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28th November 2005 Archive

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  • MS goes fishing, hooks Cray co-founder

    Supercomputer boffin bolsters MS line-up...

    Burton Smith is leaving the supercomputer maker Cray, which he co-founded, to join Microsoft. Smith leaves the firm, where he is chief scientist, on 7 December. He is also quitting as a director of Cray. Cray specialises in the top-end of the already rarified world of high performance computing. Bill Gates recently announced …

    Servers 28 Nov 2005, 09:50

  • DiData buys African telco provider

    Picks up Plessey

    South African reseller group Dimension Data is buying the other half of Plessey Ltd. from Worldwide African Investment Holdings. DiData already owned 49 per cent of Plessey, now it is paying £10.75m (120m South African rand) for the remaining 51 per cent. DiData has held 49 per cent of the firm since 1998. Plessey is a major …

    Channel Register 28 Nov 2005, 10:24

  • Government websites fail to meet standards

    Elderly, disabled not being served

    The vast majority of public service websites in Europe are failing to meet international e-accessibility standards. That's according to a report released by the UK EU presidency, which shows that a mere 3 percent of public service websites are fully meeting the terms of the minimum accessibility requirements as stated by World …

    Public Sector 28 Nov 2005, 10:47

  • Legend takeover talks result due soon

    Might happen, might not...

    Legend Communications is due to make an announcement about a possible take-over "in the near future", the Lancaster-based ISP and VoIP outfit said today. Two months ago Legend confirmed it was "engaged in preliminary talks, which may or may not lead to an offer being made for the company". Although it is still remaining tight- …

    Financial News 28 Nov 2005, 10:57

  • PlusNet swallows Metronet

    Job cuts not ruled out

    PlusNet has swallowed Parbin Ltd - the internet outfit that trades as Metronet - for £1.7m, the Sheffield-based ISP announced today. As part of the deal PlusNet adds more than 16,000 broadband punters to its existing customer base as the ISP pursues its "strategy of aggressive organic growth". While PlusNet intends to retain …

    Financial News 28 Nov 2005, 11:29

  • Google tests click-to-call

    Google to harness awesome power of the call centre

    Google is testing a service to get advertisers and consumers talking on the phone. The system works by putting a phone icon next to some search results. Clicking on the graphic lets you enter your phone number - Google will then connect you, for free, to the advertiser. Your phone will ring and when you pick it up you will hear …

    VoIP 28 Nov 2005, 11:36

  • EC outlines anti-terror database measures

    VIS, SIS and EURODAC

    The European Commission last week adopted two measures designed to assist in the fight against terrorism and serious crime by improving the development of and access to common European databases. Of particular interest to the Commission in this context are the databases for the planned Visa Information System (VIS), the …

    Music and Media 28 Nov 2005, 11:46

  • SETI@Home goes BOINC

    Hunt for ET folded into distributed computing project

    SETI@Home, the popular distributed computing project, will cease to be a standalone program on December 15. The SETI team is throwing its lot in with BOINC, the Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing, where computer users will be encouraged to donate their spare computing cycles towards a wider range of tasks …

    Science 28 Nov 2005, 12:02

  • Software group wants role in EC MS case

    Open sourcers line up to give MS a shoeing

    The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) has asked permission to get involved in the European Commission's ongoing court case against Microsoft. The FSFE wants to provide evidence in Microsoft's appeal against part of the EC anti-trust ruling dealing with Microsoft's server APIs, according to IDG. Microsoft is appealing the …

    Financial News 28 Nov 2005, 12:47

  • Trademark dispute prompts Purple Sun rebranding

    Somewhere the Sun don't shine

    Internet monitoring outfit Purple Sun has been forced to rebrand following a long-running trademark dispute with Sun Microsystems. It seems the computer giant got the hump with Purple Sun's use of the word "sun" and blocked its application to trademark the name. As a result of a protracted dispute UK-based Purple Sun has turned …

    Enterprise Security 28 Nov 2005, 12:49

  • Orange debuts new Blackberry flavour

    French to get 8700f first

    Orange today said it will ship Research In Motion's latest Blackberry, the 8700, in the UK early next year. However, British buyers may not be immediately able to use one of the device's key features: the EDGE data-transfer speed enhancement for GPRS networks. Other carriers, expected to offer the device in the same timeframe, …

    Mobile 28 Nov 2005, 13:39

  • Report points to Xbox 360 shortage

    Europeans scrap over just 300,000 boxes

    Speculation abounds that only 300,000 Xbox 360s will be making their way to Europe for the launch of the console on 2 December. In a weekend interview with German financial publication Euro am Sonntag, Chris Lewis, Microsoft's regional vice president (EMEA, Home and Entertainment Division) is quoted as saying that analyst …

    Consoles 28 Nov 2005, 13:50

  • Techscape: A Wordwise veteran

    Interview Moir of a technologist or an entrepreneur

    The argument has been raging since Thomas Edison started General Electric: Is the technical brain behind a business or product capable or even competent enough to manage the operations and growth of that business? Some people would say Edison was the “World’s Worst Entrepreneur“ and that without significant outside managerial …

    Applications 28 Nov 2005, 13:56

  • $200K Lego brick blagger suspect nabbed

    Enough bricks to build his own jail

    A US man has been charged with stealing mountains of Lego bricks as part of a long-running scam. William Swanberg, 40, of Reno, Nevada, was indicted last week of pilfering Lego sets from Target stores across five western states worth an estimated $200,000. Prosecutors charge that Swanberg switched the bar codes on Lego boxes …

    Bootnotes 28 Nov 2005, 14:35

  • BBC pulls plug on Dalek lesbian romp flick

    NSFW Abducted by the Daleks off eBay

    Those readers who have ever wondered in an idle moment how a couple of Daleks would respond to the presence of three naked lesbians romping in their Mothership might recently have found the answer in the shape of a sci-fi smutfest entitled "Abducted by the Daleks". Sadly, however, you'll have to wonder on because the BBC and …

    Bootnotes 28 Nov 2005, 14:38

  • Japanese asteroid probe hits paydirt

    Well probably...

    A Japanese space probe has successfully taken samples from an asteroid for the first time ever. The Hayabusa probe started its one kilometre descent at 10.00pm (JST) November 25. It touched down on the surface of the Itokawa asteroid early on Saturday morning and successfully took rock samples. With the samples on board it …

    Science 28 Nov 2005, 14:41

  • Vote now for the worst corporate anthem - ever!

    Poll Warning: this is not for the faint-hearted

    Our piece last week highlighting Dutch "media investment management" outfit MindShare's version of Donna Summer's She works hard for the money provoked a mini snowstorm of emails pointing us towards some truly Mephistophelean corporate anthems - musical works so hideous that prolonged exposure to them would certainly result in …

    Bootnotes 28 Nov 2005, 15:01

  • Ex FEMA honcho turns pro with disaster consulting outfit

    The avian flu pandemic should be a breeze

    There's an old joke about chutzpah: A boy found guilty of murdering his parents faces sentencing. The judge asks if he wishes to speak in his own defence before sentence is passed. "I do, your honor," the boy replies. "I would ask the court to weigh generously the fact that I am now an orphan." Just so, disgraced US Federal …

    Bootnotes 28 Nov 2005, 15:11

  • Saddam's uniform pops up on net

    The 'ultimate artifact' says auction outfit

    Anyone who fancies spending the next few weeks sitting in a glass enclosure declaring "I am the president of Iraq and I refuse to acknowledge the authority of this tribunal" will need the apparel to complete the dramatic coutroom effect and, lo and behold, a Saddam Hussein uniform has popped up at Manion's International Auction …

    Bootnotes 28 Nov 2005, 15:42

  • Iceland left in the cold after cable cut

    Rats and diggers love broadband cable lines

    Many companies on Iceland were again without broadband internet last week when the Farice Line, a 1400 km long fibre optic line connecting Iceland to Europe through the Faroe Islands and Scotland, was cut near Inverness. Apparently, a digger accidentally severed it. According to Iceland Online it is the 17th time in less than …

    Telecoms 28 Nov 2005, 16:02

  • Romantic love quickly dies

    Brain chemicals - not amoré - linked to passion

    Romantic love normally lasts only a year, according to Italian boffins, whose findings would have Casanova spinning in his grave. Scientists at the University of Pavia reckon that a brain chemical linked to feelings of euphoria - rather than amoré - in responsible for setting new lovers' hearts a flutter. Scientists looked at …

    Science 28 Nov 2005, 16:23

  • Singaporean boffins test chicken-hugging e-suit

    Net-controlled tactile experience

    Scientists in Singapore have developed a jacket which can transmit the sense of touch over the internet, Reuters reports. Strangely, they have so far restricted themselves to testing the technology on chickens, but hope to "use the same concept to transmit hugs over the internet". Bless. Researchers at Nanyang Technological …

    Bootnotes 28 Nov 2005, 16:25

  • NHTCU warns over Sober worm

    Cyber-blitz enters second week

    The latest variants of the prolific Sober worm series are posing as messages from the UK's National Hi-Tech Crime Unit, prompting a warning from the British police agency. The tactic is an extension of an ongoing mass virus attack. Other organisations similarly spoofed last week include the FBI and CIA in the USA and the German …

    Malware 28 Nov 2005, 17:15

  • Stratus and NEC to make strong servers together

    Tolerant to a fault

    Super-strong server maker Stratus has decided it needs some help turning standard x86 boxes into mainframe-like machines. It has signed a long-term deal with NEC to jointly develop servers and share engineering costs. Under the terms of the 10-year deal, NEC will take on most of fault-tolerant hardware design work. Stratus, …

    Servers 28 Nov 2005, 21:37