Happy New Year!

Well it's that time of the year again.  That time when we bid the previous 365 days goodbye and look forward to a new beginning.  I think I can honestly speak for a lot of people when I say that 2011 was a wild ride not just in the tech world but with life in general.  From the games to the television shows, and right down the line to the death of one of our generations leading visionaries; this will be a year remember for some time to come.

So with the advent of a new year, I'd like to challenge you all to make 2012 the best year yet.  I'm not talking about resolutions; because seriously, who keeps those anyways?  But my hope is that everyone will have a safe and Happy New Year and for those who can; enjoy the long weekend!

God Bless!

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Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to take a few moments and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! Be sure to remember that Jesus is the reason we celebrate not only Christmas; but for life, love, and salvation everyday and not just on December 25th.  With that being said I wish everyone to have a joyous time with friends and family and please be safe this weekend and the upcoming New Year weekend as well.  I look forward to starting the New Year off right and to an adventurous year ahead.

Happy Nerding!

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The Hobbit!

Several awesome movie trailers have hit the web this week for their debut.  From the likes of 'Batman' to the space-faring 'Alien' prequel from Ridley Scott entitled 'Prometheus'.  And yes, they all look like splendid films.  However, none excited me more to see than Peter Jackson's 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'.  I have to be honest and say that I have never read the book.  However, now I am definitely going to (actually starting it tonight).  From what I know of 'The Hobbit' comes strictly from the old cartoon by the same name and from the backstory given in 'The Lord of The Rings' trilogy.  As an avid fan of the 'Lord of The Rings Online', I can't wait to see more of Tolkien's work on the silver screen.

I personally only have a few author's who I absolutely adore their work.  I can name them very quickly:
- H.P. Lovecraft
- Stephen King
- J.R.R. Tolkien

That's it folks.  So for me to see this trailer once, was not nearly enough.  I have watched it four times now.  And every time I pick out a little more detail.  So, for your viewing pleasure, check it out (borrowed from YouTube):

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How To Remove Our Ubuntu Wubi Install!

So if you followed along with our last video on how to use Wubi you'll know how easy it was to install our dual boot setup using Wubi.  But what would happen if down the road a few weeks or a couple of months you decide you need to reclaim the used hard drive space for other needs and wish to remove Ubuntu.  How hard is that to do?

If you have ever removed a traditional dual boot partition you'll remember that on occasion things don't always go as planned during the removal and you may end of with a bad MBR or no bootloader, etc.  The fix for this can be rather simple or you could end up with a non-booting system.  This is where Wubi shines, because this isn't the case with a Wubi install.

Should you decide to wipe your Ubuntu install (installed with Wubi) all you need to do is boot into Windows. Once in Windows, jump into the Control Panel and hit up the 'Add/Remove Programs' applet.  Find Ubuntu in the list of installed software and select to remove it.  After a short removal process, it will be gone.  Simple as that.

So be sure to watch the video below:

How To: Uninstall Ubuntu 11.10 with Wubi

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How to Install Ubuntu using Wubi!

In this video we will cover a quick and easy way to setup a dual boot system using the Wubi Installer. If you have never heard of the Wubi Installer, you may be wondering what it is.  Wubi is essentially a small application that grants the user the ability to start the Ubuntu install from with the Windows operating system. The magic doesn't stop there though.  At any point later, if you decide you want to wipe Ubuntu to reclaim the used hard drive space, or in attempt to wipe the drive and move solely into Linux from Windows, you can simply boot into Windows and remove the Ubuntu installation just as if it were a native Windows application from within the 'Add/Remove Programs' option in the Control Panel.

The Ubuntu installer has certainly gotten a lot better about keeping the 'confusion-factor' down for new user's when it comes to setting up a multi-operating system setup.  But Wubi takes just about all of the mystery out of it from the get go.  So be sure to checkout our video:

How To: Dual-Booting Ubuntu 11.10 with Wubi!

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Insane App Deals for Android Devices!

For those of you out there who are Android users/fans be sure to swing by the Android Market for the next 10 days.  To celebrate 10 Billion App Downloads from the Market, Google is selling select apps for 10 cents a piece!  That's a great deal! 





 And to stop the rumors right away, these aren't crappy apps either.  Today's deals were:

- Minecraft Pocket Edition
- Soundhound
- Asphalt 6: Adrenaline HD
- SwiftKey X Keyboard   (Highly Recommended)
- Great Little War Game
- FieldRunners
- Edmondo Sports Tracker Pro
- AutoDesk's Sketchbook Mobile (Highly Recommended)
- Paper Camera
- Color & Draw for Kids:phone

Be sure to swing by the market tonight if you see one of these that strikes your fancy.  If not, than check back everyday for the next 10 days and see what's on sale for that day!
Links: Android Market

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Techie's Update

Hey everybody, I just wanted to drop a quick update and let you all know that I am sorry for the recent lack/delay of posts and videos on both my blog and my YouTube Channel.  I came down with a pretty rough cold that claimed my voice and overall motivation for a large part of this past week.  Leaving in it's wake a voice that sounded like a sick Darth Vader (hence the lack of new videos).

I am feeling a lot better now and hopefully will have some new videos up on the YouTube Channel soon (my voice is almost back to normal so production should resume in a few days).  As far as the blog is concerned, we're not dead or stuck in some weird form of stasis, and new posts will be rolling out over the next few days so stay tuned!

Thanks everybody, have a great weekend!

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Review: Samsung Galaxy S2 Epic 4G Touch

A couple of weeks ago I managed to get my hands on a Samsung Galaxy S2.  And in short, it has to be one of my favorite devices yet.  I'm using the Sprint model which is dubbed the 'Epic 4G Touch' surname.  I have had my hands all over this phone for the past 2 weeks and it continues to get more and more awesome all the time.







