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23rd June 2003 Archive

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  • Branded pigeons invade Wimbledon

    LogoWatch Fowl in your face

    Would you buy a video game because a pigeon told you too? Game maker Acclaim hopes the answer is an emphatic, "yes". It plans to invade this week's Wimbledon championship with twenty Virtua Tennis 2 branded birds, the BBC reports. The homing pigeons will fly down during pre-match warmups, sporting spray-painted logos, and then …

    Bootnotes 23 Jun 2003, 08:06

  • Nano-technology – more investor folly?

    Under the microscope

    Nano-technology, which revolves around the development of even more powerful technologies on a microscopic scale, (the term nano derives from the word nanometer, which is one billionth of a metre), is becoming a fashionable technology topic, writes Bob McDowall, of Bloor Research. Indeed, it is awaking active investment …

    Business 23 Jun 2003, 08:26

  • Penguin on the Desktop

    Political sense

    It looks like a Linux-based solution for the PC market is becoming reality, writes Robin Bloor, of Bloor Research. Leading global PC providers are now offering a Linux option for price sensitive markets such as India and Thailand. A few weeks ago IBM introduced an India-only PC offering for the small and medium business sector …

    Software 23 Jun 2003, 08:26

  • From the Booby Hatch

    Kids today have no respect for their elders

    Senator Orrin Hatch says he wants to destroy music swappers' computers, but what he really means is that kids today have no respect for their elders, says SecurityFocus columnist George Smith. "Powerful Senator Endorses Destroying Computers of Illegal Music Downloaders!" trumpeted the Associated Press last week. What a …

    Music and Media 23 Jun 2003, 08:34

  • UK wireless ISP seeks hotspot partners

    Will o' the Wispanet

    UK wireless ISP (WISP) Wispanet has begun looking for public locations to host Wi-Fi access points. Wispanet said it will provide location partners will all the equipment they need to offer WLAN access to the Net. The WISP will also install and maintain the equipment. Wispanet operates a revenue-sharing model, splitting the …

    Mobile 23 Jun 2003, 09:25

  • Mobile operators unveil Simpay

    M-payments platform

    The Mobile Payments Services Association has changed its name, before it's really got started. The group, set up this year by Orange, Vodafone, T-Mobile and Telefonica Moviles, is now called Simpay. Simpay is targeting a billion sales transactions paid for by mobile phone a year within five years, and the group is in talks with …

    Mobile 23 Jun 2003, 09:28

  • AMD Athlon 64 4300+ to ship Q3 2004

    Leaked roadmaps

    AMD's Athlon 64 will hit a performance point of 3700+ during the first quarter of next year before rising to 4300+ by the end of 2004, according to allegedly internal company roadmaps published by French web site x86 Secrets. The roadmaps show that the Athlon 64 3100+, which will operate at 1.8GHz, is sampling now, and the 2GHz …

    Channel 23 Jun 2003, 10:10

  • ATI launches Radeon IGP 9100 chipsets

    Update RS300 and RS300M don't support 800MHz FSB

    ATI today launched its Radeon IGP 9100 and Mobility Radeon IGP 9100 - aka the RS300 and RS300M - Pentium chipsets as anticipated. Both chipsets have been designed to support a range of Intel processors, including desktop Pentium 4s and mobile Pentium M chips. The chipsets also support Celeron and mobile Pentium 4-M processors …

    Channel 23 Jun 2003, 10:14

  • C&W claims IBM price gouging

    'significant levels of overcharging'

    Cable & Wireless has brought a lawsuit against IBM for what it calls "substantial overcharging" by the IT services company. In the Cable & Wireless 2003 annual report published on Friday, the telecom said the legal action relates to a global IT services deal it signed with IBM back in December 2000. As part of the deal, Cable …

    Business 23 Jun 2003, 10:16

  • SCO staff join Linux protests

    My other placard's funny

    SCO employees in Provo, Utah have made clear their distaste for the company's war on Linux. Staff greeted protesters from the Provo Linux User Group with signs such as "Give communism a try - free Linux", "My son stole code - and published it" and, best of all, "Stealing Software Is Not A Crime" below which is written, "In Iraq …

