What does the Fox say?

Professional Engineer & PE Exam Forum

Help Support Professional Engineer & PE Exam Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I know there aren't many fans of Microsoft here, but if you are interested in obtaining a FREE* copy of Windows 10, take a look at the link below. I've been running it on my media PC for probably over a year now and it's pretty good. Definitely worked a lot of the quirks out that came up in Win 8/8.1 (i.e. the start menu is back). And free is not a bad deal. Only stipulation for the free upgrade is that users have Win 7 or 8/8.1.

http://www.maximumpc.com/windows-10-arriving-on-july-29th/

Microsoft today announced that Windows 10 will be arriving officially on July 29th. The software giant previously gave hints that Windows 10 would launch in the summer time frame and AMD CEO Lisa Su indicated likewise, but now users have a date to look forward to.


Users of Windows 7 and 8.1 are also receiving taskbar notifications of a free upgrade to Windows 10. Microsoft is pushing Windows 10 as an even bigger release than Windows 8 was, and you'll be able to upgrade to the same SKU (example: Home edition to Home edition) for free. Of course, if you're willing to pony up for more features, other SKUs will be available too.

There were previous indications from Microsoft that users with pirated copies of Windows 7 and 8.1 would have "attractive" options for getting Windows 10, but no confirmed word yet on what those options are. Although we're pretty certain that if you're pirating Windows already, Windows 10 will be "free" for you anyway.

Some notable features of Windows 10:

- Edge, Microsoft's new browser

- Cortana, digital assistant

- Xbox Live and integrated Xbox app, stream games from Xbox One

- Windows Continuum, flip between desktop/laptop/tablet modes

- DirectX 12

- Start menu


I'm late to the party, but even historically not being a MS fan I think this was a good move. This is what they SHOULD have done with XP as well; if you're going to stop supporting one of your major products, you should offer something to those customers. In the past MS had such a monopoly they didn't have to care because people didn't have a choice but to do what they said, but these days I think they are starting to realize the threat of competition from smart phones and tablets and realize they have to be more customer friendly. The days of the old dictatorial behemoth may be over.

 
Damn, I'm still running XP.


jim-head-shake.gif


 
Fox,

Got a new motorola maxx for work.(had a RAZR before but the battery got really weak recently) What do you suggest I add to it to make it more customizable?

I hate the fact that I can't get rid of blank screens left of the home screen and I liked being able to swipe left to get directly to my settings with my old droid. I know there are some apps out there but I don't want to guess and load my phone up with junk... Any help is greatly appreciated! :)

 
I'm thinking about getting a tablet. Mainly a Samsung so it can sync up with my phone. Thought? Comments? Suggestions?

 
I have a Nexus 7. I like it. Boss' wife has a Samsung - pretty similar, the Nexus was faster but had better specs than the model he ordered for her. I like both better than the iPad.

 
The Fox thread is blowing up today! Nice!

Fox,

Got a new motorola maxx for work.(had a RAZR before but the battery got really weak recently) What do you suggest I add to it to make it more customizable?

I hate the fact that I can't get rid of blank screens left of the home screen and I liked being able to swipe left to get directly to my settings with my old droid. I know there are some apps out there but I don't want to guess and load my phone up with junk... Any help is greatly appreciated! :)
Have a read through this article. Some useful information. You should be able to customize your home screens and/or arrange them as you see fit. But I believe there's a minimum of 4 that you have to maintain. If any are blank, just get a live wallpaper or something with your phone stats that will utilize the open space. Here's another regarding home screens:

http://www.androidcentral.com/how-add-and-arrange-home-screens-android-44-kitkat

I don't think that this is the exact one we got, but something like this. For all you travlers out there, it's pretty nifty for when you are in areas that you can't utilize the tv in a hotel room.

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/productID.296446600?srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=37-60234380-2&WT.mc_id=US_datafeed_Google
Wow, that's expensive. Another more economical option is the NVidia Shield gaming tablet. Excellent specs and super compact. Comes with a great XBox like controller too. And for in-room TV that sucks, just bring a ChromeCast, Amazon Fire Stick, or Roku 3. ;)

I'm thinking about getting a tablet. Mainly a Samsung so it can sync up with my phone. Thought? Comments? Suggestions?
I just recently purchased the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4" tablet for LadyFox for her b-day. She loves it, and it syncs up everything with her S4/Google account. Screen is amazing. Before that she had the Nexus 7 (1st Gen). I have the Nexus 7 (2nd Gen) but probably haven't turned it on since Jan. Thanks grad school.

