While handymen can handle many household repairs, they might not be licensed for some projects, like plumbing or electrical work.

If he or she isn’t licensed, hire a specialized contractor who is, or you could be liable for damages. Or, if you try to sell the home, you could pay more to fix the issue so it meets local code requirements.

Large projects that take time, machinery and multiple workers, such as a kitchen remodel or home addition, often require a general contractor’s license. These projects often necessitate multiple types of licensing and levels of expertise.

A qualified handyman, though, can often tackle in one visit several smaller projects that don’t require licensing.

“A remodeling contractor and handyman are essentially the same thing in terms of ability,” says Dirk Hoerr, president of Budget Right Kitchens in Oak Park, Ill. “Where a remodeling contractor and a handyman typically differ is the size and the scope of the work they perform.”

THE HANDYMAN CAN

Handymen usually charge by the day or hour. They’re often cheaper than a contractor because most small projects don’t require multiple workers, and usually don’t have much overhead cost.

Some states limit how much a contractor can do. In California, a handyman can perform up to $500 of work, including parts and labor. Because California doesn’t offer specific licensing for handymen, any handyman who wants to surpass that limit must hold state licensing in the area of ​​work he or she is doing. For example, a handyperson who does a bathroom remodel with minor plumbing work and floor installation would have to hold both plumbing and flooring contractor licenses to charge more than $500 for that project.

The cost of a handyman project can range from $75 to $5,000 or more, depending on the scope, but many are as low as $50 to $400, according to member reports.

TIPS FOR HIRING A HANDYMAN OR CONTRACTOR

Before hiring, interview several candidates. For handymen, pick one who you’re comfortable with, because you’ll be working closely with them around the house.

Be wary of any handyman or contractor who asks for full payment before doing any work. Ask for a written agreement that details the job, the cost and the payment schedule, and make sure to get a guarantee in writing.

Do your homework when hiring a contractor, especially since you may spend a lot of money on a project.

Home improvement experts say to get at least three bids. Because some contractors mark up the cost of materials, you may want to call the supplier to determine the cost of supplies to see if the contractor was reasonable.

Paying attention to how long it took the contractor to come up with the estimate is also important. If he or she says they’ll get it to you Monday but you end up waiting until Thursday, that could be a reflection of how they’ll perform the job.

The post Ought to I rent a contractor or handyman? – Orange County Register appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

A Nevada handyman convicted of strangling to death an 81-year-old man in the bedroom of a Newport Beach home was sentenced Monday, May 23, to 25 years to life in prison.

Anthony Thomas Garcia, 63, continued to profess his innocence during his sentencing hearing in a Santa Ana courtroom, a little more than a year after an Orange County Superior Court jury found him guilty of first-degree murder for the April 11, 2015, slaying of Abelardo Lopez Station.

Garcia’s conviction came at the end of his second trial; an earlier jury did not reach a verdict. The second jury found the killing was not carried out for financial gain, which had been alleged by prosecutors and could have led to a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

On Monday, Garcia told Orange County Superior Court Judge Sheila Hanson that his conviction was a “failure of the justice system. …

“I have been wrongly convicted of a crime I did not commit,” Garcia said. “I am an innocent man. I have always been an innocent man.”

Estacion’s killing came in the midst of an ugly fight over the estate of Dortha Lamb, Estacion’s dying wife who has since died. Garcia is the former boyfriend of Lamb’s granddaughter and two of Garcia’s daughters are Lamb’s great-granddaughters.

Lamb was a self-made woman who owned valuable real estate in Newport Beach, San Clemente and Costa Mesa. She had been with Estacion for more than 20 years, marrying him shortly before his death. At the time, Lamb was dying from terminal cancer and suffering from dementia.

Garcia and some of Lamb’s relatives apparently believed Estacion was abusing Lamb and taking advantage of her health issues to siphon money from her accounts. According to testimony during the trials, Garcia had told others he wanted to kill Estacion.

Lamb’s family got her out of the Newport Beach home she shared with Estacion, and went to court to try to get Estacion kicked out of the residence.

A judge delayed a decision on whether to approve a temporary restraining order against Estacion. Hours later, someone entered the Newport Beach home, cut the power and smothered, struck and strangled Estacion.

