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4th July 2000 Archive

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  • Letsbuyit.com ducks out of float

    Private placement

    Like a bunch of boy scouts in a raft race who built their craft fastest and are now hesitating before they get onto the precarious-looking thing, Britain's dotcoms are watching everyone else before they hit the stock exchange. The latest bank-dwelling company is Letsbuyit.com, which has gone for the old "market volatility" …

    Business 4 Jul 2000, 06:08

  • Wine sales online are going to get corked

    Cock-up au vin

    Online wine sellers will be the next wave of e-tailers to suffer a big shakeout. The wheels on this particular Internet bandwagon are already sliding off their axles according to an online business consultancy Rubus. Yahoo.co.uk lists about 26 online wine retailers. This is far from a comprehensive list, making no mention of …

    Site News 4 Jul 2000, 10:30

  • Boffins predict uncrackabe quantum data tech

    Now give us shedloads of cash to make it happen, demand researchers

    Japanese scientists at the country's telecoms ministry are proposing to use quantum mechanics to transmit data across next-but-one-generation networks. Quantum states are broadly analogous to the 1s and 0s of digital data. Right now, those binary bits are essentially transmitted as a waveform, with the peaks and troughs of the …

    Data Networking 4 Jul 2000, 11:08

  • RedHotAnt Speaks!

    ISP gives out a post security breach soothing message

    RedHotAnt has responded to our request for a comment on its recent security breach. The ISP has admitted that a hacker did breach site security gaining access to names, addresses, passwords and credit card details of some 24,000 subscribers. Here, in full and unedited, although interspersed with comments, is a copy of the …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 11:22

  • Intel BIOS update – close but no cigar

    Updated Who needs audio anyway?

    You see what happens? You write a positive story about Intel and fate vomits in your face. When we reported yesterday on how pleased we were with Chipzilla's latest mobo utility Intel BIOS update - it works!, we spoke a tad too soon. Although our VC820 mobo updated to the latest version 12 BIOS without a hitch, as soon as our …

    Business 4 Jul 2000, 11:35

  • Martha Lane Fox ducks the limelight

    £150k PR job available to wipe the mud off Lastminute

    Lastminute.com's sweater girl, Martha Lane Fox, is sticking her head back below the parapet. The company is recruiting a head of spin to buff up its image. Lastminute has struggled to fill the post and is expected to have to offer £150,000 or more, says the Daily Mail, to get someone for the job. Perhaps it was being ignored …

    Business 4 Jul 2000, 11:54

  • Napster details copyright case defence

    Music giants just out to beat up on little Napster claims Boies

    Napster will play the 'industry chiefs will do anything to stay in charge' card when it battles the copyright infringement case brought against it by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Napster's lawyer, David Boies - he of Microsoft anti-trust trial fame - yesterday outlined the software company's defence, …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 12:15

  • Steven Norris joins IT spin doctors

    Nobbo gets close to PR bunnies

    Ex-philanderer and Tory London mayoral candidate Steven Norris has joined the world of IT spin. Norris, famed for sustaining five mistresses, is going to work as a consultant at PR firm Citigate. Citigate's client's include Freeserve, Action Computers, Compaq, lastminute.com, Motorola, EDS, Orange, and FortuneCity.com. The …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 12:58

  • And the Socket A overclocking champion is…

    Plus more hardware a gogo

    We have a world first today. Slot A has posted its review of the Soltek 75KV Socket A ATX Motherboard. They speak very highly of it, ranking it as a contender for K7T Pro's current spot as Socket A over-clocking champion. Scores a very respectable nine out of ten. Those nutty Aussies at Insane Hardware have done a little piece …

    Hardware Roundup 4 Jul 2000, 13:08

  • Can't find your favourite site?

    Store your bookmarks centrally

    Folks who regularly use more than one PC will be more than aware of the irritation of discovering that the bookmark you want isn't on the machine you happen to be using. Now a new, free, service aims to provide users with personal website directories enabling them to access their bookmarks from any PC in the world. Online …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 13:10

  • Flame of the Week

    You're gonna burn, you Brit scumsuckers...

    In some ways, The Flame Of The Week (FOTW) a misleading title - as we don't always get around to posting a new flame every seven days. Any delay, and we get accused of losing our nerve. That ain't so: we simply don't get enough interesting flames to merit publication each week. This is not a call for spoof messages. Previous …

    Register Full Coverage 4 Jul 2000, 13:10

  • Virgin launches high street Internet stores

    Sir Richie lets slip about retail plans while announcing Virgin Energy

    A tired and slightly distracted Richard Branson let slip about Virgin's plans to set up Internet one-stop shops in old Our Price stores this lunchtime. The mention of "V-shops" was made during a press conference announcing the launch of Virgin Energy - the entrepreneur's latest venture into the utilities market. Talking about …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 13:28

  • 30 million Brits have a mobile phone

    30 million people shout 'I'm on my mobile!'

