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8th November 2000 Archive

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  • UK software and services firms face gloom and doom

    When will it ever end?

    Richard Holway, Britain's best known computer industry pundit, has turned bearish on the UK software and services sector. Speaking at a City law-firm seminar yesterday, he warned that companies in the sector would have to endure two more years of sluggish growth - around ten per cent per annum - and collapsing earnings, after …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 08:08

  • Register domains with Korean, Japanese or Chinese characters

    Russian, Turkish and Arabic coming RSN

    From this week Net users can register domain names with Korean, Japanese and Chinese (both traditional and simplified) characters. The service, due to go live on Thursday, is part of a trial which is expected to expand to support Russian, Turkish and Arabic characters. Until now, punters have been able to register only URLs …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 08:12

  • Software and services – who needs them?

    Leave well alone

    It is a truth so obvious that no one says it any more because it is so obvious, that it is extraordinarily difficult to make big money building or selling PCs. The big profits, such as they are, lie at the components level - not at the assembly, distribution, or retail level. There is of course one outstanding exception - Dell …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 08:23

  • Compel short-term prospects ‘not normal’

    Channel flannel

    Compel released this statement, to be uttered at the reseller's AGM today: "Although performance in the first quarter of the financial year was in linewith our budget, trading conditions, overall, continue to be difficult. We remain positive about our longer term prospects but see no early return to more normal market conditions …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 08:53

  • Mothernature dies, Pets.com put down

    Crash Register

    Pets.com, supposedly the healthiest of the US dogfood e-tailers, is to be put down, but ever so gently. The company ceases trading tomorrow, 9 November, in an orderly wind-down of operations. Pets.com's biggest asset is probably Sock Puppet, the company's mascot and a popular toy. The company IPO'd nine months ago at $11 a …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 09:56

  • AOL UK extends unmetered service nationwide

    Gawd bless 'em

    AOL UK is to make its flat-rate unmetered Net access service available throughout the country following the successful roll-out of the product to its existing members. To date, AOL Flat Rate is the only unmetered Internet access plan to be founded on the new FRIACO flat-rate wholesale tariff that caps costs to ISPs. However, …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 09:58

  • Too close to call: Senator Microsoft's career hangs by a thread

    MS defender Gorton tying with RealNetworks exec challenger in Washington

    The most Microsoft-friendly senator in the US is in deep trouble this morning, with the vote in the company's home state of Washington tied at 49 per cent apiece. Senator Slade Gorton and challenger Maria Cantwell jockeyed for a tiny lead in the early hours, and it could be a long, nail-biting process before either can be …

    Software 8 Nov 2000, 10:42

  • French flirt, Germans download

    Stereotypical survey

    The French and the Spanish are much more likely to chat than do email. The Brits are more likely to be managing their buddy lists than chat. And the Germans can be found downloading files rather than manning their inbox. A new study by NetValue suggests that cultural differences persist in the wired world. Or are they just …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 10:57

  • BSA deploys imaginary pirate software detector vans

    They're putting the frighteners on

    The Business Software Alliance aka The Pirate Busters is growing so frustrated in its hopeless efforts to cut down on software piracy that it has decided propaganda and misinformation is the way forward. Visitors to Glasgow Central Station yesterday were surprised to be confronted by a Ford Transit van with a small radar and …

    Software 8 Nov 2000, 11:07

  • UK Patent Office opens software patent consultation

    Should we or shouldn't we? So far, it seems impartial...

    The UK patent office has opened a consultation exercise on patenting of software and business methods, and has posted a pretty detailed and lucid questionnaire on its Web site. It's also kicked off a discussion group on the subject, and is asking for responses from all concerned - business, software authors, users and consumers …

    Software 8 Nov 2000, 11:37

  • AOL chiefs are super smug

    Victorious crusader in a struggle for unmetered Net access?

    AOL UK is displaying all the smugness of a US president elect who was told he was going to lose the election by the all-knowing TV networks but, when the time came, overturned the opinions of pundits and delivered victory right on the button. Sure, interest in today's announcement will focus on the fact that here is an …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 12:07

  • Compaq cools on Transmeta Crusoe

    Power-saving chip not up to scratch for US market?

    Compaq appears to have canned plans to launch a notebook based on Transmeta's power-efficient x86-compatible processor, at least in the US. Like IBM and Toshiba, the PC vendor has concluded that Crusoe doesn't light the candle. At least, that's what US Bancorp Piper Jaffray analyst Ashok Kumar claimed yesterday in a report on …

    Channel 8 Nov 2000, 12:27

  • Intel moves to 0.13 micron, copper

    First working parts roll off the line

    Intel has built its first semiconductors using a 0.13 micron (130nm) process. The chip behemoth has working static RAM and microprocessors using transistors approximately one thousandth the width of a human hair. The process will enter volume manufacturing next year with a die shrink of both the Pentium III and 4 and has the …

    Channel 8 Nov 2000, 12:37

  • Fabric keyboard materialises

    Did you hear me, cloth ears?

