Yesterday, we brought you an exclusive interview with Aaron Filner, group product manager of Flash, in which we discussed the fuss around Apple, HTML5 and Adobe’s multimedia platform. We learned that Adobe’s belief that HTML5 is at odds with Flash is a misperception, and we learned what to expect from Flash in the future, especially when it comes to mobile.
That video interview wasn’t the only thing I recorded, though; I also got Aaron to give me a 7.5-minute demo of Adobe Flash for Android. With my handheld cam, I recorded as Mr. Filner explored how Flash will eventually work for the Google Nexus One. Not only did he show us a preview of some awesome websites that will support mobile Flash (ESPN.com, NYT, Miniclip just to name a few), but he played several Flash games on his Nexus One, some completely unmodified from their original versions.
One other news note: You can expect Adobe Flash for Android to be pushed out simultaneously with a major Google Android update in the first half of this year, most likely Android 2.1 (FroYo) or the next update, named Gingerbread. That’s when Flash support will kick in, although, you’ll still have to download the plug-in.
Here is the full demo of Android for the Nexus One; let us know what you think of what’s coming in the comments.
Tags: adobe, adobe flash, android, demo, Flash, Google, nexus one, video
Welcome to Google, Kansas – the capital city of fiber optics, population 122,642. The small city with a big dream recently changed its name from Topeka to Google in order to show its enthusiasm for Google’s experimental Fiber for Communities program.
Mayor William W. Bunten issued a proclamation on Monday declaring the name change and urging “the citizens of Topeka to recognize and support the continuing efforts to bring Google’s ‘Fiber for Communities,’ experiment to our city.”
Talking to Bunten you wouldn’t expect this 79-year-old politician and military veteran with a penchant for phrases like “tickled pink,” to be the man behind the innovative Google fiber optics push. And yet such is the case. Now Bunten’s somewhat bizarre decision puts him and his city center stage, currently swimming in an almost overwhelming sea of press and attention the likes that Topeka — ahem Google — has never seen before.
Of course Bunten’s mission is more than just a one-man show, it’s a city-wide initiative supported by town residents and the city council, and it all started via e-mail. The story goes that Bunten received an e-mail about Google’s search for cities interested in the Fiber for Communities project, sent it along to the city manager, and together they decided to fill out the application and hope for the best.
In the meantime the local “young people” (as Bunten describes them) created ThinkBigTopeka.com to inspire citizens to nominate the city and use social media to show their support. The mayor consulted with the parties behind the site and decided to adopt one of their experimental ideas: To change the name of the city to “Google, Kansas – the capital city of fiber optics” for a day.
After further consulting with his city council — who loved the idea and recommended they make it a whole month — the mayor went on to issue the now famous proclamation. In our conversation, Bunten seemed more than amused by the amount of attention this one decision has attracted, though he chalks it all up to “great fun.”
Fun it is. Google, Kansas, lives in spirit only; an official name change would require changing the city’s Charter Ordinance, a task that’s not so easily accomplished. The name change isn’t just media fluff though. Earlier today the mayor awarded citizen Paul Guffey with a champion of character award for rescuing two juveniles from a burning car; Guffey was given the award on behalf of Google, Kansas.
Whether or not Google will find the humor in the matter remains to be seen, though we have to believe that the city’s unconventional approach to get Google’s attention will not go unnoticed or unrewarded. Bunten tells us that he has not received any direct communication from Google and that he’s aware that decisions will be based on other factors. For the time being he’s content with “having a little fun for the month and showing Google we’re interested.”
Tags: Google, Google Kansas, media, Topeka, trending
Digital measurement firm comScore released a study today highlighting the rise in social media access via mobile phones and offering some comparison metrics for some of the biggest social networks and their usage on mobile devices. comScore measured the changes in both mobile browser access to social networks and the access numbers to specific social networks from January 2009 to January 2010.
Some highlights:
– 30% of smartphone users accessed social networks via mobile browsers — this was up from 22.5% in 2009.- Total social networking access via mobile browsers on all mobile phones rose to 11.1% — this was up from 6.5% in 2009. Most of this growth was in the uptick in smartphone usage.
– 30% of smartphone users accessed social networks via mobile browsers — this was up from 22.5% in 2009.
- Total social networking access via mobile browsers on all mobile phones rose to 11.1% — this was up from 6.5% in 2009. Most of this growth was in the uptick in smartphone usage.
When it comes to specific social networks, Twitter and Facebook both had increases in mobile browser usage in the triple digits. Twitter usage via mobile browsers was up 347% while Facebook mobile browser usage was up 112%.
Mirroring non-mobile usage, MySpace mobile access was actually down 7% year over year.
It’s important to note that these figures are just from mobile browser statistics — they don’t even take into account the use of mobile applications for Twitter or Facebook.
