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-Bargain-Toshiba A100-147-Bargain- (Hounslow, Price: £399)	01 January 0001
Exellent for students. Cheap Price £399.00 Equium A100-147 Key Features Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology featuring Intel Core Duo Processor T2050 Genuine Windows Xp Media Center Edition 60 Gb Hard Disk Drive 1gb Ddr2 Ram (533 Mhz 15.4" Toshiba TruBrite Wxga Tft display Dvd Super Multi (Double Layer) drive Exellent for students. Cheap Price £420.00 (I got the receipt also where i paid £599.00) More information about the product specification. Technology type Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology featuring Intel Core Duo Processor T2050 Intel Pro Wireless 3945ABG network connection and Intel 945GM Express chipset clock speed 1.6 Ghz front side bus 533 Mhz 2nd level cache 2 Mb Operating system Genuine Windows Xp Media Center Edition System memory standard 1024 (512 512) Mb maximum expandability 4096 Mb technology Ddr2 Ram (533 Mhz) Hard disk capacity 60 Gb certification S.M.A.R.T. Dvd Super Multi drive (Double Layer) compatibility Cd-Rom Cd-R Cd-Rw Dvd-Rom Dvd-R Dvd-R(Dl) Dvd-Rw Dvd R Dvd R(Dl) Dvd Rw Dvd-Ram maximum speed Read 24x Cd-Rom 8x Dvd-Rom Write 24x Cd-R 4x Cd-Rw 10x Hs Cd-Rw 10x Us Cd-Rw 8x Dvd-R 2x Dvd-R (Double Layer) 4x Dvd-Rw 8x Dvd R 2.4x Dvd R (Double Layer) 4x Dvd Rw 5x Dvd-Ram type Dvd Super Multi (Double Layer) drive Display size 15.4 " type Toshiba TruBrite Wxga Tft display internal resolution 1280 x 800 Graphics adaptor manufacturer Intel type 945GM Express chipset memory up to 128 Mb memory type Ddr2 Ram (Uma) Internal video modes resolution 1280 x 800 maximum number of colours 16.7 Million Max External Video Modes Max Resolution 2048 x 1536 Max Colours 4.3 billion Max Refresh Rate 100 Hz Non-interlaced resolution with max refresh rate 1600 x 1200 Interfaces 1 x Dc-in 1 x external monitor 1 x Rj-11 1 x Rj-45 1 x Tv-out (s-video) 1 x i.Link (Ie 1394) 1 x external microphone 1 x headphone (stereo) 4 (Rear 2 Right 2) x Usb 2.0 1 x 6-in-1 Bridge Media slot (supports Sd Card Memory Stick Memory Stick Pro MultiMedia Card xd-Picture Card Sd Io) Expansion 2 x memory slots (1 to configure) Pc Card slot for 1x Type Ii card type ExpressCard slot number of expansion types 1 Wireless communication Compliancy Wi-Fi Network Support 802.11a b g Wireless Technology Wireless Lan (802.11a b g) Wired communication topology Ethernet Lan speed 10 100 Base-Tx topology international V.90 modem V.92 ready speed 56 Kbps data (V.90) and 14.4 Kbps fax Sound system supported audio format 16-bit stereo speakers built-in stereo speakers Keyboard keys 86 Windows keys 2 Hot Keys 1 special features spill-resistant keyboard Pointing device type Touch Pad Battery technology lithium-ion maximum life up to 327 (Mobile Mark hours Ac adaptor input voltage autosensing Ac adapter (100 240 V) for worldwide usage Physical dimensions W x D x H 360 x 267 x 29.8 (front) 36.8 (back) mm weight 2.72 kg Warranty 1-year international warranty. Upgrade your standard warranty with Toshiba warranty extension uplift and all-risks insurance packs. Bundled hardware Ac adaptor Bundled software Connectivity Doctor Microsoft Office OneNote 2003 Sonic Record Now InterVideo WinDVD Creator (2platinum) Toshiba Summit Microsoft Works 8.5 Norton Internet Security 2006 (includes free Internet updates for 90 days) InterVideo WinDVD ConfigFree on-line user s and modem manual Toshiba utilities and drivers Security features system password security wireless Lan switch slot for Kensington Cable Lock Bios password main memory (by screw) main hard disk (by screw) keyboard lock Special features Multimedia Bar with 6 Easy Keys (Internet Browser Rewind Play Stop Forward Windows Media Player) Hd Audio support Sm Bios compliant Certification Din Gost The manufacturer declares that this product complies with the following directives and regulations for the Ce-marking. Responsible for Ce marking is Toshiba Europe GmbH Hammfelddam 8 41460 Neuss Germany. Ce Mark R&Tte Cb report Saso
Mint condition laptop Cheap (Fulham, Price: £375)	01 January 0001
Asus z92j for sale. spec Look at the following super features Intel Core 2 Duo Processor 1 Gb Ram 100GB Hard Drive nvidia Geforce Go 7300 Graphic Card (Enjoy Play Games 15.4" widescreen Crystal Bright Lcd Vga and Dvi Output Dual Layer Dvd Writer Sd Mmc Card Reader Slim (Extra Small Power Suply 1.3mp Inbuilt Webcam and much more Features Processor Intel Core 2 Duo T5500 1.73 Ghz (i.e. 3.46 Combined Ram 1 Gb Hdd Graphic Card nvidia Geforce Go 7300 Graphic Card Wireless 802.11 b g WiFi Optical Drive Dual Layer Dvd Re-Writer Display 15.4 Widescreen Crystal Brite Lcd Camera 1.3mp Inbuilt Webcam Connestions 4 x Usb 2.00 Connection 1 x 4 Pin e Firewire 1 x S-Video 1 x Head Phone 1 x Speaker 1 x Microphone 1 x 55 Kbs Modem 1 x Local Area Network 1 x Vga and 1 x Dvi connection Card Reader 1 x Sd Mmc Card Reader slot Power Supply Slim and Extra Small power supply very easy to carry around. Softwares This computers comes with 100 legal and genuine softwares with their Original Cds All sofwares come with Cds You buy the laptop and buy the software it is yours they are Not pre-loaded into your computer (Please see photos 2 x Asus Win Xp Home Recover Disk Ms Works 8.8 Media Show Se 2.0 Nero 6.6 Asus Dvd Software Power Director Asus Utility and Driver Cd Norton 2005 Internet Security (Combination of 4 programs) 3 Months Lisence Etc also come with 12 month international warranty and has ms office fully installed. laptop bag 20 quid extra really good computer as new.
