Nokia introduces a leading edge connected camera, navigation device and multimedia computer in one.

Nokia unveils the Nokia N82, the latest multimedia computer optimized for photography, navigation and internet connectivity. With the tools to discover the places and moments worth capturing, and the capabilities to capture and share them instantaneously, the Nokia N82 offers photography enthusiasts an enhanced camera experience.

Discover, capture and share
The Nokia N82 enables you to explore your surroundings and find your way with navigation and routing; document your adventures with the high quality imaging capabilities; and instantly share your experiences with one click upload to the web.

Featuring A-GPS, 5 megapixel camera, Xenon flash, Carl Zeiss optics and internet connectivity, the Nokia N82 also incorporates all the multimedia computer features common to Nokia Nseries. Like its predecessor the Nokia N95, the Nokia N82 is the latest epitome of a truly converged device that is not one thing but is many.

Discover the world
The powerful A-GPS and preinstalled* Nokia Maps help you explore and locate new places, whether in another country or just around the corner. All Nokia N82 standard sales packages come with a free voice guided navigation trial*, and you can purchase additional features, such as city guides and longer subscription to the navigation.

With access to more than 15 million points of interest, you can locate and navigate to the most interesting sights, bars or restaurants wherever you are. You can also send map excerpts and routes to friends by MMS or save map screen shots to the gallery.

Capture your experiences
With a 5 megapixel camera, powerful Xenon flash and Carl Zeiss optics, the Nokia N82 delivers remarkably vivid photographs, even in low-light conditions. Fast camera activation, autofocus with a dedicated autofocus assist lamp, fast reloading between shots and DVD-like quality video capture make it a truly convenient and credible tool for capturing and telling your life stories.

Thanks to the 2GB microSD card in the standard Nokia N82 sales package*, you can store up to 900 high-resolution photos or up to 84 minutes of high quality video on the device.

Share your stories
With high speed Wi-Fi connectivity and one-click upload to online communities, the Nokia N82 makes sharing your experiences and discoveries easy. When viewing a picture or video, simply one press of a button starts uploading it while you carry on using the device for other purposes.

Or you can impress your friends with multimedia slideshows – complete with music and effects – on the high resolution display or on a compatible TV.

The Nokia N82 comes with the new content driven 3D multimedia menu and includes a convenient orientation sensor that rotates the user interface automatically between horizontal and portrait mode. For quick and easy access to entertainment content, the Nokia N82 also supports the Ovi family of Nokia internet services, including Nokia Music Store, N-Gage games** and Nokia Maps.

Rochester, New York — Strafford County residents might have seen a strange looking orange minivan driving around in the last few weeks, capped with multiple cameras and foreign looking wired machines. Some might have asked themselves, What in the name of all that is good and holy is that thing doing?

The vans represent the next stage in maps. For nearly 42 centuries, maps changed very little. They became more accurate, but they remained a two-dimensional representation of the land and water underneath us.

But cartography has come a long way in the past 40 years. And Rochester and its surrounding communities have just been recorded.

Tele Atlas, a global corporation based in The Netherlands with American headquarters in Lebanon, N.H., is in the second phase of a three-year project, mapping the United States and Canada precisely.

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In a world where portable G.P.S. navigation devices cost less than US$200 and free mapping software from Google, Microsoft and AOL is available online, is there any reason to buy a trip-planning program for your computer?

Apparently, Microsoft and DeLorme still think there is. Both companies offer extensive trip making programs updated for this year. Microsoft’s Streets & Trips 2008 comes in various versions, but the basic US$40 package includes road maps of the United States and Canada, as well as 1.6 million points of interest, like A.T.M.’s, hotels, and restaurants.

DeLorme’s US$40 Street Atlas USA 2008 includes similar mapping and planning features, and the company says it has more than four million points of interest, as well as highway maps of Mexico and the ability to transfer maps to an iPod.

To picture how these programs are supposed to be used, just recall how mom and dad used to spread out maps on the dining-room table to plot the family vacation weeks in advance. That’s who these products are aimed at: people who enjoy planning ahead and then printing out maps of their route.

To compete with satellite navigation systems, both products can be decked out with an optional Global Positioning System antenna to deliver live, spoken, turn-by-turn directions, albeit from a laptop computer in the front passenger seat.

Nevertheless, neither can compete against the portable navigation devices available from Garmin, TomTom and Magellan. It’s just much easier to spot an approaching turn on a small screen perched on the dash than it is to glance at a computer on the seat — or at a map in your lap, for that matter. (via The New York Times)

Two 15th century maps stolen from the Spanish National Library in Madrid, Spain have been recovered, with the help of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation’s special art crime department.

The maps, from an edition of Ptolemy’s Geographia, were found at a home of a private collector in Sydney, Australia who claimed that he bought them at a public auction in London.

