Dell Unveils New Rugged Laptop - Latitude E6400 XFR

(image found on cnet news)
Today, Dell has unveiled a new rugged laptop that is built to 13 different military specs. This machine is designed to withstand drops of 4 feet, Sea Fog, Temperature Extremes, Thermal Shock & Explosive Environments. The outside is designed with a Rugged Balistic Armor Material made from PR481 material. It also comes with a Primoseal that enhances protection from dust and liquids via a compression Gasket.

This new laptop is a Latitude E6400 XFR. That comes with an Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, 120GB Solid State Drive, NVidia Quadro NVS 160M GPU video card with 256MB DDR2 Ram with a starting price of $4,299.00, available March 10, 2009.

From the spec's it sounds like a great Machine for those who need a latop in extreme conditions.

Dell Unveils Latitude E6400 XFR Rugged Notebook (DailyTech)
Dell Launches Its First Rugged Touch-screen Laptop (PCworld)
Dell hopes tough guys still buy laptops (cnet news)

John Dvorak Likes Linux

(image found on roughlydrafted.com)
PC magazine critic and writer John Dvorak checks out Ubuntu Linux OS 8.10 and loves what he sees. Take a look at what he has to say and see some of the great advantages that running Ubuntu gives an end user without all the costs associate with the Windows OS and its appz.

Also, after you get done reading the article below, don't forget to check out Ubuntu for yourself.

http://www.ubuntu.com/

I have been using Ubuntu for a few releases now and i love the OS. Definitely, one of my favorite flavors of Linux Distributions.

Every so often I take a stab at Linux, to see exactly what I like and do not like about the OS. Many of its problems, for me, stem from its inability to run on my overloaded hardware, or the occasional driver that makes the OS impossible to use without hand-tweaking something or other. That said, I seriously like the Ubuntu 8.10 implementation and will now install it permanently on my latest machines. It's a winner.

This OS has a lot of nice features, and it's quick. It's freely downloadable all over the net as a ISO disk image, too. Go to the official Web site for a download link. Ubuntu is particularly cool because the install version is also a "live" version, meaning that you can boot it and run it from a CD without installing the OS at all. More important, it's a fully functional live CD, meaning that it can save and load files from drive C: or a NAS.

When I encountered a glitch, I changed to a safe graphics mode that limited my screen to 1,280-by-1,024 rather than 1,600-by-1,200—but this was no big deal.

While your PC is running Ubuntu as a live install, the CD is doing all the work for the OS, and even so, it's at least as snappy as Windows. Install it onto the hard disk as the OS for the system and the thing really flies. I'm not sure how many legacy old clunkers can run this operating system. but it's the perfect reinstall for older machines that bog down under Windows. The live feature is what it makes it so cool; no need to install the OS before thoroughly testing it.

For lightweight work, the install disk comes with Firefox for Linux and AbiWord, a credible open-source substitute for MS Word. In fact, there is probably a Linux program that will substitute for just about any Windows programs with as much or more functionality—with the exception of Adobe Photoshop. That said, there are plenty of photo editors for Linux. The popular GIMP app comes to mind.

While the various Linux desktops generally aren't as polished as Vista, they are functional and easily as slick as Windows 2000, the OS most observers think was the best Microsoft ever did. In many instances the complexity of Linux turns out to be smoothed over by the Ubuntu architecture. It's so good that I'm a little annoyed with myself for not getting to it sooner. And I sure don't want to hear "I told you so!" from all the Linux mavens.

I'm in the process of putting together a new Atom-based mini-ITX machine (with an Intel D945GCLF2 motherboard) for use as a Web browser in the kitchen. This OS would be ideal if for no other reason than the fact that I won't have to worry about anyone in the family fooling around online and getting the little machine clogged with viruses and Trojan horses.

I seriously appreciate the fact that Linux is mostly immune from malware, in much the same way as the Macintosh. I had a small machine in the kitchen running Windows, and every time I ran a scan on the thing I kept discovering too many problems. I know that if Linux becomes too popular, the malware will come. But for now it's rare—a good thing as far as I am concerned.

I'm tired of dealing with Windows malware, patch Tuesday, and the never-ending deterioration of the OS as it clogs up like a drain in a greasy-spoon restaurant. I can't take it anymore.

