NewSaurus

The character action genre hasn't been this stylish or crazy in a good long while

There's enough combat variety here to support multiple playthroughs.

The reborn Devil May Cry from Ninja Theory exemplifies what it is to really get down in the dirt and reimagine a hallowed franchise from the ground up, bringing back only the broadest character traits and relationships but leaving behind everything else about the old that gets in the way of creating a singular, cohesive new. Names like Dante, Vergil, and Mundus return, but the world they inhabit and the roles they play out are only passingly similar to what you knew of them before. Everything in this new game exists in service of making it a great game in its own right, not in stoking your nostalgia for the games you played over the last decade. As a character action game, it hits all the notes--fast, robust action, marvelous visual style, and a tremendous sense of attitude--you could want in this type of game.
To be fair, on paper, everything about Devil May Cry sounds like the tritest video game pap: a bloody war between angels and devils, endless hordes of demonic enemies straight from your favorite '80s heavy metal album art, and all of it punctuated by Scandinavian "hellektro" outfit Combichrist's thudding soundtrack. And then there's Dante, remade in the image of a club-kid layabout who's so sneeringly self-satisfied he defies any attempt you might make to identify with him. I pretty much went into the game consciously expecting to hate all of this, or at least view it as the sort of eye-rolling embarrassment video games are usually so good at delivering.
Then, oddly, I started feeling a guilty pleasure at how much I was actually enjoying the spectacle. Then later I gave up the guilt and just flung myself wholeheartedly into the cyclone of nonsense. I think it became easy to like Devil May Cry because it seems somewhat aware of itself; the game is so damn committed to having fun with its absurdity, you can't help having fun along with it. Dante may be a smirking wiseass, but his lines are witty enough and delivered with so much panache, you quickly grow to like him anyway. And he makes a great foil for his brother Vergil, who's more of an uppity, refined ideologue fighting the good fight against the demons. Dante talks a constant stream of shit to Vergil and just about anyone else who gets in his way, and there's something uncomfortable and a little dissonant about a 50-foot ancient grub-demon screeching "FUCK YOOOOOUUUUU!!!" right back at him. The best sort of dumb fun is the kind that knows how dumb it is, and I consistently got the sense from Devil May Cry knew that the entire time I was playing it.

When acting is required, it's amazing how effective real actors can be.

The game also knows when to rein it in, though. After the dramatic triumph of Ninja Theory's last game, Enslaved, it shouldn't surprise you that I'm back to devote another paragraph to the characters' performances in this game, which do so much to sell what, again, probably should have been a complete joke of a storyline. Where Enslaved had a lot of heart, Devil May Cry offers an equal amount of middle finger, but it still manages to lend an appreciable level of gravitas and some occasional poignance to its tale of saving the world from demons who have enslaved the human race with... soda. As before, the success at selling you on the plot simply comes down to all the subtle eye movements and shoulder shrugs and skilled line reads that add up to real, believable performances, the kind of thing you get when you go into a performance-capture facility and fill it with people who can, you know, act. That the characters here do so much to uplift Devil May Cry's ridiculous premise is a testament to both the capability of performance-capture technology and Ninja Theory's use of it.
Lest we forget this is also a video game: Devil May Cry is in fact a greatly entertaining character action game, as fast-paced and diverse as I could have wanted. The game starts you off with Dante's familiar sword and dual pistols, but you quickly start to collect angel and demon weapons, which fill light and heavy attack categories respectively. Switching between melee weapons, and the three firearms you end up with, just takes a tap of the d-pad. You only have a single attack button which wields your sword by default, and you switch to the equipped angel or devil weapon instantly by holding the left or right trigger and hitting that same button. The game finds a lot of interesting ways to make you stay on your toes, with enemies that only fully coalesce when one type of weapon is equipped, or floors that will hurt you if you aren't holding the same-colored weapon. More importantly, if you're quick enough, it's possible to involve three, four, or five different weapons in a single combo, and the game is constantly running a tally on the side of the screen rating how stylishly you're fighting, all the way up to triple-S.
The more style you rack up, the more new abilities and moves you can unlock (from a list of dozens), and since you lose a couple of letter grades every time you get hit, you're really incentivized to play as cleanly as possible. The combat isn't overwhelmingly hard on the default difficulty, though it isn't a cakewalk, but if you're really serious about this kind of game, play it on hard from the outset. There are another four difficulty levels waiting for you to unlock them after that. The game is built to be replayed repeatedly; you can jump back into any mission on any difficulty whenever, and there are plenty of places you just can't access without the right abilities the first time through. All of your completion totals get rated and slapped onto leaderboards if you want to keep up with how your friends are doing. In short, the between-mission trappings, the glue that holds the levels themselves together, feel thoroughly modern in this game.

