Crocodoc's new viewer aims to banish Acrobat from the office

Y Combinator alum Crocodoc is launching an HTML5-based version of its online document-viewing service today.

The software reads in any kind of document and renders it in HTML5, the latest version of the HTML standard universally used in websites, in real time. Web developers can insert an HTML tag for each document uploaded to Crocodoc’s servers into their site’s code, much as they might embed a YouTube video on a page. Users can then scroll … Continue Reading

LVestus grabs $750M for no-money-down geothermal

Though geothermal energy is hardly common at the moment, one company is looking to change that — by offering geothermal heating and cooling systems for no money down.

LVestus Energy announced today it had secured $750 million in initial project funding from Sundance Capital Group.

The company offers a purchase agreement program called GeoTPA (thermal purchase agreement) that allows municipalities, schools, buildings and property owners to install geothermal ground source heat pumps that can replace … Continue Reading

Verizon iPhone sales slower than expected

We’re still awaiting official numbers on Verizon iPhone sales, but according to leaked sales data they didn’t meet expectations, the mobile news site Boy Genius Report reveals.

BGR was given sales totals from five Apple stores (including “two very, very prominent” stores) for the first five days of the Verizon iPhone’s availability. While the Verizon iPhone started with a big lead on its February 10 launch day (909 sales versus AT&T’s 539), that slowly narrowed … Continue Reading

EcoATM nabs $14.4M to build electronics-recycling kiosks

In the future EcoATM is envisioning, you’ll be able to recycle your old cell phone for cash — or donate it to charity — via a kiosk by your grocery store or gas station. The San Diego startup said today it has raised $14.4 million in a first round of funding.

EcoATM makes an automated kiosk that uses artificial intelligence, electronic diagnostics and advanced machine vision to buy back electronics from consumers for cash or … Continue Reading

Motorola: WiFi-only Xoom tablet to cost $600

It seems that all is not lost for Motorola’s slick new Xoom Android tablet, which we previously said would suffer because of its $800 retail price. Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha revealed today that the company will offer a WiFi-only Xoom for around $600, Reuters reports.

That makes the Xoom $100 more expensive than the 16 gigabyte WiFi-only iPad, but since it comes with 32 gigabytes of storage, it’s the same price as Apple’s 32GB … Continue Reading

SlideShare takes the hassle out of Web meetings

SlideShare, a website that makes it easy for people to share presentation slides, is announcing a new product today that co-founder and chief executive Rashmi Sinha promised will offer “a whole new paradigm” for Web meetings.

There’s a good chance that you’ve sat through a Web meeting or two at some point. I usually end up doing at least two or three a week. And existing products like WebEx and Gotomeeting are, for the most … Continue Reading

Yes, there will be Angry Birds for Windows Phone 7

A squabble occurred between Microsoft and the Finnish game house Rovio, maker of the incredibly popular mobile game Angry Birds. Microsoft used the Angry Birds logo when launching its mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7, without Rovio’s consent, which didn’t go down well with the company. But now, Rovio has confirmed a Windows Phone 7 version of the hit game.

Bygones, right?

In truth, it makes a whole lot of sense for Rovio to let … Continue Reading

Protesting Nokia shareholders give up after facing cold hard reality (update: all a hoax)

Update: Well it turns out the Nokia “Plan B” investors were a hoax all along by one very bored engineer “who really likes his iPhone.” Our hearts go out to all the Nokia fanatics who thought they had investor support.
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Nokia’s new partnership with Microsoft is an exciting, but risky, attempt to rejuvenate an ailing company. So of course, stubborn young Nokia stockholders — who for some reason didn’t see any reason to … Continue Reading

Video games aren't a waste of time!

We play more than 3 billion hours a week of video games. Jane McGonigal, director of game research at the Institute for the Future, would like to see us play more than 21 billion hours a week. She thinks we can get there by overcoming misconceptions about games and building games that have a broader interest and more meaning.

McGonigal’s research, captured in the new book Reality is Broken: Why games make us better and … Continue Reading

When will Android apps outnumber iPhone apps? Mid-2012

Apple has had a long head start in mobile apps over new archrival Google.

But new data shows that the number of Android apps has grown 127 percent since August and offerings in Google’s Android Market should outnumber the total for iPhone apps by mid-2012. Apple’s App Store wares grew 44 percent in the same time.

