NewsFormer VP of HP Charged with IBM Trade Secret Theft
Posted 07/03/08 at 11:25:59 PM by Paul Lilly
If Silicon Valley were to color code the tech industry's legal climate the way Homeland Security labels the threat level, then we'd all be seeing red. This week alone we've seen Steve Jobs sued for securities fraud, Google ordered to turn over YouTube viewing data, four Chinese companies fined for selling fake NEC keyboards, a convicted BitTorrent seed farmer stare at a 10 year prision sentence, a fired CEO taking his former employer to court for allegedly snooping his personal Yahoo account, and more. If that's not enough content to keep Law and Order: Silicon Valley up and running during the next writer's strike, then just wait another week or two and you might be able to fill an entire season's worth.
The latest legal drama involves high level espionage between HP and IBM, one of the few remaining scandals not yet covered in recent news. Specifically, HP's former VP is being indicted for allegedly leaking trade secrets from his former employer IBM to HP executives. According to court documents, Atul Malhotra, who was the director of IBM global printer sales between 1997 and 2006, requested and received a multi-page confidential memo from IBM, which authorites claim he emailed to an HP senior vice president two months later after being hired by HP. The subject line read "For Your Eyes Only."
To find out how he got caught, click through the jump.
NewsCase of the Missing USB Flash Drive: Japanese Military Owns Up
Posted 07/03/08 at 10:56:48 PM by Pulkit Chandna
You are not the only one confronting difficulties retaining uninterrupted possession of your USB Flash drive, but large organizations – or their mortal employees – are also prone to misplacing their USB Flash drives brimming with sensitive data.
The latest entrant to the universal brotherhood of butterfingered flash drive owners is the Japanese military, which has admitted that one of its USB Flash drives, pregnant with sensitive maps of Japanese-U.S troop deployment was stolen a year ago by a 33-year-old captain of the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF). The captain has primeval economic faculties as he also stole the paltry sum of ¥2,000 [$19] and a ¥10,000 [$94] airline coupon.
But there was a twist in the tale as the captain was eventually nabbed and the drive recovered. But a lieutenant borrowed the flash drive and in turn gave it to a clumsy sergeant who lost it. The sergeant did a pretty good job as the drive has gone missing without a trace. The Japanese military kept the one-year old incident under wraps as it didn’t want the troop deployment maps to be scoured by internet users.
NewsRumor: AMD Readies Dual-GPU ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 for an August Release
Posted 07/03/08 at 10:37:45 PM by Pulkit Chandna
The initial response to AMD’s ATI Radeon 4850 and 4870 GPUs has been very encouraging. In fact, AMD expects the success of the two mid-range cards to help it consolidate its market share. Now there are unconfirmed reports of the high-end ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 dual-GPU with 2 GB GDDR5 memory being released by the end of this month.
The powerful GPU is expected to be priced about $499. According to Digitimes, its sources expect AMD to begin shipping Radeon 4870 X2 (RV770XT) to PC makers for designing custom cards. ATI’s revival is wonderful for the consumers as Nvidia will be pushed to improve its products and offer them at cheaper rates.
NewsGaming Roundup 7/3/08: Gaming Rocks, But Led Zeppelin Isn't Game
Posted 07/03/08 at 08:36:17 PM by Nathan Grayson
Each day, some big-wig exec says PC gaming is writhing on the ground, scrambling towards the light. Generally, I just scoff and log back in to the 10 million person chatroom that is World of Warcraft. But what about when someone who I actually respect utters the dreaded D-word? Well, I scoff at them in article form, and what better platform to use than the Roundup? Hit the ever-present "read more" link to read all about the aforementioned exec, as well as topics ranging from Gametap to Led Zeppelin, and a few things in-between.
NewsAdobe Hands Over PDF Format to ISO
Posted 07/03/08 at 07:34:21 PM by Pulkit Chandna
Just in time for Independence Day, Adobe has unfettered the popular PDF file format. Adobe has abandoned proprietary control over the popular PDF format. Now the International Organization for Standardization will assume developmental responsibilities of the file format, which will be developed as an industry standard.
The ISO 32000-1 Document management – Portable document format – Part 1: PDF 1.7 is the official ISO standard that lays down the ground rules for developers of PDF-related applications. Adobe CTO Kevin Lynch said that this move is in keeping with Adobe’s “commitment to openness.” The release of PDF specifications should lead to a much needed rise in the number of PDF creation and editing tools.
