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19th October 2004 Archive

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  • Old-timers leave IBM flat in Q3

    Seniors stall income rise

    IBM's pension plan woes kept the company's third quarter results flat, as a $320m settlement charge erased a double-digit rise in income. IBM reported revenue of $23.4bn in its third quarter - a nine per cent rise over the $21.5bn reported in the same period last year. The company also posted $2bn in income - a 12 percent rise …

    Financial News 19 Oct 2004, 07:24

  • Toshiba TV cries for help

    Feds come knocking

    Forget the Patriot Act and overactive spooks. It's your TV that could have the Feds knocking at your door. Chris van Rossman earlier this month learned this lesson when Air Force staffers, a policeman and a search and rescue officer stopped by his apartment in Corvallis, Oregon. The officials were hunting down an international …

    Bootnotes 19 Oct 2004, 08:10

  • PeopleSoft boss gets $18m to walk away

    Just go...

    Craig Conway, the former chief executive of PeopleSoft who was pushed out by the board, is to receive an $18m severance package. The golden goodbye is made up of cash and the value of his share options, according to an anonymous source talking to Reuters. PeopleSoft refused to comment on the story, but a public filing with the …

    Financial News 19 Oct 2004, 08:14

  • Apple preps 'black iPod' U2 limited edition promo

    None more black

    The infamous black iPod looks set to make a second appearance next month, when Apple ships a special edition digital music device to commemorate the arrival of rock band U2's newest long-player. So claim a variety of web sites, including Forbes.com. Apple itself isn't commenting on the specifics of the rumour, but it has …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 08:41

  • Sharp pulls Linux Wi-Fi PDA out of US

    Withdrawing to retrench in Japanese market

    Sharp has confirmed reports received by The Register that the company has dropped its Zaurus Linux-based PDA in the US market. According to our sources, Sharp USA canned the SL-6000 in the US at the end of September, dropping the device's developer support website. A Sharp spokesman yesterday confirmed the decision, InfoSync …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 08:59

  • Amsterdam Internet Exchange goes photonic

    Tripping the light fantastic

    Amsterdam Internet Exchange (AMS-IX) has connected its member Open Peering to a 10 Gigabit Ethernet per second public-peering service using photonic switching for the first time in Europe. Public peering is a means for internet service providers to send and receive traffic destined for one another's networks. Previously, …

    Data Networking 19 Oct 2004, 09:18

  • Finland can't live without Nokia

    But can Nokia live without Finland?

    Manufacturer Nokia is more important to the Finnish economy than was previously thought. According to preliminary figures by the Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA), Nokia's share of Finland's Gross Domestic Product has risen to at least 3.5 per cent, up from 3 percent last year. Finland is the only western country …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 09:19

  • PalmOne Treo 650 details confirmed

    Company exec's post-launch spiel published too soon, it seems

    Details of PalmOne's launch plan for the much-anticipated successor to the Treo 600 have leaked on to the web. The Treo 650 will launch - unless PalmOne now changes its mind - in just under a week's time, on 25 October. The venue: the CTIA Wireless IT show in San Francisco. The information came courtesy of PalmOne product …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 09:26

  • Scot develops dust-busting hovercraft

    Another British scientific first

    Readers might be forgiven for thinking that boffins could not possibly squeeze any more innovation from the humble vacuum cleaner. After all, we now now have micro-filtering vortex hoovers with sufficient power to make short work of the cat — without loss of suction — and more accessories than you can shake a feather duster at …

    Science 19 Oct 2004, 09:27

  • Ofcom conjures up idea of public IP TV broadcaster

    Digital TV over broadband

    UK communications regulator Ofcom has called for the setting up of a new public service provider (PSP) which would distribute TV programs in a digital format through broadband lines, networked PVRs, and mobile networks, as well as more conventional TV distribution systems. It has also proposed funding of £300m ($540m) a year, …

    Broadband 19 Oct 2004, 09:28

  • Let's Parlay over Open APIs

    Telecoms standards group seeks developers

    Telecoms standards group Parlay was in London yesterday to bang the drum for new developers. The Parlay Group sets and promotes open standard APIs to allow easy interaction between traditional IT applications and telecoms networks. The group says its standards are already allowing the development of enterprise applications and …

