My Life At College (Episode 7)

And today all I have is just another episode...

Here's episode 7:

For more, Subscribe to Madok's channel here: madok101

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Motorola reveals ambitious plan to build modular smartphones

Motorola has unveiled Project Ara, an open-source initiative for modular smartphones with the goal to "do for hardware what the Android platform has done for software." The company plans to create an ecosystem that can support third-party hardware development for individual phone components — in other words, you could upgrade your phone's processor, display, and more by shopping at different vendors.

What's in Google's secret floating office?

SEARCH giant rocked the boat by building a massive floating office off the coast of San Francisco - and possibly one near Portland, Maine - without proper permits.

Google has hit a snag after building a floating office without the proper permit. 

In the Bay Area, the four-story shipping-container structure is believed to have been set up as a marketing centre for the company’s new Google Glass - but construction halted suddenly a few weeks ago, leaving the barge empty and tethered to Treasure Island, CBS reported.

“Google has spent millions on this. But they can’t park this barge on the waterfront without a permit, and they don’t have one,” an insider told CBS.

To get a permit, Google must prove that activity on the barge could not be done on land.

If the Web surfers are able to score permits, the barge would be moved to Fort Mason in San Francisco.

The city’s Conservation and Development Commission confirmed it had talks with Google about "hypothetical operations" set up on the water.

A similar structure was also spotted in a harbor off Portland, Maine, the Portland Press Herald reported.

Both may be Google "water-based data centres" powered by waves, according to the Press Herald.

A representative from Google did not return a request for comment.

Source: HeraldSun

Now I wonder what exactly they were thinking. "We're Google, We're going to build a floating office."

Um, not without a permit you're not!

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BBM for Android and iPhone is here for FREE!

BBM™ is the best way to connect and share instant messages, pictures and more for free, in real time. Download the app today.

BBM for Android and  iPhone

Nokia's Lumia 1520 is the latest massive 'phablet'

With a 6in HD screen, the Lumia 1520 breaks the Windows Phone mould as it takes on the Samsung Galaxy Note 3

Nokia Lumia 1520 phablet takes Windows Phone 8 to 6in.

Nokia announced its largest Windows Phone to date on Tuesday, revealing a 6in full HD-screen Lumia 1520 phablet with a 20-megapixel PureView Camera.

Microsoft veterans design new 64-bit game engine for PC, PS4 and Xbox One

Meet Nitrous by Oxide Games.

A 64bit gaming Engine by the veterans from Firaxis and Microsoft.

Veterans of studios Firaxis and Microsoft have formed Oxide Games, a new independent company dedicated to making new next-gen 3D engines, including a new 64-bit multicore game engine for Windows PC, Xbox One and PS4 hardware.

Called Nitrous, this new engine supports Simultaneous Work and Rendering Model, a feature that automatically renders from the most available CPU core, allowing for a vastly larger number of high-fidelity 3D objects.

"In most modern games, players may see a handful of unique, high-fidelity 3D models on the screen at the same time," said Oxide ames co-founder Tim Kipp in a prepared statement. "That's because current 3D engines are 32-bit and rely on a ‘main thread' to talk to the GPU. Nitrous, by contrast, was designed from scratch to be a 64-bit, multicore engine. Nitrous will render epic numbers of units and light sources on a screen at any given time."

A number of developers have already committed to using Nitrous in their upcoming titles. This includes developer and publisher Stardock Entertainment, known best for strategy PC titles Sins of a Solar Empire, Galactic Civilizations and Fallen Enchantress, provided the seed capital for Oxide Games as part of the Stardock Strategic Investment Fund.

Full details on the new engine can be found here.

More on this story here:
Microsoft veterans design new 64-bit game engine for PC, PS4 and Xbox One

Now this is a true evolution for  gaming.

SOURCE Oxide Games

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Apple iOS 7 - Review

Because I haven't posted a video in a while.

Here's a review on iOS 7:

Thank you IGN!

