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GoPro Camera Survives Accidental 12,500 Foot Freefall

Are you kidding me? "Not one scratch on the body or lens," he writes. "A buddy the same day who is one of our camera flyers had the same thing happen but with his SLR... not the same result." While the skydiver admits the results would be different had the GoPro landed on concrete rather than grass, anything electronic and containing glass that survives a vertical drop in excess of two miles is pretty damn impressive. And how crazy is it that the camera fortuitously landed at such an angle as to still capture the skydivers landing?

30 Great Apps for Developers

Here’s 30 of the best tools for developers, some of which you might already be using and others you might have just have heard of in passing. Even if you’re not a developer, be sure to give the roundup a look, as there’s a lot of productivity apps in here that just might appeal to you too!

The New MakerBot Replicator Might Just Change Your World

The BotCave is home to MakerBot, a company that for nearly four years has been bringing affordable 3-D printers to the masses. But nothing MakerBot has ever built looks like the new printer these workers are currently constructing. The Replicator 2 isn’t a kit; it doesn’t require a weekend of wrestling with software that makes Linux look easy. Instead, it’s driven by a simple desktop application, and it will allow you to turn CAD files into physical things as easily as printing a photo. The entry-level Replicator 2, priced at $2,199, is for generating objects up to 11 by 6 inches in an ecofriendly material; the higher-end Replicator 2X, which costs $2,799, can produce only smaller items, up to 9 by 6 inches, but it has dual heads that let it print more sophisticated objects. With these two machines, MakerBot is putting down a multimillion-dollar wager that 3-D printing has hit its mainstream moment.

The Hobbit

The second trailer for Peter Jackson's new flick 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' has just been released into the wild.

Mountain Lion 10.8.2 with Facebook integration, consolidated iMessages available for download

Apple has just pushed out OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.2 just moments after releasing iOS 6 to the general public. The update makes available a variety of features that put OS X on par with iOS, namely Facebook integration inside Notification Center, Game Center, Contacts, and Mountain Lion's "Share" button. 10.8.2 also includes Power Nap support for late 2010 MacBook Airs, as well as consolidated AppleIDs and phone numbers — which means that iMessages or FaceTime calls sent to your phone number will now also appear on your Mac.

iOS 6 Is Out Now: Here’s What to Do First

— Download the latest version of iTunes 10.7 — This will add iOS 6 compatibility to your software Back up your photos and important files. Even if you use iCloud, consider doing a full backup in iTunes, just in case. If you don’t already have a copy of your contacts and calendars on your Mac or PC, go ahead and back those up too. Find your power. Apple won’t let you update your device if you don’t have a minimum amount of power. The updates are fairly large, at over 500MB per device — so go ahead and plug into some power before starting the update.

Troubleshoot your wireless network with Wi-Fi Diagnostics

To launch Wi-Fi Diagnostics, hold down the Option key as you click on the Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar. That’ll open the Wi-Fi menu with an Open Wi-Fi Diagnostics item at the bottom; click that item to open the utility. You can also launch the program directly from its hidey-hole: In the Finder, choose Go > Go to Folder, and enter /System/Library/CoreServices/. You’ll find the Wi-Fi Diagnostics app in there.

Lighting Connector

In keeping with recent meteorological themes – iCloud, Thunderbolt – yesterday Apple introduced the new “Lightning” connector for its mobile hardware. This will be the replacement for the venerable 30-pin dock connector introduced 9 years ago. I haven’t seen it in person yet, but here’s some speculation on how it may work.

Hacked! The Magic Lantern Team Cracks the EOS 7D

Magic Lantern on the EOS 7D? Yes, that’s true. Our young team member g3gg0 did the impossible, and solved the 7D puzzle within days of receiving the camera from Trammell Hudson (on September 12). Background: Trammell Hudson started to port Magic Lantern on 7D three years ago. While he was able to run user code using the firmware update procedure, he was not able to run it in parallel with Canon firmware – which was required for Magic Lantern to run as an add-on software, without replacing the main firmware. Since then, we had little or no idea about how to solve this puzzle, until last week, when g3gg0 had an Aha! moment and discovered how to load Canon firmware from autoexec.bin code. The first analysis shows that porting is straightforward (more or less), and most features will work without major code changes, as Magic Lantern does not have to run on both DIGIC processors. Basic features such as zebra and focus peaking are already working, so you may expect an alpha version to be available soon. Are there any of you still interested in a Magic Lantern port for the 7D? Please let us know by supporting our work!

LIFX Is A Smartphone-Controlled Lightbulb

Here’s what it does: Control your lights from anywhere Choose any brightness for a specific bulb, a room or your whole house Create the colors to match any mood or decor Get notifications such as Twitter, Facebook, Texts and more Reduce your energy consumption and save money Visualise your music with animated colors Make an impression at your next dinner party Get creative with colors and effects Create a night light for your kids Security mode when you’re on holidays Create groups of lights Robot dance like it’s 1999

Amazing Idea!!!

Triggertrap: a remote shutter

On the face of it, this dongle and app combo is a remote shutter release for your iPhone – but that’s just the beginning of its capabilities.

Animated solar system made of CSS markup

You don't have to be a web design expert to appreciate this animated model of the solar system, another one of the best examples of CSS we've found.

iBookstore is a game changer for textbooks

After writing about how iPads and YourTeacher helped raise math scores by 49%, I decided to speak with YourTeacher CEO Charlie Hermes to find out more about his company, and what it’s like to publish textbooks on the iBookstore.

Wonderful Article!

The What, Why and How of Textures in Web Design

The use of textures and patterns in webdesign have come a long way in only a short amount of time. From cliche grunge and gaudy vintage textures, today's best websites use texture in a wide variety of ways to create a more immersive experience, define the personality of the site and create a more refined look and feel.

Amazing animated optical illusion

Designer 'Brusspup' has created a number of animated optical illusions for us to enjoy. This latest video is the fifth in the series and as soon as we saw it, we just had to share it with you. During the video we see rotating cogs, a running leopard and even a pacman munching on bullets. It's incredible to think that each was created using a series of templates; simply glided across each other to showcase this amazing effect.