If you have listened to previous episodes of my podcast(MHF Tech), then you will know that we had announced that we were working on a new website. I can now tell you that the website is now live. You can check it right now by going to mhftech.net.
Microsoft U-turns on XBox One Used Games
There was a huge backlash with regards to the way Microsoft were handling DRM for games on their upcoming XBox One console. However, after said backlash, Microsoft has done a complete 180 and said that the XBox One will have full support for used games. Additionally, Microsoft have stated that:
“After a one-time system set-up with a new Xbox One, you can play any disc based game without ever connecting online again. There is no 24 hour connection requirement and you can take your Xbox One anywhere you want and play your games, just like on Xbox 360″.
Basically, you will only need to connect to the Internet when you get your XBox One set up for the first time. After that, you are done and you won’t need to check in online to play Xbox One games offline.
I think that this is a huge victory for gamers. The huge backlash in the gaming community has caused more people to buy a PlayStation 4 over the XBox One. That being said, I think that there is nothing to stop Microsoft in changing this policy in the future. Personally this has also blown things wide open and will leave gamers to choose a console based on the games and not on the restrictions. If I were to put some money towards one of these consoles, I would say that I am still undecided at the moment.
On a side note, the PlayStation 4 and the XBox One now have similar policies regarding used games.
What do you think about this U-turn? Let me know in the comments.
Humble Bundle with Android 6 now available
We only finished up E3 last week and there is yet another sale on right now. This time, the folks at the Humble Bundle are offering up a sixth Android bundle. Best of all, they are all DRM-free, come with the soundtracks for the games(in MP3 and FLAC) and you pick the price you want to pay. As a bonus, you can unlock an additional 2 games if you pay more than the average price paid. In the bundle this time round, you will get:
- Aquaria
- Fractal
- Organ Trail: Director’s Cut
- Stealth B*****d Deluxe
- Pulse (Android Only)
- Frozen Synapse (unlocked by beating the average price paid)
- Broken Sword: Directors cut(unlocked by beating the average price paid)
Of course, all of the these games are for Linux, Windows, Mac and Android. Be advised that this deal is only available until Tuesday 2nd July 2013.
DISCOUNT ALERT: GoG Launches a Huge Summer Sale
It’s Summer once again folks! I know that a lot of you out there might be a little bit strapped for cash at the moment. However, the folks over at Good Old Games(GOG) have launched a huge summer sale. Some the big titles on sale include Faster Than Light, Neverwinter Nights 2 and Unreal Tournament 2004 ECE. Make sure that you jump on this one as soon as possible because this sale will only last until 5th July 2013. To sweeten the deal, all of the games on sale contain no DRM and there are new super deals every day. These deals will contain super discounts which make them an absolute steal. At the time of publishing, Torchlight(an RPG) is currently available for free!
Personally, I am really tempted by unreal tournament 2004 and the original Unreal Tournament. I used to download the mods for both of these games. I originally had them game on the PC, but never got to play it online, so I might just grab me a copy. In fact, there might be a small chance that you will see me online!
Think Before You Post
I think that social networks such as Twitter, Facebook and Google+ are really great services. Content creators like me, businesses and others have been using it to promote what they do. That’s why I count on social networks to promote what I do.
However, I have been coming across many instances of people posting something on their facebook profile, then deleting it later. So why might one do that? It’s because they don’t want people to see it. They might be afraid of people reposting their post. I’ve also seen that on twitter as well.
All of that having been said, I think that there is something that everyone should understand. If you are posting things on the internet, then it is going to stay there for good. Additionally, anything posted on the internet is public.
The point that I am trying to make here, is that if you don’t want the internet to see something, then don’t post it. It’s that simple. At the end of the day, you are in charge of what you post.
As you know, I post articles here on a daily basis. I also post up manually written tweets to twitter as well as manually written facebook posts, along with other content. Before you ask if I practise what I preach, I can reassure you that a lot of thought goes into posting something. I always make sure I know all of the facts before posting something. I always try to be as objective and as journalistic as I can.
So what I am asking you to do? Just think before you post. If you have the slightest doubt in your mind about posting something then don’t post it.
Skype Gets Video Messaging
Skype officially rolled out its Video Messaging feature. Now you can send messages to your friends on iOS, Android, BlackBerry, OS X, and Windows. The feature was released as a beta in February with limitations. Now that it’s official, you can send unlimited messages for free.
Personally, video messages is a feature that I don’t care about as much as I should. Whilst it sounds like a really good idea, I have not really found a need for it as such. That being said, only time will tell if this changes.
Adi’s Pick of The Week – UNetbootin
This week, my pick of the week is an application called UNetbootin.
So what is it? Well, UNetbootin allows you to download different distributions of Linux and put them onto your USB Flash Drive, so you can boot from them. You just simply choose which Distribution you want to use, then find the drive letter of the USB Flash Drive that you want to use. I should warn you that this will format your USB Flash Drive, so make sure to back up any data on it, or find a spare USB Flash Drive before using UNetbootin. If you don’t then you could end up accidentally formatting the hard drive on your laptop and losing all of the data on there. You will then be able to boot from that USB Flash Drive into that distribution of Linux without having to get rid of your Windows install.
So why would your care about this? Well, if you wanted to put Linux on your laptop or desktop, then you will need to know which distribution you want to go with. Why does this matter? With some distributions, some of your hardware might not work properly. For example, a distribution might not work nicely with your graphics card, or ethernet card. Therefore, you have to try different distributions of Linux to make sure that everything works before you install them. I would recommend either Ubuntu, Xubuntu, Linux Mint or OpenSUSE.
