The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

6th November 2002 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

  • ISP data metering: a warning from Australia

    Letter Coming to an ISP near you

    A warning from Australia:- I read on the Register a while back that some UK ISP's were looking at Data use limits. Don't let it happen, and if it does happen, this is what you are in for, overcharging by way of "excess usage charge" in most case's here in Australia every extra Megabyte = AU$0.15, not much after all it's only …

    Letters 6 Nov 2002, 03:26

  • Seattlement Letters Judge CKK for Supreme Court!

    Some letters prompted by our coverage of the decision by Judge Consonant-Klatter to uphold the DoJ-Microsoft deal. Judge backs MS-DoJ deal, Microsoft now in the clear? MS settlement rotten with loopholes Oops! Court posted MS verdict almost two hours early How did Microsoft end up policing Microsoft? In victory, Microsoft …

    Letters 6 Nov 2002, 03:26

  • Cisco, Cap Gemini design enterprise security benchmarks

    More boxes to tick?

    Cap Gemini Ernst & Young and Cisco Systems Inc will next week launch a jointly developed security indexing service that aims to establish a process that will help companies to balance their security budgets against the level of security risk, effectively framing IT security policies in a commercial setting. The companies …

    Security 6 Nov 2002, 10:34

  • Nokia, Trend Micro plan enterprise anti-virus device

    Treading on Symantec's toes

    Nokia Internet Communications Inc has added Trend Micro Inc to its roster of companies that provide software for it to use in its range of internet traffic management appliances, representing Nokia's first foray into tackling viruses and malicious mobile code. While the Nokia Message Protector SC6600 is designed to provide …

    Malware 6 Nov 2002, 10:34

  • WorldCom to restate more than $9bn

    Lotsa lolly

    Beleaguered carrier WorldCom Inc confirmed yesterday that restatements of its earlier accounts are likely to top $9bn. The admission came as the US Securities and Exchange Commission expanded its civil complaint against the carrier, which is currently in Chapter 11. The SEC is adding claims that WorldCom violated antifraud …

    Business 6 Nov 2002, 10:34

  • Court date set for COLT liquidation tussle

    Hedge Trimmer

    Colt Telecom Group Plc faces a three-day hearing at the London High Court in December when a hedge fund takes legal action to try to push the pan-European carrier into liquidation. Highberry Ltd, which is part of New York-based Elliott Associates, claims that Colt will not have the funds necessary to repay or refinance …

    Business 6 Nov 2002, 10:34

  • NEC unveils fault-tolerant Linux server

    Stratus, Intel

    NEC Corp has announced the European release of its first fault-tolerant Linux server, the Express5800/320La, which has been developed in conjunction with fault tolerant server specialist Stratus Technologies Inc. Tokyo, Japan-based NEC's two-way Intel Corp processor-based dual redundancy server uses the same hardware …

    Servers 6 Nov 2002, 10:34

  • Brocade buys Rhapsody, braves OEM wrath

    Tooling up for Cisco battle

    Brocade Communications Systems Inc has decided that it is better to arm itself for the forthcoming battle with Cisco Systems Inc than to worry about making its OEM partners unhappy, and has spent around $175m in a share-swap acquisition of smart-switch start-up Rhapsody Networks Inc, Tim Stammers writes. Unlike the SAN …

    Storage 6 Nov 2002, 10:35

  • A kinder, gentler Perens is going Global now

    Donations gratefully received

    One thing you have to admire about Bruce Perens: he has lots of ideas and he's not afraid to implement them. Before the door was fully closed behind him at HP, he started Sincere Choice to counter Microsoft's "Software Choice" initiative. Now he's heading up a new non-profit: the Global Technology Policy Institute. GTPI is …

    Software 6 Nov 2002, 10:49

  • 'No more music CDs without copy protection,' claims BMG unit

    And there's nothing wrong with ours, it's the hardware people who're screwing up

    Faced with adverse publicity to copy protection on CDs, a year ago Bertelsmann Music Group bravely gave in and promised to replace a clutch of Natalie Imbruglia CDs which were protected by Midbar's Cactus Data Shield. But a year is a long time, BMG is at it again, this time apparently set on applying copy protection to all its …

