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29th June 2006 Archive

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  • Arguments and gunfire

    ICANN Marrakech It's dangerous in here

    It's difficult to know if there is anything more frustrating than being unable to get on the internet at an ICANN meeting, but then I'm certain that the greengrocers of Georgia or undertakers of Uxbridge have an anecdote or two to put that in shadow. While it's nice having a much bigger conference venue than usual - no more …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 00:02

  • Vicious cat-fight breaks out at NASA over space race

    Two ladies spar over journey to the Moon

    A most unusual cat-fight broke out last night at the NASA Ames center here, as two women battled to learn when they will be able to take cheap flights into space. SpaceDev founder James Benson had plowed through the majority of his presentation on space tourism opportunities when the cackling broke out. "Will you sit down. I …

    Space 29 Jun 2006, 01:23

  • MS and Cisco back resistance to controversial patent law

    Obviousness, obviously

    The US Supreme Court is to rule on one of the most controversial aspects of patent law, "obviousness". Though the case involves car accelerator pedal technology, Microsoft and Cisco are backing one side of the case, which could set a vital precedent. US firm Teleflex has accused KSR International of infringing its pedal …

    Software 29 Jun 2006, 04:02

  • Committee criticises DCA minister

    'Disappointed' in FoI oversight

    Parliament's Committee on Constitutional Affairs has criticised the government for failing to acknowledge the "serious threat" to Freedom of Information (FOI) in how electronic records are stored. The cross party group of MPs have said they are "disappointed" with evidence provided by the Department of Constitutional Affairs …

    Public Sector 29 Jun 2006, 04:02

  • Googled by GWT - Part 2

    The tutorial continues

    GWT (or the Google Web Toolkit) provides a Java library and set of tools that allow a pure JavaScript and HTML application to be derived form a Pure Java development environment. The executable is then generated from this and is implemented in terms of JavaScript, HTML and CSS etc. As such, this allows a much higher level of …

    Developer 29 Jun 2006, 06:02

  • Spain adds levy to blank discs

    Taxes goods 'likely to be used to copy'

    The Spanish government will add a levy to blank media such as CDs and DVDs to hand over to copyright holders to compensate for the duplication of copyrighted materials. The move follows the lead of most European countries, which charge a levy on goods likely to be used to copy music or films or other copyrighted works. Though …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 08:33

  • IE blighted by flaw duo

    Brace for impact

    A brace of new Internet Explorer vulnerabilities have been disclosed on a security mailing list. The most serious of the two flaws, which has been accompanied by the publication of proof of concept exploit code, involves HTA applications and creates a means to trick users into executing malign code providing users can be …

    Enterprise Security 29 Jun 2006, 08:42

  • Virgin France cops €600k piracy fine

    Illegal download outrage

    Virgin France has been slapped with a €600,000 fine for illegally downloading Madonna's Hung Up for resale on its site - in the process ignoring an "exclusive deal reached by Warner Music France with France Telecom and Orange", the BBC reports. France Telecom had inked a €500,000 deal with Warner, which allowed it to …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 08:43

  • Nokia works with Korean vendors on Wi-Bro and WiMAX

    Analysis If you scratch my back...

    Samsung may be looking to Wi-Bro, its pre-802.16e technology, to provide it with the means to gain global presence in networking infrastructure, but it knows no wireless system will really hit the mainstream without some support from Nokia, with its huge sway over the handset market. Nokia has formed a cooperation project with …

    Mobile 29 Jun 2006, 09:18

  • Dell rejigs US units

    Focus on growth and service

    Dell has reorganised its US consumer and business units to focus on growth. Ro Parra has been put in charge of Dell's consumer and small business unit. Joe Marengi is now running its US corporate business. The changes were made several weeks ago but have only just been made public. Dell CEO Kevin Rollins told the FT the …

    Channel Register 29 Jun 2006, 09:49

  • 3! inks! deal! with! Yahoo!