The inventive visual and level design just keeps on coming.

Since all the action takes place in a demonic mirror world called Limbo, the designers get to go wild with the sorts of places you're fighting in, and the game is constantly turning your expectations (and the levels) upside down by placing you in skewed, exploded, or otherwise deconstructed versions of city streets, mansions, night clubs, and a few more unlikely environments I'll leave to you to discover. While this sort of level design has started to feel a little played out since games like American McGee's Alice made it popular ages ago, I was constantly surprised and delighted by the sheer, over-the-top inventiveness of the levels in this game. There's also a degree of grappling-hook-style traversal, and a few creative moments that emphasize the relationship between Limbo and the real world, that make the game feel like more than a constant stream of enemy encounters. And the game is absolutely awash in dazzling visual presentation. I won't go too deep into that, because it's better absorbed firsthand, but the broad and ever-changing color palette, the ways the level geometry explodes and deforms around you, the titles and overlays that pop up on the screen to enhance the action, all combine to make this game a great venue for its artists to display their talents.
I brought no personal baggage to Ninja Theory's take on Devil May Cry, having played and enjoyed the original game way back when but then steering clear of the series after its poorly received second entry. Whether you're a longtime fan (with an open mind) or a total newcomer just looking for a solid character action game, it's hard to imagine anyone feeling overly dissatisfied with this new game. It's almost wholly successful at what it tries to do, and seems like the start of a promising new direction for what was otherwise a nearly forgotten franchise.

Source :- By Brad Shoemaker on ww.giantbomb.com, www.wikipedia.com

Microsoft is today putting an end to the vulnerability found in old versions of Internet Explorer (6-8) that allowed an attacker to execute harmful code in a target computer, if the user was tricked by a specially crafted website.

Soon after the security hole was found, the software giant quickly made available a temporary workaround in a form of patch that they call “Fix it”. However, the security update released today should permanently close the door, for good, to this issue.

The company reports that only a small number of users have been affected by the exploit, but acknowledges that if could potentially affect more users in the future. Because of its future impact the update has been labeled as “Critical” and it will be installed automatically to all those users who have Automatic Update enabled. Microsoft also is advising users to upgrade to IE9 and 10 when possible to stay even more protected from this particular security hole.

Note that if you previously installed the “Fix it”, you don’t need to uninstall it before applying the new update, but you may want to uninstall the patch after, as it could slowdown IE start-up time.
If you prefer to manually install the Security Update (2799329), you can download it here.

Please watch the video below for an overview of this security update, and you can find more information on the Microsoft Security Bulletin summary webpage.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/showcase/details.aspx?uuid=8d179378-a767-40cd-bbfa-3203f2bba2e6

Source :- www.pureinfotech.com, www.blogs.technet.com

Internet Explorer Logo

Today in a quick response to the matter, Microsoft is rolling out two security updates to resolve the security flaws on Internet Explorer. In this Windows Update the software giant is releasing two patches: The first patch 2744842 (described in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS12-063), permanently fixes the vulnerability on IE7, IE8 and Internet Explorer 9 on Windows XP, Windows 7 and Vista respectively.

The security hole discovered late last weekend, as we mentioned before, could allow malicious users to harm Windows machines by means of spacial design of Flash animation.

The second security update (described in Microsoft Security Advisory 2755801) is to fix the Flash exploit found on Windows 8′s IE10. This was a security issue that could cause Adobe Flash to crash, while allowing unauthorized to the computer. Even though the operating system hasn’t been released, there are already many companies and people developing software with the Release to Manufacture or RTM version — Microsoft plans to make Windows 8 available to the public on October 26th, right after the launch event the day before in New York City.

