Posts by WASDted

Power, it’s a dirty word. Power corrupts, and I don’t just mean people and politicians. Power problems, impurities and inconsistencies are a huge contributor to problems with sensitive computer equipment. Power problems can damage hardware as well as your files and data. The losses and downtime that result from power problems cost the economy billions. Utility companies are not required by law to provide perfectly “clean” power. The “dirty” power that we get from the outlet comes with a number of impurities including blackouts, power sags, power surges, undervoltage (brownouts) and line noise. As promised , we reviewed the new Eaton 5PX1500RT, a 1500VA-class Line Interactive Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS). Eaton is celebrating their 100th anniversary this year by introducing this new line of UPS products that feature energy consumption monitoring down to the outlet group. The 5PX line includes several models ranging from 1000VA up to 3000VA, all of which are highly manageable and can be rack-mounted and upgraded. These units are ideal for commercial or office applications like a server room or small data center.

Features & Specifications
Model: 5PX1500RT
Type: Line-Interactive High Frequency (Pure Sine wave, Buck + Boost)
Rating (VA/Watts): 1440/1440
Efficiency: up to 98%
Dimensions (H x W x D, inches): 3.4 x 17.4 x 20.6
Dimensions (H x W x D, mm): 86 x 441 x 522
Weight: 65 lbs. (29 kg.)

What’s in a name?
Eaton aims to …

Rumor has it that Osama Bin Laden received his new iPad 2 and instantly became target #1. That's right Mr. Al Qaida, had you read the editorial threads on DaniWeb.com you would have known that Apple is watching and recording your moves. In a heroic effort to end that war on terror, Apple handed U.S. Intelligence the exact location of Bin Laden, leading to his immediate demise.

A warning to terrorists around the world: we will find you and kill you because now "there's an app for that."

What was lurking in the bush?

This week on Oreilly.com, Alasdair Allan and Pete Warden revealed their discovery that Apple tracks and saves your location via iOS4 through your iPhone or iPad. This has sent a wripple of concern across the country and many people are demanding to know why Apple stores this info and how they intend to use it.

Apple managed to ruffle the feathers of senator Al Franken who sent a letter directly to Steve Jobs . If you have an iPhone or an iPad I urge you to watch the 20 minute video of Allan and Warden who showcase the possibilities of iOS location tracking. Pay close attention around the 12 minute mark where Allan showcases his travelling behavior graphically, based on the info extracted from his iPhone.[youtube]GynEFV4hsA0[/youtube]Your cell phone provider tracks your location; so do some cars (via GPS); some local law enforcement agencies track your cell data as well . So are you concerned with Apple tracking your every move? Take the survey at the top and write your comments below. This should be an interesting discussion.

Super engineer and friend of DaniWeb, Steve Wozniak , told Reuters on Friday that he would consider returning to Apple, or more accurately returning to an active role at Apple if asked. With Steve Jobs on an indefinite medical leave (his third since 2004), the possibility of the other founding "Steve" coming back is something that excites many Apple fans. Those who know Woz, however, know that he is not at all like Jobs. If Woz was to return to active duty at Apple I would imagine him heading up the engineers. What would be even more amazing is if Jobs recovers and the founders are reunited at Apple.

Woz is currently Chief Scientist at Fusion iO , the company that is setting the standard for super speed server storage.

Of course, this is all hypothetical as all Woz said was "I'd consider it, yeah."

Read the full interview at Reuters .

Grats to Narue! Still sorry to see Davey go but I'm glad we are in super-capable hands.

Very interesting thread. I can see a use for them, especially for those with a handicap or too old or sick to drive. Personally, I love driving, I would want to stay in control.

