Hanover  - Setting up a home internet network may not be your idea of fun, but there's one consolation. If you set it up from scratch, you can set up a system best suited for transmitting pictures, music and other computer data from inside your own four walls.

If you're building a brand new home or undertaking a complete renovation, laying local area network (LAN) cables and network boxes is advisable. If you're adding a network to an existing home, your choice is between LAN, wireless LAN, an optical fibre network or making use of the house's existing power network to transmit information.

Hanover  - Microsoft has released a beta version of Windows 7 for consumers, but computer experts recommend trying it out only in controlled environments.

"Checking it out is fun," says Axel Vahldiek of c', a German computer magazine. But since it still has security gaps, use of the beta version should be limited to controlled environments. That means users should not store any vital data on computers using the test version of Windows 7.

Munich  - Western Digital has beaten its rivals to the punch with the first hard drive capable of holding two terabytes (TB) of data.

The 3.5-inch SATA hard drive of the WD20EADS classification expands the WD Caviar Green line. The device houses four memory chips, each with a capacity of 500 gigabytes. Packed with a 32- megabyte memory cache, it is available for 300 euros (385.50 dollars), the company reported in Munich.

By utilizing variable revolution speeds and intelligent intermediate storage, the company says the new drive offers energy savings of four to five watts over drives that don't belong to its Green line.

Washington, Feb 21 : Touch screens could soon be history, for scientists have developed a new communication platform, called the `iPoint 3D', that just requires users to mover their hands in the air to do a variety of tasks-such as switching on the light, turning the stove on/off, and viewing any image from all angles.

Using the iPoint 3D, people can communicate with a 3-D display through simple gestures, and that too without touching it and without 3-D glasses or a data glove.

Asus has rolled out its new Eee PC 1002HA netbook in the Indian market.

Targeting at professional travelers, the newly launched netbook weighs just 1.2kg (with battery), and has dimensions of 264mm (W) x 181mm (B) x 27.6mm (H).

The compact and lightweight Eee PC 1002HA netbook works on Super Hybrid Engine (SHE), which reduces the power usage by 15 percent. It has 160 GB of hard disk drive with the advanced 10GB ASUS Eee online storage facilities.

The black-colored netbook comes with a 10 inch LED backlight display with a resolution of 1024×600.

Leading commercial note book maker, HP India launched a new Elite Book Notebook PC series, targeting high class business professionals in corporate sector.

The notebooks, with 15 hour battery life, are provided with all day to day use facilities and designed to withstand instant temperature increase, vibrations and humidity problems, using cutting edge technology in its manufacturing process.