Let's cover some of the phone's specs right quick:
- Dual-Core 1.2GHz processor
- 4.52" Super AMOLED Plus screen
- 8 MP rear camera and a 2 MP front facing camera
- Voice Talk by Vlingo
- Expandable Storage up to 32GB via MicroSD card
- 16GB of onoard storage
- Mobile Hotspot Feature
- 3G/4G compatible where speeds are available
- WiFi built-in

So you can see from the specs that this phone packs some serious punch under the hood.  But how does it perform?  In a nutshell, smooth as can be.  I have experienced very little to no lag from this device.  And lag is one thing I have noticed in both my Acer Iconia a500 Honeycomb Tablet and my wife's HTC Evo 4G.  Usually the lag on those devices occurs between screen transitions from Applications Menu to Home Screen or when loading up a resource heavy game.  But none of that has been evident thus far in my Galaxy S2.

Samsung packs this phone with the TouchWiz UI overtop Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread) by default.  This means we get some pretty useful shortcuts and a nice, clean looking User Interface.  Some of the shortcuts are pretty awesome too.  The one I especially like (since I shuffle app shortcuts all over the place) is the tilt to move feature.  Simply tap and hold an app shortcut and tilt your phone to cycle through the available home screens.  It works flawlessly.  If you're not a widget fan, you'll have some work to do since by default there are numerous widgets running onscreen from the first power on.

Namely, you will see the clock and weather widget on the main home screen.  If you scroll to the left one screen you will see a Driving/Handsfree Widget and and a nice looking AP News widget.  If you scroll to the right one screen from the Home Screen you will have the Google Search Widget.  This being the Spring version of the phone it does come with some bloatware from Sprint.  In the form of: Spring TV, Sprint Zone, Nascar, Sprint Radio, etc.

The phone does come with a cool app named Kies Air.  In short it lets you control the phone's contents from a computer's web browser (as long as your computer and phone are on the same WiFi network.  The layout is nice and allows you to see pretty much everything you have on your phone from pictures to the most recent text messages all within your web browser.  That being said, I could play music back but had issues copying files through the network from the PC to the Phone.  Maybe I was doing something wrong.  Still, not a deal breaker for me as I could care less about this feature overall.

The default social networking app is 'SocialHub'.  I had some issues with SocialHub (just being in the form of having to track down settings and options from where I felt they should logically be placed).  Still, not a big deal as I ditched SocialHub for the Plume and Facebook apps for Android anyways.  Another great app that comes loaded on the phone is Polaris Office. And it appears to be the full version of the app as well which includes Windows format compatibility.  So that is a nice inclusion as well.

One of the big topics that is discussed with every Android device is battery life.  And most of the time this is one of the biggest complaints from Android user's.  I can honestly say that my battery life with the Galaxy S2 is pretty good.  In short, carrying it around during the day (from an 8 to 5 workday) my phone doesn't outright die halfway through the day.  Usually when I get home in the evenings around 5:00p or so it is down to about 40% life left.  Which is pretty good in my opinion.  Especially when my wife's HTC Evo 4G tends to get something like 4.5 to 5 hours of life from a full charge.

With that being said, I'm also running it with 4G turned off (we have no 4G in my area yet) and the WiFi and Bluetooth radios turned off as well.  Surfing the web on WiFi around the house causes the battery to discharge much faster.  But still it is fine for casual use or updating a Facebook status.

The camera is outstanding and does a great job.  In low-light areas the pictures still look as long as the flash is turned on.  And the flash is freakin' bright too.  So, if you're into mobile photography with your smartphone you'll not be disappointed.

One last thing to touch on is the hands-free features.  The hands-free/voice recognition features are powered by Vlingo.  Vlingo has been around for a while and can be thought of as an app similar to Apple's Siri in functionality.  And it is pretty good.  Out of the box you can have it read your text messages and send text messages for you.  It can do web searches and pull up GPS info for you as well.  All powered from your voice.  If using a Bluetooth headset it is setup so if you say: "Galaxy Hi" it will wake the phone and allow your voice input to use the phone.  Pretty awesome.

I had only one issue with the phone, and it was more with the software and with Facebook than with the device itself.  If you sign in to Facebook for Android, you're contact list will compile all of your Facebook friends info into your Contacts List.  I didn't like this feature and quickly found an easy way to turn it off in the settings.  Once again, it was an easy fix and not that big of a deal.

I could go on and on all afternoon about how awesome this device is.  I mean, I essentially replaced my iPod Touch with this device because it everything my iTouch did in terms of music and podcasts, not to mention Netflix and Crackle run great on it.  And gaming is jaw dropping on this device.  If you are looking for a great Android phone, without a doubt I would highly recommend the Samsung Galaxy S2.  The great thing about this device is that Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile all have their own version of the Galaxy S2.  So if you're on one of these services you can have a go at the S2 yourself (sorry Verizon customers).

Easily this phone gets a 5 star/5 star score!

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Let's Dual Boot!

Our latest video has gone live and it covers the topic of setting up a Dual-Boot system.  We will cover what dual booting is and why it is handy for those who like to play around with other operating systems without wanting or having the ability to sacrifice your existing partitions, data, etc.

At one point in time, dual booting tended to be a rather daunting process and could easily overwhelm those new to the concept.  However, it has become so common place (especially among Linux user's) that the process has been somewhat streamlined and is not all that different from performing a clean install on a fresh hard drive.  In this video we will be using Ubuntu 11.10 to setup a dual-boot system with Windows 7.

So, with that said; checkout our latest video:



Dual-Booting Windows 7 and Ubuntu 11.10

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As always please swing by our website at:
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Video: Navigating Gnome Shell 3 in Ubuntu

Our latest video covers the basics of getting around in Gnome Shell 3.  In our previous video we discussed how to install Gnome Shell 3 in Ubuntu 11.10.  If you haven't watched that video yet, you may want to consider watching this video in it's entirety to make sure you'd like to check out Gnome Shell 3 in more detail.

Gnome Shell 3 brings to the table some large changes to the Gnome Desktop Environment.  It reminds me of a mix up of both Gnome and Unity.  I have my own complaints about Gnome Shell 3 (which will be touched on in another video).  But in the meantime, checkout how to navigate the new version of Gnome.



