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9th August 2004 Archive

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  • When the customer is always wrong

    Who's to blame for IT project crash and burn?

    Vendors always get the brunt of the criticism when technology projects go wrong, and why not? After all, consultancies, IT service providers, and outsourcers charge millions, if not billions, so that they can to make sure their clients get the best of the best... So when it all goes wrong, with costs through the roof and …

    Channel 9 Aug 2004, 08:47

  • Hubble loses an eye

    Analysis points to power supply problems

    One of Hubble’s four science instruments stopped working last week, NASA said on Friday. Engineers are looking into recovery options, but the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) was not slated for upgrade or replacement on any servicing mission. NASA says it is has convened a team to investigate the outage. Preliminary …

    Science 9 Aug 2004, 09:27

  • Introducing the Kalashnikov MP3 player

    An absolute must-have for street-hip insurgents

    We're obliged to reader Dennis Price for alerting us to an absolute must-have for any fashion-conscious and street-hip insurgent - the Kalashnikov MP3 player. Yes indeed, the streets of Najaf will never be the same again once the followers of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada Sadr get their hands on this little beauty - aptly named …

    Bootnotes 9 Aug 2004, 09:36

  • Intel cans 3.2GHz P4 Extreme Edition

    Scheduled for termination

    So farewell, then, Pentium 4 Extreme Edition 3.2GHz. Intel has deemed you are surplus to requirements. You will no longer be available come 19 November 2004. After that date, the chip giant will no longer accept orders for the part, though it will ultimately ship the part through to 29 July 2005 in trays and boxed parts until …

    Channel 9 Aug 2004, 09:42

  • To talk or not to talk - that is the question

    What's the future of in-flight mobile comms?

    Two news stories in the last few weeks highlight a mobile communications dilemma. There's a time to talk and a time to refrain from talking. One person's mobile flexibility is another's annoying conversation. First, increasing the opportunity, and the use of mobile devices while flying. The positive push is coming from two …

    Mobile 9 Aug 2004, 09:57

  • IBM SVC - real-world storage virtualisation

    Happy punters, despite the hype

    Storage is an area that has been the subject of much attention over the last few years with the areas of storage management and virtualisation grabbing much of the attention. However, within the sweeping torrents of hype and exaggeration there are to be found some genuine nuggets of potential value. One such pearl could well …

    Storage 9 Aug 2004, 10:08

  • Brace your IT budget for green impact

    Waste Added Tax

    British businesses are unprepared for costs and consequences of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive. The forthcoming legislation aims to regulate how businesses reuse, reclaim, recycle and dispose of surplus electronic equipment. As the final consultation paper from the DTI came out last week as a survey …

    Small Biz 9 Aug 2004, 10:24

  • Online ad spend on the up

    $16bn by 2009

    Spending in online advertising is predicted to balloon to more than $16bn (£8.7bn) over the next five years as advertisers become increasingly more confident using the Net. The online ad market is currently worth around $6.6bn (£3.6bn), according to JupiterResearch. But with a 30 per cent growth in paid search over the next two …

    Financial News 9 Aug 2004, 10:27

  • Ofcom unshackles radio spectrum

    Trading to begin by end 2004

    Ofcom, the communications industry’s regulator, has paved the way for radio spectrum licence trading to begin in the UK by the end of the year. The regulatory body published a 100-page document outlining the planned liberalisation of spectrum trading. The new rules will mean spectrum owners will be able to sell frequencies to …

    Mobile 9 Aug 2004, 10:30

  • Samsung preps 2.6in VGA LCD

    Will enable high-def video for smart phones, apparently

    Samsung will next quarter begin mass production of a 640 x 480 LCD screen that measures a mere 2.6in (6.5cm) diagonally. Initially aimed at PDAs - both the Palm OS and Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PCs Second Edition enable VGA displays - the new panel will ultimately be pitched at smart-phone makers. The tiny transflective …

    Mobile 9 Aug 2004, 10:33

  • Microsoft drops WinXP SP2 surprise onto Beta site

    But first, here are some error messages

    This year's mandatory Windows upgrade - WinXP Service Pack 2 - finally made its way blinking into the daylight over the weekend. But not before prospective upgraders had taken a tour of Microsoft's "test" Extranet and examined some perplexing Active Server Page error messages. This was what greeted readers who followed our …

