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9th September 2005 Archive

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  • Intel tightens revenue forecast

    No news is good news

    Intel today narrowed its Q3 revenue prediction and assured analysts that nothing unusual seemed to be occuring during the period. The chipmaker now expects third quarter revenue to come in between $9.8bn and $10.0bn. That range falls in the middle of a previous, broader forecast stretching from $9.6bn to $10.2bn. Intel's third …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 00:21

  • HMV digital downloads: sure it Plays For Sure

    It's as easy as a Bangalore support call

    HMV rolled out its Windows-based digital song download service this week, going head to head with high street rival Virgin. But is the service easy for the ordinary punter to understand? Have HMV and Microsoft banished the compatibility issues that have dogged the market to date? And have they laid the fears of digital …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 07:12

  • Horizon posts 20 per cent rise in profits

    Enterprise up, channel down

    Horizon Technology Group has posted a 20 per cent year-on-year increase in pre-tax profits in its results for the first half of the year. The interim results for the six months to 30 June 2005 showed the company's seventh consecutive half-year of growth in operating profit. Pre-tax profit climbed to €4m, up from €3.35m a year …

    The Channel 9 Sep 2005, 07:26

  • Computer error destroyed 1m UK tax records

    MPs round on Revenue

    Almost a million taxpayer records were accidently deleted from Inland Revenue computer systems between 1997 and 2000 due to a software problem which went unnoticed for several years. The Department took three years to discover that software used to cleanse its database of old cases was also wiping live ones from its system. …

    Policy 9 Sep 2005, 07:41

  • Intel 'sells out' of notebook chipsets

    Boosting demand for Napa?

    Intel has "sold out" of notebook chipsets, the company admitted last night. While announcing a narrowing of the chip giant's Q3 FY2005 sales forecast, CFO Andy Bryant confirmed claims that the PC business is running short of Intel-supplied notebook chipsets. “We are sold out,” Bryant said. He said the shortage will continue …

    System Builder 9 Sep 2005, 09:46

  • Three-parent embryo research gets green light

    A teensy bit controversial, this one

    UK researchers have been given the go-ahead to create an embryo that will contain DNA from three people, after the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) reversed its decision to ban the procedure. The technique in question could eventually be used to prevent a series of genetic disorders, known collectively as …

    Science 9 Sep 2005, 10:00

  • Solitary patch for MS September Patch Tuesday

    In brief Whatever

    Microsoft plans to release a single, critical patch next Tuesday, 13 September. According to minimalist details from an advance bulletin notification from Redmond issued Thursday, the update is designed to address a serious Windows vulnerability. Redmond also plans to release an update to its malicious software removal tool …

    Software 9 Sep 2005, 10:00

  • Panic over: boom times ahead for chip biz

    Increased production to push up prices, apparently

    The world's chip makers will experience double-digit sales growth next year, market watcher Advanced Forecasting (AF) said yesterday. That prediction is in marked contrast to iSuppli's forecast of 4.3 per cent growth next year, which it also made yesterday. AF reckons sales will pick up significantly during the first half of …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 10:07

  • Dell will comply with AMD subpoena

    AMD vs Intel Will search the archives for requested emails

    Dell has told the US District Court of Delaware it will comply with AMD's request for documents that the upstart chip maker believes will prove Intel engaged in anti-competitive business practices. The PC giant filed notice of its intentions with the court earlier this week. The filing notes the company's plan to make "good- …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 10:30

  • Belgians plan to subsidise PCs

    Just €850 to you

    Belgium's government will next week decide whether to adopt a plan backed by secretary of state for IT, Peter Vanvelthoven, to offer subsidised broadband-enabled PCs to disadvantaged groups in the country. The government is considering reimbursing VAT on PCs in the scheme. The PCs will be at least 41 per cent cheaper than …

    Policy 9 Sep 2005, 10:43

  • 'Mobe' excised from Reg lexicon

    Poll result The people have spoken

    It's official: the word 'mobe' has been struck from the El Reg lexicon after you, our beloved readers, voted 57 per cent (5,181 votes) to 43 per cent (3,841) in favour of kicking it into touch. The news has come as quite a blow to our very own Lester Haines - the man responsible for the outrage in the first place - and he is …

    Bootnotes 9 Sep 2005, 10:58

  • Reykjavik nets €0.8bn in Iceland Telco sell-off

    Gifts for everyone

    The Icelandic Treasury has received ISK66.7bn (€0.8bn) in cash for the sale of Iceland Telco to a group of local investors. The big pile of cold hard moolah is the highest one time payment that the treasury has ever received, according to the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service (RÚV). The ISK34.5bn was paid in Icelandic …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 11:03

  • UK PC mag in Tesco processor mix-up

    Pulp fiction

    UK retailer Tesco has begun selling processors. At least that's what the PC Pro website suggests, though anyone expecting to purchase the latest Athlon 64 chip at as discount and pick up some Clubcard points while they're about it are going to be disappointed, we fear. Take a look at Pro's Focus On Processors page. Eagle-eyed …

    Bootnotes 9 Sep 2005, 11:07

  • The unholy trinity: computers, taxes and evolution

    Letters But why aren't the Brits revolting?