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BlackBerry Tries Again With BBM for iOS, Android Rollout

BlackBerry has finally resumed its rollout of BBM for iOS and Android after hitting some snags last month.

The app will be hitting Google Play and the App Store as well as select Samsung app stores on Monday, the Canadian phone maker announced yesterday.

A swarm of cyborg insects used for mapping collapsed buildings

When Backyard Brains began pushing its open source, remote-control cockroaches on Kickstarter, the widespread reaction was, “Why?” The project got a lot of attention, but the public was skeptical about the claim that kids were learning real science while driving a living creature, and nobody seemed to be able to come up with any other useful application for the technology. Now, researchers from North Carolina State University have one: let’s use a swarm of cyborg cockroaches to map dangerous or uncertain areas like collapsed buildings.

PS4 confirmed to ship with easily replaceable 2.5-inch hard drive

Early on, Sony made it clear that users would have physical access to the 500GB hard drive in the PS4, but the exact details surrounding the process were slim. Now, we have a hands-on confirmation that anyone with the will and a screwdriver can replace the drive inside of Sony’s next console. Too bad a 500GB SSD will cost just about as much as the PS4 itself.

Oculus Rift VR Headset To Run Android Powered By System-On-A-Chip

Now if  the hype for ths device matches the actual gadget in practice,  then we could have something far greater to take the throne from Sony and Microsoft.

The full story here:
Oculus Rift VR Headset To Run Android Powered By System-On-A-Chip

We'll just have to wait and see...

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Elon Musk Wants to Make Bond's Lotus Submarine Car a Reality

Any number of memorable movie vehicles are on the road today: a DeLorean, wood-paneled station wagons, vintage Pontiac Trans Ams, an orange Dodge Charger with a "Dixie" horn.

That last might not be an easy find. But it's more conceivable than the Lotus Esprit James Bond so casually drove into the ocean in The Spy Who Loved Me. Or is it?

US government ends shutdown and avoids debt crisis

On the 16th day of the government shutdown the United States Congress has passed a bill that will raise the federal debt ceiling and re-open the government. The result of an 11th-hour deal crafted yesterday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the bill passed the Senate by a vote of 81 to 18. It then moved to the House of Representatives, where it passed 285-144 with votes from both Republicans and Democrats. Despite its passage, a majority of House Republicans ended up voting against the bill.

Overall, 162 out of 532 elected officials — all Republicans — voted against re-opening the government; that's 30.4 percent of Congress. Among the 18 Senate "no" votes were Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Ted Cruz (R-TX). At a press conference earlier this evening, President Obama stated that he would be signing the bill once it arrived at his desk; at that time, he said, "we'll begin re-opening our government immediately." The Washington Post later reported that Obama had signed the bill.

"WE'LL BEGIN RE-OPENING OUR GOVERNMENT IMMEDIATELY."

While the bill will avert the threat of federal debt default for the moment, it is ultimately only a temporary measure. Under the deal, the government will be funded only through January 15th of next year, and the debt ceiling raised through February 7th. If the same kind of political tactics are used next year, the country could find itself embroiled in a very similar situation in just a matter of months. In the meantime, a bipartisan committee will be formed to address the underlying budget issues and is scheduled to submit its recommendations on December 13th.

"There's a lot of work ahead of us," Obama said, "including our need to earn back the trust of the American people that's been lost over the last few weeks."

"GOOSE EGG, NOTHING, WE GOT NOTHING."

The shutdown largely came to pass because of the efforts of House Republicans to marry government funding with attempts to pare back or de-fund the Affordable Care Act — colloquially referred to as Obamacare. Despite that stance, today's bill did nothing to substantially change the ACA. "Goose egg, nothing, we got nothing," Representative Thomas H. Massie (R-KY) told The New York Times.

