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OLPC will run XP

Patrick Goss — 1210930453

The OLPC project has finally bitten the bullet and reached an agreement with Microsoft to use its XP operating system on its low cost laptops for the developing world.

Nicholas Negroponte’s One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project made headlines when it was announced that a Linux OS would be used rather than the seemingly ubiquitous Windows option.

Red Hat

However, the Red Hat OS and the suite of programs to run on it – called Sugar – have not proved a sweeping success and the prospects of an OS choice and eventually a dual-boot machine now seems inevitable.

XP does not currently support Sugar or, perhaps more crucially, the Mesh netowrk that allows the lapotps to form movable ad-hoc networks

Plans

Microsoft said it plans to start trials of Windows on in June for emerging markets, where customer can choose between Windows and Linux.

The decision to go with Red Hat was controversial from the off, with many asking why the more popular Ubuntu linux was not chosen.

Ikea to sell furniture in Sims 2

Marc Chacksfield — 1210926600

Not content with taking over the real world with its brand of affordable flat-pack furniture, Ikea has announced a link-up with Electronic Arts in a marketing deal that will see the Swedish manufacturer’s goods pixelated and used in the popular videogame Sims 2. The furniture will be available as an update, as of 27 June.

Speaking about the venture in the Guardian, Nancy Smith, EA’s global president for Sims, says: “For Ikea, The Sims 2 represents a media channel. This is a great channel for us to reach the young and young at heart.”

Thanks for the ad

In-game advertising (IGA) is nothing new with product placing cluttering up the likes of FIFA International Soccer billboards containing real-life brands, but hard coded advertising is still relatively new – ie the sort that allows actual interaction with branded products.

This isn’t the first time, however, that The Sims has been subject to this form of ad. Just last year you could buy and wear H&M clothes in the game. This Fashion pack was extremely popular, selling around 1 million copies.

The Sims 2 Ikea Home Stuff expansion pack will be available in June and cost around £12.

HANNSG announces low-cost 1080p monitor

Marc Chacksfield — 1210761780

HANNSG, the Taiwanese panel manufacturer, has just announced its latest 1080p monitor, the HG281DJ.

Boasting 1920 x 1200 WUXGA true 1080p resolution, the 28in monitor is ideal for all your HD viewing needs.

Predominately aimed at videomakers, designers and photographers – i.e. those looking for the utmost clarity in their images – the HG281DJ is both PC and Mac compatible. However, as the HG281DJ is kitted out with a 3ms response time, gamers may well want to give the panel a look as well.

Stay connected

Inputs on the monitor are as standard. You get the obligatory HDMI port (with HDCP support), VGA, audio and component.

The only thing that lets the monitor down is its contrast ratio. At just 800:1 we would have expected better. At least the panel is equipped with anti-glare technology and a clean viewing angle of 160 degrees.

The price is right

At £400, this latest HANNSG release is one of the cheapest 28in 1080p HD monitors around. In fact, if we were a filmmaker, at that price we would probably buy two and have a rather nice twin-monitor HD setup.

The HG281DJ is available now from www.misco.uk and comes with a three-year warranty.

Review: HP Mini-Note arrives to kick Eee PC's butt

James Rivington — 1210760640

When the Asus Eee PC 900 landed in the TechRadar office a month ago, there was an air of excitement.

The buzz was apparent even amongst those behind the scenes-types who wouldn't normally get excited about what is essentially just a new PC.

And yet when we actually saw the Eee PC 900, the atmosphere fell flat. It looked exactly the same as the original apart form a bigger screen. And a bit of extra storage and memory wasn't really enough to get anyone excited.

One month on, in comes the HP 2133 Mini-Note. It's the latest sub-notebook that's come to take a slice of Eee PC pie - and it looks like it might have a good chance to grab a lion's share.

Because while the Eee PC 900 fell down on price - £100 more expensive for only a few extra features - the Mini-Note adds a raft of features for only a little more cash.

Think the HP Mini-Note sounds interesting?

Read our full review

Microsoft's PC crime cracker not yet available

Patrick Goss — 1210603440

Microsoft has told TechRadar that the COFEE tool it has built to help the Police look into PCs believed to have been used for criminal activity is still in Beta and has not yet been made available to forces in the UK.

Microsoft had announced that its suite of programs – named the Computer Online Forensic Evidence Extractor or COFEE or short – was already being circulated, but there remains widespread confusion as to whether this is the case.

Beta

Microsoft’s security advisor in the UK, Ed Gibson, speaking to TechRadar, insists that the software – which could be used on a thumb USB drive to quickly take an image of a suspects computer – is not readily available, yet.

“The latest information is that COFEE is still in beta and that it is not yet available through the law enforcement portal,” said Gibson – who has also worked for the FBI in the fight against cybercrime.

“The law enforcement portal is a password protected site that is only be available to police forces, and COFEE will be available through that.”

