As the web scales and bandwidth demands rise, finding ways to deliver faster content is pushed out to the edge of networks, because the aggregated demand at the core would be too much to support and would add delays in delivering content. The Speed Up effort tries to take this another step further by making sure a user’s request for a content goes to a server near her, making delivery faster and more efficient from a bandwidth perspective.

At the center of the partnership between DNS providers and participating CDNs is the creation of a standard that attached location data to a DNS request so a user’s request for content goes to server nearby. Typically, a CDN or content provider routes a user based on the address of the DNS server, as opposed to the user’s location, but they aren’t always in the same region.

So now a user in Austin, Texas who types in the URL for a YouTube video will share part of his IP address as part of the DNS request. That way, the domain name system server can route the request to a Google data center in Dallas, as opposed to one in Ireland. It’s a simple idea, but it could result in faster access to content for ISPs and CDNs that elect to implement the open source code that makes this possible. David Ulevitch, CEO of Open DNS says the standard has been submitted to the IETF, but has not been ratified. The IETF is a standards body that governs protocols for the Internet.

For now, only users of Google’s Public DNS service, OpenDNS and Verisign will send out DNS information with a snippet of information gleaned from the user’s IP address. That will help the domain name servers that direct traffic around the web to send that traffic the closest provider. As for privacy concerns about attaching IP addresses to a DNS request, Ulevitch says the information only goes to companies that would see the IP address in a typical HTTP web request, so it’s not sharing any more information than is typical.

On Tuesday, when the new code is implemented, the 30 million Open DNS users and Google’s Public DNS service users visiting content hosted on the participating CDNs will immediately benefit. Ulevitch didn’t have a sense of how much improvement users might expect, although he did say it wouldn’t get worse for anyone. He hopes ISPs will also adopt the standard as well as more content delivery networks. Right now, Edgecast, Contendo, BitGravity and a few others are on board, but leaders such as Limelight or Akamai are not.

So perhaps this could be the beginning of an open effort to improve the web, or perhaps it becomes another niche effort that makes web sites a bit faster for a few people when they visit selected sites. With Google on board, however, that’s still a lot of sites.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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Hangouts has been joined at the hip with YouTube ever since the chat platform launched as part of Google+ at the end of June. Hangouts users can launch YouTube videos right from within the group video chat, and up to ten participants can watch the same video simultaneously.

So far, only recorded videos have been featured within Hangouts, but Badger is going to officially reveal at Vidcon in Los Angeles Saturday afternoon that users can easily watch live streams together as well (check out a step-by-step guide in the box on the right if you want to try this yourself).

The current method of manually searching for live video feeds is somewhat cumbersome, but YouTube is actively working on a much closer integration. Soon, it will feature ongoing live streams within the YouTube tab of Hangouts. The next step after that will be to directly integrate Hangouts into YouTube pages for live streams. “We would show you some of the available public Hangouts,” Badger told me during a phone conversation, adding that these Hangouts would be featured right next to a live stream.

A final component will be personalization: Imagine you’re going to watch a soccer game live on YouTube.com, and you can immediately see which of your friends have joined up in a Hangout to watch the same game. Badger couldn’t give me any time line for the integration of these features, but he assured me: “It’s something we’ve been working on.”

Live streaming providers have long experimented with audience participation, and a number of platforms now offer integration of Facebook and Twitter live feeds during events that are broadcasted live online. YouTube has in the past experimented with this as well, and Badger said live streams regularly provoke more commenting than prerecorded YouTube videos.

The face-to-face interaction of Hangouts takes this type of interaction one step further. Users are able to talk to each other in real time while watching a sports game, a concert or a newscast, much as if they were sitting on the couch together. The limited nature of Hangouts — only ten users can chat with each other at a given time — also adds a sense of intimacy that’s lacking from a Twitter or Facebook feed.

However, the ten-person-limit has also been a point of contention, especially around popular Hangouts. Some users have already taken matters into their own hands to circumvent the limit. When musician Daria Musk had her first Hangouts concert two weeks ago, users simply daisy-chained multiple Hangouts to offer more than ten people to join in on the fun.

