LG Optimus 3D Review.........!!!!!

The so-called 3D television revolution seems to have largely passed consumers by. 3D technology in our living room feels gimmicky, gives us a headache and, above all, lacks content. 3D technology seems to have made a quantum leap from our big screen TVs to our smartphones. Since the screen is really small we are presented with glasses-free 3D. Is that little device in your pocket ready to go 3D or are you better off without the third dimension?
The LG Optimus 3D is aiming to answer the question.

Packaging and content

The LG Optimus 3D comes in a jazzy red rectangular box, the kind you wouldn't want to be seen with in public. This jazzy red box contains the unusually large smartphone, which at first glance looks as boring as a TV remote.  The box also contains a pair of in-ear earphones, the micro USB cable that also doubles up as a charger.



Hardware and Styling

At first glance, the device has a candy bar form factor and is really big, almost as big as your hand. The screen is fairly large at 4.3-inches and covers most of the front. A shiny silver LG logo rests under the earpiece. Below the screen rest are four touch sensitive buttons. On the left of the device we have the micro USB port and the HDMI out port. The top has the 3.5mm headphones jack and the power/lock screen button. The right houses the volume rocker and the camera shutter button.

All-in-all, the device has curved edges and feels comfortable to hold but is very boring to look at. It feels a bit heavier than other devices too, weighing in at 168gms. You won't turn around and give the device a second look until you notice the two cameras resting at the rear of the device with 3D stereoscopic written next to it. Yes, the device houses two 5MP cameras with an LED flash and can shoot 2D still at a maximum resolution of 2592?194. In 3D mode however the device shoots stills at 3MP. The device also shoots video in 1080p at 30fps (2D) and 720p at 30fps (3D). The display is of course a 3D display, but doesn't work in 3D all the time. In fact, only a few specific features are enabled in 3D. The resolution of the screen too isn't very impressive at 480 x 800.

The rear of the device houses the memory card slot and the SIM card slot along with the1500mAh battery.

Under the hood, this beast is powered by a Dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor, PowerVR SGX540 GPU and a TI OMAP4430 chipset. LG boasts that the processor is Tri-Dual Technology, which simply means a dual core processor, dual camera and dual channel memory.

The only advantage to the boring styling of the device is that it is ergonomically well built if you decide to use the device for long with its 3D features. This is because the device needs to be held at a particular angle for the glasses-free 3D to be effective.



Interface
If the device looks boring then the interface is Boring with a capital B. Boot up the device and the first thing that will disappoint you is that it runs on Android 2.2 and not 2.3. The device will be upgradable to 2.3. Like all Android devices, the LG Optimus 3D is heavily skinned. You simply slide up the screen to unlock it and are greeted by 7 home screens that you can flood with app shortcuts and widgets as per your preferences.

The drag down menu has the music player controls and the power controls that can be accessed with ease.

The bottom of the home screen has four buttons that cannot be customized i.e. phone, contact, message and application. The application-listing tab too is divided into three sections, the 3D apps, apps, and downloaded apps. The four touch sensitive buttons bellow the display are standard Android - menu, home, back and search.

The 3D interface on the other hand is a different ball game all together. All the 3D content can be accessed from the '3D space' app. This app gives you access to 3D games, the 3D camera, 3D Gallery, YouTube 3D and the 3D Guide.

The 3D interface of the device is really good and adds to the feeling of depth perception but at the same time also feels gimmicky. Hold the device at a particular angle and you will have the best 3D viewing experience without glasses on a mobile device. But shift in your seat and that experience is translated into blurry images that will give you an instant headache.

A good addition to the device is that you can not only view 3D content on it but also stream it to your 3D enabled TV via HDMI or DLNA.

With the exception of 3D, the overall interface of the apps, and the skinned Android 2.2 on the LG Optimus 3D is a lackluster experience. If you are looking for a more dynamic Android experience, consider the recently launched HTC EVO 3D.



Multimedia (3D as well)
The overall multimedia experience on the LG Optimus 3D is the same as on any other Android 2.2 device with the only addition being the 4.3-inch screen. Although the resolution could have been better, the 480 x 800 resolution display gets the job done pretty well. Apps look good, pictures and videos look vibrant.

In terms of the on-board apps, you get the usual mix of music and video player along with LG's Social+ social networking app. Nothing ground breaking here.

The 3D space is where the device truly excels. Sure there is lack of content and what you do get needs to be viewed at a specific angle, but whatever the device delivers, it delivers well. It does well in adding depth to the content you are viewing. It does well in giving you the illusion that stuff is popping out of the screen at you. And it does exceptionally well at giving you a headache if you get into the 3D content for too long.

The device comes preloaded with 4 3D games - Lets golf, Asphalt, Nova and Gulliver's Travels. The games give you the ability to control the level of 3D via a toggle. But naturally while playing, you are bound to move the device quite a bit jarring the 3D image and screen and inevitably ending up giving you - you guessed it, a headache. You can view, shoot and share your 3D content on YouTube 3D which is a nice addition. The content library on YouTube 3D isn't much and you'd get bored of it pretty quickly.

The on-board camera on the device does what it does well. But in 2D mode, a 5MP camera on such an expensive device seems a bit of a letdown especially since smartphones in the same price bracket offer you an 8MP shooter. The images produced in 2D are crisp, clear and even vibrant if the lighting conditions are good. But if you decide to rely on the on-board flash, you will end up with average photos.

The same can be said for 3D. In broad daylight you get good results and the images do add a feeling of depth perception. At night however, the results are bad.

The 3D video recording is surprisingly good. Videos in 720p HD in 3D look good on the device. Keep the device steady while shooting and you could get some great video from the device.

PC Sync & Market
Since this is an Android phone, syncing all your contacts is as simple as entering your Gmail, Facebook and Twitter accounts and the device is ready to use under 10 minutes.

The availability of a variety of paid and free apps in the Android market place ensure you never run out of fun things to do, but sadly there is nothing there to add value to the 3D capabilities of the device.

LG has also added its own LG World, which is an additional app store to the Android market. It houses apps and LG specific content like games. Although the noteworthy thing here must be that there is very little 3D specific content.



Performance

Apart from all the flashy multimedia, 3D and Internet capabilities, the phone needs to be able to make calls and send messages. In terms of call quality, the audio from the earpiece is loud, clear and well audible. The microphone too works well and even in a low network situation the conversation was smooth.

The preloaded keyboard is a standard QWERTY and same as the one you'd find on the LG Optimus 2X. The typing experience on the touch screen keyboard is great. The keys are well spaced out on the large screen and errors during typing were minimal.

Another advantage on the device was that web pages rendered rather fast along with full flash support. Websites with heavy flash integration opened well but scrolling, zooming and navigating these pages felt a bit sluggish.

Despite being a dual core processor smartphone with 512MB RAM, the devices performance felt a bit underwhelming under 3D use. The battery was drained in a matter of hours if you just play around with the 3D functionality.

If you keep 3D use to a minimal, you could get one day's battery life from the device.

Another problem with the device was that it heated up really fast. Leave it to charge for half an hour, and receive/make a call immediately after that and you will realize how hot the earpiece has become.

