General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article

Qualcomm Announces New ARM Chips, Exclusive Games

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 02:59 PM PST

sdQualcomm's Snapdragon ARM mobile processors power a huge number of devices, and the company today announced some new additions to its ecosystem. New variants of the super-fast Snapdragon S4 parts are being joined by an unexpected refresh of the old S1 chips, as well. Perhaps more significant is what Qualcomm is doing with software.

Similar to Nvidia's Tegra-specific content, there will now be a suite of games exclusive to Snapdragon chips called GamePack. This will include titles like The Ball and Gallaga. Qualcomm is rolling out an app called Game Command to show off this exclusive content, just like Nvidia does with Tegra Zone. The software will be out in early 2012

The new Snapdragon S4 chips are based on Qualcomm's internally designed Krait core and can clock up to 2.5GHz and can have four cores. The S1 parts are single core, and much less capable, but the multimedia enhancements could give them a new lease on life in low-cost devices.

Nook Tablet Limits Users to 1GB of Internal Storage

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 02:41 PM PST

nookBarnes and Noble spent a long time talking up the increased storage in its Nook Tablet device, highlighting the advantage B&N feels it has over the Kindle Fire. many users were excited about having 16GB of storage on a $250 tablet, whereas the Fire has just 8GB. Now that the Nook is getting into users' hands, the other shoe has dropped. According to early reviews, users only have access to 1GB of that internal partition.

The remaining 13 or so gigabytes in the Nook are reserved exclusively for content obtained from Barnes and Noble itself. Barnes and Noble has confirmed this odd set up, saying that in the future, some apps will work with the reserved storage. Users certainly won't be happy that their existing content will have to squeeze into a measly 1GB of space, and we would suspect that this block will be defeated by modders.

Users interested in packing more content into the Nook will need a separate SD card. This storage won't be managed in the same way the internal partition will be. So, there are options, but we feel the arbitrary internal storage lock-down is anti-user.

Google Music: Everything We Know

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 02:12 PM PST

After cautiously watching Apple to see how this whole "downloading music" thing panned out, Google will unveil its online music store this afternoon. Will it become your new favorite place to grab songs? Maybe! Here's all the (rumored) dirt.

What songs are available?

Not all of them. Unlike iTunes, which has deals signed with all major labels, Google has reportedly only inked agreements with Sony, Universal, and EMI. That leaves out Warner, which is a big, big hole: Cher, Cee Lo, Diddy, Gucci Mane, Green Day, The Prodigy, Van Halen—the list is long. Lots of huge acts, dead and alive, are part of Warner's harem, and if the rumors are true, you won't have any access to them (yet) via Google Music. Which is a bummer.

How much will songs cost?

Bloomberg is reporting rumored pricing between $0.99 and $1.29 per track—which would place Google squarely in Apple and Amazon territory. No surprise here—major labels aren't about to change the pricing schemes they've been battling over for almost a decade.

Oh, hey, songs might also be free! Or one song every day will, claims Phandroid, similar to Apple's free song giveaways, which are usually crap.

How will I use it?

As it stands now in beta, Google Music is just a cloud locker for the stuff you already have—a way to listen to your library from any computer or via iOS/Android app.

There's also a built-in, iTunes-style player. Expect that to stay, although boosted functionality and/or a total redesign of the current iteration aren't out of the question. After all, this thing has been in beta for a while.

We also might see an interesting twist! Billboard is reporting Google Music might sport some neat sharing options, tied in (of course) with Google+. Whether this means simply sharing your playlist, a la Spotify and Facebook, or actually letting friends listen to songs you've purchased, is unknown. CNET says it's the latter, though: an option to give your friends a one-play taste of anything you buy.

How is it different?

Here's where we have to speculate. If Google Music wants to stand out as a third great place to buy dollar songs online (after Apple and Amazon), they'll have to push what their competitors don't: social. Ping is a complete joke (Or is it even that? People usually talk about jokes), and Amazon has zero social action.

