Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Unlocked Samsung Galaxy Nexus can now be purchased from Google

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2012/04/unlocked-samsung-galaxy-nexus-can-now-be-purchased-from-google.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

Google has started selling phones directly to customers again—well, one phone at least. The company is now selling the flagship Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich phone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, directly from its Google Play store.

The Galaxy Nexus is currently the only physical product in the Google Play store. Google is selling an unlocked GSM version with access to HSPA+ networks, meaning it will work in AT&T and T-Mobile in the US and 200 other providers worldwide. The phone started out as a Verizon exclusive at $299.99 with at two-year contract, but recently became available on Sprint for $199.99. Google dabbled in direct sales with another of its flagship phones, the Nexus One made by HTC, which was also sold unlocked at the time.

Unfortunately, the Android 4.0 phone is available only to customers in the USA, but we don't doubt a gray market could swell up to fulfill any lust for the Galaxy Nexus overseas (the unlocked GSM version has been available in Europe, though for higher prices). The fully unlocked handset is priced at $399.99 without a contract, and comes with a $10 Google Wallet credit.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/index.php

Google Drive vs. the competition: pricing plans and perks, compared

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/24/google-drive-vs-the-competition-dropbox-skydrive-icloud/

google drive

Sometimes a table says a thousand words. Now that Google has finally announced its cloud service, Google Drive, we're sure more than a few of you are crunching the numbers in your head in an attempt to figure which is the best deal. Far be it for us to tell you which service to use when we've barely had a chance to poke around Drive, but for now, better if we lay out those gigabytes and dollars in number form, rather than squeeze them into a crowded paragraph, don'tcha think? Follow past the break for a brief breakdown of what you'll get from Google, along with Dropbox, Microsoft SkyDrive and iCloud.

Continue reading Google Drive vs. the competition: pricing plans and perks, compared

Google Drive vs. the competition: pricing plans and perks, compared originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 13:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feature: Coolest jobs in tech (literally): running a South Pole data center

http://arstechnica.com/business/coolest-jobs-in-tech/2012/04/coolest-jobs-in-tech-literally-running-a-south-pole-data-center.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

Steve Barnet is hiring, but not for an ordinary IT job. His ideal candidate "will be willing to travel to Polar and high altitude sites."

Barnet, interim Computing Facilities Manager for the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center (WIPAC) at the University of Wisconsin, is looking to fill what may be the coolest Unix administrator job opening in the world—literally. Plenty of IT jobs exist in extreme and exotic locales, but the WIPAC IT team runs what is indisputably the world’s most remote data center: a high-performance computing cluster sitting atop a two-mile thick glacier at the South Pole.

The data center has over 1,200 computing cores and three petabytes of storage, and it's tethered to the IceCube Observatory, a neutrino detector with strings of optical sensors buried a kilometer deep in the Antarctic ice. IceCube observes bursts of neutrinos from cataclysmic astronomical events, which helps to study both "dark matter" and the physics of neutrinos.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/index.php

Google Drive official: 5GB of free storage, Chrome web apps, Wave-like sharing and editing (video)

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/24/google-drive-official-cloud-storage-details-docs/

google drive

If it happened any other way, it just wouldn't be as satisfying, now would it? After years of leaks, murmurs, hubbub and other familiar synonyms, Google's mythical cloud storage platform is now official... sort of. As Lady Fate would have it, the company apparently outed a memo of the features on its French blog earlier today, but before it could yank the 'pull' switch, an eagle-eyed reader managed to grab the text and run it through -- surprise, surprise -- Google Translate. What's left is an official-as-you'll-get-right-now transcript of Google Drive's features, but contrary to the hype, it all feels way more enterprise-centric than consumers may have wanted. For starters, there's no real mention of music (we guess Google Music is on its own, there), and there's just 5GB of free storage for "documents, videos, photos, Google Docs, PDFs, etc." According to the brief, it's designed to let users "live, work and play in the cloud," with direct integration with Docs and Google+.

