Resident DVD expert Flash has started a new series looking at common questions around the theme of DVD writing. His fourth article answers the question that is often asked: how do I set up my Dolby 5.1 surround speakers? If you have a question you would like Flash to answer please please email him.

Microsoft has decided that guitarist Robert Fripp’s work on the opening tune for Vista is so good it will be compulsory and won't be able to be switched off.

The RIAA is fighting against a woman who wants an independent expert to examine her hard drive to prove that she was not involved in any illegal downloading.

Toshiba has confirmed that it will launch its first HD-DVD player in Europe on 15 November. The 599 euro (£400) HD-E1 will be released two days before rival Blu-ray players, which are available within Sony's new PlayStation 3 console.

Pretec, world record holder of the highest capacity flash memory cards of CF card (12GB, March 2004), USB Flash Drive (8GB, January 2005), SD card (4GB, July 2005) and MMC (4GB, September 2005), has now released the 1st 16GB USB Flash Drive, the highest capacity thumb drive in the world, at IFA 2006.

Lite-On IT started volume production of 18x DVD burners in July of this year and expects shipments of such burners to begin to increase next quarter, according to industry sources, who noted that Sony launched a 18x Super Multi model in Europe last month and Pioneer will also offer a 18x DVD burner.

Nero has unveiled waht it claims is a major worldwide update to its premier Nero 7 digital media software suite.

Sony will release the "BNR50A" dual-layer BD-R media on September 15. The media is expected to cost in Japan 4,500 Yen ($39, £20).

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Pioneer presented plans for upcoming Blu-Ray burners at the IFA 2006, saying that that they are planning a hybrid drive that can play Blu-ray and HD DVD discs for 2007.

Philips is building on its heritage as a leader in optical storage technology to bring Blu-ray Disc to the consumer marketplace.

HP has unleashed a team of boffins backed by an army of lawyers to search for those who have stolen the secret formulas behind its printer ink.

Greenpeace has slammed the maker of computer and entertainment gear, Apple for poisoning the environment.

The outfit demonstrated the technology on a bus moving at up to 60 kilometres per hour and it managed to transfer at a speed of up to 100 Mbps between mobile transmitters and receivers. This is 50 times faster than current mobile WiMAX technology.

Apple fans laughing at Microsoft's DRM being cracked by software called Fairuse will be strangely quiet today after it has been revealed that an Apple version has been made available.

Google is making waves in the publishing industry by offering free PDFs of out-of-copyright books.

CMC Magnetics, among the five leading makers of optical disc drives (ODDs) in Taiwan, was the only maker that recorded profitability with a net earnings per share (EPS) of NT$0.06, according to financial reports released by the makers.

Warner Home Video said on Wednesday it will release 10 high-definition titles on September 26, including six in the Blu-ray format and four in the competing HD-DVD format.

The largest record company in the world is taking on Apple’s iTunes by offering free, advertising-supported music downloads.

Microsoft has said it is working to close a breach of its technology that protects music digital files from copyright infringement.