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4th August 2000 Archive

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  • Cyrix Richardson site up for sale

    Photo comes Via e-mail

    A drive-by mole has sent us definitive evidence that the former Cyrix site in Richardson, Texas, is up for sale. The photograph shows that the site, which is a total of 174, 825 square feet, is For Sale, with real estate firm The Morse Company handling the deal. We can vouch for the authenticity of the picture. Ten years ago, …

    Channel 4 Aug 2000, 07:42

  • Intel's 200MHz cunning plan to scupper AMD

    And more from our mole in the Far East

    Pressure from its PC customers and other partners forced Intel to decide to implement synchronous memory with its up and coming Pentium 4 ("Willamette") microprocessor, it has emerged. A source close to Intel in South East Asia, has shed light on the thinking -- reminiscent of Saul's conversion on the road to Damascus -- that …

    Channel 4 Aug 2000, 08:06

  • NCR buys 4Front for $250m

    And other channel mergers

    NCR is to buy 4Front Technologies Inc, the UK-headquartered computer maintenance/storage firm for $250 million in cash. This can be considered a good deal for 4Front shareholders, with the price achieved equivalent to last year's turnover of $252 million, and a 35 per cent premium to the company's closing price on Nasdaq on the …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 08:17

  • Compaq takes supercomputer lead

    2,728 Alphas - whew what a scorcha

    Forget these Willamettes and Itania, these Athlon Powers and these Durons. Compaq has just announced that it has won a deal to deliver an Alpha-based supercomputer to the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Centre which will deliver six teraflops when installation is complete next year. That's a staggering six trillion operations a …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 08:47

  • WAP Forum CEO responds to Reg

    He's not in total agreement with our synopsis

    We wrote a story about the possible future of the much-maligned WAP protocol. Scott Goldman, the CEO of the body behind WAP, WAP Forum, responded in depth. The letter consisted of the Reg story in full, with comments inserted at various points. We've cut our story out of the piece to keep the size down. We said the WAP protocol …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 08:54

  • Intel files suit against Hadron

    Trademark court case, again

    The Intel Corporation has filed a trademark case against Hadron Inc, a firm which provides information management and technical services to US federal agencies and commercial businesses. The case, docket number 5:00cv20811, was filed in the San Jose District Court on the 31st of July, and relates to alleged trademark …

    Channel 4 Aug 2000, 09:25

  • MAPS under fire as Harris sues MS, AOL over spam block

    Analysis But it's not entirely clear who the good guys are

    At first glance, pollster Harris International's legal action against AOL, Microsoft's Hotmail and others seems heavy-handed. Harris had been blacklisted in the Mail Abuse Prevention System (MAPS) Realtime Blackhole List for spamming, but a dig behind the scenes shows there's much more to this one than the bare facts suggest. …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 09:40

  • Apple anti-leak action shifts to Yahoo!

    Subpoenas Web site to demand user details

    Apple's quest for the source of leaked information about upcoming products has taken it to Yahoo! The Mac maker yesterday subpeoena'd the online operation to release any information it has on the individual Apple suspects is behind the leaks. The leaker, named in Apple's recent trade secret violation suit as a John Doe - legal …

    Mac Channel 4 Aug 2000, 09:49

  • Canadians throw the book at MafiaBoy hacker

    I was a teenage DDoSser

    Mafiaboy, the teenage Canadian hacker, was slapped with 64 new charges, when he walked into a Montreal court yesterday. The 16-year-old boy, from Quebec, denied "mischief" charges relating to a fusillade of DDoS attacks in February against big hitter Web sites such as Yahoo! and eBay. Mafiaboy was charged in April with two …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 09:54

  • HW Roundup:Is a 64MB GeForce2 worth the extra cash?

