scanning

Get a Brother wireless all-in-one printer for $49.99

I'll cut right to the chase: the Brother MFC-J270w all-in-one printer has a list price of $99.99, but Best Buy currently has it for $49.99. Shipping adds another $15, but you can save that cost by picking it up in-store. (What you probably can't escape, however, is sales tax.)

Even with those surcharges, that's a downright awesome deal on a device that prints, scans, copies, and faxes, and does so without wires. Yep, like all printers should, the MFC-J270w rocks Wi-Fi.

It also comes with a 1.9-inch color LCD (small, but acceptable for navigating … Read more

Kinect hack lets you see your own skeleton

Fortunately for the guy at right, the image overlaying his torso does not show his real skeleton. Else the poor dude's spine would be located a little too far left for our comfort.

The image is actually an augmented-reality 3D CT overlay from another person that's being used in tests of a Kinect hack aimed at letting viewers see their own skeletons.

Microsoft's motion- and depth-sensing Kinect is positioned next to a big screen. When viewers stand (or dance or sway) in front of the system, it acts like a "magic mirror" that displays a virtual X-ray window in real time.

Researchers in the Technical University of Munich's Computer Aided Medical Procedures & Augmented Reality group developed the prototype system using OpenNI and PrimeSense NITE applications. The researchers currently envision the setup as a tool for teaching anatomy rather than an alternative to real-time CT scans (though with some refining, that could come too). … Read more

Safe registry tool

Registry cleaners are fine when used with care but can cause problems when used carelessly. Unfortunately, those users who most need a reliable registry cleaner are often unable to tell vital entries from junk, with predictable consequences. Registry cleaners now emphasize doing no harm; none more so than freeware registry cleaners such as Wise Registry Cleaner Free from WiseCleaner. It's touted as thorough but especially safe and easy to use, which we found an appealing combination. By and large, it lives up to the claim.

Wise Registry Cleaner Free's installer persuades users to download and install the Ask … Read more

Hosts manager

Hosts files translate human-readable domain names--"yoursite.com"--to machine-readable IP addresses. HostsMan is a free yet powerful and comprehensive tool for managing, merging, updating, disabling, editing, protecting, and duplicating hosts files from a single interface. It packs some useful extras, too.

We chose to install HostsMan and its documentation but not the optional HostsServer, a local HTTP server for browsing with custom hosts files, or the HostsOptimizer, which is designed to prevent delays caused by the DNS Client Service. HostsMan's installer also gave us the option to disable our DNS Client Service and make a backup … Read more

Heavy smoker? Consider annual CT scans

The National Cancer Institute isn't changing one of its key messages: don't smoke--it'll kill you.

But the mortality data from its ongoing National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) involving more than 53,000 current and former heavy smokers ages 55 to 74 is so striking that the institute announced initial findings today, ahead of a more comprehensive report.

What the trial shows is that there have been 20 percent fewer deaths from lung cancer among trial participants who receive an annual low-dose CT scan than those who receive an annual standard chest X-ray.

While CT scans are already considered valuable … Read more

High-tech hair brush improves optical brain scans

When it comes to measuring oxygen levels in the brain to chart neurological activity--a technique called functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)--things can get a little hairy. Literally. As in, the patient's hair gets in the way.

So researchers at the University of Texas have engineered a novel device, which they call a "brush optrode" (variant of word optode), whose fiber tips thread past hair to increase scalp contact, thereby improving signal levels as well as overall cost and efficiency of the optical scanning technique. They will present their findings at the Optical Society's 94th annual … Read more

Basic protection

The bottom line: A new name heralds some big changes for Trend Micro's Titanium suites. The overhaul to Titanium Antivirus+ 2011 brings users a faster suite with a smaller system impact. However, Trend Micro's new security engine is too untested to be able to recommend it.

Review: Trend Micro's updates for 2011 bring a substantially overhauled suite, from the name down to its detection engine. The new version brings a new interface, new cloud-based detection engine, and new features that, on whole, are changes as impressive as those that Norton has gone through the past few years. … Read more

Victimized by a 'legitimate' drive-by download

I know very well to uncheck the preselected software offers that accompany so many program updates these days. In August 2009, I edited a story by Susan Bradley in the Windows Secrets newsletter describing how Sun Microsystems, Apple, and Microsoft were making money by pushing unwanted software on unsuspecting customers.

So I have only myself to blame for the half-hour I wasted this weekend making sure my laptop's antivirus protection was active and up-to-date. That doesn't make me feel any better about Adobe preselecting the download of McAfee's Security Scan Plus freeware along with the Flash Player … Read more

IBM helping Europe scan historical documents

IBM and the European Union are teaming up to offer a better way to scan the massive collection of Europe's treasured historical documents.

Expanding on an existing collaboration project, Big Blue and the EU will now be working with more than two dozen libraries, research institutes, universities, and companies across Europe to help them digitize their rare books and documents.

The project known as Impact (Improving Access to Text), is using new tools and tapping into crowd sourcing to speed up the mass digitization process and ensure that the scanned documents are as accurate as possible. Impact will also … Read more

Drivers ed

Device drivers allow hardware devices and computer programs to interact, so they're obviously an integral part of proper computer function. When drivers go missing or become out of date they can slow down system performance and create other problems. DriverGuide DriverScan is an easy way to scan your computer for outdated drivers. Unfortunately, although the program is free, you're going to have to pay if you want to update your drivers with it.

DriverGuide DriverScan is incredibly easy to use, which is a good thing, because there's no Help file. The program opens with a plain screen … Read more