I have used this tool on many occasions very recently. I had a seven year-old laptop running Windows XP and I wanted to put Linux on there. In my previous experience, I’ve found that it worked well with Ubuntu. However, I did not know which variant of Ubuntu to go for, so I used UNetbootin to put Ubuntu and Xubuntu onto a USB flash drive. I think that UNetbootin is one of the best, yet simple tools I have come across for this purpose. Of course, one of the main advantages of trying Linux from a USB flash drive, is that you don’t have to waste so many CDs or DVDs to try out Linux. Instead, just run UNetbootin and put a new Linux distribution on there, it’s that simple! UNetbootin is free and you can get it for Windows, Linux or Mac, and I would highly recommend going over to the UNetbootin website and checking it out.
Adi’s Week in Tech News (Week Ending 16th June 2013)
It’s Sunday and it’s time for another edition of Adi’s Week in Tech News. This is your weekly roundup of all the week’s tech news in one place.
Apple had their worldwide developers conference(WWDC) in Moscone West, California USA on Monday, where they announced new software and hardware. Starting off with the Mac software, Apple unveiled OSX Mavericks which has some cool productivity features such as Finder tabs, a new calendar app, a new maps app and a new iBooks app. All of this will be available in Autumn(Fall), however developers can get their hands on a developer preview version of OSX Mavericks right now!. On the mobile side of things, Apple showed off the latest version of their mobile device operating system called iOS 7. It a revamped design, a control center to get quick access to wi-fi, bluetooth and other settings. A developer preview is available right now for iPhones, but it will release to the public in the Autumn. Of course, there were new MacBook Airs with faster performance, an Intel Haswell CPU and superfast 802.11ac networking which is available right now.
By sheer coincidence, E3 was also happening this week and I think it’s safe to say that the console wars are back on once again. Microsoft showed their hand by showing us some cool titles coming out for the XBox 360 including World of Tanks(which will be free to play and free to download). Of course, the main portion of the announcement was spent talking about the XBox One. They showed off games such as Ryse: Son of Rome and Metal Gear Solid 5. The XBox One will be available in the fourth quarter this year for $499(£429),
Of course, Sony were also at E3 and they finally showed us what the PlayStation 4 looks like. Games took center stage with great indie titles like OctoDad alongside big franchises like Kingdom Hearts and Bungie’s Destiny. One of the other facts we learned is that there are no restrictions with regards to used games. You will be able to get a game from a friend, throw it in your PS4 and start using it. However, the console itself ”won’t stop working if you haven’t authenticated within 24 hours.” In terms of Pricing and availability, the PS4 will be available later this year, in time for the winter holidays(most probably between October and December). It will be priced at $399(£349 or €399) but you can pre-order yours now!
The EU announced that as of July 2014, all roaming charges for phone calls, text messages and data(that is surfing the internet without wi-fi) will be scrapped. For those of you in the EU, if you travel anywhere else in the EU, then you will only pay what your phone network charges for activity in the country you live in.
As part of Project Loon, Google is launching balloons into near space to provide internet access to buildings below on the ground. About 30 of the superpressure balloons are being launched from New Zealand from where they will drift around the world on a controlled path. Attached equipment will offer 3G-like speeds to 50 testers in the country. Access will be intermittent, but in time the firm hopes to build a big enough fleet to offer reliable links to people living in remote areas.
EU to Scrap Phone Roaming Charges in 2014
Today is a glorious victory for us mobile phone users. The EU has announced that as of July 2014, all roaming charges for phone calls, text messages and data(that is surfing the internet without wi-fi) will be scrapped. For those of you in the EU, if you travel anywhere else in the EU, then you will only pay what your phone network charges for activity in the country you live in.
I am really glad that this has happened. It is such a huge victory for all of us here in the UK. I remember countless occasions of going on holiday to different destinations in the EU and getting charged a lot of money for a super short phone call. I think that it’s safe to say that those days will be behind us in just over a year from now.
On the other hand, I think that the telecom companies in the EU are not going to like this at all. I am sure that they will try to figure out some workarounds in order to get away with charging more for calls to EU countries.
Microsoft Releases Office 365 for iPhone (Finally!)
It seems that Microsoft’s XBox one isn’t Microsoft’s only story. After much anticipation, Microsoft have finally released Office 365 for iOS. It’s iPhone only at the moment. The app itself is free but you will need a current Office 365 subscription. You can download yours right now from the App store on your iPhone. At the time of writing, it was not available in the UK iPhone App Store, but I presume that Microsoft are still rolling it out.
Is this the same for you? Let me know in the comments.
Hideo Kojima Confirms Metal Gear Solid 5 for PS4
As we know E3(the Electronic Entertainment Expo) is all about the games. One of them being Metal Gear Solid 5, which was announced at Microsoft’s E3 press conference.
However, the big news is that in a response to a fans tweet, Hideo Kojima, series director for Metal Gear Solid confirmed that Metal gear solid is also coming to the PlayStation 4.
In other news Hideo Kojima has also confirmed that they do have plans to bring Metal Gear Solid 5 to the PC!
I don’t know about you, but I am excited by the look of Metal Gear Solid 5. It also has Kiefer Sutherland as the voice actor for Snake. What’s more, I would be really stoked IF it does come out for PC.