Firefox passes 1 billion downloads
It's party time at Mozilla's crib everyone as Firefox, the browser that truly put a dent in Internet Explorer's hegemony, has passed 1 billion downloads. Initially known as Phoenix, then Firebird, the Foxxy One made its debut in November 2004 and is now at its 3.5 release.
Last year the Firefox 3 release saw the browser set the Guinness World Record for most downloads in the course of 24 hours, 8,002,530 downloads being recorded, and this new milestone only comes to confirm the success of Mozilla's open source application.
Mozilla intends to launch a website - www.onebillionplusyou.com, on Monday to provide information about what the one billion downloads mark represents. Now go party and don't give any alcohol to the Fox, they don't drink that, just pet it nicely. Congrats Mozilla!
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New Opera 10 snapshot released
The weekend is almost here and the Desktop Team of Opera Software does not disappoint in providing us with something to test in the next couple of days (and beyond) - a fresh Opera 10 snapshot. The new release comes with a heap of bug fixes and things like:
- New tools icon for the main menu
- Further tab improvements, including trying out better attention state design
- Changed original size of Google field to be 25% of toolbar size
- Changes to the way the dragbar and addressbar work in Standard and Mac skin. Also resolves shifting caused by removing search box
- Contacts should be below mail in the panel selector
- Removed old history icon
- Improved compatibility with 9.2x skins: Let the drag scrollbar skin fall back to toolbar skin instead of scrollbar skin
- Re-added a fall back for toolbar buttons in the tab cycler, for compatibility with older skins
- Tab cycle thumbnails on as default
- Added styling to the "no message selected" message in the mail/feed tab
- Changed the default for mail import from Opera 5/6 to Opera 7/8/9/10
- Fixed Unite status dialog: No longer losing status text selection on status update
- Advanced settings are now disabled when choosing to upgrade service
For a full changelog of the new Opera 10 build and download links of its Windows, Linux and Mac OS X versions check out this page.
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Acer to roll out new Core i7-powered Predator model
Acer's eye-catching Predator (aka Aspire G) line-up of orange gaming rigs is about to be updated with a new model called ASG7710-A41. Coming in the same Transformers-like enclosure, the new system features an Intel X58 motherboard, a 3.06 GHz Core i7 950 CPU, 6GB of RAM, two GeForce GTS 250s in SLI, a 1TB hard drive and a Blu-Ray optical drive.
The Predator ASG7710-A41 comes pre-loaded with Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit, is bundled with a Logitech G15 keyboard and G9 mouse and is set to become available soon at about $2,715. For those who want even more there's a $5,200+ G7710 powered by the Core i7 965 EE.
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McAfee buying MX Logic for $140 million
Quickly after announcing a $469 million revenue (up 18% on-year, up 5% sequentially) for Q2, security company McAfee has revealed that it reached an agreement to acquire Englewood-based MX Logic, a privately owned company providing cloud-based email and Web security and email archiving and continuity services.
Through the inked deal McAfee will pay about $140 million in cash and possibly a futher $30 million if certain performance targets are met. Following the completion of the transaction MX Logic team will be integrated into the McAfee Software-as-a-Service business unit and enable the company to offer a comprehensive and dedicated security portfolio "with the broadest set of delivery options including appliances, software, in the cloud or hybrid deployments."
"The acquisition of MX Logic will reinforce our position as a leader in Security-as-a-Service, and brings world-class email and Web defense, including archiving and business continuity services, extending our proven expertise in providing cloud-based services to our customers," said Dave DeWalt, president and chief executive officer, McAfee. "MX Logic aligns with the McAfee vision to lead Security SaaS by bringing industry-leading technologies and a strong partner ecosystem."
The acquisition of MX Logic is expected to be closed later this quarter.
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Trimmed down version of Nero 9 available as free download
Aiming to spark more interest in its software line-up, Nero AG is now offering a free version (no 15-day trial here) of its Nero 9 suite. This new release comes as a 55MB download and provides only data burning and disc copying features for CDs and DVDs, but users can choose to later purchase updates for it to add more features and functionality.
To get the free version of Nero 9 (v9.4.12.3) simply visit this page and provide an email address.
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Acer readies four Aspire M series desktops
Acer Japan is gearing up to introduce a quartet of desktop PCs under its Aspire brand - two AMD-powered ASM3202s and two Intel-equipped ASM5800s. The cheapest model prepared by Acer is the ASM3202-A42, which features a 2.6 GHz Phenom II X4 810 processor, 2GB of RAM, an AMD 780G motherboard with Radeon HD 3000 series integrated graphics, a 640G HDD and a DVD drive, and has a price tag of $625.
Going for $730, the ASM3202-A43 packs everything listed above with two exceptions - it comes with a 2.8 GHz Phenom II X4 925, a 750GB hard drive. Just like its little brother, the ASM3202-A43 is powered by Windows Vista Home Premium.
Those craving an Intel-based desktop can look at the ASM5800-A37 which boasts a 2.66 GHz Core 2 Quad Q8400, 4GB of RAM, a Radeon HD 4650 1GB video card, a 750GB hard drive and a Blu-Ray drive, and costs $1,148.
