MicroBuzz: More Windows 8 features leaked

id='post-body-3991216915337093284'>

Speedier boot-up times and cloud syncing are two new features leaked from Microsoft's next version of the popular Windows.

Windows 8 will allow users to back up data online and on mobile devices. The 'Cloud' or online backup will probably integrate with Microsoft's online services called Windows Live whilst mobile back up will likely work with Windows Phone's allowing you to carry all your PC data wherever you go.

A new feature called 'Portable Workspace' will allow users to take their Windows 8 setup with them on a USB stick or external Hard Drive. Simply plugging into any other Windows 8 computer and enjoying your customised setup.

Windows 8 is still in early development and won't be out for some time now, but as time goes on more details will emerge.

Source: http://microbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/more-windows-8-features-leaked.html

»»  read more

OneBigGame And Zoe Mode Announce Chime Is Coming To Steam With An Exclusive Track

OneBigGames and Zoe Mode have announced that their Xbox Live Arcade game Chime is coming to Steam on PC's. This new PC version will feature an exclusive track featuring the “Still Alive” Song from Portal. A percentage of royalties from the sale of the game will got to OneBigGame charity partners, Starlight Children’s Foundation and Save the Children. Chime is set to come to Steam at the end of Summer.

Screenshots

Press Release

Developer’s Altruism Brings Music Puzzler to Windows PC and continues to support Non-Profit Publisher with exclusive version available via Steam

San Francisco, Calif. – August 26, 2010.OneBigGame today announced that following the critical and commercial success of Chime on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for Xbox 360®, developer Zoe Mode has also created a Windows PC version to be released end of this summer.

UK-based Zoe Mode, who created the original game pro bono for OneBigGame, has generously decided to donate a percentage of the proceeds of this commercial PC version to OneBigGame as well. As with Chime for Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360, these royalties from the PC version will benefit OneBigGame’s charity partners Starlight Children’s Foundation and Save the Children.

Furthermore, the PC version of Chime, available through Steam®, a leading platform for PC games, will carry an exclusive track, featuring the “Still Alive” soundtrack from Valve's hit game Portal.

“We are very pleased with Chime’s performance on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 and want to thank Zoe Mode for their creativity and generosity,” said Martin de Ronde, Director of OneBigGame. “The game has proven to be a great fund-raiser, a quality game in its own right and possibly the basis for a unique, new franchise for Zoe Mode beyond our exclusivity period.”

”Valve’s generous donation of Portal's classic "Still Alive" is another great bonus for which we’re very grateful.”, continued de Ronde. “The PC version of the game features all the great tracks from the original version and now also offers fans of Chime and fans of the original Portal soundtrack the opportunity to sample this song in Chime’s unique remixing game mechanics”

Ed Daly, Managing Director of Zoe Mode, added, “We are proud to have been able to kick start the unique fund-raising initiative that is OneBigGame and are very pleased with Chime’s impact. Because of the success, we were really keen to broaden Chime as a franchise by releasing a Windows PC version. We also want to continue supporting OneBigGame beyond the exclusivity period and have decided to donate a percentage of the royalties of any future Chime title we make. Finally, we’re proud to work with Valve on the Portal soundtrack level for Chime and have done our utmost to ensure the new level is one of the best yet for Chime.”

The exclusivity structure is part of OneBigGame’s innovative way of working with game developers. The publisher works together with famous designers and developers to create unique indie style games for a mutually agreed limited exclusivity period. After this period, the developers are free to release sequels, enhanced versions or conversions for other platforms.

5 percent of the purchase price of royalties of Chime for Windows PC will be donated to OneBigGame. Chime for Windows PC will be released this summer via Steam. 100 percent of the proceeds from the Xbox LIVE Arcade version of Chime for Xbox 360 have already benefited OneBigGame during a period that ran from February 1st through to June 1st.

# #

About Chime

A creative twist on both music and block puzzle games, Chime tasks players with covering the playing field with irregular shapes, each connected to a sound effect from the background music track, to form rectangular blocks, called quads. Chime’s innovative game mechanics enables players to create a unique remix of each song every time they play a level as the building of larger quads unlock more elements of the underlying song. Working their way to 100 percent coverage of the grid, players will unlock the song in full. Acclaimed artists Philip Glass, Moby, Markus Schulz, Paul Hartnoll of Orbital and Fred Deakin of Lemon Jelly have donated their music tracks pro bono.

