What is Windows Home Server?

ZOTAC announces ZOTAC GeForce GT 630, GT 620 and GT 610 series graphics cards

News
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 20, 2012

ZOTAC announces ZOTAC GeForce GT 630, GT 620 and GT 610 series graphics cards

ZOTAC this week expanded the successful ZOTAC GeForce 600 series with new value offerings. The ZOTAC GeForce GT 630, GT 620 and GT 610 series deliver a savoury taste of Microsoft DirectX 11 technologies for an outstanding visual computing experience.

“ZOTAC is pleased to bring the GeForce 600 series to value shoppers seeking a superior visual experience discrete graphics brings to computing,” said Carsten Berger, marketing director, ZOTAC International. “By installing one of our ZOTAC GeForce GT 630, GT 620 or GT 610 series graphics cards, users can experience faster video and image processing and perfect high-definition video playback with a simple upgrade.”

The ZOTAC GeForce GT 630, GT 620 and GT 610 series are available in a variety configurations with 512MB, 1GB, 2GB and 4GB memory options in PCI Express 2.0 x16, PCI Express x1 or PCI interfaces, and active or passive cooling configurations to cater exclusively to all user computing needs.

General details

· ZOTAC Expands successful GeForce 600 series

· ZOTAC GeForce®GT 630 series

o 96 processor cores

o 1GB, 2GB and 4GB memory configurations

o 128-bit memory interface

· ZOTAC GeForce GT 620 series

o 96 processor cores

o 1GB & 2GB memory configurations

o 64-bit memory interface

· ZOTAC GeForce GT 610 series

o 48 processor cores

o 512MB, 1GB & 2GB memory configurations

o 64-bit memory interface

· NVIDIA 3D Vision capable

· NVIDIA Adaptive Vertical Sync

· DirectX11 technology & Shader Model 5.0

· OpenGL 4.2 compatible

· Hardware-accelerated Full HD video playback

· Blu-ray 3D ready

· Loss-less audio bitstream capable

Learn more from the Zotac website

New Sony VAIO S Series notebooks pictures and hands-on

News
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 20, 2012

2

New Sony VAIO S Series notebooks pictures and hands-on

Earlier this week we told you that Sony had announced it’s new S Series range. Well we got to see them up close and personal and get some hands-on time with it.

The new Sony VAIO S Series of notebooks is designed for both power and portability

It has a backlit keyboard which makes it easier to use in low-light situations.

All of the new Sony VAIO range has hibernation features, and the S series can maintain hibernation for up to 90 days!

All S series VAIO’s come with a full copy of Adobe Acrobat X, plus a 1 year anti-theft service.

There is even a dock for the S series that has a built in hard drive so that all your important data is automatically backed up whenever you dock it.

Considering there is a 17” version of the S series notebook it is still quite portable!

The screen is excellent and you even get a Blu-Ray drive.

Price wise, the S Series starts from around £654 for the base model and there are a lot of different configurations to choose from!

Learn more about the Sony VAIO S Series notebook range from here Check out our pictures and hands-on with the VAIO T13 Ultrabook

New Sony VAIO E Series notebooks pictures and hands-on

News
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

May 20, 2012

0

New Sony VAIO E Series notebooks pictures and hands-on

Earlier this week we told you that Sony was expanding it’s E Series range. Well we got to see them up close and personal and get some hands-on time with it.

The VAIO E Series 15 teams fresh, individual looks with everything you need for everyday tasks. With Intel processors, generous storage, smooth graphics and clear, high-contrast 15.5” VAIO Display, there’s all the power you need to breeze through the day.

Boasting a 17.3” VAIO Display Plus Full HD on selected models, the VAIO E Series 17 gives you extra screen space to enjoy movies on Blu-ray Disc (on selected models), edit photos or play games.

The E Series is Sony’s most popular range and comes in either 14, 15 or 17” variants and a wide variety of colours.

The E14 comes with a full version of Adobe Photoshop Elements where as the E17 comes with Sony Vegas.

The E series has a wrap-around look to it and felt very natural to use and the 17” screen was very bright and clear with it’s 1600 x 900 ratio.

Price wise, the E Series starts from around £409 for the base model and there are a lot of different configurations to choose from!

Learn more about the VAIO E Series from here Check out our pictures and hands-on with the VAIO T13 Ultrabook

Media Center Master updated to build 14012.1382

Andrew Edney

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May 20, 2012

0

Peter Souza IV has released a new build of his excellent Media Center Master software.

What is Media Center Master?

