Seven things you may not know about Windows 7

While Windows 7 has gotten plenty of attention over the past two weeks, there are some features in there that haven't gotten as much attention. I wrote on Friday about a new programming interface for location-based services. Here are seven more features that caught my eye.
1. Standard approach to mobile broadbandWindows 7 treats cellular modems as a standard connection, much like a Wi-Fi network, popping them up in the same available wireless networks dialog.
Sierra Wireless has already said it will support the new approach, which should make life much easier for road warriors (myself included). One of my few gripes about the prebeta Windows 7 laptop I'm using is that it doesn't recognize my relatively new USB Sprint modem.
2. Help with public Wi-Fi spots.This was a little feature I discovered on my own. With many public Wi-Fi hot spots, once you connect to the network, you have to do something in your browser, such as agree to certain terms or enter a password. Windows 7 pops up a notification that tells you that, although you have to be connected to the network, more action may be needed and it gives you a direct link to open your browser.
3. Windows TroubleshootingSure, it would be better if your computer worked problem-free. But, acknowledging that's not the case, Microsoft has added a central place in Windows 7 to try to figure out what went wrong and why.
Among the kinds of problems that Windows Troubleshooting aims to help solve are issues with networked printers, detecting hard drive problems, and even some proactive things, like figuring out how much life a laptop battery has before it will likely need to be replaced with a new battery.
4. New sensor supportWindows 7 adds base-level support for all kinds of sensors, from GPS, to fingerprint readers, to ambient light sensors, to accelerometers. Light sensors, for example, can now be used not only to light up a keyboard, but an application could sense daylight and make type larger so that it's easier to read.
At WinHEC, Microsoft handed out 700 free sensor developer kits that included a light sensor, touch pad, and accelerometer. The kit was a big hit with the developers, prompting one of the only long lines of the show.
5. Improved battery life and playback of DVDsMicrosoft is trying to do a couple things to make the DVD-playing experience better in Windows 7.
First and foremost, it has changed things so that DVD movies just start playing, as opposed to bringing up a long list of options.
Second, the company has worked to adjust power settings while playing back movies to enable better battery life.
"I'm hopeful it will have battery life equivalent to a portable DVD player," Microsoft's Jon DeVaan said in an interview. The issue is personal, he said. If Microsoft can reach its goal, he might be able to only bring a laptop on outings. "I hope to spare my back on family trips," he said.
6. Windows Biometric FrameworkAccording to a press release from fingerprint sensor make AuthenTec, the operating system features improved biometric support that should enable a more standard way for fingerprint management applications to work with fingerprint readers in Windows 7.
"This provides ease of fingerprint sensor integration for PC manufacturers and a more consistent user experience," AuthenTec said in its release.
7. Enhancements to Windows Media CenterMicrosoft hasn't given up on its dream of having Windows gain a prominent spot in the living room and its main effort in this area--Windows Media Center--is back in Windows 7.
BetaNews has a look at some of the new features, including support for H.264 video, an on-screen keyboard, and better method of scrolling through large libraries.

Longer-Lasting Batteries for Laptops

New materials improve the reliability, safety, and storage capacity of lithium-ion batteries.

