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Rabu, 03 Juli 2019

‘Stranger Things’ arrives in ‘Fortnite’ with upside down portals - Engadget

Fortnite is no stranger to big-budget entertainment collaborations. It's already welcomed Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and Hawkeye as part of its Endgame mode and let players stealthily assassinate their rivals via its recent John Wick partnership.

For a while now, Epic Games has teased the introduction of something a little more paranormal as part of a tie-in with Netflix's Stranger Things. With Season 3 of the smash TV series only a day away, the Fortnite world has become a touch more threatening, with dark portals appearing in the games' popular Mega Mall area.

If you head to Mega Mall's....er, Mall, you'll find Gates -- complete with floating spores -- attached to the walls of various stores. Unlike the TV show, they don't take you into the Upside Down, at least at the moment, but instead transport you to another part of the mall itself.

. @FortniteGame X @Stranger_Things
Portals now at Mega Mall in-game! pic.twitter.com/Y51h2b7bth
— JaredFPS 🔥 (@JaredFPS) July 3, 2019

Although the Gates have only appeared today, Fortnite has hosted a Scoops Ahoy store for nearly two months. Scoops Ahoy is the name of the ice cream parlor inside Starcourt Mall that Steve Harrington and new character Robin work at in the third season of the TV show. Starcourt Mall will open in summer 1985, which is the year in which the new season is set.

In a further nod to the series, small consumable ice creams are dotted around Mega Mall, granting +5 health for every one eaten.

Although Epic Games has yet to confirm the crossover, it's likely that the portals and ice creams won't be the only Stranger Things elements you'll see in game. If the Avengers: Endgame and John Wick limited-time modes were anything to go by, we'll likely see an Upside Down-themed world and various in-game emotes and skins hit the store.

We demand a Hopper skin and his iconic Season Two shuffle, just sayin'.

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https://www.engadget.com/2019/07/03/fortnite-stranger-things-crossover-mega-mall/

2019-07-03 09:55:43Z
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Microsoft Confirms Windows 10 Update Block For Apple Mac Users - Forbes

Microsoft has confirmed by way of a Windows Support advisory that Apple Mac users have been blocked from updating to Windows 10 version 1903.

According to the Windows Latest site the support page in question has been made difficult to find, courtesy of Microsoft blocking web crawlers from indexing the document. Whether this was deliberate or an error is currently unclear. What is clear though, is that users of older Mac devices will likely find that the Windows 10 May 2019 update will fail to install.

Older, in this instance, is being defined as Mac devices prior to 2012. However, Microsoft also admits that users of newer Mac devices could also find themselves facing the same Windows 10 update block if they are using outdated Boot Camp software.

Here's what Microsoft has to say on the matter: "If you are trying to update to the May 2019 Feature Update for Windows 10 (Windows 10, version 1903), you may experience an update compatibility hold and receive the message, "Mac HAL Driver - machaldriver.sys: Your PC has a driver or service that isn't ready for this version of Windows 10."

Apparently the error is being caused by a "compatibility hold" that has been put in place for devices with a "MacHALDriver.sys dated September 24, 2011 01:57:09 or older in Windows\system32\drivers."

Microsoft offers a workaround, of sorts, to the block. "Updating your Apple Boot Camp Windows Support Software drivers may allow you to update to Windows 10, version 1903," it states, adding, "you may be able to check for updated Windows support software, in macOS, choose Apple menu > App Store, then install all available updates."

While Microsoft says it is working on a resolution to the problem and gives an estimated delivery of this as "late July," there may be other options worth a try. Lifehacker suggests, "If you're not on macOS Mojave, it might be time to try giving that a shot. Or, if you're daring, you can even try jumping up to macOS Catalina." It also suggests using Microsoft's Media Creation Tool to build a new .ISO and install a clean Boot Camp version of Windows 10 version 1902 instead. This latter suggestion advising that it "might cause more issues," such as bricking the install altogether.

For those of a technical persuasion who like rolling their sleeves up and getting dirty, Lifehacker has one final suggestion: overwrite the old Mac HAL Driver with a new one obtained from an unofficial mirror source such as referenced in the Overclockers forum here.

It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway, that any of these workarounds are carried out with a risk of something going wrong and losing data as a result. If you really cannot wait until the end of the month for the Windows 10 May Update then make sure you have made full backups before proceeding.