Here is how Peter describes Media Center Master for those of you who don’t know what it is:

Smooth, powerful interface to organize your media collection.
Support for the built-in Windows Media Center Video Library strip (dvdid.xml) as well as MediaBrowser extension (mymovies.xml).
Movies, television, and adult title search from a variety of configurable meta data sources.
Built-in, fully-automated episode torrenting from multiple sources. Keep your T.V. series updated through the internet for free.
Full meta-data editor with tools to automate movie and T.V. episode renaming.
Theatrical trailer downloader with options for automatic re-encoding.
Extendable fetcher system allows other programmers to write fetchers — sample source code included in the forums.
Configurable to download actor/actress thumbnails and movie/T.V. posters, fan art, backdrops, and banners.
Flexible post-processing allows command-line operations after a movie title has been fetched — works great with Stark Covers.
…and a whole lot more…

Build 14012.1382

Raspbmc for Raspberry Pi is now in beta

Andrew Edney

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May 20, 2012

0

If you have your Raspberry Pi, you might be interested to know that Raspbmc is now in beta!

This is what was just posted:

Some good news. Raspbmc is now in beta. Let’s face it — project updates aren’t that great, users want to see results and try out what’s in the works, rather than hear about them. So that’s what I’m allowing you to do today. I wanted to make this a closed beta, seeing as release isn’t far around the corner. This was originally because I wasn’t too sure about the stability of the build, but I believe that Raspbmc is good enough for public testing.

When trying the beta, please remember that this is a test build. Some things will be broken and performance won’t be at its very best. What I’m trying to say is that this beta will not reflect the final performance of Raspbmc, and remember, Raspbmc performance and features will improve in future updates too.

The beta comes in the form of an Gzipped image file, available for download here. Windows users can restore directly from USB Image Tool, and Linux and OSX guys can just run something along the lines of:
gunzip -c installer-testing.img.gz | dd of=/dev/mmcblk0
Note: you need at least a 2GB SD card. Raspbmc will use the full size of your card.

Check out a Slice of Raspbery Pi at Sci Fi London Horizons

Have you ordered one? Let us know if you get yours before us, or even after us.

Mine has finally been ordered and should be here in a few weeks time!

Camera module for the Raspberry Pi coming soon

Andrew Edney

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May 19, 2012

0

Camera module for the Raspberry Pi coming soon

Liz has posted some pictures and information about a camera module that is coming soon for the Raspberry Pi and it’s cool!

This is what Liz just posted (head over to the site to see all the pictures):

I was sent this image this morning from Gert (not pictured), Naush (right eye and half-moustache) and JamesH (stripy shirt and chin). It’s not a terribly exciting photo – until you realise that it’s the first picture ever taken from the prototype camera add-on board we’re developing for release later in the year, which will plug into those CSI pins we expose in the middle of the Raspberry Pi. I will ask Gert, Naush and JamesH, who have been working on this in their free evenings, to answer questions in the comments below – they are also very active on our forums, so please come over and have a chat.

We may downgrade the super-duperness of the camera to something with fewer than its current 14 megapixels before release; we need to keep things affordable, and a sensor of that size will end up pricey. Before you ask (I know it’ll be the first question most of you have), we don’t have a price for the camera module yet; we’ll need to finalise exactly what hardware is in it first, but we will, of course, be ensuring that it’s very affordable.

Check out a Slice of Raspbery Pi at Sci Fi London Horizons

Have you ordered one? Let us know if you get yours before us, or even after us.

Mine has finally been ordered and should be here in a few weeks time!

Microsoft talks about Creating the Windows 8 user experience

Andrew Edney

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May 18, 2012

0

Microsoft talks about Creating the Windows 8 user experience

In the next of their on-going series of Windows 8 articles, Microsoft talks about creating the user experience.

This is how the article starts:

At the D: All Things Digital conference in June 2011, we demonstrated for the first time the new user interface that we developed for Windows 8. This new UI is fast and fluid to use, and optimized for mobile form factors such as laptops, tablets, and convertibles, where people spend the vast majority of their time today. Windows 8 works equally well with mouse, keyboard, or your fingers, and has the best pen support of any OS. It supports multiple displays and the widest array of configurations and form factors of any OS. On top of all that, Windows 8 introduces a new kind of app, which we codenamed “Metro style” following the design language that has evolved going back to Windows Media Center and the new Windows Phone. These apps are immersive, full-screen, beautiful, and optimized for the ways that people commonly use devices today.

I thought it would be useful to take a step back and describe a little bit of the background of how the Windows 8 user interface was designed, and discuss some of the decisions we’ve made and the goals of this new experience in more detail.

To continue reading, click here.

