Software : Facebook Credits to be replaced with real 'local currencies'

Facebook Credits to be replaced with real 'local currencies'
Skype integrated in Windows Phone 8: Is the Xbox 360 next?
Amazon Appstore going international as devs invited to submit apps
LG Quick Voice to take on Siri and S Voice
Symantec: we make Windows 8 faster
Twitter introduces 'no replies' timeline view for verified accounts

Facebook Credits to be replaced with real 'local currencies'

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Facebook has dropped its Credits virtual currency in exchange for real money, which it says will make life easier for app developers and users.

Announcing the news on its Developers' blog, the social network said the time had come to end the need for 'a platform-wide virtual currency.'

The transition will allow users to pay for things like power-ups in Facebook-based games like Draw Something, CityVille and The Sims.

As it currently stands, users can buy 50 Facebook Credits for $5, 105 for $10 and so on. Those credits can then be spent on apps and games, at the user's discretion.

More flexibility

"By supporting pricing in local currency, we hope to simplify the purchase experience, give you more flexibility, and make it easier to reach a global audience of Facebook users who want a way to pay for your apps and games in their local currency," wrote Facebook's Prashant Fuloria.

"With local pricing, you will be able to set more granular and consistent prices for non-US users and price the same item differently on a market-by-market basis," he added.

So now, instead of spending your credits on games, you'll spend actual cash.

Subscriptions update

In the same blog post, Facebook added that paid subscriptions for apps and games will be unleashed to the Facebook.com site and mobile apps next month.

The initiative will allow developers and content providers to start charging monthly fees to give users access to exclusive content.

Among the first to embrace the scheme will be game developers Zynga and KIXEYE.

Skype integrated in Windows Phone 8: Is the Xbox 360 next?

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Microsoft revealed today at their Windows Phone 8 summit that the internet communication tool Skype will be more integrated with the upcoming "Apollo" OS, which releases this fall.

The move was vaguely broadcast by Microsoft's Skype team at D10 at the end of last month, when they revealed that they'd be "doubling down" on Skype for Windows 8 and the new Windows Phone OS. Rumors have persisted since.

The Windows Phone 8 Skype app will provide Nokia devices with improved voice-over-IP (VOIP) support, allowing users to make Skype calls that look, sound and act identical to traditional calls.

With Skype's integration with Windows Phone 8 (mostly) cleared up, the question on everyone's lips is when the Xbox 360 will get the same treatment.

How much longer will we have to wait?

Skype, which was acquired by Microsoft in late 2011, currently boasts around 200 million users, according to the company's own reports.

So it's no wonder that Microsoft is moving toward full integration with all their hardware platforms.

Recent rumors have predicted full-on Skype integration with the next-generation Xbox console, colloquially referred to as the Xbox 720.

But Skype appearing on current Xbox 360 hardware is definitely a possibility, especially as Microsoft's camera-equipped Kinect peripheral continues to grow in popularity.

Microsoft has been revamping the Xbox 360's firmware and UI with annual iterations released every fall, and Xbox 360 Skype could be a surprise feature for this November's dashboard update.

Unsurprisingly, Microsoft declined to answer TechRadar queries regarding Xbox 360 Skype.

The company has been tight-lipped about Skype integration beyond currently announced platforms, but hopefully they'll announce something soon.

Amazon Appstore going international as devs invited to submit apps

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Amazon has begun inviting devs to submit apps for international distribution later this year.

It doesn't take a genius to work out that this probably means the Amazon Appstore is breaking free of its US-only bounds and heading to the rest of the world.

The first countries to be getting this 'international app distribution' are the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and Spain, with further expansion planned for the near future.

Feature-iffic

The Amazon App Store offers handy features like 1-click purchasing and try before you buy (known as Test Drive) of Android apps, things that Amazon reckons have contributed to its mega success in the US.

"Some developers have seen revenue double since the launch of In-App Purchasing," gushed Jim Adkins, VP of the Amazon Appstore.

"We're excited to open the door to even more opportunity by expanding app sales outside the U.S. We see tremendous potential for current developers in our distribution program to grow with the international expansion."

