Megaupload has been shut down

In what might be the first of several website attacks the popular filesharing site Megaupload" has been shut down for piracy.  While news of this takedown has been all over the web there is very little being said about the guy behind the uploads.

Dotcom, the megamind behind Megaupload, was arrested yesterday in New Zealand, his panic-room door busted down by officials, who found the hacker clinging to a sawed-off shotgun. Dotcom faces up to 55 years in prison if extradited to the U.S. and convicted on charges of racketeering, copyright infringement, and money laundering. The hacker-turned-multimillionaire businessman has been accused of costing the entertainment industry $500 million through pirated content uploaded to his popular file-sharing site, which boasted 180 million registered users and celebrity endorsements from Kanye West to Kim Kardashian.

Check out the site for a good history of what Kim Dotcom has been up to.   Heck you even get a photo of the big guy.

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Performance Tuning Protection Plan by Intel - Overclock Protection

It is about time that Intel did something like this.  For the longest time overclockers had to hide the fact they were abusing processors just so that they can use the 3 year warranty in hopes of getting their processor replaced.  This is of a special concern when dealing with special $1000 dollar processors that come with unlocked multipliers and insane levels of performance. 

Why spend that much money if you're not going to push them?

The Performance Tuning Protection Plan being offered by Intel is a chance for you to experiment with the overclocking features of your processor without the worries of what will happen if you push the procesor too far. The Plan allows you a single processor replacement, hassle-free, from our customer support. This is in addtion to your standard 3 year warranty. In other words, if it fails under normal usage, we will replace it under the standard warranty; if it fails while running outside of Intel's specifications, we will replace it under the Performance Tuning Protection Plan.

So what we are saying is this: Go ahead and push it, we've got your back.

The way this works is that you buy an enhanced warranty based on your processor type and if the processor fails while you are overclocking Intel will provide a one-time replacement, no questions asked. For more information and pricing check out the Performance Turning Protection Plan on the Intel website.

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digg is Dead! - at least to Ninjalane and the rest of the Internet

A few weeks ago I posted a thread in the Ninjalane Message Forum asking people if I should keep the "digg this" social button on each article page and I got some interesting results.

Unanimous of those was that removing the "digg this" button would not be the end of the world, in fact, some people actually offered me money to remove it. 

Yes real American dollars, greenbacks, cash!  or maybe that was a dream, I'm not sure.  Either way the "digg this" button has been removed so any of you digg'ers, all 0 of you, will have to find another outlet to get your stories off.

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Websites Wikipedia, Reddit, Others Go Dark Wednesday to Protest SOPA, PIPA

I don't normally get animated about bills like this because by the time they get passed they are so watered down that they cannot be enforced.  However, I don't think that will be the case with SOPA and PIPA, both bills have backings from large industries who are basically struggling to survive. 

Do not try to look up "Internet Censorship" or "SOPA" or "PIPA" on Wikipedia, the giant online encyclopedia, on Wednesday. SOPA and PIPA are two bills in Congress meant to stop the illegal copying and sharing of movies and music on the Internet, but major Internet companies say the bills would put them in the impossible position of policing the online world. 

The biggest issue I see with these bills is how it will embrace anti-competition processes.  In the early days one of the quickest ways to get to the top was to make sure your competition wasn't there.  Sometimes that ment attacking the company physically or creating campaigns that targeted that company to ensure the public would no longer trust them.  

With SOPA or PIPA there isn't anything to stop, say a rival hardware review site, from saying that their competition is pirating, log a complain and basically get that site blocked and or taken down without any recourse for appeal.  I believe that is one of the issues still being discussed but it still brings up questions as to how far the bills will go to police the internet. 

The story goes on to mention that the source of the piracy isn't always within the US but from foreign countries who find it easy to copy and redistribute US based software and technology.  Sadly those are who need to be targeted and a US internet bill wouldn't apply.

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How to build a digital pinball machine in Metku

This might be one of the coolest mods I have ever seen, at least since the advent of a mame machine.  The mod consists of matching 3 video panels together to create a digital pinball machine complete with sounds and realistic switches,

Check it out.

So what is a digital pinball machine? In short, it is a digital recreation of the original ones that you may have played in arcades, gas stations etc. I chose the shape of the machine to be
somewhat similar to the original ones but there is no reason to do so if more creative approach is needed.

I'm glad they opted to run it without the legs since they really didn't look sturdy at all.

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Made it back to the Labs safe and sound

Well as you may have guessed CES 2012 has concluded and I am finally back in the Labs trying to get things sorted out.

There is some stuff I need to get caught up on around the house after which I can get to adding some more CES coverage and finally posting Episode 13 of the Ninjalane Podcast.