Both Facebook and Twitter have prospered from having strong mobile strategies. Twitter’s mobile strategy and integration with SMS messages has made it a natural mobile player since its inception; still more and more users are turning to its mobile browser counterpart to send and receive messages.
Facebook has a great presence on mobile platforms, but the fact that so many people are continuing to use it from a mobile browser shows that its strategy of catering to mobile users is working.
Do you use Twitter or Facebook more on your phone or via your regular computer? Let us know!
Tags: ComScore, facebook, mobile browsers, mobile stats, stats, twitter
We don’t usually report on sex tapes over here at Mashable — standards, people — but when we heard that “Weird Al” Yankovic launched his own on his YouTube channel this past Monday, we took notice. Luckily, the vid is completely safe for work — unless you work in a bubble wrap factory. Yesterday this not-so-salacious vid — which features a fully clothed Yankovic lovingly playing with bubble wrap — only had around 300 views. Today it has more than 50,000. Why the rapid rise in interest? Here’s the basic progression:
“Wha?” begets Morbid interest begets “WTF?” begets Nervous, uncomfortable laughter begets Share
The comedian sets up the joke in the video’s description, which reads:
“‘Weird Al’ Yankovic caught in the act. Extremely graphic. You must be over 18 years old to view this footage.”
All in all, the video is far from lewd — disturbing is another story — but its shear viral nature really says something about our culture, which is obsessed with the latest celebrity indiscretion (I mean, Dustin Diamond has a sex tape, a “Weird Al” fleshfest ain’t that far-fetched).
Take a look if you have a second, although I far prefer “Amish Paradise“:
Tags: celebrity, humor, viral video, weird al
Two betrothed German geeks/gamers just upped the ante when it comes to wedding invitations.
The pair, who shared their story with Offbeat Bride, programed two versions of a Mario-inspired 8-bit video game as their wedding invitations and sent them out to friends and family. Guests are also challenged to beat the game should they wish to unlock the wedding details.
Their video game wedding invitations — dubbed Incredible Adventure — also included some remarkable custom packaging (as seen below) and two different versions of the game so would-be guests could play as either the bride or the groom.
The 8-bit game is also available for download [.exe file] should you wish to try your hand. For the rest of us, you can get the gist from the video below.
[via Boing Boing]
[img credit: Offbeat Bride]
Tags: games, trending
In an attempt to personalize the search experience, Google has announced that it is rolling out a new feature for search: Google stars. At the same time, Google search will drop the SearchWiki feature that launched at the end of 2008.
If you’re a Gmail, Google News or Google Reader user, then Google’s new stars feature is going to look very familiar. The same system of starring your favorite e-mails and articles will soon apply to all of your searches. In an announcement on its blog, the technology titan said that the new feature will allow you to bring your favorite search results right to the top of your search page, making them easier to find every time you search.
Here is a short explanation of the feature from the Google Blog:
“With stars, you can simply click the star marker on any search result or map and the next time you perform a search, that item will appear in a special list right at the top of your results when relevant. That means if you star the official websites for your favorite football teams, you might see those results right at the top of your next search for [nfl]. Here’s what the new ‘Starred results’ feature looks like:”
Stars sync with Google Bookmarks and the Google Toolbar, allowing you to look at and manage them from one location. Stars will replace SearchWiki, meaning that you will no longer have those transparent arrows to reorder results. However, if you’ve used SearchWiki extensively, don’t fret: Your edits will be preserved.
What do you think of Google stars? Is it a smart feature? Will you use it? Let us know in the comments.
Tags: Google, Google Stars, searchwiki
You may have had some instructors during your school years that seemed like they were simply carrying out pre-programmed, robotic orders, but not quite as literally as these profs. Singularity Hub reports that robot teachers have successfully passed a first round of testing in Korean and Japanese classrooms.
Thanks to trial work by the Korean Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and the Nippon Institute of Technology (NIT), robots are expected to enter the “workforce” in 500 preschools by as early as next year. By 2013, robotic teachers could be holding court in as many as 8,000 preschool and kindergarten classrooms in Korea, backed by $44 million (USD) in funding.
In general, the Korean robots will be more geared to address younger audiences, with the Japanese robots designed for older students. NIT’s e-Nuvo is a Japanese humanoid robot with a built-in projector — a feature my high school chemistry teacher surely lacked. Nor was she sporting that futuristic Astro Boy look.
All joking aside, it will be interesting to see how well robotic instructors will fit into classrooms and what roles they’ll be able to fill. Do you think a robot teacher can ever actually replace a human instructor, or will the e-Nuvos of the world be relegated to the position of sophisticated classroom sidekick?
