Tricks and tips for adsence

If you are just starting out, there are several things that you should absolutely do in order to get the most out of AdSense. The official guides offered during the signup process are fairly limited, not offering any particularly noteworthy advice. You may already be implementing many of these, but there are likely some pieces of low hanging fruit among the following.


Max Out Ad Units. We’ll start off with an easy one: AdSense lets you have up to three standard ad units on a page, so you’d be wise to take advantage by maxing out.Max Out Link Units. Link units are a wildly underused AdSense option; placing up to three of these on a page should give you a quick, meaningful boost. For sample implementations of link units, check out these example pages.Pay Attention to Link Units. This point is worth reiterating. While many publishers focus primarily on traditional ad units, link units have the potential to out-earn leaderboards and rectangles.

Set up a Custom Search Engine. This is another way to get more AdSense units on your site; custom search engines will generally see very high RPMs (though traffic is relatively light).
Enable Placement Targeting. This allows advertisers to include your website in their campaign, either by name or by targeting an interest group. Placement targeting should be enabled by default, but if you’re using DFP you may need to take a few additional steps.

Set up Custom Channels. Setting up custom channels will allow you to get better insights into what’s working and what isn’t, and will make testing down the road easier. It’s pretty easy to get these up and running, and worth making the up front investment to do so.Allow Text & Images. One of the primary choices within AdSense involves either restricting an ad unit to “image only” or allowing both text and image ads. Permitting text ads to show gives AdSense a deeper pool of ads, and will almost certainly increase your click rate and earnings.

Use Standard Units. While AdSense lets partners choose from more than a dozen ad units, there are a few units that are more common with advertisers. Using these common ad sizes–300×250, 728×90, and 160×600–will give AdSense a deeper pool of advertisers from which to choose.
Monitor Fill Rate. Make sure that you’re serving ads and not blank space on your site. Monitoring fill rate is an easy way to do this; if there are any discrepancies, here are five reasons why AdSense and Analytics may not match.

Supplement AdSense. The terms and conditions of AdSense allow for only three ad units per page. In many cases, pages can comfortably accommodate more than three ads per page without overwhelming visitors and leading to a bad experience. If you think your site could use more ad units, there’s nothing to stop you from supplementing your AdSense units with ads from a competing provider. (For more on supplementing AdSense with additional ad networks, jump to this section.)

Place Units Above the Fold (ATF). This one might seem obvious: the higher up on a page your ads are, the more they’ll be viewed (and the more you’ll earn).
Relative Positioning Matters. While placing ads above the fold is generally advantageous, the relative positioning of ads (i.e., what they’re next to) is more important than their explicit location in the page. Scroll down to #24 on this list for an example of an ad that’s above the fold, but likely out of sight within the first few seconds of a visitor being on the page.

Beware of Overdoing It. When chasing AdSense earnings, it’s easy to get carried away and make decisions that are detrimental to the user experience in order to generate some additional revenue. While there may be a short term win, you’ll ultimately hurt the long term earnings potential of your site by eroding your traffic base. Here is the example Google gives of what not to do (on the far right):

8 Easy Ways Students Can Make Money Online

8 Easy Ways Students Can Make Money Online

We should stop wasting time, in over connecting through social media! I feel sorry for my friends who waste hours and hours of their precious time on Facebook or any other social media it may be, which doesn't give back any thing at the end of the day.

At this point of time where i know something about the potential of constructive nature of internet, i cant even look back where i use to waste 8-10 hours of continuous online gaming! That was terrible. My online gaming rig (xfire) has registered more than 1200 online gaming hours. Wish i had spent those on blogging or any other constructive work on online.

I would recommend my fellow friends through this post, that kindly think out of the shell (beyond your age). Gaming or Facebooking is not every thing in the world. Here i am to list some of the great ways by which students, housewives, teens, or who ever it may be, would feel blessed to know, the list of top 12 money making ventures online.

Didn't you ever wished to have that extra pocket money, that you could spend out by your own will? For the gamers out there, who just cant leave their gaming world (as i couldn't get out of it easily), i have an exciting news for you later in the post. You need to read this one, before you jump back to your game!

Same is the case with housewives, who often want to pass their time constructively, they can earn really good sums through these money making opportunities while sitting in their homes. Its interesting and exciting. That's why i wish i had started my online career 5-6 years from now.

1. YouTube Career- Make Money From Uploading Videos To YouTube

YouTube is another world. No doubt about that. I have 2 channels, one for my blog and another where i used to put random vlogs/tutorials i liked. Though i never make any money out of it, as the Partnership program wasn't available in Pakistan, but its a great way to (if you have viewership and if you live where partnership program is available).



Below is the country list where YouTube partnership program is available.

YouTube Says:

If you live in country where partnership hasn't officially been launched, you will be redirected to the homepage. Currently, the YouTube Partner Program is only available to users in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, France, the United Kingdom, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden and the United States.

But note that you could even get into money program without joining YouTube partners program. How basically that works is that imagine you have started making quality videos (that you upload to your YouTube channel regularly) and if you videos start getting decent hits (like 10k+ approx), that is when people like your stuff, then YouTube often invites the person to join their money program.

You could then be able to display Adsense ads on your videos and start earning revenue. In case you get accepted into YouTube partnership program, there is nothing better than that (if you have passion making videos online) as YouTube would then start paying you out monthly according to the number of hits/views you get on average. That is by your popularity/viewership.

If i had been accepted into Partners program, i would probably not have faced towards the blogging career of mine. Just saying. I love making videos :) (plus i am good at editing, so that's makes out a perfect combination that you need for YouTube success)

So i would say that do give it a try. This is specially great for youngsters, teens, students. Housewives can actively participate in the YouTube community too if they would not get bored of making videos eventually. Every thing needs consistency.

(I am going too long for this one)

2. Make Money By Playing Games Online (Testing/Reviewing)

Yeah by playing games! Did you ever wish for something like this to happen. You can keep on playing hours and hours, but this time you would be get paid. There are so many companies that pay out the gamers community to play on their games, often before releasing period so that they could give out their feed back. This lets the companies to improve any glitches or other gaming experience bugs that could later drop their game sales.



Few thousands dollars could save their entire millions project. Win win situation for both the parties. The gamers and the developers.

There are few such sites that require you to signup (paid) which i don't feel is much practical for students, so instead they could op tin for just paid to play games. Where you get paid by simply playing number of hours on the site.

The companies give out a portion of their ads revenue.

3. Write Articles To Get Paid Online

Hubpages/Squidoo

Many people often consider website like Hub pages/squidoo in this category which i don't really believe too. These popular websites work in a way, where users publish articles on their hub, which is kinda their profile page. The articles could be of any category. I think you choose the category in which you would write in when you make up your profile for the first time.

They don't pay you for publishing articles, in fact you get revenue by the Adsense ads that get displayed beside your articles (hubs). For that you have to link your account with your Adsense account. Other options are Kontera. They also accept affiliate links in the article.



So i believe this option is good for those who doesn't want to or doesn't know to build up their own blogs from zero level. As these sites do the SEO work for you. The users would make more money out of ads if their articles are good enough to attract traffic from search engines (as our normal blog posts does).

I would not prefer this one over blogging. You could work a little more hard on setting up your blog and would get thousand times more reward in future for the same level of handwork with your articles.

 Paid To Review Articles

Then their are those sites which pay for review different products. May it be a neutral product or something of their own. A website like review stream pays out 2$ to the writers for each review that gets published (accepted) and then .1$ for each comment that is based on the review.

The more quality reviews you write, the more you get.

4. Get Paid To Listen To Music Online

This doesn't have any age barriers. Music is a universal language that could suite any one of any age. Companies pay you to listen to the music that is yet to launch. Why? Because they get an opportunity to get feedback from music lovers by which they could improve the final addition of the song. This helps them to launch successful music to the industry and makes huge sums.

