Microsoft’s Windows 8.1 Operating System upgrade available

Today Microsoft made a free preview version of its brand new Windows 8.1 operating system available to download. A current Windows 8 users can simply go to Microsoft’s Windows preview website and download the new update for free.The new operating system include the return of the Start button (sort of), enhancements to desktop mode, changes to the Start screen, multitasking enhancements and more. The new Windows 8.1 operating system update can be downloaded here

I'm upgrading right away!

Leave your comments about your expectations and what you look forward to in the new upgrade.

Microsoft's Xbox One unveiled

Microsoft unveiled its eagerly awaited new generation Xbox One videogame console on May 21, touting it as a home entertainment hub that goes far beyond games.

"Today, we put you at the center of a new generation in the living room," said Don Mattrick, head of Microsoft's interactive entertainment business, unveiling the new version of the popular game console.

The beefed-up hardware is powered by software that allows for instant switching between games, television, and Internet browsing, according to Mattrick. Skype was also integrated for online video calls.

Kinect motion and sound sensing accessories accompanying the consoles will recognize users and respond instantly to commands spoken in more natural language, according to Microsoft executives.

"This is the beginning of a new generation of games and entertainment and a new generation of smart TV," said Microsoft entertainment unit executive Yusuf Mehdi.

Microsoft played to longtime Xbox fans with glimpses of blockbuster games including "Call of Duty Ghosts" and "FIFA" football being tailored for the new consoles.

A beloved "Halo" science fiction shooter franchise was used to showcase the merging of television and videogame play in Xbox One.

Famed filmmaker Steven Spielberg signed on to produce a live-action "Halo" television series in partnership with gamemaker 343 Studio.

"For me, the 'Halo' universe is an amazing opportunity to be at the intersection where technology and myth-making meet to create something really exciting," Spielberg said in a video snippet played during the press event at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

Xbox One consoles will be released later this year, according to Mattrick, who did not disclose pricing details.

Microsoft has sold some 77 million Xbox 360 consoles since they hit the market in late 2005. Console rival Sony has sold about the same number of PlayStation 3 consoles.

Meanwhile, Nintendo sold nearly 100 million Wii consoles, which became hits due to innovative motion-sensing controls after their debut in 2006. However, demand for Nintendo's recently released Wii U consoles have been disappointing.

Sony announced a new generation PlayStation 4 system in February but spoke ambiguously about the device, leaving much to the imagination.

Sony on released a YouTube video teasing its plans to show off the PS4 in Los Angeles on June 10, the night before the annual video game conference E3 officially gets underway.

The PS4, which is also to hit the market by the end of this year, will succeed PlayStation 3 consoles that began their lifespan in late 2006.

"Microsoft wins the next-gen game console launch wars by launching something that the company doesn't even call a console," said Forrester analyst James McQuivey.

Where first Nintendo offered us a tablet to accompany the millions we had already bought and Sony then offered us a box that we couldn't even see, Microsoft has trumped them both by delivering the Xbox One.

Microsoft has apparently put its hardware and software mastery to effective use, bringing game controllers, tablets, smartphones, voice, and gesture together in the Xbox One, according to the analyst.

"Microsoft takes an unlikely trophy home today -- it can claim to be the winner of the race to build the best living room user experience available," McQuivey said.

Very un-Microsoft, to be honest, and a pleasure to see.

Microsoft Office debuts on iPhone

Microsoft made Office available on iPhones for people who pay to use the popular productivity software as a service in the Internet cloud.

A free Office Mobile application for iPhones hit the shelves of Apple's App Store but can only be used with subscriptions to Office 365 Home Premium or Office 365 ProPlus.

Documents or other files created using Office programs can be saved at Microsoft's online SkyDrive.

"The iPhone app enables great Office content viewing and on-the-go content editing capabilities," Julia White, general manager of Microsoft's Office division, said in a blog post.

After signing in to an Office 365 account, you can access, view and edit Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents from anywhere.

