Community team coordinator on the European MotorStorm forums, "Lestrade" writes that an update for the game will be coming "in the next couple of weeks." The update will be free and is required to play the game online.

The patch, which bumps up the game to version 1.2, will address several issues, including a bug that allowed racers to exploit the boost, an increase in the size of the buddy list, better online performance, audio issues, and more.

NVIDIA has released new WHQL certified 8 Series ForceWare driver version 158.18 that adds support for GeForce 8600 GTS, GeForce 8600 GT, GeForce 8500 GT, GeForce 8400 GS, and GeForce 8300 GS GPUs. This version offers increased performance in 3D applications. Please read the release notes for more information.

Windows Vista 32-bit (30.4 MB)
Windows Vista 64-bit (43MB)

NVIDIA has released new beta 100.14.03 Linux driver that adds support for the newer GeForce 8 series graphics cards. Specifically, the NVIDIA 100.14.03 display driver adds official support for the GeForce 8600GTS, 8600GT, 8500GT, 8400GS, and the 8300GS. Download the new Linux 100.14.03 driver from here.

AMD/ATI has released new official drivers for ATI based video cards. This release of Catalyst has improved OpenGL performance under the Microsoft Vista operating system for all Radeon X1000 series of products, in both single card and hardware CrossFire configurations. Typical improvements of 15% or more can be seen in games such as Doom 3, Quake 4 and Prey, with enthusiast class of products seeing improvements of 30% or more. This release of Catalyst also adds the Avivo Video Converter for Windows Vista (32-bit). Head over the AMD/ATI download section and select the proper Catalyst driver for your operating system and video card.

We told you about NVIDIA's the updated Windows Vista drivers yesterday. It came to our attention that the driver suite for Windows XP, the Media Center Edition and Windows 2003 was updated as well and leads in the term of version number. It now officially supports the recently released 8300/8400/8500/8600 cards and delivers increased 3D performance as usual. Please remember this driver is still in a beta state!

Windows XP / Windows XP Media Center Edition 32-bit (39.2 MB)
Windows XP Professional x64 Edition /Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (39.2 MB)

NVIDIA Updates Vista ForceWare Drivers

NVIDIA has updated its Vista ForceWare display drivers for all GeForce 6, 7 and 8 cards, for both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the OS. This takes the version number up to 158.18 - the drivers are still listed as being beta whilst NVIDIA continues to improve them, but they are the official drivers available through the main downloads section of the site so should be stable. You can view the range of fixes below, although there are no new features in this release.

The 32-bit download is available here (30.2MB) and the 64-bit download is available here (42.7MB).

Anyone who uses Windows Vista and Mozilla Firefox may be pleased to hear that the Windows Media Player team has now released a plugin for Firefox that should allow the browser to play WMP content on websites. Here are the steps to get it working:

• Installation of the Windows Media Player Firefox Plugin may require administrative access to your PC. It is recommended that you close all other open browser windows before continuing with the installation.
• Click the Install button to automatically download and install the Windows Media Player Firefox Plugin.
• Depending on your security settings, you may see a Security Warning dialog box. Click Install to install the plugin.

There is a known issue if you are using Firefox version 2.0.0.3 on Windows Vista with the installer failing with error code -203. To work around this simply restart Firefox (you will get a notification that Windows Vista will be changing the Firefox compatibility settings) and then install again - the second time should succeed.

The download is available here, and the new plugin works on all versions of Windows XP and Windows Vista (although it is mostly intended for Vista, as that currently has no WMP support in Firefox).

We told about NVIDIAs latest driversuite yesterday but people who actually used these new drivers report about stability problems of some sort. So be careful when installing the 101.70 with it's new control panel. It's needless to say that this is actually a leaked beta.ForceWare 101.70 for Vista 64bit and ForceWare 101.70 for Vista 32bit
Thanks to Guru3D for hosting!

Opera Software just finished the version 9.20 of its popular browser. The new main feature is Speed Dial, the fastest and easiest way to access your favorite sites. Speed Dial allows you to transform your top nine sites into visual favorites that are immediately available in any new tab. Of course the new version comes with the famous BitTorrent downloading support, the possibility to customize your own search engine and the Widgets, Small Web applications (multimedia, newsfeeds, games and more) that make your desktop experience more fun.Download your version over here: Opera Download Website

DirectX 9.0c has now been updated for April to fix minor issues - this isn't a vital update, but it's recommended for those who are keen to keep their Windows install up-to-date or for those experiencing any problems with 3D applications.

