MICROSOFT UNVEILS NEW FREE SECURITY SOFTWARE

Hoping to dispel fears about the vulnerability of Windows to viruses and other malware, Microsoft Tuesday released a trial version of a new free security package called Microsoft Security Essentials.

The software is designed to replace the Windows Defender tool that Microsoft released in 2007, but which was widely derided as being inadequate to protect computers from the constant and ever-evolving threats posed by hackers.

Microsoft has been widely criticised for failing to include free and effective security software in its Windows operating systems, which are targeted far more intensely by malicious software than the rival Linux and Apple systems.

The world's largest software company said that Microsoft Security Essentials is available to the first 75,000 subscribers in the US, Israel, Brazil and China. The software is meant to run in the background, without constantly bombarding users with security alerts or using a lot of system resources.

A full version of the software is expected to become available in September.

GREEN IT SKILLS

IT professionals can differentiate themselves by leading the green agenda to build greener IT assets.

IBM can help you understand, learn and grow your "green IT skills". Knowledge of IBM technologies and products help developers use/create IT assets to reduce energy consumption.

Check out Green Links from IBM:

SOA Sandbox for Green:
Find specially designed exercises that help you assess how to leverage SOA technology to make enterprises more efficient and eco-friendly.

Go Green - with a 60 day free trial of Active Energy Manager (AEM):
AEM V3.1.1, an extension of IBM Director, helps monitor and manage the power and thermal usage of system in IT environments.

IBM Enterprise Modernization Software:
Quickly experience and evaluate our latest solutions for modernizing and deploying core System z applications in a "tinker, test, and try" environment

How to measure employee carbon footprints:
Part 1, Sample SOA implementation architecture

Support a greener mobile workforce using the Eclipse Rich Client Platform:
Extend the Eclipse platform to support offline computer needs of field personnel.
Discover the value of common open source platform to remote teams

Shut down idle computers on your network automatically
Save electricity, bandwidth, and wear by detecting inactive systems on your network and shutting them down automatically

WILL FACEBOOK,TWITTER GO TO THE BAZAARVOICE WAY?

Burlingame: Facebook and Twitter may not be the biggest winners from social networking. Traditional brands may get the last laugh--or at least the richest laugh--on social networks.

So far, companies such as Facebook and Twitter have attracted all the buzz for creating social networking. Making money, however, has proved more challenging. Using Facebook and Twitter is something like hosting a big cocktail party, observes Brett Hurt, founder and chief executive of Austin-based Bazaarvoice, which offers user-generated review platforms and expertise to other businesses. "But nobody shops at a cocktail party."

Consumers, however, do shop at old-fashioned branded retailers--say anything from Office Depot ( ODP - news - people ) and Staples ( SPLS - news - people ) for office supplies to Macy's ( M - news - people ) and Nordstrom ( JWN - news - people ) for clothing. And when someone wants to buy a product, they often like to turn to their friends and colleagues for advice. "Where the action is happening in social networking is on the brand sites," contends Hurt.

Hurt is betting big on that insight. Bazaarvoice got its start by helping companies develop the technology for hosting consumer ratings and comments on their sites. But he's moving rapidly into social networking, using Bazaarvoice's technology to help consumers effectively shop with their friends.

User generated ratings, reviews

Bazaarvoice provides features like user-generated ratings and reviews for sites of manufacturers and retailers. Such mechanisms on Web sites can generate and increase word-of-mouth and viral marketing campaigns for products.

Classic social networks are almost like echo chambers, giving people a place to share their opinions and even educate friends. But consumers aren't usually focused on buying products when they're in the social networking milieu; purchasing decisions happen elsewhere, says Hurt. But when people go to shop, evolving technologies, such as Facebook Connect, can help authenticate users and transplant communities of friends elsewhere.

Kingston saw 10 fold increase in product reviews

A month after Kingston launched BrandVoice's syndicated reviews on OfficeDepot.com, Hurt says, the retailer saw a 10-fold increase in the number of reviews of Kingston products. More reviews translated into more sales; sales of reviewed Kingston products nearly doubled. Even sales of Kingston products that hadn't been reviewed grew 35%.

Such channel advertising, Hurt predicts, could become a disruptive technology in the future of online advertising. "It's the highest growth area of our business," Hurt says, "and the most exciting."

ORKUT,FACEBOOK,TWITTER,HI5...

The social networking sites have brought a revolution in our lives by almost changing the way we socialize and interact.Extremely popular,these sites have people from all age groups glued to them.Be it a collegiate trying to stay connected with school friends or an old couple logging on to see the pictures of their grandchildren in another country,everyone has his or her own reasons for logging on.

Tanvi,an 18-year old who has an account on both Facebook and Orkut says,"I make it a point that I go online everyday and update my profile regularly." And she is not the one to do so on a regular basis.The popularity of these sites can be measured by the fact that they have millions of users worldwide.Facebook was in news recently for having 200 million users worldwide.Now this surely is some following!

These sites are a blessing for people who are apprehensive of approaching people directly or are introverts.This helps them interact with others and make more friends this way.Social Networking Sites have also made being in touch with friends easy,convenient and affordable.It has helped us in maintaining contact with people who are far off.Imagine being able to chat with friends who are not in your town for almost free!Not just can we be in touch with friends,but also social networking here!

