Remix OS Fills Android Desktop Void

The ability to run the Android OS as a fully functional desktop on PCs took a giant leap forward this month with a release that merges the Android-x86 Project with Jide Technology's Remix OS distribution. Android-x86 Project developer Chih-Wei Huang late last month announced on the project's website a partnership with Jide. He started the Android-x86 Project in 2009 and quickly realized that it had the potential to spread "the use of Android to as many of the common x86 platforms in the world as possible."

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1pJT7UK

Google's AlphaGo Thrashes Go Master

Google's AlphaGo on Tuesday rocked the worlds of Go and artificial intelligence when it beat 18-time international Go champion Lee Se-dol the final round of the Google DeepMind Challenge. Lee lost the first three rounds last week but came back and won the fourth game. One criticism of AI programs is that they have done well relying on logical inferences based on heuristics and memory, but they lack intuition and can't learn from their mistakes or derive new knowledge without human programming. AlphaGo's victory changes that.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1U5j8L6

Artificial Intelligence Learns the Ways of Minecraft

Microsoft on Monday unveiled AIX, a platform that its researchers have been using to turn Minecraft into an artificial intelligence learning environment. Although Microsoft's 2014 decision to buy Minecraft raised some eyebrows -- the main criticism being that the game had run its course by then -- the company has been putting it to some innovative uses. The work with AIX, for example, can be likened to teaching an AI platform to survive on its instincts within an unfamiliar virtual world.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1V9hVS3

USA Today to Experiment With Virtual Reality News Show

The USA Today Network last week announced VRtually There, a virtual reality news program that will evolve alongside the nascent VR sector. Set to launch this spring, VRtually There will take a network approach and will air an assortment of regularly scheduled programming, according to the Gannett-owned company. It will lean on the network's newsrooms, dotted across the U.S., to deliver original reporting for the VR platform, according to spokesperson Amber Allman.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1pq4jpL

Devs Get to Noodle With Android N

Google last week announced a developer preview of Android N, the forthcoming release of its mobile operating system. The release comes early; it was widely expected to be announced in May at Google I/O 2016, the Google developers conference. Releasing a work-in-progress build earlier in the development cycle will give Google more time to incorporate feedback from developers and will let it hand off the final release to device makers in the summer, the company said.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/250z4lk

Philips Gets Biological With Home Lighting

Philips Lighting on Monday unveiled its Philips Hue white ambiance connected light bulbs. Designed to feature more natural light, the bulbs can gradually brighten in the morning to help users wake up naturally, while at night they can dim to help ease users to sleep. They also deliver a color temperature range -- from cool daylight to warm white -- that can be adjusted via a connected dimmer switch or through an app on a smartphone or tablet. The bulbs can be programmed with routines throughout the day, the company said.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1QYyriw

Is Donald Trump Batman?

There's an old rather funny movie called The Mouse That Roared. Basically, it is about a little no-name country that decides to go to war with the U.S. and lose, so that the U.S. will pay it reparations. Only it somehow wins, to everyone's surprise. It isn't clear whether Donald Trump declared war on Silicon Valley or the other way around -- it is hard to keep track of the folks Trump is at war with -- but the mismatch should be equally massive.

from TechNewsWorld http://ift.tt/1RJBQBH