Project Composer

Credit:techcrunch

In the past few years, there has been a tremendous growth in the use of cloud file sharing services. From what it looks like from the rumours in the market, Dropbox seems to be looking forward to bring back the HackPad.

Dropbox has acquired HackPad, which is a collaborative documents service company a year back. This Y Combinator-backed start-up grew up to be the most preferred choice of the people and the most important tool for taking down notes at any event, conference apart from the classroom.

The main reason for the immense popularity of this tool was attributed the simple design, easily usable, and had the nature of being real-time. Now out of nowhere we have the new entrant with the similar feature as well as the remarkable resemblance to the HackPad has appeared in the market and this is called the Composer.

The project composer: 

One of the users of the product Hunt spotted out this project. This is the websites which highlights the best products available in the market based on the voting of the users from the community itself.

As of Today, Adam Waxman, from the SeatGeek product posted out a link to the composer however most of the users replied that they are unable to get access to this link. Even though the app is currently available on the domain of Dropbox.com, looks like the name has been taken from an internal ongoing project.

This project will first request for authentication from the users to access their files and folders of the Dropbox account. Even though most of the people are able to clear the initial rounds of authentication for the composer, they end up getting the error message indicating that they are not allowed to use the service as if now.

Just incase the user finds that they have received this message in error, they can send email to the company at feedback@dropbox.com. However one of the users was able to get access to the composer and stated that it looks much like Evernote as it allows collaborative note taking. She further added that the composer users will be able to Dropbox files, and tables with their notes, add tasks.

At the end what it looks like is the transformation of HackPad and its integration with the Dropbox. Even though Composer might not be as popular as Evernote but it can still become a cause of concerns for other companies as the users of the Dropbox cloud storage facility will be relying on the composer. Even though the Dropbox Company has denied giving information about the Project composer, they have stated that additional information will soon be released.

Compose has been able to keep the essence of HackPad but the company is working on it to make it future ready. Companies can certainly expect tough competition in the market but they have the advantage of minimal features and ease of understanding. The project has currently received mixed response in the market, but Dropbox is working on the improvisation of the project.

Selecting an Online Marketing Company

There is a tremendous amount of competition in the online business world. In order to get ahead of your competition, you need to be able to market your products and services better than the companies you are competing against. This can be much easier said than done. There are many ways to go about online marketing. Some of these methods have proven to be much more effective than others. The trick is to use the right methods in the right locations for the specific products you are trying to sell. To do this, you need to hire professional online marketing consultants to help you. There are literally thousands of companies to choose from that provide this service. Here is how to go about selecting an online marketing company.

1. Get some quality recommendations

If you are looking for a dentist, you would ask people you trust to recommend a good dentist to you. Recommendations are how were are able to find out about many excellent professional services. The same idea applies to online marketing. Ask people you trust within the online business community to give you the names of marketing companies that they trust and respect. Find out which companies your colleagues have hired before. Hopefully, you will be able to compile a good list of names by doing this.

2. Read online reviews

The list of websites that provide online reviews is practically endless. Therefore, it should not be difficult for you to find some reviews of online marketing companies. Reading reviews that have been written by actual customers will be helpful to you because it will allow you to know what to expect. This information will give you the ability to make a more educated decision when it comes to hiring an online marketing company.

3. Find out the services that are offered

Once you have finished compiling your list of online marketing companies you are thinking of using, you can begin to narrow down your list by taking a look at the various services that are offered by each company. While you may think that the vast majority of online marketing companies will offer exactly the same services, you may be surprised how much they differ. You need to determine exactly what methods of marketing you believe will be most effective for your particular product or business. You then need to find a company that specializes in that method of marketing.

4. Compare prices

The prices that are charged by online marketing companies will tend to vary just as much as the services they offer. Therefore, it is in your best interests to compare as many companies as possible in an effort to get the lowest price.

Limited Access State for Inadvertent Inputs

Google Inc. – Patent Application – Limited Access State for Inadvertent Inputs

It has been reported by a New Reporter-Staff News Editor at Politics & Government Week, from Washington D.C. VerticalNews journalist report that a patent application filed on October 28 2013, by inventor Mittal, Sanjev Kumar from Bangalore had been made available online on February 12, 2015 and the patent assignee is said to be Google Inc.

The news editor gained the quote from the background information provided by the inventors – Computing devices such as mobile phones, tablet computers etc. can generally perform various functions like executing applications stored thereon and outputting information like documents, emails, pictures etc.; for display. Some of the computing devices could include limited access state which could prevent an unauthorized user from accessing and viewing applications as well as information that could be stored at the computing device resulting in effectively locking the computing device.

These computing devices helps the user to provide a specific input for instance the passcode, pattern or biometric information in order to unlock the computing device to gain access to the information or application which could be stored in the device. The locking techniques does provide some kind of security ensuring that only users knowing the specific input needed to unlock the computing device could access the application and information that is stored in the computing device.

Computing Devices Constructed to Execute Action 

Some of the computing devices are constructed to execute an action in response to receiving greater than a threshold number of ineffective unlock efforts, for instance, the computing device could prevent extra unlocking efforts for a predetermined amount of time.

In such instances, the device could delete some or even all information that may be stored in the computing device in response to the attempts made of unsuccessful unlock which could be greater than a threshold number and in some other instances, information could be unintentionally deleted from the device.

As an enhancement to the background information to the patent application, VerticalNews correspondents also gained the summary information of the inventor for the patent application and in one instance; the disclosure was directed to a system which included receiving by a computing device functioning in a first limited access state which was an indication of a first input.

