Software News

Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux became engaged in August last year and, for some reason, everybody expected them to tie the knot as soon as possible. Naturally, when this didn’t happen, people assumed it was because they were having problems.

Nothing could be farther from the truth, the actress said in a recent interview cited by the New York Daily News.

She’s not married yet but, contrary to reports, it’s not because she and Justin are fighting like crazy or not agreeing on important aspects such as where to be married, where to live after the wedding or whether they want children or not.

The reason they’re yet to wed is simple: their schedules are too hectic right now.

“We just want to do it when it's perfect, and we're not rushed, and no one is rushing from a job or rushing to a job,” Aniston said.

“And, you know, we already feel married,” she added.

“There have been no canceled weddings. There have been no postponed weddings. There have been no arguments about where to get married. Just clearing all that up,” Aniston continued.

Just last week, reports in the blogosphere were saying that the two actors might have gotten married in secret in Charlottesville, Virginia.

At the same time, other reports claimed that they would not be married anytime soon because they had called off the wedding after intense fighting on where they should live their family life: she wanted Los Angeles, he New York.

In all fairness, neither Jennifer nor Justin ever announced a wedding date, so all the assumptions that it’s to take place on X or Y date were pure speculation from the start.

Considering they usually go out of their way to keep their life out of the pages of the tabs, expect to find out about the nuptials after the special day.


Via: Jennifer Aniston Explains Why Shes Not Married Yet to Justin Theroux

The team at PopCap Games and publisher Electronic Arts are delivering a new video developer diary for their Plants vs Zombies 2: It’s About Time tower defense game, designed to give players an insight into how the game was created.

The developer says, "meet some of the team and find out all about Crazy Dave, his taco, Penny and what's coming new to PvZ 2!"

PopCap explains how it developed the ideas that will make the sequel as much fun as the original experience.

At the moment It's About Time is soft launched in New Zeeland and in Australia and the game is expected to arrive in the rest of the world before summer is over.

Plants vs. Zombies will also be used as a setting for the Garden Warfare cooperative shooter.


Via: Plants vs Zombies 2: Its About Time Gets New Behind the Brainz Video Diary

The following tutorial will teach Ubuntu 12.10 and Ubuntu 13.04 users how to install the recently released LibreOffice 4.1 open source office suite on their operating system(s), replacing the old 4.0.x version.

Dubbed "a landmark for interoperability" by The Document Foundation, LibreOffice 4.1 was officially released on July 25 and it brought a large number of improvements in the area of document compatibility, especially when importing or exporting Microsoft OOXML filters, as well as legacy Microsoft Office and RTF file filters.

The "LibreOffice Packaging" team made a great job releasing the LibreOffice 4.1 packages on their PPA repository for Ubuntu 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal) and Ubuntu 13.04 (Raring Ringtail) so fast. However, packages for the "still in development" Ubuntu 13.10 (Saucy Salamander) are also available!

Step 1 - Add the LibreOffice 4.1 repository

If you use one of the supported Ubuntu operating system (read above for details), open a terminal by typing "Terminal" in the Unity Dash (without quotes)...


...and copy/paste the following command in the terminal window, once it is opened:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:libreoffice/ppa

Hit the Enter key after you’ve pasted the above command, type your password when asked and hit the Enter key.

Hit Enter again when asked...


Don't close the terminal window! Proceed to the next step.

Step 2 - Install LibreOffice 4.1 on Ubuntu

Now copy and paste the following command in the terminal window:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get -y dist-upgrade

Wait for the installation to finish and close the terminal window. That's it! Your LibreOffice office suite has been upgraded to version 4.1. In time, it will automatically upgrade to newer releases, as they are published by The Document Foundation, so make sure you update your system regularly.


If you have problems with the tutorial, do not hesitate to comment below!

Via: How to Install LibreOffice 4.1 on Ubuntu 12.10 and 13.04

This week, the review department of Softpedia Games delivers long-form evaluations for: Civilization V – Brave New World, an expansion that redefines the turn-based strategy experience from Firaxis, Shadowrun Returns, the Harebrained Schemes title that brings back the classic universe, and The Raven – Legacy of a Master Thief.

At the same time, we have a Gamer Diary that explains more about the core ideas of Brave New World, while chronicling my world domination attempt playing as Brazil.

As always, there are two Weekend Reading features to explore: one about time and the Steam Summer sale and another about Shadowun Returns and saved games.

Our sole Quick Look talks about Race to Mars and we have an exclusive interview with the team working on Satellite Reign.

Our EndWeekGame piece talks about our free time and we also have a selection of the most important news of the week.

On Monday, Sony revealed that the PlayStation 4 could record fifteen minutes of gameplay, while Blizzard offered people at Comic-Con the first look at the World of Warcraft movie.

On Tuesday, an analyst talked about potential launch shortages for the Xbox One and the PS4 and Valve talked about its future plans for Steam and Greenlight.

On Wednesday, Treyarch talked about death threats and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 updates and Microsoft revealed how the Xbox One could be used as a game development platform.

On Thursday, Microsoft revealed that the Xbox One could be used as a game development platform and Sony confirmed the existence of a Gran Turismo movie.

On Friday, Activision revealed that World of Warcraft subscription numbers dropped to 7.7 million, while The Creative Assembly delivered a new diary for Total War: Rome II featuring Carthage.

On Saturday, Sony talked about the RAM allocation for the PS4 and the LeBron James approved NBA 2K14 soundtrack was revealed.

Via: A Gamers Week: July 28

Human activities are releasing tons of carbon dioxide into our planet's atmosphere. Scientists are hoping to rid the world of some of it by burying it deep underground.

More precisely, they wish to inject it in basalt. They hope that basalt formations can trap this gas, and that, in time, the CO2 will react with calcium and magnesium to form limestone.

The mineralization of this compound would curb the risk that the CO2 could leak out of the ground and work its way back in the atmosphere.

As geochemist Juerg Matter puts it, “You reduce the risk of leakage, and you can pretty much walk away from your storage reservoirs”.

Nature reports that, since about a week and a half ago, scientists at the US Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been pumping pure carbon dioxide in the ground close to the town of Wallula in Washington, US.

The area they have chosen for this project is the Columbia River Basalt formation, which apparently contains numerous pores.

According to the same source, the researchers working on this project are confident that, by early August at the latest, these pores will have become home to about 1,000 tons of carbon dioxide.

Data collected while carrying out laboratory tests and computer simulations suggests that, in about 10 -15 years' time, roughly 20% injected in the Columbia River Basalt formation will be mineralized.

“The mineralization reaction is most likely faster than what we in the community had thought,” Juerg Matter argues.

To prevent any leakages that might occur before the CO2 starts reacting with the calcium and the magnesium, the injection well will be capped by solid rock.

Shortly after they are done burying the carbon dioxide in this porous formation, scientists will begin to closely monitor the injection well.

They will collect water and soil samples, and try to determine what chemical reactions are taking place in the underground, and whether or not the project has turned out to be a success.

Via: Scientists Try to Rid the World of CO2 by Injecting It in Basalt

The Obama administration used to be in favor of protecting whistleblowers, but lately it seems that things have changed.

