Modern PC News for
the Week Ending March 15, 2004
BBC.co.uk |
Father Names Son 'Version 2.0'
Thanx to Brian B for this one
A proud US father and self-confessed
engineering "geek" has named his son after a computer software term. Jon
Blake Cusack, from Holland, Michigan, told local newspapers the US
practice of adding "Junior" or "II" after a boy's name was too common. So,
when his son was born last week, he decided on the name Jon Blake Cusack
2.0, as if he were a software upgrade.
Mr Cusack admitted that it took months
to persuade his wife, Jamie, to accept the idea. Mrs Cusack said she
asked several friends if they approved of the name. All the men, she
said, felt the name was "cool". However her women friends were less
impressed. "I think the women will end up liking it," she said.
Mr Cusack told the Holland Sentinel
newspaper he got the idea from a film called The Legend of 1900, in which
an abandoned baby is given the name 1900 to celebrate the year of its
birth.
...After little Jon Version 2.0 was
born, Mr Cusack even sent a celebratory e-mail to family and friends
designed to look as though he and his wife had created new software.
"I wrote... stuff like 'there's a lot of
new features from Version 1.0 [Mr Cusack himself] with additional features
from Jamie'," he said. And he is already planning for his son's
future. "If he has a child, he could name it 3.0," he said.
XBReporter.com & SiliconValley.com |
Is XBox 2 the Rumored "Microsoft Home Station":
Specifications Leaked
...Not unlike Sony's drive to develop a "home station"
that would function as the center of a home entertainment system,
Microsoft plans to make the Xbox 2 the machine that will take over our
living rooms, providing not only video game entertainment, but also online
functions, and direct-to-disk digital TV recording. Microsoft has deep
pockets and may venture on undeterred of the moderate success of Xbox 1,
but it may take Xbox 2 or even Xbox 3 or 4 before Microsoft's plan for
global domination of our living rooms becomes reality.
...the next Xbox will be ready to launch in fall 2005
with the following specifications:
-
Three IBM-designed 64-bit microprocessors. The combined power of
these chips means the Xbox Next will have more computing power than most
personal computers. The chips are used in Apple Computer's high-end G5
PowerMac machines now.
-
A graphics chip designed by ATI Technologies with speeds much faster
than its upcoming R400 chip for the personal computer. This chip will
help the next Xbox to display games with the resolution of
high-definition TV.
-
Compatibility with the original Xbox, which is based on Intel and
Nvidia chips, isn't guaranteed. Microsoft is concerned it would cost too
much money in hardware or in licensing fees to enable the Xbox Next to
play old Xbox games. This is risky in part because Sony's strategy has
been to maintain compatibility with its old consoles.
-
...In contrast with the current Xbox,
the next one will have no hard disk drive -- unless Sony puts one in the
PlayStation 3. Instead, the console will rely on flash memory to store
saved games and permanent data, much like the current PlayStation 2...
-
...The machine also will have about 256
megabytes of dynamic random access memory. But Microsoft will upgrade
that to 512 gigabytes if Sony puts in more. The previous Xbox had 64
megabytes. And lastly, it isn't clear if Microsoft will include the
current DVD video technology or Blu-Ray, its successor. Blu-Ray will
hold much more data, but it's unclear when it will be ready for
market...
"I can't imagine that Microsoft would be
so insanely stupid as to make it incompatible," said Jon Peddie, an
analyst at Jon Peddie Research in Tiburon
...The top executives of both Electronic
Arts and Activision said this week that they have not received formal
"software development kits" from Microsoft yet, but they did say they have
begun creating next-generation games. Internally, Microsoft has begun
developing game prototypes, and it is using G5 systems to do so...
NU2.nu |
Preinstalled Environment (BartPE) Bootable Live Windows CD/DVD
 Bart's
PE Builder helps you build a "BartPE" (Bart Preinstalled Environment)
bootable Windows CD-Rom or DVD from the original Windows XP or Windows
Server 2003 installation/setup CD, very suitable for PC maintenance tasks.
It will give you a complete Win32 environment with network support, a
graphical user interface (800x600) and FAT/NTFS/CDFS file system support.
Very handy for burn-in testing systems with no OS, rescuing files to a
network share, virus scan and so on. This will replace any Dos bootdisk in
no time!
For all the screen shots and
instructions, click
HERE.
