Computer Hacks and tricks: News

Showing posts with label News. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Microsoft giving away Windows 10

Microsoft has confirmed that copies of Windows 10 would be given away to those who wish to test it. Earlier they announced that Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users can have free upgrade to Windows 10. This comes after reports of Microsoft giving away Windows 10 copies to pirates. All you need to do is install the latest Windows 10 preview (build 10130) and use Microsoft Account that is registered for the Windows Insider program. After this you will receive the final version of Windows 10 for free. Windows 10 will remain genuine and therefore you can have install of the preview and upgrade to the final version later.

It was confirmed on Twitter by Microsoft's Gabe Aul. "As long as you are running an Insider Preview build and connected with the MSA (Microsoft Account) you used to register, you will receive the Windows 10 final release build and remain activated," says Gabe Aul .

Microsoft will soon require testers to use a Microsoft Account to receive updated builds, and even when Windows 10 is finalized testers can opt-in and keep receiving future test versions in the coming months. So if you're running Windows XP or Windows Vista and you're looking to get a free copy of Windows 10, simply install the preview now and you'll get the final copy free once it's ready on July 29th.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 users receiving ICS Update

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 users can now update their android os to ICS. To update goto Settings>>About Phone>>Update.

Android 4.0.x Ice Cream Sandwich

The SDK for Android 4.0.1 (Ice Cream Sandwich), based on Linux kernel 3.0.1,was publicly released on October 19, 2011.Google's Gabe Cohen stated that Android 4.0 was "theoretically compatible" with any Android 2.3.x device in production at that time. The source code for Android 4.0 became available on November 14, 2011.The update introduced numerous new features.

Version	Release date	Features
4.0.1	October 19, 2011	Soft buttons from Android 3.x are now available for use on phones Separation of widgets in a new tab, listed in a similar manner to apps Easier-to-create folders, with a drag-and-drop style A customizable launcher Improved visual voicemail with the ability to speed up or slow down voicemail messages Pinch-to-zoom functionality in the calendar Integrated screenshot capture (accomplished by holding down the Power and Volume-Down buttons) Improved error correction on the keyboard Ability to access apps directly from lock screen Improved copy and paste functionality Better voice integration and continuous, real-time speech to text dictation Face Unlock, a feature that allows users to unlock handsets using facial recognition software New tabbed web browser under Google's Chrome brand, allowing up to 16 tabs Automatic syncing of browser with users' Chrome bookmarks A new typeface family for the UI, Roboto Data Usage section in settings that lets users set warnings when they approach a certain usage limit, and disable data use when the limit is exceeded Ability to shut down apps that are using data in the background Improved camera app with zero shutter lag, time lapse settings, panorama mode, and the ability to zoom while recording Built-in photo editor New gallery layout, organized by location and person Refreshed "People" app with social network integration, status updates and hi-res images Android Beam, a near-field communication feature allowing the rapid short-range exchange of web bookmarks, contact info, directions, YouTube videos and other data Support for the WebP image format Hardware acceleration of the UI Wi-Fi Direct 1080p video recording for stock Android devices Android VPN Framework (AVF), and TUN (but not TAP) kernel module. Prior to 4.0, VPN software required rooted Android.
4.0.2	November 28, 2011	Fixed minor bugs on the Verizon Galaxy Nexus, the US launch of which was later delayed until December 2011 (For Canadian consumers, 4.0.2 reportedly created a bug on the Galaxy Nexus that crashed the application market when users attempted to view details of any Android application. It also inadvertently reduced the NFCcapabilities of the Nexus phone).
4.0.3	December 16, 2011	Numerous bug fixes and optimizations Improvements to graphics, databases, spell-checking and Bluetooth functionality New APIs for developers, including a social stream API in the Contacts provider Calendar provider enhancements New camera apps enhancing video stabilization and QVGA resolution Accessibility refinements such as improved content access for screen readers
4.0.4	March 29, 2012	Stability improvements Better camera performance Smoother screen rotation Improved phone number recognition

Friday, March 9, 2012

Android Market is now Google Play

Google Play is a digital content service from Google which includes an online store for music, movies, books, and Android apps and games, as well as a cloud media player. The service is accessible from the web, the Android app, or Google TV, and all of the content is instantly available across all of these devices after purchase. Google Play was introduced in March 2012 when Google rebranded its existing Android Market and Google Music services.

Movies

Movies are available in US, UK, Canada, and Japan.According to Google there are "thousands" of movies available on Google Play Movies, some in HD, including comedy, drama, animation, action and documentary.Users have the ability to rent movies and watch them instantly on the Google Play website or via the Google Play Movies app on an Android device.Alternatively, users can download movies for offline viewing and view them later using the Google Play Movie app.

