review iptek and otomotif

LCD TV "LG 42LK450" Full HD

2011-03-26T01:29:00.000-07:00

LCD TV "LG 42LK450" Full HD

LG released a new LK series product comes with a screen 42 inches, the product was given a series of "LG 42LK450". This device has dilangkapi with Full HD technology, which previously has not been installed in 32LK311 LG series, other than that the product also has a contrast ratio of 100,000:1. ENERGY STAR latest technology embedded in the TV is able to save energy when not turned on early to take a big power.

Detail Specification:

* Contrast Ratio: 100,000:1
* Aspect Ratio :16:9
* Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixel Full HD
* Size & Screen Type : 42 inchesl , HD LCD TV
* Terminal In / Out: HDMI, USB, d-sub
* Remote Control: Ready
* Warranty: 1 year
* View Angle (V / H): 170/160 degree
* Speaker : HD speaker Surround sound
* Best Feature 1 : Full HD 1080p Resolution, ENERGY STAR® Qualified, Smart Energy Saving
* Best Feature 2: Picture Wizard II (Easy Picture Calibration), Intelligent Sensor, ISFccc® Ready

VGA GeForce GTX 580

2011-03-20T21:17:00.000-07:00

VGA GeForce GTX 580

Spesifikasi:

a) GPU/Interface:

Bus Interface : PCIe 2.0 x16, Core Clock: 1544 MHz, Max Single Display Resolution: 2560 x 1600, Max Power (TDP): 244 Watts.

b) Video Memory:

Memory Clock Speed: 2004 MHz, Memory Size: 1.536 GB, Memory Type: GDDR5, Memory Bus Width: 384-bit, Memory Bandwidth: 192.4 Gbps.

c) Display Interface:

Dual Channel DVI: 2 Connectors, HDMI 1.4a: 1 Connector, VGA: Supported.

d) Supported API:

Directx: 11, OpenGL: 4.1.

e) Rendering Technologies

Paralell Computing: Cuda, Video Processing: PureVideo HD, 3D Viewing: 3D Vision Ready, Multi Display: 3D Vision Surround Ready, Display Quantity: Multi Monitor, SLI/CrossFireX: 3 GPUs, Cooler: Fan/Heat Pipes, Power Connector: 6 pin / 8 pin.

VGA ATI Radeon HD 6870

2011-03-20T21:13:00.000-07:00

VGA ATI Radeon HD 6870

Spesifikasi:

a) GPU/Interface:

Bus Interface : PCIe 2.1 x16, Core(s): Dual, Core Clock: 900 MHz, Max Single Display Resolution: 2560 x 1600.

b) Video Memory:

Memory Clock Speed: 1050 MHz, Memory Size: 1 GB, Memory Type: GDDR5, Memory Bandwidth: 134.4 Gbps

c) Display Interface:

Dual Channel DVI: 2 Connectors, HDMI 1.4a: 1 Connector, Mini-DisplayPort: 1.2 Connector, VGA: Supported.

d) Supported API:

Directx: 11, OpenGL: 4.1, OpenCL: v1.1

e) Rendering Technologies

Paralell Computing: Dual-Stream, Video Processing: EyeSpeed Technology, Multi Display: Eyefinity, Display Quantity: 6 Screens, SLI/CrossFireX: 6 GPUs, Cooler: Fan, Power Connector: 4 pin.

Fuji Xerox DocuCenter

2011-03-19T11:13:00.000-07:00

Fuji Xerox DocuCenter IV C 2270 / 3370 / 4470 / 5570

Specification: Features that enhance productivity

Fast print speeds of up to 25/ 35/ 45/ 50 ( 2270/ 3370/ 4470/ 5570) ppm in colour and BW enhance office productivity
Fastest start-up time of 3 seconds ( from power saver mode)
High quality documents with 1, 200 x 2, 400 dpi print resolution and better colour technologies
New design, colour user interface provides easy access to all advanced features so you get your job done faster
Finish documents in-house with hole punching, stapling, and booklet making so they' re ready for immediate distribution
Fast scan speed through the document feeder of up to 70 ppm in black and white and colour for quickly converting paper documents to digital files
Fast warm-up time of 28 seconds ( from power off)
Wide array of fax tools and features such as faxing from your desktop and Fax Forward, which allows for digital storage and distribution of fax documents
Preview images on the user interface before sending them with standard Thumbnail Preview feature
Control costs and access to copy, print, fax and scan functions with Internal Auditron and Xerox Standard Accounting
Achieve greater cost control of all copy, print, fax and scan functions with Internal Auditron and Xerox Standard Accounting
Safe email transmissions with encryption and password-protected PDFs

Specification:

Standard Functions: Print, Copy
Optional Functions: Scan, and Fax

Print Speed: 25 Up to 55 ppm Colour / Black and White

LED Printhead Technology
Print Resolution: Up to 1, 200 x 2, 400 dpi

Memory: 1 GB ( Max 2 GB)
Duplex Automatic Document Feeder ( DADF) : 110 sheets

Paper Tray Capacity:
Standard: 2, 090 sheets / Max: 5, 120 sheets

Paper Size:
Paper Tray
Max: SRA3 12.6 x 17.7" ( 320 x 449.6 mm) , 12 x 18" ( 304.8 x 457.2 mm) ; 256 gsm
Min: A5; 60 gsm

Bypass Tray
Max: 320 x 482.6 mm; 280 gsm
Min: Postcard ( 100 x 148 mm) , Envelope ( 120 × 235 mm) ; 55 gsm
Paper Output Capacity: 500 sheets

FYI

FUJI XEROX LED PRINT HEAD WINS TECHNOLOGY AWARD

THE IMAGING SOCIETY OF JAPAN RECOGNIZES ITS HIGH-QUALITY AND HIGH-RESOLUTION IMAGES

A high-resolution LED ( light-emitting diode) print head developed by Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. won The Imaging Society of Japan’ s Technology Award. The LED print head with self-scanning light emitting device is incorporated into Fuji Xerox’ s color multifunction devices and color printers.

The development of a 1, 200 dpi self-scanning LED together with a dedicated ASIC ( application-specific integrated circuit) has overcome the issues presented by conventional LED print heads and also has realized high resolution. The Imaging Society of Japan, in presenting the award, recognized the contribution of Fuji Xerox’ s LED print head to the advancement of electrophotographic technology.

About the Award-Winning LED Print Head
LED print heads require neither a polygon mirror nor the motor to rotate the mirror, which enables a size reduction as well as noiseless operation. While they have such advantages, conventional LED print heads had difficulty in realizing higher image quality due to numerous light-emitting elements, which cause fluctuations in the amount of light resulting in unevenness in color density.

Fuji Xerox has responded to these issues by developing a 1, 200 dpi, high-resolution self-scanning light-emitting device ( SLED* 1) along with a technology, DELCIS* 2, which enables precise integrated control of all light-emitting elements by a single high-performance ASIC. Furthermore, Fuji Xerox adopted lenses with uniform optical characteristics to create a simple-structure, high-resolution LED print head ( 1, 200 x 2, 400 dpi) ( Figure 1) , which has realized downsizing as well as high-quality images equal or superior to those produced via laser raster output scanner ( ROS) systems.

* 1 Self-Scanning Light Emitting Device: A device that can emit light in sequence from its elements.
* 2 Digitally Enhanced Lighting Control Imaging System: An LED exposure control technology that uses proprietary SLEDs. Highly precise correction of the amount of light is achieved by ASIC’ s integrated control of all SLEDs, resulting in a high resolution of 1, 200 x 2, 400 dpi. DELCIS is a registered trademark in Japan.

Fuji Xerox’ s LED print head has dramatically reduced its size and weight compared to the conventional laser ROS system allowing more room for a device’ s paper ejection ( equal to the space for one paper tray) where a finisher capable of stapling can be loaded.

Japanese LED watches

2011-03-17T04:32:00.000-07:00

Sauron Japanese Style Watch

Japanese LED watches, such as those from Tokyoflash, look really cool and provide a unique way to tell time. This Sauron Japan Style LED Watch fits the mold with a futuristic design, red and blue LED lights, and a Dark Paladin Armor bracelet. Plus you have to be a geek, or at least as smart as one, in order to tell time with the Sauron LED watch.

Do you have what it takes to wear The Sauron? Press the top button and after some animation, you’ll be shown some blue parallelograms. Each blue parallelogram equals 1 hour. Press the button again, and you’ll be shown red parallelograms and red triangles. Each red parallelogram equals 5 minutes. Each red triangle equals 1 minute.

Star Wars USB hand warmers

2011-03-17T04:15:00.001-07:00

Fans Star Wars saga will be more useful during the days of winter as it can be used as hand warmers in space opera inspired by George Lucas.

There are two designs for you to choose from: The black one featuring arch-villain Darth Vader and a blue display bleep-blooping astromech droid R2-D2.

The hand warmers both have the aluminum case and you just hook it into the USB port to charge. Two hours of charging will provide you with a comfortable temperature of 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for about four hours.

Star Wars USB hand warmers from the Japanese toy company Takara Tomy has not been released and they had no information about the price.

Samsung CLP-620ND

2011-03-14T10:55:00.000-07:00

Samsung CLP-620ND Color Laser Printer Network/Dup.

	Print Method:	Color Laser


	First Page Output Time:	25 Seconds


	Resolution:	9600 x 600 dpi effective output


	Maximum Duty Cycle:	65,000 Pages Per Month


	Print Speed B/W:	20 ppm


	Print Speed Color:	20 ppm


	Condition:	New


	Color Output:	Color


	Printer Use:	Medium Format


	All-In-One:	No


	Fax Capability:	No


	Network Ready:	Yes


	Automatic Feeder:	No


	Dimensions:	17.4"W x 16.9"D x 16.7"H

	Connectivity:	Ethernet
		USB

	Standard Paper Input:	250 Sheets


	Standard Paper Output:	200 Sheets


	Duplex Printing:	Automatic


	Paper Sizes Supported:	Envelopes
		Bond
		Labels
		Card Stock

	Processor:	350 MHz


	Memory Included:	256MB

Lexmark's new Genesis S815 printer

2011-03-11T11:01:00.000-08:00

Lexmark's new Genesis S815 printer

Lexmark's new Genesis S815 printer Review : It’s hard to get that excited about printers, isn’t it? But the new Genesis, just announced by Lexmark, is about the coolest-looking business device since the MacBook Air. Even better, it’s powerful and efficient so you can justify it to the bean counters on those terms rather than on its striking looks. It’s also exceptionally simple to use, and satisfyingly accessible when it comes to more complicated scanning and printing requirements, like multiple images on one page, say.

In case you can’t make sense of it from the photo, what’s new about the Genesis is that it stands vertically, as opposed to horizontally as other printers do. So when you want to copy or scan a document, you lift the front of the case forward and drop the paper in.

Inside the machine is a 10-megapixel camera sensor which enables the machine to scan much faster than most scanners and printers. Lexmark’s claim, borne out in our tests, is that it transfers “from document to digital” in about three seconds – it’s not unusual to wait a minute or more for this to occur with most printers. There’s no automatic page feeder, please note, which is about the worst you can say about the Genesis.

If you’re familiar with scanning documents you’ll know the most time-consuming and deeply frustrating part of the process is finding you’ve positioned the original in just-not-quite the right place, and you only discover this when the scanning is finished.

Here, the camera sensor puts an image of what you’ll get onto the colour display on the front of the printer. So you know instantly if you’re in the right place and can adjust accordingly.

The 4.3-inch display is also a touchscreen which you use to operate the printer. Along with the fast scanning capabilities, the machine also copies, prints and even faxes as well. It works wirelessly so you have flexibility as to where you put the Genesis. The touchscreen also features Smart Solutions which means you can download apps such as Evernote, Facebook and Twitter if you must.

Individual colour and black ink tanks, combined with well-priced refill cartridges mean the Genesis is economical to run. It has automatic two-sided printing options to save you paper, too. It's very much a high-end machine but it's not like some printers which are cheap to buy but expensive to operate.

This printer looks great and performs spectacularly. It’s a solid, feature-packed machine which, if you’re looking for a scanner that is fast and effective, is hard to beat.

MPman 3 vs Speedvision 3.5

2011-03-11T03:54:00.000-08:00

MPman 3" Pocket Digital Freeview TV
vs
Speedvision 3.5" Digital Freeview TV & Radio

These 2 pocket sized Digital Televisions with freeview both appear to offer very similair performance and value.

Both offer the ability of allowing you to use it as a freeview box for your TV by having video & audio outputs. Both also have the facility of using it as a radio receiver.

Though when getting down to the technical and performance comparisons it is obvoius there is a clear winner.

Although the MPman has a slightly smaller screen, the picture quality is superior at 960x320pixels in comparison with the Speedvision that only has a QVGA display with 320 x 240pixels.

Vision quality alone may not be enough, but the MPman also performs better in terms of receiving a signal, something that can be hit and miss in this world of patchy digital signals.

I am not alone in believing the MPman to be the superior Pocket TV, reviews of it on Amazon are overwhelmingly in praise of it.

Check out the current price below on Amazon UK for both, and feel free to look at the product reviews there.

Review Lexmark X5650 All In One Inkjet Printers

2011-03-05T23:25:00.000-08:00

Lexmark X5650 is a kind all in one inkjet printers. A good and simple form and ease of use. Printer price of the Lexmark X5650 is $ 99.99. Quite cheap, is not it?. Features of the Lexmark X5650 among others:

* Manage Large Documents with Ease, Fit up to 25 pages in the auto document tray and copy, scan, or fax without worrying or waiting around.

* Fax Features Business-Quality, sophistication meets convenience with 99 speed dial options, junk fax blocker, caller ID, and broadcast send, all at 33.6Kbps modem speed.

The specifications of the Lexmark X5650 among others:

* Print Technology: Thermal Inkjet.

* Color Technology: 4 Color Inkjet – Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black.

* Print resolution black: Up to 1200 x 1200 dpi.

* Color print resolution: Up to 4800 x 1200 dpi.

* Black print speed: up to 25 ppm.

* Color print speed: up to 18 ppm.

* Duty cycle: 3000 pages per month.

* Print noise level: 48 dBA.

* Time to first copy (black): 8 seconds.

* Time to first copy (color): 10 seconds.

* Dimension: 13.1 x 18.3 x 19.7 ins.

* Weight: 20.03 lb.

Bagaimana cara unlock Haier C6000

2011-02-21T03:14:00.000-08:00

cara unlock Haier C6000. Caranya cukup mudah, ikuti langkah-langkahnya berikut ini :

* Sebelumnya, pastikan kondisi baterai HP Anda masih dalam kondisi cukup.
* Ketik “*32#00#” (tanpa tanda kutip) dan akhiri dengan tombol Dial
* Pilih opsi “Minlock Off”
* Restart HP dan selanjutnya Anda sudah bisa gunakan kartu CDMA lain.

sekarang Anda bisa pilih provider yang Anda suka. buat recomend sih pake Smart atau StarOne punya paket Internet murah. Saya yakin Anda sendiri sudah punya pilihan tersendiri. Namun, terlepas dari itu semua, HP ini patut dipertimbangkan sebagai prasarana alternatif koneksi akses internet via HP. Selain harganya murah, dengan kombinasi kartu perdana yang tepat kita ga perlu jauh-jauh ke warnet hanya untuk sekedar mengakses internet.

Inject nomer CDMA di Blackberry 8830

2011-02-21T03:09:00.000-08:00

caranya inject nomer CDMA di Blackberry 8830, kalau untuk HH CDMA lainnya sih belum coba

1. Type ##000000 (Dial)

2. Di MDN (Mobile Destination Number), isi nomer yang akan di inject, jangan gunakan nol / 0 untuk CDMA Cellular (Fren, Smart), untuk CDMA FWA (Flexi, Esia, Hepi, StarOne) langsung isi no MDN saja, untuk kode are tidak perlu di isi.

3. Di bagian IMSI, silahkan IMSI untuk MDN tersebut, kalau di CDMA namanya MIN (Mobile Identification Number, biasanya diiringi dengan angka 198xxxx

4. Sisanya default.

5. A-Key, nah ini bagian yang cukup sulit, konsep inject itu sendiri adalah, mengawinkan MDN dengan ESN si HH / Handset. Biasanya di outlet-outlet yang terima inject, dia udah bekerja sama dengan operator setempat. Caranya adalah, kita kasi tau ESN dan MDN agar A-Key nya bisa tergenarate, total nomer yang akan diisi di field A-Key sebanyak 26

6. Di field bagian bawah adalah untuk aksed data (Usernam & Password), ini sama seperti kita isi Field APN di Option, Advance Option, TCP. Kalau di CDMA field ini yang akan diisi. Isi sesuai dengan pilihan operator masing.

7. Tekan Blackberry Menu (lambang blackberry) pilih SAVE, nanti dia akan merestart HH secara otomatis.

Note :
Bagian yang paling tersulit adalah, mensetting PRL untuk HH kita, ini dibutuhkan software khusus, karena sampai sekarang saya masih belum menemukan key untuk mengeluarkan menu PRL.
Mungkin teman-teman ada yg menggunakan handset CDMA keluaran Nokia, pernah mengalama kejadian Roaming (lambang segitiga) dibagian atas. Kenapa ini bisa terjadi? Karena pada handset CDMA keluaran Nokia, semua PRL operator CDMA di Indonesia didaftarkan, begitu kita ga dapet signal, si handset akan mencari signal terkuat berdasarkan PRL yang ada di memorynya (Sequence)
Untuk Blackberry tidak demikian, karena di Amerika sendiri, mereka sudah pasti akan meregister unit-unit mereka dengan settingan PRL mereka masing-masing. Jadi tidak akan terjadi overlapping.

Jangan menghancurkan hardisk yang rusak

2011-02-15T09:33:00.000-08:00

Jangan keburu menghancurkan hardisk meski Anda sudah tidak menggunakannya lagi. Temukan cara lain yang lebih jitu, daripada harus membongkar-bongkar gudang untuk mencari palu.

Sebuah majalah konsumen terkemuka menasihati pemiliki komputer untuk menghancurkan hardisk jika akan menjual komputer. Pasalnya, ada banyak risiko data-data pribadi akan terungkap dari hardisk bekas meskipun sudah diformat.

Dikutip detikINET dari ITportal, Sabtu (10/1/2009), inilah beberapa cara yang perlu dipertimbangkan untuk dilakukan pada komputer bekas sebelum akhirnya (jika memang terpaksa) memutuskan untuk menghancurkan hardisk:

1. Gunakan DBAN (Darik's Boot And Nuke) jika Anda berencana menjual komputer lewat Ebay. DBAN berfungsi "membersihkan" komputer. Semua konten dapat terhapus secara otomatis sebelum Anda merelakannya jatuh di tangan orang lain. Namun Anda perlu membuat CD yang dapat di-boot terlebih dulu, atau DVD yg memakai file ISO.
2. Cara lainnya adalah dengan mengisi space yang ada di hardisk drive dengan file-file hingga penuh dan menindih file-file sebelumnya. Sebagai contoh, unduhlah kopian ISO dari distribusi Linux manapun dan kopi semua itu(jika Anda memakai Windows). Setelah semua terisi, kemudian formatlah.
3. Anda bisa juga mengambil semua data yang ada, mengkompresnya, mengamankannya menggunakan sandi yang kuat, kemudian memformat hardisk drive tersebut. Hal ini untuk menanggulangi bila ada orang iseng yang akan merecover file-file itu.
4. Tetapi jika Anda ingin menyingkirkan komputer Anda beserta semua perangkatnya, apakah tidak lebih baik jika menyumbangkannya saja untuk acara amal atau untuk teman terdekat Anda?

detik-inet

PC Media Valhalla Beta

2011-02-15T01:05:00.001-08:00

PC Media Valhalla Beta merupakan antivirus terbaru dari PC Media yang bisa digunakan untuk mengatasi serangan virus lokal.

Antivirus ini masih dalam tahap beta, jadi mungkin masih terdapat beberapa bug. Pada versi beta ini ditambahkan 4 fitur baru yaitu link protector, anti keystroke, ekstension manager, dan lock setting.

Jika ingin mendapatkan perlindungan dari serangan virus lokal, tidak ada salahnya mencoba antivirus ini meskipun masih beta.

download PC Media size (5,61 MB)
Password : valhalla
Windows : XP/Vista/Win 7

Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 with Crack Full

2011-02-15T01:02:00.001-08:00

Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 with Crack Full Version Black List is one of the many security software used around the world because of the ability and also their performance in handling various kinds of malware.

This security software will protect from various disturbances that can damage the computer. For those who do not yet have a reliable security software can use this software.

download size (71,21 MB)

Password : dnh

True System Security Tweaker

2011-02-15T00:41:00.000-08:00

True System Security Tweaker adalah software gratisan yang bisa dimanfaatkan untuk melakukan optimasi dan juga tweaking pada komputer softholic mania.

Software ini memiliki sekitar 470 tweaking keamanan untuk sistem komputer dan juga kemampuannya untuk membatasi komputer dari akses yang tidak berhak.

Kelebihan lain dari software gratisan ini adalah bisa dijalankan di flashdisk (portable devide) dan juga tampilannya yang sederhana.

download True System Security Tweaker size (1,18 MB)
Windows : 2000/2003/XP/Vista/Win 7

PC Auto Shutdown 4.3 Full Version

2011-02-15T00:34:00.000-08:00

PC Auto Shutdown 4.3 Full Version adalah software yang bisa dimanfaatkan untuk mematikan komputer secara otomatis dengan mudah.

Software ini juga dapat melakukan restart, hibernate, ataupun log off. Jika softholic mania suka sekali lupa dan sering meninggalkan komputernya dalam keadaan hidup, bisa menggunakan software ini sebagai solusinya.

download PC Auto Shutdown size (1,9 MB)
Password : dnh

Instal Flash Disk Lock

2011-02-13T09:10:00.000-08:00

Buat kamu2 yang sering pake flashdisk,sering colok2 flasdisk di komputer umum,and akhirnya dapet souvenir berbagai virus,ini dia solusinya. Flash Disk Lock,software yang bisa memproteksi flashdisk kamu2 dari kunjungan virus.

Flash Disk Lock tu aplikasi buat nyembunyiin data yg ada di dalam flashdisk sekaligus mengunci akses ke dalam flashdisk.Buat mengakses isi flashdisk yang udah di instal Flash Disk Lock diperlukan password. And jangan lupa buat kunci flashdisk sebelum dicabut.

Flash Disk Lock ini juga bisa menghindari virus yang memanfaatkan fungsi autorun.Selain itu juga disediakan fungsi Scan buat File Asing atau Virus yang bersembunyi di dalem Root Direktori fashdisk. Extensi file yang dideteksi adalah EXE, VBS, SCR, INF, INI, HTT, BAT, COM, PIF.

