15th December 2000 Archive

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Consumer Profile Exchange could protect privacy

If Congress would get off its ass, that is

The IBM-backed, XML-based standard enabling companies to exchange consumer data conveniently over the Web called Customer Profile Exchange (CPE) may not be quite the threat imagined by worried US consumers and privacy advocates. The scheme itself actually includes provisions for the responsible sharing of information, such as …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 07:32
Homechoice loses email

Checked back of sofa, not there. Must be spammers...

Broadband ISP and video-on-demand outfit Homechoice has been experiencing a major routing problem that has left Net users with a pitiful service for at least a week. It has also admitted it has also lost emails - despite blaming the problem on spammers - although Homechoice won't admit to the scale of the problem. The company' …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 09:59
Express sells four Web sites for £1

Old media shafts newmeejah

Express Newspapers sold four of its Web sites for a £1 yesterday in a bid to stem the haemorrhage of cash from the business. Richard Desmond, the new owner of Express Newspapers, is reported to have been "shocked" at the cash burn rate. The sites are said to be costing the company around £8 million a year to run. The lucky …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 10:21
Corel Linux sell-off nearly a done deal

Or might it be buying something instead?

Troubled software developer Corel looks set to sell off its Linux operation - an option mooted just three weeks ago by company CEO Derek Burney. Interviewed at Comdex, Burney said he was ruling nothing out and nothing in in his attempts to find a solution to Corel's financial woes. Burney specifically said that one option under …

Software 15 Dec 2000, 10:29
Taiwan snaps at heels of Jap LCD market

Is that sun rising or setting?

Top Japanese LCD makers are losing out to aggressive Taiwanese competition. Hitachi and Toshiba, second and third biggest flat panel display makers, are losing market share to Taiwanese suppliers who have nearly doubled production this year, say analysts. Acer Display Technology and Chunghwa Picture Tubes, are tipped to become …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 11:02
Red Hat shaves loss to $900k

Revenues up 112 per cent too

Red Hat, the Linux company that isn't a Linux company - it's an "open source Internet infrastructure solutions" provider, apparently - yesterday said its latest quarter saw revenues rocket a clear 112 per cent. And its loss improved somewhat too. For the three months to 30 November - Red Hat's third quarter of fiscal 2001 - …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 11:06
Net users are Lunatics

Moon affects the way we use phones and stuff

People use the Net and chat on the phone more in the run-up to a full moon than at any other time of the month, according to the boffins at BT. They claim there are cyclical troughs and peaks in people's calling behaviour, which builds up to a peak in the week before a full moon. And they've discovered that these 29-day cycles …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 12:01
United halves newmeejah spend

The great e-xperiment dies a long and painful death

United News & Media is to halve its investment in newmeejah for 2001 and rename its online umbrella organisation as part of series of changes at the company. The monster media group blew £120 million propping up its online sector during 2000. Next year, it can only afford £60 million. It has also signalled its intention to …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 12:01
The Incredible Shrinking Merisel

Channel Flannel

Once upon a time, Merisel was the world's second biggest IT products distributor. Years of cutbacks has seen the company retrench, first to North America, and now to Canada only. It is firing 200 staff, winding down distribution activities in US over the next 90 days and will in future restrict itself to flogging software …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 12:32
HP worker ‘missing’ after plane door opens mid-flight

Search for high-flying purchasing executive

A search is on for a Hewlett-Packard employee who is missing after a door was opened during the flight of one of the firm's shuttle craft. HP said one of its purchasing staff is missing after the incident which happened during a company-operated shuttle flight for staff between Roseville and San Jose, California. Bruce Nelson …

Bootnotes 15 Dec 2000, 12:52
BTinternet offers 24/7 unmetered Net access

And you thought the Virgin birth was a miracle

BT's ISP, BTinternet, is to launch a 24/7 unmetered Net access product to rival those offered by AOL UK and Le Freeswerve. From January, BTinternet will roll-out 'BTinternet Anytime' offering customers all day, everyday Internet access for £14.99 per month with no additional call charges. Ironically, the service is based on …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 13:25
Warner Bros backs down on Harry Potter Web site

Suddenly Claire Field is the conglomerate's best friend. Funny that...

Well, that didn't take long. One week after we got a little indignant about Warner Brothers sending 15-year-old Claire Field a legal letter demanding she hand over her www.harrypotterguide.co.uk domain, the giant conglomerate has backed down and waxed lyrical about how wonderful her site is, what a great fan she is etc etc, you …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 13:35
Korean duo do each other in after suicide site meet

The site gave them poison advice

A 21-year-old student and a 28-year-old man were found dead in a motel room, in what appears to have been a suicide pact. The two men, both from South Korea, met on a suicide Web site. The older man was identified as Mr Kim. The student found with him was named as Mr Cha. Cha's father committed suicide in 1984 and Cha himself …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 13:43
EO cans news team

