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Rumor calls out Windows 95 as the reason Microsoft skipped version 9
Still confused about why the new version of Windows is 10, instead of 9? Beyond the loosely defined numbering schemes that are all too common in tech (how many iPhones did it take to get to 6?), a note posted to Reddit could provide an answer. Reddit user cranbourne claims to be a Microsoft developer, and cites rumors that early testing with the name "Windows 9" ran into problems with code some third-party developers used as a shortcut to detect when apps are running on Windows 95 or Windows 98. The problem, is that it wasn't written to actually check for the extra character. Whatever the real reason is Microsoft isn't saying, and it gave Gizmodo a vague non-answer about the new name so your conspiracy theory is as good as ours (we think they were avoiding a Tolkien nine rings of power reference, and we have evidence to prove it.)
Oculus lets you tinker with the code and design of its first VR headset
If you've ever wanted to modify a virtual reality headset (or even create one from scratch), Oculus VR just gave you a big head start on your project. The Facebook-owned firm has opened up the code, mechanical elements and design for its first VR wearable, the Oculus Rift DK1. Provided you have the know-how and tools, you can now build upon everything Oculus learned in its early days about screens, head tracking and ergonomics. The source material won't help you recreate the more advanced technology of newer Rift kits or the Gear VR, but it should be worth a look if you're curious about the inner workings of immersive displays.
'Minecraft' add-on helps you learn programming while you play
Programming languages can be daunting to learn, especially if you're a kid who'd rather be playing games than creating them. Thankfully, ThoughtSTEM has found a way to make coding both accessible and entertaining in one shot. Its upcoming LearnToMod software teaches you how to write JavaScript code by producing Minecraft mods that are appropriate to your skill level. If you're just starting out, you can use building blocks of code that produce simple-yet-fun features, such as a bow that shoots teleporters. Advanced students, meanwhile, can write in raw JavaScript and produce content that you wouldn't think was possible in Minecraft's cuboid universe, such as a Tetris mini-game.
Buy Secret Ponchos on Steam, give another to a friend
Spaghetti western shooter Secret Ponchos is best enjoyed with a friend Lady and the Tramp-style, like a plate of pasta. While you won't need to do any smooching with your bestie, those playing the game on Steam can now show a little love by gifting a copy to one friend. The "Secret Ponchos Double Down" promotion grants all buyers an extra Steam code, providing they pick the game up before August 5. The game arrived on Steam in mid-June via Early Access, and is currently available for $14.99. Whether you buy a copy for yourself or are the recipient of one of the free codes, you'll have access to the full version of the game when it arrives later this year. While there's no set release date for Secret Ponchos, it is expected to launch in full on both PC and PS4 this fall. [Image: Switchblade Monkeys]
Qualcomm briefly takes down Android code for CyanogenMod, Sony and itself
The Android community just got a big (if brief) scare. In the space of a few days, Qualcomm has both made and retracted a Digital Millennium Copyright Act request that took down 116 code repositories (many of them Android-focused) that were allegedly using the chip maker's confidential technology. As it turns out, quite a few of the targets were legitimate users running the company's open source software. And you'll definitely recognize some of the names -- the move shut down code bases maintained by the CyanogenMod custom ROM team, Sony and even Qualcomm itself. Suffice it to say that the removal would have created a lot of headaches if you wanted to modify Android for the many, many devices with Snapdragon processors.
Reprogram your surroundings in Glitchspace, now on Early Access
First-person puzzler Glitchspace is now available through Steam's Early Access service for PC, Mac and Linux. The alpha version of the game from developer Space Budgie is available for $6.99 on Early Access and $6.49 through the game's official site. Described as a "first-person programming" game, Glitchspace has players navigating a cyberspace-style world to locate a place that is a "by-product of cyberspace and its various glitches" known, appropriately enough, as Glitchspace. Space Budgie focused on emergent mechanics for the game, as players can identify glitches in the game and "exploit them in various different ways." Objects in the game are both programmable and non-programmable thanks to the "Null" programming system in the game created by the developer. Programmable objects include a "canvas" in which players can add functions to affect them, such as forces to move them, scale them, duplicate them and a myriad of other possibilities. The game includes a sandbox mode for players to toy around with as well as Oculus Rift support for those that want to immerse themselves in the matrix-like world. Space Budgie expects to launch the full version of Glitchspace in Q2 2014. [Image: Space Budgie]
Facebook wants to help you write code faster with its 'Hack' programming language
Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook often try to assist and provide tools for coders, both current and future ones. With that in mind, the social network today announced Hack, an open-source language for programmers. This new language has been used internally at Facebook for the past year and offers a lot of potential for developers, enabling them to program faster and be able to catch errors more easily, among other things. Hack, which was developed for the HHVM platform, is designed to be extremely friendly with PHP; as Facebook puts it, its new programming language "offers the best of both dynamically typed and statically typed languages, and that it will be valuable to projects of all sizes." Essentially, this means you theoretically could have access to websites that are faster and more reliable. Interested in learning more? Head over to Facebook's Engineering blog, where you'll find all the nitty-gritty details you're looking for.
