Movie Review: The Millenium Trilogy

The final movie chapter in Stieg Larsson’s so-called Millenium Trilogy books finally came to my local independent theater, and I decided to see it before I actually read this book, since I knew it would not be around long enough for me to finish reading. “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest” actually wraps up the ongoing story of Lisbeth Salander in a very neat and tidy way. There aren’t loose ends, so much as there is the possibility of more to come, and in fact Stieg Larsson, who died at the age of 50 before seeing any of these books published, left an unfinished book behind, and possibly synopses for more.
Actually, I haven’t even started the last book in the trilogy, though I’ve read the first two. I probably won’t even buy it, now that I’ve seen the movie. All of the movies stayed relatively true to the plot and the spirit of the books.
Of course there are details omitted, but the basic stories remain mostly unchanged. This isn’t like the complete rewriting Ludlum’s Bourne books received, where the end product in no way resembled the novels.

Panasonic TC-P50GT25 – With a tweakable THX mode

Panasonic TC-P50GT25 is a 50 inch 3D plasma TV and this product is also available in 42 inch size called Panasonic TC-P42GT25. The picture quality on both the TVs is the same and there are no major differences apart from the size of the TV.
This is the second 3D TV from Panasonic for the year 2010. The previous one was a flagship model and the manufacturer had put in all possible features. Hence it was really expensive. For the Panasonic TC-P50GT25, the manufacturer has cut a few corners in order to keep the price low. The design of the TV is pretty lukewarm. There is nothing aesthetically appealing about this panel apart from the bronze brownish strip on the TVs bottom. The TV is glossy black and it is accompanied by a stylish stand which lets the display swivel on sides.
Panasonic TC-P50GT25 is three and half inch thick on the sides which means this doesn’t have LED technology. I liked the feature set of this panel for the price that it is offered for. On the back, there are two HDMI ports and one is on the side. You will also find two component video inputs and a VGA jack for computer connectivity. Remember that for PC, you don’t get the full possible resolution.

Inpostlinks

The restrained dawn strains behind the crowd.

CTL starts shipping 2goPad SL10 Windows 7 tablet for $499

Everyone is still talking about the iPad. A bunch of other people are talking about Android tablets. What about Microsoft’s OS? That’s starting to make some headway too, since the CTL 2goPad SL10 has finally graduated from “work in progress” to “product being shipped.”

Cars that drive themselves

Can the spinning lasers on top of the Google car see my underwear?   To find out the answer, I asked the inventor of the device, David Hall.
“No, it can’t see your underwear but it can tell how tall you are and exactly how far you are standing in respect to a car.”
LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) is a new way of looking at the world.   With 64 spinning lasers, LIDAR images the world in a true 3D manner by measuring the distance from a stationary or moving position at a million points per second.   The image is recreated by the control software in a similar way as modern video gaming operates.
As a competitor in the second DARPA Grand Challenge, David Hall came up with the idea.  His first version of the LIDAR was the size of a spare tire spinning on top of his green Toyota Tundra.   It was a successful design and Hall went on to make a smaller version that was used on five of the six finishing vehicles in the recent Urban Grand Challenge.

Greenpois0n Jailbreak FAQ released for iOS devices

For those who can’t wait for a Dev-Team developed jailbreak for your iPhone, iPad or iPods, then you may have looked at GreenPois0n as an alternative. The tool comes with no guarantee and raises many questions for users looking to break their 4.1 firmware. @omokas has posted an updated faq just 40 minutes ago explaining almost everything about the GreenPois0n Jailbreak, even including irc contact details to get a hold of the devs. Here’s a reprint from the original pastie post:

Greenpois0n FAQ
Q.Does GreenPois0n Unlock an iPhone ?
A.No it doesn’t.
Q.which devices does it support ?
A.It supports iPad (all versions), iPod Touch 3G , iPod Touch 4G, iPhone 3GS (Old&New Bootrom) and iPhone 4.
Will support iPod Touch 2G MC soon.

Verizon to offer iPad + MiFi bundle later this month, AT&T doing 3G

If you’ve been itching to get your hands on an Apple iPad but you want to latch onto the “can you hear me now” network for wireless surfing, it looks like you’re in luck. Not only is Verizon going to start selling the Apple tablet; it’s going to bundle it with some MiFi action to boot.