Bethesda: Fallout 4 was 'basically done' when the game was unveiled

Michael Hatamoto | Gaming | Jul 29, 2015 9:35 AM CDT

If there are certain features you'd like to see in Fallout 4, don't hold your breath, as the game is "basically done."

With most of the hard work already done, and the gaming community excited, Bethesda is spending its time fixing bugs and finalizing things.

"Let's be honest, [right now] it doesn't matter what anybody wants for a feature in Fallout 4," Pete Hines, VP of marketing at Bethesda, in a statement published by GameSpot. "The game is basically done. It was by and large done before we announced it, in terms of the features going in. You're not adding new features in May, June, July in the next year you're releasing; you're trying to get everything fixed."

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US government worried as more Americans wooed by Islamic State online

Michael Hatamoto | Internet & Websites | Jul 29, 2015 8:40 AM CDT

More US citizens are being stopped as they try to leave the country, in an effort to join the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

FBI Director James Comey admits the group's recruitment efforts using social media is successful, as they recruit "troubled souls." IS has been able to radicalize potential recruits from across the world, and those responsible for running the accounts are quick to create new online profiles if one is taken down.

"What worries me most is that ISIL's investment in social media - which has been blossoming in the last six to eight weeks in particular - will cause a significant increase in the number of incidents that we will see," Comey said while speaking at a national security conference. "That's what I worry about all day long."

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Anonymous continues siege against Canadian intelligence agency

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Jul 29, 2015 7:30 AM CDT

As part of its "Operation Anon Down," the Anonymous hacker collective promises to continue leaking documents from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). In its first data release, Anonymous shared a 2014 Treasury Board memo regarding funding of the Canadian spy agency's operational ability overseas.

Anonymous continues siege against Canadian intelligence agency

During a protest of a dam project, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) shot and killed James McIntyre, a protester wearing a Guy Fawkes mask. The police said McIntyre ignored their commands while approaching in an "aggressive manner." Here is what Independent Investigations Office said:

"According to the police, officers were responding to a report of a male causing a disturbance at a public information session. Upon arrival, police encountered a masked individual outside, believed to be connected to the complaint. A confrontation occurred and the male affected person was shot."

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Report: Apple Music already has 10 million users testing the service

Michael Hatamoto | Business, Financial & Legal | Jul 29, 2015 6:30 AM CDT

Apple Music launched on June 30 and has quickly amassed more than 10 million subscribers, according to a report published by Hitsdailydouble.com.

The website spoke with anonymous sources inside a few major record labels, as Apple doesn't release those types of figures publicly. Each new member can enjoy a three-month free trial of the service, so it will be interesting to see how many subscribers stick around following the trial period.

The entry-level plan costs $9.99 per month, and a $14.99 per month family plan allows for up to six users to enjoy the streaming music service.

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Former NSA lawyer: Snowden 'really set back' cybersecurity discussion

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Jul 29, 2015 5:30 AM CDT

Edward Snowden doesn't have very many fans when it comes to people in the US government and the National Surveillance Agency (NSA).

"It is hard to quantify this harm, such as it is, but I think the inflammatory nature of the way the Snowden affair played out really set back our collective discussion on cybersecurity," said Rajesh De, former general counsel for the NSA, when asked about Snowden's data leaks during the Big Law Business Summit.

The White House recently responded to a petition to the White House that sought an official pardon for Snowden. Of course, that's not going to happen:

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Download Windows 10 to a USB flash drive or ISO file with this link

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Jul 29, 2015 4:17 AM CDT

Have you been patiently waiting for your PC to tell you that your reserved copy of Windows 10 was ready? So have I, until I stumbled across this link to the Microsoft website where you can download Windows 10.

If you've already got a Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 serial key, you can download Windows 10 to a USB flash drive or ISO file. The download link includes the Download Tool, available in both 32- and 64-bit, where you can download and install Windows 10 easily. Mine has just finished downloading, so the servers are full steam ahead right now thanks to Microsoft reserving a huge 40Tbps of bandwidth for the launch of Windows 10.