The data comes from the App Genome Project, a research project undertaken by Lookout Mobile Security, a mobile app … Continue Reading

Paid apps are on the rise in the maturing Android Market

The Android Market used to be a disaster for paid apps, at least compared to the heavy preponderance of paid apps on Apple’s App Store.

But Android is catching up as its marketplace matured in the past six months. That’s important for Google, maker of the Android operating system, because it means that its developers will be more successful selling apps. And having successful developers is critical for Google as it competes with Apple.

Paid … Continue Reading

China's alternative Android Markets: lots of app choices, piracy, and security risks

Google hasn’t opened an Android Market in China, so a number of Chinese carriers, phone makers, and independent companies have opened their own versions of the Android Market there. The result is a lot of app choices for Chinese users, but there are also more security risks.

Android has a lot of potential in the Chinese market. If the marketplace for apps can come together, then China could become a land of huge opportunities for … Continue Reading

Deals & More: Catch grabs $7M for mobile note taking

Today’s funding announcements include one company that tracks users’ thoughts online and another that tracks their data:

Catch snags $7M to securely capture notes on the go: The developer of mobile apps for taking notes on smartphones has raised a first round of funding led by Excel Venture Management. Founded in 2008, the San Francisco-based startup allows users to securely write down, organize and sync notes on Android and Apple devices.

Singly gets $1.6M to … Continue Reading

Gamers are using Vivox voice chat like crazy

Vivox has figured out something good: gamers like to chat. The gamer voice chat company is announcing today that it had 45 million users in 2010, up 150 percent from 18.5 million at the end of 2009.

While voice chat companies may seem old hat, the Vivox success shows that focusing on a passionate group of users and serving them well has its rewards.

Gamers use Vivox to chat with each other over the internet … Continue Reading

Pro gamers to get recognition as athletes on major sports broadcasts

Professional gamers have been trying to get primetime attention as real athletes for years. They’re finally succeeding now, as evidenced by the fact that a major sports broadcast distributor has agreed to air the broadcasts of Major League Gaming across its different distribution channels, meaning pro gamers will get as much exposure as other athletes on broadcast media.

Major League Gaming chief executive Sundance DiGiovanni said in an interview that sports-fashion-media company IMG Worldwide is … Continue Reading

IBM’s Watson obliterates humans in first Jeopardy round

After tying for first place last night, IBM’s Watson supercomputer trounced its human competitors tonight in the conclusion of the first round of its Jeopardy challenge.

Watson ended the night with $35,754, while former human Jeopardy champs Brad Rutter and Ken Jennings scored $10,000 and $4,800 respectively.

That’s a huge divide, and it goes to show just how much IBM has progressed since its supercomputer Deep Blue defeated chess grandmaster Gary Kasparov in 1997. It’s … Continue Reading

Nvidia, Qualcomm in mobile race to power holiday gadgets

Graphics chipmaker Nvidia announced today that it will have “the world’s first quad-core” mobile processor out today. That means its latest offering for cell phones and other mobile devices features four processing brains in one chip.

San Jose-based Nvidia is in a race with San Diego’s Qualcomm, which announced a quad-core chip yesterday, to get to market the fastest with a mobile chip that has screaming performance.

This competitive battle reminds me of the competitive … Continue Reading

How far can Apple push developers?

Apple revealed the details of its previously announced subscription feature for applications on the iPad and iPhone today, and there’s been a pretty loud backlash.

What’s the problem? At first glance, the rules seem fair enough. Apple takes a 30 percent cut of subscriptions sold through the App Store, but publishers are free to offer subscriptions elsewhere, for example through their website. (There’s something kind of hilarious about the fact that Apple says explicitly, “Since … Continue Reading

Waiting for Superman pledge turns up $5M for change in schools

Waiting for Superman, a popular documentary about America’s public school woes which drew particular attention from Silicon Valley’s entrepreneurial class, comes out on DVD today, February 15. In September, Paramount Pictures announced that NewSchools Venture Fund had committed to investing $5 million in entrepreneurial education organizations if over 150,000 pledged to watch the film.

That target was reached in October, and New Schools is now announcing the first three recipients.

NewSchools partner Jonathan Schorr said … Continue Reading