passes

In a perfect world, all 100-watt-per-channel amplifiers would be equally powerful. If we were talking about cars instead of amplifiers, you might suppose all cars with 300 horsepower are equally fast. But the weight of the car, gearing, and suspension tuning all play their parts, so performance expectations have to be based on more than just a single specification or number.

Before we go any further, I'd like to point out that the power spec's prime relevance lies in determining how loud a given set of speakers can play. Assuming the speakers can handle power, feeding them more power will produce louder sound levels. Sound quality is another matter, and isn't always associated with power, so the more powerful amp isn't necessarily the better-sounding amp. A few months ago I wrote a rave review of a 3.5-watt amplifier that sounded wonderful with my Zu Essence tower speakers. So just a couple of watts can sound amazing, and play louder than you'd think. Amplifier-speaker matching is more than a numbers game; knowledge of what works with what is a valuable commodity, so if you're lucky enough to have access to a top-notch hi-fi dealer or an experienced audiophile buddy, don't be afraid to ask for advice. … Read more

Passwords drive us crazy. With bank accounts, credit cards, insurance policies, social networking sites, student loans, pharmacies, and many other sites all demanding passwords, it's a lot to keep up with. LastPass for Chrome is an easy and secure way to manage passwords, and we wish we'd had it a long time ago.

LastPass has a lot of features, and it took us a little while to get acquainted with everything, but overall it's very easy to use. At first glance it may seem that LastPass doesn't do anything that you can't already do in … Read more

2K Sports NHL 2K11 brings console-like hockey gameplay to your touch screen and manages to pull it off well, with only a few minor annoyances. If you've played console hockey games, you'll feel right at home; pick from any of the NHL licensed teams (with all your favorite players) and hit the ice for an Exhibition game, play an entire 82 game season, or you can practice in the Free skate and Shootout modes. There is no multiplayer option in NHL 2K11 (Wi-Fi or otherwise), but hopefully that's slated for later versions.

The control system consists of … Read more

We recently got a chance to go on the most amazing off-road adventure in the 2011 Range Rover and the 2011 LR4. Both vehicles have had minor tuning to their engines to make them more efficient, and a bit of a face lift on the body. But where judgment really stands is how well the Range Rover and LR4 do in the great outdoors.

Beauty and the Beast

On the first day of our wild adventure, we went from Telluride over Imogene pass in the San Juan Mountain Range--to an elevation of 13,000ft.

The 6,000-lb Range Rover is a beast, but climbs up the rocky trailways like a mountain goat. With a 5.0-liter, 510hp supercharged V8, we weren't concerned with setting 0-60 mph records; although the Range Rover can do 0-60 in 5.9 seconds.

The Colorado mountainside provided the best place for us to try out the Range Rover's new features: Gradient Acceleration Control and Hill Start Assist. Hill Start Assist keeps the initial driver-generated brake pressure long enough for your foot to move from brake to accelerator without the car rolling backward on the rocky trails.… Read more

In just a few short decades we've become dependent on the Internet to manage large portions of our lives, from our finances to our friendships, our entertainment to our exercise routines. With all these online resources come slews of passwords, and we don't think we're the only ones who have trouble keeping them straight. KeePass Password Safe Portable is a lightweight program that lets users keep their passwords handy and secure.

The program's interface is plain and intuitive. Users are first prompted to set a master password that controls access to KeePass. Then it's simply … Read more

Just a few weeks after the Chrome beta updated to version 6, Google upgraded the developers version of Chrome to 7 on Thursday. Available for Windows, Mac, and Linux, Chrome dev 7.0.503.0 comes accompanied only by minor bug fixes.

There are some small tweaks to the Wrench options menu on Mac, and IP addresses typed into the location bar work when browsing in offline mode. There are several anticipated changes planned for Chrome 7 that either haven't yet been implemented yet or require manual activation. These include the Native Client support for Web apps, which can … Read more

Security suite maker Webroot, best known for its Spy Sweeper program, on Monday finally released the long-delayed upgrades to to its PC security programs, updating its line in a bid to make it more competitive and relevant in an increasingly crowded security field. Webroot also introduced a new program, Internet Security Complete 2011, which provides tools that go far beyond basic threat detection and removal.

The programs offer multiple levels of protection. The simplest is Webroot Spy Sweeper, which focuses on spyware detection and removal. Webroot AntiVirus with Spy Sweeper is analogous to basic programs like Norton Antivirus and combines … Read more

The ultimate freeware encryption program, TrueCrypt is loaded with powerful features that users concerned with protecting data from prying eyes will find robust and comprehensive.

It offers 11 algorithms for encrypting your private files in a password-protected volume. You can store your encrypted data in files (containers) or partitions (devices). TrueCrypt works hard to offer powerful data protection, recommending complex passwords, explaining the benefits of hidden volumes, and erasing telltale signs of the encryption process, including mouse movements and keystrokes. Though the interface may not be immediately intuitive, its powerful, on-the-fly encryption for no cost still earns the freeware security … Read more

The ultimate freeware encryption program, TrueCrypt is loaded with powerful features that users concerned with protecting data from prying eyes will find robust and comprehensive.

It has 11 algorithms for encrypting your private files in a password-protected volume. You can store your encrypted data in files (containers) or partitions (devices). TrueCrypt works hard to offer powerful data protection, recommending complex passwords, explaining the benefits of hidden volumes, and erasing telltale signs of the encryption process, including mouse movements and keystrokes. Though the interface may not be intuitive, its powerful, on-the-fly encryption for no cost still earns the freeware security tool … Read more