| Windows 8 Market Share Headed Back Towards Single Digits Posted: 02 Oct 2014 11:13 AM PDT  Windows 10 will go up against Windows 7, not Windows 8/8.1
Now that Microsoft has unveiled Windows 10 and is even serving up a Technical Preview for curious folks to check out, Windows 8 is already feeling like old news. Some felt that way even before Microsoft's announcement, which might explain why Windows 8 lost market share in the desktop OS market in the month of September. At this rate, it won't be long before Windows 8's share drops back into single digits. According to Net Applications, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 fell to a combined 12.26 percent of the desktop OS market by the end of September, down more than a percentage point from 13.37 percent at the end of August, which is the highest it's ever been. It will be interesting to see how things shake out from there. On one hand, it's possible that Windows 8/8.1 peaked in August and will never see a higher share of the market now that Windows 10 is on the horizon. However, it's also possible that Windows 8/8.1 will see a small surge as companies continue to migrate away from Windows XP, though the numbers don't yet support that notion. Since having support pulled back in April (except for firms who pay for extended support), Windows XP has dropped less than 3 percentage points, going from 26.29 percent at the end of April to 23.87 percent at the end of September, a decline of 2.42 percent. During that same time, Windows 8/8.1 has gone from 12.24 percent to 12.26 percent, or virtually nowhere. Windows 7 is the one that's benefiting from XP's demise -- it's share of the market has gone from 49.27 percent at the end of April to 52.71 percent at the end of September, a bump of 3.44 percent. Barring an extreme turn of events, Windows 10 will find itself competing with Windows 7 instead of Windows 8/81. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| 1.3 Million People Tuned into Nvidia's GAME24 PC Gaming Celebration Posted: 02 Oct 2014 10:36 AM PDT  PC gaming is alive and well
Nvidia earlier this month launched a 24 hour celebration of PC gaming called GAME24. In addition to being the first GAME24 of (hopefully) many more to come, it was also the first live streamed 24-hour global celebration of PC gaming. By the numbers, it was a success -- GAME24 attracted more than 1.3 million gamers from nearly 150 countries who tuned into the live stream to see tech talks, a 24-hour modding competition, and more. GAME24 was home to a Dota 2 tournament, product giveaways, and the launch of new hardware -- Nvidia used GAME24 as a launchpad for its flagship Maxwell-based GeForce GTX 970 and 980 graphics cards. "We wanted to bring the PC gaming industry together so we could celebrate all the great things that gaming has to offer. And gamers responded, crowding into events in Shanghai, London, Los Angeles, Chicago, Indianapolis, Mission Viejo and Stockholm," Nvidia stated in a blog post. "Even more showed up online." Those who tuned in didn't just take a peek and leave -- the average time spent was 15 minutes per person, with a total of 30,000,000 minutes watched collectively. GAME24 also raised $50,000 to Donate to Games in the fight against cancer, Nvidia said. If you missed it, you can check out some of the highlights below: Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Samsung Shares Human Butt Testing Details in Wake of Bendgate Posted: 02 Oct 2014 09:55 AM PDT  Galaxy Note 4 takes on the human gluteus maximus
The issue of Apple's iPhone 6 Plus being prone to bending out of shape may be blown out of proportion -- Apple claims that the problem is "extremely rare" -- but whether it is or isn't, you can bet that Samsung is going to use the ammunition to fire at its rival. Having already taken to Twitter with digs at Apple, Samsung today posted a video showing the process its Galaxy Note 4 phones go through to ensure they stay rigid. "Samsung makes and sells hundreds of millions of smart devices each year, and it's very important that each and every one is in line with its strict quality control standards. So, to make sure you can rely on its devices, including Galaxy Note 4, Samsung runs rigorous tests both during and after development and production," Samsung says. According to Samsung, its devices undergo a three-point bend test. Part of that entails applying enough pressure to the middle of the handset to break three pencils. And, believe it or not, there's a test that simulates human weight by plopping a fake buttocks up and down on the device several hundred times. Check it out below: Samsung credits the Galaxy Note 4's abilty to stay rigid to its metal frame, magnesium bracket, and mutually reinforcing structure between parts. Indeed, similar tests performed by Consumer