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SPRK
schools 4 parents 4 robots 4 kids
— EDITION —
Meet the robot designed to inspire tomorrow's
inventors and innovators. Kids and kids at
arn how to
heart can discover robotics
program, create accessories, dream up new
ways to play, and explore the library of free
apps. Fire up your imagination and change the
way you think about play.
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BATTERY LIFE
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APPLE, GOOGLE BRING NEW iPHONES, iPADS, APPLE TV...
SMARTPHONE FUNCTIONS TO HOW IT ALL UNFOLDED ON WEDNESD
CAR DASHBOARDS 3 gm.
HERO: BRINGINGA SPRK TO SCHOOLS AND
HOMES ACROSS THE WORLD
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' . SPHERO:
bringing a
SPRK to
schools and
homes
across the
world
Relevance
that far
transcends
the
classroom
ACLOSER LOOK AT THE LATEST VERSION
OF THE ROBOTIC ORB
It’s becoming increasingly the case that anyone
who has failed to hear about a little company
called Sphero must have been living on Mars,
because let's face it - it has been everywhere
as of late. If you only first became acquainted
__ with the company due to its production of the
p latest app-enabled Star Wars droid, BB-8, you're
definitely behind the times.
Sphero was formerly known as Orbotix, with the
firm’s original Sphero toy breaking cover in 2010.
The invention of lan Bernstein and Adam Wilson,
it consisted of a white polycarbonate orb that
one could control via a dedicated app on their
smartphone or tablet. It wooed visitors to the
2011 Consumer Electronics Show where it was
first demonstrated, and two years later, anew
version - Sphero 2.0 - hit the scene.
Since then, the firm has continued to expand
its product offering with the aforementioned
addition to one of the most iconic casts in
movie franchise history - so no pressure on
Sphero for the upcoming The Force Awakens to
make it a hit rather than a Jar Jar Binks-shaped
catastrophe, then. Thankfully, the initial press
reaction seems to indicate that BB-8 will be
firmly the former rather than the latter, and
there's no denying that it resembles a plausible
cousin of R2-D2.
AN INCREASING REPUTATION FOR
INNOVATION
But hobnobbing with Hollywood's great and
good and giving its venerable original toy a
light update is hardly the sum total of Sphero's
work in just a few short years. After all, it’s also
released the Sphero Ollie - a variation on the
company’s previous formula that resembled a
cylindrical can shod at each end with rugged
tires. We reviewed it with great enthusiasm
ourselves a year ago and now, we think
Sphero might have unleashed another little
mechanical masterpiece.
But before we go further, let’s set some more
of the background. Sure, the original Sphero
and the subsequent 2.0 and Ollie editions were
10
INTRODUCING SPHERO SPRK EDITION
What we're referring to, is a little something
called SPRK - an educational program that
Sphero launched in 2014, and while that
may appear to be a merely trendy title with
its obvious absence of a vowel, it’s actually
a perfectly functional acronym. It stands for
‘Schools Parents Robots Kids; which should
indicate to you the philosophy that the company
has brought to the accompanying version of its
rolling RC ball, the Sphero SPRK Edition.
First things first - if you're considering the SPRK
as an upgrade from your existing 2.0, you might
be surprised to discover that the two bots are
physically and mechanically one and the same.
That's right, there’s no difference between them
- well, save for the swapping of the traditional
Sphero opaque white cover for a transparent
version that reveals the device's inner workings.
That's a logical move - after all, if this thing is
going to be used in schools at least as often as
its forebears, the youngsters might as well get
used to viewing the components that could
get them interested in building such a thing for
themselves at some point down the line. The
SPRK educational program has already resulted
in such frankly incredible student projects as
an aquatic racer, maze tower and model of the
solar system - so one can only begin to imagine
the many applications that the specifically
education-geared SPRK will make possible.
THE GRAND UNBOXING...
But enough of our rambling - perhaps it’s time
to describe our first-hand experience of trying
out the SPRK Edition. On removing the product
14
ig
from the box, it quickly became clear to us
just how unfussy the SPRK is - the complicated
stuff is kept very much on the inside, as we
were soon to find out. The contents of the box
included, as well as the sphere itself and the
associated charger on which it could be easily
snugly placed, a piece of card consisting of a
pop-out 180 degree ruler and some circular
pieces bearing the numbers 1, 2 and 3... all very
intriguing thus far.
Detailed on the card enveloping the device,
meanwhile, were various suggested uses
for this intriguing transparent orb and its
associated apps - from “sharpen your science
skills’, “pull off a practical joke” and “teach
yourself programming’ to “create your future’,
“illuminate the world” and, erm, “chase your cat”.
More insight was also provided into Sphero’s
objectives with the device, the company
declaring that “Learning should be fun - that’s
why we created SPRK.’
Despite its apparent targeting of the education
field, Sphero has been keen to play up the
SPRK’s more universal appeal, claiming that
those of all ages and skill levels can get to grips
with it. Well, we were soon to discover that for
ourselves - the box also containing a ‘Quick Start
Guide’ that helped to get us well-versed with the
device in practically no time.
The booklet’s simple diagrams and instructions
guided us through such aspects as the
downloading of the SPRK app - there are
versions available on iOS and Android - as well
as the charging of the orb and setting up of
Bluetooth, as is required to do any playing at all
from a smartphone or tablet.
17
LOTS OF FUN - BUT ALSO A LOT MORE...
We duly headed to the App Store to download
the app - in our case, the iOS one, given that we
were using an admittedly antiquated iPhone
AS for our test. However, the download process
was swift enough and before long, we had the
app to ourselves to toy with. As soon as we
fired it up, we saw that Sphero has paid close
attention to making the software as easy and
quick to use as possible.
On initially loading the software, we were
actually presented with the ‘programs’ that
dictate the orb’s various behaviors. Basically, the
Sphero SPRK Edition is all about programming
and coding, with the preset programs the
gateways through which those of any skill level
can become accustomed to such notoriously
specialized disciplines. Tasks of which the
SPRK is capable range from spinning round
and changing color to simply hurtling across
the floor at breakneck speed, in hot pursuit
of the cat that we mentioned earlier - and the
‘Programs’ section is where it all begins.
This isn’t a part of the app of sole relevance to
coding dweebs. After all, the app provides you
with a series of sample programs through which
you can get the toy to provide a spectacular
light show through fading and strobe effects,
move around in a circle, perform a figure of
eight motion or even jump in the air, among so
many other actions. You can even set the SPRK
to drive by itself, reacting to collisions in its
environment - whether that be the living room,
classroom, office or even outdoors.
Once you're confident with all of that, it’s time
to hit the big blue ‘Add New’ banner at the top
18
19
of the screen and create your own program,
giving it aname before using the simple
interface to drag and drop various parameters
in the categories of ‘Actions, ‘Events, ‘Sensors,
‘Controls’ and ‘Operators: You may initially
ask the SPRK to roll forward, for example,
stipulating the speed, duration and direction...
perhaps followed by a number of spins, prior
to it then stopping for a certain period of time
and changing color.
