2nd January 2007 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

A Brief History of Information

Part 1 The word that means everything - and nothing

Kierkegaard said that irony was "as baffling as depicting an elf wearing a hat that makes him invisible." He's lucky he never encountered information. The word seems to stand for everything, and nothing. "Information" describes everything from a precise mathematical property of communication systems, to discrete statements of …

Bootnotes 2 Jan 2007, 00:02
Security firm erects threat-level aggregator

Brown alert

Security intelligence firm CERTStation has established a threat level aggregation service. The CERTStation service pulls together real time risk assessments from eight vulnerability watch services (including Symantec ThreatCon, SANSInfoCon and CERTStation in-house service) on one Flash-tastic page. At the time of writing …

Security 2 Jan 2007, 06:02
Novatel Merlin XU870 ExpressCard 34 'super 3G' datacard

First UK Review High-speed net access for the hottest laptops

ExpressCard 34 add-ins are few and far between, leading a fair few notebook users to question the wisdom of laptop makers who've dropped the PC Card interconnect for the new, faster version. The mobile phone network Vodafone recently shipped a USB-connected HSDPA modem for PC Card-less. Perhaps it should have waited for Novatel' …

Reg Hardware 2 Jan 2007, 08:02
Vodafone offers buyers Samsung BlackBerry-a-like

SGH-i320 ships

Vodafone has begun offering Samsung's slimline BlackBerry-like i320 smart phone to its business customers, according to the carrier's website. It's charging from nothing to £140 inc. VAT for the QWERTY keypad-equipped handset, depending on which airtime package you select. The tri-band GSM/GPRS SGH-i320 runs Windows Mobile …

Reg Hardware 2 Jan 2007, 10:12
Germany and France split on Google-beater

C'est la vie...

Germany is withdrawing from an agreement with France to develop a Google-beating search engine. The Quaero programme was announced by Jacques Chirac in 2005 and promised a European search engine for PCs and mobile devices. The service was meant to provide better searching of audio and video content. Backed by the German and …

Applications 2 Jan 2007, 10:32
AMD behind ATI R600 spec, benchmark leak?

Downed site said to have company links

An alleged specification for AMD's soon-to-be-announced next-generation graphics chip, the ATI R600, has been posted on the web by a site that is said to have admitted it has links with the chip maker. A covert marketing operation? Possibly, but with the website, Level 505, currently offline, it's hard to test the theory. …

Reg Hardware 2 Jan 2007, 11:03
The devil is in the details

Editors blog Grabbing data quality by the tail

It's well-known that data quality is often the devil you find hiding in the implementation detail of many big integration (and other) projects. It's a particular issue when companies merge. Of course, "your" salespeople always fill in contact and customer details accurately and honestly but "their" salespeople apparently got …

Developer 2 Jan 2007, 11:11
Wireless not worth hacking?

Opinion Times have changed

For four years, I've been pretty clear about my personal opinions on wireless hackers. I don't worry about them. So when I say: "It's time to worry about wireless hackers," it's not just another security consultant scare story being recycled - it's because I think things have changed. What has changed? Easy: corporate …

Enterprise Security 2 Jan 2007, 11:37
Xbox 360 led US Xmas sales - just

Beats Wii by a nose, early figures show

They're figures for the US market and they're just preliminary findings, but it's looking like Nintendo's Wii and Sony's PlayStation 3 were both outsold by Microsoft's year-old Xbox 360 this Christmas - but only just. The numbers come from US retail market watcher NPD by way of a CNBC video report. According to the research …

Reg Hardware 2 Jan 2007, 11:40
Fight for Hutchinson Essar mobile intensifies

Over 20 million Indian subscribers up for grabs

What looked like a two-way battle between Vodafone and Reliance for Indian operator Hutchison Essar is shaping up as a triangular contest. Indian conglomerate Essar, which co-owns the operator with Hutchison, is looking to raise enough money to buy out its partner, and is emphasising its first-refusal position. Vodafone was …

Financial News 2 Jan 2007, 11:56
eBayer offers OS X-booting Dell laptop

One notebook, two operating systems

A UK-based eBayer last week offered for sale a Dell Inspiron 6000 notebook with a difference - this one booted into Apple's Mac OS X operating system, with Windows XP on board as an alternative. It's all a little bit iffy, of course, since Apple doesn't permit the installation and usage of its software on machines other than …

