Tuesday, 25 March 2014
Determined by an extremely solid confidence later on of programming characterized server centre innovation, Bank of America is controlling IT to practically add up to virtualization, from the server farm to desktop.
The engineering accomplishes for the aggregate of a server farm what virtualization accomplished for servers: It decouples equipment from the figuring assets. Its objective is to empower clients to make, grow and contract figuring ability essentially, rapidly and effectively.
The product characterized server farm is not yet an actuality. Anyway there are sufficient parts of the engineering set up to persuade David Reilly, Bank of America's worldwide foundation official, that it is what's to come.
"The product characterized server farm is going to breathtakingly change how we give administrations to our associations," said Reilly. "It gives a chance to, in actuality, the equipment to vanish.
"We think its powerful, this pattern," said Reilly.
The course Bank of America sets for IT is vital. The budgetary administrations industry, all in all, is a quick adopter and can manufacture markets for new advances. It likewise has a tendency to have extensive IT operations.
Goldman Sachs, for example, utilizes about 10,000 IT experts, speaking to more than 25% of its workforce. Bank of America won't uncover the span of IT staff, however it utilizes around 250,000 individuals general.
The money related administrations industry is relied upon to use $430 billion all inclusive on IT not long from now, or more than 20% of the normal overall IT use of $2.14 trillion, as stated by IDC.
The meanings of a movement to programming characterized IT operations may have numerous effects.
Bank of America has been a substantial client of legitimacy and exceptional reason fittings, in any case, "we see that, inexorably, there will be no separation in the equipment," said Reilly.
The bank is utilizing more merchandise fittings, which implies x86-based frameworks, and diminishing its utilization of appropriateness frameworks, said Reilly. "You can envision for some equipment accomplices that is a mite of a startling minute. The key for base is going to be the product that characterizes it, not the physical equipment layers."
The segments that will make up the product characterized server farm are arriving.
Vmware, for example, in the not so distant future reported general accessibility of its Virtual San (vsan) item that conveys a real some piece of what will make up a product characterized server farm. The product, which is a piece of Vmware's vsphere portion, "decouples conditions" that exist between the requisition and the underlying framework, said Alberto Farronato, Vmware executive of item promoting for capacity and accessibility.
That decoupling gives it a chance to managers treat stockpiling as an asset pool as opposed to something joined to a particular mechanism. It ought to help counteract over-provisioning, or purchasing more stockpiling limit than required for a provision, and diminishing the need for specific aptitude sets to oversee different frameworks.
Tuesday, 25 March 2014 0
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Addressing a Chrome beta characteristic realeased in February, Google is currently taking off its Google Now cards stage to the general-release forms of the Chrome desktop program. The take off starts today and will keep on seedding program renditions for the following few weeks, Google proclaimed in a Monday upgrade to a prior blog entry.
The new desktop characteristic applies to the PC, Macintosh and Chrome OS variants of the program, and might be empowered by marking into desktop Chrome with the same Google account you use for Google Now in Android or ios.
You may have generally ran across the characteristic by serendipity. More or less, all the relevant data cards that as of recently seem -as though by enchantment!- -on Android telephones can now show up on your desktop program. The cards can uncover anything from games scores to climate redesigns to bundle conveyance cautions. What's more much, a great deal more. Everything relies on upon what you look for (be it on your telephone or desktop), and which signs Google gives careful consideration to when you completely pick into its data administrations.
Anyhow here's the most intriguing characteristic of Google Now's most recent mission for world command: When you hunt down something on the desktop, it can generate a card on your telephone. To wit: Insignificant minutes before composing this story, I was astonished to uncover that a restaurant hunt on my PC set off a Google Now "Time to..." route card on my HTC One.
Yet oddly, no Google Now card showed up on my desktop. At any rate...
Google Now regularly feels to a degree supernatural. The characteristic is area and time-mindful, and has an uncanny capability to serve up supportive bits of data even before you understand you require them. You basically need to be a dynamic Google hunt and biological community client, and select into Google's administrations.
To begin with our telephones. Right away our desktops. Furthermore soon, our wrists. Google Now says all your base are fit in with us.
What's more, alright, we know its not the most uncovering first look, indicating as it does , noticeably a considerable measure of sand and
a front-end that looks similar to whatever is left of Bentley's extent, if a little taller.
Be that as it may it does indicate that the up 'til now anonymous SUV has discarded the inconceivable single headlights of 2012's EXP 9 F idea energetic about a twin-light plan more like that of the Mainland GT: verification positive that, as Bentley let us know in January, the styling of the processing auto will be 'totally distinctive' to that idea.
"The front, side, back and top has changed," Bentley administrator and Chief Wolfgang Schreiber repeated today. "We made a totally new auto, a true Bentley SUV. Presently it will meet the desires of our clients much superior to two years prior. Regardless of the possibility that there was no emblem, you'll know it is a Bentley."
Bentley brags the 4x4 will make 'a totally new fragment in the SUV business', proclaiming it as 'the world's first extravagance SUV'.
That is a claim that may anger a couple of Area Meanderer workers, who could sensibly assert their new Go Wanderer - particularly in £140,000 long-wheelbase structure - makes a really fair showing of playing extravagance SUV.
Anyhow Bentley says its SUV will be pitched at a more monied business sector than even the priciest Extent Meanderers, with even the entrance model beginning 'simply over' the extended RR's £140k asking cost: up 'til now unchartered region for Suvs.
"We need to take care of the issue for each one of the individuals who need to use all the more on a SUV," smiled Kevin Rose, Bentley's showcasing supervisor, with tongue maybe marginally in cheek. "This is the thing that Bentley does. When we propelled the Mainland, it had no immediate contender. Assuming that you might be first to do something, its influential."
