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[Linoman]

X64bit.net End of year newsletter, 2006

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Can you all believe it; it’s now a matter of hours until we are in 2007. This year (2006) saw some interesting progress in the IT sector. This newsletter is a recap of some of the most interesting topics, guides and articles we have covered in our 2006 newsletters.

Reviews: One of the most followed articles was the progress of Windows Vista from build 5308 to RTM status.

Build 5308 – nvyseal

“As many of you know, Microsoft released its full feature build of vista 5308. In this build the IE7
has not changed much. This build does include the windows defender in it and is able to report
phishing sites. One thing many people have been asking is if the sidebar is included in this build,
yes it is, it also includes the 3D flip. The photo gallery has been left untouched. The games have
gotten a facelift. Like all betas, there are still some bugs that needs working out.”




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Build 5342– nvyseal

“On March 25th, Microsoft released to beta testers the latest version of Vista build 5342. I
know, you say “another build, this is getting boring”, but this build is different, (digg it)! IT
WORKS!! This build comes after Microsoft postponed the retail release for the up and coming
operating system until 2007. We also have information that almost 60% of the code for Vista
will be rewritten.
We are happy to share with you some screenshots of this new build and brief information
about it. Included in this build is an extensive collection of drivers and the exclusive sidebar.
Glass is also a feature that we all have come to respect and love, along with the 3D flip. The
official version number is 6.0 Version 5342.winmain_idx04.060321-1730. Internet Explorer
7.0 is build Version 7.0.5342.2. Nice features include a new "Paint" and needed redesigned
network center. Be prepared to have your system "Rated" again by this OS, and don’t be
disappointed by the rating, as things will improve as the OS improves. This version includes an
"Ultimate Extras" services (live update, windows live) for those who "own" a copy of window
Vista. With windows "Ultimate" Vista, you get Cutting edge programs, Innovative services and
Tips and Tricks, w00t!!”


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Build 5365- Nvyseal

“Let’s take a quick tour of Vista 5365.8.060419-1800. Firstly this is "just a build" not a CTP. It
Is still considered as Beta 1. The Vista Team spent time on this build and made fixes to key
areas to show Beta Testers that they are committed to the quality that we can expect from
Redmond. Let’s see if they pass the x64bit.net challenge.

I started the install, which by the way has a completely new install interface, and one burger,
and a few fries later (approx. 30 minutes) I was booting for the first time into Vista 5365. The
only information I had to give the OS was its CD Key. Install was faster than the previous
build. I do need to tell you, on final install, you should see all the neat graphics Microsoft has
in store for you. Glass again was not a problem with my ATI AIW Pro 9700, using generic MS
drivers. I will install the ATI and Audigy drivers later.

I noticed a large performance increase which was expected. My performance rating stayed the
same. Boot time was faster

I activated the sidebar under accessories and took a look at the gadgets, but didn't see
anything new. Active Sync was not able to sync up to my PDA on the first boot.”


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Build 5456.5-Nvyseal

“Vista has incorporated a bunch of easy to use, high quality, and extremely fast photo correction tools into the Photo Gallery. I’m going to walk you through what each of them does so that you can make your photos pop.

All of the editing tools in Vista are located in the Gallery Viewer. You can get to this by double clicking on a photo in either the Vista Photo Gallery or from any folder. The various fix tools are all located on a pane which you can open up by clicking the “Fix” button in the command bar.

The Vista Photo Gallery has controls to adjust exposure, color, crop region and red-eye. Each of the individual controls are accessed by clicking on the corresponding button in the fix pane. The Photo Gallery also has an “Auto Adjust” feature, which as the name implies, automatically find the best exposure and color settings for the photo.”




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Build 5744-Nvyseal

All the info on the last planned release to the beta program prior to RTM




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Build 6000.16386.061101-2205 FINAL –x64bit.net team


After five years, a complete restart of the entire Vista project and a year in beta testing.
Windows Vista has finally reached RTM. The final build number is 6000.16386.061101-2205. Vista GA (General Availability) will be from 30 January 2007.





