HP Researchers Build Intelligent Memory

Here is an interesting article I read about HP and some work on a new type of computer memory.

Agam Shah, IDG News Service

Researchers at Hewlett-Packard have developed a working unit of a memory
circuit that has existed in theory for 37 years, which could ultimately replace
RAM and make computers more intelligent by tracking data it has retained.

The technology, called memristor, could allow computers to make
decisions by understanding past patterns of data it has collected, similar to
human brains collecting and understanding a series of events.

For example, a memristor circuit could be capable of telling a
microwave the heating time for different food types based on the information it
has collected over time, said Stanley Williams, senior fellow at HP.

A memristor circuit requires lower voltage and less time to turn on
than competitive memory like DRAM and flash, Williams said. "Because it [uses]
less voltage and less time, of course, it uses much less power," Williams said.
Denser cells also allow memristor circuits to store more data than flash
memory.

Through prototypes, HP is trying to show circuit designers what
memristor is capable of doing. "What we have done is confirmed a concept for a
new electronic device that was originally proposed nearly 40 years ago,"
Williams said.

Memristor is the fourth fundamental circuit element, joining the other
three -- resistor, capacitor and inductor -- that had been known for 150 years,
Williams said. The element has properties that cannot be duplicated by any
combination of the other three elements, Williams said.

"It is as fundamental to electronic engineering as a chemical element
is to chemistry or an electron is to physics," Williams said.

In a 1971 academic paper, Leon Chua, a mathematician and professor at
the University of California at Berkeley, wrote that memristor would have
properties similar to a synapse in a brain. The synapse makes connections
between two neurons, and the more often a signal is sent to a synapse, the
stronger the synapse gets.

"That is a very different type of behavior than anything that had been
observed before in circuit elements," Williams said.

HP is not going to reproduce all the functions of a brain in memristor,
but the company is trying to build a relatively simple computing machine that
operates on a different principle from today's computers, Williams said.

The scientists created the memory by applying a charge on a circuit
with blocks of titanium dioxide. The actual resistance of the memristor changes
depending on the amount of current flowing through the circuit, Williams said.
When the current is turned off, the memory retains the information it has
acquired.

Although the concept of memristor has existed for a while, the memory
prototype is an academic device that will first work its way to academia. It
could hit the commercial semiconductor market in five years, Williams
said.

If you need memory now, give me a call of guaranteed memory.

How To Use Your Projector

Rules for Team Presentations

The necessity for teamwork in the workplace is not a new idea. However, it is becoming commonplace to find that cooperative effort is needed in all areas of corporate communication. Presentations are no exception.

When you work in a group, there are always varying degrees of "teamwork" issues that need to be addressed. Whether it's developing a consistent presentation style and tone, scheduling team meetings or determining who will present.

Team presentations can be a nightmare if you don't get off to a good start. Here are guidelines designed to make your team presentation experience less hectic.

1. Select a strong team leader
This individual should have the leadership ability and authority to make on-the-spot decisions. Whether it's content, structure, presenters, etc, this person needs to take full responsibility for the overall outcome of the presentation.

2. Follow the same rules you use when developing a solo presentation
Make sure everyone understands the overall presentation objectives as well as their roles in the development of the final presentation.

3. Organize content development
Trying to collectively "write" a presentation is a difficult task. Try arming each person with a stack of Post-it notes. Then, have individuals write only their own ideas (one per note). When it comes time to "write" the presentation, go to a room with a large blank wall and use this flat surface as a clean slate. Organize presentation content on the wall; move topics as desired. Once the content is organized, the group can determine what types of visual aids are needed and where to place them.

4. Keep visuals with one person
Be sure one person is assigned to manage the visual aids. By assigning one team member to this task, you can ensure consistent color, style, and format.

5. Provide transitions
If you have multiple presenters, you need to plan clean transitions between presenters. Smooth, transitions ensure that you convey a well-prepared, professional image.

6. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse
When pulling together a team presentation, it is important that everyone become familiar with presentation content, visual aids, and transitions between presenters. Because everyone presents in a unique way, it is critical that the team practice together in order to reach a high level of comfort with the presentation and each other. A full dress rehearsal with visual aids is a must for a successful team presentation!

