I’m taking a little break from blogging.  Back soon.

If you use Windows XP or Vista and are willing to download and run an installation package, you will now be able to use Microsoft’s new Photosynth service that creates “synths” — scenes that automatically position groups of images as they would appear in real life, letting users zoom around and explore environments from many perspectives.  You’ll need a Windows Live ID, as well.  The Seattle P-I has a detailed story.

The program runs inside Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 and 3 only, and your photos will be available for the public to view, findable through the Photosynth search tool.  The program is a combination of technologies from Microsoft Research, the University of Washington and Seadragon Software, a Seattle-based startup that Microsoft acquired in 2006.  Up until now, it has only been a technology preview.

“It’s a cool product — if it works” as demonstrated, said Matt Rosoff, analyst at the independent research firm Directions on Microsoft. “I think once people see how it works, it’s interesting enough and cool enough that a lot of people will be attracted.”

The new version of Photosynth comes with the ability to rotate a scene on a circular axis to see an object from all the angles at which it was photographed.  The underlying technology matches up the commonalities in photos to figure out the “right way” to present them together on the screen.

“The idea behind Photosynth isn’t to stitch together a perfect 3D model of a particular scene.  Rather, it’s to let people browse and view photos in a way that gives a sense for the broader surroundings.  When one photo is selected, others are shown around it, but slightly blurred.  The individual photos aren’t altered.”

Android video walk-through
Here’s a fairly detailed video look at the new Android emulator. MobileCrunch goes through all the current apps — the phone, the browser, Google Maps—and even crash the OS a few times for good measure.

“Android adopts a traditional desktop user interface, letting you drag icons around that launch different apps, as well as look at a full menu of apps hidden away in a tray. A small search box can also be placed right on the opening screen.  Another nice little feature is the ability to assign certain contacts different priorities,” says TechCrunch.

You’ll find links to a number of Android stories here.

Tech: Can’t live without it
PC Magazine staff reveal the tech apps and gadgets they can’t live without (Part 1).

The list includes the fairly predictable Blackberry, the fun, useful Flip digital camcorder (yeah!), a favorite bluetooth device, camera, several laptops, several DVRs, and more.

Venturebeat (and other sources) state that the Federal Communications Commission has approved the much anticipated Google Android phone, being called the HTC Dream, and documents suggest a release date of Nov. 10 at the latest.  Earlier dates have been rumored.

HTC has asked the Commission to grant it a short-term confidentiality request on its design attachments until Nov. 10th, 2008.  “Note the Nov. 10 date could be used to confuse people intentionally. The FCC request by Apple for the iPhone, for example, had a longer confidentially request than it really needed (three weeks in that case).”

But Wired Blog network asks, can Google, HTC and T-Mobile really deliver a blockbuster product by then?  There is concern by several industry watchers contacted by Wired.com who think it is going to be a challenge.  The worst thing Google can do is to rush a “half-baked product,” says Jack Gold, an analyst with J. Gold Associates.  Even Google has recently admitted that the operating system is not ready for prime time.

Following FCC approval, Google released an updated Software Development Kit (SDK).  TechCrunch states that this release has been long overdue, but now that it is out it may begin to appease many of the mobile app developers who have been frustrated by the general lack of access to the latest SDK.  With T-Mobile’s Android phone only two or three months away, it doesn’t give them a lot of time to create jaw-dropping apps.

Some of the new applications in the SDK include an alarm clock, calculator, camera, music player, picture viewer, and Messaging (for SMS/MMS conversations.)  New development tools were also added, such as a graphical preview for XML layouts for users of Eclipse, and a tool for constructing 9-patch images.  The release is version 0.9, not yet 1.0, and still has some bugs.

The last few days have produced a flurry of speculation and rumors about the first Google Phone based on the Android OS possibly being on the market early this fall.  The phone, coming out from T-Mobile, is nicknamed “Dream.”  It will have a touch screen like the iPhone, but will also have a slide-out keyboard.

Wired Blog Network says that according to an unofficial T-Mobile blog, the first version of the multimedia GPhone will be released by HTC starting on September 17 for one week, for T-Mobile customers only.  This offer will be immediately followed by a general release a week later.

The phone’s rumored price is $150 for the first week only, and then up to $250 and $400 (likely depending on the size) the week after that. That $150 price point will place it right between the iPhone and Sprint’s Samsung Instinct, but “if it’s more expensive, not even an innovative new OS and the hype that will come with it will make people run for it.”  Data pricing, a complete unknown now, might determine how attractive, or not, the phone finally is.

Ars Technica notes the launch date is up in the air due to uncertainties in the Federal Communication Commission’s timing.  The Commission must first approve both the hardware and software for use on US cell networks before it can be sold to customers. Reportedly, executives at all three companies (Google, HTC, and T-Mobile) plan to announce the phone in September in order to benefit from impending holiday season sales.

The Ars post contains links to some first videos of the Android Dream.

TechCrunch says, “It will take an army of Android phones across many carriers and countries to start to seriously challenge the iPhone.”  Their concern, apparently, is that a rush to market is unlikely to produce a product like iPhone where so much attention to detail is found.  On the other hand, one only has to keep up with mobile-community blog posts to see plenty of criticism of the iPhone.

Want to see what some others are saying?  Take a look at Lifehacker, ABC News, and Cnet.

Buy environmentally-friendly products at Amazon
Amazon has added a “green” category to its list of products.  You can search for electronics, home, grocery (including reusable bags), household, baby products, personal care and more.  You can also “pick 3 green products you wish everyone had” and submit them to the site.