TheRegister.co.uk |
Virus Writers Selling Infected PC, IP Address' to Spammers
By Jan Libbenga - Thanx to Rolllannndoo for this one
...Virus
writers are selling the IP addresses of PCs infected with Trojans to
spammers. Spammers use these infected systems to unlawfully distribute
commercial email messages, without the knowledge of their owners.
The Trojan involved was spread by a virus called
Randex.
This small program contacted its 'master' through the chat protocol IRC.
It was programmed to look for CD keys of games, or secretly load
additional software. The Trojan was also able to install a proxy server
which can be used to relay spam through the infected PCs...
BBC.co.uk |
Flexible Displays on the Horizon
Thanx to Victor for this one
The future will be flexible, as screens
you can roll up and pop into a jacket pocket enter mass production, argues
technology analyst Bill Thompson.
...Last week electronics manufacturer
Philips announced the start of mass production of the world's most
flexible display, a thin plastic film that can be rolled into a tube and
popped into a jacket pocket.
After years of research, they have
reached the point where they are ready to start selling the screens and
have set up a new company, Polymer Vision, to do deals with computer
manufacturers, handset makers and the rest of the electronics industry.
The display is not exactly a substitute
for a widescreen TV, since it is only 12 cm across, with 80,000 grey-scale
pixels and a one second refresh rate...
Lindows.com |
Microsoft Never Owned "Windows"
 ...Judge
Coughenour ruled that once a word is generic it is always generic
and therefore ineligible for trademark status. Microsoft's position is
that because they have spent 1.2 billion dollars on marketing and because
they have monopoly market share in the PC industry that this had changed
the definition of the word 'windows', making it their own word. This
position was flatly rejected by the court. Additionally, the court ruled
that the time frame to examine to determine genericness is not how the
word is used today, but rather before
Microsoft began shipping its first commercial copies of Microsoft Windows
1.0. Since Microsoft's first windows product came out in late 1985, we
have been collecting evidence prior to that date to present to the jury
and now we know that is the precise time period that matters...
eWeek.com |
Microsoft Expands Lindows Fight to Canada
by Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
Microsoft Corp. has opened a Canadian front in its continuing legal
war with
Lindows.com Inc. In this latest move, Microsoft filed a request for a
permanent injunction at the Court of Canada in Ottawa, Ontario, last week
to stop Lindows.com from using Lindows, LindowsOS and other terms that
conflict with Microsoft's Windows trademark.
If the Court grants this injunction, it
would be a serious blow to the San Diego, Calif.-based Linux distributor.
According to Lindows.com, "Canadian customers represent more than 20
percent of Lindows.com's early business."
Microsoft representative Stacey Drake
explains to eWEEK.com: "In response to what is a clear and obvious
infringement of its trademarked Windows name, Microsoft has taken steps in
Canada to curtail infringing or misleading behavior on the part of
Lindows.com."
...In Europe, Microsoft has successfully
won preliminary injunctions against Lindows. As a result, Lindows.com has
adopted a new name in those countries, Lindash, so that it can continue to
do business.
However, in the United States, Microsoft
has not been successful in getting an injunction against Lindows.
Microsoft faces the possibility of having its Windows trademark
overturned...
News.com |
Napster: 5 million Songs Sold
Napster, the digital song store and subscription service launched by Roxio
in late October, said Monday that it passed the 5 million mark in online
song sales. Although that keeps it ahead of other only-on-PC services'
announced sales figures, it remains far behind Apple Computer's iTunes,
which serves both PCs and Macintosh computers
Reuters.com |
eBay To Offer Financing and Leasing on Large Sales
...As part of the small business push,
eBay and partner Direct Capital will offer leasing and financing programs
on eBay transactions valued at $2,000 and up. The company also is
hammering out a deal with a major partner to provide small business lines
of credit.
In 2003, business buying on eBay doubled
from a year earlier to $2 billion in global gross merchandise sales, with
much of that activity coming from small businesses, Jordan Glazier,
general manager of eBay business, said...
BetaNews.com |
Yahoo! Drops Google, Launches New Search Engine
By David Worthington
Yahoo! has ended its marriage of
convenience with Google and has begun to field test its own search engine
technology in regional markets. The rollout of Yahoo's new engine, built
on top of technology acquired from Inktomi, marks an unofficial end to its
partnership with Google, which dates back to October 2002.
...Google essentially filled the void
left by Yahoo!'s transition from a hand compiled directory of
Web sites to modern algorithmic search technology that includes
index and ranking mechanisms. Within two months of signing with Google,
Yahoo! shed its dependency on third parties and purchased Inktomi. The
buying spree continued with the purchase of Overture in July 2003.
