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10th November 2004 Archive

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  • MS latest: Nokia quits trade group in disgust

    But EU won't be bounced

    Nokia has quit the Computer and Communications Industry Association, a day after the group cut a deal with Microsoft. With one of its oldest and most tenacious antitrust opponents out of the way, Microsoft made an overnight public relations effort to try and bounce the EU competition commissioners to walk away from the Eurocrats …

    Business 10 Nov 2004, 04:47

  • C&W to axe 600 jobs

    Further restructuring

    Cable & Wireless is to axe 600 jobs in the UK and Europe as it continues to keep a tight control on costs. In a further shake-up, C&W announced today that it is closing its London head office and relocating to Bracknell. It is also reorganising its UK business into four divisions - Enterprise, Business, Bulldog and Carrier …

    Financial News 10 Nov 2004, 10:28

  • EDS delays results for third time

    Five more days please

    Services giant EDS has asked the Securities and Exchange Commission for a third extension to the deadline for posting its financial results. The firm has delayed posting results for the third quarter ended 30 September twice already. It first asked for more time in October and then again in early November. KPMG, its auditor, is …

    Financial News 10 Nov 2004, 10:31

  • John Ashcroft resigns

    'Patriot' Act booster has done his bit

    Claiming that "the objective of securing the safety of Americans from crime and terror has been achieved," US Attorney General John Ashcroft bid farewell to the Department of Justice Tuesday to set out toward "other challenging horizons" not yet specified. Ashcroft, who was nominated by President Bush for the top job at Justice …

    Music and Media 10 Nov 2004, 11:19

  • EC objects to MS - Time Warner ContentGuard takeover

    We don't like it...

    The European Commission is objecting to Microsoft and Time Warner's attempted takeover of digital rights company ContentGuard. The EC expressed its concerns when the deal was announced in August. At the time it said: "It appears to the Commission that the transaction might possibly create or strengthen a dominant position by …

    Financial News 10 Nov 2004, 11:39

  • Amazon supremo joins space race

    Bezos's challenge to high-flying Branson

    Amazon supremo Jeff Bezos has thrown down the gauntlet to Brit entrepreneur Richard Branson by declaring that he is also going into the space tourism business. Branson has already ordered a fleet of vehicles based on Burt Rutan's X-Prize winning SpaceShipOne, and plans to offer short jaunts by 2007. Bezos too has set his sights …

    Science 10 Nov 2004, 11:49

  • Konfabulator comes to Windows

    Widgets a-go-go

    Konfabulator has just been released for Windows, much to the delight of its many supporters. The 8MB programme is a $25 JavaScript runtime engine that lets you run little files named Widgets that can do pretty much whatever you want them to. There are calculators, alarm clocks, calendars, cam viewers, search tools and RSS news …

    Mac Channel 10 Nov 2004, 11:51

  • Oracle users: smiley, happy people

    User group survey

    The annual UK Oracle Users Group (UKOUG)survey reveals an overall increase in customer satisfaction and a big increase in the number of people taking part. Ronan Miles, UKOUG chairman, said the biggest surprise was the size of the increase in respondents. He told The Reg: "We always get more people responding, but an increase …

    Applications 10 Nov 2004, 11:59

  • AOL to be split in four

    AOL Europe appoints new chief exec

    AOL - the monster internet outfit that can't hang on to its punters - is to split its operation into four divisions. According to reports, the move is designed to cut bureaucracy and improve efficiency at the ISP and make the decision making process "much crisper". The new divisions are to be split along the lines of Access, …

    Telecoms 10 Nov 2004, 12:01

  • Saudi ministers urge removal of camera phone ban

    Ban will 'increase prices significantly'

    Four Saudi ministers have appealed to to lift the ban on camera phones in the Kingdom. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and Ministry of Finance all separately requested that mobile phones with cameras be allowed. In …

    Mobile 10 Nov 2004, 12:37

  • Infineon and ProMOS kiss and make up

    Court case? What court case?

    Infineon and ProMOS have finally ended a long running argument over licensing for DRAM chips. The two were part of a joint venture with Mosel Vitelic which ran from 1996. ProMOS licensed Infineon technology, made the chips and sold them to Infineon which sold them onto Mosel Vitelic. In January 2003 Infineon ended the deal …

    Channel Register 10 Nov 2004, 12:58

  • Bofra worm sets trap for unwary

    Zero day exploit used to produce zombies

    A new family of worms which uses an unpatched vulnerability in Internet Explorer is spreading widely across the net. Bofra-A poses as photos from an adult webcam in an attempt to fool users into clicking on a link. Clicking on the link causes the targeted PC to run malicious script hosted on a previously infected computer. This …

    Malware 10 Nov 2004, 13:04

  • People of Weight™ hail fat-busting miracle pill

    A 'mouth-watering prospect'

    A miracle fat-busting pill which also helps people quit smoking and cuts harmful cholesterol levels has been hailed as a "mouth-watering prospect" for British GPs after two years' successful trials. That's the verdict on rimonabant by David Haslam of the National Obesity Forum, who enthused: "This is a completely unique drug …

    Science 10 Nov 2004, 13:26

  • German customs grab Saddam's left leg

    Limb impounded, plot thickens

    There is confusion surrounding the fate - and indeed the authenticity - of Saddam's left leg after German customs seized the remnant of the bronze statue on the grounds that its owner does not have valid import documents for the limb. To recap, the leg turned up on German auction site azubo.de after British soldiers apparently …

    Bootnotes 10 Nov 2004, 13:27

  • MS extends IP protection to hoi polloi

    Ammo for fight against open source

    Microsoft is to extend its intellectual property (IP) protection to all licensed users of the bulk of its software. Previously the IP indemnification was only available to volume licensees, but now the company says it will protect all its users in the event of disputes arising over patents, copyright, trade secrets and …

