Computer Support Blog

One of the main features of the Xbox and PlayStation lines have been the ability to play online, download additional content, and even digitally download games directly to the console from the Internet. These services have mostly been used by more hardcore gamers because that is the type of gamer these consoles target. Nintendo marketed the Wii, on the other hand, as a console for social gamers of all ages – basically a family gaming console. With that in mind, it did not appear to need the same services as Xbox Live and the PlayStation network provided.

. Alongside the release of the Wii U console, Nintendo is preparing to release the Nintendo Network in order to take advantage of the popularity of mobile gaming on smartphones and social network gaming. This service will function similarly to the Xbox and PlayStation networks in that it will provide extra downloadable content. Digital downloads of full games will be available in the future, but Nintendo was hesitant to say when. There were also hints that the Nintendo Network will support micropayments.

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There are some truly incredible minds working in academia today.  The best teachers can inspire the next generation and help change the world by providing the fundamentals of their given field to their successors.  But only the most jaded people actually believe the unfortunate adage “those who can’t, teach.”  In fact, some of the very best educators lead by example and continue their professional development by excelling in their field while teaching.  Louis McPhee is one such educator and his latest invention, a medical robot, may well change the world.

An assistant professor at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, Louis Phee is able to translate simple ideas into complex, working technologies.  Louis Phee is credited with the design of a new medical robot based upon a crab!  When Lawrence Ho mentioned to Phee that cancer extraction would be much easier using a crab, over a crab dinner, Phee explored the possibility of taking that outlandish idea and making it into a reality.  Louis Phee and Lawrence Ho worked together to create a surgical robot designed like a crab that is now treating cancer in the esophagus!

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Facebook versus Google Plus – which side are you on? It is the battle for the future of social networking and the outcome will decide the direction the Internet takes in the coming years. Google+ is still a relatively new social networking site, having only been launched last year, but it shows promise.

Some of the most basic features of Google+ were applauded by the public when first introduced. Facebook did its best to integrate similar features within its own site, but the features on Google+ are far more seamlessly incorporated. These features include the circles, hangouts, and making Google+ part of all other Google websites.

Google+ allows you to easily group your friends the way we do in real life with the circles feature. The best thing about this feature is that no one else knows in which group you have put him or her. The hangouts are the video chat feature for Google+ and this feature allows people to chat with everyone in one of their circles all at the same time.

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Online gaming has taken a few major turns in recent years, especially in terms of type of players and company business models. Until recently, most games on the Internet were for hardcore gamers. Now, anyone can find a game online that he or she will enjoy playing.

Social networking games have created a window into the gaming world for casual players by creating thousands of games that are free and very easy to play. These games come with a revolutionary business model that other types of games are slowly adopting.

Massively Multiplayer Online games, known as MMOs, are a type of game in which players from all over the world can play the game together in an online world. MMOs can be any type of game, but Role Playing Games (or RPGs) are the most popular. These MMORPGs, like the well-known World of Warcraft game, are beginning to change.

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If you play games on Facebook, you know about Farmville. No matter your opinion on the game itself, there is no denying that Farmville is a huge success. As is Zynga, the company that created Farmville.

Zynga currently has four of the past year’s top ten games on Facebook, according to Gameinformer. These games, of which Farmville was not one, were ranked based on how highly players recommended the games.

Zynga’s Farmville remains a very popular game, even if it did not make that list. How and why is it so popular? Why do people play a game where they have to run a farm? How does Zynga make money from these free Facebook games?

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All throughout school, your English teacher taught you the correct spellings of words, how to formulate proper sentences, and the difference between a colon and a semi-colon. Then, you bought a computer and a cell phone for your children. Suddenly, you cannot understand a word of the text messages they send you.

With the rise of the Internet and text messaging, the way people communicate has changed. The young people who have grown up using these written methods of instant communication needed an faster way of typing their messages, so they developed what is known as ‘text speak’.

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Some companies in the technology sector work very hard for years before their brand is successful enough to have name recognition outside the industry.  In 2010, two of every five personal computers that were sold used a mother board by computer manufacturer ASUS.  Even so, it was not for a few years later that ASUS began to market computers effectively enough to compete in the computer manufacturing market.  The transition from support company providing vital internal hardware to a recognizable brand of its own comes as the result of Jonney Shih’s hard work.

Jonney Shih is the Chief Executive Officer of ASUSTek Computer, Inc. (commonly known as ASUS).  Shih has been the Chairman and CEO of ASUS since 1993 and he has presided over the company’s longest period of sustained growth.  In fact, it is hard to imagine where ASUS would be if Jonney Shih were not guiding the company.  Virtually every major policy that has made ASUS a household name resulted from Shih’s influence and direction.

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Between work, school, afterschool activities, other responsibilities, and trying to have a social life, it can be easy to forget to do your laundry. Laundry tends to pile up and hardly ever get done, at least in most households, but what if there was an easy way to do your laundry while concentrating on other tasks?

The Samsung announced its new WF475 washer and dryer set at the Consumer Electronics Show this January, which feature integrated Wi-Fi. Along with the now-standard touch screen settings display, your washer and dryer will be able to connect to the Internet.

This built in Wi-Fi capability will allow users to activate the washer and dryer with a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer. With this ability to remotely activate the system, if you forgot to turn on the washer before you left the house you can do so whenever you remember, wherever you are. You will be able to start and stop the cycles, change settings, and remotely monitor your laundry by using the SmartHome app.

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Even though YouTube is the largest and most popular video-sharing website, it is not the only one. Vimeo is one alternative for independent filmmakers. Vimeo has gained a large following but it will never be as big as YouTube because it limits the content on the site to videos that the users have made themselves.

The site is popular with musicians and independent filmmakers because it is an easy way to highlight their talents in a community of like-minded people. Users get good exposure on the site when they post their own videos. Many hope to use Vimeo as a springboard for their careers in film or music.

Vimeo announced that it would be completely redesigning its website soon. The video hosting site wants to make the experience it provides better than ever before and more easy to use. Probably the most noticeable change will be a larger video player covering most of the width of the page. Users will also discover new ways for them to share their unique content, easier navigation around the site, and more privacy features.

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What is the one major problem with tablets? If you answered with something similar to “They do not have keyboards,” then you are among the majority of frustrated tablet and touch screen smartphone owners. Tablets are great; they are portable, lightweight, easy to use, and great for working outside the home or office. Tablets are the hot new item over the last two years and many people would love to be able to discard their laptop in favor of their new tablet.

There is just one problem with replacing laptops with tablets and it is a huge problem for users. The lack of an actual keyboard makes typing on a tablet a hassle. Typing on the virtual, onscreen keyboard is slow, imprecise, and awkward. The angle for holding your wrists and arms is completely wrong, and there is also the problem of trying to hold the tablet and type with both hands at the same time.

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