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27th November 2003 Archive

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  • Openzone-in-a-box comes to Ireland

    Cheap box, expensive access

    Esat BT this week introduced to Ireland a do-it-yourself hotspot product for small business owners who wish to enable their premises with a public wireless network. Openzone in a Box can be purchased off the shelf and will allow business owners to install their own hotspots for a significantly lower cost than opting for the …

    Wireless 27 Nov 2003, 09:36

  • So when will Linux vendors charge for security fixes?

    Opinion Ending the free lunch

    Linux vendors spend money building security bug fixes. How much longer will they give them away for free, writes SecurityFocus columnist Hal Flynn. In the last week of October, Apple debuted its latest installment of the BSD-based operating system Mac OS X 10.3, also known as Panther. With it came many new features, as well as …

    Security 27 Nov 2003, 09:44

  • Nigeria stamps on 419 (again)

    Huge foreign currency earner

    Nigeria is to set up an inquiry into 419 fraud and the laws covering this crime. It may also set up a new agency to tackle the scam which has made the country's name synonymous with Internet fraud. "The government will step up measures against these criminal activities," President Olusegun Obasanjo said, the BBC reports. …

    Music and Media 27 Nov 2003, 10:10

  • Softwron shows off its new technology

    Stob They’ve got our number

    Today was ‘open doors day’ at Softwron Inc, the US software and litigation giant. Softwron is the first company to take advantage of the US Patent Office’s surprise announcement that integers are patentable. To counter recent unfavourable coverage, the company took a party of top-notch journos, your correspondent naturally …

    Bootnotes 27 Nov 2003, 10:32

  • 18,000 Net users caught in BT billing error

    Swing low, sweet chariot

    Around 18,000 people were charged twice for their BT Internet services this month, following a billing error at the dominant fixed-line telco. According to a BT spokesman, only a tiny percentage of the company's dial-up and broadband customers were hit by the snag. In an email to punters BT apologised for the mistake …

    Telecoms 27 Nov 2003, 11:06

  • Europe to adopt Wi-Fi faster than US

    Mobile-friendliness, cafe culture key drivers, says analyst

    Demand for public WLAN services will be stronger in Europe than the US during the next five years, according to a study carried out by US market watcher Insight Research. Worldwide, some $163 million will be spent on Wi-Fi services and kit during the 2003-2008 period. Insight's study - Wi-Fi in North America and Europe: …

    Wireless 27 Nov 2003, 11:20

  • Spanish police arrest Raleka virus suspect

    'Computer science delinquency'

    Spanish police have arrested a 23-year man on suspicion of writing the Raleka computer worm. The unnamed man is suspected of leading a Spanish phreaker group called "AKELARRE". According to a statement by Spain's Civil Guard, three houses were searched and eight computers seized during the investigation that led to the arrest …

    Wireless 27 Nov 2003, 11:21

  • Watching the Net's background radiation

    What happens to a naked TCP/IP node?

    When the city sleeps, it's never completely silent. But when the Internet sleeps, what kind of static does it make? What does it sound like? Like the weird warbles astronomers claim to hear from outer space? We'd like to share what the Internet sounds like when it sleeps, and in its current highly agitated state, we think it's …

    Music and Media 27 Nov 2003, 11:41

  • Nigeria stamps on 419 (again)

    Huge foreign currency earner

    Nigeria is to set up an inquiry into 419 fraud and the laws covering this crime. It may also set up a new agency to tackle the scam which has made the country's name synonymous with Internet fraud. "The government will step up measures against these criminal activities," President Olusegun Obasanjo said, the BBC reports. …

    Music and Media 27 Nov 2003, 11:48

  • Toshiba blue laser tech chosen for HD DVD spec.

    DVD Forum vote passed

    The DVD Forum, the industry body responsible for defining and maintaining the DVD standard, has approved Toshiba and NEC's suggestion for a version of the format that will support HDTV. The proposed specification is based on a blue laser optical system, yielding a disc capacity of 15-20GB per side. The format uses the same disc …

    Personal 27 Nov 2003, 12:01

  • Message to House Robots: Be Stupid

    Europe in Brief

    New technology from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm (Sweden) is teaching household robots a more efficient way to get around the house. A major problem for household robots on the move is that they have very little knowledge about their surroundings. A chair that has been moved or a person standing in the …

    Music and Media 27 Nov 2003, 12:08

  • Sendo X aims to out-Nokia Nokia, outsmart MS smartphone

    The big bet for brand status

    Sendo founder and CEO Hugh Brogan yesterday announced the company's big bet smartphone, the Sendo X. "Announced", which is what it says here, is apparently different from "unveiled", which is what it says here, and is different still from having volume production shipping into the channel today. But glitches permitting the Sendo …

    Mobile 27 Nov 2003, 12:09

  • EU internet privacy laws tightened

    No more insults?

    Norway's Data Inspectorate says it is ready to go after people who publish embarrassing pictures of others without their permission, the Norwegian daily paper Aftenposten reports. A recent decision by a EU tribunal clears the way for tougher privacy regulations elsewhere too. Any business with a website must prepare for a …

    Music and Media 27 Nov 2003, 12:21

  • Fossil revamps MS Spot watch line

    Vanilla, 'Dick Tracy' models launched

    Watch maker Fossil has relaunched its range of timepieces based on Microsoft's Smart Personal Object Technology (Spot). The arrival of the updated line-up comes after it was revealed earlier this month that the system's debut has been put back until next year. Fossil announced last January it would offer a set of Spot watches …

    Wireless 27 Nov 2003, 12:27

  • Microsoft plays hardball with Dutch Lindows resellers

    Who you gonna call? Michael Robertson!

