IT-Code-News: IT News Head Lines (TweakTown) 23/12/2013

NASA begins its ISS repairs, the first 6.5-hour spacewalk has begun
Four days ago we reported that NASA had ordered urgent repairs to the International Space Station (ISS), with these repairs now beginning with a 6.5-hour spacewalk.

Astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins will begin the repairs, where they will hopefully replace a faulty piece of cooling equipment. This is the first of three spacewalks the astronauts will do, with the last one happening on Christmas Day, just a dew days from now.

First major US retailer to accept Bitcoin in the second half of 2014
Overstock.com CEO, Patrick Byrne, has said that his company would be one of the first to accept Bitcoin, where it will accept the digital currency in the second half of next year.

Byrne spilled the news during an interview with the Financial Times, where he said there is going to be a market in Bitcoin, and he wanted his company to embrace it. Byrne believes Bitcoin will hold its value better than the fiat-based dollar, thanks to the fact that it is mathematically constrained, versus the limitless printing of the dollar through the Federal Reserve and government authorities.
The Overstock.com CEO stated that his company would bank the digital currency in the event that similar digital funds increase in popularity. If, however, the digital currency begins to deflate, the company would transfer Bitcoins to dollars on a daily basis.

Former EA Senior VP joins Oculus VR as head of worldwide publishing
Oculus is securing talent every couple of weeks it seems, with the brain child of Doom and Quake, John Carmack, stepping on board as Chief Technology Officer not too long ago. Now have news that the VR outfit has secured a former EA Senior VP to join as the head of worldwide publishing.

This department is fresh, with the aim of the new department to help developers create games that work with the Oculus Rift. David DeMartini is the man for the job, and in a statement to Gamasutra, DeMartini described his position as "not particularly different from what I did for seven years" when he was involved with the EA Partners program.
He continued: "I'm figuring out how to partner effectively with big developers, small developers, all the way down to the individual who just wants to make something great for the Rift."

Most-Googled tech gadget of 2013 in the US? Sony's PlayStation 4
The PS4 has been with us for around a month now, but it looks like Sony's next-gen console was the most-searched-for item this year in the US, under the Tech Gadgets category.

This data is coming from Google's Zeitgeist, which makes a tally of the year's most popular searches. How did the Xbox One fare? Well, surprisingly, it didn't even arrive in the top 10 for the US. As for worldwide searches, the PS4 came in position 3 for the Consumer Electronics category, while the Xbox One was in position 4.

Steam Holiday Sales: more massive savings on big titles!
The Steam Holiday Sales continue, with some great savings over the next 16 or so hours. We have Telltale Games' The Wolf Among Us at 33% off, down from $24.99 to $16.74. Or, how about Sleeping Dogs down from $24.99 to just $4.99 - a whopping 80% off.

You might have been waiting for CounterStrike: Global Offensive to drop, so now is your time: it has 75% off, down from $14.99 to just $3.74. Darksiders II: Death Lives also has 80% off, down from $49.99 to just $9.99 - a massive saving!

Stolen Target credit cards hitting black market
Major retailer Target is under fire after 40 million customers have been affected by a credit and debit card security threat, as some account information has hit the open market.

An unnamed bank had its security team purchase back stolen account information of its customers from an online forum, with account information available on sometimes sophisticated online trading places. It seems that credit cards were the main focus of the breach, with Target claiming there hasn't been impact to debit card PIN numbers.
This is a frustrating situation for Target, banks, and consumers - banks are hesitant to issue new cards, due to the high price ($3-$5 per card, on average), while customers are worried about their financial security.

ASUS USB-AC56 802.11ac Wireless Adapter Review

As new wireless technologies proliferate in the market, in this case 802.11ac, we find ourselves searching out the means to utilize the new standard. Most notebooks and ultrabooks are not coming equipped with 802.11ac out of the box, leaving us researching and comparing USB wireless adapters.
ASUS has enjoyed recent success with their entire line-up of networking products, the most notable were the 802.11n routers, accompanied by their very own wireless adapters. Hoping to continue this success, ASUS has launched the next generation of wireless products with 802.11ac capabilities. In house today, we have the opportunity to take a look at the USB-AC56 wireless adapter.
Specifications of the adapter have the device featuring a USB 3.0 port for maximum throughput. Additionally, the adapter features a 2dbi internal antenna with the option of an external dipole as well. Compatibility extends from Windows XP to 8 and Mac OS X 10.5+. Warranty is listed at two years.

The packaging for the adapter denotes many of the capabilities of the device. Here we have 5GHz capabilities up to 867Mbps and 2.4GHz 300Mbps. Also featured is the AiRadar Technology, which is ASUS twist on beamforming.

Included in the scope of delivery, we have the adapter and high gain antenna, along with the utilities disk and USB 3.0 stand.

Taking a look at the included stand, we find it built quite well. In addition, the USB 3.0 extension cable is heavily shielded to eliminate any interference with the 2.4GHz wireless band.

Looking over the adapter, we find it quite similar in appearance to many of ASUS' previous wireless adapters. The top showing a diamond pattern with the ASUS logo in chrome.

On the side of the adapter, we find the WPS button for quick wireless connectivity.