System Operasi yang diperlukan Windows 2000 atau windows XP . System Flash Disk Lock perlu +/- 500 Kb Free Space di flash disk. Flash Disk Lock ini cuma buat USB flashdisk & ngga kompatibel buat USB MP3 Player.

Download Flash Disk Lock

NextUp TextAloud v2.303-NeoX

2010-07-22T18:57:00.000-07:00

Windows Sofware | NextUp TextAloud v2.303-NeoX | 3.30 MB

TextAloud reads text from email, web pages, reports and more, aloud on your PC. TextAloud can also save your daily reading to MP3 or Windows Media files ready for playback on your iPod, PocketPC, or even on your TV with Tivo’s Home Media Option. Be more productive or just be entertained wherever you go with our text reader. Our TextAloud 2.0 release is here and packed with new features! If you haven’t heard computer speech lately, you’ll be amazed at how human-like the latest voices really are. Click Here for a sample audio file created using our text to speech converter with the optional AT&T Natural Voices. We also offer exciting premium voices from NeoSpeech and Cepstral to bring you the best quality and personality in speech for your PC. Business people, students, educators, writers, lawyers, homemakers and busy people from all walks of life find TextAloud to be an essential tool they use every day. It’s been featured in The New York Times, PC Magazine, Writer’s Digest, on CNN and more.

Additional Information:
* Included with the program of speech engines
* Loquendo – Olga (Rus) + additional votes. (Eng.)
* Scansoft-RealSpeak-Nuance-TTS-SAPI5-Daniel-UK-English (Eng.)
* A full set of reading and learning English

Homepage – http://www.anonymz.com/?http://www.nextup.com/

For Download Just click This

Seni Hacking Facebook

2010-02-03T01:47:00.000-08:00

Seni Hacking Facebook

Seni Hacking di Indonesia sudah mulai menyebar. Banyak orang-orang yang ingin menjadi hacker, baik itu untuk kepentingan baik maupun buruk. Lalu bagaimanakah sang Hacker itu bekerja, dan bagaimanakah sang Hacker begitu hebatnya bisa membobol suatu sistem yang sudah memliki pengamanan ketat. Disini kita akan mengaitkan antara Hacker dengan Facebook. Berikut adalah cara-cara hacker membobol akun facebook kita menurut mas krisna :

1. Dengan membekukan alamat email kita.
Cara ini sering digunakan hacker pemula untuk membekukan email seseorang, yang dimana si korban tidak bisa login email lagi. Cara ini membutuhkan software yang namanya Facebook Freezer.Kelemahan dari cara hack ini, si korban masih bisa me-reset password facebooknya kembali,setelah itu korban dapat bermain facebook lagi.

2. Dengan membuat halaman login palsu.
Cara ini digunakan hacker untuk membuat halaman login palsu yang dimana si korban akan memasukkan username dan password facebooknya di halaman login palsu tersebut. Dengan ini sang Hacker dapat menyimpan username dan password facebook dari si korban.

3. Dengan menggunakan software keyboard (keylogger).
Semacam software yang digunakan untuk memantau kegiatan keyboard komputer, setiap tombol yang di tekan oleh user akan di simpan baik oleh keylogger.Bisa saja cara ini digunakan oleh penjaga warnet yang nakal lalu membobol akun facebook anda.

4. Dengan menggunakan software pencuri password.
Software ini cukup mengancam bagi korban hacker, karena software ini dengan sangat mudah bisa mendapatkan password email dari sang korban.Untuk menghindarinya sebaiknya anda sembunyikan alamat email anda dari informasi facebook anda.

Samsung B2100

2010-01-04T18:15:00.000-08:00

Like the B2700 Bound, the newer Samsung B2100 Xplorer (also called Solid Extreme) fits in nominal features with hard-edged rugged talents. While both handsets foster similar look and feel, the B2100 is targeted towards even more low-end consumer markets, fitting in less-powerful hardware and a considerably cheaper price.

Compared to the B2700, the B2100 Xplorer is even more single-minded in its approach. It’s an ultra-basic phone with extreme durability that should serve you well for plenty of outdoor uses. Samsung claims it can withstand a ton of abuse, including rain, dust, shock, water, salt, fog, solar radiation (for real, they bill sunlight as solar radiation) and extreme temperatures.

Naturally, the bulk of our tests went on that end, putting the phone through hell and high water. As expected, it survived with nary a complaint. It’s the perfect torture subject for sadists – absorbing all punishment without as much as a squeak. With its rubberized edges, water-tight flanges and all-around solid construction, this is a phone that should stay alive through most any extreme situation.

Like other rugged handsets, typing on the T9-style keypad is a serious problem, with tough keys that require hard presses in order to register. The 1.8-inch screen is extremely small and limiting, but it should survive through every travail, along with the rest of the phone.

User-interface and overall specs of the handset harken back to a decade ago. Features include a 1.3-megapixel camera (below average quality), an FM radio, a basic music player, a voice recorder and microSD card expansion. The music player is decent and should serve you well for those lonely nights in the woods, though, you’ll need an SD card to supplement the phone’s 10MB onboard storage. There’s also a very bright torch that should prove quite handy for rugged uses.

Voice calls are excellent, which is a major plus, considering that’s pretty much what a handset like this is good for. It also offers long battery life, which should allow for a good stretch on standby, making it perfect for extended time outdoors.

Overall, the Samsung B2100 Xplorer does as it’s supposed to, offering basic phone functions with great call quality and insane survival capabilities. At the price ($100 to $140 unlocked, depending on where you buy), it’s also cheap enough to warrant the choice.

Software Resetter Epson Stylus Photo 1390

2009-12-29T02:27:00.001-08:00

Software Resetter Epson Stylus Photo 1390

Need adjustment program or software resetter for Epson Stylus Photo 1390, download here. To use this software is easy. The unique feature on this software is that is having facilities shipping setting in maintenance menu. This function is implementing in case of nozzle expulsion troubles caused by the transport. This function will have a cleaning process performed automatically when the printer is turned on.

Reset waste ink Counter using adjustment program Epson Stylus Photo 1390

* Turn on the Printer.
* Set date setting in your computer to 4 October 2007.
* Run Adjustment Program by clicking “AdjProg.exe”.
* Select Accept
* Select Particular adjustment mode
* Select “Waste ink pad counter – OK
* Click Initialization to reset current protection counter to “Zero”.
* Turn off printer and turn on again.

Download Adjustent program Epson 1390

Pentax K-X Kore Ja Nai Robo

2009-11-08T05:41:00.000-08:00

Pentax KX SLR issued a colorful toys like DSLR camera. Pentax DSLR this special edition called Pentax KX Kore Ja Nai Robo. The idea came from a wooden robot named Kore Ja Nai Robo, a robot created by wood Zarigani Works, Pentax KX This special edition was changed into a robot-like timber, particularly in terms of color.
According to this special edition pentax made only 100 pieces and displays colors bright, coupled with his lo describe friction face on the top right. And not just in the body are painted, but also in the DSLR camera lens that is more similar to the camera a little toy than a real DSLR camera.
Pentax KX Kore Ja Nai Robo is sold for 79,800 yen and a bonus cell phone users get the hook of the robot

Sony VAIO P Series Netbook with Windows 7

2009-10-17T01:36:00.001-07:00

Sony VAIO P Series Netbook with Windows 7

Previously Sony already release VAIO P Series and now you can get Sony VAIO P Series with Windows 7 OS and new processor. The Sony VAIO P using Intel Atom 2GHz processor with variant like VAIO P39VL and P31ZK available in Italy using Intel Atom Z550 and Z540 processor.

The Sony netbook P31 available in Ivory White and Ebony Black colors, capacity at 80GB HDD (4200 rpm) and also with Windows 7 operating system. Another varian Sony VAIO P39 featuring 128GB SSD and Windows 7 Professional Edition and only available in Black Ebony color.

All of the Sony VAIO P Series come with 8-inch display with 1600×768 pixel, 2GB of RAM, Intel GMA500 integrated graphic card and 3G connectivity.
source:Sony VAIO P Series Netbook with Windows

Cara membasmi virus Autorun.AEEQ lebaran

2009-09-21T06:52:00.000-07:00

“Selamat Hari Raya Iedul Fitri Mohon Maaf Lahir dan Bathin
Kamu Adalah Manusia terkutuk di dunia!
Laksana Anjing Kelaparan Memangsa Sesamanya
Memuja Harta dan Maksiat Berkedok Muslimin
Pantas teman2mu memanggilmu Anjing!!!…
:: Istigfar Nak, Istigfar!! ::”

Autorun.AEEQ

Selamat Hari Raya Iedul Fitri Mohon Maaf Lahir dan Bathin

Kamu Adalah Manusia terkutuk di dunia!

Laksana Anjing Kelaparan Memangsa Sesamanya

Memuja Harta dan Maksiat Berkedok Muslimin

Pantas teman2mu memanggilmu Anjing!!!…

:: Istigfar Nak, Istigfar!! ::

virus Autorun.AEEQ lebaran mempunyai cirri-ciri sebagai berikut dan cara meghapus virus ini ada di sini

Ciri-Ciri
Ciri-ciri yang dapat diketahui dari virus ini tidak lah terlalu sulit, hal ini dapat dilihat dari beberapa jejak yang akan ditinggal kan seperti:
1. Munculnya tray menu pada taskbar dengan nama “CoolTrayIcon Service” yang berisi pesan ucapan Selamat Idul Fitri, pesan ini akan muncul jika user melakukan klik kanan pada tray menu tersebut,
2. Merubah icon selain drive System dengan icon MS. Word 2007 dan munculnya pesan dari pembuat virus saat user mengakses drive rsebut

Cara mengatasi virus Autorun.AEEQ
1. Putuskan komputer yang akan di bersihkan dari jaringan selama proses pembersihan.
2. Nonaktifkan [System Restore] selama proses pembersihan agar pembersihan dapat dilakukan dengan optimal.
3. Matikan proses virus yang aktif di memori dengan menggunakan tools pengganti Task Manager seperti tools “Security Task Manager”. Kemudian blok proses yang mempunyai icon Explorer [shstat.exe, ctfmon.exe, hkcmd, acpictl.exe]

Silahkan download tools tersebut di alamat berikut:

http://www.neuber.com/taskmanager/download.html

Matikan juga service [Microsoft ACPI Driver Extension] pada service Windows dengan cara :
· Klik [Start]
· Klik [Run]
· Pada dialog box [RUN] ketik [SERVICES.MSC]
· Klik kanan pada nama service [Microsoft ACPI Driver Extension], kemudian pilih [Properties]
· Pada kolom [Startup Type] pilih “Disabled”
· Klik tombol [STOP]
· Klik tombol [Apply]
· Klik tombol [OK]

4.Hapus string yang dibuat oleh virus dan disable autorun Windows agar virus tidak aktif kembali, silahkan salin script dibawah ini pada program notepad kemudian simpan dengan nama [repair.inf], jalankan file tersebut dengan cara
·Klik kanan REPAIR.INF File
·Klik Install

[Version]
Signature=”$Chicago$”
Provider=Vaksincom Oyee
[DefaultInstall]
AddReg=UnhookRegKey
DelReg=del
[UnhookRegKey]
HKLM, Software\CLASSES\batfile\shell\open\command,,,”"”%1″” %*”
HKLM, Software\CLASSES\comfile\shell\open\command,,,”"”%1″” %*”
HKLM, Software\CLASSES\exefile\shell\open\command,,,”"”%1″” %*”
HKLM, Software\CLASSES\piffile\shell\open\command,,,”"”%1″” %*”
HKLM, Software\CLASSES\regfile\shell\open\command,,,”regedit.exe “%1″”
HKLM, Software\CLASSES\scrfile\shell\open\command,,,”"”%1″” %*”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon, Shell,0, “Explorer.exe”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\Folder\SuperHidden, UncheckedValue,0×00010001,1
HKLM, SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\lanmanserver\parameters, AutoShareWks,0×00010001,0
HKLM, SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\lanmanserver\parameters, AutoShareServer,0×00010001,0
HKCU, Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer, NoDriveTypeAutoRun,0×000000ff,255
HKLM, SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\Explorer, NoDriveTypeAutoRun,0×000000ff,255
[del]
HKLM, SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\ACPIService
HKLM, SYSTEM\ControlSet002\Services\ACPIService
HKLM, SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\ACPIService

5.Hapua file yang dibuat oleh virus dengan terlebih dahulu menampilkan file yang tersembunyi agar mudah dalam mencari file virus tersebut, dengan cara : (lihat gambar 12)
· Buka Windows Explorer
· Klik [Tools]
· Klik [Folder Options]
· Klik tabulasi [View]
· Pilih opsi “Show hidden files and folders”
· Uncheck opsi “Hide protected operating system (recomennded)”

Kemudian hapus file berikut:
· C:\Explorer.exe [di semua drive]
· C:\Autorun.inf [di semua drive]
· C:\Windows\system32\config\shstat.exe
· C:\Windows\system32\dllcache\hkcmd.exe
· C:\WIndows\system32\oob\ctfmon.exe
· C:\WIndows\system32\acpictl.exe

6. Untuk pembersihan optimal dan mencegah infeksi ulang, scan dengan menggunakan antivirus yang up-to-date

sumber:vaksin

Mesin 5-Langkah: 700 cc, 130 PS

2009-08-21T21:30:00.000-07:00

Berbagai perusahaan rekayasa mesin berusaha membuat sumber penggerak dengan efisien kerja makin tinggi. Targetnya, irit konsumsi bahan bakar dan ramah lingkungan.

Berbagai cara pun dilakukan. Paling populer dan sudah bisa dimanfaatkan saat ini adalah membuat mobil hibrida: mengawinkan motor bakar dengan motor listrik.

Kendati demikian, terutama untuk motor bakar, perusahaan rekayasa terus mengembangkan mesin yang makin efisien. Salah satu yang banyak dibicarakan para ahli teknik dan dipublikasi media otomotif adalah mesin bensin 5-langkah yang dikembangkan oleh Ilmor, Inggris.

Juga dijelaskan, mesin ini dikembangkan dari konsep lima langkah yang ditemukan oleh Gerhard Schmitz.

Reputasi Ilmor memang tidak diragukan lagi. Perusahaan yang sebagian sahamnya dimiliki Mercedes-Benz dan diandalkan sebagai pemasok mesin tim F1 McLaren-Mercedes juga tak henti-hentinya memublikasikan mesin 5-langkah hasil pengembangannya.

Bahkan, mesin ini juga diikutkan pada berbagai pameran agar publik memahami cara kerjanya. Maklum, selama ini mesin yang digunakan secara umum adalah 4 dan 2 langkah.

Kinerja
Setelah mendapatkan perhatian dari media otomotif sejak Mei lalu, minggu pertama Agustus, Ilmor kembali merilis hasil terbaru dari pengembangan mesin 5-langkah tersebut. Dikatakan, kinerja mesin 3 silinder, 700 cc plus turbocharger, kemampuannya luar biasa: tenaga 130 PS dan torsi 165 Nm.

Tanpa memberikan detail, pada putaran berapa tenaga dan torsi tersebut diperoleh, Ilmor malah mengatakan, bila dikembangkan lebih lanjut, terutama bagian katup dan komponen pendukung lainnya, tenaga yang dihasilkan bisa mencapai 150 PS. Hebat!

Cara kerja
Konstruksi mesin sama dengan mesin 4-langkah konvensional. Ada katup dan penggerak katup (poros kem) di kepala silinder, double overhead camshaft (DOHC).

Konfigurasi 3-slinder merupakan bagian langsung dari siklus kerja 5 langkah mesin ini. Silinder tengah, diameternya lebih besar dibandingkan dengan dua lainnya yang berada di sampingnya. Proses kerjanya juga berbeda. Silinder tengah dan pinggir saling berhubungan dengan saluran buang dan isapnya.

Dua silinder pinggir berdiameter sama, melakukan proses kerja 4-langkah konvensional. Adapun silinder tengah bekerja dengan siklus 2-langkah. Silinder pinggir bertekanan tekanan tinggi (high pressure). Sebaliknya, silinder tengah bertekanan rendah (low pressure).

Silinder pinggir secara bergantian menyalurkan gas buangnya ke silinder tengah atau tekanan rendah. Di silinder tengah, gas buang tersebut dibakar lagi dengan siklus kerja dua langkah.

Dengan konfigurasi tersebut, cara menggerakkan katup silinder tekanan tinggi dan rendah berbeda.

Nokken as atau poros kem silinder tengah memiliki putaran yang sama dengan poros engkol (crankshaft). Adapun pada silinder tekanan tinggi, nokken as berputar setengah poros engkol.

Cukup menarik, pada silinder tekanan rendah, perbandingan kompresi dan ekspansi bisa berubah. Dengan cara ini, bisa dipilih perbandingan optimum.

Seefisien diesel
Konsep 5-langkah bekerja dengan perbandingan kompresi tinggi seperti mesin diesel. Karena itu, efisiensi kerjanya sama dengan mesin diesel mutakhir, common rail. Keunggulannya, emisi NOx lebih rendah.

Sebenarnya bila diteliti, konsep dasarnya mirip dengan siklus Atkinson yang digunakan Toyota pada Prius. Dalam hal ini, Toyota lebih unggul dari proses pembuatan mesin karena tetap memanfaatkan teknologi konvensional dan VVT-i.

Kehebatan mesin Ilmor, kendati kapasitasnya 700 cc, kemampuan menghasilkan tenaga sama dengan mesin 1,8 liter 4-langkah. Konsumsi bahan bakar minimum, brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) lebih baik dari 215 g/kWh. Mesin ini menggunakan injeksi langsung, plus turbocharger.

Ilmor berharap, mesin ini digunakan pada mobil hibrida, baik yang bekerja secara seri, paralel, atau kombinasi. Sekarang, mesin tersebut akan diujicobakan langsung pada mobil. Ilmor pun gencar mencari mitra OEM sebagai pemasok mesin.

Di lain hal, pengamat teknologi mesin menilai, konstruksi mesin 5-langkah Ilmor ini cukup sederhana. Pasalnya, jumlah silinder dan katup lebih sedikit. Silinder tengah, dengan ekspansi lebih besar, kerugian gesek internalnya lebih rendah. Begitu juga kerugian panasnya. Tinggi efisiensi, jadi lebih baik kerjanya.

ZBJ

The Sims 3 Video Game

2009-08-09T23:43:00.000-07:00

The Sims 3 Video Game

It’s incredibly difficult to make a great game even better. What’s even more difficult, developers mustn’t screw up an already great game by changing what made the original so loved. These factors filled me with apprehension as I played The Sims 3. I was curious but worried that the formulaic approach of the older versions would return without the charm. There are only so many times you can be amused at the jumbled sounds they use for speech. I was worried that they tweaked the formula to the point of being unrecognizable, but I really should have known better.

In Sims 3, everything is just as you left it from Sims 2. The controls and graphics are incredibly similar to its predecessors and legions of expansions. So, what makes Sims 3 a new, fantastic experience? In short: the ability to customize just about anything you’d like.

If you want to create a new style for that couch you just purchased, do it! An accessible palette allows you to mix and match fabrics, styles, and colors to a new level of customization. Not only can the player create completely new styles, items can be placed at a 45 degree angles for the first time which allows for more complex decoration. No longer shall Sims be forced to sit at 90 degree angles. Feng shui never felt so good.

Options aren’t limited to items either. The Sims themselves are now far more customizable. The number of accessory options from the vanilla install made my head hurt. Part of the ache derived from my lack of fashion sense, but I digress.

In addition to Sim creation tweaks, you can now assign up to five traits and a lifetime wish to Sims. Traits are split between mental, physical, social, and lifestyle, and combine to form a true persona and individual attitude. For example, a combination of "good" and "kleptomaniac" traits will clash in an interesting and wonderfully fulfilling way during the game. I chose "genius," "bookworm," and "artistic" for my Sim. I may have been thinking of a certain freelance journalist at the time (not Features Director Sinan Kubba). My Sim likes to complain about the quality of books at the local library to the annoyance or indifference of everyone else.

Lifetime wishes also change the Sims game play. Once you’ve chosen a lifetime wish, your Sim is stuck with it, so choose well. The available wishes are based on the Sim’s traits, leading to a well-rounded Sim with an goal that matches his/her persona. They range from becoming an astronaut to leader of the free world. A number of the wishes are simply the highest level in a career path, but others (like "heartbreaker") are more specialized and amusing.

The only major change in game play is the sandbox-style neighborhood. Your Sim is no longer confined to a block in the city. Want to go to the gym at 3 AM? Feel free to lazily stroll over there, stealing a potted plant from the neighbors along the way. In the older versions of The Sims, expansions revolved around visiting places not accessible from your little corner of the simulated world. Sims 3 expands this idea, making your corner bigger to begin with. Your Sim can now roam freely across an entire town, allowing him to read at the library or knock on the door of his rich fellows up in the hills. This also leads to an increase in interaction with other Sims who have traits and lifetime wishes of their own. I can’t explain how fun it is to set the game on a faster setting, and just let it run and run.

Drug Wars Video Game Review

2009-08-09T23:11:00.000-07:00

I booted up Merchants of Brooklyn like any good jury duty appointee - with a complete lack of knowledge of the subject at hand. I had never heard of the title or its recently patched in sub-game Drug Wars (which is how Steam knows the game). I hadn’t even heard of the developer Paleo Entertainment. How I wish I could return to my ignorant state.

Merchants of Brooklyn (as it is credited on thecompany’s website) starts off well enough. Players are introduced to Mateo, one of the Neanderthals cloned to provide a working class for the lower parts of now-flooded NYC. As the story deepens, players find that Mateo was a champion gladiator, fighting for his own survival until his arm was removed by a chainsaw. During recuperation, the doctor gifted our avatar with a small upgrade - a bionic, transforming arm that is able to "download" new guns into itself (it’s the future so crazy crap can happen). With it, Mateo seeks revenge on his backstabbing high-brow boss.

The game quickly marred my initial excitement for CryEngine2-powered brutality. For starters, the title is loaded with Quality Assurance problems. Basic graphical glitches initially tarnished my experience, such as the title forgetting its dark roots and displaying a pretty rainbow across the side of the screen. New drivers didn’t help, and it reappeared on a second computer as well. The graphical glitches, as detrimental as they are to ruining immersion, were mere gnats in the insect metaphor of fail. General physics inconsistencies such as shooting through doors or walls, ridiculous collision detection, and unintelligible explosions proved to be the nest of flies in my ointment. Then I ran smack into the mother of all QA missteps, the spider of our metaphor, a crash to desktop. Not once or twice, but dozens of times.

Generally these problems, though egregious, can be overlooked if the core game play is fun. Don’t worry, the game sucks too. Merchants of Brooklyn offers nothing to a gamer, budget or hardcore. There are so many failings aspects of general game design that they are best shown in bullet point to reduce your pain, and in case the developers come looking for a synopsis.

