Innovative Tech News

RPI Creates Intelligent Avatar

2008-03-13T04:48:00.000-07:00

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, have created a virtual character with the reasoning abilities of a 4 year old child.

"...At a recent conference on artificial intelligence, the researchers unveiled the “embodiment” of their success to date: “Eddie,” a 4-year-old child in Second Life who can reason about his own beliefs to draw conclusions in a manner that matches human children his age."
“Current avatars in massively multiplayer online worlds — such as Second Life — are directly tethered to a user’s keystrokes and only give the illusion of mentality,” said Selmer Bringsjord, head of Rensselaer’s Cognitive Science Department and leader of the research project. “Truly convincing autonomous synthetic characters must possess memories; believe things, want things, remember things.”

"Such characters can only be engineered by coupling logic-based artificial intelligence and computational cognitive modeling techniques with the processing power of a supercomputer, according to Bringsjord..."

Alternatives to Windows Vista

2008-01-29T04:19:00.000-08:00

Worried about having to upgrade to Windows Vista on every PC?

Concerned that your PCs can't meet Microsoft's requirements for powerful memory and graphics capabilities?

You're not alone.

Estimates are that 50% of the average business PCs in the US do not meet the minimum Vista requirements, and 94% do not meet the Vista Premium requirements.

If you're considering deploying Vista, then you're probably going to need to replace your desktop PCs.

And if you're going to replace your desktops, why not consider Symbio diskless thin clients instead?

If you want to move to Vista enterprise-wide, you could upgrade the server to Vista and switch the desktops to Symbio thin clients, instead of upgrading the server to Vista and replacing all the desktops with Vista-capable PCs. Symbio thin clients are far less expensive than Vista-capable PCs, far more secure, reliable, and longer lasting.

Boot, command and control your 6" tall, diskless thin clients with The Symbiont Boot Appliance.

Now you only have to touch one machine to update everyone instantly.

Don't just upgrade your network. Improve it!

Make this upgrade your last upgrade with The Symbiont Solution

Smaller than a paperback book and weighing just 2 pounds, our SYM1112 has the perfect footprint for every working environment.

no moving parts
nothing to break
no embedded software
nothing that can be corrupted

And offers the maximum in data security.

ITB, Inc is a Symbio Authorized Reseller.

New Product - GorrilaPod

2008-01-25T08:28:00.000-08:00

if you need a tripod for your lightweight digital camera? You will want to try Gorillapod

Gorrillapod firmly secures your camera to just about anything — anywhere and everywhere! Unlike traditional tripods, the Gorillapod has flexible, gripping legs which can wrap around almost any surface. It is now available in three sizes!

Available from $21.95US

ANN: Thin Clients with Altiris admin capabilities

2008-01-24T04:33:00.000-08:00

Announcement:

Computer Lab International (CLI), announces support for the world-renowned third party management software, Symantec Altiris® Deployment Solution™.

Placentia , CA (PRWEB) January 7, 2008 -- Computer Lab International (CLI), one of the leading thin client manufacturers, announces support for the world-renowned third party management software, Symantec Altiris® Deployment Solution™. Altiris® management solutions enjoy broad customer acceptance and broad support for managing PCs and thin clients alike.

Altiris® Deployment Solution™ software allows customers to distribute a preconfigured image to MT3500 series XP Embedded Thin Clients within their network. This imaging capability is in addition to the robust imaging support of the CLI Thin Client Management Console - SNMPAdm. Altiris® brings best of breed, enterprise class device management while SNMPAdm allows ease of installation and use with essential management capabilities.

Altiris® support on CLI thin clients proactively meets customer demands for those already leveraging the Altiris® for deployments solutions in their networks. Preconfigured images can be deployed to one or thousands of CLI thin clients using Altiris® Deployment Solution™, which can be load balanced to meet the requirements in Enterprise class deployments.

Altiris® Deployment Solution™ software by Symantec®, reduces the cost for the management of Thin Clients, desktops, notebooks and servers. Using the Altiris® solution, IT managers are able to automate the installation of software components, operation system images, the migration of user data and profiles, as well as patch distribution.

A preconfigured, "Altiris®-ready" image is now available for download upon request from Computer Lab International. This image is preconfigured with the latest Altiris® agent and expedites initial image configuration with complete support from both CLI and Altiris® technical services groups.

ITB is a CLI value added reseller. for more information or a demo unit contact us today.

