Buffalo, the Japanese computer peripheral maker, is the first manufacturer to release a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 external hard drive and USB 3.0 external 12x Blu-ray Burner. The BR-X1216U3 is able to burn a 25GB Blu-ray disc in 11 minutes at 12x when USB 3.0 is used. If USB 2.0 is used, the drive will be restricted to 7x. The HD-HXU3, external Hard drive performs like an internal drive when USB 3.0 is used. The price is still rather high for the new technology, but with time as other manufacturers release their products, it will surely come down. Currently both USB 3.0 devices are only available in Japan, but will soon be available here the in the states.
Buffalo On A Roll With USB 3.0 devices
November 30th, 2009Hardware-Accelerated Graphics Coming to A Browser Near You
November 30th, 2009Last Week at Microsoft’s Developer Conference, Microsoft unveiled a few tidbits about Internet Explorer 9. One of the new features to be unveiled pertains to hardware-accelerated graphics and text will be supported through Direct2D and DirectWrite technologies. What this essentially means that online games played through your browser will be able to take advantage of the graphics power of your computer to bring you stunning improvements, such as improved visuals, clearer text, and better mouse tracking. The new feature will only be available for Internet Explorer 9 users running Windows 7 or Vista.
Microsoft’s Internet Explorer isn’t the only browser on the way with hardware-accelerated graphics. Mozilla Firefox is also slated to have the technology built into a future release. So, the world of online browser-based gaming in about to a major upgrade regardless of which browser you prefer.
Recent Activity & Thanksgivings
November 30th, 2009Over the last week or two, I’ve provided two customers and both of my brothers with Windows 7 Home Premium. My parents’ copy will be arriving today. I had a few appointments, one involving a vague Internet problem that turned out to be a failing wireless adapter, and another regarding a slow desktop PC in desperate need of an upgrade. My grandmother was sent to the hospital Wednesday, where she stayed until Saturday afternoon due to dehydration. She is doing much better now.
The four installs of Windows 7 gave me an opportunity to learn something new. Windows 7 comes as a DVD disc. Two of the systems that received Windows 7 were using Intel Pentium 4 socket 478 processors. The motherboards were from different manufacturers but produced around the same time about four or five years ago. However, whenever I tried to boot to the DVD disc, I would receive a CD error. After swapping in and out several test DVD drives, and successfully booting from a Windows XP CD disc, I came to the realization that booting to DVD isn’t supported on older systems.
In these cases, the best solution that I’ve found is to use Windows XP Home, Professional, and early versions of Media Center Edition (since they’re available on CD) as the launch pad for the installation. After installation, a clean (unformatted) installation can complete successfully. I suspect that the problem also affects Vista DVD discs, but since very few people upgraded to Vista, I never encountered this short-coming.
The appointments that I had since my last blog involved a notebook PC with a vague Internet problem and a desktop in need of a memory upgrade. I brought the notebook home after backing up customer data onsite to the customer’s external hard drive. After connecting it to my KVM and wired network, I proceeded to check the system out for the usual causes of Internet issues. After cleaning up and configuring the system for optimal performance, I returned the system to the customer. I connected to their network and browsed a few pages. The pages loaded quickly. A couple of hours later, I received a call that the system was unable to connect to their wireless network. I returned and reexamined the patient in regard to its wireless connectivity. I examined their wireless network environment and ultimately, came to the realization that the notebook’s wireless adapter was beginning to fail. They wanted to obtain the needed component themselves, I recommended a replacement.
For the desktop customer, I gave the machine a full work up and removed several pieces of malware, optimized settings for performance, and ordered 2 GB of RAM and a Linksys Wireless PCI adapter for the system. The parts arrive today. When I return the system tomorrow, I will examine their network environment and optimize it for best performance, including relocating their wireless router to a more central location. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Finally, my grandmother was sent to the hospital over Thanksgiving with dehydration. She went to the ER on Wednesday. They ran tests and immediately began to give her fluids. She began to improve immediately. There had been talk that she would be coming home, however, her doctors wanted to keep her in the hospital under observation. On Saturday, she came home. Last night we had our delayed Thanksgiving dinner, thankful that my grandmother was home where she belonged.
Google’s Chrome OS Coming to Netbooks in Late 2010
November 20th, 2009Google recently released the current build for Google Chrome OS, an open source operating system designed to run on low-cost netbooks. Chrome OS’s primary interface will be an enhanced version of their Chrome browser. Some reports indicate that Google’s Gears will be part of the OS enabling users to use some apps offline, although the vast majority of the apps used on Chrome OS will be Internet based apps. The new systems will be able to boot quickly, some estimates say in as much as seven seconds. Supported hardware apparently will be kept to a minimum, since the devices will be primarily Internet-only devices. The netbooks will only support small solid state (flash) hard drives that will primarily be used to store documents, emails, and other types of data temporarily until it can be sent to Google. All of the data sent to Google will be encrypted and stored on and backed up to Google’s servers and will instantly follow you to your next Google Chrome OS-based netbook. Although it is too early to tell how successful Google’s Chrome OS will be, it is apparent that they are looking at a very specific niche – Internet users.
LED Tattoos Coming Soon To A Tattoo Parlor Near You
November 20th, 2009Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a silk and silicon implant that sits under the skin transforming it into an LCD screen. The implant is smaller than a grain of rice and can be controlled by other implants to display whatever content you choose when combined with bioluminescent ink. Some of the preliminary uses being envisioned by researchers include an implantable blood sugar monitor, GPS maps on the back of your hands, and even ads displayed on human billboards. Phillips has an idea for how this technology can be used with touch sensors to provide an intriguing sexual experience. Click this link to view their video – View discretion is advised. So, the next time someone looks down at a bare wrist and says “Look at the time, I’ve gotta run.” They may be looking at an LED wristwatch tattoo displaying not only the current time, but their entire schedule for the day.