Software & Apps - Page 73

Since Windows 10 launches on July 29 and will serve as a free upgrade of sorts for Windows 7 and 8/8.1 users, it's expected there will be plenty of users trying to upgrade. The ATM Industry Association is recommending financial institutions and businesses look to upgrade their active ATMs to Windows 10 as soon as they are able to.

It was only a recent shift from Windows XP to Windows 7, and with support for Windows 7 ending in five years - now could be a time to make use of Windows 10, which includes security enhancements. Don't count out Google Android as OSes that could find their way to ATM machines in the future.

"ATM deployers should start their 2020 migration without delay," said Mike Lee, CEO of the ATM Industry Association, in a statement, "as ATM hardware purchased now will still be in use when support for Windows 7 OS ends in that year. This means terminals would need to be upgradeable and compatible with the next big operating system. It's important to know which ATM configurations are going to be Windows 10-compatible."

Following our recent news which saw Firefox place 'read-it-later' support directly into the browser, Mozilla has now launched a marketing campaign titled with the slogan 'FoxYeah' in a bid to win over more users.

The spiel at the top of the page reads "know someone who needs to download Firefox? #FoxYeah you do! Go ahead, send them a personal invite below," and seems like a bid to turn its users into some form of fan-boys, advocating for a brand they support.

With panels on the foxyeah.Mozilla website telling users to do things like invite followers, 'invite your peeps' and more, he page continues on for quite some time telling you which people you should invite from random walks of life.

Microsoft will publicly release Windows 10 on July 29, with the company making an announcement courtesy of its "Blogging Windows" blog. Windows 10 was expected sometime during the summer, and Microsoft wants to make good on its promise.

However, there could be a mad scramble to upgrade starting on July 29, and Microsoft is preparing for possible chaos:

"One of [the] things that we can do for people who reserve is pre-download some of the bits to their PC so that those people aren't blocked on the Internet pipe trying to deliver lots of and lots of Windows bits starting on (July 29)," said Joe Belfiore, corporate VP for the OS group at Microsoft, in a statement published by USA Today.

Worldwide PC shipments will drop 6.2 percent in 2015, marketing the fourth consecutive year of declining market volume, according to the IDC research group. Microsoft will release Windows 10 this summer for the PC, and additional rollouts will take place shortly after, the company has confirmed.

"Microsoft and PC vendors still need to convince users of the advantages of the new OS and new PCs, which will take some time," said Loren Loverde, VP of worldwide PC trackers at IDC. "In addition to educating clients, they'll face tough competition from other devices, and weak spending in many regions. As a result, we see PC shipments stabilizing in 2016, followed by limited growth for the next few years."

Looking ahead, Microsoft expects Windows 10 to be on more than one billion devices in just three years, and will help consumers upgrade. When do you plan to install or upgrade to Windows 10?

Google I/O 2015: Google has kicked off its Google I/O 2015 conference, where the Mountain View-based giant has just unveiled Android 6.0 'M'. The new operating system won't be big on features, as the company has said that "the central theme of M is improving the core user experience".

Google will be using improvements that OEMs have been using in their custom builds of Android directly into Android 6.0, with six things that Google is baking into Android M. First, we have App Permissions getting overhauled. It will be similar to how the iPhone does it, with a smaller set of permissions for your device, where apps will not only ask you permission when you use the feature, instead of when you very first install the application.

The company has also allowed developers to bake Chrome into apps now, which is something Google referred to as "Chrome custom tabs". This allows Chrome inside of Chrome, or Chrome inside of an app. This Chrome-in-a-Chrome also supports saved passwords, autofill and all of the rest of Chrome's features.

Did you know that it has been nearly 6 months since AMD released a WHQL-certified Catalyst driver? With NVIDIA constantly refining and fine tuning its GeForce driver with a constant stream of Game Ready WHQL releases, even for Windows 10 with DirectX 12 support, AMD has fallen behind the ball, big time.

We used to see monthly releases of Catalyst drivers back in the day, which added performance improvements for new games, increased support for features like CrossFire and Eyefinity, and even support for new GPUs as they were released. But it has been over 18 months since AMD released the Radeon R9 290X, and 12 months since the Radeon R9 295X2.

The last WHQL-certified Catalyst drivers were released on 9/12/14 in the form of the Catalyst 14.12 Omega WHQL, and since then, AMD has released just two Beta drivers, with the Catalyst 15.4 drivers helping out with Grand Theft Auto V, and adding support for FreeSync. With the impending release of an entire new architecture with HBM memory in the form of the Radeon R9 390X, we should hopefully expect AMD to not just release a kick ass new driver, but to keep up with monthly releases to better compete against NVIDIA in the software side of its products.

During an interview with WorldsFactory, Pisces Interactive, the developer behind Magicka 2 talked about DirectX 12. The studio said that DX12 will have large improvements over DX11, but teased that the Vulkan API could be even better.

