2013年8月4日 星期日

ARKYD:大家的太空望遠鏡 - 新創意之創業方式 ( ARKYD: A Space Telescope for Everyone, the new business from most smart science and engineers )

ARKYD:任何人都可以控制的太空望遠鏡

目前ARKYD在 Kickstarter 上啟動了一個眾籌計劃,任何人都可以通過捐獻款項獲得一次遠距離操作太空望遠鏡的機會。操作者隻需要利用自己的電腦、手機等設備就能操作在太空飛行的望遠鏡。該計劃兩天就獲得了50萬美元的資金。

Planetary Resources是一間緻力於開發小行星礦產資源的公司,其制造了一個計劃用於探測小行星資源的小型太空望遠鏡ARKYD。

  目前ARKYD在Kickstarter上啟動了一個眾籌計劃,任何人都可以通過捐獻款項獲得一次遠距離操作太空望遠鏡的機會。操作者隻需要利用自己的電腦、手機 等設備就能操作在太空飛行的望遠鏡。該計劃兩天就獲得了50萬美元的資金。根據Planetary Resources的策劃,任何人隻要參與了這次的眾籌計劃,就可以在特定的時間段內獲得操作ARKYD的權利。

  具體的操作模式是,在分配的時間內,由操作者通過任意使用網頁,手機或者平闆電腦上的應用來控制ARKYD。操作者可自由選擇利用ARKYD做何用途,但通過目前提供的應用,可操作ARKYD執行任務還具有一定的局限。

根據現在Kickstarter上捐贈不同金額的資金,操作者獲得的權限利用ARKYD做的事情大概分成3種:

  第一、將自己的照片上傳到ARKYD,然後在自己所分配到的時間段內展示出來,操作者可以在那段時間內控制ARKYD上的輔助攝像頭拍攝自己照片在太空中漂浮的場面。

  第二,通過ARKYD上的望遠鏡,利用波長在200nm—1100nm的電磁波對宇宙進行觀測,目前可以觀測太陽係內的星球和小行星帶。

  第三、教育機構或博物館可以通過與望遠鏡聯動,然後根據望遠鏡拍攝的景象開展相關課程。而值得一提的是,已經有一個以ARKYD為主題的展覽正在籌備中。

  這是世界上第一個提供給大眾控制的太空望遠鏡,有興趣的讀者可以嚐試一下,讓自己具有紀念價值的照片在太空中飄蕩,並「再次」拍照留念。

ARKYD Space Telescope project

The first publicly accessible space telescope! Take amazing photos of space or have your photo displayed above the Earth.

Since the formation of Planetary Resources, our primary goal has been to build technology enabling us to prospect and mine asteroids. We've spent the last year making great leaps in the development of these technologies. These advancements have presented us with the opportunity to engage in another passion of our team:

The ARKYD is a technologically advanced, orbiting space telescope that will be controlled by YOU, the crowd, through your pledges and community involvement! You can even direct your telescope time to non-profit science centers and universities for use in your communities!

Just think about the true impact of this endeavor for a moment.  Together we can provide access to technology that costs tens of millions of dollars into the hands of students, scientists and a new generation of explorers, who will use it in ways we can’t even fathom yet!

The ARKYD 100  Space Telescope A commercial space telescope within reach of the private citizen ( ARKYD100 太空望遠鏡的私人公民商業太空望遠鏡 )

The ARKYD 100 Space Telescope is Planetary Resources’ first Arkyd Series 100 product.  It will provide the company with the core spacecraft technologies necessary for asteroid prospecting while creating the first space telescope within reach of the private citizen. The ARKYD contains the critical structures, avionics, attitude determination and control, and instrumentation that enable low-cost asteroid exploration.

The ARKYD 100 Space Telescope provides spectacular views of the Earth’s surface and deep space, including the rich, virtually unexplored areas between our planet and the Sun. Central to its configuration and functionality is a precision imaging system. With arc-second resolution, the ARKYD 100 spacecraft camera will provide detailed celestial and Earth observations where you want them, and when you want them. The ARKYD 100 is capable of surveying for near-Earth asteroids during one orbit, then be retasked for rain forest observation on the next. The possibilities for utility and engagement are only limited by the imagination of the user.

Planetary Resources is currently developing the ARKYD 100 Space Telescope for spaceflight in the near future, and is proud to have it as its first product offering to the public. If you have interest in the ARKYD 100, or in other Planetary Resources offerings, please contact us.

