New Devices

PVR in your palm:
leadtek’s Winfast Palm Top TV is an external TV tuner power house. This device is so tiny that it looks like small car without wheels and fi ts snuggly in your palm. A complete media center, it substitutes your TV, FM, and VCR. To use the FM function, you will have to connect an external antenna (which was not provided with the package). The main software which controls the tuner is called WinFast PVR. It is easy to use and comes with a manual.
The Palm Top device doesn’t need an external power supply as all other TV tuner cards do. To power the device, all you have to do is plug it in to your computer’s USB port. Next, after setting
up the device and the software, is tuning the channels. The user gets to specify the region, which gives the device preset instructions to speed tuning. The tuning is real fast—it took us not more than a minute to tune 100 channels. One unique feature incorporated in the device is Picture-in-Picture (PIP), using which the channels can be categorized as per your requirements. You can watch two channels at one time; although that’s a tad diffi cult, Winfast PVR allows you to view one main screen and one sub screen at the same time. Befi tting the perfect media center experience, this device allows you to pause, rewind live television
and play instant replays. Take your breaks during a TV show or movie and never miss a scene again.For the purpose of recording, the Palm Top provides excellent features which are are not only fl exible to use but also gives you full control over your TV or media player. It supports de-Interlacing for good video quality. It allows you to specify file size, video length and also gives you the option to choose the type of encoding format you want and specify the fi le size. There is also the option of scheduling recording—the time control feature helps you schedule a particular program and recording happens automatically. You can not only split single video fi les recorded
from your TV but also those copied to your PC and then burn them directly to a DVD or to a CD without any other software. New and innovative features that caught our attention include the ability to display video as a desktop background; a unique tool enables taking a snapshot from a playing video and mail it directly through the same program. Seven other programs that come bundled include Ulead DVD MovieFactory 4, Cool 3D SE, Cyberlink Power DVD 6 and Ulead
Videostudio 9 SE. The Palm Top TV is your alternative media center without much investment.
For: Elegant design; very easy to set up; no external power supply needed and a good PVR.
Against: Requires a fast processor.

CrossFire mainboard:-

ECS EliteGroup is known for manufacturing feature-rich and cost-effective motherboards. The KA3 MVP Extreme is their fi rst Socket AM2 (successor to Socket 939) board to hit the market. This is a CrossFire board that uses ATI’s Xpress 3200 chipset with two PCI-e 16x slots. A single PCI-e 1x and 2 PCI slots are also squeezed onto the ATX board. The Northbridge and Southbridge have passive heatsinks—the latter being very small in height and size. A 40 mm fl uorescent yellow exhaust fan blows heat from the voltage regulators out of the board. As far as package contents are concerned, this board comes packed with SATA cables, an extra USB/Firewire panel, an additional parallel port bracket and an eSATA bracket. An additional BIOS chip has been provided that can be used to flash problematic fi rmware. Design and layout
This is one colorful board. The PCB is purple and on it you will see orange, red, yellow ochre, blue, bright yellow and green. To complete this riot of color, the PCI slots are accompanied with fl ashing blue diagnostic LEDs. At fi rst glance, the board seems bare with minimum clutter and open space between the memory, Northbridge and the CPU. The 16x PCI-express slots are positioned too close to each other and they are separated by a 1x PCI-e slot and a CMOS battery. There should have been enough space to house two cards with large heatsinks. Performance The motherboard was put through the paces with SiSoft Sandra’s processor and memory benchmarks. The processor scores were up to the mark with other AM2-based boards reviewed earlier. The memory bandwidth recorded a lower score (by about 2-5 percent) as the board accepted the Kingston memory (at default latencies) with a command rate of 2T. On the audio/video encoding front, the scores were acceptable —the audio compression putting a greater amount of load on the processor. Watching a movie while another was being converted to XviD at the same time brought the encode rate down by just 5 fps. Since this is an "Extreme" board, the BIOS provides users with overclocking options to adjust the CPU multiplier and CPU/RAM voltages. In spite of these features, the RAM was unable to work at 1T. For: Loads of USB and SATA connection options are provided. Produced good scores in the encoding tests. Against: Lack of space between the CrossFire PCI-e slots. Test rig Processor: AMD Athlon 64 FX-62 Memory: Kingston KHX8500D2K2 (1066 MHz running at 800 MHz) (5-5-5-15:2T)
Hard drive: Western Digital Raptor 740GD
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce 6800 GS
Performance Scores
PCMark ‘05: 6134
3DMark ‘05: 5213
SiSoft Sandra 2007
Dhrystone (MIPS) : 20378
Whetstone (MFLOPS) : 17206
Memory bandwidth : 7931 MB/s
HDD index : 55 MB/s
HDD sequential read : 68 MB/s
HDD sequential write : 32/52 MB/s
Audio encoding (192kbps – best quality):
624.7 kB/s
Video encoding test: 87.24 fps
Video encoding + playback test: 82.3 fps

