Category: iT news

The Echo Show is the first in Amazon’s line of smart speakers to incorporate a screen, and it seems very much more “speaker with a display” than “tablet with better audio and microphones.” It has all the functionality of Echo, including access to Alexa, Amazon’s voice-operated assistant. The screen can, for example, provide a more detailed weather outlook than what Alexa spouts out, and it can keep you more on track when you’re working through a recipe by displaying each step as you need it. It can display song lyrics too.

Microsoft has announced the availability of Canonical’s Ubuntu Linux distro as a free download in the Windows Store. It can be installed on any Windows Insider build, said Microsoft Senior Program Manager Rich Turner. There are some distinct advantages to using the Windows Store version of the Ubuntu Linux Distro: The software can be downloaded faster and more reliably due to the use of a sophisticated block-based download mechanism; and the store version has been enhanced to support running multiple distros side-by-side and simultaneously.

Hyperloop One on Wednesday announced that it had conducted a successful first test of a specially designed vehicle to travel in a vacuum environment. The company achieved controlled propulsion and levitation of a Hyperloop One vehicle at 70 mph on a 315-foot test track in the Nevada desert. The test vehicle reached nearly 2Gs of acceleration during its brief 5.3 second test run on the specially built track. A comparison has been drawn between the Hyperloop accomplishment and the Wright Brothers’ first test flight in December 1903.

Analytics is “about having a sense of curiosity — the ability to look at data and say, ‘what is it telling me?’” said Olivia Duane Adams, chief customer officer at Alteryx. “I define analytics as ‘the ability to ingest any and all relevant sources of data that might help answer a question being asked.’ Analytics is the ability to use all the data you have to answer a question, or at least to drive insight to get to a better answer. Analytics is everywhere, and that’s because data is everywhere.”

The Fedora Project has announced the general availability of Fedora 26, the latest version of the fully open source Fedora OS. Fedora Linux is the community version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux, or RHEL. Three distinct editions target different users. Fedora Atomic Host edition is an operating system for running container-based workloads. Fedora Server edition installs the Fedora Server OS on a hard drive. Fedora Workstation edition is a user-friendly operating system for laptops and desktop computers, suitable for a broad range of users.

HP just took over the PC market worldwide. You probably don’t get how incredible this is, so here’s an analogy: It’s as if a crooked referee put a bunch of lead on an overweight racer and shuffled him to the back of the pack, but in the end, the guy finished first. You’d seriously want to look under his T-Shirt to see if you’d find Superman’s costume. This isn’t Apple coming up with an iPod or iPhone and flanking the market — this is a firm that simply pushed on the gas pedal at a time when everyone said it was going in the wrong direction.

SharkLinux OS is one of those very rare newcomer distributions that has “Future Big Winner” written all over it. Over my many years of reviewing Linux software and distros for Linux Picks and Pans, I have found that the story of what spurred the developer to create the distro often showcases the driving power that enables open source software. That is the case with SharkLinux OS, which has an interesting back story — a tale of innovation and ingenuity. SharkLinux OS delivers a good performance early in its development cycle.

With September fast approaching, speculation has begun to roil about the next generation of iPhones, particularly the iPhone 8, or whatever Apple decides to name its special 10th anniversary edition of its smartphone. However, fans aching to get their hands on the iPhone 8 may have to ache longer than those upgrading to the expected new iPhone 7s and 7s Plus models. The iPhone 8 won’t ship until the November-December time frame, according to a new report, and even then it will be available only in low numbers.

Avnet last week unveiled a beta version of Ask Avnet, a virtual assistant that combines AI with on-demand access to industry experts. Ask Avnet targets “engineers, designers, hobbyists, makers and purchasing specialists across the electronics supply chain — which includes the product manufacturing chain,” said Kevin Yapp, SVP for digital transformation at Avnet. Ask Avnet gathers information from the company’s Web-based ecosystem — including Avnet.com, element14.com and Hackster.io — and soon will include access to other Avnet properties.

Google’s augmented reality goggles were a flop several years ago — when intrepid explorers wore the devices in restaurants and bars, sparking reactions ranging from disapproval to outright violence — but they have become very welcome in the workplace. Their success in a host of business settings led The Team at X on Tuesday to announce an expansion of its Glass Enterprise Edition program. The latest version of Glass looks like a pair of safety glasses, but it’s really a small, lightweight wearable computer with a transparent display.