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27th June 2007 Archive

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  • Quantum touts high end de-duplication box

    Virtual tape, remote replication and de-dupe, all in one

    Quantum has announced a high-end de-duplication appliance, called DXi7500. The new box is aimed at large enterprises, and as well as de-dupe, it can also be used as a virtual tape library (VTL) with a path to real tape, as disk-based backup and even as straight replicated disk storage. The company claims it is the only vendor …

    Storage 27 Jun 2007, 00:53

  • Proto- YouTube copyright suit lives on to darken another Google day

    More evidence, please

    You win some, you lose some - and sometimes simultaneously. YouTube suffered a setback last week when a judge refused to grant it pre-trial judgment in the first copyright lawsuit directed against the video-sharing site, but it dodged a bullet when the judge also declined to grant the plaintiff's similar motion seeking to …

    Law 27 Jun 2007, 00:55

  • TorrentSpy filters pirated videos

    Makes a hash of it

    As TorrentSpy continues to fight a lawsuit by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), founders of the popular video download site have announced a new filtering system that allows content owners to remove pirated material from the site’s search results. The new filtering system, known as FileRights, automatically …

    Applications 27 Jun 2007, 00:58

  • Ellison rules out M&A breather

    Got to circle around those SAP wagons

    Oracle loves buying companies and it simply can't break/won't break the habit. It's got ambitious growth targets to meet and rivals' market share to take. Chief executive Larry Ellison and president and chief financial officer Safra Catz today re-committed the company to more mergers and acquisitions to help it hit its goal …

    The Channel 27 Jun 2007, 01:14

  • Europe's banks must inform customers of US snooping

    Privacy chiefs impose deadline

    Privacy chiefs have given Europe's banks a September deadline for alerting customers that their financial transactions could be tracked by US security agencies. Customers must be warned that even transactions within Europe could be monitored, they said. The new rules come from the Article 29 Working Party, a committee of …

    Security 27 Jun 2007, 02:03

  • The decline of antivirus and the rise of whitelisting

    Drumbeats get louder

    The recent acquisition of SecureWave by PatchLink was not so much an acquisition as a merger, with PatchLink being the senior partner. With 3400 customers it had about twice the customer base as SecureWave and it also had about twice the staff. The merger probably sent a shock wave or two through the declining AntiVirus …

    Security 27 Jun 2007, 02:14

  • Jabra motors in with in-car speakerphone

    Bluetooth headset specialist Jabra has released a sexy little car kit, the SP5050 - lightweight and with active noise cancellation to better beat out engine sounds. The SP5050 clips onto your car's visor and only requires you to take it out of the box, charge it up and auto-pair it with your phone before it's in full use. …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 07:02

  • British steam car aims for landspeed record

    Record attempt ready to go

    A British steam car is in the final stages of preparation for an attempt on the land speed record, or at least the steam-powered version of it. In the early days of motoring, steam cars outpowered their petrol and electric-driven cousins. A Stanley Steamer was the world's fastest vehicle in 1906 with a top speed of 127 miles …

    Science 27 Jun 2007, 07:02

  • Hotspot prices to fall after Boingo goes global with WiFi

    Which is nice

    WiFi pioneer Boingo is passing the 100,000 hotspot mark, with a new WiFi service "providing international business travellers with access to more than 100,000 locations around the world for one low monthly cost with no roaming charges and no per-minute fees." The key detail, however, will be the decision to go flat rate. The …

    Broadband 27 Jun 2007, 07:02

  • Datawrite's cash-strapped multimedia player

    Datawrite has unveiled an all-in-one multimedia device to play music, watch videos, listen to the radio, play games and view documents on, and all for only £50. The Nitro isn’t the most stylish of multimedia players on the market, but it packs a powerful application punch nonetheless. The £50 4GB version is MP3, MP4, WMA …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 08:02

  • Scientists ID possible Tunguska crater

    Was it a bird, a plane or a big sodding rock?