Procedure Focussed on Managing Access State

Procedures of this disclosure are focussed on managing access states of computing device and in some applications, it could operate in a first limited access state for instance a first locked state.

At the time of operating in the first limited access state, the computing device could be arranged to compare received user input to certain input which may be needed for transition of the computing device in operating in an access state – an unlocked state.

Receptive to receiving input from user which does not tend to correspond to the certain user input needed to unlock the computing device, it may switch from operating in the first limited access state to a second limited access state.

For instance, in response to defining that the received user input could most likely not be an attempt to unlock the computing device from first limited access state, the device could be constituted to switch to operating in the second limited access state.

Prosthetic Hand Recreates Feeling Of Cotton Bud Touch

Prosthetic Hand – Creation of a Sense of Touch

Invention and technology has given rise to a prosthesis which for the first time helps people who have lost a hand due to amputation or accidents,to recognize a natural sense of touch which is often taken for granted. The sensation is so good that a person who had tried the device commented that on leaving the lab, it felt like leaving his hand at the door.

 For ages, researchers had been working on the creation of a sense of touch for those who could have lost their limbs, with intentions that could help them with the control and sense of embodiment of a prosthetic limb. A group of researchers are ahead of the competition with the completion of a successful trial with many others recruiting people for testing the technologies.

Recent developments have enabled people who have lost their limbs to move a prosthesis and grip objects. The ability to distinguish what is touched.is essential in controlling and accepting prosthesis as a part of the body and this was accomplished for the first time by Dustin Tyler, together with his colleagues, at the Louis Stokes Veterans Affairs Medical Centre in Cleveland, Ohio.

Cuff of Electrodes – 3 Main Nerves in Residual Area of Limbs

The team found a means of transmitting long term realistic physical sensation like the feel of a cotton wool ball to two individuals who had lost their hands in an industrial accident.

There have been several attempts in creating a sense of touch in recent years by conveying vibration to a person’s residual limb which can equate to pressure on the prosthesis though it proved to be more distracting rather than helpful and has not been adopted.

Attaching electrodes to the inside of residual nerves was also attempted though the tingling sensation produced diminished over a period of time. Something more complex was then attempted by Tyler’s team and two years ago, a cuff of electrodes around the three main nerves in the residual area of the two person’s limbs was implanted which are the nerves that usually transmits sensory information from the hand to the brain.

Each of these cuff comprised of electrodes which could stimulate different parts of the nerve and the wires that were connected with the electrodes to the machine provided a stream of electrical pulses which was connected to the prosthesis used by the individuals. The system was to operate it, wirelessly.

Real Achievement – Prosthetic Limb 

Tyler states that `as soon as they stimulated the nerves in the first subject he immediately informed that for the first time he felt his hand since it was removed’. The team than switched on each electrodes in turn and the individuals felt a tingling sensation as though it was coming from the tip of their prosthetic thumb then the tip of the index finger till the touch sensation moved across the whole of their prosthetic limb.

 Providing a real sense of touch to one who could have lost their limb is a great achievement and doing the same for one who has been paralysed by spinal cord injury could be more challenging wherein a spinal injury could prevent nerves from coordinating with the brain. Hence communication between the brain and prosthetic limb could bypass these nerves.

A team at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 2012 had implanted a device in the brain of paralyzed women, from the neck downwards to help her to control the most sophisticated prosthetic arm with the use of her mind.

Hacking Game 'Touchtone' Turned Me into an NSA Spy

Thinking about becoming a NSA spy itself sends out a chill down by spine but after playing TouchTone, I have been eagerly awaiting a chance to get my hands on being a responsible spy. This iOS puzzle game got me hooked up like never before.

I was experiencing thrills of searching of enemies across the state by just scouring across emails and text messages. This is completely different and I experience it in my daily life. As per the statement of co-creator Mike Boxleiter, people might start feeling this entire game very creepy as well as voyeuristic. All they need is to stop for a while and rethink about the game again.

What the game is all about? 

The game starts with a simple training exercise wherein the player has to identify if the chain of email between the potential customer and a bookstore employee should be monitored. At the bottom the game will highlight a transcript indicating if the email has any content indicating potential threats. The player has to identify any kind of threat to national security.

A simple example is the interaction dealing about The Anarchist Cookbook, clearly indicates that there is not much to worry about however any interaction dealing with crafting homemade bombs certainly requires the attention of the player.

Soon after completing the level, I got scolded by my one of the handler who is none other than a Patriot, and he point-out that some students have been emailing about going out to smoke weeds. I had indicated that this mail is not at all threatening.

He stated that from his perspective, and all this was about drug trafficking which required monitoring. According to Boxleiter, most of the people on the Wall Street are more or less criminals. He was not satisfied with my effort and work as I was thinking about all these as a rational human, which is not all like a spy. He stated that our system is so messed up as they are not concerned about people who carry our fraud of millions but focused on people with beards.

This game is about exposing the loopholes in the system which is in use. In simple words we can say that in the world of TouchTone, racial profiling does not exist, which ensures that the spies are searching out for the maximum information possible for anyone known suspects.

The more he added that NSA is about creating connection between different people. In simple words we can say that this game is all about tailing the suspects till he can be put behind the jail. After this the game starts over with another connected suspect.

At the end, TouchTone is a hacking mini-game similar to that off BioShock and Deus Ex. The game is simple consists of 6 x 7 grid with different which are of different colours laser beams meant for directing it to the same-colored targets by means of reflector panels.

Even though the game might look deceptive but can turn out to be slightly exhausting. People might not find this game funny but reflects the normal life of the people. The game requires people to look the concept from a humorous point of view. It is meant for inspiring conversations.