Regardless of other extravagance brands, including Maserati, preparing uber-SUV offerings, Bentley says its 4x4 is heading the race. "We unquestionably will be the first to market. We'll be the benchmark," said Rose.
Bentley predicts it will offer around 3500 of its Suvs every year, boosting the organization's yearly bargains to 15,000 autos by 2018. 2013 was a record year for the Crewe organization, offering a little more than 10,000 autos and giving back a working benefit of £139.7 million.
The SUV will propel with Bentley's existing V8 and W12 motors, and will be followed in 2017 by a petrol-electric half breed rendition. Bentley affirmed today that it will turn into the sole maker of W12 motors for the VW Aggregation, supplying units for utilization in huge Audis and Volkswagens.
The advancement, which will make 100 new occupations in Crewe, could see 9000 W12 motors fabricated every year in Britain, and speaks to the first run through Bentley has traded motors.
At the same time over to that SUV. Schreiber affirmed the so far anonymous 4x4 has generally finished summer testing, which was depicted as 'exceptionally fruitful', and will now experience a winter testing system. We'll see the completed auto in two years time.
HTC is rebooting after a challenging year, with the launch Tuesday of an updated variant of One, its leader cell phone. Anyhow if HTC can't enhance the showcasing of its gadgets, the organization will have some major difficulty turning around its fortunes.
HTC kept on strugging a year ago in the shadow of Fruit, Samsung Gadgets and more fruitful challengers like Huawei Advances, LG Hardware and Lenovo. While they all expanded their cell phone shipments, HTC's aggregate shipments dropped, notwithstanding a cell phone advertise that developed by over 40 percent, as stated by Technique Investigation.
The year was topped off with a final quarter in which HTC's net benefit dropped steeply.
"HTC had a bad dream 2013 and will need to disregard it rapidly. The organization lost a huge bit of its piece of the pie in 2012 and that carried on a year ago. It hasn't had the capacity to stop that slide," said Neil Mawston, official chief at System Dissection.
There is little uncertainty that HTC will put out an alternate focused cell phone Tuesday, yet that isn't sufficient, as stated by Roberta Cozza, research executive at Gartner.
"We are in a business sector where having one of the best cell phones configuration insightful and characteristic savvy truly doesn't help if your brand doesn't resound with customers. With HTC, the promoting hasn't been solid enough," said Cozza.
A year ago advertising crusade with performer Robert Downey Jr. may have expanded brand mindfulness. While HTC doesn't have Samsung's showcasing plan, Cozza and Mawston concurred that HTC need to better demonstrate what sets its items separated from the opposition, if the organization needs to build bargains and eventually survive.
The second emphasis of the One is relied upon to have a 5-inch full HD screen and a Snapdragon 801 processor with four centers running at 2.3ghz. The telephone is likewise supposed to have two Polaroids on the back that will cooperate to generate better pictures.
Polaroids are currently the centering
An enhanced Polaroid has been one of the principle subjects on cell phones HTC's newcomer will rival, including the Sony's Xperia Z2 and the System S5 from Samsung, They were propelled at Portable World Congress a month ago and will go at a bargain in April, with the S5 beginning to ship on the eleventh.
The cell phone business sector is foreseen to high temperature up further with a successor to the G2 from LG Hardware and another iphone as right on time as May or June.
HTC has generally presented three new telephones not long from now: Crave 310, Yearning 610 and Longing 816, which are all some piece of an expanded concentrate on the midrange of the business sector. Anyhow an effective high-end model is key for any cell phone organization, on the grounds that it can both help enhance benefits with better edges and make a trickle-down impact for whatever remains of the portfolio.
That HTC's new leader cell phone gets fruitful in the U.s. is particularly essential, on the grounds that that is the place the organization's current inconveniences began.
"Basically what happened to HTC was that it lost enormous in the U.s. to Samsung and Fruit. That appeared to set off a domino impact around the globe and HTC didn't have enough vicinity in China to balance that," Mawston said.
HTC tearing back some piece of the overall industry in the U.s. might be an enormous first venture in the right course for the organization.
Monday, 24 March 2014
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Numerous cutting edge aeration and cooling systems as of recently have sensor-driven cooling that breaks in once the room temperature hits a certain level, however the Aros' ready for and dampness sensors include a large number of other mechanization characteristics. Indeed without a movement sensor ready for, unit has the capacity to distinguish when you're lock stock and done with the house and change the temperature appropriately that is determined by the geolocation emphasize on your telephone. The framework additionally makes a cooling timetable for you dependent upon your use propensities after a few weeks, and you can have the framework control the air conditioner unit's vitality utilization dependent upon the most extreme measure you'd get a kick out of the chance to use on your vitality bills.
The Wi-Fi-empowered Aros can additionally be worked remotely by means of a portable application turning it on throughout the last minutes of your drive home, or having the air conditioner kick on naturally dependent upon your telephone's GPS coordinates, for instance. Like other Quirky+ge units, the Aros is controlled through the free Wink application for ios and Android gadgets.
Like all Peculiar undertakings, this one takes advantage of the thought of one man Columbia, Maryland's Garthen Leslie, thus and utilization crowdsourced prescriptions to sharpen the last item. Yet for the Aros, the task additionally took advantage of GE's experience in making home machines. Be that as it may despite the fact that the guts of the air conditioner unit are like existing GE 115-volt/8,000 BTU ventilation systems, the outside has experienced a sensational redesign.
It looks practically like a monster white Bluetooth speaker, with a moderate front grille specked with round gaps, opened vents on the top that are intended to blow air upward and amplify flow, a blue Headed readout of the temperature on the base right corner of the unit, and capacitive touch-catches on the lowest part left corner for controlling the unit.
