General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article

Danish Retailer Tips Holiday Release for Grand Theft Auto V on PC

Posted: 14 Jul 2014 10:14 AM PDT

Grand Theft Auto VPsst, Rockstar Games -- release GTA V to PC already!

Hype was high leading up to the launch of Grand Theft Auto V, and just like with previous releases in the series, it launched to console first with nary a word from the developer when it would land on PC. Heck, we still don't know when GTA V will finally be ported over to Windows, though some hints have emerged. A Danish retailer recently listed GTA V shipping to PC on November 14, 2014, though now it says something different.

We caught wind of the potential November release through our sister site, PC Gamer, which took a screenshot of the initial listing. It was surmised that it could simply be a place holder, though maybe not since games typically release on Fridays in Europe, and November 14 falls on a Friday this year.

We headed over to the online shop (called Cool Shop) to see for ourselves, but it's not listing GTA V as having an "expected release" on December 31, 2014. That makes us less confident that the shop knows what it's talking about, but hey, at least it seems the game is close to launching.

Rockstar Games previously confirmed GTA V would eventually to ship to PC and next-generation console, it just didn't say when. When it does, it will have an enhanced video editor and a number of visual quality enhancements.

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Device Authentication Could Make Passwords Obsolete

Posted: 14 Jul 2014 09:56 AM PDT

Keys on KeyboardPerhaps one day you won't need a password to log into your accounts

Everyone knows you're not supposed to use the same password for multiple websites and services. If you follow that advice right down to the letter, then you're juggling numerous passwords, depending on how many banking sites, forums, auction portals, and everything else you're signed up for. It's a pain, and perhaps an unnecessary one -- device-based authentication could render passwords a thing of the past.

At least that's what Christopher Mims over at The Wall Street Journal believes. In fact, he's so confident about the irrelevance of passwords that he shared the one he setup for his Twitter account. It isn't a dummy account, either, but an active Twitter account that he's been using to post more than 51,000 tweets since 2007. His password is simply "christophermims."

He's willing to give it away because he uses a device-based authentication method that requires not only a password, but verification on his iPhone.

"If you want to sample the early version of a post-password future, all you have to do is switch on a common security feature of every major Web service. It's available across all the web giants, including every account offered by Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, and dozens of others, and yet surveys suggest more than half the public hasn't heard of it. It's called two-factor authentication," Mims explains.

It's not unlike an ATM, in which the first factor is your PIN (or password), and the second is your debit card, a physical thing that you keep in your wallet or purse. Without it, the PIN is useless, and so are passwords without a physical device in a two-factor authentication scheme, Mims argues.

What's your take on all this? Do you think device-based authentication will render standalone passwords obsolete? Give Mims' article a read and sound off!

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MakerBot 3D Printers Infiltrate a Dozen Home Depot Stores in Three States

Posted: 14 Jul 2014 09:29 AM PDT

MakerBot at Home Depot3D printers could end up in a hardware store near you

The 3D printing craze continues to gain steam, as well as attract attention outside of the technology sector. To wit, MakerBot and The Home Depot announced a collaboration to bring MakerBot Replicator Desktop 3D Printers on the hardware store's website and a dozen brick-and-mortar Home Depot stores in California, Illinois, and New York beginning today. It's considered a pilot program and could expand to more stores if received well by the public.

"MakerBot 3D Printing and Scanning products will be showcased inside The Home Depot stores in specially designed kiosks that will encourage visitors to experience the wonder of 3D printing firsthand," MakerBot said (PDF). "Trained MakerBot retail staff will provide continual 3D printing demonstrations and offer 3D printed keepsakes for interested customers to take home with them, as well as help with purchase decisions."

Half of the stores showcasing the Replicator are located in California, with an additional four in Illinois (three in the Chicago area), and two more in New York. If you don't happen to live by one of available locations, you can browse Home Depot's selection of MakerBot printers and accessories on its website. At present, Home Depot's website carries the Replicator, Replicator 2, Replicator Mini, 3D Scanner, and both red and blue filament.

For many, price has been a prohibiting factor to make the leap into 3D printing territory. However, this collaboration is a neat way to introduce the technology to people who might otherwise overlook it.

