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9th February 2001 Archive

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  • Bruce Springsteen loses cybersquatting dispute

    WIPO worm turns

    Bruce Springsteen has lost his domain name dispute after a WIPO panel ruled 2-1 in favour of notorious domain hoarder Jeff Burgar. The ruling, on an apparently clear case of domain squatting, gives more ammunition to WIPO's critics. One panelist complained of factual errors and said that official guidelines had not been …

    Media 9 Feb 2001, 10:05

  • We haven't gone titsup.com says SuSE's Wiegand

    Updated Not pulling out of ZzzServer biz

    SuSE US president Volker Wiegand says he's been misrepresented by Linuxgram's "Fallen Angel" article. No, he doesn't think Linux businesses are inevitably doomed, and SuSE is sticking around to be profitable. And nor is SuSE pulling out of S/390 ZServer development, he says. "I've laid off thirty of my best friends, said …

    Software 9 Feb 2001, 10:19

  • Toshiba bets on Rambus

    Set to triple RDRAM production

    Toshiba says it will triple production of Rambus DRAM memory chips in anticipation of demand for more powerful computers following the launch of the P4. It said the production increase was on target for September, by which time RDRAM would account for 60 per cent of its total output - a total of eight million units per month. …

    Channel 9 Feb 2001, 11:33

  • HP replaces faulty power units

    Shocking

    Hewlett Packard is launching a program to replace potentially unsafe power distribution units (PDUs) primarily found in its rack systems. Users may get an electric shock from an affected system if the internal primary safety ground of the PDU is interrupted. HP says it has had no reports of any injuries due to the problem. A …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 11:35

  • SEC probes Lucent accounting practice

    Allegations of revenue misreporting

    An investigation into possibly fraudulent accounting at telecommunications equipment maker Lucent has been begun by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), according to a report in today's Wall Street Journal. The paper quotes unnamed sources "familiar with the investigation" who said the inquiry by the SEC's enforcement …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 11:42

  • Woundup IM merger looms, Windows nametag inflation

    There'll be just the one. Except for...

    It's about time someone stepped in and tried to create a standard protocol for all the instant messaging services. IMUnified is currently teaming up with AT&T, Excite@Home, Odigo and Prodigy Communications, along with Microsoft and Yahoo - both of whom have well-known IM software. AOL Time Warner is still debating whether or not …

    Software 9 Feb 2001, 12:02

  • Intel's Jackson will offer 2 chips for 1

    Updated Skating paradigms to cool overheating Gelsinger

    Intel will be introducing SMT into their Foster chips in the summer, sources close to the project have confirmed to The Register. And with Project Jackson, its codename at Satan Clara, Intel will break with its traditional approach to microprocessor design by introducing SMT, or 'simultaneously multithreading', which presents …

    Channel 9 Feb 2001, 12:06

  • Excite threatens to sue New Labour over logo

    Suspiciously similar it must be admitted

    Excite has confirmed it is considering taking legal action against New Labour over the political party's new logo. Labour released the new logo last week to feature on the party's merchandise. It consists of a stick man with a loveheart top - it supposed to woo the young and combine funkiness with an election cross with a love …

    Media 9 Feb 2001, 12:48

  • I can sing a rainbow

    Readers rush to defend Reg

    Enough already! That's what you, our beloved readers, are saying in response to the person of colour blindness who launched a vicious verbal assault on our humour-flagging proposal. Please give it up for the splendidly-named Rossz Vamos-Wentworth: Regarding the flame you received about colour blindness. That guy is an idiot (I' …

    Letters 9 Feb 2001, 12:51

  • Kids charity Web site saved at last minute

    Phew!

    The Web site of a children's charity has been saved following a U-turn by Sheffield-based ISP, PlusNet. Project HappyChild was one the 1,100 users kicked off from the service last week for alleged abuse. But thanks to an eleventh hour reprieve, the site can continue operating. Penny Rollo, who runs Project HappyChild on a …

    Media 9 Feb 2001, 12:53

  • Carbon copy offers from Time and Tiny

    Kinda like wearing the same dress as your best mate

    The battle for the high street is hotting up as both Time and Tiny launch remarkably similar PC deals. A quick checklist comparison reveals few differences. Both are based on a 1GHz Athlon, come with 40GB hard drives and 256MB of RAM, have 17-inch monitors, CD-RW and DVD drives etceteras... And there isn't much in the prices …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 13:04

