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<title>Haaze.com / franbrbbab / All</title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com</link>
<description>Test Web 2.0 Content Management System</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 07:10:40 +0000</pubDate>
<language>en</language>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[App reveals dead bugs, carcinogens in your lunch]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=app-reveals-dead-bugs-carcinogens-in-your-lunch</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=app-reveals-dead-bugs-carcinogens-in-your-lunch</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 07:10:40 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>franbrbbab</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=app-reveals-dead-bugs-carcinogens-in-your-lunch</guid>
<description><![CDATA[If you're concerned about the number of foods you eat that contain pulverized insect bodies, or worry about all the ways another Coke or Pepsi might contribute to your early demise, boy, have I got an app for you.That doctor is probably not prescribing this app...(Credit:Flickr user skampy)The folks at the Center for Science in the Public Interest are wagering you're willing to fork over a buck to find out how truly disgusting and/or dangerous the ingredients in your food are with their new &quot;Chemical Cuisine&quot; app. Download it for 99 cents for iOS or Android and you have instant access to an encyclopedia of all those indecipherable ingredients on food labels--things like cochineal extract or carmine, which comes from those unfortunate aforementioned insects and is used to add a nice pink, purple, or reddish hue to your yogurt and other munchies.An Acesulfame-K up your sleeve won&amp;39't make a winning hand in the end.(Credit:CSPI/EchoDitto)Believe it or not, cochineal extract is an ingredient that CSPI rates as safe to consume for most people but notes that some folks can have a severe allergic reaction. &quot;Certain People Should Avoid&quot; is one of five ratings used for the ingredients in CSPI's database. The others are &quot;Safe,&quot; &quot;Cut Back,&quot; &quot;Avoid,&quot; and &quot;Caution&quot; for those ingredients that might pose a risk and need more testing. One entry of interest in that last category is the natural sweetener Stevia, also known as Rebiana or by brand name like Truvia, a bottle of which is currently on a shelf at my home. The app capsule on Rebiana points out that natural doesn't necessarily mean safe or healthy--there's been evidence that it can promote cancer and infertility in rodents.In the &quot;Avoid&quot; category, the artificial colorings and sweeteners dominate, from notorious names like Aspartame to the more harmless-sounding--but still potentially carcinogenic--&quot;caramel coloring.&quot; Most bottles of Diet Coke contain both.CSPI is quick to point out that most food additives are relatively safe in the amounts in which they're used. In fact, I counted less than 20 on the &quot;Avoid&quot; list on Chemical Cuisine.One characteristic of this app seemed a little baffling to me, though. While I'm not exactly operating in the nonprofit sector, this sort of awareness-building app just screams to be made available free, and the 99-cent price seems odd for what amounts to basically a digital pamphlet, albeit a very handy one.Then again, I'm likely to see that dollar returned a thousand-fold with all the dough I now won't spend on those carbonated cancer and corn-syrup bombs in a can in the future.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Microsoft releases Windows Home Server 2011]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-releases-windows-home-server-2011</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-releases-windows-home-server-2011</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Mar 2011 07:10:21 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>franbrbbab</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-releases-windows-home-server-2011</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Microsoft)Microsoft has officially released its new Windows Home Server 2011.With the release to manufacturing, Windows Home Server 2011 is now slated to reach MSDN and TechNet subscribers in early April where they can download the software via their subscriptions. The latest version should also start to pop up on computers in May, according to Microsoft, which said that manufacturers have already been working with the new home operating system.The official version of Windows Home Server 2011, codenamed Vail, comes almost a year after the beta was released and close to two months since the release candidate made its debut.Using the same core operating system as Windows Server 2008 R2, the new version is designed for people who need to juggle multiple PCs, home networks, and an ever growing amount of photos, music, videos, and other hefty content. Running Windows Home Server on a dedicated PC, users can set up network shares to access all their data, back up their networked PCs, remotely access their files, and stream their music and videos. The software offers a central dashboard for