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22nd July 2003 Archive

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  • What the hell happened to StoragePoint?

    Does Bill Clinton know?

    An online storage company - once blessed by Bill Clinton - has vanished into thin air, leaving an untold number of users in a data void. San Diego-based StoragePoint appears to have shut its doors without uttering a word to some users about where their data has gone. Reports have the company providing flaky service over the …

    Media 22 Jul 2003, 07:51

  • Snags hold up biometrics, experts say

    Ropey tech, privacy concern

    While widespread use of biometrics technology is expected by 2008, a lot of work still needs to be done to iron out its shortcomings, according to experts. Speaking at the launch of European Biometrics Forum (EBF) in Dublin on Monday, Anthony Allan research director with Gartner Research outlined the pros and cons of using …

    Security 22 Jul 2003, 08:37

  • Cisco and Intel: the alliance the wireless world should fear

    WiFi Alliance rival

    The announcement says "Intel and Linksys." But you have to remember that these days, Linksys is owned by Cisco. Together these two giants, Intel and Cisco, are setting up their own little rival to the WiFi Alliance. Well, not so little, maybe... The first stage is "a technology and marketing program to improve the experience of …

    Broadband 22 Jul 2003, 08:57

  • OptimalJ proves its case

    Faster, better coding

    On Monday (July 21st) Compuware announced version 3.0 of OptimalJ. This has some important new features, writes Phil Howard, of Bloor Research. However, perhaps even more interesting is the simultaneous release of independent performance analyses that the company has commissioned into the performance benefits of OptimalJ …

    Data Center 22 Jul 2003, 09:02

  • Brits ‘spend’ £25m a year at work on chat, sex, TV vote calls

    Social workers in Norwich and Wrexham startling honest. The rest of us...

    According to research by BT, UK workers blew £25 million last year dialing chat lines, sex lines and TV vote lines from their desks. A total of 35 million calls were made to premium rate phone lines – costing up to £1.50 a minute – when employees should have been working. Financial advisors and hotel workers topped the league …

    Small Biz 22 Jul 2003, 09:18

  • Punters climb on board MMO2

    Half a mill in three months

    MM02 attracted half a million new punters during the last quarter, bringing its total customer base to just under 19 million. In Germany and the UK the mobile phone company also reported that punters were spending more, although average revenue per user (ARPU) remained flat in Ireland. In the UK, the number of 02 punters …

    Mobile 22 Jul 2003, 09:49

  • DDR 400 prices up 14 per cent

    Prices rise as inventory levels fall

    Top-end DDR SDRAM prices are on the rise, Taiwanese online DRAM trader DRAMeXchange has reported. Contract prices for 400MHz DDR rose almost 14 per cent last week over the first two weeks of July, the trader's figures reveal. According to DRAMeXchange, contract prices for 256Mb DDR 400 chips are now at between $4.90 and $5.40 …

    Channel 22 Jul 2003, 10:31

  • Michael Jackson ‘speechless’ on P2P jail bill

    Too Whacko even for Jacko

    Michael Jackson has slammed a proposed US bill which could see music file traders jailed for downloading just one illegal copy. In a statement, the superstar said: "I am speechless about the idea of putting music fans in jail for downloading music. It is wrong to illegally download, but the answer cannot be jail. "Here in …

    Media 22 Jul 2003, 10:39

  • Court slams Vogon for overbilling Serious Fraud Office

    SFO wins costs

    Data recovery specialist Vogon was heavily criticised n court last week for attempting to overcharge the Serious Fraud Office. Judge Richard Seymour, sitting in the Technology and Construction Court division of the High Court, dismissed Vogon's action regarding a disputed claim of payment for data recovery services to the SFO …

    Storage 22 Jul 2003, 10:43

  • ATI schedules Radeon 9200SE for July launch

    Fills out 9200 family

    ATI will launch a budget graphics chip, the Radeon 9200SE, before the end of the month, DigiTimes reports citing unnamed sources. The 9200SE is essentially a cut-down version of the 9200. It's clocked at 200MHz (the 9200 runs at 250MHz) and has a 64-bit memory bus (the 9200 has 128 bits of memory bandwidth). The 9200SE supports …

    Channel 22 Jul 2003, 10:51

  • Philips spin-off sells design tools team to ARM

    Getting ready to rejoin parent?

    ARM has bought DSP specialist Adelante Technologies' A|RT co-processor design tools operation. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the acquisition transfers ownership of A|RT to ARM, along with the Adelante's Adelante Technologies Belgium subsidiary, based in Leuven. Adelante will continue to develop its other …

    Channel 22 Jul 2003, 11:21

  • Intuit opens UK small.biz support service

    Collecting subs

    Sometimes it appears that a small business can't move without having someone, somewhere trying to proffer advice how to do it properly. Now Intuit, the accountancy software developer, is getting in on the act in the UK. It is setting up an independent advice site "primarily" for its own Quickbook customers. Unlike, say, our …

    Small Biz 22 Jul 2003, 11:24

  • Transmeta TM8000 to support LPC Flash

    Direct link to BIOS settings

    Transmeta's long-awaited TM8000 processor will support Low Pin Count (LPC) Flash from Sharp and STMicro, the company said today. Essentially, the TM8000 will be able to control and access LPC Flash chips without the need for ancillary chips. That, Transmeta says, will lead to improved energy efficiency in TM8000-based systems. …

    Channel 22 Jul 2003, 11:38

  • Post TI deal, Sendo and Orange settle MS phone suit

    Alleged infringement retroactively disappeared

    Sendo and Orange today announced the "settlement" of Sendo's patent lawsuit against the phone network, with a singularly minimalist statement. "Sendo and Orange today announced settlement of the patent action between Sendo and Orange. Sendo have withdrawn the lawsuit and will contribute to Orange's costs. The terms of the …

    Mobile 22 Jul 2003, 11:41

  • Unexpected GSM mobile phone network found in Baghdad

    Or was that two networks?

