Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac OS goes gold, hits the App Store

It's been available since October in beta form, but Microsoft has just turned its Windows Phone 7 Connector product to a shiny shade of gold, giving Mac owners a solid (if not Zune-free) option for hooking up their Windows Phones without firing up Boot Camp. We're told there aren't any new features in the latest build worth noting, so you'll get the same options as before: media synchronization, iTunes compatibility, and support for Windows Phone firmware updates.

[Source: Engadget]

IBM's Mira supercomputer does ten petaflops with ease, inches us closer to exascale-class computing

Say hello to the Blue Gene/Q, or if you're looking for something a bit less intimidating, "Mira." That's IBM's latest and greatest concoction, a ten-petaflop supercomputer capable of running programs at ten quadrillion calculations a second. Hard to say who'd win between Mira and Watson, of course, but there's absolutely no question who'd come out on top if Mira were pitted against her predecessor Intrepid (hint: Mira's 20x faster). To put this all in perspective, IBM's chiming in with this:

"If every man, woman and child in the United States performed one calculation each second, it would take them almost a year to do as many calculations as Mira will do in one second."

Mira's next stop is at the US Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory, where it'll be used to tackle 16 projects in particular that were drawn from a pool of proposals to gain access to her capabilities. We're told that these include a range of initiatives -- from reducing energy inefficiencies in transportation and developing advanced engine designs to spurring advances in energy technologies -- and in time, it could lead to exascale-class computers "that will be faster than petascale-class computers by a factor of a thousand."

[Source: IBM via Engadget]

Internet, Software, Mobile Software Last.fm radio app goes 'premium' on home and mobile devices, web and desktop streaming remain free

 

Last.fm has decided to tweak its offering on the app front, where it is now introducing a new subscription requirement for most mobile and home entertainment devices. From here on out, you'll have to pay for the privilege of streaming music through the company's software on devices like the iPhone and Squeezebox, though the blow is nicely cushioned by the news that there won't be any ads to dilute your aural pleasure. Windows Phone 7 won't be subject to the new fee for the remainder of 2011 in the US and UK, while Sonos devices will continue to stream freely until this summer, but eventually it seems like all these apps will cost a little bit of cash to use. And "little" is the operative word here, as Last.fm is asking for only $3 / €3 / £3 per month. If you really can't stomach the outlay, however, just stream via the web or desktop application.

[Source: Lastfm via Engadget]

Hardware Chart

I do a good bit of tech support for people these days for a little bit of extra income. So a few months ago I made up a kinda of tech-emergency-kit. It's sort of like a first-aid kit, but for computers and such. It's still changing depending on what I need, but so far it really hasn't needed much more for any of the situations that I've come across. Some of the items here you can do without, pretty much all of it is cheap and I'll provide some links for as many as I can.

Storage containers:
This is really up to your discretion. I use a tackle box and a regular toolbox to hold everything in and twist-ties to keep things tidy.

List of items and their use:
*  4GB-8GB USB Drives x 2  = Any brand is fine, the cheaper the better. I always have two different brands just in case a computer won't read it or one messes up
*  120GB or larger USB Drive = This is essential if someone computer is so bad off it needs to be wiped clean. Use this to make a backup of everything that needs to be
*  VGA to RCA converter = I personally use this instead of carrying around a seperate monitor. It's main purpose is for people that don't have an HDTV with a VGA hookup.
* USB/PS2 Keyboard = For backwards compatibility
*  USB/PS2 Mouse = For backwards compatibility
*  USB Hub =  For using the Keyboard/Mouse
* Wireless Router = Check Woot if you decide to carry one, I got my spare one on there for just under $20
* Outlet Strip = Handy if there is a lack of plugs
*  Lots of cables =  Have at least two of each of the following:
7' Ethernet, RCA 3.5mm splitter, 12' RCA 3.5mm, 12-25' RCA 2 cable, RCA splitter x 4, KVM cable, Phone cable, Power cables 1 2 3, HDMI to DVI, HDMI, 6' Component, 6' Composite, 6' Svideo, 6' VGA, Universal USB cable, Univesal Laptop power cable
* Electrical tape
* Boot CD's of Ubuntu, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Ophcrack
* A couple of spare CDs and DVDs

You'll need a few handtools as well (screwdrivers mainly), but none that you shouldn't be able to improvise with. Most everything on here I got for free from different places and people. Just take your time building it up, starting with the Boot CD's and USB drives, everything else is extra. With all this stuff you should be able to fix just about any computer or home theater.