ARKYD SERIES 200 - INTERCEPTOR

Adding propulsion capabilities and additional scientific instrumentation to the ARKYD 100 Space Telescope enables an Earth-crossing asteroid Interceptor mission. Several undiscovered asteroids are seen for the first time as they routinely cross through Earth’s neighborhood. By hitching a ride with a launched satellite headed for a geostationary orbit, Interceptor will be well positioned to fly-by and collect data on these new targets of opportunity.

Two or more Interceptors can work together as a team to potentially identify, track and fly-by the asteroids that travel between the Earth and our Moon. The closest encounters may result in a planned spacecraft “intercept,” providing the highest-resolution data, similar to how government efforts first explored the Moon with the Ranger missions (1961-65) and later with the Deep Impact mission at Comet 9P/Tempel (2005).

These Interceptor missions will allow Planetary Resources to quickly acquire data on several near-Earth asteroids. ( 這些攔截衛星任務將允許,快速獲取一些近地小行星上的行星資源數據。)



註:ARKYD 是快速獲取一些近地小行星上的行星資源數據之衛星計劃,將取得近地小行星上的特殊資源數據。
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Nexus 7、Chromecast、Moto X、Google Fiber 讓 Google 全面往硬體產品衝 ( Moto X、Nexus 7、Chromecast、Google Fiber push Google into a hardware company? )

Google 與 Hulu 和 HBO 合作 Chromecast 串流電影

電視串流業者Hulu和時代華納旗下的家庭電影院(HBO)宣布正與Google合作,將透過Google的電視棒Chromecast播放它們的收費訂閱節目。

Google上月推出售價35美元的Chromecast,插在電視的HDMI槽即可透過Wi-Fi無線傳輸,在電視上播放影片。這款電視棒可搭配採用Google Android作業系統的裝置,或蘋果的iPhone。

Hulu和HBO的加入,將可壯大Chromecast的內容,使Google更能與Roku和蘋果TV競爭;這兩大對手也提供網路傳送的內容在電視和行動裝置上播放。Google已表示,未來將爭取納入Pandora媒體的音樂串流服務,並和其他內容供應商合作。

總部設在洛杉磯的Hulu在聲明中說:「我們正積極與Google合作,以便把Hulu Plus納入平台中。」

時代華納的HBO也表示,正與Google磋商,將把HBO Go加入Chromecast平台。

Hello Moto X

After Google acquired Motorola Mobility last year, I wondered what was next for the smartphone company. It spent ages clearing out its pipeline of smartphones that were already in development before rumors of an X Phone made in America started making the rounds. In those early X Phone days, Rick Osterloh, Motorola’s SVP of Product Management said the team that worked on the device was plopped in front of a whiteboard and asked to describe the product they wanted to make. That brainstorming, plus loads and loads of user testing, came together in the form of the Moto X.

Motorola isn’t the same company today as it was when Google snapped it up last year — it’s smaller, leaner, and if recent reports are indication, gutsier than ever. The Moto X is that new Motorola’s coming out party, and I think they’ve finally got something worth celebrating.

Before I launch into a lengthy harangue about how this phone makes me feel, let’s dig into the X’s vital statistics. Just about those rumors were true, folks: 4.7-inch AMOLED display running at 720p? Yep. 10-megapixel “ClearPixel” camera with 1080p video recording? You bet. Android 4.2.2.? Check. microSD card slot? Sadly, no. That would all make for a decent, if unremarkable little smartphone, were it not for what the Moto X packs inside its plasticky frame.

The real star of the show Motorola’s X8 chipset, which actually consists of a 1.7GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro, Adreno 320 GPUs, 2GB of RAM and specialized processors meant to handle natural language processing and information from the X’s myriad sensors. If that thing sounds familiar, well, it should.

Verizon and Motorola’s recent Droid launch took some of the shine off the X’s more intimate event this morning. Why? A lot of the X8-centric features that seemed to make the Moto X so smart — those always on voice commands, the motion-sensitive Active Display, and the twisty camera activation gesture — will in all likelihood wind up on most of Motorola’s new phones going forward, the Droid Ultra line included.

Oh, and the device is expected to launch very soon. Think the end of August/early September — it all depends on when Motorola’s carrier and distribution partners make their announcements. Speaking of carriers, AT&T and Verizon will both sell the 16GB black and white versions of the X for $199 (on contract, of course) when it launches later this month, but only AT&T customers will able to customize them using the MotoMaker website. Additional caveat: it seems like the 32GB storage upgrade can only be purchased from MotoMaker for the time being, which is frankly pretty lame.

Not a particular fan of either carrier? That’s fine too: the Moto X will also be available for purchase as an unlocked device, and as a developer edition with an unlocked bootloader (for easily hackability), though Motorola doesn’t seem to have locked down pricing for either version just yet.