* The story disappears after the introduction.
* The weapons are earned randomly. Guns should be better than your arms, right? Wrong. The projectile flingers are so horribly designed and balanced that pummeling your enemy, even the robots, into submission is far more viable (especially when you considering the lack of ammo).
* The little voice-over work is incredibly forced. Think a man trying to speak like a woman.
* Long load times for poorly designed levels.
* Incredibly repetitive in every way.

I hoped that Paleo Entertainment would surprise me. MoB even started off well. The music rocked, the story intrigued me, and the visuals and art direction are acceptable. Everything else about this title is an utter failure, especially the complete lack of basic QA testing. I tried to get past the flood of technical errors, but it’s just too great to ignore.

Just once I want to review a game for TGR that works! (You have a working one now, no complaining! -ED)

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

2009-08-09T22:56:00.000-07:00

One can’t expect much from a game based on the Transformers license, especially with the involvement of Michael Bay. Explosions? Check. Giant robots? Check. Signature catch-phrases? Check. Even bigger explosions? Check. In that regard, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen has it all. Unfortunately, the only thing that these robots are disguising is a mediocre game.

Revenge of the Fallen is focused at first. Players are thrown into the never-ending struggle between the noble Autobots and the sinister Decepticons, with the game allowing players to choose their side. Each campaign contains 23 missions set in major cities loosely following the film’s plot. Both sides offer a roster of the best and brightest ‘bots, from the eternally awesome Optimus Prime and Bumblebee to the devastatingly destructive Megatron and Starscream. The robots can switch between multiple attack modes on the fly, each offering hand-to-hand combat and an array of machine guns, rocket launchers, and sniper rifles to take down long-range targets. Additionally, each bot can transform into their vehicular form with the touch of a button, which opens up new attack possibilities and makes transportation easier as players mow down hundreds of enemy mechs.

Slaughtering bots is something that players will become intimately familiar with during Transformers: RotF, since nearly all of the game’s 46 missions feature this objective. While the occasional level involves base defense, injured robot escort, or in-flight combat, most play time time spent in the game’s vacant cities will involve smashing until there is nothing left to smash. This gets repetitive quickly, as the controllable Transformers all feel similar. Sure, some can drive faster than others or have more badass weaponry, but the game play doesn’t feel different with different bots. This is more apparent when playing the second campaign, as both the Autobot and Decepticon story modes are nearly identical in mission structure, robot handling, and lack of variety. Hell, even the last boss fights are exactly the same!

The dearth of creativity is disappointing since the game play of Transformers is damn fun. Weapons handle nicely, with a decent selection of explosive blasters and ‘fist to titanium face’ brawling mechanics. Transforming is especially well conceived, as players merely hold down a trigger to switch to the robots’ wheel or sky-based form. The developers at Luxoflux wisely implemented a few transformation-centric combo attacks to freshen the game play. For example, players can change into a vehicle as machine gun bullets pierce the air, get within arm’s length of the intended target, then release the transform button to execute a wicked sky leap, ground pound, or slicing attack. Since the entire game is built around driving and fighting, the combination of the two is awesome and adds strategy to otherwise mindless action. The developers also wove an upgrade and unlockable system into the game, with the latter opening different bot skins and full episodes of the cartoon for one’s viewing pleasure.

The lack of any environmental destruction is less welcome. While the bots rip countless enemy drones apart with ease, the buildings and structures surrounding the struggle never fall. This—to put it bluntly—sucks, as the movies revel in incidental demolition of popular landscapes. The cities are bereft of life, with a scant few cars and people representing the entire populations of China and California. The game attempts to link these areas with poorly designed story sequences. These either involve narration over a radar screen or a group of bots chatting about mission success while staring at a map. These are poorly produced, banal, and unskippable.

Revenge of the Fallen offers online multiplayer, though players shouldn’t bother. Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, and Control Point modes are available, but poor character balance, uninspired maps, a lack of players, and a broken lobby system render them unplayable. The game’s visuals are equally ill-conceived, offsetting detailed bots with generic cityscapes, odd-looking humans, and uninteresting enemy drones. The sound fares better, with the legendary tones of Peter Cullen returning to voice Optimus Prime and the ‘splosionriffic sound effects relaying the chaos satisfactorily.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is shamefully brought down by an absence of variety, destructibility, and personality. While it lacks substance, the nonstop carnage, large cast of playable characters, and entertaining combat might make Transformers: RotF worth a rent for players still digging robots in disguise. Casual fans should pick up the original flick on Blu-Ray instead.

Nissan GT-R

2009-08-09T21:21:00.001-07:00

Nissan GT-R sudah dianggap "dewa mobil" bagi penggila kecepatan. Bagaimana tidak. Dari segi tampilan, sedan dua pintu ini tak cuma memancarkan kesan sigap dan gesit, tetapi juga sangat kuat dengan aura power full-nya. Makanya, pihak prinsipal, ketika melahirkan GT-R, tak ingin mengebiri unsur kecepatan.

Termasuk juga, pemilik Nissan GT-R ini, yang namanya enggan disebut. Sebaliknya, ia coba mengoptimalkan potensi besar yang terkandung pada produk Jepang tersebut. Pilihannya, untuk R35 GT570 ini disuntik dengan paket dari HKS di sektor dapur pacu.

Seperti blow-off valve kit HKS super SQV, intercooler pipe, turbo actuators, center pipe, extension pipe, air filter, dan busi, semuanya dijejali dari HKS. Kemudian, update semua computer software yang berkaitan dengan rpm launch control dengan versi terbaru.

Si pemilik juga berusaha membuka semua pembatas kemampuan di ECU. Caranya, melakukan reflash AP1 yang berkenaan dengan pengaturan timing ignition dan fuel. Dengan memperbarui dapur pacu, kini Nissan GT-R tersebut diklaim satu-satunya yang mempunyai tenaga sekitar 600 dk.

Dari sisi eksterior, tak banyak ubahan, kecuali pada bagian belakang, ada penambahan sayap. Lagi-lagi, GT-R ini diklaim sebagai satu-satunya yang sudah mengganti sayapnya dengan aftermarket dari Amuse.

Sayap tersebut terbuat dari bahan dry carbon yang ringan dan kuat. Harganya disebut-sebut sekitar Rp 80 juta dan pemasangannya menurut Henry Vonda dari bengkel UFOGR tidak rumit, tinggal baut ke dudukan standarnya. Untuk menyesuaikan dengan warna bodi, Henry melaburnya dengan kelir hitam.

Kalau Anda penasaran ingin melihat Nissan GT-R dalam kondisi standar, bisa datang ke Senayan City. Di sana, PT Nissan Motor Indonesia (NMI) sedang menggelar test drive bagi kosumennya sampai 2 Agustus mendatang. (Rudy)
SBT

Meter Kombinasi Tiga Dimensi untuk Mobil Hibrida dan Listrik

2009-08-09T21:08:00.000-07:00

Evolusi penggerak mobil dari mesin bensin ke hibrida dan listrik juga akan diikuti teknologi informasi yang ditayangkan melalui panel instrumen, atau di Indonesia lebih dikenal dengan meter kombinasi. Sistem informasi digital atau telematik pun semakin dalam penetrasinya ke mobil.

Munculnya sistem tayangan informasi mobil baru ini tidak lepas dari kerja mobil hibrida yang lebih rumit. Informasi yang harus ditayangkan pun lebih banyak dibandingkan mobil bermesin bensin atau diesel mutakhir.

Pada mobil hibrida dan listrik, banyak energi yang tersisa di baterai, dan hal itu harus diinformasikan secara terus-menerus. Begitu juga jarak yang bisa ditempuh berdasarkan energi di dalam baterai. Dengan demikian, pengemudi merasa lebih aman dan nyaman.

Dapat direkonfigurasi. Kondisi tersebutlah yang membuat Yazaki North America Corp membuat prototipe panel instrumen yang bisa diubah-ubah tayangannya (customized). Alhasil, layar panel instrumen pun mirip komputer kecil. Bisa jadi, itu lebih canggih dibandingkan dengan netbook yang bisa dibawa-bawa seperti agenda kecil. Layar panel instrumen bisa diubah konfigurasi dan citra latar belakangnya.

Terakhir, Yazaki berhasil membuat prototipe kelompok instrumen yang dapat direkonfigurasi sebagai dasar layar peraga buat mobil hibrida dan listrik. Panel tersebut menayangkan informasi dalam bentuk grafik tiga dimensi pada satu layar LCD.

Tayangan pada panel instrumen makin beragam berkat dukungan dari industri mikrocip. Untuk prototipe meter kombinasi tiga dimensi ini, Yazaki menggunakan prosesor Freescale Semicondutor MPC5121e. Komputer mikro itu lantas dihubungkan ke LCD dari lapisan tipis transistor resolusi tinggi yang dikenal dengan thin-film transistor (TFT).

OS Linux. Menurut John Vincent, Product Marketing Microcontroller Solution Group untuk Freescale Semiconductor, ini bukan kali pertama prosesor MPC5121e digunakan buat panel instrumen mobil. Namun yang menarik, prototipe meter kombinasi yang dibuat Yazaki ini bekerja dengan sistem operasi Linux dan driver grafik Open GL.

“Inilah untuk pertama kalinya Yazaki menggunakan sistem operasi Linux dan Open GL untuk panel instrumen,” ungkap Michael Boyd, Engineering Manager of Display Technology and Advanced Development for Yazaki North America Inc.

Untuk kendaraan hibrida dan listrik, meter kombinasi harus dapat menayangkan informasi pengisian dan pemakaian energi listrik, efisiensi saat mobil menggunakan motor listrik (mode listrik), jarak yang bisa ditempuh berdasarkan energi pada baterai dan bahan bakar di tangki, tenaga yang dihasilkan motor listrik, serta informasi lainnya.

Ditambahkan, fitur seperti informasi tenaga mobil, interface buat data, USB dan jack video nantinya juga bisa melengkapi sistem.

“Susunan konfigurasi bisa disesuaikan dengan selera pemakai mobil, termasuk mengganti citra dan gambar latar belakang layar. Kemungkinan lain, bisa menayangkan performa mobil, menyimpan album audio, dan interface untuk input kamera video,” tambah Boyd. Makin ribet saja tuh mobil nantinya!

ZBJ

Cara Membersihkan Batok Lampu Berembun

2009-08-09T21:04:00.000-07:00

Sangat menjengkelkan sekali, berangkat ke kantor dengan pakaian rapi dan bodi sudah kinclong, tapi pada bagian dalam lampu depan berembun. Apalagi terjadi pada menjelang malam, sangat menggangu sorotan lampu.

Ada beberapa hal jadi penyebabnya. Ini dikarenakan ringkihnya sealer antara mika lampu dan reflektor. Kalau indikasinya di situ,lepas rumah lampu dan setelah terbuka rekatkan kembali dengan sealer yang baru. Walau lumayan repot, Anda bisa melakukannya sendiri.

Penyebab lain, embu masuk melalui soket lampu senja. Untuk mobil-mobil keluaran sekarang, lampu senja terintegreted denngan lampu utama.. Dan beberapa lampu senja yang karet sil lampunya mudah getas sehingga dapat disusupi air. Cukup dengan menggganti sil tersebut maka persoalan bisa dituntaskan.

Bagaimana jika embun bukan disebabkan karena dua hal di atas? Ada satu bagian lampu yang mungkin tidak banyak diketahui. Umumnya mobil-mobil terbaru, lensa lampu depannya terbuat dari bahan plastik. Tujuannya, selain mudah dibentuk, dengan plastik hemat biaya produksi dan berbobot ringan. Namun plastik tidak tahan panas. Padahal, bohlam halogen menghasilkan panas saat diaktifkan. Alhasil ia butuh lubang untuk mengeluarkan udara panas. Dan lubang itu berada di belakang lampu. Sudah kecil sering tersamar oleh soket dan pengatur arah sorotan lampu. Bisa jadi air masuk lewat situ kala mobil dicuci.

Cara membersihkannya, copot soket lampu bila yang dekat tabung cadanngan air radiator dilepas dulu. Setelah kaitannya terlepas, keluarkan lampu dari lubangnya. Ambil kalin majun lilitkan pada kayu dan ikat dengan karet dan masukkan ke dalam lampu melalui rongga lampu utama. Setelah digosok-gosok, lap untuk kedua kalinya, tapi menggunakan bahan mikrofiber. Bersih dah. (Susanto Ari P)

SBT

How to Buy Velg

2009-08-09T20:07:00.000-07:00

Velg pavement is a competitive price. Bedalah seken with the price in a store. You need to see some things that would be okay with the condition of the goods. So let enggak regretted, for the community Sruntulan-select velg for tips in the street.

According to Rocky, one of the founders Sruntulan, select velg basic principles must be understood. First specify the first model that dinginkan. "Customize your theme with modifications the car," he said. Such, velg crossbar five themes suitable for racing and I spoke I made the cover elegant style. Then find out the diameter, width, offset and PCD velg pengin in the lead-up can get into the car space Fender Elu.

Create a price deal, The seller is also a senior at Sruntulan love advice, "Let enggak expensive, get friends who already know with it." But if no, do the bidding start from 50% of the price of a given trader. "Range of 75% of the price offered.

While knowing the condition of a tire, kembangn see it. "Ban the vulkanisir nip it have a enggak nyambung," said Rocky. Not only that, the physical test can be done. "Press the nail, if karetnya hard, it means that the ban has been a long time," said Wendry, also from Sruntulan.

The steps:
1.Cari know the size of the diameter and width velg, there is usually behind the bar velg.

2.lebih sure with the size, use a ruler to know the actual width velg.

3.Detail velg surface conditions. Velg lips from start to bolt hole. "Raba surface. If the former velg cracked and repaired, usually enggak flat surface, "said Rocky.

4.Lihat of surface color, usually velg patch if there is a color stripe. Oh yes, if want to check the condition velg, akan better results when the tires without the circle in velg. "Disabled tires can be shut," said Wendry, one member of a Sruntulan Honda Stream. (Grace)

SBT

Velg Clean Cars

2009-08-09T19:53:00.000-07:00

For car owners, if there is no intention of roads, clean velg Body can be clean, but if the condition of the four faint rim, make the vehicle look less perfect. And do not clean it, or treat lightly. Moreover, the already coated chrome, if it can be derived-home peel.

step by step process.

1. When the new car out the way, do not direct water wearing. Because, that is still warm velg easily cause fungus when exposed to water. Wait until the temperature is normal.

2. Make sure the inside is clean sepatbor. If not, the dirt will stick.

3. Wash uses a special shampoo or liquid velg. Special chrome that has been coated, use a special cleaning fluid velg chrome. If not, akan chrome or dull skin.

4. When washing, to reach the hard to use the brush or toothbrush.

5. When you are clean, dry cloth material with a chamois or shammy.

6. If there is dirt, such as asphalt, get rid of the besin or kerosene. "After that, the new poles white compound used, the type of the most soft and enggap finishing velg future damage," said Rudy's Auto Trend, Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta.

7. Final touch, polish with wax. According to Daniel Saputra, Car Care Product & Meguier of Consultant's, various types of wax depending on the type of material velg (finishing paint, chrome, and aluminum). So, stay out of his type of finishing is velg. (Tomo)

BlackBerry Gemini

2009-08-09T19:02:00.001-07:00

PT Excelcomindo Pratama (XL) will be one of the distributor Gemini BlackBerry (Curve 8520) that have been used as the cheapest BlackBerry at this time. Sales will likely begin before the wordiness with the price of Rp 3 million contract without a subscription.

"Between Rp 3 million to Rp 4 million," said Dolly Wisaka Surya, Manager of Operation Support Internet and Data Services in XL between the network drive test Lampung .7-Madura-9 August 2009. If in the U.S. and Canada is a price that is cheaper around Rp 1.5 million shopping center and even Walmart began selling price of Rp 500,000. However, this was accompanied by a subscription contract for two years.

Dolly says Gemini basically be called the economic version of the BlackBerry Javelin (Curve 8900). Glance it looks the same but has a lower camera is 2 megapixel and 128 MB internal memory. However, according to Dolly, the Gemini architecture does not lose even better.

"I try to receive the 35,000 email no interference at all," he said. In addition, the Gemini is a product of the first BlackBerry that has touchpad and the optical media at the top of the key to access the video data, photos, and music. Casingnya even stronger and tahn fall.

According to Dolly, a contract without making consumers can choose an alternative access to all the BlackBerry, whether offered through the scheme XL daily, weekly, and monthly. Customers can also use the free service prepaid and post-pay. Even customers can try the service operator to weigh the quality of service.

XL has not been this far to ensure the goods available at the beginning of september though expected. According to Dolly BlackBerry Gemini should already be signed in Indonesia this month even as Indonesia prepared before launch the two countries after the U.S. and Canada.

However, it failed due to government regulations that stop the licensing of new products to BlackBerry Rim authorized service center to open in India on August 26 promised future.

Wah

BlackBerry Storm review

2009-08-06T00:14:00.000-07:00

By now most of us have heard this story in one fashion or another: when Steve Jobs and Apple were in the planning stages of the iPhone, the first carrier they brought the device to was America's largest network, Verizon. Even if you haven't heard how the tale ends -- Verizon refused and Jobs took his multi-billion dollar ball to AT&T -- you surely know the outcome. The iPhone has soared to become the ultimate smartphone, the must-have accessory that everyone from celebrities to your mom wants -- nay, needs -- to have in their pocket. It's changed the landscape of modern cellphones, put a serious dent in the sales of competing devices (just recently overtaking the venerable RAZR as the best-selling domestic handset), and unquestionably raised the bar when it comes to expectations for features in new handsets.

It may seem unfair to open up the review of RIM's latest BlackBerry -- the Storm -- with a history lesson on the iPhone, but if you understand the market which Verizon and RIM hope to capture, then you understand the Storm, and it helps put this critique in perspective. The Storm, a widescreen, touchscreen device boasts many of the same features as the iPhone, but adds innovations like a clickable display, and comes packed with RIM's legendary email and messaging services. Mainlined into the biggest (and some say best) network in the States, the Storm is an almost deafening blast to the competition at first glance, but does it hold up on closer inspection? Read on to find out.

Industrial design

The Storm is a striking device. From the second you lay eyes on it, it's clear that a lot of time and care went into crafting this phone. The majority of the front panel is display, a large 3.25-inch (480 x 360) touchscreen sitting just shy of flush with a silver bezel that runs around the sides, top, and bottom of the device. The bands seem to be plastic, not metal, and trace the outline of the moderately thick (0.55-inch) phone, looping around the back, while the rest of the surface is a high gloss, piano black plastic. Below the screen are four familiar BlackBerry keys (phone, menu, back, and end / power), along the left is a convenience key and a micro USB port (RIM has eschewed the more common mini USB slot for the lower profile of the newer variation, though that seems to be the way the industry is headed), and on the right side is another convenience key, volume rocker, and (yay!) 3.5mm headphone jack. Around back, the battery cover is made from solid piece of brushed aluminum, and the camera and flash sit atop the plate, covered by a glossy plastic strip. Along the top of the phone there's a single LED to the right, and lock and mute keys incorporated into either side of the casing like soft rockers -- a nice touch. Generally, the construction of the hardware and components used seem higher in quality than previous devices from the company, with buttons that click tightly and a heft that tries (and succeeds) to communicate an understated class.

It's not completely rainbows and unicorns, however. We noticed backlight leaking in through the sides of the screen, which partially killed the continuity of the design (and had us raise eyebrows at build quality), and the screen sort of slides around when it's pressed down and held (more on that later). No deal breakers, but certainly a couple minor niggles we wish we hadn't seen.

Touchscreen

The touchscreen is where most of the attention on this phone will be focused, and rightfully so. Unlike similarly stacked competitors (the iPhone and Instinct come to mind) the Storm doesn't just boast a capacitive touch display, it also utilizes a completely unique "click" technology called SurePress which actually allows you to click the screen down like a mouse button. The purpose of this technology, ostensibly, is to provide two aspects to touch screens which are currently lacking in most devices: the ability to "hover" without selecting or moving an on-screen element, and the physical sensation of "clicking" when you type or navigate. The Storm's screen certainly provides those two things in spades, but our question is whether or not they actually improve the experience of using this sort of device -- and in our opinion, they do not.

Before we plunge into why we feel the hardware doesn't work here, we need to preface it with some information about the software. You can't really talk about one without the other.

What you first should know is that the operating system used on this phone is almost identical to previous BlackBerry OSs -- notably 4.6, as seen on the Bold. The main reason for stating that is because you must understand the basis for the UI design. All modern BlackBerrys use a QWERTY or SureType keypad coupled with a trackball for navigation, in addition to heavy emphasis on a pop-up menu accessible by the "menu" key from pretty much every section of the OS. The difference in 4.7 is not a paradigmatic shift away from this approach, rather, the company has added touch and multitouch functionality to take the place of trackball movements. What this means is that unlike the iPhone, which is most certainly the closest competitor on the market to this phone, the Storm's UI is not custom built for touch navigation -- touch navigation is added after the fact. Things which flow naturally on an iPhone -- flicking through lists, scrolling for a contact, moving around in a webpage or looking through photos -- feel inelegant and uncomfortable on the Storm. There's no inertia to movement, no assurance that your finger is the lynchpin to control of the device. The screen is sensitive enough, surely, but how its software reacts to those touches makes all the difference, and here the feeling is that you're never completely in charge of the phone.

BlackBerrys have garnered an almost mythic stature as the phone for email and messaging. One of the components of RIM's success for that model has been the inclusion of QWERTY keypads (and more recently the halved QWERTY SureType keyboards) on their phones. As any email addict will tell you, very few devices can compete. The slant from RIM's PR on the Storm is that the new clickable touchscreen delivers another high caliber typist's dream to their roster -- but that couldn't be further from the truth. Rather than the click making things easier, it actually makes them more difficult. As you press down to engage a "key," you're required to release before moving to another, which means that you can only type so quickly. In our tests, we were constantly frustrated by the staggering, laggy movement when trying to type with any speed. You have to let the click depress before you can strike another character, and that makes for a stuttery input process. Additionally, hovering over characters is represented by a blue glow, which looks nice when moving around, but in practice doesn't do a very good job of letting you know what key you're touching. We had spelling errors aplenty. All of this would be helped greatly by an intelligent software component that guessed what you meant to type -- much like the iPhone's predictive element. Unfortunately, what RIM provides is more of a glorified T9, which means if you type "fo," it doesn't know you meant to type "do." Ultimately we found ourselves slowly and carefully pecking out messages that should have taken less time to put together, clicking screen or not.

