Transcript
InnoTechNews
2015
QUARTERLY BULLETIN
October [#15]
TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH & ARCHITECTURE
InnoWave Technologies’ Editorial Team [Contributors]
SEA Team [Reviewers]
SEA Team MC Team
Windows 10
downloads bend, but don't break, the Internet [Inside ]
Windows 10 downloads bend, but don't break, the Internet Intel to Acquire FPGA-Specialist Altera for $16.7 Billion [04] EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES: Artificial Evolutionary Neural Network Algorithm makes its way onto classic games faster than NAND TIPS: Here’s how to force Windows 10 update onto your [05] WIKI-LINKS: Tesla Powerwall IT GENERIC: Nokia sells Here maps to German car makers for €2.8bn [06] MULTIMEDIA: Forget 4K resolution! Samsung is building an 11K mobile display that can mimic 3D [02]
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IT GENERIC:
Windows 10 downloads bend, but don't break, the Internet www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-downloads-bends-but-doesnt-break-the-internet/
Windows 10 is now available not just for Windows Insider, but for anyone who wants to download it. That's all well and good, but can the Internet handle millions of simultaneous 3.5GB downloads? So far, even as Akamai reports that Internet traffic is 35 percent higher than normal, the answer is yes.
S
ome people feared that Windows 10 download traffic could break the Internet with traffic peaks of up to 40 Terabits per second (TBps). That doesn't seem to be happening. While Microsoft declined to say exactly how they're handling the demand, we do know some things about how Microsoft is delivering Windows 10's bits to your computer.
Terry Myerson, Microsoft's Executive Vice President of the Windows and Devices Group, gave us a big hint in early July. Myerson blogged, "Starting on July 29, we will start rolling out Windows 10 to our Windows Insiders. From there, we will
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start notifying reserved systems in waves, slowly scaling up after July 29th." In other words, unlike Apple with iOS 8, Microsoft isn't letting everyone rush to the update gate and clog it up with traffic. While Microsoft wouldn't confirm this, Dan Rayburn, executive VP of Streaming Media, said : Microsoft has reserved up to 40Tb/s per second of capacity from all of the third-party CDNs [Content Delivery Networks] combined. It's a busy day on the Internet. It may even be record-setting when all is said and done, but the Internet's in no danger of breaking.
IT GENERIC:
Intel to Acquire FPGA-Specialist Altera for $16.7 Billion Source: Intel and anandtech
Intel has announced in the beginning of June that they are buying Altera in an all-cash deal of $16.7 billion.
T
he reason for this buy is that Intel wants to pick up Altera for their Field Programmable Grid Array (FPGA) experience, not only to continue FPGA development but also to integrate FPGAs into some of their future products. Altera is actually one of the two major competitors, and alongside rival Xilinx the two companies comprise the bulk of the market. Prior to this sale Altera already had a close relationship with Intel, with Altera using Intel’s 14nm process for their latest generation of Stratix FPGAs. As one of only a few external companies known to be using Intel’s 14nm process, Altera’s FPGA’s have been a natural complement to Intel’s application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) business. On a business side there’s minimal overlap, but more importantly on the technical side FPGAs are good candidates for early production on a lower-yielding node. Since FPGAs are just large arrays of programmable logic and RAM, they can easily compensate for defects, allowing for a greater number of chips to be shipped for revenue early-on than a more complex ASIC. Purchasing Altera allows Intel to bring their FPGA production entirely in-house, not just producing FPGAs but better aligning them to Intel’s development plans as part of their integrated device manufacturing model. However more significantly, this gives Intel access to top-tier FPGA technology, which they can use to augment other products. Intel is already talking about the possibilities they see for Altera’s FPGA technology in the Internet of Things (IoT) and datacenter
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markets, but also the company has confirmed that they will be integrating FPGA technology into some of their future Xeon products, to allow customers to essentially build-out semicustom processors via the FPGA component. Intel already does on-package FPGAs for certain customers, so this would represent the logical extension of that process by bringing the FPGA fully on-die. For Intel this also represents a chance to further branch out in the markets they cover. The PC and server market has continued to treat the company well, even as PC sales have slowed, but having so far struggled to capture a major piece of the mobile space from ARM and its partners, Intel has been looking at other avenues of growth. In this case FPGAs represent a high-margin business on their own, one that’s increasing in revenue as ASIC development costs continue to rise, and a good match for Intel given their traditional manufacturing advantage.