High-definition web cam:-

It is indeed exciting when you are able to chat with friends and family while also being able to watch them in real time. Today video chatting has become so common a trend in Internet communication that the market is inundated with numerous web cams that let you video chat with clarity. The VX-6000 is Mircosoft’s new web cam integrated with the new Windows Live Messenger. It also works on Yahoo and other similar instant messengers. The new avatar of Windows Live Messenger has a separate module for video chatting, very similar to that of Skype. Installation Software installation is pretty straight forward—pop in the disc and install the software and drives. Remember that you need to install the software before you plug it in. Microsoft cautions users with the removable bright green fl uorescent tag on the USB adapter and a prompt to install the software fi rst. OS compatibility is with Windows XP only. The web cam comes with a fl at circular stand that allows it to easily perch on CRT monitors. For LCD monitors, the base opens up imparting a nice tight grip. Features and performance One distinctive features of the web cam is its ability to record high-defi nition videos at a resolution of 1.3 megapixels (1280x1024 pixels). Note that the regular CRT television resolution is 640x480 pixels. Still images can be interpolated up to 5 megapixels. Video can be recorded at 30 fps. Recording at such a resolution comes handy if you are into video blogging. Another cool feature is face tracking. The web cam follows your face as you move within its 71-degree wide-angle frame; what it does is mere zooming in and out as you move around, therefore it gets a bit irritating when the cam remains zoomed on your face. It also lets you pan and tilt the image. Face tracking, panning and tilting are not possible for resolutions above 800x600 pixels, which means you cannot face track at the cam’s highest resolution of 1.3 megapixels. With a USB 1.1 connection, it supports a maximum resolution of 800x600 pixels for video and the highest resolution of 1.9 megapixels for stills. This is due to the limitation of the USB 1.1 data connection
speed. The quality of video and still images is very good with good color reproduction. The skin tones are also accurately represented. The built-in microphone comes with the acoustic noise-canceling feature. It saves you the trouble of using an additional microphone. You can also team it up with your own set of speakers or headphones. The camera is an expensive proposition if you only want to use it for video chatting online. And to do that at 1280x1024 resolution, you need a blazing fast Internet connection at both ends. Therefore if video recording at high resolutions is your requirement then the VX-6000 is delightful to work with. Otherwise there are lots of affordable options available from Logitech, Creative and iBall. For: One of the few web cams with the ability to record at HD (1280x1024) resolutions. Against: Very expensive.

Software and More

CYBERLINK POWERDIRECTOR 7 ULTRA:

Consumers who want a video editor that has an extensive, highly usable feature set, is an outstanding performer, & can speedily input & output all relevant formats should look to CyberLink PowerDirector 7 Ultra. The latest version gives you six independent picture-in-picture (PiP) tracks in addition to the original video, title, & music & narration tracks.
You can configure the work area as a storyboard or timeline & can trim content dragged to the timeline using several tools, including a Multi-Trim window that lets you quickly identify & grab scenes. One, for example, speeds DV capture by letting you can scan the tape at 6x speed.
Another significant addition to CyberLink lets you control effects via key frames so that you can transition them in & out or change values over the duration of a clip. In general, the effects offerings have advanced. You'll find a wide array of artistic effects features, expecially in the powerful picture-in-picture designer.
The product edits & renders high-def contect quickly, makes good use of multiple CPU cores, proves speedy at burning Bly-ray media, & supports new disc-burning formats, including BDMV & BDAV Blu-ray. Its speed, unique range of functionality, & ease of use makes CyberLink PowerDirector 7 Ultra is best.

