Vol 2, Issue 22

                                                                                        

So, T6 is a bit late this holiday week as I did not work on it over the holiday weekend.  Okay I did start but the wife caught me and I had to stop.

 

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* Wifi *

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Wireless Client update for Windows XP with Service Pack 2

Microsoft  finally issued a fix for a long time problem in Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2). Users with that OS  would find that when starting up, if the Wi-Fi was turned on, the laptop would automatically connect to previously associated networks. They didn't fix that part. But  the patch  does prevent the list of preferred networks from being shown to anyone in range, such as a rogue AP or laptop with ad hoc networking turned on. Nothing prevents the connection to the rogue if it has the same name/settings as a previously connected network except you handling the connection manually.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917021

T6 Comment: Of course these are all issues Microsoft denied were occurring - I do not actually know this but for those who remember the release of Windows 2k and the host of issues which were suddenly touted as  fixes and improvements from the Win98 days. and Win2k and oh yeah XP.   

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Ralink Technology Announces Industry's Longest Range draft-802.11n Wi-Fi Chipset

RaLink Technologies' new 802.11n draft-compliant chip supposedly has the longest range in the industry. The RT2800 will double the range of other chips using a "patented, low-noise circuitry that pinpoints and recovers the high-speed 802.11n streams of data," according to RaLink's claims. The chip can be used in APs for residences, business, and outdoors. It is designed to take software upgrades as the 11n draft changes in the future. Standard interfaces for the chip include PCI, miniPCI, CardBus, USB 2.0, PCIe, and MiniCard.

http://www.ralinktech.com/ralink/Home/News/PressReleases/12_18_2006.html

T6 comment: You will kindly notice that the press release from Ralink does not mention exactly what range the "...longest range..." is.  With all the positives the n standard is to bring-(low power consumption and high data through put)- it is still not a verified standard and range is one of its biggest issues.  IEEE states a July 07 date for release but still had over 1000 issues for the committee to resolve at closing of the last meeting.  This combined with several technical reviewers pointing out test showing just awful range on the current production models to claim n standard compatibility, make it questionable for summer release.  I had an individual describe to me an inability to obtain b\g Access points and routers as all the shops in his area were expunging stock to make room for the n versions, I wouldn't count on that.  Those looking for higher data rates and more reliable range connection will have to wait just a little while longer, or design better network topologies. 

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*HD \DTV*

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LCD Shipments Hit All-Time High

LCD monitor shipments hit an all time high in the third quarter with 34.6 million units shipped worldwide, according to DisplaySearch.

The LCD market grew 21.9 percent year-over-year and 16.3 percent from the previous quarter. Worldwide revenues grew as well from the second quarter, jumping 7.4 percent to $9.4 billion; however, the vast majority of this growth took place outside the North American market, which saw quarterly sequential growth nudge up just 2 percent.

Third quarter's five best selling LCD monitor categories by size/resolution.

Size/Resolution	Q2'06 Share	Q3'06 Share	Q2/Q3 Unit Growth
17" SXGA	52.7%	50.8%	12%
19" SXGA	25.7%	24.6%	11%
15" XGA	11.8%	10.1%	0 %
19" Wide	4.1%	8.1%	129%
20" Wide	2.1%	2.2%	23%

http://www.twice.com/article/CA6401433.html

T6 Comment: LCD is the king of the Displays, but note the line about "...Vast majority of this growth took place outside North American market...".  still even in North America LCD sales trump plasma.   Everyone is getting squeezed by the need to reduce prices to inspires buyers to pony up and upgrade to a flat panels in general, thus lower margins for the stores.   See the last article quote in this section for more.

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Forget L.C.D.; Go for Plasma, Says Maker of Both

What kind of company takes out ads in daily newspapers attacking one of its own type of products? In the case of Panasonic, the answer is a company that has significant investments in a rival technology

... the company believes that plasma technology is under unfair attack from competitors making “desperate attempts” to denigrate what it sees as plasma’s superiority

This holiday, Panasonic went a step further, running an ad in newspapers around the country under the heading “Six facts you need to know before you buy a large flat-panel TV.” The ad points out plasma’s superior contrast, color rendition, crisp motion, viewing angle and durability when compared to L.C.D. TVs.

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/12/25/business/25flat.190.jpg

Link to a JPEG  of the 'Six Facts' Ad

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/12/25/business/25flat.190.jpg

T6 Comment: Regardless of the 6 'facts' the ad purports Plasma is still a display out of reach price wise for the average buyer.  Most are still unbearably confused about HD, how to get it, that they don't just get HD because they bought an HD set, what the different resolutions really mean-( or what would be compatible with The Blu-Ray or HD-DVD formats) or even that they should insure the units come with HDMI inputs. Yes, most of what the Ad states is reasonably true, my question is give the price differences will the average consumer see this as worth the cash.  Given the sad state of HD sales and subscriptions I do not get a warm and fuzzy on this yet.

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Circuit City Sees Red Over Flat-Panel Pricing

Circuit City’s profits plummeted in its fiscal third quarter as the No. 2 electronics chain succumbed to the flat-panel margin pressures that are roiling the CE industry.