My Movies Collection Management for Windows Media Center 4.04 PR4 Released

News

Andrew Edney

-

May 18, 2012

0

My Movies Collection Management for Windows Media Center 4.04 PR4 Released

As well as the news versions of My Movies 4.03 PR4 for Media Center and My Movies 2.11 PR4 for Windows Home Server 2011, Brian has also released version 4.03 PR4 of the Collection Management component.

Here is the complete changelog:

Added: TIFF besides TIF as cover file option.
Added: Remote Server API functions for Windows Media Center music control.

Change: Better handling of database upgrades, so that later versions does not need all clients to be upgraded when server is upgraded.
Change: Do not include series/box container title in Media Center option deprecated, is now always true.
Change: “Is Box Set” checkbox removed, and box sets moved up under global data rather than personal data, as preparation for upcoming box set functionality.
Change: Show digital copy in HTML preview.
Change: Media Center Background service updated to later API version

Download My Movies 4 Collection Management Now

What do you think of My Movies?

Check out our review of My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 2.0 Pre Release 7

My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 Version 2.11 PR4 Released

Andrew Edney

-

May 18, 2012

0

Brian has also released version 2.11 PR4 of My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011.

Windows Home Server 2011

My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 operates as database back-end for My Movies clients in multi-zone environments.

The My Movies for Windows Media Center or My Movies Collection Management products can be downloaded and installed on client PC’s to maintain movies in the database on My Movies for Windows Home Sever 2011.

My Movies may not be pre-installed on commercial products, nor in any way redistributed or provided to end-users by installers that is not part of our installer program.

Change Log:

Added: Meta-data storage for MediaBrowser (Requires 500 points).
Added: Option to specify target directory name for DVD and Blu-ray’s, and by that also specify to separate the two when copying.
Added: Profiles for New iPad and Apple TV 3
Added: MPEG2 converter profile added. MPEG2 conversion is now removed from a target to be part of video converter.
Added: Possibity to use mencoder in converter profiles
Added: The system will now check media info for titles where the information for some reason could not be read at the time the title was added or edited

Change: Rename of Apple TV profiles from MP4 to M4V which should be better handled by iTunes.
Change: Updated SDK for Nimbie, to support latest Nimbie NB21.

Fix: Error when new converter profiles are added without the converter was restarted.
Fix: Dune meta-data for TV Series was not stored with a full meta-data update.
Fix: Unidentified discs were not updated as expected.
Fix: Universal video converter profile did not have correct supported devices comments.
Fix: Converter could loop on specific discs, when they were seen as TV Series but no episodes could be found (Blu-ray problem).

Before installing a pre release version, you must make a backup of your database using the Collection Management program. There are no guarantee that a pre release version functions as expected, and it should therefore only be used for evaluation purposes. The database backup ensures that you can revert back to the latest stable version.

My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 2.11 Pre Release 4 can be used as server for My Movies 4.03 Pre Release 4 clients.

You can download the Windows Home Server 2011 edition here Check out our review of My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 2.0 Pre Release 7

My Movies for Windows Media Center 4.03 PR4 Released

Andrew Edney

-

May 18, 2012

0

My Movies for Windows Media Center 4.03 PR4 Released

Brian has just released My Movies for Windows Media Center version 4.03 PR4.

Here is the change log:

Added: Box sets are now contributed to the online service, and can be added as full boxes from service. Please pay attention to new guidelines for contributing Box Sets: /how-to/written-documentation.aspx?Page=Contributing%20Box%20Sets.
Added: Automatic refresh rate changing (experimental). Please read details on http://kb.mymovies.dk/KnowledgebaseArticle50076.aspx. We would like your inputs on how this works on your setup.
Added: Meta-data storage for MediaBrowser (Requires 500 points).
Added: Option to log in with Facebook.
Added: Backdrop fade in time configuration added to Windows Media Center settings.
Added: The system will now check media info for titles where the information for some reason could not be read at the time the title was added or edited
Added: Show digital copy information in HTML preview.
Added: Image contribution number on banners, posters and backdrops of TV Series.
Added: GetTitlePlayOptionsForDune API call.
Added: Data service command to start Windows Media Center.

Change: Different handler for DVP-CS777ES disc changer.
Change: Filter limitation removed from Collection Management, and now only applied in Windows Media Center.
Change: All titles are no counted, even box set container titles.