Pressure mounted on both parties as the shutdown stretched on, particularly as the debt ceiling deadline — and the threat of default — loomed. House Republicans advanced a number of bills that would fund discrete portions of the government, a tactic that gained no traction with Senate Democrats. Meanwhile more members of the House came forward calling for a vote on a "clean CR" — a resolution that would fund the government without linking it to any ACA-related provisions. "That's essentially what we're doing now," Representative Charlie Dent (R-PA) told the Times, stating that Congress should have passed such a bill weeks ago. "People can blame me all they want, but I was correct in my analysis and I'd say a lot of those folks were not correct in theirs."

This article has been updated to reflect that President Obama has now signed the bill.

Credit: Bryan Bishop
Source: The Verge

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Xbox One graphics currently output in 900p, worse than PS4′s 1080p

In the ongoing prerelease war between Sony’s PS4 and Microsoft’s Xbox One, the PS4 continually appears to be the clear victor, from Sony’s E3 showing and Microsoft’s DRM and indie game debacle, to the PS4′s superior hardware and the Xbox One’s higher price. Now, a mysterious insider that has leaked correct Microsoft info in the past, is claiming that the Xbox One can’t output in 1080p, and tops out at a mere 900p.

PlayStation’s DualShock 4 May Change Other Gaming Systems

Can’t we all just share our toys?

Over the years, it’s been interesting to see how technology has allowed us to branch out from the traditional way of gaming. Everyone knows that when it comes to consoles, each system has its own unique propriety trademarks. The PlayStation controller, for example, is often considered one of the best gaming controllers ever. Ergonomically speaking, the shape and contour of the plastic fits perfect in just about anyone’s hands comfortably. Also, the layout of the buttons no doubt influenced Microsoft, who would later become its competitor when it designed its Xbox controller (we’ll overlook the monstrosity the original Xbox shipped with). The point is, these days, developers have things locked down pretty tight. You’re not going to see things like an Xbox 360 controller running a PS3 console (without a mod or foreign adapter). It’s even become more difficult for third-party developers like MadCatz and Pelican to get in on the fun, as they’ve always been known for making great accessories, often times cutting into the original manufacturer’s profits due to offering the product at a discounted rate.

NSA reportedly collecting millions of email address books and IM contact lists worldwide

The Washington Post has just published another revealing scoop about the National Security Agency. The paper is reporting that the NSA is currently collecting contact lists from email and instant message services from users worldwide — and Americans are among those whose data is being harvested.

The revelations come courtesy of senior intelligence officials and documents provided by Edward Snowden. The program is said to feed off of email address books and buddy lists that are transmitted by various online services when users sign on, write a message, or sync their computers or mobile devices to one another. Instead of targeting individual users, the lists are described as being collected en masse, in the hopes of letting the NSA map out and discover relationships between various players. A similar NSA program mapping the social ties and relationships of Americans was revealed last month.

Intel Fires Up Gaming With Iris Pro

Intel stormed New York Comic Con this weekend to make its gaming tournament debut with Iris Pro integrated graphics processing.

On the third floor of the Javits Center, Intel dominated a full corner of the Comic Con floor, with large displays and demonstrations of dozens of systems, from high-end gaming desktops to the Oculus Rift. But this Sunday, the real focus was the gaming stage, where two top gamers squared off for an exhibition match of Starcraft II, and doing it all without any discrete graphics processing.

Where most gamers opt for larger desktops, which can accommodate larger graphics cards and bulky cooling systems, this match was unique, because it featured Intel's Iris Pro integrated graphics.

Intel Fires Up Gaming With Iris Pro (Pictures)

For many years, Intel showed only a passing interest in graphics processing, providing basic integrated graphics solutions on its Core processors, but leaving gaming-grade solutions to companies like Nvidia and AMD. With the introduction of Intel's fourth-generation Haswell processors, this has changed, and new basic processors offer enough graphics oomph for basic gaming, with Intel HD Graphics 4000 and up posing a giant leap forward in Intel's graphics solution. Taking things a step further is Intel's Iris Graphics, which ramps up performance into low-end discrete GPU territory. And finally, at the top of the Iris heap is Intel's Iris Pro graphics, itd top tier graphics solution, available only on Intel's high-end, quad-, and hex-core processors.

