UniBrows Add-On Combines Old School (IE6) with New School (IE8)
Most of you probably have no desire to turn back the clock and get your Web surfing groove on with IE6, but consider all those enterprise users who developed apps to work with Microsoft's non-standard browser. The sad reality is Microsoft essentially broke the Web, leaving scores of business users with the unenviable prospect of coding new applications to work with updated browser releases, running a virtualized solution, or staying pat with old technology. Enter Browsium, an upstart who hopes to sidestep the
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Samsung And AT&T Deliver Samsung Focus And Solstice II Phones
Samsung Mobile and AT&T announced the Samsung Focus and the Solstice II. The Focus is a smartphone that runs on Windows Phone 7. It has a 4-inch Super AMOLED screen, multiple messaging options and a 5.0 megapixel camera. It will be available on November 8 for $199.99. The Solstice II is a quick messaging device with a 3-inch touchscreen. The Solstice II features Samsung’s TouchWiz 2.0 user interface which provides one-touch access to frequently used applications and social networks. The Solstice II
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DRAM Market in a Sorry State
Show of hands, how many of you can remember paying $200, $300, and even $400 for high-end DDR1 kits back in the day? We get a little green under the gills just thinking about it, and those of you new to the game should thank your lucky stars that you entered this hobby at a time when the DRAM has hit rock bottom. Or has it? Look around online and you'll find several 6GB tri-channel memory kits going for less than a C-note. Could RAM possibly get any cheaper? Apparently it can, and probably will. Following another
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At Capital One, Different Browsers = Different Interest Rates
This news story comes straight from the "We couldn't make this up" file. It's a well known fact that banks offer different interest rates to different customers depending on the applicant's credit history, credit rating, and annual income. Somewhere along the line, one's choice of browser was apparently slipped into the mix. Would-be borrowers who visit Capital One's auto loan calculator are presented with a range of rates; we've got the screenshots below to prove it. That's Firefox 3.6.12 on the upper left,
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Sony Announces Next Generation Blu-ray Drives
Sony introduced the next generation of its internal Blu-ray Disc rewritable drives. The new drives are capable of writing single BD-R media at up to 12X and dual layer BD-R media at up to 8X speeds. Sony's BWU-500S model comes with CyberLink’s Media Suite 8 software and one 25GB Sony BD-R blank disc. In addition to recording to BD-R and BD-RE discs, the drives can record to DVD discs and CDs as well. The drives use a SATA interface and a standard 5.25-inch form-factor. SONY OPTIARC AMERICA INTRODUCES NEXT-GENERATION
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Panasonic Introduces Latest Micro Four Thirds Camera: Lumix DMC-GF2
Panasonic's DMC-GF1 has easily been one of the company's most highly touted cameras, and one of the most popular interchangeable lens units altogether. But the GF1 has started to show its age somewhat with this newer era of Micro Four Thirds, and the competition is getting heated. In order to stay ahead of the curve, Panasonic has today unveiling the next version of the GF1, the Lumix DMC-GF2. It's the company's thinnest and lightest Micro Four Thirds system camera to date, weighing around 7% less than the GF1
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Toshiba Reveals 10.1" Folio 100 Android Tablet
Could it be? Another tablet? Of course, it's the year of the tablet! The next in line to pump out their best anti-iPad effort is Toshiba, with the Folio 100 actually being one of the slicker units that we have seen recently. This is another Android-based tablet, presumably to go head-to-head with Samsung's Galaxy Tab. For now, it's only shipping in Europe, but maybe if it sells well there, it'll head to other parts of the globe shortly. This is a 10.1" unit, fully supporting Flash 10.1 (via a firmware update
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Jack PC Puts A Thin Client Into Your Wall Socket
Have you ever wished you could hook up your PC in one room, and then use it in another? You can definitely do this if you own a laptop, but here's a better solution for desktop owners: the Jack PC. The Jack PC EFI 7900 is really just a thin client PC at heart, but it's bottled up into a small shell that's suitable for mounting in your wall. It's described as the most secure, modular, and manageable Thin-Client solution offering connection to any type of popular Terminal, Citrix or Legacy servers, and Vmware
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Intel To Rent 22nm Production To FPGA Manufacturer
Intel made headlines earlier this week when the company announced it would be selling foundry space to FPGA designer/manufacturer Achronix. This isn't the sort of strategic move we normally we see from Intel; the manufacturing giant has been able to avoid licensing its production capacity to other companies in order to meet costs. The Achronix deal doesn't imply any sort of long-term strategy change from Intel, but it could be a sign that the company is looking to acquire smaller companies. The term FPGA stands
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Amazon's Disc+ On Demand Program Expands To Over 10000 Titles
Now this is an idea worth acting upon. Amazon's Disc+ On Demand program has just been expanded, which hopefully makes it large enough to make a serious impact on the industry. If you haven't heard of the program before, it's probably because it's small. Basically, it enables customers to instantly watch movies on Amazon Video On Demand that they have purchased on DVD or Blu-ray. If you can prove that you own the disc, you can watch it on-demand. Pretty useful! The initial program is being expanded to support
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HP Brings Instant-On To Enterprise And Business
It may not sound like anything very significant, but to anyone who has ever used an enterprise machine, it is. Generally, company issued notebooks are slow to load and slow to awake from sleep. Much of that has to do with the loads of corporate security programs that have to load in the taskbar before your machine becomes useful, but hearing that "instant-on" was coming to enterprise is like music to our ears. The company has just announced new integrated solutions that will help businesses and governments create
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Qik Video Chat Embedded On T-Mobile's MyTouch 4G Android Phone
T-Mobile USA is really blowing things out here lately. They just proclaimed to be America's largest 4G carrier, and they're also pushing the new myTouch 4G phone as a major competitor to the iPhone and a host of other handsets on less speedy networks. Now there's one more reason to consider that combo over another: Qik. Qik is a video streaming and video calling application that has thus far been a third-party download for Android devices. It's actually an upcharge to use it on the EVO 4G with Sprint's WiMAX
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Lawsuit Accuses Apple of Bricking iPhone 3Gs with iOS 4 to Sell More iPhone 4s
You'll recall, we're sure, just how poorly the iPhone 3G performed with iOS 4, and even Apple's fixes to performance in iOS 4.1 didn't fix everything. Thus, we now have what we expected: a lawsuit. Plaintiff Biana Wofford has filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of California for San Diego. She alleges that Apple knew that iOS 4 would essentially "brick" the iPhone 3G, and that the Cupertino, CA-based company hoped that such bricking would boost iPhone 4 sales. Wofford is seeking class action status. Aside
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ViewSonic Goes Green With Full HD VG36-LED Series Of Monitors
If you just so happen to be in the market for a new monitor, ViewSonic just so happens to have a new pair to choose from. The company's new VG36-LED Series of monitors are just being introduced this week, with two new ones in the line to start with. There's the 24" (23.6" vis.) VG2436wm-LED and 22" (21.5" vis.) VG2236wm-LED, and outside of the physical size, most of the specifications are identical. Both units have slimmed bezels, a native 1920x1080 resolution, DVI and VGA ports a 20,000,000:1 MEGA contrast
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Will Sesame Street Attract Apple's Ire Over "There's An App For That" Song?