Back after Obama’s election in 2008, his team added a promise to protect whistleblowers to the Change.gov site, but now that entire content has been wiped out.

As the Sunlight Foundation noticed, the page has been pointing to the White House homepage for a while, but access to a variety of old material and agendas was still allowed.

“Barack Obama will strengthen whistleblower laws to protect federal workers who expose waste, fraud, and abuse of authority in government,” the promise said, calling whistleblowing an act of courage and patriotism.

Now, that Edward Snowden has let the world know that the NSA is spying on everyone, the Obama administration seems to have changed its tune and is now hunting him down, putting pressure on nations that have offered him help and trying to influence the decision of Russian authorities on his asylum request.


Via: Obama Once Promissed to Protect Whistleblowers, Now Hunts Snowden

There’s no shame in admitting you’re a workaholic (who isn't these days?), and admittance is usually the first step towards curing this so-called condition.

Which is why if you think you spend way too much time in front of the computer, you might want to consider using this free utility called Awareness, created by the people at Futureproof LLC.

Ask any physician and they’ll tell you it’s recommended to step away from the computer screen once every other hour or so. While everyone has their own work pace, the general consensus is that you should take 5 minutes off every other hour.

And if you can’t seem to remember this on your own, you can use Awareness, which plays a relaxing Tibetan singing bowl sound at pre-determined intervals, letting you know it’s time to go have a snack, or take a sip of water.

Download Awareness for Mac OS X (Free)

Via: Awareness Is a Free Utility for Mac Workaholics

As expected, the Russian authorities are not letting their American counterparts get away with threats when it comes to Edward Snowden’s extradition.

Alexei Pushkov, chairman of State Duma’s foreign policy committee urged the members of the United States Congress to stop threatening Russia with sanctions.

“I don’t think it’s worthwhile speaking to Russia in a language of sanctions,” Pushkov told Itar-Tass.

His reaction, of course, comes after senators pertaining to the Appropriations Committee have asked the Department of State to sanction all countries that are trying to aid Edward Snowden. The sanctions the politicians talk about regard both trading and general economic ties.

The short-list of countries could include China, Russia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia and Nicaragua.

“Even if an amendment of this kind is passed, the U.S. will scarcely make Russia change its policy. Decisions on granting political asylums in Russia to whomever are taken in the Kremlin and not in the White House and everyone should proceed from this reality,” Pushkov said.

Via: Russian Official: Situation Around Snowden Unaffected by US Threats

Sony has apparently confirmed the first details about its upcoming Gamescom 2013 press conference, as the event will be held one day before the convention kicks off, on August 20, at 7pm CET.

Gamescom 2013 is rapidly approaching and both Sony and Microsoft are gearing up for another round of the next-gen console war, as both companies are expected to show off new details about their PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Now, Sony has confirmed, via MCV, that it's going to hold its Gamescom press conference on August 20, at the special Saatenhaus am Rheinpark venue in Cologne, Germany, right near the Kolnmesse expo center, where Gamescom will be held between August 20 and August 25.

The press conference will start at 7pm CET and should focus on the PlayStation 4, not to mention current platforms like the PS3 or PS Vita.

Via: Sony Gamescom 2013 Press Conference Gets New Details

The development team at ZeniMax Online working on The Elder Scrolls Online is giving fans of the game a chance to take a look at another creature that they will face in the MMO, the scamp.

In an official blog post they state, "Scamps are small, and they aren’t particularly intelligent, but they’re agile combatants who delight in cruelty just as much as any of the larger Daedra."

ZeniMax also says that it has tried to inject some humor into the scamp design, both in the way he moves and into his voice.

But the creature still has very powerful abilities like launching fireballs from his hands or calling rain down from the sky.

The Elder Scrolls Online is set to launch on the PC, the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony in spring of next year.

Via: Elder Scrolls Online Reveals New Fireball Wileding Scamp Enemy

In its first full year under Tim Cook’s lead, Apple pulled a hat trick with the much-coveted Brand of The Year distinction, scoring the highest marks across three major product categories.

According to findings from the 2013 Harris Poll EquiTrend (EQ) study, Apple took home Brand of the Year distinctions in three categories - Computer, Tablet and Mobile Phone.

The study measures the perceptions of 38,500+ American consumers on more than 1,500 brands in lifestyle, product and service across over 155 categories.

“While many have questioned the post-Steve Jobs fate of Apple, the company continues to hold its spot as a top technology brand,” says Harris Interactive.

The group’s SVP, Manny Flores, said “…what really stands out is that in all three of the categories Apple brands are measured - Computer, Tablet and Mobile Phone - its Brand Momentum scores are in the top 30 of all 1,500 brands evaluated in the study, showing that consumers see this as a brand of the future.”

Via: Apple Wins "Brand of the Year" Distinction in Computers, Tablets, Mobile

Google spent $1.31 billion (€985 million) on 16 acquisitions in the first six months of the year, most of it on Waze.

In its financial filing, Google reveals it paid $966 million (€727 million) for the Israeli mapping startup Waze. This places the acquisition under the $1.1 billion (€827 million) price that was rumored at the time.

Other disclosed buyouts for the first half of the year include Makani Power and Wavii. This means that Google bought Waze and spent the rest of $344 million (€259 million) on another 15 companies.

The search giant didn’t highlight how much it shelled out for each company but, with an average of nearly $23 million (€17.3 million), they couldn't have cost too much.

Google has also listed the selling of Motorola Home for $2.238 billion (€1.683 billion) in cash, plus $150 million (€113 million) in closing adjustments and $175 million (€132 million) in stock.

This means the company has made a lot more money than it spent on acquisitions.

Via: Google Spent Most of Its Acquisition Budget on Waze

CCleaner has received another important update today and in addition to many other improvements, the new version also brings support for Microsoft’s first Windows 8 OS update.

CCleaner 4.0.4 can now work with both Windows 8.1 Preview and Internet Explorer 11, so you can clean the operating system and boost the overall performance of your machine even if you’re running Microsoft’s latest Windows release.

Even though it could be a little premature to add support for Windows 8.1 Preview given the fact that Microsoft is believed to be preparing the launch of the full version in August, the application definitely comes in handy, as it still works with all the other Windows versions on the market.

As far as Internet Explorer 11 is concerned, CCleaner packs the same options to remove temporary Internet files, history, cookies, recently typed URLS, index.dat files, last download location, autocomplete form history, and saved passwords.

Download CCleaner 4.0.4 with Windows 8.1 Preview / IE11 support.

Via: CCleaner Adds Windows 8.1 Preview, Internet Explorer 11 Support

Video game developer Rare and publisher Microsoft are confirming that their titles Kinect Sports Rivals will be delayed to the spring of 2014 on the Xbox One home console in order to give the studio more time to increase the quality level of the title.

Polygon has confirmation of the delay from the hardware maker and it seems that Rare has hit some problems with the core gameplay.

Initially the game was set to be a launch title for the new Microsoft home console.

