IRCTC launches e-wallet scheme to make ticket booking simpler

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) have been making various efforts to make ticket reservation/cancellation process easier for people. IRCTC has now taken one step further in this direction as it launches a new e-wallet scheme for users.

The new initiative is a 'rolling deposit scheme' wherein users have an account with the IRCTC and have a sum already deposited that can be used for future tickets bookings. With e-wallet, process of booking tickets is expected to become less time-consuming.

According to an IRCTC official, the current system takes a relatively long time as the customer is directed to a bank's service, from IRCTC service, to make the payment and the again redirected to the IRCTC website.

Only PAN card verified users can register for the e-wallet scheme. In case of cancelling a ticket, IRCTC will credit the refund to the e-Wallet account next day.

The official asserted that there are many instances when customer's login in the IRCTC website expires during the money transaction, thus money is deducted from user's account but he is unable to retrieve the ticket.

E-wallet scheme ensures the customer is not directed to the bank's server for the payment, ultimately saving considerable time and increasing accuracy. The official reveals the new initiative has received good response since its launch in the second week of this month.

So far, about 4,000 registrations have been made for the IRCTC e-wallet scheme.

Worldfloat adds free online movie streaming service

Worldfloat adds free online movie streaming service

Home-grown social networking website Worldfloat has introduced free online movie streaming service for its users. Out of total 25,0000 movies, 18,000 are English and 7,000 are in Hindi. The social networking company plans to add more movies of different languages including Telegu, Malayalam, Punjabi, Bengal, and Italian and French.

“Worldfloat's movie feature is currently the largest free movie service in the world for both English and Hindi movies. The English and Hindi movies on Worldfloat range from the year 1890 to the latest 2013 movies,” says the company in a release.

“Despite being the largest social networking website in the world, Facebook does not have this feature of watching free movies on its website, while Worldfloat has its movie service for free for its users . Netflix being the world's largest core movie service also does not offer free for all movies like Worldfloat.”

Worldfloat.com recently launched its own news and image search engines, taking on the likes of Google and Yahoo.

The social networks aim to launch a 'social commenting facility', which will enable users to comment and share on news stories through its search engine.

“This social commenting and sharing will be based on keywords or topics of real-time world news and will help its users share and gather knowledge, learning and insights on all world subjects and topics and real time news events. Using the news engine technology and vision Worldfloat will combine at once Google's news search and social networking of Facebook at the same time,” said the company.

Google launches Helpouts, connects users with experts via live video

Google has announced a new tool called Helpouts, which aims at assisting users on a range of topics including home improvement, education, fashion and beauty, art and music, cooking or medical advice through live video chats. Google has teamed up with companies such as Sephora, One Medical and Rosetta Stone to provide real-time assistance through live video. According to Google, over 1,000 companies have participated in the company's new initiative.

Google allows companies to fix their own prices, charge users either by minute or session, or even flat free. However, Google hopes most of the providers will be offering free services. There's also an option to set up an appointment with a particular vendor or connect with expert, if he/she is available, instantly.

Users have the option to select providers based on availability, price, ratings, reviews or qualifications. Google conducts a background check of providers before allowing them to join the platform.

Google Helpouts charges a flat 20% transaction fee on all paid and non-Health Helpouts. For free Helpouts, Google does not charge any transaction fee. Starting January 1, 2014, Health Helpouts will be charged a transaction fee like all other paid Helpouts.

“In case of a provider-issued refund, the transaction fee is refunded proportionately to the amount refunded. If the provider issues a full refund, the full transaction fee is also returned to the customer,” says Google.

“The transaction fee covers credit card fees, the cost of offering users a 100% Money Back Guarantee, paid advertising and promotion, and the cost of running Helpouts.”

“Google’s mission is to organize the world’s useful information,” Udi Manber, the Google vice president for engineering in charge of Helpouts, said at a press conference in San Francisco. “But if you do search for a long time, you realize most of the world’s useful information still resides in people’s heads.”

According to Manber, Google is also planning to include offline interactions, such as calling for a home repair expert to visit your house.

