What's new in iTunes 8

From KevinRose.com comes new details on iTunes 8.

• There will be a new Grid View to browse your artists and albums visually.
• TV Shows will be available to download in in HD quality from the iTunes Store
• A new new music visualizer is included.

iTunes 8 includes Genius, which makes playlists from songs in your library that go great together. Genius also includes Genius sidebar, which recommends music from the iTunes Store that you don't already have.

I'm interested to see how Genius works, the rest is meh. If Genius works like Pandora, I'm in, especially if that feature can be ported to things like the iPhone.

Here's what I want to see that isn't mentioned yet.

• iPhone backup speed needs to be dramatically improved.
• Hopefully they fix the iTunes store to make it faster and easier to use.
• Support for a wider variety of video formats.

Here's to hoping.

Scooters and motorcycles can pollute 90 times as much as SUVs

Ecomodder has an interesting article that claims scooters are not environmentally friendly options for transportation.

...the EPA that tested a Yamaha YZR R6 and found that it emitted 90 times more hydrocarbons than a Dodge Durango SUV. Hydrocarbons are the pollutants responsible for forming ozone and smog, which is both a serious health risk as well as an extreme eyesore.
...
On the other hand, however, you’d be getting 2-4 times the fuel economy and emitting fewer green house gases. However, the magnitude that these are reduced is tremendously outweighed by the magnitude that smog-forming pollutants are increased. Nevertheless, you will save money on gas, but riding a scooter isn’t quite as safe or air-conditioned as a car.

I tend to agree with their conclusion. If you are taking a short trip, ride your bike. It's much safer, it's better for you and keeps you in shape, and it is the best option for the environment.

Top 10 Weird Things Sent Into Space

From the website Null Hypothesis comes an interesting article about the Top 10 Weird Things sent into space. Items include things like Scotty's ashes from Star Trek, and Luke Skywalker's light saber!

10. Golf Balls
9. Salmonella
8. Luke Skywalker's Light Sabre
7. Sweet Potato
6. Bird Droppings
5. Inflatable Space Station
4. Scotty's Ashes
3. Cosmic Dancer
2. Sea Urchins
1. Anything you want

In the category of "Anything you want", I wonder if I can shoot things into space that really need to go, like the entire band Maroon 5?

Hilarious Joker/Batman Interrogation Spoof Outtakes

Watch out there is language, but this is too funny!

Rootclip.com announces the Chapter 4 winner

JakusB has won Chapter 4 of Chance Encounter with their entry Unwelcomed Help. Congratulations and good work JakusB!

Again, this round had some intense competition with Tony's entry Back in Black: Out of Time, bryceanderic's entry True Colors, and a comedic sping with Dynomar's submission Homerun.

Great work by everybody this round! Thanks for your patience while we tallied the last judge votes coming in over the holiday weekend.

Just a reminder that JakusB, FungusRidden and joshutk are ineligible to compete until the final chapter, so we need your submissions next round!

JakusB you've won a $250 VISA Gift Card, a really cool Balance Beam from Trig Industries, Retail Value $249.50, a "Video for the Web" training DVD by VASST, Retail Value $80, and The DV Rebel's Guide: An All-Digital Approach to Making Killer Action Movies on the Cheap by Stu Maschwitz, Retail Value of $44.99.

Also, JakusB is now eligible to compete in the final chapter for the $2,000.00 Cash Grand Prize.

Google's new web browser not compatible with Apple OS X or Linux

Google has announced a new web browser called Chrome to compete with Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Opera. However, the new browser is not going to be available for people running Apple's OS X operating system or Linux.




Does the world really need another web browser? Where is Chrome's advantage?

Google Chrome is said to be redesigned completely from scratch and promises to load pages faster and more securely. It also includes a new engine for loading interactive JavaScript code, dubbed V8, that is designed to run the next generation of not-yet-invented Web applications.

Chrome is going to be available for downloading Tuesday in more than 100 countries for computers running on Microsoft’s Windows operating system only. Google said it’s still working on versions compatible with Apple Inc.’s Mac computer and the Linux operating system.

Google is touting Chrome as a more sophisticated Web browser better suited for displaying the dynamic and interactive content blossoming on the Web as people migrate from television, radio and newspapers.

Personally, since I'm an Apple user, and since I'm completely dependent on Firefox's plug-in architecture, I'll be passing on Chrome for now. It will be an interesting project to follow however.