Reg Hardware 2 Jan 2007, 12:08
How to crash a Windows mobile using MMS

Test code spotlights mobile malware menace

Security researchers have released proof-of-concept code that exploits vulnerabilities in MMS implementations in mobile phones running mobile versions of Windows. The vulnerability was discovered six months ago by security researcher Collin Mulliner, who published the exploit at the Chaos Communication Congress in Berlin last …

Malware 2 Jan 2007, 12:17
419 'money launderer' caught at Schiphol Airport

Police say companies were plundered

Dutch police believe a Nigerian man who was arrested at Schiphol Airport a couple of weeks ago with €1.2m in his pocket - the biggest money seizure in Dutch history - belongs to a major 419 scam operation. According to Dutch police Idowu Musiliu Balogun, 36, works for ringleader U. Kingsley, who is still at large. Kingsley and …

Music and Media 2 Jan 2007, 12:46
Google steps in to the real world

Successful trial selling newspaper ads points to corporeal future

A 2-month trial selling newspaper adverts to Google’s on-line customers has exceeded expectations according to the Washington Post, and will be expanded into a commercial service in the next few months, with radio and TV to follow. It’s no secret that Google makes its money selling advertising, or that the internet makes up …

Financial News 2 Jan 2007, 14:39
Why the Novell and Microsoft deal is good for Linux

Industry comment All eyes on Linux

Being ever aware of Microsoft's monopolisation endeavours, coupled with working in a Linux world inherently mistrustful of the software giant, it may seem strange that I believe the Microsoft/Novell agreement will be great for Linux. But I do. Why? Interoperability between Microsoft and Linux has long been the greatest …

Software 2 Jan 2007, 14:44
Katie Price and Peter Andre: the greatest album ever?

'Songs so emotional, I go weak at the sphincter'

It's official: the debut album by highly-talented popsters Katie Price and Peter Andre has been classified by Amazon reviewers as possibly the greatest album ever - a terrible shock to those of us ready to dismiss their musical talents and consign A Whole New World to the dustbin of musical history. One breathless correspondent …

Entertainment 2 Jan 2007, 14:49
O2 late to start year

Attempt to reduce network overload overloaded

It seems an obvious enough ploy: all O2 customers were sent an SMS message suggesting they might want to avoid the congestion which normally clogs up the mobile networks come midnight: 02: Happy New Year! So we're a bit early, but why not join us? Send your New Year texts early and beat the midnight rush ...which would have …

Mobile 2 Jan 2007, 14:51
Kansas temperatures hit all-time low

A chilly -5572 Celsius

Thanks very much to reader Jon Fisher who sent us the following screengrab relating to the weather in his home town of Manhattan, Kansas. Locals should be certain to wrap up warm before venturing from the house: Chillingly, this forecast by AccuWeather.com classifies -5572°C as "Moderate" on its Cold Index, leading us to …

Music and Media 2 Jan 2007, 14:52
Singles charts goes digital

Greetings, pop-pickers

The UK Top 40 singles chart has severed its historical dependency on physical stuff. As of yesterday, the hit parade will allow digital-only tracks to be included in the weekly listing. The Official UK Charts Company, which runs the marketing survey, has dropped its requirement that labels must produce the song in some physical …

Entertainment 2 Jan 2007, 14:56
Scientists look to straighten homosexual sheep

Gay rights campaigners slam US research

Former Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova has come out in favour of the rights of homosexual sheep in a burgeoning row over tests carried out by two US universities aimed at "curing" ovine friends of Dorothy. According to The Times, researchers at Oregon State University in the city of Corvallis and at the Oregon Health and …

Biology 2 Jan 2007, 15:05
Google plugs GMail exploit

Callback calamity

Google has fixed a vulnerability in its popular GMail web mail service that creates a means for hackers to steal users' contact lists. The cross-site scripting flaw stemmed from the decision by GMail to store contact lists in a JavaScript file. GMail always saves contact lists as JavaScript code using the same URL, so a …