Music

On 16 November 2011 Google introduced Google Music with a music store, Google+ integration, artist hubs, and purchasing reflected on T-Mobile phone bills. The three major label partnerships announced were with Universal Music Group, EMI, and Sony Music Entertainment, along with other smaller labels. To celebrate the launch, several artists released free songs and exclusive albums through the store.According to Google there are "hundreds" of free songs in Google Play and "millions" available for purchase. Users can also upload up to 20,000 of their songs to the service, for free.Songs in Google Music are priced at US$1.29, $0.99, $0.69, and free.Users also get personalized recommendation based on what they listen the most. Music can be played on the Google Play website, or any Android device. Music can also be stored for offline playback.

Books

Google Play's books are available in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.According to Google there are over 3 million ebooks on Google Play, "nearly 3 million" are free and there are "hundreds of thousands" available for purchase.Books can be read online at the Google Play website, or offline, via the Android app.

Several new features like sharing are also available.

Link : https://play.google.com/store

Apple IPad 3 Features: Review

Apple unveiled the new Apple IPad 3 on Wednesday. It is expected to have a 9.7 inch retina display and a higher resolution of 2048 X 1536 and around 44% more colour saturation. It delivers four times the pixels, compared to the iPad 2, and the 3.1 million pixels in the Retina display are more than one million more pixels than an HDTV. It is fuelled by the powerful A5X dual core processor with quad-core graphics designed for swifter performance and responsive user experience to support the Retina display. It offers twice the performance, compared to A5 chip, while maintaining the power efficiency.

After camera-less original iPad, the company has shown room for improvements and gladly the iPad 3 features the 5 megapixel iSight camera with support for 1080p video recording. It comes with 5-element lens and IR filter. The new iPad will bring in voice dictation, giving everyone the taste of Siri. As expected, it also supports 4G LTE, it now supports 21Mbps HSPA+ and DC-HSDPA at 42Mbps, with LTE at 73Mbps (Verizon, Rogers, Bell, Telus and AT&T will be the LTE partners). The battery life is maintained 10 hours, while 9 hours on 4G.

The iPad Wi-Fi + 4G comes with built-in next generation 4G LTE that supports faster networks for HSPA+ and DC-HSDPA, and both CDMA and GSM iPad users can reap the benefits. Personal Hotspot can be used to share the fast network connection on your iPad with up to 5 other devices using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or USB. On typing the microphone icon on the keyboard, iPad listens to you and converts it into text. This can be used to write messages, take notes, search the web and more. It works with third-party apps and capable of updating Facebook status, tweeting, or writing Instagram captions.

The new iPad also brings in the latest update to the OS as the iOS 5.1. Chris Cheung from Autodesk showcased the new SketchBook Pro, a drawling app that focuses on art line for artists, exclusively available for iOS from April. Mike Capps, President of Epic Games launched Infinity Blade: Dungeons. Randy Ubillos, Chief Architect for Photo and Video apps talks about reinvention of iPhoto with new gestures, new effects, multi-touch editing, and you can beam photos directly between devices. There’s a new bezel gesture, too. Other elements to be updated are iWork and GarageBand.

A quick look at the highlights of the new iPad:

A5X chip with quad-core graphics
9.7" Retina display with 3.1 million pixels
5 megapixel iSight camera
1080p video support
4G+LTE
iOS 5.1 operating system

The new iPad has been dipped in shades of Black and White and will be made available starting March 16. It is now available for pre-order for select countries - Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Switzerland, UK and the U.S Virgin Islands. The end of March will see the device reach another batch of countries, like New Zealand, Greece, Hungary, to name a few. Obviously, you won't see India making it to any of these lists, but going by the latest trend, we shouldn't have to wait too long, till the dainty devices reach our shores. The 16GB iPad is priced at $499 (approx Rs.25,092), 32GB at $599(approx Rs.30,120) and $699 (approx Rs. 35,150) for 64GB. For 4G services, the prices are $629 (approx Rs. 31,630), $729 (approx rs. 36,652) and $829 (approx Rs. 41,679), respectively. Obviously, one needs to keep in mind, when the new tablets hit the Indian markets, prices are bound to be on the higher side of the approximate rates mentioned above.

With the launch of the new iPad, the iPad 2 is made available at an affordable price of Rs. 24,500 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model and Rs. 32,900 for the 16GB Wi-Fi + 3G model.

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Hardware of the Week: Raspberry Pi

The Raspberry Pi is a single-board computer developed in the UK by the Raspberry Pi Foundation. The foundation plans to release two versions, priced at US$25 and $35 (£16 and £22) plus delivery cost and sales tax. The Foundation started accepting orders for the $35 model on 29 February 2012. The Raspberry Pi is intended to stimulate the teaching of basic computer science in schools.

