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6th September 2005 Archive

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  • Poker shares dip

    Market won't bet on cards...

    PartyGaming - the company behind the world's largest poker website - saw its shares dip sharply this morning despite posting an 81 per cent increase in turnover. Investors are worried that online gambling will not continue its current rapid growth. The company, which floated in June, brought in $437m in the six months to 30 …

    Financial News 6 Sep 2005, 08:30

  • Coke to sell virtual stuff with the 'real thing'

    I'd like to buy the worldwide web

    Ireland will be the first European market to see a new generation of coke-vending machines, which will also sell mobile phone top-ups, ringtones and music. UK-based Inspired Broadcast Networks has signed a deal with Coca-Cola to distribute digital content from its soft drink vending machines. The vending machines will be linked …

    Financial News 6 Sep 2005, 09:09

  • Skype honeypot snares dirty IMers

    NSFW Hot bloke-on-bloke chat action

    Imagine this entertainment scenario: you create a female Skype profile and activate it in "Skype me" mode. Within a few minutes, IM pervs begin to sniff around your honeypot. What they don't know, though, is that they're being set up by a programme which partners two horny male IMers for an intimate conversation - one of whom …

    VoIP 6 Sep 2005, 09:29

  • France Telecom rejigs business structure

    NExT!

    France Telecom (FT) has rejigged its business and introduced a new bunch of suits to help press ahead with its "NExT" programme. In June the telco announced ambitious plans to converge its brands - mobile operator Orange and ISP Wanadoo - to provide punters with a "whole new world of services in the areas of communication, …

    Mobile 6 Sep 2005, 09:32

  • Digital divide is self-repairing, says UK gov

    Good, let's all go down the pub then

    A UK government-sponsored study has declared that the digital divide between technology-rich citizens and e-impoverished have-nots "is only a short-term concern that will correct itself with time", eGov monitor reports. The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) report - knocked out by business consultants Indepen, and …

    Public Sector 6 Sep 2005, 09:46

  • Gigabyte unveils 'less hazardous' Opteron mobo

    RoHS, RoHS, RoHS your boat

    Gigabyte last week announced its first 'eco' workstation mobo - a dual Opteron-aimed board that complies with Europe's hazardous materials regulations. The GA-2CEWH is built to the limitations imposed by the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS). The EU's RoHS rules come into force on 1 July 2006 and ban the use of "lead, …

    System Builder 6 Sep 2005, 09:48

  • Saturn's rings are mighty weird

    More Cassini holiday snaps

    The Cassini imaging team has released a slew of previously unseen pictures from the Saturn ring and moon system, to coincide with the 37th annual meeting of the Division of Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society held in Cambridge. The scientists have identified new features in the rings, including some that are …

    Science 6 Sep 2005, 10:11

  • Intel EOLs 533MHz FSB Xeon CPUs

    Goodbyeee

    Intel has formally announced the demise of the 533MHz frontside bus-supporting Xeon processor, company documents seen by The Register reveal. With the Xeon DP line now already running an 800MHz frontside bus, marking the 533MHz version's cards comes as no surprise perhaps, but the decision to end-of-life the products is now …

    System Builder 6 Sep 2005, 10:17

  • Vibrating buttocks key to driver alertness

    Tactile warnings cut crashes

    You can blame the French for this one: the next time you buy a car it may well be packed with buttock-vibrating technology designed to keep you alert and thus reduce "common type of car accident by up to 15 per cent", the Telegraph reports. The prang in question is rear-ending - accounting for a quarter of all accidents - and …

    Bootnotes 6 Sep 2005, 10:24

  • Sony shows 8x DVD+R dual-layer drive

    And Mitsubishi flips its discs

    Sony has become one of the first DVD writer manufacturers to ship a dual-layer DVD+R that can write at 8x speeds, the company said today. Separately, Mitsubishi today said it will ship DVD+R DL 8x capable media in October. Sony's DRU-810A is an internal drive that hooks up to the host across an Ultra DMA Mode 2 ATAPI interface …

    Peripherals 6 Sep 2005, 10:28

  • Fired pizza-loving programmer wins prize

    SimplyFired

    A software developer who was sacked by a US mortgage firm for snaffling a "leftover" pizza slice has won an internet contest for the most outrageous job dismissal. Jim Garrison, 39, has won a a week-long trip to the Caribbean for two after submitting his story to SimplyFired.com. The US-specific site, run by recruitment …

    IT Director 6 Sep 2005, 10:37

  • Ashes interest could bowl over computer networks

    Owzat then?