Our combatants were both using customized Clevo laptops, the same customizable laptops favored by boutique gaming PC vendors like AVADirect, CyberPower, and MSI. Each player was gaming on a CyberPower Zeus Hercules gaming laptop, customized with Intel Core i7-4750HQ quad-core processors but no discrete graphics. That's right, these professional gamers squared off with nothing but integrated graphics, something relatively unheard of until this year. The laptops were outfitted with the aforementioned Core i7 processors, as well as Intel brand solid-state drives (SSDs) and using Intel's Hyperbaric Cooling system, which sucks cool air into the laptop chassis directly to hotter components rather than only forcing out hot air.

The players were Dario "TLO" Wünsch, who games as part of Team Liquid and hails from Germany, and Benjamin "Demuslim" Baker, an American-born gamer with Evil Geniuses. With TLO playing as Zerg and Demuslim as Marines, it was a pitched battle. Demuslim started off cautiously, building up his resources and TLO opted for a more aggressive opening, grabbing territory quickly. As the battle raged, it went back and forth for a time, but ultimately TLO's aggressive opening paid off, as he pushed Demuslim's blue Marine forces back into a corner and swiftly tore through his forces.

Afterwards, I had a chance to speak with each player about the laptops they played on and what they thought about Intel's Iris Pro graphics.

New York Comic Con 2013 Photo Blog (Pictures)

"I found the performance very good, and it's very light, very portable," said Ben "Demuslim" Baker. He spoke about how much more portable gaming notebooks have become while still getting more powerful.
Dario "TLO" Wünsch was just as enthusiastic, saying "it's basically perfect for me." He described how important it is for him to have gaming capability on the go, for use on planes and in hotel rooms, where he wouldn't be able to use a full-size gaming rig.

Intel representative Mark Chang talked briefly about Iris Pro graphics. "The new Iris Pro graphics let you watch, game, and create," he said, touting the new graphics as an alternative to low-end discrete GPUs.

"You can even watch 4K video using Iris," he said.

While Dario "TLO" Wünsch came out the winner of this battle, it seems pretty clear that Intel's latest advancements are a pretty big win for gamers.

Credit: Brian Westover
Source: Intel Fires Up Gaming With Iris Pro

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Sony Xperia Z1 for T-Mobile USA leaks in press shot

Stuff like this always happens when tgese guys try to get us hyped on a new gadget.

Check out the story here.

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ION Glasses Are The Unobtrusive Notifications System You Wear On Your Face

With Virtual Reality on the rise, these will be the go to gadgets.

Check out the story here.

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iPhone 5s Users Reporting 'Blue Screen of Death' Error with iWork Apps

And the errors with the new Apple devices continue... 

These people really can't do anything right without Steve Jobs.

Never has an Apple device given this much problems.

More on the story here http://www.macrumors.com/2013/10/11/iphone-5s-users-reporting-blue-screen-of-death-error-with-iwork-apps/

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LG Unveils G Pro Lite Phablet With Stylus

LG today added another phablet to its lineup with the LG G Pro Lite, a 5.5-inch smartphone that comes equipped with its own stylus.

LG said the G Pro Lite is aimed at practical smartphone users "who want to enjoy the convenience of a large display." While it sports the same screen size as the LG Optimus G Pro, which landed on AT&T in May, the specs aren't as impressive, which explains the "Lite" moniker.

The G Pro Lite features a 960-by-540-pixel display and runs a 1GHz dual-core processor, compared to the 1,920-by-1,080 full HD IPS display and 1.7-GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor on the Optimus G Pro.

The G Pro Lite runs Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and includes 1GB of RAM. There's an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and 1.3-megapixel front-facing shooter, as well as a 3,140 mAh battery. It supports 3G networks, Bluetooth 3.0, USB2.0, A-GPS, and Wi-Fi Direct.