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2019/07/03/microsoft-confirms-windows-10-update-block-for-apple-mac-users/

2019-07-03 09:53:57Z
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iOS 13 will fix the FaceTime eye contact problem - The Verge

iOS 13’s third developer beta includes a new feature that makes it look like you’re staring directly at your front-facing camera during FaceTime calls, even when looking away at the person on your screen. The feature, which was spotted by Mike Rundle on Twitter, only appears to be working on the iPhone XS and XS Max with this version of the beta, and can be toggled on and off from within FaceTime’s settings.

Normally, video calls tend to make it look like both participants are peering off to one side or the other, since they’re looking at the person on their display, rather than directly into the front-facing camera. However, the new “FaceTime Attention Correction” feature appears to use some kind of image manipulation to correct this, and results in realistic-looking fake eye contact between the FaceTime users. Coincidentally, Rundle himself theorized back in 2017 that Apple would one day do this, although not so soon.

It’s not clear exactly how Apple is achieving this effect, which devices it will eventually work with, or whether it will support group calls. We’re also curious to know whether it works when there are multiple people in the frame, for those times when you group your entire family round a device to FaceTime a distant relative. The feature should arrive in the public-facing beta next week.

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https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/3/20680681/ios-13-beta-3-facetime-attention-correction-eye-contact

2019-07-03 08:22:07Z
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Google Chrome Is Simplifying Web Payments - Thurrott.com

Google is introducing a change to the way your payment methods are handled by its Chrome browser. The new changes are meant to simplify web payments for everyone.

The main change here is that Google now lets you access your Google Account payment methods right from Chrome without having to have Chrome syncing enabled. That means if you haven’t turned on Chrome syncing for your Google Account, you will now be able to access the cards you have saved onto your Google Account. The feature only works for sites where Google Pay is accepted, though.

Like before, you will still be asked for a card’s CVC before you can actually grab the card’s details from your Google Account. For those wanting to add a new card, Google Pay will send them a confirmation email to add the new card to their Google Account.

None of this changes the way your payment methods were saved in the past, though — so you will continue to be able to store payment methods locally on your current device, without storing it on Google Pay, or without syncing it with your other devices. The new Google Pay integration is simply making things much easier for those with Google Pay.

Tagged with Google Account, Google Chrome, Google Pay

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https://www.thurrott.com/google/209706/google-chrome-is-simplifying-web-payments

2019-07-03 08:20:53Z
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Report: Samsung in 'Final Stages' of Fixing Galaxy Fold After Pre-Launch Disaster - Gizmodo

Illustration for article titled Report: Samsung in 'Final Stages' of Fixing Galaxy Fold After Pre-Launch Disaster — Photo: Kelvin Chan (AP)

Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that South Korean hardware giant Samsung has finally figured out how to keep its $2,000 Galaxy Fold bendable smartphones from going haywire as soon as they land in the hands of users, and though it is in the “final stages” of the redesign it still doesn’t know when sales will resume.

Samsung indefinitely delayed the Galaxy Fold launch in April after early reviews found the device had serious problems including screens that continually flickered or worse and hinge bulges—though admittedly it seemed that many of these issues were caused by reviewers peeling off a protective film on the screen that apparently looked removable, but absolutely should not have been removed. (Gizmodo found no such problems with our review unit, finding it had other serious flaws and trade-offs but was still an exciting debut of new technology.)

Bloomberg’s sources say that Samsung has now readied a fix for these problems, including by stretching the protective film across the entire screen and into “the outer bezels so it would be impossible to peel off by hand.” It has also re-engineered the hinge so that it pushes “slightly upward from the screen (it’s now flush with the display)” so that the film stretches further when the phone opens. That last part does seem to suggest that the issues with the protective film weren’t solely limited to unsuspecting users ripping it right off the device. Bloomberg wrote:

That tension makes the film feel harder and more a natural part of the device rather than a detachable accessory, they added. The consequent protrusion, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, may help reduce the chance of a crease developing in the middle of the screen over time, one of the people said.

Note that reports as early as May described similar presumptive solutions to the Galaxy Fold’s woes as well as claimed a rollout was imminent, so perhaps take this news with a grain of salt. However, Bloomberg’s sources were slightly more cautious, saying that while Samsung will soon begin shipping some parts including displays and batteries to Vietnam, the revamped device is “unlikely” to make an appearance at an “Unpack” event in early August which is widely believed to be the Galaxy Note 10's launch.

Samsung Electronics CEO DJ Koh recently admitted to reporters the botched Galaxy Fold rollout as “embarrassing” and he had “pushed it through before it was ready.” Huawei’s foldable Mate X, which Samsung was apparently trying to beat out the door, has hit its own delays and may not be out until September.