Stay tuned 

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CES:2012 TechReport Round-up - Get along little doggies

Busy Day for me yesterday so no daily post for Day 2  (yet). In the meantime check out what TechReport has been up to.

- Nvidia and Asus aim for $249 Tegra 3 tablet
- Thermaltake brings rubber domes back in style
- OCZ, Marvell scale Kilimanjaro with PCIe SSD
- Lenovo's Yoga bends over backward to please us

Another big day of running around and catching up with folks.  Stay tuned.

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Some CES 2012 Stories

More CES News from around the web, hardware related at least

- CES 2012: Digital Experience @ ThinkComputers
- x86 Everywhere: Intel Announces Medfield Phones @ HotHardware
- CES 2012: EVGA SR-X Dual Socket 2011 Motherboard @ Legit Reviews
- 7-series mobos abound at Gigabyte @ TR
- TechwareLabs Event Coverage:  CES2012 Monster Press Conference
- CES 2012: MSI’s Z77 Motherboards & Graphics Upgrade System @ Hardware Canucks

There isn't a wide range of Review site media at CES this year, which kinda explains the sudo lack of news.  Stay tuned, more to come.
 

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Sapphire Radeon HD 6970 2GB Dual Fan Review @ Hardware Canucks

Even though the next generation of AMD HD graphics has been released and has proven to be faster than the 6900 series but not fast enough to justify a totally ignoring the previous generation.

Especially when they are a custom design from Sapphire.

The HD 7970 may be the graphics card everyone is talking about but it only just became available in somewhat limited quantities and pricing is far beyond the reach of most consumers. But while the Southern Islands-based cards will take over AMD’s flagship range, lower end cards still provide great performance at a fraction of the cost.  That's where Sapphire's HD 6970 Dual fan enters the equation. 

Of course the only real issue with a dual fan cooler on a GPU is that it won't vent to the outside, and that is why we have good case cooling.

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NL: Review Block - Cases Roundup Style

Being that this is CES week the news postings will be a little on the light side.  Hopefully I can make up for it in CES news.

Until then here are a few cases from the news box.

- Antec's P280 enclosure
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Full-Tower Chassis Review @ Techgage
- SilverStone Grandia DG06 HTPC Chassis Review @ MissingRemote

Be sure to check out our own reviews of the Antec P280 and Cooler Master Cosmos II for comparison.

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ASRock Extreme9 X79 Motherboard Review @ SSD Review

I hate to admit it but the latest ASRock X79 motherboard does look really good both in terms of overall look and the UEFI interface. 

Today we are going to test the new X79 Extreme9 ASRock Motherboard in a variety of high powered benchmarks. This new high end enthusiast-class motherboard looks to set the tone for the high powered X79 overclocking segment and we are testing to see if it can live up to its reputation as the “Overclocking King”. Let’s fire up the test bench, and see what she has!

ASRock is claiming that this board is the overclocking king which might just be marketing but the board appears to have all fo the required components and appears to look the part so only time will tell.

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Fit for fan update - which cooler fit on the motherboard ?

Ever wonder if a certain cooler will fit on a motherboard? Overclocked inside has created another JavaScript guide that does just that.

The interactive fit for fan guide is a new development, which contains some AMD Socket AM3/AM3+, Socket AM2/AM2+, Socket 939, Socket 754, also older Socket A motherboards and some HSFs for each Socket.

The guide is somewhat limited in that it doesn't cover memory height limitations or mounting hardware but if you are curious about physical dimensions be sure to check it out.

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CES Next Week

Just a friendly reminder that CES 2012 starts next week and unless I miss my flight or the end of the world occurs I plan to be in attendance.

Be sure to check the site and blogs section for highlights from the various CES days and get an idea of the stuff I have been looking at.  Unlike previous years I don't plan to do reports on the show itself but do plan to post pics of some of the new gear the mfgs have on display.

There should also be a new Ninjalane Podcast episode posted during the show but likey won't cover anything from CES.

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Canadian man uses iPad to enter US

I will admit that I am not an avid smartphone user, I have a Blackberry Pearl and love it for the form factor and the fact I can make calls.  Aside from emails and text messages I use it for its intended purpose. a phone.

With that said I was surprised to see people in the SFO airport using their iPhones to validate their boarding passes making the whole process truly paperless.  The same sort of thing has happened with a Canadian man who was able to enter the US with a digital copy of his Passport and valid driver's license.

Martin Reisch said Tuesday a slightly annoyed U.S. border officer let him cross into the United States from Quebec after he presented a scanned copy of his passport on his Apple iPad. Reisch was a half hour from the border when he decided to try to gain entry rather than turn back and make a two-hour trek back home to Montreal to fetch his passport.

He told the officer he was heading to the U.S. to drop off Christmas gifts for his friend's kids. He said that true story, the scanned passport and his driver's license helped him get through last week.

