Drivesafe.ly Reads Your Emails and SMS Out Loud

Filed Under (Email, Gadgets, Productivity, Software) by tech989 on 18-12-2009

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There is an endless line of applications that try to make it safer to drive with your BlackBerry. As CrackBerry Abusers, we find it near impossible to drive without checking our emails or SMS on the road. DriveSafe.ly hopes to help keep us all safer on the move with their free application. As emails or SMS messages come in, DriveSafe.ly will read them out loud so you don’t need to take your eyes off the road. You can choose to have the messages automatically played, or on-demand through the menu. The obvious downside to the free version is that there are sponsor messages which can become annoying after time, however there is also a pro version of the application that adds additonal voices and is sponsor free. DriveSafe.ly is available as a free download in the BlackBerry App Store.

Features

  • Reads your text messages and emails out loud in real time
  • Hands Free – No need to touch the phone while driving
  • Good natural voices
  • Understand acronyms and dates
  • One-touch activation – no complicated setup
  • Bluetooth and radio transmitter compatible
  • Reads text message shorthand (lol, brb)
  • Optional customizable auto-responder and timeout duration

Benefits

  • Eliminates texting while driving and reading emails while driving
  • Safely stay connected while reducing distracted driving
  • Keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road
  • Be safer and more productive during your commute
  • Lightweight app doesn’t slow down phone or drain battery
  • Flexible app allows many customization options

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I’m extremely excited about the potential DriveSafe.ly provides.The free version is amazing itself, but the Pro Version is a bit expensive at $13.95. If you’re like me and hate to pay for Apps, the DriveSafe.ly team is giving us the option to utilize Facebook to share the App and be rewarded with the Pro Version for free. Simply Become a Fan of Drive Safe.ly on Facebook and if 5 of your Facebook friends become a fan, you’ll get the Pro Version free for 30 days. If 25 of your Facebook Friends become a fan, the Pro Version will be free for a lifetime.

“DriveSafe.ly is taking off because people want to stay connected while they drive, and do it in a safe way” says Heath Ahrens, CEO of iSpeech and creator of DriveSafe.ly. “I recommend that everyone install DriveSafe.ly, not because I work for the company behind it, but because I actually use it and it stops texting while driving.”

Interested? You can see a demo of the DriveSafe.ly Mobile App in action below.

You can obtain further details concerning the free DriveSafe.ly Mobile App (there’s also Drivesafe.ly Pro, which isn’t free), which is available in the US for the iPhone (jailbroken only for now, it appears) as well as BlackBerry, Android and Windows Mobile handsets , via the official DriveSafe.ly website.

Some of the Best Tech of 2009

Filed Under (Gadgets, Hardware) by tech989 on 18-12-2009

Nikon Coolpix S1000PJ
Microprojector prototypes started popping up two years ago, and it was clear from the start that their destiny was to become small and inexpensive enough to be built into other gadgets. Now, Nikon has notched a first: The tiny LED projector in its 12.1-megapixel, $430 compact camera casts large, clear images onto a wall. This promises to resurrect the slide shows of earlier eras, without the hassle of actual slides. (Remember those?)

Eye-Fi Explore 2 GB Wi-Fi SD Flash Memory Card EYE-FI-2EX (OLD VERSION)

The EyeFi card has been on my wishlist for months: it’s a wifi-enabled SD card that lets your camera upload to your favorite photo sites — like Flickr and Facebook — without connecting to your computer. This particular model — the Explorer — includes geo-tagging; it recognizes where you are when you snap your picture, so you can do cool things like mapping your pictures in iPhoto. We had our eye on the EyeFi thanks to its integration with our beloved Evernote: the plan was to use the card in our office camera so that we could snap and upload our many whiteboard sessions, and get them all into Evernote so they’d be fully searchable. (Evernote’s text recognition works on handwriting, so once you snap a whiteboard, you can retrieve your notes by searching for any word you wrote on the whiteboard.) Unfortunately, it wasn’t until we were well into the “why the heck doesn’t this thing work?” process that we discovered our particular Canon PowerShot is an unsupported model. We’re still hoping to use it in another camera, but meanwhile, EyeFi loses big points for failing to note compatibility exceptions in its list of supported brands. than the rear)
Asus Eee PC T91
It’s a netbook! It’s a tablet! It’s a touch-screen! Asus’ Eee PC T91 is both versatile and — at just over 2 pounds and less than an inch thick — mobile. The small, sleek computer boasts a 16GB shock-proof solid-state hard drive, another 16 GB of removable SD storage, a 1.33-GHz Intel Atom Z520 processor and a built-in webcam.  asus.com | $500

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Asus Eee PC 1101HA (netbook, $430) This well-designed, slim-line netbook stands out for its excellent keyboard and touchpad, and its clear, bright, 11.6-inch screen. Its battery life rocks, too, at over 8 hours. Though this model isn’t be the fastest we’ve tested, its overall handling impressed us.

