Month: December 2007

Online Tool Developed to Check for Botnet Activity

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It is estimated that 1 in 4 computers on the internet today are part of a botnet. After observing bot activity from thousands of compromised computers, local administrator develops easy way to check for botnet activity.

Daytona Beach, FL (PRWEB) December 12, 2007 — It is estimated that 1 in 4 computers on the internet today are part of a botnet. After observing bot activity from thousands of compromised computers, local administrator develops easy way to check for botnet activity.

A botnet is a group of computers (bots) networked together and controlled by someone other than the owner of the computer. Systems Security Administrator Rusty Crawford states, "After attempting to notify thousands of owners of automated bot activity coming from their compromised computers, it was obvious this is a growing problem and a solution was needed. The majority of the public is not even aware that their computers have been infected and are a part of botnet activity."

Botnetchecker.com has developed a "honeynet" to detect and analyze bot activity. As new bots are detected, they are added to the lists at botnetchecker.com. It is free to visit botnetchecker.com and just by visiting the site an IP will be cross checked for bot activity. If botnetchecker.com detects bot activity a red warning is shown on the screen. Links are provided to information and tools that can help safely remove the offending programs from the infected computer.

Botnetchecker.com does not block anything. It is simply a free tool to help identify if the computer IP used is, or has been, involved in botnet activities on the internet. Botnetchecker.com obviously does not have a list for every bot on the internet but the "honeynet" is detecting new ones all the time. Crawford recommends bookmarking and using botnetchecker.com on a regular basis.

 http://www.botnetchecker.com

 

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OnChip Devices Introduces Low Capacitance ESD Protection Chips for USB Port

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Superior electrostatic discharge protection with ultra low capacitance now available for USB port.

Santa Clara, CA (Vocus/PRWEB ) December 12, 2007 — OnChip Devices, a world leader in Integrated Passive Devices (IPD), has introduced low capacitance ESD protection devices for single and dual USB ports. These devices protect the two data lines and the power rail of the USB 2.0 high speed interface. The very low sub-1pF line-capacitance of the new ESD2100-02 and ESD2100-04 ensures minimal dis495 East Java Drive Sunnyvale, CA 94089tortion of the 480-Mbit/s USB 2.0 signal. These devices offer optimum trade-off between low line-to-ground capacitance and compliance with IEC61000-4-2 level 4 (air discharge up to 15kV, contact discharge up to 8kV).

New generation mobile computing and consumer products are increasingly susceptible to ESD events since they predominantly use integrated circuits (IC) with sub-micron geometries and lower working voltages. Furthermore, portable electronics require lower capacitance to maintain the signal integrity of their high speed I/O ports. Traditional silicon TVS diodes offer low ESD clamping voltage and fast response time, but their large line-capacitance limits their use in high speed applications. Other solutions such as polymers and varistors offer low capacitance, but their high clamp-voltage limits their ability to adequately protect ICs from latch-up after an ESD event thereby causing soft errors.

  The introduction of the ESD2100 family of products reflects the increasing use of higher data rates for interfaces in computer and consumer electronics. "USB is the most common port in all Computer Peripherals and Portable Consumer Electronics such as MP3 Players, Digital Cameras and Mobile Handsets," said Sona Joe, product marketing manager. "The rail-to-rail topology of our ESD2100 provides protection of both upstream and downstream USB 2.0 (full speed) and on-the-go (OTG) ports. The additional ESD diode between the Vcc and Ground prevents charging of the Supply Line."

Availability and Pricing
The OnChip ESD2100-02 offers 2-channels of ESD protection suitable for a single USB port. It is available immediately worldwide at $0.11 USD in quantities of 10,000. Pricing for the ESD2100-04 with 4-channels of ESD protection suitable for two USB Ports is $0.15. Developed at OnChip Devices' Santa Clara facility, these components are produced to the highest quality standards.

About OnChip Devices
OnChip Devices head-quartered in Santa Clara, CA is a global leader in Integrated Passive Devices. With it's own silicon fabrication facility and strong partnerships with full turn-keys assembly houses in Asia, OnChip is offering state-of-the-art silicon and ceramic solutions for High-brightness LED, Computing and Consumer Electronics.

Step by Step

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If you are a web designer than you probably already heard of Step by Step “Microsoft Expression Web” ….If not you need to look into it. The days of Frontpage and Dreamweaver may be limited now that you can use Expression Web. It takes alot of the work out of updating and tweaking sites.

