Thursday Tech Madness - tech
(hx) 09:37 PM CET - Feb,19 2004
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- Netsky.b worm spreading fast - Security experts have warned of
a new mass mailer
worm, W32/Netsky.b@MM, or Netsky.b. Antivirus software vendor McAfee's
Anti-Virus Emergency Response Team (Avert) said the worm is infecting PCs at a
rate of 40 to 50 an hour. A memory-resident mass mailer, the worm copies
itself to folders on drives C: to Z:, including the words 'shared' or
'sharing', presumably to achieve peer-to-peer propagation. After being
executed, the worm emails itself out as an attachment with a randomly chosen
file name.
- Windows XP Kernel NtSystemDebugControl() Flaws -
Several vulnerabilities were reported in the Windows XP kernel in some
debugging functions. A local user with 'SeDebugPrivilege' rights can execute
arbitrary code in kernel mode. The flaws reportedly reside in the
NtSystemDebugControl() function, which is exported by the
ZwSystemDebugControl() function (in ntdll.dll). The NtSystemDebugControl()
function reportedly executes in ring 0 (i.e., kernel mode). It is reported
that a local user with appropriate privileges can use the SYSENTER/SYSCALL
instructions (via the NtSystemDebugControl() function) to write to the
IA32_SYSENTER_EIP model specific register (MSR) and change the MSR to point to
the user's arbitrary code. No solution was available at the time of this
entry.
- Microsoft Announces New Xbox Live Features - Microsoft says,
encompasses (but is not necessarily limited to)
the following new Live features, which will gradually roll out over the
coming year: Team Dynamics (a structured clan system), Competitions (Tsunami
will let developers more easily implement different competitions into games)
and Title-Managed Online Storage (sharing user-created content).
- Ultrawideband in 2005, but only in America - Temporarily abandoning
the IEEE, Intel says that
UWB will be available in products by 2005 - if you live in the United
States. Intel on Wednesday pledged to remove the cables cluttering up homes as
it outlined its strategy to introduce a new generation of high-speed radio
networking. By 2005, the company said, a wide range of consumer electronics
devices would start to be able to communicate with each other over
ultrawideband wireless, which is a very high-speed, short-range networking
system. However, only the US has regulations in place that allow this, and the
company could give no date for European approval.
- Is your PC ready for Longhorn? - In an e-mail, the software maker
said
it will outline the required specifications for computers to run Windows
at WinHEC (the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference), which takes place May
4 to May 7 in Seattle.
- Philips, MediaTek expect to offer dual-layer DVD+R solution in 2Q -
Both Netherlands-based Philips Semiconductors and Taiwan-based MediaTek expect
to
begin offering solutions for dual-layer DVD+R technology in the second
quarter of this year at the earliest, according to sources.
- Mitsubishi Displays Reversible LCD - Mitsubishi Electric is
showing off a new LCD that can be viewed from both sides. The display,
which the company says is a world first, was developed initially for use in
clamshell-type cellular-telephone handsets and could help make such telephones
thinner and lighter.
- Grantsdale DX9 support limited to pixel shader only -
The integrated graphics component of Grantsdale, Intel's upcoming
mainstream Pentium 4 desktop chipset, supports only half of DirectX 9's key
shader functionality, it emerged today. Intel revealed earlier this week that
Grantsdale's integrated graphics core will support DirectX 9's Pixel Shader
2.0 specification. However, Desktop Products Group chipset marketing director
Bill Leszinske today confirmed that the core does not provide Vertex Shader
functionality. Geometry processing will be handled by the CPU, he said.
- Intel's 64 bit Doomsday Scenario - Intel has unleashed its
significant
PR clout to dash AMD's Tier-One hopes by brazenly adopting 64 bit extensions.
In doing so, Intel is also emulating its plucky rival AMD. This is the kind of
merciless backtracking that makes one love the monopolists.
