Yes, cloud services like Dropbox make it easy to share folders through public directories and links, but you still have to put those folders in the cloud in the first place. Wouldn’t you rather share them straight from your PC? BitTorrent hopes to make things that direct with its big Sync 1.4 update . Now, you can share folders with others just by giving them web links; you don’t have to wait for the files to reach a remote server, or rely on Sync’s slightly more obtuse Key system. You don’t have to sign up for an account, either, and you can still limit access to prevent others from messing with precious documents. About the only headache is that your recipient needs Sync, although BitTorrent promises that it will walk first-timers through the process. The 1.4 release is also an excuse for BitTorrent to give Sync a much-needed interface makeover. While a lot of the basic concepts remain intact, the new front end is both prettier and easier to understand on Macs and Windows PCs — arguably very important when people are more likely to be trying Sync for the first time. You can grab the desktop upgrade (which includes Linux) right now, and matching updates for both Android and iOS should be ready later today. Filed under: Internet , Software , Mobile Comments Source: BitTorrent Blog

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BitTorrent Sync lets you share folders on your PC using web links

Like Uber but instead of needing to go somewhere, you want to eat lunch? UberFresh is perfect for you. Oh wait, do you also live in Santa Monica, CA? Because then it’s actually perfect for you. The service starts today, and, as advertised, you’ll swipe to the “UberFresh” section of your Uber app and a driver will bring you lunch. No, you don’t get in the car and go somewhere; think of it like app-based food delivery. For the service’s initial launch, your lunch options are limited to a single item per day (there’s a menu on Uber’s site right here ). Admittedly, the options for the first week look pretty delicious , and the Yelp rankings for each restaurant back up Uber’s choices as at least somewhat legit. There’s no update to download; you just have to live in Santa Monica and open up Uber. Head below the break for full instructions, care of Uber. HOW TO ORDER: 1. Toggle to the uberFRESH option on the far right of the slider between 11:30 am and 2:30 pm from August 26th – September 5th. (Closed on weekends and Labor Day) 2. Set your delivery location within the Santa Monica coverage area and request away 3. Upon arrival, meet your driver outside to grab your delicious lunch This is hardly Uber’s first foray into food. The company annually sponsors an ice cream truck day, wherein ice cream trucks are dispatched to a wide variety of locales ( 144 cities this year ), on-demand. Today’s addition of UberFresh is far more substantial, with a handful of restaurant collaborations and a test market in Santa Monica. Uber repeatedly calls it a test, and even has a definitive start and stop time for its run (“from Tuesday August 26th until Friday September 5th with the possibly of an extension; closed weekends and on Labor Day”). The aim isn’t just to move into food delivery, but to “disrupt” yet another industry; the legal battles Uber faces in “ridesharing” are likely less of a concern when it comes to food. As Uber puts it, this is UberFresh’s raison d’être : “Typical food delivery takes 45 minutes – 1 hour. uberFRESH delivers you healthy, fresh food in about 10 minutes. Rather than standing in long restaurant lines, trying to find parking at your favorite restaurant, or dealing with unpredictable delivery times, uberFRESH brings you a great lunch on-demand with none of the hassle.” The only rub is that drivers currently will not bring the food inside; it’s all “curbside” delivery. Here’s hoping there’s not a lot of rain in Santa Monica’s near future. For that tradeoff, though, there’s the standard no tipping policy and ease of use that comes with Uber. It’s an interesting experiment for sure, and one that’ll need to grow tremendously before reaching larger markets. Filed under: Cellphones , Handhelds , Tablets , Transportation , Internet , Software Comments Source: Uber

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Uber uses its fleet to deliver food with new ‘UberFresh’ service

Los Angeles’ grand dreams of putting iPads in schools came into question a month ago, and they’ve now come to a screeching halt. Superintendent John Deasy has suspended a contract with Apple to both “take advantage of an ever-changing marketplace” (read: diversify hardware) and, crucially, to investigate recently raised ethical concerns. Allegedly, both Deasy and a top deputy have close links to executives at both Apple and curriculum provider Pearson, calling the whole iPad program into question; it suggests that officials were doing personal favors rather than taking kids’ needs into account. Deasy is quick to claim that his team was only working closely with Apple and Pearson on the pilot, not the contract, and offered a deal to another major vendor. Whether or not that’s true, the suspension suggests that the vision of an iPad in every LA classroom may never come to pass — it’s more likely that the broader device selection is here to stay. [Image credit: Schooltechnology.org /Lexie Flickinger, Flickr ] Filed under: Tablets , Apple Comments Via: KTLA Source: LA Times

