Smile
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NVIDIA's AI can put your pet's smile on a random animal
We've already seen how AI image-processing algorithms can be dumb and smart at the same time, and that's on full display with NVIDIA's latest interactive demo. "GANimal" lets you take a picture of your favorite pet and transfer its expression to any random animal or breed including pugs, hyenas, bears and lions. That creature will then "smile" or pose just like your Fluffy or Fido.
Data-mined photos document 100 years of (forced) smiling
Here's an odd fact: Turn-of-the-century photographers used to tell subjects to say "prunes" rather than "cheese," so that they would smile less. By studying nearly 38,000 high-school yearbook photos taken since 1905, UC Berkeley researchers have shown just how much smiling, fashion and hairstyles have changed over the years. The goal was not just to track trends, but figure out how to apply modern data-mining techniques and machine learning to a much older medium: photographs. Their research could advance deep-learning algorithms for dating historical photos and help historians study how social norms change over time.
I had to smile for my free cup of coffee at a trade show
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-601847{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-601847, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-601847{width:629px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-601847").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Coffee, pens, non-existent free WiFi, and USB sticks are the four spirit animals of any tech show. But what if a company wants you to be happy before you've got your cup of morning sunshine? That's DigitalSTROM's gambit, using its sensors and Intel's RealSense 3D camera to detect when you're smiling before delivering your daily caffeine hit. Sensing a grimace could prove more practical.
PDFpen 6 released with special limited time pricing
Smile Software has released PDFpen and PDFpen Pro version 6.0 for the Mac. The popular app lets you edit PDF documents by adding signatures, correcting text, ticking boxes and a lot more. It's a powerful piece of software. The new version adds the following goodies, among others: Microsoft Word export New editing bar and enhanced design for better ease-of-use Support for Auto Save and Versions Optimized for Retina displays Drag and drop to reorder Library items To celebrate the release of PDFpen 6 and PDFpen Pro 6, Smile Software has released the apps at a special discounted price for the first 48 hours of availability. The company also wants to address those who've bought previous versions from the Mac App Store, as the store doesn't allow upgrade pricing. Smile explains the situation on its blog: It has always been our policy to offer current users an upgrade path when a new version is released. Because PDFpen is available in both the Smile Store and the Mac App Store, upgrades are more complicated. There is no mechanism for offering upgrades in the Mac App Store. To accommodate customers who wish to purchase Mac App Store versions, special pricing will be offered for the first 48 hours. PDFpen will be $29.99 and PDFpenPro will be $39.99 for this very limited time. The special pricing expires on March 20 at midnight PDT. Got it? Just to be clear, here's the arrangement in a nutshell Upgrade Pricing - Mac App Store (First 48 hours only. All prices are USD.) PDFpen 6 is selling for $29.99 PDFpen Pro 6 is $39.99 during the initial sale. This version includes iCloud support. Here's the deal on upgrade pricing when buying directly from Smile: PDFpen 6 is $30. PDFpen Pro 6 is $30. PDFpen to PDFpen Pro 6 is $40. Note that this version -- purchased directly from Smile -- does not include iCloud support. Why? Because Apple restricts iCloud access to apps purchased on the Mac App Store / iOS store.
Marvell and Stanford create SMILE Plug cloud computer, SMILE Consortium to get companies and devs to build a better education system
Last time we saw the SMILE Plug cloud computer, it was nothing more than a render -- an alabaster box with dual external antennas and a glowing green (or red) visage to let you know when it's functioning properly. We were told that it would be a dev kit that creates an ad-hoc network within a classroom that serves up to 60 devices at once using Arch Linux ARM, and can run off a wall outlet or a battery pack. Well, that bit of vaporware has coalesced into what you see above, and it seems that Marvell has delivered everything it promised. The final SMILE Plug packs 512MB of RAM, a 2Ghz single-core Armada 370 SoC and an enterprise-class 802.11 a/b/g/n Avastar WiFi chip to ensure high connectivity and power efficiency at a low monetary cost. It also has two Gigabit Ethernet ports, dual USB 2.0 plugs and a microSD slot for folks needing more than the 512MB of onboard storage. As currently configured, the SMILE Plug will cost around $30, and it'll start shipping to Stanford's SMILE (Stanford Mobile Inquiry-based Learning Environment) pilot programs next month.%Gallery-165788% Marvell doesn't plan to be the only one building these cloud computers, however, which is where the SMILE Consortium comes in. You see, the SMILE Plug is but a reference design, and Marvell and Stanford are trying to get OEMs building their own SMILE Plugs. The consortium is dedicated to "developing innovative education solutions on an open platform" and is seeking both hardware manufacturers and software developers to meet its goal of changing educational environments around the world. What kind of classroom do Stanford and Marvell envision, and how does the SMILE Plug fit into it? Join us after the break to find out.