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Amazon Kindle 2 (e-book reader, $259) This skinnier remake of the original Kindle boasts an improved interface and a redesigned keyboard. With 2GB of onboard storage (room for 1500 average-length books), this reader has everything but the faint rustling of paper pages turning. Text is crisp and tight, and the screen technology is noticeably better than in version one. The device charges via USB, and you can use it as a mass-storage device.

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Microsoft Windows 7 (operating system, prices vary) With Windows 7, Microsoft hopes to put the bad press from Vista behind it. Windows 7 smooths out a number of Vista annoyances (User Account Control, anyone?) and makes the interface cleaner and easier to work with overall (for example, the new taskbar uses one icon per open application instead of accumulating individual buttons for each window). It’s slightly faster than Vista, too, reversing the trend of software upgrades yielding performance downgrades.

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TomTom XL 340 S, $250

For point-A-to-B drivers who just need to get there, TomTom’s XL 340 S is practical, affordable, and solid – the type of GPS you’ll keep around the glove box for peace of mind for years to come.

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Garmin 265WT, $350

If you hate subscriptions as much as we do, Garmin’s 265WT makes one of the best nav units you can buy. Why? Free traffic updates for life. Technically, they’re supported by ads, but we found them so unobtrusive we could barely spot them.

Archos 5 Internet Tablet, $400

This Android-powered tablet offers a full five inches of screen for browsing the Web, watching movies, and all the other tasks your tiny smartphone screen just won’t cut it for.

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Microsoft Zune HD, $220+

The debate still rages on in our Zune HD vs. iPod Touch comparison, but we have to give Microsoft major props for the amazing OLED screen, build quality and interface on this personal media player. No, it won’t scratch the iPod Touch in terms of apps, but for music and video alone, they don’t get much better than this.

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Kodak Zi8, $180

Kodak puts Flip to shame with the high-definition Zi8, which shoots in 1080p (or 720p at 60 frames per second), offers a standard SD memory slot and thoughtful extras like a microphone input, all for cheaper than most competitors’ ho-hum 720p models.

Apple iPhone 3GS (smartphone; $200 for 16GB, $300 for 32GB, with two-year contract) The faster processor and the improved camera are merely incremental upgrades, but the iPhone 3GS’s new hardware augments some highly innovative software. Gaming runs more smoothly on the 3GS, making the iPhone a superior entertainment device. And being able to record video and upload directly to YouTube (finally!) adds a new dimension of fun. Battery life could be better, but the iPhone 3GS solidifies Apple’s hegemony in the crowded smartphone landscape.

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Palm Pre (smartphone, $150 with two-year contract)

After marching straight to the brink of death, Palm pulled a surprise 180 this year by launching its Pre. With the QWERTY keyboard the iPhone lacked and an incredibly polished operating system, it was the first real smartphone to give diehard Apple fans a case of wandering eyes.

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Motorola Droid, $200 on Verizon

If the Palm Pre caused a little impropriety among Steve Jobs worshippers, the Motorola Droid was enough to make some of them take off their white plastic rings. Temptations include true multi-tasking, a hard keyboard, and a gorgeous high-resolution screen.

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Aliph Jawbone Prime (Bluetooth headset, $130) This sleek headset offers impressive call quality and excellent noise cancellation, and it can be worn with or without an over-the-ear loop. It has a textured design and comes in seven different colors. The Talk button is conveniently marked by a slight dip in the surface, but sometimes distinguishing whether you’ve pressed it or not can be difficult.

LastPass 1.51 (password manager, free) LastPass 1.51 automatically fills in saved log-ins and forms with the click of a button. This handy Web freebie and browser plug-in also syncs your data to any computer that you use regularly. You always knew that someday you’d find a more reliable password manager than your yellow Post-its.

