(PRWEB) October 24, 2011

Every year businesses are warned to be prepared for snow, but every year services and workplaces seem to grind to a halt. with forecasters already predicting heavy snowfall, Action Storage has announced details of how its new Winter Preparation Kits can help retailers, businesses, schools and other organizations to keep their doors open throughout the busy festive season.

Heavy snowfall is estimated to cost UK businesses £1.2 billion per day from absenteeism, lost productivity and lack of customers. the worst hit are often retailers and restaurants, but with Action Storage’s Winter Preparation Kits they can give themselves the best chance of staying open and attracting more customers this year.

Action Storage’s Winter Kits comprise of a variety of items, including grit bins (available in 80-400 liter sizes), shovels, gloves, salt spreaders, snow pushers and bags of de-icing salt, providing businesses with everything they need to clear areas for vehicles and people.

Two types of salt spreaders are available: drop and spinner. they are both made from corrosion free plastic, and enable de-icing salt to be quickly and easily spread throughout car parks and walkways after a snowstorm. the spinner, in particular, can deliver salt to large areas quickly with an 8 point adjustment system to control the rate at which salt is dispersed across a width of up to 3 meters.

Last year there was 30 inches of snow, which caught councils by surprise. this led to de-icing salt becoming scarce, forcing many businesses to close without the means to keep their premises open. To avoid this happening again, Action Storage supplies 25 kg bags of brown or white salt, up to 8 of which are supplied with their Winter Preparation Kits. Stocking up early can enable businesses to avoid being caught out unprepared and to keep their doors open.

Four main types of Winter Preparation Kits are available: Winter Car Kit, Winter Driveway Kit, Winter Small Business Kit and the Winter Car Park Kit, and all contain a different array of items. the Winter Small Business Kit, for example, comprises of a 200 liter grit bin, 10 x 15kg bags of white de-icing salt, a small salt spreader, a salt scoop and a G4 snow pusher.

Further information on Action Storage’s Winter Preparation Kits can be found on its website along with details on the 4000 other products in its range, where you can also order its 180 page catalogue free of charge. Councils can place orders on credit with a valid purchase order and all orders placed online receive an upfront 5% discount.

About Action Storage

For 25 years Action Storage has supplied shelving, racking and other storage equipment using the latest materials and innovative designs. its clients include supermarkets, warehouses, government offices, schools and anyone else requiring high quality storage systems throughout the UK and mainland Europe.

Action Storage prides itself on its high service levels, and provides a free, unique advice line for discussing your requirements and assessing the perfect storage solution.

For service inquiries contact:

Website: action-storage.co.uk Email: sales(at)action-storage(dot)co(dot)uk Tel UK: 0800 592215 Outside UK: +44 (0)1908 525700 Fax: +44 (0)1908 321650

Action Storage 6 Fitzhamon Court Wolverton mill South Milton Keynes Bucks MK12 6LB

Sources guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/dec/01/snow-cost-uk-economy-more-than-6bn

Read the full story at prweb.com/releases/2011/10/prweb8899678.htm

New research conducted on behalf of the Wi-Fi Alliance shows that while wireless users are making strides on the security front, they’re still leaving their Wi-Fi networks too open to intruders.

BETTER WIRELESS: Software upgrades could produce self-tuning wireless access points

The survey, conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of the Wi-Fi Alliance, found that 86 percent of Wi-Fi users have taken basic privacy and security steps in setting up their access points and routers. However, while 97 percent of those surveyed said they believe the data on their devices and networks is “safe and secure,” these same people scored an average of 66 percent when asked about a series of recommended security/privacy steps that they’ve taken. Some 59 percent have failed to use passwords meeting basic security criteria, only 62 percent have auto-sharing turned off and just 18 percent use VPNs when on a wireless hotspot.

The Wi-Fi Alliance recommends enabling WPA2, creating strong Wi-Fi network passwords (at least 8 characters long, with a mix of letters and symbols) and changing them regularly, and turning off automatic sharing on devices to avoid connecting to suspect networks.

The survey was conducted during August and involved 1000 interviews with a mix of people across the United States.