Otherwise, there are a few great implementations of the screen -- copying and pasting, which is the norm on RIM phones, is fully represented here with elegant multitouch functionality. You just grab the beginning and end of a section of text you want to snag with two fingers, and a menu pops up along the bottom for copy / paste duties. In the browser, you can hover above a link with your finger before clicking it (a big help on crowded pages), and you can double tap (not click) to zoom into pages, though there's no way to back out other than hitting the minus magnifying glass. We don't think the technology used for the screen is a dead-end by any measure, but it has a long way to go before it's honestly competing with the iPhone for virtual keyboard domination. Right now it's a nice idea with less in the way of usability than we need. If speed isn't a concern, you'll probably find it manageable, but for BlackBerry addicts and those accustomed to typing on the iPhone, this will be a disappointment.

Besides the new technology behind the display, the screen itself is fairly tremendous. Colors are rich, and contrast is solid. The brightness isn't quite as eye-searing as the iPhone at full tilt, and doesn't even approach the supernova 8830 we've got here, but frankly, how bright do you need it? Everything looked sharp and clear, though we've gotten a little spoiled by the Bold's incredible pixel density, and now other phones seem to pale in comparison.

Software

As we said, 4.7 isn't a huge step up over 4.6, but there are a number of improvements worth mentioning. Navigating through menus and the home screen is still very much a typical BlackBerry experience though. The phone has two levels of "application" screens, the initial landing screen, which gives you eight app icons of your choosing, and a deeper level which displays all of your folders and programs. You can use the touchscreen to hover (or select) each of the icons, giving it that blue glow, but we found it annoying that you couldn't drag your finger across the selections and have the glow follow you (as it does when typing). It gets stuck on the first thing you touch, and you have to re-press to move to another icon -- it seems like it would be more convenient to have the selection follow your movements, but the phone doesn't seem to know the difference between a quick flick up or down and a selection. You click down on the screen to launch an app or make a selection in a list, and you can swipe up and down to move through the list of apps, though it's not nearly as smooth as it should be. BlackBerry fans used to a real keyboard and shortcuts might find themselves a bit lost here when trying to get around quickly -- you can set one of the convenience keys to pop open the virtual keyboard, but it doesn't seem to recognize long presses, shortcuts, or find-as-you-type contact searches like traditional RIM devices (typing on the Storm just takes you to the dialer, why we don't know).

Most components of the UI which require scrolling don't seem drastically changed, but you can now jump through lists by up-down gestures. Again, we found that the lack of inertia made this seem stiffer than expected, though it worked well enough when moving around the phone. RIM has added a few visual tweaks to the OS on the Storm, like crossfades and sideways swipes of pages which admittedly give it a bit more polish, although they seem largely superfluous (don't worry, we feel the same way about the iPhone's zooms and scrolls). Overall, transitions between screens and inside of apps do seem a bit more sluggish than the performance on the Bold, but whether this is due to those new effects or a higher CPU load given the touch recognition and screen size, we can't say. We did find ourselves missing the speedy response of a traditional BlackBerry, and also felt like responses lagged behind our movements enough to be annoying. There seemed to be a few noticeable bugs floating around, and at least one that ground the phone to almost a halt -- when quitting the browser on a page that was still loading, it turned the navigation on the home screen to molasses. Another flaw we had crop up was accelerometer related, an irksome bug that rendered the portrait-to-landscape switching (and vice versa) non-existent. We can't say if that was hardware or software related, but the details count, and those little snags take points away.

Thankfully the browser has been considerably updated. If you have any experience with RIM's last attempt at mobile browsers (the Bold), then you know what manna from heaven any fixes would be. 4.6's browser is, in a word, unusable. Load times are painful, rendering is only sometimes accurate, and mostly it's just a tortuous mess to get around in. We can honestly say that the Storm's implementation is leaps and bounds beyond what the company has previously offered. Pages load quickly and are generally formatted correctly, navigation is much snappier (zooms don't take hours to redraw), and scrolling is tolerable, if not as buttery smooth as we prefer. And ultimately, that's a point that must be made -- while the browser is much better than earlier versions, and is an admirable attempt, it's still a bit behind Mobile Safari and the G1's Webkit-based "Chrome light," lacking support for more advanced features like multiple tabs. Why RIM doesn't build something from scratch (or buy a license from Opera) is a question for the ages -- we can't imagine anyone has any real affection for this experience. Still, for casual tasks and most browsing, you could certainly do worse, and it's nice to know that a lot of energy went into this update.

On the messaging and email front, very little has changed here from earlier RIM phones, save for some of that visual flair. Particularly when it comes to email, the use of screen real estate and selection of fonts seems dated when compared with the iPhone. We won't complain about the email service itself, delivery of messages was rock solid (of course), but a quick glance at the iPhone versus a quick glance at the Storm provides a strong juxtaposition of design languages. Reading email on the BlackBerry was an inconsistent experience, and highlighted the feeling that not too much trouble had been taken to freshen up this UI and format it for the bigger screen. Under the hood, we found account management simple enough, but those looking for solid Gmail integration (like, say, all the people Verizon and RIM hope to lure away from Apple's camp) will be seriously let down. There doesn't seem to be any decent alternative for getting Gmail the way you're used to, save for Google's own app (which is remarkably good save for a few issues).

On that note, third-party software is still a bit weak for the platform, and essentially non-existent for the Storm itself. It doesn't look like using this phone will break any (or most) of the software already out for BlackBerry devices, but there's also not much taking advantage of the new format and screen real estate. In particular, something like the Facebook application -- which Verizon and RIM are pushing hard with the launch of the Storm -- is a poor stand-in for the iPhone offering, sporting exactly the same functionality it does on an older RIM device. Reps from the company assured us that their version of the App Store was coming, and they do have a tidy application manager on the phone already, so we're hoping that third parties really step up their game with the introduction of the Storm.

Because the phone is being marketed as a convergence device, it's got an extra emphasis on media functions. In truth, the media players / browsers are almost identical to 4.6's options, though again there's some nice visual flair added. The bigger screen allows for larger artwork to be shown off, and it's a match made in heaven for video playback. Management of media is still pretty standard -- we copied files back and forth between the microSD card (8GB is included with the phone), but there's no flashy Cover Flow or anything. In fact, we noticed a slight graphic glitch when moving from portrait to landscape, which might be nothing, or may be due to the fact the phone has no hardware acceleration for graphics.

All in all, the software feature-set the phone ships with is incredibly strong. There's a broad selection of applications, including the "To Go" suite that allow you to view and edit Word, PowerPoint, and Excel documents. Average (and even not so average) users will be hard pressed to find something that's missing, and RIM makes it easy enough to grab key software if someone wants it. You have to hand it to them, they cover pretty much all the bases... save for one nasty omission.

We were a bit stunned to find out that we couldn't sync the Storm with our Mac out of the box. We don't mean "hey we couldn't sync with iTunes" (we're not insane), we mean, "hey, we can't sync this, at all, in any way." For the few Mac users that also happen to dig BlackBerrys, there's a piece of software RIM offers free of charge called PocketMac, which does a half decent job of at least throwing your contacts, calendars, and other assorted must-haves onto your device -- but you're out of luck if you buy a Storm. Apparently, the software needs an update badly, and if you expect to enjoy the same service it provides to something like a Bold, you'll be surprised and annoyed (as we were) to find this doesn't let you sync your data. For that, right now, you're going to have to go download (and pay for) something like Missing Sync. It's pretty outrageous to us that in crafting a device so obviously aimed at the iPhone's marketshare no one thought to make it accessible to Apple users even a little. Look, we know it's not a huge segment of the market, but it's there, and if history has taught us anything, it's a segment to be reckoned with.

Phone / Data

When it comes to sound quality and reception for making actual phone calls, you can't beat this combination. RIM phones generally have loud and clear earpieces and speakerphones, and Verizon -- love it or hate it -- has a great network. Those two facts are certainly apparent when it comes to the Storm. We found the earpiece to be plenty loud, and the speakerphone equally booming. If we had a complaint, we'd say the mid-range was a bit shrill on the phone. The Bold, by comparison, has a much warmer, well-rounded output. Still, that's a pretty minor complaint, and if you're looking for sheer network-clutching goodness, this is a pretty damn good choice. In addition to Verizon's CDMA, EV-DO, Rev. A madness, the Storm sports a GSM radio (a number of them), so you can grab HSPA in the rest of the world, and truck on some sweet, sweet EDGE here in the States.

Speaking of that EV-DO, the download speeds and network stability of the Storm seem pretty tight. Although the phone omits WiFi, as long as you stay inside decent Verizon coverage areas, you won't feel that sting too badly.

Camera / GPS / Battery life

In general, picture quality was excellent on the camera, which offers a healthy 3.2-megapixel resolution. The only problem we had -- and it was a big one -- was the fact that it took ages to focus and snap a shot. There were numerous times when trying to photograph something that we lost the shot because of the length of time it took the camera to kick in. In broad daylight, things fared a slight bit better, but when using the flash, it was pretty hard to get good results. This seems like something that could take a simple software tweak to fix -- we know the camera looks nice, we just need it to take photos faster. A lot faster.

One of the nice things about the Storm is that it's not just capable of doing still photos, but can shoot video as well. Results are mediocre, allowing capture up to 320 x 240, with quite a bit of heavy artifacting. Still, knowing that you can pull this out to grab something reminds us -- yet again -- that this is a necessary basic for modern cellphones.

Using the device for navigation garnered excellent results in terms of signal reception and tracking, but having to slug through the abysmal Verizon Navigator software isn't exactly joyous (dudes, that intro animation is the worst thing we've ever seen). It would be nice to see some third party options on the device for PND duties, though at least Verizon tries to throw a lot of content into the mix (movie times, traffic, local search), no matter how heavy handed it feels (real, real heavy handed).

Since we had a very, very limited time to test the phone, we can't really give you solid figures on battery life. In casual use, however, the Storm seems to be going strong even after a heavy workload: browsing, media player, and phone calls. We've had the phone on and chugging all day, and it's only seeing about about a 30 percent drop in life so far. If this keeps up, you can color us officially impressed with the juice you can pull out of this thing.

Wrap-up

It's clear from the device itself and the massive promotional push that both RIM and Verizon are giving the Storm that they view this as a proper threat to the iPhone's dominance in the smartphone market. Over the last few weeks we've been bombarded with commercials, leaks, press releases, and special events all celebrating the arrival of the Storm, both here and abroad. So it seems fairly obvious that yes, the companies believe they have a real contender on their hands -- and in many ways they do. The selling points are easy: the phone is gorgeous to look at and hold, it's designed and backed by RIM (now almost a household name thanks to their prevalence in the business and entertainment markets), and it's packed with features that, at first glance, make it seem not only as good as the iPhone, but better. The only hitch in this plan is a major one: it's not as easy, enjoyable, or consistent to use as the iPhone, and the one place where everyone is sure they have an upper hand -- that wow-inducing clickable screen -- just isn't all that great. For casual users, the learning curve and complexity of this phone will feel like an instant turn off, and for power users, the lack of a decent typing option and considerable lagginess in software will give them pause. RIM tried to strike some middle ground between form and function, and unfortunately came up short on both.

Going into this review, we really wanted to love this phone. On paper it sounds like the perfect antidote to our gripes about the iPhone, and in some ways it lives up to those promises -- but more often than not while using the Storm, we felt let down or frustrated. Ultimately, this could be a great platform with a little more time in the oven, but right now, it feels undercooked -- and that's not enough for us.

N97 Mini, Versi Minimalis N97

2009-08-04T22:46:00.000-07:00

Nokia will release a new mobile phone which is a minimalist version of N97. Products that have been given a name Nomia N97 Mini is not only the smaller size of the N97 but also the price is cheaper.

Certain changes in the N97 that is on the size of the Mini keyboard diperkecil with the navigation button touchpad. While the size of each button remains the same. Mini N97 does not have a camera cover. Memory capacity is also estimated that only 8 GB or 16 GB is not like the N97 has 32 GB.

In addition, of course, the wait-awaited price is different. Nokia N97 predicted akan Mini sell around 100 euros, or about Rp 1.4 million cheaper than the standard N97 is now sold in Indonesia Rp 7.9 million.

Mini N97 would be reported first introduced on the Nokia World next month. Model itself has been shown since the end of last year. But, wait as N97 Mini figure what this later.

Scandalmonger akan secretion N97 Mini start to appear at the first photos released Engadget. In the image is visible and the N97 mobile phone with the same shape but with a smaller size. Rumor is they deliberately excluded Nokia to chop another vendor that will be released semblant N97 with the size of a small and using the Mini behind.

Wah

Samsung SPP-2040 Photo Printer

2009-08-04T20:16:00.000-07:00

Samsung has recently made a push into the photo printer market; bringing competition to a market occupied primarily by inkjet printer manufacturers such as Canon and Epson. Samsung is only offering two models in this initial push, the SPP-2020 and the SPP-2040. These two printers vary from their inkjet cousins. Using a technology called dye sublimation (also known as dye diffusion thermal transfer ), these printers produce prints with a much more gentle gradation between colours. Rather than laying down dots of ink, which even with the best of printers can still be discerned, a dye-sub printer uses a thermal film to transfer the colours the paper. There are a few more nuances to the technology that are beyond the scope of this article (for more info click here ). Let's just say that the prints produced are closer to photo lab quality, and will stand up much better to fading and running.

Of the two photo printers Samsung is offering, we are reviewing the SPP-2040. This printer is a compact, dedicated photo printer that generates 4" x 6" prints via the afore mentioned dye sublimation process. However those prints don't have to come specifically from your computer, as the SPP-2040 has a built-in media reader for all your flash media needs. It's also PictBridge friendly meaning you can print directly from a compatible camera. The unit also sports a 2" LCD screen that can be used for previewing images directly on the printer.

Current Real Time Pricing
Samsung SPP-2040 Thermal Photo Printer
As of writing of this article, the Samsung SPP-2040 has a street price that averaged $105 USD. The price even includes a 10 sheet starter kit and ribbon. As for replacement paper and ribbon, they do come bundled together. You can either purchase a 120-sheet kit for approximately $46 USD (IPP-46120G), or 40-sheet kit for $25 USD (IPP-4640G). We'll look at further price to performance comparisons later on. Let's continue.

Overview

In just 60 seconds, our photo printers let you print a lab-quality 4" x 6" photograph from your PC or Macintosh computer. Or directly from any PictBridge-enabled digital camera. Or even wirelessly, with a convenient Bluetooth option. The SPP-2040 also includes a 7-in-1 memory card slot and a 2-inch color LCD.

Specifications


Print	Method	Dye Diffusion Thermal Transfer
	Speed *	60 seconds (4" x 6")
	Resolution	300 x 300 dpi
	First Print Out Time	75 seconds
Controller	Processor	ZR4100 (ARM7)
	Memory	4 MB Flash / 32 MB DRAM
	Emulation	JPEG
	Memory Card Slot	CompactFlash I II, SmartMedia, SecureDigital, MultiMedia Card, Memory Stick, xD-Picture Card
	OS Compatibility **	Windows 98/Me/2000/XP, Mac OS 10.3
Paper Handling	Input Capacity and Types	20-sheet Cassette Tray
	Output Capacity and Types	10-sheet Face Up
	Media Tap	Yes
General	Net Dimension (W x D x H)	180 x 136 x 66 mm (7.1" x 5.4" x 2.6")
	Net Weight	1.1 Kg (2.4 lbs) (w/o cassette tray)
	Packing Dimension (W x D x H)	233 x 225 x 177mm (9.1" x 8.8" x 7.0")
	Packing Weight	2.4 kg (including accessory kits and inner box)
	LCD	2.0" Color TFT LCD
	LCD Fonts	Korean, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Dutch, E. Portuguese, Finish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Hungarian, Czech, S. Chinese
	Interface	USB A type : USB 1.1 (Connect with DSC, Camera Phone), USB B type : USB 2.0 (Connect with PC)
	Keys	Power
	Noise ***	55 dBA
	Power Requirement	110 ~ 240 VAC, 50/60 Hz, 1.7A
	Power Requirement	Standby : 10Wh or Less Operating : 40Wh
	Operating Conditions	Temperature : 10°C ~ 32°C (50°F ~ 89°F) Humidity : 20% ~ 80% RH
	Warranty	1 year from date of purchase or 2,000 sheets (whichever may come first)
Consumables	Type	Samsung Photo Paper, Ribbon Cartridge
	Model Code	IPP-4640G (40 sheets, 4" x 6", photo paper + ribbon cartridge)
		IPP-46120G (120 sheets, 4" x 6", photo paper + ribbon cartridge)
		Initial Kit : 10 sheets (4" x 6", photo paper + ribbon cartridge)
Options		SPP-00BA (Bluetooth)

* Print speed will be affected by Operating system used, computing performance, application software, connecting method, media type, media size and job complexity.
** Please visit http://www.samsungprinter.com to download the latest software version.
*** Sound Pressure Level, ISO7779

Size

Product Dimensions: 7.1"(W) x 2.6"(H) x 5.4"(D)

Visual Inspection

Unpacking was a relatively simple affair, and the SPP-2040 was contained in three-section fold up box. Once you open the two small sections, you are greeted with the saying "touch the moment." Opening up the rest of the flaps reveals a large amount of content. Everything you need to get started is pretty much included, and there's lots of documentation to help you along the way. The printer itself is only a small part of the total package.

The first thing you end up removing from the package is all the extras and accessories. The left and right compartments contain all the attachments needed to setup the SPP-2040. The power adapter and cable are found in the left compartment, and the 10 included sheets of photo, colour ribbon cartridge, and paper tray are in the right compartment. There was unfortunately no printer cable to be found, so you'll have to purchase your own USB cable. In the middle compartment, on top of the printer's packaging sits a white envelope which on the front says "forever." I guess if you combine this with the first phrase, you get "touch the moment forever." Anyhow this envelope contains all the documentation you'll need to setup up the printer. Now it's time to unpack the printer.

The SPP-2040 is deceptively compact; something that we'll come back to later. The colour scheme is the standard silver n' black that is used on many modern electronic devices meant for the home. The controls and 2" LCD adorn the front, and the controls are nicely spaced to allow easy fiddling. The rear has one of the paper feed slots, and a small fan port for cooling. As for connections, the power connector and two USB plugs (type A and B) can be found on the left side of the printer.

One of the big capabilities of the SPP-2040 is a rather ironic lack of need for a computer to edit and print images. With the built-in 7 format media reader and the 2" LCD screen, you can view and print images right off your camera's memory card. You can perform some simple editing techniques with the host of controls on the front. However the media reader is detected in Windows as a removable storage drive and assigned a drive letter, allowing you to use...say Photoshop for more advanced edits.

The hinge for the LCD screen does give me some reservations. It definitely feels very flimsy, as if the whole thing is plastic construction. However I've had the unit for a few weeks now, and the hinge hasn't worn out yet. Hopefully this doesn't cause any issues in the future. As for the controls, the buttons as mentioned earlier are very nicely spaced and easy to access. There's no need to twist your fingers in any unnatural way to operate this printer.

Setting It All Up

The SPP-2040 is very simple and straight-forward to setup; a feat made possible by the included user guide. The whole setup process is split up into 3 steps, installing the consumables, making all your connections, and installing the software. Once you've complete these steps, you are ready to start creating prints with the best of them.

First things first, we get to install the colour ribbon cartridge. That's right, I said ribbon cartridge. Not since the glory days of the dot matrix printer have I heard those words uttered on a specs sheet. However this particular ribbon is a little different for the ribbons of yore. It's a colour coated strip of cellophane. Also the colour is transferred to the paper using a thermal process. The printer is easily installed by inserting it in the slot on the side, and pushing until it clicks into place. The nice thing about this technology is that these cartridges are good for exactly the amount of prints they are rated for. When I completed my 10th print, this same cartridge was perfectly clear from end to end. This takes the guess work out of photo printing as you will know exactly how many prints you have left, and the quality will be consistent across all those prints.

The second part of consumables installation is setting up the paper tray. Basically, all you do is flip up the cover and insert the paper face up. The reason for the closed paper tray is to keep as much dust off the paper as possible. This is somewhat defeated by the paper slot on the rear, which exposes the print between colour layers. This is a minor concern, as the paper is only exposed for a few seconds and I found that the chance of dust getting on the print was slim (my computer room could be called "medium" dusty). The big nagging aspect of the tray is how far it sticks out from the front of the printer; a whole 6.5 inches to be exact. This printer becomes less and less compact when you add to that the recommended 6 inches of clearance you need behind to printer for the rear paper slot.

Finally we get to connect the printer, and install the software. As mentioned previously, the SPP-2040 doesn't come with a USB cable. You will need to purchase a separate USB A-B cable to connect the printer to your computer. However if your camera supports the PictBridge standard, you can plug the camera directly into the printer (using the second USB port pictured) and create prints right from your digital camera. The second USB port also supports a special Bluetooth adapter (SPP-00BA) that Samsung sells as an accessory to the SPP-2040. As for the software installation it's very quick, taking only about 5-10 minutes. Along with the driver, you get Samsung's basic photo suite called PhotoThru.

Software and Use

Samsung has included some basic image management software with the SPP-2040. Called PhotoThru, the program allows you create albums of photos, print individual pictures, and also print multiple pictures to a single print allowing you to create your own index prints or wallet-size photos. PhotoThru also includes some image editing functionality. You can adjust all the major colour settings (Hue, Saturation, and Lightness), as well as switch between colour mode, black & white, and sepia tone. Further more, you can perform some limited effects like red-eye reduction, sharpen, blur, and mosaic.

If you want to load up your own favourite image editing program, or print from some other software, you can. The driver included with the SPP-2040 gives you access to many of the same output features you can get from the PhotoThru software. From the properties, you can print both bordered and borderless photos. You can also use the same multiple-up features you can in PhotoThru, allowing you to put multiple images on a single 4" X 6" print.

Let us not forget the afore mentioned capability to print directly from your camera's memory card via the built in media reader. With this you can completely forgo the use of a computer. Images are viewed on the adjustable 2" LCD display. The LCD seems to be very high quality, producing a bright and colourful image easily viewed by those with all but the poorest of eyesight. For comparison, the screen is about the same size as a 35mm film slide.

Testing

All testing for the Samsung SPP-2040 was done with my Dell Inspiron 700m laptop, using various photos from my collection. Prints were done in both "Normal" and "Best" mode to time a difference on printing time, as well as gauge any quality difference. Finally, we committed the ultimate test...subjection to water. The SPP-2040 claims to produce a waterproof print, and we test if that is indeed true.

First a little primer as to how the dye-sublimation process works. The printer lays down the same three colours as it's inkjet cousin. The ink is transferred as a vapour from the backing film to the paper one colour at a time, rather than being sprayed onto the surface of the paper all at once like the nozzles of an inkjet. The colours are printed individually in the order of yellow, magenta, and cyan. A thin clear layer is then transferred, protecting the print from fading and the like. You'll notice black is missing from the process. That is because black is produced as a combination of all three base colours. Surprisingly, any black areas of the produced prints appear very...well...black.

