Friday Tech Reading - tech
(hx) 05:36 PM CEST - Oct,22 2004
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- Google patches one security hole, but another surfaces - Search
engine darling
Google Inc. has patched a hole in its search engine the could have allowed
malicious hackers to modify the content of the Google search results page or
silently modify search results, but a new hole may have already appeared. The
vulnerability concerns the Google Custom WebSearch service, which allows
third-party Web portals and other Web sites to use Google's servers to search
content on their Web site. A flaw in Google's Web servers allowed malicious
hackers to insert javascript instead of links to image files, allowing them to
alter the appearance of the Google search results page or steal search data.
After being alerted to the hole, Google fixed the vulnerability, said Nathan
Tyler, a Google spokesman.
- 53 arrested in phishing crackdown -
Brazilian police
have arrested 53 people for allegedly stealing $30m (L16m) from online
bank accounts. The crackdown, involving 160 police officers, took place across
four states in North Brazil. Suspects are believed to have targeted thousands
of online banking customers by sending emails containing Trojan horses, a type
of virus able to collect information on internet bank accounts.
- Internet Explorer is the Chenresi of bad code -
MSIE is
more tolerant of bad HTML than other browsers, according to research
carried out by a Polish security researcher. Michal Zalewski has published his
preliminary results on the Bugtraq security mailing list. Zalewski used a
program to generate tiny, razor-sharp shards of malformed HTML which he could
use to test recent versions of internet Explorer, Mozilla, Netscape, Firefox,
Opera, and two text browsers Lynx and Links. All the browsers but internet
Explorer kept crashing on a regular basis due to NULL pointer references,
memory corruption, buffer overflows, sometimes sheer memory exhaustion.
- Microsoft Records 106 Million SP2 Downloads - According to
Microsoft,
the 106
million distributions mainly encompasses consumers and small business
customers. A company spokesperson could not quantify the number of enterprises
that have deployed the update, but claimed that customers were reporting "good
results."
- Microsoft: Still no free 250 MB Hotmail accounts -
Microsoft
is being slow to deliver the free 250MB mail storage it promised earlier
this year. It has offered 2GB mail space but for a price of $19.99 per year.
Many readers have written to say that Hotmail had promised a free upgrade to
250MB by the end of the September. Gmail offers 1 GB but its still private
club with invite only while Yahoo mail will offer you 100 MB's for free and
anybody can sing.
- Xbox Live! Security Steps Up - The Xbox Live team has noticed and
received reports from the Xbox Live community about users connecting to the
Xbox Live service using modified Xbox consoles. In most cases, these users
have used the modifications to gain an unfair advantage over other players,
such as racing modified, faster cars in Project Gotham Racing 2. By doing
this, users are breaking the Terms of Use that must be agreed to when a
gamertag is created. The Xbox Live team will not tolerate this unfair activity
and have taken steps to protect our community from this cheating.
Xbox Live has recently initiated additional security measures to ensure
that those connecting to Xbox Live with modified hardware will be removed from
the system. Modified consoles will be banned, and information about those
banned machines will be tracked to prevent them from connecting to the service
again.
- Swatch, Microsoft Eye Wrists - Microsoft Corp. and watch maker
Swatch are offering
a new line
of wireless data watches (photo),
the companies said yesterday, bringing the era of Dick Tracy wristwatch radios
one step closer. The watches offer news, sports, weather and stock quotes,
among other snippets of content, via Microsoft's MSN Direct wireless data
service. Twice the number of information channels of earlier Microsoft-based
models are available. The watches come with three levels of service. Each
comes with free local weather, news headlines and stock-index levels. For $40
a year, users can receive more weather data, personalized news and sports
scores, stock quotes, horoscopes and the like. For $60 annually, they can
receive instant messages and calendar reminders from their PC if they use
Microsoft Outlook software.
- J.P. Stewart - A new hobby: putting Windows XP in your car -
This is a different kind of video. It's not of someone talking about a
Microsoft product. It's about a Microsoft employee's hobby.
- Intel Cancels Plan to Enter Digital TV Chip Market -
Intel said it has scrapped plans to enter the digital television chip business,
marking a retreat from a major component of its consumer electronics
initiative. The cancellation, which follows a string of missteps by the
world's largest chip maker, eliminates a major competitive threat faced by
Texas Instruments Inc., whose own chips for rear-projection televisions have
become a successful enterprise.
- iRiver ships Linux portable media players -
iRiver has formally introduced its Linux-based Portable Media Player (PMP)
family (photo)
in the UK. The device maker also said this week that it has cut the price of
its H series colour digital music players.
- Digital Audio Player's Hard Drive Hits 100GB - Carlsbad,
California-based Digital Mind (DMC) this week announced an update to its
Xclef 500, a Mac- and PC-compatible digital music player that the company
claims is the first to offer 100GB of storage capacity. The Xclef 500 connects
using a USB 2.0 interface and also accepts input from a built-in mic, line-in
audio connector, and S/PDIF optical mini plug. It features 20+ hour battery
life using a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, and supports built-in MP3
encoding, voice recording, FM radio, recording capability, and more.
