Archive for June, 2007

Motion Sensing for the Xbox 360

As wonderfully ergonomic the Xbox 360 controller may be, it lacks a feature that Wii and PlayStation 3 controllers have: motion control. But thanks to a third-party modification, the Xbox 360 controller will sense tilting motions and translate them into movement in-game.

Talismoon’s motion sensing upgrade, called the Tiltboard, is a circuit board loaded with ICs and solder points much like those forbidden modchips andmust be placed inside the controller casing and requires the soldering of seven wires. The Tiltboard senses motion in a similar way that it does on the PlayStation 3’s SIXAXIS controller and maps it to the controller’s right analog stick.

The modification adds two buttons on the back of the controller, which are used to control various functions. For example, the tilt maybe enabled or disabled, along with adjusting the sensitivity, angle and inverted settings.

As the Tiltboard is an unsupported controller modification, it is unlikely at any game developers will tool their software specifically to support this aftermarket motion control.

Pricing on the Tilt Board is said to be $39.99 and Talismoon plans to distribute the product to various e-tailers across 12 countries including the US, UK, Canada, China, Australia, and many others.

Another company called XCM is already shipping its version of the motion sensor called Bestilt which only requires 5 solder points and retails for roughly $38.

Source: DailyTech

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Windows XP Service Pack 3 Leaked Details!

Not only is Windows XP Service Pack 3 alive and kicking, but Microsoft also managed to leak details about what the refresh will contain. The Redmond Company’s policy when it comes down to future releases of the Windows platform is to gag all details. Windows

XP SP3 is old news for Microsoft. And with the general availability of Windows Vista it was pushed to the background. But in all fairness, Microsoft never confirmed the cancellation of the third service pack for Windows XP. The company only scrapped it out of sight and under the rug with repeated delays.
The availability date for the first beta of Windows Vista SP1 was revealed by a U.S. Justice Department legal filling. Microsoft plans to deliver Vista SP1 beta by the end of 2007, but the date is of course nothing more than an estimation. By comparison, SP3 for Windows XP is cu rrently planned for the first half of 2008. But Microsoft initially planned to deliver the third service pack for Windows XP in 2006, only to postpone the release to 2007 and then again to 2008.
Windows XP SP3, despite its collection of delays, will make it to the market, and Microsoft plans in integrate changes to Internet Explorer and to Windows Media Player into the refresh. “Microsoft has agreed to make changes to Windows XP, two Middleware Products, and Windows Live Messenger. The Windows Live Messenger changes have been delivered in the Windows Live Messenger 8.5 beta and will be included in the public release. Changes for Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player will be made available to users in August 2007 and Microsoft is discussing with the TC the delivery mechanism for those changes. The Windows XP changes will be incorporated into Service Pack 3 for Windows XP,” revealed the U.S. Justice department in its filing.

Source: Softpedia

Joost invitation Giveaway

This time the Tech Today has decided to give its readers the Joost invitations after the Wallop invitation giveaway which was a great success.Joost which most of U may not be familiar with is a new way of watching TV on the Internet. With Joost, you get all the things you love about TV, including a high-quality full-screen picture, hundreds of full-length shows and easy channel-flipping.

You get great Internet features too, such as search, chat and instant messaging, built right into the program - so you find shows quickly and talk to your friends while you watch. And with no schedules to worry about, you can watch whatever you want, whenever you like - as often as you want. Joost is completely free, and works with most modern PCs and Intel Mac-based computers with a broadband connection.

Free TV- Now showing at Joost: hundreds of full-screen shows from your favorite channels.

Exciting extras-Chat, instant messaging, search and more - baked right into the TV experience.

Complete control-With Joost, you’re in charge. No more schedules - watch what you want, as often as you like.

U can know more about Joost here- http://joost.com

To get this invitation U just have to reply along with Ur name and E-Mail and we will send you the JOOST invitation within a day most probably earlier than that and also stay tuned for more fantastic giveaways,

Windows Server Code Name "Centro" is coming in the next few weeks

Today I just got an Email from Microsoft Connect saying that they will be releasing the CTP version of Windows Server code name “Centro” within a few weeks.Here is what the mail reads-

Big News! Microsoft is planning to release a Community Technology Preview (CTP) of Windows Server Code Name “Centro” in the next few weeks. We look forward to your continued participation with Windows Server “Centro” and are really excited to receive your feedback on the upcoming CTP. The team is looking for confirmation we have it right, and your feedback can and will directly impact the design of this exciting new product!