Prosecutors accused Garcia of driving from Carson City to Newport Beach to kill Estacion, alleging he then immediately drove back to Nevada. They also alleged he left his cell phone with his adult daughter, Samantha Garcia, to make it look like he had stayed in Nevada.

Samantha Garcia initially told investigators she had her father’s cell phone the night of the killing and sent fake text conversations between his cell phone and hers. But during both trials the daughter recanted those earlier claims, alleging detectives pressured her to lie about having the cell phone.

During the trials, Garcia’s attorney, Alisha Montoro, described him as a non-violent, devoted family man who lived a simple life. The defense attorney denied the allegations by prosecutors that Garcia believed his daughter’s were entitled to Lamb’s money. She said Garcia wasn’t even in California the night of the killings.

During the sentencing, Clara Sanchez, Garcia’s sister, described him as funny, kind and unselfish, adding that he is “generous and giving to a fault.” She denied that he has ever been “a violent or aggressive human being. …

“We are all so proud that he has been able to survive in an unfair and prejudiced judicial system,” Sanchez told the judge.

The defense attorney unsuccessfully requested a new trial, alleging, among other things, that some jurors had fallen asleep during the second trial and that a juror had cited their own medical experience to claim the death could only have been a homicide.

The judge described the allegations of jurors falling asleep as “not credible” and said the discussion about the cause of death appears to have been based on opinions formed from courtroom testimony, not outside evidence

“Nothing I say will make this feel better for Mr Garcia or Mr Garcia’s family,” Judge Hanson said. “But make no mistake, I would not proceed with sentencing if in the court’s view Mr. Garcia was an innocent man.”

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Q. How much does chimney cleaning cost?

A. Chimney cleaning costs depend on several factors.

What type of chimney do you need a chimney sweep to inspect? Hiring someone to clean a boiler chimney can cost as little as $40. Full-size chimneys stemming from a wood-burning fireplace, however, typically cost at least $100 to $150.

Certain situations can also drive up the cost. If your roof provides limited accessibility, if the chimney sweep needs to use special tools or if the sweep needs to remove animals (living or dead) from the chimney, expect to pay up to about $350.

However, don’t let a potentially high price tag stop you from hiring someone to complete the job. Neglecting your fireplace could prove much more costly.

IMPORTANCE OF CHIMNEY CLEANING

Chimney fires commonly result from creosote buildup. Creosote, which is extremely combustible, populates in most chimneys when wood burns. Regular chimney cleanings remove creosote, eliminating that as a cause of chimney fires.

According to a report released by the National Fire Protection Association in 2016, home heating equipment accounted for 16 percent of home fires and 19 percent of home fire deaths from 2009 to 2013.

Thirty percent of those fires resulted from failure to clean equipment, including chimneys.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A CHIMNEY SWEEP AND INSPECTION

Prior to a cleaning, a sweep may want to inspect your chimney for any damage. Expect the inspection to include a thorough examination of the chimney liners, smoke chamber, chimney exterior and firebox. An inspection can usually identify structural problems and water damage.

During the cleaning, a sweep uses a chimney brush or vacuum to clear out soot and creosote. Chimney sweeps should also lay down floor coverings before starting to minimize the mess caused by the cleaning.

Staff writer Kaley Belakovich contributed to this report.

The post How a lot does chimney cleansing value? – Orange County Register appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

A Nevada handyman convicted of strangling to death an 81-year-old man in the bedroom of a Newport Beach home was sentenced Monday, May 23, to 25 years to life in prison.

Anthony Thomas Garcia, 63, continued to profess his innocence during his sentencing hearing in a Santa Ana courtroom, a little more than a year after an Orange County Superior Court jury found him guilty of first-degree murder for the April 11, 2015, slaying of Abelardo Lopez Station.

Garcia’s conviction came at the end of his second trial; an earlier jury did not reach a verdict. The second jury found the killing was not carried out for financial gain, which had been alleged by prosecutors and could have led to a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

On Monday, Garcia told Orange County Superior Court Judge Sheila Hanson that his conviction was a “failure of the justice system. …

“I have been wrongly convicted of a crime I did not commit,” Garcia said. “I am an innocent man. I have always been an innocent man.”