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Microsoft Reportedly Expands Free Windows License Program to Boost Hardware Sales

Posted: 14 Jul 2014 08:41 AM PDT

Windows 8.1 LogoMore affordable Windows tablets could be on the horizon

Here's a bit of potentially good news for Microsoft's hardware partners. Word on the web is that Microsoft may expand its free Windows license program to include tablets priced below $250. Up until now, tablets less than 9 inches qualified for the subsidized pricing, though unconfirmed reports suggest the program will cast a wider net in order to get more Windows-based tablets out in the wild.

Microsoft's partners already pay a reduced rate for Windows 8.1, and ever since June, they've paid nothing for installing Windows 8.1 on smaller size tablets. Giving Windows away like that reduces their cost by $10 to $15, and with sometimes razor thin profit margins ruling the day, it's been enough of an incentive to attract additional vendors into the Windows space.

In addition, Digitimes reports that Intel has been aggressively promoting its CPUs for mobile devices in China. The hope is that by offering its processors at cheap prices, it will attract white-box players to join the fold.

As it stands, some 70 percent of whitebox vendors cooperating with Intel planned to release Android-based tablets in the second half of the year. However, between the expansion of the free Windows license program and cheaper Intel CPUs, that number is set to drop to 50 percent in the third quarter.

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Freshly Baked Raspberry Pi Model B+ Emerges From the Oven with More USB Ports, Improved Audio

Posted: 14 Jul 2014 08:16 AM PDT

Raspberry Pi Model B+The final evolution of the original Raspberry Pi

At some point in the future, there will be a brand new version of the Raspberry Pi, likely dubbed Raspberry Pi 2. For now, however, the Raspberry Pi Foundation decided to tweak the original model one final time by implementing several requested upgrades, and what emerged is the Model B+. It uses the same BCM2835 application processor as the Model B and still has 512MB of RAM. Heck, it even costs the same (or at least it's supposed to) -- $35. So, what's new?

There are now four USB 2.0 ports compared to two in the Model B, and they feature better hotplug and overcurrent behavior. You'll also find that the GPIO header has grown from 26 pins to 40 pins, lower power consumption thanks to replacing linear regulators with switching ones, improved audio with a dedicated low-noise power supply, and a push-push microSD card slot to replace the old friction-fit one.

All of this comes wrapped in a neater form factor -- the Raspberry Pi team aligned the USB connectors on the Model B+ with the board edge, moved composite video onto the 3.5mm jack, and added four squarely-placed mounting holes.

"We think you're going to love Model B+, but to ensure continuity of supply for our industrial customers we'll be keeping Model B in production for as long as there's demand for it," Raspberry Pi Foundation said.

Otherwise, if you're ready to make the leap, the Model B+ is available now. Adafruit has it for $40, slightly above the $35 price tag Raspberry Pi announced.

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Newegg Daily Deals: AMD FX-8320 Vishera, Intel Core i5 4460 Haswell, and More!

Posted: 14 Jul 2014 06:14 AM PDT

AMD FXnewegg logo

Top Deal:

Imagine if Jack had traded his mother's cow for a chip instead of three magical beans. Not just any chip, mind you, but an 8-core chip carefully crafted on a 32nm manufacturing process. Had it been thrown out the window, it might have grown into a towering AMD system, and who knows where the story would have gone from there. Want to find out? Then consider today's top deal for an AMD FX-8320 Vishera 8-Core Processor for $150 with free shipping (normally $160 - use coupon code: [EMCPCWP26]). We don't recommend tossing it out the window, but it sure would go nicely with a socket AM3+ motherboard.

Other Deals:

Intel Core i5-4460 Haswell Quad-Core 3.2GHz LGA 1150 Desktop Processor for $180 with free shipping (normally $190 - use coupon code: [EMCPCWP97])

Rosewill THOR V2-White Edition, THOR V2-W Gaming ATX Full Tower Computer Case for $100 with free shipping (normally $140 - use coupon code: [EMCPCWP44])

Asus 24-inch 2ms Full HD HDMI LED Backlight LCD Monitor for $145 with free shipping (normally $180 - use coupon code: [EMCPCWP59]; additional $20 Mail-in rebate)

G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory for $153 with free shipping (normally $170 - use coupon code: [EMCPCWP36])

Microsoft's Cortana Voice Assistant Correctly Predicts World Cup Winner

Posted: 13 Jul 2014 10:45 PM PDT

Cortana in action during the World CUp

The voice assistant was spot on with 15 out of 16 knockout match predictions

The quadrennial soccer extravaganza that is the FIFA World Cup just got over in Brazil, with the Germans beating the Argentinians for the title by scoring the only goal of the match in the second half of extra time. But they weren't the tournament's only winners. The final also saw Microsoft's Windows Phone voice assistant Cortana cap off an overall brilliant tournament by once again correctly predicting the winner prior to kick off.