"The market for smartphones with displays over five inches will continue to grow and LG is in a great position to capture these new customers when they're ready to move up from their current phones," Dr. Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, said in a statement.

The phone will come in black and white. It will debut this month in Latin America followed by Asia, Russia, China, India, and the Middle East.

LG did not say whether the G Pro Lite will make its way to the U.S., but customers here can instead nab the new powerful LG G2, a 5.2-inch smartphone that runs a 2.26GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor.


Earlier this week, meanwhile, LG said it will begin mass producing the world's first flexible OLED smartphone panels.

Credit: Chloe Albanesius
Source: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2425475,00.asp

PS: THIS IS MY 200th POST!

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Reports of flesh-rotting drug krokodil popping up in Midwestern suburbs and NYC clubs

As awareness of the super-addictive substance spreads, doctors are sounding the alarm

There have now been at least eight cases of the skin-rotting Russian drug krokodil reported in the US, according to medical professionals who spoke with The Verge, and at least three resulted in death.

Apple reportedly halving iPhone 5c production

So it turns out the multi color iPhones are not ad popular as Apple thought.

Apple reportedly halving iPhone 5c production http://www.cnet.com.au/apple-reportedly-halving-iphone-5c-production-339345635.htm

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General Update

So I just updated the How To Update PlayStation®3 System Software using a PC post. We're now at Software Version 4.50

You can find the post here:
How To Update PlayStation®3 System Software using a PC (Updated 10/10/2013)

Update your PlayStation®3!

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Amazon launches PayPal competitor

Apparently Amazon wants to eliminate PayPal with its own online payment method.

My only question is will this be available to every country on the planet, or will it be like PayPal that filters out certain countries?

More on the story here.

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Six hidden features of iOS7

SO iOS 7 has had it's problems. But it also has some very nifty hidden features.

You guys just can't get enough, so here are six more features of iOS 7 we dug up for you

We've gone hunting for them so you don't have to. Check out the list below.

Kazuya PEWGF Tutorial

The one move required to perfectly master your Kazuya Mishima. The 13f Electric, The PEWGF...

The Perfect Electric Wind God Fist  

Kazuya Mishima

Here's the tutorial:

DORYAH!

This tutorial is brought to you by TheMainMan

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Pentagon-funded Atlas robot refuses to be knocked over

Meet Atlas, a humanoid robot capable of crossing rough terrain and maintaining its balance on one leg even when hit from the side.

Boston Dynamics road-tests its Atlas robot on rough terrain

And WildCat, the four-legged robot that can gallop untethered at up to 16mph (26km/h).

FIFA 14 - Just Some Info

FIFA 14 is a 2013 sports football simulation video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronics Arts. It was released on 24 and 27 September 2013 in North America and other regions, respectively, for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox 360 consoles. It was also released as freeware for iOS and Android on 23 September 2013 and is due for release on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation Vita consoles. It is the sixteenth title in the FIFA video game series.

Global box art featuring Lionel Messi

for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows versions.

A demo of the game was released worldwide on September 10, 2013, two weeks before the launch of the full game, on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. Teams included in the demo are PSG, FC Barcelona, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund, New York Red Bulls and Boca Juniors.

The iPhone 5S sensors are dangerously faulty: How did Apple mess up?

The iPhone 4 had Antennagate, the iPhone 5 had Scuffgate — and now, if a huge number of reports on the Apple Support site and elsewhere are to be believed, the iPhone 5S is suffering from Sensorgate. It’s hard to believe that Apple would mess up so momentously, but it seems that the gyroscope, compass, and accelerometer are all faulty on the iPhone 5S. It isn’t clear if the sensors themselves are broken or poorly calibrated, but the result is the same: You should not use your iPhone 5S for anything that relies on these sensors, such as playing games, checking the level of your latest DIY efforts, or navigating dense woodland.

