Magazine
Australia's premier computer magazine, PC Authority gives you the facts, opinions
and insight to make informed PC and tech purchasing decisions.
Issue:
103 | June, 2006
What's in this issue
Remember when Microsoft told us our living rooms would become digital entertainment havens? Our PCs would be the centre of all our media, cunningly falling under a new PC category called Media Center. From this whisper quiet, digital entertainment device, we could control our movie library, record digital TV, listen to music, and snuggle up on the couch in front of the telly to watch a photo slideshow.
But in reality, it turned out differently. The PCs were big, hulking hybrids that you barely wanted in the study, let alone the living room. Furthermore, many Media Center PCs shipped without a built-in electronic programme guide (EPG), meaning you had to look elsewhere to record scheduled TV. All in all, the revolution ended up being a mild splash, rather than a tidal wave of new hardware, software and services.
Fortunately, the vision hasn’t died. It’s clear that Microsoft was only providing one piece of a larger puzzle, and now it’s Intel’s turn to fill in the gaps with Viiv. Intel Viiv isn’t one piece of hardware or software, rather it’s a set of technologies and standards. It’ll be the glue that third party vendors use to ensure devices work well with each other, and consequently making it easier for us to build up our home entertainment paradise. In light of this, our new issue looks at the hardware, software and most importantly, the content.
Will Intel pull it all together? It’s all in this month’s issue.
LAPLINK EVERYWHERE 4*
Laplink Everywhere enables you to log in to your computer from Internet-enabled PCs, PDAs or even some mobiles, no matter where you are in the world. The program provides a password-protected user authentication system and doesn’t require you to reconfigure your firewall. Laplink Everywhere operates with 128-bit SSL to ensure your transmissions are secure. This version allows one hour of remote access per month, with a 12 month license. Follow the instructions provided during installation to register.
TURBODEMO STANDARD 5*
Whether you need to sell software, train others or offer technical support, with TurboDemo you can build presentations filled with animation and audio that will convey your message clearly. Once you’re familiar with the basics, creating a new demo only takes a few minutes. The menus include some options that are only available in TurboDemo Professional.
RISE OF NATIONS: RISE OF LEGENDS
Play the sequel to Rise of Nations, Microsoft’s surprise real-time strategy hit. Huge demo included. ACD FOTOSLATE 3.0
With high quality digital cameras cheaper than ever, most people now have a large collection of photos archived on their hard drive. ACD FotoSlate helps you get more from your digital images, by using them in creative projects from CD sleeves, to T-shirt transfers. HEALTHFRAME EXPLORER LITE
Your medical records are a vital resource in managing your personal healthcare. They’re usually split up between your GP, the local hospital, dentist, health centre everywhere you’ve ever been treated. This easy-to-use program helps you build up a personal health record of your own, a permanent database of all your medical details, which will always be accessible. The Lite version allows records to be created for one person only. FEATURED ARTIST
Take in the manic-rock, alt-country conundrum that is Clinkerfield, our featured OzMusicWeed artist this month.
*Online registration requiredFREEWARE
- 3d Traceroute 2.1.8.18
- Adolix Wallpaper Changer 1.5
- AI Roboform 6.6.7
- Autoplay Repair 2.0.2
- Belarc Advisor 7.1f
- BlogBridge 2.13
- Chat Controller 1.1.0
- CPU-Z 1.32.1
- CSS Tab Designer 2.0.0
- Easy HTML To Any Script 1.4.1 build 027
- ExtractNow 4.13
- Find and Run Robot 1.09.04
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