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Google Slides automatically captions your presentations
If you want to caption a presentation for people who are deaf or hard of hearing, you typically have to do it yourself. Google might just save you that trouble -- it's launching an automatic closed captioning feature for Slides. Plug a microphone into your computer, hit a "CC" button and Slides will automatically caption your speech as you walk through the presentation. As the captions arrive in real-time, you don't have to worry about stopping on each slide to give your audience a chance to read.
Google Glass monthly update improves photos with HDR, captions
Google has committed to pushing software updates to its Glass headset each month, and a post on Google+ reveals this month's tweaks are focusing on pictures. If you're a fan of using the device for POV shots, it should take better pictures by capturing a sequence of images for improved low-light performance and HDR pictures in bright situations -- check out a gallery of enhanced images at the source link below. Also new is a prompt to add a caption after you take a picture. Users can tap their headset, speak the caption and it's automatically inserted. Last month's XE5 update addressed a wider range of issues, but this one will make sure any impromptu pictures (with your subject's full awareness and permission for the photo, we're sure) are high quality.
Caption Contest: Maker Faire's morning pick-me-up
Some mornings you just don't want to get out of bed. We've all got our own methods for starting the day, but few are quite so...electric...as this this one spotted at Maker Faire over the weekend. No doubt even Tesla himself couldn't have concocted a better way to shake oneself loose from a bad case of the Mondays. Richard Lai: "Starbucks now brewing Electric Latte. Espresso with steamed milk and a dash of lightning, finished with a sprinkle of copper dust." Darren Murph: "Jump Start kind of undersells things, no?" Jon Fingas: "The best part of waking up is 10,000 volts in your cup." Billy Steele: "The folks at Jolt Cola are not going to be happy about this." Tim Stevens: "No, it's pronounced 'coffeen' not 'caffeine'!" Terrence O'Brien: "Bobby's decision to learn Conjure Refreshment really started to pay dividends when his mage reached level 64" Zach Honig: "Would you mind nuking this for me?" Brian Heater: "Just another McDonald's lawsuit waiting to happen." James Trew: "Electrici-Tea." Dan Cooper: "Van De-Caff Generator."
Caption Contest: HTC's down-to-earth photo shoot
With the Android handset market as jam-packed as it is, it can be tough to distinguish your device from the maddening crowd. We've seen some bizarre and sublime attempts to do so over the years, but few have reached the terminal velocity of HTC's skydiving fashion photoshoot aimed at promoting its new One line of phones. Has the company hit the bullseye here, or is it and its accompanying light-headed skydivers destined to splatter all over the advertising landscape? It just might take a caption contest to find out for certain. Zach Honig: "If I make this reverse overhead shot do you promise to attach a parachute to my string?" Sean Buckley: "Drop test #3 will commence in 3.. 2.." Christopher Trout: "Who needs a facelift when you have wind effects like these?" Darren Murph: [Yelling, to combat the wind] "WHY DO WE HAVE FOUR PEOPLE TO PROMOTE THE ONE LINE?" Brian Heater: "Another dropped call from AT&T." Myriam: "Looks like we fixed that bug in the accelerometer! It's working just fine right now..." Tim: "Hang on, trying to decide which Instagram filter to apply... so many choices..." Michael: "Well, whaddya know, Face Unlock works while free-falling at 10,000 feet!" Zach Lutz: Despite the fabulous view, Guy couldn't resist his overwhelming urge to check for available software updates. Sharif Sakr: As if throwing Dr Dre and his Beats Audio out of a plane wasn't enough, they had to shoot him in the back with an arrow. Richard Lawler: What do you mean there aren't any FourSquare badges for this? Jose Andrade: "Don't move. I'm almost done with this DrawSomething drawing" Billy Steele: "You just hold the phone and I promise I'll pull the 'chute. Maybe."
Enough Already Arduino mutes TV's overexposed celebrities, frees you to live again (video)
Are you besieged by celebrities? Sure, you could try turning off the TV, but now there's a more complex, DIY solution: Enough Already, an Arduino box that mutes your television at any mention of certain names -- Lady Gaga, for example. The setup's fairly simple if you're comfortable with hardware hacking; it uses the Video Experimenter Shield to read closed captioning data, then sends the mute command via IR whenever offending words appear. Of course, you can tweak the blacklist however you like, so Pippa Middleton updates will still get through. Follow the tutorial after the break and you'll be able to once more channel-surf in peace, knowing you'll never again have to hear the word "Snooki."