The Hidden Costs of Cheap PCs	01 January 0001
When you add in the cost of even a basic suite of software and an Internet connection, owning a cheap PC can end up running you thousands of dollars. These extra costs are the real source of the digital divide.
2007 SAB ENVIRONMENTALIST AWARDS - WINNERS !!!	16 October 2007
2007 SAB ENVIRONMENTALIST AND ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISTSOF THE YEAR AWARDS WINNERS ANNOUNCED![Johannesburg, 11 October 2007] Green and brown issues took centre stage at the SAB Environmentalist of the Year and Environmental Journalists of the Year Awards which were held at the SAB World of Beer in Newtown.Andrew Muir, executive director of the Wilderness Foundation, was named Environmentalist of the Year and received the Nick Steele Memorial Award for his work. The award is given in honour of the late legendary game ranger Nick Steele, and honours an environmentalist who has promoted the cause of conservation and whose work will leave a legacy for years to come. The merit award in this category went to Joe Matimba, project manager at Food and Trees for Africa.Karl Ammann was named SAB Environmental Journalist in the broadcast category for his documentary The Cairo Connection, which was broadcast on SABC2’s 50/50. Ammann is one of the world’s top environmental journalists – he is already the winner of the prestigious Dolly Green Award for Artistic Achievement at the Genesis Awards, for his work on the illegal bush-meat trade in Cameroon. The Cairo Connection looks at the illegal smuggling of primates from Africa.Honoured alongside him as SAB Environmental Journalist in the print & internet category was Elise Tempelhoff of Beeld. The judges’ commended her for the huge amount of research that goes into her stories – some, like her article on the impact of gold mines in the West Rand on the environment, were investigated over a period of five years. Merit winners in the broadcast category were Anneliese Burgess for Heat and Running on Empty broadcast on SABC3’s Special Assignment; Liz Fish for SABC’s poignant The Spirit of the Mountain and Tekweni Television’s Sandra Herrington for her documentary on the illegal development at Kosi Bay.Print & internet merit winners were Jorisna Bonthuys of Die Burger for a body of work; Roberta Griffiths for the youth publication EnviroKids; freelancer Leoni Joubert, who has specialised in climate change in the South African context; Leon Marshall of The Star for a series on transfrontier-park development in Southern Africa, and Sophia Swanepoel and Laskarina Yiannakaris for the Eco Babe column in True Love Babe, which integrates green living into everyday lives rather than treat it like a fad.Along with the coveted title, the three category winners each took home R15 000. Merit winners received R2 000.In an effort to make the event more carbon-friendly, a tree will be planted in each guest’s name/on behalf of each guest? in Soweto as part of the 2010 Soweto Greening Project. There were a record number of 127 entries this year but according to the panel of judges, what was even more gratifying was the high standard of entries received for the awards. The judges were JP Louw; Jeunesse Park; “The Lion Man” Gareth Patterson; Dr Ian Player; Windsor Shuenyane and John Yeld.Says Tony van Kralingen, MD of SAB Limited: “We are both honoured and proud to see how the awards have gone from strength to strength over the past two decades, and become South Africa’s most prestigious accolade for journalists producing crucial environmental coverage. The number and quality of entries is a clear indication that the South African media are placing a stronger focus on environmental matters – and for this we commend them. As the gatekeepers and voice of our society, the media have a defining role to play in educating the public about the ever-increasing environmental challenges our country, and our world, face.”ENDSEditor’s Notes:The full list of winners of the 2007 SAB Environmentalist and Environmental Journalist of the Year Awards, including merit awards, are:The Nick Steele Memorial Award for the SAB Environmentalist of the YearAndrew MuirExecutive director of the Wilderness FoundationAndrew Muir is recognised as one of South Africa’s leading conservationists, who has raised over R200-million for conservation and social development programmes and who has had an impact on the lives of thousands of South Africans.Muir, during 20 years of concentrated work, has been actively linking environmental and social solutions at critical junctures in South Africa’s history. Concentrating on wild habitats, he has understood natural areas as a context for both social and environmental reform. Programmes that he initiated since 1987 have impacted on nearly 100 000 South Africans, dominated by those from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. As an environmental activist and leader who targets community influencers – youth leaders, politicians and opinion leaders – Muir develops opportunities for extending socio-political perceptions (among youth during the apartheid era), reforming environmental legislation (opinion leader trails at birth of democratic governance), developing environmental awareness among emerging young black leaders (Imbewu trails led by previously unrecognised role models) and for activating a future for orphans of the Aids crisis (Umzi Wethu, an environmentally focused skills development initiative for job placement). In 2000, Muir joined the Wilderness Foundation as the executive director in South Africa. It aims to protect and sustain the African wilderness and wildlands through holistic and integrated conservation, social and educational programmes and political lobbying.He has a Masters Degree in Environment and Development from the University of Natal and serves on a number of non-profit and conservation boards. In addition, he is a co-founder