NEC VT491 Multimedia Projector

$699
Resolution: SVGA (800 x 600)
Brightness: 2000 ANSI Lumens
Contrast Ratio: 600:1
Weight: 6.4 lbs
Connectivity: RGB (2), Component Video, Composite Video, S-Video
Environments: PC and Mac Compatible
Warranty: Three Year Limited, One Year for Lamp

Good Eats-Los Angeles

I went on a trip recently to Los Angeles. My darling wife Sheri and I were on our quest for the best delicatessen. It's not an easy search, but someone has to do it. Studio City has Art's Deli. A friend of ours was eating there one night when Jay Leno ran in to pick up some food to go. Ivan Reitman commandeered a corner booth with Dan Ackroyd to work out the plot twists of Ghostbusters. We had hoped to run into someone famous, but we didn't have any luck here.

The food is typical of many delicatessens. The menu is filled with tiny print and dozens and dozens of choices. Breakfast is served all day, but we came for sandwiches. Sheri had the corned beef and I had the pastrami. Don't come here unless you are hungry. The rye bread was not overpowering and had a fresh firm feel. The meat was piled so high that you could barely see the bread. The table didn't have much in the way of condiments. The mustard in the plastic squeeze bottle tasted like Gulden's, but that was where the extras ended. The pickle was crisp and sharp. A good Kosher pickle.

The atmosphere was bright, clean and unassuming. For a restaurant that has been around for more than 30 years, it didn't have the character I was expecting. The food was good, but not outstanding.

Enjoy!

Computer Kits for May

Here are my latest kit offerings. Let me know if you have any questions. This is both an academic endeavor and a way to save money.

Ultra-portable Notebooks

I have always been a fan of very small and lightweight notebooks. My wife is always asking how I can see anything on that small screen. If you need to carry a notebook around with you, being light weight is a real bonus. Here is a model that I was interested in when I read about this last week.

A little-known San Francisco firm has created a personal computer that weighs 1 pound, clips onto a belt like a cell phone and runs any Windows program.
Born in a warehouse in Hunters Point, Oqo (pronounced O-Q-O) is the brainchild of a team of former Apple and IBM engineers who set out to create a new genre of ultra-small, fully functional, go-anywhere PCs.
That was in 2000. Eight years and a few false starts later, Oqo has matured into a firm with 100-plus employees, more than $20 million in sales and one huge challenge: to defend its niche against computer giants like Hewlett-Packard, Acer and the Taiwanese firm Asus that have either launched or are poised to launch their own ultra-portable PCs.
Asus released a 7-inch, $500 PC substitute several months ago and a 9-inch version will premiere any day. HP recently released the $600 Mini-Note PC, a 2.6-pound laptop running Windows Vista, and Acer is expected to unveil ultra-portables soon.
Against these emerging competitors, Oqo is selling a fourth-generation device called the Model 02. This 1-pound PC is about the size of an old fashioned paperback book. It starts at $1,300 and comes with a vivid screen, QWERTY keyboard, built-in wireless and a hard drive or flash memory for storage.
Standard connectors allow users to plug the Model 02 into a full-sized keyboard and monitor when working in an office.

More about Model 02

The unit comes with a belt clip so you don't have to worry about laying it down and leaving it somewhere. A little pricey at $1300, but a neat idea.

For a more approachable option we have the Asus eeePC in stock for about half the price. It's a little bit heavier, but it still has lots to offer. The keyboard action feels great and the screen is vivid. 2.6 lbs and all of the functionality of a

full size PC.

Call for more info.

More About XP

XP is going away on June 30th of this year. This is still the latest statement from Microsoft. What does this mean for most schools and businesses? Probably not too much other than a slight increase in the price of your operating system. Here is what is happening in the business world as of February of this year.

Businesses satisfaction and intended purchase rates for Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Mac OS X Leopard, based on information from ChangeWave collected in February 2008

Most companies and schools are sticking with XP for the foreseeable future.

What can you do?

Keep using Windows XP. On new computer builds you can request Vista Business or Vista Ultimate and initate the downgrade rights for XP. This keeps you in compliance and allows you to use the programs and hardware you are used to. Downgrade rights are only available for Vista Business and Vista Ultimate.