Google, though, has Google+. The service is mighty lackluster at the moment, outside of fanboys and the niche geek community, but turning it into a music distribution network could be clutch. Imagine an easy way to download that newest Waka Flocka Flame (oh, wait, no, he's signed with Warner) and then easily drop it into your friend's (or friends'!) face via Plus, giving you all an instant medium to talk about how great or horrible it is. Google+ is about as thrilling as a nursery home staring contest right now, so adding a social music aspect could light a spark. The existing cloud storage would also keep Google on pace with iTunes Match and Amazon's MP3 Cloud Drive. With Google, odds are you'll be able to buy a song, download it to your device, and also stream it from anywhere in the world. No word if the existing 20,000 song cloud cap will stay in place, however.

But at the very least, Google Music will mean there are three viable online music options, instead of two. And competition is always a good thing.

Gizmodo is the world's most fun technology website, focused on gadgets and how they make our lives better, worse, and more absurd.

How to Pick the Right Power Supply

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 01:05 PM PST

The Role of the Power Supply

The power supply is an oft-underappreciated component. Everyone knows it's necessary, and most people who build their own PCs have some understanding of the basics of what a power supply does. But almost everyone tends to buy more power than they really need, or they'll buy the cheapest PSU that delivers the wattage they think they need.

We're not going to get too deep into the inner workings of the PC power supply, but it's worth talking a bit about the basics of how they work before we dive into what to buy. Note that all references to household current are U.S. numbers, so adjust accordingly if you're reading this in a different part of the world.

psu

PC PSU Basics

The power supply's job is to take 110-120V running at 60Hz and convert it to voltage and alternating current frequency suitable for your PC. Oddly, the current coming in from the wall is converted to DC (direct current), and then converted back to very high frequency alternating current. Trying to convert directly to DC current from 60Hz would require massive components, and PSUs would be unnecessarily large.  This high frequency AC is then converted to DC.

You'll often see references to power supply rails. A rail represents a single voltage source. Most PCs use +3.3, +5 and +12V for driving motherboard and component circuitry. For most performance enthusiasts,  +12V current delivery is probably the most important. The +3.3V and 5V rail is for storage plus some motherboard components and expansion cards.

The 12V rail was once a fairly minor component in power usage inside the PC, but two things changed all that. First, Intel shipped the Pentium 4 CPU, which needed a 4-pin (now often 8-pin) 12V power connector to keep the power-sucking P4 running. The second thing that happened is that PCI Express graphics cards began using external power connectors for high performance products. So now the most power hungry parts inside the PC require 12V power delivery.

You'll see heated debate among performance enthusiasts about the benefits of multiple +12V rails versus a single 12V rail. The thinking behind a single rail is that any particular 12V connector can draw all the power it needs, up to the total 12V limit for the PSU. Multiple rails are safer, with better circuitry for shutting down the PSU and protecting the system if current draw on one rail is too high. For most users, the number of rails is irrelevant to overall performance. If you're interested, check out this discussion on multiple versus single rails.

psu circut

How Much Power?

This is the biggest bugaboo power supply buyers face: how much power do I need? Various power supply calculators exist, like the ones at Outer Vision and vbutils. These are useful tools to give you a baseline, but most of them lack listings for every possible component. For example, the Extreme Outervision calculator didn't list my Corsair sealed liquid cooler, so I had to take a guess. But it did show all the other components, and recommended a 718W PSU for my Core i7 980X CrossFireX system. That's close to the 750W unit I actually use.

In point of fact, however, most systems don't draw that much power at full throttle. I've been testing graphics cards on the same test system for several years. That system has an Corsair TX850 PSU. The single largest power draw I've seen with this system was when I reviewed the Asus Mars II graphics card, which has two overclocked Nvidia GTX 580 GPUs and no current limiter. Under a heavy load, that system drew 718W. If you seriously overclock your CPU and have three GTX 580 cards, you might want a kilowatt or more. Most normal systems can get by with less than 800W.