A TRUE STAR PERFORMER
You might then be ready to watch the
SPRK‘do its thing’ in accordance with the
instructions that you have given it. Watch out
for that cat! If you haven't done so already,
you'll need to make sure that the SPRK is
actually switched on - while Sphero says that
this can be done with a quick double-tap of
your fingers, you should be sure to give it a
fair whack. When we initially attempted to get
it going, we were lightly tapping various parts
of the device to no avail, expecting it to be
much more touch-sensitive. In the event, the
light flared on after a few forceful hits and we
were ready to go.
We couldn't deny that the SPRK was a star
performer, whatever we did with it - and
we'd thus far only scratched the surface of
its functionality. But even at this early stage,
we were especially impressed by the device's
durability. Spohero does urge SPRK owners not
to drop the toy ona hard surface or drive it off
a ledge higher than 18 inches, while it is also
apparently “not designed for chewing, throwing
or aggressive play.’
In practice, though, that polycarbonate shell
seems pretty damn tough. For hour after hour,
it whacked walls and other hard surfaces and
while it did admittedly gain some scratches
and scuffs from all of that punishment, it never
looked remotely likely to actually break. It is
during activity of this nature that the SPRK
demonstrates its worth as a straightforward
remote controlled orb, and when serving
this purpose, it is no less impressive than the
2.0 or Ollie.
23
A REALLY IN-DEPTH BOT AND APP
However, as we have already touched on, the
SPRK Edition was always meant to be more
than a mere toy, and it is the other areas of the
associated app that most aptly illustrate how
it meets Sphero's higher objectives. While, for
example, it’s great to be able to create your
own programs via a‘what you see is what you
get’-style drag-and-drop editor, the appetites of
more advanced coders will only ever be satisfied
by the ability to program via text - another
function that Sphero provides.
Those advanced users - as well as many who
aspire to be - may also take an interest in
the ‘OVAL info’ part of the app that provides
further insight into Sphero’s own C-based
programming language. Or for that matter,
they may be tempted to view the ‘Community’
section that provides a direct feed of the
Sphero educational Twitter account - a great
snapshot of the fascinating ways in which
schools around the world are inspiring their
students with Sphero products.
The ‘Settings’ section is a little basic, simply
giving you information on the version of the app
that you are using (1.0.4 in our case), as well as
‘Contact Sphero’ and ‘Force Firmware Update’
options. One other part of the app that we're
sure pretty much everyone will love, however,
is ‘Inside Sphero, which presents you with an
interactive, three-dimensional blown-up view
of the device's innards, from its upper axle,
batteries, wheels and motors to its Bluetooth
antenna, charging coil, polycarbonate shell
and circuit board comprising microprocessors,
accelerometers, gyroscopes and LED lights.
24
7
26
|
DON’T FORGET THE MORE
CONVENTIONAL FUN
What does all of that leave? Oh yes... the good
old ‘Drive’ mode. This is the section that you
head to if you really do just want to ‘freestyle’
with the device, controlling it like a traditional
remote controlled toy via your mobile
handset. To use this mode via a smartphone,
you will be required to switch it from portrait
to landscape orientation.
You will then be presented with a virtual
directional pad with which to send the SPRK
moving and spinning from left to right, side to
side, all while changing to any color that you
desire. In short, it does whatever you want it
to do, in the finest tradition of the good old-
fashioned remote controlled toy.
If you can’t seem to make sense of the
relationship between your screen input and the
actual direction of travel of your SPRK, you can
ensure that it’s aligned correctly by pressing
and holding down the small icon in the bottom
left corner of the ‘Drive’ screen. A blue tail
light will appear inside the orb, and you are
instructed to drag the on-screen aim ring until
the light faces you.
Using such simple-to-use directional controls,
it wasn't long until we were controlling the
Sphero with a degree of accuracy that enabled
us to navigate tight spaces in the room, rather
than slamming into door frames or scaring
away too many errant cats. Even if you never
intend to use the device for any kind of
educational purpose, it can provide you with a
lot of long-term enjoyment.
28
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A DEVICE THAT SHOULD TAKE ACADEMIA
- AND BEDROOMS - BY STORM
It's not too often that you come across a robot
like this that makes as much sense as a random
toy as it does for much worthier, more brain-
taxing purposes. But then again, if there is any
company that we would have expected to be
able to achieve such a feat, it would undoubtedly
be the ever-more impressive Sphero.
Sphero has made no denials about its high
hopes for the SPRK and the connected
educational program, talking about how “by
combining Sphero with a comprehensive
curriculum for learning and teaching
programming, this robot is inspiring tomorrow's
inventors and innovators.’ The company has
talked up the SPRK Edition’s relevance for
everything from visual-based, text-based and
object-oriented programming to the sharpening
of general mathematic, scientific and artistic
skills and critical thinking.
Nor, given Sphero’s penetration in the education
market already - with 15,000 schools and some
5,000 teachers having already been reached - do
we doubt the firm’s ability to attain these lofty
aims. Sphero SPRK Edition may be an impressive
all-round educational-tool-cum-remote-
controlled-toy, but it also cradles some of its
parent company’s greatest ambitions to make
the world a much better - or at least better-
educated and inspired - place. m
by Benjamin Kerry & Gavin Lenaghan
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32
APPLE, GOOGLE BRING SMARTPHONE
FUNCTIONS TO CAR DASHBOARDS
Playing deejay with voice commands will get
easier for more Americans this fall as some best-
selling cars get updated with software that
integrates smartphones into the dashboard.
With the 2016 model year, Apple’s CarPlay
and Google's Android Auto will turn cars as
affordable as a base model Chevy Spark into
rolling robotic assistants that give directions to
nearby restaurants or play the latest hits with
commands as simple as “Play Ellie Goulding.’
The Associated Press recently tried out both
systems on a 2016 Honda Accord. As with
phones, voice-activated car technologies don't
always work as intended, bringing up inaccurate
directions or failing to open an app, for example.
But overall the two systems are convenient and
incredibly intuitive.
33
Both CarPlay and Android Auto should give
drivers more time to keep their eyes on the
road compared with the automakers’ own voice
systems, which can require multiple steps and
looking at on-screen menus. Still, as with any
system that requires driver input, there are
concerns about distraction.
“Anything that takes your attention away from
the task of driving is not something you want
to engage in,’ said Kathy Lane, a spokeswoman
for the National Safety Council, a nonprofit
organization created by Congress to promote
safety.
Neither system has been tested yet by the
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, says
spokesman Russ Rader. The institute studies
both human and mechanical factors in trying to
reduce the number of vehicle crashes.
Consumers increasingly want to use their
smartphone while driving - without running
afoul of the law. For the last few years, drivers of
most new cars have been able to speak to their
phones and have audio stream through a car's
speakers using the nearly ubiquitous Bluetooth
wireless standard. However, doing so can require
fiddling with the phone, like holding down the
home button first.
Both CarPlay and Android Auto allow voice
commands to be turned on with a touch of
a steering wheel button. Phones need to be
plugged into the USB port, where the phone
is kept charging and powering the in-car
entertainment. You can access maps, voicemail,
phone contacts and music apps using a touch
screen embedded in the dashboard - no need to
grab your phone.
34
35
There are two limitations with the Apple
system, whether or not you're using it on
CarPlay. One is that Apple reserves voice
commands for its proprietary apps - phone,
maps, texts and Apple Music.