and trustee of Usiko Rites of Passage, chairman of the Wilderness Leadership School Trust, board member of the WILD Foundation (US), associate of the Gaia Foundation (UK), director of the Board of Open Africa Initiative and Member and deputy chairperson of the Eastern Cape Provincial Parks Board. He has presented keynote addresses throughout the world.Environmentalist of the Year Merit AwardJoe MatimbaProject manager at Food and Trees for AfricaFood and Trees for Africa is the first and only national non-government, non-profit, greening organisation in South Africa. In 2006, 194 communities received 32 723 trees. Matimba’s contribution to the organisation is huge. He is involved in developing environmental upliftment and educational projects in communities and schools while working with schools, churches and youth organisations in greening initiatives and permaculture food gardening projects. He also promotes self-sustainable development, organic food production and environmental greening activities in schools, home-based care centres, hospices, prisons and communities, while promoting sustainable utilisation of natural resources for environmental, economic growth, educational, recreational, cultural, health and spiritual purposes. He also compiles reports for sponsors, and course and workshop educational materials for project members. SAB Environmental Journalist of the Year (Broadcast)Karl AmmannThe Cairo Connection50/50 SABC 2 Hundreds of primates – including Africa’s big apes, chimpanzees and gorillas – are being smuggled out of Africa. Ammann painstakingly researched and tracked the way these apes are being smuggled “legally” and illegally out of central Africa to the Middle East and then on to the rest of the world – this while some authorities are fully aware of what is going on. The programme was self-funded and not produced on the instruction of a particular broadcaster – the idea being to expose a terrible wrong, regardless of cost and effort. After the programme was aired on 50/50 the show received immense feedback from viewers, who were shocked and angry at what had been exposed. These included influential people with government connections in some African countries who requested copies to show abroad and possibly put pressure on those who can make a difference to the suffering of these defenceless wild animals. The judges felt that productions like The Cairo Connection endure in the mind of the viewing public and make a lasting impression regarding important environmental concerns. Broadcast Merit WinnersAnneliese BurgessHeat/Running on EmptySpecial Assignment SABC 3 Anneliese Burgess won this award for two of her programmes broadcast on Special Assignment – Heat, which looked at how global warming will affect South Africa, and Running on Empty, which focused on Marine and Coastal Management (MCM), one of the country’s most important environmental agencies, which has run out of money. The judges praised them for being “polished productions which got to the core of the issue and are immensely thought-provoking. They importantly underline that environmental issues are not separate to human issues and that when we speak about the environment we are also speaking about our own survival”.Liz FishThe Spirit of the MountainSABC 3 Lindela is raised in the Eastern Cape by his grandmother until being taken to Cape Town at the age of 12. His life is changed forever when he climbs Table Mountain. The lyrical story from this veteran anti-apartheid film maker is a quintessential SA story about the children, women and old people forgotten in the rural areas – and the pain of being abandoned. The story stood out because of the filmmaker’s ability to blend spirituality in an inspirational human-centred environmental story. The impact is an inspirational one for South Africa’s youth, reinforcing important links between young people, the environment and spirituality.Sandra HerringtonKosi Bay illegal developmentTekweni TelevisionThree years ago Sandra Herrington reported on the environmental degradation in the Kosi Bay area of the greater St Lucia Wetland Park. A revisit showed an area in serious trouble. More and more people are moving into the area and laying claim to the land. The programme examines whether it is possible to successfully accommodate communities inside a World Heritage site. The judges praised the programme for its vibrant portrayal of a pressing environmental issue. The production emphasises once again that environmental concerns of South Africa's coast, of which people are the core, cannot be ignored.SAB Environmental Journalist of the Year Print & InternetElise TempelhoffBeeldEnvironmental journalist for Beeld, Elize Tempelhoff, has won for her impressive body of work. The judges commended her for the huge amount of research that goes into her stories – like her article on the impact of gold mines in the West Rand on the environment were investigated over a period of five years. Tempelhoff’s tenacity has certainly paid off and she has convinced her editors to give her substantial editorial space over time. Elise also realises that follow up is an integral part of an environmental journalist’s work. Her stories have real impact in terms of showing results – some have been quoted in scientific articles by the CSIR, which has also used them in presentations. Other issues she has focused on during the past year include the search for cheap coal in South Africa’s vulnerable wetlands and the story of the controversial De Hoop Dam. Tempelhoff presented a paper “A Story of Two Dams” on the De Hoop Dam and the Nandoni Dam in Finland in June.Print & Internet Merit winners:Jorisna BonthuysDie BurgerJorisna Bonthuys’ body of work examines the impact of biodiversity losses involving the habitat, agriculture and climate change as well as policy issues and the impact they have on both humans and ecosystems. Articles focused