April, 2013 - Softonic English

How to use Messenger Reviver 2

Are you displeased about Microsoft’s transition from Windows Live Messenger to Skype? On April 8th, all Messenger users (except those in mainland China) were forced to migrate to Skype. Thankfully there is a solution for those yearning to use Messenger again. Messenger Reviver 2 allows you to patch or reinstall fully functional versions of Windows Live Messenger.

Note that this is not a permanent solution as Microsoft still plans to fully discontinue Messenger and all of its services at a later date (estimated around March 2014). Messenger Reviver 2 is also an unofficial app, so it is possible that Microsoft will block this workaround in the future. In any case you should also check our complete guide to moving from Messenger to Skype. Also consider other alternatives such as Google Talk and Facebook Messenger.

We’ll show you how to use Messenger Reviver 2 and get Windows Messenger running again.
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Call of Duty: Ghosts out on Nov. 5th, according to leaked poster

GameSpot leaked a promotional poster for the game, Call of Duty: Ghosts, a day before its rumored announcement. The poster shows off the cover art we’re all familiar with now along with a release of “11.5.13.” The poster is apparently part of a pre-order exclusive for GameSpot.

Yesterday, Activision launched a teaser site for the mysterious Call of Duty: Ghosts game, which revealed that the story will indeed involve Lieutenant Simon “Ghost” Riley. The iconic skull mask is a dead giveaway of Riley’s character, who first made an appearance in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in 2009. The leaked poster also confirms that game developer Infinity Ward is developing Ghosts.

UK retailer, Tesco, accidentally leaked product pages for Ghosts last week, which showed a generic release date of December 30th. A November 5th release makes sense for a holiday release. The Tesco leak showed versions for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, and PC. We expect an official announcement about Call of Duty: Ghosts tomorrow.

Check out the leaked poster below. Continue reading “Call of Duty: Ghosts out on Nov. 5th, according to leaked poster”

Vine 1.1 update brings support for mentions, front-facing camera

Twitter’s popular Vine video app is getting a small update to version 1.1 today. Users can look forward to recording video with a front-facing camera and support for mentions.

Previously, the Vine app for iOS only allowed recording video with the rear facing camera, making it difficult to record yourself. Now users can swap between the front and rear-facing cameras to record video. There is a new camera switch button at the bottom left corner of the app.

Vine also supports mentions, letting you tag your friends in your Vine posts. To tag someone, use the “@” sign and start typing your friend’s name. A list of possible friends will show up at the bottom. It works much the same as tagging on Twitter.

You can download the Vine update here on Softonic.

Source: Vine Blog | Download: Softonic

Facebook beta for Windows Phone ditches ‘Metro’ design

The current Facebook app for Windows Phone isn’t very good. That’s why Microsoft is launching a new beta version of Facebook for Windows Phone 8. Users will be able to try out the latest features like support for high-resolution photos, sharing posts, and the new Facebook Timeline. Microsoft wants those who download the Facebook beta to provide feedback about issues and features users want to see in the final version. There’s a dedicated feedback button to quickly send the development team your comments and requests.

The old app was styled after Microsoft’s “Metro” design language, which featured a column interface that you could swipe between. The Facebook beta uses the same design language that the Android and iOS apps already share. There’s a menu button at the top to access the navigation sidebar, which gives users sections for the News Feed, Messages, Events, and Friends list.

The complete redesign of Facebook for Windows Phone comes after the Twitter app also ditched its “Metro” styling back in February. It seems Microsoft is becoming less strict with the design language of third party applications.

You can download the Facebook beta for Windows Phone 8 here on Softonic.

Skype gets Video Messaging in latest Windows beta

Skype began testing its Video Messages feature back in February on Mac, Android, and iOS. Today the feature makes its debut on the Windows platform in the latest beta for Skype. Microsoft is giving Windows 7 and Windows 8 desktop users a preview of the new feature. The Windows 8 “Metro” version of Skype currently doesn’t support sending Video Messages (Windows 8 and Windows Phone users can receive video messages) but that feature is coming soon, according to Skype’s blog post.

Video Messages is still in testing but users can send up to 20 Video Messages per month before having to sign up for Skype Premium for $4.99 a month to continue using the feature.