Here are a couple of other videos (not electric cars, but self-driven):
[youtube]U88UlyjM4Pc[/youtube]
[youtube]50rbUfTYykc[/youtube]

That wind blew a ship at sea

Hewlett Packard has been synonymous with ‘quality printers’ for decades, but these days a printer is not just a printer anymore. We expect more and more is what you get with the HP Officejet Pro 8500A Plus, a new multi-function machine and member of HP’s ePrint family. We reviewed it and found a stand-alone printing center that does not rely on a PC for its content tap. Let’s have a look…

FEATURES & SPECIFICATIONS Typical Print Speed: 15 ppm black, 11 ppm color Max Print Speed: 35 ppm black, 34 ppm color Scan Resolution: Up to 4800 ppi Copy Resolution: Up to 1200x600 dpi Connectivity: USB 2.0, Ethernet, PictBridge, Wireless 802.11b/g/n, memory card slots Display: 4.3" CGD (color graphics), Touchscreen Paper Handling: 250-sheet input tray, 50 sheet ADF, optional 250-sheet input tray, 150-sheet output tray Monthly Page Volume: 250 to 1,250 pages Duty Cycle: Up to 15,000 pages Memory: 128 MB

FIRST IMPRESSIONS
The first thing you notice is that this printer looks great wherever you put it. Its shinny, black cover is chic and sexy. This certainly doesn’t look like your HP from the 90’s. It just looks like new technology and I find myself constantly wiping fingerprints off to keep it pretty; kind of like your favorite watch or shinny gadget. Its compact design is deceiving consider the full array of features such as printing, faxing, scanning, copying, duplexing, networking, wifi and apps. The printer is rather light in weight; that gave me a …

Some people just want help, and once they get it they're gone. That's okay. There rest of us like community, being a part of something bigger than ourselves and helping others. And through helping others we grow, sharpen our own skills and often realize something new that solves an old problem we had forgotten about. This sense of fulfillment and being a member of a great community is something you just can't buy. It is earned and I'm still trying to earn my way in, so I can appreciate all of you who give so much of your time to making DaniWeb what it is.

maybe you're right, maybe Dani banned me ;)
all I can say is 'i can haz won moar chance pleez?'

Today, Microsoft announced that it has sold over 10 million Kinect sensors as well as Kinect games. At the same time Kinect for Xbox has set a new Guinness World Record for having sold 8 million units in the first 60 days. They managed all of this during a recession, hello!

Many PC gamers and users are embracing Kinect , figuring out ways to hack it to use with a PC. Microsoft has already hinted that Kinect with eventually be made to support PC. I'm thinking Minority Report is getting closer and closer.

In an announcement made today, Western Digital (WD) agreed to acquire Hitachi ’s Global Storage Technologies division for roughly $4.3 billion. With this acquisition, WD, an industry leader in consumer and entertainment-class storage solutions that recently ventured into the solid-state drive market, no-doubt aims to become a major player in the enterprise storage market. Steve Miligan, president and CEO of Hitachi GST said "Together we can provide customers worldwide with the industry's most compelling and diverse set of products and services, from innovative personal storage to solid state drives for the enterprise," Mr. Miligan will join WD as president, reporting to John Coyne, CEO of WD.

Today’s announcement has sent shares of Data Storage Stocks soaring [index up over 2%]. Western Digital (WDC) traded up over 15% today while other drive makers like Seagate Technology (STX) enjoyed gains close to 10%. Another winner today is OCZ Technology Group (OCZ) which closed the day up 15% but not due to WD’s announcement, rather because it beat fourth-quarter 2010 estimates and recorded $64 million in revenue. That is a gain of 100% over the previous year.

No doubt storage is getting smarter, faster and now leaner with one less company competing.

Wow, happygeek, great review, right on the money. I agree with your assesment. My favorite testament to Apple's commitment to design and quality is the MagSafe power connector. Win!

I normally begin reviews with some background of the company or product I’m writing about but in this case let me say: every I.T. professional, programmer, developer, digital artist or person that carries their data and files around on a flash drive or disk needs an Imation Defender Biometric product. Personally, I keep and carry certain files on me at all times. I have an SD card in my wallet and a USB flash drive in my jacket always. I am always backing up important files that I am working, lists of passwords and accounts, code from websites I am developing and my favorite photos. My two biggest fears are: what if my flash drive fails and I lose my files and worse yet, what if my flash drive gets lost or stolen. The first one is easy, I always backup my important data and keep these files on more than one drive. In most cases I have copies on the PCs I am moving files between. The second problem is a nightmare. If I lose my flash drive and someone gets a hold of it they will have access to all of my files, I’m dead.The Nightmare Is Over The digital storage experts at Imation have created a line of secure digital storage solutions they call the “Defender Collection” . Among the recent entries into Imation’s Defender family of products is the F200 Biometric Flash Drive , a USB flash …

