Tech Olive

For those lazy Firefox slackers that still haven’t done themselves a favor and updated to 3.6, Mozilla will send out reminders to those running older versions that they have the option to update to the latest version, which includes many new, useful features.

Since its release back in January, Firefox 3.6 has been downloaded over 130 million times (at the time of this writing) and that’s not including automatic updates.

[Mozilla]

Redmond’s newest operating system, Windows 7, has sold 90 million licenses since its release in the Fall of 2009. This makes Windows 7 the fastest-selling operating system of all time. The announcement came early last week at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference by Microsoft CFO Peter Klein.

[Windows Blog via MCV]

While most of us are doing the smart thing by utilizing torrents, stragglers still using LimeWire will be thankful to know that AVG will be heading their way to make the LimeWire file sharing client more secure. Using licensed AVG Antivirus SDK, LimeWire will scan files that are downloaded to the user’s PC and let them know if they grabbed a virus on accident. One of the downsides is that the integrated AVG will only be available to LimeWire Pro users. The rest of you using the free version will have to continue doing virus scans of your downloads the traditional way.


via [Download Squad]

Good news for all prospective buyers of Microsoft Office 2007. If you buy the 2007 suite between now and September 30, 2010, you’ll be able to grab Office 2010 for free when it’s released this June. We’re not sure why you would want Office 2007 anytime after June, but who knows what crazy things people do these days.

[Microsoft]

Nvidia has recommended that all users that have the 196.75 drivers installed revert back to the previous 196.21 version due to reports of overheating video cards during intense gameplay. StarCraft II beta testers were the first to spot this problem when they detected temps as high as 104C. After finding out about this heated issue (pun intended), Nvidia has released an official statement:

We are aware that some customers have reported fan speed issues with the latest 196.75 WHQL drivers on NVIDIA.com. Until we can verify and root cause this issue, we recommend that customers stay with, or return to 196.21 WHQL drivers. Release 196.75 drivers have been temporarily removed from our Web site in the meantime.

So folks, it might be best for you to revert back to 196.21 if you do any GPU-intense gaming.

via [IncGamers]

A new version of “the world’s fastest browser” is now upon us. The new Opera 10.5 release has an all new look and features private browsing, improved support for HTML5, and Opera Unite, which allows you to share content with other Opera users. It’s already released for Windows machines and will be arriving to Mac and Linux “soon.” I know you all are dying to get your hands on this, so head over to Opera’s website and get in on the fun.


[Press Release]

Remember a couple weeks ago when we told you about a Windows 7 update that would check to see if your copy of Windows 7 was legit? Well, it’s out now and ready to be executed. If you wish to not install, just click on the list of Important Updates and it should be listed in there. For me, it was already unchecked, so I was set to go, but it may checked by default for others.

As of now, Steam is offering gamers the chance to participate in an awesome beta. They are currently testing a (much needed) whole new user interface for their wildly popular program. Unfortunately, the new changes make the program feel awkward and alien again, so you’d better opt-in for the beta so that you know your way around before the final version goes public. The new UI is packed with changes and new awesome features, so head over to Steam’s information page for a complete breakdown.

To get the beta, simply just apply the new UI to your current Steam by clicking here, then when the Settings menu appears, choose “UI Update” in the “Beta participation” box about half-way down.

It’s very apparent that netbooks are known for not being all that powerful. They’re great for portability, checking your email and surfing the web, but when it comes to heavy information processing like playing HD video, you’ll have to look elsewhere, or do you?

One of the biggest cons with my netbook was that it would barely play my HD collection, but that was until the guys over at PC Pro showed a fairly simple way of accomplishing it by using the ever-diverse Media Player Classic and the CoreAVC codec. CoreAVC is known as one of the fastest software decoders out there, and when it’s coupled with one of the best video players, Media Player Classic, you get the ultimate video player for your netbook. Mind you, CoreAVC will cost you $10, but there’s also “other ways” to get it, of course.

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For those of you still grasping onto the release candidate of Windows 7, your time will come to an end very shortly. Microsoft sent out an email today reminding those still using the RC that they better think of other plans. On March 1, 2010, computers running Windows 7 RC will begin shutting down every two hours. Work will not be saved during these shutdowns. On June 1, 2010, Windows 7 RC will fully expire.

You can, in fact, continue to still use the RC in two hour increments, but you’ll also have to put up with a black background with an annoying message on the desktop, as well as periodic notifications alerting you that your copy is no longer genuine.