This is the actual description:
The smart way to learn Microsoft Expression Web one step at a time! Work at your own pace through the easy numbered steps, practice files on CD, hands-on exercises, and master the fundamentals of creating effective Web sites. You ll work with advanced design technologies and discover the powerful and easy-to-use Web design experience that Expression Web delivers. You’ll learn how to create professional-looking Web pages, work with powerful design tools and task panes, and incorporate support for XML, Microsoft ASP.NET, Extensible HTML (XHTML), and Web pages built using Microsoft Office FrontPage®. You ll also learn how to build templates, work with sophisticated cascading style sheets and other design features that help you to precisely control your work, and take advantage of built-in support for today s Web standards. With STEP BY STEP, you can take just the lessons you need or work from cover to cover. Either way, you drive the instruction, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Includes an easy-search companion CD with files for practicing the book s lessons, a complete eBook, and more!

I need a book with pics to get the full effect and Chris did the job with this book.

Look for it on Amazon and the author is Chris Leeds

Craigslist & Gumtree

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Everyone wants to sell something or another. With the Internet it has become much easier to find places that you can sell a product and not have to pay to advertise it locally in a newspaper.

With sites like Craigslist and Gumtree you can now post your ad for free and sell whatever you want. Those sites make it easy for you to select a location and put your ad and then sit back and wait for someone to email you or call you. Millions of people visit those ads on a monthly basis and are becoming every more popular. So if you have items that have been laying around forever and you just don’t know what to do with them now you have a place to sell them.

Also, if you are a small business and hampered with advertising rates you need to also utilize Craigslist and Gumtree to post about your business services and what you can provide for others. Posting is still free and still seen by millions.

Of course there are ways to make all of these postings even easier now than before with software programs such as EzAdSuite and EZGumTreePoster . With these programs you can setup your advertising campaigns and not have to deal with the manual way of posting.

Don’t miss out on the free ways to sell items and to advertise your services. They are out there and it’s just a matter of utilizing them.

Daniel Hand is the publisher of Computer Repair Business Lessons Learned. http://www.computerrepairbusiness.net

Computer Repair Business Lessons Learned

 

Running WinsockXPFix.exe Your Window XP PC

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“If your internet connection stops working after removing spyware using adaware or spybot, or because you removed a virus, your TCP/IP stack may have been corrupted. Running WinsockXPFix.exe may correct this problem. WinsockXPfix restores the files associated with connecting to a tcp/ip network. You can download WinsockXPFix.exe” Download from here: http://www.iup.edu/house/resnet/winfix.shtm

A New Resource For Old Equipment: Custom-Manufactured Replacement Circuit Boards

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As the global economy tightens up, more companies are seeking innovative ways to get more life out of their old equipment. One increasingly popular approach is to use replacement PCBs to extend equipment life, add updated capabilities, and enhance system performance.

Glen Arm, MD (PRWEB) December 10, 2007 — It's a familiar story for many small manufacturers. The printed circuit board (PCB) controlling a critical piece of equipment fails, bringing the machine — and an entire production process — to an abrupt halt. Buying new equipment is prohibitively expensive. But replacement PCBs are no longer available, making repair impossible. Until now.

Reverse engineering firms like Armistead Technologies are filling this rapidly emerging need in the market. Armistead Technologies specializes in the design and short-run manufacture of replacement circuit boards.

"We take your worn-out old circuit board, reverse engineer it, update it with new components, and deliver a brand-new board that plugs right into your old equipment," says John Armistead, founder and owner of Armistead Technologies. "Not only is your equipment up and running again, but it also can be repaired easily because all the electronic components on the board are from currently available stock lists."

One bonus to reverse engineering a custom replacement PCB is that functions can be added to extend the capabilities of the system, creating additional efficiencies.

Since 1995, Armistead Technologies has reverse engineered replacement PC boards for clients in the electronics industry as well as manufacturers and even commercial printers. In addition to reverse engineering services, Armistead Technologies also offers custom PCB manufacturing and assembly, making it a one-stop shop for its customers.

"We do it all," Armistead says. "We're not some offshore company that requires an order of several thousand PCBs. We can reverse engineer and manufacture as few as five or ten replacement PCBs. And we handle everything, from design to assembly, right here in the U.S."

Armistead points out that the cost of reverse engineering and manufacturing a few replacement PCBs is a tiny fraction of the cost of replacing an entire piece of equipment. In most cases, the cost savings are dramatic.