And there's something else that always bugs me about Windows. I have an iMac that I use at the office, and a few times every month Apple has some patch that it sends out. With few exceptions, each time a patch is installed with the Mac OS, the performance of the machine improves. With Windows, the performance always declines.

I don't think Microsoft has ever sent out a patch that improved the performance of the machine. Ever.

And of course, the biggest differences between Ubuntu and Windows are the cost and the subsequent headaches, because Microsoft is constantly fretting over bootleg copies. The company monitors machines to make sure they are running legal copies of software. There have already been instances of computers shut down by Microsoft HQ because of some glitch in the cloud. This is simply unacceptable. I don't want to rely on a system like that.

I cannot wean myself off Windows altogether because, well, I write about Windows. But for ancillary machines that I put together where I need reliability and low price, I'm always going to see whether Ubuntu works. And if it does, that's what gets installed.

If I had a small or mid-size company, I'd probably use only Linux and open-source software, just to stay out of the way of the software police and their onerous "audits"—another abhorrent situation that, to me, is intolerable.

You should also note that almost all of the newest hardware coming out has Linux support. The critical mass has been reached. Go download Ubuntu 8.10 and see for yourself what the fuss is about. You won't regret it.

Its nice to see such a great review from John on this awesome OS.

Dvorak Likes Linux (PC mag)

Rumors of Apple creating a Netbook are surfacing

(image found on slashgear)
The rumors are now starting about apple coming up with a netbook soon. A Taiwanese financial paper called the commercial times reported today (March 9, 2009) that two Taiwanese based computer companies are in talks now with Apple for some new hardware (possibly netbooks).

Quanta Computer (Taiwan based company) that currently is a contributor to the iPhone is reported to be the maker for the Apple Netbook. Followed by another Taiwanese base company, Wintek that would be making the touch panels.

Wintek is also reporting that currently there is no shipment date set but that it would be likely to begin shipping Netbooks in Mid-Year 2009. This information is also being reported in Digitimes too.

When Apple executives were recently questioned about this issue they said they don't believe people would be please with a netbook type device from apple, sighting performance would be a big issue. Various analysts already are starting to comment on this issue and just calling it all hype.

I don't know if its all talk since its being reported in a financial paper and it sounds more like something in the mix then not. What ever it is im sure we will be pleasantly surprised by the unveiling when Apple is ready.

Apple Netbook Rumors Stirred by Taiwan Newspaper (eweek)
Apple ordering netbook-sized multitouch panels for 2H09? (Slashgear)

"Wolfram Alpha" Search Engine unveild

(image found on cnet news)
They say if you can build a better mouse trap you can have the world at your doorstep. The same is true with a better search engine. In today's time where time is so precious and correct information is key in so many decisions, the world is always on the look out for a new and more productive search engine. Well there is something on the horizon now, Stephen Wolfram, the genius mathematician, physicist and software entrepreneur is at it again.

He has created a new kind of search engine, something we are all accustomed to seeing in the science fictions shows like star trek. A search engine which searches for information based on factual data. This new kind of search dubbed, "Wolfram Alpha" uses a "Computational Knowledge Engine", will do just that. The way it works is it breaks down a question into english then parses them into a query which its answers by searching a series of libraries it has within. This is a great idea that has long been held in sci-fi movies but lacking the correct algorithm to properly do it.

In a recent blog entry this is what Wolfram had to say:
"All one needs to be able to do is to take questions people ask in natural language, and represent them in a precise form that fits into the computations one can do," Wolfram said in a recent blog post. "I'm happy to say that with a mixture of many clever algorithms and heuristics, lots of linguistic discovery and linguistic curation, and what probably amount to some serious theoretical breakthroughs, we're actually managing to make it work...It's going to be a website: www.wolframalpha.com. With one simple input field that gives access to a huge system, with trillions of pieces of curated data and millions of lines of algorithms," he added.

Well the creator of Mathematica has done just that by using Mathematica and NKS (a new kind of science) he has created a search engine that will answer your factual query by searching libraries in such a manor. The only bad thing is that it can only answer factual queries. If a person asked it how good of a job someone was doing it could not answer that since that is based off opinion.

The search engine is scheduled to be released to the public in May 2009. Some people do wonder if Google will try to incorporate some of this technologies idea into its search for query too. I guess it could be an interesting option if they can get the algorithm right for the search.

