RIM’s PlayBook just got real — quite literally — at Adobe’s MAX conference today. Granted, out-of-the-box Flash and Air support are being billed as a big deal for the PlayBook, but it still seems a little strange that the company showed non-functional dummies running video loops encased in Plexiglas at its developer conference just a few weeks back, only to let Adobe show the good stuff at its own event here. There is some logic behind it, for what it’s worth: Adobe and RIM have announced availability today of an Air SDK targeting the PlayBook’s QNX -based platform with deep hardware integration, giving devs plenty of ramp-up time considering that the tablet won’t be available until early next year. Kobo was among the companies on-hand to talk about the sheer awesomeness of the dev environment, and the general attitude toward the PlayBook’s ease of development seems to be a positive one; we all know how important third-party apps are to a mobile platform’s success at this point, of course, so we’ll need a few thousand more Kobos on board to leave these guys with a happy ending. Check the full demo from the MAX keynote stage after the break. Update: RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis — who was up on stage with Adobe’s Kevin Lynch for the demo — announced that devs who get PlayBook apps approved into App World will get a free PlayBook. Not a bad incentivizer, if we do say so ourselves. Continue reading BlackBerry PlayBook demoed in the flesh at Adobe MAX, Air-based SDK launched BlackBerry PlayBook demoed in the flesh at Adobe MAX, Air-based SDK launched originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 14:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …It’s pretty hard to argue with George Will on this one : There are hundreds of plausible nominees for the title of America’s Second-Smarmiest Politician, but surely the top spot is un-contested. Americans of all political persuasions can come together in affirming one proposition: Public life would be improved by scrubbing Rep. Alan Grayson from it. This act of civic hygiene probably will be performed Nov. 2 by voters of Florida’s Eighth Congressional District. Polls indicate that a majority of them plan to deny Grayson, 52, a second term by electing his resonantly named opponent, Daniel Webster. Grayson, never missing an opportunity to live down to his reputation, ridicules Webster’s “18th-century name.” Given Grayson’s relentless advertising of his intellectual shortcomings, it is surprising that he recognizes the name. Grayson’s preferred name for Webster—he used it in an ad—is “Taliban Dan.” Grayson’s idea that whatever rhymes is witty is sophomoric. His innuendo is worse. Consider: Webster, 61, the third-generation manager of his family’s air-conditioning business, served in Florida’s legislature for 28 years, becoming the first Republican speaker of the state House in 122 years—since Reconstruction—then serving in the state Senate until retired by term limits two years ago. A devout Christian who home-schooled his six children, in 2009 he addressed a religious conference of men in Nashville on the subject of how to be a good husband. Concerning relations with their wives, he urged the men not to focus on biblical verses that enjoin wives to be submissive: “Don’t pick the ones that say, ‘She should submit to me.’ That’s in the Bible, but pick the ones that you’re supposed to do. So instead, ‘Love your wife, even as Christ loved the church he gave himself for it’ as opposed to, ‘Wives, submit yourself to your own husband.’ ” Grayson sliced and spliced a videotape of Webster’s words to depict Webster as saying, “She should submit to me. That’s in the Bible.” When asked about his lie-by-editing, Grayson blithely said, “These were his words.” Grayson’s ad says: “Religious fanatics try to take away our freedom in Afghanistan, in Iran, and right here in central Florida…Daniel Webster wants to impose his radical fundamentalism on us.” Hence “Taliban Dan.” Will goes on to explain how Gov. Charlie Crist could certainly deserve consideration for this award, and Will’s column was written before yesterday’s embarrassing Crist performance on CNN during which he refused to let Marco Rubio speak and heckled him during a debate . Crist deserves honorable mention for America’s Worst Politician. Back to Grayson, Will sticks the knife in and twists it with this closing paragraph. The vulgarity of Grayson’s brief congressional career validates the axiom that there is unseemly exposure of mind as well as of body. Concerning his nonstop anger, whether real or feigned, remember: “Anger is not an argument.” So said Sen. Daniel Webster (1782–1852). Grayson will probably end up with his own show on MSNBC.
Continue reading …On Sunday, The New York Times reported that Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s administration had been secretly accepting millions of dollars in cash from the Iranian government. Sketchy! And on Monday, Karzai owned up to his part in the clandestine funding program at a news conference, taking a swipe at the West while he was at it.
