IT News Head Lines (TweakTown) 1/26/2015

Battlefield Hardline's maps and modes detailed
Battlefield Hardline is much closer to its release on March 17, with Electronic Arts teasing what maps and modes to expect from the new entry into the Battlefield franchise.

The maps that will be included with Hardline are as follows: Downtown, Bank Job, The Block, Dust Bowl, Hollywood Heights, Derailed, Riptide, Everglades and the 420 friendly map Growhouse. As for the modes, we have Conquest, Team Deathmatch, two capture the flag variants with Heist and Blood Money; Rescue, where gamers playing as cops have to handle a hostage situation; Crosshair which sees a VIP being protected; and finally Hotwire, where the bad guys try to steal cars while the cops try to stop them from taking the cars - usually resulting in a big shootout.

The upcoming new beta of Battlefield Hardline will include both Dust Bowl and Downtown, but we don't know when the new beta of Hardline will be arriving.


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Star Citizen continues to cash in, topping $70 million collected
The Star Citizen project has tacked on another $1 million made in the past two weeks alone, collecting a total of $70 million - the most successful crowdfunded project. More than 734,700 people helped fund the project, and there is plenty more money to be made through the rest of 2015. To celebrate the milestone, here is a new Arena Commander teaser:

Cloud Imperium Games plans to launch the final release of Star Citizen in 2016, and has a road map of future developments that will be made prior to release.

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Windows 10 Preview built 9926 with Cortana, and more is now available
It was only last week that Microsoft was showing off the latest build of Windows 10, but the company has just made this version of its upcoming OS available to all. During the event, we found out about the awesome look AR headset HoloLens, and that DirectX 12 will be an exclusive to Windows 10.

The January Technical Preview build - 9926 - is now out, and includes total Cortana integration. Microsoft's virtual assistant will hang out on the taskbar, helping users search for apps, settings, files and more across the Internet. The revised Settings menu has also had some work done to it, bringing it into line with the look of the Control Panel.

Microsoft has also baked in the new Photos, Maps and Xbox applications, as well as a look at the Windows Store Beta. Minor changes have sneaked into the new build according to insiders, with a bug in the keyboard lights not working for Caps/Num/Scroll lock, now being fixed in the latest build. One of the bigger parts of the new build of Windows 10 that is missing is Internet Explorer's replacement, Spartan. Another is the new Music Locker feature, which is based on the company's OneDrive service.


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Connected homes could pose major security concerns to early adopters
The Internet of Things (IoT) captured a lot of headlines during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) earlier this month, and security will remain a major issue for early adopters. The idea that connected household items can access the Internet provides great opportunity for enhanced services - but provides cybercriminals an access point to compromise new products.

Cybersecurity companies are aware of the great potential of IoT and connected devices, but understand they must scramble to defend an entirely new ecosystem that seems poised to boom.

"If people are worried about Facebook and Google storing your data today, wait until you see what is coming with IoT in next 2-5 years," said Ed Montgomery, Marketing Manager at F-Secure, via Tweet.


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Call of Duty: World at War II rumored to be unveiled in May
It looks like Activision is preparing for the unveiling of the next entry into the Call of Duty franchise with Call of Duty: World at War II. The publisher will reportedly unveil the new game on May 4 according to an alleged promotional poster for the gmae.

While Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare took gamers into the future with some next-gen weapons, exosuits and more, World at War II will bring things back to reality, and history. Anonymous Protection leaked out the reveal date, which is May 4 at 10AM PDT/1PM EDT. It makes sense, as Activision unveiled the first look at Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare on May 1 last year.

Treyarch will likely be the studio behind the development of the game, handing off the yearly Call of Duty game torch from Sledgehammer.


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Key to wider wearable adoption could be to just keep things simple
Wearable products will invade the consumer and business markets in the coming years, but will take patience from manufacturers and buyers. There is a lot of confusion regarding the current wearable market, as there is a clutter of different products, multiple platforms, and rather uneven marketing efforts from manufacturers.

Integrating faster and more powerful hardware doesn't seem to be a problem for wearables, but manufacturers are now trying to create more visually appealing products. Early generations of consumer wearables were rather bulky and didn't seem to be fashionable at all, though that is beginning to change.

Wearables were quite popular during the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), with many new product announcements and public launches. However, analysts still are unsure what to make of the industry, even though they expect it to rapidly grow in the coming years.


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Private drone pilots taking to the skies, but safety concerns mount
Many first-time drone pilots are taking to the skies in the United States, and that has increased safety concerns regarding drone crashes. One such concern is a "flyaway" when the small drones catch a jet stream and simply blow away - and pilots are unaware of how to regain control of the flying craft.