- Never Fill a Digital Camera Memory Card Again -
Epson's new P-2000 Multimedia Storage Viewer features a 40GB hard drive
that you can use to store images from memory cards. That means you don't have
to worry about running out of card space or carrying a notebook along--just
insert the memory card into the P-2000, transfer the images, clear the card,
and start shooting again. Each of the two built-in memory card slots supports
CompactFlash Type I and Type II and Secure Digital memory cards--an optional
third-party adapter supports additional cards. The P-2000 has a 3.8-inch
display for viewing JPEG images. Its 40GB capacity is enough to store about
5000 RAW-format images and up to 10,000 5-megapixel JPEG images, according to
Seiko Epson representatives.
- Intel Boosts Centrino's Speed -
The Pentium M 765 processor ($637) runs at a clock speed of 2.1 GHz and
includes 2MB of Level 2 cache and support for a 400-MHz front-side bus.
Previously, the Pentium M 755 was the fastest processor in the line with a
clock speed of 2 GHz. The introduction of the new processors follows recent
price cuts on Intel's mobile processors. On October 17, Intel cut the price of
the Pentium 755 by 33.6 percent, from $637 to $423 in 1000-unit quantities,
according to the price list posted on the company's Web site.
- AMD, Intel Stick with Speed for Gamers - McCarron said that as
both AMD and Intel prepare to unveil new, ultra high-end processor
refreshes later this month that will push the 3.5 GHz mark, the companies are
cutting it close when it comes to having machines with the chips available
this holiday season. However, because of the loyal nature of the market and
the fact that system replacement is far more likely with extreme gamers, the
companies should be able to pull it off, according to McCarron. He added that
in the ultra-high end desktop market, a new version means that all previous
versions are no longer of value.
- 90 nano Winchester Athlon 64s for sale -
A Japanese website reports that shops are selling Athlon 64 using the 939
socket and the Winchester 90 nanometre core. Akiba Ascii 24 reports that five
types of AMD Athlon 64s are being sold - the 3000+, the 3200+, the 3500+, the
3800+ and the 4000+. (thanks
TheInqurer)
- No Fake "Power Color" Cards in the USA, Says Local Representative -
An official for PowerColor Computer Inc., a subsidiary of Tul Corporation
based in the City of Industry, California, said
the company has not ship allegedly fake RADEON 9600 PRO SKUs into the USA
and that the country’s market is free of forged graphics cards reported to be
available in some other countries.
- Corsair Offers 550MHz DDR Modules with Reduced Latencies -
Corsair's new "DDR550" memory modules will be available as 1GB
dual-channel optimized kits – TwinX1024-4400C25 and TwinX1024-4400C25PT. The
company says that its new modules function with CL2.5 4-4-8 latency settings,
down from CL3 4-4-8 timings of the previous incarnation of Corsair's "PC4400"
DDR SDRAM.
- nForce4 motherboards pictured - The XtremeSystems Forums have
snagged
some interesting pictures of upcoming nForce4 motherboards from Foxconn,
MSI, Tyan, Epox, ECS, Chaintech, and DFI
- MSI's nForce4 PCI-E/SLI boards - The K8N Diamond with Nvidia SLI
technology
can accelerate the 3D performance by over 180% via two SLI-ready graphics
cards. The Nvidia nForce4 chipset features configurable PCI Express lanes for
SLI technology, and the graphics interface can be set as a single PCI Express
x16 or dual PCI Express x8. The other new interface is SATA2 which supports
data transfer rates up to 3GB/sec - twice the speed of SATA1. The NVRAID 2.0
can obtain unmatched storage performance with SATA2 hard drives in the wink of
an eye. Its scalability can also configure the disk array across SATA and IDE
hard drives as single RAID.
- Crucial Ballistix 1GB (2x512) PC3200 review -
The memory performed like a champ and I would not hesitate to recommend it
to any one. There are a lot of companies at the moment trying to be the King
of the low latency memory market and I think I can safely say that crucial is
one of the top runners in that figh. So whether you're a high performance
freak or just a casual user you can't go wrong with Crucial and its Ballistix
line of high performance memory products
- ASUS V9999 Gamer Edition Graphics Card review -
ASUS V9999 Gamer Edition graphics card left a wholly positive impression –
we just couldn't find any defect in it, however negligible. It seems like the
manufacturer gave thought to every small detail, forgetting nothing, which is
a rare thing. Highest performance, six operational vertex processors,
efficient cooling system with a copper heatsink, beautiful appearance and
generous accessories all contribute to making the V9999 Gamer Edition into a
wanted product. The device is free from the main disadvantage of the original
GeForce 6800 design – slow memory. Having a higher-clocked memory, the ASUS
card scored well in our tests, quite comparably to the most dangerous rival,
the RADEON X800 PRO.
- Graphics comparison chart updated - TechReport have updated their
handy
graphics comparison chart, adding a stack of new graphics cards. The
comparison chart will give you a good idea how the various graphics options
stack up in terms of pipeline configuration, fill rate, and memory bandwidth,
but keep in mind that there are a few manufcturer-specific SE, LE, 64-bit, and
Golden Ultra Turbo Sample Editions out there that don't necessarily match.
