Effing Meteors is a cataclysmic world-destroying physics Time Waster

Remember Effing Hail? Well, Effing Meteors belongs to the same genre, but with a couple of interesting twists.

You're looking at a side-view of a planet, complete with its layers of atmosphere. Above the planet, in space, there are meteors. These are hurtling towards the planet, but they're often not large enough to survive entering through the atmosphere, so they burn along the way.

Your job is to destroy the planet; or more specifically, destroy all living organisms on a given planet. You can do this because your cursor generates a gravity field. So you click one meteorite and hold; soon, that single meteorite starts attracting other meteorites in its vicinity and grows into something larger - a planetoid. Now when you smash that into the planet's surface, it does survive the atmosphere and generates quite a shock - perhaps even enough to destroy the population of that planet.

Once you destroy a planet, it simply "revolves", revealing a new planet. Each planet is different: Some planets shoot back; and there's a planet with dinosaurs that run away from you, and then flying saucers enter the picture and it all gets a bit hard to explain.

Bottom line: This is a really fun game, with innovative graphics. And sometimes you can win a level by simply doing nothing!

Effing Meteors is a cataclysmic world-destroying physics Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 31 Jan 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/31/effing-meteors-is-a-cataclysmic-world-destroying-physics-time-waster/

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Fujitsu and partners show off cord-free display using SUPA wireless power (video)

Cords suck. They tangle, they get lost, they're never long enough, and you never have the kind you need. Indeed, wireless displays are nothing new -- but when you hear "wireless display," you typically think that they've managed to cut the video cable alone. Well, Fujitsu's taken it one step further here at CeBIT this week, throwing together what it claims to be the world's first totally wireless desktop display -- no video, no power. The imagery is handled via wireless USB and can connect to any appropriately-equipped PC, while the juice is sucked in using a newly-minted proposed standard for wireless power delivery called SUPA (developed with the likes of Fraunhofer) that can function over wide surface areas -- in this case, an entire desk. Right now it's just the display, but it's easy to imagine how phones, laptops, tablets, and anything else that requires continuous power or a quick, convenient recharge could benefit from this arrangement rather than needing a special mat (which is, of course, corded) lying around. Fujitsu tells us that SUPA can deliver about 25 watts in its current incarnation, which isn't going to keep your gaming PC going -- but it'll certainly handle your typical handheld device (or, in this case, a 22-inch monitor).

The demo we saw was a little glitchy; the first time we visited the booth, Fujitsu was having a hard time getting the WUSB connection to light up, but it was up and running the second time we dropped by. We got the impression there wasn't quite enough bandwidth to deliver smooth video at this color depth and resolution, but it was good enough for data entry tasks. Likewise, the monitor appeared to flicker from time to time, suggesting that it was either right on the edge of that 25W maximum or just experiencing typical prototype hiccups. On a couple occasions, they lifted the monitor to reset it, and it only required 2-3 inches of lift before power was lost -- so this isn't the kind of thing where you can get up and wander around with a device and expect it to magically continue to charge (we'd be awfully concerned about being turned into beef jerky at those energy levels, anyway).

All told, we're excited about this technology, assuming SUPA can gain enough critical mass in the marketplace to be relevant. They're expecting the first commercial applications next year... so in the meantime, enjoy our pictures and videos while you plan how you're going to rearrange your workspace once you don't have to worry about power cords.

Gallery: Fujitsu and partners show off cord-free display using SUPA wireless power

Continue reading Fujitsu and partners show off cord-free display using SUPA wireless power (video)

Fujitsu and partners show off cord-free display using SUPA wireless power (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Mar 2011 11:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/gG9nC1vDAbk/

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Schumer Calls on Amazon, Twitter to Switch to More Secure HTTPS

New York Sen. Charles Schumer is asking Amazon, Twitter and other popular Websites to switch to the more secure HTTPS protocol, as Google and Facebook have. - U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer is on a new consumer-protection
mission. At a press event Feb. 27, he called on Amazon, Twitter and other major
U.S. Website operators to switch from the HTTP-based Web address protocol to the more secure HTTPS-based addresses, according
to a Feb. 28 report from Reuters.
...

Source: http://feeds.ziffdavisenterprise.com/~r/RSS/eweekwireless/~3/YLDk_qLPRa8/

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Android 2.3.2 Gingerbread leaks for Samsung Galaxy S

Not every Galaxy S user around the globe even has Froyo yet -- but Samsung's ready to move on, it seems, crafting a ROM based on Android 2.3.2 (in other words, quite recently) for the i9000 model that just leaked across the giant faucet better known as the internet. The darned thing is nearly a quarter gigabyte in size, so Samsung's not playing here, but users haven't fleshed out everything that's changed just yet. Of course, if you're using one of the millions of Galaxy S devices that aren't an i9000, you've got more waiting to do... but we're certain hackers are already well underway tearing this bad boy apart and crafting custom ROMs for various SKUs. Hang tight!

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Android 2.3.2 Gingerbread leaks for Samsung Galaxy S originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 17:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/n3y8IoR9KPs/

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How to change the screen time-out on Android

This week's tips series was all about Android, highlighting some the operating system's built-in utilities, and better ways of getting stuff done. For other technology tips, check our Tips index.

Earlier today, I was helping my brother set up his new Motorola Defy. While the phone itself was quite nice (and tough), the screen kept turning off after just a few seconds of idle time. It was starting to drive us crazy, but after quickly poking through the settings we fixed it. Here's how:

1) Go to Settings > Display

2) Tap Screen timeout

3) Tap the timeout value you wish to use

Of course there's a trade-off between convenience and battery life - having the screen time out after two whole minutes can be nice, but your battery may not last very long. And while you're here, you can also easily adjust your display's brightness.

This tip wraps up this week's Tips series. What would you like to see next week? Let me know in the comments!

How to change the screen time-out on Android originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/28/how-to-change-the-screen-time-out-on-android/

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Gmail app for Android adds custom label colors, improved text select

Google has delivered another pair of tweaks to the Gmail app for Android. This time around, users with Android 2.3.X Gingerbread will notice improved text selection when tapping and holding to copy. Custom label colors are also synced as of this update, making it easier to see how your messages have been auto-sorted. The update note also trumpets our favorite vaguery: bug fixes.

Hit the Market app on your Android device and head to My Apps to update, or download the new Gmail app.

Gmail app for Android adds custom label colors, improved text select originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/24/gmail-app-for-android-adds-custom-label-colors-improved-text-se/

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Amazon Prime members now get streaming movies, TV shows

Amazon Prime -- which used to just get you discounted one-day or free two day shipping across the U.S. on all your Amazon purchases -- now includes a pretty nice bonus feature. That's it above: free, on-demand streaming of thousands of TV shows and movies.

Sure, the selection is pretty small compared to what services like Hulu and Netflix offer, but this is a pretty nice freebies to toss at Amazon Prime customers. Or is Amazon Prime now a nice freebie to toss as streaming video customers? Either way, if you're a U.S. resident you can sign up for a one-month trial at no charge to see if Amazon's on-demand video offering floats your boat. Existing Amazon Prime customers should already have access.

As The Next Web points out, this is probably just the first step in Amazon's inevitable march toward a full-blown video on demand service. We're curious to see how things will progress from here.

Amazon Prime members now get streaming movies, TV shows originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/22/amazon-prime-members-now-get-streaming-movies-tv-shows/

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