PC Perspective Podcast #216

Join PC Perspective this week as they talk about our GTX 660Ti Roundup, AMD Steamroller, Multi GPU Graphics Card Rumors and more!

Annoyed Gamer Episode 6

Marcus moves to his native habitat! From ranting about piracy to answering your questions – the man is on fire!

AMD The Surround Computing Era

AMD shared with us that it has spent the last 10-20 years developing processors that could simulate "visual reality," and it's going to spend the next couple of decades turning that 'visual computing era' on its head and develop processors and platforms that start with an image (or series of images, or GPS data, or other environmental data), interpret their contents and context, and use that to deliver better real time experiences to users. Thie company told us that this will leverage both cloud and client based processing, tying together all of the technologies and architectures that AMD has to offer.

Looking at the vision of what Surround Computing is and what is might look like in not-too-distant future, AMD offered up this example:

"Imagine it’s noon and you’re heading out of the office for lunch. As you leave, your mobile device intuitively knows where you’re going by automatically calculating multiple data points streaming in from the built-in GPS, clock, maps and cloud database connection. Since it knows your preferences so well, it goes to your favorite restaurant’s website and checks the specials. A friendly automated voice inside your device springs to life and offers to take your lunch order. You reply, 'lunch salad to go,' and the device places the order for you. By the time you arrive at the restaurant, it’s ready for pickup. An electronic payment was completed while you were in transit, so you don’t even have to reach for your wallet. And all of this happens without downloading apps or typing on your phone."

It may sound like something out of the Jetsons, but keep in mind that this is AMD's visions for decades from now. No back to your regularly scheduled discussion on Surround Computing. Surround computing imagines a world without keyboards or mice, where natural user interfaces based on voice and facial recognition redefine the PC experience, and where the cloud and clients collaborate to synthesize exabytes of image and natural language data. The ultimate goal is devices that deliver intelligent, relevant, contextual insight and value that improves consumers’ everyday life in real time through a variety of futuristic applications. AMD is leading the quest for devices that understand and anticipate users’ needs, are driven by natural user interfaces, and that disappear seamlessly into the background,” said Papermaster during his opening remarks.

Papermaster explained that the Surround Computing Era will rely on "robust plug-and-play IP portfolios" including CPUs, GPUs, fixed function logic, and interconnect fabric. He also unveiled key details of AMD's upcoming "Steamroller" CPU architecture while underscoring the benefits of the industry-standard Heterogeneous Systems Architecture (HSA) that enables software developers to easily assign scalar and parallel compute workloads to the most appropriate compute units, and therefore optimize power.

The road that leads us to the Surround Computing Era will be no less challenging and every bit as exciting as the 20-year journey in graphics processing that brought gamers from ‘Pong’ to today’s modern game titles that feature stunning visual realism,” Papermaster explained. “It will take an industry movement to complete this journey, and HSA provides the clear path forward to enable this next generation in computing."

Intel Testing Oil Immersion Cooling for Its Servers

This could be misconstrued as nerd and geek porn in some circlesbig Intel has been running an experiment for the past year on the feasibility and economy of cooling of total emersion oil cooling. The end result of the study is a resounding ‘yes’ on all counts. It works, it’s much cheaper and by the way Intel, it’s tres cool.

"Cyborg" Flesh Created With Nanowires and Human Tissue

A team of Harvard Bioengineers have successfully created the first known cyborg tissues. The rat tissue was combined with a collagen base and fused with nanowires and transistors, allowing the researchers to read cell data. The next step in the cyborg process would be getting the cells to respond to digital input. Thanks to forum member jadams for the heads up.

Revel: Programming the Sense of Touch

From the Disney Research Labs, new research is being conducted on tactile perception. The new studies are allowing tactile sensing to be transferred from almost any object to touch screens by way of a process known as ‘Reverse Electrovibration’.

Unreal Engine 3 for Windows 8 and Windows RT

A joint announcement today at IFA today by Epic and NVIDIA outlined the upcoming Unreal Engine 3 for Windows 8 and Windows RT. Now the ball is in the court of the Unreal developers to create games on the Windows RT platform.

Kingston Digital Releases Enterprise-Class SSD

Kingston Digital announced the release of its first enterprise-class server SSD. The new class of solid state drives addresses the performance and process requirements required for server reliability and speed while reducing energy requirements. The new drives are available in 100, 200 and 400GB capacities.