The only issue I have with printing setup of the SPP-2040 is it's paper feeding system. While in the tray, the paper is protected from dust. However while printing the entire print is exposed to dust twice; once out the back slot and once out the front. Depending on what your environment is like, this exposure may harm your prints. You see, if a fleck of dust gets on the print between colours layers it can block the next layer and cause an area of discoloration. Because of the way that the paper comes out, there is also an issue with clearance and how much room the SPP-2040 actually takes up. On it's own, the printer is very compact. Once you add the paper tray, you gain another 7 inches of depth out the front. This isn't a big deal, until you take into consideration that you also need 7 inches out the back for when the paper comes out the back paper slot. This makes this printer a lot less compact front to back than one expects.

Timing is everything, and Samsung claims that the SPP-2040 can produce a single photo in 60 seconds. Now whenever any company makes such a claim, it's usually based on a default or lowered setting. This is true with Samsung as well, as the SPP-2040 was only able to achieve this time on the "Normal" quality setting. Bump the setting up to "Best," and printing average 65 seconds per print. Start doing batches of three or more, and you might 3 or 4 seconds onto that time based on the amount of processing required for the batch job. Print quality however, was superb. It easily bests any inkjet based solution. Due to technological differences, the dye-sub based printer SPP-2040 produced much smoother colours, without any harsh dots or pixelation.
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Over and above the standard test prints and gradients, and some gratuitous photos of my adored car, I used the above test photos for printing. Other than being the most artistic meal one of my roommates has ever prepared, the dinner pictures have a great selection of colours. The output quality of the SPP-2040 was very good; producing prints that were comparable to prints from a photo lab. The prints created were as vibrant as the originals, with accurate and natural colours being produced.

The same print quality was also consistent across all prints. From the first print to come off a fresh ink cartridge, to the last print to be produced, every print was of very a high quality and there wasn't any drop in ink level or colour saturation. This is great compared to inkjet printers, which because of the way they utilize their ink reserves can produce inconsistent results. This can cause quite a variance in colour saturation, especially near the end of the life of an inkjet cartridge. Due to the afore mentioned print ribbon that dye-sublimation printers like the SPP-2040 use, there is never a shortage in ink. Each ribbon cartridge is designed with exactly enough ink for a set number of prints. Actually when you buy a replacement cartridge kit for the SPP-2040, it comes with both paper and ink. There are two kits available, a 120-sheet kit for approximately $46 USD (IPP-46120G), and a 40-sheet kit for $25 USD (IPP-4640G). The ribbon cartridge in these kits is designed to print only as many prints as there are sheets of paper. This is quite convenient, as you know how many prints you will get and also that they will be all of top quality.

Finally we test the claims Samsung has laid down of water-proof prints. Use and eye-dropper, I placed many drops of water on a print. Immediately wiping them off, I noticed no running ink or streaks. The colours in the wet areas were still as vibrant and natural as before. I even left water on the print for an extended period of time, with the same result. Furthermore, I "accidentally spilled" a glass of water all over the print. The only thing noticeable was the paper itself peeling. The print itself was fine. Anyone who is familiar with inkjet based digital prints knows that even on the most "water-resistant" of prints, water is still close to certain death. However with a dye-sublimation printer like the SPP-2040, this doesn't seem to be a problem.

Conclusion

Samsung has really hit the ground running with this printer, there first entry into the crowded dedicated photo printer market. The SPP-2040 produces prints that are a stiff competition to their photo lab counterparts. The choice of dye-sublimation technology over one of the many iterations of inkjet was a smart one on their part, as dye-sub blows inkjet out of the water. The only inkjet printer that comes close to the close in class and price to the SPP-2040 is the Canon Selphy series, and even then the only Selphy models rated on par with the SPP-2040 by some of my fellow reviewers are those that use dye-sublimation.

Speaking of price the SPP-2040 itself is very inexpensive, coming in at $100 - $120 USD as of the writing of this article. The paper/ribbon packages themselves are available in a 120-sheet kit for approximately $46 USD (IPP-46120G), and a 40-sheet kit for $25 USD (IPP-4640G). Of these two kits, the 120-sheet one is obviously the better value.

Based of the price of the 120-sheet kit, you are paying approx $0.38 per print. Now compared to many digital photo printing services, this isn't much of a deal. Actually since the dawn of dedicated photo printers, many have known that printing from home would be more expensive. However the convenience of home printing more than makes up for it. You can edit all you images on your own, adding effects and fixing flaws. The included software will take care of many of these functions, and if you can't find what you're looking for in PhotoThru you can throw open your favorite image editor and tinker till your heart's content. The savings in this area is phenomenal, as this is where the photo labs make the big bucks.

There were only a few minor issues that crept up during testing. The purported compactness of the SPP-2040 was questionable, due to the paper feed system. Also the paper feed system could be an issue in dusty environments, which may lead to a ruined print or two. Oh and the construction of the hinge for the 2" LCD screen seems rather flimsy.

With all that in mind, I still give high praise to the Samsung SPP-2040. The print quality of this dedicated photo printer is second to none. It's price point is not budget breaking. Finally, it's compact, light, and easy to use. Given all these factors, I'd say the SPP-2040 is Editor's Choice material.

The Great Power Of Linux On a Small CD

2009-08-04T18:13:00.000-07:00

The Great Power Of Linux On a Small CD

knoppix-coverKnoppix is a bootable CD with a collection of GNU/Linux software, automatic hardware detection, and support for many graphics cards, sound cards, SCSI and USB devices and other peripherals. Knoppix can be used as a Linux demo, educational CD, rescue system, or adapted and used as a platform for commercial software product demos. It is not necessary to install anything on a hard disk. Due to on-the-fly decompression, the CD can have up to 2 GB of executable software installed on it.

If one is to believe news from the Linux camp one could be forgiven for thinking that the world was out to destroy the beautiful thing that is the Open Source movement. Angry fingers would be pointed in several directions, surprisingly (or unsurprisingly) all in the general vicinity of Microsoft. Of course, the noises from the other side are just as loud (actually quite a bit louder). They, in turn, claim that Linux is ‘unsafe’, hard to use and even harder to maintain, and worse of all, prone to exploitation by hackers (since the source code is open source and thus can essentially be seen and played around with by anyone).

I’ve always preferred the uncomfortable seat on the fence, despite the green grass on both sides. Granted, you tend to get sore sitting in such a way after a while, but the view from here is great, and argument very clear. The battle between proprietary code (led by Microsoft, no less) and open source (Linux) has been going on ever since Linus Torvalds created Linux and started the process that has made it the genuine force that it is today. And as is the case in such fighting, there are three sides to the story: Microsoft’s tale, Linux’s woes and my bit of the story. And my part begins with the most interesting OS of them all…

What if you had an operating system that ran completely from a CD? That’s right, just one CD. And this CD also contained very useful programs for word-processing, data recovery and system repair utilities, image-editing and internet connectivity, along with excellent audio and video players? What if all you had to do was to boot from this CD and voila, in a few minutes your new OS had taken over your PC. Taken over? Nothing to worry about, as removing the OS from your computer was to be as easy as removing the CD. Literally.

Welcome to the world of Knoppix.

Given the fact that we are in the midst of multi-gigabyte operating systems that we there would be such a competent one that could be run entirely from a CD-ROM is stupendous. Imagine the possibilities. Customized versions of the Knoppix OS would mean that you could literally carry a streamlined version of your home PC around with you wherever you went. Need to recover data from a crashed hard-disk? Boot into Knoppix and use the system repair and data recovery tools to retrieve your data (burn it to a CD-R, or transfer it via a PC-to-PC connection) and maybe attempt to fix the disk as well. Secondly, if you are a web developer who wants to check how sites look from within a Linux environment, all you need to do is pop Knoppix in and check out your websites from Mozilla or Konqueror. Away from the office and want to work on customized software specially made for your company? Knoppix, along with a USB drive to store data, turns your crisis into a simple matter of finding a PC. And like all Linux versions, meeting the minimum system requirements would be a snap (82 MB RAM, CDROM drive, SVGA card, Intel compatible CPU (i486 or better)).

There is a lot to be said for Knoppix, especially for its appeal to Linux newbies (or ‘noobs’, as vernacular has it). With no need for an installation (although that is given as an option), and with excellent hardware detection, Knoppix has single-handedly done away with the two major concerns for Windows users wanting to try out Linux: A complicated installation process, and the problem of finding the right drivers for all your hardware. In effect, Knoppix is an excellent choice for someone who wants to try out Linux without having to go through the usual hassle. It’s easy to use, and doesn’t mess with your system either. Despite being run completely off the CD, it runs pretty quickly as well.

knoppix-logo Knoppix also boasts a comprehensive suite of programs that has almost everything that home/office desktop could be used for. The package list is tremendous, with the compression system allowing for over 2GB of stuff to be stored. This is amazing and is certainly more than any other single live CD can hold. For a basic idea as to how you should be fine, Knoppix contains 2 office suites (Koffice and OpenOffice), has KDE, Mozilla (web+mail+IRC), PHP, MySql, samba, xmms and tons more. This is no gaming platform, but more than enough is packed in there to let you accomplish most of your usual tasks on the PC (see DistroWatch for a complete list). And if you want more, do an installation and now that you can write on the hard-disk, use apt-get upgrade, apt-get dist-upgrade (after making sure your sources.list is correct) to get more.

Knoppix does have a few minor problems. These are limited to a few quirks within the KDE, some problems with hardware detection and complaints that 5 minutes to boot a PC is too long (which, by the way, is quite quick for a live-CD OS). The reality is that such problems are expected from an Open Source operating system. Linux platforms are not judged by the same criteria that Windows, or any other ‘paid-for’ OS is (this is perhaps a major reason behind the Linux-bashing that goes on in Microsoft-related circles). No one expects Knoppix to work perfectly when detecting hardware, and the fact that it more often than not works extremely well forms the basis of our judgment, whereas if Windows XP Professional refused to detect my LAN card I would not stop cursing their ineptitude (no matter that it detected everything else, or everyone else’s card). The standards applied here are totally different, and thus Knoppix survives all such criticism and continues to bathe in the afterglow of a job well done.

A few thoughts on customization. One gets a feeling that the package is perhaps too comprehensive (how many text editors do you really need?). My view is that at least for the downloadable version, there should be a way for the user to select or unselect the programs that are required. As such, one could select their favorite browser, text editor, office suite, etc. and produce a more compact installation package. Theoretically, you could also build a custom Knoppix installation that would even run your office applications (as mentioned earlier). The possibilities are great, and hopefully the Knoppix development team will take into consideration the idea of streamlining / customization, if only for the downloadable version.

So there you have it. A special flavor of Linux that offers, apart from a live-CD OS, a quite stable operating environment as well (and comes bundled with lots of goodies) that is unprecedented in terms of hardware detection. And more importantly, this could be a precursor of things to come with respect to OS development and how the industry perceives the role of an operating system, be it Linux or Windows. Maybe it’s time for diversification and specialization in the OS market, and maybe, just maybe, Microsoft is set to lose more ground as the ‘free’ operating systems get better and better. You can download and try out Knoppix here .

Mike Ber is the owner of the Canadian Domain Name Portal Every.ca . He is also a contributing author to Canadian Computer Magazine and Developer .

Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT Wireless Router & VoIP

2009-08-04T09:56:00.000-07:00

Summary:

The Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT Wireless-G Broadband Router is really four devices in one. It's a wireless access point, full-deplex 10/100 switch, broadband router and a VoIP adapter. This is the Swiss Army Knife of wireless routers!

The Swiss Army Knife of Wireless-G Broadband Routers

The Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT Wireless-G Broadband Router is really four devices in one. First, there's the Wireless Access Point, which lets you connect both Wireless-G and Wireless-B devices to the network. Second, there's a built-in 4-port full-duplex 10/100 Switch to connect your wired-Ethernet devices together. Third, there is a Router function to lets your whole network share a high-speed Internet connection.

The fourth and most unique function is the VoIP phone adapter which enables high-quality feature-rich VoIP Service through your high-speed connection even while you're surfing the Internet. The router features two standard telephone jacks, each operating independently - like having two phone lines.

wrt54gp2a

The WRT54GP2A-AT is designed for use with AT&T CallVantage VoIP Service. If you don't know what VoIP is then you haven't been reading this site enough (go here for refresher course). The AT&T CallVantage service lets you save with unlimited local and long distance calling. Plus you can enjoy features like Call Waiting, Caller ID, Advanced Voicemail, Call Forwarding and lots of other special phone features. You can even organize your calls, and manage features easily with your own Personal Call Manager home page. And as long as you're an AT&T CallVantage customer you can keep the phone number for life, regardless of where you move in the world. Unlike the normal phone system, VoIP is not location dependant - you can use your VoIP number at home or move it to China if you like.

Wireless-G Broadband Router with 4 Ethernet Ports & 2 Phone Ports

The back of the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT looks like any other Linksys broadband router with the exception of the two phone jacks. The jacks operate completely independent of each other. It's just like having two phone lines and indeed, each jack can have its own phone number - one for the phone and the other for a fax machine for example.

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Any corded or cordless phone can be plugged into the phone jacks. The WRT54GP2A-AT turns whatever phone that's connected to it into a VoIP phone. This is the biggest advantage of using the WRT54GP2A-AT for VoIP - you don't have to buy any special phones. Before these phone adapters came along, the most common way to get VoIP was to buy a special VoIP phone. The problem with that kind of setup was you had to get rid of that fancy office phone that you paid a lot of money for. For people who want VoIP but wish to keep their landline phones, the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT is a great way to do it.

Quality Of Service

The advantage with integrating the VoIP adapter and router together is that it delivers much better VoIP phone performance than a separate VoIP adapter. This is because the router is the gateway for all the traffic activity going across the network. So the WRT54GP2A-AT gives priority to time critical transmissions like VoIP phone calls. This function, known as Quality Of Service (QOS), allows for crystal clear phone calls even when your Internet connection is under a heavy load. Because of the explosion of VoiP, many broadband cable ISP now offers QOS for extra charge. With the cable company's QOS, you are offered a certain level of bandwidth no matter how much load is on your cable line. However, your router still has the job of dividing this load and can't offer QOS to the VoIP adapter. The Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT can.

The Rest Of The Router Packaging

Besides the broadband wireless router, the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT comes with the user's guide, setup CD, Ethernet cable and power adapter.

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The router itself is the same size and weight as other Linksys wireless routers. At 7.32" wide by 2.48" tall by 6.08" deep and weighing in at 19.29 oz the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT isn't the most portable router. However, it was never designed to be. The Linksys Wireless-G Broadband Router with 2 Phone Ports is designed to be at the center of your home or office network. With this router you can share a high-speed Internet connection, files, printers, and multi-player games, and turn that Internet connection into a high-quality carrier for VoIP calls.

In addition to VoIP, the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT Router can serve as a DHCP Server. It also features a powerful SPI firewall to protect your PCs against intruders and most known Internet attacks. Configuration is a snap with the web browser-based configuration utility.

Linksys Configuration Utility

There are two ways to configure the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT wireless-G router. If you're completely new to networking you will want to run the included Setup CD which will guide you step by step though the setup process. Those with a bit more experience can use the Setup CD as a drink coaster and log into the router's web-based utility and set up from there.

wrt54gp21

The router's web-based utility is where all action happens. Believe it or not, most people who buy wireless router never see their router's setup utility. This is because once your router is plugged into your broadband provider and computers, you should be able to get internet access on all the network comps. At this point, most people say "Hey! It works!" and leave it at that. Only problem is they've just left their entire network wide open for attacks.

Changing the default password and setting up security is crucial to the operation and safety of your wireless network. To protect your data and privacy, the Linksys Router offers both WEP and more advanced WPA encryption.

VoIP Performance

Setting up the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT was no harder than setting up any other Linksys routers. Just plug in everything to it's corresponding port, then fire up Firefox (or Internet Explorer) and log into the router to set it up. Total setup time is about 10 minutes.

The WRT54GP2A-AT is designed to work with AT&T CallVantage Phone Service For Broadband and will not work with any other VoIP provider (a Vonage version is available for those who don't like AT&T). Because the WRT54GP2A-AT is tied to AT&T’s VoIP service, AT&T locks certain parts of the router’s firmware to prevent you from flashing it so you can use it with other VoIP providers. We also found you can not disable the firewall (but you can set up DMZs) and the QOS settings are locked as well.

VoIP phone calls were amazingly good. Call quality was super clear and free of any background noise or echoes. Even when the router was downloading a bunch of files off the internet, voice quality never dropped. I have lost connections before with stand alone VoIP phone adapters and separate routers when uploading files and talking at the same time. That never happen with the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT. This is by far the best VoIP adapter I have ever experienced.

Router Performance

Router performance was equally as good as the VoIP performance. The WRT54GP2A-AT is among the fastest wireless router I ever tested, just a tick behind the D-Link DI-624. With my notebook right next to the Linksys router, I measure 37.8 Mbit per second transfer speed, dropping to 37Mbit/sec when I moved 5 feet away. At a distance of 50 feet, wireless speed dropped to a still very acceptable 17.5Mbit/sec.

Going into this review, I really thought a separate router and VoIP adapter was a better way to go than the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT. However, after experiencing the amazing voice quality offered by Linksys QOS feature, I wouldn't use a stand alone VoIP adapter again. Add in the fact that the Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT is also among the fastest wireless broadband router we've ever tested and you have yourself a winner.

The Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT sells for $129.81 at CDW and $125.99 at Buy.com. The current low price of $119.99 can be found at our friends from New Egg. You can always get the current low price by checking the price box at the top of this review.

The Good

* Router with built in VoIP
* Quality of Service for super clean phone call even under heavy loads
* Excellent set of wireless security features
* Easy setup
* Fast wireless performance

The Bad

* You are limited to using just one VoIP provider

TrendNET TEW-633GR Wirless N Gigabit router

2009-08-04T01:53:00.000-07:00

The actual TrendNET TEW-633GR Wirless N Gigabit router itself is about the same size as its predecessor and it still adheres to the same 802.11n draft spec (ratification isn't expected until October 2008) as the router before it. But man alive, does the TEW-633GR feel like a different beast altogether. It looks better, it performs better, and it was perhaps even easier to setup. Before we get into the nitty gritty, let's have a look at the key features and specifications.

Features and Specifications

* Wi-Fi compliant with IEEE 802.11n and IEEE 802.11b/g standards
* 4 x 10/100/1000Mbps Auto-MDIX Gigabit LAN port and 1 x 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit WAN port (Internet)
* Supports Cable/DSL modems with Dynamic IP, Static IP, PPPoE, PPTP, L2TP & BigPond connection types
* Supports AP mode and Bridge mode
* Built-in 3 external antennas support 300Mbps high speed performance and great coverage
* Firewall features Network Address Translation (NAT), and Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) protects against DoS attacks
* Traffic control with virtual servers, special applications, gaming services & Ubicom StreamEngine feature
* UPnP (Universal Plug & Play) and ALGs support for internet applications such as email, FTP, gaming, remote desktop, Net Meeting, telnet, and more
* Provides additional security of enable/disable wireless SSID, internet access control (services, URL & MAC filtering)
* Supports multiple and concurrent IPSec, L2TP and PPTP VPN pass-through sessions
* Supports Static Routing – RIPv1 announcer
* Easy management via web browser (IE 6.0 or above, Firefox, Opera, Netscape) and remote management
* Supports 64/128-bit WEP(for 11b/g), WPA/WPA2 and WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK
* Compliant with Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP/2003 server/Vista, Linux and Mac OS
* Coverage up to 150 meters (500ft.) indoor(depends on the environment)
* Coverage up to 400 meters (1300ft.) outdoor(depends on the environment)
* 3 year warranty

Okidata C6100DN LED Printer

2009-08-04T00:26:00.000-07:00

A workgroup color LED printer with a budget price

As a long time Hewlett Packard Laserjet printer person, it was hard for me to accept the concept of getting a new laser printer other than a HP. I have been using HP laser products starting with the Laserjet Series II all the way through the HP Color Laserjet 5550 series printers. When I was looking at new printers recently, Okidata offered me the opportunity to test out a couple of their printers. I was dubious at first, but after seeing the ease of maintenance of the printers and the quality of the prints, I went ahead with the testing.

Okidata makes their own print engines, whereas a lot of manufacturers source the print engine from other vendors. Xerox purchases a lot of their print engines from Okidata whereas HP sources from Canon, among others.

Price:

This feature packed printer comes with an incredible price point. At the time of this review, I was able to find this printer for $849 to $992 without much searching. For a workgroup, color laser printer with duplex capability and the print speed this has, this is a great price point. Nothing is short changed as far as features goes.

Features:

The features of the Okidata C6100DN are as follows:

* Fastest in their class: color output at up to 26 ppm; black & white at up to 32 ppm1
* Time to first page as fast as 11 seconds color, 9 seconds black & white1
* HD Color Printing technology for sharp detail and rich color depth
* 1200 x 600 dpi resolution for crisp, clear output
* Models available with duplex (2-sided) printing, additional paper capacity, and 40 GB hard disk drive standard
* PCL and PostScript compatibility
* 10/100 Base-T Network connectivity standard
* Single Pass Color™ Digital technology for printing up to 110 lb. (203 gsm) card stock and banners
* Handles media from 3" x 5" cards to banner sheets up to 8.5" x 47.24"
* Security features including data encryption, password protection, and document and hard disk erasure
* Convenient operator panel enables printer and network settings changes
* High-capacity, 2-piece consumables for low Total Cost of Ownership in color and mono2
* 1-Year limited warranty with Overnight Exchange on printer 3; 5-Year limited warranty on LED printheads
* Live, toll-free technical support 24/7/365

Kingston Migo Edition Flash Drive

2009-08-04T00:17:00.000-07:00

I still remember when USB flash drives first hit the scene. It sounded so impressive to shove 32 megabytes into your pocket, because the next best thing would be to opt for 100MB zip disks. The key advantage is that thumb drives are universal, working with just about any computer so long as they have an available USB port. The industry has advanced substantially since the introduction of the first USB flash drive and we see a couple of these innovations in the Kingston DataTraveler Mini - Migo Edition. This drive may be small in stature, but it's big in storage and it comes with a couple extras too.

Features At A Glance

The DataTraveler Mini - Migo Edition USB Flash Drive from Kingston Technology is available in three capacities: 1GB in light blue, 2GB in light purple, and 4GB in dark blue. Outside of the amount of memory housed within, the three drives should be identical in functionality and performance. For the purposes of this review, Kingston provided us with the 4GB version (product number DTM/4GB). Key features found in this mini drive include:

Securely carry and work with your files, email and Internet settings with Migo
Dimensions: 0.70 x 1.42 x 0.40 inches
Designed to Hi-Speed USB 2.0 specifications
Supported Email Clients: Outlook Express 5.0+, Thunderbird 1.5.0.5+
Supported Browsers: Internet Explorer 5.0+, Firefox 1.5+
Migo software not compatible with Mac OS

Nikon Coolpix P6000, Dilengkapi GPS

2009-08-03T23:51:00.000-07:00

Di masa demam Facebook maupun situs jejaring sosial lainnya sekarang ini, tentu lumrah jika setiap anggotanya gemar memajang foto di akun mereka. Sifat “narsis” setiap orang agaknya membuat pasar kamera digital tetap ramai kapan pun juga.

