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OSX86 on a PC, sans hacks! |
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Written by Jacob Thomason
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Monday, 16 June 2008 |
 So, a company by the name of EFI X has just announced the release of their new device for installing an OEM copy of Mac OS X with a planned launch date of June 23. Apparently this is a unique USB device that offers the ability to copy over certain system files and drivers (I suspect). Taking a look at the company's website will reveal what appears to be plans for a pci device as well.
The FAQ page of EFI X leaves a lot of mystery still in the air. What we do know is.
1. It won't work with AMD
2. It will work with laptops
3. Its been tested out on a "production" level.
4. Its some unique USB device, and possibly a PCI device as well
What we don't know is, pretty much everything else at this point. While I like the idea of this product. I am not so sure Apple will be pleased with the release. Additionally, I need more details before I take this too seriously.
via InsanelyMac
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Sunday, 08 June 2008 |
 Think your mod is the best out there? If so, you could get fame and fortune at the first annual Ultimate Case Mod Championship held this year at NVISION08 . Sponsored by NVIDIA and CPU magazine, the top mod will receive a $5000 cash prize, as well as a next generation hardware package and your mod on the cover of CPU magazine. The runner up gets $1000 and a hardware package and third place gets $500 and a hardware package.
NVISION08 is held between August 25th and 27th in San Jose, California. Along with the modding competition there will also be the Electronic Sport World Cup with a total cash pot with $200,000 and the GeForce LAN competition. General Admission is $35, with $50 tickets available for the enthusiast. The hardware mod competition is judged on four criteria, it's technical merit, it's artistic merit, the "polished" feel, and the "wow" factor.
Get your game face on. It's go time.
NVISION08 Ultimate Mod Competition
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Asus showcases built-in projector |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Thursday, 05 June 2008 |
 Apple changed the way telecommunications worked when they introduced the iSight into the cases of the iMac & portables. Asus is hoping to do something similar with a built-in projector inside an unmarked laptop. Mini projectors have been the craze lately. Small pocket sized projectors capable of displaying image anywhere from 6 to 36 inches.
To me the projector wastes a lot of real estate on the screen. While this laptop will probably never make it to production, it does show a move to a more all encompassing device. Imagine a device that would allow you to see yourself in the camera on the screen and on the flip side have the person you are talking to projected on the wall in front of you. This could turn into something big.
See the video at hothardware.com
From Marco via Digg
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FCC may provide free wireless web. |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Saturday, 31 May 2008 |
 The Federal Communications Commission Chair Kevin Martin wants to give free wireless internet to 95% of America, but there's a catch. Marvin wants to have part of an auction for the 25 mega hertz wireless spectrum be used for free internet access, while the rest of the spectrum can be used for commercial purposes. Marvin's plan (which we should find out more about after the June 12th FCC meeting) is to have the winning bidder supply free internet access to 50% of America within 4 years and 95% in 10 years. The free internet would also filter out an "obscene" content.
I'd love free internet if there was no porn on it, I'd really like it since I could feel alot better about my kids going online that way. The only problem I have is who considers what obscene? Obviously it depends on where you live and your lifestyle. Something that a person in Alabama thinks is obscene is vastly different than someone in New York City. So who decides what is considered "obscene"?
We'll find out more about Marvin's grand plans after the FCC meeting, we'll keep you updated as best we can when we hear more about it.
Get more of the story at The Raw Story.
From HotHardware.Com via a Digg from Marco.
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Comcast pwned cause of their attitude. |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Friday, 30 May 2008 |
 So ComCast & Network Solutions got pwned by some hackers earlier in the week. Why the hackers were initially trying to get in is still up in the air. The hackers "Defiant" and "EBK" openly don't like ComCast, but is it enough to really take over their internet services? Regardless of initial motivation, they did. At first it was playful, they hacked into Network Solutions and changed the contact on one of the 200 ComCast domain names they now controlled. ComCast noticed this and immediately got control back. The hackers, part of the underground group Kryogeniks, didn't stop there. They continued there attack via Network Solutions and regained control of the 200 domains. Once they were in a second time they played around and called the technical contact for the domain names. After the manager hung up on them they got mad, and that is when things went really bad.