Another problem with these calculators is that not all PSUs are created equal. That 750W PSU I've got in my system is a Corsair AX750, which can deliver robust current load even as it approaches its rated maximum output. Other higher end power supplies from other companies like Antec, Coolermaster, Seasonic Enermax and others are equally well built.

Let's take a quick look at two different 750W PSUs as a comparison. Both sport single +12V rails. One is the Diablotek PHD750 and the other is the PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750. Both have two 6-pin and two 8-pin PCI Express power connectors. But the Diablotek is rated to deliver 54A on its single 12V rail. If we do the math, 54A x 12V is 648W.

The PC Power & Cooling unit specs tell us it's rated to deliver 62.4A on its single 12V rail, so 62.4A x 12 is 748.8W. So the PC Power & Cooling unit can deliver almost its entire power load to the 12V rail. It's also got a better warranty.

That doesn't mean the Diablotek is a "bad" PSU – but I'd never use it in a system where I know the PSU might be under stress, like a dual GPU system with a significantly overclocked CPU. The PC Power & Cooling unit is rated at 88% efficiency, which translates to lower power usage when idling. Of course, it costs $110 versus the $60 for the Diablotek. But you get what you pay for.

Let's reiterate that last though: with power supplies, you get what you pay for. Component quality doesn't come cheap, and the power supply is critical in ensuring a stable system. I've often encountered stability issues with systems that were solved by installing a higher quality power supply.

Current Delivery

One other issue to consider is current delivery, particularly on the PCI Express power connections. Not long ago, some Nvidia-based graphics cards caused problems with systems that seemed to have perfectly adequate power supplies. The problem was that the PSU didn't ramp up current delivery at system startup, and the system would sometimes refuse to boot. The GPU really wasn't the problem—the PSUs—which were usually multiple 12V rail designs, rather than a single rail—just couldn't deliver adequate current to the GPU. Even if the system booted successfully, stability problems could persist. So be sure to check the rated current on the PCIe power connections if you're contemplating a multi-rail design.

Modular or Not?

Modular power supplies are popular because they allow you to easily and simply organize your power connections. With standard power supplies, there are always unused cables that you need to bundle up and tuck somewhere inside the case, and the result is not only unsightly, but can interfere with airflow in smaller cases.

On the other hand, modular PSUs aren't perfect. Each connection can increase the impedance on the circuit, potentially making it less efficient. Modular PSU makers have improved connectors over time, the connection can never be as efficient as straight wire. For most users, the convenience of modular connectors outweighs minor losses in efficiency.

The real issue is the lack of standards for modular connections. Even pinouts for similar looking connectors can differ. The hodge-podge of different modular connectors is an incredible nuisance, particularly if you own different brands of power supplies. Even within the same brand, different PSUs may have different modular connectors.


Each PSU maker uses different styles of modular connectors, so hang onto extra cables!

If the PSU makers could agree on one set of connection standards, then the connectors themselves could be interchangeable. There might even be aftermarket connectors available. For example, I'd love to be able to add more SATA connectors and dump some of the old Molex-style 4-pin connectors in some setups. But that's not possible in today's environment of different connector styles for modular PSUs.

 

 

Count Your Connections!

Of course, power isn't everything. In addition to how much power you need, you also should count your connectors. I've gotten myself into trouble in the past when I discovered that my PSU only has four SATA drive connectors, while I have five SATA devices in my system. Sure, I can use an Molex-to-SATA adapter, but I'd really prefer to have the correct connectors.


Can't have too many of these…

So be sure to do an inventory of all the connectors in your system. Don't forget to take into account possible future growth, particularly with SATA and PCI Express connectors. Better to have four 8-pin PCIe connectors, and use them only in 6-pin mode, than to not have them and discover that new high performance graphics card you just bought requires two 8-pin connectors. Similarly, ensure the PSU has a minimum two extra SATA connectors beyond your existing installation.