Updated And jobs go at VNU

EO, the online share distribution platform owned by NewMedia SPARK, is making its EOnews news team redundant. EO chief exec Mark Stacpoole said the decision was part of the fallout from EO acquiring the Swedish online retail IPO outfit, EPO.com, which also has news on its site. There was staff overlap he said. The EOEPO. …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 13:45
Group pitches CD-R, DVD compatibility

Standard to allow consumer kit to player computer-burned discs

The Optical Storage Technology Association, a trade body for makers of rewriteable CD drives and media, has approved a specification to allow consumer CD and DVD units to play CD-R and CD-RW discs created by PCs. Dubbed MultiPlay, the specification was created by removable storage specialist Oak Technology, and was ratified by …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 15:05
Microsoft hacked in the Balkans

Pro-Linux graffiti artist exploits 'weakest link'

A Microsoft Web site has been defaced in the latest of a string of attacks that have called into question the ability of IT companies to keep their systems secure. The software giant's Slovenian site, www.microsoft.si, was sprayed with pro-Linux graffiti by a hacker who gained control of the site, which is hosted in the former …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 15:26
Corel responds to Linux sale speculation

The official line is there is no official line. Or something like that

Corel issued a major press announcement this afternoon to announce there's... er... nothing to announce. Yet. Maybe. The troubled software company's statement followed reports from industry sources that it's selling its Linux division to Linux Global Partners for $5 million in cash and a 20 per cent stake in a new company to be …

Software 15 Dec 2000, 15:38
Infineon buys into Ramtron

FRAM, DRAM, thank you, ma'am

German chipmonger Infineon has taken a $30 million, 20 per cent stake in Ramtron, comprising $10 million in cash and $20 million in shares. The two companies have also signed a cross-licensing agreement to give Infineon access to Ramtron's ferroelectric RAM (FRAM) memory technology, while granting Ramtron use of Infineon FRAM …

Channel 15 Dec 2000, 15:59
Toshiba latest victim of US PC slump

But will get a lift from elevator sales

Japanese notebook manufacturer Toshiba has admitted that its US sales have not escaped the current slump. Toshiba said computer sales in the US - which accounts for 40 per cent of the company's total PC revenue - have dropped at the same rate as rivals. "We are no exception," Toshiba executive VP Tetsuya Mizoguchi told …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 16:00
Claire Swire: wanna know who she is?

Well click here then

Well, this has been an interesting week for all fellatio lovers out there. To be honest, we've been sitting on Claire Swire's true identity for a day because first we'd heard she might have lost her job and then there were the rather nasty legal implications. However, Claire still has her job at MagicButton.net - an affiliate …

Bootnotes 15 Dec 2000, 16:02
DRAM makers sit on stocks

How long can they hold out?

Spot market DRAM prices rose for the week of November 20, but mainly because manufacturers are sitting on stocks, market research firm ICIS-LOR reports. The DRAM makers don't like today's current price slump - and they expect prices to swing back upwards in line with anticipated increased demand next spring (ICIS-LOR analysts …

Channel 15 Dec 2000, 16:49
Thus virus variant is not very scary

But make sure you're backing up

New variants on an old macro virus showed up this week. First spotted in September last year, the Thus virus tries to erase all the data on an infected hard drive. Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, said: "We didn't get any calls. This really isn't an issue if you are running anti virus software - just about …

Software 15 Dec 2000, 16:51
Don't use such foul language on the site, you wa*kers

Tut tut tut

Rudest words in Britain Subject: bollocks My dear - I'm an American - can you please tell me what bollocks are and if you've ever seen one? Ditto wanker, paki, and shag. Are you familiar with these, m' lady? Bruce Rogowski While I really like reading The Register, I think you are going over the line of good taste and good …

Letters 15 Dec 2000, 16:55
Flame of the Week: we're a bunch of tits

Well, at least she spelt "tits" right

[Normally, we're tidy up readers' spelling and grammar, but we felt that doing that in this case would remove some of its crazed beauty] Breathe gasps for survival Subsequently: Breathe calls in administrators due to your crap information provided on you web sight designed to scare people and put them of legitimet companeys …

Letters 15 Dec 2000, 16:56
Major MS pirate pleads guilty

He had a $2m business going

A US man has coughed to being the main man in a $2 million worldwide network that counterfeited Microsoft Office. Mario Stacchini, 31, has pleaded guilty in state court to attempted trademark counterfeiting, reports AP. He faces a maximum seven years in chokey for the offence. Stacchini's pals in Ohio, California, Pennsylvania …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 16:57
Reg staffer cut off by 24-7 Freecall

Great business decisions of our time

Troubled UK unmetered ISP 24-7 yesterday dumped another 1000 users from its service for alleged 'abuse' yesterday, including yours truly. It's difficult to tell precisely how I abused them, as I wasn't given the courtesy of an email telling me what was going on. The service worked yesterday and this morning it didn't. A call …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 16:59
Website combines spam with encryption

Hide your secrets in rubbish

At last! A positive use for spam. A website has been set up, called Spam Mimic, where users can embed encrypted messages in spam in order to disguise the fact confidential data is been exchanged. Steganography, or the technique of burying encrypted text in other files, such as pictures, in order to disguise the fact …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 17:14
Shoot 'em up shoot outs and Soltek exclusives