Sandboxing keeps TextExpander 4 out of the Mac App Store
Smile released TextExpander 4 today, with a whole slew of new features. But don't zip over to the Mac App Store to find it -- the company is one of the first and most notable to remove an app from the Mac App Store as it can't be sandboxed. Sandboxing is required for Mountain Lion apps that will be sold through the Mac App Store, and protects systems and users by limiting the resources apps can access. That doesn't mean that TextExpander 4 cannot be used on Mountain Lion Macs; in fact, Smile made a point in their PR blast this morning that the app is signed with a Developer ID from Apple to work with Gatekeeper in Mountain Lion. The list of new features is pretty lengthy: New fill-in types: multiple line text fields, pop-up menus, optional text sections Supports default values for text and popup fill-ins Edit fill-ins and options with popup interface Expand snippets and switch apps while using fill-ins Improved statistics with graphical display (and the ability to tweet your stats) Hands-on tutorial for new users Contextual menus for snippet editor and list Updated appearance for Lion and Mountain Lion French and German autocorrect groups So if TextExpander 4 isn't in the Mac App Store anymore, how do you purchase it? Easy -- just go to the Smile website and download a fully-functioning demo, and you can purchase a license from within the app. The app sells for US$34.95, a family pack is $44.95, and an office pack (covers five users in an office) is $99.95. Upgrades are free for users who purchased TextExpander after January 15, 2012, and $15 for those who purchased the app before that date. The upgrade can be purchased from the app as well.
Marvell's Classroom 3.0 includes Armada-powered SMILE Plug Computer
All together now -- "Aww!" Marvell has just outed its Classroom 3.0 initiative here at CES 2012, with the star attraction being the cutie above. That's an Armada-powered plug computer known as SMILE, hailed as the "first plug development kit designed to turn a traditional classroom into a highly interactive learning environment." The device is capable of creating a "micro cloud" within a classroom, with the entire environment able to be controlled by the instructor. The hardware's being launched in tandem with an expanded One Laptop Per Child partnership, with the OLPX XO 3.0 trumpeted as the perfect companion product. It's capable of serving up to 60 clients at once, and it's based on Arch Linux for ARM; there's even a 5V Li-ion battery for back-up -- you know, in case that rambunctious kid of yours pulls the power. It'll be hitting kiddies and teachers alike this Spring, but there's nary a mention of price.
Berg's Little Printer churns out RSS feeds with a receipt and a smile
It's hard to think of a device more aptly named than BergCloud's Little Printer. It's little. It prints. It even smiles at you. And why wouldn't it? It's adorable. Equally notable is what it produces -- RSS feeds printed out on grocery store-style receipts. All you have to do is hook it up to your router, configure your RSS subscriptions from your smartphone and press a button to print them out. The Little Printer connects wirelessly to a small box that's plugged into your router. This box, in turn, interfaces with the Berg Cloud (also unveiled this week), providing constant updates and pulling down any web content you've selected. If, for instance, you want to print out Foursquare updates, you can use the app to add them to your queue and print them out for later reading. It's basically like InstaPaper... with more paper. BergCloud has already struck partnerships with ARUP, Foursquare, The Guardian, Nike and Google, though more are on the way. No word yet on pricing, but the device is slated to go up for pre-order sometime next year. Check it out in action, after the break. [Thanks, Dave]
Spriiing Smile Android phone hits Thailand by way of Sweden with China's help
Did a Thai company we've never heard of just make the best-looking portrait QWERTY Android phone to date? We might not jump the gun that quickly -- but it's definitely up there. Spriiing Design (yes, three i's) is launching its Smile model in Bangkok on January 18th and the rest of Thailand thereafter, featuring a 3 megapixel camera, 512MB of ROM, 256MB of RAM, microSD expansion to 16GB, and a 2.6-inch QVGA display along with 3G support on the 900 and 2100MHz bands paired to a 528MHz Qualcomm MSM7225 core atop Android 2.1. In other words... yeah, this pretty low end fare. More interestingly, though, the handset was apparently designed in Sweden and manufactured by Huawei -- in fact, it's got "In connection with Ideos" silkscreened on the back, and Ideos is the brand that Huawei's been pushing this year for its Android-powered gear. Small world, ain't it? Follow the break for Spriiing's video teaser. Update: Turns out this puppy is on sale in Australia, too, through Boost Mobile (yep, there's a Boost Mobile there). Thanks, Matt! %Gallery-112429%
SmileOnMyMac is now Smile
Going forward, the artists formerly known as SmileOnMyMac will now just be known as Smile. The name change reflects the company's more diversified software offerings outside of the Mac, which now include an iOS version of its popular app TextExpander on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. In addition to TextExpander, Smile's (wow, it takes a while to get used to the name) portfolio of Mac OS X apps includes PDF editor PDFpen, CD/DVD label designer DiscLabel, and its fax app PageSender. Smile's name change is similar to a move that Apple made. Citing its changing product portfolio, which included products outside of the traditional computing paradigm, Steve Jobs announced at Macworld 2007 (where the iPhone debuted) that the company would be changing its name from Apple Computer to Apple, Inc. Accompanying the company's name change is a new logo (sans the "on my Mac") and a new URL (it has changed from smileonmymac.com to smilesoftware.com), though both URLs will direct you to the company's site.
