0 CodeWeavers and Wine is bringing DirectX 11 to Linux

More Windows PC games will “just run” on Linux, and it’ll be easier for developers to package those games with compatibility code and officially support them on Linux. Now, CodeWeavers expects CrossOver to support DirectX 11 by the end of the year, with Wine gaining compatibility shortly afterwards.

Microsoft’s DirectX graphics technology is only officially supported on Windows, Xbox, and other Microsoft platforms. The Wine project helps bridge this gap and already supports DirectX 9 very nicely.

Wine already supports DirectX 9 very well, but many new games no longer support DirectX 9 and rely on newer versions of Microsoft’s graphics technology. Wine is an open-source compatibility layer that allows Windows applications to run on top of Linux, Mac OS X, and other non-Windows operating systems.

CodeWeavers offers a paid product, known as CrossOver, which is built on top of the open-source Wine code. It pays developers to add features, and those improvements inevitably end up back in the open-source Wine project. CrossOver also provides a convenient interface and more of a guarantee that certain applications will be officially supported and not break.

While the DirectX 11 support will make it into CodeWeavers’ product before it makes it to the open-source Wine project, the code will be open-source and submitted for inclusion into the Wine project. In other words, CodeWeavers helps fund and support the development of Wine. 

The new underlying CrossOver technology will also allow developers to port DirectX 11 games to Linux more easily. Linux gamers tend to dislike this type of port and prefer a native game that doesn’t use any Windows compatibility layer, but hey, it’s still better than nothing.

In the past, John Carmack of id Software and now Oculus has even argued that “emulation of some sort is a proper technical direction for gaming on Linux.” The better that DirectX compatibility gets, the easier it will be to port Windows-first games to Linux. And, even if certain games aren’t officially supported, it’ll become easier to just run them without any modification. Big game engines are increasingly supporting Linux, but general Windows compatibility is still helpful.


 You may also like to read :

• Crytek’s CryEngine Now Supports Linux

Detail: CodeWeavers and Wine is bringing DirectX 11 to Linux

0 Boot to UEFI Mode or Legacy BIOS Mode

Boot into UEFI mode or legacy BIOS-compatibility mode when installing Windows from your USB, DVD, or network location.
If you install Windows using the wrong mode, you won’t be able to use the features of that firmware mode without reformatting the drive.

Applies To: Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 R2 and the latest Windows 10

Select the firmware mode during bootup

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1. Boot the PC. As the firmware starts to run, press the key that opens the boot device menu. For example, press the Esc, F2, F9, F12, or other key to enter the firmware or boot menus.
2. On the boot device menu, select the command that identifies both the firmware mode and the device. For example, select UEFI USB Drive or Network - BIOS.
   
   
   
   

   Note:
   You might see separate commands for the same device. For example, you might see UEFI USB Drive and BIOS USB Drive. Each command uses the same device and media, but boots the PC in a different firmware mode.

   
   
   
   
   If a boot device option does not appear for your device:
   • Check the options in the firmware menus to enable or disable BIOS-compatibility mode.
   • To use BIOS-compatibility mode, check for options in the firmware menus to disable UEFI SecureBoot features.
   • For older PCs (Windows® 7-era or earlier), look for options to Boot from file, and browse to the \EFI\BOOT\BOOTX64.EFI file on that device.
   
   
   When you boot Windows PE on a UEFI PC, you may need to check whether the PC is booted in UEFI mode or legacy BIOS-compatibility mode.
   For example, running Windows Setup through Windows PE requires you to be in the correct firmware mode.Use any of these methods to help make sure that Windows is installed using the correct firmware mode
   For many operations, such as applying Windows images using Diskpart and DISM, the firmware mode might not make a difference.
   
   

   • If you install Windows by using Windows Setup or the Windows installation DVD or Bootable USB drive, use preformatted hard drive on your destination PCs
   • Use the GPT file format for UEFI mode or MBR file format for BIOS mode.
     
     
     
     When Windows Setup runs, if the PC is booted to the wrong mode, Windows will fail to install. For more info, see Windows Setup: Installing using the MBR or GPT partition style.  If this is a frequent problem, you can remove the boot files for UEFI mode or BIOS mode to prevent the PC from booting in the wrong mode. If the PC firmware is set up to boot in the wrong mode, the media will immediately fail to boot, allowing you to immediately retry booting the PC into the correct mode.
     
