NASA Wants To Test Earth Defense System By Slamming A spaceship into Asteroid

NASA has been working with agencies around the globe to develop a space defense technology that would be used to protect Earth from anticipated asteroid impacts. Though there’s no expected impacts in our relatively near future, such a technology may prove vital for protecting humanity in the future, and as such work is underway now to test possible defense methods. One of these tests will be carried out by NASA , and it’ll involve slamming a spacecraft into an asteroid to divert its course. 

The upcoming test is call Double Asteroid Redirection Test, DART for short. This will mark the first time NASA has set out to demonstrate the effectiveness (or possibly lack of it) of one of its asteroid deflection techniques. DART received approval from NASA on June 23, though the exact testing date isn’t clear at the moment. The spacecraft involved in the test will be about the size of a fridge and it will travel at a rate 9 times faster than a bullet, according to the space agency. 


The target of the test is one of two asteroids that comprise a binary system — Didymos B, the smaller of the two, will be struck by the spacecraft. This binary asteroid system has been studied by researchers for years, and it is slated to make a ‘distant approach’ to our own planet in the next half-decade. Overall, the smaller of the two — the DART target — is about 530ft across.

A self-targeting system built into the spacecraft will enable it to aim itself at the asteroid; researchers on Earth will see the impact take place and be able to calculate the effects it has on the asteroid’s trajectory over time. Assuming an asteroid is determined to be a threat while it is still very distant, it would only take a very small change to its trajectory to derail its course by a significant distance.

SOURCE: NASA

Retro NES-style Controllers: You Now Can Buy Them For Your Nintendo Switch

Ever wish your Nintendo Switch looked more like the original NES?

No? Just us? Well, either way, ColorWare thinks someone out there wants a NES-style Switch, because it has just launched the Joy Con Classic, a pair of custom-painted Switch controllers. They're painted in black and grey to resemble the original NES, but they're only available for a limited time. And, yes, they function just like any other Switch controllers and work with your existing Switch system.

ColorWare has been releasing custom versions of the Switch for several months, giving consumers the chance to literally switch up the look of their Switch. The company's new Joy Con Classic features a two-tone design in black and grey with glossy red buttons and accents, just like the Nintendo Entertainment System that originally released in 1985. But these retro controllers aren't exactly cheap. 

They come with a $200 price tag ($120 more than the standard Joy-Cons), though they feature all the same hardware - accelerometers, gyro sensors, buttons, and even matching wrist straps. So you're probably only going to pick these up if you're diehard Nintendo fan. Keep in mind shipping for the controllers is currently starting at three weeks from the time of checkout.

If you live in the UK, ColorWare says it ships there, too. We'll update this post when we find out more about UK pricing.

Microsoft Ends Support Office 2007: Here is What To Do In The Aftermath Of This

With every latest update in a product or a new product, Microsoft ends the previous product. This year, it is the End of Life for Office 2007. It is nothing but Microsoft will end the support for Office 2007 on October 10, 2017. Hence, Microsoft advises all the current users of Office 2007 to upgrade Office 365 or ProPlus. Microsoft has published a complete guide on the roadmap of End of Life for Office 2007 and also how to upgrade it to Office 365 and Office 365 ProPlus.

End of Life for Office 2007

End of Life for Office 2007 is nothing but the end of support for this product by Microsoft. Hence, users will not receive any patches or updates for Office 2007 after October 10, 2017. As a result, using Office 2007 may leave users’ computers vulnerable to errors as well as security threats.

Most of the Microsoft products have a support lifecycle of 10 years. Thus, Office 2007 too received new features, bug fixes, security fixes and various other updates during these 10 years. The end of this lifecycle is typically known as End of Life. The End of Life for Office 2007 will be October 10, 2017.

After the End of Life for Office 2007, Microsoft will not provide:

• Technical support for issues
• Bug fixes for issues that are discovered
• Security fixes for vulnerabilities that are discovered

Besides this, currently, there are several Outlook 2007 clients that are using Office 365. From October 31, 2017; these clients too won’t be able to connect to Office 365 mailboxes. Hence, Outlook 2007 clients using Office 365 will not be able to receive and send mail.

So what should you do?

Before the End of Life for Office 2007, users are recommended to follow one of these steps:

• Upgrade to Office 365 ProPlus, the subscription version of Office that comes with many Office 365 plans.
• Upgrade to Office 2016, which is sold as a one-time purchase and available for one computer per license.
• Upgrade to an earlier version of Office, such as Office 2013.

As Microsoft mentions, Office 365 is the subscription plan that includes access to Office applications and other cloud services, including Skype for Business, Exchange Online, and OneDrive for Business. On the other hand, Office 365 ProPlus is the version of Office that comes with many Office 365 plans. It includes the full versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, Publisher, Access, and Skype for Business installed on your client computers.

As the End of Life for Office 2007 is nearing and only 3 months are left, users are advised to upgrade as soon as possible. To know more about the procedure of upgrading, read the complete article on Microsoft Office Support website.