    Elektex is claiming a world first with the launch of a roll-up fabric keyboard, and says the device will be a big hit with PDA users. The selling point, of course, is that it is easier to type than to use the stylus and the Graffiti handwriting input employed on PalmOS PDAs. It can be folded, rolled up, scrunched and washed …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 12:44

  • MS hacked by Dimitri again. Perhaps

    Corporate sloppiness or hacker self-aggrandisement?

    The hacker that gained access to several Microsoft servers through a known security hole on Friday claims he did it again yesterday (Tuesday). Dimitri says he uploaded a file called oopsididitagain which mocked MS' security policy. The file title refers to the hit single by Britney Spears, and Dimitri also gave an indication of …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 12:49

  • Gartner jumps on ‘RDRAM dead’ bandwagon

    Dead in 6-8 months, apparently

    Analyst group Gartner says that RDRAM will be dead in six to eight months. At the Gartner Symposium/ITXpo in Cannes yesterday, senior analyst Kevin Knox told delegates: "Rambus is pretty much dead. It only made it into some areas such as high-end workstations, but it is dead for the mainstream PC. It is probably not a wise …

    Channel 8 Nov 2000, 13:11

  • Win Brit Net Lit

    More freebies from Vulture Central

    It's a radical information dissemination idea - words printed on thin sheets of paper and glued together. It's called a book, and you too can own one. The tome up for grabs is The New English Library book of Internet Stories. It contains tales of shagging, murder, some clever sci-fi Net stuff and a few homages to Tales of the …

    Site News 8 Nov 2000, 13:21

  • Vodafone pays £1.8 billion for Swisscom Mobile

    NEC eyes AOL Europe and Wanadoo - and there's more besides

    Vodafone is to acquire a 25 per cent equity stake in Swisscom Mobile in exchange for £1.8 billion. Vodafone can pay for the stake in cash, shares or a combination of the two as it sees fit. In return Swisscom will get access to Vodafone products and services and will take part in its supply chain management. Japanese giant …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 13:28

  • Samsung prices 24in TFT LCD monitor at £3525

    Monster price, monster display

    Samsung has released its 24in TFT LCD monitor and priced it at £3525 ex VAT. The 21in model is £2,975 ex VAT. The Samsung Syncmaster 240T TFT include has a max resolution of 1920 x 1200 (WUXGA), 230 cd/m2 luminance, and 400:1 contrast ratio. It's got analogue RGB, digital RGB, and composite video and S-video inputs. You can …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 14:09

  • Hitachi plans Web enabled PDA

    Can you wait until the end of 2001?

    Hitachi has revealed plans to start selling web enabled PDAs followed immediately by provision of content services in an effort to bolster its handheld computer business. No decision has been made about which OS the devices will run the company said, and they will not be available for a while. The company said it would start …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 14:39

  • AA buys inflammable site

    Some success in dotcomland

    Petrolbusters.com, the Web site set up to provide information about where to find the cheapest fuel, has been bought by Britain's largest motoring organisation. The site is now owned by the AA - not Alcoholics Anonymous, you fool, the Automobile Association - after it coughed up £250,000 cash for the niche site. It seems the …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 14:41

  • Ryanair says Web will save it £15m a year

    Online sales rise, travel agent commission dies

    Budget airline Ryanair has confirmed its status as one of the world's most profitable airlines with Q2 pre-tax profits rising 54 per cent to £33.7 million. Its net profit margin has grown from 25.7 to 30 per cent in the three months to 30 September. Most of this is down to savings it has made since introducing online bookings …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 14:42

  • Codebreaker crybabies call for clues

    No chance, and time is running out...

    Our Codebreaker competition has certainly got most of you stumped. We recently suggested that if you lot had been working on the Enigma code at Bletchley Park, we'd still be trying to bridge the Rhine. That scenario has proved to be hopelessly optimistic. We'd still be looking at the Atlantic wall through binoculars. If …

    Bootnotes 8 Nov 2000, 15:25

  • What do you give the man who has everything?

    Penicillin?

    What better present for Christmas than a personalised domain name? Well, a case of decent malt whisky, a box of Cuban cigars or a Jaguar XKR do spring to mind. But if your loved one would be happier with their very own domain name then dotcomsforchristmas is the place to go. A snip at £25 including a free three-page Web site [ …

    Bootnotes 8 Nov 2000, 15:42

  • Baltimore results going in the right direction

    Revenues up, losses down.