The other is that you must be a subscriber to
Apple's $10 a month Apple Music service if you
want ask the digital voice assistant Siri such
complicated tasks as “play the top song from
2011.’ (It’s Gotye’s “Somebody That | Used to
Know,’ if you were wondering.) However, you
can use your voice to play songs you have
downloaded and own on your iPhone.
The less restrictive Android Auto will allow
you to use apps like Spotify as long as you
specifically tell it to “play Aerosmith on Spotify,’
or set Spotify as the default music app. A Spotify
subscription also costs $10 a month.
The systems themselves can cost users a lot more.
The 2016 Honda Accord EX with manual
transmission is the lowest trim on which Honda
is offering CarPlay and Android Auto support.
At $25,480, the EX is $1,315 pricier than the
Sport trim, and includes things like a moon
roof, keyless remote and a better touch-screen
display. Volkswagen’s entry level 2016 Jetta 1.4T
at $17,680 offers CarPlay and Android Auto as
part of a $995 technology upgrade that includes
a larger touch screen and rearview camera.
Some automakers believe that such features
could motivate buyers to move up the trim
level, rather than to more expensive models.
“It's going to provide a good benefit to the
Accord shopper,’ says Jay Guzowski, manager of
product planning for mid-size cars at American
Honda Motor Co.
36
37
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= General Motors stands alone in offering CarPlay
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cars as inexpensive as the Spark - the 2015
= version retails for upward of $12,170 - and
as high-volume as its Chevrolet Cruze and
Malibu sedans and Silverado trucks. Chevrolet
marketing director Steve Majoros calls the
decision “revolutionary,’ and one the automaker
hopes will improve its market share.
“CarPlay and Android Auto are about to really
a; | hit the mainstream,’ says Kelly Blue Book senior
> analyst Karl Brauer. “We're talking about some
/ 40 to 50 models that'll have it in probably the
next 12 months or less, which is maybe about 20
percent of the entire car market.”
IHS analyst Colin Bird predicts that automakers
in the U.S. and Canada will sell a modest 497,000
cars with CarPlay, Android Auto or both this year.
The number should jump to 5 million in 2018
and nearly 10 million in 2020.
39
As smart and helpful as the CarPlay and Android
Auto are, they aren't perfect.
On a quick demo of a fully-loaded, coffee-colored
2016 Accord Touring, the Android Auto voice
assistant helped me play songs from artists like
Adele, Sting and Ellie Goulding but would not
recognize “U2" as anything other than “YouTube.”
It also failed to open the iHeart Radio app despite
being told to (a later check showed the app
hadn't been set up to recognize its location,
which may have thrown a wrench into things).
40
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CarPlay users won't be able to use the superior
Google Maps through the interface, even if
the app is on their phone. In the demo, Apple’s
notoriously quirky maps app directed me to
drive to Honda's American headquarters in
Torrance through the research and development
back way, bypassing the front driveway and
visitor parking lot even though it was a more
direct route.
There's still work to be done on making the
integration better.
41
One problem is that when phones must be
plugged in - rather than left in a pocket or
purse - usage of Internet-connected apps
goes way down, says Pandora's vice president
of automotive business development, Geoff
Snyder. “When it’s required for use of the system,
utilization falls off pretty dramatically.’ So for
now, certain automaker-made infotainment
systems with apps will be more convenient for
people who just want to get in their cars and go.
Apple software engineering executive Craig
Federighi said in June that the iOS 9 mobile
operating system update coming this fall will
make CarPlay work without taking out your
iPhone. But according to Apple, that may require
another hardware update from automakers:
support for Wi-Fi.
43
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BLACKBERRY WILL BUY SECURITY
COMPANY GOOD TECH FOR $425M
BlackBerry said Friday that it will make another
security-related acquisition, buying Good
Technology for $425 million in cash.
BlackBerry, once known for making
smartphones, is now trying to focus on
software that lets IT departments manage
mobile devices. The company said Good
Technology will help it offer a unified secure
platform for mobile devices that runs on any
operating system. It said Good Technology has
about $160 million in annual revenue, while
BlackBerry has reported about $3 billion in
revenue in its last four fiscal quarters.
The Canadian company expects to complete the
purchase by the end of November.
Image: Mark Blinch
47
Earlier this year BlackBerry Ltd. bought
WatchDox, a provider of secure enterprise
file-sync-and-share technology, and agreed to
buy AtHoc, a software company that develops
emergency alert systems for government
agencies, military bodies, and other
organizations.
The company also announced a round of
job cuts earlier this year as it restructures its
business and deals with weak smartphone
sales. BlackBerry has eliminated thousands of
jobs in the last few years under CEO John Chen,
who and has focused on reducing costs and
increasing innovation.
U.S. shares of BlackBerry rose 10 cents to $7.56
in midday trading Friday. The stock has fallen 28
percent over the past year.
48
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New iPhones.
iPads,
Apple TV... /
how it all -
unfolded on »
Wednesday
New iPhones with 3D Touch display
make official debut
52
|**
As 10am Pacific Daylight Time on Wednesday,
September 9 approached, the throngs of
journalists lining up outside the Bill Graham
Civic Auditorium knew that they were in
for an exciting event. Surely enough, hours
later, they emerged from the venue having
seen Apple unveil a quick succession of new
products - some subtle refinements, some
potentially revolutionary. What exactly did
they see? New iPhones, new iPads, a new
Apple TV - just as the rumors had suggested?
Read on for a thorough account of an
extraordinary event in the history of Apple.
Apple Special Event. September 9, 2015.
55
EDDY CUE AND ZANE LOW HELP TO GET
THE CROWD EXCITED
Yes, the media waiting outside the theater
knew that this event was going to be huge.
Plenty of hints were there: a venue much larger
than usual for an Apple launch event, rumors
circulating about lots of exciting and unique
new Apple products, and even a pre-show tweet
from Apple's Senior Vice President of Internet
Software and Services, Eddy Cue, that it was “a
big day for the big screen!”
In a neat touch, Apple's own radio station, Beats
1, was playing in the auditorium as the audience
chatted amongst themselves and presenter
Zane Lowe told them to “please switch all
electronic devices to silent mode”. Quite right,
too - the only ringing or beeping we wanted to
hear from an electronic device during the next
two hours would be that of awe-inspiring new
Apple products.
It wasn't long before Lowe and the sounds of
his station faded away to allow Apple CEO Tim
Cook to arrive to audience applause. He spoke
of his company’s excitement at being here
and enthused about the “incredible year for
Apple”. In the first concrete sign of a ram-packed
launch event, he warned that there was a lot to
announce and so “no time for updates”.
WATCH OUT - THERE’S EVEN MORE ON
THE WAY FOR APPLE WATCH
That little disclaimer did not, however, stop Cook
referring to the Apple Watch's amazingly high
customer satisfaction level of 97%. He soon gave
way to Jeff Williams, Apple's Senior Vice President
of Operations, who had a lot to say about the
wearable’s future - and what an exciting one it
seems. He announced that Facebook Messenger,
one of the world’s most popular mobile apps,
is coming to Apple Watch, before calling on Dr.
Cameron Powell, the co-founder of health app
AirStrip, which is also on the way to the wearable,
to demonstrate the app’s features.