Estacion’s killing came in the midst of an ugly fight over the estate of Dortha Lamb, Estacion’s dying wife who has since died. Garcia is the former boyfriend of Lamb’s granddaughter and two of Garcia’s daughters are Lamb’s great-granddaughters.

Lamb was a self-made woman who owned valuable real estate in Newport Beach, San Clemente and Costa Mesa. She had been with Estacion for more than 20 years, marrying him shortly before his death. At the time, Lamb was dying from terminal cancer and suffering from dementia.

Garcia and some of Lamb’s relatives apparently believed Estacion was abusing Lamb and taking advantage of her health issues to siphon money from her accounts. According to testimony during the trials, Garcia had told others he wanted to kill Estacion.

Lamb’s family got her out of the Newport Beach home she shared with Estacion, and went to court to try to get Estacion kicked out of the residence.

A judge delayed a decision on whether to approve a temporary restraining order against Estacion. Hours later, someone entered the Newport Beach home, cut the power and smothered, struck and strangled Estacion.

Prosecutors accused Garcia of driving from Carson City to Newport Beach to kill Estacion, alleging he then immediately drove back to Nevada. They also alleged he left his cell phone with his adult daughter, Samantha Garcia, to make it look like he had stayed in Nevada.

Samantha Garcia initially told investigators she had her father’s cell phone the night of the killing and sent fake text conversations between his cell phone and hers. But during both trials the daughter recanted those earlier claims, alleging detectives pressured her to lie about having the cell phone.

During the trials, Garcia’s attorney, Alisha Montoro, described him as a non-violent, devoted family man who lived a simple life. The defense attorney denied the allegations by prosecutors that Garcia believed his daughter’s were entitled to Lamb’s money. She said Garcia wasn’t even in California the night of the killings.

During the sentencing, Clara Sanchez, Garcia’s sister, described him as funny, kind and unselfish, adding that he is “generous and giving to a fault.” She denied that he has ever been “a violent or aggressive human being. …

“We are all so proud that he has been able to survive in an unfair and prejudiced judicial system,” Sanchez told the judge.

The defense attorney unsuccessfully requested a new trial, alleging, among other things, that some jurors had fallen asleep during the second trial and that a juror had cited their own medical experience to claim the death could only have been a homicide.

The judge described the allegations of jurors falling asleep as “not credible” and said the discussion about the cause of death appears to have been based on opinions formed from courtroom testimony, not outside evidence

“Nothing I say will make this feel better for Mr Garcia or Mr Garcia’s family,” Judge Hanson said. “But make no mistake, I would not proceed with sentencing if in the court’s view Mr. Garcia was an innocent man.”

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San Francisco lawmakers are mulling a proposed law that would allow police to use private security cameras – think: those in residential doorbells, medical clinics, and retail shops – in real time for surveillance purposes.

The US city’s Rules Committee was due to vote on the draft ordinance on Monday, and this was pushed out by at least a week by the panel; its members indicated they would vote on an amended proposal July 18 at the soonest.

Matt Cagle, an attorney for the ACLU, called the proposal for a “power grab” by the SF cops. “It is rare for a police agency to seek to tap into privately owned cameras — I haven’t seen that in California before,” he told The Register. “This is the police seeking permission to proactively and affirmatively go out to private camera owners and say hey, can we live-stream your cameras? This is unprecedented in the city’s history.”

The proposal [PDF] expands San Francisco’s 2019 surveillance ordinance, which, among other things, requires the police to seek authorization from the public and elected officials before acquiring and deploying surveillance systems. So if it weren’t for this law, the cops could monitor citizens without the public even knowing.

The 2019 law also limited the cops’ access to and usage of real-time video footage from things like Internet-of-Things cameras and security CCTV, and the police department and mayor say this hamstrings their ability to fight crime.

The new proposal – championed by Mayor London Breed after November’s wild weekend of orchestrated burglaries and theft in the San Francisco Bay Area – would authorize the police department to use non-city-owned security cameras and camera networks to monitor live “significant events with public safety concerns” and ongoing felony or misdemeanor violations.

Currently, the police can only request historical footage from private cameras related to specific times and locations, rather than blanket monitoring. Mayor Breed also complained the police can only use real-time feeds in emergencies involving “imminent danger of death or serious physical injury.”

