How to Change Time Format in Windows

Many of the visitors here use Windows Operating System. The most common observation is that people use the same installation done by their dealer for years without even restoring the backup they have been provided. Its better for users to reinstall Windows after some time as there may be some performance changes during the period of time due to repeated installation and removal of third party softwares.

Usually the time format after a fresh Windows installation will be in 24 hour format which is most undesirable for many of the users. You can change time format from default 24 hours to 12 hour format just within few seconds. Here is how one can achieve that.

Open Control Panel > Regional and Language Options

Now, click Customize this format button. You will be shown up with customization window, goto time tab.

The default 24 hour format will be displayed as HH:mm:ss. If you want to change time format, you need to change the way as you wish depending on the instructions / notations given in the image. In simple words, if you want to have your new time format to be of 12 hour type, modify the default HH:mm:ss to hh:mm:ss. Now you will see the changes come into effect after you click Apply / OK. The same procedure works fine with Windows XP or Windows Vista.

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God Of War 3

Teeth bared, veins bulging, Kratos plunges both hands elbow-deep into the gargantuan eye socket of the Cyclops.

Propping a foot against each hulking shoulder of the giant, the bloodthirsty Spartan and raging son of Zeus yanks the beach ball-sized organ as if it was a cork coming out of the world's largest wine bottle.

Blood vomits from the orifice as the glistening optic nerve stretches and stretches and stretches like an overtaxed rubber band. It snaps, the two halves of the ruined eyestalk flutter to the ground, and the giant orb comes free in Kratos's hands.

The kicker: this is an in-game, playable sequence from God of War III, Sony's outrageous new action epic for the PlayStation 3. Though it's months away from completion, God of War III is already something special. So are you really going to think twice before playing God of War 3?

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Now you can Unmask and Track Anonymous Calls

A service launched on Tuesday lets cell phone users unmask the Caller ID on anonymous calls - TrapCall, which is offered by TelTech Systems, reveals the phone numbers and names and addresses of blocked Caller IDs.

TelTech is also the company behind the controversial SpoofCard, an Internet calling-card service that allows users to place calls in which originating caller numbers appear to be something completely different--like the White House switchboard.

TrapCall instructs new users to reprogram their cell phones to send all rejected, missed, and unanswered calls to TrapCall's own number. When a blocked or restricted number appears on a cell display, the user presses a button on the cell that is normally used to send the call to voicemail.

The call is then rerouted to TrapCall's toll-free line, where the caller's information is obtained and then sent back to the original call's recipient. All this reportedly takes about six seconds while the caller is listening to a normal dial tone.

The service, which is currently available to AT&T and T-Mobile subscribers, is free and includes the option of blacklisting unwelcome callers. Additional premium features include the recording incoming calls (which TelTech notes may be illegal, depending on the users' individual state laws), voicemail transcriptions via e-mail and text message, and the ability to listen to voicemail via the Web.

However, the service raises a couple of sticky privacy issues, especially for victims of domestic violence.

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Operation Flashpoint 2 shoots for PC, PS3, 360

It's been nearly two years since Codemasters re-announced Operation Flashpoint 2, promising that the military simulation would hit "PC and major console formats." We all assumed that meant PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but Codemasters stuck to its guns.

The company changed its tune today, officially confirming that the sequel to Bohemia's Operation Flashpoint will hit PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 alongside PC. In addition, the game has dropped the 2 from its title, now just Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising.

As Bohemia has moved on to produce its ArmA line of military simulators, Codemasters is developing the new Operation Flashpoint internally, though Bohemia was originally attached to the sequel way back in 2003. The new game uses the EGO Engine, previously seen in Codemasters' Colin McRae: DiRT and Race Driver: GRID.

Described by Codemasters as the "most accessible, engaging and visceral sandbox shooter of the year," Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising arrives this summer.

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LG GB110, GB106 Radio Phones

LG has announced the launch of its first mobile phones with “Intenna” FM radio for India - the new models, the LG GB110 and the GB106 are bundled as an entertainment package expunging the need to attach headset while listening to FM Radio.

Both the handsets are equipped with a 1.5-inch color display, extensive phonebook memory and they also come with a stylish leatherite carry pouch. While the LG GB106 also features an anti theft mobile tracker, the LG GB110 comes up with additional features like a VGA camera, a micro SD card slot (expandable up to 2 GB and 1GB card included) and MP3 full song play back. The company also claims talktime of up to 10 hours and 600 hrs standby time for the GB106 and up to 440 hrs standby time for the GB110.

Available in two colors – black and grey, the LG GB110 is priced at Rs 3,100 and the GB106 is priced at Rs 2,100.

Anil Arora, Business Group Marketing Head, Mobile Communication, LG Electronics Pvt Ltd. said, "We are happy to launch LG GB110 and LG GB106 which offer a completely new experience to its users. These powerful but affordable mobile sets offer mobile music on the move."

"At LG, we lay emphasis on understanding the customer needs and work towards meeting their expectations through our new offerings. This launch is in line with our philosophy of providing the best to our customers. I am positive that with the key feature of Intenna FM, these handsets will catch on everyone's attention and be well accepted" he added.

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Video games sales skyrocket in down economy

Consumers may be cutting back on entertainment, but they're still spending on videogames.

The vidgame sector was up 13% in January, collecting $1.3 billion in coin, driven mostly by Nintendo hardware and software sales, according to data from market research group NPD.

Nintendo's Wii was once again the top selling console, moving 679,000 units, while its handheld DS device sold another 511,000 units.

Its "Wii Fit" was the top selling game for the month, with 777,000 copies sold -- perhaps a nod to consumers' annual New Year's resolution of wanting to exercise more.

Nintendo's "Wii Play," "Mario Kart," Electronic Arts' "Left 4 Dead" and "Call of Duty: World at War" rounded out the top five.

Only two new games cracked the top ten -- "Skate 2" from Electronic Arts for the Xbox 360 and "Lord of the Rings: Conquest" on the PS3. "Skate 2" moved 199,000 copies for the Xbox 360, while "Rings" sold 113,000 for the PS3.

Strength of older games is being attributed to an influx of new gamers.

Overall, software sales were up 10% to $676 million, while hardware grew to $445 million, a 17% bump over the same period last year. Accessories also enjoyed a bump of 11% due to the interest in consoles.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 is still besting PlayStation's console sales, with 309,000 systems sold versus 203,000 for the PS3 and another 101,000 for the PS2. Sony's PSP shipped 172,000 units.

Sony's "Little Big Planet," exclusive to the PS3, failed to sell enough copies to make it into the top 10, signaling that the family friendly title isn't necessarily connecting with its core audience.