- R420 Shows up at IDF - According to
Tweakers.net,
in a short part discussing the GDDR-3 graphics memory, which currently has
speeds in the range of 500 - 700MHz (1 - 1.4GHz effective) ATI demonstrated a
demo of the upcoming, DirectX9 heavy title, Colin McRae Rally 4 on R420, which
was quoted as running at 2 - 3 time faster than present DirectX9 capable
hardware (thanks Beyond3D)
- AMD Athlon
2500 vs 3000 -
The thing that should or could influence your decision on which one you buy
are things like whether the processor is unlocked or not. A good number of
3000's are still unlocked, but the problem is they tend to be rather poor
overclockers. Some find it hard to hit 200 x 11 so be advised it's not a
perfect world. But you will be able to adjust the multipliers and perhaps find
a sweet spot where you can run at a slightly higher speed than stock.
AOpen Aeolus GeForce FX 5900XT | Chaintech GeForce FX 5900XT | MSI
FX5900XT comparison -
The cards do differ from the FX 5900 we've seen before. Will this PCB be
able to run with the faster 2.2ns memory in order to move the standard FX 5900
(non-Ultra!) to the new base? - It's not clear yet. However, the rumor
predicts the arrival of a kind of FX 5900XT Turbo (a curious combination of
the suffixes isn't it?), which will have the new PCB combined with the 2.2ns
memory.
Fluance 5 Speaker Surround Sound Home Theater PC System SX-HTB -
SubzeroTech has posted
a review of Fluance 5 Speaker Surround Sound Home Theater PC System
SX-HTB. "When listening to music I was immediately aware of how cozy the
speakers sounded. They really could produce what sounded like a room, a real
room with real musicians. The depth of field was uncanny. The bass, as I
mentioned before was also surprising in that sitting on a couch 15 feet in
front of the towers I was bombarded with convincing low frequencies, enough to
make the pirate ships in POTC really creak by in a big way. Furthermore the
audio sensation that is the ROTJ speeder bike seen can only be summed up as
sensory overload. I tested with so many films, but the favorite was probably
LOTR: the DVD sound and video was faithfully reproduced with anomalous Elvish
voices scintillating above you, with irrepressible thunder rolls coursing
throughout the sound stage. It is something to experience, and as an upgrade
for a home theater and a PC sound system the results are really self
explanatory"
LITE-ON LDW-851S DVD+/- R/RW review - LITE-ON IT, in its latest
attempt at optical drive perfection have re-introduced
their
8X4X/4X2X DVD±R/RW with different optics. This new drive carries the
incremental model number of LDW-851S as opposed to the LDW- 811S of the older
version. Some say these new optics were introduced because their old supplier
couldn’t keep up with LITE-ON's production, other are speculating that these
new optics will usher in their newer line which will burn 8x on BOTH DVD+R and
DVD-R instead of just 8x for DVD+Rs. This will make many people in the DVD-R
camp extremely happy as the DVD burning enthusiasts consider DVD-R the
superior media form.
MSI CR52 CD Writer review - So where does this place
the MSI CR52? Well, in a very good position as it’s rated at 52-speed for
writing CD-Rs, 32-speed for writing CD-RW and 52-speed for reading CDs, which
makes it one of the fastest CD writers around.
Eumax H5001 RF Wireless Optical Mouse -
The Eumax
H5001 RF Wireless Optical Mouse performed quite well, though its small
button size did result in a larger number of missed clicks. Our only
significant concern we could find with the H5001 is that its resolution would
likely prove too limited for those seeking an input solution for gaming.
However, it is doubtful any serious gamer would ever be caught using a $25
mouse.
Chieftec Silver Dragon review -
The Chieftec Silver Dragon offers the budget minded case shopper a
considerable list of features for an aluminum case that retails for less than
$100.00. Dual rear 80mm fans, placement for a pair of 80mm front located fans,
massive side window with locking side panel and door. Perhaps with a total of
10 bays to fill you could find something to fill them all.
