Hasta La Gadget!

While Microsoft is busy readying the much talked about Windows 8 for release, a new patent application has popped up that could reveal even bigger — or at least faster — things to come. According to the filing for “Fast Machine Booting Through Streaming Storage,” which was submitted in February of last year and released last week, Redmond is looking at creating a system that could stream an entire OS to just about anything with a screen. The proposed setup would enlist a series of storage devices, both remote and local, to act as a virtual hard disk, allowing anything from a set top box to a tablet to boot almost instantaneously. We don’t know about you, but we’ve already started a list of ways to spend the extra seconds.

[Thanks, Bogen]

Microsoft patent application points to fast-booting streaming OS originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Aug 2011 06:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This article was written on May 28, 2010 by CyberNet.

Windows only
Most people carry a USB drive around for storing files on-the-go, but that’s not all they are good for. A free (for non-commercial use) program called Predator will actually let you use a USB drive as a key for your computer. Basically, when you remove the drive the computer will lock itself, and it will be unlocked the next time you insert the drive.

How it works is simple:

1. You insert the USB drive
2. You run PREDATOR (autostart with Windows is possible)
3. You do your work
4. When you’re away from your PC, you simply remove the USB drive – once it is removed, the keyboard and mouse are disabled and the screen darkens
5. When you return back to your PC, you put the USB flash drive in place – keyboard and mouse are immediately released, and the display is restored.

There are some things you might naturally be concerned about, such as what happens if you lend out your drive to someone and they copy everything on it? Well, you can set up the app to require a password in order to unlock your computer, but that may not be necessary. Predator will update your key from time-to-time so that any copies are invalidated. If you’re worried about losing your USB drive you can always designate a secondary drive, that uses its own key, that can be used in an emergency.

The free version of Predator is only for personal, non-commercial use. If you do buy the app you’ll also get some advanced features such as Twitter or SMS notifications in the event that someone tries to “break into” your computer. For most home users I’m guessing the logging options really aren’t necessary.

Predator Homepage (Windows only; Free for non-commercial use)

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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We’re wishing a heartfelt farewell to Microsoft Reader today, because the folks at Redmond have decided to pull the plug on their e-book application, more than a decade after it first launched. Pre-dating the rise of the e-ink medium, the forward-looking MS Reader was originally designed to display digitzed books on an LCD screen, using the company’s ClearType font display. Over the past few years, however, the app has slowly faded into obscurity, with the latest desktop version dated from 2007 and its last update rendering it compatible with Windows Mobile 6.1. The concept was clearly ahead of its time, but it ultimately fell behind what would become a swelling trend, ushered in by the Kindle, Nook and other e-reading hardware. No word yet on whether Microsoft plans to introduce a similar tool for Windows 8, though the timing of Reader’s demise certainly leaves ample room for speculation.

Microsoft closes the book on MS Reader app originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Aug 2011 08:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This article was written on November 23, 2006 by CyberNet.

Tutorial Thursday

One thing that I never understood about Windows was why there are preset locations for the system folders like “My Music” and “My Pictures”. Operating Systems are about giving users choices (well, sometimes) and this is something that should be easily adjustable. Microsoft must have realized that and they now offer an extremely easy solution for users to move the location wherever they want in Vista.

First of all, many of you may be wondering why I would ever want to move the location in the first place? On my desktop PC I have two hard drives: one for my operating system and another for my main files. The hard drive that stores my main files is very important because it keeps backups of the other computers (and our website) along with my pictures and music. I don’t want to waste space on my operating system hard drive when I already have the music and pictures located on the other hard drive…so basically I just want to link the “My Music” and “My Pictures” folders to the other hard drive.

For Windows XP you can dive into the Registry but I think it is much easier to use the TweakUI utility that Microsoft provides:

1. Download TweakUI from Microsoft
2. After you install it, go to your Start Menu and execute the application. Browse to the the My Computer->Special Folders option.
3. Select the drop-down menu and choose which folder you would like to change.
   
4. Click the Change Location button and select Yes to agree to the warning prompt that you will receive.
5. Choose the new location for your folder. Click OK to accept the new folder location and continue changing any other folders that you would like. You should also browse through the TweakUI program because it offers a lot of great things that you can change.

Microsoft actually got smart and made it possible to change this feature in Windows Vista without the need for additional software or Registry hacks. Look at how easy it is now:

1. Open up Windows Explorer and browse to the folder that you would like to change. In this example I am doing the Downloads folder.
2. Right-click on the folder and select the Properties option.
   
3. Go to the Location tab and change the location to wherever you would like.
   
4. Repeat this with all of the folders that you would like to change.

In both Windows XP and Windows Vista it is pretty easy but I am happy that Microsoft finally decided to integrate this option into the Vista user interface. I have noticed a lot of these subtle features as I have been using Windows Vista and I will continue to share them with you over the next few weeks. By the time the consumer version is released you will be all prepared and knowledgeable about these time-saving features.

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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A guy named Ben Wu sent us this video recently and it sort of blew our minds. Wu, an engineer and self-described dreamer, has spent the past year developing a program he calls Quantum Phantom — an Iron Man-inspired system that allows users to control a computer’s cursor using only an ordinary webcam. With his Windows software onboard, Wu can draw, write and move onscreen icons or widgets, simply by waving his camera in front of a set of dual monitors. The prototype is even sophisticated enough to recognize his own webcam-produced handwriting and automatically convert it to rich text. In most cases, the sensor relies upon an ordinary cursor to navigate a screen, but Wu has also developed a pointer-free solution, as demonstrated toward the end of the above, three-part video. Be sure to check it out for yourself and get lost in the magic.

[Thanks, Ben]

Quantum Phantom prototype lets you control your computer screen with a webcam (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Aug 2011 08:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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