As of January 1st, 2024, Steam has officially stopped supporting the Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1 operating systems. After that date, existing Steam Client installations on these operating systems will no longer receive any updates, including critical security updates. Steam Support will be unable to offer technical assistance to users still on these older operating systems. Steam also cannot guarantee the continued functionality or security of the Steam client and games purchased through Steam on unsupported Windows versions. Users are strongly encouraged to update to a newer Windows 10 or 11 version to ensure Steam and its games continue functioning properly beyond the January 1st cutoff date.

This change is necessary because core Steam features rely on an embedded version of Google Chrome that no longer functions on older Windows. Future Steam versions will also require Windows features and security updates only present in Windows 10 and later. With Microsoft having ended security updates and technical support for Windows 7 in 2020 and Windows 8.1 in 2023, these older operating systems are increasingly vulnerable to new malware exploits when connected to the internet. This malware can negatively impact PC performance, cause Steam and games to crash, or be used to steal Steam account credentials. Updating to a supported Windows version is highly recommended for all Windows 7/8/8.1 users to continue securely running Steam.

Intel Graphics has introduced feature rivaling NVIDIA VSR (virtual super resolution) for Chromium-based web-browsers such as Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, which enhances the quality of streaming video, both from lower resolutions to higher; as well as improving the quality at native resolution. This was discovered in the change-log of a Chrome build, which talks about the introduction of a "-features=IntelVpSuperResolution" command-line argument to start Chrome with, to enable the feature.

Apparently, the Intel VSR feature works on Intel iGPUs dating back to the 11th Gen Core ("Tiger Lake" and "Rocket Lake,") based on the Xe-LP graphics architecture. The feature should come particularly handy when trying to upscale online video from lower resolutions (such as SD 360p/480p or HD 720p), up to Full HD (1080p) or higher. It's reported that VSR is enabled by default on Chrome/Edge 110, and doesn't require that command-line argument. To use it, you will need Intel iGPU graphics drivers version 27.20.100.8681 or later.

Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge 110 introduced RTX virtual super resolution (VSR) support. This would come as a boost to browser-based games, as well as next-generation webpages that use raster graphics objects that can be rendered at a lower resolution than the user's display resolution, and upscaled at minimal hardware-resource cost. When our Chrome browsers and GeForce drivers updated last week, we couldn't get VSR to work. The latest GeForce 528.49 WHQL drivers released on February 8 do not support RTX VSR, yet. Driver support is now expected to be added from GeForce R530-series drivers.

NVIDIA has recently released GeForce NOW 2.0.27 which includes a variety of improvements and bug-fixes. NVIDIA has added beta support for the Google Chrome browser on Windows and macOS which will make it easier to start playing. GeForce NOW Users can simply go to https://play.geforcenow.com/ to start playing, along with Google Chrome support NVIDIA has made it easier to save and share games simply by copying the URL. NVIDIA also updated GeForce NOW macOS to include native support for Apple M1 devices which will enable the best experience on these devices. You can read the full release notes for GeForce NOW 2.0.27 below.

QNAP Systems, Inc. today updated Notes Station 3, a multi-user note-taking application for NAS. With Notes Station 3, workgroups can collaboratively edit notes and easily track edits, greatly simplifying team communication and improving productivity. The mobile version, Qnotes3, allows users to record and share inspirations, ideas, and tasks at any time.

"Collaborative notetaking can greatly improve individual and workgroup productivity," said Josh Chen, Product Manager of QNAP, adding "Notes Station 3 and Qnotes3 are convenient, hassle-free, and ideal for recording daily inspirations, plans, and meeting minutes. We constantly improve Notes Station 3 based on user feedback."

Microsoft introduced the Windows segment heap memory improvements for modern and system apps such as Microsoft Edge to reduce memory requirements. In a recent blog post, Principal PM Manager of Microsoft Edge Kim Denny announced that with the latest Windows 10 May 2020 Update Microsoft Edge saw a memory usage reduction of up to 27%. The New Microsoft Edge referenced here has adopted the chromium source engine which shows the possible memory reduction effects on google chrome.

