Visual Studio 2010 Pre-Beta CTP is Now Live

The pre-beta, Visual Studio 2010 bits are now available for download. You can get them here:

• Main download page.
• The VS 2010 download files page.

The C# compiler team samples are also available for download here.

Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 mark the next generation of developer tools from Microsoft. Designed to address the latest needs of developers, Visual Studio delivers key innovations in the following pillars: Democratizing Application Lifecycle Management, Enabling emerging trends, Inspiring developer delight and Riding the next generation platform wave. For more information, check out the Overview of Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0

Packs of robots to hunt down "uncooperative humans"

The latest request from the Pentagon seems like a precursor to Terminator. They are looking for contractors to provide a "Multi-Robot Pursuit System" that will let packs of robots "search for and detect a non-cooperative human". One thing that really bothers DoD is having their troops diverted from other duties to control robots. So having a pack of them controlled by one person makes logistical sense. But I'm concerned about where this technology will end up. Given that iRobot last year struck a deal with Taser International to mount stun weapons on its military robots, how long before we see packs of droids hunting down pesky demonstrators with paralysing weapons? Or could the packs even be lethally armed? Steve Wright of Leeds Metropolitan University is an expert on police and military technologies, and last year correctly predicted this pack-hunting mode of operation would happen. "The giveaway here is the phrase 'a non-cooperative human subject',":

"What we have here are the beginnings of something designed to enable robots to hunt down humans like a pack of dogs. Once the software is perfected we can reasonably anticipate that they will become autonomous and become armed. We can also expect such systems to be equipped with human detection and tracking devices including sensors which detect human breath and the radio waves associated with a human heart beat. These are technologies already developed."

Another commentator often in the news for his views on military robot autonomy is Noel Sharkey, an AI and robotics engineer at the University of Sheffield. He says he can understand why the military want such technology, but also worries it will be used irresponsibly.

"This is a clear step towards one of the main goals of the US Army's Future Combat Systems project, which aims to make a single soldier the nexus for a large scale robot attack. Independently, ground and aerial robots have been tested together and once the bits are joined, there will be a robot force under command of a single soldier with potentially dire consequences for innocents around the corner."

What do you make of this? Are we letting our militaries run technologically amok with our tax dollars? Or can robot soldiers be programmed to be even more ethical than human ones?

Hologram Driving Assistant

The first hologram co-driver for your car gives you directions, wakes you if you fall asleep, helps you park and prevents theft. FAQ's: How much does it cost? The price of DAConnect will be announced at its official launch on Oct. 13, 2008 How many types of holograms can be projected? One female and two male figures are available (including the standard security hologram). Holograms reproduce themselves highly accurately. Actually, DAConnect uses "holofims", ie video recordings. Do the projected holograms also speak other languages? Currently the holograms communicate in English. In case of accidents with foreign drivers you can use a pre-recorded phrase in one of five languages (Italian, Spanish, French, German and English). Does DAConnect work even if there is a passenger sitting on the seat on which the hologram is projected? No. Any object between the light beams interrupting the projection of the holographic figure prevents the proper functioning of the system. Can it be used in a convertible? No. The projected hologram is visible only under certain lighting conditions inside a passenger compartment. [DAConnect]

Government: Data mining doesn't work

The most extensive government report to date on whether terrorists can be identified through data mining has yielded an important conclusion: It doesn't really work.

A National Research Council report, years in the making and scheduled to be released Tuesday, concludes that automated identification of terrorists through data mining or any other mechanism "is neither feasible as an objective nor desirable as a goal of technology development efforts." Inevitable false positives will result in "ordinary, law-abiding citizens and businesses" being incorrectly flagged as suspects.

The whopping 352-page report, called "Protecting Individual Privacy in the Struggle Against Terrorists," amounts to at least a partial repudiation of the Defense Department's controversial data-mining program called Total Information Awareness, which was limited by Congress in 2003.

The report was written by a committee whose members include William Perry, a professor at Stanford University; Charles Vest, the former president of MIT; W. Earl Boebert, a retired senior scientist at Sandia National Laboratories; Cynthia Dwork of Microsoft Research; R. Gil Kerlikowske, Seattle's police chief; and Daryl Pregibon, a research scientist at Google.

But the authors conclude the type of data mining that government bureaucrats would like to do--perhaps inspired by watching too many episodes of the Fox series 24--can't work. "If it were possible to automatically find the digital tracks of terrorists and automatically monitor only the communications of terrorists, public policy choices in this domain would be much simpler. But it is not possible to do so."

By itself, of course, this is merely a report with non-binding recommendations that Congress and the executive branch could ignore. But NRC reports are not radical treatises written by an advocacy group; they tend to represent a working consensus of technologists and lawyers.

The great encryption debate of the 1990s was one example. The NRC's so-called CRISIS report on encryption in 1996 concluded export controls--that treated software like Web browsers and PGP as munitions--were a failure and should be relaxed. That eventually happened two years later.

Coming Soon - Real Working Tricorder

Oh such exciting news! Scientists at the University of California have created a device they are calling a "Universal Detector", but which in effect is a Tricorder (aka Star Trek Tricorder). As Gizmodo put it, "the facts of the matter are clear: You'll be able to point this thing at other things and figure out what they're made of". The idea uses a thin layer of metal drilled with nanoscale holes, laid onto the surface being tested. When the perforated plate is zapped with laser light, the surface plasmons that form emit light with a frequency related to the materials touching the plate. A sensitive light detector is needed to measure the frequency of light given off. The team, led by Kevin Tetz and members of the Ultrafast and Nanoscale Optics Group at the University of California, says the devices will be small and portable. They will work on a range of substances, from bacteria to explosives, and run on low power (green Tricorders!)