    Web access on the go

    3 is to give its punters unrestricted access to the wibbly wobbly web following a deal with Yahoo!. The 3G phone outfit has signed a global agreement with the internet giant to use its mobile internet services. The pair will work together to offer 3's punters services such as Yahoo! Search, Yahoo! Mobile Web, Yahoo! Messenger …

    Mobile 29 Jun 2006, 10:11

  • Intel reportedly delays 'Conroe'... by four days

    Other roadmap adjustment alleged

    Intel has allegedly put back the shipment of its 'Conroe' Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Extreme processors by a whopping four days, Taiwanese motherboard-maker sources have claimed. How will the chip giant's fanboys cope? No reason was given for the short delay in the DigiTimes story revealing the allegation. If true, the launch will …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 10:32

  • Sapphire ready to ship first HDMI graphics card

    HDTV friendly

    Sapphire has claimed to be the first graphics card maker to offer a board with a built-in HDMI port. The card is based on ATI's CrossFire-ready Radeon X1600 GPU. The Radeon X1600 Pro HDMI's graphics core has 12 pixel pipelines and is connected across a 128-bit bus to 256MB of GDDR 3 clocked to 800MHz. The GPU runs at 500MHz. …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 11:03

  • Rank outsider poised to buy Elonex

    Cartridge recycler to recondition firm

    A printer cartridge recycler has entered the final stages of negotiations with administrators to snap up choice cuts of defunct British PC manufacturer Elonex Plc. If a deal is struck today as expected, Elonex, a firm that cultivated an upper class image with customers in the "Times Top 100" and public sector, could be pulled …

    Channel Register 29 Jun 2006, 11:15

  • Venus Express reveals double-eyed storm at planet's pole

    First results looking good

    The first scientific results are already beaming back from the European Space Agency's Venus Express mission. After spending nine days in an elongated orbit around the planet in April, the spacecraft has confirmed the existence of a huge double vortex atmospheric system at the south pole of the planet. Venus Express made its …

    Space 29 Jun 2006, 11:19

  • ATI RS600 said to be set to ship as Radeon Xpress 1250

    Go-to-market branding revealed

    The Intel-oriented version of ATI's RS600 chipset will ship as the Radeon Xpress 1250, it has emerged. According to a presentation slide posted by DailyTech, the 1250 will be support ATI's Avivo picture-processing system and be pitched at digital-home machines. The slide suggests the chipset will be suitable for Viiv-branded …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 11:22

  • Scots battle English on Andy Murray blog

    Net carnage follows 'anyone but England' slur

    The blog of Scottish tennis hopeful Andy Murray has turned into a Braveheart-style battlefield between Scots and English following the player's recent comment that he'd back Paraguay in England's opening World Cup match, and in fact he'd support "anyone but England" during the tournament. Well, the English didn't like that one …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 11:28

  • MySpace mugging: not just kids at risk

    Wild web gets wilder

    It seems that it isn't just teenage girls who are in danger on MySpace. A 22-year-old Florida man has been held up at gunpoint after going to meet an 18-year-old he made contact with on the MySpace network. According to reports, Ernest Evans had arranged a date with a woman calling herself Natalia after the two had been …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 11:33

  • Yahoo! settles click fraud

    Cash back!

    Yahoo! has settled a class action case brought against it for click fraud. The search giant will pay $4.95m in attorney fees and offer cash and discounts to thousands of unhappy advertisers. There is no limit to the final amount Yahoo! may have pay out, but the company seems confident it won't break the bank. The decision was …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 11:49

  • Penis pump judge faces stiff sentence

    Used device 'while sitting in judgment of others', court hears

    A retired US judge is himself before the beak in Bristow, Oklahoma, "on charges he used a penis pump on himself in the courtroom while sitting in judgment of others", AP reports. The trial of Donald D Thompson, 59, has reportedly provoked much courtroom merriment as the jury has been entertained by both a defence attorney and …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 11:52

  • Intel readies 'Kaylo' uni-processor server platform

    Core 2 Duo CPU plus 3000-series chipset

    Intel appears set to ship the its anticipated Xeon 3000 processor family for single-CPU servers and workstations in August - a year after details of the new product line first emerged. The chips will form part of the company's 'Kaylo' platform for such machines. According to a roadmap graphic posted by Chinese-language site …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 11:53

  • HP taps Brocade for new SAN gear

    Filling the backend

    HP has added a trio of Brocade connectivity platforms to its storage portfolio. HP's B-series will present offerings based on the Brocade SilkWorm® 4900 switch, the SilkWorm 7500 router, and the SilkWorm FR4-18i Blade for the SilkWorm 48000 Director. Brocade marketing VP Tom Buiocchi gushed: "Today's announcement underscores …