The Wi-Fi study results are somewhat remindful of those in another recent survey, but this focused on cellphone and texting use while driving, and conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

Some 95% of those surveyed said they view other drivers emailing or texting while driving to be a danger to their own health, but 35% of those same drivers acknowledged having sent or read a text or email message in the past month. according to the survey, 88% of drivers feel talking on a phone is a threat to safety, yet two-thirds admitted to having talked on a cellphone while driving in the past 30 days.

The Web-based survey was conducted in June and involved some 3100 U.S. residents.

There’s nothing unsafe about following Bob on Google+ (just don’t do it while driving or on an unsecured Wi-Fi network)

Read more about anti-malware in Network World’s Anti-malware section.

Get ready for camera 3.0. because next year, you might have to decide whether an 11-megaray sensor is enough for your new light-field camera.

Lytro, a Silicon Valley startup, today unveiled its radical new camera–also called the Lytro. With it, the company hopes to rewrite the rules with a technology called light-field photography, but the scale of the company’s ambition is matched by the scale of its challenge.

On the outside, the Lytro looks different–a smooth, two-tone elongated box 4.4 inches long and 1.6 inches square. at one end is the lens and at the other is an LCD touch-screen display; along the sides are power and shutter buttons, a USB port, and a touch-sensitive strip to move the F2 lens through its 8X zoom range.

There are three models–the $399 cameras with “electric blue” and “graphite” exteriors whose 8GB of built-in memory is enough for about 350 shots and the “red hot,” 16GB camera that can record 750 shots, Chief Executive Ren Ng told CNET in an interview today. U.S. residents can buy one now, through Lytro’s Web site only, though they won’t ship until the first quarter of 2012.

It’s a striking industrial design for those accustomed to cameras festooned with buttons, protruding lenses, scroll wheels, and knobs. But the biggest differences are on the inside.

The three Lytro camera models sport a very different design on the outside, but their light-field technology inside is even more of a departure from conventional cameras.

(Credit:Lytro)

Conventional digital cameras use lenses to focus a subject so it’s sharp on the image sensor. That means that for an in-focus part of the image, light from only one direction reaches the sensor. for light-field photography, though, light from multiple directions hits each patch of the sensor; the camera records this directional information, and after-the-shot computing converts it into something a human eye can understand.

The result is that a Lytro camera image is a 3D map of whatever was photographed, and that means people can literally decide what to focus on after they’ve taken the photo.

“Camera 1.0 was film. Camera 2.0 was digital,” said Ng, who worked on the technology at Stanford University before founding Lytro, originally called Refocus Imaging, in 2006. “3.0 is a light-field camera that opens all these new possibilities for your picture taking.”

Lytro's camera lets a single shot be refocused on different subjects.

(Credit:Eric Cheng)

The biggest such possibility Ng points to is that an image becomes more dynamic. With the camera, a photographer looking at the screen can change the focus point. In one demonstration, the image shows the droplets of water on the window at one moment and the new York skyline from the same image at the next moment.

The interactivity is not limited to the camera. Software included on it lets people do the same operation on computers, with images hosted for free at Lytro’s Web site, or embedded in Facebook pages. only aMac application will be available at launch, though a Windows version is on the way, and Lytro plans viewer apps for mobile phones as well.

Lytro believes the cameras will be be handy for focusing an image after it was taken; you can whip the camera out, turn it on, and snap the shot rapidly without worrying about waiting for an autofocus system to hunt around while the baby’s first smile fades away.

“It’s got an instant shutter. you press the button–bang! it takes the picture right away,” Ng said. “We have that unique feature–shoot first, focus later. the camera doesn’t have to physically focus while you take the shot.”

The image is ready for refocusing operations immediately after it’s taken, the company said. And though people can toy with the image on the 1.46-inch LCD display, they don’t need to. That’s good, given the limits of such a small view.

Another interesting feature: because the camera captures depth information, Lytro images can be viewed in 3D, something the company demonstrates with3D TVs. the image information will be recorded for anyone who buys a Lytro camera, but the ability to view the 3D versions will come later with a future version of the company’s software.

The Lytro camera

One big challenge for the company will be convincing people that they want this interactivity.

After-the-fact fiddling with photos can be a drawback as well as an asset. Focusing 40 birthday party snapshots after the fact might get tedious for the photographer, not to mention for a more casual viewer flipping through views of the event. some might enjoy exploring the new aesthetic domain of shiftable focus, but a lot of people taking snapshots just want it in focus in the first place.