During the knockout matches she was spot on with all her predictions, save for the Brazil-Netherlands third place playoff, where her mojo deserted her and she ended up favoring hosts Brazil instead of the actual winners, the Dutch.

Here's an excerpt from a post on the Bing Blog explaining how the predictions work: "The process of predicting outcomes of sporting events is unlike voting show predictions [another thing Cortana does], as popularity and some sentiment signals do not play similar roles in determining who wins a contest.  Rather, the actions and performances of a handful of individuals solely determine who wins, loses, or ties.  For the tournament, our models evaluate the strength of each team through a variety of factors such as previous win/loss/tie record in qualification matches and other international competitions and margin of victory in these contests, adjusted for location since home field advantage is a known bias.  Further adjustments are made related to other factors which give one team advantages over another, such as home field (for Brazil) or proximity (South American teams), playing surface (hybrid grass), game-time weather conditions, and other such factors.  In addition, data obtained from prediction markets allows us to tune the win/lose/tie probabilities due to the 'wisdom of the crowds' phenomenon captured by the people wagering on the outcomes. You can read more about the model on the Next Blog here."

Image Credit: Bing Germany

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Cheaper Chromebooks in the Offing

Posted: 13 Jul 2014 10:23 PM PDT

Chromebooks

Use of inexpensive ARM SoCs could pave the way for sub-$200 Chromebooks

When Acer recently introduced the C720 Chromebook, a Haswell Core i3-toting device, we couldn't help but wonder if users would be comfortable shelling out $350 or more for a Chromebook. This is an especially pertinent question because if there's one thing that has helped these nifty little devices carve a niche for themselves, it is their greater affordability compared to entry-level Windows machines. The good news is that Chromebooks are likely to get even more affordable in the near future.

This is because inexpensive ARM-based SoCs from the likes of MediaTek and Rockchip could end up powering future Chromebook models. Taiwan-based MediaTek, in fact, has already begun its efforts to get in on the Chrome OS action.

"A new experimental ARM Cortex A7 board named Moose has recently been added to the open-source Chromium OS repository by MediaTek," Google's François Beaufort revealed in a Google Plus post Saturday.

With A7 chips from the likes of MediaTek being cheaper than even the ARM-based Exynos chips Samsung currently uses in a couple of its Chromebooks (the only company to do so), any device based on such SoCs will no doubt be cheaper than existing ARM- and X86-based Chromebooks, albeit while being considerably slower as well. However, all such dirt cheap devices are still quite far off — that is, if they show up at all.

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Adobe Now Guarantees Access to Lightroom Photos Even Beyond Subscription Expiry

Posted: 13 Jul 2014 10:04 PM PDT

Lightroom

Lightroom 5.5 update addresses "lingering concern"

Over a year back, Adobe abandoned its pay-once, use-forever Creative Suite in favor of a subscription-based app distribution model. Despite the ensuing furor, the company's recurring annual revenue from Creative Cloud subscriptions has grown to over $1.20 billion. That being said, the company seems willing to address some of the gripes of its over 2.4 million Creative Cloud subscribers  — well, especially where Lightroom users are concerned.

Last month, it made the once promotional $9.99 per month (annually) Creative Cloud Photography bundle, which includes access to Photoshop and Lightroom, a permanent part of its product portfolio, giving users of its popular photography apps a more affordable alternative to the $50-per-month Creative Cloud annual subscription. (Note: A perpetual license option is also available but the standalone Lightroom bought thus does not come with any mobile capabilities.) Now the company says it has addressed a major issue that has been bothering those who happen to access Lightroom under one of the subscription plans.

"With the latest update to Lightroom 5.5 I believe we've also addressed a lingering concern in the community: What happens to my photographs after my membership ends?  With Lightroom 5.5, at the end of a membership, the desktop application will continue to launch and provide access to the photographs managed within Lightroom as well as the Slideshow, Web, Book or Print creations that we know many photographers painstakingly create," Tom Hogarty, principal product manager of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, said in a blog post Thursday.

"The Develop and Map modules have been disabled in order to signal the end of the membership and the need to renew in order to receive Adobe's continuous innovation in those areas. Access to Lightroom mobile workflows will also cease to function. We hope this meets the expectations of our customers and we look forward to an ongoing dialog."

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