“The theft of cultural property is a worldwide problem which the FBI takes very seriously. This type of crime is not only an offense against an institution, but deprives the international community of its cultural heritage,” FBI Director Robert Mueller said. “We are pleased to assist the Spanish National Police and Civil Guard in returning these treasures to their rightful owners.”

Meanwhile, the investigating team has confirmed the robber’s identity. His name is Cesar Gomez Rivero, a 60-year-old man originally from Uruguay with Spanish nationality living in Argentina. The authorities of United Kingdom, Australia and Argentina have recovered nine other maps. In total, 11 stolen maps were recovered. (via AHN)

Gasoline pump maker Gilbarco Veeder-Root said Wednesday a new service will let drivers use Google Maps to get directions while filling up at the pump.

Mountain View-based Google Inc.’s mapping service will be integrated into Gilbarco’s Applause media system, which has been incorporated in its Encore pumps with color screens and Internet connections.

“Getting directions at the pump is safer than using Internet-enabled devices from the driver’s seat and far more reliable than just asking a stranger,” Kirsten Paust, VP of global retail systems at Gilbarco, said in a statement.

Participating stations will provide a color screen where users can go online to search for directions and landmarks. A hard copy will be available off the receipt printer.

Gilbarco plans to roll out early next month, initially at about 3,500 gas pumps. (via East Bay Business Times)

The modernized Global Positioning System Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite, launched from Cape Canaveral on Oct. 17, has been declared fully operational for military and civilian navigation users around the globe, following a successful on-orbit checkout by a combined U.S. Air Force/Lockheed Martin team.

The satellite, designated GPS IIR-17M, is the fourth in a series of eight satellites that bring new capabilities to military and civilian users of the GPS system. Each satellite features a modernized antenna panel that provides increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti- jamming capabilities for the military, and a second civil signal that will provide users with an open access signal on a different frequency.

Lockheed Martin’s operations team conducted the on-orbit deployment and checkout of all spacecraft systems in just over six days, allowing Air Force Space Command’s 2nd Space Operations Squadron (2 SOPS) based at Schriever Air Force Base, Colo., to conduct the navigation payload initialization. The satellite was subsequently declared operational on Oct. 31 for both civil and military users.

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Top Backpacker Destinations Australia
by Explore Australia Publishing

Publication Date – November 2007 / $29.95 paperback / 260 pages / 232 x 168 mm / Colour photographs
ISBN – 1 7411 7235 7

Top Backpacker Destinations Australia is the ultimate guide for budget-conscious travellers wanting to journey around Australia – and want to have fun doing it.

Focusing only on the ‘top’ destinations in every state, the guide has detailed chapters on each capital city and the best touring regions. There is information and reviews on attractions, tours, adventure activities, food, nightlife, budget-friendly accommodation and contact organisations.

With colourful images and colour-coded state sections, the guide is structured so that backpackers will make sure not to miss the best that each Australian region has to offer. The guide is also supplemented by introductory information, including air travel, money matters, working holiday visas and Explore Australia’s ‘Top 10s’.

The back section of the guide features a 40-page, fully indexed Australia-wide road atlas. This atlas section is great for backpackers interested in driving around the country, or for those who simply want a good understanding of the country’s geography.

• Includes all the information that any backpacker would need to journey around Australia.
• Strong focus on ‘top’ destinations, making it easier for backpackers to decide on the best places to visit. Aimed specifically at the backpacker/young traveller market, with information and reviews on adventure activities, bars, pubs and nightclubs.
• Practical information including contact organisations and websites.
• Fully indexed Australia-wide road maps.

Great price point at $29.95 and perfect for the huge backpacker/young traveler market.

via BBC News Online

BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, has bought the travel guide publisher, Lonely Planet.

Lonely Planet, founded by husband and wife team Tony and Maureen Wheeler in 1972, publishes around 500 titles that are widely used by backpackers.

The purchase fits in with BBC plans to grow online revenues and expand operations in America and Australia.

Lonely Planet also produces travel programmes and its web site receives 4.3 million visitors a month.

The Wheelers, who owned the business along with John Singleton, will retain a 25% shareholding in the company.

“We felt that BBC Worldwide would provide a platform true to our vision and values, while allowing us to take the business to the next level,” they said.

The amount paid was not disclosed. The BBC said that the deal would strengthen Lonely Planet’s visibility and growth potential. It would also allow Lonely Planet users to access BBC content – such as Michael Palin’s New Europe.

After travelling overland from Europe to Australia, the Wheelers produced their first book, Across Asia on the Cheap, from their kitchen table.

Today, Lonely Planet has offices in Melbourne, Oakland and London, with more than 500 office employees and more than 300 on-the-road authors.

Google Maps

Provides directions, interactive maps, and satellite/aerial imagery of the United States. Can also search by keyword such as type of business.

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