If you have more than one UNIX box in your care, you know how duplication happens. Every machine needs a common set of settings. Package upgrades need to be deployed. Certain packages need to be on every server.

You also want to make sure that any changes to your systems happen in a controlled manner. It's one thing to start off with two servers that are similarly configured; it's anoth [Link]

[Just a final reminder for the IGF student and mobile competitions for 2009, which are finishing up this weekend and Monday respectively - good luck to all the entrants, both competitions have had some standouts in previous years.]

Organizers of the 2009 Independent Games Festival are giving a final call for entries for this year's Student Showcase competition (due November 15th), and IGF Mobile competition (due November 17th), following the closing of entries for the main IGF competition earlier this month.

After a record turn-out for the IGF Main Competition, with entrants to be revealed soon, the ever-popular, free Student Showcase competition has an imminent deadline, with game students battling to be one of the ten games available in playable form on the 2009 Game Developers Conference show floor.

The Student Showcase... [Link]

Okoro has a new HTPC for the masses with the OMS-LX100 Digital Entertainment System. Inside the rather slim exterior, you will find the following specifications :-

• Single CableCARD tuner
• Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2GHz processor
• NVIDIA GeForce 9300 video card
• 4GB RAM
• 7,200RPM SATA hard drive (500GB)
• 7.1-channel high-definition audio support
• HDMI port
• Dual-layer DVD burner

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Have you ever seen that many active LCD TVs in your life before? Well, if you haven't perhaps it is time to make a beeline for Grand Central Station, where a bunch of Sharp Aquos LCD TVs , numbering 43 in total, were specially and lovingly stacked on top of one another, resulting in a 26-foot tall Christmas tree. These panels come in various sizes, ranging from 19" to 52" models anchoring the bottom part. All of these are wired together to display coordinated video shows, and currently cycles through nine different patterns to keep the audience mesmerized. Kudos to Japanese video artist Tsuyoshi Takashiro for his creation. Sharp will make sure it doesn't get repetitive by releasing 10 new patterns next month.

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Phones are meant to be pretty solid in their build, considering how often it is bandied about, and we believe that handsets ought to be able to withstand a couple of unintended drops to the floor without breaking or cracking. Well, the Glassy Glassy phone concept is otherwise, since it comes with double glass layers (hence its name), which also translates to having to carry around a tissue handy so that fingerprints can be wiped off each time you want to use the phone. We guess a protective cover of some sort will sell especially well if the Glassy Glassy ever makes it to mainstream consciousness, but we'd be pretty content if it didn't.

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Things don't look good for our friends at Detroit, but that doesn't mean they'll just keel over and give up the good fight. Nice to see some creativity involved when it comes to marketing their vehicles, with Chrysler announcing a "Web edition" package that features a whole host of Internet-capable gizmos which are connected to an Autonet Mobile router known as Chrysler uConnect Web. The entire collection comprises of :-

• Dell Mini 9 netbook
• 8GB iPod Touch
• Sony PSP
• Digital camera with an Eye-Fi Wi-Fi SD card

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We know that times are hard, and good thing there are companies out there who feel the pain of consumers, releasing decent consumer electronics with pocket-friendly prices. The latest would be the F19 LCD monitor from AOC, featuring the following :-

• PC/Windows, Mac-equipped With Analog VGA Dsub or DVI Port
• Digital Input DVI-D HDCP
• 16:9 widescreen
• Contrast Ratio 10,000:1 (dynamic)
• Plug & Play DDC/2B, DDC/CI
• 5ms fast response time
• Easy-to-use navigation
• 19" viewing area

Add a comment | From: Link]

Gadget4All has a weird gizmo for the masses - the Roll-up Mouse Pad With Speaker + Hub. As though a mouse pad functioning as a USB hub is not good enough, it even comes with built-in speakers. You will be able to connect other audio and video devices to it via USB, but we wouldn't rely on the included speakers since you're probably better off with your current desktop audio setup. Pity the USB hub features the outdated USB 1.1 technology, or else it would have been worth the $22 investment as a Christmas gift idea.

