Month: July 2013

I became a founder at $20.00. I want one! It looks like it will rock! Go to about 3:00 in the video to see the hardware specs… zowie! It will dual boot Ubuntu and Android, so that you can have the best of both worlds!

This is ultimate phone/pc/device for serious uber-geeks!

Hardware:

“We’ve scoured the research labs of the biggest companies and most exciting startups for the latest and greatest mobile technologies to specify the first-generation Edge.

Crafted from cool, textured amorphous metal, the Edge has a distinctive, precise look but its rakishly chamfered edges are shaped to fit naturally in the palm — our design prototype already has a wonderfully solid feel. It’s the right size, too. Edge gestures are the next big thing in mobile, and our testing has found that a 4.5in screen is ideal for comfortable control of all four edges with one hand.

We also believe the race for ever higher resolution has become a distraction. Beyond 300ppi you’re adding overhead rather than improving display clarity. We think color, brightness and dynamic range are now the edge of invention so we’ll choose a display for its balance of resolution, dynamic range and color accuracy.

We’ll protect that gorgeous display with something vastly tougher than glass: pure sapphire crystal, a material so hard only diamond could scratch it. For a phone to run a full desktop OS, it must have the raw power of a PC. We’ll choose the fastest available multi-core processor, at least 4GB of RAM and a massive 128GB of storage. The battery will use silicon-anode technology, so we can squeeze more energy into the same dimensions.

With that kind of muscle, this phone can be your main PC anywhere — and we really do mean anywhere. You can use the desktop wherever you can find a standard HDMI screen, and the dual-LTE chip will get you online with 4G even when you’re travelling abroad. It’s desktop computing gone truly mobile.”

Software:

“Next-generation hardware deserves innovative software. The Ubuntu Edge will dual-boot both the Ubuntu phone OS and Android, and convert into a fully integrated Ubuntu desktop PC.

First, Ubuntu mobile. We designed the interface to create a beautiful home screen that’s free from the usual clutter. You navigate by swiping over an edge of the screen: open your favorite apps on the left edge, switch instantly between open apps from the right, and use the system and app toolbars at the top and bottom respectively. It’s so simple, Ubuntu doesn’t need a home button at all.

Specialist data artists have designed Ubuntu’s welcome screen, with graphics that evolve over time to reflect your use of the phone. We’ve reinvented the inbox so you can read and respond to texts, emails and social media posts in an instant.

From mobile… to desktop. Yes, it’s the full Ubuntu desktop OS used by millions on a daily basis — and it runs directly from the phone, so you’ll be able to move seamlessly from one environment to the other with no file syncing or transfers required. The core OS and applications are fully integrated with their smartphone equivalents, so you can even make and receive calls from the desktop while you work.

Finally, you can also boot the phone into Android. And there’s a good reason for that…”

The Plan:

“As well as being a bonus for app developers and anyone with a big Android app collection, including Android on the phone means we’re able to offer full convergence at launch. On day one, you’ll be able to launch the Ubuntu desktop from within Android using our existing Ubuntu for Android app.

Then shortly after launch we’ll push out a free software update that adds this desktop integration to Ubuntu mobile as well. That’s the real goal we’re working towards. At that point you’ll have a leading-edge smartphone that runs Ubuntu and Android, both of which can also run a fully integrated Ubuntu desktop OS. What other phone can match that?

However you choose to use Ubuntu Edge, the incredible components will keep it running fast and fresh as our software evolves. We’ll push out monthly Ubuntu software updates to add features and polish, and we guarantee to keep supporting the phone for three years.”

OK, one of my doctorates is a a Ph.D. in Theology… and I don’t “get” this one! This is a bit weird. Not making fun of anyone here, to each his own… live and let live, but you gotta admit, we live in weird times!

Vatican: Get time off in purgatory by following Pope on Twitter

By: Jessica Hartogs for CBS News – “The Vatican is taking a modern approach to one of its oldest traditions, by offering indulgences to Twitter followers of the Pontifex’s social media account.

Aware that some Catholics may not be able afford to travel to Brazil, where World Youth Day is being held from July 23-28, and perhaps also in an effort to modernize himself, Pope Francis is making this first-time offer to the faithful who follow the events in Rio de Janeiro online.

Under Catholic belief, after confessing and being absolved of sin, the indulgences granted reduce the amount of time one spends in purgatory, where one’s sins are weighed after death. Under the Pope’s new offer, those who follow the week’s events on the Twitter feed can get a speedier transit through purgatory, hopefully on the way to heaven.

‘The notion of indulgence is that you’ve already been forgiven for your sin, because you’ve gone to confession, at least in theory, but what it does is reduce the amount of time you have to spend in purgatory after you die to work off that sin,’ said Patrick Hornbeck, chair of the department of Theology at the University of Fordham in New York.

The concept of indulgences date back to the 1300s, when popes began to teach that because the church had the power from Christ to forgive sins, the church also had the power to reduce the amount of time one spent in purgatory, said Hornbeck.

‘The way indulgences were originally conceived as is you do some kind of religious work. So you say a particular prayer, you go on pilgrimage to a particular place, you state a particular mass, or whatever that might be,’ said Hornbeck.

‘What’s new about this announcement is the migration onto Twitter, and to say that’s it’s possible to follow these events in Brazil on World Youth Day through an electronic medium rather than going there yourself,’ said Hornbeck.

The decree, issued by the Apostolic Penitentiary — the Vatican office that deals with indulgences — also asked priests around the world to make themselves available to hear confessions of those who want the Indulgence and to encourage public prayers for the success of World Youth Day.

‘This Pope has done a remarkable job of demonstrating how well aware he is of the way in which his younger audience, his younger followers, follow things and I think it totally makes sense that young Catholics would be much more likely to participate via social networking and social media rather than through traditional ways,’ said Hornbeck.

The Pope has almost 2.7 million followers on Twitter.”