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Google Executive Calls Android Acquisition 'Best Deal Ever'
Believe it or not, the Android operating system was not a Google original. Rather it was an acquisition made by the search engine giant in 2005. Now, a Google executive is calling it the "best deal ever" and with how popular the phone OS is, I can certainly see his enthusiasm. The deals of the acquisition were never made public though it was surmised to be worth nearly $50 million. David Lawee, Google's vice president of corporate development, was speaking at the Stanford Accel Symposium this week when he made the "best deal ever" comment. He admits that he was skeptical at first about it and hoped that Andy Rubin, founder of Android, would do something when seeing him around the Google offices for two years. Well, Rubin certainly did do "something" as Android is quickly becoming one of the most popular phone operating systems in existence.
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Failure at U.S. Air Force Base Takes 50 Nukes Offline
A failure involving the launch control computers at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming caused an entire squadron of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles to go into "LF Down" status causing a loss of communication with the missiles. The failure also meant that certain security protocols were down as well. While the missiles were still able to be launched, control was only possible via an airborne communications platform.
The missiles are controlled by a launch control computer (LCC) which is responsible for periodically querying the status of each missile for which it is responsible. Since the LCC pings the missiles in sequence, an out-of-sequence query will cause the missile to report errors. The missile control officers tried several quick fixes, but more and more errors began being reported which caused the officers to take all five LCCs off-line, leaving 50 missiles in the dark. The officers were able to then successfully restart four of the five LCCs. A similar cascading failure was noted 12 years ago at another Air Force base due to a hardware failure, leading investigators to concentrate on that as the prime suspect.
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Sennheiser Launches Four New Headsets
Those in the market for a new headset with a fair bit of cash to spend may have found the solution. Sennheiser has just launched four new headsets on US soil today, after a few months debut in Europe. The new headsets are the PC 360, PC 333D, PC 330, and PC 163. The PC 360 is the new flagship model, replacing the venerable PC 350, but this time Sennheiser is basing the headset off the HD 555 headphones and not the HD 380 headphones. This means the PC 360 is an open set which should give you an even bigger soundstage during your games, but also allows noise in and out. The noise-canceling microphone is on the left side and will mute itself when you swivel it up and out of the way. There is a volume wheel integrated on the right ear cup allowing quick access during a game or even a movie. The PC 360 is a circum-aural headset so it will fit completely around your ears. The PC 360 is an analog model meaning it plugs directly into the on-board or discrete audio on your computer.
The PC 333D and PC 330 share a similar design, just the 333D includes Dolby Headphone technology to simulate 7.1 surround sound. Each one is of the closed variety meaning no sound leakage, either from the outside or the headset, and each is also circum-aural. Sennheiser has built its "DJ Hinge" into the right side of each headset which allows you to swivel that ear cup around to hear someone talking to you. Each one also features a noise-canceling microphone that mutes when swiveled up and volume controls on the right ear cup, just like the PC 360. The PC 333D connects via USB while the PC 330 is an analog model.
The last one is the PC 163D which also features Dolby Headphone technology for a simulated 7.1 effect. It is an open model as well, though this one sits on your ears rather than around them. It features a noise-canceling microphone and integrated volume controls, though this time it seems the volume controls are on the cord itself. The PC 163D connects via USB.
All four headsets are available now, with the PC 360 running you $299.95, the PC 333D at $239.95, the PC 163D at $209.95, and the PC 330 at $169.95.
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