    Storage 29 Jun 2006, 12:08

  • Plextor readies Blu-ray recorder

    Autumn introduction

    Plextor will ship its first Blu-ray Disc drive in September, the storage specialist has said. The PX-B900A is an internal unit for PCs and will support both single- and dual-layer recordable and rewriteable media. The drive connects to the host across via an ATAPI link. Like other BD recorders, it operates as 2x speed, …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 12:41

  • Pure pushes PocketDAB sound, battery life

    Updated model offers FM tuner, Sennheiser 'phones

    Pure has updated its PocketDAB portable digital radio, boosting the battery life, trimming the weight and adding an FM tuner for good measure and overseas jaunts. Oh, and it's now available in rather more tasty black attire. The PocketDAB 1500 retails for around £90 inc. VAT. That buys you not only the player but a set of …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 13:02

  • Guardian blushes red in tech quiz challenge

    MPs make daily eat its words

    The story began on 9 March, when Richard Sarson flung down the dataglove by writing Techno world has MPs beat, in which he put the number of technically unchallenged MPs at no more than 20 or 30 and expressed the hope that implementing the ID card bill would be the thing that made the rest of them care. Apparently, MPs do use …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 13:15

  • Net neut now needs a miracle

    Or a filibuster

    Barring an unlikely Senate filibuster, the issue of net neutrality has almost certainly died for this year's legislative session in Washington DC. On Wednesday, a Senate commerce panel failed to attach the provisions preventing operators "from blocking, degrading or prioritising service on their networks" to this year's …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 13:19

  • Korean carrier readies 'lipstick' phone

    World's most compact slider phone?

    South Korean telco KTF has unveiled one of the world's most compact slider phones, so small it's shorter than a lipstick dispenser and perfectly sized for any purse, the company's handset design subsidiary claimed. The EV-K130 - it's less formally known as the Ever Mini Style - weighs a mere 73.5g and measures 8.2 x 3.7 x 1. …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 13:41

  • Google payments service arrives at last

    Check out Checkout

    Google's long-predicted payment service has finally arrived. Called Google Checkout, the service goes live in the US today and will be available elsewhere soon. The search giant promises users easy purchasing and the choice to keep email addresses private. An icon for Checkout will appear next to AdWords ads for shops using …

    Applications 29 Jun 2006, 13:51

  • Indonesians cuff Playboy model

    Indecency rap for Playmate

    Police in Indonesia have arrested the country's first Playboy model and her editor-in-chief on a decency violation rap. Playmate Kartika Gunawan posed in lingerie for the first local edition of the magazine, which provoked a storm among the country's Muslim population. Reaction by hardliners prompted the publishers to up sticks …

    Entertainment 29 Jun 2006, 14:16

  • LG touts 'super 3G' widescreen slider phone

    High-speed video calls

    Korean industrial giant LG this week attempted to attract local buyers with a new HSDPA handset designed to allow them to make video calls in widescreen, though it'll be handy for video playback too, we'd guess. LG's offering is the Cyon-branded slider dubbed both the LG-SGH100 and the LG-KH1000. Not only does it operate as …

    Reg Hardware 29 Jun 2006, 14:16

  • AOL bidding continues

    Comment As telcos muscle in on European ISP market

    The AOL rumours just won't go away. In Europe it appears that the company is up for sale, in the US the management still maintains that it is expanding in Europe. This week is the turn of Telecom Italia to be put in the headlines, believed now to be in the front running to buy AOL's German and French operations. So why would a …

    Telecoms 29 Jun 2006, 14:25

  • Chat sites must take care of their kids

    Interview LunarStorm of opinion

    The companies behind social networking sites are failing in their duty of care by not protecting their most vulnerable users, according to Matt Colebourne, CEO of digital society site, LunarStorm. He argues that companies like MySpace need to bite the bullet and put proper security systems in place, even if that means spending a …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 14:50

  • Red Hat shows strong first quarter

    Hit with patent claim

    Red Hat posted good results for the first quarter of 2007, ended 31 May, with revenues up 38 per cent to $84m. Subscriptions made up $71.5m of this, with training and services providing the other $12.5m But Wall Street wasn't impressed and pushed Red Hat shares on Nasdaq down five per cent. GAAP net income for the period was $ …

