By Craig Lloyd on Feb 13th, 2011 at 11:02AM
This week on Steam’s Weekly Top Sellers list, the just released Test Drive Unlimited 2 sees the top spot while Magicka jumps up to number two. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is still holding on in number 7 and Civilization V squeezes back into the last spot at number 10. See the complete top ten list after the break.
By Craig Lloyd on Feb 12th, 2011 at 2:41PM
Before Tech Olive, Tim and I were just regular computer illiterate idiots (hell, we still are), but we had to start somewhere in order to learn and gain knowledge about how computers and technology worked. So, where did we start? We ended up starting a little computer “business” and called it CT Customs (CT = Craig and Tim). It ultimately failed epically before it even began, but we didn’t care.
The first thing we did was pool together all the money we had from our piggy banks, which was a little over $500, and built our first computer ever. The rig consisted of an AMD Athlon 64 3400, 1GB of DDR400 RAM, Nvidia GeForce FX 5500, a 250GB SATA hard drive, DVD burner, and Windows XP Home Edition.
By Craig Lloyd on Feb 11th, 2011 at 3:02PM
While we at least know that new MacBook Pros will be arriving sometime soon (rumored for March 11th), word has gotten around that Apple will also update the MacBook Air this summer, and it’s none other than a Sandy Bridge update. While this may not seem like a huge piece of news, keep in mind that the current MacBook Air line uses last-gen Core 2 Duo chips with less-than-stellar graphics. Despite this, there not all that bad, but with Sandy Bridge, the MacBook Air could possibly be an amazing piece of work, since the graphics are built directly onto the CPU chip.
via [CNET]
By Craig Lloyd on Feb 11th, 2011 at 1:06PM
An anonymous reader asks:
“I have no idea what I did, but I keep getting pop ups that says my computer is infected with viruses and that in order for it to get rid of them, it says I need to buy the full version of this program called “Security Shield”. For some reason it installed on my computer and I get these pop ups as soon as I turn on my computer. I tried to uninstall it but it won’t let me and it also won’t let me do a scan with my normal anti-virus program. How do I get rid of this!”
Malicious anti-virus programs are nothing new and once they get on your PC, it can be hell. I did a little bit of research about this “Security Shield” and it looks like it automatically installs onto your computer through other spyware and such. In order to do anything (like easily remove it), you have to pay up for the full version, which is how they get you. However there’s a couple of things you can try.
I actually just recently heard about this trick: The fake anti-virus program locks you out of certain tasks like running your real anti-virus program by blacklisting certain .exe files, but there are a couple that it allows like “explorer.exe” and “iexplore.exe”. Simply rename your real anti-virus program’s executable to either of these names and you should now be able to run it!
Another option is simply booting into Safe Mode w/ networking (Press F8 during boot process) and then running a virus scan to remove the fake anti-virus program.
By Craig Lloyd on Feb 10th, 2011 at 10:39PM
The original Thermaltake Level 10 is obviously one of the most bizarre and coolest computer cases we’ve ever seen. We even used it in our 2010 Dream PC. The company has decided that they haven’t taken it far enough and have introduced the Level 10 GT. What’s new? Well, it’s got a much improved ventilation system thanks to one 140mm fan and three 200mm fans, all of which have LED color-changing capabilities and the ability to adjust fan speed and even the direction of air flow. It also has a neat little window that you can look through to see your machine in action processing those bits and bytes. As for the smaller features, it’s got USB 3.0 and eSATA support and even a cool little hanger to hang your headset from during off-gaming hours. Thermaltake is asking $280 for this beast and it’s available now.
For a full gallery of photos of the new Level 10 GT, head on over to Thermaltake’s Flickr page.
By Tim Hage on Feb 10th, 2011 at 6:46PM
Huge-name movie composer Clint Mansell has signed on to bring his orchestral brilliance to Mass Effect 3‘s musical score. Though it is a disappointment that the game won’t have music from the two-man team that provided the tracks for both previous games, it’s still very exciting that the job is being given to a man that has proven himself many times over.
If you are unfamiliar with Mansell’s work, he’s probably best known for “Lux Æterna,” a track that has made its way into countless advertisements, montage videos, and just about anything that called for a classical and emotional track.
via [Rock, Paper, Shotgun]
By Craig Lloyd on Feb 10th, 2011 at 2:17PM
For those still using Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser (or for those that are giving it a second chance), you’ll be happy to know that the release candidate for IE9 is now available for download on both x86 and x64 system running either Windows 7 or Vista. Download it here and let us know your thoughts!
[IE Blog]
By Tim Hage on Feb 10th, 2011 at 1:41PM
With the Xbox 360′s exclusive iron grip on Black Ops‘ recent First Strike DLC finally loosening, it seems PC gamers will get shafted just once more before actually receiving the DLC. The PS3 map pack will become available on March 3rd, but PC gamers get to wait yet again. It’s expected to hit sometime later in March for PC gamers, but no official date has been revealed. The good news is that, because of these delays, there’s a good chance it means PC gamers will get the DLC free. Only time will tell.
Moving on: Black Ops received another title update via Steam recently. The changes are as follows:
via [Shack News, Press Release]
By Tim Hage on Feb 9th, 2011 at 7:19PM
After starting a series as well as the original Dead Space did, it’s always a point concern that in an attempt to make the experience feel fresh again, the developer might just change too much. In contrast, there’s also worries that the second game will only succeed in watering down the series and leave it feeling stale and stagnant. This is a balance that Dead Space 2 struggles to keep through its 8-10 hour campaign.
By Craig Lloyd on Feb 9th, 2011 at 3:31PM
If you’re familiar with the Palm mobile brand, then you undoubtedly know about the webOS mobile operating system for smartphones and tablets. HP (who owns Palm) announced today at their “Think Beyond” webOS event that the mobile operating system is coming to PCs and printers later this year. Sadly, that’s all the details that were given, but we’ll definitely hear more from HP as the days go on.
via [Engadget]