Promosquad, SonyMusicAwards are example sites where housewives, teens, students, almost any body  could hear to music and get paid.

5. Chat With Friends To Make Money Online

You get paid to chat with your loved ones with the chat system of these sites, just like Facebook etc. Its just that you get paid for what you do. It has great potential. If you can resist chating to your friends and would not be able to leave social media, than you can try this out. Yuwie and Mylot are few examples. You get paid when your pictures are viewed, .5$ / 1000 picture views. Referrals give out a better response. In an all, getting  a penny is better than wasting time at all. But personally i don't really think this would justify the time we would put in.

 6. Put Advertisement On Your Car To Make Money

You can add banners of various sizes on your cars, to publicize other companies/products and get paid in return. This might suite somebody who travels a lot. Full car advertisement pays as much as 500$/month. For smaller ads, you can expect to make 1000$ a year.


For qualifying, you have to drive around 1000 miles/ month. The ads can be easily taken off and doesn't damages your car in general. You can check out Paidrides site for an example.

7. Type Documents And Papers To Make Money Online

If you are good at typing, then this might be a constructive hobby for you. You simply would be given task (documents/papers) to type and then get paid. This includes writing articles for blogs, for sites that offer paid articles jobs etc.

8. Get Paid By Answering Questions

If you are good at any subject, you can always help others about it. Imagine answering questions in Yahoo answers and get paid. Student Questions and know Brainers can be a good example to give here.

Hope these ways would make you more productive. As an all, i am really in the favor of blogging. Though you wont be getting any instant money but after 8-10 months of handwork, you would find your self in a position which you might have dreamt of.

How to ace through EAMCET the easy way

How to ace through EAMCET the easy way

The Engineering, Agriculture and Medical Common Entrance Test (EAMCET) 2014 examination is expected to be held on May 22, 2014after rescheduling because of the Lok Shabha polls. Applications are available till April 4, 2014. Only candidates belonging to Andhra Pradesh are eligible for EAMCET 2014.

EAMCET, engineering examination will be conducted for a total of 160 marks. 80 marks will be allotted to Mathematics, 40 for Physics and 40 for Chemistry. 160 Questions will be asked and candidates have to answers them in the duration of 3 hours. Every question carries one mark and have no negative marking.

With exam dates postponed by five days and more than a couple of months now, a quick review of the exam pattern and a few this -n-that will help aspirants get an extra edge.

 Mathematics covers fifty percent of the question paper. Hence students have to give priority to mathematics. For scoring good ranks students have to earn good marks in Physics, Chemistry and 60 marks out-of 80 in Mathematics.

Students appearing for JEE mains are already much prepared for EAMCET and they have to utilize the reaming time for planning preparation.

As there are no criteria for compulsorily scoring some minimum marks in any subject, hence students have to work-hard for scoring more marks in the subject in which they have good knowledge.

The exam has no negative marking system; students can hence apply their luck on questions they aren't sure of

In EAMCET either one or two questions will be asked from each topic of every subject, hence students have to give equal preference to all topics and sections.

Easy and less quantity topics should be practiced early. Mathematical Induction, Partial Fractions, Polar Coordinates and Random Variables are the easiest and probable topics in Mathematics. A question will be asked from Units and Dimensions topic of Physics subject.

Equal preference will be given to the Intermediate first year and second year syllabus. Speed of answering and exactness should be developed.

The marks scored in EAMCET will be given as 75 weight age and marks scored in groups subjects in Intermediate course will be given as 25 percent weight age. Final rank will be prepared by joining the both marks.

Engineering Agriculture and Medical Combined Entrance Test is conducted by the Jawaharlal Nehru Technical University, Hyderabad on behalf of the APSCHE for entry into the first year of the following Under Graduate Professional courses offered for the academic year 2012-2013 in the University and Private unaided & affiliated Professional colleges in the State of Andhra Pradesh.

Keep calm and prepare!

Wipro to expand internship programmes for SA students

Wipro to expand internship programmes for SA students

Wipro, Information Technology major is planning to expand the intake of graduates for its internship programmes to be held in South Africa. In its second year in 2013, Wipro's local internship programme had enrolled a total of 70 graduates. It is now set to increase the number to 150.

The applicants from disadvantaged backgrounds for internship programmes will have to go through entrance exams and interviews with local Wipro leadership. This process will be followed to test attitudes to learning and technical aptitude.

Wipro informed that after the completion of initial three months of theoretical training, the interns will be interviewed for an apprentice role on various live projects.

After being placed, the interns will be provided with a supervised on-the job training and mentorship for three months. Then their performances will be reviewed based on which the qualifying candidates will be absorbed into Wipro's operations in South Africa.

"The internship programme is becoming a crucial enabler of Wipro's growth in Africa. For us, the programme is about nurturing talent for local leadership and ensuring that we have the right people on board -- people who understand local culture, local markets and local customers across the African continent," Wipro senior vice president, Human Resources Saurabh Govil said.

"The programme offers a very high chance of being absorbed into the company - the first batch of 30 interns from 2013 is now employed full-time at Wipro," he added.

Top 5 jobs that can be done from home

Top 5 jobs that can be done from home

Do you wish to work from the comfort of your sofa, set your own working hours, spend more time with your family and not be caught in jams while going for office? Big Deal? Nay! Here is a list of top 5 jobs that are not only financially rewarding, but also satisfying.

1. Proof Reader: This is one of the most sought after jobs on the list. With freelance writing and full time blogging being one of the hits in the market, there also arises opportunities for individuals that have strong writing and editing skills to turn into a proofreader.
A proofreader needs to ensure that the text is grammatically correct, accessible and well-written.

Basic qualification required: Those applying for the job of a proof-reader should have a Bachelors degree in Arts or a related field.

Average salary: Rs 0.75 lakh to 3.72 lakh per annum

2. Translator: If you are good at bridging the gap between languages, this job suits you. The translators are professional experts who can convert spoken and written words in a desired language. All you need to do is translate the sourced material into the targeted, desired language without modifying the meaning of the original copy.

Basic qualification required: No specific degree is required. Only good communication skills and fluency in various languages (at least more than one) is needed.

Average salary: Rs 1.24 lakh to 10.76 lakh per annum

3. Web developer/ designer: The individuals, who partly have a way with creativity and partly with technicality, can opt for this job. The professionals engaged in this job will have to work with technical and graphical aspect of designing a website. They are required to satisfy the client's specifications of web based on target audience, branding, product positioning, and market and web traffic generation.

Basic qualification required: Those applying for the job of a web-designer should posses undergraduate diploma in design, fine arts or equivalent.

Average salary: Rs 0.94 lakh to Rs 5.26 lakh per annum

4. Medical Transcriptionist: The job description of these professionals includes transcribing dictated recordings from physicians and other medical professionals into reports, memos and other documents. They are high in demand all the time and a lot of people offer huge pay packages to grab these talents. The candidates are required to possess strong listening and typing skills and the willingness to follow a doctor's orders.

Basic qualification required: To apply for this job, the candidate should have Associates' degree or should have done one year certification programme.

Average salary: Rs 0.72 lakh to Rs 3.60 lakh per annum

5. Tutor: A college degree, a little bit patience and a computer are the three basic things required for this job. The people who want to get a job of tutor will have to provide assistance to students to help them build confidence level and make them understand the course. You will be required to create a virtual classroom for students to evaluate their work and give them feedback. You need to have a vast knowledge of the subject, good communication skills and should be able to motivate students.

Be prepared for your interview!

Be prepared for your interview!