Hewlett Packard recently launched a new line of x-Series LED backlit LCD monitors . Sitting at the top of the size chart in that line is the HP 2711x, a gorgeous 27-inch monitor that enhances the look of any desktop system. HP packs several new features and technologies into this new display, starting with a cooler, more efficient backlight. By replacing the traditional cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) with a new LED (Light Emitting Diode), the backlighting consumes nearly half the energy while achieving higher contrast ratios, earning this monitor a 5.0 ENERGY STAR rating. As large as it is, the 2711x only weighs about 13 pounds, thanks to its slim, sleek design and an external power supply, making this one of the lightest 27-inch displays available.

SpecificationsFull HD 1920x1080p native resolution
3,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio (DCR)
300 nits of typical brightness
5 ms on/off response time (reduces blur)
Pixel pitch of 0.3114mm
VGA, DVI-D and HDMI (with HDCP) inputs
170 degree viewing angle
Design
A simple, slim (1-inch deep), sleek and attractive design adorns this new monitor. It sports a shiny-black bezel that is rather thin and features a rounded-edge that kind of reminds us of HP’s All-in-One PCs . The stand elevates the screen enough to allow space to slide your keyboard underneath the screen. It is possible to tilt the screen from -5 to +25 degrees, but you cannot rotate …

A big part of what makes us human is the way we communicate with each other. We speak words, big deal, machines can do that. But what sets us apart as humans are the flaws, nuances, slang, shorthand and ambiguity we often use when we speak. The famous game show Jeopardy asks questions that are not designed for a computer to answer. They are spoken in natural English language, a form of communication that is not what computers were designed to understand… until now. In 1997 IBM’s Deep Blue defeated the world’s number one chess player. Fast forward 14 years, in a joint effort with the game show Jeopardy, IBM has created a supercomputer that is a cloud comprised of roughly 100 IBM POWER7 servers . This 10-rack mini data center was represented by a friendly avatar known as Watson who competes against human contestants on Jeopardy.

Until now, in order extract an answer to a complex problem from a computer one needed to be very well versed in a language that computers understand. You needed super-human-geek-brain-power to understand complex algorithms and formulas, machine codes and the binary state of being in order to ask the mech. Watson has changed all that. Now anybody can simply speak (or type) a question, in natural, human language and Watson will answer you in natural-sounding, simple to understand speech. Now doctor House can fire all his staff, work with Watson …

welcome aboard. we look forward to seeing you on the boards!

yes like this...

[youtube]HEheh1BH34Q[/youtube]

lol

2560x1600

The term Net Neutrality has been the subject of heavy discussion for the past several years. The freedom to go where and when we want to on the internet is about to slip away. Big telecoms and internet giants like AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, Time Warner and even Google have met with the government and came up with a set of rules that will allow them to regulate and prioritize what we see on the internet (to say the least).

Yesterday Steve Wozniak, the engineer that co-founded Apple Computer, Inc. wrote an open letter the FCC imploring them to keep the internet free. In his letter to the FCC he wrote "Please, I beg you, open your senses to the will of the people to keep the Internet as free as possible." - and then he goes on to explain how "every time and in every way that the telecommunications carriers have had power or control, we the people wind up getting screwed."

Please read Woz's entire letter to the FCC published via The Atlantic here .

This is one of the most important moments of action in the history of the Internet and it is far bigger and more important than the FCC. President Barrack Obama ran on the promise to preserve Net Neutrality. Unfortunately Obama's appointee, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski seemed to have forgotten the president's promise as he conducted closed-door discussions with giant phone and cable companies.

In

What products and technologies are you folks interested in seeing coverage on? Give me some suggestions and I will do my best to bring back more info, perhaps some photos, etc. I will even try to post them while I'm there.