In a recent chromium commit discovered by WindowsLatest shows a chromium developer stating that users "could save hundreds of MB in the browser and Network Service utility processes, among others, on some machines,". Considering Google Chrome has the largest market share of any browser by a healthy margin and given its memory-hogging tendencies this development will be a very welcome addition. The feature is currently being implemented and should hopefully be available soon.

There are two types of people in the world: tab minimalists who have just a few tabs open at a time and tab collectors who have...significantly more. For minimalists and collectors alike, we're bringing a new way to organize your tabs to Chrome: tab groups. This feature is available now in Chrome Beta. Now, with a simple right click, you can group your tabs together and label them with a custom name and color. Once the tabs are grouped together, you can move and reorder them on the tab strip.

The wait is over. The Lenovo Chromebook Duet, one of the thinnest, lightest and most hotly anticipated Chromebooks in the world, hits the North America market today. Designed for mobile productivity, the 2-in-1 detachable Lenovo Chromebook Duet has a 10.1-inch screen and comes with an ultrathin, detachable laptop-grade keyboard to help you get work done from the kitchen, to the home office or couch. The Lenovo Chromebook Duet runs Chrome OS - the powerfully simple operating system that boots up fast, and stays secure with seamless automatic updates for up to eight years.

Samsung today announced the Galaxy Chromebook, a premium Google ChromeOS 2-in-1 device that converts between a conventional notebook and a tablet with a stylus. This is the first time Samsung is bringing its Android-focused Galaxy brand over to its Chromebook family. The $999 price-tag may look like a tall ask for a Chromebook, until you look at some of its specs. The star attraction is the 13.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen with 4K UHD resolution. Samsung developed the Galaxy Chromebook in close coordination with Intel as part of its ambitious "Project Athena" initiative of developing next-generation portable computing devices that defy conventions on performance and battery-life.

Under the hood is an Intel Core i5-10210U "Comet Lake" processor with 8 GB of LPDDR3-2133 memory, a 256 GB NVMe SSD, UFS + microSDXC card slot, and 802.11ax + Bluetooth connectivity (at this price we'd have expected at least 4G cellular modem). It dumps type-A USB ports and instead features a couple of type-C ports, one of which doubles up as a power input. The 4K UHD display is pulled by integrated Intel UHD 630 graphics. A 47.9 Wh battery powers the thing, with Samsung claiming 8h 20m of run-time. Measuring 30 cm x 20.32 cm x 0.99 cm (closed), the Galaxy Chromebook weighs 1.03 kg. The included S-Pen stylus slots into the body. The Galaxy Chromebook is available in two color options, red and gray, both priced at $999.

Today, AMD announced the first members of its 2019 mobility line-up encompassing all notebook segments: 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen 3000 Series Mobile Processors powering ultrathin and gaming notebooks; AMD Athlon 300 Series Mobile Processors powering mainstream notebooks with the fast and efficient "Zen"3 core; and optimized 7th Gen AMD A-Series processors, elevating performance for mainstream Chromebooks. In addition, AMD announced that starting this quarter, gamers, creators and enthusiasts will be able to install Radeon Software Adrenalin software to bring the latest GPU features and game optimizations to all systems powered by AMD Ryzen Processors with Radeon Graphics.

"Users expect mobile PCs that excel at both everyday tasks and compute-heavy experiences, and with our latest mobile processor portfolio AMD offers exactly that across all levels of the market," said Saeid Moshkelani, senior vice president and general manager, Client Compute, AMD. "Notebook users want to experience the latest modern features while streaming, gaming, or finishing work faster. Enabling breakthrough entertainment experiences, AMD is pleased to enable a wide range of AMD powered notebooks than ever that deliver on those expectations with blazing fast performance, rich graphics, and long battery life."