To use Helpouts, users must sign in to Google Plus and Google Wallet, which is available online and Android phones.

Helpouts is Google's another attempt at entering the paid expert space. Back in 2002, the company had come up with Google Answers, which was shut down in November 2006. Google, however, believed the Answers was a “great experiment” and had paved the way for “future products”.

To know more about Google's Helpouts service, visit https://helpouts.google.com/home.
 

Pedal charge your laptop with a cycling generator

A US design firm, Pedal Power, has created two cycling generators, Big Rig and Pedal Genny, which produce electrical power. The device generates enough electric power to charge your laptop and helps you burn calories too.

The company stated that, The Pedal Genny is a portable, single function machine with an optional seat, but does not have a work surface. It features a flywheel for smooth pedaling, an all-steel, hand-built frame and full-size cranks. The device can be used for generating electricity, pumping water, and can be easily configured to power most any mechanical device requiring less than 1 horsepower.

The second machine called Big Rig is designed for off-grid applications and features a work surface, with an ergonomic seat for comfort and can make quick adjustments for different riders. It has a flywheel to smooth pedaling, an all-steel hand-built frame and comes with a wide range of gearing.

The company stated on its website that an average adult can use it to generate 100 watts of electricity, operate an air compressor, a hydraulic pump or any hand-cranked machine. The machine has been found to be suitable for small scale agricultural applications such as churning butter, cracking grains and pumping water.

"There are a billion bicycles in the world today -- nearly one in every home. One day, we hope to see every household charging phones, processing food, and pumping water with pedal power," states the team.

"With an efficiency of 97 per cent, bicycle technology is nearly perfect. So why do we use it only for transportation? Bicycle technology can and should be used for many everyday tasks. Using your own power rather than plugging into the grid is not only fun, but helps you understand your energy use and reduce your ecological footprint," the company said.

Source : ET

Now, create your own smartphone controlled robot

Magnetic robot construction kits have been developed by engineers that will allow users to build their own smartphone controlled toy robots that can drive and wiggle.

The robot construction system dubbed as MOSS, uses over-molded neodymium, 'rare earth', magnets and carbon steel ball bearings to construct a wide variety of tiny robots.

The system has been developed by a Colorado firm called Modular Robotics in Boluder, does not require coding or wiring your construction. Users can control the robots remotely using a smartphone or a tablet by attaching a Bluetooth module.

MOSS was created over two and a half years back and has been through various levels of development. According to the company, which launched the system on crownd funding site Kickstarter, the blocks can be put together in various permutations to create unique robots.

"We're already making Moss so we don't need the Kickstarter funding. But in 2013, it seems like the place where people look for cool new tech products," chief executive and design director Eric Schweikardt told the BBC.

The robots will run on a rechargeable lithium polymer battery. Users can also make use of the bundled micro-USB cable to recharge.

The Colorado firm also hopes that MOSS will be accessible to be younger children who can create their own robot. Kits starting at $59 are already on offer to Kickstarter backers for a basic starter kit that will allow them to build a light sensing robot.

However, an advanced kit that lets you build your own Bluetooth controlled car will require you to shell out a whopping $379.

The kits should be begin shipping by early next year.

Source: Kickstarter

How to use your old phone/tablet to power your in-car entertainment system

It's almost inevitable that at least once during the period you own a car, you will consider upgrading the in-car entertainment setup. This may include the head-unit (the central unit that sits in the dash) and even the speakers. While you may go ahead with the other upgrades as planned, we would like to draw your attention to an option that may save you some money. At least with respect to the purchase of a new head-unit.

If you are considering a touchscreen double-DIN unit, be ready to shell out at least Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 18,000 for a basic system with a 5-inch touchscreen. Anything with a bigger 7-inch screen would cost upwards of Rs. 20,000, and the more you look for features like Bluetooth, memory card expandability and video playback, the cost will just go up. But, if you have a tablet that was the apple of your eye at some point of time, or there is a smartphone that you moved on from sometime back, why not get these devices back in shape and use them instead?

