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Do you remember how awesome it was when you upgraded from you old VHS tapes to DVDs? The picture was way clearer and the sound was amazing, right? Well another technology shift of even greater proportions is on the horizon in the home entertainment industry.

A standard dvd or dvd-R disc has about 4.7 GB of storage, but the new Blu-Ray discs have over 25 GB of storage on a single-layer disc and 50 GB on a dual-layer disc! And all that extra space, over 10 times more than a regular dvd, does not go to waste. Movies in Blu-Ray format will have crystal clear, life-like High Definition picture and superb digital sound. This unprecedented high quality combined with a 1080p High-Definition TV will be like nothing you have ever seen before. Are you salivating yet?

The only thing that will stop you from running to your nearest Circuit City, best Buy or Sony Style to pick up a Blu-Ray player and a couple movies to go with it (and if youre really ambitious, you can buy a Blu-Ray disc burner too) is the large and almost unwieldy price tag.

Today, a stand-alone Blu-Ray player will cost you around $1000, with each movie at about $50, meaning it would take a sizable chunk out of that portion of your bank account you allocate towards home entertainment. Now if you have a phone number annual salary that wont be a problem, but what about for the rest of us?

Well, just as with any new and emerging technology, the price will be very high at the outset, meaning that mostly techies and people who dont mind dishing out a few thousand bucks will buy it. But with time (maybe even in time for the 2006 holiday season), the price will drop until it becomes affordable. And for those of you who absolutely can not wait to get one of these awesome pieces of technology in your living room, you will be glad to hear that the new Sony Playstation 3 coming in November 2006 will come equipped with a Blu-Ray player. This next-gen console will cost around $600, a bargain for just the Blu-ray player.

The Playstation 3 will be the most powerful gaming machine ever released in terms of raw computing power. It features a new technology called a Cell chip, which works like 9 CPU microchips in one. This allows for blazing speeds and spectacular graphics, especially when it comes to running lots of programs simultaneously.

So, how do you obtain this tantalizing cinematic machine without overdrawing your checking account? My advice is to wait until the holiday season. The mainstream will have caught wind of the new Blu-Ray technology and it will become a holiday must-have. The price will inevitably be lower, and it will be your choice whether you want to go with a stand-alone player or a ps3.

If you wish to find out more about Blu-Ray players and what movies are available, check out http://blu-ray-site.com for more information. This is a technology that will awe and inspire, and it will forever change the home theater experience.

Richard Weber

While there are many brands and models of wire EDM machines available today, the three most prominent manufacturers are Elox, Japax, and Mitsubishi.

While each of these companies manufacture similar products, there will always be some varying features such as the User-interface with the CNC controller, the numbers of wires, be it a 4-axis or 5-axis Wire EDM machine, type of electrical current (AC vs. DC), and the gauges of wires that can be used. Another very big difference will be the size of the tank in which the manufacturing is accomplished.

Some examples of specifications for one model from each of these companies are:

Elox Fanuc Model M - (the Fanuc indicating the type of CNC controller that is a component of the Elox wire EDM) has an X-axis path of 20, a Y-axis path of 14, and a Z-axis path of 10

Japax wire EDM Model LDM-S - has a Y-axis path 13.8 and capable of machining a work piece with the measurements of 15.7 x 19.7 x 5.9 and a table that moves 7.9 x 13.8

Mitsubishi wire EDM Model DWC 110 H-1 - has an X-axis of 12, a Y-axis of 18, and a Z-axis of 10

Each of these models only represents one of many different models offered by their respective manufacturer. Variations will be observed from model to model with some differences including the distance that each axis wire can travel, the size of product that can be manufactured and the CNC controller.

When selecting a wire EDM machine, one must take into consideration the product that will be manufactured, the degrees of tolerance and variances that are allowed, how detailed the cut will be, and not least importantly, the funds available for purchasing the wire EDM.

While Elox, Japax and Mitsubishi are three prominent manufacturers of wire EDM machines, remember that there are also other manufactures of wire EDM machines.

Yeeeah... That's A problem

You just got paid and its time to get that new laptop youve been dreaming of. So you head off to the store, pick up your new (insert brand name here) laptop and bring it home to check out your spoils. Youre thrilled when everything works great, until you try to plug in your cellular internet PCMCIA card. Then you realize that the card wont fit! Whats to be done?

ExpressCard Muscling In

This is a scenario that is becoming more and more common as computer manufacturers roll out new laptops using the newer, faster ExpressCard standard. And along with the advent of this new technology comes the demise of the PCMCIA standard, which will become more and more rare. Although the ExpressCard offers significantly faster speeds and a more compact form, which will help to keep laptop design slim, the rapidity of the rollout has caught ExpressCard manufacturers struggling to keep up with demand as consumers seek ExpressCards to replace their existing PCMCIA cards. Perhaps the most prevalent issue is that while there are now ExpressCard versions of most PCMCIA cards, there are few, if any, viable alternatives for EVDO, EDGE, or GSM cellular internet PCMCIA cardbus cards.

EVDO wireless router

There are several potential solutions to this issue. The first would be to buy a specially designed stand-alone router with a cardbus slot specifically intended for a wireless internet card. This router takes the cellular signal from the aircard and converts it into a WiFi signal that can be picked up by a standard 802.11b/g wireless adapter. The 3G Phoebus is in this class of router.

ExpressCard to PCMCIA

Another solution is to use an ExpressCard to PCMCIA adapter. This adapter plugs into your available ExpressCard slot, and allows you to connect your wireless aircard (via an attached cable and receiver) to your laptop.

usb to Cardbus adapter

The best available solution for this problem is to use a usb to PCMCIA adapter. This adapter consists of a usb cable that is attached to an adapter that is designed to allow you to insert your cellular PCMCIA card. Simply plug the usb port into your computer and do a simple install to take advantage of wireless internet with your new ExpressCard laptop.