Apple is famous for protecting its intellectual property (IP) and has gone so far as to sue folks for things that have absolutely nothing to do with iPods, iPhones, or even music. Since Apple has been awarded a trademark on the "There's an app for that" slogan, we hope they don't decide to take a club to the kid's show, Sesame Street. Sesame Street produced a segment around the iPogo Stick (which is already enough, most likely, to attract Apple's ire). However, in the segment Sesame Street did, the term "There's
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Wirefly Announces Free Mobile Backup Service For Cell Phones
Upgrading your cell phone can be a bittersweet process. On one hand, you get a cool new toy with lots of new features to check out. On the other hand, transferring contacts, pictures, settings, email accounts, etc can be a bit of a pain. Wirefly, an online retailer of cell phones and plans, is working to make transferring data from one phone to the next a bit easier thanks to its new Wirefly Mobile Backup service. This new service is designed to help you backup and transfer your contacts and more, regardless
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Acer Reveals Aspire RevoView Networked Media Streamer
Another day, another media streamer. That certainly seems to be the case here lately, as company after company continues to introduce new ways to stream media from the Internet and your networked storage locations onto your television. The newest one to join the bandwagon is the Acer Aspire RevoView, which is an HD DLNA certified media player that can playback media content from all DLNA certified devices. The box itself looks fairly stylish, and the setup looks fairly simple. It can connect to TVs via HDMI,
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Hitachi Unveils World's Thinnest External Hard Drive
Oh my, is that Hitachi's new G-Drive with G-Technology in your pocket, the slimmest external hard drive on the planet, or are you just really unhappy to see us? Oh it is Hitachi's G-Drive! That would explain the ultra-slim footprint. The G-Drive is a 2.5-inch external unit measuring just 128.6mm (L) x 82mm (W) x 9.9mm (H), so you can fill it with confidential files and slide it in your pocket with no one ever being the wiser. "Our new G-DRIVE slim is yet another way that we’re making high quality storage
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Sophos Offers Free Antivirus Software For Macs
Sophos on Tuesday released free anti-virus software for Macs. While it's not hard to find free antivirus software for Macs (ClamXAV has been at it for years) by all accounts this is the first commercial grade tool available for nada. That means no strings attached, no trial period that descends into perpetual requests to upgrade and no major features missing The Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac Home Edition rivals paid options in catching viruses, its makers say, and not just the ones that can harm Macs, but those
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The Countdown Begins, Multitasking Comes to iPad in 3...2...1...
Go ahead and call the iPad nothing more than a glorified iPod touch, assuming you want to rub salt in the wound. Of course, that isn't exactly true, but most of the criticisms are, one of the big ones being the lack of multitasking support. The iPhone has it and so does the iPod touch, but the iPad doesn't, not yet anyway. The good news? Your magical slate will soon possess the power of multitasking once iOS 4.2 rolls out of Cupertino. Hold your breath if you want, Apple has gone and released the latest build
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Study Shows Preschoolers Watch Too Much TV
Is the boob tube your child's best friend? Although the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that preschool-age children watch no more than two hours of TV a day, a recent study shows that many children exceed this limit. According to researchers at the Seattle Children's Research Institute and the University of Washington, 66 percent of the 8,950 children the team studied watched more TV than the recommended limit. This study was based on data that included children 5 and younger between 2001 and 2006.
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T-Mobile USA Claims To Have "America's Largest 4G Network"
Well, this should be interesting. T-Mobile USA has had their hand slapped before for calling their HSPA+ service "4G," with Sprint and Clearwire claiming to actually offer true 4G service (WiMAX). In reality, T-Mobile's HSPA+ service is based on 3G protocols, but it's tweaked for higher speeds than can be achieved on Verizon, for example. But rather than taking that punishment and changing their tone, T-Mobile has just unveiled "4G service" that reachers over 75 metro markets. And that surely will not make Sprint
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Western Digital Brings WD Photos App To Android
If you own a Western Digital NAS drive (like the My Book Live, WD ShareSpace or My Book World Edition), and you also own an Android smartphone, this news is definitely aimed at you. Western Digital just introduced the WD Photos app for Android, giving even Android users the ability to check into their photo album at home. Previously, WD Photos was available for iPhone, but now the Android Market is populated with its own version that can be downloaded free of charge. The WD Photos app is compatible with the
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Wacom Reveals Three New Pen eSignature Tablets
More tablets! Oh, wait. These aren't the tablets you're probably thinking of. Rather than introducing new Windows 7-based or Android-based tablets, Wacom has just announced a new round of tablets that are meant for creative professionals. Pros that use Photoshop more than e-mail. The Wacom STU family of signature tablets have been revealed, with these three aimed at companies that are moving toward paperless transactions and a digital workflow. The STU-520, STU-500 and STU-300 are all designed to capture electronic
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Apple Owns 95% Of The Tablet Market: Can Anyone Stop Them?
Are you ready for a surprise? Unfortunately, you probably won't find it here. A new report, put out by research firm Strategy Analytics, has found that Apple is in firm control of the tablet PC market, and it's unlikely that the situation will change in the near term. Years ago, tablet PCs hit the market with next to no fanfare; consumers scoffed at how big they were, and the battery life was rather terrible. They were mostly used for field work and in enterprise applications. Today, the timing is right for
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Mid-Range NVIDIA GPU Battle: GTX 460 vs. GTX 470
You have to love competition. With the release of AMD's affordable HD 6870 and 6850 graphics cards, the folks over at NVIDIA decided to respond with a move of their own. In case you missed it, the same day the Radeons launched, NVIDIA dropped the price of their mid-range GeForce products to gain a competitive advantage in the market, and more importantly, to try an rain on AMD's parade. And when it comes to price wars, you won't hear us complaining. Even before the Radeon launch, the GTX 460 was
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ATi HD5790 rendering issues
My baby nephew is to embarrassed to post on the forum so I'm doing it for him. He put together a new rig and is having issues with his ATi HD 5790 Graphics. The rendering is off and he has tearing so he loaded VSync so now his FPS is off and his controls are a fraction of a second off. He's running at 1920 X1200 60hz which is all he can get out of his LCD. His main concern is gaming online and playing is beloved Unreal which he and his friends rewrote to run online. Apparently ATi doesn't support PhysX.
Here's his setup:
i7 870
ASUS P7P55D-E Pro
ATi 5790 Graphic
Patriot DDR3 4GB
Win 7 64Bit
and a bunch of other stuff he's crammed into the case he's not disposed to divulge.
Any suggestions are appreciated. He thinks the card is bad.
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Will Sesame Street Attract Apple's Ire Over "There's An App For That" Song?
Apple is famous for protecting its intellectual property (IP) and has gone so far as to sue folks for things that have absolutely nothing to do with iPods, iPhones, or even music. Since Apple has been awarded a trademark on the "There's an app for that" slogan, we hope they don't decide to take a club to the kid's show, Sesame Street.
We'll see if anything legal comes of this. Hopefully, it will just be ignored. In the meanwhile, here's the segment.