Wolfram Alpha Search Engine: www.wolframalpha.com

A bit of interested info on Mr Wolfram:
Stephen Wolfram has a track record of scientific breakthroughs and some controversy. He received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Caltech in 1979 when he was 20 and has focused most of his career on probing complex systems. In 1988 he launched Mathematica, powerful computational software that has become the gold standard in its field. In 2002, Wolfram produced a 1,280-page tome, A New Kind of Science, based on a decade of exploration in cellular automata and complex systems. The book stirred up a lot of debate in scientific circles. Legendary physicist Freeman Dyson described the tome as "a case of style over substance."

Wolfram Alpha Search Engine Will Directly Answer Your Questions (Daily Tech)
Stephen Wolfram and the techno-dianetics of Google-ology (arstechnica)
Wolfram Alpha: Next major search breakthrough? (cnet news)

Unauthorized Apple iPhone App stores hit the marketplace

(image found on cnet news)
For the longest time if you wanted to get an app for your iPhone or iPod touch device you had to go through the apple iTunes store. But, now things have changed and there are three new options on the horizon.

The first one is called Cydia. Created by Computer Science genius Jay "Saurik" Freeman, age 27. Cydia was created as an open source distribution center offering independent developers and option to create software and offer it to end users without the approval of apple. There are hundreds of appz currently available with over 350,000 users and growing for this site.

But, be forewarned if you desire to use appz from this site you will need to "Jailbreak" your phone to make it able to install this appz. Here is an article here from Lifehacker on how to do it(click me). You should be forewarned that if something does goes wrong your iPhone will become a brick. The good thing is, it does seems possible to fix this problem, but it will cost you a few bucks too.

The second site is called "Rock your Phone". This site does not require you to "Jailbreak" your phone to install the appz they will be offering.

Then there is a third one but i didn't get wind of the name yet. But, I did find out it is scheduled to offer a series of adult oriented games on it for your iPhone or iPod touch device.

I am sure Apple is a bit pissed but they should have seen this coming because there are so many thousands of appz that Apple turns away and they were bound to come to the public market eventually.

Unauthorized iPhone app stores emerging (cnet news)
New online 'app' stores offer new shopping experience (CTV.ca)
Other App Stores Look for Slice of Apple (street.com)

A Pair of Black Holes discovered Orbiting Each Other

(image found on the register uk)
Yesterday, Astronomers at the NOAO (National Optical Astronomy Observatory) discovered two enormous Black Holes orbiting each other. This is a very rare occurrence. The discovery was made by Todd Boroson and Todd Lauer while examining data from 17,000 Quasars using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, a major mapping project which has already imaged a quarter of the cosmos.

Quasars are thought to represent a super masive black hole in the center of a distant galaxy. Scientist want to figure out whiy they have never seen this kind of anomoly before.

There is a theory that predicts compact, massive bodies black holes orbiting should produce possible ripples in space-time moving at the speed of light.

Newfound Black Hole Duo Could Make Space-Time "Ripples" (National Geographic)
Shall we dance? Two big black holes found together (Reuters UK)
Stargazers spy elusive binary black hole system (The Register)

Zillion TV offers cable alternative

(image found on dvice.com)
Updated:
Turns out users will need a bit more bandwidth then i previously wrote:
Consumers need at least a 3 megabits per second Internet connection to view standard definition content and at least a 7 megabits per second Internet connection for high-definition programming. Wow that is a big difference from 1.5 Mb, esp. when looking at HD content.
===============================================================
Zillion TV is currently in beta with the Z-bar service which offers you an alternative to paying cable prices for TV video. By paying an initial $50 installation fee you can cut your ties to the cable company forever. You will then have an option to see great titles and shows for free with advertisements inserted (hmm sounds like cable now) or buy the show and see it without advertisements (also sounds like cable too, without the monthly basic cost).

The set-top box gets the video via your broadband internet connection(1.5 Mb or higher (esp. for HD)). Zillion TV is currently working with broadband providers to provide people with the best service possible. "The company says it won’t be sluggish, either, but instant streaming. Think Amazon’s Video On Demand service in terms of how your purchases and rentals will live, too, as in on the company’s own servers (we’ll soon be accessing all our entertainment in the data cloud, no?) and not taking up space on your hard drives."

Another partner is Visa, which will enhance your commercial-watching experience by giving you instant access to buy stuff right from your TV. There will even be a “loyalty program” that rewards viewers “for simply watching programming they love and interacting with advertising from categories they’ve personally selected.”