Navigating Gnome Shell 3

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Video: Installing Media Codecs in Linux Mint 11

In our latest video we will step through the process of installing multimedia codecs in Linux Mint 11 'Katya'.  By default the version of Linux Mint 11 I used to install in our previous video does not include the Multimedia Codecs.  Simply put, no mutlimedia codecs = very limited support and playback of things like videos, music, and flash based content.  So, why use such a limited release?

There are several versions of the Linux Mint 11 'Katya' Live CD.  The reason a 'No Codecs' version was made available is for distributors such as magazine companies or disk suppliers who may not have the legal rights to the licenses for some of the 3rd party multimedia codecs.  So, Mint has a 'No Codecs' version which squeezes the operating system on a single CD-ROM without the multimedia codecs.  If you so desire, there is a full version which does include the multimedia codecs and some extra software packages preinstalled.  This version however is quite a bit larger in file size and is designed to fit a DVD.

So without further delay, feel free to checkout our video on installing Linux Mint's multimedia codec packages.

Install Multimedia Codecs in Linux Mint 11

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Video: Installing Linux Mint 11 'Katya'

In our latest video we will step through the basics of installing Linux Mint 11 'Katya'.  'Katya' is the latest distribution release of Linux Mint with version 12's Release Candidate just being announced.  Mint is based on Ubuntu and in some circles is considered to be one of the best Linux distributions out there (next to Ubuntu).  There is also a version of Mint that is Debian based and features rolling distribution updates; meaning, you get the major updates as they roll out instead of doing a "mass-upgrade" on the entire OS.  That's nice.

The version of Linux Mint 11 being used in this video is the GNOME, 32bit version without Multimedia Codecs.  In our next video, we will step through quickly and easily installing these codecs.

Installing Linux Mint 11

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New Videos!

Due to technical issues with my Ubuntu install, I will be a few days later on the Gnome 3 introduction video.  In in the meantime, I'll have a couple of Linux Mint 11 videos going live in a few hours.  Thanks!

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Doctor Who Big Screen Bound?

"Leave us alone, we did it right
the first time...All 11 of us!"
-The Doctor

So it appears that David Yates (director of the "Harry Potter" films) is aiming to bring Doctor Who to the big screen.  Yep, I'm not hot on this idea.  Were the "Harry Potter" movies well directed?  As a matter of fact they were.  Granted I did not read any of the books, the movies seemed very well put together.  However, please leave Doctor Who alone.  Just because the show is rocking it and growing it's viewer base doesn't warrant a blockbuster movie be made.

You may be asking, why?  A lot of my opinion on this matter is the fact that the franchise will get royally screwed up.  Doctor Who has been running off and on for decades.  Yates has already gone on the record to make mention that the movie will not follow the television series.  In a sense wouldn't this be considered a "reboot"?  What better way to break a franchise than do a theatrical reboot of it?  It just doesn't sit well with me.

Now you may be saying, well you are just a fanboy of Matt Smith...  Nope, Matt Smith is a spectacular Doctor (just a David Tennant was).  I love Doctor Who regardless who the Doctor is played by.  I have never understood the allegiance to one particular actor who plays the Doctor (as many, many Who fans are).  You are basically saying that the only Doctor for you is *insert fav Doctor here*.  This isn't fair and in my opinion not what Doctor Who is about.  We all know the Doctor can regenerate meaning that at any time a new actor could step into the Time Lord's shoes.  And is no doubt one of the big factors behind the series longevity.

Anyways, I could go into a thousand reasons why Doctor Who should be left alone when it comes to making big-budget, theater released movies.  But mostly it goes against everything we have come to know and love of Doctor Who.  For years it has made it's name as being one of the few Sci-Fi television shows which incorporates the traditional "man-in-a-costume" monster or alien over computer generated graphics.  Only now with the last two seasons of Who are we really getting more cgi monsters being shown off.  This gives is a particular charm in my opinion.  Especially with so many other television shows pulling off lower quality cg creatures.  A big budget movie would no doubt do away with that particular nuance that for many has made Who what it is.  I don't care who you get to write the script or fill the shoes of the Doctor.  This is wrong by all means of the definition of the word "wrong".

From the keyboard of a dedicated Whovian... Mr. Yates take your Who Movie concept and stick it in the Tardis' swimming pool!

Original Source: http://bit.ly/uFAZ3e

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New Android Unlock Feature Trickery!

If you follow Android news, you'll know that one of the big features rolling out with Ice Cream Sandwhich (from here on will be called 'ICS' for short) is the Face Unlock feature being included in the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.  So here's the deal, the device will use facial recognition to unlock your device.  That's awesome and it doesn't impede upon one of Apple's patents, right?  Sure is.

Or at least it was until some wiseguy decided to try and beat the feature at it's own game.  And let's just say, he won.  It was posed as a question from Twitter to SoyaCincau as to whether or not the Galaxy Nexus face unlock feature could be unlocked using a printed picture of the owner's face.  In his test, he didn't even need to kill a tree or waste ink on printing a picture.  He used the Galaxy Note device and took his own picture.  And guess what, it worked.  The Samsung Galaxy Nexus unlocked.

It has also been called to question as to whether he setup the device to unlock with the picture or setup the phone to behave the way it did.  His answer is that he setup the phone to unlock using his face, not the picture.  And he is sticking to that story.  Which in my opinion is completely believable.  After all, facial recognition isn't doing anything other than comparing a fresh image of your face with one on file somewhere in a database tucked away inside the operating system on the phone (all geeky references to how the technology actually works aside, this is basically it).

So, the concept that this could be tricked makes a lot of sense to me.  What do you think?

I can see a couple of ways this could be a pain for someone.  Say someone is having a meal with you and snipes a picture of you while you're waiting for your meal using their iPhone 4S (for example).  You get up and go to the restroom and while you're gone they use the image of you on their device and unlock your phone.  For kicks they now set your unlock screen feature to match their face. It seems you'd be locked out of your own phone right?