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Sony Announces Next Generation Blu-ray Drives
Sony introduced the next generation of its internal Blu-ray Disc rewritable drives. The new drives are capable of writing single BD-R media at up to 12X and dual layer BD-R media at up to 8X speeds. Sony's BWU-500S model comes with CyberLink’s Media Suite 8 software and one 25GB Sony BD-R blank disc. In addition to recording to BD-R and BD-RE discs, the drives can record to DVD discs and CDs as well. The drives use a SATA interface and a standard 5.25-inch form-factor. 
SONY OPTIARC AMERICA INTRODUCES NEXT-GENERATION BLU-RAY DISC REWRITABLE DRIVES
SAN JOSE, Calif., Nov. 4, 2010 – Sony Optiarc America today announced its next-generation half-height internal Blu-ray Disc® (BD) rewritable drives for the computer aftermarket. ÂAvailable in a retail and OEM configuration, the new drives are an ideal replacement burner for a standard DVD drive while offering all the benefits of Blu-ray Disc technology, including Blu-ray 3Dâ„¢ high-definition playback.Â
The drives write single BD-R media at up to 12X and dual layer BD-R media at up to 8X speeds, recording a full 25GB disc in about 10 minutes. The 12X recording speed is achieved using 6X compatible BD-R media.Â
The BWU-500S retail branded model comes with CyberLink’s Media Suite 8 software for capturing, authoring, editing, backing up, viewing high-definition personal content and playing back Blu-ray Disc movies including 3D Blu-ray movies. Also included in the retail box is one 25GB Sony BD-R blank disc.Â
The new drives can record up to 50GB of data for random access storage and backup on BD-R (write once) or BD-RE (rewritable) discs, or up to 220 minutes of high-definition 24M bps MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 video on a BD-R/RE 50GB disc.
The drives also record standard 4.7GB DVD+/-R discs at up to 16X speeds, 8.5 GB DVD+/-R Double/Dual layer at up to 8X, DVD+RW at up to 8X, DVD-RW at up to 6X, CD-R at up to 48X, CD-RW at up to 24X, and support DVD-RAM recording at up to 12X speeds.Â
The internal drives feature a Serial ATA (SATA) interface and standard 5.25-inch form-factor for easy installation inside a desktop PC. They also incorporate intelligent monitoring for consistent recording, and adjusting read-speed technology which enhances smooth playback.Â
Availability
The BWU-500S retail branded drive and the OEM BD-5300S drive are available this month through authorized distributors, resellers and select online sites.Â
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Skype For Mac 5.0 Beta Now Available, Brings Group Video Calling
Mac users, you aren't being snubbed any longer. Today, Skype for Mac has been revealed in Beta, bringing the same features that version 5.0 already delivered on the PC side to OS X users. The new Skype 5.0 for Mac introduces a revised user interface, and as Skype says, a "more Mac-like experience."
For example, the Skype app has been brought together in one window for ease-of-use, and the Mac address book has been integrated, making it possible for you to call, IM and SMS your contacts when they are online or offline. This build also highlights a new feature, group video calling, which is basically a teleconference option for Skype. Users can make video calls with over two people as long as all participants are on the new Mac beta or Skype for Windows 5.0.
It's available to download now free of charge.
It was worth the wait – the new Skype 5.0 is now available for Mac today in beta, introducing a revamped look and feel that simplifies navigation and provides a more Mac-like experience. For example, the Skype app has been brought together in one window for ease-of-use, and the Mac address book has been integrated, making it possible for you to call, IM and SMS your contacts when they are online or offline.
The new Skype for Mac also offers our popular new feature - group video calling - which allows you to make video calls with more than two people at a time as long as all participants are on the new Mac beta or Skype for Windows 5.0. Group video calling brings people together like never before, allowing you to do more things together with your friends, family and colleagues whenever you are apart.
The new Skype for Mac also includes the following new features:
   * New call control bar — Hang up, mute and more from a mini Skype toolbar that sits on top of any web pages, documents or photos you’ve got open
   * Search chat content to easily navigate past conversations
   * Offline IM so that you can send and receive instant messages even if the recipient is offline
   * Personalise contacts via user profiles
   * Quickly rejoin calls if your Internet connection fails momentarily
   * Floating Contacts Monitor to see your online contacts and contact groups
Try out the new Skype for Mac in beta and tell us what you think using the Skype > Provide Skype Feedback menu item. And stay posted as we roll out the official version soon.
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Tesla Motors Sees $30 Million Investment From Battery Maker Panasonic
These days, getting funding for a project is rather difficult. A lot more difficult than it once was, that's for sure. But it's pretty clear that Panasonic believes in what Tesla is going after, as they have just set aside $30 million to invest in Tesla.The two companies already have an existing relationship, and it definitely just became stronger. Panasonic purchased $30 million worth of common stick in a private placement at a price of $21.15 per share, and if you were wondering why Panasonic -- a company typically associated with televisions and cameras -- would invest in a car company, here's the deal. Panasonic just so happens to be the world's leading battery maker, and Tesla only makes electric vehicles. Seems a lot clearer now, doesn't it?
Tesla currently uses Panasonic battery cells in its advanced battery packs and has collaborated with Panasonic on the development of next generation battery cells designed specifically for electric vehicles. While Tesla's current battery strategy incorporates proprietary packaging using cells from multiple battery suppliers, Tesla has selected Panasonic as its preferred lithium-ion battery cell supplier for its battery packs.
Hopefully, this investment will help Tesla get even more vehicles on the road. Electric cars sound great in theory, but until they hit critical mass, it's unlikely that the infrastructure will be erected to keep up.
Panasonic Invests $30 Million in Tesla: Companies Strengthen Collaborative Relationship
PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Panasonic Corporation and Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) today announced that Panasonic has invested $30 million in Tesla. The investment was made through the purchase of Tesla common stock in a private placement at a price of $21.15 per share. The investment builds upon a multi-year collaboration of the two companies to accelerate the market expansion of the electric vehicle.
Panasonic is the world's leading battery cell manufacturer and a diverse supplier to the global automotive industry. Tesla currently uses Panasonic battery cells in its advanced battery packs and has collaborated with Panasonic on the development of next generation battery cells designed specifically for electric vehicles. While Tesla's current battery strategy incorporates proprietary packaging using cells from multiple battery suppliers, Tesla has selected Panasonic as its preferred lithium-ion battery cell supplier for its battery packs.
"Panasonic aims to be the number one Green Innovation Company in the Electronics Industry by 2018, the 100th anniversary of our founding," said Naoto Noguchi, President of Energy Company, a unit of Panasonic responsible for the battery cell business. "Our sophisticated lithium-ion battery cell technology, combined with Tesla's market-leading EV powertrain technology, helps us fulfill this goal by promoting sustainable mobility. We are proud to strengthen our relationship with Tesla Motors."
"It is an honor and a powerful endorsement of our technology that Panasonic, the world's leading battery cell manufacturer, would choose to invest in and partner with Tesla," said Tesla CEO and cofounder Elon Musk. "Panasonic offers the highest energy-density cells and industry-leading performance with cutting edge Nickel-type cathode technology. We believe our partnership with them will enable us to further improve our battery pack while reducing cost."
