16Jun 2015 by richard@baronsoftware.com

Avatar Gaming PC looks to have disappeared. So what about the warranty?

Hardware Reviews
Avatar Gaming PC company looks like they have gone under after a few years of selling some low budget machines for gaming folks. The product line were not the most solid but they gave the user a Windows 8 machine using AMD and NVIDIA components.   Some of the issues they always had were the CPU fan failing after a few months (cheap cool master) and the case was very thin. The tech support guys were quick to answer and I would assume once the warranty is over (1 year) you are on your own. I would suggest to ask any vendor who still has the supply line to question whether the company is around or what type of warranty is there for a machine that the parent is gone. The…
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30Apr 2015 by richard@baronsoftware.com

Lazarus Pascal Release Version 1.4

Software Events
The free Pascal compiler, Lazarus version 1.4 has been released and can be obtained for free by clicking here! The work involved by developers to get a free Windows / Linux / Mac compiler for anyone to use is simply amazing. The work is based on contributions provided to the programmers who provide free time to get this outstanding compiler ready. Everything you need to develop a Rad type of application which is driven using Pascal is quick and easy to set up. The application works pretty much like Delphi 7 did allowing users to drop components on the forms and set up simple code for events. Lazarus is a Delphi compatible cross-platform IDE for Free Pascal. It includes LCL which is more or less compatible with Delphi's VCL. Free…
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30Apr 2015 by richard@baronsoftware.com

Delphi Developers Day 2015

Software Events
[caption id="attachment_43" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Delphi Developers Days 2015 Tour[/caption]     Recently I attended the Delphi Developers Day 2015 in Chicago and boy was it fantastic.  The sessions were kept roughly to one hour of interesting subjects that pertain to the Delphi Developer.  The presentations were led by Cary Jensen and Ray Konopka along with the assistance of Loy Andersen gave all developers a chance to learn something new using the Delphi language. Each developer receives a manual that contains the full presentation along with source code that can be read as well as downloaded from the DDD 2015 web site.   The code is updated as the tour continues into the European market.    The two days were packed with activities from the start to the finish with very…
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25Mar 2015 by richard@baronsoftware.com

Will Windows 10 Become a Subscription Model?

Software Events
When Windows 10 is released later this year, free upgrades will be available for Windows 7 and 8 users for one full year.  Now as we all know, the Microsoft machine is not here for charity and things will cost down the road.  Microsoft is hoping to take reliable Windows 7 machines and actually brand new Windows 8 machines thinking that if they give it away free for a year, people will move to the new OS.  As it is known any upgrade doesn't always work with the older technology from years in the past.  Happened with Vista upgrades or NT to XP which created a IT department nightmares forcing for budgets to include new machines with OS licenses. The story is the same as last time, Microsoft indicates a…
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25Mar 2015 by richard@baronsoftware.com

Google Glass is staying or going ?

Hardware Reviews, Software Events
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Google chairman Eric Schmidt said that the company is still hard at work perfecting its wearable, calling it a “big and fundamental platform for Google.” So at this point while most normal people think it is a pretty cool idea, the cost and the support are next to non-existing.  Google earlier this year ended its Explorer program and stopped selling the original Glass. The project was moved out of Google’s research labs and transferred to a new unit that was under the watchful eye of Tony Fadell, who runs Google’s Nest connected home division.   “We ended the Explorer program and the press conflated this into us canceling the whole project, which isn’t true,” Schmidt told the Journal. “Google is about taking risks, and…
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