The in-ear earphones provided with the device are great for making calls. The audio is really loud and the mic picks up the voice very well. It is however horrible for listening to music. The headphones lack bass, but the midrange and vocals sound good.

Verdict
There are just two 3D smartphones available in the market today - the LG Optimus 3D and the HTC EVO 3D. In terms of ergonomic looks, UI and style, you are better off with the HTC. The 3D performance is however better on the LG. The depth perception, viewing angle and pictures taken in 3D look much better on the LG Optimus 3D.

Overall, it's hard to recommend either of the devices as 3D is still gimmicky on the small screen, lacks content and above all, there is very little 3D usability on the phone. For the most part, your everyday activities are in 2D.

For a price of Rs. 37,000, you are better of picking up the highest end Android smartphone from any manufacturer or an iPhone.

Pros

3D performance is good
Large screen
Good build quality

Cons
Lack of 3D content
Dull looks and LG skin
Battery life is poor

Ratings
Performance:  2.5
Price:  2
Ease of Setup: 4
Ergonomics: 3
Wow Factor: 2
Overall: 3

List of Phones that will get Ice-Cream Sandwich

Google has officially unveiled the Ice Cream Sandwich i.e., Android 4.0 along with the launch of Samsung Galaxy Nexus. This ICS buzz has now made Android phone Geeks go crazy. Its a crazy and a very good deal indeed!

Asus came up with an announcement that their Padfone would come with Android 4.0 and it would be available in January 2012. That would be the near time when the Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) would be made available for update on existing phones.

The following are the Android phones which I think should be able to run the Ice Cream Sandwich which is more stable and provide a better experience. We are not sure when these phones would receive the official firmware update but they are the front contenders for the Ice Cream Sandwich update first.

Samsung Nexus S
When the Samsung Galaxy Nexus debuts with Ice Cream Sandwich then why not its predecessor mobile phone? If you are expecting Ice Cream Sandwich update on existing phones then Nexus S is prime contender because it is the phone to start testing ICS.
Probably, when the Galaxy Nexus is available by this November, the ICS update for Nexus S should be taking it shape slated to be released soon.


Samsung Galaxy S II
The next phone which will get the Ice Cream Sandwich update is the Galaxy S II phone by Samsung Electronics. Galaxy S II is powerful phone with dual core 1.2 Ghz processor and impressive specifications to runs the Ice Cream Sandwich OS update smoothly. Already we have spotted Galaxy S II in China coming with NFC so there would be no problem & easily compatibility for Ice Cream Sandwich on S II phone.


Motorola Droid Razr

The Droid Razr by Motorola was launched just 12 hours earlier than the Galaxy Nexus launch and boards almost same specifications. Motorola team has already announced it that Droid Razr will be out with Ice Cream Sandwich soon and maybe they are playing with smart moves to keep in check with Samsung.

Droid Razr has got the right hardware but lacks Galaxy Nexus for most part of important update of NFC and Android Beam which one of the highlighting feature of Ice Cream Sandwich.


Motorola Atrix 2
The Motorola Atrix 2 dual core 4G phone should be the next phone in the Motorola line up to receive the Ice Cream Sandwich update but it would be maybe by January next year the update of Ice Cream Sandwich is to be available on it.


Motorola Droid Bionic
The Motorola Droid Bionic with dual core 1 Ghz ARM Cortex A9 processor and OMAP chipset should be the next range of Android phone which would receive the Android update to 4.0. Motorola changed the chipset from Tegra to OMAP in order to pursuit the LTE and ICS in the near phone on this phone. Maybe it would be the first choice of device to receive the ICS update as Razr and Atrix 2 among the Motorola phones are the prime contenders for ICS update.


HTC Amaze 4G
The HTC Amaze 4G truly deserves the name as it has pretty decent software and has an amazing camera too. Also the hardware with which its built has killer specifications and chances that ICS would first come to HTC Amaze 4G when you talk about HTC phones to go with.
Since there is no official announcement which mobiles would receive the Ice Cream Sandwich, users are expecting too much, maybe but I would say let the Ice Cream Sandwich to be launched and then think about updates. For those who are unable to judge whether there mobile is upgradeable to Android 4.0 update, check back our blog.


The following are the few others mobile phones which might receive the Android 4.0 updates are LG Optimus 3D, Motorola Photo 4G, Motorola Atrix 4G, Samsung Droid Charge, myTouch 4G Slide.
Some of the phones launched in 2011 will get update and more won’t but its clear that high-end phones which would be announced from now should include Ice Cream Sandwich as the minimum operating system. Importantly we would see more custom ROM coming up which are built with modifications over the ICS.

Windows 8 Tablet from Samsung Coming in 2012 2H............!!!!

Samsung is launching a range of new tablets in the second half of next year 2012. The new tablets will run the Windows 8  operating system .Windows 8 Tablet is scheduled to launch in 2012.
TFor those of you not aware of the Series 7, it is a tablet device with a slide out keyboard (pictured below) and is aimed at the enterprise user. With it having a physical keyboard and a tablet form factor, it’s ideal for those who want to switch between a multi-touch display in tablet mode or more of a laptop type of system.

Samsung-Sliding-PC-7-Series-tablet

Windows 8 was first revealed back in September and was received well in the media and amongst developers who began downloading it. The whole Windows 8 user interface is different than what we have seen before. It uses a Metro UI that makes using touch a lot easier.

Tranform your windows 7 appearance into Android.........!!!!!

Bored of the same Windows 7 theme? Or do you want to get a ‘Awesome Android‘ appearance on your system?

 First have a look at all the amazing Android-Win7 OS! Its really ‘Awesome’.

Installation

Windows-Android Startup

Desktop and Start Menu







Its just a 26mb skin pack. Droid fan? What are you waiting for?




Get them here-

DOWNLOAD FOR WINDOWS 7 x86

http://www.deviantart.com/download/261282717/android_skin_pack_1_0_x86_by_hameddanger-d4bk719.zip

DOWNLOAD FOR WINDOWS 7 x64

http://www.deviantart.com/download/261282844/android_skin_pack_1_0_x64_by_hameddanger-d4bk74s.zip

China Wants Its Hands All Over Your Internet....!!!!

China faces US cyber-spying accusations after proposing a “Code of Conduct” to the UN and renewing its internal internet censorship.

 New revelations about industrial cyber-spying and internal crackdowns on micro-blogs call into question China’s motives to exert control over internet governance - and behave responsibly outside its borders in cyberspace.

If I was China right now, I’d be SO embarrassed.
I mean, if I had just turned in a big report to the U.N. proposing an internet “Code of Conduct” under the guise of security and fighting cyber crime, and then the U.S. Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive issued a report saying I was doing the very things that would violate that proposal…
Well, it would be way worse than that time I showed up to the first day of 8th grade homeroom and Becky the cheerleader was wearing the exact same blue Banana Republic sweater that I was.
I’m in no way trying to minimize what’s going on here, but it’s difficult not to think The Onion is orchestrating China’s PR around its intent to make sure everyone on the internet is dressed appropriately.
I’m actually not taking the analogy too far. Let me explain.

