11th April 2007 Archive

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Dell turns green waiting for Barcelona

New box impatient for four-cores

Dell is dipping its toes into the AMD quad-core processor market for servers - antsy to take the plunge when AMD releases "Barcelona" in mid-2007. The computer seller has released the PowerEdge 2970, a box that runs on dual-core Opterons today but which can also hold four-core parts down the road. All Dell needs is the damn …

Servers 11 Apr 2007, 00:02
Georgia on the mind of three million after CD loss

One more reason to fear data handlers

Sensitive personal information on 2.9 million Georgia residents is at risk after a company lost a CD that contained the details. It is at least the third such blunder in less than a week and raises serious doubts about the measures private companies and public officials take to safeguard individuals from identity theft. The …

ID 11 Apr 2007, 00:11
UK PS3 price begins to drop

It was really only a matter of time

Retailers WH Smith and Play.com have both knocked £25 off the price of the PS3, offering the console for just under £400. But while the WH Smith offer was an Easter weekend-only deal that ended today, the Play.com offer will run for "the foreseeable future", a representative told Register Hardware and includes a free HDMI …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 07:02
The 800lb Googilla in the boardroom

Column Still doing no evil?

Google, like the legendary 800lb gorilla which got elected to the board, has reached the sort of size and influence where it can sit where it likes in the boardroom. Two questions: 1) should we do something to protect ourselves from this 800lb gorilla? and 2) if so, what? The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) was pretty …

Law 11 Apr 2007, 09:17
FOI restrictions unnecessary, Info Commissioner says

Existing rules can do the job if used properly

The government would not need to limit the scope of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act if public authorities used existing rules properly, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has said (pdf). The ICO is opposing the government's changes. The gvernment wants to limit the scope and number of FOI enquiries by changing the …

Law 11 Apr 2007, 09:18
Palm developing own OS - again

Full circle turned

Palm is to build its own handheld operating system, combining a Linux foundation with the regular Palm OS look and feel. Work is clearly progressing: devices equipped with the new OS are due later this year, the company's CEO, Ed Colligan, said this week. If all this sounds familiar, it's because it's the approach PalmSource …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 09:22
Imperial College to research IT and patient safety

DoH stumps up £4.5m for research programme

The Department of Health (DoH) has provided funds to investigate IT's ability to improve efficiency and service quality. It has announced a £4.5m research programme that will take in IT's potential for improving the reliability and safety of healthcare, both through new technology and through monitoring information. The Centre …

Public Sector 11 Apr 2007, 09:29
Listen up banks: women are worth IT

'Archaic' systems stifling marketing campaigns

Britain's banking sector has been told to jizz up its customer databases to more effectively target the female market. Based on their latest research, financial consultants at Accenture are urging British banks to reorganise their "archaic IT" as well as the information they keep on customers so as to improve the way they …

IT Director 11 Apr 2007, 09:49
Orange talks up Vox

HTC smart phone to ship as SPV E650

Orange has begun punting its first Windows Mobile 6 device to its business buyers. Apparently based on HTC's 'Vox' smart phone: it is a candybar handset that incorporates a slide-out, mini QWERTY keyboard. The Orange version is dubbed the SPV E650, and is being offering from today at a range of prices up to £165 exc. VAT …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 09:51
Five critical reasons to update Windows today

Patch Tuesday puts sysadmins on overtime

Microsoft has released six bulletins, five covering critical vulnerabilities, as part of its latest Patch Tuesday update. The critical list includes flaws in Universal Plug and Play, Windows CSRSS, Microsoft Agent and Microsoft Content Management Server that create a means for hackers to inject code into vulnerable systems. …

Security 11 Apr 2007, 10:02
Small tech firms say green regs WEEEly unfair

'Disproportionate' costs

Small IT retailers are footing an unfairly large chunk of the bill for the UK government's much-delayed regulations for disposing of junked electronic kit, a trade group has claimed. The UK government's implementation of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive is "fundamentally flawed", according to the …

Channel Register 11 Apr 2007, 10:10
US deploys cloaked airliner

Stealth black helicopters circle Dallas Forth Worth airport

Regular readers will recall our pride last year when we were able to reveal that the UK had developed a stealth Eurostar train, spotted on Google Earth decloaking as it pulled into London Waterloo station. Well, we didn't think the US would take this astounding technological advance lying down, and we've been proved right. …

Science 11 Apr 2007, 10:13
Data disposal: Every action leaves a trace

Comment Footprints in the sand

I recently had the honour of being among a team of storage managers from large companies around the UK. Discussions centred mainly around virtualisation and maximising utilisation rates, bringing together disparate vendors' kit as a single resource pool and how to manage data growth as voice and video are brought in to the mix …

Storage 11 Apr 2007, 10:21
Gov claims mobile phone theft waning as penalty rises

But is there still a market?