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OFFICE 2007, the progress from start to finish-x64bit.net team


“As some of you might already know Microsoft has announced that office 12 will be called Office
2007. They also announced that the office12 refresh is supposed to be released this month on
connect. Rumors have it that this build is expected to be required for the use with the new Vista
CTP Microsoft also announced the pricing details. For office Pro Plus, it will include Excel,
outlook, power point, word, access and publisher for 499$ or 329$ for upgrade Office small
business has the same features but without the access and it will cost $449 and $279 for up
grade. Office standard edition will include word, excel, power point, and outlook for $399 or $239
as upgrade Microsoft has changed the SKU targeted at Students and teachers, naming it Home
and Students and replacing outlook with OneNote, This package will be available to everyone
now for $149 Last Office basic, which Microsoft said will only be sold with new computers will
include Word, excel, and outlook, Pricing was not giving for this package”

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Office Refresh-Neon

“Firstly installation - This looks quite nice and more tidy. Not many things to comment on here,
but i note how you can choose upgrade or customize your installation. You can even leave older
versions of Office installed. The whole process is very straight forward

I had a shock when i first opened Microsoft Word. Immediately i was reminded of Vista when i
saw an Orb in the top left corner, reminiscent of the Vista Start menu Orb. When I clicked this
orb I find that the File menu looks very much like a Start menu.
Performance wise I couldn't find fault with it and as I navigated around the layout that is very
much the same as previous Office 2007 (formerly Office 12) builds. Very accessible! If I want
something, I click and a whole category is there and I can see all the available functions. Note
the zoom feature in the bottom right is still there and now almost like the Quick Launch on the
taskbar, there is a similar thing above the Office Orb button. On top of this there is a great
menu for customizing MS word, including what format you save in.

PowerPoint has been given the same attention as Microsoft Word. Menus are easy to use and
to understand, all the main features that you are more likely to need are at hand. It has same
options as you can get in Word, such as which format you save slideshows in. Backward
compatibility will be very important to a lot of people. Things like animations and insert are
now right where you can get them. If you highlight any of the animations you get a preview
quickly below on the stage. Same with Sounds and other extras”

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Linux:


Kubuntu 6.06 LTS-Linoman

“I have been a user of Dapper Drake 6.06 ever since Flight CD 5 arrived on the scene. For over 2 months, I have seen how improvements have been added and bugs fixed. In the past I continued to just update my system but when Kubuntu 6.06 LTS was released I decided to rather format and install a fresh copy.

Unlike previous versions of Kubuntu the “install” and “live' cd are now on one cd. The CD loads a full Kubuntu desktop, which lets you try it out before installing it. If one chooses to install Kubuntu it is now all done graphically. This is a huge improvement over the previous text installer, installing through GUI system makes installation so much easier and to newbies it must seem like a miracle.

(Please note if you need advanced options then rather download the alternate install cd which uses the text based installer)

The installer is quick and asks a few basic questions; Systems Name; Users Name and Password; Preferred Language; Keyboard Layout. (This is not in the order that the installer asks these questions)”


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Automatix 6.2-1-Linoman

“With copyright patents all over the place. A lot of Linux distributions have been forced to exclude property codecs. The good thing is how ever, the user can download these codecs later. Ubuntu and its derivatives are plagued by this.

For a beginner this can be quite a daunting task. A few scripts have arrived on the scene to assist users installing property software/codecs.

One such script is Automatix. I first came across it last year, when I was using Ubuntu 5.10 Breezy. I was amazed at how much easier it made my life. Then I decided to start using the alphas of Dapper Drake. I was saddened that Automatix did not support it then. When Dapper Drake arrived on the scene I install Kubuntu 6.06 LTS and went hunting for Automatix.

I was pleased to see, Automatix now supported Dapper Drake. Automatix has come a long way. When I first used it last year. The script would crash with out warning. In this release I did not have these problems. Installing and keeping Automatix updated is a breeze. Automatix can now install and update by apt, just add the appropriate entry to your /etc/apt/sources.list.”


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New iTunes 7!- chriso_86

today Apple released their next generation of the ipod family. Along with this they have also released the next version of iTunes. Here are some pics of the new program. Head over to apple.com and download it and give it a try!! I just tried it on my 64bit computer and it loaded, which the last version of iTunes would not work on x64




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Bragging Rights:


x64bit Screen Savers:


x64bit Logon Screens


More info here and here


We now have our own chess room, so what you waiting for? Sign up

http://chessroom.x64bit.com/
http://www.x64bit.ne...p?showforum=122


Own Rigs


How to build your own Conroe, by chriso_86

“I am building a brand new Conroe system to replace my Opteron. I plan on walking through all the basic steps needed to building your very own system for all you newbs that what to get into building your own computer! And for the rest of you guys that already and smarty pants just tag along and check out all the sweet pictures to come!!

First off I had to order parts!! This is probably one of the most important steps in building your computer!!! I usually start with the processor since everything has to be compatible with that!!”