Heatsink Roundup - Techwarelabs brings you
its first major heatsink review for some time. The products that qualified
for the review came from Cooler Master, Thermalright, OCZ, and Microfins. In
addition to providing a review of heatsink cooling solutions, a review of
Arctic Silver's new Ceramique thermal compound is included as advances in
thermal transfer technologies are passed on to consumer-level products.
New ForceWare graphics drivers on 1st March -
NVIDIA is planning to release a new set of WHQL ForceWare graphics drivers
within the next couple of weeks. Referred to as the Release 55 drivers,
version 56.56 was to have been posted today, but was delayed due to a bug that
would have affected the performance of the new Unreal Tournament 2004 demo. In
related news, Neoseeker has posted
a preview of Forceware 56.56 Drivers, another NVIDIA ForceWare 55 Hands-On
can be found at
HotHardware (tnx NeoNSX).
Timedemos For UT2k4 Demo - 3DCentre have posted two time demos (assault
~
flyby) for benchmarking the Unreal Tournament 2004 Demo
OpenOffice.org 1.1.1b review - FlexBeta has posted
a review of OpenOffice.org 1.1.1b.
Linux kernel 2.4.25 - Marcelo Tosatti released
the 2.4.25
kernel, unchanged from the earlier 2.4.25-rc4.
Kernel 2.6.3 Final - Linux Kernel has been updated with few patches
and made official
stable release.
SQL Server Web Data Administrator -
The SQL Server Web Data Administrator enables you to easily manage your
SQL Server data, wherever you are. Using its built-in features, you can do the
following from Microsoft Internet Explorer or your favorite Web browser:
Create and edit databases in SQL Server 2000 or Microsoft SQL Server 2000
Desktop Engine (MSDE 2000), Perform ad-hoc queries against databases and save
them to your file system, Export and import database schema and data, Manage
users and roles, View, create and edit stored procedures.
ASP.NET Resource Kit 1.1 -
The ASP.NET Resource Kit is an essential resource for any web developer
whether you're already using ASP.NET today, or looking to learn ASP.NET. The
kit contains step-by-step instructions for getting started with ASP.NET, free
controls from third party vendors, access to great ASP.NET hosting deals and
more.
Diagnostic Tool for the Microsoft VM 1.0 -
The Diagnostic Tool for the Microsoft VM can be used to scan one or more
computers to detect the presence of MSJVM and MSJVM-related software.
Adobe Reader Speed-Up 1.13 -
Adobe Reader Speed-Up significantly decreases the amount of time required
for Adobe Reader 6.0 to start by disabling most of the least used plugins.
Plugins can be freely enabled and disabled, if required. Currently supports
free and full versions of Adobe Acrobat v3.0, v4.0, v4.0.5, v5.0, v5.1, v5.5,
and Adobe Reader v6.0 and v6.0.1.
Google Toolbar 2.0.107 -
The Google Toolbar (download)
increases your ability to find information from anywhere on the web and takes
only seconds to install. When the Google Toolbar is installed, it
automatically appears along with the Internet Explorer toolbar. This means you
can quickly and easily use Google to search from any website location, without
returning to the Google home page to begin another search.
Zoom Player 3.31 Final -
Zoom Player is a robust Media and DVD Front-End Player. It was designed to
be simple at first glance while being remarkably dynamic and flexible when
used to its full potential and works in two modes.
DVDShrink v3.1.6 beta 2 -
DVD Shrink
is software to backup DVD discs. You can use this software in conjunction with
DVD burning software of your choice, to make a backup copy of any DVD video
disc.DVD Shrink will also burn your backup DVD, if you have installed the
latest version of Nero.
MemTest86+ 1.11 -
Memtest86+ is a thorough, stand alone, OS independent memory test for x86
architecture computers, based on the well-known original Memtest86. It
supports the latest technologies. MemTest86+ creates a bootable diskette or
CD.
LiteOn firmware - Lite-On has released
a new firmware versions for the LDW-451S and LDW-851S DVD recorders.
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Updated:03:04 PM CEST Jun,20
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