security
Evidently hardware assisted brute force password cracking has arrived: A technique for cracking computer passwords using inexpensive off-the-shelf computer graphics hardware is causing a stir in the computer security community. Elcomsoft, a software company based in Moscow, Russia, has filed a US patent for the technique. It takes advantage of
hardware
Let me be completely honest with you. I have a full-blown mouse fetish. I've owned every single major mouse model from Microsoft and Logitech since the bad old days of the original Microsoft "Dove bar" mouse, and the Logitech MouseMan. I remember quite clearly bringing home
hardware
Steve Olson contacted me a few weeks ago after he saw my post on ergonomic computing. Steve works for Ergotron, and offered to comp me some monitor arms. Usually when I get offered free items related to my blog, I politely decline. I don't want a conflict of
hardware
I'm a big fan of dual-core systems. I think there's a clear and substantial benefit for all computer users when there are two CPUs waiting to service requests, instead of just one. If nothing else, it lets you gracefully terminate an application that has gone haywire,
pc building
I previously documented the "Ultimate Developer Rig" I'm building for Scott Hanselman: * Building a PC, Part I * Building a PC, Part II * Building a PC, Part III I added a little bit of PC quieting magic as a finishing touch. Here's a picture of
hardware
Yesterday, we completed a basic build of Scott Hanselman's computer. We built the system up enough to boot to the BIOS screen successfully. Today, we'll complete the build by installing an operating system and burning it in. The first thing we'll need is hard
hardware
Over the next few days, I'll be building Scott Hanselman's computer. My goal today is more modest: build a minimal system that boots. I'd like to dispel the myth that building computers is risky, or in any way difficult or complicated. If you can
hardware
In When Hardware is Free, Power is Expensive, I referenced a Google whitepaper (pdf) that explained why typical PC power supplies are not particularly efficient: Most likely, the computer you're using wastes 30-40% of the electrical power it consumes because it is using an inefficient power supply. It&
software development concepts
Bill Gates has often said that over time, the cost of computer hardware approaches zero. Here's one such example: Ten years out, in terms of actual hardware costs you can almost think of hardware as being free. History has proven him right. Computer hardware isn't literally
hardware
The mouse wheel is so integral to my mousing experience now that it's difficult to imagine using a GUI without one. Although I clearly remember using mice without scroll wheels, I can't recall exactly when the transition occurred-- when mouse wheels became a standard, expected feature
hardware
I recently had the opportunity to rebuild my work PC. It strongly resembles the "Little Bang" D.I.Y. system I outlined in my previous post on the philosophy of building your own computer. See, I do take my own advice. Here's a quick breakdown of
hardware
If you're ever in Silicon Valley, I highly recommend checking out the Computer History Museum. Where else can you see a live demonstration of the only known working PDP-1 in existence, and actually get to play the original Spacewar on it? I did. It was incredible. I got