Google Fiber光纖上網已經開放至幾個城市

Google Fiber有三種服務方案,單純存取Gigabit網路服務的每月使用費為70美元,若要同時使用Gigabit網路及電視服務的月費則是120美元,這兩項服務皆免收300美元的網路建構費,第三個方案則是免費的5Mbps網路,但民眾必須支付一次性的300美元網路建構費。

Google在堪薩斯市測試的1Gb光纖上網服務終於推出,Google Fiber有三種服務方案,單純存取Gigabit網路服務的每月使用費為70美元,若要同時使用Gigabit網路及Fiber TV電視服務的月費則是120美元,第三個方案則是免費的5Mbps網路。

Google 去年於美國堪薩斯州堪薩斯市正式推出 Google Fiber 光纖到府服務,理想可達到上下傳 1000Mbps 的速度、實際運作後也有近乎 700Mbps 表現。這回德州奧斯汀丁市將成為第二個可享用 Google Fiber 的城市,服務將在明年登場。

分析

  • Google 產品策略與動作越來越快,市值已經超越 Microsoft,如今 Google 已經推出 Nexus 7、Chromecast、Moto X、Google Fiber 四項產品,讓 Google 全面往硬體產品衝;
  • 原來 Google 策略及生意模式看,竟將平台、搜尋、加值服務放在前三位,硬體是很小一部份,現在看來還需觀察 Moto X 是否很成功,若 Moto X 很成功,將是 Android 市場新變數。
  • 台廠須由半導體、品牌、關鍵零組件、差異化創意找出市場空間,否則,台灣價值就是微利代工;
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2013年8月2日 星期五

蘋果雲端儲存服務領先群雄 ( Apple lead media cloud business ) - Dropbox 、Google Drive 將緊追 ( Apple Inc. iCloud is a most amazing growth of Cloud service in world wide )

調查:美國雲端媒體服務 蘋果居領先地位
iCloud became world wide top cloud storage service

蘋果 (Apple)(AAPL-US) 在眾多科技領域中,都維持領先地位。一份由 Strategy Analytics 所做的調查顯示,在雲端媒體服務,蘋果也是美國榜首, iCloud 及 iTunes Match 市占達 27%,遙遙領先其他競爭者。

據《ZDNet》報導, Strategy Analytics 調查發現,2012 年第 3 季的雲端媒體服務,iCloud 及 iTunes Match 用戶占 27%為最高,其次是 Dropbox 的 17%,Amazon Cloud Player 以 15% 緊追其後,其次才是 Google Drive 的 10%。

蘋果能取得領先的關鍵之一,是他們自 iOS 5 以來,就力推 iCloud 媒體同步,而他們在 MP3 及平板和智慧型手機,都有強大的市占,帶來雲端服務的優勢。

Strategy Analytics 數位媒體部主任 Ed Barton 表示,雲端領域中,「音樂」是最重要的戰場。包括蘋果、Amazon 及 Google,約 90% 利用雲端儲存音樂。即使 Dropbox 比例不是這麼高,也仍有 45% 比例儲存音樂。
iCloud is still a big market share among Cloud service

一如預期, 年輕人最常使用雲端媒體服務,這次的調查中,20-24 歲美國人使用的頻率最高。不過另一方面,多達 55% 受訪者並不使用雲端媒體服務,也顯示這個領域還需要更長期的經營發展。

Mailbox Cost Dropbox Around $100 Million ( Dropbox 併購 Mailbox )
Dropbox + Mailbox aim at platform service as iCloud

Disrupt alumnus Dropbox made the second in a series of super-savvy, super-early stage acquisitions today, picking up hyped-up email management app Mailbox in an acquisition that we’re calling “DropMail.”

We had been hearing that Mailbox was raising money, piquing the interest of Andreessen Horowitz among others, which is why today’s news that the company sold to the harmoniously named Dropbox didn’t come as a surprise. Sometimes an acquisition is the easiest way to raise resources for growth — especially when you’re tackling as expensive a problem as email. And have a six-figure wait list.

And we’re hearing that this particular acquisition was not cheap — The post-pivot startup cost the storage company “well over” $50 million, according to multiple sources. And we’ve heard that that the price was around $100 million in cash and stock.

Yahoo had also made inroads with the email platform, founded by IDEO veteran Gentry Underwood, which makes sense considering the brand decline of Yahoo Mail as well as the latter company’s dismal mobile traction. But Dropbox’s allure and sympatico vision made more sense for the fledgling startup, whose impressive numbers gave co-founders Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi the courage to take a swing at email.

In any case, we can probably expect to see Dropbox handling email attachments real soon.

