The Wall Street Journal  reports that the update will be available later this year in time  for the holidays. Windows President Tami Reller claims Microsoft is planning to showcase Blue to the public.

“Microsoft executives will make two sets of relevant disclosures in coming weeks … First up soon will be details about pricing, packaging and an official name.”

Reller with a Windows 8 tablet

Reller also said that a second Blue update is expected before June. Microsoft experts and enthusiasts were betting on the first update before June… we now know that there will be two updates, the second occurring near BUILD conference. The final Blue will be released to consumers near holiday season.

Related articles

• Microsoft: Windows 8.1 Preview Coming in Late June (technutty.co.uk)
• Microsoft Confirms Windows Blue Update Coming; Says Windows 8 Passes 100 Million Downloads (allthingsd.com)
• Microsoft confirms Windows 8.1 ‘Blue’ will be available to developers at the end of June (theverge.com)

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So you want to enter the confusing world of Torrents. Yep, it’s a dangerous and thrilling universe. Here’s how to get started. Note: We do not endorse the use of Torrent files to steal copyrighted material

• First, you need to install a Torrent Client, a program that allows you to open and download torrent files. Here are a few examples of Torrent clients.
•  utorrent
• and bit torrent   

•  Now you have to go to a Torrent website. There are many… so choose one…… now browse for the  song, book, or other file you want. The largest Torrent  website is Piratebay.
• Great! Now that you have found the file in the torrent website, make sure it is not protected by copyright law:), Look for the little red magnet icon and click on Get this Torrent.  This is the fastest method of downloading the torrent.
• 
• The torrent client will now begin to download your file.
• Always get the file that has been the most downloaded; make sure it has the most seeders, which indicates the file is most likely valid and contains no viruses.
• Wait patiently and then you are done.
• Please note that torrents are meant to be used responsibly. We are not responsible if copyright law punishes you for downloading files with copyright.

Related articles

• The Pirate Bay’s Oldest Torrent is “Revolution OS” (torrentfreak.com)
• The Pirate Bay becomes world’s largest file-sharing website (slashgear.com)

Turn left into the water….? Huh?

Some parts of Clapham, Londo, are … ahem… censored.

Yah… it’s embarrassing but, it’s not our fault.

Beautiful town square in Milan, is… torn to shreds.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mb8p1w3d2X1rhptwbo1_1280.jpg”>

Sorry, this has no explanation… we are as baffled as you.

Hmmm…. touche.

Those using iOS6 get special treatment….

Ooops…  Did NASA just compliment Apple???

Right side: Correct  ;    Left side:  Apple Maps

Meant to be the perfect road-tripper, the Acer Aspire V5 delivers impressive performance on a 15in frame

Decent touch screen, sturdy aluminum frame, roomy hard drive, speedy CPU

Weak battery performance

Size & Weight

Weight : 5.29lbs

Size:  15.6 in

Display

Display Type:     15.6in TFT active matrix LED

Resolution:  1366×768 

OS

OS:   Microsoft Windows 8

Processor

Memory:    8GB

Memory Type: SSDR3 SDRAM

Processor:  Intel 3rd Gen Core i5 3317U / 1.7 GHz

Core:  Dual-Core

Cache:  3MB

Hyper-threading: Yes

Storage

Hard Drive:  750GB

Hard Drive RPM: 5400 rpm

Ports & Connections

USB :   1x  USB 3.0

           2x USB 2.0

2-in-1 card reader:   1 Port

HDMI : 1 Port

VGA : 1 Port

Ethernet: 1 Port

Battery

# of Battery Cells :  4

Battery Capacity : 2500 mAh

Battery Chemistry :  Lithium-ion

Multimedia

Speakers:   Stereo

Headphone Jack:   3.5 mm jack Built-in

Microphone:   Built-in

Keyboard

Type: Built-in Keyboard

Track Pad: Multi-gesture track pad

Sensors & Extras

Bluetooth:  Yes ( 4.0 )

More Info

acer.com

Images courtesy of Acer

Communications

• Wireless 802.11a/g/n,
  Bluetooth

The city of Beaches and Carnivals is expected to get a new tag, the technological hub. The head of the Microsoft’s bazillion division Mr. Michel Levy expressed his view against the press and stated that they are hoping to stimulate an awesome flow of knowledge among Microsoft’s research teams, local research universities, emerging IT firms and their Brazilian market. A day before the press conference Microsoft had revealed their plan for spending $100 million to build a new research center in Rio.

