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15th March 2006 Archive

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  • Sony delays PlayStation 3

    Update Global roll-out in November

    It's official: Sony has delayed the roll-out of the PlayStation 3 to early November from the late March timeframe the consumer electronics giant had originally pegged for the product's release. However, it confirmed the console will launch in the US, Canada, Europe and Japan simultaneously. The exact reason for the delay isn' …

    Reg Hardware 15 Mar 2006, 07:53

  • Apple posts full-length movie on iTunes

    Test download not for public consumption?

    Apple appears to have begun - albeit in a very small way - full-length movie downloads. The Mac maker yesterday posted a Disney TV movie, High School Musical, on the iTunes Music Store, offering the 1h 40m, 487.1MB film for the best part of $10. The download appears to be a trial run for a Disney Channel video service. When …

    Reg Hardware 15 Mar 2006, 08:29

  • Intel ships 31W Core Duo-based Xeon LV chip

    Sossaman sauce

    Intel has begun shipping 'Sossaman', the 65nm Core Duo-derived low-voltage Xeon processor it announced in July 2005. The chip giant is pitching the part, which it claims consumes no more than 31W, at 1U-rack and blade servers, along with network-attached storage (NAS) and communication applications-oriented boxes. Sossaman - …

    Servers 15 Mar 2006, 09:40

  • Amberpoint helps Capita manage DSA

    Case study Managing stacks of stacks

    Go on, admit it; the mention of 'government' and 'applications of IT' in the same sentence often leads to a stifled yawn or, perhaps more likely, a loud guffaw. But away from the headline debacles there are things happening, and they may yet prove to be a good example of what Service Oriented Architectures (SOA) are meant to be …

    Public Sector 15 Mar 2006, 09:40

  • Microsoft targets Oprah with Windows Vista

    You'll laugh, you'll cry - then you'll buy the book

    Oprah using a Windows Vista-powered PC? Crazy you say, but anything is possible in the wacky world of Microsoft marketing. Remember the Windows 95 launch? Who doesn't - unless you're one of Microsoft's younger generation of engineers being instructed by management that Windows Vista is this decade's version of Windows 95. After …

    Software 15 Mar 2006, 09:58

  • Sony states hard drive 'required' for PS3

    Touts Linux support too

    Sony's PlayStation 3 will require a hard disk drive, the consumer electronics giant revealed today. It indicated the console would ship with a 60GB 2.5in drive and that it would be upgradeable, suggesting the unit is removable - much like the Xbox 360's HDD. That said, it isn't clear whether the PS3 will ship with an HDD. …

    Reg Hardware 15 Mar 2006, 09:59

  • Spyware-for-hire couple plead guilty

    Israeli prison looms for Haephratis

    An Israeli couple faces prison after confessing to the development and sale of a spyware Trojan horse that helped private investigators snoop on their clients' business competitors. Ruth Brier-Haephrati, 28, and Michael Haephrati, 44, have entered guilty pleas to industrial espionage charges over the Trojan horse case. Ruth was …

    Malware 15 Mar 2006, 10:16

  • EasyGroup wins easy.com trademark

    Ruling a 'powerful weapon' for easy empire

    EasyGroup, parent of easyJet, easyMobile, easyCruise and many other 'easy' brands, has won a trademark for easy.com, despite objections that the term was devoid of any distinctive character and therefore ineligible for registration. Easynet, a large ISP that has no relationship with Stelios Haji-Ioannou's easy empire, objected …

    Music and Media 15 Mar 2006, 10:20

  • Lastminute.com blasted for Gary Glitter kiddy ad

    Coughs to 'error of judgement'

    Lastminute.com blamed an "error in judgement" after an ad plugging the sale of theatre tickets used a tasteless pun about disgraced pop star Gary Glitter and "kiddy treats". In an email for children's theatre and plays, the ecommerce giant featured the faces of two young boys along with the heading "DOING IT FOR THE KIDS". The …

    Music and Media 15 Mar 2006, 10:38

  • Human rights and wrongs online

    'Censorship' or 'protecting citizens'?

    A government's position on censorship used to protect its citizenry is dictated by who they are. The well-popularised censorship of internet content in China by Google and other big players, and criticism of this by the US government, is really just the tip of the iceberg. On 15 Febrary, the United States Congress held …

    Music and Media 15 Mar 2006, 10:50

  • Police to replace Holmes2

    Wanted: IT system successor

    The Police IT Organisation (Pito) is putting together plans to replace a national IT system used to respond to serious crime investigations and major emergencies, it announced on 14 March. Holmes2 (Home Office Large and Major Enquiries System) has been used in most large scale police operations, including the 7 July bombings …

    Public Sector 15 Mar 2006, 11:05

  • PC Mover finds partners

    Make upgrades easier and more people will upgrade

    Laplink, the maker of PC Mover - software which takes all your settings, documents and contacts from your old PC and puts them onto a new PC - has found some distribution partners. The company is working with various US computer makers to have its software included on machines. Intel is also offering discounts on PC Mover for …

    Channel Register 15 Mar 2006, 11:25

  • Cisco puts its heart into SIP

    Embraces integration

    Cisco’s approach to wireless standards has been to create its own platforms, and only fully support open standards once these platforms have gained such market share that openness is no real threat. This was seen in WLans, where Cisco has only recently backed interoperability between its products and third party access points …

    Networks 15 Mar 2006, 11:29

  • Government ID Card claims deflated

    Biometric data open to abuse, says EU data supervisor

    Biometric data employed for identification purposes could be misused and lead to "function creep", the European Data Protection Supervisor has warned. In a comment this week, the EDPS, who monitors the use of public data, said the ease with which biometric information, such as fingerprints, could be shared with other databases …

    ID 15 Mar 2006, 11:58

  • Microsoft lowers bar for finance

    Get it on the never-never

    Microsoft is lowering the threshold for US businesses wanting to borrow its cash to pay for software and hardware purchases. Previously deals had to be worth more than $10,000 but that has now been lowered to just $3,000. US customers can get 36-month loans for some purchases - software, hardware and services - and can defer …

    IT Director 15 Mar 2006, 12:05

  • Sony to bring PSP Base Pack to Europe, US

    EyeToy, GPS accessories and PSOne game downloads coming too

    Sony is to launch a global content download service for its PlayStation Portable handheld games console, the company said today. It will also ship a PSP version of the hugely popular PS2 accessory EyeToy, and a GPS-module to enable not only navigation but location-specific game functionality. Details are few and far between, …

    Reg Hardware 15 Mar 2006, 12:15

  • BT secures Welsh broadband deal

    £13m pays for final 35 exchanges to get DSL

    Millions of pounds are to be spent converting the last 35 BT exchanges in Wales to broadband in a move to deliver blanket broadband coverage throughout the Principality. The Welsh Assembly has just inked a deal with BT to convert the last exchanges in Wales are to be wired for broadband - so a further 10,000 homes and business …

    Telecoms 15 Mar 2006, 12:21

  • Grey marketing rubbed out at SCC

    You're still broking? That's so 90s

    Specialist Computer Holdings has closed its grey market broker, Global Distribution, to keep HP sweet. The official word from SCC is as much a sign of how the times have changed as is the closure of Global Dis. "The Group has made a strategic decision to focus on its vendor relationships through its core businesses. This …

    Channel Register 15 Mar 2006, 12:45

  • UK Biobank opens its doors

    World's biggest medical experiment is go

    The first phase of a huge project to collect and analyse a vast array of biomedical data has been launched today. The Manchester pilot of the world-first UK Biobank is the start of a ground-breaking study which eventually hopes to recruit half a million volunteers aged 40 to 69. The study will examine in detail how genes, …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 12:47

  • Space shuttle delayed... again

    Scheduling by PlayStation?

    NASA has once again pushed back the launch of space shuttle Discovery. The first launch since last year's recurrence of the foam-shedding problem that caused the Columbia disaster now won't happen until July at the earliest, according to engineers. The problem this time is with a fuel tank sensor. Fixing it will take three …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 12:52

  • Readers indulge in lappy-slapping

    Poll result The people have spoken

    We can only wonder what the 11k+ of you, our beloved readers, who took the time to vote in our poll (now closed) to determine the future of the word "lappy" on El Reg were supposed to be doing with your valuable time, but the results are in and the people have spoken. However, before the moment of truth arrives, we thought we'd …

