IT lay-offs in GM revamp may take months to emerge (part 2)

Author:Ian Grant

GM has been losing money since 2005. Its latest quarterly report showed a shareholder deficit of $90bn. The US government stepped in with a $20bn loan, and the new deal gives it a 61% share of the new company in return for its share of $33bn in new funding. The auto maker will aim to break even on (largely US) manufacture and sale of 10 million vehicles a year, rather than the present 15 to 17 million, it said.

GM has asked the bankruptcy courts to approve steps to protect current and new GM customers and ensure uninterrupted operations in the transition to the New GM.

In a statement, the firm said GM dealers will continue to service GM vehicles and honour GM warranties. GM confirmed that all business operations are continuing without interruption outside the US.

GM was founded in 1908, and today manufactures cars and trucks in 34 countries. It employs 235,000 people and sells and services vehicles in 140 countries. In 2008, it sold 8.35 million cars and trucks globally. It owns brands such Cadillac, Chevrolet, and Hummer, as well as Opel, Vauxhall and Saab. On Friday it announced plans to start making a small car in the US.

source by http://www.computerweekly.com

IT lay-offs in GM revamp may take months to emerge

Author:Ian Grant

It is too soon to tell how many IT workers will be laid off in the restructuring of General Motors, the biggest US car and truck maker, which will emerge from bankruptcy protection in 60 to 90 days.

The slimmer "New GM" will have less debt and lower operating costs, thanks to a $33bn deal struck today between itself, the US and Canadian governments and worker bodies.

The 5,500 workers at GM's UK Vauxhall operation will have to wait for the outcome of negotiations between GM and Magna International, a Canadian motor vehicle maker, which plans to take over Adam Opel which with Vauxhall forms GM Europe. The German government has given Adam Opel a €1.5m bridging loan while talks continue.

According to reports, business minister Peter Mandelson has received assurances that Magna intends to continue production at Vauxhall. However, a Vauxhall spokesman said changes in workforce levels might take several months to come to light.

source by:

From: Peter

Hidden Secret Browser Google Chrome
In the post-Sep 09, 2008


Netter are using Google Chrome? If not, may be secret behind the browser is Google's latest move could make Netter choose this browser.

Here are some secret hidden Google Chrome:

1. 'incognito' window (Control + Shift + N)
This feature allows Netter for browsing through a secure browser windows, because with this feature Netter not leave impressions such as' search & browser history and cookies. So not sure if Netter akan sites visited or do not want other people at work know Netter visit a site, this feature is certainly useful.

2. Home or Alt + Control + T
Showing all the sites and bookmarks that have been opened by the previous Netter in the form of a thumbnail. This feature is found in the Opera browser and add ons in FireFox. Alt + Home to open a site on the same page, while Control + T on the new page.

3. Control + Shift + T
Reopen the tabs that are not deliberately closed by Netter when browsing. Google Chrome can remember up to 10 tabs you closed by mistake.

4. Control + Tab (Control + Shift + Tab)
Try to use this shortcut to move quickly with the tab, Control + Tab to go and Control + Shift + Tab to move back. Alternatively to direct the position of the lead-up to the series is the shortcut Control + 1, Control 2 to + Control + 9.

5. Opens With Quick Link Site
To open a link to the site quickly, Google Chrome offers the same features with FireFox 3, with a mouse click on the scroll Netter directly or click the link and drag it to the browser tab.

6. Bookmark Site With Fast
Click the star on the left of the address bar of your browser. Chrome address bar can also function as a direct seacrh the page directly to search engines that we want

7. Control + B
Hide and show the Bookmark browser quickly.

8. Control + H
Open all the sites that have been visited (history) quickly. On the right there is the option delete history for this day, if you want to remove Netter history has ever visited the site on that day.

9. Control + A
Open windows download file. Shortcut is the same as in FireFox

10. Shift + Escape
Open the Google Chrome task manager to quickly view the memory consumption and to turn off the tab which has the potential to make the browser freeze (hangs)

11. about: plugins & about: crash
Enter the word about: plugins in the address bar to see what plugins are installed on Chrome. And about: crash to see the tabs which make Chrome crash, freeze or hang. Other features: about: stats, about: network, about: histograms, about: memory, about: cache, about: dns, about: Internets

12. Access menu on Chrome
Netter can access the menus to re-Optimize and customize the browser on the right side. Choose a menu that is image 'key UK' and choose the option. In it there are many options such as Chrome as the default browser, change the default Search, change the language, and so forth.

source by: http://www.gsn-soeki.com/wouw/a001114.php

Computer experts brace for “Conficker” worm (Part 2)

“It’s not time to hide in the bunker. But it might be prudent to look out the window,” he added.

In February, Microsoft announced it was offering a $250,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever is responsible for creating Conficker, saying the worm constituted a “criminal attack.”

FEARS OF ID THEFT

Botnets are a major worry because they can surreptitiously steal identities, log sensitive corporate information, credit card numbers, online banking passwords or other key data users of infected PCs type on their keyboards.

The information is often sold to criminal rings.

“Most malware we see in this day and age is very concerned with stealing information and making money for the author,” said Dave Marcus, a researcher with security-software maker McAfee Inc’s Avert Labs.

Experts said Conficker’s authors might gradually change the way it communicates to avoid attention and to prevent companies from putting in place safeguards such as those used to fight the worm since it first surfaced last year.

