Sean Parker and Lars Ulrich talk Napster vs. Metallica, hug it out with Spotify

One of today’s many , many Spotify announcements was that legendary thrashers Metallica would be coming to the streaming service. As part of the announcement CEO Daniel Ek brought out the bands notoriously outspoken drummer Lars Ulrich and Spotify board member Sean Parker who, as you might remember, had a hand in founding Napster . While there was some broad discussion about the direction of the music industry and the future of music consumption, a large chunk of the half hour-long conversation revolved around the shared history of the two and the legal feud between the pioneering file sharing service and the band. The two were surprisingly cordial, if slightly uncomfortable looking, and delved deep into the details of what both described as a “street fight” between the parties. Ultimately, both admitted that things got blown out of proportion and escalated unnecessarily. But there also seemed to be some admission by Lars that there was an element of Luddism to his band’s reaction. To see the entire, extremely interesting conversation, check out the video after the break. Continue reading Sean Parker and Lars Ulrich talk Napster vs. Metallica, hug it out with Spotify Filed under: Internet Comments

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Sean Parker and Lars Ulrich talk Napster vs. Metallica, hug it out with Spotify

Bloomberg: Blockbuster to sell phones at brick-and-mortar locations

If the sight of remaining Blockbuster stores shocks you, brace yourself for another surprise: they could soon be selling smartphones alongside your 80s comedies. Dish Networks may have dashed its dreams of turning Blockbuster into a Netflix competitor, but according to a pair of Bloomberg sources, the firm will be pushing the veteran video rental chain into the smartphone retail arena. Blockbuster has already been peddling handsets online, but it’s said the sales will be extending to the chain’s roughly 850 remaining brick-and-mortar locations. According to the outlet, Dish CEO Charlie Ergen has planned on charging Blockbuster with smartphone sales since picking the company up last year . Bloomberg also notes that the move could signal Dish Network’s entry into offering mobile phone service, a la AT&T and Verizon — it’s sure gaining the spectrum to do so. Sure, the move might take the video store in an odd direction, but its not as if you won’t be able to watch movies on your Blockbuster-bought smartphone. [Image Credit: Josh Smith, Flickr ] Filed under: Cellphones , Mobile Comments Via: Gizmodo , The Verge Source: Bloomberg

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Bloomberg: Blockbuster to sell phones at brick-and-mortar locations

Windows Phone now home to 120k apps, downloads and dev revenue rising post-WP8

Windows Phone 8 is a roaring success! That is if you ask the platform’s Senior Director, Todd Brix, who tweeted today that developer revenues and downloads have doubled since its launch in November. While this sounds all good, what does it really mean? Back in June, the former Windows Phone Marketplace surpassed 100,000 published apps . To further gauge the platform’s progress, Nokia recently announced that the Windows Phone Store now has over 120,000 apps, with 46 of the top 50 iOS and Android applications being available for WP8. While today’s vague declaration of success didn’t reveal any specific numbers, a 20 percent software increase in under six months is definitely something to smile about. As much as we’d like to slap Microsoft a high-five, we’ll have to save our jubilation until we get a little something more concrete — hopefully a set of official statistics will Surface sooner than later. Filed under: Software , Mobile , Microsoft Comments Source: Todd Brix (Twitter) , Nokia

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Windows Phone now home to 120k apps, downloads and dev revenue rising post-WP8

Microsoft Office 2013 now available to businesses, wide release still set for Q1 2013

Right on time , businesses with the inside track to Microsoft’s account team and partner program can now snag the latest version of Redmond’s content production software suite, Office 2013 . What’s that? You’ve got the hook up, but you were also hoping for Exchange Server 2013, Lync Server 2013, SharePoint Server 2013, Project 2013, and Vision 2013? You’ll be happy to hear that those are also available today — the already announced “first quarter 2013” release window for Office 2013 stands, when it’ll become widely available both digitally and at direct retailers. The big update to Office this time around comes in the form of Windows 8-style visuals and cloud-based saves using Microsoft’s SkyDrive service. We’ve got a full hands-on right here if you’d like to learn more ahead of next year’s big launch. Filed under: Desktops , Internet , Software , Microsoft Comments Via: WinSupersite Source: Microsoft