Security 2 Jan 2007, 15:09
Data modelling wars

Comment Scuffles, at any rate

It is actually going a bit far to say that there are truly data modelling wars going on but certainly the users of ERWin are being aggressively targeted by both Sybase with PowerDesigner and Embarcadero with ER/Studio. This is, in part, because ERWin no longer sits within any of CA's core areas of focus, so it hardly surprising …

Servers 2 Jan 2007, 15:15
BBC peddles news filth to children

British army photo shocker

According to the BBC's Predictions for 2007, Afghanistan is set to become the new Northern Ireland. If that's true, then the photo accompanying this piece of crystal ball gazing should alert the locals as to the need to lock up their grandmothers: Shocking. The parents among you still not convinced - following the recent " …

Entertainment 2 Jan 2007, 15:23
Tokyo to blanket Ginza with RFID tags

Forlorn attempt to prevent visitors getting lost

The Tokyo Ubiquitous Network Project has announced plans to blanket the Ginza region of Tokyo, the most popular shopping district, with 10,000 RFID tags and other wireless technologies to provide shopper-assistance and location-based services. The trial starts later this month, and will feature a specially-designed handheld …

Mobile 2 Jan 2007, 15:30
Growing rumpus over Saddam execution footage

Iraq investigates mobile phone video

The Iraqi authorities have launched an enquiry into "unofficial mobile phone footage" of Saddam Hussein's execution last Saturday after the graphic video surfaced on the internet within hours of his hanging, the BBC reports. The grainy two-and-a-half minute film shows Hussein being taunted by witnesses, with one unknown …

Music and Media 2 Jan 2007, 15:56
BOFH 2006: Complete and utter detox

Talkin' bout a resolution

17 minutes of goodwill Episode 1 Happy New Year The Way of the Hammer Episode 2 Engineers are great! 'Did you know..?' Episode 3 Yes, we did - we're Systems and Networks Automated attendant abuse Episode 4 'I'm sorry, that serial number is not recognised' Headhunted Episode 5 'A wonderful opportunity' BOFH takes a leaf …

BOFH 2 Jan 2007, 16:30
Munich buys Windows 2000 used licenses

Money for old code

The German city of Munich is buying a whole pile of Microsoft Windows this month - but it won't be the newly released Windows Vista. Instead, it will buy 2000 legit "used licenses" of Windows 2000 Professional, claiming it will save them money. The licenses are bought from Munich based company Usedsoft, which buys up licenses …

Channel Register 2 Jan 2007, 16:43
Saddam's YouTube smash

Opinion User generated content at the gallows

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT "User Generated Content" finally scored a smash hit in 2006, although we had to wait until the year's end to see it. But thanks to a minute of grainy, camera phone footage, the truly shambolic nature of the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was disclosed for all to see. The footage that …

Music and Media 2 Jan 2007, 16:56
eBay cross verification bug

AKA error 3005

For an e-tailer, there isn’t a worse time of year to have major issues with your site than the run-up to Christmas, but that is precisely what eBay has been struggling with at the moment. eBay calls it a "cross verification bug", essentially it is the link between a user's eBay and their Paypal account. While it may sound …

Security 2 Jan 2007, 16:59
Happy New Malware

Worm posing as seasonal postcard crashes into in-boxes

A significant worm outbreak over the new year festivities has put paid to the notion we've seen the end of mass mailing worms just yet. The Luder email worm (AKA Dref-V and Trojan downloader Tibs-jy, first seen on 30 December, poses as an electronic postcard and clogged up email in-boxes over the last two days after …

Malware 2 Jan 2007, 17:03
Microsoft accused of trying to buy bloggers

Generous giving

A Microsoft stunt handing out brand spanking new laptops with Windows Vista to selected bloggers has backfired with claims that Microsoft tried to "buy" bloggers. At least six bloggers each received a sleek, black, highly specified Ferrari machine running the as-yet-to-be released Windows Vista from Microsoft and Acer just …

Music and Media 2 Jan 2007, 17:28
Second Nasdaq warning for BEA

Easy come, easy go

Java middleware vendor BEA Systems has received a second warning from Nasdaq over potential delisting of its stock for failing to file financial results. BEA was warned that it faces delisting, after failing to file results for its third quarter, which ended on October 31, 2006. BEA has until January 8 to get its finances in …

Financial News 2 Jan 2007, 17:32