I really want to see a new and improved Windows 7 tablet PC to come around soon. Don’t you? I personally don’t see much point in a tablet if it runs the same operating system as my aging smartphone. So far, Microsoft has kept my hopes up. They have confirmed that they are currently working on Windows 7 tablet PCs, and today Steve Ballmer talked a bit more about Microsoft’s tablet PC plans. Ballmer was quoted as saying, “We’re in the process of doing that as we speak. We’re working with our hardware partners. We’re tuning Windows 7.” He made it clear that Microsoft will be sticking to Windows 7 for their upcoming tablets, and made it sound like their intent was to take the desktop and reshape it to fit in the form factor of a slate. Sounds like a lot of work, but if done right, it will definitely be worth it. It’s worth nothing that this has already been done unsuccessfully with older versions of Windows in the past, but with Windows 7 and better hardware, this holds a lot of promise today.
So it’s mid-2010, there are a lot of Android-powered tablet PCs in the market, and then there’s the iOS-powered alternative, Apple’s iPad. Many people are waiting for either a lower price for the 3G-enabled iPad, or a “better” Android tablet to become available. Still, others are waiting for yet another kind of tablet. One that’s powered by a real desktop operating system in the form of Windows 7. Yes, I’m talking about the Windows 7 tablets. Continue reading »
Today is the perfect time to update your Windows 7 installations because Microsoft has just release Service Pack 1 for the latest version of their flagship operating system. Windows 7 SP1′s release was announced as early as last month along with Windows Server 2008 R2 at Microsoft’s annual Tech-Ed conference. It is said that Windows 7 SP1 will include several hotfix patches and RemoteFX, a new enhancement to RDP’s graphical remoting capabilities that should provide provides rich 3-D graphical experience for remote users. Windows 7 SP1 will also come with new virtualization tools that will help Windows Server 2008 R2 users prepare for cloud computing. There might be more new things to Windows 7 SP1 but for now Microsoft is mum on additional details.
Google has put the power to create mobile applications in the hands on virtually anyone with the introduction of their latest product, Google App Inventor for Android. Currently in its beta stage in Google Labs, the App Inventor for Android allows programmers and non-programmers alike to make their own mobile applications for the Android OS. It looks like a great way to dabble in mobile app creation without having to go through the extensive training to which the pros are subjected, but it might be a little far-fetched to think that applications produced via Google’s App Inventor for Android will be able to match the quality and sophistication of those coded by real programmers. But who really knows? Could the next Android killer app come from the new App Inventor?
Nowadays, it’s no longer considered cool to walk around with an Android smartphone in one hand and a netbook running Ubuntu Linux on the other. But you know what is? Using both hands to tinker with an Android smartphone that’s running Ubuntu Linux instead of the Android OS. It drives the ladies nuts, for some reason. If you’ve got an extra Google Nexus One lying around and have been wanting to mess with Ubuntu Linux for the longest time, well now you can. Even just a faint curiosity about the possibilities would suffice. I have here an embedded video which shows exactly what I’m talking about above, and the Source link below provides some details regarding installation.
It looks like 64-bit computing is finally starting to pick up steam, thanks to Microsoft’s latest desktop operating sytem, Windows 7. According to figures recently published by the software giant, the 64-bit version of Windows 7 accounts for nearly half of all Windows 7 installations at 46%, compared to Windows Vista’s measly 11% back in its “glory days.” This might be due to the fact that most prebuilt computers you can buy nowadays come with at least 4GB of RAM, or even if they come with 3GB of RAM or less, some of them still have Windows 7 64-bit installed. Even I, personally, use the 64-bit version of Windows 7 on a couple computers of mine with only 1GB of RAM. I know the point of a 64-bit OS is to make better use of available system memory (32-bit Windows can only read up to 3.25GB of RAM), but a 64-bit OS has other benefits too. Now all that’s left to happen is for our most used desktop programs to come out with 64-bit versions in order to better take advantage of this development. Notably, Firefox and many other popular programs still don’t have 64-bit versions.
If you have absolutely had it with Windows Mobile and would like to see Android running on one of your own WinMo-powered smartphones, Well, you’re in luck. Because with a constantly active community of developers composed of people just like you and me who want to see Android take over the world to have the option to run Android without forking over the cash for a brand new phone, you can now install the Android OS on a Windows Mobile smartphone by following a particular set of instructions to a T. It doesn’t yet work on all WinMo smartphones but you can check out the progress devs are having with several popular smartphone models, along with the above-mentioned instructions, via the Source link below. Note: use great caution.
With the introduction of Apple’s iPhone 4, video calling was also introduced as a new feature in the guise of something called FaceTime. It was nice to see the iPhone finally catch up to competition in this regard, but there’s a minor problem: FaceTime only works on Wi-Fi and not on 3G. So what’s an iPhone 4 owner to do? Well, nothing, actually, until the last update was rolled out to fring for iPhone which added support for video calls over 3G. And it works flawlessly in video calls with users of fring on other platforms besides the iPhone, too (Android and Symbian, for example). Check out the iTunes App store to give the new fring a try (on your new iPhone, that is).
Due to persistent public demand, Cerulean Studios has just announced that they are already working on an Android version of the Trillian IM client. This hardly comes as a surprise as Trillian is quite a popular IM client and it has already made its rounds in the iPhone platform. Trillian for Android’s features will include (1) the ability to connect to Facebook Chat, Windows Live, Yahoo!, AIM, ICQ, Google Talk, Jabber/XMPP or MySpaceIM, (2) synchronize contacts, avatars, status, accounts and more with your Trillian-enabled desktop or mobile apps, (3) support for tabbed chat windows with bubble view, photo transfer, buzz and emoticons, and (4) the option to set status, avatar and display name quickly in one simple screen. Trillian for Android will work for all types of Android phones, even those as old as the T-Mobile G1. Cerulean Studios says the first beta release is only a few weeks away so watch out for updates.