The patches are now available for Windows 8, Windows 7, Vista and Windows XP via Microsoft’s Windows update service.

Source :- www.pureinfotech.com , Microsoft Security Bulletins

INTERNET EXPLORER LOGO

Days after the newly discovered weakness in Internet Explorer (versions 9, 8, 7 and 6) that could potentially put at risk a massive number of Windows PCs, Microsoft has made available a temporary resolution for the problem in form of a Windows Fix it (kb2757760), also an update scheduled to be released this Friday to permanently path the issue.

The exploit, discovered during the weekend, could allow a malware to bypass security protocols via Flash and affect XP, Vista and Windows 7 machines. In a new article the company stated that there is a fix now for it and it is easy to apply: “This is an easy, one-click solution that will help protect your computer right away. It will not affect your ability to browse the web, and it does not require a reboot of your computer.”

While the fix it (Microsoft Fix it 50939 and 50938) delivers a protection against the security hole, Microsoft recommends to IE users that it is highly important to install the forthcoming security update set for Friday via Windows Update. To get all the steps on how to install Microsoft Fix it for Internet Explorer follow these instructions.

Source :- www.pureinfotech.com

INTERNET EXPLORER LOGO

As you might have heard by now, Internet Explorer 9 down to version 6 are at risk because of a new security flaw – IE10 on Windows 8 has not been affected –. Microsoft has yet to issue a security update, but until then the company is suggesting some options to temporally deal with this bug.
About the new IE bug, well… It is a security hole that was discovered days ago and it could potentially compromise PCs running Windows 7, Vista, XP SP3 and below, if users browse malicious web pages designed to take advantage of this Internet Explorer’s weakness.

In an article from Microsoft Security Advisory the company is offering details about the problem and it is also advising users to protect themselves from this vulnerability until an update for IE is release.

Four different workaround to deal with the bug

What you should always be doing is advice first:

1>> Make sure that you have an antivirus and anti-spyware solution installed and up-to-date, and also make sure that you are using a firewall, either use the one built-in Windows or use a third-party solution.

2>> It is also suggested to install the Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit or EMET from Microsoft. The utility is designed to help protect from weakness in software being easily exploited, by adding an extra layer of security that function as an obstacle that whoever writes the malicious software must bypass first.

3>> Another option is to modify your Internet and Local Intranet security settings to High. If you want to do this. Open Control Panel, in the search box type Internet Options, from the list results open the Internet Properties, navigates to the Security tab and in the “Security level for this zone” position the slider to High for both zones. Click Apply and then OK.

4>> Active Scripting can also be used by setting it to notify in both Local Intranet and Internet. To accomplish this task once again open the Internet Properties and in the Security tab, select the Internet zone, click the Custom Level button. Then scroll down and under the Scripting section, set the Active scripting option to Prompt, and click OK. Remember to do the same for the Local Intranet zone.

According to the company these workarounds could help prevent users from loading websites that can harm their computers with this security hole.

Changing the settings will actively trigger an unpleasant message every time the user stumble upon a web page that make use of the ActiveX control prompting to allow or block the web page. However, you can always opt not to use Internet Explorer, until a fix is release. Options are all around, you can use Google Chrome or Firefox as alternative web browsers among others. This is a pretty easy thing to do if you are a normal user, but the challenge comes when companies depend on IE to access their web applications.

Source :- wwwpureinfotech.com

With no fix available yet, Microsoft has a few words of wisdom for users who don't want to be bit by the newly-discovered bug.

A malware attack exploiting Internet Explorer 9. (Credit: Rapid7)

 Users of Internet Explorer versions 6 through 9 are grappling with another security flaw without a fix, but Microsoft has a few suggestions to help shore up protection.

Uncovered this past weekend, the security hole could compromise the PCs of IE users who surf to a malicious Web site. Microsoft said it's already aware of attacks that have tried to take advantage of this weakness.

Since no fix is yet available, it's up to users of IE to protect themselves. A new Microsoft Security Advisory offers several recommendations.

