Google Maps goes to Mars

Google Maps has made a giant leap beyond even the moon to give Googlers their first close up of Mars. You don't get the complete picture, but the locations of pretty much every landing, successful or otherwise, are depicted along with many of the most important geographical features such as Valles Marineris. The images were snapped some 250 miles out by a series of orbiting instruments: the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) creates a map colour-coded by altitude while the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) offers a visual depiction of the red planet. ...more

AMD attacks megahertz-myth with new XP processor

AMD describes its new Athlon XP 2600+ as the 'world's highest-performing processor for desktop PCs'. For what is its new flagship desktop processor, AMD asks consumers to ignore the simple headline figures for operating speed in terms of clock cycles per second (the XP 2600+ clocks 2.13GHz). ...more

ATI launches next-gen graphics

ATI is claiming it has eclipsed rival Nvidia with its latest visual processor, the Radeon X800. Rick Bergman, Senior Vice President Marketing, General Manager, Desktop, ATI, said: 'With the RADEON X800, the design team has accomplished something that no one thought was possible. Not only have they developed the highest-performing and most efficient graphics architecture in the world, they have done so while maintaining high levels of stability, reliability and manufacturability. ...more

Microsoft wants the world to share its Passport

Microsoft has announced plans to expand its Passport authentication service so that it works with third-party enterprises and service operators. Its goal is to make the Microsoft Passport a universal single sign-in system that will span multiple organisations and services and networks. The development should not come as a surprise. ...more

New Duron for Windows XP

A 1.1GHz Duron is AMD's latest offering for mainstream desktop PCs. With Windows XP due to appear on the shelves, AMD is emphasising the multimedia capabilities of the new chip - as well as hardware-based data pre-fetch, it uses 3DNow! Professional technology. ...more