    The largest earth "impact" of recent times, the Tunguska event, might have left a crater after all. The impact levelled more than 2,000 square kilometres of forest in Siberia, but is thought to have been caused by an asteroid or comet exploding in Earth's atmosphere since no crater marking the impact has ever been found. Now …

    Science 27 Jun 2007, 08:02

  • Navigating the mysterious world of nano-medicine

    A Fantastic Voyage

    Most discussions of the future of medicine tend to revolve around genetic manipulation, personalised pharmaceuticals, and putting off death as long as possible. Yet the work that's going on in research labs in Basel, Switzerland, home of two of the world's biggest drug companies isn't about any of that. Instead, they are …

    Science 27 Jun 2007, 09:02

  • BPEL: scripting and human tasks

    Part 2 in our series on business process execution

    In the last column in this series, we looked at the general concept of business process management with respect to SOA (Service Oriented Architecture) based systems. In particular, we reviewed BPEL (the Business Process Execution Language) and what it offers and at some of the extensions for BPEL. In this second column, we’ll …

    Developer 27 Jun 2007, 09:02

  • Dell pitches XPS laptops at the mainstream

    Now with 13.3in screen, now no longer just for gamers

    Dell's anticipated 13.3in laptop did make an appearance yesterday - it was launched alongside the PC maker's new, coloured Inspiron notebooks under Dell's XPS gamer-oriented brand. Dell's XPS M1330: wireless wonder? Dubbed the M1330, the Core 2 Duo powered machine is offered with a choice of Intel's own integrated X3100 …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 10:01

  • NI firms waste £11m on IT finance

    Most lost on admin charges and interest on borrowing

    Businesses in Northern Ireland are wasting up to a quarter of a million pounds a week on poor IT financing deals, according to research released on Tuesday. The unnecessary costs work out at approximately £0.12 in every pound borrowed to purchase or lease IT products and services, or £11.3m (around €16.8m) per year in total. …

    The Channel 27 Jun 2007, 10:03

  • EU chooses mobile TV standard

    One system to rule them all

    The European Commission has drafted a document recommending the adoption of Digital Video Broadcasting - Handheld (DVB-H) as a pan-European, mobile-broadcasting standard to avoid "market fragmentation". The document is intended for publication mid-July, according to reports in The Wall Street Journal, and follows on from …

    Data Center 27 Jun 2007, 10:08

  • Ofcom hands Channel 5 biggest-ever fine

    Two Five shows discontinued

    Five has been hit with a £300,000 fine by regulator Ofcom in what is the biggest payout by a public service broadcaster to the regulator. It was found to have faked winners in live call-in competitions. In shows produced by Cheetah, a subsidiary of Big Brother producer Endemol, production staff posed as winners on numerous …

    Media 27 Jun 2007, 10:13

  • Mobile Clinic: keeping mobile workforce management consistent

    Mobile Clinic It's the daddy of them all

    The number one question that you all seem to be losing some sleep over is, 'How do we keep mobile device management consistent with the policies and procedures applied to the other devices on my corporate network?' Once again we roll out our illustrious panel of experts to tackle it for you, to give you some pointers and …

    Workshop 27 Jun 2007, 10:15

  • Asus re-locates GPS PDA in UK

    New take on old approach

    Time was when all budget GPS gagdets were Windows Mobile PDAs with bundled route-planning software and a satellite pick. Now they're almost all dedicated units a la Tom Tom. But Asus is having another go, with its A696 GPS PDA. The A696 is a palm sized 11.7 x 7.1cm device that weighs 165g and measures 1.5cm in thickness. …

    Science 27 Jun 2007, 10:31

  • Hippie-era CIA skulduggery report unveiled

    Warrantless spook wiretap shocker! Erm, hold on ...

    The so-called "family jewels" internal report into questionable doings by the CIA in the 1960s and early '70s is now available online - with only a moderate amount of blanking-out. Having promised to do so last week, the CIA has now released the entire 700-page report dating from 1973. Parts of it were already known, but last …

    Government 27 Jun 2007, 10:36

  • IBM and Informix tie down Cheetah

    Code line merger seems unlikely

    I have periodically written about Informix Dynamic Server (IDS) ever since IBM acquired it. Initially, IBM had the wrong messaging—all of its databases were marketed under the DB2 brand, which didn't go down too well—but this has now changed with the company's refocus on information management in general and Information on …

    Developer 27 Jun 2007, 10:42

  • Sun updates Solaris Express developer edition

    Key tools to unlock greater chip performance

    Sun Microsystems has announced new functionality for Solaris Express Developer Edition. The OpenSolaris-based distribution targets developers for the Solaris OS, Java, and Web 2.0 with a set of products that are optimized for multi-core processor architectures and includes new compilers and development tools designed to assist …

