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Thread ID: 23322	2002-08-13 10:23:00	monday & tuesday news	tweak'e (174)	Press F1

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70766	2002-08-13 10:23:00	The scene is set for Taiwan's PC core logic designers to get the edge over RAMBUS with the development of dual-channel, double-data-rate designs for release this year . Read more on this story from EETimes below: The DDR chip sets will give DRAM a bandwidth edge over Rambus memory in high-performance desktop systems, entry-level servers and workstations . Silicon Integrated Systems Corp . (SiS) and Via Technologies Inc . are putting the finishing touches on two similar chip sets, the SiS655 and Via P4X600, which offer memory support up to DDR-333 . ALi Corp . will not field a device, but Intel Corp . will release a similar chip set, code-named Springdale, next year, which should also support a 667-MHz front-side bus . All of the devices will exceed the front-side bus bandwidth of the Pentium 4 533-MHz Northwood . The whole story is available for reading at EETimes ( . eetimes . com/semi/news/OEG20020809S0036" target="_blank">www . eetimes . com) . VIA has released a new version of their 4-in-1 driver package (version 4 . 42) with the following inclusions: INF file v1 . 701 AGP driver version 4 . 30b2 IDE Filter driver version 1 . 20 IRQ routing driver version (Win98 only) 1 . 3a Add IDs and 8X AGP support for #400 chipset series Grab the new package from the following links: - Mirror 1 ( . viaarena . com/drivers/4in1/4in1442v" target="_blank">downloads . viaarena . com(a)p2 . zip) - Mirror 2 ( . fileconnect . net/modules . php?name=News&file=article&sid=1286&mode=&order=0&thold=0" target="_blank">www . fileconnect . net) XP-AntiSpy 3 . 61 has now been released . There is no word on what's changed in this utility that let's you disable some built-in update and authetication 'features' in WindowsXP since version 3 . 60 came out a couple of days ago . For more info on XP-Antispy, check this out: There's a service running in the background wich is called 'Automatic Updates' . I don't know what this service transfers from my machine to other machines on the internet, especially the MS ones . So I play it safe and disable such functions . If you like, you can even disable these function manually, by going through the System and checking or unchecking some checkboxes . This will take you approximately half an hour . But why wasting time when a little neat utility can do the same in 1 minute? This utility was successfully tested by lots of users, and was found to disable all the known 'Suspicious' Functions in WindowsXP . Grab it here ( . xp-antispy . de/XPAntiSpy3-English . zip" target="_blank">www . xp-antispy . de) . ABIT has announced the new addition to it's MAX series of motherboards, the IT7-MAX2 . The IT7-MAX2 is intended for Socket478 Pentium 4 processors with 400MHz/533MHz bus, based on the i845E chipset . It features 3 DDR DIMM slots supporting PC1600/PC2100 DDR SDRAM, an AGP 4x slot and 4 PCI slots, integrated onboard 2 SerialATA-150 ports, ATA/133 RAID controller, 10 USB 2 . 0 ports and 3 IEEE1394 ports, supports 10/100Mbit Ethernet, 6-channel AC’97 codec with optical S/PDIF and ABIT’s brand SoftMenu 3 technology . Optionally you can include a Media XP panel, which should be installed into the 5-inch bay of the PC case and featuring a Smart-card reader, audio ports, USB and IEEE1394 connectors . mp3PRO Player version 1 . 1 . 0 has been released with the following changes: complexity reductions for mp3PRO encoding by 30-50% ignoring the CRC check when playing mp3/mp3PRO files improved accuracy of the time slider for VBR and ID3v2 tagged files improved robustness when playing corrupted mp3/mp3PRO files added an option to encode the Original File Length in the bitstream, for such files the decoder would output a sample accurate . wav file on output mp3PRO player features the following: Encode . wav files into mp3PRO files at 64 kbps . Play back all mp3 and mp3PRO files . Click here ( . mp3prozone . com/assets/mp3PROAudioPlayer_v1_1_0 . exe" target="_blank">www . mp3prozone . com) to download the player . 3D Gamers has posted up some new screenshots for Unreal II: The Awakening, the single-player first-person shooter sequel in the works at Legend Entertainment . These are high-res shots and if Unreal II is anything like the eye candy that UT2003 is, it's going to be a bumper christmas for games . Check the shots out here ( . 