So, What's the Deal With MicroSkype?

Well, the Linux bloggers down at the blogosphere's Broken Windows Lounge had just barely finished chanting Skype's funeral dirge last week when word came that there might be reason to belt out another round. Sure enough, turned out Skype has decided to cut its ties with the free and open source Asterisk telephony system.

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/72549.html

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What to consider before buying technology this holiday season

Source: http://feeds.washingtonpost.com/click.phdo?i=5eda2edc18ddfd12072b91ed1e8b5942

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Auslogics Disk Defrag 3.2 gets smarter, faster

Auslogics Disk Defrag has been part of my system maintenance toolkit for quite some time. With the release of version 3.2, it's now even better at tidying up and optimizing your system's hard disk drives. In addition to a cleaner, easier-to-use interface, Disk Defrag 3.2 offers improved single file and folder defragging, better processing of multiple disks, a simplified scheduling screen, and more informative tool tips. Auslogics has also fine-tuned the program's defragmentation and file consolidation algorithms.

For laptop users, there's a new option to lock the program if your system is running on battery power -- so scheduled operations don't kick in and drain your power source at an inopportune moment. If you happen to have an SSD installed in your PC, you can head to the Disk Defrag options and exclude it from scanning (many think that defragmenting an SSD is a very bad idea).

Auslogics Disk Defrag is a free download and works with most versions of Windows.

Auslogics Disk Defrag 3.2 gets smarter, faster originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/11/auslogics-disk-defrag-3-2-gets-smarter-faster/

TERADATA TELETECH HOLDINGS DIEBOLD EMULEX BT GROUP

Top 10 Songs About (or to) Computers

As computers have become an integral part of life over the past 50 years, many a musician has burst forth in song about them. We track down the best efforts.

Source: http://feeds.pcworld.com/click.phdo?i=d96d06deba291841c0c97cb11bbbbd14

SYNTEL SEAGATE TECHNOLOGY INTERDIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS AUTODESK INTUIT

Verizon Wireless settles with FCC over false data charges

The Federal Communications Commission reached a record $25 million settlement on Thursday with Verizon Wireless over false data charges, in a move meant to show that the agency is stepping up scrutiny of consumer billing practices.

Source: http://feeds.washingtonpost.com/click.phdo?i=eb57972d9eb6dc4428c7f8eed7e14f1a

AUTODESK INTUIT IMATION . F5 NETWORKS PRICELINE.COM

Microsoft's Courier Team Scatters

The founders of Microsoft’s Pioneer Studios, which created the concept behind the double-sided Courier tablet, have scattered and the group’s office, located in...

Source: http://feeds.pcworld.com/click.phdo?i=0fe7a56099a900592bdea106016f9903

ORACLE TNS ASML HOLDING SANDISK MICROS SYSTEMS

Mitoza is a fun, freaky Web toy with an artistic look

While not a game per se, I found Mitoza intriguing enough to spend quite some time with it. You start off with a seed, and are then presented with two choices: you can either click a flower pot, or click a cute little birdie.

If you click the flower pot, a flower pot appears and the seed is planted inside. You're then presented with two further choices -- a water can or a bottle of fertilizer. Each choice you make causes your creation to morph, and presents you with two other choices.

There's no winning or losing, really. Each "game" usually lasts around four or five choices, at which point the plant/animal dies in some creative (but not too gruesome) way. At this point you instantly start over with a new seed.

The graphics are captivating; the whole thing has a cinematic feel to it, with a bit of artificial camera shake added for style.

All in all, it's a fun, peaceful way to spend a few minutes, and it might even make you think a little bit while you're at it.