Vista Manager 1.5.1:

Yamicsoft Software Vista Manager - The Best Tuning and Optimizing Utility for Windows Vista!
Windows Vista is the new Operating System for home users and professionals alike. Windows Vista brings clarity to your world, so you can more safely and easily accomplish everyday tasks and instantly find what you want on your PC.
Vista Manager is the powerful software, All-in-One utility to optimize, tweak, tune up and clean up your Windows Vista. It bundles more than 20 different utilities in one! Get access to hundreds of hidden options to improve system's performance and security, clean registry, junk files and defrag Registry, optimize network to speed connection, Mange the startup entries with Windows, change wallpaper automatically, and many other miscellaneous utilities. It is an excellent companion for Windows Vista.

ADOBE ACROBAT 9 PRO EXTENDED:
The juggernaut of portable document creation is getting more powerful, judging from Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro Extended (the high end among three versions of the latest release that do more than read PDFs). PDF Portfolios-the most impressive of three big, new features-lets you combine different file types (including multimedia) in a PDF document & add eye-catching tools for navigate complex, tree-structured file sets.
Another terrific addition converts standard video formats into Flash you can embed into a PDF file. Anyone with the free Adobe Reader will be able to view the videos. The third major enchancement offers three different document comparison algorithms: one for docs with mostly text & tables, another for presentations & graphics-rich files, & a third for scanned documents.Acrobat 9 also promises to reduce the frustration of collaboration: You'll find live-chat & shared-document features, complete with free storage & chat hosting on a new adobe site. And although this is a measure update, you won't have to learn an entirely new app. The product largely sticks to the previous interface style.
Some rough spots linger. The overlap between the features in the top-line menus & the toolbar remains confusing, & I'm disappointed to find that the OCR capability still can't properly scan pages from old books & newspapers. Nevertheless, Acrobat is the gold standard for PDF management, & this version is brilliant. No one with professional responsibility for exchanging & managing data should be without it.

Internet Explorer 8 Beta: Underwhelming:

MICROSOFT HAS released a public beta version of the next Internet Explorer—but don’t download it expecting either a stable browser or stunning innovation.
Its developers say Internet Explorer 8 better supports Web standards, can automatically recover from a crash, and includes new features. One of these is Activities, plug-ins that eliminate some tedious cutting and pasting. Highlight a street address, and you can automatically bring up a map of that location. Another new feature, called Web Slices, lets you track changes to a portion of a Web site—for instance, a specific eBay auction.
The beta is clearly buggy: when we tried installing Internet Explorer 8, it crashed oft en and seemed to confl ict with multiple apps on the system. Th e Web Slices feature seems already to trail Safari’s Web Clips technology, which lets you transform a piece of any Web page into an automatically updating widget on an OS X desktop. Internet Explorer 8’s version works only if the site’s developer enables it. And because the slices live in an Internet Explorer toolbar, you still have to open your browser in order to see new activity.
Microsoft hasn’t specified when Internet Explorer 8 will be fi nal.

SugarSync File Syncing Service:

IF YOU USE multiple computers and mobile devices for creating and editing documents, it can be tough to keep different versions of your fi les in sync. A new service called SugarSync goes a long way towards curing those syncing headaches.
SugarSync is both a Webbased service and an application that you download; together, they provide a way for you to always have the most current version of a file, regardless of what computer you’re using. You configure the downloadable application, called SugarSync Manager, to monitor certain folderson your PC. Files in those folders are then uploaded to your personal SugarSyncSugarSync File Syncing Service Web page, which acts as an online storage repository, allowing you to access them from any Web browser.
SugarSync excels when you begin making changes to your documents. Any time you make a change to a file, the changes are automatically saved to the original version of the document on the computer on which it was created. SugarSync automatically saves those updates to your Web-based storage space, and also sends them to the original document on your office PC. Unfortunately, once you edit and save a file, only the newest copy is preserved.
Unlike many online storage services, SugarSync isn’t free. A nifty feature for camera phone users allows them to have any pictures taken with their phones sent directly to their PC.
SugarSync provides a cost effective and easy-to-use solution to manage files on several devices.