Defiant and EBK then went on an all night binge of moving the ComCast servers around the internet, essentially toying with ComCast and causing massive disruptions to ComCast users getting access to their emails. Eventually ComCast/Network Solutions did pull control back in, but it took a while for all the DNS's to point to the correct server. During this time they could have had access to the financial information of the ComCast users, but they chose not to. They simply wanted to "stick it" to ComCast. Well, they did. But now they are waiting for that knock, err, pound, uhhh... bashing of the door down by the feds to take them in for questioning/arrest.
The part that gets me is how open the hackers are about it. They completely screwed Network Solutions and ComCast, and they are giving interviews about it. If you look at Defiant's myspace page there is a picture of him smoking a bong. DUDES!!!! Sometimes you gotta keep that stuff quiet. Don't be broadcasting it or you'll get busted. Kids, will they ever learn?
The moral of the story. If you have an account on Network Solutions, I'd be careful. And if some kid calls you telling you that he has control of your domain names, don't be rude.
Read more at Wired.com
Defiant's apparent MySpace page.
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Watch us as we break the law. |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Thursday, 29 May 2008 |
 I did it. You don't realize it yet, but that picture to the left is a direct patent infringement. You can't tell by just looking at it, but if you click on it you'll see that it is linked to another webpage. Don't tell the cops, at least don't tell the Singapore cops. Apparently the Singapore based VueStar has a patent granted in 2006 that says if you have an image that is linked to another web page, you are using their Intellectual Property and are in direct patent infringement.
Okay. Yes, this is true. But it is also a load of crap. VueStar has sent out invoice to companies asking for money from them for using their patents. If push comes to shove this should fall under the "obviousness test" that the Supreme Court helped reinforce recently. If this were a true patent infringement everyone from your grandma to Google would be in violation. There are more details that the patent goes into but they are all a load of BS, like searching through a database to find images to display? Really? Bottom line, don't worry about the cops busting down your door to slap you with a fine, unless you live in Singapore.
Favorite quote is from VueStar, "If your site is only text and has no images, icons or other patent methods then no license required".
Link to US Patent 7065520
From theinquirer.net via arstechnia.com
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FastMac's all purpose battery charger. |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Friday, 23 May 2008 |
 Finally. This is what heavy laptop uses have been waiting for, a battery charger that is NOT device specific. If you have more than one type of laptop or more than one battery you know what I mean. Apple changes the battery layout with every model and size change, so if you buy a battery stand it is usually only good for that model or that size. FastMac realized this and has made the U-Charger , a "U"niversal laptop battery charger.
What really gets me so giddy about this is how many batteries it can charge. "All 10.8V Apple Laptop Batteries Produced Since 1999." Yes, that's right. You can buy one external battery charger and charge your iBook G3 or your MacBook Pro. There are a few models that it can't charge (14.4v models), but they are working on the another version for these. Craziness I tell you. It is currently on sale for $69.99 (retails for $89.99). If you've looked at other chargers that just do one battery type you know how good of a deal this is. If you are a road warrior, consider this your new shield.
Click here to see the battery list supported by the U-Charger
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Fastest Mac DVD drive for less |
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Written by Chris Tangora
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Thursday, 22 May 2008 |
 Other World Computer, macsales.com, now has the fastest DVD burners for the Mac. If you have a PowerPC tower or desktop (excluding the G5 iMac and MacMini) you can get extremely fast burn speeds for dirt cheap. For $32 you can get a 20x DVD write speeds and 10x DVD-DL speed. For an additional $3 you can upgrade to a lightscribe DVD burner with even faster DVD-DL & CD speeds, and you can burn DVD-RAM up to 12x. These aren't knock off brands either, OWC has always carried what we consider quality Mac products and this is no exception. The $32 DVD burner is a Pioneer and the $35 burner is Samsung .
While these are great deals you do have to look at the background to this. These are really good speeds for DVD burners, no doubt. But the only problem I can see is the eventual fading out of DVD's. Granted that it won't happen for a few more years, but once we start seeing the BluRay disc burners coming into the Mac the rest of the industry will follow. The DVD supply will be around for a long time. It's convenient and it isn't proprietary (like BluRay).
If you don't have a PPC tower OWC still has some DVD drives that will work for your upgrades. They also offer BluRay readers as well, but they start out at $160 and go up quickly to the upper $600's. If you have a PPC tower or desktop that you plan on keeping for the next 2 to 4 years these DVD burners are worth a look. If you get one and you like it, make sure you send them your old one back for a cash refund on it (it's not much, but every dollar helps).
Comparison of high definition optical formats
OWC's rebates for old opticals
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