We can even upload our pictures and videos among other things on our profile so that our friends can have a sneek peek in our lives.Amit,a 20-year old does the same,"I really enjoy making new friends online.But after this recent mishap where a girl was raped by her online friend when they met,even I have become suspicious.It's not just about being a girl or a guy,you always need to be careful."

Teenagers are completely hooked onto these sites.Naina,a regular user of Facebook says,"I go online almost everyday.Although my mother scolds me at times I still try and go as often as possible." But why this addiction we ask? She answers,"I joined Facebook almost three months back.Maybe it's the novelty factor.I found a lot of my long lost friends here and also made some new ones."

But for Radha,it wasn't less than a nightmare when her son only son,Saurabh suddenly started going online almost everyday.She was afraid that her son had started watching porn.When she could not take the tension any more she decided to confront her son,"One day when Saurabh was again online,I asked him what he was doing online everyday.He told me he had made an account on Orkut and also showed me his profile.He had put many of his favourite photographs there and had already 50 friends on his list.Not only was it not expected,I was so relieved!"she chuckles.

Seeing this current trend of networking sites becoming a part of our lives,the current,it seems,is here to stay for long.

GOOGLE TO STEP UP ANTI-PORN EFFECTS IN CHINA

Beijing: Google Inc. said Friday that it was working to block pornography reaching users of its Chinese service after a mainland watchdog found the search engine turned up large numbers of links to obscene and vulgar sites.

Google said in a statement that company officials had met government representatives "to discuss problems with the Google.cn service and its serving of pornographic images and content based on foreign language searches.

"We have been continually working to deal with pornographic content - and material that is harmful to children - on the Web in China," the statement said.

The statement followed accusations from the China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center that Google had failed to "filter pornographic contents from its search engine results according to China's relevant laws and regulations."

The watchdog said tests found that the search engine provided links to a large number of lewd and vulgar pictures, videos and articles, though it gave no specific examples.

China, with the world's largest population of Internet users at more than 298 million, has the world's most extensive system of Web monitoring and censorship and has issued numerous regulations in response to the rise of blogging and other trends.

While the government claims the main targets are pornography, online gambling, and other sites deemed harmful to society, critics say that often acts as cover for detecting and blocking sensitive political content.

State media reported Friday that the government had stopped some of Google.cn's search functions. Details weren't given, and it wasn't exactly clear what had been closed off.

In its statement, Google said the company was working to fix any problems with improper searches. "This has been a substantial engineering effort, and we believe we have addressed the large majority of the problem results," it said.

Google, headquartered in Mountain View, California, has struggled to expand in China, where it says it has about 30 percent of the search market. China's homegrown Baidu search engine remains the most popular, with about 60 percent of the market.

The company launched Google.cn with a Chinese partner after seeing its market share erode as government filters slowed access for Chinese users to its U.S. service.

While sites on topics such as the banned Falun Gong sect or Tibetan independence are perennially blocked in China, readers could still gain some access to such information through Google's cache function.

Google.cn returns search results on sensitive political topics only for sites not offensive to the government. Human rights activists have criticized the new service, which excludes search results on human rights, the Dalai Lama and other topics banned by the communist government.

The accusations against Google.cn come as a controversy simmers in China over a government order to load Internet-filtering software on every new computer sold on the mainland from July 1.

The government says the Green Dam Youth Escort software is aimed at blocking violence and pornography, but users who have tried it say it also prohibits visiting sites that discuss homosexuality and even blocks images of pigs because it confuses them with naked human bodies, according to Hong Kong media reports.

The software has also aroused safety concerns, with computer scientists at the University of Michigan reporting last week that it contained "serious security vulnerabilities due to programming errors," and recommended users protect themselves by uninstalling Green Dam immediately.

After a major outcry by citizens used to the relative freedom of online life, legal challenges and petitions, the government appears to have backed off slightly, saying users would not be obligated to use or install the software.

INTEL,AMD TAKE BATTLE TO NEW ULTRA-THIN LAPTOPS

San Francisco: Laptops an inch thick that multitask and edit multimedia content, but cost only $500? Intel and AMD are betting they aren't too good to be true.

The world's thinnest laptops, usually the province of executives and the well-heeled, may this year go mainstream thanks to cheaper but still-powerful processors from Advanced Micro Devices Inc and Intel Corp.

AMD got the ball rolling by enabling inexpensive thin laptops early this year. But Intel, with 80 percent of the processor market, may edge out its foe with its Consumer Ultra Low Voltage chip, or CULV, which promises longer battery life, computing power adequate for most, and a recession-friendly price.

The flip side? If the less-pricey ultra-thin form takes off, it may eat into revenue and profit for Intel's and AMD's blazing-fast high-end processors, analysts say.

"It's a pretty substantial threat" to pricing, said Endpoint Technologies analyst Roger Kay. "Any amount of volume it picks up there is going to shift the mix downward."

AMD partnered with Hewlett-Packard Co in January to launch the Pavilion dv2. Intel launched its rival CULV chip this month and Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc were among those that demonstrated laptops based on the new technology at the Computex trade show in Taipei.

Their premise? With more people gravitating toward mobile and wireless technology, consumers want smaller laptops -- and most of those people would prefer doing more than surfing the Web, which the no-frills netbooks now excel at.

Most people would never need the unbridled processing power that advanced, larger processors offer, analysts say.

UBS analyst Uche Orji said corporations and gamers would use high-end chips but most consumers would go with Intel's CULV chip.

