This is just downright threatening. Software engineer Will Gorman has seen fit to play god and create a robot out of Lego that can build things out of Lego. Really. The machine is essentially a robotic tank of Lego that is fed instructions from MLCad, a 3D modeling program. As of yet, it can only do up to 8×2 bricks (you know, the Lego brick), and can’t handle much more than simple structures. But imagine a Mk.2 that could work with NXT hardware? What about one that could 3D-print its own Lego bricks? “There is a recursiveness to this whole thing,” says Gorman of his brainchild. “I love the idea of…

Hey, you know Facebook’s ‘Photo Memories?’ Do you have the same problem I have, where every single one seems to be from the same album, featuring the same person (or two people)? What’s the deal with that – like, beyond an algorithm that determines with whom you interact most? Do you like that person (or people)? What if you don’t? Y’know, anymore? What if you just had a nasty breakup with that (those) person (people)? Seeing their face in the sidebar refresh after refresh is probably pretty painful. Facebook is now taking steps to deal with this. According to Inside Facebook, Facebook will no longer…

I hang out with an awful lot of comic book dorks, and many of them have been cowering in fear since Disney’s fateful acquisition of Marvel, wondering what impact The Mouse will have on their favourite superheroes. Generally, I’ve told them not to worry – Warner Bros has owned DC for, what, like, thirty years, and if you ask me, that’s been nothing but good news for Dr. Bruce Batman and Friends. But I digress. Check this bizness out, as it’s the first Disney/Marvel tie-in I’ve seen since the acquisition, and it’s geek chic as hell. Do I really need to explain it? It’s Marvel heroes, done up TRON-style….

As much of an advocate I am for competition, I can’t help but laugh on the inside when I see yet another favorable impression of Windows Phone 7. I want to say great things about it. No, I really do! But I can’t! It’s because I know that this is a failure from the start. So before we get into detail about the competition and the hoopla surrounding Windows Phone 7, let’s start with the company that is behind all of the commotion: Microsoft. Microsoft’s Problems Microsoft has an identity problem. If you ask a teenager to explain what Microsoft does, you will, without question, hear them mention Windows….

Andy Rubin took issue with Steve Jobs’ analysis of the openness of Google at Apple’s earnings release, and tweeted his opinion on the matter. Unfortunately, the tweet was either massively ironic, or completely misses the point of what Jobs was attempting to say. The tweet Rubin sent was a terminal command intended to demonstrate the full extent to which Android is open: the definition of open: “mkdir android ; cd android ; repo init -u git://android.git.kernel.org/platform/manifest.git ; repo sync ; make” However, what Rubin ultimately demonstrates is that Google simply has a different…

Ever since the iPad was announced, there has been no end of talk about how it and other tablets represent the future of magazines. As it turns out, this is now partly true. Magazines, in the form of apps, are plentiful on the iPad, and if nothing else, they’re certainly a new way to experience a magazine. The 7″-9″ screen is a good size for viewing mixed content and the touch screen makes scrolling through a magazine feel familiar and obvious, yet still novel. But what is the idea of the magazine in the internet age? And are they still relevant? Or is something about the internet already making them less…

Pantone, the controllers of all things color have released a new product that brings color from the real world into your workflow. Pantone Capsure is a new handheld device from Pantone that allows you to sample a color anywhere, anytime and bring it back to your computer to use in your projects. The device picks the closest Pantone Matching System color and downloads it to your computer. This kind of technology has been available for some time in hardware stores, but now designers can use the technology directly. At $649 the device isn’t exactly cheap, but will be a godsend for those who aim to use…

Palm Web OS is now officially resigned to the history books. It was really only a matter of time, but now the official title of the mobile OS is HP WebOS. After a bit of a rocky start in the Palm Pre, WebOS essentially tanked because of lack of polish compared to other mobile operating systems. Well, WebOS is back, and apparently it’s now a strong contender. The OS now features true multitasking, an updated version of Synergy, Palm’s interesting social media integration software, Adobe Flash and a number of other advancements. The first device to run HP WebOS 2.0 will be the Palm Pre 2, released in France…

2010 is a big year for the internet. The number of people browsing the world wide web will reach and surpass 2 billion, nearly a third of the world’s population. That number has doubled in the past five years alone, with 226 million new internet users this year alone. The International Telecommunication Union released figures highlighting the importance of the internet, particularly in developing nations. The figures show that 71% of people in developed countries are online, compared with only 21% in developing nations. The ITU says it’s particularly important for developing countries to…

Steve Jobs rarely appears at Apple’s financial conferences, but when he does, oh boy, lookout. Steve Jobs isn’t shy by any means, but he’s definitely not a loudmouth, so his confidence at yesterdays earnings announcement is either his pride getting the better of him, or he wants to make sure we’re all watching while his company makes the future. Jobs stopped just short of cattiness while describing RIM and Google’s position in the mobile market. On RIM, Jobs noted that they have reached the end of their competitive advantage, and are faced with the difficulty of adapting to a new model. “We’ve…