The camera’s image quality also remains to be seen. Another Silicon Valley startup, Foveon, tried to shift the digital photography paradigm with a new sensor design that produced what Ng would call camera 2.0 images. But Foveon struggled to convince the photography industry of the approach’s merits and cost-effectiveness, and lensmaker Sigma ended up acquiring the company. Lytro will have to prove its way here, too.

Another challenge will be convincing people to buy something so different online. People like to handle cameras, and though they’ll be able to try the refocusing effect online, they won’t be able to get a feel for the camera itself. Lytro wouldn’t comment on its retail strategy.

Then there’s the vocabulary gap. the Lytro cameras gather 11 megarays worth of data, Ng said. “The sensor collects 11 million rays of light at every shot,” he explained. That’s a lot of rays, but it’ll be awhile before anyone has an idea what kind of image quality that enables, the way people have at least a vague understanding of megapixels today for conventional cameras.

So there are challenges. But if the company can get a foothold, it can grow–and it’s got Moore’s Law on its side, because much of the challenge of light-field photography is in the image processing rather than the optics.

Updated 1:28 p.m. PTwith further detail and photos.Updated 2:24 a.m. PT October 20to note that the cameras can be purchased now, though shipping won’t be until 2012.

Newport woman raises awareness of condition on US radio

1:40pm Monday 17th October 2011

• Print
• Email
•  

a NEWPORT woman who suffers from a painful pelvic condition is taking a campaign to raise awareness of it global, with a regular slot on a US online radio show.

Danielle Bevan-Jones, 23, of Caerleon Road, was contacted by Hollywood actress Elizabeth Oas, who also suffers from endometriosis, after Ms Oas had seen a video the University of Wales, Newport, student had created about living with it.

miss Bevan-Jones, who was diagnosed with the incurable condition in January 2010, now appears on the online radio show the Pelvic Messenger once every few months.

Endometriosis, which affects one in ten women, occurs when the lining of the womb grows in other areas outside of the womb and can lead to some women feeling pain so excruciating it feels like they are in labour.

miss Bevan-Jones decided she wanted to raise awareness of the condition after first going to the doctors in November 2007 with what she thought were bad period pains.

After seeing six doctors and being referred to two psychotherapists, she finally underwent a laparoscopy at the Royal Gwent Hospital, leading to the diagnosis.

although she underwent six months of chemical menopause treatment, there is no specific treatment available to cure the condition.

This leaves her suffering in pain for around 25 days each month and some days she is unable to get out of bed.

Wanting to help others like her, miss Bevan-Jones, a documentary, film and television student, decided to start making the film. After putting her film ‘myendowhat’ on YouTube, she also has had a national radio appearance and been on a phone-in to the Lorraine Kelly Show.

she also has a fundraising page atjustgiving.com/ Danielle-Bevan-Jones and has now been appointed as a trustee for the Endometriosis SHE Trust UK.

she said: “I just realised that something needed to be done about the lack of Endo awareness and funding.”

For more information on miss Bevan-Jones’ campaign, contact danibevan

Read these News stories

The company has sold the devices through global cable brands and OEMs, including Vizio, Samsung, PNY, Monster, RadioShack, Buffalo Supply inc and Kordz.

RedMere’s patented technology allows HDMI cables to be made ultra-thin and portable.

The company is capitalising on increasing demand for HDMI-enabled handheld products, such as smartphones, tablets, digital cameras and video games that now connect to a HDTV or HD projector anywhere.

Before RedMere successfully developed this revolutionary chip technology, passive HDMI cables needed large amounts of copper and PVC to handle the high-speed data rates which made the cables heavy and bulky.

Because of RedMere’s booster module, consumers can now buy a 10-foot active HDMI cable that is thin enough to coil up in their palm or pocket, but will support high-definition signal transfer, deliver picture-perfect HD images and sound, and is 3D and 4K2K compatible.

Irish firm emerges as leading provider in growing HDMI market

“Not only has RedMere exceeded expected revenue figures for 2011 but to reach the 1m unit sales mark so early in a young company’s history is a sure sign that RedMere is the leading technology provider in the active HDMI cable market,” RedMere’s CEO, Ruud van der Linden, explained.

