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jayne-hecate-writer · 4 years

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Old and Useless

I am fucking angry, but my rage is impotent and useless because the people I am angry at, don’t care that I am angry. Actually, they do care a little bit and they are arguing that my anger is unjustified and unfair on them. I did not realise that I was a bully and was asking so much from them…

So you may be asking who I am so angry with and why am I being so unreasonable? The answer is complicated, but my dear reader, it is really not you, well unless you are one of those people mentioned above. You see, I am angry with the big names of the tech industry and the reasons as to why, are both complex and deep. To explain this anger, I need to tell you a story, a true story in fact, that started a little over twenty years ago. So settle down, put your feet up and let us go back through the swirly mists of time to the autumn of 1995, when I started my degree at a prestigious British university.

My University was neither prestigious or an actual university. It was a former teacher training college that had in the past trained nice young ladies to be nice young teachers of nice young children. The grounds that these nice courses were taught in, were beautiful, with ancient trees, two small lakes with a folly that looked just like Camelot from Monty Python. The college was however, not happy being just a run of the mill college, because a simple college did not make much money when compared to a prestigious University and so they set about changing from a college into a... University College, a subtle change, but a change for the better they assured us, the actual students of the place. But after all of the expensive name changes and font changes on the new name, the leaky roof still leaked in the student accommodation and the library still had not bought a new book for three years, but they were going to modernise the place with a whole new building.

When I started my degree, my essays were hand written on stuff called lined paper, or if we could afford to buy one, they were typed up on an electronic typewriter. The college had put up a new and rather ugly building that was filled with these wondrous boxes of blinking lights, boxes of lights that were the early home computers and they came with a thing called Windows 95 that allowed you to look at pixilated images of boobies. They were amazing.

Were they really amazing? The correct answer is no, no they were not. The problem was that to someone who had never used a computer before, it was a box that made a lot of noise and a filthy heat, that took up a lot of space on my desk and did very little, even when asked. I poked the keyboard and moved the funny little box on a wire and the pointer on the screen moved too, I was entranced.

I did not play with those boxes of lights again until several years later when back in another university (again a former polytechnic that wanted to be posher and thus changed its name and status!) I was told that my essays needed to be submitted typed up or word processed. Excited, I dived into the world of home computing and spent hundreds of pounds on my own box of lights and switched it on to be greeted by the green fields of the Windows XP screen background and the appalling monster that was Clippy, the word assistant in the shape of a talking paper-clip. He would pop up when I was typing and ask me if I wanted help with my essay and would then offer me useless advice that had no relevance to what I was doing. Clippy was the first piece of technology that I regularly told to fuck off.

My first home network came in 2005, when the chance to buy a second computer presented itself and although it was broken, I could fix it. Putting the two of them together and seeing them communicate for the first time was amazing. I could drag files from one computer and put them on another. I could work on two projects at the same time and swap files between them on two different machines. Windows XP was so easy to use, wasn’t it?… No, it wasn’t. Windows XP was all that I had available at the time and I had to train my brain to think in the Windows XP way. It had plenty of quirks and numerous faults and to add further insults, with two machines, I had two versions of Clippy that I was forced to to tell to fuck off. Then my hard drive died.

I was lucky, I had back ups on CD of most of my files, but not of everything and that included the operating system. Thankfully I had the original install disk, a CD that contained Windows and another that contained Office and that cunt Clippy. Only, the disk was keyed to only one of my computers and when asked to submit a code, it was most unhappy and said no. That was the very first time that a computer said no to me. I consulted an expert and was informed that I needed to pay an awful lot of money to Microsoft in order to fix my computer and that was before I paid the already mentioned man, an awful lot to put on the computer what Microsoft gave him. So, after an awful lot of money exchanged hands, I had two computers once again, but not for long.

This time, the fault was more serious, the outer box stayed the same, but the bits inside changed. This was the first time I encountered something called a Mother Board and another thing called a graphics card. Then came the sound card and the memory and the hard disk and the optical drive and the LAN card and the USB expansion and the second hard disk and before I knew it, I was looking at a pile of parts that had cost hundreds of pounds and none of it fucking worked yet because of fucking Microsoft.

This pile of parts led me down the path of not wanting to keep giving Microsoft hundreds of pounds every time I rebuilt my computer. So I started playing with something called Linux. It was anarchic they said, it broke away from conventions they said. It does everything Windows does, but even better they said… They lied. Very quickly I had to learn about a thing called ‘The Terminal’ into which I typed out lines and lines of code. After which, I would hit return and then I would have to search through hundreds of lines of code to find the place where I had mistyped a character or two. Then I would repeat that process several more times, adding more code and finally, I had a working computer. Making it talk to the Windows XP machine was a trial because it seemed that they spoke different languages, but I did it and speak to each other they did.

My new Linux machine played my DVD movies, it played my music CDs and I was able to write on it without being interrupted by that shitcunt Clippy. But Linux back then was not all that stable and glitches would start to appear and before I knew it, I spent just as much time typing in code as I did listening to music. The two computers stopped talking to each other and I had to work really hard to make them friends again. My first machine now long dead seemed like a mere pocket calculator compared to what I had found myself with. The Micro ATX board the size of a drinks coaster had been replaced by something faster, bigger and more fun, but these money pits soon began to drain my purse of funds needed for other projects and as funds grew tight, the computers complained all the more, leaving me with just one computer again and a box of lights that had gone dark.

My first laptop had windows ME on it and it would seize up and need restarting after twenty minutes of work or half an hour of theme hospital. I really miss theme hospital, it was very silly and it was lots of fun, but it, like my laptop and Windows ME and Windows XP and Windows 7 and Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 are all long gone and here lies the nub of every issue I have with technology now. The constant need for the next new thing and frankly it boils my piss. I am fizzing in the gusset right now and not in a good way, this is anger, I am royally pissed.

In 2013 I bought a new laptop computer from PC world, a mistake I would repeat only once more. Thanks mainly to the advice from the sales adviser, who told me that the Google Chromebook was the next advance in home computing, I started looking at one. “Does it work away from home?” I asked in all innocence. I was assured that it did and with it freshly purchased, I promptly pissed off to a desert island in the Indian ocean looking forwards to writing up my adventures on my new laptop. It did not work. It would not even switch on without a connection to wifi. Finally and unbelievably on a remote desert island, we found a Pizza restaurant and I managed to switch on the Crapbook (a name I now give you for every Chromebook in existence) using their slow wifi. The Crapbook proved time and time again just how much of a worthless pile of shit it was. It promised so much and provided so little in return. In the end, I used it only to watch YouTube while in the bath because frankly every ‘Ap’ on the damn thing was fucking shit. As a writer, I wanted a laptop that could use office software to type up my stories. The Crapbook could do this, but it had no spell checker, it could not save to the laptop hard drive and when transferring files to another computer, the document would be turned into indecipherable gibberish. With imported documents, it would destroy formatting and leave behind a document that had so many page errors that not even a Windows machine could repair it.

Also, the Crapbook could not talk to the Windows Machine (now on Windows 10) on he home network, but then, neither could the iMac, the Sony Smart phone, my USB stick or my external hard drive. I was by now running four computer systems, the Crapbook, the iMac, the Windows 10 Laptop and the Linux desktop. None of them were capable of communicating with each other across the network, either wired or wireless. The Crapbook was a joke at the best of times, but when I discovered that this was the only machine that could read every USB stick I owned, but none of the others could, I almost threw it out of a window.

The problem was how the USB drives were coded. The Linux machine could see all of them, but could only write to the external hard drive. It could read from the blue USB stick, but not write to it. The red USB stick would register, but the Linux machine would say that the drive was faulty and I would have to restart the machine three times just to be able to remove it safely! The old MP3 player that worked as a USB memory stick could be written to by the Linux machine, but it could not delete files and would instead turn the drive from eight gigs of data, into three song and a large file called trash, that contained every file I wanted to delete, but it seemed permanently burned onto the drive, never to be removed. I gave up trying in the end.

The Windows machine can see the external hard drive, but depending on some unknown variable can or cannot write to the drive. Some days it can and all is well. These will be the days when the system volume also works and I can make my headphones louder by clicking the appropriate button. However, some days Windows decides that my pressing the volume button is a sign of my need for existential peace and it ignores my request for louder or quieter music. On these days, the external hard drive becomes a place of mystery too. The Blue USB stick does not exist and the red one is old and slow.

The iMac could see the external drive, but not the USB sticks. If it did see the USB sticks, it would delete them and I would have no idea if they were safe to remove from the computer. Writing to the External hard drive was also impossible. As was taking data from it, but it could see it.

As I write this, I am back on the Linux desktop because the Windows Laptop has been unusable for almost four days. Why is this you may ask? The answer is because when I bought it, I could not afford very much and so bought myself a budget laptop. It has a Core i3 processor and four gigs of ram. The board in the case is the size of my mobile phone and the processor and the cooling fan are on opposite sides of the case (this is relevant shortly) with just one air vent, towards the front of the computer. While trying to render a picture of a Lego model, the computer began to overheat. The fan speed increased to maximum and the keyboard developed a hot spot that made it uncomfortable to use and then the screen went dark as the machine simply shut down. A full thermal throttling shut down that required fully dismantling to blow the dust from the fan and clear the pathway between fan and CPU. Given the amount of space inside the laptop casing, I am forced to ask why there is a six inch gap between the fan and the CPU, plus a four inch gap between the fan and the vent? The heat coming through the bottom of the machine made it uncomfortable to actually have on my lap (never do this, it blocks the vents) and the computer shut down to protect itself. When I finally restarted the laptop, I discovered that it had developed yet another instability, possibly due to thermal damage of the CPU. Meanwhile in the background, Windows update (that you cannot turn off) was slowly sucking away processing time from other functions. I have set the times when Windows can do updates, which is every evening when I am not writing. However, this update has got bigger and bigger, drawing more and more CPU time (I know because I have been watching the progress with CPU ID and monitoring the core temps) and is as we speak, only 8% downloaded of whatever current update it is now on, having restarted three (edit- four!) times already this morning.

So why am I angry? I am angry because none of these fucking things work as promised. When I do finally get them to work as I want, updates come down that fuck with my settings. I cannot prevent updates, they come with inevitable gloom and yes, I am aware that I can delay them or stop the machine from downloading on a metered connection, but just like HG Wells’ Martians, still they come! For four days, my Windows 10 Laptop has been installing, downloading and installing updates. It has been hanging while installing updates that when looking on the Microsoft website, they say it is time to start coding in the terminal.

The Crapbook gave me a message recently that read in nicer language, “give us more money or we will reveal your banking details to scammers…” Thanks for that Google, you cunts.

The Linux machine wants to update to the next version of the OS, that I have tried and really don’t like because it tries to make my desktop work like a mobile phone.

The iMac keeps telling me that it is too old and is not safe to use on line any more.

The Smart phone will interrupt what I am doing with it, to show me adverts. It also on occasion refuses to allow me to answer actual phone calls, because to do so, I must first attempt to close down an advert for emojis that will randomly appear. An advert that I neither wanted or asked for.

What was once a tool and an essential learning aid has become nought but a shallow toy, filled with advertising junk, following my every key tap, not to help me, but to sell me shit I don’t want and steal my data for companies to buy and sell me more shit I really don’t want. The machines I knew and loved are gone. Media outlets such as Linus Tech tips tell us that using old machines on line is irresponsible because it endangers everyone else to attack from scammers. The message is plain. Old is bad. Repair is bad. Throw it away and buy a new one… BUY BUY BUY, never fix. Sell my soul for old shit I don’t want. Stop using these wondrous machines for actual creative processes and use them instead to buy emojis for chatting with my friends. I fucking hate it. I fucking hate that tech companies can make their expensive computers so disposable. As much as I loved the iMac, Apple can fuck themselves in their arses with burning hot iron spikes for making them almost impossible to repair and even my trusted ASUS have gone the same way by putting the fan and the CPU in different sides of the case. Apple, Microsoft and Google have taken apart the computer world and used it to extract money from us the consumer, as if they did not have enough already. Also and probably finally for this angry rant, I really liked Theme Hospital! Bloaty Head Disease made me laugh and I can’t fucking play it any more.

I fucking hate these technology companies. They claim that they are making everything better, but what they are doing is making old but good things useless just so that they can convince us to buy the newer models of the old ones each year. To hell with the environmental impact of all of the e-waste, consume, play, dispose… When did computers become digital nappies?

PS. The Laptop is now on 85% of its forth install and restart of the day…

#apple inc #microsoft #linux #Home Computers #right to repair #Clippy #windows 10 #windows update

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ournervousstudentnut-blog · 6 years

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Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1: which is best for you?

IT's been more than four years after the Windows 10 released, and though many users initially resisted the shift, it is most certainly here to remain. As always though, there are a number of die-hard fans of prior operating systems that have to make the leap.

Its mix of a far enhanced desktop experience, more intuitive integration of touchscreen features, a plethora of new programs and much better functionality makes it a very clear upgrade over its predecessor.

With loads of new features, improved, integral hardware service and enhanced performance it is also a worthy update for Windows XP and Windows 7 consumers also.

Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1 time

We have found no clear difference in boot times between both OS, not on the 2 computers we employed for this evaluation: a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon plus a Microsoft Surface Guru. Both notebooks flashed to the login screen in 2 minutes, under either Windows 8.1 and Windows 10; using just fractions of a second's difference between the boot times of the 2 OSes on each machine. 1 characteristic that could shave a couple of seconds off real-world boot instances is Windows 10's facial recognition instrument, which permits an individual to be logged at the moment they sit in the front of the PC. This characteristic, however, takes a particular Intel RealSense 3D camera and won't work with a normal webcam. Together with fingerprint readers, these cameras are now relatively common in high-end laptops, which provides Windows 10 a small edge. Winner Windows 10, by a whisker, but only in the event that you count the tiny possible time saving of facial recognition.

The Ideal port for the Ideal apparatus

But ignore all that if you are using a Windows 10 Telephone or tablet-computer, every one of which utilizes a version variant of Windows 10 to show an interface best suited to each display size. Windows 10's tablet-style, in reality, seems an awful lot like Windows 8 Start screen. Microsoft attempted to market Windows 8 as a working system for every single device, however, it did so by forcing the exact same interface across tablet computers and PCs--just two quite different device types. Windows 10 tweaks the formulation, allowing a PC is a PC and also a tablet computer to be a tablet computer, and it is vastly better for this. And if you've got one of these fancy two-in-one hybrids? Windows 10's Continuum mode has you covered. Except, because of Windows 10's shared heart and universal programs Windows 10 Telephones can even mime appropriate Windows 10 PCs when linked to an external screen.

