We all know that drones can safely go where humans cannot, but one other big upside is their potential to (sometimes literally) pave the way for people to follow, by doing things like weaving together physical bridges that can support a person’s weight.

As this video from the RTH Zurich Flying Machine Arena shows, a set of quadcopters can be programmed to braid and knot a sturdy rope bridge in midair. The effect is surprisingly graceful, each drone managing to avoid the other as they swoop back and forth in the room. The low strength-to-weight ratio of the materials deployed makes it possible for lightweight drones to construct surprisingly capable structures.

Motion-capture devices were used to map the space, taking positional measurements around which the drones could then operate. Nothing was left to human hands – even the tie-offs and other connections were completed automatically by drone. While scaffolding was provided in this case, there is no fundamental reason why the same drones could not work with existing supports in nature like rocks or trees. The open question: what will we call the works and processes of this new breed of robotic builders? Droneconstruction sounds a little too much like deconcstruction, but options are still open.

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Even the most dedicated tinkerers out there can find themselves getting overwhelmed as gadgets get more complex. A company called littleBits wants to be sure that future generations never lose the love of creating all things electronic. They’ve been around for a while, selling tiny circuit boards with specific functions that snap together with magnets. This LEGO-like approach to electronics lets anyone at all build their own custom electronic devices.

Now, littleBits is introducing a new snap-on device called Cloud Module. Like the other littleBits pieces, this one attaches easily to any of your home-brewed electronics projects – no soldering or programming. But this one has a slightly more advanced function: it makes your device internet-enabled. The Cloud Module lets your creations join the Internet of Things, a term used to describe everyday items that are connected to the web and to each other.

The video above shows Reggie Watts playing music on a synth made entirely of littleBits components. This is the type of project that littleBits wants to inspire. People who are interested in electronics but don’t have the experience or confidence to go about creating things in the traditional way can use this handy system to become tech wizards, perhaps even inventing the next must-have gadget. The Cloud Module is still in beta at the moment, but when it becomes publicly available it will let home-based gadgeteers create things on a whole new level.

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You know you aren’t supposed to use the same password for every website, but it’s basically impossible to remember a bunch of well-chosen passwords. Instead of writing them all down on sticky notes around your computer (which is not entirely secure, of course), Ford has a pretty smart way to log you into all of your favorite websites with hardly any effort on your part. The Ford KeyFree Login is an app created by as a clever marketing tie-in for Ford’s keyless locking and unlocking technology.

With the app, your web accounts – like Facebook, Twitter and Gmail – are unlocked as soon as you and your mobile phone get close to your computer. Then when you walk away, the accounts are logged out and locked automatically. The scope of the app is quite narrow, though: it only works with Google Chrome running MacOS. And there are, of course, some security concerns involved with any app that stores your passwords. The app has already launched in France but is expected to go global soon.

The post Ford App Unlocks Websites When You’re Near the Computer first appeared on Gajitz.

(image via: Gerard Girbes)

With the holidays swiftly approaching, it hasn’t escaped our attention that more and more holiday shopping is done in non-traditional ways. Driving to the store and fighting through crowds to grab the last sleeved blanket out of the hands of a fragile little grandmother? Pssh, that’s so last decade. Now we just whip out our mobile phones, iPods, iPads, netbooks or notebooks and enjoy the futuristic convenience of having the stuff we want brought right to the front door.

(image via: William Addington)

But how many of us would keep using these devices so extensively if it weren’t for the internet? Phones are obviously still useful without internet access, but the iPad without internet is…well, a fancy Kindle. Internet access has become so ubiquitous that many of us don’t even notice how often we use it. Googling an answer to your kid’s homework (so he doesn’t realize that you have no idea who the 27th president was, either), grabbing a quick recipe for dinner or looking up the phone number to the pizza delivery place have become things that lots of us do almost without thinking.

(image via: Zoe)

Would you keep using your devices if they didn’t have internet? Personally speaking, we carry around the iPod Touch, netbooks, laptops and a variety of mobile phones, and none of these would be the same without the near-constant internet access they give us. We wouldn’t be able to play online Xbox 360 games with friends across the country or across the world, and our Wii experiences would be sorely lacking in interactivity, too. Our iPods would no longer stream Netflix movies for us as we jog endlessly on the treadmill at the gym; instead we’d have to settle for music downloaded directly from our computers (since the iTunes store would no longer let us buy grooves on the go).

(image via: Keith Williamson)

While web-enabled gadgets have undoubtedly made life easier, they have also made it easier to work too much, get distracted too easily and generally lose track of time. But like all things, we learn to enjoy our gadgets in moderation. As you load up on electronically-purchased gifts for the holiday season, take a closer look at how you’re shopping and remember to be grateful for the little things: free wi-fi, web-enabled gadgets, mobile versions of your favorite online retailers, and free shipping with no minimum purchase. The future is now, and the future is very, very good.

The post Long Live the Future: Would No ‘Net Change Gadget Use? first appeared on Gajitz.