This particular Apple Watch app has a multitude
of useful features for doctors. It can, for example,
show live cardiac waveforms and other health
information. Should a doctor see anything
particularly concerning in this data, they can
securely send a message from the watch to
the patient's care team. Patients, too, can wear
an Apple Watch with AirStrip, which can help
a doctor to monitor the patient and regularly
receive new messages about their health.
All that said by Powell, it was back to Williams
to announce Apple's new partnership with the
luxury fashion brand Hermés. This has resulted
in both new bands and digital faces becoming,
from October, available for Apple Watch. It was a
convenient launchpad for moving onto the many
other new Apple Watch models and bands that
Apple has made and already started shipping in
24 countries. We particularly liked the new gold
and rose gold-colored Apple Watch Sport models,
plus the new stainless steel watch with the ever-
familiar Product Red color for its band.
59
A BIG NEW PRODUCT... INTHE MOST
LITERAL SENSE
Of course, one of the most heavily-rumored big
product announcements for September 9 had
been... well, if you haven't been closely following
Apple news recently, you will soon find out.
Tim Cook moved promptly onto the subject of
the iPad, which he described as “the clearest
expression of our vision of the future of personal
computing.’ It was the kind of bold declaration
that would have made Steve Jobs proud, as
would have Cook’s follow-up remark that “we
have the biggest news in iPad since iPad.”
We were then treat to a video with tantalizing
glimpses of what looked, at first glance... well,
like an iPad. Except that, as became clearer when
Cook brought out the slate on stage as well, it
was... quite a bit bigger. Yes, as had been heavily
hinted by the tech press for months, Apple had
a new line of iPad, its first since the launch of the
first iPad Mini back in October 2012. This one,
however, went the opposite direction in size,
having a 12.9-inch Retina display and the name
of the iPad Pro.
MORE POWER, MORE PERFORMANCE,
MORE PIXELS
Cook further revealed that there is a lot of
extra power to go with that display. In fact, it
has “more power and performance than any
iOS device we've ever made.’To many Apple
followers, it hasn't been clear why the company
would decide that a larger-screened iPad was
the way forward, but Cook justified the decision
by pointing out that the iPad is “a magical piece
of glass you hold in your hands’, and “can do
62
things a smartphone can’t do because it doesn't
need to fit in your pocket.’
Phil Schiller, Apple's Senior Vice President of
Worldwide Marketing, had a lot of impressive
specs to reel off. The screen's resolution, he
told, is 2732x2048 pixels - a total of 5.6 million
pixels, even more than the 15-inch MacBook
Pro with Retina display. At this stage, the iPad
Pro already looked very credible as a MacBook
alternative - even before Schiller described its
display as “the most advanced display we have
ever built” Unsurprisingly, then, it's a formidable
multimedia powerhouse; it was revealed to be
capable for using video-editing app iMovie to
simultaneously edit a trio of 4K video streams.
A FEW LITTLE - AGAIN, LITERALLY -
EXTRA THINGS TO MENTION...
Naturally, every new Apple product is
accompanied by an array of Apple-made
accessories, but the ones available for the iPad
Pro are more eye-opening than you might
have expected. The most striking is the Smart
Keyboard, which is part of a new Smart Cover
and provides a physical keyboard. Another,
similarly intriguing accessory is the Apple Pencil
- which, as Chief Design Officer Jony Ive explains
in a video presented by Schiller, is great for iPad
Pro activities requiring considerable precision,
like drawing.
To engage in such activities, though, you will
have to wait until the large slate is released in
November. There will be no such wait for the new
iPad Mini 4. Schiller revealed that this boasts the
“power and performance of iPad Air 2” in“an even
smaller Mini enclosure’ - and it’s already on sale.
67
69
HEY SIRI, GIVE US A HINT... OF WHAT THE
NEW APPLETV CAN DO
Everyone, it seems, has a TV - but not everyone
seems to be regularly watching it. As Tim
Cook explained once he had returned, there
has been a trend of more content that would
have traditionally been consumed through a
television set instead being consumed through
apps. It is surely a logical progression, then, to
equip TV with apps in order to bring it well and
truly into the twenty-first century - and that is
clearly what Apple has endeavored to do with
the new, fourth-generation Apple TV.
Calling his company’s vision for TV “simple and
perhaps a little provocative’, Cook said that
it could only be realized through a number
of new tools, including “powerful hardware,
that runs a modern operating system, that
provides a new user experience that’s fun and
easy to use’, plus an App Store. All of this, as
was made clear by Eddy Cue in his following
presentation, is present in the new Apple
TV - and Cook expressed Apple's belief that it
could fundamentally change the way in which
we watch TV.
Cue gave us our first look at the physical set top
box and remote - the former slightly chunkier
than the box of the third-generation model,
the latter now sporting a smooth glass surface
providing for, in Cue’s words, “a great touch
experience” As the invites Apple had sent out
for the day’s event hinted, Siri plays a significant
role here, to the extent that the remote has a Siri
button. It was demonstrated how this button
could be used for obscure requests for searching
content; among the offered examples were “Siri,
show me something new” and “Anything with
Jason Schwartzman’.
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CONTENT, CONTENT AND MORE
CONTENT FOR THAT APPLE TV
Now, that was the hardware - and Cue moved
quickly onto what software could be enjoyed
through it. It was revealed that, along with the
unsurprising inclusion of iTunes content, users
would be able to stream from Netflix, Hulu,
HBO and Showtime, with more companies to
come on board with Apple TV in the foreseeable
future. Searching through so much content was
demonstrably straightforward, as a search could
take place through multiple apps and provide
all the search results on just one screen - a very
streamlined-looking search performance.
Ah, we just mentioned apps! Cue further revealed
that Apple has redesigned all of its apps for easy
use through the Apple TV - we even got a look
at the new, Apple TV version of Apple Music. For
Apple, however, the process of redesigning all
those apps could have eased by their integration
with a new operating system, tvOS, as it is based
on iOS. We should also expect to see a quick
blossoming in the number of third party apps
for this new OS; Cue declared that “developers
are going to love it”, thanks largely to tools and
technologies like Xcode, Metal and GamekKit.
This new Apple TV, which will run on a 64-bit A8&
chip and Cue called the speediest generation
yet, will come in 32GB and 64GB models priced
respectively at $149 and $199 and start shipping
in late October.
75
NOW FOR THE “HEADLINE ACT”:
THE iPHONE 6S AND 6S PLUS
As excited as we have been by these freshly-
unveiled products, there’s no doubting the creme
de la creme of Apple product lines, certainly
in terms of sales and long term popularity: the
iPhone. At this point in the keynote, Tim Cook
called iPhone 6 “the most popular iPhone ever”
and the two iPhone 6 handsets released last year
“the most popular phones in the world”. Following
up such successes could have been daunting
for any company, but Cook was unflustered as
he then finally removed the veil from the new
iPhones: the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.
Typically for S-series iPhones, these devices
seem to focus largely on under-the-hood
tweaks rather than significant revamps in
physical design. But what tweaks they are!
Cook was bold in claiming that, despite the
initial visual familiarity of the new iPhones, “we
have changed everything” - which lead nicely
onto the product slogan of “The only thing
that’s changed is everything.” Schiller then took
Cook’s place once again to list all of the notable
changes - some already expected, some rather
more eye-opening.
