Opera Mini 5.1 beta for S60 brings copy and paste, native email, and speed

This week, Opera let loose a new beta of their latest and greatest proxy-based browser for S60-powered smartphones. Essentially giving any Nokia S60 phone a fast and fairly decent browsing experience, Opera Mini 5.1 beta now supports the platform's native copy and paste feature, and it can call up the native email client. This doesn't sound like a lot, but in usability stakes, the ability to copy and paste or email a link, article, or page directly from the browser is a real boon.

The update also brings with it some tweaks to the back end -- the bit that essentially powers your browsing experience in Mini. Start up, scrolling, and page loading have all seen speed improvements, while font support has been increased and so has the number of Nokia handsets that can run the Mini-marvel. Those bugged by the constant dialog boxes requiring permission to connect to the Web will be pleased to know that Opera's managed to do away with them.

It's currently only available in English, although greater language support is promised as the beta develops. Interested parties can get their Mini-on by visiting the Opera Mini download page on your Nokia S60 device.

Microsoft Security Essentials now offered via Windows Update

We're big fans of Microsoft Security Essentials -- it's lightweight, free, and offers malware protection that's every bit as good as (if not better than) more recognized names like Norton and McAfee (quit giggling, DS regulars...). Today, Microsoft has begun offering Security Essentials as an optional install via Windows Update.

Like Live Essentials and the Windows 7 Language Packs, users can now opt-in to load MSE on their Windows system. The update notification beckons small office users as well, offering a reminder that Security Essentials is free for them to use, too -- as long as they have 10 systems or fewer.

Malwarebytes 1.5 detects and cleans more malware faster than ever

Malwarebytes is one of the most trusted and effective tools for removing all kinds of malicious software. Over at the Malwarebytes forums, there's big news today: MBAM 1.5 has been released, and it's faster, smarter, and better than ever. Startup time has been trimmed to just a few seconds and scanning speed improved by as much as 500%. There's also a host of new detection algorithms which allow MBAM to better detect all the frustrating, shifty malware floating around cyberspace.

Users can now manually add files and folders to the Malwarebytes ignore list, too. If you own the pro version, you'll get enhanced command line tools, a smarter, faster "Flash scan" which takes as little as 10 seconds to complete, and one-touch automatic updating.

Download Malwarebytes 1.5

BIOS Update Procedure

All latest Motherboards today, 486/ Pentium / Pentium Pro etc.,ensure that upgrades are easily obtained by incorporating the system BIOS in a FLASH Memory component. With FLASH BIOS, there is no need to replace an EPROM component. Once downloaded, the upgrade utility fits on a floppy disc allowing the user to save, verify and update the system BIOS. A hard drive or a network drive can also be used to run the newer upgrade utilities. However, memory managers can not be installed while upgrading.

Most pre-Pentium motherboards do not have a Flash BIOS. The following instructions therefore do not apply to these boards. If your motherboard does not have a Flash BIOS (EEPROM) you will need to use an EPROM programmer to re-program the BIOS chip. See your dealer for more information about this.

Please read the following instructions in full before starting a Flash BIOS upgrade:
A. Create a Bootable Floppy (in DOS)

•With a non-formatted disk, type the following:

format a:/s

•If using a formatted disk, type:

sys a:

This procedure will ensure a clean boot when you are flashing the new BIOS.

B. Download the BIOS file

•Download the correct BIOS file by clicking on the file name of the BIOS file you wish to download.

•Save the BIOS file and the Flash Utility file in the boot disk you have created. Unzip the BIOS file and the flash utility file. If you don't have an "unzip" utility, download the WinZip for Windows 95 shareware/ evaluation copy for that one time use from _www.winzip.com or _www.pkware.com. Most CD ROMs found in computer magazines, have a shareware version of WinZip on them.

•You should have extracted two files:

Flash BIOS utility eg: flash7265.exe (for example)

BIOS eg: 6152J900.bin (example)

Use the latest flash utility available unless otherwise specified (either on the BIOS update page or in the archive file). This information is usually provided.

C. Upgrade the System BIOS

During boot up, write down the old BIOS version because you will need to use it for the BIOS backup file name.

Place the bootable floppy disk containing the BIOS file and the Flash Utility in drive a, and reboot the system in MS-DOS, preferably Version 6.22

•At the A:> prompt, type the corresponding Flash BIOS utility and the BIOS file with its extension.

For example:

flash625 615j900.bin

•From the Flash Memory Writer menu, select "Y" to "Do you want to save BIOS?" if you want to save (back up) your current BIOS (strongly recommended), then type the name of your current BIOS and its extension after FILE NAME TO SAVE: eg: a:\613J900.bin

Alternatively select "N" if you don't want to save your current BIOS. Beware, though, that you won't be able to recover from a possible failure.

•Select "Y" to "Are you sure to program?"

•Wait until it displays "Message: Power Off or Reset the system"

Once the BIOS has been successfully loaded, remove the floppy disk and reboot the system. If you write to BIOS but cannot complete the procedure, do not switch off, because the computer will not be able to boo, and you will not be given another chance to flash. In this case leave your system on until you resolve the problem (flashing BIOS with old file is a possible solution, provided you've made a backup before)

Make sure the new BIOS version has been loaded properly by taking note of the BIOS identifier as the system is rebooting.