    Corporate networks could be bowled over this week as England face Australia in the final nail-biting Ashes match of the summer. Computer experts are worried that company networks might not be able to cope with tens of thousands of cricket fans logging on to the net to follow the action from the Oval. Stuart Beattie of Network …

    IT Director 6 Sep 2005, 10:39

  • Sony PSP sets UK console sales record

    More than double Nintendo's initial DS shipments

    Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) sold 185,000 PlayStation Portable handheld consoles in the UK this past weekend, smashing the previous three-day record, set by Nintendo's DS in March. Sony's sales, said market watcher Chart-Track, which provided the statistic, makes the PSP's UK debut the most successful console …

    Consoles 6 Sep 2005, 11:26

  • BCS hits 50,000 members

    A thousand new members a month?

    The British Computing Society is celebrating a 20 per cent surge in membership to an impressive 50,000 people. Which is going to make it difficult to find a venue for meetings - Ibrox Stadium in Glasgow, usually home to Rangers, has room for just over 50,000. The BCS has increased membership by 20 per cent in the last year. It …

    IT Director 6 Sep 2005, 11:42

  • Speedy cannibal pulsar caught in the act

    One companion star, to go

    European and US space agency astronomers have spotted a particularly fast-spinning pulsar that is in the process of gobbling up its companion star. The sighting is further supporting evidence for the hypothesis that binary pulsars evolve into isolated, fast-spinning pulsars, and actually increase their spin rate by chowing down …

    Science 6 Sep 2005, 11:47

  • Demand for IT staff falls

    Nobody wants you...

    There is less demand for IT professionals in the UK and fewer posts are being advertised. IT-related Job Centre adverts fell by a quarter and there were 7,000 less jobs advertised online and in the press in the first quarter of 2005. But there is some good news - actual gross salaries rose by about two per cent in the quarter …

    IT Director 6 Sep 2005, 11:50

  • Airbus secures $1.5bn China deal

    In brief 'Hugely important'

    Airbus has signed a $1.5bn deal to supply 10 Airbus A330s to China Southern Airlines. The aircraft will be delivered during 2006-7. Tony Blair took time out from a visit to the country on EU business to witness the accord, accompanied by his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao. British Airbus General manager Iain Gray enthused: "It …

    Bootnotes 6 Sep 2005, 12:01

  • Dutch ISPs sue government for wiretapping costs

    Too expensive

    A large group of ISPs and telecom operators in the Netherlands is to sue the Dutch Government for the cost of installing wiretaps. Wiretapping is required by the Dutch Telecommunication Act of 1998. The Dutch Government insists that it is normal for ISPs and telecom operators to pay the costs for general law enforcement. …

    Music and Media 6 Sep 2005, 12:06

  • SurfControl hits trough

    Security firm in sales slump

    Shares in UK-based censorware outfit SurfControl slipped 12 per cent this morning after the firm's annual results came in at the bottom end of expectations. For the year ending to 30 June 2005 (FY2005), SurfControl sales reached $97.8m (£53m) up 12 per cent from $87.3m in FY04 and narrowly meeting anticipated revenues of …

    Financial News 6 Sep 2005, 12:18

  • Are you scared of iPods, penguins, terrorists or Daleks?

    Letters Danger, every way you turn

    So, do we want form over function, or function over form? Are we a nation of style kings and queens, or does geek (un)chic still reign supreme? The answers to these probing (ahem) questions are probably not to be found in the letters below, but your thoughts and opinions about iPod phones certainly are. Light may also be shed on …

    Letters 6 Sep 2005, 12:46

  • Thong-wearing fireman escapes axe

    No IT angle, but plenty of helmet and chopper

    Editorial note: OK, we lied - the following piece has been purged of all cheap cracks about engines, appliances, greasy poles, axes, choppers or helmets. Now read on... Here's a useful pointer for anyone thinking of whipping their clothes off this afternoon and running starkers through the office: a thong could be the only …

    Bootnotes 6 Sep 2005, 13:49

  • Sapphire Pure Innovation PI-A9RX480 mobo

    Review Overclocker's dream - or too expensive?