Easeus Partition Manager Server:
full review:-
If you believed that space on your hard disk can be better utilized, then you are right. How many times have you wanted to be able to save more files on your E: drive and reduce the space allocated to your C: or D: drive? When you click on “My Computer” on the Windows desktop, the “drives” that you see such as C:, D:, and E: are all usually “partitions” of a single larger hard disk. By itself, Windows offers very little in the way of partition management without losing data, so people use applications made especially for this purpose. This is where Easeus steps in, with its Partition Manager Server Edition 1.6.4 currently standing at version 1.6.4. It features an easy to use interface – after all, you don’t really dabble with partitioning everyday, you just use it when you need to, and don’t want to go through a steep learning curve that day. Easeus Partition Manager helps you with partition tasks such as creating, deleting, resizing, moving, hiding, and setting-active. Its task-based interface lets you visualize a “map” of your hard disk, showing you which partition is positioned where. For instance, let’s imagine this situation. Your C: drive is sized at 20 GB, there is a D: drive of 40 GB placed next to it, and then an E: drive of 50 GB at the end of the drive map. You want to delete everything on drive E: and use that space for your C: drive instead, so here’s what you’d do. First delete the partition named E:, then move the partition named D: to the end of the drive map, which leaves behind 50 GB of unallocated space in the middle of the map. Then resize C: so that it fills out the unallocated space, and apply the changes. Why apply the changes? That’s because when you make changes to the drive map, Partition Manager holds these changes in abeyance, so that you can undo any accidental damaging changes. But once you apply the actions you had lined up, you cannot revert back to how it was. There are many other operations you can carry out on your partitions. You can even set a password so that you don’t accidentally make changes that you didn’t intend to. It supports FAT, FAT32, and NTFS file systems on all consumer-level internal and removable types of storage devices. Easeus also claims support of hardware RAID, SCSI, and Firewire drives. However, this product currently does not support hard disks over 800 GB in capacity, dynamic disks, or a system with over 32 installed disks. There are multiple editions of Partition Manager on offer by Easeus. The one we have looked at here, is the server edition, which will install and work on server versions (eg: Windows Server 2003 Web Edition) as well as consumer versions of Windows (such as Windows 2000, XP, Vista, etc.), including 64-bit versions of Windows. It is priced at $149 (approximately Rs. 6, 705 at current exchange rates) for installation on one physical machine. A license to install on an unlimited number of machines is also offered, at $399 (approximately Rs. 17, 955). Easeus offers a 30-day money back guarantee, for use if the product you purchased does not meet your needs. More details about this product, and purchases of the same, can be done from the developer’s website .

Television

PVR in your palm:-

leadtek’s Winfast Palm Top TV is an external TV tuner power house. This device is so tiny that it looks like small car without wheels and fi ts snuggly in your palm. A complete media center, it substitutes your TV, FM, and VCR. To use the FM function, you will have to connect an external antenna (which was not provided with the package). The main software which controls the tuner is called WinFast PVR. It is easy to use and comes with a manual. The Palm Top device doesn’t need an external power supply as all other TV tuner cards do. To power the device, all you have to do is plug it in to your computer’s USB port. Next, after setting up the device and the software, is tuning the channels. The user gets to specify the region, which gives the device preset instructions to speed tuning. The tuning is real fast—it took us not more than a minute to tune 100 channels. One unique feature incorporated in the device
is Picture-in-Picture (PIP), using which the channels can be categorized as per
your requirements. You can watch two channels at one time; although that’s a
tad diffi cult, Winfast PVR allows you to view one main screen and one sub screen
at the same time. Befi tting the perfect media center experience, this device
allows you to pause, rewind live television and play instant replays. Take your breaks
during a TV show or movie and never miss a scene again. For the purpose of recording, the Palm Top provides excellent features which are are not only fl exible to use but also gives you full control over your TV or media player. It supports de-Interlacing for good video quality. It allows you to specify fi le size, video length and also gives you the option to choose the type of encoding format you want and specify the fi le size. There is also the option of scheduling recording—the time control feature helps you schedule a particular program and recording happens automatically. You can not only split single video fi les recorded from your TV but also those copied to your PC and then burn them directly to a DVD or to a CD without any other software. New and innovative features that caught our attention include the ability to display video as a desktop background; a unique tool enables taking a snapshot from a playing video and mail it directly through the same program. Seven other programs that come bundled include Ulead DVD MovieFactory 4, Cool 3D SE, Cyberlink Power DVD 6 and Ulead Videostudio 9 SE. The Palm Top TV is your alternative media center without much investment. For: Elegant design; very easy to set up; no external power supply needed and a good PVR. Against: Requires a fast processor.

