1st November 2004 Archive

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China shuts 1,600 cybercafes

The crackdown continues

The Chinese government confirmed this weekend that it has closed 1,600 internet cafes and fined operators a total of 100m yuan ($12m) since March, when it began its crackdown on violent or pornographic content, and other material it considers harmful to public morality. Government inspectors have checked up on 1.8m cafes since …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 09:46
Intel 1066MHz FSB chipset slips out

But CPUs not due until later this week

Intel will launch its much-anticipated 1066MHz Pentium 4 frontside bus this week, introducing the new FSB frequency with the i925XE chipset and a 3.46GHz P4 Extreme Edition CPU. Far Eastern mobo makers were busily preparing product announcements last week in anticipation of Intel's introduction. Indeed, some - like ABIT's …

System Builder 1 Nov 2004, 10:23
Fahrenheit 9/11 gets web airing

Light election-eve viewing

Voters in the US will be able to log on to the net tonight and download Michael Moore's controversial documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11, for some topical election-time viewing. Net movie provider CinemaNow is making the film available on a pay-per-view basis as of this evening, The BBC reports. Documentaries in alternative …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 10:39
Intel lost 6.7% chipset market share in Q3

VIA the main beneficiary

Intel's chipset competitors stole market share from the chip giant during Q3. So claims a Merrill Lynch report cited by a number of websites. The report assigns 62.1 per cent of the chipset market to Intel, 18.5 per cent to VIA, 9.9 per cent to SiS, 4.5 per cent to ATI and 4.2 per cent to Nvidia. Between Q3 and Q2, Intel's …

Channel Register 1 Nov 2004, 10:48
BT's batphone swoops closer

Holy multifunctionality!

BT is hoping for a spring launch for its combined phone which will allow people to make VoIP, mobile or landline calls from the same handset. When you use the phone near your home or office the call is routed using your landline connection. If you are out and about it will use the mobile network to connect calls. But if you are …

Mobile 1 Nov 2004, 11:01
VoodooPC pitches 'world's fastest' PC

Athlon 64 FX-55 and nForce 4 SLi drive claim

Canadian performance PC maker VoodooPC today introduced what it claims is the "world's fastest gaming computer", based on the latest processor and chipset technology from AMD and Nvidia. Odd, then, that the Voodoo Rage SLi, despite being based on Nvidia's nForce 4 SLi chipset is named after an old ATI graphics chip. In …

PCs 1 Nov 2004, 11:27
Google blocks Gmail exploit

Cookie monster conquered

Google has fixed a flaw in its high-profile webmail service, Gmail, which created a possible route for hackers to gain full access to a user's email account simply by knowing their user name. Using a hex-encoded XSS link, the victim's cookie file could have been stolen by a hacker, who might later use it to identify himself to …

ID 1 Nov 2004, 11:30
Iomart offers free broadband

SMEs tempted

Scottish ISP Iomart is offering small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) free broadband for a year if they subscribe to its NetIntelligence security product. Outfits signing up to the NetIntelligence service - which costs £29.99 a month and provides mail filtering, monitoring and reporting designed to protect company email …

Telecoms 1 Nov 2004, 11:32
For sale: Vulcan bomber, one belligerent owner

Another eBay bargain

If your next-door neighbour has just bought a thrusting silver 4x4 with tints, alloys and bull-bars and spends all of his time waxing it suggestively on the front drive just to make sure everyone else knows just how inadequate they are in the vehicle department, then eBay may have the answer. Yup, for just a little over £6k ( …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 11:33
Toshiba recalls notebook RAM

Faulty DIMMs could cause data-loss

Toshiba today said it could replace memory modules installed in certain Tecra, Satellite and Portégé notebooks after it emerged that some may malfunction and cause data-loss. Toshiba did not reveal how many machines worldwide might be affected by the problem. The company said that third-party DIMMs fitted into a range of …

PCs 1 Nov 2004, 12:02
Undead worms dominate Halloween viral chart

Night of the Living NetSky

NetSky-P and Zafi-B continue to be the most frequent causes of computer virus infestation months after their releases in March and June this year. NetSky-P accounted for more than a third (35.8 per cent) of all viral incidents monitored by anti-virus firm Sophos in October. More than a quarter (28 per cent) of other reports …

Anti-Virus 1 Nov 2004, 12:09
Business frets over wireless security

Is it safe?

