Chirp
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Twitter rolls out redesign with proprietary Chirp font
Twitter's latest redesign is here, and it includes a new typeface.
NYT: Google's Echo competitor is called 'Home'
Google's answer to the Amazon Echo is named Google Home, according to The New York Times. Google Home, which was developed under the codename "Chirp," is a voice-powered assistant that can answer basic questions as you bustle around the house. The device should hit stores in the fall and Google is set to unveil the device during its big I/O conference tomorrow, NYT reports.
Google's own interpretation of Amazon's Echo is coming soon
All of a sudden, it's as if everyone is working on voice-controlled personal assistants, and reports suggest that Google's version of something similar to Amazon's Echo could land as soon as the Google I/O event next week -- which would make sense. According to sources at Recode, it's currently being developed under the codename, Chirp.
Google is reportedly working on an Amazon Echo rival
Nest might not be building a challenger to the Amazon Echo, but that doesn't mean its sister company Google is standing idle. The Information's sources claim that Google is building its own voice-controlled "personal assistant device" to beat Amazon at its own game. Just how it would work isn't clear (though it would likely rely on Google's existing voice search tech), but the search giant is believed to be working alone -- unlike Google's OnHub line, you won't find any hints of Nest technology inside.
Peripheral Vision 006: Shawn Campbell on starting a radio station with a computer and microphone
"People sometimes say, 'oh, you're just like a real radio station,' " Shawn Campbell begins with a smile. "I have to say, 'we are a real radio station -- we're just one that doesn't have a broadcast signal yet.' " Campbell is seated besides a mic in studio B of what does, indeed, look like a real radio station. I might have half-jokingly made a comment along those lines when we arrived -- one-hundred-plus years of terrestrial broadcasting is enough to instill one with certain preconceived notions about what, precisely, makes a radio station. Campbell launched Chicago-based CHIRP in 2007 with terrestrial radio dreams and a team of 75 volunteers. "I'd had a couple of bad experiences in radio where I'd really poured my heart and soul into a station, only to have it thwarted by the owners," she explains. "Initially we thought that we were going to have to wait to apply for a low-power FM federal broadcast license. We thought we were going to have to lobby and change the laws to be able to do that. But we were so engaged that after about six months, we thought there [was] no reason not to start as an online station and continue our work to increase access for low-power FM and eventually apply for a license."
Bonnaroo Festival participants enjoy live video and audio with ChirpVision
The 2013 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee offered listeners an enhanced viewing experience over the four-day festival. An iPhone and Android app by ChirpVision provided music fans with HD audio and video of any one of the three stages, no matter where they were at the festival. The ChirpVision apps proved especially useful when music fans were greeted with a rainstorm, but could still watch live performances from the "That" tent, which housed the Chirp WiFi Zone. According to ChirpVision co-founder Robert Bianchi, "ChirpVision technology takes the fan experience to a whole new level ... By allowing fans to enjoy interactive features ... while never missing the action around the festival." The press release further states that "ChirpVision can stream video up to 100,000 event patrons." The technology works over standard WiFi systems and three live video channels at 24 frames per second, optimized for mobile devices. ChirpVision is an interactive in-venue closed-loop wireless broadcast system, developed by Chirp, Inc. They plan to add texting, DVR function, VoIP, internet and other features to their apps in the future. This could change the user experience for a number of multi-stage fan events across the globe, such as Burning Man or Farm Aid. It certainly would help those of us who hate to be immersed in crowds, enjoy large festivals from the sidelines.
Chirp iPhone app introduces sharing via sound
You'd be forgiven for thinking this is a story about some sort of jukebox from my House (of Crackpot Theories), but this is news about a real app called Chirp. What's Chirp? "Half Bump, half Soundhound." On your iPhone, you choose an item (photo, note, or link) and then you can share with everyone around you who also has the app. It plays a high pitched series of tones, which other phones nearby (also running Chirp) listen for; the tones convey the URL to the item uploaded, and the other phones download it. (The app does require data access to work, so it's not true peer-to-peer sharing, but it's good enough.) I loaded it today, and since the TUAW staff doesn't all report to one big office, I was sitting here by myself wondering how to test it. Luckily the Chirp Blog has a couple of test items you can use to try it out, and I have to admit, it's pretty slick. Something I hadn't thought about when I first downloaded the app was doing something with audio on a website or in some other fashion, like an audio QR code. At first that sounded kind of cool, considering all the useful kinds of things to be done with something like that. Then I thought about hearing the same brief tone many many times a day and I think that would get old in a hurry. As of now it appears to be just the Chirp app that uses this technology, but for a quick way to share files it looks reasonably handy. [hat tip The Next Web] #next_pages_container { width: 5px; hight: 5px; position: absolute; top: -100px; left: -100px; z-index: 2147483647 !important; }
Garmin's $23 Chirp wireless beacon brings geocaching thrills to Oregon, Dakota GPS units
Looking for an avenue to join millions of others in geocaching, eh? We know, there's hardly a better way to spend a weekend than by playing a sophisticated game of hide-and-seek, and Garmin's right there with us. If you, like it, are stuck in Kansas with nary a Jayhawk game in sight, this here pebble is the answer to all of your boredom woes. The Chirp is a wireless beacon that's designed to work with any compatible wireless-enabled Garmin handheld (the Oregon, Dakota and the recently announced GPSMAP handhelds are mentioned by name), and once you've set it up to cooperate with your device, it'll automatically transmit program coordinates so other cachers can find each stage of your multicache -- it's touch-and-go in its simplest form. The whole thing measures just 1.3- x 0.9-inches, weighs under an ounce and can be had for just $22.99. So yeah, good luck sticking to Segway polo with an offer like that. Update: Video after the break!