We're also told that Drive can be installed on one's Mac, PC or Android phone / tablet, while an iOS version will be "available in the coming weeks." Of note, Google's making this accessible to visually impaired consumers with the use of a screen reader. As for features? Naturally, Google's flexing its search muscles in as many ways as possible; if you scan in a newspaper clipping, a simple Search All within Drive will allow results to appear directly from said clipping. If you upload a shot of the Eiffel Tower, it'll show up whenever you search for the aforesaid icon. Moreover, Drive will allow folks to open over 30 types of documents directly from a web browser, including HD video, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop and more -- "even without the software installed on your computer." For those concerned about access, the new platform will have the same infrastructure as any other Google Apps services, giving admins a familiar set of management tools on that end.

On the topic of storage, just 5GB are provided gratis, with 25GB costing $2.49 per month, 100GB running you $4.99 per month and 1TB demanding $49.99 per month, with a maximum of 16TB ($799.99 per month, if you're curious) per user; thankfully, Google Docs will not be included in your usage total. Finally, the note played up the ability to "attach documents directly into your Drive Gmail," and given that it's intended to be an open platform, Goog's promising to work with third party developers in order to enhance Drive's functionality even further. The source link below is still dead as of right now, but it simply can't be long before the lights are officially turned on. Oh, and if you're not enamored at the moment, the outfit's suggesting that "many more developments" will be arriving in the coming weeks.

Update: It's live on the Google Play store, and a pair of explanatory videos are embedded after the break!

Continue reading Google Drive official: 5GB of free storage, Chrome web apps, Wave-like sharing and editing (video)

Google Drive official: 5GB of free storage, Chrome web apps, Wave-like sharing and editing (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Gurwin Sturm (Google+), François Bacconnet (Google+)  |  sourceTechCrunch, Google Drive, Google Play  | Email this | Comments

from Engadget http://www.engadget.com

Google back in the smartphone sales game: unlocked Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ (GSM) available for $399

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/24/google-galaxy-nexus-unlocked-on-sale-gsm-hspa/

Google back in the smartphone sales game: unlocked Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ (GSM) available for $399

Hang on to your kneecaps, folks. Google's just announced that it's making the Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ available in its Play web store for $399 contract-free. That's right: the unlocked, unbranded, pure Google, 16GB GSM version everyone's been importing from foreign lands far and near is now officially available in the US -- booyah! The handset ships with Android 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and comes with Google Wallet pre-installed (including a $10 credit to get you started with the company's mobile payment service).

As a refresher, it's not Google's first time in the smartphone sales game. The company made the Nexus One available on its own website in 2010 before pulling the plug and then partnering with Best Buy to sell the Nexus S later that year. One of the problems with the Nexus One was support -- or lack thereof. Google's assured us things will be different this time and it will be offering proper support for its Nexus flagship. We sure hope so.

The Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ is on sale now for $399 (plus taxes and two-day shipping) in the new Devices section of the Play web store. It's a phenomenal deal for one of the best Android phones on the market today -- especially when you consider it provides 21Mbps HSPA+ with great battery life (unlike the "fake" Nexus) and no commitment on your choice of AT&T or T-Mobile. So go ahead, stick it to the carriers and get a taste of dumb-pipe utopia -- delicious, isn't it?

Google back in the smartphone sales game: unlocked Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ (GSM) available for $399 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Monday, April 23, 2012

Intel Core i7-3770K CPU review roundup: crossing the Ivy Bridge

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/23/intel-core-i7-3770k-cpu-review-roundup/

Ivy Bridge

Today is officially Ivy Bridge day, in case you didn't already know. Intel took the wraps off the latest member of its processor family and the internet wasted no time putting the flagship Core i7-3770K through its paces. The 3.5GHz quad-core desktop chip comes packing not only some architectural tweaks, but a brand new integrated GPU in the form of the HD 4000. Oh, and it does all this using a brand new 22nm manufacturing process and 3D "Tri-Gate" transistors. What does that mean for you, the user? Lower power consumption, better performance and, surprisingly, unbelievably fast media transcoding. When AnandTech turned its eyes towards Quick Sync, the on-die media transcode engine introduced with Sandy Bridge, the 3770K practically buried the competition. Using Cyberlink Media Espresso the new chip turned a DRM-stripped Blu-ray of Harry Potter (130 minutes of 1080p video) into an iPad friendly format in just seven minutes without taxing the CPU.