Kinect Sports Rivals includes six activities: : climbing, wake racing, soccer, target shooting, bowling and tennis.

All of them can only be performed by using the improved Kinect motion capture system that is included in the Xbox One package.

Microsoft has denied rumors that it plans to introduce a version of its new console without Kinect.


Via: Xbox One's Kinect Sports Rivals Delayed to Spring 2014

A woman from Essex, England has had her debit card stolen during a shopping session at the grocery store.

A man came up to her asking for directions and he managed to swipe the card from her handbag.

She realized that the only way that she could find the culprit was to provide police with accurate details about his physical appearance.

51-year-old Serena O'Connor is an art teacher who also does portraits and she was able to create a painting of the thief in 45 minutes.

"I do portraits so I tend to scrutinize people’s faces and take in a lot of detail. [...] It only took me about 45 minutes. It’s not my best work, but it might just be helpful," she says.

The police were amazed at the portrait and they are asking the public for information on the robber.

Via: Robbery Victim Paints Thief's Portrait in 45 Minutes Photo

FLV Media Player is currently one of the easiest choices when it comes to a simple app capable of playing FLV files on a Windows device, so lots of users have already installed it.

The application just got a new update, so make sure you launch the Store and download the new version as soon as possible.

No release notes have been provided, but given the fact that the latest major update was launched only a few days ago, this new build is most likely supposed to address some of the bugs found in this version.

The previous update brought two not only stability and performance improvements, but also playback position synchronization across devices in case you’re using the app on more than a single Windows 8 computer.

Download FLV Media Player for Windows 8/RT

Via: FLV Media Player Updated on Windows 8 Free Download

The Mail app is one of the apps that got improved as part of the 8.1 update cycle, but it appears that some users are now experiencing issues with it.

According to a post on Microsoft’s support forums, notifications are no longer available for the Mail app on Windows RT 8.1 and reinstalling doesn’t seem to help.

“Ever since I installed Windows 8.1 RT Preview to my Surface, the Mail App's push notifications have stopped working. I've tried everything I could think of. I uninstalled and reinstalled the app, I've triple-checked the permissions to make sure the app is allowed to push notifications, but even with the permission on, nothing,” one affected user explained.

Microsoft is expected to fix all these common issues by August, as the RTM version of the operating system is set to go live sometimes next month.

Via: Windows 8.1 Preview Bugs: Mail App Notifications Not Working

Teleglitch: Die More Edition, a game developed by Test3 Projects and published by Paradox Interactive, has been released on Steam for Linux.

Teleglitch: Die More Edition is a roguelike top-down shooter that features pixelated graphics and procedurally generated maps that change every time a player loads them. This means that no two playthroughs will be the same.

According to the developers, if you purchase before Teleglitch: Die More Edition until July 31, at 10AM PST, you will receive the Original Soundtrack plus 8 Exclusive in-game weapons and utilities.

Linux System Requirements:

• OS: Ubuntu 12.04
• Processor: 3000 MHz
• Memory: 1024 MB RAM
• Graphics: Geforce 6600 or equivalent (OpenGL compatible card with at least 256MB)
• Hard Drive: 100 MB HD space
• Sound: 2D sound compatible card

The price of Teleglitch: Die More Edition is €12,99 ($12,99) and you can get more details about on the official Steam website.

Via: Procedurally Generated Arcade Shotter Teleglitch: Die More Edition Arrives on Steam for Linux

Porpoises can't read, and I'm pretty sure they are clueless around a computer. I guess this was why the three marine mammals featured in the video above had to figure out some way to keep themselves entertained.

The video shows the porpoises blowing bubble rings at one another. It looks to me like they are having the time of their lives, and would not trade this game for anything in the world. Except life in the wild, perhaps.

The footage was shot at Fukuoka Aquarium in Japan only a few days ago.

Specialists say that, in the wild, porpoises blow bubble rings to stun fish. Once the fish quit fidgeting as much as they normally would, the marine mammals eat them.

Sadly, porpoises kept in captivity only get to use this trick to entertain people.

Via: Watch: Porpoises Play Catch the Bubble, Have the Time of Their Lives

iOS customers using Yahoo’s official Mail application have been crying for a sign-out button on the main screen. So Yahoo! delivered.

In Yahoo! Mail 1.5.7 signing out is easier now. “We heard you. This has been added back to the main screen. Simply tap on your name in the sidebar to surface this option,” says the company.

In addition to this new feature, the update includes fixes for crashes and other bugs experienced by some users.

Yahoo! Mail requires iOS 6.0 to work on your iDevice. It’s compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation), iPod touch (5th generation), and iPad, and has been optimized for large displays.

For users looking for a way to turn off notifications, simply navigate to the iOS Settings pane, then access Notifications > Yahoo! Mail, and choose None “Alert Style.”

Download Yahoo! Mail for iOS (Free)

Via: Yahoo! Mail Gets New Sign-Out Feature on iOS

Work on the famous Winamp multimedia player continues, so a new version of the app was officially released today for Windows users.

Winamp 5.70 Build 3435 Beta is only a minor update that fixes a bug in build number 3434, so in case you’re already running the old version, make sure you get this one as soon as possible.

“3434 was found to have an issue with skin loading and has since been pulled. Build 3435 or later is recommended to be used instead,” the official release notes reveal.

Still, keep in mind that version 5.70 remains a beta build, so some bugs and performance issues may still be experienced, regardless of the Windows operating system version you are running right now.

Download Winamp 5.70 Build 3435 Beta for Windows

Via: Winamp 5.70 Build 3435 Beta Out for Windows Users

Microsoft announces that its Xbox Live service is down at the moment and says that it is working as fast as possible to identify the issue and fix it.

On the official status page the company states, "We’ve got our team engaged and they are working hard to get everything back to normal as expediently as possible. You’re being so patient while we're working, and we really appreciate you! We’ll update you on our progress as soon as we have more information."

So far Microsoft is not saying what might have caused Xbox Live to go offline.

The outage affects those trying to use the service using the Xbox 360 home console, Games for Windows Live and Windows 8 on the PC, Windows Phone and Xbox.com.

Updates will be offered as Microsoft identifies and eliminates the Xbox Live issue.

Via: Xbox Live Is Down, Microsoft Working to Fix the Problem

Tom Bui, a developer working on the Steam digital distribution service at Valve, says that the company is interested in launching more titles in the future in order to make sure that it gives players plenty of chances to find experiences that are interesting to them.

Indiestatik quotes him as saying that, “The primary problem right now is that we simply cannot ship as many games as we’d like. What matters is that we give customers the chance to buy your games and let them vote with their dollars. We realise that we are failing in this regard and are working to fix it.”

Steam is the biggest digital distribution system on the PC and it’s unclear exactly how the team at Valve might increase the number of releases without overwhelming players.

Recently, Valve has introduced Trading Cards for many of its games and the Greenlight system is also performing well.

Via: Valve Wants to Make More Games Available to Players, Says Developer

The Apache OpenOffice, the original open source office productivity suite, designed for professional and consumer use, is now at version 4.0.

