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‘World of Warcraft’ patch downs servers for hours
The latest patch to the popular online game “World of Warcraft” has led to the game’s servers being down for hours longer than expected.
According to Gil Shif, public relations manager for “World of Warcraft” publisher Blizzard Entertainment, the latest major patch to the game–version 1.10, which is designed to adjust the talents of priests–caused some “snags” that have affected the servers going back online as planned.
Ouch! I can only imagine how many geeks this affected :( Check out the read at ZD Net.
Xbox Identifier
I built this little application to help you guys out. You type in your serial and it calculates where your xbox was built, the year and month it was manufactured, assembly line and number. It’ll also figure out what version your xbox is. I gathered the information from the xbox lunix project site. May be helpful to people who are new to the mod scene.
I haven’t used this tool personally, but it looks pretty sharp! Check it out at UK Gamer.
Holographic breakthrough crams in 0.5TB per square inch
InPhase Technologies claims to have broken the record for the highest data density of any commercial storage technology after successfully recording 515Gb of data per square inch. Holographic storage can dramatically boost capacity as it takes advantage of volumetric efficiencies rather than recording only on the surface of the material.
Read all about it at VNU Net.
Hardware Roundup for March 29
I’ll make this a quick post due to waking up late! If you check out any review today, make sure it’s Hot Hardwares review of the Gigabyte i-RAM. If you have 4GB of DDR lying around, it may just be what you want for ultra fast load times ;)
- VIZO Shuttle Portable 2.5″ HDD Enclosure – Virtual-Hideout
Cases & Enclosures
- Arctic Cooling Accelero X1 – PC Modding Malaysia
- Spire VertiCool II & DiamondCool II – OCIA
- Top 3 GPU Water Blocks Square Off – 3D Xtreme
Cooling
- Gigabyte i-RAM GC-RAMDISK – Hot Hardware
- Gskill 2GB F1-4000BIU1 PC4000 – Xtreme Computing
- Seagate NL35 400 GB Hard Drive – XYZ Computing
Memory & Storage
- Abit AN8 32X – Pro-Clockers
Motherboards & CPU’s
- Audio FX Gaming Headset – A True Review
- Creative Live! Motion WebCam – UK Gamer
- Enermax Noisetaker II 701AX 600W Power Supply – 3D Gameman
- Motorola HT820 Bluetooth Stereo Headset – Legit Reviews
- ThinkOutside Stowaway Travel Mouse – Think Computers
Peripherals & Power Supplies
- ASUS X1900 XT Crossfire – Guru 3D
- EVGA e-GeForce 7800 GS CO SuperClock – MVKTech
- MSI NX7300GS-TD256E – PC Stats
Video Cards & Monitor
NES games for the XBox 360
Called NESCafe, the emulator works through Media Center on the Xbox 360 and it does have limitations. The inventor who goes by the handle “Xexter” has not found a way to add a menu for the roms list so you will have to edit the nes.htm and change to whatever Nes rom you want to play.
Hopefully only the very beginning of emulation on the system. Nothing beats playing the classics without having to haul out the dusty console. Check out the full posting at The Inquirer.
Married Man Sues To Get On Dating Site
The San Jose Mercury News is reporting that a man has chosen to file a lawsuit against dating site eHarmony for not letting him on the site, due to the fact that he’s married. He says he’s separated and the site is discriminating against him due to his marital status.
People will obviously sue anybody for any reason, but this is as stupid as they come. Is he so new to the internet that he doesn’t realize that one out of every ten sites is a matchmaking site? Check out the posting at Tech Dirt.
TorrentSpy Says MPAA Can’t Reinterpret The Supreme Court On File Sharing
TorrentSpy has filed a motion to dismiss the case, noting that they don’t promote any kind of infringement and they don’t host or link directly to any files copyrighted by the MPAA. In other words, they’re making a case that all they are is a search engine for torrents, and if the industry is worried about people putting up torrents that infringe on copyrights, it should go after those actually responsible, rather than the search engines.
It seems likely that these agencies will end up slowing down on these attempted site rapings and start going after the actual users who are responsible for distributing the files in the first place. Things could get interesting! Check out the full read at Tech Dirt.
Viiv 1.5 May End Traditional Media PCs
The existence of digital media adapters will totally remove the need to have a media centre PC taking up space in your living room, unless you’re one of the few users that finds it practical to do anything other than passively soak up multimedia content whilst relaxing on the couch.
Sounds like quite the prediction, but I am not so quick to adopt a technology like Viiv. Who knows, it may actually make things easier and make more sense then the way we do things now. You can read the full article at CNET Aus and check out the posting at Slashdot.
No Rare On Virtual Console
Reports coming out of the US from the Games Developers Conference are suggesting that Nintendo’s Virtual Console service (its planned retro classics downloads for Revolution) will lack some of the big name games belonging to the now Microsoft-owned Rare.