I like the concept of facial recognition for unlocking the device.  However, I don't see how this is anymore secure than a lock screen pattern or passcode.  Both of which can easily be circumvented should someone be attentive enough to watch you unlock your phone.

If you'd like to watch the video yourself check it out at:
http://youtu.be/BwfYSR7HttA

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APB: Reloaded Has A Live Action Trailer

Remember a title from a while back that took the media by storm as a massively multiplayer game in the same vein as Grand Theft Auto.  This game was titled: "APB: All Points Bulletin".  Initially this game was released on the PC and the devs where considering a console version.  The game was short lived though due to faults of it's own merits (from gameplay to game modes disappoints were huge).  The game just couldn't deliver what fans and industry watchers had hoped it would.  In short, the game launched in June 2010 and closed down in September 2010.  Yep, short lived alright.

After bouncing around in limbo for a little while, GamersFirst picked it up and it was released by Reloaded Productions.  If you aren't familiar with GamersFirst they are a MMO gaming company that carves their business into the Free-to-Play market of MMO titles.  Titles under their label include: War Rock, Knight Online, Taikodom, Sword 2, and most recently Fallen Earth (out of which I can personally attest that War Rock and Fallen Earth are great games). With this new development in the game's brief lifespan there was hope once more.

The game went into Open Beta in May 2011 under the title: "APB: Reloaded".  One of the big positives this game has going for it is character customization.  This was one of the few things it's original incarnation did right.  And hopefully it will roll over to this version as well.  So with the news that the game is finally making it's way back to life, GamersFirst has rolled out a Live Action Trailer.  Honestly, I love watching these Live Action Trailers.  Sometimes they suck, sometimes they are awesome.  Really it's a crap shoot and one I have no way of being able to predict prior to watching it.  This trailer is pretty unique in that it shows the different character customizations in a live action form.  And it is an interesting trailer (so it definitely doesn't suck).

However, it is not for the faint of heart and should be for mature audiences only as it depicts scenes of graphic violence.  It is kind of ironic that this trailer rolls out so close to the release of 'Saints Row: The Third', don't you think?




If you're interested in checking out the game swing by their website:http://www.gamersfirst.com/apb/?fbid=wmjBHrVWu3DAnd if you'd like to see other games from GamersFirst visit:http://www.gamersfirst.com/

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Steam Users Beware!

On Thursday, November 10th; Valve announced that their Steam forums had been compromised.  In an initial release from Mr. Gabe Newell it was stated that the intrusion "went beyond the forums".  But it is unclear how far beyond the forums this attack managed to go.  Valve is saying that there is no evidence that any personal data or credit card information was harvested or stolen and they are continuing the investigation.

If you have used Steam (or it's forums) you'll know there is a separate login for the forums which requires a separate password.  Of course this is assuming you have theoretically passed "Online Security 101" and are not using the exact same password as you do for your Steam purchases (if so you're billing info could very well be at risk).  One of the first recommendations of online safeguarding is to not use the same password for everything you do online.  Why?  Simple, if that password is compromised it then becomes very easy for the rest of your online dealings to be compromised too.

Valve will be resetting forum passwords and urging user's to update their passwords in general.  In short, this is probably a good rule of thumb for anyone using Steam.  Regardless whether you are actually at risk or not. Here are two things to help:
- Change your password for both Steam Forums and your overall Steam Account.
- Keep watch on whatever method of billing you have setup for Steam purchases to be on the safe side.

I think it is a shame that yet another game service has been compromised.  I'll be the first to admit that it is probably impossible for any service to be 100% bulletproof when it comes to security.  And when it comes right down to it, the fact of the matter is that our online security as customer's lies at fault with ourselves.  Sad but true.  How can customer's hold a particular service to blame for security issues when customer's are using weak passwords, not changing passwords regularly, and flat out putting themselves at risk?

In short, we can't.

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Google vs RIAA concerning Mobile Apps

Apparently Google is in the hot seat with the RIAA.  What about?  Seems to be about some apps in the Android Market that allow user's to download MP3's.  One in particular: MP3 Music Download Pro seems to be the topic of much discussion.  The RIAA is claiming that they have issues a take down notice to Google.  And Google did not respond.

Google's stance was that the app could be used for legitimate purposes (like downloading public domain music which is legal and free).  In short, if you have pulled down this app from the Android Market or were planning to I wouldn't be surprised if it disappears very shortly.  Plus, with the RIAA getting involved if you use this app (or apps similar to it) I'd be very careful.  The awkward part for me is the fact that this app promotes downloading music and is very vague as to what it's limitations are (meaning you can technically access copyrighted materials).  And yet, a lot of reputable sources are promoting the app and suggesting it as a great app.  Just because it's mobile doesn't necessarily make it right folks.

I know people in general like free things.  I understand that.  However, I don't see why Google doesn't go ahead and make the leap with a music store offering.  The web has been a buzz for several months now that this would be a viable option for Google.  And one that Google hasn't denied and has actually been working with recording labels on.  Maybe if Google opened their own music retail hub online, and started screening out these free MP3 apps everybody wins.  Customer's get the music their looking for at competitive prices (legally and without RIAA action), Google gets a cut of the profits, and the RIAA is happy that the bad apps are screened out and legit music is filling devices.

Just a thought.

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Linux Mint in Number 1 Spot?

So I was messing around this afternoon on Distrowatch (my favorite Linux website) and I noticed their Page Ranking section on the far right side of the page.  And something odd caught me eye.  The fact that Ubuntu was no longer in the very top #1 spot anymore.  What?!  Could it be that another distribution has made the jump to pop up the list a little ways?  Even over the Ubuntu giant?

Seems it's true.  As of this writing Linux Mint was now in the top seed.  This is pretty crazy, especially since Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu (at least one version of it is, the other is Debian based).  So my next thought is, why?  Did Canonical ripple the waters enough with the exclusion of the traditional desktop when they chose Unity as the default desktop environment?  Is Ubuntu outgrowing it's own community?  Who knows.