However, what about gambling?

Here is more guarantee for Windows 10 on the gambling side. DirectX 12, in matches that apply it, should observe healthy improvements. However, in games that don't utilize DX12, it is likely going to be a whole lot closer.

As an instance, I conducted Tomb Raider on our PCWorld zero-point system. It's an Intel Core i7-4770K, 16GB of DDR3/1600, along with a GeForce GTX 980. I used exactly the exact same Nvidia drivers using both OSes. Be aware that I conducted Windows 10 construct 10162 instead of the current construct 10240, as that's the previous ISO of Windows 10 previews that Microsoft made accessibly --no amount of coaxing would get Microsoft's servers to kick anything newer. My tests reveal a certain, if modest, advantage for Windows 10. Here is Tomb Raider for one to gawk in: Other evaluations gave a bit more of a triumph for Win10, but that will not set the world on fire like DX12 is anticipated to games that support you're outside. We are planning a more comprehensive look at Windows 10 gaming functionality, so stay tuned.

Personalization

Back in Windows 8, large icons and easy options were in the forefront. The Start screen enabled one to easily organize and resize live tiles, boosting their performance and ease of use. Together with Windows 10, the timeless tiled and desktop UI are no more different interfaces. Rather, elements of these exist and highly configurable. Live tiles are incorporated in the Start menu, instead of inside their interface, in which they may be transferred, the place to reveal rapid info, or launching apps. Programs can be immobilized or transferred to the menu for simple access.

Start Screen vs. Start Menu

The one most significant addition to Windows 10 is that the yield of the Start Menu, especially for routine desktop computer and regular no-touchscreen-use consumer. The Start are full of Screen of Windows 8 never made sense when using a mouse and keyboard and mercifully Microsoft has addressed this. Rather, Windows 10 includes a Start Menu that integrates the Live Tiles of this Windows 8 Start Screen and it may be made to match the entire screen. It is far more intuitive and makes with a mouse/trackpad and keyboard easier. If you mostly use the background computer in Windows then Windows 10 will make you a lot happier.

Edge Browser and Virtual Desktops

I have listed these both together as they're caught up attributes. The Edge browser (that is still a characteristic restricted at the start ) is Microsoft's effort to claw momentum out of Chrome. Edge works considerably faster than Internet Explorer and is only available on Windows 10. Besides this Windows 10 eventually adds Virtual Desktops such as those seen on Linux and Mac OS X. These enable users without multi-monitor installations to make multiple virtual desktops that are useful for dividing utilization between leisure and work, work into jobs or whatever you need. It is a fantastic feature.

You adore Windows Media Center

Microsoft has revamped plenty of items in Windows 10, replacing a lot of its heritage desktop apps with universal programs. By way of instance, Windows Photo Viewer is dead, replaced with the newest Photos app. However, while you may get Windows Photo Viewer back into Windows 10, you can not get Windows Media Center back. As it has gone, together with DVD playback service. For all, this is not a massive loss -- most people flow instead of seeing DVDs, after all, as well as Microsoft, has been attempting to kill Media Center because of Windows 8. However, for a few, it might be a deal breaker. If you are a Media Center enthusiast -- or in the event that you desperately enjoy some other heritage features that don't now exist in Windows 10 -- afterward Windows 10 might not be for you personally.

Cortana

Another key new feature of Windows 10 not accessible Windows 8 is Cortana - Microsoft's semantic electronic assistant. A sort of super-Siri, which may engage you in the dialog. Over simple speech recognition, Cortana constantly scours the web for advice to notify its interactions with you. Plus it learns from the behavior, contacts and so forth, to be able to better fit your needs. Cortana on Windows Phone is fairly good, and it is currently on iOS and Android. Therefore that the addition of Microsoft's digital helper is a large boost over Windows 8.

Windows 10 vs Windows 8.1: Pairing

Though it was the largest overhaul of this OS since Windows 95, Windows 8 has been unusually secure and bug-free from the get-go. Really we had it operating on regular work programs six months prior to launch. Windows 10 was, to put it charitably, a bit wobblier. Microsoft is frequently issuing updates for your applications, but these updates frequently lead to difficulties. It looks like every couple of months, there are reports of accidental file deletions, glitches, crashes and other various errors. General stability is definitely better than it had been, but the simple fact that these mistakes persist is bothersome. Thus far, we have not seen any bugs that we would believe sufficient to justify downgrading to a previous version of Windows, however, it must be stated that reliability is not Windows 10's strong suit - and it does not seem like it ever is. On the flip side, Windows 10 Enterprise users may cut out a good deal of the hassle - that we will discuss more in a moment - meaning it is not so much of a problem.

Action Center

Windows 8 Windows Store programs might not have been a joy to use on appropriate PCs, but one crucial benefit they stored rocked my socks: System-wide notifications. Where conventional desktop software will become self-explanatory silos, Windows Store programs will take you a pop-up telling at the upper-right corner of the display when, say, you receive a new email or some fresh direct message from Twitter. If you visit them, that is. Following a notification pops up in Windows 8, then it disappears into the ether, never to be viewed or summoned. It's true that you could theoretically view missed notifications in their programs' individual Live Tiles on the beginning screen, but that hangs out there? Windows 10 cures the ailing with the debut of its new Action Center, which looks in the right-hand facet of the taskbar. Missed notifications will live there until you discount then huzzah! . You will also find quick-action buttons that enable you to quickly manage Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, input Tablet Mode, and much more.

Windows 10 appears to provide essentially no appropriate performance benefit over Windows 8 mainstream evaluations, but let us not be overly negative--since there is no reason to be. Together with Windows 7, Microsoft updated the schedule for the way the OS coped with CPUs, which guaranteed improvements and battery lifetime economies for both Intel and AMD CPUs. That was not a check-off thing for Windows 10. Since Windows 8.1 performances were very great.

There are also some improvement from 8.1 to win10 with backup and previous version which you can restore you deleted file more easily. When you didn’t turn on the backup, try this tip how to recover deleted files windows 8 and hope you have a good luck!

And, let's not forget that Windows 10 ushers at DirectX 12, which should very much yield substantial performance increases in games that support it.

#windows #system

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gundampilot · 6 years

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Inspired by @dialup2002 to post some more old stuff. :) This is a desktop screenshot I posted on my DevART account January 2005. Kicking it with Windows XP, but I loved/preferred the classic style that I was accustom to (95-98-ME). I made the wallpaper used, but I’m having trouble finding a copy of it. I’ll prob try to remake it in non-1024x768 resolution lmao. Not sure if this is from 2005. It might have been from 2004, but I hadn’t posted it yet. I did that a lot. Some fun notes about some of the software icons pictured (lots of info):

Firefox - THE FIRST BROWSER TO DO TABS OMG. I was a huge advocate for Firefox, especially in its initial releases. They were doing things on the internet nobody had really seen up to that point, and made it popular! Since I had so many issues (as most people do) with Internet Explorer, I was shopping around for a new browser at the time of this shot. Google Chrome didn’t exist yet. (Can you imagine??)

IE - As stated above, I disliked IE. It was kept for various reasons, however. Such as testing website layouts, since the mass-majority of people used it and things looked different in browsers when you were coding.

Opera - While giving Firefox a try, I also managed to snag a very, very early copy of Opera. I’ve always been the type of person that loved to try out new stuff as early as possible, and this was a very special piece of software that I wanted to give a go. The reason that it was special? You had to send away for a CD for it. That’s right, kids. They snail-mail’ed me a CD because it was considered “commercial software.” I paid to get that browser lmfao. I was super super hyped later in 2005, because it became “freeware” and I was able to more-easily push my friends to try it out. The devs were (and still are) seriously awesome. This is why I still use Opera as my main browser today! Ya’ll should try it if you aren’t already! You can even use your most-beloved Chrome extensions on it. :)

Soulseek & WinMX - Holy crap, you guys! lmao Is anyone here old enough to remember these programs?? XD This was basically where most people went after Napster bit the dust. This was when we were all scrambling, trying to find a new P2P sharing program. This was right in-between the eMule/Donkey phase and before the Limewire/KaZaA fiascos where people’s computers were being overloaded with viruses from companies trying to stop pirating. Ahh, the wild, wild west... Days were so exciting when you spent hours downloading something that could potentially ruin your computer lmao

WS_FTP - Still one of my favorite FTP programs for Windows! Works like a charm! These days I use Transmit 5 for Mac, but this was my first program ever for file transfer protocol. It’s basically a tool for uploading files to my website’s server, because back when I first registered it, there was no web uploader for that kinda stuff. Now I stick with that because it’s easier and I’m used to it lol

Veo Digital Studio - Used to use this for my webcam back before webcams were built into laptops, and before they were common enough to have amazing freeware available for them. (Also this is hilarious.) The quality was horrible, but I was hella excited to take pictures and share them with friends and on my blog at the time. From what I remember, there was something I used after this that was some type of South Korean selca software. Haduri? Something like that. It was really cute and even let you do little animations. :)

Animation Shop - Okay. So... from what I remember, this might have been owned by the people that made Paint Shop Pro? I think it was Corel. I honestly don’t remember where I got this from, but this is what I used to use to make animated gifs (because Photoshop just....didn’t for some reason? I had to use PSP at some point, I remember that. I just don’t remember why lmao. It might have been my copy didn’t allow it, or my computer was just too shit to run it good enough, or just stopped working because....Windows).

Adobe Photoshop 5.0 - I originally got this rip from a friend of mine, whose dad got a CD from his company that he worked at. It was an official/real license, which was really awesome! I think this was the first version of Photoshop I ever owned (!!), which is pretty amazing to think about about! I had that CD copy for a few years. I initially was gifted a copy of the CD around 2001-2002 or so. I know for a fact I had newer versions (7.0 was legend before CS suite came around), so I’m not sure why I was using this one at this point lmao. My guess is, like mentioned above, something happened with my computer and I didn’t want to format it and reinstall everything lol or because it was the fastest version I had installed to boot up and do a quick photo edit.

Adobe Photoshop 7.0 - I do remember this took a long time to start up. I can only imagine this was like a bad pirated copy or something, or was so bloated with new stuff in it, and that’s why I kept 5.0 for a quick boot. I know I used this majority of the time, though. Most of my backups for brushes and fonts are from backups that include 7.0 as a zip. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ My computer wasn’t the most powerful at the time, despite what I pushed it to do, so this is prob why. But hell yeah! Photoshop represent! lol I still use it today, and its still one of the first things I install on a fresh OS install. Enjoying CC 2017 these days.

Nero Start Smart - I was so excited to make mix CDs and share them! Back in the day before you had stuff like playlists that were sharable on YouTube/Spotify, etc, you had this to share music. Or play in your car. Or CD walkman. Nero was a software you could burn your CD-Rs and make your own laser-etched album art! I begged for years to get a CD burner lmao. Back when casette tapes were still around enough that my parents were like “but why???” lmao. They were not common back in the day like they became over time, just, like, included on your computer. Back then you had to buy one and install it into your computer tower yourself! I got mine I believe.....in 2001? It was the year after the Playstation 2 was released. The first one I got was just a very standard burner. Did a very specific type of CD burning at a low (slow af) speed. It was $700 lmfao. Let that sink in for a minute because my parents didn’t let me forget about it for the next four years lmfao. I saved up birthday and Christmas money and went halves on it. Then I upgraded to the one that this one was! c: Which did the laser etching, and DVD burning! (And you better believe I was burning DVDs of stuff I was downloading online lmfao this was the golden age of the internet where everything was just available everywhere as long as you had the patience to download that shit, because it took forever to download)

Volume Control - My dad and I messed with the wires on all of these random computer speakers and stereo speakers that we had collected over the years and hotwired our own version of a 5.0 surround sound in the room, which was mounted to the ceiling corners and above the computer station. It was lit. I needed Volume Control easily accessible because sometimes the speakers needed redirecting, or I needed to turn the beats down because my mother was tired of my fifth time playing the Gundam Wing OSTs and Miyavi. (It was metal, okay???)

Windows Media Player - I did not use this to listen to media. Let me reiterate that. I did not use it to listen to media on. lol this was specifically used to rip tracks from CDs that friends lent me, because it was the easiest software I was able to use to change the KBPs for quality control and the ID3 tags so I could save it and organize it for use in Winamp and know wtf I was listening to lol. Nobody used WMP for listening to music.... xD

Winamp - The best music player. Period. Still. Nothing beats it. Pls, pls, Nullsoft! Come back and make a native version for MacOS. :’(((( I would buy it! Doesn’t even have to have new features or look different. Classic look, pls pls!

Media Player Classic - Do people still use it??? This player was amazing! Paired with k-lite codec pack, it played everything. It was like VLC before VLC. And it looked good. Clean. Small. Could be installed anywhere which was nice. And the codec packs just made everything look and run fantastic!

Recycle Bin - .... Trash XD

Magnifier - This was for my dad because he had bad eyes and couldn’t remember CTRL +/-/0 to increase the text on pages that he wanted to read.

My Documents - Where I saved all the stuff I downloaded. Not the real My Docs. Just a folder that I named as such, with a custom icon. I don’t know why I wanted it there lol. I think to just have a uniform square on my desktop haha

Journal - I renamed this. I forget the original name of the client, but it was the official client of LJ. It was basically a program that let you write up posts for Livejournal and you could format things, draft them, etc, and post without uploading to your journal/blog. I liked it because sometimes I couldn’t post right away, and it made making drafts a lot easier for me to go back and edit. It also let you edit past posts, which was really convenient instead of looking for it on the web version one post at a time.

AIM+ - I loved AOL Instant Messenger, but over time the ads became too much. I invested a lot of time in 3rd party clients. I was constantly switching between AIM+, Adium, DeadAIM, Pigeon, Trillion, etc. Depended on what I wanted to do that day. Want to clone a SN? Want to skin the colors of the chats? Need transparency? Want to customize your lists? Want to log into more than one msg system at once? They all had their strengths. This was my msg service of choice. Back in the day you were either on this, MSN, or Yahoo!. Some people rocked ICQ and there were a few others, but these were the most common from who I knew/hung out with. I miss those days. <3

You can see WinMX running in the taskbar lmfao so I was prob downloading something at the time of snagging this quick shot. I also had DevART open (prob because I was gonna share this on there). I really wish I had more programs open at the time of this! XD It’s wild to look back at some of the software changes over the years!