Musk’s second concert was streamed live on Hangoutparty.com, a site that has since been offering live screencasts of other Hangouts as well. Badger didn’t have any specifics to share about similar options offered by YouTube itself, but he said his team is certainly aware of the phenomenon: “We have definitely seen lot of demand to live stream Hangouts.”

Image courtesy of Flickr user kevindooley.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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YouTube brings human-enabled closed captioning to live video for Google I/O originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 May 2011 06:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink ZDNet  |  Google I/O  | Email this | Comments
Engadget

• This player is the iPod touch, not the Apple iPhone
• Upgrade your player with the iPhone 2.0 Software Update for iPod touch via iTunes for an additional fee
• 8 GB of storage provides approximately 1,750 songs; includes earphones, USB cable, dock adapter/connector, polishing cloth, and stand
• Battery life provides up to 22 hours of music and up to 5 hours of video
• Music downloads from iTunes, Wi-Fi web browsing, and 3.5-inch widescreen multi-touch display

.caption { font-family: Verdana, Helvetica neue, Arial, serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; } .caption2 { font-family: Verdana, Helvetica neue, Arial, serif; font-size: 10px; font-style: italic; } ul.indent { list-style: inside disc; text-indent: 20px; } The iPod touch features Apple’s revolutionary multi-touch user interface that enables you to find and enjoy all of your music, videos, and more on its gorgeous widescreen display with just the touch of a finger. First introduced on iPhone, the multi-touch interface uses pioneering new software to present the perfect user interface for each application.

Glide through albums with the iPod touch’s amazing Cover Flow technology. View iPod touch dimensions.

Browse the Web with the included Safari browser. Or fire up a YouTube video and enjoy the show.

The iPod touch responds to your movements; turn it sideways and your video is presented in widescreen mode.

Rating: (out of 436 reviews)

List Price: $ 299.00

Price: $ 234.99

Related IPod Products

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There are various video files available to us, some of them can be easily downloaded from Internet through Torrent, there are also Youtube video, Google Video, Yahoo video; some are purchased from iTunes, some are HD video file like mod, tod, AVCHD (m2ts, mts,ts), DV, MOV, flip video file that we shoot by ourselves. There are times we need to convert those video file to mp3 on Mac OS X. I have searched around the Internet and come up with a list of tools (website, freeware and shareware for Mac users) that help to convert any video files to mp3 with fast speed and best hi-fi audio output.

Why people are becoming so fascinated with mp3 audio files?
MP3 becomes more popular because of its smaller file size for CD close quality, more music can fit on one CD in mp3 format and faster it becomes when sending/receiving over Internet. MP3 has become the standard for exchanging music on the Internet. More and more portable playback equipments support mp3 like MP3-CD-Walkmans, Car-radio’s, DVD players, iPod, iPhone and Blackberry.

There are mainly three different groups of video file I am going to cover below and will introduce you different tools/programs for each group to convert to mp3 on Mac.

Part 1. Programs specially for converting video file from video sharing community website to mp3

The video sites I mentioned are:
YouTube, MegaVideo, Dailymotion, Metacafe, Veoh, Myspace, Break, iFilm, Google Video, Bolt, ClipJunkie, ClipShack, CollegeHumor, FunnyJunk, Glumbert, GoFish, Grouper, Hallpass, MilkandCookies, Putfile, SantaBanta, Sharkle, Shoutfile, Vimeo, vSocial, Yikers, ZippyVideos… and loads more coming soon!
Scroll down to start turning your video or music video files into mp3s for your cell or mp3 player!
VidToMP3 is a brand new site that allows you to download the audio from none-copyrighted video clips on video sites! VidToMP3 can support all of your favorites, Myspace, Youtube, Google video and more.

Step by Step instruction on How to convert youtube to mp3:

1. Copy the FULL address of the page with the video.
2. Paste the address you copied into the text box below.
3. Click “Download”, and wait. Please be patient.
4. When conversion is complete, click on “Download MP3″.