This research laboratory will be the first advance technology research lab in Latin America and fourth worldwide. According to the Microsoft team, Rio center will also be used for gearing up the business start-ups and help facilitate operations for Microsoft’s Bing Search Engine.

They also addressed that 15 internet start-ups will be selected every two years to get financial, technological and administrative support from Microsoft. Each selected organization will be eligible for a financial support up to $500,000.

Although the  new laboratory will not be able to get started before the end of next year, the business accelerator program is going to be operational by Q2 of 2013.

Sporting a magnesium casing, tons of ports and connections, and a brilliant, optically-bonded screen, this is one hell of a tablet that stands tall for both work and play.

Vapor Mg Casing, Full USB 2.0 Port, microHDMI, magnetic power connector

Heavier than it looks ( nevertheless it is sturdy weight), casing is prone to smudges

Size & Weight

Weight:   1.5 lbs

Display

Type:   10.6in TFT active matrix LED

Resolution:  1366×768 

Display Technology: Microsoft Clear Type

OS

OS:   Microsoft Windows RT

Build:   9400

Processor

Memory:      2GB

Processor:  Nvidia Tegra 3 Quad-Core

Storage

Flash Memory:   32 GB ( 64 GB model available)

Extra Memory:   supports microSDXC, microSD,
microSDHC . ( up to 64 GB)

Ports & Connections

USB :   1x  USB 2.0

micro HDMI Port:   1 Port

microSDXC:   1 Port

Battery

Battery Capacity:   31.5 w-hr

Battery Life:   up to 8 hours

Battery Standby:   360 hours of standby

Multimedia

Camera:   Yes: ( Front @ 720p/ Back @ 720p )

Speakers:   Stereo

Headphone Jack:   3.5 mm jack Built-in

Microphone:   Built-in

Keyboard

Type: Detachable Keyboard

Key Implementation: Raised keys on Touch Cover / Touch Keys on Type Cover

Track Pad: Multi-gesture track pad

Sensors

Accelerometer : Yes

Ambient Light Sensor : Yes

Magnetometer: Yes

Gyro Sensor: Yes

GPS: No

NFC: No

Verdict

The Microsoft Surface stands tall as a perfect tablet for both work and play.

More Info

surface.com

Images courtesy of Microsoft

The 10.6 in tablet has drawn the praise of critics from Cnet to Engadget. Now, Microsoft’s first tablet, earned Oprah’s approval. She said, “”The Surface, Microsoft’s first tablet, feels like a Mercedes-Benz to me, people!”

Microsoft has made its Surface tablets available for pre-order, starting at $499. Surface will retail at Microsoft stores on October 26.  You can pre-order your Surface RT here.

Prices for Surface RT

• Surface RT w/no Touch Cover, 32 GB  – $499
• Surface RT with Touch Cover,  32 GB – - $599
• Surface RT with Touch Cover,  64 GB  – $699

For a complete review of Surface, please see Microsoft Launches Surface (VIDEO) and Microsoft Surface vs. Apple iPad

Please note that Surface Pro will be available for pre-order soon.

Surface RT is sporting an 8 hour battery and 2Gb system memory. In comparison the iPad sports a 10 hour battery and just 1GB system memory. For more info, see surface.com

Related articles

• Microsoft Surface RT priced at $499 for 32GB without Touch Cover (theverge.com)
• Microsoft Surface available for Pre-Order from today (techcurrents.wordpress.com)
• Microsoft puts a price on Surface, starts at $499, or $599 with Touch Cover (engadget.com)
• Microsoft’s Surface available for pre-order in eight countries, shipping October 26th (theverge.com)

The design of the Windows 8 box is very classy and modern. Let’s make this clear: this is not the Windows you love to hate. Windows 8 is a brand new product designed for the modern world.

Pricing:

Windows 8 Pro Upgrade – $69.99 ( for consumers )

Windows 8 Pro Pack (Product Key Card) – $69.99

Windows 8 (Core): $99.99 (for System Builders)

Windows 8 Pro: $139.99 (for System Builders)

This is not the first time Microsoft has bought their employees the latest and greatest tech. The mp3 player Zune HD and Windows Phones became a common site across the Microsoft campus. This goes for PCs as well, where the best Windows laptops can always be found on Microsoft campuses.

Surface is expected to launch the day Windows 8 launches. Sporting impressive specs, analysts expect the Surface to cash in big on the tablet market–which has been dominated by Apple for quite some time now.

Related articles

• Microsoft freebies: Ballmer to give all employees free Surface tablet, PC and phone (digitaltrends.com)
• Microsoft gifts full-time employees with Surface tablets, Windows 8 phones and PCs (engadget.com)