    Developer 19 Oct 2004, 09:51

  • 419ers take Aussie financial advisor for AU$1m

    Greed + stupidity = jail

    A Melbourne financial manager faces a hefty prison sentence after stealing AU$1m from his clients and handing it over to Nigerian advance fee fraudsters. Robert Andrew Street, 58, fell for a classic 419 scam after receiving an email from the Reverend Sam Kukah offering him a cool $65m in return for relocating cash held by …

    Security 19 Oct 2004, 09:59

  • AMD slashes prices, ships Athlon 64 4000+

    Up to 50 per cent off

    AMD today introduced the Athlon 64 4000+ and Athlon 64 FX-55, as anticipated, along with price cuts across the rest of its 64-bit desktop and desktop-replacement mobile CPU line-up. The company also cut the prices of its mainstream Mobile Athlon 64 processors, and those of the XP-M chips. The latter saw a number of lower-end …

    System Builder 19 Oct 2004, 10:03

  • Egg losses soar on France debacle

    UK 'satisfactory'

    Egg's decision to pull out of the loss-making French market is continuing to hammer the UK internet bank as the group recorded a pre-tax loss of £103m in the nine months to the end of September. Much of this loss is down to the £113m Egg has already announced it is spending to exit France, along with the £35m its French business …

    Financial News 19 Oct 2004, 10:05

  • AMD heralds PCI Express chipsets

    Chipset vendors line up with products

    AMD formally welcomed its Athlon 64 processor family into the world of PCI Express, touting the availability of chipsets that support the new add-in card format. According to AMD, chipset makers ATI, Nvidia, SiS, ULi and VIA will be offering "a broad range" of PCI Express products. No great surprise there, since details of …

    System Builder 19 Oct 2004, 10:30

  • The .NET Developer's Guide to Windows Security

    Site Offer £10 off the hands-on guide

    Making applications secure has been one of the biggest priorities for Microsoft developers. However, very few books have been written for developers; most security books are aimed at administrators. The .NET Developer's Guide to Windows Security is required reading for .NET programmers who want to develop secure Windows …

    Site News 19 Oct 2004, 10:30

  • Microsoft moves in on music downloads

    Analysis No Apple turnover, this time

    The press say this is Microsoft IBM all over again from the 1980s with only one result possible. We're not so sure. Everything that happened in online music seems to be related this week, starting with Apple owning up to an astonishing 2m iPod sales in its last quarter in the results it launched last week. The results were …

    Financial News 19 Oct 2004, 10:58

  • Peruvians develop super-tasty guinea pig

    Scuttling soon to a plate near you

    Scientists at Peru's La Molina National University reckon they have developed a world-beating culinary experience - the plumper, tastier "Peruvian Breed" guinea pig, AP reports. The average Peruvian guinea pig weighs in at best at a modest one-and-a-half pounds and offers the locals a lean, sinewy eating experience. The new …

    Science 19 Oct 2004, 10:59

  • NEC to show laptop with built-in fuel cell

    Big leap forward with smaller power unit

    NEC will this week show a prototype notebook PC powered by its own fuel cell unit, the company said today. The power supply marks a big improvement over NEC's previous fuel cell efforts, the company said, with what is effectively a 20 per cent reduction in the size of the cell for the same power output. Indeed, where the …

    Science 19 Oct 2004, 11:03

  • The problem with Informix

    Opinion Little Orphan Annie

    IBM has a problem with Informix. It is one of those problems that is actually a good problem, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't cause headaches. The problem is twofold: first, IBM's main database product is DB2 - but actually Informix is a very good database and always has been. In appropriate circumstances, you would …

    Developer 19 Oct 2004, 11:05

  • German claims mobile phone chucking record

    Diddle eeeeeeeeee

    A German man is claiming the title of world mobile phone-chucking champion after hurling his handset 67.5m - that's 223 feet in old money. The new record set by Nico Morawa - a member of the association of German mobile phone throwers - thrashes the former monster throw of champion Heiko Scholl, who flung his mobile 65.8m four …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 11:13

  • Creative Sound Blaster Wireless Music

    Review From PC to hi-fi via Wi-Fi

    With so many PC owners now having large collections of music on their hard drives, it's no surprise that we're seeing more and more devices designed to get that music off the computer and into the living room. Creative's Sound Blaster Wireless Music attempts to do all of this without the hassle of network cables, instead using a …

    Reviews 19 Oct 2004, 11:23

  • HP Labs demos plastic LCDs

    Bendy

    HP Labs, HP's research arm, demonstrated a prototype plastic colour LCD screen in London yesterday. Although the prototype is small - just 3cm by 4cm - the team says the technology could be scaled up to extremely large displays, with resolution comparable to that of printed material. The researchers have developed a way to …

