Intel looks beyond PCs, eyes new segments

The future is in personal computing, not just personal computers, according to Intel CEO Paul Otellini who said his company was betting on new market segments such as netbooks, handhelds and consumer electronics to drive growth with PC sales likely to be “flat or slightly up” this year.

Intel, whose range of microprocessors power almost 80% of computers worldwide, also announced that it

has built working chips that pack 2.9 billion transistors in an area the size of a finger nail.

Delivering his keynote at the Intel Developers’ Forum 2009, Mr Otellini also launched an Intel Atom Developer Programme inviting third party programmers to create new programs for its Atom line of microprocessors. Atom powers net books — bare-bone PCs with small screens for net surfing and word processing — a segment, which Mr Otellini said was holding up the whole computer market now.

“We have the worst recession in 70 years. The netbook filled the gap,” he said, adding that Atom will eventually cover connected devices. “At the highest level, every electronic device is likely to be connected to the Internet at some point in time. And we think the architecture to do this, obviously, is Atom,” he said. 

Netbooks outpaced the two other popular devices in the consumer market — Apple’s iPhone and the Nintendos gaming console Wii — in the past three quarters, he added. In-vehicle infotainment systems, which clocked a 17% growth rate in the year when the automotive industry slipped to a recession, are another growth area for Intel.

Mr Otellini said that a company that Intel has been working with over three years, Harman Becker, has secured two major design contracts for Atom-based systems. “Daimler will put it into their S-Class and C-Class series starting in 2012, and BMW is developing a cross-platform, which means it goes across all their models, as an option for 2012 and beyond,” the Intel CEO said.

Intel has also begun factory production of its 32 nanometre chip, and the latest one — the 22nm one — continues to deliver the promise of Moore’s Law: smaller transistors, improved performance and lower cost, said Sean Maloney, Intel’s executive vice-president.

“The rapidly increasing number of transistors and processor instructions we add have made possible the integration of more and more capabilities and features within our processors. This has driven an incredible amount of innovation throughout the industry, with the real winners being the consumers, gamers and businesses,” he said.

How to Speed Up Windows 7 - Quick and Simple Ways to Optimize Your Windows 7 Performance

A computer has become a necessity in our daily lives. This is because we rely on it to store important information, chat with family and friends, communicate with our clients, and send and receive information.

Therefore, even a small problem with our computer can prove to be frustrating. Also, if you have Windows 7 as the operating system on your computer and it is giving a reduced performance, you may often have thought how to speed up Windows 7.

Taking your computer to a repair shop or calling an expert is not an affordable solution. This can cost you a lot of money over the time. Therefore, you need to look for a much more cheap and efficient solution for how to speed up Windows 7.

One way to ensure that your computer speeds up and keeps giving consistent performance is by installing and running a good registry cleaner on it. A good cleaning software program speeds up your operating system in the following ways:

• It cleans up the Windows registry, which is the root cause for many system errors. If the files and settings in the Windows registry are damaged, lost, or corrupted, Windows 7 slows down and starts giving errors. By running a registry cleaning expert on your computer, you make sure that all these errors are identified and repaired, thereby causing Windows 7 to speed up.

• It deletes all redundant and unused files in the Windows registry, which were accumulated during the uninstalling of hardware and software, and ensures that your computer gives enhanced performance.

• It provides you with the facility to defragment your system regularly. This ensures that your system continues to give superior and excellent performance over the time.

• Registry cleaning software keeps a backup of all registry files before the scan and repair process. Therefore, even if you lose out on any of the important files and information, you have the option to retrieve them.

Registry cleaning software comes at a very cheap rate and offers you a free trial period. You can use the software during the trial period and see the scan results for yourself. If you are satisfied with the scan results, you can buy the compete version of the software and use it to repair the identified errors. 

So you see, now you know how to speed up Windows 7!

7 Things to Watch For in Windows 7

If you follow computer operating system news, you might have noticed the conversations in some technical circles about Microsoft's next operating system called Windows 7. This new Windows version is due out in the fourth quarter of 2009 and it includes some interesting and useful features.

It appears that Windows 7 is going to be a good one. At least that is the early consensus from those in the hallowed halls of IT. Windows 7 RC1 (Release Candidate 1) is being put to the test and here are seven (imagine that) things that are liked about this new operating system:

1) Windows 7 Action Center

No, this is not a news desk on your local TV station. This is a centralized location from which management of user security, troubleshooting, and recovery issues can be performed. All of these features were included in prior versions of Microsoft Windows, but you had to go to separate places to get to them. Now, this application brings them all together under one roof. Brought over and expanded from Windows Vista, this is one improvement that is sure to please.

2) Windows 7 Problem Step Recorder

Have you ever had a problem with your computer that keeps on happening again and again? If you cannot connect remotely to a help desk or other source of support, you cannot accurately describe what is happening. Now, you can use the Problem Step Recorder (PSR) and record all of the screen pictures, keystrokes and mouse clicks and save them into an MHTML (web) document that allows you to send it as a zipped (compressed) file to those who can help you.

3) Windows 7 ISO burner

The term ISO is a name for an image (software capture) that is created for the purpose of distributing software to computers. Mainly used to create CD's, the ISO standard has been around for a while. But in the past, Windows versions did not have a utility that allowed you to burn this directly to a CD or DVD. Now you will find this useful applet included in the operating system right where it needed to be all along.

4) Windows 7 Credential Manager

Ever get tired of managing multiple user names and passwords? The new Credential Manager is better than Windows Vista's User Accounts applet. It allows for secure storage of passwords and credentials in the Windows Vault that gives you access to other computers, websites, email accounts, etc.

5) Windows 7 Text Tuning and Color Calibration

In your use of Windows, getting things to look right on your monitors can sometimes be a chore. What resolution do you use? What if you want to use a resolution that does not look right on the screen? Now you can adjust that with this Control Panel application. This is particularly helpful if you have more than one monitor, because you can adjust each separately. It actually lets you compare text and colors on your monitor and pick what looks best to you.

6) Windows 7 System Repair Disk

Different Windows versions have included some repair features in the past, but nothing like this. This feature provides a very user-friendly graphical interface that allows you to create a CD or DVD that is bootable and contains files that can help you fix problems with your Windows Installation. You can access system recovery options even if you don't have or can't find your original Windows installation disc.

7) Windows 7 Backup and Restore

In Windows XP System Restore was perfected. But backup remained limited in its features. In Windows 7, backup features have been greatly improved and combined with restore functions to allow for a better overall experience in these critical areas.

Windows 7 includes many other new and improved features over prior versions of this operating system, but these are 7 of the most commented-on by early adopters.