3dgamers . com/screenshots/games/unreal2/" target="_blank">www . 3dgamers . com) . SIS has released new version 7018 Audio 1 . 17 drivers . The new audio drivers can be downloaded standalone from the following links: - Windows 9x (ftp://210 . 17 . 18 . 13/driver/sound/sis/7018w9x117 . zip) - Windows XP (ftp://210 . 17 . 18 . 13/driver/sound/sis/7018xp117 . zip) Or the complete 7 . 25MB package is available for download from here (ftp://210 . 17 . 18 . 14/driver/sound/sis/sis7018 . zip) . Microsoft is offering Windows . NET RC1 and the following other software for free evaluation for UK residents: Visuals Studio NET (DVD Version) Office XP Standard Version Windows 2000 Server/ Advance Server Microsoft Windows Management Platform SQL Server 2000 Windows XP Pro Plus lots more . . . . . . . . . Check out the site here ( . microsoft . com/uk/technet/preview/evaluation . asp" target="_blank">www . microsoft . com) if you're a UK resident . Realtek have released new version 3 . 26 sound drivers for the ALC100/P (SIS7012 Audio), ALC20xx and ALC650 OnBoard Sound chipsets . If you have one of these, grab the drivers here ( . realtek . com . tw/htm/download/driver . asp?class1=computer&model=ALC100/P" target="_blank">www . realtek . com . tw) . IE Booster 1 . 5 is now available for download . This is what IE Booster does: IE Booster is a freeware collection of tools that extend the context menu of Internet Explorer (version 5 and up) for Windows . IE Booster's feature list is impressive, it can show all forms and applets of a web page, page source, all hyperlinks, images and style sheets . More detailed info can be found on a selected image, and it's copy features include the ability to copy the current page title, link target, a selection as plain text or the current image to the clipboard . " The new version includes the following changes: “Open link in new minimized window” All result pages are shown in a new window some bugfixes Download it here ( . paessler . com/download/Download_IE_Booster/download_ie_booster . htm" target="_blank">www . paessler . com) and read a bit more on the program here ( . paessler . com/products/ieb/" target="_blank">www . paessler . com) . EPoX has released a new beta version BIOS for the 8K3A/+ board . The biggest change is the re-enabling of the CPU Fast Decode command which was disabled after BIOS 2312 . Here's is the link to the BIOS ( . aoaforums . com/forum/attachment . php?s=bd7fc4143a7254891bea24bf67c7cec6&postid=90085" target="_blank">www . aoaforums . com) ReGet Deluxe 3 . 1 Beta Build 137 shareware is out . There's no word on the changes in this latest version of the reliable download manager program, but you can download it here ( . reget . com/dl/dx/regetdx_137 . exe" target="_blank">download . reget . com) . Guru3d has posted on a new set of Detonators Drivers build on the version 29 . 90 . These drivers may be a bit more stable than the new 30 . 82 drivers just released, so if you want stability over new, grab the drivers here ( . guru3d . com/files/detonator/" target="_blank">www . guru3d . com) . Microsoft's new volume licensing agreements, Licensing 6 . 0, hasn't gone down too well with customers . Here's what is happening with Microsoft's new plan for volume selling: Giga Information Group says that 20 percent of Microsoft's customers can't afford the new program, which basically requires them to sign up for 2- or 3-year subscription terms . A total of 40 percent of Microsoft's former volume-licensing customers have simply opted to not sign up for Licensing 6 . 0 . Gartner says the percentages are even uglier in other countries . In Australia, for example, as many as 50 percent of Microsoft's customers have bailed from Licensing 6 . 