Eight is better than six.

Note that some power supplies come with multiple ATX12V connectors – those connectors used to deliver additional dedicated power to the CPU. Some lower end motherboards only have a single 4-pin ATX12V connector, while higher end boards have an 8-pin connector. A few extended ATX boards for workstation and server apps may have an additional 4- or 8-pin connector. Most PSUs have a split 8-pin, in which either 4-pin half may be used in a motherboard with only a 4-pin connector, or may be combined to supply 8-pin ATX12V. A few PSUs ship with dedicated 4- and 8-pin connectors, so you use whichever one you need.


If your PSU comes with a fixed 8-pin ATX12V connector, there's probably a 4-pin one as well. Or you could have a dual 4-pin.

Note that most power supplies still ship with a number of those old Molex 4-pin connectors. These days, those are mostly used for driving fans that don't connect to a motherboard, though a few older optical drives still exist that use them. On higher end systems, I find those Molex plugs going completely unused, because the case fans are either plugged into the motherboard and controlled by the BIOS or plugged into a dedicated fan controller.

Efficiency & Noise

Now that actual power supply efficiency certifications exist, it's a little easier to choose a PSU based on a desired efficiency goal.

Before jumping into a discussion of PSU efficiency ratings, let's discuss a key point. Let's say you have a system that runs at 70W idle with a 500W PSU. If you drop in a 800W PSU that's equally efficient, your system will still run at 70W while idling. The system consumes no more power at idle just because you have a PSU with a bigger maximum capacity, assuming both are equally efficient. The bigger PSU gives you more headroom – it will run more quietly and generate less heat when it's drawing 500W. So having a little extra capacity headroom may reduce noise levels and even generate less heat.

PSU efficiency is rated at five levels for typical desktop PC PSUs; those levels correspond to how well the PSU maintains 80% efficiency over its load range. (There's actually a sixth level for high voltage redundant PSUs.) Here's a chart from the Wikipedia article on the 80 Plus standard:

The key takeaway is that higher 80 Plus levels are more efficient. Note that not all power supplies are equally adept at hitting the standards; there are always little variations among different samples. But in general, higher 80 Plus ratings means your PSU is more efficient – and also likely more expensive.

Physical Size

So you've just bought that lovely 950W, 80-plus gold certified power supply. It's heavy and solid feeling, and has all the connectors you ever would want. So you go to install it in your PC chassis, only to find out that you can't have your hard drives and the power supply installed at the same time.

Oops.

This scenario has happened to me on occasion. PSUs actually come in different physical sizes. The size doesn't matter much if you pop it into a gigantic, full tower case. But a number of mid-tower cases have constrained PSU spaces that are opposite the optical or hard drive bays. Buy a PSU that's just a little too long, and you'll find yourself unable to attach SATA drive connectors.


Two very good 750W PSUs. Guess which one fits into a small case.

Bottom line: be sure to check exactly how much space you have, and the physical size of the power supply, before dropping hard coin on that new PSU.

Final Thoughts

We've barely touched on the technology underlying today's power supplies, which deliver more power and are more efficient than ever. However, this should arm you with enough information to make good choices.  Remember, if there's one thing you don't want to skimp on, it's the quality of the power supply. If you're on a budget, be willing to sacrifice a speed grade on your CPU for a better PSU. It's much better to be stable and actually run your games than have a systems that can generate blue screens of death just a little faster.

Vivid: HTC Smartphone or Adult Entertainment Company?

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 11:58 AM PST

Vivid is the name of an HTC smartphone recently introduced on AT&T's wireless cellular network. It's also the name of a porn company. That's a problem. Vivid Entertainment (the adult movie maker) sent out a cease and desist letter to HTC on the basis that the Vivid name infringes it's trademark. Turns out nobody likes to be violated by a smartphone, not even a porn company.