There are several big-named companies who have signed up to work with them like: NBC universal, Disney, 20th Century Fox Television, Sony Pictures and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution. With the current host of content providers they have over 15,000 titles to offer with a lot more expected by launch time.

This is not to bad of a cost since especially the base rate is like the regular cable but FREE.
It looks like something definitely looking into when it gets released out of beta. But, until then we still have online options like Hulu to use too without all the costs or legalities of the cable companies.

ZillionTV lets you dump cable for good (dvice.com)
ZillionTV Streams On-Demand Content to Your TV (Electric House)
paidContent.org - ZillionTV Launches; Can It Avoid Boxee's Problems? (Washington Post)
ZillionTV Streams TV Content, Lets Viewers Choose Ads (ecommerce times)

Resident Evil 5 Blood Drive

(images found on PCworld.com)
Capcom together with the Red Cross is hosting a blood drive on Friday the 13th coming up at the World of Wonder Gallery, 6650 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, California from 11am to 5pm.

(images found on PCworld.com)
Come see the new Resident Evil 5 game at the assorted Kiosks on display and donate some blood for a very good cause. Each blood donor will get a limited edition hand numbered stylized poster, bumpers stickers, buttons and a chance to win a copy of the game plus a chance to win some of the Limited Edition Red Consoles too.

What a great way to welcome in such an awesome new game. If i am in LA on that day i will definitely stop by to donate some blood and pick up some blood drive collectibles.

Again the event is :
World of Wonder Gallery, 6650 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA
on Friday, March 13, 2009, 11:00 AM-5:00 PM

Resident Evil: Blood Drive (blast magazine)
Spill Real Blood for Resident Evil 5 (PCworld)
Spill Some Blood for Resident Evil 5 (dread central)

Microsoft Rolls up the Sleeves with Windows 7

(image found on cnet news)
With the public beta release of Windows 7 Microsoft is showing consumers that they are now rolling up their sleeves like never before to make sure this Vista replacement works like it should. They are on a mission to make sure they don't make the same mistakes they did in the past.

Enthusiasts are worried Microsoft isn't listening to their comments but actions do seem to speak louder then words. Due to feedback to Microsoft they went back and made several revisions to dvd handling. When customers wanted to have that option they added it but then when corporate customers were worried about people watching DVDs on company time they fixed that issue too.

The same goes with BitLocker-To-Go. This encryption feature was initially available for use under Vista and Microsoft went and later added an option for Widows XP users to use it too. The encryption feature helps secure USB devices.

With the design of Windows 7, Microsoft is looking at how customers work when using a product and also where they get tripped up too. So they can step in an fix issues before they get worse. One of the interesting things they learned was that some programs wouldn't install themselves under Vista because the application designers that created them had hard coded the programs to work with a certain OS only. This offers a rational explanation of why many of the older programs seemed to have issues installing or even working under Vista.

Microsoft is looking at calling Windows 7 officially version 6.1 in the series of Windows OS's.

Microsoft in the Enterprise Edition:
With the progression of Vista into Windows 7 Microsoft is showing corporate customers that making the upgrade from Vista or Windows XP is actually a great idea. They are touting the advantages that empower users seamless access from anywhere, esp. the mobile users community.

Windows 7 makes streamlining management a piece of cake by offering an easier way to manage and deploy laptops, desktops and virtual environments. IT Pro's can also use the same tools as they do now in Vista. In Windows 7 there is a feature called Powershell 2.0 which helps to reduce costs while managing and troubleshooting PC's by using a new scripting options for automation capabilities.

When it comes to accessing data applications anywhere at anytime there are features such as Branch Cache, Direct Access, Federated Search and Enterprise Search Scopes to make it easier for the end user.

Microsoft has also spent time with improving security and control by focusing on protecting data, enabling compliance and giving IT better control. One of the ways is by using the BitLocker-to-go program to protect data and give access to authorized users on a read level only if necessary on a usb device. Then we have App Locker which is a mechanism that gives administrators the ability to grant group policy to run on a system where needed.

From recent survey's 61% of customers were worried about having unauthorized applications installed on their systems (that is why AppLocker had priority development) and 49% wanted to have direct access capabilities.

So Microsoft is listening and responding to peoples questions and requests. So far so good guys.