on the impact of development decisions and the continued pressure on water sources and biodiversity along the South Coast; rooibos tea farming in the country and mining in the Richtersveld. The judges said: “Bonthuys’ commitment to the issues she covers really stands out in her work. She clearly does a huge amount of research, which she is able to synthesise into a very readable whole.” Roberta GriffithsEnviroKidsFor nearly three decades EnviroKids (previously Toktokkie magazine) has strived to promote environmental awareness and education among children. It’s published quarterly by the Wildlife and Environmental Society of SA and plays a strong role in environmental education. It produces stimulating articles that are easily understood by first- and second-language readers. The magazine content is in demand by school text book publishers and four themes have been reprinted at the request of government agencies for their own use. The judges regard the magazine as “a real investment in the future” and believe that the presentation meets the needs of young people and is both informative and entertaining. Leoni JoubertFreelanceLeoni Joubert’s interest in climate change began with a trip to Marion Island in 2003 to study its impact on the natural environment of this remote sub-Antarctic wilderness. She went on to write a series of articles also focusing on climate change in South Africa. The result was Scorched: SA’s Changing Climate, which was published in November 2006 by Wits University Press. Since the launch, she has been commissioned to write articles on the subject for many different titles. The judges said “her work is remarkable in terms of the depth and breadth of material covered. She explains climate change in the South African context relating it to the global concern for this phenomenon”. Leon MarshallThe StarThe three articles that won Leon Marshall a merit award are representative of a series the journalist did on transfrontier park development in Southern Africa. The series has dealt with the tough realities of trying to put the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park together, the resounding success of Kgalagadi and the dream of one day having a continuous parkland reading from SA’s Augrabies National Park along the entire coast of Namibia and across the Kunene to include Angola’s Iona Park. The judges’ felt Marshall shows “an innate ability to take a subject and research it very thoroughly then communicate it in a very reader friendly understandable way. He has trailblazed some very important issues that others have then picked up on”.Sophia Swanepoel and Laskarina YiannakarisEco Babe Column, True Love Babe The magazine realised that many young consumers in their target market were ill aware of environmental concerns and that green issues were not regarded as very “glam”. Against this background Sophia Swanepoel and Laskarina Yiannakaris – both avid environmentalists – started a monthly column to gradually create awareness and understanding of earth crises. They believe it is important to integrate green living into everyday lives rather than treat it like a fad. The judges were knocked out. “It’s fun! They’re reaching a new market in a really accessible way, and people who will be very influential in the future.”Media queriesHannalie CoetzeeDlamini Weil CommunicationsHannalie@dwcs.co.za011 804-1485
Money Saving cheapest UK Broandband Internet connection Deals (U K, Price: £8)	01 January 0001
Hi there If you are looking for cheap UK Broadband deals then check out http w.broadbandinternetdeals.info where you can search and compare cheap broadband deals offered by UK Isp s
Nissan's car navigation to offer fuel-saving tips	22 January 2007
(InfoWorld) - Drivers of some Nissan cars in Japan from Monday will begin tracking the fuel efficiency of their vehicles on the Web thanks to a new system that ties in with the car's existing navigation system. The new service is being offered through Nissan Motor Co.'s Carwings, which is a service-oriented component of factory-installed navigation systems in Nissan cars. Carwings supplements the basic navigation system by offering real-time traffic data and information useful to drivers, such as upcoming attractions and cheap gas nearby. The additional data is supplied via a cell phone data connection. Carwings, which is free for the first three years and then ¥5,250 ($43) per year thereafter, also offers a live operator who can remotely program the navigation system or offer recommendations on things such as nearby restaurants. The fuel-efficiency system has two parts. Inside the car the current fuel efficiency can be displayed on the navigation screen and is constantly updated as each journey progresses. Then each time the navigation system accesses the Carwings server the data is relayed back and can then be checked via a password-protected page on the Internet. The Web page can also provide historical data allowing drivers to check the efficiency of their vehicles over a period of time. Nissan said the service is part of its goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles through better cars and better driving. Car owners are encouraged to improve their own driving efficiency through tips and a ranking system that awards them a bronze, silver, gold or platinum rating based on the data. Drivers will also be able to compare their fuel efficiency score against the average of other drivers with the same car. The service is being introduced Monday through factory-installed DVD Carwings navigation systems in nine Nissan models available in Japan (Fuga, Tiida, Latio, Serena, Lafesta, Wingroad, Note, Sylphy and late-model Presage from May 2006). It will be available in hard-disk based factory-installed systems from the middle of this year. Carwings has yet to be introduced in vehicles outside of Japan. Nissan said a wider launch is under consideration.
Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 Beta	12 May 2008
Earlier today we shipped a public beta of our upcoming .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 releases.  These servicing updates provide a roll-up of bug fixes and performance improvements for issues reported since we released the products last November.  They also contain a number of feature additions and enhancements that make building .NET applications better (see below for details on some of them). We plan to ship the final release of both .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 this summer as free updates.  You can download and install the beta here. Important: SP1 Beta Installation Notes The SP1 beta released today is still in beta form - so you should be careful about installing it on critical machines.  There are a few important SP1 Beta installation notes to be aware of: 1) If you are running Windows Vista you should make sure you have Vista SP1 installed before trying to install .NET 3.5 SP1 Beta.  There are some setup issues with .NET 3.5 SP1 when running on the Vista RTM release.  These issues will be fixed for the final .NET 3.5 SP1 release - until then please make sure to have Vista SP1 installed before trying to install .NET 3.5 SP1 beta. 2) If you have installed the VS 2008 Tools for Silverlight 2 Beta1 package on your machine, you must uninstall it - as well as uninstall the KB949325 update for VS 2008 - before installing VS 2008 SP1 Beta (otherwise you will get a setup failure).  You can find more details on the exact steps to follow here (note: you must uninstall two separate things).  It is fine to have the Silverlight 2 runtime on your machine with .NET 3.5 SP1 - the component that needs to be uninstalled is the VS 2008 Tools for Silverlight 2 package.  We will release an updated VS 2008 Tools for Silverlight package in a few weeks that works with the VS 2008 SP1 beta. 3) There is a change in behavior in the .NET 3.5 SP1 beta that causes a problem with the shipping versions of Expression Blend.  This behavior change is being reverted for the final .NET 3.5 SP1 release, at which time all versions of Blend will have no problems running.  Until then, you need to download this recently updated version of Blend 2.5 to work around this issue. Important Update: If you previously installed a VS 2008 Hotfix, you must run the HotFix Cleanup Utility before installing the VS 2008 SP1 Beta.  Click here to download and run this. Improvements for Web Development .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 contain a bunch of feature improvements targeted at web application development.  The VS Web Dev Tools team has more details (including specific bug fix details) on some of the VS specific work here.  Below are more details on some of the work in the web-space: ASP.NET Data Scaffolding Support (ASP.NET Dynamic Data) .NET 3.5 SP1 adds support for a rich ASP.NET data "scaffolding" framework that enables you to quickly build functional data-driven web application. With the ASP.NET Dynamic Data feature you can automatically build web UI (with full CRUD - create, read, update, delete - support) against a variety of data object models (including LINQ to SQL, LINQ to Entities, REST Services, and any other ORM or object model with a dynamic data provider). SP1 adds this new functionality to the existing GridView, ListView, DetailsView and FormView controls in ASP.NET, and enables smart validation and flexible data templating options.  It also delivers new smart filtering server controls, as well as adds support for automatically traversing primary-key/foreign-key relationships and displaying friendly foreign key names - all of which saves you from having to write a ton of code. You can learn more more about this feature from Scott Hanselman's videos and tutorials here. ASP.NET Routing Engine (System.Web.Routing) .NET 3.5 SP1 includes a flexible new URL routing engine that allows you to map incoming URLs to route handlers.  It includes support for both parsing parameters from clean URLs (for example: /Products/Browse/Beverages), as well as support to dynamically calculate and generate new URLs from route registrations. This new routing engine is used by both ASP.NET Dynamic Data as well as the new ASP.NET MVC framework.  It will support both WebForms and MVC based requests.  ASP.NET AJAX Back/Forward Button History Support .NET 3.5 SP1 adds new APIs to ASP.NET AJAX to allow you to better control the history list of a browser (enabling you to control the behavior of the back/forward button of the browser). You can learn more about this feature in the article here and the screencast here. ASP.NET AJAX Script Combining Support .NET 3.5 SP1 introduces a new <CompositeScript> element on the <asp:ScriptManager> server control, which allows you to declaratively define multiple script references within it.  All the script references within the CompositeScript element are combined together on the server and served as a single script to the client, reducing the number of requests to the server and improving page load time for ASP.NET AJAX applications. The script combining feature supports both path based scripts and assembly resource based scripts, and dynamically serves up the combined scripts using the ScriptResources.axd handler. Visual Studio 2008 Performance Improvements HTML Designer and HTML Source Editor In February we released a HotFix roll-up that included a number of performance improvements and bug fixes for the VS 2008 Web Designer.  VS 2008 SP1 includes all of these fixes, as well as a number of additional performance improvements. Visual Studio 2008 JavaScript Script Formatting and Code Preferences Visual Studio has for several releases supported rich source code formatting options for VB and C# (spacing, line breaks, brace positions, etc). VS 2008 SP1 adds richer source code formatting support for JavaScript as well (both inline <script> blocks and .js files).  You can now set your Javascript coding preferences using the Tools->Options dialog: These preferences will be automatically used as you type new Javascript code in the source editor.  You can also select existing code, right-click, and choose the "Format Selection" option to apply your style preferences to existing JavaScript code.  You can learn more about this new feature here. Better Visual Studio Javascript Intellisense for Multiple Javascript/AJAX Frameworks VS 2008 includes Javascript Intellisense support in source view.  The intellisense support with the initial VS 2008 release works well with vanilla JavaScript as well as code written using the ASP.NET AJAX JavaScript type patterns.  