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Microsoft Office 2013 now available to businesses, wide release still set for Q1 2013

Hacker group rewriting Tumblr pages into a racist, anti-gay screed (update: Tumblr says it’s fixed)

Some Tumblr users are seeing their pages replaced with several dozen duplicate posts from a known hacker group, warning that deleting said message will delete the Tumblr page in question (it’s unclear if this is actually true, but seems to be false in our testing). Tumblr confirmed the ongoing issue to us this morning, and warned users who’ve seen the message to “please log out of all browsers that may be using Tumblr,” as that’s one way the “viral post” is being spread. The message from the group is aimed at the wide world of “bloggers,” and insists Tumblr users should take their own lives. Tumblr says its team is “working to resolve the issue as swiftly as possible,” though there is no timeline for when it’ll be fixed. In the meantime, we suggest changing your Tumblr password (though there’s no indication that passwords were necessarily taken, or any other personal information) and staying away from the site until the all clear is given. Thus far, it doesn’t seem that any previously written posts have been deleted, but simply pushed dramatically far down the timeline by a deluge of duplicate posts. We’ll update this post as we learn more. Update: A Tumblr rep tells us, “Tumblr engineers have resolved the issue of the viral post attack that affected a few thousand Tumblr blogs earlier today.” The sites we were seeing affected earlier seem to have returned to normal. Filed under: Networking , Internet , Software , Mobile Comments Source: GNAA.eu

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Hacker group rewriting Tumblr pages into a racist, anti-gay screed (update: Tumblr says it’s fixed)

Microsoft confirms Surface with Windows 8 Pro pricing: starting at $899 for 64GB version, shipping in January

Details on the Pro variety of Microsoft’s Surface tablet have been hard to come by since the company first announced it back in June , but it’s filled in some big ones today. It’s confirmed in a blog post that the device will start at $899 for the 64GB model, with the 128GB version setting you back $999. Both of those are what’s Microsoft’s dubbing the “standalone” model, which means you’ll get a Surface pen/stylus, but have to shell out extra for a Touch or Type Cover (each over $100). Both will be available in January, although there’s no specific date or word on pre-orders yet. As you can see, the device looks similar to the Surface RT , including the same “VaporMg” casing and built-in kickstand, and it also boasts a 10.6-inch display with a 16:9 aspect ratio. A key difference with that latter bit, though, is that the screen packs a full 1920 x 1080 resolution as opposed to the 1366 x 768 found on the RT model. You’ll also get a third-gen Core i5 processor with Intel HD Graphics 4000 (no more specifics on that just yet), 4GB of RAM, a Mini DisplayPort that can output a 2560 x 1440 resolution, a full-size USB 3.0 port and, of course, Windows 8 Pro with support for all your traditional desktop applications. All that expectedly makes the tablet itself a bit heftier than its RT-based counterpart — it’s just over half-an-inch thick and weighs in at two pounds on the nose. Update: The spec list confirmed that the Surface Pro will have a 42 W-h battery, but Microsoft has now also expanded on that in a tweet , saying that the device is expected to “have approximately half the battery life of Surface with Windows RT.” Based on our testing of the RT version, that should translate to just over four-and-a-half hours. Filed under: Tablets , Microsoft Comments Source: Official Microsoft Blog , Microsoft

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Microsoft confirms Surface with Windows 8 Pro pricing: starting at $899 for 64GB version, shipping in January

Popslate launches iPhone 5 case with four-inch E Ink screen (video)

This is pretty darn cool. It’s called Popslate — an iPhone 5 case with a four-inch E Ink screen on the back — and it’s launching right now on Indiegogo for $79 in two colors. Combined with a bespoke social imaging app, it lets you take and share pics, then “pop” them to the back of your phone. Better yet, the always-on, ultra low-power, black and white display becomes a canvas for notifications, sports scores, maps, lists and notes, all just a glance away. An open API allows third-party developers to design custom apps for Popslate — including accelerometer support to interact with the backside screen by tapping on it. Imagine a micro e-reader app which uses the E Ink display instead of the main panel to conserve battery. The company is still in the early stages of development and sadly didn’t have a prototype to show us, but it’s already gathered a team of talented designers, engineers and developers. It’s also secured a partnership with E Ink to use the latest in ruggedized e-paper technology and is hoping to raise enough funds to make Popslate a reality. Two colors are available at launch (black and white) with prices starting at $79 for the first 500 supporters, then $99 and up. Hit the break for the demo video and IndieGogo link. Continue reading Popslate launches iPhone 5 case with four-inch E Ink screen (video) Filed under: Cellphones , Mobile Comments

