On October 22nd, 2009 when Windows 7 is available for purchase from computer retailers around the world, you can look forward to dozens of improvements and new features. The one I am most looking forward to is the fulfillment of a long-ago stated goal; a vision of easy choices, of seamless migration, of natural evolution

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You’ve Got Windows 7, Now What? | Easy Choices | Windows 7 Bridges the 64-Bit Future and 32-Bit Past

Microsoft updates Windows® 7, just before launch…and it is very cool! Back in June, I wrote a brief blog on some interesting developments from Microsoft, Hulu and YouTube .  I covered how each of these vendors had released news and/or applications to bring more content to the HTPC in new and exciting ways.  At that point in time, Microsoft’s announcement of Netflix integration into Media Center was strictly limited to Windows Vista®.  However, I had suggested that they would include this integration into Windows® 7 by launch time.  Well, I am happy to say that Microsoft released an update for Windows 7 in the past couple of days that now adds Netflix.  However, Microsoft did not stop with just the Netflix integration; the update includes support for the Adobe Flash player and even more mainstream content from content providers like CBS, NBC, PBS and others, offering both current  shows like ‘How I Met Your Mother’, ‘Dateline’ and ’60 Minutes’ to  classic shows like ‘Star Trek’, ‘Twilight Zone’, ‘MacGyver’ and more.  If you have not seen this yet, Hack 7MC has a nice overview on the new features added to Windows 7. You can also find a discussion on these new changes at The Green Button While some may raise concerns regarding viewing quality of the content, I think this change should be viewed from a larger perspective.  This change puts the framework in place for delivery of real and interesting content on Windows 7 capable PCs.  I have spent some time over the past couple of nights checking out the content and while it is not HD quality, it was certainly better than low resolution web video I have seen on other sites.  I’m hopeful that the visual quality of the material will be improved upon as time moves forward; it is the framework that I find really exciting. As I stated previously, these are exciting times for the HTPC.  The role of PC technology in the home is constantly changing for the better.

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Netflix and Internet TV on Windows® 7, have you seen it?

Building your own AMD technology-based HTPC, where do you start? For those of you that have been following along our AMD@Home blog, you know I have written multiple blogs on HTPC topics such as why you might want one and the cool things you can do with it .  I have even covered how I am using one at home for my family’s TV viewing needs.  For this entry, I’m adding a little flair to the blog series by taking your through the videos for the assembly of an HTPC and show how easy it is to put one together.  There are a total of 9 videos in this series — most are only a couple of minutes long so it should make for easy viewing. One of the main advantages of building your own system is that you are in control not only of the cost, but also the features and functions.  You get to choose exactly what components will go into the build and a sense of pride when the job is complete

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How To: Guide for the Assembly of an HTPC

This collection of solar system-inspired from artist Jimmy McBride have left me breathless. What really has me excited, though, is his post about his next project .

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Solar System-Inspired Quilts from Jimmy McBride

Today, the Center for American Progress (CAP), in collaboration with Maria Shriver, released The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Changes Everything. The report outlines how government, businesses, and faith-based institutions are responding to changing demographics in the workplace, namely the increasing number of women workers. The report outlines and how to create better opportunities for women and men in the workplace

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The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Changes Everything

Amy of Glitter, Vinyl and Thread came up with this fascinating entry for the Craftster Good Cause Challenge . Inspired by the vibrant and “deceptively beautiful” images of breast cancer cells she found while researching the subject, she designed this plush version of breast cancer cells .

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Plush Breast Cancer Cells Sculpture

Kristen posted up pictures from this year’s Plush You! show in Seattle at Schmancy, and it looks so great! If you’re around Seattle, be sure to check out the show through the end of October! [ Read More ] [ Comments ]

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Pictures from Plush You! 2009

Layers of abstraction always exist between man and machine. Starting with our gestures and speech, one symbolic language passes through an interface to another, ultimately translated to code. The fundamental language or instruction set of an x86 central processor evolves slowly, balancing new features and compatibility

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Dealing With Reality | The Introduction | ATI Stream Technology and OpenCL | Part 1

A hardware roundup – The Mainstream/Mid Level Build! As stated in the first part of this blog series, I have seen different sites put together a list of potential HTPC hardware for budgets under $1000 USD.  While many of these sites are showcasing some nice systems, I think there are multiple ways to approach this project.  As such, I put together my own list for a potential HTPC build while offering some options to hit different price points — entry level, mainstream/mid level and higher end systems — each less than $1000 USD.   In part one , I covered the basic entry level system.  It served as a starting point for a system that could be easily upgraded.  This time, I want to look at some upgrades we can do to the entry level system to enhance the features/functions of the HTPC that make it more of a mainstream system. So what can you expect from a mainstream HTPC build?  It should be able to easily handle all the same tasks as the entry level build and more.  With the mainstream system, we can add Blu-ray playback, transcoding content for portable devices, streaming content to other devices (other PCs, extenders, etc.) and TV tuning functionality.  I would like to point out, these are just guideposts to provide a frame of reference for feature sets, functions and price points.  Some features may be more important than others to you as the reader.  Therefore, you may want to consider changing individual components to better meet your needs.  I am listing some optional equipment for your consideration.  I have tried to note component choices that are unchanged from the entry build and those that are upgrades.