"When a system isn't working any more, you might think your only option is to replace the system," he says. "But you can call in someone like me and just replace the PCB, and keep your current system in operation."

About Armistead Technologies, LLC.
Armistead Technologies is an engineering firm based near Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1989 by John Armistead, a graduate electrical engineer from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Armistead Technologies specializes in reverse engineering printed circuit boards, and re-engineering older PCB designs to be compliant with updated standards and compatibilities.

For more information about getting re-engineered replacement PCBs, visit http://www.armisteadtechnologies.com/replacement-boards.shtml or call John Armistead at (410) 627-2408.

New PowerPoint rival uses 3D animation to slash preparation time

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Presentations that blend text with 3-D animation can now be created in minutes with Executive Impact – a new low-cost software package from www.wclass.com.

Ireland (PRWEB) December 10, 2007 – World Class Solutions has just launched a new class of presentation software that combines the advantages of 3D graphics and animation with significantly reduced preparation time. The low-cost package is available from the firm's web site.

"It's called 'Executive Impact' because it's possible to create a complete presentation from scratch in less than 7 minutes", explained CEO Pat Hough. "Most business people don't have enough time to create effective presentations because they're just too busy. This package will help them focus on their message – the most important part of any presentation. The graphics and structure are already built-in."

Executive Impact actively blends 3D graphics with text. "Our aim was to develop something new to give our customers a professional edge. I think they also enjoy the irony that the best-looking presentations now take the least time to create", said Pat Hough. Audiences agree that the results are exceptional – a departure from PowerPoint templates that use graphics only as a backdrop.

World Class Solutions also develops high-end custom presentations. All of the key points in those presentations are illustrated using 3D animated graphics. "First we profile the audience", Pat Hough explained. "Then we fine-tune the graphics to appeal specifically to the decision-makers in the audience. The sequence, the timing and the keywords all have to be carefully chosen for maximum impact. Custom presentations can take between four and six weeks to prepare but the same underlying technology is used in the new product."

Executive Impact is a stand-alone presentation package for Windows XP or Vista. It does not require Microsoft PowerPoint or other presentation software. Each package is based on a single theme and costs €25 + VAT (about US$37). More information is available on the website.

 

Toshiba Unveils Company

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New Portégé M700 Series, Toshiba’s 9th Generation Tablet PC, Provides Mobile Professionals a Powerful and Versatile Solution

IRVINE, Calif. (Business Wire EON/PRWEB ) December 10, 2007 — Building upon its award-winning legacy of Tablet PCs, Toshiba’s Digital Products Division, a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., today announced the Portégé® M700 Tablet PC series. The Portégé M700 is the company’s first Tablet PC to incorporate a touch screen LED backlit display.

  As the ninth generation of Toshiba’s innovative Tablet PC product line, the Portégé M700 series offers enhanced versatility, performance and productivity to attend to the needs of on-the-go professionals, “corridor warriors,” educators and students.

“Toshiba’s Portégé M700 Tablet PC provides mobile professionals with an exceptionally intuitive Tablet PC to meet their mobile computing needs,” said Jeff Barney, vice president of marketing, Digital Products Division, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc. “Building upon many years of successful Toshiba Tablet PC platforms, the Portégé M700 incorporates our customer’s most requested features resulting in Toshiba’s most powerful and versatile Tablet PC to date.”

As Toshiba’s first Tablet PC with a touch screen supporting both fingertip input capabilities and traditional pen-based input, Toshiba’s Portégé M700 empowers users with a more flexible and convenient Tablet PC computing experience. The Portégé M700 detects the presence of a digital pen or a user’s fingertip, automatically switching between the different input methods, with the digital pen given priority when both inputs are simultaneously detected.

The Portégé M700 series incorporates an LED backlit display with anti-glare coating, which allows Toshiba’s new Tablet PC to be viewed in a wide range of environments both indoors and outdoors. The LED backlit display produces superb image quality and rich color saturation indoors. While outdoors the anti-glare display delivers a clear, easy-to-view image.

The resolution offered by the widescreen 12.1-inch WXGA display of Toshiba’s Portégé M700 yields 30 percent more detail than a standard 12.1-inch XGA display. This affords users enhanced clarity for viewing multimedia files and multiple page documents side by side. The Portégé M700 Tablet PC display mirrors the layout of a standard sheet of paper when in portrait mode to give users a familiar writing workspace.