To start, the usual advice always applies. Make sure you're running updated antivirus and antispyware software and that you're using a firewall, either a third-party utility or the one built into Windows.
You can also install the Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit from Microsoft. EMET tries to ward off attacks on software holes by putting up a wall of security obstacles that the malware writers must circumvent. EMET can be configured specifically for Internet Explorer as well as other applications.
Another option is to push the Internet and local Intranet security settings in IE to "high." To do this, launch Internet Explorer, click the Tools menu, and then select Internet Options. Click the Security tab and then select the Internet zone. Under the Security level for this zone, move the slider to High. Click the Local Intranet zone and again push the Security level to High.

Users can also set Active Scripting to "prompt" in both the Internet and Local Intranet zones. To do this, again select Internet Options from the Tools menu in IE. Click the Security tab. Click the Internet zone and then select Custom Level. Scroll down to the Scripting section and set Active Scripting to Prompt. Repeat the same steps for the Local Intranet zone.

As Microsoft warns, tweaking these settings could prevent access to certain Web sites.
Even changing the setting to "prompt" will trigger an annoying message anytime you hit a Web site that uses ActiveX controls asking if you want to allow or block the site.

Microsoft's own Windows update sites -- *.windowsupdate.microsoft.com and *.update.microsoft.com -- rely on ActiveX control to install available updates.

You can add sites that you trust to the Trusted sites zone through Internet Options. But this can be time-consuming since you have to add them on an individual basis.

As a result, the easiest option is to just not use Internet Explorer, at least not while this exploit remains in the wild. Individual users can switch to Firefox, Chrome, or another browser. Organizations that have standardized on Internet Explorer face a tougher challenge. So the onus now is on Microsoft to fix this hole as quickly as possible.

You can learn more about the security flaw and possible workarounds through Microsoft's Security Advisory.

 Source :- www.cnet.com by Lance Whitney

Getting familiar with keyboard shortcuts not only help you get the work done faster, but also more efficient. If your daily job rely heavily on using Windows, here are some 100+ Windows Keyboard Shortcuts you might want to check out. If there’s any nifty shortcuts we have missed, appreciate a heads up.

The General Shortcuts

We’ll kickoff the list with some really general shortcuts that you often used.

• CTRL+C (Copy)
• CTRL+X (Cut)
• CTRL+V (Paste)
• CTRL+Z (Undo)
• Delete (Delete)
• Shift+Delete (Delete the selected item permanently without placing the item in the Recycle Bin)
• CTRL while dragging an item (Copy the selected item)
• CTRL+Shift while dragging an item (Create a shortcut to the selected item)
• F2 key (Rename the selected item)
• CTRL+RIGHT ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word)
• CTRL+LEFT ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word)
• CTRL+DOWN ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph)
• CTRL+UP ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph)
• CTRL+Shift with any of the arrow keys (Highlight a block of text)
• Shift with any of the arrow keys (Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text in a document)
• CTRL+A (Select all)
• F3 key (Search for a file or a folder)
• Alt+Enter (View the properties for the selected item)
• Alt+F4 (Close the active item, or quit the active program)
• Alt+Enter (Display the properties of the selected object)
• Alt+Spacebar (Open the shortcut menu for the active window)
• CTRL+F4 (Close the active document in programs that enable you to have multiple documents open simultaneously)
• Alt+Tab (Switch between the open items)
• Alt+ESC (Cycle through items in the order that they had been opened)
• F6 key (Cycle through the screen elements in a window or on the desktop)
• F4 key (Display the Address bar list in My Computer or Windows Explorer)
• Shift+F10 (Display the shortcut menu for the selected item)
• Alt+Spacebar (Display the System menu for the active window)
• CTRL+ESC (Display the Start menu)
• Alt+Underlined letter in a menu name (Display the corresponding menu)
• Underlined letter in a command name on an open menu (Perform the corresponding command)
• F10 key (Activate the menu bar in the active program)
• RIGHT ARROW (Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu)
• LEFT ARROW (Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu)
• F5 key (Update the active window)
• Backspace (View the folder one level up in My Computer or Windows Explorer)
• ESC (Cancel the current task)
• Shift when you insert a CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive (Prevent the CD-ROM from automatically playing)

