Intel Touts New Transistors
Intel plans to announce today news of a groundbreaking effort made by the company's scientists in Hillsboro, Oregon at the Silicon Nanoelectronics Workshop in Kyoto, Japan. News of the achievement leaked out to Reuters just two days after an IBM press release detailed an altered form of silicon. Intel has engineered what they claim to be the fastest and smallest transistors ever to be produced.
The chip giant is forecasting the potential to create microprocessors that contain nearly 1 billion transistors running at a clock speed of 20 gigahertz. As chips approach that threshold, the search for a new material to replace silicon continues. Faster processors open a wide range of possibilities to software developers for creating powerful, new solutions.
IBM's 'Strained Silicon' Boosts Chip Speed
With the help of Big Blue, consumers will begin to see more efficient micro-electronics by 2003 that provide more power for CPU hungry applications. The current generation of semiconductor technology has received a considerable boost in performance thanks to breakthrough from IBM. A newly engineered material named "Strained Silicon" can increase chip speeds up to 35 percent, as well as reduce power consumption.
This week's announcement marks IBM's fifth major breakthrough in semiconductor technology in the past four years. Strained Silicon breathes more life into the material, which is quickly nearing its physicals limits. According to IBM, "The new technology takes advantage of the natural tendency for atoms inside compounds to align with one another. When silicon is deposited on top of a substrate with atoms spaced farther apart, the atoms in silicon stretch to line up with the atoms beneath, stretching -- or 'straining' -- the silicon." The material speeds up the flow of electrons through silicon by up to 70 percent. The result is faster performance without the need to miniaturize transistors.
AT&T Scales Back Plans for Interactive TV
As Microsoft prepares to roll out interactive television software with selected partners, AT&T recently announced that it is scaling back its commitment to the technology. Citing that customers were not ready to accept the advanced features included in high-end set top boxes, the cable giant has re-evaluated its plans. This move strikes a blow to Microsoft's attempt to gain a foothold in interactive TV services, after having invested five billion dollars in AT&T and spending over six years experimenting with the technology.
According to Reuters, Microsoft encountered difficulty while porting its Windows-based technology to the set top boxes, which include far less processing power than PCs. These setbacks resulted in Microsoft missing key deadlines to make its software available to partners – incidentally making room for competitors. If things went according to plan, Microsoft would have been in the living rooms of over 10 million AT&T customers. Meanwhile, the Redmond giant announced that Portugal's TV Cabo, Mexico's Cablevision, and Israel's Matav Cable Systems Media have begun critical market trials of Microsoft solutions.
Titans Clash over Speech Patent
This past Monday, two giants clashed over intellectual property rights. Cable and long-distance behemoth AT&T alleges that the world's largest software company infringed on its patent for a voice compression algorithm. AT&T engineered a technology which isolates and encodes speech, allowing for more efficient file transfer rates and an optimized use of storage space. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, AT&T was issued a patent on January 19, 1988. Microsoft first incorporated the technology into Windows 95 and has continued to do so with each subsequent release of Windows.
First reported by Reuters, AT&T informed Microsoft of the alleged infringement in April of 1999, and offered to license the technology to Microsoft. The software giant refused AT&T's offer, triggering a legal response. The lawsuit states "AT&T has been, and will continue to be, damaged and irreparably harmed by Microsoft's infringement, which will continue unless Microsoft is enjoined by this court."
Beta Test LEGO BIONICLE
From building blocks to video games, Lego has done it all. Lego Software is looking for 100 beta testers to try out the company's upcoming PC CD-ROM game, BIONICLE: The Legend of Mata Nui. Be one of the first 50 accepted and take home a snazzy BIONICLE baseball cap. All beta testers will receive a complimentary copy of the game and a mention in its credits. The sign up period ends on June 8, and you must be 13 years or older to participate without parental consent. Lego is currently only accepting applicants from the United States or Canada.
The Legend of Mata Nui is a mythical adventure game were users can, "harness elemental forces and outsmart dangerous foes in their quest to free the island of Mata Nui from the dark shadow of Makuta." Explore jungles, underwater cities, surf streams of lava, ski down a mountain, even cause your own natural disaster. The game includes several characters that will be unlocked as you play on. Concept animation and screenshots can be viewed from the beta Web site.
Polaroid Focuses Lens on New Tech
Coming soon to a shopping center, drug store, or mall near you - Polaroid. Rebounding off the success of its popular I-Zone instant pocket camera and digital cameras, the financially troubled company is betting that convenience, once a factor in its demise, will jumpstart sales. New digital printing technologies coded-named 'Opal' and 'Onyx', are the basis for a dramatic shift in Polaroid's business strategy.
Opel and Onyx are key parts of Polaroid's strategy to shift from analog to digital technologies. According a press release, Polaroid's Opal technology is, "a two-sheet, thermal print medium that combines the best of traditional thermal transfer and inkjet technologies to generate photographic-quality color prints. Opal's high image quality and stability, combined with fast print speed, make it an optimal technology for dedicated home photo printers or the retail photo finishing environment."
Toshiba to Debut Next Generation LCD
Folks who attend Society for Information Display (SID) 2001 at San Jose, California will glimpse a taste of the future. Toshiba is set to reveal its full-color polymer organic light emitting display (OLED) technology, which functions much like an LCD with improved power consumption, response time, and wider viewing angles. These advantages appeal to OEMS such as Apple who recently announced a switch to LCD displays for the majority of its systems. OLED will offer a more suitable platform for viewing media than existing LCDs, and leaves the door open for thinner screens.