The Portégé M700 series uses high-performance Intel® Centrino Pro processor1 technology, including Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processors2, Intel® 965 Express chipset, Intel® Wireless Wi-Fi Link 4965AGN supporting draft 802.11n3, and Intel® Active Management Technology (AMT 2.6). Intel’s AMT 2.6 delivers the ability to remotely deploy systems and supply proactive security and maintenance measures. This provides the network manager better control of mobile computing assets to minimize user downtime and provide greater efficiency at the office of when traveling.

The Ultra SlimBay® on the Portégé M700 gives users the flexibility to change the configuration of the Tablet PC to adjust to their individual user needs. With support for an internal optical drive, second hard drive or weight saver, the Ultra SlimBay helps eliminate the bulk and inconvenience of carrying additional external components. The Portégé M700 comes with a DVD SuperMulti Drive4 and weight saver as part of the standard configuration.

To simplify the transition from notebook computer to Tablet PC, the Portégé M700 design incorporates an improved hinge and display guide/peg mechanism as well as latch-less design to provide greater ease of use and industry leading stability. This combination of features ensures the display is securely locked into position in both notebook and Tablet PC mode.

The inclusion of the latch-less design enables Toshiba to cleanly integrate a Webcam and microphone on the bezel of the Portégé M700. The 1.3 megapixel Webcam provides mobile professionals the flexibility to communicate face-to-face with colleagues, co-workers and loved ones when out of the office or traveling. The Portégé M700’s Webcam can take still photos, record video clips and record audio notes.

Featuring the full suite of Toshiba’s third-generation EasyGuard™ technology5, the Portégé M700 brings a more reliable and secure mobile computing experience that includes:

  • HDD Protection—Because the hard disk drive (HDD) is one of the most critical Tablet PC components and that a dropped Tablet PC rarely falls in a single linear direction, Toshiba implemented the 3D accelerometer. This mechanism detects the acceleration caused by a sudden fall from multiple directions. The 3D accelerometer helps guard the HDD against awkward accidental drops, including a spinning, falling Tablet PC, by rapidly removing the HDD head from between the HDD platters, better protecting the Portégé M700 in all three rotational dimensions of pitch, roll and yaw.
  • Shock Absorbing Design6—The Portégé M700 Tablet PC features enhanced protection zones that run along all sides of the Tablet PC to help the Portégé M700 better withstand accidental drops. Toshiba also placed reinforced ribs within the rounded edges of the display to better protect critical components including the display and inverter by dissipating energy resulting from accidental bumps or drops. For further durability, Toshiba encased the display with magnesium alloy, a lightweight, rugged material utilized in structural, automotive, industrial and aerospace manufacturing.
  • Spill Resistant Keyboard7—Toshiba improved its spill resistant keyboard to help protect against accidental spills of water and other liquids, including soda and coffee with cream and sugar. This enhanced feature affords users time to save work and shut down the system in the event of an accidental spill — helping to prevent the loss of data.

Additional information about Toshiba’s EasyGuard technology is available at www.EasyGuard.Toshiba.com

In addition to providing a reliable and secure mobile computing experience, Toshiba has incorporated several value-added features, including two “Sleep-and- Charge” USB ports. These ports allow users to charge compatible electronic devices, such as select cell phones or MP3 players whether the system is on or off. The Sleep and Charge USB ports eliminate the bulk and inconvenience of carrying extra chargers to recharge mobile devices. Toshiba’s Portégé M700 is compatible with several Portégé M400 accessories including: Express Port Replicator, digital pen, reserve pen, battery and secondary battery.

The following configurations demonstrate the various specifications and price options available within the Portégé M700 Series:

Portégé M700-S7002 Recommended Configuration (ESUP $1,799)8

— Genuine Windows® Vista™ Business (32-bit version)

— Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T75001

— 2.2GHz, 4MB L2, 800MHz FSB

— 2048 MB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM memory9

— 160GB (5400 RPM) Serial-ATA hard disk drive10

— 12.1-inch diagonal widescreen LED backlit display
— supporting digital pen and touch screen
— Indoor/outdoor display
— Wide viewing angles
— 1280 x 800 (WXGA) native resolution

— Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 with 8MB-251MB dynamically allocated shared graphics memory11

— Integrated DVD SuperMulti (+/-R Double Layer) drive4

— Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n)

— Intel® Pro 82566MM 10/100/1000 Ethernet

— Bluetooth® v.2.0 + EDR

— Integrated 1.3 megapixel Webcam® with built-in microphone

 