    Collapsing tax computer systems have impressed no one. The following probably sums up the response so far: "The Revenue has since introduced a backup system." So they implement a nation-wide tax management scheme without ANY form of backup ? And when the inevitable mistake occurs (because there always is one mistake waiting …

    Letters 9 Sep 2005, 11:23

  • BOFH: Putting a price on the Boss

    Episode 27 70k a year? You must be joking

    The Boss is in a particularly cheerful mood and I don't like it. Any moment I fear he's going to want to hug one of us or tell us we're doing a great job or something. It's just not normal! Someone's going to find out what's wrong and as it's the PFY's turn to 'tard himself down I give him a prod and point him at the boss. "Hm …

    BOFH 9 Sep 2005, 11:31

  • PalmSource bought by browser developer

    Access all areas?

    Japanese mobile content company Access is to buy the Palm OS, it said today. The move has the blessing of Palm. Access will acquire PalmSource, paying cash for the shares in a deal that values the operating system developer at $324.4m. PalmSource's Nasdaq-traded share price closed at $10.09 yesterday. Access' $18.50-a-share bid …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 11:40

  • Google and GEICO settle AdWords dispute

    Big group hug

    Google and car insurance firm GEICO have settled a trade mark dispute over the search engine's sale of sponsored search terms "Geico" and "Geico Direct". GEICO had claimed that this use was in breach of its trade mark rights. Car insurance firm GEICO sued both Google and Yahoo! subsidiary Overture in May 2004 over the sale of …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 11:45

  • UK gov flies IT security kitemark

    New quality award scheme

    The UK Government today unveiled a quality award scheme designed to ensure that users of off-the-shelf IT security products are buying a product that meets Government-approved standards. An encryption vendor won the first accreditation today. The CSIA Claims Tested Mark scheme is primarily aimed at IT and information security …

    Security 9 Sep 2005, 11:59

  • Ethical concerns vex IT workers

    What would Gates do?

    IT workers feel less able to refuse work they don't agree with and more resigned to cutting software testing in the face of ever-shortening deadlines, according to a new study on IT ethics. As well as commercial pressures, information security concerns over both hacker and internal attacks were high on the ethical agenda of …

    Management 9 Sep 2005, 12:06

  • Searching for failure? Try George W. Bush

    Google tells it like it is

    Poor old George Bush: try as he might he just can't convince his critics that his handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster was - until he sort of pulled his finger out - anything other than a complete fiasco. Accordingly, Google is currently offering the Prez's biography as its top link for the search 'failure': Ho ho. Of …

    Bootnotes 9 Sep 2005, 12:33

  • Music phones no threat to MP3 players

    Personal Video Players even less so

    Apple clearly doesn't perceive Motorola's ROKR phone as a significant threat, and neither does market watcher Canalys, which today said the MP3 player makers are, for now, safe from mobile phone manufacturing rivals. It doesn't need to worry about portable media players, either, if forecasts from market researcher In-Stat prove …

    Mobile 9 Sep 2005, 12:48

  • Phone cos and rights activists round on Clarke

    Will he listen?

    Mobile phone companies and net service providers have slammed proposed European laws on data retention as illegal, expensive and intrusive. The plans call for the compulsory retention of communications data by communications providers for a period of at least 12 months. In practice, this will mean mobile phone and internet …

    Media 9 Sep 2005, 13:03

  • NEC wades into deeper channels, signs Interface

    Margin call

    NEC Computers has signed UK distie Interface Solutions International to pump channel sales through smaller dealers. Interface is cock-a-hoop about its exclusive, as this breathless quote from the firm's enterprise sales director, Rob Tomlin, shows. "This deal sets us apart from the pack and ensures NEC’s proven track record in …

    The Channel 9 Sep 2005, 13:20

  • Wheelbarrow blagger cuffed after 2mph pursuit

    Poor choice of getaway vehicle

    A Devon criminal mastermind has been given a two-year community supervision order after pleading guilty to a burglary during which he attempted to make good his escape with a wheelbarrow - only to be cuffed after a two-hour, 2mph dash for freedom with his victim in low-speed pursuit. Dairy farmer Chris Lees was out milking his …

    Bootnotes 9 Sep 2005, 14:14

  • Katrina to hammer silicon wafer production?

    Blows hydrogen plant out of action

    Hurricane Katrina could have a deeper impact on the world's semiconductor industry than first feared, market watcher iSuppli claimed today. The affect of the storm on energy supplies is already beginning to be felt, but iSuppli today said the hurricane had forced a key producer of high-grade hydrogen to shut down. Air Products …

    Financial News 9 Sep 2005, 14:42

  • Burning Bush fans turn flames on El Reg

    FoTW Like we care...

    Oh dear. It seems that these days even the mere observation of some simple facts can get a person enough properly abusive flames to start his (or her) own gas-ring-burner. The simple facts in question concern Google, and one George W. Bush. He is currently presiding over the United States of America, for anyone not familiar …

    Bootnotes 9 Sep 2005, 14:44

  • Apple pipped to Nano name by arch-rival

    Legal battle brewing?