Eight thousand Btus is a not too bad measure of cooling limit for rooms and flats that are a most extreme of 350 square feet. Then again, the Aros additionally backs multi-room daisy-chain setups, as more than one unit might be utilized to gather use information and a bunch could be controlled as a solitary framework by means of the Wink application.
Every air conditioner unit costs $300, which is a sensible cost. Other GE 8,000 Btu/115-volt aeration and cooling systems take around $250, and those don't offer the brilliant characteristics or smooth style of the Aros.
Monday, 24 March 2014 1
Friday, 21 March 2014
All the android smartphones from all manufacturers make up nearly 80% of all smartphones recently sold worldwide, but on the other hand Apple's iPhone and iPad still dominate when it comes to Web browsing in the U.S. and other Developed countries in the world.
In the U.S., about 62% of all mobile Web browsing in the last year was done from iOS smartphones and tablets, according to dotMobi, a Web consulting and Web data measurement firm. The company recorded billions of Web sites visited by smartphones and tablets in 101 countries, including the most developed ones.
Overall, iOS devices were used most often for browsing in 34 of the 101 countries measured and Android enjoyed the lead of 34 in 67 nations.
The percentage of mobile users browsing the Web with iOS devices was higher in several nations than in the U.S. In the UK and France, that figure was 65%; in Japan, 68%; in Canada, 73%; and in Australia, 74%.
Meanwhile, Android smartphones and tablets are used more often for browsing in Central, Eastern and Southern Europe, including Spain (56%) and Germany and India (both at 58%). Macedonia was strongest for Android usage, at nearly 91%, while South Korea -- home of big Android device maker Samsung -- had 74% of users browsing with Android.
Eileen O'Sullivan, the chief operating officer of dotMobi, said that Apple still maintains a stronghold across major markets in the world, but added, "its dominance is not guaranteed." She said that while Apple is still considered an "aspirational brand," its relatively high prices compared to Android smartphones and tablets could cost it market share in the countries where it leads.
All of dotMobi's data is freely available on the Web, but users must register to see it.
The company provides maps that rank browsing by OS, even a specific device, and clicking on a country will show the percentage of use for that device in that country. For the U.S., Apple's 62% share of Web browsing by iPhone and iPad compares to about 19% for Samsung devices and less than 4% each for Motorola, LG HTC, BlackBerry, Nokia and others.
Nearly 49.5% of Web browsing is done via iOS devices in China, with the remainder shared by Android devices from various brands, including Samsung , HTC
, Huawei and Lenovo .
Friday, 21 March 2014 0
Thursday, 20 March 2014
ULTIMATE EARS UE BOOM | $200
Best for: Poolside partiers who need loud multi-directional sound in a splash-friendly design.
The Boom is a great choice for a trip to the beach or park—places you’d bring a tote. You won’t fit this big cylinder into a pocket, like you might the Mini Jambox, though. Your car’s cup holder, sure—it’s the size of a tallboy. But bigger means more volume, and the crisp-sounding audio blasts in all directions. The water-resistant skin can handle splashes too. The party doesn’t stop there: Using UE’s free app for Android or iOS, you can link two Booms wirelessly to create a stereo pair.
JAWBONE MINI JAMBOX | $180
Best for: Aesthetes who want a pocket-size speaker and easy access to all their playlists.
The Mini Jambox is about half as thick as the original and sounds almost as good. Its sturdy aluminum body is road-ready, and at only an inch deep it stashes easily in your back pocket. You need to sit in front of it for the best sound, because its two drivers and passive bass radiator all face forward. But what the Mini lacks in volume it makes up for in crazy portability. Plus, Jawbone’s app gives you access to the speaker’s settings and puts all your playlists—Spotify, Rdio, MP3s—in one place.
Thursday, 20 March 2014 0
Google clearly knows what time it is. Today it announced Android Wear, a project to bring Android to wearable computers. The company is starting with smartwatches and rolled out a slick demo video showing how notifications and speaking commands will work. If Google Glass is Google Now for your face, this is pretty much Google Now for the rest of your body.
The preview shows watch-users getting Google Now-style notifications automatically delivered (there’s a jellyfish warning at this beach, here’s another one closeby!) based on cues like location and prior activity. You’ll be able to ask questions in natural language, prefaced by “OK Google,” and get a reply. For that to work well, we’d expect that the watches need to always be listening for the OK Google prompt, Moto X style. It’s also going to be able to control other devices, you can sling a movie to your TV, or fire a playlist on your phone. It’s going to work with health apps to do things like notify you to move when you’ve been too inactive, or track how far and fast you’ve run. And clearly, it’s going to enable all kinds of new actions just as smartphones themselves did.
What Google is actively rolling out today is a developer preview that’s going to let application makers plug into this capability. Your apps will be able to do some of the same kinds of things Google Now can to send you a notification without being asked, or complete a request that you’ve spoken.
Google Now is already the killer feature of Glass. It’s incredibly well-suited to wearables. It makes far more sense to fire notifications to a wearable than a phone, because you can’t always glance at a hand-held screen. You may be driving, for example, or have it tucked away in a bag. As we’ve noted before, wearables are barreling towards us and it won’t be long before you’re going to be wearing the future all over yourself. And that future looks a lot like Google Now.
If your lemonade stand has strong sales this summer, you might be able to buy a new scooter. But that kid who owns a chain of neighborhood lemonade stands from Elm St. to Main? The kid who pops his Garanimals polo-shirt collar? That kid rolls in a third-generation Henes Broon.
The Broon is an electric luxury car for kids, and its high-end features go far beyond its absurdly slick exterior. Inside and out, these 4-foot-long vehicles are more like miniature cars than toys.
