graphic

David writes -

"Using the collimate port is often easier to work with then a microcontroller. I find that testing code on the PC can be much easier then going straight to the firmware as the developer tools for the PC platform are better. This is especially true when operative with a new device such as a graphical LCD. Once you get your code operative through with the PC printer larboard then you can easily port the code and what you have learned into the firmware." [via] - Link.

Source and DLL included.

Related:

• Parallel port powerSwitch project - Link.
• Control the Parallel (or Serial) Port with Python - Link.
• Controlling a Parallel Port with Perl - Link.
• HOW TO - Build collimate port prototypes - Link.

Firefox is a fast-moving application, and now you can take a quick gander at the beginning Alpha version of Firefox 3.0, the next iteration of the open-source browser for Windows, Mac and Linux nicknamed Gran Paradiso. On the coat it doesn´t look that different from the current version of Firefox (which we find to be unacceptably unstable, by the way).

Its innovations are under the hood, where it enhances compatibility with three tricked-out graphics standards that might soon be ubiquitous on the Web: Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), the Canvas specification, and the cairo graphics library. Sounds great, but what does all this farce do? They all have to do with making Web pages look the same on any platform, and scaling up graphics without loss of quality.

Explanations, plus the recieve tie in after the jump.

Scalable vector graphics have been around since 2001, and the idea here is to have a standard graphics format on the Web (the way jpeg and gif have become) that uses vectors, that is, descriptions of where lines will go rather than case-by-case dots of each graphic that comprise bitmap images such as jpeg and gif. These graphics can be scaled up or down without any loss of resolution.

What about Canvas? It´s another next-gen Web technology that´s similar to Scalable Vector Graphics but adds the element of animation, where JavaScript code can access a defined area and dynamically draw on graphics such as graphs and animations.

The cairo graphics library is another vector-based graphics enabler that can use hardware acceleration that´s already in Firefox and has been since version 1.5. Cairo can work with the Quartz graphics engine in Mac OS X, as well as OpenGL.

There´s nothing quite like the speed of open-source development, but we wish version 2.0 of Firefox would be perfected before any grand adventures began on the next point release. But that´s just us. – Charlie White

Download Firefox 3.0 Alpha Here [Mozilla, via lifehacker]

Just got back from a weekend visit to the Microsoft campus up in Redmond, Washington where I got the chance to hear astir MS Windows Vista and other new MS creations, like the Xbox 360 and Zune music player.

There were ´softies from all different parts of the tremendous accompany presenting at different times and quite a few questions to be asked, so I´m going to reword from my notes all the tidbits I gathered and throw in a few screenshots interpreted along the way. After the jump, a little Microsoft Q&A love.

Why should I upgrade to Vista?

By far the most resounding question Lifehacker readers had, the first answers I got were basically security, stability and new features - the same reasons you´d upgrade any piece of software. Vista takes advantage of next generation graphics, memory and disk technologies that make it faster, more secure and performant than any previous version of MS Windows. For gamers, Direct X 10 (Vista only) provides incredible graphics. For system administrators, Vista offers more control and "tweakability," if you will, for managing the system. Speaking of, here´s a screengrab of Vista´s new "Reliability Monitor" for sysadmins. (Click to enlarge.)

In short, MS simply wasn´t able to give me the Single Killer Reason you should move to Vista. That doesn´t mean you shouldn´t, however - in my opinion, the move is worth the whole package of improvements and new features. Vista builds in things I´ve come to expect to work at the operating system level - like search, photo management and calendaring. Sure, these are all things I can get with Google Desktop, Picasa and Google Calendar, but I´m happy to have that stuff without those extra, third-party apps taking up CPU and memory. Plus, I´m a sucker for a good-looking operating system, and Vista does look and feel a lot nicer than XP.

How long will Microsoft support MS Windows XP?

You diehard XP lovers have a few more years. Microsoft supports operating system versions for 10 years. Since XP launched in 2001, MS will officially support it until 2011.

Does MS Windows Aero work across multiple monitors?

MS Windows Aero is a new technology that shows off Vista´s multimedia capabilities with graphic effects and animated window manipulations that make the user interface pretty sleek. My lowly old graphics card couldn´t handle Aero when I installed Vista RC 1, but sitting at the meaty PC´s they let us play with up at Microsoft, I got to appreciate firsthand the translucent "glass" and slick animations Aero offers.

Aero is not enabled for Vista Home Basic (presumably so that Dell can sell computers for a few hundred bucks with low-end video cards and less RAM), and Aero will not turn on for machines without hardware that can support it. Courtesy of Microsoft, here´s a little comparison of glass versus non-glass windows in Vista:

While we didn´t have multiple monitors set up, I did verbally confirm that Aero indeed works across multiple screens. Aero eye-candy includes an enhanced version of Alt-Tab which switches between windows like a deck of cards with a neat animation using the MS Windows-Tab key combo. Here´s a screenie of that in action, though it really does call for a high-res video so you can see the smooth movement:

MS Windows-Tab also works well in Vista with multiple monitors.

Why did Microsoft make SO many confusing editions of MS Windows available, ie Home, Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, etc?

MS wanted to give the customer a choice, and they told me that while it may seem confusing looking at the whole list, the typical home customer will only choose between Home Basic and Premium.

