6th August 2004 Archive

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Phone spam misery looms Stateside

Just the fax

A little-noticed Bill before the Senate will ensure daily misery for US cellphone users, thanks to the inattentiveness of telecomms regulator the FCC. This week the FCC ruled against spam sent to mobile users that originates from email addresses. The regulator believes that the 1991 Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) …

Telecoms 6 Aug 2004, 00:40
Blogging 'cruelty' allegations rock post-DNC calm

And we have pictures

Allegations of cruelty to Webloggers have surfaced after the Democratic Convention last week. Around 30 Webloggers were invited to join 15,000 accredited media at the political convention, and in the build-up, the "blogosphere" drew its breath in anticipation. Only now, after the sadistic practices have been revealed, has the …

Music and Media 6 Aug 2004, 00:43
Michigan wardrivers await sentencing

'This has messed up my entire life,' laments wireless felon

In what prosecutors say is likely the first criminal conviction for wardriving in the US, a Michigan man plead guilty Wednesday to a federal misdemeanor for using the Internet through an open Wi-Fi access point at a Lowe's home improvement store in suburban Detroit. Paul Timmins, 23, pleaded guilty to a single count of …

Music and Media 6 Aug 2004, 08:37
The return of the dotcom yuppie?

Young guns aim for the Internet

Budding entrepreneurs are increasingly keen to start up online businesses, suggesting that the dotcom downturn is over, new research has found. A survey of MBA students by Palo Alto Software found that 74 per cent were planning to set up a business after graduation, with six in ten of those wanting to start up on the Internet. …

Small Biz 6 Aug 2004, 08:53
O2 billing blunder cuts off thousands

These things happen

Thousands of O2 punters have been unable to use their mobile phones following a billing blunder by the mobilephoneco. More than 8,000 punters were cut off earlier this week after O2 barred access to the phones. A spokesman for the company explained that the phones had been "temporarily barred in error" following the migration …

Mobile 6 Aug 2004, 09:33
Crossed lines leaves Orange punters seeing red

London calling

Mobile phone punters in London have been having the wierdest conversations after Orange admitted that it has been getting its wires crossed. An "intermittent crossed line fault on the Orange UK network" is being blamed for some callers being able to listen in to other people's calls - and presumably, other people earwigging …

Mobile 6 Aug 2004, 09:35
Controversial TechnoDepot shirt back on the shelves

Cash'n'Carrion Show me the way to go... where?

We're absolutely delighted to announce that pretty well the full range of TechnoDepot shirts has been replenished and the Cash'n'Carrion warehouse is filled to bursting with top-quality apparel. The TechnoDepot collection encompasses various snappy designs, including Bug? It’s an undocumented feature, Mac OSX. I’ve upped my …

Site News 6 Aug 2004, 09:53
Home Office prohibits happy biometric passports

Don't say cheese

The Home Office says all new passport photographs must be of an unsmiling face with its gob firmly shut because open mouths can confuse facial recognition systems. It issued the new guidelines yesterday, The Sun reports, as part of the move towards biometric passports. The new rules come into immediate effect. Getting …

Music and Media 6 Aug 2004, 10:08
Feds OK DVD+R/RW DRM tech

The licensor will see you now

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved the use of Video Content Protection System (VCPS), the DVD+RW Alliance's preferred copy-protection system. VCPS essentially governs the recording of digital TV shows onto DVD+RW media. The FCC has defined what it calls the 'Broadcast Flag', a code that can be …

Music and Media 6 Aug 2004, 10:14
Digital print booths: readers put us in the picture

Letters Watch the birdie

The debate surrounding digital print booths in general, and Kodak print booths in particular, continues unabated. Our intrepid soul at the man/machine inferface - Simon Prentagast - contacted us again to grass up the Boots branch which allowed punters to enjoy other peoples' snaps by not erasing the files after printing: …