Last week the Chinese government stepped up monitoring of the internet inside its borders. Hard to believe, right? It started with an anti-porn and anti-vulgarity censorship campaign on mobile devices back in 2009, but this new crackdown is on China’s many popular micro-blogging sites (Twitter is a micro-blogging site).


...........................................................................................................................................................still there.....

Google: Android 4.0 to be open sourced in "coming weeks"

Summary: Google will make its Android 4.0 dubbed “Ice Cream Sandwich” available to the open source community in the coming weeks and is designed to fuel Google’s big push in both the smartphone and tablet war against Apple. Google’s planned purchase of Motorola’s Mobility unit — the most successful Android smartphone and tablet supplier — will also likely help if it ultimately musters government approval

Google’s next generation Android 4.0 — code named “Ice Cream Sandwich” — will be available to the open source developer community in weeks, one company spokesman said yesterday.
And yes, Ice Cream Sandwich is designed to re-unify the Android code base for smartphones and tablets, and will likely please more in the open source community, the spokesman indicated.
“It will be open sourced in the coming weeks, yes,” said Randall Sarafa, a spokesman for Google. “Correct. No, Honeycomb was not [open sourced].”
“ICS will be open sourced, and yes, ICS is meant to reunify and provide *one* release for both tablets and smartphones,” Sarafa wrote in another one of several e-mails written in response to questions from this blogger about Google’s open source efforts with respect to Android.
Honeycomb, the previous Android 3.0 code base optimized for tablets, was subject to some criticism for its potential to fork Android, and for not being available to open source developers.
“”Ice Cream Sandwich is Android 4.0, and it is one release for tablets, smartphones and everything in between. That means that tablets going forward can run on Ice Cream Sandwich as can phones, so it is an update for both tablets and smartphones,” Sarafa said.
This blogger wanted to talk to Google about the potential for ICS to compete more aggressively against iPad and iPhone 4 s but was told that a tablet spokesman was not available.
How about a spokesman from Motorola?
Google announced plans to purchase Motorola’s mobility business unit for $12.5 billion earlier this year.  Motorola is the largest and most successful hardware supplier of Droid phones and Android-based Xoom tablets.

No, Facebook Is Not Ruining Your Grades [STUDY]...!!!

The latest of several studies to look into the relationship between Facebook use and low grades has a counterintuitive twist — some kinds of Facebook use are correlated with higher GPAs.
“Facebook use in and of itself is not detrimental to academic outcome,” says study author Reynol Junco, a professor at the Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania. “It depends how it’s used.”
The study, published last week in Computers in Human Behavior, analyzes 1,839 college students’ survey data about Facebook use and actual grades (as opposed to self-reported grades). It also takes into account students’ high-school GPAs.
On average, students say they spend 106 minutes on Facebook per day. Each increase of 93 minutes beyond 106 minutes correlates with a GPA decrease of .12 grade points — statistically significant, but not dramatic when applied to a real-world situation.
“You have to spend an inordinate amount of time on Facebook for it to be related to GPA in a way that is shocking,” Junco says.
It makes sense that a drop in grades would be caused by students who let Facebook time cut into study time. But the data shows no correlation between time spent on Facebook and time spent studying.
All Facebook activities do not have the same relationship with grades. Posting status updates and using Facebook chat generally mean a lower GPA, while checking to see what friends are up to and sharing links suggest a higher GPA. In other words, social Facebook activities were correlated with lower grades and information-related Facebook activities were correlated with higher grades.
This doesn’t necessarily mean forgoing Facebook status updates and chat is likely to improve a student’s grades. Nothing in the study implies cause and effect. Instead, it seems that what’s important about Facebook in an educational context has very little to do with how much time you spend on it.
Junco thinks there are ways Facebook can be used effectively in an educational context — which is why he sets up Facebook groups for each of his classes to continue discussion online.
“What I like best about it is that we’re using a technology that students already use,” he says.

Call of Duty – United Offensive Game Cheats revealed...!!!

After a good start of Game Cheats with the World’s most addictive game – Angry Birds, We are back to Game cheats for PC.

Call of Duty – United Offensive Game Cheats

Cheat List:
Add the “+set developer 1 +set sv_cheats 1” command line parameter. Press ~ during game play to bring down the console window.
Invincibility god
Gives the player all weapons in the game give all
Enemies don’t shoot at you notarget
Refills the players health meter give health
Makes the player commit suicide kill
Enables walk through walls noclip
Restart current level map_restart
Puts the camera at a third person perspective.
You are always invisible however. toggle cg_thirdperson
Removes the sky which can brighten or darken
the terrain depending on the map toggle r_fastsky
Puts the game in wire frame toggle r_showtris
Makes random textures turn invisible toggle r_lockpvs
Removes all on screen information making the
game look like a movie toggle cg_draw2d
Refills the players weapon ammo levels give
ammo Makes the ground and other stationary
textures white toggle r_lightmap
Allows rifles to be fired in Automatic Mode.
Hold down shoot weapon 32
Displays lines where the light comes through
the leaves toggle r_showLeafLights
Displays numbers on each texture toggle r_showtricounts
Displays where you can access via blue lines toggle r_showportals
Makes the players arm and gun invisible which
boosts the frame rate toggle cg_drawgun
Puts the game in multicolours (rather laggy) toggle r_measureOverdraw
Shows scripts over important soldiers and
objects toggle g_entinfo
Gives indicated item give
Teleports you to a specific node on the map jumptonode
Loads the map you want map
Gives a list of all commands in the game cmdlist
Gives information about the game graphics gfxinfo
Play Any Level

When in a Single Player game bring down the console with the “~” key, and type the following to play any level and mission you want.
Play Mission 1: Bastogne 1 map bastogne1
Play Mission 2: Bastogne 2 map bastogne2
Play Mission 3: Foy map foy
Play Mission 4: Noville map noville
Play Mission 5: Bomber map bomber
Play Mission 6: Train Bridge map trainbridge
Play Mission 7: Sicily 1 map sicily1
Play Mission 8: Sicily 2 map sicily2
Play Mission 9: Trenches map trenches
Play Mission 10: Ponyri map ponyri
Play Mission 11: Kursk map kursk
Play Mission 12: Kharkov 1 map kharkov1
Play Mission 13: Kharkov 2 map kharkov2
Cheats:
To activate cheats on Call of Duty: United Offensive you should either go to start-> run and type:
“C:Call of DutyCoDUOSP.exe” +set developer 1 +set sv_cheats 1 or create your own shortcut with that code.
Then bring down the console in game play and type the code below. Usually (~) or in my case (‘).I have only tested one code and it worked fine God = GODMODE

Every Android device now infringes Apple patent: Slide to unlock

Summary: Apple has received a confirmed patent for the “slide to unlock” control in use on every Android phone and tablet in existence.