PS4′s second screen functionality trounces Xbox One’s SmartGlass

Now that we've seen what the next-gen consoles have to offer in terms of traditional gaming, the focus online is shifting towards the ancillary benefits of the PS4 and Xbox One. Both Sony and Microsoft are betting on the second screen experience for the upcoming generation, and we’re finally beginning to get a better idea of what we can expect on smartphones and tablets. More importantly, the PlayStation Vita might just turn out to be the ace up Sony’s sleeve.

Valve’s Steam Box specs revealed, seems like a letdown

It’s only been a few days since Valve officially announced its entry into the world of hardware, and we’re already getting some interesting new details straight from the horse’s mouth. Today, Valve revealed the official specs for the 300 beta units being developed for testing. While there are no huge surprises here, it does shine a light on what Valve expects gamers to want out of a living room gaming rig.

Buy iPhone 5c at Best Buy, Get $50 Gift Card

If you've got your eye on Apple's colourful iPhone 5c, you might want to head over to Best Buy this weekend.

The big box retailer is offering a free $50 gift card when you buy an iPhone 5c with a two-year carrier agreement. This 5c costs $99.99 for the 16GB model while the 32GB version is $150.
If your eyes just lit up, you better act fast to take advantage of this offer. The deal started yesterday and runs through Monday, Oct. 7.

The promotion is only available when you purchase the device in one of Best Buy's physical retail stores, or use the in-store pickup option, according to the fine print. The gift card can then be put towards the iPhone 5c purchase, or used for future transactions at Best Buy.

The deal comes after Best Buy slashed the price of the iPhone 5 in half during the Labor Day weekend for customers trading in a working iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S.

My Life At College (Episode 6)

OK, so it's been a while since I've given you these...

So here's Episode 6:

Go check out Madok's YouTube channel here: madok101

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Microsoft Revives 'Hover' to Showcase IE11

Microsoft tapped into users' nostalgia today with the re-release of the 18-year-old video game Hover, a move that is also intended to show off Internet Explorer 11.

Originally shipped on the Windows 95 CD-ROM, Hover has earned something of a cult following over the years, sparking a dozen unofficial versions and a number of Reddit threads dedicated to reminiscing about the then-revolutionary game. Now, Redmond has modernized its classic capture-the-flag-meets-bumper-cars game for the Web.

'Pissing granny' becomes viral sensation

AN angry granny has been busted spitefully urinating on a man's car.

Mark Zarsky captured the incident on his security camera,

The woman is believed to be a process server. She reportedly stopped past his home earlier asking if he was Mark Zarsky - he replied no - assuming she was a salesperson. After her third trip to Zarsky's home she knocked on the door and looked in through the windows.

But after he failed to answer, she dropped her trousers right next to his mercedes and proceeded to urinate on his driveway.

Naturally, the real estate broker uploaded the video to YouTube.

"Sweet looking Grandma process server shows true colours when she returns to same location for third time and can't find anyone home," he wrote in the description.

He also posted a note on his front door which reads "Check out your YouTube video 'Process server granny', your now famous worldwide (sic)."

Zarsky told CBS that if he's served again by the granny that he wants new papers "as the others may have been contaminated".

It's unknown what Zarsky is being subpoenaed for.

Here's the video:

Source: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/technology/news/pissing-granny8217-becomes-viral-sensation/story-fni0bzod-1226732904738

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Feds Shut Down Black Market 'Silk Road' Drugs Site

U.S. officials have seized a website notorious for trafficking in illegal goods, known as Silk Road, and arrested the man believed to be behind it, Ross William Ulbricht.

According to a complaint filed in New York district court, which was published online by Krebs on Security, Ulbricht is being charged with narcotics trafficking conspiracy, computer hacking conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy.

In that complaint, FBI Special Agent Christopher Tarbell described Silk Road as a "sprawling black-market bazaar, where illegal drugs and other illicit goods and services have been regularly bought and sold by the site's users."

