Multi-display for your laptop

At home, I've used a couple of monitors for more on-screen "real-estate" - this is particularly useful when you're doing software development or other work where you need lots of windows open at once. At work, I hook up a large screen desktop monitor to my laptop for a larger viewable surface. While this is useful, it just doesn't work while traveling.

There's a new device on Kickstarter called "Sliden'Joy" that adds one or two HD displays to your laptop. They're light, thin and will offer 3 sizes: 13", 15", 17" so that you can take them with you when you travel to have the multidisplay experience.

The prototype is less than 2 cm / 0.8" thick - the production version may be a little thinner. It attaches magnetically to the back of your display and the extra displays slide out from either side.

It will work with either a Mac or PC connecting to the laptop via USB (and powered by USB as well.) The displays can be angled in different directions for desktop presentations.

It looks like a 2 display version will start around $350 and a single display version, around $250. With about a month to go in the Kickstarter, no production/delivery date has been set.

For more info:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/slidenjoy/slidenjoy-double-or-triple-your-screens

Stand-alone barcode scanner

There are loads of barcode scanner apps available for your smartphone – you take a picture of the barcode and the phone gives you information about the cost and where to buy it. Some even help you build shopping lists.

Hiku provides similar functionality, but it’s a dedicated device that scans barcodes and then adds the item to a shopping list in the cloud. When you’re getting low on milk, scan the barcode on the carton and milk will be added to your shopping list - which is available to your smartphone when you go shopping. If you run out of something that doesn’t have a bar code, just speak into the device.

It’s rechargeable and works for ~2 months on a charge and uses WiFi to connect to the cloud. It’s also magnetic so you can stick it to the side of your refrigerator. About $80.

As embedded controllers get cheaper and smaller, expect to see more single-purpose devices like this.

For more information: http://hiku.us

iOS 8.4 upgrade

I'm an early adopter - when a new release of an operating system comes out, I upgrade pretty quickly. I've been burned a couple of times, but I usually have more than one way to get things done and serious problems usually get fixed pretty quickly.

Last week I upgraded to iOS 8.4 and it was painless. It was pretty fast and I've done it on 5 iOS devices without a glitch (so far.) But, like I always say, unless you're willing to risk some problems, I'd recommend waiting a couple of weeks just to see if other people report problems you can't live with - I've read about people having GPS problems after the upgrade. I haven't noticed this, but I don't use GPS a lot.

There's an Apple iBook with lots more info on 8.4: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/iphone-user-guide-for-ios-8.4/id917482340?mt=11 

Here's a brief on Apple Music, included with iOS 8.4, highlighting the features: http://www.guidingtech.com/45230/apple-music-explained/ 

You're magnetic ink...

A challenge to wearable technologies is that they’re typically not flexible – so they have to be embedded in something that can be strapped to your wrist, arm, head, or carried in your pocket or on a chain. An advance in conductive printing technology could change that.

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have designed a flexible conductive ink that can be printed on textiles in a one-step printing process. 

The ink is made of silver, rubber and organic surfactants and solvents. It can be stretched 3X and still maintain its conductivity.

This opens the way to flexible sensors that could be printed on anything that needs to flex – clothing, shoes, headbands or even asphalt or EPDM roofing materials!

Here's a link with details: http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2015/150625/ncomms8461/full/ncomms8461.html

Chromebook remote access

This year I took an Asus Chromebook on vacation. I wanted something light, portable and with good battery life to use for reading e-mail, browsing and staying connected with work.  And, I didn't want to risk exposing my MacBook to the salt air.

The Chromebook worked well. I use gmail for most of my email accounts (all but work e-mail). Not surprisingly, Chromebooks do gmail very well. I also use a Chrome browser for most of my browsing at work and at home, and the Chromebook obviously does Chrome very well too.

I’m a VDI desktop user (my desktop is on a server at work) and I typically use a MacBook Air to connect using VMWare Horizon. On the Chromebook I used the new VMWare Horizon client app (thanks to Paul Fortner for discovering it.) I’d been looking for this client for a couple of years – ever since the Chromebooks came out. It was a quick install and worked out-of-the-box.

There used to be a couple of very convoluted methods of accessing VMWare VDI’s using Citrix but the Horizon app really simplified things. I needed to use an RSA token to authenticate, but that’s what I use to connect my Mac at home to my desktop VDI at work, so I was all set.

There were some problems with the resort's in-room WiFi for the first couple of days, but it worked fine in their "business center." I got the WiFi sorted out with the help of the concierge and the network support staff and a couple of tedious phone calls... However, once WiFi was working it only took a minute or two to get connected, and once I was connected it was almost like working from home running Horizon. 

I use a cheap Chromebook (less than $200.) The keyboard isn’t as nice as the Mac’s, but it was functional and after using it for a few minutes, it was relatively painless.

The Chromebook downside is that it doesn’t work without a WiFi connection – but since there’s usually a WiFi connection available almost everywhere I go, this didn’t turn out to be much of an issue. I've found plane WiFi unreliable for this kind of access - but this just meant that I could relax and have some deep down-time on the plane ride there and back...

All-in-all it was a useful experiment. Next time I’m out of town on business, I’ll probably take a Chromebook.

Windows 10 update

The latest update to the Windows 10 preview is out, Build 10158, with a couple of improvements in addition to the usual bug fixes.

Microsoft Edge:

• Favorites import from other browsers
• Home button
• Password manager with auto-fill and form-fill
• Drag and drop tabs to a new window
• Audio works with hidden tabs or minimized tabs

Continuum:

• Better tablet-mode animations
• Better support for desktop applications and “modern” apps

Start:

• Swipe up to view All Apps
• Click a letter heading in All Apps to view a jump grid (like Windows Phone)

Cortana:

• Flight and package tracking alerts
• Voice-email now works
• Office 365 integration features (not in the consumer version I’m using.

Snipping tool and Photos app updated
Surface 3:

• Works with Windows 10 (previous build had some problems)
• Better battery life

Windows 10 should be available to the public on July 29.

I've loaded it on a couple of different platforms (a Lenovo touchscreen laptop, an old Dell E6420 and on a Mac Mini running Parallels) and it seems to work fine. 

If you're a Windows 8.1 user, I think you'll like it - Windows 10 is what 8.1 should have been...

See the update from Microsoft for more details:
http://microsoft-news.com/heres-whats-new-in-windows-10-build-10158/

Cellulose recycling into 3D materials

Umeå University researchers in Sweden are working on turning cellulose waste material into raw materials for 3D printing - things like doors, frames, walls and, ultimately, complete homes.

Working with Sliperiet, a research coordinator that has just received €1.9 million from the EU, they're developing a regional center for sustainable building.

Along with other researchers in Sweden, they are working on technology to turn scrap wood into building materials - it's a way to recycle carbon from the scrap that would otherwise end up in the atmosphere.

While this work is in the early stages there are already some 3D printer "wood/polymer" products (Laywoo-D3, for example) being used to create wood-like objects that can be shaped, sanded and milled like wood.

This is an exciting time in materials science with new products emerging every month.