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The Motorola ZN 300

Motorola was lying low at the Mobile World Congress (MWC), press shots of its new ZN 300 are doing the rounds on the internet.

As for the phone, the device is a slider featuring a 3 megapixel camera, 3.5mm jack, QVGA display and runs Linux. Opera Mini finds its way in as the default browser.

The official spec sheet is still unavailable. In any case, whenever the device is out, Motorola will have to price it really well to make it an attractive proposition.

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Motorola with big touchscreen Arrives

Despite the not so good financial situation at Motorola, the company keeps working on bringing out new devices and the most recent leak is if a device that wasn't shown at the Mobile Word Congress and it doesn't even have a name as yet.

There isn't much in terms of technical details either, although the handset will feature a large touch screen display, a 5 Megapixel Kodak camera and TV-out functionality as seen from the pictures of the handset which leaked to Engadget. It also looks like it will have a front facing camera for video calls, a xenon flash for the rear camera, as well as an LED light which we presume is used for the auto focus function in poor light conditions.

However, Engadget is suggesting that this might be Motorola's first Android device, which makes it all the much more interesting, as this would be the first real killer Android device in our opinion, as the HTC made devices haven't really delivered when it comes to stand-out features.

It's unlikely it will be Windows Mobile as it's lacking several of the "required" buttons, although Engadget is also suspecting that it might just be running the bog standard Motorola OS for touch screen devices which would make this device a lot less appealing.

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Halo Wars Review

The good news is that Halo Wars masterfully transports the series' best elements to an entirely different genre, and its unparalleled accessibility makes for an excellent introduction to real-time strategy. The bad news is that its self-imposed limitations take a meaty chunk out of its longevity.

It's quite a change from the Halo we all know and love but Ensemble (R.I.P.) has done a great job. The RTS action is fun, the controls are surprisingly tight and the presentation is great. It won't thrill every Halo fan but it's definitely lives up to the franchise's high standards.

Twenty years before John-117 steps out of cold storage and dons the mantle of Master Chief, the Covenant locks onto the trail of a secret that could give them an insurmountable advantage in the war against humanity. After the first slick pre-rendered cinematic, I'm tearing across snow and ice in a Warthog, gathering pinned marines so I can retake a base. The basic controls become second nature within moments.

The fifteen imaginative missions task you with everything from rescuing civilians to dragging gear up a steep slope, and often underscore the long-term ramifications of your command decisions. This is the spine of any strategy game. Though Halo wars is incredibly user friendly yet it also constrains advanced players by eliminating much of the strategic layer.

This is no doubt a conscious decision that was made in order to ensure balance and user-friendliness, but there are places where Halo Wars' streamlining goes too far. It's hard to imagine the rationale behind unit selection controls that don't allow you to do basic stuff like gather troops into groups, order them into simple formations, or even subtract individual units from your current force. Elaborate attack plans aren't impossible, but they require unnatural contortions that felt unnecessary.

The prequel story doesn't content itself with simple name-dropping, and instead touches on all the science fiction themes that enabled the original trilogy to capture so many imaginations.

PROS: Simple and intuitive controls; superb upgrade system; detailed battles; good unit variety.

CONS: Base and building placement is constrained; poor unit selection tools; limited save system; minor path-finding issues.

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HTC Touch Pro 2

Directly from HTC: "And to answer the big question on everyone's minds, the Touch Pro2 will be broadly available in all major markets."

The HTC Touch Pro 2 is a beefed up version of its predecessor and now sports some updated features. The overall package is sexier and the device looks built for purpose.

Its features include 512MB of ROM, 288MB of RAM, microSD expansion and a 3.2 megapixel camera. The highlight is obviously the massive 3.6-inch screen with a resolution of 800x400.

Both the Touch Pro 2 and Touch Diamond 2 devices will be made available by Q2 2009 with the Touch Pro 2 launch expected a bit later. No word on the prices yet but we'll keep you updated.

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Samsung unveils Two 12 megapixel Cams

Samsung Electronics today unveiled two new 12 mega-pixel compact digital cameras boasting 24mm ultra-wide angle Schneider lenses.

The first, TL320 is the world's first digital camera to feature a three-inch AMOLED screen with HVGA resolution. The HZ15W, Samsung's second mega-zoom, point-and-shoot digital camera, offers consumers one of the most powerful lenses on a compact point-and-shoot with an impressive focal length of 24-240mm (35mm film equivalent).

The official specs sheets for the TL320 lists a 12.2 megapixel sensor, 5x optical zoom, 3-inch HVGA AMOLED display, 720p movie recording, HDMI output, dual image stabilization and twin analog gauges for checking out memory capacity and battery life.

As for the ZH15W, that one checks in with a dozen megapixels even, a 10x optical zoom, a 3-inch LCD monitor, 720p movie mode and most of the same features as the aforementioned cousin.

Both shooters should be available this May for $379.99 and $329.99, respectively. The price in India would be higher than the Rs 18,000 conversion.

Users can also take advantage of the TL320's Face Detection, Blink Detection, Smile Shot, and Beauty Shot technologies. For blur-free images, especially when using the HZ15W at its maximum zoom, Samsung includes both Optical and Digital Image Stabilization.

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Street Fighter IV Review

Street Fighter IV evens the playing field for a wide range of potential players with a spectacular fighting engine that creates an incredibly accessible experience.

With the exception of some lame anime cinematics in the game's arcade mode, the presentation in Street Fighter IV is simply incredible. The wide assortment of levels shines fantastically in vibrant 3D, with subtle touches and backgrounds details all adding to the fun. Onlookers cheer in the background, set pieces collapse as fists fly, and shopping carts rattle with every earth-shattering blow.

One of the greatest aspects of SFIV's combat is undoubtedly the absence of parrying, replaced by Focus Attacks and EX moves. No matter what you do, you can never gain a complete advantage over another player simply because you're a tournament level Street Fighter maniac. The inclusion of Ultra moves also eliminates the one glaring problem with most modern fighting games: once you fall behind, it's tough to catch up, much less win.

Like any modern fighting game, SFIV has unlockables everywhere. Aside from the already beefy roster consisting of the original twelve World Warriors from SFII, you can unlock twelve more as you progress through the game, not to mention a wide array of alternate costumes. There's also a nifty movie gallery with all of the prologues and endings to each character's respective story. If that doesn't keep you busy, then the extra modes such as Time Attack and Survival can definitely help players hone their skills.

