Hand Robotics

Facebook Timeline Goes Universal for Brand Pages: Now What?

Brayden Baskerville — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 10:17:08 +0000

ADOTAS – As promised (or threatened) for some weeks now, Facebook Timeline for brand pages goes live today. For some, it’s an anticlimax — many brands were eager to jump into the new layout right away, and even before Timeline was offered for brands pages there was some chatter about how prime that design was for sharing pertinent information and offers and for its capacity to (c’mon, everyone say it together) tell the story of your brand.

The general line of thought it that Timeline is a positive thing for brands, or at least that it should be if brands choose to play to its strengths. Some st

Find more…

This Week in Enterprise Software News

Ella Willoughby — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 05:51:53 +0000

SOFTWARE ADOPTIONS AND UPGRADES

Peace Hills Insurance selects UNIT4’s Agresso Business World Insurance “UNIT4 won this faceoff against Oracle JD Edwards, MS Dynamics GP, and MS Dynamics NAV thanks to its unique capabilities to effect business change within the software. Peace Hills plans to implement three Agresso ERP modules: Financials, Planner, and Expenses from Agresso suite.”—Aleksey Osintsev, TEC Research Analyst

Fluid control equipment manufacturer Vernay selects Epicor ERP ETO manufacturing, discrete manufacturing “As a legacy system replacement, Epicor ERP brings new capabilities and opportunities to the company. Support f

Find more…

Ted Talk [video]: Donald Sadoway on battery breakthroughs

Dylan Bini — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 05:08:47 +0000

MIT Professor Donald Sadoways lectures were good enough to convince Bill Gates to invest in his startup called Liquid Metal Battery. Now you can watch a glimpse of a mini lecture by Sadoway, because the TED conference just released Sadoways 15 minute TED talk.

Find more…

Amazon Frustrates With ‘Suspension’ Of Kindle Newspaper Additions

Brayden Baskerville — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 05:05:48 +0000

Amazon (NSDQ: AMZN) is denying a frustrated publisher’s claim that it has indefinitely stopped adding any more newspapers and magazines to its Kindle store around the world.

“Completely out of the blue, Amazon have told us they have decided to stop publishing any new newspapers on the Kindle indefinitely, worldwide,” says Gannett’s Herald & Times Group of Scotland, which was awaiting approval for its Kindle edition.

The Herald & Times says Amazon has suspended its approval of black-and-white editions submitted by publishers while it works through a backlog of submitted titles and reprioritises resources – a closure that is supposedly not permanent but which may be long-term.

But Amazon tells paidContent: “That’s not true—we are accepting newspapers on Kindle.

“However, we are not always able to immediately launch every publisher who contacts us using our more heavyweight integration method. For publishers

Find more…

WLST script to add DataSource and DBAdapter EIS Connection Factory

Ella Willoughby — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 14:30:17 +0000

Creating a EIS ConnectionFactory in your Database Adapter can be done with the WebLogic Administration Console, but of course this is also “scriptable”. What I needed was a script that created a Data Source with EIS Connection factory bound to the specific datasource.

First I created a properties file, let’s call it DsCf.properties. Every

Find more…

Q&A: Nigerian Communications Commission’s Dr Bashir Gwandu

Brayden Baskerville — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 08:13:24 +0000

During the Innovation Africa Digital Summit in Ethiopia, IT News Africa had the opportunity to talk to Dr Bashir Gwandu, Nigeria’s Communications Commission’s Executive Commissioner. Gwandu discussed the future of mobile devices in Nigeria, content creation and the country’s recent efforts to free up spectrum.

What we realized is that we dont have fiber on the ground; and that we don’t even have as much copper as we need. So we asked ourselves what infrastructure will allow for communication and the only solution that we can have is wireless- and the most important resource to allow that communication is spectrum.

We have a growing requirement for data with a lot of content coming out of Nigeria. Going i

Find more…

Gaj-it Guide: When Will Your Device Get Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich ?

Dylan Bini — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 22:17:06 +0000

Google’s Ice Cream Sandwich is a sore talking point for millions of Android device owners across the world at the moment – Googles plan to get all handsets running on the same software has been quite a ride. Well, were here to help well run through all the manufacturers who have promised ICS and see how they have faired on the first-quarter promises.

Ice Cream Sandwich was actually release in 2011 – three months later and the rollout is only really now getting into top gear. Given

Find more…

How to Get Swype on the Galaxy Nexus

Ella Willoughby — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:46:19 +0000

Merry Christmas GBM Galaxy Nexus Owners! Swype is here, unofficially.