     
   • You can remove the UEFI or BIOS boot files from either Windows PE or Windows Setup. For example, if you only include boot files for UEFI mode on the Windows installation DVD, and during manufacturing you accidentally attempt to boot the PC to BIOS mode, the PC will immediately fail to boot, and you can begin troubleshooting right away.
     
     • UEFI: To prevent Windows Setup or Windows PE from booting in BIOS mode, remove the bootmgr file on the root of the media.
     • BIOS: To prevent Windows Setup or Windows PE from booting in UEFI mode, remove the efi folder on the root of the media.
   • From Windows PE, you can check the GetFirmwareEnvironmentVariable function. For more info, see WinPE: Boot in UEFI or legacy BIOS mode.
     

         What is UEFI?

         Applies to Windows 8.1, Windows RT 8.1  and Windows 10
     
     UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is a standard firmware interface for PCs, designed to replace BIOS (basic input/output system). This standard was created by over 140 technology companies as part of the UEFI consortium, including Microsoft. It's designed to improve software interoperability and address limitations of BIOS. Some advantages of UEFI firmware include:
     
     • Better security by helping to protect the pre-startup—or pre-boot—process against bootkit attacks.
     • Faster startup times and resuming from hibernation.
     •  Support for drives larger than 2.2 terabytes (TB).
     •  Support for modern, 64-bit firmware device drivers that the system can use to address more than 17.2 billion gigabytes (GB) of memory during startup.
     • Capabililty to use BIOS with UEFI hardware.
         
     Note:
     
             All 64-bit versions of PCs running Windows with a logo from the Windows Certification Program will use UEFI instead of BIOS. To learn more about your PC's support of UEFI, see the product info that came with your PC.
     
          {source}
     
     

     Switching from BIOS to UEFI

     
     The UEFI interface is much better looking than the old BIOS screen (a sample of an old BIOS is shown below), but I have found it to be a bit slower in use. Quickest navigation is by mouse, but my system is not always responsive to mouse clicks. This isn’t a major issue as I spend very little time in the UEFI, and the other benefits are huge.
     
     
     In addition to better interoperability, UEFI firmware provides several technical advantages:
     •     Compatibility with operating systems that support only BIOS
     •     Ability to boot from large disks
     •     CPU-independent architecture
     •     CPU-independent drivers
     •     Flexible pre-OS environment
     •     Modular design
     
     Two of the most notable Windows features for UEFI systems are the following:
     •     Multicast deployment, which enables large scale network-based image deployment in manufacturing and enterprise settings.
     •     Fast boot and resume from hibernation, which improves user experience.
     
     The rich UEFI interface provides ample room for innovation in the development of operating system features. Along with the other members of the Unified EFI Forum, Microsoft is investigating the following:
     •     Rootkit prevention
     •     Network authentication
     
     
     
     UEFI Support
     Operating systems started to support the platform interface design by 2007, but most Windows versions, such as Vista with SP1 and Windows Server 2008, only offered support on the 64-bit editions. Unfortunately, we found that industry support for UEFI is still very weak, and there are some shortcomings on the storage end.
     
     
     OLD BIOS
     
     
     
     
     Check whether the PC is booted in UEFI mode or legacy BIOS-compatibility mode.
     Here is an OLD BIOS (blue Screen) UEFI mode is name as Secure Boot ..
     
      For most PCs, you can disable Secure Boot through the PC’s BIOS.
     
     You may need to disable Secure Boot to run some PC graphics cards, hardware, or operating systems such as Linux or previous version of Windows.
     
     Secure Boot helps to make sure that your PC boots using only firmware that is trusted by the manufacturer.
     
     For most PCs, you can disable Secure Boot through the PC’s firmware (BIOS) menus. For logo-certified Windows RT 8.1 and Windows RT PCs, Secure Boot is required to be configured so that it cannot be disabled.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
      ASUS EFI
     
     
     
     Gigabyte New  UEFI
     
     
     
     
     
     You May Also want to Read : Creating Bootable Windows 10 Installer on USB drive
     
     
     
     

Detail: Boot to UEFI Mode or Legacy BIOS Mode

0 ODiN is the World’s First Laser Projection Mouse

Users who buy the product will receive a small projector that can sit on top of a table, and connects to a PC via its USB port. It works by displaying a virtual trackpad on a hard surface like a table. For users, this means they’ll essentially see a small box, made out of red light, with the right and left click buttons projected at the top of the trackpad.

