Education, and Tutorial ......

computer room

Computer, Internet and more...

Gateway releases 16-inch MC series laptops


Gateway on Monday released its first 16-inch laptops, the MC7801u and the MC7803u. With a 16:9 aspect ratio screen, 16-inch (and 18-inch) models are beginning to emerge.

Unlike traditional 16:10 laptop displays, a 16:9 screen matches the ratio of movies and HD content. Similar to the redesigned MacBook, the display on Gateway's MC series laptops features a glossy glass overlay that runs edge to edge. The 16-inch screen features a 1366x768 resolution; you'll need to bump up to an 18-inch model for 1080p playback.

The $950 MC7801u features a 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T5800 CPU, 4GB of DDR2 RAM, 64-bit Vista Home Premium, and a 320GB hard drive. So what don't you get on this sub-$1,000 laptop? You miss out Intel's latest Centrino 2 platform, and the laptop relies on integrated Intel GMA 4500MHD graphics.


A second model in the 16-inch MC series, the $1,000 MC7803u, will feature a dedicated 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 graphics card. Providing the MC models with a distinctive look, a thin pleather strip runs down the middle of the lid. The lower-end MC7801u features a burgundy lid, and the higher-end MC7803u features a black lid.

Other features include HDMI and VGA ports, backlit keyboard and multimedia controls, Webcam, DVD burner, Draft N Wi-Fi and Gigabit Ethernet, four USB 2.0 ports, and ExpressCard and media card slots.

The Gateway MC7801u is being sold through Best Buy and is included in our holiday retail laptop roundup. Look for our review next week.

Posted by Gans - computer blogger at 12:17 AM 0 comments
Labels: Gateway releases 16-inch MC series laptops

Visiting card

Visiting cards also known as calling cards first appeared in China in the 15th century, and in Europe in the 17th century. The footmen of aristocrats and of royalty would deliver these first European visiting cards to the servants of their prospective hosts solemnly introducing the arrival of their owners.

Visiting cards became an indispensable tool of etiquette, with sophisticated rules governing their use. The essential convention was that one person would not expect to see another person in their own home (unless invited or introduced) without first leaving their visiting card with the person at their home. Upon leaving the card, they would not expect to be admitted at first, but might receive a card at their own home in response. This would serve as a signal that a personal visit and meeting at home would not be unwelcome. On the other hand, if no card was forthcoming in return, or if a card were sent in an envelope, a personal visit was thereby discouraged. As an adoption from French and English etiquette, visiting cards became common amongst the aristocracy of Europe, and also in the United States. The whole procedure depended upon there being servants to open the door and receive the cards and it was, therefore, confined to the social classes which employed servants.

Some visiting cards included refined engraved ornaments and fantastic coats of arms. However, the standard form visiting card in the 19th century in the United Kingdom was a plain card with nothing more than the bearer's name on it. Sometimes the name of a gentlemen's club might be added, but addresses were not otherwise included.

The visiting card is no longer the universal feature of upper middle class and upper class life that it once was in Europe and North America. Much more common is the business card, in which contact details, including address and telephone number, are essential. This has led to the inclusion of such details even on modern domestic visiting cards, a practice endorsed by modern books of etiquette, such as Debrett's New Etiquette.

Among officers in the military, at least in the United States, the use of calling cards and the paying of social calls on superior officers is still customary. It is still somewhat common in the U.S. Navy and very common in the U.S. Marine Corps, which tends to be the most "traditional" of the U.S. Armed Services. The use of visiting cards is optional in the U.S. Army today and regulations state that "there should be no directives or requirements for individuals to purchase visiting cards". Current U.S. Marine Corps calling cards are 1.625 by 3.25 inches and are always plain white pasteboard; the traditional size, according to U.S. Army Regulations, is 1.5 by 3.25 inch