In a conference call, Schoonover said the magnitude and the velocity of the price declines were “unprecedented” in all his years in the industry, and described the situation as a “sea change” in flat panel. He traced the volatility to a plasma TV vendor with excess inventory, and to defensive responses by two LCD vendors that viewed the price moves as grab for market share.

a conference call, Schoonover said the magnitude and the velocity of the price declines were “unprecedented” in all his years in the industry, and described the situation as a “sea change” in flat panel. He traced the volatility to a plasma TV vendor with excess inventory, and to defensive responses by two LCD vendors that viewed the price moves as grab for market share.

http://www.twice.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articleID=CA6401414

T6 Comment:  and Circuit City is not the only one as NPR, Bloomberg Radio and the Wall Street Journal report all describe both big box stores - Best Buy, et al- and smaller boutique sellers are suffering less then expected profits due to lowering margins on monitors which are being price slashed to get more buyers. Units are indeed selling but not nearly at the levels all the pundits have been proclaiming - 'the year of the HD panel is finally here...'. Almost, maybe.

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* Format Wars*

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Dell Goes Blu-ray with High-End Laptop

On Monday, Dell released the latest in its XPS line of high-end notebooks, the M1710, with on-board Blu-ray DVD. The Notebook also boasts the new nVidia GeForce Go 7950GTX graphics card and a screen whose resolution tops out at 1920 x 1200 pixels.

"It's very profitable for the computer manufacturers to sell to early adopters," said Bhavnani. "It's hard to get supplies like Blu-ray drives and HD drives, so they're charging a premium for them."

Which standard will win? "It's still too early to tell," said Bhavnani, adding that a neck-and-neck race could harm consumers. "If one of these goes the way of the Betamax," he said, "you won't feel all that good about yourself" if you've spent hard-earned dollars to own it.

http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=0300032NX8EC

T6 comment:  So, if one of the formats, "...goes the way of the  Betamax" does that mean it will become the professional broadcast standard and the other will be 'prosumer' ?   

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Why the battle of the Consoles was more

This holiday season, each of the three console makers insisted it was above the horserace. Microsoft told us the Xbox 360, with its global install base of nearly 10 million machines, already had an unstoppable lead. Sony said the PlayStation 3, with its built-in high-definition Blu-ray movie player, would be the centre of digital entertainment in the networked home and far more than just a game player

http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/165140

T6 Comment: In the 80's the war was won buy an un-likely, often poorly made, moderately priced machine you could watch movies on AND could record your TV shows for later viewing -( Time Shifting).  Today's Format war just may be won buy those who fight fake wars on game consoles.  Given that the game consoles are cheaper then the average standalone Blu-Ray or HD-DVD player this -( and the porn industry) may just decide the tide.

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CES: Toshiba plans aggressive HD DVD push

Toshiba Corp. is planning an aggressive push for the HD DVD format at next month's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, a senior executive said last week.

A group of companies supporting the HD DVD format will hold a news conference on Jan. 7 on the eve of the massive consumer electronics exhibition to announce their plans for 2007

When asked if Toshiba would be announcing cheaper players Fujii remained tight-lipped on the company's plans but said, "At first I thought the price threshold is $499. Maybe coming next is $399 and after that is $299." He didn't give a timeframe for this possible drop in prices. 

While both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc have appeared in stores during 2006 sales of both formats remain relatively low. Prices of compatible machines are high and the formats continue their battle.

http://www.infoworld.com/article/06/12/26/HNtoshibaces_1.html

T6 Comment:  I am unclear if the low sales figures leave out the game consoles with built in High Def DVD players but I would presume so.  Still give the relative lead in units, viewable material and lesser production woes for Blu-Ray, HD DVD may need this push just to get up the hill and remain even.

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*Signal Distribution*

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IBM slows down light signals in chips

Researchers at Big Blue have published a paper demonstrating how optical signals--photons that represent data--traveling within a microprocessor can be delayed, a key element in developing chips that can relay signals with optical fiber.

Intel,  IBM and relative newcomers such as Primain and Luxtera are trying to devise ways to replace the metal cables that connect chips inside computers, as well as wire connections inside chips, with optical components. Optical technology consumes much less energy. Plus, it doesn't generate heat, and it can transfer signals faster than metal wires.

To delay the signals, the light passes through a "microring resonator," which is a waveguide looped into several circles rather than a straight line. Because the light has to travel much farther than it would if the waveguide directly connected two points, the data traffic can be buffered.

http://news.com.com/IBM+slows+down+light+signals+in+chips/2100-1008_3-6145150.html?tag=cd.top

T6 Comment: And you only half believed Technical support when we advised you to use interlocks and buffers for data management.

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Siemens breaks network speed record

Researchers at Siemens have set what they say is a record of 107Gbit/s electric transmission of data over a single fiber-optic cable of just over 100 miles.

Siemens (Munich, Germany) said the data rate was achieved by using a specially developed transmission and receiving system that processes the data by purely electrical means directly before and after its conversion into optical signals.