In addition to producing its own vehicles, Tesla also builds electric powertrains, including battery packs, for other automobile manufacturers. Panasonic and Tesla intend to explore joint marketing and sales of battery packs that would be designed and assembled by Tesla using Panasonic's battery cells.
About Panasonic
Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of electronic products for a wide range of consumer, business, and industrial needs. Based in Osaka, Japan, the company recorded consolidated net sales of 7.42 trillion yen (US$79.4 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2010. The company's shares are listed on the Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and New York (NYSE:PC) stock exchanges. For more information on the company and the Panasonic brand, visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net/.Â
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Black Friday, Already?
Not sure if you guys checked your inbox, but newegg already claims to have black friday deals. My question is, do you think that it's going to get any better? If not, this looks to be rather uneventful. I was hoping to atleast see a few decent ssd's get placed under $100.
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Ubuntu's moves
Anyone else sad about the moves that Ubuntu is making. I know they are known in the Linux community as a beginners Linux OS, but why remove Synaptic? And now they are moving from gnome to Unity? Unity is half as good as Gnome if that. Just seems like crazy moves that are going to only hurt the OS. I suppose I can always just install these packages, but why not just make another flavor like Kubuntu instead of removing your most popular Windows Manager. Idk maybe something behind the curtian is happening like Gnome dropping in downloads to KDE. Which is totally likely since KDEs newer versions are very good. Idk I just don't like the moves. Thinking of hunting down a new OS before 11.04
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Idea for New Members
I got this idea from a forum I was once on long ago. Essentially it made all new members into a probationary membership for like your first 5 posts. All your posts or thread creations would need to be approved by the mods or admin. After that you were free to do what you want. I think its something like this could be put in place it would cut down on all the forum spam. I know the Idea inst exactly new comer friendly but its an idea. I realize it might put more work on the mods and admin but It cant be much more than were doing to keep the forum spam free.
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Panasonic Introduces Latest Micro Four Thirds Camera: Lumix DMC-GF2
Panasonic's DMC-GF1 has easily been one of the company's most highly touted cameras, and one of the most popular interchangeable lens units altogether. But the GF1 has started to show its age somewhat with this newer era of Micro Four Thirds, and the competition is getting heated. In order to stay ahead of the curve, Panasonic has today unveiling the next version of the GF1, the Lumix DMC-GF2.
It's the company's thinnest and lightest Micro Four Thirds system camera to date, weighing around 7% less than the GF1 and being around 19% smaller than the GF1. Pretty major for compact shooters! As for internal specifications, the unit has a 12.1MP Live MOS sensor, a Full HD movie mode (shoots in AVCHD or Motion JPEG) and support for their newest interchangeable 3D lens, the LUMIX G 12.5mm / F12.
It also features a 3" rear touch screen (but no optical viewfinder), a wide range of AutoFocus modes (includes a 23-area tracking system), a newly-designed Touch Q-menu and a Venus Engine FHD. There's also a new advanced noise reduction system, an ISO range of 100-6400 and a wild new Intelligent Resolution technology, which means that three areas – outlines, detailed texture areas and soft gradation – are automatically detected.
Panasonic plans to ship the unit early next year, with pricing to be announced within a month or so.
Panasonic Introduces Company's Smallest and Lightest Digital Interchangeable Lens System Camera With Flash
Â
New Panasonic LUMIX GF2 Features Touch-Screen Operation, Full HD Video Recording Capability and Compatible with Panasonic's Interchangeable 3D Lens
SECAUCUS, N.J., Nov. 4, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Panasonic today announced the LUMIX DMC-GF2, the latest of the company's DSL Micro (DSLM) compact mirrorless cameras, which is Panasonic's smallest and lightest interchangeable lens system camera – complete with a built-in flash. The LUMIX GF2 is compatible with lenses from the Micro Four Thirds standard, meaning the system is small and compact, while not compromising ease of operation or image quality. Even more, the LUMIX GF2 is compatible with Panasonic's new 3D interchangeable lens, the LUMIX G 12.5mm / F12, so users can take 3D photos.
"The LUMIX GF2 is key in the Panasonic DSL Micro line-up, as it's the smallest and lightest model we offer, while still offering superb image quality, which our consumers have come to expect from LUMIX. Compared to the GF1, its predecessor, the GF2 has been reduced approximately 19% in size and approximately 7% in weight yet is still retains its signature built-in flash," said Darin Pepple, Senior Product Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. "We expect the LUMIX GF2 to be an attractive model for consumers who want to step up to a more powerful camera that is easy to use, and a camera that is 'future-proof' with its 3D capabilities."
The LUMIX GF2 is extremely easy to operate for consumers at any level, thanks to a newly-designed user interface, which allows for the focus to be set, or shutter released, by simply touching the large 3-inch touch-screen LCD. The touch-screen LCD with a 460,000-dot-resolution makes taking great photos intuitive. Once a user locks on a subject by touch, the LUMIX GF2 tracks the subject with the AF tracking function, even if the subject moves – making it easy to take photos of moving subjects, like children playing. The contrast AF system adopted by the LUMIX DMC-GF2 is not only accurate and easy to use, but also very fast. Users can choose from a wide range of AF (Auto Focus) modes, including multiple-area AF with up to 23 focus areas, 1-area AF with a selectable focus area, Face Detection, and AF Tracking.
The touch operation also dramatically shortens the time spent navigating the menus. With the LUMIX GF2's newly-designed Touch Q-menu, the user can customize the camera's shortcuts with the most commonly used settings. Together with the simple button components, including dedicated buttons for video recording and iA (Intelligent Auto) mode which lights in-use, users can operate the camera intuitively with ease.
With the Intelligent Scene Selector in the iA mode, the camera automatically switches to the appropriate mode according to the subject touched. For example, a touch on a human face switches to the portrait mode and a touch on the background or scenery switches to the scenery mode, while a touch on the subject close to the camera switches to the close-up mode. With the MF assist mode for manual focusing, users can enlarge the subject by just a touch to select 1x, 5x or 10x and smoothly move the subject by dragging it on the screen. In iA mode and the Peripheral Defocus mode, the range of defocus can be adjusted by just moving the slider with a finger, something not possible with larger more complicated DSLR cameras that don't feature touch control.
While achieving breakthroughs in compactness of design and outstanding photo and video quality, the Panasonic LUMIX GF2 can contribute its professional-level imaging performance to well-balanced engine and sensor technologies. For the image processor, the Venus Engine FHD is incorporated, featuring exceptionally high performance signal processing capabilities in both photo and movie recording. With the advanced noise reduction system employing the 3D NR and CNR (Chromatic Noise Reduction), users can capture clear, naturally-balanced images even when shooting at high ISO sensitivity levels to help prevent the color bleeding.