Microsoft in January began letting people subscribe to Office as a service in the Internet cloud, shedding the need to buy the popular productivity software on a disk.

It's kind of a reflection of how most of us live nowadays," company official Oliver Roll said at the time. "The same way you get instant access to movies or music at Netflix or Spotify, you access your documents in the cloud.

Microsoft earlier launched a version of Office 365 for businesses.The Office suite includes Word, Excel, and OneNote.

The Redmond, Washington-based software giant's competition includes a suite of online applications hosted by Internet powerhouse Google. Microsoft is also keen to stay in tune with the lifestyle shift to smartphones and tablets despite failing to score hits with mobile devices powered by its Windows software.

Microsoft Integrates Outlook.com Inboxes with Skype

The integration of the video chat and messaging service with Microsoft’s free e-mail service is rolling out to U.K. users now and will be available in the U.S. “in the coming weeks.” Microsoft is delivering Skype to Outlook.com users’ inboxes. A preview, which combines the video chat and messaging service with the tech giant’s free e-mail service, is being introduced now to users in the U.K. and will be rolled out to users in the U.S. and Germany “in the coming weeks.” 

Further international expansion is expected this summer, the company announced Monday evening. Microsoft promotes the integration as “less typing, more talking”: “Even with the best email service, sometimes text isn’t enough,” Simon Longbottom, Skype’s director of global marketing, wrote in a company blog post. “We all face those situations where it’s just easier to jump on a call to talk something through. Sometimes that quick call can accomplish more than a long email reply. 

That’s why we are bringing Skype audio and video calling to your Outlook.com inbox.” The integration seems a natural progression for Skype, which Microsoft acquired in October 2011. Microsoft announced last November it would soon retire its instant messaging client in favor Skype. Skype executives said in late October that Skype would most likely replace Messenger someday but had declined to provide a public timetable.

 Skype has published the video below to demonstrate how the integrated products will function.  

Souce:CNET

How to use HTTP proxy in IE 7,8,9,10 Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer is very popular browser of Microsoft Windows (Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7,..). Many people use it for web. Configuring and using HTTP proxy in Internet Explorer is easy.

Run Internet Explorer

Go to Tools → Internet Options

Choose the provider or see below for LAN settings, and click Settings

Click Advanced

Configure your proxy

If you have only LAN, click LAN settings

Click Advanced

Configure your proxy

Google, Bing, and Yahoo partner for web tag standards

When the top three Internet search providers work together on a project, the web pays attention. On Thursday, Google, Bing, and Yahoo introduced schema.org, a resource for website owners and developers that want to add markup to their pages.

Search engines rely on schemas, or HTML tags, to improve results and make them more accurate. When webmasters set out to optimize their sites for SEO, they can use these markups to help push their sites to the top of results.

A lengthy note on schema.org gives a little more background and explains why finding common ground with website markup is so important:

Many sites are generated from structured data, which is often stored in databases. When this data is formatted into HTML, it becomes very difficult to recover the original structured data. Many applications, especially search engines, can benefit greatly from direct access to this structured data. On-page markup enables search engines to understand the information on web pages and provide richer search results in order to make it easier for users to find relevant information on the web. Markup can also enable new tools and applications that make use of the structure.

This isn’t the first time the biggest players in search have collaborated on a project of this nature. In 2006, Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft came together to create sitemaps.org, which helped standardize Sitemap protocol.

Microsoft Device Update

You've probably seen the adverts on TV and not really taken interest in them when they were first aired, but as you watch them more often you would take notice at what they're actually involve.What adverts am I talking about? Microsoft's Holiday party of course.
Towards the end of last year I was invited by Microsoft to a presentation on their up and coming products and software changes. The event which was held at Durban's ICC and unusually I was the first to show up, grabbed my bag of Microsoft goodies and made my way into the room where I was told I had to be seated in the special tables provided up front. 

Collin Ross: Windows Client Business Group

I was greeted by Microsoft's Collin Ross who was heading the presentation. As much as I  wantied to know why I was there and who he was my eyes couldn't get off the massive display table they had filled with laptops, tablets, desktop replacements and other computing devices.

the machines...