TMZ first broke the story and said the letter gives HTC until Monday to change the name of its phone or else Vivid Entertainment will escalate legal proceedings and attempt to ramrod HTC in court.

HTC confirmed with The Verge that the cease and desist letter is in fact real, so apparently this isn't an ill-conceived publicity stunt. In fact, HTC doesn't seem to want to talk much about it.

"We are reviewing the complaint and don't expect to have any further comment until it is resolved," HTC told The Verge in a statement.

Whether or not Vivid Entertainment is making a mountain out of a mole hill is probably irrelevant, giving the kind of attention this is garnering. In the end, HTC and AT&T may have screwed the pooch on this one.

The Game Boy: Things I Can't Do in Skyrim

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 11:51 AM PST

Skyrim is utterly staggering. There's just so much of it. So much to see. Some much to discover. So much stuff. Predictably, everyone on earth can't stop playing it, and all of society has ground to a screeching, swerving, slow-mo-exploding halt. And when people aren't playing it, they're gabbing on about it incessantly. "I did this, I did that, I kissed a dragon and I liked it." I get it. You can do things. You want a cookie? I want a cookie. Cookies are pretty great. Where was I? Oh, right: I think it's time for a change of pace. So here are roughly a billion things I can't do in Skyrim.

I can't create spells – Previous Elder Scrolls games actually offered the option to whip up your own acts of absurdly powerful wizardry. In Oblivion, I once made a custom fire spell so powerful that I'm pretty sure it was eventually declared the canonical beginning of Fallout 3.

I can't spare my enemies – I love that enemies in Skyrim sometimes opt not to immediately charge in your direction, screaming wildly and nearly choking to death on their own disgusting mouth foam. It makes the world feel exponentially more authentic. And I also appreciate that enemies sometimes attempt to yield and hobble away on their broken kneecaps that I broke by breaking them. So of course, being an honorable guy, I attempt to let them off with a grievously gushing warning. But then – like clockwork – they say, "No... it can't end like this" and start tickling my vital organs with their pitiful feather strikes again. So I strike back. 

I can't use my shouts when people are around – So there I was, watching the sun rise outside a small settlement, when a dragon flew overhead. "All right," I figured. "I could use some light morning exercise." The dragon landed for our little pistols/city-obliterating-flame-cannon at dawn duel, but suddenly, a crowd of guards (and a horse, for some reason) surrounded him as well. Oh well, though, the more the merrier, right? Overwhelmed, the dragon tried to take off. Reflexively, I unleashed a basic stun shout, dropped him like a sack of flame-spewing potatoes, and drove my blade through his face. Hooray, victor-- wait, what? I was still taking damage. I turned to see that the entire crowd was attempting to slice me into dragonborn sashimi. And also the horse, for some reason.  

I can't stop using my imagination – Modern game design's become unrelentingly fixated on the idea that you can't leave a damn thing to the imagination. That's unfortunate, because imagination's a huge part of the reason I've become so invested in Skyrim's world. For every random bout of cave-spelunking or vampire slaying, I find myself dreaming up motivations and storylines for both my character and my enemies. Sometimes, I do it without even noticing. For instance – without spoiling too much – my character became a werewolf, and I found myself strongly identifying with his fatally feral alter ego. Whether it was the werewolf-hunting Silver Hand or a woman (who I initially rescued!) who professed to being part of an organization that dabbles in werewolf homicide, my character developed a no-mercy policy. "...vampires, werewolves – anything impure blah blah blah," she concluded, listing off her faction's preferred targets. "Oh, well, isn't that just a shame," I thought to myself. Then I tore out her throat.        

I can't train a dragon – Which is lame, because I even watched this movie that showed me how!

I can't get Lydia to STOP LEAPING IN THE WAY OF MY FIRE AARGH DAMN IT – Skyrim's companion AI is bad. So, so, so bad. It's like some random troll is Lydia's secret lover, and she's diving in slow-motion to take a bullet for him. And. She. Won't. Stop. Ever. So yes, now I travel alone. 

