Windows 10:   10   Reasons   You'll   Love   It.

Windows 10 looks like a good operating system, but the reasons we love an operating system are harder to predict.

I'm genuinely excited by Windows 10.

I know. It shows I have very little to live for. But I'm excited by Windows 10 in the same way I'm excited for the next season of Marvel's Agents of SHIELD. I didn't like last season at all, but the idea is so good I figure it can only get better..

On July 29, we'll see if Windows 10 can erase the bad taste still in our mouth leftover from Windows 8. The idea of an operating system experience across smartphone, tablet, and PC is really a nice idea. Even the iOS experience isn't as consistent across form factors, and if Microsoft really does give us that experience -- and a good phone to go with the great Surface tablet --it really will force consumers into some very interesting decisions..

But heck, I'm not expecting miracles. I have to work with a Windows PC, and I also use one for gaming at home, so I'm with Windows no matter what. All I want is to not hate it. Give me something I can work with and I'll happily stick to a Windows PC environment even if I never own a Windows phone.

[What happened to Windows 9? Read 10 Real Reasons Microsoft Skipped Windows 9.].

Others are more picky than me..

We can talk about features and user experience all we want. But the truth is people like or they don't like operating systems largely because of visceral reactions. They don't like the look. They don't like the social response to it. It doesn't fit their mindset. Whatever it is, once a tide of hates sweeps of an OS, it is done.

The opposite is true as well. We love things for strange reasons. And I think we'll love Windows 10. Beyond the features there are other reasons to love it. Here are my 10.

10 Reasons People Will Love Windows 10.

1. Everyone hates change. We've had three years to look at Windows 8, so it doesn't feel like change.

2. People love round numbers.

3. Cortana is cooler than Siri. No really. Cortana started in the best video game ever.

(Image: Brian via Flickr).

4. We love that myth that Microsoft gets it right every other operating system.

5. Windows is optimized for touch screens. 10 fingers. Windows 10. Coincidence? I think not.

6. The average house has 10 windows. Windows 10. Coincidence? I think not.

7. The new Microsoft browser is called Spartan. How awesome is that? Though it does make you want Windows 300.

(Image: Arcayne via Wikipedia)

8. It isn't Vista.

9. Anyone who hates Windows ran to Apple a long time ago.

10. You got your start button back, you big whiners.......

Why   Facebook,   Telepathy    Don't    Mix.

Mark Zuckerberg thinks telepathy is the ultimate form of communication. Believe it or not, for certain things, Facebook is better than telepathy.

Mark Zuckerberg said in a Facebook chat this week that he believed the future of communication was telepathy. Presumably, he also meant that was the future of Facebook. No more status updates. No more walls. No more messenger. Not even pokes. Just broadcast your thoughts. Sounds cool, but in practice, what would that be like? It sounds like a potential nightmare to me.

To be clear, Zuckerberg didn't say Facebook was researching this. He didn't say it was just around the corner. He merely said, "One day, I believe we'll be able to send full rich thoughts to each other directly using technology. You'll just be able to think of something and your friends will immediately be able to experience it too if you'd like. This would be the ultimate communication technology.".

Hrm … here's the problem I see with this vision. I like my friends. I like to hear what they think. But I go to Facebook on my time, not my friends' time. Telepathy sounds … invasive..

Imagine you're at work trying to concentrate and a voice popped into your head and said, "I just got engaged!" Well good for your friend. You might even drop what you are doing at work and have a telepathic conversation. Who’s the lucky guy or gal? When's the wedding? Am I invited?

Sounds kind of fun when the news is big, right? Even if you were trying to work.

Now, multiply it. Imagine you are at work and you started hearing your news feed from Facebook in your ear. "Just had a great lunch." "I can't see how Hillary Clinton can lose the election this year." "Check out this picture of my baby." "Read this." "Read this." "Read this." It would be a nightmare. A constant barrage of thoughts. It would be like self-imposed ADHD. Heck, sometimes that is what it already feels like when you read Facebook.

Clearly, telepathic Facebook can't work that way. We'd all go insane.

(Image: r nial bradshaw via Flickr).