Most consumer drones weigh around 2.2 pounds, and if it was being flown at 400 feet, can yield more than 900 pounds of force if it slammed straight into the ground.

"There's just too many people that just have no idea what they're doing flying with their cool cameras," said Bill Stockwell, drone flight instructor at McHenry County Community College, in a statement to the Chicago Tribune. "I fly a competitive 7-foot helicopter that goes about 140 mph. If it was flying at 400 feet, which is legal, it would hit the ground with 2,200 pounds of force. Can you imagine what that would feel like?"


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US wireless carrier battle presents great opportunity for subscribers
The four major wireless carriers in the United States are engaged in a war for new subscribers, with an increased level of poaching taking place. The increased competition has presented a great opportunity for subscribers looking to upgrade their plans, get new phones, or switch carriers.

Verizon Wireless and AT&T currently enjoy their respective positions as the No. 1 and No. 2 wireless carriers in the United States, but Sprint and T-Mobile are locked in a fierce battle for the No. 3 position. Sprint is giving current T-Mobile subscribers an incentive to jump ship, offering up to $350 to cover switching costs along with a minimum of a $200 trade-in for T-Mobile phones. The Sprint promotion runs until April 9.

Both companies also have an eye on the remaining one-quarter of US mobile phone owners using feature phones, with both fighting to attract them to smartphones.


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Report: Active seniors enjoying the Internet, especially using PCs
Active Baby Boomers are aging, but are increasingly embracing the Internet on PCs, smartphones, tablets, and other electronics - with 60 percent of adults 65 years of age or older now regularly using the Internet. Furthermore, 44 percent of smartphone owners 50 years or older access the Internet or check email every day from a PC or mobile device, according to Pew.

Mobile makers are finding a lucrative opportunity to market devices to a wide age group, ranging from children to Baby Boomers - especially as many older adults use devices such as tablets and e-readers for casual Internet use and reading.

"As Baby Boomers age into their 60s and 70s, they are showing a determination to stay current with digital technology's advances," said George Otte, CEO of Geeks on Site, in a press statement. "We see an increased reliance on using the Internet, but with more comfortable access models like desktop computers, rather than smartphones and tablets. It's within this segment that we see an opportunity to guide and help these Boomers."


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NASA is testing helicopter drones that could be used to explore Mars
Exploring Mars has proven to be a beneficial yet extremely tricky operation for NASA, with the Mars rovers helping yield a lot of insightful knowledge - and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory hopes to use the Mars Helicopter to add to exploration.

The Mars Helicopter would be able to travel up to three times the distance that either rover can travel in a single Martian day, along with pinpointing new locations for the rovers to explore.

The light craft could weigh just 2.2 pounds and measure 3.6 feet from the tip of one blade to the other - and the prototype body looks similar to a medium-sized tissue box. The JPL is currently testing the proof-of-concept in California, with no possible launch dates discussed.

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Companies must 'update their security' plans to improve security
Business leaders are paying attention to cybersecurity more than they were in recent years, but struggle to find methods to keep networks secure. Trying to determine what steps to take remains a complicated issue, especially with some companies discovering data breaches months after the initial incident occurs.

There are a number of potential problems for companies trying to keep their networks secure, as potential attacks originate from a variety of sources. Much focus is dedicated to preventing a breach, but business leaders also need to focus on the likelihood that a cyberattack was successful:

"The role of organized crime and government-sanctioned hacking will continue to thwart cybersecurity efforts [in 2015]," said JF Roy, CTO of TIBCO LogLogic, in a statement to TweakTown. "Breaches will continue to be discovered after the fact, which means that businesses must update their security and risk management plans to include incident response policies with contingencies for involvement of federal law enforcement."


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Microsoft Xbox chief expects to do great things, thanks to Windows 10
Gamers have a lot to look forward to in 2015, and Microsoft hopes to blend its upcoming Windows 10 operating system with the Xbox One, so gamers don't have to be tied to a specific platform. Xbox chief Phil Spencer understands there may be some bumps in the road along the way, but feels gamers will benefit from the expected "symbiotic" relationship between the Xbox One and Windows 10.

" So I look at the opportunity to make Windows gaming and Xbox gaming kind of symbiotic with one another," Spencer said during a recent press conference. "And try to grow the number of people that are connected and the amount of content that's available on both platforms - [I feel is] a huge opportunity. I don't feel that there's some kind of financial motivation for me to keep things off of PC."

Microsoft wants to generate Xbox One sales, and hopes integrating Windows 10 into the overall gaming experience could help.


