14th June 2000 Archive

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UK minister claims cheapest access in world

WCIT 2000 Who does she think she is kidding?

The minister for small business and e-commerce, Patricia Hewitt, took the podium here in Taipei today, to outline New Labour's stance on e-commerce. She kicked off by congratulating the Taiwanese on the event, and said that UK folk enjoyed the cheapest of all Internet access in Western Europe. Hey, you and I know the truth of …

Music and Media 14 Jun 2000, 02:00
Appellate court will hear MS whinge

MS on Trial 'The trial sucked, and we're about innovation...'

Tuesday was an incredibly busy day in Washington for Microsoft and the US Department of Justice (DoJ). First, US District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson accommodated the DoJ, as expected, by withholding judgment on a stay of his remedies which had been requested by Microsoft, until after the company filed its long-promised notice …

Software 14 Jun 2000, 05:30
Napalm charged 3dfx card hits town

Voodoo Magic?

The Voodoo5 5500, the meatiest graphics card available from 3dfx until the 6000 model comes along, goes on sale in the UK this week. The Voodoo5 5500 is the first of 3dfx's boards to be based on the VSA-100 processor, previously known as the Napalm chip. The board has both Full-Scene Anti-Aliasing (FSAA) and T-Buffer …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 06:16
The cuckoos in the Net incubator nest

A bit lax on the old regulation front

Internet incubators could find themselves at the wrong end of legal action, according to the Financial Times. The companies offer consultation services and sometimes investment in return for stakes in hatchling net businesses. Many new incubators have failed to ask for authorisation under the Financial Services Act, because …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 06:18
Adobe lashes out at Mac rumour site

Seeks $10m damages, jury trial over AppleInsider's Photoshop 6 leak

Graphics software specialist Adobe has launched an all-out legal offensive against Mac News Network (MacNN) after the Apple-watching Web site's AppleInsider page posted a sneak preview of the next version of Adobe's flagship title, Photoshop. Not to be satisfied with a mere 'pull the story or we sue your ass off' - the usual …

Music and Media 14 Jun 2000, 08:07
Feds home in on AOL instant messaging

The Unprovable chases the Unreadable. IRC, anyone?

The Feds have stepped in to investigate AOL's dominance of the instant messaging business. The company operates the AIM and ICQ networks and has so far successfully fought off challenges from both Microsoft and open source messaging protocols. But how much longer this good cop/bad cop tactic can hold out now looks questionable …

Software 14 Jun 2000, 08:09
IBM previews latest PowerPCs

Could be even faster than Motorola's more advanced version

IBM yesterday previewed its upcoming gigahertz-targeted PowerPC CPUs: the PPC 750CX and PPC 750CXe. Both chips are extend the PowerPC Generation 3 architecture (aka G3) which marks the final point at which Motorola's and IBM's PowerPC development efforts coincided. Since the split, some two years back, Motorola has forged ahead …

Channel 14 Jun 2000, 08:39
Politics and the courts – will MS get an easier appeal ride?

MS on Trial At least one judge seems touchy on the subject...

Harry Edwards, the chief judge of the DC Circuit, went on the record last October in the Legal Times to express his disdain that a judge's politics should influence a ruling. He lashed the Washington Post for suggesting that "Microsoft's fate could hinge on which judges hear appeal" and characterising "the impending appellate …

Software 14 Jun 2000, 08:48
Sun takes the high ground against EMC

And debuts new four letter acronym. Begins with 'J'. Bzzzzt...

Sun's latest J-word comes out of the closet today as it unveils its masterplan for network attached storage. Jiro is Sun's management framework for looking after the boxes of disks that will be littering data centres - and probably homes too - pretty shortly. It's the culmination of a slew of alliances that Sun has been …

Software 14 Jun 2000, 08:53
Sega to license Dreamcast, form chip JV

Sega apes Sony apes Palm - fears M$

Sega is attempting to court third-parties to license its Dreamcast 128-bit games console technology, sources close to the videogame company have claimed. In other words, if it's good enough for Sony, it's clearly good enough for Sega. Sony announced a similar scheme this month. The Japanese electronics-to-entertainment giant …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 10:52
Thieves nick 300 Axion monitors

So keep 'em peeled

Bedfordshire Police have launched an investigation into the theft of more than 300 PC monitors. The kit disappeared at 4am on Thursday June 8 near the UK premises of Taiwan-based monitor manufacturer Axion Technology. The items were in a lorry belonging to haulage firm News Transport in Flitwick, Bedfordshire, and were waiting …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 11:26
Gerstner slams clueless CEOs