Are you selected for the interview by the company? Congratulations. But don't be excited as you have only crossed on hurdle.  You should be aware that now is the time when you need to be serious as you will come across various types of interview. Here is the list of the interview you might face:

1. Personal Interview: Personal interview can help you in knowing your employer better. You can interact with your interviewer and get the information about the company, about your job or about the person. It also helps in developing a relationship with the company as well as in expanding your network. You have to be prepared in advance for your interview. Read about the company on its website or the brochure. If possible, exchange business card to be in touch.

2. Telephone Interview: It is often used for the screening of open position. It last of around 10-15 minutes depending upon the recruiters need. For, telephonic interview your answers should be to the point. The good thing about the telephone interview is that you can prepare your resume, cover letter and other necessary document needed for the interview.

3. Video Interview: Video interview is usually used while recruiting for the remote areas or the job is based out of the state or country. Using Skype, video conferencing software or other video chatting services, an individual might be asked to complete the interview process by interacting with the employer over the internet. Wear professional attire and choose a place without any disturbance.

4. Panel Interview: This type of interview is conducted by more than three or four people. The panel may include; direct manager, hiring manager and other related individuals. Don't forget to make eye contact with the person asking questions as it shows your confidence.

5. Group Interview: As the name suggests, the group interview is conducted in groups which include groups of jobs seekers invited to take part in the process. This interview helps the interviewer to separate the best candidate. Make sure you voice is heard and act as a team player.

Why Facebook bought WhatsApp

Why Facebook bought WhatsApp

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg explains why his company has paid $19bn for mesaging service WhatsApp. Here is the statement he released:
 I'm excited to announce that we've agreed to acquire WhatsApp and that their entire team will be joining us at Facebook.

Our mission is to make the world more open and connected. We do this by building services that help people share any type of content with any group of people they want. WhatsApp will help us do this by continuing to develop a service that people around the world love to use every day.

WhatsApp is a simple, fast and reliable mobile messaging service that is used by over 450m people on every major mobile platform. More than 1m people sign up for WhatsApp every day and it is on its way to connecting 1bn people. More and more people rely on WhatsApp to communicate with all of their contacts every day.

WhatsApp will continue to operate independently within Facebook. The product roadmap will remain unchanged and the team is going to stay in Mountain View. Over the next few years, we're going to work hard to help WhatsApp grow and connect the whole world. We also expect that WhatsApp will add to our efforts forInternet.org, our partnership to make basic internet services affordable for everyone.

WhatsApp will complement our existing chat and messaging services to provide new tools for our community. Facebook Messenger is widely used for chatting with your Facebook friends, and WhatsApp for communicating with all of your contacts and small groups of people. Since WhatsApp and Messenger serve such different and important uses, we will continue investing in both and making them each great products for everyone.

WhatsApp had every option in the world, so I'm thrilled that they chose to work with us. I'm looking forward to what Facebook and WhatsApp can do together, and to developing great new mobile services that give people even more options for connecting.

I've also known Jan [Koum, WhatsApp founder and chief executive] for a long time, and I know that we both share the vision of making the world more open and connected. I'm particularly happy that Jan has agreed to join the Facebook board and partner with me to shape Facebook's future as well as WhatsApp's.

Jan and the WhatsApp team have done some amazing work to connect almost half a billion people. I can't wait for them to join Facebook and help us connect the rest of the world.

Facebook looks to buy solar drone company: Reports

Facebook is in talks to buy Titan Aerospace, a maker of solar-powered drones, to step up its efforts to provide Internet access to remote parts of the world, according to reports from technology blog Techcrunch and financial news outlet CNBC.
Both websites cited anonymous sources who are familiar with the deal and put a purchase price at $60 million.

Facebook spokesman Tucker Bounds said on Tuesday that the company does not comment on rumors and speculation. Titan Aerospace representatives did not respond to requests for comment.

If Facebook does buy Titan Aerospace, the purchase could fit with the goals of CEO Mark Zuckerberg's Internet.org project. The Facebook-led partnership, which includes Qualcomm Inc., Samsung and Nokia, was launched last summer and aims to connect the more than 5 billion of the world's 7 billion people who are not already online. Presumably, Internet.org could use Titan's solar-powered atmospheric satellites to serve as airborne wireless access points.

Google Inc., which is not a part of the Internet.org effort, launched a similar undertaking earlier this year with the goal of getting everyone on Earth online. Called Project Loon, the effort launched Internet-beaming antennas aloft on giant helium balloons.

Titan's drone-like atmospheric satellites, which are still in development and not yet commercially available, can stay in the air for as long as five years, according to reports. Titan's website cites a wide range of uses for the drones, including atmospheric and weather monitoring, disaster response and voice and data communications. The last two could be reasons for Facebook's interest in Titan.

But Zuckerberg said last week at the Mobile World Congress wireless show that access connectivity is not the main obstacle to getting the world online. He said more than 80 percent of the world's population live in areas with 2G or 3G wireless access. More important, he said, is giving people a reason to connect: basic financial services, access to health care information and educational materials.

Facebook's acquisition of a company called Onavo last fall also fits with Internet.org's vision. Onavo develops data compression technology, which helps applications run more efficiently. This is especially important in developing countries, where people have access to much slower Internet speeds

Flipkart sales run rate hits USD 1 bn, a year ahead of its target

Flipkart sales run rate hits USD 1 bn, a year ahead of its target

Increasing Internet penetration and youngsters shopping online has helped homegrown e-commerce major Flipkart hit an annualised sales run rate of USD one billion (over Rs.6,100 crore) -- a year ahead of its

target.
The company was aiming to reach the billion dollar-mark (for gross merchandize value or GMV) by 2015.

"In March 2011, we announced that by 2015, we wanted to hit USD 1 billion in GMV. At that point in time, our run rate was USD 10 million. Today, we are really proud and excited to announce that we have hit a run rate of USD 1 billion GMV one year before our target," Flipkart co-founders Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal in a statement.

Flipkart had started as an online bookstore and now sells products across categories like fashion and electronics.

It is also beginning to enter areas like white goods and furniture.

It also operates under the marketplace model under which it allows retailers to offer their products on their platform.

The company had also raised USD 360 million from private equity funds last year, one of the largest deals in the e-commerce space.

Since its inception, the Bangalore-based firm has raised USD 540 million from investors including Naspers, Tiger Global, Accel Partners, Dragoneer, Morgan Stanley, Sofina and Vulcan Capital.

"We have grown 100X in the last three years and it reinforces our position as the leader in the Indian e-commerce industry," the statement said.

Research firm Forrester estimates India's e-commerce market to touch USD 8.8 billion in 2016. This will be driven by increasing Internet userbase and more people shopping online.

Estimates suggest that India has over 200 million Internet users, of which some 20 million transact online.

Taller men are smarter too!

Taller men are smarter too! 

The fact is that women fall for men who are taller. Now, they have an extra reason to go for them as researchers have discovered a significant correlation in the DNA between tall people and intelligence.

"We tested whether DNA-based genetic similarities among people related to their similarities in height and intelligence. What we found was a small association between height and intelligence, such that people who are taller tend to be smarter," study author Riccardo Marioni was quoted as saying in Sunday Times.


Read Story: French and Italian men are the biggest love-cheats

The study was the first to analyse the DNA markers for height in people who are not related.
Data was collected from more than 6,800 unrelated people.

Both height and high IQ are also linked with better health, the researchers pointed out.

The data could be used to predict other health outcomes, said the study published in the journal Behavior Genetics.

However, if you are not tall, then no worries -- researchers attributed about 70 percent of short people's IQs to genetic factors.