Caption Contest: you shall not interrupt Gandalf's 3D viewing session
Nobody likes being bothered while they're really getting into a movie, and as we all know you can't really get into a movie unless it's in 3D. Right? Sir Ian McKellen took things a step further, not only watching a screening of The Hobbit in the third dimension but doing it in character, and looking ever so slightly perturbed at having his viewing session interrupted by a rogue photographer. The guy in the back doesn't seem to mind, though. Thomas: "Galadriel, is that new shampoo?" Tim: "These glasses may be passive but I you may find me getting very aggressive if you use that flash one more time." Brian: "I'll tell you what, you're making me Gandalf the Red right now." Joe: "Would 'one standard to rule them all' be asking too much?" Michael: "ZZ Top called, they want their roadie back" Terrence: "Even Gandalf the Grey is powerless against the magic of these glasses which make any man look like a 90-year-old blind woman." Richard Lai: "Ha, no 3D for that flaming cyclops in Mordor." Darren: "One ring. Two Towers. 3Ds." Christopher: "Sir Ian McKellen: the latest victim of Rick Rubin's Ambush Makeover." Sean Buckley: "Confound it all, Samwise Gamgee. What have I told you about interrupting me during my stories?" Josh Fruhlinger: "You know how they say 3D is bad for children? This dude is 14." Myriam: "Yes, wizards get hangovers too. Are you happy now?"
Caption contest: this is why grocery stores shouldn't sell smartphones
"We call it a very nice phone and you can get it on a 12 month contract." Oh, really, Tesco? Nifty! So, how much is that bag of day-old doughnuts... with and without a contract? Don: "Knowing my luck, if I buy this now they'll have an iPhone 4 with a Bold keyboard on sale next week." Darren: "Do you guys sell a vegan model?" Michael: "At Tesco, we've got raspberries, strawberries, and... ThunderBerries?" Tim: "With Android, are you supposed to squeeze it or shake it to tell if it's ripe?" Chris: "You can find it in the toothpaste aisle of your local grocery store." Myriam: "Behold the Desire Torch, a new AndroBerry phone from HTRIM... now available in the cheese aisle." Richard Lai: "By popular demand we have extended our Tesco Mobile Rewards offer to our shanzhai range." Sean Hollister: "And Tesco embraced fragmentation, the only way it knew how." Vlad: "Hey, if RIM's gonna use our apps on its tablet, then we're gonna use its buttons on our phones. Fair's fair." [Thanks, Matt O.]
Caption Contest: Russian prez is impressed by iPad 2
In non-Soviet Russia... presidents tend to receive some pretty swanky high-tech gifts. Dmitry Medvedev, leader of the good people of Russia and one of the few men to successfully rock denims with a suit jacket, has been bestowed with a fresh new iPad 2 and his facial expression seems to suggest he was immediately irradiated with blasts of magic, fairy dust, and the smiles of innocent children from across the world. We just hope he hasn't seen the crummy camera yet, he is something of a tablet photography connoisseur. Darren: "Why, lookie there! I can see Alaska from my iPad 2!" Joe: "I can't believe I'm playing chess with Garry Kasparov!" Jose: "I wonder if Barack also likes to play Risk on his iPad." Josh F.: "See? The cat is talking but he's saying 'has' instead of 'have!'" Don: "Kickin' in the front seat, sittin' in the back seat, gotta make my mind up, which seat can I take?" Tim: "Look, it already has Words with Comrades installed!" Vlad: "And this has push notifications for when Mr. Putin has instructions for me, yes?" Richard Lawler: "10,000 apps and it's still cheaper than buying the New Jersey Nets." Myriam: "And so if I tap here, it opens the door to the shark tank... and over here are the laser controls. Cool, eh?" Richard Lai: "Hullo Anna!"
Caption this, win a white Vindictus wolf hood! [Updated 11/5]
See that picture above? Yeah, it needs a caption, and we need you to caption it! Of course, we're not asking you to be creative for absolutely nothing. We know that it's hard coming up with funny captions for screenshots, and that's why we're adding a little bit of an incentive into the mix. How would you guys like, oh, a Vindictus wolf hood? And we're not talking about the common, everyone-has-one, red Vindictus hoods either. No, no, we're talking about the new white wolf hoods! Our good friends at Nexon have sent us five white Vindictus wolf hoods, and we really want to give them away to the five best captions we receive for this picture. If you're interested in throwing your caption into the ring, then just click the "read more" button to get the full scoop on this contest! [Update: Check behind the break for an update to the contest!]
