The Geek Church

I’ll start with this Horus Coffee Table iPod/iPhone dock.

There is a a new Windows PC virus that has been appearing on iPads.

Here’s a Mock Draft App for 2011 for the iPhone/iPod Touch.

Here’s a new Thanko foldable USB keyboard.

Yet another wireless mouse and keyboard combination with the Shenzhen Feishu Technology Fly Mouse.

Here’s a PayPal app for iPhone and Google Android.

Here’s the Marine Sharpshooter for the iPhone and iPod Touch, free today only.

MapQuest has a Navigator GPS App for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Here’s a SyncBox that does transfers between USB devices.

Lots of BlackBerry news. Like BlackBerry 6 is in the Third Quarter of 2010. There is a BlackBerry Bold 9650 and Pearl 3G leaked on day before a big WES 2010.

The Nexus One is coming to Vodafone UK.

Here is some iPad cases Skinny and Slick from Acme Made.

This WOWee One portable speaker can turn any flat surface into a speaker.

This app could Sync your iPhone to the iPod Touch to the computer, but Apple may never approve of it.

This iPod with a camera showed up on eBay, but not for long.

Here’s the Praktica’s Point-and-shoot camera the Luxmedia 12-Z4.

Here’s Freetalk’s Everyman HD, which is up for pre-order.

Acer has an eco-friendly LCD monitor, the V193Bwmd.

Here’s the Samsung 9000 LED LCD TV Series.

Check out the very first YouTube video, celebrating its fifth anniversary.

Floppy disks are going the way of the dead format, starting with Sony.

Lastly, here’s the Husqvarna DXR 310 robot, for destruction.

Autonomous robot technology seems to be a popular venture for researchers and developers these days. Currently, this technology is being applied in the development of smart vehicles designed to function independently without the need for a human operator. One example of this is the X-37B Space Shuttle created by Boeing, which took flight last night.

This robotic test craft had been in development for the last decade before its recent launch and DARPA actually took possession of it back in 2004. The plan for this autonomous spacecraft is to let it remain in orbit for two hundred and seventy days and it is supposed to return to Earth on its own by autopilot. According to Gary Payton of the Air Force, there is no estimation for the self-operating vessel’s return. It seems that they literally intend to wait and see if it will come back at all. Beyond that, specific details about the purpose of the experiment remain unknown.

However, if this project goes as planned, the X-37B Space Shuttle will make its return to Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and should be ready for re-launch fifteen days later. Another test run has been scheduled for 2011. Well, DARPA and the Air Force should keep their fingers crossed and maybe they’ll see their robotic spacecraft’s safe return after 270 days.

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When attending a public event like a city or state fair, you normally expect to see the same types of attractions for local residents and out-of-town tourists. These attractions usually include carnival-style thrill rides, hand-made craft booths, art exhibits, musical concerts, theater performances and carnival-style games. But what about virtual, human sculptures made possible through the use of augmented reality technology? That’s how they do it in Amsterdam!

This past Saturday, a public fair known as a “flashmob” was held in Dam Square, Amsterdam. Apparently, there is a rising trend called “the human statue” concept. People can have their pictures taken with a virtual, human sculpture, which can also be downloadable as content if you have a smartphone such as the Android or iPhone. Furthermore, these virtual sculptures are brought to life with augmented reality through an application installed on your smartphone. At this “flashmob” on April the 24th, popular characters of film, television and comic books made appearances in Dam Square. These characters include Spider-Man, Darth Vader and Superman.

In order to create your virtual, human sculpture, you must first install the “Layar” application on your smartphone. If you’re an iPhone user, you can download the Layar app. and activate its flashmob AR view feature. Human sculpture models are downloadable with a SD card if you have an Android phone and using QR codes is also required. Then, you have to bring your own 3D model to the event and create obj/mtl files if you’re using an Android. The AndAR application is required for this process to work and it was made available for participants on the 23th of April. Finally, AR tags were provided at Dam Square as markers on the ground where your virtual model would appear and these tags are linked to your obj/mtl files.

Judging from the pictures I saw, this concept of the virtual, human statue looks quite amazing. Virtual characters are actually created to exist in the same location with real people and they can be seen in a photo or as downloadable content on your smartphone. It seems that Amsterdam has taken a more technological approach with the help of augmented reality in order to attract locals and tourists to public events.

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