    Bootnotes 15 Mar 2006, 13:03

  • MSI GeForce 7900 GT card

    First UK Review NX7900GT-T2D256E, to be precise

    It has now been a few days since Nvidia announced its latest range of graphics cards and stocks are already running low at most retailers. In Nvidia's defence, there were cards available to buy from day one, although some online retailers charged a fair amount extra for the cards. The first board to arrive at Reg Hardware's …

    Reg Hardware 15 Mar 2006, 13:08

  • Stardust finds comets are born of fire and ice

    A space oddity

    Surprising data from NASA's Stardust programme has revealed that comets have heat-formed components. Scientists analysing samples from the seven-year mission to collect material from the tail of comet Wild 2 found glassy particles that must have been formed at high temperatures. Stardust curator Michael Zolensky said: "It seems …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 14:12

  • DARPA targets al-Qaeda with spook cyberfly

    Hybrid Insect-MEMS X project

    Geek entomologists stand by your beds: the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is looking for research proposals in the area of Hybrid Insect Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems, aka HI-MEMS - remote-controlled cyberinsects capable of being "delivered" to within five metres of Osama bin Laden from a control …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 14:15

  • MS issues Office überpatch

    Out of bounds

    Microsoft has patched a variety of vulnerabilities in its ubiquitous Office suite which create a means for hackers to attack vulnerable systems. The critical (cumulative MS06-012) update, along with a security fix (MS06-011) to defend against an "important" privilege escalation flaw in Windows, form a brace of patches issued by …

    Security 15 Mar 2006, 14:16

  • Bulldog targets SMEs

    Gagging for it, apparently

    Local loop unbundling (LLU) operator Bulldog has unveiled two broadband and phone packages aimed at small businesses (SMEs) in a bid to expand its own operation. It has dug up some research to suggest that two thirds of SMEs believe their current voice and broadband providers "do not understand their business or just pretend to …

    Small Biz 15 Mar 2006, 14:20

  • Kids barred out at Guinness.com

    No booze for you, sonny

    It's good to see that guinness.com is taking a responsible attitude to underage drinking, what with the UK and Ireland's streets currently awash with alcopop-swilling tearaways laughing in the face of asbo-wielding coppers. That's right, you must be of legal age to enter the site, so if you were born in 1990 in England, here's …

    Bootnotes 15 Mar 2006, 14:28

  • Army strength fibre provider

    Project Bowman gets cables

    Scottish firm Brand-Rex is celebrating today because its fibre optic cable is the first to be approved by the UK's Ministry of Defence. The cable is the only one to comply with MoD standard Def Stan 60-1 (Part 3) / 2. The tactical fibre cable is tougher, non-metallic and very flexible. It is already in use as part of the Army' …

    Data Networking 15 Mar 2006, 14:45

  • Star Wars TV spin-off aims for 100 episodes

    Jumping the shark

    Producers of a TV spin-off of the Star Wars films reckon it will run for 100 episodes. Producer Rick McCallum told BBC Radio 1 that writing will shortly begin on the project, which will begin filming in 2008 ready for transmission in the same year. The series is set between Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith and Star …

    Bootnotes 15 Mar 2006, 14:47

  • Online ejaculation pole: shock result revealed

    NSFW And the stroke average is...

    Last September we ran a shamelessly non-IT-related piece on UK sex toy e-tailer LoveHoney's online ejaculation pole* - a frankly preposterous survey of how many strokes it took Linux programmers to achieve explosive climax when indulging in a quick five-knuckle shuffle while perusing a Natalie Portman topless sunbathing snaps …

    Bootnotes 15 Mar 2006, 14:55

  • Millions left dangling by DWP call centres

    Analysis Whose job is IT anyway?

    Over 20m pleas for help made to Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) telephone call centres fell on deaf ears last year because it had a crap computer system and poorly trained staff, said the Public Accounts Committee today. Edward Leigh MP, chairman of the PAC, said in a statement that he was "pleased" with the "progress" …

    IT Director 15 Mar 2006, 15:22

  • AMD ponders maths boost to quad-core Opterons

    Talking to Clearspeed

    AMD is in talks with UK co-processor company Clearspeed in a bid to boost the performance of future multi-core x86 CPUs, it has emerged. It's not hard to see why. Clearspeed's current CSX600 design can provide a huge floating point boost. Clearspeed's co-processors accelerate compute-intensive maths library operations in much …

    Reg Hardware 15 Mar 2006, 15:33

  • Dell's redundant server strategy: more details

    Up sell? Up yours

    Earlier this week we passed on the story of a customer phoning Dell Computers and asking for something to link two PCs. Dell sold them a server and is currently refusing all requests for a refund. Dell says orders placed through its business channel are not eligible for return or refund. We can now reveal that not only did Dell …

    Small Biz 15 Mar 2006, 15:47

  • DTI pushes science record

    (Science) Education, (science) education, (science) education

    Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Alan Johnson defended the Blair government's record on science at a Royal Society bash today to mark National Science Week. His colleage, Science Minister Lord Sainsbury, chimed in to trumpet the growth in the number of science, engineering and technology graduates under Labour. …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 15:57

  • Codebreakers unravel second Enigma intercept

    M4 Project targets last naval cipher

    A distributed computing project has successfully cracked the second of three unbroken Enigma intercepts dating back to World War II. The naval codes resisted the best efforts of allied cryptographers but are beginning to fall to the combined forces of the net community, brought together by the M4 Project. The second message to …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 16:15

  • Beginning VB.NET Databases

    Cash'n'Carrion Super savings at the Reg bookshop

    Teaches Visual Basic .Net developers the concepts and skills necessary to write VB.Net database applications. This book touches on database design concepts but focuses on using ADO.Net to access and manipulate data in relational databases. While the book covers all data providers in ADO.Net briefly, the primary objective is to …

    Site News 15 Mar 2006, 16:16

  • PlusNet dangles details of 8 meg regrade

    You know you want it

    PlusNet is to begin upgrading its customers to new 8 meg services from the end of the month, the Sheffield-based ISP confirmed today. It plans to upgrade its 200,000 or so broadband punters for free and without asking them to sign new contracts. PlusNet's speed shift is part of a nationwide speed increase from BT Wholesale …

    Telecoms 15 Mar 2006, 16:19

  • RFID tags can be infected with a virus

    No kidding

    Dutch researchers have warned that RFID tags – small microchips, which can be used to tag products or animals - can be infected with computer viruses. A group under the guidance of Andrew Tanenbaum at the Amsterdam Free University made the world's RFID "malware" publicly available. "We hope to convince the experts that the …

    Malware 15 Mar 2006, 16:20

  • UK drugs trial hospitalises six

    Intensive care for 'seriously ill' men

    Six drug trial volunteers who were given an anti-inflammatory drug at a private research unit based at London's Northwick Park Hospital are in intensive care after suffering a "reaction", the BBC reports. The six were given TGN1412 - "designed to treat conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and leukaemia" - on Monday. Within …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 16:21

  • Java start-up Azul sues big daddy Sun

    Father? Why have you forsaken me?

    A small hardware start-up packed full of former Sun Microsystems executives has sued Sun. Azul Systems alleges that Sun has tried to bully it with the threat of legal action over patent infringement claims. The Azul lawsuit centers around numerous patents relating to server and software technology such as handling multi- …

    Servers 15 Mar 2006, 17:14

  • Slobodan Trojan poses as murder pics

    Windows security killer on the loose

    Emails purporting to prove that the recently deceased former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic was killed contain a malicious Trojan, called Dropper-FB. Milosevic, whose trial on charges of genocide was nearing its conclusion, was found dead in his cell in the Netherlands on Saturday. Prospective marks are invited to open …

    Malware 15 Mar 2006, 17:18

  • Chinese claim world's first ultrasonic frog

    That crazy frog

    Scientists have discovered how Amolops tormotus, AKA the concave-eared torrent frog, makes itself heard above the gushing waterfalls of its habitat in east-central China: bat-style ultrasound. The discovery, detailed in today's issue of journal Nature, makes this particular crazy frog the first non-mammal known to use …

    Science 15 Mar 2006, 18:02

  • Lost Ernst & Young laptop exposes IBM staff

    Exclusive Oops, we did it again

    Ernst & Young has lost another laptop containing the social security numbers and other personal information of its clients' employees. This time, the incident puts thousands of IBM workers at risk. Ex-IBM employees are also affected. The Register has learned that the laptop was stolen from an Ernst & Young employee's car in …

    Enterprise Security 15 Mar 2006, 22:07