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Researchers: Gas station fuel tanks are vulnerable to potential attack
It appears the serial ports of automated tank gauges (ATGs) of almost 5,300 gas stations and fuel depots in the United States are vulnerable because they aren't password protected. ATGs are used to more accurately track fuel tank inventory levels, raise alarms, track fuel deliveries, and conduct leak tests - but people with access to the interfaces could cause problems, according to the Rapid7 Security Street blog.

It doesn't look like there have been any incidents of actual breaches, but shows the importance of password protecting connected technologies. ATGs can be accessed via serial port, plug-in serial port, TCP/IP circuit board, and fax/modem.

Rapid7 was made aware of the issue by Jack Chadowitz, founder of the Kachoolie security firm, and started investing ATG vulnerabilities since Jan. 9.


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Lizard Squad says it wasn't hacked, distributed customer data
Despite previous reports claiming the Lizard Squad was hacked, which would be a public relations nightmare for the hacker group, it appears the list could have just been distributed. Members of the group were sharing the list with trusted contacts, plotting attacks against specific accounts that piqued their interest. Seems a trusted source received the list and decided to publicly release it, according to an unnamed Lizard Squad member.

"We've got a fairly good idea who handed it over to Krebs & co. though," a supposed Lizard Squad spokesman told Forbes. "I didn't look into it much but from what I heard there were some pretty well known Twitter users in there for example and gamers. There were some interesting people who signed up... and considering most users were stupid enough to reuse their passwords..."

The Lizard Squad still seems mainly interested in attacking gaming-related services and servers, and while several members have been arrested, continue to pose a threat.


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Psychologist explains gaming addiction, dangers posed to gamers
After news reports revealed a 32-year-old Taiwanese man died after an epic three-day gaming session, many people said he was foolish and should have known better. However, experts are speaking out to discuss the topic, due to increased headlines and more people suffering from these types of incidents. Prolonged gaming sessions can lead to health and psychological problems, including repetitive strain injuries all the way to visual hallucinations.

"For me, addiction boils down to constant reinforcement, or put more simply, being constantly rewarded while playing the game," said Mark Griffiths, chartered psychologist and director of the International Gaming Research Unit at Nottingham Trent University, in an editorial posted on CNN.

He also explained the rewards that gamers can receive from continuous gaming.

"Gaming rewards can be physiological (such as feeling 'high' or getting a 'buzz' while playing or beating your personal score), psychological (such as feeling strategic play helped you win), social (such as being congratulated by fellow gamers when doing something well in the game and, in some cases, financial (such as winning a gaming tournament)."

Doctors and psychologists were unsure what to make of possible video game addiction, but it is being more widely researched - and the death toll unfortunately continues to climb.


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Gaming has changed the way we spend time with friends - here's how

The basics and personal experiences

Games can now certainly be considered mainstream. How many people do you know that don't at least own a Nintendo Wii at their house? All-too-often now you'll see the oldies crack out Wii-Fit after one too many wines and cackle as they try to complete the balancing games, eventually falling over and rushing to the toilet for a quick spew.

Early last week, I attended a bucks party LAN party. Yep, you read that right, a LAN. No, we didn't hire a Stormtrooper inspired stripper. No, we didn't go out on the town and tape the husband-to-be to a tree. But, we did drink one-too-many 'amber fluids' over the course of a few (gearing) instance WoW runs and extremely hilarious Dota2 5-man alias quests full of troll builds like Natures Prophet (read: profit) with four Gloves of Haste in his inventory at one time.

How many birthday parties now involve a 'warm-up' to the club based around semi-drunken Call of Duty or Mario Kart 8? If you take a close look, the way we celebrate occasions, or simply just hang out with friends, has changed quite a lot over the years and will continue to evolve.

Back it up with some statistics, shall we?

Back in April 2014, the Entertainment Software Association published a report claiming that 59% of Americans play video games and 51% of households own two consoles on average. This is alongside findings reaching back to June the 13th, 2014 where Sony themselves claimed that nearly half of their PS4 audience has never known the joy of owning a PS3 - which is something like the following (strong language warning!).

What can we conclude from these two reports alone? Discounting the older population (60 plus) and the youngsters (12 and under), the majority of our population considers themselves somewhat of a 'gamer' and play video games on at least a semi-regular basis. Friends are said to be made through a few common circumstances, including location, interests and commonplace. Guess what, if you and your mate both go to school together, like video games and live not to far away, it's likely you've caught up in the past, will catch up soon, present or later, or meet to play some kind of video games.

The other conclusion drawn is that the 'new age of the gamer' is now here. As I previously stated, Sony released information that half of its PS4 crowd doesn't even own a PS3 - meaning that a bunch of people are getting into console gaming for the first time.
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Available Tags:Windows , security , wireless , NASA , Microsoft , Xbox , gaming , gamers ,