- Qualcomm Launches Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 Mobile Platform
- AMD Launches Ryzen PRO 7000 Series Mobile & Desktop Platform
- Intel Launches Sleek Single-Slot Arc Pro A60 Workstation Graphics Card
- NVIDIA Announces Latest Ada Lovelace Additions: GeForce RTX 4060 Ti & RTX 4060
- Maxon Redshift With AMD Radeon GPU Rendering Support Now Available
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First Person in U.S. Convicted for Spam E-mailing
Goodin is convicted under the 2003 CAN-SPAM Act, which makes it illegal for marketers to send out false or misleading information to users. Goodin sent millions of these e-mails over the course of his spam career… Goodin is being convicted of spam, and ten other counts that include wire fraud and unauthorized access to AOL accounts and company trademarks for illegal purposes. He is to be sentenced on June 11th of 2007 and faces up to 101 years in prison.
101 years in prison for spam, few years for rape and 20 or so for murder? That’s all I have to say. Goodin riddance!
Source: Daily Tech
BitPass Bites It
In a press release Friday January 19th, CEO of BitPass Matthew Graves stated they’re calling it quits.
Dear Valued Bitpass Buyer,
We want to thank you for your past business, however due to circumstances beyond our control, we are discontinuing our operations. We have partnered with Digital River to provide operational support during the period prior to shut down. As of today, January 19, 2007, all Bitpass Buyers with US dollar denominated accounts are being notified that they will have seven (7) days to spend any amounts that currently exist in their Bitpass Account. During this seven day period, US Buyers will not be able to further fund their account. On January 26, all US Bitpass Buyer accounts will be closed and Digital River will begin the process of refunding all unspent monies to the accountholder. All account records and materials will be retained for 60 days and available upon request.
Again we would like to thank you for your business and support.
Matthew Graves
Chief Operating Officer
Bitpass Inc.
kthnxbye
What Time is Ouch!?
Just because something CAN be done, doesn’t necessarily mean it SHOULD be done. Take a watch pierced to your wrist for example.
ModBlog has a wristwatch piercing that is both an interesting idea, and one crazy application. Ouch!
I must admit I actually have my doubts about the authenticity of this in that, if you were going to actually attach something like this to your skin, wouldn’t you choose a model that is more streamlined, fits the curve of your skin and wouldn’t be ripped off the first time you put a coat on. *shudder*
I mean seriously, if you’re going to do it, why not just implant LEDs under your skin and have yourself an internal digital watch?….*waits to see this appear suddenly and misses out on millions in patents…*
Boeing’s New Way To Fly
Boeing publicly unveiled the interior of its forthcoming 747-8 Intercontinental passenger jet for the first time on January 18 in Renton, Wash. Here is a view into the interior of the plane from the center-front of the mockup the company showed off to reporters and photographers.
This is one product that well deserves a next-gen title. The plane itself is quite unique in that it has curvy wings, which becomes a common theme throughout. Business class passengers have a -lot- of legroom and there is even a small table for passengers to sit and talk. I want one.
Source: News.com
Dolby to turn volume down on loud commercials
Gone will be the days of relaxing on the couch while watching TV, only to frantically jump up and turn the volume down when a particularly loud commercial comes on. That’s what Dolby hopes to avoid with a system introduced at CES last week, called Dolby Volume. The system introduces technology to equalize the volume accross TV channels, programs, and commercials.
I have been lucky enough to not run into this problem while watching TV, but I have many times on the computer. Ars brings up a good point though, “what happens when watching an action movie or TV show with explosions or or other sudden noises that are meant to be loud and startling.” It would be lackluster to have a climax scene in a movie be dulled down like that. Let’s assume Dolby thought of this already.
Source: Ars Technica
101 Free PC Games
It’s not hard to find free games on the Internet — but it’s damn near impossible to sift through the terabytes of crap to find good ones. That’s where the editors of Games for Windows: The Official Magazine come in: We’ve tracked down another 101 absolutely, positively, no-strings-attached free games that are actually worth playing, grouped them into handy categories, and put most of ’em up on FileFront.com.
Warning! Do not read this article if you 1) Value your time, 2) Value your loved ones, 3) Don’t have a case of Bawls handy. This is a huge list, but sadly most of the games don’t include any screenshot. However, as a bonus all of the games can be downloaded through their sister site very quickly and without a login.