Unlike LCDs which are backlit, OLED displays will present output, "via an organic light-emitting diode in the pixels formed on a TFT array." Toshiba touts a prototype that features a 2.85-inch display supporting 260,000 colors and a 64-level (6-bit) gray scale. "The breakthrough display was achieved by development of technology for forming a light-emitting polymer film on a low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor (TFT) array," according to the company. Polysilicon was pioneered by Toshiba, and is a key element of OLED technology achieving active-matrix display.
Microsoft: Upgrade Your Media Player
In the company's seventh security bulletin this month, Microsoft has announced two vulnerabilities affecting Windows Media Player 6.4 and 7.0. Users of Windows Media Player 6.4 can download one patch with fixes for both exploits, however a heftier download is needed in order to patch version 7.0. Microsoft recommends that Windows Media Player 7.0 users upgrade to the newest release, 7.1.
In both cases, information must be known about the user's system in order for an attacker to successfully exploit these flaws. Privacy is enhanced when users of Windows Media Player uncheck the option: "Allow Internet sites to uniquely identify your player."
Aimster Struggles On
Aimster founder, Johnny Deep has promised to fight on and will not give up his rights to the company's domain. Deep told BetaNews, "What a travesty the whole domain name procedure has become. Two arbitrators, in an apparent effort to advertise their own services to big corporations, decided to usurp powers that federal courts would not have exercised. See the opinion of the third dissenting arbitrator to realize what was really going on. Yes we'll appeal it and we'll surely win."
Late last week, the Capital Business District Review has reported on a decision that requires Aimster to relinquish its domain name. A ruling by the National Arbitration Forum found that "AIM" in Aimster violated America Online's trademark for its instant messaging software. The case, "American Online, Inc. v. John Deep." was greatly influenced by the conclusions of the NAF.
Napster Seeks Beta Testers
Following legal woes and a massive drop in popularity, Napster is now asking its users for assistance. Changes in Napster's filters have caused many searches to not turn up any results, and music is not being shared. New filters are being implemented and the file sharing application will continue its transition toward a subscription-based service. Napster plans to use the fees to compensate artists and songwriters. Today a bulletin was posted on the company's Web site asking for beta testers to aid in the development of the new subscription technologies. Potential beta testers are able to sign up from Napster's homepage, and will be notified as more information becomes available.
Is Your Computer Ready for XP?
For some time, many users have thought 128 MB of RAM to be the sweet spot for use with Windows. With the advent of Windows XP however, Microsoft now considers a "value PC" to include at least that amount. A recently released PC Design Checklist for Windows XP details what computing power the software giant feels is necessary to take advantage of the upcoming operating system. Unfortunately, many users will have to upgrade in order to meet these new guidelines.
The Windows XP checklist calls for systems to include several components usually seen on high-end machines. For seamless device connectivity, four USB ports are required along with two Firewire ports, one of which must be located at the front of the PC.
RealNetworks Debuts RealArcade Beta
Game enthusiasts now have another reason to celebrate. The Internet has been an ideal platform for distributing games, and RealNetworks has decided to expand its product offerings to take advantage of this medium. Months after being released to developers, a beta of RealArcade and its services have gone live for the general public.
RealArcade allows gamers to play web-based games for free, to manage downloads, and it also provides communities for discussion and review. Moreover, the community also matches up players with one another for multi-player action. RealArcade also offers one centralized location for support and gaming tips, even with over forty developers signed on – some of which have provided exclusive content for Real's new gaming platform. One compelling feature is the ability to re-download purchased games after a hard drive failure or a reformatting.
MIS Extends Microsoft's Wireless Reach
Users of Microsoft-compatible mobile devices now have access to a wider range of information while on the run. A key piece of Microsoft's mobility and .NET strategy, Mobile Information Server 2001, has been released to manufacturing. According to Redmond, MIS extends "the reach of Microsoft .NET Enterprise applications, enterprise data and intranet content into the realm of the mobile user."
Microsoft has met its target for release in the first half of 2001, and MIS will hit store shelves in most areas by June.
Microsoft to Provide 'Ultra-Secure' Bank Software
Microsoft is poised to enter the banking business, set to provide banks with software to ensure ultra-secure transactions over the Internet. The Windows 2000-based system has enhanced verification capabilities allowing banks to know exactly whom they are conducting business with online. According to an Associated Press report, the technology "matches a security framework designed by Identrus, an alliance of 150 of the world's largest banks."
This new software initiative has the Redmond giant partnered with Unisys and Baltimore Technologies. The AP reports that Baltimore will contribute its Public Key Infrastructure security system, and that Unisys will support customers using the system. Microsoft is not creating a new product, but rather will utilize its partners to "match Identrus' specifications with a single purchase."
Too Much Memory Crashes Windows
Windows 2000 and XP seem to thrive on an abundance of RAM. However, with Windows 9x too much RAM may be worse than too little, yet another quirky idiosyncrasy of the OS that we all know and love. According to a knowledge base article, machines running with over 512 MB of RAM may, "stop responding (hang) while Windows is starting, or halt and display the following error message:"
Insufficient memory to initialize windows. Quit one or more memory-resident programs or remove unnecessary utilities from your Config.sys and Autoexec.bat files, and restart your computer.
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