The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

25th August 2004 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

  • Major telcos and device makers go after Induce Act

    Enter the Do Not Induce Act

    A coalition of technology heavyweights, including SBC, MCI and Verizon, have taken a stand against the controversial Induce Act, offering up an alternative to the proposed legislation that would allow consumers and vendors to enjoy the culture they love in a more protected fashion. A number of organizations today presented a …

    Music and Media 25 Aug 2004, 01:27

  • Xbox slayings take even more horrific turn

    Victims tortured

    The gruesome Florida Xbox killings became even more revolting this week as gory details emerged around the methods used by the murders on their six victims. In a 15-count indictment, prosecutors stated that the victims had their throats slashed and were stabbed even after they had already died. In addition, one woman was …

    Bootnotes 25 Aug 2004, 02:41

  • Apple iPod team seeks Wi-Fi engineer

    Portable player as AirPort Express remote control?

    Apple is looking for two iPod hardware engineers both with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi experience, opening the possibility that the portable music player may be upgraded with wireless connectivity. The job applications - which you can view here and here - were posted on behalf of Apple's iPod division and call for candidates with "a …

    Mobile 25 Aug 2004, 09:28

  • California green lights e-voting

    11 counties are go for electronic ballot

    California's election officials have approved the use of electronic voting machines in 11 of the state's counties. Kevin Shelley, California's secretary of state, said that the counties had improved the security of their voting machines so that they now comply with all conditions required for state certification. Four counties …

    Public Sector 25 Aug 2004, 09:47

  • Olympic no-hopers immortalised online

    Abject losers crowned with laurel

    There's nothing we Brits like more than a gallant loser and El Reg is delighted to report that those athletes who crawled exhausted from Athens' Olympic arena clutching a wooden spoon between their teeth have been immortalised online. Yes, if you fancy celebrating "Brunei Darussalam, whose single athlete finished last in his …

    Music and Media 25 Aug 2004, 09:48

  • Covent Garden gains Wi-Fi coverage

    Gym's access point ranges across piazza

    Notebook PC or PDA-equipped visitors to London's Covent Garden will now be able to access the Internet wirelessly through Broadreach Networks' ReadyToSurf service. Coverage comes courtesy of a co-location deal with Jubilee Hall Clubs' gymnasium sited in the heart of the old market building in the centre of the Covent Garden …

    Wireless 25 Aug 2004, 09:52

  • Linksys, Netgear prep soho VoIP kit

    Cheap calls and Wi-Fi

    WLAN kit makers Linksys and Netgear have rolled out consumer and small-business oriented wireless access points with integrated Voice over IP (VoIP) support. Linksys' WRT54GP2 provides a pair of VoIP phone ports alongside the usual broadband, wired and 802.11g connectivity. The company also unveiled its PAP2 phone adaptor, …

    Data Networking 25 Aug 2004, 10:29

  • Inventory issues fail to hamper chip biz growth

    Researcher ups 2004 forecast - again

    Market watcher Gartner has upped its 2004 global chip sales forecast to $226bn, the company said yesterday. The tweak represents an increase in sales over 2003 of 27.4 per cent, up from Gartner's June figure of 25 per cent. The increases in inventory noted by industry players and observers at the end of Q2 are not sufficient …

    Channel 25 Aug 2004, 10:57

  • Sony talks up PlayStation Portable's chips

    CPU, graphics and media engines, and more

    Sony yesterday spilled the beans on the chip it plans to use to power the upcoming PlayStation Portable (PSP). The PSP comprises a number of components: the CPU, a media processor, a 3D graphics engine, a security processor and a power manager. The PSP's MIPS R4000-based CPU will run at up to 333MHz, Sony chip designer …

    Consoles 25 Aug 2004, 11:33

  • Hollywood sues DVD-chip makers

    Sold chips to dodgy buyers, MPAA alleges

    The Motion Picture Ass. of America (MPAA) yesterday confirmed the organisation has begun legal proceedings against two makers of DVD chips. It alleges that the pair were rather more willing to offer their products more widely than they should be. The MPAA alleges that the two companies - Taiwan's MediaTek and US-based Sigma …