0 . The best customer quote? "For frickin' sake, [Microsoft has] $36 billion in the bank, and they're trying to squeeze us . " You can read more at Wininformant ( . wininformant . com/Articles/Index . cfm?ArticleID=26209" target="_blank">www . wininformant . com) . Tom's Hardware have been doing some Serial ATA testing using a Serial ATA Western Digital Hard-drive, a RocketRAID 1520 Serial ATA control from Highpoint, a ABit IT7 MAX2 (onboard serial ata connectors) motherboard, and a highpoint ide serial ata convertor . Hee's a clip from the review: "At last - a year after the standard was finalized, the first Serial ATA products are about to hit the stores . Practically all controller card producers already have compatible products ready to go, but hard disk manufacturers are waiting until fall before they release the hard drives . In this article, we take a look at a number of devices to give you our first impression of Serial ATA . " The whole review is here ( . tomshardware . com/storage/02q3/020812/index . html" target="_blank">www . tomshardware . com) for the reading . Viper Lair has posted an FAQ on How to integrate SP1 for Office with your current office CD ( . viperlair . com/articles/guides/offxpsp1/offxpsp1 . htm" target="_blank">www . viperlair . com) . This could be handy if your planning a new upgrade . Check out this part of the FAQ: Depending on how you aquire the update, it's still a bother to some people to install the patch, after installing Office XP . Your CD is typically required (more annoying if you keep your CDs locked away from your desk), and if you're running Windows 2000, you may need to reboot (unless you update to Windows Installer 2 . 0) . To avoid all this, the easiest thing to do is to create an integrated Office XP CD with Service Pack 1 . For the purposes of this guide, we'll be using the Administrative Update . I tried using the 17MB update, but it doesn't seem to acheive our intended goal . Complete Internet Cleaner 1 . 1, the program that will clean out all those stray files, is out with the following new stuff: A report button, which shows the size of index . dat files and if they contain any information . For more info CIC is better described as follows if you're not sure what it does: Complete Internet Cleanup is a utility to erase your Internet tracks . All your Internet traces are logged to index . dat files and deleting Cache, Cookies and History does not clear the contents of index . dat files . Complete Internet Cleanup clears index . dat files . Complete Internet Cleanup is also a utility to help running your PC faster by emptying Windows Temp directory, Recycle Bin and Recent Documents folder You can check out a screenshot here ( . pcmesh . com/images/screenshot . jpg" target="_blank">www . pcmesh . com) and download it here ( . pcmesh . com/cic . zip" target="_blank">www . pcmesh . com) . Keep your eye out as the price of TFT monitors could be about to fall . Here's part of a news report over at News . com: After rising for nearly a year, the prices on components for flat-panel monitors have begun to drop . And, although consumers have yet to see the benefits of the component reductions, retail prices on finished monitors will decrease steadily as the year goes on, analysts say . Read the rest of the story here ( . com . com/2100-1040-949010 . html" target="_blank">news . com . com) Creative have released an new standalone WebCam Drivers for the model number PD1001 for users running Windows 98/98SE/ME/2000/XP . The new driver changes the following: This release includes several fixes and improvements to video quality . It is also fully WHQL certified for Windows XP and is tested on Creative WebCam only . Grab the driver here ( . europe . creative . com/support/drivers/eula . asp?id=430" target="_blank">at . europe . creative . com) . CPUBENCH version 3 . 3 . 0 . 1 is out . No word on the changes, but you can download it from Major Geeks here ( . majorgeeks . com/article . php?sid=1018" target="_blank">www . majorgeeks . com) . Gamers depot have posted an interview with Trident Microsystems about their Trident XP4 graphics card, the budget performance alternative to a GeForce . Here's a quick snip: Here is a quick recap if you have no idea what i am talking about . Trident Microsystems is about to launch a new GPU that will be a killer card and will make some waves for ATi and nVidia, the cards are aimed at the budget consumer but the card for $100 XP4 GPU will perform better than my GF4Ti4600 for $400 . Due to hit the streets this October and offer full DirectX 9 hardware support . "We recently had the chance to rap with their VP of marketing, Le Nguyen, about this new chip and what it means to the consumer - More importantly, what it could mean to NVIDIA and ATI . " Snag the whole interview over at Gamers Depot ( . gamersdepot . com/interviews/trident/xp4/001 . htm" target="_blank">www . gamersdepot . com) . There is an updated demo for TOCA Race Driver, the upcoming Codemasters game that shows how a V8 Supercar race should look and feel, available for download . This