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LA freezes its iPad program for schools

Remember that rumored $1 billion deal Google worked out to purchase the internet’s most popular game-streaming service? Amazon may be taking it over. According to The Information , folks close to the deal say that Twitch and Amazon are in late stage talks for a $1 billion acquisition. Why the change in buyer? It’s not clear (or confirmed), though it might be a response to concerns that joining Google could stifle innovation or competition. Either way, neither company is talking about the rumor right now, though one person involved suggested that the deal could be formally announced soon. Update: Amazon and Twitch made the news official after this was published. Filed under: Gaming , Google , Amazon Comments Source: The Information

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Amazon reportedly ready to snatch Twitch away from Google (update: confirmed)

3D-printed implants just got one of their biggest real-world tests to date. Peking University Third Hospital has successfully implanted the first 3D-printed vertebra in a 12-year-old boy with cancer in his spinal cord. The bone substitute is made from titanium powder like many orthopedic implants, but promises to be both safer and longer-lasting than conventional replacements. Since it’s designed to mimic the shape of the child’s original vertebra, it doesn’t need cement or screws to stay in place; healing should go faster, too. The construct is full of small holes that let natural bone grow inside, so it should eventually become a permanent, stable part of the spine that won’t need adjustments at some point down the road. CCTV notes that the full results of this surgery won’t be available for some time. He’ll have to wear gear that keeps his head and neck still for the next three months, and it will likely take much longer than that before we know how well the implant holds up in real-world conditions. If everything goes smoothly, though, the surgery will be proof that 3D-printed bones are useful virtually anywhere in the body — and, in some circumstances, might save your life. [Image credit: Peking University Third Hospital] Filed under: Science Comments Source: Forbes

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Boy gets the first 3D-printed vertebra implant

LG only just brought its 55-inch 1080p OLED to a $3, 500 price that’s within the limits of mainstream credit cards, and it’s already back with something better. The curved 4K OLED TV we saw at CES is about to go on sale in Korea, and will arrive soon everywhere else, meaning well-heeled buyers don’t have to choose between Ultra HD resolution and the sweet black levels offered by this newer display technology. We don’t have an official US price for the TV yet, but HDGuru’s usually reliable retail sources say the 77-inch model (there’s also a 65-inch version in) will arrive for about $7, 000 next month. In Korea it’s priced at about 12, 000, 000 won ($11, 738), however US prices are usually much lower. LG exec Hyun-hwoi Ha isn’t mincing words either, calling the new display “the pinnacle of technological achievement” and saying the tech will overcome LCDs in sales in just a few years. Can OLED pull off what plasma couldn’t ? LG is betting it will — meanwhile Samsung seems convinced that OLED isn’t quite ready for prime time. Filed under: Displays , Home Entertainment , HD , LG Comments Source: LG Newsroom

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LG’s first 4K OLED TV is ready to kill LCDs once and for all

