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22nd November 2006 Archive

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  • Vodafone buys in to enterprise mobility

    When is a mobile company not a mobile company?

    Vodafone has acquired Aspective and Isis Telecommunications Management; two UK-based consultancies that specialise in the mobilisation of customer relationship management and sales force applications, as well as providing telecommunications services to small and medium businesses. At the same time, it has signed an exclusive …

    Mobile 22 Nov 2006, 05:02

  • Carphone Warehouse calls in 3PAR for 24TB arrays

    Virtualises storage for its utility data centre

    Carphone Warehouse has tapped storage newbie 3PAR for 24TB of virtualised disk storage. The replicated pair of 3PAR InServe S400 disk arrays will provide virtualised storage as part of Carphone's move to a utility data centre. They replace IBM ESS-800 storage boxes and will support critical applications such as Carphone's …

    The Channel 22 Nov 2006, 09:18

  • Nominet puts its future on the line

    UK registry owner holds second EGM

    UK registry owner Nominet is this morning holding its second extraordinary general meeting in a year in Oxford in an effort to expand its business and modernise its processes. Following a disastrous attempt eight months ago to rewrite its corporate make-up, where the company faced a revolt by members of its own advisory board …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 09:39

  • Student tasering will save the world from Linux

    Letters And prevent global warming

    Lots to cover today, so let's get right to it. We start with a dig at Scott "The Green" McNealy, who described this week how he and Sun could stop global warming armed with nothing more than a bic biro, a used washing-up liquid bottle and some sticky-backed plastic (OK, maybe that wasn't quite what he said, but you know what we …

    Letters 22 Nov 2006, 09:56

  • Computer Misuse Act could ban security tools

    Publishing software flaws now an offence?

    The new Police and Justice Act, published today, could criminalise legitimate IT security activity. There are fears among security experts that changes it makes to the Computer Misuse Act will make it illegal to distribute some vital tools. The new law modifies the Computer Misuse Act of 1990, the cornerstone of Britain's anti- …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 10:03

  • Apple iPhone 'to use PortalPlayer chip'

    Nvidia GPU in video-centric iPod, too

    MP3 player chip maker PortalPlayer will see one of its media processors integrated into Apple's much-rumoured iPhone, a US analyst has claimed. And since PortalPlayer should soon be a Nvidia subsidiary, the deal, if true, is good news for the graphics chip company too. Actually, doubly so since, according to Friedman, …

    Hardware 22 Nov 2006, 10:06

  • Police pilot roadside fingerprinting

    Pull over, show your index finger

    Ten police forces in England and Wales are to test handheld fingerprint checking devices on the roadside. The forces' automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) teams, who already cross check vehicle number plates against databases, will be able to verify a person's identity within five minutes without having to take them to a …

    Policy 22 Nov 2006, 10:12

  • O2 trial could see a picocell in every home

    Evening Standard:O2 wants to microwave our kids

    O2 is to trial picocell technology which, in theory, could see every Be customer doubling up as a VoIP access point from the comfort of their own home. The concept is pretty simple: a tiny cell site is placed in the customer’s home, similar in size to a Wi-Fi access point, which allows nearby GSM handsets to connect and then …

    Mobile 22 Nov 2006, 10:14

  • Report raises child index alarm

    Protection measures could put children more at risk

    The Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR) says that government policies designed to safeguard children could divert resources and create a surveillance culture where parents are sidelined. Titled Children's Databases: Safety and Privacy, the report was written by the FIPR for the Information Commissioner's Office ( …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 10:24

  • The database abstraction framework strikes back

    Part 2: C++ Generic Coding

    In my last article, I looked at one of the differences between the C++ and Java communities; the availability of application development frameworks that have a profound effect on programmer productivity. I mentioned specifically the Java example of Hibernate and tried to identify reasons why the Java community is more innovative …

    Developer 22 Nov 2006, 10:33

  • US teen fires up fusion reactor

    Hot basement project

    A 17-year-old US student has, after two years' work and 1,000 hours of research, managed to achieve nuclear fusion in the basement of his parents' Oakland Township home, The Detroit Free Press reports. Thiago Olson's Fusor was knocked together with bits and pieces bought on the internet and blagged from manufacturers at a …

    Science 22 Nov 2006, 10:38

  • Muslim clerics slam Koranic ringtones

    'Un-Islamic' verses

    Indian Muslim clerics have condemned the use of verses from the Koran as mobile ringtones, Yahoo! reports. Mohammed Asumin Qazmi, an official at the Dar-ul Uloom seminary in the northern Indian town of Deoband, said the verses were "not meant for entertainment", and declared that "anyone who persists in using these should be …

    Mobile 22 Nov 2006, 10:42

  • Intel 'Bearlake' to support HDMI, HDCP?