A screencap I took to convince my
eyes it's real!

I have my own reasons for why Ubuntu 11.10 isn't necessarily my first pick anymore when it comes to Linux Distributions.  However, regardless of my personal opinions there is a reason Ubuntu is one of the most used Linux Distro's in the world.  It's good, slick, and most everything works right out of the box.  I truly believe that some user's got fed up with Canonical's direction and decided to go looking elsewhere for their Linux fix.  Either way, this exposure is no doubt a big deal for Mint.  Especially with version 12 just right around the corner.

Kudos Linux Mint!

If you want to check it out for yourself, visit:
http://www.distrowatch.com
http://linuxmint.com/

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Our Facebook Page!

Just a reminder, be sure to follow our Facebook Page to stay updated on when new stories roll out on the site.  And for some extra goodies from time to time!

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WoW: Mists of Pandaria

Yesterday I mentioned World of Warcraft's troubles and a little information about the latest WoW Expansion: Mists of Pandaria.  I figured it was only fair to follow up with a little more of what is known about the upcoming expansion for one of the biggest MMO titles on the market.


With the expansion Blizzard will offer up:
- New Race
- New Continent
- Level cap will be raised to 90
- And a new class.

If you've been living under a rock for the last couple of weeks, than you'll know that the Pandaren are the new race and they hail from Pandaria (lacks a little imagination for me).  The new class is Monk.  Blizzard will also be bringing a new challenge mode, PVP goodies, and more.  If you haven't seen the trailer yet, check it out (borrowed from the WorldofWarcraft YouTube Channel).

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Ironic Week in Review

Dig that hole a little deeper,
these guys are...

This week there were two topics of interest that I thought were kind of funny or ironic.  So here we are, The 'Ironic Week in Review'.

First topic:
Isn't it kind of ironic that almost immediately after announcing no more mobile Flash.  Adobe goes and rolls out an update for Flash on Android devices?  I know they said they wouldn't drop support for updates (just support for further versions of Flash on mobile plateforms).  But still, it's almost as if Adobe decided they needed to prove to the public that they still have the ability to update it.

Or maybe they needed to save face with all of those people who let "Flash Support" sway their purchasing decisions when it comes to consumer electronics?


Second topic:
It's official Ashton Kutcher is a "Qwitter" or a "Twitter-Quitter".  It appears as though Mr. Kutcher tweeted about the Penn State Abuse Scandal without being fully informed (at all, whatsoever; it's only made national headlines seriously?!).  And it struck a cord with the general public since he has something close to 8 million Twitter followers (which equates to a countries population right?).  In his defense he did publicly issue an apology on his blog.  Enough said right?  Nope, he the proceeded to hand his Twitter account over his "team" at Katalyst Media "to ensure the quality of it's content".  Isn't Twitter like Microblogging or the ability to randomly update stuff wherever you are at?  Maybe the way to ensure "quality content" is to stay informed of what you are tweeting about?

Why is this turn over ironic?  Well you can thank Mr. Kutcher for Twitter being what it is today (or at least lending a hand).  Remember in Twitter's earlier days when Kutcher was in a "follow war" with a couple other celebrities and his account seemed to just take off?  I don't know it just seemed ironic that for someone who started Twitter so strong and now because of some controversy decides to bail and let some PR rep take over?  That's Hollywood for you.

At second glance, maybe "Two & A Half Men" is rubbing off on him.  Maybe he decided to bail before the "trolls" come after him?  (another joke in bad taste I know- #jokefail).

:)

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No More Gmail Love for Blackberry

It was announced recently that Blackberry users will soon be unable to get their hands on a dedicated Gmail app for their devices.  However, as one might expect from a company like RIM who was basically one of the front runners in the smartphone market, this is kind of a surprise. Instead, the decision came from Google themselves.  RIM built their business in the phone market by granting a web experience on their devices and were one of the first to really get it right.  Only since the iPhone's debut has RIM been struggling to stay ahead of the tech curve. 

No doubt RIM is feeling the pressure being put on from both Apple and Google in the smartphone industry.  We have already seen this with the release of RIM's Blackberry Playbook which has all but been a 'hot item' since it's release.  So what is the plan with Google then?  Looks like the effective date is November 22, 2011.  If you are a Blackberry user who already has the Gmail app installed, you're in the clear.  Unless of course you require some sort of support for it.  Otherwise, you can continue to use it to your hearts content.  The other good news is that if you are indeed a Blackberry user, your device already includes native Gmail support via Blackberry Internet Services.  So you're still in the clear regardless what Google decides to do now or in the future.

If you are a Blackberry user who doesn't have the app but would like to get it.  You have until the 22nd of this month.  Instead of supporting a dedicated app, Google seems to be redirecting their efforts in this area to "building a great Gmail experience in the mobile web browser" per their website.  What do you think?  Does this sound like Google is trying to sway Blackberry/Gmail user's to move towards Android (or at least away from RIM)?  Either way, with about every other mobile device supporting a Gmail app sounds kind of funny with this move doesn't it?

It definitely sounds like it's been a big week as far as "tech shake up's" go.  With Adobe's announcement earlier this week of discontinuing mobile Flash to Google not supporting Gmail app's on the Blackberry platform...Man, what's next?  Is Netflix going to reopen Qwikster? (just a joke, sorry Netflix).

:)

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Voting Now Available!

Hey everybody!  Do me a favor and look in the left sidebar at the top section.  You'll now see a new Voting section.  Keep an eye out right here for a say so in some of the things we will cover on the site.  I am starting some reader voting to bring more interaction between our readers and myself!

In our first poll be sure to vote for which Linux Distribution you'd like to see a video review for!  Voting will run for 7 days.  So cast your vote!

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Guild Wars Halloween Hats Coming Back...