    Operating Systems 9 Aug 2004, 10:34

  • Late payments are putting your wages at risk

    Small.biz frets over tardy debtors

    Over a quarter of small businesses are worried that late payment could prevent them from paying wages to staff, new research has revealed. The study, conducted by BACS Payment Schemes, found that more than one in four firms admitted that they could not pay employees if customers didn’t settle their debts for one month. BACS …

    Small Biz 9 Aug 2004, 10:39

  • Google IPO 'hangs in the balance'

    States launch stock goof enquiries

    Google's public floatation is only "50/50" likely to proceed as scheduled this week, with US papers reporting that it will be delayed for "logistical reasons". This follows a week in which Wall Street's finest piled into the company, criticizing the Dutch Auction-style IPO and warning small investors from participating. It didn …

    Financial News 9 Aug 2004, 10:43

  • Intel readies 3.73GHz P4 Extreme Edition for Q4

    1066MHz FSB for first 90nm P4EE

    Intel has upped the clock speed of the upcoming Pentium 4 Extreme Edition which is expected to support a 1066MHz frontside bus speed. That a gigahertz FSB is on the cards emerged late in June courtesy of an ABIT product roadmap. The document revealed the upcoming availability of a 3.46GHz P4EE that will ship alongside a new …

    Channel 9 Aug 2004, 10:57

  • Daleks to sprout legs

    Stair challenge solved at a stroke

    Doctor Who fans are in for a special treat when the new series hits the screens - Daleks with legs. The BBC is considering solving the greatest challenge facing the trundling terminators: that of climbing a simple flight of stairs. What's more, the new-look salt cellars may also have the ability to fly. Tim Hancock, spokesman …

    Bootnotes 9 Aug 2004, 11:25

  • Pipex swallows Nildram

    Gulp!

    Pipex has bought AccentUK Limited - which trades as the much-respected independent broadband ISP, Nildram - in a deal worth £12.9m. The acquisition, announced today on the stock exchange, willl add around 35,000 broadband punters to Pipex's existing customer base, taking its total number of ADSL punters to 162,000. Said Pipex …

    Telecoms 9 Aug 2004, 11:27

  • Four dead in Japanese nuclear plant accident

    But no leaked rads, say officials

    At least four people have died, and seven others were injured, in an accident at a nuclear power plant in Japan. Superheated steam escaped from a turbine after cooling systems failed. "Steam spewed in the turbine building area at the number three nuclear reactor," a spokesman for Kansai Electric Power, the company that operates …

    Science 9 Aug 2004, 11:37

  • DualDisc roll out challenged by Euro patent holder

    Hybrid DVD/CD is our technology, claims DVD Plus

    The roll-out of DualDisc hybrid DVD/CD media later this year could yet be hampered by a German company that claims ownership of the technology if talks between the intellectual property firm and major music industry players break down. Each DualDisc is double-sided disc with a CD on one side and a single-layer DVD or DVD Audio …

    Music and Media 9 Aug 2004, 12:14

  • Japanese boffins build Dalek-style robot guards

    Be afraid. Be very afraid

    Mad scientists in Japan have scored a disastrous own-goal in the forthcoming, all-too-inevitable battle between man and cyberappliance for dominance of Earth. Rather than relying on guards, CCTV cameras or locks, Tokyo-based Secom has developed a robot to deter intruders. Robot X can "chase intruders, take high definition video …

    Bootnotes 9 Aug 2004, 12:59

  • 14 admin jobs go at Microsoft UK

    "Strategic business decision" apparently

    Microsoft has axed 14 admin staff from its UK operation after making what it described as a "strategic business decision". Those affected - most of whom work at Microsoft's UK HQ in Reading - were told the bad news this morning. In a statement, Stephen Harvey, director of People & Culture, Microsoft Ltd, said: "At Microsoft Ltd …

    IT Director 9 Aug 2004, 13:01

  • Penguin backs down on Katie.com

    Book renamed, order restored

    Penguin Putnam’s decision to rename one of its best-selling books could mean that one of the Net’s oddest domain name battles may be drawing to a close. The dispute is odd because it is not over ownership of a domain name, but about its use as a book title. It is quite a saga, but in short Katie.com is two things. It is book by …

