BuffaloGrid, mobile power and internet service for the off-grid world

By Vasudev Ram

Saw this today. Seems somewhat interesting:

BuffaloGrid is a startup that describes itself as a "mobile power and internet service for the off-grid world".

BuffaloGrid - What/

BuffaloGrid - Why/

BuffaloGrid - Customers/

- Vasudev Ram - Online Python training and consulting

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Twilight for Android - adjust screen brightness

Twilight - Android Apps on Google Play

Twilight is an app for Android that is similar to f.lux for desktops, which I blogged about some time ago. Both let you adjust the brightness of your screen (PC or mobile) for day or night conditions.

I just downloaded Twilight and installed it on my Android phone today. It seems to be working okay.

f.lux got a big update today:

http://justgetflux.com/news/pages/bigupdate/

- Vasudev Ram
www.dancingbison.com

Python for Android

By Vasudev Ram

Just saw this via Hacker News:

Python for Android.

Excerpt from the Python for Android site:

Python for android is a project to create your own Python distribution including the modules you want, and create an apk including python, libs, and your application.

A few other points from the site:

- They provide a VirtualBox image with the prerequisites.

- Python for Android is only tested on Ubuntu 11 and 12 as of now. They welcome patches.

Hacker News thread about Python for Android.

Haven't checked it much yet, but looks interesting.

- Vasudev Ram - Dancing Bison Enterprises

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Charge your phone in 20 seconds

Teen's prize-winning invention may charge your phone in 20 seconds - CNN.com

Interesting  ... She got a $50,000 award for it at an Intel Science competition for high school students.

Ubuntu on tablets announced

http://www.ubuntu.com/devices/tablet

Seems to be quite hyped, with a lot of features and benefits mentioned. Have not had a chance to check it out in more detail yet. The idea is good in principle, but how good it will really turn out to be depends on a lot of things, not just on their execution of the plan - some of those other things being carriers, hardware partners, fragmentation, whether they install or allow partners to pre-install  battery-hogging and general crapware on the tablets, etc.

Saw the news on Twitter a few hours ago.

Now there is a Hacker News thread about it:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5244956

- Vasudev
dancingbison.com

OpenGarden ties up with TextMe

Open Garden teams with TextMe to connect the unconnected tablet — Tech News and Analysis

I had blogged about OpenGarden before.

One of their founders, Stanislas Shalunov, worked at BitTorrent and on the Internet2 project earlier.

-  Vasudev Ram

KBOX, a mini Linux for non-rooted Android devices

Kevin Boone's Web site

It is experimental and limited; also does not use standard Linux file system layout.

- Vasudev Ram

mosh, the roaming mobile shell from MIT

Mosh: the mobile shell

Just seen via Hacker News.

mosh looks very interesting based on the description at the link above.

Excerpt:

( Mosh
(mobile shell)
Remote terminal application that allows roaming ,
supports intermittent connectivity , and provides
intelligent local echo and line editing of user
keystrokes.
Mosh is a replacement for SSH. It's more robust
and responsive, especially over Wi-Fi, cellular, and
long-distance links.
Mosh is free software, available for GNU/Linux,
FreeBSD, Solaris, Mac OS X, and Android. )

And that's just first part of that intro page, which is fairly long and has lots of interesting details on the benefits of mosh, as well as some background on its internals. I read a large part of it. The Android port is experimental, by a third party, but they are working on an official one.

HN thread about it (early, will probably grow) includes some possible cons too:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5016745

- Vasudev Ram
www.dancingbison.com

Reading this made me think (again), why the heck can't phone makers get more creative?

Android PoliceAn Experiment: My Life With A Nexus 7 As My Phone

For example, they could make phones that can be split into two pieces (in many different ways), to solve the problems that the post and its comments talk about (of size).

Remembering Modu, Israeli modular phone startup mentioned on TechCrunch some time ago  ...

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modu

CherryPy web server + framework runs on Android via SL4A

Running CherryPy on Android with SL4A | defuze.org

Post  is from 2010, but idea is cool and can be useful, more so since the CherryPy server can access some Android functions such as the phone's location.  See the example in the post.

The post author wrote a book on CherryPy earlier.

I've tried Cherry some earlier, and it is good.

I had blogged on my older blog jugad.livejournal about  the possibility of running a web server on Nokia / Symbian phones, and about SL4A earlier on this current blog.

SL4A (Scripting Layer For Android):

http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting

About the post author, Sylvain Hellegouarch:

http://www.defuze.org/about

- Vasudev Ram
www.dancingbison.com
Python, Linux and open source developer / trainer.

The Google Motorola X Phone

Google Designing 'X Phone' to Rival Apple, Samsung - WSJ.com

Focusing (pun intended) on photos doesn't seem like much of a strategy, but that's only a part of their reported plans. Who know how it will go. The market will speak (*), eventually.

HN thread:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4954449

(*) Death speaks:

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appointment_in_Samarra

First saw that quote in the foreword of a Jeffrey Archer novel.

Github Mobile for Android and iOS

GitHub Mobile

Seems to have many useful features.

- Vasudev Ram
www.dancingbison.com
Software training and consulting,
including Python, Linux, databases and C.

Qt to support Android by 2013

Digia extends its commitment to Qt with plans to acquire full Qt software technology and business From Nokia | Qt Blog

See near the end of the above link, and also my previous post.

wxAndroid, which I blogged about earlier, is a similar effort to bring the wxWidgets cross-platform C++ GUI toolkit to Android.

- Vasudev Ram
Python training and development
www.dancingbison.com

MeterPlug hardware with mobile apps can save on power bills

This small plug and your smartphone could save you electricity | Mobile Technology News

Innovative idea.

The article describes how it can have multiple cost-saving benefits.

Android and iOS are supported.

MeterPlug will be at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

- Vasudev Ram
Software training and consulting
www.dancingbison.com

The future of mobile in 2013 - GigaOm

What we’ll see in 2013 in mobile | Mobile Technology News

Found the article interesting.

Predictions are just predictions, of course, but there seems to be some research behind their content in this post.

Some points of interest from it:

- WiFi roaming without user intervention

- More wireless radiation and greater invasion of privacy are concerns.

Breakthrough for mobile plans in the US?

T-Mobile CEO confirms the iPhone and the death of phone subsidies | Mobile Technology News

Interessant   ...  India has had unbundled plans for ages. Not commenting on the pros and cons of either, just saying  ...

The gimmicks (oops, I meant games :) carriers  play.

As Barnum said, there's a sucker born every minute.

Caveat emptor.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304065704577422643666002940.html

HN thread:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4883844

Controversial post and thread on web vs. mobile

Rethinking Mobile First | Hacker News

Python 3.3 for iOS released

https://mobile.twitter.com/Phaseit/status/275346465294012416?p=v

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/python-3.3-for-ios/id577911279?ls=1&mt=8

Mobile Google search with "classic" interface

If you are on a mobile device and want the classic Google search interface instead of the mobile one, use this form:

www.google.com/search?nomo=1&q=your-query-here

-Vasudev Ram
www.dancingbison.com

Jolla Mobile's Sailfish OS progressing ...

Jolla Details Sailfish OS: Offers Unique Multitasking, New Pulley Menu, More

TheNextWeb article above has details.

Better multitasking seems to be one of the features of Sailfish.

I had blogged about Jolla Mobile earlier, here:

Jolla's $260 million Meego revival plan

It is a mobile OS startup based on Nokia's earlier MeeGo Linux-based OS, which in turn was the successor to the Maemo OS, which ran on the Nokia N900.