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Connect your monitors via USB and save the planet?

According to DisplayLink, a Microsoft Research study says that using two or more displays can increase productivity by as much as 50 percent. The company also notes that University of Utah researchers have shown that users of multiple displays make up to 33 percent fewer mistakes than those working on a single monitor.

Now, in its own study released Wednesday, DisplayLink says that using multiple monitors simultaneously via USB consumes less power than using them via DVI. To plug multiple monitors into one system traditionally requires that you use a discrete graphics card solution with dual DVI ports. Right away that's theoretically more power, since discrete solutions take more energy to run than integrated solutions. With DisplayLink, you'd simply be using the USB port to connect, so there would be no need for a dual DVI card and the integrated graphics would suffice.

At Interop, an IT conference and Exposition in New York this week, DisplayLink is leaning on its study results to push the energy efficiency of using DisplayLink to connect multiple monitors via USB.

In its study, DisplayLink measured the power needed for a desktop PC to run one to four LCD monitors. Two identically configured systems were used--one equipped with DisplayLink-enabled USB-to-DVI adapters and software, and another with dual-DVI discrete graphics cards (the most common type of dedicated multidisplay board). Power consumption was measured at the entry of the computer power supply to gauge total system power usage under different system loads. … Read more

DisplayLink powers new Sony notebook dock

On Monday, DisplayLink announced that its network display technology is now available in the new Sony Vaio USB Docking Station VGP-UPR1.

The DisplayLink technology that allows users to connect multiple monitors to their systems via USB 2.0 is embedded in the docking station. The dock is compatible with Sony Vaio notebooks as well as other notebooks that have USB 2.0 connections. This could be useful for mobile users and travelers that have the rather rare and unique need of using more than one monitor to do their work.

The dock can be used with any display with an … Read more

NebuAd suspends Web-monitoring plans

Silicon Valley start-up NebuAd has suspended plans to deploy a controversial program that displays ads based on the monitoring of Web activity while Congress reviews privacy concerns, according to a report in The Washington Post.

The secretive company, which intercepts and performs deep-packet inspection of what's flowing through a company's network in hopes of delivering relevant ads, announced earlier this week that co-founder and CEO Bob Dykes was resigning. His departure comes as several Internet companies canceled or suspended trials of the tracking technique.

"Our platform was architected to be a multi-channel ad system," spokeswoman Janet … Read more

Earn your bandwidth black belt

Comcast has thrown down the bandwidth gauntlet. Starting in October, Comcast broadband users will be restricted to 250GB worth of downloads per month. When asked whether the cable company was planning on offering a bandwidth meter to customers, a Comcast representative stated that it hopes to, eventually, but until then Google would be a nice place to find one.

So, I've come up with a list of free bandwidth monitoring software for Windows and Mac that should tide you over until Verizon brings some Fios action to your hood.

First off, let's look at BitMeter. When running, it … Read more

Baby Tech: Angel Care Movement Sensor with Sound Monitor

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is one of the leading causes of death among infants under the age of one in the United States; one of the reasons why parents worry so much when placing their infant down for a nap. Countless parents are advised to swaddle their babies or they are advised not to place objects such as pillows and stuffed animals in the crib with the baby. Most importantly one must put their baby to sleep on his/her back. Many parents, especially new parents, have so many things to worry about when it comes to the safety of … Read more

Viewsonic demos 120Hz desktop LCD at NVISION 2008

Viewsonic showed off a 22-inch, 120Hz desktop LCD display prototype at NVISION 2008 on Monday in San Jose, Calif.

While most computer LCD displays refresh at 60Hz, the Viewsonic prototype achieves virtually double the refresh rate, which can be beneficial when watching a movie. Since the 24 frames per second (fps) framerate that film is shot at can be evenly divided into 120Hz, it makes for a smoother framerate than what you get with a 60Hz display, especially during action scenes.

In my experience, movies running at 120Hz look like video as opposed to film and takes away from that … Read more

Featured Freeware: Process Monitor

Imagine Regmon on steroids, and you'll have a glimpse of this home-run hitting process watchdog. Process Monitor's simple spreadsheet-like interface displays processes through a user-created filter. The interface lacks simple single-click column sorting, however, columns are easily shown or hidden.

Process Monitor displays an extensive amount of information that will appeal mainly to advanced users. Context-clicking a process offers a pop-up menu of options to display additional information or affect the process. The pop-up is also available as the toolbar Event menu. Other pull-down menus manipulate the great amount of information to highlight trends. A button bar offers … Read more

Another 22-inch widescreen LCD for $179.99 shipped, this one with HDCP!

I'm hoping this is the start of a trend. Last week we had a 22-inch Soyo LCD monitor for $179.99 shipped, no rebates required. On Monday, Buy.com has a 22-inch AOC Envision LCD monitor for $179.99 shipped, and it's even better: Unlike the Soyo, it supports HDCP. That means if you plug it into a PC equipped with a Blu-ray drive, you'll have no trouble watching movies.

In other respects, the AOC stacks up nicely. It has a native resolution of 1,680 by 1,050 (not quite 1,080p, but more than sufficient … Read more

Return of the $179.99 22-inch LCD monitor -- now rebate-free!

You know I'm all about big monitors for small monies. Buy.com has the Soyo DYLM2284 22-inch widescreen LCD on sale for $179.99. Oh, but it's a refurb, right? Wrong. So there's a big ol' rebate, then? Nope. But surely there's an exorbitant shipping charge? Nah. This is a new monitor, and $179.99 is your out-the-door price. Score!

This is the same Soyo that was selling for $199 plus shipping back in April, proving once again that cheap things come to those who wait. It has VGA and DVI inputs, built-in speakers, a 5ms … Read more