Windows 7 gets down to business (cnet news)
Microsoft Touts Windows 7 for the Enterprise (eweek)

Amazon Launches Kindle app for iPhone and iPod Touch devices

(image found on boston.com)
Great news for iPhone and iPod touch device owners, now you can download and view Amazon Kindle books on your handheld device just like on the Kindle, but without the added cost of buying one.

Amazon has just released a new app that can be downloaded from the Apple App Store for free. This e-book reader will allow you to view and purchase Amazon Kindle books. There are currently over 240,000 Kindle books available in the company library. The other plus side to this is if the books have color in them you will be able to see it on your i-device as oppossed to seeing it in select shades of grey on the Kindle unit. Also, the app comes with a sync application that will keep track of where you were reading and book mark it so you can come back to the same place at a future time.

It even gets better, say you have a Kindle and an i-device, well this app also features something called whispersync, which goes and syncs with the amazon server and then lets you book mark the place on the i-device then use your Kindle to finish off from where you stopped previously or vica versa, giving you a digital bookmark for your reading pleasure. There is one thing you should be aware of this free app does not include the Text-to-Speech option that is available on the Kindle.

Stock shares at Amazon were up 2% early this morning giving Amazon stock a price of $62.91.

Not to bad of a free app. With all the assorted different kinds of books available, even 104 out of the 112 New York Times Bestsellers, everyone can find something to read on their i-device. I currently don't have a Kindle myself, but i am still considering getting one because i think its the right time now with the Kindle 2 unit.

What Does Kindle Really Do for iPhone? (PCworld)
UPDATE: Amazon Launches Kindle App For iPhone (money CNN)
Free iPhone Kindle App Lets You Read All About It (Channel Web)

Microsoft Kumo Search Program Revealed

Microsoft is starting to leak out information on a new search engine they are working on to combat the web supremacy that Google and Yahoo have over it currently. The search project dubbed Kumo, which in Japanese means either spider or cloud is set to create something new in the world of how search is done in the first place.

The idea is to incorporate this new search feature into Microsoft's Live Search. This new search engine will be creating a new era of searching by using a visual approach and returning searches based on what it sees in just a wink of the image or a simple glance. Microsoft's Steve Ballmer is set to make an announcement today at the Microsoft MVP 09 Summit on this new project.

Currently, the beta testing for this project is being done internally only and not being released to the public. I caught wind of a possible url for the search engine: www.kumo.com.

But, when i went to the link, I got an Access Denied, You don't have permission to access "http://www.kumo.com/" on this server.Reference #18.675b1208.1236189015.8974c0d page popping up. The new search engine is set to be released in the new few years.

This project sounds like a great idea, but it is going to be an uphill battle for Microsoft to wage against search Kings Google and Yahoo that currently control the lead in search. Microsoft will need to create something new and different that works to sway the popular masses from the current Kings of search. If they can get this search engine to work the way its supposted to, that might be the key to becoming more popular then they were before.

This venture will require more then just simple relaunching or rebranding of Live Search.
Good Luck Microsoft you will need it.

Microsoft Quietly Working on Live Search Service (Daily Tech)
Does Microsoft's Kumo Herald an Era of Visual Search? (PCworld)
Has Microsoft found the answer to Google? Search Me (InfoWorld)

Huge drop in PC sales forecasted

(image found on silicon republic)
The Worldwide PC sales market is expected to take a huge dip this year to sales of just 257 million units which is a huge drop of 11.9 percent. This is the biggest that has ever happened in the industry and on top of that mobile phone sales are also declining too.

"This is going to be a tough time for the industry," said George Shiffler, a research director at Gartner in San Jose, which released the report Monday. "It's grit your teeth and gut your way out."

Both emerging and mature markets are affected, which is especially bad news for Silicon Valley because emerging markets have been a growth engine for technology companies, even as their sales slowed in the United States and the rest of the developed world.

Shipments of mobile PCs are expected to grow 9 percent this year to 155.6 million units, Gartner said, but that's not enough to offset an expected decline in shipments of desktop PCs of 31.9 percent, caused because more people are hanging on to the computers they already have.

Gartner expects developed markets to decline by 13 percent this year, compared with a 7.9 percent decline in 2001 after the dot-com bubble burst. Emerging markets are expected to decline by 10.4 percent, compared with an 11.1 percent growth in 2002.

