Drive-by mapping: the technology behind sat nav

In this exclusive video report, PC Pro's Jim Martin goes behind the scenes with Teleatlas - one of the UK's major sat nav map data suppliers - to find out how maps are made. We take a ride in a mapping van that captures all the data needed to turn the real world into what's displayed on your screen. Plus, we discover how maps may soon appear in 3D. ...more

And also today (18-September-2001)...

Here, in brief, are some of the day's other stories. Handspring imaging Digital imaging the Handspring way is now possible with the eyemodule2 digital camera, which plugs into the Springboard expansion slot in the PDAs. It lets you capture and view digital images in colour or black and white in a number of different formats: full VGA resolution images, Palm-sized images and mini-movie video clips. ...more

Mouse on the move

Are you a mobile computer user? Do often find yourself stuck for space when using your laptop? Is your current pointing device just not delivering the goods? Well, the Ring Mouse available from PSA Parts aims to solve such a problem. The device is like a mini-trackball with a hole in the middle so that it can be worn on the index finger like a ring. The thumb is then used to manipulate the ball and direct your pointer; the index finger clicks the main trigger. ...more

Firefox 2.0 Release Candidate 3 available

Firefox 2.0 beta testers are getting their final chance to kick the tyres of the beta version of the open source browser. Mozilla, the organisation behind Firefox, has made Release Candidate 3 available for testing. ...more

Nvidia announces Forceware software utilities

Nvidia Corporation has announced a new set of software tools offering new drivers and compilers, desktop management software, system management software and multimedia software. The suite of utilities, known as ForceWare, is said to work with all desktop and notebook PCs fitted with Nvidia GeForce graphics hardware. This has been made possible by the company's Unified Driver Architecture (UDA), which is forward-and-backward compatible hardware and software with Nvidia hardware and software. ...more