"This becomes the core of consumer products," said Orji. "Intel's has 30 percent more battery life. Intel's will get up to 8 hours and AMD's we think is up to 5 hours, so Intel has an edge there."

Intel's director of mobile platforms product marketing, Uday Marty, said the company expects 20 percent of its consumer shipments will be for ultra-thins by the end of 2009.

A potential problem

The PC industry, still struggling to recover from one of its worst downturns ever, badly needs more growth drivers.

Acer, the first company to introduce a cheap Intel-powered CULV laptop, expects revenue from that segment to account for 15 percent of its total sales by the end of 2009.

Asustek, which pioneered the netbook in 2007, plans to launch five consumer-priced ultra-thins this year.

But analysts say a surge in this market may hurt already weak revenues for chip makers in the short run. Intel's Atom -- designed for netbooks -- siphoned sales from its pricier chips, a trend analysts say the CULV chip may sustain somewhat.

Atom-powered netbooks begin at around $300, but can cost much more for a designer model. The new ultra-thins cost as little as $500, while notebooks are twice that.

Analysts say chip margins, however, will stay much the same because costs have shrunk as makers fit more chips on a single wafer. Ultra-thins also cost less to make and lower power requires less in the way of cooling.

Analysts say product margins for CULV chips stand in the mid-60s, about the same as Intel's mainstream processors, and above margins for Atom processors, which are about 11 percentage points below average, according to analysts.

"It is a difficult thing for revenue and profit... People don't live by profit margin percentages, they live by profit dollars," IDC analyst Bob O'Donnell said. "How do you make up for that shortfall? We think it's through the sale of value-added products such as software and accessories."

IDC does not have shipment forecasts for ultra-thins but is confident they will do well.

The stakes are rising. AMD in June launched a dual-core version of its ultra-thin chip and said it will launch a second generation of chips in the second half of the year that it says will nearly double the battery life of the first.

"Some people are suggesting that AMD could step in and pick up some of Intel's market share, but I'm not too sure. AMD doesn't have the same range of chips that Intel has right now, and it's difficult for me to see how they can really change the current state of play," Daiwa Institute of Research analyst Pranab Sarmah said.

MULTI-TOUCH TABLET PC

Notebook PC

HP prefers to call it a notebook PC, but with a 12.1-inch screen, it will tend to get categorized somewhere between netbooks and notebooks.

But it also offers more versatility - swivel the screen 180 degrees and fold it - the notebook turns into a multi-touch tablet PC (slate mode), where you can work on applications, write or draw with a digital pen (included in the pack) etc.

The pen itself is not a dumb stylus. Just pointing it at a menu or a hyperlink highlights it. A button in the pen also provides the right-click function, though using it can get a bit of getting used to.

At first glance

This is probably the first multi-touch tablet PC. HCL has a touch-screen product too, but it is a netbook, with a much smaller screen.

A subdued embedded design on the cover makes the HP tx2 look different from other netbooks and laptops, but its glossy surface finish means that you'll be left scrubbing off fingerprints very often. We wonder why laptop makers have a fancy for 'fingerprint-magnet' surfaces.

The tx2 comes pre-loaded with Windows Vista Home Premium. The brain of the notebook - the 2.2GHz AMD Turion X2 ZM-82 processor is a bit disappointing as we expected a higher powered Intel or AMD.

That would have made the product a little more expensive, but would have offered more bang in terms of processing power. The keyboard is well designed and typing is comfortable with firm feedback.

Intuitive multi-touch interface

The main part of the notebook is the tablet PC mode. As said earlier, you can swivel the screen 180 degrees and fold it to convert it into a tablet PC. To browse, explore or control the PC functions, just use your fingers or the digital pen.

The tx2 is a multi-touch PC. This means you can use two fingers. For example, you can zoom a photo, or turn it around by using your fingers. The zoom function is easy and responsive, but flipping or turning around the picture requires some getting used to.

You are supposed to keep a finger stationary and rotate with the other. We found it a bit difficult at first and were able to turn a picture only after several attempts.

Finger gestures

The finger gestures also help when browsing pages. The test piece came with an Internet Explorer browser and the gestures worked well. We were able to zoom and pan pages using fingers.

The same gestures can also be used for zooming in and out of word or excel documents.

Repeated efforts

The screen is pretty intuitive and understands the difference between the digital pen, your fingers and any other part of your hand.

So if you happen to rest your hand on the screen while typing, the screen understands and prevents any unnecessary applications or programs from opening.

The only problem we faced was while trying to open applications with our fingers. Most often, it required repeated efforts to open applications with finger taps.

The digital pen or the usual click with the trackpad or the enter key did the job more easily. Maybe there were some settings to be tweaked that we didn't try out.

Good option

The battery lasted around four hours, which we think is decent. Battery time was slightly down when we browsed the net using Wi Fi.

If we compare netbooks to this notebook, which we actually shouldn't as it is supposed to be a proper laptop, the main plus point is the presence of the optical drive.

We are mentioning this since we think if you have netbooks on your mind, but are put off by the lack of optical drive, this could be a good option.

What we loved

One big plus for the HP TouchSmart tx2 is the Altec Lansing speakers, which live up to the reputation. We can say the tx2 beats other laptops and netbooks with the Altec Lansing speakers.

But don't expect to bring the house (or office) down with the sound. Remember, though it has a pair of Altec Lansing speakers, it's only a laptop.