At idle, power consumption hasn't changed much, but when TechSpot put the pedal to the metal things looked quite a bit different. The new i7-3770K sucked down just 147 watts, which was even four watts less than lower clocked i5-2500K. And, of course, it delivered much better performance. In fact, in Bit-Tech's tests, the only chip that was able to routinely best it was the hexa-core 3960X Extreme Edition -- and even that CPU barely eked out its victories. While AMD's offerings simply can't compete with Intel's on pure performance or power consumption, it does still outrun run Chipzilla's GPU. The HD 4000 is, undeniably, a huge step forward for the Core line, but it falls just short of matching the A8's integrated Radeon on Tech Report's tests. For more benchmarks than your heart can handle check out the pile of links below.

Read - AnandTech
Read - Bit-Tech
Read - TechSpot
Read - Tech Report
Read - Hot Hardware

Intel Core i7-3770K CPU review roundup: crossing the Ivy Bridge originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Apr 2012 21:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The NOFAN CR-95C: a fanless copper CPU cooler for your next-gen build

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/23/nofan-cr-95c-fanless-copper-cpu-cooler/

The NOFAN CR-95C: a fanless copper CPU cooler for your next-gen build

Interesting times to be shopping around for a processor, but what about a new cooler to go with it? This unassuming little work of art is the copper special edition of the NOFAN CR-95C, which is rated to cool CPUs of up to 100W TDP without the need for a fan. Judging from all the Intel and AMD leaks, that level efficiency ought to have you covered regardless of whether you opt for Ivy Bridge or Trinity -- so long as you don't mind hanging around until June, because FanlessTech reckons we won't see it go on sale any sooner.

The NOFAN CR-95C: a fanless copper CPU cooler for your next-gen build originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Apr 2012 11:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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from Engadget http://www.engadget.com

U.S. to defend Afghanistan for decade post-exit

http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2012/04/ap-us-to-defend-afghanistan-for-decade-after-exit-042312/

KABUL, Afghanistan — Washington has pledged in a newly agreed strategic pact to help defend Afghanistan militarily for at least a decade after the country formally takes control of its own security, an Afghan official said Monday.

from Air Force Times - News http://www.airforcetimes.com/rss_news.php

PSA: Fitbit Aria WiFi scale available now for $130

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/23/fitbit-aria-wifi-scale-available-for-130/

It's been three months since Fitbit got into the WiFi scale game, but until now Withings has remained pretty much the only option for weight watchers who actually intend to buy one. Now, though, the Fitbit Aria is finally shipping and, just like Fitbit said it would, it costs $130. That's potentially not a bad deal, seeing as how it matches the $160 Withings scale in a few key areas: it tracks weight, BMI and body fat percentage, gives you the option of tweeting your poundage, and can recognize up to eight different users. Like Fitbit, too, it allows you to access your data through a website, or an iOS / Android app.

Of course, the main thing the Aria has that Withings doesn't is a fitness monitor to go with it. The Aria is designed to work with the company's Fitbit trackers, which log physical activity, calories burned, stairs climbed and, if you're diligent about data entry, the various meals you've consumed. Since all that information lives online in an alphabet soup of healthiness, it might paint a more complete picture of how fit you are. Then again, you'd have to commit to wearing the Fitbit day in and day out. And, you know, pay $100 for it. Your call.

Continue reading PSA: Fitbit Aria WiFi scale available now for $130

PSA: Fitbit Aria WiFi scale available now for $130 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Apr 2012 06:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Saturday, April 21, 2012

Nokia releases a commercial shot entirely with the 808 PureView (video)

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/20/pureview-commercial/

Image

Nokia's released a new commercial that it says is shot entirely using an 808 PureView. Whilst it's clear the company's hired a coterie of models, professional photographers and a world-class lighting rig, it's still a great indication of what the technology can do in the right hands. Head on past the break to see the results for yourself and then catch yourself seriously weighing up buying a Symbian phone for your next handset, just like we are.

