GeekwithEnvy

Microsoft

Forget 3D Glasses I Want Virtual Reality Gaming

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When I was a kid I imagined that the games of the future would include virtual reality and while gaming technology has come along way, theres still plenty of room for innovation.Red Or Blue Pill

While many great game titles have been released over the years, gaming technology has remained pretty much the same. Consoles will continually upgrade their graphics capabilities, tweak their shape, size, and the way we control our games, but I want to be able to jump into my games and truly become a part of that world in every way possible. The idea kind of reminds me of the movie The Matrix, eventually you should be able to be that connected to an experience.

Fortunately, there are many smart people who are interested in making virtual reality happen, including some at Sony Entertainment and Valve. Chet Faliszek of Valve has mentioned that they are actively working on a virtual reality project and Microsoft has filed VR based patents. So, it would seem that companies are taking virtual reality seriously, and it’s about time.

What makes this so interesting is that VR technology really is still in it’s infancy, nothing has been perfected and no one is sure who is going to have that breakthrough moment and create something amazing. Most people involved with VR are fiddling around with all kinds of ideas as they mash up screens,mirrors, circuit boards, cables and software to create a truly unique experience.

With VR you also have to consider how that type of gameplay differs from sitting at your computer or on the couch playing with a normal, hand held controller.  Virtual reality will require you to move around much like Kinect for Xbox 360. Chances are you won’t always want to burn 500 calories chasing and killing zombies but I guess it would be nice to at least have that option.  Now what would really be amazing is if you could control your character just by thinking.

Many of the technologies needed to make all of this happen already exist, it’s just a mater of of making them all work together. As for now, we can all remain hopeful as we watch and wait to see who comes out with the best VR solution.

Ready or Not Windows 8 is On it’s Way

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Well, it’s been really fun talking about how different Windows 8 is and how crazy it all seems but we are slowly approaching the release date for the new OS and some feel it just isn’t ready.

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I would argue that any OS is never really ready when it first releases. There are so many things that will likely only be discovered when the masses begin to upgrade  and tear apart the shiny new OS. This process of fix-on-the-fly  is nothing new for Microsoft and I’m sure we won’t be happy with the new OS until the first service pack releases or maybe even the second for that matter.

What is truly important here is that Windows users really try to look at Windows 8 as something entirely new and try not to compare it to Windows 7. The world is changing and Microsoft is adapting with it, and this is a great thing. Many of us hate change and for this reason alone we tend to look at Windows 8 and feel like we will never upgrade. However, as we march forward and watch Microsoft make one of the biggest changes to it’s operating system since the ‘Start’ button, I wonder what I plan to do personally.

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Do I jump in? Do I wait a few months ? What computers do I upgrade first and do I upgrade all of them or just one? These are the questions that I’m trying to answer, even as I write this I’m trying to figure out what I will do.I have been experimenting with the developer preview and the release preview and I still feel very uncomfortable using Windows 8 with a mouse and keyboard. I don’t know why I can’t seem to shake this feeling. This OS is designed to work with touch and it feels like the laptop and desktop experience is an afterthought.

I’m pretty patient when it comes to OS software, I have tried just about every semi-popular OS out there from obscure linux based OS’s to OSX and back to mobile OS’s. Generally I give an operating system a fair shake up until it’s first major patch. Once we reach the first major patch, if I still feel it’s not working for me, I will usually move on to something else.

When we look at Windows 8 we can’t forget that it’s not just about how we feel about the new OS, it’s also about the faith that hardware manufactures put into the new OS. After all, the hardware is useless with out a good operating system to make it work. Let’s not forget that Microsoft is also going to be releasing it’s own tablet with Windows 8 on it, which will have Microsoft competing directly with those same hardware manufactures that Microsoft want’s Windows 8 to run on.

What about developers? what will they do with existing titles? How will they fit-in with the new OS? Is this change something that developers want to engage in? Some developers feel threatened by Windows 8 and feel that they will be forced to operate within a “box”.  Take the keyboard and mouse out of the equation and now you either are forced to work with touch or an Xbox controller.  Something doesn’t feel right here and I can quickly begin to understand why.

Now, take all of this crazy change and bundle it up in a nice, shiny, new Microsoft store that you build right across the street from the Apple store and you’ve got a front row seat to historic change in the world of technology.