JavaScript is a very flexible language, though, and many JavaScript libraries use this flexibility to full advantage to implement their features - sometimes in ways that prevented the intellisense engine from providing completion support. VS 2008 SP1 adds much better intellisense support for popular Javascript libraries (we specifically did work to support JQuery, Prototype, Scriptaculous, ExtJS, and other popular libraries).  You will get better default intellisense when you reference these libraries.  We are also looking at whether we can maintain additional intellisense hint files that you can download to get even better intellisense and documentation support for some of the more popular libraries. Below is an example of using a JQuery startup function with the VS 2008 SP1 JavaScript intellisense engine: Notice below how VS 2008 SP1 can now provide method argument completion even on chained JQuery selectors: Visual Studio Refactoring Support for WCF Services in ASP.NET Projects VS 2008 SP1 adds better refactoring support for WCF services included within both ASP.NET Web Site and ASP.NET Web Application Projects. If you use the refactoring support to rename the class name, interface contract, or namespace of a WCF service, VS 2008 SP1 will now automatically fix up the web.config and SVC file references to it. Visual Studio Support for Classic ASP Intellisense and Debugging Previous versions of Visual Studio included support for intellisense and debugging within classic ASP (.asp) pages.  The file and project templates to create classic ASP pages/projects hasn't been in VS for a few releases, though, and with the initial VS 2008 we incorrectly assumed this meant that people weren't still using the classic ASP support.  We heard feedback after we shipped that indeed they were.  With VS 2008 SP1 this support for classic ASP intellisense and debugging is back:   Visual Web Developer Express Edition support for Class Library and Web Application Projects The Visual Web Developer 2008 Express edition (which is free) is being updated in SP1 to add support for both class library and ASP.NET Web Application project types.  Previous versions of Visual Web Developer Express only supported ASP.NET web-site projects. Among other benefits, the support of class library and web application projects will enable ASP.NET MVC and Silverlight projects to be built with the free Visual Web Developer 2008 Express.  All of the above JavaScript, Dynamic Data, Classic ASP, and AJAX improvements work with Visual Web Developer Express as well. Improvements for Client Development .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 contain major performance, deployment, and feature improvements for building client applications.  Tim Sneath has a great blog post that talks about some of the client improvements here.  Below are more details on them: Application Startup and Working Set Performance Improvements .NET 3.5 SP1 includes significant performance improvements to the CLR that enable much faster application startup times - in particular with "cold start" scenarios (where no .NET application is already running).  Much of these gains were achieved by changing the layout of blocks within CLR NGEN images, and by significantly optimizing disk IO access patterns.  We also made some nice optimizations to our JIT code generator that allow much better inlining of methods that utilize structs. We are today measuring up to 40% faster application startup improvements for large .NET client applications with SP1 installed.  These optimizations also have the nice side-effect of improving ASP.NET application request per second throughput by up to 10% in some cases. New .NET Framework Client Profile Setup Package .NET 3.5 SP1 introduces a new setup package option for developers building .NET client applications called the ".NET Framework Client Profile".  This provides a new setup installer that enables a smaller, faster, and simpler installation experience for .NET client applications on machines that do not already have the .NET Framework installed. The .NET Framework Client Profile setup contains just those assemblies and files in the .NET Framework that are typically used for client application scenarios.  For example: it includes Windows Forms, WPF, and WCF.  It does not include ASP.NET and those libraries and components used primarily for server scenarios.  We expect this setup package to be about 26MB in size, and it can be downloaded and installed much quicker than the full .NET Framework setup package. The assemblies and APIs in the .NET Framework Client setup package are 100% identical to those in the full .NET Framework setup package (they are literally the same binaries).  This means that applications can target both the client profile and full profile of .NET 3.5 SP1 (no recompilation required).  All .NET applications that work using the .NET Client Profile setup automatically work with the full .NET Framework. A developer can indicate that the client application they are building supports both the .NET Framework Client Profile and the full .NET Framework by pulling up the project properties page for a client application within VS 2008 SP1.  Within the project properties page they can select a new checkbox that indicates it only requires those assemblies included in the .NET Framework Client Profile: VS 2008 will then ensure that the project can only reference those assemblies shipped in the client profile setup package (and it will generate a compile error if you try and use a type in an assembly not included in the client redist).  The compiled client application will then run on machines that have both the full .NET Framework installed, as well as machines that only have the .NET Framework Client Profile installed. If you have a machine that only has the .NET Framework Client Profile installed, and you try and run a .NET application on it that did not mark itself as supporting the .NET Framework Client Profile, then the CLR will refuse to run the application - and will instead prompt the end-user to upgrade to the full .NET Framework package.  This ensures that applications always run correctly - and that developers do not need to worry about missing assembly exceptions at runtime if a user tries to run an application that requires the full .NET Framework on a machine that only has the .NET Framework Client Profile installed. We believe that a large class of .NET client applications will be able to use this new .NET Client Profile setup to significantly speed up their installation, and enable a much more consumer friendly experience. New .NET Framework Setup Bootstrapper for Client Applications .NET 3.5 SP1 introduces a new "bootstrapper" component that you can use with client applications to help automate making sure that the right version of the .NET Framework is installed.  