Apple's Secure Coding Guide is an invaluable tool for new and veteran developers alike
If you develop an app, someone is going to try to destroy it. Once upon a time, hackers may have had a reason for trying to destroy your hard work, but these days the only motivation computer outlaws need is a little boredom. Thankfully Apple has released a Secure Coding Guide for developers old and new alike, which provides an invaluable resource for building an app that can survive attacks. As the recent SnapChat leaks have shown, leaks or hacks don't have to cause constant damage to harm a program. Sometimes a single break-in is enough. Apple makes this point clearly during the Coding Guide's introduction. A large-scale, widespread attack is not needed to cause monetary and other damages; a single break-in is sufficient if the system broken into contains valuable information. Although major attacks of viruses or worms get a lot of attention from the media, the destruction or compromising of data on a single computer is what matters to the average user. For your users' sake, you should take every security vulnerability seriously and work to correct known problems quickly. If every Macintosh and iOS developer follows the advice in this document and other books on electronic security, and if the owner of each Macintosh takes common-sense precautions such as using strong passwords and encrypting sensitive data, then OS X and iOS will maintain their reputations for being safe, reliable operating systems, and your company's products will benefit from being associated with OS X or iOS. It's easy to get cocky when using OS X or iOS products; after all they're notoriously reliable and don't face normal PC's history of hacking vulnerability. The Secure Coding Guide will teach you the different types of security vulnerabilities that commonly effect iOS apps. Apple has even provided a handy Security Development Checklist to run down before you submit your final product to the App Store. You can find Apple's Secure Coding Guide as a free PDF download right here.
Titanfall beta sign-up list is open now for PC and Xbox One gamers (update)
Titanfall has become something bigger than a multiplayer mech game. It's the reason many people decided to invest in an Xbox One, and the reason why many others decided to postpone their next-gen console purchase altogether -- the finished title won't arrive until March 11th, and it's coming to the PC and 360 (360 is slightly delayed until March 25th) too. In the meantime though, the developer behind Titanfall, Respawn Entertainment, is providing early access via a beta and you can sign up for access starting tonight at 9PM ET. The good news is that you don't need to pre-order the game to get in, but the bad news is that it's not open to all, so we don't know how many slots there are to go around. Go ahead and try your luck at the sign-up page -- we'll let you know the URL once it's posted "shortly before" 9PM ET, according to Respawn founder Vince Zampella. Update: The beta sign-up page is live a bit early, interested Xbox One and PC (with an EA Origin account) gamers can apply here (protip: The USA is actually near the top of the country list, not all the way at the bottom). The accompanying FAQ answers a few questions you might have about the beta. There's no Xbox 360 beta planned, once the game is installed on an Xbox One any user on that console can play it, and the beta is available to gamers around the world, although all text will be in English. If you weren't first to sign up don't worry, it doesn't appear to be first-come, first- served. Sign-ups close on the 14th at 7PM ET, and those admitted will be notified via email by midnight pacific time on February 17th. Update 2: EA has sent out a quick press release advertising the beta and dispensing a few more details, specifically the start date: February 14th. It also details the game modes available to testers, named Attrition, Hardpoint Domination and Last Titan standing -- essentially Team Deathmatch, a control point capture mode and variant on Team Deathmatch that ends when all of a team's Titans are destroyed.