Street Fighter IV is exactly the sequel that tournament players, series fans and long absent gamers have been waiting for. The fighting system is truly unique, letting casuals and experts equally enjoy the Street Fighter experience without getting bogged down in techniques and precision timing. Street Fighter is a title that's built for newcomers, yet tweaked for old school vets from the arcade and home console days.

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Resident Evil 5 for PC Arrives!

Though we had a strong inkling back in January 'Resident Evil 5' would be coming to the PC, today it is confirmed by Capcom.

The game will be out "later in the year" (Q4 we presume), and like their other coming titles 'Street Fighter IV' and 'Bionic Commando' (now both set for a July release), additions to this version are in the works.

In this case, support for NVIDIA's new GeForce 3D Vision technology will be included, on top of the expected online co-op.

All three games will be available at retail and via digital distribution, including Capcom's own e-store.

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The Red Hot Gaming Babe of the Week

Remaining cool and collected in the hot, hostile, African environment, Sheva Alomar marks her Resident Evil debut as Chris Redfield's levelheaded tour guide in this terror-filled wasteland.

Born in Africa and a member of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, Sheva feels right at home in this intimidating landscape, and is never caught short for zombie-destroying weaponry. This beauty isn't afraid to blow some baddie brains to pieces, if you aren't able to.

Sheva's parents were killed in an industrial accident, leaving her an orphan at an early age. Hungry for retribution, she worked to overthrow the country's government with a rebel group. Here she gained proficiency in deadly, sexy combat, and learned to pose with big, intimidating weapons. She later left Africa for the US, where she worked on her education and cultivated her hot accent.

Stunning Australian actress Michelle Van Der Water serves as the model for Sheva. For the role, she had to pose in various outfits and carry a range of firearms. Michelle's very pleased with the result, believing the finished article looks very much like her.

Sheva's appearance hasn't done much to quieten the cries of racism from critics of the game. Says one gaming website: "That Sheva neatly fits the approved Hollywood model of the light-skinned black heroine, and talks more like Lara Croft than her thickly accented foes, merely compounds the problem rather than easing it."

That may be, but boy do we love the Hollywood model. You can put Sheva's acrobatic skills to use in Resident Evil 5.

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Is Twitter just another Fad?

Fads come and go when the proverbial flock loses interesting, and all the sheep drift to another, greener pasture. This appears to be the case with micro-blogging service Twitter.

With the initial celebrity exposure, it's no wonder Twitter became such a sensation, but the majority of users don't actually stick around. Just a few weeks ago, Twitter reportedly had a 131 percent increase in U.S. visitors alone, between February and March 2009. Earlier this month, traffic was up by 700 percent, year-over-year; this boom has been attributed to an influx of middle-aged users in addition to media attention.

However, a report from media tracker Nielsen Co. revealed that 60 percent of Twitter users actually don't revisit the month after they join, and even at the height of its popularity, the site hada meager retention rate below 30 percent. By contrast, Facebook and MySpace both have a retention rate above 70 percent following their popularity growth.

"Twitter just doesn't seem to have a whole lot of stickiness to it," said Ezra Gottheil, an analyst at Technology Business Research Inc. "People join Twitter ... and then it has to be an on-going commitment. Twitter's charm is that it's immediate and instant. The minute you get busy, it's usefulness fades."

He goes on to add, "It's a major head scratcher because it's intrinsically a slice of time. I hope they reach a phase of general stability. It has to level off at some point and it won't level off at everyone in the whole world using Twitter."

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PSP 2.0 will be named 'PSP Go!'

According to sources, it is now a done deal and Sony will be announcing a refreshed PSP at E3.

Sources are indicating that the name of the new PSP will be the “PSP Go!” and it will hit the streets of Japan in September with an international launch expected to be on tap for October or early November, as Sony wants to make sure that they are players in the holiday season buying.

The PSP Go! will be available in both an 8GB and a 16GB configuration using a new innovative sliding form factor as we predicted previously. The UMD will bite the dust in favor of a memory stick configuration meaning that downloads are go.

Sony is said to be preparing 100 old and new games for launch, but the PSP Go! looks to lack the initially though dual-joystick configuration. While several photos of mock-ups are making the rounds, don’t believe them; as from what we hear they are all fakes.

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Google sued over Android

Illinois developer Erich Specht, sued Google and some 47 other companies in the Open Handset Alliance for using his trademark.

Specht claims he has the rights to the Android name which denotes Google's version of Linux that adorns their handsets. Specht has registered the trademark in 2000 and two years later, the US Patent and Trademark Office awarded the trademark to Android Data, Specht's company.

According to the USPTO, no application would be granted the exclusive right to use the term data, therefore making "android" that dominant word and the trademark. However Android Data never amounted to anything and was dissolved in 2004.

Specht claims that he was not aware that Android was software and thought it was something to do with mobile hardware. Not surprisingly Google said that the case has no merit and it will defend against it. It would not surprise us, however, if it just gave him some money to go away and not tell us about it.

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5 Reasons why you should Install Windows 7!

The XP Killer

The long awaited RC1 of Windows 7, also known as build 7100, is now available to download for the general public directly from Microsoft.

For those that didn't want to try the beta, the new RC is certainly worth a try! Here are 5 reasons why Windows 7 is the next best thing from Microsoft.

Browse on!

Windows 7 addresses Vista's problem of resource hungriness. The boot time is fast, and so is the time taken to come out of the hibernation mode.

Reviewer Benny Har-Even in IT PRO found that "Windows 7 brings a more responsive and sprightly feel."

Reviewer Adrian Kingsley-Hughes writes in ZDNet, "Windows 7 works on netbooks, but if you push the system the same way as you push a desktop system then you might need to add more RAM. On top of that, remember that Windows 7 takes some 7.5GB of disk space, so you need to factor this in. My advice would be not to bother upgrading an existing netbook unless you really feel you want a particular Windows 7 feature. Wait for Windows 7 netbooks to arrive on the scene as some of these will hopefully come with 2GB of RAM fitted."

Boots Super Fast

For those who use a number of applications and files at the same time, there's a new facility that helps to reduce desktop clutter. You can now drag them and stack them in groups on the taskbar.

And what's more, if you hover the mouse over, say, the Windows Explorer stack, each window in it will appear horizontally as thumbnails, and you can click on the one you need to start using it.

Right clicking on a stack gives a 'jump menu' that lets you see your most recent files. You can also 'pin' files that you use regularly on to a stack, so that they are always there on top of a stack.

Also, if you have a number of windows open and you want to focus on one and avoid the clutter around it, just take the mouse to that window's titlebar and shake it. Everything else disappears. Shake the same way again, and all others reappear.