Caption contest: Bing bus goes searching for search results
Bus. Ice cream truck. Personal space invader. Vessel of illicit speaker transport. It's all semantics, anyway. Darren: "Man, this smoke is great, but damn if I'm not suddenly craving an orange Push Up." Joe: "Unlike the Street View car, the Bing truck is equally at home on the street or at a rave." Chris: "In the event the authorities get too close for comfort, Bing is prepared to take its entire operation mobile for weeks at a time, stopping only to refuel." Don: "At last, the real decision engine is revealed." Richard Lawler: "Ok, so the plot is, we pick up "models" off the street... and find low cost plane tickets, product reviews or a nice restaurant for them. That's it." Ross: "Creative Picture Framing" indeed, Microsoft. Creative picture framing, indeed. Joanna: "Didn't we just do a sketchy tech van caption contest!?" Richard Lai: "For the last time: we don't sell froyo here." Tim: "Creative Picture Framing was a front for GHOST: Google Hating Operatives with better Search Technology. Jeeves had already arrived in his blacked out Benz, but the Altavista boys were nowhere to be found." Myriam: "Oh, I see! It's an art car for Burning Man... Right." [Thanks, Hosain]
Caption contest: the Verizon van makes a pit stop
Is there any love more forbidden? Nilay: "So... do you have the iPhone?" Ross: "Hey, we ran out of markers coloring our 3G coverage map, can we borrow yours?" Richard Lai: "Stealth sabotage fail." Chris: "Can you hear me now, [censored]?" Thomas: "Trust me, I just need help lifting this couch into the van." Sean Hollister: "Stick together -- it's the T-Mobile way." Vlad: "And this, dear friends, is where all your phone tariffs are calculated, negotiated, and determined. Yay, free market!" Tim: "Ten years ago, a crack wireless unit was kicked out of Bell Atlantic for a crime it didn't commit. This group promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the FCC, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... The V-Team." Laura: "There's like, a map for this, right?" Darren: "Hey, someone has to mop the floors around here, right?" Joanna: "Rumor: Verizon to get rollover minutes!" Paul: "What the world needs now..." Myriam: "Hey man, I have some great speakers to sell you real cheap." [Thanks, Brad]
Massively's EVE Online Tyrannis contest, part 2: Caption competition
Last week we launched the first of three awesome EVE Online contests in association with CCP Games. To celebrate the upcoming launch of EVE's Tyrannis expansion with its impressive planetary interaction feature, we asked players to submit their best screenshots featuring planets. We expected around 25 entries but with the contest being open to international readers, we received an absolute flood of responses. A total of 114 screenshots were sent in before the deadline last night and we began the difficult process of choosing our favourite shots. Thanks to the generosity of the fellows at CCP, we were able to increase the number of winners from 5 to 10. Congratulations go to EVE players Agara Mnemion, Aurum Pax, Banana Ninja, driv4r, Garnoo, Ice Monster, Lamthara Lachesis, paritybit, SpiroTris and Vladmir Skef. Each of you will soon have a 30 day pilot's license delivered in-game by CCP. For those interested in seeing the winning screenshots, they're the first ten images in the colossal 114 entry gallery below. %Gallery-92556% Skip past the cut for this week's second part of our amazing Tyrannis contest trilogy. Think up a funny caption for our screenshot and you could win two months of EVE game time! UPDATE: Winners announced at the end of the post! All winners will be emailed to arrange delivery of their prizes.
The iPad introduction video, as captioned by Google
Hey remember that feel-good iPad introduction video with the Ben Folds cover of "In Between Days" Apple posted on launch day? Yeah, well you're going to remember the hell out of it once you watch it with Google's auto-transcription enabled on YouTube. Trust us, you owe yourself these few moments of absurdity. Update: Video after the break! [Thanks, Jeff] %Gallery-87737%
Find creepy cats in Fallen Earth screenshot caption contest
What in the world is a double-cat? Well, Fallen Earth is currently holding a special kind of caption contest where players will find out, shortly followed by the rest of the world. It remains to be seen whether we shriek in horror or laugh in a fit of terror-filled glee. Either way, your caption will probably help a lot. Oh wait, here's a double-cat right now. So, players are to search the sandbox MMO world for this hair-curling (or straightening, for some) double-cat, screenshot it and then put a caption on top of the image. It sounds tough, but we believe in random strangers all the time -- especially when they're our readers. So if you happen across the mythical creature and feel up to the challenge, send your submission in to fecontest AT fallenearth DOT com and perhaps you could win a super special Fallen Earth poster signed by the dev team!
Caption contest: What is Craig doing?