You'd immediately "turn notifications off" and only check your telepathic posts on your own time. So then what happens? Well, basically, it would be like checking your messages on an answering machine. You'd hear the voices in your head one at a time reading their status updates. And here's the funny thing: It would actually be harder to prioritize them than it would be if you read them. When we read, we can scan for key words and phrases to cue that something is important. If we see a picture of lunch, we know it is a lunch selfie and move on. In our brains, we can't do that. We're processing it at the speed of the brain, which is close to the speed of light. We're stuck with all the static.

So now you'd ingest the contents of your news feed, all of it, good or bad, whether you like it or not, in one big, friend thought burst. Sounds pretty maddening, too.

[ Not only does telepathy sound bad, so does VR. Read Facebook VR: 10 Reason It Won't Work. ].

Strangely enough, Facebook might be closer to the ideal way of sharing Facebook-like information than telepathy. Telepathy, believe it or not, doesn't replace Facebook. It replaces the telephone.

Telepathy is a one-on-one or group communication strategy for having planned exchanges of information. Facebook is ad hoc. It is "get to this when you feel like it (or never)."

Try this on for size. In the future, there may be only two methods of communication: Facebook and telepathy. Telepathy takes care of the phone, speech, email, telegrams (do we still have telegrams?), mail, etc. All communication designed to convey information from point to point is perfect for telepathy. And then Facebook handles all information best sent in broadcast form.

Maybe that's not exactly how it goes down, but I bet even if Zuckerberg had a telepathy helmet in his possession today, in the end he'd see that it was more of a threat to AT&T than a way to change his own company.....

The Threat Of Artificial Intelligence.

Super-intelligent robots deserve some concern, but really we should be paying more attention to the people and processes involved in building our machines.

At the end of June, a group of computer scientists gathered at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation in Washington, D.C., to debate whether super-intelligent computers are really a threat to humanity.

The discussion followed reports a few days earlier of two self-driving cars that, according to Reuters, almost collided. Near-misses on a road aren't normally news, but when a Google self-driving car comes close to a Delphi self-driving car and prompts it to change course, that gets coverage.

To hear Google tell it, the two automated cars performed as they should have. "The headline here is that two self-driving cars did what they were supposed to do in an ordinary everyday driving scenario," a Google spokesperson told Ars Technica.

Ostensibly benevolent artificial intelligence, in rudimentary form, is already here, but we don't trust it. Two cars driven by AI navigated around each other without incident -- that gets characterized as a near-miss. No wonder technical luminaries who muse about the future worry that ongoing advances in AI have the potential to threaten humanity. Bill Gates, Stephen Hawking, and Elon Musk have suggested as much.

(Image: CSA-Printstock/iStockphoto).

The panelists at the ITIF event more or less agreed that it could take anywhere from 5 to 150 years before the emergence of super-human intelligence. But really, no one knows. Humans have a bad track record for predicting such things.

But before our machines achieve brilliance, we will need half-a-dozen technological breakthroughs comparable to development of nuclear weapons, according to Stuart Russell, an AI professor at UC Berkeley.

Russell took issue with the construction of the question, "Are super-intelligent computers really a threat to humanity?".

AI, said Russell, is "not like [the weather]. We choose what it's going to be. So whether or not AI is a threat to the human race depends on whether or not we make it a threat to the human race.".

Problem solved. Computer researchers can simply follow Google's example: Don't be evil.

However, Russell didn't sound convinced that we could simply do the right thing. "At the moment, there is not nearly enough work on making sure that [AI] isn't a threat to the human race," he said.

Ronald Arkin, a computing professor at Georgia Tech, suggested humanity has more immediate concerns. "I'm glad people are worrying about super-intelligence, don't get me wrong," he said. "But there are many, many threats on the path to super-intelligence.".

Arkin pointed to lethal autonomous weapon systems, an ongoing challenge confronted by military planners, policymakers, and people around the world.

What's more, robots without much intelligence can be deadly, as an unfortunate Volkswagen contractor in Germany discovered the day before the ITIF talk. .

The 21-year-old technician was installing an industrial robot with a co-worker when he was struck by the robot and crushed, according to The Financial Times. The technician was inside a safety cage intended to keep people at a distance.