CES 2011 in on from January 6-9, 2011 - see www.cesweb.org

Scott Wilson is not a noob when it comes to the worlds of business and industrial design. Many of us use products that were either designed by Scott or him firm MINIMAL (written also as MNML). In fact if you have a new Xbox 360 with Kinect Sensor or any of a handful of recent products from Dell, HP, Microsoft, Motorola or Logitech to name a few, you are likely enjoying the aesthetics, ergonomics and usability provided by Wilson’s influence. Recently Scott Wilson decided to turn to the crowd funding website called Kickstarter to raise some funds for his latest design, a watch wrist band that converts an iPod Nano into a multi-touch watch. There are two designs actually. The TikTok is a simple snap-in design that allows you to easily snap the nano into the wrist dock. The LunaTik is designed to be a premium conversion kit for a more permanent home for your nano. It is forged from machined Aerospace Grade Aluminum and is sure to be a conversation starter. His goal was to design something that people would stop you and ask “WTF is that?” and by the looks of it, it will accomplish just that. All I can say is: I can has? The goal was to raise at least $15,000 in order to pay for initial production tooling costs and that’s it. Well with just under a day left for this fund-raising project he managed to attract …

Yesterday HP launched a handful of new consumer-class monitors dubbed the “x-Series”. So what’s the news here? Well the screens, ranging from 20 to 23 inches all share some amazing new specs. They are all about an inch thick and they all feature mercury-free light-emitting diode (LED) backlighting. LED backlighting is going to be featured in HP monitors moving forward (including the 25 and 27 inch models that will debut on December 19th). What is nice about LED backlighting is that it can achieve very high contrast ratios, great performance and do it all at nearly half the energy consumption of previous-gen LCD monitors. The most obvious difference is that this new line boasts a dynamic contrast ratio of 3-million to 1, as compared to the previous-generation’s typical 15,000:1 ratio. These newcomers are all ENERGY STAR® 5.0 qualified and EPEAT® Silver registered. We are expecting to follow-up soon with an in-depth review of the upcoming HP 2711x, a 27” LED Monitor with 1920x1080 resolution. For the time being here are some specs on each of the new x-Series monitors:HP 2011x 20-inch LED monitor Price: $159.99 Key Features:HD-ready 1600 X 900 resolution anti-glare panel 3,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio 250 nits of brightness 5 ms response time VGA and DVI-D (with HDCP) inputs HP 2211x 21.5-inch LED monitor Price: $199.99 Key Features: Full HD 1920 X 1080p resolution anti-glare panel 3,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio 250 nits of brightness 5 ms response time VGA and DVI-D (with HDCP) inputs …

The HP Elitebook 8440w should be calledwork-mobile not workstation. The word ‘workstation’ implies you are stationary at a big, powerful computer. Not if HP has something to say about it. They've successfully taken the workstation concept and combined it with what a mobile user expects from a notebook. This powerful, yet lightweight laptop computer packs a big punch in a 6 lbs. package. Let's take a closer look...

Specs & Config
Model: HP EliteBook 8440w MobileWorkstation
Processor: Intel Core i7 M620 @ 2.67GHz
Chipset: Mobile Intel QM57 Chipset
Memory: 4GB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM in dual channel (16GB max)
Graphics: Nvidia Quadro FX 380M 512MB (dedicated)
Display: 14.0-inch diagonal LED-backlit HD+ anti-glare (1600x900)
Storage: WD 320 GB 7200 rpm 2.5-inch hard drive
Optical: LightScribe DVD+/-RW SuperMulti DL Drive
Battery: 9-Cell 100 Wh Li-Ion Battery
Wireless: Bluetooth 2.1 and 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi and HP Mobile Broadband powered by Gobi
Webcam: 2-megapixel
Dimensions: 13.21 x 9.30 x 1.23 inches
Weight: 5.81 lbs. (starts at 4.9 lbs.)
OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 32-bit version (installed in ours)
Warranty: Limited 3 year standard parts and labor warranty (3/3/3)
Tech Support: 1-800-334-5144

Design & Features Designed to meet tough military standards for vibration, humidity, dust, high temperature, altitude and even spills, this notebook certainly looks like a business tool. The lid and palm rest are …

Are all HDMI cables created equal? Without lab equipment it is difficult to tell the difference between HDMI [or any cables] at short lengths [under 6 feet]. But signals traveling greater distances do degrade and that is a fact. The longer the wire, the greater the resistance and weaker the signal or current on the receiving end. Here is a round-up comparison of a handful of HDMI cables, designed to provide a 1080p picture at the end of a 50 foot run. This is not a very complex and technical review, just a simple test to show what can be expected from longer HDMI cables at different price points.