High Definition Television:-

High Definition Television, or HDTV for short, is the entertainment technology of the future.
It surpasses the quality of standard definition television in many impressive ways. The resolution of High Definition Television is ten times greater than the resolution of standard definition television and the picture is delivered in the same 16:9 aspect ratio of a movie theater. This added viewing area will make you feel like you're part of what's happening on the screen. Sound is delivered through Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, which when used with the right configuration of speakers adds to the sensation of being part of the action.
Of course to take advantage of these extra features, you need special equipment. An HDTV capable television has to have the wide format 16:9 aspect ratio and needs to be able to handle the higher resolution. In other words it needs to be capable of packing more pixels into any given area. The sound system most frequently consists of two speakers in the front of the home theater by the television, three behind the couch or chairs where people watching the television will sit and often a sub-woofer under the couch.
In addition to the obvious equipment, you will need a receiver capable of decoding HDTV satellite signals so the programming can be displayed on the screen. Dish Network offers two major receivers that can handle HDTV.
The ViP211 is Dish Network entry level HDTV receiver model. It has all of the same basic features of any other Dish Network receiver. It displays Dish Network's Electronic Program Guide which gives you a number of ways to control and manage your television experience. The Electronic Program Guide lets you see what's on each channel up to days in advance. It gives program information including when the program was made, who stars in it, rating, and often includes plot information. The Electronic Program Guide allows different family members to make lists of their favorite channels so they don't have to sift through everyone else's channels to get to what they want to watch. It has manual and automatic event timers, and Parental Control Locks. The Parental Control Locks are especially valuable because they allow parents to control what kinds of programming their kids have access to. Parents can block out specific programs, entire channels, or only programs with certain MPAA ratings, while still being able to access the full spectrum of programming. Each Dish Network receiver is also capable of displaying Caller ID information on screen and downloads all of it's software updates from the same satellite signal that it receives programming. It comes with a remote control that connects you with all of the receiver's feature and can be configured to control up to three additional home entertainment components.

The main difference between the ViP211 and Dish Network's entry level receiver is that it can decode HD as well as standard definition programming. It displays television resolutions of 480i, 480p, 720p, and 1080i. It also has a USB 2.0 port and an Ethernet port both for future use and easy upgrades.

DishNetwork's ViP622 DVR is the most fully featured satellite receiver on the market today. It has all of the features of the ViP211 but with the added features of a Digital Video Recorder which allows you to record up to 200 hours of your favorite shows and the ability to send a signal to a second television (with HD programming downgraded to SD format).