Fix: There was a problem with the 3D Blu-ray icon.
Fix: DVD chapters structure was not set in the order specified by the PTTs on the disc
Fix: RS-232 changer could load disc in wrong changer.
Fix: Increased waiting time for RS232 changer, solving a problem where it would not play a requested disc.
Fix: Issue with background service not starting, causing disc copying to not work.
Fix: Title synchronization could fail in some situations due to an invalid date.
Fix: Attempt to clean memory better when building Dune index.
Fix: Changed how directory content was checked for being in use. It could cause media info to not be read on some files transferred to another server.
Fix: An issue with an already open database connection when updating backdrops.
Fix: Issue could occur with HD DVD file structure playback if different players were set for HD DVD and Blu-ray file structure.
Fix: An error could occur saying that you do not have player capable of playing Blu-ray or HD DVD file structure, even when you have.
Fix: The sort title box was not limited to 100 characters as it should be.

Before installing a pre release version, you must make a backup of your database using the Collection Management program. There is no guarantee that a pre release version functions as expected, and it should only be used for evaluation purposes. The database backup ensures that you can revert back to the latest stable version.

My Movies 4.03 Pre Release 4 can be used as client for My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 2.11 Pre Release 4 or My Movies for Windows Home Server 2.00.

Download My Movies 4.03 PR3 now Check out our review of My Movies for Windows Home Server 2011 2.0 Pre Release 7

Apple announces the iTunes Festival with 30 nights of free music

Andrew Edney

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May 18, 2012

0

Apple announces the iTunes Festival with 30 nights of free music

Apple have just announced this years iTunes Festival with 30 nights of free music, and you can apply for tickets now!

The iTunes Festival is coming back in September 2012. We’re inviting more than 60 artists to perform 30 consecutive nights of brilliant live music at the Roundhouse in London. This year’s spectacular line-up includes Usher, Jack White, Norah Jones, One Direction and more.

Every ticket to the iTunes Festival is free—you can apply to win tickets to any performance.

If you can’t make the gigs, watch the shows live or view them afterwards for a limited time on your computer with iTunes, or on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch with the iTunes Festival app. You can also stream the concerts to your big screen wirelessly using AirPlay and your Apple TV.

Plex Updates their Media Server and Client to v0.9.6.2

Andrew Edney

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May 18, 2012

2

Plex Updates their Media Server and Client to v0.9.6.2

Plex has just released an update to both their Media Server and Client, taking it to version 0.9.6.2 and bringing with it a number of fixes and new features.

Let’s walk through the changes for the media server first:

NEW: Greatly enhanced media analysis. When I asked Max how to describe the changes, he said “it’s awesome”. He’s a man of few words, but I’ll try to explain a bit more. The media server analyzes your media for a few reasons: In order to extract a thumbnail, and to glean details about the exact format and codecs in the file. The latter is critical in order for players to determine what files they can consume without transcoding, which can be Direct Streamed (remuxed), and which need to be transcoded. The world of media is incredibly complicated. A simple MP4 file be optimized for streaming, or not; it can have 64-bit chunk offsets, or not; the H.264 inside it can be a myriad of different profiles, levels and have different features enabled. We now capture all of that information, and it will have many uses, not least in making the DLNA server component truly world-class. One thing you’ll notice is that when you scan in this version, the scan will take a lot longer the first time on an existing section, because the scanner is upgrading the analysis for all your files. Be patient, kick back, open a beer, and let it do its job!
NEW: The default on new installs is to empty trash automatically. This was confusing too many new users, and I think it was the wrong default, not to mention a confusing UX around learning how and why to empty the trash.
NEW: Support for non-DRM iTunes videos and iTunes U.
FIX: Improved segmented MPEGTS output (fixes Roku artifacts). And there was much rejoicing!!
FIX: TV shows didn’t load metadata properly if the episode had a date but no index (e.g. personal media).
FIX: Individual TV episodes can now have their content rating set by the agents.
FIX: A few random crashes observed in the wild.
FIX: (Linux) From scratch installs now work again (e.g. Synology).
FIX: Crash when transcoding (e.g. to LG MediaLink).
FIX: Status text while scanning didn’t show up in the OS X media manager.
FIX: Transcoder recognizes some MPEG2 files correctly now.
FIX: Return the HTTP body from plug-ins even when there’s a failure.
FIX: Audio transcoder wasn’t working for remote clients.
FIX: Regression in the transcoder leading to green/artifacts on iOS/ATV2.
FIX: Many fixes for SRT “burning” during transcode, including subtitles not showing up at all or only partially.
FIX: (Linux) Ensure we kill orphaned DLNA servers.
FIX: (Linux) DLNA server occasionally wasn’t able to start, unable to obtain IP.
FIX: Don’t identify MP4 chapter tracks as subtitles.
FIX: Durations in MP3 files should be analyzed much more accurately.