If approved, the draft ordinance would also allow SFPD to collect historical video footage to help conduct criminal investigations and those related to officer misconduct. The draft law currently stands as the following, which indicates the cops can broadly ask for and/or get access to live real-time video streams:

Obtaining video footage from private security cameras has real public-safety benefits and would help officers arrest drug dealers and looters in real time, San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott told lawmakers on Monday.

“What we’d like to do is be able to, in the appropriate circumstances, live monitor this activity as it’s occurring, so we can have a better chance of apprehending those committing those acts,” he said.

What we’d like to do is be able to, in the appropriate circumstances, live monitor this activity as it’s occurring

If the proposal successfully passes out of the committee during next week’s hearing, it still requires approval by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors before it becomes law. And it faces significant public opposition in the meantime.

Cagle said San Francisco Supervisors have received “hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of messages in just the last few days” from residents who oppose the proposal. And he pointed to a survey [PDF] of 372 likely voters, commissioned by the ACLU, that found 60 percent of San Franciscans oppose letting the police use private cameras to monitor people.

In a joint letter [PDF]17 organizations including the ACLU of Northern California, EFF, social justice center GLIDE, and the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, urged the Board of Supervisors to oppose or “significantly amend” the policy, which they say will “allow the SFPD to engage in unprecedented live surveillance” via thousands of private cameras.

It could allow SFPD to share video footage of, say, women visiting medical clinics that provide abortions with out-of-state prosecutors, or undocumented immigrants going to work with federal immigration agents, the organizations argued. We note that San Francisco is a sanctuary city.

“We are deeply concerned that SFPD’s proposal, if approved as written, threatens the privacy and safety of people going to work and school, accessing housing and seeking social services that make our city healthy and safe,” the letter said.

Opponents argue that the proposal would be used to criminalize Black and Brown people, activists, immigrants, LGBTQ people, and Muslims. And if lawmakers don’t toss the surveillance expansion outright, the groups want the supes to at least set limits on what the cops can surveil, how long they can retain the data collected from private cameras, and with whom they can share the video footage .

As it’s currently written, the proposal would allow police to spy on First Amendment activities, such as political protests or religious gatherings, and keep all footage on file for as long as officers wanted.

“This concern is far from hypothetical: EFF and the ACLU of Northern California sued the city after SFPD used a business district’s camera network to live-monitor protests for eight days following the police murder of George Floyd in the summer of 2020,” EFF policy analyst Matthew Guariglia wrote in a blog post.

Over the next week, lawmakers are expected to meet police and incorporate some changes into the surveillance proposal.

“Any time a government builds a surveillance system that collects information about people, that system can be vulnerable to misuse by other agency, and this allows the SFPD to share collected footage with very few limitations,” Cagle said. “What we are saying is, if we care about reproductive justice, if we care about stopping police violence, if we care about protecting activists, than we should do everything we can to boost protection rather than increasing surveillance.” ®

The post San Francisco cops need real-time entry to personal cameras • The Register appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

American football team the San Francisco 49ers have been hit by ransomware, with the criminals responsible claiming to have stolen corporate data and threatened to publish it.

Calling itself Blackbyte, the ransomware gang responsible published samples of stolen documents on a dark web blog over the weekend, as seen by The Register. About 300MB of files were present on the publicity site used by Blackbyte and are thought to include recent internal finance data for the team.

The 49ers said law enforcement and “third-party cybersecurity firms” were on the case and acknowledged the security breach in a statement on Sunday, saying: “To date, we have no indication that this incident involves systems outside of our corporate network, such as those connected to Levi’s Stadium operations or ticket holders.”

The intrusion and theft came to light days after US law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Secret Service, issued an alert warning American companies of the threat posed by BlackByte. That warning stated that the gang had “compromised multiple US and foreign businesses, including entities in at least three US critical infrastructure sectors.”

“The BlackByte executable leaves a ransom note in all directories where encryption occurs,” continued the Feds’ advisory [PDF ]. “The ransom note includes the .onion site that contains instructions for paying the ransom and receiving a decryption key. Some victims reported the actors used a known Microsoft Exchange Server vulnerability as a means of gaining access to their networks.”

The sports team becomes just the latest in a long line of extortionware victims over recent years. Ransomware is now regarded as one of the leading threats to enterprise cybersecurity, with criminals using customized malware to infect corporate networks, steal and encrypt data, and demand a ransom to unlock it and not publish it online.