The influence of Hong Kong action cinema stars like Bruce Lee lives on in today’s cinema, but the ancient styles they based their techniques on are slowly dying out. But there’s now a crowdfuding project aimed at preserving the heritage of different Kung Fu fighting styles, called the Hong Kong Martial Arts Living Archive . It’s a collaboration between a martial arts society called the International Guoshu Association (IGU) and the City University of Hong Kong. The goal is to use photos, high-speed video, panoptic video and motion capture to capture and quantize the different techniques. The project organizers believe that fighting styles like Hung Kuen and Wing Kong from the south of China, along with various northern styles, are best preserved in Hong Kong. That’s because many of the Kung Fu masters from the nation’s north and south converged on Hong Kong due to political instability on the mainland around the turn of the 20th century. Rather than preserve such techniques in traditional 2D forms as shown above, the group wants to preserve a complete 4D analysis of the forms. On top of storing images, video and mocap data, it plans to include physical data like speed, torque, torsion and force data. That’s because different Kung Fu techniques use different body mechanics, which can’t be conveyed by mere drawings or oral descriptions. It’s also capturing a large amount of 3D panoptic camera data shot from six different angles. While a large amount of motion capture has already been performed by the City University of Hong Kong, its funds are starting to run dry. As a result, they’ve launched a crowdfunding campaign on FringeFunder , with the hope of raising $47, 000 to hire motion capture experts. The minimum pledge is about $39, which will get you perks like a framed certificate and project poster, with higher level pledges snagging Kung Fu tours in Hong Kong and even dinner with local celebrities. Check the video below for more information — and as a reminder of what they’re trying to preserve, watch Bruce Lee single-handedly transform US television. Filed under: Misc , Home Entertainment Comments Via: Off the Reservation Source: FringeBacker

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Crowdfunded project uses 3D motion capture to catalog ancient Kung Fu styles

Google’s Knowledge Graph is pretty good at telling you who was the 37th president of the US , or what the square root of 342345 is. Ask it more complex questions, like “why does the sun set at night?” and it’ll still send you off to find the answer yourself. Next week in New York, Google researchers will present a paper on its “Knowledge Vault, ” which Kevin Murphy of Google Research, describes as “the largest repository of automatically extracted structured knowledge on the planet.” Knowledge Vault applies machine learning (unlike Knowledge Graph which is an extension of community supported tools) to automatically trawl webpages, assimilating their facts, information and connections therein. Not only does this mean it’s faster, it can continually grow and update itself. The net result will be a huge database of knowledge, the likes of which would have been unimaginable just years ago. The real-world implications are that services like Google Now (or Siri et al) could get a huge boost in smarts — tapping into a much deeper well of understanding, knowing what, how and why things are related. This could lead to much more intelligent web services, or truly explode any limits of augmented reality (“ah, you’re in Berlin, and sent an email last week about museums, perhaps you want to visit the Museum Berggruen “). Unsurprisingly this comes at a privacy cost; analysts are expecting Google to leverage services like Gmail that contain your data (plus the data that’s public/online) bundled in with the rest of the world wide web. While there are no timelines on when we might see this implemented in live services, don’t be surprised when it’s not just your proximity to Sir Bacon that freaks you out, but how and why you’re so close, plus favorite films you have in common, and where you can go and see them locally. Filed under: Science , Software , Google Comments Via: New Scientist Source: CIKM

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Google’s ‘Knowledge Vault’ seeks the answer to life, the universe and everything

One of the unique features inside Google’s self-driving car is that it doesn’t sport a steering wheel or a set of pedals. That won’t fly on public roads in California though, so the folks in Mountain View are faced with adding them or sticking to closed-course testing . New regulations that go into effect next month require autonomous vehicles to let the driver take “immediate physical control” should the need arise. Google says it’ll adhere to the rule by installing a temporary steering wheel and pedals in its 100 prototype cars set to begin testing on private roads in September. Filed under: Transportation , Google Comments Source: Wall Street Journal

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California requires manual controls before Google’s car hits public roads

McDonald’s is taking on a new strategy to get us to eat more of its artery cloggers — one that involves ramping up its digital efforts. Golden Arches has just hired its first ever U.S. vice president of digital (former Ticketmaster exec Julia Vander Ploeg) and, at the same time, posted a bunch of relevant job opportunities . By the looks of it, the company wants to form a team of professionals under Vander Ploeg to be able to reach its goals, including offering “a variety of digital music and entertainment experiences” (as stated in its posting for a product director for music and entertainment) to its patrons. McDonald’s is also looking for people to improve its mobile website, develop games and, more importantly, release a global mobile ordering app that customers can use anywhere they are. Sadly, the company hasn’t elaborated on what its plans are at this point in time. And since you’re not the only one wondering if McDonald’s aims to release games and downloadable music in the future, we’ll keep an eye out for more details. Filed under: Misc Comments Source: CNBC

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McDonald’s plans to release global mobile ordering app, digital music program