Bizarre Facts about McDonald’s, Interesting to Know

Bizarre Facts about McDonald’s, Interesting to Know

• McDonald’s first started selling hot dogs, not hamburgers.
• In 1974, Ray Kroc started a real estate business, with the golden arch. After getting a prime location he started to sell hot dogs and rest is history.
• World had been hit by recession and downfall many times, but McDonald’s never loses its sale and revenue generation.
• McDonald’s Monopoly promo from 1995 to 2000 gave away many prizes. In actual all top prizes were won by McDonald’s employees fraudulently.
• McDonald’s serves daily 62 million customers which is more than the population of Great Britain and accounts to world’s 1% population.
• The burger giant holds record of highest per second sales, more than 75 hamburgers every second all over the world.
• Total revenue of McDonald’s is $27 billion, which makes McDonald’s 90th largest economy on the planet. Revenue from franchise stores makes $8.7 billion, larger than the total wealth of Mongolia
• McDonald’s per day revenue accounts about US$75 million from all over the world.
• McDonald’s gives employment to 761,000 people worldwide more than the total population of Luxembourg. The company hires 1 million workers in US alone every year. 1 in every 8 American workers is an employee of McDonald’s. Famous Sharon Stone, Shania Twain, Jay Leno, Rachel McAdams and Pink worked for McDonald’s in the start.
• McDonald’s menu differs in every country like in Portugal menu items consist of Caldo Verde soup, in India the restaurant serves Chicken Maharaja Mac and the potato-patty McAloo Tikki Burger, Brazil menu has tasty Quiche de Queljo, Red Bean Pie for dessert in Hong Kong, Parmigiano Reggiano burger in Italy and stone oven-baked Ciabatta roll burger in France.
• The testy Egg McMuffin was modeled on eggs Benedict. Herb Peterson invented and included Egg McMuffin in McDonald’s menu to serve as breakfast.
• After every 14.5 hours a new McDonald’s restaurant is opened around the world but then also McDonald’s is not holding the world’s largest restaurant chain record. The record is with Subway.
• From year 2011 to 2013, McDonald’s had opened one restaurant every day in China. Currently McDonald’s delivers in 18 countries over the world.
• McDonald’s is the favorite toy store for kids. Its world’s largest distributor of toys with 20% of all sales over the world. 1.5 billion Toys are distributed annually by McDonald’s around the world and the hit one is Ty Beanie Baby.
• 88% of people around the world can easily identify and recognized McDonald’s golden arches as compared to 54% for the cross. Paris is only the place on this planet with white arches in place of McDonald’s golden arches.
• Queen of England owns a retail park in Slough which is very near to Buckingham Palace and also has a drive-thru McDonald’s. The Royals often drop in for Burgers at the restaurant.
• Guantanamo Bay in Cuba has its own McDonald’s the first and only one in Cuba. Inmates are lured Big Macs and fries.
• A 71 year old lady Stella Liebach spilled her McDonald’s coffee on her lap and sued McDonald’s. Her medical bill totaled a staggering $10 000 and McDonald’s offered her $800. She dragged McDonald’s to US court, later McDonald’s paid her $2.7 million.
• The first drive-thru opened in US for Marines. When McDonald’s implemented it in China, confused Chinese customers would park their cars and love to eat in the restaurant.

Malaysian jet missing: China deploys ten satellites to help in search for the airliner

Malaysian jet missing: China deploys ten satellites to help in search for the airliner

China has deployed 10 satellites to help in the massive air and sea search for a missing Malaysian airliner, the People's Liberation Army Daily said on Tuesday.

The satellites will use high-resolution earth imaging capabilities, visible light imaging and other technologies to "support and assist in the search and rescue operations for the Malaysian Airlines aircraft", the newspaper said in an article that was also carried on the defence ministry's website.


Dozens of ships and aircraft from 10 countries scoured the seas around Malaysia and south of Vietnam as questions mounted over possible security lapses and whether a bomb or hijacking attempt could have brought down the Boeing 777-200ER which took off from the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.

China has urged Malaysia to speed up the search for the plane. About two-thirds of the 227 passengers and 12 crew now presumed to have died aboard the plane were Chinese.

The Chinese satellites will also help in weather monitoring, communication and search operations in the area where the plane disappeared, the newspaper said.

China will also strengthen the Beidou navigation system's satellite monitoring capabilities to "provide reliable navigation for the rescue operations and communication support".

Ten nations search for missing Malaysia jet

The disappearance of a Malaysian airliner about an hour into a flight to Beijing is an "unprecedented mystery", the civil aviation chief said on Monday, as a massive air and sea search now in its third day failed to find any trace of the plane or 239 people on board.{mosimage}

Dozens of ships and aircraft from 10 countries scoured the seas around Malaysia and south of Vietnam as questions mounted over possible security lapses and whether a bomb or hijacking attempt could have brought down the Boeing 777-200ER which took off from the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.

The area of the search would be widened from Tuesday, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, the head of Malaysia's Civil Aviation Authority, told reporters.

A senior police official told Reuters that people armed with explosives and carrying false identity papers had tried to fly out of Kuala Lumpur in the past, and that current investigations were focused on two passengers who were on the missing plane with stolen passports.

"We have stopped men with false or stolen passports and carrying explosives, who have tried to get past KLIA (airport) security and get on to a plane," he said. "There have been two or three incidents, but I will not divulge the details."{mosimage}

Interpol confirmed on Sunday at least two passengers used stolen passports and said it was checking whether others aboard had used false identity documents.

Azharuddin said a hijacking attempt could not be ruled out as investigators explore all theories for the loss of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

"Unfortunately we have not found anything that appears to be objects from the aircraft, let alone the aircraft," he told a news conference.

"As far as we are concerned, we have to find the aircraft. We have to find a piece of the aircraft if possible."

Azharuddin also said the two men with stolen passports did not look like Asians, but he did not elaborate. Airport CCTV footage showed they completed all security procedures, he said.

"We are looking at the possibility of a stolen passport syndicate," he said.

A senior source involved in preliminary investigations in Malaysia said the failure to find any debris indicated the plane may have broken up mid-flight, which could disperse wreckage over a very wide area.

"The fact that we are unable to find any debris so far appears to indicate that the aircraft is likely to have disintegrated at around 35,000 feet," said the source.

Asked about the possibility of an explosion, the source said there was no evidence of foul play and that the aircraft could have broken up due to mechanical causes.

Still, the source said the closest parallels were the bomb explosions on board an Air India jetliner in 1985 when it was over the Atlantic Ocean and a Pan Am aircraft over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988. Both planes were cruising at around 31,000 feet at the time.{mosimage}

The United States extensively reviewed imagery taken by American spy satellites for evidence of a mid-air explosion, but saw none, a U.S. government source said. The source described U.S. satellite coverage of the region as thorough.

Moss-covered cable reel

Hopes for a breakthrough rose briefly when Vietnam scrambled helicopters to investigate a floating yellow object it was thought could have been a life raft. But the country's Civil Aviation Authority said on its website that the object turned out to be a "moss-covered cap of a cable reel".

Flight MH370 disappeared from radar screens in the early hours of Saturday, about an hour into its flight from Kuala Lumpur, after climbing to a cruising altitude of 35,000 ft (10,670 metres).

Underlining the lack of hard information about the plane's fate, a U.S. Navy P-3 aircraft capable of covering 1,500 sq miles every hour was sweeping the northern part of the Strait of Malacca, on the other side of the Malaysian peninsula from where the last contact with MH370 was made.

No distress signal was sent from the lost plane, which experts said suggested a sudden catastrophic failure or explosion, but Malaysia's air force chief said radar tracking showed it may have turned back from its scheduled route before it disappeared.

The Boeing 777 has one of the best safety records of any commercial aircraft in service. Its only previous fatal crash came on July 6 last year when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 struck a seawall on landing in San Francisco, killing three people.

Massive search

About two-thirds of the 227 passengers and 12 crew now presumed to have died aboard the plane were Chinese. The airline said other nationalities included 38 Malaysians, seven Indonesians, six Australians, five Indians, four French and three Americans.