ODiN is the world’s first laser projection mouse, claims its creator, Taiwanese company Serafim Technologies. The device was shown off on Monday, a day before the Computex trade show in Taipei.

To read the gestures, the projector has built-in sensors that can track a user’s finger movements over the trackpad. The company created the product as a way to meld together mouse and touchscreen functions together, said Serafim’s CEO GZ Chen.

For instance, the product’s virtual trackpad can read multi-finger gestures. When a user taps the trackpad with two fingers, and swipes left, the PC’s Internet browser will move back a webpage. By swiping right, the PC’s browser will move forward a webpage.

Users can also pinch the trackpad with two fingers to zoom in or zoom out.

ODiN is the World’s First Laser Projection Mouse
Posted by Blogmytuts.blogspot.com on Tuesday, 2 June 2015

Serafim’s CEO said it also developed the product, as a way for certain industries to do away with computer mouses that collect germs and dirt over repeated use. The company plans to continually offer software updates to the ODiN, as a way to optimize its functions.

The ODiN launches this month and will be priced at $69. It was also featured on Kickstarter.

Detail: ODiN is the World’s First Laser Projection Mouse

0 Troubleshoot all sorts of problems with any PC with Ubuntu live drive

A Ubuntu live drive can be used as a digital Swiss army knife to troubleshoot all sorts of problems with any PC, whether you need to recover files from a failing computer, diagnose hardware problems, perform a deep virus scan from outside Windows, or even reset a forgotten Windows password.

We’ll be getting our hands dirty with some Linux terminal commands here, but don’t worry—the Linux terminal won’t bite. You can even copy-paste most of these commands directly into the terminal.

Create-Ubuntu-live-bootable-usb-drive

To get started, you’ll need a Linux live USB drive, CD, or DVD. You can use any Linux distribution for this, but we’re focusing on Ubuntu to simplify things.
http://www.gadget-technolog.blogspot.com/2015/04/create-ubuntu-live-bootable-usb-drive.html 
Check Slax Linux :http://www.gadget-technolog.blogspot.com/2015/05/slax-linux-your-pocket-operating-system.html

Recover files from a failing drive

We’ve all been there. Your PC may not boot, Windows may be showing errors and blue-screening, or—even worse—you may hear that dreaded mechanical hard drive clicking.

Even if you can’t boot Windows, there’s a good chance you can read the drive from within Linux and recover some files before the hard drive dies completely. Or, if the Windows system is corrupted and the drive itself is fine, you can recover all of the files from outside Windows.

Recovering Windows-stored files with Ubuntu is as easy as opening a folder.

There’s no Linux terminal involved here. Just click the folder icon on Ubuntu’s launcher to open the file manager. You’ll see your Windows drive under Devices in the sidebar; click it and you’ll see your Windows file system. If you have multiple partitions or hard drives, you’ll see multiple devices here.

Connect an external drive or USB stick to your computer and it will appear under Devices, too. Copy and paste the files you want to back up from the Windows system to your external drive, just as you would on Windows. You could even fire up a web browser and upload the files directly to Dropbox or another cloud storage service, or open the Brasero Disc Burner application included with Ubuntu to burn them to disc.

Reset your Windows password

Ubuntu can also edit your Windows user account passwords, which is great if you’veforgotten your Windows password. We tested this on a modern Windows 8.1 Update system and it worked perfectly. We’ll be modifying the Administrator account here—after you unlock it and clear its password, you can log into Windows as Administrator and reset your other passwords.

Open a terminal by clicking the Ubuntu logo in the top-left corner of the launcher, typingTerminal, and pressing Enter. Run the following commands to install the password-changing utility you’ll need. (If you’ve already run the first two commands, you don’t need to run them again—just run the third one here.)

sudo add-apt-repository "deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu $(lsb_release -sc) universe"

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install chntpw

Be sure to open the file manager from the launcher and click your Windows drive under Devices to view its contents if you haven’t yet. This will “mount” the drive and make it available in the terminal.

Finding the Windows directory using the Terminal. 