HWRoundup It's a beauty

OC Workbench has an exclusive peek at the latest offering from Soltek. The Soltek SL-75KVA-X mainboard certainly impressed these guys despite falling short of some of its competition in the overclockability stakes. Click here to get the rest of the story. Sharky has the lowdown on the year's best First Person Shooter games. …

Hardware Roundup 15 Dec 2000, 17:21
Southpark meets Wallace and Gromit

Shockwave and Atomfilms in broadband e-entertainment orgy

Shockwave.com and Atomfilms.com have jumped into bed together for a broadband e-entertainment orgy. The new company will combine offerings such as Atomfilms' short films and animations with Shockwave's interactive games, shows and music. The venture will boast work from Aardman Productions - creators of Chicken Run, and Wallace …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 17:25
Is the end looming for the Microsoft monopoly?

Analysis There are signs the wheels might be coming off the gravy train...

Firing off the current industry standard profit warning yesterday Microsoft CFO John Connors blamed the usual suspects. To an extent this is justifiable, because Microsoft remains dependent on PC sales, and if PC sales are sluggish then Microsoft software revenues ought to slow to match. But there are a few factors special to …

Software 15 Dec 2000, 17:58
So, ole Dubya finally finally wins

And you're still not happy

US Supremes hand White House to Dubya US Supremes stop Florida re-counts I've been impressed by your stuff even if you seem to prefer Al to GW, but as somebody else has pointed out that The Reg is not unbiased, that's why many of us read it. Keep up the good work. Alan You can do better in your writing by not referring to …

Letters 15 Dec 2000, 17:58
Prodigy to fight BT's ‘shameless’ hyperlinks patent lawsuit

Issues rallying call for others to stand against monster telco

Prodigy Communications Corp has reacted angrily to BT's hypertext links lawsuit branding it "blatant and shameless". One of the US' biggest ISPs, Prodigy has broken its silence and claims BT's patent of hypertext links is "groundless". It intends to fight its case and expects other companies to band together to take on BT. If …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 18:14
Best of the Rest: Harry Potter, Kevin Warwick, Lara Croft

Now that would be an interesting three-some

Bigger tits for Lara Croft Not having played Tomb raider, either 1 through the 4 I know of, I can safely say I am unbaised. However the article you just wrote suggested because I'm a male, and an Internet user that I should really give a load of horse shit about the size of Lara's breast. Many a geeks conversation centre …

Letters 15 Dec 2000, 18:31
Readers' Letters filth, filth, filth

Swear words and Bill Clinton's replacement

[A busy busy week for stories this week - isn't everyone supposed to be taking it easier this time of year? A PR bunny told us on Wednesday that her company figured they'd get a last story in the papers before Christmas and while everyone else was going to company parties. It seems everyone else had had the same idea. BUT …

Letters 15 Dec 2000, 18:34
Int'l cybercrime treaty remains horrid

Commentary CoE listens to law enforcement, but few others

This week, the Council of Europe (CoE) Experts Group on Crime in Cyberspace is meeting in Strasbourg, France to finalize the international Cybercrime Convention. The experts should be proud of themselves. They have managed during the past eight months to resist the pernicious influence of hundreds if not thousands of …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 19:30
BugTraq, @Stake differ on vulnerability reports

And we think they're both right

Two respected names in Internet security, SecurityFocus and @Stake, have encountered what we hope will be a brief impasse on the issue of how to share vulnerability reports, into which a great deal of unremunerated work is put. Recently, @Stake, which also runs the Hacker News Network Web site, submitted an abbreviated notice …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 22:04
Nvidia agrees to buy ailing 3dfx for $112m

3dfx will lay off most of staff and dissolve

The PC sales slowdown today claimed fresh blood: 3dfx has decided to shut its doors and flog most of its assets to Nvidia for $112 million. Today Nvidia agreed to pay $70 million cash and one million in shares for the rival graphics card chipmaker, whilst loaning 3dfx $15 million that will be credited to the cash part of the …

Business 15 Dec 2000, 23:32
Ellison richer than Gates?

Bill's shares lose $4.5 billion in one day

Bill Gates watched helplessly as investors wiped $35 billion off the value of his beloved company today. Microsoft's share price fell $6.13, or 11 per cent, to $49.38 this afternoon, knocking off a hefty portion of Gates' own personal fortune. The Microsoft chief owns 731,749,668 shares in the software giant, (as of September …

Bootnotes 15 Dec 2000, 23:34
Korean sex-swap op pulls in the hits

Thousands log on to see what gets lopped off

South Korean doctors claim to have discovered the secret of pulling in Internet punters - by showing sex change surgery on line. A private clinic and medical information company involved in the stunt say the site has received 19,000 hits from e-voyeurs hoping to catch a glimpse of the ten-minute clip. The episode has been …

Music and Media 15 Dec 2000, 23:36