Anyway, that’s one of my oldest screenshots that I can find that I’m able to share right now. :) I’m going to be posting a remake of that wallpaper that I did later today for those of you that want that, too.

If you read this far, thank you!! Hope you had fun reading about old stuff!

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download406 · 3 years

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Virtual Villagers 5 Walkthrough Free Download

If you want to finish Virtual Villagers 5 – New Believers as fast and as efficiently as possible it’s best to follow the strategy below. You can check off each part of this Virtual Villagers 5 walkthrough and make sure you convert all Heathens as quickly as possible. Selecting your villagers. Required: – Puzzle: 1, 2, 14. Official Site of Virtual Villagers by Last Day of Work. Includes exclusive free downloads, help, walkthrough, hints, tips, and free strategy guides. Get all the inside info, cheats, hacks, codes, walkthroughs for Virtual Villagers 5 - New Believers on GameSpot. Virtual Villagers 3: The Secret City is an exciting addition to the Virtual Villagers franchise. Grow your little people in real-time as you embark on a journey to re-populate the city ruins of Isola. Along the northern island shores, find new sources of food to nourish your villagers and make a variety of unique potions from hidden herbs.

Overview

Tips & Tricks

Uninstall Instruction

FAQ

Virtual Villagers 5 Walkthrough Puzzles

Virtual Villagers 5: New Believers Description

Explore the center of Isola in this innovative new chapter in the Virtual Villagers series, while you reckon with a band of mysterious masked heathens, who do not believe in you! Guide your tribe as they attempt to convert the savages, by dismantling their precious totems and removing their scary masks! Make them believe! FEATURES: ? The latest chapter in the Virtual Villagers saga! ? Visit the center of the Island of Isola. ? Masked heathens that need to be shown the light. ? Mysterious heathen Totems to be dismantled. ? Many God Powers to impress your villagers and the heathens! ? New puzzles, new collectibles, new Island Events! ? Dozens of achievements for players to accomplish. ? Real-time gameplay: new surprises every time you turn the game on!

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Click 'Start'

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Under Programs click the Uninstall a Program link.

Select 'Virtual Villagers 5: New Believers' and right click, then select Uninstall/Change.

Click 'Yes' to confirm the uninstallation.

How do I uninstall Virtual Villagers 5: New Believers in Windows XP?

Click 'Start'

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Click the Add or Remove Programs icon.

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How do I uninstall Virtual Villagers 5: New Believers in Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000?

Click 'Start'

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Double-click the 'Add/Remove Programs' icon.

Select 'Virtual Villagers 5: New Believers' and right click, then select Uninstall/Change.

Click 'Yes' to confirm the uninstallation.

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Operating system:Windows 10, Windows 8/8.1, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP

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A village manager game with dedicated missions.

Virtual Villagers 5 is mostly about managing your village. Your secondary objectives include converting a bunch of heathens into followers, removing their totem poles and getting them to take off their masks.

The goals in this game are far tougher than they were for the fourth game in this series. The graphics have also been tweaked a little to make them a little smoother. The game has a hint of Populous: The New Beginning since you have god-like powers and have to command your followers. Gain points to grow your powers, and build your god-like skills.

There Are Other Games Out There That Are Like This One

Virtual Villagers 5 Tutorial

You may read reviews claiming that this game is unique, but if you are a hardcore gamer or a fan of the Real-Time-Strategy (RTS) game, then you will recognise a lot of features in this game from other games. What is good about this instalment is that they have given you a little more freedom. It used to be that you had an objective and you had a seemingly single path towards completing that objective. You were railroaded into a solution with very little wiggle room, but with this game, you have more freedom to vary things.

Damn Those Repetitive Noises

Some fool decided that the villagers should repeat the same phrases when things need doing. It wouldn’t be so bad if they varied what they said as they do with Seven Kingdoms, but to hear the same grunting noises again and again is annoying.

You Have To Babysit The Game

As a player, you do have control over what happens, but for the most part your job is babysitting the village. It takes a very long time for things to happen, which means you also need a lot of patience. You have to be very careful when you play otherwise things fall apart. Speaking of babysitting, when a villager woman has a baby, then she cannot do anything else for two years, which is just dumb.

That Religious Thing

Some people do not like the idea that it goes the way of converting villagers from one religion to another. It is not so much the fact that you get to convert them organically--you have to invade and pull down their totem poles. It hits rather close to home for some people.

Pros

An interesting game

Better than the other versions

An engaging game for younger people

Cons

Virtual Villagers 5 Walkthrough Free Download Pc

Starts harder but then becomes a little meaningless

Bigger maps are needed

They can still do better in terms of graphics

0 notes

mindthump · 6 years

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The untold story of how the XPS 13 defied odds to become the world’s best laptop https://ift.tt/2vCoc4N

Dell.

What does that name make you think of? You’re answer is likely beige boxes, affordable laptops or – if you’re a child of the ‘90s – the infamous ‘Dude, you’re getting a Dell!’ guy. Despite his best efforts, Dell spent most of its life as the very definition of dull. The company’s computers were affordable, practical, reliable, but never exciting.

Not anymore. Dell’s XPS 13, our favorite laptop three years running, has redefined what people expect from a premium Windows-powered notebook – and its 2015 release was just the beginning. The company has since unleashed salvo after salvo of cutting-edge products across both its Dell and Alienware brands.

Change like that doesn’t happen overnight – but, as we found out, it can be spurred by just a few talented people with ambitious ideas.

The Birth of the Adamo

XPS (Xtreme Performance System) is not a new brand for Dell. It’s been around for over fifteen years, a carry-over from a simpler time in computers and technology. We all remember those days, right? Gateway controlled the market on high-end consumer PCs, Windows 95 reigned supreme, and Apple was known only as a desktop computer company.

In many ways, Dell’s feet are still firmly planted in that world. It’s a massive corporation that still makes a large chunk of its revenue selling computers to corporations in bulk. Yet something was in the water in the late 2000s. While the MacBook Air was developed in Cupertino, Dell was attempting to pioneer its own radical new direction for the future of computing.

Dell Adamo 13

It was called Adamo — a quiet, short-lived experiment within the walls of Dell that would pave the way to a very different future for the conservative computer manufacturer. It was built by a small team, created as if out of thin air, and disbanded within two years – but the groundwork it laid within the walls of Dell would change it forever.

“It was what we called a dark program,” says XPS Lead Marketer Donnie Oliphant. “It was a ‘need-to-know’ basis. It was literally like three guys in a room upstairs that had a lock on it. If we’d had more exposure to the rest of the business, it never would have made it out the door. We let the rest of the company in on it about six months before we shipped it.”

While the MacBook Air was in development in Cupertino, Dell was attempting to pioneer its own radical new direction for the future of computing.

Oliphant was moved over from the Latitude business at Dell, and he’s the longest-standing Dell employee in key roles on the current XPS team. He was joined by another key figure: Nicolas Denhez. You may not have heard the name before, but the French designer is responsible for some of the most celebrated modern technology concepts such as the Xbox One S and X, HoloLens, and the Microsoft Courier project. Before he moved over to Microsoft, he worked on multiple laptops in the Adamo line laptops, all of them futuristic, risk-taking, and doomed.

“The mechanical carcass cost on that was $570,” says Oliphant, pointing to the solid chunk of aluminum in an Adamo laptop’s chassis. “They were ridiculously expensive, and that wasn’t because of the material choices. It was because of our ineptitude with regards to design.”

The Adamo line produced two products its short life, the Adamo 13, and the Adamo XPS. They’re among the strangest PCs ever released commercially. Launching within six months of each other, they featured an all-aluminum body, and hefty pricetags to match. The Adamo 13 was $2,000 for the lower-priced model, and $2,700 for the higher-end model. But from a design aesthetic perspective, the Adamo 13 was far ahead of its time, even compared to something like the MacBook Air.

Dell Adamo XPS

“It was basically myself and [Denhez] that sat upstairs and built ID models on what we wanted it to look like. And then we took it to engineering and said, ‘put a computer in this.’ Typically, it’s the other way around. Typically, we do a design — architecture, features — and then we wrap a skin around it. This was done the opposite. If you think about it from today’s design philosophies, they were done ass-backwards.”

The Adamo XPS had a very different design story, though it was even more experimental in its conception. Dell completely out-sourced the design and development of the product, hoping to save a few bucks along the way.

“We used an outside design house — so, non-Dell employees. The idea was that we could offshore the development,” he says. “The thought process was that was going to be cheaper, but it just turned into a major headache — and we still had to finish it for them. There was a little bit of animosity toward that second system. But it was cool, because it was sub-10mm.”

Dell’s Adamo XPS is tiny even by today’s standards at just 0.4 inches thick.

In fact, the Adamo XPS was declared the thinnest laptop in the world when it was launched at CES of 2009. At just 0.4 inches thick, it’s tiny even by today’s standards. Oliphant would be the first to admit that ultra-thin designs come with its own flaws and compromises, but the desire to create bold, sleek products would live on in future XPS products.

“When I inherited XPS in 2010, and we took the products that were going to be the next-generation Adamo and we put those on the XPS roadmap,” said Oliphant. “The first XPS 13, codenamed Spider, launched in early 2012. That really should have been an Adamo product if we had kept [Adamo] alive.”

Going from Adamo to Dino

In 2006, Dell purchased Alienware, a popular gaming PC manufacturer based in Miami, Florida. The acquisition made great business sense, giving Dell access to a new market for high-end gaming rigs. Yet Alienware was a very different company than Dell. It was scrappy, down-to-earth, and completely consumer-focused. That ethos was about to get injected into the company in a big way.

Frank Azor Bryan Steffy/Stringer/Getty Images

The face of Alienware today is Frank Azor, who might be the most casual and earnest tech executive you’ll ever meet. He’s the kind of guy that’ll tease his employees for wearing a suit to a meeting and can just as easily talk about the internal components of a laptop or the latest gaming trends. While Azor and his team brought a casual attitude to Dell, for him, a corporate culture of risk-taking is what made the XPS 13 possible.

“You have to have a culture that is willing to innovate,” says Azor. “You can’t have ID with these crazy fucking ideas that are far out there, and then have a product planning team that say ‘I like some of them, but those are too expensive, or ‘my engineering team will never let us do that.’”

Azor started working at Alienware when he was just sixteen years ago, as one of just four other employees. Now, he’s the manager of both Alienware and XPS lines at Dell — and he’s determined to transform Dell’s stuffy culture from within.

“We’re an aircraft carrier,” he says. “To make a turn, it takes a long time. You need to start gaining momentum, and then you’ll start making the turn. I would say we’re in the momentum phase right now. This stuff is leading the company’s image — it’s leading the kind of culture we want to be. It’s all stemmed from the type of stuff we’ve done on XPS.”

Within just a few years of its launch, the influence of the XPS 13’s design has reached just about every screen we look at today.

Compared to the Adamo products, the XPS 13 might not look that strange, but it took significant risks. Starting the trend of thinning out bezels, the XPS 13 dared to move the webcam below the screen. The result when using the webcam was (and still is) odd, shooting right up your nose, and giving you a double chin. The team received its fair share of criticism for it, but the XPS team has stuck to its guns rather than caving in on the decision.

“When everybody’s like ‘we’re bought in, we’re going to be a culture of innovation, we’re gonna take risks, we’re gonna augment the engineering process to help solve for those defects and risks,’” he says. “But we’re going to go into this together with risk — a higher risk than we would if we built a “me-too” product — then you can make amazing things happen. If that hadn’t happened, we probably wouldn’t be where we are right now.”

During our tour of the Dell headquarters, we received an in-depth look at all the advanced engineering that powers the next generation of XPS laptops. (Photos: Luke Larsen/Digital Trends)

The legacy of XPS

Design trends come and go, but they always start with a trendsetter. The 2015 version of the XPS 13 was such a device. Manufacturers of televisions, monitors, smartphones, and laptops have all been on a mission to remove bezels — and that was set in motion by the XPS 13. On the smartphone front, you need only to look to the iPhone X or Galaxy S8 in your pocket. In laptops, look at the MateBook X Pro, which takes the bezel-less approach to the next level.

Dell’s XPS devices even make the MacBook Pro look a little outdated. According to Oliphant, that was always the goal, and the XPS 13 proved it was possible for PC manufacturers.

“Apple was very successful during that decade,” he said, speaking of the late 2000s. “Before 2015, most ultra-notebooks were just deemed MacBook Air-knockoffs or wannabes. What we saw shift with the introduction of Dino, our XPS 13 in 2015, was we started winning some of those head-to-head comparisons. We were actually delivering products with things that Apple didn’t have.”

Like any success, the XPS laptops didn’t spring out of nowhere. It was forged in a fire of bad experiments, lost profits, and finger-crossing moments. Yet Dell stuck with it, because the people behind the XPS 13 believed in the quality of what they’d built. Instead of retreating, they improved, tweaked, and revised. The result was a laptop that impressed critics and changed the company that built it.

“We’ve had to create a subculture for XPS. And from a consumer perspective, we’re trying to change the perception of customers or potential customers of Dell,” Azor said. “That’s what XPS is here for.”

#IFTTT #Feedly #hmmm #tech #good to know

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banggoodblog · 7 years

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Can You Justify Buying a Flagship Anymore? [Long Read]

High-end smartphone manufacturers aren’t selling their flagship phones like they did three years ago. HTC and Sony are almost on the verge of shutting down their mobile phone business. LG and Motorola are hardly making profits. And the top two dogs, Apple and Samsung, are seeing a slowing increase in sales. Meanwhile, Chinese brands are rising up and selling more than ever. Here is my breakdown of what is causing this shift in the smartphone industry.

Increased smartphone retention rates

The smartphone market wasn’t as saturated 3 or 4 years ago as it is now. Back then, the majority were still hanging on to their feature or “dumb” phones. Today, almost everyone’s upgraded to a smartphone. And most of them are willing to stick with their phones for at least a couple of years.

