Skype outage – Video calling and chat put on hold

Skype servers are currently taking a “short break” claims the official website for the worldwide video calling and chat service.

We at the Gadget Helpline started suffering with our own person-to-person communications with the Skype tantrum booting us out of chat, with log-in attempts prompting error messages to appear – and it appears we’re not alone.

The Skype service began to cut out for users across the globe at around 12:15pm following an outage which the company are now looking into after pulling the active service. The Skype website itself is also glitchy and the aforementioned message goes onto say that it was still possible to download and enjoy the Skype software. However on doing this we found no result – only the same error message repeated.

It’s easy to jump to a conclusion after all the recent high-profile server intrusions with big names such as Sony being toppled by hacking and denial-of-service attacks it’s quite possible that Skype are next in line for these kind of troubles, particularly after being bought out by Microsoft around two weeks ago – an $8.5-billion deal which today looks like a pretty disappointing start to the union.

Numerous users have been jumping over to Twitter and using their 140 characters to give Skype a bashing to which the company’s account has responded with “Some of you may have problems signing in to Skype and making calls. We’re investigating and hope to have more details to share soon”.

Are you also experiencing Skype difficulties this afternoon? Let us know at the official Gadget Helpline Facebook or drop us a comment below.

LimeWire ordered to shut down

In a major victory for the music industry, a New York federal judge has ordered embattled P2P software maker LimeWire to immediately and permanently stop distributing and supporting its filesharing software. In a 17-page injunction (PDF document) issued on Tuesday, Judge Kimba Wood of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York ordered LimeWire to cease the searching, downloading, uploading, file trading and file distribution functionality of LimeWire's P2P filesharing software.

The injunction instructed LimeWire to immediately communicate the court's decision to all users of the software and to all of the company's employees, principals and other stakeholders. It gave the company 14 days to report back to the court on the steps LimeWire has taken to comply with the order.

A spokeswoman for the company today stressed that the court's order does not mean that LimeWire is shutting down and said that it only prevents LimeWire from distributing or supporting its P2P software. It does not prohibit the company from going ahead with its previously announced plans to launch a subscription based music service and neither does it prohibit the company from operating its online store, the LimeWire spokeswoman said.

"While this is not our ideal path, we hope to work with the music industry in moving forward," the spokeswoman said. "We look forward to embracing necessary changes and collaborating with the entire music industry in the future."

The court injunction is a huge victory for the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which has been trying to get the court to shut down LimeWire for quite some time. The RIAA and the music labels it represents have accused LimeWire and its chief executive, Mark Gorton, of willfully enabling widespread copyright infringement. In numerous court documents the music industry has claimed that the use of LimeWire's P2P software by users to illegally download and distribute copyrighted music has caused the industry tens of millions of dollars in losses.

In a ruling in May, Wood found LimeWire and Gorton liable for inducing and enabling copyright infringement. Wood agreed with the recording companies and found that LimeWire and Gorton had engaged in conduct that knowingly fostered and enabled copyright infringement. The judge upheld virtually all of the arguments raised by the recording companies and ruled that LimeWire had failed to implement any meaningful barriers that would have made it harder for users of its software to illegally share and download music files.

Following that ruling, the RIAA ratcheted up its pressure against LimeWire by asking the court to shutter the company and freeze all its assets. Then in June eight music publishers also filed a related copyright infringement lawsuit against LimeWire in the same federal court in New York.

A predictably jubilant RIAA today welcomed the court's response to the lawsuits. "For the better part of the last decade, Limewire and Gorton have violated the law," the RIAA said. "The court has now signed an injunction that will start to unwind the massive piracy machine that Limewire and Gorton used to enrich themselves immensely."

The statement noted that the court is scheduled to conduct a trial in January to determine the extent of the damages that LimeWire should be held liable for to compensate for the "billions and billions" of illegal music downloads through LimeWire. The court injunction ominously noted that LimeWire almost certainly will be held liable for the piracy and potentially be assessed statutory damages that are well beyond its capacity to pay.

Tuesday's ruling comes just weeks after the Federal Trade Commission announced that it was dropping an investigation of the company's P2P software. The FTC said its decision was prompted by the new safeguards that LimeWire has built into newer versions of its software.

Google TV Apps Video Preview

Smartphones has got a bunch of apps. Now your TV will have apps too. Here's a sneak preview of the apps that will be available on Google TV soon.



If you do not know what the Google TV is, or even why it is, then watch the following video.

Google Logo for Google Homepage Shocks Googlers

Google Logo for Google Homepage Shocks Googlers Today- Although it is not being used in all of Google’s sites worldwide, people are surprised to see the Google Logo today, September 7, 2010 on Google Homepage. Apparently, it once again an interactive Google Doodle just like the recent Google Doodles on Pacman and the most recent Buckyball featured on homepage of Google.

People are searching everywhere and trying to decode the Google Logo hidden message on Google’s homepage. Speculations have risen as to what could probably be the reason for the unique Google Logo today September 7 on Google homepage. Most people point it to the celebration of the the anniversary of Google this September. However, a Google spokesperson have already claimed that it has nothing to do with Google’s birthday saying: “Today’s doodle is not related to a birthday but is fast, fun and interactive, just the way we think search should be.”

