General Gaming Article |
- Forum Feature: This Week in Threads!
- Google Health and PowerMeter Shutting Down
- Contest Friday: CivWorld Invites!
- DEFCON Kids: All Hackers Aren't Jerks
- PCI Express Developing Blazing-Fast External Standard
- New Retro Transformer USBs Let You Transfer Data In Style
- Asus Announces F1A75 Motherboard Series for Fusion Platform
- New CPU-Z Build Supports AMD FX Bulldozer and Llano
- Cool Site of the Week: Turntable.fm
- Leaked IRC Logs Provides Insight into LulzSec
| Forum Feature: This Week in Threads! Posted: 24 Jun 2011 05:35 PM PDT It's Friday, and we're wrapping up another issue of the magazine. The September issue, to be precise. We know that's a heck of a lead time. We can't wait to show you! While you're waiting to see the 2011 Dream Machine, there are a few things you can do. You can apply to be our boss! Or you could join the discussion on our official forums! Or you could do both!
Check out our Appraisals, Deals & Bargains (oh my!) subforum, otherwise known as the kleinkinstein show. There are appraisals. There are deals. There are bargains. Most of the latter two are posted by the indefatigable kleinkinstein, but you could post some too. You know. Does (page file) size matter? Join psymonkey and the rest of the gang for a frank discussion. Maggard wants to know what to do with an old Socket 775 Dell machine. RaginNoob requests watercooling advice. angelsix wants help building a rig for 3D Blu-ray and gaming. Head on over to the forums for all these fine threads and more! Don't forget to add your voice to the discussions, or start your own thread! |
| Google Health and PowerMeter Shutting Down Posted: 24 Jun 2011 03:02 PM PDT
Google Health was launched as a way for users to organize and analyze their own health information. Google admits that adoption was limited to the tech-savvy crowd, but they believe the idea can still help millions of people. Health is going to be shut down on January 1, 2012, but data can still be exported until January 1, 2013. Google PowerMeter was a product of Google.org, the search giant's non-profit wing. This service allowed users to monitor their energy usage with an array of charts and graphs. It was total data-porn, but the service relied on the installation of "smart meters" in homes. Since most municipalities aren't yet up for that, it didn't happen. Total sunset on PowerMeter is set for September 16, 2011. |
| Contest Friday: CivWorld Invites! Posted: 24 Jun 2011 02:01 PM PDT If we say "Sid Meier," do you say "Yes, please, please, give meeeee it!" If we say "CivWorld," do you make this face?
Yes? Really? A) How do you do that? and B) Get ready to squee with joy because we've got three invites to CivWorld to give away today! Here's the lowdown - in order to enter you must have a Facebook account for this contest. Why? Pretty simple explanation really: we're horrible people who want to ruin your day and invade your privacy. Nah, not really - but the game is only available via the Facebooks right now, so you're going to kind of need to have a Facebook account to access the game. (Yes, boo, hiss, I know - we'll have another contest next week so don't throw rocks at me just yet). Still with me? Alright, now, just go to our Facebook page and leave a comment with a suggestion for an Image Gallery - something you'd like to see made into a story like this one, or this one, or this one. You can also comment here, on this post, if you'd rather. Usual rules and regulations apply (and are in the small print below). Also, please note that 2K Games or Take-Two Interactive are in no way affiliated with the giveaway. Good luck to everyone!
