The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

16th August 2005 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

  • Rupert Murdoch seeks dysfunctional search engine

    Blinkx, Technorati in the frame

    With a billion dollars to spend on his new Fox Interactive Unit, Rupert Murdoch is going shopping. Last month he picked up web community Intermix Media for $580 million, and followed-up by adding insider sports news network Scout Media for $60 million. This time search sites Technorati and Blinkx are in the frame - the LA …

    Music and Media 16 Aug 2005, 06:45

  • Chips, LEDs to go in Agilent shake-up

    $4bn windfall to buyback shares

    The heart of the original Hewlett Packard company, Agilent, is spinning off its semiconductor in a major restructuring. It's also agreed to sell its stake in its LED joint venture Lumileds to JV partner Philips. More divestments will follow, as Agilent said it will seek buyers for its system on a chip and memory testing …

    Financial News 16 Aug 2005, 06:46

  • Brains, cancer and computers

    Studying the machines that will study us

    The race is on to apply machine learning to biology. The starting gun was fired in 2002 when research company Correlogic stunned the medical world with the announcement of a vastly improved test for detecting ovarian cancer. The new test was simple - a few drops of blood are all that's required - yet reliable. What made it truly …

    Science 16 Aug 2005, 09:13

  • Apple patches OS X security flaws

    Patching time is here

    Apple has posted its latest Mac OS X security update, which addresses a number of potential vulnerabilities in the operating system. Included among the patches are repairs to AppKit which prevent malicious users exploiting buffer overflows with carefully crafted .rtf and .doc files, executing malware stored within those files …

    Operating Systems 16 Aug 2005, 09:28

  • Intel brings forward 90nm dual-core Xeons

    Have the 65nm versions been delayed?

    Intel has confirmed claims made last week that it plans to bring forward the release of dual-core Xeon processors. Describing development work on the chips as running "ahead of schedule", the chip giant last night said 'Paxville', the 90nm dual-core Xeon MP part will ship "later in 2005" instead of Q1 2006, as originally …

    PCs 16 Aug 2005, 09:35

  • Porn makes you blind: official

    Temporarily, thank God

    A Vanderbilt University research squad has illustrated what the Victorians and Mary Whitehouse knew all along: that smut sends you blind, albeit temporarily. The same apparently applies to blood and guts images, although of course eyeballing snaps of carnage does not carry the same penalty of eternal damnation as ogling smut. …

    Science 16 Aug 2005, 09:53

  • C&W wins mating dance with Energis

    Now plans to go toe-to-toe with BT

    Cable & Wireless claims it will be able to reduce its reliance on BT’s infrastructure after sealing its acquisition of rival telco Energis yesterday. The company will pay £594m in upfront cash for Energis, with up to £80m more in cash or shares three years after the deal is completed. C&W will also inject £35m into the Energis …

    Financial News 16 Aug 2005, 10:25

  • AMD, IBM to 'extend' chip R&D partnership

    Out to 2011, and into 32nm, 22nm

    AMD and IBM are to co-operate on the development of 32nm and 22nm process technologies. So claims a report (registration required) in yesterday's San Jose Mercury News, which notes the agreement between the pair will stretch through to 2011. According to the paper, the two chip makers will jointly work on research into new …

    PCs 16 Aug 2005, 10:28

  • AMD rolls out faster mobile processors

    Sempron, Athlon 64 lines extended

    AMD today rolled out a handful of mobile processors, extending its Mobile Sempron and Mobile Athlon 64 product lines. So, in comes the Mobile Athlon 64 4000+, a $382 chip aimed at "full-size notebooks", as AMD puts it. The same sort of kit is targeted by the Mobile Sempron 3300+, priced at $125. For thin and light machines …

    PCs 16 Aug 2005, 10:30

  • Russia struggles to contain bird flu outbreak

    H5N1 is on the march

    Russia has said that an outbreak of bird flu in the Ural mountains is spreading, despite its efforts to contain the virus. Workers are reportedly destroying birds in Chelyabinsk, in a bid to prevent the disease, confirmed as the H5N1 strain which can be dangerous to humans, making its way further west into Russia, Reuters …