Mention must be made about the touchpad. It is perforated and great to use and you don't have to worry about your fingers sliding out of the touchpad.

Comfortable carrybag

The build quality is great. When you hold the notebook in your hand, you realise the effort HP has put in ensuring a high standard of build quality.

The TouchSmart tx2 comes in a nice, compact and comfortable carrybag - unlike the usual bulky ones that come with other notebooks.

The bag itself is beautifully designed and doesn't look you are lugging a full-fledged laptop around.

What we disliked

One drawback is that we found the notebook tended to heat up quickly, especially on the right side.

Another drawback, if you think it is one, is the lack of a fire-wire port. This is supposed to be a full-fledged laptop/tablet PC, and a fire-wire port would have been a nice option.

On the whole, the HP TouchSmart TX2 is a nice and compact laptop-cum-tablet PC. If you think netbooks are puny and laptops are monsters, this could be the right one for you. For the price, we would have preferred a more powerful processor.

Ratings

Aesthetics & design: 4

UI and software: 4

Features: 4

Value for money: 3

Price: Rs 64,990

Specifications

Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium

Processor Name: Mobile AMD Turion 64 X2 Ultra XM-86

Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz

RAM: 4 GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)

Weight: 4.9 lb

Screen Size: 12.1 inches

Screen Size Type: widescreen

Graphics Card: ATI Radeon HD 3200

Storage Capacity: 400 GB

8-Cell Lithium Ion Battery

Networking Options: 802.11n

Primary Optical Drive: Dual-Layer DVD /-RW

External storage options: 5-in-1 digital media reader, Express card/34 PC card slot, 3 USB 2.0 ports

Multimedia: Webcam, Fingerprint Reader, HP Mini Remote Control

Connectivity: Wireless-N Card with Bluetooth

LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD /-RW with Double Layer Support


Note:The picture of each laptop is given.You have to go according to them.

HI-FI HEADPHONES

Creative Aurvana live

If you're after a pair that sounds good enough for late-night home listening and are cheap and robust enough to wear outdoors with your iPod, you could do a lot worse than these. Creative has dropped all the X-Fi sonic processing and virtual surround nonsense here, to concentrate on winningly warm, bassy sound.

Love - Very good sound quality and value for money
Hate - Unpleasant, shiny looks. Can get sweaty
We say - Canned goods from Creative with exceptional sonics at a giveaway price
Rs 9,999

Sennheiser HD650

A more German-looking pair of headphones would be hard to imagine, and these do indeed very efficiently deliver sound that brooks no argument. Once 'run in' like a new car for a number of hours, they are smooth, sweet sounding and accurate with CD, high bit-rate digital music and analogue sources, especially.

Love - A comfy, superb-sounding pair
Hate - Sound decidedly muffled out of the box
We say - Once run in, these Sennheisers more than justify their price tag, giving hours of pleasure
Rs 27,990

Grado GS1000

Looking like they came from the radio of a Lancaster bomber, these pricey numbers are a sonic cut above everything else here except the Denons. Much lighter than they look, they can be worn for endless hours in comfort. They fill in sonic detail superbly at lower volume and blow your head off at higher levels. Astonishing.

Love - Transcendently wonderful sound once plugged into a decent source.
Light, very comfortable build
Hate - The price is a wee bit mad, isn't it?
We say - If you can afford them, get a pair
Rs 62,000

Audio-Technica ATH-AD700

A design mish-mash, these DJ-ish headphones do good things with MP3 player sound, but their open-backed design bellows out sound, which fellow bus passengers may find just a teensy tad annoying. Similarly, the weirdly cantilevered headband makes them very comfy, but also makes them feel like they'll fall off at any moment.

Love - Solid sonics. Look pretty fly. Decent value
Hate - Don't sit very well on your head
We say - Good audio let down by idiosyncratic design
Rs 5,700

Denon AH-D7000

A symphony in polished hardwood, these Denons scream quality before you put them on, then whisper it in honeyed tones once they're within striking range of your ears. Fed a decent source, they serve up a low end that extends down to earth's core and treble that floats up to heaven, whether you rock Wagner or Wu Tang.

Love - Sonics and build quality match the Grados...
Hate - But not as comfortable for long-term wear
We say - Pure manna from heaven for your ears, these are worth the cost... but who can afford it?
Rs 57,000


Note:The picture of each headphone is given.You have to go according to them.

SUPER SLIM SONY VAIO P

Glossy design

Sony insists the Vaio P is not a netbook, but a premium 'pocket style PC'. The emphasis is clearly on aesthetics and portability, with a super-slim design and high-quality glossy paint finish.

Slip into your pocket

The unique shape allows you to slip a Vaio P into any coat or trouser pocket. It's less than 2 cm thin, and only slightly wider and deeper than a business envelope. Externally, you'll notice the perfectly rounded corners and smooth lines.

Even the underside is free of stickers, labels and screws. Around the edges are the power and Wi-Fi switches, two USB ports, an earphones socket, a custom port for expansion, and one slot each for SDHC and Memory Stick cards-limiting, but manageable.

Roomy keyboard

Opening the lid reveals a large, roomy keyboard. The keys are well spaced, except for the miniscule right [Shift] key and the cramped arrow key cluster. Unfortunately, they're a bit too mushy and since there's no wrist rest, the lower lip where the cursor buttons sit obstructs the entire bottom row.