updated Demo puts you as Ryan McKane, a test driver with gasoline running in his veins, that spends his life struggling against his father’s disappointment, while his brother’s phenomenal racetrack success overshadows every minor victory he achieves . When his father perishes in an octane-fuelled blaze of fire on the asphalt that he loved, Ryan’s frustrated ambition galvanizes into a unrelenting determination to triumph over all opposition and become first a ToCA Race Driver, then maybe even World Champion . To get the updated demo to work follow these instructions: Run the V8ValvolineDemo . exe from the CD . Just follow the on-screen install process . The V8 Supercars Race Driver Valvoline Demo will then be installed . A new folder will be created in your Start menu . You can run the Hardware setup if you would like to change the graphics settings . This is recommended before you run Race Driver . The Hardware Setup program can be found in the Codemasters/V8 Supercars Race Driver Demo folder of your Start menu . It is recommended that the game is set to 32 bit colour for the best visual performance . Once you have selected your hardware setup click Save and Play . Download the 170MB demo from here ( . bhmotorsports . com/download/211" target="_blank">www . bhmotorsports . com), you need to burn the . iso file on to a CD, or else it will ask for the CD or download the No CD Patch ( . bhmotorsports . com/download/240" target="_blank">www . bhmotorsports . com) to remove the CD check . Check out some ultra-cool screenshots here ( . bhmotorsports . com/RDRIVE/screenshots" target="_blank">www . bhmotorsports . com) . Zoom Player version 2 . 80 Beta 1 is out, hot on the heels of 2 . 71 out yesterday . There is no word on the changes but you can download the program that provides special zooming functions to improve TV-Output quality by eliminating overscan here ( . rio . ee/zoomplayer280b1 . zip" target="_blank">zp . rio . ee) . Microsoft has released Money 2003 for Pocket PC version 2 . 01 . This smaller version of the home business accounting type software can be downloaded for free from microsoft ( . microsoft . com/mobile/pocketpc/downloads/money . asp?FinishURL=%2Fdownloads%2Frelease%2Easp%3" target="_blank">www . microsoft . com FReleaseID%3D40984%26area%3Dsearch%26ordinal%3D11% 26redirect%3Dno) WebcamXP version 0 . 97 is out . WebcamXP is a webcam utility that allows you to share your webcam with everyone without having to set a web server on your computer . The web server is integrated to the software and needs only a few configuration parameters such as server port and local directory . Check out more info here ( . darkwet . net/) and download it here (http://download . betanews . com/download/1004419964/webXP097 . exe" target="_blank">www . darkwet . net/) and download it here (http:) if you feel the need to share you're webcam with the rest of the family . Computer Weekly has reported on a series of security holes in Goolgle's toolbar program for your web browser . Read below for the details: A series of security holes in the Google Toolbar, an application offered by the popular search engine that adds easily accessible search features to Web browsers, could allow an attacker to read files, reroute searches and execute scripts on an affected PC, according to a security alert released yesterday by GreyMagic Software . GreyMagic identified a total of nine vulnerabilities ranging from minor - a Web site operator being able to tell what keys a user is pressing in the Google search field - to serious - the scripting vulnerability . Among the less serious flaws found is the search bar keylogging described above, enabling the "Page Rank" and "Category" features that could reveal user information, clearing the toolbar's history or even uninstalling the application . More seriously, by using a specific Uniform Resource Locator (URL), attackers could reroute searches through their own Web sites, allowing them to log information about users, the security group said . By using other URLs containing scripts, an attacker can read files on the affected PC or execute scripts in the same security context that Web pages are viewed . The flaws were all patched by Google's automatic update to the toolbar, released on Wednesday, meaning that many Google Toolbar users should already be protected against the holes, GreyMagic said . You can read more over at Computer Weekly 360 ( . cw360 . com/article&rd=&i=&ard=114866&fv=1" target="_blank">www . cw360 . com) and download a copy of the patched toolbar here (http://toolbar . google . com/) . TweakersGuide has posted a performance article covering the second beta of Microsoft's DirectX 9 . 