We’re talking independent suspension systems, disc brakes, differential steering regulated by aluminum-alloy gear trains, and four-wheel drive on the fully loaded versions (yes, there are tiered configuration options for each model). They also have a hood, trunk, and doors that open as they would on a full-size car, as well as functional headlights, turn signals, brake lights, and tail lights.
Those luxe features extend to the main cabin, where the Broon cars are available with a swank leather seat, an MP3 player with stereo speakers, and a removable 7-inch Android tablet that doubles as the car’s dashboard and infotainment center. There’s also a “simulation mode” available via the tablet that teaches kids how to drive and lets them race digital cars onscreen. The cars come with a Bluetooth remote so that parents can prevent youngsters from pulling a Jack Kerouac or Thelma and Louise.
If you don’t like one of the three existing body styles — the F series is the sports car, the T series is like an open-top Hummer, and the M series is a sedan — the Broon series offers an ingenious solution: The car chassis has a modular design that allows for different bodies to snap right on top of it in parts. Henes is working with major car companies — Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and Jaguar among others — on licensing mini-sized versions of their rides.
Even flipping through the Broon series’ 90-page glossy catalog simulates the experience of buying a real high-end car. Don’t expect a lot of horsepower though: Each car tops out at about 10mph, which can be adjusted down to about 5mph if parents want to curb their little speed freaks.
Prices haven’t been finalized for the cars yet, but a Henes representative at Toy Fair in New York told me the fully loaded versions of the F series, T series, and M series will go for around $800. There are entry-level options of each car that don’t include the leather seat, the 7-inch tablet, the independent suspension system, four-wheel drive, and other features.
The completely redesigned interface of iOS 7 meant a lot of users lost some familiar, and legitimately useful, navigational elements. Now, with Apple’s recent iOS 7.1 update, you can at least get back one of them: button shapes.
In the menus on iOS, the default is for buttons to be text-only, with a “<" indicating that you can tap there to navigate up a level in the Settings (these text-only buttons are also very evident in the Calendar app). For many, however, this text-only design made it harder to determine not just what was tappable, but where to actually tap. If you fall in that category -- or you're just nostalgic for some of iOS's old design elements -- just go to Settings > General > Accessibility and toggle on “Button Shapes.”
Now, the text buttons within the Settings menu are surrounded by a larger shaded arrow shape. Other text buttons are also filled and surrounded by a darker colored rounded rectangle.
Personally, I don’t like the look of the buttons option as much as the plain text scheme, but it certainly makes clickable buttons more apparent in the OS.
Friday, 14 March 2014
Diesel power is new to the 2015 BMW X3, but that's not the only update on this refreshed midsize crossover. The X3, which will make its U.S. debut at the 2014 New York International Auto Show in April, plays in an increasingly crowded BMW lineup, with the entry-level X1 below, the X6 and soon-to-arrive X4 competing in the bizarre coupe-like crossover segment, and the X5 offering a three-row option. But with buyers in this price range also considering the all-wheel-drive 3 Series Gran Turismo, does the updated X3 differ enough to stand out?
New models certainly won't hurt the X3's case. The four-cylinder diesel we've seen in the 328d makes an appearance in the 2015 BMW X4, and should translate to a huge boost in EPA-rated fuel economy. The volume-oriented X3 xDrive28i is now available in a $39,325 (including destination) rear-drive sDrive28i model, which once again allows the midsize luxury crossover to slip in below $40,000. The all-wheel-drive 2015 X3 xDrive28i is $40,725, while the new 2015 X3 xDrive28d is a $2100 upgrade. Though we don't yet have fuel economy numbers on the diesel, the lighter and smaller 328d sedan is good for 31/43 mpg city/highway with all-wheel drive. The X3 xDrive35i remains available, at a price of $45,825.
The diesel-powered 2015 BMW X3 will only be offered with all-wheel drive, and features a 180-hp turbodiesel 2.0-liter I-4 with 280 lb-ft of torque. Acceleration from 0-60 mph is said to take under eight seconds, compared to the claimed 6.2-second performance from the new rear-drive X3 sDrive28i, which is powered by a 240-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter I-4. When that's not quick enough for your luxury SUV, there's always the X3 xDrive35i, with a 300-hp turbocharged inline-six that helped it scoot to 60 mph in as quick as 5.3 seconds in Motor Trend testing. All engines are mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission, and we hope the 2015 X3's transmission reacts more quickly than did the one in our long-gone 2011 X3 long-termer.
No matter which configuration you choose, the 2015 X3 has been X5-icized, with revised headlights (LEDs are optional) now connected to the updated grille. The rear bumpers have also been tweaked, and the side-view mirrors now have turn-signal indicators. The changes are subtle, but current X3 owners may notice the difference between their crossover and the updated X3 from the front.
Inside, the 2015 X3 has new cup holders with a sliding cover for the center console and, as you'd expect, a wider range of exterior/interior design combinations. The iDrive controller now has touchpad functionality — an advanced bit of tech that should go nicely with other features including front collision and pedestrian warning systems, a City Collision Mitigation system, a power liftgate like the Escape's that can open with a movement of the foot below the rear bumper, as well as adaptive cruise control and a head-up display. Between the available engine upgrades and advanced technology, good luck keeping the MSRP below the mid-$40,000 range.
To keep your 2015 BMW X3 unlike all the others at the mall, the automaker is offering xLine and M Sport upgrades. The new xLine adds metallic trim in the bumpers, satin aluminum side cladding in the air intakes, and the appearance of an under guard in the front and rear. The X3 xLine also offers different leather interior options, plus other 19-inch wheel designs. The X3 M Sport bumps up the curb appeal with exclusive 19- and 20-inch wheel options and includes a few other visual upgrades, but also offers paddle shifters and revised transmission, steering, and suspension settings.
