Apple Newton Making A Comeback

Washington (dbTechno) - Rumors are circulating that the Apple Newton may be surfacing once again.

The Apple Newton which has not been seen since 1993, had technology  way ahead  of its time. The specs for the new Newton device are rumored as having it around 1.5 times bigger than the iPhone.

It is also expected that it will have a 720×480 display which will likely make up the entire face of the device. It may not be a far fetch to think that the entire thing may appear like a much larger iPod Touch.

Apple may be trying to expand the UMPC market without having an actual keyboard on the device. The market is currently occupied by the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet as well as the Archos 704 WiFi.

It may still be a far fetch but we could be seeing the iNewton very shortly. With the roll that Apple is currently on with the iPhone, iPod Touch, etc, there is little that will stop them from trying new things.

Bring on the Apple iNewton!

U.S. Breast Cancer Rates Continue To Decline

Boston (dBTechno) - According to a new report from the American cancer Society (ACS), breast cancer death rates continues to decline.

The new report found that the risk of dying from the disease dropped by 2 percent from a year ago.

80 percent of women diagnosed with breast cancer can live 10 years later.

Because of fewer women taking hormone therapy, the report noted a sharp decline in breast cancer diagnoses. Read more

Facebook Attacked Over Child Safety

New York (dbTechno) - Facebook, the social networking site and rival to MySpace, is being accused of not keeping its young users safe from sexual predators in a case of child safety.

An investigation has found that there are many problems and issues with the safety controls on Facebook. This puts the safety of the children which use the social networking site at severe risk. The New York State attorney general has subpoenaed Facebook asking them to try to explain the security policy of the site as well as the issues they found in regards to safety.

Undercover investigators were able to pose as teens and receive sexual advances within days of setting up a profile on the site according to the New York State attorney general.

One such situation had a fake 14-year-old girl whom was asked by a 24-year-old man for nude pics days after the profile was created.

There have been no charges yet towards Facebook. Attorney general Andrew Cuomo stated that “Facebook has the right to operate any type of Web site it deems fit. It does not have the right to represent that its site is safe and that it promptly responds to complaints when such statements are not accurate.”

Caves and Water Evidence Discovered On Mars

Boston (dbTechno) - The Mars Odyssey spacecraft has detected what appears to be seven caves on a volcano as well as evidence of water on Mars.

NASA stated that the volcano is named Arsia Mons and has found 7 cave openings on the volcano. This is right near the tallest mountain on Mars.

There also has been temperature changes which have been discovered by the Mars Odyssey. They show that the temperature around the openings to the caves are far lower than the temperatures of the surrounding areas.

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is looking at evidence which shows that water existed at various times during the history of the Mars planet.

It is amazing to see these pictures which are now being sent out in regards to the possibility that life once existed on Mars in these caves and with the water they believe used to be there.

The research by NASA is continuing and it is expected that more data will be available soon as the caves are expected to be confirmed and the study into water on Mars continues.

Germs Are Tougher and Deadlier In Space

Boston (dbTechno) - Researchers have found that bacteria which causes food poisoning on Earth can get stronger in space and actually be deadly.

A team of researchers sent dozens of packaged vials of salmonella on a 2006 shuttle mission to test out how they would react once they got into space. The vials were in orbit for 12 days. The bacteria on the shuttle was then tested.

It was found that the bacteria was 3 times more deadly to mice than it was before it left Earth. The findings have been reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

They stated that a protein caused the increased strength in the virus. Researchers are hopeful that since they found out how this particular protein gains strength, that it can be used to find a vaccine against Salmonella.

Dr. Cheryl Nickerson stated that “It has tremendous potential.” There has never been any report of food poisoning on a space shuttle mission or on the International Space Station. This research though may make them take more notice.

This is because since the viruses are far more potent up in space, it is possible that more harm could be done to the astronauts before they can get the care and help they require. The protein which causes the increase in strength is called Hfq and could be a target for a vaccine or new antibiotic in the near future.

Amazon Launches DRM-Free iTunes Competition

Boston (dbTechno) - Amazon has launched a new music store to compete with the Apple iTunes Store as they have launched Amazon MP3 which will offer DRM-free music.

The early version of the store is launching this week with an initial catalog of songs over 2 million, which is very impressive for an early launch. The highly anticipated store is going to be offering DRM-free music, something which the iTunes store does not offer. Amazon is going to try and compete head to head with iTunes.

The Amazon MP3 service will have cheaper songs than the iTunes service as they will be sold anywhere from 89 cents to 99 cents per song. Amazon has stated over half of the initial 2 million songs are priced at 89 cents.