Continue reading Nokia releases a commercial shot entirely with the 808 PureView (video)

Nokia releases a commercial shot entirely with the 808 PureView (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 07:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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N-Control's Avenger goes Elite, keeps classic good looks

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/20/n-controls-avenger-goes-elite-keeps-classic-good-looks/

N-Control's Avenger goes Elite, keeps classic good looks

Competitive gamers are always looking for a way to sharpen their edge, but few solutions provide leverage like the N-Control Avenger, a controller attachment known for rigging gamepads with actual levers. This quirky clamshell impressed us last year with its customizable trigger pulleys and finger flickable appendages -- allowing us to command the controller's face buttons without taking our thumbs off of its analog sticks. Today the outfit silently unveiled the Avenger Elite, a familiar looking successor that promises to offer more of the same, albeit better.

Company founder David Kotkin explained that the new unit features higher quality materials, a more sensitive hair-trigger system and a new "spring against spring" button depression to give its button levers some extra oomph. The new unit's arms are also stronger, says Kotkin, and shouldn't have to be adjusted between sessions. The Elite sells for the same steep $50 as the original unit, although N-Control is offering a discount on Ghost Recon: Future Soldier when bundled with the plastic peripheral, $75 nets you both. Kotkin was kind enough to send us a few shots of the unit ahead of its May 5th launch date, check them out in the gallery below, or click past the break for the official press release.

Continue reading N-Control's Avenger goes Elite, keeps classic good looks

N-Control's Avenger goes Elite, keeps classic good looks originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 05:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Friday, April 20, 2012

Eyes-on Whiteman Technology's Delta DVR, plus more hardware details

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/19/eyes-on-whiteman-technologys-delta-dvr-plus-more-hardware-deta/

Eyes-on Whiteman Technology's Delta DVR, plus more details on its internals

Did the recent revelation of the Delta DVR, with its six tuners, AMD silicon running Windows Media Center embedded and 3TB HDD have you viewing your current DVR with disdain? Well, stop reading now, because we got to speak with the man who created the Delta DVR, Ryan Whiteman, and found there's even more to like about his potential TiVo killer. Read on after the break for the full scoop.

Continue reading Eyes-on Whiteman Technology's Delta DVR, plus more hardware details

Eyes-on Whiteman Technology's Delta DVR, plus more hardware details originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thursday, April 19, 2012

Brammo's 100MPH Empulse coming May 8th, spooks electrons with six-speed gearbox

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/19/brammo-empulse-electric-motorcycle-six-speed/

Brammo's 100MPH Empulse coming May 8th, spooks electrons with six-speed gearbox

By rights, Brammo's street-fighting Empulse should have gotten here quicker, but at least we now have a firm launch date. Sporting an all-new six-speed gearbox in place of the one-speed original, Brammo's spec sheet shows a 121-mile city range (or 56 miles on the highway), 100+ MPH maximum hustle and a re-juicing time of 3.5 hours in fast-charge mode. We're not sure if the price has budged from the original $14,000 estimate, but if you want to see what that ballpark sum might get you, the video after the break is all yours.

Continue reading Brammo's 100MPH Empulse coming May 8th, spooks electrons with six-speed gearbox

Brammo's 100MPH Empulse coming May 8th, spooks electrons with six-speed gearbox originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft reveals the fourth version of Windows 8: Enterprise

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/19/the-fourth-version-of-windows-8-revealed-enterprise/

Windows 8 logo

We're sure some of you aren't as interested in the Windows 8 versions destined for workplace drudgery as you are the home editions, but admit it, the IT guy inside of you is a little curious. As detailed in an official blog post, the new unique feature in Windows 8 Enterprise is Windows To Go, which we think of as Windows on a stick. Basically it allows you to run your corporate image on a home PC or other personal devices -- the opposite of that USB disk you carry to work with portable versions of your favorite unsanctioned apps. Also new is the ability to automatically sideload internal Metro apps as well as enhancements to the virtual desktop client. Of course Windows 7 Enterprise features like DirectAccess, BranchCache and AppLocker are still there, but some features like BitLocker are now available in the Pro version of Windows 8 too. If you were thinking you might like these at home, don't forget that Enterprise is only sold with Software Assurance (Microsoft's perpetual upgrade program), but that does bring extra abilities too, like a free Virtual Desktop Access license -- you didn't think you got that for free did you -- and the optional Companion Device license that extends your VDI and Windows To Go rights to four more personal devices. Now, if it just included the ability to boot directly to the desktop, then most corporation's biggest concern with Windows 8 would be appeased.

