Independence Day
The 4th of July holiday is upon us once again, a day when most of folks in the U.S. celebrate Independence Day with backyard BBQs, friends, family and fireworks. All of us at [H]ardOCP would like to wish all of you a happy 4th and ask that you all take a moment to remember the true meaning of Independence Day. Please stay safe, read the firework safety tips we listed below and have fun! With any luck, we’ll see you all back here tomorrow with all your fingers and toes intact!

On June 11, 1776, the colonies' Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia formed a committee with the express purpose of drafting a document that would formally sever their ties with Great Britain. The committee included Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman and Robert R. Livingston. The document was crafted by Jefferson, who was considered the strongest and most eloquent writer. (Nevertheless, a total of 86 changes were made to his draft.) The final version was officially adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4. The following day, copies of the Declaration of Independence were distributed and, on July 6, The Pennsylvania Evening Post became the first newspaper to print the extraordinary document.

Fireworks Safety
If you are staging a home fireworks display this year, you might want to give this checklist of safety tips the once over. If you are planning on drinking today, it is best to let the sober folks handle anything on fire...or the thing “on fire” might end up being your drunk ass.

Fireworks are an American tradition. They can provide hours of wholesome, family entertainment, but must be used by adults carefully and safely. To insure the safety of both the audience and those lighting the fireworks, we recommend that you obey the following fireworks safety measures during your fireworks display.

What NOT To Do on July 4th
As cool as this video is, it is best not to have roman candle fights with your friends.

How Fireworks Work
If you want to know how fireworks actually work, I recommend this link as well as this one. Between the two sites you’ll get a good idea how fireworks are made and how they get their color, incandescence and luminescence. There is also some really, really nice high-res pictures of fireworks here.

Download The Declaration
Every year, on the 4th of July, I like to post this link to the U.S. archives that hosts high resolution copies of the Declaration of Independence, high resolution scans of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and other documents as well. These images will print at up to approximately 24" wide by 29" high at 150dpi.

[H]ardware Round-Up
Cooling
ASUS Triton 85 CPU Cooler @ Overclockers Club

ETC.
ECS Factory Tour @ OCC
Getway G200 CarBook For The Deaf @ VIAArena
MSI European Overclocking Challenge 2008 @ OC3D

Video
PALiT GeForce 9800 GTX @ CPU3D
Sapphire HD 3870 Ultimate Video Card @ Pro-Clockers
Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 Video Card @ BmR

IBM Technology to Protect Customer Data
Researchers at IBM's India Research Laboratory have developed advanced data masking technology that helps call centers protect critical data without disrupting customer service or business operations. As IBM (NYSE: IBM) continuously seeks new methods to ensure privacy and security, the company intends to utilize this capability in its own call center operations to further protect information for its services clients around the world.