Waterfox 18.0.1 brings the power of Firefox 18 to 64-bit Windows
After a gap of nearly three months, Waterfox 18.0.1 has been released, bringing the Firefox variant for 64-bit versions of Windows bang up to date. Its return is welcome news considering Mozilla recently dropped its own 64-bit Windows build from the Nightly codebase, and allows
The delay in releasing Waterfox -- also available as a portable build -- has been attributed to major bugs in the Intel C++ compiler, which is used by developer Alex K to produce Waterfox from the Firefox source code.
Ten days left to get Windows 8 Media Center for free
Windows 8 special pricing expires on January 31, but it is not the only Microsoft special offer that goes away on that day. The company kicked Media Center somewhat to the curb with the new operating system. It no longer comes as a part of Windows, but requires the Pro version and a special add-on pack that will be sold for $9.99. To boot, there are no new features included. Media Center remains unchanged from Windows 7.
Still, there is a small but very dedicated group of followers who love Media Center, and for good reason. If you own an HTPC (home theater PC) then Microsoft's solution remains one of the best options available and, if you act before the end of this month, you can grab that $9.99 media pack for free.
CyanogenMod 10.1 M1 -- first monthly release -- is available
Keeping up with recent CyanogenMod tradition, the team behind the popular green droid custom distribution unveiled the first monthly release based on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. The build is designed to offer users a stable experience, more suitable for daily use compared to the usual nightly builds.
CyanogenMod 10.1 M1 is currently available only for a limited number of devices, including the Google Nexus lineup (Nexus S, Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 7 including the 3G variant, Nexus 4 and Nexus 10), the US variants of the Samsung Galaxy S III, the Samsung Galaxy S (codename "galaxysmtd" and "galaxysbmtd"), the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (versions P3100 and P3110), the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (versions P5100 and P5110) as well as the Hardkernel ODROID U2 open development platform.
Sony Xperia Tablet Z says 'Hello' from Japan
Following the new smartphone flagships introduced at CES 2013, the Xperia Z and Xperia ZL, Japanese Android device manufacturer Sony has unveiled the successor to its Xperia Tablet S slate. Dubbed the Xperia Tablet Z, it sports a dust-proof and water-proof shell, and a lightweight and thin form factor.
The Xperia Tablet Z comes with a 10.1-inch display with a 1920 by 1200 resolution (known as WUXGA), backed by Sony's Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2 technology. The panel features a 16:10 aspect ratio, an interesting choice seeing as how Sony's own recent smartphones feature the narrower 16:9 aspect ratio for each of their respective screens.
Sky introduces a TV and movie download service for mobile phones and tablets
Users of the satellite TV provider’s free Sky Go service -- which enables subscribers to watch live Sky channels and on-demand programming on mobiles and tablets -- will soon be able to download TV shows and movies on their portable devices.
According to Sky, this will make it the first mobile TV subscription service to offer downloadable Hollywood movies in the UK and Ireland.
Create disk, partition and system backups with AOMEI Data Backuper
Bitter experience has taught us to be highly skeptical of free backup tools, particularly when they come from commercial companies: they’ll usually include one or more annoying restrictions in an effort to get you to upgrade to something else.
Would our concerns really apply to AOMEI Data Backuper, though? We installed the program to take a closer look.
How Apple can get its mojo back
Apple executives like to talk about the post-PC era as an opportunity. But they have a post-Steve Jobs crisis that needs resolution first -- and fast. This week's calendar fourth quarter earnings report is time to assess where the company is and where it might be a year from now, and whether investors should lift falling shares from the nosedive.
Post-Steve Jobs -- and I'm talking as much about the time before his death -- Apple has lost the quality that made great products. The company’s approach to computer/device design is consistent and pervasive: Humanization. Apple design seeks to humanize complex technological products. There has been much written about Apple design in context of products that look good. But there is something more fundamental: Designing tech that is easy to use by making it more an extension of the human being -- more part of you. It's this quality missing from recent new product iterations, which aren't any more human-like than their predecessors. Meanwhile, competitors like Samsung do better.
Get the Windows 8 desktop you want with StartMenu8 1.0
If you’ve upgraded to Windows 8 and discovered you’re not a fan of the new Start screen then the chances are you’ve already installed one of the many free tools which can give your system a more Windows 7-like appearance. If not, though, IObit has just released StartMenu8 1.0, a simple program which may be able to help.
Just install StartMenu8 1.0 and by default the program will launch along with Windows, skipping the Start Screen and jumping directly to the desktop. StartMenu8 1.0 will disable the Windows 8 “hot corners”, too.
Kim Dotcom's Mega site goes live
On January 19, 2012 at 6:48 am local time Kim Dotcom's mansion was suddenly raided by authorities looking for evidence against his popular MegaUpload file sharing website. Since then the case has dragged on, but done little to dampen Dotcom's enthusiasm and spirit. The colorful internet tycoon chose the exact moment of that raid, 365 days later, to launch his brand new Mega site.
