Recently in Gadgetry and Geekery Category

I haven't seen this story reported elsewhere, so I thought it was worth noting, particularly for the speech technology tie-in:

OC3 Entertainment's FaceFX Product to Use Fonix VoiceIn Technology

OC3 is the developer of FaceFX, a facial animation technology for game development. Integration of Fonix's VoiceIn technology will enable more realistic animation and add support for a number of languages. Besides adding realism to game characters, the technology will be used for enhancement of in-game voice chatting.

The press release, although interesting, doesn't give many details about what FaceFX does (maybe they were paying for PR copywriting on a per-word basis), but from OC3's Web site, I gather that the technology allows better synchronization between a character's audio track and the movements and expressions on the character's face. The site shows a good screen shot of the FaceFX user interface at:

http://www.oc3ent.com/images/facefx/preview_window.jpg

Good marketers show screen shots like this on their Web sites, IMHO. Good going, OC3! One thing further that would enhance the presentation would be an animated demo showing a character created with the technology. Oh, wait, now I see they do have a demo -- here's a link to a great movie showing two action-hero game characters acting out the old Abbott and Costello "Who's on First" routine -- it's a hoot:

http://www.oc3ent.com/WhosOnFirst.wmv

AB -- 8/31/05

It's wonderful for us here at TMCnet to be the recipients of public relations efforts translated into English from other languages. Press releases can serve as a delightful means of cross-cultural education. This press release arrived today:

A member of United Fun Traders, J2ME games developer, HeroCraft launched new game 'Black Shark'

The announcement is sent out by United Fun Traders of St. Petersburg, Russia. United Fun Traders describes itself as a consortium with "a bulging portfolio of mobile products and services," providing marketing support for Russian mobile content developers. This particular release is sent out in behalf of developer HeroCraft in honor of the launch of its new game 'Black Shark.'

The release opens with the following evocation of nostalgia:

"In childhood everybody dreams to be an astronaut or pilot. Every pilot dreams to fly on one of the fastest and dangerous heavy armored modern helicopter -- K-50 'Black Shark.'"

Well now that I think about it, if I really try I can in fact reach back to a time in my childhood when such a prospect would have been appealing. It's not anything I'm proud of. The press release introduces us next to the game's scenario:

"Your objective is to demolish the military bases of the enraged terrorist organization 'Children of Danawa,' which, by some incomprehensible means, have run into possession of nuclear weapons."

Recognizing that this game is developed in Russia might make the source of these nuclear weapons somewhat more comprehensible.

And the release adds to the realism with:

"Ten secure military bases are ready to make a nuclear explosion. The lives of many people are in powerful arms and armored cabin of your war machine. Can you fight against endless enemies?"

That just about sums up my experience in the business world for the past 25 years.

Today's release continues with game instructions and frequent warnings not to let the enemy launch his nuclear missiles and closes with a word of encouragement:

"Good luck on the battlefield!"

Developer HeroCraft is headquartered in Kaliningrad, Russia. And to give you an idea what-all is included in the "bulging portfolio" of products, today's release gives a list of HeroCraft's other titles, which include:

"Airship Racing: Around The Globe," "Ball Rush," "Bikini Balls," "Black Shark," "Bubble Revolt," "Dragon and Dracula," "Dragon and Dracula Iceland Adventure," "Erotic Galaxy," "Governator: Unleashed Power," "Top Guy: Governator," "Kamikaze Quest: The God's Wind," "Robo,","Robo2," "Mummy and The Beauty," "Sky Corsairs."

AB -- 8/15/05

I haven't seen this announcement anywhere else, so I thought I would take note of it:

New Universal Remote Control Software -- NoviiRemote Deluxe for PPC Will Be Available in August

The NoviiRemote Deluxe application turns your PocketPC into a universal remote control. It's customizable so you can create your own buttons and layout. Probably every gadget geek already knows this, but from what I gather your PDA can function as a remote through its infrared port. Older versions of NoviiRemote work with Palm OS, Windows Mobile and Treo devices.

Here's an illustration from their Web site to give you an idea what the possibilities are:

AB -- 7/26/05

For the most part, I've given up hope of ever having time to play computer games again. But I have to admit that an announcement like this gets my attention:

Her Interactive Transforms First Nancy Drew Novel into a Windows PC Game Honoring the Series' 75th Anniversary; Nancy Drew: Secret of the Old Clock Hits Store Shelves this Week

Maybe guys weren't supposed to feel this way, but I always enjoyed the old Nancy Drew novels as much as the Hardy Boys, Rick Blaine or Tom Swift. And I'm much more drawn to a computer game that involves solving a puzzle than to one that requires me to pretend I am destroying other life forms.

