Technology

Zach Sobiech, creator of the "Clouds" song that became a viral YouTube hit, died of cancer on Monday. He was 18. "Zach was at home and at peace with those he loved most," the Children's Cancer Research Fund said in a statement announcing Sobiech's death. "Zach's life ended just as he lived, embraced by the love of his family, friends, grace and music." Sobiech had been fighting osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, for the past four years after his diagnosis at age 14. Last May, after treatment options ran out, doctors told the Minnesotan teen that he had up to a year left to live Since his diagnosis in 2009, Sobiech had been writing farewell letters in the form of songs to his friends and family. Last year, he uploaded "Clouds" to YouTube, a pop tune that went viral and currently boasts over 3 million views. Sobiech's story struck a chord with people all over the world, including some celebrities who spread his message through a tribute video Read more...More about Viral Videos, Clouds, Music, Us, and Watercooler

Towards the end of the lengthy Google I/O 2013 keynote speech last week the company unveiled a new version of the recently released Galaxy S4 that will come running stock Android firmware minus the usual bloatware, but it seems that many consumers will have to play a waiting game to see a global release of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Edition. The handset will become available next month in the US on the 26th via Google Play costing a cool $649, and according to Cnet the device will only be available to US consumers at launch with no indication when the device will become available elsewhere. While the handset has a high asking price the device is carrier unlocked as well as having an unlocked bootloader, and when you compare it to the standard model unlocked it doesn’t seem quite so expensive. You would have thought that the appeal for such a handset would be strong around the world, and while costing a lot more than the 16GB Nexus 4, spec wise the Galaxy S4 has a lot more to other consumers. It is not really known what Google are going to officially call the device as the Google Edition label was given to the device before it was even officially announced. There is no reason why Google won’t eventually widen the availability of the device outside of the US, and maybe Google is giving Samsung time to concentrate getting units of the standard version of the Galaxy S4 to markets around the world first. Do you like the idea of owning the Google Edition Galaxy S4 or is the price to high for you?

The dust has settled on the Google I/O event and while there were a number of new services and upgrades to existing ones announced the company didn’t take the wraps off any new version of its mobile operating system. The company did drop some hints of what will be coming in the next few months though as Google teased Android Key Lime Pie without giving any launch details. While there have long been rumours that the next version of the Android operating system would be Key Lime Pie, more recently there has been talk of just another minor upgrade in the form another version of Jelly Bean. Although during the Reto Meier “Android Protips 3: Making Apps Work Like Magic” session at the event last week the company did a nice little tease of the upcoming firmware. The session included techniques for developers to build great Android applications, and at around the 25 minute mark the image that you can see on this page appeared. You can see the Android bugdroid sitting on a bench wearing a magicians hat enjoying a piece of key lime pie, and it didn’t end there as later the company showed a game with mentions of Key Lime Pie along with Google Chrome and Android Jelly Bean. As we have reported previously it is being suggested that Android 4.3 will be launched along with a white Nexus 4 on June 10th, and the minor upgrade to the Jelly Bean firmware will include support for Bluetooth Low Energy. Source: Reddit via Android Authority.

Most of today's 2.5" notebook hard drives top out at an even terabyte. You can find higher-capacity offerings, but those conform to 12.5- and 15-mm versions of the 2.5" form ...Read more...

Wanted: one co-op partner for Splinter Cell: Blacklist. Must enjoy crashing through doors simultaneously, long walks in the dark, and pretending that one of the character’s is still voiced by Michael Ironside. Preference given to someone that can quote Chaos Theory’s Sam/guard chats and those who would rather muck about with the AI over actually following the mission text. To be in with a chance, watch the video below and apply in the comments. (more…)

Police in Uganda have raided two newspapers and two radio stations in a bid to discover the source of a story embarrassing to the government of President Yoweri Museveni.On 7 May, the Daily Monitor published an article about the so-called "Muhoozi project". It claimed that there was a conspiracy to frame, or eliminate, high-ranking members of the government who do not support a plan for Museveni's son, Brigadier Muhoozi Kainerugaba, to assume power when his father steps down.The story was based on a leaked letter written on 29 April by the head of Uganda's intelligence service, General David Sejjusa, and sent to the director of the internal security organisation, in which he called for the plot to be investigated.Soon after publication, police turned up at the Monitor's offices to question the article's authors, Risdel Kasasira and Richard Wanambwa, and managing editor, Don Wanyama. They refused to reveal the source of the letter.Police then obtained a court order demanding a copy of the Sejjusa letter and disclosure of the paper's source. The Monitor refused to comply with the order, and on 20 May some 50 officers raided the paper, which shares its Kampala headquarters with other outlets owned by the Nation Media Group, including two radio stations.According to a statement by the group, police disabled the printing press, computer servers and radio transmission equipment, and informed the staff that the offices were a crime scene. Police also raided a tabloid newspaper, the Red Pepper, in another suburb of Kampala while searching for a source of the leaked letter.Since the raids, the radio stations, KFM and Dembe FM, have been off the air. The Monitor's printing press remains down Maria Burnett, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch (HRW), said: "Police should resolve legal disputes before the courts without resorting to abusive tactics to scare journalists away from politically sensitive stories. Muzzling the media is a bad way to address Uganda's political debates."She pointed out that the Ugandan authorities have a history of shutting down broadcasts without due process in times of political controversy. Source: HRWPress freedomUgandaYoweri MuseveniAfricaHuman rightsCensorshipRoy Greensladeguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Opera’s WebKit-powered browser for Android has completed its beta period and is out in full today, the company has announced, with a few additional tweaks. The much-anticipated beta launch came in March, some two months ago. Now, in addition to the existing features – which include a new user interface and Discover — users of the browser can now choose to place their navigation bar at the top or bottom of the screen. Text wrap and full screen modes have also been added. The browser was one of the highlights of Mobile World Congress in February, where it was unveiled off the back of the Norwegian firm’s decision to ditch its Presto engine in favor of the open source WebKit. That explains the speed gains that users of the new browser will enjoy on their device. The browser runs native Web apps, but the headline feature is Discover, which recommends content for users — encouraging a “lean-back surfing experience”, as CEO Lars Boilesen puts it — based on a range of factors that include previous clicks, Web page history and their location. On the downside, Discover content is curated by Opera itself and is not automated. Off-Road is another notable addition that uses Opera’s network optimization expertise to lower the amount of traffic used per session, and get the most out of slow and unreliable connections. Other features — while regular on rival browsers — that mark a change for Opera include private browsing and a unified URL-search bar. If you still don’t have it yet, you can find the browser on the Google Play Store or m.opera.com. From Mobile World Congress: Opera CEO Lars Boilesen talks acquisition rumors, plans and Firefox OS [Video]

The Cupertino company is expected to launch several new devices this year. The next generation iOS tablet is one of them. If you are waiting for this tablet, then you will be happy to know that it will be available for purchase in September. According …

Two more factions, Indonesia and Morocco, have been revealed for upcoming Civilization 5 expansion, Brave New World. Leading Indonesia is Gaja Mada, famous for his military insight as prime minister of the Majapahit Empire; Ahmad al-Mansur leads the Moroccans, sultan of the Saadi dynasty in the 1500s. Brave New World, the second expansion to Civilization 5, is due in July and will add nine new civilizations, several new wonders and modified mechanics from the base game. The first expansion, Gods and Kings, arrived last summer, adding new espionage and religious mechanics.Gallery: Civilization 5: Brave New World (Indonesia and Morocco) Civilization 5's 'Brave New World' expansion adds Indonesia, Morocco originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 21 May 2013 02:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments More...

Late at night, I search for car porn...(@fourtitude's photo)