Why the need to change? Primary Idea: Save Money on an upgrade!
There are multiple scenarios in play here. Either your car has a factory fitted audio system that you are now bored of. Or the existing head unit has developed faults and needs replacement. If you are considering a single-DIN head-unit replacement, you will have to spend anywhere between Rs. 6,000 to Rs. 15,000 for one, with better features as you go higher up the menu! If it is a double-DIN unit that you crave for, then the entry level versions from recognized brands will cost upwards of Rs. 15,000. However, if the idea of a slightly unconventional setup that saves on expenditure right now doesn’t bother you, please continue reading this.

 

Any other benefit? Many, actually.
Even if you spend Rs. 30,000 on a proper double-DIN unit with a 7-inch touchscreen, from the likes of Pioneer, what you will get at max is Bluetooth connectivity, ability to play back very limited video formats, and “value-adds” like two memory card slots. However, you will still not get stuff like navigation, web connectivity and even social networking on that device. A good old smartphone or tablet can offer all that, without creating a fuss.

With your old smart device, you get music, video playback, the occasional movie for the passengers without many issues with the formats; you may even get GPS navigation via various apps like Google Maps, MapmyIndia, Tom Tom India app etc., and a whole host of connected features like social networking for when you are stuck in a traffic jam, email for when you need to respond immediately and web browser for when the signal remains red for almost an eternity. All in all, you do get to do a whole lot of stuff. Basically, the old smart device will still be a more connected device than what most two-DIN system will offer.

SAFETY WARNING!
While we are all about having the most possible features in that ONE device you need in the car, we would urge you to be extremely careful while driving. Avoid using any gadgets, and do not get distracted by a new email or chat notification. Be it the phone/tablet you are using for music playback, or even your existing smartphone. Please keep your eyes on the road, and only play with these gadgets when you are safely parked somewhere.

What do I need pre-installed? Most existing setups would work.
Before we get into the details of how this would work, let us run you through all the elements of this setup - essentially, what you will need for this to work.

 

It doesn't matter if you are bored of the existing music system or not, all you need is the 3.5mm headphone jack for the phone or tablet to be integrated as the lead device for the in-car infotainment system.

First up, there will be the existing head unit in the car, that currently would handle tasks like cassette (yes, some people still use them) or CD playback, USB input, FM Radio etc. Basically, we need this head unit to work as the interface between the playback device and the speaker, via the aux method. All you need with this system is a 3.5mm aux cable, to plug into the audio system at one end, and the smartphone/tablet at the other. If the port is on the front itself, good for you. If not, you will need to get one installed off the rear of the system - any good audio install person will be able to do this for you in a jiffy. This cable could be the male-to-male cable, for direct connection to a device like an iPod, or a male-to-female cable, with the female end available to you for plugging in a device. This however necessitates the need for another aux cable in play, and we would suggest the typical male-to-male cable to be used here. A good quality one, nevertheless, because you may not want to keep getting this changed every few months.

Secondly, the speakers. You may or may not want to get these changed, but that is irrelevant at the moment. As long as you have the speakers installed, the audio will be good to go. These speakers cannot be directly connected to a playback device, hence the need to route the audio through the existing head unit.

What if I already have Bluetooth in-car?
Even simpler then. You won't need any cables. Every time you switch on the system, let the phone / tablet / MP3 player connect to the head unit, and you are good to go.

So, an old smartphone will work?
Yes, very much. Good you didn’t just throw them away. In fact, even an old tablet or MP3 player will do the same job, equally smoothly. All you need is a working headphone jack on the device, and space to store your music. Expandable storage? Even better! If you happen to have an active SIM card in the phone or tablet (3G enabled versions), you may additionally even enjoy online radio while driving, using an app like TuneIn, for example. Or music from the cloud, something like an iTunes Match or Xbox Music, for example.