“We work with the highest possible quality cable manufacturers, distributors and OEMs to help deliver what now is a global product – the ultra-thin active HDMI cable using RedMere’s booster module inside the connector,” van der Linden added.

RedMere’s booster module is embedded into the sink (TV) side connector of the HDMI cable.

The programmable active silicon embedded equaliser overcomes any performance limitations over wire gauge, length and frequency – allowing the self-powered module to act as the power house of the cable, replacing the need for all the copper to transmit the signal reliably.

Every single cable is individually tested at production, and compliance is fully guaranteed with the high-speed HDMI standard, future proofing these super-slim cables against 3D or 4K2K compatibility.

MINI GOES LOUD!

The new BMW-built edition of MINI, the British cult compact car, can be spotted on our streets with different body modifications. The Clubman, first presented in 2007 at the International Automobile Exhibition, was awarded with the Red Dot Design Award for its concept only a year after its release.

Mac Audio, manufacturers of amplifiers and loudspeakers, has customized Mini Clubman S, the most powerful version, into a unique Showcar.

The exterior of Mac Audio Mini radiates the glow with its new matte white special color. The previous quite sporty car appearance has been emphasized by John Cooper Works Bodykit. thanks to the professionals on the Wimmer Rennsporttechnik team, the Mini features impressive 230 HP due to adjusted engine electronic system, a modified exhaust system and optimized air intake pipes.

To reap the fruits of this enormous performance potential on the streets, the Mac Audio Mini rolls on the tire/wheel combination of 15-inch Oxigin rims, 8′ x 18′ wheels (also painted in white with use of special coating) and 215/35-18 Yokohama Advan Sports tires . The Stoptech four-piston high performance brake system, the KW coilovers Variant 1 in Inox and the Sportster Recaro CS-seats convincingly top off the performance package.

Mac Audio put the greatest emphasis, however, on the interior of its Showcar. here the job was entirely done by the company’s own Professional Installation Team headed by Nic König.

12m2 of Dynamat Xtreme insulating material was used in order to eliminate vibration and rattling. Installation experts have mounted Mac Audio Star X 2.16 front and rear loudspeakers system in the modified door panels. this sophisticated job has resulted in brilliant high tone playback, clear midtones and a springy kickbass. The handmade 90-liter bass enclosure equipped with 3 x Mac Audio STX Reference-Woofers makes the Showcar quake and guarantees a real feeling of music. The 6 Micro X Series amplifiers with the maximum capacity of 3,900 Watt have enough sound in store for any musical taste. A visual highlight has been created by mounting the amplifiers in the headliner where they dramatically stand out over a giant mirror in the trunk floor. Extra batteries, buffer capacitors and cabling by Stinger provide ideal connection. The brain of the whole system is the Audiovox VME 9325BTA Head unit which enables the user to control navigation using iPod, iPhone, USB, DVB-T and Bluetooth by touchscreen. Perfect visual integration of audio components and an exclusive interior combination of leather and Alcantara puts the Mac Audio Mini way ahead of the series base model.

Being on the road in this four-wheel rocker is … sheer joy.