Dialog Box Keyboard Shortcuts

• CTRL+Tab (Move forward through the tabs)
• CTRL+Shift+Tab (Move backward through the tabs)
• Tab (Move forward through the options)
• Shift+Tab (Move backward through the options)
• Alt+Underlined letter (Perform the corresponding command or select the corresponding option)
• Enter (Perform the command for the active option or button)
• Spacebar (Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box)
• Arrow keys (Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons)
• F1 key (Display Help)
• F4 key (Display the items in the active list)
• Backspace (Open a folder one level up if a folder is selected in the Save As or Open dialog box)

Microsoft Natural Keyboard Shortcuts

• Win (Display or hide the Start menu)
• Win+Break (Display the System Properties dialog box)
• Win+D (Display the desktop)
• Win+M (Minimize all of the windows)
• Win+Shift+M (Restore the minimized windows)
• Win+E (Open My Computer)
• Win+F (Search for a file or a folder)
• CTRL+Win+F (Search for computers)
• Win+F1 (Display Windows Help)
• Win+ L (Lock the keyboard)
• Win+R (Open the Run dialog box)
• Win+U (Open Utility Manager)

Accessibility Keyboard Shortcuts

• Right Shift for eight seconds (Switch FilterKeys either on or off)
• Left Alt+left Shift+PRINT SCREEN (Switch High Contrast either on or off)
• Left Alt+left Shift+NUM LOCK (Switch the MouseKeys either on or off)
• Shift five times (Switch the StickyKeys either on or off)
• NUM LOCK for five seconds (Switch the ToggleKeys either on or off)
• Win +U (Open Utility Manager)

Windows Explorer Keyboard Shortcuts

• END (Display the bottom of the active window)
• HOME (Display the top of the active window)
• NUM LOCK+* (Display all of the subfolders that are under the selected folder)
• NUM LOCK++ (Display the contents of the selected folder)
• NUM LOCK+- (Collapse the selected folder)
• LEFT ARROW (Collapse the current selection if it is expanded, or select the parent folder)
• RIGHT ARROW (Display the current selection if it is collapsed, or select the first subfolder)

Shortcut Keys for Character Map

• After you double-click a character on the grid of characters, you can move through the grid by using the keyboard shortcuts:
• RIGHT ARROW (Move to the right or to the beginning of the next line)
• LEFT ARROW (Move to the left or to the end of the previous line)
• UP ARROW (Move up one row)
• DOWN ARROW (Move down one row)
• PAGE UP (Move up one screen at a time)
• PAGE DOWN (Move down one screen at a time)
• HOME (Move to the beginning of the line)
• END (Move to the end of the line)
• CTRL+HOME (Move to the first character)
• CTRL+END (Move to the last character)
• Spacebar (Switch between Enlarged and Nor mal mode when a character is selected)

Microsoft Management Console (MMC) Main Window Keyboard Shortcuts

• CTRL+O (Open a saved console)
• CTRL+N (Open a new console)
• CTRL+S (Save the open console)
• CTRL+M (Add or remove a console item)
• CTRL+W (Close window/tab)
• F5 key (Update the content of all console windows)
• Alt+Spacebar (Display the MMC window menu)
• Alt+F4 (Close the console)
• Alt+A (Display the Action menu)
• Alt+V (Display the View menu)
• Alt+F (Display the File menu)
• Alt+O (Display the Favorites menu)

MMC Console Window Keyboard Shortcuts

• CTRL+P (Print the current page or active pane)
• Alt+- (Display the window menu for the active console window)
• Shift+F10 (Display the Action shortcut menu for the selected item)
• F1 key (Open the Help topic, if any, for the selected item)
• F5 key (Update the content of all console windows)
• CTRL+F10 (Maximize the active console window)
• CTRL+F5 (Restore the active console window)
• Alt+Enter (Display the Properties dialog box, if any, for the selected item)
• F2 key (Rename the selected item)
• CTRL+F4 (Close the active console window. When a console has only one console window, this shortcut closes the console)

Remote Desktop Connection Navigation

• CTRL+Alt+END (Open the m*cro$oft Windows NT Security dialog box)
• Alt+PAGE UP (Switch between programs from left to right)
• Alt+PAGE DOWN (Switch between programs from right to left)
• Alt+INSERT (Cycle through the programs in most recently used order)
• Alt+HOME (Display the Start menu)
• CTRL+Alt+BREAK (Switch the client computer between a window and a full screen)
• Alt+Delete (Display the Windows menu)
• CTRL+Alt+- (Place a snapshot of the active window in the client on the Terminal server clipboard and provide the same functionality as pressing PRINT SCREEN on a local computer.)
• CTRL+Alt++ (Place a snapshot of the entire client window area on the Terminal server clipboard and provide the same functionality as pressing Alt+PRINT SCREEN on a local computer.)