The passenger manifest issued by the airline included the names of two Europeans - Austrian Christian Kozel and Italian Luigi Maraldi - who were not on the plane. Their passports had been stolen in Thailand during the past two years.

An Interpol spokeswoman said a check of all documents used to board the plane had revealed more "suspect passports", which were being investigated.

"Whilst it is too soon to speculate about any connection between these stolen passports and the missing plane, it is clearly of great concern that any passenger was able to board an international flight using a stolen passport listed in Interpol's databases," Interpol Secretary General Ronald Noble said.

A European diplomat in Kuala Lumpur cautioned that the Malaysian capital was an Asian hub for illegal migrants, many of whom used false documents and complex routes including via Beijing or West Africa to reach a final destination in Europe.

"You shouldn't automatically think that the fact there were two people on the plane with false passports had anything to do with the disappearance of the plane," the diplomat said.

"The more you know about the role of Kuala Lumpur in this chain, the more doubtful you are of the chances of a linkage."

A Thai travel agent who arranged the tickets for the two passengers using the stolen passports said she had booked them on the flight via Beijing because they were the cheapest tickets, the Financial Times reported.{mosimage}

The travel agent in the resort of Pattaya said an Iranian business contact she knew only as "Mr Ali" had asked her to book tickets for the two men on March 1.

She had initially booked them on other airlines but those reservations expired and on March 6, Mr Ali had asked her to book them again. She told the newspaper she did not think Mr Ali, who paid her in cash and booked tickets with her regularly, was linked to terrorism.

Nokia X: Five reasons why it is not just another Android

 Nokia X 

The newly unveiled Nokia X series of Android phones may have taken the ongoing Mobile World Congress 2014 by storm and at the same time stolen the limelight from Samsung's Galaxy S5, but the fact remains that the Nokia phone is not a typical Android phone.


The low-cost Nokia X series, powered by the Google-owned Android OS, is the first ever Android phone from Nokia's stables. Apart from the fact that this is Nokia's first foray into the Android market, what has got the MWC talking about the Nokia X series are the prices - Nokia X for 89 euros, Nokia X+ at 99 euros and XL for 89 euros.
Though presented and launched as an Android phone, here are five reasons why it is different from your usual Android phones available in the market.

1.  A trimmed Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: The Nokia X series runs on a trimmed version of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean without the stock Google services as seen in other Android powered phones.

The users can, however, sideload Google apps via APK files.

2. No Google App Store: Stock Google android applications such as Gmail, Chrome, Google Maps etc have been replaced by Outlook and Microsoft Exchange, Nokia Express browser and Here Maps.

3. Windows Phone-like UI: Though it is Nokia's first Android phone series, Nokia has stuck to its Windows phone-like UI combined with Asha Fastlane.

4. Back button: The X-series smartphones come with a back button from the Asha full-touch phones instead of having the typical three button layout as seen in traditional Android phones.

5. New app store: Nokia is developing its own app store to provide applications for Nokia's own Android platform.


The Nokia X series smartphones are not an alternative to the pure Android phones. The X series bring a mix of Android, Windows Phone, and Nokia's own Asha OS experience.


Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/nokia-x-not-a-typical-android-phone/1/345708.html

Moto G: Features that make the smartphone popular in India

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Moto G

Moto G is finally here and right now is only available on Flipkart.com and you will have to reserve one to actually own one and that too you'll get a delivery in 6 to 10 days.
So why is the Moto G so popular in India?

It features a Quad-core processor in it which everyone wants and a fast one too. Moto G houses a 1.2 Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor coupled with 1GB of RAM.

On top of the powerhouse processor it has a Dual SIM slot which everyone is looking for these days.

Plus you also get a 4.5 inch HD Display with superb colour reproduction and the screen has a minimum refractive index as well so you can see the screen under the sun as well.


Moto G runs on Android 4.3 JellyBean operating system right now and Kit Kat update is on its way as well.
Design on the MotoG is vibrant, curvy and the Motorola logo inside the crater just adds a pinch of spice o the style quotient of this smartphone. There is also an option of colourful backpanels on the Moto G so yes it is a smartphone ment to target the youth.


What I guess Motorola Moto G lacks is on the camera. It has just a 5 Megapixel camera that is capable of HD video recording but then the images are grainy in low light the zoom is not that great either.
Moto G is not a top of the line Android smartphone but sure it is the one which in a budget and packs a punch.


The 8GB variant is priced at Rs.12,499 whereas the 16GB phone comes for Rs.13,999.
Moto G is a pocket size rocket that is all set to fly high in the market.

Nokia's X+, 5-inch XL Android phones to be available in India by May

Nokia's X+, 5-inch XL Android phones to be available in India by May

New Delhi: Finnish handset giant Nokia today launched its much awaited Android-based smartphone 'X' in India for Rs 8,599, aimed at protecting its turf in the fiercely competitive market.
The company had announced 'Nokia X' family of affordable smartphones, which runs Google's Android apps, at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona last month.
The company had said then that Nokia X+ is expected to be priced at euro 99 (about Rs 8,400), Nokia XL at euro 109 (about Rs 9,200) and Nokia X at euro 89 (about Rs 7,500).While Nokia X users will not have access to Google's app market 'Google Play', they can sideload Android apps from third party app stores as well as Microsoft app store.

Nokia said it will bring the other two devices - X+ and XL - in the Indian market in the next 60 days.
"India is one of the fastest growing markets for smart phones in the world. With the launch of Nokia X, we are adding more ammunition to our smartphone portfolio. We believe Nokia X is a unique combination of Nokia quality and experiences, Microsoft services and Android apps," Nokia India Managing Director P Balaji told PTI.

India is the third largest market for smartphones. IDC data showed that smartphone sales in the country surpassed 44 million units in 2013, up from 16.2 million in 2012.The surge has been mainly powered by home grown vendors like Micromax, Karbonn and Lava, which offer smartphones for as low as Rs 3,000.Also, IDC attributed the migration of users from feature phones to smartphones primarily due to the narrowing price gaps between these product categories.Asked if the handset will eat into the business of its Asha range of affordable smartphones, Balaji answered in the negative.

"Asha, Nokia X and the Lumia range are three separate offerings. While the pricing of each of these will come down with time, they have their own set of features that offers value to a particular set of people," he added.
Terming the Nokia X as a "feeder" for its Lumia range of premium smartphones, Balaji said the device will help users experience Microsoft services like Skype and Outlook before they actually opt for the Lumia devices.

Currently, Lumia 520 is the cheapest handset in the Lumia series. It is available for about Rs 9,999 (dealer price) and Rs 7,600 (eCommerce sites).
The dual SIM Nokia X is a 4-inch device, powered by a 1 GHz dual core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. It features a tile-based design, 512MB RAM (up to 32GB expandable memory), 3MP camera and 1500 mAH battery.

The Nokia X is based on the Android open platform.

While Nokia X users will not have access to Google's app market 'Google Play', they can sideload Android apps from third party app stores as well as Microsoft app store.

Nokia X

Nokia X

Just weeks after the launch of Nokia’s first ‘Android phone’ –  – at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the company has brought the phone to India. Priced at Rs 8,599 (best buy), the phone is available for purchase starting today (March 10).
Although Nokia X is based on Android, it is very different from other phones in the market that work on the Google’s OS. Here are six ways in which the Nokia X is different from the crowd.

