GAMERS GEAR UP FOR GRAND THEFT AUTO V

When players get their hands on "Grand Theft Auto V" on Tuesday, the gaming world will get another titillating dose of the sex and violence that has come to define the series in the eyes of millions -- many of whom have never played it. Early reviews of the game confirm a checklist of activities from any good criminal's daily planner: bong hits and lap dances, torture and tasers. They also herald the return of what The New York Times called "the most immersive spectacle in interactive entertainment." And in a world that's learned to take "Call of Duty" and Quentin Tarantino in stride, it's a combination some predict could result in the most lucrative entertainment launch in history. "GTA is easily one of the biggest game releases of the year," said Steve Butts, editor-in-chief of games and entertainment site IGN.com. "The previous game is still one of the biggest entertainment launches of all time, and there's no reason to think GTA V will be any different." Launched in 1997, the "Grand Theft Auto" series is one of the most successful in video-game history, selling more than 125 million units. Along the way, the series has transcended the gaming world to become a cultural phenomenon through its rare mix of popularity and controversy. Samuel L. Jackson, Dennis Hopper, Ricky Gervais, Peter Fonda and Debbie Harry are among the voice actors who have lent their talents to the series. Flipping the script on the typical good-versus-evil story, gamers play "Grand Theft Auto" titles as criminals -- from two-bit hoodlums trying to work their way up the ranks of organized crime to seasoned, rough customers hell-bent on revenge for wrongs done to them by other crooks. Much of the franchise's appeal is its status as an "open world" game. While most video games, even those with story lines attached, keep the player busy on a predetermined course of action, open-world games allow greater freedom to explore. And while games with some open-world elements date back to the video arcades of the '80s, none had ever combined as many as the "Grand Theft" series, creating an immersive experience for players of its 10 titles and numerous expansion packs. Want to work out? Hit a night club? Get a job? Change the radio station on your car stereo? All are possibilities. But there's no denying that, for some players, the ability to do very nefarious things in that open universe has also been a draw.

U.N SYRIA REPORT RELEASED

U.N. Syria report released U.N. weapons inspectors returned "overwhelming and indisputable" evidence of the use of nerve gas in Syria, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday, calling the findings "beyond doubt and beyond the pale." The inspectors' 38-page report was released after Ban briefed Security Council members on its contents. The team found what it called "clear and convincing evidence" that the nerve agent sarin was delivered by surface-to-surface rockets "on a relatively large scale" in the suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus on August 21. "It is the most significant confirmed use of chemical weapons against civilians since Saddam Hussein used them in Halabja in 1988, and the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century," Ban said. "The international community has a responsibility to ensure that chemical weapons never re-emerge as an instrument of warfare," he said. Ban called the attack "a war crime" and a violation of treaties banning the use of chemical weapons that date back to 1925. But the inspectors' mandate did not include assigning blame for the attack, and Ban would not speculate on who launched the attack. The team did identify two types or rockets it said were used to deliver the gas and their trajectories, and international observers have said those weapons are not known to be in the hands of rebels battling the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Australian U.N. Ambassador Gary Quinlan, who is currently serving as president of the Security Council, said the report bolsters his country's stance. It "confirms, in our view, that there is no remaining doubt that it was the regime that used chemical weapons." Read the report And Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador, said a preliminary review of the report points toward forces loyal to al-Assad. "The regime possesses sarin, and we have no evidence that the opposition possesses sarin," Power said. "It defies logic" to think members of the opposition would have infiltrated a regime-controlled area to fire on opposition-controlled areas. Britain, France, and NATO have also said al-Assad's regime was behind the attack. But Russia is Syria's leading ally, and Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin maintained Moscow's stance that Syrian rebels might be to blame.

U.N SYRIA REPORT RELEASED

U.N. Syria report released U.N. weapons inspectors returned "overwhelming and indisputable" evidence of the use of nerve gas in Syria, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday, calling the findings "beyond doubt and beyond the pale." The inspectors' 38-page report was released after Ban briefed Security Council members on its contents. The team found what it called "clear and convincing evidence" that the nerve agent sarin was delivered by surface-to-surface rockets "on a relatively large scale" in the suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus on August 21. "It is the most significant confirmed use of chemical weapons against civilians since Saddam Hussein used them in Halabja in 1988, and the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century," Ban said. "The international community has a responsibility to ensure that chemical weapons never re-emerge as an instrument of warfare," he said. Ban called the attack "a war crime" and a violation of treaties banning the use of chemical weapons that date back to 1925. But the inspectors' mandate did not include assigning blame for the attack, and Ban would not speculate on who launched the attack. The team did identify two types or rockets it said were used to deliver the gas and their trajectories, and international observers have said those weapons are not known to be in the hands of rebels battling the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Australian U.N. Ambassador Gary Quinlan, who is currently serving as president of the Security Council, said the report bolsters his country's stance. It "confirms, in our view, that there is no remaining doubt that it was the regime that used chemical weapons." Read the report And Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador, said a preliminary review of the report points toward forces loyal to al-Assad. "The regime possesses sarin, and we have no evidence that the opposition possesses sarin," Power said. "It defies logic" to think members of the opposition would have infiltrated a regime-controlled area to fire on opposition-controlled areas. Britain, France, and NATO have also said al-Assad's regime was behind the attack. But Russia is Syria's leading ally, and Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin maintained Moscow's stance that Syrian rebels might be to blame.