    Developer 27 Jun 2007, 10:46

  • SanDisk and DivX shake hands

    SanDisk and DivX are now the best of chums. The memory card specialist will now be allowed to incorporate DivX Stage 6 technology into its Sansa line of media players. Although products are not expected to be announced by SanDisk until later this year, the vendor claimed the agreement will provide its customers with access to …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 10:53

  • Eliminate stress at the touch of a button... literally

    USB to the rescue

    Stress gets to us all, but until now there have been only three outlets: going for a ciggie, squeezing a stress toy or punching your boss. But now you can press the red button and bring all your stress to an end with the USB stress panic button. Pretend you are bringing the world to an end by lifting its cover and slamming …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 11:09

  • Windows Live gets upgrade

    We are born to be a Live...

    Microsoft is beta testing two new features of Windows Live - its effort at delivering software as a service over the web. It has added a photo-sharing application, Live Photo Gallery, and 500MB of online storage space called Windows Live Folders. Windows Live Photo Gallery is available to testers in nine countries and is …

    Software 27 Jun 2007, 11:35

  • Microsoft security engineer makes top-10 worst jobs list

    Rated less fun than scooping up whale poo

    Summer's here, and 'tis the season to be compiling lists. One of the most eagerly awaited is the Ten Worst Jobs in Science, issued by Popular Science magazine. This year the roster of horrible occupations has gained widespread attention because it includes "Microsoft Security Grunt". Working at the Microsoft Security Response …

    Security 27 Jun 2007, 11:39

  • First reviews find iPhone more than a pretty face

    Not that much more, though

    Reporters for the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have had their iPhones for two weeks now, and their first reviews cast a cautious optimism on Apple's new baby. Unsurprisingly they both liked the interface, though text-entry using the on-screen keyboard came in for some criticism. Web browsing was good, but only …

    Networks 27 Jun 2007, 12:09

  • Spluttering UK net neutrality movement gets breath of life

    Jupiter lights the way

    Efforts to get the net neutrality bandwagon rolling in the UK continue, with new predictions that ISPs are set to charge content providers for faster loading. The current dog eat dog market for broadband will make a two-tiered model too tempting for cash strapped providers, according to a report by Jupiter Research analyst Ian …

    Broadband 27 Jun 2007, 12:13

  • EMI pitches cross-platform content into the VidZone

    Meanwhile, take-over speculation mounts...

    EMI has signed a licensing and distribution agreement with Vidzone Digital Media to deliver the music giant's full DRM-free digital catalogue to mobiles and PCs via its cross-platform offering. The technology developed by Vidzone should allow third parties to offer branded PC and mobile music services with a single account …

    Mobile 27 Jun 2007, 12:32

  • Brand-name reviews give iPhone the thumbs-up

    First looks published

    Apple's iPhone doesn't - or shouldn't - find its way into the hands of consumers until tomorrow evening US time, but that hasn't prevented units finding their way into the hands of the brand-name reviewers like the Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg. Walt is generally quite keen on Apple products, and the iPhone proves no …

    Phones 27 Jun 2007, 12:33

  • Dell dances out with desktop Inspirons

    No longer a laptop brand

    Wedged underneath the excitement of Dell's latest Inspiron and XPS notebook announcement, is a new line of Inspiron desktops that could actually give you some decent performance - if you don't mind being tied to your desk, that is. The infamously direct-only PC builder has so far taken the wraps off two models in the series: …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 13:01

  • Google search rivals full of sound and fury

    Analysis Signifying nothing

    The rumor hit the web early this month. Citing an anonymous source, TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington reported that Microsoft was putting together some sort of uber search team at its Silicon Valley outpost in Mountain View, California. Gathering at least twenty “rock star” developers - including 23-year-old wunderkind Sanaz Ahari …

    Applications 27 Jun 2007, 13:02

  • Platform dives into Intel's world of clusters

    Well-stacked

    Canada’s Platform Computing has signed up to Intel’s Cluster Ready program and claims to be first to market with a commercial stack that has been certified under the scheme. It will be pitching its Platform Open Cluster Stack (OCS) stack at OEMs, saying it enables them to bundle together easy-to-use clusters. The stack is …