Portégé M700-S7001X Recommended Configuration (ESUP $1,699)8

— Genuine Windows® XP Tablet PC Edition 2005

— Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7500

— 2.2GHz, 4MB L2, 800MHz FSB

— 1024 MB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM memory9

— 160GB (5400 RPM) Serial-ATA hard disk drive10

— 12.1-inch diagonal widescreen LED backlit display
— supporting digital pen and touch screen
— Indoor/outdoor display
— Wide viewing angles
— 1280 x 800 (WXGA) native resolution

— Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator X3100

— Integrated DVD SuperMulti (+/-R Double Layer) drive4

— Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n)

— Intel® Pro 82566MM 10/100/1000 Ethernet

— Bluetooth® v.2.0 + EDR

— Integrated 1.3 megapixel Webcam® with built-in microphone

Complete product specifications for all the Portégé M700 models are available at www.sell.toshiba.com or www.toshibadirect.com.

The Portégé M700 series is available with a three year standard, limited warranty12, which includes carry-in support at Authorized Service Providers throughout the country; or customers may utilize any of the 4,460 UPS Stores and Mail Boxes Etc. locations nationwide for packaging and delivery of the product to a centralized depot for prompt turnaround service. Customers can also choose to upgrade the Portégé M700’s service plans, including up to four years of extended warranty coverage.

All new Toshiba notebooks and Tablet PCs are RoHS-compatible13, effectively reducing the environmental impact by restricting the use of lead, mercury and certain other hazardous substances. This coupled with a mercury-free LED backlit display has earned Toshiba’s Portégé M700 the Green Electronics Council’s Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) gold status. To achieve this status, the Portégé M700 had to pass a strict set of criteria created to reduce the impact electronics have on the environment. The Portégé M700 is Toshiba’s sixth mobile computing solutions to earn the EPEAT gold status.

Toshiba also offers a computer trade-in and recycling program to reduce environmental impact and promote efficient utilization of resources. All Toshiba computers qualify for free recycling, while non-Toshiba computers and other consumer electronic products can be recycled for a small fee. For more information please visit: www.reuse.toshiba.com

About Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc. (TAIS)

Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., TAIS is comprised of four business units: Digital Products Division, Imaging Systems Division, Storage Device Division, and Telecommunication Systems Division. Together, these divisions provide mobile products and solutions, including industry leading portable computers; projectors; imaging products for the security, medical and manufacturing markets; storage products for automotive, computer and consumer electronics applications; and telephony equipment and associated applications.

TAIS provides sales, marketing and services for its wide range of information products in the United States and Latin America. TAIS is an independent operating company owned by Toshiba America, Inc., a subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation, which is a global leader in high technology and integrated manufacturing of electrical and electronic components, products and systems, as well as major infrastructure systems. Toshiba has more than 191,000 employees worldwide and annual sales of over US $60 billion (FY2006). For more information on Toshiba’s leading innovations, visit the company’s Web site at www.toshiba.com.

1. Processor. CPU performance may vary. See Processor Legal Footnote at www.info.toshiba.com

2. Intel Core 2 Duo Processor. Intel® Dual Core Technology is a new technology designed to deliver improved performance to the notebook PC. Performance or compatibility may vary. For more information on Intel's Core 2 Duo processors, visit: http://www.intel.com/core2duo/.

3. Draft N Performance Disclaimer. The Intel® Wireless Wi-Fi® Link 4965AGN (802.11a/g/n) adapter is based on a draft release version of the IEEE 802.11n specification, also known as “Draft-N”, which may not be compatible with, or support all features (e.g., security) of, certain Wi-Fi® equipment.

4. Optical Drive. Copy protection technology may prevent or limit recording or viewing of certain optical media (e.g., CD or DVD).

5. EasyGuard. Toshiba EasyGuard™ technology comprises a number of features some of which may or may not be available on a particular Toshiba notebook depending on the model selected. See www.easyguard.toshiba.com for detailed information.

6. Shock Protection. Toshiba’s shock absorption technology provides higher impact protection for your system as compared to Toshiba systems without similar shock protection features based on Toshiba’s drop tests. Toshiba’s standard limited warranty terms and limitations apply. Visit www.warranty.toshiba.com for details.

7. Spill-Resistant Keyboard. Under Toshiba testing conditions, the spill-resistant keyboard delayed the time for a water spill to reach the computer's main board to allow more time to properly close down the machine. Toshiba’s standard limited warranty terms and limitations apply. Visit www.warranty.toshiba.com for details.