    Music and Media 9 Aug 2004, 13:37

  • Nvidia unveils Quadro FX 4400

    Workstation-class

    Nvidia today followed ATI's workstation-class graphics card launch last week with one of its own. The first of a "distinctive new family" of pro-oriented cards, the Quadro FX 4400 is nevertheless neither the first PCI Express workstation card, the first such board to support Nvidia's SLI (Scaleable Link Interface) system, or …

    Channel 9 Aug 2004, 13:53

  • Tough times for BEA

    Management musical chairs

    Holding a management position with BEA Systems these days is a risky proposition. In the space of a single week, BEA lost SVP of advanced development Adam Bosworth and CTO Scott Dietzen, two of its leading visionaries, following the exit of VP of products and solutions Rick Jackson and senior director of marketing Erik Frieberg …

    Financial News 9 Aug 2004, 14:00

  • Stelios preps launch of easyMobile

    'Cheap, efficient mobile telephony' apparently

    Stelios Haji-Ioannou - the man behind no frills airline easyJet and the easyInternet cybercafe chain - looks set to announce details of his new discount mobile phone business. According to Reuters, Stelios could be about to blab as early as tomorrow announcing details that easyMobile is to team up with Danish operator TDC A/S, …

    Mobile 9 Aug 2004, 14:03

  • Nokia moves to counter Apple-Moto music alliance

    Partners with Loudeye/OD2

    Nokia has chosen to partner with digital music distributor Loudeye to develop a music download platform for mobile phones. The announcement of the deal, said to be a multi-year agreement, puts Loudeye head to head with Apple in the fight to dominate the next level of the legal music download market. Last month, Apple teamed up …

    Mobile 9 Aug 2004, 14:34

  • Perseid meteors promise free firework show

    Comet dust to light up the skies

    Star gazers are in for a treat this week, if the clouds clear, as the Perseid meteor shower builds to its peak of activity. The Perseid meteors are an annual show, starting in late July when Earth enters a cloud of debris from the tail of Comet Swift-Tuttle. This year we’ll also cross the path of a new strand of debris that …

    Science 9 Aug 2004, 15:06

  • A fright at the Opera

    Cross-platform flaw creates minor drama

    Opera last week updated its browser to defend against a vulnerability that could allow an attacker to spy on private emails or computer files. A flaw in versions of Opera prior to version 7.54 makes it possible for attackers to read (but not alter) files on a victim's PC or snoop on mails emails written or received by M2, Opera …

    Applications 9 Aug 2004, 15:08

  • Silicon Valley staff 'gloomiest' in US

    Offshore anxieties

    Silicon Valley's optimism isn't shared by the people who work there. According to the AP, area employees are the most pessimistic in the United States. Twenty-seven per cent fear losing their jobs, compared to 18 per cent nationally. Although the unemployment rate has fallen, few new jobs have been created, and laid-off workers …

    IT Director 9 Aug 2004, 16:33

  • HP offers $300m for UK's Synstar

    Services play

    HP made a bid today to boost its IT services operations in Europe by acquiring UK outfit Synstar. HP has offered up $300m in cash for Synstar, which is close to a 28 percent premium on the firm's Friday close of 78.25 pence share price on the London Stock Exchange. Synstar's shares jumped as much as 27 percent to 99.50 pence …

    Financial News 9 Aug 2004, 16:49

  • Cheap rocket crumbles in hunt for $10m space prize

    Three dummies wounded

    Only dummies were wounded yesterday when a low-budget rocket trying to make its way to space blew up over Washington. Space Transport Corp. (STC) saw its $20,000 Rubicon 1 rocket travel a few hundred feet in the air and then explode due to a malfunction. The rocket crashed near its takeoff spot after a parachute failed to open …

    Science 9 Aug 2004, 19:56

  • Google! Licenses! Yahoo's! Secret! Sauce!

    Caves in, pays up for Overture patents

    In a move that recalls IBM's decision to mortgage its future, via an MS-DOS license, to Microsoft, Google has made peace with arch-rival Yahoo! The two giants have settled a contentious patent dispute with Google agreeing to license technology based on several Yahoo! patents that form the basis of their mutual, astronomical …

    Music and Media 9 Aug 2004, 23:32