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<title>Haaze.com / FralogyParlot / Published News</title>
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<pubDate>Sun, 29 May 2011 07:10:06 +0000</pubDate>
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<title><![CDATA[Robot makes stage debut in play about lust, science]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=robot-makes-stage-debut-in-play-about-lust-science</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=robot-makes-stage-debut-in-play-about-lust-science</comments>
<pubDate>Sun, 29 May 2011 07:10:06 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>FralogyParlot</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=robot-makes-stage-debut-in-play-about-lust-science</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Arthur was built specifically for a production at Octagon Theatre Bolton.(Credit:University of Bolton)&quot;Secret Thoughts,&quot; a play by British novelist and playwright David Lodge, is introducing audiences to a hot new actor--Arthur the robot.  Arthur comes onstage for about 20 seconds, scans the room, and collides with furniture in the production, which is described as &quot;science against art, and morality against indulgence.&quot; In it, Ralph, a married, groundbreaking cognitive scientist, meets Helen, a recently bereaved novelist, and &quot;sparks fly&quot; (presumably not from the robot short-circuiting). It's really just a walk-on (roll-on) part for the remote-controlled bot, who's made mostly of fiberglass. But it leads to a pivotal conversation between the characters about the emotional intelligence of robots. And, of course, it marks another exciting step forward for aspiring robot thespians everywhere. Laura Durham with her robot, Arthur, during the building process.(Credit:University of Bolton) The world premiere of &quot;Secret Thoughts&quot; will show through June 4 at the U.K.'s Octagon Theatre Bolton located in Lancashire in Northern England.  &quot;At the Octagon, we have the facilities to make theatrical sets, costumes, and props, but a modern, sleek robot was a bit beyond our reach,&quot; Oliver Seviour, the play's production manager, said in a release. So the Octagon decided to turn to students at the nearby University of Bolton for casting help. The theater sponsored a bot designing and building competition, and first-year special-effects student Laura Durham took the prize for her creation, which can move backward, forward, and sideways. The upper half can rotate to scan the room, as called for in the script.  &quot;The build was quite complex, and we had our fair share of problems along the way,&quot; said Durham. It took her and her team--tutor Simon Wiggins, fellow student Jack Myers, and technician Dave Lewtas--four weeks to build Arthur and help it train for its nonspeaking role (it communicates with help from its battery-powered LED light).  Arthur joins the ranks of such famed robot actors as Wakamuru, a humanoid from Mitsubishi Heavy Industry that in 2008 appeared onstage in Japan alongside real-life actors in a play hailed as a first in robot-human artistic collaboration. Since then, in at least one other example of robot and human artistry coming together, Yamaha's HRP-4C girlbot has shared the stage with a group of singing/dancing human counterparts. With the field for robot performers getting ever more crowded, Arthur might want to consider hiring an agent.Kate Coogan, Rob Edwards, and Arthur the robot star in &amp;34'Secret Thoughts&amp;34' at the Octagon Theatre Bolton. (Credit:Ian Tilton)<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Digital comics come to life on tablets]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=digital-comics-come-to-life-on-tablets</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=digital-comics-come-to-life-on-tablets</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Mar 2011 07:10:24 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>FralogyParlot</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=digital-comics-come-to-life-on-tablets</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Digital comics have been around for longer than theiPad, but they were previously confined to either the computer or a tiny smartphone screen. The iPad breathed life into this burgeoning field by providing a larger, colorful display that was still portable.How the eye follows the pageIn fact, one of the very first apps to debut on day one of the iPad's release in 2010 was Comixology, an app that allows you to purchase, store, and read comics right on the iPad.  Comixology'siPhone app debuted in late 2009, but it wasn't until the iPad version that the digital comic potential was realized. Comixology boasted a reading experience that's almost cinematic, supposedly mimicking how the eye follows the printed page with a mode called &quot;guided view.&quot; In guided view, you read panel by panel, instead of page by page. David Steinberger, Comixology's CEO, claims that around 50 percent of its users use guided view instead of full-page mode.Content deals soon followed, as Comixology started offering titles by Marvel and DC, the two biggest names in comics. Indeed, Comixology helped the two publishers come up with their own dedicated apps in the iTunes App Store. It has also created title-specific apps like the Scott Pilgrim app that only carries Scott Pilgrim books.  The reason is simple: Specific apps get higher level search-ability in the iTunes App Store. This proved especially useful when the movie of the same name debuted and people wanted to read the books that inspired the film. Audience diversity and growthOne of the more interesting results of digital comics ontablets and smartphones is that they typically draw in more casual consumers who are newer to comics. Steinberger said, for example, that the digital audience tends to favor pop culture hits more than traditional comic book fare. When the zombie-centric Walking Dead series debuted on AMC, digital sales of the comics on Comixology went up dramatically. This might be because casual consumers either don't know about their local comic book store or just don't want to go there. Comixology on the iPad(Credit:Screenshot by Nicole Lee/CNET) &quot;The [traditional] distribution of comics is lame,&quot; Steinberger said. &quot;They're not on newsstands anymore, they're not in the corner stores. They're only available to direct-market retailers and there's less distribution than it used to be. There's great opportunity here to gain a larger market [of comic readers].