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Kim Dotcom retiring from Call of Duty, hopes to be king of Titanfall

Charles Gantt | Gaming | Feb 17, 2014 9:31 AM CST

Many people will only know the infamous Kim Dotcom for his trouble with law enforcement over the file sharing website, MegaUpload, but Dotcom is actually most famous for being the best Call of Duty player in the world. For the past few years, Dotcom has dominated the world leader boards in several CoD games including Black Ops II as well as the recent title; Call of Duty: Ghosts, but all good things must come to an end.

Today Dotcom announced that he would be retiring from the Call of Duty franchise after becoming the first person in the world to reach 100,000 kills in Free-For-All mode in Call of Duty Ghost. A score of 5,000,000 accompany's that achievement, and to really put things into perspective, Dotcom managed to kill 100,000 players with only dying about 31,000 times himself, meaning for every time he died, he killed almost 3.5 people.

Dotcom's next goal is to become the best Titanfall player in the world, and with the game being developed by two past COD developers, there are a lot of similarities, making this the perfect game for Dotcom to dominate. With Betas active now, and the game officially releasing in March, we wont have very long to wait until we find out just how good Dotcom is at Titanfall either!

Continue reading: Kim Dotcom retiring from Call of Duty, hopes to be king of Titanfall (full post)

Google acquired SlickLogin to replace passwords with inaudible sounds

Google recently acquired an Israel based startup called 'SlickLogin', which indicates that the company is making plans to replace passwords and even two-factor authentication methods with an inaudible sound unique to your phone and Google login.

SlickLogin has a patented technology where your passwords and two-factor authentication setups can be replaced with a unique and inaudible sound. Once enabled, the website's login page would typically listen to this inaudible sound via your phone and then granting access to your account. This could solve a lot of problems and overcome the possibility of your email account being hacked by someone. All you have to do is hold your smartphone near your PC with the website's login page, and the access will be granted.

The startup's team seem to be excited to work with Google, as they said that the company has been working on some great ideas to make internet safer for everyone.

Continue reading: Google acquired SlickLogin to replace passwords with inaudible sounds (full post)

Tax Dispute in India won't affect Nokia's planned sale to Microsoft

It was reported earlier that Nokia was in serious trouble with the Indian government over a tax evasion dispute of a jaw-dropping amount of $542 Million. As a result, the authorities raided the company's factories and offices in India. The matter is still pending in the court, but the situation escalated to a point where the company later threatened to pull its entire manufacturing business from India. In September 2013, Microsoft made a deal with Nokia to acquire the company.

Because of the tax evasion dispute that involves its factories in India, the company's planned sale to Microsoft would become complicated, according to WSJ. The report explained that that this complication involves a factory in Chennai which makes millions of mobiles per year and the deadline to complete this transaction should be completed by the end of Q1 2014. If the factory is not included during the transition, it may continue its operations as a "contract manufacturer" for Microsoft until the disputes are cleared. This step however would make it more complicated for Nokia.

Since this factory is a major component in the deal and therefore not an establishment that can be omitted or sold later, it was speculated that it would result to a stalemate. The operations was not suspended, but if the transfer is not completed before Q1 2014, the situation may put 8,000 jobs at stake who are currently working in the same factory. But Nokia issued a statement which claims otherwise.

Continue reading: Tax Dispute in India won't affect Nokia's planned sale to Microsoft (full post)

Unnamed U.S. law firm caught up in NSA spying, report states

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Feb 16, 2014 7:19 PM CST

American attorneys were caught up with the NSA's global surveillance program, as an unnamed U.S. law firm representing an overseas client currently in a bitter legal battle with the U.S. government. Specifically, the Australian and U.S. governments agreed to share information on a law firm that was retained by the Indonesian government - and information protected under attorney-client privilege was likely included.

Attorney-client privilege isn't protected from NSA eavesdropping, though the American Bar Association demands attorneys to "make reasonable efforts" so confidential information isn't shared with others.

There has been growing concern that governments conducting spying and surveillance could breach attorney-client privilege with little recourse.

