Latest News - Page 3045

The days of Firefox "talking" to you while updating are over. With the release of Firefox 15 today, Mozilla has done away with that form of updates, opting for the silent updates, or background updates, utilized by Chrome and other software. No longer will you have to wait while it updates to the latest version! What a relief.

All joking aside, this really is a nice feature to have in software. One of the most frustrating things I have encountered in computing is when I really need to look up something quickly and the browser is updating to the latest version. Since the updater is an integral part of the software, Mozilla took its time testing this before releasing it.

"This was one of the scariest projects that I've ever worked on, since messing something up in the updater component could have catastrophic consequences in case it prevents users from being able to update to newer Firefox revisions," said Ehsan Akhgari, a programmer who worked on the project.

The FCC has issued a statement today saying they are forming a group to study the use of portable electronic devices (PEDs) on aircraft. The current policy is quite cumbersome and requires lots of time and effort to get a device authorized for use during flight. The FCC recognizes this is an issue of consumer interest and this is the reason they have formed the group.

"With so many different types of devices available, we recognize that this is an issue of consumer interest," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "Safety is our highest priority, and we must set appropriate standards as we help the industry consider when passengers can use the latest technologies safely during a flight."

The group will examine the methods used for certification along with a variety of other issues and then present the findings to the FCC. Unfortunately, they will not be investigating the use of cell phones for voice communications. A reason for this was not provided and it seems like a massive miss on the group's priority list.

NVIDIA has had to push back its launch schedule due to troubles with the manufacturing processes. Originally, Kepler was supposed to launch in 2011, however, it is still being launched to this day and we've almost hit 2013. No new architecture will be produced until Maxwell in 2014.

Maxwell is an interesting animal. It will be a 20nm chip, which isn't a big deal. However, it is being designed so that it can be manufactured at GlobalFoundries, IBM, Samsung and TSMC. This should allow NVIDIA to ensure a large enough supply, or make a change if one of the fabs is having process issues.

The GTX 700 series should be a similar launch schedule to what has so far occurred with the GTX 600 series. This means we won't see anything until March 2013 or later. But the good news is that the new chip should between 25-30% higher performance and power efficiency. The Kepler refresh will have to compete with AMD's Sea Islands, so the real battle will take place in 2014 with Maxwell taking on Sea Islands.

As we reported previously, it appeared that Samsung was preparing a Samsung S III in black. We found this out thanks to leaked pictures, and now we know that we had just scratched the surface. Samsung has said the color availability will vary by carrier and region, though they haven't said which colors are going where.

The Samsung PR machine had a bit of fun writing this press release, I'm sure. Take a look:

We've reported on LG's mysterious 'superphone' twice now, but it looks like the phone has been officially outed by LG. We'd like to introduce LG's Optimus G, and with it, LG are looking Samsung right in the eye and going for their jugular.

LG's Optimus G lands in Korea next month, and will be the first LTE-powered, quad-core CPU phone on the market. The exact chip is Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064, which is a 1.5GHz quad-core beast of a chip, but that's not the best bit. Optimus G sports LG's fully integrated touch technology, "in-cell", providing a thinner screen, and bezel.

It's a True HD, 1280x768, IPS LCD and LG are claiming that when the smartphone is turned off, the 3mm bezel and body of the phone match the screen - very, very nice. Optimus G also bakes in 2GB of RAM, a 13-megapixel rear snapper, 1.3-megapixel front facer, and a 2,100mAh battery, all housed in a phone that is just 8mm thick. One of the downfalls, is that the Optimus G will only launch with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, and not the freshly-baked Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Sob.

It looks as though NASA is wanting their Small Spacecraft Technology Program to see Android-powered devices go into space. The space agency wants to see if cheap consumer-based hardware can dependably survive a journey into space.

NASA believes that sending tiny satellites into space will pave the way for a low-cost delivery system, they also hope to improve upon, or evolve new propulsion techniques by working with much smaller devices, like smartphones. The first-gen, smartphone-powered satellites will be baked into a modular, cube-based chassis named 'CubeSat'.

The first PhoneSat will measure just 10x10x10cm, or roughly double the size of a Rubik's Cube. NASA will throw in Samsung's Nexus One smartphone, one external battery, radio equipment, and a watchdog circuit that will be used to reboot the device in case of a problem. NASA have already run stress tests on the Nexus One, which it passed without any modifications required. These tests were run to see if the smartphone could handle the launch and orbit into the dark beyond of space.

Alright, so Oculus Rift just got a whole lot more exciting today, with the announcement that Hawken would support the VR headset when it's released on December 12. During an interview with Forbes, publisher Meteor Entertainment's Mark Long talked of why Oculus Rift and Hawken are a match made in heaven:

Lag with the VR headset was also discussed, where Long addressed concerns saying that the Unreal Engine has ways of getting around it:

I'm not all that excited for Windows 8 on desktop, but mobile devices like tablets and hybrid beasts are going to be amazing with Microsoft's upcoming operating system. Sony has made the news today with PocketNow reporting of their upcoming VAIO Duo 11.