Various ransomware gangs have renamed themselves over time to avoid attracting international law enforcement attention. One such example was the Blackmatter gang, which rebranded twice in 2021 – both times claiming to have shut itself down. The gang is not believed, at the time of writing, to have any links with the BlackByte criminal crew. ®

The post San Francisco 49ers hit by ransomware, information leaked on-line • The Register appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Q. How much does the chimney cleaning cost?

A. The cost of chimney cleaning depends on several factors.

What type of chimney does a chimney sweep have to inspect? Hiring someone to clean a boiler flue can cost as little as $40. However, full-size chimneys that come from a wood-burning fireplace usually cost at least $100 to $150.

Certain situations can also drive up costs. If your roof has limited access, requires the chimney sweep to use special tools, or has to remove animals (live or dead) from the chimney, you can expect to pay up to $350.

However, don’t let the potentially high price tag put you off hiring someone to get the job done. Neglecting your chimney could prove to be much more costly.

IMPORTANCE OF CHIMNEY CLEANING

Chimney fires often result from creosote buildup. Creosote, which is extremely flammable, colonizes most chimneys when wood is burning. Regular chimney sweeps remove creosote and eliminate it as a cause of chimney fires.

According to a report released in 2016 by the National Fire Protection Association, from 2009 to 2013, 16 percent of home fires and 19 percent of home fire deaths were attributed to home heaters.

Thirty percent of these fires are due to appliances, including chimneys, not being cleaned.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A CHIMNEY SWEEP AND INSPECTION

Before cleaning, a sweeper may want to inspect your chimney for any damage. Expect the inspection to include a thorough examination of the chimney liners, smokebox, chimney exterior, and firebox. An inspection can usually detect structural problems and water damage.

During cleaning, a sweeper uses a chimney brush or vacuum to remove soot and creosote. Chimney sweeps should also lay floor coverings before they start cleaning.

Staff writer Kaley Belakovich contributed to this report.

The post How a lot does chimney cleansing value? – Orange County Register appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

The Justice Department has secured a number of Wi-Fi access points that may allow administrators to access industrial control equipment, according to a tip from The Register.

Four unsecured wireless networks named Boiler Pump 1 through Boiler Pump 4 were freely accessible in the Royal Courts of Justice (RCJ) until The Register informed officials what was going on.

The nets were all visible from the ground floor of the Queen’s Building, an extension of the original 1960s neo-Gothic courthouse. The RCJ is home to the UK’s highest civil courts, including the Court of Appeal.

A source told us that connecting to the passwordless access points exposed a login page for what appeared to be an industrial control system developed by Armstrong Fluid Technology. Armstrong’s website contains PDF copies of equipment manuals with default administrator passwords, which Armstrong calls “Level 2” access.

“Level 1 allows the user to change the operating parameters and reset them to the factory settings, but not save them as the factory settings in the manual, just before we reveal the fairly simple Level 2 password, which we will not reveal here.

A malicious person who connected to the unsecured access point and looked at the branding of the pumps login portal could easily have added two and two and given administrator access to the pumps. Their shutdown could have caused the water pipes to freeze overnight as winter sets in, potentially forcing the building to shut down * and delays in legal proceedings.

Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service spokesman Jake Conneely told The Register, “The staff has taken immediate action to ensure that these facilities are inaccessible and that security is maintained across the courts.”

We have been informed that the WLAN access points have been deactivated until further notice.

A tech-savvy attacker could use the access to the pumps as a starting point for further network exploitation. Such pivots of harmless devices are routine for ransomware attackers as well as for hostile nation states, as compromises with a focus on digital supply chains have shown in recent years. One such attack was targeted at Accellion’s Internet-connected file transfer devices.

A knowledgeable source from a pentesting company who did not name The Register because they did not speak on behalf of their employer confirmed that HVAC system components typically come with a Wi-Fi access point for local access by maintenance companies . They suggested wiring the boiler pump control into a larger building heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) facility that permanent staff can remotely access.

The existence of the vulnerability is surprising: As the largest and most prestigious civil court in the country, the RCJ complex is a public space, which means that those responsible for the RCJ HVAC systems should expect others to be able to use the unsecured wireless access points . They may also have been visible from a public road that runs behind the Queen’s Building.

