Devs start your engines, Windows 7 RTM Code Pack Released

Now that Microsoft has officially signed off on the Windows 7 RTM build and has released it to MSDN/TechNet subscribers, it's time for some API code so developers can start developing applications for Windows 7.

Microsoft today released the Windows 7 RTM Code Pack 1.0, available to the general public.

Microsoft's Charlie Calvert, Community Program Manager for the C# group said, "The Windows® API Code Pack for Microsoft® .NET Framework provides support for various features of Windows 7 and previous releases of that operating system. The Code Pack has reached version 1.0 and has been published on Code Gallery."

Developers familiar with the Code Pack will glad to hear that Shell Search API support has been added, Drag and Drop functionality for Shell objects has been added, support for Typography and Font enumeration DirectWrite APIs have been created, as well as support for Direct3D and Direct2D interoperability.

Microsoft also noted that the following individual features are support in this release:

• Windows 7 Taskbar Jump Lists, Icon Overlay, Progress Bar, Tabbed Thumbnails, and Thumbnail Toolbars.
• Windows 7 Libraries, Known Folders, non-file system containers.
• Windows Shell Search API support, a hierarchy of Shell Namespace entities, and Drag and Drop functionality for Shell Objects.
• Explorer Browser Control.
• Shell property system.
• Windows Vista and Windows 7 Common File Dialogs, including custom controls.
  Windows Vista and Windows 7 Task Dialogs.
• Direct3D 11.0, Direct3D 10.1/10.0, DXGI 1.0/1.1, Direct2D 1.0, DirectWrite, Windows Imaging Component (WIC) APIs. (DirectWrite and WIC have partial support)
• Sensor Platform APIs
• Extended Linguistic Services APIs
• Power Management APIs
• Application Restart and Recovery APIs
• Network List Manager APIs
• Command Link control and System defined Shell icons.

You can download the API, requirements, help files, and more here.

Apple Tablet - The story continues

The rumors regarding Apple's plan to manufacture a tablet computer have been circulating for a very long time now. However, it seems that these rumours finally have some tangibility; we should be expecting a release in the next couple of months.

This news has always been spattered with controversy as some people are welcoming the device and others slamming it as flawed. Whatever the stance, the success of the device remains to be seen. Wired Magazine's UK website sheds a little more light on the subject today by providing predicted pricing guidelines for the awaited addition to the Apple family.

Though typically with Apple releases many rumors appear and it becomes hard to sort out any truth. According to one of Wired's analysts, the Apple tablet will not be arriving in the near future, instead well into next year.

"Last week we spoke with an Asian component supplier that has received orders from Apple for a touchscreen device to be fulfilled by late [calendar year] 09," Munster wrote in a report. "This data point underscores our thesis that a tablet will likely launch in early 2010." This new information throws the cat amongst the pigeons once more, so what we are left with is yet more speculation and only mock predictions as to what the device will look like.

The general consensus at Wired is that the device will be a direct competitor to the Amazon ebook empire; other speculations as to the nature of the device have also been voiced. Wired's analyst, Munster, made his predictions for the device back in may.

• The device will most likely be a larger format iPod Touch, measuring between seven to ten inches
• The tablet will be used primarily for web surfing, e-mail and digital media
• Pricing should be between £300 and £450, positioning the tablet between an iPhone and a MacBook
• A carrier will probably subsidise the device, which will include a 3G modem

Yet more confusion regarding the Apple tablet. It seems that 2010 might be the year of the tablet as there are yet more rumours regarding Dell, Intel, HTC, and Nokia working on tablet devices along with TechCrunch who is working to get out its Crunchpad touchscreen tablet.

