Archive for June 2012
ASUS Tek Computer announced this week that they have become the first motherboard manufacturer to obtain WHQL (Windows Hardware Quality Labs) certification for 32-bit Windows 7. ASUS’ P5Q PRO and P5Q SE PLUS have received the coveted seal of approval. The company is expecting other models to be certified soon.
Hardware undergoes specific tests by the manufacturer and stringent testing by Microsoft before being allowed to use the “Compatible with Windows 7″ logo. To ensure that ASUS motherboard users “will enjoy a complete and flawless Windows 7 experience when the operating system is officially launched,”ASUS is striving to obtain certification for its entire line of motherboards.
The Windows 7 Logo Program is supposed to ensure that companies who are awarded the use of the logo have products that are reliable and compatible with Microsoft. Companies that meet the requirements get to use the logo, and benefit from the market recognition, and consumer confidence it supposedly brings to a product.
For now, Microsoft has only blessed ASUS’ two models. One is the P5Q SE PLUS, with an Intel Core 2 Extreme/Intel Core 2 Quad, or Intel Core 2 Duo Processor; the Intel P45/ICH10 chip set; Gb LAN, with a 1 x PCIe 2.0 x16 graphics slot. Its memory stands at 16GB, DDR2 1200 MHz. The front side bus (FBS) is 1600 MHz. The second winner, the P5Q PRO runs the same CPU, FSB, LAN and memory. Its chip set is the Intel P45/ICH10R, and the graphics slot is 2 x PCIe 2.0 x16.
ASUS also was joined this month by DTS thereby incorporating the Surround Sensation Ultra PC into their P5Q Turbo and the latest M4 Series. The partnership will entertain users with a surround effect from just two speakers or even headphones. DTS was founded in 1993 and pioneered in multi-channel audio. They’ve expanded their repertoire to include home theater, car audio, PC and game console products. More recent products involve DVD-Video, Blu-ray Disc and Surround Music software.
In addition to motherboards, ASUS is also involved in a broad spectrum of products from PC components to complete solutions including desktops, smartphones, PDAs, broadband communications products, LCD monitors and notebooks, notably the Eee PC. The huge company has over 10,000 employees and revenues of $8 million. They probably know how to cash in on today’s WHQL certification.
Random access memory (RAM) is the best known form of computer memory. RAM is considered "random access" because you can access any memory cell directly if you know the row and column that intersect at that cell.
The opposite of RAM is serial access memory (SAM). SAM stores data as a series of memory cells that can only be accessed sequentially (like a cassette tape). If the data is not in the current location, each memory cell is checked until the needed data is found. SAM works very well for memory buffers, where the data is normally stored in the order in which it will be used (a good example is the texture buffer memory on a video card). RAM data, on the other hand, can be accessed in any order.
Similar to a microprocessor, a memory chip is an integrated circuit(IC) made of millions of transistors and capacitors. In the most common form of computer memory, dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a transistor and a capacitor are paired to create amemory cell, which represents a single bit of data. The capacitor holds the bit of information -- a 0 or a 1 (see How Bits and Bytes Work for information on bits). The transistor acts as a switch that lets the control circuitry on the memory chip read the capacitor or change its state.
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The capacitor in a dynamic RAM memory cell is like a leaky bucket. It needs to be refreshed periodically or it will discharge to 0. This refresh operation is where dynamic RAM gets its name. Dynamic RAM has to be dynamically refreshed all of the time or it forgets what it is holding. The downside of all of this refreshing is that it takes time and slows down the memory.
In this article, you'll learn all about what RAM is, what kind you should buy and how to install it. See the next page to learn more about dynamic RAM and memory cells
A capacitor is like a small bucket that is able to store electrons. To store a 1 in the memory cell, the bucket is filled with electrons. To store a 0, it is emptied. The problem with the capacitor's bucket is that it has a leak. In a matter of a few milliseconds a full bucket becomes empty. Therefore, for dynamic memory to work, either the CPU or the memory controller has to come along and recharge all of the capacitors holding a 1 before they discharge. To do this, the memory controller reads the memory and then writes it right back. This refresh operation happens automatically thousands of times per second.
Before creating a new project, make sure that the latest version of Windows Media Player and the Windows Media Player SDK is installed on your computer.
Start Visual Studio, then create a new project.
In Visual Studio, open the Toolbox.
If Windows Media Player does not appear in the Components portion of the Toolbox, do the following:
- Right-click within the Toolbox, and then select Choose Items. This opens the Customize Toolbox dialog box.
- On the COM Components tab, select Windows Media Player.If Windows Media Player does not appear in the list, click Browse, and then open Wmp.dll, which should be in the Windows\System32 folder.
- Click OK. The Windows Media Player control will be placed on the current Toolbox tab.
You can now select Windows Media Player in the Toolbox and add it to a form.
Visual Studio gives the Windows Media Player control a default name such as "axWindowsMediaPlayer1". You may want to change the name to something more easily remembered, such as "Player".
Adding the Windows Media Player control from the Toolbox also adds references to two libraries created by Visual Studio, AxWMPLib and WMPLib. You can find them in the Solution Explorer under References
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In every case, Hardware Central has you covered with in-depth laptop reviews, deals, comparisons and buying guides -- everything you need to find and outfit your next notebook or not book.
You'll also learn the ins and outs of the increasingly complex technology powering laptops: Major technology vendors like Intel, AMD, nVidia and others are building laptop components with special design considerations designed to help users get the most out of their battery life without sacrificing portability or power -- and knowing what's ahead for notebook technology is important for any potential laptop buyer.
How you format a Mac hard drive is entirely dependent on what kind of drive you plan on formatting. For instance, is the hard drive internal or external? And if internal, has it been partitioned or are you looking to reformat the entire system to factory state? Whatever your formatting situation, this how-to guide will cover each of these step-by-step.
Before you go messing around in the Disk Utility application, make sure you know what the drive is going to be used for. If it’s an external hard drive, for instance, do you plan on hooking it up solely to Macs or Windows PCs as well? Each one has its own compatible format, so you’ll have to be careful which you choose. FAT 32 is the most compatible disk format which is why it’s the most widely used on USB thumb drives — it’s compatible with both Mac and Windows PCs. HFS+ is the native Mac OS file system, and NTFS is Windows’ (Macs can read what’s on NTFS-formatted drives, but they cannot write).
Before you start formatting any hard drives, make sure you’ve backed up your data! Formatting an external hard drive will delete any information on the device, likewise reformatting your system will essentially bring your Mac back to a clean factory state, thus removing all information you’ve stored on it. Conclusion: Be sure to backup first.