0 . The article runs a comparison between beta 1 and DirectX 8 . 1 including benchmarks and screenshots . Here's a short burst from the article: "The second beta performs like the first one: not better than DirectX 8 . 1 . Thus, it's not really necessary to install this beta unless you are a developer and might want to check out DirectX 9 as the leaked betas are SDKs (Software Development Kits) . " View the whole thing here ( . mikemth . de/modules . php?name=Sections&sop=viewarticle&artid=54" target="_blank">twg . mikemth . de) . Microsoft has released the Web Component for their Visio 2000/2002 Viewer . The Web Component will allow anyone to view Visio drawings and diagrams (if created with Visio 5, 2000, or 2002) inside Internet Explorer version 5 . 0 or later . This is handy if you don't have a copy of Visio installed . You can download it here ( . microsoft . com/downloads/2002/vviewer . aspx?FinishURL=%2Fdownloads%2Frelease%2Eas" target="_blank">office . microsoft . com p%3FReleaseID%3D41367%26area%3Dsearch%26ordinal%3D 1%26redirect%3Dno) . Go the bizarro stories: A Dutch Woman who claims she is allergic to Intel Pentium processors is continuing to fight for compensation . The woman has filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Economics in the Netherlands, and, apparently against Intel too, claiming that the processor gives off particular radiations which cause her to break out in hives . She didn't have any problems with the 486 processor, apparently, but is claiming that high frequency radiations from the Pentium is making her sick . The woman appears to have been discharged for medical reasons but so far claims that those problems are down to the Pentium appear to have been rejected by tribunals . You can read more about this truly bizarre tale here ( . theinquirer . net/?article=4825" target="_blank">www . theinquirer . net) or the dutch version here ( . planet . nl/multimedia/0,1674,101_1501_1108056,00 . html" target="_blank">www . planet . nl) . Creative has released a new version of their Creative File Manager for NOMAD Jukebox 3 . The release contains the following: Creative File Manager 1 . 00 . 19 Creative NOMAD Jukebox 3 drivers v1 . 02 . 03 (non-WHQL certified) Download the new File Manager here ( . creative . com/scripts/download . asp?Agrmt=slicense . html&file=http://files . asia . creative . com/files/creative/drivers/app/jb3/Creative_FileManager_1 . 00 . 19 . exe" target="_blank">asia . creative . com) . Following straight on from the Nero 5 . 5 . 9 . 4 RC released yesterday, comes Nero 5 . 5 . 9 . 6 . There is no word on what's new but you can download it from here (ftp://ftpit . nero . com/Nero5596 . exe) or from FileConnect ( . fileconnect . net/modules . php?name=News&file=article&sid=1276&mode=&order=0&thold=0" target="_blank">www . fileconnect . net) . thx monty ( . ozquake . com/montysdump/index . html" target="_blank">www . ozquake . com) words from the man himself "Hi everyone, I just posted a reply to another news item but I thought that I would post a separate item anyway to thank everyone who visits the Dump on a regular basis . The site past the 150,000 mark during the week, which for me was a huge buzz and I am blown away that 6800+ people a week are now choosing to visit my site . This is a far cry from the 200 odd a month I was getting when I first started . It is so crazy, I now get emails that are sent in a broken English from countries whose origin is non-speaking asking for advice on different matters, I even had a job offer from a Seattle based company, because they thought I was a computer programmer just by visiting the site . Anyway I digress, once again I would just like to let everyone know that I am deeply honoured that you come to the site and if there is anything that I can do to make your visits anymore enjoyable, easy or informative or you just something that you would like changed, let me know and I will be happy to oblige . So thanks, keep visiting and tell your mates to have a look . Cheers Monty "	tweak'e (174)
70767	2002-08-13 23:56:00	<bump>	tweak'e (174)
70768	2002-08-14 01:11:00	<almighty whack>	Mike (15)
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