There was a time when Chrome users could be safe and think that what they did in Google Services (Gmail, YouTube, Maps, etc) was separated from their actions in the browser. One thing wasn't necessarily tied to the other, but now things have changed - and without any public disclosure from Google.

Starting with the recently published Chrome 69, if you use this version of Chrome and log into any Google service or site, you will be automatically and magically logged into Chrome with that user account. A systems architect called Bálint disclosed a problem that changes Chrome behavior in a way that could potentially harm user's privacy.

In what is certainly a major step forward for Internet advertising and the way these are delivered to users, Google has announced that their in-Chrome AdBlocker, which will ship embedded on the Chrome web browser, should be up, running, and being distributed in installation packages by February 15th. This move by google comes after the company joined a voluntary association in the form of the Coalition for Better Ads Experience Program, which aims to better the Internet - and its ads - on both consumers and publishers. This coalition's aim is to define standards for advertising, marking ads as either acceptable or not under the standard's rules, and will "certify web publishers that agree not to use the most disruptive ads identified in the Standards and will accredit browsers and advertising technology companies that will assess publishers' compliance with the Standards and filter digital ads based on the Standards."

Following its integration in the Better Ads Coalition, google will officially activate its AdBlocker on February 15th, whose criteria for blocking ads will be based off of the Coalition's white and black listing of websites and ads according to whether or not they conform to the body's advertising Standards. Google wrote on a developers blog post that "Starting on February 15, in line with the Coalition's guidelines, Chrome will remove all ads from sites that have a "failing" status in the Ad Experience Report for more than 30 days."

Google Tuesday announced that it is discontinuing YouTube on Amazon's home entertainment platforms Fire TV and Echo Show. YouTube is the world's most popular on-demand video service, and continues to be the largest video sharing site. In a statement, Google said that the decision to pull YouTube from Amazon platforms was in reciprocity to Amazon continuing to hamper sales of Google devices, and preventing Amazon Prime Video from working on Google Chromecast. "Amazon doesn't carry Google products like Chromecast and Google Home, doesn't make (its) Prime Video available for Google Cast users, and last month stopped selling some of (our sister company) Nest's latest products. Given this lack of reciprocity, we are no longer supporting YouTube on Echo Show and Fire TV," Google said.

As if preventing Prime Video from working on Chromecast doesn't amount to "selectively blocking customer access to an open website," a hypocritical Amazon retorted "Google is setting a disappointing precedent by selectively blocking customer access to an open website." Google has, in its statement, left the door open for a possible agreement between the two. "We hope we can reach an agreement to resolve these issues soon," Google stated. This could likely see Google devices such as Chromecast and Google Home return to Amazon, and the availability of Prime Video on Chromecast and other Google Cast platforms. If it gets any worse from here on, Google has another, more destructive weapon in its arsenal against Amazon - Search results.

Mozilla today released the Firefox Quantum web-browser for PCs. Technically version 57.0 of Firefox, Quantum comes with an overhauled user-interface, a more evolved multi-process sandbox than Google Chrome, and is geared for both performance and lower memory footprint. Mozilla claims that web-rendering performance has been doubled over the previous version (Firefox 56.0), making it play in a league above Google Chrome. It's also designed to have up to 30% smaller memory footprint than Chrome.

Firefox Quantum takes advantage of the very latest CPU instruction sets, and GPU features, to accelerate web-rendering, with a focus on keeping the interface as smooth as possible, without losing out on the quality of rendering. It also adds WebVR and and WASM support in-built, broadening its feature-set for browser-based gaming. Grab Firefox from the link below.DOWNLOAD: Mozilla Firefox Quantum

DisplayLink, the leading provider of USB graphics technology, today announced its docking stations and adapters work with Chrome OS Release 51 onwards. A demonstration of the native plug-and-display capability will be shown at Interop 2016, Las Vegas showcasing the latest Chromebooks from industry leaders such as Dell and HP. For a demo, visit the DisplayLink booth at Interop Las Vegas Expo, between May 4th and May 5th.

