Listen to the world on a shoestring, or more if you're game

I've been using a thumb-size gadget that is a riveting example of how the Internet has turned our vast planet into a small village.

Plug the USB Internet Radio Jukebox into your PC (Windows only) and a world of sound and opinion awaits.

Sure, you can use your browser to find the Web sites from public and private radio stations from Australia to Zimbabwe, but that's quite a task if you don't know the call letters.

Aluratek's USB radio is a tuner that uncovers these gems. It claims access to more than 13,000 stations - all for $39, money well spent for an audio world tour.

Tivoli Audio, which makes products for audiophiles, takes a different tack with its device: Its NetWorks radio doesn't attach to a computer to access Web radio.

I love the Tivoli radio, which connects through a home's Wi-Fi network. It's well-designed and easy to use, and the signal is crisp. I found an Indie rock station from Dublin, Phantom FM, five minutes after plugging it in.

But it's a tough sell at $600.

Still, I recommend both products for different reasons.

• USB Internet Radio Jukebox

Consider the events of Jan. 20, when Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th U.S. president. Using the Aluratek device and my office computer, I listened to commentary from various parts of the world.

On Ireland's RTE Radio - the first station worldwide to play U2's new single, "Get On Your Boots" - there was a tart discussion about Obama's global priorities.

On London's LBC 97.3, the host believed the world's opinion of the U.S. won't change under Obama, even if the new president proves popular. "The world will still dislike America because they have fridges bigger than most of our flats," he said. "It's envy."

In Australia, ABC Radio National host Steve Cannane showed a fine grasp of the U.S. civil rights movement with pointed questions for his guest, American reporter Bruce Shapiro.

Tuning software is built into Aluratek's device (aluratek.com). When you plug it into a USB port, a window opens to guide you. You find stations on the left-hand side: top 10 by genre or region, a broader selection of stations by genre or region, and folders to store favorites and your listening history. The center of the display offers a world map to find stations by region or by genre (hits, public radio, jazz, sports talk, etc.).

I've enjoyed world tunes from Sky.FM, classical music from Spain and folk from Canada's CBC. Some stations have failed to connect at times, but that's been rare. And because the selection is so vast, alternatives are a click away.

• Tivoli NetWorks radio

It may seem ridiculous to recommend a radio that costs $600, but if you enjoy life's finer gadgets, consider the Tivoli NetWorks radio. You can attach an iPod to this elegant radio or play audio files stored on your computer. But that's not why you would want it.

Once connected to your home's wireless network - mine was identified within minutes - you never have to fiddle with settings again. When you want music, just turn it on like you'd do with any radio.

You can search content by genre or region; you also can select from the podcasts many radio stations now store, something the Aluratek player does not offer. I've been listening to flamenco and jazz in the evening while relaxing with a glass of wine.

There are no dials for tuning. You use a remote control to search for stations, although it's more like discovery. You are, after all, searching content among the world's radio signals.

Stations are displayed across an LCD screen that sits atop a speaker. The design is handsome - the type of product you would find in a doctor's home office.

There are drawbacks.

One, the LCD does not display song information. If you hear something you like, you'd better be paying attention when the DJ comes on, and hope that you understand Spanish when listening to an Andalusian station.

Two, the radio plays in mono. For stereo you need to order a matching speaker. The standard $600 model also does not include an FM tuner for local stations.

For $650, you can order a NetWorks radio with FM. For $700, you can get a stereo model; for $750, you can get stereo and FM. (For local AM, hope your favorite station streams its signal online.)

Clearly, the biggest hurdle is price.

Yet you will love the Tivoli NetWorks (tivoliaudio.com) if you're a fan of radio and fine products.

But if you just want to listen to the world, Aluratek's $39 USB radio can't be beat.

___

(c) 2009, Chicago Tribune.
Visit the Chicago Tribune on the Internet at www.chicagotribune.com/
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

Dell Unveils AMD Opteron 2P 4P Servers

Dell today announced two PowerEdge(TM) servers featuring AMD Opteron(TM)processors as part of Dell's commitment to leadership in price-performance,performance per watt and reducing complexity in customers' server environments.

The company unveiled the PowerEdge 6950 and PowerEdge SC1435 along with theintegration of Dell OpenManage(TM) and Oracle Enterprise Manager at a pressconference at Oracle OpenWorld.

The Dell PowerEdge 6950 is a four-socket server designed for demandingenterprise applications such as database, server consolidation, virtualizationand migration from costly RISC-based systems. Featuring AMD Opteron processors,the PowerEdge 6950 can deliver industry leading performance(1), eclipsingperformance levels of conventional four-socket servers and consumes up to 20percent less power than previous-generation four-socket PowerEdge servers(2).

The PowerEdge SC1435 is a two-socket, rack-dense server optimized forhigh-performance compute clusters, distributed Web serving and small- tomedium-sized businesses that require leading price-performance ratio and energyconservation features. The AMD Opteron processor-based PowerEdge SC1435 candeliver performance gains of up to 128 percent(3) and performance-per-wattimprovements of up to 138 percent(4).