The bootstrapper component can handle automatically downloading and installing either the .NET Framework Client Profile or the full .NET Framework Setup Package from the Internet if your machine doesn't have either of them installed.  The boostrapper can also automatically handle upgrading machines that have a previous version of the .NET Framework installed.  For example, if your machine already has .NET 3.0 installed, and your application requires .NET 3.5, the bootstrapper can optionally download just the update files needed to upgrade it to .NET 3.5 (and avoid having to download the full .NET Framework setup download). The setup bootstrapper component can be used with both ClickOnce based setup packages, as well as with third party installer products (like Installshield).  The boostrapper optionally enables fully customized setup branding experiences (splash screens, custom setup wizard steps, etc) and should make it much easier to build optimized client setup experiences. ClickOnce Client Application Deployment Improvements .NET 3.5 SP1 includes several improvements for ClickOnce deployment of both Windows Forms and WPF applications.  Some of these improvements include: Support for the .NET Framework Client Profile (all ClickOnce features are supported with it) ClickOnce applications can now be programmatically installed through a ‘Setup.exe’ while displaying a customized, branded install UX ClickOnce improvements for generating MSI + ClickOnce application packages ClickOnce error dialog boxes now support links to application specific support sites on the Web ClickOnce now has design-time support for setting up file associations ClickOnce application publishers can now decide to opt out of signing and hashing the ClickOnce manifests as they see appropriate for their scenarios. Enterprises can now choose to run only Clickonce Applications Authenticode signed by ‘Known Publishers’ and block anything else from running FireFox browser extension to support Clickonce installations using FireFox browsers Windows Forms Controls SP1 adds several new Windows Forms controls - including new vector shape, Printing, and DataRepeater controls:   WPF Performance Improvements .NET 3.5 SP1 includes several significant performance optimizations and improvements to WPF.  Some of the specific graphics improvements include: Smoother animations Hardware accelerated rendering of Blur and DropShadow Bitmap Effects Text Rendering speed improvements - especially with VisualBrish and 3D scenes 2D graphics improvements - especially with z-index scenarios A new WriteableBitmap class that enables real-time and tear-free bitmap updates.  This enables custom "paint"-style applications, data visualizations, charts and graphs that optionally bypass the default WPF 2D graphics APIs. Layered window performance improvements SP1 also adds support for better data scalability in WPF.  The ListView, ListBox and TreeView controls now support "item container recycling" and "virtualization" support which allows you to easily achieve a 40% performance improvement with scrolling scenarios.  These controls also now optionally support a "deferred scrolling" feature which allows you to avoid scrolling in real time and instead wait until a user releases the scroll thumb (the default scrolling mode in Outlook). This can be useful when scrolling over very large data sets quickly.  WPF Data Improvements .NET 3.5 SP1 includes several data binding and editing improvements to WPF.  These include: StringFormat support within {{ Binding }} expressions to enable easy formatting of bound values New alternating rows support within controls derived from ItemsControl, which makes it easier to set alternating properties on rows (for example: alternating background colors) Better handling and conversion support for null values in editable controls Item-level validation that applies validation rules to an entire bound item MultiSelector support to handle multi-selection and bulk editing scenarios IEditableCollectionView support to interface data controls to data sources and enable editing/adding/removing items in a transactional way Performance improvements when binding to IEnumerable data sources WPF also now exposes hooks that enable developers to write custom panels w/ virtualized scrolling.  We'll be using this support together with the above data binding improvements to build the new WPF datagrid that will be shipping later this year. WPF Extensible Shader Effects .NET 3.5 SP1 adds support in WPF for a new shader effects architecture and API that allows extremely expressive visual effects to be created and applied to any control or element within WPF.  These shader effects support blending multiple input compositions together.  What makes them particularly powerful is that WPF executes effects (including custom effects you build yourself) using the GPU - giving you fully hardware accelerated graphics performance.  Like almost everything in WPF, you can also use WPF databinding and animation on the properties of an effect (allowing them to be fully integrated into an experience). Applying an effect onto a Control is super easy - just set a Control's "Effect" property.  For example, to add a hardware accelerated drop-shadow effect on a button you can use the built-in <DropShadowEffect> on it via either code or XAML: Which will cause the button to render like so: Because Effects are extensible, developers can create their own custom Effect objects and apply them.  For example, a custom "DirectionalBlurEffect" could be created and added to a ListBox control to change its scroll appearance to use a blur effect if you rapidly scroll across it: Keep an eye on Greg Schechter's blog to learn more about how the Effects architecture works and to learn how you can both create and apply new effects within your applications (his first set of posts are here).  Note: In addition to introducing the new Shader Effects API, WPF in SP1 also has updated the existing Blur and DropShadow Bitmap effects already in WPF to be hardware accelerated. WPF Interoperability with Direct3D .NET 3.5 SP1 adds support to efficiently integrate Direct3D directly into WPF.  This gives you more direct access to the hardware and to take full advantage of the Direct3D API within WPF applications.  You will be able to treat Direct3D content just like an image within an application, as well as use Direct3D content as textures on WPF controls.  For example, below are three samples from the Direct3D SDK: We could either load them in as image surfaces within a WPF application, or map them as textures on WPF controls.  Below is an example of mapping them as textures onto cubes in a WPF 3D application: Note: the Direct3D integration isn't today's SP1 beta release.  It will appear in the final SP1 release. VS 2008 for WPF Improvements VS 2008 SP1 includes several significant improvements for WPF projects and the WPF designer.  