    More than half of Brits now own a mobile phone, with one handset sold every two seconds. Figures due to be released this week from the four major phone operators are expected to show that 52 per cent of the population - 30 million people - have a mobile. And ownership is likely to top 60 per cent by the end of the year. Sales …

    Data Networking 4 Jul 2000, 14:21

  • Hackers can make your PC explode

    It was only a matter of time, really....

    Hackers can now turn your home computer into a bomb and blow your family to smithereens, and do so remotely from thousands of miles away, the Weekly World News reports. The recent DDoS attacks which paralysed the Amazon, Buy.com and eBAY Web sites are tame compared to what will happen in the near future, the paper warns. …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 14:47

  • Dr Spinola's PC Clinic Incompetence and Incomprehensibility

    Incomptens Nervosa Technicii Cretinal

    Dear Dr Spinola Please help me, I appear to have rather rashly purchased an Intel 820 motherboard... Dr Spinola replies As a doctor, I am often asked why people buy computer hardware that turns out to be totally unfit for the purpose for which it was obtained. There is a medical term for this malady - Incomptens Nervosa …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 14:47

  • What the Hell is … the PC retail rigging claim all about?

    Sour grapes - or Rip-Off Britain?

    Britain's biggest PC retailer Dixons was this week facing legal action after being accused of playing its part in rip-off Britain. Department store John Lewis threatened to sue Dixons over its exclusive agreements with Compaq and Packard Bell. According to John Lewis, which had the backing of Comet and Tempo in its criticisms, …

    Business 4 Jul 2000, 14:48

  • RIP: Tories attack from the Right

    Oliver Heald, Conservative MP, sets out opposition

    Oliver Heald, Conservative MP for NE Herts, is one of the fiercest opponents of the government's proposed Regulation of Investigatory Powers (RIP) Bill. In an interview with The Register, he explains which main aspects have still to be resolved with less than six months before the proposed Act is expected to be passed. Around …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 14:48

  • RIP Bill – ISP costs mount up

    Financial obligations 'not onerous'

    ISPs could have to pay more than £200,000 per year to comply with the government's plans to intercept Web traffic. Medium to large ISPs will be expected to incur annual costs of between £23,200 and £236,000 to run the planned interception devices if suggestions in the report commissioned by the Home Office go ahead. The …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 14:48

  • What the hell is… the UK's RIP Bill

    What's with all the fuss about the Blair Net Project?

    The UK Government's Regulatory Investigatory Powers (RIP) Bill goes before Select Committee in the House of Commons today and in a little more than six months it could be enshrined in law. But with 30 amendments tabled against it and an angry mob of opponents waiting to string it up, RIP has become better known for the …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 15:10

  • Big Brother Bill faces Select Committee storm

    RIP opponents gather on all sides to halt legislation in its tracks

    Opponents of the Government's Regulatory Investigatory Powers (RIP) Bill are preparing for the next round in the fight to have it stopped in its present format, when the draft legislation goes before a Select Committee tomorrow. Last Monday, RIP passed its second reading in the Commons but is still the target of heavy criticism …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 15:10

  • Man uses spam to sell kidney

    $1m, 99 year lease, one careful owner

    A Virginian man is looking to raise at least $1 million by selling his kidney on a 99-year lease. Phillip Jones is emailing media groups outside the US to try and gain publicity for the sale of his vital organ. The 31-year-old construction worker is looking for a buyer outside the US because the sale of body parts is illegal …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 15:17

  • E-sign act a victory for democracy, Clinton reckons

    And the death of e-mail gobbledegook to boot

    US President Bill Clinton delivered a patriotic speech via the gimmick of a Web-cast to commemorate both the New Economy and Independence Day, during which he enthused with satisfaction over the blessings of e-commerce upon a grateful nation, as embodied in a piece of recently-signed legislation empowering the masses to sign …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 15:31

  • Home truths: Bionic man takes the Metal Mickey

    How CNN, Wired, the BBC, The Times, Guardian, Daily Mail et al fell for the cyborg saga

    The cover of this month's Wired features "cybernetics pioneer" Kevin Warwick explaining how he is pushing the boundaries of science and humanity by turning himself into a cyborg -- part man, part machine. A small implant into his arm will allow a computer to decide its movements, paving the way for a future where humans and …

    Register Full Coverage 4 Jul 2000, 15:33

  • Dr Spinola: How can I stop hairs getting in my PC?

    We give the answers to your PC problems

    Having trouble with your brand new machine or with the lovely application software that's cost you an arm and a leg? Our very own PC paramedic, Dr. Spinola, will guide you through the hardware morass. Q Someone has told me that microprocessors, which as everyone knows are the brains of a PC, also have a full head of hair …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 15:41

  • Dr Spinola: My PC doesn't work: what shall I do?