Sure, Intel's demo man -- Craig -- had something specific he was showing us earlier at the company's CES press event, but you can assuredly think of something more... creative, can't you? Tim: "Laaaadies...." Josh T.: "You over there, feel like makin'... no? Okay." Joe: "This one's called Cold Lampin' With Intel." Richard Lai: "Intel outside." Chris: "We doin'... big pimpin', spendin' cheese. We be... big pimpin' on C.O.R.E.'s" Darren: "'Cause my Atom don't stop 'til six in da mooooaannnin'." Ross: "Our Flavor Flav impersonators aren't like your Flavor Flav impersonators." Thomas: "Quick to the point to the point no fakin, I'm cooking AMD like a pound of bacon." Richard Lawler: "This ain't funny so don't ya dare laugh." Don: "I pity the fool that buys AMD." Joanna: "No, you're a rockstar." Vlad: "I might look like a fool, but I'm getting paid to dress and act like this, what's your excuse?"
Caption Contest: Civil War reenactment + iPhone = ubernerd
Far be it from us to make fun of people for their favorite pastimes -- that would, in fact, be the pot calling the kettle black (considering that we're both addicted to gadgets and quilting, we have little room to point fingers). However, it's possible that you might be a serious nerd if you're caught gabbing on your iPhone in the midst of a hike during a reenactment of the Battle of Gettysburg. Good sir, we salute thee!Laura: "Are you telling me I'm not eligible for an upgrade until 1865!?"Joe: "North and South could both agree that lack of Flash support was a grave oversight"Thomas: "Robert E. Lee!? I thought you said rob a 3G"Josh T: "What? I said 'what's so civil about war anyway?'"Nilay: "An app store divided against itself cannot stand."Don: "Scurvy? Nope, not an app for that."Chris: "Yeah, I mistook it for a piece of hardtack last week, just came back out this morning. Works great!" Ross R.: "I like that it runs Merrimac OS X."[Thanks, Ethan]
Caption contest: it's deadbeat-tastic!
Karma's a bitch on the streets of Chicago.Chris: "Oh, the boot is attached to a third-party wheel? We don't support that configuration, sir."Paul: "Did you try restarting it?"Don: "Ok, sir, we can remove the boot between the hours of 8AM and 8PM. Will you be at the vehicle?"Darren: "Fired."Nilay: "CableCARD installations have become increasingly hostile."Joe: "I bet the DirecTV guys never have this problem."Richard: "You have exceeded your monthly mileage quota. Additional travel can be purchased for $20/mile."Josh: "Let's see you dream your way out of this one."Ryan: "Oh, so you can't take off the boot until we pay the fines. But can I interest you in our all-in-one triple-play package?"Thomas: "So this is what throttling feels like." [Photo courtesy of Patrick Brendan O'Dea; thanks Chicago Scooter Club]
Caption a Champions Online screenshot, maybe win a beta key
If you've ever seen a screen caption here on Massively (largely supplied by the bloggers who post them) then you've probably thought, "I could do better than that!" If these words have indeed passed through your noggin, then here's your chance to show us how it's done. Cryptic's got yet another contest to win Champions Online beta keys, and this time the prizes go to whomever can make with the fancy wordage.Here are some of our other thoughtful entries for the image above. Also, yes, ours is not a caption and instead a thought bubble. Maybe when Cryptic has a "submit your thought bubbles" contest we'll have a fighting chance. Until then, feel free to gaze at the two new screens that have been released for the contest. Bonus!%Gallery-17946%
Wii Warm Up: LOLCAPTIONS
HAY GUYZ, we've got this terrific image of a cat resting his tired head on a Wii Fit board, but our LOL caption has been kidnapped by ninjas. Are you a bad enough dude to come up with a replacement caption?The commenter with the funniest bit of accompanying text will win ... nothing. You might earn the admiration of Kamezo here, maybe. You can't really guarantee anything when it comes to cats.
Caption This: Vote for winners! [Updated]
I hope everyone had a blast participating in this week's Caption This contest! However, as of Wednesday night at 11:59 PM EST the entry period officially closed, and I'd like to thank everyone who participated for making it a success! (And if you missed this week's contest, never fear, there will be another one starting on the Monday after next!) But now it's time to pick a winner -- the staff of WoW Insider has narrowed hundreds of entries down to ten finalists, and we want your opinion on which captions for the above screenshot are the best of the bunch. The winner will be walking away with a 60-day gamecard and second place will snag a More DoTs t-shirt from J!NX. So come on -- let us know which entry you liked best (polls will be open until 9am EST tomorrow), and on Monday we'll announce the winners!Update: The voting period is now closed -- we'll announce the winners soon!