Rules MaximumPC contest rules: Anyone who posts a comment listing an idea for an image gallery to this story on either MaximumPC.com or the MaximumPC Facebook page will be entered to win the one of the three CivWorld invites described in this article--one entry per accepted comment. Prizes will be awarded by random drawing. Submissions will be accepted on our Facebook.com fanpage. Submissions will be accepted until Monday the 27th of June at 06:00 PM PST. By entering this contest, you agree that Future US, Inc. may use your name, likeness, website, and submission for promotional purposes without further payment. Employees of Sponsor, its respective parent, subsidiaries, affiliated companies, and agents, and foregoing employees¹ household or immediate family members (defined as parent, spouse, child, sibling, or grandparent) are NOT eligible to enter Contest. All prizes will be awarded, and no minimum number of entries is required. Prizes won by minors will be awarded to their parents or legal guardians. Future US, Inc. is not responsible for damages or expenses the winners might incur as a result of this contest or the receipt of a prize, and winners are responsible for income taxes based on the value of the prize received. A list of winners may also be obtained by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope toFuture US, Inc. c/o MaximumPC Contest, 4000 Shoreline Court, Suite 400, South San Francisco, CA 94080. This contest is limited to residents of the United States. No purchase necessary; void in Arizona, Maryland, Vermont, Puerto Rico, and where prohibited by law. |
| DEFCON Kids: All Hackers Aren't Jerks Posted: 24 Jun 2011 11:47 AM PDT
Workshops and classes are scheduled to teach future Neos and Condors how to do everything from picking locks to communicating in code to wheedling information out of people. "There will be a workroom for kids to participate in hacking activities anytime throughout the two days, including a Codebreaking Museum, a Makerbot and the Hardware Hacking Station," the Defcon Kids website says. As odd as it sounds to teach a room full of 10 year olds how to crack a Master lock, everything's given the full white-hat spin. For example, while the "Google Hacking" class shows kids how to get data hidden in plain sight, none of the courses involve penetrating network defenses. "We want to expose kids at an earlier age to the wonders of taking things apart and making them do things that they weren't intended to do," Jeff Moss, DEFCON's founder, told Reuters. This year's Defcon 19 takes place at the Rio Hotel and Casino in Vegas from August 4th to August 7th. The organizers are setting aside two rooms on the 6th and 7th for Defcon Kids. Anybody aged eight to 16 is encouraged to attend, but "DEFCON Kids is not daycare; kids are their parents' responsibility." |
| PCI Express Developing Blazing-Fast External Standard Posted: 24 Jun 2011 11:09 AM PDT
The specification's still in the design stages, but the target numbers being tossed around still make you sit up an take notice. EE Times reports the external PCI Express will be based on PCIe 3.0 and capable of transfer rates up to 32Gbps in distances up to three meters, a number that makes Thunderbolt's otherwise-speedy 10Gbps seem sluggish in comparison. On the downside, the spec won't support devices that pull in more than 20 watts of power, so the dream of plug-n-play high-end graphics cards is still just a dream. Design-wise, the external PCIe's cord and connector are "expected to be flatter than those of Thunderbolt," EE Times says. The initial design will be based on standard copper wiring, but high-speed copper and fiber wiring specs could be implemented in the future. Don't start drooling yet, though – external PCIe cables aren't expected to hit the streets until mid-way through 2013. |
| New Retro Transformer USBs Let You Transfer Data In Style Posted: 24 Jun 2011 10:19 AM PDT Geeks don't accessorize quite the same as norms. Matching your shoes with your shirt places you at the top of the fashion totem pole at most computer conventions. That being said, everybody likes a bit of flair every now and again, and geeks are no different. When you want to draw admiring "Ooohs" and "Aaahs" out of your tech-loving pals, you can pull Mimobot's new retro Transformer USB drives out of your pocket and rest easy knowing you're sporting the Gucci of the gadget world.
Mimobot, a company specializing in designer USB drives, showed off the pint-sized Optimus Prime and Megatron at the CEA Line Show going on in New York City the past couple of days. Engadget points out that while the retro Transformers don't actually, well, transform, they do come preloaded with Transformer-related screensavers, videos, digital comics, icons, avatars and more. That Gucci effect comes at Gucci prices, though. Pricing for the line starts at $23 for a 2GB drive and tops off at $60 for a 16GB drive. You can preorder the drives on Mimobot's website and bring the war between the Autobots and the Decepticons to your PC on July 18th. If Transformers don't strike your fancy, check out the other options on Mimobot's website. You can get USB drives sporting all types of cool, geek-related characters, ranging from Hal Jordan to Hoth Luke. Image credit: Mimobot |
| Asus Announces F1A75 Motherboard Series for Fusion Platform Posted: 24 Jun 2011 10:09 AM PDT
"The Asus F1A75 series are designed with the exclusive DIGI+ VRM and the most intuitive UEFI BIOS on the market," Asus says. "The F1A75-V EVO is the world's FM1 socket motherboard with dual x8/x8 PCI-Express for AMD CrossFireX support, while the entire range of Asus F1A75 Series motherboards are designed to natively support the latest USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gbps standards." Other features include four DDR3 memory slots, seven SATA ports, three PCI-E x16 slots, 7.1 channel audio, GbE LAN, eSATA, D-Sub, DVI, and HDMI. AMD didn't announce a price or release date. |
| New CPU-Z Build Supports AMD FX Bulldozer and Llano Posted: 24 Jun 2011 09:30 AM PDT
And that's everything that's new in version 1.58. Otherwise, it's same the utility it's always been, giving system owners a detailed rundown of core components, including CPU vitals such as the name, number, core stepping, core voltage, clockspeed, multiplier, cache information, and more; motherboard vendor, model, revision, BIOS model and date, chipset and sensor, and graphic interface; memory frequency, timings, SPD settings, vendor, serial number, and timings table; and Windows and DirectX version. You can download the latest release here. |
| Cool Site of the Week: Turntable.fm Posted: 24 Jun 2011 09:22 AM PDT
While still in a semi-closed beta, turntable.fm is already showing incredible promise. The premise is a simple one: Up to five users at a time are invited to spin tunes in any number of rooms, with other users free to drop in and listen to what your room has at any time. DJs can draw upon Turntable.fm's vast music repertoire or upload their own songs to add to the mix. As your song is played, the other DJs and users in the room can up-vote your song selection to legendary status, or ramp it's popularity down far enough to vote it right out of the mix.