"DisplayLink is truly excited to announce native OS support in Google's Chrome OS from today onwards," said John Cummins, Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing. "No driver is required, just plug in any DisplayLink device and it just works. As Chromebooks have expanded across education and corporate markets, we've experienced strong demand to enable Chromebooks with the DisplayLink installed base of millions of devices. A Chromebook and DisplayLink multi-head docking station enables multiple monitors for a true productivity desktop experience. We are proud to have worked closely with Google to deliver this new functionality to customers worldwide."

Synology Inc. today announced the official release of DiskStation Manager (DSM) 6.0, the latest version of its award-winning NAS operating system. DSM 6.0 marks the beginning of a new era for Synology's DiskStation and RackStation products, expanding their role in professional environments with an exciting array of virtualization, data replication, and productivity tools.

We would like to express our gratitude to the enthusiastic users who submitted thousands of ideas and suggestions during the 6-month long beta program, helping to shape the future of DSM and create an unparalleled experience," said James Chen, CEO of Synology Inc. "The need for cloud-based collaboration tools that don't sacrifice users' privacy and ownership of data will continue to grow. With DSM 6.0, we aim to be at the forefront of this trend, helping professionals work together while maintaining an efficient data protection solution."

NVIDIA is giving final touches to a feature that's similar in function to PlayStation 4 SharePlay, called GameStream Co-op. Accessed through its GeForce Experience app, the feature will let you share your game over the Internet with your friend, letting them either take over control (and get you through a level you're stuck with), or play co-op multiplayer with. The way this works is that your systems renders the game, and streams it across the Internet to them.

NVIDIA is planning to get GameStream Co-op into the hands of as many gamers as possible, by the minimum system requirements of the host PC rather low. You need at least a GeForce GTX 650 graphics card to get started. The guest PC has even lower system requirements, including not needing any discrete-graphics, and just Google Chrome (the game streams to them as a web-page). The only notable requirement is an Internet bandwidth of at least 7 Mbps (upstream) for the host, and 7 Mbps (downstream) for the guest. NVIDIA plans to put a working beta of this feature in the hands of gamers by September.

NVIDIA released a GeForce driver update, version 353.38 Hotfix (not WHQL signed), that addresses a software bug that affects users of the popular Google Chrome web-browser. Users of the GPU-accelerated web-browser have been reporting crashes (both of the browser and display driver), and app freezing. The driver also addresses the issue of slow startup and window-switching of apps with G-SYNC enabled. The rest of its feature-set is carried over from the 353.30 drivers.

DOWNLOAD NVIDIA GeForce 353.38 Hotfix

Patriot, a leading manufacturer of mobile accessories, computer and USB memory, announces the development of a Type-C USB Flash Drive for the new MacBook, Google Chromebook Pixel and other Type-C equipped notebooks and systems available on the market. With the recent release of the latest MacBook, which has been upgraded with the new Type-C port, consumers will now be able to use the Type-C USB Flash Drive to transfer data from any other form factor using a single robust and small solution.

Outfitted with a polished metal exterior, the dual-sided Type-C / Type A USB Flash Drive will feature both a small Type-C at one end and a standard USB 3.0 connector at the other end allowing seamless data transfer from traditional devices to the new Type C based device. Patriot solves the problem of compatibility, providing a solution that is compatible with all devices.

QNAP Systems, Inc. today announced the release of the TS-x31 series Turbo NAS for SOHO and Home users. Powered by a dual-core 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex-A9 CPU, it provides a high-performance yet economical solution for file storage, sharing, and data backup coupled with the easy-to-use cloud-based note-taking application and a wide range of multimedia functions.

Available in 1, 2, and 4-bay models, the TS-x31 series is an easy-to-use network storage center for backup, synchronization, remote access, and home entertainment. "Due to the privacy concerns of pubic cloud services, the TS-x31 is ideal for establishing a secure and large-capacity private cloud where users can store, share, and access their files anytime, anywhere," said Jason Hsu, product manager of QNAP.