    Science 16 Aug 2005, 10:41

  • Gateway ends losing streak

    But cuts FY2005 sales, earnings forecast

    Gateway went back into the black during its second quarter, the PC maker reported yesterday, ending its 13-quarter run of loss announcements. For the three months to 30 June 2005, Gateway sold $873m worth of kit, up 4.2 per cent on both the year-ago quarter and the previous three-month period, which both yielded revenues of $ …

    Financial News 16 Aug 2005, 10:48

  • Get back to your crack den, agent of Satan

    FoTW Cripes

    We don't get many like this. This is what is known as a quality flame. It has nearly everything: barely constrained anger, personal insults, accusations of drug use, unnecessary exclamation marks, capitalisation...we could go on. It also has another classic hallmark of a great flame: typos. Those few spelling errors we have …

    Bootnotes 16 Aug 2005, 10:56

  • IRC bot latches onto Plug-and-Play vuln

    Second route to 'root'

    The Microsoft Plug-and-Play vulnerability exploited by the ZoTob worm has been harnessed to create an IRC bot. IRCBot-ES uses the vulnerability to spread instead of more common vectors such as Windows RPC security vulns. The attack provides evidence that virus writers are swarming around the vulnerability - which was only …

    Malware 16 Aug 2005, 10:59

  • UK faces fertility law shake-up

    Big issues up for debate

    The UK's fertility laws face a major shake-up in the face of experts' demands that the regulations need to keep pace with scientific advances. Among the issues up for review are embryo screening, the creation of "designer" babies aimed at treating sick siblings and how exactly to deal with embryos left in limbo when couples …

    Science 16 Aug 2005, 11:53

  • NTT preps 3D web browser

    Not quite cyberspace

    Japanese software company NTT will release its three-dimensional web browser in October, the company revealed last week. The ¥30,000 ($275) SpaceBrowser package works with Internet Explorer to render information in a 3D space. The example NTT uses is a wine store where the prices of the various cuvées on offer are arranged as …

    Applications 16 Aug 2005, 11:58

  • Scientists brew up pure nerve stem cells

    UK and Italian team hails breakthrough

    Scientists at the University of Edinburgh have announced the successful creation - in conjunction with the University of Milan - of nerve stems cells, hailing the breakthrough as a great leap towards possible treatments for diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. The initial application for the cells will be to test the …

    Science 16 Aug 2005, 12:02

  • Net bulges with illegal animal auctions

    White eBayer, black heart

    An investigation into the illegal net trade in live animals and animal products has revealed that those with sufficient cash can purchase anything from a gorilla to a Siberian tiger or - if they sound like a bit of a handful - elephant tusks or a stuffed peregrine falcon. The International Fund for Animal Welfare's (IFAW) three …

    Bootnotes 16 Aug 2005, 12:14

  • Crocodile blood fights HIV

    Oz boffins moot AIDS-busting extract

    Australian scientists have discovered that crocodiles - as well as boasting a fine set of teeth and a nice line in drowning and subsequently consuming buffalo - have a highly robust immune system capable of seeing off some penicillin-resistant bacteria. Crocs in Oz's Northern Territories need it, too, says US boffin Mark …

    Science 16 Aug 2005, 12:45

  • HTC 'Tornado' Wi-Fi smart phone storms in

    WLAN + EDGE

    Details of HTC's next smart phone design has emerged, courtesy of Finnish site qtek.fi, which tracks HTC customer Qtek. The design, dubbed 'Tornado', follows on from 'Hurricane', the handset better known as the Orange SPV C550, launched last month. Tornado's biggest change over its predecessor is support for an optional …

    Mobile 16 Aug 2005, 12:51

  • 180Solutions sues former affiliates over illegal tactics

    Bad actors 'used botnets', protests adware firm

    Adware maker 180solutions has sued seven former distributors for using networks of compromised computers to surreptitiously install its software on users' PCs. The complaint, filed in King County Superior Court, names defendants Eric de Vogt of the Netherlands, Jesse Donohue of Australia, Khalil Halel of Lebanon, Imran Patel of …

    Malware 16 Aug 2005, 13:11

  • WinDVD developer sues Dell

    Hands off our instant-playback patent, firm says

    WinDVD software developer InterVideo has sued Dell, claiming the PC giant has infringed one of its patents. The developer yesterday said it had filed a formal complaint with the US District Court of Northern California. The patent in question, number 6,765,788, details a "method and apparatus for integrating personal computer …

    PCs 16 Aug 2005, 13:16

  • Toshiba Libretto U100 ultraportable notebook

    Review Good things, small packages?