    Integrated chipsets ready for consumer electronics applications

    Intel's upcoming integrated G35 chipset, part of the 'Bearlake' series, will incorporate support for HDMI and HDCP, leaked company information indicates. A slide published by Chinese-language site HKEPC reveals the G35's integrated GPU will be capable of feeding an HDMI port, a pre-requisite for driving the latest HD TVs. The …

    Hardware 22 Nov 2006, 11:04

  • Crayfish enjoy a bit of sub-dom: official

    Scientists probe 'humping' behaviour

    Scientists from Georgia State University have rather splendidly discovered that crayfish "act out elaborate rituals of dominance and submission", Reuters reports. Specifically, Fadi Issa and Donald Edwards found said crustaceans "display... a complex ritual, when two males engaged in pseudocopulatory behaviour to signify their …

    Science 22 Nov 2006, 11:20

  • Brocade continues green streak

    'Bout the Benjamins

    Storage switch maker Brocade continued its run of financial good form by posting its best ever revenues, and said its acquisiton of arch-rival McData could close as soon as January. Brocade brought in $208.8m in Q4, 44 per cent up on revenues for the same period in 2005. It beat its own best expectations of $205m, which it had …

    Storage 22 Nov 2006, 11:21

  • Blogging for fun and profit

    Site kick starts a blogging business model

    New website ReviewMe has just hit the web, offering a unique way for bloggers to make money - by being paid to review products and services. Making money out of blogging isn't easy, a few Google ad-words aren't even going to cover the cost of the coffee drunk while typing, let alone the cost of running a website. So bloggers …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2006, 11:28

  • i-mate unveils candybar-sized PDA phone

    Launches a BlackBerry alternative too

    Smart phone seller i-mate has launched its latest Windows Mobile handhelds: a follow up to the QWERTY keyboard equipped JAQ it launched a few months ago, and a classic tablet-like PDA phone squeezed into a candybar form-factor. The JAQ3 sports a 2.4in, 320 x 240, 65,536-colour touch screen above the keyboard. It's a quad- …

    Phones 22 Nov 2006, 11:29

  • Vista's EULA product activation worries

    Walking on thin ice?

    The terms of Microsoft's End User License Agreement (EULA) for its upcoming Vista operating system raises the conflict between two fundamental principles of contract law. The first, and more familiar, is that parties to a contract can generally agree to just about anything, as long as what they agree to doesn't violate the law …

    Operating Systems 22 Nov 2006, 11:40

  • O2 readies XDA Flame PMP phone

    Why wait for the Zune phone?

    As Apple prepares to take the iPod into mobile phone territory, so O2 may be preparing to pitch its XDA smart phone line as an alternative portable media player platform, if allegedly leaked marketing collateral for its upcoming XDA Flame is to be believed. According to a flyer posted on a Pocket PC Thoughts forum, the Flame …

    Mobile 22 Nov 2006, 11:48

  • Alcatel slaps Microsoft with patent infringement claim

    Meanwhile, in the big leagues...

    Fresh from Steve Ballmer's claim Linux infringes on Microsoft IP, Microsoft has itself succumbed to another accusation it is illegally using someone else's technology. Telecoms giant Alcatel has opened legal proceedings against Microsoft seeking damages and costs for the alleged infringement of seven patents. The disputed …

    Software 22 Nov 2006, 11:54

  • Net pedants pile into Casino Royale

    Now pay attention, 007

    Those of you who have yet to see* Daniel Craig giving it some stick in Casino Royale will undoubtedly get added pleasure from the experience armed with www.moviemistakes.com's comprehensive list of the film's outrages against continuity and fact. For example, one sharp-eyed critic notes: "When Bond first gets into his Aston …

    Bootnotes 22 Nov 2006, 11:56

  • Verisign to restate years of financials

    Stock options again

    The Verisign board has decided to restate more than four years worth of financial reports after an internal review found stock options may have made them unreliable. The investigation by the online transaction security firm's independent directors is ongoing. "Incorrect measurement dates and other administrative inconsistencies …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2006, 12:51

  • Tech Data sales up, profits down

    There may be trouble ahead

    Technology distie Tech Data made sales of $5.4bn for the third quarter ended 31 October, an increase of seven per cent on the third quarter of fiscal 2006. But net income was down to $9.6m compared to $23m in the same period last year. This includes $6.1m charges for restructuring European business and $2.8m paid to …

    The Channel 22 Nov 2006, 12:52

  • UK child protection database 'misguided', critics warn

    Think of the children

    UK government policies designed to safeguard kids might backfire by diverting valuable resources while creating a "culture of surveillance" where the role of parents is sidelined, according to a report for the Information Commissioner published on Wednesday. The study, Children's Databases: Safety and Privacy (PDF), takes a …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 13:03

  • Home Office to grab for more CCTV power

    Plods not happy with law, ICO, or surveillance quality

    The police and Home Office are to press for regulatory powers that will insist that every one of the 4.2 million CCTV cameras in Britain is upgraded so it can be deputised to gather police evidence and provide a vehicle for emerging technologies that will automatically identify people and detect if they are doing anything …

    Policy 22 Nov 2006, 13:20

  • Londoners like free HD TV

    Freeview-based HD trial shock result revealed

    UK broadcasters the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five have hailed the trial run pumping out HD content across the Freeview free-to-air digital TV network a "technical success", paving the way for terrestrially broadcast nationwide HDTV in the very near future. The trial was launched in June this year, sending HD TV broadcasts to …