We're eager to try the 2015 X3's new xDrive display, which shows details about the crossover's body roll and pitch. Most of the time, the xDrive system sends 80 percent of the torque to the rear wheels. Even with all-wheel drive, the 2015 BMW X3 may just hit 30 mpg on the highway in the real world, thanks in part to the coasting feature that disengages the engine at speeds of about 30-100 mph after the driver lifts off the accelerator.
The 2015 BMW X3 remains an ideal size — bigger than the cramped X1 but not as bulky as the more popular X5. The revised X3's changes will help keep the crossover feeling fresh for a couple years, but we'll have to get behind the wheel to see whether it could finally unseat the Lexus RX as the luxury crossover best-seller.
Nokia's Refocus app -- which lets users play with the focus after a picture has been taken -- is now available for all Lumia smartphones with Windows Phone 8.
Nokia has been launching new camera features and apps on its top-end models first, and then later making them available to cheaper devices.
Nokia Refocus lets users take a photo and later choose what they want in focus by clicking on the image. There is also a Color Pop feature which will not only refocus part of an image, but also highlight the color of that particular area.
A blog posted by Nokia on Friday gives a simple demonstration of what the effect looks like.
Nokia isn't the only smartphone manufacturer that lets users play with what part of a photograph is in focus. New high-end devices such as LG's G Pro 2, Samsung's Galaxy S5 and the Xperia Z2 from Sony have similar features.
Initially Refocus was only available for the Lumia PureView smartphones. The app works best when the main subject is close to the camera, and the effect becomes greater with more objects at different distances in the background, according to Nokia.
Because Refocus captures several photos of the same scene, it'll take a couple of seconds to finish a shot and users need to keep still for it to work. Nokia also recommends finding a stable spot such as a wall or a lamppost and then holding the smartphone tightly against it; users should hold their breath when they press the camera shutter button, it said.
Lumia owners who have used Refocus seems to like it; the app had received 4.5 stars out of 5 from 334 reviews on the Windows Phone app store as of Friday morning. For the app to work users must have installed the Amber software update, which arrived in August last year.
Singapore plans to regulate local Bitcoin exchanges to stop the virtual currency from being used in money laundering and terrorist financing schemes, authorities said.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is bringing greater scrutiny to Bitcoin because of its "anonymous nature" in virtual currency transactions, it said in an online post on Thursday. Transactions with the digital currency can be done without submitting a user's personal information.
As part of the new regulations, Bitcoin exchanges and vending machines will have to verify the identities of their customers, and report suspicious transactions to local authorities.
MAS doesn't intend to regulate all bitcoin transactions, and said it was taking a "targeted" approach. Nor will it offer bitcoin investors the same safeguards other traders in real currencies receive.
Instead, Singapore authorities are warning consumers about the rapid price fluctuations of virtual currencies. In the last year, Bitcoin prices have been volatile, reaching as high as US$1,126 in November, only to fall by several hundred dollars in the following weeks. Currently, bitcoins trade for $644, according to Coinbase, a U.S. based company that's building services around the digital currency.
Singapore's MAS, however, said that it could step up Bitcoin regulations if needed. The group plans to monitor the development of virtual currencies closely. MAS previously published a consumer alert, warning the public on the risks of trading in bitcoins.
The regulatory steps are just the latest efforts by governments to control bitcoin trading. Singapore's neighbor China has banned the nation's banks from trading in the currency, and implemented similar anti-money laundering measures for local Bitcoin exchanges.
In the U.S., the heads of one exchange called BitInstant were recently arrested for allegedly laundering money with the digital currency. The CEO of BitInstant and the site's compliance officer allegedly schemed to sell over $1 million in bitcoins to facilitate illegal drug sale
You know what the trouble with troubleshooting iOS is?
You can't do it. Because it doesn't exist.
Okay, I'm exaggerating a bit. There are a few basic things you can try when something goes wrong on your iPhone or iPad, such as force-quitting an app or restarting your device. You can also revert to some basic settings from Settings > General > Reset. If none of that helps, you can always erase and restore your iOS device from a backup. But really, that's about it. If none of those options work, your either have to wait for the relevant update from Apple or take your device to the Apple Store.
That state of affairs stands in stark contrast to Mac troubleshooting. I had occasion to reflect on this recently as I was writing up my latest Bugs & Fixes column. In the course of attempting to diagnose and remedy a problem with my Mac's camera, I employed Disk Utility to repair permissions, performed a Safe Boot, shifted to a separate login account, cleared cache files, checked Console error logs, killed a process via Activity Monitor, temporarily removed items from various Library folders and ran several Terminal commands.
Not one of these techniques is available for iOS troubleshooting. In theory, nearly all of them are technically possible. After all, iOS is a variation of OS X and contains most of the same underlying capabilities. With a jailbroken iOS device, for example, you can run Terminal commands and access the various Library folders. But Apple provides few options for the non-jailbroken among us to do any of this--and none of them accessible to casual users.
All of which leads to the key question: Does the absence of troubleshooting tools in iOS matter? Is Mac-like troubleshooting even desirable on an iOS device?
The case against troubleshooting in iOS
From Apple's perspective, the answer is clearly no. Unlike the Mac, iOS devices have been designed from the ground up to be closed boxes. Rather than view this as a potential liability, Apple would argue it's an asset for these consumer-aimed devices. While it makes under-the-hood troubleshooting next to impossible, it also makes it far less likely that you will need to do so, the theory being that less can go wrong if everyone and everything is locked out.
The goal is for iOS devices to work as simply and reliably as most other current consumer electronics, from televisions to microwave ovens. For such devices, troubleshooting options are generally quite limited. What options do exist are typically found in the slim back pages of the device's manual, and if they're not sufficient, it's time to call the repairman--or head off to the store for a new model.
