Microsoft

I am a pretty major fan of the Civilization video game franchise having played every release from the very beginning and while Civilization 5 may have had its problems it has definitely shaped up to be one of the best so far. We have already had one DLC for the game called Gods and Kings which returned a couple of the more sorely missed parts of the game’s strategy by many of the game’s players and hardcore fans. Well it looks like we have another new DLC headed our way on July 6th and besides bringing two new civilizations to the game we are also going to be getting two new strategy features: Policies and Ideologies. The new DLC is called Brave New World and from what I have seen in the trailer for the expansion these new strategy features definitely look interesting, but of course you will need the original Civilization 5 game installed for the DLC to be usable. As well as the above new goodies we will also see: Eight new wonders New trade system 2 new scenarios New paths to Cultural victory New World Congress diplomacy mechanic The Civilization 5: Brave New World is up for pre-order on Amazon for $29.99 as well as being available on Steam on launch day. via Joystiq Civilization 5 Next DLC Brings Policies And Ideologies [Video] is a post from: Winextra Follow us on Twitter: @WinExtra and on Facebook: WinExtra Fans Related posts: Age of Empires II Being Reborn On Steam In HD on April 9 [Video] Civilization V Gods & Kings Expansion Pack Returns Some Of The Game’s Greatness [Video] Steam No Longer Just For Game As They Announce PC And Mac Software Addition Insomniac’s FUSE Trailer Brings Lots Of Blood And Shooting To The Table [Video]

Did you know you can also run Windows Azure in your own datacenter, allowing you to service your end-users yourself instead of outsourcing to a hosting company? read more

Microsoft has released an Operations Manager Management Pack (MP) with monitors, collection rules, and views to help keep your DHCP environment healthy. read more

A simple way to get back to the default settings in Windows 8 Here’s a great new Windows 8 tip, courtesy of a reader: Microsoft provides a handy web site that lets you quickly and easily remove all of the personal settings you’re syncing through your Microsoft account to Windows 8 and RT. read more

I want HALF, Eddie!! With the understanding that some of this information must be placed in the unconfirmed category, I’ve heard from two sources now that Microsoft has an interesting goal for its well-received Surface tablets: 50 percent of all Windows tablet sales in the coming year. read more

An often irreverent look at this week's other news An often irreverent look at this week's other news, including a new report about Windows 8 usage that has been misunderstood by most, a hope that Intel’s Haswell chip will save the PC industry, an ITC ruling that clears Microsoft of violating Google patents, an FTC probe of Google display ads, Samsung sells 10 million Galaxy S4 handsets in less than a month, and a US District Court judge preliminarily sides with DOJ in its price-fixing suit against Apple. read more

Microsoft Corp. has won a trade battle over Google Inc. regarding patents used in Microsoft's Xbox. Bloomberg reports Microsoft was cleared by the the U.S. International Trade Commission, which said it wouldn't review a ruling regarding patents held by Google-owned Motorola Mobility. Xbox sales in the U.S. could have been stopped if Google won the fight. Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT) attorney said the decision "is a win for Xbox customers and confirms our view that Google had no grounds to block our…

Bothell medical device company Ekos Corp. is being bought by British healthcare company BTG plc for $180 million. Ekos makes a product used in the treatment of severe blood clots. Previous investors in Ekos included GS Healthcare Capital Partners, MedVenture Associates, Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital and NGN Capital. EKOS employs 150 people and has a U.S. field force of 45, including 17 clinical specialists. All employees are expected to move to BTG on completion of the deal, BTG said in a statement.

The remarks come as the company launches a new line of PC/tablet hybrid devices.

Since news broke Thursday night of the Skagit River bridge collapse that took out both the northbound and southbound lanes of I-5 in Mount Vernon, Wash., many people have turned to Twitter to get updates as soon as they’re available. Early reports indicate people are being transported to the hospital after cars fell into the river. The Coast Guard reportedly deployed search and rescue boats. The Associated Press, the Skagit Valley Herald and all the local television news crews are currently at…