Mobile phone theft has almost been eliminated, according to the Home Office. It announced last week that 80 per cent of handsets are now blocked within 48 hours of the theft being notified, and new jail terms have been introduced for those found attempting to reprogramme stolen handsets. The use of SIM chips allowed stolen …

Crime 11 Apr 2007, 10:22
Are BI vendors creating unrealistic expectations?

Reg reader workshop Tell us what you think

Earlier this week on the current Reg Workshop discussion it was posited that all too often marketing people appear to be in control of the vocabulary used in relation to Business Intelligence (BI). We went on to say that much of the language seems to be targeted at motivating senior managers and "business decision makers" on …

Business 11 Apr 2007, 10:37
Viacom models Panama hat for Yahoo!

Semel to Google: Ha! Ha! Ha!

Viacom has handed Yahoo! the right to sell advertising on its popular Comedy Central, MTV, and other web properties. Yahoo!'s nascent Panama platform will provide contextual advertising on 33 Viacom flagship "broadband sites", with the possibility of expanding to cover a further 140 sites worldwide. Added together, Viacom …

Financial News 11 Apr 2007, 10:39
Oracle promises 37 spring security patches

Blooming marvellous

Oracle plans to release 37 security patches next week as part of its quarterly update cycle. The fixes cover as-yet-unspecified flaws in products including Oracle Database, Application Server, and E-Business Suite, among others. Some of the patches due to be released on Tuesday, 17 April cover flaws in multiple products. An …

Security 11 Apr 2007, 11:13
Darfur genocide mapped from space

Google Earth initiative tells it like it is

Google and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum today launched the "Crisis in Darfur" Google Earth initiative which offers users a handy guide to the systematic destruction of the Darfur region of Sudan as a result of an ongoing conflict between local rebel groups and pro-government militias. Since 2003, an estimated 200,000 …

Applications 11 Apr 2007, 11:16
Samsung spins SpinPoint 2.5in drives

Storage for laptops, DVRs

Hot on the heels of Samsung's 3.5in SpinPoint hard disk drive launch last week comes a pair of new 2.5in models, one pitched at servers, the other at notebooks and consumer electronics kit like DVRs. The 5,400rpm SpinPoint M5 line will come in 60-160GB versions, with models that extend that maximum capacity to 250GB coming …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 11:53
Korean cloners in new faking investigation

Journal suspends wolf research

Access to research which reported the cloning of two endangered Korean wolves has been suspended by publishers pending an investigation into the veracity of the claims. The wolves were paraded in front of the world's media by Seoul National University just over two weeks ago, but their origins quickly became the subject of …

Biology 11 Apr 2007, 12:01
LG takes Shine to 3G

LG has polished up its Shine handset portfolio with a new 3G model. The manufacturer didn't say much about its new baby, but it implied the UMTS version follows the same shiny slider format as the standard tri-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE model. The 2.5G model contains a two megapixel camera; 240 x 320, 262,144-colour display; …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 12:09
Orange punts two year lock-in

Puts brakes on handset replacement cycle

Customers who are prepared to wait 2 years for their next subsidised handset, or give up the subsidy entirely with a SIM-only deal and no commitment, are being offered bonus minutes and text from Orange UK.. The benefits, compared to the 18 month contracts already available, depend on what kind of animal you are: Canaries get …

Mobile 11 Apr 2007, 12:18
Military thinktank sees dark future

Brain-chipped middle class Goths in flashmob revolution by 2035

A UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) thinktank led by a controversial senior officer has issued some radical predictions for the future. In its rolling Strategic Trends Programme document, the MoD's Development, Concepts and Doctrine Centre (DCDC) seeks to outline the challenges the British forces might face in the period up to …