Part 2 .Convert DRM’d video file to mp3

Perhaps you’ve purchased music from iTunes and you want to play those tunes on a non-iPod music player. Apple says no. Maybe you’ve become a Mac or Linux user, and you need your WMA (Windows Audio) files in a standard, portable format. Microsoft says no. How about making backup copies of your music library? Or burning your favorite tunes to a CD so you can listen in the car? The RIAA says no.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t.
If you’re frustrated by the DRM protection roadblock, check out my list of audio converters below. These programs will help you convert iTunes AAC and M4A formats to MP3, or just about any other sound format you need. You can also use them to convert protected WMA files to MP3. Some of these tools are free, and some require payment. Generally, the paid-for software is a little easier to install and use, so depending on your geek level, choose the one that works best for you.

Audacity – Audacity is a general purpose audio program that allows users to record and edit audio. It works on Windows, Mac OSX and GNU/Linux, as well as a couple other operating systems. If you start Audacity and press the Record button, it will capture the song being played by iTunes. Add the LAME Encoder (also on the Audacity download page) and you’ll be able to export from Audacity to MP3 files. (FREE)

Part 3. Convert mod, tod, AVCHD (m2ts, mts,ts), DV, MOV, flip video, MP4, AVI to mp3.

There are times you shoot video clips using your camcorder and would like to save the audio as mp3, for authoring CD. Or there are times you need to convert some audio files to Mp3 for playback on your devices like iPod, iPhone, and other non-Apple mp3/mp4 players. MP3 Converter for Mac can convert JVC Camcorder TOD files to mp3, Canon mod file/Panasonic mod file to mp3, convert Flip video (Mino and Ultra) file to mp3, convert AVCHD (m2ts, ts, mts) file, convert Quicktime.mov to mp3, convert DV, MOV, MP4, AVI, mpeg, wmv, dv, m4v, rmvb, 3gp, mkv and vob to MP3 on Mac with fast speed and original output quality.

MP3 converter for Mac is suitable for both novice and pro alike users; the batch import and batch conversion feature can save your precious time a lot. The program allows you to trim video/audio files and merge pieces together so that you can always get the best part of audio as you wish.

It was only a few days ago that Crytek and EA showed off Crysis 2 to the world’s gaming press—and CrunchGear. It looks crazy, yes, and that finely tuned opinion—”it looks crazy”—is based on the Xbox 360 version. But if we believe Crytek’s business development boss, then the game runs even better on the PS3 than it does the Xbox 360. The games may look identical, or extraordinarily close to it, but the Xbox 360 is being pushed far harder than the PS3. You probably already knew that, yes.

The bossman, Carl Jones, told ComputerAndVideoGames.com:

At the moment, we’re getting slightly more performance from PS3 compared to 360. I’m very confident that products using CryEngine 3 are going to come out as the best looking, or at least in the top three, on every platform.

Unless the PS3 version, I don’t know, also washes your laundry, I doubt you’re going to see a huge difference between the two console version of the games. Unlike Final Fantasy XIII, where the Xbox 360 version looks like a 2007 YouTube video compared to the PS3 version.

Not that any of this matters, since we all know the PC version will be the best! There’s a reason I burned a hole in my bank account for the ATI Radeon 5970!

Actually, there isn’t; I just wanted the damn thing for no particular reason.

Up until a few minutes ago, I had never heard of “geocaching.” One quick YouTube video later, and I’m all, “That sounds amazing.” If only I were 10 years old, then I could join the Boy Scouts and get my very own geocaching badge, the Scouts’ newest, most tech-y badge available.

Let’s first explain geocaching. It’s basically a worldwide treasure hunt that uses GPS devices. You go to geocaching.com, obtain coordinates of hidden geocaches—small “treasure chests”—head over to said location with your GPS device, then come back and tell everyone what you’ve found on the Web site. I don’t know who puts these geocaches all over the world—presumably members of the community.

The Boy Scouts now award badges for finding geocaches. It’s an attempt to “modernize” the organization, giving kids a chance to try out their navigation skills with the help of modern technology.

Perhaps a “properly forwarded your router ports” badge is in order, or “jailbroken an iPhone“?

Just 3.2 pounds, folks. That’s all. Jetsetting, globetrotting, running after trains and then jumping into that one open car with all the hay in it. That could be you. Except once you’re in the hay car you could get on Twitter and be like, “Just ran alongside train and jumped in open car filled with hay. Need a Claritin! Blah! ROTFLOL!”