About OneBigGame

OneBigGame aims to raise funds to help solve problems afflicting children around the world. The nature of these problems can be diverse, but the kind of projects OneBigGame supports will always revolve around a structural improvement in children’s lives, expanding their opportunities in life.

OneBigGame raises funds by publishing games kindly donated pro bono by established names in game development, in conjunction with support from the development community as a whole. The games will be published on the dedicated games portal OneBigGame.org, as well as through a variety of PC and console download channels.

OneBigGame always aims to donate a minimum of 80 percent of all donations to its charity partners Save the Children and Starlight Children’s foundation. To learn more about OneBigGame, please visitwww.onebiggame.org.

About Steam

The leading online platform for PC games and digital entertainment, Steam delivers new releases and online services to over 25 million PC users around the world. For more information, please visitwww.steamgames.com.

About Zoë Mode

Zoë Mode make games that are accessible; simple, social games that are effortlessly fun but don’t take themselves too seriously. Based in Brighton and San Francisco, Zoë Mode’s diverse work force is unified by its attitude to gaming. Zoë Mode believes that games are powerful ways of bringing people together; that there is more to life than gaming, but that gaming can make life better; and strongly believes that there is a game for everyone. Zoë Mode is part of Kuju Entertainment Limited.


Source: http://qtegamers.blogspot.com/2010/08/onebiggame-and-zoe-mode-announce-chime.html

»»  read more

The Top 5 Contract Notebook Manufacturers

Being a notebook aficionado, I own several Apple products, a netbook, a pocket computer, a mobile Internet device (Archos 8), a touch tablet computer, a smartphone, a smartbook and a USB VOIP SIM card reader and softphone. Surprisingly, most of what I have were made by just a handful of electronics giants.

An advocate of Infrastructure Investing, I firmly believe that your most consistent earnings will come from the suppliers of the materials that make up the gadgets that consumers want by expressing their insatiable appetite for whatever that trendy mobile device or technology item happens to be. If, you're fortunate to invest early in those industries or niches before the growth of that entity softens, you will be happy you did. Since it isn't always possible for whatever reasons to get in early, you can at least to strive to ride the wave of earnings from those companies that supply or contract manufacture the items the public desires.

Here are the Top 5 Contract Manufacturers in the Notebook Industry and you will note that many if not all of these companies, specialize in other mobile devices and entertainment products as well.

#1) Quanta Computer, Inc. (TPE: 2382) based in Taipei, Taiwan is the largest contract notebook manufacturer in the world. Quanta Computer also makes GSM mobile phones, WLAN related products, PDA’s and LCD’s.

#2) Compal Electronics, Inc. (TPE: 2324) is the 2^nd largest notebook manufacturer in the world. Compal Electronics is based in Taipei, Taiwan, with offices in the U.S., U.K., Mainland China and South Korea. Compal’s leading manufacturer facility is located in Kunshan not far from Shanghai.

Compal Electronics manufactures select models from Acer, Dell, Toshiba, HP/Compaq, Fujistu and Siemens. Compal also manufactures 3D televisions, IP-televisions and “all-in-one” computers.

#3) Wistron Corporation (TSE: 3231) is the 3^rd largest contract notebook manufacturer in the world. Wistron Corporation is an electronics manufacturer based in Hsinchu, Taiwan.

#4) Pegatron Corporation (TPE: 4938) is the 4^th largest contract notebook manufacturer and also produces consumer electronics (game consoles) and communications devices (mobile phones). Pegatron is based in Taipei, Taiwan. Pegatron was formerly Asustek, the maker of the Eee netbook computer.

Pegatron Corporation also makes smartbooks, MID’s (mobile Internet devices), motherboards, VGA (video graphics array), MP3 players, E-book readers and DPF (digital photo frames).

#5) Inventec Corporation (TPE: 2356) is the 5^th largest contract notebook manufacturer and based in Taipei, Taiwan.

Your strategy should be to examine each computer manufacturer as well as the brand (Dell, Acer, Toshiba, etc.) to determine which shows the most promise for continued growth. Keep in mind also that between the top 4 contract notebook manufacturers, the notebook brands that contract with them generally don’t show loyalty to any one-contract manufacturer when their bottom line is at stake. Notebook brands generally go with whichever contract notebook manufacturer affords them the best margins, so choose wisely among them. Due your research and profit from your understanding.

