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| Price: | $154.89 |
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Saturday, April 14, 2007
SanDisk Sansa e280 8GB Digital Multimedia MP3 Player - SDMX4-8192-A70
Wi-Fi Bug Found in Linux
A bug has been found in a major Linux Wi-Fi driver that can allow an attacker to take control of a laptop-- even when it is not on a Wi-Fi network.
There have not been many Linux Wi-Fi device drivers, and this is apparently the first remotely executable Wi-Fi bug. It affects the widely used MadWi-Fi Linux kernel device driver for Atheros-based Wi-Fi chipsets, according to Laurent Butti, a researcher from France Telecom Orange, who found the flaw and released the information in a presentation at last month's Black Hat conference in Amsterdam.
"You may be vulnerable if you do not manually patch your MadWi-Fi driver," said Butti. Before making it public, he shared the flaw with the MadWi-Fi development team, who have released a patch. However, not all Linux distributions have yet built the patch into their code, said Butti.
The kernel stack-overflow bug lets an attacker run malicious code, and can be used even if the machine is not actively on a Wi-Fi network, according to Butti, who used "fuzzing" techniques which had been shown by David Maynor and "Johnny Cache" Jon Ellch, at last year's Black Hat USA conference, and previously exploited on Windows and
Macintosh systems.Linux users have previously suffered from a shortage of Linux drivers, and have campaigned to get wireless networks supported in the Linux kernel. With fewer Linux laptops on Wi-Fi networks, security experts-- and presumably hackers-- have taken longer to get round to Linux drivers, but issue of handling remote data at the kernel level can cause trouble on the open source OS just as easily as any other.
Butti has previously developed the RAW series of proof-of-concept hacker tools. He also found the Windows Wi-Fi flaw by fuzzing, during the Month of Kernel Bugs last year.
Intel may have upper hand in processor war, for now
Intel Corp. (Nasdaq:INTC - news), the world's largest chipmaker, had been losing market share to rival AMD, but is now believed by analysts to have stemmed losses or even gained share thanks to a raft of new products.
Meanwhile, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE:AMD - news), which saw its sales soar in recent years as its powerful, energy-efficient processors trumped Intel's, is now struggling with outdated products and a costly acquisition.
AMD's woes were underscored earlier this week when it said that lower prices and unit sales meant that first-quarter revenue would be about $1.23 billion, 20 percent below the average Wall Street forecast.
"AMD had superior products a year to two years ago and for the first time was able to have prices above Intel's, and Intel was having to be competitive on pricing to clear inventories" said Cody Acree, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus.
"Today, it's a reversal of those roles," Acree said. "We expect that Intel is actually gaining share and that AMD is having trouble staving that off and is having to cut prices to help make that happen."
Intel had about 74.4 percent of the market for desktop, laptop and server processors, according to January data from Mercury Research, which estimated AMD's share at about 25 percent.
When Intel reports first-quarter earnings on Tuesday, it is expected to show a net profit of $1.28 billion, or 22 cents per share, on revenue of $8.97 billion, according to the average Wall Street forecast on Reuters Estimates.
While that would be a 5 percent fall in profit from a year earlier, analysts are bracing for AMD to report on Thursday a net loss of almost $342 million, a dramatic about-face from the $184.5 million profit it posted a year earlier.
AMD plans to counter Intel in the middle of this year when it launches a new chip with four processing cores, meaning that it can handle several tasks at once.
The big question is whether the chip, known as Barcelona, will offer enough of an advantage to take more customers away from Intel.
Intel has a quad-core chip as well, but it consists of two dual-core chips stuck together. AMD says its design of having all four cores on one piece of silicon will be faster and use less energyTime is Running Out for Windows XP
Microsoft will force PC makers to stop selling machines running XP by the end of this year, despite ongoing compatibility problems and demand for XP from users.
Demand for XP is particularly strong among small and medium-sized businesses, according to Dell, which announced it will continue offering some machines with XP pre-installed.
However, the clock is ticking, and Dell and other PC makers will be obliged to stop selling machines running XP by the end of the year, despite ongoing compatibility and performance issues with Windows Vista.
Dell has decided to continue offering XP on business systems through the summer through a feature called "Customize with
Windows XP," the company said in a recent blog post.Dell said the move reflects strong demand for XP machines, especially for smaller businesses, which often buy systems in small numbers from OEMs.
"Dell recognizes the needs of small business customers and understands that more time is needed to transition to a new operating system," said Tom West, director of small business marketing at Dell, on the company's blog. "The plan is to continue offering Windows XP on select Dimension and Inspiron systems until later this summer."