Whatever your position is on patent infringement and the never-ending lawsuits in the mobile space, the fact is until the system is overhauled it is the law. I hate that design elements can be patented, instead of actual devices which makes more sense. Apple has been riding the patentability of design elements for a while, and has a number of Android device makers on the ropes as a result. A U. S. patent awarded today to Apple guarantees that every Android phone and tablet ever made infringes Apple’s design.
Anyone who has touched an Android device has come face-to-face with the slide to unlock feature. The device is inaccessible until a slider or similar control is touched and slid to a boundary, unlocking the gadget. This simple control has now been patented by Apple, removing it from the available design pool to anyone else.
Apple has been picking and choosing its targets for patent infringement litigation carefully, using various patents it owns to go after infringers. This new patent over the simple slide to unlock feature means the company can go after any Android device maker it wants, and likely have success in the courts.
Heck, the control on Windows Phone devices, sliding the lock screen up to access the phone functions, may very well infringe on this patent too. That could extend to the upcoming Windows 8 as early preview versions use this same control to unlock devices.
Apple filed for the slide to unlock patent before the original iPhone was released, and just received confirmation of the patent. That puts every Android device ever made firmly in the infringing category, should Apple choose to get nasty.

Four key reasons to include cloud computing in your business strategy...!!!

 

Summary: The issue of success or failure in moving your company data, IT storage, servers or software to the cloud is often driven by technical issues, including performance, bandwidth, security and total-cost-of-ownership (TCO) considerations.

This guest post comes from Mark Skilton, Global Director of Strategy and Global Infrastructure Services, Capgemini, and Co-Chair of the Cloud Computing Work Group, The Open Group.
By Mark Skilton
The issue of success or failure in moving your company data, IT storage, servers or software to the cloud is often driven by technical issues, including performance, bandwidth, security and total-cost-of-ownership (TCO) considerations. While many of these factors are key criteria for selecting cloud solutions, they usually don’t align with the bigger picture that C-level executives must consider when adding new IT solutions.
How IT can help sustain or create a competitive advantage has never been more apparent than today through the use of cloud computing. This technology boasts benefits such as reduced costs and scalability, just to name a few, but many companies fail to find the right fit for cloud within their business. [Disclosure: The Open Group is a sponsor of BriefingsDirect podcasts.]
This is because cloud computing is not one size fits all. Performance, network bandwidth, security, and total cost concerns can be allayed through a better portfolio and investment approach that considers the multitude of options available.
How cloud computing fits
In industries where working capital bears a high price and is in short supply, businesses often have to make ends meet and have limited investment available. Therefore, being able to source the lowest cost and drive efficiencies even further is critical to growing business and market share.
For companies with limited working capital resource or cash flow funds, the use of on-demand services becomes an attractive option for consumers to avoid upfront costs or maintenance of services. Likewise, companies seeking to provide better profitability from their operation and vendors managing their cost center can leverage on-demand models to target areas of their portfolio to reduce cost and maximize return.

When adopting cloud computing, companies are often driven by cost effectiveness, rather than looking at the bigger picture and asking what cloud solution is the best fit for the business.

When adopting cloud computing, companies are often driven by cost effectiveness, rather than looking at the bigger picture and asking what cloud solution is the best fit for the business. Cost savings, longevity of product, and performance aren’t mutually exclusive, and all should be factored into the decision-making process when researching and purchasing a cloud solution.
Here are four questions, which include key metrics and drivers, to ask when researching cloud solutions that will maximize the value of cloud computing for your organization:

1. Why is investment being spent on areas of IT that are not differentiating your business and can be commoditized?
   • Key Metric: The balance of percent of investment on non-core commodity IT
   • Key drivers: TCO needs to consider where to focus IT investment
2. How can IT grow and adapt with the ever-increasing expansion of data storage and the growth of computing demands eclipsing on-premise facilities?
   • Key Metric: The cost of storage and archiving , recovery and continuity
   • Key drivers: Latency of network and storage costs can be targeted through considering the whole IT portfolio, not just niche use cases of cost-performance. Look at the bigger picture.
3. How can access to new markets and new channels be better served through extending networks and partnerships?
   • Key Metric: Size of markets and effectiveness of sales channels, both internal sales and external direct sales and reselling
   • Key drivers: Total cost of acquisition can include the creation or use of third-party distributed marketplaces and self-service portals and platforms
4. Is your own IT fast enough to beat your competition or drive the cost savings or revenue and margin growth plans you need?
   • Key metric: Speed of IT delivery and its cost and quality of service.
   • Key drivers: Performance can be offered through selected service provisioning. Question whether all knowledge needs to be in-house. Skills can be as-a-service too.

Open Group Cloud Computing Book

The Open Group recently published Cloud Computing for Business –The Open Group Guide to address many of these key questions. The book is intended for senior business executives and practicing architects responsible for defining corporate strategy, and it identifies how to select and buy cloud computing services to achieve the best business and technical outcomes.
You can purchase a copy of the book from The Open Group here or download preview sections here:

Cloud Computing for Business – Preview – first 30 pages
Cloud Computing for Business – Section 1.8
Cloud Computing for Business – Section 4.1

This guest post comes from Mark Skilton, Global Director of Strategy and Global Infrastructure Services, Capgemini, and Co-Chair of the Cloud Computing Work Group, The Open Group.

You may also be interested in:

• Enterprises should harness the power of social media to better know their markets, says Capgemini
• Open Group cloud panel forecasts cloud as spurring useful transition phase for enterprise IT architecture
• Examining the current state of the enterprise architecture profession with The Open Group’s Steve Nunn
• The Open Group’s cloud work group advances understanding of cloud-use benefits for enterprises
• Mutual embrace of SOA and cloud computing builds into productivity waltz across the IT landscape

Its been Ten Years now! Windows XP has been the best of Microsoft product...!!!!

What? Is Win XP really 10 years old?
Yes! It is!!

Facts & Figures :
Release: August 24, 2001
Achievement: Windows XP is one of the most used Operating System on earth!  In the year 2006, it ruled the world with a massive 85% of the world’s population using it. And out of which 74.9% used internet (w3 statistics)
It was the launch of what was to become Microsoft’s most successful operating system.
Its been Ten years and three service packs, Windows XP is still installed on some 42% of the world’s computers.
The problem what it faces is obviously the Security threats! A 10 year old OS cannot really sustain or prevent the current era’s hackers and intruders!
Though the Service pack 2 and 3 had some improvements in security, it still lagged way behind WINDOWS 7.
The Admin doesn’t really have full-control over his users to control the access and give limited permissions. This can be very well achieved in Windows 7.
Nevertheless, Windows XP was the easiest OS to work on. The best layman’s Operating System! Modifying Settings, Accessing the Windows XP’s OS files and many other stuffs actually helped any person to get used to Computer and finally get induced into Computing!
Window’s greatest advantage is their robust MS-Office package. Its the best, it rules over all its competitors – Open Office, Libre Office etc., To be frank, they can never be called as Competitors.
That’s why, even on Apple’s hardware, many technical types have chosen to dual-boot XP.

XP‘s huge driver library and developer base are what keep me coming back to my XP box. If it’s been dreamed of in the world of PCs, by now it’s been dreamed of on XP.