Conventional lithium-ion batteries in laptops and cell phones quickly lose their ability to store energy and can catch fire if they're overcharged or damaged. Now researchers at Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, IL, have developed composite battery materials that can make such batteries both safer and longer lived, while increasing their capacity to store energy by 30 percent.
Last month, the researchers took a significant step toward commercializing the technology by licensing it to a major materials supply company, Toda Kogyo, based in Japan. The company has the capacity to make the materials for about 30 million laptop batteries a year, says Gary Henriksen, who manages electrochemical storage research at Argonne.
The new materials are one example of a new generation of lithium-ion electrode chemistries that address the shortcomings of conventional lithium-ion batteries. Each has its own trade-offs. For example, another material called lithium iron phosphate has better safety and durability than Argonne's materials, but it stores somewhat less energy than conventional lithium-ion batteries. Argonne's materials improve on the safety and reliability of today's laptop batteries, while also storing more energy.
The Argonne researchers have improved the performance of the positive electrodes by increasing the chemical and structural stability of the materials already used in laptop batteries. In conventional lithium-ion batteries, which have cobalt oxide electrodes, a small amount of overheating, caused by overcharging the material or by electrical shorts inside a battery, can lead to rapidly increasing temperatures inside the cell and, in some cases, combustion. That's because, as the material overheats, the cobalt oxide readily gives up oxygen, which reacts with the solvent in the battery's electrolyte and generates more heat, feeding the reactions. The Argonne researchers addressed this problem by replacing some of the cobalt oxide with manganese oxide, which is chemically more stable.
The researchers' next step was to replace some of the active metal oxide materials in the electrode with a related but electrochemically inactive material, forming a composite. This material does not store energy, because it does not release and take up lithium ions as the battery is charged and discharged. (Lithium-ion batteries create electrical current as lithium ions shuttle between positive and negative electrodes.) The inactive material makes the composite more stable than conventional electrode materials, which means it can last longer. One version of the material can last for 1,500 charges and discharges without losing much capacity, he says. That's more than double the life of conventional laptop batteries.

What's more, reducing the amount of active, energy-storing material has the counterintuitive effect of increasing the composite's storage capacity. If too much lithium is removed from conventional cobalt oxide materials, the material degrades and quickly loses its ability to fully charge and discharge. The inactive material makes it possible to use much more of the lithium without damaging the material.
The electrode material can store 45 percent to 50 percent more energy than the best electrodes in laptop batteries. In terms of an entire battery cell--given that the positive electrode represents less than half of the total weight and volume of a battery cell--the total energy storage of the battery can be improved by 20 percent to 30 percent, Henriksen says.
The researchers' next step is improving the rate at which the composite material can be charged and discharged so that it can be used in hybrid vehicles. As it's made now, the Argonne material can be completely discharged in about three hours--fast enough for laptops but far too slow for a car. Discharging rates will need to be at least three times faster, and likely more, for the technology to work in plug-in hybrids, vehicles in which the battery can be recharged from a conventional electrical outlet.

More Biofuels Woes

The projection that U.S. farmers will grow less corn this year is bad news for ethanol producers.

That strong wind you might have felt earlier this week was just more air rushing out of the biofuel bubble. Monday's statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture--that farmers expect to plant 8 percent fewer acres of corn in 2008, compared with 2007--is very bad news for the already struggling ethanol industry. It takes a lot of corn to make ethanol, and the feedstock is a major cost of creating the biofuel. U.S. farmers' plan to plant less corn this year means that record-high corn prices, which are already above $5 a bushel, will likely stay high. It doesn't take an economist to figure out what the grim numbers portend for ethanol manufacturers. Higher feedstock costs, at the same time that yet more ethanol production capacity is coming online, could mean another very tough year for the ethanol market.
Beyond being a pain for ethanol producers, the high corn prices will further exasperate the tensions between using the crop for fuel rather than for food. In a New York Times article, one expert issues a frightening warning:
"We're hoping for good yields," said David Orden, a senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute in Washington. "If we get bad yields and tight commodity markets are pushed even tighter, we'll get food prices skyrocketing, inflationary pressures and food riots in developing countries, and countries cutting off their exports."
No one knows, of course, whether it will be a good year or not for growing corn in the United States. If it is a bad year, look for even more criticism of ethanol biofuel and, in particular, the Renewable Fuel Standards that mandate that petroleum suppliers use nine billion gallons of ethanol this year. But even if it's a good year for growing corn, expect the poor profit margins for ethanol producers to continue and more grumbling about the economics of biofuels.

