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Weekend Open Forum: Modern Warfare 2 on the PC, a multiplayer fiasco?

Jose Vilches — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:46 -0500

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was released worldwide this week to an overwhelming success, selling 4.7 million copies on a single day and raking in an estimated $310 million in North America and the United Kingdom alone. Reviews have been mostly favorable too, at least as far as gameplay is concerned. But there is one group who feels slighted by a series of changes made in this latest addition to...

Asus to launch a pair of 3D laptops

Matthew DeCarlo — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:58 -0500

Asus plans to launch a new 17" 3D notebook in the first quarter of next year, according to DigiTimes. Asus' G72GX will feature an Intel Core i7 processor, an Nvidia GeForce GTM 160M graphics chip, 4GB of RAM, and dual 320GB hard drives. The company is also planning to release a 15.6" 3D notebook, the G51J3D, at some point this month. Apart from the smaller display, the G51J3D's core specifications...

Microsoft to release source code for Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool

Matthew DeCarlo — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:30 -0500

Microsoft confirmed today that its Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool had indeed contained open-source code -- but it wasn't intentional. As first suspected by the blog Within Windows, Redmond had contracted the project to a third party, and simply didn't catch the code during its review process.

Crysis and Crysis Warhead 50% off, Overlord $1.50 via Steam

Matthew DeCarlo — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:19 -0500

As usual, Valve is offering a fantastic weekend sale through its digital distribution service, Steam. The company has substantially reduced the price of Crysis and Crysis Warhead. Both titles typically run $30 but are now available at half off for $15 each. The Crysis Maximum Edition pack that bundles the titles together is also discounted, with a total price of $30.

Nintendo Wii reclaims top sales position during October

Matthew DeCarlo — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:10 -0500

Sony's introduction of the $300 PlayStation 3 Slim landed it a top spot in September's console sales, ousting the Wii. Things have turned around for Nintendo, though, as the Wii reclaimed the number one sales position last month, according to research conducted by NPD.

Dangerous "unpatchable" flaw discovered in Adobe Flash

Justin Mann — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:30 -0500

A newly discovered flaw in the Flash suite could put both users and servers at risk, according to some recent reports. Adobe has verified the hole, which lies inside any Flash-based application that allows people to upload their own content. Though some details are omitted, the flaw would allow someone to upload a malicious Flash object to a site, which in turn would be downloaded and processed by...

First zero-day Windows 7 flaw published; not a great risk

Justin Mann — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:00 -0500

Windows 7 has brought a lot to the table, not the least of which is improved security architecture that helps make it safer than previous versions. It isn't impenetrable though, and the first zero-day exploit for the new OS was discovered earlier this week.

News around the web: 50 Best Inventions of 2009

Erik Orejuela — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:30 -0500

The 50 Best Inventions of 2009 @ Time

Google Chrome OS coming next week?

Jose Vilches — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:19 -0500

Google's much-anticipated operating system, Chrome OS, will be available for download next week. That is at least according to a "reliable source" cited by TechCrunch, who claims we can expect official driver support only for a small set of devices in this early version.

YouTube getting 1080p video next week

Justin Mann — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:11 -0500

It wasn't all that long ago when YouTube moved past the grainy, low-resolution limitations they started with and began offering "High Quality" video streaming. With high-speed broadband becoming ubiquitous and capable of supporting higher quality streams, people want more -- and Google is set to deliver. Starting next week, YouTube will begin offering the ability to upload and stream 1080p resolut...

Microsoft Office 2010 beta build leaks onto torrent sites

Jose Vilches — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 10:45 -0500

Even though a public beta build is expected to arrive as soon as next week at the Professional Developer Conference in Los Angeles, those of you who can't wait until then can apparently find the Office 2010 code already on torrent sites. According to Neowin, the Professional Plus version of Microsoft's next-gen productivity suite has been making the rounds online marked as Beta 2 (build 14.0.4514....

Xbox Live sets new user record with over two million playing at once

Justin Mann — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 07:30 -0500

Despite banning about a million Xbox 360 owners from Live, Microsoft's online gaming service isn't lacking subscribers, not by far. Following the launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the number of simultaneous players connected to the Xbox Live service set a new record, reaching an impressive two million active users.

AMD looks ahead to profitability, talks about Fusion and mobile DirectX 11 GPUs

Matthew DeCarlo — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:46 -0500

For the first time in years, AMD expects its microprocessor business to turn a profit in 2010. In a meeting with analysts and investors, the company said it is working hard to reduce debt -- which is currently around $3.2 billion. While still down, AMD posted a smaller-than-expected loss in the third quarter, which may be a sign of better things to come.

Matrox's M9188 graphics card drives eight displays simultaneously

Matthew DeCarlo — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:03 -0500

Matrox has announced the world's first single-slot PCIe x16 graphics card with support for up to eight monitors. With 2GB of dedicated memory, the Matrox M9188 can drive up to eight DisplayPort monitors at 2560x1600 or DVI Single-Link at 1920x1200 per display from a single computer. The card is compatible with 32 and 64-bit iterations of Windows XP, Vista, 7, Server 2003 and 2008, as well as Linux...

Xbox 360 bans rise to 1 million, banned consoles go up for sale

Justin Mann — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:04 -0500

Microsoft has reportedly unleashed a second wave of bans, bringing the total count of banned Xbox 360s to around 1 million -- about five percent of some 20 million Live-connected consoles. There is also some uncertainty now as to whether or not the bans are permanent. It is safe to assume that they are, as Microsoft specifically targeted consoles as opposed to Gamertags. However, there is no guara...