Any additional installations? Not strictly necessary.
Well, not really. Surely, the central console will have enough space for you to place the phone or iPod or tablet, once it is connected to the system. However, for those of you who may hate any sort of clutter in the car, there are the universal mounts that you can buy. Not very expensive either, and can hold most smartphones and 7-inch tablets. Good quality smartphone mounts are available for around Rs. 300 onwards, and the ones that can hold 7-inch tablets cost Rs. 600 and above. You can use the suction cup setup to place these securely on the windshield, and out of your way.

There are various universal mounts that let you dock your smartphone (various screen sizes) and even smaller sized tablets safely and out of the way. The one pictured here is the Grip GO Universal mount, that lets you "stick" the phones to it. There are also the "clamp" mechanism versions available. 

There are also in-dash setups that let you slot in the tablet into the same are space as an existing two-DIN head unit, with a modified faceplate. However, that is never ideal, because you miss out on the flexibility of the using an external device anyway. Additionally, not every car's design elements will allow you to do that, for example in the case of a Ford EcoSport (pictures above), which sees the entire audio and Bluetooth system integrated very smoothly with the rest of the gadgetry. Plus, the setup costs considerable amount of money, and not everyone wants their car’s dash to be ripped open. There is no standard for this, and you will have to check with the car accessory dealer for the specifics for your car.

New Technology

How to Enable Intel Wireless Display Differentiation for Miracast on Intel Architecture phone

Introduction

Wireless display technology is becoming more and more popular on Android* phones and tablets since Google started supporting Miracast on Android 4.2. Wireless display technology makes it easier for end users to expand their phone’s LCD size. I think there is a good chance that ISVs will integrate the wireless display feature into their applications, especially games and video players.

But how to realize Intel® wireless display differentiation for Miracast on Android for x86 phones is a big challenge for enabling ISVs. This article introduces how to enable dual display differentiation for Miracast by showing a case study of enabling iQiyi online video player and WPS office on K900. We hope that lots of amazing applications can be enabled in the future.

What is Miracast

The Wi-Fi Alliance officially announced Wi-Fi* CERTIFIED Miracast on 2012.9.19 , which is a groundbreaking solution for seamlessly displaying video between devices, without cables or a network connection. Users can do things like view pictures or videos from a smartphone on a big screen television, share a laptop screen with the conference room projector in real time, and watch live programs from a home cable box on a tablet. Miracast connections are formed using Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Wi-Fi Direct*, so access to a Wi-Fi network is not needed—the ability to connect is inside Miracast certified devices.

The connection of Miracast is based on a Wi-Fi direct, peer to peer connection. The Wi-Fi-based Miracast architecture is shown below.

Figure 1: Miracast* architecture

There are four modes of Miracast connection as shown below:

 Figure 2: Miracast* connection modes

With a Miracast connection, you can enable connectivity across devices without Wi-Fi AP infrastructure, as topology 1 shows. You can also connect to a display via an adaptor while connecting to an AP, as topology 2 shows. It is very convenient to watch online video at home with this mode. If you have a smart TV that also supports Miracast, your TV, AP, and your smartphone can even connect to each other, as topology 4 shows.

According to the Miracast standard, the interactive mode of source and display devices can be diagrammed as follows:

 Figure 3: Miracast* session management

Source and display devices discover each other’s Miracast capabilities prior to connection setup. The connection is based on Wi-Fi direct or TDLS. Source and display devices determine the parameters for the Miracast session based on capability negotiation. The negotiation process is based on the TCP connection. Source devices will transfer content to display devices via MPEG2-TS format based on the UDP connection.

Miracast wireless streaming-supported formats are listed in Table 4.

Table 4: Miracast* streaming format

Miracast on Android 4.2

Google started supporting Miracast on Android version 4.2. End users can share movies, photos, YouTube videos, and anything that’s on your screen with HDTV via wireless display technology. The external HDTV is listed as an external display.

Now Miracast on Android supports clone mode and presentation mode, as shown below:

Figure 5: Miracast* support modes

Clone mode duplicates the phone display on the remote display. The resolution of the frames sent to the adapter matches the resolution of the local display. In this mode, both local and remote displays are turned on and show the same content.