They also guarantee that their top 100 best selling songs will stay at 89 cents as well. Amazon has deals with Universal Music Group, and EMI as well as many other labels, more than 20,000 in total.

The music can be downloaded in 256kbps VBR MP3 format without any copy protection. This means that once you own the song you can pretty much do anything you want with it.

Apple has intentions of getting rid of the DRM restrictions for iTunes but it has a long way to go. Amazon MP3 is going to make a serious run at the market as Amazon is already the 5th largest audio CD vendor in the world without any digital music downloads factored in.

Microsoft Hoping Halo 3 Launches Xbox 360 Ahead Of Wii

Boston (dbTechno) - Microsoft is hoping that with the release of Halo 3, sales of the Xbox 360 will rise and once again put Microsoft in the global sales lead in terms of consoles ahead of the rival Nintendo Wii.

Hundreds of thousands stormed the streets on Monday night to be the first to be there at 12:01 a.m. on September 25th to pick up their copy of Halo 3.

Microsoft is hoping that Halo 3 will be such a success that not only every current Xbox 360 owner picks up a copy, but that it attracts new buyers to the Xbox 360 console as well.

Halo 2 managed to take in $125 million during its first 24 hours of release on the original Xbox.

The Xbox 360 Halo 3 is expected to do over $300 million when it is all said and done. The game shipped in a regular edition for $59.99, a collector’s edition for $69.99, and a legendary edition for $129.99 which came with a replica Spartan helmet.

There was also the release of the Halo 3 edition Xbox 360 for $399.99. Microsoft has all of the Halo pieces in place and is hoping to score big this holiday season as they look to regain the lead over the Wii and grow the lead they currently have over the Sony PS3.

EA Heading Into Horror Genre With Dead Space

Boston (dbTechno) - Electronic Arts made the announcement of a brand new third-person survival horror epic along the lines of Resident Evil meets Star Wars in Dead Space.

EA is hoping to garner fans from such franchises as Silent Hill, Resident Evil, Condemned, and many more with the launch of Dead Space. The game is going to deliver, according to EA, an unprecedented level of psychological thrills as well as some gruesome and bloody action.

The game is set in deep space as you take the role of engineer Isaac Clarke. EA stated that “It is not long before Isaac awakes to a living nightmare when he learns that the ship’s crew has been ravaged by a vicious alien infestation. He must fight through the dead silence and darkness of deep space to stay alive.”

Dead Space is in early development still with a release of Holiday 2008 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 currently set.

Glen Schofield who is the executive producer of Dead Space stated that “We wanted to create the most terrifying game we could, and keep the player on the egde of his seat the entire tiime.”

Dead Space is shaping up nicely thus far.

Microsoft Vista SP1 Sent To Testers

Boston (dbTechno) - Microsoft is moving ahead with its Vista Service Pack 1 as it has been sent in beta form to select testers.

Microsoft has made the announcement that the SP1 for the Vista operating system is not really going to add a whole lot to the brand new OS, but instead is going to improve on features which are already established and in the system.

Testers were selected to try out SP1 based on their abilities and should not be able to access the updates to get it via the Microsoft Connect website.

The Vista SP1 in its current state is a 5-language Standalone Package. There is also another package which has 36 languages.

Beta testers will also have access to Vista SP1 through Windows UPdate.

Microsof’ts Brandon LeBlanc stated “When SP1 shows up in Windows Update, it does so as an important update and gives a size range from 51mb to 679.6mb.”

The access will be provided to testers with Windows Update within the next 48 hours. Beta testers will need a valid license key to install the SP1 update.

Halo 3 Storms Retail For Xbox 360 With Midnight Launches

Boston (dbTechno) - Thousands upon thousands of people lined up outside of retail locations across the United States for their chance to be the first to pick up Halo 3 for the Xbox 360.

Halo 3 is the third and final chapter in a trilogy from Bungie, the developer of the series. Halo began back in 2001 on the original Xbox and managed to put the Xbox brand on the map for Microsoft all by itself.

Microsoft is expecting Halo 3 to top $300 million in sales in its first day and considering the start that it had at the midnight launches, this is a definite possibility.

One fan stated “it’s crazy, you see it everywhere.”

The hype machine has been going for almost years now with Mountain Dew soda bottles branded with Halo 3 along with many other toys which would make George Lucas and his Star Wars brand jealous.

Over 1 million copies of Halo 3 were pre-ordered as of the beginning of August and it is expected to be the biggest video game release of all time when it is said and done. So if you were not there at 12:01 a.m. last night you better get to your retail store quick to join in on the Halo 3 madness before they are sold out!

Master Chief reigns again with the Xbox 360…

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