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Pic of the Week

Member Submitted picture of the week. If you would like to submit a picture that you would like us to post, send your picture along with a brief description and title of the picture and why you want it posted. Please send all pictures in JPEG format.


A sign of our wastefullness and ingenuity simultaneously, and the constant throughout all areas and applications of technology; the heatsink.

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GTX 480

Visual computing giant Nvidia has recently released their newest iteration of graphics processing technology, termed the GTX 400 series and led by the flagship add-in video card the GTX 480 (aka "Fermi" by its architecture name). This is a very long awaited piece of technology, and was taking with great amounts of criticism and praise simultaneously. It was meant to be a huge step in the direction of general purpose GPU computing, and a huge step in general. As obvious, as, there is no GTX 300 serious, only preceding is the GTX 200 series and then the jump to the current generation of the GTX 400 series.

The GTX 480 dissapates 250 watts of energy with this large heatsink

Nvidia has great competition. The flagship GTX 480 (pictured) sits price-wize inbetween the top two video cards of Nvidia's direct competition, and the other primary video card manufacturer, ATI. However, performance wise, the GTX 480 is only marginally faster than the less expensive high end part of ATI (namely the HD 5870), but more expensive. The GTX 480 is capable of drawing 250 watts, has 480 processing cores, as well as 1.5 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 384 bit bus, is almost 11" long, and cost $500. The power draw is also very poor when not in use, however, this is a very new GPU, and will most likely mature with time. All negative things present, still, mostly all buyers of the card are very happy. One might refer to this unit as a "beast", considering both negative and positive notes.

A Note about GPU's / Video Cards: Every personal computer has a video card (also known as GPU, graphics processing unit), it is how you see what the computer is doing to you. However, with many and most computers, it is possible to upgrade your video card for extended video performance, for purposes such as: playing high definition video, designing in visually based programs, or playing a video game.

 
April 19 2010
 
Technology
  


 


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GM Creating a "Heads Up Display" For Your Vehicle's Windshield

The currently being created technology makes use of infrared lasers to invisibly track the world outside of your car, and uses the information detected to display information on your windshield. This can enable a driver to track the lines on a road, without being able to visibly see them. The lines can be "drawn" with lasers onto the phosphorous surface that coats the windshield, the surface will be transparent, and will emit light when excited with the collision of photons from the lasers.

Because the entire windshield will be coated in the phosphorous compound, any part of the windshield can be used as a display, effectively, the screen onto which the lasers project. The can transform your entire windshield into a HUD, display critical information, and less critical information such as a GPS interface. The possibilities are essentially limitless. This could very well signal the end of the speedometer.

March 19 2010
 
Technology
  


 


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International Consumer Electronics Show, Las Vegas, 2010

At the dawn of every new year, the largest and highest wattage usage conglomerate of expos takes place; This is CES and it is held in Las Vegas, Nevada. CES is an opportunity for companies, offering essentially anything electronic, to display and show off their new and up coming products. Huge companies and manufacturers are here to contend for the attention of either the consumer, the dealer, or investor as he or she walks by. The huge companies are here, such as Intel and Microsoft, as well as small companies or even small groups of people renting space on the floor.

This year, CES takes place January 7-10. CES is a place of bright lights and many, many people. Technologies, such as 3D displays and 3D viewing technologies, that are merging onto the market are prominent at CES. 3D technology is one of the main focuses at CES, as it is a brilliant step forward in quality of visual technology that is becoming very readily available. However, 3D or not, you will never find so many TV's, monitors, projectors, and displays of any kind in one place.

See link below for pictures taken at the monolithic convention

CES 2010 Pictures

Jan 7 2010
 
Technology
  


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Lee Iacocca (responsible for saving the Chrysler Corporation from failure) has written a recently published book, "Where Have All The Leaders Gone?" Thereof Lee Iacocca says the following:

"Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder! We've got a  gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff,  we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean  up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid  car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'Stay the course..' Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned, 'Titanic'. I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the bums out!'. You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have.  But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore...

The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs...  While we're fiddling in Iraq , the   Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom-poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the ' America ' my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you? 

I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged.  This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have..."

"...Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory. Or send someone else’s kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield yourself. It’s another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down. On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A hell of a mess, so here's where we stand.

- We’re immersed in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving. 
- Obama is running the biggest deficit in the history of the country. 
- We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs. 
- Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy. Our schools are in trouble due to poor leadership in school districts. 
- Our borders are like sieves. 
- The middle class is being squeezed every which way. 
- These are times that cry out for leadership.