Since this particular Google Logo is not present in all Google sites worldwide, here is a quick view on today’s Google logo as featured in Google Homepage below:

image from: http://www.worldcorrespondents.com/

Future Touch Screen Technology

Touch Screen Technology develops as fast as the clock ticks. Can you imagine what kind of touch screen technology is waiting for us in the future? Well, this is just a preview...


In above photo, you are watching a mirror that is a multitouch screen that can display news updates, events, tasks, your schedule for whole month, videos, TV and more...That means you can brush your teeth while getting updates from not only your friends and family but from around the globe right at your mirror.

The future of screen technology is stretchable screens, transparent screens and e-ink displays, to name a few. Devices e.g. keyboard, mouse will be totally vanished and replaced by the multi-touch screens. The future is the future of multitouch screens.



source: techmynd.com

Best Laptops and Desktops of 2010

Whether you're looking to surf from an ultralight netbook at your favorite coffee shop, tear into opponents on a gaming PC, or edit family videos on a touch-friendly all-in-one desktop, this year's crop of laptops and desktops offers a bounty of power and flexibility at prices that have never been more reasonable. We've compiled some of the most worthy machines on the market today, along with a few of the most promising upcoming hardware, to highlight some of 2010's best laptops and desktops.


HP TouchSmart 300
$800+

HP has been producing finger-friendly desktops under its TouchSmart moniker for years now, but the native touch features added with Windows 7 truly bring this system into its own. Besides integrating touch even more tightly with built-in software, a reasonable $800 price tag, more refined build quality and 2.8GHz AMD Athlon II X2 240e processor coupled with ATI graphics make the TouchSmart 300 a great value.

Lenovo ThinkPad X100e
$449+

Netbooks don't have to feel cheap. With the X100e, Lenovo has bred real ThinkPad durability and build quality into a machine only a little more expensive than your average netbook. An 11.6-inch display and AMD Neo processor help further differentiate it from the toy-like netbook crowd, but be warned: Battery life does suffer a bit. Expect no more than four hours under typical use.



Sony Vaio CW Series
$810+

The name "Sony" doesn't typically end up in the same sentence with "bargain," but we think the Vaio CW Series is just that. Even the most bare-bones CW notebooks come equipped with Intel's new Core i3 processor, dedicated Nvidia GeForce graphics with 256MB on-board memory, a 320GB hard drive, and 2GB of RAM. Wrap it all up in one of six metallic finishes that wouldn't look out of place at an Audi dealership and you're looking at one fast, attractive notebook for the cash.

HP Pavilion MS225
$600

While most manufacturers have resigned to borrowing anemic netbook hardware for all-in-one PCs in this price range, HP has managed to outfit the MS225 with a legit AMD Athlon II X2 250u. It's no speed demon by a long shot, but when you consider the MS225 sweetens the deal with its own 18-inch screen and peripherals, you can't get much more bang for the buck from an all-in-one.

Lenovo IdeaPad U1 Hybrid
$1,000

Does Apple's iPad announcement have you wondering whether to buy a tablet or a notebook? Now you can get both in one. Using a separate battery and processor in both the screen and base, the U1 literally splits apart to turn the laptop screen into a dedicated tablet running a custom Linux OS. (Traditional convertible tablets merely swivel around the screen, which keeps all the bulk of the base attached in tablet mode.) Although this CES 2010 announcement hasn't yet come to fruition, the very concept of it should keep potential PC buyers on their toes this year.

Dell Alienware M11x
$799

Get your game on wherever you go with Alienware's astoundingly tiny M11x. Although the 11.6-inch screen makes it tiny by gaming standards, Dell claims it will be able to pull off the same feats a 15-inch notebook will, including 720p gaming at over 30 fps, courtesy of the Intel Core 2 Duo and 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 335M inside.



Apple MacBook
$999

The most affordable MacBook in Apple's enviable stable got even better in late 2009, making it one of our favorite all-around laptops out there. Sturdy unibody construction gives it unrivaled build quality, while standard Intel Core 2 Duo processors and Nvidia's GeForce 9400M put some serious pep in its desktop performance. The $999 price tag still seems steep by some standards, but unless you're on a serious budget, the extra cash pays for a lot of polish.

Gateway One ZX Series
$720+

Whether you view touch as a cute novelty or an absolute necessity, Gateway's One ZX series delivers with one of the most fluid and engrossing touch-screen experiences we've encountered. The massive 23-inch 1080p screen and top-notch hardware in the high-end model ($1,400) make it equal parts cinema, gaming rig, media-editing machine and touch toy, while the cheaper 20-inch model tones it all down in favor of a reasonable $720 price tag.

source: Digital Trends

Apple Tablet, iPhone 4 Launch Confirmed for January 27

Apple just announced an event on January 27th that will no doubt dazzle us with what the company is calling its "latest creation." At the event, Apple will unveil the company's long-rumored tablet device.