The features, please:

• Intel Core i5 CPU at 2.4GHz (with “Turbo Boost” up to 2.93GHz)
• 12.1-inch LED-backlit multi-touch screen at 1280×800 resolution
• “Up to ten hours of battery life, enabled by a twin hot-swappable battery design” – one battery for five hours, both batteries for ten hours
• 3.2 pounds with single battery, 3.7 pounds with both batteries
• Able to withstand a drop from 30 inches
• Windows 7 with XP downgrade option
• 250GB hard drive, 2GB of RAM (expandable to 6GB)
• Wi-Fi (b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1, optional Gobi networking

Initially, the screen will be available as a “Multi-touch + digitizer screen allowing input via finger, gestures and electronic stylus pen” but in the Fall, there’ll be a “Gloved multi-touch screen allowing input via finger and gestures.”

Now before you get too excited, this thing’s meant for the health care, field service, and education sectors and, as such, carries a pretty gigantic starting price tag of $2500. It’ll be available for purchase sometime in June of this year.

Here’s a YouTube video from Panasonic:

And some hands-on photos that CrunchGear’s own J. Biggs took recently.

Full Press Release:

Panasonic Introduces the Toughbook® C1 – World’s Lightest 12.1” Convertible Tablet PC

Innovative design and exceptional performance ideal for professionals in healthcare and other highly mobile markets

SECAUCUS, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Panasonic Computer Solutions Company, manufacturer of durable, reliable Panasonic Toughbook® mobile computers, today introduced the Panasonic Toughbook C1, the world’s lightest 12.1” convertible tablet PC. The new device delivers up to 10 hours of battery life, a 30” (to base) drop rating, optional Gobi2000™ mobile broadband and a host of other features designed to maximize return on investment and reduce the total cost of ownership. Powered by the Intel® Core™ i5 520M vPro™ processor and weighing only 3.2 pounds (with one battery, 3.7 lbs with two), the Toughbook C1 offers desktop-class performance in a lightweight, convertible tablet form factor that is ideal for road warriors and mobile workers in a variety of markets, including healthcare, field service, sales and education.

Innovative Design

The Toughbook C1 is one of the first laptops to support multi-touch and digitizers, offering the input of a finger, gesture or an electronic stylus pen for handwriting recognition and greater precision. By leveraging Panasonic’s advanced battery technology, the Toughbook C1 delivers up to ten hours of battery life, enabled by a twin hot-swappable battery design that allows for continuous use, pushing productivity in the field to a new level. The Toughbook C1 also features a shock-mounted, flex-connect 250GB hard drive with a quick-release feature that allows for enhanced data protection.

The Toughbook C1 is the first convertible to employ a unique triple hinge design – one set of hinges for opening and closing the screen and another hinge for rotating the screen to tablet mode. The Toughbook C1’s triple hinge design significantly reduces hinge failures (a common problem with current generation convertible tablets) by separating the two actions normally required of a single hinge. Toughbook C1 also offers a ‘hand-free’ ergonomic strap and dome hand support system that cradles the hand for comfortable long term use as well as providing a natural keyboard tilt.

Meets Needs of Medical Professionals

“One of the main markets for the Toughbook® C1 is healthcare,” said Greg Davidson, healthcare senior business development manager, Panasonic Computer Solutions Company. “We have been working with our healthcare customers to design a convertible tablet that truly addressed their needs. To date, the market has been making do with tablets that fail to offer the light weight, ergonomics and battery life needed by healthcare professionals. We believe the new Toughbook C1 addresses all these issues, while offering the additional benefits of excellent performance and durability.”

Desktop Performance

The Toughbook C1 is powered by the Intel® Core™ i5-520M vPro™ Processor (2.4 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.93 GHz, Intel® Smart Cache 3MB), giving the device desktop performance in a lightweight and highly mobile form factor.

“The Toughbook C1 is an example of a convertible tablet PC that has been designed for a mobile workforce,” said Erik Reid, mobile client marketing director, Intel Corporation. “Intel® Core™ i5-520M vPro™ Processor technology makes the Toughbook C1 more valuable by helping to address remote management and security issues. This creates a compelling solution for organizations that want the most out of their mobile employees.”