These include: Several performance improvements Events tab support within the property browser Ability to sort properties alphabetically in the property browser Margin snaplines which makes form layout much quicker Better designer support for TabControl, Expander, and Grid Code initiated refactoring now updates your XAML (including both control declarations and event declarations in XAML) Go to Definition and Find All References now support things declared in XAML The debugger has also been updated in SP1 so that runtime errors in XAML markup (for example: referencing styles, datasources and/or other objects that don't exist) will now be better identified within the debugger: Data Development Improvements .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 include a bunch of improvements for data development. Some of them include: SQL 2008 Support VS 2008 and .NET 3.5 are being updated to include support for the upcoming SQL 2008 release.  Visual Studio 2008 data designers, projects and wizards now fully supporting connecting and working against SQL 2008 databases.  ADO.NET Entity Framework and LINQ to Entities: .NET 3.5 SP1 includes the new ADO.NET Entity Framework, which allows developers to define a higher-level Entity Data Model over their relational data, and then program in terms of this model.  Concepts like inheritance, complex types and relationships (including M:M support) can be modeled using it.  VS 2008 SP1 now includes built-in designer support to help with this modeling: The ADO.NET Entity Framework and the VS 2008 Entity Framework Designer both support a pluggable provider model that allows them to be used with any database (including Oracle, DB2, MySql, PostgreSQL, SQLite, VistaDB, Informix, Sybase, and others). Developers can then use LINQ and LINQ to Entities to query, manipulate, and update these entity objects. ADO.NET Data Services (formerly code-named "Astoria") .NET 3.5 SP1 includes a flexible framework that enables the creation of REST-based data services.  Formerly code-named "Astoria", the ADO.NET Data Services framework provides support for publishing data through a standard REST URI syntax and using standard HTTP verbs to operate on the data resources.  Developers can easily expose data models created using the ADO.NET Entity Framework, and/or use a pluggable provider model to expose other data models. In addition to publishing data sources, the framework also adds a client API for working with remote REST services.  Included with this client API is a LINQ library that allows the remote query of REST services. WCF Development Improvements .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 include several enhancements for WCF development.  Some of these include: Significant scalability improvements (5-10x) in Web-hosted application scenarios Support for using ADO.NET Entity Framework entities in WCF contracts API usability improvements with DataContract Serializers, and with the UriTemplate and WCF web programming models Enhanced TestClient support within VS 2008 SP1 New Hosting Wizard in VS 2008 SP1 for WCF Service Projects Improved debugging support in partial trust scenarios VB and C# Improvements The VB and C# teams have also added some nice improvements to VS 2008 SP1: Visual Basic You can now add "XML to Schema" items to Visual Basic projects.  On adding these project items a wizard will open that allows you to create a XSD schema set from a variety of XML sources.  This schema set is then added to the project and it enables VB XML intellisense. This support was previously available as a web download - you can learn more about it here. A XSD browser is also now included with VS 2008 SP1 and allows you to browse XSD schema sets.  With the final SP1 release, developers will be able to right-click on XML element names (either in XML properties or XML literals) in the VB code editor and select “Go To XML Schema Definition” - this will open the XSD browser and display the schema set (and select the current element) for the VB project. C# The C# code editor now identifies and displays red squiggle errors for many semantic code issues that previously required an explicit compilation to identify.  For example, if you try to declare and use an unknown type in the C# code-editor today you won't see a compile error until you do a build.  Now with SP1 you'll see live red squiggle errors immediately (no explicit compile required): The debugger in VS 2008 SP1 has also been improved to provide more debugging support for evaluating LINQ expressions and viewing results at debug time: LINQ enabled data sources now have a "Results View" node show up within the debugger watch window.  Expanding this node will evaluate a LINQ expression and allow you to examine the materialized objects it returns: Team Foundation Server Improvements TFS 2008 SP1 includes a ton of improvements.  Please read Brian Harry's Team Foundation Server 2008 SP1 Preview blog post for more details. Summary .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 provide a bunch of bug fixes, performance improvements, and additional feature enhancements that make building all types of .NET applications better.  It will be a fully compatible service pack release.  We plan to ship the final release of both .NET 3.5 SP1 and VS 2008 SP1 this summer as free updates.  You can download and use the beta now here. Hope this helps, Scott
Arrests in double murder inquiry	28 November 2007
Two men are arrested in connection with the murders of two people in Belfast in March.
Man charged over 1990 rape case	28 November 2007
A man is charged by police in connection with the rape of a woman in 1990.
Morning miscellanea	28 November 2007
From the What a Great Idea Dept, this guy has made the Wii remote work with Macs. Thanks to JY for the link. I got the Hauppauge 1145 working with the EyeTV software, connected to my Comcast cable line, but I'm disappointed with the quality of the image, lack of HD support (I thought that's why I was buying it) and the software is too limited. It was able to get the listings from TitanTV when I hooked up to the antenna they provide, but it doesn't get the listings when I use the cable hookup. There is a way to manually record, but I couldn't find the automatic way. And the software is "lite" -- it costs another $39 to get the full thing. I want to make beatiful recordings of PBS shows like Frontline and Nova (I get the HD versions via Comcast), still not there. But I am determined! I'm working with people in Italy to organize a conference in February to create a connection betw American and Italian bloggers. Of course the food will be excellent, as will the wine. The Italians will tell us how poorly their country runs, and we will tell them we wish we had it so bad.