Reports verified that the Galaxy Note 3 is stronger than much of the competition by being able to withstand 150 pounds of force before deforming (for whatever reason, Consumer Reports didn't test the Galaxy Note 4), versus 130 pounds for the LG G3 and iPhone 5, 90 pounds for the iPhone 6 Plus, and 70 pounds for the iPhone 6 and HTC One (M8). At the same time, Consumer Reports also concluded that at 70 pounds and 90 pounds of force, fears of a design flaw in either the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus respectively are "overblown." Be that as it may, 150 pounds of force on the Galaxy Note 3 is mighty impressive. Assuming no major designs to the overall structure, the same or similar should be true of the Galaxy Note 4. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Netflix Inks Adam Sandler to Four Movie Deal Posted: 02 Oct 2014 09:24 AM PDT  Adam Sandler goes streaming for laughs
Netflix on Thursday announced a deal that will see the release of four full-length feature films starring comedian and actor Adam Sandler exclusively through the streaming service. Sandler's Happy Madison Productions will work with Netflix to develop each of the four films, so you can probably expect a similar style of humor as past Sandler movies, and perhaps a continuation of the usual cameos. Sandler has grossed more than $3 billion globally at the box office, but more importantly for Netflix's decision to do a deal like this is that his films "consistently rank among the most viewed by Netflix members in the U.S. and across its global territories from Brazil to the U.K.," Netflix said. The stand-up comedian turned actor has appeared in numerous films such as Happy Girlmore, Billy Madison, The Wedding Singer, Punch Drunk Love, The Waterboy, The Longest Yard, 50 First Dates, Grownups (1 and 2), and more. "When these fine people came to me with an offer to make four movies for them, I immediately said yes for one reason and one reason only. Netflix rhymes with Wet Chicks. Let the streaming begin!!!!," Sandler said. Other than being on the hook for four movies in collaboration with Happy Madison Productions, other terms of the deal were not disclosed. Traditional studios typically pay Sandler $20 million per movie along with a percentage of the film. For his role in Anger Management, Sandler earned $25 million plus 25 percent of the gross, which was around $150 million, giving him an additional $37.5 million, according to Celebrity Networth. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Study: Playing Portal 2 Improves Cognitive Skills Posted: 02 Oct 2014 08:31 AM PDT  "Portal 2 kicks Lumosity's ass"
Most of the time when you hear about video games in the news, it's some bonehead politician trying to win votes by condemning virtual violence while trying to make a connection to real world crimes. We know that's bunk, but on the flip side, are there positive benefits to playing games? You betcha. A new study shows that playing Portal 2 might actually be better than Lumosity at improving cognitive skill sets. In case you're not familiar with it, Lumosity is a "human cognition project" consisting of scientifically designed games intended to work out your brain and improve cognitive functions. It works, but maybe not as well as Portal 2, according to a study that compared the two titles. The study focused on 77 undergraduates who were randomly assigned to play either Portal 2 or Lumosity for eight hours. Before playing their assigned game, they each took a set of online tests related to problem solving, spatial skill, and persistence. "Results revealed that participants who were assigned to play Portal 2 showed a statistically significant advantage over Lumosity on each of the three composite measures...Portal 2 players also showed significant increases from pretest to posttest on specific small- and large-scale spatial tests while those in the Lumosity condition did not show any pretest to posttest differences on any measure," the researchers concluded. Val Shute, one of the study's three researchers, put it in plain English for The Wall Street Journal -- "Portal 2 kicks Lumosity's ass," Shute said. This study alone isn't extensive enough to definitely say that Portal 2 is better for the brain than Lumosity, but the results also can't be ignored. WSJ spoke with Shawn Green, a psychologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who studies video games (but wasn't involved in this particular study), who brought up an interesting point. "If entertainment games actually do a better job than games designed for neuroplasticity, what that suggests is that we are clearly missing something important about neuroplasticity," Green says. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
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