There is no question that a number of the new mobile solutions that are being developed could help many business processes function more efficiently. The results of a recent survey, carried out at an executive briefing held by IT consulting services and solutions provider C&C Technology, sheds some light onto the perceived …

Enterprise Security 1 Nov 2004, 12:19
Rockall Times reignites anti-smoking jihad

Cash'n'Carrion Campaigning apparel back on the shelves

So popular have UK satire website The Rockall Times' contributions to the ongoing smoking debate proved that the North Atlantic-based ne'er-do-wells have just been obliged to reprint their top-notch campaigning apparel for a third time: While we concede that they're not for the faint-hearted, it's certain that both these t- …

Site News 1 Nov 2004, 12:20
Carphone unveils bundled broadband

'Straightforward' apparently

The Carphone Warehouse is stepping up the pressure on BT with a new bundled voice and broadband offer for under £20 a month. TalkTalk Broadband gives punters uncapped 512k ADSL (with no set-up fees and a free modem) plus free evening and weekend phone calls. Calls to other TalkTalk customers are also free. The decision by The …

Telecoms 1 Nov 2004, 12:31
Getronics snaffles PinkRoccade

Brief €338m Dutch buy-out

The two biggest Dutch ICT service companies - Getronics and PinkRoccade - are to merge. Getronics will buy the outstanding shares of PinkRoccade, listed on Euronext Amsterdam, for €338m. The management board will be chaired by Klaas Wagenaar, existing chairman and CEO of Getronics. The companies believe that the new combination …

Financial News 1 Nov 2004, 12:56
Apple London store doors to open 20 November

Kiwi band headlines

Apple has formally announced that it will open its first UK - nay, first European - Apple Store on Saturday, 20 November. On that day, at 10am, the doors at 253 Regent Street, London, W1 will open to the public for the first time and "extend Apple's reputation for innovation and flair... bringing a totally new retail experience …

Mac Channel 1 Nov 2004, 12:56
Creative Zen Touch 20GB music player

Reg review cPod?

Creative may claim to have introduced the world's first hard drive-based music player, but its efforts have always been undershadowed by Apple's iPod. It's easy to see why. Literally so, in fact. While Creative's Singaporean product designers have focused on functionality, Apple's worked on look and feel. So while the iPod is …

Reviews 1 Nov 2004, 13:03
NASA eyes May launch for Shuttle

Delayed by hurricanes

NASA has announced that the Space Shuttle will take to the skies once more next year, in a launch window that lasts from mid May to early June. It will be the first mission in more than two years after all flights were grounded in the wake of the Columbia shuttle disaster in which seven astronauts died. The space sgency had …

Science 1 Nov 2004, 14:00
Celebrity mugshots get date with destiny

Calendar celebrates A-list felons

Anyone who knows the special pleasure of seeing pictures of their favourite celebrities immediately after they've been arrested will welcome the launch of a calendar including all of Hollywood's A-list felons. Celebritymugshotcalendars.com offers 12 celebs including Robert Downey Jr looking a little crazed after he was arrested …

Financial News 1 Nov 2004, 14:07
BT Wholesale to trial 2Mb ADSL

ISPs sign here for pilot

BT Wholesale has begun recruiting ISPs to take part in a trial for a new 2Mb ADSL service. The trial is to kick off on 29 November and is set to run for at least eight weeks. The BT IPStream 2000 product is due to be tested within BT during November before the introduction of a broader commercial trial. BT reckons the "wires …

Telecoms 1 Nov 2004, 14:19
Intel 3.46GHz P4 Extreme Edn and i925XE chipset

Review Bus master?