- The Coolermaster Dual Storm: Will Two Fans Double Cooling Performance?
- Things are best done in pairs - at least, that's what Coolermaster
probably thought
when it equipped the Dual Storm with two fans. But the concept pans out:
with the Hyper6, thermal resistance decreases, and air is also transported
away from the "dead spot" in the cooler's center. However, it only does that
reliably at low fan speed, because in the high-speed mode the Dual Storm
becomes unbearably loud. A user modding his or her chassis will especially
like the illumination. At a price of $29 (€29), however, this product is
hardly a bargain.
- Kingston DataTraveler II, II Plus, and Elite flash drives review -
The maximum average read speed (21.2MB/s attained by the DataTraveler II
Elite) is very close to the speed of an external 7200RPM hard drive
connected via USB2.0. The interface has finally matured and Kingston put their
skills to good use with this series of flash drives. Your best bet is a
DataTraveler II Plus; the II is too slow and the Elite may be slightly faster
and the software much better, but the price difference is hard to justify.
- Edimax Wireless 802.11g Network - Once you figure out that
you are
never going to get the 54Mbps that is the standard listing for 802.11g,
you still see you have the performance of a 10Mbps wire network. Wireless
networking is competing with Home PNA (but I find Home PNA is not very well
supported since wireless made the scene) and with PowerLine networking, which
uses your house electrical wiring for the network.
- Logitech MX1000 Laser Cordless Mouse review - According to Logitech
this new laser technology is 20 times more sensitive than even the best
LED based mice, which means that you can use it on virtually any surface.
- SilenX iXtrema Pro 400W Power Supply - After testing this PSU for
quite a long time, we concluded that its high power specs and complete
security besides its absolute silence even under heavy workloads, make it a
perfect solution for all types of uses, from the beginner to the experienced
hobbyst.
Voltage levels were very stable without incurring in overheating, which
makes us think that this PSU can deliver a lot more than we asked it for; it
is perfectly ready for really hefty workloads, keeping the low noise levels.
-
Samsung X10 Plus - Slim & Light Notebook review - The screen
is a 14.1in affair and is a very fine example of a good TFT display.
Unfortunately, the
resolution is limited to 1,024 x 768, which is a little disappointing
considering the physical size
- Microsoft Partner Pack for Windows XP - Microsoft has released a
free suite of software dubbed
the "Partner Pack", for computers running Windows XP. The free add-on pack
includes new Microsoft and 3rd party sofware items. Word is: "The Partner Pack
is the ultimate application package for your Windows XP PC. Install this
package and you will be able to play new games and have more fun, explore the
internet in new ways, keep in touch and share information with friends and
family, better protect your PC and do more with tools and desktop utilities."
- Apache 1.3.32 - The Apache Foundry has released new version of
their
1.3.x HTTPD servers (download)
- Safe XP 1.4.10.20-
Safe XP
allows users to quickly tweak various security and privacy related settings in
XP. The options include Media Player settings, Services settings (error
reporting, time synch, remote registry etc.), as well as and option to remove
items from the Start menu, network security settings and more.
- NVIDIA DVD Decoder 1.00.58 -
NVIDIA
DVD Decoder (download)
enables the industry`s highest quality DVD and MPEG-2 playback and rich
surround sound audio for Windows Media Player and Windows Media Center
Edition.
- Messenger Plus! 3.25.106 -
Messenger Plus! Extension (download)
is a program that adds functionalities to the MSN Messenger/Windows Messenger
chat program. Some of the added features are logging, personalized Away
Messages, transparency effects, and a feature to minimize all MSN Messenger
windows to the system tray.
- Longhorn SideBar 4.0 -
This will add Longhorn SideBar on your Windows 98 or later with Active
Desktop features.
- Ignition [CD/DVD optimizer] v2.9.0.49 -
This CD/DVD
burning optimizer helps you saving space on your media by optimizing the
way files are placed on the CDs/DVDs of your set. For example if your backup
fits on 3-4 CDs, a manual files organazation might lead on a 4th with only 10
Mb of data when a better organization would have only required 3 CDs.
- CodeGuys EEPROM Utility for Lite-On DVD+/-RW drives -
The CodeGuys
released a new tool called
CodeGuys
EEPROM Utility . With this tool you can backup and restore the
EEPROM of your Lite-On DVD+/-RW drives. Another important feature is the
option to reset the "learned media calibration data", this can be very useful
when you have a bad burning quality and want set back your drive to "learn" it
again.
- VIA Hyperion Pro 64 4.51 Beta -
This package contains the drivers for Windows XP 64 and Windows Server 2003 64
bit only (original
FTP link), supporting the components for K8T800, K8T800Pro and K8M800
including VT8237 South Bridge: : AC97 audio, RAID drivers and the RAID tool
have all been updated. But don't get confused people! If you're not using a 64
bit operating system, these are not for you.
- NVIDIA NVFlash 5.10 -
With this utility it is possible to flash your NVIDIA graphics card with a
new BIOS. Of course make sure you create a backup of your original BIOS.
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Updated:11:14 PM CEST Jun,06
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