Mitoza is a fun, freaky Web toy with an artistic look originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/28/mitoza-is-a-fun-freaky-web-toy-with-an-artistic-look/

QIMONDA INTERNATIONAL GAME TECHNOLOGY LOGITECH INTERNATIONAL INFOSYS TECHNOLOGIES MCAFEE

Aluratek Cinepal 8? HD Personal Media Player Review

With all of our MP3 music, digital pictures, digital videos, not to mention e-books, wouldn’t it be great to house all of them in one device? Oh wait, there is… Introducing the 8″ inch Cinepal Personal Media player (APMP10F)� from Aluratek. This media player has the ability to play your music, show your photos, play [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2011/05/28/aluratek-cinepal-8-hd-personal-media-player-review/

QIMONDA INTERNATIONAL GAME TECHNOLOGY LOGITECH INTERNATIONAL INFOSYS TECHNOLOGIES MCAFEE

GTA's Liberty City recreated in Google Street View, reveals your nearest Ammu-Nation

Type "Liberty City" into Google Maps and it whisks you to some place east of Wichita, Kansas. Yup, Wichita, for Pete's sake. No self-respecting Grand Theft Auto fan can stand for an omission like that, and thankfully now they don't have to. Those hardcore Niko-lovers at gta4.net have not only recreated the real fictional Liberty City using the Google Maps API, they've even cobbled together 80,000 screenshots to provide full-blown Street View too. Man, we haven't seen this much Gay Tony passion since the Trashmaster. Oh, wait a minute -- apparently this so-called Street View leaves out a couple of ramps that gta4.net considered to be "not very interesting." Hush, and you call yourselves fans?

GTA's Liberty City recreated in Google Street View, reveals your nearest Ammu-Nation originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 19:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/zoyTqoOIQZ4/

LM ERICSSON TAKE-TWO INTERACTIVE SOFTWARE INTEL SONUS NETWORKS INFOCUS

Elephant Quest is an addictive, deep platformer

When someone tells me about a "platformer", my first thought is that it's probably a simple game that mainly revolves around running and jumping around, with a minimal plot. [Play a Zelda game! -Ed]

Elephant Quest is one platformer that managed to prove me completely wrong. Yes, you do run and jump around, and you also shoot at stuff. But the game has much, much more going for it.

Basically, as you run, jump and shoot, you gain experience points and level up. Hitting Space brings you into an interface where you can convert your experience points into Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Dexterity points. Once you've "specialized" your points, you then get to pick what exact skills you'd like to enhance in each field. For example, you could use your dexterity to enhance your weapons or increase your swiftness.

The game is played in a huge maze; you go through rooms using doors, and there's a large map. As the name implies, there are quests you can take, too. For example, one quest had me searching all over the place for ten balloons.

The bottom line is that this is a surprisingly deep game that just might ensnare you for a good bit longer than you intended to play. Beware!

Elephant Quest is an addictive, deep platformer originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/25/elephant-quest-is-an-addictive-deep-platformer/

PALM KONINKLIJKE KPN FAIR ISAAC STANDARD MICROSYSTEMS LAM RESEARCH

Smartphones, not DVRs, are the biggest threat to TV adverts

TV viewers are a famously fickle bunch, which tends to drive TV advertisers crazy. The prevalent theory remains that skipping past ads using a pesky DVR is the biggest enemy of marketers, but new research has once again contradicted that received wisdom. The IPG Media Lab in Los Angeles pulled together a representative group of 48 TV and online video viewers and asked them to sit through some programming while equipped with the usual "devices or distractions" that accompany their viewing habits. Central to the study was the measurement of time each person spent facing the screen and how engaged they were with the content. The first thing noted was that 94 percent of TV viewers and 73 percent of online video consumers used some other form of media to augment their visual entertainment. Smartphones were the most common, with 60 percent of test subjects resorting to their handset while gawking at the TV. That's resulted in a mediocre 52 percent attention level during actual programs and 37 percent during ads. In other words, two thirds of the time, commercials are being ignored and smartphones are helping people with that heinous behavior. Ironically, fast-forwarding adverts using a DVR garnered attention levels that were 12 percent higher, mostly because people were trying to make sure they didn't skip too far ahead. Damn, why does reality have to be all complex and stuff?

Smartphones, not DVRs, are the biggest threat to TV adverts originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 May 2011 08:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/dUOG5Cv4wno/

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These 8 Robocoasters Are The Most Fun You Can Have Sitting Down [Robocoaster]

The mechanical love-child of an industrial assembler and articulated centrifuge, a Robocoaster can flick, flip, and spin riders better than any traditional coaster could. Our friends at Oobject.com have eight great examples of them in action. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/dyY4qce42Oo/these-8-robocoasters-are-the-most-fun-you-can-have-sitting-down

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