The trackpoint is well positioned and you can tap it lightly to register a click. Above the keyboard lie two slots for the speakers, which quite frankly, are awful. A mic and VGA webcam are integrated.

Crazy resolution

The screen measures eight inches, pretty normal for a netbook-class device, but has a crazy resolution of 1600 x 768 - over twice as wide as it is tall. That kind of horizontal resolution is greater than most 19-inch desktop monitors! Sure, it plays HD video, but all those pixels are crammed into almost no space at all. Icons and buttons are miniscule, and even regular text on screen is impossibly tiny.

A shortcut button brings up a dedicated media interface which is designed to look and feel like the PSP's Xross Media Bar. Pressing the same button while the Vaio P is off brings up Instant Mode, an instant-on OS which lets you access stored media files and browse the Web as well.

Hardware configuration

The model we tested uses an Intel Atom Z530 CPU (1.6 GHz, HyperThreading, and 512 KB of L2 cache) and a 64 GB solid-state flash drive.

You also get 2 GB of DDR2 RAM, Intel GMA 500 onboard graphics, and built in Wi-Fi N and Bluetooth 2.1 EDR for wireless communications. Noise-cancelling earphones and an adapter for Ethernet and VGA video outputs are also included.

Performance

Using Windows Vista avoids the now down-market feel of XP, but takes its toll on performance. The combination of hardware and software produced some of the lowest scores we've ever seen.

The Vaio P took 413 seconds to complete our real-world video encoding test (which measures the time taken to encode a 1-minute MPG file to MPEG-4), and 436 seconds to compress and archive 200 MB of multiple files into a single RAR file - way below par.

Good battery life

Synthetic benchmark scores were equally dismal, with SiSoft Sandra 2009's CPU Arithmetic tests throwing up scores of 2007 Dhrystones and 1665 Whetstones, along with 1156 MB/s in the memory bandwidth test.

However, battery life was well above average at 3 hours, 30 minutes under light load, and 2 hours, 50 minutes under heavy load.

Conclusion

We can't help but classify the Vaio P as a netbook rather than as an ultraportable laptop. Sure, it looks awesome, but this isn't what you'd be considering if you want a cheap and compact extra PC. You could buy two decently configured mainstream laptops or a killer high-end gaming desktop PC for the same price.

Verdict: Buy one if money's no object and you want to look good while surfing the web. Because of its small screen and keyboard it's not very practical for any other type of use.

Specifications

Sony Vaio P VGN-P15G

Dimensions (WxHxD): 245 x 19.8 x 120 mm;

Weight: 594 g;

Processor: Intel Atom Z530, 1.6 GHz;

Memory: 2 GB DDR2;

SSD: 64 GB;

Display: 8-inch, 1600 x 768;

Wi-Fi: 802.11 n.

Price: Rs 64,990

Warranty: 1 year

For: Excellent looks, dramatic style statement.

Against: High price, low performance, few features.

For viewing the pictures,do click on this link:
http://sify.com/finance/imagegallery/galleryDetail.php?id=jdzsyJicfid&title=Super_slim_Sony_Vaio_P

SNOOZE MOUSE

Keyboard shortcuts

Do you really want to reduce the strain on your hand and wrist? Then give some rest to your overworked mouse and start using keyboard shortcuts.

Keyboard shortcuts are a big time saver not only for people who work all day on the same program but also for those working with different applications or programs.

For various applications

But where do we get the various keyboard shortcuts listed in one destination?

Try www.keyxl.com, which provides a list of keyboard shortcuts for various platforms/applications.

This provides an online database of keyboard shortcuts for popular software programs, browser-based applications and operating systems.

'Quick search'

Users can search the keyboard shortcuts by program, software category and also by platforms. The supported platforms are Windows, Mac, Linux and Web applications.

You can also do a 'quick search' for Microsoft applications, Adobe applications, Google Apps, Web Browsers, E-mail programs, Photo/Imaging, MP3, and HTML Editors.

Extensive list

For instance, if you are looking for keyboard shortcuts in Internet Explorer, just enter 'Internet Explorer' in the search field. It will list out the various versions of Internet Explorer and their shortcuts in an orderly manner.

The extensive list of keyboard shortcuts displayed on the Web site is more printer-friendly.

This Web site is a must for people passionate about keyboard shortcuts.

ASUS G50V LAPTOP FOR GAMING ADDICTS!

Gaming laptops

Today's gamers have a mind-boggling variety of games and gaming platforms to choose from. PC games, the Sony PlayStations and the Nintendo Wii, all vie for their attention. And to provide for gaming needs on the move, they have the versatile, albeit small Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP).

But, is there a gaming platform or device that is portable, that enhances the game's visual experience to a bigger size than the PSP, is able to connect to the web for group/ online gaming and can it also double up to perform the user's other computing needs? That's where the gaming laptop enters. It being a very niche segment, there aren't too many options for buyers of gaming laptops.

And the buyers of these laptops here may also be a smaller group. But, that hasn't deterred ASUS from launching its G50V, a feature-packed, very capable gaming laptop.

At a glance

This is a laptop built with gaming addicts in mind. The ASUS G50V has 'youth' written all over. One look at the G50V and you know it is no 'run-of-the-mill' laptop. The smooth black lid has a Lambo-style, shield-shaped 'Republic of Gamers' logo in the middle, as if to ensure you don't mistake it for something in which you just create dreary Excel and Word files.