8. Price. Reseller prices may vary. ESUP means “Estimated Single Unit Price.”

9. Memory. Memory size may vary. See Memory Legal Footnote at www.info.toshiba.com.

10. Hard Disk Drive Capacity. Hard drive capacity may vary. 1 Gigabyte (GB) means 109 = 1,000,000,000 bytes using powers of 10. See Hard Disk Drive Capacity Legal Footnote at www.info.toshiba.com

11. Graphics. GPU performance may vary. See Graphics Legal Footnote at www.info.toshiba.com

12. Warranty. The terms and conditions of Toshiba’s standard limited warranty, extended warranty and service upgrade terms and conditions are available at www.warranty.toshiba.com.

13. RoHS This product is compatible with European Union Directive 2002/95/EC. See RoHS legal footnote at www.info.toshiba.com

© 2007 Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc. All product, service and company names are trademarks, registered trademarks or service marks of their respective owners. Information including without limitation product prices, specifications, availability, content of services, and contact information is subject to change without notice.

CompUSA to Close

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(TheForceField.net ) December 7, 2007 — CompUSA, known for its mix or computer, accessories and other electronic products, is closing all of its 103 stores beginning in January. The company plans to liquidate its inventory during the holidays with closing sales.

CompUSA, managed my Mexican financier Carlos Slim Helu, closed half its stores this spring, had been struggling for several years. The company recently sold to a subsidiary of restructuring firm Gordon Brothers Group.

The company will sell certain stores that are still profitable. The rest will be closed.

 

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Data Clean Corporation Offers Test Kit to Aid in the Identification of Tin Whiskers

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A self-administered Tin Whisker Test Kit helps determine if Tin Whiskers are present.

Des Plaines, IL (PRWEB) December 6, 2007 — Data Clean Corporation now offers a self-administered Tin Whisker test kit to help identify the presence of Tin Whiskers. The Tin Whisker test kit is a natural extension of product offerings from Data Clean, a known specialist in Zinc Whisker identification and remediation.

Tin Whiskers and Zinc Whiskers are tiny metallic crystalline growths believed caused by stress at the molecular level. Phenomena within the Tin or Zinc plating on many common metal components causes the molecules to align in such a way to produce tiny growths, or whiskers, on the surface. These fuzz-like pure metal growths can easily break off, become airborne, and enter sensitive electronic systems such as computers, servers, and telephone systems.

The metallic whiskers can cause electronic failures. From fighter jets to missiles and nuclear plants to commercial satellites, reports of malfunctioning electronics caused by Tin Whiskers are well-publicized.

Tin is a good conductor of electricity and is commonly used to plate the leads of electronic components and wires. If whiskers come to rest on exposed tin plated circuitry, short circuits and failures are likely. "Inside a Data Center, a commonly reported symptom of whisker contamination [Zinc Whiskers is a high incidence of power supply failure", reports Rich Hill, President of Data Clean Corporation.

Although the exact cause of whisker growth remains a mystery, there are various metallurgical methods used to attenuate growth. The electronics industry has historically used a mixture of tin and lead to plate electronic leads to make the leads more solderable and to prevent Tin Whisker growth. Recent lead-free initiatives (RoHS) in the European market and the subsequent return to pure tin plating in electronics are leaving many with questions as to whether their products are growing whiskers.

Data Clean's Tin Whisker test kit includes a labeled sample container(s), instructions for collecting a sample, a record sheet, and analysis of each sample. After a sample is collected by the customer, it is sent to the laboratory for professional analysis.

The analysis utilizes Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive Radiation to review both the geometry and elemental makeup of the sample. The analysis is able to distinguish between simple tin particles, common to almost all tin plated materials, and the dangerous tin whiskers.

Data Clean Corporation cautions users. The test is intended to confirm the presence of Tin Whiskers at the time and location the sample is collected. Whiskers could be growing on other components, not tested. And an object that shows no signs of Tin Whiskers could grow whiskers later.

About Data Clean Corporation

Data Clean Corporation, a leader in controlled environment cleaning and maintenance services, helps administrators of data centers, cleanrooms, environmental test chambers, laboratories, and computer rooms avoid the high cost of contamination.

In addition to Zinc and Tin Whisker testing, Data Clean takes a holistic approach to controlled environments by offering specialized cleaning services, cooling analysis/hot spot remediation, access floor repairs, contamination source identification, and related product offerings.

Headquartered in Des Plaines, Illinois, Data Clean Corporation is a global company with sales offices in the US, Canada, Asia, and Europe.

For more information visit www.dataclean.com or call (800) 328-2256.