U.N SYRIA REPORT RELEASED

U.N. Syria report released U.N. weapons inspectors returned "overwhelming and indisputable" evidence of the use of nerve gas in Syria, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday, calling the findings "beyond doubt and beyond the pale." The inspectors' 38-page report was released after Ban briefed Security Council members on its contents. The team found what it called "clear and convincing evidence" that the nerve agent sarin was delivered by surface-to-surface rockets "on a relatively large scale" in the suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus on August 21. "It is the most significant confirmed use of chemical weapons against civilians since Saddam Hussein used them in Halabja in 1988, and the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century," Ban said. "The international community has a responsibility to ensure that chemical weapons never re-emerge as an instrument of warfare," he said. Ban called the attack "a war crime" and a violation of treaties banning the use of chemical weapons that date back to 1925. But the inspectors' mandate did not include assigning blame for the attack, and Ban would not speculate on who launched the attack. The team did identify two types or rockets it said were used to deliver the gas and their trajectories, and international observers have said those weapons are not known to be in the hands of rebels battling the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Australian U.N. Ambassador Gary Quinlan, who is currently serving as president of the Security Council, said the report bolsters his country's stance. It "confirms, in our view, that there is no remaining doubt that it was the regime that used chemical weapons." Read the report And Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador, said a preliminary review of the report points toward forces loyal to al-Assad. "The regime possesses sarin, and we have no evidence that the opposition possesses sarin," Power said. "It defies logic" to think members of the opposition would have infiltrated a regime-controlled area to fire on opposition-controlled areas. Britain, France, and NATO have also said al-Assad's regime was behind the attack. But Russia is Syria's leading ally, and Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin maintained Moscow's stance that Syrian rebels might be to blame.

What's coming in laptops, desktops, and Windows tablets by KSM

These are the machines we can't wait to get our hands on. Price:TBD Availability:Fall 2013 The outlook:The updated model has pro-level Xeon processors and dual GPUs, making it a hot workhorse for high-end multitasking. But it's the design of this new Mac Pro that became a conversation topic; instead of a big square box, the new Pro is a shiny black cylinder that looks like it fell off the engine of a starship, allowing the pro-level power as the current boxy Mac Pro to fit into a much smaller space. Price:TBD Availability: Fall 2013 The outlook:The Flip attacks the hybrid engineering challenge by adding a hinge to the center of the upper lid, forming a horizontal line from left to right. The lid folds back along that line, allowing the screen to tilt back. First, it flips back to form a kiosk mode, with the screen pointing out from the back of the system (away from the keyboard and touch pad). Then the lid can be pushed shut to form a slate-style tablet, and unlike with the Yoga, the keyboard is on the inside. Price:TBD Availability: Fall 2013 The outlook:A standalone superthin Windows 8 tablet that connects to a flat keyboard, the Vaio Tap 11 is something between a slate and a full hybrid. The two parts clip together via magnets for a reasonably secure closed unit to carry, and when separated, the tablet half sits up on a built-in kickstand. It's the thinnest Windows 8 tablet you can get with a full Intel Core i-series CPU. Price:$1,099 Availability: October 2013 The outlook:How do you top the much-loved original? In the case of the just-announced Yoga 2 Pro, the star of the show is an ultrahigh-res 13.3-inch display, with a native resolution of 3,200x1,800 pixels. That puts the Yoga 2 in similar territory to the Toshiba Kirabook, Retina MacBook Pro, Chromebook Pixel, Samsung Ativ Book 9 Plus, and a handful of others. Price:$949 Availability: November 2013 The outlook:Lenovo has a new take on the Yoga that should make a lot of people very happy. This new ThinkPad-branded model has a seriously engineered keyboard and chassis design that pulls the keys into the body as you fold it over backward into tablet mode. Genius idea, and great for making the tablet mode more backpack-friendly. Price:TBD Availability: October 2013 The outlook:The upcoming Mac OS remains familiar, but gives apps a cleaner look, fixes old bugs, and improves core technologies for power efficiency and responsiveness. On top of that, it brings iOS features into the fold, including new versions of iBooks, Apple Maps, Finder Tabs, and a number of other time-saving enhancements. Price:$329 Availability: November 2013 The outlook:The $329 Encore has a 1,280x800-pixel IPS multitouch display, and inside, it has one of Intel's upcoming new Bay Trail Atom processors, which may improve performance over current Atom models, plus 32GB of internal storage, and a microSD slot for adding up to an additional 32GB of storage. Read our impressions here. Price:Free Availability: October 18 The outlook:One of the biggest complaints for Windows 8 was the removal of the Start (or Windows) button in the lower-left corner of the desktop. As a compromise of sorts, Microsoft has reintroduced the Start button in Windows 8.1 in the lower-left corner of the screen. Clicking on it brings up the Start screen, where you can type a few letters to find and open apps, just like in Windows 8. You'll also be able to boot to the desktop, get a revamped Windows app store interface, and many other tweaks, small and large.