XP‘s user-friendly nature is still unmatchable. A transition to Windows 7 was a sudden jerk for many. As Windows7 was something advanced for starters.

What’s next?
Windows 7 is also ruling the next part of the world! We are waiting for some news that Microsoft will release about Windows 8. Windows 8 is supposed to be the ‘Next-GEN OS’ of this Decade!

LogMeIn – Mobile Application:::::: T0 Login Remotely....!!!!!!!

Remote Computing for starters is a tool that allows access to any computer from a remote location. This is a very crude definition of the actual process, but will convey to you the basic principle that runs remote computing.

LogMeIn is one such app available across all major platforms that will make remote computing a whole lot remote by allowing the technology to be utilized over tablets and smart phones. The technology behind the app is dependable and robust.
What is particularly encouraging about this app is the attention to detail, the ease of use and it’s nominal pricing.
The ratings for the app are once again encouraging and surely this app is worth the try.
This app is available on both iPhone/iPad and Android. [Visit the respective articles to get both features and download link of LogMeIn app]

Angry Birds Game Cheat codes revealed...!!!!

Angry Birds is one of the MOST POPULAR game for both Mobile phones(Android, iPhone, iPad, iPod, Symbian, Windows Phone etc.,) and Web Browser (Google Chrome).
People are addicted to this game! They waste a lot of time playing this! This includes me and people in my company!
So, I started surfing the net for some tricks and cheats so as to finish all the levels, so that, I can seriously do some more posts like this!

I found them all over the web! Here is an ‘Almost-Complete’ compilation of -

Angry Birds Cheats-

Achievements:
Complete the indicated task to unlock the corresponding bonus Golden Egg level.
All Achievements:
Angry Birds Addict – Play Angry Birds for 30 hours.
Angry Birds Fan – Play Angry Birds for 5 hours.
Bird Slinger – Shoot 5,000 birds.
Block Smasher – Smash 50,000 blocks.
Defeat The King – Finish World 3.
Egg Cracker – Get 10 golden egg stars.
Egg Hunter – Find 10 golden eggs.
Episode 1-Score Addict Episode 1 – Get 4,000,000 points.
Episode 1-Total Destruction Episode 1 – Get three stars in all levels.
Episode 2-Score Addict Episode 2 – Get 3,300,000 points.
Episode 2-Total Destruction Episode 2 – Get three stars in all levels.
Episode 3-Score Addict Episode 3 – Get 4,800,000 points.
Episode 3-Total Destruction Episode 3 – Get three stars in all levels.
Episode 4-Score Addict Episode 4 – Get 3,900,000 points.
Episode 4-Total Destruction Episode 4 – Get three stars in all levels.
Green Baron – Finish World 8.
Hardhat Hidalgo – Finish World 9.
Herr Helmet – Finish World 1.
Hovering Helmet – Finish World 6.
Icepicker – Smash 5,000 ice blocks.
Mason Moustache – Finish World 10.
Mounting Moustache – Finish World 7.
Mr. Moustache – FInish World 2.
Pig Popper – Smash 1,000 pigs.
Royal Ringleader – Finish World 11.
Smash Maniac – Smash 500,000 blocks.
Star Collector – Get 750 Stars.
Star Gatherer – Get 1500 Stars.
Stonecutter – Smash 5,000 stone blocks.
The Imposter – Finish World 4.
The Mysterious – Escape Finish World 5.
True Angry Birds Fan – Play Angry Birds for 15 hours.
Woodpecker – Smash 5,000 wooden blocks.
Locations Of All Golden Eggs:
To unlock and so making all the Golden Eggs available, you will have to complete each Golden Egg level. You can do it by selecting the Angry Birds Golden Eggs menu, choose a golden egg level and finish it.
Golden Egg #1 Can be found in the Credits menu. Tab the settings icon, and then select the i help icon. Scroll down until you find the Golden Egg at theend of the credits. Tap it.
Golden Egg #2 Can be found by tapping the Sun picture, located at the levels menu.
Golden Egg #3 Select any level and press Pause (II buton), then tap on the question mark (?), and just click through the tutorial until you see a GoldenEgg, being dropped by a white bird. Tap the Golden Egg to recover it.
Golden Egg #4 Achieve the maximum stars level (3 stars) that is available for the 1, 2 and 3 Themes. Another thing that you can try, is to beat all the previous high scores that you have achieved for all themes.
Golden Egg #5 Achieve the maximum star level for the Themes 4 and 5. Another way is to beat your previous high scores in those levels.
Golden Egg #6 Go to level 1-8 and tap the treasure chest.
Golden Egg #7 Go to level 2-2 and smash the Beachball.
Golden Egg #8 Go to level 4-7 and zoom out the map. In the top right hand corner of the map, you will notice a small yellow bird standing on the cliff. Hit that bird, and that will give you the Golden Egg.
Golden Egg #9 Go to level 5-19 and zoom out the map. The golden egg is located outside of the screen, above the rocket. You should use a yellow or a white bird to grab the golden egg.
Golden Egg #10 Go to level 6-14 and try to hit the yellow ballon, which is located under the tree-house. You will have to use the Green ?Boomerang? Bird tohit it. This will give you the golden egg.
Golden Egg #11 Go to theme 8 and slide it to the left, you will see the egg on the right. Tap it.–And now u found all 11 golden eggs.
Unlock everything:
If u beat the whole game you get extras and unlock everything! i havn’t found out everything yet but i’ll keep u posted.
Unlockable: How
all birds – beat game.
new courses – i am just contributing.
extras – beat game.
All Hidden Levels:
Complete the conditions to unlock the hidden Golden Egg levels
Sound Board – Get 3 stars in every level worlds 1-3
Golden Egg Level 1 – Get 3 stars in every level worlds 4-5
Golden Egg Level 2 – In the level select screen, tap the sun
Golden Egg Level 3 – Watch the credits, tap the Golden Egg at the very end
Golden Egg Level 4 – Within any level, go to the help screen. Tap the egg at the end
Golden Egg Level 5 – In Level 1-8, tap the unreachable chest
Golden Egg Level 6 – In Level 2-2, break the beach ball
Golden Egg Level 7 – In Level 4-7,tap the egg at the very top right of the map (zoom out)
Golden Egg Level 8 – In Level 5-19, it’s hiding on the top right of the left tower
Golden Egg Level 9 – In Level 6-14, pop the yellow balloon
Golden Egg 10 – In level 6-14 bust the yellow balloon in the lower right corner
Golden Egg 11 – In theme 8′s level page, brush the screen right to left to reveal a golden egg
Golden Egg 12 – Get 3 stars for every level in Danger Above
Golden Egg 13 – In level 8-15 break the boxes in the far left corner
Golden Egg 14 – In level 9-14 fire the boomerang bird at the hat on the far right side of the screen on the small cliff.
Golden Egg 15 – Bust the rubber duck in the bottom left side In 10-3
Golden Egg 16 – Get three stars on all levels in the Big Setup
Unlockable : Locked Worlds :
Perform the followings steps to unlock all worlds without playing through the game.
1. Load up Angry Birds and go to the world select screen.
2. Center a locked world on the screen.
3. Push back button all the way out of Angry Birds.
4. Load Angry Birds back up and when the “Play” button appears tap it rapidly.
5. You should be inside the locked worlds stage select screen.
6. Now, pass the first level of each world to unlock it.

