After a sweltering summer, Tech with Taylor is back for the fall semester. I’ll be bringing you the latest news in tech along with in-depth analysis of ongoing events every single week.
But for now, let’s take a look back at what happened over the summer.
1. Elon Musk unveils the Hyperloop
SpaceX founder Elon Musk shared his plans for a new form of transportation called the Hyperloop in a blog post August 12.
The concept boils down to shooting passenger cars through what amounts to a vacuum tube at sub-sonic speeds.
Now the tube isn’t a perfect vacuum — that’s incredibly dangerous — but it has a very low pressure, decreasing the forces acting on the car that would otherwise make it slower or require more energy to overcome. Additionally, Musk proposed placing air compressors on the front and back of the cars, essentially moving the air from the front of the car to the rear.
The loop would be suspended on pillars that mostly follow California’s I-5.
Musk estimates such a mode of transportation would cut travel time between San Francisco and Los Angeles to 30 minutes and cost around $6 billion.
This idea is in almost direct opposition to the proposed California High-Speed Rail project, which voters approved for near $10 billion in funding in November 2008. While the rail would travel around 220 mph, Musk’s Hyperloop would travel closer to 800 mph.
Critics have said the loop would be susceptible to earthquakes or a prime target for terrorists, which, at least for the earthquakes, is less of an issue since the loop will be built on pillars designed specifically for earthquakes.
As for the terrorist threat, CNET’s Molly Wood refutes that complaint expertly:
“The list of things our species wouldn’t have if we were only concerned about death, discomfort, or security issues is long and goes all the way back to domesticating horses or even fashioning sticks and stones that were kind of sharp. These are reasonable questions to ask, but if they’re the first questions we ask, we’re letting fear dictate our future, and that future will inevitably disappoint because we never tried anything. We might die, or we might not, but we shouldn’t live in fear when we could first just try it.”
I really suggest reading her entire blog post, it’s excellent.
2. Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer announces his departure
Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer surprisingly announced his plan to retire within a year in a blog post on on the company’s website August 23.
The only CEO other than Steve Gates to lead the software giant, Ballmer has lead Microsoft for 13 years, through an era of never-before-seen profits, but also through some difficult times.
Though Microsoft Office is still the dominant office suite, the company has had trouble adapting to the mobile marketplace. Apple and Google have all but a stranglehold on the mobile OS marketshare, and Windows Phone, while a completely competent OS, is struggling to grow.
Various interviews since the announcement have shown that the exact timing may have not been Ballmer’s choice. His blog post states:
“My original thoughts on timing would have had my retirement happen in the middle of our transformation to a devices and services company focused on empowering customers in the activities they value most. We need a CEO who will be here longer term for this new direction.”
A search committee is being formed to find a replacement for Ballmer.
3. Apple details iOS 7, rumored release date in September alongside iPhone 5S
Apple revealed the next version of its mobile operating system in a press conference June 10.
TDR contributing writer Renee Barrow wrote a great news story in Tuesday’s paper.
iOS 7 completely changes the way your iPhone will look. There’s no more skeumorphism, or designs that attempt to replicate real life, like the hideous green felt in Game Center or the awfully accurate yellow legal pad in Notes. Instead, there are clean lines, bright colors and transparent layers found throughout the OS.
Unfortunately, the changes mostly end there. There’s nothing that will drastically change your iPhone experience, save the new Control Center that gives quick access to certain applications and settings. Everything just looks different.
And that might not be enough to fix the stagnant nature of iOS.
The fact that new iPhone will also not sport any significant difference from the iPhone 5, which, if we’re being honest, only has one major difference from the iPhone 4S, only compounds the issue.
Rumored features of the next iPhone — most likely dubbed “5S” — include a dual-LED flash, more color options (champagne and gunmetal) and … that’s it.
According to AllThingsD, Apple will reveal the next iPhone (and possibly a cheaper version) on September 10. Invites for Cupertino’s events usually come out a week in advance, so we should know if ATD’s source holds up soon.
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Check back next Thursday for an update from the IFA mobile conference in Berlin as well as confirmation on the reveal date for the next iPhone. As always, thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next week for the latest and greatest in tech.