After being adopted into the Apache Foundation and after picking a new name, the Apache OpenOffice, the project hasn't been evolving as fast as everyone expected it.

Even so, Apache OpenOffice 4.0 is a major release and it incorporates a huge number of new features and change, which turns it again into a powerful competitor in the open-source community.

“Building upon the great success of the OpenOffice 3.4 release, which has seen over 57 million downloads, this major update brings exciting new features, enhancements and bug fixes.”

“OpenOffice 4.0 features an innovative new Sidebar user interface, additional language support for 22 languages (including 3 new languages), 500 bug fixes, improvements in Microsoft Office interoperability, enhancements to drawing/graphics, performance improvements, etc.” reads the official announcement.

Highlights of Apache OpenOffice 4.0:

• The Sidebar has been added as a major new feature of the user interface, and it's available in all of the OpenOffice applications;
• Eleven property panels have been migrated from IBM Lotus Symphony: Alignment, Area, Cell Appearance, Graphic, Line, Number Format, Page, Paragraph, Position and Size, Text and Wrap;
• Major fidelity improvements have been implemented;
• DOCX outline level is now fully supported;
• Table background color from table style is now supported for DOCX files;
• The Color Palette has been enhanced and it has been extended with a selection of more useful colors, arranged in a new scheme to make finding colors simpler;
• The Gradients have been improved and have been extended with new, more useful ones;
• New Gallery Themes and Gallery enhancements have been implemented;
• The “Selection Handles User Interface” has been refined.

Check the official announcement for a complete list of changes, new features and improvements.

Download Apache OpenOffice 4.0 right now from Softpedia.

Via: Apache OpenOffice 4.0 Becomes a Serious Player with Major Overhaul and New Features

Sony has confirmed that its PlayStation 4 next-gen console can record 15 minutes of gameplay, as opposed to the Xbox One that can only store the last 5 minutes of footage.

Recording and broadcasting gameplay footage, either through videos or live streams, has become a necessity for next-gen consoles like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, as Sony even has a dedicated Share button its DualShock 4 controller.

Now, after hearing that the Xbox One can record the last 5 minutes of gameplay or 30-seconds intervals, Sony has revealed that the PS4 can record 15 minutes of gameplay.

The statement was made to CVG and confirms that the last 15 minutes of footage can be accessed via the Share button, edited, and uploaded to Ustream so that it can appear on the PlayStation Network.

More details about the whole system are expected to appear as we get closer to the PS4 launch this year.

Via: PlayStation 4 Can Record 15 Minutes of Gameplay

Today, mobile phone carrier AT&T has officially announced the upcoming availability of the 4G-capable Nokia Lumia 520 smartphone for its GoPhone users, featuring a price tag of $99.99 (€76).

Packing a 4-inch IPS LCD WVGA display and Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 operating system loaded on top, the handset provides users with appealing features, including support for Nokia’s HERE location services.

The handset packs a dual-core processor, 512MB of RAM, 8GB of internal memory, 7GB of cloud storage via SkyDrive, and a 1430mAh battery that can deliver up to 10 hours of talk time. It will be released on July 26.

"We are excited to launch the first 4G Windows Phone 8 smartphone in our GoPhone portfolio," said Jeff Bradley, senior vice president, devices. "A diverse device ecosystem benefits everyone, and the addition of an affordable Windows device gives our customers yet another choice that fits their needs."

Via: AT&T Adds Nokia Lumia 520 to Its GoPhone Lineup

Japanese mobile phone maker Sony Mobile is preparing the release of an updated flavor of its Socialife application, and might make it available for download before the end of July, it seems.

According to a recent post on XperiaBlog, the company has already confirmed plans to release the app update before the end of July, and also said that it will provide users with a “completely new look and feel.”

As part of the upgrade, users will see all news being listed in a Headlines section, complemented by an integrated portal called “All feeds,” where all sources in Socialife will be updated. Articles are also said to be easier to view, courtesy of a lighter color design of the interface.

The new app release will land on Xperia Z, ZL, ZR, SP, L, T, TX, and V smartphones in the beginning, but will reach the Xperia Tablet as well, at a later date.

Via: Sony Preps Major Update for Its Socialife App

By now, it's certain that Advanced Micro Devices will be skipping the Radeon HD 8000 graphics card series and jumping straight to Radeon HD 9000. That's not exactly correct either though, it turns out.

Yes, AMD will skip the HD 8000 line, but it won't go with the Radeon HD 9000 naming scheme, according to something that VR-Zone published not long ago.

Instead, it will use a different naming scheme for the video controllers: R9-XXXX.

As such, we suppose that the top-tier single-GPU video card will be called R9-9970, with the dual-GPU board as R9-9990, whenever AMD decides to bring it out, months from now.

All in all, it looks as though the Sunnyvale, California-based company wants to start with a sort of clean slate.

The first video card should be revealed in a few months. If we're lucky, we might even find one on display at IFA 2013, in Berlin, Germany, this September.

In a way, the new naming scheme is similar to the one used for accelerated processing units, where the series moniker comes first, and the number after the dash. That's why there are A8-series and A10-series chips up for order.

It's still hard to guess if the names will really follow our assumptions though.

If, say, the high-end card gets the R9 prefix, the name would end up at R9-x970, but probably not R9-9970, since it would mean stating the series level twice.

The folks at VideoCardz point out that the tactic is similar to the one applied to the Radeon X series, where the X in, say, Radeon X1950XTX was eventually replaced with HD. Now, HD is being replaced by Rx. Clearly, AMD is trying to freshen things up.

On a related note, some time ago, SemiAccurate saw that the latest AMD drives supported Radeon APU A6-6200 with R3 Graphics and Radeon R5 M200 series cards, implying that there would be entry-level add-in cards, despite the prevalence of CPU-integrated video.

Via: AMD Radeon HD 9000 Will Have New Names: R9-XXXX

The development team at EA Sports says that it will continue to create college themed American football titles in the coming years and is working with the Collegiate Licensing Company in order to get access to player names and likenesses.

Andrew Wilson, an executive vice president at the company, tells Polygon that, "Our relationship with the Collegiate Licensing Company is strong and we are already working on a new game for next generation consoles which will launch next year and feature the college teams, conferences and all the innovation fans expect from EA Sports."

Apparently the new deal is starting on July 1 2014 and is set to last for three years.

EA Sports and the NCAA severed ties, apparently because of the recent lawsuits that have targeted the college football franchise.

NCAA Football 14 is the last title to use the logo and names associated with the series so far.

Via: EA Sports Will Continue to Create NCAA Football Games

The final flavor of Linux Mint 15 KDE, has been launched and completes the collection of desktop environments for the famous distribution.

According to the developers, this edition features all the improvements from the latest Linux Mint release on top of KDE 4.10.

Highlights of Linux Mint 15 KDE:

• A new screen locker has been added in order to make the Workspaces more secure;
• KWin now detects some virtual machines and enables OpenGL compositing, when it’s possible;
• The printer setup, maintenance and job control have been improved;
• Dolphin has received a large number of fixes;
• Kate has received an improved notification system;
• Okular has received a new feature called tiled rendering.