Overture's assets included AltaVista and AllTheWeb...
BetaNews.com |
File Swappers Warned to Avoid Windows Source Code
By David Worthington
Peer-to-peer (P2P) file swappers have
fallen under the radar of Microsoft. A statement released on the company's
Web site indicates the race is on between Redmond and hackers
who are illegally distributing its intellectual property.
Ever since some of the source code for Windows NT 4 and Windows 2000
Service Pack 1
hit the Web, a frenzy of downloading has ensued to snatch up
Microsoft's crown jewels.
...To thwart the illicit sharing of its
code, Microsoft is working to institute the use of alerts within several
peer-to-peer
file sharing clients, where a significant portion of transfers
have taken place. Any user who searches for the leaked Windows source code
will be notified that downloading the code is an illegal act...
...Some users who have already
downloaded the code can expect to receive letters in the mail from
Microsoft explaining that having possession of its property is a violation
of the law...
News.com |
SCO selling Linux Licenses Online
By David Becker
Controversial software seller
the SCO Group has launched an online-ordering site for companies
that want to use the open-source Linux operating system with
SCO's blessing.
The
Web site debuted quietly last week. It enables companies
that use Linux to purchase a license that covers SCO's Unix
System V, portions of which SCO claims were illegally
incorporated into the source code of Linux.
Full licenses cost $699 per server
central processing unit (CPU) or $199 for a desktop PC that runs Linux. An
annual license costs $149 per server CPU or $49 per desktop PC...
...SCO has declined to reveal
how many businesses have purchased Linux licenses, but the
activity is believed to be minimal, as businesses wait for the
IBM case to be resolved and rely on
legal indeminfication offers from major Linux sellers...
TomsHardware.com |
Intel's 64 bit Lye (Omid needs to apologize to AMD users)
There is a
fine distinction, that often blurs, between misspresenting the
truth and lying, both on a legal and ethical scale. Former U.S
President Bill Clinton best illustrated the fine line on a
Homeresque level during his alleged "legally accurate" statement
that he never had sexual relations with his former intern Monica
Lewinsky. This week, there was a huge disparity between what
Intel announced and the subsequent noise that Intel finally is
jumping on board 64 bit computing.
In fact, many
failed to note the context in which Intel announced this week
the availability of 64 bit extensions for its x86, 32-bit server
chipsets. First, these extensions are actually verbatim to those
of AMD's, as
Geek.com has pointed out. Second, Intel has sold 64
bit (non x86) processors for years, it has been a failure and
IDF did not serve as Intel's "64 bit coming out party."
...To apologize to AMD lovers,
who, and rightly so, point to the processor's consistent
performance spec ratings and price/quality benchmarks, which
more often than not beat Intel processors, Intel has also
conceded that its Itanium 64 bit is no way to go for small
server applications.
Meanwhile, Opteron's 64 bit,
x86 compatibility with existing 32 bit server applications is
what users want, at least according to unit sales statistics.
This is after Intel has poured millions into marketing campaigns
to tout Itanium as the next generation 64 bit server processor
until this week when Intel officially and finally pulled the
plug and stopped the hemorrhaging, by relegating the Itanium to
the status of a "database processor." ...
Commodore.ca |
SmartRipper ASPI Errors
If you are seeing aa "No ASPI Adapter
Available" error when ripping DVD's with SmartRipper, just download an
ASPI layer from
HERE an put in your SmartRipper folder.
If you are receiving "No
ASPI access to this drive switch to WinIO" when using SmartRipper:
-
close SmartRipper
-
play the DVD for a few seconds (i.e.
using Media Player, ATI DVD Player,...)
-
start SmartRipper
Microsoft.com |
Getting Unexplained Scripting Errors in Internet Explorer?
After you install Office 2003, you may receive an error message that is
similar to the following when you view Web pages in Microsoft Internet
Explorer:
Error A Runtime Error has occurred.
Do you wish to Debug?
Line: line number Error: nature of script error
To resolve this behavior, you must
reconfigure the Internet Explorer script debugging options. To do this,
follow these steps: Open Internet Explorer. On the Tools menu, click
Internet Options. In the Internet Options dialog box, click Advanced.
Click to select the Disable script debugging check box. Click to clear
the Display a notification about every script error check box. Click OK.
Video News Feed from The FeedRoom.com:
These are NOT advertisements; they are streaming video of
technology related news stories from primarily the United States.
They will change every few days.
|