For AMI BIOS
Once the BIOS has been successfully loaded, remove the floppy disk and reboot the system holding the "END" key prior to power on until you enter CMOS setup. If you do not do this the first time booting up after upgrading the BIOS, the system will hang.

BIOS Update Tips
note:
1.Make sure never to turn off or reset your computer during the flash process. This will corrupt the BIOS data. We also recommend that you make a copy of your current BIOS on the bootable floppy so you can reflash it if you need to. (This option is not available when flashing an AMI BIOS).

2. If you have problems installing your new BIOS please check the following:

Have you done a clean boot?
In other words, did you follow the above procedure for making a bootable floppy? This ensures that when booting from "A" there are no device drivers on the diskette. Failing to do a clean boot is the most common cause for getting a "Memory Insufficient" error message when attempting to flash a BIOS.

If you have not used a bootable floppy, insure a clean boot either by

a) pressing F5 during bootup

b) by removing all device drivers on the CONFIG.SYS including the HIMEM.SYS. Do this by using the EDIT command.

Have you booted up under DOS?
Booting in Windows is another common cause for getting a "Memory Insufficient" error message when attempting to flash a BIOS. Make sure to boot up to DOS with a minimum set of drivers. Important: Booting in DOS does not mean selecting "Restart computer in MS-DOS Mode" from Windows98/95 shutdown menu or going to Prompt mode in WindowsNT, but rather following the above procedure (format a: /s and rebooting from a:\).

Have you entered the full file name of the flash utility and the BIOS plus its extension?
Do not forget that often you will need to add a drive letter (a:\) before flashing the BIOS. Example: when asked for file name of new BIOS file which is on your floppy disk, in case you're working from c:\ your will need to type a:\615j900.bin, rather than 615j900.bin only.

AVG Free update cripples Windows 7 64-bit

Demonstrating quite clearly why you should never jump straight on an update the moment it's released, and that good backups are imperative, the latest update to AVG's free antivirus offering prevents Windows 7 64-bit from booting after a forced post-installation reboot cycle. The 271.1.1/3292 (432/3292) definition update, which requires users to reboot their PC after installation, blocks Windows from booting properly and throws up a c0000135 blue screen of death, requiring that you take recovery action.

AVG as you might expect, have promptly pulled the update and included instructions for use of the AVG Rescue CD/USB, which allows you to simply go into the system drive and rename the offending AVG files so they don't play a part in the Windows boot cycle. Of course you could enter into Safe Mode and remove the offending piece of software, and while there, why not install our current favorite free antivirus solution, Microsoft Security Essentials?

Adobe Flash Player 10.2 beta brings greater hardware acceleration

Adobe's pushing hard with hardware acceleration and for good reason: using the GPU takes a serious load off the CPU, which Flash is pretty hard on at the best of times, especially on Mac OS X. Adobe hopes to address those concerns with today's release of Flash 10.2 beta and the arrival of a new feature called Stage Video.

The idea behind Stage Video is that it'll enable hardware acceleration of the whole video rendering pipeline, and as a result, decrease CPU load by up to 85%. If that's not enough to get excited about, Adobe claims that Stage Video will make Flash player best-in-class for playback performance of video, with higher frame rates, reduced memory usage, and higher video quality with greater pixel fidelity. To the end-user Stage Video means faster and smoother video playback on the Web, and most importantly, Flash video will no longer slow your computer to a crawl.

Another addition in the 10.2 update is hardware acceleration support for Internet Explorer 9, which takes advantage of the native acceleration hooks available in IE9 for rendering surfaces. Support for full screen mode with multiple monitors has also been improved, now allowing you to keep video in full screen mode on one monitor while still being able to use the other for something useful rather than a blank, black screen reminiscent of a chalk board. Native custom mouse cursor support has also been integrated into Flash player, which will be useful for mouse-orientated Flash-based games.

Adobe reckons that Stage Video will bring "native video performance" to the desktop, and therefore could be an important step in the war with HTML5 video tagging. Grab the latest beta of Flash player 10.2 for Windows, OS X and Linux from the Adobe beta labs -- and then check out Adobe's Stage Video YouTube demo, which has already begun leveraging the new Flash technology.

Microsoft releases details of the upcoming Silverlight 5

Speaking at the Silverlight Firestarter conference yesterday, Scott Guthrie, the vice president of Microsoft's Developer Division, reassured the masses of Silverlight's future by detailing the exciting new features in Silverlight in 2011.
On the application-development front, there's a ton of exciting new features. Font rendering has been improved (which is no surprise, given Silverlight's new home on the Windows Phone 7), lower-latency networking has been added,immediate mode graphics are now possible (cue some very sexy games and visualizations), and also some improved sandboxing features have been thrown in. Scott mentions better integration with IE9's hardware acceleration, too, but no real details are given.

Top of the bill, media-wise, is GPU-accelerated video decoding (I thought Silverlight 4 already did that?). There's a cool new feature called Trickplay that lets you alter the playback speed of Silverlight videos -- with pitch correction! (I've wanted this feature for so long -- why has Silverlight beaten you to it, Flash?) Finally, there's improved "power awareness," which will stop the screensaver kicking in while a Silverlight video is playing.

Exciting stuff, but we'll have to wait until "the first half of 2011" for the first beta!