Check the official announcement for a complete list of changes and improvements.

Download Linux Mint 15 KDE right now from Softpedia.

Via: Linux Mint 15 KDE Officially Released

As part of its new initiative to boost iPhone sales, Apple will release an updated version of the Apple Store application featuring special deals for customers.

According to people who are familiar with the matter, Apple employees will be encouraged to pre-install the app on any new iPhone sold in its stores.

The updated Apple Store app will have a redesigned interface to match that of the web-based / online Apple Store and, according to one screenshot leaked by 9to5mac, paid apps will be made free on occasion (sort of like little treats every once in a while).

Apple has been pushing to sell more iPhones in its retail stores, and has even partnered with BrightStar to offer a trade-in-program, while the company’s Back to School promotion now includes the iPhone.

Via: Apple to Release New "Store" App with Special Offers

As we are nearing the end of July, the only review we deliver this week is for Bit.Trip.Fate on the PC, an interesting experience for those who appreciate an experience that challenges their expectations.

We also have the usual Weekend Reading pieces: one dealing with the continuing battle between the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4, even before launch, and another about the way Steam Trading Cards might signal the coming of a secondary market from Valve.

We also enter the final stages of my simulated Tour de France, which today reaches Paris in its Pro Cycling Manager 2013 virtual incarnation.

As always, we also have a selection of the most important pieces of news from the last seven days.

On Monday, a leak revealed the content for the Collector's Edition of Batman: Arkham Origins, and the team at NetherRealm revealed that Martian Manhunter is set join the cast of Injustice in the coming weeks.

Tuesday, developers talked about the state of the coming title update 12 for the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft, and EA Sports revealed that the United Kingdom cover for FIFA 14 features Gareth Bale alongside Lionel Messi.

Wednesday, Bethesda talked about the significance of the next generation of consoles for their games, and Volition confirmed that Johnny Gat is coming back to star in Saints Row 4 late in August.

Thursday, FIFA 14 once again came up, as 19 teams from Brazil were confirmed as being fully simulated, and BioWare delivered a new expanded teaser image for their Dragon Age: Inquisition.

On Friday, Warner Bros. revealed the Copperhead woman assassin enemy that will appear in Batman: Arkham Origins, while Turn 10 talked about the DLC potential for Forza Motorsport 10.

Saturday, the NPD Group delivered the sales figures for June in the US, and a new Halo based comic was revealed as coming in December.

Via: A Gamers Week: July 21

This past week there has been an avalanche of news regarding tech giants that are trying to convince the American authorities to improve transparency around surveillance efforts, as well as to give them the chance to disclose more details about the data requests made by the government.

Microsoft, for instance, took the opportunity to once more iterate that it has not been giving the NSA direct access to its servers and that all products it offers are completely safe.

The statement brings nothing new to the table and is basically the same as the one given over a month ago, when the scandal had just started, although perhaps it sounded a bit more irate at all the fuss made by the media.

In an effort to show that they want more transparency, companies that have been specifically named in the NSA PRISM documents, such as Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, and Apple have been trying over and over again to gain back some of the trust they lost when Edward Snowden’s leaked documents hit the press.

It’s true that these companies have denied any involvement since the start, but the American authorities have done nothing to help them out in stating their cases, keeping mum on the subject and limiting their speeches to the technical aspects of the programs, rather than the players involved.

With all the information coming through, it’s difficult to tell who’s lying anymore or whether the truth is in the carefully worded statements made by Internet companies.

Regardless, the decision to believe – or not – in the innocence of these companies lies with each individual. While many have decided to keep using the same services, others have sought out proper replacements to use instead.

This has been done, however, more in protest rather than for the privacy’s sake, since it is known the NSA also has the ability to collect information without tapping into the servers of these Internet companies.

Via: PRISM: Tech Companies Keep Trying to Gain Back Trust

Documentary film “Blackfish” is set to open in New York and Los Angeles this weekend, and SeaWorld is doing its best to convince people not to go see it.

As previously reported, the film tells the story of Tilikum, a captive orca whale that attacked and killed its trainer, Dawn Brancheau.

It's intended to raise awareness about the fact that orca whales kept in captivity suffer tremendous psychological damage. This is why they turn against humans, the film argues. 

Naturally, SeaWorld fears that these claims will affect its image, and will make people think twice before going to see its whale shows.

Hence the fact that SeaWorld did not take long to lash out at “Blackfish,” and argue that it fails to accurately portray what happened at the time when Tilikum attacked Dawn Brancheau.

“Instead of a fair and balanced treatment of a complex subject, the film is inaccurate and misleading and, regrettably, exploits a tragedy that remains a source of deep pain for Dawn Brancheau's family, friends and colleagues,” the marine park said in a statement, as cited by The Atlantic Wire.

“Blackfish” director Gabriela Cowperthwaite disagrees, and says that all evidence points to the fact that the killer whale lived up to its name because of the many years it had spent living in captivity.

To get an idea of what “Blackfish” is all about, check out the film's trailer below.



Via: SeaWorld Is Gravely Upset About Blackfish, Says the Movie Is Inaccurate and Misleading

The death of a woman at Six Flags over Texas on Friday is currently under investigation. As I told you, the woman was in the Texas Giant when she fell to her death.

The ride is 14 stories high and a maximum of 24 tourists can get on it at any time. When it was debuted in 1990 it was built entirely out of wood. A million dollar renovation before 2011 made it safer. The wooden rails were replaced with other made out of steel.

Arlington police Sgt. Christopher Cook was on site but refused commenting to the AP. Six Flags over Texas is the oldest amusement park in the successful franchise.

Carmen Brown of Arlington, who was watching the woman being fastened as she was buying a ticket has described watching her fall off.

"She goes up like this. Then when it drops to come down, that's when it (the safety bar) released and she just tumbled," she describes.


Via: Roller Caster Death at Six Flags Investigated [AP]

“The Lone Ranger,” despite a huge budget, lots of promotion, and boasting two of the hottest leading men of the hour (Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer) was a resounding commercial flop for Disney. Depp, for one, doesn’t care that critics hated it.

As I noted on a previous occasion as well, chances are good that it was critics’ unfavorable reviews that pretty much ruined the film’s chances at the box office because word of mouth made people not want to see it.

In a recent interview cited by the Daily Mail, Depp says he isn’t bothered by all that.

“To be quite honest I couldn't give a rats about U.S. journalists' opinions,” he says.

“What I do care about is my kids' opinions and they loved it, they loved the ride and maybe they are biased, slightly, but for all purposes my kids were able to forget that it was Daddy five or ten minutes into the film and they enjoyed the ride. The ride itself is incredible and unique, this film, so yeah I trust my kids' opinions more than the US critics,” Depp adds.

Did you see “The Lone Ranger” yet? If so, what did you think of it?

Via: Johnny Depp Couldnt Care Less That Critics Hated The Lone Ranger

The beta version of Process Lasso has just received another update, this time bringing a couple of new options, as well as bug fixes for issues reported in the previous builds.