Code redemption down on PlayStation Network [Update]
Manage to pick up a PlayStation 4 on Black Friday, or for the system's launch in Europe? Got some codes you need to redeem? Not so fast. Sony has ceased code redemption on the PlayStation Network, meaning game vouchers, money cards and the like are currently as useful as pretty words on pretty paper. Sony tweeted the news via its PlayStation Twitter account, linking to a post on the PlayStation Blog. The post notes that online play and other features of the network are still up and running, and claims an update will be provided "soon." We'll be keeping an eye out for the update, and let you know when then will be now. Update: Users are reporting that codes can be redeemed, just not necessarily through the PlayStation Store. From the XMB menu, go to Account Management -> Redeem Code. Update 2: The PSN is armed, but not yet fully operational. A post on the EU PlayStation Blog notes several updates, the most recent of which reads: "We have been working on the PSN service roll-out throughout the weekend and are continually increasing the availability of the voucher redemption functionality. The next phase of the roll out is to introduce the What's New Activity Feed and Live Item in the Content Information Screen, which we will be able to update you on tomorrow. Thank you for your continued patience as we manage PSN to restore full service."
EA plans to scrap Online Pass from existing games, enable access without a code
EA's Online Pass program has been in the news a bit of late, but that'll soon change. The voucher's now set to be phased out completely -- earlier this month the company shared that it won't be including the certificates with new games, but now Game Informer reports that this will apply to existing titles as well. Soon, EA Sports games will no longer prompt users for a code, while numbers for other titles will be made available for free online. The rollout should wrap up over the next few weeks.
Sony waives its publishing fee; Would Apple ever do the same?
Video-game maker Sony has been making a big push for independent developers lately, both on its handheld PS Vita system and on its upcoming PlayStation 4 console, and yesterday, the company took another big step. Sony has decided to waive its usual US$99 fee for PlayStation Mobile developers, meaning that anyone can join the developer network and publish games on its platforms for free. That's a big move, and while it might not mean a boost in PlayStation Mobile publishing (there are other hiccups, such as the difficulty of game creation and the limited size of the market), it does show just how open Sony is to independent software developers. So here's a question: Would Apple ever do the same thing? Ever since the App Store opened, Apple has charged $99 a year for a developer account to publish apps on its platforms. Anyone can download and use Xcode to make apps, but to publish them, you've had to pay that fee, and the price has never changed. If Apple did lower the price or remove it, there would be some benefits: There'd be more apps on the App Store, and thus more potential profit for Apple and its developers. The developer community would be more open, which would lead to better documentation and communication in general. And while, yes, there would probably be even more low-quality apps, there would also be more potential for great or terrific apps that focus on a relatively niche market. However, Apple would lose all the money it makes from the developer fee, money that probably goes into maintaining the developer network and its services. And Apple likely doesn't want the dev network to be a complete free for all. It still uses that network to beta test new software and operating systems, and there is still (technically) a non-disclosure agreement that binds anyone who signs up for the program. Plus, it's not like Apple needs more developers. Those numbers are growing every day, even with the fee in place. So it seems unlikely that Apple will drop or even change that fee anytime soon: It's a very low barrier to development, but for Apple, it's better than no barrier at all.
Google releases code for devs to integrate Chrome with iOS apps
If you're jealous of Gmail's newfound talent of opening links directly in Chrome on iOS, Google's released some code that'll help you bake that functionality into your own apps for Apple's mobile OS. By implementing the new OpenInChromeController class with x-callback, devs can have in-app links open in Chrome and let users return to their application with a back button. Developers can even choose if the link opens a new tab in Mountain View's browser. Of course, the feature will only work if Chrome happens to be installed on the iDevice in question. To grab the code and read up on the documentation, click the second source link below.
Samsung releases kernel source for a trio of Galaxy S 4s
As Samsung prepares to release its new flagship to the masses, the company is already making moves to accommodate its open source following. Today, the Korean electronics maker served up the kernel source for three versions of the Galaxy S 4. On tap are two unlocked variants of Samsung's next big thing (GT-I9500 and GT-I9505) along with Virgin Mobile Canada's rendition of the handset. Seeing how you've already seen the device stripped down to its unmentionables, why not go the extra mile and take a whack at its software? That is if you know what you're doing.
GameFly offers 20% off Black Friday discounted digital PC titles this weekend
GameFly has posted its sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday on digital PC games, and there are quite a few healthy discounts in there, on big PC titles from this year and last. And even beyond the prices on the website, you can use the code NOV20OFF for an extra 20 percent off these already discounted titles. We've got deals on deals here, people!You can look through the whole list of prices on GamerDeals, but the standouts are probably XCOM: Enemy Unknown for just $37.49, Dishonored for $29.99, Torchlight 2 for just $14.99, and Spec Ops: The Line and The Darkness 2 for $7.49 each.Only on Black Friday, you can grab Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning also for $7.49, and Hotline Miami is that same price on Saturday. And on Friday and Monday only, Need for Speed: Most Wanted is $24.99. All those prices are before the code discount, too, so if you need to stock up on PC titles, GameFly seems like one of the best ways to do so.
