Content and news by Rob Williams

Installation of a new motherboard can be a real pain in the butt. If your new motherboard uses any other chipset then the old one, chances are you may experience the BSOD (blue screen of death) in Windows 2000/XP.

Check out the full article at NGOHQ.

It wasn’t all that long ago when Intel and NVIDIA agreed to sign a broad cross licensing agreement. At the time, many wondered what that would mean in terms of products – what could NVIDIA add to Intel’s line up? Of course, Intel are keen to get some credibility back with gamers and enthusiasts after a number of weak products turning many of them over to AMD. This meant one thing: SLI.

For in-depth views on both motherboards, check out the article over at Bit-Tech.

Repetitive strain injury may be the scourge of the modern computerized workplace, but the engineers at Maltron Keyboards have been working on solving the problem since 1977. This British firm makes ergonomic keyboards to reduce strain on the hands of the tapping masses.

This looks like a seriously uncomfortable keyboard, but for those who do suffer various strains on the hand, it may be worth looking at. The $495 pricetag is quite a reason to stay away though. Check out the news posting at NY Times. Source: digg.

Microsoft has enlisted some outside help for one of the most anticipated new features of its updated web browser: the ability to alert people that they may be about to enter a fraudulent website.

The company has recruited WholeSecurity, a maker of computer security programs in Austin, Texas, to help Internet Explorer 7, the next version of its browser, identify websites designed to trick people into disclosing personal data to identity thieves, the companies said. These “phishing” sites mimic legitimate sites, such as eBay and Citibank, and have contributed to a national identity theft epidemic.

At least we see Microsoft cares enough about security that they will get outside help if the need be. Maybe they should get outside help for Vista. Check out the posting at Silicon.com. Source: digg.

Expected to happen in the second half of this year, mass adoption of DDR2 memory will challenge small and medium DRAM-module houses as well as companies providing SMT-assembling services for DRAM-module vendors. Lawrence Chang, the vice president of Kingmax Semiconductor, the company ranked as the world’s eighth-largest third-party DRAM-module supplier by iSuppli for the last two years, argued that this would speed up consolidation in the DRAM-module industry.

I for one, am not in a hurry to get DDR2, because it’s definitely not a necessity right now. Head over to DigiTimes for the full article.

When it comes to computing power, 64-bit desktop and servers are state-of-the-art in most respects, but they could be less secure than mainstream 32-bit systems. Because companies like AMD, Intel and Microsoft are pushing 64-bit computing, though, companies have no choice but to prepare for it, contends Rob Enderle, principal analyst for the Enderle Group.

Of course there will be new threats, so hopefully they can get a good grip on them sooner than later. Check out the posting at Internet News.

Just got a tour of the sprawling campus that is the Alexis Park Hotel, where DefCon is in full swing. My guide was a junior “Goon,” one of dozens of security folks wearing orange shirts who keep the peace around here and physically remove hackers who get rowdy or otherwise cause more than their allotted share of mayhem.

If you want to know what goes on at DefCon, this is a pretty good read. Check it out at Washington Post.

Here’s a bit of sad news: Tapwave, manufacturer of the Palm-based Zodiac gaming handheld, has shut its doors. We said nice things about this product repeatedly, and gave it an award in 2004.

The Zodiac took the Palm OS–still one of the best operating systems ever built for a mobile device–and put it in a handheld with a beautiful oversized screen, fast graphics, impressive audio, and built-for-gameplaying controls. It was an extremely slick design and I didn’t encounter a single person around the PCW offices who tried the Zodiac and wasn’t impressed.

It’s always sad news when great tech get’s the doors shut on it. Check out the full posting at PC World.

The ASUS P5P800 is a great entry into the Intel LGA775 Platform. Unfortunately, due to its utilization of only a three phase power cirucit, it suffers bad VCore drop under load, which can cause crashing and instability. We present an easy solder mod which changes how the board controls voltage under load, resulting in more stability and higher overclocks.

If you have this board and want to mod it, check out the article at techPowerUp!.

