COMPUTER NEWS & TRENDS Full-function mini-notes from HP and ASUS      To help schools offer affordable computing to every student, HP has introduced a full-function, mini-notebook PC priced starting under USD500.      Designed for the education market, the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC is flexible enough for students to use from the classroom to the family room.      At slightly more than two and one-half pounds, the HP Mini is smaller and lighter than many math or science books. It includes a suite of wireless, multimedia and security capabilities to allow students to learn everywhere they go – from class to home, from field trips to vacations.      Business and mobile professionals value the same mobility, usability and cost concerns of the education market. The HP Mini provides mobile professionals a sleek, lightweight device that provides access to information and the ability to collaborate with others as well as to communicate via email, instant messaging or even blogging.      The HP Mini is packed with a combination of features to boost productivity and improve the overall mobile experience, including simple, refined design and anodized aluminum shell that is sleek and sturdy yet lightweight; HP DuraKeys featuring a clear coating applied over the notebook keyboard that protects the finish and printed letters and characters; an HP 3D DriveGuard, which sends a signal to shut down the hard drive upon sudden movement or shock by using a three-axis digital accelerometer chip.      Scratch-resistant display and magnesium hinge bracket; a large 8.9-inch diagonal WXGA display, user-friendly full keyboard (QWERTY) and touchpad; ability to view video, still-image capture, web conferencing or video-enhanced instant messaging with no additional hardware to buy or carry, and an optional integrated VGA webcam enables video and still-image capture to allow the addition of photos and video clips to presentations, documents and email.      The mini notebook comes with two battery solutions: three-cell for lightest-weight configurations or optional six-cell for longer battery life.      Wireless technologies such as integrated Wi-Fi Certified WLAN and optional Bluetooth, allowing students to access the Internet as well as communicate via email, IM, chat, VOIP and blogging is also offered. The wireless technologies also enable connections at hotspots as well as with Bluetooth devices such as printers, mice and headsets; and an optional Absolute Software’s Computrace allows IT professionals to work with local law enforcement to track and help recover stolen or missing computers, inventory computers district wide and detect changes in hardware and software.      HP also announced the development of the Teacher Experience Exchange, an online community sponsored by the company and Microsoft to provide educators a one-stop resource to discuss, share and learn with other educators. At the exchange, www.hp.com/go/teacherexperience, teachers also can access tutorials for teaching with technology in the classroom.      To help K-12 teachers effectively integrate new technology in the classroom, HP also plans to provide free, online professional development courses designed to engage students and improve student achievement through the use of technology. ASUS upgrades the Eee PC      Amid the buzz of reaching a new milestone of 1 million Eee PCs sold in just 5 months after its launch, ASUS has provided yet another round of excitement with its release of the new Eee PC 900.      This new generation of the ever popular PC packs in a whole range of hardware that includes a 8.9 inch widescreen, a 1.3M pixels webcam, the new innovative FingerGlide and 12GB and 20GB storage capacities for Windows and Linux platforms respectively-----catering to wider consumer needs while still maintaining the “Easy to learn, work and play” concept by keeping the overall weight under 1kg.      Mobility is one of the major factors attributed to the Eee PC’s success; and this is in part due to the use of the built-in Solid State Disk (SSD) technology-----which offers a quiet, energy saving and shock proof design for stable computing on-the-go.      Traditional hard disks spin at 5400 RPM (Revolutions per Minute), making them more prone to data loss or damage if shocks or bumps are received.      Conversely, the Eee PC is able to protect against such incidents, and is the perfect tool for outdoor computing-----suitable as an ideal companion for reporters, wildlife photographers and other like-minded outdoor enthusiasts.      “Vital feedback from a wide variety of users have been received, which has spurred us on to create more options to cater to different user requirements.” said Jerry Shen, CEO of ASUS.      Through extensive R&D, the inclusion of the 8.9” display screen does not affect the overall weight of the Eee PC 900, which remains below 1kg, making it easy for children and women to carry it around; and maintains the ultra portable theme that has become synonymous with the Eee PC.      With this large screen size of 8.9”, a resolution of 1024 x 600 is achieved, allowing users to view a single A4 page without the need to scroll left or right and making it much easier and more effective when reading or working on documents.      The new Eee PC will also incorporate an innovative FingerGlide feature that makes operating the Eee PC easy and convenient. For example, with just two simple finger movements on the touchpad, users will be able to zoom in and out of pictures (great for looking at image details), or scroll up and down for easier document viewing.      Furthermore, the Eee PC 900 pairs a 1.3M Pixel webcam with its wireless Internet connection capabilities for web conferences anywhere, anytime for easier web communications and increased work efficiency.      To suit differing user requirements, the Eee PC 900 comes in both Microsoft Windows and Linux versions.      The Microsoft Windows version allows more experienced users to seamlessly utilize the Eee PC through the familiar Windows interface, and incorporates Windows Live features like Windows Live Messenger for instant messaging; and Windows Live Mail for consolidated email accounts on the user´s desktop. Complementing this is Microsoft Works, which equips the user with numerous office applications to work efficiently.      The Linux version is useful for users who desire an icon-driven and easy point-and-click interface. Well suited for children or users without any computer experience, it provides a fast boot-up time-----ideal for fast Internet access while waiting for public transport, or taking notes on-the-go.