From devices that haven't been launched yet to concepts that will never see production. It was all there, fully functional devices for me to play with! But first back to the reason I was there, Microsoft launched in December their "Holiday Party" campaign. What is it? Basically its showing how Microsoft are using their software and online presence to link multiple applications and devices. Its like reuniting a family, you have your laptop with windows, desktop the same, X-box with live functionality and your windows mobile smart phone which all can be linked wireless to each other. Now I know what you're thinking "Microsoft? they're no where at the moment, Mac all the way!" Yes especially when it comes to mobile phones and tablets, one would tend to agree with that statement BUT...

Windows phones with mobile 7.5

Microsoft were aware of it too, hence the new range of devices soon to hit the country is like no other you've seen before. Normally the cellphone manufacturer would build the phone and buy the OS from Microsoft. Many had problems with these "Windows phones" because the manufacturers never built the phone with the correct specifications to make the most out of the operating system. What Microsoft then did was tell the various makers that, here's how we want you to build the phones, these are the specs and this is the layout. On these new phones which all are pretty similar, have Microsoft Windows mobile 7.5. Its the latest mobile OS out by Microsoft, you may recall in my Deadmau5 post, the launch of the Nokia Lumia in London, that has Windows 7.5 running on it. The OS itself along with the phones is a pretty lethal combination with the user interface and processing ability being brilliantly fast. With Windows there is nothing complicated about it so everything is self explanatory, not saying that its childish but more practical than other OS's on mobiles.

Also discussed was cloud computing, with the rate social media is exploding world wide many are taking advantage of this with their devices being more mobile but also with the new devices, storage does become a problem. One wouldn't walk around with a tablet and a huge external hard drive around now would they? Step in Microsoft Windows Live Skydrive, now if you already have a Windows Live account/ hotmail address, you already have one. What is skydrive? basically its a portion of the Internet allocated to you. You upload files to the drive and you can access them from any machine world wide. Eg: if I have a video of 50mb that I want to email to a friend, I'd upload it to my skydrive then send him the email. He wouldn't have to download the attachment to view it unless he wanted to. I was told at the presentation that at the moment, you can store up to 2gigs of data on your skydrive which is ALOT considering how many people have Live accounts.

Asus UX21E

The pick of the laptops on display had to be the new super slim Toshiba and Acer, both with solid slate drives and i7 processors. These were just bench marks of the technology of the future. These sleek sexy machines are just as powerful as any other laptop if not more and battery life is pretty impressive. All of them were running Windows 7 and to say it was running smooth was an understatement.

Acer Aspire S3

 Now one who is reading this must be thinking that Windows is just ripping off Mac, first with the phone, now with the Mac book pro equivalent. Well yes you're right and no you're wrong in a way. Mac's for eg the iPad are generally used by people for an entertainment aspect. Its a cool device no doubt, the app's are brilliant but 80% of the time its hardly used for business. Just buy a laptop is what most will be saying, why though? We have made devices like this, why cant we use it for business as well? sure you can load Microsoft Office for Mac but that's just pricey. What if there was a windows alternative? Pretty soon there will be and it might be more powerful than most laptops. Mecer had on display their new slate which was powered by an Intel Core i5 processor. Yes a core i5 processor in a slate drive!

The downfall to it is the weight and thickness, but its not being put into production just yet as they are addressing those issues. BTW, that's what Windows 8 looks like, yes Windows 8 but more about that later. Apart from showcasing the serious stuff, they did have some other cool stuff on display for us. How many times have you watch CSI and they're busy on the heads up touch screen display and Horatio asks for the image to be shown on the big LCD and with a quick flick the guy almost throws the image onto the screen in front. Fake surely? not anymore, Windows have made that technology now! By syncing the devices to the TV, one can access video's, songs or pictures via your portable device but view them on another display. i.e the video will only play on the TV while you can carry on doing other work on your device. Cool huh? That's not the best part. Everyone knows about Kinect, the device made for the X Box which enables the user to control the games via movement, no controller needed. Now Microsoft are researching ways in using Kinect with PC's! They had on display a laptop with the device hooked up and just by hand movements, one could access documents, view slide show presentations and even draw on MS Paint. The technology is still under development but the possibilities with it are endless.