RIP Tom

Tom Clancy dead at 66 http://www.gamespot.com/news/tom-clancy-dead-at-66-6415233

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Slaves of Electricity

We are slaves of electricity. Outwardly, it might appear that Tesla and Edison wrangled electricity into submission — into usable power — but really, ever since the first commercial light bulb and high-fidelity telegraph, electricity has ruled the lives of men.

Almost every facet of contemporary society is dictated by the properties of electricity. Like fresh water, sanitation, and education, access to electrical power can make or break a community.

The Machine Stops

Sometimes you should take the time to think about much more than just what is in front of you....

It is never wise to invest too much time, energy, or faith into a single point of failure. You might have the fastest and most efficient car in the world — but if it breaks, you have nothing. Investing all of your money in Apple stock might make a lot of sense in the short term, but if an earthquake hits Silicon Valley you’re going to wish you had a diversified portfolio. Having just one best friend who you share everything with is great — until that friend moves across the country or dies.

Chromecast support for Hulu Plus coming today

So there's now compatibility...

The popular video-on-demand service Hulu Plus is now compatible with Chromecast. The service, which offers up programming from a number of major networks for a small monthly fee, pledged to officially support Chromecast back in July, but is only now making good on that promise. Hulu is rolling out the new feature through an update to its Hulu Plus apps for Android and iOS phones and tablets. The updated apps will have a "Cast" button for one-touch streaming to Chromecast.

Google's Chromecast Device

Google has, until now, supported Hulu Plus through its "tab casting" feature, which lets you stream the contents of any browser tab to your TV. However, the experience through tab casting isn't perfect, and the new feature should improve support significantly. Hulu Plus is one of the first premium video options to natively support Chromecast since the streaming stick launched with Netflix and Pandora support, but other popular video services like HBO are also said to be working on support. The new apps will be available today from both Apple's App Store and the Google Play store.

Source: The Verge

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Spotify now lets users follow artists and tastemakers directly from the web

Spotify Takes Its Follow Button Outside Its Walled Garden, Lets Fans Follow Musicians And Others From Anywhere

Following the launch of its Play music-playing button last year, today Spotify took one more step outside of its walled garden: it has launched a new Follow button, a widget that can go on any desktop or mobile page, not just pages within Spotify itself (as the Follow button previously used to work), to let users follow other profiles within Spotify.

Apple Unseats Coca-Cola as World's No. 1 Brand of 2013

Apple has replaced Coca-Cola as the world's No. 1 brand of 2013, according to a new study from Interbrand Corp.

Apple's brand value grew 28 percent to $98.3 billion, while Google took second place with $93.3 billion, and Coca-Cola, which has held the top spot for 13 years, dropped to third with $79.2 billion. IBM came in fourth with $78.8 billion, followed by Microsoft at $59.5 billion.

Goodbye thumbsticks: Valve unveils Steam Controller with PC-like trackpads

Valve reveals its very own controller -- with two circular trackpads -- joining the company's new operating system and custom hardware prototypes announced earlier last week.

Steam Controller

Valve on Friday rounded out its vision for PC gaming in the living room with the Steam Controller. It's a specially designed wireless device with dual trackpads that are meant to translate the feel of a mouse and keyboard to a handheld controller geared toward big-screen playing.

Credit: Nick Statt
Source:Goodbye thumbsticks: Valve unveils Steam Controller with PC-like trackpads

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CNET Update - Valve Steam Machines to battle game consoles

An update from CNET brought to you by Bridget Carey.

A lot of interesting stuff to lookout for here:

In this episode of Update:
- Learn about Valve's upcoming Steam Machines and the Steam operating system. To play PC games from the living room TV, Valve also designed a new type of wireless controller with trackpads.

- Get ready for Samsung's Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear smartwatch to hit US stores this week, with RadioShack offering trade-in deals.

- Tell Facebook if you don't like an advertisement, and Facebook will listen and adjust.

- Don't be surprised to see ads in the Gmail Android app, according to code discovered by Android Police.

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