25th February 1999 Archive

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Microsoft hissed and booed at Intel event

Intel Developer Forum Developers don't like Windows 2000 up them

A keynote speech by a senior executive at the Intel Developer Forum in Palm Springs this morning was received by delegates with hisses and boos. Carl Stork, a senior hardware exec at Microsoft, was outlining Microsoft's plans for the Windows 2000 platform, only six months after the software company told the same delegates the …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 00:06
Technology fails at Intel

Printer drivers down, net down, pix of i820s up

The press room at the Intel Developer Forum is a model of efficiency, by and large. The first morning we logged into our system, everything worked perfectly. But some wag had made the picture of the i820 chip we ran last week the default background. We can assure you it was not us. Next day, we tried to print out Intel's plans …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 00:19
Gateway takes 19.9 per cent share in NECX

But why isn't Gateway on the Merced vendor map?

Gateway has bought into an e-commerce company, thus demonstrating that where Compaq will go, Gateway will follow. The minority interest, just under the 20 per cent limit, is in the NECX Office and Personal Technology Centre, the company said. Gateway has an option to buy more, if it wants, as part of the deal. ®

Business 25 Feb 1999, 01:13
Compaq to give away VMS licences on Alpha to hobbyists

Now what's the connection between AMD and Compaq, again?

Pre-eminent Alpha tracker Terry Shannon is reporting that Compaq is set to give away free VMS licences to home and hobbyist users of the Alpha platform. Shannon, a journalist who runs Shannon knows Compaq, said that the system has been in place for nearly 18 months on VAX systems. Compaq is now extending it to Alpha systems, …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 01:18
MS demo video breaches own licence agreements

MS on Trial Oh, those crazy videos...

A Microsoft demonstration of how easy it is for OEMs to customise the Windows desktop shown yesterday was in breach of Microsoft's OEM licensing agreements. Or at least, it was if the OEM isn't one of a handful of top PC manufacturers. Microsoft showed the video to accompany the testimony of OEM licensing chief Joachim Kempin, …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 10:24
UK Internet awards results

Slaps on the back all-round at industry gong-fest

Dixon's Freeserve and the Great Stan of Software have taken top honours at the Internet Service Providers Association's (ISPA) first ever Internet Industry Awards. In a glittering ceremony in the heart of London's West End, crowds flocked to watch the leading players of the UK Net industry converge on the Cafe Royal in …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 11:23
Theft of email is a crime, says US court

No kidding

A US court has ruled that stealing email is a criminal offence and could land offenders in hot water. The Pennsylvania court ruled that an employee of the Internet company Sladekutter illegally hacked into the computer system of rival company Labwerks. In what amount to industrial espionage, the intruder stole email containing …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 11:31
Metabyte to double power of nVidia TNT

Wicked3D developer brings SLI-style operation to non-3Dfx cards

US-based Metabyte is developing a version of 3Dfx's Scan Line Interleave (SLI) technology for its upcoming own-brand nVidia Riva TNT-based 3D accelerator cards. According to Metabyte sources cited by US magazine Maximum PC, the new system will allow two TNT-based Wicked3D boards to work together as a single, double-bandwidth …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 11:53
French ISP gives up the ghost after barrage of legal actions

At least, we think that's what has happened...

Altern, a French service provider that hosts Web sites for free, has shut up shop after its owner said he was hacked off with being taken to court. Owner Valentin Lacambre decided enough was enough after facing six separate legal proceedings against him. In one instance he was taken to court for hosting nude pictures of model …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 12:11
Apple's FireWire Future

Analysis Why is Steve Jobs so keen to ape Sony? Think 'consumers'...

Interim CEO Steve Jobs' recent claim that he wants Apple to emulate Sony's approach to designing and marketing computers shows that the company really has figured out it needs to think 'consumer' if it's to continue to grow in the long term. That doesn't mean simply punching out faster iMacs, though that's clearly part of the …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 12:49
Intel snubs IEEE 1394 for USB 2.0

The phony war of the connectivity standards starts here

Mainstream PC support for the FireWire connectivity system looks set to vanish following Intel's announcement at this week's Developer Forum that it is readying the next generation of the Universal Serial Bus (USB) and a faster version of the ATA-66 interface. And Pat Gelsinger, general manager of Intel's desktop division, went …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 12:54
How MS tried to keep the lid on its OEM customers

MS on Trial Mid-98 the wonderful new flexible MS didn't seem that flexible at all...

In his written testimony and in court this week, Microsoft OEM chief Joachim Kempin argues that Microsoft is willing to be flexible over the software its OEM customers can install. The permission to modify the Windows 98 startup sequence granted to seven large OEMs in the first half of last year will also be granted to other …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 15:10
Nice and Easynet does it

Out of the red and into the black for fiscal 98

Easynet Group reported its first profit after announcing that its turnover last year increased by 128 per cent to £17.0 million (1997 £7.4m). Revenues from corporate customers were up 143 per cent to £11.2 million (1997 £4.6m) and dial-up revenue climbed 107 per cent to £5.8 million (1997 £2.8m). Reporting pre-tax profits of £ …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 15:15
Review of call charges procedures is delayed

UK telecomms body says it will publish next month

Telecomms watchdog Oftel has delayed the publication of a consultation document which could jeopardise subscription-free Net access in the UK. The document was scheduled to be published this week but has been delayed until the beginning of next month. A spokeswoman for Oftel denied that there was anything "sinister" going on or …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 15:36
Ex-Soviets seek $$$ for Merced-killer – Transmeta linked?

Poverty-stricken boffins at Elbrus need $40 million to crush Intel. Give generously?

Russian microprocessor design company Elbrus International today announced details of E2k, a CPU it claims will run three to five times faster than Merced - and there may, or may not, be a Transmeta connection. Elbrus is the cash-strapped spin-off of the Soviet military and space supercomputer programmes, and the fact that …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 16:14
Only real men have fabs

Intel Developer Forum So is Intel wimping out?

Jerry Sanders III, the CEO of AMD, said at a conference a few years "only real men have fabs". He was referring in that case to Cyrix, now a subsidiary of NatSemi. But in his keynote speech at the Forum this morning, Mark Christiansen, a VP of the networks communication group at Intel US, seemed to hint that maybe being fabless …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 16:29
Rosen takes lead as least credible MS witness

MS on Trial Could this be the end of a glittering career?

Dan Rosen, previously senior director, strategic relationships in Microsoft's so-called advanced technology group, and now general manager for new technology, has taken over the yellow jersey as Microsoft's least credible witness. His testimony may be his epilogue so far as his future career a Microsoft is concerned. His manner …

Business 25 Feb 1999, 16:32