    Apple may have handed its loss-making MP3 player rival, Creative, an opportunity to win a significant victory in the company's self-proclaimed "war" against the iPod maker. Apple's iPod Nano grabbed the headlines this week, but Creative's Zen Nano has the advantage of coming to market ahead of its rival. Creative launched the …

    Peripherals 9 Sep 2005, 14:51

  • War Child album goes down to the wire

    Mixed and on the web in 24 hours

    It's been tight, but at around 5pm today UK time, music fans will be able to listen to the fundraising War Child compilation album Help: A Day In The Life - knocked together in a record-breaking 24 hours and featuring such luminaries as Radiohead and Gorillaz. Coldplay have also made a late appearance into the line-up, with a …

    Bootnotes 9 Sep 2005, 15:02

  • Rollercoaster gets woman pregnant

    G-force puts bun in oven

    Here's an interesting concept for anyone trying unsuccessfully to get pregnant - rumpy-pumpy followed by white-knuckle rollercoaster action might just do the trick. Cuban-born Nayade Elbing, 28, and her hubby had been hoping for children for several years, but their lack of offspring led Nayade to believe she was sterile, …

    Science 9 Sep 2005, 15:05

  • Over-the-air iTunes wouldn't choke O2

    Tech Digest How far will Apple go?

    Are over-the-air downloads to iTunes phones coming next? The networks might be keener on Apple going mobile with the service than you might think. It was always assumed by UK mobile phone analysts that had Apple and Motorola offered direct over the air music downloads via iTunes to its newly launched ROKR music phone, that the …

    Mobile 9 Sep 2005, 15:31

  • Firefox blighted by unpatched bug

    IE-style security flap hits alternative browser

    Security researchers have discovered an unpatched vulnerability in Firefox that might be used to crash vulnarable systems. Hackers might also use the security bug to trick surfers into running malicious code by simply fooling them into visiting a maliciously constructed website. This is a class of problem well known to IE users …

    Security 9 Sep 2005, 15:43

  • Thousands of HP Europe staff to feel Emperor Hurd's axe

    Come back, Carly!

    Europe will feel the pain of Emperor Hurd's HP job cuts with the region set to lose thousands of positions in the coming months, according to a union official. The axe will fall on around 6,000 HP workers, with France, Germany and the UK accounting for most cuts. That total marks a fraction of 15,000 or so positions HP plans to …

    Management 9 Sep 2005, 17:48

  • File-sharing Republican blogger tackles Hollywood Hatch

    Interview Voting with your mouse

    A US politician challenging the pro-Hollywood Utah Senator Orrin Hatch is supporting file-sharing as a means to promote business innovation and keep the internet free. Republican challenger Steve Urquhart is taking a pro-small business and creative commons stance against Hatch, arguing that hobbling file-sharing technology …

    Media 9 Sep 2005, 18:04

  • Sun's Niagara: speeds and feeds emerge

    Exclusive Roll up, clock speed and configurations here

    Sun Microsystems has said a lot about its 8-core Niagara processor, but it hasn't told you word one about upcoming 6-core and possibly 4-core chips. Luckily, El Reg can help. Sun plans to ship 8-core and 6-core versions of the Niagara processor in single socket servers before year end, according to sources. The decision to …

    Servers 9 Sep 2005, 19:25

  • Subpoenas at 6Gbps? RIAA, MPAA join Internet2

    Boffins look nervous

    The experimental high speed internet project Internet2 has two new members today: a pair of acronyms guaranteed to have researchers rifling anxiously through their "Stuff" directories. Both the Recording Industry Ass. of America, the RIAA, and Hollywood lobby group the Motion Picture Ass. of America, the MPAA, have signed up to …

    Media 9 Sep 2005, 21:20

  • Vint Cerf replies: 'I've been busy, you know'

    Star Letter The chief of staff has a message...

    Google's newest star hire takes exception to our assertion that he's been in meetings for much of the time since inventing TCP/IP. Not at all, he writes. Andrew, Some facts - it took 10 years to get tcp/ip off the ground and into an operational internet in 1983. I engineered MCI Mail during 1983-1986. I developed a set of …

    Letters 9 Sep 2005, 21:24

  • Carly Fiorina joins League of Exiles

    The board that shed a thousand tears

    Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina is the latest big name to join Steve Case's League of Extraordinary Banished Executives - otherwise known as Revolution Health Group (RHG). For the uninitiated, RHG is where one-time high-flyers go to cool down, write a few chapters of their books and plan speaking engagements. Case, the America …

    Management 9 Sep 2005, 21:39

  • Former HP boss Platt dies

    The last of the engineer leaders

    Former HP boss Lew Platt has died suddenly aged 64. Platt will be remembered as the last of HP's engineer managers: he joined HP as an engineer in 1966 with a technical degree from Cornell and an MBA from Wharton, and rose through the ranks. After the crisis at the turn of the 1990s which saw David Packard return to a hands on …

    Business 9 Sep 2005, 22:15