This week on infoMania Conor looks at local news’ big ass pumpkin obsession and at the GOP’s fancy new web site. Sarah wonders if weird contraptions are the secret to everlasting beauty. Sergio counts down the hottest new tracks on Billboard. And Ben sits down with Mr. Belding from ‘Saved By The Bell’ 16 years too late. current.com or on Current TV. And make sure to check out our facebook profile for special features at infomaniafacebook.com.
Video Rating: 4 / 5
Short version: Versatile but not particularly compact, the Vandal is a good choice for the hardcore urban biker/family man who needs to fit everything in his backpack, rain or shine.
Features:
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Full review:
The right bag can make all the difference, and there are a hell of a lot to choose from, as we saw during Bag Week. For the gadgeteer, I found the Mamba Shift was great — for a laptop jockey, the Buran is a dream. But if I was travelling or shopping, I wouldn’t choose either if I had the option of the Mission Workshop Vandal. As long as you’re not carrying around a lot of little gadgets, this is a great choice for an all-purpose backpack.
Keep in mind during this review that the Vandal has a younger sibling, the Rambler, which is slightly smaller and costs $30 less, so if things seem a little big, there’s always that option.
So the general idea is that this is a relatively normal-sized backpack, weather-sealed of course, until you need it to carry a ton of junk, in which case you can unzip the sides and it accordions open, revealing a big-ass 800 cubic-inch space. In there goes your laundry, your groceries, your clothes for a trip, etc etc. I finally got a chance to put this to the test on a beautiful day in Seattle. I’d just had a long ride, which is why I’m winded in this video:
You know, in the video it doesn’t really look like that much stuff comes out of the bag, but trust me, it was packed. So that probably expresses more or less what I really need to say here.
Also: I’m very bad at taking pictures of backpacks and bags for some reason, which is why I’m using Mission Workshop’s official shots, except for this one:
Since it was nice out whenever I happened to take this bag with me, I didn’t really get to test out its weather sealing. So into the shower it went! I was happy to see that the water beaded up and flowed right off, as planned. Furthermore, there didn’t appear to be many catch points where the rivulets would collect, which points to good design on their part. It should be noted that the expandable portion of the backpack is not weather-sealed. I imagine this was necessary to let it compact well, but it’s a bummer nonetheless. That said, it’s not like it’s made of cheesecloth. You just can’t wear it in the shower. Also worth nothing: the padding that your back rests on is absorbent as well.
Another minor issue was that the straps have no elastic bands or obvious places to stow them. If you’re riding your bike, this leads to them whipping around and hitting your ears and back. A problem present on many backpacks to be sure, but it would have been nice to be able to lock those down.
I also felt there could have been more padding between the sections. The middle weather-proofed section is the logical one to put a laptop in, but there’s really nothing protecting it from shocks on either side. Likewise, there isn’t anywhere to put something like a camera and lens — to be fair, this is a problem shared by the Buran and many other backpacks, even the gadget-oriented Mamba Shift. But with so much cargo space, I’m disappointed there wasn’t a “safe area” for stuff like that.
Conclusion:
At $229 (or $199 for the slightly smaller Rambler), the Vandal is an expensive backpack. But that’s because it’s a durable, versatile, weather-proof backpack, not some $30 piece of garbage with a zipper that’ll break off after three months. I wish the Vandal had more padding and more ready access pockets, but that’s not really the kind of pack it is. I’d take this thing on a trip around the world in a second — wish I’d had it in Luxembourg when I stashed my regular-style pack under a bush and it started pouring like crazy. If all you need is something to pop your laptop and a book or two in, you’d be better off with a smaller, more tech-friendly bag. But if you’re the kind of person who really uses a pack like this, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
Product page: Mission Workshop Vandal
In his first time speaking at University of Washington—the giant Microsoft-endowed school in the company’s backyard—Steve Ballmer explained “the cloud.”
First, there was a goofy video showing how stoned most UW students are, conducted by a gal with shockingly platinum hair and bronze skin. Then Ballmer says it’s something he’s betting his company on, and that every company is betting their companies on, and that it’s a $3.3 trillion industry. That’s pretty serious. Here are his five key principles:
1. “The Cloud Creates Opportunities and Responsibilities” (In fairness, Ballmer admits it sounds like “some blah blah blah business term.”) What he means is that creators don’t have to come from big-ass tech companies to market cool software now. He says “Apple’s done a very nice job” with the App Store, giving opportunities to developers, and that Microsoft is keen on providing those types of opportunities. How do developers who have worked on open-source or freeware apps finally get some money for their creations? (Does this mean Windows Phone 7 will follow a similar developer strategy? Who knows…)
He also says that the cloud is supposed to give more control to users, not just developers. Control over privacy and anonymity, that is. Ballmer doesn’t mention too many examples, but cites Facebook—obliquely—as an example of the challenges of cloud-related privacy.
2. “The Cloud Learns and Helps You Learn, Decide and Take Action” Machine learning is key to cloud strategy. Ballmer says that when you look out at 83 million websites and try to find something simple but hard to search for, like “What do we as a society spend on healthcare?” you can easily get nothing. “It’s only eight numbers,” Ballmer says, but they’re hard to find in one simple little chart. The cloud needs the intelligence to know what people are looking for, and know how to go and find that information on its own, or collaboratively with users.
