Flight status with Google
Did you know that when searching with Google for a flight number you get back departue and arriving information of that flight?
Weblog of Fernando Reig Matthies
Google Chart API
The Google Chart API is an extremely simple tool that lets you easily create a chart from some data and embed it in a webpage. You embed the data and formatting parameters in an HTTP request, and Google returns a PNG image of the chart. Many types of chart are supported, and by making the request into an image tag you can simply include the chart in a webpage.
Check out this little “Hello World” sample:
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=p3&chd=s:hW&chs=250x100&chl=Hello|World
I don’t know how long this has been around, but I found out only a week or so ago. The Google Chart API will be very useful for me in a bunch of reporting projects.
If you are into Ruby check out Ruport (Ruby Reports) and the Online book I found online.
Via Google Code
Songza: search engine & internet jukebox
Songza is the brainchild of 23-year-old Aza Raskin the president of Chicago-based software company Humanized, Inc., and the son of Apple Macintosh founder Jef Raskin.
Over the course of a month, he and Humanized’s Web/Systems Architect Scott Robbin worked weekends to bring the idea to life. The site launched on November 8, 2007 and instantly generated significant buzz around the world. Hundreds of bloggers and news writers have praised its elegant user interface, beautiful design, and all-around utility.
Simple, elegant and works great. Love it!
Via Humanized Blog
Student’s Ad Gets a Remake, and Makes the Big Time
The idea that you do not have to be a professional to create a good commercial is becoming widespread, in a trend known as consumer-generated content. Leave it to Apple to paraphrasing the company’s old slogan a bit think differently.
A television commercial for the new iPod Touch from Apple, scheduled to begin running on Sunday, 10-28 is being created by the longtime Apple agency, TBWA/Chiat/Day. It is based on a commercial that an 18-year-old English student and Apple devotee named Nick Haley, who says he got his first Macintosh when he was 3 created on his own one day last month.
His spot offers a fast-paced tour of the abilities of the iPod Touch, set to a song titled ‘Music Is My Hot, Hot Sex’ by a Brazilian band, CSS.
Mr. Haley said he was inspired to make the commercial by a lyric in the song, ‘My music is where I’d like you to touch.’
He based the visual elements on video clips about the iPod Touch and other new products, which can be watched on the Apple Web site (apple.com). He uploaded his commercial to YouTube, where it received four stars out of a possible five and comments that ranged from ‘That’s awesome,’ followed by 16 exclamation points, to ‘Makes me want to buy one and hack it.’
Via fscklog
Broadcom develops all-in-one 3G phone chip
Communications chipmaker Broadcom today revealed that it had developed the BCM21551, the first major cellphone processor to include both 3G cellular data access as well as other technologies in a single chip. The chip is ready for current and near-future mobile Internet access with connections to HSDPA networks (such as AT&T, Rogers, and some European networks) peaking at 7.2Mbps in ideal downloads, and the fast-upload HSUPA at up to 5.8Mbps; new, however, are the inclusion of a radio receiver for picking up calls as well as an FM radio tuner and an integrated Bluetooth module. These give any future phone using the chip true high-speed Internet connections without requiring a separate processor and the increased size or reduced battery life that often comes with the extra hardware, Broadcom says. Legacy access to GPRS, EDGE, and other legacy connections are also built in.The Broadcom development may address a key complaint of Apple chief executive Steve Jobs, who in a European press conference said that 3G iPhones were held back primarily because of the poor battery life of current chipsets. Most 3G phones top at three hours of battery life when using the technology for enhanced calls or data versus the eight hours of calls for slower, EDGE-only hardware. However, Apple currently uses Infineon hardware and would likely have to switch suppliers entirely to use the Broadcom development in the iPhone.
Via Electronista
Wii Overtakes Xbox 360 in Global Sales
Wii Overtakes Xbox 360 in Global Sales:
Not only did the Xbox 360 have a year-long head start, but the Nintendo still isn’t producing Wii consoles fast enough to meet demand. I still haven’t seen one on a store shelf.
Via Daring Fireball Linked List
Bankinter outage
My bank here in Spain seems to have some problems, as their online banking service has not been available for a few hours now.
After calling there call center a few minutes ago, they didn’t gave me any solution other than wait. They didn’t tell when they expect the service to be Online again.
It seems their Interactive Voice Response System is down as well, as I did get a real person on the phone this time, instead of the IVR that responds normally.
Update:
La avería “ha sido importante” y el proceso de recuperación de información “va a ser largo”, según apuntaron las fuentes, además de subrayar que la página web volverá a estar operativa a lo largo del día y que los usuarios afectados “serán compensados”.
My translation from this article excerpt of a major spanish online newspaper: The outage has been a serious one and the backup process is going to take longer, different sources have informed. The online service will be back during the day and that affected users will get compensated.
It’s past 20:30 and the service is still knocked out. I’m interested to see who will get compensated and with what. Perhaps they are giving away some new iPod Nano’s to be announced tomorrow by Steve Jobs.
Update: finally this morning the service was Online again. The thing I’m still missing is some kind of official information as being a customer for more than 9 years of what has happened and if the where some new measures taken to avoid this same problem in a future.
Instead I got an Ad in an Email where they talk about 24H/365D availability and the security the Online service has among other banalities and that I can win a Mazda6 car by using their service at least 3 times.
Sigh…
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