You can download the latest Skype desktop beta for Windows 7 or Windows 8 here and try out Video Messages yourself.

Source: Skype Blog | Download: Softonic

Yahoo! Android app integrates Summly

Last week, Yahoo! updated its iOS application to integrate Summly, a technology that trims stories down into digestible summaries. Today, the company released a Yahoo! app for Android that looks and functions just like the iOS version. Yahoo! is trying hard to keep the user experience consistent across all of its properties with web app, Android, and iOS versions working and looking the same.

While Summly is integrated into the Android Yahoo! app, there’s no mention of the service on the program page or anywhere within the app. It seems that Yahoo! is phasing out the Summly brand and just integrating its technology into its products. The summaries that Summly provides for the Yahoo! app work well and help readers breeze through headlines.

Other features in the Yahoo! for Android app are the ability to share stories via email, Facebook, or Twitter. As with the iOS app, users can specify the topics they’re interested in to create a personalized news experience. There’s also quick links to other Yahoo! apps.

Both Yahoo! apps for Android and iOS are only available within the United States at the moment but that could change in the upcoming weeks. You can download the Android and iOS versions right here on Softonic.

New GTA V trailers: Franklin, Kevin and Trevor

Rockstar has released three new Grand Theft Auto V trailers today. In them, we learn more about the lives of our three protagonists: Michael, Franklin and Kevin.
You can also now sign up for GTA’s Scientology-baiting Epsilon Program religion/cult, at its website. It’s not clear what signing up is for, and you need to provide your photo. The terms and conditions state very strongly that it is no kind of competition, but if you want to keep up with the campaign for Grand Theft Auto V, signing up should be a no-brainer!

The trailers went live at 11am PST (4pm GMT). Watch below:

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For more on GTA V, check out all our coverage here.

A Twitter app for Google Glass is found

A Twitter for Glass app has been discovered by TechCrunch, via a since deleted tweet. The quick deletion of the tweet and account suggest it was an official app in development that was supposed to be a secret.

The Twitter for Glass app seems to allow you to directly tweet images, whereas the default Glass settings upload everything to Google+. We’ve already seen evidence of Google Games and The New York Times apps for Glass, and we expect to hear about more core web services getting apps for Google’s wearable technology over the next year.

Glass is not expected for public release until 2014, but in the meantime we will certainly hear more about how Twitter and Facebook intend to make use of this new technology. Sharing photos is the most obvious feature, but there will hopefully be more unusual and surprising things developers will find to do with Glass.

[source: TechCrunch]

Skype is coming to Outlook.com

The new Outlook.com will soon integrate Skype video calls, beginning with some users in the UK, and then the US. The migration of users from Windows Live Messenger to Skype always implied that the latter would also come to Outlook, which uses Messenger as its chat service.

Microsoft will gradually roll out Skype integration to all Outlook.com users while it is being improved, based on feedback from the small scale tests. Using Skype in Outlook.com will require a plug-in installed in your browser. As with the Messenger hand over, Skype will integrate your Messenger and Skype contacts, making them all available in your People tab.

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More rumors point to new look for iOS 7

Since Jonathan Ive became responsible for human interface design at Apple, we have been expecting a change in the style of the interfaces in iOS. New rumors published by 9to5Mac suggest that iOS7 will indeed be much flatter and minimalist, like the design of their devices.

iOS has looked more or less the same since appearing in 2007, and while it’s incredibly easy to use and has been very influential, it no longer looks very modern. Microsoft’s Windows redesign has given it a much fresher and bold look, and it seems the time is right for a flatter, more streamlined design.

According to sources in Apple, iOS 7 will be very different to iOS 6, but still has the ‘no-learning curve’ feel that makes it easy to pick up. There will be all new icons for Apple apps, and new interfaces. Leather stitching and metal sheens will go, replaced by a cleaner, more functional design.

These are only rumors, but as we’ve already seen with the Podcasts app, it does seem like Jonathan Ive is having a direct effect on interface design, bringing his industrial design philosophy to Apple software. Big changes are unusual in Apple though, which has always favored incremental improvement over radical changes. I would expect an overall cleaner, flatter look to iOS 7, but no big fundamental changes to how the operating system works.

We expect to find out a lot more at Apple’s World Wide Developers Conference in June.

[source 9to5Mac]