Internet Explorer navigation

• CTRL+B (Open the Organize Favorites dialog box)
• CTRL+E (Open the Search bar)
• CTRL+F (Start the Find utility)
• CTRL+H (Open the History bar)
• CTRL+I (Open the Favorites bar)
• CTRL+L (Open the Open dialog box)
• CTRL+N (Start another instance of the browser with the same Web address)
• CTRL+O (Open the Open dialog box, the same as CTRL+L)
• CTRL+P (Open the Print dialog box)
• CTRL+R (Update the current Web page)
• CTRL+W (Close the current window)

Source :- www.hongkiat.com

Window Xp - Screenshot

Today, Tuesday, April 10th, 2012 is the day that Microsoft is ending the mainstream support for Windows Vista after five years of its release, and for Microsoft Office 2007. However, because Windows XP still a big player in the operating system world, all support is set to be terminated in about two years, together with Microsoft Office 2003.

As reported by Ars Technica, the software giant has two stages for the support lifecycle of its products:

• Mainstream: The product gets all sorts of updates, security, stability, fixes, and seldom features.
• Extended: The product only gets security updates and business have to pay for bug fixes.

This means that Windows XP and Microsoft Office 2003 are in the Extended lifecycle until the end of 2014. Windows Vista and Microsoft Office 2007 on the other hand has just joined the Extended stage and their limited support are set to be terminated in early 2017.
For more information, you can visit Microsoft’s lifecycle web page.

Source :-  www.pureinfotech.com

Ten years have passed since Windows XP was first released for general availability, and how much technology has changed since a decade ago. Looking back 10 years in past, I don’t recall streaming all of my music, watching my TV shows right from a laptop wirelessly connected to the internet, or using a flash drive in the camera to take pictures and record HD videos with a device that fits in the palm of my hand; definitely many big changes have happened.

The software giant started developing Windows XP (experience) back in 1999 under the code name Windows Neptune and it took less than 2 years to bring it to the retail stores.

Windows XP was built from the grown up to replace Windows 2000 and Windows ME. This operating system also marked the end of MS-DOS era — for many of you that may not know, previous versions of Windows such as, Windows 98, Windows 95 and Windows 3, used to run on top of MS-DOS, but starting Windows XP the operating system run independently of Microsoft Disk Operating System –.

Here is a short video where Bill Gates, Microsoft Chairman and CEO — at that time– kills MS-DOS.

In Windows XP, Microsoft introduced a new user interface, visual effects, a new theme engine. XP also was shipped bliss default wallpaper from Napa Valley landscape in California. And of course many new features were included like the ability for each user to have their own account.
Windows XP had 3 major updates, service pack 1, 2, 3, that offered tons of fixes and the addition of a number of new features such as, WPA Wi-Fi support, ad blocker for IE6, Firewall, and bluetooth support. The software maker also added the Windows System Center, which was built to alert users of security concerns like, not having an antivirus, configure Windows Updates, disabled Firewall, etc.
This 10 years old operating system dominated the computer market until recently, when Windows 7 finally surpassed its predecessor worldwide usage. But it still a long way to go, Windows 7 is installed on 40.21% of all global desktop computers in the world and Windows XP is in second place with 38.64%, according to StatCounter. Now after many time of postponing, Microsoft is scheduled to end the support of Windows XP and Office 2003 by April, 2014. In this 10 year anniversary Microsoft is also urging users to move to Windows 7.