HP today announced a new lineup of sleek consumer PCs including, two new powerful HP ENVY x2 detachable PCs designed to deliver a notebook experience for productivity, but quickly transform to a tablet for entertainment and apps; the ultra-portable HP Pavilion x2 detachable PC designed for customers who want to simplify their life with a single device that transforms from tablet to laptop; and two new colorful HP Chromebooks that bring the power of the Chrome OS for a fast, simple, protected internet experience.

"Customers have told us they want devices that offer flexibility and performance while reflecting their personal sense of style," said Mike Nash, vice president, Product Management, Consumer Personal Systems, HP. "The products we are announcing today include innovative designs, vibrant color options, choice of operating system and computing power to enable the way that customers communicate, play and live."

Intel Corporation and other companies today introduced a new lineup of Chrome devices, including the first designs using Intel Celeron processors based on the Bay Trail-M system-on-chip (SoC). A new class of Chromebooks based on the 4th generation Intel Core i3 processor were also unveiled. The announcements were made at a press conference in San Francisco hosted by Navin Shenoy, vice president and general manager of Intel Mobile Client Platforms Group and Caesar Sengupta, vice president, product management, Chrome OS at Google as well as representatives from Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, LG Electronics USA and Toshiba.

"Intel has grown to become the No. 1 microprocessor in Chrome systems," said Shenoy. "We've been working on five generations of Chrome and after Google, Intel is the largest contributor to the Chromium OS. Intel chips are the first and only to support 64-bit Chrome OS. This deep history and investment combined with our stellar Bay Trail and Haswell SoCs mean Intel can offer the best performing devices at every price point in the Chrome category. When people are shopping for Chrome devices, they should look for Intel Inside."

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor solutions, announced that its Exynos 5 Octa mobile application processor is the power behind the new Samsung Chromebook 2*. The Exynos 5 Octa family features an eight-core ARM big.LITTLE processor configuration built for efficient handling of multiple tasks in high-end mobile devices today.

"Maximizing performance in tight power and thermal budgets is critical in today's mobile devices," said Dr. Kyushik Hong, vice president of System LSI marketing, Samsung Electronics. "Compared to Exynos 5 Dual, our new Exynos 5 Octa application processors deliver up to 125 percent increase in computing and two times the multimedia performance. This enables designers to develop leading-edge products with significantly improved battery life."

ASUSTOR Inc., a leading innovator and provider of network storage solutions, has announced the release of the ASUSTOR Data Master (ADM) 2.1 Beta Program for all of its NAS devices (2, 3, and 6 Series). All ASUSTOR users are welcome to download the beta firmware from the official ASUSTOR website and experience all the brand new features firsthand.

The ADM 2.1 Beta Version expands the core functionality of the system and includes newly expanded support for Bluetooth devices along with MyArchive, an exclusive new storage technology developed by ASUSTOR. Furthermore, a number of in-house developed Apps have been added to ASUSTOR's App lineup that are sure to please both business and home users alike.

LG Electronics will unveil the first-ever LG Chromebase, an all-in-one computer powered by the Google Chrome operating system, at next month's 2014 International CES. The LG Chromebase (Model 22CV241) offers the highly efficient Chrome operating system for a fast, simple, secure and affordable computing experience. Along with the unique operating system, a 21.5-inch widescreen Full HD IPS display and a raft of advanced features, this innovative new desktop computer comes packaged in a chic, space-saving design.

The LG Chromebase all-in-one computer is underpinned by a simple yet powerful architecture and comes with several outstanding Google applications. It also serves as a gateway to tens of thousands of web apps in the Chrome Web Store, many of which work just as well offline as they do online.
The LG Chromebase allows users to write emails and documents, read the latest news and Ebooks, edit videos and photos and play entertaining games. The streamlined platform makes almost any task effortless and is the perfect device for taking advantage of Google products such as Gmail, Drive, Search, Maps, YouTube, Play or
Google+ Hangouts.