Airport-style security checkpoints at the main entrance of the RCJ will search anyone who enters. The age-old right of every Briton to enter a courtroom and sit in the public stands to watch the proceedings means that physical access to the Queen’s Building is impossible.

As far as we know, pump access has not been maliciously exploited – but if you’ve had a particularly cold day in court recently, it may be worth asking why. ®

Boot note

* Or maybe not, as the Evening Standard’s court correspondent said today:

It’s ridiculously cold at Inner London Crown Court this morning where the jury has been told they can keep their hands, coats and gloves on if they want.

If this happened in an office building, or maybe the Justice Department headquarters, people would be angry …

– Tristan Kirk (@kirkkorner) November 22, 2021

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Nvidia sees itself as the hardware overlord of the “metaverse” and has dropped some references to the operation of a parallel 3D universe in which our cartoon selves can work, play and interact.

The chip business has expanded Omniverse with new installations – an underlying hardware and software engine that acts as a planetary core that brings together virtual communities in an alternate 3D universe. Omniverse is also used to create avatars to enhance real-world experiences in cars, hospitals, and robots.

“We’re not telling people to replace what they do, we’re improving what they do,” said Richard Kerris, vice president of the Omniverse platform, during a press conference.

The Omniverse announcements came this week during the company’s GPU technology conference. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will speak about many of these announcements on Tuesday.

Jensen like you’ve never seen him before. Source: Nvidia. click to enlarge

One such announcement is Omniverse Avatar, which can generate interactive, intelligent AI avatars, for example to help guests order meals or help a driver park themselves or navigate the streets.

Nvidia gave an example of a conversational avatar replacing servers in restaurants. When ordering food, an AI system – represented by an avatar on the screen – could converse in real time using speech recognition and natural intelligence techniques, record a person’s mood with the help of computer vision and recommend dishes based on the knowledge database.

To do this, the avatar has to execute several AI models – for example language, image recognition and context – at the same time, which can be a challenge. The company developed the Unified Compute Framework, which models AI as microservices so that apps can run in a single or hybrid system.

Nvidia already has underlying AI systems such as the Megatron-Turing Natural Language Generation model – a monolithic transformer language developed jointly with Microsoft. The system is now offered on its DGX AI hardware.

Omniverse Avatar is also the underlying technology behind Drive Concierge – an in-car AI assistant that is an “in-car personal concierge, ready for you,” said Deepu Talla, vice president and general manager of Embedded and Edge Computing.

AI systems in cars, represented by interactive characters, can understand a driver and the occupants of the car through habits, voice, and interactions. Accordingly, the AI ​​system can make phone calls or make recommendations for restaurants in the vicinity.

With the help of cameras and other sensors, the system can also detect whether a driver is sleeping or warn a driver if he has forgotten something in the car. The messages of the AI ​​system are displayed on screens using interactive characters or interfaces.

Old dog, new tricks

The Metaverse concept isn’t new – it’s been around since Linden Labs Second Life or games like The Sims. Nvidia hopes to break down proprietary walls and create a unified metaverse so that users can theoretically switch between universes created by different companies.

During the briefing, Nvidia didn’t mention that Facebook was helped to realize its vision of a future around the metaverse, which is at the center of the renaming to meta.

But Nvidia is getting other companies to bring their 3D work to the Omniverse platform through its software connectors. That list includes Esri’s ArcGIS cityEngine, which can create urban environments in 3D, and Replica Studio’s AI voice engine, which can simulate real voice for animated characters

“What makes all of this possible is the basis of USD or Universal Scene Description. USD is the HTML of 3D – an important element as it enables all of these software products to take advantage of the virtual worlds we are talking about, ”said Kerris. USD was developed by Pixar to share 3D assets in a collaborative way.

Nvidia also announced Omniverse Enterprise – a subscription offering with a software stack that helps companies create 3D workflows that can be connected to the Omniverse platform. Priced at $ 9,000 per year, the offering is aimed at industries such as tech and entertainment and will be available through resellers such as Dell, Lenovo, PNY and Supermicro.

The company also uses the Omniverse platform to generate synthetic data on which to train “digital twins” or virtual simulations of real-world objects. The ISAAC SIM can train robots using synthetic data based on real and virtual information. The SIM enables the introduction of new objects, camera views, and lighting to create custom datasets that robots can be trained on.