Handling .NET Toolstrip merge and unmerge in C#

2008-01-19T05:27:00.000-08:00

The Tool strip control that ships with VS2005 allows you to create a Windows™ style tool bar for your MDI Applications. This control works well with one exception: automatic unmerging.

The win forms tool strip control has no provision for automatic unmerging of child form tool strip controls from the MDI Parent form tool strip; If anybody knows why the folks in Redmond did this please let me know. Anyway, to work around this you need to use the ToolStripManagers RevertMerge method. Sounds simple, right?

Well... yes and no.

The answer lies in using OnMdiChildActivate method this fires the MdiChildActivate Event. If you try using MdiChildActivate by itself nothing happens by the way. so you need this method to fire it.

First you will need a MDI parent form with a tool strip and a MDI Child form with a tool strip. Name the tool strips tsParent and tsChild. Set the tsChilds visible property to false. Add controls to the tool strips as needed.

Next add an Interface to you solution and call it IChildForm. For our purposes this interface will have only one property called ChildToolStrip

namespace foo
{

interface IChildForm
{
ToolStrip ChildToolStrip { get;set;}
}
}

Next you need to implement this interface in the Child Form(s).

public ToolStrip ChildToolStrip
{
get
{
return tsChild;
}
set
{
tsChild = value;
}
}

Next...You will need to override OnMdiChildAcivate in the parent form. Also don't forget to call the base implementation
of OnMdiChidActivate().

protected override void OnMdiChildActivate(EventArgs e)
{

base.OnMdiChildActivate(e); //REQUIRED
HandleChildMerge(); //Handle merging

}

Next you will need to call the base implementation of OnMdiChildActivate. Next add the following code for the HandleChildMerge method.

private void HandleChildMerge()
{
ToolStripManager.RevertMerge(tsParent);
IChildForm ChildForm = ActiveMdiChild as IChildForm;
if (ChildForm != null)
{
ToolStripManager.Merge(ChildForm.ChildToolStrip, tsParent);
}
}

Now your toolstrips should unmerge automatically...

10 minute E-Mail

2008-01-19T05:00:00.000-08:00

Ever wanted to have a temporary, throwaway e-mail address? One you could use when you are filling out a web form and they require you to provide an e-mail address. 10 Minute mail is a free service that allows you to create a free e-mail address that lasts for 10 minutes.

Sender Policy Framewoks, Helps Fight Spam

2008-01-02T06:58:00.000-08:00

Have you ever received an e-mail that supposedly came from you but was not sent by you or your company? For example; you have an e-mail account called Sales@MyCompany.com and one day you receive an e-mail from Sales@MyCompany.com. You didn't send this e-mail, it's spam, it could be an ad for herbal medicine or a get-rich quick scheme.

No big deal, just delete it right?

Well not really, actually it is a big deal. Think about it, that spammer is sending his electronic trash, (with your companies name on it) to potentially thousands of other e-mail addresses!

This can damage your companies reputation.

Fortunately, there is a solution.

SPF = Sender Policy Framework

"SPF fights return-path address forgery and makes it easier to identify spoofs.
Domain owners identify sending mail servers in DNS. SMTP receivers verify the envelope sender address against this information, and can distinguish authentic messages from forgeries before any message data is transmitted."

Setting up SPF is free. If you don't have one set up one today Read More

Beware the top online holiday scams

2007-12-13T04:43:00.000-08:00

Tis' the season, for scammers and other crooks. To make sure you don't get scammed, check out this list of the top online scams. Oh yes...Merry Christmas.

Upgrading to Visual Studio 2008, Use Caution

2007-12-06T07:22:00.000-08:00

If you plan to upgrade to VS 2008 take care. Installation can be tricky if you are using the BIDS
features of SQL Server 2005. Read More

Get your own TV Show

2007-11-15T04:46:00.000-08:00

Something like YouTube for live video, this site can turn web cam owners into video broadcasters.

Ustream is a platform that provides live interactive video for everyone. Anyone with a camera and an Internet connection can use Ustream to broadcast to a global audience.

Just go to the site, register and name your show and you get a web cam specific URL that can be viewed 24/7, best of all its free.

Senate approves 7 year Internet tax ban

2007-11-08T04:21:00.000-08:00

The Senate has approved a 7 year extension to the ban on Internet taxation. The extension will prevent greedy state bureaucrats from imposing new taxes on internet usage; which could increase internet use fees by as much as 17%. GOP lawmakers want to make the ban permanent; saying it would spur investment in broadband internet access, Democrats forever in love with taxes of any kind, blocked the attempt

Free download teaches programming

2007-11-01T04:56:00.000-07:00

Want to learn game development or OOP? A free tool called 'Alice' can help; According to the Alice.org site: "Alice is an innovative 3D programming environment that makes it easy to create an animation for telling a story, playing an interactive game, or a video to share on the web. Alice is a teaching tool for introductory computing.

