I was away this week so I wasn’t able to update the blog over the past week. As I’m now back to my normal schedule, I should be updating it more regularly. In any event, enjoy this weeks Weekly Wrap-Up. (P.S. Devs may be getting WP7 devices next week!)
“4K” Videos Coming to YouTube
YouTube announced on Friday that they would be unveiling the ability for “4K” videos on their website. This somewhat new standard will significantly increase the quality of video content that is available on the website. “4K” videos are about 4 times as big as the current Hi-Def 1080p videos. With a resolution of 4,096 x 3,072, 4K video offers the best quality of video that is currently readily available to the general public. Of course, the average person is still uploading their videos from their cell phones, digital cameras etc., so don’t expect a whole bunch of “4K” videos being uploaded to YouTube anytime in the future. However, it does stand to reason that the guys in charge of HDMI are already creating a standard for this new type of video. If anything, more and more of this video will be available to our homes.
Only 500 KINs Sold? As If, Try 10,000
With the downfall of the KIN, many Microsoft antagonists were trying to downplay the overall success of the KIN device, you know, the one Microsoft recently axed. Somehow somebody decided to quote the number of KINs that were sold to be 500. I’m not entirely sure where that number could have ever come from, but it’s not the real number. In fact, Microsoft actually sold much closer to 10,000 KINs during its short tenure. Still, 10,000 KINs is nothing to brag about, but it’s literally 20 times better than the number some tech journalists were apparently reporting. Perhaps we can get fairer reporting on a Microsoft device in the future. We can still have fair reporting when it comes to Microsoft, right?
Windows 7 Family Pack – To Be Released This Holiday Season?
Maybe. That’s what some people are saying, and it seems logical that Microsoft would re-release the Windows 7 Family Pack around this time. For those unfamiliar, Windows 7 Family Pack offered three licenses of Windows 7 Home Premium to those, well, with more than one PC. The entire package cost $150, or about $30 more than a single license of Home Premium. This was a great deal, and something I’ve been looking forward to Microsoft doing for quite some time. The ill-conceived Family Pack, however, originally “ran out” shortly after Windows 7 was first released. If it is released again, hopefully it won’t disappear as quickly as it did before.
Windows Phone 7 Coming October, 2010
It was announced (sort of) this week that Windows Phone 7 would be officially available come October of this year. However, it seems like this was the date that was set a long time ago, or at least, that’s what I had always envisioned was an October release date. Even if Windows Phone 7 is released in October, it will take a while for Microsoft’s partners (i.e. Motorola, HTC, Dell, etc.) to fully implement the software.
Support for 64-bit
And this bit of news is both impressive, and unimpressive at the same time. First, of course, Windows 7 64-bit is now being sold on 46% of PCs (or in other words, it’s installed on 46% of PCs). This sounds great of course, but I would have thought it would be a bit higher by now, especially with almost every PC now being sold with 4GB or more of RAM, it just seems natural to have 64-bit Windows 7. Either way, 46% install base is still pretty impressive, and will obviously continue to grow as time goes on. Of course, it’s still a wonder why BlackBerry still doesn’t offer support for Outlook 2010 64-bit, however.
Windows XP, 2003 Zero Day Flaw Patched
Remember the security flaw for Windows XP and Server 2003 that a Google employee found? Well, Microsoft has finally gotten a chance to patch the flaw and it will be available this Tuesday. Of course, it wouldn’t have been as big of an issue had the original Google employee gone directly to Microsoft (as is typical for the situations); instead of being an idiot and letting the entire world know. Of course, his response was that it was for better for everyone or something like that… yeah, it was definitely better for everyone. That’s why hackers immediately took a hold of this vulnerability and started exploiting it. Note to Google: go through the proper channels next time. Maybe then Microsoft would actually be able to fix it before it became a Zero-day flaw. (It seems like everything is a Zero-day flaw now.)
Finally, Firefox Is More Modern
Mozilla released its latest beta of Firefox (dubbed version 4.0) on Tuesday this week. So far, I’ve been very impressed. Firefox 4.0 offers a slick new UI that should be a pleasant welcome to those using Windows 7 or Vista. Of course, it’s not just the UI that makes Firefox 4 better than its predecessors. Mozilla has done several tweaks to the backend, some of which are noticeable, while others aren’t (by design, of course). You can download and install the latest beta from the Mozilla Beta site. You can also find a thorough look at Firefox 4 on my site as well (link soon).
Windows Phone 7 Devices for Developers Next Week?
Maybe. That’s what some of my sources are saying. ‘Nuf said here.
Tech for Seniors
I recently started a new blog called Tech for Seniors. It will focus on getting seniors used to and familiar to technology, especially newer, more modern technology. As with this blog, I’ll try to focus as much as I can with Windows, but will try to convey it in a much more simple, and easier to understand (i.e. no tech jargon) way. I’ve worked a lot with a few seniors and their computers, and find that a lot of what I do, I could also post online, sort of as a quick reference. I won’t be updating it as frequently as this site; however, I’ll try to post some new task every week. Feel free to check it out sometime!
As always, you can follow me on Twitter, leave a comment below, or e-mail me!
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