Why don’t we need to upgrade so often anymore?

Smaller leaps in performance: In the early days of smartphones, each new model offered a considerable upgrade in features and performance, you could quickly be left behind. The leaps in the last few years cannot be compared to the jumps when WiFi, GPS, 3G or cameras were first released, you needed those technologies, or you became outdated.

Flagships move away from performance

The shift in how phones are marketed has moved away from hardware-based aspects, where RAM, CPU, WiFi, and GPS used to be critical points of competition, larger/smaller/curved screens, ultra slim, gorilla glass, longer battery life, and metal frames have now become key points of difference. Aesthetics and size changes have taken the lead in how brands communicate their phones. Even the push for 2K screens is just hype as your eye cant detect the difference. Cameras are one area that is still a drawcard, but even then for online use an old phone can take a good selfie and make a good snapshot.

All of these things are improvements, but as you are not missing out on any significant change in technology, it is not a strong reason to ditch a phone that already performs well.

Just look at your desktop PC

Laptops and PCs followed a similar cycle, specs from even 5 years ago are still good enough for everything you do today, but if you contrast back to Windows 95-XP days, you often needed a hardware upgrade to enjoy the latest features or connectivity. Now Windows 7 and 10 will happily operate on the same machine without the need for a physical upgrade. Why? Because the performance needed to run an operating system and run regular tasks has been surpassed, you don’t get a vastly improved day to day performance with a new computer, the bottleneck now is internet speed, not your hardware. If your computer is a few years old, chuck in an SSD for a vastly faster startup and load time.

Smartphones are entering this stage too where an upgrade might be faster, but it is not going to change your use of the device or unlock something new.

Peaked mobile performance requirements

Look at what you do with your phone today, and compare to last year, the web, software, and entertainment have changed a lot, but the actual performance you require from your phone has not dramatically changed. Web browsing, Facebook, Reddit, watching videos opening a few apps and using a GPS has already been catered for, the latest smartphones offer more speed or ability to open more apps at once but nothing revolutionary.

Again you can look at computers…

In the last 5 years, software and the web have not needed any physical hardware upgrade. So you have not been pushed to change your setup just to keep current software or your online social life and entertainment accessible.

Everyone loves a new phone (or a new PC), but unlike the early smartphone days, you are not so quickly pushed to upgrade anymore, as the older model might be slower but will still update, run and operate the same programs.

Things have also been optimized

The push to optimize applications has also made them smaller and lighter so newer apps can actually be less resource heavy than their earlier versions.

The same can be said with the web, the focus on optimizing a page is based on making it smaller, making the server faster and only loading what is necessary. Gone are the days of bloated Java heavy sites with awesome animation and buttons. Pages might be increasing in overall size (mostly due to more pictures), but the actual performance needed to web browse has not considerably changed since the beginning of the YouTube video era.

New Media Needs New Hardware

Throughout history our media consumption has had a few epic developments, printed media, radio and TV were all huge shifts in the way we consume media. All these changes also required new physical hardware both to produce and consume. Video has been the latest for a long time, but now a huge shift is coming. VR, AI, and ultra-high resolution will develop into a new interactive medium of entertainment and commerce. This will bring a new horizon to hardware performance and new features.

Until VR or another big hardware development comes, we can expect to see people upgrading their phone less often.

Chinese Smartphone Adoption Hitting Big Brands

The flagships are also facing an increase in competition from imported smartphone brands. Besides Korea and Japan, there’s another Asian country that’s making a name for itself with its smartphones – China. Smartphone users who are willing to upgrade no longer have only a handful of OEMs to look up to. The options at their disposal have multiplied, thanks to Chinese manufacturers such as Huawei, OnePlus, Xiaomi, Vivo, Meizu, and Oppo. They offer top-notch, flagship hardware for a mid-range price. For example, the recently introduced Xiaomi Mi5 does almost everything a Samsung Galaxy S7 can do. It packs in the same hardware as the S7, and it also doesn’t skimp on build quality. Despite such identical traits, Xiaomi sells its flagship for less than $400. The Samsung equivalent retails for almost $700.

The Top Dogs are Not Going Anywhere, Yet

With Xiaomi, Oneplus, Oppo and others making a mark in the smartphone industry within a relatively short period, seasoned players may have seen a hit in their bottom line, but they are not anywhere close to incurring losses. Samsung, Apple, LG phones are still seeing a good number of buyers. There are reasons why people buy the much more expensive Samsung and Apple phones when there are equivalent, less costly alternatives.

First, these companies have created a brand loyalty or fan base that’s hard to wipe off within a couple of years, especially the Apple fans are hard to convert. Moreover, the more prominent brands have a wider distribution network. Their phones are accessible in almost every part of the world. It’s nearly impossible to find a mobile phone store that doesn’t have Samsung or Apple phones on display. Chinese brands are yet to spread their wings outside China and India, although available online, the physical presence of these names has not spread so quickly. From a service perspective, Apple, Samsung, and even LG, for that matter, have an established customer service network.

Shopping online and ordering from China has also become much faster and safer. With the rise in local warehouses and protection offered by PayPal and Credit card companies getting your phone from overseas is hasslefree.

Chinese phones are now hard to resist

The dedication of these brands to imitate Apple and Samsung, not in just looks, but also performance and quality have resulted in not only cheap alternatives but in fact robust alternatives to big brands. These Chinese flagships have proven they can mix function and price and in doing so have greatly threatened the overpriced flagship brands.

Conclusions

People are not replacing their phones so frequently, and the market is slowing.

It is slowing because the performance we need for regular use has not changed, we don’t need faster / higher specs to keep software updated.

The trend can be easily seen in the development of the laptop and PC industries.

A new shift in how we use our phones will energize the market again, VR/AI has this potential.

Chinese brands have shifted from producing knockoffs to creating their own flagships.

The winners in this lull are smartphones brands from China who are rapidly gaining market share, they offer top specs with unbeatable value for money.

Running some old brick of a thing and looking to upgrade?

Experience the value of Chinese smartphones, you’ll be amazed what even $150 can get regarding performance.

Popular Chinese Smartphones

What do you think? Can you still justify buying a Samsung or Apple?

Can You Justify Buying a Flagship Anymore? [Long Read] was originally published on Banggood.com Official Gadget Blog And Latest News Reel

#Android #apple #educational #smartphone

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darthpeanut-blog1 · 7 years

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The evolution of Windows, from Windows 1 to Windows 10

We have been talking about the features of Windows 10 since October of last year and many of you are bored with reading articles like "5 reasons why I should not upgrade my computer to Windows 10" (according to the article's limb) . This post is thought to detoxify us from the vortex of these days since the decision, after all Frank Sinatra would say It's up to you ....

Let's go through the last 30 years of Windows, starting naturally in Windows 1 until we reach Windows 10. We started:

Although it was announced in 1983 by Bill Gates, its launch did not take place until two years later, specifically on November 20, 1985. It was popular thanks to its graphic interface based on windows that gives its name.

Among its desktop features were the management of MS-DOS files, calendar, notebook, calculator and clock.

Microsoft launches Windows 2.0 with desktop icons, expanded memory, better graphics and the ability to overlay windows, control screen layout and use keyboard shortcuts to speed up work.

It was the first Windows platform for applications as common today as Word or Excel.

On May 22, 1990 appears Windows 3.0, the first version that achieved commercial success, with several million sales in the first year. Important changes to the user interface were introduced, as well as improving the exploitation of the memory management capacity of processors.

The Program Manager and File Manager made their first appearance in this release, along with the redesigned control panel and some games like Solitaire, Hearts and Minesweeper. Who has not ever played the mythical solitaire?

Although the marketing people of Microsoft try to convince the world that NT means New Technology , the truth is is that the initials NT come from the code name that had the project when it was in the N-Ten development phase. The final project was launched on 27 July 1993.

To carry out this development from scratch, IBM partnered with Microsoft. They built a 32-byte multitasking, multi threaded, multiprocessing, multi user OS with a hybrid core and an abstraction hardware layer to facilitate cross-platform portability. GTA 6 System Requirement

A year and a month later, on July 24, 1994, Microsoft released Windows 95. They ran an unprecedented ad campaign that included the Rolling Stones' " Start Me Up " song. The detractors of Windows did not miss the opportunity to mock indicating that the lyrics of the song said "... you make a grown man cry ...", but this did not prevent that in only 5 weeks were sold 7 million copies a record!

Windows 95 was more consumer-oriented, had a completely new user interface and features that today are very familiar, but then something revolutionary, such as the Start button, the Taskbar, the Notifications Area (remember which was the time of the modem, fax, ...), etc.

On June 25, 1998, the first version designed specifically for the consumer was born. A number of user interface enhancements are introduced through the Internet Explorer 4 Windows desktop update package. For example, the ability to minimize a window with a simple click on the toolbar icon, buttons navigation to "Forward" and "Return", etc.

With Windows 98 the recognition of scanners, mice, keyboards and levers was improved.

The last of the line of Windows 9x based on DOS, Windows Millennium Edition, considered like one of the worse versions of Windows that has existed, is released on September 14, (Although as the saying goes, someone will come that good will do to me; P)

Unlike W95 and W98 they lacked DOS real-mode support. In his favor it must be said that he had a very useful feature, namely "Restore the System" which allowed users to establish a stable configuration of the system earlier than the current one.

Just one year later, on October 25, 2001, the first consumer operating system based on NT architecture, codenamed was Whistler, went on sale with the name of XP of and XP eriencie . It turned out to be one of the most successful, in December 2013 its market share reached 500 million computers. After 12 years in the market 12 years !, in April 2014 Microsoft stopped supporting.

Windows XP introduced new features such as the use of a new user-friendly interface, the ability to use multiple user accounts at once, the ability to group similar applications in the taskbar, just to name a few.

We had never waited so long for a change of SO, more than 5 years! Microsoft would have liked to have it ready to cash in on Christmas 2006, but had to wait until January 30, 2007 to launch it worldwide. It is remembered as a system that came late, bad and drag . Key complaints focused on security functions, digital rights management, hardware requirements, and software performance and compatibility.

In its favor, we must remember the characteristics that everyone identifies, namely: the new graphic interface that allowed transparency in windows, the Flip-3D application that was activated with the key combination Win + Tab, and showing with a 3D effect the windows that were open could change from one to another. In addition, it allowed to have a preview of the open windows, by simply hovering over the buttons on the taskbar.

By the way, do you remember when in April Stack Overflow unveiled the preferences of the programmers and discovered that 2015 are still programmers who use Windows Vista and Windows XP: O? Better let's forget this last and let's continue with the review, there is little left!

Many consider Windows 7 as the OS that Windows Vista would like to have been. In fact, in its origins was conceived as a kind of update of Windows Vista, which allowed to maintain some degree of compatibility with applications and hardware. As soon as it came to market on October 22, 2009 began to eat the market share of its predecessors.

Checkout: GTA 6 Release Date

Windows 7 stands out for offering a redesigned interface, a new taskbar, important improvements in OS performance and especially since W7 marked the debut of Windows Touch , which allows to explore the web from touch screens.

The 25 of October of 2012 made long put the controversial Windows 8. The users tear the garments ... it did not have Home button! How could they survive without it?

Its user interface was modified to make it more user friendly and easy to use with the touch screens, in addition to being able to continue using the keyboard and mouse. It is the moment of the Apps whose icons of different sizes occupy the screen, can be grouped, show notifications, ... The file explorer now leaves only a click of mouse, functions that were previously hidden and like this we could list hundreds of new features, but we know you're impatient to get to the next.

After three years of hard journey through the desert without a home button, July 29, 2015 makes its stellar appearance Windows 10. And now what?

Anyway there is a "universal rule" that has been fulfilled since Windows came out, and is that users always consider a good version and the next bad, alternating them. For example, Windows XP: Good, but Windows Vista: Bad. And if you look at the list has always been fulfilled. Now it plays good version, so ... as we told you at the beginning of this article, the decision is yours ;-)

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jamesmcphee30 · 6 years

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Wi-Fi 6 Is A Stupid Branding Idea

You’ve probably seen recently that the Wi-Fi Alliance has decided the rebrand the forthcoming 802.11ax standard as “Wi-Fi CERTIFIED 6”, henceforth referred to as “Wi-Fi 6”. This branding decision happened late in 2018 and seems to be picking up steam in 2019 as 802.11ax comes closer to ratification later this year. With manufacturers shipping 11ax access points already and the consumer market poised to explode with the adoption of a new standard, I think it’s time to point out to the Wi-Fi Alliance that this is a dumb branding idea.

My Generation

On the surface, the branding decision looks like it makes sense. The Wi-Fi alliance wants to make sure that consumers aren’t confused about which wireless standard they are using. 802.11n, 802.11ac, and 802.11ax are all usable and valid infrastructure that could be in use at any one time, as 11n is 2.4GHz, 11ac is 5GHz, and 11ax encompasses both. According to the alliance, there will be a number displayed on the badge of the connection to denote which generation of wireless the client is using.

Except, it won’t be that simple. Users don’t care about speeds. They care about having the biggest possible number. They want that number to be a 6, not a 5 or a 4. Don’t believe me? AT&T released an update earlier this month that replaced the 4G logo with a 5G logo even when 5G service wasn’t around. Just so users could say they had “5G” and tell their friends.

Using numbers to denote generations isn’t a new thing in software either. We use version numbers all the time. But using those version numbers as branding usually leads to backlash in the community. Take Fibre Channel, for example. Brocade first announced they would refer to 16GB fibre channel as “Gen 5”, owing to the fifth generation of the protocol. Gen 6 was 32GB and so on. But, as the chart on this fibre channel page shows, they worked themselves into a corner. Gen 7 is both 64GB and 256GB depending on what you’re deploying. Even Gen 6 was both 32GB and 128GB. It’s confusing because the name could be many things depending on what you wanted it to mean. Branding doesn’t denote clear information.

Subversion of Versions

The Wi-Fi Alliance decision also doesn’t leave room for expansion or differentiation. For example, as I mentioned in a previous post on Gestalt IT, 802.11ax doesn’t make the new OWE spec mandatory. It’s up to the vendors to implement this spec as well as other things that have been made option, as upstream MU-MIMO is rumored to become as well. Does that mean that if I include both of those protocols as options that my protocol is Wi-Fi 6.1? Or could I even call it Wi-Fi 7 since it’s really good?