  • Gnutella leaves foolish people open to fraud

    It's foolproof but not idiot-proof

    The free file-sharing program Gnutella may be leaving daft people open to fraud through use of their cookies. The program - a wider and uncontrollable form of Napster - enables files of any type to be up and downloaded over the Internet. Previous press reports of the open-source program have concentrated on its ability to share …

    Security 9 Feb 2001, 13:09

  • Torvalds – You've let us down

    Worst of all, you've let yourselves down

    Linus Torvalds = Mould? Let's face it - last week's motley collection of rhyming slang was enough to have your Pearly King reaching for the valium. It can't get any worse, can it? Oh yes indeedy, as MW Grossmann is about to prove: Linus is a Finn, which rhymes with (and is how Naathanas say) 'thin' ('Such huge tits on a girl …

    Letters 9 Feb 2001, 13:14

  • Diamond geezer in trumpet triumph

    'Brutish' Telecom takes one in the 'nads

    BT has £900 commonsense failure We're always happy to print a story with a happy ending. We just don't get many of 'em. Thanks then to James Fouzie, who will bring a warm primaveral glow to the hearts of millions with this: I just read your piece on the £900 telephone bill sent to the Curtis family in Cornwall. I recently came …

    Letters 9 Feb 2001, 13:16

  • No pardon for Microsoft, Sun chief urges Bush

    Did he hear something we didn't?

    George W Bush's interesting collection of IT supporters showed signs of fissure yesterday as Sun boss Scott McNealy - not anything like as liberal as he looks - raved that Microsoft was guilty, a monopoly, and certainly didn't qualify for any kind of pardon. Speaking at a National Press Club lunch in Washington McNealy urged …

    Software 9 Feb 2001, 13:41

  • How to write for the Reg

    Nick a story and then add 'shagging'

    Avid ZDnet fan Anthonie Wain has just sent us this hurtful guide to generating Reg content: How to write an article for The Register in 7 easy steps: Step:1 Go to www.zdnet.co.uk. Find a topical story on internet or technology news. Step:2 Copy and paste article into The Register format. Step:3 Add some sarcasm, biting …

    Letters 9 Feb 2001, 14:14

  • MS to court: why it's OK to string up judges

    Not Being Nice About Jackson After All Week continues...

    Microsoft's legal team has helpfully sent the appeals court a letter pointing to a precedent for kicking a judge off a case. But it turns out that the judge referred to is not the one you're most likely to think of. Back in 1995 Microsoft got Judge Stanley Sporkin kicked off its case, but the precedent cited now is that of Judge …

    Software 9 Feb 2001, 14:14

  • Tories launch their e-lection campaign

    LINX warns politicians not to spam voters

    The London Internet Exchange has warned political parties that it will not tolerate the distribution of bulk unsolicited email and will consider sanctions against anyone who indulges in spam. LINX - which carries more than 90 per cent of UK Internet traffic - gave the gentle reminder on the eve of a mass mailing by the …

    Election 2001 9 Feb 2001, 14:27

  • Broadband squabble gets silent treatment

    Oompah-pah, oompah-pah that's how it goes

    The deafening slanging match that has raged for the last two days concerning BT's grip on broadband appears to have stopped. As the deadline approaches for BT and Oftel to meet AOL UK's demands, there's still no sign of a settlement. Yesterday, AOL UK and Freeserve were making more noise than an amped-up oompah band. Today, …

    Data Networking 9 Feb 2001, 15:00

  • Readers' letters I am illiterate, how dare you…

    See if you can guess the rest

    It's been a bumpy couple of weeks aboard the rollercoaster that is the Vulture Central mailbag. No sooner had the police dispersed the small but threatening mob of colour blind demonstrators who were picketing our lobby (dressed, incidentally, in odd socks, green trouser/red jumper combos, etc. etc.), than Jeremy G got his mum …

    Letters 9 Feb 2001, 17:34

  • Symantec under attack over security patents

    Latest virus update debate

    Symantec has stirred up a controversy in the anti-virus community by filing two patents which cover its method for updating anti-virus software and definitions incrementally. The patents, filed last year but only publicised this week, concern technology which allows users to download only those incremental virus definitions …

    Security 9 Feb 2001, 17:45

  • Biggest hard drive ever, ever, ever

    What, you want better than 5000 miles of optical fibre?