My Character Posing by a Necrid
Rider at last year's Halloween
Festivities

If you are a Guild Wars player than you will now that every holiday events are thrown in several of the large city hubs in-game.  Part of these events include winning the free holiday hats for your character.  And if you remember just a few weeks ago, the north-eastern portion of the United States was wrecked with a freak snowstorm that managed to wipe out power to a majority of those people.  Due to this ArenaNet will be making the holiday hats given out for Halloween available to anybody who missed their chance at getting them over Halloween Weekend.

Here's the deal (per the official GW forum): a Holiday Hat giver will be located in Kamadan and Lion's Arch and will accept holiday items given out as loot during the Halloween festivities in exchange for the hats.  According to the forum it looks like the Hat Givers should be in-game next week (more than likely) and will be there for one week.

Unfortunately, I haven't been in the game for several months and have no Halloween goodies to trade.  Hey ArenaNet, why not just inbox the hats to all players or send us redemption codes to our accounts via in-game mail and let those who didn't get the hats unlock them?  Just wondering.

For the link to the official forum post visit: http://bit.ly/ukQyZc

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What's Happening to WoW?

Admittedly, I have spent my fair share of time in the past running around in World of Warcraft.  Was it fun?  Sure.  Was it creative?  Sure.  Was it worth me spending $15 dollars a month to play it when compared with my time spent actually in-game during the course of the month?  I didn't like it that much.  :)

I am not one of these "WoW haters"; let me get that out there first and foremost.  As far as the game goes, it was one of the first MMO titles to get it right.  Otherwise, it would have folded a long time ago.  Blizzard has been successful at indirectly killing off or forcing other MMO titles similar to WoW's genre into a Free-to-Play business model.  For some this alternative business model has been a success for other titles it means death of the game.  Either a game has that certain charm, flare, and gameplay worthy of such fanfare.  And yes, WoW certainly has it.


It was reported just a couple of months ago that Blizzard has lost something in the neighborhood of 800,000 subscribers from July 2011 to September 2011.  I don't care who you are, that is a huge loss.  Is this a sign of the economy?  A sign that people just aren't playing?  Or are they getting spoiled to the Free-to-Play plan?

Regardless, looks like Blizzard is pulling out the one card that not many people on the face of planet Earth can shy away from: Panda's.  I don't care who you are, but you have to be on bad dude not to have a soft spot in the old ticker for a panda.  And Blizzard knows this, so coming soon to Azeroth will be a new expansion entitled: Mists of Padaria.  This expansion will bring the Pandaren race as well.

Will the adorable pull of Pandaren Shaman draw people back?  Time will tell.

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Adobe Kills Off Flash for Mobile Devices

It's no secret that HTML5 is a growing technology.  Now with a lot of desktop web browsers able to play nicely with HTML5 (and this is growing as well); it seems that it may become one of Adobe Flash's rivals on the web.  It is also no secret that Apple doesn't jive with Flash very well (at all) to put it modestly.

Up until yesterday (Wednesday) it seemed as though Flash had a decent foothold in the mobile sector when you figure it plays very well with Android based devices.  Why is yesterday such a point in the previous sentence?  Because yesterday; Adobe announced that it would no longer be developing Flash for mobile devices.  One thing you will also remember is that Adobe products are pretty decent.  At least as long as they are updated regularly when the newest versions roll out.  If not, then they typically turn into security risks (as with the case for most outdated software).

In a recent blog post by John Nack (product manager at Adobe) he pointed out that basically if Flash is kept from being run than they will have to find a different approach.  Is this a shot at Apple?  Apple doesn't ship their mobile devices or their computers with Flash preloaded.  Not really a big deal, right?  Since most Windows computers don't ship with it preloaded either (or at least an updated copy).  Wrong!  Apple has their reasoning behind this.

Apple's stance in the past is that Flash is more resource intensive than it probably should and caused lower performance in their products.  Meanwhile, the rest of 'web-world' uses Adobe products as sort of a 'defacto standard' on the web.  Regardless whether you are a fan or a "Flash hater", it's goes without saying that Flash is everywhere on the web.  If we look into the future just a short way, what if manufacturers and content creators find other ways to produce their projects and content on mobile devices; would this not also bring about a movement among people in the industry to figure out how to port their content away from Flash on the desktop/laptop side of things too?  That is speculation on my part though (I like to project ahead a little ways).  I hope I am wrong or that HTML5 is really that good to handle the migration from Flash by the industry.  On the other hand, it would be nice to be able to visit a site that was once Flash based and get the prompt that you need to install the latest "plugin for your web browser"...

As far as the mobile market is concerned, it looks as though Apple is probably pretty happy with Adobe's decision.  Seeing as how other devices may win some user's over solely on the fact that they grant a complete "web experience" in that they offer Flash as well (I have seen some ads that point this out specifically).  Either way Adobe rolls their dice, I hope for their sake they already have a plan in the mobile arena.  Otherwise, who knows?

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Time to Upgrade!

The other day I received an email from my cell phone provider informing me that one of my lines is eligible for an upgrade.  So Monday afternoon I swung by my provider's store and chatted with a friend of mine who works up there and got the skinny on what it will cost me to upgrade.  And I had a little time to play around with a few phones to see which one I liked the most (it will be Android based).

And I have to admit that after playing with the Nexus S, HTC Evo 3D, HTC Evo Design, and the Samsung Galaxy Epic S2; that the Samsung Galaxy Epic S2 has captured my attention.  I have been reading up on it and man, that is a freakin' sexy phone.  I have been madly in love with my jailbroken iPod Touch now for a couple of years.  However, the battery isn't lasting nearly as long as it once did (an unfortunate plunder for just about every phone/mp3 player) and so I was looking for a device that would also serve for decent podcast listening (my main use for my iPod Touch).  And from everything I can tell, aside from the Epic S2 being a slick phone with a nice version of the TouchWiz UI overlayed ontop of Gingerbread, the whole phone seems to offer exactly what I'm looking for.  So hopefully within the next couple of weeks I'll be able to get my hands on some new Android goodness.