Like last year’s iPhones, the 6S and 6S Plus will
come with the respective display sizes of 4.7-
inch and 5.5-inch, and a choice of four finishes:
silver, gold, space gray and rose gold. However,
as Schiller explained, the rose gold finish here
“may look the same but this is an entirely new
aluminum’ - 7000 Series aluminum. Another, but
still expected, change is a new pressure-sensitive
touch interface - called not Force Touch, as many
rumors had suggested, but instead 3D Touch.
76
°°
YOU CAN TOUCH THIS: THE NEW 3D
TOUCH DISPLAY
This enables a wealth of new touch gestures.
Schiller showed how, with commonly-used apps,
a user can press the icon lightly to peek at the
app's content, and press harder to fully launch
the content. This has been integrated into built-
in iPhone apps; for instance, light-pressing on
the Phone app icon brings up a short menu
of favorite contacts, and similar previews are
possible with the Mail and Calendar apps. You
can even make a prompt “emergency selfie”
without fully opening the Camera app! Schiller
enthused that the whole interface is “just so
much more direct and natural than ever before”.
He went on to cite some of the hardware
modifications - including a new AQ chip, which
is 70% speedier than the A8 processor, and
new, second-generation Touch ID sensor, which
is twice as fast as that of the iPhone 6 and 6
Plus. Other, particularly eye-catching, changes
include “Live Photos” Here, 3D Touch can be
used to shoot 3 seconds of video around a
photo, therefore creating an animated photo
- we were amazed by the visually shimmering
water that Schiller showed on screen. He insisted
that these photos are “not videos”, but are
certainly a first for iPhone.
Despite all these great additions, Schiller said
that the new iPhones will follow the same
pricing structure as last year’s. That means, on
a two year contract, $199 for a 16GB iPhone 6S,
right up to $499 for a 128GB iPhone 6S Plus. It
will be possible to preorder from September 12
for a September 25 release.
81
NEV FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS
ON CELLPHONE SURVEILLANCE
Federal law enforcement officials will be
routinely required to get a search warrant before
using secretive and intrusive cellphone-tracking
technology under a new Justice Department
policy announced Thursday.
The policy represents the first effort to create
a uniform legal standard for federal authorities
using equipment known as cell-site simulators,
which tracks cellphones used by suspects.
It comes amid concerns from privacy groups
and lawmakers that the technology, which is
now widely used by local police departments,
is infringing on privacy rights and is being used
without proper accountability.
“The policy is really designed to address
our practices, and to really try to promote
transparency and consistency and
accountability - all while being mindful of the
public's privacy interest,’ Deputy Attorney
General Sally Yates told reporters in announcing
the policy change.
84
The policy applies only to federal agencies
within the Justice Department and not, as some
privacy advocates had hoped, to state and local
law enforcement whose use of the equipment
has stirred particular concern and scrutiny from
local judges.
The technology - also known as a Stingray,
a suitcase-sized device - can sweep up basic
cellphone data from a neighborhood by tricking
phones in the area to believe that it’s a cell
tower, allowing it to identify unique subscriber
numbers. The data is then transmitted to the
police, helping them determine the location of
a phone without the user even making a call or
sending a text message.
The equipment used by the Justice Department
does not collect the content of communications.
Even as federal law enforcement officials tout
the technology as a vital tool to catch fugitives
and kidnapping suspects, privacy groups have
raised alarms about the secrecy surrounding its
use and the collection of cellphone information
of innocent bystanders who happen to be ina
particular neighborhood or location.
In creating the new policy the Justice
Department was mindful of those concerns and
also sought to address inconsistent practices
among different federal agencies and offices,
Yates said.
“We understand that people have a concern
about their private information, and particularly
folks who are not the subjects or targets of
investigations,’ Yates said.
The new policy requires a warrant in most cases,
except for emergencies like an immediate
86
national security threat, as well as unspecified
“exceptional circumstances.’ The warrant
applications are to set out how the technology
will be used.
In addition, authorities will be required to delete
data that’s been collected once they have the
information they need, and are expected to
provide training to employees.
The policy could act as a blueprint for state and
local law enforcement agencies in developing
their own regulations. But it’s unclear how
broad an impact Thursday’s announcement
will have, since it does not directly affect
local police agencies unless they're working
alongside federal authorities on a case or
relying on their assistance.
Use of the technology has spread widely among
local police departments, who have been largely
mum about their use of the technology and
hesitant to disclose details - often withholding
materials or heavily censoring documents that
they do provide.
Local departments have faced scrutiny from
judges about how they deploy the equipment,
though agencies have often insisted that non-
disclosure agreements with the FBI limit what
they can say.
The FBI has said that while specific capabilities
of the equipment are considered sensitive, it
did not intend for the agreements to prevent
the police from disclosing to a court that the
equipment was used in a particular case. Yates
said she expected the FBI to revise any such
agreements to be more transparent.
88
ie
The American Civil Liberties Union called
the policy a good first step, but expressed
disappointment that it did not cover federal
agencies outside the Justice Department or local
police who use federal funds to purchase the
surveillance equipment. It called on the Justice
Department to close remaining loopholes, such
as the one allowing for warrantless surveillance
under undefined “exceptional circumstances.’
“After decades of secrecy in which the
government hid this surveillance technology
from courts, defense lawyers, and the American
public, we are happy to see that the Justice
Department is now willing to openly discuss its
policies,” ACLU lawyer Nathan Freed Wessler said
in a statement.
90
Nate Cardozo, a staff attorney with the Electronic
Frontier Foundation, a privacy group, praised
the policy as an important step, though he said
he suspected Justice Department attorneys
saw “the writing on the wall” and recognized
that judges would increasingly begin requiring
warrants.
Though the policy does not require local
police to follow the lead of federal agencies,
“this is going to let the air out of state law
enforcement's argument that a warrant
shouldn't be required’
“We think that given the power of cell-site
simulators and the sort of information that they
can collect - not just from the target but from
every innocent cellphone user in the area - a
warrant based on probable cause is required by
the Fourth Amendment,’ Cardozo said.
91
WAVE OF NEVV
WINDOWS 10
DEVICES ON
SHOVV AT BERLIN
TECH FAIR
Computer manufacturers are unveiling the first
big batch of devices running Windows 10 at the
IFA home electronics show opening in Berlin on
Friday.
The industry has seen sluggish sales in recent
years as consumers opt to spend their money
on smartphones and tablets instead, so many
companies are pinning their hopes for a revival in
the PC market on the latest version of Microsoft's
operating system.
Among them is Toshiba, which launched its new
Satellite Radius 12 this week, priced at 1,449
euros ($1,627) in Europe. The 12-inch laptop
comes with a 4K screen designed to make the
most of Windows 10’s graphics ability. It also
93
features a special microphone and a dedicated
button for Cortana - Microsoft's voice-controlled
digital assistant - as well as infrared cameras to
identify users by their faces.
We expect to see lots of new sales from October
onward thanks to Windows 10, said Tony
Alderson, a senior product manager at Toshiba.
The Japanese company also launched its new
Satellite Click 10, whose screen can be detached
and used as a tablet. It, too, is optimized for
Windows 10 and will appear on shelves next
month for about 499 euros.
