Small enough to almost fit into your palm, Linutop has designed a Linux based diskless computer system . "It runs on an AMD processor, weighs approximately 8 oz, has 256 MB of RAM and is packaged with most of the common utilities, software needed for the everyday light user and internet surfer (i.e. AbiWord Word Processor, Evince PDF reader, Firefox Web browser, Gaim instant messenger and Totem media player). It claims to target the everyday internet surfer but could be used in other ways too, e.g. PoS terminals and embedded vehicle PCs."

AMD has made it into Tech Blorge's top 10 list of 'neatest toys' for you PC at the International CES show this year. "7. AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core processors - The Athlon 64 Dual-Core processor for your desktop PC contains two processing cores on one chip; the result is a chip that is able to perform calculations on two streams of data simultaneously, thereby increasing the efficiency and speed while running multiple programs. AMD is well known for their low cost Vs. speed processors."

The Air Force is putting out 'want ads' these days. They are looking for price quotes for a multiprocessor computational cluster for running serial and parallel jobs. "Air Force researchers need a computer system that runs the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 operating system with one cluster control node, one network server node, 30 compute nodes, and gigabit network connecting all nodes in the cluster. The cluster control node must have two dual-core AMD Opteron processors that run at least 2.8 GHz, 8 gigabytes of random access memory (RAM), DVD optical drive, at least 250 gigabytes of hard disk space, and open DIMM sockets to support future memory expansion. Each of the system's 30 compute nodes must have two dual-core AMD Opteron processors, 8 gigabytes of RAM, DVD optical drive, at least 40 gigabytes of hard disk. The company selected must deliver the computer system 30 days after receiving the order."

If you've wanted to take a look at AMD's LIVE system, then your wait is over. "Micro-Star International (MSI) will display a series of its Media Live audio/video PC systems based on the AMD Live! platform at the 2007 International CES in Las Vegas. MSI's Media Live PCs will join a rank of dual-core AMD Live!-based desktops introduced by other PC vendors, including the Pavilion m7575tw from Hewlett-Packard (HP), the AcerPower 1000 from Acer and the E520 from Dell."

Dell has slowly been introducing AMD processors to their desktops. Now, AMD is finding their way into Dell's notebooks - the Dell Latitude 131L . "Targeted at the ever lucrative business market, the 131L is a no frills notebook that's perfect for all those tedious office applications we all love to hate but simply can't do without. Overall the Latitude 131L is a solid performer. Business notebooks are never going to be the most exciting of things and this is no exception, but it does what it's supposed to do with aplomb and offers plenty of value for money."

WIN Enterprises has announced the PL-01030 Micro PC , a compact, low-power device for the OEM market. "The PL-01030 features an AMD Geode LX800 low-power processor, as well as 2 x LAN, 4 x USB2.0, 4 x COM, CF and LPT I/O. The lightweight chassis is dust-proof, and its compact size makes it suitable for point-of-sale, kiosks, medical, entertainment, and general embedded applications."

Computerworld has a 2007 CPU roadmap for the masses. And, this looks to be year that " AMD battles back (and takes the eight-core lead)". You can expect to see "AMD's push to a smaller fabrication process, an all-new Socket AM3 and the alluring potential of eight- and sixteen-core processors."

If you're at this year's CES show in Las Vegas you might see the new Alienware Media Centre . "The all-in-one system combines an AMD-based digital media platform with PC functionality and an AVR internal audio amplifier. At the heart of the DHS A Series amplifier lays an advanced D2Audio Digital Audio EngineT (DAE-1) Class-D PWM controller with an integrated DSP.D2Audio is the first digital amplifier company to meet THX Ultra2 performance levels."

Adlink Technology has a new single-board computer, the NuPRO-796 . The NuPRO-796 "incorporates an AMD Geode GX 533 processor. The fanless computer features low 1.1-W CPU power consumption to deliver a combination of low overall power, low cost, and high computing performance. Included onboard are a 128-Mbyte DDR266 memory on a single small-outline dual-inline memory module slot, one UltraATA 66 IDE connector, and four Serial ATA connectors with RAID support."

The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project will begin to ship its XO laptops worldwide this July. The machines are being produced by Quanta Computer Inc. and powered with a 366-megahertz AMD processor. "At the core of the XO interface, developers are now announcing the first details of Sugar, the OLPC Human Interface. Sugar provides chat and sharing functions for the core applications featured on the OLPC. Christopher Blizzard, a lead developer for the OLPC project, emphasizes "We want this interface to be social. This means that kids can communicate in every app that they can show each other things, that they can take each other on tours of the web and many other ways of collaborating.""

Shuttle is highlighting the Socket AM2 from AMD with the new Shuttle XPC Barebone SK22G2. "The Shuttle XPC Barebone SK22G2 includes DDR2 memory and DirectX 9 graphics support that delivers necessary pixel shaders to meet requirements of Windows Vista operating system. PC features SilentX technology integrated with noise reduction for optimized cooling and stability utilizing programmable smart fans."

AMD landed the 'economic development deal of the year' from Business Facilities magazine with its decision to locate a computer microchip plant in Luther Forest Technology Campus. "The $5.2 billion AMD deal was the Tinton, N.J., magazine's "gold winner," calling it the biggest and most high-impact expansion in the country in 2006. Last week, AMD signed a grant disbursement agreement with the state establishing a two-year window from July 2007 to July 2009 in which AMD can decide whether to build a 300-millimeter chip plant in Luther Forest in Saratoga County. Also last week, the state's Public Authorities Control Board voted to approve a $650 million grant for AMD."

Acer had added another 'value-for-money' notebook to their mix, the Acer Aspire 5101ANWLMi . "The Acer Aspire 5101ANWLMi uses an AMD Turion 64-bit enabled processor running at 2.0 GHz, and comes with a hard disc drive of 60GB that reserves sufficient storage space for saving files, downloads, music, and games. The Acer Aspire 5101ANWLMi takes mobile productivity closer to consumers, and aims to capture their imagination with the latest features, aimed at increasing work productivity and efficiency as well as facilitating a powerful entertainment tool."

AMD Live! is set to take a larger piece of the multimedia pie with support for Blu-ray and HD DVD beginning in the third quarter of 2007. "AMD Live! sets a standard in digital entertainment offering a full-featured, easy-to-use media center PC, designed to enable consumers to organize, distribute, share, and enjoy their content collection throughout the home and on the go. It is felt that support for Blu-ray and HD DVD by AMD Live! will be a boost for the blue-laser market."

AMD is one of the 'top dogs' of 2006. "AMD jumped a whopping eight positions in the rankings, and found itself as the world's seventh largest chip maker of the year. This was partially due to the company's acquisition in 2006 of ATI Technologies for about $5.4 billion, and iSuppli's calculations for AMD include ATI's revenue for the entire year."