Science 11 Apr 2007, 12:26
Watchdog downsamples Creative Xmod 'better than CD' claim

Prove it

Music player maker Creative has been told not to claim its Xmod sound-enhancement system can take an MP3 track and make it sound better than a CD - at least until it can prove that's the case. The wrist-slapping came from the UK's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) after an audio engineer objected to Creative's claim, made …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 12:27
Bondage pics found in astronaut's car

Hold tight for lift-off

The former NASA astronaut accused of driving across the US wearing nappies in an attempt to kidnap a love rival had a computer disk containing bondage images in her car when she was picked up by police, according to court documents. Navy Captain Lisa Nowak, 43, is facing trial for an attempted kidnapping and other charges …

Space 11 Apr 2007, 12:56
Evesham motors in with car-friendly second-set LCD TV

A widescreen LCD TV for a mere £120? Yes, there's a catch: Evesham's TV-930 is has a screen size of just 9.2in - handy, the company claims, as a bedroom telly and - thanks to a 12v power adaptor - in-car usage too. The TV-930 offers a 16:9 aspect ratio on a 640 x 480 panel capable of displaying 16m colours. Telly stats fans …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 13:06
US businessman makes $9m selling lunar real estate

Still eight billion acres up for grabs

An apparently unnoticed loophole in the 1967 UN Outer Space Treaty has allowed a businessman from Nevada to spawn a multi-million-dollar property business selling plots of lunar real estate at $20 (£10) an acre. Dennis Hope has been claiming ownership of the Earth's Moon - and seven planets and their moons - for over 20 years. …

Space 11 Apr 2007, 13:23
DNA database 'will span most of the UK population'

Even human rights appeal case will not lessen its reach

The Government's DNA retention policy combined with increasingly sophisticated statistical techniques means that eventually most citizens in the UK will be linked to data stored on the police's DNA database, according to a privacy law expert. The outcome of an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) that challenges …

ID 11 Apr 2007, 13:55
Neighbours from hell will be sent to boot camp

Sin binned

Outcast British families are to be thrown into "sin bins" till they learn how to behave in the community, according to the government. Fifty-three Family Intervention Projects around the country will provide intensive social care for around 1,500 families a year. Some of them will be removed from their communities and housed in …

Public Sector 11 Apr 2007, 14:01
Girls Gone Wild boss jailed for contempt

Of court, not underage girls

The founder of jubtastic video operation Girls Gone Wild has been jailed for contempt of court, Associated Press reports. Joe Francis, 34, who coins "an estimated $29m a year from videos of young women exposing their breasts and in other sexually provocative situations" was cuffed and thrown in chokey on a federal arrest …

Entertainment 11 Apr 2007, 14:06
SurfControl reforms on track

It's all about on-demand

SurfControl updated the stock market today on progress in the third quarter, ended 31 March 2007. The company's move to services delivered via the internet rather than straight software licensing continues to pay dividends. Revenues from on-demand services grew 40 per cent compared to the same period a year ago while …

Financial News 11 Apr 2007, 14:28
Paymaster migration an object lesson

Modernizing legacy apps is better for all

The trouble with some legacy applications is that businesses dare not get rid of them. That is fine as long as the platforms on which they run continue to be at least supported - and ideally updated - by the manufacturers. For many reasons, that cannot always be the case, which can leave users with a problem: can they find an …

Developer 11 Apr 2007, 14:39
C2000 takes on audiovisual biz

Ripe for distribution?

UK-based technology distributor Computer 2000 has stepped into the audiovisual business and announced today that Darren Sainsbury will head up the new strategy. C2000, which is owned by Tech Data, said it hopes to quickly establish itself as "the distributor of choice in the sector" over the coming year. Sainsbury has worked …

Channel Register 11 Apr 2007, 15:02
Readers win with Reg Hardware

Register Hardware recently offered its readers the chance to win a Sony PlayStation 3 games console. Well, we've collated the entries, erased the incorrect answer, and we now have a very lucky winner to announce... So our congratulations go out to Paul Leader, whose name was plucked by the Reg Hardware Randomizer out of the …