Developers can now submit apps to Amazon for approval by visiting the Amazon Mobile App Distribution Portal.

News of the international plans jives nicely with a rumour that broke earlier this month, which predicted a European launch for the app portal this summer.

Obviously we're excited to speculate that this means the Kindle Fire is heading East too, although we wouldn't be surprised if Amazon decides to make the Kindle Fire 2 its European tablet debut rather than the original.

LG Quick Voice to take on Siri and S Voice

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Well it was only a matter of time. First there was Siri, then Samsung took it on with its S Voice software, and now LG has launched its own version called Quick Voice.

Like Siri and S Voice, it allows you to operate functions of the phone just by speaking your command. So searching, arranging appointments, and finding videos on YouTube have never been easier.

According to the Korean press release, the service will support 11 apps at launch, including phone, email, address book, alarm clock, and calendar. And you can search maps, weather, stocks and the web just by speaking.

Bad Korea move

The bad news? It'll only be available for LG's Optimus Android handsets in Korea. The Optimus Vu will get the speaking personal assistant in late June, while the Optimus LTE 2 will have it in July. Both handsets will update to Android Ice Cream Sandwich around the same time.

There's no word on whether it'll come to the UK. Or whether it'll let you search local businesses like restaurants or taxi services. Though Siri will only be able to do that in the UK when iOS 6 arrives in the autumn.

We also don't know whether it'll have a male or female voice, or whether you'll have the choice between the two.

Samsung launched S Voice on the Galaxy S3, to compete with Siri, which made its debut on the iPhone 4S.

LG announced it will back out of making tablets to focus on smartphones, so expect a big push in its Android offerings soon.

Via: Engadget

Symantec: we make Windows 8 faster

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Symantec reckons the forthcoming Windows 8 release of its Norton security software will actually speed up Microsoft's new OS.

At a briefing attended by TechRadar, Symantec head of development Collin Davis talked up the performance of the company's new code coming later in the year, saying using it in preference to Windows Defender means a faster experience in the Consumer Preview and Release Preview versions of Windows 8.

"Windows, as you know, includes Defender. And that's a big deal. That's great, it's important and it's continued to raise the bar," said Davis.

"But with Defender comes something interesting. You know how often we talk about speed and performance. We have an entire team that work on nothing but performance. Now we get to say, Norton makes Windows faster. Because Defender is slower than Norton."

Windows 8 security

"If you turn off Defender, your PC will be faster. We always have overhead, we still do. We add less overhead than Defender does. Beginning with our Fall release, you will be updated to the latest technology without reboots."

We were shown several slides with supposed better performance by Norton running on Windows 8, though it must be said these are internal Symantec tests. When questioned about this, Davis said he was sure the results would be replicated by independent testing.

Davis was also firm that, despite the growth in mobile operating systems, Windows will always be a target. "The bad guys will always exploit the operating system with most installs. Windows 8 will be no different."

The new Norton Fall release will also mean the end of the reboot when installing updates. "You won't need to reboot your PC. We've done a lot of new work on our update system without having to bounce the system."

Moving to versionless updates

And the new end of version numbers of Norton products in (though don't bet against boxes still being labelled with the year in shops). "What we're also looking at is the concept of versionless CDs," explained Davis.

"The subscription model hasn't changed, but the process of going from, say, 2011 to 2012 has traditionally been a manual one. So we've shifted away from that."

OEM versions of the software will also automatically be updated.

Twitter introduces 'no replies' timeline view for verified accounts

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Twitter has introduced a new feature which hides the multitude of replies when checking out another user's profile page.

The new functionality, which has only been added for verified accounts, means all of those context-less replies can be kept from plain sight.

When you head over to the page you'll now see an option to view All or No replies.

That means when you visit a prolific member's profile page, especially one who is very active when replying to fans like Kevin Smith, you'll can choose to view only his original proclamations.

The great unwashed

There's no word on whether Twitter will roll this feature out to the great social networking unwashed or whether it simply plans to keep this feature for the more illustrious members of the Twitterati.

We can think of a few of our friends we'd like to try it out on.

Yahuui Blog

Wednesday, June 20, 2012