    Hardware 23 Jun 2003, 10:25

  • Win a copy of ‘Red Hat Linux 9 for Dummies’

    Site offer Signed by Jon 'maddog' Hall, no less

    Linux Guru Jon 'maddog' Hall will be signing copies of his latest work - Red Hat Linux 9 for Dummies - at the LinuxUser & Developer Expo - The Linux Zone - at Networks for Business this week. Yup, from 1.00 to 1.30 on 24 and 25 June, the man himself will be gracing stand 200, pen in hand, ready to do the business. However, if …

    Software 23 Jun 2003, 10:26

  • OpenOffice for the Mac goes gold

    Suite news

    OpenOffice for the Macintosh is finally out of beta, just in time for Apple's WorldWide Developer Conference. Binaries for the 1.0 General Master are already available for download from mirrors closer to the International Date Line. The Mac version runs under the X11 Windowing System, rather than native Aqua interface, but …

    Mac Channel 23 Jun 2003, 10:31

  • Microsoft rebrands Pocket PC as Windows Mobile

    Chucks in a handful of enhanced features for good measure

    Microsoft has launched the latest version of its Pocket PC platform: Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PCs. Not, you'll have noted Pocket PC 2003, but Windows Mobile. The software giant is engaging in a little re-branding, pulling together its various mobile device offerings under a single brand. Essentially, it's pulling Pocket …

    Mobile 23 Jun 2003, 10:59

  • TSMC accused of violating 45-year-old chemistry patent

    Sues chemist

    TSMC has returned fire in the opening salvo of a legal battle centring on claims that the Taiwanese foundry violated an obscure chemistry patent filed more than 45 years ago. This past Friday, TSMC filed a complaint with the San Jose US District Court asking the judge to rule that two patents administered by Chicago-based …

    Channel 23 Jun 2003, 11:49

  • Intel powers more TOP500 supercomputers

    But NEC is still the daddy

    The number of Intel systems in the TOP500 supercomputers more than doubled in the last six months from 56 to 119. "This is a major shift in this marketplace," commented the compilers of the Top500list, a new version of which was published today. "With this increase, the Intel processor family joins IBM's Power architecture and …

    Servers 23 Jun 2003, 12:37

  • House bill would cast FBI as copyright Pinkertons

    P2P hackmeister Berman pulls out all the stops

    House bill would cast FBI as copyright Pinkertons P2P hackmeister Berman pulls out all the stops 765 words International terrorists will be able to sleep easier if US Representatives Lamar Smith (Republican, Texas) and Howard Berman (Democrat, California) have their way. A new bill Smith and Berman are sponsoring on behalf of …

    Music and Media 23 Jun 2003, 12:55

  • Microsoft appeals French piracy fine

    $19m at stake

    Microsoft went to court in France last week to appeal its conviction in 2001 for software piracy, for which it was ordered to pay $425,000 in damages, costs and interest. Today we publish an eyewitness account of the appeal by Lionel Berthomier, who has been covering the case almost single-handedly since 1996. But first some …

    Software 23 Jun 2003, 12:59

  • Wireless deregulation lobby arrives in UK

    Getting Coase with the Capitalists

    Europeans may be surprised to be learn that they need a wireless infrastructure as broken as the one in the United States, but stand by for a deluge of ideology from American lobbyists to convince you otherwise. Of course this time, the deregulation lobby isn't parading its poster children: Enron and ClearChannel. It knows it …

    Wireless 23 Jun 2003, 13:03

  • Lik-Sang founder speaks out on Nintendo court case

    'Settle the question once and for all...