Not all the cheats have been tested, though all are supposed to work without any hindrance!
Credit goes to the actual sources.

Swap Mouse Keys – “C” code---> C-Programming Rocks...!!!!

It is a simple piece of code but every effective and annoying!Prank your friends with it:)Compile using any 32 bit “C” compiler.
[javascript]
//coded by sham;
#include<windows.h>
int main()
{
BOOL bOldState;
SystemParametersInfo(SPI_SETMOUSEBUTTONSWAP,TRUE,bOldState, 0);
}
[/javascript]
Download .exe
Solution:To change it ,set parameter as FALSE and execute,else change in mouse properties from control panel.

iPhone turned into a spiPhone! Beware of it !!!!

Patrick Traynor

Let me start with a question, How many of you have smart phones or planning to have one ? I know its  a lame question to ask because it is the trend of smartphones and they are now ruling the world with their charm.  But let me tell you, days to come will challenge your phones to hack your privacy. And if you are an addict to your phone and if you aren’t letting your phone off sight not even for a second then believe me you might be more vulnerable than any other person. You will be shocked as you go through the post below, so get ready to get shocked-
A research team in Georgia Institute  Of  Technology in the United States Of America has turned smartphones into Spy-phones, irony is that the more you pay the phone, easy to get being hacked.  They have invented an application that will let your phone to detect what all you have written in your mails, passwords and sensitive documents using your own phone’s accelerometer(It is the internal device that detects when and how the phone is tilted). They have used it to sense keyboard vibrations and decode the complete sentences with up to 80 percent accuracy. According to the researchers it is not an easy task but it can be accomplished using the latest smartphones. When they first tried it using iphone3 the results weren’t that accurate but when they tried it with iphone 4 ,bingo! they were spot on with accuracy touching 80% as it has ax added gyroscope to filter up the accelerometer noise.

iphone listening to keyboard

Previously Professor named Patrick Traynor had achieved similar feat by using microphones, but they are relatively more sensitive than accelerometer. They sample 44,000 vibrations/second where as later one samples 100 vibrations/second but the problem arrived when manufactures started giving extra protection by not giving access to microphones for being used by third party applications unless user approves it. But this protection is unlikely in the case of accelerometers, which allowed them to use it as a tool.

iphone as Spiphone

The technique works by using a software that detects the pairs of keys being pressed, rather than individual key stroke or letters. Then it will determines on what side of the keyboard does this pair of keys lies, is it on the left or right side of the keyboard, and whether they are close together or far apart. After that software compares the result against a preloaded dictionary.

For example : If a user types a word “SPORTS“, which is then split into pairs of words as  SP-OR-TS, and is interpreted as LEFT-RIGHT-FAR, RIGHT-LEFT-FAR, LEFT-LEFT-NEAR i.e, LRF-RLF-LLN  and then the code is compared with that of 58,000 words in a dictionary. This technique went on to fetch words with 80% accuracy in iphone4.
According to Henry Carter, a PhD student in computer science and one of the study’s co-authors- this hacking attack is carried on by requesting phone user to download an innocent looking application, which doesn’t ask to use any of the phone sensors. When the Keyboard detection malware is turned on, and when it is placed next to the keyboard as you start typing it starts listening  like a small kid without making a noise maintaining pin drop silence.
But the effective range has to be at most three inches from a keyboard, so phone users can simply leave their phones in their pockets or bags, or just move them further away from the keyboard.

These graphs show measurements recorded by a smart phone as letters are typed on a nearby keyboard. The device can distinguish between "a" at the left of the keyboard and "l" on the right, as well as between two pairs: "pq" and "nm."

But in real world if there are noise where the user is operating or playing music or traffic noise, when typing then i don’t think hacker would able to hack the details of what you type. As phone technology improves, attacks via the accelerometer could become more feasible. At the same time if security is provided around the accelerometer then it will be difficult to infringe the protective shield. At the end, i need to agree that though this is innovative but i don’t think this will affect any of the current users. And i don’t think this technique will sustain for long period, because if 2 minds work on infringing privacy then there are thousands of minds working on to prevent it.
Thank you for reading the post, if you like this post, please leave a comment…

What Happens Every 60 Seconds on the Web!!!!!

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60 Seconds - Things That Happen On Internet Every Sixty Seconds [Infographic]

World Wide Web is growing at rapid pace. On average, more than a billion new pages are added to it every day. To give you an idea of how big world wide web is, our Infographic 60 Seconds will cover some really interesting facts about websites that we use on day-to-day basis.

Did You Know That - In 60 SECONDS
Search engine Google serves more that 694,445 queries
6,600+ pictures are uploaded on Flickr
600 videos are uploaded on YouTube videos, amounting to 25+ hours of content
695,000 status updates, 79,364 wall posts and 510,040 comments are published on Social Networking site Facebook
70 New domains are registered
168,000,000+ emails are sent
320 new accounts and 98,000 tweets are generated on Social Networking site Twitter
iPhone applications are downloaded more than13,000 times
20,000 new posts are published on Micro-blogging platform tumbler
Popular web browser Fire Fox is downloaded more than 1700 times
Popular blogging platform WordPress is downloaded more than 50 times
WordPress Plugins are downloaded more than 125 times
100 accounts are created on professional networking site LinkedIn
40 new Questions are asked on Yahoo Answers.com
100+ questions are asked on Answers.com
1 new article is published on Associated Content, the world’s largest source of community-created content
1 new definition is added on Urban Dictionary.com
1,200+ new ads are created on Craigslist
370,000+ minutes of voice calls done by Skype users
13,000+ hours of music streaming is done by personalized Internet radio provider Pandora
1,600+ reads are made on Scribd, the largest social reading publishing company

Nintendo Launches Pokemon Rumble Blast For 3DS

        Pokemon Rumble Blast for 3DS

For those of you who like the Pokemon games will probably be pleased to hear this news.Nintendo reportedly has launched a new game called Pokemon Rumble Blast for 3DS console.

This game will be the first Pokemon game that can be played for 3DS. In this game, you will playas a pokemon and can fight as well as to collect no fewer than 600 types of Pokemon.

This game features a cooperative play mode and specials streetpass. Games that can beobtained at a price of 34.99 USD (300 thousand) has bebarapa type boss that must beovercome to raise the level. Besides this game also offers wireless features, so you can playmultiplayer.

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Data Communication? Characteristics of Data Communication

Data communications are the exchange of data between 2 devices via some form of transmission medium such as a wire cable.
The effectiveness of Data communication depends on 4 characteristics-
1. Delivery – The system must deliver data to the correct Destination. Data must be received by a specific user or device.
2. Accuracy – The system must deliver the data accurately. Data that have been altered in transmission and left uncorrected are unusable.
3. Timeliness – The system must deliver the data in a timely manner. Data delivered late are of no use.Especially in the case of Video or Audio streaming, timely delivery of data is very important. This is called as Real-Time transmission.
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Block any Website on Computer Using C Code.....