The design is based around a Broadcom BCM2835 system on a chip (SoC),which includes an ARM1176JZF-S 700 MHz processor, VideoCore IV GPU, and 256 Megabytes of RAM. The design does not include a built-in hard disk or solid-state drive, instead relying on an SD card for booting and long-term storage.

Raspberry Pi Logo

This board is intended to run operating systems based on the Linux kernel, including, but not exclusive to Linux and to support the Python programming language, BBC BASIC, C and Perl.

Back in 2006, Eben Upton was lecturing in Cambridge University when he spotted the drop off in the skill levels of A-level students applying to the Computer Science course. Compared to the 1990s, when those applying had been hobbyist programmers who honed their skills on the likes of Amigas, BBC Micros, Spectrum ZX and Commodore 64 machines, the current crop of applicants had little or no programming skills.

Along with a number of colleagues, Upton came up with the idea of a cheap computer that could easily be installed in schools and universities across the country, giving students access to a computer on which they could learn how to program.

Over the next three years a wide range of colleagues and friends from within the computer industry came on board to help Upton develop the Raspberry Pi and get it to the point it is at today.

The Raspberry Pi is powered by a Broadcom BCM2835 system on a chip (SoC) featuring an ARM1176JZFS CPU running at 700Mhz. The SoC will also support Blu-ray quality playback, using H.264 at 40Mbits/s. In other words, not exactly a powerhouse, but with that video support it can have genuine practical applications for things such as being a multimedia PC to plug into your telly. The graphical capabilities of the pocket-sized computers will be roughly equivalent to an original Microsoft Xbox levels of performance, which isn’t too bad considering it will only cost you $25.

The OS can be downloaded from http://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads .

The cases for Raspberry Pi is yet to be officially released eventhough many people have made some like these.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

How to fool your friend with phone?

Let’s shift to the phone for a bit. First, a service that never gets old: PrankDial.com. Just surf over and enter a friend’s phone number. You can pick from a bunch of different voices and styles, then enter any message you want, and it’ll call them and say it aloud. You can pull three of these pranks every day at no charge, which ought to leave you plenty of obnoxious options.

Two other sites bring a different twist to telephone troubles. TeleSpoof.com and SpoofCard.com let you call anyone and have whatever number you want show up in CallerID. See how confused your girlfriend gets when you call her cell phone…from her cell phone. Each service only lets you make three calls per phone number before they make you pay, but that’s enough to give you ample amusement. Oh, and it’s still legal, though that might change — so get on this while you can.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

MS Office 15 Leaked!!!

Microsoft Office's successor version's developer version has been leaked. The leaked build of Office 15 is from Milestone 2 (M2), and has the version number of 15.0.2703.1000. From the setup file’s properties, the build is believed to be compiled on March 8th, 2012, where Office 15 officially entered M2 phase early March with build 15.0.2621.1000.

The next Office 15 features Moorea, an application looks like to be a clipboard for any type of content including text and images. Its tagline is “everything you need in one place”, so the features and functions of Moorea can be expanded when it arrives in final form. Moorea 15 is installed but not linked via shortcut in this build. Anyway it’s easy to unlock and enable Moorea. There is also a Microsoft Lime application to test UI elements. Several enhancements and improvements have also been made to individual Office 15 applications of Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Visio. For example, ability to import data via Atom feed, new conversion support between numbers and Roman alphabets, ability to insert online video and audio and etc.

Otherwise, Office 15 is still very much looks like Office 2010. The main visibly enhancement expected in Office 15 is likely to be incorporation of Metro UI as core design theme, which first used in Windows Phone 7 and Zune, and is also anticipated to include in upcoming Windows 8. In fact, the setup installer of Office 15 still prominently display that it’s installing Office 2010, despite after installation the application is called Office 15 (O15).

Download

Note: Only 32-bit (x86) version of Office 15 M2 is leaked.

File Name: MondoC2R.en-us_15.0.2703.1000_x86.iso
Size: 926MB

Torrent Download: microsoft.office.15.m2.torrent
Magnet Link: magnet:?xt=urn:btih:356D4CEED14AC796131D363A8AC0AA46426CA5AB

The leaked Office 15 M2 build is still very buggy, so DO NOT use it to replace your Office 2010 or Office 2007, and use at your own risk. It can be installed on Windows Vista and Windows 7, but not Windows 8 though. The system requirements is similar to system requirements of Office 2010. After downloading, extract the ISO archive and run the SetupMondoC2R.exe to install Office-Next version 15.

After installation, you may choose to activate Office 15 with KMS activator.

The leaked Office 15 uses Click-to-Run (C2R) and App-V technology (something like virtual drive that’s why you will notice installation is completed in fast and furious manner), and contains full set of Office 15 applications, including Access 15, Excel 15, PowerPoint 15, Word 15, Outlook 15, Visio 15, InfoPath Designer 15, InfoPath Filler 15, Project 15, Publisher 15, OneNote 15, SharePoint Workspace 15, SharePoint Designer 15, and various other tools.