Dell isn't planning to offer XP on consumer systems, saying they prefer the "latest and greatest," a situation that displeased some customers. "Thumbs down for not offering this to home users," wrote one user.
"Many home users- especially gamers- do consider XP the 'greatest'- especially after all the media articles and benchmarks showing very poor gaming performance and compatibility on Vista," wrote another.
At the end of this year, however, Microsoft OEMs' contracts will no longer give them the option of selling XP-powered machines. This is despite problems that have surfaced for consumers as well as businesses, such as games and application incompatibility and driver problems.
Most recently, users complained that Vista's start-up, shut-down and application load times are far too long compared with Windows XP. Users on Microsoft's Performance & Maintenance forum, who sound pro-Vista for the most part, have vented about a variety of speed issues.
"I have XP and Vista running side-by-side [but] I twiddle my thumbs waiting for certain apps to load up on the Vista machine while the load is instantaneous on the older XP machine," wrote a user identified as William. "I've tweaked it as best as I could with the info available and I am still very disappointed."
Doubts have also been raised about Vista's security, after it emerged that Vista was affected by recent widespread hacks involving Windows' animated cursors, even though that portion of the code was addressed by an update more than two years ago.
Breaking: Google Spends $3.1 Billion To Acquire DoubleClick
DoubleClick was founded in 1996. DoubleClick was taken private in 2005 by Hellman & Friedman and JMI Equity for $1.1 billion. The New York Times
10x revenue for a mature company is a…healthy…valuation. At least part of the acquisition price appears to be due to a desire by Google to keep this asset out of Microsoft’s hands.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Unlimited Video Game Rentals » for FREE Trail at GameFly.com
| Rent video games for PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube and Game Boy Advance
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12/03/05 08:43 CST
Price drop!!
Dell 20 in E207WFP Wide Flat Panel Monitor » for $209 at Dell.com
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How to get this deal:
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Price drop!!
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Dell Dimension E521 AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core 4000+, 2GB RAM, 500GB, 16x DVD+/-RW Drive, 19" E197FP LCD (Flat Panel), 1yr At-Home Warranty, Windows Home Premium » for $799 at Dell.com
| Basic daily tasks, Intense multimedia applications, Enhanced video editing, Digital photography, Web content creation
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HOT!!
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Dell Dimension C521, AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core 3600+, 512MB, 80GB, 16X DVD-ROM Drive, 17" LCD (Flat Panel), 1yr Warranty, Windows XP Home » for $399 at Dell.com
| Basic daily tasks, Intense multimedia applications, Enhanced video editing, Digital photography, Web content creation
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Best Price to buy
Compaq Presario c502us, Celeron M 440, 1.86GHz, 15.4" WXGA, 512MB, 80GB, DVD / CD-RW Combo Drive, 802.11b/g, Windows Vista Home Basic » for $449.99 at CompUSA.com
| For those seeking reliable mobile performance technology that will enable high-speed wireless internet connections for surfing, e-mail and more, the Compaq Presario c500 series Notebook PC provides proven mobile technologies and easy-to-use digital entertainment features. Optimized for mobile performance, its 6.6-pound design is powered by Intel® mobile processors and supports high-speed WiFi 802.11b/g WLAN options.
How to get this deal:
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HOT!! |
Dell Inspiron E1505 Pentium® dual-core T2060, 1.6GHz, 15.4" WXGA TrueLife, 1GB RAM, 120GB, 8X CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability, 802.11b/g, 1yr Warranty, Windows Vista Premium » for $699 at Dell.com
| New from Dell featuring an Intel® CoreTM Duo processor and high-end graphics options for an optimal mobile entertainment experience.
Note: Configuration & Pricing may change at Dell Website at any time. Make sure that you configure system to reach coupon limit if any. | ||
w/ Windows Vista!! |
Dell Inspiron E1405 Pentium® dual-core T2060, 1.60GHz, 14.1" WXGA, 1GB RAM, 160GB, 8X CD/DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW) with double-layer DVD+R write capability, 802.11b/g, Windows Vista Home Premium, 1yr Warranty » for $749 at Dell.com
| Its 14.1-inch widescreen display is packed into a compact design, so you can comfortably use your notebook on planes, trains or anywhere space is at a premium.