Microsoft now is in a new quest to reinvent Windows “without compromises” with Windows 8. This is a new operating system that features hundreds of new improvements, a new Start screen that replaces the classic Start menu, designed that is almost a carbon copy of the company’s Windows Phone OS. The software maker is also going to allow application developers to write Metro style apps in almost any language, including HTML, that will interact with the Start screen and the OS. This new redesign also opens the door for Microsoft to finally compete head-to-head with Apple and Google in the tablets market, something that the company could not yet achieve — If you want to learn more about the up coming operating system, check out our Windows 8 spot.

 Check out this infographic to find out more:



Source :- www.pureinfotech.com, www.blogs.windows.com

A Dreamweaver user will definitely reckon what a powerhouse it is. Packed with tonnes of features, options and debatably one among the most well known IDE (Integrated Development Environment) in today’s market. It may not meet the criteria that some developers demanded however, Dreamweaver undeniably provides a decent range of development, collaborating and coding tools. These options and tools are hidden under layers of regrettable less intuitive menus, which is why we are providing tutorials in today’s post.

We will show you some of the most powerful functions of Dreamweaver to assist your access them quickly, along with many other helpful tricks that will lubricate you development time and improve your code quality significantly. Full list after jump.

1. Dynamic View with “Live View”

We already know that DW offers a static view of our open files, but what about "dynamic views" of an application such as WordPress?
First, we need to tell DW what settings to use to present our"dynamic views" correctly. To do this, select HTTP Request Settings from the View > Live View Options menu, then enter the GET or POST parameters you need to view your application correctly.
Then by switching to Live View in DW, it replaces the old Design View pane with a live, pixel-perfect WebKit rendering of your page; complete with live Javascript, DOM manipulations, database queries, server-side code, and rendered CSS, rather than the placeholder icons you see in Design View.

2. "Code Navigator" is DW’s Firebug

Taking it a step further is all about the Code Navigator and when in the Live View window, ALT-clicking (Command-Option-clicking for Mac) anywhere in the window, instantly presents the code that rendered that item. Similar to what you might currently see in Firefox/Firebug.

3. Freezing JavaScript

Due to the dynamic nature of Ajax, many times we need to interact with a page where certain items are not rendered or available on first page load. These are items that are injected into the page some time after page load. Here’s an example:
You might want to change the styling of a tool tip that is implemented entirely in JavaScript. Before today, you’d have to methodically search your way through your scripts to find what was being created and where.
Instead, try this:
Render your page in Live View, then hit F6 to Freeze JavaScript at any time, allowing you to target and dissect the code relating to any dynamic item in the page.

4. Live View’s Next Best Friend – "Live Code"

When using Live View, you can also turn on Live Code. Live Code will update your code as you hover, click and interact with elements and items in the Live View window!

5. Automatic JavaScript Completion

Dreamweaver comes with an intelligent and complete HTML and CSS code completion, but what about Javascripts? If you code jQuery or Prototype in Dreamweaver, then you should know there are API extensions that provide Javascript code completion. It reduces the typing needed and can come in pretty handy for fast coders.
Click here to read more, or download:

• jQuery API extension for Dreamweaver
• Prototype API extension for Dreamweaver

6. Beautify Codes On The Fly

Does your code page look like unorganized, messy lines of code? Use the Apply Source Formatting feature and reformat it exactly to your preferences. To quickly clean them up, click the Format Source Code icon at the bottom of the Coding toolbar (Edit > Toolbars > Coding) and select Code Format Settings to set your preferred formatting.
You can also access the formatting option from Commands > Apply Source Formatting or only apply it to a select block of code by selecting the Apply Source Formatting to Selection option.

7. Get widgety

Just click the Extend Dreamweaver icon (it looks like a gear) in your Application Bar and select Browse for Web Widgets. This will take you to the Adobe Exchange where you can find additional widgets from vendors such as Yahoo!, JQuery, and many others.

8. Subversion & Dreamweaver

And yes, Dreamweaver does support Subversion (SVN). For developers who uses SVN to maintain revision control of their project, this could be a good news. Dreamweaver developer Andrew Voltmer discuss how you can use Subversions with Dreamweaver.

9. No More Redundant Styles

Many people use Dreamweaver as a way to update content visually, like a word processor. Before Dreamweaver CS4, this could result in redundant CSS rules like .class1, .class2, and so on. In Dreamweaver CS4, just switch your Property Inspector to HTML mode (click the HTML icon on the left of the Inspector) and you’ll say goodbye to all that redundant CSS, inserting only appropriate HTML markup.