Letters 6 Aug 2004, 10:40
XP SP2 stalls at starting gate

Under starter's orders but not away

Yesterday saw a further minor delay in the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2, the most significant revision of the Windows code base since its launch in 2001. Microsoft originally said it planned to release Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) to manufacturers on Wednesday. That didn't happen. Microsoft is now saying the release …

Operating Systems 6 Aug 2004, 10:42
Samsung targets DDR 2 with 90nm process

While Infineon provides Winbond with 90nm DRAM tech

Samsung has begun shifting memory production to a 90nm process, even as rival DRAM maker Infineon agreed to provide Winbond with its 90nm technology. The South Korean giant revealed last month that it has started punching out unspecified DRAM chips at 90nm. It expects three per cent of its Q3 wafer starts to be fabbed at that …

Channel 6 Aug 2004, 10:53
Online sales increase

Good news for etailers

One in ten of all credit card payments in the UK is now made online, according to the latest research from the Association for Payment Clearing Services (APACS). The number of credit card payments made online has shot up five-fold since 1999 as punters increasingly use the Net to buy books, CDs, computer gear, holidays, …

Financial News 6 Aug 2004, 11:25
Yahoo! Offers! Local! Search!

Local search for local people

Yahoo! has launched a beta version of a new search site, Yahoo!Local which it says will give punters a more accurate guide to local businesses, large and small. The company says the move is a response to a demand for finely-tuned Web searches, as people log on to find things closer to home. Analysts at The Kelsey Group suggest …

Small Biz 6 Aug 2004, 11:33
Webcam snares toff 'tea leaf'

Thieving aristo caught red-handed

An 18-year-old pupil at £7,000-a-term Harrow public school was caught relieving a fellow pupil's wallet of cash after the suspicious victim rigged a webcam to capture the blag. Gregory Allen, 18, set the trap after £200 was stolen from fellow students. The webcam - sited over Allen's desk - was triggered by anyone opening the …

Bootnotes 6 Aug 2004, 11:35
Nvidia Q2 sales, income slide

'Disappointing' and 'short of our expectations', says CEO

Nvidia confirmed that demand for integrated graphics chipsets is hindering its discrete chip business when it posted "disappointing" Q2 results yesterday. The graphics specialist saw quarterly income plunge year on year as a result of falling revenues. Sales for the three months to 25 July 2004 - fiscal year 2005 - totalled $ …

Financial News 6 Aug 2004, 11:42
Sony selects Blu-ray for PlayStation 3

Up yours, HD-DVD

Sony has confirmed that the PlayStation 3 will ship with a Blu-ray optical drive. At this stage, it's not clear whether the console will feature a read-only unit or allow users to record video onto the blue-laser medium too. It's certainly tempting to view the PS3 as more of a successor to the poorly received PSX than the PS2 …

Consoles 6 Aug 2004, 11:43
Beckham penalty outrage ball heads for space

X-prize bid for infamous sphere

The ball David Beckham infamously booted over the bar during England's crucial Euro 2004 shoot-out with Portugal might be going into space - for real. Online casino GoldenPalace.com, which bought the ball for €28,050 (£18,500) in an online auction last month, has announced plans to store the sporting relic onboard a Canadian …

Bootnotes 6 Aug 2004, 12:28
US prosecutors challenge P2P companies

Clean up your act - or else...

P2P software companies have been told to clean up their act and do more to protect their users from the seedier side of the file-sharing scene - or risk facing legal action. The call comes from US attorneys general from 45 states, the District of Columbia and the US Virgin Islands in an open letter to the P2P software industry …

Music and Media 6 Aug 2004, 13:49
3 UK to show footy highlights

Before Match of the Day. Result

Beginning this season, 3 UK's customers will be able to watch highlights of the goals in Barclays' Premiership matches before they are shown on Match of the Day. Subscribers to 3's video mobile network will be able to download video highlights of every Barclays' Premiership match at 5:15pm every Saturday. On all other match …

Mobile 6 Aug 2004, 14:15
Tiscali to squeeze overheads as losses swell

Pips getting ready to squeak?