Continue reading: Unnamed U.S. law firm caught up in NSA spying, report states (full post)

Pennsylvania high school adopts Linux, rolls out laptops to students

Michael Hatamoto | Software & Apps | Feb 16, 2014 5:45 PM CST

Penn Manor High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania will embrace the open source Linux platform, installing it on more than 1,700 laptops. Every student at Penn Manor HS received an Acer TravelMate laptop powered by the Ubuntu 13.10 OS - and the student body was encouraged to explore the OS and push its limits.

"We encourage our students to install software and lift the hood of the system to better understand what makes it tick," said Charlie Reisinger, Penn Manor district technology director, in a statement to Linux.com. "I hope our students run local webservers, toy with Python or simply explore graphics programs such as GIMP. Linux offers so many opportunities to explore computing, programming, and the arts."

Desktop Linux market share, at just 1.60 percent, is dwarfed by the Microsoft Windows operating systems - but still plays an important role in our everyday lives. Google Android, for example, got its successful starting using Linux, while set-top boxes, supercomputers, researchers use open source technology, and many cloud-based services rely on Linux in one its software layers.

Continue reading: Pennsylvania high school adopts Linux, rolls out laptops to students (full post)

Samsung started boosting its production of 25nm DRAM chips

Roshan Ashraf Shaikh | RAM | Feb 16, 2014 3:17 PM CST

Samsung Electronics has started increasing its 25nm DRAM production with the hopes that it can grab a good share of the DRAM market while they still can. The South Korean based chipmaker is taking advantage of the situation courtesy of an accident that broke out at SK Hynix's DRAM production fab in China in September 2013.

Because of the fire that broke out in its plant, one third of the DRAM's production halted. Samsung Electronics and Micron Technology are the only DRAM chipmakers who are close enough to compensate for the production scarcity, including the production of chips for Apple Technology and GDDR5 for video cards.

Samsung Electronics has an advantage since they already have a 25nm DRAM production fab. The majority of DRAM production from Micron is based on 30nm process, and its technology transition to 20nm production won't be completed until the end of 2014. It was only recently when Micron completed its transition to manufacture 25nm chips via its plant in Hiroshima. This fab was formerly owned by Elpida Memory and produced DRAM chips for mobiles.

Continue reading: Samsung started boosting its production of 25nm DRAM chips (full post)

Norwegian psycho ready to launch hunger strike if PS2 isn't upgraded

Michael Hatamoto | Gaming | Feb 14, 2014 11:30 PM CST

Convicted killer Anders Breivik is ready to go on a hunger strike of his self-proclaimed "torture" conditions at the Ila and Skien prisons in Norway. Breivik killed 77 people in a shooting and bombing rampage in 2011, and is now serving a 21-year sentence.

Breivik demanded the right to a newer PlayStation 3 game console "with access to more adult games that I get to choose myself," according to a letter he wrote to journalists. "Other inmates have access to adult games while I only have the right to play less interesting kids games. One example is 'Rayman Revolution,' a game aimed at three year olds."

The game title in question received a 3+ rating in Europe, so it's suitable for gamers of all ages above three years old. The ESRB gave the same title E+10, which means any player 10 years of age or older.

Continue reading: Norwegian psycho ready to launch hunger strike if PS2 isn't upgraded (full post)

Sony PlayStation 4 dominating Microsoft Xbox One global sales

Michael Hatamoto | Gaming | Feb 14, 2014 8:01 PM CST

The Sony PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Xbox One are engaged in a fierce battle in the console market, though it looks like the PS4 outsold the Xbox One by a hefty 2-to-1 margin. The NPD Group didn't release specific sales figures, only saying that the PS4 led the market in hardware sales, but Sony executives claimed that its console "nearly doubled" that of the Xbox One.

Game hardware sales in January 2014 were down 21 percent compared to the same time last year, though January 2013 had five weeks. Microsoft's reliance on restrictive DRM - or gamer perception of intrusive anti-piracy efforts has caused gamers frustration. In addition, cross-platform gamers are playing better on the PS4 than the Xbox One, along with the lower price tag of the PS4.

"Overall retail video game sales would be down only 1 percent instead of down 21 percent, if sales were normalized to account for the five-week January 2013 compared to the four-week January 2014," said Liam Callahan, NPD analyst, in a statement.

Continue reading: Sony PlayStation 4 dominating Microsoft Xbox One global sales (full post)

Bitcoin glitch wipes out Silk Road 2.0, is the end near?