Tags: e-Nuvo, education, japan, korea, robotics, robots, tech
An API for Google’s PowerMeter energy-consumption monitoring service has just been released, which means that you can expect to see a lot more compatible smart meters cropping up as manufacturers start to build devices for the platform.
PowerMeter is an initiative from the dot org part of the Googlesphere that monitors a home’s energy usage in real-time, so you can see just how much power turning on the hairdryer, microwave, Hoover and TV at the same time uses.
By letting consumers see their energy usage via an iGoogle desktop widget, the service aims to make people aware of how much power they are wasting, thereby helping the poor old planet and saving the consumer cash.
Until now, the service wasn’t wholly available — unless a consumer’s electricity provider offered smart meters, or they chose to pay out and self-install the TED 5000 from Energy Inc.
There’s no news at this early stage on which companies plan to make PowerMeter-compatible devices, but eco-consumers should keep their eyes and ears peeled for more over at the Google PowerMeter webpages.
Tags: electricity, energy, gadgets, Google, google powermeter, software, web
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We searched forums, blogs, and Twitter to find out which Firefox add-ons are most popular with web developers, and we came up with this top 10 list.
Every plug-in on the list offers outstanding utility to developers who install them in their browsers. In fact, some of them are even considered indispensable. And they’re all available as free downloads for Firefox, right now.
If you know any other developer staples that didn’t make our top 10, be sure to share them with us and our other readers in the comments. And if you’re more into Google Chrome, be sure to check out our list of 10 essential Chrome extensions for developers.
With Firebug, you can edit the CSS, HTML, and JavaScript on any web page live without navigating to a different application. Changes can be made and previewed in real-time. The add-on also comes with network activity analysis tools and a JavaScript performance profiler. Like the Firefox browser itself, Firebug can be extended with plug-ins that add new features.
The Web Developer add-on is the most powerful and dynamic extension in this list; it adds a toolbar that lets you do numerous useful things.
You can disable Java, disable or view cookies, disable CSS, view styles, see detailed information on forms, disable images, find broken images, view JavaScript, display all kinds of behind-the-scenes information, edit HTML, show hidden elements, resize the window to a specified resolution, validate code and much more.
ColorZilla is a color picker that lives down in your browser’s status bar. Just click the ColorZilla button and move the cursor over the color you want to find out about; you’ll be given a reading that includes the color’s RGB values and the hexadecimal code you need to duplicate the color on your own site. ColorZilla also includes a color wheel, a page zoomer and a measuring tool.
HTML Validator appears as an icon in the status bar, and displays the number of HTML errors Firefox encountered when opening up a web page. You can then dive into the HTML code to investigate what caused the errors.
Be warned that when you navigate to the Firefox add-on page for HTML Validator, you’ll be told that the add-on isn’t available for download for your operating system if you’re a Mac or Linux user. Take a quick trip to the developer’s website and you’ll find versions for several platforms, though.
FireFTP is an adequately featured FTP (File Transfer Protocol) client that runs inside Firefox. When you execute it, it appears as an extra window just like Firefox’s bookmark or download managers. Features aren’t just limited to the basics; you can perform integrity checks or searches, sync directories while navigating, compare directories and so on. This add-on should meet the needs of the majority of FTP users.
Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser is barely used by web developers, but it’s the most popular browser in the world at large. With IE Tab you can open any website in a tab that’s actually running IE instead of Firefox. That way, you can more easily make sure your website runs correctly for millions of people who aren’t using Firefox.
Note that IE Tab is not available for Mac or Linux, since you need to have IE installed for it to work and there are not any currently supported versions of IE for non-Windows operating systems.
With MeasureIt, you can draw a rectangular ruler anywhere on the website to get the measurements (height and width) in pixels of any element or space. Similar functionality is offered by ColorZilla, so running both add-ons at the same time would be redundant, but this plug-in is nevertheless hugely popular.
Greasemonkey allows more advanced customization of your browser by executing custom JavaScript scripts that change the way websites are displayed. Hundreds of scripts are available, and many of them are tailored to specific websites. For example, we’ve covered the Facebook Friends Checker script in the past; it monitors your friends list when you’re logged in to Facebook and notifies you when one has been removed.
When you look at the source for a web page using Firefox’s normal tools, you’re given a massive block of barely-organized text; it’s not very easy to scan and look for something specific. View Source Chart displays a web page’s source code in a set of smartly divided, colored partitions. It visually represents tag boundaries and DOM structure so you can navigate efficiently without getting lost in the noise.
Use Aardvark to select elements on a website and perform any one of a broad selection of functions on them. You just click on an element and hit one of several keyboard shortcuts. Possibilities include hitting R to remove the element, W to widen it, I to isolate it or V to view the element’s source. Hitting H for “help” brings up a list of all 14 shortcuts.
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Tags: add-ons, developers, extensions, Firefox, plugins, software, Web Development, web development series
