ICANN comes in with new top level domains

ICANN has decided to press ahead with plans to open up a range of brand name top level domain suffixes, despite having some weighty opposition.
The decision was announced by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) president and CEO Rod Beckstrom, who said that after some chin stroking the organisation is ready to begin receiving applications for new global top level domain names (GTLDs) on 12 January.

This week will witness a biggest change in the world of World Wide Web. After 30 years of its inception, internet will allow users to have domain names of their choice. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) which decides who gets to manage .com, .net and other domains to the right of the period in a URL, plans to begin accepting applications this week for a hugely expanded number of Web domain options.For instance, you can apply for a domain name after yourself or your company. Like .ravi if your name is Ravi or .pepsi.At present there are about 22 types of top-level domains (TLDs) such as .com or .gov; and country codes such as .in for India and .uk for the United Kingdom.Reportedly, anyone will be able register any web address suffix for USD 185,000 (Rs 9,754,051 approx). ICANN will start accepting applications from January 12.

Top level domain names have already seen some scandal in recent months thanks to the launch of the triple X top level domain, which is intended to segregate adult entertainment web sites from the rest of the internet.

Bajaj out with its ULC aka RE60

It seems like India is into an era where the Ultra Low Cost Items are refurbishing the market at regular intervals, grasping recommendation around the world.

After Ultra Low Cost Car (ULC) Nano, brought in by Tata Motors with a price tag of sub 3000$ price tag, Bajaj also unveiled the ULC Bajaj RE60, The low-emission car targeting auto rickshaw drivers was developed in partnership with Nissan and Renault.

The company claims that the car would have a mileage of close to 40 km per litre and will have an 200 cc engine. The car will be launched in 2012. The engine is new water cooled DTSi 4 (Digital Twin Spark Ignition) valve and would give a maximum speed of 70km per hour. The car has a seating capacity of four people.

Tata Nano is currently the cheapest car in the world. The sources declared that the price would be around 1.25 Lakhs.

Tablets in Indian Market seeing Price Cut

India's Cheapest Tablet Aakash brought in an increased drop in the prices of the tablets of the other Tablet majors in the market say it be Blackberry, Motorola and now Sony.

Call it like "Minor hitting hard on Majors". Here the minor includes Aakash, Beetel Magix and newest one is Classpad.

Aakash that was well received by the people in India showing an enormous response to such an extent that it was sold out in first three days of its launch over internet on datawind website. Beetel Magix 2 being the successor of Beetel Magix, introduced the high end configuration in the tablet market under 10K making it prominent competitor in the tablet market. Now we have a new competitor Classpad, brought in by Rohit Pande, an Alumni of IIT, Delhi and IIM, Calcutta that ranges from 8K to 14K, considered to be the toughest competitor in the Tablet market in India.

With the boom of new popups like aakash and classpad etc, the majors in the market are facing a tough time with the sales that primarily the Blackberry after selling 90K tablets in first 9 months of its launch in India slashed rates by 50% for a week to make its playbook play over the tablet market.

And now Motorola Xoom which was launched in India with a big hype for being the first tablet to run on Google’s Honeycomb but received a lukewarm response. Experts believe that despite it fantastic features the tab couldn’t market itself due to its high price tag. They too slashed the prices by 11K. And now the Electronics manufacturer Sony announced its 9.4-inch Tablet S is getting a 5K price cut, lowering the price of the 16GB model to 20K and the 32GB model to 25K. Sony had previously issued a price cut on December 15th in an apparent attempt to spur holiday sales as the tablet market becomes increasingly competitive.

Samsung Galaxy S2 to get Android 4.0 ICE CREAM update

Cellphone makers Samsung Electronics on Thursday announced that its Galaxy S2 would soon upgrade to Android 4 Ice Cream.

Samsung confirmed by the first quarter of 2012 its Galaxy S II smartphone, Galaxy S II LTE (Long-Term Evolution) edition and Galaxy Note will update itself with the Ice Cream Sandwich software.