Mobile phone sales also declined in the fourth quarter, although they rose in 2008 overall, according to a report Gartner was to release today. PCs and mobile phones in turn have the biggest impact on global sales of semiconductors, which declined in January by 28.6 percent year over year and 11.9 percent since December, the Semiconductor Industry Association said.

This year's expected drop in PC sales is a combination of the recession and a quick reaction by companies in various parts of the PC supply chain, which have improved their technology for forecasting demand, Shiffler said. Whether they have cut inventory too much remains to be seen.

Still, the effects of Gartner's report are rippling throughout the technology industry.

Shares of Applied Materials, Intel, AMD, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft and Dell all dropped on Monday, and a spokesman for Intel said the company expects more months of decline.

Intel has announced it will lay off 5,000 to 6,000 employees as part of the closure of several older factories in the United States and abroad, and the upgrading of four U.S. factories, on which the company proposes to spend $7 billion.

Also on Monday, Intel announced specialized processors for car entertainment systems, media phones, and industrial automation and control systems.

"We know it's challenging times, and we are continuing to try to control the business and also try the best we can to invest so we can come out stronger than when we went in," said Chuck Mulloy, an Intel spokesman.

Intel is better positioned than most companies to invest in the future because of its size, Shiffler said. "My question is, what happens to the others? Do they have resources, or access to credit?"

He expects the economy to improve in 2010 and 2011, he said, but it has to stop falling first.

Fading sales

PC shipments: 257 million units expected in 2009, down 11.9 percent

Previous biggest drop: 3.2 percent in 2001, after dot-com crash

Semiconductor sales: Dropped in January to $15.3 billion, down 28.6 percent year over year and 11.9 percent from December

Mobile phone sales: Dropped in fourth quarter, but rose overall in 2008

Source: Gartner and Semiconductor Industry Association

Wow this is pretty but, but i can't help but wonder if this could also be a time to develop something new that might bounce things back up. I wonder if anyone has considered creating something of a combination pc/cloud unit to sell. Where the initial cost is cheap for the item if not free followed by a commitment to a monthly access service to use what you need when you need it via cloud computing. With all the hotspots and wireless connections popping up all over the place this could be the time for something new and a bit radical to hit the system and go beyond where we are now...

2009 PC sales: record low predicted (neoseeker)
PC market heading for worst year in history (The Tech Herald)
Biggest drop ever expected for PC shipments (SFgate)

Intel introduces new Atom processors for assorted gadgets.

(image found on digitimes)
Intel will we offering some new Atom processors for other items besides mobile internet devices and netbooks. The company is looking at offering new companies a chance to bring their digital gadget to market using their chips.

The company introduced four Atom chips that will go into devices such as entertainment systems for cars, videoconferencing devices, robots and interactive kiosks, said Doug Davis, vice president of Intel's digital enterprise group.

These ultra-low-power chips can offer the rich multimedia performance and high-bandwidth Internet connectivity demanded by those devices, Davis said.

The Z500-series Atom processors are integrated chips the size of a penny that draw little power and do not require fans to operate. The chips draw 2.5 watts of power or less and run at speeds of between 1.10GHz and 1.6GHz. The chips offer integrated 2D and 3D graphics and will be manufactured using Intel's existing 45-nanometer process.

Some new markets being targeted by Intel with the new chips include entertainment systems in cars and desktop videophones. For example, the new Atom Z520PT powers an in-car infotainment system that can run video without compromising on performance, Davis said.

Intel and OpenPeak also provided a reference design for a touch-screen videoconferencing phone embedded with a low-power Atom chip. Resembling a blown-up mobile Internet device, the OpenFrame home IP (Internet Protocol) phone design from OpenPeak also runs Internet-based video and social-networking applications, Davis said.

As part of the announcement, Intel also said Microsoft automotive applications would work with Intel's embedded Atom chips. Microsoft's auto division provides a software toolkit for developers to write in-car applications that include navigation and hands-free calling.

The new chips will be available in commercial quantities in the second quarter of this year. Pricing information was not immediately available.

Intel has taken a number of steps to develop integrated chips that could fit into devices such as set-top boxes and TVs. The chip maker in February said it was hurrying up the move to the new 32-nanometer process technology to produce faster and more integrated chips.

To that effect, the company said it would spend US$7 billion over two years to revamp manufacturing plants. The 32-nanometer process will also help Intel make more chips at lower costs and add efficiencies to the production process. Intel will begin producing chips with 32-nm circuitry starting in late 2009.