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MSI teases its Z170A XPOWER Gaming Titanium Edition motherboard

Anthony Garreffa | Motherboards | Jul 28, 2015 11:32 PM CDT

Intel is about to press the launch button on its upcoming Skylake processors, a range that will include the new flagship Core i7-6700K processor, and while we've seen some of the GIGABYTE and BIOSTAR boards, now we're getting a sneak peak at one of MSI's enthusiast boards.

The MSI Z170A XPOWER Gaming Titanium Edition is a work of art, sporting a beautiful white and black color scheme that is going to look great with the right components. One of the standout features on the new Z170A XPOWER Gaming Titanium Edition motherboard is the inclusion of the 'MSI OC Dashboard'. This dashboard is located next to the DIMMs, and lets you overclock your system very easily.

The MSI OC Dashboard has a few buttons on it that lets you overclock your CPU, but it also features direct BCLK control from the new tool. You can also do a complete discharge of the motherboard, which is a different touch than we're used to. On the board itself, we have two M.2 slots, 8 x SATA 6Gbps ports, two SATA Express ports, two USB 2.0 connectors, a right-angled USB 3.0 connector, and an internal USB 2.0 port.

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Windows 10 launch has Microsoft securing 40Tbps of bandwidth

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Jul 28, 2015 9:25 PM CDT

The launch of Windows 10 is here, with Microsoft blasting out the Windows 10 update to some PCs who had 'reserved' a copy of the new desktop operating system.

Users are reporting that they're seeing a "'$Windows.~BT' folder onto the C:/ of their system, with Plaffo.com reporting: "Several users have noticed a new folder in the main memory of your PC called '$Windows.~ BT' that contains the files for the installation of Windows 10". The folder sitting in C:/ is only visible if you enabled hidden files and folders in your Windows settings.

But the more interesting news is coming from the fact that Windows 10 is going to chew up a considerable amount of the Internet for the coming days, with Dan Rayburn, an analyst at Frost & Sullivan saying that Microsoft had wanted to start blasting out Windows 10 to users on July 25, but had to wait for the delivery and distribution partners to free up capacity up to an insane 40Tbps (over 4TB/sec).

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Xbox chief happy to see 'death of consoles' talk proven wrong

Michael Hatamoto | Gaming | Jul 28, 2015 8:20 PM CDT

Xbox boss Phil Spencer believes it's a great time for the gaming console market, and years ago shot down talk of the console business dying. Instead, the Microsoft Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4 have both garnered major attention by gamers:

"I have a lot of respect for the team at Sony and the success they've had with PS4, and it's a great time for the console industry," Spencer said in an interview with Edge. "I've said this a few times, but four years ago when I was sitting doing these interviews it was, 'do people need consoles any more?' and, 'isn't this just dead? Everybody's playing on their phone.' And now you're looking at the PS4 having sold over - I don't remember their last number - but over 20 million."

Game studios still must work hard to develop AAA games for consoles that are successful - and some wonder if game console units are actually profitable for Microsoft or Sony. In the end, manufacturers will continue pushing forward with consoles, as gamers are still interested in buying them.

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Anger the Internet by killing Cecil the Lion? Suffer the backlash!

Michael Hatamoto | Internet & Websites | Jul 28, 2015 7:00 PM CDT

Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer isn't having a good day, as the Internet is flooding his business with angry phone calls, emails, and Yelp reviews.

Palmer, an avid hunter, was hunting in Zimbabwe when he shot 13-year-old Cecil the Lion. The lion, which lived on protected national parkland, was lured out of its sanctuary - and was shot by the bow hunter. After being wounded, Palmer and his paid guides tracked the animal for about 40 hours before finally killing him.

The lion was extremely popular among tourists at the park, and had six lioness mates and more than a dozen cubs. Palmer paid more than $50,000 to go lion hunting while in Zimbabwe, and killed an animal that wore a GPS collar while being tracked by Oxford University researchers, according to The Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force.

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