In the meantime, I have lots of computers available with XP-Professional on the shelf and ready to ship.

So what else is interesting about the above chart? Corporate users who have machines running Leopard have the highest satisfaction. I'm not sure what is behind that.

2.33GHz Intel® Core 2 Duo Processor E8400

2GB Dual Channel DDR2 Memory

160GB SATA HDD

DVD+/-RW Optical Drive

Integrated Intel GMA 3100 Graphics

Windows® XP-Professional

Keyboard and Mouse

3 Year Warranty Included

$849

Check out the complete line of stock and custom computers at NW Computer

Dave Niehaus Autographed Ball

Recently I mentioned that I

was able to get Hall of Fame announcer Dave Hiehaus' autograph while at Spring Training. I am just getting around to posting the picture. The Mariners need to pick up the pace right now. Too many close games and they don't seem to be able to win any of them. It's still early in the season but not too early to be discouraged. I'm heading for the game tonight. This could be the start of a turnaround.

David Ortiz Jersey Update

As most of you know by now, the David Ortiz jersey that had been buried in the new Yankee Stadium sold on E-bay for over $175,000. The good news for the buyer is that shipping was included.

David Ortiz Jersey

Many of you have been following the saga of the Red Sox fan construction worker who put a David Ortiz jersey in the concrete of the new Yankee stadium as a curse. After they dug up the jersey it was put up for sale on Ebay. The last I looked, it was over $72,000! Check out the bidding.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120248650648

Are Computer Keyboards Dishwasher Safe?

We had a discussion around the office about how to clean your keyboard. I mentioned that I put my Microsoft ergo keyboard in the dishwasher and let it air dry for a few days. It came out spotless and it is still working fine almost a year later. I can't say you won't have any trouble, but if it's either throw it away or try something desperate, this might be your thing.
Here is an article from NPR talking about the same subject.

by Nell Greenfieldboyce
Morning Edition, June 14, 2007 ·

Studies show that computer keyboards have more bacteria than toilet seats.
But it's hard to clean all those keys. So some people advocate an extreme
solution: Throw your keyboard in your dishwasher.

At first glance, this seems insane. But the computer-keyboard-in-the-dishwasher advice is all over the Internet. And don't we wish it were true? My keyboard is an old Hewlett Packard that's encrusted with a kind of mysterious black grime. I thought, "Well, why not try my KitchenAid?'" I ran the experiment one night. I put the keyboard on the top rack, cord and all, key-side down. I used a little soap, and hit "normal wash." (I didn't want to pots 'n' pans it.) I was encouraged to do this by Scott Moschella a computer guy who runs a blog called Plastic Bugs.

According to Microsoft's Sean Butterworth, I had just made a big mistake. "We do not recommend putting our keyboards, or any keyboards for that matter, in the
dishwasher," he says. "What will cause the problems first, is the short-circuiting in the wiring." Butterworth should know. At Microsoft's hardware division, people check out every possible thing that might harm a keyboard. "We test with everything from cracker crumbs, salt and pepper, hair," he explains. "We even create a special solution we call artificial sweat." They have also submerged keyboards in plain water. "And that gets you relatively close to what it would be like if you put it through the dishwasher," Butterworth says. "And typically that makes most keyboards lose functionality."

Other major manufacturers have the same party line. Robert Gulino, with
Logitech, told me I could wipe the surface gently with a damp cloth. Or, blow
out dust with a little can of compressed air. "But, you know, in terms of
washing it, we certainly don't recommend that," Gulino says. "If you did want to
be able to do that, it would have to be a very different keyboard. The
electrical components inside would have to be encased in membranes. But we just
don't do that."

I was just hoping my keyboard wouldn't have to be replaced.
After its ordeal in the dishwasher, I let it air dry for a week. Then I plugged it in and started to type. I tested the space bar, the return key, all the numbers and letters. It seemed perfect.