    And see a T'bird get terminated

    Wondering if you should fork out the extra cash for the 64MB GeForce2? Click here before you do, as Tech Review compares the 32MB and 64MB versions. And did you ever wonder what the different settings on the GTS driver build actually do? Follow this link to Planet Hardware who have explained everything. Planet Hardware has …

    Hardware Roundup 4 Aug 2000, 10:08

  • Telewest's blueyonder price to fall

    It's just a question of when

    Telewest is to cut the cost of its broadband cable Net access service, blueyonder. The announcement, which could be made as early as Monday, was confirmed by Telewest's CE, Adam Singer, following mounting speculation that the cableco would have to cut prices to compete with other broadband products. Speaking yesterday, Singer …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 10:17

  • S3 closes Diamond graphics board biz

    Operation to wither and die

    S3's shift from chip company to a home-oriented digital media and Internet operation almost reached its conclusion yesterday when the company announced the closure of its consumer graphics card operation. S3 admitted that it wasn't able to sell the operation off, but that's no great surprise, perhaps, given the cutthroat nature …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 10:20

  • Dr Spinola interviews Queen Mum

    World Exclusive as seen in every newspaper on the planet

    Dr Spinola Ma'am, may I start by thanking you for this rare opportunity to talk with someone who has played such a key role in the computer industry over the last 100 years. HRH My pleasure, dear boy. Is that a bottle of Gordon's on the table behind you? Dr Spinola What was your introduction to IT? HRH Sorry, I thought you …

    Bootnotes 4 Aug 2000, 10:27

  • S3 admits Taiwan rejected chip sale to Via

    Negotiations to try to rescue JV continue in earnest

    S3's attempt to form a joint venture with Via and to then sell the Taiwanese mobo company its graphics chip business was initially rejected by Taiwan's government, S3 boss Ken Potashner admitted yesterday. "The Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Government of Taiwan initially denied the application for our joint venture based …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 10:42

  • S3 revenues rise

    But they're a long way off its pre-Diamond merger expectations

    Digital media company S3 yesterday saw its second quarter revenues rise almost 137 per cent to $135.8 million, but experienced a widening loss of $36.3 million on the back of the spin-off and closure of two of its subsidiaries. For Q2 2000, S3 lost $12.1 million (13 cents a share). That's almost as much as the company lost in …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 11:13

  • Oracle embraces old technology

    Must be getting board of all that gnumeedjia

    You see the funniest things from the train window. Anyone familiar with the Thames Valley Business Park in Reading will know that Oracle has what can only be described as an impressive presence there. In all there's about six or seven aircraft-hangar sized buildings, confirming its status as one of the world's foremost hi-tech …

    Bootnotes 4 Aug 2000, 11:26

  • Dome black hole deepens. Who's lying though?

    You know it's bad when the computers go

    The Millennium Dome - possibly the most criminal waste of money the world has ever seen - has been forced to start selling "surplus" equipment in a desperate bid to get some money. At least that's what The Daily Telegraph says. We chased up the story that The New Millenium Experience Company was selling hundreds of handhelds to …

    Bootnotes 4 Aug 2000, 11:30

  • Sony admits PlayStation 2 Euro launch delay

    Release put back one month - official

    Sony has confirmed that Europe will indeed see the PlayStation 2 later than originally scheduled. Europeans eager to get their hands on the console will now have to wait the best part of a month for one, now the release date has been put back to 24 November from 26 October. That's a week further back than sources yesterday …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 11:37

  • The day's dotcom financial news – only one dead

    Egg and Autonomy doing well

    Online bank Egg is to build a third call centre in Derby, creating 1,500 new jobs in the Midlands. The centre is needed because of the large numbers of new customers, 600,000 a year the company claims. The two existing centres employ 2,000 people and are based in Derby and Dudley (near Birmingham). The bank's half-year figures …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 11:55

  • Securities, exam, Concentric, spam

    Here's your Friday dose of irony

    A reader has kindly sent us a spam email from someone offering University Diplomas for a fee ("No required tests, classes, books, or interviews. Bachelors, masters, MBA, and doctorate (PhD) diplomas available in the field of your choice. No one is turned down." Hang on! This doesn't sound kosher). The interesting thing though …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 12:00

  • What the Hell is… a flip-chip?

    Plastic pins, anyone?