"The PowerEdge 6950 and PowerEdge SC1435 continue Dell's unwavering commitmentto meet customer needs and lead the industry in price-performance andperformance per watt," said Brad Anderson, senior vice president, Dell ProductGroup. "These servers - combined with the integration of Dell OpenManage withOracle applications to simplify the deployment, management and monitoring ofOracle applications - deliver the solutions our customers need to reducecomplexity in enterprise environments."

Marty Seyer, senior vice president of AMD's Commercial Segment, noted Dell andAMD's vision to deliver uncompromising performance-per-watt choices and completesolutions to Dell enterprise customers.

"AMD and Dell share a commitment to deliver system-wide innovation where itmatters most to customers," said Seyer. "By combining Dell's world-class productdesign, service and support with the performance-per-watt benefits of AMDOpteron processors and open innovation platform enabled by the AMD Torrenzainitiative, customers have the right tools for addressing specific workloadneeds and applications while reducing total cost of ownership."

Grid Management: Simplified

Dell and Oracle have integrated Dell OpenManage and Oracle Enterprise Manager tooffer an industry-first solution for simplified management of the Oracleapplication infrastructure. The integration of these standards-based toolsenables customers to natively manage Dell PowerEdge servers within a singlemanagement console familiar to Oracle database administrators.

By continuing its commitment to integrate its OpenManage product family withpartner solutions, Dell is delivering standards-based, enhanced management forcustomers. This enables fast issue isolation and improved availability betweenapplication and hardware, helps minimize training and use of multiple tools andleverages existing IT investments for customers.

The integration of Dell OpenManage and Oracle Enterprise Manager includessupport for lifecycle management of Dell PowerEdge servers with features suchas:

System discovery, reporting and configurationManaging server hardware healthCross-platform system event notificationEvent-driven policy executionDell PowerEdge - Excellence in Performance and Performance per Watt

The new servers complement Dell's ninth-generation PowerEdge serversintroduced earlier this year, delivering the most comprehensive technology anddesign enhancements ever to the widely installed product line. Enhancementsinclude:

Industry-first programmable LCD that enables quick and easy visualdiagnosis of server faultsIndividually labeled hard drives that provide quick identification of thetechnology, capacity and speedStandardized color coding and cabling that help make PowerEdge serverseasier to manage and service today and with future generationsDraw-latch design for tool-less access to server componentsImageWatch(TM), a Dell service that helps customers proactively manage thenumber of changes to system images, available in a block-release formatfurther helping to reduce the number of image changes a customer has tomanage.SAS (Serial Attached SCSI) hard drives for fast, reliable datatransmission and minimized thermal outputTCP/IP Offload Engine, which helps reduce traffic on a host processor toenhance system performanceEnhanced virtualization technology for improved performance, managementand utilization in virtualized workloads such as VMware ESX, Microsoft VirtualServer or XenPCI-Express I/O, which delivers high-performance Ethernet, RAID,InfiniBand and Fibre Channel interconnect while providing investmentprotection for future technologies Dell Platinum Plus Delivers Complete Enterprise Solutions, EnablesExtended Uptime

Customers buying Dell's newest PowerEdge servers can also benefit fromPlatinum Plus Enterprise Support, Dell's highest level of enterprise support.Platinum Plus provides reliability and global consistency for customers withbusiness-critical needs. It includes the industry's first Operations PerformanceBenchmarking feature, a patent-pending methodology that allows customers toroutinely compare critical IT performance metrics to historical results andsimilarly configured environments.

Platinum Plus also includes the Enterprise Command Center Real-Time TrackingWindow, a Web-enabled feature to provide a virtual Enterprise Command Center tofollow ongoing support activities.

Platinum Plus is the culmination of a more than $ 200 million investment inenterprise support over the past several years. In addition to Platinum Plus,Dell offers Gold, Silver and Basic levels of enterprise support. For moreinformation, visit www.dell.com/services.

Pricing and Availability

Available now worldwide, the PowerEdge 6950 and PowerEdge SC1435 with dual-core,next-generation AMD Opteron processors are priced from $ 6,499 and $ 1,299,respectively.

Cyclogyro Flying Robot Improves its Angles of Attack

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(PhysOrg.com) -- In the past few decades, researchers have been investigating a variety of flying machines. Most studies have focused on improving the flying performance of standard flying mechanisms, rather than developing innovative flying mechanisms.

But one intriguing flying mechanism that has received relatively little attention is a horizontal-axis rotorcraft - or "cyclogyro" craft. First proposed in the 1930s, a cyclogyro is a unique mechanism of generating lift forces, being propelled by horizontal rotating wings. Unfortunately, the few prototypes that were built at the time were unsuccessful at flying.