Here is the complete story: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=11029793

Book Review-The Man Who Made Lists

Last week I picked up The Man Who Made Lists, by Joshua Kendall. This is a book about Peter Roget who is best known for his thesaurus. I read a book by Kendall a couple of years ago about one of the main contributors to the Oxford English Dictionary. I found that book quite interesting and looked forward to this new book. Roget was born in the late 18th century and lived until 1862. This was the height of the English Enlightenment. There were many middle class Englishmen who had the leisure to study and experiment with ideas and science. Roget was trained as physician but wasn't social enough to have a successful medical practice. He was obsessed with lists from his youth. He took refuge in lists of words. There were other accomplishments throughout his life like the development of the slide rule and his Bridgewater Treatise contribution which was a mammoth series of books detailing how the Bible was scientifically possible. Roget is known for his thesaurus though. Unfortunately, the book doesn't have much suspense. It is very dry. Just describing what happened day to day in his life was pretty boring. Roget might be of interest. This book didn't bring that out.

Enjoy!

How to Use Your Projector

Giving Your First Public Presentation

Your boss just told you that you will be speaking next week at a luncheon meeting of the local professional marketing association. She said your topic should relate to the award-winning marketing campaign you just completed, but she didn't elaborate on details. You are excited but very nervous. You have never given a presentation before a large group and you don't know where to start. Have no fear! The following checklist should help you get the background information you need to develop an effective presentation.

General Information
1. Who will be attending?
2. How does your topic relate to the attendees?
3. Does this group understand the technical/industry language you may use in your presentation?
4. How long do you need to speak?
5. What is the preferred style to present?
6. Will there be Q&A?
7. What is the name of the sponsoring organization and key contact information?

Audience Information
1. What is the audience size?
2. What are the basic demographics of the audience (age, gender, race, religion, education level, socioeconomic level, etc.)?
3. What are some of the related interests of the audience?
4. What will the audience be wearing (audience attire)?
5. What will be the disposition of the audience (friendly, supportive, neutral, hostile)?
6. What is the knowledge level of the audience regarding your presentation topic?

Once you have the basic information about your audience, you need to get more information about the logistics of your presentation. This information is critical. You don't want to get caught preparing an hour-long presentation to later find you were to appear on an expert panel for Q&A.

Venue Information
1. When is the presentation (time/date/location)?
2. What information exists regarding the event?
3. What is the venue for the presentation?
4. What is the room setup?
5. If you need A/V equipment, can the staff supply the equipment you need?
6. Will there be other speakers? In what order will they speak? What are their topics?
7. Will someone introduce you? What is his/her contact information?
8. Will there be press coverage?
9. Who is responsible for travel and hotel arrangements/expenses?

Microsoft Office Ultimate Offer

Microsoft Office Ultimate


This is a great offer for anyone not running Office 2007 yet. You need an email address with a .edu extension and be enrolled in college. $59.95 for Office Ultimate is a fantastic price.

Office Ultimate from Microsoft

Offer good through April 30, 2008

Recycling That Harms the Environment and People

Discarded circuit boards in the town of Guiyu, China, where scientists found environmental contamination from crude recycling practices.

By HENRY FOUNTAIN
Published: April 15, 2008

Recycling is supposed to be good for the environment. But if it’s not carried out properly, certain kinds of recycling — notably the dismantling of electronic circuit boards, which contain lead, zinc, copper and other metals — can cause environmental harm.

It can also be dangerous to human health, as a new study of electronics recycling in China shows.

Anna O. W. Leung and Ming H. Wong of Hong Kong Baptist University and colleagues went to the town of Guiyu in southeastern China, home to a cottage industry of family-run recycling workshops. These are typically set up inside homes, where family members melt the tin-lead solder on the boards to remove chips and other components for sale, with only small household fans for ventilation.

The researchers collected surface dust samples in and around these workshops, at local markets and schools and in other nearby residential areas.

As reported in Environmental Science and Technology, they found extremely elevated levels of lead, zinc and other metals in the workshops. Lead levels, for example, were up to 2,400 times commonly accepted optimum levels.

The contamination extended beyond the workshops into adjacent streets. Lead levels were still high, although about one-fifth the levels inside the homes. But even neighborhood schoolyards and markets were affected, suggesting that people spread contaminated dust as they walk around.

Off-lease Computers

I have a few of these great off-lease Dell desktops available at a great price. Let me know if there is anything special you are looking for. Many brands and models available.