By now, I am sure everyone knows that Swype doesnt work on the Galaxy Nexus. I expected them to have already worked on a version compatible with both ICS and the 720p screen resolution that the Galaxy Nexus sports since the unlocked GSM version had been out there a few months already. Thats wasnt the case and we, the owners of the Verizon Galaxy Nexus, are waiting patiently. Well, patiently isnt a word I can use for my own anticipation. I have been checking all over for the last couple weeks waiting for the real thing to become available.

Apparently, with the Holidays, I wasnt checking too closely.

Find more…

Four Steps to a Stable and Faster Wifi Connection

admin — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 11:37:37 +0000

When your Wifi network starts to hiccup from performance issues, it usually means the connection is not as stable as it could be. Telltale signs of a stability problem may range from sluggish web browsing experience to constantly losing your entire connection. Whether your network is set up in the home or work setting, issues such as these are perplexing enough to make your head spin — and not in a cool way.

An unstable and slow connection can no doubt throw a monkey wrench in your internet activities, but luckily, improving your wireless network is a relatively easy process. Find more…

The last iPad: future is here

admin — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:13:34 +0000

Today, the last year’s iPad 2 looks almost awful in the comparison to the new iPad. Its screen now looks mealy when viewed together with the last device from Apple. Comparing these two tablets, you immediately notice the improved quality of display. So, where will Apple go from this update?

Without question, it now beats all players in the quality of tablet screen. Actually, the display in the new iPad seems perfect at making pictures, video and text and it is doubtful Apple will improve the screen in the next year’s iPad model.

Find more…

FBI Still Struggling With Supreme Court’s GPS Ruling

Brayden Baskerville — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 03:40:07 +0000

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court said police had overstepped their legal authority by planting a GPS tracker on the car of a suspected drug dealer without getting a search warrant. It seemed like another instance in a long line of cases that test the balance between personal privacy and the needs of law enforcement.

But the decision in U.S. v.

Find more…

Nikon COOLPIX L26 16.1 Digital Camera in Red Is a Great Just Because Gift and has a New Lower Price

Dylan Bini — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 22:04:03 +0000

The Nikon COOLPIX L26 is available at Amazon for $116.00.

There are so many people who use their phones to take all their pictures. If you don’t have a phone that takes great photos or you just want quality pictures you could not get from a phone. The Nikon CoolPix L26 is a great camera that can make memories last a lifetime with the click of a button. It would make a great gift or just get one for you.

So easy to use—just turn it on and shoot! A

Find more…

To combat identity theft, protect computer, experts say

Ella Willoughby — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 08:13:35 +0000

In a survey of more than 600 people, the researchers found that computer users who were running antivirus, anti-adware and anti-spyware software were 50 percent less likely to have their credit card information stolen.

The study appears in the research journal Deviant Behavior.

“When you think about antivirus software protecting you, you might think about it keeping your files safe and not losing your music and photos,” said Thomas Holt, MSU associate professor of criminal justice and lead researcher on the project.

Find more…

How a natural gas van came to market with a DOE loan (shocking!)

Dylan Bini — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 10:18:04 +0000

A year after a startup making natural gas vans, called the Vehicle Production Group (VPG), closed a $50 million Department of Energy loan, the company began producing its inaugural van. Today, the Miami startup, which was the most recent beneficiary of the controversial federal program, is seeing hundreds of vehicles on the road, according to Fred Drasner, chairman of the company.

Founded in 2006, VPG is re-entering the spotlight lately partly because it was among the lucky five that were able to clinch loans from the DOEs Advanced Vehicle Technology Manufacturing program before the bankruptcy of Solyndra last fall led to a political backlash that seems to have made the DOE less willing to approve more loans.

Find more…

Transforming Your Organization? Start with Accounting

Ella Willoughby — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 09:30:14 +0000

Before the lean enterprise paradigm swept across the manufacturing industry, I doubt many business people would have considered accounting as a serious tool for changing the mindset of decisions makers and how businesses operate. It turns out, however, that there’s more than one way to do accounting, and the accounting approach an organization uses can have a significant impact on a business’s direction.

Let’s take a look at three specific areas of accounting and how traditional practices lead to inefficiencies and delayed decision making. Although the conventional approach may appear to be rock solid, it can be revised to support alternative principles to better address current business challenges.

Work-in-progress inventory. Any accountant will tell you that work in progress (WIP) is a company’s asset. A compa

Find more…