The company claims the speed is 2.5 times faster than the previous transmission record on a live fiber link. It was conducted using the long-haul network of a large but un-named U.S. network operator, where Siemens previously deployed a 40 Gbit/s optical link for commercial use.

http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=196701621

T6 Comment:  But no one could know where the data went -  All my youtube video uploads - gone !   Paging Dr. Heisenberg,  paging Dr. Heisenberg

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* New Media *

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Mono is the new stereo on national DAB

The new national jazz station, called theJazz, began testing yesterday on the Digital One national DAB multiplex in glorious 1960s-style MONO. And in order to fit theJazz onto the Digital One multiplex, they have reduced the Capital Life and Core music stations to mono as well.

And I have to say that it is somewhat ironic that these three stations began transmitting in mono on the same day that Ofcom's consultation titled "The Future of Radio" closed, in which they touted the idea that it might be possible to switch FM off in 10 or so years' time and yet studiously ignored the fact that DAB sounds worse than FM, and they didn't even mention the AAC+ audio codec once, which is the only hope we have of improving the audio quality and the audacious suggestion that music stations be transmitted in stereo on DAB.

This episode also highlights the danger of allowing the big commercial radio groups to own the multiplex operating companies — the vast majority of UK commercial multiplexes are wholly-owned by the big commercial radio groups themselves

http://www.digitalradiotech.co.uk/articles/Mono-is-the-new-stereo-on-national-DAB.php

T6 Comment:  You all saw this coming, no ?  More and more content on limited broadcast bandwidth - despite its being encoded.  For me, so long as I am listening to Parker, Sonny Rollins or Coltrane - most who recorded heavily in the 50's (Thank you Rudy Van Gelder!) then I am fine with it.  Well, not really but I could ignore the lack of 2 channel for awhile.

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New Ad Campaign Plugs High-Definition Radio - (link has audio link)

Morning Edition, December 25, 2006 · The radio industry is rolling out a $250 million ad blitz to promote high-definition radio in the face of sluggish consumer demand for the HD radio devices. After all, to hear HD radio, you have to OWN an HD radio.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6672638

T6 Comment: 1 reason this will not work.  The radio stations are still crap, they are run by the conglomoramas of Clear Channel and the ilk. Despite what MSNBC's Gary Krakow states - content will ofen trump the mediums quality.  The format should be a winner - sounds great, multiple channels for niche market draw- except the formats are still stale and un-inspiring.

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*Tech Arcane*

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Koyono BlackCoat Work

BlackCoat Work is a hybrid workman's jean jacket with a clean cut and also Made for iPod.  KOYONO has partnered with Eleksen, makers of Elektex® smart fabric interfaces, to integrate five button ipod control into our coats.  These controls allow for full functionality of your iPodwithout having to remove it from the coat.   Fluid and uninterrupted access to your tunes without missing a beat is finally here.

http://koyono.com/products/blackcoat_work/description.html

T6 Comment:  I recall seeing these type of Techno-clothing back in the high days of tape walkmans, except they did not have controls but covered in speakers.  I am not sure if this BlackCoat means true mass market saturation of the i-pod and the advent of 'Cyber-suiting', or the begining of the end of it.

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The Roots of Audio Recordings Turn at 78 RPM

Technology and Art

Morning Edition, December 19, 2006 · Our series on how technology affects art continues with a report on how those old 78 RPM records set the stage for music today's recordings.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6645723

T6 Comment: Very interesting take on how initial mediums keep a hold on newer emerging formats, for good and ill.  Also contains links to audio articles 'Lost and Found: 20th Century Cylinders and The Secret History of Technology and Pop Music.

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* Obit   *

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Disk drive pioneer Al Shugart dies

Shugart founded Seagate Technology in 1979, one of the earliest personal computer disk drive manufacturers and still one of the largest such companies today. His first hard drive stored a total of 5MB. He initially had trouble finding funding for that project, because nobody at the time believed personal computers would ever need that much storage. His company also had success with floppy drives: the famous 5.25" Disk

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061214-8427.html

T6 Comment:  Nope I did not know him, but it is always proper to respect the passing of those who made what we do.

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* Year Ender   *

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Microsoft's Amir Majidimehr: a "window" to the world of digital media - (link Credit to Andrew Ludke)

Microsoft vice president weighs in on the future of consumer electronics, telecommunications, and more. EDN interviewed Amir Majidimehr, corporate vice president of the Consumer Media Technology Group within the Mobile and Embedded Devices Division at Microsoft. His team delivers Microsoft digital-media technology to mobile operators and consumer-electronics manufacturers and owns Microsoft's digital-rights-management and advanced media strategies, including HD DVD.

http://www.edn.com/article/ca6391444.html

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You may know all the new Years Eve Superstitions and Urban legends but many do not, help educate your associates - Have them subscribe to T6 today !

Why not start off the new year right by helping to create, not just passively accepting.  Attend the NYC ST. Marks New Years poetry Readings or send in your tech links and help build a better t6.

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All opinions expressed are mine alone and are not necessarily those of Crestron Electronics, its employees, associates or even their families. Just my big mouth