Eugene, OR — (SBWIRE) –10/11/2011 — Coast Computer Services announced today the introduction of Remote Virus Removal and Technical Support Services for residential and business customers using Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7. Coast Computer Services can remotely access customer computers and provide complete technical support to customers in any location throughout the United States.using remote access software, technical support professionals at Coast Computer Services can easily attach to a customer computer and observe the technical problem being experienced by the customer. Utilizing their technical knowledge and experience, technical support professionals are then capable of remotely resolving technical problems in a timely and professional manner. all staff at Coast Computer Services are American, native English speaking technical support professionals with a minimum of 19 years of experience in Virus Removal and Technical Support. You will find communicating with Coast Computer Services to be completely painless because all staff are fluent in conversational English. Coast Computer Services understands the importance of listening to their customers. Their number one priority is meeting their customer’s needs. with this goal in mind, they strive every day to provide the best technical support in the United States. call Coast Computer Services today at (541) 997-0700 or visit them on the web at mycoastcomputers.com.about Coast Computer ServicesSince 1992, Coast Computer Services has provided nationwide technical support to residential and business customers using Microsoft Windows. Coast Computer Services also provides business customers with Professional Web Design, Web Application Development, Business Computer Networks, Database Development and Custom Programming.Technical SupportCoast Computer Services provides technical support for residential and business customers throughout the United States. Technical support includes Virus Removal, Spyware Removal, Windows Error Resolution, Printer Problem Resolution, Email Problem Resolution, Software Problem Resolution, Hardware Problem Resolution, Software Installation and Removal, Driver Installation and Removal, Data Recovery, Registry Repair, Password Recovery and Wired/Wireless Networking.If you are experiencing a technical issue of any kind involving Microsoft Windows, we are here to help.Professional Web Design and Web Application DevelopmentCoast Computer Services develops fully customized websites for businesses throughout the United States. Websites have included Online Stores, Picture Galleries, Image Panning, Marketing Text Development, Search Engine Optimization, Credit Card Merchant Solutions, Streaming Audio and Video, Newsfeeds, Knowledgebases, help Desk Systems and Many Others.Websites have utilized the following technologies: LAMP (Linux – Apache – MySQL – PHP), AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript – XML), jQuery, phpMyAdmin, Adobe Flash, Adobe Actionscript, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Dreamweaver, Adobe Illustrator, UserCake, RDF (Resource Description Framework), API (Application Programming Interface), HTML(Hypertext Markup Language), DHTML (Dynamic Hypertext Markup Language), XHTML (Extensible Hypertext Markup Language), Perl, RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).Business Computer NetworksCoast Computer Services installs and supports business computer networks throughout the United States.Business computer networks have included Active Directory, Group Policies, User Account Management, NTFS Permissions, Folder Shares, Printer Shares, Print Servers, Printer Redirection, Shared Modems, Patch Management, Windows Updates, Windows Service Packs, Security Analysis, Server Monitoring, Traffic Analysis, Network Inventory, Software Licensing, Network Design/Implementation, Firewall Configuration, Email Migration/Conversion, IT Policies and Procedures, Technical Documentation, Remote Access, Remote Control, Email, Antivirus, Troubleshooting, Preventative Maintenance and Disaster Recovery. Business computer networks have utilized the following technologies: Microsoft Windows Server, Microsoft Windows Small Business Server, RedHat Enterprise Linux, Novell Intranetware 4.11 and Novell Netware 3.12/4.1, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Remote Web Workplace, Microsoft Remote Desktop, Terminal Services, Terminal Services Web Access, Printer Redirection, Microsoft Internet Information Server, Microsoft Sharepoint, Sage MAS90, Symantec Backup Exec, Symantec Backup Exec System Recovery, Trend Micro Worry Free Business Security, Symantec Endpoint Protection, Dameware Mini Remote Control, Forward/Reverse VNC (Virtual Network Computing) and Watchguard MUVPN (Mobile User Virtual Private Network), Novell Managewise, Novell ZenWorks, Intel LANDesk and many others. Database Development and Custom ProgrammingCoast Computer Services develops fully customized database applications for businesses throughout the United States. Database development has included 2D Barcode Automation, Case Management, Inventory Management, Client Management, Document Management, Project Management, Parts and Repair Management, Time and Materials Management, Purchase Order Processing, Work Order Processing, File Transfers, Automated Report Distribution, Complex Report Design, Lead Generation, Lead Analysis, Cause Analysis, Cost Analysis, Log Analysis,Image Retrieval, Image Manipulation, Data Retrieval, Data Manipulation, Webpage Retrieval, Webpage Manipulation, Email Retrieval, Email Manipulation, Telephone Keypad to English Dictionary Translation, CAD Drawing Management, Room Reservation, Point of Sale, Quality Assurance, Knowledgebase and Many Others.Database applications have utilized the following technologies: LAMP (Linux – Apache – MySQL – PHP), AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript – XML), phpMyAdmin, jQuery, UserCake, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Visual Basic, Microsoft VBScript, Microsoft ActiveX, Adobe Flash, RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and Perl.(C) Copyright 2011, Coast Computer Services, LLC. all rights reserved.

October 27, 2011

Dramamine wasn’t necessary. But, standing in the center of the gallery room at the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis, does make you feel as if you’re on the deck of a ship.