Experts say the bet on Windows 10 could pay off,
as consumers finally loosen their purse strings.
Last few years, many people bought Android
tablets instead of buying a new computer,
but that market is saturated now, said Rudolf
Aunkofer, global director IT at consumer research
firm GfK. At the same time laptops are getting
quite old, so Windows 10 is likely to kick off a
wave of replacements.
Aunkofer said the drop in sales seen in recent
years may have been exacerbated by Microsoft's
announcement about the new operating system,
which prompted some consumers to hold
back. Before that, buyers may have simply been
unconvinced that upgrading their devices for
Windows 8 - widely seen as more of a cosmetic
enhancement than a real improvement - was
worthwhile.
One problem for computer manufacturers is
that Windows 10 is remarkably tolerant of old
hardware, and upgrades are free. Microsoft says
Windows 10 has already been installed on 75
million devices since its debut at the end of July.
94
Many people who have a computer that’s 1 to
3 years old will go for the free upgrade, said
Aunkofer. But there’s a big base of machines
that’s 5 to 7 years old and those will be replaced.
The trend, he said, is toward so-called two-in-one
devices which can serve as laptops or tablets,
such as the Satellite Click 10, or tablets with a
separate keyboard.
Microsoft is urging software designers to
embrace its Universal Application Platform, so
that desktop software and apps designed for
other operating systems will run on Windows 10.
This strategy demonstrates one way in which
Microsoft has learned from its recent missteps
in the smartphone market. A lack of apps and
the relative novelty of its operating system have
been cited as a hurdle to consumer uptake,
compared to more established smartphone
systems such as Apple's iOS and Google's
Android.
Nick Parker, vice president of Microsoft's OEM
division, said the free upgrade for older Windows
computers should help stimulate interest across
devices, since it’s designed to look the same on OneDrive-
laptops, tablets and smartphones.
Windows 10 lets you try new things and maybe
accelerate purchase of new hardware, he said.
The same might be true for one of the low-
cost educational computers launched at IFA
this week. Acer’s Aspire 1 Cloudbook is a fully
functional PC for the price of $169, giving
Windows 10 the chance to take back market
share in the sub-$200 segment from Google’s
Chromebooks.
96
OneDrive
#01 - Happy Wheels
By Jim Bonacci
Category: Games
Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#02 - PAC-MAN 256 - Endless Arcade Maze
By BANDA! NAMCO Entertainment Europe
Category: Games
Requires iOS 7.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
#03 — Facebook Messenger
By Facebook, Inc.
Category: Social Networking
Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
#04 - Facebook
By Facebook, Inc.
Category: Social Networking
Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
#05 - Instagram
By Instagram, Inc.
Category: Photo & Video
Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
)& Video
6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
optimized for iPhone 5. P
— Layout from In:
By Instagram, Inc.
Category: Photo & Video
Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
#10 - Google Maps
By Google, Inc.
, 3 .
Category: Navigation
| Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
(as
#01 - OS X Yosemite
By Apple
Category: Utilities
X 10.68 or later
By Dag Agren
Category: Utilities
Compatibility: OS X 10.6.0 or later
4 » #01 - Minecraft — Pocket Edition
By Mojang
Category: Games / Price: $6.99
Requires iOS 5.1.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#02 - VHS Camcorder
By Rarevision
Category: Photo & Video / Price: $3.99
Requires iOS 8.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#03 — Five Nights at Freddys 4
By Scott Cawthon
Category: Games / Price: $2.99
Requires iOS 5.1.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#04 —- Heads Up!
By Warner Bros.
Category: Games / Price: $0.99
2
* Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
° ar ali This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
ooh .
: .* . <2 , rn A
. #05 — Akinator the Genie
By Elokence
Category: Entertainment / Price: $1.99
Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
07 - Plague Inc.
By Ndemic Creations
Category: Games / Price: $0.99
Requires iOS 4.3 or later. Compatible with i
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#08 - Geometry Dash
By RobTop Games AB
Category: Games / Price: $1.99
Requires iOS 5.1.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#09 - THE GAME OF LIFE Classic Edition
By Electronic Arts
Category: Games / Price: $0.99
Requires iOS 5.1.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5.
#10 - Horizon Chase - World Tour
By Aquiris Game Studio
°
A) Category: Games / Price: $2.99
| . ¥ Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
This app is optimized for iPhone 5, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus.
| 100
#05 — AntiVirus Sentinel Pro
By Calin Popescu
Category: Utilities / Price: $9.99
Compatibility: OS X 10.7 or later, 64-bit processor
#06 — Logic Pro X
By Apple
Category: Music / Price: $199.99
Compatibility: OS X 10.8.4 or later, 64-bit processor
-Notability
#08 - Disk Doctor
By FIPLAB Ltd
Category: Utilities / Price: $2.99
Compatibility: OS X 10.7.3 or later, 64-bit processor
#09 — FaceTime
By Apple
Category: Social Networking / Price: $0.99
Compatibility: OS X 10.6.6 or later 5 Ree, “> sees
#10 - Duplicate Photos Fixer Pro
By Systweak Software
Category: Photography / Price: $0.99
Compatibility: OS X 10.7 or later
ao POLS,
SER asia
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MCCARTHY STATHAM BYRNE 1oLAW
(Ss) (4) |¥)
by Paul Feig
Genre: Comedy
Released: 2015
Price: $14.99
KKKKK
65 Ratings
Trailer
Spy
Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) is a desk-
bound analyst who, unbeknown to many
people, is at the helm of many of CIA’s most
dangerous missions. However, after two of
the Agency’s top agents, the James Bond-
style Bradley Fine Jude Law) and Rick Ford
(Jason Statham) become beleaguered, it’s left
to Cooper to become a field agent to avert a
global crisis.
FIVE FACTS:
1. The cast also includes Rose Byrne and
Bobby Cannavale.
2. At one stage during production, the film
was titled Susan Cooper.
3. The writer, director and producer, Paul Feig,
made this movie as he knew that he would
never be allowed to direct an actual
James Bond movie.
4. Shooting primarily took place in Budapest,
Hungary due to tax breaks and its ability
to double for other settings in the script.
5. In an otherwise positive review of Spy, the
Huffington Post criticized the manner in which
the film “traffics in fat jokes’, particularly
“cracks about Susan’s weight”.
See more in ane
103
UNES alll
Jason Statham & Melissa McCarthy Interview
wn
°o
-
Furious 7
(Extended Edition)
Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian
O'Conner (Paul Walker) have returned to live
in the United States after being amnestied
for their past crimes in the country. However,
there is a new threat: a rogue special forces
assassin, Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), who
seeks revenge against Toretto, O’Conner and
the others in their team for his comatose
younger brother.
FIVE FACTS:
1. The movie includes the final cinematic
appearance of franchise regular Paul Walker,
who died in a single-vehicle accident in
November 2013, halfway through filming.
2. The production crew reacted to Walker’s
death by delaying filming before having
Walker’s brothers, Caleb and Cody, stand
in for the late actor in action scenes that
he had been set to complete.
3. In an official statement published on
Facebook by the Fast & Furious team, Walker's
dramatic scenes in Furious 7 were described as
“among the strongest work of his career.’
4. The movie is currently the fifth highest-
grossing of all time.