If this works out, look for some Android app review videos to hopefully start popping up over on my YouTube Channel at: http://www.youtube.com/techiesmarts

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Featured Blog on Bloggers.com!

Hey everybody!  I just wanted to thank all of our reader's and follower's for helping our site be noticed as a Blogger of The Day on Bloggers.com!  This is a great honor and I thank everyone for their support!  If you have a website or blog that you manage and update swing by the great community of people over at Bloggers.com!  This service is full of great people with loads of collective knowledge!

Check out my profile on Bloggers.com at: http://bloggers.com/techiesmarts

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Video: Installing Gnome Shell 3

Our latest video has just gone live on our YouTube Channel and it cover's yet another alternate desktop environment for your Ubuntu 11.10 installation.  This video covers installing Gnome Shell 3!

The latest version of Gnome Shell brings with it some changes and some rather fancy looking eye candy as well.  I honestly haven't had a whole lot of hands on with Gnome Shell 3 since making the video, but I do plan on digging in this week and learning how to get around in it and I will chronicle my sessions with at least one Gnome Shell 3 Basics video.

Overall the new Shell looks pretty slick.  It's a very clean looking desktop with a lot of the usual screen clutter (i.e.: menu's, icons, etc.) all being hidden in the activities menu.  I kind of like the concepts behind it as well.  And my first initial impressions of Gnome Shell 3 are:
- I can't wait to try it out a little more in depth.
- It looks amazing, and with the right theme could look even sweeter.
- Seems to be very snappy and responsive under VirtualBox.

So without further delay, checkout our latest video on how to install Gnome Shell 3:

Ubuntu 11.10: Installing Gnome Shell 3

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As always, make sure you stay up to date with our YouTube Channel for the latest news and videos by subscribing!
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Ubuntu 11.10: Installing IceWM

If you love using Ubuntu and want the latest the greatest without the bloat of Unity maybe because your computer is holder and refuses to play nice with Unity than checkout IceWM.  IceWM is an alternate desktop environment for Linux.  If you are looking for a sleek and elegant looking desktop with lots of eye candy than IceWM probably isn't for you.

Installing IceWM is pretty easy to do via the Terminal or you can use the Ubuntu Software Center to install it as well.  I will also install the 'icewm-themes' package as well during the course of this video.  Be sure to visit our YouTube Channel and subscribe so you can stay updated as to when new videos go live!

Ubuntu 11.10: Installing IceWM

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Be sure to visit our YouTube Channel and Subscribe!
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Kind of Slow...

Not much of interest going on today in the tech world.  I guess it's been kind of slow on that front.  Aside from recent flooding in Thailand possibly having an impact on hard drive manufacturing/availability for the first few months of 2012.  And the Siri outage for iPhone 4S users this week.

On the gaming front, be sure to checkout DC Universe Online which went free to play this week.  And early numbers report this was a success and already showing a rather large increase in the game's population/sign-ups.  So go check it out: http://www.dcuniverseonline.com/

This means I will hopefully be able to get caught up on my emails and make some videos this weekend for the YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/techiesmarts

Check back soon!

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Installing LXDE in Ubuntu 11.10

As we continue our search for alternate desktop environments for Ubuntu 11.10 'Oneiric Ocelot' we now arrive at LXDE.  LXDE is short for the "Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment".  It's mission is a simple one: to be "extremely fast performing".  LXDE is great for older computers or computers with lower resources than most have by today's standards.  Running LXDE will give you the best of both worlds: a great experience as your desktop environment, and the latest advantages with Ubuntu.

The great thing about LXDE is that even if you don't use Ubuntu, you can install LXDE in other distributions as well.  Another perk for LXDE is it makes a nice desktop environment for people who are trying to migrate from the Windows world.  You can even customize LXDE to a certain extent as well.

So without further delay, feel free to give our video below a watch:

Ubuntu 11.10: Installing LXDE

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Be sure to stay up to date with our YouTube Channel by subscribing to it!
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Ubuntu 11.10: Switching Login Managers

I received several emails after our posting our video about installing KDE in Ubuntu 11.10 concerning the login screen being changed.  If you followed along with our video we actually set the login screen to use KDM instead of the default for Ubuntu 11.10 which is LightDM.  Both login screens work the same way, but they look very different.

If you decide you like the original Ubuntu 11.10 login better than KDM's login screen, then watch the video below.  It's under 3 minutes long and a simple Terminal command will have you back up with LightDM in no time.

Ubuntu 11.10: Switch Between KDM to LightDM Login Screens

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Backup Your Android Apps Using Astro

Last week my wife managed to assassinate her HTC Evo 4G Android based smartphone.  She uses her phone more than her laptop these days, so she has a lot of data she wanted to move over to the insurance replacement we got her.  Not a big deal since pretty much everything she wanted was already stored on her external SD card.

Where I ran into a problem was when she asked the dreaded question: "Can I transfer my apps from one Evo to another?".  Short of finding a way to relocate apps to her external SD card to be moved, I had no clue how to do this.  We haven't had to cross this bridge before.  She looked through her apps on the old Evo and decided there wasn't anything there she couldn't re-download manually and all of her apps are freebies from the Android Market.  So she decided to handle it that way.  But this got me thinking (and researching) is there a way to backup all of your apps on your Android device to easily reinstall on another Android device at a later time.

And with Astro File Manager, the answer is yes!  Astro File Manager is free from the Android Market (it is ad supported).  Once you have it downloaded, simply tap the the Astro Icon to launch it.  And you will be greeted with the main screen.  Now tap the button marked 'App Backup' (see pic below).

 

 Step 1- Tap the 'Application Manager/Backup' button.

Then you will be taken to a screen with a list of all of your installed apps.  On my Acer Iconia a500 it also lists apps that came with the device (I'm using the stock ROM and it's not rooted).  Simply scroll through the list and pick the apps you'd like to have backed up by taping the check box to the right of their list entry.  Or you can select the entire library of apps by tapping the top most check button (it's a Select All).