Process Lasso 6.6.0.65 Beta comes with a log filter that allows you to quickly search or filter logged activities, but also with a new PLLogToCSV utility that automatically converts all log files to CSV format.

In addition, the new release changes the terminate confirmation message box so that the default button is “No,” the developers explain in the release notes.

Keep in mind that while Process Lasso 6.6.0.65 Beta should work smoother than previous releases, it’s still in testing stage, so some bugs and performance issues might still be experienced while using the app.

Download Process Lasso 6.6.0.65 Beta for Windows

Via: Process Lasso 6.6.0.65 Beta Released

After conquering the video game space and performing well in movie form it seems that Halo is poised to once again launch an assault on the comic book space, with a new Escalation series set to launch on December 11.

Frank O’Connor, a director at developer 343 Industries, tells Polygon that, "Yes, I can confirm that we are working on a Halo comic book series with Dark Horse."

It seems that the narrative structure of the comic book series will be handled by the same writer who handled the creation of the story for Halo 4.

Talent linked to Mass Effect, Dragon Age and Star Wars will handle the art.

No information was revealed about the core character of the Escalation comic book.

During E3 2013 Microsoft teased another Halo video game project for the Xbox One.

Via: Halo Gets Escalation Comic Book on December 11

There numerous methods to keep sensitive files protected from being accessed by third-party or unauthorized persons. Setting the “hidden” attribute or restricting access to certain areas of the disk may do the job, but only until a workaround is found (and there are simple ways to achieve it).

A more reliable solution is to encrypt all the information and protect access to it with a master password. There are plenty of choices for this, but one of the newest ones is Protectorion ToGo, a freebie that can work with removable drives as well.

The application is free of charge for personal use, but for business use the developer makes available plans starting from $39.90 / 29.90EUR. This license covers one computer and two external devices.

Protectorion ToGo does not require installation, although a version that does is also available. You can use it with USB devices, and all the files that go through it are automatically encrypted, and you can save them in this state.

When run for the first time, the utility presents the license terms document, which you have to agree to. Next you are prompted to provide a master password to protect the safe.

This dialog window can also display the strength of the password you provide and allows you to type in a hint that could lead to remembering the countersign in case you forget it. All this information is mandatory for creating the vault, which is stored in the same location as the executable file.

What you end up with is a mechanism that can immediately encrypt any data you feed it and store it at the source location. The entire process is carried out quite fast (but depends entirely on the size of the data) and the standard used for protecting the data is AES-256. The application uses a randomly chosen 40-character key that is managed in the background.

There is nothing impressive about the interface as looks are plain and simple showing that the developer’s focus was on the functionality of the software rather than on aesthetics.

Adding the files to be encrypted is done by simply dragging and dropping them into the application window. Then you can choose to erase them after the import operation is over and the entire progress is visible.

The safe created looks like a basic version of a file manager. There is a folder-tree in the left hand side of the application window and the files are displayed in the right. There is the possibility to organize it into folders.

A trashcan ensures that hitting the delete button on an entry by accident does not make it lost forever and you can easily recover it. However, emptying the waste bin makes it unrecoverable.

Elementary file operations such as copying and pasting are supported, albeit only inside the program. As such, you won’t be able to copy an item in Protectorion ToGo and paste it in Windows Explorer or any other file manager.

Dragging and dropping it for this purpose is also unsupported; this can be done, though, through the “unencrypted export” function, available in the context menu of each item, or the “export” option present in the toolbar.

The program is quite flexible and it does not keep the data under strict lockdown. You are able to open the files straight from the vault. As expected, the process takes a little longer because data needs to be decrypted first.

A search bar can help you find a specific item in the vault. If there are multiple entries sharing the same name, you will have to instruct Protectorion to continue the search until the relevant result appears.

Sensitive information also includes passwords and various credentials. The developer is well aware of this fact and built a password manager into the program.

It is nothing fancy, just a very basic utility that can store user names and passwords along with web and email addresses.

You can also use it to store various notes for each entry. Furthermore, there is the possibility to organize them into groups and copy details to the clipboard.

Working with Protectorion ToGo is an easy job that can be performed even by the less skilled users. It runs on removable drives and even if you delete the executable, the vault is still available on the storage device. Thus, you can re-download the program and run it at the source.

The safe created by Protectorion is visible, but unless decrypted, the content is just a bunch of useless files.



The Good

It does not require installation and it is free of charge for home users. You can start encrypting the files right away by dragging and dropping them in the application window.

Handling the files is easy as the program offers an Explorer-like file management experience. The built-in password manager allows you to store credentials securely.

The Bad

Each time you launch the application, an advertisement will pop out promoting the paid version of Protectorion ToGo.

The Truth

Protectorion ToGo is easy to use and works great straight from removable devices. It achieves its purpose, but some users might feel the need for a richer set of options and functions, especially when it comes to the built-in password manager.

Via: Protectorion ToGo Encrypts Sensitive Files on Removable Drives

The Tour continues with a rather weird stage, one which has two HC climbs near the start, designed to sap the strength of riders from the get-go, and two rather easier ones near the end.

It’s hard to once more go up so many times, especially after the two climbs over L’Alpe d’Huez that took place yesterday, but the cyclists are still looking for wins and for good performance on the mountains and I suspect that a powerful breakaway will get away quickly and will end up winning the stage.

I no longer have a clear strategy, seeing the overall weakness of my riders, and I will try to see if any sort of opportunity opens up for me later in the stage.

A group of good climbers has quickly managed to get away and they have established a commanding lead over the peloton.

Le Col de la Madeleine was especially hard to get over, but in the end, it seemed that a concerted effort from the big teams might bring back the escapees and set up for another duel on the last climb.

But even when I committed two riders to do the chasing, the rest of the teams failed to join me and in the end, the big group up the road splintered and John Gadret managed to get away from his companions and swept the win by a respectable margin.

My own leader, Schleck, tried to stay with then favorites but lost some time on the descent, while the rest of my riders came home with the rest of the peloton.

One more mountain stage follows before the final parade in Paris, where Alberto Contador will probably wear the Yellow Jersey after he managed to defeat all his rivals during the last few days.

Take a look at how the last climbs of the stage unfolded.



Via: Pro Cycling Manager 2013 Diary: Up and Down in the Alps

Good news for Android users who listen to their favorite music via Winamp, as developers have just released a small update that fixes some of the issues reported in the past.

First and foremost, developers have announced that they have fixed the “stutter” and “skipping” during music playback issues that were affecting some device models.

Furthermore, the folks over at Nullsoft have confirmed that they have addressed a rare issue where playback would stop randomly, regardless of the device model.

There are still a few known issues that need to be addressed in future updates, such as the ones detailed below:

– Pro Bundle – Gapless playback, Crossfade, & EQ not supported for M4A files on Android 2.1;
– Pro Bundle may not be supported / available on older or less expensive devices with chipsets that do not support floating point calculations.

Winamp 1.4.11 is now available as a free download via Softpedia and it should be fully compatible with all devices running Android 2.1 and up.