The youth-oriented design doesn't end with the lid. Flip it open and you are dazzled by the bright orange coloured borders to the keyboard and trackpad. The control indicators and trackpad sport a cool-blue LED-lit border. The side of the trackpad below the keyboard has a rubberised feel, which again tries to tell you {lsquo}this machine is different,' and could be especially useful for better grip while gaming.

The panel above the keyboard has controls that are touch-sensitive, including ones for switching screen modes and controlling the speaker volume. On its side, again in cool-blue LED, is a display window, which throws up information such as battery charge, CPU and RAM usage and also whatever custom text you want to display.

The touchpad has a slightly rough, matt surface that helps easier tracking. The buttons below are quite large so that you don't miss them if you prefer to use the buttons instead of the mouse in a fast moving game. A nice surprise is the full-fledged number pad as you find in normal keyboards, but this does not affect your typing.

A closer look...

As you power up, you have an option of quickly booting into the ExpressGate mini Linux application, where you can browse the Net or make Skype calls. This is useful if you have to quickly browse the Net or listen to music without waiting for the full Windows boot, which would take more time.

The display from the 15.4-inch screen is brilliant... it has to be; this is supposed to be a gaming laptop. With the help of the touch-sensitive buttons above the keyboard, you can also tweak the display to step down brightness (and power) if you are not gaming.

There is a 2-megapixel Webcam and a microphone above the screen. The Webcam is decent, but performance is nothing too special.

The ASUS perks

The G50V comes with Altec Lansing speakers. The sound is better than in many other notebooks, but is not quite loud enough. We expected better sound in a gaming laptop, more so with Altec Lansing speakers. Sound effects play an important part in the gaming experience. Though the reproduction from the speakers was a bit weak, the full-sized 'Siberia Steelseries Gaming Headset' which is an optional accessory with the laptop did help experience the game better.

The laptop comes with a mouse (optional) that looks like it has undergone genetic mutation. There are buttons and wheels all around it that can be put to use in games. To make things easy, ASUS has included a separate user manual for the mouse.

How does it perform?

The G50V doesn't let you down in its core focus - gaming performance. No wonder, because it comes with an Nvidia GeForce 9700M GT graphics processor backed by 512 MB of GDDR3 memory. For those technically inclined and also for those who wish to know more about the graphics card, ASUS says the '9700M has 32 DirectX 10-class compute cores and a 128-bit memory interface, and it is largely derived form the G96 GPU that powers desktop graphics cards like the GeForce 9500 GT.'

The G50V comes with 4GB RAM, but ASUS warns that 'due to the 32-bit Operation System's limitation, only 3 GB will show up with a 4 GB memory. The 64-bit Operating System will not have this issue.'

The laptop comes with several 'performance modes' that will squeeze out power from the processor based on your demands and based on the game you are playing. We hit the keys with two games - the hugely popular GRID and Alone in the dark. And the 'Oohs' and the 'Aahs' echoed in our office thanks to the stunning clarity of the animation in the G50V's screen.

There is no stuttering and the graphics processor's power comes through clearly when you consider how heavy an application these two games can be. Of course, the one thing we missed was dedicated gaming accessories. Using the keys can be quite disappointing, since the level of control they offer is limited.

Other features

The entire unit, including the adapter (which itself is quite heavy) weighs over 3 kg. Though the weight is on the higher side, the unit is likely to find its place among young buyers who won't mind carrying it around. The G50V is also one hot laptop, quite literally. Make sure you have good ventilation under the unit, if you ever actually attempt using it on your lap. Otherwise, it will be 'crispy fried legs, anyone!'

The G50V also comes with an attractive (but optional) Republic of Gamers backpack. The build quality is excellent. There are four USB ports, a VGA port, a FireWire port, a HDMI port, a DVD cum Blu-ray optical drive, a multi-card reader slot and ExpressCard slot.

The batteries lasted for over two hours with some less power-hungry games. It is better you carry the adapter with you if you have plans to hang out with your friends for a longer time. The colourful lighting all around the laptop is cool, but also ensures that the battery drains fast and charges slowly. Even the {lsquo}power-saving' mode leaves a few lights blinking.

On the whole, the G50V is something that you can proudly take to parties.

The design is a head turner and the laptop doesn't disappoint you performance-wise too. One drawback could be the weight, but young buyers shouldn't be too bothered, given its looks and performance. You may also want to connect more powerful external speakers to enhance the G50V's sound reproduction.

Specifications

Processor & cache memory: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor

Operating System: Windows Vista Ultimate, Vista Home Premium

Main memory: DDR2 800 MHz SDRAM, 2 x SODIMM socket for expansion up to 4GB SDRAM

Video graphics & memory: NVIDIA GeForce 9700M GT External 512MB GDDR3 VRAM

Dimension & weight: 37.5 x 26.5 x 3.43-4.06 cm (W x D x H), 3.3 kg (with 6 cell battery,1xHDD)

Audio: Built-in Azalia compliant audio chip, with 3D effect & full duplex
Support Dolby Home Theater, Altec Lansing co-brand speakers

Optical Drive: Blu-Ray DVD Combo

Card reader: 8 in 1 card reader, SD,MMC,MS,MS-Pro,mini SD w/adapter,MS-Duo,MS-Pro Duo via adapter

Warranty & support: 2-year limited global hardware warranty, 1-year battery pack warranty

OS Compatibility: Windows Vista, Windows XP driver is not available

Price : Rs 1,15,000

Rating:

Aesthetics & design: 5
UI and software: 4
Features: 4
Value for money: 4

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GOOGLE,MICROSOFT,YAHOO HIRING IN INDIA

Hiring plans

Microsoft, Yahoo! and Google may have decided to trim their workforce worldwide to cope with the economic turmoil, but these entities do have openings in India.

