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21st July 2005 Archive

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  • Window closing on Office 2003

    Catch this year's upgrade in time for next year's upgrade

    Microsoft is facing an uphill battle to push copies of Office 2003 on customers and its ISV partner ecosystem, ahead of next year's predicted launch of Office 12. Office 2003 appears to be falling behind in targeted sales for this point in the product's lifecycle, according to Microsoft's own internal figures and guidelines. …

    Applications 21 Jul 2005, 00:42

  • UK to stockpile bird-flu vaccine

    Most of us still likely to die

    Now is the time to train as a nurse, join the army or make yourself indispensable to the government in some other way. The government has confirmed that it is to stockpile two million shots of the vaccine against the H5N1 strain of bird flu. It plans to use the drug to protect emergency and medical workers against a global …

    Science 21 Jul 2005, 01:02

  • On Creativity, Computers and Copyright

    This commons just isn't very creative

    "We'd run out of ironic things to say" - Neil Tennant, The Pet Shop Boys The fur is flying. John C Dvorak thinks Creative Commons licenses are a solution looking for a problem. What is the point? he asks. Advocates of the scheme say he's ignored an important detail. At this stage in the debate, both parties are in danger of …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2005, 01:43

  • Ebuyer promises to be better

    No hostages to fortune here

    Ebuyer's new marketing boss has been telling El Reg what has changed at the etailer and why it is now taking customer service seriously. The website offers cheap electronics and computer goods but fast growth led to serious customer service problems earlier this year. Earlier this year it emerged that Sheffield Trading …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2005, 06:02

  • Ringtone shoplifters nab £75m worth of choons

    Hop off with crazy frogs for free

    The music and ringtone business is being ripped off to the tune of £75m per year, as people grab free previews of ringtones via PCs and transfer them to their phones, says software company QPass. The company studied 100 "leading" download sites - 42 mobile carrier portals, and 58 "online entertainment" and music stores offering …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2005, 09:38

  • eBay posts record numbers

    Online auction-tastic

    Ebay - the global auction site branded an "electronic pimp" by angry popster Bob Geldof - has notched up record numbers for its second quarter. For the three months to the end of June eBay reported record consolidated net revenues of $1.09bn - up 40 per cent year on year. At the same time it delivered record operating income of …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2005, 09:59

  • ID theft fears prompt ecommerce boycott

    People do the silliest things

    Identity theft fears are prompting some UK consumers to avoid buying goods or services online or over the phone, according to a national survey published this week. The poll of 1,000 Brits found that one in five had already stopped making telephone purchases because of the threat of identity theft. A similar proportion (17 per …

    ID 21 Jul 2005, 10:55

  • Worm wears iTunes guise

    Runs malware not music

    The latest incarnation of the Opanki worm, which spreads itself using AOL Instant Messenger, has begun targeting iTunes users. The worm appears as a message headed 'this picture never gets old' and carries as a payload a link to a file called itunes.exe. Anyone who clicks on the link to download the Apple app receives the worm …

    Malware 21 Jul 2005, 10:59

  • UK government's science project gets mixed report

    Not bad, but could do better

    The government has issued its first annual report on the ten-year, billion-pound framework on science and innovation investment. Although it says the road ahead will be tough, it has found some reasons for optimism. The numbers of students applying to study Physics at A-level fell again in 2004/2005, but applications for places …

    Science 21 Jul 2005, 11:03

  • Nokia Q2 sales, income jump

    Handset earnings fall

    Nokia today met its own earnings forecast but fell short of analyst expectations when it posted its Q2 results. The three months to 30 June yielded revenues of €8.1bn ($9.8bn), up 24.6 per cent on the €6.5bn ($7.3bn) it recorded for Q2 FY2004. Net income came to €799m ($966m), or 18 cents a share - 15 per cent higher than the …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2005, 11:10

  • Colt ups revs, narrows losses

    Life as a telco still a challenge

    Colt - the UK-based telecoms group that provides communications services to businesses - has managed to post slightly improved numbers. Turnover for the three months to the end of June was up 4.5 per cent to £316.7m compared to the same period last year. At the same time Q2 pre-tax loss fell from £28m to £26m. Part of that …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2005, 11:17