But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the   point.

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo? We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened. Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the hurricane or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in the crucial hours after the storm. 

Everyone’s hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again. Now, that’s just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time. Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do about it? Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debit, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry..."
 
"...I’m not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here.  I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope - I believe in America . In my lifetime, I've had the privilege of living through some of    America ’s greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst  crises: The 'Great Depression,' 'World War  II,' the 'Korean War,' the 'Kennedy Assassination,' the  'Vietnam War,' the 1970's oil crisis, and the struggles of recent  years culminating with 9/11.
 
 If I’ve learned one thing, it's this: 'You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. 
  
Only a few people in the US know you elected an illegal alien to be President! A Muslim at that! And he jumped right in destroying the US from the inside. Osama bin Laden is smiling from ear to ear because he is winning the war on terror and you helped by voting his man in as President!
  
That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a "Call to Action" for people who, like me, believe in America '. It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let’s shake off the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had ‘enough."

America has set an upstream course for itself, but we believe at some level we are still what once made us great.

We need leaders, intentional, positive, powerful people. The answer is NOT Obama. The answer is in every one of us, and they way we see our society. We must BE the change we seek, or no change shall be.


Nov 13 2009
 
American Society
 
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Watch this video regarding healthcare with respect to the ability of American society:
Nov 5 2009
 
Politics
  

 

 

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Windows Seven, Released

Microsoft has finished creating and has just released the latest instance of their Windows operating system. Be not fooled by negative advertisements, the product is showing great amounts of promise, winning the high regards of even those left with a bad taste in their mouths of Vista.

How does this affect you?

Another option for your choice of computer operating system now exists. One that has proven to be a great finished product. Windows Seven is more efficient, better designed, longer tested and innovation ready. So efficient infact, it was found running on a computer using a Pentium II processor (very slow and very old, equates to a very slow computer). That, in itself, is remarkable. Typically, newer software requires too much processing power for older hardware to be able to use it. This is a testament to efficiency and compatibility.

 

With the release of Windows Seven, the computer become just became more powerful yet.


Oct 22 2009
 
Technology
  

 

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President Awarded Nobel Peace Prize

Barack Obama, with an all respect to reason, humbled approach, accepted his Nobel Peace Prize; not with glory but with a projected rationality. He described the award not as gratification for any accomplishment, but as a "call to action". In his acceptance speech he without naming specific people compares himself to others who have received this same award. He agreeably states that he "does not deserve" the award. As displayed, hence, he justifies the situation not as a personal compliment but as an aforementioned "call to action". Click here to view a video of his speech.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee on record is said to have awarded him this prize on behalf of "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples." Obama had not been mentioned as a runner for the prize and the decision by Thorbjorn Jagland (chairman of Nobel committee) was surprising to most. The Nobel committee is said to recognize his efforts to create solutions to complex social problems, inclusive of a future without nuclear weapons.

The winner of each Nobel Peace Prize is chosen by a committee of five lawmakers elected by the Norwegian government. Self-nominations are not allowed.
Oct 10 2009
 
Politics
  

 

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Laser Keyboard

This is the pre-foreseen future, projected, literally. This is a keyboard designed for use with a cell phone or a PDA, and physically does not exists (except for the projector about the size of a matchbook). The bluetooth device tracks the movement of your hands, effectively watches you type and even makes sounds simulating a keyboard. As far as those notches on keys "F" and "J" for tracking your home row keys, not available at this time as you will be forced to look at where you're at.

The "bluetooh laser virtual keyboard" is avaliable for purchase for 150 US dollars.

Aug 22nd 2009
 
Technolgy
  
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Mac Security Flaw

To anyone who says that the Apple operating system is without flaw, or at least supremely secure... Well first ask them if they have researched beyond a commericial... A flaw in the core of the Mac OS X (Mac operating system 10) was recently published at Black Hat security conference of 4,000 attendees, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The flaw allows hackers to obtain information used to steal identity, such as online bank documents and transactions. The technique that exploits this flaw is used to obtain the scrambled identity information, and is known as "Machiavelli". Using this technique, it is possible to take control the OS's "Safari" browser and log passwords. An Apple spokesman could not be reached for comment, this is a reoccurring theme with Apple. Such as with the Iphone 3GS overheating and discoloring issue, and the dodgy delayed response to thereof. There is no magic cloud of superiority protecting Macs from internet threats, the fact is because they only hold a very small market share (~9%) they are a smaller target for hackers. There aren't less viruses for Macs because they are better, there are less viruses for Macs because there are less Macs.