Dell GX270

Processor: Intel Pentium 4 2.6GHz

Memory: 512MB (installed) / 2GB (max)

Hard Drive: 40 GB

Integrated Features: CD-ROM

Graphics Controller: Intel Extreme Graphics 2 (with Intel 865GV Chipset)

Networking: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet

Connectivity: USB 2.0, Serial, Parallel, VGA

Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Professional

Warranty: Three Year Limited
Price: $345 each
Quantities limited

LA Trip

I was down in Los Angeles with my delightful wife Sheri to visit my Mom. While down there we had a little extra time to see some sights. One of the highlights was taking a drive up to Santa Barbara for a night. The weather was unusual in that it was very warm...80 degrees! That is hot for a beach community. It was over 90 in Los Angeles. A nice extra was that it had rained the previous week and the hills were all green except where the oranges and yellows of the wild flowers broke up the tall swaying grasses. We stayed in a great hotel 1 block from the beach called The Inn at East Beach. The hotel was a simple older establishment that was fun to stay at. The guy who was working at the front desk had lived there and worked that job for 16 years. He enjoyed it like it was his first day.

I have a baseball collection of 1963 Dodgers that I have been gathering for over a year now. One of the last players I'm looking for is a signed ball from Phil Ortega. I got an address from a celebrity address website for a house in Carpinteria. We stopped by hoping to find him home. As we pulled into the driveway our hopes were raised. I got out of the car and went to the back door. As I aproached, the tenants came out of the house. All they could say do was shake their heads and say we had the wrong Phil Ortega. They said he was not the same man. My wife interpreted this as he had some mental problems. The people who lived there said No! No! He is not the baseball player. We were disappointed but I need to keep looking. Check the link to the side of the page to see more of my baseball collection.

We went to dinner in downtown Santa Barbara at Restaurant Roy. This is a restaurant that has been around for quite a few years and has a relaxed feel to it. We got there about 7:00 and learned that it was early for dinner. They serve dinner until midnight...an unusual trait even in a big city. Roy has a prix fixe menu at a very reasonable price. All meals get homemade bread, a very nice house salad and a choice of soups. We had the artichoke, cilantro soup that was fresh and hit the spot. Some of the entrees that you can choose from include rib eye steak, fresh ravioli, a catch of the day and a cured pork tenderloin. I ended up with the rack of lamb. This came with a lot of chops with a light cumin glaze. Sheri had the ravioli stuffed with spinach in a light cream sauce. We also had a plate of prawns, fresh fish and scallops with pasta and a similar cream sauce. Very relaxed atmosphere and worth searching out.

The school year is winding down for my son Tom. He is still trying to find a job for this summer in some math related field. Any ideas? He did get a promotion on the school newspaper for next year. As managing editor he will have more control over the paper. He plans on taking it in a new direction of leading the discussion on issues rather than simply reporting on events.

The weather is starting to improve and as I look out over the lake, I wonder how soon it will be warm enough to put the JetSki in the water. The longer days offset the grey from the clouds.

Memory Pricing

Memory for newer machines is at an all time low. Now is the time to upgrade your RAM. Here is an example of what to expect.

Prices for 2 GB of RAM for the newer MacBooks for example is running at $45.99 a pair for 2 1GB sticks.

Let me know what model computer you have so I can help speed up your machines.

The Future of Windows XP

There have been some interesting moves on the part of Microsoft in the last week or two regarding Windows XP. According to Microsoft, large computer makers will no longer be selling machines with XP after June 30, 2008. Sales of XP will be discontinued after January 31, 2009. I get lots of calls asking if I can still get Windows XP-Professional and as of this point the answer is definitely yes. I am still getting requests for about 80% of my sales with XP. There is still a great deal of fear over Vista. Some people report having conflicts with existing hardware or software but most have not really even tried Vista. Before going any further, Microsoft has said that it will support XP at least through 2014.

Microsoft stated this past week that it will continue to sell Windows XP-Home for lower end systems primarily for use in emerging markets. Machines will need less hardware requirements to run adequately helping to reduce the cost of these computers. This is not going to be a factor for most schools and businesses which require XP-Professional to run on their domains.