Download: DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer [45 KB - 36.6 MB]
Download: DirectX Redist Runtimes [48.9 MB]
Download: DirectX SDK [441 MB]
Download: DirectX SDK: Symbol Files [36.1 MB]

Most users will only need to use the web installer, but any Vista users updating DirectX will need to download the redistributable (it isn't listed as being supported by the web installer) - it's unclear whether any DirectX 10 updates are included.

Microsoft has released an updated version of its MS07-017 patch that fixes some incompatibility problems with the animated cursor vulnerability patch. Early installers of the original 925902(MS07-017) patch that was issued on Tuesday reported seeing error messages with their Realtek HD Audio Control panel. In addition to Realtek, users of three lesser known programs could be affected. Those programs are ElsterFormular, TUGZip and CD-Tag. Microsoft says the problem appears because of the user32.dll and the hhctrl.ocx files have the same memory address after the patch. You can download the updated 935448 patch from here.

NVIDIA has updated the display drivers for users with GeForce 8800 series cards running on Windows XP. Some minor issues have been fixed issues including the media player hanging when playing MPEG2 HD video clips using overlay in 1080i and then switching to full screen mode, system crashes after four or more suspend/resume cycles and screen corruption when running Company of Heroes in SLI mode. You can download these drivers here.

Forum users at Broadband Reports have posted some problems with Microsoft's new patch for Vista. The KB925902 patch, which was supposed to fix vulnerabilities including the cursor exploit, is reportedly creating issues including stopping antivirus software such as AVG and F-Secure loading correctly, causing false positives of a Trojan, and even preventing users booting entirely. Although this isn't yet a widely documented problem, it may be best to delay patching Vista until the matter becomes a little clearer. Apparently the news poster at neowin.net also experienced this problem, with one of the two computers he installed the patch on failing to boot.

Relating to Firingsquad.com, NVIDIA will release a new S.T.A.L.K.E.R. optimized graphics driver for the GeForce 8 series next week. The new optimized driver should increase the performance especially on GeForce 8800GTX cards, because these cards aren't much faster than their "little brother", the 8800GTS, when playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. with current available drivers. Additionally the new driver should provide the missing SLI-functionality in the game.

As we reported earlier EA promised to address a number of technical issues present in Command and Conquer 3. They kept their promise and here is the official Patch 1.02:
ENGLISH | GERMAN Standard Edition | GERMAN Kane Edition | SPANISH | FRENCH | ITALIAN | SWEDISH | HUNGARIAN | CZECH | DUTCH | KOREAN | POLISH | RUSSIAN | THAI | CHINESE_S | CHINESE_T

Developed for the PC by the Company's world-renowned development studio Firaxis Games, Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword will be the second expansion pack for Civilization IV - the 2005 PC Game of the Year and a major commercial success, selling over 1.5 million units worldwide since its October 2005 release. The expansion will focus on the late-game time periods after the invention of gunpowder and will deliver 12 challenging and decidedly different scenarios created by the development team at Firaxis Games, as well as members of the Civilization Fan Community. Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword will also include ten new civilizations, 16 new leaders, five new wonders, and a variety of new units that will offer even more fun and exciting ways for players to expand their civilization's power as they strive for world domination. Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword will be available in July 2007.

AMD/ATI has released this month's version of its display driver for the Radeon 9500 series and higher cards, taking the version number to 7.3. The driver is available for both Windows XP and Windows Vista, on 32-bit and 64-bit systems, with each requiring a different download. New features include OpenGL CrossFire support for Windows Vista, as well as other crossfire enhancements for Windows Vista which could see X1000 series cards gain performance improvements of up to 60%. There are obviously a number of other small issues that have been resolved in Vista and XP, but nothing too major.