Source: 1UP
Single-Pixel camera takes on Digital
Researchers in the US are developing a single-pixel camera to capture high-quality images without the expense of traditional digital photography. Being developed by a lab at Rice University in Houston, Texas, the single-pixel camera is designed to tackle what its developers see as the “inefficiencies” of modern digital camera. It currently resembles an old-fashioned pinhole camera and is the size of a suitcase, but assistant professor of electrical engineering Kevin Kelly told BBC World Service’s Digital Planet programme that it is only “the beginning of things.”
I have no problem with my digital camera but this is one intriguing technique. Instead of an expensive sensor capturing an image, millions of incredibly small mirrors will capture the appropriate light/color of all the “pixels” which would result in the image. Sounds complex, and it is. I look forward to seeing this one progress.
Source: BBC UK
Game Dev 2007 Resolutions
I’d like to see less companies using draconian anti-piracy measures. No consumers want to be made to feel like a criminal. Stardock’s Galactic Civilizations II has done very well without any copy protection on the CD, and our customers have been very vocal in their appreciation of not having to deal with anti-piracy measures that usually do more to irritate paying customers instead of preventing piracy.
Amen to that! I somewhat feel the same way regarding serial keys, because they are a nusiance over time. Alas, that will never happen. Regardless, less copy protection would be a great thing as the quoted develoeper above makes clear. Perhaps some game developers could get together and make a Nintendo Wii game that actually impresses me? Pow, right in the kissa!
Source: Gamasutra
Wanted: Adrian Lamos Blood
After pleading guilty to breaking into the paper’s internal computer network in January 2004, the terms of Lamo’s probation had confined him to the eastern district of California, which includes his parents’ home near Sacramento where he is living. That probation, which included mandatory “computer-monitoring software and filtering equipment,” expired Monday. What isn’t over is Lamo’s refusal to give federal authorities a sample of his blood, which he says violates his religious convictions.
Religious beliefs aside, I don’t think I’d agree with giving blood for the simple fact that there are far more sensible ways to gather DNA. Lamo is willing to provide whatever else necessary for the Government to add his DNA to their databases, but they won’t have it. I think it’s humorous that a Government that blatantly states “In God We Trust” attempts to push someone to go against their own beliefs. Ok, so maybe it’s not -that- humorous.
Source: News.com
Fact: Video games popular for kids
New research from the folks at The NPD Group shows that kids are increasingly getting their hands on digital content and are playing games as early as the age of 2. Playing games, whether on a PC, console, phone or music player, was the highest ranked activity. More within…
Before you throw an “O RLY?” out there, please allow me to first. O RLY? I do admit, the fact that some children begin playing games at age 2 impresses me. As long as it’s not Doom III, it could actually help with brain growth or at least with reaction times. Of course, fast forward 5 years to where you are grounded from your NES because you failed your 2nd Grade Math quiz…
Source: Game Daily
Nobel Prize Winners Live Longer
Winners live longer, at least when it comes to the Nobel Prize, new research shows. An analysis of 524 nominees for the Nobels in physics and in chemistry between 1901 and 1950 showed that the group’s 135 winners lived about two years longer than the also-rans. The finding points to the health benefits of social status and suggests that status benefits the bodies of the cerebrally normal too.
Do Nobel Prize winners live longer as a result of having that status? It could be a mental thing, it makes sense. Personally, I believe it’s all coincidence but hey, that’s why I don’t have a Nobel Prize. You can read the full article while I am in the corner kicking myself for not paying more attention in school.
Source: Live Science
Intel Science Talent Search Semifinalists Announced
Santa Clara, Calif., Jan. 17, 2007 – Three hundred high school seniors today were named as semifinalists of the Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS) 2007. The STS, America’s oldest and most prestigious science competition, is often called the “Junior Nobel Prize.” Each of the 300 Intel STS semifinalists receives $1,000 with an additional $1,000 going to their respective schools, resulting in $600,000 in total awards. This year’s entrants hail from 46 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, and represent 487 schools.
I think in the spirit of all things reality TV, Intel should rename the search to “Intel Idol”. That aside, this really is a great talent search with an amazing first prize. Even the finalists receive a laptop… hard to complain about that. Read the full press release here.