Windows has had this problem going all the way back to Windows 3.0. Moving to Windows 3.1 was a huge upgrade, but the point release didn’t make it seem that way. After that, Microsoft started using branding names by year instead of version numbers. But that still caused issues. Was Windows 98 that much better than 95? Were they both better than Windows NT 4? How about 2000? Must be better, right? Better than Windows 99?1

Windows even dropped the version numbers for a while with Windows XP (version 5.1) and Windows Vista (version 6.0) before coming back to versioning again with Windows 7 (version 6.1) and Windows 8 (version 6.2) before just saying to hell with it and making Windows 10 (version 10.0). Which, according to rumor, was decided on because developers may have assumed all legacy consumer Windows versions started with ‘9’.

See the trouble that versioning causes when it’s not consistent? What happens if the next minor revision to the 802.11ax specification doesn’t justify moving to Wi-Fi 7? Do you remember how confusing it was for consumers when we would start talking about the difference between 11ac Wave 1 and Wave 2? Did anyone really care? They just wanted the fastest stuff around. They didn’t care what wave or what version it was. They just bought what the sticker said and what the guy at Best Buy told them to get.

Enterprise Nightmares

Now, imagine the trouble that the Wi-Fi Alliance has potentially caused for enterprise support techs with this branding decision. What will we say when the users call in and say their wireless is messed up because they’re running Windows 10 and their Wi-Fi is on 6 still? Or if their cube neighbor has a 6 on their Wi-Fi but my Mac doesn’t?2

Think about how problematic it’s going to be when you try to figure out why someone is connecting to Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) instead of Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax). Think about the fights you’re going to have about why we need to upgrade when it’s just one number higher. You can argue power savings or better cell sizes or more security all day long. But the jump from 5 to 6 really isn’t that big, right? Can’t we just wait for 7 and make a really big upgrade?

Tom’s Take

I think the Wi-Fi Alliance tried to do the right thing with this branding. But they did it in the worst way possible. There’s going to be tons of identity issues with 11ax and Wi-Fi 6 and all the things that are going to be made optional in order to get the standard ratified by the end of the year. We’re going to get locked into a struggle to define what Wi-Fi 6 really entails while trying not to highlight all the things that could potentially be left out. In the end, it would have been better to just call it 11ax and let users do their homework.

You’d be shocked the number of times I heard it called that on support calls

︎

You better believe Apple isn’t going to mar the Airport icon in the system bar with any stupid numbers

︎

from martinos https://networkingnerd.net/2019/01/24/wi-fi-6-is-a-stupid-branding-idea/

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stepphase · 3 years

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Windows 11: all about Microsoft's new OS like release date, new features

If we are to believe the many rumors circulated on the Web, Windows 11 is about to be announced by Microsoft. The editor of Redmond has indeed scheduled a major event on June 24. A few days before this “epic” conference, we take stock of everything we currently have on the new Microsoft operating system.

While Microsoft had promised in 2015 that Windows 10 would be the ultimate version of its famous operating system, the Redmond giant seems to be reversing its decision. After announcing in May 2021 that the next update of the system would be a real small revolution, it seems more and more likely that behind this update is in reality ... Windows 11 !

First, we wanted to take stock of the validity of this hypothesis. Did Microsoft troll everyone or will Windows 11 really see the light of day? Secondly, we have listed all the new features that we can expect in this new edition of the OS. Finally, we have tried to answer the various questions that such a change implies: when will Windows 11 be released? Windows 10 going to disappear? And above all, will the new OS be free like its predecessor for those who already have a license of the old version?

IS MICROSOFT REALLY GOING TO RELEASE A NEW VERSION OF WINDOWS?

Several elements in Microsoft's communication indeed suggest that Microsoft is about to launch a new edition of its OS. Throughout its announcements and videos, Microsoft has left the following clues:

An animation officially released by the company suggests the number 11 on the ground , as you can see in the tweet below. The visual in question is not new and had already been posted by the Microsoft.design account on Instagram in early April 2021. But at the time, the 4 parallelograms which are reflected and which make up the Windows logo were very distinct from each other. . In the new version of the visual in question, they have merged to reveal the number 11.

https://twitter.com/Windows/status/1400125115765907458

Another clue concerns Microsoft's conference time, which will be at 11 a.m. on June 24, 2021.

For several years, Microsoft has not organized a big event dedicated exclusively to Windows for a long time. Moreover, the most recent dates back to 2015, the year Windows 10 was released. Consequently, the event of June 24 can only augur one thing: a new version of Windows is in order.

An animation traces all the jingles of the OS from Windows 95 to Windows 7, an animation whose audio has been slowed 4000 times. This video may seem quite anecdotal, except that its 11 minutes duration is again a big clue as to the imminent release of Windows 11.

Finally, the last clue that suggests a major overhaul of Windows: Microsoft has stopped publishing new builds of Windows 10 for beta testers. Build 21390 will therefore remain the last version, until the event of June 24.

https://youtu.be/fMr4Qm5ZWrI

WHAT'S NEW IN WINDOWS 11?

Microsoft has not officially communicated on the release of Windows 11, we remain for the moment at the stage of hypotheses concerning the content of the new OS. According to Satya Nadella, the current CEO of Microsoft, the next Windows is shaping up to be a big event : “Soon we will be sharing one of the most important Windows updates of the last decade, in order to deliver greater economic opportunities for developers and creators. I have used it for the last few months and am incredibly happy with the next generation of Windows, ”he said in May 2021.

A GRAPHIC REDESIGN ON THE AGENDA

We also know that Microsoft has been working for almost a year on a graphic overhaul of Windows, in particular to offer a new Start menu, new windows, a new taskbar and new applications . In addition, Microsoft launched a call for applications in April 2021: the Redmond company is looking for someone to "modernize the Windows user experience." "

A serious facelift of Windows would therefore be on the agenda, traces of which can already be seen in some leaks or in the very latest Builds of Windows 10 (the famous pre-versions accessible from the Windows Insider program). One of the first new features that we notice is that depending on the applications, windows and menus have less angular and much more rounded edges.

The icons of Windows should benefit from a helping youth. This change is already visible in the latest builds of the Windows Insider program. File Explorer thus benefits from new icons, as shown in the screenshot above.

The Start menu should also enjoy a new lease of life. It should also benefit from rounded edges , but also from a window "detached from its icon". This would also be the case for all the icons on the taskbar, whose menus would float as the concept below reveals.

A NEW SETTINGS APP

The action and notification center should also be reviewed and corrected, just like… the Settings application! According to the latest rumors, the Parameters module should indeed benefit from a redesign, which already allows you to manage Windows from every angle. As shown in the screenshot below, the application would have a new interface and a completely different layout compared to what we can currently see with Windows 10. Some options such as virtual desktops or multitasking would be put more forward.

It is obvious that this application is intended to replace 100% of the Control Panel, which gradually disappears over the updates of Windows 10. Will the new version of the operating system be the opportunity for Microsoft to let go of the Control Panel for good, or at least to hide it in the twists and turns of Windows?

ANDROID COMES TO WINDOWS 11

We have been talking about it for a while, but it seems that the information is being confirmed month by month. The next version of Windows should include an emulator to launch Android applications. If we are to believe the most recent GitHub mentions of the Windows Subsystem for Linux GUI project, support for Android applications by Windows 11 would be native: no need to install an application like ANDROID STUDIO, BLUESTACKS, NOX PLAYER.

Will emulators like BlueStacks disappear with the release of Windows 11?

Windows 11 should be able to take care of everything. It remains to be seen how applications initially planned for touch support will be able to be supported by Microsoft's OS.

WHEN IS WINDOWS 11 RELEASED?

If we are to believe what Microsoft said, a new version of Windows will be released this year. Although the name of the new OS has not been confirmed, it is very likely that it is Windows 11, and not just an update to Windows 10.

For the more impatient, Microsoft obviously wants to release a preview at the end of the conference on June 24, 2021 .

WINDOWS 10 GOING TO DISAPPEAR?

Launched in 2015, Windows 10 could bow out after 10 years of existence.

Here again, it is still a bit early to judge the future of Windows 10 as long as no official announcement has been made. On the other hand, if we stick to Microsoft's usual policy regarding new versions of Windows, Windows 10 is not going to go away anytime soon. Unless there is a final turnaround, the OS still has many long and beautiful years ahead of it. Windows XP for example has been maintained for almost 13 years, while Windows 7 has lasted for 11 years. Even the much-maligned Vista will have lived for almost 11 years too.

Windows 10 arrived in its 6 th year, it is clear that its life cycle is not going to end anytime soon and he still has a few years to live, if that via updates security. This is what the operating system's software support page suggests. Microsoft is indeed talking about a deadline of October 14, 2025 for Windows 10 Home, Windows 10 Professional, Windows 10 Professional Education and Windows 10 Professional for Workstations.

https://youtu.be/MEv1EcTSQdA

HOW MUCH WILL WINDOWS 11 COST?

When Windows 10 was released in 2015, Microsoft "offered" all users of Windows 7 and Windows 8 a license for its new operating system. This offer was only supposed to last for a year, but six later it is still active. We can reasonably hope that the editor of Redmond will repeat the operation with Windows 11: any holder of a license for Windows 8 or Windows 10 (Windows 7 is no longer supported) should be entitled to a free migration to Windows 11 .

As for the newcomers, they will probably have to put their hands in their pockets, knowing that at present, a full Windows 10 license costs between 145 and 259 euros depending on the version . It is likely that a Windows 11 license will show up at similar prices.

Finally, the last avenue to consider: the acquisition of a Windows subscription. A formula that would take on its full meaning with a Windows in the Cloud, the release of which also seems imminent. Recall that Microsoft already offers Office 365 in this format since 2011. If Windows 11 were to be declined in a remote version on the Cloud, it could well be that Microsoft launches such an offer.

RELATED QUESTIONS:

Computer experts: tips on how to insure the longevity of ones computer?

System Properties: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Version 2002 Service Pack 2 Dell Dimension DEO51 Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 2.53GHz 2.53 GHz. 768 MB of RAM AT&T Yahoo service provider - MODEM Speedstream 4100 My Comp. Tech told me he had tripled the memory; so the above specs. may not be accurate with regard to this. When not in use, I always put it on Stand By . Disk Fragmenter: when should I, and should not, utilize this? I'm 74 yrs. old, and had never even touched a computer til I retired; and have no formal education in computer operations. So please delineate your responses in layman's terms. Any recommendations so as to insure my computer's longevity would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Alberich""

Where can my family find affordable health insurance?

We live in Minnesota, we're a young couple, newly engaged with a 5 month old son. We were working on getting Minnesota Care. Our son's coverage was suppose to start Dec. 1 and my fiance's coverage was suppose to start later. We just received letters stating we make 275% too much!! We don't know what to do. I am going to school so I am still covered by my parent's insurance but my son needs coverage. Where can I find something affordable but that has good coverage?""

Where can I find a list of insurance rates by make/model?

I am looking to buy a used car, but I want to make sure that the insurance isn't sky high. I do not know what kind of car I want right now so I do not have any information to enter in a car insurance search. Where can I find a list of cars that typically have the lowest insurance rates?""

""Young adult, no health insurance, I need help!?""

I am going to make this simple as possible: During this year, Jan to March, I have been on my parent's insurance, NJ FamilyCare, which we were enrolled under free-care because we were horribly under the poverty line, or above it? We're poor, that's it. And on April 1st, I was terminated from my insurance, they are saying I am 19 years of age, thus I have no insurance. Late August we (as a family) re-applied with all our names, and sent the papers in. But with a lot of research, I knew I shouldn't have been, under the Affordable Care Act I should have been on my parent's insurance until the age of 26. I meet the requirements: 1. Dependent Adult (19 years old) 2. Full - time student, no college insurance. 3. No insurance for 6 months now. 4. Not employed. I know for a fact, that being a full-time student, and being unemployed, shouldn't affect this, but maybe it is? I talked to a representative from the welfare office, (where my parents applied) and the lady (rudely) told me that because I am 19, and in school, I was terminated. And my social worker won't be done looking at the papers until late November. WTF? That doesn't make sense, so I kept the battle on, and told her that I should be covered under the law. But after some bullsh*tting around, she hung up on me. So I called again. And this time, another lady was saying, her son who is 20 years old, is insured under her insurance, and that I should come in with my parents, and tell our social worker that I am a full time student, who can't afford to be employed, (because of my 21 credit semester), I am dependent, and I have no job. I was like, well, it's not like I don't want a job, I just can't find the time to have one. I used to work 12 hour shifts, so don't think I don't like to work. The main reason I need the insurance, is because of my ADHD and Mania. I also always get sick, and have kidney problems. But with this, I still can't imagine why I was terminated. The lady told me I shouldn't have been under the law, but different people have different ideas... So, I will go to my social worker on the Tuesday, and find out what's happening. But I know I should be covered, and at least for my sake until I am 23-24. To which I plan to graduate and get my own insurance, and home. But if it doesn't work out, what other low-payment options are there? I heard about NJ Protect, but it's expensive on my part, and no way can I burden my parents with out-of-pocket payments. Thanks in advance.""

How much is the average cost of premiums for E&O insurance for a CPA firm?

I'm wondering what would be an average estimated cost for e&o insurance costs for a CPA firm? the firm has more than 3 people and more than $400,000 in revenue""

Car insurance question!?

Sorry of his sounds dumb, but I'm 15 and want to get a car. When a kid gets his or her liscense does the insure cost more or the same if they have their own car or not? Let's say kid a has a liscense but no car so she uses her parents car every once in a while. Kid b has her own car. Which insurance would cost more or would hey be the same? (just assume they both had he same exact car and grades)""

Liability insurance for massage therapist?

I will be getting my massage therapy license in about two weeks...if I work for a spa, will I need liability insurance? Or will my employer cover me?""

Can an insurer refuse me insurance because of a secondary drivers record?

