Content and news by Rob Williams

Computer power supplies, there are SO many to choose from, in fact my next 4 reviews (including this one) are of power supplies! All the manufacturers claim theirs is the best, but which is really the best? They all are supposed to do so many things, and they all have lots of abbreviations on them, what does it all mean to you and me? Just what is PFC or OTP,OPP,OVP?, and do you need it?

Head over to Think Computers for the full review!

Seasonic doesn’t need great reputation to help them stand out in the power supply market. Their products are top notch and
provide excellent performance. The S12 500W is more than proof to show what they’re capable of.

Check out the full review at InsaneTek.Published on July 10, 2005

Andrew Lee, an analyst with TD Securities who specializes in ATI, has said that ATI is the possible target of a stock takeover, according to a report at the National Post. ATI’s stock saw a much-needed boost at the end of the week, fueling speculation that ATI is possibly being courted or even targeted for a hostile buy. The stock hovered around CAN$14.50 for most of the week, but after a dip Thursday to $14.00, the stock shot up to 15.77, up 8.6 percent for the entire week. It had reached a peak of $15.90, which is still a far cry from the $25 range enjoyed before June, when the stock started to tank. Shares hit their 52-week low on July 7, at $13.90.

ATI must hurry up.. that much is evident. Maybe they have something big up their sleeves.. or at least hopefully. Check out the full post here. Original post: TechPowerUp!.

Allthough the desktop graphic cards are just being released, information about the new mobile parts has been floating around the internet. There will be 3 different parts for each price class (value, mainstream & highend), all based on PCIe.

Check out the first details at TechPowerUp!.

The folks over at nV News have the first screenshots for Sin Episodes, and they look amazing! From the first shots, it definitely looks like they are sticking to what worked in the first game, and I hope it keeps up that way. Check them out here.

Adobe yesterday reported its Reader contains a vulnerability that would allow an attacker to remotely execute malicious code. A security flaw in the dominant document-sharing software could allow hackers to seize control of a computer system.

It’s seems to be only Unix versions of the app that are vulnerable, and an old version. If you have 7.0 or later, you won’t have to worry about the exploit. Read more here.

Officials at the University of Southern California say they will contact everyone who used the school’s online application form in the past eight years after learning that a prospective applicant exploited a security flaw on the site to view a handful of past forms. School security officials say they plan to contact about 270,000 people although they believe the alleged hacker viewed only about 10 files.

Check out more info here.

After downloading and installing a modification to the game — one of many “mods” available on Web sites maintained by videogame enthusiasts — a new world opens up in which the girlfriends appear nude and engage in explicit sex acts, according the mod’s author.

The new content fills in what publisher Rockstar Games left to the imagination in the rated M (Mature) version sold in stores. Sexual content of this kind generally earns videogames an AO (Adults Only) rating, which very few retailers are willing to sell.

In my opinion, who cares if this is a hidden ‘locked’ feature. Kids who play the game, still have to ‘unlock’ it to see it. If they have to go through the effort to see it, they could even easier go through the efforts of seeing an adult website. Check out the article at SF Gate.

Thermaltake presented some nice cool looking hardware at the Cebit 2005 this year. Today I have to opportunity to play with the Muse 5,25 Inch Enclosure. This enclosure can be used for 5,25 Inch DVD/CD/CDRW but can be fitted with 3,5 Inch HDD as well. The data is portable making use of a USB2.0 connection but a separate power supply is needed. Never the less making it a multipurpose enclosure to take and share you backup with whom and where ever you are.

Head over to the HardwareXL.

Team ARP proudly announces the official launch of The PDP Gigabyte Memory Giveaway Contest! Want to get a gigabyte of XBL-grade Patriot DDR memory for free?? Just try your gaming skills at the PDP Gigabyte Memory Giveaway Contest!

Check out the full details at Rojak Pot.

The AirCruiser G Desktop Router proves to be a reliable and powerful product from Gigabyte. They have demonstrated ingenuity in producing a product which is capable of delivering a full fledged Wireless Solution conforming to 802.11g standards with adequate security options and running at a good rate of 54 mbps while freeing up a power point and saves desktop space by eliminating the footprint users normally need for a Wireless Router.

Check out the full review over at PC Modding Malaysia!

Rambus has souped up its memory technology to let memory chips talk to graphics processors much more quickly than they do today. The technology should lead to better pictures from games consoles and high-end PCs, the company said Thursday.

Rambus designs interfaces that link memory chips to processors. The interfaces attach to DRAM (dynamic RAM) chips, the workhorse memory-type for PCs, servers and game machines. In general, the faster the memory, the better a system works.

Memory that runs five times faster than current GDDR3 sounds good to me. Check out the story at PC World.

Ever since Fedora’s inception, it’s had a reputation of being the BETA grounds for Red Hat’s development team. Although this is partially the case, it continues to be an incredibly stable and exceptional distribution for Linux users. However, one of the widely criticized packages in past Fedora releases has been Red Hat’s Up2date due to its slow and limited service compared to yum or apt. With the release of FedoraCore4 (Stentz) came a new version of Up2date. In this article, we’re sharing some useful configuration tips for this revised version of Red Hat Up2date.

Check it out at Phoronix.

There’s never been a better time to buy system RAM than right now. £130 buys you a 1GB DDR1 dual-channel pack that gives superlative performance when paired up with a S939 CPU, preferably a fast one. The performance advantage over regular memory, usually specified with 2.5-3-3-7 timings, can be close to 10%, so investing in some high-quality RAM makes decent sense.

Check out the full review at Hexus!

Greetings from the Central Wastelands! In a three-day “road trip,” GameSpy featured Auto Assault this week at http://archive.gamespy.com/landing/autoassault/ , including a plethora of great stories: a hand’s on preview ( http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/auto-assault/630427p1.html ), an examination of the crafting system ( http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/auto-assault/631120p1.html ), an look at player races & classes ( http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/auto-assault/631007p1.html ), a…..

The Kingwin AquaStar AS-3000 Liquid Cooling System is an all-in-one unit. The pump, radiator, reservoir, and fans are enclosed, making setup a snap. It also can be installed in two 5.25″ drive bays or externally. Not only does it come with a CPU water block, but a GPU water block is also included. This is an excellent cooling solution for today’s fast PCs. Watch the Video to find out more…

Head over to 3D Gameman for the full video review!

Today, we are proud to present a pictorial review of the latest Intel motherboard from ABIT – the ABIT AW8-MAX i955X motherboard!

Come and check out the bells and whistles of this fascinating new motherboard!

Check out the full look at Rojak Pot.

he Albatron K8SLI is a budget oriented Socket939 motherboard based on NVIDIA’s nForce4 SLI chipset. While it has been designed with cost in mind, performance has not been left out. Innovative features like second BIOS on an external add-in card and automatic SLI switch make this board easy to use. Overclocking possibilites are good as well, we managed to reach a maximum FSB of 390 MHz.

Check out the full review at TechpowerUp!.

In trying to think up ways to keep your computer cool, hard drives are sometimes overlooked entirely, but it shouldn’t be. We are taking a look at the Silverstone FP53 HDD cooler. Let’s take a look to see if it makes any substantial difference to the temps!

Net calling software Skype has exploded onto the scene. Its ease of use and robustness have quickly built an enormous user base and introduced many to the power of net calling. But Internet users should be wary of Skype because its strategy is a throwback to the ’80s built on proprietary standards that locks out all others. This week, a product called Gizmo is being unveiled – the first viable Skype alternative built on open source that pledges to connect to all.

Check out the full look at Tech Zone.