When it comes to memory card readers/writers, there are numerous 7-in-1 and 9-in-1 models on the market that make memory card data transfer very convenient. Today though we will be checking out a 21-in-1 card reader/writer! Even while packing in support for 21 digital card formats, the Link Depot USB 2.0 card reader is one of the smallest to ever enter our labs.

Head over to Phoronix for the full review!

Upgrading your computer’s memory is one of the most worthwhile
upgrades you can do. In addition to being the cheapest way to give your
computer a noticeable boost in overall performance, a memory upgrade is
arguably the easiest to perform. A long time ago, memory upgrades referred
strictly to capacity. Nowadays, the speed of the memory has also become
important.

Head over to A True Review.

After several years of waiting to see the successor to Windows XP, code-named Longhorn, we’ve finally gotten our hands on Beta 1 of what now will be called Windows Vista.

This version, aimed at developers and IT shops, lacks many features that the final Windows Vista, still over a year away, will have. But it has all the basic foundations of the OS and displays Microsoft’s new emphasis on making a system that will be more stable and secure, as well as giving users greater clarity as regards their files. This “clear vision” is what Microsoft says is reflected in the Vista name.

Check out the full preview at PC Mag!

The country’s Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) has revoked the controversial game’s M15+ rating, because of hidden sex scenes, meaning it can no longer be legally sold, rented, advertised or exhibited in Australia, developer Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. said Friday.

The OFLC ordered businesses that sell the video game to remove existing stocks immediately.

Check out the full story here.

Dual-layer DVD writers are coming the rage, even in the absence of cheap dual-layer DVD blanks. Today, we are going to take a look at the new LITE-ON SOHW-1693S Dual Layer DVD±R Writer.

Touted as a fully-packed DVD writer capable of supporting both +R and -R formats of single- and dual-layer DVDs, this drive appears to have everything an enthusiast could ever ask for. Or does it? Check it out now!

Head over to Rojak Pot for the full review!

Today, John Guzman is sharing his point-of-view regarding mental v. physical labor. Is mental labor, such as IT and programming work, more demanding than physical factory work? Find out John’s opinions in his latest editorial.

This is a fantastic article. I’ve often had arguements with people about this exact subject. Check it out at Phoronix.

With the help of the 955X chipset, DDR2 is reaching new speed records. Corsair’s latest PC2-8000UL runs at extreme speeds with low
latencies. Better hurry and grab some, it’s going to disappear fast.

Check out the full review at Insane Tek.

Basically, there aren’t many memory modules that can achieve such high speed DDR600 (or at least 275MHz) which can be used around the clock without damaging the modules. With such high speeds, the memory bandwidth is increased thus the memory performance is pretty impressive. Overall, these G.SKILL FC modules are recommended to anyone, even for extreme overclockers. Besides that, the price for it is quite attractive with its performance and one more important thing is it doesn’t require high VDIMM to achieve such high speeds. It also cost effective as you will not need a DDR Booster or a VDIMM mod to supply more juice for these modules.

Head over to PC Modding Malaysia for the full review!

These days, there are so many workstation graphics card models that it has become quite impossible to keep up with the different configurations. Therefore, we decided to compile this comprehensive guide to over 70 workstation graphics cards.

We hope this comparison will provide an easy reference for those who are interested in comparing the specifications of the various workstation graphics cards in the market as well as those already obsolescent or obsolete. We will keep this guide updated regularly so do check back for the latest updates!

Head over to Rojak Pot for the full chart!

The Lian Li F1 Aluminum Computer Desk is nothing short of astounding. Overall design, construction and styling are brilliant. It’s all aluminum, therefore light for its size and extremely sturdy. Cables can be easily hidden, and it has many drawers for storage. Being able to quickly tuck away cables is glorious because it eliminates clutter. It even comes with the all aluminum PC-V1000 case. This is without a doubt THE COMPUTER DESK! Watch the Video to find out more…

Now *this* is a desk!! Check out the review at 3D Gameman!

I’ve no doubt many of you have never used a graphics card with less than 64MB onboard, and some of you may be horrified to learn such miserly products even exist, but as one of the old crumblies from the era of sub-2MB graphics cards, it seems inconceivable that we now find very few cards with less than 128MB of onboard memory, and most boasting a healthy 256MB.

Check out the full review at 3D Velocity.