Software that prevents your cat from screwing up your computer when it walks across the keyboard has been developed by an Arizona company.
BitBoost's PawSense is a background application that can tell the difference between cat walking and human typing.
The company says the average cat's paw depresses two or three adjacent keys when the feline takes a stroll across the keyboard.
But before Muffy can accidentaly crash applications, change the names of files, or delete hours of work, the software cuts off keyboard input and plays an irritating sound to shoo Fluffy away.
"This teaches your cat that getting on the keyboard is bad even if humans aren't watching," company literature says.
Luck of the Irish: A new "non-destructive" virus may have cost Dell millions last week, an antivirus firm warned.
Data Fellows says that Dell had to shut down a manufacturing plant in Ireland and recall about 12,000 PCs infected with the Win32.Funlove virus, a non-destructive virus that changes the security settings on Windows 95, 98, and NT machines.
The shutdown may have cost the company up to US$22 million, Data Fellows said.
However, a Dell spokesman said only 500 machines were recalled and the estimated cost was wildly innacurate.
"It's been totally overstated," said spokesman Jerele Neeld. "It's all clean now. The factory is clean. All systems are clean."
Buy-buy: Low-cost PC maker e-Machines has launched a new crop of cheapo machines for the holiday season, including the company's first laptop.
eMachines' new lineup includes the $999 eSlate 400k, which features a 400 MHz AMD K6 processor, 32 MB of RAM, a 12.1-inch screen, a 4.3 GB hard drive and a 24x CD-ROM. The Windows 98 machine weighs in at 6.3 pounds, eMachines said.
The company also released two other computers: a box aimed at gamers -- the $899 eMonster 500A, a 500 MHz Pentium III machine that comes with a spiffy graphics system and DVD drive; and the eTower, a sub-$600 DVD-equipped PC.
In other news, the Irvine, California company is reportedly toning down the design of its eOne, an all-in-one machine that a federal court recently decided bore an illegal resemblance to Apple's iMac.
According to The Register, a British online publication, eMachines will launch a redesigned eOne next spring.
Gone is the iMac-like curvy blue case. Replacing it is a boxier design which, like the iMac, will be available in five fruity colors.
"There's only so many ways you can design an all-in-one," an eMachine spokesman told The Register.