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Building an HTPC on a Budget (part 2)

Two pieces of legislation are moving through Congress that have the potential to affect the economic security of America’s elders. The Medicare Premium Fairness Act of 2009 (H.R.

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Bills Considered in U.S. Congress to Support Elder Economic Security

I’ve received a lot of questions in the last week about how to install a Retweet button on web pages, blogs, and article pages so I thought I’d take a few minutes to explain how easy this is to do. In this post, I’ll show you where to find the proper code for placing the button on your website or blog. Begin by visiting TweetMeMe.com .

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Tweet This! A How To Guide On Installing A TweetMeMe Button

Informing Communities: Sustaining Democracy in the Digital Age “Informing Communities” Sustaining Democracies in the Digital Age” has been published out of the US by The Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy. The Commission was assembled in 2008 to recommend policy reforms and other public initiatives to help American communities better meet their information needs

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Informing Communities: Sustaining Democracies in the Digital Age

This week Google hit home yet another nail in the coffin of any remaining notion that an organisation (corporate or government) can still control the message. The launch of Sidewiki is a potential game changer for the way online spaces are managed from here on in. Google promotes it as a way to add value to an existing website by providing an opportunity to add “expert advice, helpful tips, background information, and added perspectives.” Watch the YouTube video above (if you have access from work..

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Is Google Sidewiki a game changer?

Over the past two weeks, WOW traveled to both West Virginia and Wisconsin to present on the Elder Economic Security Initiative. In West Virginia, the Gerontology Institute at UMASS-Boston joined WOW in presenting draft Elder Index data to the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy and its stakeholders.

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The Initiative on the Road!

In today’s post I wanted to provide some insight into the information sources I use on a regular basis to stay on top of what’s happening in Internet marketing. I often get questions from my associates and like minded individuals in search of reliable information. There are a few resources that I like to use on a regular basis and describe each of them in this post.

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Internet Marketing Resources You Can’t Live Without

After last week’s video on article marketing, I received a lot of comments and questions about article marketing. One of the most popular questions is where you should be submitting your articles and how to write them

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How To Use eZineArticles To Promote Your Articles And Build Backlinks

Although I initially found this through the extremely respectable (but currently slightly dormant) Finest Def Mix blog, there were a thousand reasons to not like it: 1. Group name with deliberate spelling mistake, ‘cos dey from da streets.

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Color Me Badd – Heartbreaker (1992)

Lean Back Technology for your HTPC! So, you’ve got this fancy new HTPC, but how do you use it?  Well, I thought we would take a look at the various options for controlling your HTPC.  I am splitting this post into a two part series covering both keyboard and mice, plus wand style solutions.  In the first post of this series, I covered a few options for keyboards and mice .  This time, I will spend a little time covering the wand style remotes.  Like previous posts on technology, products covered are limited to what I had immediately available — not intended to cover all the different options out there. Likewise, this is not intended to be a review of all the different solutions, just an introduction to a few available products.  I was fortunate enough to get my hands on a few of these different solutions for testing thanks to our technology partners.  As such, I brought these devices home for a brief period so I could see how my family liked them. I know, I said I should never use my family as beta testers, but this seemed a little different and I felt it would be more useful to provide their feedback in addition to mine to provide a wider cross section of user experiences. More about their responses later on.  The ultimate goal of the HTPC for me is that I would never have need of a keyboard or mouse and that I could do everything with a remote in hand.  As covered in the “What Can an HTPC Do?” series ( part 1 and part 2 ), I showed you a lot of what you can do with just a remote in hand.  So, it made a lot of sense to try out a few different wand style remotes and see how well they get along with Windows® Media Center.

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Anyone Seen the Remote? (Part 2 on Controlling your HTPC)

On my never-ending quest to find individuals and companies succeeding with Social Media I hit a goldmine. In a single word, Shutterstock

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Shutterstock: A Case Study Of How One Company Is Using Twitter To Grow Their Business

This weekend we celebrate National Grandparents Day! It is a day to recognize grandparents across the country for their love and guidance. Grandparents take on many responsibilities, and in some cases, are responsible for raising their grandchildren. According to the UC-Berkeley Center on Aging, over the last ten years, the number of children living with grandparents increased by 50 percent

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Recognizing our Grandparents