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES:
Artificial evolutionary neural network algorithmmakes its way onto classic games faster than NAND www.techtimes.com/articles/60573/20150615/mari-o-ai-program-learns-play-super-mario-world.htm
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reated by developer Seth Bling, MarI/O – software made up of a neural network and genetic algorithms – can complete Super Mario like that's its job. On June 13, Bling uploaded a video showing MarI/O playing a level of the popular game with impressive skill. Possessing a degree in computer science and an interest in computer learning, Bling was able to create the neural network that learns how to play a game through trial and error. Learning how to play just like we do, MarI/O can figure out the best ways for escaping enemies and completing the level. Bling says the program started out with no knowledge of Super Mario or Nintendo. It learned how to play the game through a process he calls "neuro-evolution." The AI program uses a neural network, or mathematical network of how our brain works, to see which blocks it can stand on, where the enemies are and which buttons to press to navigate. Neuroevolution is a form of machine learning that uses evolutionary algorithms to train artificial neural networks. Artificial neural networks are a family of statistical learning models inspired by biological neural networks (the central nervous systems of animals, in particular the brain) and are used to estimate or approximate functions that can depend on a large number of inputs and are generally unknown. Bling also explains how the program learned over a 24-hour evolution period. The first version of MarI/O starts off dumb, just standing there until it learns how to walk. Over the program's training time, MarI/O learned to not only play Super Mario World, but it also developed the ability to master the level with ease after 34 generations. It's important to add that the program isn't the best player, since it does leave some coins behind. Still, it's amazing to know that a program was able to learn and master a game using the same principals of our biological evolution. MarI/O is also able to learn how to play other games without need to change the source code.
TIPS:
Here’s how to force Windows 10 update onto your PC by downloading and installing right now http://pocketnow.com/2015/07/29/force-windows-10-update
D
espite the fact that Microsoft has officially flipped the switch on the Windows 10 update, you might not be getting your free copy immediately. It might take days, or even weeks, until you can enjoy the brand new OS with its shiny new features. However, there’s a way to force the Windows 10 update to your computer, and have it downloaded and installed right away. RedmondPie published a neat tutorial on how to force Windows 10 update onto your PC, and, so far it has been working flawlessly. Just follow these easy steps and you should be up and running in no-time. However, you need to make sure, before you proceed, that you are running a genuine copy of Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.1 Update, and
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your system is up to date with all previous updates from Windows Update downloaded and installed. In a nutshell, you will need to: 1. Make sure your system is set to receive and install Windows Updates automatically 2. Delete everything in the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\ Download folder 3. Run this command in an instance of cmd.exe ran as administrator: wuauclt.exe /updatenow 4. You should be all set and your download should begin shortly.
WIKI-LINKS:
Tesla Powerwall https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tesla_Powerwall
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he Powerwall is a rechargeable lithium-ion battery product manufactured by Tesla Motors for home use. It stores electricity for domestic consumption, load shifting, and backup power.
The device comes in multiple glossy colors including white, charcoal, red, and blue. The Powerpack is a bigger variant available for industrial consumers with a storage capacity of 100 kWh. Tesla's objective is to "fundamentally change the way the world uses energy" by "fostering a clean energy ecosystem and helping wean the world off fossil fuels" using backup energy storage for renewable energy. The Powerwall has two different models for domestic consumption, each using different generic cell chemistries. One model is optimized for daily cycling, such as for an off-grid situation; the other for being a backup battery. Tesla uses proprietary technology for packaging and cooling the cells in packs with liquid coolant. It was announced at the product launch on April 30, 2015, that the Powerwall would retail for US$3,000 for a 7 kWh model and US$3,500 for the 10 kWh model. Shipments were planned to begin in the late summer of 2015.
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okia sells Here maps to German car N makers for €2.8bn http://www.zdnet.com/article/nokia-sells-here-maps-to-german-car-makers-for-2-8bn/
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okia has finally confirmed the sale of its Here mapping business for €2.8bn ($3bn) to a consortium of Audi, BMW, and Daimler. The sale ends months of speculation over the fate of Here, with the deal between Nokia and the German car group expected to be complete by the first quarter of 2016. Audi, BMW, and Daimler will hold an equal share in Here, with the three companies saying today that none is seeking a majority interest. The car manufacturers are have acquired Here to obtain technology that will help them develop new assistance systems and fully autonomous driving - the company likely appealed as it allows the consortium to do so without being locked into services from the likes of Apple or Google. Underpinning such systems will be precise digital maps, mobility and location-based service capabilities, as well as the high-precision cameras and sensors installed on modern cars that help provide real
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time-time traffic data. The idea is that automakers' access to shared raw data will allow them to create "differentiated and brand-specific" services for their customers.
MULTIMEDIA
Forget 4K resolution! Samsung is building an 11K mobile display that can mimic 3D www.engadget.com/2015/07/10/samsung-11k-display/
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hile most people are still trying to wrap their heads around 4K displays (and 8K screens aren't that far off), Samsung is setting up an even more ambitious milestone. It seems like the tech giant is taking resolution to the next level after an announcement made by Chu Hye Yong, the director of Base Technology. Yong stated that the company is planning to develop the world's first 11K super-resolution display by 2018.
That's an eye-melting 2,250 pixels per inch, around four times higher than Samsung's existing quad-HD mobile displays. But Samsung
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isn't alone in this crazy experiment either: It's already teamed up with 13 companies to work on the so-called "EnDK" project, and the South Korean government is investing $26.5 million over five years. So what's the point of an 11K resolution on mobile, when even 4K seems like overkill? Samsung says that that crazy amount of pixels will give screens a 3D-like effect, likely without the need for wearing glasses. It would take at least three years for this display to be completed and Samsung would want it to be ready before the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang so that it can show it off there.
CARTOON www.itworld.com/article/2877632/mobile/itworld-cartoons-2015-the-year-in-geek-humor-so-far.html
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