Software : Download of the day: VLC Media Player

Download of the day: VLC Media Player
Intel and Stephen Hawking open source assistive computer control system
Blip: Microsoft has finally closed the curtain on Clip Art
Latest Firefox update brings the goods, including shift to Yahoo search
Evernote wants to usurp PowerPoint, make your cubicle more collaborative
Intel buys password management software PasswordBox

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VLC is the ultimate media player, pure and simple. It can play pretty much any and every video file, and has a plethora of other features to fulfil any task you throw its way

Why you need it

The web is full of weird and wonderful video formats, and working out what program to play them with can be a bit of a nightmare. Luckily, there's VLC Media Player, which swings in and saves the day with its incredible range of supported formats. It's compatible with almost everything, supports streaming, features 7.1 surround sound and can play DVD, CD, MP3 and FLV files and much, much more. Not bad for a free program.

Unlike a lot of media players, VLC Media Player requires no extra codecs for most video formats, allowing you to get going with minimum hassle. In fact, pretty much the only video format it can't play is Indeo Video 4/5 (IV41, IV51).

But it's not a one trick pony; VLC Media Player has some pretty neat tricks up its sleeve. It can play zipped videos with even having to extract them first, and can also boost playback volume by up to 200%, search for album artwork and arrange videos into a playlist – useful if videos are split into small parts, for example.

So when it comes to media players, VLC Media Player is the name to beat.

Key features

Works on: PC, Mac, Linux, Ubuntu, Mint, iOS, Andriod and many, many more
Versions: Free
Huge compatibility: VLC Media Player can play almost any type of video file imaginable, most of which won't require you to download a codec. It can also play a large range of audio formats, too
Extra features: VLC Media Player also has a number of extra features, such as being able to play zipped files with extracting them. It has basic editing tools, and can form playlists from lists of files.

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Intel and Stephen Hawking open source assistive computer control system

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Intel has worked with Professor Stephen Hawking to develop an open-source solution that could help 3 million people afflicted with Motor Neuron Disease (MND) and quadriplegia communicate and use computers more easily.

Called ACAT (Assistive Context Aware Toolkit), the system took three years to develop and has replaced Hawking's existing system that was developed by Intel 20 years ago.

It has allowed the professor, who is almost entirely paralysed due to an MND-related condition called Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), to perform many actions on a computer faster – from communicating with others through a software-based voice synthesiser to navigating emails, documents and the web, as well as performing other common tasks.

Swift action

Hawking controls a computer by using muscle movements in his cheek, which are detected using an infrared sensor mounted on his glasses, to select on-screen text as a cursor hovers over it. According to Intel, it has been drastically improved through the integration of text prediction software Swiftkey, which has doubled the professor's speech rate by adapting to his lexicon.

Hawking explained at the event that his old system was making it "very difficult to communicate effectively and to do the things I love to do."

He added: "With the improvements inside, I am now able to write much faster and it means I can continue to give lectures, write papers and books and, of course, speak with my family and friends more easily. The new system is life-changing for me, and I hope it will serve me well for at least 20 years."

The new toolkit is open source and Intel is hoping that researchers and technologists will be able to use it to create customised solutions operated through touch, eye blinks, eyebrow movements and other inputs for communication.

Blip: Microsoft has finally closed the curtain on Clip Art

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The '90s will forever be remember as the decade of Clip Art, as crappy drawings of printers and shamrocks decorated middle school science homework projects, billion-dollar business transaction presentation slides and everything in between.

But alas Clip Art is dead, Microsoft has declared, taking up a new cry: "Long live King Bing!"

Users who seek to "insert online pictures" in Microsoft Office desktop apps from this day forward will be taken to a Bing portal with a copyright filter that shows only images with Creative Commons licenses.

The images are more up-to-date, Microsoft says, and no one will miss Clip Art. Right?

More blips!

We wish we'd used more Clip Art in our blips while we still could.

Latest Firefox update brings the goods, including shift to Yahoo search

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Mozilla said last month that Firefox's highly publicized shift from Google to Yahoo search would occur in December, and we didn't have to wait long once the month began.

Less than 24 hours into the final month of 2014 Mozilla unleashed the newest version of its browser, Firefox 34, which includes Yahoo as its default search engine and some other changes.

Firefox 34 is available for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Android.

Hello, Firefox

In the desktop browser Mozilla has added "Firefox Hello," the native calling feature first seen in a Firefox 33 beta, plus a new search bar that offers suggestions in real time.

The new Firefox search bar also lets you click on a customizable set of square buttons to search directly on specific sites.

Android also got a notable feature with full Chromecast tab mirroring. All versions of the browser were treated to "various security fixes" as well.

Some of the changes, like Yahoo becoming the default search, apply only to the US, while other countries will see other new defaults.

Are you looking forward to CES 2015 as much as we are?

Evernote wants to usurp PowerPoint, make your cubicle more collaborative

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Evernote has launched two new features in its iOS and Mac apps and one new feature on all platforms, and all three are aimed at power and business users.

Mac and iOS get the new presentation mode and a feature called "Context," while all platforms now have Evernote's "Work Chat" feature.

Presentation mode automatically configures your notes into a presentable format so you don't have to spend time fiddling with PowerPoint.

It also has a new "visual layout editor" that lets you edit how your notes are presented.

Not another Clippy

Context is a bit harder to define. It "surfaces related notes from your past work, relevant people you can connect with on LinkedIn, and critical news and information sources from around the web" as you type, Evernote explained in a blog post in October.

That's not all, though, and Evernote Business users will see info from even more sources.

Unfortunately for now presentation and Context are available only to premium Evernote subscribers on Mac and iOS.

Meanwhile Evernote's Work Chat aims to let you chat quickly about projects "without leaving your workspace" within Evernote. It also lets you see what your peers are working on and edit shared notebooks, an existing feature that's now free for all.

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Intel buys password management software PasswordBox

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Intel has purchased password management company PasswordBox, although the terms of the deal - and Intel's full intentions here - were not disclosed.

PasswordBox is a cross-platform tool that sets up tough-to-crack passwords for all the apps and websites you use.

Intel says it wants to extend PasswordBox's reach to more customers, and it's adding the company to the Intel Security Group's Safe Identity organization.

That group "is committed to delivering solutions that reduce the pain of passwords, simplify and strengthen security and providing consumers with easy access to their digital lives," reads an Intel press release, and no doubt PasswordBox will help further those goals.

Big plans

Intel laid out its general plan for PasswordBox, but failed to mention anything concrete.

PasswordBox generates passwords and then fills them in automatically for users on mobile and desktop devices, and Intel says it plans to "extend and expand" that capability.

Intel will also use PasswordBox's inherent simplicity to make the authentication process more simple, the company's announcement says.

"Intel Security and PasswordBox share the same goal of improving digital identity protection across all devices and platforms," Intel Security Group Senior Vice President and General Manager Chris Young said in the announcement. "We believe we have the technology, expertise and reach to bring simple, secure access to consumers worldwide."

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Tuesday, December 2, 2014