Makers of PaintCode open CodeAutomat service, for turning SVGs into code
I'm currently working on developing an iOS app in conjunction with a graphic designer, and because my design skills are pretty terrible, we set out to look for a solution to turn the scalable vector graphics (SVGs) he's designed into Objective-C code snippets I can insert directly in the app. There are a few different ways to do this, but it turns out that PaintCode (which Erica wrote about earlier this year) is the solution we're going with -- it's an app that will fairly easily convert scalable vector graphics into Objective-C code, which iOS can then use to draw out a user interface for a touch-based app. And it just so happens that just as I found their app, the folks behind PaintCode have released a brand new product. CodeAutomat is a new service, from the same developers, that's designed to make SVG-to-code conversion as easy as possible. All you need to do is upload your SVG file on the site (you can even drag and drop it in), and then for a small charge (starting at US$4.99), the browser-based app will turn your graphic into code, using PaintCode's formula. Now, PaintCode's price is $99.99 (on the Mac App Store now), so if you're converting a lot of graphics, you might want to splurge for the whole app. But the service is super easy to use, and works with any SVG file -- just plug it in and play. For those who need a few conversions but don't want to buy a whole app, CodeAutomat could be very helpful indeed.
JailbreakMe hacker Comex let go by Apple after failing to respond to offer letter
After developing JailBreakMe, cracking such devices as the iPad 2 or iPhone 4 and finally scoring a paying intern gig with his nemesis, hacker Comex tweeted that he's no longer working at Apple. Also known as Nicholas Allegra, the talented coder's Cupertino situation apparently came asunder when he failed to respond to an email offer to re-up with the company, though he also told Forbes that the situation was more complicated than that. He added that "it wasn't a bad ending," and that he has fond memories of his Apple experience, but if you're hoping the Brown University student will have an iOS 6 jailbreak soon, don't hold your breath -- he's concentrating strictly on his studies, for now.
Samsung releases Galaxy Note II source code, gives modders a big fish to fry
If you've managed to stretch your hands around a Galaxy Note II smartphone already, but were hoping to get a custom ROM on it, there's good news: Samsung has just released the source code. It's now been posted for the international GT-N7100 model, giving developers a peek at the 5.5-incher's inner workings and allowing them to get to work on new mods. The company has been faithfully posting its Android code for handsets like the Galaxy S III shortly after they've gone on sale, letting developers like CyanogenMod release custom ROMs scant weeks afterward. So, if you get tired of TouchWiz or want root control of the pen-enabled behemoth, you can be sure someone's on the job right now.
Adafruit releases WebIDE alpha for Raspberry Pi, eases beginners into coding
If you've been intrigued by the Raspberry Pi but were hesitant to get one because you're new to Linux, Adafruit has a solution for you. The team that brought us the Raspberry Pi Education Linux Distro has come up with a special WebIDE (Web Integrated Development Environment) designed to run on the affordable barebones computer. It's entirely web-based so there's no need to install any software -- just launch a browser, hook up your Pi, and you're ready to go. To make life easier for coders, the platform has a terminal built in, plus there's an automatic updater included to keep folks running only the freshest version of WebIDE. It's currently at the alpha stage, so only experienced users should install it for now, but Adafruit's hoping to roll out a stable release suitable for programmers of all levels sometime soon.
Google releases new Java to iOS source code translator
Developers have their work cut out. Even if we (impolitely) sidestep the likes of Windows Phone, BlackBerry and the rest, those coders often have to pitch their work across web, iOS and Android. Google's trying to make that job a little easier, introducing a new tool that automatically converts Java source code into Objective-C, which is used in iPad and iPhone apps. While the J2ObjC tool can't tackle the UI for these, it does allow developers to craft other parts (including data access and nuts-and-bolts programming) into an easily shareable code without editing. Some existing Google projects already utilize the new translator, but its results remains a little temperamental -- the tool hasn't translated all possible paths just yet, and many Java devs have, according to the project page, "a slightly different way of using Java."