Building on it's already impressive set of social features, each turntable.fm room also offers a chat interface for users to wax about their favorite tunes over, as well as links to Facebook, Twitter and email to send out invites to your friends with. After using turntable.fm for a mere two days, we're already hooked, and we're sure you'll be too! |
| Leaked IRC Logs Provides Insight into LulzSec Posted: 24 Jun 2011 09:09 AM PDT
Leaked IRC logs published today by the U.K.'s Guardian provide some insight into LulzSec and give a glimpse at how the hacking organization works. According to the logs, a 30-year-old security consultant known a "Sabu" controls the group of around six to eight people and keeps everyone in line. "Kayla" supplies the botnet, and "Topiary" is the one responsible for promoting LulzSec's image via press releases and Twitter. "They turn to be obsessed with their coverage in the media, especially in physical newspapers, sharing pictures of coverage they have received in the Wall Street Journal and other papers," the Guardian writes. "They also engineered a misinformation campaign to make people think they are a U.S.-sponsored government team." The seemingly tight-knit group doesn't always see eye-to-eye. Two members quit after LulzSec attacked an FBI site on June 3, prompting Sabu to tell the remaining members that, "You realize we smacked the FBI today. This means everyone in here must remain extremely secure." According to the Guardian, the logs were leaked by a former affiliate named "m_nerva," a move that didn't sit well with LulzSec. "Remember this tweet, m_nerva, for I know you'll read it: your cold jail cell will be haunted with our endless laughter. Game over, child," LulzSec said. The Guardian provides a ton of analysis on LulzSec, which you can read here. |
Everytime Google starts a blog post with "An update on", we cring, knowing that a tool or product is getting the axe. Today, 
Current headlines would have you believe that the hacking community is a seedy world full of anonymous, government-hating hooligans and lulz-seeking havoc-wreaking chuckleheads. That is a part of it, but for every jerk who steals credit card numbers, there's a hard-working hacker helping to identify weaknesses in networks and shore up corporate defenses. Hoping to inspire a new generation of white-hat hackers, DEFCON's hosting their first ever event targeting techie children, the aptly named DEFCON Kids.
They say you can never have too much of a good thing. That theory's being put to the test by computer transfer technology. We've already got FireWire, USB, Ethernet, eSATA, et cetera, et cetera. Now, an old contender is entering the field sporting new technology; the PCI Special Interest Group recently announced that they're developing a new standard for an external, cabled version of the formerly internal-only PCI Express. Watch out, Intel – this tech's set to collide with Thunderbolt in the marketplace.
Motherboard makers are preparing for the launch of AMD's upcoming Llano line of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs). That includes Asus who today revealed its first boards sporting the necessary FM1 socket to support AMD's A-series APUs and powered by the AMD A75 chipset. New boards include the F1A75-V EVO and V1A75-V Pro, both of which Asus promises will offer "exceptional overclocking" capabilities and a range of proprietary and next-gen technologies.
Is that a Bulldozer processor in your desktop or is your computer just happy to see you? With the latest build of CPU-Z released today (v1.58), you can find out. Updates to this popular freeware update have typically been few and far between, and this is only the second time it's been tweaked since late October 2010. In addition to recognizing FX Bulldozer chips, the latest release also detects AMD's Llano APUs and adds preliminary support for Intel's Sandy Bridge-EP processors.
When it comes to great ways to discover and share new music or the tunes you've loved for years, the internet has already set the bar pretty high. From sketchy p2p services like the original Napster, to great services like Rdio, Last.fm and Spotify, modern music listeners are spoiled for choice. 
On the surface, the hacking group known as LulzSec appears to be a cocky bunch that's seemingly well organized and capable of backing up their bravado, who are unafraid to take on the U.S. government and any other entity they deem worthy of their time and effort. But are they as confident, organized, and capable as they appear to be, or do they fit the mold of the stereotypical teenager hacker, like the 19-year-old who was | You are subscribed to email updates from Maximum PC - All Articles To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