I am a new driver, I am now insured with a different company but am not happy with how much I am paying. Now, When I first got my vehicle I did a quote with a different insurance company, I was pleased with the cost of insurance, so I decided to try to go ahead with their insurance policy. It took 12 days for this company to contact me back, that's only because I called them questioning about the progress. Now the wait didn't bother it is the fact that the refused me. I know that as an insurance company they have the right to refuse an insurance policy, but it was the EXCUSE they gave me that infuriated me. Now let explain the situation as clearly as I can. I am a new driver, I am still living with my dad so I was obligated to put him onto my insurance plan because we are living int he same building and both have access to my car, as a new driver I have 0 tickets, 0 cancellations of insurance (have had previous insurance for a motorcycle with the same company) and I must also put 0 experience. now my dad has over 30 years driving experience, but he had 1 ticket in the past 3 years. So this is what the insurance company said to me on the phone, We are refusing your policy because you are a new driver, and your secondary driver has had 1 ticket in the past 3 years. Me, and my father both think that this is just an excuse to not insure a new driver. I am insured now and have been for the past several months driving everyday to and from work, my insurance is getting a bit costly now and am thinking of trying the other company again. I would like to know, Can the insurance company refuse me for those reasons? And would you recommend trying that company again after a few months have past or try to find cheaper insurance elsewhere?""

Insurance on Giving Birth?

Me and my husband don't have any insurance and we want to have a baby, what is the average monthly payment for insurance that will cover everything from the ultra violet sound to the monthly check-ups to the auctual giving birth in the hospital.""

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Getting a check from both insurance companies?

I recently got in a car accident, and both insurance companies (mine & the other party's) sent me a check to cover the damages, each check is enough to cover the full damage. What should I do? a. Use check from other party's insurance, and return the one from my insurance company. b. Use check from my insurance company, and return the one from the other party's. c. Keep both checks""

Do you need car insurance to put a car under your name?

I have an used car, to switch the car to your name, and register it, do you need to have insurance?""

How much do you pay for your teenager's(16) auto insurance?

I just got a learner's permit, and GEICO says that they do not charge for learner's permit. However, when I get my driver's license, it'll cost an additional ~$500 per 6 months. I am a straight-A student, records are clean, and I'm NOT adding an another car--just me--into my parent's coverage. Is this expensive? Normal? Cheap? What do you pay, and what company are you covered by? thanks""

Is there an insurance that gives the same benifits as AAA at a lower price?

AAA is awsome but expenisve is there any other car insurance that offers the same benifits at a lower price

What is the cheapest insurance for a new driver with sports car (97 camero)?

About how much can I expect to pay???

Do you need to buy the car before getting insurance for it?

I am looking for my first (used) car from a private seller, and I would like to be able to drive it home, so will I have to buy insurance for it before I buy it? And will I have to own the deed before I get the insurance?""

At fault driver asks for my proof of insurance.?

I was legally parked out on the street and this person decided to park right behind me. But that persons poor maneuvers failed and crashed into my car, my car lurched forward. So i got out to see if my car was ok. I but as I get out I look at the person and she smiles and waves me off like I'm making too much of a deal about this. I was just looking for an apology or something like that. But they blurted out that it was only 2 miles per hour what possible damage can happen!? I said thats not the point and asked for insurance info, wrote the info down and asked why they were being so rude and hyper. its because i don't like being accused of damage I didn't do!! That person is a lowly fool. ANYWAY to get to my question. They mentioned they were an attorney and under California law that they must see my proof insurance, i gave it cause I have nothing to hide. But should I have given my info away? How should I report this claim to my insurance?""

Maternity health insurance question?

My son may be the father of a child, due next month. If paternity test proves him to be the dad, can her insurance go after his insurance to pay for the prenatal and delivery bills? This is in New York State""

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I hit a car in Los Angeles and I have State Farm. The guy I hit drives a range rover and all I did was scratch his driver's side door. The body shop wants $1200 to repaint the door, which I think is insane. I would pay cash, but $1200 is a lot of money. Does State Farm have accident forgiveness, or will my premium go up if I claim this on my insurance?""

Insurance help at 18 years old?

hello i am a 18 years old i am lucky enough to have a very good job so i can afford to spend alot of money for a 18 year old on a car i am looking to spend around 11k in all even tho the cheaper the better its not buying the car that is the problem its the insurance on the cars i want to buy all being around 4k for any half decent cars ?? any help would be grateful for some facts and figures .... cheers alex

Getting car insurance on a learner's permit?

i'm 22, living at home but my parents don't want me on their policy and won't let me drive their cars. so i've got to get my own - my question is, how do i get car ...show more""

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We were involved in a hit and run accident. Obviously not our fault, but the people that did it drove off. They've yet to be found. Our car was totaled and we're currently waiting on a payment from the insurance company. My question is, will our monthly car insurance payment go up, even though the accident wasn't our fault? Also, if they find the people that did it (there's more to the story and we're waiting on fingerprints from the car) is it possible to get their insurance to pay the extra amount if ours DOES go up?""

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A question regarding health insurance for couples?

me and my girlfriend have been dating for two years now. i plan on proposing to her this spring, but we can't afford a wedding yet. i was wondering if me and her could get an affordable health insurance, or would we need to get married to do that? i was also thinking, that if we would have to prove marital status, that we could marry at a court house, then eventually i'd propose and have a formal wedding in the future. what do most couples do in this situation, when finding good health insurance? we're healthy, no illnesses and the only prescription my girlfriend has is for her birth control. i also plan to start my own business, so getting our own insurance would be essential. thanks!""

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I am looking at switching to Foremost for my auto insurance and was wondering if anyone had any comments or experiences about auto insurance through Foremost Insurance company.

Car insurance...???

my cousen is on his dads car insurance.there is no claims on the insurance either, when they first set up my cousen on his insurance they gave him a fixed amount to pay each month, they signed a contract on that agreement. but they took double that amount out last month and are now saying that they owe them more money, they have put his insurance up without sending written warning or any other kind of notice.. is this legal.. is there anyway we can catch them out? please help""

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At what ages does auto insurance rates rise?

Staying on parents health insurance in NJ?

As the title states, I am wondering if I am eligible to stay on my parent's health insurance (we live in New Jersey and my dad gets the family insurance through his job in Delaware). I am 23 years old, not in school, and my job offers health insurance. I have read that the law allows children under the age of 27 to remain on their parent's health insurance UNLESS the kid's job offers health insurance. As I stated, mine does offer it. HOWEVER, an older coworker of mine told me that her children were able to stay on the family health insurance until age 27 even though the kids' work offered insurance because the cost of the insurance at the child's job was over $25 per week. The cheapest policy at my job will cost me just over $30 per week. Unfortunately, I have not found any trace of this $25 rule anywhere online. Is this a true policy? If insurance isn't offered cheaply enough, can I stay on my parent's policy? Can anyone shed some light on this?""

Texas Roadhouse health insurance?

I was told working full time here I'd get free health insurance. Does anyone know if this is true? :)

Changing car insurance beneficiaries during a divorce?

IS IT TRUE THAT MY SOON-TO-BE EX HUSBAND CAN'T CHANGE OUR CAR INSURANCE POLICY UNTIL OUR DIVORCE IS FINAL??? I NEED HELP WITH THIS... IT SAYS THAT HE CANT MAKE ANY CHANGES TO IT IN THE SUMMONS THAT WAS GIVEN TO HIM BUT I WANT TO KNOW HOW LNG UNTIL HE CAN CHANGE IT BECAUSE HE IS TRYING TO CHANGE IT NOW

How much would insurance cost for a 97 Mazda Miata?

I'm thinking about getting my 16 year old son a 1997 Mazda Miata with about 110,000 miles. I have 3 cars currently with state farm. I do plan on selling one car to buy the miata. I have a clean driving record myself. My son in an honors student. He has completed drivers Ed. He hasn't gotten in any wrecks yet. Any idea of how much insurance would be a month for him?""

Switch auto insurance from USAA to Nationwide?

If the policy quoted by Nationwide was ~35% cheaper than what USAA would give, for the exact same coverage, would you switch? Why or why not?""

What are your insurance premiums monthly?

I am currently paying $54 a paycheck to cover my husband and myself. It would cost me $18 for myself only and $102 for family. We do not have any deductibles, only copays. Emergency room $125, urgent care $40, specialist $30, ob $15, and pcp $15. I have an epo from United. I am curious to know what other people are paying for health insurance.""

Insurance Types?

Is there a type of insurance that covers any type of damages you cause? Specifically destruction of a mattress.

I have lost my car insurance details and paid in full how can I find out who I am insured with?

After paying for my car insurance in full I have lost the documentation and cannot remember which company I am insured with is there any way to find out who my insurance company is?

Where can i buy health insurance?

How much would full coverage insurance be with 2 points on my license?

I am almost 24 and I want to get a new car but I'm not sure how much I can afford a month because I'm not sure how much full coverage insurance would be. I was recently in an accident so I have 2 points on my license and never paid full coverage so I have no idea around how much it would be.

Is it compulsory to have comprehensive insurance for car or 3rd party ins is sufficient?

any diff for having insurance for new/old/second hand car?

Can my roommates and I get a group renter's insurance policy?

Hi, I'm going to be renting a house with 3 friends this semester, and I'm looking at renter's insurance. My current insurance company says they don't do policies that would cover the whole household. Is this just common practice, or is it possible with another company? Are we better off just getting individual insurance, or could it be cheaper to get one policy to cover the entire household?""

""Can I lose in small claims court if I got into a accident that wasn't my fault, but I didn't have insurance?""

Can I lose in small claims court if I got into a accident that wasn't my fault, but I didn't have insurance?""

""What company, in your opinion, is the cheapest for car insurance?""

I'm 29, good credit rating, have like 1 speeding ticket on my record (will be taken off with defensive driving)""

Why is my car insurance higher than my sisters?

Okay I am kind of frustrated so I am hoping someone can explain this to me. My sister and I both have our car insurance through progressive. We both have 2003 Chevy Cavilers (4 doors). Neither of us have been in an accident, we live only a few miles apart. The only differences I can think of: Her car is red, my car is blue, and I am 23 and she is 25. Other than that we have the exact same policy, everything! Last month she paid 140 for her 6 months. This month they want me to pay 191!!! I don't understand!! Does me being 2 years younger really make a difference?? I appreciate any input! Thanks for your time! Also, who do you think has the best car insurance. I am going to switch if I can find lower than 191.""

Does it cost to remove someone on your insurance ?

I wanted to drop my sister off my insurance plan because she found a cheaper insurance company, does it cost to remove her ?""

How much do you pay for health insurance per month?

Just your portion/ per month / your age I am 30 and did not choose a health plan at work because I think $170 a month for basic HMO is too much for a single healthy person. I used to pay $60 with dental and vision at my last job (which I know is really cheap). When I interviewed here they told me they had a great health plan. Well, guess what they lied! I will definatly be asking more questions about health insurance when I talk salary for my next position.""

HELP PLEASE. AUTO INSURANCE FOR NEW DRIVER. I NEED A GOOD ANSWER?

how much a year would a 1998 chevrolet camaro base, not z28, be for a new driver. any ideas? and also a 2002 dodge intrepreped es 4 door cost? please.""

Insurance after driving ban?

Does anybody know of any cheap car insurance company's that deal with drivers that have recantly been banned?

What can I do for health insurance for my child and myself?

I am contemplating quitting my job, which offers health insurance, to open a home business. I have been slowly building up my business and it's getting to the point where I have to either decide to quit my full-time job or stop developing my business. I have the potential to make much more with my own business than I do at my current job. Before I make the decision to quit my job, I am researching my options about health insurance, which is very important to me because my daughter has special needs and I do not want to jeopardize her health in any way. I also don't want to get myself into a tricky situation where I end up bankrupt because I get sick and don't have health insurance. I have contemplated taking COBRA after quitting my job, however that is very costly. My boyfriend and I toyed with the idea of him putting me on his health insurance as a domestic partner, but my daughter would not be included in that. We live in Minnesota and I'm wondering if MinnesotaCare would be an option for us, at least to tide us over until I can afford to purchase health insurance or my boyfriend and I get married and my daughter and I can go on his plan. However, I did read that to qualify for MinnesotaCare you must not have had insurance for the last 4 months and that's not a gamble I want to take. My daughter is already on TEFRA (MN disability health insurance) so I am wondering if she was dropped from my plan if TEFRA would cover her 100 percent. My worry about that is if another group health plan wouldn't accept her pre-existing conditions going forward because she would be off a group plan for more than 62 days. Does anyone have any ideas about affordable health insurance options that I should look into? Or know more about the HIPAA laws? And before someone suggests calling the state for information...I have and I'm waiting for a call back. Thanks!""

For Lexus owners: Is it expensive to maintain a Lexus?

Don't bother with saying, If you are thinking about buying a Lexus, you should be able to maintain it. If not, shop for something else. I love the Lexus IS design, both outside and inside. And I'd love to get myself one of these beautiful cars. However, before I take one of these cars in my driveway, I want to make certain I am not making a mistake. These are the questions I want you to answer: 1. I heard the price for one tire is $300... Is this true? If no, how much does one of these tires cost? 2. I heard the price for oil change is $110. If this is not true, how much does it cost you for oil change? 3. I heard if either the front bumper or rear bumper needs replacement, the cost would be $5000. If this is not true, how much do you think a bumper replacement should cost? 4. Although the amount you pay for car insurance is based on your driving history, I heard that the quality of a car does play a major role. I am 27. So, in your opinion, how much do you think I will pay for car insurance for the 06 Lexus IS 250? My driving history has a clean record. I have yet to receive a ticket. 5. What other things I need to know about owning one of these cars? Please answer my question.""

""If you're car is stolen, will your insurance rates increase if you are reimbursed by your insurance?""

If you're car is stolen, will your insurance rates increase if you are reimbursed by your insurance?""

Medical insurance questions?

I've been considering on going to a psychologist, however I do not want my parents to find out. I still live with them and I am going to be 22 soon. I am still under their insurance. I have the means to go out on my own and I can pay the copay on my own. I am not sure how it works when you use insurance. Will my parents be able to find out through my insurance? (For example, will insurance alert them in any way?)""

What is the cheapest insurance company?

Ok so I'm 16 years I have an 08 Kawasaki ninja 250 and I live in rural California what should I expect to pay for liability only

How much would my insurance cost?

I can't seem to get some of the online quotes to work?? I'm 21, have been driving since I was 16, with NO blemishes on my record. I (will) drive a 2006 Acura TL. Just a ball park number. Thanks!""

