Rev2.org » Parimal Satyal

OpenID: The Problem of the Solution

Parimal Satyal — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 10:14:12 +0000

The OpenID Foundation announced yesterday, in what it seems will push their decentralized login system further as a standard, that five big players of web and technology world — Google, IBM, Microsoft, Verisign and Yahoo! — have joined their corporate board. For those of us tired of having to remember and maintain several online logins and passwords, this could be very good news. With a catch.

A Brief History
OpenID started out as a project in 2005 by LiveJournal creator Brad Fitzpatrick as a way to maintain a common login between websites, ...

Google Releases Forms as Spreadsheets Input Method

Parimal Satyal — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 17:47:34 +0000

Google today introduced a new feature as part of Google Docs that will make collecting data for your spreadsheets very easy. Now, every time you want other users/team members/collaborators to contribute data to your spreadsheet, you can do so in a very simple way.

Here’s how it works: you design a form with individual fields or information that you’d like people to fill — corresponding to your spreadsheet — and send as many invitation emails (with a link to your form) as you like. Their results, or whatever they input into the ...

Google Sneaks In a Flight Simulator with Earth

Parimal Satyal — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 16:33:24 +0000

The newest release of Google Earth, version 4.2, comes with a hidden flight simulator. No, it’s not the other way around and yes, it’s still free. For all supported OSes.

Although the simulator appears very basic, with just 2 aircraft and 27 airports, it seems like this part of the software is in beta (and therefore largely undocumented) and some have speculated that this “could become a standard feature” in future versions, introducing the rather exciting prospect of Google getting into designing games (not that flight simulators are games). Or, ...

Video Sharing Bolt.com Ceases Operations

Parimal Satyal — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 12:03:57 +0000

Bolt.com, an online video sharing site, has posted a notice on its front page (now the only page), notifying all that, as of August 14, 2007, it has ceased all video sharing operations. The general assignment, or ‘assignment for the benefit of creditors’, executed by parent companies Net Revolution, Inc. and Bolt, Inc. means that, due to bankruptcy, Bolt.com’s assets will now be quickly sold off and the proceeds from liquidation paid to creditors.

Possibly related to this new development is ...

iPhone Unlock Update: Works in Certain Carriers

Parimal Satyal — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 12:48:44 +0000

Some time back, we told you the iPhone had been partially unlocked to allow outgoing calls with Australia’s Telstra; but now, thanks to the efforts of members in hackint0sh.org team, there’s now a way to get everything working — incoming, outgoing, SMS — with certain carriers in Europe. This method might also work in other areas.

The hack involves extracting communications information from the carrier’s SIM card as well as from the original AT&T card, using the information to update downloadable flash and EEPROM files, and finally writing ...

Bebo: An In-Depth Look

Parimal Satyal — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 11:19:15 +0000

To most Americans, Bebo, the third most popular social network (after Facebook and MySpace) in terms of users and pageviews, would be unheard of. The social network was the most popular search term on Google for 2006 and has managed to cause a storm internationally. We decided to delve a bit deeper and investigate what is behind the Valley-based 50 employee startup that seems to be changing the ‘rest’ of the world. Let’s take an in-depth look at Bebo.

Background

Bebo was created by Michael Birch and his wife Xochi Birch in ...

iPhone SIM Unlocked, Video Posted: What’s Next?

Parimal Satyal — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 23:44:14 +0000

The iPhone has been unlocked. Or so an Engadget mobile article about a new YouTube video posting suggests. YouTuber ozbimmer, in his video, demonstrates how he’s able to make an outgoing call with an iPhone registered to the Australian network Telstra.

While the hack doesn’t seem to support support incoming calls or SMS quite yet, the iPhone could be considered for the first time to be truly SIM-unlocked. For the moment, though, it’s still just ...