An investigation into the accident has begun. But the cause isn't likely to be malevolent machine intelligence. Human error would be a safer bet. And that's really something to worry about..

Chicago Cloud Computing Tax Is Not Amusing

In a new ruling, Chicago is planning to tax cloud computing services such as Netflix and Apple's new music service. CIOs should pay attention.

The Windy City is looking to fill its tax coffers with cloud computing.

Chicago has ruled that its local amusement tax will be extended to cloud-based delivered content effective as of the first of this month. This means that entertainment services likeNetflix or the new Apple Music Service can be taxed when delivered to Chicago residents.

The Chicago Tribune reported that the tax will bring in $12 million in its first year.

CIOs will want to watch this development since the new rules were broad enough so that they apply to the general delivery of cloud services..

The ruling invokes the broader nonpossessory computer lease tax which covers the use of leased computer services..

In the new ruling, city officials specifically identify taxable leases of personal property to include "functions such as word processing, calculations, data processing, tax preparation, spreadsheet preparation, presentations and other applications available to a customer through access to a provider's computer and its software. These last examples are sometimes referred to as cloud computing, cloud services, hosted environment, software as a service, platform as a service, or infrastructure as a service.".

Well, wow. This is more than amusement. It's a land grab on the electronic frontier.

(Image: PaulMoody123/iStockphoto).

I spoke to Michael Wynne, a partner in the ReedSmith law firm in Chicago, who has already written about this ruling in his blog. He has extensive tax litigation experience in the state and city arenas..

Wynne noted there has only been one case tried on the lease tax, and that was in 1989, before the rise of the Web..

"I don't think that anyone entering into agreements for infrastructure services [is] contracting for personal property," Wynne said." Just because you get a bill from Company A doesn't mean you are using Company A's servers.".

Indeed, Wynne finds fault in how the tax bill that was revised by Chicago was formulated in the first place.

"The meaning of the original bill is that the person that has the property is basically lending it to you," he said, adding, "There's a lot of assumptions in the bill that do not translate well to how services are actually being delivered today. Things are being extended in areas for which they were not envisioned.".

There is already talk of an appeal.

"There are no direct parties named as participants here. I think if it's appealed it will come because someone got surprised by this tax," Wynne noted.

The ruling does allow some mitigation strategies.

[Is technology out to get us? Read 9 Ways Technology Is Slowly Killing Us All.].

For instance, only the users of a service who are located in Chicago should be charged this tax, not the total users of a service. Since vendors are responsible for collecting the tax, ascertaining whether or not they are doing it in a proper manner on the proper services becomes important for them. Storage services or accessing read-only data are not taxable, for example.

Other governmental bodies will be watching how this ruling is accepted. While it is easy for a company to move across a city line if it is onerous, it may be far harder to do that if the state imposes such a tax.

Wynne said, "I think taxation of these services is on everybody's radar screen. I have no doubt it is being looked at.".

Casio    Entering     Smartwatch    Fray.

Casio plans to make a smartwatch for outdoorsy men that it will release in March 2016.

Casio isn't sitting idly by as wearables from Apple and Google chew into its market. The company will debut a smarter watch next year that it promises will look good and be comfortable to wear.

Kazuhiro Kashio, Casio's new CEO, told theWall Street Journal that the watch will be affordable and practical: "We are trying to bring our smartwatch to a level of watch perfection: a device that won&'t break easily, is simple to put on and feels good." It will be priced around $400, which is about what Apple charges for the entry-level Apple Watch.

The company hopes to bring the device to market by March 2016 and it will be released in Casio's home market of Japan, as well as the US. The watch "will be targeted at men for outdoor sports and leisure use both in terms of functions and appearance," according to the Journal.

(Image: avemario/iStockphoto).

Casio didn't provide any other details about its smartwatch. For example, Kashio would not say what platform the device will use. Android Wear, from Google, is free for Casio to use if it wants, but Kashio's comments imply it is going in a different direction.

Casio is no newbie to watches.

Fully half the company's annual revenue comes from its watch operations. It's known to produce G-Shock watches, which are generally targeted at outdoor enthusiasts and athletes. The company is confident its smartwatchwill be successful. "We will aim to achieve about [$80 million] in smartwatch sales as soon as possible and expand the business from there," said Kashio to the Journal.