How much would insurances cost on a 88 corvette?

im am going to be 16 and going to get a red corvette i was wondering how much would insurance cost for it and i live in CA in LA i well be under my moms insurance pollicy so what would u think it would cost i drive the car a lot and all the car is for looks it not for racing and pick a up all the girls and go to party lol

Car insurance thats cheap for kids?

I am 17 just bought a car and dont have any insurance i work and make around 120 a week, im still in school and am looking for insurance that is affordable.""

Insurance fronting ( making car insurance cheaper )?

If i'm not the owner of the vehicle ( my mum is ), yet im still insured on the policy as a named driver but im the main driver am i commiting insurance fronting. insurance fronting states that if you are the owner of the vehicle but only a named driver this is called insurance fronting, but im not the owner but a named driver does the same rules apply""

Licence wrong date when applying for insurance?

when you get a quote along the way it asks you to enter when you recieved your licence. what if i put 2-3 years old when in actual fact it is only 2 months old. Will the insurance company find out that i am not telling the truth or can i get away with it? Do they check my licence to see when i got it. thanks.

Under Obamacare if you have stage 4 cancer and go to sign up for health insurance how affordable will your?

rates be? Is there anything in Obamacare that's going to stop the insurance company from charging you an arm & a leg?

How much would a street bike cost to insure?

like a gsxr 1000. Just the price range.

How does a first time car buyer get insurance?

I'm thinking about getting a car, used most likely. The question is how do I go about getting car insurance, I'm a first time car buyer btw? Do I need it before I buy the car? Am I able to buy it with the car? How would I go about getting car insurance? Thanks""

Can I have two different health insurance providers?

I would like to get my medical insurance from Geisinger choice (I live in PA and know first hand they are good insurance) but I want my dental and vision from Humana. Am I allowed to mix insurance companies??

Whats the best insurance company in the u.s.?

i don't have insurance and i really want to do gymnastics (i'm 13) but i guess we have too much money to be able to have kids connection and so i just need a affordable insurance company i can talk to my mom about :) thanks!

Where can i buy health insurance?

At what age does car insurance drop to a normal rate?

im 16 and i wanna wait til a certain age so i dont have to pay alot for the insurance

Car Insurance Comparison?

Is there any website that will allow me to get quote for different insurance company at once kinda like priceline for plane tickets? I would like to be able to shop for the best insurance with the same criteria that I want. Thanks!

Car Insurance?

Ok so my Car Insurance is due 9th Feb, ive had my quote through from Direct Line and I wanna stick with them... Thing is though, Im waiting to start receving incapacity benefit as i am really unwell and unable to work at the minute..so i cant afford it until my benefit starts coming through My car is taxed until June My question is, can i cancel my insurance and keep the car parked outside my house, but obviosuly not drive it, until i can get the insurance OR do I have to inform DVLA and declare my car as off the road?? Many thanks! xxx""

Is it true that my car insurance is going to cost more because of my toyota's recalled problems?

I totaled my car. No insurance. Still owe money to the bank! Want to refinance. Help!!!?

Ok here's the deal. I financed a car through a dealership (1st time buying a car) and got completely taken. I didn't understand the paperwork, and the person selling told me that the GAP insurance would take care of me if the car was totaled. What I failed to realize was I needed to have full coverage to have the GAP insurance!! I only have liability insurance. I totaled the car. I still owe $8000 to the bank. I've had the car for 8 months and the bank has never come after me to get full coverage insurance; I'm not sure why. I haven't told the bank that I totaled the car, and I'm trying to pay the loan off as quick I can. In the mean-time I've kept the liability insurance on it, so as not to alert the bank, but I would rather drop the insurance since it is just wasted money at this point. I also want to drop the GAP insurance and the extended warranty they sold me, but again I don't want to alert the bank that I don't have full coverage. Any advice appreciated!!!""

Who has to pay and/or who's insurance payments go up?

presume i am driving a car that doesn't belong to me, but a car someone let me borrow for just one drive. the car is insured for the owner, but my name is not on the insurance. i have my own insurance, but its for some other car. i am a minor (17) and have a california driver's license with 1 point on it. now, let's say I get into a car accident (in califonia) and its my fault. there is damage to the other driver's car, but none to mine. if reported to the insurance companies and not handled on the side, who's insurance goes up? mine or the owner of the car's? if not reported to the insurance companies, who is responsible for paying, me or the owner of the car? will this accident result in an added point to my drivers license? any other information i should know of? any help will be greatly appreciated! thank you so much!""

Does planned parent hood accept health insurance?

does Planned parent hood accept health insurance ? if they do does anyone know if they will accept aetna health insurance?

""I knocked over a stop sign with someone else's car, whose insurance company do I use?""

Nothing happened to the car, I just need to pay for the stop sign. (I still don't understand why they can't just stick the sign back in. Nothing happened to it.) Anyway, I'm wondering if I should call my insurance company, or the person's insurance company. The police took the insurance # of the car's owner, but to file a report, do I call my company or his? (We both have the same company, USAA, but I don't know what policy # to use.)""

Health Insurance?

This may be silly, but I saw a commercial the other day on tv that was advertising for health insurance for a little over &5.00 a day. I am currently in the hunt for health insurance so i wanted to go online and get some info. As luck may have it by the time i was able to get on the internet i forgot what the website was. I know the company starts with an e and its right at the tip of my brain, but i cant remember. Like i said this is a bit silly, but if anyone knows what im talking about please let me know! I havent seen a commercial for it sense.... I live in dutchess county, NY. Thanks!""

""GENERALLY, how much would insurance be on a benz c350 for a 19 or 20 year old male?""

I'm a male. im 19 almost 20. the car wouldn't be brand new, it'd be a 2008 with like 20k or so miles on it. and i've never had an accident in all my 3 years of driving, never even been pulled over, not a single ticket. perfect record, i have good grades, college student. Im just wondering like a GENERAL idea...don't tell me to go get a quote...ya i know i can do that, but there is a reason why im asking on yahoo answers as well! it shouldn't be too much right? not like a mustang or camaro coupe?? because mercedes c class's are rated high in safety as well! and this is going to be a v6 sedan, not a v8 coupe or anything.""

Does anybody know of a good affordable life insurance?

I live in California, im 19, im perfectly healthy(i've never smoked and i've never drank...ever)and im trying to find a life insurance policy to purchase for myself, since at the time i was born my parents couldn't afford one. So, i decided to do the smart thing and decide to get myself life insurance. I would like to know of people's opinions on life insurance, and which ones are best for someone my age.""

""What percentage of your net income should you spend on all your bills including mortgage, car, insurance, etc.""

Live in New York, just about to buy a house and am wondering what other people are spending on all their bills as compared to their salary. I'm figuring about 55%-60% of my net ...show more""

""What would motorcycle insurance cost for 17 yr old guy, kawasaki ninja 250R?""

what would an average motorcycle insurance cost for me? i am looking for a ball-park estimate and understand that there are MANY other factors which matter... If anyone has an idea, what would be like the MAX price for a good insurance... i've seen that insurance prices can range from 200-400 yearly, but i want to make sure that after i get the motorcycle i dont find that the insucance is like 1000 /yr. Thanks""

What is the best insurance for a pregnant woman?

So I got a girl pregnant. We are not married. I have a good job making plenty of money but do not have benefits. She does not have benefits or make enough to afford health insurance. What is the best route for us to take to make sure we have the best care for her and the baby during pregnancy and after birth?

What is the average cost of life insurance?

I know individual circumstances apply, but there must be an average monthly cost somewhere. 33 years old, Male Looking for term life insurance, 500K I was just given a monthly quote for $28 per month""

What if im 18 and want to pay for my own auto insurance?

I'm thinking about moving out of my house cause it sucks. I'd have to buy my own car and I'm thinking an older civic, cause they're reliable. Anyone got any ideas on what a good but cheap way to insure would be?""

Insurance company for getting car out of compound?

I have full licence but need to get insurance company to cover to get car out of police compound

Which company can provide me good student international insurance?

student international insurance

How much would it cost to get auto insurance to drive a church van?

I want to drive the church van for my church but I don't have a vehicle. The church van is always over crowded on Wednesdays and they are looking for someone to drive one of their vans but the driver is responsible for the insurance. My big question is, how can I get insurance so I can drive their van without a vehicle under my name?""

Who offers the cheapest life insurance?

How much would the insurance be for a Porsche Cayenne Diesel a year?

The insurance would be for a female driver with over 25 years of experience. How much would it cost a year, and also how much would the monthly diesel bill be? Thanks""

Looking for some cheap full coverage car insurance.?

""Which monthly expense is more expensive: car payment with insurance, or health insurance?""

Wining and dining, or health insurance? Travel and accomodations, or health insurance? Cigarettes or health insurance? Street drugs or health insurance?""

Insurance estimates on these four cars?

which do you guys think would be cheapest and most expensive on insurance out of these four cars: 03-05 Acura RSX type S (v4 manual) 01-03 Lexus IS300 (v6 auto) 99 Lexus SC300 (v6 auto) 97 Lexus SC400 (v8 auto) What do insurance companys look at, the year and price of the car (the moment you bought it)? If so, I would imagine the two bottom lexus's to be the cheapest, but Im not sure, since they have much bigger engines. What do you guys think? Thanks in advance.""

Punishment for driving with no insurance in ca?

car insurance. jw

Where can i buy health insurance?

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wisconsin-insurance-license-renewal-alexander-collins/"

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saffrongamer · 7 years

Text

Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg Review Script

*To be edited and slightly trimmed down*

*Will be very different after voice-over, video, and final cuts are made*

When I was growing up in the early 2000s I rarely had any exposure to many big game mascot franchises. The only ones I had seen were Mario 64 and pokemon at my cousin’s house or my sonic 3 & Knuckles CD for our family computer that used keyboard controls. And there’s no way in hell my tiny little hands would be able to reach any sort of playability on that PS/2 port windows XP nightmare dinosaur. Nooo, the only thing I really played as a kid was Spyro the Dragon on the playstation 1.

If you’re old enough to remember anything before the Nintendo Wii, then you probably remember going down to your local walmart or target and trying the demos for the latest video games.

You know,

looking directly up,

at a 90-degree angle,

with an impossibly short cable,

trying to play a children’s game. (echo in the background: WHY? LIKE WHAT THE FU-” *cut to next clip.*

Now I’m sure it sounds like I’m just rambling, and don’t worry I’ll get to that point, but I wanted to share my magical 2003 experience with one of my favorite games. The gamecube demo had a special disc on it. This magical little disc had several games and trailers to distract kids and fathers while mom goes and picks out some socks for tomorrow's Sunday Mass. For the older crowd, this preview disc had games like Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, Soul Calibur 2, and Viewtiful Joe. While the kids they had Sonic Adventure DX and Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg. Of course, I chose the Boy who Hatched: Billy. Hey, I was a little kid, I saw colors, a silly name, and a chicken suit. What more could peak my interest?

So I gave it a try. And I died. I died a lot. The demo starts by having you roll down a curvy path to the beach. I constantly fell into the water. I don’t even remember how far I got before I had to stop. As mom called me away, I felt a mix of disappointment and longing for more on top of my terrible neck pain.

And so I forgot about Billy and his Egg rolling adventures for the next few years. By then I had my own Gamecube and several games for it like Mario Sunshine, Sonic Heroes, and Pokemon Colosseum. Every time dad and I would go to our local gamestop, I would poke through the games and see if I could find anything. Dad would try to speed me along by suggesting a game, and I usually would have turned down whatever he chose. Until one day he grabbed billy hatcher, not because it was at a wicked good price or that he knew I would love it. He just was getting my attention with it because he liked to call me a chicken as a kid and he knew it would rile me up.

So of course, I bought it and took it home with me. First thing that got my attention was that it supported multiplayer. As the older brother I was naturally used to thrashing my younger sisters in mario party, so what was another game to feed my dominance as the eldest child? My sisters and I loved it.

We rolled around on eggs,

collecting fruit,

hatching the eggs,

collecting animals,

attacking each other with the animals after spending an hour on one round

Basically Ark: Survival Evol-*T-Rex Roaring clip*

We had names for a few of them too. We knew some of their names from the manual, but we called this one Chelk, Bunnybird, Lion, Sharky, Ostrich… We weren’t very creative children.

I guess the point I’m trying to convey is what this game was for me and my siblings and how much we enjoyed it. I was never able to get super far in the main game cause I was a kid and I sucked at video games that weren’t Spyro the Dragon or Pokemon Ruby.

So what was the reason for that build up? Why did I ramble about quality family time with a video game about kids rolling around eggs? I don’t know. I don’t have a direct focus for this video. But I would like to talk about what I think of the billy hatcher game now that I’m an adult.

So Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg… How do I begin this? You’re a young blonde boy Billy who’s overslept for his outing with his friends. He and his friends see a small chick that is being attacked by a crow, so Billy beats the fuck outta it with a stick. It is then revealed that the chick is actually the Chicken God of MorningLand. Billy and his friends are then taken to the new world to be the chosen heroes. I guess this is a new approach to the Isekai genre, so move over SAO and No Game No Life Billy’s coming to take over.

After donning the hero’s rooster outfit, Billy Hatcher and his friends Rolly Roll, Chick Poacher, and Bantam Scrambled set off to free MorningLand from the evil crows.

Each level until the final boss is structured in the same method. With a few varied level challenges moved around. You arrive in the new level with a hearty “Let’s Go!” and set off to find the trapped chicken elders, roll them over fruit, and then hatch them to obtain this game’s power star; an emblem of courage. The next level will always be a boss fight. This is what I’d usually consider what a developer would have put into place in order to keep the game kid friendly. Like allow a child to do what they’re able to do and then beat the game for their own success. While the older crowd can appreciate value in getting all of the mcguffins and beating all of the challenges. But that didn’t really happen. You see. There’s only about 6 levels. You need about 20 or so emblems to enter the final level. So if you try to move onto the final level, the game will spit you back to the stage select after you’ve trudged your way through the sand stage until you have 20 emblems. Therefore, since you only have about 12 emblems, you’ll need to go through the stages to pick some levels. Now the structure for the other stages follows a mismatched order of this for a total of 8 emblems for each stage: collect X amount of giant coins, kill 100 crows, race an NPC, find and free the 7 caged chickens, and 1 or 2 actually creative levels for that stage. 3 of the stages have you save your captured friends before they’re blown up for it’s level 4. Then allows you to play as your friends. I always liked playing Bantam as a kid cause I thought he could grab ledges better.