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Popslate launches iPhone 5 case with four-inch E Ink screen (video)

Japan unveils prototype of new maglev train, promises speeds of up to 311 mph

More than a year after the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Tokai) received construction approval to get going on its maglev railways, it has finally unveiled a Series L0 prototype that would put its current bullet train system to shame. Designed to travel at 311 mph, a single one of these high-speed marvels is designed to carry about 16 carriages, which translates to about 1,000 commuters. While Japanese travelers already enjoy a speedy 90-minute trip from Tokyo to Nagoya, this new maglev system promises to cut that journey to just 40 minutes. Announced nearly five years ago , the project has since been extended to include an Osaka-Tokyo leg and will cost around nine trillion yen (approximately $112 billion) when all is said and done. Don’t pack your bags just yet though; the maglev’s Nagoya rail isn’t scheduled to go live until 2027, and the boarding call for Osaka isn’t until 2045. Of course, if you need to ride electromagnetic rails now , there’s always China’s Shanghai Transrapid, which has been ferrying passengers to and fro the Pudong airport since 2004 — it once reached speeds of 501km/h (311mph). China’s even planning a whopping 1,000 km/h vacuum-tube maglev train in just a year or so. Of course, those of us on the other end of the Pacific are still waiting for that long-delayed California-Nevada maglev project to work out. Sigh. Filed under: Transportation Comments Via: Inhabitat Source: Phys.org

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Japan unveils prototype of new maglev train, promises speeds of up to 311 mph

MediaPortal posts 2.0 alpha media hub and new remote apps, teases 1.3 beta with Titan

Home theater PC owners only just recovering from their turkey or tofu comas will have some updating to do — MediaPortal has been busy. The experimenters among us will most likely want to jump straight into the promised MediaPortal 2.0 Alpha Autumn , which carries new visual layouts and video backgrounds, a news plug-in and a party-friendly music player. New versions of remote tools like aMPdroid, MPExtended, WebMediaPortal and WifiRemote bring their own slew of upgrades, such as HTTP Live Streaming in MPExtended or a “what’s new” interface in aMPdroid. We’ll readily admit that our eye is most drawn to the yet-to-be-launched MediaPortal 1.3 beta’s addition of the Titan skin you see up above: going beyond what we saw in October, the extra-polished look goes a long way towards accommodating newcomers and the style-conscious. We’re still waiting on publicly accessible 1.3 beta code, but everything else is waiting for open-source media hubs at the included links. Filed under: Cellphones , Home Entertainment , Software , HD Comments Via: Missing Remote Source: MediaPortal (1) , (2) , (3)

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MediaPortal posts 2.0 alpha media hub and new remote apps, teases 1.3 beta with Titan

Hybrid 3D printer could fast-track cartilage implants

Most of the attention surrounding 3D printers in medicine has focused on patching up our outsides, whether it’s making skin to heal wounds or restoring the use of limbs . The Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine has just detailed a technique that could go considerably deeper. By mixing natural gel put through an inkjet printer with thin and porous polymer threads coming from an electrospinner, researchers have generated constructs that could be ideal for cartilage implants: they encourage cell growth in and around an implant while remaining durable enough to survive real-world abuse. Early tests have been confined to the lab, but the institute pictures a day when doctors can scan a body part to produce an implant that’s a good match. If the method is ultimately refined for hospital use, patients could recover from joint injuries faster or more completely — and 3D printers could become that much more integral to health care. Filed under: Science , Alt Comments Via: Gizmag Source: Institute of Physics

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Hybrid 3D printer could fast-track cartilage implants