Saucy new desktop features

For those who use a number of applications and files at the same time, there's a new facility that helps to reduce desktop clutter. You can now drag them and stack them in groups on the taskbar.

And what's more, if you hover the mouse over, say, the Windows Explorer stack, each window in it will appear horizontally as thumbnails, and you can click on the one you need to start using it.

Right clicking on a stack gives a 'jump menu' that lets you see your most recent files. You can also 'pin' files that you use regularly on to a stack, so that they are always there on top of a stack.

Also, if you have a number of windows open and you want to focus on one and avoid the clutter around it, just take the mouse to that window's titlebar and shake it. Everything else disappears. Shake the same way again, and all others reappear.

Makes comparing documents silky smooth

In XP, if you want to compare, say, a set of figures in one document with those in another, you have to go alternately into the two documents.

In Windows 7, you can just drag one document or window to one side of your screen and it will snap to that side filling half the screen, and then you can drag the other document to the other side, and it will fill up the other side. Easy to compare, or copy from one to the other.

The Windows XP Mode

It allows you to run a XP application on Windows 7. But Preston Gralla of ComputerWorld who tested the feature says home users are not likely to have a great experience with it.

"Sharing files between the two environments (XP and 7) will be a challenge... (and) it's not designed for games," he says. However, he finds it a great tool for businesses that have already sunk money into XP applications. Microsoft says small businesses using, say, Tally accounting solutions on XP will be able to continue using those on Windows 7.

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HOW-TO: Install Windows Vista SP1 Beta

Some people don’t install Windows Vista before SP1 is available, but (too bad) SP1 isn’t available to the public yet). Today there was a patch posted with you can install SP1 through Windows Update!

Just follow the next steps to install SP1 :

Download Service Pack 1 through Windows Update :

1. Download Windows Vista Service Pack and unpack it on your machine.
2. Run SP1Beta_Hack.cmd with adminpriveleges, after you run the cmd you should see update KB935509 at Windows Update.
3. install the update (KB935509) and restart your machine after you installed the update succesful.
4. Run Windows Update again. You should see update KB937287 in the list.
5. Install this update (KB937287) and restart your machine again.
6. Run Windows Update for the 3rd time. Now you should see update KB938371.
7. Install this update (KB938371) and restart your pc (again).
8. Finally you should run Windows Update again and you should see Service Pack 1 Beta for Microsoft Windows Vista (screenshot below).
9. Install SP1 and restart your pc for the last time.

1. Run watermark_fix.reg.
2. Rename user32.dll.mui to user32.dll.mui.old (you can find the file at c:\Windows\System32\en-US\).
3. Copy user32.dll.mui from the zipfile to the location mentioned above.
4. Restart Windows Vista

Just for the record : I don’t take any responsabillity for the correct installation of SP1. SP1 is only available on the English, German or Japanese version of Windows Vista. If SP1 finds another language (and you can’t uninstall it) you’re unable to install SP1.

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100% XP Compatible? - Windows XP Mode for Windows 7

Rafael Rivera and Paul Thurrott reveal a new Windows 7 application compatibility feature called Windows XP Mode. The only thing I can say about it is that there’s no reason left to migrate from Windows XP to Windows 7! Let’s hope so!

Especially in businesses there are a lot of applications which (probably) won’t run perfectly on Windows 7. Windows 7 has a solution for the incompatible applications. It’s called : Windows XP Mode (XPM).

XPM is nothing more then a virtual-pc based virtual environment with Windows XP with SP3 installed. Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate users can download it for free from the Microsoft Website.

You can compare XPM with Virtual PC, but with the difference that you don’t have to run the virtual environment they way you’ve (probably) tested Windows 7. A application which you install inside the XPM environment is simply published to your Windows 7 host as well. That way it’s possible to run XP based applications from your Windows 7 installation!

Paul Thurrott has published cool pictures about the XPM setup on his SuperSite for Windows! Click here to visit the gallery. Rafael has also a nice post about XPM.

Too bad it’s not available for the consumer versions of Windows 7 right now, but Windows 7 is not released yet..so maybe this will change!

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How-To receive a valid Windows 7 key

To receive a valid Windows 7 Beta/RC key just click here to visit the official Windows 7 Product Key page, or follow the instructions below.

Step 1 : Logon to http://technet.microsoft.com (click on Sign in in the upper right corner)

Step 2 : Copy (Don’t CLICK IT!) one of the links below to the address bar and press enter :

32-Bit key : https://www.microsoft.com/betaexperience/scripts/gcs.aspx?Product=tn-win7-32-ww&LCID=1033 (don’t click, Copy and Paste!)

64-bit key : https://www.microsoft.com/betaexperience/scripts/gcs.aspx?Product=tn-win7-64-ww&LCID=1033 (don’t click, Copy and Paste!)

f you followed the steps correct you should see your key (depending on your version it could also say Windows 7 Beta 32-bit Product Key ). Have fun!

UPDATE : Notice that you’re now viewing this page on another server and that’s the reason the old comments are not available at the moment (they’re not lost/erased!).

Tip : You can use the 64-bit during a 32-bit installation and a 32-bit key during a 64-bit installation (it seems that getting a 64-bit key is faster!)

Step 3 : If you receive the error below, just press F5 to refresh (I had to refresh more then 10 times before I received the key), if you’re being redirected then you didn’t follow the steps 1 and 2 correctly!

UPDATE : Notice that you’re now viewing this page on another server and that’s the reason the old comments are not available at the moment (they’re not lost/erased!).

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Windows 7 RC is available for download!

Let’s hope the Microsoft download servers will get a good last night of sleep, because from tomorrow they will have a tough job to do: Present the Windows 7 RC (and Windows Server 2008 R2) download to the whole world! Let’s hope they’ll do a better job then they did with the release of the Windows 7 Public Beta!

It’s good to read that the Windows 7 RC download will be available from May 5th through July 2009!

And if you’re unable to get your key? why don’t get your key right now! You can get it at this Microsoft webpage.

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Security : DHCP Server & MAC address filtering with Server 2008

The DHCP Server Callout DLL helps to filter out DHCP requests based on MAC address.

When a device or computer tries to connect to network, it first tries to obtain an IP address from the DHCP Server. The Callout DLL (read: hook-in DLL) also works and should continue to work on Windows Server 2008.

The DHCP Server Callout DLL checks if this device MAC address is present in known list (text file) of MAC addresses configured by administrators.
If it is present, the device will be allowed to obtain an IP address or the device requests will be ignored based on the action configured by administrator.
MAC address based filtering will allow network administrators to ensure that only a know set of devices in the system are able get ip address from DHCP Server. This DLL will help administrators to enforce additional security into network.