Sony's VAIO Duo 11 looks to be an 11-inch device, thanks to the '11' in its name, and the 'Duo' parts seems to point toward the fact that its a convertible tablet. More details on the device aren't available right now, but it looks like the convertible tablet also sports the ability to use a stylus pen.

This means we should be able to use the Sony tablet as a normal tablet with our fingers, and when we want to do some handwriting, we can whip out the stylus pen and go all Picasso on the VAIO Duo 11. The keyboard looks to be backlit, which is another bonus. The keyboard is not detachable, and I think this is a great idea. These hybrid devices should sport a thin, but attached, keyboard. Typing on a tablet feels ridiculous, and if you can type relatively fast, you'll respect Sony's decision to include an attached keyboard.

Telstra's 4G network sports some incredible speeds, but it's currently limited to in and around the capital cities of Australia. Of course, they aren't just sitting on their hands, with the telco announcing a huge expansion plan that will take place over the next 10 months which will see Telstra's 4G network cover 66% of the population of Australia by mid-2013. Telstra have provided a state-by-state breakdown:

Telstra have also announced that they have turned on 4G coverage for Bondi in Sydney, as well as in the North Sydney rail tunnels. The telco has also stated they are working on getting coverage in "every tunnel in every city in Australia". Telstra are bringing over 1,000 new base stations for their 4G expansion, and they've also said that they won't need to acquire new spectrum from the Digital Dividend auctions to support this new coverage, but they have said they're going to try and get more spectrum at government auction.

A website, GoDarkForIE.org, is encouraging other websites to black out on October 26, 2012 to users of Internet Explorer below version 9. Dabbling in web development a bit myself, I know first-hand just how frustrating it can be to develop for all the browsers, especially fixing bugs in older IE versions.

GoDarkForIE argues "old browsers hurt the web! They don't understand modern technologies, lack features, they're buggy, have security holes and prevent you from seeing the web the way it should be seen." They liken it to not upgrading your TV ever. "Imagine if everyone didn't upgrade their TV or computer? It would mean all the great advancements like HD, DVD's etc would all go to waste. Imagine what you'd be missing out on!"

The mission? "To get websites to go dark on October 26, 2012 to users of Internet Explorer below version 9."

Store shelves could soon be bare of Samsung products, if Judge Koh accepts Apple's preliminary injunction request. We knew that Apple would go after sales bans after winning by so much over Samsung, we just didn't know which products. Now, Apple has filed with the court listing the models that they would like banned.

Apple is going after the eight devices listed in the chart above. Why wouldn't they go after all 24 of them? Well, a large majority of them are no longer being sold and Judge Koh doesn't like having her time wasted, as Apple and Samsung found out, so they've narrowed the list down to a more reasonable amount.

The devices included in the list are the Galaxy S 4G, the Galaxy S II ATT, the Galaxy S II Skyrocket, the Galaxy S II T-Mobile, the Galaxy S II Epic 4G, the Galaxy S Showcase, the Droid Charge, and the Galaxy Prevail.

Sony is starting to think differently about how it presents the PlayStation brand to users. Previously, with the PlayStation 1, 2, and 3, only games approved by Sony could be played on the system. Well, at least until modders and hackers got their hands on the system. However, with the massive losses that Sony showed during its last earnings, it's doing everything it can to expand.

Sony has realized that the PlayStation can no longer be a closed platform. They need to open it up and allow other developers to write games and other manufacturers to create controllers that interface with it. In order for it to compete with mobile and PC gaming, these things are a must as they are already available in the competition.

"[The] old model of these very siloed platforms is breaking down a bit," said Ryan, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe head honcho. "PS2 was not a connected device. PSP was not really a proper connected device. PS3 is and PS Vita most definitely is. So we have the ability now to have devices talk to each other. We are having to reset a lot of our thinking. And I am enjoying that. But it is a challenge, because we've been pushing PS1, PS2, and PS3, basically the same way, and then all of a sudden we are like 'You have to forget that and think differently.'"

Looking for a new CPU? You may just want to hold off for a little bit longer, at least until you see what AMD is planning to bring to the table. Thanks to leaks, we can now provide you with an idea of what they may be planning for their Vishera line of FX CPUs, set to launch in Q3 or Q4 of 2012.

The launch plan looks to be similar to the launch plans of "Zambezi" in that they are launching one eight-core CPU, one six-core CPU, and one quad-core CPU. The launch of Vishera is supposed to be coordinated with the launch of their new APUs using the same processing core, Piledriver, which is an updated Bulldozer.

The eight-core FX-8350 will ship with a 4.00 GHz clock speed, with a speed of 4.20 GHz for TurboCore. The six-core FX-6300 will ship with a clock speed 3.50 GHz, and a 4.10 GHz TurboCore speed. The quad-core FX-4320 will feature the same clocks as the FX-8350 with half the cores. The document also provides some more information on AMD's upcoming APUs.