PG&E starts getting gas from manure

The renewable energy industry hits the fan Tuesday in California.
Pacific Gas & Electric and BioEnergy Solutions will open a pipeline Tuesday that will deliver methane from a manure-to-gas facility on a farm in the Fresno area to the utility. Some farms in California, such as cheese maker Joseph Gallo Farms, and a number in Europe already generate gas from manure, but they also consume it to run their operations. This marks the first time that manure-generated gas will get sold across pipelines in the state.
(Credit: BioEnergy Solutions)
BioEnergy Solutions owns and operates the digester (the thing that converts the manure into gas), which is located on the 5,000-cow farm, called Vintage Dairy. The company says it will soon build digesters at other nearby farms. The Vintage Dairy facility is expected to provide enough gas for 1,200 homes. Ultimately, BioEnergy will deliver 3 billion cubic feet of gas to PG&E a year, enough gas for 50,000 homes.
Although BioEnergy and PG&E talk about how many homes the gas could serve, the utility will actually use the gas to run electrical power plants. PG&E has set a goal of generating 20 percent of its power from renewable sources by 2020, not including power from hydroelectric dams. Although the utility gets only a small amount of its power now from utilities, it has signed enough contracts to inch it past the 20 percent mark, said a spokeswoman.
A single cow is probably good for 100 watts of power after the conversions are calculated, according to some estimates. Cows crank out about 120 pounds of manure a day. Just in case you were wondering.
PG&E wouldn't say what it is paying for the gas, but contends that the prices are competitive. Manure won't be the only source of renewable gas in the future. Other companies such as Ze-Gen and Onsite Power Systems are working on converting other types of trash into power.
BioEnergy uses the storage pond method for converting manure. In a nutshell, the manure is placed in a big pond with microbes, which break down the manure. The gas from the digester--which ordinarily would float into atmosphere and contribute to greenhouse gas levels--then goes to an upgrade facility that separates the methane from other gases conjured up by the manure. The digester will prevent approximately 1,500 tons of methane, one of the more harmful greenhouse gases, getting into the atmosphere from the Vintage farm alone.
The pond at the Vintage facility can hold around 37 million gallons of water and manure, which will no doubt make for great discussions on any Cub Scout field trip. Other companies, such as Microgy, have turned to thermophilic digesters, which use a combination of heat and microbes.
The gas from BioEnergy's Vintage digester will be piped to the nearby upgrade facility, which then connects to commercial natural gas pipelines. Other farms will also pipe gas to the facility.
Besides serving as a source for natural gas, these digesters serve other environmental functions. Manure storage facilities are a source of groundwater pollution as well as greenhouse gases, so the more that's digested, the better.
Normally, getting rid of manure is a regulatory and financial headache for farmers. With digesters, however, they typically no longer have to pay disposal fees, or can even get a small fee from the operator of the digester, depending on the contract.

Intel picks 'Atom' as name for new chip family

Intel has picked "Atom" as the new brand name for its latest microprocessor, the world's largest semiconductor company said.
The Intel Atom processor is the name for the new family of low-power processors, the brains of digital devices, that will power mobile Internet devices and ultra low-cost and small notebook and desktop personal computers.
Intel sees a big market for the Internet-connected devices that can fit in one's pocket and for what it is calling the netbook, a low-cost PC costing around $250.
The Intel Atom processor is based on a new microarchitecture designed for small devices and low power consumption, Intel said. The chip is less than 25 square millimeters, and 11 of the chip's dies--the slivers of silicon with 47 million transistors each--would fit in an area the size of a U.S. penny.
The new chips, previously code-named Silverthorne and Diamondville, are made on Intel's 45-nanometer chipmaking technology and slated for introduction toward the middle of this year.
"Diamondville and Silverthorne both represent an attempt by Intel to sell chips profitably for a whole lot less," said Nathan Brookwood, an analyst at market research firm Insight 64. "This is the first new processor design coming out of Intel since the Pentium Pro in 1995."
Atom joins other Intel brands including Core, Core 2, Celeron, and Xeon, names for other processors the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company makes and sells.
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Intel also announced the Intel Centrino Atom processor technology brand aimed specifically at mobile Internet devices. It was formerly code-named Menlow.
Centrino Atom includes the Intel Atom processor, a low power companion chip with integrated graphics, a wireless radio, as well as thinner and lighter designs.
Sean Maloney, chief sales and marketing officer for Intel, said that Atom is "a fundamental new shift in design, small yet powerful enough to enable a big Internet experience on these new devices. We believe it will unleash new innovation across the industry."
Intel also said that Atom has potential for new sales dollars in consumer electronic devices and other gadgets, and said it was well positioned for growth in all of those segments with Atom's low-power architecture as a foundation.