Source: http://wakeupprofits.blogspot.com/2010/08/top-5-contract-notebook-manufacturers.html

»»  read more

Take time to be holy

Take time to be holy,
Speak oft with thy Lord;
Abide in Him always,
And feed on His Word.
Make friends of God's children;
Help those who are weak;
Forgetting in nothing
His blessing to seek.

Take time to be holy,
The world rushes on;
Much time spend in secret
With Jesus alone;
By looking to Jesus,
Like Him thou shalt be;
Thy friends in thy conduct
His likeness shall see.

Take time to be holy,
Let Him be thy guide,
And run not before Him
Whatever betide;
In joy or in sorrow
Still follow the Lord,
And, looking to Jesus,
Still trust in His Word.

Take time to be holy,
Be calm in thy soul;
Each thought and each motive
Beneath His control;
Thus led by His spirit
To fountains of love,
Thou soon shalt be fitted
For service above.

Lyrics: William Dunn Longstaff

My top lament recently was that I had no time to live. From the time I wake up at 6.30am to 6.00pm when work ends, those 12.5 hrs are essentially dedicated to work. That’s 5 days a week. Take away travelling time to get home, dinner time, bath time, sleep time, I barely have 1.5 to 2 hrs to ‘live’. And that’s just for myself. What about time that I need to commit for loved ones?

But when this song came around, it kind of shook me up. What kind of ‘time’ have I been thinking of? I think it was the worldly time, the kind of time that we so painfully feel slipping away from our physical selves, the biological clock ticking away to eventual death, well, physically. I’ve been focusing on my life on earth, worrying for the earthly pleasures I’m missing out.

I’d forgotten that I had another clock to look at, the real clock. The one that doesn’t end for all eternity. “Take time to be holy, The world rushes on; Much time spend in secret, with Jesus alone.” That’s just saying, hello, so what if you don’t have the so-called time to watch entertainment, play games etc etc, who cares? Time spent with Jesus is way better!

I’d been drawn into worldly pleasures, and thus felt the intense need for more more more, and the constant dissatisfaction. I’d been so unsatisfied with life, simply because I hadn’t been living the right one.

Well, now the real challenge comes around, practical Christian living. We’ll see. http://hozzy.blogspot.com/2010/08/take-time-to-be-holy.html

»»  read more

Ron Lieber in the NY Times writes: 

"Coming soon: credit and debit cards that cut you off when you disregard your own monthly budget. 

In the next couple of days, MasterCard is expected to announce that Citigroup will be the first company in the United States to issue MasterCards with special features intended to protect consumers not only from thieves but also from themselves. 

The service, called inControl and already in use by some Barclaycard holders in Britain, is a sort of financial chastity belt that offers the potential to prevent a variety of budget sins and other money traps. 

Worried about your restaurant habit? If your bank adopts MasterCard’s service, you could tell it to have your debit or credit card reject any restaurant purchase above whatever monthly cap you set."

Ummm. Yeah - cause that would help (SARCASM ALERT!) - having your credit card declined when the bill is presented to you after you've already eaten the meal.  Obviously, restaurants are probably the worst possible example of potentially good uses for auto-budget-enforcing credit cards, since you pay for the product after you consume it.  So, while it might help if your card automatically rejected your purchase of a new pair of  $700 Jimmy Choo shoes and they take them and put them back on the shelf, it won't help you so much if it rejects your $700 dinner at Per Se that is already residing comfortably in your tummy.

However, the service has some interesting customizable features:

"The inControl system, at its most basic level, is intended to let people do two things: be warned about charges on their cards and block the wrong kinds of transactions. 

Alerts can be sent when a purchase is made with a credit or debit card in particular geographical areas or at certain dollar levels. Also, if you use your card only for in-person purchases and never use it online or for recurring charges, you could arrange for an alert every time your card is used when you’re not present at the merchant ringing up your purchase. That way, if fraud is afoot you can call the company right away to cancel the charge. 

If the alerts start to get annoying, you can alter them or turn them off at any time through your bank’s Web site or over the phone."

Interesting - no reason we shouldn't be able to do this with current payment processing technologies.  There are myriad potential applications; like cards for your children that you program to be used only at gas stations and grocery stores, or only at drug stores, etc...  Employers can give their employees cards that can only be used at certain types of stores, programmed by the user.