    Science 19 Oct 2004, 11:27

  • UK watchdog blocks 11 rogue dialler operators

    Others face the chop too

    Eleven companies have been barred from running premium rate internet dialler services as part of a crackdown on scammers ripping off UK punters. Another 33 companies also face the chop after premium rate watchdog ICSTIS used emergency powers to tackle the growing problem of rogue diallers, which hijack people's computers and …

    Media 19 Oct 2004, 12:04

  • Hefty savings on the Inova X1

    Cash'n'Carrion Lots of torch for not much cash

    We know how popular state-of-the-art torches are with our readers, so we've secured just 50 of the magnificent Inova X1 at a one-off offer price of just $25.38* - that's a hefty saving on the usual retail price of $39.60. The facts are these: the Inova X1 torch delivers a focussed beam of light precisely where you want it. Its …

    Site News 19 Oct 2004, 12:06

  • Hefty savings on the Inova X1

    Cash'n'Carrion Lots of torch for not much cash

    We know how popular state-of-the-art torches are with our readers, so we've secured just 50 of the magnificent Inova X1 at a one-off offer price of just £13.61 (£15.99 inc VAT) - that's a hefty saving on the usual retail price of £21.99 inc VAT. The facts are these: the Inova X1 torch delivers a focussed beam of light precisely …

    Site News 19 Oct 2004, 12:06

  • UK preps major security awareness campaign

    For Hoi Polloi

    A major UK government campaign to help small businesses and consumers protect themselves from Internet security threats will launch in the UK next year. The National High-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) is co-ordinating the £2m three-year security awareness campaign, codenamed Project Endurance, and it is seeking business sponsorship. …

    Small Biz 19 Oct 2004, 12:11

  • UK tech specialist school pioneers open source switch

    Thin client, app servers make the grade

    a Felixstowe school has taken advantage of the UK government's Specialist Schools Initiative to implement a switch to Open Source software as its chosen capital project. Under the Initiative Orwell High School, which was recently granted Specialist School for Technology status, qualifies for a government capital grant of £100, …

    Software 19 Oct 2004, 12:14

  • ARM rise bucks Q3 trend

    Makes solid gains in 'seasonally weaker quarter'

    ARM made solid gains during the third quarter of its current fiscal year, with rising royalty revenues and improving margins pushing up the chip designer's income in what CEO Warren East called a "seasonally weaker quarter". For the three months to 30 September 2004, ARM received revenues totally £39.4m - £14.6m from licensing …

    Financial News 19 Oct 2004, 12:33

  • Weak US drags down PC sales growth

    Dell and HP continue to dominate

    Though the global market for personal computers continued to expand in the third quarter, shipment levels were not as strong as expected. In its quarterly update on the PC business, research outfit Gartner said that global PC shipments rose by 9.7 per cent in the three months to September 2004, compared to a year ago, slightly …

    The Channel 19 Oct 2004, 12:35

  • Digital Retro goes coffee table

    Book Review A flip down memory lane...

    Gordon Laing's Digital Retro (Sybex Books, ISBN 078214330X) is a trip down memory lane. When memory was £5 a kilobyte and 64k was 'elephantine'. It's a look at forty computers from 1975 to 1988, starting with the MITS Altair and finishing with the NeXT Cube. There is some scene setting from the days of Babbage to the invention …

    Vintage 19 Oct 2004, 13:08

  • Apple updates iBook laptops

    And re-introduces the single-CPU Power Mac G5

    Apple updated its iBook consumer notebook line today, as expected, and extended its Power Mac G5 family downmarket with a single-processor 1.8GHz model. The latest iBooks essentially feature faster processors and bundle AirPort Extreme 802.11g adaptors, previously offered as an optional extra, but the pricing remains roughly …

    Mac Channel 19 Oct 2004, 13:16

  • IT contractors dream of fat futures

    Get the deposit down for your TVR

    The UK IT contracting market is enjoying a boom last seen in the heady days of desperate Y2K projects. The finance market, with upgrades needed to ensure compliance with new regulations, has helped push up demand. The number of IT contractor posts jumped from 16,518 in Q1 04 to 29,898 in Q3, according to the Computer Weekly/SSL …