Screenshots and Videos

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Adobe Flash Hit By Another Zero-Day Bug

Adobe this week warned of a critical bug in Flash Player 10.2 that could causes crashes and potentially allow a hacker to take control of an affected system.

The company said Monday that it is in process of finalizing a schedule for delivering updates to affected versions. At this point, it exists in Flash Player 10.2.153.1 and earlier versions for Windows, Macintosh, Linux and Solaris, Adobe Flash Player 10.2.156.12 and earlier versions for Android, and the Authplay.dll component that ships with Adobe Reader and Acrobat X (10.0.2) and earlier 10.x and 9.x versions for Windows and Mac.

"There are reports that this vulnerability is being exploited in the wild in targeted attacks via a Flash (.swf) file embedded in a Microsoft Word (.doc) file delivered as an email attachment, targeting the Windows platform," Adobe said in its advisory.

Adobe said it was not aware of PDF-related attacks in Reader or Acrobat, and Adobe Reader X Protected Mode mitigations would prevent that type of exploit from happening. As a result, the bug for Adobe Reader X for Windows will be addressed in the next quarterly update for Adobe Reader on June 14.

As PCMag's Larry Seltzer points out, this type of vulernability might sound familiar. It's quite similar toanother Flash zero-day from several weeks ago that was embedded in an Excel file and used to attack RSA. Brian Krebs also noted that only one of the 42 anti-malware engines on VirusTotal could detect this attack.

Source:PC Mag

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Bing-Powered Searches Hit 30 Percent in March

Bing is expanding its reach as a search engine, according to new data from Experian Hitwise. In March, Bing powered nearly a third (30.01 percent) of U.S. searches.

The amount of Bing-powered searches has been steadily increasing. In February, they accounted for 28.48 percent of traffic, meaning the March figures are a 5 percent increase.

However, Google is still top dog as far as search engines go. In captured 64.42 percent of the market, a 3 percent decrease from the previous month. But other sources are gaining on Google. Yahoo nabbed the third spot with 15.69 percent of searches, a 5 percent month-over-month increase, and Bing alone saw a 6 percent increase from February's figures with 14.32 percent of the space. While Hitwise also tracks 69 additional search engines, they only comprised 5.58 percent of U.S. searches in March.

The term Bing-powered search might be a bit confusing. In July 2009, Microsoft signed a 10-year dealwith Yahoo that allows Bing to power Yahoo's search site and Yahoo to handle advertising. Bing has been powering Yahoo search in the U.S. and Canada since August 2010.

Hitwise also monitors search success rates, meaning searches that actually lead you to a Web site. Both the Yahoo and Bing sites had nearly the same rate of success at 81.4 percent and 80.32 percent respectively. Google had a lower success rate of 65.91 percent.

Most searches (24.40 percent) are just one word long, according to Hitwise. In fact, longer searches (those that are five to eight words in length) slipped 3 percent from February to March, while shorter queries (one to four words long) were up 1 percent.

Source : PC Mag

AMD Has First Certified USB 3.0 Chipsets

The USB 3.0 specification took an important step towards wider implementation with the certification of the first SuperSpeed USB 3.0 chipsets, the A75 and A70M FCH chipsets from Advanced Micro Devices, the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) announced Tuesday.

"The ramp of the SuperSpeed USB ecosystem has been unprecedented, and the first certified SuperSpeed USB chipsets from AMD are a momentous step in the industry," USB-IF president Jeff Ravencraft said in a statement.

"SuperSpeed USB integration into the chipsets is a strong incentive for manufacturers to bring an even broader range of SuperSpeed USB solutions to the market."

The USB specification for establishing communication between peripheral devices like flash drives and a PC, smartphone or other host controller has largely replaced older interfaces like serial and parallel ports.

The USB 3.0 specification was completed in November 2008 and the first consumer USB 3.0 products were released by Buffalo Technology a year later. The first certified USB 3.0 products, including motherboards from ASUS and Gigabyte, were announced at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

A key new feature in the USB 3.0 specification is the "SuperSpeed" bus, which adds a fourth transfer mode to enable much faster transfers of data from peripheral devices to host controllers.

"The integration of SuperSpeed USB into AMD's Fusion Controller Hubs demonstrates AMD's commitment to providing the industry's latest, most innovative connectivity technologies," said Chris Cloran, corporate vice-president and general manager of AMD's Client Group.

"AMD Fusion Controller Hubs will provide competitive performance while consuming low power with active USB 3.0 traffic for high definition video and fast connectivity with the latest SuperSpeed USB devices."

AMD rival Intel has its own proprietary I/0 technology called Thunderbolt.