It looks like Donkey Kong 64 will make an appearence on the console because it’s a Nintendo title, which makes personally pleases me. But if the console lacks such great hits as Banjo and Goldeneye.. it’s lacking a lot. Check out the article at
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Xbox 360 Live downloads over 10 million
In what must be deemed a massive success for Microsoft’s new console, the Xbox 360, the company has announced that 85 per cent of “connected” Xbox 360 owners have downloaded content from the Xbox Live marketplace.
That.. is not a small number. It helps that most downloads a free, but 10 Million in just over 4 months is pretty incredible. I don’t even want to see the bandwidth bill. Check out the full posting at Tech Digest.
PSP vs. DS: One Year Later
As E3 2006 draws near and the great next-gen console war begins to take shape, it’s easy to forget, in all the hype surrounding the Nintendo Revolution and the Sony PS3, that there’s already a major knock-down, drag-out brawl in progress.
For a cool look at the pros and cons of each system, check out the full article at 1UP.
How to build a home theater PC
Based on the success of our first system build log (How to Build an Ultimate Gaming PC), Corsair has just published another system build log. This time we dive into the details of building a home theater PC. From component selection, system build, software installation, to watching and recording TV – we have every step covered in great details! Over 100 photos to document the process to show your readers how easy it is to put a HTPC together.
This is a great guide if you are completely new to the world of HTPC’s or even PC’s for that matter. You can check out the in-depth guide at Corsair.
Perpendicular Hard Disk Drives Article
Hard Disk Drives store all our most valuable data, our contacts, email, family photos and the like, but increasingly space is getting cramped in drives… Perpendicular Hard Disk Drives aim to stem the theoretical limit of disk capacity, and this article aims to explain how and why.
This is a look at how hard drives store data and the difference between the longitudinal and perpendicular ways of doing things. Check out the informative read at BTX Form Factor.
Top Online Clothing Stores
You don’t have drive to a Neiman Marcus to find great clothes. By using the Internet, you can save yourself time and money, while creating a unique fashion style. There are tons of web sites offering all kinds of fashions, from geeky t-shirts to designer jeans.
This is a great list for clothing shops you may not have heard out. If you feel the need to update your wardrobe, check out the article at Design Technica.
Hardware Roundup for March 28
There’s a bunch going on today in reviews, so let’s get right to it. Building an HTPC can be difficult only because there are so many SFF cases on the market. Viper Lair today takes a look at Silverstone’s LC17B, which turns out to be a good choice despite it’s installation hassles. Looking for a solution to keep your chipset a lot cooler than a stock solution provides? Red & Blackness takes a look at the Microcool Northpole XE, which proved to have good cooling power but covers a few PCI-E slots!
- Silverstone LC17B HTPC – Viper Lair
- Ultra Products Aluminus – Big Bruin
Cases & Enclosures
- Kingwin Big Air AMD Cpu Cooler – Virtual-Hideout
- Microcool Northpole XE – Red & Blackness
- Thermaltake BigWater 745 – A1-Electronics
Cooling
- Mushkin 2GB XP2 PC2-5300 – AnandTech
- OCZ EL DDR PC-4000 XTC Platinum 2GB – Overclockers Online
Memory & Storage
- ABIT AN8 32X – Bit-Tech
Motherboards & CPU’s
- Bluetake i-Phono Plus Headphones and BT007Ex Bluetooth EDR USB Adapter – Think Computers
- Keysonic Keyboards and Warp Laser Mouse – Technic3D
- TerraTec Space 7.1 Sound Card – Xtreme Computing
- Ultra X-Connect II 550W PSU – Legion Hardware
Peripherals & Power Supplies
- Leadtek 7900GT – GD Hardware
- NVIDIA GeForce 7900 GT – Legit Reviews
- NVIDIA GeForce 7900 GTX – Rojak Pot
- XFX 7900GT and 7600GT – Overclockers New Zealand
Video Cards & Monitor
- 5 Days Left In OCIA.net & CoolerMaster March Giveaway – OCIA
- AData FingerPrint Disk : AData FingerPrint Disk – T-Break
- Bytek Systems Diino Online Backup Service – BIOS Magazine
- MTB Keeping It Cool Contest 2006 – ModTheBox
- Nikon Coolpix S3 6.4MP Digital Camera – Bona Fide Reviews
- Samsung Yepp YP-U1ZB 1GB MP3 Player – PC Stats
- Transcend T.sonic 310 MP3 Player – XYZ Computing
Etcetera & Contests
3dGameMan.com UT2004 Game Server
3D Gameman has just opened a UT2004 server, so if you feel like getting some fragging in, check out all of the info here.
