Bulk CD Copying

CD Copying is a great way to back-up data or create mass-marketing material such as catalogues. Bulk CD copying  is performed on industrial CD copying equipment. This may consist of a tower of CD recorders which receive data from a master-computer. Some CD copying equipment is loaded manually but newer machine have a robotic CD transfer arm which can add blank CDRs to the CD tray and remove the burned CDs, adding them to a stack. The automated process is much more reliable and ensures that large orders can be fulfilled on time.

Labelling of CDs has come a long way also. No longer are you left hunting around for a half-working permanent marker to write illegibly on the disc. Some CD burners will use a system known as LightScribe, which uses the  the writing laser to burn your image design into the top-surface of the CD.

A quicker alternative is use a sticky paper label which is stuck on the CD. This has the advantage of being easy to print using conventional printing techniques, cheap and fast. For the highest-quality printing, full-colour CD labels can be silk screen printed on large orders but is expensive and best used on large batches of CDs or those that are required to last for more than seven years.

Self-Organising DNA Helps Create More Closely Spaced Devices

Small pieces of DNA known as DNA Origami have been made to self-organise onto silicon forming the scaffolding for new electronic components.  Current micro fabrication techniques can create surface features with a spacing of 45nm. Creating the transistors and electronic components closer together will ultimately lead to faster computers.

In this image, we see the DNA origami looking like the triangular shaped spaghetti hoops. The hope is that the DNA can be used to manipulate the tiny parts that will go into future devices such as carbon nanotubes. The DNA origami can be made to fill regularly spaced holes etched into the silicon carrying their cargo when they are added to liquid and this is made to contact the sillicon.

As microfibrication techniques move to a smaller scale the cost of fabrication becomes increasingly more expensive as features must be resolved using light of smaller wavelengths. The components features are made from the top down. This new technique has the scope to create parts and then introduce them to the substrate. A more bottom up approach if you will. This research and has a great deal of potential but to develop the process to a useful stage, where it might be used on a large scale may take more than ten years.

Microsoft Banned from Selling Word

A court in Texas has banned the sale of Microsoft’s word processing software Word due to patent infringement by the Canadian company i4i. In addition to banning sale of the product, it has also been fined £175 million.

The patent infringement corncerns the use of XML files to store documents. XML is a mark-up language like HTML but one in which users can define their own tags to stand for parts of the document suhc as price or product. XML is used in Open Source word processing software such as Open Office.

The injunction prohibits microsoft from importing and selling any Word product into the United States which can open XML files, .docx or docm.

Microsoft have 60-days to comply with the ruling but issued a statement that it will be appealling the decision.

CD Duplication

CD duplication can provide an inexpensive service for your business with a fast turn around. Typically upto 500 discs can be produced in a 24 hour turn around time and with duplication offering many benefits to the small business from creating backups of important data to producing large numbers of catalogues or product data for distribution to your potential customers.

How does it work? Much like your traditional CD burner that you have on your home computer or laptop except on a larger scale. Companies that offer this service have towers of CD burners allowing them to replicate a CD many times in a short time.

While a traditional CD burnner is great for producing a single disc, a CD replication company can offer the facility to have colored artwork printed on the top surface. Recently, developments in the MagicWrite disc allow the user to actually use the CD burner to create a printed image on the specially coated surface of the disc. However, while this is an improvement on simply writing on the top of the disc with a perminent pen, it is still not up to the impressive standard of surface printing that can be produced by commercial screen printing techniques.

British Technology Love Affair

Britons love technology so much that they are willing to cut back on spending on holidays and eating out or at least this is the conclusion of an annual review by Ofcom. Spending on mobile  phones, internet and TV is more important than everything except food according to the survey of some 862 people. When asked how they would be cutting back spending during  the recession, 47% said eating out, 41% cutting back on DIY projects, 41% on holidays compared with 19% who said they would cut back on mobile phone spending, 16% tv subscriptions and 10% broadband services. The study also showed the increase in social networking use. It shows we really love our tech in the UK.

Your own Satelite in Orbit for $8000

A company is offering personal satellites which will be sent into low Earth Orbit for the interestingly low price of $8000. (4,751 GBP) . The interorbital tube satellites will be sold in kit form and contain the parts for a satellite that can be picked up on HAM radio. The satellite kit contains:

• Casing, endplates and Mounting hardward
• A transceiver
• A battery pack
• Solar Cells
• Power management control system (PMCS)
• Microcomputer
• Software
• Antennas
• Safety switches
• complete instructions

Up to 32 satellites can be launched on a single rocket into a polar orbit. To prevent the build up of dangerous space junk, after a few months the satellites will fall back to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere. As well as the equipment included there is also some space in left for your own experiments. A maximum mass of 0.200 kg  is available. More information can be found at the company web-page.