people to run the various administrative tasks.Windows Home Server has suffered a couple of setbacks in recent months.The previous version offered a much-beloved feature called Drive Extender, which let people extend or &quot;pool&quot; multiple disk drives into a single large volume as they added new storage. But claiming that the drive extender technology &quot;was not meeting our customer needs,&quot; Microsoft gave it the heave-ho from the new version late last year. Though Microsoft added a feature called the Move Folder Wizard to move content between different drives, the loss of Drive Extender may turn off many potential users of Windows Home Server 2011.Microsoft also lost one of its key Windows Home Server hardware partners late last year when Hewlett-Packard, known for its robust MediaSmart Windows Home Server servers, announced that it would no longer make computers for the Home Server operating system. The loss of HP leaves a few key manufacturers, such as Acer, who'll be building dedicated boxes for Windows Home Server 2011.Windows Home Server 2011 will be released in 19 languages, according to Microsoft, including English, French, Chinese, Russian, and Korean.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Zynga's valuation to exceed $7 billion]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=zyngas-valuation-to-exceed-7-billion</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=zyngas-valuation-to-exceed-7-billion</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 08:10:16 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>franbrbbab</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=zyngas-valuation-to-exceed-7-billion</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Zynga's valuation could be on the rise.The social-gaming company is currently trying to raise about $250 million, the Wall Street Journal is reporting. And if it gathers that much cash, it could see its valuation grow from the $4 billion it was worth in April to &quot;between $7 billion and $9 billion&quot; now, the Journal said, citing unnamed sources.Zynga's possible decision to take on $250 million in additional financing is somewhat surprising. According to the Journal's sources, the social-gaming company doesn't need the money. However, that isn't stopping it from being courted by several investors who see it as a potential cash cow if it ever goes public.Since its founding in January 2007, Zynga has witnessed immense growth in its online games, including FarmVille and Mafia Wars, by piggybacking on the success of the world's top social network, Facebook, among other social sites. It now also has a presence on theiPhone andiPad.According to Zynga's Web site, the company now has over 215 million active users playing its games each month, and more than 50 million people actively playing its titles each day.Zynga's valuation has consistently been a topic of debate in the gaming industry. In October, a value-tracking service called SharesPost calculated Zynga's value at $5.51 billion. It made headlines because one of the top traditional video game publishers in the industry, Electronic Arts, had a market capitalization of $5.2 billion at the time. Currently, SharesPost values Zynga at $6.17 billion, while EA has a market capitalization of $6.09 billion.As impressive as Zynga's rising valuation might be, it still pales in comparison with that of Facebook. Last month, it was reported that the social network raised $500 million from Goldman Sachs and Russian investment firm Digital Sky Technologies on a valuation of $50 billion.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[A first look at Gears of War 3&'s super-bloody multiplayer (video)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=a-first-look-at-gears-of-war-3rsquos-super-bloody-multiplayer-video</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=a-first-look-at-gears-of-war-3rsquos-super-bloody-multiplayer-video</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>franbrbbab</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=a-first-look-at-gears-of-war-3rsquos-super-bloody-multiplayer-video</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The super-carnage video game Gears of War 3 is set to launch its public multiplayer beta in mid-April and debut on the Xbox 360 on Sept. 20. Alongside Halo, the Gears of War franchise is Microsoft&amp;'s best-selling video game on the Xbox 360 game console. Fans are chomping at the bit to get a close look at the game&amp;'s newest release, which will be the culmination of eight years of work for Epic Games on the three-part series. Today, the game press got a close look at the game&amp;'s multiplayer combat.Gears of War 3 is one of those games that could take off into the financial stratosphere' that is, the sales of this third game in the series could turn out to be much better than the sales of the first and second, in contrast to the usual pattern of decline for a movie series. Since Microsoft has sold more than 50 million consoles, the possible audience for a Gears of War 3 is far bigger than it was for the original Gears of War that debuted in 2006. If Epic Games adds the right touches to the game in its third