After installation, both the DLL (MacFilterCallout.dll) and the installation/configuration instructions (SetupDHCPMacFilter.rtf) are available under %windir%\system32.

Download MacFilterCallout.dll

Additional Information : DHCP Team Blog

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Tracing an E-Mail

Let's discuss, how to trace an email sender from the email header.

Viewing Email Header

Every e-mail comes with information attached to it that tells the recipient of its history. This information called a header. The below is the Full header of email .All this information comes with the email. The header contains the information essential to tracing an e-mail. The main components to look for in the header are the lines beginning with "From:" and "Received:" However, it might be instructive to look at what various different lines in the header mean.

Some e-mail programs, like Yahoo or Hotmail, have their full headers hidden by default In order to view the full header, you must specifically turn on that option. Some ways of doing this in different e-mail programs follow here:

Viewing full Header in Yahoo and Hotmail
Yahoo

Click Options -> Click Mail Preferences -> Click Show Headers -> Click "All" -> Click "Save"

Hotmail

Click Options -> Click Mail Display Headings (under "Additional Options") -> Click Message Headers -> Click "Full" ->Click "OK"

Viewing full Header in Email Clients like (Outlook and Eudora etc)
Outlook Express
If you use OE, you may not have much luck; it sometimes gives little more information than what you can see in the main window. But here's the application path anyway:

Click File/Properties/Details to find the header information.

Outlook
First, highlight the email in your Incoming window, right-click on it, and select Options. The window that comes up will have the headers at the bottom.

Eudora
Be sure the message is open, then Click the 'Blah, Blah, Blah' button from the Tool Bar, and the headers will appear.

Pegasus
Select Reader/Show All Headers/

Netscape Mail
Select Options/Headers/Show All Headers

Netscape Messenger 4.0 and 4.5
Select View/Headers/All

Full header in detail:

Message ID:

It is used to identify the system from which the the message has originated (I.e. from the system the sender has logged in). However, this is too easy to forge, and is consequently not reliable.

X-Headers:

X- headers are user defined headers. They are inserted by email client programs or applications that use email. Here from the X- headers inserted into the email by the email client it is clear that the sender has used Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2800.1106 to send this email.

X-Priority: 3

X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2800.1106

MIME-Version:

MIME stands for Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension. It tells the recipient what types of attachments are included in email. It is a format that allows people send attachments that do not contain Standard English Words, but rather graphics, sounds, and e-mails written with other characters. The Mime-Version field merely confirms that the version of MIME used corresponds to the standard version (which is currently 1.0).

From:

Form is useless in tracing an e-mail. It consists of the email of the sender but this can be obviously be a fake. One can use any fake-mailer to fake the sender's name.

Content-Type:

This line tells the receiving e-mail client exactly what MIME type or types are included in the e-mail message. If the Content–Type is text/plain; charset="us-ascii" just tells us that the message contains a regular text message that uses English characters. ASCII is the American Standard Code for Information Interchange and is the system used to convert numbers English characters.

Return-Path:

It is the address to which your return e-mail will be sent. Different e-mail programs use other variations of Return-Path:. These might include Return-Errors-To: or Reply-To etc.

Received:

This field is the key to find out the source of any e-mail. Like a regular letter, e-mails gets postmarked with information that tells where it has been. However, unlike a regular letter, an e-mail might get "postmarked" any number of times as it makes its way from its source through a number of mail transfer agents (MTAs). The MTAs are responsible for properly routing messages to their destination.

Let me strip-off the above email header to make the understanding easy. The header is splitted and the two received headers are given below.

Received Header 1:
204.127.198.35 - Tue, 25 Nov 2003 19:56:18 -0800
from rwcrmhc11.comcast.net ([204.127.198.35])
by mc7-f12.hotmail.com
with Microsoft SMTPSVC(5.0.2195.6713)

Received Header 2:
68.37.24.150 - Wed, 26 Nov 2003 03:44:57 +0000
from pavilion (pcp03530790pcs.mnhwkn01.nj.comcast.net[68.37.24.150])
by comcast.net (rwcrmhc11)
with SMTP
id <20031126034457013001nk6pe>

The MTAs are "stamped" on the e-mail's header so that the most recent MTA is listed on the top of the header and the first MTA through which the e-mail has passed in listed on the bottom of the header. In the above sample e-mail header, e-mail first passed through 68.37.24.150 (pcp03530790pcs.mnhwkn01.nj.comcast.net), and at last made its way through 204.127.198.35 (rwcrmhc11.comcast.net).

In the Received Header 2, the one marked as "pavilion" is either the domain name of the server from which the email has originated or the name of the computer from which the email has been sent. By doing a DNS query for "pavilion", it is confirmed that it is not a know host name hence, must be the name of the computer from which the mail has originated. "68.37.24.150" is the IP address from which the mail might have originated or it is the IP address of the ISP (Internet Service Provider) to which the user was logged on while sending the mail.

Trace who owns the IP address
Every computers hooked on to internet is assigned with an IP address. Individual users possess a dynamic IP address when they logged on to any ISP to access internet. These IP addresses are assigned by the ISP itself. Organization usually possess static/public IP address which is stored in a database of registries.

There are three major registries covering different parts of the world. They are

www.arin.net => American Registry of Internet Numbers (ARIN) : It assigns IP addresses for the Americas and for sub Saharan Africa.

www.apnic.net => Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) : It covers Asia

www.ripe.net => Réseaux IP Européens (RIPE NCC) : It covers Europe

Thus, to find out which organization owns a particular IP address, you can make a "WHOIS" query in the database at any of these registries. You do this by typing the IP address into the "WHOIS" box that appears on each of these websites.

"Received Header" will have the IP address of the ISP in case the users has dialed up to the ISP while sending the email. But if the user has send the email from within the corporate then the corporate public/static IP address is logged.