The studio said: "DX12 is a big improvement over DX11, it enables games to move to the next generation of graphics. But we're also eagerly awaiting the official release of OpenGL Vulkan, which might even be better than DX12. Currently we are only experimenting with the API's but we will of course support them eventually".

When it comes to the Xbox One version of Magicka 2, Pisces Interactive added: "Paradox has been focusing on PC only for many many years. And this is Paradox first game on the new generation of consoles so we start slow and begin with PlayStation 4. We will see if and when a Xbox one version would be possible. Currently we also have an exclusive deal with Sony".

Google knows that its Chrome browser is a serious consumer of RAM, but the development team is reportedly very aware of this, and are working on lowering Chrome's RAM consumption.

Thanks to a Reddit AMA session, a Chrome for Android engineer said: "We are actively working on reducing battery usage and we are looking into when Chrome is in the foreground and in the background. Since its inception Chrome has been focusing on security and performance of the web across all supported platforms. Performance sometimes has come at the cost of resource usage, but given the importance of the mobile platform this is one of the top things we are looking into".

Google has a serious focus on mobile, but it is not forgetting desktop users at all. As for the desktop side of things, Google added: "We are profiling Chrome to improve our start-up speed and proactively fighting memory bloat and memory leaks. For example, this year the first gesture latency and mean input latency has decreased steadily".

Back in the day, some of the only games you had to play on your new, expensive, single-core PC with 8MB of RAM were the pre-installed ones with Windows. Well, it will be happening again when Windows 10 rolls around later this year, with Candy Crush Saga to be pre-installed.

Xbox Wire has announced that on all future versions of Windows 10 that Candy Crush Saga will be pre-installed, once it launches later this summer on Windows 10. Those that upgrade to, or download Windows 10 "for periods of time following the game launch" will enjoy Candy Crush Saga pre-installed on their new operating system.

The post teases: "With its compelling blend of tricky puzzles coated in gorgeous eye candy, Candy Crush Saga is a global phenomenon for good reason. Windows Phone users have been enjoying Candy Crush Saga since its launch on the platform in December, and later this year, all Windows 10 owners will be able to experience the hit game that's swept the mobile world like wildfire".

Google is all but confirmed to unveil the new version of Android at Google I/O 2015 that takes place between May 28-29 this year, with Android 6.0 'M' expected to replace Android 5.0 Lollipop.

We don't know what the 'M' stands for just yet, but it could be Marshmallow, Maltesers, or countless other delicious treats that start with an 'm'. We are expecting more Material Design, something that took center stage in Android 5.0, and should continue in Android M. With a session at Google I/O called "Bringing Material Design to Life on Android", it's not hard to put two and two together there.

WCCFTech is also reporting that there should be more concentration on privacy control, something that is again continuing from their efforts on Android L. Bloomberg has reported that "The new settings would give users the option to pick and choose what an app can access". Improved integration of the voice controls should also be something Android M does better than previous iterations of Google's mobile OS, too.

Microsoft will be making multiple versions of Windows 10, with no less than six versions being made available. Most people will be buying the Home or Pro versions of Microsoft's next, and possibly last version of Windows, though.

There will be six versions released, with Windows 10 Home, Windows 10 Mobile, Windows 10 Mobile Enterprise, Windows 10 Pro, Windows 10 Enterprise, and Windows 10 Education. As you can see, most people will opt for Home or Professional. We have a detailed rundown of the Windows 10 SKUs thanks to Microsoft insider Mary Jo Foley, and her report on ZDNet.

Windows 10 Home: The consumer-focused desktop edition. This will include the core Windows 10 features, such as the Edge browser, Continuum tablet-mode for touch-capable devices; Cortana integration; free Photos, Maps, Mail, Calendar; Music and Video apps; and Windows Hello face-recognition/iris/fingerprint log-in for devices that support those technologies. On devices with screen sizes of 10.1 inches or less, users also will get Universal Office apps for free, once they are available.

Consumers and businesses aren't in a big hurry to purchase new hardware or software, as Microsoft prepares to launch the Windows 10 operating system this summer, according to NVIDIA.

"We see a very soft market going into Q2," said Colette Kress, Chief Financial Officer at NVIDIA, while speaking during a financial analysts' call. Previously, the Gartner research group predicted PC prices will increase up to 10 percent in 2015, as the industry is still undergoing a change to fight off mobile products.

Windows 10 is expected to receive strong support, especially from disgruntled Windows 8/8.1 users - and Microsoft believes Windows 10 could be the last OS upgrade consumers need, as it will provide a seamless user experience across multiple devices.

With Windows 10 right around the corner, the news of Microsoft's upcoming operating system being the last could scare some people. But, for others, it shouldn't come as a surprise.

