PC IN A FLOWER VASE : ECS's MING VASE

1. One Taiwanese computer maker has come up with a novel way to camouflage a computer made for your living room: give it the shape and color of a Ming Dynasty vase.

2. Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) put the small blue and white vase-shaped computer on display by a large-screen LCD TV at Computex Taipei 2009, to the effect that it really looked like Chinese art work rather than a gadget.

3. Inside the shapely plastic covering includes

(a) Home media computer complete

(b) A Blu-ray Disc player offering full 1080p high-definition video quality

(c) Intel Atom N230 microprocessor

(d) Nvidia Ion graphics chips and a

(e) 2.5-inch hard disc drive.

(f) Bottom of the vase reveals plugs for an HDMI cable, an Ethernet cable and USB ports.

4. See all this in the pictures in set....really amazing!!!

PAPER BOOKS CONVERGE TO E-BOOKS : KINDLE DX

1. We have been hearing often in our offices, in the forums, in various visionary speeches from bosses about a paperless office. I heard this word for the first time in late 90's when the company I was working in, the CEO gave a mention about a paperless office. The word induced internal laughs amongst most of the audience of how is it possible?

2. Slowly over a period of time, now 10 years, the thing doesn't look inconceivable. To add to the various options available today in form of e-mails, web sites, mobiles etc.....the latest IN thing is KINDLE DX from Amazon. The gadget is shown in the pic inset.

3. Recently read about the same in the June issue of Digit. It also mentioned about how the biggest library of the world ie British Library is putting in lots of effort in digitizing books available presently on its shelves. It has put up four giant scanners, working for last 2 years with the help of a 21 MP camera clicking all the way while a robotic arm turns them.

4. The configuration of this KINDLE Dx is as follows :

- Slim: Just over 1/3 of an inch, as thin as most magazines

- Carry Your Library: Holds up to 3,500 books, periodicals, and documents

- Beautiful Large Display: 9.7" diagonal e-ink screen reads like real paper; boasts 16 shades of gray for clear text and sharp images

- Auto-Rotating Screen: Display auto-rotates from portrait to landscape as you turn the device so you can view full-width maps, graphs, tables, and Web pages

- Built-In PDF Reader: Native PDF support allows you to carry and read all of your personal and professional documents on the go

- Wireless: 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle DX, anytime, anywhere; no monthly fees, no annual contracts, and no hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots

- Books In Under 60 Seconds: You get free wireless delivery of books in less than 60 seconds; no PC required

- Long Battery Life: Read for days without recharging

- Read-to-Me: With the text-to-speech feature, Kindle DX can read newspapers, magazines, blogs, and books out loud to you, unless the book's rights holder made the feature unavailable.