    Music and Media 25 Aug 2004, 12:07

  • Polymer researchers probe self-healing fuel tanks

    It's all about golf balls

    On the atomic scale, shooting particles at stuff to see what happens is a long established scientific principle. But a group of US scientists which applied the idea on a macro scale found that a commercial polymer has a very interesting property: when it is shot at, it immediately "repairs" the bullet holes. The polymer is …

    Science 25 Aug 2004, 13:11

  • Sheep pine for absent friends: official

    Family snaps help relieve ovine 'separation anxiety'

    The Cambridge University team which discovered that sheep prefer happy, smiley people has once again pushed back the envelope of ovine understanding with the revelation that sheep cheer up when they see snaps of friends and relatives. According to the Telegraph (registration required), team supremo professor Keith Kendrick …

    Bootnotes 25 Aug 2004, 13:18

  • EC launches Microsoft DRM probe

    ContentGuard

    The European Commission will, after all, launch a probe of the deal between Microsoft and Time Warner to take joint ownership of a US DRM company, ContentGuard. The probe is warranted, the Commission announced in a press conference today, because the deal could lead to Microsoft extending its monopoly in operating systems to the …

    Financial News 25 Aug 2004, 13:39

  • Macrovision CDS-300 version 7 beta

    Exclusive A CD lock-in tech that only annoys P2P traders?

    Macrovision describes version 7 of its CDS-300 copy protection system as a major step forward in keeping P2P users' hands off copyright content for which they don't have the distribution rights. Having seen a demo of the alpha release, which performed as advertised, we were nonetheless pleased when a copy of the latest beta …

    Music and Media 25 Aug 2004, 13:55

  • Small 'scope spots big planet

    500 light-years hence

    A new extra-solar planet has been identified orbiting a star 500 light years from our solar system. The discovery was made by a team using a four-inch diameter telescope to make their observations - a size of 'scope readily available and much used by amateur observers. The research was conducted at the Harvard-Smithsonian …

    Science 25 Aug 2004, 14:10

  • US cracks down on spam mountain

    Ashcroft to announce cases this week

    John Ashcroft, the attorney General of the US, is expected to announce on Thursday dozens of lawsuits against alleged spammers following a low key campaign against the practise across the US. The arrests have been made over the last few weeks as part of a coordinated effort to crack down on spamming, dubbed Operation Slam Spam …

    Spam 25 Aug 2004, 16:25

  • Server makers shift more boxes than cash in Q2

    Dell and Sun make gains

    Strong sales of small one- and two-processor systems again pushed the overall server market higher in the second quarter, according to the latest data from Gartner. Total server sales hit $11.5bn in the period - a year-over-year rise of 7.7 percent. Dell enjoyed its familiar position as the fastest growing vendor, and IBM held …

    Servers 25 Aug 2004, 16:45

  • Windows XP SP2 features security crater - report

    Start patching the patch

    Windows XP Service Pack 2 has a flaw that gives users a false sense of security - quite literally. One report describes the security hole as a 'crater'. The vulnerability lies in the web systems management interface (WBEM), which allows downloadable code to spoof firewall status information. It's a convoluted exploit, but in …

    Enterprise Security 25 Aug 2004, 18:03

  • China's 3G 'wonderchip' primed and ready

    Sponsored by Beijing, nurtured in Sunnyvale

    Chinese engineers headquartered in the heart of Silicon Valley have produced a dual band mobile phone chip that's sure to cause more heated debate when trade delegations from the two superpowers next meet. Spreadtrum Communications says it already has contracts from four manufacturers for its 'superchip' - as the state news …

    Mobile 25 Aug 2004, 18:46

  • US DoJ searches homes of P2P evil doers

    Keeping our movies safe

    The US DoJ (Department of Justice) today launched an assault on P2P file traders, using search warrants to investigate five homes and the offices of one ISP (Internet Service Provider). This is the first time the DoJ has applied such drastic measures against file swappers, and the move comes just one week after a California …

    Music and Media 25 Aug 2004, 20:36

  • Music labels sue 896 more music lovers

    Being a fan doesn't pay

    The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) has lobbed a fresh round of lawsuits at music fans. The music label mob announced today that it has sued another 896 file-swappers - an apparent retaliation against an appeals court ruling confirming P2P networks as legal. The latest lawsuits were aimed at 744 fresh P2P users …

    Music and Media 25 Aug 2004, 22:07