Filed under: Windows, Microsoft
People were pretty excited when Microsoft officially announced the Windows 7 Family Pack, and with licenses for three machines for $150, there was good reason for that excitement. Last year, the limited run was sold out within about six weeks — leaving a lot of potential customers in the lurch.
Don’t fret! Assuming you didn’t already go out and buy three licenses for your machines, you’re going to get a second shot at the Pack. Yes, Microsoft is bringing back the Windows 7 Family Pack to celebrate the first anniversary of the Windows 7 launch on October 22nd.
Better news: this time, the deal will be available outside the U.S. as well. The lucky countries include Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, and Australia. Microsoft is leaving the door open a bit; other countries may still be added to the list.
As before, it’s going to be a limited run, so make sure you grab a Pack as soon as you can.
Microsoft bringing back three-license Windows 7 Family Pack originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft – Windows 7 – Canada – France – Germany
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Microsoft’s co-founder Paul Allen has filed suit against nine companies over patent violations. Through his current firm, Interval Licensing LLC, Allen is suing Apple, Google, AOL, Facebook, ebay, Netflix, Office Depot, OfficeMax, Staples, Yahoo, and YouTube (which is a subsidiary of Google). The claims involve four separate patents, most of which cover integral parts of how the companies named do business. For example, one patent allows site suggestions for consumers based on things they’re currently viewing, while another allows related articles to be delivered while reading news. All in all, it sounds like Allen’s patents — if they’re indeed found to cover these technologies — are seriously vast. The suit, which was filed today, does not name any specific amount of damages he is seeking. Allen, who is one of the richest people in the world with an estimated worth of over $13 billion, recently pledged to donate over half of his wealth to philanthropic causes after Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates called on the world’s billionaires to do so.
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen sues Apple, Google, Facebook, AOL, eBay, Netflix, Yahoo!, Staples, OfficeMax, Office Depot, and YouTube over patents originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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While we’ve given up on ever winning an online match of StarCraft II, that doesn’t mean top-down unit control schemes are only for nerds in their mom’s basement with their cheap rush tactics and Cheeto fingers and obscene triple digit APMs (we’re not bitter or anything). In fact, we kind of like the look of this robot control interface, developed at UMass Lowell by Mark Micire as part of his PhD research. The multitouch UI puts Microsoft Surface to good use, with gestures and contextual commands that make operating an unruly group of robots look easy, and a console-inspired touch control setup for operating a single bot from a first person perspective as well. There are a couple videos after the break, the first is Mike operating an army of virtual robots, using Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio to simulate his soldiers and environment, but the second shows his first person UI guiding a real robot through a maze, in what amounts to a very, very expensive version of that Windows 95 maze screensaver.
Continue reading Multi-robot command center built around Microsoft Surface (video)
Multi-robot command center built around Microsoft Surface (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Aug 2010 17:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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This might not be as sexy as its recent physical redesign, but the Xbox 360 is about to take what might be a major leap forward for many gamers. The console’s voice chat codec is going to be tweaked in an upcoming system update to allow a higher bit rate, and consequently better audio, through. Originally put together to run on 64k internet connections with the original Xbox, the codec’s finally catching up with our broadband times and should see itself renewed some time this fall, potentially alongside the retail launch of Kinect. Great, now when 12-year old kids destroy us in Halo, we’ll be able to hear their high-pitched gloating with crystal clarity.
Microsoft set to up bit rate on Xbox Live voice comms, pwners everywhere rejoice originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Aug 2010 03:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Microsoft, Beta, Browsers
This time the leaked
Internet Explorer 9 image we’re looking at is a bit more trustworthy than the mock-up we received back on April 1st. As
Mary Jo Foley reports, the image above was posted by Microsoft’s Russian PR site, though the post has since been pulled from the server and now returns a 404 error.
If this is the new interface, it’s certainly been simplified from the IE8 incarnation. A few things look odd to me, however. First, there’s the way the back button is cut off by the Bing Web page — it seems like the UI element should float on top rather than being cropped by the content below. I’m also not convinced that placing the tabs next to the address bar is a good move — the bar will be quite cramped when multiple tabs are open.
I do like the look of the favorites, home, and history(?) button on the far-right side and the introduction of a unified address/search box. Too often I’ve had a circular conversation while trying to instruct users to type into the address bar and not the search box in IE. This is one change I’d be really happy to see.
It’s only two and a half more weeks until we find out if this is our first look at the IE9 beta interface. Even then, it’ll be a beta version — and could very well change before the final version ships early next year.