Microsoft reveals the fourth version of Windows 8: Enterprise originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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from Engadget http://www.engadget.com

Breivik says he trained for Norwegian massacre using Modern Warfare

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2012/04/norwegian-shooter-breivik-says-he-trained-using-modern-warfare.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

Anders Behring Breivik, the 33-year-old Norwegian ultranationalist who has admitted to killing 69 people in a shooting rampage and eight more in a bomb blast last July, said during his trial today that he "prepared" for the attacks by playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

As reported by The Guardian, Breivik said the game, which includes many tasks that could be compared with a real attack, was good for practicing "target acquisition" and for getting experience with realistic holographic gun sights:

"If you are familiar with a holographic sight, it's built up in such a way that you could have given it to your grandmother and she would have been a super marksman. It's designed to be used by anyone. In reality it requires very little training to use it in an optimal way. But of course it does help if you've practised using a simulator."

Breivik had previously mentioned Modern Warfare 2 as "part of my training-simulation" in a 1,500-page manifesto written before his rampage. However, in that same manifesto, Breivik also admitted to owning a collection of weapons which he practiced with often at firing ranges, showing extensive real-world preparations in addition to any claimed virtual "training."

Breivik's testimony also addressed his obsession with World of Warcraft, which he says he played for up to 16 hours a day during a sabbatical he took from work between September 2006 and December 2007. Prosecutors in the case had previously pointed to Breivik's obsessive WoW playing as a sign of his instability, but Breivik himself said that game was merely a hobby. "Some people like to play golf, some like to sail, I played WoW," he said. "It doesn't have anything to do with July 22."

Breivik's manifesto suggested that telling people you've started playing a massively-multiplayer game like World of Warcraft was a good way to help "justify isolation" and "avoid suspicion from relatives and friends" when planning an attack.

Breivik's game playing may become a key part of the ongoing trial, which is meant to determine his mental fitness. Defense witness and sociology professor Thomas Highjland Eriksen told Reuters that there's a chance Breivik "can't tell difference between reality and a computer game," and that during the attacks he may have been in a fantasy universe where he "becomes a knight, a defender of the civilization of Europe." But information about the detailed planning that went into the attacks, including meetings with other ultra-nationalists in London and Liberia up to nine years prior, seem to go against this line of defense.

UPDATE: Added additional context about Breivik's manifesto and training with a collection of actual weapons.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/index.php

How to run the new Chrome OS environment without a Chromebook

http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2012/04/howto-run-the-new-chrome-os-environment-without-a-chromebook.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

Google is revamping its Chrome OS platform with a new desktop environment and window management system. We took a close look at the user interface improvements earlier this week in a detailed hands-on report. In our review, we explained how advanced users can install the experimental new interface on a Chromebook by enabling the developer update channel.

Of course, that only works if you have a Chromebook. After we published our review, we heard from many readers who wanted to test the latest experimental version of Chrome OS on conventional hardware. In this tutorial, we will explain how to install a third-party build of Google’s operating system in a virtualized environment or on a bootable thumb drive.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/index.php

Carsabi points the way forward for buying a used car online

http://arstechnica.com/business/reviews/2012/04/carsabi-points-the-way-forward-for-buying-a-used-car-online.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

After two years of living in Europe, my wife and I have returned to the US—specifically to Oakland, California. Although there are some public transit options (and I bike a lot), we’ve decided that we want to get a car to share between the two of us. So, I turned to where most of us turn these days to buy pretty much anything: Craigslist.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/index.php

