Sunday, September 30, 2012

Speedtest.net overhauled with new look, new features

speedtest
Speedtest.net is pretty much the go-to site for quickly figuring out how fast (or slow) your connection really is and comparing the numbers your ISP boasts with what it actually delivers. And now it's got a new coat of paint and a couple of neat features. In brief:
  • New UI: The map widget is much improved; it actually looks like a map now, and it's easy to see where you are.
  • Smart server selection: If there are several test servers nearby, Speedtest will now ping each to see which has the least latency and use that for the test. You can still specify servers manually, too.
  • User accounts: You can sign up for a free account and aggregate results from several computers/connections.
  • Speed Wave: This new feature lets you add your test results to the results of many other users, and get a nice composite view.
All in all, you get some nice, new functionality and a snazzier interface to boot. Nice!

Speedtest.net overhauled with new look, new features originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scape, Brian Eno's new ambient music creation app is now available on the iPad (video)

Scape, Brian Enos new ambient music creation app is now available on the iPad video

Music making apps for the iPad are ten-a-penny, but when it's the brainchild of a super-producer like Brian Eno, you have to take notice. Scape is the third of his collaborations with Peter Chilvers after Bloom and Trope, an app that lets you generate ambient music with Eno's own sounds on a colorful, conceptual interface. Unlike standard beats'n'loops setups, each sound is tied to a series of rules -- including the time of day -- that ensures the tunes you create never play the same way twice. It's available from iTunes for $5.99 / £3.99, and who knows, maybe in a few years time, Coldplay'll come calling for your professional expertise.

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Scape, Brian Eno's new ambient music creation app is now available on the iPad (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 Sep 2012 05:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Canadian Government Accidentally Ran a Bunch of Ads on the Pirate Bay [Piracy]

The Pirate Bay tends to be a website that national governments aren't particularly fond of. That being the case, it'd be surprising if a national government ran ads on the site, advertising an Economic Action Plan, right? Canada did that, but not on purpose. More »


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Mozilla Messaging reintegrates with Labs, unifies focus on Web-based communication

Mozilla Messaging, citing Mozilla's increased focus on Web-borne communications, will be reintegrating with Mozilla Labs.

The Messaging subsidiary was formed in 2008 to focus on Thunderbird, but given Mozilla Labs' current focus on identity and contact management, it now makes sense for the groups to be merged. Thunderbird will be unaffected by the change -- some URLs might change, but that's it -- and presumably Messaging's F1 and Raindrop will thrive in the Labs playground.

What this means for the end user -- for the hundreds of millions of Firefox users -- is that the next big additions will be communication- and messaging-oriented. Contacts and F1 will be almost certainly be baked into Firefox 5 or 6, both of which will be released this year -- and, who knows, there might be something else even more exciting up Mozilla Labs' sleeve!

Mozilla Messaging reintegrates with Labs, unifies focus on Web-based communication originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia Parking helps you find and pay for a spot, we go hands-on (video)

Parking in Paris is a nightmare. No, it's worse -- it's bad enough to keep you awake at night, worrying that your precious machine will be scratched up or simply missing the next morning. Nokia, at least, is trying to make things a little easier with an upcoming service it's just calling Nokia Parking. It's a comprehensive parking database launching in Europe in November that can not only help you find parking but even help you pay for it once you do. More details, and a video demo, after the break.

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Nokia Parking helps you find and pay for a spot, we go hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 20:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows 8 now available to OEMs via Microsoft Connect

windows 8Select Microsoft Connect partners -- major players like HP -- have been given their first taste of Windows 8. According to various sources, the build string currently sits at 7971.0.110324-1900, which is the third milestone build of the successor to Windows 7.

So far, there haven't been many details revealed about Windows 8. An actual System Restore -- which is being referred to as History Vault -- has been reported, and the feature will allow users and administrators to completely roll back a system to a previous state. A factory reset option is also said to be included.

We've also seen Windows Live integration taking shape on the desktop. It's believed that you'll be able to log in to Windows 8 using your Windows Live credentials, not just a traditional offline Windows username and password.

All that's left now is for a leaked Windows 8 build to show up on a torrent site. Feel free to tip us if you see that happen.

Windows 8 now available to OEMs via Microsoft Connect originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TweetDeck to launch as HTML5 Web app, now accepting beta testers

When TweetDeck landed in the Chrome Web Store, it seemed like an indication that it might eventually evolve into a pure HTML5 Web app. Now it looks as though that's exactly what's going to happen, with TweetDeck announcing that a new, not-just-for-Chrome Web client is ready for beta testing.

It's a natural progression for TweetDeck, especially since its originally Adobe Air app is practically all Web code. TweetDeck Web will sport a feature set which is nearly identical to the Chrome app, with the notable exception of Twitter streaming.

Initially, TweetDeck is targeting Firefox 4 and 3.6, Google Chrome, and Safari. Opera and Internet Explorer 9 won't be invited to the dance until a bit later on.

If you'd like to get in on the TweetDeck Web beta, head on over and register -- or sign up using your existing TweetDeck account.