Panasonic's Venus Engine FHD enables Intelligent Resolution technology, which means that three areas – outlines, detailed texture areas and soft gradation – are automatically detected. Then, the outline parts are enhanced effectively to give edges more clearness while giving a moderate accentuation to the texture areas to look more finely detailed. To the soft gradation part, noise reduction system is applied to make it smoother. Apart from the uniform enhancement of sharpness, the innovative technology Intelligent Resolution precisely performs signal processing pixel by pixel, resulting in images that are naturally clear and crisp in both video and photos. The 12.1-megapixel Live MOS sensor featured in the LUMIX GF2 offers the best of both worlds – the superb image quality of a CCD sensor, plus the lower power consumption of a CMOS sensor.
All of Panasonic's LUMIX G-Series DSLM cameras are equipped with the highly-efficient Dust Reduction System. If dust gets inside the camera when the user changes lenses, it could cling to the image sensor and show up as a spot in photos. The Dust Reduction System helps to reduce this risk by placing a supersonic wave filter in front of the Live MOS sensor. Vibrating vertically around 50,000 times per second, the filter repels dust and other particles.
The LUMIX GF2 shoots professional-quality full High Definition (HD) videos as well as handling still photography. The LUMIX GF2 can record 1920 x 1080 videos at 60i or smooth HD 1280 x 720 movies at 60p in AVCHD. For those looking for better compatibility with computers, the LUMIX GF2 can also record HD Motion JPEG in 1280 x 720 and QVGA, VGA and WVGA. A dedicated video record button makes it easy to start shooting videos, and high quality sound is recorded with the stereo microphone for Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator. Panasonic's iA mode extends to video recording, with the following features: Optical Image Stabilizer, Face Detection, Intelligent D-range Control and Intelligent Scene Selector.
The Panasonic LUMIX GF2 is artistic not only in form, but also in function, as it provides an array of features that lets users capture true-to-life images while also creating their own expressive, beautiful images. The LUMIX GF2 features My Color mode which is integrated with the conventional Film mode. My Color mode offers a total of eight preset effects — Expressive, Retro, Pure, Elegant, Cinema, Monochrome, Dynamic Art, Silhouette, plus Custom mode, which lets users manually set the color, brightness, saturation and contrast levels. Also, with the Full-time Live View function, users can see how these settings will affect the images before they shoot, which makes it easier to capture the exact effect desired. The LUMIX GF2 has 17 Scene modes, most which can be used during video shooting, too. The exposure meter can be displayed in the P/A/S/M shooting modes for entry-level users to visually learn the correlation between shutter speed and aperture to enhance their photography skills.
The Panasonic LUMIX DMC-GF2, with a quality and solid aluminum body, will be available in black, silver, white, and red models with the following kit options: DMC-GF2C – 14mm F2.5 Lens Kit and DMC-GF2K – 14-42mm Zoom Lens Kit. The LUMIX GF2 will be available in January 2011 and pricing will be announced approximately 30 days prior to shipment.Â
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Toshiba Reveals 10.1" Folio 100 Android Tablet
Could it be? Another tablet? Of course, it's the year of the tablet! The next in line to pump out their best anti-iPad effort is Toshiba, with the Folio 100 actually being one of the slicker units that we have seen recently. This is another Android-based tablet, presumably to go head-to-head with Samsung's Galaxy Tab. For now, it's only shipping in Europe, but maybe if it sells well there, it'll head to other parts of the globe shortly.
This is a 10.1" unit, fully supporting Flash 10.1 (via a firmware update coming later this month) and utilizing NVIDIA's Tegra 2 chipset. The display has a 1024x600 screen resolution, and it ships with Android 2.2 onboard. There's also 16GB of storage, Bluetooth 2.1, Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n), optional Mobile Broadband is on the way and there's even DLNA support for media streaming.
Other specifications include mini-HDMI, USB 2.0, an SD/MMC card reader and a 1.3MP webcam. There's also 7 hours of claimed battery life, and as for pre-installed software, you'll get Toshiba Media Player, Fring, Document to Go, Evernote. Pricing will vary across Europe, with MSRPs ranging from £329 in England and €399 to €529 elsewhere.
Toshiba ships its Android-based tablet FOLIO 100
Toshiba Market Place for FOLIO 100 makes available a broad choice of applications
Neuss, Germany, 4th November 2010 – Toshiba begins distribution of its recently announced media tablet FOLIO 100 throughout Europe. The Android-based device offers a rich entertainment experience and gives access to a wide selection of apps and download services via Toshiba Market Place.
Enjoying a rich multimedia experience
Featuring a broad range of connectivity options the 25.7cm (10.1') personal media tablet FOLIO 100 provides a seamless, user-friendly experience across entertainment, social networking and mobile Internet. Support of Adobe® Flash 10.1 enhances FOLIO 100's rich multimedia capabilities. A plug-in to allow playback of Flash videos will be available for download free of charge as of mid-November 2010 via Toshiba Market Place[1].
A wide selection of apps allow personalisation of FOLIO 100
Via Toshiba Market Place, FOLIO 100 offers access to a download area with a wide selection of apps optimised for FOLIO 100's 10.1' screen. Users can choose from several hundred[2] apps that are neatly organised in categories including communications, games, travel & maps, business & finance, e-books, utilities and many more.
Developer platform offers professional support
To support software developers, Toshiba offers access to a platform (www.toshibatouch.eu) that is especially dedicated to their needs. They will find useful tools and get professional support for developing new apps which are optimised for FOLIO 100 and Toshiba's Internet companion AC100. Apps can be uploaded and will be added to the Market Place portfolio as soon as they get approval to be used on FOLIO 100 and AC100. An attractive revenue share model allows developers to participate with up to 70 per cent of the revenue of their app.
Download and music sharing made easy
Music Place, powered by 7Digital, offers an easy to use client that gives access to one of the widest catalogues of music. Users can either download purchased tracks and file it on the FOLIO 100 or store it on a personal cloud storage area and then sync their connected devices via internet. This opens up a modern way to enjoy content anytime and anywhere.
Facts & Figures*
· CPU: Nvidia® Tegra™ 2
· 25.7cm (10.1'') capacitive multi-touch display with 1,024 x 600 pixels
· Highly intuitive graphical interface that runs on top of Android 2.2 (Froyo)
· On-board storage capacity: 16 GB
· Bluetooth 2.1 +EDR, WLAN (802.11 b/g/n), Mobile Broadband (soon available in certain models and countries)
· DLNA® compatible
· 1 x mini HDMI®, 1 x USB 2.0 (client and hub), SD/MMC Card Reader
· Supports Adobe® Flash 10.1. Software download available as of mid November 2010
· Rotation of displayed content on the screen by accelerometer
· Webcam with 1.3 MPixel
· Battery life: 7 hours (65% web browsing, 10% video playback, 25% standby)
· Weight: 760g
· Size: 281mm x 181mm x 14mm
· Pre-installed software (excerpt): Toshiba Media Player, Fring, Document to Go, Evernote
* depending on configuration and local availability
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Amazon's Disc+ On Demand Program Expands To Over 10000 Titles
Now this is an idea worth acting upon. Amazon's Disc+ On Demand program has just been expanded, which hopefully makes it large enough to make a serious impact on the industry. If you haven't heard of the program before, it's probably because it's small. Basically, it enables customers to instantly watch movies on Amazon Video On Demand that they have purchased on DVD or Blu-ray. If you can prove that you own the disc, you can watch it on-demand. Pretty useful!The initial program is being expanded to support more and more titles today, with over 10,000 eligible titles now on the list. Titles range from new releases to timeless classics, and the complete selection of Disc+ On Demand movies can be found at www.amazon.com/discplus.