Download links:

• Windows XP 32-bit
• Windows XP 64-bit
• Windows Vista 32-bit
• Windows Vista 64-bit

Largest Software Release in Adobe's 25-year History Revolutionizes Creative Workflows

SAN JOSE, Calif. - March 27, 2007 - Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced the Adobe Creative Suite 3 product line, a revolutionary offering of tightly integrated, industry-leading design and development tools for virtually every creative workflow. Adobe's new Creative Suite 3 line-up unites the best of Adobe and Macromedia product innovation to provide designers and developers with a broad spectrum of creative options for all facets of print, web, mobile, interactive, film, and video production. There are six all-new configurations of Adobe Creative Suite 3. These include, Adobe Creative Suite 3 Design Premium and Design Standard editions; Adobe Creative Suite 3 Web Premium and Web Standard editions; and Adobe Creative Suite 3 Production Premium (see separate releases). Rounding out the product line is Adobe Creative Suite Master Collection which combines 12 of Adobe's new design and development applications in a single box-the most comprehensive creative environment ever delivered.

This is the first patch released for the long awaited S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Shadow of Chernobyl fixing a list of more than 68 different game issues. There are different versions of the patch for the different SKU's released worldwide and for the Digital Distribution version. Be carefull which one you use. Please note that Saved games from previous versions will NOT work with the patch. Please click here, read the patch description and download it if you want.

New version 3.3 of the NVIDIA BIOS Editor (NiBiTor) software, has just been released. NiBiTor is the original and definitive BIOS tweaker that supports the latest NVIDIA graphics cards, and which is updated on a regular basis. NiBiTor allows graphics card enthusiasts, or the hardcore overclockers to have full control over some advanced features and functionality found on firmware of supporting cards. This version has added support for the 8800 series as well as some minor bug fixes.

Download: NVIDIA BIOS Editor (NiBiTor) v3.3

The March 2007 Windows Vista Application Compatibility Update is a package of software updates that address common application compatibility issues in Windows Vista. When you try to install and run certain legacy games or applications in Windows Vista, you may experience one or more of the following symptoms: The game, the application, or the firmware may not be installed correctly, may cause system instability, or may not work correctly.

Download: Windows Vista Application Compatibility Update March 2007

Mozilla has issued another minor update to its Firefox 2.0 web browser. New for Firefox 2.0.0.3 is a single security fix that patches up a hole in the browser's FTP PASV functionality. Also new in 2.0.0.3 are fixes to improve Web site compatibility. Firefox users can download the 2.0.0.3 updater from Mozilla's homepage or use the auto update function within the browser.

Linux/Unix (*nix) users have probably heard all about Gnome by now. Gnome is a window manager for the X Window system. Window managers allow *nix users that would otherwise be looking at command line or the rather bland X Windows system to use something much more elegant, which may even surpass Windows or Macintosh's various window managers in functionality, efficiency, and beauty. Back to Gnome. The makers of Gnome have ensured that they would stay on a timetable for releases, and 2.18 rolled out just in time. Gnome 2.18 adds a laptop power manager for mobile users, improves window managing between two windows, and vastly improves security. If you're really interested in all the changes from the previous version of Gnome, you can read the full release notes here.

Those of you using *nix (such as the techPowerUp! FreeBSD club) who enjoy the clean Gnome environment can download the latest version here.

After a day spent in preflashing my new Sony PSP, it seems appropiate for me to inform you that an upcoming system update of the PlayStation 3 firmware to version 1.6 will give users the ability to download files from the PlayStation Network in the background. Currently, PlayStation 3 owners must halt all activity and remain focused on the download progress bar. Any attempt at another operation on the console will cancel the download, which is non-resumable. Another recently announced feature to be included in the 1.60 update is the introduction of Folding@home functionality, giving owners of a PS3 the opportunity to use their new game system to help find real-life cures to diseases such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, cystic fibrosis and many cancers. Version 1.60 will also improve the Web browsing ability of the PS3. The update will bring zooming and new resolution settings for easier surfing, plus a full-sized keyboard on-screen for more convenient text entry. The release date of the new firmware is March 22 2007.

Microsoft quietly rolled out SP2 for Windows Server 2003 today as part of its critical updates list. Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2) is a cumulative service pack that includes the latest updates and provides enhancements to security and stability. In addition, it adds new features and updates to existing Windows Server 2003 features and utilities. The SP2 update can be applied to all Windows Server 2003/Windows XP Professional x64 Edition products.