Anda yang suka bepergian, bisa jadi terpikat dengan seri semiprofesional Nikon Coolpix P6000. Inilah satu dari sedikit kamera digital yang menyertakan fasilitas GPS untuk menandai lokasi di mana foto didapatkan. Menarik bukan?

Meski digolongkan kelas kompak, desain P6000 dengan tebal sekitar 4cm dan bobot 250 gram memang tidak terlalu praktis. Namun, grip yang mantap tetap membuat kamera ini enak digenggam oleh satu tangan saja.

Ukuran yang sedikit besar ini bisa dimaklumi mengingat banyaknya fitur yang diusung P6000, termasuk dudukan untuk lampu blitz eksternal (hot shoe), tombol dial untuk mengatur setting khas fotografi, dan lima tombol fungsi/menu di sebelah kiri. Selain itu, masih terdapat pula viewfinder sebagai pendamping layar LCD 2,7”. Viewfinder ini agaknya disediakan untuk mereka yang tetap menyukai aktivitas bidik melalui jendela intip atau untuk menghemat baterai dengan menonaktifkan LCD.

Untuk mendukung kebutuhan mereka yang sudah memahami fotografi, P6000 yang memakai sensor CCD dengan total resolusi 13,5 megapixel ini dibekali cukup banyak fitur, mulai dari modus otomatis sampai pilihan bidik P-A-S-M untuk setting manual. Kamera yang juga menyediakan menu dalam bahasa Indonesia ini menyediakan memori internal 48MB yang bisa memuat 2 foto format RAW atau 7 foto JPEG resolusi tinggi.

Untuk mencegah foto yang buram akibat guncangan, Nikon seperti biasa menempatkan fungsi Vibration Reduction (VR) yang memang cukup berguna, utamanya pada kondisi pencahayaan yang rendah. Namun harap diingat bahwa fitur VR ini tidak akan efektif untuk memotret benda yang bergerak. Kemampuan zoom optis yang hanya 4x juga tidak efektif untuk pemotretan jarak jauh. Karena itu, bisa kami sebut bahwa kamera ini merupakan model semipro yang tanggung.

Di antara sederet fitur yang diunggulkan, mungkin yang membuat P6000 menarik adalah fasilitas GPS untuk mengetahui posisi sebuah obyek di muka bumi ini. Jangan salah, GPS di sini bukan untuk memandu Anda seperti alat GPS umumnya, melainkan untuk menandai foto sehingga dapat diketahui lokasi di mana foto tersebut diambil. Untuk memudahkan hal ini, Nikon menyertakan fungsi Picture Bank pada tombol dial di mana Anda bisa memilih foto untuk di-upload ke portal Picturetown (layanan bagipakai foto dari Nikon via software Nikon Transfer).

Fasilitas GPS ini jelas menjadi keunggulan lebih, karena kompetitor jarang yang memilikinya. Namun, fungsi penandaan foto dengan bantuan GPS ini lebih optimal jika pemotretan dilakukan di ruangan terbuka, bukan di ruangan tertutup (indoor). Perlu diingat, penggunaan fasilitas GPS ternyata membuat baterai lebih cepat habis.

Sebagai kamera semipro, Coolpix P6000 memang sudah cukup memuaskan berkat banyaknya ragam setting manual yang tersedia dan hasil foto yang memang cukup bagus. Namun pada ISO 400 ke atas, seringkali sebagian detil image tampak hilang.

***

Dari segi fasilitas dan kemampuan, kamera ini layak disetandingkan dengan Canon PowerShot G10 atau Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 yang sekelas meskipun daya tahan baterai P6000 tidak sekuat keduanya.

Rangkaian fitur khas kamera DSLR memang amat membantu pengguna mahir bereksplorasi secara manual. Ini ditambah lagi dengan feature face detection untuk memfokuskan bidikan secara otomatis ke arah wajah obyek serta fasilits D-Lighting untuk meningkatkan pencahayaan hasil foto yang gelap. Kesimpulan kami, Coolpix P6000 memang layak dipakai mereka yang sedang belajar fotografi dengan serius.

Sumber: InfoKomputer

PLUS: Grip mantap; banyak feature foto menarik; hasil foto bagus; fasilitas GPS dan LAN; dukungan aplikasi; remote control; mampu menggunakan lensa lebar.

MINUS: Detil hilang di ISO tinggi; daya tahan baterai pendek; modus RAW lamban.

Olympus FE-5010, Dual IS

2009-08-03T22:20:00.000-07:00

Jika Anda sudah memutuskan akan membeli kamera saku Olympus dengan dana terbatas, pilihan ideal jelas jatuh ke seri FE yang merupakan model Friendly & Easy, alias mudah digunakan. Meskipun terkesan konservatif (di antara model SP dan mju dari Olympus), kelas FE tetap memiliki fitur yang cukup berarti untuk mendukung aktivitas fotografi. Seri FE yang paling lengkap fiturnya sekarang adalah FE-5010, dengan beberapa kelengkapan ada pada model SP (semipro).

Beberapa fitur yang diunggulkan pada FE-5010 cukup serupa dengan kamera digital kelas kompak lainnya, seperti kemampuan zoom optis mencapai 5x dan layar LCD 2,7” yang tergolong lebar. Olympus juga mengedepankan kemampuan FE-5010 yang bisa menerima kartu memori microSD (TransFlash) sebagai pendamping memori xD mereka.

Seperti kita ketahui, memori xD cenderung lebih mahal namun kecepatan tulisnya rendah dan kapasitas maksimalnya baru mencapai 2GB. Kelemahan yang sering disorot konsumen ini memaksa Olympus mengadopsi microSD yang kini sudah tersedia sampai 16GB. Untuk dapat menyelipkan microSD ke kamera, disediakan adapter khusus (MASD-1) yang telah disiapkan dalam paket FE-5010.

Dengan mengandalkan kemampuan resolusi maksimal 12 megapixel, FE-5010 termasuk jajaran kamera saku di atas 10 megapixel yang kini mulai tren. Agar hasil fotonya maksimal, Olympus sudah memakai prosesor TruPic III seperti yang ditempatkan pada model DSLR mereka.

Sistem penstabil gambar pun ada 2, yang disebut Dual-iS (digital & optical image stabilization). Sistem ini merupakan mekanisme secara optis dan digital untuk mengoreksi gambar yang buram akibat guncangan tangan pemotret. Sejauh ini, kami lihat modus Dual-iS memang lebih efektif dibandingkan iS tunggal. Namun, pada modus rekam video, peredam yang digunakan hanya sistem iS-digital sehingga pergerakan video tampak kurang mulus.

Memotret dengan FE-5010 ternyata sangat menyenangkan karena selain disediakan modus serba otomatis (iAUTO) tersedia pula 14 skema foto (modus SCN) yang bisa dipilih sesuai kondisi. Sistem iAUTO akan membuat pilihan manual sangat terbatas karena nyaris semua fungsi diatur kamera. Dalam modus ini hanya tersedia pilihan resolusi dan jenis kompresi image.

Jika ingin lebih kreatif, silahkan pilih modus P (program) yang juga menyediakan pengaturan cahaya lampu neon (fluorescent) sampai 3 jenis pada opsi WB (White Balance). Pada modus skema (SCN), Anda bisa mengaktifkan fitur “Smile Shot” yang memungkinkan kamera memotret secara otomatis jika mendeteksi senyuman dari seseorang bidang fokusnya.

***

Hasil foto outdoor FE-5010 sudah sangat mencukupi untuk kelas kamera kompak. Di samping itu, dukungan zoom optis sampai 5x juga banyak gunanya saat membidik obyek jauh. Namun dalam kondisi tersebut, manfaat feature Dual-iS kurang maksimal.

Kamera yang dilengkapi struktur pelindung untuk mencegah jatuh dari ketinggian sekitar setengah meter ini juga menyertakan fitur Perfect Fix yang mampu memperbaiki pencahayaan hasil foto dan mengusir efek mata merah yang sering timbul.

Boleh dikatakan, FE-5010 merupakan kamera entry level (seri FE) Olympus dengan kemampuan paling lengkap dengan harga sekitar 3 juta rupiah.

Sumber: InfoKomputer

Baterai dan perilakunya

2009-08-03T22:07:00.001-07:00

Baterai adalah salah satu dari sumber energi dan sangat penting bagi penggunaan kamera digital. Produsen kamera digital mengunakan berbagai macam jenis baterai yang berpengaruh terhadap harga, ukuran serta kemampuan kamera tersebut. Untuk jenis yang paling banyak digunakan saat ini, adalah baterai type Lithium dan type AA. Untuk type AA biasanya digunakan baterai Alkaline. Berbeda dengan baterai AA biasa, jenis Alkaline mempunyai kapasitas lebih besar yang pada kamera digital digunakan untuk LCD dan Flash. Namun, penggunaan baterai Alkaline sebenarnya lebih disarankan untuk diganti dengan jenis NiMH yang mempunyai kapasitas lebih besar lagi dibanding Alkaline dan mempunyai kemampuan untuk di isi ulang. Sedangkan jenis baterai Lithium lebih menguntungkan dari segi berat dan ukuran, karena kamera yang menggunakan baterai type Lihtium biasanya didesign lebih compact dan lebih ringan dibanding kamera dengan baterai type AA.

Jika diperhatikan pada baterai Alkaline kemungkinan tidak terlihat berapa besar kapasitas yang tertulis pada baterai, sedangkan pada NiMH terlihat jelas berapa besar kapasitas yang dapat disimpan oleh baterai tersebut. Ketika baterai memberaikan power kepada peralatan elektronik yang memerlukan energi yang besar seperti kamera digital, peralatan komputer, portable music player sebuah baterai Alkaline hanya akan memberikan sebagian dari kapasitasnya. Sedangkan pada baterai NiMH atau NiCd, baterai tersebut memberikan lebih banyak kapasitasnya dan besarnya mendekati kapasitas maksimum pada peralatan elektronik yang rakus energi. Itu berarti pada kamera digital, sebuah NiMH dengan kapasitas 1800 mAh dapat memberikan lebih banyak foto dibanding sebuah baterai Alkaline yang mempunyai kapasitas 2800 mAh.

Baterai recharger NiCD, NiMH dan Lithioum (Li-ion)

Tipe baterai isi ulang dibagi dalam tiga kategori umum: nickel cadmium (NiCd), nickel metal-hydride (NiMH), dan lithium-ion (Li-ion). Ada juga tipe lithium polymer (Li-poly) yang supertipis, namun mahal dan jarang ada di pasaran.

Baterai NiCd merupakan jenis tertua, paling tahan banting, namun berat dan volumenya paling besar. Baterai jenis ini sudah tidak lagi banyak digunakan pada kamera karena dianggap tidak praktis. Baterai NiCad sangat rentan efek memori. Maksudnya, baterai hanya mengisi ke tingkat dimana baterai terakhir di-discharge, akibat proses akumulasi gas yang terperangkap dalam plat sel baterai. Jika baterai di-discharge hingga 30 persen dan di recharge, maka baterai hanya akan mengisi energi yang terpakai tadi (30 persen) yang dilanjutkan dengan penyusutan volume "gas" yang terperangkap. Cara terbaik untuk menghilangkan efek memori dan membuang sisa gas terperangkap adalah dengan melakukan "burping", atau mengkondisikannya. Maksudnya, menghabiskan seluruh isi baterai pada kamera hingga benar-benar kamerea mati dan melakukan re-charging.

NiMH merupakan pengembangan dari NiCd, dibanding NiCd dengan volume sama, kapasitasnya jauh lebih besar. Namun, seperti halnya NiCd, NiMH juga rawan terhadap memory effect meski tidak sebesar NiCd. Beberapa produsen baterai bahkan menyatakan NiMH produknya bebas memory effect. Fenomena ini muncul saat baterai yang belum habis dipakai sudah di-charge ulang. Bila dilakukan berkali-kali baterai dapat kehilangan kapasitasnya dan hanya mampu menampung sedikit daya saja sebelum dengan cepat habis. Memory effect dapat dihilangkan dengan mengosongkan baterai sampai habis sebelum mengisi ulang.

Li-ion (Lithium) merupakan teknologi terbaru dalam baterai kering isi ulang, lebih ringan dan lebih besar kapasitasnya dari NiMH. Ia juga tidak akan mengalami memory effect hingga Anda bebas mengisi baterai jenis ini kapan saja dan di mana saja. Namun, ia juga paling rentan dengan berbagai macam masalah.

Kata mAh merupakan satuan kapasitas baterai isi ulang. 500 mAh berarti bila baterai dibebani 125 mA (mili amper), ia dapat bertahan 4 jam. Atau 1 jam pada 500mA. Makin besar nilai mAh sebuah baterai berarti ia akan dapat dipakai lebih lama sebelum perlu di-charge ulang. Angka 1.2 V menyatakan besarnya voltase baterai. Pastikan voltase baterai ini sama dengan spesifikasi kamera Anda.

Untuk battery baru, disarankan untuk melakukan proses charging (isi) dan discharging (membuang) setrum 2 sampai 5 kali hingga battery mencapai kapasitas maksimalnya. Cara melakukan discharging dengan menggunakan baterai tersebut sampai tidak bisa digunakan lagi dikamera. Pada alat charger tertentu, disediakan fasilitas untuk discharge baterai. Biasanya fasilitas yang disediakan pada alat ini cukup aman, karena proses pengosongan hanya terjadi sampai batas yang aman.

Setiap 10-15 kali siklus isi ulang baterai NiMH, kosongkanlah baterai hingga habis sama sekali sebelum mengisi ulang. Hal ini dilakukan untuk menghilangkan "bibit-bibit" memory effect yang mungkin timbul.

Jangan sekali-kali mengosongkan baterai dengan bola lampu dan kabel hingga lampu mati. Ini akan dapat merusak sel baterai yang paling lemah (reversal effect), dan pada gilirannya merusak semua sel. Sisakan setidaknya 1V per sel baterai, pantaulah terus-menerus karena voltase baterai akan turun dengan tiba-tiba. Bila Anda tidak memiliki alat untuk itu, lebih baik jangan lakukan. Mengosongkan dengan kamera adalah cara terbaik, karena ambang batas aman pasti tidak kelebihan.

Beberapa produsen baterai NiMH menyatakan bahwa baterainya bisa di recharge lebih dari 500 kali, namun

bila baterai NiMH telah mencapai 400 kali siklus isi ulang, perlu dipersiapkan untuk penggantian baterai tersebut, karena walaupun masih bisa digunakan, biasanya kapasitasnya sudah menurun dan berarti masa pakai sebelum diisi ulang sudah berkurang.. Baterai Li-ion dapat rusak dengan mendadak jika rangkaian di dalamnya rusak.

Untuk membuang baterai yang sudah tidak digunakan, sebaiknya berhati-hati karena kandungan kadmiumnya bisa mencemari tanah.

Self Discharge

Salah satu yang perlu diperhatikan pada penggunaan baterai charge NiCad dan NiMH adalah 'self discharge', yaitu berkurangnya kapasitas yang terdapat pada battery walaupun tidak digunakan. Jumlah/persentasi self discharge pada masing-masing baterai berbeda-beda, tapi bisa diperkirakan sekitar beberapa persen (1 sampai 3%) perhari dari kapasitas maksimumnya dan pada suhu 70 derajat Fahrenheit.

Penempatan baterai NiMH pada temperator yang lebih rendah akan sedikit membantu mengurangi efek self discharge. Ada yang menyebutkan apabila baterai NiMH dibekukan (dingin) dalam 1 bulan sisa kapasitas baterai masih ada 90% sejak terakhir di recharge. Tapi sebelum digunakan, baterai NiMH yang dibekukan tersebut harus dikembalikan dulu pada suhu ruangan yang normal. Jadi setelah kita men-charge baterai NiMH, sebaiknya disimpan pada suhu yang dingin untuk mengurangi efek self dischargenya.

Disarankan untuk me-recharge lagi baterai yang sudah disimpan dalam jangka waktu yang lama sebelum di gunakan.

Berbeda dengan baterai Alkaline, jika baterai Alkaline disimpan pada suhu ruang normal, efek self discharge yang terjadi kurang dari 2% per tahun. Sehingga walaupun disimpan dalam jangka waktu yang lama, kapasitas baterai Alkaline nyaris tidak akan berkurang dari semula. Sebagai catatan, jika baterai Alkaline disimpan pada suhu 85 derajat Fahrenheit, efek self discharge hanya sekitar 5% pertahun, tapi pada 100 derajat Fahrenheit, efek self discharge baterai Alkalin sekitar 25% pertahun. Jadi apabila kita tinggal pada lokasi yang cuacanya sangat panas, disarankan untuk menyimpan baterai Alkalin pada ruang pendingin untuk menghindari efek selft discharge, walaupun persentasinya sangat kecil sekali dibandingkan efek self discharge pada baterai NiMH dalam kondisi suhu yang sama.

Baterai Lithium juga hampir sama dengan baterai Alkaline, efek self dischargenya sangat kecil dibandingkan dengan baterai NiMH, sehingga jika kita charge penuh dan disimpan pada suhu ruang normal pada waktu yang lama, kapasitanya juga tidak akan banyak berkurang. Tapi sampai saat ini untuk ketiga jenis baterai tersebut (Alkaline, NiMH, dan Lithium) baterai NiMH harganya memang lebih murah dibanding yang lainnya. Jadi dipertimbangkan saja menggunakan baterai jenis yang mana dan disesuaikan dengan peralatan yang akan digunakan.

Charging Time

Ada berbagai macam jenis alat charger yang digunakan untuk mengisi ulang baterai NiMH atau NiCd yang kapasitasnya habis. Alat-alat tersebut mempunyai berbagai macam sensor untuk membatasi kelebihan kapasitas (overcharge) yang dapat mengakibatkan sel baterai tersebut rusak dan kemampuan penyimpanannya berkurang. Sensor dalam bentuk timer, biasanya ini sudah disesuaikan satu paket dengan jenis baterainya, sehingga dari awal charging sampai waktu tertentu, alat charger ini dapat menghentikan pengisian sehingga menghindari overcharge. Ada juga dalam bentuk microprocessor yang biasanya disebut oleh produsen sebagai smart rapid charger, yaitu dapat menghitung dengan tepat berapa sisa kapasitas baterai sebelum alat tersebut berhenti men-charge baterai. Kadang alat ini juga dilengkapi dengan detektor suhu baterai yang berfungsi juga untuk membantu mengendalikan charging baterai. Trickle charge, adalah kemampuan alat charger untuk memberikan ampere secara sedikit-sedikit ke baterai NiMH akibat dari efek self discharge (keterangan tentang self discharger diatas). Kemampuan ini berguna untuk menjaga agar baterai selalu dalam kondisi penuh dan siap pakai, walaupun dibiarkan dalam jangka waktu yang lama di alat charger.

Terdapat juga alat charge yang manual, untuk alat ini sebenarnya hampir sama dengan alat charge yang menggunakan sensor, tapi bedanya perlu diperhitungkan dengan tepat sehingga tidak terjadi overcharge, karena alat ini akan men-charge terus selama belum dimatikan, jadi tidak ada indikator baterai sudah penuh. Namun apabila charging timenya tepat dan tidak melebihi hitungan maksimum, maka penggunaan alat ini cukup aman, tapi biasanya arus yang diberikan cukup kecil (untuk menghindari overcharge) sehingga diperlukan waktu lama agar baterai bisa terisi penuh.

Untuk charging Time pada masing-masing jenis alat charge sebenarnya mempunyai perhitungan dasar yang dapat dihitung dengan rumus ideal sebagai berikut :

mahB = Kapasitas Maksimum Baterai
mAhC = Bersarnya Amper perjam yang diberikan charger
th = Total Waktu dalam Jam
th = mAhB / mAhC

Jadi, jika baterai 1800 mAh dan Ampre Chargernya 100 mAh, berarti :

1800 / 100 = 18 jam

Waktu yang diperlukan untuk chargingnya pada kondisi ideal adalah 18 jam.

Penting !

Hindari untuk membawa baterai AA NiMH / NiCd dan disimpan pada kantong baju atau celana (atau dibawa dengan sembarangan), pada keadaan tertentu baterai tersebut dapat berhubungan singkat satu dengan yang lain dan itu dapat menyebabkan panas dan bahkan menyulut api didalam kantong.

Sejarah Fotografi, Sejarah Teknologi

2009-08-03T22:02:00.000-07:00

FOTOGRAFI secara umum baru dikenal sekitar 150 tahun lalu. Ini kalau kita membicarakan fotografi yang menyangkut teknologi. Namun, kalau kita membicarakan masalah gambar dua dimensi yang dihasilkan dari peran cahaya, sejarah fotografi sangatlah panjang. Dari yang bisa dicatat saja, setidaknya "fotografi" sudah tercatat sebelum Masehi.

DALAM buku The History of Photography karya Alma Davenport, terbitan University of New Mexico Press tahun 1991, disebutkan bahwa pada abad ke-5 sebelum Masehi, seorang pria bernama Mo Ti sudah mengamati sebuah gejala. Apabila pada dinding ruangan yang gelap terdapat lubang, maka di bagian dalam ruang itu akan terefleksikan pemandangan di luar ruang secara terbalik lewat lubang tadi.

Kemudian, pada abad ke-10 Masehi, seorang Arab bernama Ibn Al-Haitham menemukan fenomena yang sama pada tenda miliknya yang bolong.

Hanya sebatas itu informasi yang masih bisa kita gali seputar sejarah awal fotografi karena keterbatasan catatan sejarah. Bisa dimaklumi, di masa lalu informasi tertulis adalah sesuatu yang amat jarang.

Demikianlah, fotografi lalu tercatat dimulai resmi pada abad ke-19 dan lalu terpacu bersama kemajuan-kemajuan lain yang dilakukan manusia sejalan dengan kemajuan teknologi yang sedang gencar-gencarnya.

Adalah tahun 1839 yang dicanangkan sebagai tahun awal fotografi. Pada tahun itu, di Perancis dinyatakan secara resmi bahwa fotografi adalah sebuah terobosan teknologi. Saat itu, rekaman dua dimensi seperti yang dilihat mata sudah bisa dibuat permanen.

Penemu fotografi dengan pelat logam, Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre, sebenarnya ingin mematenkan temuannya itu. Tapi, Pemerintah Perancis, dengan dilandasi berbagai pemikiran politik, berpikir bahwa temuan itu sebaiknya dibagikan ke seluruh dunia secara cuma-cuma.

Maka, saat itu manual asli Daguerre lalu menyebar ke seluruh dunia walau diterima dengan setengah hati akibat rumitnya kerja yang harus dilakukan.