ANDROID SANS GOOGLE

Nokia X’s operating system has been built on Android Open Source Project (AOSP). This is just a fraction of Google’s OS seen in many of today’s phones. AOSP doesn’t come with proprietary Google code and hence, Google apps such as Play Store, Google Maps, etc, will not be available on Nokia X. Over the years, Google has been linking several key features to Google Play Services, which isn’t available under AOSP. If an app makes use of any of these features, Nokia X won’t be able to run it.
For further information on the limitations of AOSP, you can read two articles on the subject at Ars Technica. One is about Google’s iron grip on Android and the other explains why forking Android is not the best idea.

DISTINCT MICROSOFT FLAVOUR

Nokia X comes with a customised tile-based interface that reminds of Windows Phone. Couple that with Microsoft services such as OneDrive, Outlook and Nokia’s own Here Maps, and it’s easy to mistake this phone for a Windows Phone device.
Nokia said it is working on an easy way to migrate your data from the Nokia X to Lumia phones. More details on that should be available in the coming weeks.

FAST LANE

Nokia X just has one button below its touchscreen display. This is a back button that looks identical to the one on new Asha series phones. It’s not surprising that Nokia also brought the Fast Lane interface from Asha to the X. Fast Lane gives you quick access to your favourite actions, whether it is playing music or calling. It also keeps you updated on upcoming events from your calendar.

FIXED FOCUS

The Nokia X’s camera does not have auto-focus, which is a bit baffling considering the phone’s price. The Lumia 520 costs less than the X and comes with auto-focus. If you love photography, then the Nokia X’s camera is going to prove a little restrictive.

THE APP MARKET

The biggest concern, however, is availability of apps. Nokia ships the phone with apps such as Facebook and Opera,

Microsoft Xbox One

                                     Microsoft Xbox One

                              Microsoft is thinking big with the Xbox One. Instead of building a game system that's essentially a beefed-up version of the Xbox 360, like Sony did with the PlayStation 4, it built a comprehensive media hub for all of your living room entertainment. This approach, combined with an initial promise that the system would require a constant Internet connection and that the included Kinect camera would always be on, worried a lot of gamers. Add a $499 (list) price tag, $100 more than the PlayStation 4 and $200 more than the Nintendo Wii U, and you have a game system with an uphill battle.Well, Microsoft's ambition has paid off. Not only is the Xbox One a powerful game system that rivals the PlayStation 4, it really is the comprehensive entertainment hub Microsoft envisioned. (And it turns out that it doesn't require an always-on Web connection and you can turn off the camera.)

                          Kinect voice controls, television integration, and multitasking features make the Xbox One an ideal combination of game system, media hub, universal remote, program guide, and Blu-ray player. The Xbox One's voice controls and TV integration are revolutionary and could pave the way for game systems to become true all-in-one entertainment centers. Sure, it's expensive and imperfect, but it does so much so well that its flaws and price can be forgiven, making it an Editors' Choice.

Design

                 The Xbox One doesn't take many design cues from the Xbox 360 or Xbox 360 Slim. Instead, it follows the philosophy of the original Xbox: giant black box. It's big, black, rectangular, and looks closer to an old-school VCR than a futuristic, stylish game system. It combines glossy and matte black finishes to lend some style, but no shine can get past its plain blockiness. The PlayStation 4 looks much nicer and slimmer, with its parallelogram shape and the ability to stand it on its side to show off the multicolored status light (with an optional stand). The Xbox One has to be laid down horizontally, and is simply black with a white light on it.

      Measuring 3 by 12.9 by 11.7 inches (HWD) and weighing about seven pounds, the Xbox One absolutely dwarfs the PlayStation 4 and Wii U.  The front is dominated by a matte black left half that holds the slot-loading Blu-ray drive and a glossy right half that features a glowing, flat, touch-sensitive Xbox button. The button turns the system on if you don't want to use the Kinect or a controller, and it's just as infuriatingly sensitive as the Xbox 360 Slim's power and eject buttons. Brushing anything against it, even lightly, can trigger the button. Fortunately, given the voice controls, you don't have to actually touch the Xbox One or go anywhere near it unless you're changing a disc or setting up a gamepad. A USB port sits on the left side of the system, next to a pairing button for registering controllers. The back panel holds an HDMI input and output, the Kinect port, an Ethernet port, an optical audio port, two USB ports, and the power port.


                         The new Kinect camera is just as blocky and almost as large, dwarfing the PlayStation Camera just as the Xbox One looms over the PlayStation 4's form. It's a chunky, rectangular brick that measures 2.4 by 9.7 by 3 inches (HWD), with a large, prominent lens, a glowing white Xbox logo, and three soft red LEDs to illuminate you with infrared light. The base can tilt up and down and has a tripod screw mount if you want to secure it. The bigger, blockier Kinect sports much more impressive insides, though; it features a 1080p-capable camera instead of the Xbox 360 Kinect's VGA resolution, and its microphone array on the bottom edge of the camera is clearly improved.

Controller

The Xbox One controller is comfortable, but it's not the impressive leap in design that the PlayStation 4's DualShock 4 gamepad is. It's a mostly matte black gamepad that looks and feels almost identical to the Xbox 360's gamepad. Instead of the Start and Back buttons, the gamepad has Menu and View buttons that serve the same functions. The triggers provide individual force feedback, rumbling in response to what you're playing apart from the gamepad itself. This feels particularly good for racing games like Forza Motorsport 5, because the right trigger's resistance and response to acceleration feels much more precise with force feedback.


The bumpers, on the other hand, feel too flush with the body of the gamepad, and sit high enough that they aren't particularly comfortable to hit. It's a small complaint, and the gamepad feels good overall. The Xbox One comes with one controller and two AA batteries; if you want to use a rechargeable, one-piece battery solution you can forget about, you need to buy a Charge and Play Kit separately for $25 (but you can just use rechargeable AA batteries, and the gamepad works with a direct wired connection thanks to its microUSB port).
Interface
If you're familiar with Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8, you'll recognize the Xbox One Dashboard. The interface is pure Metro, with large, easily identifiable panels displaying the current game or app running, your most recent apps, pinned items (which can include games, apps, media, or Web sites to the left), and the Xbox Live Store to the right. Even if you loathe the UI for computers or mobile devices, it really works well as an HDTV interface. The big panels are easy to read and navigate, and the gamepad's analog stick and direction pad are the ideal ways to select them.



The Xbox One supports "snapping" apps to any game or software you're running. By selecting Snap on the Dashboard and picking an app (or by saying "Xbox, snap," which I'll explain below), you can keep certain apps on the side of the screen. You can, say, keep Skype or Hulu Plus or any other snappable app running while you play a game. You can also snap two apps, keeping one on the side while the other takes up most of the screen, letting you watch video on Netflix while you have Internet Explorer running next to it.

NBA 2K14 (Xbox One)

NBA 2K14 (Xbox One)

BY JEFFREY L. WILSON
NBA 2K14 is the next-gen game that may entice people to purchase a Sony PlayStation 4 or Xbox One. Boasting gorgeous skin tones, realistic physics, and a ton of new animations that run at 60 frames per second and 1080p resolution, NBA 2K14 is a beaut. Thankfully, 2K Games' latest basketball title is more than surface; NBA 2K14 is a wonderful recreation of American pro hoops that should keep basketball fans shooting, rebounding, and boxing out until the final days of the season.