  • WD extends HDD warranty periods

    Six months after Maxtor did, and a year after Seagate

    Western Digital fired the latest shot in the hard drive warranty war this week by upping the coverage period on its enterprise drives to five years, and extending the desktop and notebook warranty durations to three years. That said, the move comes some way behinds WD's rival HDD suppliers. Maxtor increased the warranty periods …

    Peripherals 21 Jul 2005, 11:21

  • Nvidia updates drivers to confound CrossFire

    '14x antialiasing? Pah! We do 16x!'

    Nvidia last night posted its latest ForceWare graphics drivers, touting the new release's inclusion of a new antialiasing mode delivered by the company's SLi technology. ForceWare 77.76 introduces a 16x antialiasing mode, with the two SLi-connected graphics cards co-operating to render a single scene, this time pursuing image …

    Peripherals 21 Jul 2005, 11:28

  • Clarke 'lowers bar' on terror crime via web, writing, preaching

    Global database of undesirables to be compiled

    UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke yesterday announced plans to exclude or deport individuals deemed to have encouraged terrorism via preaching, running web sites or writing articles, and gave further details of plans for new terrorist offences including "indirect incitement" of terrorism, which is likely to cover similar …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2005, 11:57

  • OQO Model 01 handheld PC

    Review Compact wonder?

    There's no denying that the OQO Model 01 is one of the coolest devices that I've ever got my paws on. It is an amazingly compact yet fully featured PC, in a very similar vein to the Sony Vaio U series. However, there are some obvious advantages that the Model 01 has over the U70P. Top of that list has to be size: the Sony was …

    Reviews 21 Jul 2005, 12:44

  • Firefox update fixes stability glitches

    Earth breathes easy as equilibrium restored

    The Mozilla Foundation rushed out a new version of Firefox on Tuesday to address stability problems introduced when it fixed a series of security vulnerabilities last week. Firefox Version 1.0.6 restore API compatibility for extensions and web applications that did not work in Firefox 1.0.5, a release itself designed to fix a …

    Applications 21 Jul 2005, 12:52

  • Dusty star could conceal alien 'Earth'

    Rocky planets make a comeback

    US Astronomers have discovered a sun-like star wrapped in a shroud of dust, prompting speculation that the system could harbour a young Earth. The star, named (poetically as always) BD +20 307, lies around 300 light-years away from us, in the constellation of Aries, but could still shed light on the formation of rocky, Earth- …

    Science 21 Jul 2005, 12:59

  • Sony wins Nuplayer PSP sales ban

    Importer responds with discount PSP offer

    UK-based PlayStation Portable grey importer Nuplayer has been ordered by the English High Court to stop selling the handheld console. Despite initial optimism, Nuplayer this week admitted the case, brought against it by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), had not gone its way. After delaying his verdict in order to take …

    Consoles 21 Jul 2005, 13:06

  • London hit by four minor explosions

    Capital returns to normal after terror alert

    London today came under terrorist attack for the second time, although four incidents which affected three tube stations and a bus were minor. Sky News said that the emergency services responded to a 1pm incident on a number 26 bus in Hackney Road, North London, in which the top windows were blown out. No-one on the bus is …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2005, 13:09

  • Biggest 419 bust in history

    310 scammers nabbed

    The FBI and Spanish police have arrested 310 people in Malaga, Spain in connection with a €100m bogus (email) lottery scam run by Nigerian gangs. It is the biggest 419 bust in history, and may result in drastic reductions of scam mails. The operation, codenamed Nile, centered on a mob which operated from Southern Spain. No less …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2005, 13:15

  • Be 24 meg service to cost under £30 a month

    Autumn launch expected

    Be - the broadband ISP that doesn't have any punters yet - has confirmed that its 24 meg service will cost less than £30 a month. The broadband service from the local loop unbundling (LLU) operator is due to launch in London in the next couple of months once Be has installed its kit in 45 BT exchanges. So far the LLU operator …