Our Net strategy? Sorry mate, you got me there

Lou Gerstner believes the new economy is forcing companies to "act in some very unbusiness-like ways" and that many CEOs have an "air of desperation about them". The IBM chief says companies are being blinded by "dot-com alchemy" and that some could be on "dangerous ground" if they fail to grasp the fundamentals involved. This …

Music and Media 14 Jun 2000, 12:30
Oops, Britney Spears is ebusiness babe

Woolies gets e-wonder and other e-trade tales

Britney Spears, the 18-year-old pop star, has agreed to be paid in shares for becoming the face of teen Web site YOUtopia.com. Spears, who is already worth a cool £10 million, will be an online hostess for the site, which is due to be launched this month. Canadian venture YOUtopia.com will offer online cafes, virtual parties and …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 12:30
Lou Gerstner Memo

LVG spills his guts

To: XXXXXXX cc: From: XXXXXXX Subject: Lou Gerstner: Guest Commentary: Blinded by Dot-Com Alchemy I was recently with the highly regarded chief executive of a major U.S. multinational who admitted to me that he has told his executive committee: "Do something with the Internet--anything." The CEO of a well-known Asian …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 13:26
Win2K driver saga: HP staff not happy bunnies

'Bill and Dave's lifeless bodies would be more inspiring than the current leadership'

A number of HP insiders have kindly responded to our questions earlier this week about the continuing lack of Windows 2000 drivers HP Win2K OfficeJet drivers slip again. Some point to mysterious gaps in the San Diego parking lot once occupied by the vehicles of the folks who had been working on the older 500, 600 and 700 series …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 13:32
Doctor Spinola's PC Clinic

This week: The Microsoft breakup

Dear Dr Spinola, I am a small computer user and I'm very concerned at the breakup of Microsoft. What do you advise? Dr Spinola replies: You shouldn't be overly concerned. Many users are shorter than average and my usual advice is to sit on a cushion so you can reach the desk in comfort. Dear Dr Spinola, I too am a small …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 13:40
Another day, another DoubleClick privacy PR disaster

This time it's Web form data 'spillage'

DoubleClick has been caught mucking around with personal privacy - again. The world's biggest online ad sales house has been caught gleaning email addresses and other personal information from Web site customers - without the knowledge of Web sites. DoubleClick says the transmission of personal data from the unwitting Web sites …

Music and Media 14 Jun 2000, 13:49
MS begs court for longer sentences

MS on Trial And more paragraphs...

Microsoft's stay appeal is not at the moment in a form acceptable to the Court of Appeals because it is too long. Microsoft knows this, because it has submitted a separate "Motion for Leave to Submit an Overlength Motion for Stay Pending Appeal" to the court asking it to accept its longer motion for a stay. The Federal Rules of …

Software 14 Jun 2000, 14:00
Dotcom hacks found working for free

Dangerous precedent set

A gaggle of US dotcom journalists have taken the unlikely step of working for free. More than 100 journalists and marketing staff have volunteered to keep showing up at the offices of APBnews.com, even though the company cannot pay them. Investors are saying that APBnews.com, an online crime news and information site, must …

Business 14 Jun 2000, 14:24
Consumers' Association in spamfest

Watchdog bites itself

The Consumers' Association (CA) has responded to criticisms that it is failing to champion the cause of Net users against spam. In a short response to the 20 people who emailed their views to the CA following a Register investigation, the consumer watchdog said: "The Consumers' Association is currently reviewing the policy on …

Music and Media 14 Jun 2000, 14:58
Opto-tech boffins large it up on Govt. grants

Well, you got to keep them out of mischief somehow

Government and industry are to invest matching funds to develop optical Internet technology, Science Minister Lord Sainsbury said today. The British Government will cough up £6 million for the research backed by a further £5 million from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). But since the EPSRC is …

Music and Media 14 Jun 2000, 15:59
M'Soft anti-theft evening ends in robbery

Levi jeans go walkabout

It seems Microsoft failed to ram home the evils of theft to UK journalists last night. The software giant tried its best with the assembled hacks at its anti-piracy evening at the Limelight Nightclub in London. It even enlisted the help of TV celeb Graham Norton to get its message across. Norton hosted a game in which tables …

Bootnotes 14 Jun 2000, 17:25