    Baltimore Technologies, the security specialists, announced losses of £7 million for the third quarter ending September 30. Revenues were up 24 per cent on last quarter and 215 per cent on the same quarter last year to £20.1 million. During the quarter revenues from license fees rose by 28 per cent to £10.3 million, and now …

    Software 8 Nov 2000, 15:52

  • AltaVista pimps for pornmonger

    Search engine bends over backwards for new partner

    Private Media Group Inc - the NASDAQ-listed peddler of porn - has signed an advertising and directory deal with AltaVista in a bid to grow its business. The adult entertainment outfit will advertise its wares on AltaVista's sites in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Pacific. In return for pointing sex-related …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 15:57

  • China goes Net censorship crazy

    Puts RIP Bill to shame

    Not a country renowned for freedom of speech, China has nevertheless outdone itself with a new set of Net censorship laws that would make Draco proud. Not only are Western news portals including the BBC, CNN and Yahoo! to be blocked, but anyone wishing to post news from anyone other that state-owned media outlets will have to …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 16:00

  • Sony backtracks on PlayStation 2 allocation pledge

    UK won't get as many consoles as promised

    Sony has admitted it won't be able to supply UK retailers with enough pre-Christmas PlayStation 2 consoles. Last September, when Sony cut the number of PlayStation 2s allocated to the US from one million units to 500,000, it pledged Europe's allocation of 500,000 units would not be cut. And today the Japanese giant changed its …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 16:58

  • NEC puts a brave face on DRAM debacle

    Spot prices continue to plummet

    NEC expects to weather the DRAM storm, despite last month's plunging memory prices. The Japanese chipmakers's president Kojo Nishigaki has said the business is ready for memory prices to stay low until the end of its financial year on March 31. Prices have halved in the past four months, cutting into chip manufacturer's …

    Channel 8 Nov 2000, 17:10

  • Russian credit card scam looks bigger than we thought

    Victims' Web host makes statement

    Yesterday The Register reported that some customers of Web host Fasthosts, were unlawfuly having small amounts of Russian roubles charged to their credit cards. All the money was apparently going to a Moscow-based company called Incomtel. Since the initial story, Fasthosts has issued a statement, which we will print in full. …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 17:18

  • Free! GAP phone with every jumper

    What can WAP do to ingratiate itself with us

    "This jumper comes with a free GAP mobile phone. While stocks last." This, at least, is one view of the future for these blasted WAP phones that everyone has been going on about but no one has bought. We were chewing the cud over lunch with Dr Ronjon Nag and Chris Ashmore - CEO and VP/GM of Cellmania, respectively - and were …

    Data Networking 8 Nov 2000, 17:33

  • HWRoundup The Nvidia GeForce2 MX graphic cards duke it out

    Mobile CPU mania

    Sharky has posted the weekly CPU prices roundup. The general feeling is of levelling out - this is never bad news if you are buying. Click here for a little more detail than that. We're linking to this because the sell was just too good to resist: "The Virtual Ink Mimio system is the sort of thing that I'd pay money for right …

    Hardware Roundup 8 Nov 2000, 17:47

  • Net is a fraud haven

    And 62 per cent of cyberspace doesn't care

    Despite every netizen and their dog trying to expand their corner of cyberspace, 62 per cent of organisations on the Web use no anti-fraud measures. So claims a survey by SAS Institute, which indicates that the retail, telecommunications, finance and public sectors are all apathetic when it comes to protecting themselves and …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 17:59

  • Europe to ban spam?

    Working party could influence MEPs

    An influential body of data protection experts could be about to recommend that Europe bans spam. The Data Protection Working Party - made up of Data Protection Commissioners from all 15 member states of the European Union, including Britain's Elizabeth France - has now finalised its views on "unsolicited communications" …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 18:01

  • IBM SP used to model heart beats

    720 pumping processors help fight disease

    Researchers at Duke University's looking into heart disease are using simulations running on an IBM SP supercomputer, based on the same technology as ASCI White. The machine has 720 processors and is currently ranked as the 16th most powerful computer in the world. The research team at the university's computational …

    Business 8 Nov 2000, 18:24

  • Asus hacked and down

    You've 14m3 k1dd13 to thank for it

    Taiwanese motherboard manufacturer Asus has seen its dotcom site hacked and down for the whole of today. Instead of the usual colourful layout, we are instead treated to a message from the charming and eloquent young man that hacked the site. It reads: defaced by 14m3 k1dd13 fuck hackphreak and that stupid dickhead rloxley We …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 18:26

  • Dell and Dixons give dire e-service

    Survey based on single e-purchase hammers big names

    Dell, Dixons and WHSmith have been slammed for shabby customer service on the Net. In a survey of the top 25 online shopping sites in the UK, consultancy Plaut found that just 15 per cent of e-tailers had a level of customers service equivalent to that expected on the high street. And cyber heavyweights like Dell came out the …

    Music and Media 8 Nov 2000, 18:33

  • Whistler to include ‘block all unsigned apps’ security mode

    Permission needed to run your apps on Windows

    Microsoft is to incorporate a "signed application" system in Whistler, the intention being to furnish users with a super-secure mode of operation that just plain stops code executing on the machine. Unsigned code, that is. Speaking about Whistler in London today Microsoft VP for IT infrastructure and hosting Jim Ewel described …

    Software 8 Nov 2000, 18:36