Dish Network offers dramatically better television service:-

There's a media battle going on between cable television providers and satellite TV companies. Both claim to provide the best service, lowest prices, and widest selection of programming. But when you look at a side by side comparison between cable companies and Dish Network, it becomes clear that Dish Network offers dramatically better television service.Dish Networkoffers a huge number of value adding features that cable either doesn't bother with, doesn't provide completely, or gives you at an increased cost. For example, Dish Network lets you add additional televisions to your plan at no extra charge while cable companies often charge upwards of five dollars per TV. Dish Network provides all of it's programming in digital format for crystal clear picture and CD quality sound. Most cable companies are still using an old fashioned analog signal that carries more interference than digital. Dish Network often provides free HDTV and DVR equipment, while cable is doesn't bother with DVR and is struggling simply to provide any HDTV at all. Dish Network provides hundreds of channels while cable selection is typically limited at about 90 channels. Dish Network offers a huge amount of optional extra programming packages like MLB Extra Innings, NBA League Pass, NHL On the Ice, and ESPN Gameday. Cable can't offer any extra programming. Cable doesn't offer anything close to the amount of foreign language programming available through Dish Network and Dish Network offers about twice as many Pay Per View channels.The main reason for this huge disparity is that cable television service simply doesn't have the information transmitting capacity necessary for the television services people demand these days. With a cable there's only so much information that can be crammed into it at any given time. It's a lot like a water main. If you live on a modest residential street where people's main use of water was showering and watering small gardens, there would probably be a small water main supplying the whole neighborhood. But if suddenly everyone put in swimming pools and huge lawns that needed to be watered, the old water main wouldn't be able to supply water for all of that and the utility company would have to dig it up and replace it with a bigger one. Cable is the same way. It was fine for the 80 or so analog channels that people wanted back in the 1980's, but now in the 21st century people want digital television, HDTV, and hundreds of channels. Today's high tech television is a lot like the metaphorical swimming pools and lawns, and the old system of cables simply can't keep up.Satellite TV technology, by contrast, relies on transmitting programming over electromagnetic signals through air and space. The electromagnetic waves don't have any practical limits on information transmitting capacity. Cable companies have to install new cables while Dish Network gets a free data transmission system.Cable companies are trying to update the cable networks to meet the new demands of their customers, but this process involves digging up and replacing thousands of miles of cable, which can get very expensive. The companies in turn pass the cost on to their customers in the form of average rate increases of over 8% every year! And that's where the biggest difference between Dish Network and cable TV becomes apparent: value for the money. We all want to know that our money is being well spent. Cable TV's rates are already higher than Dish Network's and the selection is more limited. Dish Network by contrast offers service that's already better, is constantly improving, and does so with stable rates.If you want the best value, most programming options, and easy accommodation of new technology, then a satellite TV service like Dish Network is clearly the way to go.

Dish Network has introduced a line of portable entertainment systems it calls Pocket Dishes:-

In an effort to make their entertainment options even more widely available, Dish Network has introduced a line of portable entertainment systems it calls Pocket Dishes. The idea is essentially to have an ultra compact multimedia entertainment center that you can take with you anywhere you go. Each model of Pocket Dish can download program content from any Dish Network DVR and replay it on it's own integrated LCD screen or on almost any television. Pocket Dishes can also play music stored in WMA, MP3, or WAV formats, can be used to play video games also available for download from Dish Network, and function as a digital photo album.The basic model, the Pocket Dish AV402E, is super compact. At 2.4" high x 4.2" wide x 0.7" deep, it's about the same size as a wallet. Considering it's small size, it's storage capabilities are really impressive. It has a 20 GB hard drive which can store up to 20 hours of downloaded Dish Network programming, 200,000 digital photos in JPEG format, and 10,000 songs. It has a 2.2" LCD screen with a standard aspect ratio of 4:3, and delivers audio through headphones. One feature that the AV402E has that the more advanced models lack is a built in microphone which is great for taking notes or recording music or interesting sounds.The mid level AV500E and the top of the line AV700E have many feature in common that the AV402E lacks. Both of the higher models have LCD screens with 16:9 aspect ratios which make viewing movies in wide screen format easy. Each comes with a remote control, docking station, built in speakers, and a stand.One feature that both the AV500E and AV700E have that's truly impressive is digital video recording capacity. Both can be connected to just about any television, satellite receiver, VCR, or cable box to record video content. Of course they're forced to record in real time with this set up (all Pocket Dishes can download about an hour of programming every five minutes from any Dish Network DVR with a USB 2.0 port), but the real benefit of recording in this mode is that the Pocket Dish's maximum program content capacity can be quadrupled. In other words, the AV500E which can hold up to 30 hours of Dish Network programming can hold up to 120 hours of programming from other sources!As far as individual specs, the AV500E measures 3" high x 4.8" wide x 0.8" deep and has a 4 inch screen (with the 16:9 aspect ratio). It's 30 Gig hard drive can contain up to 30 hours of Dish Network programming, 300,000 digital photos, and 15,000 songs.The AV700E really is a full fledged home entertainment system in and of itself. It's 7" screen makes for easy viewing while at 4.2" high x 8.2" wide x 0.8" deep, it's still very portable. It has a big 40 Gigabyte hard drive that can hold up to 40 hours of Dish Network programming (note that this would be up to 160 hours from other sources!), 400,000 photos, and 20,000 songs.Pocket Dishes are definitely an improvement for portable entertainment over portable DVD players. Not only are they smaller but they hold more programming. And while a laptop computer has a greater viewing area, Pocket Dishes are much cheaper and make it easy to get content through the use of a Dish Network DVR. Pocket Dishes are a great way to take home entertainment with you wherever you go.