Add a comment |... [Link]

Ultrasone of Germany has unveiled its smallest pair of headphones in its collection, the HFI-15G. This pair comes with an open-back supra-aural design that boasts a decentralized driver position which is touted to widen the sound-stage simply by directing the waves to the outer ear - taking a different route that most normal headphones do by directing said waves straight into the ear canal. Features of the HFI-15G include :-

• Frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz
• Sound pressure level of 96dB
• 40mm Mylar drivers
• Impedance of 32 Ohms.
• 85 grams (minus cord)

Don't be fooled - the Sound Resolution speakers by Yorozu Audio offers pretty decent audio in a form factor that is fun to look at and guaranteed to start a conversation no matter where you are. Available in a small fake milk carton design, it evne comes with a speaker printed on the side for that added effect. We don't think that forking out $51 for this is worth the price though, unless you're in it more for the aesthetics than performance.

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Neiman Marcus has something for grandmas across the country this Christmas with the Demy Digital Recipe Reader. This device looks like a bloated iPhone of sorts, coming with a generous touchscreen display (older folk can't really read the fine print, you know), complete with cube-shaped glossy menu icons for an easy cooking experience. Unfortunately, the $300 price point makes us gag at our throats since something as simple as this clearly does not warrant such a price tag. After all, most moms and cooks already have the recipes in their head or on paper, so this jump to the 21st century isn't really that big a breakthrough. Save yourself the three Benjamins and use that to get the cheapest iPhone instead - at least you can use it to order pizza when your cooking adventure goes awry.

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The Home Chare—yes, that's chare, not chair—is a combination wheelchair for the disabled and for Jabba the Hutts. This device not only can be adjusted into a bed and standing aid, but also can double as a toilet via a replaceable seatless cushion. We can't see how this toilet design is convenient though, unless, of course, you rode around in this wheelchair pantless or in a pair of asschaps. Since the Home Chare is currently not on the market, we hope this will give them time to fix the restroom-accessibility situation. [Product Page via Yanko]

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Great news for those who use IBM Lotus Notes - this email client-server will soon be supported across a wide range of S60-powered smartphones from Nokia, which translates to a potential of 80 million users who can access their corporate email accounts through Lotus Notes Traveler over their phones. This support will begin from next month onwards, so hold your horses for the moment while you wait for IBM to work the kinks out. This collaboration is a no-brainer - it enables Nokia to offer devices capable of mobilizing almost 90% of the business email clients and applications, all without having to acquire extra licenses.

Add a comment | From: Link]

According to a Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information press release, the eagerly expected iPhone 2.2 operating system update will arrive tomorrow, November 21. The release is expected to bring new features, but the Institute's note highlights a major security problem that can make your iPhone to place a call when visiting a malicious web site. This date is in line with the previous rumors. Update: here's the video of the security exploit that the iPhone 2.2 release will fix, according to the Fraunhoferians.

The Fraunhofer Institute SIT alerted the producers of the iPhone about this issue a month ago. To close this hole, new firmware will be released on November 21.

According to Collin Mulliner, the... [Link]

Filed under: iTunes, Software Update

• Addresses a quality issue creating MP3s on some computers.
• Fixes a connectivity issue with the iTunes Store when using some Internet proxies with Mac OS... [Link]

A couple of weeks ago, a ten second clip called “Bruce Lee's secret training video,” featuring someone looking like the famous Kung Fu master completely owning at ping pong with a pair of nunchaku, was uploaded to the Chinese Internet. Now, the entire clip is up and... it's a Nokia ad! For a Bruce Lee version of their N96! I guess with the rising middle class already getting jaded with traditional marketing, companies in China are starting to embrace virals. Still, in terms of ads, Nokia seems to have hit on a winning formula. I can't think of many things I love more than Bruce Lee, ping pong and pwnage! [Youku]

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