interiors
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Pinterest makes it much easier to buy what you see
Pinterest has introduced a few new features to make it easier to shop directly from pins.
Philips' Hue app is actually good now
At this year's CES Philips announced a forthcoming update for its Hue smart lights app. The company kept details to a minimum, but now we know exactly what the promised improvements look like, as v3.0 rolls out on the Play Store today. Alongside a raft of feature additions, it's had a complete makeover.
IndoorAtlas uses disturbances in the (geomagnetic) force to map interiors, plot a path to aisle 3 (video)
Interior navigation is only just coming into its own, but IndoorAtlas has developed a technology that could make it just as natural as breathing -- or at least, firing up a smartphone's mapping software. Developed by a team at Finland's University of Oulu, the method relies on identifying the unique geomagnetic field of every location on Earth to get positioning through a mobile device. It's not just accurate, to less than 6.6 feet, but can work without help from wireless signals and at depths that would scare off mere mortal technologies: IndoorAtlas has already conducted tests in a mine 4,593 feet deep. Geomagnetic location-finding is already available through an Android API, with hints of more platforms in the future. It will still need some tender loving care from app developers before we're using our smartphones to navigate through the grocery store as well as IndoorAtlas does in a video after the break.
Ship interiors planned in the near future for Star Trek Online
It's been an interesting process to watch the growth of Star Trek Online over the past few months, with Cryptic clearly making a concerted effort to pack a great deal more content into the game as fast as possible. They've stated prior that they would like to go no more than three months between major content updates, with smaller updates happening on a monthly basis. In the most recent Engineering Report on the official site, we get more details about what's being planned and worked on for the near future -- and the many players eagerly awaiting ship interiors don't have to wait that much longer. The report outlines the rough plan for the next three months, for the Season 1.2 patch, the followup 1.3 patch, and the Season 2 update planned in July. 1.2 is aiming at adding a "sidekick" system a la City of Heroes, new playable races, and social improvements. 1.3, targeted for June, is adding Dabo, the option to trade bridge officers, and weekly episodes. And as could be expected, Season 2 is packed to the gills with new features -- including Klingon episodes, "neutral" episodes for all factions, and ship interiors. Take a look at the full report for more looks at what's on the table and being tested for Star Trek Online.
Star Trek Online and the breadth of content
If you're a fan of the franchise, there are things that you likely want to be in Star Trek Online that aren't there yet. Ship interiors, missions taking place on board the ship, improved ground combat, diplomatic missions... it's not a difficult list to fill out. Executive producer Craig Zinkievich conducted a recent interview in which he was taken to task on several of these points, which he responded to in a fairly straightforward fashion. The short answer is that it's not a lack of want from the team, just a matter of time and resources to be invested. For example, as he points out, ship interiors (a much called-for feature) can post a slight problem due to the nature of the ships. Galaxy-class starships are the size of a small city, so they want to incorporate the feature in a way that makes it a meaningful use of a player's time. The interview covers a range of topics from exploration and diplomacy to shoring up the weaker points of combat (mostly ground combat, as players would expect). Take a look for a few more ideas about the future direction of Star Trek Online, up to and beyond the upcoming "Common Ground" content patch.
Boldly going where you can't currently go: Star Trek team interested in expanding ship interiors
You can visit the furthest reaches of space, but you can't actually visit your own engine room. You can travel great distances across the universe, but you can't walk that 20 feet outside of your bridge. Restrictive, no? Well, Trek fans should be interested to hear that Craig Zinkievich, Star Trek Online's executive producer, has recently mentioned to IncGamers that he is interested in fleshing out more of the interior of the player's starship, giving them more room to walk around and get a feel for their ship. Plus, you know, it's only been requested by the players at least 40 billion times. "Anything we can do to make the game feel even more like Star Trek is something we want to do. So, definitely, we want to give people more of their ship," Zinkievich told IncGamers. "This is one of those things we want to get perfect before introducing it to players, though it's going to be an undertaking." [Via The Escapist]
New Sebring sports heating/cooling cupholder
When it comes to implementing high-tech innovations inside the passenger cabin, it's usually names like BMW, Mercedes, and Lexus leading the pack, so we were a little surprised to see Chrysler seemingly beat all those luxury manufacturers to the punch with a hot (and cool) new cupholder for the 2007 Sebring. Not only does this dugout look like it does a great job protecting your beverage from tipping, it's actually got both a heating and cooling mechanism that will keep your coffee at a piping hot 140 degrees Fahrenheit or your soda at a chilly 35 degrees. You'll be able to pick up the new cupholder sometime in Q4 of this year for around $20,000 (note: price includes car).[Via AutoSpies]