Everywhere the eye wanders — starboard, port side, bow and aft — there are scenes of life and labor on the vast and vivacious seas. And even though the framed paintings are different sizes, depicting different aspects of powerfully mundane maritime moments, the overall effect isn’t a feeling of being lost at sea, but rather one of being caught, like a netted fish, in the narrative expressions of Frank Cardozo Nicholas.

What: “Men and the Sea” exhibit

• Where: Cape Cod Museum of Art, 60 Hope Lane (off Route 6A), Dennis
• When: Through Nov. 27

In “Line Squall,” for example, there’s a fisherman in a dory, laboring to row back to the mother ship off in the distance. will he make it back? can his crew mates even see the lone fisherman as his little wooden boat, full of fish, is obscured from their view behind a swollen, rolling wave?

Standing next to me, Tracy Bledsoe, Nicholas’ daughter and manager of her late father’s trust, talked about her impressions of him and his work. She channeled Nicholas’ profound passion for art and his deep desire for the work of his lifetime to finally be recognized as a collection of master pieces.

“Yes, the Cape is beautiful. That’s why he moved to the Cape — to work as an artist, full-time. But, it was the working man he focused on in his art — the human condition,” she said.

The human condition under which Nicholas was born, the trajectory of his career, the eclectic body of his work, are just as mesmerizing as the 200 or so mostly oil paintings her father created in his 81 years.

Born in segregated Washington, D.C., Nicholas was formally trained in both commercial and fine art at the University of Pennsylvania Museum School of Art, the Pratt Institute, the Art Student’s League and the Brooklyn Museum School. But, instead of following the advice of his mentors to go into academia because of the racism he would experience working in the commercial industry, Nicholas went to work as, among other things, an illustrator of textbooks and greeting cards.

“It is almost needless to say,” he would later reflect, “that I did spend the next 20 years running into stone and glass walls.” And it wasn’t only racial obstacles he encountered. “It was about style, content, context, everything. if I wasn’t painting in primitive motif, I couldn’t really be black — and if I was black, I couldn’t want to paint Caucasians, or Native Americans or ballerinas, mythical heroes or landscapes — I had to stay within the boundaries, and respect the high walls of tradition.”

Though he never ran away from race and painted a powerful series of African-American life in his “Black Narrative Collection,” Nicholas wanted to be recognized as a master American artist, not an African-American painter, Bledsoe explained.

Besides, she said, like many African-Americans, her father’s ancestry was more complicated than neat racial categories. his father abandoned the family when he was young, which was such a sore spot for Nicholas he actually scrubbed “Frank Nicholas” from his paintings and re-signed them “Cardozo” in honor of his great-grandfather, a Jewish Spaniard expelled from his native country under a vicious anti-Semitic pogrom.

Despite, or maybe because of, the bumps and bruises of soul-sapping bigotry, Nicholas developed a keen eye for detail and research.

“Whatever his subject, he didn’t paint until he did lots of research. … he walked by the water a lot. Water is one of the hardest things to paint because of the motion of the water and the way light reflects on it,” Bledsoe said.

“He wouldn’t even start on a painting until he had a real grasp of it. there were days I would walk into his studio and want to ask him something mundane. And he would be there just starting intently at whatever he was working on,” she said.

But, it wasn’t just Nicholas’ artistic mastery that led Cape Cod Museum of Art Executive Director Elizabeth Ives Hunter to exhibit the “Men and the Sea” collection. It was the emotive response she encountered while giving a tour to museum visitors.

“There’s this one painting of a grandfather cupping his grandson’s face. this woman just burst out in tears,” Hunter told me, tears on her own face. “There is always a certain amount of pain in childhood, don’t you think?”

That’s the kind of reaction — one that cuts deeper than intellect — Nicholas craved.

“He died still hungry for recognition,” Bledsoe said. “I feel his voice would still be crying out: ‘Look at the work!’ But it wasn’t about him. It really was about the work. he wanted people to look at each of these and ask questions. what happened? Why?”

There was one painting, depicting a fisherman standing on a boat while docked in the harbor. It’s near dusk, or is it dawn? The water is calm and the fisherman is glancing down, the water reflecting in his face. And it seems the weight of the world is on that one fisherman’s shoulders. what was he thinking? That’s what I would’ve asked Nicholas.

Email Sean Gonsalves at .