According to Microsoft Technical Evangelist Jerry Nixon, "Windows 10 is the last version of Windows". He added: "Right now we're releasing Windows 10, and because Windows 10 is the last version of Windows, we're all still working on Windows 10". If this is the last version of Windows, we can expect this to be the biggest launch of Windows ever.

Internally, Microsoft began working on Windows 10 after they started pulling the best parts of Windows 8.1 away, which ended up forming the last version of Windows ever. Instead of massive successive releases of Windows, Microsoft will instead provide improvements and fixes through updates, in a different way. Instead of the usual Patch Tuesday's, we should expect bigger updates over time which will overhaul the operating system.

Cheryl Treadway, 25, reportedly used the Pizza Hut mobile app to alert police when her boyfriend, Ethan Nickerson, 26, allegedly held Treadway and her three young children hostage.

"She told him, 'The kids are hungry. Let's order a pizza. Let's get them some food,'" said Nell Hays, Public Information Officer at the Highlands County Sheriff's Office, as reported by ABC News. In addition to placing an order, she submitted the following message: "Please help. Get 911 to me. 911hostage help!"

Once the app order was received by Pizza Hut, employees contacted the Highlands County Sheriff's Office, and police were immediately dispatched to the house. Treadway managed to take one child and flee the residence, and police convinced Nickerson to surrender.

A preview has been pushed live by Microsoft pending its release of the Office 2016 desktop productivity suite, with no Office 365 subscription necessary for download.

The technical preview of this edition was reportedly released back in February 2015 surrounded by strict non-disclosure agreements for all involved.

Now Microsoft is ready to open it up to the masses with their general manage of Office marketing, Jared Spataro, commenting that he's looking forward to feedback from a large public audience before full release later in 2015. Reportedly similar to Office 2013 in the looks department, Office 2016 pledges to offer better cloud storage options, collaboration opportunities and more.

Google Android and Apple iOS control the majority of the mobile operating system market, but there is an intensifying fight for the No. 3 position. Consumers and businesses are expected to embrace wearables, connected vehicles, smart products, and the Internet of Things (IoT) on a larger scale in the next 10 years.

"For both new and incumbent OS vendors, capturing the next wave of users will require support of new device types, a strong focus on developing markets, and support for universal development processes," said Eric Abbruzzese, research analyst at ABI Research. There will be a number of new consumer products hitting the market, so it's up to software developers to create appealing software environments that are easy-to-use and extremely flexible.

Companies must work on creating an OS that is appealing in developing markets, paying close attention to Southeast Asia, India and China - and can heavily modify Android to their own needs, but must be prepared to invest a large amount of capital to make the effort successful.

In a bid to make skies safer, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) warned that a software fault could result in loss of power mid-flight on the gigantic Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

Discovered by Boeing themselves in private testing circumstances (not real flight), this issue can occur if the aircraft is not powered down between trips, resulting in the generator systems on board switching to fail-safe mode and seeing all AC power cut - mid air or not.

This issue is said to take 248 days of usage for the fault to occur, rendering it as an unlikely thing to happen in real-world circumstances. However, this model of aircraft has reportedly experienced some other issues resulting in extended boot up times.

Build 2015 - After months of teasing Project Spartan, the browser that will replace Internet Explorer in Windows 10, Microsoft has unveiled Microsoft Edge during its Build 2015 developers conference.

Microsoft Edge sports a flat, minimalist look with some smart features like Cortana voice commands and annotation for websites. Edge features a new tab page that displays websites alongside useful information like weather, and more. The company is also making it much easier for developers to bring over extensions from competing browsers like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.

We should see and hear more about Microsoft Edge as we slide closer towards the release of Windows 10, which is still rumored for July.

Microsoft is opening the door for Google Android and Apple iOS app developers to port their software and games to Microsoft Windows 10. If everything works out, more Windows 10 apps will be available to users, and developers won't be forced to rebuild the app from scratch.

"Initially it will be analogous to what Amazon offers," said Terry Myerson, executive VP of operating systems at Microsoft, in a statement to The Verge. "If they're using some Google API... we have created Microsoft replacements for those APIs."

The company, which hopes to give new life to its smartphone and tablet effort with Windows 10, will give Android and iOS developers access to new software development kits (SDKs). "We want to enable developers to leverage their current code and current skills to start building those Windows applications in the Store, and to be able to extend those applications."

American Airlines was forced to delay "more than a couple dozen" flights following problems with an app installed on Apple iPad tablets used by pilots. Some pilots had to return their aircraft to the gate, while others said they fixed the third-party app problem during passenger boarding.

"Some flights are experiencing an issue with a software application on pilot iPads," according to a statement released by American Airlines. "In some cases, the flight has had to return to the gate to access a Wi-Fi connection to fix the issue."

The airline became the first company to convert pilots fully to electronics for navigation and flight plans, so any data changes can be made quickly and efficiently. American Airlines claims it saves over 400,000 gallons of fuel each year, and millions of pages of paper documents were replaced with just 8,000 iPads.