Intel may also be looking for outside help to develop custom Atom chips for embedded devices. Earlier on Monday, Intel entered a partnership to share the Atom chip designs with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. TSMC customers will have access to the Atom intellectual property to develop customized chips.

The partnership with TSMC could result in the development of customized chips for Intel to access new markets it can't reach alone, Brookwood said.

If you needed customized GPS (Global Positioning System) or graphics technology on the chip, for example, you couldn't do it, as Intel doesn't provide the building blocks to do so, Brookwood said. The deal with TSMC makes that level of Atom chip customization possible, he said.

Why Intel is sharing its secret sauce (Fortune)
Intel Introduces Atom Chips for New Devices (PCworld)
Intel and TSMC to make 'strategic announcement'(Digitaltimes)
Intel expands Atom's reach into cars, cellphones (TG Daily)

3/3/09 Happy Square root day today

(image found on Scientific American magazine)
Well folks it is Square Root day today, March 3rd two thousand nine. The day where the month squared by the day equals the year number 3^3 = 9.

Scientifc American Magazine has this to say about it:

"Math lovers and numerologists take note: Today, March 3, 2009, is square root day.

The unofficial holiday comes around but nine times a century, when the numbers of the calendar align so that the month and day are each equal to the square root of the year as expressed in two-digit form. (In today's case, 3/3/09, 3 is the square root of 9—in other words, 3² = 3 x 3 = 9.) Square root days arise in every year whose last two digits are a perfect square, or a number whose square root is a whole number: The last square root day was on February 2, 2004 (2/2/04), and the next occurrence will be on April 4, 2016 (4/4/16).

A square root day group on Facebook, boasting more than 2,400 members, suggests celebrating the minor mathematical oddity by eating radishes or other roots—cut into spot-on squares, of course.

Because of the nature of perfect squares, the wait time between square root days increases by two years each time as the century unfolds—five years separated the previous square root day from today's, seven years will pass before the next square root day in 2016, and nine years will elapse before the following one in 2025. But after the final square root of this century, September 9, 2081 (9/9/81), there will be a slightly prolonged layover before the 22nd century starts its own run of square root days on January 1, 2101 (1/1/01)."

New Net Tablets show their face....

As the year goes forward the new netbook craze is grabbing everyone. Cheap, clean and fast enough to do what many people can without blowing your budget at the same time. Well just as we got wowed by the netbooks here comes a new kind of netbook. At Demo 09 in Palm Desert, CA, a new netbook was shown with a touch screen.

(image found on Tom's Hardware)
The Touch Book by Always Innovating was displayed today with a sweet detachable keyboard (optional) and a cool magnetic mounting for putting it on a fridge. The touch screen was designed with people that have larger fingers to be able to use the interface.

(image found on cnet)
The product will run a Linux OS, Gentil (company's CEO, Gregoire Gentil) said, and it's the first Netbook based on an ARM CPU, not the typical Atom found in most Netbooks. He says users can expect 10 to 15 hours. Gentil says this machine is capable of running mobile operating systems such as Android or Windows CE.

(image found on Gizmodo)
The cost is very reasonably slated at $299 (without a keyboard) or $399 with a keyboard, with release dates being this spring. I definitely, look forward to picking up one of these units soon.

(image found on cnet)

Always Innovating launching touch-screen Netbook (cnet)
Touch-screen laptop, iPhone service highlight DEMO 09 (Network World)
Net Tablet: Always Innovating Touch Book (Tom's Hardware)
First Hands On: Touch Book Is a Part-Netbook, Part-Tablet(Gizmodo)

Resident Evil 5 available March 13th

(image found on precedentcinema)
Resident Evil 5 is coming to a store near you.

The official product page describes an "exclusive red finish" with a matching red wireless controller, plus all the other Elite goodies, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, and of course, a copy of Resident Evil 5 itself. All that available on March 13th for $400, which is what the existing matte black model goes for with copies of LEGO Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda. Not half-bad, though a copy of Capcom's Street Fighter IV in lieu of II would've made it untouchable.

So the big question probing everyones minds is: what does the red color stand for ? I think it stands for Blood. I guess because everything goes back to whats in the blood.

What do you think ?