Continue reading …For Eleanor Clift, the dream will never die. At least not until after all the polls close on November 2. The uber-liberal Newsweek contributor presses Democrats to “Keep Dreaming” in an October 25 post at the magazine's website. Clift insists that it is possible that Democrats can get their base motivated enough to keep Republicans from taking the House: read more
Continue reading …Get ready humans, because we have an all new, amazing Engadget Show fresh out of the box. For your viewing pleasure, Josh sits down with Microsoft director Aaron Woodman to chat Windows Phone 7 and demo nearly all of the new devices, including the Dell Venue Pro . Next up, Darren Murph joins the round table for a bunch of demos, including the new Macbook Airs , Palm Pre 2 , and more Windows Phone 7 . Nilay leads a thorough demo of Google TV via the Logitech Revue and Engadget editors Ben Drawbaugh and Tim Stevens make some unbelievable cameos. We’ve got highlights from the New York Reader Meetup , plus a Halloween costume contest that quickly gets out of hand. To round it all out, Kris Keyser brings the jams with a rocking set of chiptunes music with visuals from noteNdo . What are you waiting for? Watch it now! Hit up the new video stream after the break, now with convenient chapter markers ! Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller Special guests: Aaron Woodman, Darren Murph, Ben Drawbaugh, Tim Stevens, Tim Stevens’ dog Yoshi Produced and Directed by: Chad Mumm Executive Producer: Joshua Fruhlinger Edited by: Danny Madden Music by: Kris Keyser Visuals by: noteNdo Opening titles by: Julien Nantiec Taped live at The Times Center Download the Show: The Engadget Show – 014 (HD) / The Engadget Show – 014 (iPod / iPhone / Zune formatted) / The Engadget Show – 014 (Small) Subscribe to the Show: [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Show directly in iTunes (M4V). [ Zune ] Subscribe to the Show directly in the Zune Marketplace (M4V). [ RSS M4V ] Add the Engadget Show feed (M4V) to your RSS aggregator and have it delivered automatically. Continue reading The Engadget Show – 014: Aaron Woodman, Windows Phone 7, Google TV, Macbook Airs, Palm Pre 2, Halloween Costumes, and more! The Engadget Show – 014: Aaron Woodman, Windows Phone 7, Google TV, Macbook Airs, Palm Pre 2, Halloween Costumes, and more! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 13:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …USGBC There is a lot of schadenfreude in the air as the lawsuits fly and everyone piles on with everything they have ever hated about LEED, including the bike racks . In New York City, residents of Riverhouse (seen in TreeHugger here ) are suing because, according to Stephen Del Percio, “the building’s much-heralded ‘green’ heating system consistently f… Read the full story on TreeHugger
Continue reading …Saying her biggest regret was lying to federal officials about her use of performance enhancing drugs, Marion Jones spoke to The Associated Press about her new book, her mistakes, and her time in prison. (Oct 25)
Continue reading …Photo: Picsio , Creative Commons And this man aims to fix them … There were more than a few folks critical of standard NGO and conservation group practices at this year’s Poptech conference . For instance, Ned Breslin, the CEO of Water for People, tells me that reports from the field show that as many as 60% of the wells installed i… Read the full story on TreeHugger
Continue reading …Take fishing for instance : Tales of huge haddock hauls were a few of the fish stories that came with the boat Chris Brown bought last year from a Canadian. To Brown, they were stories of missed opportunity. The previous owner told Brown that for years the vessel trolled the edge of an area closed to U.S. fishermen for conservation. Because no one told the fish the Canadians hadn’t signed on, the fish grew undisturbed in U.S. waters, then swam east into the nets of waiting Canadians. “They were incredibly grateful for our conservation efforts,” Brown, of Point Judith, R.I, said dryly. We seem bound and determined to shoot ourselves in the foot with conservation efforts, whether it be fishing as in the example above, or in things like offshore drilling. We ban drilling and other nations ramp up their efforts and take our oil. We ban incandescent lightbulbs and put hundreds of Americans out of work when their factories are shuttered.
Continue reading …Photo credit: me’nthedogs / Creative Commons The Exmoor Emperor, standing over nine feet tall and weighing over 300 pounds, was thought to be the largest wild animal in all of Britain. That title, however, is up for grabs since the giant red deer was recently found shot dead. Believed to be the work of a licensed hunter, the kill occurred within the confines of the law but the shooting has raised questions about red deer huntin… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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