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How-TosKeep Your PC/Xbox/PS3/AppleTV From Overheating in a Closed Cabinet

Posted 10/14/08 at 12:00:00 PM by Will Smith

We love to have tons of cool electronics hooked up to the big living room TV -- who doesn’t? But, if you’re like us, your significant other is less keen on seeing all that awesome black plastic and shiny metal, and you probably did the same thing we did: Went out and bought an overpriced, crappy piece of mass-produced furniture that has doors. Doors! And what do those doors do? They create hot pockets of electronics-killing heat that will shorten the life of our precious gear. All to keep the wife happy.

Fear not, heat haters. We put the Maximum PC brain trust to work in assembling a quick, quiet, and easy cooling solution for, well, just about any cabinet you’re willing to cut a hole in. We tested our solution with two of the hottest pieces of hardware we could find: an Xbox 360 and an AppleTV. With both boxed turned on, and with the door closed, the internal temperature of the cabinet quickly hit 130F. But after we mounted our heat-triggered fan, we saw the internal temperatures hovering a scant degree or two above room temperature. Want to find out how we did it? Hit the jump!

Comments: 30
TAGS: cooling, fan, hardware, hack, htpc, blowhole, overheat

How-TosHow To: Control a PC and Mac with One Keyboard and Mouse

Posted 10/13/08 at 12:00:17 PM by Alex Castle

We at Maximum PC remember a time, long ago, when having a dual-monitor setup was enough to establish some pretty serious nerd cred. These days, however, everyone and their grandma are playing World of Warcraft and checking their email at the same time on their two screens. So what’s a guy got to do to stand out from the pack? Here’s one idea: run two computers in tandem.

Synergy is a free, open source program that allows you two control two or more computers with a single keyboard and mouse. The linked computers behave as though they were simply different monitors in a traditional multi-monitor, single-computer setup. That is to say, if you drag the mouse off the left side of the right monitor, it appears on the left monitor, directing all keystrokes to that box. More impressively, Synergy synchronizes the two computers’ clipboards and even their screensavers.

Comments: 4
TAGS: Software, pc, linux, open source, how_to, Mac, hack, kvm, synergy

NewsRussian Firm Breaches WiFi Security Bulwark Using Nvidia Graphics Cards

Posted 10/10/08 at 06:46:20 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Elcomsoft, a Russian firm, has devised an ingenious method of breaching WiFi’s WPA and WPA 2 encryption systems, according to a report at SC Magazine.

The technique leverages the parallel processing power of Nvidia’s latest graphics cards to speed up the “password recovery” process by 10,000 per cent. Global Security Systems (GSS) has advised enterprises to deploy VPNs for safeguarding their WiFi networks.

We, too, can only advise you to secure your office WiFi network using VPN encryption before professional industrial sleuths start waging brute forcing blitzkriegs using ordinary graphics cards.

Comments: 1
TAGS: graphics card, nvidia, WiFi, hardware, hack, wpa, CUDA, russia, wpa-2, parallel processors, eclomsoft, brute force

NewsCharges Brought against 20-Year-Old for Infiltrating Palin’s Account

Posted 10/09/08 at 06:42:24 AM by Pulkit Chandna

Quickly after the news of Palin’s Yahoo email account being hacked broke out, cops zeroed in on 20-year old David Kernell, who happens to be the son of Democratic Tennessee State rep. Mike Kernell.

Now, more than a fortnight after the entire incidence came to light, David Kernell has been indicted. According to the indictment, David advertently accessed Sarah Palin’s personal email account on September 16, 2008 without having the authority do so. David might have to spend up to five years behind bars if the charges against him are proven.

Comments: 12
TAGS: legal, law, hack, sarah palin, yahoo email account, david kernell, mike kernell

NewsPalin's E-Mail Id Hacked Using Social Engineering, One Person Quizzed

Posted 09/20/08 at 04:32:15 AM by Pulkit Chandna

Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin found that she is just as vulnerable in cyber realms as any of us, when hackers wrested control of her Yahoo e-mail id. The hackers released five screenshots of her personal e-mails and photographs.

Both her campaign manager and the FBI confirmed the news of her account being hacked, which began circulating after the appearance of the leaked screenshots on WikiLeaks. You will not be able to have a look at the screenshots yourself, in case your peeping faculties have been roused by the news, as they have been taken down.

The hackers are said to have only counted on their social engineering skills – by collecting or guessing personal information required for password recovery – and Yahoo’s flimsy, lax password-recovery process for breaking into her account. All said, the hack has exposed Palin’s inexpedient habit of conducting state business using a personal e-mail account.

According to Knoxnews, State Rep. Mike Kernell admitted that investigators had quizzed his 20-year old son David Kernell about the hack. Kernell is a Democrat!

Comments: 7
TAGS: e-mail, Yahoo, social engineering, hack, sarah palin, republican, governor

NewsThe Tip of the Facebook Exploit Iceberg

Posted 03/27/08 at 02:42:00 PM by David Murphy

Who's Byron Ng? A total tool, that's who. He's the one who ran a few Google searches and tipped off the Associated Press about a Facebook exploit that's been passing around the 'net for months now. The AP picked up the story and put it in every newspaper under the sun, making him a minor campus celebrity who's now forever disinvited to Facebook Club. It also tippped off Facebook to what was going on, and the company was quick to plug the exploit.

Click Read More for more.