This usually works out, because these devices typically function for years without requiring any significant troubleshooting. And even if something does go wrong, most users would hardly welcome having to deal with the equivalent of Disk Utility, Console logs, Library folders, and Terminal commands. The average consumer electronics user has enough trouble figuring out how to juggle home theater remote controls or program a digital alarm clock. If they were expected to master Mac-like troubleshooting for each device, they would probably throw up their hands in despair.
It's true that iPhones and Macs are different than most other digital devices, due to their complexity and available options. This increases the probability of running into problems. Regardless, iOS devices come remarkably close to matching the trouble-free standards of other "simpler" household digital devices. In my case, despite having a half-dozen iOS devices in active use in our home, it's very rare that something goes wrong with any of them that has me wishing I could access their Library folders or run Terminal.
The case for troubleshooting in iOS
Still, from my perspective, when things go wrong with a Mac, it helps that numerous troubleshooting options exist and are easily accessible. This way, people who are familiar with these tools can not only do their own troubleshooting but can also offer assistance to the less-skilled of their acquaintance--thereby avoiding the hassle of a trip to the Apple Store or the cost of a service call. For that matter, without these tools, even the people at the Apple Store would have a harder time diagnosing and solving Mac problems.
For the same reasons, I believe it would be preferable if Mac-like troubleshooting tools were freely available for iOS. Sure, you can argue that this might encourage potentially dangerous experimentation by beginning users--experimentation that could on occasion lead to the user making things worse. However, I don't worry too much about that; for one thing, I'm unaware of pervasive problems caused by troubleshooting gone astray on Macs. Most Mac users probably aren't aware of the existence of tools such as Terminal, much less have ever launched them. I wouldn't expect things to be any different with iOS devices. In any case, with a backed-up iOS device, you could almost always recover from whatever harm was done--with much less effort than on a Mac.
The future of troubleshooting
Despite my preferences, I know that a broadened suite of iOS troubleshooting options is not likely to happen. I see no sign that Apple is planning to provide end-user access to iOS Library folders or offer Terminal in the App Store. For one thing, it would largely defeat the purpose of sandboxing and App Store restrictions, allowing third-party modifications to iOS that, for various reasons, Apple wants to prohibit. For reasons I've already cited, I've gradually come to accept the viability of Apple's position. I see how infrequently these troubleshooting tools are needed in iOS and as time goes on I expect iOS devices to become even more bulletproof.
Actually, I expect the Mac itself to evolve in this same closed direction over the coming years. To avoid a potential torrent of complaints, Apple may retain optional access to some areas, but they will be inaccessible by default (similar to how the home directory Library folders in today's OS X are hidden by default). I can even imagine a setup where under-the-hood OS access is limited to Apple developers, consultants, and technicians.
I believe Apple when they say that they have no plans to merge iOS and OS X. However, it still makes sense for OS X to adopt more and more characteristics of iOS over time. Macs were once called "personal computers," but that's a 20th-century designation that's rapidly vanishing. In the 21st century, Macs are becoming yet another "digital device"--closer to the simplicity of iPads than to the Macs of old. Tomorrow's devices will push that envelope even further.
This is the direction that all digital devices are headed. We are approaching the day when the need for end users to fiddle with the likes of Library folders will be as rare as the need to re-solder a logic board is today. As this future gets closer, traditional troubleshooting will increasingly become something we spy only through our rear view mirrors.
Wednesday, 12 March 2014
The creators of the Roboy robot wanted it to move as much like a human as possible, using a skeleton of 3D-printed bones and joints, tendons -- and coiled springs in muscles.
Wait, springs?
The springs are there to give Roboy's movements fluidity. One reason most humanoid robots still move, well, robotically is that their movements are too stiff.
Human muscles are springy, so if we are nudged or bumped out of the way, we gently bounce back, and if we jump or fall, we can absorb the shock, said Rafael Hostettler, manager of the Roboy project at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich.
It's possible to model that springiness in software, so a robot can use sensors to detect when there is resistance to its movements, and modify the force applied -- but there's inevitably a lag in the processing of such inputs, so the movement will not be as natural as ours, Hostettler said at the Cebit trade show in Hanover, Germany.
The springiness of our muscles also allows us to put more energy into movements such as throwing, building up the tension in one muscle by pulling against another, and then suddenly letting go. That's harder to model in software, and so in their robot's muscles the Zurich researchers decided to use real springs -- thick, coiled ones of the kind seen in a car's suspension, only smaller.
Roboy's musculature is much like our own, with paired actuators operating in opposition at each joint and wires in place of ligaments. Other robots might use a single motor able to pull in either direction. The resistance offered by the 12 motors in each of Roboy's arms feels almost human when shaking hands -- although the grip of the hand, with only one motor, is less natural.
The work is part of a wider European research project called Myorobotics, which aims to create robots that are cheaper to build and safer to be around -- the idea is that being struck by a springy robot will be less dangerous than a hit from a solid one.
If Roboy could stand, it would be 1.42 meters tall, but its leg and foot muscles are not strong enough to balance its 30-kilogram weight, so it can only sit.
The most striking thing about Roboy is its enormous head, with glowing eyes that, in a cartoon touch, turn red when the robot is simulating anger. A projector inside the head also animates the lips and can give the impression the robot is blushing.
Roboy took around nine months to build. Beyond its role as a proving ground for robotics technologies, the researchers have other applications in mind. "We see it as a training tool for doctors to learn standard tests for stroke diagnosis," said Hostettler. That's something difficult to learn from videos or books, he said, as it requires doctors to get a feeling for the way patients react to physical stimuli.
The robot's ability to show different facial expressions will be useful for that project, but its main purpose is as a means to communicate about robot research, he said. The crowds stopping to stare and shake hands with Roboy at Cebit prove his point.