Today's news release gives some idea of the scenario of "The Secret of the Old Clock":

"The game opens with Nancy driving her classic blue roadster to the Lilac Inn in the sleepy town of Titusville. A mutual friend has suggested that Nancy look in on 17-year-old Emily Crandall who has inherited the inn from her recently deceased mother. After a mere month, Emily is straining to keep up with the management and financial demands of the inn. Nancy is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery.

"Players step into the shoes of Nancy Drew as they are challenged to figure out the root of Emily's problems. They can travel around town supporting themselves with part time jobs and casually chatting with Emily and her circle of acquaintances who provide clues. There's the friendly but stressed local banker, the ESP expert who lives near the inn and Emily's guardian, always distracted but constantly around to help.

"For the first time, players will be able to drive around town in Nancy's car with the aid of a map. They will also tie together clues from a myriad of puzzles. In addition, there's a mini-golf game within the game."

Mini-golf, no less! Well, I'm impressed!

User experience? The Web site of publisher Her Interactive does provide some screen shots. This one caught my eye -- a little reminiscent of Myst, perhaps:

And old Nancy Drew enthusiasts will no doubt be entertained by this rendering of Nancy's snappy blue roadster:

So now that I have lost all credibility as a technology blogger, I had better get busy looking for some hard science to report on next ....

AB -- 7/25/05

This news item from TMCnet's feeds caught my eye today:

Human Service Mission to the International Lunar Observatoriesp>

Like many press releases, as a stand-alone item it left me scratching my head. According to the release, a company named SpaceDev has received a small contract from Lunar Enterprise Corporation to "create a conceptual mission architecture and mission design for a human servicing mission to the Lunar south pole targeted for the period of 2010 to 2015."

Now as I understand it, a human servicing misson is a space mission to be performed by actual humans riding in a spacecraft, as opposed to a robotic mission controlled remotely. But what in the world is on the Lunar north pole that could need servicing, I wondered? Obviously, additional research was called for.

Investigation revealed that the funding organization for the just-announced project, Lunar Enterprise Corporation, is a group formed to advance the development of human projects on the moon. One of their proposed projects is the establishment of an observatory at the south pole of the moon. So if I understand correctly, the mission design project announced today would essentially help in the planning and budgeting for maintenance of this proposed observatory.

Is this a serious project? Yes. (Likely to happen? I don't know. Feel free to chime in.) Starting lunar development with an astronomy project certain sounds sensible. Space Age Publishing Company, the parent organization for Lunar Enterprise Corporation, has longer-range ideals, though. Consider this quote from the company's Web site:

"It is common knowledge in the scientific and space community that, in order to save humanity from an inevitable cataclysmic event, a better understanding of the universe and steps toward becoming a multi-planet species (each starting with the Moon) must be achieved."

Serious stuff, no?

In case you're wondering what it would look like, here is an artist's conception of the proposed lunar observatory:

AB -- 7/22/05

This news item seemed quirky enough to take note of:

Alabama Man Sets New World Record Cash-In of Largest Penny Collection; More Than 1.3 Million Pennies Cashed In Using Coinstar Machine at Local Escambia County Bank

And I thought my uncles were weird!

Some intriguing things about the story:

The guy collected these pennies for 38 years and had them stored in his garage in four 55-gallon drums and three 20-gallon oil barrels. They weighed more than 4.5 tons.

Coinstar says there is over $10.5 Billion in loose change sitting around people's homes in the U.S.

According to today's release, a Coinstar machine can count up to 600 coins per minute, and the story only mentions one machine at this guy's local bank in Flomaton, Alabama. I'm wondering, did the guy stand at the machine for 36 hours spilling in coins?

1,308,459 pennies is only $13,084.59. I guess if I saw $13,084.59 lying on the ground I would pick it up (unless it was all in pennies) -- but still, that doesn't sound like such a great payoff for all the hassle involved!

AB -- 6/23/05

... pretty much like the old one!