Windows Server “Centro” is built on Windows Server 2008 and provides an integrated server and management system for midsize businesses. The upcoming CTP includes many new Windows Server 2008 Beta 3 based components, as well as updates to the server applications that shipped in Windows Server “Centro” Beta 1 (updated versions of System Center Essentials 2007, Exchange Server 2007 and ISA, as well as new updates to setup, Active Directory domain join functionality and a host of other improvements). The team has done a tremendous amount of work to ensure a smooth experience for you. How are we doing and what do you think of our progress? Let us know!

To install Windows Server “Centro”, you need three physical servers and the associated network hardware. Ideally, the servers should be configured identically, although this is not a requirement. The minimum hardware requirements are as follows:

· 64-bit (x64) processor
· 60 GB hard-disk drive
· 2 GB RAM Management Server (4 GB recommended)
· 2 GB RAM Messaging Server (4 GB recommended)
· 2 GB RAM Edge Server
· DVD-ROM drive
· 1 network adapter (2 in the Edge Server

Asus reveals full specs for C90 customizable laptop

Those of us who cringe at paying bloated prices for the privilege of having our computers built by the Dells and HPs of the world have long been looking forward to ASUS’ upcoming C90 barebones laptop: its so-called D-door design finally gives mobile users some of the same ability for customization that desktop modders have had for years. Well the fast-growing Taiwanese manufacturer has just revealed the full specs for this anticipated device, which we now know to support Core 2 Extreme processors up to the 2.93GHz X6800, up to 3GB of 800MHz DDR2 RAM, your choice of MXM-compatible graphics solutions, and whatever optical drives and storage space you happen to need. Still no word on a release unfortunately, although if we can believe an eBay seller already putting it up for preorder, we should be seeing the 15.4-inch, WSXGA+ C90 hit stores within the next few days for under a grand.

Source Technoworld

Microsoft launches new-look MSN for mobile phones

The MSN Mobile Team at Microsoft launched a redesigned MSN portal optimized for mobile phones on Sunday, stepping up its offering at a time when more powerful devices increase the demand for richer content on handsets. However mobile Internet use still represents only a fraction of computer-based Web usage, but that could change with companies like Microsoft who see increasingly powerful mobile phones and faster networks opening the door for new services and content.

“We firmly believe there is an inflection point here,” said Phil Holden, Microsoft’s director of mobile Web services. “There’s a new battle, a new frontline developing on the mobile phone.”

Microsoft’s new MSN Mobile portal available at http://mobile.msn.com offers news, sports information, entertainment features and access to services like e-mail, search, maps and instant messaging all on one page. And what’s great is that when a user accesses the portal, the MSN platform detects the handset and optimizes the site for that device, adjusting things like font sizes for different screens.

source- liveside

Apple iPhone delivers up to eight hours of talk time

Apple® today announced that iPhone™ will deliver significantly longer battery life when it ships on June 29 than was originally estimated when iPhone was unveiled in January. iPhone will feature up to 8 hours of talk time, 6 hours of Internet use, 7 hours of video playback or 24 hours of audio playback.* In addition, iPhone will feature up to 250 hours-more than 10 days-of standby time. Apple also announced that the entire top surface of iPhone, including its stunning 3.5-inch display, has been upgraded from plastic to optical-quality glass to achieve a superior level of scratch resistance and optical clarity.
With 8 hours of talk time, and 24 hours of audio playback, iPhone’s battery life is longer than any other ‘Smartphone’ and even longer than most MP3 players,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We’ve also upgraded iPhone’s entire top surface from plastic to optical-quality glass for superior scratch resistance and clarity. There has never been a phone like iPhone, and we can’t wait to get this truly magical product into the hands of customers starting just 11 days from today.”
View: Full Story

1 million Safari Downloads in 48 hours!!!

Apple has announced that it has shipped over 1 million copies of Safari 3 for Windows in the first 48 hours since the free public beta was made available.

Safari 3 is the fastest browser running on Windows, rendering web pages up to twice as fast as IE 7 and up to 1.6 times faster than Firefox 2, based on the industry standard iBench tests. Safari 3 supports all modern Internet standards including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, SVG and Java. Safari updates are delivered seamlessly through Apple’s Software Update, and the first update for Safari for Windows Public Beta which fixes some early reported bugs was released last night.

Safari 3 for Windows requires Windows XP or Windows Vista, a minimum of 256 MB of memory and a system with at least a 500 MHz Intel Pentium processor.

Source: World of Apple