Gregarius » BetaNews.Com » août 29, 2013

BetaNews.Com (4 non lus)

Did Poetic slip and confirm iPhone 5C name and date?

Publié: août 29, 2013, 10:38pm CEST par Alan Buckingham

I own several tablets and am always on the lookout for a good deal on a new case for one of them. One place I keep a frequent eye on is Poetic, which manufactures a full line of cases for a number of different devices. As of this afternoon, we can add one more device to that lineup -- the Apple iPhone 5C.

You can imagine the surprise I got upon arrival on the company home page when I was greeted with the image seen above. The company appears to be unveiling its line of bumper cases for a phone that has not yet been released or even announced. In fact, Apple has yet to confirm it will even be holding an event in early September.

A click on the image resulted in the product page which again confirmed the 5C name and the shipping date of September 10 -- sadly no dimensions were listed. Its also unclear if the image was taken with a 5C posing, though that seems rather unlikely. When BetaNews spoke with Poetic representative Linda Cho she would only confirm the date of the bumper release and would say no more when pressed with other questions. In other words, Ms. Cho refused to admit there would even be a phone for this case.

None of this is entirely surprising. It ties nicely with what we have been hearing in rumor form -- the time frame and 5C name have been floating around the internet for a while. However, Apple generally frowns on this sort of thing, trying to keep even the name a secret until the event. As of this writing the page was still live.
Hidden File Finder lets you quickly identify hidden files on your PC

Publié: août 29, 2013, 10:33pm CEST par Mike Williams

If a malicious program wants to hide objects from you, then the simplest approach is to mark those files or folders as "hidden". By default they won’t be visible in Explorer, and even if you’ve changed that setting (see Folder Options in Explorer) they’ll still be just a few files out of many. You may never notice their existence.

When you’re checking a PC for malware or similar issues, then, it makes sense to highlight hidden content, and Hidden File Finder makes that very easy indeed.

The program attempts to install a couple of toolbars during the setup process, but the "Decline" button means they’re easily avoided. And after that, it’s all very straightforward: point the program at your starting folder, or the entire system; click "Start Scan", and then watch as the program lists anything of interest. (It won’t take long: our test PC saw around 36,000 folders 220,000 files checked in under a minute.)

Once the scan has finished, you’ll be presented with a report which includes each hidden file and its name, type, size, creation date and path. This can be sorted by each attribute, too, so you can easily pick out the largest files, or those created most recently.

To help you further, the program highlights executable files in red, while ignoring hidden files of known types (desktop.ini, thumbs.db) entirely.

And if you do spot anything which looks suspect, right-clicking it provides options to check the file at VirusTotal, search for it on Google, unhide the file or delete it entirely.

None of this is exactly sophisticated, of course. Hidden File Finder can only pick up the simplest attempts at concealment, with the hidden file attribute; if your system has something more advanced, like a rootkit, then the program is most unlikely to find any trace of it at all.

Still, checking your hidden files occasionally can be useful, and if you’ve no way to do this currently then Hidden File Finder is worth a try.
Flickr for iOS gets a revamp with new filters and photo editing tools

Publié: août 29, 2013, 10:29pm CEST par Nick Peers

Yahoo has released Flickr 2.20 for iPhone and iPod touch, a major new update to its app for quickly sharing and uploading photos using your iOS device’s camera.

The new build adds three major new filter-based features to its roster, plus adds new camera tools while dropping the paywall on some of the more professional editing tools. Both sets of tools are also jazzed up with new animated transitions for "the best camera experience yet".

The mobile app debuts a brand new set of filters that appear to have been inspired by Yahoo’s recent acquisition of GhostBird, the publisher behind PhotoForge and KitCam on iOS.

In addition to this, users can also apply live filters to their snaps, allowing them to preview various effects and use them as a lens while snapping the shot. Finally, if users don’t like the stock filters provided, they can be further customized to personal preference.

The update also adds a number of tools to help take better photos, with grids, pinch-to-zoom support, focus lock and improved exposure management controls, allowing users to ditch other third-party apps for snapping photos for use on Flickr.

Yahoo has also removed the paywall on its professional editing tools, meaning users can further enhance their photos with the help of enhance, crop, sharpen, adjust color, use levels and vignette adding tools among others without having to pay for the privilege.

The end result is an app that gets a much-needed update to close the gap on rival photo-sharing services like Instagram. Flickr 2.20 for iPhone and iPod touch is available as a free download now. Also available is Flickr 2.1 for Android.
Halo: Spartan Assault gets free Operation Hydra expansion

Publié: août 29, 2013, 7:23pm CEST par Brian Fagioli

Last month, Microsoft released Halo: Spartan Assault for Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8. I declared that the game was "the best smartphone game I have ever played" -- a statement I stand by today. However, Microsoft has chosen not to rest on its laurels. Today, the company announces an update to the popular game called Operation Hydra.

Microsoft says it is a "free game update with five new missions to battle through". The company further says that the update "also adds support for phones with 512MB RAM, making the game available to even more Windows Phone models".

While the game is also available for Windows 8, this is really huge news for the Windows Phone 8 community. Initially, the game was only available to Verizon customers with 1GB of RAM. While Verizon's exclusivity ended on August 18, the 512MB restriction still segregated the community. Today's announcement means all Windows Phone 8 users can experience this awesome game including the new update.

"In the new five-mission Operation Hydra expansion update, you intercept a haunting alien signal after the destruction of planet Draetheus V. Following the signal to the core of the planet’s moon, you discover its terrifying source -- and a surprising new mystery to unravel", says Microsoft.

While the game is a bit pricey (at least for a smartphone game) at $6.99, there is good news for those of you who prefer to try before you buy. A Microsoft spokesperson tells me that a demo version of "Halo: Spartan Assault" will be available as a free download in both the Windows Phone Store and Windows Store on August 30. It will feature one mission and the gameplay tutorial.

The game can be downloaded here for Windows 8 (including RT) and here for Windows Phone 8. Have fun!