Ads by Google

Apple is rumored to be bringing out a Smart TV shortly. TVs are both one of the most popular consumer products and one of the most difficult to be successful at doing. the latter is exemplified by failed efforts from Dell, Gateway, HP, and Pioneer, all of which tried and failed at selling TVs. one of the most memorable moments was when then CEO of HP, Carly Fiorina, got up and gave a speech on how her HP was never going to bring out a me-too product right before announcing HP’s TVs, which really weren’t different than other products in market.

TVs have had a lot of trouble advancing over time. Color took nearly 20 years to catch on, flat panes took about a decade to hit acceptable price points, and 3D TV is, by most measures stalled, waiting for both great content and a technology that doesn’t require prosthetics (glasses). Smart TVs are interesting, but the spectacular failure of Google TV certainly took the steam out of that market by showcasing a new technology could get a CEO (Logitech’s) fired. currently, the market is awash with inexpensive flat screen TVs and buyers have mostly replaced their tube TVs in their homes with sets that have a service life of between 8 and 10 years.

In this market, Apple’s TVs will try to roll and while, if any vendor could do it, it would be Apple; I’m skeptical they will give this product the go-ahead and whether even Apple can revitalize this market. But, given Apple’s record during Jobs’ reign of sequential hits, let’s talk about how this might be done.

Unique Content

This is what made color eventually become a success around 20 years after it was introduced. the program was the Wonderful World of Disney and every kid (me included) wanted to see that show and see it in color. Families that had color TVs immediately had neighborhood status over those that didn’t and children whined to their parents about being deprived of this now critical technology. the not so subtle message was that success was partially defined by whether or not you could afford a color TV and, in a few short years after the Disney program aired, color TVs were the norm.

For the Apple product, or any Smart TV or 3D TV for that matter, to be successful will need unique compelling content that some significant group wants to watch. Given the connection between Apple and Disney, there is a great opportunity for a repeat and targeting kids for unique, safe, Disney content could significantly help drive these new sets into the market.

Installation Services

This is one thing the Apple stores currently lack and installing a TV is often not a trivial action these days. the products tend to be heavy, often require wall mounting, and need to be connected to stereo systems, which can be daunting (though with HDMI far less so than it used to be). the stores are going to need to staff the capability of going to the home to ensure the Apple experience and protect Apple’s ease of installation/ease of use message. Part of that would likely be helping set up the iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch as the likely remote control for the TV and critical components (the TV alone could likely be done in the store but getting receivers to work will likely be too daunting for most potential customers to want to try on their own).

Compelling Design

What makes Apple products stand out and sell themselves is their unique and simple design language.   If these TVs just look like any Samsung, Sony, or Vizio TV, people are unlikely to be as willing to pay the premium. They’ll need to have a design with similar dimensions, because they will most likely be replacing another set, but they will also have to have a unique and likely iPad like appearance.

Touch

Touch, while cool, is mostly impractical on a TV that is up on the wall, but could be interesting in a table top set.  I think this is one feature it would be wise to leave off and have people explore touch instead on the Apple device used as the remote control. You then get the “better-together” advantage of a product set and each TV also moves one of the other Apple products. so, while Touch is important, it is best left off the TV and enhanced in the iPad/iPod/iPhone remote control.

Price

TVs are very price sensitive and doing what Apple did with the iPad (buy up enough supply so that everyone else pays more) will be very difficult unless it is a unique panel.Transflective panels are way too expensive in this size and don’t look that great in rooms most likely to have TVs anyway and any other unique technology will raise the panel cost too much for Apple to bring to market a competitively priced product. an Apple product could carry a 10% premium over another Smart TV, particularly if they hit on everything else, but the real win would execute like they did with the iPad and have an aggressively priced set resulting from Apple’s unique ability to negotiate and lock up critical components while still having the buyer view the product as a premium offering.  I don’t think they can do this given the saturation of the TV market and that panel makers like Samsung are likely not going to give Apple this kind of advantage. But I would have said the same thing about tablets and they certainly pulled that rabbit out of the hat.