To sum things up, I say if you support Microsoft then use Windows 8 and provide all the feedback you can to help Microsoft build the software you want to use. This is the only way they can get a real feel for what consumers want and need from their software. In the meantime I remain optimistic about Windows 8 and hope to see it succeed.

 

Xbox Issues for Time Warner Cable Customers

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Xbox live subscribers who use Time Warner Cable as their internet provider are having major difficulties trying to get online. This issue has been going on for a few days now and Microsoft is working hard to find a solution. Microsoft has made an official statement about the ongoing problem.

“If you’re having issues connecting to Xbox LIVE and are using the Time Warner ISP, thank you for being patient and sticking with us while we work out the problem. Rest assured we are still working hard alongside Time Warner to fix it as quickly as we can. We will continue to update you as new information becomes available.”

We will keep you updated when we find out whether or not a fix has been released. You can also keep an eye on Microsoft’s LIVE Service Status Page here.

 

Internet Explorer Security Issue To Be Addressed

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If you use Internet Explorer then you may want to be extra careful when surfing the web, as a hole in the browsers security has been exploited. This security hole allows an attacker to gain access to your system simply by visiting a malicious website.

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This exploit has gone unnoticed for the last few releases of Internet Explorer and has primarily been used to infect machines with “Poison Ivy”, a back-door Trojan. Many computers have already been infected with the Trojan, so it’s important that you keep up on your definition updates and scans for your preferred anti-malware, anti-virus software.

This only goes to show that even if you think you’re fully protected from malicious software, you’re still at risk if you don’t use your best judgement when visiting unknown websites. Stick to sites you know have a good track record. You can use tools like Site Advisor to check url’s before you visit them, this site is ran by McAfee and does not require you to download anything, you simply type in the url you wish to check and search. It will let you know if the site has been flagged for malicious activity and it will also show you a list of files and other sites the website links to and whether or not they could pose a risk to your computer. However, some sites that are new and haven’t been scanned by McAfee will show up as untested, these sites should probably be avoided until you know for sure that they are safe to visit.

No matter what operating system you use, you should always have you computer check for updates automatically. You can even manually check from time to time and make sure the latest updates are installed. Microsoft releases updates constantly and the majority of what your downloading is to protect you from malicious code. This doesn’t just apply to OS software either, make sure your anti-virus software is also up-to-date with the latest definitions.

Microsoft is aware of this vulnerability and has listed it as critical, the company has recently posted a security bulletin on the matter here. An official fix is slated to be released on Friday and should allow IE users to browse securely again.

Windows XP Usage Starting to Drop

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Ever since it’s release Windows XP has dominated the PC landscape and when Windows Vista came around, XP users wouldn’t budge. If you ask most XP users why they haven’t upgraded you’ll get a variety of answers but most will likely point toward XP’s solid track record as a stable well performing operating system that works on older and newer hardware with ease. It really is that simple, it works well, and it works well on most of the hardware out there.

Another point to take into consideration here is that most of the people who have tried to upgrade from XP did so while Windows Vista was around and this left a bad taste in their mouths. With what I would call one of Microsoft’s worst operating system releases, I can understand why you would return to your old friend XP, which even on it’s worst day was better than Vista.

However, with the web becoming more media rich, and with more and more people trying to edit videos and photos taken with their favorite mobile devices, the need for better hardware beckons us. Our 512mb of RAM and our old processors, (yes,people are still using these) just aren’t cutting it and PC users are going out and buying new hardware with Windows 7 pre-installed.  Once consumers get a chance to try Windows 7, most are surprised at how nice the operating system is and how well it works with your new hardware.  Windows 7 has been patched, re-patched and optimized over the years to a point to where it just works and that is exactly what XP users wanted the last time they tried to upgrade.

Let’s not forget forget that consumers are not the only important factor when considering operating systems, there are vendors too. Vendors now have more faith in moving on as well. Take Adobe for example, they have indicated that the next release of Photoshop will not support Windows XP. If we look at some statistics, Wikimedia indicates that 38.58% of OS usage belongs to Windows 7 while XP holds out around 21.75%. Windows Vista holds on to a slim 6.98%.

What turns out to be kind of strange and well, a bit of a problem for Microsoft, is that these users are just now starting to catch on to Windows 7 when Windows 8 is about to make it’s big debut and not just any debut, this is going to be a huge change for Microsoft. We will just have to wait and see what develops and I think it will be interesting to see if people can connect with Windows 8’s primarily touch-based interface.