Note: Configuration & Pricing may change at Dell Website at any time. Make sure that you configure system to reach coupon limit if any. | ||
HOT!! |
HP dv2000t, Intel Core Duo T2250 1.73 GHz, 14.1" WXGA, 2GB RAM, 120GB, 8X DVD+/-R/RW w/Double Layer Support, 802.11b/g, Bluetooth, HP Imprint Finish with Integrated Microphone + Webcam, Windows Vista Home Premium » for $809.99 at HPShopping.com
| They say you can't judge a book by its cover, but you're likely to fall in love with the HP Pavilion dv2000t at first sight, before discovering its inner beauty. The infinitely cool HP Imprint finish on this 14.1" notebook makes a statement, and Intel's Centrino technology makes it as powerful as it is pretty. At 5.3 lb. and 1" thick, the dv2000t is destined to become one of your take-everywhere essentials.
How to get this deal:
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HOT!! No Mail-in Rebates!! |
04/13/07 01:00 CST
HP dv6000t, Intel Core Duo T2250 1.73 GHz, 15.4" WXGA, 2GB RAM, 120GB, 8X DVD+/-R/RW w/Double Layer Support, 802.11b/g, Bluetooth, HP Imprint Finish with Integrated Microphone + Webcam, Windows Vista Home Premium » for $819.99 at HPShopping.com
| This versatile system can be configured to fit meets most users' computing and mobile entertainment needs. Featuring the exclusive HP Imprint finish (optional), it's equally stylish in your home office or an Internet café.
How to get this deal:
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HOT!! No Mail-in Rebates!! |
04/13/07 01:00 CST
HP Pavilion dv9000z, AMD Turion(TM) 64 Mobile MK-36, 2.0 GHz, 17.0" WXGA, 2GB RAM, 120GB, LightScribe DVD+/-RW w/Double Layer, 802.11b/g, HP Imprint Finish/Microphone/Webcam, Windows Vista Home Premium » for $899.99 at HPShopping.com
| More is better! Get twice the fun with the HP Pavilion dv9000z Entertainment Notebook PC when you select dual core processors from AMD and dual hard drives. This 17" notebook is a multimedia powerhouse; it has a full-size keyboard that includes a numeric keypad, which is great for high-volume data entry as well as gaming.
How to get this deal:
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No Mail-in Rebates!! |
04/13/07 01:00 CST
HP tx1000z tablet PC, AMD Turion(TM) 64 X2 Dual-Core TL-52, 1.6GHz, 12.1" WXGA BrightView w/Integrated Touch-screen, 2GB RAM, 120GB,LightScribe Super Multi 8X DVD+/-RW w/Double Layer, 5-in-1 Card reader, 802.11b/g, HP Imprint Finish + Fingerprint Reader + Webcam » for $1234.99 at HPShopping.com
| ultraportable, lightweight (just 3.95 lb.), and powerful new HP Pavilion tx1000z Notebook PC features a high-definition, 12.1" BrightView display that opens for standard use or conveniently twists for viewing files and movies in cramped spaces. The optional touchscreen converts your notebook into a tablet PC. Cloaked in HP's elegant Imprint finish, it's also packed with other optional features, including a fingerprint reader.
How to get this deal:
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HOT!! |
04/13/07 01:00 CST
Casio EX-Z60 Exilim 6 Megapixel Digital Camera
3x Optical Zoom / 2.5" LCD Screen / Still and Movie modes / 8MB Memory and Slot for SD Card / PictBridge / USB / BLACK ... more info
J&R Item # CAS EX-Z60BK
Mfr. Part # EXZ60BKDBB
3x Optical Zoom / 2.5" LCD Screen / Still and Movie modes / 8MB Memory and Slot for SD Card / PictBridge / USB / BLACK
The simple to use EX-Z60 offers 6.0 Megapixel images and a 3x Optical Zoom packed into a slim body enhanced by rounded edges. The camera features a large, easy-to-see 2.5” LCD Monitor as well as the Anti Shake DSP, which along with the Auto Macro and Quick Shutter functions considerably reduces the incidence of blurred images due to moving subjects or shaky hands, ensuring that beautiful images can be created and enjoyed by anyone. The EX-Z60 comes with many other convenient and User-friendly features, including Easy Mode, a simplified camera menu that helps make taking pictures (still and movie) easier and more fun. The Best Shot button enables convenient, one-touch access to 33 shooting preset modes offering a wide range of camera settings for taking hassle-free photos every time. And not just still photos, you can also shoot movies. Bundled Accessories: Rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery, Lithium-ion battery charger, AC power cord, USB cable, AV cable, Strap, CD-ROM 6.0 megapixel high Resolution CCD and 3x Optical zoom Lens / 4x Digital Resolution / Still images can have up to 2816 x 2112 resolution / Movies with Sound up to 640x480 VGA resolution Large easy-to-see 2.5 inch TFT LCD display The Exilim Engine features the Anti Shake DSP, which reduces blurring Unit Dimensions: 3.75" (W) x 2.39" (H) x .78" (D) (excluding projections; .64" at thinnest point) / Unit Weight: Approx. 