By giving a "WHOIS" query for 68.37.24.150 at www.arin.net, the following result has been displayed:

Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. JUMPSTART-1 (NET-68-32-0-0-1)
68.32.0.0 - 68.63.255.255
Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. NJ-NORTH-14 (NET-68-37-16-0-1)
68.37.16.0 - 68.37.31.255

# ARIN WHOIS database, last updated 2004-02-04 19:15
# Enter ? for additional hints on searching ARIN's WHOIS database.

From above queries it is found that the IP address (68.37.24.150) is owned "Comcast". By making further queries on "Comcast" it is found that it is the name of the ISP located in NJ, US - 08002. The result of further query is given below:

OrgName: Comcast Cable Communications, Inc.
OrgID: CMCS
Address: 3 Executive Campus
Address: 5th Floor
City: Cherry Hill
StateProv: NJ
PostalCode:08002
Country: US

NetRange: 68.32.0.0 - 68.63.255.255
CIDR: 68.32.0.0/11
NetName: JUMPSTART-1
NetHandle: NET-68-32-0-0-1
Parent: NET-68-0-0-0-0
NetType: Direct Allocation
NameServer: DNS01.JDC01.PA.COMCAST.NET
NameServer: DNS02.JDC01.PA.COMCAST.NET
Comment: ADDRESSES WITHIN THIS BLOCK ARE NON-PORTABLE
RegDate: 2001-11-29
Updated: 2003-11-05

TechHandle: IC161-ARIN
TechName: Comcast Cable Communications Inc
TechPhone: +1-856-317-7200
TechEmail: cips_ip-registration@cable.comcast.com

OrgAbuseHandle: NAPO-ARIN
OrgAbuseName: Network Abuse and Policy Observance
OrgAbusePhone: +1-856-317-7272
OrgAbuseEmail: abuse@comcast.net

OrgTechHandle: IC161-ARIN
OrgTechName: Comcast Cable Communications Inc
OrgTechPhone: +1-856-317-7200
OrgTechEmail: cips_ip-registration@cable.comcast.com

# ARIN WHOIS database, last updated 2004-02-04 19:15
# Enter ? for additional hints on searching ARIN's WHOIS database.

Now since the IP address found belongs to an ISP, it is clear that the sender has dialed up to this ISP while sending the email. For further enquiry we can then request the ISP to provide us with details of the user who has dialed up to them at that given point of time (Wed, 26 Nov 2003 03:44:57 +0000). If the ISP cooperates, they will check their user and message logs to see who was logged into that particular IP address at that time and date. This will reveals the sender's telephone number from which he/she has dialed to the ISP. Now once we have the telephone number we can easily retrieve the name and address of the sender.

Now the above case is solved but there are also other cases where the IP address found on the email header may be owned by an organisation or a cyber cafe.

Cases1: THE IP ADDRESS OWNED BY AN ORGANISATION

But in case the IP address found belongs to an organisation then you have to request them to provide information about the user who has send the mail from within the organisation network. They must have user and message logs on their firewall / proxy and can trace each of their computers connected at the given point of time. By supplying the organisation with the e-mail header of the offending e-mail, they can check these logs and hopefully produce information of the user of that machine.

Cases2: THE IP ADDRESS OWNED BY A CYBER-CAFE

In case it is found that the sender has sent the email from a cyber-cafe then it becomes a difficult task to trace him/her. The user may not be a frequent visitor to that cyber-cafe. But let's assume that you receive such mails frequently from that particular cyber-cafe then you can install "key-loggers" in the computers at the cafe. These programs records user's keystrokes, thus creating a record of everything that was typed at a particular terminal. By reviewing the key-logger logs you may be able to trace the sender in this case.

Note: These methods would aid greatly in identifying an e-mail sender, they also would impinge on the rights of others using the computers to conduct their personal business. Such a conflict defines the ongoing struggle between the fight against terrorism over the Internet and the right to privacy, which will continue to evolve in the years ahead.

enjoy.....Sump

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How To Increase IE Download speed, IE download

If you have ever tried to download several things simultaneously through IE then you may have noticed that it doesn't work quite the way you may have hoped it to. This is because IE limits the amount of simultaneous downloads to two. This is done so that the perceived download progress appears to be tolerable. If you have a high speed connection then your browser should be able to handle a few more downloads. Here is 2 different steps I found to increase your number of connections. Have fun!

IE Download Limit
This is to increase the the number of max downloads to 10.
1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
2. Locate the following key in the registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\m*cro$oft\Windows\Curre ntVersion\Internet Settings
3. On the Edit menu, click Add Value (a dword) , and then add the following registry values:
"MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server"=Dword:0000000a "MaxConnectionsPerServer"=Dword:0000000a
4. Quit Registry Editor.

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Google's G1 all set to overtake Iphone

2012 will herald the end of the Iphone as the dominant force in mobile communications.

Analysts from Informa Telecoms and Media reckon that devices using Google's Open Source Android operating system will outstrip those using Apple's OSX for Iphone around the same time as the planet finally gives up the ghost and goes boom.

With Windows Mobile on the wain, Symbian market share bombing by 30 per cent and Linux struggling to find a foothold in the smartphone sector, Apple's insanely popular handset has every player in the market playing catch-up, including Johnny-come-latelies Acer and Dell.

Will Android take over the world? We can only wait and see.

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Now you can use your IPOD with a Wink

Wink, a smile or a raised eyebrow could soon change the music on your iPod or start up the washing machine, thanks to a new Japanese gadget.

The device looks like a normal set of headphones but is fitted with a set of infrared sensors that measure tiny movements inside the ear that result from different facial expressions.

The gizmo -- called the "Mimi Switch" or "Ear Switch" -- is connected to a micro-computer that can control electronic devices, essentially making it a hands-free remote control for anything.

"You will be able to turn on room lights or swing your washing machine into action with a quick twitch of your mouth," said its inventor, Kazuhiro Taniguchi of Osaka University.

"An iPod can start or stop music when the wearer sticks his tongue out, like in the famous Einstein picture. If he opens his eyes wide, the machine skips to the next tune. A wink with the right eye makes it go back.

"The machine can be programmed to run with various other facial expressions, such as a wriggle of the nose or a smile."

The Mimi Switch could also store and interpret data and get to know its user, said Taniguchi, chief researcher at Osaka University's Graduate School of Engineering Science in western Japan.

"It monitors natural movements of the face in everyday life and accumulates data," Taniguchi told AFP in an interview. "If it judges that you aren't smiling enough, it may play a cheerful song."

Some may use the device for relaxation -- perhaps by changing music hands-free while reading a book -- but Taniguchi said it could also have more serious applications to make people's lives safer and easier.

"If the system is mounted on a hearing aid for elderly people, it could tell how often they sneeze or whether they are eating regularly," he said.

"If it believes they are not well, it could send a warning message to relatives."

The device could also serve as a remote control for appliances for physically disabled people, from cameras and computers to air conditioners, or alert medical services if a person has a fit, he said.

The Ear Switch follows on from an earlier device called the Temple Switch that was small enough to fit inside a pair of eyeglasses and also read the flick of an eyelid.

"As the ear switch is put in the ears, its optical sensors are unaffected by sunlight," Taniguchi said.