Marketing

What often sets Apple apart is their willingness, under Steve Jobs, to properly fund effective marketing.   They will need to have buyers look at the Apple product as something both unique and desirable in its class and this, given how saturated the TV market is, won’t be easy. This will likely be the real test of the post Jobs Apple and define near term whether they can still do amazing things. This last is why I think it is likely that the existing team will pull the plug on this product, because it represents a huge risk should it fail and the odds against anyone succeeding in an effort like this in the TV market are long.

Risks

In the end, the big thing about a new Apple TV is whether the post Jobs Apple is willing to take the big risks. the iPod was a massive risk that paid off, the iPhone less of one, but still thought by many to be impossible given the then strength of Palm, RIM, and Microsoft in smartphones, and the iPad following so soon after the failed Windows Tablet looked to be a fool’s game.  In each case, Apple surprised the market with massive success, but only by being willing to take huge risks and believe in their model’s ability to pull out a winner. a real Apple TV is a bigger risk than any of these prior products, but given the fact that households have multiple TVs and that each TV will likely sell at least one iPad or iPod as a controller, it could also become Apple’s greatest success.

We will know shortly if Apple is both willing to take these big risks and still willing to invest in them to a level which assures their success. This one product will likely tell us if the new Apple can eclipse Steve Jobs’ Apple or be forever eclipsed by it. I think Apple could do this; the question is whether they will.

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

(PhysOrg.com) — Every vehicle has a magnetic field, and researchers have now found that a vehicle’s magnetic field has an inverse relationship with distance at small distances. the relationship provides a way to estimate a vehicle’s position using its magnetic field when the vehicle is less than a few meters away, which could be useful for detecting imminent collisions just before they occur.

S. Taghvaeeyan and R. Rajamani of the University of Minnesota have published their study on using vehicles’ magnetic signatures for position estimation in a recent issue of Applied Physics Letters.

“the main sources of magnetic fields are the magnetized steel belts in the tires, the ignition, the alternator, air conditioning system, speakers, etc.,” Rajamani told PhysOrg.com. “the significant metal in the engine block, transmission, driveline, etc., can also be magnetized.”

To measure a vehicle’s magnetic field, the researchers used anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensors on the vehicle that’s doing the measuring, while the other vehicles do not need to be equipped with any kind of device. the AMR sensors, which contain silicon chips with a thick coating of piezoresistive nickel-iron, can detect a change in the ambient magnetic field induced by a passing vehicle. the change in magnetic field causes a change in the resistance of the nickel-iron layer in the AMR sensors. While measuring a vehicle’s magnetism has previously been used to measure traffic flow rates on a road, it’s never been applied to estimating the distance between two vehicles.

In their study, the researchers performed a theoretical analysis and experimental measurements with different vehicle types to determine exactly how the magnetism relates to distance. they found a clear non-linear relationship between the measured magnetic field and distance below about 6 meters.

“in general, the magnetic field for a magnetized body varies with the powers of the inverse of the distance,” Rajamani said. “in the case of cars, we were able to show in this paper that cars have a magnetic field and that the variation could be described by a first order inverse relationship with distance.”

However, the researchers also found that this relationship depends on the type and size of a vehicle, and also changes from one location to another. To estimate a vehicle’s position without knowing these variables, the researchers found they could use two AMR sensors separated by a certain distance along with an adaptive estimation algorithm. as long as an approaching vehicle is close enough to affect both AMR sensors, the two sensors can accurately estimate its position, regardless of the vehicle type, vehicle size, or general location.

The magnetic field technique is not the first attempt at measuring inter-vehicle distances. Currently, some luxury vehicles use radar or laser sensors to measure distances to other vehicles. however, these sensors have two drawbacks: they cannot measure distances of less than 1 meter, and a typical radar distance measuring unit can cost over $1000. in comparison, the AMR sensors can measure distances of less than a meter and cost less than $10.

“the sensors will be useful for detecting an imminent collision,” Rajamani said. “the sensors will provide information on the relative velocity and position of the impending crash on the vehicle. This could be used to pre-tighten seat belts, inflate airbags and deploy other active structural enhancement measures that can protect the occupants in the car during the crash.”

more information: S. Taghvaeeyan and R. Rajamani. “Use of vehicle magnetic signatures for position estimation.” Applied Physics Letters 99, 134101 (2011). DOI:10.1063/1.3639274

Copyright 2011 PhysOrg.com. all rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part without the express written permission of PhysOrg.com.