"The real leap with inControl, however, is being able to turn off certain forms of spending altogether. Dining out is the one I sometimes have trouble keeping in check, but for you it might be your iTunes habit or something else. While inControl now sorts companies into merchant groups that you can set budgets for or ban altogether, MasterCard said that if it had enough demand for company-specific caps it would add those, too."

Well, ignore the asinine dining example again, but otherwise the whole selected budget control by category idea couldn't really hurt.  After all, we've already established that we need all the help we can get.

-KD http://fridayinvegas.blogspot.com/2010/08/interesting-idea-idiotic-example.html

»»  read more

US to woo Mideast on Iran sanctions

US to woo Mideast on Iran sanctions
Tue Aug 17, 2010 2:39AM
The undersecretary of the US Department of the Treasury plans to visit Middle Eastern countries to discuss Iran's nuclear program.

Stuart Levey, who is scheduled to tour a number of Persian Gulf states later this week, will attempt to convince officials of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Lebanon to step up pressure on Tehran.

On Sunday, the US Treasury undersecretary said in a statement, made public to UAE media, that his tour will focus on “the new UN Security Council resolution last June imposing a fourth round of sanctions on Tehran” and to “make sure, especially the new legislation passed by the US (last June) with respect to the sanctions, is well understood by (US) partners in the region.”

Levey has particularly targeted Iran's large trade volume with the UAE.

He says Washington is also planning to send envoys to Brazil, Turkey, South Korea, Japan, and Ecuador to discuss how to minimize their economic ties with Iran.

Tehran, however, insists on its nuclear stance, saying sanctions cannot harm its economy.

While continuing to encourage Russia and China to follow its lead in implementing tougher sanctions against the Islamic Republic, the US is trying to cajole Dubai of the UAE into limiting its trade relations with Tehran.

Dubai, which is reportedly home to around 500,000 Iranians, is widely regarded as one of Iran's largest trading partners in the region.

According to some Iranian Embassy officials in Abu Dhabi, trade between Iran and Dubai topped $15 billion in 2009Source: http://newsessentials.blogspot.com/2010/08/us-to-woo-mideast-on-iran-sanctions.html

»»  read more

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Collector's Edition (PC)

Blizzard announced plans today for a Collector's Edition of their upcoming World of Warcraft expansion. This limited edition of Cataclysm will come with the following bonus items:

- Art of the Cataclysm art book, with 176 pages of never-before-seen images.
- Exclusive in-game pet named Lil' Deathwing.
- Behind-the-scenes DVD with developer interviews and commentaries.
- Soundtrack with 10 tracks from the game.
- Special edition mousepad featuring Deathwing.
- Trading Card Game cards, including a 60-card starter deck from the Wrathgate series.

This version of the expansion will run fans $79.99, but there is still no release date.

Source: GameInformer.com
http://playmorabox.blogspot.com/2010/08/world-of-warcraft-cataclysm-collectors.html

»»  read more

5 Examples of PC Cooling Gone Wrong

Has your computer ever overheated in the middle of the night, during an intense gaming session? If so, here are five things you shouldn't use to cool your PC. Continue reading to see them all -- image above via.

1. Giant Fan

If your case's fans fail, then there's always the stand-up electric fan. Pointing it properly and safely seems to be the biggest issue in this example of PC cooling gone wrong.

2. Ice Encased Hard Drive

We've heard of CPU overclocking, but definitely not hard drive. Unless this person somehow modified this drive to spin at 50,000rpm, encasing it in a block of ice seems like overkill.

3. Air Conditioned PC

Called the Water Chiller, this PC by Mikevanelst.com should be used in only the most extreme situations, like playing Farmville with max settings, etc. In all seriousness, this air conditioned PC runs at a chilly -5C, but can be turned all the way down to -20C if Arctic Silver is used on the CPU block.

4. Table Fan Case

When is a table fan not just a table fan? When you take it apart and reassemble it as a PC case, throwing in some PVC piping along the way. We can imagine it gets quite noisy once everything is running simultaneously.

5. World of Fans

Rather than buy a traditional case and install a few fans inside, this modder used 66-fans to create a case. On the inside, you'll find "an Intel P4 3GHz Prescott CPU with MSI MS-6540 motherboard, 512MB DDR400 RAM, 40GB ATA HDD, and a 36X CD-ROM" drive.

»»  read more