Gadgets

It's official: Microsoft has given up on its Xbox One DRM and online requirements:

Mere days after Microsoft told Pocket-lint that consumers should wait to judge the Xbox One until after it launches, the company apparently now plans to lift DRM restrictions on games and a requirement that the console remain connected online 24/7....

Microsoft's next game console, the Xbox One, is perhaps best known for its complex used game system and once-per-24-hour online check-in requirement. Today, it looks like Microsoft is rolling back those policies according to a report at Giant Bomb, and the company took to its Xbox blog to explain. "As a result of feedback from the Xbox community, we have changed certain policies for Xbox One reflected in this blog," the page reads. The "in this blog" portion of that text links out to a new, still not live page on the Xbox news site with a URL reading, "update." Developing ... Comments Source: Xbox Wire, Giant Bomb

Microsoft reverses controversial game licensing policies [Updated] by @KyleOrl

Microsoft has caught a lot of heat for restricting the sale and trading of used games on Xbox One, and requiring the consoles to phone home every 24 hours for verification. Basically, for having hefty DRM. Well good news for whiners everywhere: Microsoft is giving up. Read more...

A rumor is circulating that Microsoft has decided to reverse its decision to both require an Internet connection to use the Xbox One and restrict game sharing and trading. We can’t stress enough…

New research shows Mars had an oxygen-rich atmosphere 4 billion years ago

Big Data—information sets too large to be effectively computed on desktop systems—isn't just the buzzword du jour. It provides an unprecedented ability for business and industry to precisely model the effects of past managerial decisions on the bottom line. But an emerging analytical process called prescriptive analytics could help companies not only learn from previous decisions, but predict and plan for upcoming issues as well. It's Big Data evolved, and could change how the world does business.Read more...

Steve Jobs explains how every tech innovation will be lost to history

Many technology companies happily pay security researchers and general-purpose hackers cash for identifying software bugs. These so-called bug bounties have led to innumerable vulnerabilities being fixed before they can harm end users. Microsoft,…