    A Reuters report so wacky we feel sure it must be true reports the mysterious appearance of a mobile phone network in Baghdad yesterday. And it is erm, a GSM mobile phone network. The company formerly known as WorldCom currently runs a network for the US military and related operations, but - at least until yesterday - there …

    Mobile 22 Jul 2003, 12:23

  • Euro Q2 smartphone sales sky rocket

    PDA sales up too - but losing ground to Nokia and co.

    The European PDA market is bouncing back, according to the latest figures from market watcher Canalys, with Palm and Sony doing particularly well out of growing demand for mobile devices. That demand is highlighted by a 239 per cent increase in unit shipments between Q2 2002 and Q2 2003, Canalys reports. Of course, that growth …

    Mobile 22 Jul 2003, 12:27

  • Linux and Linus in Las Vegas

    Panel beating

    At CA World in Las Vegas, CA devoted a day to Linux, writes Robin Bloor of Bloor Research. This included a panel session for press and analysts, chaired by Sam Greenblatt, SVP and Chief Architect of CA's Linux Technology Group. The panel was made up of a selection of the great and the good from the Linux community. It included …

    Software 22 Jul 2003, 12:33

  • Palm Tungsten T2 launch imminent

    Exclusive Wednesday, we hear

    Palm will release the Tungsten T2, the follow-up to the popular Tungsten T, later this month, possibly as early as Wednesday, 23 July. According to official details seen by The Register, the T2 is the same form factor as the current model, so the version we reported on earlier today, is not, at least for now, the next …

    Mobile 22 Jul 2003, 13:10

  • One US.gov smartcard ID to fit all

    Credentials pitch

    The United States government is moving towards issuing single smart card identity credentials for all federal employees. To ensure these smart IDs work across all of the government, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has established a new committee, the Federal Identity and Credential Committee (FICC), to co-ordinate …

    Security 22 Jul 2003, 13:43

  • Nvidia powers up high-end Quadro FX

    Launches 3000 and 3000G

    Nvidia today introduced the latest additions to its Quadro line of workstation graphics cards, the FX 3000 and the FX 3000G. The new chips more than double the memory bandwidth of Nvidia's previous top-of-the-range offering, the Quadro FX 2000, from 12.8GBps to 27.2GBps. Boards based on the new parts will support up to 256MB of …

    Channel 22 Jul 2003, 13:54

  • Lindows unveils HDD-less $169 Linux appliance

    Boots off the CD

    Consumer Linux company Lindows.com is getting into the information appliance business, the company said today. It has begun offering the WebStation, a small office/home office-oriented PC, for a mere $169. Of course, that doesn't buy you a top-spec. system. You don't even get a monitor. The WebStation is based on a VIA C3 …

    Personal 22 Jul 2003, 14:23

  • Logical flogs French ops to MBO team

    Not enough critical mass

    Logical, the Datatec-owned networking equipment reseller, is flogging its French ops to an investment constortium including the current management. Terms are undisclosed. In a statement Datatec and Logical Group chief executive Jens Montanana said the disposal was consistent with Logical's decision to concentrate on countries …

    Channel 22 Jul 2003, 14:42

  • US names the day for biometric passports

    ID Day preparations

    A senior US government official has laid out detailed plans for the timing and form of US government issued biometric passports. Frank Moss, deputy assistant secretary for Passport Services, presented his organisation's plans to evolve to a new, more secure "intelligent document" from today's paper-based passports at the Smart …

    Security 22 Jul 2003, 14:44

  • Broadcom awful quiet about server chip flaw

    How many have suffered?

    Broadcom will not utter a peep about how many customers may be affected by a defective chip that caused Sun Microsystems to suspend shipments of two servers. The problem, uncovered earlier this month by El Reg resides in the Broadcom 5704 chip. Sun found that the four onboard Ethernet ports on its low end V210 and V240 servers …

    Servers 22 Jul 2003, 14:57

  • Linux in Munich – Gartner gets retaliation in prematurely?

    Don't draw conclusions from projects that haven't been designed yet. D'oh...

    In what some less incisive souls are viewing as ammunition for the counter-attack, a recent Gartner 'first take' (the research outfit's free info-gobbets) warns that Munich city council's decision to migrate to Linux should not be seen as proving the case for Linux on the desktop. Which is no more than, as we say over here, the …

    Software 22 Jul 2003, 17:18

  • IBM giving SuSE Enterprise Linux away

    Go on, give it a try

    IBM has put on a clean, white glove and given a slap to both Intel's Itanic chip and SCO. It has started a new Linux giveaway program for customers ready to purchase a pSeries Unix server. Those customers willing to pick up some fresh hardware (up to four processors) can receive a free license for SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 …

    Servers 22 Jul 2003, 17:31

  • BT talks tough in biz market

    We're cheap, honest

    BT has hit back at claims that its telco services to business customers are dearer than its rivals. The UK's monster telco reckons its BT Business Plan tariff, launched earlier this year, provides average savings of 12 per cent compared to rival services - a saving of £144 million against the average competitors' best rates, …

    Small Biz 22 Jul 2003, 18:10

  • Sun holds onto profit as revenue falls

    More cash piled away

    Sun Microsystems continued to see revenue slump in its fourth quarter, as hardware sales remain tough to come by. The server maker posted $2.98 billion in revenue for the period ended June 30. This marks a 13 percent decline compared to the same period a year ago when Sun pulled in $3.42 billion. Net income hit $12 million in …

    Servers 22 Jul 2003, 20:25