    Personal 6 Nov 2002, 11:29

  • Carphone Warehouse buys Opal Telecom

    Offers more telco services

    The Carphone Warehouse is to offer fixed-line telco services to its high street customers following its acquisition of Opal Telecom. The deal will cost The Carphone Warehouse £65m in shares and cash with the option of a further £18m possibly being payable over the next two years. For The Carphone Warehouse, the deal offers the …

    Business 6 Nov 2002, 11:49

  • Wine bores discover physics

    But Bog.Bros. remain at large

    When irrationality abounds, what can we turn to but science? The Bogadanov Brother's faux physics breakthrough - detailed here last week - may have proved too hot a potato for the New York Times science editor to pursue, but this minor but sensational story is now gaining some traction with mainstream media. Or at least one …

    Bootnotes 6 Nov 2002, 12:06

  • S Korea to invest $11bn on broadband

    You want it, you can have it

    South Korea is to spend a whopping $11bn on bringing a 1Mbps broadband service to every household in the country by 2005. South Korea is already the world's leading broadband nation by a mile. This latest commitment to invest in fast Net access will ensure that South Korea remains head and shoulders above its nearest rivals for …

    Telecoms 6 Nov 2002, 12:40

  • Megabeam rolls out Euro WLAN network

    Not for Joe Public

    Megabeam, the pan-European wireless Internet service provider, has set the pricing for its WLAN hotspot service for the first time. Subscriptions bought directly will start at €7.5 for two hours' access. Twenty-four hour access will cost € 30 (approx. £19). As you can see from the pricing, Megabeam is targeting the business …

    Mobile 6 Nov 2002, 13:17

  • BT and Microsoft attempt to dominate UK broadband

    Let's play Monopoly

    BT (the UK's dominant telco) has teamed up with Microsoft (the world's dominant software company) in a bid, no doubt, to dominate the UK's broadband sector. Obviously, they don't say that in a statement released today. Instead they say the alliance is part of a strategic collaboration to bring "dynamic broadband applications" …

    Telecoms 6 Nov 2002, 13:43

  • Dell PDAs to hit the market in two weeks

    Pricing sweet spot

    Dell says it will begin selling handheld devices in mid-November, as long-time PDA makers like Palm and HP wait for the onslaught. The official unveiling of the company's line of PDAs (personal digital assistants) will come at the Comdex event in Las Vegas on 18 November. Dell said it will begin taking orders from the launch …

    Personal 6 Nov 2002, 14:05

  • Tablet PCs go niche in 2003 – Gartner

    Small market share

    Tomorrow, November 7, is as you all know Tablet PC Launch Day. We can expect a raft of form factors and price points from the serried ranks of notebook makers and rebadgers. But it's going to be a while, at least a year, probably a wee while longer, before the Microsoft-inspired devices hit the mass market. According to those …

    Personal 6 Nov 2002, 14:56

  • Three held in Ericsson spy riddle

    Shaken and stirred

    Police in Sweden has detained three people on suspicion of spying against mobile phone giant Ericsson. The three individuals - described as either employees or former employees - are suspected to have handed over top secret information to a foreign power. In a statement Henry Sténson, Senior Vice President, Communications, at …

    Business 6 Nov 2002, 14:57

  • Gartner slams 3G navel gazing

    It's the consumers, stupid

    The mobile industry is forgetting consumers in its obsession with debts, doubts and delays surrounding third generation mobile phones. Adam Daum, VP and Chief Analyst at GartnerG2 (Gartner's research arm), said "the industry has been too obsessed with 3G technology to the detriment of the needs of consumers. "The vast majority …

    Mobile 6 Nov 2002, 15:09

  • Gang of Four set W-CDMA royalty cap

    Squaring up to Qualcomm

    It's taken months around the negotiating table, but today four leading mobile phone firms agreed to reduce royalties for W-CDMA patents, ensuring that payments comprise no more than five per cent of equipment costs. The Gang of Four - Nokia, Ericsson, Siemens and NTT Docomo - want mobile phone networks to choose W-CDMA …

    Mobile 6 Nov 2002, 15:39

  • Privacy self-defence packages go down a bundle

    Freeze out hackers and can spam

    A combined security package from Anonymizer and UK firm ArticSoftUsers gives users the chance to surf the Web anonymously and protect confidential data from prying eyes with. Anonymizer enables individuals surf the Internet in complete privacy, keeping personal information away from spammers. It keeps the visitor invisible from …

    Music and Media 6 Nov 2002, 21:44