The South Korean giant has also said that its Galaxy R phone and Galaxy Tab 10.1, Tab 8.9, Tab 7.7 and the new Tab 7.0 Plus will also be update with the newest Android ICS.

Ice Cream Sandwich brings a host of new features, including the ability to unlock the device using facial recognition and resize widgets on screen.

It also enables Honeycomb-styled multitasking, notifications and Android Beam, letting users share information through near-field communications.

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Who says nothing is Impossible, I have done Nothing in my Life....

Google out with another Whimisical Trick

In the spirit of the Google “barrel roll,” the company has another tricky search result today: Search the words “let it snow” and watch what happens.

Of course, your Google search results will contain videos of that old favorite song, but what’s that? Snowflakes falling in your browser? Frost on the Google bar? Could this be some mistake?

Watch your browser fill up with snow, and then skate around with your mouse, where your browser acts just like a frozen lake, showing the path your cursor has taken. Want to start over? Simply click the “defrost” button and again you’ll see a clear screen, adorned by that easy wind and downy flake filling it up anew.

It has also come with another whimsical trick: type in "Hanukkah", wait and observe the outcome of the same. Google’s also celebrating Hanukkah! Type the word “Hanukkah” on the Google search form and you’ll see a special surprise.

Bhuwan: An Indian Version of Google Maps

ISRO launched the beta version of its web-based 3D satellite imagery tool, Bhuvan, on August 12, 2009. Bhuvan offers more detailed imagery of Indian locations compared to other Virtual Globe software, with spatial resolutions ranging from 5 to 100 metres. Locations can be viewed from different perspectives, and the software will also provide functionality for the measurement of distances. The Bhuvan portal is designed to run on slow Internet connections. The images available do not include any military installations in India, due to security concerns.

Bhuvan has a number of other features, which include weather information and administrative boundaries of all states and districts in India. Bhuvan provides images of the entire globe, but resolution is currently best in India. On the Indian subcontinent, Bhuvan will be able to display pictures from a perceived altitude of 10 metres, at which height a commuter moving on a road can easily be spotted.

Bhuvan allows users to view 2D and 3D images, along with information on soil, wasteland and water resources on the Indian subcontinent. Users can superimpose administrative boundaries of their choice, from a selection of boundaries available, on images as required. Bhuvan also allows visualization of AWS (Automatic Weather Station) data in the graphic view, as well as in tabular form. Users can "fly" from one location to another, and also navigate using the 3D view pop-up menu (with fly-in, fly out, jump in, jump around and view point controls).

Since the initial, buggy beta release, a more stable version has been released, with which users have reported fewer problems. A discussion forum has also been started for users experiencing difficulties.

Visit the app at BHUWAN

HzO technology: Make your smartphone waterproof

In the future, you may not need a protective case to use your phone in the pool. Go ahead, toss it in--the HzO nano technology will protect it from the H20.HzO demonstrated its technology that waterproofs electronic devices at a press preview for the "Consumer Electronics Show" in New York on Nov. 8.
HzO President and CEO Paul S. Clayson used a Samsung Galaxy S2 handset outfitted with the company's WaterBlock technology to show how the phone could maintain function while being submerged underwater. "It is a very exciting technology that we feel will be able to change the durability and life-time value of your smartphone as well as other mobile electronic devices as these units tend to fail quickly with moderate exposure to water and/or moisture," said HzO Head of Business Development Scott Gordon.

The below video shows how HzO works:


He explained that HzO's "nano-scale film barrier" bonds so tightly to the interior and exterior of a smartphone or other electronic device that the units are completely protected from water. As he dunked a working Samsung Galaxy S smartphone protected HzO technology into the bowl of water, the unit continued functioning even as it filled with water. He even placed a call to the phone, which rang normally. He said the vapor-coating technology also works on other materials like paper, which he showed off by dropping a protected business card into the water.
The HzO technology will be included in upcoming products from Zagg, which markets its own "skins" and other protective gear. Zagg has announced that it will be offering limited-edition "WaterBlocked" versions of the iPod touch, iPod shuffle and iPod nano with the HzO sealing technology inside.

Demo: