The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

22nd November 2005 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

  • IPTV gets cool reception in UK

    Yes, but can it pick-up Channel 5?

    Broadband TV has yet to take off in the UK despite the fact that it is regarded as one of the oldest IPTV markets in Europe. Stiff competition from satellite giant Sky and the soon-to-merge cablecos NTL and Telewest has meant that the UK has failed to jump onto the IPTV bandwagon, according to a new report from ScreenDigest. …

    Telecoms 22 Nov 2005, 02:02

  • Lads from Lagos set up Anfield branch

    LFC lottery spam scam hits the net

    Fraudsters are posing as representatives of a lottery sponsored by Liverpool Football Club in an attempt to defraud gulliable net users. The spam messages claim that recipients are one of 40 lucky winners to have won £500,000 in a lottery supposedly run by Liverpool FC. The emails say that LFC's financial success exceeded …

    Spam 22 Nov 2005, 03:02

  • Texas puts Sony BMG in its sights

    'Illegal spyware'

    The Attorney General for the state of Texas filed a lawsuit against Sony BMG Music Entertainment on Monday, calling the media giant's copy-protection technology "illegal spyware". The complaint alleges that Sony BMG violated the Texas Consumer Protection Against Computer Spyware (CPACS) Act, which includes provisions that …

    Malware 22 Nov 2005, 09:19

  • What does your MP think about the price of eggs?

    Find out with new MySociety site

    The people behind TheyWorkForYou.com and WritetoThem.com have launched a new site aimed at encouraging dialogue between the public and their MPs. The idea behind HearFromYourMP.comis in line with much of the rest of MySociety's work, which in the words of the group's founder, Tom Steinberg, is to "unite in holy matrimony the …

    Public Sector 22 Nov 2005, 09:54

  • Intel preps two-stage 'Napa' retail roll-out

    Exclusive Celeron M roadmap revealed

    Intel Celeron M processors based on the upcoming 65nm 'Yonah' core will appear in Q2 2006, according to the chip giant's latest roadmap. Separately, internal Intel retail documentation seen by The Register reveal the next generation of Centrino, aka 'Napa', will debut in January as anticipated, but be followed by a second-stage …

    Reg Hardware 22 Nov 2005, 10:02

  • Telcos united on anti-patent laws

    Sort out rules Europe told

    Vodafone, Orange, T-mobile and other big telcos are joining up to tell Europe's main standards body to tighten up its rules on intellectual property. The telcos will tell the European Telecommunications Standards Institute, the body behind the GSM standard, that current rules leave companies at risk of "excessive" demands for …

    Telecoms 22 Nov 2005, 10:34

  • Initial Xbox 360 reviews good not great

    Console missing 'must-have' game

    The latest from the UK’s leading games blog - Games Digest. From the makers of Tech Digest and Shiny Shiny. Initial Xbox 360 reviews good not great The US launch of Microsoft's new console, the Xbox 360 is minutes away. And while it's still nearly a fortnight away from launch in Europe (Decemer 2 is the date), many US …

    Consoles 22 Nov 2005, 10:44

  • Motorola bundles Bluetooth for Skype

    VoIP service goes retail in the US

    Motorola has begun shipping its first Bluetooth headset co-branded with VoIP service Skype, punting the pack into the US retail market through RadioShack. The bundle - dubbed the Motorola Wireless Internet Calling Kit - comprises the Motorola's H500 headset and its P850 Bluetooth dongle for PCs that lack this kind of wireless …

    Mobile 22 Nov 2005, 11:07

  • Suits predict another bumper e-Xmas

    Ho! Ho! Hum!

    Festive shoppers have already been busy flashing their cash online, according to accountants KPMG. Its survey of Christmas spending habits found that each of us will fork out on average £333 on pressies this year. And it seems we've already been out and about spending around £104 of our budget so far. And the beancounters …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2005, 11:11

  • 419ers break world's shortest email record

    I need help

    God alone knows what happened to Liberia's Charles Taylor and his distraught widow plus mewling and orphaned infants boarding a Red Cross plane to Nigeria where the former dictator had thoughtfully deposited $23,000,000 (TWENTY-THREE MILLION DOLLARS) in a safe deposit box in Lagos just waiting for some willing business partner …

    Bootnotes 22 Nov 2005, 11:15

  • LSE clarifies ID Card cost claims

    Huge variants in estimates for scheme fuel spats

    The London School of Economics (LSE) has issued a statement clarifying its position on its National ID card research. The announcement follows press reports that project costs could go as high as £40bn. The LSE says that its original estimate of a £19.2bn high watermark stands and no other figure should be attributed to them. …

    Public Sector 22 Nov 2005, 11:17

  • Apple iTunes slams into top ten music retail chart

    Seventh biggest US music seller, says researcher

    Apple's iTunes Music Store is now one of the US' top ten leading music retailers, market watcher NPD has claimed. NPD based its chart on unit sales made during Q3, counting every 12 downloaded tracks as the equivalent of a CD purchase. Apple's online shop is in seventh place, up from position 14, which it held in Q3 2004. …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2005, 11:21

  • Exploit code unpicks IE flaw

    SP2 no defence

    Hackers have created a potent exploit for a six-month old vulnerability in Internet Explorer which was previously believed to be only a Denial of Service risk. A fresh exploit posted on computerterrorism.com proves that the security bug can be exploited to gain system access, even on systems running Windows XP with Service Pack …

    Enterprise Security 22 Nov 2005, 11:24

  • No corporate sponsors for Darwin exhibition

    Evolution just too touchy a subject

    The evolution vs. creationism debate in the US is now so contentious that the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York has been unable to find a sponsor for its new exhibition detailing the life and discoveries of Charles Darwin. With American companies apparently unwilling to be seen to be taking sides, the whole …

    Science 22 Nov 2005, 11:27

  • VIA unveils multi-GPU AMD chipset

    K8T900 debuts with RapidFire

    VIA today introduced its long-awaited AMD-oriented desktop chipset with multi-GPU support, the K8T900. It's a high-end part pitched as pro, gamer and enthusiast buyers. It's these kinds of users who will appreciate the chipset's RapidFire technology, VIA reckons. RapidFire reduces latency in the connection between card and …

    Reg Hardware 22 Nov 2005, 11:29

  • Vienna goes Oh! for open source

    Happy IT director?

    The city of Vienna's move to open source is going well but will never embrace every desktop machine. Vienna's IT director Erwin Gillich told the Reg: "It's all going well. We carried out a study two years ago looking at how many desktop machines we could move to Linux. The percentage is higher now but still not 100 per cent." …

    Software 22 Nov 2005, 11:35

  • Baffled cops probe sex of bald flasher

    Most Wanted poser for Hull constabulary

    We know that the UK's police forces are currently pushed to the very limits of their resources, what with combating alcopop-deranged, binge-drinking hoodies and enduring long stints behind the radar gun, but surely someone down at Hull constabulary can made an educated guess regarding the sex of this flashing ne'er-do-well, …

    Bootnotes 22 Nov 2005, 11:37

  • Asus offers no-noise graphics card for Xmas

    Si-i-lent night, Ha-a-lf-life night...

    Asus will shortly ship what it dubs as "zero noise" - 'silent' to the rest of us - graphics card that eschews buzzing fans in favour of a "large" heat-sink. The heat-sink feeds a secondary cooler through a heat-pipe. The cooler is mounted on an adjustable bracket to allow you to position it perfectly within your PC case's …

    Reg Hardware 22 Nov 2005, 11:39

  • Microsoft opens file formats

    Fighting open source on new front

    Faced with increasing pressure from public bodies worried that storing documents in proprietary formats could lead to future problems Microsoft is submmitting its file formats to a European standards body. Massachusetts recently cited concerns about its future ability to access documents as a reason to move away from Microsoft …

    Applications 22 Nov 2005, 11:40

  • IXEurope to open third London datacentre

    Pitter patter of 30,000 feet

    IXEurope plans to open its third datacentre in London in January to meet increased demand from the corporate sector. The firm has already signed up new punters for the site in West London flogging around 20 per cent of the 30,000 square feet facility. The site is currently undergoing a major refit ready for its opening early …

    Data Networking 22 Nov 2005, 11:43

  • Google wants your culture

    All your cultures are belong to us

    Stretching its promise to "Do no evil" to near breaking point Google is backing a plan from the Library of Congress to digitise and store the world's culture. This is not a yoghurt factory but an attempt to extend the Library's existing project "American Memory" to the rest of the world. The "World Digital Library" aims to do …

    Music and Media 22 Nov 2005, 12:21

  • Eclipse broadband no longer titsup

    And...relax

    Eclipse Internet says its broadband service is now back to normal after going titsup yesterday evening although punters may have to reset their kit to restore their connection. Engineers at the Exeter-based ISP - which has around 60,000 broadband users and is owned by Hull-based Kingston Communications - worked into the evening …

    Telecoms 22 Nov 2005, 12:57

  • Hauppauge hails Flash drive-sized Freeview tuner

    Digital TV on the USB

    Hauppauge Digital today launched what it calls the "TV stick" - a digital television tuner compressed into a compact, USB Flash drive-sized package. The WinTV HVR-900 requires only a spare USB 2.0 port, from which it draws power, so there's no need to lug a power adaptor around as is the case with plenty of other USB-connected …

    Peripherals 22 Nov 2005, 13:45

  • Fayrewood bid talks terminated

    Trading update

    Fayrewood's mystery suitor is suiting no more: the AIM-listed computer distie announced today that takeover talks, announced on 26 August, have been terminated. Fayrewood sweetened the news with an upbeat trading statement and a commitment to increase dividend payments. Turnover in its core distribution business increased by …

    Channel Register 22 Nov 2005, 13:46

  • Black Box to avoid software crashes

    It really works!

    Imagine if you will the following situation. A customer of yours phones to report that his system has failed in a mysterious way. You are given a good error report with details of the transactions. So you try to replicate the problem. Nothing happens. You even go to the extent of making a site visit and you chat to an …

    Developer 22 Nov 2005, 13:52

  • PwC warns of WEEE complexity

    Businesses should think liability

    Consultants at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) are warning their clients that forthcoming WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive will be more than just another regulatory hoop to jump through. The legislation, which should come into force in the UK in June 2006, presents significant challenges, the company says …

    Channel Register 22 Nov 2005, 14:04

  • Feisty Mercury comes out fighting

    Quicksilver

    Mercury Interactive marketing chief Christopher Lochhead was in London on Monday to reassure investors, customers and employees that the company remains on track despite a US fraud investigation that prompted the departure of three of its most senior executives. The enterprise software vendor's chief executive, general counsel …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2005, 14:08

  • Punters angry as Eclipse admits still suffering ADSL probs

    Stuck in limbo

    Customers have reacted angrily to assurances made by ISP Eclipse that its broadband service is up and running again. Yesterday, the ISP's broadband network went titsup leaving thousands without high speed net access. Today it issued a statement saying that the "service has now been restored". But this did not chime with the …

    Telecoms 22 Nov 2005, 14:37

  • The World Summit in pictures

    WSIS Tunis Ben Ali, Ustumi, Annan and the rest...

    Since the Internet is a multi-faceted beast, we felt it only right that we also make use of its ability to displays photos. As such here is a brief pictorial review of the World Summit in Tunis this week: The World Summit saw just under 20,000 people turn up to a series of giant tents, otherwise known as the Kram conference …

    Music and Media 22 Nov 2005, 16:12

  • SANS compiles Top 20 security vulns list

    Apps and networking appliance crash security party

    Bugs in anti-virus scanners and web-based applications joined flaws in Microsoft and Cisco networking products in a list of the 20 most serious vulnerabilities discovered this year. The list - compiled by the SANS Institute in co-operation with security vendors such as Qualys and government agencies in the UK and US - …

    Security 22 Nov 2005, 16:24

  • EDS coughs up over Tax Credit debacle

    Back to work program

    EDS is to stump up £71.25m to settle its dispute with Her Majesty’s Revenue & Revenue over the disastrous system the services giant built to support the UK’s Tax Credit system in 2003. EDS said the settlement, under which it will make an upfront payment and hand over “additional amounts over time”, would not impact its earlier …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2005, 16:59

  • FBI warns over Sober worm

    Your IP address hasn't been logged, say Feds

    The latest variants of the prolific Sober worm series pose as messages from either FBI or CIA investigators in an attempt to dupe Windoze users into opening infectious attachments. The trick was last used in February. On Tuesday, variants of the worm had accounted for over 65 per cent of all viruses reported to UK-based …

    Malware 22 Nov 2005, 17:05

  • Cybermen solve plane door crisis with gaffer tape

    Letters Well, there you go

    Two IT related letters and a whole load of rambling thoughts on topics as diverse as cybermen and airplane doors. But let's kick off with the tech. Microsoft hands its file formats over to the European standards body, Ecma International. Yah boo sucks, you said: Interesting story, but your coverage is sadly inadequate even …

    Letters 22 Nov 2005, 17:14

  • Sony unsinged by rootkit CD fiasco

    Analysis Expect more exploits

    What next for CD buyers? For all the lawsuits, over-the fold-coverage in mainstream print and on primetime TV, and howls of anguish from the blogosphere, Sony Music has sailed through the rootkit CD fiasco largely unharmed. The only figure that matters - the bottom line - appears to be unaffected by the fiasco. CNet's John …

    Music and Media 22 Nov 2005, 20:15

  • CTO hole plugged at Novell

    'Superior intellect' tapped

    IBM and Lucent Technologies' veteran Jeffrey Jaffe has been named as Novell's next chief technology officer following an eight-month search. Jaffe will be responsible for technology direction and lead Novell's product business units, reporting to recently appointed president and chief operating officer Ron Hovsepian. Jaffe …

    IT Director 22 Nov 2005, 20:20

  • On the true meaning of Holidays™ Inc.

    Seasonal Letters Mind your language

    Last week we brought you the story of how a Wal-Mart employee gave a heroically inappropriate technical answer to a question from a customer concerned that the company had replaced "Christmas" with "Holidays" in some of its promotional material Wal-Mart is the United States biggest retailer, and under fire from both church and …

    Letters 22 Nov 2005, 20:30

  • RSS 'extensions' published by Microsoft

    Re-setting the standard

    Microsoft has released details of a set of proposed extensions to Really Simple Syndication (RSS), billed as making it easier to receive and share data. A draft of Simple Sharing Extensions (SSE) version 0.9 for RSS 2.0, and Outline Processor Markup Language (OPML), has been published under the Creative Commons license by …

    Applications 22 Nov 2005, 21:34

  • These supercomputers could be yours

    SC05 A photo extravaganza

    It often feels like AMD receives an inordinate amount of hype for the Opteron processor. Without question, the chip runs great, and AMD has gained market share on Intel as a result. Still, however, Intel owns such a massive portion of the server processor market that AMD remains a relatively minor player. If, however, last …

    Servers 22 Nov 2005, 23:09

  • Get a Reg logo on Google maps and win $10,000

    Radio host puts up the dough

    Those of you who want to take Google ads to the next level may be interested in a deal offered by Los Angeles radio host Phil Hendrie. The comic has put up a large lump sum to anyone who can have their banner spotted from space by Google maps. "You know, I have this plan," Hendrie said, during a broadcast this month. "Do you …

    Bootnotes 22 Nov 2005, 23:33