5. Walker had anticipated the upcoming
eighth Furious movie before it was confirmed,
according to his co-star Vin Diesel.
106
og
‘Tu nes Preview |
Oo
by James Wan
Genre: Action & Adventure
Released: 2015
Price: $14.99
kkk kt
1202 Ratings
Rotten Tomatoes
eae %
Trailer
ONE LAST RIDE
FURIOUS?
80L
Vin Diesel Interview
Speed of Light
110
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THE BOOK OF SOULS
iT unes Preview |
(fly)
Genre: Rock/Metal
Released: Aug 28, 2015
11 Songs
Price: $11.99
kK kk
450 Ratings
a} d
The Book of Souls
Iron Maiden
If you know heavy metal, you know Iron
Maiden. Since its formation in London in 1975,
the British band has scored huge successes
on both sides of the Atlantic, among them the
classic 80s albums The Number of the Beast
and Peace of Mind. The Book of Souls is the
band's sixteenth studio album, and its first for
five years.
FIVE FACTS:
1. lron Maiden was formed by bassist Steve
Harris, the only original member still in the
band.
2. The band's best-known lead singer is Bruce
Dickinson, who has been a member of Iron
Maiden since 1981 except for a hiatus from
1993 to 1999.
3. The last Iron Maiden studio album, The
Final Frontier released in 2010, topped the
charts of 28 countries.
4. The Book of Souls is lron Maiden’s first
studio double album, making it the band’s
longest studio album to date.
5. In support of The Book of Souls, Iron
Maiden will be on a global concert tour
from February to August 2016.
See more in
iTunes m
Nicko McBrain Interview
112
113
;
q
Metal Gear Solid V
Original Soundtrack
Selection
Various Artists
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, the
newest title in the Metal Gear stealth game
series, has just been released and attracted
more plaudits than you could fit into a
mysteriously walking cardboard box. Gamers
who love many of the sounds accompanying
Snake on his mission won't be as evasive as the
game's hero when rushing to get their hands
on the soundtrack.
FIVE FACTS:
1. The game Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom
Pain was released on September 1.
2. It is available for Microsoft Windows,
PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and
Xbox One.
3. The game's plot take place before that of
the very first Metal Gear game, which was
released in 1987 for the MSX2 computer.
4. Three million copies of The Phantom
Pain were sold in its first five days on sale.
5. However, Forbes has calculated that the
game will likely need to sell about five to six
million copies to make back its development
and marketing costs.
114
46 Songs
Released: Sep 02, 2
24 Ratings
tk tke
Genre: Soundtrac!
Price: $15.99»
A Phantom Pain
115
1Am Skull Face
117
MEDIA GENERAL j
BUYING MEREDITH nig
IN $2.4B DEAL
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Media General is buying Meredith Corp. in an ——
approximately $2.4 billion cash-and-stock deal.
The combined 88 television stations in 54
markets will be able to reach 30 percent of U.S.
households, the companies said, making it one
of the largest owners of major network affiliates.
118
The new company, called Meredith Media
General, will also own magazines like Better
Homes and Gardens, Parents and Shape, as well
as Allrecipe.com.
Meredith shareholders will receive cash
and stock valued at $51.53 per share. That's
a 12 percent premium to the company’s
Friday closing price of $45.94. Media General
stockholders willo wn about 65 percent
of the combined company, while Meredith
shareholders will own approximately 35 percent.
Meredith CEO Steve Lacy will serve as CEO and
president of the combined company.
The board will include 12 members, eight
appointed by Media General Inc. and four
by Meredith. Media General Chairman J.
Stewart Bryan III will serve as chairman of the
combined business.
Meredith Media General will maintain corporate
and executive offices in Des Moines, lowa
and Richmond, Virginia. Meredith is based in
Des Moines, while Medial General is based in
Richmond, Virginia.
The companies expect more than $80 million in
total savings within the first two years after the
transaction closes.
Both companies’ boards approved the deal,
which is targeted to close by June 30, 2016.
It still needs approval from Meredith and
Media General shareholders and the Federal
Communications Commission.
Meredith shares rose $4.31, or 9.4 percent, to
$50.26 in morning trading Tuesday while Media
General added 17 cents, or 1.5 percent, to
$11.32.
121
DISNEY TEAMS UP WITH
AMAZON AND MICROSOFT
Disney has signed agreements with Amazon and
Microsoft that will allow them to use its cloud-
based digital movie service.
The deals expand the number of ways in which
people can watch Disney films. The company
already has agreements in place with Vudu,
Google Play and iTunes.
The service includes more than 450 digital
movies. :
122
124
The Walt Disney Co. said that U.S. customers
of Amazon Video and Microsoft Movies & TV
will now be able to connect to Disney Movies
Anywhere starting Tuesday. The service will let
users access Disney, Pixar, Marvel and “Star Wars”
movies in various ways, including through the
Disney Movies Anywhere app for Microsoft's
Xbox 360 and for Amazon Fire tablets, Fire TV
and Fire TV Stick. Customers can also access and
watch movies through the Amazon Video app
for televisions, connected devices and mobile
devices and through the Microsoft Movies and
TV service on Windows and Microsoft Xbox
devices, as well as online.
The app will be available on Roku and Android
TV starting Sept. 15.
125
BOEING
NAMES ITS NEW
APOLLO-STYLE
SPACECRAFT
~ THE STARLINER
Boeing already has the Dreamliner. Now it also
has the Starliner.
The aerospace giant announced the name of
its future space fleet Friday. More than 200
people, including Florida Gov. Rick Scott, NASA
and Boeing officials, and a bevy of former
astronauts, gathered at NASA's Kennedy
Space Center to celebrate the grand opening
of Boeing’s commercial crew and cargo
processing facility.
Once a space shuttle hangar, the transformed
building will serve as home to the Starliner.
Its first launch with a crew to the International
Space Station is targeted for 2017.
Until Friday, Boeing's still-under-development
capsule was known simply as the CST-100, an
abbreviation for Crew Space Transportation and
100 kilometers, the threshold of space.
Boeing is one of two private U.S. companies
contracted by NASA to transport space station
astronauts from Cape Canaveral.
Spacex, the other company, is developing an
enhanced version of its cargo-carrying Dragon
capsule - a super Dragon. That work is being
carried out at its headquarters in Hawthorne,
California.
NASA wants its astronauts launching from
U.S. soil again rather than hitching expensive
rides from Kazakhstan with the Russian Space
Agency. That hasn’t happened since the last
shuttle flight in 2011.
The Starliner name was revealed by the
commander of the last shuttle flight, Chris
Ferguson, now deputy manager of operations
for Boeing’s commercial crew program.
129
“We get asked a lot, ‘When are you going to pick
a name for that wonderful spacecraft?” Ferguson
told the crowd. “Well, I've always said, Just wait.
It’s coming.’ Well, guess what? The wait is over.”
“Please welcome the CST-100 Starliner,” Ferguson
said as a temporary wall behind him rose and
revealed, to dramatic music and flashing lights,
spacecraft sections that will be used for testing.
In choosing the name, Boeing wanted to give
anod to the next generation of space and the
next 100 years of flight for Boeing, Ferguson said.
The Chicago-based company will mark its 100th
anniversary next summer.