Real World Durability

In order to withstand the demands of a highly mobile work environment, The Toughbook C1 has been designed to endure drops, bumps and spills. The Toughbook C1 successfully survived drops of 12” from any angle for the unit itself and from 30” for the shock-mounted, flex-connect hard drive. Additionally, the Toughbook C1 survived a 30” (just over the typical height of a desk or table) drop to the base of the unit while operating. The unique Panasonic spill-resistant keyboard design protects against liquid spills of about 6 ounces (200 cc), and both the lid and base of the notebook are designed to withstand more than 225 lbs (102 Kg) of pressure. In addition, Panasonic’s commitment to quality—at both the component and finished goods level—results in a total of more than 500 checks and tests during and after production.

“An exceptional level of engineering has gone into the Toughbook C1,” said Kyp Walls, director of product management, Panasonic Computer Solutions Company. “The unique triple hinge design, ‘hand-free’ ergonomic strap, twin hot-swappable battery system and quick-release HDD Pack exemplify our commitment to go beyond ‘good-enough’ and delivering products that map to how our customers use them. The Toughbook C1 sets the standard for what an enterprise convertible tablet should be.”

Embedded Wireless Connectivity

The Toughbook® C1 offers a variety of embedded wireless technologies, including Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth® 2.1 and optional Gobi2000™ mobile broadband technology from Qualcomm. Gobi simplifies complex multi-carrier wireless deployments for IT departments and allows mobile employees improved connectivity options while traveling at home or abroad. The Toughbook C1 is also designed so Wi-Fi, WiMAX and 3G mobile broadband modules can be embedded in the same unit, while allowing exceptional reception and flexibility for data access on the go. The Toughbook C1 will be certified on the Sprint and Verizon Wireless networks, allowing workers to stay connected at all times. Other wireless carrier certifications will be announced soon.

Integrated Features

To enable advanced communication and collaboration, the Toughbook C1 offers integrated features, such as an optional modem or a webcam for mobile video conferencing and a standard built-in dual array microphone for superior speech recognition. Multiple security features are also available, including options for SmartCard and fingerprint readers, to ensure sensitive data is kept secure and private.

Panasonic Toughbook® C1: Select Features and Specifications

Genuine Windows 7® (with XP downgrade option)

Intel® Core™ i5-520M vPro™ Processor (2.4 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.93 GHz)

250GB shock-mounted flex-connect hard drive with quick-release

2GB RAM (DDR3-800), expandable to 6GB

Choice of two 12.1” WXGA (1280 x 800) displays with LED backlighting

Multi-touch + digitizer screen allowing input via finger, gestures and electronic stylus pen

Gloved multi-touch screen allowing input via finger and gestures (available Fall 2010)

Anti-glare screen treatment

6 backlit tablet buttons (5 user-definable)

Hot-swappable twin battery design

5 hour battery life (with one battery); 10 hour battery life (with two batteries)

3.2 lbs (with one battery); 3.7 lbs (with two batteries)

Optional webcam

Built-in dual array microphone

Business-rugged

30” operating drop (to base only)

26 sides 12” drop (non-operating)

225 lb pressurized vibration

Magnesium alloy case

Spill-resistant keyboard (protects against 6 ounces spills)

Triple hinge design with screen rotation lock

‘Hand-free’ ergonomic strap and dome hand support

Embedded Connectivity

Optional integrated WWAN / Gobi2000™ mobile broadband (EV-DO and HSPA)

Intel® Centrino® Advanced-N 6200 802.11a/b/g/n

Bluetooth® v2.1 + EDR (class 2)

Optional Integrated Security Features:

Fingerprint reader

SmartCard reader

11.8” (H) x 8.9” (W) x 1.2”-1.7” (D)

Optional desktop dock with DVD multi-drive and dual monitor support

Optional 4-bay battery charger

Pricing and Availability

The Panasonic Toughbook® C1 will be available worldwide starting June 2010. In the United States, the Toughbook C1 is expected to be available at an estimated street price of $2499 from authorized Panasonic resellers and distributors.

The Toughbook C1 includes a standard three-year limited warranty.