    PC Clinic We have the answers to those nagging questions

    Having trouble with your brand new machine or with the lovely application software that's cost you an arm and a leg? Our very own PC Doctor, Dr. Spinola, will guide you through the hardware morass. Q I bought a new PC for Christmas and have noticed that the system freezes unexpectedly. What shall I do? A This is a common …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 15:45

  • Flame of The Week: Full Coverage

    We just want to be loved.

    In some ways, The Flame Of The Week (FOTW) a misleading title -- as we don't always get around to posting a new flame every seven days. Any delay, and we get accused of losing our nerve. That ain't so: we simply don't get enough interesting flames to merit publication each week. This is not a call for spoof messages. Previous …

    Register Full Coverage 4 Jul 2000, 15:51

  • Silicon implants boost your orbs

    We're talking about eye surgery, of course

    US surgeons have implanted an experimental electronic retina into the eyes of three blind people, proving that the operation can be done without the eye automatically rejecting the device. It will be at least three weeks before the doctors know whether sight has been restored, but they are sure that the operations will be …

    Business 4 Jul 2000, 15:52

  • Welcome back to WAP

    Back from a well-deserved break from this mobile madness

    The sheer hideous number of WAP phone announcements has slowed down in recent weeks, but don't think the situation has got any better. We had taken refuge from the craziness but are now heading back into the fray as, despite all advice to the contrary, people still want to know about it. Our scepticism is increasingly being …

    Data Networking 4 Jul 2000, 16:12

  • Drugs for sale on Welsh Assembly site

    It's the green green grass of home

    The Welsh Assembly has sacked an employee after emails advertising the sale of dope appeared on the organisation's internal bulletin boards. Assembly administrators launched an enquiry after email messages advertising cannabis were found on the system - which is restricted to assembly staff and members. "There was no formal …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 16:19

  • Opposition mounts against UK's Big Brother Bill

    Adopt an MP and see if you can get it changed

    Parliament is today debating plans which will massively extend Government snooping powers in Britain. If adopted, the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (RIP) Bill would give the Government the green light to snoop on private emails and mobile phone conversations. Those backing the Bill say the new measures simply bring new …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 16:24

  • Register ABCe – six million and rising

    587,000 readers in November

    Hurrah, The Register's latest ABCe audit results are published today -- and great reading they make too. For us, any rate. In November 1999, The Register (www.theregister.co.uk)delivered 6,139,998 page impressions, making us comfortably Britain's biggest IT news site. November page impressions were more than four times higher …

    Site News 4 Jul 2000, 16:24

  • ONdigital's script for journalists

    It has saved us a lot of effort

    Scripts for OnDigital press conference written a week before the 11 July event QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Q What are your latest subscriber numbers? A At xxxxxxx, as at the end of June 2000, they're very sound results showing steady growth. They're exactly what we had anticipated. We're on budget and on course for1 million by the …

    Letters 4 Jul 2000, 16:26

  • I'll get you, Penelope Pitstop

    Prepare to die...

    From: Nicholas Vining Date: Thu, 2 Dec 1999 17:09:33 Subject: You are the worst reporter I have ever seen in my entire life Right. You're gonna get flamed here, and I'm serious. I have never been so pissed off with a member of the media as I have with you, and your stupid organisation. In future, check your fucking references …

    Flame of the Week 4 Jul 2000, 16:30

  • MS exec's hunting trip: illegally chased and shot 4 antelopes

    Kempin drops $6k after nine hunting violations in Montana

    John Lettice Microsoft OEM chief Joachim Kempin was guilty of nine charges of illegal hunting, and far from being a "noted gunslinger," as we suggested in our story yesterday, he seems to have been hunting without a licence, in Montana. The Kempin incident was reported on MSNBC (relation) on 17th December, but that story has …

    Bootnotes 4 Jul 2000, 16:37

  • Crackers are common criminals

    Opinion Microsoft not to blame for all the trouble in the world

    Hackers have a certain romantic image - it's a bit like Robin Hood; the small man against the machine; the righter of wrongs, that sort of thing. On British TV the other night, a young hacker from Wales was asked why he had broken into a computer and downloaded several thousand people's bank details. He replied that he had done …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 16:47

  • ONdigital launches psychic NetTV box

    Insight into the strange world of IT journalism no.42

    Next Tuesday ONdigital will announce the launch of a new TV channel and forthcoming Net box that will give consumers Internet access through their TV. Details are a little sketchy but the channel, so far unnamed, will be out next year. The Net box is a little disappointing, it uses its own browser and should be available in …

    Music and Media 4 Jul 2000, 17:06

  • MS hands out gongs to star programmers

    PowerPup engineers mysteriously snubbed

    Microsoft has inaugurated a "Distinguished Engineers" programme and announced the first recipients. In a letter leaked to Dave Winer's Userland scripting website, Microsoft's Steve Ballmer says the first sixteen DEs are "visionaries... unparalleled and essential to our long-term success". The gongs go to some familiar and well- …

    Software 4 Jul 2000, 19:01