Interestingly, the companies are cutting jobs in India too, even as they have hiring plans in the country.

Employment opportunities

For instance, software giant Microsoft recently said it would create employment opportunities in tune with the growth of the Indian economy.

The announcement came from its chief executive officer Steve Ballmer amid the firm proceeding with 5,000 job cuts worldwide, including 55 employees in India. The workforce reduction in the country would be completed in the next 18 months.

Vacancies in India

Few months ago, search engine giant Google unveiled plans to trim as many as 200 jobs in sales and marketing operations worldwide. Nonetheless, the firm is hiring for about 20 positions in engineering operations, finance and software engineering, among others.

Internet entity Yahoo! too would be slashing its employee strength as part of its efforts to bring down costs. At the same time, the company has over 100 vacancies in India, according to its website.

Adding people

Steve Ballmer noted that Microsoft would continue to hire and create employment opportunities in line with the recovery and growth of the Indian economy.

'We had said that we would lay off about 5,000 people. We are still filling other jobs. We are mostly through that process globally and there is still some work to do.

'. . . There are areas where we are continuing to add people. As I said, these are global additions, so it is a little hard to separate our work globally from our work in India,' he said.

Still hiring

Yahoo! recently said in a statement it would be cutting as many as 700 jobs, representing nearly five per cent of its worldwide headcount, and has given pink slips to around 60 employees at its R&D centre in Bangalore, India.

Still it is hiring for over 100 positions in the country. This month alone the company posted an offering of 10 vacancies, according to information available with Yahoo's website.

According to its website, Google has over 20 job openings in different areas such as advertising sales and enterprise, engineering operations, finance, human resources and software engineering.

Different positions

India, which is one of the largest locations for Google outside the US, has different positions at its offices in Hyderabad, Bangalore and Gurgaon.

Meanwhile, in a sign that financial crisis is hitting the search engine giant also, Google would be reducing its headcount by 200 employees.

MICROSOFT'S MOTION CONTROL FOR XBOX 360

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MICROSOFT'S 'BING' GIVE EASY ACCESS TO PORN

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FREE ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE FROM MICROSOFT

The wait is over

Boston: Microsoft Corp is getting ready to unveil a long-anticipated free anti-virus service for personal computers that will compete with products sold by Symantec Corp and McAfee Inc.

Trial version soon

A Microsoft spokesman said that the world's biggest software maker is testing an early version of the product with its own employees. Microsoft would 'soon' make a trial version, or product beta, available via its website, he added, but declined to provide a specific date.

Symantec shares fell 0.5 per cent on Nasdaq and McAfee fell 1.3 per cent on the New York Stock Exchange, while Microsoft was up 2.1 per cent. The Nasdaq composite index was down 0.47 per cent.

Long-term threat

Investors are closely monitoring the free service, code-named Morro after Brazil's Morro de Sao Paolo beach, amid concern it could hurt sales of products from Symantec and McAfee, which generate billions of dollars of revenue a year protecting Windows PCs from attacks by hackers.

'It's a long-term competitive threat,' said Daniel Ives, an analyst with FBR Capital Markets, though he added that the near-term impact was minimal.

Microsoft has said that Morro will offer basic features for fighting a wide range of viruses, which would likely make it comparable to low-end consumer products from Symantec and McAfee that cost about $40 per year.

Free Morro

Their top-selling products are security suites that come with features including encryption, firewalls, password protection, parental controls and data backup.

Three years ago, Microsoft entered that market with Live OneCare, which turned out to be a commercial flop. It announced plans in November to kill that product suite, saying it would launch the free Morro service by the end of 2009.

Complete protection

Analysts said they are looking forward to Morro's beta to see exactly how its features compare to those in products from competitors.

Microsoft has said it will provide protection from several types of malicious software including viruses, spyware, rootkits and trojans.

Internet security suite

Officials with Symantec and McAfee have said they do not see Morro as a threat.

'Microsoft's free product is basically a stripped down version of the OneCare product Microsoft pulled from the shelves,' said Symantec Consumer division president Janice Chaffin. 'A full Internet security suite is what consumers require today to stay fully protected.'

Strong growth

Joris Evers, a spokesman for No. 2 security software maker McAfee, said his company is already enjoying strong growth despite competition from free anti-virus products that are on the market.

'On a level playing field, we are confident in our ability to compete with anyone who might enter the marketplace,' he said.

A spokeswoman for Trend Micro Inc, the No. 3 player, declined to comment.

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LAPTOP SAFETY

FOR YOUR SAFETY

This is very important information about charging your Laptop for a long period of time. The above pictures show the danger of overcharging, as it exploded and may cause fire. Most laptops generate a lot of heat when they are ON, so you need to be very careful by keeping them cooled. There are Laptop Coolers in the market specifically designed for laptops. Nowadays, almost everyone at least has one laptop at home. Never leave the laptop charging for long period of time near combustible materials, and better yet to use flat table and raise the laptop side with some kind of support below it to get Air ventilation at the bottom side.

Most important of all, never leave the Laptop running in any room unattended.

