Solid Documents announced the release of Solid Converter PDF version 3.1. The new version features additional capabilities that allow users to convert virtually any PDF into a Word document regardless of its layout or text orientation, while maintaining a straightforward, easy-to-use interface.

Hewlett-Packard announced that its portfolio of servers and server blades now will include a number of models powered by Advanced Micro Devices’ new Opteron dual-core processors. The Opteron-powered HP ProLiant and HP BladeSystem servers are designed to use less electrical power and require less cooling due to their advanced architecture, an HP spokesperson said. The servers will incorporate AMD Opteron 2000 and 8000 Series processors, DDR2 (double-data-rate 2) memory technology and small form factor disk drives. AMD is counting on the updated version of its Opteron chip to set the pace for its server business in the coming months. IBM on Aug. 1 was the first major server vendor to announce that it would produce servers powered by the AMD Opteron dual-core microprocessors.

DeadMan’s Handle, the innovative concept in notebook security, is being recommended for use after the recent terrorist incidents in the UK. This advanced software protects sensitive notebook information when it is lost or stolen. It does so by invisibly erasing it, providing an additional layer of security that complements technologies now in use. The system not only protects company data, but also system access and network settings. The removal of these settings greatly reduces the possibility of attacks by criminals. With laptops now going into unlocked hold baggage in planes it has become essential for mobile security to be improved. The software can protect all aspects of confidential information and system data on their machines.

A portable hacking device equipped with hundreds of exploits and an automated exploitation system will go on sale in the United States in October. The wireless handheld, called Silica, is the latest product to be developed by Immunity, a Miami-based security company that sells penetration testing products and services. An early version of Silica, which supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth wireless connections, has been fitted with more than 150 exploits from Immunity’s Canvas product to allow security professionals to conduct pen tests while walking through office cubicles. Penetration testing, or pen test, is used to evaluate the security of a computer system or network by simulating an attack by malicious hackers.

IBM later this year plans to release management tools for its mainframe server, including a "federated" security application for logging onto several systems at once. Al Collar, general manager of IBM’s Tivoli management software division, on Tuesday announced the product plans at the Share IBM user conference in Baltimore. In the second half of the year, IBM plans to release Tivoli Federated Identity Manager for z/OS, a version of its single-sign security application for the mainframe z/OS operating system.

Caliton Innovations has released a new Lotus Notes tool: Caliton Template Analyzer. Lotus Notes developers and administrators can now whip their Lotus Notes templates into shape by identifying exactly where their templates are being used and misused within their organisation. Lotus Notes templates allow developers to share code and database design amongst multiple applications. Caliton Template Analyzer determines exactly which Lotus Notes databases inherit from a particular design element or template.

Trivedi Solutions announced that it has achieved the IBM ServerProven certification for its mChart for Notes product. IBM ServerProven certification helps IBM customers to easily identify a business application that has been validated on IBM Systems. Solutions that are ServerProven represent applications that have been enabled for IBM Systems and have been verified through a customer experience to be installed and running in a customer location. mChart for Notes offers an unequalled capability to create dynamic Java Graphs of Lotus Notes/Domino data. Users need to only select Notes documents from within a View and click a button to instantly generate a graph.

SAP’s move to expand its in-memory technology beyond its business intelligence confines to broader enterprise data sets has sparked debate over the potential threat to database vendors. eWEEK reported in its Aug. 7 issue that, according to sources close to the company, SAP is broadening the scope of its in-memory technology to areas where users need fast query and transaction capabilities and, in the process, is potentially disrupting Oracle’s core relational database business (about 55 percent of SAP’s customer’s applications sit on an Oracle database) by negating the need to store data externally.

Lenovo Group hasn’t had an easy time since its takeover of IBM’s PC division, and its removal from the main index of the Hong Kong stock exchange is just the most recent sign of trouble for the company. The world’s third-largest PC vendor will formally be removed from the Hang Seng Index on Sept. 11, according to HSI Services, replaced by Taiwanese mobile phone maker Foxconn International Holdings. Losing its place on the index won’t affect Lenovo’s operations, but it could send its stock lower. And it’s a small humiliation for the company, which was expected to be a major technology component of the Hang Seng.

Jim Nicholson, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs secretary, on Monday said that every VA department computer will soon undergo upgrades that include improved information security encryption. The VA plans on having all laptops upgraded within a month, and upgrades of its desktop machines, as well as portable drives and other media, will follow soon thereafter. Laptop encryption will begin on Aug. 18.