Meskipun tahun 1839 secara resmi dicanangkan sebagai tahun awal fotografi, yaitu fotografi resmi diakui sebagai sebuah teknologi temuan yang baru, sebenarnya foto-foto telah tercipta beberapa tahun sebelumnya.

Sebenarnya, temuan Daguerre bukanlah murni temuannya sendiri. Seorang peneliti Perancis lain, Joseph Nicephore Niepce, pada tahun 1826 sudah menghasilkan sebuah foto yang kemudian dikenal sebagai foto pertama dalam sejarah manusia. Foto yang berjudul View from Window at Gras itu kini disimpan di University of Texas di Austin, AS.

Niepce membuat foto dengan melapisi pelat logam dengan sebuah senyawa buatannya. Pelat logam itu lalu disinari dalam kamera obscura sampai beberapa jam sampai tercipta imaji.

Metode Niepce ini sulit diterima orang karena lama penyinaran dengan kamera obscura bisa sampai tiga hari.

Pada tahun 1827, Daguerre mendekati Niepce untuk menyempurnakan temuan itu. Dua tahun kemudian, Daguerre dan Niepce resmi bekerja sama mengembangkan temuan yang lalu disebut heliografi. Dalam bahasa Yunani, helios adalah matahari dan graphos adalah menulis.

Karena Niepce meninggal pada tahun 1833, Daguerre kemudian bekerja sendiri sampai enam tahun kemudian hasil kerjanya itu diumumkan ke seluruh dunia.

FOTOGRAFI kemudian berkembang dengan sangat cepat. Tidak semata heliografi lagi karena cahaya apa pun kemudian bisa dipakai, tidak semata cahaya matahari.

Penemuan cahaya buatan dalam bentuk lampu kilat pun telah menjadi sebuah aliran tersendiri dalam fotografi.

Cahaya yang dinamai sinar-X kemudian membuat fotografi menjadi berguna dalam bidang kedokteran.

Pada tahun 1901, seorang peneliti bernama Conrad Rontgen menemukan pemanfaatan sinar-X untuk pemotretan tembus pandang. Temuannya ini lalu mendapat Hadiah Nobel dan peralatan yang dipakai kemudian dinamai peralatan rontgen.

Cahaya buatan manusia dalam bentuk lampu sorot dan juga lampu kilat (blits) kemudian juga menggiring fotografi ke beberapa ranah lain. Pada tahun 1940, Dr Harold Edgerton yang dibantu Gjon Mili menemukan lampu yang bisa menyala-mati berkali-kali dalam hitungan sepersekian detik.

Lampu yang lalu disebut strobo ini berguna untuk mengamati gerakan yang cepat. Foto atlet loncat indah yang sedang bersalto, misalnya, bisa difoto dengan strobo sehingga menghasilkan rangkaian gambar pada sebuah bingkai gambar saja.

Demikian pula penemuan film inframerah yang membantu berbagai penelitian. Kabut yang tidak tembus oleh cahaya biasa bisa tembus dengan sinar inframerah. Tidaklah heran, fotografi inframerah banyak dipakai untuk pemotretan udara ke daerah-daerah yang banyak tertutup kabut.

Kemajuan Pesat

KEMAJUAN teknologi memang memacu fotografi secara sangat cepat. Kalau dulu kamera sebesar mesin jahit hanya bisa menghasilkan gambar yang tidak terlalu tajam, kini kamera digital yang cuma sebesar dompet mampu membuat foto yang sangat tajam dalam ukuran sebesar koran.

Temuan teknologi makin maju sejalan dengan masuknya fotografi ke dunia jurnalistik. Karena belum bisa membawa foto ke dalam proses cetak, surat kabar mula-mula menyalin foto ke dalam gambar tangan. Dan surat kabar pertama yang memuat gambar sebagai berita adalah The Daily Graphic pada 16 April 1877. Gambar berita pertama dalam surat kabar itu adalah sebuah peristiwa kebakaran.

Kemudian, ditemukanlah proses cetak half tone pada tahun 1880 yang memungkinkan foto dibawa ke dalam surat kabar.

Foto pertama di surat kabar adalah foto tambang pengeboran minyak Shantytown yang muncul di surat kabar New York Daily Graphic di Amerika Serikat tanggal 4 Maret 1880. Foto itu adalah karya Henry J Newton.

Banyak cabang kemajuan fotografi yang terjadi, tetapi banyak yang mati di tengah jalan. Foto Polaroid yang ditemukan Edwin Land, umpamanya, pasti sudah tidak dilirik orang lagi karena kini foto digital juga sudah nyaris langsung jadi.

Juga temuan seperti format film APSS (tahun 1996) yang langsung mati suri karena teknologi digital langsung masuk menggeser semuanya.

Bagaimana pun, fotografi adalah bagian penting dari kebudayaan manusia.(ARBAIN RAMBEY)

Cross GG81

2009-08-03T21:57:00.000-07:00

Tampang Cross GG81 mengingatkan Sinyal pada ponsel TV besutan Nokia di masa-masa awal munculnya ponsel TV, yaitu ponsel lipat yang bisa dibuka ke samping seperti buku. Bedanya, GG81 punya tombol pengunci ekstra (letaknya di dekat siku) yang memastikan bagian layar benar-benar terkunci dalam posisi landscape.

Cross memberi tombol khusus TV. Cari saja tombol bertulisan TV di area keypad. Pada saat ponsel dalam posisi landscape, antena ada di kiri atas, tepat di siku. Posisi ini terasa nyaman ketika memegang ponsel. Setting untuk Analog TV terlihat biasa saja. Tapi ternyata kita bisa merekam siaran TV. Cukup dengan memencet navigasi tengah ketika sedang menonton. Hasil rekaman tinggal diputar kembali di Video player. Kerennya, video pun ternyata masih bisa dipotret lagi. Untuk yang ini, kita tinggal pencet tombol kamera saat video sedang ditonton.

Cross mengklaim tangkapan siaran TV-nya paling bagus di antara ponsel TV lainnya. Cukup bisa dipercaya, sebab kami lihat tayangan gambarnya lumayan bersih meski ditonton di kendaraan bergerak. Namun kami belum membuktikannya di luar kota.

Antena berbagi-pakai antara Analog TV dan FM Radio, sehingga FM Radio bisa langsung dipakai tanpa harus repot colok-colok headset. Di sini pun siaran radio bisa direkam; tinggal pencet navigasi tengah. Melihat tombol pintas MP3 di deretan tombol, agaknya fasilitas ini menjadi salah satu unggulan GG81. Jika diminta memilih antara FM Radio dan Audio player, radionya terasa lebih menarik. Speaker tersebar; yang satu di pojok kiri atas, dan yang satu lagi di kiri kamera. Suaranya nyaring dan lumayan bersih.

Kamera
Setting pada Camera dan Video Recorder terlihat lengkap. Image size maksimal foto adalah 1280x960. Video bisa direkam dengan ukuran dan waktu tak terbatas, tergantung kapasitas memorinya saja. Camera maupun Video Recorder memakai navigasi atas-bawah untuk zoom, kiri-kanan untuk EV dan tengah untuk shoot/record.

Dobel GSM, Sama-sama Aktif
Sesuai kodenya, GG81 mengusung dobel jaringan yang keduanya bisa sama-sama aktif. Opsinya Dual SIM open, Only SIM1 open, Only SIM2 open, dan Flight mode. Kita bisa salin data Phone Book dari SIM ke ponsel dan sebaliknya, juga antar SIM.

Inbox langsung dibagi jadi SIM1 Inbox dan SIM2 Inbox. Cross Mobile menyiapkan Copy to phone/SIM dan Move to phone/SIM.

Kapasitas dan Konektivitas
Slot MicroSD diumpetin di balik batere. Bila dikoneksikan ke PC via kabel data, di ponsel akan muncul pilihan Mass storage, Webcam dan COM port.

DENGAN KATA LAIN...
Ponsel dobel GSM dengan fasilitas hiburan yang asyik.

Sumber: Sinyal

TIPS Pengguna Pocket-Consumer Digicam - Mencegah Under Exposure

2009-08-03T21:55:00.000-07:00

TIPS Pengguna Pocket-Consumer Digicam - Mencegah Under Exposure
Kamera-Digital.com (Chandra R)

Umumnya pengguna kamera saku, mengeluh hasil foto yg mereka dapatkan cenderung kurang terang (under exposure), terutama flash photography (indoor), ini terutama karena pada kamera jenis ini hanya mengandalkan built-in flash yg rendah intensitas cahayanya, sehingga jangkauan / coverage areanya terbatas, ditambah kebiasaan memotret pada jarak maximum jangkauan flash.

Yang sering terjadi adalah:

* pada wide angle lens (zoom out max), hanya daerah tengah saja yg cukup cerah, sementara pada bagian tepi / pojok, cenderung lebih gelap, ini dikarenakan keterbatasan coverage area flash (terlepas masalah design lensa, vignetting).
* pada lensa tele (zoom in max), cenderung keseluruhan kurang cerah (under), ini disebabkan pada posisi zoom in, bukaan aperture mengecil, sehingga lebih banyak dibutuhkan cahaya, akibatnya jangkauan flash memendek.

Untuk menghindari problem tersebut, kita perlu tahu kemampuan flash kamera, umumnya pada kamera saku hanya diberikan data jangkauan max flashnya, misalnya: wide angle: 3 m, tele: 2 m, pd ISO 100.

Setiap peningkatan 1 stop / double (ISO 200), jarak tersebut meningkat 1,4 kali, 2 stop / quadruple (ISO 400) meningkat 2 kalinya, sebaliknya bila ISO turun ½ nya (ISO 50) menurun 0,7 kali.

Untuk mencegah under exposure, usahakan memotret dalam jarak sebelum / di bawah jangkauan max flash.

Ada beberapa hal yg harus diperhatikan:

1.Gunakan ISO tertinggi utk kondisi cahaya kurang (low light) dan atau utk obyek bergerak (foto sport / action), agar obyek cukup tercahayai, sekaligus “membekukan” gerak.

Kelemahan dgn penggunaan ISO tinggi, terutama pada kamera bersensor kecil ini, adalah peningkatan noise (dlm kamera analog / film, grainy), akibat peningkatan sensitifitas sensor terhadap cahaya dengan cara menaikkan gain amplifier sensornya. Tapi tingkat noise ini (umumnya consumer digicam max ISO 400), masih layak cetak utk ukuran kecil (3-4R), bila anda “alergi” dengan noise / grainy, hindari ISO 400, gunakan max ISO 200.

2.Gunakan flash dgn speed rendah (slow synch flash) agar obyek + backgroundnya cukup tercahayai dengan baik.

Ini terutama berguna untuknight shoot / scene, di mana BG yg gelap, akan cukup tercahayai (cerah), hanya yg perlu diingat, walau menggunakan blitz, krn pada speed rendah, usahakan menjaga kamera + subyek fotonya tetap steady (disarankan meng-gunakan tripod / alternatifnya). Keuntungan lainnya, semakin rendah speednya, semakin lebih natural warna cahaya asli yang terekam (misalnya: warna lampu pijar yg lebih warm).

3.Gunakan nilai (+) EV (exposure compensation) utk “mencerahkan” hasil foto kita.

Keuntungan dengan cara ini, adalah: peningkatan kecerahan tidak dibarengi dengan peningkatan noise, karena cara kerjanya adalah dengan menurunkan speed sampai batas “aman”, di mana speed masih cukup tinggi untuk handheld, bila ini masih belum cukup, maka aperturenya yang akan diperbesar; terkait dengan cara kerjanya, kita harus memperhitungkan akibatnya:
# semakin besar nilai (+) EV-nya, semakin rendah speednya, ini tidak cocok untuk “membekukan” gerak obyek, lebih cocok untuk still foto.
# bila sampai aperturenya diperbesar, maka DoF-nya akan memendek, tapi hal ini jarang, apalagi mengingat kamera saku digital mempunyai DoF yang “sangat” panjang, kecuali untuk foto macro.
# karena kecerahan ini sengaja kita “tambahkan”, maka hindari penggunaannya utk foto dalam jarak dekat / close-up (1 m atau kurang), untuk menghindari over exposure; lebih berguna untuk foto yang mendekati jangkauan max flashnya, agar tidak under exposure hasilnya.

Seberapa besar nilai (+) EV-nya (exposure value) ? tergantung berapa cerah foto yg kita inginkan, kondisi penerangan di lokasi pemotretan, dan jangan lupa sesuaikan dengan ISO setting yg kita gunakan, utk itu lakukan percobaan dulu utk menentukan nilainya.

Umumnya nilai +2/3 - 1 (+0,7 - 1,0) pd ISO 100-200 sudah cukup, pada kondisi tertentu yg membutuhkan tingkat kecerahan tinggi, mungkin baru cukup pd ISO 400 (misalnya: foto group yg terpaksa dilakukan pd jangkauan max flash). Untuk auto ISO setting, perhatikan range ISO-nya, umumnya antara 100-200, 100-400, 50-150, tergantung merk / type kameranya (walau kamera umumnya cenderung memilih ISO terendahnya).

Ditulis oleh : Chandra R (chan8lus@cbn.net.id)

Tips Memilih Kamera Digital

2009-08-03T21:54:00.000-07:00

Kamera-Digital.com (CBN)

Kamera Digital mempunyai jenis yang bermacam-macam dan fitur yang terkadang membuat kita bingung untuk memilih sesuai dengan kebutuhan kita. Memilih kamera sebenarnya gampang-gampang susah terutama bagi pengguna yang masuk kategori pemula atau amatir. Oleh karena itu, tips ini sangat berguna bagi calon pengguna kamera sebelum memilih kamera digital yang diinginkan. Berikut beberapa tips sebelum berburu kamera digital.

Resolusi
Gambar digital dibuat oleh titik-titik yang disebut piksel. Resolusi ini merujuk pada banyaknya piksel yang bekerja sama membuat suatu foto. Biasanya ditunjukkan oleh horizontal x vertikal. Resolusi 1280x960 memiliki total 1,2 Megapiksel. Semakin besar resolusi akan memproduksi foto yang juga lebih baik.

Sesuaikan resolusi yang ditawarkan dengan pilihan Anda. Biasanya dalam satu kamera tersedia pilihan resolusi yang berbeda. Jika hanya ingin mengirim foto melalui e-mail, resolusi 640x480 sudah memadai. Tapi jika ingin mencetak sebaiknya pilih resolusi yang lebih besar, agar gambar tidak pecah dan buram.

Pastikan fitur pendukung lainnya
Sebelum membeli, pastikan kamera digital pilihan Anda memilih beberapa fitur pendukung seperti kemampuan memori tambahan. Ini untuk memperbesar gudang penyimpanan foto Anda.

Jika sesekali menginginkan gambar bergerak, pilih kamera yang mendukung video karena beberapa kamera digital ada yang hanya berkemampuan audio saja. Sesuaikan dengan kebutuhan Anda. Video atau audio?

Selain itu perhatikan kemampuan zoom yang ditawarkan. Optical zoom menjadi pusat perhatian ketimbang digital zoom, si peranti kunak yang menyediakan fasilitas croppping dan memperbesar gambar.

Lampu kilat (flash)
Rata-rata produk kamera digital dilengkapi dengan lampu kilat yang terintegrasi. Ada yang otomatis atau perlu menekan tombol on untuk menjalankannya. Flash berguna sebagai pendukung cahaya.

Gambar yang diambil dalam kondisi agak gelap dapat tetap tampil maksimal dengan bantuan lampu menyilaukan.

Perhatikan juga apakah si ramping memiliki fitur tambahan seperti pengurang efek mata merah. Beberapa produk juga datang dengan pilihan foto untuk pengambilan gambar di malam hari atau night scene.

Layar LCD
Layar LCD di bagian belakang kamera digital memudahkan Anda melihat obyek. Di sini Anda juga bisa melihat dan menghapus gambar yang tidak diinginkan. Pilih layar LCD dengan kandungan resolusi yang cukup besar sehingga warna yang tampil lebih natural. Ukuran layar juga berbeda-beda. Pastikan layar tidak terlalu kecil, sehingga gambar bisa tampil maksimal.

Self-timer
Self timer biasanya bisa mencapai 10 detik. Selain memudahkan memotret gambar diri, fitur ini juga berguna untuk mengambil gambar dalam keadaan cahaya yang kurang karena bisa mengurangi guncangan akibat tekanan pada tombol pengambilan gambar.

Daya tahan baterai
Kalau tak ingin kesenangan terputus gara-gara baterai loyo, Anda perlu memperhatikan berapa lama sumber listrik ini bisa bertahan. Memilih baterai yang bisa diisi ulang (rechargeable) adalah tindakan bijaksana dan lebih hemat.

Koneksi
Perhatikan apakah kamera digital Anda bisa berhubungan dengan perangkat digital lainnya seperti televisi, printer, PC atau Mac. Anda akan tertolong dengan adanya USB kabel.

Anda juga bisa mencetak gambar dengan bantuan kabel USB. Beberapa kamera digital sudah mendukung PictBridge yang membuat Anda leluasa mencetak gambar langsung dari kamera digital meski mereknya berbeda.

Adapun keenam vendor yang mempelopori standar terbuka itu adalah Canon, Hewleet-Packard, Seiko Epson Corporation, Olympus Optical Company, Fuji Photo Film Corporation dan Sony Corporation.

Kalkulasi harga
Jangan lupa untuk mengkalkulasi harga perangkat pendukung lainnya seperti baterai isi ulang dan adapter AC.

Waktu operasi
Pilih kamera digital yang tidak butuh waktu terlalu banyak setelah jeda pengambilan gambar. Selisih waktu 4 hingga 6 detik saja mungkin membuat Anda kurang puas dengan kinerja si ramping.

Bandingkan harga dan garansi
Jangan hanya terpikat pada sati toko saja. Kalau ada waktu luang tidak ada salahnya Anda melakukan riset kecil-kecilan sebelum membeli.

Margin keuntungan yang berbeda menjadi sumber mengapa harga yang Anda temui di toko yang satu tidak sama dengan yang lain. Perhatikan juga garansi.

Akhirnya jangan hanya terpikat pada bentuk tubuh yang menggoda tapi perhatikan isi atau fitur yang ada di dalam suatu produk.

Silahkan menggunakan fasilitas Kamera-Digital.com Forum untuk melihat dan mencari informasi tambahan sebelum memutuskan pilihan anda.

Nexian G900

2009-08-03T21:46:00.000-07:00

Ponsel Nexian G900 ini dipaket bersama perdana XL. Di unit yang Sinyal terima, slot 1 sudah langsung dipasangi SIM card XL. Begitu ponsel dinyalakan, kita tinggal registrasikan nomornya.

Jika Anda sudah punya nomor XL, tentu saja nomor bundel itu tetap bisa diganti dengan nomor milik anda. Hanya, kita jadi melewatkan bonus yang ditawarkan XL.

Tapi jika Anda punya nomor operator lain, slot 2 (di bawah slot 1) siap menampungnya. Sebetulnya slot 1 tetap dapat diisi nomor operator lain. Tapi pasti merepotkan bila harus menyetel ulang seluruh setting yang sudah didedikasikan untuk XL. Pengaturan UART setup ada di Settings > Phone setup.

Sebagaimana ponsel dobel GSM lainnya, di sini juga ada pengaturan pengaktifan SIM; ada di Settings > Dual SIM settings, dengan opsi Dual SIM open, Only SIM1 open, Only SIM2 open, dan Flight mode.

Satu hal yang digembar-gemborkan paket ini adalah kemudahan ber-Facebook. Di jajaran menu utama memang kita akan temukan icon Facebook. Begitu diklik, kita akan dibawa ke situs Facebook.

Catat: yang terakses adalah www.facebook.com; bukan http://m.facebook.com. Coba perhatikan ketika kita meng-update status, atau melakukan aktivitas lainnya, tak muncul tag Facebook Mobile.

Mungkin Nexian hanya membuatkan pintasan ke bookmark situs Facebook di WAP browser. Perhatikan opsi menu browser ketika halaman utama Facebook telah terbuka: di situ ada Input address. Artinya, kita tetap bisa browsing ke situs lain dari browser ini.

Menurut kami, akan lebih asyik bila yang terakses adalah Facebook Mobile. Sebab tampilannya jauh lebih ringan. Namun bisa jadi ini tak dianggap penting, mengingat paket XL menawarkan biaya akses internet yang diklaim sangat-sangat murah.

Selain Facebook, Nexian juga memasukkan aplikasi eBuddy dan Opera Mini. Jadi kita bisa chatting maupun browsing semau kita. Apalagi di antara bonus yang diberikan XL ada chatting Rp 0,01 dan bonus 10 MB internetan segila-gilanya.

Di jajaran menu utama, Nexian juga menaruh pintasan khusus ke Email. Penyetelannya pun lumayan mudah. Tapi perlu diingat bahwa ini bukan push email seperti BlackBerry asli. Kita tetap harus pakai Send and receive.

Desain
Sekilas, apalagi bila sudah disarungi, G900 mirip BlackBerry Javelin. Tak heran bila ada sebagian orang yang menjulukinya NexBerry, alias Nexian gaya BlackBerry.

G900 memakai keyboard Qwerty sebagai input. Bagi mereka yang berjemari gajah mungkin agak repot memencetnya karena terasa agak imut. Untuk mengunci keyboard, pencet saja tombol home, lalu pencet tombol *. Cara membukanya juga sama.

Sinyal hanya mendapati 2 tombol khusus di jajaran tombol, yaitu tombol home (bergambar rumah) dan tombol Messages (bergambar amplop). Messages yang dimaksud di sini adalah Text message, MMS dan Chat.

Tombol home sekaligus berfungsi sebagai menu kiri. Tapi untuk masuk ke menu utama, biasanya kami harus pencet navigasi tengah. Navigasi 4-arah jadi pintasan ke aplikasi; ini bisa disetel ulang dari Settings > Phone setup > Dedicated key.

Sebagai ponsel dobel GSM, Nexian menyiapkan 2 tombol call. Gampang dikenali karena ada angka 1 dan 2 di tombol call tersebut. Cara bertelepon ternyata biasa saja: langsung saja pencet tombol angka di keyboard, lalu pencet tombol call yang diinginkan.

Yang penting dicatat dari fungsi telepon agaknya adalah adanya Black list yang bisa mengeblok sampai 5 nomor dan Background sound yang bisa menjadi suara latar saat sedang bertelepon.

Pemakaian tombol untuk angka agak berbeda ketika pengetikan SMS. Kita harus pakai tombol alt lebih dulu untuk memunculkan angka.

Kapasitas dan Konektivitas
Slot MicroSD disembunyikan di balik batere, di kiri bawah. Dalam paket diberikan pula MicroSD Visi-On 1GB.

Port USB mini berada di bawah bodi. Ini bertugas 3-in-1 antara isi ulang batere, transfer data dan headset.