Killer Wireless-N 1202 and E2200 Ethernet controller launch, aim to squash your ping times

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/19/killer-wireless-n-1202-e2200-ethernet-controller-bandwidth-priority/

killer e2200Killer Technology -- formerly known as Bigfoot Networks -- has certainly come a long way from its days as a scrappy startup, and now the outfit's taking one more step towards ping domination with the introduction of two new products. Qualcomm Atheros is actually doing the honors, as it formally reveals the Killer Wireless-N 1202 WiFi module with Bluetooth as well as the Killer E2200 gigabit Ethernet controller. Each one is aimed at DIYers and OEMs, enabling machines based on them to automatically classify and prioritizing gaming, video and audio network data -- a bit of behind-the-scenes black magic that's said to "provide a superior, uninterrupted online entertainment experience." As you'd expect, both will include the Killer Network Manager software on associated rigs, giving end users a borderline ridiculous amount of control over how bandwidth is used. We're told that the 1202 will ship next month, while the E2200 is available now; pricing remains a mystery on both, though.

Killer Wireless-N 1202 and E2200 Ethernet controller launch, aim to squash your ping times originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 07:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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from Engadget http://www.engadget.com

The Windows 8 Enterprise SKU: Windows To Go and new Software Assurance benefits

http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2012/04/the-windows-8-enterprise-sku-windows-to-go-and-new-software-assurance-benefits.ars?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

Microsoft's introduction of the Windows 8 SKUs on Monday left many of the details of the corporate-oriented Enterprise edition unknown. The company has started to fill in the blanks in a new blog post. Windows 8 Enterprise will include a number of features not found in Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro, the ARM-oriented Windows RT, or the emerging markets edition. On top of these software features, the Software Assurance license scheme is being changed to offer customers some new capabilities.

The exclusive software features include the ability to create Windows To Go portable USB installations, DirectAccess VPN-less remote access to corporate networks, BrancheCache cached access to remote fileservers, AppLocker software restrictions, enhanced 3D, USB, and touch performance in VDI deployments, and the ability to side-load Metro-style applications.

To make full use of these features, Software Assurance usage rights are changing too. Any employee with a company PC with a Software Assurance license will also have a corresponding Windows To Go license, so that they can boot a secure, corporate-controlled environment on their home PCs. This can be extended further with Companion Device licenses (for extra cost), allowing employees to access corporate environments through either Windows To Go or VDI on up to four personally-owned systems.

There will be a license change relating to the Windows RT operating system used on ARM machines: when used as a companion to a Software Assurance-licensed machine, the ARM device can be used to access a VDI image with no additional license required.

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from Ars Technica http://arstechnica.com/index.php

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Custom clock pays homage to CPU, separates geeks from the squares (video)

http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/18/custom-clock-pays-homage-to-cpu-separates-geeks-from-squares/

Custom clock pays homage to CPU, separates geeks from the squares (video)

Pop quiz: Can you tell what the device pictured above is? If you answered "a clock that represents the essential building blocks of a CPU while using binary and HEX numerals to display time," then you're certifiably crazy -- and correct. The brainchild of tinkerer extraordinaire Lior Elazary, the "CPU clock" mechanically emulates the application of computer concepts -- codes, instructions and checks -- to create a "simple" wall clock. To display the time, the middle register uses binary numbers to indicate the hour (a reading of "0010" indicates 2 o'clock, for example). For minutes, the clock uses the HEX numerals on the outer edge of the device, so "05" represents "5," "0A" indicates "10," and so forth. Keeping the clock up to date is a ball that goes around and activates the various levers to change the time. Given all its geeky goodness, this one easily takes the nerd cake from the wordy QLOCKTWO W and super flashy Sci-Fi watch. For a more clockwork-like explanation about its inner workings, check out the video after the break.

Continue reading Custom clock pays homage to CPU, separates geeks from the squares (video)

Custom clock pays homage to CPU, separates geeks from the squares (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 04:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Hack a Day  |  sourceLior Elazary  | Email this | Comments

from Engadget http://www.engadget.com