Dropbox (online storage service, getdropbox.com, basic service free; also iPhone app, free) Dropbox makes online storage, including file syncing and sharing, as easy as saving to a local drive. Just save or drag files–up to 2GB for free, or up to 100GB for a fee–to a folder on your Windows, Mac, or Linux system, where Dropbox software will promptly transfer them to the service’s secure online servers. If you aren’t currently using Dropbox, you should be.

Evernote.com (software, basic service free; also iPhone app, free) If your problem is information overload, Evernote may be the solution. This versatile site gathers e-mail messages, business documents, Web clips, memos, and images in a smart, sortable format that lets you find everything fast. It even reads text in your pictures, so you can take a snapshot of a whiteboard after each meeting and later search it by keyword to find what you need.

Picasa Web Albums 200 GB of storage for $50 and get a FREE Eye-Fi card

Filed Under (Digital Camera's, Gadgets, Software, Websites) by tech989 on 11-12-2009

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Three weeks ago Google made extra storage for Gmail and Picasa Web Albums more affordable, and now they’ve partnered with Eye-Fi to make it even easier to get your photos into the cloud. Eye-Fi offers WiFi-enabled memory cards which make your existing camera wireless, so it’s easy to upload photos and videos right to Picasa Web Albums or to your computer — no cables required. For a limited time, when you buy 200 GB of Google paid storage for $50, you’ll get a free 4GB SDHC Eye-Fi card (a $95 value).

The Eye-Fi card lets you wirelessly upload photos and videos directly to Picasa Web Albums or to your computer. It even includes automatic geotagging, so you’ll know exactly where your pictures were taken. And you won’t need to worry about running out of space — 200 GB is enough storage for a hundred thousand original resolution photos. Visit picasa.google.com/eyefi.html to get yours today.

Get tons of Google storage
200 GB is enough for 100,000 original resolution photos taken with a five megapixel camera.

Share photos more easily
Wireless uploading means you’ll never have to plug in your camera again.

Geotag your photos
Automatically tag your photos with their location and never forget where a photo is from.

Make your camera wireless, automatically upload photos to Picasa Web Albums, and save $95 while you’re at it.

  • The Eye-Fi card requires a SDHC compatible camera and a Wi-Fi router. If your camera is more than 3 years old, it might not work! Check if your camera is compatible.
  • Special, limited time offer available while supplies last.
  • Sorry, no refunds or returns.
  • Valid only in US and Canada, only for users buying paid storage for the first time. Limit 5 per household.
  • Your Eye-Fi cards will be delivered within 2-4 weeks after purchase, and shipping is free.
  • Google paid storage renews annually, but you can always downgrade to a smaller storage plan or choose not to renew.
  • 4GB SDHC Eye-Fi Home video card ($69.99 value) includes one free year of Web Share and Geotagging ($24.98 value). These services will remain free if Eye-Fi card is used to upload to Picasa Web Albums.
  • Have more questions? Read all the details.

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TuxPaint for Kids

Filed Under (Gaming, Software, Websites) by tech989 on 04-12-2009

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TuxPaint

Tux Paint is a free, award-winning drawing program for children ages 3 to 12 (for example, preschool and K-6). It combines an easy-to-use interface, fun sound effects, and an encouraging cartoon mascot who guides children as they use the program. It’s a very fun open source drawing program for kids. Some features include a paint brush, rubber stamp, line tool, shape tool, text tool and a very interesting magic tool, which has many options for adding to and affecting your artwork. There are even sound effects.

Kids are presented with a blank canvas and a variety of drawing tools to help them be creative. If you have never played with Tux Paint, now is a great time to experiment with its many drawing features.

Four reasons to download and play with Tux Paint right now:

  1. It’s free!
  2. It’s compatible with Windows, Max OSX, Linux and other operating systems
  3. It works in over 80 languages
  4. Awesome fun for kids 3 to 12 years old (or their parents)

A coloring book picture

You can also load ‘Starter’ pictures, like this coloring-book chicken.


A simple drawing

Draw freehand pictures using the various brushes.

  • Paint brush
    • Various brushes available
    • Parents/teachers can add more brushes
    • Brushes can be animated
    • Brushes can change shape depending on the direction they’re drawn
    • Alternate color palettes can be created and used

Rubber Stamps

The stamp tool allows a wide array of pre-drawn and photo-realistic images to be added to a drawing.