&quot; He pointed out that the app actually includes a retailer finder. While it might seem odd that Comixology is promoting its brick-and-mortar rivals, Steinberger sees them more as allies. &quot;Everyone expects us to be a disrupter to steal market share,&quot; he said. &quot;We feel that the way the market is shaped in the first place, there's an incredible chance here to enlarge the market. We feel that getting more people to discover comics at all is great for everyone.&quot;  Publishers and pricingPerhaps the most compelling reason to buy digital over print is that you get practically infinite shelf space and inventory. Back catalogs are easier to access without having to go through the disappointment of missing one or two titles in a vast collection.  But to please the true comics fan, Comixology and competitors like Graphic.ly need to deliver new comics on the same day as the print version arrives in stores--this is called day-and-date delivery, and it usually happens on Wednesdays. Some publishers already do this, like Archie, and Marvel and DC do deliver a few of their titles this way. But the numbers aren't nearly where they should be, especially with popular titles and independent releases. The other issue is pricing. While most comics are 99 cents and $1.99 each, current issues can be $2.99 or the same price as the print version. Since the comics are DRM-protected, some readers might not feel the price is justified.  Steinberger admits that DRM might not be palatable, but it's a necessary evil--&quot;otherwise publishers don't do this at all.&quot; However, since Comixology offers its content not only on iOS devices, but also on the Web and on Android, Steinberger says that hopefully the seamless reading and downloading experience will make the DRM less heinous. One way for publishers to lower the price is to go it alone without a third-party distributor. For example, Viz Media and Dark Horse have developed their own apps that you can download on the iTunes App Store. Their books are typically cheaper than their print counterparts--some Viz books are half the price, while Dark Horse charges around $1.49 per issue.  Dark Horse goes a step further to cut costs by trying to avoid Apple's e-commerce system, redirecting users to the mobile Safari app to purchase comics, much like Amazon's Kindle application. Graphic.ly&amp;39's Android app is currently the only app to support Marvel comics on Android.(Credit:Screenshot by Nicole Lee/CNET)Expanding marketEven though Comixology was there first, it's no longer the only player in the game. Graphic.ly is an up-and-coming competitor in the space--the company has apps for the iPhone, iPad, and Android devices. Even though Graphic.ly's library of titles is not as large, it has worked out a deal where it's the only Android app to deliver Marvel comics--Comixology's Android app blocks Marvel content, at least for now. Graphic.ly also has a social component to its app that lets you clip a panel and share it on Facebook, leave a review on individual issues, and read your friends' reviews. While Comixology is iOS-centric, it has recently been very bullish on Android, and is working out a better in-app purchasing experience with Google. But Steinberger admits that it all started with Apple. &quot;Without Apple, this market would not have happened,&quot; he said. &quot;They created a sense for consumers that they should buy digital content on their devices. They make devices for image-rich content.&quot; Digital futureWhen asked about the future of digital comics, Steinberger said the first step is for publishers to get comfortable with day-and-date releases of digital copies. The risk is understandable--both retailers and publishers are afraid that sales would go down as a result. &quot;But we're getting a lot of data that as we're selling a lot of Walking Dead books, hard-copy sales of Walking Dead keep going up too,&quot; he said. &quot;We're expanding the market, we're not destroying the retailer. We're helping them. It's beneficial for everyone to have all content available everywhere as soon as it can.&quot;  In fact, Comixology recently announced a digital affiliate storefront for retailers so retailers can start selling comics online too. Steinberger claims that it's actually connected to the retailer revenue-wise, and it is in Comixology's interest for the retailer to do well. Comixology also developed a publisher portal for self-publishers and independent creators. You can sign up, submit your books, set up the guided-view system, and use its own in-house software to create the digital comic. The book will then go on sale in the Comixology store. Obviously Comixology will take a percentage of sales and there might be an entrance fee, but it might be the easiest way to get your self-published book distributed. &quot;There's room for growth in the market,&quot; Steinberger said. &quot;We still love print. We have walls of trade paperbacks and hardcovers in the office. &quot;But digital is for people who haven't read comics in 20 years because of too much bulk, or the people who travel who don't want to carry around books,&quot; he continued. &quot;We've heard stories of comic fans who threw away their collections years ago to clear up space in the garage or the basement, and are now back because of us.&quot; If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, there will be a panel about digital comics at WonderCon at Moscone South this Friday, April 1, at 7 p.m. PT. in room 220. Panelists will include David Steinberger, who was interviewed for this article, as well as Micah Baldwin, CEO of Graphic.ly, and Michael Murphey, CEO of iVerse, another distributor of digital comics. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Salesforce makes 3rd acquisition in 2 months &8212' productivity app developer Manymoon]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=salesforce-makes-3rd-acquisition-in-2-months-8212-productivity-app-developer-manymoon</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=salesforce-makes-3rd-acquisition-in-2-months-8212-productivity-app-developer-manymoon</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>FralogyParlot</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=salesforce-makes-3rd-acquisition-in-2-months-8212-productivity-app-developer-manymoon</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Salesforce announced today thatit has picked up Manymoon, a company that adds additional productivity and collaboration tools to web apps like Gmail and Google Apps, as part of a two-month-long spending spree that has now included three acquisitions.Manymoon adds some additional functionality to Google Apps, such as the ability to create projects and alerts in Gmail based on information received in an email. It also has similar apps for the Google Chrome Web Store and LinkedIn. Manymoon also includes some tools to share Google Docs with others and browse large amounts of documents. The service is designed to help employees keep track of their work life and tasks and to collaborate with co-workers.The company&amp;'s services won&amp;'t be disrupted, and the Manymoon team is going to continue adding features to it as they normally would, according to a post on Manymoon&amp;'s site, which gives some additional details about the announcement. That&amp;'s a contrast to Salesforce&amp;'s lastacquisition, Etacts, which ended up shutting down its service just after it was acquired.The acquisition is part of Salesforce&amp;'s latest attempt to branch out from its traditional customer relationship management (CRM) software. The company launched an enterprise-style Facebook service called Chatter.com yesterday.Salesforce also invested $4 million in Seesmic, a client for reading status updates from Facebook, Twitter and other social services.Now Salesforce has a slight reach into another cloud service with Manymoon&amp;'s presence on Google Apps. Manymoon didn&amp;'t say whether its features would end up on Salesforce&amp;'s CRM software a4&quot; just that it would continue working on its current products.Salesforce recently dropped $212 million to buy Heroku, which develops and deploys web-based applications that rely on the programming language Ruby on Rails. It made that announcement at Dreamforce in December. Salesforce also acquired email contact managerEtacts for an undisclosed sum shortly after Dreamforce in December.The financial details of the Manymoon deal weren&amp;'t disclosed, but Kara Swisher&amp;'s BoomTown blogsaid the price was somewhere between $25 million and $35 million. Manymoon has raised a small amount of seed funding from Harrison Metal, who was also an investor in Heroku.Next Story: Google Latitude gives 10 million users check-in power Previous Story: Educator marketplace TeachersPayTeachers pays out over $1M for lesson plansPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: CRM, enterprise, gmail, Google Apps, productivityCompanies: etacts, Heroku, Manymoon, salesforce          Tags: CRM, enterprise, gmail, Google Apps, productivityCompanies: etacts, Heroku, Manymoon, salesforceMatthew Lynley is VentureBeat's enterprise writer. He graduated from the University of North Carolina, where he studied math and physics, in May 2010. He has reported for Reuters. He currently lives in San Francisco, California. You can reach him at mattl@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @logicalmoron. Have news to share Launching a startup Email: tips@venturebeat.comVentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[DEMO: ShowUhow&'s video guides promise to reduce product returns]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=demo-showuhowrsquos-video-guides-promise-to-reduce-product-returns</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=demo-showuhowrsquos-video-guides-promise-to-reduce-product-returns</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>FralogyParlot</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=demo-showuhowrsquos-video-guides-promise-to-reduce-product-returns</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In 2007, $13.8 billion worth ofproducts sold in the United States were returned. According to Accenture, 68 percent of these products were returned because they were not meeting customer expectations or were simply too confusing to use. ShowUhow, a startup presenting at DEMO, has developed a solution for the latter problem and has guaranteed to retailers and manufacturers that its service will decrease product returns and increase sales conversions.ShowUhow is collaborating with retailers and manufacturers to create and host a series of product video guides, which will then be distributed to consumers via mobile devices and the web. These video guides will include information on set-up, configuration, features and benefits. After or prior to purchasing an item, a consumer can download the ShowUhow mobile application, scan the item&amp;'s barcode or enter the product information, and then be shown the product video.As an example of how effective ShowUhowa4a4s videos are, one cell phone manufacturer using the service saw a 64% increase in monthly product sales during the first three months compared to a 7% overall product average. Simultaneously, the manufacturer experienced a 12% decrease in support calls concerning products supported with ShowUhow guides.ShowUhow generates revenue by charging retailers and manufacturers for the product video guides, hosting services, and use of the guides. Although there are no companies that compete directly with ShowUhow, the company may face competition from larger retailers who are interested in releasing similar guides of their own.ShowUhow currently has 500 guides total with 9 of the top 11 retailers, including BestBuy, Costco, Walmart and ToysRUs. The guides have been viewed over a million times, the company said.Founded in 2008, ShowUhow is headquartered in San Diego and has 16 employees. It raised $3M in a first round investment from SYNCOM Venture Funds. ShowUhow is led by Chief Executive Kim Olson, who previously served as the VP and General Manager of DriveCam and SeminarSource.Previous Story: DEMO: News360 takes personalized news feeds mobilePrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: DEMO, DEMO Spring 2011, how-to, product manuals, ShowUhow, video guidesCompanies: ShowUhowPeople: Kim Olson          Tags: DEMO, DEMO Spring 2011, how-to, product manuals, ShowUhow, video guidesCompanies: ShowUhowPeople: Kim Olson Have news to share Launching a startup Email: tips@venturebeat.comVentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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