Content and news by Rob Williams

NVIDIA SLI Interview

A Few Words from Chris Daniel

by Josh Walrath

Recently I was given the opportunity to submit a handful of questions to the product marketing manager of NVIDIA’s SLI Program. Chris Daniel was kind enough to get these in-depth answers back to me in a very timely manner. My questions are in regular type, and Chris’ are in blue and italics.

For all the ladies reading this (all three of you), this is Chris.

The AGP 3.0 specification supported two AGP slots, why did NVIDIA never pursue dual AGP video solutions in terms of both video cards and motherboard chipsets?

AGP did not provide the bandwidth to do this effectively. The high-bandwidth bus architecture offered by PCI Express enabled NVIDIA to launch its SLI technology and reach scaling of up to 2X.

Great interview. I had no idea that AGP 3.0 could support two slots. Check it out at Penstarsys.

“Mountain View, Calif.-based Google, the No. 1 search engine, filed a 68-page complaint against Froogles.com in the Eastern District Court of New York. The complaint alleges that Froogles.com proprietor Richard Wolfe, a New York state resident, illegally traded on Google’s famous name and search brand for profit with a “nearly identical” mark.”

Go go Google! Really though, did they actually think they wouldn’t hear from Google sometime or later? Read about it here.

“Google on Wednesday will begin to offer people custom accounts to search over their personal query history, in a move to outdo rivals and endear Web surfers.”

This is a great idea, and should have been made long ago. Read more about it at News.com.

“Novell has finally boxed up SUSE 9.3 ready for use.

It describes the latest version as the ‘richest’ ever release. What is certain is that a lot of work has been done on making it as consumer friendly as possible.

Installation has been pared down to a three-click process. Neat touches have been added such as OpenOffice saving documents in Microsoft formats by default so that when they are emailed, Windows users will be able to open them. Even iPods are recognised as devices when plugged in to a system running 9.3.”

SuSE is personally one of my favorite Linux distros, hands down. Can’t wait to see what 9.3 has all in store. Check it out at PC Pro.

“Firefox, the internet browser that has won a cult following allowing it to chip away at Microsoft’s market dominance, received a setback this week as several serious security weaknesses emerged.”

Just another reason to update your browsers and malware removal programs. Read about it here.

“Playboy obviously feels that PSP owners are sex-obsessed geeks who like to look at picture of naked ladies (and who are we to argue) as they are about to offer nude and non-nude galleries specially formatted for Sony’s portable console.”

Time to buy a PSP. Read about it here.

“The U.K. record industry has announced that it has won a court order to force Internet service providers to reveal the identities of 33 suspected file sharers.”

All I can say is, Ouch!, to those 33 people. Read about it here.

“Websites are still cool. It doesn’t matter how many badly designed personal sites there are, the fact is that a website still offers you almost unlimited room for personal expression, with the added side-bonus of potentially being useful. In this guide, PCSTATS will explore the process of hosting a website from your home computer using a broadband Internet connection. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll stick to using Microsoft’s IIS (Internet Information Server) to render the site, and help you deal with the issues of dynamic IP addresses, among other potential home-based web hosting problems.”

Check out the guide at PC Stats.

“There are several ways to cool down a PC silently, take for example watercooling. But there are other ways. Lian-Li noticed this for sure and started manufacturing pc cases that have the cool look, a sweet, intelligent design and yet are very effective when it comes to cooling. Today’s test subject for example is made of 100% aluminum, but it does not stop there, the entire layout both in and external have been developed with the motto cool down the PC while making it look aesthetically beautiful. And, although taste can differ, they sure succeeded that with the PC-V1000 Plus, a really astonishing PC case with some pretty interesting airflow techniques, including cooling fans and ducts.”

Check it out at Guru3D.

“Corsair is not the only player with the flashy looks. Crucial’s Ballistix Tracer steps up with their “bling bling” memory to give enthusiasts great performance, overclockability, and of course, aethestics.”

Check it out at InsaneTek.

“With the recent release of the 64-bit 6XXX series and soon to be released Intel dual core processors, more manufacturers will be focusing their operations on LGA775 cooling as the market becomes flooded with these chips. One of the manufacturers to recently release new Socket T heatsinks has been CoolJag. The heatsink we’ll be testing today is the CoolJag JAC84MC CPU Cooler.”

Check out the review at Phoronix.

“Today, Antec has further developed and refined it’s cases and products. The P160 is one of the ultimate culminations in design – refined, polished, perfected, and now presented to you. While it isn’t really made out of recycled fighter planes, you’ll be just as happy with it regardless as you play and tinker with everything that this case offers.”

Check it out at Think Computers.

“This product has all the power & features needed for the latest computer systems. With 550 watts it will easily power the most demanding PCs. It comes with a quiet 120mm blue LED fan, has lots of leads, and comes with a uniquely featured total power consumption display. This analog wattage readout shows real time power usage. Watch the Video to find out more…”

Check out the video at 3D Gameman.

“The new spyware functionality will be integrated into Symantec’s Norton Internet Security, which provides protection from viruses, hackers, and privacy risks. The commercial version is scheduled for release in the second quarter of the year.”

I personally hate NIS, and don’t know how it can get any worse. But, I like this idea, and it should have existed long ago. Read about it at Tech News World.

“I defy anybody to tell me why is it more secure to not run as root. Nobody really has a good answer. They say “oh, yeah, it is!”, but it really isn’t.”

Awesome interview, definitely check it out here!

“DivXNetworks, the company that created the revolutionary, patent-pending DivX video compression technology today announced that X Software, a leading provider of DVD and video software, will use DivX video compression technology to allow consumers to archive video in their newly launched Video Vault product.

“X Software has created a unique software product,” said DivX’s Chief Operations Officer Kevin Hell. “Video Vault allows consumers to import, convert, and organise their video library using high-quality, highly compressed DivX technology and export those videos back on a wide variety of devices including DivX Certified DVD players, Portable Video Players, Wireless Media Servers and more.”

You can find more out about this at DVDXSoftware.

“ION Technologies has come up with a nifty idea of putting a flashlight in a USB flash drive. Called the Flashlite, the hybrid device is a lifesaver in case you need to find car door keyhole or locate a USB port in the dark.”

You can check that out here.

“In related news, Sony announce a couple of new Micro Vaults, some of which come with a on-the-fly file compressor. The flagship model also hits 28MB/s read & 18MB/s write, 2nd fastest speed to date.”

And check that out here!

“First off we must say that the EverCool PT03-9232CP fan while powerful was not that noisy compared to some we have reviewed.

The cooling performance of this EverCool PT03-9232CP is not that bad either considering its size and fan power especially at our 70 watts heat test. Even as we turn the heat up the PT03-9232CP is still keeping pace even at 170 watts of heat to remove.”

Head over to A1 Electronics for the review.

“ENTHUSIASTS HAVE ALWAYS sought to improve performance. Traditionally, we’ve measured these improvements in terms of computational power, pixel pushing prowess, and the like, but noise levels are becoming an increasingly important performance metric. As PCs become “fast enough,” there’s an increasing desire to make them less obtrusive, especially as we move systems out of the office and into our living rooms, kitchens, and cramped dorm rooms where they sit just feet from our beds.”

Read more at Tech Report.

“Looking for that great looking mid-tower case. We have reviewed quite a few of them. Today we get to checkout one of Aspire’s new stylin cases. The X-Plorer case promises to provide a great look for modders with a unique cooling design for those seeking air cooling CPU performance.”

Check out the review at A True Review.