EVGA Announces 1500W Classified Power Supply

The EVGA SuperNOVA NEX1500 Classified power supply allows users to switch between single or multiple 12V rails, as well as access to the exclusive SuperNOVA software, which lets users make voltage and fan adjustments. Not only that, the power supply is also capable of delivering up to 1650W of power output when using Overclock Mode, but this requires 230 volts of AC power.

Researchers Cram 700TB of Data Into One Gram of DNA

Despite decades of research, Deoxyribonucleic Acid, better known as DNA, is still considered to be one of the most complex structures in existence. Naturally, scientists have been working hard to fully harness the unique powers of DNA.

One potential use of DNA is its potential to store digital data. Because of its extremely dense structure, stability and survivability, DNA is an ideal candidate for massive data storage. While many extreme storage mediums need to be kept in strict temperature environments, DNA is able to survive for thousands of years at room temperature. Taking full advantage of its properties, Harvard researchers George Church and Sri Kosuri have successfully stored 700 terabytes of data into a single gram of DNA.

Surprisingly, the process was somewhat similar to traditional storage devices. While standard digital storage devices encode fragments of binary data onto hard drive platters, the DNA storage process synthesizes strands and encodes binary values onto each of its four DNA bases (TGAC). To read the stored data, all you would have to do is sequence the unique strands of DNA - in a similar fashion as sequencing the human genome. While this method may be capable of storing staggering amounts of data, synthesizing and sequencing DNA is no simple task. While modern lab equipment has certainly evolved over the years, DNA reading and writing would be a costly and lengthy process. Although this suggests DNA should be used for archival purposes, who knows what the future holds.

Borderlands 2 Sir Hammerlock Tour Trailer

You think you know the Borderlands? As Gearbox proves in its latest trailer, Pandora is a whole new world in Borderlands 2, with new areas, new classes, new abilities, new enemies, new weapons, and more new stuff stacked on top of all the rest. To help get you up to speed, Sir Hammerlock is here to take you on a tour of the new Borderlands, including a detailed class overview that has me thinking I'll be playing as the Assassin, Zer0, first. A 72% backstab damage boost? Booyah, indeed. Also check out Gearbox's Guide To Surviving Borderlands 2.

Far Cry 3 Island Survival Guide Trailer

Far Cry 3's Rook Islands are scary. I'll probably die a lot trying to explore them. Tigers will eat me, random dudes will shoot first, and I'll probably fall off a cliff once or twice. So, really, I could use all the help I can get. That's why I appreciate this new Survival Guide trailer. Oh, and the visuals aren't too bad either.

My favorite part? When protagonist Jason Brody fixes his broken thumb with a cringe-inducing crack. I loved the way Far Cry 2 made you really feel the pain that your character was going through when they healed their wounds. Great to see that idea come back.

PC Perspective Podcast #215

Join PC Perspective this week as they talk about NVIDIA's GTX 660 Ti, MSI ZPower Z77 Motherboard, AMD GPU Price cuts and more!

Annoyed Gamer Episode 5

Are fanboys ruining the game industry? Marcus responds to the frequently asked question.

Ubisoft's ‘I Am Alive’ on PC September 13

Ubisoft announced that ‘I Am Alive’ will be migrating to the PC platform on September 13th. The PC version has been enhanced from the Xbox and PS versions with higher resolution, better graphics and two new modes.

Could a 'Printable Gun' Change the World?

Ah, the wonders of 3-D printing. Defense Distribution is putting together a project to develop a downloadable CAD design that would produce a functional .22 caliber handgun from a 3-D printer. What could possibly go wrong with that plan?

High Tech Boobie Touching Glove

Call me old fashioned but I still prefer the low-tech approach to touching boobies.

Sleeping Dogs PC Demo

HardOCP has noticed that Steam has a demo for Sleeping Dogs posted. If you were still on the fence about this game, now would be a good time to download the demo and give it a go.

Galaxy GTX 660 Ti GC Dual Fan Unboxing

Those of you that are fans of unboxing videos should check out this Galaxy GTX 660 Ti GC dual fan video at Linus Tech Tips today. Our evaluation of the 3GB version of the GALAXY GeForce GTX 660 Ti GC can be found here and the overclocking test results are here.