    With world+dog merrily dropping terms like FC-PGA into polite conversation, here's a layperson-friendly explanation of what they're on about: The Flip Chip Pin Grid Array (FC-PGA) package is used on Pentium III processors, while Plastic Pin Grid Array (PPGA) packaging is used on Celerons. This does not mean Celerons have …

    Channel 4 Aug 2000, 12:09

  • Buffalo PR tells world its journalist contacts

    See if you can get there before you take it down

    Buffalo PR is so keen on "striving for 100 per cent client, staff and journalist satisfaction" that it has put up its journalist contact list on the Web for all to see. It's not terribly exciting to be honest, but does give an interesting indication of how it works and reads like a Domesday Book of UK IT journalists (our own …

    Bootnotes 4 Aug 2000, 12:12

  • AltaVista ISP in pointless queue-jumping exercise

    Can't push in, won't push in

    AltaVista has denied it is misleading people over the introduction of a new time-limited flat-fee Net access package. Writing in an email plugging the new service, Andy Mitchell, the MD of AltaVista UK and Ireland, said customers signing up to AltaVista Freetime 20 would be "automatically enrolled in the AltaVista Unmetered …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 12:33

  • VC foul-ups: the ones that were thrown away

    At least Decca rejected The Beatles only the once

    Bessemer Venture Partners says it could well be America's oldest venture capital firm, with an unbroken history stretching all the way back to 1911. This "long and storied history has afforded the firm an unparalleled number of opportunities to completely screw up", it admits. So top marks to the company for publishing the …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 13:20

  • RIP grants rights to spies who employ us

    Govt. invites comments

    The DTI has given the British public until the end of the month to submit comments on the Government's plans to let bosses read staff emails without consent. While MPs are making the most of their summer recess and swanning off on holiday or honeymoon, employers, trade associations, charities and individuals have been given …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 13:20

  • Virus launches DDoS for mobile phones

    Whatever next?

    A cracker going by the name 'HSE' has said that he intends to bring fear and terror to the hearts of mobile phone users everywhere "come hell or high waters". HSE has written a program in MS Visual Basic 5.0 that uses the public "canals" in mobile phone networks in order to transmit huge volumes of SMS messages to any number …

    Data Networking 4 Aug 2000, 13:21

  • Pirates – make 'em walk the plank

    Software theft or redistribution of wealth?

    [This article appeared first in Direct Access, a Microsoft UK online channel magazine.] When you were 14 you probably thought nothing of taping the Top 20 off the radio on a Sunday evening; who knows - you may even have progressed to videoing Top of the Pops. But such a laissez-faire approach to copying software applications …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 14:19

  • Chinese Govt backs MP3 site

    Rock on Beijing

    The Chinese Government is just weeks away from unveiling its own MP3 music site. ListenToChina.com is designed to promote and develop Chinese music and if it proves successful, it could create a completely new, financially sustainable music distribution platform for the nation's artist. All the artists featured on the site …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 14:26

  • DRAM sales – it's quiet out there

    Maybe too quiet

    World DRAM prices continued to rise from mid-June to mid-July, according to research company ICIS-LOR. The 30 day rolling average ended July 14 for contract price 128Mb DRAM memory chips was $14.31 in North America, $14.23 in Europe and $12.77 in Asia. Prices rose two per cent in North America, 2.18 per cent in Europe and 3.36 …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 14:52

  • Competition Win a bullet riddled motherboard!

    The Reg goes mad with generosity

    Fancy getting your mitts on a unique piece of computing history? The Reg is giving away Kay Buena's old motherboard. You know, the one that got shot? All you have to do is complete the following sentence: "I deserve to win Kay Buena's motherboard because..." (And anyone who refers to astounding feats of overclocking will be …

    Hardware Roundup 4 Aug 2000, 15:18

  • Oftel tongues Welsh speakers

    It's all Dutch to us

    Oftel is to publish its documents in Welsh - as well as English - the winged watchdog announced today. The bilingual measure will also mean that Oftel officials will answer the phone and publish leaflets in Welsh. Explaining why Oftel has taken the decision, David Edmonds, Director General of Telecommunications, said today: " …