    Financial News 29 Jun 2006, 14:54

  • Canadians go ultrasonic for tooth regrowth implant

    Shane MacGowan on the first plane to Alberta

    Scientists in Canada have patented an ultrasound device which they say will help regrow broken teeth. A team at the University of Alberta have miniaturised a technology called low intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) so a wireless growth-stimulating 'chip' can be implanted into a patient's mouth. The regenerative effect of …

    Biology 29 Jun 2006, 14:59

  • Dell adds 'Captain Kirk' tool to premium support package

    Put a 'plus' on your platinum

    Dell's extended apology to its corporate customers continued this week with the rollout out of a new server and storage support option. Customers have now been blessed with the choice of signing up for Dell's Platinum Plus service. That's an upgrade over the boring old Platinum service that Dell offered before, and existing …

    Storage 29 Jun 2006, 15:08

  • Cellcos ally to keep their hands on beach front spectrum for 4G

    Comment Lobbying regulators to avoid paying huge license fees

    Six of the world's largest mobile operators have formed the Next Generation Mobile Network (NGMN) Forum, aiming to use their collective lobbying might to ensure they can run fourth generation mobile broadband networks in their existing spectrum without significant additional licensing fees. Vodafone, T-Mobile, Orange, KPN, …

    Mobile 29 Jun 2006, 15:14

  • RSA in three-way mating dance

    EMC moves out of the shadows

    RSA Security has confirmed it is talks with at least one potential bidder after the New York Times said storage giant EMC was closing in on the company. The NYT said RSA was talking to EMC "or at least one other bidder” about an acquisition which could be worth more than $1.8bn. The firm’s board will review final bids before …

    Storage 29 Jun 2006, 16:11

  • Intergraph revives patent cash cow

    Clipper taken to Fujitsu, NEC and Toshiba

    An old microprocessing patent that has in previous years has nabbed Intel, Dell and others was sprung on a clutch of South East Asian computer firms today. Intergraph, which started out doing missile guidance systems in the 60s, acquired a microprocessor technology it called the Clipper and sold for a brief few years as an …

    Servers 29 Jun 2006, 16:12

  • Spanish revolt against blank media levy

    ¡No!

    Spanish activists have launched a web-based campaign to fight the recently-imposed levy on blank media which will "place a tax on blank CDs, DVDs and even flash memory sticks", as we reported earlier today. Todoscontraelcanon.es (all against the levy) is collecting signatures under a "Your Signature Counts" slogan, and vows …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 20:09

  • Supremes axe Gitmo kangaroo courts

    Fair trials prove stubbornly popular

    The US Supreme Court has axed a pillar of the Bush Administration's national security strategy by insisting that prisoners in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba not be subjected to the kangaroo courts, otherwise known as "military tribunals," that the Bushies have attempted to use in disposing of terror suspects. The Court had previously …

    Music and Media 29 Jun 2006, 22:42

  • Top engineer quits NASA ahead of shuttle launch

    Storm clouds of all kinds gathering

    A senior NASA engineer has quit just days before the countdown for the Discovery Space Shuttle, citing management differences. Charlie Camarda, previously director of engineering at the Johnson Space Center, with a history of 30 years working for NASA, has stepped down saying he could no longer tolerate the way management …

    Space 29 Jun 2006, 22:48

  • Solaris dials domain zero with Xen

    VMware who?

    Sun Microsystems will release sample code next month giving Solaris 10 its first injection of virtualization on Intel and AMD hardware, finally expected in 2007. Sun will release a snap shot of code to the OpenSolaris community, which runs on the community's Xen virtualization technology and provides domain zero support for …

    Servers 29 Jun 2006, 22:49

  • EMC buys three more letters for $2.1bn

    We'll take R-S-A, Pat

    EMC continued its all out shift toward software today by throwing down $2.1bn for security specialist RSA. Earlier in the day, the New York Times reported that RSA had offered itself up to suitors and that EMC was the most likely candidate to go through with the buy. EMC later confirmed this report by revealing that it will pay …

    Storage 29 Jun 2006, 23:30