Michael Hatamoto | Internet & Websites | Feb 14, 2014 4:08 PM CST

The underground Silk Road 2.0 website was reportedly hacked and those responsible ran off with an estimated $2.6 million for their efforts.

"I am sweating as I write this... I must utter words all too familiar to this scared community: We have been hacked," Silk Road 2.0 administrators posted on a forum. "Our initial investigations indicate that a vendor exploited a recently discovered vulnerability in the bitcoin protocol known as 'transaction malleability' to repeatedly withdraw coins from our system until it was completely empty."

Although Defcon, the admin who posted a message on the Silk Road 2.0 forums didn't post an exact figure taken, security experts believe 4,400 coins - the equivalent of close to $2.6 million - was taken.

Continue reading: Bitcoin glitch wipes out Silk Road 2.0, is the end near? (full post)

T-Mobile makes steps in the right direction, fighting wireless rivals

Michael Hatamoto | Mobile Devices | Feb 13, 2014 8:59 PM CST

T-Mobile is on the right track to better compete against the three bigger wireless carriers in the United States, though it will continue to be a drawn out, fierce battle. The company is putting pressure on AT&T and seeing results, with the company's sights set on attacking competitors and attracting new subscribers.

"T-Mobile was dying on the vine for years," industry analyst Jeff Kagan recently told TweakTown. "Then a little over a year ago they hired a new CEO, John Legere. He ran Global Crossing. He looked around at T-Mobile, the changing marketplace, and decided on a path. This has been successful for T-Mobile. They have seen the first couple quarters of growth in years. And hopefully they can continue to build."

Verizon Wireless and AT&T, the No. 1 and No. 2 wireless carriers in the United States, relying on "wireless, wire line, television using IPTV and a wide variety of different technologies and offerings. T-Mobile is just wireless. And a small wireless player at that," which forces T-Mobile to get a bit creative with their sales and marketing efforts. "I think T-Mobile can continue to grow going forward for a while. However they will likely remain the number four competitor. Unless they get acquired."

Continue reading: T-Mobile makes steps in the right direction, fighting wireless rivals (full post)

Taco Bell teasing mobile app that lets customers order from phones

Charles Gantt | Mobile Devices | Feb 13, 2014 9:37 AM CST

If you have ever sat in a long line outside of a fast food restaurant and wished you could just place your order with your smartphone to speed the process up, then you might just be in luck. Taco Bell is reportedly beta testing a system that would let you place your order and even pay for it before ever even arriving at the store to pick it up.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Taco Bell is testing the mobile app at five of its locations in Orange County, California, and is preparing to ramp up the program to more markets and users over the course of the next several weeks. The report also says that based on the initial success of the program, the company could roll the system out to all of its locations in the US by the end of the year.

While other restaurants have online ordering similar to this, Taco Bell is tossing a interesting twist into the mix that involves GPS location tracking. After an order has been placed, the system will track the customer via the GPS sensor in their smartphone, and when the customer is within a few minutes of the Taco Bell location, it will alert employees to begin preparing the order. This allows customers to pick up their food much faster than traditional walk-in and drive-through methods, and will save both time and money for all parties involved.

Continue reading: Taco Bell teasing mobile app that lets customers order from phones (full post)

500px for iOS updated to allow photo upload from iPhone and iPad

Charles Gantt | Software & Apps | Feb 13, 2014 8:48 AM CST

Image sharing websites such as Flickr, Imgur, and Photobucket have all grown in popularity over the last year as camera's on mobile devices get better with every revision, but popular photo sharing service 500px has up until now, refused to allow mobile images to be uploaded to its servers. This ban on mobile images is mainly because the website takes pride in offering high-quality images, something many smartphones still lack.

That all changes today! This morning, 500px announced that it has updated its iOS app and now allows the uploading of images from iPhone and iPad devices. The company says that users should not worry about an influx of low-quality images, and instead should remember the way 500px thrives based on its community. The company says that the new upload feature only allows quick uploading of images taken from a stand-alone camera via an SD to iPhone and iPad adapter. This means that images taken with the iPhone and iPad can not be uploaded directly from the app, thus keeping low-quality images out of the system.