Popular its simple watches may be, but Casio is entering an increasingly competitive market for smart wearables.

Apple is believed to have sold 2.8 million Apple Watches since the device debuted April 24. IDC suggests the wearable market will reach 72.1 million devices this year, with 33.1 million smartwatches shipping worldwide. Google's Android platform accounts for a good chunk of the smartwatch market, as does Pebble and its simpler smartwatch.

[Read more about the wearables market.].

Casio will need to worry about apps.

Both WatchOS and Android Wear support an increasing number of third-party apps. Later this year, the Apple Watch will fully support native apps running directly on the wearable. If Casio's smartwatch is going to cost as much as the Apple Watch (and more than most Android Wear devices) it will need to offer a significant advantage in comparison. It's hard to see how it will do that without an associated ecosystem....

Why Customer Service Will Never Be The Same.

Millennials:  Why  Customer  Service Will    Never    Be   The   Same.

While a recent study focuses on how consumers interact with brands, the results also hold lessons for IT in how to tailor internal tech support services to best meet the expectations of a multigenerational workforce.

(Image: Flavia Brandy via Flickr).

Millennials -- and to a lesser extent, older generations -- are changing how they want to interact with customer service, according to a recent study. While the study focuses on how consumers interact with brands, 

the results also hold lessons for IT in how to tailor internal tech support services to best meet the expectations of a multigenerational workforce.

An online survey of more than 2,000 US consumers conducted by Desk.com, a customer service platform offered by Salesforce, showed a preference to avoid customer service phone calls and engage in other communication methods, including texting, online chat, and social media.

Tech-savvy millennials, in particular, want to interact with customer service reps much the way they interact with their friends -- online and via text chat instead of phone calls. Generation Xers and baby boomers also prefer to avoid the traditional customer service call center.

The definition of which age groups make up these generations differs from study to study. For the purposes of this report, millennials are those aged 18-35; gen Xers are aged 36-55; and boomers are aged 56-65.

Millennials have high expectations for customer service communications overall, particuarly when it comes to how quickly a brand responds to their needs. This is driven partially by an understanding of what technology enables (instant communication and instant gratification) and by perceived failings in existing systems.

Check out the results of the survey and share with us in the comments section below whether you think your organization is meeting the customer service needs of its millennial customers or employees.................

ADMISSION – SUMMER COURSES - 2015.

 ADMISSION – SUMMER COURSES - 2015.
1. NUML offers following short courses during summer vacation from 25th June to 29 th July 2015.

a. Language Courses (Min Qual: Matric OR Matric appeared).

(1) Arabic (2) Bangla (3) Balochi.

(4) Chinese (5) English (6) French.

(7) German (8) Japanese (9) Korean.

(10) Pashto (11) Persian (12) Punjabi.

(13) Russian (14) Spanish (15) Turkish.

(16) Urdu for foreigners.

b. Other Courses.

For BA/BSc or Equivalent.

(1) Statistical Tools for Social Science Research (SPSS, E-Views, STATA).

(2)Diploma in Banking & Finance.

(3) Diploma in Development Economics.

(4)Orientation Course for Teachers for teaching English Classes.

(5)Use of SPSS in Social Sciences Research.

(6) Orientation Course for MA English External Students.

(7) Diploma in International Affairs (DIA).



For BA/BSc 2nd Div or Equivalent.

(1) Orientation Course for MA English.

For FA/FSc or Equivalent.

(1) Personality Development.

(2)Business Chinese Course.



For Matric or Matric appeared ADMISSION – SUMMER COURSES - 2015.
1. NUML offers following short courses during summer vacation from 25th June to 29 th July 2015.

a. Language Courses (Min Qual: Matric OR Matric appeared).

(1) Arabic (2) Bangla (3) Balochi.

(4) Chinese (5) English (6) French.

(7) German (8) Japanese (9) Korean.

(10) Pashto (11) Persian (12) Punjabi.

(13) Russian (14) Spanish (15) Turkish.

(16) Urdu for foreigners.

b. Other Courses.

For BA/BSc or Equivalent.

(1) Statistical Tools for Social Science Research (SPSS, E-Views, STATA).