Human's tool modify

Early Hunting and Gathering Tools :-
An assortment of prehistoric tools provides evidence of the hunting and gathering methods of early peoples. Slabs of bark were often used to gather nuts and berries and functioned as crude dishes or bowls (top left). Reproductions of fishing tackle and arrows believed to have been used around 8000 bc are displayed on the lower left. Recovered tools for digging and cutting (right) are shown with recreated wooden handles. The heads of the adzes are made from flint, as is the fire-starter shown below them.

Early Agricultural Tools:-

Humans began farming about 12,000 years ago. The ability to control their food supply freed people from a nomadic lifestyle, which allowed for the beginning of cities and towns. These early farming tools date from about 6,000 bc. The picture portrays an axe (bottom) used for clearing; flint sickles (left), used for harvesting cereal crops; a flat rock and rounded stone (center), used for grinding flour; and perforated clay slabs (upper right), probably used to ventilate bread ovens.

Automation Trade-Off:-
Technological advancement has both positive and ill effects on a society. Take, for example, advances in automation technology. Automation has improved production efficiency and quality control, and has reduced the need to have workers perform potentially dangerous tasks. On the other hand, automation has made many jobs unnecessary, putting employees out of work, or forcing them to retrain.

Inventor with Robot:-
An inventor plays a duet with his robotic creation, Wabot-2, at the Tokyo Exposition. Building this kind of robot is a challenging task because the dexterity of the human hand is perhaps the most difficult function to recreate mechanically. Although Wabot-2’s performance may not be emotional, with an electronic scanning eye and quality components, the technical accuracy will be extremely high.

Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier:-
Nuclear power propels the huge bulk of the Abraham Lincoln through the water. Part of the fleet of the U.S. Navy, the Abraham Lincoln provides a flight deck for high-performance planes. By naval standards the ship is very long, but its runway is still shorter than most air strips on land. To compensate for this, incoming planes use hooks on their undersides to catch arresting cables on the ship’s deck.

Robotics:-
This robotic hand is capable of performing the delicate task of picking up and holding an egg without breaking it. A tactile array sensor located on the right half of its gripping mechanism sends information to the robot's control computer about the pressure the robotic hand exerts; given this information, the control computer instructs the robotic hand to loosen, tighten, or maintain the current gripping force. This feedback loop repeats continuously, enabling the robotic hand to stay in between the two extremes of dropping and crushing the egg.

Hitech Mobiles

Sony Ericsson Idou 12.1 MP Camera Mobile
For Sony Ericsson, it seems that a 8MP camera phone is not enough. At the Mobile World Congress which started today, Sony Ericsson launched a 12.1 MP camera mobile phone codenamed Idou which is a smartphone having high end camera features and is based on Symbian OS.
The SE Idou comes with a 12.1 MP camera having features like Xenon Flash, Geo Tagging, Auto Focus, Smile Detection, Face Detection and advanced camera touch features. It has a 3.5 inch TFT Touchscreen with 360 x 640 pixels supporting 16 million colors amd 16:9 widescreen format support. Connectivity options include 3G, Wi-Fi, DLNA, GPRS/EDGE, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, USB 2.0. FM Radio along with GPS with A-GPS support are also present. The Media Menu is now fully optimized to support the 16:9 format and will enable you to play your favorite movies, music etc. The phone’s memory can be extended by using microSD cards.
The phone is expected to be launched in the second half of 2009.

Moto Rokr em25
The Moto Rokr em25 is a sleek slider phone from the Rokr lineup. The
music on the phone is accessible via a one-touch button and the ‘airplane’ or ‘demo’ mode allows for playback without interruption. The battery allows for ten hours of music listening, 490 minutes of talk time, and 330 hours of stand by time. There is a 1.3 MP camera with 4x digital zoom. There is also a built-in fm receiver, and the memory is expandable upto 2 GB.