When customers purchase a Disc+ On Demand title on Blu-ray or DVD from Amazon.com, a digital copy of the movie will automatically be added to their Amazon Video On Demand video library. Customers can watch the movie instantly on a Mac, PC, or nearly 200 Amazon Video On Demand compatible Internet connected TVs, Blu-ray players, and set-top boxes. We're hoping that this soon covers all movies, as this is definitely a step in the right direction in bridging the physical-digital media divide.
 Amazon.com Expands Disc+ On Demand
Now offering more than 10,000 Disc+ On Demand titles, making it easy for DVD and Blu-ray customers to “buy now and watch nowâ€
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced the expansion of Disc+ On Demand, a program that enables customers to instantly watch movies on Amazon Video On Demand that they have purchased on DVD or Blu-ray. In response to the initial popularity of the Disc+ On Demand program, it has been expanded to offer customers more than 10,000 eligible titles. Titles range from new releases to timeless classics. To browse the complete selection of Disc+ On Demand movies, customers can visit www.amazon.com/discplus.
   “When we launched Disc+ On Demand last year, we were excited by the overwhelmingly positive response from our customersâ€
When customers purchase a Disc+ On Demand title on Blu-ray or DVD from Amazon.com, a digital copy of the movie will automatically be added to their Amazon Video On Demand video library. Customers can watch the movie instantly on a Mac, PC, or nearly 200 Amazon Video On Demand compatible Internet connected TVs, Blu-ray players, and set-top boxes.
“When we launched Disc+ On Demand last year, we were excited by the overwhelmingly positive response from our customers,†said Steve Oliver, category leader for Amazon.com DVD. “Customers love instant gratification, and this program allows customers to watch Disc+ On Demand titles instantly, without having to wait for their DVD or Blu-ray to arrive in the mail.â€
Amazon Video On Demand is a digital video service that offers customers more than 75,000 commercial-free movies and television shows to buy or rent. New release movies are often available as soon as they’re out on DVD, and many TV shows are available the day after they broadcast. Amazon Video On Demand also offers thousands of titles in high definition. For a full list of Amazon Video On Demand compatible devices visit www.amazon.com/watchontv.
For more information on Amazon Video On Demand visit www.amazon.com/vod.Â
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Mid-Range NVIDIA GPU Battle: GTX 460 vs. GTX 470
Today at HotHardware, we're looking at a trio of mid-range video cards designed to give enthusiasts the best bang for their buck. These factory overclocked GeForce GTX 400-series graphics cards are from Gigabyte, MSI, and Zotac. Each one has taken the original reference design from NVIDIA, and gone a step further. In addition to higher GPU speeds set by the manufacturer, they provide unique features such as improved cooling solutions, customized PCB layouts, and higher memory capacity. Read on to find out how well they perform, and if one of them has what it takes to be your next upgrade...
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Jack PC Puts A Thin Client Into Your Wall Socket
Have you ever wished you could hook up your PC in one room, and then use it in another? You can definitely do this if you own a laptop, but here's a better solution for desktop owners: the Jack PC. The Jack PC EFI 7900 is really just a thin client PC at heart, but it's bottled up into a small shell that's suitable for mounting in your wall. It's described as the most secure, modular, and manageable Thin-Client solution offering connection to any type of popular Terminal, Citrix or Legacy servers, and Vmware VDI. Basically, this is a computer, in your wall. So if you need to move, just pop one in each wall around the house, and you can move your peripherals at will. It contains a 1.2GHz CPU and fully supports wireless networking, and it gets powered via Ethernet cabling. The link below provides information for receiving a sample unit.
The Jack PC EFI 7900 is a versatile, feature-rich thin client computer fully integrated into an existing LAN Jack . Supported by the industry-leading Xcalibur Global Management software, it is the most secure, modular, and manageable Thin-Client solution offering connection to any type of popular Terminal, Citrix or Legacy servers, and Vmware VDI.
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The EFI 7900 is the highest performance device of the Jack PC series, combining strong performance with highest security and lowest power consumption achieved by the uniquely designed state of the art hardware built especially for thin client appliances. It is the perfect workstation for users that require high-end functionality.
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Owning a DVI-I Video-Out supporting either Analog or DVI monitor, it also provides support for Dual Display.
With its great performance, high security and easy deployment and management, the EFI 7900 is the thin-client-of-choice for organizations all over the world.
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Highlights:
   * High End Jack PC, DVI-I video, Dual monitor support
   * Patented “Computer in a Jack†architecture offering Full physical protection from damage & theft
   * Installable in wall, furniture and floor
   * Powered by standard Power-over-Ethernet (PoE); can also be powered by externally
   * Patented RISC-based hardware architecture
   * Separate 8 MB video memory dedicated to video performance     Â
   * Latest RDP, ICA and VDI support
   * Fully Customizable Desktop interface         Â
   * Fully modular operating system and Plug-Ins to fit user needs
   * Plug-and–play connectivity – fast, easy installation and deployment
   * Data Security and integrity
   * 100% Virus / Trojan Immunity          Â
   * Very Low Power Consumption (5W max)   Â
   * Xcalibur Global management software scalable to manage hundreds of thousands of Users and devices via a standard Active Directory interface
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Qik Video Chat Embedded On T-Mobile's MyTouch 4G Android Phone
T-Mobile USA is really blowing things out here lately. They just proclaimed to be America's largest 4G carrier, and they're also pushing the new myTouch 4G phone as a major competitor to the iPhone and a host of other handsets on less speedy networks. Now there's one more reason to consider that combo over another: Qik.Qik is a video streaming and video calling application that has thus far been a third-party download for Android devices. It's actually an upcharge to use it on the EVO 4G with Sprint's WiMAX network, but it allows for video calling over cellular networks, whereas the iPhone's FaceTime calling is available only over Wi-Fi.
Now, Qik has found a new home on T-Mobile. The myTouch 4G is becoming the first phone to have Qik embedded at a hardware level, with the phone itself being used to help smooth out the video calling process. This is a new, deeper level of integration, and it's expected to make the experience far better for video callers. The integrated T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik will be the first to offer integration into the native Android address book with the benefit of indicating live presence allowing customers to connect with friends and family through live video conversations and video messaging over T-Mobile's network and Wi-Fi. That means that one glance at your Android contact list will let you know if someone is available to video chat, which is a first for Android.
It's also a free service and free to use on the carrier's cellular network. Let's see AT&T or Verizon offer something like that…
T-Mobile and Qik Launch Breakthrough Mobile Video Chat Service
Â
First to Offer Native Android Address Book Integration with Video Chat including Presence, and Industry-Leading Performance through Deep Hardware Integration
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Nov. 3, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Qik and T-Mobile USA, Inc. today announced details of the next generation live video communications, sharing and messaging service to be available to consumers across with the U.S. through the upcoming availability of the T-Mobile® myTouch® 4G. The integrated T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik will be the first to offer integration into the native Android™ address book with the benefit of indicating live presence allowing customers to connect with friends and family through live video conversations and video messaging over T-Mobile's network and Wi-Fi.