Here, to drive the point, Ballmer invited a guy from the Bing team to demo Bing Maps’ explore feature. It’s live, so you can check it out for yourself. Drill down into the University of Washington, if you want a good representation of what they’re doing.
3. “Cloud Enhances Social and Professional Interactions” This Ballmer admits is kind of an obvious notion, as we’re already immersed in it, but he says that the innovations here will improve to a point where “virtual interaction through the cloud is as good as being here today.” He doesn’t mean “as good” in the sense of “as useful.” He means that one day, an entire auditorium of activity would be able to be captured on 3D video and streamed live anywhere, like Harry Potter diving into a Pensieve. (That’d be my Potter fanboy analogy, not Ballmer’s.) He also means, of course, that realtime data collaboration tools will get better and better. He didn’t mention that they’d have anything to compete directly with Google Wave, but if they do, hopefully they’ll focus on ease of use.
As a near-term social example, he brought a demo of Xbox Live TV, something already launched in England with the Sky Player. Imagine Mystery Science Theater 3000 done with Xbox avatars, under a screen playing a live show. In the Sky example, of course, sports are key. I am thinking there are very few live TV events anymore, but maybe a Lost episode or some (non-Olympic) sporting event would be a good example.
4. The Cloud Wants Smarter Devices This pillar of the Ballmer argument is the one that probably makes the most sense to Giz readers and people who have kept up with Windows Phone 7 (and Pink) news. As a student sitting near me just pointed out, the “smarter devices” angle is antithetical to what Google and others seem to preach, but Microsoft obviously cares about processing at the consumer end, and they believe that as long as processing is cheaper than bandwidth it makes sense.
Not surprisingly, his demo is Windows Phone 7, so I’ll spare you any crappy photo and just link you to our comprehensive coverage.
5. “The Cloud Drives Servers Advances That Drive the Cloud” We tend to ignore the hardware demands of the cloud, but obviously, Microsoft’s server business is a key part of Ballmer’s reason for promoting the cloud. He speaks of service issues—systems able to deploy software instantaneously worldwide, without a hassle. “If a machine breaks, that shouldn’t be your problem. There shouldn’t be people babysitting all these machines.” A call for QA, perhaps, and aimed as much internally as it is externally.
An example of the fruits of this is a UW project called Azure Ocean, which is constantly aggregating the world’s oceanographic data, expanding constantly with sensor data every day, noting that it must have been a “very exciting period in the last few weeks” with the earthquake in Chile. No doubt no one will dispute the need for research tools of this scope now.
Ballmer also says that part of this server business is people having their own clouds. Governments and companies want to buy their own systems. Sometimes this is obvious, like for military or strategic purposes, but sometimes it’s just a matter of preference, and Ballmer wants people to be able to buy “refrigerator”-sized water-cooled systems with net connections, if that’s their preference.
Ballmer concludes with the sentiment that “the Cloud fuels Microsoft and Microsoft fuels the cloud.” Take that as you wish.
My own quick take on this is that the cloud is as nebulous as you think, but at least these are areas worth thinking about more. The cloud isn’t anything new, but it’s taking shape, and clearly in the hands of only a few companies. Google is the biggest, and arguably Microsoft is #2. In other words, we need to listen to Ballmer, cuz he’ll be driving it, at least for now.
By Chris Scott Barr
Having an HTPC can be a useful thing, what with all of the greatness of a computer hooked up to your big-ass TV. The biggest issue with using them is, well, using them. Sure, if you’re using something simple like Windows Media Center then a remote should do the trick. If you’re trying to do anything that requires typing or mousing, then you’ve got to have the necessary tools. Traditional keyboards and mice are large and clunky, things that should not be found in your living room. That’s why companies like Lenovo are creating hybrid devices that provide similar functionality while still looking like something you’d want sitting on your coffee table.
The latest offering from Lenovo is this Multimedia Remote with Keyboard. Meant to be held like a traditional remote, it offers a trackball at the bottom for your mousing needs. When it comes time for typing, you’ll use the keyboard just as you would with most QWERTY phones. A tiny USB dongle is all that’s require to connect it to your computer. At $60, this should be a welcome accessory to any living room with an HTPC.
Some day, I too will have three identical monitors for gaming purposes. It’ll have to be in my game cave once I retire as an eccentric millionaire, though. Don’t have room for it here. That’s probably a good thing, though, since I also don’t have the money required, and besides that there are still a few quirks to be worked out. Not to mention the fact that the best games are barely playable on current hardware, since you have to run them at resolutions like 7680×1600.
First, they need to shrink the bezels on some monitors. I’m tired of a big-ass border between my screens. Come on, guys, make it happen! Second, there needs to be no weirdo stretching on the games. Anamorphic widescreen is one thing, but having a 150-degree viewing angle is something you need to deal with more carefully than simply giving the player a fisheye view, or zooming in and giving them a portion of what they’d normally see. I know it’s hard, but do I look like I care? Back in your hole!
Glitches or no glitches, it’s still out of my price range. It’s still enticing to be playing a game with full peripheral vision. Just git them bezels outta here!