Pandora names former Microsoft exec as its new CEO

Pandora names former Microsoft exec as its new CEO Pandora has named Brian McAndrews, a former Microsoft executive, as its new CEO, the web radio service said in a statement. McAndrews is taking over for Joe Kennedy, who earlier in the year announced he would step aside. With the hire, Pandora showed where its priorities are. Most of Pandora's revenues are generated through advertising and McAndrews is an experienced marketing and advertising exec, who was with a venture capital company for several years after leading Microsoft's advertiser and publisher solutions. He landed at Microsoft after the software maker acquired aQuantive, a digital marketing company where he was CEO. "We had very specific criteria for our new CEO," said Tim Westergren, Pandora’s founder and chief strategy officer. "We were very strategic about finding the right person — Brian is that person. No one better understands the intersection of technology and advertising, which he clearly demonstrated during aQuantive’s meteoric rise." No one better understands the intersection of technology and advertising. For awhile, the rumors were that Pandora was interested in hiring a marquee name, someone with a background in radio and music, such as Mel Karmazin, the former CEO of Sirius XM. There was another camp that believed Pandora wanted someone who was a proven winner at digital entertainment, such as Jason Kilar, former chief of Hulu. Some observers speculated that Pandora would want someone who had experience getting legislation passed, since Pandora has tried for more than a year convince Congress to lower the royalties it pays to play music. McAndrews takes over a time when Pandora faces a crowded field of competitors. Google's Android, Apple, and Microsoft have already begun offering streaming music. Beats by Dre and YouTube are expected to get their subscription services off the ground before the end of the year. At the same time, Pandora is looking to reach profitability on a consistent basis. McAndrews has his work cut out for him. The good news is that Wall Street seems pleased by the news. In after-hours trading, Pandora's stock was up 6 percent to $22.70.

Pandora names former Microsoft exec as its new CEO

Pandora names former Microsoft exec as its new CEO Pandora has named Brian McAndrews, a former Microsoft executive, as its new CEO, the web radio service said in a statement. McAndrews is taking over for Joe Kennedy, who earlier in the year announced he would step aside. With the hire, Pandora showed where its priorities are. Most of Pandora's revenues are generated through advertising and McAndrews is an experienced marketing and advertising exec, who was with a venture capital company for several years after leading Microsoft's advertiser and publisher solutions. He landed at Microsoft after the software maker acquired aQuantive, a digital marketing company where he was CEO. "We had very specific criteria for our new CEO," said Tim Westergren, Pandora’s founder and chief strategy officer. "We were very strategic about finding the right person — Brian is that person. No one better understands the intersection of technology and advertising, which he clearly demonstrated during aQuantive’s meteoric rise." No one better understands the intersection of technology and advertising. For awhile, the rumors were that Pandora was interested in hiring a marquee name, someone with a background in radio and music, such as Mel Karmazin, the former CEO of Sirius XM. There was another camp that believed Pandora wanted someone who was a proven winner at digital entertainment, such as Jason Kilar, former chief of Hulu. Some observers speculated that Pandora would want someone who had experience getting legislation passed, since Pandora has tried for more than a year convince Congress to lower the royalties it pays to play music. McAndrews takes over a time when Pandora faces a crowded field of competitors. Google's Android, Apple, and Microsoft have already begun offering streaming music. Beats by Dre and YouTube are expected to get their subscription services off the ground before the end of the year. At the same time, Pandora is looking to reach profitability on a consistent basis. McAndrews has his work cut out for him. The good news is that Wall Street seems pleased by the news. In after-hours trading, Pandora's stock was up 6 percent to $22.70.