Since the TMCnet Web site is down and I can't publish anything except on this blog, I thought I would just take a moment to express wry amusement over this story from CNN/Money:

New-look PT Cruiser unveiled

I suppose PT Cruiser enthusiasts will be able to pick out dozens of things that are different about the 2006 version, but honestly, nothing stands out to me:

AB -- 6/16/05

I have podcasting on my mind right now, as we just finished our most successful podcast yesterday -- had Aculab's David Duffett conferenced in from England -- check it out by going to TMCnet's podcast page here.

But doing research today, I found some commentary referring to podcasting as "time-shifted radio," which I thought was a great description, borrowed I think from the realm of Tivo. (This is probably nothing new to veterans. At TMC, we're rank newbies at podcasting, although we love it and it has become an important part of our weekly publishing cycle.)

I found another commentator saying something along the lines that 'no, it's not time-shifted, it's on-demand.' So I though those two ideas were worth noting and recording -- time-shifted, on-demand.

Wikipedia has a great entry about podcasting here.

AB -- 6/11/05

Smart marketers are often alert to tie in their product claims with current news events, so the following press release title brought a smirk to my lips:

Devastating Landslide in Laguna Beach Could Have Been Averted or Minimized by New Predictive Mapping Technology by Geoka

This timely headline came less than 24 hours after news reports of the Laguna Beach landslide, which destroyed about 15-20 homes in that affluent California community. Homeowners had to flee their homes when they awoke to the sounds of rending structural members and exploding water pipes.

But setting aside my commentator's jadedness, Geoka makes some good arguments in its release:

"The new hazard mapping technology from Geoka shows the exact locations of the natural processes which led to the devastating landslide in Laguna Beach this week. Geoka's Ladwein Map explains the causes of the landslide by disclosing where strong rain weakened the soil, leading to the property damage ....

"The Geoka technology differs strongly from conventional methods used by geologists. While traditional geological appraisals require investigations, drillings and chemical soil examinations, the new technology of Geoka allows for a software based analysis by a 3D model of the area. Conventional methods usually do not detect unidentified weak zones, while the Ladwein Map of Geoka will uncover the cause of previously unknown weak zones."

Geoka's Web site includes great illustrations showing how Ladwein maps can identify unstable terrain. Here's an example of the Ladwein map of La Conchita, Calif., site of a devastating landslide earlier this year:

Glad I didn't build a home below that yellow circle.

Richard Ladwein, scientific director of Geoka, developed the SPIRS procedure, described as a "procedure for an automated disclosure of areas which are threatened by natural hazards." SPIRS stands for "Structure Process Inclination Response System" and is explained on the Geoka web site. Unlike many web sites I visit, Geoka's is rich with illustrations and details about the company's services and technology.

AB -- 6/3/05

This announcement just caught my eye:

Zarlink Introduces World's First Wireless Chip Designed Specifically for In-Body Communication Systems

Designed for implanted medical devices, Zarlink's ZL70100 is a low-power RF transceiver chip that allows data communications over a two-meter range, far enough to allow wireless communications between an in-body device and a base station for patient health monitoring.

Today's release provides some suggested applications for the technology:

"... an ultra low-power RF transceiver in a pacemaker can wirelessly send patient health and device performance data to a bedside base station in the home. Data is then forwarded over the telephone or Internet to a physician's office, and if a problem is detected the patient goes to the hospital where the high-speed two-way RF link can be used to easily monitor and adjust device performance."

"During surgery, a physician can use the higher data rates and longer communication range afforded by MICS technology to program the performance of an implanted device outside of the sterile surgical environment."

"The higher data rate and extended communication range of our radio transceiver enables advanced in-body communication systems, such as implanted blood glucose sensors controlling insulin intake for diabetes patients, networked stimulators restoring lost limb function or pacemakers using the high-speed wireless link to signal emergency response during a cardiac event." (Here quoting Steve Swift, senior vice president and general manager, Ultra Low-Power Communications, Zarlink Semiconductor.)

Zarlink's product data sheet suggests that this chip might be used in pacemakers, ICD’s, cochlea implants, neurostimulators, implantable insulin pumps and bladder control devices.

Bladder control devices? That last item rather sparked my imagination and encouraged me to delve deeper into the product literature. If there's a possibility that someday this chip might be used inside me as part of a bladder control device, I would be very curious to know its dimensions. Unfortunately, Zarlink's product literature does not include this essential detail. What is Zarlink trying to hide, the inquiring mind wants to know?

Anyway, perhaps you will get some idea of the nature of this component from the following photo:

AB -- 5/31/05