    Dutch Lindows resellers are accusing Microsoft of intimidation, after several received phone calls from the software giant seeking meetings to "avoid" legal action over the name of the operating system. "This about the name, not about Linux," a spokeswoman for Microsoft in the Netherlands confirms. Lindows argues that "windows …

    Channel 27 Nov 2003, 12:36

  • Police arrest ID thief in Wells Fargo case

    Stolen PCs recovered

    Police have arrested a California man for stealing computers containing the personal information of thousands of Wells Fargo customers. Edward Jonathan Krastof, 38, of Concord in California, has confessed to stealing a computer containing the sensitive information after breaking into the offices of a financial analyst hired by …

    Security 27 Nov 2003, 12:57

  • Calling all channel players

    We got a survey which wants filling

    Hello there. Judging from response to previous surveys, The Register has a lot of readers from the channel i.e. the sell-side of the IT industry. Which is nice, especially as our approach to channel-specific news is somewhat less than methodical. We think it's time to up the ante on our channel coverage, but first we have to …

    Channel 27 Nov 2003, 13:25

  • Earthport to sue Egg

    Wants 'a substantial sum'

    Internet bank Egg is facing legal action over an alleged breach of contract. The action - due to begin in the New Year - is being launched by electronic payment outfit Earthport. Publishing its results yesterday, Earthport said: "The company [Earthport] has prepared a claim against Egg for a substantial sum under the November …

    Business 27 Nov 2003, 14:09

  • BBC to flog technology division

    1,400 staff face uncertain future

    The BBC is to flog its wholly-owned commercial subsidiary - BBC Technology Ltd - in a bid to save the corporation up to £30 million a year. The sale - which still needs Government approval - could be worth around £100 million to the Beeb and if given the go-ahead, is expected to be completed by autumn next year. Some 1,400 …

    Business 27 Nov 2003, 15:12

  • Why Indiana and New Jersey were right

    Letters The smart money stays at home

    “Indiana's decision to scrap the TCS contract will appease voters, media and unions in the short term, but it will probably force the state to spend more taxpayers' dollars on revamping the benefit claims system than it had planned. New Jersey now spends $340,000 per month on supporting its welfare benefits applications from a …

    Letters 27 Nov 2003, 15:23

  • Nokia N-Gage tops mobile game download chart

    Good news for game deck as download game sales rocket

    Sales of downloadable mobile games to N-Gage users have outstripped sales to Nokia 3510i users by eight per cent despite a huge disparity in the installed base for the devices, according to UK mobile game retailer mProvision. The company, which operates mobile gaming portals ngagegames.co.uk and mynokiagames.co.uk, says that …

    Mobile 27 Nov 2003, 16:27

  • Vuln exposes soft underbelly of Mac OS X

    Apple patch pending

    Details of a vulnerability in Mac OS X that creates a mechanism for crackers to take over vulnerable machines has been posted on the Net. Security researcher William Carrel released details of a vulnerability, and suggested workarounds, in advance of a fix from Apple because of what he sees as the vendor's sluggish response to …

    Mac Channel 27 Nov 2003, 16:30

  • Tiscali in logo makeover

    It's about 'maturity and internationality'

    Pan European ISP Tiscali has undergone a logo makeover to reflect the "maturity and internationality" of the company. The cost of the new image - which turns Tiscali's uppercase logo and accompanying motif into something that looks like a lowercase typewriter-like font - is not being disclosed. Although not being fully …

    Bootnotes 27 Nov 2003, 16:35

  • Pivotal: slim pickings support big ambitions

    Acquisition target

    Pivotal had all the signs of an acquisition target: small customer base, declining license revenue, and dwindling cash reserves. Still, no one would have anticipated the level of interest that has resulted in Oak, CDC and Onyx all squabbling over the potential feast. When the vendor pickings are slim, even the most modest of …

    Hardware 27 Nov 2003, 20:20

  • Aftershocks of undersea cable outage hit UK ISPs

    DDoS attack theory debunked

    A damaged undersea transatlantic cable led to the failure of other Internet systems which resulted in serious problems for many UK Net users this week. Damage to a cable somewhere off the French coast at around 4pm on Tuesday afternoon caused havoc for Net and phone users in the UK. BT has confirmed that some of its voice …

    Telecoms 27 Nov 2003, 20:26

  • ’Wron number caught in Fermat-defying romp

    Stob Innocent integer ensnared by Wiles’ wiles

    US software and litigation giant Softwron Inc is today vigorously denying a rumour that its newly patented integer, the so-called ’Wron number, has been caught flouting numerical law. Hirsute expensively-suited granite-jawed granite-named Mr Rock McDosh, founder and CEO of Softwron, appeared before the world’s press to defend …

    Bootnotes 27 Nov 2003, 20:56

  • CIO survey shows ECM set to surge, Documentum leads

    Vignette and Interwoven just behind

    A survey of European CIOs, published this week on the subject of Enterprise Content Management (ECM), reveals the rationale behind the Open Text - Ixos merger, showing Documentum as the European market leader with Open Text nowhere in sight. Other strong players, only just behind Documentum in Europe include Vignette and …

    Hardware 27 Nov 2003, 21:10

  • EU patents vote delayed

    Up in the air

    An EU vote on patents legislation has been delayed again, as the debate over the effect of intellectual property laws on software innovation continues. The original EU directive on software patents was supported by large corporations, but was vehemently opposed by a range of academics, software developers and members of the …

    Software 27 Nov 2003, 21:10