4.16 oz (excluding battery and accessories) Once powered on, the camera is ready to take pictures in approximately 1.4 seconds Built-in multimode electronic-flash Rapid Flash enables three consecutive, high speed flash photos in only one second / Soft Flash prevents over Exposure when taking shots in Macro Records movies at up to 640 x 480 (30 fps) with sound (integrated Mono MIC and speaker) Uses proprietary Casio lithium-ion rechargeable battery (included); 180 shots per charge Input/Output Terminals USB / AV connector // USB: USB 2.0 (Full-Speed) Self-timer: 10 seconds, 2 seconds, Triple Self-timer Focus Modes: Auto Focus, Macro mode, Pan Focus, Infinity mode, manual focus Exposure Control - Light metering: Multi-pattern, center-weighted, spot by CCD / Exposure: Program AE Accepts Optional SD or MMC Memory cards (we advise buying an optional 256MB or higher for practical use of EX-Z60
Request a copy of the manufacturer's warranty, click here for details
Protect your investment with an Extended Service Plan
Product Specifications
| Megapixels | | 6.0 |
| Lens | | Zoom Lens |
| Storage Media Type | | SD Secure Digital or MMC Multimedia Card |
| Body Type | | Compact |
| Optical Zoom | | 3x |
| Digital Zoom | | 4x |
| LCD Viewer | | 2.5 Inch |
| Still Picture Capture | | Yes |
| Video Movie Capture | | VGA - Up to 640x480 |
| Electronic Flash | | Built-in |
| Sound | | Yes |
| Self Timer | | Yes |
| Anti Shake Mode | | Yes |
| Built-in Memory | | 8MB |
| Compatible with Windows PC | | Yes |
| Compatible with Macintosh | | Yes |
| PictBridge | | Yes |
| Manufacturer's Warranty - Hardware | | 1 Year |
Consumer Alert: Massive Virus Outbreak
A huge virus surge of a new Storm Worm variant is flooding e-mail inboxes and evading many antivirus programs. In my tests of 31 programs, only four reported a virus.
Postini, an e-mail security company, says that over the last 24 hours it has seen about 55 million virus e-mails, about 60 times the daily average. The first e-mails had romance-themed subjects: "A kiss so gentle," or "I dream of you," for instance. The latest batch attempts to fool readers--with subjects like "Worm Alert!" or "Virus Alert!"--into thinking they are already infected and need to apply a supplied patch--an attached virus.
Here is the image, with embedded text, from the actual virus-laden e-mail PC World received.We received one such virus e-mail here at PC World, titled "Worm Alert!" The e-mail included a text message embedded in an image, which makes it easier to evade antispam tools. The attachment was a password-protected archive named 'patch-7594.zip,' with the password contained in the image's text.
Outwitting Antivirus
At 2:30 p.m. I uploaded the attachment to Virustotal.com, which uses many different antivirus programs to scan uploads. Of 31 programs, only 4--ClamAV, eSafe, Kaspersky, and Symantec--reported a virus.
Here are the results of the virus scan PC World ran, showing how few antivirus programs picked up the problem.According to Postini, double-clicking the attachment unleashes a succession of modern malware attack methods. First, a rootkit will attempt to hide the malware from both human and antivirus scans. Then the worm will attempt to disable antivirus programs. Next, the worm connects to a custom peer-to-peer network used by the worm's creators to issue commands. Those commands might be to download additional malware, send spam, or transmit personal data stolen from the victim computer.
Finally, to spread itself further, the worm searches for e-mail addresses on the victim machine and sends itself to any discovered addresses. The worm is self-mutating, according to Postini, changing e-mail subject lines, attachment file names, and malware characteristics in order to evade antivirus and antispam programs.
Cloudmark, another e-mail security company, says it sees similar outbreak numbers. Today's flood is ten times as large as one this past Sunday, which also involved the virulent Storm Worm.
A Growing Storm
First seen in January, the Storm Worm was originally named for subject lines such as "230 dead as storm batters europe." It created its own virtual storm with 42,000 different variants over a 12-day period, according to security company Commtouch. The huge number of variations was meant to confound traditional signature-based antivirus protection, which must know about each variant to protect against it.