The essential flying principle of the cyclogyro rotorcraft is that, as the wings rotate, their angle of attack must be altered so that the wings can lift and thrust at the appropriate times in the cycle. Designing such variable wings that can alter the angles of attack has proven difficult.

But recently, a team of engineers consisting of Naohiro Hara, Kazuo Tanaka, and Hiroshi Ohtake from the University of Electro-Communications in Japan, and Hua O. Wang of Boston University in the US, have developed a cyclogyro flying robot with a new kind of variable wing mechanism. The mechanism is based on a pantograph, which is a mechanical linkage that was originally developed in the 17th century as a drafting tool for copying and scaling line drawings.

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IEEE Transactions on Robotics. The mechanism is an extension of two of the authors' earlier prototype designed in 2006, which demonstrated that a cyclogyro-based flying robot could generate enough lift force to fly and carry a very small (10 g) payload. With the new mechanism, the researchers hoped to improve the efficiency. Through simulations and experiments, they focused on demonstrating the possibility of a flying robot with a pantograph-based mechanism.

The engineers explained that, in the downstroke motion, the new mechanism can generate heavy lift forces in the upward direction by expanding the wings with larger angles of attack. Conversely, in the upstroke motion, the mechanism can reduce anti-lift forces in the downward direction by contracting the wings with smaller angles of attack. Due to this folding up motion of the wings, which creates a larger wing area in a small space, the rotorcraft can get a larger lift force compared with the authors' previous strategy.

The simulations and experiments (in which the rotorcraft was tethered for stability) showed that the robot could generate a lift force exceeding its own weight. Not only could this force allow the robot to fly, it means the robot could carry a significant payload (155 g). Accounting for the robot's four rotors, the engineers hope that it may be possible to fly the robot with a battery, some sensors, and even a control board (currently, the robot receives power from an external supply).

In the future, the engineers plan to develop a detailed aerodynamic analysis of the wing motion. Eventually, they hope to develop a full-body flying robot with the optimal parameters, including four sets of pantograph-based variable wings and a stabilizing controller. With its ability to rise, hover, and go backward, a cyclogyro flying robot could one day operate as a highly maneuverable micro air vehicle.

More information: Hara, Naohiro; Tanaka, Kazuo; Ohtake, Hiroshi; and Wang, Hua O. "Development of a Flying Robot With a Pantograph-Based Variable Wing Mechanism." IEEE Transactions on Robotics. To be published.

© 2009 PhysOrg.com

Dell Blamed For Severe Shortage Of Athlon X2 CPUs

System builders are irked about a severe shortage of AMD Athlon 64 X2 processors and blame the chip maker's partnership with Dell."It's a fiasco. There's no product in the channel. It's all going to Dell," said Glen Coffield, president of CheapGuys, a system builder in Orlando, Fla. "AMD is divorcing the channel." Coffield said AMD is hurting its loyal system builders, who feel they have been used and dumped now that the chip maker has a partnership with Dell and other top-tier OEMs. Another large system builder that has a relationship with AMD agreed that the situation is dire for channel partners. He said the supply problem started at the end of June and is hurting his business.

Finally, a device that lets you hug people over the internet!

Looking for a gift for someone you really care for, but dont see in the flesh that much? This new piece of kit might be what youre after.

The Like-A-Hug vest, developed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, allows Facebook users to hug one another no matter how far apart they are.A Like-A-Hug vest on display at the website of designer Melissa Kit Chow has been touted as "wearable social media" that inflates to embrace wearers whenever Facebook friends "Like" items they post at the social network.Chow worked with Andy Payne and Phil Seaton in the MIT Media Lab to create the puffy black vests, according to her website.Like-A-Hug lets hugs "be given via Facebook, bringing us closer together despite physical distance," Chow said in a post describing the vest.Want to hug back? No problem! Provided the sender is also wearing a Like-A-Hug, the recipient can return a hug by squeezing their own vest to deflate it.Chow described herself as a graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Design who subtly skews everyday interactions with the environment for "a reawakening of a sensorial spacial experience."

EVGA SLI Twin Turbo Bracket

EVGA is proud to announce a New stylish accessory for your EVGASLI System, the EVGA SLI Twin Turbo Bracket. The bracket attaches securely toyour EVGA 6800GT/6800Ultra SLI graphics cards helping to keep them perfectlyaligned and evenly spaced on your motherboards and does not interfere with theSLI connector. The EVGA SLI Twin Turbo Bracket is made from high qualitylightweight Aluminum with distinct stylish markings to show the world you meanbusiness when it comes to gaming.

Detailed Geforce GTX 280 Pictures

The GTX 280. Unlike the 9800GX2, the card does not come with a HDMI port built in. The heatsink is similar to the 9800GTX, but with additional vents by the sides of the card.

The back

Two SLI connectors are available for TRI-SLI

6+8pin PCI-E power needed, shows how power hungry this card can be.

The rear exhaust