Previously I have posted how to block USB post in computer.. C-Program to Disable & Enable USB Port..  

In this post I’m going to show you how to block any websites in computer..

DISCLAIMER: THIS POST IS EDUCATIONAL PURPOSE ONLY. DON’T FLAME ME FOR MISUSE OF THE CODE, AND USE IT ON YOUR OWN RISK.

There are many reasons why you need to know how to block a website. Some of the most common reasons are you have been targeted by spammers who use adware and popup to attack your PC. Other reasons may be to prevent user from having access to certain site.


CODE:

/* Copyright Protected by mycfiles.com
C Program to Block any website on computer */

#include<DOS.h>

#include<DIR.h>

#include<stdio.h>

#include<string.h>

#include<conio.h>

char ip[12]="127.0.0.1";

FILE *target;

int rootfinder(void);

void siteblocker(char *);

void main()

{

char name[20];

int success=0;

clrscr();

printf("Enter The web site name to be block\n");

gets(name);

success=rootfinder();

if(success)

siteblocker(name);

printf("%s is blocked",name);

getch();

}

int rootfinder()

{

int done;

struct ffblk ffblk;//File block structure

done=findfirst("C:\\windows\\system32\\drivers\\etc\\hosts",&ffblk,FA_DIREC);

/*to determine the root drive*/

if(done==0)

{

target=fopen("C:\\windows\\system32\\drivers\\etc\\hosts","r+");

/*to open the file*/

return 1;

}

else return 0;

}

void siteblocker(char *na)

{

int i;

fseek(target,0,SEEK_END); /*to move to the end of the file*/

fprintf(target,"\n");

fprintf(target,"%s\t%s\n",ip,na);

fclose(target);

}

Save the code as block_site.c and open it and compile it by Ctrl+F9. It will create a exe.
Now right click on that exe and open it with run as administrator.
Now the program will ask to enter the web site name to be block.
Enter the site name like www.site.com and press enter program will say www.site.com is blocked.

Code Analysis:
There is manual way of doing this trick
Go to C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\Etc and find the file “hosts”. Open hosts file in Notepad.
In hosts file go at the end and add the sites you want to block
Example :
127.0.0.1             www.site.com
Save the file and exit
Hosts file description
Restart your browser and try to open the site, changes will take place immediately.
This is what we are doing with above c program..

To unblock site:
To unblock sites follow the manual way and open the hosts file in notepad and delete last lines
That 127.0.0.1  www.site.com and save.

You might cannot modify the hosts file because of windows file permission issue, then
Right click on hosts files > properties > security > and to change permissions click edit then select user and check full control box and save now again open the hosts file and modify.

Note: the reason we are running program exe in run as administrator mode is because the windows file permission issue. Normal user doesn’t have full access to the system files that we can’t write anything into the file.


Hope you like the post, express your feelings about post by comments... :)

GADGETS » REVIEWS::: Hands on: Windows Phone 7.5 Mango....!!!

Microsoft's Windows Phone Mango finally hits Indian shores in the form of the Samsung Omnia W,  but will it challenge the might of Apple's iOS and Google's Android? Will the OS war overtake the tablet war?

Microsoft would have us believe that the Mango build will rectify the deficiencies of Windows Phone 7. How much truth is there in this claim? We'll find out here.

From its inception, Windows Phone 7 was a head-turner with the Metro UI generating a lot of positive press. However, it's good looks couldn't make up for the deficiency of functionality which included no copy-paste, average enterprise E-mail and almost no apps to speak off in the original build.

Now that Microsoft has added more than 500 new features, Windows Phone is a much more complete and secure option for someone hunting for a high tech mobile device. Aside from this, a Nokia partnership not only guarantees a state of the art flagship Windows Mobile device line-up, but also an apps ecosystem.

500 new features may sound cool on paper but, trust us, most will care only for about 5 or 7 top nuggets, as most of the other enhancements are under the hood.

We made few key observations about Microsoft new smartphone platform:

Not a Dual Core universe:
How does one determine if it's a flagship smartphone? Size? No. Camera? No. Memory? No. Display? Maybe. Dual-Core CPU? Yes. At least all these tech terms matter for Android, maybe even for the iPhone, but not for the latest generation of Windows Phone Mango devices.

No support for dual-core hardware does not mean "below par performance", it just means Windows Phone devices don't need them! These puppies just fly, like the iPhone. Scrolling is super smooth, multitasking is fluid and battery life remains good, much better than the dual-core army of Androids.

While Microsoft is not making its own Windows Phone hardware, it is very picky about the requirements for Windows Phone Mango, which include a minimum of 384 MB RAM, a minimum 4 GB flash drive, minimum resolution of 800x480 and Qualcomm CPUs. This means Microsoft's platform will not face the type of fragmentation Android goes through by being present in multiple price segments. Minimum requirements also ensure that user experience will be consistent across all devices, which is another plus mark for Windows Phone.

Even our test subject, which is currently the most advanced Windows Phone device, boasted of a 1.4Ghz Qualcomm CPU, 512 MB RAM, 8GB internal memory and a 3.7-inch Super AMOLED+ display.

On the flip side of things the no go for dual-core hardware means no 1080p video support and also reduces the spec sheet bragging rights, which is pretty annoying.

Whatever Microsoft thinks, dual-core architecture has to be supported soon or later because the buzzwords are the ones that attract consumers. At the moment Android is doing it pretty well and, heck, even Apple is following suit. Seriously, does any iPhone user feel underpowered? We don't think so but that hasn't stopped Apple from launching dual-core architectures like the one seen in the iPad 2.

It's still a Metro world:
With the sheer dearth of Windows Phone devices in the country, we just felt the need to add this. For those who don't know, Windows Phone does not share any legacy with the erstwhile Windows Mobile platform. The new operating system brings forth the Metro UI which has now been further enhanced in the Mango build.

The UI follows Microsoft's "Glance and Go" mantra. It is divided into two - The main screen being flooded with Tiles and a Scrolled selection of all apps. Tiles are basically large geometric icons, which also offer a bit of information, keeping in with the Glance and Go philosophy. The Tiles offer a middle ground between Apple's icon heavy interface and Android's widget friendly homescreens. 

Microsoft calls these "live tiles", actually amongst the 500 Mango updates, the Live Tiles are also in for an update. Nothing major here, apart from the Tiles offering more information and more frequently, making them livelier.

Microsoft truly believes in Metro - they even put it at the fore in Windows 8 - but for the layman its something absolutely new, for some even a wee bit alien. For Microsoft's sake that's something users will need to come to terms with, if Windows Phone is to succeed as a mobile OS.

Smart Multitasker:
Back in October last year, when Windows Phone was released, it had no multi-tasking. We were struck by this while reviewing the Dell Venue Pro - was Microsoft living in the dark ages? How could a modern mobile OS survive without multitasking?

Well, then came, the NO-DO update, which kind of added a halfhearted attempt at multi-tasking.