A note on "Mac vs PC"

A fact is that Apple sells a state of mind, not a superior product. Superior marketing does not render a superior product. Until recently Windows had no ad campaign to retort to Apple's insulting "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" ads. With their "Laptop Hunter" ads came retort. Apple immediately requested that Microsoft pull the ads.

The modern PC is a excellent product at an amazing value, Apple knows this. Keep in mind this is regarding the laptop market, Windows has even more of a value advantage in the desktop market.

Aug 10th 2009
 
Technolgy
  

 

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IBM Roadrunner

Not just a computer, a super computer. And not just any super computer, the worlds fastest. The computer is located on our soil at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The $133 million computer is built using, believe it or not, average processors, most likely slower than the one in the computer you're viewing this with. However, it just so happens the roadrunner has 6,480 of those average processors. Specifically, an AMD Opteron @ 1.8 GHz, which is a dual core processor, and attached to each AMD core is an IBM PowerXcell 8i @ 3.2 GHz. It consumes 2.35 Megawatts of power, 6,000 square feet, and has 103.6 TiB of memory, that's roughly 100,000 GB.

Why?

It is used to calculate how nuclear materials are to age, among other uses within respective milieus such as the financial, automotive and aerospace industries.
July 12th 2009
 
Technolgy
  
     

 

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May 12th 2009

The Stockton Stingrays are a team of blind and visually-impaired athletes who play an adaptive form of baseball using a 16” beeping ball, four-foot buzzing bases and the help of sighted volunteers. Beep baseball is one of the few team sports accessible to the blind. It builds teamwork, perseverance, independence, confidence and leadership skills, as well as the players’ mental and physical condition. Through this sport these athletes get the opportunity to test their skills and determination against others from around the country. The 2009 National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) World Series will be hosted by the Stockton Stingrays at home base in Stockton, CA, July 26 through August 2 2009.

The atheletes are currently seeking new players and challengers, as well as volunteers and donations. Go stingrays!

 

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March 31st 2009

A potentially harmful virus is amidst us. Under the names of Kido, Downadup, and conficker, this in its latest variant, DOWNAD.AD, is appraised to have the ability to spread through networks and portable storage devices such as USB flash drives. The goal of this virus is to acquire a large network of infected PCs to in turn steal private information and send spam. Once the worm infects a PC it blocks it from microsoft websites and virus protection websites, so a remedy cannot be acquired. The virus even includes an algorithm to update infected PCs.

If your PC is not protected you can download state of the art protection directly from our site by going to the home page and clicking on the Trend Micro Internet Securty 2009 icon.

If you want to download the current patch for this vulnerability, Choose your operating system from the list below, download the file, then install it. If your operating system is not listed below, click here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poem of the Week

Poem of the Week submitted by our readers

  

 

A Poem About Technology

A computer was something on TV
From a sci fi show of note.
A window was something you hated to clean
And ram was the cousin of goat.

Meg was the name of my girlfriend
And gig was a job for the nights.
Now they all mean different things
And that really mega bytes.

An application was for employment.
A program was a TV show.
A curser used profanity.
A keyboard was a piano.

Memory was something that you lost with age.
A CD was a bank account.
And if you had a 3 1/2" floppy
You hoped nobody found out.

Compress was something you did to the garbage
Not something you did to a file.
And if you unzipped anything in public
You'd be in jail for a while.

Log on was adding wood to the fire.
Hard drive was a long trip on the road.
A mouse pad was where a mouse lived.
And a backup happened to your commode.

Cut you did with a pocket knife.
Paste you did with glue.
A web was a spider's home.
And a virus was the flu

I guess I'll stick to my pad and paper
And the memory in my head.
I hear nobody's been killed in a computer crash,
But when it happens they wish they were dead.

 

 

 

Joke of Week

Ancient Tech Support

The tech support problem dates back to long before the industrial revolution, when primitive tribesmen beat out a rhythm on drums to communicate:

This fire help. Me Groog

Me Lorto. Help. Fire not work.

You have flint and stone?

Ugh

You hit them together?

Ugh

What happen?

Fire not work

(sigh) Make spark?

No spark, no fire, me confused. Fire work yesterday.

*sigh* You change rock?

I change nothing

You sure?

Me make one change. Stone hot so me soak in stream so stone not burn Lorto hand. Small change, shouldn't keep Lorto from make fire.

*Grabs club and goes to Lorto's cave*

*WHAM*WHAM*WHAM*WHAM*

  

 

 

 

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