The ZCam

Zcam (Gizmodo Article)

The ZCam from 3DV Systems is the first consumer low-cost camera that can capture depth information or in other words, 3d space. It's like the Wiimote except no extra peripherals are needed, just your hands and body. In a demonstration at GDC this past week, a guy went through a piece of software almost identical to the one from Minority Report using hand motions to go through different folders and move his way around. "It gets 3D information by emitting pulses of infra-red light to all objects in the scene and sensing the reflected light from the surface of each object." It can detect 3d motion and volume down to 0.4 inches with full color 1.3 megapixel video at 60 frames per second. There won't be any lag if it is used in applications like video games or training programs. Not sure on when it's going to be released, but I can't wait to see what companies will do with this.

Internet Browsers

There are tons of other browsers out there other than IE, and thankfully they're almost as good if not better in many ways. Here are three that are pretty popular and useful.

1.) Firefox

Firefox was designed to be a simple browser with great security and also able to use many extensions. Many add-ons make it great for web-development and makes Html and CSS much easier to deal with as you can change things on the fly to see what you like best. It's skinnable, has it's own phishing filter, and is great for RSS. It really isn't very different from IE in many ways. Like most other browsers it's free as well. I personally use this browser the most because it's just so reliable. It never crashes, unlike IE, and is faster than any other browser I've used. I also added a tool bar on for my Computer Science class and it helped me tremendously in making beginner websites for class. By far my favorite.

2) Safari

Safari came out in 2003 and was basically Apple trying to punch Microsoft in the face. It's known for it's stylishness and speed, and Mac users loved it so much that they eventually quit making IE for Macs. Like Firefox it's free and can be downloaded for Windows or Mac. It has integrated RSS which really sets it apart from the first 2. Unfortunately there's no real web service and productivity applications, which means web development would probably be a little tougher on it. It just really stands apart from IE in it's elegance and RSS support.

3) Opera

This browser has been around since 1996 and yet many people haven't heard of it. It has tons of great features, integrated RSS, it's fast, has a great community, and is just a powerhouse. Unfortunately it's ugly and the UI is a little off, but not too much. Really this browser should be the best out there, but it isn't marketed as much as it should be so people don't really know about it. Nintendo has been one company to acknowledge it, as it is the web browser used for the Wii. Like the last two browsers it's free, and available on both Windows and Mac. This browser could be the one with the potential to take over, but they just need to put more money into marketing.

After studying up on browsers a little bit more I'm seriously considering trying out Opera for a while. I hardly saw any negatives on any of the websites and it seems to be the obvious best one.

Computer Package

Well here it is, not too fond of prebuilt computer packages as they seem to rip you off but here goes.

Customized xps 210

5)Desktop
6)Dell
7)XPS 210
8)Intel
9)2.4 GHz
10)4 Gigs
11)1 320 gig SATA HD
12)Yes, there is at least one as it lets you add a floppy drive or media card reader.
13)Windows Vista Home Premium
14)320 Gb
15)8 USB ports, 2(?) ethernet, 2 firewire, and an optional media card reader.
16)LCD
17)19"
18)Dell
19)AIO 926
20)Doesn't say, but I'm going to guess Ink-Jet
21)20ppm black 15ppm color
22)Trend Micro Internet Security, Microsoft Works 8

If I had the choice of building my own or buying it in a package...definitely build my own, save a couple hundred bucks and it's much more powerful.