Marcel's Mindweeds

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Google simply won’t stop lavashing us with online goodies. If it’s a hartrate meter, or keeping track of energy consumption online , there is always room for more. Now you are able to draw in Google Docs. Using SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) or VML (Vector Markup Language) you are enabled to put in straight lines, pre defined shapes and your own doodles. Click here to see whats is new in Google Docs.

In de Volkskrant vandaag een artikel over OnLive. Online gamen met alleen een joystick. Verwerking van data vindt plaats in de super krachtige servers van het bedrijf. Geen console meer nodig, geen toeters en bellen, gewoon een game afnemen wanneer je het wil. Klinkt natuurlijk fantastisch maar toch moet je een kastje aansluiten tussen TV en Internet en daarnaast is het nog maar afwachten welke games er ingezet gaan worden om de markt te veroveren. Daarnaast is het zo dat een echte test met duizenden gebruikers en meer nog niet gedaan is. Ik zal niet zeggen dat het geen kans heeft maar er moet echt wel wat meer gebeuren om de wereld hiermee te veroveren. Het zal op zijn minst nog wat tijd kosten voordat het doorbreekt en tegen die tijd zou het leuk zijn als de concurrentie ook meedoet. Klik hier voor het artikel in de Volkskrant online

I have been following robotics from a distance for some time now. Decennia ago we thought that we would have dish washing robots, a hang-the-laundry-droid and other tin slaves in a very short period of time. Now we know that this is not the case. But looking at the development of information processing capabillities of robots things have changed and are going faster than we think. In the early 90ties a robot could be controlled with 100 MIPS (millions of instructions per second) now my Macbook works with 10.000 of those.

This makes me wonder about the status in less than 50 years. We most probably will have computers and robots that outrun us in loads of areas and at the rate they are developing we might not be able to catch up with them. I can’t say that I like that perspective but anyway, judge for your self: Rise of the Robots–The Future of Artificial Intelligence by Hans Moravec

On Monday I always take some time to read reviews. Just read a review on what some experts consider to be a better website. I think it is a bit strange to give people the label ‘expert’ that easily, but ok. After seeing some sites that I myself do not find very new or extremely good I saw one that I think is strong because of the simplicity. Visa combines Flickr with ‘responsabillity’ in a nice and simple way.  Click here to see the site.

Sorry, this article is not available in English (yet).

Credit crisis. I can’t stand the words anymore, to be honest. Ik kan het woord eigenlijk niet meer horen. I am affected by it and I don’t want it to be that way at all. Companies firing people, financials proving to be thieves, entrepreneurs with fear of innovation and fear of thinking more than one step ahead and so on.

I am going to put a ban on these words and thoughts. I will do my very best to replace words and thoughts with something positive, anytime I hear or think them. And when you talk to others it seems that more and more people are getting tired of it.

My advice to the government, media and other ‘outspoken’ organisations is very simple. Bring in something positive, for example teach people how to convert this in to their advantage.

Enough is enough!