When you're done, simply tap the blue 'Backup' button at the top of the screen and it will proceed with the backup process.  Once it's complete you can navigate to the backup folder to verify it did infact backup what you wanted.  Last night I backed up 54 apps and there was a folder created with all 54 apps stored inside.  (It actually stores the APK files so you can reinstall them from this backup).

Here is where I bumped into a little trouble.  Everything I seemed to find online referred to the backup folder being automatically stored to the external SD card by default.  On my Acer Iconia a500 this is not the case.  It actually stored the folder on the 'SD storage' partition/directory where pretty much all of the other app data is stored.  Using Astro I navigated to the backup folder and copied it and then navigated to the 'External SD Storage'.  Astro refers to the device's native storage as 'Internal Memory'.  See the picture below.

 

Copy the 'backup' folder from the 'Internal Memory' folder to 'External SD Card'

Once the copy is finished I went back to the 'Internal Memory' folder and deleted the subfolder named 'apps' in the 'backup' folder to save space on my device.  Restoring apps was extremely easy as well.  Simply select the 'Application Manager/Backup' button from Astro's main screen and select the tab 'Restore Apps'.  And point Astro to the folder where your app backups are stored.

Now that we know how, it will be as simple as installing Astro File Manager on both Android devices (one to backup from the old device and the other to restore from the backup to the new device).  Astro is also a great file manager which can be extended through Market downloads granting things like Bluetooth Access and access to Windows and Samba servers as well.  The free version if ad supported but you can also purchase the Pro version which is ad free.

If you use another backup app be sure to let us know by leaving a comment!

And if you need to get your hands on Astro File Manager, swing by the Android Market at:
Astro File Manager by Metago on the Android Market

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Is there a Siri for Android? Part 2: Skyvi

Skyvi was the second app I tried out during my quest for a 'Siri-like' app for Android devices.  You can read my post below about my hands-on with Iris incase you missed it (click here: my hands-on with Iris).  I have to say I kind of like Skyvi a little better.  The interface is a little more cluttered and not quite as slick looking as Iris.  However, it is very clear from the get-go what you can do with Skyvi.  When you launch the app, the initial screen you are taken to has a series of categories or buttons you can use to explore assorted questions and tasks you can have Skyvi do for you.

In a similar test to my use of Iris, I started off by asking some simple questions pertaining to things like the weather, my location, etc.  And all seemed to work much like Iris.  But where I really started having fun was letting Skyvi post status updates on Facebook and Twitter for me.  After pairing your Facebook and Twitter accounts with Skyvi it is literally as simple as tapping the microphone icon and saying "Update my Facebook Status".

You will get a voice prompt from Skyvi asking what you want your status to say and a voice box will pop up.  Simply tell it what you want and it will automagically send your status update to Facebook (it will read it back to you once it's posted, so be careful what you say first time around).  The Twitter update works the same way.  Out of the four updates I posted through Skyvi only one of them seemed to be misinterpreted.  Pretty much the same rule of thumb applies to Skyvi as with Iris.  Speak somewhat slow and very clear to get the proper results the first time.

You can even have Skyvi read your Facebook and Twitter updates from friends and you can use it to write a comment on a Facebook friend's wall.  Pretty awesome!  Skyvi is free and is a lot of fun to play with.

To check out Skyvi for yourself, swing by the Android Market at: Skyvi for Android

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Is there a Siri for Android? Part 1: Iris

One of Apple's biggest advertised features of their new iPhone 4S is Siri.  If you have been living under a rock and not sure what Siri is, I'll fill you in.  Siri is basically a virtual personal assistant that recognizes your voice.  Basically you queue up Siri and tell it what to do.  It can do web searches for you, answer questions, give you information (like what your weather is), schedule calendar events, set alarms, etc.  In short, it's pretty freakin' cool.  And I'm not a huge iPhone fan; but Siri is pretty sweet.

So naturally I set out to see if the Android Market had anything similar to Siri available (knowing I wouldn't find much).  Right off the bat I was surprised to find two apps that claim some of the features that Siri includes.  Both allow for speech in and speech out controlling.  In short, you can chat with the app and it can physically talk back to you.  Fun and yes, a little creepy.  I'll be splitting both apps into two articles.  This is the first.

The first I tried was 'Iris'.  Iris is still in Alpha Development as of this writing but it is fun to play with.  As far as being a productive tool, I can't quite call it that yet.  But it is a blast to screw around with.  The first few minutes spent with Iris was full of laughs and learning.  You can ask Iris to tell you what your local weather forecast is and it will return in voice results with your local temperature, etc.  If you ask it a question about a movie or song it will return information about the source material in question.

The app is somewhat slick looking with a solid, black background and only a blue orb on the screen.  You simply press the orb and when the speech box pops up on screen fire a question or comment at Iris.  Your searches and results will build a list down the screen keeping track of your discussion with Iris.  Within the first few minutes Iris has correctly returned search results about several songs and television characters.  My next question was asking it for the phone number for a local pizza restaurant, which should have been simple enough via a quick web search.

Instead Iris informed me that she "wasn't going to give me her phone number..."  Which was hilarious since I have never tried to "pick up" and electronic device before.  I have noticed with Iris that the correct searches are driven from very clear spoken word.  You also have to go slow sometimes for Iris to understand you.  But the fact that this works as well as it does is crazy.  It's almost like having Jarvis (Tony Stark's AI voice from Iron Man) in your pocket. 

But considering the story behind Iris, it is amazing that the app is already this far along in progress.  Simply put the initial app was developed in around 8 hours by the folks at Dexetra.com.  I look forward to seeing how development on this app progresses.

And if you haven't noticed yet, Iris = Siri spelled backwards. Clever!  It also works on both phones and tablets.

Anyways, if you'd like to check out Iris then swing by the Android Market:
Iris (alpha) on Android Market

Click here: to see my hands-on with Skyvi (another Siri-like app for Android)

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