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New Conroe system+ Radical Mod -, scaramonga

I took delivery today of the following components:

1 x ASUS P5W DH Deluxe WiFi Board
1 x Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
1 x 2GB G.Skill DDR2 HZ PC2-6400 RAM
1 x OCZ GameXStream 700W PSU
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 SATA 2 16MB 320GB (Storage Drive)
1 x Sony Black Floppy Drive
1 x NEC AD-7173A DVD+-RW Burner
1 x Logitech Gaming Keyboard
1 x Logitech G7 Laser Cordless Mouse
1 x Coolermaster Stacker STC-T01 Server Case
1 x UV Lighting Kit
1 x Swiftech H20 APEX Ultra WC Kit




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Simons new toy, Compaq Presario V5305WM Media Center Notebook

Microprocessor 2.00 GHz Mobile AMD Sempron™ Processor 3300+ Microprocessor Cache 128KB L2 CacheMemory
512MB 333MHz DDR Memory Max 2048MB
Video Graphics ATI RADEON XPRESS 200M IGP Video Memory 128MB DDR
(shared)Hard Drive 60GB 5400RPM
Multimedia Drive 24X DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive
Display 15.4” WXGA High-Definition BrightView Widescreen (1280 x 800) Display
Fax/Modem High speed 56k modemNetwork Card I
ntegrated 10/100BASE-T Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 connector)
Wireless Connectivity 54g™ 802.11b/g WLAN with 125HSM / SpeedBooster support
Sound Altec Lansing
Keyboard 101-key compatible
Pointing Device Touch Pad with dedicated vertical and horizontal Scroll Up/Down pad
PC Card Slots

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Linoman's new toy


Now I am sure most of you know about my new PC,, but sorry incase you dont. I have to brag aswell; I love Windows XP x64 Edition

Processor: AMD® BOXED ATHLON™64 X2 3800+ PROCESSOR - 2.0GHZ DUAL CORE SOCKET AM2 2X512K 2000MHZ HT 90NM AMD64
Motherboard: GIGABYTE® "S SERIES" NVIDIA NFORCE 430 CHIPSET - FOR AMD K8 PROCESSORS @ 1000MHZ HT - INTEGRATED MAINBOARD - SOCKET AM2 ONLY
4X DDR2-800 (DUAL CHANNEL),
4X SATA2 + 2X ATA133, NVRAID, 2X PCI, 1X PCI-EXPRESS 1X, 8 X USB 2.0 (4 BY CABLE), IEEE1394, FULL ATX
FEATURES 1X PCI EXPRESS X16 SLOT, REALTEK 8CH HIGH DEFINITION AUDIO, NVIDIA INTEGRATED LAN, MICROATX, FEATURES SAFE & SMART TECHNOLOGY
Graphics Card: GEFORCE 6100 VGA, 512MB (its onboard but it should run well)
RAM: Times 2" TRANSCEND® JETRAM™ HIGH-PERFORMANCE 512MB DDR2-533 240-PIN MODULE : CL4, 4-LAYER PC BOARD (Aka in total 1GB Or Ram)
Box: GIGABYTE® CHASSIS - ATX TOWER 4-IN-1 SOLUTIONS : BLACK/SILVER DUAL TONE CHASSIS, KEYBOARD, MOUSE WITH 400W 24-PIN PSU
DVDRW: LITEON® SHORT HALF-HEIGHT DVD MULTI-WRITER + LIGHTSCRIBE, 16X+R/-R, 8X +R/4X -R DL, 8X +RW, 6X -RW, 5X -RAM, 16X DVD, 48XCDR, 24X RW
Harddrive: SEAGATE® BARRACUDA™ 7200.10 SERIES - 250GB SERIAL ATA II (SATA2) PLUS - SERIAL ATA 300 (3GBPS) WITH 16MB CACHE @ 7200RPM
Soundcard: CREATIVE® SOUND BLASTER AUDIGY VALUE PCI SOUND CARD - 6 CHANNEL SURROUND SOUND SUPPORT - EAX SUPPORT
Modem: CNET® 56K V.92 INTERNAL PCI BUS SOFTWARE MODEM WITH CONEXANT CHIPSET
Keyboard and Mouse LOGITECH® OEM SERIES - INTERNET PRO BLACK PS2

Shocking News Stories:


Battlefield 2142 With a Dash of Spyware

When you open the box, a big slip of paper falls out first, preceeding any discs or manuals. The slip of paper says, essentially, that 2142 includes monitoring software which runs while your computer is online, and records "anonymous" information like your IP address, surfing habits (probably via cookie scans), and other "computing habits" in order to report this information back to ad companies and ad servers, which generates in-game ads.

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Parents Nearly Trade Kids for PS3s

It seems people will do anything to get a PlayStation 3 this holiday season. A Minnesota radio host announced over the radio that if parents were willing to turn their children over to the station for 24 hours, they would give them a new PS3.