Dropbox Acquires Snapjoy And Puts Photos Into Its Focus ( Dropbox 併購 Snapjoy )

Less than one week after Dropbox aqui-hired Audiogalaxy to beef up its cloud music ambitions, today comes news of another acquisition, this time focused on another form of media, photos: the cloud-storage giant is buying Snapjoy – like Dropbox, a Y Combinator-alum — which lets users aggregate, archive and view all of their digital photos from their cameras, phones and popular apps like Flickr, Instagram and Picasa, and then view them online or via an iOS app.

We first got wind of this deal via an anonymous tip — and then tracked down what was happening. The news has also been confirmed by Dropbox and Snapjoy themselves.
Dropbox will learn Pinterest to aim at Photo platform service?

The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed — or, more precisely, in the words of co-founder Michael Dwan, the price was “A furlong of sunshine or a bucket of rainbows, whichever is less.” Dwan says other companies were also knocking on Snapjoy’s door — but declined to say who. Other investors in addition to Y Combinator included SV Angel, Quotidian and the Start Fund, along with Jawed Karim, Yael and Noam Shazeer and Garry Tan.

I asked Dwan why he decided to sell. The simple answer is scale. “The user experience we always wanted was limited by our development capacity and the economics of scale,” he told me in an email exchange. “Dropbox has some of the best talent in the world and is operating at incredible scale, so a lot of the barriers are removed. The equation in my mind is simple: (Mac + Windows + Android + iOS + Linux + Web clients) * rock solid infrastructure * 100 million users = infinite possibilities.”

Dwan declined to give any details on how many users Snapjoy has signed up, or any other usage metrics, or how many people have been subscribing to its paid tier versus only using the free service.

The move is a sign of how Dropbox continues to “move up the value chain,” extending its touchpoints and service offerings to customers beyond simple storage facilities. The move opens Dropbox up into being more of a full-service digital photo center, rather than just a place to store your jpegs as backup or when your own hard drive runs out of space.

It’s an interesting time in the world of photos — with companies like Instagram under the microscope over what it may or may not decide to do with its users’ data; services like Flickr extending its functionality as a place to create pictures as much as it is a place to store and share them; and Twitter also entering the fray. Snapjoy potentially gives Dropbox its own oar to dip into the stream. It will also put it into closer competition with Facebook Photo Sync. Right now the two partner on filesharing in Facebook Groups, but with moves like this into photos, a bread-and-butter area for Facebook, we could see that relationship changing.

Dwan tells me, and Snapjoy also notes in a blog post, that it will continue to serve its existing customers — a possible sign that the service will live on in another form as part of Dropbox — but for now it’s closing itself to further sign-ups. It looks like Dwan, who co-founded the company with JP Ren, and others are relocating from Boulder, Colorado, to San Francisco. Whether that will be the full, existing team of six people or only a part is still being worked out.

Just as the Audiogalaxy acquisition played to Dropbox’s existing popularity as a place to store music, this, too, could give Dropbox a chance to expand how its users make use of photos stored in Dropbox’s cloud — already a popular use of the service. Dropbox, interestingly, had previously extended its photo capabilities on Android; Snapjoy’s iOS focus, therefore, is complementary to that.

Apple buys Locationary, a startup building a Wikipedia for location

Apple has acquired a Canadian startup called Locationary, which uses crowdsourcing and game mechanics to create a database of up-to-date location and business information data, reports AllThingsD.

Apple will no doubt use Locationary’s location data services to make its maps much more accurate.


分析
  • 在雲端媒體服務,蘋果也是美國榜首, iCloud 及 iTunes Match 市占達 27%,遙遙領先其他競爭者,其次是 Dropbox 的 17%,Amazon Cloud Player 以 15% 緊追其後,其次才是 Google Drive 的 10%;這分析發現 Microsoft 的 Skydrive 提供更大雲端儲存空間,但市占卻是最低,因此,雲端儲存媒體是以方便性及其他平台實用性為生意為主;
  • 由雲端儲存媒體服務延申至雲端儲存媒體及應用平台生意模式,Dropbox 併購 Mailbox 及 Snapjoy 往應用服務平台生意模式發展,Google Drive 早已將已將 Google docs、Google music 與第三方應用服務軟體結合直接攻向雲端應用服務平台模式來提升市占率
  • 依 Apple iCloud 雲端媒體應用服務平台生意模式,未來 Dropbox 及 Google Drive 最能跟上 Apple ,台廠仍須思考那一種雲端媒體應用服務平台生意模式適合台灣,否則,tablet 及 smart phone 持續低價化時代,台灣電子產業要往那裡走?
  • 同時值得注意 AAPL 並購 Locationary,同時正仔細看一些 social apps 公司,讓雲端媒體應用服務平台更完整;
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