TweetDeck to launch as HTML5 Web app, now accepting beta testers originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 06 Apr 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pastebin updated to V3, releases Windows app

pastebin
Pastebin is a very popular website aimed at coders and other nerdy types, which allows them (or should I say, us) to paste and share snippets of code with lovely syntax highlighting.

It has recently undergone a major overhaul which includes the release of a brand new Windows client. The new client lets you create new "pastes" and manage your existing ones. It joins a host of other tools from Pastebin, such as the Google and Chrome extensions, OS X widget and the mobile apps.

If you're currently using Pastebin, the new client is a great addition. And if you haven't tried it before, next time you have a piece of code you want to share or get some feedback on, you could do worse than try out Pastebin.

[Thanks, Jeroen!]

Pastebin updated to V3, releases Windows app originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Saturday, September 29, 2012

Save your tabs and Panorama tab groups in Firefox 4

Firefox 4 save tabs
When Firefox 4's tab grouping tool, Panorama, had its keyboard shortcut changed to the finger-breaking combo of Ctrl+Shift+E, we thought Panorama would get dropped before FF4's final release -- but, thankfully, it made the cut!

If you've used Firefox 4 and Panorama, you might have noticed that Mozilla's new browser doesn't always save your tab groupings when you close the browser -- a bit of a pain, if you spend a long time setting up the perfect groups! This is tied into the removal of the 'Save and Quit' dialog box -- and enabling Panorama tab group saving is just a matter of re-enabling the Save and Quit dialog.

Open a new tab and head to about:config. Click through the warning and type 'quit' into the filter box. Double click browser.showQuitWarning to change its value to true (see image after the break). That's it -- now you'll have the option of saving your tabs, and thus tab groups, when you close Firefox.

For more tech tips, visit our tips index.

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Save your tabs and Panorama tab groups in Firefox 4 originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft, CEA Take Different Views on CES Pullout

Microsoft sparked a tech-world furor Dec. 21 with the announcement that, starting in 2013, it will decline to provide a keynote speech or booth at the Consumer Electronics Show.

"We have decided that this coming January will be our last keynote presentation and booth at CES," Frank Shaw, Microsoft's corporate vice president of corporate communications, wrote in a posting that day on The Official Microsoft Blog. "We won't have a keynote or booth after this year because our product news milestones generally don't align with the show's January timing."

Microsoft will continue to participate in CES, he added, "as a great place to connect with partners and customers across the PC, phone and entertainment industries."

Indeed, CES doesn't always coincide with Microsoft's timing for its more high-profile releases. For example, at the 2011 edition of the show, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer used his keynote to hint at Microsoft's movement into tablets with Windows 8, but the company nonetheless chose to wait for several more months before providing a glimpse of the operating system at work.

However, executives at the Consumer Electronics Association, which runs CES, seem to dispute Microsoft's pullout as unilateral. Jason Oxman, the CEA's senior vice president of industry affairs, told The New York Times Dec. 21 that Microsoft's ending its show presence was more of a mutual decision. "From our standpoint, it was the right decision as well."

According to Oxman, the CEA wanted a new company for that opening keynote slot long held by Microsoft. The newspaper paraphrased him as saying the split with Microsoft "had not been acrimonious."

For its part, Microsoft could use Ballmer's 2012 CES keynote (if not its significant presence on the show floor) to show off some of the Windows 8 tablets in development. But after that, it seems, all such announcements and unveilings will come on Microsoft's terms. Whether that dampens the ability of CES to draw industry buzz remains to be seen.

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Zoho Docs 2.0 adds iPad support

zoho docs ipad
Zoho has offered an iOS app for a while now -- at least for the iPhone and iPod touch. Those of you who have been wanting to use the Zoho app on your iPad were out of luck, but that's no longer the case.

Zoho Docs 2.0 has landed in the App Store, and the most notable change is that it's now a universal app. Now you're able to take advantage of the app's mobile productivity powers on your larger iOS device. Retina display support has also been added, as have document sharing options -- which you can utilize in both the viewer and collaboration modes.

Just like the basic Zoho service, the app is available totally free of charge. Paid subscriptions get you additional storage space and start at $3 per month for professional use.

Zoho Docs 2.0 adds iPad support originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 06 Apr 2011 22:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Don't mind the zero-emissions Mercedes fuel-cell car behind the invisible curtain (eyes-on video)

Don't mind the zeroemissions Mercedes BClass fuelcell car behind the invisible curtain eyeson video

Mercedes wanted to make a dramatic statement about how its new B-Class F-Cell car passes through the environment without leaving a trace, so it placed it behind an invisible LED curtain. We wanted to (not?) see that for ourselves at the Paris Auto Show, so took a quick tour of the magic LED cloak and the technology behind it. It doesn't work quite as well in a show hall as it did when we first saw it in its natural habitat, but the system was still a fun way to show off Merc's green ambitions. It works by passing video from behind the car taken with a Sony video camera through a laptop to a 200 x 300 resolution LED curtain. That makes the car blend in with its background, which is what such a car would do in the real world as far as its emissions go -- apart from a little water, of course. See the video below for the complete technical explanation.

