In essence the only plus points about the IPod Touch are the extra memory (if you go for the 16Gb option) and not having to sign up to a new phone contract, compared to the IPhone.
The minus points are many with various niggles about lack of a volume control on the unit meaning having to remove the Ipod from your pocket and touch twice/swipe everytime you want to skip a track or change the volume. Engadget have just put up their thoughts and we have to say that we agree with most of their views.
In addition to these points are the lack of applications compared to the IPhone, notably in our view the Google Maps App. However, as the IPhone and the IPod Touch run the same operating system the apps seem to be interchangeable as long as you can find a way to transfer them.
We don’t recommend this due to issues of warranty and copyright but HackTheIpodTouch.com are reporting the ability to transfer Maps.app to the Ipod Touch. No word on levels of success yet but if you want to fill up your Ipod Touch screen with all those missing apps we are betting the chance is only a few weeks away.
With it of course comes a void warranty and risk of legal action etc etc….
For those interested our Ipod Touch is going back to the Apple Store in Regent Street, London, next week as its screen is shockingly bad for playing video, see Apple Touch for more info.
As we saw in yesterday’s post on Real Estate Goes Virtual Second Life can be viewed as ‘Living the Architecture’. Despite limited import tools using site plans it is possible to group build and create a representation of the architecture that can indeed be ‘lived in’ albeit virtually.
Keystone Bouchard of the ever excellent The Arch Blog has modelled the Porchdog house by Marlon Blackwell Architect in Second Life and with it taken the concept of Living the Architecture near to completion.
The movie below provides a good overview of the process from origional CAD rendering to drawings lined up in Second Life and finally the completed building:
The Porchdog was developed as part of Archtiecture for Humanity, the concept is a raised residence for areas at risk of climate impact such as New Orleans.
The proposition of raising a home 12 feet above the ground introduces several issues that challenge the traditional notion of the Gulf Coast streetscape and affiliated porch culture. Among these is the very concept of having a porch that is an extension of the interior space.
In addition, the massing of a proportionally tall house speaks more of isolation than of the construct of a meaningful social space through a series of houses enclosing the street. The Porchdog house addresses these challenges while providing the requisite protection from a potential Category 4 storm surge event.
As we saw in yesterday’s post on Real Estate Goes Virtual Second Life can be viewed as ‘Living the Architecture’. Despite limited import tools using site plans it is possible to group build and create a representation of the architecture that can indeed be ‘lived in’ albeit virtually.
Keystone Bouchard of the ever excellent The Arch Blog has modelled the Porchdog house by Marlon Blackwell Architect in Second Life and with it taken the concept of Living the Architecture near to completion.
The movie below provides a good overview of the process from origional CAD rendering to drawings lined up in Second Life and finally the completed building:
The Porchdog was developed as part of Archtiecture for Humanity, the concept is a raised residence for areas at risk of climate impact such as New Orleans.
The proposition of raising a home 12 feet above the ground introduces several issues that challenge the traditional notion of the Gulf Coast streetscape and affiliated porch culture. Among these is the very concept of having a porch that is an extension of the interior space.
In addition, the massing of a proportionally tall house speaks more of isolation than of the construct of a meaningful social space through a series of houses enclosing the street. The Porchdog house addresses these challenges while providing the requisite protection from a potential Category 4 storm surge event.
Bionatics, a developer of 3D plant, landscape modeling and simulation tools for the 3D industry, has just announced the upcoming release of its newest simulation software: LandSIM3D®.
LandSIM 3D – is by way of the press release – a new generation of simulation software developed for analysis, design, planning and presentation of landscape and urban projects. With Bionatics kind permission we have uploaded a sample movie of LandSIM as detailed below:
LandSIM3D will be revealed for the first time in the United Kingdom during two exclusive conferences scheduled in London, October 15th and Manchester, October 16th with prestigious guests such at Scott Wilson, The Ordnance Survey and the Forestry Commission of France invited to testimony about their experience with LandSIM3D:
“The upcoming release of LandSIM3D is a great opportunity for a large range of urban planners and landscape professionals since this new 3D tool will give them an ability to rapidly visualize large geographical or territorial information data that are often complex and difficult to understand in a simple and convenient way” explains Stephan GOURGOUT, Sales Director and co-founder of Bionatics. “LandSIM3D makes it possible to quickly correlate vectorial data coming from GIS and aerial photos to deliver a realistic and geo-referenced 3D model: an accurate base from which projects can then be inserted and studied with their alternatives and their environmental impacts”.
LandSIM3D is different from traditional 3D imagery solutions, normally reserved for computer graphics experts. It offers a whole gamut of features and services which are directed towards landscape and urban planning professionals and includes a simple interface which guides the operator with the new use of the 3D. LandSIM3D thus proposes to accompany the professionals in their everyday practice through the following key steps:
MODEL the existing landscape in 3D to better analyze and study it in a few hours only.
INSERT your architecture, infrastructure, urban or even new landscape project simply in this existing environment.
STUDY the possible alternatives of your project, its environmental impacts and its evolution in the future.
PRESENT your decisions and EXPLAIN your choices thanks to the interactive 3D visualization. A must have tool for your public meetings and presentations.
LandSIM3D is scheduled to be released in November 2007, in United Kingdom.
Registration for the LandSIM3D UK launch tour can be made online at www.landsim3d.com.
For more information about LandSIM3D, contact Bionatics +33 1 56 02 04 20 or by email: infolandsim3d@bionatics.com
We hope to be at the launch in London and will carry full review of the software as soon as we get hold of a trial version…
In essence the only plus points about the IPod Touch are the extra memory (if you go for the 16Gb option) and not having to sign up to a new phone contract, compared to the IPhone.