    Think of mainboards based around AMD's Socket 939 processors. Now think of the chipsets on which they're based. We bet that Nvidia and VIA would be on the top of most people's lists, and with good reason, as both companies have a well-established heritage in designing chipsets for AMD CPUs. ATI has tried hard to break into …

    Reviews 6 Sep 2005, 14:25

  • FriendsReunited in sale talks

    Clicks into cash?

    Reunion website FriendsReunited is in talks which could lead to its sale. The company is talking to at least five firms about its future. Michael Murphy, CEO of Friends Reunited said: “Profits are expected to be £6.5 million for 2005 and over £8 million in 06. “As a result of this performance and the Group’s prospects, we can …

    Financial News 6 Sep 2005, 14:47

  • Munich's Linux migration heads south for the winter

    Delayed until 2006

    Munich's city administrators' much-discussed migration to Linux has been delayed until 2006, according to reports, because of an additional pilot phase that was not accounted for in the original plans. Project leader Peter Hoffman told CNet that as planning progressed, he and his team realised that the pilot phase, which will …

    Applications 6 Sep 2005, 14:51

  • Samsung to play safe with dual HD DVD/Blu-ray rig

    Can't beat 'em, join 'em

    Samsung is to harness consumer confusion over which next-generation optical disc standard to back by offering a player that supports both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc (BD). The machine will launch sometime next year, said Choi Gee-Sung, Samsung's consumer electronics chief, in an interview published by the Financial Times …

    Peripherals 6 Sep 2005, 15:09

  • FSF moots patent retaliation clause for next GPL

    Final say goes to Stallman, though

    The Free Software Foundation says it is mulling over plans to introduce some kind of patent retaliation clause into the next version of Richard Stallman's General Public Licence. The clause would seek to restrict the distribution and use of free software to parties prepared to forgo patent infringement lawsuits against free …

    Software 6 Sep 2005, 15:22

  • UK.gov ditches 'Big Brother'-style e-voting

    What a shambles, say Tories

    The Government has ditched plans for electronic voting at next year's local elections, it emerged today. The news was slipped out in a written answer during the summer recess prompting the Tories to describe plans for "widespread electronic voting and an 'e-enabled general election' by next year" as "a shambles". Rounding on …

    Public Sector 6 Sep 2005, 15:38

  • Fire, cockup and virus calamity vex storage managers

    Wrong week to stop sniffing glue

    Fire, computer viruses and human error are viewed as the main threats to corporate data by European businesses, according to a survey by storage specialists Hitachi Data Systems. The latest edition of HDS’s bi-annual Storage Index reckons that low-tech 'old fashioned' threats pose the greatest risk of upsetting the operations of …

    Storage 6 Sep 2005, 15:46

  • Intel hands Czech firm millions for virus protection

    Díky moc

    Intel Capital has taken its largest equity stake to date in an Eastern Europe outfit, sinking $16m into Czech anti-virus company Grisoft to help it expand in business and consumer markets. The chip giant's venture capitalist arm said it was investing in Prague-based Grisoft to improve the development of anti-virus software and …

    Malware 6 Sep 2005, 18:00

  • Peloton getting closer for Borland

    Releasing JBuilder 2006

    Borland Software has renewed its commitment to open source development tools using Eclipse, while announcing availability of its latest flagship Java IDE. The company said Tuesday work is "well underway" on development of Peloton, the first installment in a raft of Eclipse-based products from Borland. Peloton, announced in June …

    Developer 6 Sep 2005, 21:41

  • Microsoft cripples 'Longhorn' Server for Itanium

    Three tasks only for sales-challenged chip

    Intel has long bragged about the ability to run three operating systems - Windows, Linux and Unix - on the Itanium processor. Much to its dismay, however, Microsoft will cut that magic "three" down to about "two and a half" with the release of Longhorn Server. Microsoft last week told customers not too expect much out of its …

    Servers 6 Sep 2005, 21:44