    Data Networking 4 Aug 2000, 15:51

  • Double-take Demon site. Tut tut

    We know people borrow HTML, but come on

    Interesting comparison for you all. Check out Demon's site here. Then have a peek at Metropolitan Internet's site here. Strangely similar, no? The thing is, everyone pinches a bit of HTML or JavaScript now and then but Metropolitan is really taking the piss. Doesn't exactly give you much confidence in Metropolitan either - if …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 15:53

  • 7.6 million PCs shipped in Europe in Q2

    Not a return to the glory days of 1998

    European PC sales grew nine per cent to 7.6 million units in the second quarter of 2000. According to a Dataquest report, shipments in the business sector grew just 0.3 per cent, but this segment still accounted for the lion's share of the market with 72 per cent of Europe's PC sales and 5.5 million units. Growth in the home …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 16:10

  • Flame pain in our brain

    What is wrong with people?

    [We ran a computer-generated Flame of the Week. We wished we hadn't. Emails demonstrating previously unknown levels of stupidity arrived by the vanload. We decided the only thing to be done was write an apology. People then flamed us for apologising (Hint: whenever you see "An apology" on The Reg, you can be absolutely certain …

    Letters 4 Aug 2000, 16:33

  • Flame of the Week: The British are scum

    We think it was Andrew's Canadian story that lit the touch paper

    [Clearly deranged, this beloved reader started responding to Andrew's story where he suggested we supply a baby seal for Canadians to club, but then the switch went and suddenly we're involved in the joys of the British Empire. We started taking out the spelling mistakes, but then figured that add a certain something to the …

    Letters 4 Aug 2000, 16:36

  • Canadians finish off seal and turn on Reg

    Actually, Canadians have a grand sense of humour. We welcome you all

    [Andrew found a small disclaimer in a Microsoft competition which said if a Canadian won, he/she would have to pass a maths test before taking the prize. Apparently it's some odd Canadian law. He then made an off-colour remark about seal clubbing] Microsoft suggests Canadians can't add I found Andrew Thomas' comment in the …

    Letters 4 Aug 2000, 16:41

  • Oh no! Here come the statisticians

    What are the odds of hundreds of replies to a simple question?

    [Lucy wrote about a man who claimed to have random pressed buttons on a remote control and suddenly been able to order pizzas and limos on someone else's credit card. Hmmm. Anyway, she asked what the odds were that you could randomly get a credit card number and expiry date right. All those budding mathematicians out there saw …

    Letters 4 Aug 2000, 16:49

  • Best of the rest: a delicious assortment

    Reuterspeak, Oftel, shouting man and a train rant

    Win2k successor Whistler to beta in October If one deciphers these seemingly benign paragraphs of Reuterspeak with a) the Bible Code, b) Blowfish [passphrase: bytemebytemenow], and c) the decoder ring in specially marked packages of Cinnamon-Raisin Poofy-Wheat Crispies, one realises quickly that this apparent random gibberish …

    Letters 4 Aug 2000, 17:22

  • Boxman cancels IPO, Dressmart ponders existence

    So much for clever Swedes

    Q. What do all these companies have in common: Boo.com; Letsbuyit.com; Boxman.com; Dressmart.com? A. They are or were all B2C Web businesses founded by Swedes. At the height of the dotcom madness - you remember, it was only March - newspapers and new media rags were full of irrational guff about Sweden, and what a marvellous …

    Business 4 Aug 2000, 17:38

  • Amazon leaves authors open to abuse

    Reg hack's brother savaged online

    Online retailer Amazon has come under fire for letting any old person pose as an author and submit a comment about a book they haven't written. According to The Independent, children's writer Philip Pullman, sci-fi novelist John Christopher, and Terry Goodkind (not sure what genre he writes in) have all suffered and they are …

    Music and Media 4 Aug 2000, 17:49

  • Readers' Letters: you're either with us or you're shouting at us

    Flames of flames, seal-murdering Canadians, crazy stats. Just a normal week

    Blimey! Lots of ranting this week. Most of it deranged, you'll be pleased to hear. That's all I'm saying this week, it's sunny outside and everyone but me and Rob are down the pub. Oh yeah, email here. Flame pain in our brain Don't even want to go into the details, they're so depressing. Basically, people aren't very bright. …

    Letters 4 Aug 2000, 17:55