AutoSmiley uses the iSight to turn your face into an emoticon
This one's a little silly but I still really like it -- AutoSmiley is a public domain app that runs in the background while you work, quietly monitoring your iSight's camera input. Whenever it detects a smiling face on the camera (so any time you smile while working), it will send a ":)" emoticon to the keyboard. It's probably not quite practical, as there are a lot of times when you might smile but don't want to actually send an emoticon. I do like the idea that it turns emoticons into real expressions of emotion. When you actually see a ":)" or an "lol" in someone's IM or email, you never really know if they've actually smiled or laughed at what you've typed earlier, and a program like this puts a little more power behind the colon and parenthesis. As the app's description says, using it can go a little farther towards "enforcing honesty in your online communication." The app is a free download for US, UK, and NL keyboards on the Mac. The app was featured on Wednesday's TUAW TV Live, which you can watch to see AutoSmiley in action.
Omron's Okao Catch measures the intensity of your smile
It was inevitable, really. Not even two months after jolly researchers at Kansai University developed a machine to calculate the quantity of a person's laughter comes a new method of measuring just how hard you're cheesing. According to Omron's Yasushi Kawamoto, the Okao Catch technology is able to closely analyze "the curves of the lips, eye movement and other facial characteristics to decide how much a person is smiling." In a recent demonstration, it threw up percentages as people moved in front of a camcorder and began to grin, and while a somber individual did net an astounding score of zero, it doesn't seem that negative numbers are doled out for frowners. Besides being incredibly novel, the creators are hoping that it can be used in the medical field for accurately judging the "emotional state of patients," in robotics for helping androids "decipher human reactions" and in dressing rooms assisting B-list celebs improve their charm.[Via Tarakash]
Smile trainer exercises mouth muscles, creeps us out
Considering that some digicams are emerging with built-in smile detection, we'd say whipping that grin of yours into shape might not be a half bad idea. Granted, Patakara's latest certainly isn't the first, but rather than just shaping your smile, this thing actually exercises the muscles around your mouth -- presumably to help you cheese more intensely for even longer periods of time (you superstar, you). Heck, there's even three models with different resistance levels for those totally committed. But let's be honest, you won't even give those fancy Body Trainer headphones a second glance -- are you really going to dedicate time each day for this? You are? Well, then by all means, hand over your ¥5,250 ($52) and get to chompin'.[Via popgadget]
Omron announces smile measurement software
Sensing component company Omron has created what it calls "smile measurement software," which rates the amount of happiness that human subject of a photo are exhibiting. On the face of it (ouch!), the applications aren't too obvious: then you consider that this could easily be used by robots to detect their owner's -- and future slave's -- state of mind, even if it is on a rather polarized scale. According to Omron, the subject doesn't even have to be looking at the camera to work, the application is only 50kb in size, and it can run effectively on embedded mobile chips. Just don't go complainin' when your next digicam confirms your worst fears, that yes, your child is emo.
Olympus' FE-Series of shooters detect smiles, not snark
Olympus is in a tizzy this morning with four new shooters from their FE-series of compact digital cameras. The 12 megapixel (1/1.72-inch CCD) FE-300 is the big pixel-huntin' dog of the bunch packing a TruePic III image processor, 17 scene modes, xD expansion, and 2.5-inch LCD in a 22.1-mm thick package. Next up is the 7.1 megapixel (1/2.5-inch CCD) FE-290 which lacks the face detection of the FE-300 but squeezes in a 3-inch LCD and 4x wide angle optical zoom lens. The FE-280 then, crams 8 megapixels into a 1/2.35-inch CCD and super slim 19.1-mm body. Ammusingly, it features a "Smile Shot" mode which automatically tracks faces and then throws the shutter when your subject smiles, or grimaces presumably, when snuggled up with aunt vinegar. Bringing up the tail-end is the ho hum 7.1 megapixel FE-270. Look for 'em all to ship starting September.%Gallery-6275%[Via Impress]Read -- FE-300Read -- FE-290Read -- FE-280Read -- FE-270
Bugs show a little emotion
Sorandra over on Livejournal has an interesting bug happening when she runs WoW in Vista-- her female draenei is showing a different skin in different situations. Out of water, she's got the face you see up on the left. But in water, a different face appears. It looks like her toon just really hates water.Of course it's just a texture error (a known one, at that), most likely fixed by updating her video drivers. But it does kind of make you wonder a little bit why Blizzard doesn't bother implementing something like this for real, and making characters actually show facial animations. Sure, the mouths move, but we can't actually frown when we /frown or smile when we /smile. If it's this easy to change the face textures, it seems like it would be just as easy to show displeasure for real.The only obstacle might be that they'd have to design different textures for each gender and race, which would take a bit of time (time probably best spent on the actual patches and expansions). Still, a little more emotion would be fun to have. If Blizzard ever gets around to doing a graphics overhaul (much like Dark Age of Camelot has done with one of their expansions), hopefully something like this will be on the list.