Internet Download Manager 5.18 Beta Released

Internet Download Manager (IDM) is a tool to increase download speeds, resume and schedule downloads. Comprehensive error recovery and resume capability will restart broken or interrupted downloads due to lost connections, network problems, computer shutdowns, or unexpected power outages. Simple graphic user interface makes IDM user friendly and easy to use.Internet Download Manager has a smart download logic accelerator that features intelligent dynamic file segmentation and safe multipart downloading technology to accelerate your downloads. Unlike other download managers and accelerators Internet Download Manager segments downloaded files dynamically during download process and reuses available connections without additional connect and login stages to achieve best acceleration performance.

Changelog:

• Added processing of site names in foreign languages
• Added support of Unicode characters for download descriptions and file names
• Updated IDM icon
• Improved recognition of server bugs. For example when dailymotion.com proxy servers send incorrect data under certain conditions

News source: Official website
Download: IDM 5.18 Beta

Facebook acquires FriendFeed for an undisclosed sum

News has broken today that social networking giant, Facebook, has acquired the website FriendFeed, a company which has had a rather strong influence on many of the commonly-used features that Facebook provides. TechCrunch initially reported the story, and they're doing their best to try and get more details. So far we've seen press releases from both companies.

FriendFeed said that they have accepted Facebook's friend request, and have provided a bit of clarity for current users of the site. As it stands, everything will operate normally, and any news related to the website will be posted here. FriendFeed say that any future plans that they conclude on with Facebook will be openly shared with the community, and the API for the website will remain operating as normal too.

This is certainly quite good for Facebook, considering the team of 12 employees at FriendFeed. They have a range of ex-Google workers, including one Paul Buchheit, the man who was behind Gmail, and also led the way with advertising for the company. According to Facebook's press release, Bret Taylor, a co-founder of FriendFeed, said, "Facebook and FriendFeed share a common vision of giving people tools to share and connect with their friends. We can't wait to join the team and bring many of the innovations we've developed at FriendFeed to Facebook's 250 million users around the world." Buchheit added, "As we spent time with Mark and his leadership team, we were impressed by the open, creative culture they've built and their desire to have us contribute to it. It was immediately obvious to us how passionate Facebook's engineers are about creating simple, ground-breaking ways for people to share, and we are extremely excited to join such a like-minded group."

Expect to see more announcements on this soon.

New Windows Live Wave 4 services spotted

The first few details about the next iteration of Microsoft's set of Windows Live software and services, known as Windows Live Wave 4, are beginning to emerge. Two new services, Windows Live Documents and Windows Live Devices, are currently undergoing testing within Microsoft.

Windows Live Documents will replace the existing Office Live Workspaces service, which provides users with online access to their documents and facilities for sharing work with others. The current online applications will be replaced with the free offerings of the new Office Web applications - lightweight versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote which allow users to create, edit, and share Office documents though a browser.

In an attempt to simplify and improve user experience, Office Live merged with Windows Live earlier this year meaning that all the current Office Live services will eventually be delivered through Windows Live. Windows Live Documents is thought to store your files through SkyDrive, which already acts as the storage for services such as Windows Live Photos.

This screenshot of an internal testing website by LiveSino.net and shows the two new services added to the standard Windows Live header. It also shows that the link to Windows Live Events has been removed as the service is set to "retire" next year.



Windows Live Devices looks like it will replace Live Mesh, a service that synchronises files between different devices and an online storage space. The features look pretty much the same, such as synchronisation and remote desktop access, and should be available by downloading some software to your PC, Mac or mobile phone. The new software may be in the form of an updated version of the Windows Live Sync software and the online storage space - currently known as your Live Desktop - may be replaced by Windows Live SkyDrive.

LiveSide point out that digital photo frame tool Windows Live FrameIt is expected to be integrated with the rebranded service as well. Along with the Office Live team, the Live Mesh team also moved into the Windows Live Group earlier this year.




Images courtesy LiveSino and LiveSide, click to enlarge.

Windows Live Documents and Windows Live Devices will join the line up in October when public beta testing is expected to get under way. The final release of Wave 4 is expected around the same time as Office 2010 launches, in Q1 of next year.