There remains some fairly obvious doubts over whether the process would remain private to police forces should it be used to push for criminal convictions – with the likelihood that any defence would require access to the way in which the program takes the information.

Microsoft offers low-cost XP for emerging markets

Patrick Goss — 1210582500

Microsoft has announced that it will cut the price of its XP operating system for ultra-low cost PCs that are built for emerging markets.

Although it has yet to confirm that XP will be handed a stay of execution for PC manufacturers, the OS will remain for the ultra-portable market and for projects that are trying to build ULCPCs for the likes of India and China.

Linux

Currently Microsoft is competing with the likes of Linux, which is freeware, but the prospect of $16 XP could lure manufacturers into plumping for the tried and tested software from the Redmond company.

The pricing is actually $26 dollars, but companies can potentially get a $10 rebate.

Currently the offer only stands if the screen size of the PC is less than 10.2 inches with a HDD of less than 80Gbytes, with Microsoft keen to ensure that their lower cost option doesn’t impinge on the sales of their flagship OS Vista.

Weekend round-up

Patrick Goss — 1210578480

It’s been a busy old weekend in the world of tech, but as usual we have scouted round to bring you the most vital (and quirky) stories from over the weekend.

Firstly, late on Friday Microsoft confirmed it would be appealing against the massive fine it has been hit with by the European Union for defying sanctions imposed after the anti-trust rulings.

The EU decided to hand Microsoft a whopping £680 million fine after deciding the Redmond company was guilty of not providing key code to rival software manufacturers.

Microsoft are seeking ‘clarity from the court’ in their appeal.

You’ve been iFramed

The most famous Mac thief was probably the Hamburgler, but running a close second is the fellow who got away with a lady’s MacBook only to be caught by the woman’s ingenuity.

Using her remote access to the Mac, the victim took a photo of the thief from her laptop and gave it to the police.

If it wasn’t for those pesky iKids…

Facebook ordered to out Fake Dean profile kids

Cyber-bullying of teachers is becoming an increasingly common problem, but in America, one educator who found himself on the wrong end of a fake Facebook profile has gone to court to get the social networking site to reveal the culprits.

The profile, which has since been removed, contained "pictures and messages inappropriate for a Dean of Students to send to a student."

Facebook have been ordered to retain the details of those that created the profile pending further investigation from the courts.

That's it for now, but stay tuned to TechRadar for the rest of the day's news as it breaks or grab a feed here - get it while it's hot.

Reviewed: Sony Vaio TP2 media PC

James Rivington — 1210158100

While the fabled 'digital home' is still yet to materialise in any meaningful way, it's certainly a lot closer now than it was five years ago.

Media streamers that wirelessly stream music and movies from your PC onto your living room television, are now widely available.

And some people think that the next step is for people to embrace the standalone media PC. It sits under your TV like a games console or a DVD player – except it's a fully fledged computer running Windows Vista.

Digital home

Sony has thrown a lot of money and effort at this market in the last few years, and the fruit of that labour comes to us in the form of the Sony Vaio TP2 media PC.

It comes packing a 2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 500GB of storage, a Blu-ray drive, and various connectivity options including HDMI.

It’s an extraordinary machine. Very powerful. It looks pretty too. And there aren’t many people who wouldn’t want to have one in their living rooms. But how much does it cost?

Read our full review

Ballmer makes TIME influential list

Patrick Goss — 1209726180

Microsoft’s ebullient CEO Steve Ballmer has been included in TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people list.

The larger-than-life Microsoft man has become an increasingly influential figure at the Redmond company since Bill Gates announced that he will step down in June this year.

Ballmer’s on-stage antics – a famous monkey dance, throwing a MacBook Air to the ground and fairly regular bursts of screaming enthusiasm – have made him a cult figure within Microsoft.

Chief warrior

But it is business acumen that has planted him firmly among in the esteemed company of TIME’s list.

"He is actually Microsoft's combative, take-no-prisoners chief warrior," says Guy Kawasaki – the former Apple evangelist who wrote the TIME profile.

“If you want 95% of the wallets of every market that you're in, then you want this Steve. If you want 95% of the mind share of every market that you're in, then you need the other Steve (Jobs).”

Will Apple crush Psystar?

Patrick Goss — 1209656749

After all the hoo-hah, it appears that Psystar’s PCs running OSX actually DO exist and are now turning up at people’s houses – which begs the question will Apple finally crush them?

Apple has remained tight-lipped over the entire debacle, which has fuelled thousands of comments over Psystar’s wandering address, mysterious history and problems with payments.

However, the likes of the US Engadget site have got their hands on the Psystar PC and, aside from some slightly noisy fan related issues, it appears that the OSX PC is fit for purpose.

Hurdle

So one hurdle cleared, but Apple could still technically ask Psystar to desist from installing OSX onto its machines, as it breaks the terms of its EULA.

If Apple does choose to prevent companies selling their own machines with Apple’s OS it could raise concerns in US law.

It could also be portrayed as a big company crushing the little man for doing something that is obviously of great interest to many.