Wednesday, 12 March 2014 0
Tuesday, 11 March 2014
Monday, 10 March 2014
Samsung has taken the wraps off the Galaxy S5, the latest in its series of flagship Android phones. It has a lot of cool feature, including things that no company has ever put in a smartphone before.
You can read all about the Samsung Galaxy S5's features and specifications in our detailed launch coverage, but here's a quick list of our 10 favourites.
1) It has a heart rate sensor
Samsung is particularly proud that it's the first to put a heart rate sensor into a smartphone. That bump right below the camera lens isn't a flash, it's a sensor that will help you track your activities and plan your workouts. The S-health app uses it to coach you as you work out. You can of course also use Samsung's Gear 2 or Gear Fit in conjunction with the Galaxy S5.
2) Water and dust resistant
While we might not chat on the phone while showering or watch videos underwater as Samsung's top execs suggest, we do appreciate the fact that the Galaxy S5 is water and dust resistant. We'll be quite happy if it survives a few accidental dunkings and the occasional rainy misadventure.
3) The fingerprint sensor can be used for lots of things
We don't know how Samsung plans to implement security, other than its promise that your fingerprint patterns will never be uploaded off the device. You can use the fingerprint sensor to authorise payments and sign in to apps and services. Let's hope this doesn't turn into a huge security disaster.
4) Kid-friendly mode
We've seen this on Windows Phone already, but it's a great feature and we won't complain. Kid mode lets you decide which apps, games and features are appropriate for your little ones so they stay safe when they get their hands on your phone (and your phone stays safe too).
5) It has a crazy power-saving mode
For anyone who's ever been stranded somewhere because a background app devoured their last few percentage points of battery life, Samsung's new power-saving mode will come as a blessing. The screen goes black-and-white only, and all non-essential apps and services are killed, allowing the last 10 percent of your battery to power your phone through an incredible 24 hours. You can remain accessible via calls and text messages, which is what you need most in an emergency.
6) You can combine Wi-Fi and LTE data for insanely fast downloads
The Galaxy S5 supports Category 4 LTE which should work across multiple carriers in multiple countries, as well as Wi-Fi ac. For those occasions when either one of those conduits can't provide enough bandwidth, you can gang them up to use both simultaneously.
7) The camera has a 0.3-second autofocus lag
Smartphone cameras are getting better and better, but there are still times when you just can't capture that special moment because someone moved or blocked your shot while your camera was still focusing. Samsung claims a 0.3-second focus lag, which should eliminate that kind of delay altogether.
8) Brand new UI
Let's face it, Samsung's TouchWiz UI is not everyone's cup of tea. However the Korean electronics giant has made some progress, and the latest iteration of its custom UI has some nice touches that should help ease the pain of Android purists everywhere. The new UI is toned down, and there won't be a flood of S-this and S-that apps.
9) It comes bearing gifts
There wasn't much information about Samsung's new Galaxy Gifts feature, but it seems as though owners of a Galaxy S5 will receive a few bonus features and priveliges from major app makers including LinkedIn, PayPal, Evernote, Box, and the Wall Street Journal.
10) It has a private mode
The new Samsung Galaxy S5 will let you stash photos, videos and files securely so that you don't have to worry about personal information such as IDs and bank documents falling into the wrong hands. Only when you swipe your own finger over the fingerprint reader will they be accessible.
While that is indeed an impressive list of features, but there is one thing we dislike about the new S5. Samsung describes its body as "glam", "modern" and "iconic", but all we see is plastic, plastic and plastic. It's pretty much the same shape as the Galaxy S3 and S4, which is yet another dissapointment. The four shimmery colours and custom designer accessories don't improve things at all. Let's hope Samsung gets the memo and turns to more premium materials like many of its competitors have already.
Monday, 10 March 2014 0
BARCELONA, SPAIN — Samsung has finally unveiled the much-anticipated Galaxy S5, the latest smartphone in its Galaxy family of Android devices. The smartphone was announced at the Mobile World Congress tradeshow here, and it debuted alongside two smart wearables — one fitness-based, one more watch-like — designed to pair with the device.
But the handset is of course the core product in Samsung’s mobile strategy, and this is the new flagship device, following on the heels of last year’s massively successful Galaxy S4. The S5 arrives on several U.S. carriers (and in 150 countries around the world) in April. Pricing has not been announced.
Let’s take a closer look at the hardware. Like the S4 before it, the Galaxy S5 is not crafted from metal, even though it seems metallic just looking at the edges and the back plate. It’s actually made from polycarbonate. The S5 also has an odd perforated pattern on the back cover. The company is quick with the self-praise for it’s “modern glam look,” but in actuality, the perforations just emphasize the plastic construction of the phone, an effect that nobody here in Barcelona seems to enjoy. On the front side, there’s a 5.1-inch AMOLED display which is crisp and bright, just as you’d suspect if you’ve seen other Samsung flagship phones.
While it physically looks a lot like the S4, the Galaxy S5 is just a bit bulkier and heavier. Not by much — we’re talking a few millimeters in width and height and 15 grams in weight. But it’s enough that you can feel the difference when you hold the old and new devices in your hands.
The biggest difference — and one of the most compelling reasons to upgrade from last year’s Galaxy — is the new fingerprint scanner on the S5. It’s integrated into the home button below the screen, just like Apple’s implementation on the iPhone. You can use it to unlock the phone, to verify a PayPal payment while using a mobile shopping service, and to verify your Samsung account. All of this is done by just pressing a single finger against the home button. Adding your own fingerprints when personalizing the device is easy — you swipe your thumb, or index finger, or any other finger from top to bottom on the home button about eight times. Activating the recognition is quick and neat, and all of the fingerprint recognition attempts I’ve made since I got a hands-on unit have worked perfectly.