OCZ Technology Announces New PC2-6400 Flex XLC
Sunnyvale, CA — January 18, 2007 — With the goal of providing their latest proprietary technology to every enthusiast, OCZ Technology Group, a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory, today launched the OCZ PC2-6400 FlexXLC 2x1GB Kit, the mainstream edition of the recently released DDR2-1150 memory part. Intended for the enthusiast looking for the absolute highest performance and value, the new PC2-6400 Flex XLC delivers unprecedented speed, signal integrity, and thermal management, all at a lower price point than the current flagship high-speed binned Flex XLC solution.
The DDR2-1150 Flex kit really hasn’t taken off per se, so I’m interested to see where this new one goes. Overclocking aside, it’s a great kit to add to your system as long as you have a capable WC rig and tubing. Read the full press release here.
Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD
Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are two new optical storage technologies that fight as the successor of DVD. In this article you will learn everything you need to know about these technologies, including the motivations that lead to the creation of both. Is it really true that DVD has its days counted?
I do know one thing. Both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are expensive, regardless of what one you choose. But if you want to learn more or jump on either bandwagon, Hardware Secrets has posted a new article taking a deep look into both formats and explain the differences between the two.
Source: Hardware Secrets
Microsoft pushes Vista versions, Offers download options
Microsoft wants to make sure consumers and small businesses know there are myriad ways they can acquire Windows Vista — particularly in premium versions — when it becomes generally available on Jan. 30. On Thursday, Microsoft said that for the first time, users will be able to purchase its Windows OS by downloading it over the Internet.
Being able to download the OS makes sense; It just seems like a natural progression. However, if I am to shell out a good chunk of change for a new operating system, I’d rather have the box to prove it. It doesn’t look like the downloadable versions will be any cheaper, so it’s meant for those select few who don’t care about a box and want it -now-.
Source: NeoWin
Pirate HD-DVDs are here
Late last year, a hacker claimed to have circumvented the copy protection scheme used to protect HD DVD and Blu-ray content. Just over two weeks after the news broke, the online pirate community is seeing the fruits of hacker labor with the first release of a full HD DVD available for download. The first HD DVD movie released is Serenity, which weighs in at 19.6 GB. The file reportedly is available in EVO format and is playable with PC-based players such as PowerDVD at full 1080p resolution.
How much would you have to love a movie to want to wait long enough to download 20GB of data? I’d just buy the movie and be done with it, but I could be in the minority. I can see a lot of people receiving letters from their ISP due to extreme bandwidth overages thanks to this one. I don’t condone piracy, but it’s nice to finally see such stupid copy protection “broken”. I fully believe in people being able to back up movies they shell out a lot of cash for.
Source: DailyTech
MySpace to offer Spyware for parents
Parents who install the monitoring software on their home computers would be able to find out what name, age and location their children are using to represent themselves on MySpace. The software doesn’t enable parents to read their child’s e-mail or see the child’s profile page and children would be alerted that their information was being shared. The program would continue to send updates about changes in the child’s name, age and location, even when the child logs on from other computers.
I am somewhat two sided on this one. Personally, I hate privacy breaches, but I know full well what kind of idiots roam MySpace. If I had a child, I would not even let them use it, personally. That said, if a parent was to use such software I believe the child should know that the parent has these “spying” capabilities. At least this way, it would coax them to behave online and hopefully stay out of trouble and harm. Lying to your kid is not going to set a good example.
Source: ZD Net Blogs
Adobe releases Flash 9 for Linux… finally
After months of waiting, Adobe finally releases Flash 9 for Linux. This version includes many improvements over the betas that have been available for a few months. Now when Linux users try to download the player through the site, they will be prompted with a question of whether you want the .tar.gz or .rpm version. Regardless of what you choose, these are not open source releases… simply a single binary that’s copied to your browsers plugin folders.
I’ve been using Flash 9 beta since it was first released and am quite pleased with how well it works. However, I’ve found quite a few bugs that don’t occur on Windows, so I am hoping that this final release will clear up the rest of those. If you are curious as to how well this final release compares to Flash 7, Linux Desktops set up their machine to do a direct comparison. To grab the latest version, just follow this link.
Dell/Futuremark performance competition!