    Following last week's triumphant announcement by Nintendo that it had won a victory over Hong Kong based mail order retailer Lik-Sang, one of the company's founders, Alex Kampl, has spoken publicly about the ruling. We were also contacted this week by Pacific Game, the company which took over the running of Lik-Sang.com last …

    Personal 23 Jun 2003, 13:09

  • Fortnight worm exploits antique Windows vuln

    This should not be happening

    Windows users are being infected a JavaScript worm – even though protection has been available for almost three years. The Fortnight JavaScript worm exploits a vulnerability in Microsoft VM ActiveX which makes it possible for malicious code to execute simply by reading an message in an HTML aware email client. Microsoft issued …

    Malware 23 Jun 2003, 13:18

  • Intel launches 3.2GHz P4 – h'ware sites launch reviews

    Reg Review Roundup Fastest x86 CPU yet, but Athlon cheaper

    Intel today launched its 3.2GHz Pentium 4, as anticipated, and the reviews are already beginning to appear on the web. The new chip contains 512KB of on-die L2 cache and operates over 400, 533 and 800MHz frontside bus frequencies. It is fabbed using a 0.13 micron process. The new chip just leads fellow Pentium 4 stable mates …

    Channel 23 Jun 2003, 13:47

  • Pocket PC makers line up to support Windows Mobile 2003

    Reg Kit Watch JVC iO PDA to offer Ogg Vorbis support

    PDA Alongside Microsoft's Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PCs launch, (see Microsoft rebrands Pocket PC as Windows Mobile), hardware vendors have been announcing PDAs based on the new operating system platform. New Pocket PC provider JVC today launched its iO PDA. Based on a 400MHz Intel XScale PXA255 processor, the iO line …

    Mobile 23 Jun 2003, 15:22

  • One in five US firms have sacked workers for email abuse

    The email of the species is deadlier etc.

    One in five (22 per cent) US companies have fired an employee for abusing corporate email facilities, according to a survey published today. The survey from the American Management Association, Clearswift, and The ePolicy Institute also found out that workers spend about a quarter (25 per cent) of their working day dealing with …

    Hardware 23 Jun 2003, 15:45

  • Apple recodes OS X Finder for ‘user-centric’ computing

    Some features revived from OS 9, other borrowed from Win XP

    Apple has torn up Mac OS X's old Finder file manager and has started on a new, more "user-centric", less "computer-centric" version, Steve Jobs told Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) attendees in San Francisco today. Top of the list of additional features this new Finder will offer is Labels - colour-coding for icons that …

    Mac Channel 23 Jun 2003, 18:02

  • Apple launches 2GHz, 64-bit Power Mac G5

    Update And 3GHz in 12 months' time

    Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled what he claimed was "the world's fastest personal computer" today, ending more than six months of speculation over whether the Mac maker would use IBM's 64-bit PowerPC 970 processor. It is. Apple will offer Power Macs based on the 2GHz processor, and Jobs boldly promised a 3GHz version this time …

    Mac Channel 23 Jun 2003, 18:47

  • EU backs biometric passports

    At Uncle Sam's behest

    European Union governments last week agreed to embed computer chips containing biometric data in passports. The plans to create passports carrying information on a person's fingerprint or retinal scans are presented as a way to reduce counterfeiting and fraud. Biometric chips would also be implanted in visas issued to foreign …

    Security 23 Jun 2003, 20:14

  • Veritas goes virtual with server software

    Jareva's OpForce returns

    Veritas has made good on its acquisition of Jareva Technologies with the release of a new server provisioning software package. Version 3.0 of Veritas' OpForce software will start shipping in early July and is based on the OpForce IT Automation Suite formerly built by Jareva. The product fits in under the broad virtualization …

    Software 23 Jun 2003, 20:28

  • Supreme Court backs library porn filters

    Librarians haven't been this sexy since Casanova

    The U.S. Supreme Court has decided that filtering Internet content is a must in order for libraries to receive certain types of federal funding. Free speech crusaders cried as the top court handed down a 6-3 decision in favor of filtering on Monday. The court argued that the Internet changes too fast and has too much content to …

    Music and Media 23 Jun 2003, 21:43