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Jr., also
a former shuttle skipper, talked up the space
agency’s plans to send astronauts to Mars in the
2030s, with Boeing and SpaceX picking up the
get-crews-to-orbit slack.
“If you're not excited, then there’s something
wrong with you, to be quite honest,” Bolden said.
130
|
isa)
-
2h
The most senior astronaut present, Gemini and
Apollo's Thomas Stafford, liked what he saw.
“It's a great name,” said Stafford, 84, who flew to
the moon on Apollo 10, two months before the
first manned moon landing in 1969. He said the
spacecraft is reminiscent of the capsules from
the Apollo moon program.
NASA's commercial crew contract with Boeing
to certify, test and fly the Starliner capsules
totals $4.2 billion. The SpaceX contract is worth
$2.6 billion.
Online:
Boeing: http://www.boeing.com/space/
NASA: https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/
commercial/crew/
he
> 133
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SONGS
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CAN'T FEEL MY FACE
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LOCKED AWAY (FEAT. ADAM LEVINE)
R. City
WATCH ME (WHIP/NAE NAE)
SWLENTO
STITCHES
SHAWN MENDES
FIGHT SONG
RACHEL PLATTEN
WHERE ARE U NOW (WITH JUSTIN BIEBER)
SKRILLEX & DiPLo
MARVIN GAYE (FEAT. MEGHAN TRAINOR)
CHARLIE PUTH
HOTLINE BLING
DRAKE
135
ALBUMS
PENTATONIX (DELUXE VERSION)
PENTATONIX
1989
Taytor SWIFT
UNBREAKABLE
JANET JACKSON
BLURRYFACE
TWENTY ONE PILOTS
KILL THE LIGHTS
Luxe BRYAN
THE BOOK OF SOULS
ron MAIDEN
MONTEVALLO
Sam Hunt
BRAND NEW
Ben RECTOR
UNBREAKABLE SMILE
(BONUS TRACK VERSION)
Tor! Ketty
AMERICAN BEAUTY / AMERICAN PSYCHO
Fatt Our Boy
137
138
MUSICVIDEOS
WILDEST DREAMS
Taylor SWIFT
WATCH ME (WHIP/NAE NAE)
SWLENTO
DRAG ME DOWN
Owe DIRECTION
BAD BLOOD (FEAT. KENDRICK LAMAR)
Taylor SWIFT
WHERE ARE U NOW (WITH JUSTIN BIEBER)
Jack U, Sxritex & Diplo
UPTOWN FUNK (FEAT. BRUNO MARS)
Mark Ronson
GOOD FOR YOU
SELENA GOMEZ
CAN'T FEEL MY FACE
THE WEEKND
SMOKE BREAK
Carrie UNDERWOOD
SHAKE IT OFF
Taylor SWIFT
139
EPS1.9_ZERO-DAY.AVI
_ Mr. Rosor, Season 1
SO CLOSE, YETSOFAR
Fear THE WaLKING DEAD, SEASON 7
THE GUY WHO GETS A HICKEY
~ America’s Next Top Mopet, SEASON 22
SEX, LIES & LEECHES
Tue Rea Housewives oF ORANGE Counry, SEASON 10
4M, AGENT’S NIGHTMARE
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“5, SE ASON 6
141 |
142
AFTERMATH: STAR WARS
Cuuck Wenig
1 CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW
Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
THE GIRL IN THE SPIDER’S WEB
Davip LAGERCRANTZ
THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN
Pauta HAWKINS
FRICTION
SANDRA BROWN
CHANGE YOUR THOUGHTS
CHANGE YOUR LIFE
Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
THE ESSENTIAL WAYNE DYER COLLECTION
Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
Xx
Sue GRAFTON
THE MARTIAN
Anpy Weir
GREY
EL James
143
TOYOTA TO
INVEST $50M
IN CAR-TECH
RESEARCH AT
STANFORD, MIT
Toyota is investing $50 million with Stanford
University and the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology in hopes of gaining an edge in an
accelerating race to phase out human drivers.
The financial commitment announced Friday by
the Japanese automaker will be made over the
next five years at joint research centers located
in Silicon Valley and another technology hub in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Toyota has hired robotics expert Gill Pratt to
oversee research aimed at developing artificial
intelligence and other innovations that will
enable future car models to navigate the roads
without people doing all the steering and
stopping.
“We believe this research will transform the future
of mobility, improving safety and reducing traffic
congestion,’ said Kiyotaka Ise, a Toyota executive
who oversees the company's research and
development group.
Unlike some of its rivals in the technology and
auto industries, Toyota believes the day when cars
are able to drive entirely by themselves is unlikely
144
145
to arrive within the next decade. The company
instead is focusing its efforts on developing
technology that can turn a car into the equivalent
of an intelligent assistant that recognizes when
it should take over the steering when a driver is
distracted or automatically play a favorite song
when it detects a driver is in a bad mood.
“What if cars could become our trusted partners?”
mused Daniela Rus, an MIT professor who will
lead the university's research partnership with the
automaker.
Major tech companies such as Google and Uber
are competing against a range of automakers to
make robot cars that will be better drivers than
people and save lives by causing fewer accidents.
Google, which runs some of the world’s most
popular online services, has been working on
a fleet of self-driving cars for the past six years.
Its goal is to have the cars capable of driving
completely on their own by 2020. Ride-hailing
pioneer Uber has teamed up with Carnegie
Mellon University on a Pittsburgh research center
in its quest to build driverless cars.
Toyota Motor Co. has been working on
autonomous driving technology for about 20
years, but it was known as “advanced driving
support” back in the 1990s, Ise said.
Pratt, a former program manager at the U.S.
government's Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency, or DARPA, suspects many people
will still want to drive some of the time even
when cars are fully equipped to handle the task.
He hopes Toyota's research will give the option
of relying on computers to do the job when they
are stuck in traffic or traveling down a boring
stretch of highway. “Our focus today is more on
146
148
the autonomy of people,’ said Pratt, who will be
based in Silicon Valley.
Under the Toyota partnership, the MIT research
center will focus on inventing ways for cars to
recognize their surroundings and make decisions
that avert potential accidents. If the goals are
realized, Toyota might be able to build a car“that
is never responsible for a collision,’ Rus said.
Besides working on recognition technology, the
Stanford research center will try to create artificial
intelligence programs that study human behavior
to learn more about the decision making and
reasoning that goes into driving so cars can
quickly adjust to potentially dangerous situations.
Stanford's research will be led by Fei-Fei Li,
director of the university's artificial intelligence
laboratory.
Not far away from Stanford, both General Motors
Co. and Ford Motor Co. have established offices in
Palo Alto, California, in their own quests to make
smarter cars.
Meanwhile, just to the south, Google's self-
driving cars are regularly cruising the roads of
the company’s hometown of Mountain View,
California, during ongoing testing of the vehicles.
California law still requires humans to be in the
self-driving cars to take control in dangerous
situations or if something goes wrong. Most of
the time, though, Google's self-driving cars are
being controlled by a computer. They logged a
combined 147,000 miles in autonomous mode
from June 3 through Aug. 31, according to
Google. The self-driving cars were involved in four
collisions that resulted in no major injuries. The
robot cars were rear-ended by vehicles driven by
people in those accidents.
149
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