No word was given on when this feature may be released on Android, but with the recent influx of Dual USB Drives for PC and Mobile popping up, I am sure it wont take long before the Android version of the app gets updated. As an ex-professional photographer, and someone who still shoots professionally on the side, I feel this is a good choice for 500px. Opening the service up to allow images from mobile devices themselves would simply inundate the system with very few good photos, and would flood it mediocre to poor images.

Continue reading: 500px for iOS updated to allow photo upload from iPhone and iPad (full post)

Edward Snowden asks Russia for protection, after threats from the US

Anthony Garreffa | Current Affairs | Feb 13, 2014 5:34 AM CST

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden can't catch a break, where the former NSA contractor has asked Russian law enforcement for security. The reasoning behind this is there have reportedly been threats made by US officials over Snowden's life.

After threats to Snowden were made last week, Snowden's lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, said: "We are concerned with the situation around Edward. We see the statements made by some US officials containing potential and implicit threats and openly calling for causing him bodily harm".

BuzzFeed posted an article, using words from a US intelligence officer who provided a full explanation of a possible Snowden capture, where he said: "We would end it very quickly... Just casually walking on the streets of Moscow, coming back from buying his groceries. Going back to his flat and he is casually poked by a passerby. He thinks nothing of it at the time starts to feel a little woozy and thinks it's a parasite from the local water. He goes home very innocently and next thing you know he dies in the shower".

Continue reading: Edward Snowden asks Russia for protection, after threats from the US (full post)

Microsoft "seriously considering" Android apps on Windows Phone

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Feb 13, 2014 12:33 AM CST

The Verge is reporting from unnamed sources that Microsoft is "seriously considering" adding support for Android apps to its Windows and Windows Phone operating systems.

Tom Warren, reporting with The Verge, says that the move could see Microsoft position itself better in the market with Android apps, as a "Band-Aid" for its Windows Phone apps, or lack thereof. We've seen this before, with BlackBerry providing compatibility for Android apps on BlackBerry 10 devices.

The one stopping block for Android apps on Windows would be the lack of Google Play Services, so we won't see the same APIs as an "official" Google Android device. We are seeing more and more love for Windows + Android love, but would this be enough?

Continue reading: Microsoft "seriously considering" Android apps on Windows Phone (full post)

Toyota issues Prius recall over faulty software

Michael Hatamoto | Connectivity & Cloud | Feb 12, 2014 7:31 PM CST

A software glitch has forced Toyota to recall 1.9 million vehicles sold worldwide from 2010 to 2014, trying to fix an error that causes the car to stall. The recall hits 1 million cars in Japan, 700,000 in the United States and the remaining 200,000 from Europe and other select markets.

Specifically, Toyota will have car dealerships install updated software to fix a bug that leads to heat buildup in the car's circuit transistors, which obviously caused damage. Engine warning lights would trigger an alert, but the vehicle would also occasionally stall while driven.

No reports have been submitted to Toyota regarding accidents or injuries from the unexpected error.

Continue reading: Toyota issues Prius recall over faulty software (full post)

FirePower Technology honors OCZ PSU warranties, keeps products alive

Michael Hatamoto | Cases, Cooling & PSU | Feb 12, 2014 12:18 PM CST

Shortly after announcing FirePower Technology acquired OCZ's power supply assets, the company announced it will honor the warranty of current OCZ PSU owners. FirePower paid $850,000 for the OCZ business unit and plans to revive the brand, operating under the FirePower Technology name, with Silencer MK III, ZX, ZT, ZS, ModXStream, CoreXStream, Fatal1ty and StealthXStream products.

FirePower hopes to use the OCZ product portfolio to enter the gaming PC and industrial workstation markets.

"We are excited to launch our business with the OCZ power supply team, which was built on the successful legacy of the PC Power and Cooling brand," said Lawrence Firestone, FirePower President and CEO, in a statement. "The launch of this independent business unit within FirePower will allow us to re-establish these brands, launch new products and drive the company back to the market leadership position this group enjoyed several years ago."

Continue reading: FirePower Technology honors OCZ PSU warranties, keeps products alive (full post)

Intel preparing native 15-core Xeon processor

Anthony Garreffa | Processors | Feb 12, 2014 5:36 AM CST

Intel is preparing a new 15-core Xeon CPU, which will feature 4.31 billion transistors, a 3.8GHz Turbo Frequency, 155W TDP, 40 PCIe lanes, and will join the Xeon E7 line-up.

