World's largest computing grid lives to go live
[Via China View]
[Via China View]
Microsoft may extend Windows XP "downgrade" deadline by six months
First off, we'll warn you that these reports are currently unconfirmed by the suits in Redmond, but word has it that Microsoft is working with at least one OEM to have the Windows XP "downgrade" deadline pushed out from January 2009 to at least July 31, 2009. That's according to an e-mail sent from Microsoft to an unspecified partner company, which purportedly details a plan to work with other buddies in pushing that deadline out another half year. Given the results thus far, we suppose we're not too surprised to hear that firms are still clamoring for the XP option, but one wonders when this madness will ever end. Will folks really be opting for XP on new machines after Windows 7 is out? [Via Download Squad]
Leadtek intros SpursEngine-packing PCI-E card
Well, it looks like Toshiba isn't just keeping its Cell-based SpursEngine chip confined to its laptops and super-resolution DVD players, as Leadtek has now also taken the wraps off a PCI-E card that'll let you add some of that "faster than real-time" HD video transcoding to your desktop PC. Dubbed the WinFast PxVC1100, the card promises to encode and decode H.264, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 video with ease (and entirely in hardware), and it includes 128MB of 1.6GHz XDR memory to aid in the process. Just don't expect it to come cheap, as the card's apparenlty set to demand ¥30,000 (or $286) when it hits Japan later this month.
[Via Custom PC]
[Via Custom PC]
Samsung takes eco-friendly to the desktop with MV100 and MZ100
HP's TouchSmart IQ506 gets reviewed, dissected
[Thanks, Janet]
Sony makes the JS1 and sister laptop NS1 official
[Via Digital Drops]
Acer Aspire Predator and matching G24 LCD hit the States
Mac Pros accused of emitting toxic gas, placing blame on someone else
Just when Apple has started to make some friends at Greenpeace, it looks like another one of its fine products might be a wee bit toxic. According to the French newspaper Liberation, that mysterious stench emanating from your Mac Pro contains benzene -- which can irritate the eyes, skin and respiratory tract. Instead of being a mere inconvenience, that smell could be a cloud of poison gas that threatens to dizzy up, nauseate and migraine-ify you and everyone you care for. Apple has yet to issue a statement on any of this, but until it's all straightened out, those of you with the stinky Macs might want to seriously consider wearing a hazmat suit when checking your email.
Update: Apple tells Macworld that "We have not found anything that supports this claim, but continue to investigate it for the customer." Funny -- that's exactly what we used to say during long car rides.
Update: Apple tells Macworld that "We have not found anything that supports this claim, but continue to investigate it for the customer." Funny -- that's exactly what we used to say during long car rides.
[Via the Guardian]
Ballmer says "Windows Cloud" OS will debut this month
While a good chunk of this month's Professional Developers Conference will be focused on Windows 7, it looks like Microsoft has another little surprise up its sleeve, with CEO Steve Ballmer himself dropping word that the company also plans to introduce its new, tentatively-titled "Windows Cloud" OS at the conference. Of course, Ballmer isn't about to get very specific about the OS just yet, though he does seem to be dampening expectations a bit by saying, "just like Windows Server looked a lot like Windows but with new properties, new characteristics and new features, so will Windows Cloud look a lot like Windows Server." He also apparently confirmed that geo-replication and other features "designed for the cloud" would be built into the OS, and he confirmed the existence of Midori, but said it was still in the incubation phase, adding that, "the guy in the office next door to somebody working on Midori is not supposed to know about Midori." We assume that also means that Windows Cloud is not Midori, but we'll know for sure once PDC gets underway on October 27th.
Media server concept from Toshiba doubles as mega D&D die
AMD debuts dirt cheap ATI Radeon HD 4550, HD 4350 graphics cards
NVIDIA managed to generate quite a bit of interest with its $59 GeForce 9400 GT graphics card, and it looks like rival AMD is now taking things one step further with not one but two cards that are even cheaper. Those include the $55 ATI Radeon HD 4550 and the $39 ATI Radeon HD 4350, which pack 512MB and 256MB of memory, respectively, along with some other surprisingly not too shabby specs. Namely, each card packs DirectX 10.1 support, an HDMI port with support for 7.1 channel audio, upscaling "beyond 1080p," and even support for ATI's CrossFireX technology in case you want to pair two of them up. As usual, you can expect the cards to be available from a whole host of different manufacturers, at least some of which should have cards available by October, if not sooner.
[Via bit-tech.net]
[Via bit-tech.net]
Dell pre-loading Iron Man, world asks "Why?"
While in the throes of customizing your dream machine over at Dell, weighing CPU cost vs. memory cost, would you click on a $19 option called "Iron Man movie with bonus content?" We sure wouldn't, but now you can, part of what the Director of Dell's Global Consumer Group is calling the company's "slow immersion into content as a major piece of the puzzle in terms of what consumers want from a PC." Right. The (surely DRM-riddled) film is available on any Inspiron, Studio, or XPS laptop or desktop, playable on that machine itself or through your choice of Windows Media Extender. Iron Man is the only film on offer now, but meaty palms are likely being pressed as you read this to drive other partnerships and more choices. This could let the company hook customers before even shipping their hardware, a potential advantage for what looks to be a looming content battle with Apple.[Thanks, SebS]
AMD's 45nm Shanghai enters production, next stops are Deneb, Istanbul
Ubuntu alpha apparently breaking hardware, shattering dreams
Well, it looks like the good times that are the Ubuntu alpha testing process hit a bit of a snag recently, as one of the latest kernels apparently had the nasty side effect of irreparably damaging some users' hardware -- specifically, certain Intel network cards. So far, it seems that only laptops have been affected by the bug, which corrupts the NVRAM used to store data like MAC addresses, but folks don't seem to be ruling out the possibility that it could affect desktops as well. What's more, while a warning has been added to the ISO download, it hasn't been pulled altogether, with the only explanation given being that it would delay the 8.10 release schedule too much. Not entirely surprisingly, that has prompted at least a few folks to give up on testing alpha versions of the OS, at least until this whole thing gets sorted out.[Thanks, JagsLive]
AMD said to be revising naming scheme for 45nm Phenom CPUs
Get out your processor score sheets, folks (both of you), 'cause it looks like your world is about to get shook up again. According to some unnamed "industry sources," AMD is going to be welcoming its new 45nm Phenom processors by slightly revising its conventional naming scheme, although it's not going quite so far as to ditch the main Phenom X3 and Phenom X4 branding all together. Instead, it's supposedly going to be switching the model numbers from four to five digits, with the lower-end processors following a 1xx00 format and the higher-end CPUs using a 20xx0 scheme. That, of course, is being done in the name of "simplifying" things, although we'll let you be the judge if that's the first word that pops in your mind or not when you take a glance at the table available at the read link below.
