What, you haven't read the latest issue of the QNX Source newsletter?

It always pays to get your information straight from the source. I'm speaking, of course, about the Source newsletter, which QNX publishes 10 times a year.

If you want to keep track of the latest QNX videos, webinars, whitepapers, press releases, product updates, and board support packages, subscribing to the Source is the way to go. But if your inbox is already crammed with too many newsletters, meeting requests, and advertisements for fake Rolexes, there is an alternative: you can bookmark your browser to the Source newsletter archive.

Here, for example, is a screen cap of part of the June edition, which is available now on the archive.

Solar Impulse plane completes final leg of cross-America trek

It has the wingspan of a Boeing 777, but weighs only as much as a family car. It has four propellers, but doesn’t sip an ounce of fuel. It's called the Solar Impulse, and it is the first plane designed to fly round the clock using only solar power.

In early May, the Solar Impulse took off from Mountain View, California on the first leg of its journey across America. Last night, it completed the trek, landing at New York's JFK Airport. In between, the plane made stopovers at Phoenix, Dallas, St. Louis, and Washington DC, allowing the Solar Impulse team to meet the public, show off the plane, and promote their vision of renewal energy. (In New York next weekend? If so, you're in luck: you can see the plane in person at JFK.)

Along the way, the plane set a new distance record for solar-powered flight: 1541 kilometers. The previous record was 1116 kilometers, set by — you guessed it — the Solar Impulse team.

QNX Software Systems is the official realtime OS partner for the Solar Impulse project, which uses QNX technology for several of the plane's control and data management functions. For more on the project and the people behind it, see the Solar Impulse website.

But before you go, check out this video, which starts off with some inspiring clips of the Solar Impulse in flight — followed by a cameo appearance by Larry Page wearing Google Glass.

Space-grade technology... in the palm of your hand

What does your phone have in common with planes, trains, automobiles, and space stations? If it's a BlackBerry 10 smartphone, plenty.

When you pick up a BlackBerry Z10 or BlackBerry Q10 phone, you are tapping into OS technology like no other. Technology that hospitals use to defeat cancer. Technology that power plants use to create energy. Technology that skyscrapers use to save energy. Technology that movie studios use to create mind-blowing special effects. And technology that calls for help if your car gets into an accident. In short, technology that makes a difference in my life, your life, everyone's life.

But enough from me. Especially when the video says it so much better...

Solar Impulse plane launches cross-America trek — with QNX on board

It isn't always easy being green. But it can be really cool. Case in point: the Solar Impulse HB-SIA, a one-of-a-kind airplane powered only by the sun. Earlier this morning, the HB-SIA took off from an airfield in Mountain View, California, to start the first leg of its journey across America.

QNX is the official (and mighty proud) realtime OS partner for the Solar Impulse project. For more on the project and its goal of promoting green energy, see my previous posts and the Solar Impulse website.

Meanwhile, here is footage of this morning's take-off, courtesy of CNET:

The first website ever is back online

I just stumbled on a cool blog post from Dan Noyes, the web manager for the CERN communications group. Dan tells us that the very first Web URL is now back online, and it looks just the way it did in 1992. Cool, that.

Without further ado, here is the URL: http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html

For the story behind this project, visit CERN's aptly named "Restoring the first website" project page. And while you're at it, check out this article on BBC News.

Successful beyond imagining

Hey, do you remember the "Imagined" video that QNX released back in November? You know, the one that takes a sneak peak at what cars might be like a few years from now? Well, I have a couple of updates.

First, the video has logged more than 518,000 views. Impressive, that. Second, it's
been named an honoree in the annual Webby Awards. Which puts it in the same company as videos from Disney, HBO, and Coca-Cola. Doubly impressive, that!

If you aren't familiar with the Webby Awards, they've been dubbed by the New York Times as the “Internet’s highest honor.” You can find out more about them here. And while you're at it, check out the blog post from Mike Edgell, the creative director at Thornley Fallis, the company that helped us realize our vision of tomorrow's car.

The winners of the Webby Award winners will be announced tomorrow, April 30. Just one more day...

Canon unveils 8D, first DSLR with 4G connectivity

April Fools' is over, folks — and yes, this post is a hoax. Some of the features, such as 4G connectivity, are indeed plausible, but can you detect the one truly anachronistic feature?

This just in: Canon Inc. has unveiled the new Canon 8D, a 42-megapixel APS-C digital SLR equipped with a 4G LTE antenna.

Outwardly, the new camera is almost identical to the existing 7D, which has been Canon's flagship APS-C DSLR since 2009. In fact, the only visible differences are a slightly larger LCD, a control button dedicated to the camera's 4G function, and an auto-telescoping built-in flash that uses a combination of high-intensity magnesium filaments and oxygen gas to achieve a guide number of 148 (in meters).

Most of the real changes have occurred inside. Aside from the new integrated LTE antenna, the megapixel count has jumped from 18 to 42, without any attendant increase in chroma or luminance noise, thanks a new generation backlit CMOS sensor. (Yes, you'll have to invest in expensive glass to take full advantage of the higher resolution.) And in a surprise move, Canon has decided to part with its well-regarded DIGIC processor technology — the new camera uses tandem processors, each based on a quad-core ARM Cortex A9 chip.

For details, vist the Canon website.