He said he was planning to patent his new device in Japan and abroad, work on a wireless version, and seek corporate funding to market it for practical uses -- something he expected might take two or three years.

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First Look: Samsung's Two new touch screen phones

Samsung have been putting out a lot of touch screen phones in the past year and it seems like the company isn't going to slow down any time soon, as Samsung has just announced two new additions to it touch screen phone range, the S5600 and the S5230.

Both handsets are fairly budget orientated compared to past touch screen devices from Samsung, but luckily even budget devices these days are quite feature packed. Both models use Samsung's TouchWiz UI and as such Samsung can keep some of the cost down compared to going with a third party OS.

Starting with the S5600, this is a 3G device with 7.2Mbps HSDPA on the 900 and 2,100MHz bands and it also offers quad band GSM. It has a 2.8-inch QVGA (that's 240x320) display and this is the biggest disappointment with this handset. Other features include a 3 Megapixel camera with smile shot, a front mounted camera for video calls, FM radio with RDS, Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR, USB 2.0 PC sync, 80MB of user accessible memory and a microSDHC card slot.

The S5230 is a quad band GSM handset, but oddly enough Samsung has granted it a bigger screen at 3-inches which a higher WQVGA (240x400) resolution. Apart from the forward facing camera the feature set is the same as for the S5600, although the S5230 only had 50MB of built in memory.

The S5600 measures 102.8x54.8x12.9mm (HxWxD) and the S5230 measures 104x53x11.9mm (HxWxD), but no weights were supplied by Samsung. Both models have a 1,000mAh battery. Both models also support H.263, H.264 and Mpeg4 video, with the S5600 adding support for WMV video as well.

The S5230 should hit stores from next month, with the S5600 following in May.

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Nokia is set to launch up to three new XpressMusic handsets later today - the models are the 5730, 5330 and the 5030, although the last one might not get the XpressMusic branding.

The most interesting of the three is the 5730 which features a slide-out QWERTY keyboard much akin to the one found on the Nokia E75. The 5730 is also said to have built in WiFi, a GPS receiver, a 3.2 Megapixel camera and a front facing camera for video calls, as this is a 3G handsets. It also features something called "Say and Play" and a new "Xpress Home Screen" which should be a customizable home screen similar to what can be found on some of Nokia's E-series devices.

The 5330 is a slider and although not a lot of details have been provided, it should feature a 3.5mm audio jack, up to 24h battery life and MySpace support. Finally the 5030 is a really basic budget model with a built in FM radio that doesn't need a headset to be plugged in to work. It also has a rather large speaker built in to the back. Again, the 5030 should have up to 24h battery life.

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Apple releases new 'Talking' Ipod

Apple launched its third generation iPod Shuffle late yesterday that offers a new "revolutionary" VoiceOver feature that can actually speak the name of the artist, song title and playlist name to you.

The voice quality is better if you own an Intel based Mac with the latest version of OS X, while owners of PCs and older Mac's get a much more computerised voice.

The new 3G Shuffle, as it has been dubbed, is smaller than an AA battery but can hold about 1,000 songs using Apple’s math. The new Shuffle is a rectangular shape, leaving the previously square-ish shape behind.

The big news beyond the VoiceOver (which can speak in 14 different languages) technology is the upgrade to 4GB of flash memory and 10-hour playback time on a full charge. Speaking of charging, the new 3G Shuffle is able to be 80 percent charged in two hours and fully charged in three hours (some competing devices charge fully in less than half the time, so this isn't a huge feat. Ed.). The 3G Shuffle does use a special USB cable for charging and syncing.

The new Shuffle will be available in a silver and black finish and will be only available in the 4GB configuration. One major flaw that has already been widely criticized is the fact that the controls are built in to the headphone cord, as the player itself doesn't have any playback buttons. Some commands require multiple presses and you might even have to press and hold to perform a desired task.

We're sure Apple fans will overlook its flaws and it should prove to be quite popular; but we have to wonder how much smaller the iPod really needs to go and how many more times users will be willing to upgrade. Of course, many users now own multiple iPods these days, and with a price of $79 many can afford to buy a second one.

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The Samsung Android

Although details such as the model name hasn't been revealed, early details of the specifications of Samsung first Android powered handset has made their way online thanks to a deal conference in the Netherlands.

Dutch site GSM Helpdesk got the scoop, although the details are still fairly thin. They're reporting that the handset will be powered by a 528MHz processor, has a capacitive touch screen (the kind used on the HTC Dream/G1), quad band GSM support and some sort of HSDPA/HSUPA support, although they're only speculating about what speeds and network frequencies will be supported.

Details of things like built in memory is yet again very unclear, except that it should have a fairly large amount of built in memory, as well as a micro SD card slot. It will of course have a built in camera too, but again there are no solid details but a 3.2 Megapixel plus camera should be included.

The handset is also said to incorporate Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support, but it's unknown if it will have a built in GPS or not. It will of course have the full complement of Google application support and as with the HTC Magic/G2, it looks like it will have an on-screen keyboard.

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Google Chrome beta gets even faster

Google's Chrome browser has a new beta version that is faster than its "stable" version and is much buggier.

Google said that it will be developing its browser along three parallel tracks: a stable version for mainstream users, a developer track for the programming crowd, and the new beta track for more adventurous punters. A Windows version of the beta claims to be 25 percent faster than the current stable version of Chrome.

It also includes extra features such as form autofill, zooming, autoscroll, and tab-dragging. It crashes a bit more often too.

Although Chrome seems to be devouring market flesh like a revenge seeking Tyrannosaurus just out of rehab. The spectacular V8 JavaScript virtual machine combined with its multiple-process design, Incognito feature, Omnibox and Gears make Chrome a browser you can't refuse.

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HTC Touch 2 gets free Windows Mobile 6.5

If you get yourself an HTC Touch II you will get a Windows 6.5 version for free. This is what a HTC representative told us in a pleasant chat a few days ago.

HTC is not certain about the way of transition, but they suspect that there will be an update that will be delivered via Windows.

Windows Mobile 6.5 is a huge leap forward and it will get Windows mobile to a more competitive position against the iPhone OS, while we believe that Symbian is the one that needs to do a lot of catching up.

The Windows mobile 6.5 is being expected later this years but different sources quote different dates and the earliest possible we’ve heard is Autumn this year but it might be later than that.

HTC Touch II looks and works much better than its older brother even with Windows Mobile 6.1 but 6.5 version will certainly get it a new breath. This will give Microsoft a better fighting chance against Apple and this is exactly what they want.

