The world's first computer art?

The year is 1956. You are a mainframe programmer writing software for a U.S. military computer. You have the opportunity to create the first art to be displayed on a computer screen. What would you draw?

I love nature, so I'd probably choose a tree or a flower or a mountain — something that would be seen as a universal symbol of beauty. As it turns out, the programmer who created the first computer art chose a somewhat different form of beauty: a pin-up girl.

I kid you not.

You can read the entire story on the Atlantic website.

New wallpaper for your BlackBerry PlayBook — QNX concept car 2013

Our good friend (and ace graphics designer) Michael Ball took some excellent photos of the new QNX technology concept car, just before it was shipped to 2013 CES. I thought this photo looked especially cool when displayed on my PlayBook tablet, so I converted it into a wallpaper that you can download from my Flickr page:



To download the wallpaper to your PlayBook:

1. Go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulleroux
2. Tap the wallpaper.
3. A larger image will appear. Tap Actions, then tap View all sizes.
4. An even larger image will appear! Tap Download the Large size of this photo.
5. Your PlayBook will ask you to enter a file name. Type something meaningful, such as concept_car_wallpaper.jpg, and tap Save.
6. From the PlayBook home screen, tap Pictures, then tap Downloads.
7. Tap the wallpaper you want, swipe from the top of the screen and tap Set as Wallpaper.
   
   You're done!

Missed the latest QNX Source newsletter? No worries!

If you follow this blog, you may have noticed that I encourage everyone to sign up for the QNX Source newsletter. It is, in my humble opinion, the best way to keep tabs on the latest QNX videos, press releases, products, software updates, webinars, and whitepapers. (Mind you, I write the newsletter, so perhaps I'm not so humble after all. :)

Seriously, though, I encourage you to subscribe today. If you want to know what you're missing — or if you missed a recent edition — no problem. We're now archiving past issues on the QNX website.

Just click here to visit the newsletter archive, and you can catch up on a whole years' worth of news. (You'll notice that we didn't issue a newsletter in December — but believe me, January will be a doozy.)

QNX at 2013 CES: The media's take

The show ain't over yet, but already, media coverage of the QNX concept car at 2013 CES is pouring in faster than my modest brain can handle. I'm still catching up, but here, in no particular order, are my favorite stories so far.

I'd love to hear what you think of what the media is saying. So before you go, let me know!

New York Times — A Tricked-Out Bentley at CES Shows Off Tech’s Capabilities

Washington Post — CES 2013: Car tech focuses on making the most of your time on the road — safely

Driving.ca — QNX's Bentley gives glimpse of future car tech

Engadget — QNX unveils concept Bentley Continental GT alongside Car Platform 2.0

CNET — QNX concept Bentley showcases future dashboard technologies

Uber Gizmo — QNX Shows Off Bentley Continental GT Concept Car

Car Design News — QNX Car 2 at CES 2013 (video)

CrackBerry —  Dan Dodge shows off the QNX Bentley concept car at CES (video)

BerryReview — Monitor RIM’s New Bentley QNX Concept Car @CES from Your Browser

Auto Guide — QNX Previews Tesla-Sized Touch Screen in a Bentley

Engadget — QNX builds in-car speech framework with AT&T's Watson, knows our true intentions

Itbusiness.ca — RIM subsidiary brings in-car speech recognition (and a Bentley) to CES

LAPTOP — QNX Bringing HTML 5, 4G LTE, Video Conferencing to Future Cars

TechnoBuffalo — Chevy, Ford, and QNX at CES 2013 (video)

Financial Post — CES 2013 kicks off with RIM’s QNX showing off car, a step closer to digitized homes

Ottawa Citizen — Ottawa companies use CES to pitch latest products to the world

Tech 2 — CES 2013: QNX shows off Car Platform 2.0 with concept Bentley Continental GT

Blast Magazine — At 2013’s Consumer Electronics Show, car safety has become a hot topic

N4BB — QNX CAR Application Platform 2.0 Chosen by Delphi for Next-Generation Infotainment

That's it for now. I aim to post some more stories and videos early next week. Stay tuned.

This post originally appeared on the QNX auto blog.

QNX-powered Chevy Mylink drives home with Best of CES award

Congratulations to the infotainment team at Chevrolet! Their next-generation Chevy MyLink system has just won a Best of CES award, in the car tech category. The competition judges were particularly impressed with MyLink's user interface and integration with the car's instrument cluster.

The MyLink system was one of two QNX-powered finalists in this year's competition; the other was Garmin's K2 infotainment platform.

Chevy plans to roll out the new version of MyLink later this year.

This post originally appeared on the QNX auto blog.

Two QNX customers, Chevrolet and Garmin, shortlisted for 2013 Best of CES awards

Who doesn't love to win an award? Last year, for example, we were absolutely thrilled that our QNX CAR application platform drove home with a Best of CES award. Heck, I'm still excited!

But here's the thing. All of the products and services that QNX offers are designed with one goal in mind: to make our customers successful. The more our customers succeed, the more QNX succeeds. Which is why I am doubly excited today. Because not one, but two customers have nabbed finalist spots at this year's Best of CES awards for their QNX-based products: Chevrolet for its second-generation MyLink system, and Garmin for its K2 infotainment platform.

Congratulations to our friends at Chevrolet and Garmin — I'll be rooting for all of you!

The winners of this year's Best of CES awards will be announced today, at 11 am PT.

This post originally appeared on the QNX auto blog.

Now on YouTube! First video of QNX technology concept car

Yesterday, some friends from Texas Instruments dropped by our CES booth for a demo of the new QNX concept car. The cameras were rolling, and here's what they caught.

Mark Rigley, head of the QNX concept team, did a fantastic job of guiding TI's Michael Guillory through the car's many features, including the gorgeous HD display powered by TI DLP technology and by a TI OMAP 5 processor. Check it out:



My favorite part? The exceedingly cool video conferencing. What's yours?

This post originally appeared on the QNX auto blog.

QNX unveils brand new concept car (hint: it's a Bentley)

If you haven't visited the QNX auto blog today, you've been missing all the action. This morning, QNX Software Systems took the wraps off a new technology concept car, based on a specially modified — and drop-dead gorgeous — Bentley Continental GT.

Here's an example of what you've been missing:



I've posted many other images on the QNX auto blog, along with guided tour of the car's many features. So what are you waiting for? Check it out.