    Developer 10 Nov 2004, 13:48

  • Child porn navy doctor keeps job

    You naughty man. Don't do it again

    A disgraced Royal Navy doctor convicted of child porn offences will be allowed to keep his job. Dr Stuart Ruthven, 28, from Flixton in Greater Manchester, was convicted of 12 counts of making indecent photographs at Manchester Crown Court last September after he admitted to downloading approximately 5,000 images of child abuse …

    Music and Media 10 Nov 2004, 14:25

  • Gossiptel touts cheapo flat fees for overseas calls

    New VoIP tariffs

    Gossiptel, the UK broadband internet telephony outfit, has introduced new call packages aimed at people who like to rabbit. "World 500" gives subscribers 500 minutes per month of talk time to landlines in 35 countries for £9.99, while its World Unlimited bundle offers an unlimited talk time package to landlines in 35 countries …

    Telecoms 10 Nov 2004, 14:27

  • Kidnap hoax woman gets first mobile ASBO

    No pay-as-you-go phone for five years

    A law student has been handed a five-year anti-social behaviour order (ASBO) banning her from using pay-as-you-go mobiles after calling and texting a former schoolfriend's mother claiming her daughter had been kidnapped, the BBC reports. Angela Sarna, 21, also earned herself a two-year jail sentence after the judge at Leicester …

    Mobile 10 Nov 2004, 14:34

  • More on Informix

    Analysis We seem to have struck a chord...

    My recent article on Informix seems to have generated some heat. For example, I have had a comment from one user, who says "hurrah, hurrah, you are the first who say it openly. Pasting of DB2 is a very bad marketing feature." By this I take it that he concurs with my original article in which I spelled out the problem of how to …

    Developer 10 Nov 2004, 15:27

  • Novell rolls out Linux Desktop 9

    12 November launch

    Novell Inc. has just announced details of its latest Linux offering for desktop computers. The software is to be known as the Novell Linux Desktop 9, hopefully to be shortened to NLD 9, and will be the first "Novell branded" Linux desktop offering supplied by the company following its acquisitions last year of open source …

    Operating Systems 10 Nov 2004, 16:05

  • Vodafone 3G is go

    Predicts 10m users by 2006

    Vodafone is launching its 3G services with a range of ten handsets from Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Samsung, Sharp and Sony Ericsson. Prices depend on the tariff chosen but range between free and several hundred pounds. Services are charged on a per-use basis and some of the phones are available on pre-pay contracts. It is selling …

    Mobile 10 Nov 2004, 16:09

  • MP demands regulation of 'silent' telesales tactics

    New offence of 'corporate nuisance'

    Telesales firms responsible for scaring people witless by making silent nuisance phone calls should face stiffer regulation to cut out menacing cold calling. So says MP Kevin Brennan, who wants to introduce a Bill that would make "corporate nuisance" an offence, reports PA. The Labour MP for Cardiff West is concerned that more …

    Music and Media 10 Nov 2004, 16:14

  • EC begins IP enforcement campaign

    Pirates face broadside

    The European Commission has launched a new campaign against piracy and counterfeiting in non-EU countries, in a bid to stem estimated losses of between €120bn and €370bn a year. The commission says the main thrust of the campaign will be to ensure rigorous enforcement of existing intellectual property rights (IPR) laws, focusing …

    Music and Media 10 Nov 2004, 16:17

  • MS source code fence busted

    Sold trade secrets for $20, Feds allege

    A Connecticut man was yesterday arrested and charged with selling the source code used by Microsoft's Windows NT 4 and Windows 2000 operating systems. William P. Genovese, Jr., 27, faces charges of "unlawfully distributing a trade secret", an offence punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. …

    Operating Systems 10 Nov 2004, 16:24

  • MS search engine rumours abound

    All revealed tomorrow, pundits predict

    Microsoft's search engine is due to appear on MSN tomorrow, Thursday, according to an awful lot of anonymous sources. The New York Times heard from "a person knowledgeable about the announcement" while Reuters made do with "sources close to the company". All agreed that the search engine has only one target - Google. Details on …

    Financial News 10 Nov 2004, 16:37

  • Scotland takes big stick to smokers

    Substantial fines for lighting up in public

    Scotland looks set to follow in the footsteps of New York and Dublin by banning smoking in public places, the BBC reports. First Minister Jack McConnell told the Scottish Parliament that by 2006 any business or individual defying a "comprehensive ban" would be fined. McConnell declared: "Health rates are lamentable because of a …

    Bootnotes 10 Nov 2004, 17:22

  • Microsoft opens e-gov collaboration portal

    'Valuable knowledge bank'

    An Irish local government organisation has signed up to a newly launched global e-government initiative from Microsoft. The Local Government Computer Services Board (LGCSB) is one of a handful of government agencies around the world that have signed up to be part of Microsoft's Solutions Sharing Network (SSN). The initiative …

    Public Sector 10 Nov 2004, 19:19

  • US compute labs in desperate need of Federal swill

    Nuclear stockpiles not going to waste

    Most of you probably have no idea that it's happening. You've been sleeping well. You've been enjoying moderate amounts of scotch, playing with the kids and scratching Fido behind the ears. You've been living your merry lives, and all the while, some of the finest minds have been suffering - suffering a fate worse that having …

    Servers 10 Nov 2004, 19:31

  • Intel doubles down on dividend

    Pennies for the rich

    The generous brass at Intel have decided to double the dividend shareholders will receive next year. Investors of record on Feb. 7, will receive a whopping quarterly dividend of 8 cents per share. Along with the dividend doubling, Intel announced that it will repurchase another 500m shares of stock. Intel has repurchased $6.6bn …

    Financial News 10 Nov 2004, 21:59