Wiimote acceleration values plotted on a PC

November 30th, 2006 by

Cyrus Farivar

Filed under: Gaming

While a good number of people who've gotten their hands on a Wii have caused all kinds of damage ranging from a busted window to broken TVs and beer glasses, others are taking a much more careful and measured approach to understanding the Wiimote's true nature. A fellow named Marcan42 on YouTube has put together a video which shows the Wiimote's acceleration values dumped to a computer, the first step necessary in hacking the device. It's anyone's guess how long it'll take to actually transform this raw data over Bluetooth into actual usable gameplay input and mechanics, but those hungry now for at least a video of some hot acceleration charts n' graphs need to no further than past the break.

[Via digg]

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CNET’s James Kim and family missing — have you seen them?

November 30th, 2006 by

Ryan Block

Filed under: Announcements

We've received word that a respected member of our tech community, James Kim (whom many of you may know as CNET's senior editor of digital audio), and his family have gone missing. As we understand it, last weekend James, his wife Kati (above right), and his very young girls Penelope (left) and Sabine (baby), drove from their home in the SF Bay Area to Seattle. They were expected back some time Sunday, but were last seen by a hotel clerk at 5:45 PM on Saturday in or between Gold Beach or Portland, Oregon. We sincerely do hope they are all safe, and our hearts go out to the Kim family.

We'll have more information as we get it. If you have any information as to the Kim family's whereabouts, please contact the SFPD at 415-558-5508 during normal business hours, and 415-553-1071 after hours.

Update: Crave reports that James and his family are driving a 2005 silver Saab station wagon with license plate "DOESF." The official missing person report can be found here.

Update 2: According to Crave, officials investigating the case have narrowed their search to a stretch of Oregon's Highway 38, which is on the route that the family would most likely have taken to get to the Gold Beach motel where they had reservations.

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Colorado scientists invent breathable rubber

November 30th, 2006 by

Cyrus Farivar

Filed under: Wearables

In the run-up to the Iraq war there was a lot of concern that Saddam Hussein might use chemical weapons against our servicemen and women on the battlefield. One of the big problems to keep in mind while combating chemical weapons is that there aren't really any good options for what to wear (a bigger concern than you might think). One option is to don a butyl rubber suit, which keeps nearly everything bad out, but keeps the soldier's sweat in. Unfortunately, trapping heat has some nasty consequences, which can lead to heat stroke or in the worst scenario, death. Scientists at the University of Colorado have just devised a solution to make butyl rubber breathable by combining it with liquid crystals to create 1.2 nanometer-wide pores, which allow sweat to go out, but prevent larger, nastier stuff from getting in. The researchers also add that there may be a way to use this same technology to get that pesky NaCl out of salt water. From the little that we know about textiles science, this sounds like a beefed up version of Gore-Tex -- that reminds us, we'd like our breathable rubber suits in black, please (it'll go with the most of our gadgets that way).

[Via Scientific American]

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Viewsonic’s V212 wireless tablet client

November 30th, 2006 by

Donald Melanson

Filed under: Tablet PCs

Released earlier this month but slipping under our radar 'till now is this rare non-display product from Viewsonic, the V212 Wireless Tablet Client, a follow-up to the company's earlier V210 model. Like that model, the V212 is a Windows CE-based device aimed primarily at vertical markets like healthcare and sales, intended to give users remote access to files and applications stored elsewhere. Also like the earlier model, the V212 packs a 10.4-inch 800x600 touchscreen, integrated 802.11b/g, and a decided lack of storage, although Viewsonic has seen fit to add a CompactFlash slot this time 'round. In addition to vertical markets, Viewsonic's also pushing the device as a suped-up home automation controller, with support for the Z-Wave wireless protocol that'll let you turn the tablet into the world's most expensive light switch. And we do mean expensive -- $1,599 may not be much for some of the markets they're going after, but we doubt there'll be many folks picking one of these up as an alternative to a laptop or UMPC.

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UK regulator Ofcom considering phasing out analog radio

November 30th, 2006 by

Cyrus Farivar

Filed under: Portable Audio

We keep hearing about this "new media" thing that's supposed to bring the imminent death of traditional print and broadcast media. Only problem is that those pesky old-school journalists still keep turning out printed pages and keep making radio and TV shows that are actually aired, over, you know, the analog airwaves. Well, the UK may be the first country to shut down traditional analog broadcasts in favor of digital radio (and probably those podcast things we've heard about). Red Herring is reporting that Ofcom, the UK's equivalent of the FCC, recently published a statement that automatic renewal of AM and FM licenses could "tie up very valuable slices of spectrum for 24 years" and that the spectrum should instead be used for mobile television and "more digital radio and data services." However, while traditional radio is unlikely to get shut down overnight, Ofcom apparently believes that it will get phased out pretty soon. We're guessing that by the time that happens, DAB radios will probably drop under the $100 mark, allowing us to finally enjoy the Beeb in full digital glory and on the cheap.

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Intel gets behind pre-802.11n, adding to Centrino

November 30th, 2006 by

Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops, Wireless

Well, it doesn't look like there's any turning back now. After waiting for what feels like the better part of a century for an official stamp of approval on 802.11n, draft-n and pre-n products just got a whole lot of legitimacy from Intel, who has now announced it will be stuffing the pre-standard WiFi spec into its Centrino chipsets as early as next year. Along with the usual user benefits of added speed and supposed range improvements over 802.11g -- Intel is claiming 50 percent greater, but we'll believe that when we see it -- the inclusion of pre-n by Intel will most likely create a de-facto standard for 802.11n which could prove difficult for the IEEE Standards Committee to screw with when they finally get around to finalizing the 802.11n spec in 2008. Sounds like a win for consumers for now, but we could all be hurting come mid-2008 when we find out those fancy laptops we sprung for in 2007 are suddenly obsolete.

[Via Ars Technica]

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