Nokia N810 WiMax
It’s time to wish WiFi goodbye—that’s the point Nokia is trying to prove and they do that by releasing an Internet tablet that earlier n pported WiFi, but will soon support WiMax as well. It’s called the N810 and is not your regular mobile phone with MP3 playback and a ulti-MP camera! The device has a 4.1-inch screen with a resolution of 800x480 and doubles as a touch screen. There’s an inbuilt keyboard as well, and the whole thing weighs around 226 gms. It has a 640x480 VGA camera, so you can post images on your blog! Internet
connectivity through Wimax can be yours for close to $500 (Rs 20,000)—just be prepared to receive a slightly bulkier device, courtesy WiMax hardware.

Creative ZEN Mozaic
The first time you see the Creative ZEN Mozaic, it looks like a flatter and larger version of ZEN Stone plus — similar body and rounded corners. At closer inspection you can see the difference. The ZEN Mozaic has got a matte charcoal finish all over and gray and white accented keys that look great on it. As far as support is concerned the ZEN mosaic supports majority audio formats, MP3 and WMA to name a few. Along with that it can also play video content on it as well, though you will definitely have to wait for hours to convert the video with the bundled utility. We wish there was support for newer video formats like MP4 and DivX on this PMP. The ZEN Mozaic has a 1.4- inch colour display screen having a resolution of 128 x 160 pixels. The display is vibrant and colourful, and is good enough to display all information about a song. Due to its low resolution, video is not a good experience. An FM player and a Voice recorder are also included, which is good for people who don’t like to have too many gadgets. The ZEN mosaic is a powerful little monster when it comes to music playback. The quality of the bundled headphones are a big let down. You will have to get yourself a good pair of cans if you buy this player, so remember to add that cost. The battery life is good enough, and lasts about 6 hours between charges. FM reception is bad, and the lack of an expandable memory slot is worse —you’re stuck with the 2 GB provided. There are 4 GB and 8 GB versions available as well, but it’s still not enough these days. Overall, the bundle is something that looks a lot better than it sounds. Specifications Supports MP3, WMA and AVi formats, 1.4 in colour display, loudspeaker, FM radio Price: Rs 5,499

Technology

Technology is a broad concept that deals with an animal species' usage and knowledge of tools and crafts, and how it affects an animal species' ability to control and adapt to its environment. Technology is a term with origins in the Greek "technologia", "τεχνολογία" — "techne", "τέχνη" ("craft") and "logia", "λογία" ("saying"). However, a strict definition is elusive; "technology" can refer to material objects of use to humanity, such as machines, hardware or utensils, but can also encompass broader themes, including systems, methods of organization, and techniques. The term can either be applied generally or to specific areas: examples include "construction technology", "medical technology", or "state-of-the-art technology".
The human race's use of technology began with the conversion of natural resources into simple tools. The prehistorical discovery of the ability to control fire increased the available sources of food and the invention of the wheel helped humans in travelling in and controlling their environment. Recent technological developments, including the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, have lessened physical barriers to communication and allowed humans to interact on a global scale. However, not all technology has been used for peaceful purposes; the development of weapons of ever-increasing destructive power has progressed throughout history, from clubs to nuclear weapons.
Technology has affected society and its surroundings in a number of ways. In many societies, technology has helped develop more advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes produce unwanted by-products, known as pollution, and deplete natural resources, to the detriment of the Earth and its environment. Various implementations of technology influence the values of a society and new technology often raises new ethical questions. Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of human productivity, a term originally applied only to machines, and the challenge of traditional norms.
Philosophical debates have arisen over the present and future use of technology in society, with disagreements over whether technology improves the human condition or worsens it. NeoLuddism, anarcho-primitivism, and similar movements criticise the pervasiveness of technology in the modern world, claiming that it harms the environment and alienates people; proponents of ideologies such as transhumanism and techno-progressivism view continued technological progress as beneficial to society and the human condition. Indeed, until recently, it was believed that the development of technology was restricted only to human beings, but recent scientific studies indicate that other primates and certain dolphin communities have developed simple tools and learned to pass their knowledge to other generations.