Via: Winamp for Android Gets Small Update, Fixes Stutter and Skipping Issues

Yves Guillemot, the leader of publisher Ubisoft, says that pre-order levels for the Xbox One from Microsoft and PlayStation 4 from Sony are two times higher at the moment than those seen for the current generation of hardware.

The CEO made the statement during an investor call after his company revealed its financial results and projected how well it will perform in the coming months.

Both Microsoft and Sony are saying that they are trying to make sure that all those who want to pre-order a next gen console can do so at a retailer, although some have suspended the process for short periods of time.

Ubisoft believes that the Xbox One and the PS4 will both be launched in November and will offer a significant boost to the gaming industry throughout the final months of the year and 2014.

Via: Ubisoft: Xbox One and PlayStation 4 Pre-Orders Double Those of Current Gen

A satanist group has made it their mission to turn the mother of Westboro Baptist Church gay and they believe that they have succeeded.

Vice reports that The Satanic Temple have performed a ritual that turns the departed gay by having two men and two women kissing over the tombstone of the subject.

The ceremony, which is called a “Pink mass” was held over Catherine Idalette Johnston's grave at the Phelps family graveyard in Mississippi.

"There were, in fact, scriptures recited, candles lit, and a ceremonial proceeding that we may eventually post the details of at our website,” spokesperson for the group, Lucien Greaves has described.

He held the two ceremonies, one involving a male and the other a female couple. As I have reported in the past, Westboro strongly oppose the LGBT community.

Via: Satanist Group Claim to Have Turned Westboro Founder's Mother Gay

Microsoft has often promoted Internet Explorer as the best way to browse the web regardless of the platform you’re using, so the company has now started what it calls the Companion Web to show the benefits of a seamless experience across multiple devices.

“The Companion Web is all about a world where experiences move seamlessly across the multiple screens around us – our tablets, phones, computers, and televisions. To help illustrate this, we worked with our friends at Polar to create a Companion Web experience that spans multiple screens offering you the ability to view and voice your opinion based on the content you’re watching,” the tech giant said.

The Redmond-based company has teamed up with Polar to launch an iOS app that employs the Companion Web concept to enable a website to complement what the user is watching on a bigger screen.

“You can leave it up alongside a film, TV show, or video and keep up with new opinions and questions as they appear in real-time, or use any device with a web browser to control what’s on display. When you scroll, vote, or switch topics with your device, the big screen experience immediately responds to your actions,” Microsoft noted.

The Softies promise to bring even more developer goodies to the market in the coming months, especially because the company is getting ready to debut the new Internet Explorer 11 browser included in Windows 8.1.

Word is that the official debut of the next Windows release is projected to happen in the next few months, but people familiar with the matter have hinted that August could very well witness the public launch of the update.

Microsoft has already confirmed that Windows 8.1 will hit RTM in August, but there’s still no official word on general availability for what’s being considered a major makeover for Windows 8.



Via: Microsoft Tries to Unify Web Experiences with New Internet Explorer Project Video

Mary-Louise Parker, star of the hit Showtime series “Weeds” and recent feature films “RED 2” and “R.I.P.D.,” doesn’t plan on working as an actress for much longer.

In a new interview cited by ABC News, the actress says celebrity bloggers have pretty much taken out all the fun in her line of work, because the focus rarely falls on acting these days.

“It’s sport for people, it’s fun to get on at night and unleash their own self-loathing by attacking someone else who they think has a happier life – or something, I dunno,” she says.

“I wouldn’t mind doing a TV show again, I’d like to do a couple more plays, but I’m almost done acting, I think,” Parker explains.

She also laments a “mean” culture in which people watch only TV shows that document the lives of “little girls in pageants and housewives and plastic surgery and people in rehab.” She doesn’t want to be a part of that.

So, if she does retire, Mary-Louise plans to spend more time with her kids, take better care of her goats and “throw [her] Internet in the lake.”


Via: Mary-Louise Parker Is Almost Done Acting Because of Bloggers

The National Collegiate Athletic Organization announces that it is terminating its collaboration with developer EA Sports for the NCAA Football video game series starting with 2014, apparently because of issues linked to ongoing and potential future litigation over trademarks.

The organization says, "The NCAA has never licensed the use of current student-athlete names, images or likenesses to EA. The NCAA has no involvement in licenses between EA and former student-athletes."

It seems that colleges and universities will have the option to decide whether they are interested in working with EA Sports on future NCAA Football video games.

The football simulation is a popular franchise for Electronic Arts, although it lacks the impact of Madden NFL.

The NCAA logo and name will only be included in the coming release, which is set to arrive on July 19 on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3.

Via: NCAA Terminates EA Sports Collaboration for Football Game Series

On Sunday, August 25, at a live ceremony held at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, the who’s who in the music industry will come together to celebrate a year in accomplishments, at the MTV Video Music Awards 2013. The nominees were announced just minutes ago.

Considering that Justin Timberlake made his music comeback in 2013 after a 6-year absence, it comes as no surprise that his album enjoyed both commercial and critical success immediately upon launch.

He leads the nominations with 6 nods, and is going head to head with Macklemore, who also scored 6.

Nominees also include Miley Cyrus, Robin Thicke, Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, Pink and Thirty Seconds to Mars.

The complete list is included below – and make sure you check back here for the winners, to see if your favorite gets to go home with the much coveted Moonman.

Video of the Year:
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Wanz, "Thrift Shop"
Bruno Mars, "Locked Out of Heaven"
Robin Thicke feat. T.I. and Pharrell, "Blurred Lines"
Taylor Swift, "I Knew You Were Trouble"

Best Hip Hop Video:
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray Dalton, "Can't Hold Us"
Drake, "Started From The Bottom"
Kendrick Lamar, "Swimming Pools"
A$AP Rocky feat. Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar, "[expletive]' Problems"
J. Cole feat. Miguel, "Power Trip"

Best Male Video:
Justin Timberlake, "Mirrors"
Robin Thicke feat. T.I. and Pharrell, "Blurred Lines"
Bruno Mars, "Locked Out of Heaven"
Ed Sheeran, "Lego House"
Kendrick Lamar, "Swimming Pools"

Best Female Video:
Rihanna feat. Mikky Ekko, "Stay"
Taylor Swift, "I Knew You Were Trouble"
Miley Cyrus, "We Can't Stop"
Pink feat. Nate Ruess, "Just Give Me A Reason"
Demi Lovato, "Heart Attack"

Best Pop Video:
Bruno Mars, "Locked Out of Heaven"
Justin Timberlake, "Mirrors"
Fun., "Carry On"
Miley Cyrus, "We Can't Stop"
Selena Gomez, "Come and Get It"

Artist To Watch, Presented by Taco Bell:
Twenty One Pilots, "Holding On To You"
Zedd feat. Foxes, "Clarity"
Austin Mahone, "What About Love"
The Weeknd, "Wicked Games"
Iggy Azalea, "Work"

Best Collaboration:
Justin Timberlake, feat. Jay-Z, "Suit & Tie"
Pitbull feat. Christina Aguilera, "Feel This Moment"
Calvin Harris feat. Ellie Goulding, "I Need Your Love"
Robin Thicke feat. T.I. and Pharrell, "Blurred Lines"
Pink feat. Nate Ruess, "Just Give Me A Reason"