Also equipped with 4GB of memory and Blu-Ray drive, the ASM5800-A38 also has a 2.83 GHz Core 2 Quad Q9550, a GeForce GTS 230 1.5GB and a 1TB HDD. For this configuration the expected price tag is $1,460.
All the four Aspire M series desktop PCs are set to become available in Japan next week.
Pictures courtesy of PC watch.
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Gmail gets support for third-party outbound servers
Among the many things offered by Gmail is the ability to send an email using the address from a third party (non-Google) service. This feature although getting the emails delivered properly, has been criticized for including the Gmail username in the "Sender" field of the message header, the end result looking something like this: 'From username@gmail.com On Behalf Of username@non-gmaildomain.com'.
Due to 'popular demand', Google has now given users the option of taking out the 'on behalf of' by using the servers of third-party email services to send emails. To make use of this new option go to the Accounts page under Settings, and click 'edit info' from the 'Send mail as' section. The last step is to choose the option to 'Use your other email provider's SMTP servers.' Yes, it's not the biggest addition to Gmail but it's nice to have such options available.
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eBay working on new P2P tech for Skype
While reiterating its intention to spin off Skype, eBay has confirmed that it is concerned about the future of its communication-prone subsidiary due to a pending lawsuit regarding the peer-to-peer technology used by Skype. Back in 2005 when it spent $2.6 billion to buy Skype, eBay didn't acquire the P2P tech, which is currently still licensed from Joltid, a company owned by Skype founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis.
After a few years of relatively happiness, Joltid and eBay have started battling, with the former accusing Skype of breaching their license agreement, and eBay filing a claim with the English High Court of Justice in London to resolve the dispute. With this case set to kick off in a UK court in June 2010, eBay has begun working on a new technology to use in the event that Joltid wins and the current license agreement is severed.
eBay has warned that its alternatively to Joltid's P2P solution may come with less functionality (at least at first) and could even drive away Skype users, so it probably hopes it will win the case next year. Until then Skype continues to run, make money, and prepare for the spin off.
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Intel said to stop supplying netbook makers with Atom Z processors
Although not as widely used as the Atom N series model, the Atom Z CPUs can still be found in quite a few netbook models, like the Dell Mini 10, Acer's AO751h, and Asus' Eee PC 1101HA. According to a new report though, the number of Atom Z-powered netbook will drop in the coming months as Intel will stop selling them to makers of such machines.
As the Pine Trail platform closes in Intel plans to end deliver of Atom Z chips for netbooks by the end of this year, letting manufacturers choose between the 'old' N and new N series Atoms. The Atom Z processors were initially targeted for use within MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices) but since this segment hasn't pick up it agreed to let them power netbooks.
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Creative and THX working on THX TruStudio PC suite
Sound Blaster maker Creative has teamed up with sound specialist THX in order to develop THX TruStudio PC, a 'bundle' of technologies that are supposed to deliver "an unprecedented PC audio listening experience." Set to be offered to OEMs, the TruStudio PC suite consists of the following:
- THX TruStudio PC is designed to bring the same great audio experience found in live performances, films, and recording studios to the PC.
- THX TruStudio PC Surround provides immersion control to enhance the natural sense of audio depth and spaciousness by creating virtual surround sound channels. Stereo content or multi-channel content played over stereo speakers and headphones will sound as if it's coming from all sides while voices remain centered in front and original balance and timbre is preserved.
- THX TruStudio PC Crystalizer restores the natural dynamic range that is lost when iTunes and MP3 music gets compressed. This makes the music sounds as good as the artist originally intended, and adds an enhanced level of realism for movies and games.
- THX TruStudio PC Speaker fills in the missing low frequency tones and gives the extra impact for a better entertainment experience. Consumers no longer have to tolerate lack of bass in speakers built into notebook PCs, 2.0 speakers or headphones, as THX TruStudio PC Speaker technology dramatically improves the sound experience without a subwoofer.
- THX TruStudio PC Dialog Plus enhances the voices in movies for clearer dialog, allowing the listener to hear the dialog over the rest of the soundtrack and over ambient noise in the listening environment.
- THX TruStudio PC Smart Volume addresses the problem of abrupt volume level changes during playback and between songs by automatically and continuously measuring volume, and intelligently applying gain and attenuation to compensate for those changes.
"Now Creative has joined forces with THX to develop an entirely new level of listening experiences for music, movies, and games with TruStudio PC, utilizing the expertise each company has developed to break new grounds in the consumer experience. It's an amazing suite of audio technology solutions, providing a level of listening quality that consumers have never had before," said Steve Erickson, VP and GM of audio at Creative. "Now PC manufacturers can produce PCs that sound dramatically better and they can market this significant differentiation in sound quality by using the THX TruStudio PC brand, instead of differentiating by processor or memory capacity."
Creative and THX have not said when we'll be seeing the first systems 'powered' by THX TruStudio PC but luckily, we can wait. Right?
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