The Plex client has a number of fixes, and we’ll be paying it more attention in the coming months.

NEW: Developer ID-signed for Mountain Lion.
NEW: (OS X) Support for Crystal HD
NEW: Allow forcing transcoding on local networks (good for older clients).
FIX: Fix a crash when playing video over VNC.
FIX: Apple remote keymap was incorrect in Now Playing window.
FIX: (OS X) Many fixes for optical/HDMI audio output.
FIX: (OS X) Transcoding 5.1 AAC and DTS to AC3 works now.
FIX: When selecting multi-item videos, it always played the first item.
FIX: Occasional flicker when starting videos.
FIX: Respect the “noCache” attribute, fixes some channels not refreshing properly (e.g. Netflix).
FIX: (OS X) RTMP wasn’t enabled properly.
FIX: When playing some WebKit channels, it improperly transcoded, resulting in no audio.
FIX: Saved cookies were making some channels fail to play (e.g. YouTube).
FIX: Skinning issue that could make multiple thumbs appear for some content.
FIX: Only show watched state (and context menu items) for library content.
FIX: Changing display blanking settings required exiting and re-entering full screen to take effect.
FIX: Plex.ToggleDisplayBlanking keymap function restored.
FIX: Plex.RunScript and Plex.RunAppleScript work again (Mac OS only).
FIX: (OS X) Plex.RunScript handles files with the .scpt extension as well as .applescript.

Download Plex Media Server from here

Another Raspberry Pi update from RS Components

Andrew Edney

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May 18, 2012

0

Another Raspberry Pi update from RS Components

If you are still waiting information on your order of your Raspberry Pi from RS Components, then Liz at Raspberry Pi has just posted another update!

This is what Liz just posted:

Just landed in San Francisco for Maker Faire – please come and visit us if you’re in the area this weekend! (I’m near death – this is my fourth trip to and from the US this year, and my soul still thinks it’s somewhere over Iceland.) I found this in my inbox from Jo. RS customers take note!

Hi Everyone. Just a quick update for you on the information Liz posted here on Friday.

As promised last week, we have started inviting the next customers in our queue to place their orders for a Raspberry Pi. Delivery dates for these orders will be through June and July.

By this time next week we expect to have invited everyone that registered for a Raspberry Pi with RS on the first day – some 100,000 of you – to place your order. We’ll also have an update on expected availability for those left in the queue.

As always we will be regularly updating our FAQs and sending further updates to Liz to put on the Raspberry Pi website.

Best wishes

Jo & all the RS Raspberry Pi Team

Check out a Slice of Raspbery Pi at Sci Fi London Horizons

Have you ordered one? Let us know if you get yours before us, or even after us.

Mine has finally been ordered and should be here in a few weeks time!

Sony VAIO T13 Ultrabook pictures and hands-on

Andrew Edney

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May 18, 2012

0

Sony VAIO T13 Ultrabook pictures and hands-on

Back at the start of this month we told you about Sony’s entry into the Ultrabook market, the new VAIO T13. Well we got to see it up close and personal and get some hands-on time with it.

The T13 has a 13 inch screen (hence the 13 bit) and comes with either an SSD or a hybrid HDD/SSD. In terms of battery life, the SSD will get around 9 hours and the hybrid will get around 7 hours.

The T13 will also come with a full copy of Adobe Acrobat X

The T13 will be available “ready made” in Sony’s Online Store, but there will be many variations, including an 11” version, so it would be best to check out Sony’s Configure to Order service before pushing the button.

Having got a chance to use the T13, I have to say that I really like it. I want to test it out for a much longer period, and use it the way I would use it, but so far I am impressed.

It is thin, light-weight, and has that Sony “look” about it. It has a beautifully clear display (1366×768) with a wide (16:9) ratio. There is an HD web camera mounted as part of the screen (its 1.31 megapixels). It also felt very solid, and that included the screen. I have owned and used a number of Sony VAIO’s over the years and one thing that I have found is that some models feel a little flimsy – this is certainly not the case here!

The model I got to try had an Intel Core i3-2367M processor, 4GB RAM and a 320GB HDD. This particular model starts at around £679 and goes up from there, so if you wanted more memory and an SSD instead of the HDD then the price does jump up a fair bit.

There are a number of ports available on the T13, including USB 3.0 with charge capabilities and standard USB 2.0.

There is also an HDMI port, and all the usual ports you would come to expect including a card reader.

Here are some more pictures of the VAIO T13:

The T13 will be available from early June, and I cant wait to try it some more! For Sony’s first entry into the Ultrabook market, I think they may be on to a winner!