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Internet Explorer 8 launches amidst Zero Excitement

We don't want to ruin Microsoft parade, but does anyone still consider Internet Explorer the web browser of choice?

As Internet Explorer 8 is set to launch later today we doubt that Microsoft's servers will be over-run with download requests.

We're not sure IE8 even addresses the major issues with Internet Explorer, as it seems like Microsoft has focused more on adding more gimmicks rather than improving the basics its web browser. According to the press release, Microsoft's users wanted "safety, speed and greater ease of use" from Microsoft's next web browser and we have yet to see if IE8 will deliver on this.

New features include better protection against online threats, accelerators, web slices and visual search suggestions. We're all for the improved protection against online threats, as long as it still means that your browser will function as normally and without your system grinding to a halt. Accelerators is a tighter integration with various web services through third party add-ons that are activated by right clicking on the page you're visiting which will bring up a range of options depending on the specific site and accelerator. Options such as search, email, sharing and map-access are suggested in the press release.

Web slices is meant to make certain services more easily accessible, no matter what site you're browsing and the list of services in the press release includes Digg, OneRiot, eBay and Yahoo! email. We're not quite sure how this will work in praxis, but we won't have to wait too long to find out. Finally visual search suggestions are meant to be a "rich, real-time search" tied in with various popular sites, as well as your history and bookmarks. The advantage here would be the visual element that might actually prove to be a widely used feature in IE8.

Microsoft claims that "Internet Explorer 8 is one of the fastest browsers on the market today, beating other top browsers in page load time on almost 50 percent of the 25 top comScore Inc. Web sites." It will be interesting to see if IE8 can live up to that claim and if all the new features are enough to bring people back to using Internet Explorer. IE8 will be available in 25 languages from the word go, which is at least something for those looking to try out the new browser in their native language.

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HTC Touch Diamond 2 arrives on April 15th

The new HTC Diamond touch II should be available as of April 15th, and if you would get a handset with Windows 6.5 version for free.

The HTC Touch Diamond 2 derives inspiration from the original touch Diamond and sports the same design cues, while going all guns blazing as far as the features are concerned.

It now has a larger 3.2-inch, WVGA screen and is now thinner at just 13.7 mm. The camera is a five megapixel unit with auto focus. The interface is the same TouchFLO 3D running over Windows Mobile 6.1. The ROM and RAM figure remain the same: ROM: 512 MB, RAM: 288 MB.

On the other hand the HTC Touch Pro 2 is a beefed up version of its predecessor and now sports some updated features. The overall package is sexier and the device looks built for purpose.

Its features include 512MB of ROM, 288MB of RAM, microSD expansion and a 3.2 megapixel camera. The highlight is obviously the massive 3.6-inch screen with a resolution of 800x400. Touch Pro 2 would be available later this year.

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Now Gmail has an 'Undo Send' feature

Google has pulled a new magic trick today - the search giant has developed a feature that will allow its Gmail clients to take back an email they wish they never sent.

The Gmail labs have come up with a feature called "Undo Send," that lets you abort the sending of any Gmail message. That is if you use it within five seconds. The service is designed to stop people who make the mistake of hitting the “reply all” button when they only wanted to send the email to one person on the list.

Gmail will also look for the word attached in your document and if there is no attachment it will warn you that you have not done it. There is also a feature of Google Apps which puts orange borders around the names of e-mail recipients that are not inside your company. The idea is that you don't accidentally send corporate secrets to outsiders.

If you want a play, click on "Settings" in Gmail and then the "Labs" tab.

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Internet Explorer 8 is a Train Wreck

Microsoft invented the concept of launching a beta product in order to build up traction for the final product. Yet the introduction of Internet Explorer 8 shapes up to be a complete train wreck as far as customer adoption is concerned.

Last week IE8 launched and topped out at a market share of 1.86% by Friday afternoon. For a company with the reach of Microsoft, this was a bit of a disappointment. But browsers like Internet Explorer 7, Firefox or Safari hit their market share highs on weekends, while Internet Explorer 6, still a browser that has a fairly high market share during the week, declines.

It is too early to say which browser had to give up market share to enable IE8’s gain, but as far as we can see it does not appear that IE7’s and Firefox 3’s market share numbers have suffered. It will take some time until we can see whether IE7 users are upgrading or Firefox users are returning to IE.

But the heart of the matter is that, in a best case scenario, IE8 has gained less than 1% of market share over the weekend and may have seen somewhere between 5 and 7 million downloads between Friday evening and Sunday night. Since launch day, the market share has increased by less than 1.3%.

Let’s look at what Mozilla accomplished with Firefox. Firefox 3 gained 2.76 percentage points over its first four days of availability – and we are talking about a browser that had less than 20% overall market share at the time of its release. Microsoft’s IE is still well above the 65% mark. You do the math on the performance discrepancy – and it is now even more impressive how Mozilla handled the launch of Firefox 3.

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Acer's Android Mobile Phone

Acer's first Android handset is set to launch in September if a confidential source at Acer quoted by Bloomberg is correct.

The handset in question is the A1 which was displayed as a dummy sample at the Mobile World Conference last month.

So far no details are known about this handset apart from the OS it will be using, but it seems like Acer is going to be late in joining the Android crowd, as many of its competitors should have handsets out before then.

The adoption rate of Android has been slower than we expected, although mobile phone makers are generally not as fast when it comes to adopting new technology as the PC manufacturers and this could be part of the reason behind the slow uptake.

With Acer's takeover of E-Ten, the company does at least have a qualified team of engineers and hopefully Acer will understand the importance of designing devices that has a wide consumer and business appeal. September seems like an awfully long way away right now, but we can only hope that Acer can pull this one off and offer an interesting alternative to the current HTC devices which are somewhat lacking compared to HTC's Windows Mobile devices.

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IE8 continues to tumble

Users have given a thumbs down to Microsoft's new IE 8 browser and are frantically going back to the older IE 7. The browser, which has only be available for download for a week, is already losing ground.

At the beginning of the week it held 2.58 per cent of the market. However it has now slumped to 1.86 per cent and it appears that figure is because people are going back to IE 7.

IE 8 comes packed with new tools which might take some getting used to, but the feeling is the problem is related to Microsoft's adherence to new Web publishing standards that aren't supported by a number of major Web publishers. Most of the web has been designed around the quirks of IE 7 which used standards as a rough guideline and ended up creating a standard of its own.

With Microsoft getting fundamentalist and moving to real standards this time, some Internet Exploder users can't open some sites. This is not Microsoft's fault really as the sites should be based around the same standards. But even Microsoft's own website had problems and the outfit's Publisher software can't render properly in the new browser.

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