Now back to what I said earlier, yes Windows 8 is almost here. I say almost because the developers edition is out so the programmer's from the various software companies are busy writing programs and apps for the software. From the little I've seen of it, it does seem to be a very touch orientated software. So if you have touch screen devices, it will be superb and hence the catch phrase is "touch tomorrow". The layout is different from the norm. There is no normal desktop with start bar. Everything is in tiles, but if you do prefer a desktop, there is one available by simply selecting the tile.

I don't really have a preference when it comes to things PC, I just like whats best and easy to use. Microsoft hasn't really taken a hit in the market with sales as many still purchase their products as a given. So its good to see them taking the initiative and making products that appeals to the modern generation that want these cool gadgets. They could have very well just sat back and leave it be but they didn't and from what I've seen they're ready to give their competitors a good run for their money!

Most SellingTech Gifts in 2011

CNET editors, among others, have picked the top tech for this year - 2011. From laptops and tablets to cameras, TVs and more, here are some ideas that might please your favorite geek.

Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Ultra-portable

Editors’ take: Even with its slightly low USB 3.0 performance, the GoFlex Ultra makes an excellent portable external hard drive for people who need more storage.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W350

Editors’ take: A sweet, little wide-angle compact, the Sony Cyber-shot should make a lot of snapshooters happy.

Xbox Kinect 360

Editors’ take: With its impressive body tracking and unusual, controller-free experience, Kinect is great for casual gaming parties and workouts -- assuming you have enough room to play it.


Panasonic HDC-SD60s

Editors’ take: Panasonic's entry-level HD camcorders -- the HDC-HS60, TM60, TM55 and SD60 -- deliver a nice manual feature set and good performance, plus solid video quality for their class.

Sony PlayStation 3 Slim (160GB)

Editors’ take: With a smaller design, more energy-efficient operation, lower price tag and built-in Blu-ray and multimedia capabilities, the PS3 Slim delivers a compelling package for a reasonable price.

Roku XDS

Editors’ take: If you don't need compatibility with iTunes, you’ll likely find Roku's trio of affordable video boxes offers a wider range of streaming video and audio providers than Apple TV does.

Xbox 360 Slim (black, 250GB)

Editors’ take: If you don’t own an Xbox 360 with an HDMI-out port and hard drive, you might consider the new Xbox 360 because it addresses most of the concerns editors have had with previous versions.

Panasonic Viera TC-P50VT20

Editors’ take: With 2D and 3D sources, Panasonic's flagship TC-PVT20/25 series delivers outstanding overall picture quality.

iPhone Touch 2010

Editors’ take: The iPod Touch is the best iPod yet, offering all the fun of the iPhone experience without a carrier contract or monthly bill.

T-Mobile G2

Editors’ take: Some minor issues aside, the T-Mobile G2 is one of the carrier's top Android smart phones, offering an excellent QWERTY keyboard, speed and plenty of features.


Amazon Kindle

Editors’ take: The third-generation Kindle's upgrades ― including an improved screen, better battery life, lighter weight and lower price ― send it to the top of the e-book reader category.

Apple MacBook Air

Editors’ take: The MacBook Air is smaller and less expensive, creating an excellent ultraportable but leaving out a few features along the way.

Apple iMac

Editors’ take: The new iMac comes with a faster CPU and a new graphics card, helping this 27-inch all-in-one desktop stay as competitive in performance as it was in screen size.

Garmin Nuvi 3790T

Editors’ take: The Garmin Nuvi 3790T combines a super-slim form, a smart phone-worthy touch screen and Garmin's GPS software into one fine navigator.