You’ll find a handy Amazon Go Green search button in the top left-hand column of this blog.

Bad day(s) at Netflix
Netflix is having shipping and distribution problems running over multiple days, CNBC Tech Check reports.  When they checked with the company, they found the Netflix spokesman “candid, forthcoming and easily accessible; hallmarks of good damage control when a company is under the gun.”

At reporting time, engineers had not yet determined the problem and both the company and its customers were feeling the pain.  Netflix has been the Number 1 rated web site for customer satisfaction, according to Nielsen Net Ratings and Foresee.

On their web site, Netflix says, “We’re sorry to report that we continue to experience issues with our shipping system, so some of you are not receiving DVDs in a timely manner and some of you have not received emails letting you know we got a DVD back from you.

We apologize and we’ll be automatically issuing credits to all of you whose shipments have been delayed. Our goal is to ship DVDs as soon as possible and to provide a personalized email update to you if your DVD shipment was delayed.”

Hopefully, they will be back on track soon.

A Europa RAPID press release announced forward movement on the European Digital Library, Europeana, that was part of the i2010 initiative adopted by the European Commission in June 2005.

“The European Digital Library will be a quick and easy way for people to access European books and art – whether in their home country or abroad. It will, for example, enable a Czech student to browse the British library without going to London, or an Irish art lover to get close to the Mona Lisa without queuing at the Louvre,” said Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media. “However, even though Member States have made significant progress in making cultural content accessible on the Internet, more public and private investment is needed to speed up digitisation. My goal is to have a European Digital Library, called Europeana and rich in content open to the public before the end of the year.”

Member States will bring their valuable cultural content online. In 2009-2010 € 69 million from the EU’s research programme will go to digitisation activities and the development of digital libraries. In the same period, Europe’s Competitiveness and Innovation Programme will allocate about € 50 million to improve access to Europe’s cultural content.  Much more funding is still needed.

Benefits of a European Digital Library will include the ability of visitors to digitally discover copies of the famous Gutenberg bible – the first real book ever printed – at the British Library’s website, the voices of Maria Callas or Jacques Brel at the French Institut National de l’Audiovisuel, or Da Vinci’s masterpiece the Mona Lisa at the Louvre - all without a ticket or their physical presence.

A prototype of Europeana will launch this November.  You can see a demo now.  [via Resource Shelf]

Fan of summer Olympic sports but can’t always on TV?

Microsoft is working with NBC to provide the underlying technology for what they’re describing as an unprecedented online presentation of the Olympics, says the Seattle P-I.  More than 3,000 hours of on-demand video and more than 2,200 hours of live coverage from China is expected.  Opening ceremonies are scheduled for Friday evening.

Follow your own schedule and view your favorite sports whether they are seen on television or not.  The site, NBCOlympics.com, will be free to use, supported by advertising.

“One objective is to drive people to our broadcasts, but the other is to satisfy the interest and the appetite of the Olympic fan who simply can’t get enough,” said Gary Zenkel, the president of NBC Olympics.  He described it as “the most technically ambitious Internet project to date.”

Microsoft’s Silverlight interactive technology, a rival to Adobe Flash, will play a key part in the “enhanced” online experience. The custom NBC media player is a showcase of Silverlight’s features – such as the ability to watch multiple video streams at once, using picture-in-picture boxes.

Other features to watch for include a window of text-based commentary that people will be able to use to quickly jump to different points.  Rob Bennett, general manager of MSN Entertainment, Video and Sports predicts that the Beijing Olympics will someday be looked back upon as “a turning point in the way that people experience live events, and sports in particular, online.”

Lulu provides authors with new opportunities
Lulu is a self-publishing platform for authors that has recently teamed up with book lovers’ social network weRead.

The partnership offers even more direct marketing and promotion opportunities for Lulu users, Mashable reports.  “As weRead operates as a social networking and recommendation tool for readers, it’s a great target for authors looking to leverage Web-based platforms to spread the word about their work.”

weRead allows its members to compare, rate and recommend nearly every book in print, allowing Lulu authors to present their work within an established community of avid and well-read members.

Pew study reports growth in search engine use
The percentage of Internet users who use search engines on a typical day has been steadily rising from about one-third of all users in 2002, to a new high of just under one-half (49%), reports the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

With this increase, the number of those using a search engine on a typical day is pulling closer to the 60% of Internet users who use email, the Internet’s most popular app on a typical day.  View the complete report (PDF).

If, like me, you have started to receive emails claiming to be “CNN Top 10 News,” beware that these are more problematic than just ordinary spam.

Computerworld is reporting that clicking on one of the fake news links leads to a message that your Flash player is incorrect.  If you follow that link you’ll find yourself with a fake Flash edition that delivers a Trojan horse.

One distinguishing feature of the attack puts you in a perpetual loop so that your only choices are to kill your browser session or be browbeaten into stalling the malware, said Sam Masiello, vice president of information security at MX Logic. Inc.  They have detected more than 160 million spam messages in the fake CNN.com attack in the past 48 hours, and more than 1,000 hacked sites are apparently hosting the fake Flash Player update.

Adobe Systems, Inc. advises users to ignore any updates that don’t originate from them, and they remind us that “This goes for any piece of software (Reader, Windows Media Player, QuickTime, etc.) — if you get a notice to update, it’s not a bad idea to go directly to the site of the software vendor and download the update directly from the source.  If the download is from an unfamiliar URL or an IP address, you should be suspicious.”