Bill Gates also announced last week that Vista's replacement should be available in a year or so. This is referring to 2010 not 2009 like some media has been reporting. Vista's replacement is being called Windows 7. One of the advantages of this version is a less hardware intensive approach. A minimalistic variation of the Windows kernal known as MinWin, is being developed for use in Windows 7. The MinWin development efforts are aimed towards componentizing the Windows kernel and reducing the dependencies with a view to carving out the minimal set of components required to build a self-contained kernel as well as reducing the disk footprint and memory usage according to Mark Russinovich.

Microsoft is suffering from bad publicity over Vista and is still having trouble with it gaining acceptance. 100 million copies of Vista have been sold. Most have been bundled with new machines mostly for the retail market. Most businesses have been happy with Windows XP and have not had the need to upgrade yet. This will change over the next year when Vista is the only product readily available.

Order either Windows XP or Vista machines today. Both operating systems are in stock and ready to ship. Use the configurators on the right side of this page for desktops or notebooks to make your choices. If you prefer to go with Ubuntu or some other OS, please leave a comment on the form.

Spring Training

New Format
I am trying out a new format for communicating with my customers. After 6 years of writing my newsletter I am trying out putting my ramblings into a blog format. Please note on the left side of the page my system configurators. Quality computers that you can design for your needs. If there is something you need but don’t see, add a note and I will take care of you. I have also added postings on off-lease computers and computer kits. Let me know if there is something else you would like to see.
Spring Training
The good news is that baseball is back. I was down in Arizona a couple of weeks ago for Spring Training. My lovely wife Sheri and I have been going there for the last 7 years. I finally know my way around the area pretty well. There are a number of places we go every year when we are down there. Sheri likes going to Tempe. I like to search out the Costco. We have a few restaurants we seem to go to over and over. Don and Charlie’s is a fantastic sports bar that has an amazing amount of baseball memorabilia. It is the only place I have ever been where you can look at a display case and see row after row of signed baseballs by Hall of Fame players. We also went to P.F. Chang’s. One of the better chains for Asian Fusion food. To round out our dining we went to Buca de Beppo, another chain. They have pretty decent Italian food and a bizarre environment to eat it in. Between baseball games, we took off one day for a day trip northeast of Phoenix. We like driving the back roads to see what we can discover. On this trip, we ended up in the town of Pine. It is nearly 5000’ in Pine and there was quite a bit of snow on the ground. We were ready for lunch by the time we got there. I wanted to stop at the HB Café. We looked in the window and didn’t see anything to draw us in. Sheri wanted to stop at the Sidewinder Saloon. And that is where we ended up. This is a Wild West saloon. We entered the establishment at about 1 in the afternoon. It was bright inside. And there was a crowd. Probably about 40-50 locals playing cards and drinking beer. This in a town of a couple hundred people. As we sat at the bar, we could look into the kitchen. What we saw was the house dog wandering around the kitchen. As we studied the menu, we decided to have a prime rib sandwich. After we ordered, we enjoyed our beers and took in the local flavor. Everyone had a cowboy hat. Mostly retired people filled the bar. One interesting character was the cook. When he came out of the kitchen, he refused to speak with any of the patrons. If he had a question, he would ask the waitress. We were sitting right next to him and he wouldn’t say a word to us. The other interesting feature was that he was wearing a six-shooter on his belt. I think he was searching for any rattlesnakes that might wander in. The food was unremarkable. The atmosphere and the people were everything.
The Testament
While I was in Phoenix I read Testament, by John Grisham. I think this was the first book that I have read by Grisham. He is such a popular writer that I thought it was about time to give him a try. The first thing I noticed was that the book was quite approachable. It was very easy to get to know the characters and keep up with the story. The story is about a very rich man who dies and has written a will to try and hurt his children. The background is how the legal system deals with wills and probate. Part of the story takes place in the Panatel, a region of Brazil that is so remote that outsiders rarely venture in. Grisham loves the area and it shows. The story lacks suspense, but makes up for it by not having gratuitous violence. A fun book to read.
Hall of Fame
As you know, I like baseball. In Seattle we don’t have too much to cheer about most years. One event that took place over the winter was the election of the Seattle Mariners announcer Dave Niehaus to the Baseball Hall of Fame. This is a very special honor. I was fortunate enough to see Dave before one of the games at Spring Training and had him autograph a ball for me.