The Galaxy S5′s camera has been upgraded from a 13-megapixel shooter to 16 megapixels. There’s a real-time HDR mode, and the super-fast autofocus really is much quicker than the older Galaxies. Overall, the camera is very fast; it takes just 0.3 seconds from launching the app to actually hearing the shutter sound. The front camera has been improved to 2.1 megapixels, confirming that selfies are something everyone is jumping on.
I haven’t tested this yet, but the S5 is said to be waterproof and dustproof. Samsung claims the phone would survive bathing in water for up to 30 minutes. And though the back cover is removable, Samsung has added an inner seal to prevent from any wetness from creeping past the seams, and the connecting ports along the phone’s bottom edge are protected by a small rubber flap. I’m not a lover of such plastic plugs — you can always almost feel them breaking in your hands. But the waterproofing is a welcome improvement.
Fitness is also a big part of Samsung’s script this year, as evidenced by its introduction of a new wrist-worn fitness-tracking band. So to get you into the spirit, the company has added a heart-rate sensor on the backside of the phone. It sits just next to the LED flash, under the rear-facing camera. The sensor measures your pulse at the fingertip. The collected data is synced with the S-Health 3 fitness app that ships on the phone, and it’s presented alongside other data captured by the smartphone’s motion sensors. So you can count your steps constantly and test your pulse occasionally, giving you a rough snapshot of your fitness activities, including estimated calories burned.
Sunday, 9 March 2014
Dracula, weak and yearning release from immortality, must reclaim his powers and defeat Satan. An epic fantasy adventure set in an expansive modern-day world!
Awoken after centuries of slumber, weakened and yearning for release from his immortal bonds, Dracula must reclaim his powers and make a pact with Death, to defeat Satan and gain eternal rest. Blood is everything as Dracula faces both his nemesis and his descendant’s unyielding quest for revenge, in this final, dramatic battle between good & evil. Play as Dracula and discover the ultimate fate behind the ‘Lord of Shadow’ himself!
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 includes a High-Definition Texture Pack. Recommended for systems with at least 1Gb of dedicated video memory. This pack can be enabled from the Advanced Settings, in the Video Configuration menu.
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General Information:
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Released: February 26, 2014
Genre: Action (Slasher) / 3D / 3rd Person
Developer: MercurySteam Entertainment, Kojima Productions
Publisher: Konami Digital Entertainment
Publication Type: Repack
Language * : English , Multi6
Tablet: Is present (RELOADED)
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System Requirements:
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OS: Windows XP Service Pack 3
Processor: 2.4Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD equivalent
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: Direct X9 compatible video card 512Mb RAM
DirectX: Version 9.0c
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Hard Drive: 10 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectSound supported with Direct X9.0c or better
Sunday, 9 March 2014 0
It’s your turn to immerse yourself in the full-throttle thrill of the world’s most exciting motor sports racing series in NASCAR ’14. Take the wheel from your favorite driver and participate in the race week experience complete with practice, qualifying, and race day challenges. With your favorite personalities and live replay, NASCAR ’14 is the authentic NASCAR experience for fans.
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General Information:
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Year: 2014
Genre: Racing (Cars) / Simulator / 3D
Developer: Eutechnyx
Publisher: Deep Silver
Publication Type: Repack
Language: English
Language: English
Tablet: present (RELOADED)
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System Requirements:
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Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ (2*3000 MHz)
Memory: 2048 MB RAM
Graphics: GeForce 8800 GT
It has been the bane of many and a universally cursed feature. The whatsapp 'last seen' option has been one of the most detested features. And despite many wishes, whatsapp did not do away with the feature. But looks like there's something good that will come of the Whatsapp-Facebook deal.
There have been many ways and tricks often employed to do away with the feature and everything from changing the phone time to setting the phone on Airplane mode/switching off the mobile net before every ping has been employed. But looks like the task will just get a lot more easy.
iOS users have been luckier than their Android counterparts as they had the option of hiding their last seen updates on the app. And finally, Whatsapp is all set to roll out the feature across platforms.
The feature is still in beta stage though it can already be downloaded and activated on Android devices. Whatsapp plans to roll out the upgrade soon toall Android devices. However, presently the feature is only available to devices running Android Jelly Bean version 2.1 and above. And it does not work on tablets.
The 'last seen' option can be disabled from your Whatsapp settings. Once you have the upgraded the app, you just need to go to your Settings in Whatsapp. Under Account Settings you will now see the option to hide your timestamp. You can choose to hide your ‘Last Seen’ only from a select few in your friend-list, from all or from no one. However, you choosing to hide your ‘Last seen’ means you will not be able to chck their time-stamps too!
Apart from the ‘last seen’ option, Whatsapp is also working on letting users hide their profile pics and status from a select friends or from all. The privacy settings will soon be completely ramped up and the update rolled out.
If you cannot wait till the official roll-out, you can head directly to the Whatsapp site and download the official APK file. You first need to download the file to your computer and then transfer to your SD card. Take care that your 'Installation of Apps (APKs)' option from Unknown Sources is turned on in Settings. Once you have downloaded the file, go to your file manager and search for the APK file. Tap the file to begin installation. Your Whatsapp will be updated.
There’s no need to fear about the security as it is an official update provided by Whatsapp. There might be a few initial bugs but once the official update rolls out, the glitches will be ironed out.
Whatsapp faced their longest ever outage in years this Saturday and the social media sites were awash with jokes regarding the messenger. While Mark Zuckerberg probably became the most hated person on earth for the period of the outage, Whatsapp apologies using Twitter. Looks like Priscilla Chan will now have to hunt for new ways to keep tabs on her hubby dearest, eh?
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