It wasn't so long ago that Intel released the i925X chipset, and there was a lot to shout about. The chipset broke a lot of new ground, like the introduction of DDR 2 memory, Matrix RAID capability and Hi-Definition Audio. Then there was the long awaited debut of PCI Express. But one thing that remained static: the frontside bus …

Reviews 1 Nov 2004, 15:07
IT skills shortage threatens humanity

Not really, but it is pretty bad

British business is already suffering material harm because of a lack of skilled IT staff, a Gartner survey has found. The poll of 3,200 companies showed that 76 per cent of businesses which had problems finding staff have been forced to delay launching new products and services because of problems filling IT vacancies. One …

IT Director 1 Nov 2004, 15:07
Oxford Uni 'hackers' suspended

Snooping pair get rusticated

A pair of Oxford University students have been suspended over a little hacking project they undertook to "expose" security flaws in the University's IT system. First-year students Patrick Foster and Roger Waite were able to snoop on traffic sent over the network - including email passwords sent in plain text, a contravention of …

Enterprise Security 1 Nov 2004, 15:10
Net poll trashes Get Carter remake

Sly Stallone vehicle sent to the scrapheap

Sylvester Stallone has his place, but Get Carter is not it. This is the overwhelming conclusion of movie fans, who voted the 2000 version of the 1970s classic the "worst remake of all time" in an online poll. Get Carter, arguably one of the greatest British films of all time, tells the story of Jack Carter, a man on a quest to …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 15:14
German flogs Saddam's left leg on web

Remnant of dictator yours for €3k+

Punters eager for a piece of Gulf War II memorabilia - albeit a rather large piece - should mosey on down to German auction site azubo.de where they can snap up Saddam Hussein's left leg for offers currently in excess of €3,400. Of course, it's not really Saddam's leg - he'll be needing both of those when he finally stands …

Financial News 1 Nov 2004, 15:15
BT spins prop on SME VoIP promo

Chocks away for 'BT Business Broadband Voice'

BT has cut the ribbon on a new internet telephone service aimed at small and medium-sized companies (SMEs). The "BT Business Broadband Voice" service lets workers save money on voice calls by routing them over the net. Subscribers to the service plug in a "BT Broadband Voice box" into their broadband connection and then use a …

Telecoms 1 Nov 2004, 15:22
Web paedophile jailed for four years

Second stretch for computer consultant

A 35 year-old computer consultant was today sentenced to four years imprisonment after he admitted downloading more than 96,000 paedophilic images and movies from the net. Ian Baldock, 35, from St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, pleaded guilty to 13 counts of distribution of indecent images of children and 32 counts of making …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 15:51
Indian Muslim divorces wife by email

Or does he? Clerics investigate

Indian Muslim clerics have the rather tricky task of deciding whether an email sent by a US-based husband divorcing his wife in India is valid, the Hindustan Times reports. Rahat Iqbal married Rubab in 1998. He left for the US shortly thereafterafter, promising to call for her in three weeks. Six long years later, she received …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 15:53
China plans five-day space mission

Space programme ramping up

China has announced that is to send a second manned mission to space in 2005, signaling a firm commitment to its emerging space programme. Space authorities made the announcement at an air show in the Guangzhou Province. Two astronauts will blast into orbit on a Long March 2F rocket, in a capsule called Shenzhou-VI. Their …

Science 1 Nov 2004, 15:54
Europe indifferent to portable video

We're quite happy with our iPods thank you

European consumers want music not video or games on their portable gadgets. According to Jupiter Research only a lowly five per cent of people would like a music player which could also play films. A mere 13 per cent of people expressed any interest in a portable movie machine. But a third of people are interested in music …

Personal 1 Nov 2004, 16:05
Grokster, Sony BMG to do legit P2P service?

RIAA-attacked software provided confirms talks

Sony BMG - aka 'Bony' - the merged music label is in talks with Grokster, the P2P software company has confirmed. Negotiations are believed to be focused on the development of a new, label-friendly P2P network. If launched, the service - said to be called Mashboxxx - would provide both free material and contact with a price-tag …

Music and Media 1 Nov 2004, 16:08
Beware of Yahoo! spam scam

Users co-opted by devious bulk mailers

Spammers are trying to con users into setting up email accounts on their behalf via a series of bogus emails. The email requests, which claim to help Yahoo! prevent automated registrations, actually attempt to dupe users into creating fresh email accounts for spammers. Last years Yahoo! Began using technology to block the …

Spam 1 Nov 2004, 17:06
BT dangles Wi-Fi for a quid

Gotta be a BT broadband punter though

BT is trying to drum up business for its Wi-Fi broadband service by offering an entry-level package for just £1 a month. Snag is, you have to be an existing BT Business Broadband, BT Broadband or BT Yahoo! Broadband customer to take up the offer. That aside, anyone signing up to the time-limited promo before the end of the year …

Telecoms 1 Nov 2004, 17:10