An automotive equivalent is Drive SIM, which can generate realistic scenes using simulated cameras for autonomous driving. The SIM takes real data into account to train AI models for autonomous driving. The camera lens models are simulated and record real phenomena such as motion blur, rolling shutter and LED flicker.

Nvidia works closely with sensor manufacturers to accurately replicate the drive SIM data. The camera, radar, lidar and ultrasonic sensor models are all tracked using RTX graphics technology, according to Danny Shapiro, Nvidia’s vice president of automotive.

The company has incorporated some hardware announcements into the overall Omniverse narrative.

Become part of the new generation

The next generation Jetson AGX Orin developer board will be available to manufacturers in the first quarter of next year. It has 12 CPU cores based on Arm Cortex-A78 designs, 32 GB LPDDR5 RAM and delivers 200 TOPS (Tera Operations Per Second) performance.

The Drive Hyperion 8 is a computer platform for cars that has two Drive Orin SoCs and offers a performance of up to 500 TOPS. The platform has 12 cameras, nine radars, a lidar and 12 ultrasonic sensors. It will be used in vehicles produced in 2024 and has a modular structure so that car manufacturers can only use the functions they need. Cars with older Nvidia computers can be upgraded to Drive Hyperion 8.

Nvidia also announced the Quantum-2 InfiniBand switch, which contains 57 billion transistors and is manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. in the 7nm process. It can process 66.5 billion packets per second and has 64 ports for 400 Gbps data transfers or 128 ports for 200 Gbps transfers, they say.

The company also announced Morpheus – an AI framework that enables cybersecurity providers to discover companies and alert them to irregular behavior in a network or data center. The AI ​​framework identifies subtle changes in applications, users, or network traffic to identify anomalies and suspicious behavior.

Morpheus obtains the required data from Nvidia’s BlueField SmartNICs / Data Processing Units, which have been equipped with new capabilities thanks to an upgrade to the DOCA SDK on Bluefield DPUs such as CUDA on Nvidia GPUs.

The DOCA upgrade – version 1.2 – can also “create metered cloud services that control resource access, validate every application and every user”. [and] Isolate potentially compromised machines “. Run the tools in distributed mode on SmartNICs.

Speaking of AI, the company also announced the Launchpad program, which will provide short-term access to AI hardware and software through Equinix data centers in the US, Europe, Japan and Singapore. The latter three locations are Launchpad’s first presences outside of the US, which gives Nvidia hope that its role as an AI on-ramp could be more widely adopted.

Another new offering is a new twist on the RIVA Conversational AI tool, which is said to be able to create a custom human-like voice in one day based on just 30 minutes of sample language. Nvidia believes this is just the thing for organizations looking to offer custom voice interfaces. ®

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Nvidia’s US partner EVGA has reported that a shipment of GPUs it was sending to a distribution center was stolen from a truck.

A forum post by EVGA Product Manager Jacob Freeman states: “PLEASE NOTE that on October 29, 2021, a shipment of EVGA GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards was stolen from a truck en route from San Francisco to our Southern California distribution center. “

“These graphics cards are in high demand, and each has an estimated retail value of $ 329.99 up to $ 1959.99 MSRP.”

Which probably explains the motivation for the crime – either someone is hoping to resell them or a crypto miner has just built a cheap rig.

Freeman’s Post doesn’t say how many GPUs were stolen or whether the truck was still hauling anything. However, he warned that buying stolen goods is a crime, as is “hiding the sale or holding back” stolen goods.

Then he seems to be setting some sort of trap by indicating that attempts to register products that have not been stolen will be successful on this page that requires registration. Crooks are probably smart enough to use fake data when registering. Also, are they smart enough to use a VPN and / or Tor to hide their traces?

EVGA created the email address stopRTX30theft@evga.com to help find the perpetrators.

The RTX-30 range is aimed at gamers and content creators, so this robbery makes it even more difficult to find a GPU for those suffering from low pixel counts and / or frame rates. Those who use GPUs for other tasks can already wait months to get their hands on the devices as COVID-crimped supply chains continue to delay production.

This situation will continue for many months: In August, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said he expected “an environment with supply bottlenecks for the vast majority of the next year”. ®

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