Resident Evil Red: Xbox 360 Limited Edition Hitting Stores (PCworld)
Resident Evil 5 Xbox 360 Jasper and Pad (news.spong)
LIMITED EDITION XBOX 360 RED CONTROLLER BUNDLE AVAILABLE ACROSS EUROPE ON 13th MARCH (MCVuk)

Asteroid 2009 DD45 passes close by the earth today

(image found on inquisitr)
Now, don't panic everyone with this news blurb. An Asteroid (designated 2009 DD45) will be passing by the earth as close as 40,000 miles on March 2nd at 13:44 Universal Time. This object will be visible from areas of Japan, Hawaii, and the East Coast of Australia by telescope. So the rest of us will need to look for footage of it on YouTube to catch a glimpse.

The size of the Asteroid is estimated at about 100 feet across. Scientists believe that even if it was closer and ended up penetrating our atmosphere it would simply just burn up. So no need to worry about it.

But, the bad news for comet watchers is that the point of closest approach occurs over the Pacific somewhere west of Tahiti, although the comet should be visible from Hawaii, Japan and the East Coast of Australia with a telescope.

Don’t panic: Asteroid to pass within 40,000 miles of Earth (inquisitr)
Nearby Asteroid To Zoom By Earth (kfoxtv)
Look up in the sky! 2009 DD45 is flying by! (itwire)

Windows 7 will have Six Versions

(image found on maximum pc)
Microsoft is giving details on the new versions of Windows 7 that will be available. The company believes that 80% of its users will be using either Windows 7 Home Premium or Windows 7 Professional, so they will be putting most of their marketing in these areas.

We have over 1 billion customers. It's hard to satisfy all of them [with a single version]," Windows General Manager Mike Ybarra has said. "There are vocal customers who want every feature, and more regular consumers who say 'I want a version that can grow with me.'"

Here are the flavors of 7:

Windows 7 Starter:
This version comes in a 32-bit bare bones design. It is intended for distribution in developing countries giving users the most basic computer needs. It is designed for light weight netbooks. Also, the Aero Glass GUI will not be included in this version. Plus, a user can only run 3 applications at once. Some other features included will be the jump lists, revamped taskbar, Windows Media Player, Home Group file sharing feature, Action Center, Backup and Restore options too.

The Starter version will only be offered on pre-installed new PC's sold by Microsoft OEM's, no retail versions will be available.

Windows 7 Home Basic:
This version will be a bit of a middle step child that sits between the Starters and Home Premium editions. It will not include the Aero Glass GUI but it will give users the option to run more then 3 programs at once and also be available in a 64-bit version too. There will be a Mobility Center to manage various network connections and a thumbnail preview option on the taskbar.

This version will not be available for sale in the United States.

Windows 7 Home Premium:
The Home Premium version will have all the features of Starter and Home with a few additional goodies thrown in too. Microsoft is banking that pretty much all customers will be using this version. It will include such features as an Aero Glass GUI, Aero Background, Windows Touch, Home Group creation, DVD creation and playback, Media Center, Premium Games and the Mobility Center.

This version will be available world wide, sold in retail stores and available from Microsoft OEM's for distribution too.

Windows 7 Professional:
The Professional version will offer all the features of the Home Premium edition with some additional Networking options and some data protection features too. But, it will not be including some of the options available in the Enterprise edition such as DirectAccess or BranchCache.

This version will be available world wide, sold in retail stores and available from Microsoft OEM's for distribution too.

Windows 7 Enterprise:
The Enterprise editions offers all the features of Professional with more options for security and networking. Plus, users will have the BitLocker encryption option, DirectAccess for connecting to corporate networks securely without a VPN, AppLocker with will prevent unauthorized software from running on a machine, BanchCache with will help to speed up access of large files remotely from branch offices.

This version is designed for the corporate world and large business. It will only be available to businesses with a volume licensing account. No versions will be distruted for retail sale or OEM's for installing on a new machine.

Windows 7 Ultimate:
The Ultimate edition will give everyone the whole enchalada. It features all the options of the other versions giving the super user everything they need. Think of it as the Enterprise edition for the consumer without the voluming licenses attached to it.

This version will be available limited in retail but typically sold on via OEM machines pre-installed.

Well folks looks like microsoft has offered people a version for everyone's tastes. So far the beta version works great. I have it installed on my Samsung netbook and i love it.


Windows 7: The Six Versions Explained (itworld)