I can't stop despising the interface – "OK, so I just press Tab and then... wait, no, I meant Escape. Or maybe Q. And then I just click on... huh? Why'd the whole menu go away? And when did I pick up 47 mudcrab shells? And why am I carrying... Adolf Hitler himself?" Then it turns out that it's an episode of the Twilight Zone. Only it's not.

I can't kill children – It's Bethesda standard policy, after all. Oh, you already knew that? You tried? You monster.

I can't finish quests – Or, in short, "Hey, look! A random cave!"

I can't fight spiders – Because they're icky and disgusting and spindly and tangible evidence of a cruel, sadistic god who put each of us on this earth to watch us writhe in agony for roughly 80 years before mercifully pulling the plug. Thank goodness for bears. 

I can't dual-wield shields – Someone, please make a mod to remedy this. The best offense is an incredibly impractical defense.

I can't break barrels – This really irks me. See, I'm a master magician and not too shabby with a giant freaking sword. I can drop dragons with the very sound of my voice. All cower before me. All – that is – except the lowly barrel. I can hack and sling and shout, but it doesn't even so much as budge. When everything else in a game world seems so authentic, the few things that aren't seem all the more out-of-place. 

I can't read – No, no, I'm not illiterate. At least, I'm pretty sure I'm not. But every time I pick up a book in Skyrim, I end up going stir crazy after roughly 3.2 seconds and casting it aside in favor of more adventure. I'll turn the place into an episode of Reading Rainbow after I've explored everything. So, you know, in about three lifetimes.

I can't stop feeling like a total badass – Moreso than perhaps any other game, Skyrim makes me feel like a tiny, insanely musclebound god among men. A lot of games, of course, try to achieve the same effect through highly focused scripting and linearity. Skyrim, however, makes those games look silly precisely because it's so open. I mean, one moment, I can be buying vegetables from some local merchant, and then – out of nowhere – dragon battle. I go from being this mundane nobody to Dragonborn, owner of the world's most epic theme song, in mere seconds. And then, after I've turned the sky lizard's rugged visage into delicious brain kebabs, everyone gathers around to gawk at my handiwork. It's that dichotomy – the fact that both mundane and epic constantly exist side-by-side – that really drives the point home. Other games (MMOs, especially) toss you into gigantic worlds and leave you feeling tiny and insignificant. In Skyrim, though, you're David, and you're... living on Goliath's face? OK, that metaphor's going nowhere good. But you get the idea.

I can't tell how old anyone is – I can't be the only one who has this problem. Sure, from far away, Skyrim's denizens seem to run the gamut from tyke to nearly dead to undead, but once you're face-to-face, things get dicey. Extreme detail's a double-edged sword, and many faces have enough thought lines and furrows to power an entire first-time viewing of Memento. To me, at least, it results in some characters sounding much, much younger than they look. It's a bit... disorienting.  

I can't buy horse armor – Hey, I never said all of these were bad things.

I can't leave a lock unpicked – This is a personal problem. If I see that something's locked, it's not staying that way for long. Early on in my playthrough, I broke no less than 30 picks on one such infernal contraption. The struggle only lasted a matter of minutes, but I emerged clad in white robes and surrounded by hobbits for some reason. 

I can't play with other people – And I don't want to. Skyrim's proof positive that games don't need some tacked on multiplayer component. Please, developers: Do what fits your game – not what the marketing survey tells you.

I can't electrocute water – Skyrim's spellcasting pretty obviously takes a lot of inspiration from BioShock, so I occasionally forget what game I'm playing and hurl a bolt of lightning – with my Nord's mighty Zeus arms – right into a small body of water. My foes, however, come away singe-free. Then they murder me, and I am sad. 

I can't stop laughing at the voice acting – Don't get me wrong: Skyrim's voice-acting is still leaps and bounds beyond Oblivion's. But I've discovered no less than eight characters played by the same dude. Yeah, he's got a neat voice, but it does get a bit weird after a while. Also, how come lizard people and elves are American? 