To stay safe from today's ongoing worm surge, exercise extreme caution with any unexpected e-mail attachments, even if they seem to come from someone you know. Also, be sure your antivirus software is up-to-date. Though most antivirus programs are currently missing at least some of the variants, the companies will update their signatures as the attack progresses.
Apple puts new operating system on hold for iPhone
SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - Apple Inc. said on Thursday it is delaying the release of its new Leopard operating system in order to get its much-ballyhooed iPhone to market in June as promised.
Macintosh computers in trademark theatrical style at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco in June. Software engineers and quality assurance teams were shifted from working on Leopard to crafting and testing the iPhone, according to the Cupertino, California-based company.
"iPhone contains the most sophisticated software ever shipped on a mobile device, and finishing it on time has not come without a price," Apple said in a statement.
"Life often presents tradeoffs and, in this case, we're sure we've made the right one."
Apple chief executive Steve Jobs in January unveiled the iPhone, a new mobile phone that can also be used as a digital music player and camera.
Apple said its heralded Leopard operating system will be finished by June but will still be in the testing phase. Leopard should ship in October, according to Apple.
"If they were going to slip a project, it was better they slip Leopard rather than iPhone," said analyst Michael Gartenberg of Jupiter Research.
"It is not likely to be a big issue at all. It does tend to be a little embarrassing for them, but that is in the intrinsic nature of trying to deliver a complex operating system and the iPhone simultaneously."
Macintosh computers represent less than five percent of the global market and owners tend toward cultish loyalty that makes it likely they will tolerate a delay in the release of Leopard despite any disappointment, analysts said.
The iPhone system is built on the Leopard, or Mac OS X, operating system so it is natural for the projects to be interdependent at Apple, according to Gartenberg.
"Any time you do a complex operating system release and you give a target date you are bound to run the risk of missing it," Gartenberg said. "These kinds of things are inevitable and, knowing Apple's track record, it wouldn't surprise me if they shipped Leopard before October."
Comcast to buy Fandango movie tickets site
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Top U.S. cable operator Comcast Corp. said on Wednesday it will buy movie tickets site Fandango as part of a new online business that will offer viewers a single pipeline for video entertainment.
Financial terms of the deal were not furnished.
The new entertainment site, called Fancast.com, will debut in the summer and let consumers search and watch online video. Unlike Comcast.net, its broadband Internet portal for subscribers, Fancast will be available to all U.S. viewers.
Down the line, Fancast will not only help consumers find what to watch online and on TV, but also serve as a conduit to purchase or record it as well, Comcast executives said.
"Fancast is born of our belief that our consumers generally know there's a lot of content out there but don't know where to find it," Amy Banse, president of Comcast Interactive Media, told Reuters. She described the new Business as a super-charged electronic program guide.
Fancast is Comcast's answer to the surge in Internet media via the likes of Google Inc.'s video sharing site YouTube and Apple Inc.'s download service iTunes.
Traditional media companies are attempting to court a new generation of viewers who split their leisure time watching television with surfing the Internet and playing video games.
Y Combinator’s WriteWith Launches - Collaborative Blogging
We mentioned WriteWith in a roundup post last month on new Y Combinator startups. They’ve created a group writing platform that falls somewhere between a blogging platform, a wiki, and an online Word clone. The best part of it is that it works with the existing Wordpress and Typepad blogging software. Current blogging software is rather kludgy when it comes to working with other writers on posts. To collaborate on a document in Wordpress, you have to share a draft link with a friend and also create an account for that person. And even then, you only have one version of the document, causing old versions to be lost by new revisions. WriteWith may eventually change that for blogs and any other online publishing platform.
Background
Two of the founders originally got the idea for the system when writing at their college newspapers, the Stanford Daily and Binghamton’s Pipedream. They wanted to find a better way to move articles from thought to the printed word, while handling revisions made by as many as 6 people along the way. Their first product was a newsroom, complete with administrative features for managing an articles lifecycle. That product has been used by 15 college newspapers across the US and Canada, including Stanford and the University of Alberta, which runs a national newswire. Licenses for other enterprise content management applications for newspapers, like Managing Editor
The WriteWith team then stepped back, re-evaluated the publishing business and started designing for pixels over print. The new version is more flexible than their newsroom product and tailored specifically for managing collaboratively edited text online. And when I say text, it really is just for text. WriteWith’s text editor is taken straight out of the Dojo ajax library and doesn’t display complex WYSIWYG layout information. However, WriteWith’s focus is on editing, not the editor.
Collaboration
There’s a growing need for collaborative editing platforms as blogging becomes a more established business and the ranks of their writers grow. WriteWith may be the solution that fills that need.
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