenboom. Follow these Wi-Fi safety tips, and you won’t ever have to ever wonder.

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Hidden Camera At Your Home Technology

If you have need of a security camera, there are a number of routes you can take. The first thing you have to decide is whether or not you want the camera to be visible. If the answer is no, then you’ll get to dabble in the world of hidden cameras, which can be fun. There is a huge market for such devices, which means you have a nice variety to choose from. This “Plug” & Play hidden cam is one of my favorites.

Being the tech geek that I am, I have a lot of things plugged into the wall. That means that this particular hidden camera would blend right in with the rest of my stuff. I’m sure I could even find something for it to plug into (even though it won’t actually supply power to anything). The plug looks like any other power brick, but it cleverly disguises the camera (which records at 720 x 480 30fps) and an SD card. It uses motion detection to determine when to record. If for some reason it runs out of room, it will simply start recording over the earliest file. You’d better be protecting something mighty valuable with this camera, as you’re going to shell out $300 for one.

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Google challenges Apple with video chat service

Google has launched its own video chat service for Android smartphones to compete with the Facetime application on the iPhone.

The Nexus S, Android operating system smartphone Photo: AFP/GETTY

And unlike the Apple software, the video chat update to Google Talk works over 3G as well as WiFi networks. It uses the front-mounted cameras on high-end Android handsets.

According to the Google Mobile Blog, the new feature will be rolled out to the firm's own-brand Nexus S smartphone "in the next few weeks" as part of the Android 2.3.4 update.

Other smartphones running Google's mobile OS, such Samsung's Galaxy range, will get the update at an unspecified later date.

The service will go up against Apple's Facetime app, which was launched alongside the iPhone 4 last year, as well as third part apps such as Skype and Fring. Google has the advantage of integrating its video chat software with users' Gmail contacts list,

"You can now video or voice chat with your friends, family and colleagues right from your Android phone, whether they're on their compatible Android tablet or phone, or using Gmail with Google Talk on their computer," Google said.

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Governments probe Sony PlayStation Network hack

OKYO — The United States, Britain, Australia and Hong Kong are investigating the hacking and theft of personal data from Sony's PlayStation Network, which has 77 million users worldwide.
The PlayStation Network and Qriocity streaming music service were shut down on April 20 after what Sony described as an "external intrusion" and remain offline as the company upgrades security and works with Federal investigators.

A US House of Representatives panel Friday sent a letter to Sony chairman Kazuo Hirai with questions on the data breach.
"Sony's statement describes information illegally obtained to include account information as well as potentially profile information," said the letter from a panel of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which was posted on the Internet.
"Given the amount and nature of personal information known to have been taken, the potential harm that could be caused if credit card information was also taken would be quite significant."
The committee, which has scheduled a hearing on May 4 to discuss data theft issues, also asked Sony to explain why it believes credit card information was not taken despite being unable to determine the exact scale of the theft.
The Japanese electronics giant has said users' credit card data was encrypted but could not rule out the possibility that card data was obtained by hackers.
In Britain, the Information Commissioner's Office said it had contacted Sony and will make "further enquiries to establish the precise nature of the incident before deciding what action, if any, needs to be taken."
Australia's Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim also said he had launched an investigation.
"We're seeing more and more now information being held globally, and it's more incumbent upon organisations to make sure they do have strong security systems in place to protect that information," he told broadcaster ABC earlier this week.
Hong Kong Privacy Commissioner Allan Chiang said he was probing the breach and met with local Sony official Katsuhiko Murase who told him 400,000 Hong Kong PlayStation Network user accounts were involved.
He said Murase told him the account information compromised includes the name, address, country, email address, birthdate, PSN password and login, and PSN online ID of users but there was no evidence that credit card data was taken.
Sony is being sued in a US court by gamers who have accused the company of being negligent and breaching its contracts with PlayStation Network users.
The company has not indicated whether it has identified a culprit in the intrusion.
Internet vigilante group Anonymous had vowed retribution against Sony for taking legal action against hackers who cracked PS3 defences to change console operating software.
Sony has sold about 48 million PS3 consoles worldwide since they hit the market in November of 2006.

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Amazing Folding Bike Bag

The Folding Bike Bag by Bergmonch is a fun and useful combination of a backpack and downhill bicycle great for hiking uphill and riding down. This 9.5kg Folding Bike Bag features a folding mechanism which keeps it small and handy while it rests comfortably on your back and provides easy access to your equipment.

 When you hike up to the very top the backpack can be converted into a fully spring-mounted downhill vehicle in only two minutes. Instead of just walking down hill the Bergmonch makes your descent descent into a thrilling experience even on rough trails.

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Tom Cruise to drive BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics in Mission Impossible 4

By Aeyana
Mumbai- Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise will be seen driving the BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics in his upcoming film Mission Impossible 4. This car was recently seen in the streets of Prabhadevi in Mumbai.

The first look of the car itself made passers by go gaga over it. This is a 4-seater Supercar with high profile magnitude technology. Not much details of this supercar have been revealed.
The supercar comes with a torque of 590 lb/ft and produces about 356 horse power. It has a top speed of 250 km/hr and is likely to cross all the confines of our imagination. The car travels 100 km/hr.
This car was brought to India especially for the shooting of the 4th series of the renowned Hollywood film Mission Impossible.
The car made its debut in 2009 at the Frankurt motor show. The BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics is available in a hybrid diesel version which reduces emission and increases fuel efficiency.
BMW is all set to launch their latest model—the BMW VED by latest 2013. This car is presently just a concept. Mercedes Benz too is not far behind.
It is also gearing up to launch its new car akin to VED in the coming years.
(Reporting by Aeyana in Mumbai- Editing by Reeyanki)

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Facebook's Like button celebrates its first birthday

By Ben Parr, Mashable
Exactly one year after its launch, the Facebook Like button has become ubiquitous across the web and is still installed on thousands of new websites every day.
Facebook first introduced the Like button at its F8 developer's conference, along with Facebook Open Graph and instant personalization. Through the "Like," Facebook spread its social footprint across the web; 50,000 websites installed the Like button in its first week, and that number rose to 100,000 in less than a month.
That number hasn't stopped rising since. Facebook said Thursday that 10,000+ websites add the Like Button every day — identical to what COO Sheryl Sandberg said in October last year. In other words, the growth of the Like button hasn't slowed down in the past six months. The social network says more than 2.5 million websites have integrated with Facebook so far, including more than 80% of the top 100 websites in the U.S.
Facebook's success hasn't gone without notice. Google recently launched +1, its answer to Facebook's Like button, and a study last month by Eventbrite concluded that a "Like" is more profitable than a tweet.

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Google Defends Way It Gets Phone Data

WSJ.com Senior Technology Editor Julia Angwin reports Apple's iPhone and Google's Android regularly transmit user location data back to those companies, based on data analyzed by The Wall Street Journal.

Amid rising scrutiny of their practices, Google Inc. defended the way it collects location data from Android phones, while Apple Inc. remained silent for a third day.
The companies' smartphones regularly transmit locations back to Google and Apple servers, respectively, according to data and documents analyzed by The Wall Street Journal.
Research by a security analyst this week found that an Android phone collected location data every few seconds and sent it to Google several times an hour. Apple disclosed in a letter to Congress last year that its phones "intermittently" collect location data, and the company receives it twice a day.

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