G.Skill intros DDR3 2200MHz RAM, new Falcon II SSD lineup

Matthew DeCarlo — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:10 -0500

G.Skill claims to have introduced the world's fastest DRAM modules, rated at DDR3 2200MHz with a latency of 7-10-10-28. Running at 1.65V, G.Skill designed the 4GB (2x2GB) kit for Intel's Lynnfield processors, and is targeting enthusiasts and gamers. The modules are furnished with the company's new PI series heatspreader, and will ship with G.Skill's Turbulence memory fan. The 2200 CL7 PI RAM serie...

Microsoft starts sending invites for Office Starter 2010 beta

Matthew DeCarlo — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:00 -0500

Microsoft today began sending out invites for the beta of Office Starter 2010 to users of Office Live Workspace. According to the blog I Think Different, potential enrollees must complete a survey and are contacted later if they meet the eligibility requirements. The survey is straightforward and asks questions about the productivity software and operating system you currently use.

HP to acquire 3Com for $2.7 billion

Matthew DeCarlo — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:00 -0500

HP announced yesterday that it would acquire 3Com for $2.7 billion, or about $7.90 per share. The agreement will underscore HP's next-generation data center strategy, and the resulting business outcome will help customers simplify the processes of deploying an edge-to-core network fabric for the enterprise.

Three Arrandale chips for ultraportables detailed, priced?

Jose Vilches — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:16 -0500

Intel plans to release three new 32nm dual-core processors for ultrathin notebooks in the first half of next year, according to anonymous sources cited by DigiTimes. The initial batch of Arrandale processors will reportedly consist of the 1.06GHz Intel Core i5 520UM, the 1.06GHz Core i7 620UM and the 1.2GHz Core i7 640UM, with bulk-buying prices of $241, $278, and $305 respectively.

AMD introduces two new x86 architectures, Bobcat and Bulldozer

Justin Mann — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:33 -0500

Though AMD has taken a beating from Intel in the past few years, the Sunnyvale-based chipmaker has trekked onward. While people speculate about AMD "losing" in the CPU market, the company is still pouring a lot of resources into research and development -- and we're about to see the fruits of their labor. At a financial analyst day event, AMD unveiled a roadmap that details two new processor archi...

Boxee signs hardware deal, standalone box coming

Jose Vilches — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:34 -0500

Just as many anticipated, social media startup Boxee has announced a deal with an undisclosed "hardware partner" to sell a standalone device equipped with its media center software. The so-called Boxee box will be presented in mockup form this December 7th and will reportedly be only the first of several devices we'll see running Boxee in 2010.

Apple releases Safari 4.0.4, addresses various security flaws

Justin Mann — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:57 -0500

Apple pushed out an update for Safari today, making version 4.0.4 available to the public across multiple platforms. The update is primarily focused on security, Apple addressing at least six flaws related to Safari, WebKit or related libraries. There were other improvements as well, including a performance boost for JavaScript execution. Updates for third-party plug-in support were included as we...

Intel settles all AMD litigation with $1.25 billion pact

Jose Vilches — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:19 -0500

Intel and AMD have had a troubled relationship in recent years. The latter sued Intel for antitrust violations, with allegations that have been picked up by others including U.S. and European regulators, while Intel has claimed AMD violated a licensing agreement for x86 technology with its GlobalFoundries spinoff. In a surprise announcement, however, the companies revealed today that they have now...

News around the web: Modern Warfare 2 sells 5 million

Erik Orejuela — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:00 -0500

Modern Warfare 2 sells 5 million in a day @ ArsTechnica

Independent game developers: Piracy isn't a significant threat

Justin Mann — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:30 -0500

With game development budgets in the tens of millions, and a relatively short shelf life on many modern games, it's no wonder that developers and publishers are always looking to curb piracy. Every year, new methods are developed to prevent games from being duplicated or outright stolen via download.

Tech Tip of the Week: Install Over 50 Freeware Apps Hands-Free with Ninite

Jose Vilches — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 05:55 -0500

If you�ve reinstalled an operating system in recent times, you surely realize how tedious the whole process can be. We have covered some aspects of this in the past, looking to simplify your experience with a list of top programs to grab after a fresh OS installation, as well as a comprehensive backup checklist. And while that should give you a neat jumpstart, we haven't entirely touched on how ti...

Mozilla releases second Firefox 3.6 beta with 190 fixes, new features

Matthew DeCarlo — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:30 -0500

Mozilla released a second version of the Firefox 3.6 beta yesterday, and issued an update for the first Firefox 3.6 beta. The new build contains over 190 fixes from the original beta, along with several improvements for web developers, add-on developers, and users.

Google Latitude lets you retrace your footsteps

Justin Mann — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:30 -0500

Google is bringing a significant update to the free Latitude application, a location-awareness app available for many mobile devices. The update will allow people to track everywhere they've been, and how long they stayed in each location. Coupled with Google Maps or Google Earth integration, it even lets people "replay" a trip they took.

Microsoft accused of violating GPL, pulls Windows 7 tool

Matthew DeCarlo — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 18:30 -0500

Microsoft is facing a bit of heat after being accused of using open source code in a way that violates the GNU's General Public License (GPL). The code being questioned was found by the Within Windows blog in Microsoft's Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool. Redmond has since halted distribution of the tool, saying yesterday that it was investigating the allegations.

Razer announces its new minimalistic gaming mouse, the Abyssus

Matthew DeCarlo — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:30 -0500

Razer has introduced a new, minimalistic gaming mouse, dubbed the Abyssus. The Abyssus' feature-set is in stark contrast with the company's recently released 17-button MMO-oriented Naga mouse. Razer's latest rodent focuses on simplicity with its ambidextrous design and three-button configuration, and beefs up features behind the curtain.