The high price of iPhones in Ireland

The high price of iPhones in Ireland

DUBLIN, Ireland--Some of the papers are calling it the 1,200 euro phone.
Apple will bring its iPhone to Ireland on March 14, but the price the company will charge for the phone--particularly when the monthly service contract is added in--is raising eyebrows.
The 8GB iPhone sells for 399 euros (including value-added taxes) while the 16GB version goes for 499 euros. Plus, users need to sign up for service from cellular carrier O2 for 45 euros a month for a minimum of 18 months. The 45 euros per month fee, by the way, is the minimum. After 175 minutes of call time and 100 text messages, the price starts to climb.
Thus, the 8GB phone goes for 1,209 euros, while the 16GB version goes for 1,309 euros. The phones also run on slower, older networks than many other phones.
To put the price in newly devalued U.S. dollars, the 8GB equals about $600 while the 16GB version goes for nearly $760. With service fees, the 8GB sells for $1,834. In England, the 16GB iPhone, when only hardware is considered, sells for about $100 less than in Ireland.
While the price may be steep, there does seem to be a lot of interest swirling around. Chris Armstrong, CEO of PortoMedia, a Galway-based company coming out with a movie download services, loves his iPod Touch, which has the same keyboard. The same goes for Ray Nolan, CEO of Hostelworld, a portal for booking rooms in hostels. I saw a few other people with the iPod Touch at the Irish Software Association's annual conference this week.

eBay CEO Meg Whitman to step down

Updated at 3:20 p.m. PST with more background, analyst comment.
Meg Whitman is stepping down as chief executive of eBay after a decade, allowing a trusted insider to respond to slowed growth at the online auction pioneer.
Whitman has long said that every CEO should step down after 10 years to seek new professional challenges and make room for fresh leadership. Following her own edict, she will step down March 31 while remaining on the board.
"It's time for eBay, and this community, to have a new leadership team, a new perspective, and a new vision," she wrote on the company blog. A report that she would step down appeared Tuesday in The Wall Street Journal.
Replacing her is John Donahoe, head of eBay Marketplaces, whom Whitman recruited in 2005. Donahoe is well-respected by investors and board members, analysts said.
Whitman joined eBay in March 1998 and successfully navigated it through the dot-com boom and bust and on to near cult-like popularity with what was known as the "eBay economy." Through eBay, anyone with an Internet connection could find obscure collectibles or turn their dusty garage treasures into cash.
Now, the company faces growing competition from Amazon.com along with what one analyst calls "buyer fatigue" following years of revenue leaps.
"Whitman wasn't as innovative as her counterparts at Amazon and elsewhere...They definitely need a bit of a change of direction," said Aaron Kessler, an analyst at Piper Jaffray. "The biggest challenge is buyer activity. There's been buyer fatigue in the last year or so, with fewer people coming to the site and coming less often."
Sales are still growing, just not at the pace they once were. The company reported Wednesday that fourth-quarter profits rose 53 percent from a year earlier to $531 million, and revenue increased 27 percent to $2.18 billion.
However, the stock dropped about 6 percent in after-hours trading to $27.15 after eBay warned that revenue in the current quarter and for the full year would be below analyst estimates.
While auctions represent the majority of eBay's revenue, growth was led by other units, including PayPal, online ticketing site StubHub, Internet phone company Skype, classifieds, and advertising.
In an attempt to reverse the slowed growth, eBay has redesigned its auction site and cut some fees for listing items. Executives have hinted at further, more drastic changes to the company's listing and selling fees.
eBay took a write-down last year for its purchase of Skype, forcing it and others to reassess the value of the start-up.
Despite the concerns, the impact of Whitman's tenure should not to be overlooked, said Scott Devitt, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus & Co.
"Meg Whitman was a phenomenal success running eBay for a decade," Devitt said. "She has overseen an 88-times increase in revenue and a more than 1300 percent return in stock since the IPO...What's happened is purely maturity and not necessarily bad business."CNET News.com's Dawn Kawamoto contributed to this story.