Did Microsoft Russia leak the new Internet Explorer 9 user interface? originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 25 Aug 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Internet Explorer – Microsoft – Mary Jo Foley – Internet Explorer 9 – Microsoft Russia
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If you were one of the ne’er-do-wells who thought downloading a leaked copy of Halo: Reach and then playing it online was a really, really great idea, you might have received a stern email from Microsoft like the one recently dug up by MaxConsole. The document informs these red-handed pirates that “your Xbox LIVE account privileges have been permanently suspended due to illegitimate prerelease title play.”
Xbox Live Director of Policy and Executioner Stephen Toulouse commented on the bans on Twitter, explaining “as with all unauthorized play on Xbox LIVE, anyone playing any unauthorized title runs the risk of account permaban and console.” In short, you do the crime, you pay the time. Wait, is “forever and ever” an actual measurement of time?
Microsoft fires off salvo of Halo: Reach pirating permabans originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 25 Aug 2010 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft’s gotten a little carried away with its Internet Explorer 9 excitement and posted an early screenshot of the browser up on its Russian site. The post and the image have since been diligently pulled, but not before Mary-Jo Foley managed to snag the pictorial evidence. What’s new to see? A resoundingly minimal interface, that’s what. The Chrome comparisons should be raining down thick and heavy if this snapshot is anything to go by, as Microsoft has done a fine job of ridding its browser from pesky menus, consolidated its controls into a few icons in the top right, and combined the search and address bars into one. Of course, given the earlier leak of screenshots, those menus could still just be hiding somewhere nearby, ready to spring at us. Another similarity to Chrome (and Firefox and Safari) is the new ability to “tear off” tabs from one window and reposition them independently. We’ll see how closely the Beta aligns to what we see here when it debuts for real on September. 15.
Internet Explorer 9 makes cameo appearance on Microsoft Russia site originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Aug 2010 11:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We had a feeling that Microsoft recognized the potential in phone-to-console gaming, but during our recent hands-on time with Windows Phone 7, reps kept mum on the subject. The same can’t be said for at least one rep during Microsoft’s recent X10 event in Toronto — that’s in Canadia, in case you were wondering — who confirmed the functionality to WMPoweruser during a video interview showcasing the new OS.
“So initially we’re turn by turn-based,” the rep said, referring to the phone-to-phone multiplayer capabilities on day one. “We are working on real-time phone-to-console, likely initially through Wi-Fi — again, operator networks are sensitive to that. That’s not on day one; day one will be turn-by-turn as well as companion-type gaming where you play a level on the phone and it may unlock a level or a weapon or some special achievement on the console game. But, uh yeah — absolutely working on phone-to-console real-time. That is something we’re working on and expect to have in the near future.”
The video interview — which you can watch just past the break — also mentions gameplay between the PC and phone “using the Xbox Live infrastructure,” where the rep references Shadow Run as an example. Skip to around 10:30 for the really juicy stuff.
Continue reading Microsoft ‘working on’ real-time Windows Phone 7-to-console gaming over Wi-Fi
Microsoft ‘working on’ real-time Windows Phone 7-to-console gaming over Wi-Fi originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 15:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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While Microsoft’s new controller-free Kinect for Xbox 360 will be hitting US shores on November 4th, we’ve just learned that it’ll officially land in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa on November 11th. Sure, that’s a bit of a wait, but take heart in knowing that Microsoft’s targeting an October launch of its Xbox Live lovin’ Windows Phone 7 handsets in Europe compared to a November release in the US. Otherwise, we’re looking at the same 15 exclusive Kinect game titles already announced at E3.
Continue reading Microsoft Kinect for Xbox 360 launching on November 10 in Europe
Microsoft Kinect for Xbox 360 launching on November 10 in Europe originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Aug 2010 01:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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No, it’s not the
mystery device that Microsoft has been teasing as of late, but we have a feeling that plenty of folks will be wishing that the company’s so-called “Adaptive Keyboard” was it. Unfortunately, it’s just a prototype, and Microsoft apparently has no plans to turn it into an actual product. It will, however, be landing in the hands of a few lucky students participating in this year’s
UIST Student Innovation Contest, who will be given free reign to do whatever they like with the keyboard and possibly be rewarded with a $2,000 or $500 prize for their hard work. As for the keyboard itself, it’s basically Microsoft’s take on something like the
Optimus Maximus, and consists of a large touchscreen display on top that “extends” to the keys below — opening up a whole range of possibilities for different configurations and other shenanigans (no further technical details just yet, unfortunately). Head on past the break for a pair of demo videos and, if you’re a student, hit up the source link below for the complete contest details — act fast though, the deadline for applications is August 17th.
Continue reading Microsoft Adaptive Keyboard prototype debuts at center of UIST Student Innovation Contest
Microsoft Adaptive Keyboard prototype debuts at center of UIST Student Innovation Contest originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Aug 2010 16:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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