The joke soon turned sour when it became apparent that a majority of the callers were serious about the trade.

"We got more calls than we could handle," said Dave Ryan, "They were lined up willing to turn their kids over to strangers for a freakin' PlayStation."

Children offered included a one week and two day old baby. One caller named Katie attempted to get a PS3 by offering her 1 month old up for a 3 day period. When informed it was a hoax, she responded in disbelief.

Dave Ryan went onto say in an article,"But I didn't want them to feel too badly. I said, 'Listen you're not the only one who fell for this'. But at the same time, think about it, these are your kids, these are the most precious responsibility you'll ever have in your entire life. Be careful with your babies.' "

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New Windows attack can kill firewall

Hackers have published code that could let an attacker disable the Windows Firewall on certain Windows XP machines.

The code, which was posted on the Internet early Sunday morning, could be used to disable the Windows Firewall on a fully patched Windows XP PC that was running Windows' Internet Connection Service (ICS). This service allows Windows users to essentially turn their PC into a router and share their Internet connection with other computers on the local area network (LAN.) It is typically used by home and small-business users.

The attacker could send a malicious data packet to another PC using ICS that would cause the service to terminate. Because this service is connected to the Windows firewall, this packet would also cause the firewall to stop working, said Tyler Reguly, a research engineer at nCircle Network Security Inc., who has blogged about the issue.

"Once the firewall is down, where's your line of defense?" he said Monday, in an interview.

By knocking off the Windows Firewall, a criminal could open the door to new types of attacks, but there are a number of factors that make such an attack scenario unlikely, Reguly said.

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Pluto No Longer A Planet!

Pluto has been booted out of the planetary club.

The little rock that millions of schoolkids learned was the ninth planet from the sun is a planet no longer, thanks to historic
new guidelines adopted today by leading astronomers.

After a cosmic week-long clash over what qualifies orbital masses for planetary status, the International Astronomical Union
has stripped Pluto of the designation it's held since its discovery in 1930.

The decision by the prestigious international group spells out the basic tests that celestial objects now have to meet before they
can be dubbed a planet.

Poor Pluto failed to make the new cut because its oblong orbit
overlaps with Neptune's. It will now be a founding member of the
new club of "dwarf planets."

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From all of us here at x64bit.net we thank you, our loyal members and staff for making the site what it is. May 2007 be a prosperous year for everyone.

Best wishes,

X64bit.net staff


© 2006 X64bit.net
All Rights Reserved
Editor Linoman

[Sphere]

Can my new rig be included too?

Name: Renate
Motherboard: Asus M2N4-SLI,
with:
Socket: AuthenticAMD AM2 socket
Chipset: nVidia nForce 430 series
LAN OnBoard 10/100/1000bit
RAM support: 4X DDR2-800 (DUAL CHANNEL)
Drivesupport: 4X SATA2 + 2X P-ATA133
RAID: NVRAID 0, 1, 0+1, 5, JBOD
Extension slots:
2X PCI-1x
2X PCI-EXPRESS 16x
10X USB 2.0 (6 BY CABLE)
Powersupply: FULL ATX
PSU: 650W some-brand
CPU: AuthenticAMD Athlon 64 X2, 3800+, Socket AM2, Boxed
RAM: Dane-Elec DDR2 SDRAM, 2x 512 MB, DDR2, PC4200, 533 MHz dual channel
Graphics: Asus EN7300GT SILENT/HTD, 256 MB, DDR2, PCI Express x16
harddisks:
1: Maxtor/Seagate Baracuda 250GB S-ATA II harddisk
2: Seagate Baracuda 60GB P-ATA harddisk, IDE-master - WindowsXP 32 bit
3: Seagate Baracuda 80GB P-ATA harddisk, IDE-slave - Linux distro that works, eventually
Diskdrives:
1: DVD+/-RW Lite-On DVD-burner/reader MASTER
Audio: Creative SoundBlaster Audigy 2 Platinum 5.1 surround
Audio speakers: Logitech X5-30 Dolby Surround
Keyboard: Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
Mouse: Logitech standard el-cheapo
Monitor: AOC Spectrum 7F monitor
Chassis: Coolermaster Centurion

That's sorta it....

It's giving me a load of problems with Linux though! But she's fast

[nitram]

As much as i do bicker some times iv enjoyed being here with you all through 2006 and look forwared to your company yet again through 2007.

Thank you all and have a -

HAPPY NEW YEAR

[m.oreilly]

we love you too, nitrisco

[Scuba]

Great newsletter! I have enjoyed the short time here with you guys (and gals) and look forward to an even better year to come! HAPPY NEW YEARS! Now log off and get drunk!!!!!!!!!!!!