GeekwithEnvy

Windows

It’s No Longer Blue, It’s Windows 8.1

by Leave a Comment

Windows 8 LogoThe next update to Windows 8, which was codenamed “Blue”, now has an official name, Windows 8.1. That sounds about right, there’s really no need to put any spin on it, just increment and improve please. Windows 8 is an adventure and whether you love it or hate it, it’s clear that the OS needs a bit of repair and a whole lot of love. The update will be available for free.

One of the biggest problems I have with Windows 8 is it’s dual personality. Currently, the new UI doesn’t allow you to access to all of the settings that are available in the control panel, instead you end up back in “Desktop Mode” with the “old” control panel open. The experience needs to feel complete and flipping between old and new just breaks up the flow. It needs to be one or the other. Windows 8.1 will hopefully address some of these issues by fully integrating your settings into the new UI.

This is the first of many updates that will eventually hit Windows 8 users as Microsoft has ramped up their update release schedule. Some see this new cycle as an advantage for Microsoft as it allows them to keep things “fresh”. Others have criticized the new cycle saying that updates could be a lot less stable and/or secure since they have less time to work out the bugs. No matter what we think, Microsoft has chosen a direction and time will tell whether it was the right direction.

 

 

Microsoft Wants Nook Content for $1 Billion

by Leave a Comment

nookHD

Microsoft is reportedly looking to acquire the digital portion of Nook Media LLC and they are offering up $1 Billion for the deal. This move, if made, could help boost Microsoft in the e-book market along with a stronger presence in education, an area that Microsoft could use some help. It’s important to note that it doesn’t appear that Microsoft has any interest the hardware that Nook has, just it’s “digital assets”.

Nook hasn’t really seen great sales as of late and struggles to get any significant traction among similar hardware. This acquisition by Microsoft could prove to be beneficial for everyone involved but it’s still unclear whether or not a deal like this will go through.

Going Next-Gen With Call Of Duty: Ghosts

by Leave a Comment

 

CODGhostsLogo

The next installment of Call of Duty, Call of Duty Ghosts, is officially coming and it’s also going to be on next-gen hardware like the Playstation 4 and Xbox (Infinity?). The new COD is also set to be released on the PC. I have tried to find information confirming the release of Ghost on the Wii U but I haven’t come up with anything as of right now.

The teaser trailer provides essentially no information about the new game but it’s enough to leave us in anticipation for more. Luckily, we will be getting more details at the Xbox reveal which is set to go down on May 21st at 10:00 am PDT on Xbox Live, Xbox.com and Spike TV.

Call of Duty: Ghosts will release on Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and PC on November 5.

How To Open Windows 8 Style Apps in Desktop Mode

by Leave a Comment

 

Windows 8 is unlike any other Windows OS we’ve seen and although the new “tile system” is pretty cool. The look and feel of full screen applications on Windows 8 are also a big departure from what we’re used to, but not everyone is enjoying it.

ModernMixSS

If you’re one of those people who have a few favorite apps that are exclusive to the new Windows 8 style UI (metro) and would much rather have them open up on the “classic desktop”  in a regular window, then you’re in luck.

There’s a great app from Stardock called ModernMix that does all of this for you and isn’t just a change of appearance either. These are fully functional windows that can be resized, pinned to the taskbar, and completely closed using the familiar “X” button.

Sounds simple enough, and if you’re not enjoying the new style of  Windows then this could be a perfect solution.

You can try it for free for a month and the application is only $4.99 to purchase.

How To Test Your CPU Performance with SuperPi and wPrime

by Leave a Comment

superPi

For a custom PC builder there’s nothing more satisfying than finishing up your build so you can put it to the test. Sure you can open up an application and perform certain tasks to give you an idea of how your new build is performing, but you can also use specific programs that are designed specifically to benchmark.

One of these applications is actually quite simple. SuperPi calculates Pi to a specific number of digits and then displays the time it took to calculate the answer for each iteration. You can also determine the accuracy of the calculation which can also help determine stability of the system, this is perfect for overclocking.

It’s important to note that SuperPi is intended to test single threaded performance, if you’re looking to test multi-threaded performance you can utilize wPrime.

wPrime uses a recursive call of Newton’s method for estimating functions, with f(x)=x2-k, where k is the number we’re square rooting, until Sgn(f(x)/f'(x)) does not equal that of the previous iteration, starting with an estimation of k/2. It then uses an iterative calling of the estimation method a set amount of times to increase the accuracy of the results. It then confirms that n(k)2=k to ensure the calculation was correct. It repeats this for all numbers from 1 to the requested maximum.