    Toshiba has been designing and manufacturing notebooks for 20 years, starting with the T110 in 1985, which weighed in at over 7kg, had a battery life of 60m and possessed a green screen. To celebrate, the company has chosen to revive one of its older ultraportable lines, in the form of the Toshiba Libretto U100. Initially there …

    Reviews 16 Aug 2005, 13:31

  • Two ways of calling Skype wirelessly: DECT and Nokia

    Out of your headset

    Two wireless Skype solutions have been uncovered. One uses a standard DECT phone to make calls, the other harnesses the Nokia Series 60 Symbian software interface. Both are solutions to a problem which probably doesn't occur to the new Skype user, who sees only "free phone calls!" and fails to realise that these calls are …

    Mobile 16 Aug 2005, 13:51

  • Glasgow city centre becomes Wi-Fi zone

    Wireless access for consumers, council workers

    The centre of Glasgow is now a Wi-Fi zone, the Scottish city's administrators said today. The coverage comes courtesy of BT Openzone, which now has six hotspots in place in the city's centre, all within 50-100m of "key locations in the city's main shopping and business district", the telco claimed. The access points are …

    Wireless 16 Aug 2005, 14:16

  • KPN confirms O2 pullout

    No reason offered

    KPN has confirmed that it has withdrawn from talks with Deutsche Telekom regarding the acquisition of the German arm of mobile operator O2. The company issued a statement today confirming recent speculation in the press that it has been approached by Deutsche Telekom about acquiring O2 Germany. However, it says the talks were …

    Mobile 16 Aug 2005, 14:55

  • DoS for hire scam teen jailed for five years

    Sports hacking

    A New Jersey teenager was last week sentenced to five years in youth detention for taking part in a denial of service for hire scam. Jasmine Singh, 17, pleaded guilty to two counts of computer theft over attacks on online sporting goods stores said to have cost victims $1.5m. Judge Frederick DeVesa in Superior Court, New …

    Music and Media 16 Aug 2005, 15:11

  • Bush blocks bush on .xxx

    Porn TLD delayed by political pressure

    The controversial .xxx TLD domain has been delayed after the chairman of ICANN's Government Advisory Committee (GAC), Mohamed Sharil Tarmizi reacted to political and public pressure to ask for a postponment in implementing of the cyberporn ghetto. In a letter to ICANN's Board of Directors, Tarmizi says he believes "the Board …

    Financial News 16 Aug 2005, 15:28

  • Archaic cheques amuse Nordic readers

    Letters Well, they would, wouldn't they

    News that the cheque will be extinct by 2025 has caused much mirth among our Scandinavian and Alpine cousins. In fact, we think they are laughing and pointing at us as though we were an exhibit in a museum. Still, other people have thought of valid reasons to keep the cheque going. Read on for more: It is with great amusement …

    Letters 16 Aug 2005, 16:11

  • My spam-filled search index is bigger than yours!

    NCSA study backfires

    Last week Yahoo! claimed it had sailed past Google by indexing 20 billion web pages. Because as much as a third of the wild wild web consists of artificially-generated pages of spam designed to promote commercial web sites, this isn't much to boast about. Many of the fake pages are 'splogs', or spam blogs, or phoney catalogs, …

    Music and Media 16 Aug 2005, 20:52

  • Sun's Linux killer shows promise

    Review Solaris 10 on x86

    If Sun gets very serious about Solaris 10 on x86 and the Open Solaris project that it hopes will nourish it, Linux vendors had better get very worried. That's because, in the many areas where Linux is miles ahead of Solaris, Sun stands a good chance of catching up quickly if it has the will, whereas in the many areas where …

    Reviews 16 Aug 2005, 23:23