Ketika dikoneksikan ke PC via kabel data, USB config memberi opsi Mass storage, Webcam dan COM port.

Sebagai storage, G900 dibaca sebagai 2 drive; satu dari memori internal dan satu lagi dari MicroSD.

Kamera
Di belakang bodi, kamera akan kita temukan di kanan atas. Tak ada lampu, tak ada cermin. Pun tak terlihat tombol kamera, jadi kita harus masuk ke menu utama lebih dulu.

Navigasi kiri-kanan dipakai untuk menyetel EV, atas-bawah untuk zoom, dan tengah untuk jepret. Ini berlaku untuk Camera maupun Video recorder.

Setting untuk Camera terbilang lengkap. Foto bisa dijepret dengan Image size maksimal 640x480. Sementara video tak diberi opsi resolusi. Setting pada Video recorder tergolong standar.

Setting lainnya bisa disetel dengan cepat pakai keypad. Sekadar catatan kecil, di Camera, tombol 0 bisa dipakai untuk jepret foto. Tapi di Video recorder, tombol 0 tak punya fungsi serupa.

Yang menarik, Image Viewer bisa membuat slide show dari kumpulan foto. Malah bisa disetel dengan Type of play (Auto (Once), Auto (Repeat), Manual), Speed (Medium, Fast, Slow), Effect (No effect, Fade in, Split, Random), BGM (Off, Select from file), Horizontal view dan Sound (Off, Music 1-3).

Pada Video player, entah mengapa navigasi atas-bawah tak difungsikan. Navigasi kiri-kanan dipakai untuk fast backward dan forward, sedangkan tengah untuk Play/Pause.

Radio dan Hiburan Lainnya
Speaker ada di belakang bodi, di kiri atas. Karena tak ada tombol volume, maka dipakailah tombol lain untuk penyetelan suara, yaitu tombol - dan +. Ini dipakai di Video player, Audio player, maupun FM radio.

G900 memang punya radio, yang seperti biasa baru aktif bila headset tercolok. Kita bisa rekam siaran radio hanya dengan memencet navigasi tengah. Tapi bila takut ketinggalan, setel saja perekaman otomatis dengan Schedule FM record. Ada 4 jadwal yang bisa kita siapkan.

Dukungan Java juga memungkinkan kita meng-instal berbagai aplikasi lain berbasis Java, termasuk game. Ini lumayan menambah pengisi waktu luang.

Sumber: Sinyal

Samsung Ultra Touch S8300

2009-08-03T21:23:00.000-07:00

Mereka yang berminat terhadap Samsung Ultra Touch S8300 ini umumnya mengincar kapasitas kameranya yang 8 megapixel. Dimensi foto yang bisa dihasilkannya adalah maksimum 3264x2448 pixel. Dan itu berarti file-nya akan berukuran sekitar 2MB untuk setiap fotonya.

Konsekunesi dari file sebesar itu adalah kebutuhan akan kapasitas penyimpanan yang besar. Dalam hal ini Samsung sudah sangat siap dengan memori internal 80MB dan adanya slot untuk memori eksternal sampai 16GB.

Kualitas foto yang dihasilkan oleh kamera di ponsel ini cukup melegakan, utamanya jika kita memang berharap sepenuhnya pada janji 8 megapixel itu. Menu-menu yang ditampilkan untuk menyetel pembidikan cukup lengkap, meski tidak ditampilkan dengan mengikuti tataletak menu-menu yang umum pada kamera digital tradisional.

Sayang tidak terdapat tombol pintas khusus untuk langsung bisa membuka menu kamera. Akses kamera harus dilakukan dengan membuka menu di layar terlebih dahulu.

Me-review gambar yang sudah dijepret bisa dengan fitur sentuh yang disediakan oleh teknologi layar. Cukup sentuh dan geser seperti menggeser gambar sungguhan. Atau bisa juga dengan cara memiringkan handset sehingga satu bagian lebih rendah dari yang lain. Gambar akan bergeser meluncur ke bagian yang lebih rendah. Menarik.

Lensa kamera tersembunyi oleh slider. Keuntungannya, lensa akan lebih aman karena tidak mudah terpapar atau tergores benda keras. Kekurangannya, untuk memotret, slider harus dalam posisi terbuka, sehingga tidak serta merta dapat langsung memotret ketika kita butuh aksi cepat sebelum kehilangan momen.

Layar
Resolusi foto yang besar ditingkahi dengan tampilan yang ciamik di layar, akan membuat kegiatan memotret bikin ketagihan. Sejumlah 16 juta warna dapat ditampilkan oleh layar, ditopang oleh ukuran layar yang cukup lapang, 2,8”. Angka-angka kuantitatif itu sudah menggiurkan untuk diperoleh pada sebuah ponsel. Dari pengujian Sinyal, masih ditambah pula dengan aspek kualitatif ketajaman dan kekontrasan layar yang tak mudah dicari tandingannya.

Seperti telah disinggung, layar menerima order lewat sentuhan. Menu-menu harus disentuh untuk bisa membuka atau beroperasi. Dari sinilah nama UltraTouch diperoleh.

Jika menemukan bagian yang membutuhkan penggeseran, hal itu bisa dilakukan dengan cara menggeser betulan dari citra yang ada di layar, untuk mendapatkan bagian lainnya. Ya, persis seperti visualisasi teknologi masa depan yang terdapat dalam film-film, sekarang dapat kita rasakan sensasinya di ponsel-ponsel terbaru, termasuk S8300.

Yang agak mengecoh adalah bahwa sering sebuah tampilan menu terlihat sudah tampil utuh, tidak ada lagi sambungan di bawahnya. Padahal kalau digeser, ternyata masih ada bagian lain yang tersembunyi, menunggu digeser. Sepertinya perlu ditambah sedikit petunjuk tentang keberadaan bagian tersisa yang belum terlihat.

Antarmuka
Berkaitan dengan kemampuan dan kualitas layar, Samsung memaksimalkannya dengan sentuhan viusal yang menarik sekaligus fungsional. Meniru yang sudah ngetop di dunia komputer, pada layar utama terdapat widget, yaitu sebuah shortcut dari aplikasi tertentu yang nangkring di sisi kiri layar.

Panel widget ini bisa disembunyikan agar tidak menutup menu-menu utama dan bisa dimunculkan sewaktu-waktu dibutuhkan. Ikon menu pada widget juga bisa ditarik ke tampilan layar utama jika ingin terus digunakan, dan jika sudah tak banyak dibutuhkan lagi, bisa diseret kembali ke panel widget.

GPS
Tidak terlalu menonjol, namun, ponsel ini punya GPS. Dalam setting default, justru sulit mencari menu untuk menggunakan GPS. Kita harus menuju ke Phone Setting dan menggesernya ke bawah untuk mendapatkan GPS Setting. Dari sinilah kita bisa mengaktifkan pencarian GPS.

Tapi ternyata pengujian Sinyal pada unit tersebut tidak membuahkan hasil. Satelit tidak dapat diakuisisi oleh chip GPS pada S8300. Padahal cuaca cerah, langit tak bermega, dan peranti lain yang dijejerkan dapat mengakses satelit dengan sempurna. Kemungkinan besar sistem GPS-nya mengandalkan Assisted GPS yang harus terhubung ke jaringan Internet.

Jika berhasil, Sinyal sudah bersiap memanfaatkan fitur Google Maps yang disediakan.

Multimedia
Hanya ada seleret panel speaker yang terdapat pada bagian atas depan ponsel ini. Namun suara musik yang direproduksinya sangat renyah sampai ke telinga kita. Equalizer-nya memberikan pilihan beberapa genre musik: pop, jazz, rock, orchestra, dan lain-lain. Untuk setiap genre, cukup terasa perbedaan tonjolan alat musik satu sama lain.

Yang sangat mengherankan adalah ketiadaan jack audio, baik 2,5” maupun 3,5”. Rasanya keputusan meniadakan fasilitas ini amat mengherankan karena membuat pengguna yang mengandalkannya sebagai sumber musik tak bisa menghubungkannya ke speaker eksternal.

Aplikasi multimedia lainnya adalah radio, yang mengharuskan kita mencolokkan earphone dulu untuk bisa mendengarkannya. Sementara aplikasi yang benar-benar memanfaatkan keunggulan sistem operasi dan teknologi layar adalah game. Ada game yang memanfaatkan sensor gerakan seperti game Tumbling Dice. Ada juga yang memanfaatkan sensor sentuh seperti PyramidBloxx.

Desain
Menggenggam ponsel ini akan mendapatkan sensasi kokoh dan mantap. Pilihan bahannya menerbitkan kesan keanggunan dan kemewahan. Bagian muka digeber dengan bingkai layar dengan aksen alur logam makin mendukung kesan premium. Bobotnya cukup proporsional sehingga seakan-akan merangsang buku-buku jari untuk lebih menggenggamnya erat, jangan sampai jatuh.

Tidak terdapat tombol navigasi empat arah sebagaimana umumnya. Tombol tengah di bawah layar yang umumnya merupakan tombol navigasi, dalam S8300 ini hanya berfungsi sebagai tombol Back untuk kembali ke menu sebelumnya. Ini karena diasumsikan Anda akan mengoptimalkan layar sentuh untuk semua operasi.

Ponsel ini memilih bentuk sliding. Keypad hanya akan muncul jika bagian bawah peranti ini digeser keluar. Dalam keadaan tertutup, tampilannya menjadi minimalis dengan hanya menyisakan tiga tombol pokok. Layar yang lapang mendominasi, cocok untuk memainkan file video atau gambar. Apalagi layar ponsel ini juga mendukung tampilan rebah (horisontal) dengan dimensi panjang dan lebar mengikuti format video mutakhir.

Sumber: Sinyal

Cara membersikan virus “Folder Cinta” penebar Virus

2009-08-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

Trojan: Autorun.QBP
“Folder Cinta” penebar Virus

Ciri ciri file virus
Ciri ciri dari file virus Autorun.QBP, diantaranya :
• Menggunakan icon “Folder Cinta”
• Memiliki ukuran 793 kb
• Type file “Application”
• Ber-extension exe

Gejala / efek virus
Jika anda terinfeksi oleh virus Autorun.QBP, maka akan menimbulkan gejala/efek sebagai berikut,
• Disetiap file sharing akan muncul file virus dengan nama “[namaacak].exe” dan file system yang kosong dengan nama “khq”. File khq ini juga akan berada pada setiap root drive.
• File virus aktif di memori komputer dengan nama “csrcs.exe” pada proses dengan username lokal. Anda dapat melihat dengan menggunakan task manager pada tab processes.
• Tidak dapat menampilkan file yang sudah di hidden. (walaupun “folder options” sudah di rubah ber-kali kali, akan kembali hidden)
Registri Windows
Walau tidak banyak aksi yang dilakukan, Autorun.QBP juga membuat perubahan pada registry

Media penyebaran
Virus Autorun.QBP, dapat menyebar dengan cepat melalui jaringan serta USB Flash/removable drive.
Pada USB Flash/removable drive, ia akan membuat 2 file dengan attribute RHSA (Read, Hidden, System, Archive), yaitu :
• Autorun.inf,
• [namaacak.exe], file virus yang berukuran 793 kb
Pada jaringan, ia akan membuat 2 file (pada root folder lokal yg di sharing, serta masuk pada folder/drive dalam jaringan yang full-sharing), yaitu :
• khq, file kosong yang yang merupakan jejak persinggahan virus Autorun.QBP
• [namaacak.exe], file virus yang berukuran 793 kb

Cara pembersihan secara manual:
1. Disconnect/putuskan hubungan komputer yang akan dibersihkan dari jaringan.
2. Disable/matikan “System Restore” selama proses pembersihan virus.
3. Gunakan “Task Manager” untuk mematikan proses virus yang aktif. (kemungkinan besar dengan nama “csrsc.exe”).
Untuk membuka task manager, dapat dilakukan dengan menekan secara bersama Ctr+Alt+Del, atau dengan klik kanan pada taskbar windows. Selanjutnya matikan proses virus dengan klik [End Process] pada proses csrsc.exe.
4. Hapus file utama dari virus Autorun.QBP, yang terdapat pada C:\WINDOWS\system32, dengan nama csrsc.exe yang berukuran 793 kb dan Autorun.inf yang berukuran 1 kb.
Gunakan search/find, untuk mencari file virus duplikat yang lain, terutama pada media sharing atau USB Flash/removable drive, file virus berukuran 793 kb, berextension exe & ber type application serta file khq di seluruh drive. Jangan lupa untuk menampilkan attribute “Show hidden file…” dan menghilangkan attribute “Hide protected operating…” pada Folder Options.
5. Hapus string registry yang sudah dibuat oleh virus. Untuk mempermudah dapat menggunakan script registry dibawah ini.

[Version]
Signature=”$Chicago$”
Provider=Vaksincom Oyee
[DefaultInstall]
AddReg=UnhookRegKey
DelReg=del
[UnhookRegKey]
HKLM, SOFTWARE\Classes\batfile\shell\open\command,,, “”"%1″” %*”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\ Classes \comfile\shell\open\command,,, “”"%1″” %*”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\ Classes \exefile\shell\open\command,,, “”"%1″” %*”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\ Classes \scrfile\shell\open\command,,, “”"%1″” %*”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\ Classes \piffile\shell\open\command,,, “”"%1″” %*”
HKLM, SOFTWARE\ Classes \regfile\shell\open\command,,, “regedit.exe “%1″
HKLM, SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon, Shell, 0, Explorer.exe
[del]
HKLM, SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\Explorer\Run

Gunakan notepad, kemudian simpan dengan nama “repair.inf” (gunakan pilihan Save As Type menjadi All Files agar tidak terjadi kesalahan).
Jalankan repair.inf dengan klik kanan, kemudian pilih [install].

6. Untuk pembersihan secara optimal terhadap virus Autorun.QBP, gunakan Norman Malware Cleaner yang dapat mendeteksi dan membasmi virus ini dengan baik. Jika anda ingin terproteksi dari virus ini dan virus mancanegara lainnya, gunakan antivirus Norman Security Suite (Single User) atau Norman Endpoint Protection (Corporate User) yang dapat mencegah komputer anda terinfeksi virus mancanegara dan virus lokal dengan baik dan khusus pelanggan korporat akan mendapatkan di support ONSITE Gratis oleh Vaksinis (teknisi PT. Vaksincom).
Anda dapat mendownload Norman Malware Cleaner pada link berikut :
http://normanasa.vo.llnwd.net/o29/public/Norman_Malware_Cleaner.exe

Advan G2T-64S

2009-08-03T21:18:00.000-07:00

Mengikuti tren casing glossy yang halus mulus pada notebook masa kini, Advan G2T-64S tampil tak kalah licin meski pelapisan luks ini lebih pada cover-nya saja. Intinya, Advan ingin agar G2T-62 ini menjadi notebook ringan yang tak kalah gaya namun tetap terjangkau kantong Anda. Ya, di antara notebook sejenis lainnya model dari Advan ini memang tergolong paling ekonomis, sesuai untuk Anda yang memang mencari notebook yang lebih mengedepankan faktor kinerja plus harga.

Namun Advan terlalu membesar-besarkan desain G2T-64S yang disebutnya elegan dan bergaya itu. Klaim tersebut lebih berlaku pada bentuk luar saja. Begitu kita menengok/membuka bagian dalamnya, kesan mewah tersebut langsung lenyap.

Layar 12,1” yang digunakan memang memakai teknologi DCS (Digital Crystal Screen) yang membuat tampilannya tajam. Namun penampilannya jadi kurang seimbang dengan tampilan keyboard dan touchpad. Bagian input tersebut justru tampil biasa saja, apalagi kunci-kunci dan tombol touchpad tidak terlalu empuk ditekan alias kurang nyaman.

Dalam hal kelengkapan, Advan G2T-64S sudah mencukupi sebagaimana fitur standar notebook. Adanya tambahan port HDMI dan shortcut multimedia sentuh menjadi nilai tambah yang baik. Namun, beberapa kekurangan tetap muncul, misalnya port USB yang hanya berjumlah dua dengan letak saling berjauhan. Ini jelas menyulitkan koneksi ke beragam gadget pendukung.

Webcam 1,3 megapixel yang diklaim bersensor bagus nyatanya kurang tajam menangkap obyek di depan notebook. Seri ini juga belum menyertakan koneksi Bluetooth meskipun kunci untuk feature ini telah disediakan. Agaknya, harga yang murah memang membuat notebook ini memangkas beberapa fitur yang adakalanya kurang diperlukan.

Meski “kurang bersolek”, Advan G2T-64S mengusung prosesor kelas “lumayan” yakni Core 2 Duo T6400 2 GHz dengan FSB 800MHz. Prosesor ini setingkat di atas T5750 dengan clock yang sama pada seri mereka sebelumnya, G2T-75 (namun dengan FSB lebih rendah yakni 667MHz). Komponen penyerta lainnya tergolong standar, seperti memori DDR2 1 GB dan harddisk 160GB. Untuk grafis, notebook hanya mengandalkan chip Intel X4500 yang lazim pada notebook mainstream sekarang ini.

***

Untuk mereka yang lebih mementingkan komputasi mobile untuk aktivitas office, Internet, atau hiburan ringan, semestinya Advan G2T-64S sudah memuaskan. Namun Anda yang mengutamakan detil dan kelengkapan fungsi mungkin akan sedikit kecewa. Untuk mengetahui unjuk kerjanya, Anda bisa lihat pada tabel di bawah ini. Semestinya gambaran pada tabel tersebut memang tampak wajar untuk notebook ringan dengan kisaran harga Rp 6 jutaan.

Sumber: InfoKomputer

AVG Jaga Keamanan di Indonesia

2009-08-03T21:16:00.000-07:00

AVG Technologies, pemimpin dalam pengembang software keamanan Internet, hari ini meluncurkan versi bahasa Indonesia untuk AVG Internet Security 8.5 dan AVG Anti-Virus 8.5. Untuk pertama kalinya, Indonesia dapat menggunakan proteksi AVG dalam bahasa nasional.

"Dengan perkenalan produk bahasa lokal, kami menawarkan proteksi lengkap melawan ancaman web yang telah disesuaikan dengan pengguna di Indonesia," kata Karel Obluk, CTO of AVG Technologies.

AVG Anti-Virus 8.5 dan AVG Internet Security 8.5 diciptakan untuk dapat memenuhi kebutuhan di rumah dan perkantoran skala kecil. Penawaran ini diciptakan atas komitmen AVG untuk menciptakan proteksi yang aman, ringkas, lebih pintar, ramah lingkungan dan relevan terhadap pengguna yang menginginkan rasa aman.

AVG Anti-Virus akan melindungi komputer pengguna dari ancaman dan virus, spyware, trojan, worm, dan rootkit. AVG Anti-Virus menawarkan proteksi yang meliputi pencarian real-time untuk pengalaman online bebas masalah, download file dari web dan menukar file melalui instant messaging tanpa resiko infeksi malware, mendeteksi infeksi dari spyware, virus dan worms, serta teknologi anti-rootkit terkini untuk melawan serangan beruntun.

Sementara AVG Internet Security menyediakan proteksi real-time dan lengkap menghadapi ancaman spam ke inbox email dan menyediakan firewall. AVG Internet Security meliputi Active Surf-Shield & Search-Shield Technologies dan Identity Protection. Keunikan dari Active Surf-Shield & Search-Shield Technologies adalah melindungi Anda secara real-time melawan ancaman cyber pada saat Anda membuka link. AVG Identity Program juga telah melangkah maju dengan menggunakan teknologi terkini untuk mendeteksi dan menghalangi ancaman yang tidak diketahui sebelum ini merusak sistem Anda. AVG Internet Security melindungi dari serangan tidak terlihat yang diciptakan oleh orang yang tidak bertanggung jawab di Internet.

AVG Anti-Virus dan AVG Internet Security berjalan pada Windows 2000/XP, Vista or Vista SP1. AVG Identity Protection yang ditawarkan dengan AVG Internet Security yang berjalan pada Windows XP SP1, 2 Pro or Home, Windows Vista 32/64-bit. AVG Anti-Virus 8.5 dijual seharga Rp 248.100 dan AVG Internet Security Rp 354.400.

WAH

Printer Canon PIXMA

2009-08-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

"Open sesame", dan pintu gua pun terbuka. Begitu dikisahkan dalam cerita 1001 Malam, tepatnya Alibaba dan 40 penyamun. Nah, prinsip serupa diterapkan Canon pada dua printer multifungsi inkjet PIXMA barunya: MX328 dan MX338.

Begitu pekerjaan cetak dimulai, maka baki kertas yang tadinya tertutup pun otomatis akan membuka, siap memuntahkan kertas berisi hasil cetak, termasuk foto. Tidak perlu mantra Open sesame loh! Fitur self-opening paper output tray ini mengurangi resiko terjadinya paper jam akibat baki kertas masih tertutup saat proses cetak sudah berlangsung.

Tentu bukan hanya itu yang diunggulkan kedua printer inkjet all-in-one baru ini. Karena multifungsi, printer juga bisa dijadikan mesin fax dan scanner. Kedua fungsi tersebut boleh dijalankan bersamaan dengan menggunakan Auto Document Feeder berkecepatan tinggi.

Untuk fax, dukungan Super 3G High Speed Faxing sudah dibenamkan. Sedangkan untuk mencetak, resolusi 4800x1200 dpi diusung. Sebuah foto 4x6 inci pada resolusi maksimal itu disebutkan Canon akan tuntas dicetak dalam tempo sekitar 45 detik. Untuk memudahkan pengguna mengakses fitur printer, sebuah LCD warna 1,8” terpasang di PIXMA MX338.

Selain MX328 dan MX338, Canon juga memperkenalkan seri MX868 yang mendukung resolusi cetak mencapai 9600x2400 dpi. Printer berteknologi FINE ini didukung oleh 2368 nozzle printhead dan mampu menghasilkan butiran tinta yang sangat halus, sebesar 1 picoliter.

Datang lengkap dengan LCD 2,4”, MX868 ditujukan pada kalangan bisnis yang perlu banyak mencetak dengan kualitas tinggi. Karena itu, fitur auto-duplex (cetak bolak-balik), ADF duplex scanning dan copying 35-lembar, Super 3G faxing, serta jalur umpan kertas 2-arah, juga dukungan jaringan Wi-Fi dan Ethernet pun diberikan. Ini masih ditambah dengan fitur PDF yang diproteksi oleh password dan juga MP Navigator EX untuk memudahkan penyuntingan foto atau hasil scan.

PIXMA MX328 ditawarkan dengan harga Rp 1,5 juta, sedangkan MX338 dibandrol RP 1,795 juta. Sementara itu MX868 yang bisa dikoneksikan ke jaringan melalui kabel maupun secara nirkabel dilepas pada harga Rp 4,25 juta.

WIEK