In many ways Kim Dotcom is a larger than life figure and Mega is a larger than life site. For one, the service is offering 50 GB of free storage, much more than cloud storage offerings from services like Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Box and Dropbox. There are also paid plans for those who need more storage.
Quick, get Windows 8 Pro cheap while you still can
We knew this day would come. That Microsoft would get back to generating Windows revenue rather than lifting market share. Windows 8 pricing is set, and you will pay big bucks to upgrade after January 31. I suppose the cynical mind would see today's pricing announcement as a last push to get procrastinators off their butts before the deal disappears with the wind. Last-minute stampede means more license sales -- 60 million currently -- for Microsoft to declare in the not-so-distant future.
Starting February 1, Windows 8 Pro Upgrade will cost $199.99 -- that's up from as low as $39.99 right now. Microsoft will also, finally, sell Windows 8 (non-pro), which will cost $119.99. With respect to Windows 7 at launch, the prices are the same. But for anyone with 40 bucks on the brain, Windows 8 Pro will cost 400 percent more in just two weeks. The $39.99 price is for anyone downloading direct from Microsoft. A costlier, $69.99 upgrade with DVD media also is available -- just 186 percent increase from that one.
I can't believe I switched from iPhone 5 to Galaxy Note II
My beloved iPhone 5 recently disappeared -- lost or stolen doesn't matter. Gone is gone. Verizon ticks me off; the warranty is supposed to get me a new one for $100 deductible. But no! VZW wants me to pay full subsidized price again! So, I do what anybody would; I fire Big Red!!!
I go for cost savings and switch to T-Mobile, figuring to buy the top-of-the-line geek Android toy and sell -- or better, trade -- it. I assume the Samsung Galaxy S III is top-geek merchandise but instead T-Mo pushes me towards the Galaxy Note II. What a deal online -- $200. I immediately list it on Craigslist, looking to trade for iPhone 5. To my surprise I get multiple offers. I mean, who as a sane person would want that deal?
Best Windows 8 apps this week
Twelfth in a series. It's slow week for new application releases for Windows 8. The number of new apps in the US Windows Store is 635, down from 961 the week before. While I would not - yet - say that this is a sign of things slowing down, it is definitely something that I'll pay attention on in the coming weeks.
The total number of apps in the US store this week is 25,384 of which 20,373 are free to install and 5,011 paid; that is a ratio of 4:1 in favor of free apps.
Turn a Raspberry Pi into the ultimate emulator
Raspberry Pi, the popular credit card-sized ARM GNU/Linux computer, is a real throwback to the past. It was conceived as a low-cost way of encouraging people to get back into programming, as they did in the 80s and 90s, and it’s even possible to program it using the venerable BBC basic.
RPI Chameleon, a great new project from Carles Oriol, enhances the Pi’s time machine like quality, by letting it run emulators for a whole batch of ancient hardware, including the IBM Personal Computer, Atari 2600, Apple II, ZX81, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and Oric-1. It can even run MAME, the arcade emulator, and you can add additional emulators to its menu too.
It's easier to win the lottery than buy Google Nexus 4
The Nexus 4 was anything but a secret long before Google officially raised the curtain on October 29, last year. Impressive specs, affordable price, the promise of timely upgrades, all were compelling arguments as to why I must buy one when sales start. However, Google didn't care about my enthusiasm and had other plans in mind, offering the smartphone only to a limited number of markets. Lucky me, I'm not invited to join the party. So what can I do?
Like any passionate, but patient, enthusiast my first thought was to buy one from the German Play Store, the closest one to my location and with the lowest prices as well, instead of moving to another country or shelling out more than $500 or $600 on eBay. So I asked a colleague of mine to help me out. I would pay for the Nexus 4 and he would send it my way after receiving the package. Easier said than done, obviously, as I shortly found out that Google only accepts credit cards issued in Germany. That was Plan A, by the way. OK, but now what?
Kim Dotcom reveals Mega's royal flush -- 'generous' free cloud storage
Like it or not, the New Zealand-based entrepreneur Kim Dotcom continues to make headlines thanks to his latest project, Mega. The cloud storage service launches on January 20, and merely days before the big opening Dotcom revealed that Mega will indeed be mega in the storage department.
In a Twitter post, Kim Dotcom said that Mega will offer "generous limits for free [plan] users". But just how much is "generous"?, you may ask. The soon-to-be-introduced service will give users a whopping 50GB of free cloud storage, matching MediaFire's offer, and top established market competitors such as Box, Dropbox, Google's Drive and Microsoft's SkyDrive. Basically if there's a "box" or "drive" in the title, then it's not as "roomy".
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