All cables were tested with selected scenes from the new Avatar Extended Collector's Edition on Blu-ray available now, all over (special thanks to Fox Home Entertainment for providing the content for this review). We ran all scenes in full 1080p. We tested for video clarity and smoothness as well as audio clarity and quality. All tests were conducted using a brand name Blu-ray player connected in a typical home theater environment. We also tested 1080i signals with HDCP protection and nagging provided by Cablevision (NY) through a Scientific Atlanta Explorer 4250HD cable TV box. Further, we tested a Windows 7 Media Center PC running at 1920x1080 resolution with streaming HD from various online sources. Connections were made through a Pioneer Elite A/V receiver with full 1080p HDCP support and 5.1 high-definition surround …

i think they might find a small budget somewhere to stay afloat. didn't the obama admin say they're shutting them down or something?

Logitech is probably the most widely known and respected PC peripheral manufacturer in the world. They are known for making quality, reliable products that make sense. Leave it to our Swiss friends to re-think/design/invent the keyboard, again. Enter the Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750, a lightweight, thinwireless desktop keyboard that requires no batteries or chargers, just a little bit of light.

The Packaging Logitech put their “green” hat on for this one from start to finish. The box is made of recycled cardboard and is only large enough to contain and protect the product inside. There are no printed manuals and no disc inside. All the information you need is printed on the outside and inside of the box. The full manual drivers and apps are downloaded from the link printed on the inside of the package. Initial Use Connecting and using this product is very simple and takes seconds. Simply plug the included 2.4GHz wireless USB dongle to your PC or Mac and turn the power-switch of the keyboard on. You’re done. With almost any amount of light in the room the keyboard begins to work immediately and continues to charge even as you work. Once fully charged the keyboard can be used (even in total darkness) for up to three months. There is a little button on the keyboard that tells you if the solar cells are getting enough light (green smile for yes, red frown for …

Well here it is, just a little list of things you might want to consider this holiday season. This list is based on items we’ve used, tested or received for review in 2010.

Polk Audio HitMaster Price: $89.00

Here’s a powerful [stage monitor] speaker designed with gamers in mind. Polk Audio created the ultimate bang-for-your-buck sound solution for those who do not have a surround-sound speaker system hooked up to their console.

Design: The build is solid and clean. It replicates a classic rock band stage monitor speaker. Sports a 100-Watt on-board amp that powers the 6.5-inch woofer and dual 3x5 horn tweeters, tuned to provide a good sound range at almost any volume. The connections in the rear allow you to daisy-chain multiple HitMasters as well as plug into any TV, console, PC, iPod or any other device with RCA or 1/8-inch headphone jack.

Why we like it? Whether you take your Xbox or PS3 to a friend’s house, competitions or play at home, this floor speaker sits in front of you and blasts big sound towards your face. Perfect for playing games like Guitar Hero, Rock Band or Dance Revolution, as well as pretty much any other game that’s designed to make noise. But seriously, with the Polk Audio HitMaster you get a decent speaker system that’s well-built, respectably powerful, easy to carry and costs under $100. Cyberlink PowerDVD 10 …

having used it several times while it was still in "beta" I can attest that it is quite smooth and lag-free. I found it intuitive and quite liberating in certain game genres. can't wait to get one.

welcome

welcome to double digits, throw me a lifeline, reel me in ;)

@Nick:

Yes, but I was looking for the oldest thread to revive and came up with this one ;)

Happy birthday Dani!

@Eyal:

Normally we revive one of these threads, but this one is fine too :)

well let's revive this thread shall we??
happy birthday Dani 2010 ;)

kinda like a secret weapon ;)

look what we have here - interview is up

Steve Wozniak (or Woz to his friends and admirers) not only founded one of the most important (technology-wise) and influential (culturally) companies to date but he also practically invented the personal computer. His design, that of interfacing with a computer using a keyboard and screen, is still the standard today. Before Woz conceived the PC people would use toggle switches for input and look at indicator lights to determine the output. Computers were for professionals and hobbyists only, they were not practical, not for personal use and certainly not affordable.