Apple sent out invitations to selected media outlets this morning, asking people to "join us for an invitation-only event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco on January 27 at 10:00a.m." Fox will be live all morning long from San Francisco, bringing you all the fruit (and gadgets) that the Apple tree bears.

Reports suggest that this device has been years in the making (just take a look at this enthusiast-generated gallery of Apple table concepts, originally posted to Gizmodo two years ago), and I'm as excited to see it as you are.

I spoke to a source at Apple this morning, before the invite hit my inbox, who said the event would likely focus on three projects: The tablet device, iPhone 4, and a new round of iLife 2010 software. While we won't see new iPhone hardware just yet, we will see the next-generation software.

Apple is known to pull a last-minute rabbit out of a hat, however ... and just as likely to stuff it back in again. Last September, the company surprised fans by suddenly removing the camera from latest generation iPod Touch just before the Fall iPod event. As a result, the big stories from the September keynote were Steve Jobs back on stage after liver surgery and a Nano with a camera -- not a powerful new Touch.

Today's Apple invitation is vague as usual, but people love to look for clues in the message. The invite features spray-painted blobs amid vibrant color swatches, which could point to a device that captures "creative" activities. A tablet, perhaps? You bet your bottom dollar. Of course, it could also be a new Apple spray paint can that holds MP3s and unicorn tears. My money remains on the tablet, however.

While you wait, watch the latest episode of Gadgets and Games, where we dive deep on what we'll see in the Apple tablet. See you next week from San Francisco at 10AM Pacific Time!

source...

Samsung Will Let You Tweet from Your TV

Electronics maker Samsung announced today that it’s getting into the app store game — but it’s thinking beyond the smartphone app stores that seem so hot right now. Instead, the company says you should be able to download an app that works across your phone, your television, and your Blu-Ray player.

The idea, said Samsung Consumer Electronics President Tim Baxter at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas today, is to create “more opportunities for [innovative] devices to work together through connectivity.”

So instead of searching for apps on your phone, you could scroll through Samsung Apps on your TV using your remote control, then choose a Twitter app, download it, and send a tweet from your television. Later on, you can access the same app from your Samsung phone. Or you could start watching an online streaming movie via Netflix on your TV, then pick up watching wherever you left off on your phone. Or you could leave your remote control out of the equation, and use your phone as your TV control.

Now, most of the announced launch apps — Netflix, Blockbuster, and Picasa — involve videos or photos, and I’m hard-pressed to think of many other apps I’d want to use on my TV. On the other hand, with moves like Microsoft adding Facebook to Xbox Live, this could be where things are going. Samsung says it has 25 percent of the cell phone market and 80 percent of the emerging LED TV market, so developers would have access to a big audience.

Samsung didn’t offer too many details about Samsung Apps, except to say it would start out with “dozens” of apps, and that it will be “open,” making it easy for developers to get their apps into the store. The company plans to launch the store in the spring, then add premium apps this summer.

New iPod nano with Camera and FM Radio

Apple has recently released a new version of its most popular mp3 player, the iPod nano. This time iPod nano brings video to your music with the new built-in video camera. And for that extra kick: a larger screen and a polished aluminum finish in nine brilliant colors.

iPod nano now has a built-in video camera that lets you record fun as it happens. Then share it with friends on the Internet. It’s the video camera that’s small enough to take with you everywhere. A quick scroll through the menu takes you to the video camera. Then you’re ready to record video in portrait or landscape — perfect for emailing or posting on Facebook or MobileMe. A built-in mic lets you capture audio, too. And when you play back your video on iPod nano, you’ll hear the recorded audio with it. All of which means your indispensable music player is now your indispensable video camera.

FM radio. It gives you yet another way to rock.There’s always something great on the FM dial. And now the FM tuner lets you hear your favorite morning shows on your commute and discover new music while you work out. It even shows you what and who you’re listening to.

With Live Pause, you’ll never miss a beat.Say you need to take a quick break from listening to your favorite radio station. iPod nano lets you pause it with a click. Another click and you’re listening to your station again. You can even rewind as far back as 15 minutes, then fast-forward to catch up to the live broadcast.

iTunes Tagging. The new-fashioned way to discover music.It’s quite a dilemma: You’re listening to the radio and you hear a song you like, but when you go to iTunes, you can’t remember the name or even who sings it. Enter iTunes Tagging. Now, you can use the Click Wheel on iPod nano to tag the song. iTunes creates a list of all your tagged songs so you can easily preview or purchase them when you sync iPod nano to iTunes.

Pedometer and Nike + iPod.The new Pedometer counts every step you take. Or you can add Nike+ shoes and a Nike + iPod Sport Kit. Which makes your iPod nano the perfect workout partner.

Note to self: Voice Memos are here.The built-in mic lets you capture a thought, a reminder, a class lecture, or any audio recording you want with Voice Memos.

iTunes. Your greatest hits.It’s even easier to organize, browse, grow, and share your digital music and video collection with the new iTunes. And now you can save items with a wish list and enjoy iTunes extras — bonus features on select albums and movies — like lyrics, photos, interviews, and behind-the-scenes media.

source: apple.com