THE AX EFFECT FROM HP

The DV2-1003AX is a beauty. It looks slim and sleek, but is built sturdy too. The cover panel is glossy black, and needless to say, it tends to attract fingerprints. You realise that HP has not compromised on the build quality while concentrating on the looks.
HP manages to achieve the remarkable 'slimness' since the laptop has no optical drive. However, HP has included an external DVD writer (LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD RW with double layer support) in the package. It would have been better had HP included a carry bag as carrying a separate optical drive can be a pain. The user could also forget to pick it up if he is in a hurry.

The 1003AX is powered by an AMD Athlon Neo MV 40 16. GHz, 512 MB L2 Cache, 1600 MHz FSB) processor, which was AMD's response to Intel's Atom. While a single core processor is enough for small netbooks, HP could have gone for a more powerful processor, especially as it prefers to categorise it as an 'entertainment notebook PC'. This also explains the bundling of the external optical drive. The laptop comes with a generous 320 GB hard drive.
The notebook has three USB ports, a HDMI connector, one VGA, one RJ-45 ethernet connector, a headphone socket and a mic-in socket. There is a memory card slot, a standard in almost all laptops, including netbooks.

We spent some time hunting for the power switch and discovered it on the right side. The WiFi switch is right next to it.

The 12.1-inch diagonal WXGA high-definition LED screen is glossy, nice and bright and has no cause for complaints. The keyboard with slightly curved keys is a pleasure to work with. Graphics have become an integral part of almost all notebooks. This is no exception, but thankfully, it is subdued.

HP has gone in for Windows Vista Home Premium as if to emphasise that this is not a netbook. Despite the 2GB RAM, the 1003AX was sluggish, which we feel could be because of the single core processor. The laptop supports up to 4 GB of memory.

Inclusion of an ATI Mobility Radeon HD Premium Graphics card along with 512 MB dedicated memory manages to provide a pretty decent movie playback capability.
The speakers are from Altec Lansing and are located below the laptop. Could this be the reason for the rather mute sound quality despite featuring good brand speakers? There is an additional speaker on the left that compensated the main speakers, but lack of a similar speaker on the right affected tracks with stereophonic sounds.

The trackpad looks glossy and slippery, but we managed to use it quite easily as we quickly got used to it.

The 6-cell lithium-ion battery lasted a little under 3 hours initially with the WiFi and Internet on. Turning off the WiFi improved the battery performance, but using the external optical drive brought it back to square one. Again we had to tweak the power settings to improve the performance. We also felt the heat was slightly on the higher side.

To sum it up, the DV2-1003AX is a nice sleek laptop you would love to have and carry around, but you will have to remember to take the external optical drive every time. The performance is slightly sluggish because of the combination of the resource-hungry Windows Vista and single core processor. Movie playback and games are good, thanks to a decent graphics card and dedicated memory.

It's better when compared to a netbook. Considering the size, which is slightly larger than a netbook, the price is decent.

Ratings:

Aesthetics and design : 5/ 5

User Interface : 4/ 5

Features : 4/ 5

Value for money: 4/ 5

Text & Images: Business Line - Smartbuy

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THE 'NEW' FEATURES ON MICROSOFT'S BING

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PASSWORD BREACH AT CUSTOMS LEADS TO HUGE REVENUE LOSS

Chennai: Theft/unauthorised third-party use of customs officials' password for accessing the computer network (Customs Electronic Data Interchange or EDI) used by both the customs staff and the merchant community is causing loss of revenue, says an internal communication circulated to the offices at the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC).

On a number of occasions there have been frauds reported in the various Customs EDI locations involving "compromise of password by officers. Such frauds have led to revenue loss of crores of rupees", the communication said.

The Directorate of Systems has repeatedly issued detailed instructions on password security. These instructions set out the basic steps that should be followed by all the users to eliminate the possibility of 'compromise of passwords'.

Dismaying factor

"However, despite such instructions being reiterated repeatedly it is dismaying to notice that instances of password compromise continue to recur with unfailing regularity. It is evident that officers are not taking these instructions seriously and there is also a failure on the part of supervisory officers to effectively monitor the performance of their subordinates," it says.

"The biggest threat to security of an electronic system comes from password compromise and sharing of password. In effect, when an officer shares his password with anybody, he has to, without doubt, be regarded as being in collusion in the fraud that results," it says.

Important reason

Enquiries with the customs officials revealed that a typical instance of an unauthorised access of officer's password is that of the information about a particular case being investigated by the department being leaked to the concerned importer/exporter.

It could also lead to the information being revealed to some other establishment resorting to a similar trade practice that has come to their notice.

The merchant establishment could rearrange its affairs to escape levy of penalty, besides prosecution. The fact that only a few officers have been punished and that too, not adequately for password breach may be an important reason why such breaches continue to recur, sources in the department said.

The Central Excise and Service Tax, Directorates and other formations will increasingly be required to work on applications requiring conformity with password security guidelines. The board would like to ensure that all the security-related instructions issued by the Directorate of Systems are complied with by all officers, including supervising officers, and those violating them are brought to account without loss of time.

Further, whenever any case of 'password compromise' comes to the notice, it has to be thoroughly investigated and proceedings for inflicting exemplary punishment should be undertaken and concluded expeditiously.

It should be made clear to all the officers that maintenance of password security is the sole and individual responsibility of each officer and any breach will make them liable to disciplinary action resulting even in dismissal from the Government service, the CBEC has said.