Month: August 2010
James Dyson Award shortlist includes emergency buoyancy aid
It's a bit like Dragons' Den but without Duncan Bannatyne being nasty to you - or some of the hare-brained ideas for that matter. Engineers at Dyson's Wiltshire HQ have drawn up a shortlist of 20 inventions from all over the globe for the prestigious James Dyson Award. Now in it's fifth year, the prize…
Grow a rainforest tree with Cool Tree iPhone app
Here's an iPhone app with a difference. Called Cool Tree, it enables you to plant a virtual sapling and nurture it into a tropical tree, like a sort of green Tamagotchi. Neglect it and you risk losing it to loggers and bulldozers! Costing £1.79, £1 from the app is donated to the charity Cool Earth.…
How to take on the iPad – go for the kids and creatives
An interesting story broke in the WSJ this weekend about a proposed tablet PC device from Korean manufacturer LG. Amid the usual bluster (the VP for mobile-device marketing Chang Ma told the Wall Street Journal. "Our tablet will be better than the iPad.") came the news that the LG tablet would focus on productivity. This…
Disneyland Paris' new land Toy Story Playland and how Disney creates a theme park attraction
August is a big month at Disneyland Paris for it marks the unveiling of its first major new attraction for several years. Inspired by the trio of films, Toy Story Playland comprises three new rides which aim to make visitors feel like they have been shrunk to the size of toys. Dwarfed by giant blades…
FairShareMusic: iTunes with a heart donates to charity when you buy music
Do you buy Fair Trade chocolate? ethical food? how about ethical music? Earlier today we interviewed the founders of FairShareMusic. It's a social enterprise that sells music mp3s at the same prices as iTunes and donates half the profit to charity. So, that song will cost you exactly what it would anywhere else It's kind…
Got a brilliant start-up idea but don't know what to call it? .Dot.Com.Roulette does
So you're almost ready to unleash your Twitter and cat dating site mash-up on the world, but what to call it. What is a good name for a business start-up these days? And will the url of your dreams be available? That's where the tech start-up name generator Dot.Com.Roulette comes in. It only suggests domain…
Shiny Poll – will you use Facebook Places?
It's not stalking... it's just letting your friends know where you're hanging out. Facebook Places was announced last night and will roll out to US iPhone users today, with other phone users and countries getting it soon after. The gist: If you have a smartphone with a Facebook app you'll be able to share your…
Facebook Places Partners: Gowalla and Foursquare
Partnering up with both Gowalla and Foursquare, location-based start-ups and apps - it looks like the two will feed into Facebook Places. Scott from Gowalla came on stage and talked about the integration between the app and the Facebook user page: look out for some visually rich material, gowalla lets you add pictures to check-ins.…
Facebook Places: What you Need to Know about Facebook's new Location Feature
Watch live streaming video from facebookinnovations at livestream.com A no-frills share your location with your friends feature was what Mark Zuckerberg announced early this morning (Thursday, GMT-time) Facebook Places will pop up as an option on mobile phones ennabled with a Facebook app, letting you share your location with your friends much the same way…
Is that a threat Mr Schmidt? Why *is* the Google CEO telling us to change our names?
Is that a threat Mr Schmidt? Of late, the Google CEO has been sounding less like the information pioneer and epoch-defining mind that is he is, and more like a scary sort of Bond villain. There was that comment two weeks ago about how "people aren't ready for the information revolution that's about to happen".…
