22nd June 2006 Archive

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Commission fails to fix passenger data debacle

Policy 'boots controversy into the long grass'

Problems with the European Commission's passenger data deal have not been fixed by the commission's latest proposal and opponents may have to resort to a human rights case to fix them, according to a leading data protection expert. Dr Chris Pounder, a data protection specialist with Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind OUT-LAW, …

Music and Media 22 Jun 2006, 00:02
The call for robotics standards is on

RoboBiz How to make the abnormal normal

The robotics industry's penchant for bespoke gadgets has so far led to a slow moving field where every company and hobbyist has to spend huge amounts of time and money on new designs. A growing number of people have started to point to a lack of hardware and software standards as one of the main reasons robotics has stalled and …

Rise of the Machines 22 Jun 2006, 01:41
Ex-CA exec pleads guilty in hush money handout scandal

So much for compliance

A former Computer Associates International executive has pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice after he attempted to buy customers' silence over a company accounting scandal. Thomas Bennett, was a former business development executive with Computer Associates, now known as CA. With 15,000 employees, CA is the world's fifth …

Financial News 22 Jun 2006, 01:51
Europe to axe digital kit copyright taxes

Cheaper MP3 players, phones, set-top boxes for all?

Digital music devices are set to become cheaper in Europe if the European Commission has its way. It wants to abolish levies member states' governments add to prices to compensate artists and musicians for copyright infringement. According to an EC report, a copy of which made its way to the Financial Times, the EC wants …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 07:02
Net neutrality has ruined the web

Comment Telco wisdom

I thought I knew something about networking, but according to an animated cartoon by telco lobbyists, I've been laboring under numerous misconceptions. For example, I'd always believed it possible to increase both capacity and bandwidth without the kind of traffic discrimination that the telcos would like to introduce. …

Networks 22 Jun 2006, 07:53
Security software: Microsoft accused of predatory pricing

How low can you go?

Microsoft has been accused of potentially stifling innovation in the security sector and threatening to kill the competition through predatory pricing. Sunbelt Software, has published an interesting set of numbers purporting to show that Microsoft's collection of new Windows and email security products and services undercuts …

Channel Register 22 Jun 2006, 08:18
IT blamed for tax credits problems

System 'inflexible', adjudicator says

The adjudicator for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has highlighted inflexibilities in the department's systems. Dame Barbara Mills, the adjudicator for complaints about HMRC, the Valuation Office Agency, the Public Guardianship Office and the Insolvency Service, has highlighted the IT problems in her annual report. She said …

Public Sector 22 Jun 2006, 08:53
Toshiba unveils 1TB HDD/HD DVD recorder

Monster box

Toshiba will next month ship the world's first consumer-oriented HD DVD player capable of writing to next-generation recordable media, the Japanese giant said today. The unit also features a whopping terabyte of hard disk storage - sufficient for 130 hours' HD content, the company said. The RD-A1 goes on sale in Japan on 14 …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 09:10
Nokia, Sanyo scrap phone JV scheme

Better off working separately

Nokia and Sanyo have pulled the plug on plans to create a joint venture to manufacture and market mobile phones for CDMA markets. Both companies said they had now called a halt to negotiations made public in February this year. Neither company detailed the reasons behind the move, simply saying their investigation into the …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 09:27
ComputerLand takes O2 managed services business

Telco switches from Computacenter

ComputerLand has swiped a chunk of services business at O2 which was formerly held by reseller and services giant Computacenter. Mobile telco O2 wanted to merge its desktop and server managed services into a single contract, and had put the business out to tender. Computacenter supplied desktop services to O2 and its previous …

Channel Register 22 Jun 2006, 09:44
Coke sires son of Mycokemusic.com

As EU prepares to prick pirates' bubble

Coca Cola is planning another music venture to replace Mycokemusic.com, the music download site it is closing at the end of July. A spokesman confirmed it was considering options, but would not be drawn any further on whether it was scheming, say, a music download service for mobile phones. Coca Cola said in a statement the …

Music and Media 22 Jun 2006, 09:47
Mitsubishi readies 30GB HD DVD-R media

Ready for the Toshiba RD-A1

Mitsubishi today said it would begin selling recordable dual-layer, 30GB HD DVD media late next month, just after Toshiba ships the world's first consumer PVR to support HD DVD-R. The disc maker said it will offer a 30GB dual-layer product. The single-sided HD DVD-R DL can hold 150 minutes' of HD content encoded at a 24Mbps …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 09:51
Tiscali clears email backlog

Blames software snag for snafu

Tiscali UK says it has almost cleared a backlog of emails following a software snag that hit the ISP on Tuesday. The glitch meant that some people were unable to send email while others reported that emails were being delayed or even lost. A service status update posted on Tiscali's website yesterday afternoon read: "Some …

Telecoms 22 Jun 2006, 10:03
UK admits just half of methane emissions

Official figures in doubt

Methane emissions in the UK could be twice as high as government estimates, new European research suggests. The findings, reported in today's New Scientist magazine, come from Peter Bergamaschi of the European commission joint research centre at Ispra in Italy. Rather than taking countries' own internal estimates at face value …

Science 22 Jun 2006, 10:04
eBay ashtray reflectosmut woman reveals all

Exclusive pics of jubtastic vendor

Pity if you will the poor eBay vendor who earlier this week revealed rather more than she'd intended when photographing a highly-reflective stainless steel ashtray. This was not, it turns out, an attempt to inject a bit of spice into the second-hand ashtray market as we suggested... Hello Lester Thank you for the article you …

Music and Media 22 Jun 2006, 10:17
ATI IGP line to step over Shader Model 3.0

RS700 geared for DirectX 10, apparently

ATI's first DirectX 10-supporting integrated chipset will debut next year and be fabbed at 65nm, according to roadmap details leaked onto the web this week. The upshot: ATI is jumping straight from Shader Model 2.0 to Shader Model 4.0. The chipset, codenamed 'RS700', may ship under ATI's CrossFire Xpress 3200 brand, if a …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 10:20
How to stop Microsoft's WGA phoning home

Tool versus tool

A firewall testing website has released a tool it says will spike Microsoft’s controversial WGA tool. Firewallleaktester.com is careful to state its RemoveWGA tool does not affect the “validation” element of Microsoft’s WGA software. The company’s tool targets the “notifications” element of the WGA tool, preventing it from …

Security 22 Jun 2006, 11:02
AMD's Socket F Opterons to ship as 22xx, 82xx series

Will ship 12xx versions on Socket AM2, too

AMD will upgrade its Opteron model-numbering scheme when it launches its 1,207-pin Socket F server processor interconnect in the coming months, it has emerged. The move will also see debut of DDR 2 support for both workstation- and server-oriented chips, none of which will be available in single-core forms. According to …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 11:04
EC mulls cut in telco regulation - report

Price controls have worked, apparently

The European Commission (EC) is due to publish proposals next week that could free Europe's incumbent telcos from price controls and other forms of regulation. Draft proposals seen by the Financial Times talk of cutting regulation in seven of 18 telecoms markets. The proposals suggest price controls and other forms of …

Telecoms 22 Jun 2006, 11:08
Leak reveals ATI 80nm product plans

Roadmap

ATI will offer 80nm GPUs across the board following the process' debut in September, with only the top-of-the-range left out, a leaked roadmap from graphics card maker GeCube has revealed. The slide comes courtesy of Chinese-language site HKEPC. At the top of the list we have the RV560/RV570 variants, both with 12 pixel …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 11:32
Private profit from public investment?

Comment More on the net neutrality debate

Even after living in America for seven years, I still get surprised by how polarised debate can be on some issues. I can well remember getting in a cab in Vegas and being taken on the freeway that runs along the back of the strip to my hotel. The cab driver launched into a tirade against the then president, and I felt that …

Music and Media 22 Jun 2006, 11:37
Scientists call for teaching of facts of evolution

Here we go again...

Scientists across the world are calling for the "evidence-based facts" of evolution to be taught to all children. The InterAcademy Panel, a grouping of more than 60 international science academies, warned in a statement that information about evolution was being withheld from many children. "[We] have learned that [in some …

Biology 22 Jun 2006, 11:47
MS enriches Creative Commons with PowerPoints™

Plug me in

Readers have noted the endless banality of the "Creative Commons" here at El Reg before. Now all that's set to change. The terabytes of Sunday doodles and absent-minded loops which are already available for 'remixing', will soon be joined by purchasing lists, sales forecasts, corporate mission statements, and World Cup All Time …

Applications 22 Jun 2006, 12:19
ASA to probe Big Brother golden ticket fix claims

Draw was rigged, complaints suggest

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) will investigate complaints from TV viewers and newspapers that the Big Brother golden ticket draw was fixed, The Guardian reports. One hundred golden tickets were hidden in special edition KitKat bars distributed around the UK. One lucky ticket holder would eventually secure a guest …

Entertainment 22 Jun 2006, 12:24
Public workers say No2ID...

...And no to foreigners too

Members of Unison, the UK's largest union, voted for a motion to oppose ID Cards yesterday at its annual conference in Bournemouth. Conference delegates were also fed the usual dubious stories about the foreign countries taking on work for Britain's public sector under offshore outsourcing deals. The union managed to say …

Public Sector 22 Jun 2006, 12:28
HDMI 1.3 upgrade finalised, published

PS3 to offer souped up HD interface, says Sony

The HDMI HD equipment interconnect standard has been updated, the seven companies behind the technology announced today. One of them, Sony, said its PlayStation 3 will support the new version of the interface. HDMI 1.3 adds a number of enhancements to the current specification. For starters, it increases the interface's data …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 12:47
Retailer prices up boxed Intel 'Conroe'

£775 for a Core 2 Extreme, anyone?

Intel's upcoming 2.93GHz Core 2 Extreme X6800 gaming-oriented processor will set you back just over £775 if pre-order prices posted by one UK supplier is anything to go by. Or you have the regular 1.83GHz Core 2 Duo E6300 for under £153 if you fancy a cheaper 'Conroe'. Overclockers UK is now taking orders for the next- …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 13:13
Will the internet die in September?

ICANN Marrakech We preview the agenda(s)

There will be much to discuss at ICANN's Marrakech meeting which kicks off this Saturday, but one question rises about all others: what will happen to the internet on 30 September 2006? ICANN has its own agenda to discuss, but that agenda and what people actually want to discuss are a little different. As is the fundamental …

Music and Media 22 Jun 2006, 13:33
Cleaner combustion from Atlanta researchers

Cutting carbon monoxide emissions

US researchers have designed a combustion chamber whose emissions of carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide are close to zero. The researchers also say their design is so simple it would be cheaper to manufacture and maintain than current combustors. The combustor, which burns both gas and liquid fuels, produces nitrogen oxide …

Physics 22 Jun 2006, 14:24
Samsung Q1 ultra-mobile PC

Review Nice hardware, shame about the OS?

The jury's still out on whether Microsoft's ultra-mobile PC (UMPC) form-factor is the next step in the evolution of mobile computing or just a development dead-end sandwiched somewhere between notebooks, PDAs and PMPs. For now, all we can do is judge whether the first-generation hardware can actually cut it as a portable PC, and …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 14:43
Redstone snaps up Symphony Telecom for £17m

It's a mobile SME thing

Redstone plc is to buy mobile outfit Symphony Telecom for about £17m as part of plans to expand its business in the UK. Symphony Telecom is a distributor of mobile and fixed line telecoms to small and medium sized businesses (SMBs). It also acts as a distributor for all five mobile network operators within the UK. Once the …

Telecoms 22 Jun 2006, 14:43
Casio snaps 7.2Mp anti-shake camera

Watch the birdie...

Casio has updated its Exilim digital camera line with a 7.2-megapixel image-grabber, 3x optical zoom and sufficient anti-blur signal processing to cope with the shakiest of paws. The EX-Z70 incorporates not only an 'easy mode' for the complete novice, but also a 'best shot' setting which grabs a series of shots, starting …

Reg Hardware 22 Jun 2006, 15:02
SOA 2.0 madness

Sign the petition, help put a stop to it

Fed up with big analyst firms and IT vendors inventing divisive vocabulary and creating hype to further their own agendas? Well, you're not alone. Following an attempt by some of the bigger players to introduce yet another term into the already confused area of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), a group of analysts and SOA …

Developer 22 Jun 2006, 15:17
Novell board axes CEO

Blood on the carpet

Novell's board of directors has voted to oust Jack Messman as CEO, effective immediately. The firm announced the move today in a bid to put a rocket up the firm's growth strategy, which has suffered since it made the switch to open source. Messman said in March it would take him two years to turn Novell around following …

Financial News 22 Jun 2006, 15:26
Office 12 to have own VSTO

A step towards Version 3

When Microsoft’s Office 12 appears, towards the end of this year, it is going to present developers with a new set of challenges as users seek to exploit added functionality in the revised applications. That is where Cypress comes into play. Think of "Cypress" and you think of `tree’ - quite a good code name for an application …

Developer 22 Jun 2006, 15:49
NEC to sell Packard-Bell to eMachines founder?

¥10bn punted for European PC arm

NEC is mulling an offer for its Packard Bell PC business, according to reports. Packard Bell Europe communications director Hughes Gontier pretty well confirmed whispers yesterday that the founder of eMachines had punted ¥10bn for the company. He said: "French staff were told on Friday that NEC had received an offer." He …

Channel Register 22 Jun 2006, 16:24
AT&T retroactively adjusts privacy policy

What we meant to say is, you don't have any

Effectively exposed as a subcontractor for the National Security Agency's data harvesting program, AT&T has chosen now to impose a new privacy policy on its subscribers. In place of a promise that AT&T would only disclose phone records to "respond to subpoenas, court orders or other legal process, to the extent required and/or …

Music and Media 22 Jun 2006, 16:31
Jail time for payola search engines

Point and clink

A South Carolina senator has proposed that search engines which offer pay-to-play deals should face sanctions - including jail time for the company executives. The latest amendment to this year's doorstop telecomms legislation, S.2686, was tabled by Jim DeMint (R), and targets search sites which "prioritize or give preferential …

Financial News 22 Jun 2006, 21:38