In presentation mode, Android now allows your app to display unique content on additional screens that are connected to the user’s device over either a wired connection or Wi-Fi. The apps must be modified to support this mode, or they will default to clone mode.

Develop differentiation for Miracast on Intel Architecture (IA) phone

Intel’s wireless display solution on Android phones and tablets is fully compatible with Miracast. We also enable some apps with differentiation usages to Miracast on IA phone.

The first one is to enable iQiyi to realize the video background streaming function. Users can send video to a remote display at 1080p resolution using a iQiyi app that enables background streaming while users can navigate out of the app and play 1080p video on the local screen or use any other application, including sending email or accessing their browser without any disruption to background playback, as shown below:

Figure 6: iQiyi video BGM function

The second one is to enable WPS office to realize split the UI function on both local and remote displays. When connecting to TV via wireless display, the enabled WPS office app can show PPT slides on the remote screen while showing PPT notes on the phone’s screen, which is very convenient for the speaker. We plan to add a timer clock on the phone’s screen to give a time reminder to the speaker in the future.

Figure 7: WPS office split UI function

These two differentiation usages are developed based on Miracast’s Presentation mode using the phone’s IA hardware capability. The two applications have been uploaded to Intel AppUp® for end users to download and install on their IA phones.

Case study: How to enable dual display differentiation usages

In this section, I will introduce how to realize a video background streaming function based on our experience of enabling a iQiyi app.

As we know, to realize the video BGM function, the key difficulty is to get a service to play video in the background and deal with the surface view or video view correctly. When users press the home key, the surface view or video view will be destroyed automatically, so we have to apply a secondary display to show the background streaming video. The program flowchart is shown below:

Figure 8: Background video streaming flow chart

To create unique content for a secondary display, extend the Presentation class and implement the onCreate() callback. Within onCreate(), specify your UI for the secondary display by calling setContentView(). As an extension of the Dialog class, the Presentation class provides the region in which your app can display a unique UI on the secondary display.

There are two methods for applying the secondary display for your presentation. Use either the DisplayManager or MediaRouter APIs. The easiest way to choose a presentation display is to use the MediaRouter API. The media router service keeps track of which audio and video routes are available on the system. The media router recommends the preferred presentation display that the application should use if it wants to show content on the secondary display.

Here's how to use the media router to create and show a presentation on the preferred presentation display using getPresentationDisplay().'

1	MediaRouter mediaRouter = (MediaRouter) context.getSystemService(Context.MEDIA_ROUTER_SERVICE);

2	MediaRouter.RouteInfo route = mediaRouter.getSelectedRoute();

3	if (route != null) {

4	Display presentationDisplay = route.getPresentationDisplay();

5	if (presentationDisplay != null) {

6	Presentation presentation = new MyPresentation(context, presentationDisplay);

7	presentation.show();

8

}

9

}

Another way to choose a presentation display is to use the DisplayManager API directly. The display manager service provides functions to enumerate and describe all displays that are attached to the system including displays that may be used for presentations.

The display manager keeps track of all displays in the system. Here's how to identify suitable displays for showing presentations using getDisplays(String) and the DISPLAY_CATEGORY_PRESENTATION category.

1	DisplayManager displayManager = (DisplayManager) context.getSystemService(Context.DISPLAY_SERVICE);

2	Display[] presentationDisplays = displayManager.getDisplays(DisplayManager.DISPLAY_CATEGORY_PRESENTATION);

3	if (presentationDisplays.length > 0) {

4	Display display = presentationDisplays[0];

5	Presentation presentation = new MyPresentation(context, presentationDisplay);

6	presentation.show();

7

}

Developers can Reference the presentation demo code in Android SDK shown as below:

sdksourcesandroid-17androidappPresentation.java

Summary

Besides the selling point of Intel Inside® for IA-based phones and tablets, the wireless display feature may become a shining point. ISVs should take notice and develop more innovative usages based on wireless display, especially the dual display differentiation usages.

For additional development resources visit Intel Developer Zone http://software.intel.com/android