NBA 2K14 contains a ton of modes and features designed to replicate the player and general manager experience, but three of my favorites are "The Park," "NBA Today," and "Dynamic Living Rosters." "The Park" is a massive playground where gamers can take their created players to hoop or simply socialize with other NBA fans. "NBA Today" gives you a live look at team standings and stat leaders, and is a great way to stay on top of big matches without exiting the game. "Dynamic Living Rosters" (powered by Stats, Inc.) translates real-world hot and cold streaks to the game, so when Melo slumps, digital Melo will be off his game, too. It's an effective way to bridge the gap between the actual sport and its video game representation. That said, there are lots of menus to slice through—so much so that navigation can prove a bit confusing until you get a hang of it.
Lace Up the Sneaks
NBA 2K14's gameplay is deep—in fact, there are so many offensive and defensive moves that you may want to play with an open instruction booklet. You'll need it for the Pro Stick that gives you incredible control over ball handling and shooting. Using it in conjunction with other buttons lets you pull off dunks, crossovers, layups, hop steps, runners, pump fakes, and many other moves. There are defensive moves aplenty, too; flops, wrap fouls, rebounds, lunges, and numerous other moves are available. The wide range of options creates a game that looks like one pulled directly from broadcast TV. If you understand basketball's intricacies, such as mastering and defending the pick-and-roll, you'll do well. If you don't, the computer will pick you apart as the A.I. is quite smart. Note: The computer thieves nilly-willy passes.

NBA 2K14 features not just the 30 regular teams, but 14 Euroleague teams, too. Unfortunately, last year's Dream Teams are no more; I'd rather have the U.S. Olympic squads over the Euroleague any day. Still, NBA 2k14 includes dozens of classic teams like the Bird-era Celtics and Ewing-led Knicks.

NBA 2K14 utilizes Xbox One's Kinect peripheral to let gamers call plays by, well, calling plays. Speak a specific play (like "Clear Out" or "Pick and Roll") and your squad will follow our command. You can also use it to sub players. The Kinect sometimes didn't recognize my vocal input, but overall it did. I preferred to audibly coach than to initiate plays using the Xbox One controller.


The Highlight Reel
NBA 2K14's next-gen graphics deftly recreate the NBA experience. The athlete's character models are well-designed for the most part (they tug at shorts when tired, wipe sweat away), and the skin tones are the best ever in a sports game. That said, players on historical teams (such as the Jordan-era Chicago Bulls) weren't given the same exquisite facial mapping and look like mannequin version of old school players. Ron Harper's character, with its bugged eyes, is particularly foul.

That said, the ballers' movement—be it running, rebounding, or shooting—is outstanding. There are tons of animations and they're all smooth, keeping the controls sharp. Players attack the basket and ball in a variety of ways and perform signature moves that look absolutely gorgeous. Many PCMag staffers who walked by as I played legitimately thought I was watching a real game.

The excellent mult-person commentary gives NBA 2K14 its soul. The play-calling is spot on—it doesn't lag behind the action—and there's plenty of ancillary commentary that keeps the audio fresh. Naturally, there' is some repetition in the color commentary, but it doesn't ruin the experience.


Winning the Ring
NBA 2K14 is an excellent pro hoops title designed with hardcore basketball fans in mind. The returning NBA Live franchise—which has been on hiatus for a number of years—will have a tough time topping this all-around excellent title. If you're a series fan who plans to purchase a Xbox One, consider this game a day-one purchase.

Batman: Arkham Origins

Batman: Arkham Origins

BY MATTHEW MURRAY
Real art usually lies less in creating something than in making something difficult look effortless. Christopher Nolan demonstrated this with his record-shattering, kept-getting-better trilogy of Batman films, but Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment hasn't fared as well with its games based on the adventures of the Dark Knight. Batman: Arkham Asylum£15.99 at Amazon (2009) was an exciting trek through Gotham City's signature madhouse; 2011's Batman: Arkham City$26.00 at Amazon  expanded the playground to a chunk of the city, and despite reheated game-play elements rather than devising new ones and delivering an improbable story it still was quite a bit of fun. The latest chapter, Batman: Arkham Origins$34.50 at Amazon, the first developed by Warner Bros. itself rather than Rocksteady Games, doesn't get off so easily: This prequel is numbingly derivative (even compared with Arkham City), limited in scope, and strangely sloppy. It doesn't completely disappoint because its base conceit and engine are solid, but unlike its predecessors it never really takes wing.

Up at Bat
Propping up Arkham Origins somewhat is its refusal to be just another garden-variety origin story. Instead, it's set about two years after billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne began donning a black cowl to clean up the streets the Gotham City Police Department left to ruin—and, as we arrive on a blizzard-torn Christmas Eve, neither the bad guys nor the good guys (assuming there are any) are yet certain that Batman actually exists.

Taking Flight
From one standpoint, the quality of production has not diminished at all from the norm established by Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. The graphics retain their crisp, Gothic clarity, and to my eye the cinematic sequences that push along the story are the best to date: inventive and smooth, deftly combining the just-barely-caricaturish feel of video-game animation with the fluid drama of a movie without short-changing either.

Likewise, the game play that propelled the first two games to success is in full force here. Fighting remains a thrill, derived entirely from Batman's incomparable martial-arts training and rewarding you based on how well you chain both attacks and counters; you continue to feel a real surge of adrenaline when the number edges past five, eight, 15, 20, 30, and beyond. Tracking down and solving Enigma's challenges, as was true of the Riddler's in the previous two chapters, is a comforting cerebral change of pace from all the skull cracking. And there's still something awe-inspiring about grappling your way up to the top of a skyscraper, leaping off, and gliding for hundreds of meters above the Gotham streets—it captures both the wonder and isolation of being Batman as little else does.

Though much has been made of the recasting of the key voice actors, particularly Kevin Conroy as Batman and Mark Hamill as the Joker, I was never yanked out of the game by the new performers. Roger Craig Smith's throaty intensity, if perhaps less supple than Conroy's delivery, is certainly right for the hero, and Troy Baker's Joker was an eerily good approximation of Hamill's portrayal. What's more important: They seamlessly blend in with the holdovers (Martin Jarvis as Alfred, Kimberly Brooks as Barbara Gordon, Peter MacNicol as Mad Hatter, Nolan North as Penguin) and the new performers alike.

A new multiplayer mode lets you team up with Robin to quell Blackgate uprisings by Joker and Bane, and is a decent way of getting others involved in the action. And Challenge mode, in which you revisit maps unlocked during the story to fistfight or stealth your way through encounters that are then ranked against others who've tackled them, are a superlative example of a smart reusing of the other games' familiar idea.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (Xbox One)

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (Xbox One)

BY JEFFREY L. WILSON, MATTHEW D. SARREL
The year is 1715, and lawless pirates dominate the Caribbean Sea. Neither land nor sea is safe from these rapscallions, and the biggest hellraiser of them all is a young captain named Edward Kenway, who explores the waters during piracy's golden age. Using an expanded version of the sailing mechanic from Assassin's Creed III, Black Flag$41.69 at Amazon sees Edward journeying from Jamaica to Cuba to Spanish Florida to the Bahamas on his ship, the Jackdaw.
Conway, as he searches for treasure, also finds his place within the ancient, series-defining Assassin/Templar conflict. Meanwhile, in the game's overarching meta-story, players take on the role of a video game programmer at the Templar front company Abstergo and search the cloud for the uploaded genetic information on the Kenway family line. It's a game within a game. Gameception, if you will. And it's quite fun.

Raising the Black Flag
Black Flag's game world isn't as sprawling as Grand Theft Auto V's$39.99 at Amazon Los Santos, but the environments are highly unstructured and designed for vertical rooftop play. While there are always mission objectives, you can explore wherever you want and do whatever you want—and then go fulfill the mission. And you'll want to explore this beautiful lush world to the fullest. The move to Xbox One$499.00 at Amazon means that Black Flag is a visual treat that runs at a crisp 900p (the PlayStation 4£349.00 at Very version, it should be noted, will get a 1080p patch that also features new anti-aliasing techniques). I sometimes found myself climbing to rooftops simply to admire the gorgeous environments.

The opening level is a tutorial where you follow a pretty straightforward list of objectives; in fact, it's the weakest part of the game. Once you get through it, however, the world opens up—not completely, but pretty close. You can preempt missions to go off on side quests, explore, investigate and loot underwater shipwrecks, or even go hunting and fishing. In fact, simply following all mission objectives sells the game short because there is so much other good stuff in there. I feel like I barely scratched the game's surface after several hours of stealthy play.

