SECURITY...

• Increased Security With Windows Server 2003 Service Pack - Windows released the first service pack update for Windows Server 2003 software yesterday. Service pack 1 promises a more secure environment for users and a stronger system capable of thwarting Internet attacks. A new firewall and security configuration wizard have been added to the service pack, along with all the minor security updates released by Microsoft since the server software was released.
• "Brad Pitt" virus targets Microsoft - Hackers have released a self-spreading worm, called Ahker-F, that promises salacious movie clips of the celebrities. The e-mails contain text such as: "Watch Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt cought (sic) on TAPE! SEXY CLIP! WATCH IT!" Attached to the e-mail is a .Zip file that contains the worm. If opened, the worm spreads to the user's e-mail contacts, disables security settings on the PC, and launches a denial-of-service attack against Microsoft's security update Web site.
• Microsoft Files 117 Suits in Fight Against "Phishing" - Microsoft has filed 117 lawsuits against unknown Internet site operators who used "phishing" schemes to obtain personal and financial information from unsuspecting consumers, the world's largest software maker said on Thursday.
• Microsoft Expands Windows Piracy Check - The Redmond, Washington-based software maker has gradually been expanding the piracy check, beginning with certain international versions of Windows XP. Currently Download Center visitors using Norwegian, Czech, and Simplified Chinese versions of Windows are required to validate their copy of Windows.

OFFTOPIC...

• "Bionic eye" may help reverse blindness - The eye implant - a 3-millimetre-wide chip that would fit behind the retina - could be a dramatic step above currently available technology, says the team at Stanford University, California, US. For the device to work, the microchip would have to be implanted behind the retina of the blind person. The patient would wear goggles mounted with a small video camera. Light enters the camera, which then sends the image to a wireless wallet-sized computer for processing. The computer transmits this information to an infrared LED screen on the goggles. The goggles reflect an infrared image into the eye and on to the retinal chip, stimulating photodiodes on the chip. The photodiodes mimic the retinal cells by converting light into electrical signals, which are then transmitted by cells in the inner retina via nerve pulses to the brain.
• New Movie Trailers @ Comingsoon.net - Batman Begins | Bewitched | Fantastic Four | Guess Who (QuickTime trailer for the #1 comedy) | Kontroll | The Devil's Rejects (Rob Zombie horror film) | Turtles Can Fly | Oldboy (Asian thriller) | Red Eye | Unleashed | Walk on Water (four clips from the Israeli drama)

TECHNOLOGY...

• Microsoft Windows XP x64 RTM - Microsoft has announced that Windows XP Professional x64 has been RTM. MSDN subscribers can download ISO files of the RTM build immediately, while the rest of us will have to wait till x64 becomes commercially available in late April. Microsoft still plans to offer a special program which will allow legitimately purchased copies of 32-bit XP Professional to be traded in for copies of the new 64-bit variant.
• 16x DVD-RAM to start in July - The DVD-Forum has announced some details for the upcoming 16x DVD-RAM format at the European verification seminar, held in Reutte (Austria) on March 29th. CDFreaks translated some additional info from the German website Heise online.
• Sony's PSP Selling Well But Not Sold Out - Analyst - Sony Corp.'s new handheld video game unit, the PlayStation Portable, is selling well but is far from sold out at stores nationwide, an analyst said on Thursday. One week after the $249 PSP package was launched in the United States, American Technology Research found that only 50 of 150 stores surveyed nationally in the last two days were sold out. Another 15 stores had three or fewer units left.
• Mac OS X Tiger Goes Gold - Following up yesterday's story, AppleInsider now reports that Tiger build 8A428 has been deemed the Gold Master for shipping

HARDWARE... 

• Nvidia's nForce4 for Intel to arrive on April 6 - Nvidia will launch its nForce4 Intel Edition media and communications processor (MCP), which supports Nvidia's scalable link interface (SLI) graphics architecture on April 6, according to the company. The new MCP for Intel's Pentium 4 platform, which was unveiled at CeBIT 2005, will be featured on motherboards from at least eight Taiwan-based motherboard makers. Motherboard makers Abit Computer, Asustek Computer, Gigabyte Technology and Micro-Star International (MSI) said they have already prepared Nvidia nForce 4 SLI-based motherboards supporting Pentium 4 CPUs for their high-end product lines, especially for the gaming segment. The boards are expected to be priced at about US$200, which was confirmed by sources at Abit for its new Fatal1ty board.
• Dell Axim X50v Pocket PC - The powerful Dell Axim X50v Pocket PC features a large 3.7" VGA display that provides brilliant, clear images at 640x480 resolution. This was previously unheard of in a handheld device. The large viewing area makes documents easy to see so you can work smart and fast. In addition to the big screen display, the X50v features the fastest CPU ever placed inside a Pocket PC; an Intel XScale PXA270 Processor running at 624MHz.
• Intel Pentium 4 3.73GHz Extreme Edition - Viperlair has posted a review on the Intel Pentium 4 3.73GHz Extreme Edition.
• nForce 4 SLI MoBo Round-UP (DFI vs. Gigabyte vs. MSI) - HotHardware.Com has posted a nForce 4 SLI MoBo roundup
• BFG Tech GeForce 6600 GT OC - Bjorn3D has posted a review of BFG Tech GeForce 6600 GT OC.
• EVGA e-GeForce 6600GT PCI-E SLI - AMD Gamer takes a look at the EVGA e-GeForce 6600GT PCI-E SLI video card.
• Dual 6600GT vs Dual 6800: the SLIdown - TCMagazie has posted a comparison review between the Dual 6600GT vs Dual 6800.
• Samsung SATA 120 GB Hard Drive - Even though the Maxtor had a stated slower access time, it flew. While I don't like Maxtor as much as Samsung, the drive was faster. If you are looking to improve your system performance, Maxtor's SATA drive is a quicker drive than Samsung's SATA. To really improve performance, always go with a RAID setup.
• LiteOn SOHW-1673s - Overclockers Online has published a review of the LiteOn SOHW-1673S
• Cooler Master AQUAGATE Mini R120 Water Cooling System Video-review - The Cooler Master AQUAGATE Mini R120 allows anyone to dive into water cooling! No expert knowledge is needed to quickly and easily set up this system on any computer system. There are no worries about cutting and connecting tubes, placement of components, or even periodic maintenance. It's as simple as water cooling gets, but still performs very well.
• Samsung SyncMaster 243T 24-inch LCD - With a sticker price in the region of $2700 CDN ($2230 USD), the Samsung SyncMaster 243T is a high end solution ideally suited for commercial and demanding office applications, or consumers with a very deep pocket who demand high resolution screen real estate for their computing needs. Gamers might not appreciate this screen if they are fixated on pixel response times. Few LCDs compare favourably to CRT monitors for gaming.

GUIDES... 

• Recovering Windows Password Cache Entries - This whitepaper explains the technical issues underneath Windows password cache entries, which are undocumented by Microsoft.

SOFTWARE...