Microsoft released a patch to protect against the worm late last year, while anti-virus software companies offer software to sniff it out and destroy it. Such tools can be expensive.
Technology research firm Gartner Inc estimates businesses will spend $13.6 billion on security software this year excluding costs for related labor, services and hardware. While some consumer anti-virus software packages are available for free, others run as high as $80 each.

Security experts suspect Conficker originated in the Ukraine, based on its code. The FBI is working to shut it down but a spokesman declined to comment on its investigation.

“The public is once again reminded to employ strong security measures on their computers,” said Shawn Henry, assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s cybercrimes division.

Independent security firms such as McAfee, Symantec Corp and Trend Micro Inc say they will closely monitor cyberspace on Wednesday to see how the worm mutates but will also watch closely over coming weeks as the hype fades.

“I don’t expect much to happen on April 1st. That’s the one day I would not do it. That’s the one day everybody is watching for something to drop,” said Joe Stewart, director of malware research at SecureWorks. “It’s just another small step in whatever the end game is.”

(Reporting by Jim Finkle; Editing by Jason Szep, Gary Hill)

source :technologyonlinenews.com

Computer experts brace for “Conficker” worm (Part 1)

By Jim Finkle

BOSTON (Reuters) - A malicious software program that has infected millions of computers could enter a more menacing phase on Wednesday, from an outright attack to a quiet mutation that would further its spread.Computer security experts who have analyzed the Conficker worm’s code say it is designed to begin a new phase on April 1, and while it’s unclear whether it will unleash havoc or remain dormant, its stubborn presence is rattling businesses with multimillion-dollar budgets to fight cyber crime.

Conficker, believed to reside on 2 million to 12 million computers worldwide, is designed to turn an infected PC into a slave that responds to commands sent from a remote server that controls an army of slave computers known as a botnet.

“It can be used to attack as well as to spy. It can destroy files, it can connect to addresses on the Internet and it can forward your e-mail,” said Gadi Evron, an expert on botnets who helps governments protect against cyber crime.

But like many security experts, he doubts Wednesday will see a big attack.

The virus has been powerful enough to attack infected computers for months by exploiting weaknesses in Microsoft’s Windows operating system. Evron and several other analysts said Wednesday’s change could simply give Conficker enhanced functionality, possibly making it more dangerous.

“This is the electronic equivalent of being told there is a major storm that has a 20 percent chance of hitting,” said Mark Rasch, an executive at Secure IT Experts who spent 25 years prosecuting computer crimes at the U.S. Department of Justice.

source : technologyonlinenews.com

Guide – Overclocking Prosessor Intel Core i7 Part III (part1)

Myth Voltage Overclocking Intel Core i7
Voltage or voltage is absolutely necessary for overclocking. Tension is not only a role in the achievement of overclocking, but also the effect on the stability of overclocking itself. Myths such as the voltage memory voltage not more than 1.65 volt, because it can damage the processor is indeed true. When viewed from the Core i7 architecture itself, IMC is integrated in the processor, the impact of the excessive voltage memory will be harmful as well as IMC processor itself. This has happened before in AMD. To avoid that the producers restrict the choice of AMD motherboard memory voltage to avoid damage to the IMC processor. Then, how fate memory DDR3 memory that has a voltage above 1.65 volt operation? What can still be used? In the experiment, the author never uses voltage to 1.8 volt in the time period long enough and did not experience degradation in the processor or processors to die. In fact the influence of the voltage memory voltage does not directly affect the other, mainly voltage IOH (or chipset voltage Core Voltage IOH) and QPI / VTT Voltage. IOH Voltage has a default value of 1.2 volt and QPI / VTT Voltage has a default value of 1.1 volt. In the experiment, the effect of increasing the value of this very second voltage stability assist system, especially in the high frequency of memory and a high-voltage memory. The author set on IOH Voltage 1:25 volt and QPI / VTT Voltage at 1.3 volt. At this value is the speed DDR3-2000 with a 1.74 volt voltage running and stable. Screenshots can be seen below.

Design us a star - and win a workstation! (part 2)

HOW TO ENTER
The contest is about unleashing your creativity, and we want to recognise you, the stars of the digital art community, so your graphic should embody that concept.

The finished artwork should feature a 3D render of a five-pointed star prominently… but exactly how you treat that star is up to you.

To get you started, click the link below to download an EPS file showing a simple five-pointed star. Use this as the basis of your design.

Your image should use the Intel blue as a primary colour; and green as a secondary colour. The exact colour values are as follows:

Primary colour
CMYK – 100/40/0/0 or RGB – 8/96/198

Secondary colour
CMYK – 40/0/100/0 or RGB – 174/197/0

We have also included a number of guides within the download to show the various formats in which your design may be used, which include print ads and online banners. For the banners, it will be necessary to crop in on a smaller part of the graphic.

Bear in mind that, for print use, the image must be supplied at 300dpi resolution.

And finally, don’t include any text on the image.

Once you have completed your image, send it to us by clicking the entry link below. Include your full name and daytime phone number in the body of the email.

(Note: our email server only accepts attachments under 9MB in size).

The sender of the image that, in the opinion of the judges, best fulfils the brief and best demonstrates creativity and technical quality will win a Core i7 workstation with the specification shown at the foot of the page.

The closing date for entries is 12 February 2009.

In order to qualify to receive the prize, you will be required to send us the scene file and other assets for the graphic; and, if necessary, a larger print-resolution version of the image.

source by : www.3dworldmag.com