Black Flag kept my interest by varying the mission objectives. The stealth, follow, kill, and sea-based missions prevented repetition from settling in. Kudos to developer Ubisoft for mixing up the tasks in this massive title.

Some Rough Waters
My only major Black Flag criticism is that sometimes it felt as though I didn't have full control over my character. Edward would jump down from a wall or climb up a wall when all I wanted to do was walk by the wall. This can be frustrating in the heat of battle. The control issue is absent during combat, but when you make the split second decision to flee because of your deteriorating health, you may scream in frustration as Edward stops to hide against a wall in plain sight instead of scaling it and gets shot to death.

I also found it somewhat tricky to quickly pick up items. You have to be in the perfect position to retrieve enemy weapon drops.

Missing Content, Mobile Apps
Gamers who purchase Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag for PlayStation 3 or PlayStation 4 get additional exclusive missions featuring Aveline, Assassin's Creed III: Liberation's heroine. These three missions take place after the conclusion of Liberation, and are independent of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag's main campaign. If you want the "complete" Assassin's Creed IV experience, you should buy the PlayStation 4 version instead of the Xbox One version.

The Black Flag iPad and Android tablet companion apps demonstrate the potential of the entire companion app concept. It turned my iPad into almost a necessary accessory for the game. The map is far more detailed than the in-game map and let me to see my objectives and progress in real-time and set waypoints in-game. It was also very cool to find a treasure map in the game.

Sailing the High Seas
It's easy to dismiss Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag as just another entry in a string of "AssCreed" annual releases, but developer Ubisoft has worked diligently to expand and tweak Assassin's Creed III's features and gameplay into something that stealth-loving next-gen gamers should have in their libraries. If you've made the jump to Xbox One and desire a AAA adventure, consider Black Flag. It's a worthy pick up.

Battlefield 4 (PC)

                                 Battlefield 4 (PC)

BY MATTHEW D. SARREL
When it comes to evaluating any title in the Battlefield franchise, it's important to remember that the only reason anyone plays campaign mode is to unlock new weapons in multiplayer. Despite great voice acting by Michael K. Williams (Omar from The Wire), campaign mode is little more than a four to six hour tutorial teaching you how to play the game. It is frustratingly on-rails, and gameplay is literally "move here and shoot this." The story involves the Tombstone squad, a team of marines sent into mainland China to extract VIPs shortly after a bloody coup attempt. The story also involves a number of heavily scripted sequences that revolve around your character making poor decisions that you'd never make as squad leader. Short and frustrating do not make for a good story mode.

To be as clear as a squad leader can be, do not buy this game if you're looking for a solid FPS campaign mode.

Instead, multiplayer is where it's at in Battlefield 4.

There is also a deep powerful feeling that captures the awe of destruction so often found in combat. Battlefield 4 is a game where you'll occasionally want to stop and take a look at the world around you. Landscapes are gorgeous, combat is engrossing, and the scale of destruction is tremendous. Battles lines appear to stretch on for miles across both land and sea. And you can fight anywhere and any way you want. You can run across the battlefield, ducking in and out of cover, or you can board a helicopter, hop on the minigun, cut enemies to shreds, then hop off the gun and repair the helicopter while in flight

Commander mode returns in Battlefield 4 to allow you to command your squads and call in air strikes. You'll have to reach Rank 10 first in order to play as a commander and when you do you'll play on a top-down map that shows the position of all of your squads, all of the capture points, and all enemy troops that have been spotted. A typical sequence of Commander mode events sees you  ordering squads to march to a capture point, calling in a UAV to scan the area for enemy squads, marking them on the map, and then calling in a jammer UAV to help your squads avoid enemy scans. During combat you can call in a supply drop or a cruise missile or send in reinforcements. The only drawback to Commander mode is that squads controlled by humans don't have to actually follow your orders. This adds an element of chaos to game play that made me pretty frustrated. On the other hand, I was playing with a bunch of strangers whereas an organized clan would probably gain more value from a coordinated attack as the individuals would want to listen to their commander.

Another improvement to Battlefield 4 is the "Levolution" system which leverages the Frostbite 3 engine in order to create and destroy environmental elements during multiplayer sessions. On one map this involves an enormous skyscraper tumbling to earth.  On another a storm comes along and causes a ship to crash into an island. On another a gas main explodes and rips open the street. These don't have huge effects on game play but they are very cool to watch. My favorite is the big storm which is an almost awe inspiring thing to watch—the sky gets darker and darker, the wind whips up, and then the ship comes sliding through the map with the sound of screeching metal.

Reality Check

Battlefield 4 is not without its flaws. While most multiplayer maps achieve the right mix of open area, cover, and capture points, some (like Zavod 311) don't. It's incredibly frustrating (and not very fun) to repeatedly try to make it to a capture point only to get gunned down in essentially the same spot every time. In addition, Battlefield 4 for PC has been plagued with bugs since its release—there's even a class action lawsuit against EA as investors assert that the company lied about the status of the game's development in order to ship for holiday 2013 and inflate the stock price. Reports online indicate that DICE put every other project on hold to fix this bug ridden release. I have experienced very few crashes, maybe because I've applied every patch within minutes of release. I've read about crashes during campaign mode that will lose your progress and instability in online multiplayer that boots people off of servers in the middle of a game.

The question on every gamer's mind is "which FPS should I get right now, Call Of Duty: Ghosts or Battlefield 4. My take on it is that first you should decide if you want a campaign mode or not. For those who like playing solo, COD: Ghosts has a better campaign mode and a very good multiplayer mode.  If you prefer massive online multiplayer battles, BF4 is the way to go.

Sony PS Vita TV

                             Sony PS Vita TV

BY WILL GREENWALD
When Sony announced the PS Vita TV, it arguably got more attention than the PlayStation Vita£155.51 at Amazon Marketplace itself. Forget having a $200 handheld gaming system; a $99 (approximately, in yen) micro-console that can play Vita, PlayStation Portable, and PSOne Classic games on an HDTV? Brilliant! While the PlayStation 4$399.99 at Newegg.com competes with the Xbox One and the Vita withers against the Nintendo 3DS, the Vita TV can encroach on the small but growing microconsole space occupied by the Ouya, and with the Vita's media apps it could eat into the Roku and Apple TV markets to boot!

Sony still hasn't announced the PS Vita TV for North America yet. I don't know why. Most of my gamer friends, including Vita owners, have expressed more interest in the Vita TV than the PlayStation 4. It's small, inexpensive, and has a massive retro library thanks to the PSN store and the great ports on the Vita and PlayStation Portable. Add free games with a PlayStation Plus membership and you have a small, gamer-friendly console for a price that undercuts both the Nintendo Wii U$300.99 at Amazon and 3DS. We might see a North American Vita TV announcement at E3 this summer, but that's a big maybe. Until then, your only option is to import it.

                     

Menus and the Language Barrier
Sony pulled out all of the stops in making the PS Vita TV's interface HDTV-friendly and less reliant on the Vita's touch screen. It's the exact same interface as the Vita, complete with cartoonishly large bubbles and that irritating menu music. Fortunately, Sony begrudgingly added physical control support to the interface before the Vita TV came out; originally, you could only navigate the menus with the Vita's touch screen, which would have made the Vita TV impossible to use. There's no option to use an analog stick as an on-screen mouse cursor, which would be the natural way to get around a touch screen interface with no touch input. Instead, you just jump between different items on the screen using the physical controls and, with the Vita's highly icon and art-based interface, that can be awkward. It took me a few minutes to figure out I had to hold X to close a tab or program from the menu.