Sick of the distortions from modern day lens and cameras? Well, researchers clearly were too and have designed a flat lens that doesn't have any distortions. The only thing is that it will probably set you back more than a pretty penny. The new lens is crafted from silicon and gold, not exactly the cheapest elements.

The 60-nanometer thick lens was created by my favorite department at Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the physics department. The flat lens "approached the ultimate physical limit set by the laws of diffraction." Federico Capasso, professor of applied physics said "Our flat lens opens up a new type of technology. We're presenting a new way of making lenses. It's extremely exciting."

The lens is created by creating a very thin layer of silicon and then coating that with a nanometer thin layer of gold. This design eliminates the "fish-eye" effect of current wide angle lens and the researchers state that the image doesn't require any sort of complex corrective techniques.

We already know that the new LG phone "really flies", but what else will the new superphone contain? Well, it will be the first to bake in Qualcomm's new APQ8064 processor, and it will also be the first to sport LG Display's new True HD IPS+.

LG have said that the 'G' (no Optimus, unlike how we reported yesterday) will sport a 4.7-inch 1280x768 LCD that will be capable of pushing an all-white screen at 470 nits of brightness, all while using 70% less power than AMOLED. LG's new display, unlike most AMOLED-based displays on the market, will have an ordinary RGB stripe instead of the RGBG PenTile pixel arrangement.

LG have also said that the new screen technology will get baked into the company's Optimus Vu 2, too. LG's new superphone will also be the first to sport a new laminated touchscreen, the G2 Touch Hybrid Display. LG have said that the "unibody" design has allowed them to cut 30% off of the screen's thickness.

We reported that the world's largest oil producer, Saudi Aramco, was hacked with a malware attack, but details were scarce. The oil producer has now come out and given some information of the cyber attack.

The company experienced 30,000 workstations hacked in mid-August, with the company stating that the virus "originated from external sources", and that they were still investigating. They have since cleaned up the workstations, and resumed operations for their internal network today.

Oil exploration and production operations were not affected, according to the company, as the networks they operate on are separate. Saudi Aramco's website is still down, with a message shown above.

It looks as though Microsoft will be getting an exclusive sneak peak into your computer if you install Windows 8, as the Redmond-based company will be contacted each time you install a new application, according to software hacker Nadim Kobeissi.

Kobeissi noticed the news when running a network packed analyzer under Windows 8. Don't fret: this can be disabled quite easily. Known as Windows 8's SmartScreen feature, it acts as a protector to users from malware, and other things that can be otherwise harmful to your PC. The technology was first featured and introduced with Internet Explorer 8, as an extension of IE7's phishing filter.

When Microsoft released IE9, SmartScreen gained Application Reputation, which is a set of algorithms used to analyze the trustworthiness of downloads through digital signatures, heuristics, and information collected by the company. The technology works by using Microsoft's database of software trustworthiness, but the company collects information about user-driven downloads in the process. This data is obviously kept on Microsoft's servers.

In order to get the Raspberry Pi's pricing down to a low point, there had to be some cuts made to its abilities. First of which, was the cull of MPEG-2 decoding. MPEG-2 licensing fees would've increased the Raspberry Pi's pricing by at least 10%.

But, it looks like the foundation has found a way around this, and for just $3.16, users can purchase an individual MPEG-2 license for each of their boards through the organizations' online store. The same goes for Microsoft's VC-1 standard, which can be purchased for $1.58.

H.264 encoding isn't left out, with OpenMax components needed to develop applications with H.264 functionality, and are now enabled from the latest firmware. With CEC tagging along for the ride, we're also looking at XBian and OpenELEC operating systems that can use a single IR remote to control a Raspberry Pi, a TV and other connected goods.

CNET are reporting that the 13.3-inch Retina MacBook Pro displays have gone into production, with NPD DisplaySearch analyst, Richard Shim, telling the site "The supply chain indications are that it's for a MacBook Pro 13.3 -- not a MacBook Air".

Shim continues to reveal that the displays are being made by Samsung, LGD and Sharp. He also reveals that the launch supplies for the 13-inch model will be much better than the 15-inch model, which goes to show just how popular the 13-inch MBP really is. Shim continues "with the 15.4 it's production of a few hundred thousand units versus one or two million for the 13.3".

So, we're looking at a considerable jump in stock, and I think this model will be the one that really dukes it out with the Ultrabooks. It'll be interesting to see what resolution the 13.3-inch model ends up getting.

The work of a Stanford ant biologist, and a computer scientist have found that harvester ants on the hunt for food, use a similar method to that of the protocols used to control traffic on the Internet.

Deborah Gordon, a biology professor at Stanford, have been studying ants for more than 20 years. When Gordon discovered how the harvester ant colonies were sending out more ants to get food, she called in Balaji Prabhakar, who is a professor of computer science at Stanford, who is an expert on how files are transferred on a computer network.

At first, he didn't know why Gordon had called him, as ants had nothing to do with his field, but the next day, he realised: