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31st May 2006 Archive

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  • Sun fires up Opteron eight-way and Linux on SPARC

    Lookin' for love

    Sun Microsystems' Opteron orgy has scaled up to an eight-way with the arrival of the Sun Fire X4600. Elsewhere, Linux has made its way to Sun's new UltraSPARC T1 chips. Sun still won't "officially" discuss its eight chip Opteron dynamo, but the box has become too hard to ignore. The Register has discovered a couple of Sun …

    Servers 31 May 2006, 01:42

  • McFadden gets e-government brief

    Public face of gov.IT

    Pat McFadden has taken on the role of the government's figurehead on public sector IT. A Cabinet Office spokesperson told Government Computing News that McFadden, one of two parliamentary secretaries in the department, would take responsibility for e-government matters. He replaces Jim Murphy, the junior minister who was moved …

    Policy 31 May 2006, 06:02

  • Samsung 'gaffe' sends Apple order to rival chip maker

    Analyst allegations

    Music chip maker SigmaTel is reported to have won the contract to supply Apple with audio controllers for the second-generation iPod Shuffle because Samsung went public on the Mac maker's iPod Nano plans. The claim comes from Los Angeles-based Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Craig Berger, according to a variety of reports …

    Hardware 31 May 2006, 08:50

  • Phobos – not just Java scripting for servers

    The script may be getting better

    There is now a gentle but distinct undercurrent of real world acknowledgement going on in the Java camp, where the posturing about purity is being softened by the fact that other programming languages and applications environments not only exist but are probably good at some functions. Part of that trend can be seen in the …

    Developer 31 May 2006, 09:04

  • Rochdale man fails to prevent neighbour's erection

    Council email filter cock-up

    A Rochdale man has failed to prevent his neighbour extending his property after the local council's email filtering system blocked two missives containing the word "erection", the BBC reports. Ray Kennedy, 51, of Middleton fired off three emails objecting to the construction, but only the third slipped the net, by which time …

    Media 31 May 2006, 09:21

  • AMD launches Viiv rival, Live!

    Me too media pc platform

    AMD has formally launched its answer to Intel's Viiv media PC platform, touting not only a branded hardware specification but also a raft of content providers who will support the initiative with music and movie programming. Although the AMD Live! brand was announced earlier this year, only now has the chip maker said what's …

    Hardware 31 May 2006, 09:30

  • PC offers World Cup in HD

    That grass is sooo green

    Is a brand new high-performance PC worth £1,400? What if it means you can, after all, watch the World Cup in high definition? That's the deal, anyway, from PC Heaven, which last week announced its "Match Day" HDTV range of PC Systems. It's a super-spec PC built into a living-room friendly Shuttle-style box; but the details, …

    Hardware 31 May 2006, 09:41

  • Bandit to attack open source identity management

    Novell plans another ambush

    A number of news sites have reported that Novell will soon be announcing its latest foray into open source identity management: the Bandit project (a somewhat surprising choice of name given the focus on security, privacy and so forth). Novell is sponsoring the project and contributing the engineering effort. While it is …

    Developer 31 May 2006, 09:43

  • BenQ unveils back-to-basics business phones

    21st century looks, 20th century spec?

    BenQ Mobile has unveiled a pair of "economy class" handsets pitched at business users looking for an inexpensive but good-looking handset that doesn't have to offer all the latest features favoured by consumers. The Benq-Siemens A38 is a voice-centric compact candybar phone with a 1.4in, 96 x 94, 60,500-colour display based …

    Mobile 31 May 2006, 09:58

  • China and US trade blows over Lenovo

    'Security risk' a Red herring

    China's Ministry of Commerce has complained that the US decision to chuck out Lenovo computers because of alleged "security risks" was entirely unfair and smacks of Cold War posturing. Earlier this month, the US State Department said Lenovo PCs should be removed from any secure network because of fears they contained tiny …

    Financial News 31 May 2006, 10:05

  • Norwegians to build Arctic seed vault

    Deep freeze will safeguard world's crops

    The Norwegian government announced yesterday that it will construct an Arctic deep-freeze seed vault to "safeguard the world's crop seeds from cataclysms", Reuters reports. The Global Seed Vault, due for completion in September 2007, will be dug into a mountainside on the island of Svalbard, 1,000 km south of the North Pole. It …

    Science 31 May 2006, 10:09

  • Definitive Bladerunner heads for DVD

    'Final cut', finally

    Those of you who feel the world might benefit from yet another version of Ridley Scott's Bladerunner will be delighted to learn that Warner Home Video is planning to release a 25th anniversary "definitive new version" - billed as the "final cut" of the 1982 sci-fi classic. In September, Warner will release a "restored and …

    Bootnotes 31 May 2006, 10:14

  • Serco consults on job cuts

    Company meeting this afternoon

    Serco is in discussions with staff about likely job cuts. Staff first heard the news a week ago, and the company has set up a committee to hear employees' views - the first meeting is being held this afternoon. A source at the company told the Reg that staff were surprised by the decision because the firm carried out …

    The Channel 31 May 2006, 10:47

  • Orange confirms 'free' broadband giveaway

    That'll be £30 please

    Orange has confirmed it will give "free" broadband to its mobile phone subscribers, ending weeks of hype and speculation. The France Telecom-owned cellco's offer is part of a massive rebranding exercise that sees Wanadoo tossed to one side and the ISP business renamed Orange. Or, as the firm puts it: "Orange today achieves a …

    Broadband 31 May 2006, 10:50

  • Penny-pinching CSC bosses slap staff with pay freeze

    Now is the summer of their discontent

    CSC UK employees who avoid the current round of redundancies can expect a lean summer, after bosses announced the annual July pay award will be frozen until October. When the rises finally do come into effect, they will not be backdated. An internal memo to staff from northern region CEO Kieth Wilman said: "As the …

    Financial News 31 May 2006, 11:16

  • RFID chips for migrant workers in the US?

    But tracking tech 'not ready for prime time'

    VeriChip chairman Scott Silverman's appearance on American TV this week has raised fears of the introduction of RFID technology. According to RNIF, he "bandied about the idea of chipping foreigners on national television Tuesday". RINF said Silverman appeared to be emboldened by the Bush Administration call to know "who is in …

    Media 31 May 2006, 12:03

  • HP crosses out parallel trader

    Rubbing out grey marketing

    HP has wrapped up one of three lawsuits it has filed against channel firms in the last 18 months for "grey market" trading. It also imposed more red tape on its official partners, requiring them to "track product serial numbers on all sales and delivery documentation" so it can tell easily if they have been selling grey goods …

    The Channel 31 May 2006, 12:23

  • Managing more kinds of paper

    EMC document archive services for imaging

    EMC has announced the EMC Documentum Archive Services (DAS) for Imaging software, the latest addition to its family of enterprise archiving software products. The offering provides a single, unified archiving platform for customers whose needs include collecting, retaining, securing, and retrieving all types of document images …

    Storage 31 May 2006, 12:28

  • Tom Cruise continues net crusade

    Sends in the lawyers to recapture his name

    Tom Cruise has embarked on a crusade to win back his name right across the net. Not content with taking notorious cybersquatter Jeff Burgar to WIPO for control of TomCruise.com, the diminutive film star has sent in the lawyers to get hold of other domains sporting his name. As a result, both TomCruise.net and TomCruise.org are …

    Media 31 May 2006, 12:33

  • PlusNet slips out 'basic' broadband

    Entry level, PAYG

    PlusNet has slipped out a new entry level broadband product for a tenner a month. Its "Basic" product offers speeds of up to 8 meg but is aimed at people currently on a dial-up service, or those with no net access at all. For £9.99 a month, subscribers get 50 meg of usage. Additional time online can be purchased for 0.024p per …

    Broadband 31 May 2006, 12:34

  • Shuttle XPC SN21G5 small form-factor PC

    Review An affordable barebones box with Nvidia graphics

    Shuttle is without a doubt the best known manufacturer of small form-factor (SFF) barebones PCs in the world. The SN21G5 features the now familiar fifth-generation chassis, which is getting slightly long in the tooth now, but this is a budget model. It's based on Nvidia's nForce 6100 chipset, so it has a wide range of built-in …

    Hardware 31 May 2006, 12:44

  • Acer adds dual-core CPUs to Ferrari notebooks

    Turion X2 boost

    Acer has quietly rolled out a pair of Ferrari-branded notebooks, adding the 1000 and 5000 series to the 4000 line the company already offers. The new models are based on AMD's Turion 64 X2 dual-core mobile processors. The 5000 is a black and red carbon-fibre clad machine with a 15.4in widescreen display equipped with a 1.3- …

    Hardware 31 May 2006, 13:20

  • Online attack holds files to ransom

    Rochdale nurse hit by ransomware

    Manchester Police are investigating the case of a woman whose computer files were moved into a password-protected file she could not get into. The only file she could access contained instructions on getting her files back. Helen Barrow, a student nurse, was told to buy drugs from an online store and in exchange would be sent …

    Security 31 May 2006, 13:27

  • AOL Europe COO refuses job switch

    'We're talking to Stan about his future plans', says AOL

    AOL Europe chief operating officer (COO) Stan Laurent is rumoured to have resigned amidst a row over the future direction of the internet giant. Staff were told last week that Laurent had decided not to take the top job in charge of AOL Europe's "Audience" operation, which looks after areas such as content and advertising. But …

    Broadband 31 May 2006, 14:25

  • Microsoft's OneCare virus eater goes live

    OneCare: one ring to rule them all

    Microsoft is launching OneCare, an anti-virus and firewall product, in the US tomorrow. OneCare will be available in shops or for download. For $49.95 users can sign up three computers for a year's protection. The product is targeted at individual users or small businesses that currently have poor or no protection in place - …

    Security 31 May 2006, 14:28

  • Apple offers free, green PC disposal plan

    Buy a Mac and it'll recycle your old machine

    Apple today launched an appeal to win the hearts and minds of eco-friendly Americans. It is offering to take away their old computer and dispose the of machine in an environmentally sound manner whenever punters buy a brand new Mac. The deal applies to customers buying through its online store or retail outlets. The scheme …

    Hardware 31 May 2006, 14:29

  • Police investigate angry eBayer's revenge site

    Met called in laptop dispute

    Police are investigating a disgruntled eBayer who took online revenge after paying £375 for a laptop which, he said, did not work. The buyer recovered the hard drive from the malfunctioning notebook, finding it full of personal details, allegedly including access to email accounts, 90 voyeuristic leg shots taken on the London …

    Media 31 May 2006, 14:52

  • Farmer's huge arse pops up on Google Earth

    NSFW More cornfield shenanigans

    Hottish on the heels of the 40 metre profanity in Yorkshire which provided hours of harmless amusement for Google Earth aficionados, we have just received notification of another farmer up north who has decided to greet extraterrestrial visitors to our beautiful planet in the time-honoured local fashion: Suffice to say, this …

    Media 31 May 2006, 14:54

  • Religious excuse for opposing ID cards

    Become a Hutterite

    A court in Canada has excused Hutterites from carrying photo driving licenses because the religious group believes the Bible prohibits them from having their picture taken. Justice Sal LoVecchio of the Alberta Court of Queens Bench ruled that Hutterites, who fled persecution before settling in North America in the late 19th …

    Media 31 May 2006, 15:09

  • Swedish police scupper Piratebay

    Raid unleashes torrent of abuse

    Swedish police raided 10 different locations in Sweden and seized servers in a massive crackdown on torrent site Piratebay.org today. Reports from a wide range of online Swedish news sources claim that up to 50 police officers were involved in the raids in Stockholm, Gothenburg and several other locations around the country. …

    Media 31 May 2006, 15:22

  • CA's 'material weakness' leads to more accounting woes

    Six-year bookkeeping journey

    CA this week extended its poor accounting streak, announcing that it will delay reporting fourth quarter and full year financial results. The delay stems from the software maker's failure to record sales commission expenses correctly. Instead of reporting earnings per share of 2 cents in the fourth quarter as it once forecasted …

    Financial News 31 May 2006, 20:07

  • Sun releases Fire 5,000 plan

    Trim now, profit later

    Sun Microsystems will fire up to 5,000 workers this year, as the company tries to cut costs and make it easier to post quarterly profits. All told, Sun expects to cleave off between 11 per cent and 13 per cent of its 37,500 person workforce. The firings mark the first mass layoff to take place under new CEO Jonathan Schwartz. …

    Management 31 May 2006, 21:05