GPS technologies

I’m not entirely surprised that Windows 7 will feature a couple of API’s determining your location. One for sensors like Wi-Fi and GPS, and a second for location. Applications can then find your latitude and longitude information to provide all kinds of targeted services for customers. The catch here is that the only location-based service native to Windows 7 OS is weather information; everything else will have to be created by developers.

I’m not sure this is the best strategy for Microsoft, especially when so many other operating systems, both desktop and mobile, exist right now that are much more attractive to developers. Another problem with the Windows approach comes back to that pesky privacy issue. Because the company doesn’t believe they can absolutely know which programs are using your location, you can turn off the location features completely, or confine them to use by applications, services, or certain people. You can’t however, let some applications use your location, and others not.

Microsoft also has no plans to include a heads-up when applications are about to use your location information, nor do they have plans to incorporate such a feature in the future. It’s just all or nothing.

While it’s interesting to see a desktop operating system, especially Windows, work a Core Location API into their code, I’m not convinced at the moment. Microsoft has largely been a closed and proprietary company, with a few exceptions of late, for way too long to rely on developers here. They’ll have to do better than this if I’m to relate the term location to Windows 7.

via cnet

Yes I know everyone’s all up in the Samsung Behold at the moment, but it’s probably not the last touchscreen Samsung phone you’ll see from T-Mobile. Another Samsung touchscreen phone, known as the Samsung M880 Pixon or the Samsung T929 Leica, has leaked through Best Buy’s website. Featuring a TouchWiz touchscreen keyboard, 3G, GPS, 8 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, video recorder, and an HTML browser, the Samsung T929 Leica is JUST A RUMOR. Other than this, I’m not sure what else to say, other than I’ll keep you updated. Rumors!

via cellphonesignals

Blackberry’s Storm 9530 user guide is now available and up here in Canada it looks as if Telus might carry it by Christmas. In the United States Verizon Wireless has leaked some pricing info for their Blackberry Storm courtesy of a pre-launch test site by the carrier. Verizon looks like it’ll carry the Storm for $219.99 with a 2-year contract, so it looks like we’ll be paying for the touchscreen. A one-year contract will net you the phone for $289.99, and sans contract, a whopping $519.99.

This is a Brand New DELL Original Product 90-watt AC Adapter for Dell Notebooks with power cord.

Dell Part Numbers: U7809, 310-2862, 310-3399, 310-4002, 310-6325, 310-6557, 310-7698, 310-7699, 310-7712, 310-7743, 310-7744, 310-7860, 310-9047, 310-9049, 310-9375, 310-9376, 312-0578, 312-0579, 312-0596, 312-0597, 320-1389, 9T215, C2894, CF820, CF989, DF266, DF349, F8834, FF313, NADP-90KB, NF599, UC473

Compatible Notebook Models:

Inspiron: 1150, 1420, 1501, 1521, 1720, 1721, 600m (Smart Card Memory), 6400 6400, 8500, 8600, 9200, 9300, 9400, E1505, E1705.

Latitude: 100L, D400, D410, D420, D430, D500, D505, D510, D520, D530, D531, D531N, D560, D600, D610, D620, D630, D630N, D631, D631N, D800, D810, D820, D830, D830N, X300

Precision: M20, M60, M65, M70.

Vostro: 1700

Dell D/Port Replicator, Dell APR.

Product Specifications:

Manufacturer: Dell

Power Cord: Included

Voltage Provided: 19.5VDC

Voltage Required: 90-264 VAC / 164-265 VAC

Size: 2.28" x 5.4" x 1.11"

Max Out: 4.62 A

Power Provided: 90 Watts

Condition: Brand New

In Stock: Yes

batteries and notebook components

Zoombak is on a roll! When most GPS manufacturers are looking to cut costs in any possible way that they can, Zoombak is spending millions on a nationwide television advertising campaign dubbed “Imagine”. Demonstrating the many potential uses of the Zoombak AGPS Locators, from keeping tabs on your spouse to your dog, Imagine appeals to the emotions by highlighting the peace of mind the Zoombak creates.

“As the industry leader, it is up to Zoombak to begin building awareness of the Personal GPS Locator category,” said Simon Buckingham, CEO of Zoombak. “A nationwide, multi-million dollar television campaign was deemed the most effective and efficient way to achieve consumer awareness and provide retail support.”

Created by Gotham Inc. and directed by Sam Crawford at Zoo Films, the Imagine campaign further highlights the easy to use interface, low price point, and mass market availability of Zoombak.

Today, the Zoombak AGPS Locator was awarded Honoree status at the CES Innovations 2009 Design and Engineering Awards in New York, ensuring its place in the Innovations 2009 Showcase during the 2009 International CES, January 8-11, 2009 in Las Vegas.

Available at a huge variety of bricks-and-mortar and online retailers, Zoombak will set you back on average, $199 plus a monthly service charge.

It is well known that ionospheric refraction is the one of the dominant variables in GPS signal range estimation. Fortunately, it is frequency dependent and the first-order ionosphere error can be eliminated through the use of dual frequency measurements. The dual frequency receiver solution, however, still contains 72% of the second-order error. For GPS applications requiring cm-level positioning accuracy, the second-order ionosphere error becomes a concern in the range measurement error budget. Some basic questions are: How large is the second-order range error? What is the range of variation? What is the basic time-frequency structure of the error? (more…)

The Batteries for Laptop

Southwest Airlines says it will invest $175 million over the next six years to implement Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedures at all 64 airports it serves. It made the announcement at the Eco-Aviation Conference in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, June 19.

This article presents selective passages from the just-published minutes of the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) Advisory Board, Third Meeting, Washington, D.C., March 27-28, 2008. Most presentations have been abridged, and many of the ensuing discussions among the Board members have been shortened or eliminated in this rundown. Thus, many items of critical interest have been passed over in the name of brevity. Interested readers are encouraged to peruse the full meeting minutes posted at www.pnt.gov.

Europe is ready to begin spending that ?3.4 billion set aside for its own GNSS. The European Commission (EC) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have begun the procurement process for Galileo, the organizations said today.

Air Semiconductor says it has proven the GPS technology for its first product, Airwave1, in development tests involving geotagging images on commercial digital cameras.