Paint.NET prepares the ground for the next major revision
Rick Brewster has announced the availability of Paint.NET 3.5.11, the latest edition of his excellent image editor. As you’d expect for a minor version update, the "changes" list is rather short, but there are still some welcome tweaks here.
The Undo data for your selection manipulations is now saved to disk, for instance, reducing memory usage during lengthy editing sessions.
Bing wants your photo for its homepage
Turns out that today is World Photography Day and while Google failed to even note the event with one of its Doodles, rival Bing has taken notice of the occasion. Unsurprising really, considering Microsoft's search engine is well known for its daily images that feature various stunning pictures from a range of subjects.
Today Bing announces a partnership with Discovery to set up a contest for photographers of all ability levels. "We’re excited to invite you to be a part of Bing's Hometown Homepage Photo Contest" says Michael Kroll, Principal UX Manager at Bing.
LastPass supports immediate syncing, extends Secure Notes
Free password manager LassPass has been updated to version 2.5.0, and introduces a good range of features and fixes.
There’s now support for the immediate syncing of changes to other devices, for instance. This may not work for you immediately -- the change is apparently being "rolled out for all users in stages" -- but as long as you have polling enabled (Preferences > Advanced > "Poll server for account changes") it should be available soon.
Microsoft's QR code competitor Tag to shut up shop -- hands in two years' notice
You may well not have heard of it -- and even if you have, it's even less likely that you've used it -- but Microsoft's Tag service is to close two years from now. In a statement on the Tag website Microsoft says that it is issuing a two year termination notice in accordance with its Terms of Use and that the service can be used as normal for the next 24 months.
For anyone to whom Microsoft Tag is an unfamiliar name, and this is likely to be a large group, this is -- or perhaps was -- Microsoft's alternative to the QR code. Scan a tag from a magazine or advertisement and you can access content such as websites, videos and more.
Bot Revolt automatically blocks known dangerous IP addresses
Protecting your PC from malware normally involves trying to detect its files just as soon as you possibly can. And so you might have an antivirus tool scanning everything you access for known threats, say, or monitoring programs for suspicious behavior.
These techniques can be bypassed, of course -- and they often are -- but Bot Revolt claims it can help, adding a new layer of security which will "block over 1 billion known malicious sources" from around the world.
Ashton Kutcher's Steve Jobs somehow misses the whole point
While Mary Alyce and the boys were in Theater 7 this weekend watching Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters ("Needs more monsters," says Fallon, age 7) I was in Theater 2 watching Jobs, the Ashton Kutcher film about Steve Jobs ("Has enough monsters," says Bob, age 60).
I know the Jobs story fairly well having, well, lived some of it, but people have been asking me about the film so I thought I should check it out. Critics have not been kind and Steve Wozniak said he wouldn't recommend it. I can see why.
View Wikipedia content offline with Kiwix
Accessing Wikipedia is generally easy. Need to know something? Point your browser at www.wikipedia.org, search for the topic in question, and you’ll have all the details you need in just a few moments.
But what if you have a slow connection, maybe metered, perhaps no connection at all? Then what you really need is Kiwix, which allows you to download a local copy of Wikipedia for speedy offline access on your PC, Mac or Android device.
Microsoft issues grovelling apology for Outlook.com problems -- mobile syncing still borked
Microsoft's issues with Outlook.com continue to rumble on. Following last week's server wobble the company has issued an apology for the temporary outage, explaining that problem was a result of a "failure in a caching service that interfaces with devices using Exchange ActiveSync".
The company promises that steps have been taken to ensure that "the service will be more resilient in the future", in a status update posted at 9:34am, August 17. In spite of this, a more recent update, posted at 19:36 -- and still in place at time of writing rolling on into August 18 -- states that "There's a problem with Outlook at the moment".
Logitech Wireless All-in-One TK820 [Review]
I am typically not a fan of hardware convergence. My first computer, a Packard Bell, had a combination sound card and modem -- I kid you not. When I decided to upgrade the modem, I lost sound. What I learned that day so many years ago, is that it is better to have individual components.
When the opportunity to test the new Logitech All-In-One TK820 arose, I was excited. Logitech is known for quality hardware; but a combination keyboard and trackpad? I was dubious to say the least.
The most popular stories on BetaNews this past week
Looking at the the biggest stories on BetaNews from August, 11 - 17, 2013. This week there has been a lot of Microsoft related news setting tongues wagging -- and it's been something of a rollercoaster. Early on in the week we got a sneak peak at what to expect in the upcoming Windows 8.1 update after a new build leaked online. Build 9471 includes a number of changes from the official Preview, including new tutorials, extra personalization options, changes to a few of the built-in apps and integrated Skype.
Not long after the leak version was discovered, Microsoft went on to talk about creating a unified experience across different Microsoft and Windows devices and services. And for anyone who is sick of the Windows 8.1 hype there was some good news -- the official release date is only a couple of months away, after which things should start to quieten down.
Avast 2014 Free Antivirus, Internet Security betas now available
Avast Software has officially revealed the first public betas of Avast Free Antivirus 2014 (aka Avast 9), Avast Pro Antivirus 2014, Avast Internet Security 2014, and Avast Premier Antivirus.
These aren’t just routine by-the-numbers updates, either -- the new releases see notable improvements in many different areas.
More Windows Phone handsets get a coat of Fresh Paint
Microsoft may be continuing to celebrate with a "we're number three" chant, but the company also isn't resting on this minor victory over Blackberry. Instead it wishes to spread further and wider, and create its own apps when others fail to come through -- especially Google, which has been a major thorn in the side.
Fresh Paint, an art app that was only released last month, has a new update that is designed to support even more devices -- "Fresh Paint, Microsoft’s popular free art app first released on the phone last month, has just been updated to support Windows Phone 8 models with 512MB of RAM", says the company's Michael Stroh.
iOS owners analyzed: Most iPhone owners are single, most iPad users have pets
It's easy to learn how many iPads and iPhones have been sold -- sales figures are readily available. But this isn’t enough information for advertisers who need to know what type of demographic makes up their potential market. Research by Flurry helps to shine a light on the types of people who own different iOS devices.
A random sample of over 44,000 iOS device owners reveals that 72 percent have an iPhone and 28 percent an iPad. Plotted on a chart, the figures make for interesting reading but, as ever, the most intriguing results are to be found at the extremes.
Motorola Skip -- unlock your Moto X with a tap
A few weeks ago, I discovered a product on Kickstarter called the NFC Ring. It is an interesting concept -- you unlock your NFC-enabled smartphone by tapping it with a ring worn on your finger. Today, Motorola announces a very similar accessory for the Moto X which is called Skip. However, this product is not a piece of jewelry.
According to Motorola, "Skip is a thin, thumb-sized clip that pairs with your Moto X and unlocks it with a simple tap. Wear Skip on your shirt sleeve, shirt hem, belt loop -- wherever it feels most comfortable. It's fast, easy and secure. It provides all the benefits of a PIN without the hassle".
Popular BitTorrent client Vuze gets an upgrade
Azureus Software has released Vuze 5.1, a major update of its cross-platform BitTorrent client. Vuze, described by Azureus as "the best way to download torrents", aims to make finding, sharing and download torrents easier than other clients.
Version 5.1 boasts a new flow for its Open Torrent dialog box, a new Tags Overview option, the ability to view torrent file availability and an option to amend transfer stats, among other new features. It's had a number of notable bug fixes made too.
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