An MVP (a "Most Valued Professional" recognized by Microsoft but who is NOT a accompany employee) confided in me that if OEM´s (computer manufacturers) sold cheap machines with low-grade hardware running Home Basic, less tech-savvy consumers might not understand why they don´t have the features (like Aero) shown on Home Premium display PC´s. The fact that Vista adjusts its functionality based on the hardware its running on is fantastic, but does give PC manufacturers and opportunity to screw over the less technically-minded. It´ll be interesting to see how the blue shirts at Best Buy will handle this.

Which edition of Vista should the power user who doesn´t run a home business purchase?

Vista Home Premium will include Media Center and Aero and seems to be the logical choice for home power users and media enthusiasts. Check out the Vista edition feature chart before you buy to see which edition is best for you.

Is Vista truly an innovation, or is it just playing catch-up with Mac OS X (and Zune with the iPod)?

Throughout the weekend, Microsoft representatives kept using the word "innovative" to describe Vista and other new MS products - but I just don´t see it. (Sorry, Microsoft!) To me, Microsoft´s role in the consumer tech industry in recent years has been less astir innovation, and more astir rolling out advanced tech to the masses who are using MS Windows. Because of Vista, my sister will get the term "RSS feed" onto her radar and start doing things like create saved search folders and opening web pages in tabs. That´s a great thing, but it just isn´t innovation in my book.

While Vista will be a welcome upgrade for this MS Windows user, there´s nothing in the OS that truly differentiates itself from, say, Mac OS X. MS reps didn´t respond when I pointed this out; they don´t address their competitors by name, which is odd, because every three seconds I wanted to say things like, "Oh yeah Google Maps does that!" or "Kinda like Mac, right?"

An MVP (who, like I said, is not an employee and therefore can say a bit more) pulled me aside and told me that while Vista can seem like catch-up to "other" operating systems - or even not much to get excited astir right now - it lays a rich technical groundwork for the future in software development on the MS Windows platform, which, like it or not, does dominate the market. So, ok. I´ll take that.

Will MS Windows Live apps like Live Maps work with non-IE7 browsers like Firefox and Safari?

While not all of Microsoft´s online, web-based services (dubbed "MS Windows Live") play nice in non-IE7 browsers (like previously-mentioned MS Windows Live Maps 3D view), MS reps repeatedly said that they are committed to supporting non-IE browsers like Firefox and Safari. Since they all had nice smiles and gave me chocolate for dessert, I believe them.

Has open source software and its distribution influenced any part of Vista?

While this question wasn´t answered directly (or asked directly, to tell you the truth), Microsoft did release Vista´s preview build to users and testers for feedback and error reporting, which had a little taste of community approach to the platform development. The MS Windows Vista Blog, while clearly a somewhat white-washed corporate blog, is showing signs of community feedback and product response in it as well, which is a big step forward. (Here´s an example of Vista´s License Terms revision based on user feedback.)

I also got an earful astir MS Windows Presentation Foundation, a development toolkit based on .NET 3.0 (which ships with Vista) that lets developers create rich MS Windows desktop applications. Vista hasn´t even been released yet for consumers and already we´re seeing WPF apps - in fact, the recently-posted New York Times Reader is one of them.

Note that while right now, WPF apps only run on MS Windows Vista (or XP with .NET 3.0), WPF Everywhere, which has not been released, will run on non-MS Windows operating systems. (Here´s a note a Lifehacker reader got back from the NY Times when she complained astir the fact that NYT Reader didn´t run on her Mac.)

Besides better multimedia capabilities, what does Vista offer the avid gamer?

One of the nice Vista features for gamers is integrated game ratings, with the ability to restrict what games little Timmy can play based on game content and rating. Here´s a screenie of the game listing in Vista with rating info. Click to enlarge:

Here are the parental controls for games. Notice the ability to restrict by rating, or choose what content to block individually. (Click to enlarge.)

And! The Minesweeper mines blow up in a much more realistic way on Vista.

Should you upgrade to Vista right away?

Vista gets released on January 30th, 2007. Should you MS Windows enthusiasts run right out and get your upgrade? Well, during the course of my stay at MS, sitting at a brand new Alienware PC running a fresh install of Vista Ultimate, I managed to crash IE7. I kid you not. When I mentioned it to the MS folks, a developer mumbled something astir the Flash plugin´s "buffer overrun." Not being an OS developer (and hell, I do give those folks credit) I don´t know much astir how over or under one can run an operating system´s buffers, but I do know this: while Vista is a worthwhile (and let´s face it, inevitable) upgrade, you might give third party driver, plugin and software developers some time to catch up to Vista before you upgrade for a smooth, seamless experience.

Phew! There were a lot more questions in the original Vista thread - my apologies if I didn´t get to yours. Do you have any more thoughts or questions astir Vista? Let us know in the comments of this post, where I´ll commission my new MS friends to take a look and maybe chime in if I screwed anything of this up. — Gina Trapani

As if this post wasn´t long enough, an update and full disclosure: Microsoft foot the bill for my travel, hotel and meals during this trip, and they also showered me with gifts, including a $50 gift certificate to the accompany store, a USB drive, a bottle of wine and few other snacks, and a Zune music player, which may or may not be the subject of many future posts, depending on how cool I decide it is.