News for Friday, 24 November 2006

According to Microsoft, the HDCP format will not be implemented before 2010, but for the life cycle of a display or even a computer, it is almost tomorrow, especially due to the strong limitations linked to this format. Indeed, without a compatible device, it will simply not be possible to play HD media!
To our knowledge, Apple displays are NOT HDCP compatible while Dell is already proposing HDCP-ready LCDs.
In addition the price does not seem to be real problem, as proven by Samsung with its first 20" HDCP-compatible display for 300€.
If this monitor is not perfect as illustrated by the article published in Les Numeriques (in French), its specifications and performances are more than in line with current standards.
Apple is probably waiting for the sale of Apple Cinema displays goes down to 0 before setting and releasing a new LCD models that should be a new reference, not only for their design but also for their hardware. It is really about time.

Adobe has already started to fight with Microsoft regarding the use of PDF format in the future version of MS Office. While Adobe's David might look so small to Redmond's Goliath, he has chosen to team up with the European Commission to force the giant to follow the law, and not his law.
It remains so far unclear if the PDF dispute is the real problem, or rather the excuse for Adobe to settle old or on-going conflicts with Microsoft. It might also be one way to negotiate with Microsoft regarding the future MS format XPS that the giant is planning to "enforce" to the rest of the world.

All Macs are currently featuring a Gigabit Ethernet port. For Professional requirements, one can find 10 Gbit/s Ethernet cards. Needs have evolved with time, and ten years ago, the Gbit format was consider as gadget for rich users who could not really benefit from it. Today, it is quite obvious that it is really a big advantage to get Gbit ports when using NAS.
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc. (IEEE) agreed on a target for the next generation of the data networking technology, defining the basis of 100Gbit version of Ethernet. The new format should be finalized in a decade.
As for NAS today, HD data transfer speed will also evolve and performances increase paving the road to a network based storage. But some HD features will have to be improved, such as rotation speed defining the physical limit... towards a new era of NAND-only based HD?