Reg Hardware 11 Apr 2007, 15:06
My RFID-embedded car numberplate has a virus

Security crystal ball gazing from McAfee

Spyware - malicious programs that covertly track surfing habits or steal confidential data - are likely to migrate onto new platforms, including mobile phones and RFID chips. The scenario is sketched out in the second issue of McAfee's twice annual Global Threat Report. RFID chips, which began life as a replacement for bar …

Security 11 Apr 2007, 15:07
Wikipedia: battleground of the new millennium

US forces, lefties, wiki timewasters in unholy scuffle

Wikipedia, the famed hive mind reference database written by anyone who feels like having a go, has suffered a few military-related hiccups in recent days. Firstly, the page on the US Army went through an editing conflict. It normally starts off conventionally enough, with something along the lines of "the United States Army is …

Bootnotes 11 Apr 2007, 15:58
Mobile content works better on a Nokia

Magazine app shows what really moves users' thumbs

A mobile magazine application has demonstrated that Nokia users consistently give mobile content a higher rating than those using other handsets, even when the content is the same. The application is called EyeMags, and allows anyone to create magazine-style content which is then packaged into a Java application for others to …

Mobile 11 Apr 2007, 16:14
Sun sprinkles FISH food for storage guppies

Open sourcing NetApp killer

Sun Microsystems appears to have open sauced many of the software components that make up its elusive FISHworks NetApp killer. The company, on a regular basis, frees up code found in its Solaris operating system to the so-called OpenSolaris community. The latest code dump features a host of storage-centric software. Sun …

Storage 11 Apr 2007, 17:42
HP to SMB storage market: 'Yoo-hoo! tee-hee!'

Hopes more disk = more love

Hewlett-Packard has a major crush on the small and medium-sized business market and has announced a new model in its All-in-One Storage line and shuffled some executives to help prove it. HP's latest move in the affair is the addition of the HP StorageWorks 1200. The 2U system is the densest chassis offered in the StorageWorks …

Storage 11 Apr 2007, 19:28
Microsoft researcher obsessed with white trash data centers

Sun and Rackable pick up the phone

A Microsoft researcher has provided his seal of approval to the white trash data centers promoted by Sun Microsystems and Rackable Systems. Windows Live architect and former DB2 lead architect James Hamilton has pumped out a presentation, detailing reasons why data centers in shipping containers make sense. While thin on …

Servers 11 Apr 2007, 19:55
Microsoft 'wait-and-see' on Vista BIOS hack

Tic-tock

Microsoft has no immediate plans to tackle a reported hack to Windows Vista product activation that could allow illegal copies of Windows to be widely installed. The hack is not yet viewed as a wide-scale threat, although Microsoft indicated it may act if more hackers view breaking Windows Vista's OEM product activation as a …

Enterprise Security 11 Apr 2007, 20:15
All aboard the Green Grid

28 new riders vow to deliver less hot air

The bandwagon that is energy efficiency has gained 28 more riders, with Brocade, Novell and Copan among those signing up to the Green Grid, a non-profit consortium set up to address the problems of energy consumption in the data centre. Copan claims that because its massive array of idle disk (MAID) technology powers down …

Servers 11 Apr 2007, 20:19
Microsoft zero-days said to target Office and Windows

Another Patch Tuesday marred

Hot on the heels of yesterday's batch of updates from Microsoft patching five critical Windows vulnerabilities come reports of new zero-day exploits, some that appear to allow the commandeering of a PC. They underscore a growing pattern in which miscreants release their payloads shortly before or after Patch Tuesday. …

Enterprise Security 11 Apr 2007, 20:23
Plants may be red and yellow in galactic boonies

Star Trek no longer accurate depiction of space flora?

NASA researchers claim we might find yellow or even red plants growing in other galaxies. But probably not blue. That would be ridiculous. In the latest issue of the Astrobiology journal (You don't subscribe?), a paper titled "Spectral Signatures of Photosynthesis II Coevolution with Other Stars And The Atmosphere on …

Space 11 Apr 2007, 22:19
Apache reignites Sun open source dispute

Opens fire with open letter

The Apache Software Foundation (ASF) has publicly slammed Sun Microsystems for dragging its feet over licensing it claims is unfair and discriminatory to open source, five years after the pair resolved similar differences. The ASF has published a strongly worded open letter blaming Sun for hindering its open source Java …

Applications 11 Apr 2007, 23:02