Pandora names former Microsoft exec as its new CEO

Pandora has named Brian McAndrews, a former Microsoft executive, as its new CEO, the web radio service said in a statement. McAndrews is taking over for Joe Kennedy, who earlier in the year announced he would step aside. With the hire, Pandora showed where its priorities are. Most of Pandora's revenues are generated through advertising and McAndrews is an experienced marketing and advertising exec, who was with a venture capital company for several years after leading Microsoft's advertiser and publisher solutions. He landed at Microsoft after the software maker acquired aQuantive, a digital marketing company where he was CEO. "We had very specific criteria for our new CEO," said Tim Westergren, Pandora’s founder and chief strategy officer. "We were very strategic about finding the right person — Brian is that person. No one better understands the intersection of technology and advertising, which he clearly demonstrated during aQuantive’s meteoric rise." No one better understands the intersection of technology and advertising. For awhile, the rumors were that Pandora was interested in hiring a marquee name, someone with a background in radio and music, such as Mel Karmazin, the former CEO of Sirius XM. There was another camp that believed Pandora wanted someone who was a proven winner at digital entertainment, such as Jason Kilar, former chief of Hulu. Some observers speculated that Pandora would want someone who had experience getting legislation passed, since Pandora has tried for more than a year convince Congress to lower the royalties it pays to play music. McAndrews takes over a time when Pandora faces a crowded field of competitors. Google's Android, Apple, and Microsoft have already begun offering streaming music. Beats by Dre and YouTube are expected to get their subscription services off the ground before the end of the year. At the same time, Pandora is looking to reach profitability on a consistent basis. McAndrews has his work cut out for him. The good news is that Wall Street seems pleased by the news. In after-hours trading, Pandora's stock was up 6 percent to $22.70.

NEW iPHONE 5S

How iPhone 5S makes your finger into a password The most impressive feature of the new iPhone 5S may be its ability to turn your finger into a password. Touch ID is Apple's name for a new fingerprint scanner that would act as a security tool for log-ins and for making purchases from iTunes and other Apple stores. "Your fingerprint is one of the best passwords in the world," said Dan Riccio, a senior vice president for hardware design at Apple, in a promotional video. "It's always with you and no two are exactly alike." Apple unveiled the iPhone 5S, along with a cheaper, simpler iPhone 5C, at an event Tuesday at the company's California headquarters. Read: Hands-on impressions of the new iPhones On the new 5S, the Home button will be made of sapphire crystal and act as a reader. According to Apple a fingerprint -- up to five prints from different users, depending on who else shares your phone -- can be read by the sensor from any angle to give access the same way a password does currently. The fingerprint data is encrypted, Riccio said, and stored internally on the phone. "It's never available to other software and it's never stored on Apple's servers or backed up to iCloud," he said. The iPhone isn't the first phone to have a fingerprint sensor. In 2011, the Motorola ATRIX 4G included one, though adoption among users wasn't particularly high and the company eventually discontinued the feature. And at least one Android phone to be released this year also will have the technology, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Some laptops and PCs have had fingerprint readers for several years now. But the technology has never really caught on, with users often complaining about them being balky and unreliable.

NEW iPHONE 5S

How iPhone 5S makes your finger into a password The most impressive feature of the new iPhone 5S may be its ability to turn your finger into a password. Touch ID is Apple's name for a new fingerprint scanner that would act as a security tool for log-ins and for making purchases from iTunes and other Apple stores. "Your fingerprint is one of the best passwords in the world," said Dan Riccio, a senior vice president for hardware design at Apple, in a promotional video. "It's always with you and no two are exactly alike." Apple unveiled the iPhone 5S, along with a cheaper, simpler iPhone 5C, at an event Tuesday at the company's California headquarters. Read: Hands-on impressions of the new iPhones On the new 5S, the Home button will be made of sapphire crystal and act as a reader. According to Apple a fingerprint -- up to five prints from different users, depending on who else shares your phone -- can be read by the sensor from any angle to give access the same way a password does currently. The fingerprint data is encrypted, Riccio said, and stored internally on the phone. "It's never available to other software and it's never stored on Apple's servers or backed up to iCloud," he said. The iPhone isn't the first phone to have a fingerprint sensor. In 2011, the Motorola ATRIX 4G included one, though adoption among users wasn't particularly high and the company eventually discontinued the feature. And at least one Android phone to be released this year also will have the technology, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Some laptops and PCs have had fingerprint readers for several years now. But the technology has never really caught on, with users often complaining about them being balky and unreliable.