Next, start typing the following command into the terminal, but do not press Enter:

cd /media/

Now, press the Tab key twice. You’ll see an alphanumeric label that corresponds to your hard drive. Type the first few characters and press Tab again to automatically fill the label in. Now type /Windows/System32/config so you end up with a command that looks like the following, and then finally press Enter:

cd /media/9A72A08872A06AA9/Windows/System32/config

Run the following command and press Enter to start modifying the Administrator account. SAM is the name of the Windows system file containing the hashed user account passwords.

sudo chntpw SAM

If your Administrator account is locked—and it is by default—type 4 at the prompt and press Enter to unlock it. Type y at the confirmation prompt and press Enter to confirm.

Unlocking the Windows admin account.

You’ll have to run the sudo chntpw SAM command again to get back into the program. Type 1 and press Enter at the prompt to clear the Administrator’s password and make it blank. Type y at the prompt and press Enter to confirm again. Important: Do not use the change password option here, as it could cause problems.

You can now log into Windows with the username Administrator and a blank password. From there, you can open the Control Panel and reset other user account passwords. (Worried about other people doing this to your Windows system? Set a BIOS passwordto ensure they can’t boot to removable media and mess around with it.)

Scan for malware

Rootkits are a nasty type of malware that burrow deep into Windows and start at boot-up, pulling strings in the background so they’re invisible to antivirus programs and hidden even from the Windows Task Manager. Even if you have bog-standard malware, it’s often easier to remove malware from outside Windows. Antivirus companies often makededicated antivirus boot discs you can use to scan your system from outside Windows, but you can do this all from within Ubuntu.

We’ll use ClamAV here because it’s open source and easily installable on Ubuntu. It isn’t the only option, though; you may also want to look at commercial antiviruses like AVG Free for Linux or BitDefender for Unices.

To install ClamAV, open the terminal and copy-paste or type each of the following commands into the terminal in order, pressing Enter after each. (Again, if you’ve already run the first two commands performing another task, you don’t need to run them again—just start at the third.)

sudo add-apt-repository "deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu $(lsb_release -sc) universe"

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install clamtk

Type y and press Enter to confirm the installation.

Next, run the following command to update your virus definitions:

sudo freshclam

Be sure to have ClamAV scan all files and directories.

You can now run the clamtk command in the terminal or open ClamTk from your list of installed applications. Be sure to click the Preferences button and enable the “Scan all files and directories in a directory” option after you do.

Selecting a recursive scan while ClamTk is open.

To actually scan your Windows drive for malware, click the Scan option on the menu at the top of ClamAV's screen and select Recursive Scan. Select your Windows drive in the sidebar and clickOK. ClamTk should scan every file on your Windows drive with the ClamAV antivirus engine.

Give your hard drive a check-up

Ubuntu can also check for hardware-related issues.

The SMART hard drive status system allows a failing hard drive to warn you before it goes down in flames. To check a drive’s SMART status from Ubuntu, click the Ubuntu logo icon at the top-left corner of your screen, search for "Disk Utility" and press Enter. Select your Windows drive and look next to SMART Status to see the drive’s health status. You can click the SMART Data button to see more details and perform self-tests.

Checking your disk drive's health is SMART. Get it? Hey, stop groaning.

SMART isn’t perfect. A drive may be failing and reporting that everything is fine even as it grinds to a halt. Another drive may report a serious problem and continue working fine for months. But, if you see a serious warning, you should get your files off the drive and replace it as soon as possible.

Test your RAM

Ubuntu comes with the popular memtest86+ memory-testing utility built-in. This utility will write data to your computer’s RAM, read it back, and check if it’s correct. If your RAM has a problem, memtest86+ will notice when the RAM returns different data. In normal computer use, these problems can lead to application crashes, file corruption, and even the dreaded blue screen of death.

This utility must be chosen at boot, so you’ll have to restart your computer if you’re already at the Ubuntu desktop. When Ubuntu starts booting, repeatedly press Escapeand you’ll see the normally hidden boot menu. Select the Test Memory option here to launch memtest86+.

You want the "Test Memory" option.

Give memtest86+ some time alone with your computer after it begins. After a single successful batch of tests, known as a pass, you’ll see the message “Pass complete, no errors, press Esc to exit.” You can exit memtest86+ after the message appears or allow it to perform multiple passes. If you see an error, you likely need to replace one or more of the RAM sticks in your PC.

 source

Detail: Troubleshoot all sorts of problems with any PC with Ubuntu live drive