He said the officer seemed mildly annoyed when he handed him the iPad.

Of course a story like this wouldn't be something that border patrol would report so who do we have to blame for the story?  Yep you guessed it 

Cannot say I agree with allowing people to enter with a digital scan of their Passport but I do support digital versions of passports provided they can lock them down to prevent tampering, theft and tracking.

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Intel discontinuing over 25 desktop CPUs, say Digitimes

We always hate to see reports of things coming to an end, especially when it comes to game changing processors like the Core i7 920 and Core 2 Duo.

To pave the way for the upcoming launch of 22nm Ivy Bridge processors in April 2012, Intel has notified its hardware partners of its schedule for stopping the supply or production of over 25 existing desktop CPU models, according to industry sources in Taiwan.

Intel has issued a notice to suspend the supply of Core i5-661/660, Core i3-530, Pentium E5700 and Celeron E3500 and will cease the production of those models in the second quarter of 2012, the sources indicated.

The full list in the posting includes:

Core i7-960/950/930/870
Core i7-880S/870S
Core i7-875K/860S
Core i5-760/750S/655K
Core i5-2300/680/670
Core i5-661/660
Core i3-530
Core Duo E7500/E7600
Pentium E6600/E550
Celeron E3300
Pentium E5700
Celeron E3500
Pentium G960
Celeron 450/430

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Cooler Master Cosmos II Ultra Tower Launch Day

Exciting times if you are in the market for a totally custom case for your enthusiast level system build.  This case is pretty big weighing in a 47 pounds and standing a little less than 2 and a half feet.

Reviews from around the web
- Cooler Master Cosmos II review
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Ultra PC Case @ Pro-Clockers
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Ultra Tower @ PureOverclock
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Ultra Tower Case Review @ Hardware Canucks
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Ultra Tower Case Review @ Legit Reviews
- OC3D: Cooler Master Cosmos 2 Review
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Case Launch Review @ HardwareHeaven
- Cooler Master Cosmos II Review

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MSI Z68A-GD80 G3 Z68 Motherboard Review @ Hardware Canucks

I'm not sure I like the placement of everything on this motherboard.  For instance power and reset buttons are under the last 16x PCI Express slot and voltage test points are "under" the 24pin power connector.  Just seems like something you would never be able to use.

MSI has been fighting an uphill battle against the likes of Gigabyte and ASUS for the last few years but their new Z68A-GD80 G3 looks to even the playing field.  It features a long 5 year warranty, PCI-E 3.0 slots, user friendly auto overclocking options, a great layout and an intuitive BIOS which in many ways surpasses the competition's offerings.  But can MSI complete this near-perfect equation with stability?  We find out in this review. 

MSI was one of the first to claim support for PCI Express 3.0 on their motherboards, which is an easy claim to make since there is no way to test that it works, yet.

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Gigabyte X79 G1.Assassin 2 @ PureOverclock

Here we have one of the hottest gaming boards you can buy for the 3000 series Core i7.

"With their G1.Assassin 2 from their "Gamer" series, Gigabyte hopes to deliver a board which exceeds anything else in the mainstream market and we will be putting this motherboard to the test, both in real-world and some synthetic tests to see if this board can live up to the claims."

We looked at the G1 Killer Sniper 2 not long ago and found that the board does benefit from the higher-end components both in speed and sound quality.  The one thing it did lack was flat out overclocking ability, but for gamers stability should be the number one concern.

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MSI 990FXA-GD80 @ Bjorn3D

One of the latest 990FX boards from MSI.

Ever since the release of the AMD FX-8150, the field has been widened for 990FX based motherboards. Many 990FX motherboards were released prior to the launch of AMD's Bulldozer, however, their potential was limited by the fact athat they were working off the old Phenom architecture of CPU

I have always been interested in MSI motherboards but so far have not pulled the trigger to get one in the Ninjalane Labs for testing. Maybe this will be the year to try out the MSI.

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NL: Review Block - Coolers and Cases - 1/2/2012

Just a quick round-up of the latest coolers and cases in the Ninjalane inbox.

Coolers
- Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo Cooler
- Funky Kit Review: Antec Kuhler H2O 620 Liquid CPU cooler
- Zalman CNPS11X Cpu Cooler @ Rbmods
- NZXT Havik 120 Review
- Intel LGA2011 CPU Cooler Roundup @ Legit Reviews

Cases
- LanCool PC-K9 Computer Case Review @ APH Networks
- Antec Eleven Hundred @ techPowerUp
- SilverStone Precision PS07 mATX Case Review @ APH Networks
- SilverStone Raven RV03 Chassis Review @ OCIA

more to come including an awesome new case from...... 

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