    Here's a poser for you: What do you get if you cram 5000 miles of fibre-optics in a smallish box? A tangle that would terrify the keenest knitter in the universe? Or, just possibly, the world's largest hard drive. We found an interesting story on Newsbytes today about a group of Canadian researchers who reckon it might just be …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 17:46

  • Auction software pirate signs public confession

    He's 'very sorry'

    A US software pirate who used online auctions to tout his wares has been forced into making a public signed confession by the SIIA. Julian Kish said he was "very sorry" for what he had done, adding that he had been "in a financially bad position and I thought I could make a quick buck". In a Stalinist Great Purge type of …

    Security 9 Feb 2001, 17:52

  • Processors at Dawn: it's ugly out there

    HW Special Review sites take the gloves off

    There seems to be something of a spat brewing in hardware land, and we at Vulture Central can never resist a fight. Three sites have got into a bit of a debate about standards, morals and who posted what first. Eurogamer posted this article attacking Overclockers UK and the Overclocking Store for taking the market competition …

    Hardware Roundup 9 Feb 2001, 18:02

  • Shark blamed for China's Net problems

    Undersea cable will take 23 days to repair

    Millions of Chinese surfers got an even more restricted Internet today after an undersea cable was severed. The cable links Shanghai to the west coast of the US, and has had a knock-on effect on other parts of Asia-Pacific, with Hong Kong and Singapore suffering slower Net connections. Taiwan's state phone company, Chunghwa …

    Media 9 Feb 2001, 18:04

  • A ‘huge Nvidia Detonator driver database’

    HWRoundup Rockin' P4 overclockin'

    Hexus reckons its got a little bit of scoopage for you today. They've got pics of the "Core" heatsink - a codename, as you may have guessed. Anyway, they are very happy about it, and who are we to stand in the way of their joy. Click here to enjoy. Sharky, who has been quieter that usual for a while, has posted an account of …

    Hardware Roundup 9 Feb 2001, 18:20

  • Porno blonde goes to tribunal

    Did the filthy boss push it too far?

    Dirty pornographic emails and comments were too much for female computer consultant Tao Ball. So when she was sacked (resigned claims the object of her anger, boss Marc Garcia) she felt she had been poorly treated and went to an industrial tribunal. Marc - who sports several chins - claims that by sending pornographic emails …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 18:27

  • SUN god McNealy dismisses human rights

    'Give 'em all jobs'

    Promoting human rights is a waste of time, Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy explained in a rambling speech at a National Press Club luncheon Thursday which would have brought tears of reverent joy to the eye of any Calvinist burgher. "When people aren't at work, law enforcement agencies are busier, entitlement agencies are …

    Software 9 Feb 2001, 18:32

  • Telewest blacklisted by Hotmail in spam fracas

    Blueyonder blunder

    Cable outfit Telewest has endured the ignominy of being blacklisted by Hotmail for sending spam. Earlier this month Hotmail blocked email coming from the mail servers of Telewest Blueyonder broadband service for around 22 hours. During the period of the problem Yahoo mail servers were not accepting commands from Blueyonder's …

    Security 9 Feb 2001, 18:36

  • US Congress whips up ‘cyber menace’ again

    There be monsters on line

    Declaring "cyberterrorism" a growing threat to national security, US Representatives James Saxton (Republican, New Jersey) and Saxby Chambliss (Republican, Georgia) introduced legislation this week calling for a revised legal framework for prosecuting terrorist hackers, and renewed public-private sector cooperation in …

    Security 9 Feb 2001, 20:08

  • Motorola shaves 4,000 chip jobs

    Axe swings again

    Motorola today revealed plans to cut up to 4,000 jobs at its semiconductor business by the end of the year. The reduction, accounting for around three per cent of the mobile phone and chip company's workforce, will be made through a combination of attrition and layoffs. Motorola did not say which areas of the country would be …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 22:24

  • And the Patron Saint of the Internet is…

    Vatican not saying yet

    Surfers will soon be protected by a higher force as the Pope readies himself to name the patron saint of the Internet and computer programmers. The hot favourite is St Isadore of Seville. He may have lived 1,400 years before the Net was even dreamt of, but some Spanish Catholics have already named this holy man has the Web's ' …

    Media 9 Feb 2001, 22:32

  • Qualcomm brandishes CDMA patents handbag

    Again

    "I sent my daughter to cooking school - it cost me $5000," we overheard one financial analyst tell a another while we waited for Qualcomm to take the stage for its Banc of America Securities Technology Week session yesterday. "And I got one meal out of it." Kind of apt, we thought, as Qualcomm has spent a tidy sum on sending …

    Business 9 Feb 2001, 22:34