10. Form Validation made easy

Want to validate your form fields, but worried that you’ll have to rebuild from scratch? No worries. Simply select an existing form element, such as a text field, and apply a Spry Validation widget from the Insert > Spry menu. Then control validation requirements such as minimum or maximum characters directly from the Property inspector.

Bonus: 3 more

11. Access Related Files Easily

When you open an HTML or PHP file, you will now see a row of dependent file names, such as CSS, Javascript and even included files for PHP, at the top of the document window. You can easily switch to these files, make changes and save them, all without even opening them up. When you click any file in the Related Files bar you will see its source in Code view and the parent page in Design view. Or use Code Navigator to quickly access CSS source code that affects your current selection.

12. Check browsers compatibility

Open the document you want to check for compatibility; from the same menu bar where Code / Split / Design views are accessed, look to the far right for ‘Check Page‘ button.
Clicking it will expand a drop down menu, select ‘Check Browser Compatibility‘. The Browser Compatibility results window will show at the bottom of the window with any issues that you need to address.
Note: This will NOT check new versions of IE on Mac! To select which browsers to use for testing, select Check Page > Settings from the menu.

13. Preview PHP Pages

Dreamweaver allows you to run and preview PHP codes within the software. Here’s how to get it setup.
Getting started

1. First, select Site -> New Site from the top navigation.
2. You’ll see both the Basic and Advanced Site Definition option tabs. Let’s proceed by selecting the Advanced Site Definition tab.
3. Enter a folder name for the site in the appropriate box (for this example we’ll use "myphp" as the folder name).
4. Create another folder named "images" by entering its name in the ‘Default Images Folder’ field.
5. Under the Local Info, input the following values in the fields:
   • Site Name: the name of the site. To be used in Dreamweaver only
   • Local root folder: This is the name of the site you will be working in. Be sure to name sites in a way to minimize conflicts, or confusing names.
   • Default Images folder: This is optional, but it’s advised to create it now as most sites will use images to some extent. This is where DW will ‘look’ to insert images in your documents during the coding phase.
   • Links Relative to: This defines how document linking in Dreamweaver will be handled. You can select either Document or Root. The differences between the two are:
     • Document Relative – Will insert a path relative to the file you are working and the item being linked to.
     • Root Relative – Uses / which causes the document/file to be linked in relation to the ROOT folder.
     • Another alternative is to add some configuration to the server configuration files. Being a more advanced task, we’ll just stick to using Document-relative for now.
   • HTTP address: enter the site root folder for your project
   • Case-sensitive links: Dreamweaver will check if any file in the project can have Case-sensitive issue when uploading to the server. Notifications will be shown when you use: Site -> Check Links Sitewide. You can leave it checked if you want. I personally don’t leave it checked as I always name files in lowercase. Uppercase letter is not recommended.
   • Cache: Check Enable cache.
6. In the Remote Info page, either setup your FTP or other access to a remote server or leave the Access to None.
7. In the Testing Server page select the option that relates to the file type/system you will be testing.
8. Version Control will not be used for this example so you may leave it blank unless familiar with it.
9. Cloaking allows you to place .psd, .fla, and other source files within your sites folder and DW will disregard them when uploading/updating your site.
10. Design Notes are ideal for a web design team as it retains note on changes made to the files. It’s checked by default and fine for us to use this way.
11. Leave File View Column, Contribute, and Templates as default.
12. The Spry page simply points to the Spry assets folder which is automatically included with Dreamweaver. There’s no need to change this. Once every setting is finished, click OK.

Preview PHP in Dreamweaver
Now open a PHP file and make the needed changes to it. To view this file in Dreamweaver simply press F12 and the results will show in your default browser. You can change which browser is used in Edit -> Preferences -> Preview in Browser. This allows a faster edit-to-preview time, eliminates the need to type long URLs into your browser bar or to use another server software to render the PHP files, all of which save time!
That’s all. Happy Dreamweaver’ing :-)

Source :- By Jesse Matlock at www.hongkiat.com