version, then Gears of War 3 could become an even bigger cultural phenomenon and help Microsoft hold its own in the ongoing console war of 2011.The only thing really holding back Gears of War from reaching wider audiences is that some people just have an objection to absolute combat carnage. (I can&amp;'t imagine why). Having seen the game up close, I can assure carnage fans that they won&amp;'t be disappointed by this game.Gears of War 3 is, like Epic&amp;'s just-released Bulletstorm, a celebration of violence that is so severe that it&amp;'s almost comical. When you&amp;'re firing at someone or they&amp;'re firing at you, the screen quickly fills up with the color red and you hear squishy sounds as body parts explode. You can take a chainsaw bayonet and saw your opponent in half. Yet it&amp;'s also a thinking shooter&amp;'s game, as you have to take cover to hide from enemies to survive on the battlefield and outflank rivals as well. In Gears of War 3, you&amp;'re either shouting, sweating, or laughing through the experience.Rod Fergusson (pictured), executive producer of Gears of War 3, says the company is trying hard to make this the biggest and best game yet. It&amp;'s particularly important because the third story will bring an end to the planned trilogy. The story about humanity&amp;'s struggle with a fierce underground race of locusts has always been a big part of why fans like the series. Fans have the right to feel like they got an ending to the story, Fergusson said. He says the company has simplified the multiplayer modes and tailored the achievement rewards in multiplayer to encourage gamers.Originally, Microsoft planned to release the game in April. But it decided to delay the game to make it more polished and make sure that it could incorporate feedback from a multiplayer beta test. That&amp;'s costly to do, but it&amp;'s probably the smart decision for the sake of the brand.In my own turn at the game today, I got to play on the side of the bad guys, the Locust horde, who fight the heavily armed humans. In the Team Deathmatch mode, every team has 20 lives per round. When the lives run out, the players can&amp;'t respawn anymore. The dead players have to watch as their comrades try to survive as long as possible on their last life. I didn&amp;'t realize this and I probably consumed more lives than the rest of my teammates. But no one cursed at me. A lot of the time, I got wounded and had to crawl around on the floor hoping someone from my team would revive me. Generally, I could shoot someone for a sustained time and kill them. But if I did so, someone else would nail me from another direction. It definitely paid off to take cover behind the plentiful stone blocks and to take on enemies from the flanks.The maps are good. One was like the inside of a wrecked grocery store and another was set in a splendid outdoor garden for a place that resembled a French chteau. I got to enjoy grabbing a mortar weapon in the center of one map. But the map was so small I didn&amp;'t really have very far to shoot the mortar. The shots went up high and landed somewhat randomly in the middle of my enemies. But those rivals just got in close and dismembered me before I could get off more than a couple of shots.The maps that I played today were not particularly large, at least in comparison to Killzone 3 or Call of Duty Black Ops maps. That&amp;'s because the Gears-style fighting is all about close combat and getting the drop on someone who is just a few yards away from you. The sound was cacaphonous and there was absolutely no communication or cooperation possible, as I think we were all too busy just trying to stay alive.One thing that makes the multiplayer maps easier to understand is that Epic actually shows you a map of the game area at the beginning of the round and shows you where all the best weapons are hidden. That way, new players can master the map and play competitively against more experienced players. You can also play any of several female characters, which is something new for the game, which typically stars Marine-like male grunts.Check out our interview with Epic Games&amp;' Rod Fergusson, the executive producer of Gears of War 3.Next Story: Will Trion&amp;'s Rift be cataclysmic for World of WarCraft Previous Story: Room 77 and StackOverflow win Launch&amp;'s big prizePrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: Gears of War 3Companies: epic games, MicrosoftPeople: Rod Fergusson          Tags: Gears of War 3Companies: epic games, MicrosoftPeople: Rod FergussonDean is lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat. He covers video games, security, chips and a variety of other subjects. Dean previously worked at the San Jose Mercury News, the Wall Street Journal, the Red Herring, the Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register and the Dallas Times Herald. He is the author of two books, Opening the Xbox and the Xbox 360 Uncloaked. Follow him on Twitter at @deantak, and follow VentureBeat on Twitter at @venturebeat. Have news to share Launching a startup Email: tips@venturebeat.comVentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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