News and other tidbits that Chad Cloman finds interesting enough to share
Thinking about making the switch to Windows Vista, but you’re unsure whether your existing software will work on the new OS? Here’s an unofficial list showing compatibility for various products.
Link: http://www.iexbeta.com/…
(via Lifehacker)
Regular Chad’s News readers know that the Congressional change to Daylight Saving Time will cause the sky to fall on March 11th. Microsoft, however, is taking proactive steps to ensure the transition is a smooth one. For Outlook users there is the Time Zone Data Update Tool, and for Windows users there is the Daylight Saving Time Help and Support Center.
Link: http://lifehacker.com/…
Here at Chad’s News we don’t write with pencils anymore, but if we did, this would be the eraser we’d use. It’s a good gift for the computer geek.
Link: http://store.artlebedev.com/…
(via Neatorama)
Honda and Acura odometers are consistently recording mileage too high, in some cases by up to 3.75%. While this may help prevent you from getting a speeding ticket, it has definite ramifications for mileage-based leases and warranties. Honda has agreed to make its odometers more accurate and to center the error distribution at zero. In addition, for affected vehicles, they will extend the warranty mileage by 5% and pay back excess lease-mileage charges of $6 million.
Link: http://www.usatoday.com/…
(via Engadget)
Google has a huge hard-drive farm for which they frequently take (and store) state-of-health information. Researchers decided to use this database to analyze the key factors in hard drive failures. Surprisingly, they found there was “very little correlation” between hard drive failure and elevated temperature or high activity. They also determined that certain SMART parameters were good predictors of hard drive failure, but that the opposite was not true—many hard drives failed without a consistent pattern of SMART parameters. Of most interest to me was the fact that certain models and manufacturers had a higher failure rate, but unfortunately Google did not publish the specific names. The full study (13 page PDF file) is available here.
Thanks to Josh for suggesting this topic.
Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/…
Link #2: http://www.engadget.com/…
Satellite radio giants XM and Sirius have decided to merge. They still face regulatory approval, however, before the merger can go forward. Even though it smacks of a monopoly, I believe this will be a good thing for the listeners.
Link: http://news.yahoo.com/…
(via Slashdot)
Link #2: http://investor.sirius.com/…
Here’s something I bet you didn’t know. Local television stations are broadcasting their high-definition signals over the air. With just an inexpensive HD antenna, it’s possible to get high-quality digital television with no monthly fee. And since it’s digital, you get a sharp, clear image unlike with antennas of old. This is a less expensive alternative to paying for cable or satellite broadcasts. The only downside is that you don’t get the non-local channels like HBO, CNN, etc.
Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/…
(via Kim Komando)
Kodak, still reeling from the collapse of the film industry, is entering the inkjet printer market with a novel scheme: cheaper ink. The prices, $9.99 for black and $14.99 for color, are about half of what I used to pay for my Epson cartridges. The printers themselves are a bit more expensive—probably because they’re not selling them at a loss to gain ink customers—but the extra cost will be recouped over the long term.
Link: http://arstechnica.com/…
Link #2: http://www.kodak.com/…
(via The Consumerist)
Here’s a useful tip: save an “ICE” entry in your cellphone address book. Emergency workers know this stands for “In Case of Emergency” and will contact that person if you are unconscious. Alternatively you can add “ICE” to an existing entry, which will accomplish the same thing. Mine says “Mom -ICE-“.
Link: http://lifehacker.com/…
Thursday, May 22, 2008 is the official release date for Indiana Jones IV. This, despite the fact they haven’t started filming and don’t even have a complete script. Also, there is some question as to whether or not Sean Connery will be reprising his role as Jones’ father. And, to top it all off, Harrison Ford has threatened to pull out of the project because he may not be allowed to use a real whip.
Regular Chad’s News readers know how much I write on Computer Security. Having said quite a bit on the subject, I’ve moved on to other topics. But this research by University of Maryland engineers is noteworthy. They set up four Linux computers with weak security, connected them to the internet, and then monitored intrusion attempts over a period of 24 days. On average, the machines were attacked every 39 seconds. The researchers were able to determine the types of attacks, even down to the passwords used in dictionary attacks, as well as what the hackers did with the compromised computers. An interesting read.
Link: http://news.yahoo.com/…
Link #2: http://www.newsdesk.umd.edu/…
Kiplinger presents its list of obscure-but-useful tax deductions. Note that you may have to file a 1040 and/or itemize deductions in order to receive some of them.
Link: http://www.kiplinger.com/…
(via digg)