Virgin unveils spaceship designs

Virgin Galactic has released the final design of the launch system that will take fare-paying passengers into space.
It is based on the X-Prize-winning SpaceShipOne concept - a rocket ship that is lifted initially by a carrier plane before blasting skywards.
The Virgin system is essentially a refinement, but has been increased in size to take eight people at a time on a sub-orbital trip, starting in 2010.
Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson said the space business had huge potential.
"I think it's very important that we make a genuine commercial success of this project," he told a news conference in New York.
"If we do, I believe we'll unlock a wall of private sector money into both space launch systems and space technology.
"This could rival the scale of investment in the mobile phone and internet technologies after they were unlocked from their military origins and thrown open to the private sector."
The 'experience'
Virgin Galactic has contracted the innovative aerospace designer Burt Rutan to build its spaceliners. The carrier - White Knight Two (WK2) - is said to be very nearly complete and is expected to begin flight-testing later this year.

SpaceShipTwo under construction in CaliforniaSpaceShipTwo (SS2) is about 60% complete, Virgin Galactic says.
Both vehicles are being constructed at Mr Rutan's Scaled Composites factory in California.
The rocket spaceliner will carry two pilot astronauts and six ticketed passengers. They will fly initially from a new facility called Spaceport America in the New Mexico desert.
The journeys will last about two-and-a-half hours from beginning to end.

Eight individuals will be aboard each flight
Enlarge ImagePassengers on SS2 will climb to an altitude of 110km, from where they will get to experience weightless for a few minutes, and see the curvature of the Earth and the black of space.
Seats cost $200,000. Virgin Galactic says more than 200 individuals have booked, and another 85,000 have registered an interest to fly.
Tens of millions of dollars in deposits have already been taken, the company adds.
Satellite potential
Sir Richard said the launch system would also be made available to industrial and research groups.
"The fact that this system will have the capability to launch small payloads and satellites at low cost is hugely important," he told the launch event at the American Museum of Natural History.
"As far as science is concerned, this system offers tremendous potential to researchers who will be able to fly experiments much more often than before, helping to answer key questions about Earth's climate and the mysteries of the Universe."

Others, such as EADS Astrium, have competing conceptsThe designs released on Wednesday are a clear evolution of the concept that won the $10m Ansari X-Prize in 2005 for the first successful, privately developed, sub-orbital human launch-system.
The most obvious difference is the scale. At 18.3m (60ft) in length, SS2 is twice as big as its predecessor.
Virgin Galactic said in a statement: "It incorporates both the lessons learned from the SpaceShipOne programme and the market research conducted by Virgin Galactic into the requirements future astronauts have for their space flight experience.
"It also has built-in flexibility to encompass future requirements for other scientific and commercial applications."
A SS2 simulator is now available to train the pilots.
WK2 is 23.7m-long (78ft). Its wingspan is unchanged at 42.7m (140ft), but it will now sport four Pratt and Whitney PW308 engines.
Virgin Galactic is one of several companies hoping shortly to offer space trips.
Amazon.com entrepreneur Jeff Bezos has his own scheme, as does the Paypal founder, Elon Musk. Even Europe's EADS Astrium, the company that coordinates the manufacture of the Ariane 5 rocket, is developing a commercial suborbital ship.
Currently, the only way to buy a trip into space is to pay for a seat on the Russian Soyuz launcher. Tickets purchased through Space Adventures cost a reported $20m and take the recipient to the International Space Station for a short holiday.