    Hardware 22 Nov 2006, 14:14

  • Sony punching out PS3s 'smoothly'

    New kit being airlifted in to US, exec claims

    Sony's PlayStation 3 production lines are "now running smoothly", a senior company executive has claimed. The consumer electronics giant is "focused on our goal of shipping a million units to retail by the end of the calendar year", he added. The claim comes from Sony Computer Entertainment America communications chief David …

    Games 22 Nov 2006, 14:27

  • Met Police in laptop theft security flap

    Nothing to see here, please move along

    Three laptops, containing the payroll and pension details of more than 15,000 Met Police officers, have been nicked from the offices of LogicaCMG, the outsourcing firm that handles the payments. It's unclear whether or not sensitive details stored on the laptops were encrypted even though the Met Police describe the risk of …

    Security 22 Nov 2006, 14:56

  • Jilted marquee company's revenge turns sour

    'Cheap and tacky' wedding email goes global

    A Kiwi marquee company has apologised to a bride-to-be and her fiance after the company office manager emailed the couple saying their wedding plans were "cheap, nasty and tacky". Aucklander Steve Hausman emailed Great Marquee Company saying he and fiancee Paula Brosnahan would not require the company's services for their …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 15:29

  • Nominet wins EGM votes by a whisker

    0.97 per cent brings UK registry into 21st century.

    UK registry Nominet has won two crucial votes at its extraordinary general meeting this morning - but only just. In what the company's CEO Lesley Cowley called "a bit of a test", the request that the company be allowed to expand its business beyond running the .uk registry passed by just 0.97 per cent - a margin that may have …

    Financial News 22 Nov 2006, 15:37

  • Continental Airlines in NY time stretch miracle

    Day too short? Try our extended stopovers

    Those readers who find there simply aren't enough hours in the day to get stuff done are advised to check out Continental Airlines' return flights to the US of A: now complete with in-flight meal, a choice of entertainment and some bonus time in New York to catch up on that vital work: A good effort: four short hours extended …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 16:01

  • USB crowned as high speed SIM standard

    Still no idea what it's for, though

    ETSI has finally agreed a standard for high-speed access to the SIM used in GSM mobile phones, after several years of prevarication and filibustering the winner is...USB. SIM chips in phones currently communicate with a handset over a serial connection at a speed of 9600bps, which is fine for exchanging cryptographic keys or …

    Mobile 22 Nov 2006, 16:26

  • Chinese web pornographer jailed for life

    Sun sets on 'Pornographic Summer'

    A Chinese web pornographer who founded the country's "largest pornography website" has been sentenced to life imprisonment, Reuters reports. The Taiyuan Intermediate People's Court jailed 28-year-old Chen Hui for his part in establishing "Pornographic Summer" and three other unnamed sites. Established in 2004, Pornographic …

    Media 22 Nov 2006, 16:43

  • Spyware firms pay token fines to FTC

    Can't pay, will only pay $50K

    Two alleged spyware operations have settled lawsuits brought by the US Federal Trade Commission. Odysseus Marketing and its principal, Walter Rines, along with John Robert Martinson, the principal of Mailwiper, and its successor, Spy Deleter, have agreed to be bound by injunctions against exploiting security vulnerabilities to …

    Security 22 Nov 2006, 16:57

  • Panasas begins second storage assault on Linux clusters

    SC06 Got parallel?

    Storage start-up Panasas has polished off the first major product revamp in company history with a bang. It secured a mega-win to provide Los Alamos National Laboratory with mounds and mounds of clustered storage. Earlier this month, Panasas released a pair of new hardware systems that make use of its flagship parallel file …

    Storage 22 Nov 2006, 18:38

  • Borland takes battle to Eclipse with JBuilder 2007

    Never mind the width

    After months of promises, and with backing from the Eclipse Foundation, Borland has released an overhauled edition of JBuilder that promises to overtake Eclipse on quality. JBuilder 2007 updates Borland's previously closed-source Java development environment by employing the Eclipse open source framework and by swapping in …

    Developer 22 Nov 2006, 18:45

  • Unpatched bug bites Apple Mac OS X

    Isn't this only supposed to happen to Windoze users?

    Security researchers have discovered a serious, unpatched vulnerability in Mac OS X. The memory corruption bug creates a means for attackers to take control of even fully patched systems. Flaws in the way the AppleDiskImageController handles corrupted DMG image structures could be exploited to trigger memory corruption and the …

    Hardware 22 Nov 2006, 18:48

  • Ten things you need to know about SOA

    Elusive definitions

    SOA (service oriented architecture) is a big deal, I like it. But it isn't the be all and end all of computing. Here are ten things you need to know about SOA. 1. You can't sell SOA. SOA allows your company to be more flexible. SOA enables the agile enterprise. Oh, yes. But you can't build a business case or cost …

    Developer 22 Nov 2006, 19:06