Removing the end cap, we find the external connection for the dipole antenna.

The opposite end houses the USB 3.0 connection.

Here we have the unit complete and ready for testing.

Above we have the ASUS USB-AC56 connected to our 2.4GHz wireless network. As you can see, we are getting full speed at 300 Mbps.

Moving to the 5GHz network, we have the ASUS USB-AC56 connected at 867 Mbps.

Above we have the results from our testing using the 2.4GHz 40MHz band. Comparing the ASUS USB-N56 to our on-board Realtek 8188CE, we find the ASUS offering a 50% improvement in wireless throughput over the Realtek solution.

Utilizing the full potential of the USB-AC56, we found the adapter pushing 475 Mbps throughput at its peak.
The ASUS USB-AC56 carries quite a bit of off the shelf aesthetic appeal as do most ASUS networking products. Complimenting this, we have superb build quality for both the adapter and USB 3.0 extension, the heavy gauge cabling used in the extension insures no interference from the 2.4GHz band and the rugged plastic exterior of the adapter itself feels like it could withstand a few drops. In fact, I couldn't pry the adapter apart like I usually do for review such as this.
Performance of the unit was great. I was able to connect effortlessly to the 2.4GHz band and enjoy the range it offers. Throughput was exceptional even past 20 - 30 ft with walls within the line of sight. The 5GHz band allowed us a full 867 Mbps connection within the 15ft range, after which it did fall of slightly as we moved outwards.
The only downfall I encountered while testing the adapter was the included wireless utility. Here the software worked without issue, until I unplugged the adapter and tried to plug it back in. From this point on the software couldn't find the adapter and would error out, even after multiple re-installs. Though to counter this, you could use the built-in Windows utility with no issues.
Pricing at this time for the ASUS USB-AC56 is listed at $69.99.

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The Novelist PC Review

It's been an interesting few years for games. The focus has very much turned away from big budget blockbusters and instead is focusing now on unique experiences that can be found in the indie world, especially on the PC. Microsoft and Sony have been at pains to display huge support for the indie community on their brand new consoles, and given the success of Minecraft and a few other indie games, it's not surprising.
The latest one is The Novelist from Kent Hudson, a developer who worked on Deus Ex and so has quite a pedigree in the PC gaming world. However, The Novelist is very much a game that should not be judged by its cover, and is one of the most amazing experiences you can have on PC in 2013.
The Novelist tells the story of Dan Kaplan and his family. Kaplan is a successful writer who has hit a roadblock with his latest novel, as well as his relationships with his wife and young son. As a last ditched effort to either get a book done or reconnect with his family, Dan takes them on a summer holiday to the coast and it is here that the game begins, with you an unknown entity somehow shaping the way this story plays.

The reason why The Novelist is so successful as a game is that is very much a game that you will be able to relate to if you have a family and have built a career. Most of us know it is a constant struggle to balance between the two and this is where the gameplay and story of The Novelist focuses.
This is a game where this is no winning, instead you are forced to choose constantly between two or three difficult scenarios, and either way, the job or the family is going to be ignored and rejected, hence leading to consequences.
When it comes to the gameplay itself its fairly simple, but this allows you to focus on what really matters in this game, and that is the emotion and storyline playing out. You float around the Kaplan's holiday house (either visible to them or not, choosing to be visible makes the game more difficult), finding items that trigger memories in each character and then finally triggering the next scene by choosing to either do what the book wants, the wife wants or the son wants.

If you have ever felt bad about letting your children or partner down, then The Novelist is going to amplify that guilt and bring it back to your mind. This is a game that puts you on a massive guilt trip, but it also feels like a game that treats you like an adult - a mature game that does not contain violence, guns or sex. Between each chapter, you are shown the consequences of your action on all three parts of your life, and as I said before, there is no winning in this game.

The game is not very long and can be completed in a single sitting fairly easily. Even finding all the different items in the house for each character isn't a huge task, primarily because the house isn't that big, but the fact you generally don't get stuck for long periods of time keeps the story ticking and the focus on what is actually going on. Being frustrated would have really done damage to this game and that's not to say you won't feel frustration, you will, but it's more at the realization that you are making some very tough decisions that can only end badly for Dan.

The visuals of the game are impressive as well. Utilizing the Unity 3D engine, the visual style of the game is that which you would expect to see in a novel, which makes it perfect for the title. In the main area of the game, characters move about and you have to track them down, but in the memories, the characters are represented by artist sketches giving a visual indication that this is a past memory - it works very well.
The voice acting is also strong, although it would have been nice to see the interspersed cut scenes between sections voice acted and characters getting angry, for example.
The Novelist is a game that I had followed its development for a little while, always intrigued by what the developer was putting together. However, this game has exceeded all expectations I had with its emotional storyline cutting you to the bone emotion wise over and over again and making you decide what is the most important in Dan's (your?) life.
This is a game that will make you think about the decisions you make and how they affect your own life, and it is a game that will leave an indelible mark on your emotions even after you complete it. It's one of the best games released in 2013.

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Available Tags:NASA , EA , Steam , ASUS , Wireless ,

Sunday, December 22, 2013

IT News Head Lines (TweakTown) 23/12/2013

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