WoW Report: Higher Level Instances
Another week of World of Warcraft! Well I’m finally getting closer to level 60. This week I decided to check out some higher level instances with my guild. I have done a lot of level 40 instances over and over again so I was excited to finally check out some new ones. Hopefully these instances will have some good loot and get me some XP so I will get closer to level 60!
Check out the full article at Think Gaming.
NCsoft Forms Subsidiary in China
NCsoft Forms Subsidiary, NCsoft China, in Shanghai
SEOUL, South Korea, March 24, 2006— NCsoft® Corporation (KSE:036570.KS), the world’s leading developer and publisher of online computer games, today announced the opening of NCsoft China, a wholly owned subsidiary in Shanghai, China.
The new company is a result of NCsoft’s acquisition of a 51 percent equity stake in NC Sina, a joint venture formed by NCsoft and Sina.com in 2003. NCsoft China now becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of NCsoft and will strengthen the company’s content development and publishing power in the ever-growing Chinese game market.
NCsoft China will not only provide services for existing games created by NCsoft’s global network to the Chinese market but also will develop and publish new games that will appeal to Chinese gamers’ interests.
NCsoft currently has branch offices in the United States, Europe, Japan, China, Taiwan and Thailand for overseas services. It also has established NCRC (NCsoft Research and Development Center) in Beijing, China and NCsoft Japan in Osaka, Japan to reinforce the company’s global network for content development under its commitment to “global infrastructure, local content.”
About NCsoft Corporation
Headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, NCsoft Corporation is the world’s leading developer and publisher of online games. Founded in 1997, NCsoft is home to Lineage®, the world’s most successful online role playing game and also to Lineage 2, City of Heroes®, City of Villains™ and Guild Wars®. In coming months, NCsoft is poised to launch other massively multiplayer titles including Auto Assault® and Guild Wars Factions™ in addition to various casual games via its game portal, PlayNC™. NCsoft has offices in North America, the United Kingdom, Japan, Taiwan, China and Thailand. In fiscal year 2005, NCsoft posted revenues of KRW 338 billion or approximately US$346 million. For more information about NCsoft visit http://www.ncsoft.com or http://www.PlayNC.com.
19" LCD Monitors: The Spring 2006 Collection
Many still contend that the ViewSonic VP191b 19″ LCD monitor offers the ultimate value for its price tag. It’s true it was an exceptional monitor, and you can still find one for about $500. Not since the Hyundai Q17 has an LCD monitor achieved such fame. However, it no longer wears the champion’s belt.
They take a hard look at over 10 LCD’s, so check out the article here if you are in the market.
No ATI high end cards with HDMI.. Yet
WE confirmed that April will be when you are able to buy X1600 and X1300 HDMI cards. We also learned that right now there are no any plans for a ATI based high end HDMI capable card.
No doubt it would be a challenge to put two DVI ports and an HDMI port on the back of the card. It looks like HDMI will only be found on All-In-Wonders regardless, but even that may be a while off. You can read more at The Inquirer.
The Beatles, Apple, and iTunes
Apple is being sued in London by Apple Corps, owned by the former Beatles and their heirs. This is a third battle over the name ‘Apple’ in Britain. Apple Corps has previously been awarded $26M by Apple Computer for the use of the name.
Read more about it at Slashdot.
Steve Jobs steps back on comment?
Last week, Apple slammed the French government for proposing a law that would require Apple to license the iTunes crippleware format to its competitors, so French people could listen to the music they buy from Apple on devices made by other companies.
It looks like Jobs back in 2002 thought it would only make sense to have your music work on any player… apparently he wasn’t that serious. Check out the post at Boing Boing.
Microsoft warns of nasty IE bug
The bug, disclosed Wednesday, relates to the way that IE processes information using the createTextRange() method. By presenting the browser with specially crafted code, attackers could corrupt the system’s memory and trick it into running unauthorised software.
Another reason to use an alternative browser. Read about it at Computer World.
Xbox 360 H4xx0rz admit their hackjob is useless
After previously boasting about a DVD firmware hack that made it possible to run a backup copy of Project Gotham Racing 3 on a modified Xbox 360, one of the hackers behind the mod has joined Microsoft in calling it “useless”. Apparently the mod is useless to the general public due to its complexity (the mod “requires that the flash chip is removed from the drive circuit board and inserted into a special flash programming device”) and the fact that it could easily destroy an Xbox 360 in the wrong hands.
Looks like an easy mod is not just around the corner after all. Check out the full post at Joystiq.
DJs embrace digital breakthroughs
Take, for example, how digital music is transforming today’s DJ — perhaps the oldest and most influential tastemaker of the music industry. One would think the vinyl-obsessed DJ crowd would resist replacing their coveted crates with digital files. Yet digital music has not only caught on, it has become an entrenched part of the craft.
This article just gives more reason why MP3’s are not such a bad thing. Check out the read at Yahoo.