    Telecoms 21 Jul 2005, 13:21

  • Watchdog pops a cap in Grand Theft Auto

    Production ceased after AO rating blow

    The US's Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has bowed to pressure from various sources - including parental groups and Hillary Clinton - to reclassify Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas as Adult Only (AO). It was previously rated as a teen-friendly M (mature). The whole GTA rumpus was provoked by Dutch modder Patrick …

    Consoles 21 Jul 2005, 13:25

  • Security bracelet foils child abduction

    RFIDs tags put to good use

    A father's attempts to abduct his infant son from a North Carolina hospital last week were foiled by an electronic bracelet around the baby's ankle. Walter Mitchell was apprehended by hospital security guards outside Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte after his flight with his newborn son in a cloth bag triggered a "code pink" …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2005, 13:52

  • HP stops Expansys importing non-Euro PDAs

    Justice Laddie says grey case is black and white

    Hewlett-Packard has claimed a knockout win in its High Court action to prevent Manchester-based Expansys importing HP PDAs from outside Europe. HP said Expansys has been ordered to pay “substantial costs and damages”. The case will likely have ramifications for other vendors keen to prevent distributors and resellers sourcing …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2005, 15:02

  • Charon in stellar occultation charge

    Video evidence

    Astrophysicists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have captured footage of Pluto's moon, Charon, blotting out the light from a single star. The event has only been observed once before, 25 years ago, and then with a single telescope. This time, the researchers trained four telescopes in Chile on the occultation, to …

    Science 21 Jul 2005, 15:26

  • Sun suffers self-imposed Linux lobotomy

    Rip that 'orrible penguin from my brain!

    Not too long ago, Sun Microsystems proudly sold Linux for its line of x86 processor-based servers. If you had any doubts that this Linux love era has passed, then check out yesterday's press release describing a customer win with Ciena Corp. Love? Not even tolerance. In round one of Sun's release, the company proclaimed, Sun …

    Servers 21 Jul 2005, 15:32

  • Scotty actor's ashes head for space

    We really tried not to say 'Beam me up...'

    Actor James Doohan, best known as Star Trek's engineer, Scotty, is to have his ashes sent into space. Doohan died on Wednesday, aged 85, from Alzheimer's disease and pneumonia. Doohan will not be the first Star Trek alumnus to find his final resting place in orbit. Creator of the series, Gene Roddenberry, also had his ashes …

    Bootnotes 21 Jul 2005, 15:42

  • EMC does double-digit growth thang again in Q2

    Investors not impressed

    EMC continued its role as a Tier 1 hardware standout during the second quarter, reporting solid jumps in both revenue and income. EMC posted revenue of $2.34bn - a 19 per cent year-over-year rise from the $1.97bn reported one year earlier. Net income surged a stunning 52 per cent to $293m from $193m. As rivals such as IBM, HP …

    Storage 21 Jul 2005, 16:36

  • Japanese bank turns ATMs into one-armed bandits

    Jackpot!

    A Japanese bank is trying to get more punters to use cash tills by building in a fruit machine-style game. ATMs from Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank, due to go into service next month, will offer a game of chance to pass the time while customers wait for cash to be dispensed, Japan's Mainichi Daily News reports. The ¥105 ($1) withdrawal …

    Bootnotes 21 Jul 2005, 17:01

  • Dell sucks another $7m out of North Carolina

    Free land

    After pumping North Carolina for more than $270m, Dell decided it wasn't done yet. Actually pay for the land its new factory will sit on? Hell, no! In a confusing exchange deal, Dell will "pay" the city of Winston-Salem $7m for land in return for $7m worth of roads and grants from the city to Dell, so it gains the 200-acre …

    Hardware 21 Jul 2005, 22:49

  • Google drugs ring smashed

    Brazilians discover the power of social networking

    Police have arrested 10 Brazilians on drug charges after monitoring their chatter on Google's Orkut site. Suspected dealers were arrested in Niteroi, Rio De Janeiro and Buzios, and are accused of distributing ecstacy and marijuana. Around half of Orkut's users are Brazilian. Reuters reports that the group were using Orkut to …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2005, 23:56