(2)Diploma in Banking & Finance.

(3) Diploma in Development Economics.

(4)Orientation Course for Teachers for teaching English Classes.

(5)Use of SPSS in Social Sciences Research.

(6) Orientation Course for MA English External Students.

(7) Diploma in International Affairs (DIA).



For BA/BSc 2nd Div or Equivalent.

(1) Orientation Course for MA English.

For FA/FSc or Equivalent.

(1) Personality Development.

(2)Business Chinese Course.



For Matric or Matric appeared.

(1) IELTS.



c. For BA/BSc or Equivalent with fluency in English and at least 2 foreign languages (Arabic, German, French, English - One foreign language will do as per necessity) working professional (active translators, teaching Staff).

(1) Promotional Workshop for Autumn Semester: Introduction to.

Translation Skills and Studies (from 22 June to 03 Jul 2015).



(2) Introduction to International Translation Studies (from 06 to 24 July 2015).



d. Persian Language Course for Urdu & Pakistani Language Teachers..




2. Registration / Processing Fee : Rs. 500/-

3. For Details visit NUML website (admissions.numl.edu.pk). Candidates will submit the admission form online only. Processing Fee is Rs.500/- (Computer generated Challan Form will appear after completion of Online Admission Form). Candidate will fill in the form online and submit the print out of Application form, Undertaking form & Student ID form along with following documents (By Post):-

Attested copies of all educational documents, in case an applicant has appeared in Matric / Intermediate / Graduation Exams, then copy of Roll No Slip, CNIC/Form ‘B’, Parents / Guardian CNIC, 03 passport size pictures and paid bank receipt of Rs. 500/- (in original)

All documents along with application form should reach Islamabad Campus by Post latest by 12 Jun 2015. Incomplete Applications will not be entertained. All Applications should reach by Post. By hand applications will not be accepted.

4. Interviews will be conducted on 22 June 2015 at 8:30 am. Candidates must bring alongOriginal Certificates / Degrees / Roll No. Slip etc at the time of interview. Without original documents, interview will not be conducted.

5. For further details.

DIRECTOR ACADEMICS : Tele: 9265080, PABX 9265100- 10 Ext # 228, 243, 259, 308 & 319

For Details of Admission Schedule,Interviews Schedule, Programs Duration , Fee and Allied Charges (Lump sum), Hostel Facility Click Here.

(1) IELTS



c. For BA/BSc or Equivalent with fluency in English and at least 2 foreign languages (Arabic, German, French, English - One foreign language will do as per necessity) working professional (active translators, teaching Staff).

(1) Promotional Workshop for Autumn Semester: Introduction to

Translation Skills and Studies (from 22 June to 03 Jul 2015).



(2) Introduction to International Translation Studies (from 06 to 24 July 2015).



d. Persian Language Course for Urdu & Pakistani Language Teachers.




2. Registration / Processing Fee : Rs. 500/-

3. For Details visit NUML website (admissions.numl.edu.pk). Candidates will submit the admission form online only. Processing Fee is Rs.500/- (Computer generated Challan Form will appear after completion of Online Admission Form). Candidate will fill in the form online and submit the print out of Application form, Undertaking form & Student ID form along with following documents (By Post):-

Attested copies of all educational documents, in case an applicant has appeared in Matric / Intermediate / Graduation Exams, then copy of Roll No Slip, CNIC/Form ‘B’, Parents / Guardian CNIC, 03 passport size pictures and paid bank receipt of Rs. 500/- (in original)

All documents along with application form should reach Islamabad Campus by Post latest by 12 Jun 2015. Incomplete Applications will not be entertained. All Applications should reach by Post. By hand applications will not be accepted.

4. Interviews will be conducted on 22 June 2015 at 8:30 am. Candidates must bring alongOriginal Certificates / Degrees / Roll No. Slip etc at the time of interview. Without original documents, interview will not be conducted.

5. For further details

DIRECTOR ACADEMICS : Tele: 9265080, PABX 9265100- 10 Ext # 228, 243, 259, 308 & 319

For Details of Admission Schedule,Interviews Schedule, Programs Duration , Fee and Allied Charges (Lump sum), Hostel Facility Click Here...............