Evil PDF Attacking IE7

2007-10-25T04:59:00.000-07:00

If you are using IE7 on XP or Win2003, watch out! A PDF based trojan horse is exploiting a URL handling flaw in IE7 Read more

Looking for free stuff

2007-10-25T04:40:00.000-07:00

Looking for free software? We found this site through Stumble!
Read more

MS extends XP deadline for OEMS

2007-10-01T09:23:00.000-07:00

Microsoft has announced it will give OEMs another six months to sell PCs with Windows XP installed. This means the new deadline will now be June 30 2008. Read more

Daylight Savings Time Changes

2007-09-29T05:23:00.000-07:00

DST will end on November 4, 2007, which is one week later than usual. This results in a new DST period that is four weeks longer than in previous years. How critical is this problem to you? If you are a home user, the DST changes may only be a minor nuisance. However, for business users
the DST changes could cause severe problems. What do you need to do? We found this site at Microsoft that may be of some help in resolving these stupid DST issues.

SIMT Opening review

2007-09-27T04:49:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, we had an opportunity to go to the SIMT (Southeastern Institute for Manufacturing and Technology) grand opening. Located at Florence-Darlington Technical College, in Florence SC;
SIMT is an amazing facility! Designed to aid in the training of next generation manufacturing workers and assist in attracting hi-tech manufacturing companies to South Carolina.

Adding to the wow factor of the facility, was the 3d virtual reality simulations provided by EON Reality. Their demo included a wall sized video display, running a simulation of a corporate jet interior. Read more

Down memory lane

2007-09-06T06:18:00.000-07:00

Have fond memories of that old Apple IIC or TRS-80?
Relive them here. Read more

For $20 a month you can destroy someones life

2007-09-05T06:24:00.000-07:00

Hackers have started advertising their skills. For $20 a month the hacker will
promise to sign the targeted person up online and destroy their life
making sure the victim can't get a job, credit etc. Read more

Mini Digital Camera from Rollei

2007-09-04T05:31:00.000-07:00

Rollei has come out with a miniature digital version of its
2.8f Camera. For those of you who want the style, without
the $4500 price tag of a 2.8f the MiniDigi is for you. Read More

Win Server 2008 Rollout Delayed -- Again

2007-08-31T05:20:00.000-07:00

Windows Server 2008 RTM scheduled for roll out late this year has been
pushed back to sometime 1Q of 2008. Read more

YokkTo: ultra small PC project

2007-08-29T04:47:00.001-07:00

YokkTo (derived from yocto or 10 to the -24).
is our ultra small PC project. Starting with the form factor, we decided that the smallest reasonable size was the nano-itx form factor. Pico-itx was considered but rejected, largely due to the lack of cases designed to fit pico-itx mobo's.

Next step: case and motherboard selection.

Fujitsu's New Primergy: Small, Energy Efficient Server

2007-08-29T04:39:00.000-07:00

Starting Aug. 28, Fujitsu will begin offering the Primergy TX120, a small-form-factor, one-socket tower system that promises to use less energy and run quieter than the Fujitsu's other low-end servers. Measuring 4 inches wide by 13 inches high and 16 inches deep, uses about 163 watts of electricity, which means the server consumes about 40 percent less power compared with Fujitsu's own TX150 system. Read More

Solid State Drives

2007-08-24T04:50:00.000-07:00

Your Hard drive may soon be replaced by a solid state drive. Seagate announced it will offer solid-state drives (SSDs) in 2008. “SSDs offer a couple advantages over disk-based drives: they’re lighter, consume less power, and more rugged, making them ideal for laptops and mobile devices. The drives are available in capacities up to 160GB, according to Seagate’s Web site.” Read More

No batteries required

2007-08-20T05:44:00.000-07:00

That bulky and expensive laptop PC battery may soon be a thing of the past.
Researchers at MIT have succeeded in powering a light bulb without wires
from a distance of 7 feet. Called WiTricity (Wireless Electricity), the technology
could in time render batteries obsolete. Read more

No ink required

2007-08-20T05:07:00.000-07:00

Zink has come out with a new camera that
prints photos without using ink. The 7 megapixel
device prints small color photographs on special paper.
due out later this year no word on pricing.