Stages also follow the Sonic stage tropes we all know; Forest, Pirate, Volcano, Ice, Circus, Desert, and Chicken Heaven...

Once you reach the final level you dont need to free any chicken elders, you just travel to the final boss. And I’m sorry if this is your favorite childhood game, but this final boss is terrible. And it hurts any sort of story conclusion the game was trying to have. Your final boss is I believe named Dark Raven. You use a mechanic they taught you earlier in the level in order to beat his first form. You must roll over a dark patch on the ground until it is completely gone. You dont need to get all of the circles cleared, just the one. And believe me, you’re gonna have a hard time with this. The game wants the whole circle gone with not a single pixel left otherwise the circle reforms and damages you. This becomes incredibly frustrating when there are more circles placed down and you can’t tell which circle had which darkness. This is all going on while this snarky asshole raven watches you aimlessly roll around in front of him. His final form is just another giant raven, but “spookier” I guess? At first you can’t really do anything to him and the bird just rips off your chicken suit. But then Chicken God steps in and gives you some good ol’ divine intervention with a new chicken suit. But this one has a fancy light effect thing going on. Anyways now you must dodge the raven attacks and wait for the most damning mechanic of all to screw you over. You need to stand in the direction of the raven. Wait for it to fire a ball of light at you, press the B button at the perfect frame to catch it, and then beat the fuck outta it to finish him off. I died so many times to this thing just because I missed the perfect frame grab. You have zero room for error on this one.

After you save morning land the whole chicken world sings your praise and peace returns. But now we can talk about the interesting part of the game; the gameplay mechanics. Once billy has an egg his mobility is staggering.

You can press A to jump

Tap A again to bounce jump off the ground

hold A for a ground slam

press B to smash the egg down in front of you,

Hit R in mid air to do an air dash in the direction of your choosing

Press B on the ground to roll your egg forward and watch it boomerang back to you

Press R to accelerate yourself for an egg dash

Press A while you’re dashing for a long jump to fling yourself super far

These abilities can be super well executed with the stage design allowing you to travel extremely fast and perform nifty combos.

Each stage is littered with eggs of all kinds. They either have an animal inside to help you, or a power up. You don’t need them for about 95% of the game. They’re pretty useless. You just need to use your egg to kill things. And you only need the animals for 5% just to solve a few level gimmicks or wall blockings. The power ups are pretty pointless outside of multiplayer. Sorry if that cracks your egg.

But I still love the jester hat, please don't hate me.

Each level has 5 chick coins for each stage. These are a neat thing to hunt for, but are ultimately pointless. They allow you to use that level’s sonic egg that would have been normally unobtainable. These eggs hatch into none other than big name Sega characters. These are also pointless. They’re just the normal animal powers copy/pasted onto sonic, Nights, Chu chu rocket, and PSO character models. They’re a neat thing to see when they appear in multiplayer, but they’re no more helpful than other eggs.

Which brings me into the best aspect of the game; the multiplayer. You and your friends can play in either a death match with stock or just hatch animals. However, the animal hatching only goes to a pre-set amount of points. Which you can just steal and win instantly by killing your friends. Kinda just turns into another just deathmatch. And when the screen is all cluttered from splitscreen, it feels difficult to control the camera properly. Why do I like this gamemode again? Oh yeah, nostalgia…

Scattered throughout each boss level is a special egg that allows you to demo a small downloadable game. When you connect your GBA via a cable to your Gamecube you can play several games. Easy and Hard Chicken Shoot, NiGHTS, Chu Chu Rocket, and Puyo Puyo Pop.

Chicken shoot is bad, its just a terrible top down game where billy must roll an egg over some crows. Hard isn’t hard at all. NiGHTS is entertaining, I have no experience with the games yet, but I probably should give them a shot. I can’t do chu chu rocket since I’m a little slow, but my sister is surprisingly good at the game. But puyo puyo pop was great. Lining up colored dots to clear the screen against another player is very satisfying. It reminds me of pokemon puzzle league for the Nintendo 64. I probably should get the new game for the switch…

*GBA SP joke clip*

Last thing I want to discuss is why I think this game might have been so important for Sega when it came out. It was the first full game and original IP developed by Sonic Team for another system that wasn’t a port of a previous release. Sure they probably wrote “from the creator of sonic the hedgehog” on the cover just to push sales, but Yuji Naka’s name might not work as well as it did 10 years ago. His latest title was Rodea the Sky Soldier for the Wii & Wii U which I think deserves its own video at some point. This game was exclusively available on the Gamecube while Sonic Heroes, which released a few months later, was multiplatform. And hell, I’d rather play this game than Sonic heroes any day. And the reason why is so important, is because it was during the era 2 years after the dreamcast was discontinued and Sega went permanently 3rd party. I don’t want to talk your ear off about the 90s and the “console wars”, you’ve heard that all a thousand times before. But since then, Sega has created a variety of games that are only possible because of this relationship they’ve obtained with nintendo. Fans finally got the mario and Sonic olympic games series, and while I’m not remotely interested in them they must be doing well if they keep publishing them. But we also got Sonic colors in 2009, which is a fantastic game. And while some of the sonic games on the wii U were… lackluster, Nintendo paid for the development of Bayonetta 2 from Platinum for the Wii U. A series that sega had zero interest in funding. I could keep rambling on about them even slapping in the the gba demo download functionality, Sonic getting put into smash bros, or whatever nonsense I could come up with. But I just wanted to lament about one of my favorite childhood characters.

So that’s what I think of Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg. A lovable young boy with the ability to roll eggs. Sure, the game is littered with issues and I might only like it because of nostalgia. But I think it’s an amazing platformer nonetheless. Give it a try if you ever get the chance. I’d like to hope for a sequel, but the game’s poor sales have probably doomed any chance of that ever happening. But if you ever want to play as the boy who hatched in another game, he’s playable and makes cameos in Sega Superstars, Sonic and Sega All stars racing and racing transformed, Sonic Riders and Sonic Riders Zero gravity.

#saffron #review #script #Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg #SEGA #Sonic Team #Gamecube #Nintendo #Controller #2003 #Dreamcast #Sonic #Yuji Naka #Rolly #Chicken #Morningland #Demo #YouTube

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techongq1-blog · 7 years

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Windows, rethought: An audit of Windows 8 Windows 8 is a review in bargains. Do its two parts frame a reasonable whole?.

After months of suspicion, Windows 8 is here. It dispatches today and goes at a bargain internationally tomorrow. For the most recent eighteen months, we've kept tabs on its development crosswise over three betas and the last discharge, investigating the intricate details of Microsoft's most goal-oriented item dispatch in two decades.

Throughout the following couple of days we'll be distributing a blast of Windows 8 scope. Today we'll have the primary survey, which focuses on Windows 8's radical new UI and inquires as to whether Microsoft has finally figured out how to understand its fantasy of a genuine tablet PC. We're covering the establishment and overhaul involvement in a different element. On tap is a screenshot visit that shows off Redmond's sparkly new look and feel, and we'll likewise take a gander at benchmarks to ensure the OS still keeps running and also it ought to.

In the coming days, we'll be looking in the engine in an examination concerning the work Microsoft has done to make Windows 8 more secure, more proficient, and more adaptable. We'll couple that with an expanded take a gander at Storage Spaces, the product goliath's answer for dealing with all your circle space needs. We'll additionally be taking a gander at the all-new Xbox-marked interactive media encounter.

Beginning this end of the week, we'll have audits of the packaged Bing applications and Microsoft's scope of new amusements, alongside a gander at Windows 8's new undertaking focused elements. We'll complete up with an examination of the stage's center correspondence and informing applications right on time one week from now.

It has been right around 17 months since we got our first take a gander at Windows 8. Steven Sinofsky, leader of Windows and the Windows Live Division, and Julie Larson-Green, VP of program administration for the Windows Experience, exhibited the new Windows 8 Start screen, codenamed Modern Shell, the principal significant change to the Windows UI since Windows 95... 17 years prior.

The change was encouraged by the acknowledgment that touch figuring could be a standard wonder—would be a standard marvel—the length of it had a UI that was agreeable and helpful when controlled by fingertips alone. In the mid year of 2009, after Windows 7's improvement was finished and before Apple's iPad was declared or discharged, Microsoft started making the UI that would make Windows a really touchable working framework that would be at home on tablets.This was not the organization's initially attack into the universe of tablet figuring. Redmond's initial speculative strides into the tablet space were made back in the 1990s, with the unsuccessful "Windows for Pen Computing." In the 2000s, the organization attempted once more, with Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. Advertise achievement again demonstrated evasive.The crucial blemish with both of these frameworks was that Microsoft left the Windows UI, planned as it is for mouse and console, basically unaltered, depending on styli to duplicate the sort of exact controls that mice empowered. The outcome was unbalanced and awkward.

The iPhone's prosperity shown to the world that touchscreens were in truth reasonable info gadgets, additionally that immediate control with fingers, combined with bigger, upgraded UIs, were instrumental in accomplishing far reaching acknowledgment. Touch interfaces could be characteristic, natural, and prominent, the length of they were thoughtful to the constraints of finger info.

The UI, reconsidered

For Windows 8's UI, fingers would start things out. Yet, Microsoft has never viewed tablets as a classification in their own right; they have dependably been tablet PCs, with "PC" conveying essential ramifications of its own. PCs are adaptable, they're accessible in all shapes and sizes, from the slimmest ultraportables to full tower, multiprocessor, multimonitor behemoths. Windows 8 couldn't relinquish this assortment, so in spite of the fact that fingers would start things out, they could never be the elite info technique. Windows 8 needed to cross over any barrier: it needed to don a finger-first UI that would likewise work with mice and consoles.

After that initially look at the Start screen, our first genuine involvement with Windows 8's Modern Shell came in September 2011 at an engineer gathering called BUILD. In sunny Anaheim, California, we got the opportunity to utilize the principal open beta of Windows 8, the Developer Preview.

By then, the center ideas of the interface were at that point an unavoidable reality. Windows 8 would have two identities. One identity would be the conventional desktop and taskbar for customary mouse-and-console applications. The other would be another interface composed with fingers as top notch residents, additionally supporting mice and consoles. The tasteful of the new interface was depicted as Metro, as it was motivated by the signage utilized on mass travel frameworks around the globe: intense utilization of shading, a reliance on typography, and clear, adapted iconography.

Applications themselves would likewise be part between the customary desktop programming and the new Metro style applications: touch-to start with, yet mouse and console open.

(Microsoft has since moved in an opposite direction from the Metro name, yet the organization has not offered any predominant substitution wording, so Metro is what I'm staying with.)

Sinofsky has depicted this double interface as a "no bargain" approach, giving clients the best of both universes, "consistent" exchanging amongst Metro and the desktop, an "astonishing" touch involvement, additionally an ordeal that works with mouse and keyboard.Calling at all stations

Windows 8 isn't Microsoft's first item to wear a Metro plan. The Zune arrangement of convenient media players and their sidekick application on the PC laid the Metro foundation: the reliance on typography and the evasion of artificial 3D ingenuity, and applications that utilized the full screen (or full window) rather than committing space to fringes, title bars, menus, and other visual mess.

It was with Windows Phone 7 that Metro initially turned into a universally useful UI vocabulary. Windows Phone 7 based on the before ideas of typography and full-screen applications, including systems, for example, "live tiles," the squares and rectangles that populate the Start screen and fill double need as application launchers and status markers, alongside the "application bar," a little toolbar docked to the base of the screen.

In the Developer Preview we found out about the following cycle of Metro. Live tiles, full-screen applications, and typography were all center, however to this Microsoft included the Edge UI.

Understanding the Edge UI is instrumental to understanding Windows 8. As intense and vivid and essential as the Start screen with its Live Tiles is, it is Edge UI that drives Windows 8. It is additionally Edge UI that is Windows 8's greatest hindrance.

Edge UI is conjured in a couple of various ways. Mouse clients have two primary motions: the first is putting the cursor into any edge of the screen and either clicking or moving the mouse up or down vertically (contingent upon which work they wish to utilize); the second is correct clicking. Touch clients swipe from any edge of the screen. Portable workstation clients with reasonable touchpads (most aren't, however they ought to wind up noticeably more typical in the coming months) can likewise swipe from any edge of their touchpads. There are likewise console alternate ways.

The nuts and bolts of Edge UI haven't changed altogether since I portrayed how it functioned in the Developer Preview, however to recap the nuts and bolts:

The left-hand edge controls errand exchanging. You can swipe in from the left to burn through open applications, or swipe and hold to see a rundown of all open applications to permit coordinate exchanging.

The right-hand edge controls the charms, an arrangement of five center components: look, share, begin, gadgets, and settings. Aside from the begin enchant, which dependably flips the perceivability of the Start screen, the charms are relevant, so the Settings appeal is utilized to get to the settings of the application as of now being used.

The top and base edges control the application bar. Not at all like Windows Phone, which made the application bar a close lasting on-screen installation, in Windows 8 the application bar is covered up until uncovered with a swipe.The charms are second in significance to the Edge UI. They give reliable top-level access to five expansive practical territories. At the point when summoned with the Start screen noticeable, they act all around; for instance, Search defaults to looking all your applications, settings, or documents. Their concentration is limited when conjured with an application noticeable—the pursuit enchant changes to an application's particular hunt highlight, for instance.

While inquiry and settings are plain as day, offer and gadgets require somewhat more clarification. Dissimilar to desktop programming, Metro applications can't specifically speak with each other. Web Explorer, for instance, can't specifically speak with the email application. This implies Internet Explorer can't tell the email application "make another email with this URL in it."

Rather, Metro applications need to play out this sort of correspondence by means of the Share fascinate. Applications that have information to share simply need to bolster it into the sharing framework, which happens at whatever point you open the Share enchant. Applications that can do helpful things with shared information—sending it to somebody by email, transferring it to a cloud benefit, tweeting it—enlist with the framework, and are recorded in the Share beguile. You then pick the application you need to use to share from the rundown the appeal provides.To email a URL, for instance, you peruse to the URL in Internet Explorer, then open the Share enchant. The Mail application will be recorded; tap it and another mail with the URL will be made. All the correspondence is intervened by the working framework.

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