We are cooperating with Dell on a new competition that just went live and has some fabulous prizes! It is open for US residents and is called The Dell/Futuremark Performance Shootout. The idea is simple: Submit the fastest 3DMark06 result and win a Dell 30″ Ultrasharp widescreen flat panel monitor!
I’m not sure if it’s just me or not… but I am assuming if you have a machine powerful enough to have the highest 3D Mark score in the world, you hardly need a free monitor. I could be wrong, however.
Source: Dell Forums
Intel Fourth-Quarter Revenue $9.7 Billion
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Jan. 16, 2007 – Intel Corporation today announced fourth-quarter revenue of $9.7 billion, operating income of $1.5 billion, net income of $1.5 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of 26 cents. Excluding the effects of share-based compensation, the company posted operating income of $1.8 billion, net income of $1.7 billion and EPS of 30 cents.
Intel seen this coming, so it’s not much of a surprise. Of course they have a lot on that go that contributed to this, such as the expensive new 65nm plant in China. Read the full press release here.
Corsair Augments Flash Readout USB Product Family with 4GB and 8GB Capacities
Fremont, CA (January 17, 2007) – Corsair, a worldwide leader in high performance computer products, today announced the immediate availability of the Corsair Flash Readout USB drive in new 4GB and 8GB capacities. The Corsair Flash Readout USB drive takes the benefits of USB Flash drives one step further by allowing users to label the drive with personal IDs and showing the remaining storage capacity via the embedded digital display, hence alleviating the need to plug the USB drive into the PC to verify content.
This is perfect for those who want a lot of storage on the go and like to keep track of the usage. I’m still waiting for a thumb drive to hold my entire life, then I’ll be content. Read the full press release here.
Futuremark Releases VGMark07
Saratoga, CA – January 16th, 2007 – Futuremark, publishers of the world’s most acclaimed benchmarks for handhelds and PCs, announced today the release of VGMark07, the OpenVG(tm) Benchmark. This new benchmark will provide unbiased vector graphics performance data for handset manufacturers, ODMs, semiconductor companies and network operators within the handheld industry. VGMark07 is the first product that will enable the handheld industry and media to make objective and accurate cross platform performance comparisons of OpenVG 1.0 API enabled hardware and software solutions.
This is not a new benchmark for enthusiasts, but may prove useful for those reviewers of PDAs and Smartphones. Generally speaking, the better the results from the benchmark, the better the device should be in handling vector based applications. Read the full press release here.
OCZ Technology Announces the New 1000W ProXStream Power Supply for Enthusiasts
Sunnyvale, CA—January 15, 2007—OCZ Technology Group, a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and power supplies, today announced the launch of the ProXStream power supply series, a new high performance PSU that was first showcased at the recent 2007 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. OCZ engineered the ProXStream to provide ample power to even the most demanding high-end systems. Incorporated in a small and diverse form factor, the ProXStream 1000W core is extremely efficient and very practical, as it can be integrated into just about any chassis.
Sure, it’s no 2000W but it has ample power to handle your Quad-Core CPU and Quad-SLI setups with ease! Read the full press release here.
Dreamcasts last breath close?
It is certain that Sega of Japan plans to discontinue production of GD-ROM media in February, 2007. This media is used almost exclusively by the Sega Dreamcast home console, and the NAOMI arcade system. By stopping production, future official games (licensed by Sega) on the Dreamcast or NAOMI will not be possible.
I still love my Dreamcast to this day. It’s never been unhooked from the TV! The fact that games are -still- being developed for it goes to show how many fans still exist. When it comes to that console, it was all about the gameplay, not the graphics. If you are a DC fan, you can head here and download/print an image to sign and send to Sega. This may or may not thwart their decision but it’s worth a try.
Warioware: Smooth Moves Review
I have to admit that I was skeptical of Wario Ware: Smooth Moves. The demo looked stupid, the box looked stupid, and the art looked stupid too. In case you get my drift, the whole game looked completely rediculous and I wasn’t sure why I even wanted to check it out. Within moments of popping in the game – I found out.
If you enjoy party games without the party, then this could be your type of game. I have to wonder what Nintendo is thinking with the Wii… things do not seem to be getting better. This looks like an incredibly fun game, but no multi-player? Come on!