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Your Computer Is Your Enemy

The old cliché, "If you want a friend, get a dog" still stands in the 21st Century. It is well established in the medical community that animals can do much to extend the human life span as well as improve the quality of life. Don't live on or vicariously through your computer. A pastor once said his job was to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. Thus we have the difference between a real live pet and an inanimate electro-mechanical object - in this case the personal computer. The pet comforts while the computer, improperly used and/or over used, is a thief and a murderer. Besides, the computer, especially if you run a Microsoft Operating System and Microsoft production software, requires much more maintenance than does a pet. This alone is enough to drive most users' blood pressure through the roof. How many times do you suspect that needs to happen before it begins to take a toll on the human body? It is even more aggravating than t...

Is Electricity possible from the air ? Lord Drayson

He claims that a technology called Freevolt can be the power source for the "internet of things", allowing low energy devices from wearables to sensors to operate without being plugged in. The technology involves harvesting radio frequency energy from existing wireless and broadcast networks, from 4G to digital television. Lord Drayson says it's a world first: "It doesn't require any extra infrastructure, it doesn't require us to transmit any extra energy, it's recycling the energy which isn't being used at the moment." The technology was demonstrated in the lecture theatre at the Royal Institution, where Michael Faraday worked on electromagnetism in the 19th Century. Lord Drayson first showed how much radio frequency energy was in the room, and then used his Freevolt system to power a loudspeaker. He also demonstrated the first product to use the energy system, a personal air pollution monitor called the CleanSpace tag. It has be...

Early Apple computer fails to sell

However, neither the Apple 1 nor the rare antique television were sold. Apple 1 computers are usually valuable collectables. Made in 1976, there are now only about 50 left in the world. At a similar sale last year, one fetched $365,000 (£237,000). And in 2013, another attracted a $905,000 bid. The Apple 1 at Monday's vintage tech sale had a starting price of $300,000. The Cray-4 processor sold for $37,500. The 1936 Baird television set may not work and delivers a huge electrical charge of 5000 volts. But auctioneer Bonhams had forecast that it could fetch between $20,000 (£13,000) and $30,000.He was working on the Cray-4 model when his company went bankrupt in 1995, and the following year he died in a traffic accident. The processor, with serial number 001, was listed with an expected price tag of $50,000 - $80,000. Other lots included an early German Enigma machine, handwritten paperwork by Albert Einstein and a 19th Century te...

First 8K TV to sell in October by Sharp

Sharp has announced plans to sell an 8K television screen from October. Although several companies have developed "super hi-vision" resolution test models, this is the first such TV to be made commercially available. The 8K format provides 16 times as many pixels as 1080p high definition. It creates an image so detailed that it can appear three-dimensional. However, the 85in (2.16m) device's 16m yen ($133,000; £86,000) price is likely to limit sales. Interest is expected to come mainly from broadcasters and other companies involved in testing the format.One analyst suggested it would not become a serious proposition for members of the public until the turn of the decade. We're not expecting 8K TVs targeted at consumers to be released until at least 2016, and we don't expect they will cross one million units until after 2019," said Abhi Mallick, from IHS Technology. "Japan's NHK is the only broadcaster so far to announce plans to cre...