Italian ISP - Tiscali - vowed to cut overheads by 15 per cent over the next year after posting increased losses for the three months to June. Pre-tax losses swelled to €65.5m (£43.5m)in Q2, compared to €56.3m (£37m) in the same period last year even though Q2 revenues jumped 26 per cent to €272.6m (£181m). While Tiscali …

Telecoms 6 Aug 2004, 14:22
How to order WinXP SP2 now

Then wait for the postman

Microsoft has unveiled the web page from which end users can order CDs of Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 2. However the nag is still reluctant to leave the stable. English language CDs will be available on 25 August, with German, Japanese and French language CDs to follow from 1 September, and twenty one other language …

Operating Systems 6 Aug 2004, 14:26
Taiwan firms to launch 2TB memory card

Just what the world needs, apparently

Taiwanese technology companies will this autumn unveil what they hope will be the next solid-state memory card format. Dubbed 'µcard', the format will support up to 2TB of storage capacity within a 3.2 x 2.4 x 0.1cm card - the same size as a standard MMC unit. The new cards are said to be connector-compatible with the older …

Storage 6 Aug 2004, 14:43
Bulldog targets SMEs with unbundled SDSL

London first, UK by early 2005

Unbundling ISP Bulldog is targetting SMEs with an "affordable" SDSL service. Available in unbundled exchanges in central London for now, Bulldog reckons it will be available "across the UK from early in 2005" as the company installs its kit in more of BT's telephone exchanges. "Bulldog 2&2" - the name of its new SDSL service, …

Small Biz 6 Aug 2004, 14:45
Brits still blind to benefits of Wi-Fi

So much for Intel's Centrino advertising

It's 17 months since Intel launched its Centrino and began telling the world about wireless networking - Apple (ahem) launched its first 802.11b product in 1999 - and still the majority of the UK public remain blissfully unaware what Wi-Fi is. The chip giant today announced that its research - actually conducted by ICM Research …

Wireless 6 Aug 2004, 14:45
Attack of the Segway-riding Finnish Penguin bloggers

Letters And a Rush of blood to the head

Right. Let's get started. First up, Katie Jones, the unfortunate damsel who happens to share a domain name with the name of a TV show in the US. Well, not share, because Katie.com is hers. The US show just named itself Katie.com anyway, resulting in a flood of unwanted traffic to poor Katie Jones' site. As ever, you had some …

Letters 6 Aug 2004, 15:15
Virgin demands Apple license iTunes DRM

Group's French digital music biz complains to govt.

VirginMega - the Virgin Group's French online music joint venture with media company Lagardère - has claimed that Apple is guilty of anti-competitive behaviour by refusing to licence the iTunes Music Store's FairPlay DRM technology. Apple's opponent has formally asked France's competition watchdog to rule that the iPod maker …

Music and Media 6 Aug 2004, 15:18
Six charged in $10m Ingram computer fraud

The Romanian connection

A Romanian man and five Americans were indicted yesterday by a California Grand Jury over an alleged $10m computer fraud. The gang is accused of fraudulently obtaining a small fortune in computer equipment after breaking into Ingram Micro's online ordering system. Calin Mateias, 24, from Bucharest, is suspected of cracking into …

Channel 6 Aug 2004, 15:28
Sony Ericsson K700i: burning bright

Reg Review It's the midrange flagship. How does it sail?

Sony Ericsson's K700i is its new midrange flagship, the successor to the T68, the phone "which saved Ericsson". It's also the second non-smartphone I've used in recent months that I've been very reluctant to return. Despite one very serious flaw, Sony Ericsson users will be at home with this new model. Family history When …

Reviews 6 Aug 2004, 16:51
Intel gets quiet about the competition

A little too quiet

Intel's release this week of a 64-bit Xeon server processor made one thing clear - AMD has its rival in a real tizzy. As an Intel spinmeister was describing the new Nocona processor, we couldn't help but think of the salute John Kerry used at the Democratic convention. "I'm reporting for duty," he said. The scripted scene …

Servers 6 Aug 2004, 18:20