Best Video With A Social Message:
Kelly Clarkson, "People Like Us"
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, "Same Love"
Snoop Lion, "No Guns Allowed"
Miguel, "Candles in the Sun"
Beyoncé, "I Was Here"

Best Rock Video:
Imagine Dragons, "Radioactive"
Fall Out Boy, "My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)"
Mumford & Sons, "I Will Wait"
Thirty Seconds To Mars, "Up in the Air"
Vampire Weekend, "Diane Young"

Best Art Direction:
Capital Cities, "Safe and Sound"
Thirty Seconds To Mars, "Up in the Air"
Janelle Monae feat. Erykah Badu, "Q.U.E.E.N"
Lana Del Rey, "National Anthem"
Alt-J, "Tesselate"

Best Choreography:
Chris Brown, "Fine China"
Ciara, "Body Party"
Jennifer Lopez feat. Pitbull, "Live It Up"
will.i.am feat. Justin Bieber, "#thatPOWER"
Bruno Mars, "Treasure"

Best Cinematography:
Thirty Seconds To Mars, "Up in the Air"
Lana Del Rey, "Ride"
Yeah Yeah Yeahs, "Sacrilege"
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray Dalton, "Can't Hold Us"
A-Trak & Tommy Trash, "Tuna Melt"

Best Direction:
Justin Timberlake feat. Jay-Z, "Suit & Tie"
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray Dalton, "Can't Hold Us"
Yeah Yeah Yeahs, "Sacrilege"
Fun., "Carry On"
Drake, "Started From The Bottom"

Best Editing:
Pink feat. Nate Ruess, "Just Give Me A Reason"
Calvin Harris feat. Florence Welch, "Sweet Nothing"
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray Dalton, "Can't Hold Us"
Justin Timberlake, "Mirrors"
Miley Cyrus, "We Can't Stop"

Best Visual Effects:
Capital Cities, "Safe and Sound"
Duck Sauce, "It's You"
Flying Lotus, "Tony Tortures"
Skrillex feat. the Doors "Breakn' a Sweat"
The Weeknd "Wicked Games"


Via: VMAs 2013: The Nominations Are Out

Streaming site FirstRow Sports will be blocked off by Internet providers from the United Kingdom after the High Court sent out an order.

The FirstRow website has approximately a million visitors each day and offers streams to major sporting events, including English Soccer League. The Premier League’s legal team has been trying to get the site down for some time now.

Backed up by UEFA, the PGA European Toru and the Rugby Football Union, FirstRow, they finally managed to get a blocking order for the website, TorrentFreak reports.

According to the judge, while FirstRow itself doesn’t host any streams, it is responsible for the copyright infringements that occur on the site.

The case is made worse since sports bars and pubs use the unauthorized streams in their establishments.

FirstRow owner classifies the verdict as “nonsense” and that the site only indexes user-generated content from external sites.

He claims that blocking FirstRow will not stop the streams since they can still be accessible online.

Via: FirstRow Sports Streaming Site to Be Blocked by UK ISPs

Top Smash is one of the most interesting games that arrived in the Store lately, as it allows Windows 8 adopters to play tennis using their webcams.

The application is based on motion sensing technologies and works exclusively on x86 and x64 devices, so no Windows RT support is available for the time being.

“Prepare for a Top Smash tennis workout! Be the best on the lawn – get your four points to win a game. A full body motion game with your hand as the racket, show your best serve and score points,” the app description reads.

The trial version allows you to try out the game, but the full build of the game comes with 15 different levels and other high-quality content.

Click here to view and download Top Smash for Windows 8.

Via: Top Smash for Windows 8 Uses Webcams to Control Players Download Now

Desura, a digital distribution platform for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS games, has been acquired by the developers of Second Life, Linden Lab.

Desura has been around for quite some time, but they never managed to get enough traction with new titles. Still, this platform has been a good startup for many Linux games and developers.

“Desura’s talented team, thriving business, and impressive technology are a great fit for Linden Lab. This acquisition gives us a global platform for serving creative developers of all kinds, and we’re looking forward to growing both Desura’s global community of gamers and its fantastic portfolio of thousands of games, mods, and other content.”

Our aim is to invest and support the Desura team in making it the most open and developer-friendly platform in the world,” said Rod Humble, CEO of Linden Lab.

The Desura users have been assured that the services will continue to run uninterrupted and the transition to a new management will not affect gamers in any way.

Via: Desura Service Bought by Second Life Creatore, Linden Lab

A new beta flavor of the Facebook application is now available for download for the owners of Android-based devices, namely version 3.5, with some appealing new features packed inside.

Following the update, users will be able to save photos on their devices straight from the photo viewer, and will also enjoy a series of fixes for issues that caused the application to crash before. A problem that resulted in blank spaces being displayed instead of photos has also been resolved.

At the same time, the new app release brings notification scrolling capabilities, with older notifications automatically loading when scrolling to the end of newer ones, the release notes published on Android Police unveil.

At the same time, the on-screen menu bar has been removed from the bottom of the app on phones that don't have a hardware menu button.

On devices that have Facebook Home installed on them, phone's status bar now shows at the top of the lock screen by default. To download Facebook 3.5 beta for Android, follow the instructions on this page.

Via: Facebook 3.5 Beta for Android Brings Notification Scrolling

The sixth beta release in the new Firefox 23.x branch has been made available for download by Mozilla for all available platforms.

The binaries for Mozilla Firefox 23.0 Beta 6 can be downloaded and run without having to install anything.

The details for this latest beta version haven't been made available just yet, but the official mirrors have been updated with the new releases.

A detailed list of upcoming features and other various changes can be found on the official website.

Download Mozilla Firefox 23 Beta 6 for Windows

Download Mozilla Firefox 23 Beta 6 for Linux

Download Mozilla Firefox 23 Beta 6 for Mac OS X

Remember that this is a development version and it should NOT be installed on production machines. It is intended for testing purposes only.

Via: Mozilla Firefox 23 Beta 6 Released on Multiple Platforms

A 45-year-old man from Caratinga, Brazil, died after a cow wandered on the roof of his house and it gave way under its weight, making the animal crash right atop on him as he was lying in the bed, The Telegraph reports.

Joao Maria de Souza was with his wife in bed at home, when the cow escaped from a local farm and somehow made its way onto the roof.

The cow fell on Joao’s side of the bed and he was immediately rushed to the hospital. He was still conscious and seemed only to have a leg fracture.

Within hours, while waiting for a more thorough examination, he died of massive internal bleeding, the aforementioned media outlet says.

This is the real tragedy, the man’s family says.

“Being crushed by a cow in your bed is the last way you expect to leave this earth. But in my view it wasn't the cow that killed our Joao, it was the unacceptable time he spent waiting to be examined,” they say.

The Telegraph notes that the wife and the cow were not injured in the freak accident.


Via: Cow Falls on Man as Roof Collapses, Kills Him