The deployment of new higher speed networks, like T-Mobile's 4G mobile broadband network, together with the introduction of devices like the new T-Mobile myTouch with 1GHz CPU and 720p video capability, now makes possible a new social video experience providing consumers with new ways to communicate and share using video with their friends, family, and through social networks.
T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik offers dramatically improved video quality and frame rates compared to other video calling solutions on the marketplace through deep hardware integration. Further, this is the first video communications service that is integrated directly into the native Android address book including live presence indication. From the device address book, users can view if their contacts are available to engage in a live video session, and can directly initiate a session from the native device user interface.
Unlike existing video calling solutions, T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik allows users not only to conduct live two-way video conversations from their mobile device, but also allows users to leave video messages. Similar to leaving a voice message when a recipient is not available for a voice call, users are demanding the ability to leave video messages when they attempt to share an irreproducible moment with their friend or family member.
The service also allows friends and family members to receive video messages on over 200 supported phone models, and also allows users to share moments through social networks, to stream live to the web, and to archive their important memories through a dedicated video management site at www.qik.com.
"Qik is proud to bring this game-changing new service to market specifically for T-Mobile customers," said Vijay Tella, CEO of Qik. "We have answered the need for both live and asynchronous capabilities, which is the hallmark of any complete consumer video communications service, and we have done it at a level of quality and performance that simply needs to be experienced to believe."
"T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik is the ideal showcase for the capabilities of our network and is an example of our focus on providing innovative new solutions to enrich the lives of our customers," said Andrew Sherrard, vice president, product management, T-Mobile USA.
More information on Qik can be found at www.qik.com or www.qik.com/blog. For press inquiries please email press@qik.com or call +1-650-279-8619.
Customers can visit http://mytouch.t-mobile.com for more information about the myTouch family of smartphones including the myTouch 4G.
T-Mobile and the magenta color are registered trademarks of Deutsche Telekom AG. myTouch is a registered trademarks. Android is a trademark of Google, Inc.
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Apple Owns 95% Of The Tablet Market: Can Anyone Stop Them?
Are you ready for a surprise? Unfortunately, you probably won't find it here. A new report, put out by research firm Strategy Analytics, has found that Apple is in firm control of the tablet PC market, and it's unlikely that the situation will change in the near term. Years ago, tablet PCs hit the market with next to no fanfare; consumers scoffed at how big they were, and the battery life was rather terrible. They were mostly used for field work and in enterprise applications.Today, the timing is right for consumer tablets, and the iPad has a commanding lead over everyone else. According to the report, they now own 95% of the entire tablet market when looking at the most recent July-to-September time frame.
Competition is definitely set to grow; Microsoft's Windows 7 should show up on a number of leading-edge tablets in time for Christmas, and Samsung's Galaxy Tab goes on sale in America later this month. But will it be enough? The iPod grabbed onto the portable media player market and refused to let go, and everyone else that tried to topple Apple failed…even Microsoft with their Zune.
SA analyst Neil Mawston had the following take on things: "The tablet wars are up and running. Apple has quickly leveraged its famous brand, an extensive retail presence and user-friendly design to develop the tablet segment into a multi-billion-dollar global business. We expect Android's share to rise in the fourth quarter as more models, such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab, enter the market."
In March 2011, the iPad will have been out an entire year, and just as other tablets are catching up, it's likely that Apple will reveal the second iteration of the iPad and throw everyone on their heels again. Time will tell, though.
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Lawsuit Accuses Apple of Bricking iPhone 3Gs with iOS 4 to Sell More iPhone 4s
You'll recall, we're sure, just how poorly the iPhone 3G performed with iOS 4, and even Apple's fixes to performance in iOS 4.1 didn't fix everything. Thus, we now have what we expected: a lawsuit.Plaintiff Biana Wofford has filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of California for San Diego. She alleges that Apple knew that iOS 4 would essentially "brick" the iPhone 3G, and that the Cupertino, CA-based company hoped that such bricking would boost iPhone 4 sales. Wofford is seeking class action status.
Aside from Wofford's complaint alleging that Apple knew that the update from iOS 3.x would brick or rather, turn her iPhone 3G into a "device with little more use than that of a paper weight," Wofford also addressed the difficulties with downgrading the ROM on an iDevice. Indeed, Apple has never offered a company-certified way for someone to simply plug their iDevice into iTunes and downgrade to an earlier ROM.
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Study Shows Preschoolers Watch Too Much TV
Is the boob tube your child's best friend? Although the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that preschool-age children watch no more than two hours of TV a day, a recent study shows that many children exceed this limit. According to researchers at the Seattle Children's Research Institute and the University of Washington, 66 percent of the 8,950 children the team studied watched more TV than the recommended limit. This study was based on data that included children 5 and younger between 2001 and 2006. As a result, the results are already dated—they do not include time spent watching or playing video games or being on a computer. They also exclude any time spent watching video on a cell phone.  On average, children from the study watched 4.1 hours each weekday.
"The biggest message from this study is that parents need to be aware of all the settings where their children are spending time," says lead author Dr. Pooja Tandon at the Seattle Children's Research Institute. "This study didn't look at outcomes for these children, but other studies have shown that increased screen time beyond one to two hours a day is associated with higher risks of various problems, so the fact that a national estimate shows that most children exceed that recommendation is concerning for all of those outcomes."
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Sophos Offers Free Antivirus Software For Macs
Sophos on Tuesday released free anti-virus software for Macs. While it's not hard to find free antivirus software for Macs (ClamXAV has been at it for years) by all accounts this is the first commercial grade tool available for nada. That means no strings attached, no trial period that descends into perpetual requests to upgrade and no major features missingThe Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac Home Edition rivals paid options in catching viruses, its makers say, and not just the ones that can harm Macs, but those that harm Windows, too, if a Mac user were to pass along an infected e-mail.
Sophos says its aim is brand awareness -- which given the fact that we're writing about it, seems to be working. But we think there's another side. Very few Mac users bother with anti-virus software. There's a widespread belief that malware for Macs doesn't exist. If the virus scanner makes users more aware of the evil bytes gunning for them, maybe more Mac users might be convinced of the need.
Truth is, statistics on the number of Mac-specific viruses is hard to find. Macintosh/Unix advocates frequently claim that the Mac operating system, particularly OS X, is inherently more secure than options like Windows. Security malware vendors trying to sell you their products, and beleaguered Windows experts, have another viewpoint. They say the lack of Mac viruses is simply a numbers game. Most of the world's desktops run Windows. But with the growing popularity of Macs -- and the fact that the iPhone and iPad run on adapted versions of the same OS -- professional malware bad guys could grow more interested.
"I'm also aware that there are a growing number of bad guys out there who might consider Mac users a 'soft target' and deliberately set out to infect Apple Macs, in the hope of stealing login details to banks and social networks, commandeer your MacBook to send spam or install irritating pop-ups, or simply commit identity theft," says Sophos' anti-virus guru, Graham Cluley, on his blog that announced the free product.