NewsMaximum PC turns 10! To Celebrate, Editor-in-Chief Will Smith Cuts Cake, Not Cheese
Posted 07/03/08 at 05:34:03 PM by Norman Chan
We just finished producing our September 2008 issue, which marks the 10-year anniversary of our magazine. The very first issue of Maximum PC was the September 1998 edition, which featured the Dream Machine ’98 on its cover. To celebrate the occasion (and the successful launch of the new website), the staff took a break from building rigs and benchmarking to enjoy some devilishly delicious cake and champagne.
The September issue will also feature a nostalgic retrospective of the past 10 years of Maximum PC, highlighting predictions we got right (and wrong), the amazing tech trends we witnessed develop, and first-hand recollections from past staff members. Gordon shares his favorite lab memories, and ex-intern Brian Lam (of Gizmodo) reveals what he learned from his tenure.
Here’s to the next 10 years!
Hit the jump for another look at the cake -- it's not a lie!
FeaturesBudget Cases Reach New Heights
Posted 07/03/08 at 04:58:33 PM by David Murphy
Selecting the perfect computer case is like scouting the grocery store for a bottle of wine. And as oenophiles of all knowledge levels and palates know, you can’t judge a bottle by its price. In that sense, we’re scooping from the bargain bin in this month’s mega-roundup of computer cases: Only chassis priced at $100 or less are eligible.
Just because a case is cheap doesn’t mean it’s poor. So before you plunk down a pile of cash on your next case, see how these sub-$100 boxes stack up against their pricier brethren.
ReviewsLian Li PC-P80R
Posted 07/03/08 at 04:56:33 PM by David Murphy
In July 2008, we tested six sub-$100 budget chassis. For comparison's sake, we also tested one of the most expensive consumer cases on the market—Lian Li’s PC-P80R.
There’s no denying that the PC-P80R makes a statement. And we’re not just talking about its avid ATI affiliation. Regardless of our personal graphics-card preferences, we have to admit that Lian Li’s fanboy chassis looks awesome. What’s more, minus a single, irritating lapse in design judgment, this enclosure’s internal layout is a stunning combination of beauty, foresight, and ease of use.
Hit the jump to see what all that extra jingle gets you.
NewsFour Companies Fined for Selling Fake NEC Keyboards
Posted 07/03/08 at 04:11:51 PM by Paul Lilly
Forget about buying fake Guccis and knockoff Louis Vuittons, and take a look at your keyboard instead. Are you sure it's genuine? It most likely is, as the effort and risk would surely outweigh the rewards in trying to sell a fake high-end keyboard, and lower end boards would hardly make the illegal venture worthwhile. Nevertheless, four Chinese companies apparently thought it made good business sense to make and sell counterfeit NEC keyboards, a move which has earned them a court ordered fine of CNY1.15 million. In U.S. dollars, that only equates to roughly $167,000, which only serves to highlight the bad business decision. It's believed the four counterfeiters profited at least CNY1 million in the venture, or about $36,000 USD after a four way split.
While NEC keyboards may seem like a quirky target, counterfeit computer goods can add up. In a joint operation earlier this year, officials from the US and European Union seized over 360,000 computer components worth a whopping $1.3 billion over a two week period. Some of the over forty different trademarked brands included Intel, Cisco, and Phillips.
Have you ever been bamboozled by fake goods, PC or otherwise? Post your experience(s) below.
NewsHands-On Lab Test! We Scrutinze Polaroid's New Pogo Portable Printer
Posted 07/03/08 at 03:50:03 PM by Gordon Mah Ung
I still own a vintage Polaroid SX-70 Land Camera but feeding it was expensive then and now nigh impossible thanks to the end of instant film. Polaroid’s POGO portable printer brings back some of the fun I had with the SX-70. This pocket printer is the first to use Zero Imaging’s Zero Ink paper that does away with ink in favor of billions of embedded crystals in the 2x3 sheets of paper.
Hook your PictBridge-enabled digital camera up to the POGO via a Type A USB cable and let the fun begin. Once the camera has finished chewing on the image, it will take about 30 seconds to print out. The POGO will print full bleed to the tiny pieces of paper and the adhesive back lets you stick ‘em anywhere. Fun, right?
Hit the jump for more impressions and a gallery of sticky photos.
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