    Management 19 Oct 2004, 13:52

  • Motorola MPx220 to hit UK in December

    US official debut this past weekend

    Motorola will ship its eagerly awaited second-generation Windows Mobile 2003 smart phone, the MPx220, in the UK in December, The Register has learned. Sources close to the company this week revealed that the handset, which began shipping in the US earlier this month, will almost certainly make it to market here ahead of …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 13:55

  • Boffins moot chilled light for optical comms

    Faster isn't always better

    A group of American theoretical physicists have, on paper at least, proven the existence of a new class of soliton that could help simplify high-speed optical communications because it can be slowed down. In the 1 October issue of Physical Review Letters, the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) physicists …

    Science 19 Oct 2004, 14:04

  • Robbie Williams: crooning soon on a phone near you

    Mobe and PDA-friendly memory card format

    Record label EMI will release Robbie Williams' Greatest Hits on mobe and PDA-compatible Multimedia Memory Card (MMC) memory card from next month. Pundits say it's the first time that music has been made available in this format. The album will come with video content and will be on sale at 600 Carphone Warehouse stores in the UK …

    Mobile 19 Oct 2004, 14:35

  • UK Gov unwraps Gambling Bill

    Regulation of online betting on the cards

    The Government has published its new gambling bill today designed to shake up the gambling industry. Although the legislation covers the whole of the industry, part of it also covers the explosion in internet gambling and casinos. The Government insists the new measures would protect children (by including compulsory age checks …

    Financial News 19 Oct 2004, 14:48

  • Microsoft spruces up Navision

    Now we are 4.0

    Navision accountancy software is getting its first big upgrade since it was bought by Microsoft two years ago. Jon Hughes, director of Microsoft Business Solutions Partner Group, believes the mid-sized market, where Navision has most customers, is maturing: "A few years ago it used to be just finance packages but now mid-sized …

    Applications 19 Oct 2004, 14:59

  • Sainsbury's, Accenture and the £3bn IT flop

    Call in 3,000 shelf stackers. Quick!

    Sainsbury's, the UK supermarket group, is blaming Accenture for the disastrous state of its new logistics system. It is recruiting 3,000 shelf stackers to fix the damage manually. The new system is unable to track stock properly and Sainsbury's is taking a £550m charge to its profits. Writing off IT assets which are now useless …

    Management 19 Oct 2004, 15:13

  • Nvidia details nForce 4

    Longhorn TCP offloading, Serial ATA 3Gbps - but no post-AC97 sound

    Nvidia made public details of its nForce 4 PCI Express chipset, as expected - doubly so since AMD welcomed the company's Athlon 64-oriented product earlier today. The leaks pretty much had it right. The nForce 4 family comprises three models: nForce 4, nForce 4 Ultra and nForce 4 SLI, the latter providing support for Nvidia' ' …

    System Builder 19 Oct 2004, 15:47

  • Talented flunkeys unite against phishing

    Letters Featuring rare praise for Reg hack

    We thought we'd spice things up a little this week and do something different. Among all the letters we get telling us that we are ignorant morons undoubtedly in the pay of [insert large technology company's name here], we do get the odd bit of praise. Don't worry, we won't let it go to our heads, but were running one such …

    Letters 19 Oct 2004, 16:03

  • Software gains plump EMC's Q3

    Buying spree pays off

    EMC's 2004 surge continued in the third quarter with its more than ample software business driving growth. EMC pulled in $2bn during the period - a whopping 34 per cent more revenue than the $1.5bn reported in the same quarter last year. EMC's income jumped as well to $218m - a 37 per cent rise over last year's $159m. The …

    Storage 19 Oct 2004, 16:06

  • ID scheme? 'Nah, it'll never fly', says UK eGov head

    Former Accenture chief lays IT on the slab

    The Register's department of bizarre coincidence notes with some concern Sainsburys' squeal of 'It was Accenture!' with reference to its sad IT disaster, together with the arrival at uk.gov of Ian Watmore, formerly UK MD of, er, Accenture. Watmore's role as head of e-government has been differentiated from that of his …

    Bootnotes 19 Oct 2004, 16:53

  • Microsoft mocks software rivals with dual-core chip embrace

    Ahead of its time

    Microsoft has bucked most of the major software makers by agreeing to count multicore processors as a single chip in its product pricing schemes. Rightly recognizing an opportunity to boast, Microsoft today dedicated an entire press release to its pricing decision. The company will stick with its per processor model for …

    Servers 19 Oct 2004, 17:01