[Bloomberg]

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https://gizmodo.com/report-samsung-in-final-stages-of-fixing-galaxy-fold-a-1836064327

2019-07-03 04:00:00Z
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Selasa, 02 Juli 2019

You Can Now See Your Android Notifications on Your Windows 10 PC - Thurrott.com

Microsoft is rolling out a new update to the Your Phone experience in Windows 10. The company is enabling a major new feature for the app. It can now mirror your Android’s notifications, allowing you to get all your phone’s notifications right on your PC.

This isn’t the first time Microsoft has allowed users to view their Android notifications on their phone. In the past, Microsoft had a similar solution, albeit very unreliable, integrated into Cortana. This time around though, it’s a little more advanced. Microsoft’s Vishnu Nath, who’s responsible for the Your Phone app and some other cross-device experiences in Windows, tells me that the company is introducing a feature called “notification chasing”. If you are a Windows Insider, you will essentially be able to click on a notification from your phone, and it will mirror your phone’s screen on your computer and allow you to take actions right from there.

So for example, if someone messages you on WhatsApp, you can click on the notification and it will open up WhatsApp on your phone and mirror the phone screen on your PC, allowing you to reply to the message. It sounds really useful.

The feature doesn’t yet support quick replies, so you won’t be able to do in-line replies for apps like WhatsApp, Twitter, Messenger, etc. Microsoft tells me that’s coming soon.

The new notification mirroring feature is being rolled out gradually, but it should be available to most users today, with Microsoft expecting to finish the complete rollout by July 9.

Tagged with Your Phone

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https://www.thurrott.com/windows/windows-10/209664/you-can-now-see-your-android-notifications-on-your-windows-10-pc

2019-07-02 17:53:08Z
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Nvidia responds to AMD with ‘Super’ gaming cards - MarketWatch

Nvidia Corp. launched a new line of gaming cards Tuesday that seeks to normalize the arms race with rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

On Tuesday, Nvidia NVDA, -1.37% announced a “Super” brand of its RTX line of Turing-based gaming cards, which allow real-time ray tracing, letting a computer render realistic-looking lighting and shading. Nvidia said it would launch its RTX 2060 Super and RTX 2070 Super cards on July 9, and its RTX 2080 Super card on July 23.

The 2080 Super, which Nvidia said is faster than its current top-of-the-line Titan Xp chipset, will retail for $699, while the 2070 Super will retail for $499 and the 2060 Super will cost $399. The company said it would keep selling its RTX 2060 chipset for $349.

The announcement comes about a month after rival AMD AMD, -0.54% took aim at Nvidia, long the market leader in consumer gaming cards, with new offerings. At the beginning of June, AMD shares rallied 10% in one day after the company announced the Radeon RX 5000-series of gaming chipsets. Then, a little more than a week later, AMD Chief Executive Lisa Su said their “best of the best” Radeon 5700 XT gaming card would retail for $499 in July.

At the time, Wells Fargo analyst Aaron Rakers estimated that AMD’s RX 5000-series had about a 10% performance advantage over Nvidia’s RTX 2070. Nvidia claimed that the “Super” versions of its cards are expected to run up to 25% faster than their current versions.

From earlier this year: AMD’s Lisa Su taking aim at Intel and Nvidia

With both cards coming out in July, the competition may boil down to a question of availability, which is very hard to forecast, analyst Pat Moorhead said. While he wouldn’t call Nvidia’s move a “stalemate,” the principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy told MarketWatch in an interview that “the competitive position isn’t going to change fundamentally.”

Moorhead said Nvidia is going to have to market its new cards as being superior to AMD’s with their ray-tracing capabilities, an area where game developers are just beginning to take advantage, and Deep Learning Super Sampling, or DLSS. That is what Nvidia calls its AI-assisted technology that boosts frame-rate performance when the chipset is handling graphically intense workloads.

“The game developers and engine developers are committed, but it just takes time to roll all this out,” Moorhead said. “I think it’s going to be up to Nvidia to ... market or sell the fact that this is coming.”

“I think in the end people are going to say, ‘Is it worth an extra $50 or $100 for the Nvidia brand to get ray tracing and DLSS vs. AMD?’ That’s really what I think this will come down to,” he predicted.

Shares of Nvidia are up 24% for the year, compared with a 69% gain in AMD shares and a 30% rise for the PHLX Semiconductor Index SOX, -1.46% .

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https://www.marketwatch.com/story/nvidia-responds-to-amd-with-super-gaming-cards-2019-07-02

2019-07-02 15:37:00Z
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