Good sense prevailed with someone at Microsoft because now Mango is in the big league - all that one has to do is long press the back key and a webOS style card menu pops up enabling us to scroll through the various open apps.

Microsoft follows the Apple path and opts to suspend apps rather than keeping them open which is the implementation followed by Android. This ensures better battery life and, in our experience, app switching which was very smooth - we could quickly switch between a game and the Facebook app, for instance.

Mango is a Socialite:
This one is a biggie. In a nutshell, from being the worst OS for social networking, Mango Windows Phone becomes the best by far. Even with iOS 5 and its built in Twitter integration, Windows Phone will reign supreme for some time to come - unless, of course Google pulls a rabbit out of it's hat and unleashes something mind-blowing in Ice Cream Sandwich.

Aside from integration with Facebook, Twitter, E-mail and Windows Live, the highlight is the "People Hub". It's your one stop to all social information. It's just like the Friends Stream on HTC devices but much cooler and, more importantly, unlike Friends Stream it's a feature that's Microsoft has added in the OS from the ground up.

Everything is very neatly organized, but we would have preferred better Twitter integration. Power users will demand more control over their posts and here is where Mango's integration fails. At present, frequent Tweeters need a dedicated client but, nonetheless, we like what we have seen though there's room for improvement.

Twitter is not perfect but Facebook comes very close - we did not even need to touch the extremely attractive app Facebook has built for Windows Phone.  All the functionalities we are used to in a Facebook app can be had through Microsoft's integrated solution.

Besides these implementations, the People Hub also manages to organize our contacts very neatly. It automatically configures groups such as co-workers, family and so on; it even rearranges information in our news feed accordingly.

Apart from this, we also have solid camera integration and a hub called the Me Hub which just like the People Hub and is the one stop all for personal information.

Inspite of its kinks, Windows Phone Mango now provides the best out of the box social networking experience on a mobile platform, which is feat neither Android nor Apple can compete with.

Google+ is conspicuous by its absence and that's just not going to change until the big G comes up with an app on its own.

Email and Messenger:
Originally, Windows Phone did not even support threaded conversations. Now, we can actually have a conversation with someone on Facebook and seamlessly switch to Windows Messenger or SMS all on the same thread. That's what we call integration.

We can now have multiple inboxes secured in one tile rather than have a separate tile for each and every inbox.

Apart from this there are "Conversation" style threads seen in the messaging app. Now we don't need to go through a labyrinth of mails in a clutter mailbox, we can just find the one in question through the Conversation.

Bing, Bing and Bing:
As Steve Ballmer likes to put it, Windows Phone Mango is all about Bing, Bing and Bing! Be it Bing Maps, Bing Search, Bing Vision or the Bing powered Local Scout feature, there's no doubt who's the star on Windows Phone Mango.

So, with Bing Maps we get turn-by-turn voice navigation, which was a no show in the Windows Phone 7. Is it better than Google Maps? No. But it is a much improved product. In the US it might be a decent competitor to Google Maps but in India it still needs some catching up to do, but one can't blame Microsoft for pushing its own solution. Early adopters should not fret because this ever improving product is now going to get some Nav-tech enhancements courtesy the Nokia deal which might just give it the added oomph when it goes head to head against Google Maps.

Bing Vision is basically Microsoft's answer to Google's Goggles. Need more information about a book, no problem just scan the barcode using Bing Vision and you are good to go. Don't know a monument, just snap a picture of the Taj Mahal and Bing Vision will do the rest. It's not as extensive or exhaustive as Goggles but there is no reason it cannot become better.

There is even a "Places" like app called Local Scout. Need to find the nearest Barista? No problem. Local Scout taps in Bing Maps and finds you the nearest one.

Apart from all these added features there is obviously Bing Search at the core. The search key takes us to Bing Search and it is closely tied in within each and every app. Now that's what we call integration.

Explore the web with Internet Explorer 9:
With Mango, we get a new version of IE which features GPU acceleration, sandboxing of tabs, support for HTML5, CSS3, SV, XHTML, DOM and more along with a faster java script. All this jargon basically converts to a much smoother and faster browsing experience.

Microsoft Office is king again:
One of the few strengths of Microsoft's now Ex-Mobile platform, Windows Mobile, was the way it handled Office documents. Windows Phone had thrown that great legacy of smartness into the gutter. Fortunately, Microsoft Office makes a strong comeback in Mango, which includes tight Office 365 and SkyDrive implementation.

New to Mango is the sublime integration of Office 365 with SkyDrive. Previously, we could sync OneNote files and now Mango allows us to save Word, Excel and PowerPoint as well as gives us access to Sharepoint. Google Docs are good for personal use, but the moment you touch Enterprise Microsoft is king and here is where Mango rules.

In fact, Microsoft has really bumped up the functionality in Word and Excel. We get a myriad of templates, just like on Pages and Numbers on the iPhone. With these, both the apps really do look the part and offer enhanced functionality, rather than being some souped up version of a Documents 2 Go.

But the key out here is tight integration with the Cloud, that's where the corporate customer is going root to for Windows. Unlike Apple, Microsoft does not have an iCloud for music but we would not be surprised if something of that sort comes in the next build called "Tango".

Marketplace, shop till you drop:
While there is nothing exceptionally new about the Marketplace, we must mention that as Mango launches in India, the Marketplace offers more than 30,000 apps which in itself is quite a substantial number but falters the moment we speak of the iPhone 450,000 apps and Android's 300,00 apps.

Many are of the opinion that this dearth of apps is Mango's Achilles' heel and for the most part we agree. On the brighter side of things, though, Windows Phone now has most of the top apps people generally install when they purchase a smartphone.

Microsoft has also added a Web Marketplace, which behaves just like the Android Market place. It's always connected to our Windows Live account and the moment we click buy, it beams the app directly to our device.

And some more cool stuff:
Mango also brings features like Internet Sharing, Visual VoiceMail, and an updated Zune player and music controls for homescreen.

Internet Sharing is pretty self-explanatory. Just like Android, we can now tether our 3G signal to other devices, though this feature is restricted to newer devices. Devices which get upgraded to Mango will not have this feature.

Redmond had touted Visual Voice Mail as a big feature, but this functionality is absolutely useless to the Indian customer as none of the operators support it yet.

Now that Zune is also updated, it can take out bios of artists that you are listening to and it can also be controlled from the homescreen itself as a control pane appears if music is being played in the background.

Support for Video Chat has not been officially announced but Mango has built in APIs, which can be utilized by video chat apps like Skype.

Verdict:
As with our Windows 8 hands on, we see a lot of potential for Mango. Mango incorporates some of the best features of Apple's iOS and Google's Android and presents them in a fresh unique interface. Besides this, Microsoft also manages to break ground in terms of Social Networking integration, and rekindles it's enterprise mojo with Office 365 and SkyDrive.

There is no doubt that Windows Phone is now a contender, especially with Nokia leading the way. Having said that, compelling an option though it be, it still does not give many users a reason too change. At the same time, it is hampered by a dearth of apps and negative press for its creators. Reaching the big league was the easy part - now begins the tough bit of beating the might of iOS and Android.