TiVo for your PC

From CNET News:

Traditionally, anyone who wanted to convert a PC into a DVR was limited to the likes of Windows Media Center, SnapStream Beyond TV, or (for the more adventurous DIYers) MythTV.

Starting in mid-October, however, people can turn their Windows PCs into a full-on TiVo DVR thanks to Nero's new Liquid TV package. The software effectively turns a standard PC into a full-service TiVo DVR, replete with the same interface, program guide, and ease-of-use as TiVo's standalone hardware DVRs--but with the added ability to burn recorded shows to DVD or export them to portable devices such as the iPod or PlayStation Portable.

Liquid TV will be available in two versions. The $200 package includes a standard TiVo remote, USB DTV tuner/antenna (for over-the-air analog and digital TV, including HD broadcasts), and an IR blaster (for controlling external cable and satellite boxes, which would then be fed into a video capture card on your PC). The $100 package is software only; it's for people who already have a TV tuner card and remote solution (or who will opt for the software's onscreen mouse controls). Images credit Nero.

Visual Studio 2010 to Come with 'Black Box' for Testers

Airplanes are equipped with recorders that capture both cockpit audio and flight data, so in the event that something goes wrong, investigators can try to determine the source of the problem. And Microsoft wants to give that capability to developers and testers. In the next version of its developer tool suite, to be known as Visual Studio 2010, Microsoft plans to include the ability to record the full screens of what testers are seeing, as well as data about their machine. When a test application crashes, the technology will enable developers to see the bug as it occurred. In an interview last week, Microsoft Developer Division Director Dave Mendlen said the feature is designed to avoid the all-to-frequent conflict that occurs when a software tester finds a bug that the developer says it can't reproduce. Internally, the feature has been called "TiVo for debuggers." Microsoft is also talking about new modeling tools it says will make it easier for programmers new to a team to get a sense of how earlier versions of the software work. One of the other goals is to add more business intelligence tools--things like dashboards and cockpits--that enable the project managers to assess whether a development project is on track. Now that I'm finally settled into Visual Studio 2008 and LINQ, I'm ready for 2010! I really like the TiVo for debuggers option. I can see this be very helpful for game developers, who have an even more difficult task of reproducing a state that caused a crash. We've had all sorts of workarounds in the past, including creating our own "Tivo for debuggers" (which basically records the value of all variables, and let's us load the game at any given state). I'm also excited to see what other new tools will be in Visual Studio 2010 and the .NET Framework 4.0. I've seen hints that cloud computing classes will be included, for example. Visual Studio Team System 2010 will offer tools for managing test cases and execution, and will boost support for filing actionable bugs. (Credit: Microsoft)

TIVO new User Interface in testing, features Picture in Guide at last!

The DVD Rental Video Blog brings news that TiVo will soon feature some changes to its user interface, including Picture In Guide.

If I were to list one basic feature I’ve always wanted for my TIVO is an integrate User Interface with Picture in Guide (PIG). Little has changed with its interface over the years, picture is obstructed by grid-style onscreen guide while navigating though user menu to retrieve list of recording show or change settings. Competitors such as DirectTV, Dish Network and Cable service carriers have long offering DVR with PIG. That soon to change; Tivo is cooking up a user interface with a complete new look- Featuring PIG with ability to display picture while peruse user guide.

Read the full article at the DVD Rental Video Blog.

Write Your Novel at WEbook

For those writers hoping to hit the big-time with their book ideas, new social publishing company WEbook wants to recreate for books what Digg did for internet articles. Submit your work to WEbook and collaborate and vote on which writing is the best.

Shelve the notion of a solitary writer toiling alone for years in a dimly lit attic. WEbook.com is a place for lively writing groups, groundbreaking titles, and a chance for an engaged and creative community to find unrecognized talent and select the very best written works for publication as books, eBooks, and Audiobooks.

At WEbook, writers can get immediate feedback on their work. Reviewers can tear apart bad writing and make it better and everyone gets a chance to vote. If WEbook users vote your project as one of the best, WEbook will publish it, in print or electronic form, too.

WEbook

The Un-Green Revolution

I'm a big Green lover (ask my wife). I try to buy green products, organic foods, energy efficient appliances, etc. Almost a year ago, I upgrade my home PC. I love the upgrade (quad core CPU, 4G RAM, 756MB Video, 2TB SATA drives, etc). However, one thing that troubled me during the upgrade was the amount of power needed for the GPU (graphics processing unit, or the video card). I had been using a 500W power supply, but it never peaked over 250W. The new video card could put my whole system into using up to 850W! I even had to get a new UPS (uninterrupted power supply) because the old one couldn't put out 800W. Seems others are taking notice with how the GPU manufacturers are steadingly increasing the amount of power needed for their cards. We've almost hit a limit (for extreme PC's). The standard wall outlet has a finite amount of power it can supply. In fact, some new extreme PC's need a special wall outlet like you find for refrigerators and washer/dryers!

The End of Commercial Aviation?

The New Republic has an interesting article discussing the possible demise of the commercial aviation industry.

Early signs of an aviation apocalypse are already upon us. As oil prices flirt with $130 per barrel and the dollar struggles, airlines are paying nearly 80 percent more for fuel than they did a year ago. Twenty-five airlines have gone belly-up this year--three to four times the usual yearly rate. Major carriers like American, Northwest, and United, still reeling from the industry downturn after September 11, go barely a month without announcing layoffs and capacity cuts.

I've always been of the opinion that the market will force someone to create a better product. In this case, I'm expecting to see all electric airplanes (in 10 years?), biodiesel fuled planes, or maybe even solar powered planes.