I can't discount the idea that the guards are probably psychic – I've just trekked half-way across the world. Where am I? What's this place's story? Who knows? I'm a stranger in a strange lan-- "Hey, you're that new member of the Companions," exclaims a random guard. He may as well add "How are the wife and kids? I heard Timmy recently spoke his first word at precisely 8:42 PM on a Wednesday." But hey, maybe word just travels fast in Skyrim, right? Nope. Later, I spelunk deep into an underground prison and steal something right out from beneath the nose of the only friendly NPC there – and thousands of feet beneath any sort of guard. Much later, I finally see the surface for the first time in what feels like ages. My eyes are nearly pierced by bright shafts of sunlight. And then they are pierced by an unending hail of arrows. Yep: guards. Somehow, they know. Why? Because they're psychic.  

I can't get some random little girl in Whiterun to stop accosting me – Yes, little girl, I know you do chores for your mother. Yes, I know it's fun, but it can be hard work. I know because you've said it roughly 1200 times, and you won't stop going out of your way to tell me. I know this is a giant world, but maybe we could have a little more NPC dialog variation?

I can't carry everything – I know, I know, inventories need limits lest they become more over-stuffed than a Double-Stuffed Oreo that's been stuffed with double its normal amount of stuff, but still. Inventory management is a pain in the ass. At the very least, could I ask for some sort of system that auto-deposits items I pick up at my home when I'm over-encumbered? I would like that very much.  

I can't stop being reminded of Game of Thrones – Giant political conflict? Check. Statement about how said political conflict ultimately ignores a greater threat on the horizon? Check. Winter? Check. Dragons? Check. Which is all my way of saying PLEASE BETHESDA, MAKE THAT GAME OF THRONES TITLE YOU PASSED UP.

I can't stop laughing at this video – KETTLE BONUS.

I can't stop playing – Speaking of... er, yeah. You can away now.

Wikipedia Makes Another Plea for Donations

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 11:33 AM PST

Visit any Wikipedia page and you'll see at the top a big, bold font personal appeal from site founder Jimmy Wales who once again is asking for handouts. His plea starts off by letting visitors know Wikipedia is the No. 5 website in the world, serving 454 million people each month and dishing out billions of page views. Maintaining its modest army of 400 servers and 95 staff costs money, and advertising has no place on Wikipedia, Wales says. As for your cash, well, that's a different story.

"If everyone reading this donated $20, we would only have to fundraise for one day a year," Wales states on Wikipedia's donation page. "But not everyone can or will donate. And that's fine. Each year just enough people decide to give.

"This year, please consider making a donation of $5, $20, $50, or whatever ou can to protect and sustain Wikipedia."

If that's not enough to convince you, there's also a blog post outlining 5 reason why you should fork over your hard earned cash to the Wikimedia Foundation, one of which is redundant (No. 2 states Wikipedia is ad free, as you're already reminded on the donation page).

The decision to maintain Wikipedia as a donation-funded site isn't a cut and dry one, and there are people who would like to see Jimmy Wales embrace online advertising. ZDNet's Stephen Chapman is one them, and he has a plea of his own: Stop begging for donations and start implementing ads. Chapman contends that ads don't have to be annoying, and on the contrary, it would be easy to police them so you don't turn away visitors adamant about not visiting an ad-funded version of Wikipedia. Those users are probably using Adblock anyway, Chapman says. Moreover, Wikipedia wouldn't have to rely on Google Adsense if it didn't want to "because companies would practically trip over each other to have their ads displayed to 454 million people every month!"

Do you agree with Chapman and think Wikipedia should finally switch to an ad-supported model, or are you okay with multiple donation drives each year? Sound off in the comments section below.