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Don't mind the zero-emissions Mercedes fuel-cell car behind the invisible curtain (eyes-on video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 11:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dodge is a space-shooter in which you have no weapons

dodge
Space-shooters are usually a fairly fiery affair, with many types of guns, weapon upgrades, power-ups and more. Dodge does away with all of that, while keeping the very essence of a space shooter: Dark background, fast action, and stuff blowing up all over the place.

Your vector-looking spacecraft is the fastest thing on the screen, most of the time. And as the header implies, you have absolutely no weapons; you can't get any, either. All you have is agility and maneuverability.

Your opponents shoot heat-seeking missiles at you; the missiles lock on and start tracking you. The trick is to dodge the missiles while putting them in the path of one of your enemies, thus letting them have a taste of their own medicine.

There are three types of enemies, at least in the first few levels: "simple" spaceships which fire slow projectiles, "tanks" which seem to be more serious and take more hits to destroy, and "circles." The circles simply explode, spewing twenty or thirty very fast projectiles. This sounds dangerous, but is actually great once you learn to use them; they are very destructive for tanks, and can even blow up other circles.

The soundtrack is very techno, but it meshes very well with this type of game. Intense fun!

Dodge is a space-shooter in which you have no weapons originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Chocomize personalized chocolate: giveaway and discount code

chocomize
Okay, I know what you're thinking: chocolate on Download Squad? That's right! That's because Chocomize is one of the nerdiest ways to get chocolate online: it's a website where you customize your own bar using a multi-step process.

We've covered Chocomize before in our holiday gift guide, so when they reached out to us offering to do a giveaway, we really couldn't resist.

Chocomize is giving away ten gift certificates, each worth $50, for you to create your own customized chocolate. They sent us some pictures of their recent creations, which you can find in the gallery below.

Regardless of the giveaway, you can use the discount code switched to get 10% off any Chocomize order. The code is valid through April 20th - just in time for Easter!

To participate, simply leave a comment. Fine print is after the jump.

Continue reading Chocomize personalized chocolate: giveaway and discount code

Chocomize personalized chocolate: giveaway and discount code originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 06 Apr 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Salesforce CEO Benioff Slams Microsoft

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff used a high-profile company event in New York City to engage in one of his favorite activities: swiping at competitors such as Microsoft.

"I think they've lost their relevancy," was how he described Microsoft during a Nov. 30 question-and-answer session, following his company's unveiling of its Social Marketing Cloud. "I just don't think they matter anymore." He was dismissive of the upcoming Windows 8, suggesting that that the "Windows Everywhere" paradigm was terminally outdated.

Microsoft and Salesforce have made a sport of lunging at each other's throats. On the product side, Salesforce.com's browser-based CRM competes with Microsoft Dynamics CRM. On the lawsuit side, the two companies have engaged in tit-for-tat patent battles, the latest of which ended in August 2010 with Salesforce agreeing to pay Microsoft an unspecified amount.

In the wake of that lawsuit, the companies' respective spokespeople took a somewhat conciliatory tone, with Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel of intellectual property and licensing at Microsoft (not to mention the bĂȘte noire of Google Android), describing the endpoint agreement as "an example of how companies can compete vigorously in the marketplace while respecting each other's intellectual property rights."

But that doesn't stop Benioff from doing his best to rip into Microsoft seemingly at every opportunity. There's a method to his madness: Salesforce products like the new Social Marketing Cloud (a suite of cloud-based analytics and engagement tools built atop Radian6 software) fully embrace the idea of browser-based software as an increasingly important business platform, one whose flexibility and scalability eclipses traditional on-premises software (and associated hardware). Meanwhile, Microsoft is powering toward the cloud as fast as it can, with products like Office 365, but its revenues are still largely tethered to traditional software such as Office and Windows, which it continues to heavily promote. Benioff needs to cast his company as the way of the future, and Microsoft as struggling to catch up.

The flip side is that Microsoft has billions of dollars and thousands of very smart people at its disposal. That means the company can do things like burn through hundreds of millions of dollars per quarter on developing online services. It can also afford to play a much longer game, strategy-wise, than many of its competitors. In other words, it's a dangerous opponent.

So Benioff slams them as outdated, and Microsoft's people fire back, and the game continues.

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This is the carbon fiber core of Ferrari's first hybrid

Ferrari has already said that it will never make an electric car -- at least, not while Luca di Montezemolo is in charge -- but we already know that a hybrid Ferrari is in the cards. And, this is what will hold it all together. At this year's Paris Auto Show the company rolled out this carbon fiber cage that is the core chassis of the machine. Other than a pledge that the thing will use F1-inspired technology nobody would tell us what it would be called (possibly F70, at least internally) or just when the rest of its components will be bolted on. But, for now, enjoy this sneak peek under the skin of Ferrari's next hypercar.

Steve Dent contributed to this report.

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This is the carbon fiber core of Ferrari's first hybrid originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 18:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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