The importance of the Apple I’s design was its usability and simplicity. Woz would design a computer, then redesign it to work the same way with fewer chips and parts. Fewer parts means fewer points of failure, means increased reliability [and lower cost]. This policy is the pinnacle of engineering, still evident in Apple’s clean and friendly designs of today.

DaniWeb caught up with Woz recently for a few questions.Eyal Akler (DaniWeb): In your book you mentioned that early on you learned what it means to be an engineer, “an engineer’s engineer,“ can you tell what that means? Is there a fundamental rule to being an engineer?

Steve Wozniak (Woz): I wanted to be among engineers as my friends. Also, I liked designing products that engineers would use. So I was their engineer in that sense.

DaniWeb: You worry about people a lot. What worries you the most?

Woz: I worry that in wealthy societies …

agreed vaultdweller123, PC gaming is superior to consoles, especially in the following genres:
FPS, MMO RPG, SIM, flight SIM, driving SIM, strategy... pretty much most genres. I'll give consoles a slight edge in multi-player sports games and rhythm games (like guitar hero, dance revolution and such), and draw for arcade-style fighting games like street fighter.

LMAO, apparently you are a pirate...

if you look to the right side of each post you will find arrows (up and down). you click an up arrow if you like a post, then it will allow you to make a comment and give you the option to add reputation. for example if you think my post to you was helpful go ahead and give it a try and add to my rep ;)

add what?

welcome to DW

Day 1 of the Intel Developer Forum kicked off with some cool announcements from Intel's CEO, Paul Otellini and EVP/General Manager, David Permutter. First off Otellini went into some numbers, stating that Gartner estimates each day 1 million PCs are shipped. Next he reminded us that Moore's Law still lives strong and that Intel is on the way to a 22nm (nanometer) manufacturing process. He also explained (but not in great detail) that Intel's recent acquisition of McAfee will be integrated with vPro technology to create a truly secure, "trusted" software/hardware relationship. He went on to mention some additional recent acquisitions and explained that Intel will continue to acquire and integrated companies and technologies to achieve its goals to create a completely harmoneous, ubiquitous and secure ecosystem of connected devices that allow users to access their files and work across many platforms. When asked about Intel's plans to acquire more companies, Otellini stated that there aren't any plans on the table at the moment but they would certainly entertain an acquisition if "the right company at the right price" came along. He also said that Intel is not concerned about having spent 50% of its available cash on recent acquisitions and he is confident in Intel's ability to generate plenty more cash. Intel continues to support the MeeGo standard for app development across platforms and pushes Intel's AppUp store for …

Intel Developer Forum 2010 starts today in San Francisco. The city is decorated from the airport to downtown with banners and ads by Intel with clever catch phrases like “Sponsors of Tomorrow,” “Shake hand with the future” and “Big thinkers, welcome home.” Today is the first of a three day event designed to introduce some new products, technologies and innovation from Intel Corporation and some of its industry partners. The aim is also to gather around “big thinkers” programmers, developers, engineers and designers and encourage them to innovate [with Intel ingredients of course]. On the agenda are some keynotes from the likes of Intel’s CEO, Paul Otellini and others as well as numerous technology showcases, technical sessions, classes and chats.

IDF is hosted at the Moscone Convention Center with special activity stations set up that include Poster Chats, Intel’s Smart TV Pavilion, Wireless Display Zone and an Advanced Technology Zone. Some of the announcements we are expecting are:

Axel Technologies: introduces Fuugo and showcases how Fuugo unites live Broadcast TV with Internet TV. Fuugo is the first TV application for personalizing a content stream by blending content choices from broadcast, mobile, and Internet TV. It utilizes social media, recommendations, and various content sources to create a stream that matches the viewer’s interests.

