Geekly Update - 27 June 2012

The AskBobRankin Geekly Update

After all the controversy surrounding cellphone radiation and brain cancer, the FCC chairman has called for a formal inquiry on the subject, the first in 15 years.

July 12 is the start of the Olympics and in honor of the event, there is a Facebook portal for London 2012 that is already "liked" by about 3 million. There are pages on events and athletes, but there are restrictions on users uploading videos and what the athletes themselves can post.

The U.S. Air Force's X-37B completed a 15 month flight last Saturday that seemed to be surrounded in secrecy. Although the AF claims that it was simply performing scientific experiments, there are rumors that the former NASA unmanned plane may be used for spying or as a type of futuristic weapon.

Microsoft unveiled the Windows 8, ARM-based Surface, their contribution to the tablet wars. With a 10.6" display, the device can play tunes, videos and games, takes advantage of apps, runs Office and comes with a built-in kickstand and touchpad cover.

Speaking of Microsoft, they previewed their Window Phone 8 OS that includes customized tiles, GPS and a wallet type security system. The next gen cell phone will feature IE10 with its faster browser and NFC (Near Field Communication) for sharing.

Spotify is dropping its $10.00 monthly mobile music fee and will instead offer ad-supported tunes. The free service that lets users listen to playlists and rate music is only available on iPhones/iPads for now as other users must still pay for the service.

Sharp takes the prize with the planet's largest LED TV with its 90" AQUOS LC-90LE745U. Almost 4 feet tall and 6 feet across, with a price tag to match. You'll have to cough up $10,999 to own one.

There are Twitter causes and animals who tweet, and now BOS Iced Tea is the proud owner of a traveling Twitter-activated vending machine, presently in Cape Town, South Africa. BEV gives out a sample when users tweet the hash tag #BOSTWEET4T on their mobile devices. Check out BEV at work here.

Firefox users, if you have noticed problems with your Adobe Flash Player 11.3, you are not alone as many have noticed crashes, screen freezing and video that might not play. While attempting to correct the problem, Mozilla has some workarounds you can try.

"Reading: The Next Generation." While I remember LeVar Burton best in his role of Geordi LaForge from "Star Trek: TNG," some associate him with "Reading Rainbow" and will be thrilled with his next gig, a free iPad app with an optional subscription service. Over 150 interactive books and 16 video field trips are available so far.