Cluley then makes a pretty convincing argument by listing a handful of recently discovered malware geared for the Mac. He points to a Web site discovered in 2009 that had embedded Mac-specific malware behind a seemingly innocent downloadable HDTV viewer. He points to evil Mac malware in files posted to P2P sites and a recent Facebook attack that brought people to Mac PWNing site.
One of the more interesting attacks Cluley names is a sophisticated cross platform Java attack, Boonana, that made news last week. It could infect all operating systems, Windows, Macs and Linux.
Sophos anti-virus guru Graham Cluley demonstrates how Boonana can infect Macs
Sophos promises that there is no catch to users who download the software. Sophos will maintain the tool's virus signatures, updating-every hour. Suspicious files can be quarantined, and scans can be done automatically in the background or on demand. Phone support is not offered, but technical support is available, via online forums.Read More ...
Love Letter
Sorry for posting this guys.
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Thanks to AR, Your City Can Be Invaded by Tie Fighters
Tie fighters have invaded your city, but it's not because of a new George Lucas film. Instead it's the augmented reality video game coming soon to the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch 4th Generation devices.The game is Star Wars Arcade: Falcon Gunner, developed by Vertigore Games and published by THQ Wireless. The AR portion of the game, as shown above, is for it to include your surroundings into your game insert them into the crosshairs of the Millenium Falcon's blasters.
In addition, Star Wars Arcade: Falcon Gunner will include iconic locations from the Star Wars universe, such as the escape from the Death Star, the Battle of Hoth, all with the option of switching between rendered backgrounds and AR from your iDevice’s camera.
Watch a video demo below.
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Microsoft: "Kinect CPU Usage Down to Single Digits."
Microsoft's Kinect (formerly Project Natal) motion control system launches today into a market that's just recently seen the debut of the PlayStation Move. Prior to now, there's been some discussion of whether or not the XBox 360's CPU could handle both Kinect and the demands of modern games; CPU usage in Kinect-capable software was claimed to be in the 10-15 percent range. According to Alex Kipman, Microsoft's incubation director and the brains behind Kinect, the company has managed to reduce the motion controller's demand for cycles down to single digits. According to Kipman, Microsoft gamers who use Project Natal will never have to deal with slower game performance or stuttery playback due to the performance requirements on the device. As he explains:Â As we create games, you can think about the platform as a set of paints and paintbrushes...What Kinect brings to the table is a new set of paints and paintbrushes, it broadens the palette and allows you to do different things. Not all features are created equal, you can totally imagine a game that's using practically the entire of the Xbox 360 and still uses identity recognition. You can have a game that uses a small vocabulary of voice recognition that will still have pretty much 100 per cent of the processing."
One of the most interesting comments Kipman makes is in regards to recent releases like Call of Duty: Black Ops. "as much as we like to talk about bits and percentages, you take a game like, I don't know, Call of Duty: Black Ops - there's a significant amount of processing, be it CPU or GPU, that still remains on the table."
The reason that quote is so interesting is that it doesn't match up with what the game industry generally likes to emphasize. Listen to developers talk, and you'd be excused for thinking that while older titles could scarcely take advantage of multiprocessing on the PS3 or XBox 360, modern titles are able to milk those capabilities for all they're worth. The truth is much more nuanced. Multicore gaming has improved, but parallel programming is inherently difficult and subject to diminishing marginal returns. In a way, both Kinect and Move could be seen as a solution to a question that's doubtlessly nagged both Microsoft and Sony:Â "What do we do with the processing cycles that very few games are ever going to be able to use?"
It's a motion-sensing bar of joy that may or may not actually be fun.
Intel's solution to this issue, for the curious, is Turbo Boost. As CPU core counts continue to grow, Santa Clara continues pushing single-thread performance through the introduction of a feature that doesn't actually require them to guarantee you anything. Since all Turbo Boost speeds are above the minimum they specify, customers have no grounds to complain if they don't get the speeds they want. As tricks go, it's a great one.
Back to the topic of Kinect itself, we're curious to see if gamers will embrace Redmond's movement controllers as readily as they seem to be embracing Sony's. Of the two, we're far more dubious about Kinect for the simple reason that it offers no buttons and does not seem amenable to the simultaneous use of a controller. It's certainly possible to make great games that don't use buttons, but there's no guarantee that Microsoft has found a formula for translating complex game controllers and behaviors into button-less functionality. It's one thing to move a character by pantomime, another thing entirely to contemplate inventory management and weapon-switching in a fast-paced game. God help anyone who ever tries to circle strafe and aim simultaneously.Â
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Intel To Rent 22nm Production To FPGA Manufacturer
Intel made headlines earlier this week when the company announced it would be selling foundry space to FPGA designer/manufacturer Achronix. This isn't the sort of strategic move we normally we see from Intel; the manufacturing giant has been able to avoid licensing its production capacity to other companies in order to meet costs. The Achronix deal doesn't imply any sort of long-term strategy change from Intel, but it could be a sign that the company is looking to acquire smaller companies.The term FPGA stands for Field Programmable Gate Array; such processors are designed to be capable of emulating a variety of hardware features in software. While this sort of emulation is inevitably much slower it would be in hardware, FPGA's allow engineers to experiment or test various designs without physically building them first. According to Achronix's press release, the company expects to realize significant advantages from its Intel partnership.
Achronix has formed a strategic relationship with Intel to build the Speedster22i Platform. Based on Intel’s world class 22nm process technology, the Speedster22i Platform forms the basis of the latest Achronix FPGA families.
Speedster22i FPGAs have significant advantages over larger geometry 28nm FPGAs. By combining Intel’s 22nm process and the innovative Achronix FPGA technology, Speedster22i FPGAs will yield up to 300% higher performance, 50% less power and 40% lower cost than FPGAs built on less advanced, 28nm processes.
Intel's 22nm process technology yield both performance and density benefits for Achronix FPGAs. Area has a squared relationship with linear dimension, meaning 28nm circuits are approximately 1.6 times larger than 22nm circuits. This results in Speedster22i FPGAs having significantly lower power and higher density than FPGAs built in 28nm technology.
The Achronix Speedster22i FPGA Platform uniquely enables applications that require an end-to-end supply chain within the United States. Being built at an onshore location offers significant advantages to programmable logic users who demand the highest level of security. Additionally, Speedster22i FPGAs benefit from the high device reliability inherent to the Intel supply chain.
That bit about national security is particularly interesting; it suggests that Achronix's Speedster22i has won designs from companies or from the US government that have a vested interest in keeping such work secure. In the past, security researchers have demonstrated how offshore foundries owned by unfriendly governments could conceivably build hardware backdoors into CPUs or other computer hardware. Such elements are extremely difficult to detect, as they can be sandwiched in between legitimate layers of other circuitry. As for how this benefits Intel, it gives the company inside access to the work its partner is doing. If Santa Clara decides Achronix is doing interesting work with a potentially tasty profit margin, it'd be a small step to buy the company. Since none of Achronix's work interferes with Intel's current markets, it takes very little risk.
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