  • Rubber stamp
    • Hundreds of photographic and cartoon stamps images are available
    • Parents/teachers can add more stamps and create categories
    • Stamps can have descriptive text and sound samples (names, facts, etc.) and/or sound effects assigned to them
    • Stamps can be resized, flipped and mirrored
    • Raster bitmaps (Portable Network Graphics (“PNG”)) with full-color and alpha transparency (32bpp RGBA) supported
    • Vector graphics (Scalable Vector Graphics (“SVG”)) supported

Outer-space rubber stamp images

Many stamp themes are included with Tux Paint. You can also add your own.

  • Line tool
    • Uses Paint Brush’s brushes
    • ‘Rubberband’ shows where the line will be drawn as you move the mouse
  • Shape tool
    • Draw various filled and unfilled polygonal shapes
    • Rotate shapes (this feature can be disabled for younger children)
  • Text and Label tools
    • Come with various fonts
    • Bold, italic and size can be changed
    • Parents/teachers can add more fonts
    • Supports numerous languages (See International Character Input, below)
    • Labels may be moved or edited later (Coming soon)
  • ‘Magic’ (special effects) tool
    • Blind – pull window blinds down, or across, the picture (Coming soon)
    • Blocks – turn parts of the picture ‘blocky’
    • Blur – blur parts of the picture using the mouse
    • Bricks – paint realistic large or small brick patterns
    • Calligraphy – a smooth brush that changes thickness depending on how quickly you stroke
    • Cartoon – make parts of the picture look like a cartoon
    • Chalk – make parts of the picture look like a chalk drawing
    • Color & White – turn the picture monotone
    • Color Shift – Jumble the colors of the picture
    • Confetti – Throw confetti over your picture
    • Darken – darken the colors of parts of the picture
    • Distortion – slightly alters the position of the picture under the brush
    • Drip – make parts of the picture look like it’s dripping away
    • Edges – outline the edges of shapes in yur picture
    • Emboss – gives the image’s edges highlights and shadows
    • Fill – ‘flood-fill’ an area with a particular color
    • Fisheye – view parts of your picture through a fish-eye lense
    • Flip – flip the image vertically
    • Flower – draws curvy-stalked flowers
    • Foam – paints foamy bubbles that grow as you move the mouse
    • Fold – fold down the corners of your picture
    • Glass Tile – see your drawing through glass tiles
    • Grass – paint realistic clumps of grass on the screen and into the distance
    • Hexagon Mosaic – create a pattern of hexagons (Coming soon)
    • Irregular Mosaic – turn your picture into a mosaic of shards (Coming soon)
    • Kaleidoscope – four symmetric brushes
    • Light – draw beams of bright light on your picture
    • Lighten – fade the colors of parts of the picture
    • Metal Paint – paints shiny metallic colors
    • Mirror – flip the image horizontally
    • Mosaic – make your picture into a mosaic of colors
    • Negative – invert the colors of parts of the picture
    • Noise – add random noise to your picture
    • Perspective – bend your picture to view it from different perspectives (Coming soon)
    • Picasso – a triplet of brushes that paint in unison
    • Puzzle – shift parts of your picture around like it’s a sliding puzzle (Coming soon)
    • ROYGBIV Rainbow – draw a rainbow arc of seven solid colors (Coming soon)
    • Rails – draw connecting train tracks
    • Rain – add raindrops to your picture
    • Rainbow – draw using a brush that paints in all colors in the rainbow
    • Real Rainbow – draw a colorful arc based on a real photo of a rainbow
    • Ripples – rippled waves over your image
    • Rosette – three brushes that draw in a rosette pattern
    • Shift – move the entire picture around
    • Silhouette – turn parts of your picture into a silhouette
    • Smudge – push the colors around as though smudging wet paint
    • Snow Ball – cover your picture in snowballs
    • Snow Flake – cover your picture in snowflakes
    • Square Mosaic – create a pattern of squares (Coming soon)
    • String V – draw V-shaped string art
    • String corner – draw string art
    • String edges – draw string art around the edges of your picture
    • TV – make your picture look like it’s on a television
    • Tint – change the color of parts of the picture
    • Toothpaste – paint with colorful gel
    • Tornado – add a tornado funnel to your picture
    • Wavelets – wiggle your picture up and down
    • Waves – wiggle your picture side to side
    • Wet Paint – draw with wet, smudgy paint
    • Zoom – zoom your entire picture in or out (Coming soon)
    • … plus, programmers can easily and quickly create new ‘Magic’ tools using a plug-in interface!