This means we can expect the new native 15-core processor to be joined by seven other CPUs for a total of eight CPUs, with Hyper-Threading thrown into the mix we can expect up to 240 threads being capable thanks to this new processor. The new Ivy Bridge-EX processor will feature 15 cores/30 threads, 37.5MB of L3 cache, will support DDR3-1600MHz RAM and most likely come in at over $5000 when it lands.

The new 15-core CPU will use the LGA2011 socket and arrive as the Xeon E7-8890 v2 CPU, we will see 8 members in the Xeon E7-8xxx v2 range.

Continue reading: Intel preparing native 15-core Xeon processor (full post)

US Army to begin testing 'Iron Man' armor this June

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Feb 12, 2014 3:43 AM CST

The US military is getting ready to test out its first prototype Iron Man armor, announced by the head of US Special Operations. Navy Adm. William McRaven stated that three unpowered prototypes of the Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit, or TALOS, are currently being assembled, with an expected delivery date of June.

McRaven talked about the suit's potential to save lives during a special conference in Washington DC, where he said: "That suit, if done correctly, will yield a revolutionary improvement in survivability and capability for special operators".

TALOS should feature its on on-board computer, health monitors, and MIT-developed liquid armor that is capable of hardening itself in a matter of milliseconds. The end result should see TALOS being able to sustain gunfire, just like Tony Stark in Iron Man. Right now, the armor is being worked on by 56 corporations, 16 government agencies, 13 universities, and 10 national laboratories.

Continue reading: US Army to begin testing 'Iron Man' armor this June (full post)

Sandisk's new Extreme PRO USB 3.0 flash drive writes up to 240MB/sec

Anthony Garreffa | Storage | Feb 11, 2014 8:20 PM CST

Sandisk has just announced its new Extreme PRO USB 3.0 flash drive, which comes in just one size: 128GB. The new Sandisk Extreme PRO USB 3.0 flash drive is capable of delivering write speeds of up to 240MB/sec, while reading at an impressive 260MB/sec.

"The Sandisk Extreme PRO USB 3.0 drive offers world-class performance for technology aficionados who demand high-speed, durability and peace of mind that their files will be safe" explains Philippe Willams, Director of Product Marketing of Sandisk. He continues: "We are excited to be expanding our USB 3.0 solutions, and this is another example of our efforts to enable consumers with fast access to content and data".

Sandisk's ultra-fast Extreme PRO USB 3.0 flash drive features a sophisticated design, made with a durable aluminum metal casing which protects the flash drive from wear and tear. It also comes with Sandisk's SecureAccess software, which provides 128-bit AES encryption and password protection. The Sandisk Extreme PRO USB 3.0 flash drive has

Continue reading: Sandisk's new Extreme PRO USB 3.0 flash drive writes up to 240MB/sec (full post)

AMD details DockPort in newly released video on YouTube

Charles Gantt | Displays | Feb 11, 2014 7:23 PM CST

For well over a year now, AMD has been touting it's DockPort technology previously known as "Lightening Bolt" technology, and today we got a much closer look at big red's low-cost alternative to Intel's Thunderbolt technology. AMD has posted a video on YouTube that gives us a closer look into what exactly DockPort really is.

DockPort got official recognition as an official DisplayPort standard at CES 2014 by VESA,one of the standards governing bodies. AMD's DockPort appears to be an amazing Tunderbolt-like connector that will allow multiple connectors, devices, and monitors to all be synced off of the same single DockPort docking station. The ability to simply purchase an HDMI, USB 3.0, or any other connector module, and connect it inline with every other port is something I have been waiting for for a long time, and will definitely change the way we connect our devices.

"AMD's versatile DockPort connection opens up a world of possibilities, like a portable hub where you can charge, transform, accessorize and otherwise connect your device in an all-in-one solution, reducing cable clutter and bringing data and display connectivity to your notebook or tablet via a single, DockPort supported DisplayPort link," AMD said in a statement.

Continue reading: AMD details DockPort in newly released video on YouTube (full post)

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