I have a Nexus 7. I like it. Boss' wife has a Samsung - pretty similar, the Nexus was faster but had better specs than the model he ordered for her. I like both better than the iPad.
:plusone:

 
Last edited by a moderator:
I don't think that this is the exact one we got, but something like this. For all you travlers out there, it's pretty nifty for when you are in areas that you can't utilize the tv in a hotel room.

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/productID.296446600?srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=37-60234380-2&WT.mc_id=US_datafeed_Google
Wow, that's expensive. Another more economical option is the NVidia Shield gaming tablet. Excellent specs and super compact. Comes with a great XBox like controller too. And for in-room TV that sucks, just bring a ChromeCast, Amazon Fire Stick, or Roku 3.
Ummm, think about WHERE some of the trips i've mentioned are to off line and for how long. And when I say in room tv that sucks, I am saying- tube tv with no ports that has one channel in english and no wireless network for miles...

 
I don't think that this is the exact one we got, but something like this. For all you travlers out there, it's pretty nifty for when you are in areas that you can't utilize the tv in a hotel room.

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/productID.296446600?srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=37-60234380-2&WT.mc_id=US_datafeed_Google
Wow, that's expensive. Another more economical option is the NVidia Shield gaming tablet. Excellent specs and super compact. Comes with a great XBox like controller too. And for in-room TV that sucks, just bring a ChromeCast, Amazon Fire Stick, or Roku 3.
Ummm, think about WHERE some of the trips i've mentioned are to off line and for how long. And when I say in room tv that sucks, I am saying- tube tv with no ports that has one channel in english and no wireless network for miles...
Not even a coaxial port? :huh:

A hot-spot can also be used. And on some of the newer devices, you can actually cache some of the shows on the actual device so no data connection is needed. Or with the Roku, you can connect an external drive and play your shows that way as well. There are ways EG.....ways of the Force. ;)

 
Last edited by a moderator:
I don't think that this is the exact one we got, but something like this. For all you travlers out there, it's pretty nifty for when you are in areas that you can't utilize the tv in a hotel room.

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/productID.296446600?srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=37-60234380-2&WT.mc_id=US_datafeed_Google
Wow, that's expensive. Another more economical option is the NVidia Shield gaming tablet. Excellent specs and super compact. Comes with a great XBox like controller too. And for in-room TV that sucks, just bring a ChromeCast, Amazon Fire Stick, or Roku 3.
Ummm, think about WHERE some of the trips i've mentioned are to off line and for how long. And when I say in room tv that sucks, I am saying- tube tv with no ports that has one channel in english and no wireless network for miles...
Not even a coaxial port? :huh:

A hot-spot can also be used. And on some of the newer devices, you can actually cache some of the shows on the actual device so no data connection is needed. Or with the Roku, you can connect an external drive and play your shows that way as well. There are ways EG.....ways of the Force. ;)
you never know what you are going to walk into, you bring what you have and sometimes you can use it and sometimes you can't. (and we have the hot-spot, but international data can get expensive and it can still be spotty depending on where you are)

 
WHY THE HELL DOES ANY BUSINESS BUY IPADS?!

This seemed like a good place to drop this.

F-ing worthless, glorified e-mail checkers. I NEED TO INSTALL THINGS AND NOT GO THROUGH THE APP STORE! This is like AOL circa 1999!

 
^ yup. They are not geared for "practical" business use in my opinion with how restricted they are. LadyFox's company found a deal on them to be used to record field data. They ended up returning all of them for things as simple as not being able to print or open media files up without having to go thru F-iTunes.

I'm not saying they're awful for everyone, but for what you've described, I've heard quite a few similar complaints.

 
We used to have a PM in the company who I F*CKING HATED. The guy was an absolute weasel, would tank a project by claiming credit for work not performed, and then job hop so the successor was the one that took the hit.

He had his company-issued iPad with him which our IT group had loaded with a GPS-based version of SmartPlant 3D, so if you were walking down a pipe system, you could hold your iPad up real-time and confirm that pipe, valves, and supports were located and oriented correctly. He sat there trying to show it off during a meeting as he twirled his iPad around his head.

He got ROYALLY pissed when I commented "that would be a lot more useful on your projects in the event that you ever actually installed anything" in front of the company's process improvement manager. One of my bosses starting dying laughing, the other just buried his face in his hands and started shaking his head. Whoops.

 
Back
Top