Enhanced 1080P Video Of Curiosity Rover Decent

For those of you interested, this is a full resolution version of the NASA Curiosity rover descent to Mars at 15fps.

Source: HardOCP

Water Light Graffiti

Thousands of LEDs illluminated by contact with water? Yeah, it's as cool as it sounds. Check it out:

Hoverbike Video: Real or Fake?

And the raging debate of the day...is this real or fake?

Self-Driving Car Tops 120mph On The Track

Yeah, I'm not so sure I want to be doing 120mph around a track with no one behind the wheel. Then again, you'd think Hollywood would be all over something like this to replace stuntmen in crash scenes.

The Trackpad of the Future?

A trackpad that can do multi-touch and force detection as well? Sounds good if they have more than just this concept video:

Cool [H] Reader Video of the Day

This video, made by long time forum member CButters, is the coolest thing I've seen on an iPhone in a loooong time.

Microsoft Updates Its 25-year-old Logo

Microsoft is hoping to reinvent the desktop experience with Windows 8 and its Modern UI. The OS represents a massive change in the traditional desktop user interface, and it looks like Redmond is looking to give itself a little makeover, too. Microsoft today unveiled a brand new corporate logo. This is the first major Microsoft logo change in the company's history. It's been 25 years since we've updated the Microsoft logo and now is the perfect time for a change.

This is an incredibly exciting year for Microsoft as we prepare to release new versions of nearly all of our products," he wrote, later adding, "This wave of new releases is not only a reimagining of our most popular products, but also represents a new era for Microsoft, so our logo should evolve to visually accentuate this new beginning.

Aliens: Colonial Marines - Escape Mode Trailer

Gearbox has revealed details of a new multiplayer mode for Aliens: Colonial Marines. It's called Escape, and pits a team of four US colonial marines against – you've guessed it – a team of four playable Xenomorphs. The mode has the added pressure of a time limit, in which the soldiers must stay alive and make their way to the evacuation zone. Meanwhile, the Xenomorphs must hunt down and kill the marines.

Logitech Fully Water-Washable Keyboard K310

We’ve all experienced that moment of distraction – followed by panic, when a cup of coffee or a soda spills all over your keyboard," says Sophie Le Guen, senior director of mice and keyboards at Logitech. "Because life and its messes will happen, regardless of how careful you are, Logitech designed the Logitech Washable Keyboard K310 to look and function like new, even over time."

According to the company, not only can this keyboard be hand washed time and time again, it can be submerged in up to 11 inches of water (except for the USB plug -- keep that dry). Drainage holes at the back of the keyboard allow for easy drying while key characters are laser printed and UV coated so that letters don’t fade in the wash. Even more, the keys themselves can last up to 5 million keystrokes, ideal for dirty, heavy-hitting fingertips.

Mad Catz Unveils S.T.R.I.K.E. Modular Gaming Keyboard

As any PC builder can attest to, modular products are great. But what about Just a few weeks ago, Razer unveiled its Ouroboros gaming mouse complete with modular ergonomic components to match multiple grip styles for both hands. As some of you noticed, the Ouroboros was somewhat similar in design to the Mad Catz R.A.T.

Now, the maker of the R.A.T. is bringing another modular peripheral to the fray, the S.T.R.I.K.E. 7. Drawing inspiration from its mouse counterpart, the keyboard features a durable metal body with mechanical keys and five modular components including: a V.E.N.O.M. TFT-LC touchscreen with TeamSpeak integration, four programmable buttons on a function strip, number keypad and a complex combination of wrist and palm rests. As great as all of these customizable features may be, they come at quite a hefty cost. Touting a $300 price tag, the S.T.R.I.K.E. 7 may be one of the most expensive mechanical keyboards on the market. But if you've got the cash to spare and you're an addict to customization, you can purchase the keyboard directly from the Mad Catz Gameshark store.

Natural Selection 2 Trailer

Natural Selection 2 has a variety of playable aliens, an entire armoury of human weaponry, turrets, squidgy alien hives and floating disembodied commanders able to boss troops about but, somehow, it doesn’t have mech suits. Yet. With much aplomb, the latest trailer tears the silver sheet off the hulking humanoid form of the Exosuit. It comes with two chain guns and air conditioning as standard, which is especially useful during those times in which you’re on fire. In times of calm you can pop the hood to stare smugly down at your poorly armoured squad mates. In short, it’s everything you’d probably want from a wearable war machine.