Fresco Logic and American Megatrends Inc (AMI): come together to deliver the industry’s first SuperSpeed USB 3.0 xHCI 1.0 Solution

Ocosmos and Intel: team up to bring …

you'll have to open up your PC and take a look at the label on your power supply. It will say what the wattage it or at least what the make and model is. As for the RAM, you'll have to take a look at the label on your memory sticks and see what type of RAM you have, then you can purchase matching memory. Based on your system specs I would guess you have 2x 1GB DDR2 RAM but you will have to make sure and also fing the exact speed and specs of the RAM. Again, most of that will appear on the label.

9800 GT should have no problem with those games, and I would recommend 4GB if you have Windows Vista or 7. 2GB might be just enough if you are running XP.

Here's how these cards are similar:
- both are DX10
- both support a resolution up to 2560x1600
- both 512MB of GDDR3 (256-bit) memory
- both support SLI

Here's how they differ:
- the GTX+ will cost you about $50-$60 more
- the GTX+ runs hotter
- the GTX+ takes up 2 slots (GT only takes 1)
- the GTX+ has faster memory and core clocks
- GTX+ has more CUDA cores (128 vs. 112)
- GTX+ supports 3-way SLI (GT only 2-way)

What would you like to use it for? Gaming?

How many available slots do you have?

Most importantly, the question of whether your PC can take either of these cards depends on what kind of power supply you have. The GTX+ requires at least a 450 Watt PSU while the GT needs at least a 400 Watter. I'd make sure to have some headroom (a true 500 Watt PSU would be ideal).

You should also make sure you have proper airflow and cooling to accommodate the extra heat as these cards are in a different class than your X1550.

On a side note: upgrade the RAM if you can. 2GB is a bit low for almost any application you would need such powerful video cards for, but it should work.

This is funny but what if it is a not-too-distant reality?
[youtube]Xtuxax8Dtk4[/youtube]LOL "Come on let's go to Dunkin Donuts..." or the 911 call, how funny is that.

Telecommuting is one thing but how about actually being there. Imagine you’re working from New York and you need to check up on a production plant in Seattle. Imagine being able to walk around the building in Seattle while sitting at your desk in New York, talking to people around the remote office, going in and out of meetings in the conference room, even keeping a close eye on the production line. Well Menlo Park, CA based Willow Garage is making that possible with their Texai communication systems. Now humans can actually inhabit a robot-like unit (think Avatar minus the blue skin and magical trees, or Surrogates). That’s right you can take over a robot in Seattle, check up on that production plant, then inhabit another robot in Florida and visit the warehouse there, then posses another robot in California and attend a shareholders’ meeting (practically in person)… you get the picture. The possibilities are endless.

Sanford Dickert, good friend of DaniWeb and Texai Product Director at Williow Garage, blew-away the crowd of techies on Tuesday night as he presented at the Tech NY Meetup in NYC. First he remotely visited Willow Garage’s offices in Mountain View and walked around the halls there saying hello to the crew. Then, in a few seconds and a couple of clicks, he inhabited a Texai robot at the home of the creator of Texai robots in Indiana for a quick chat.

Here’s a video from Tuesday night’s …

Green is in these days, and so is saving money. The EcoStrip 2.0 looks like a common power strip with built-in surge protection but it actually works to save you money while reducing your carbon footprint. The EcoStrip 2.0 comes with a USB connector that you plug into your PC to activate its magic ability. Once connected it knows when you shut down your PC [or Mac], then it cuts all power to the remaining ports on the power strip. Everything else you plug into the EcoStrip stops drawing power the moment your computer is off.

According to the International Energy Agency , the U.S. wastes billions of dollars each year on energy lost to standby power (also known as "Vampire Power") . This means that all those devices we leave plugged in when we’re not using them are actually drawing a lot more power than we think. Many of these devices, such as printers, monitors, speakers and cell-phone chargers, are kept around the computer desk. Together these devices can add 7%-12% to your electric bill, wasting power and costing you an extra $20-$150 per year. The EcoStrip 2.0 aims to reduce that waste by cutting power to all those devices, all you have to do is remember to shut down your PC. Did you know that leaving your PC on draws an average of 50-300 Watts, about as much as a common refrigerator?

Bad Habits
The bottom line is …