Windows Phone 7 App of the Week: Tango

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 10:48 AM PST

Hard to believe it's been a year since Windows Phone 7 was launched in the US. Microsoft's partners certainly haven't been releasing new devices at an Android-like pace, but there are several new devices launching with Mango on both AT&T and T-Mobile. In addition to all of the new features that Mango brings to existing hardware there are some additional upgrades you will only notice if using one of these newly launched devices. One of the most welcome upgrades is support for front-facing cameras. We have to admit that we are rather surprised that the first video-calling app for Windows Phone isn't Skype, but Tango for Windows Phone definitely brings some attractive functionality to the platform.

   

Tango is billed first and foremost as a service for mobile devices, offering clients for iOS, Android, and now Windows Phone. For those wondering, the application will install and run on devices without a front facing camera (we tested it on our Samsung Focus on AT&T) but you're obviously not going to get the full experience without new hardware. Registration with Tango is required when you first run the app, but surprisingly no username or password is created, only an association between your phone number and email address. The downside to this is the need to re-submit your phone number and email address on any other devices you register with the service.

The Tango app is simplicity itself. Tango integrates with your contact list and indicates which of your friends are using a Tango app and which would need to be invited. Once a call is initiated you have the ability to enable video, or simply use your voice. Other in-call options include the ability to switch cameras or mute the call for privacy.

   

Tango is a free application available from the Windows Phone Marketplace. Be aware that some device manufacturers, HTC and Samsung for example, also have the Tango app listed in their private areas of the Marketplace on your device. These may be a better choice for hardware and driver compatibility reasons.

Protestors Occupy Bank Of America's Google+ Page

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 10:43 AM PST

Occupy Wall Street's protestors have moved on from Oakland and NYC parks; they've packed up their beef and taken it to the 'Net, too.  Just one day after Google+ launched its new "Page" functionality for businesses, the Bank of America found its virtual territory occupied by a false profile designed to make them look very, very bad to anybody who happened upon the Page.

The creator of the fake page apparently tricked Google into giving him control of the BoA page, but Google has since given yanked it back and transferred ownership to the Real Deal. As such, the satiric text and pictures have since been scrubbed from the social media service. You can't scrub anything off the Web completely, though: Sophos' Naked Security blog conveniently took a snapshot of the page before it was changed, which we've posted above. It wasn't just a static page, either; the creator was actively posting satirical content and links into its streams, such as "Big company party in foreclosed house #2340087 tonight!"

In case you were wondering, the BoA Google+ page now sports one of those nifty little "Verified" checkmarks. Sophos' Chester Wisniewski notes that "Strangely not all business pages have this verified mark, including BoA's competitor Citibank USA." Nefariousness or laziness?

Wi-Fi Direct Compatibility Now Part Of The DLNA Streaming Guidelines

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 10:18 AM PST

Everyone's saying that the cloud is the wave of the future, but in the present, we've still got a ton of movies, music and TV shows sitting pretty on our hard drives, just waiting to be streamed to gadgets and televisions around the house. Playing content from one device on another device is only going to get easier going forward with today's announcement that the Digital Living Network Alliance has added Wi-Fi Direct interoperability into its DLNA standards. What's that mean exactly? We're glad you asked.

Wi-Fi Direct, basically, allows two Wi-Fi-enabled devices to communicate directly with one another – no local WLAN or Wi-Fi network needed – as long as just one of those two devices is Wi-Fi Direct certified. So, if you're house-sitting your buddy's home and he inconveniently forgot to share his Wi-Fi password with you, you'll still be able to stream your video collection directly from your laptop to his wireless TV – assuming, of course, that both devices are compatible with the latest DLNA standards and at least one of them is Wi-Fi Direct certified.

Wi-Fi Direct is a fairly new technology, so it can be kind of hard to find a certified device, but the press release trumpeting the new deal says that adoption is slated to grow by leaps and bounds over the next five years.  If you want the technology NOW, though, you can check out the Wi-Fi Alliance's list of Wi-Fi Direct certified products.
Posted by Shri Krishna

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