odd

Online banking hit by thieves

A new Trojan dubbed "OddJob" is stealing people's money by taking over their online banking sessions after they think they've logged off.

The Trojan, which targets Windows-based computers, is being used by criminals in Eastern Europe to steal money from accounts in the United States, Poland, and Denmark, Amit Klein, chief technology officer of Trusteer, writes in a blog post today.

Klein said in an e-mail that he could not identify the banks being targeted or provide an estimate on the number of victims.

"It is early days for this malware," he said. "… Read more

Hitachi-LG hybrid drive does away with HDD

On Tuesday, Hitachi-LG Data Storage announced a hybrid optical drive that can obviate the need for a traditional hard disk drive in thin laptop designs.

Hitachi-LG Data Storage (HLDS) disclosed a second-generation Serial-ATA (SATA) 6.0-gigabit-per-second (Gbps)-based "hybrid drive" at Ceatec 2010, held this week in Makuhari Messe, Japan. The drive is meant to eliminate the need for a separate traditional (spinning) hard disk drive in laptops, allowing PC makers to bring out optical-drive-equipped systems with only one drive.

Boise, Idaho-based Micron Technology also announced today that it is supplying 25-nanometer NAND flash chips for the drive. … Read more

Texas Fold-em

Tournament Strategy and Odds Calculator provides a helpful tool for figuring out your odds of success in a Texas Hold-em game. While the calculator is a great learning tool, the program falls flat in other departments.

The program's interface initially felt welcoming, with a few simple command options and in-depth instructions in the Help file. However, we were turned off when we couldn't join a poker game immediately. The program claimed it was "Searching for a Game," though it quickly became obvious we would need a Free License to play. However, the only way to get … Read more

Weird new home for hamster: iMac cage

An old iMac shell seems to make a suitable habitat for a hamster. Who knew? And the good news is you can buy it now on eBay. The bad news, of course, is the creator wants a ridiculous $350 for this thing--and it doesn't even boot up on hamster power.

This story originally appeared on Gizmodo.

Celebrate Odd Day in style

I've got some news that might make you feel odd, quite literally (or maybe I should say, mathematically).

Today is 5/7/09, one of a few instances when three consecutive odd numbers make up the date. As a matter of fact, it's one of only six times this will happen in the century. Today is the third this century.

If you think Pi Day (March 14) is special, note that it happens 100 times in a century. So, mathematically, today is about 16.66 times more special than Pi Day.

For this reason, folks at Oddday.net … Read more

New single: Gnarls Barkley 'Run'

Drum roll, please. America's most intriguing and addictive collaborations to emerge in the last 2 years is back. And, just when we thought we had finally got rid of the song "Crazy" from the brain, now we got "Run" to worry about. The track sounds straight out of the swingin' 60s -- bearing the same kind of excitement as early James Brown or like the peak song in a great musical. Theatrical as it may be, it's still contemporary (yet addicting) thanks to Cee-lo's hefty soul shouts and Danger Mouse forward thinking production style.

Gnarls Barkley new album suitably entitled, The Odd Couple is set for release in April. Check out the new single "Run" plus the classics and mind tripping videos that made this odd couple so hip and love able. … Read more

Gray-market products. Where do they come from?

To outsiders and consumers, the gray market somehow always seems skeevy.

Why is that store selling Apple PCs that come in a choice of English or Spanish? How come this set of speakers costs less than what I see at other retailers? And why is a luggage store selling TVs?

Did these products fall off a truck?

The answer, interestingly enough, is actually no. Often, gray market products, which are products not sold by authorized dealers, get to these stores via middlemen like ModusLink, which specializes in logistics and distribution. Most of the time, the company helps manufacturers craft a … Read more

Odds and Ends: Printer Setup Repair updated

Printer Setup Repair updated One of our favorite tools for resolving issues with the Mac OS X printing system -- Printer Setup Repair -- has received an update to version 5.1 TE, which adds the following new features, among others:

option to automatically backup and restore the printing system when performing a printing system reset. PPD files can be batch installed, moved or removed, and the contents of individual PPD files can be examined. A toolbar has replaced the options menu. an administrator-free mode. ability to delete temporary spool files from the tmp directory located inside the /private/var/… Read more

Odds and Ends: A melting MacBook; Web malware common

A melting MacBookThe MacBook and MacBook Pro portables seem particularly prone to hardware troubles, and high internal temperatures have been one of them. Now AppleDefects.com, which has done a particularly fine job of cataloging those troubles, reports an isolated but alarming case of a MacBook become so hot (while playing a DVD) that the plastic melted.

Web malware common Whether you call them savior or Big Brother, no one has a better overall view of the Web as a whole than its prime indexer, Google. Now the BBC reports that Google, investigating as part of the StopBadware coalition, finds … Read more