    The Channel 27 Jun 2007, 13:30

  • Doctors slam Choose and Book

    Choose and Book unfit for purpose

    The British Medical Association said today the NHS's Choose and Book system is unfit for purpose and actually limits choice for patients. Doctors at the BMA's annual general meeting voted for an investigation into the impact Choose and Book was having on referrals. The system is part of the National Programme for IT and, in …

    Applications 27 Jun 2007, 13:59

  • BBC iPlayer finally hits the streets

    For better or worse

    The BBC will press ahead with its Windows-only on-demand service when it launches the iPlayer on July 27, the broadcaster announced today. The end of the beta is sooner than the November launch suggested by the BBC's most recent hints. The development of iPlayer has been beset by controversy over strategy and delays and since …

    Applications 27 Jun 2007, 14:04

  • Elasmobranch scanner tech ready for War on Terror

    Pork-based artificial shark goes to sea

    The US Navy's plan to detect mines and other underwater objects by their electrical fields - in the same way as sharks and rays find prey - has moved closer to reality. Elasmobranch fish (rays, sharks and suchlike critters) have various senses, including relatively conventional vision and smell. But they also have slime-filled …

    Government 27 Jun 2007, 14:14

  • Floating storage specialist names price

    Data Domain debuts today

    Network storage and disk backup company Data Domain has announced pricing for its Initial Public Offering. Shares start trading later today on Nasdaq. The price is $15 a share - higher than expected. Data Domain is offering 7.39m shares - seven million from Data Domain and 390, 000 by a shareholder. The company should raise …

    Storage 27 Jun 2007, 14:18

  • Border agencies prep for multi-modal biometrics

    Iris, fingers, head, shoulders, knees and toes

    The UK, Europe and the US are planning to belt and brace their border databases by using multiple forms of biometrics to identify people. While a set of fingerprints might be considered enough to tell one person from another, the trio expect to be eventually back this up with iris scans and mug shots. Frank Paul, head of …

    Security 27 Jun 2007, 14:35

  • Evesham Zieo N500-HD 17in laptop

    Review Evesham tempts us with Intel's 'Santa Rosa' notebook technology

    Evesham has moved fast to pack its Zieo N500-HD laptop with a long list of 'Santa Rosa' Centrino Duo features. The 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500 processor runs on the new 800MHz frontside bus and the chipset is a combination of 965 northbridge and ICH8M. Ordinarily, a new southbridge adds a handful of new features such as extra …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 14:41

  • Google Earth for charidee

    Money for nothing and your maps for free

    Google is offering charities and not-for-profit organisations the chance to use Google Earth without paying the earth. Google Earth Outreach will offer charities an easy way to add Google Earth layers - effectively a personalised version of the application. It includes online training in adding layers, video tutorials and …

    Applications 27 Jun 2007, 14:54

  • Iomega parades designer hard drive

    For anyone that thought storage wasn't sexy, think again. Iomega's eGo - the name says it all... - is the Paris Hilton of data-packing, mirroring its 160GB capacity with a svelte, catwalk-ready design. Iomega's eGo: hard drive meets hip-flask The eGo sports a curvaceous cherry-red body, finished off with chrome. The only …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 15:02

  • Designed to pay twice

    Editor's blog Psychotherapy for UI design

    Here are some thoughts on user-interface design and the simple psychology of rooking the user. Try this for an example: I have been staying at a hotel where there is Wi-Fi available in the form of a T-Mobile hotspot. Let’s not go to the length of criticising the hotel for not fronting this service itself, putting the cost on the …

    Developer 27 Jun 2007, 15:07

  • Pipex-hosted sites left high and dry by flooding

    Fibre? It's dim oop north

    Pipex has today become the first ISP to report major technical problems caused by the extreme weather which has battered the north of England. A fibre break caused by the flooding in Sheffield has hit Pipex data centres in Leeds and Manchester, affecting the firms hosting business 123-reg. A Pipex spokeswoman told us: "Some …

    Broadband 27 Jun 2007, 15:14

  • HPC bar goes lower and wider

    Parallel computing pitches at the mainstream

    The more things stay the same, the more things are likely to change, and clear evidence of that could be seen today at the announcement of the latest Top500 Supercomputers league tables at the International Supercomputer Conference in Dresden. The tables, compiled every six months, show the fastest-performing systems …

    Data Center 27 Jun 2007, 15:28

  • Mobile security: the right way and the wrong way

    Mobile workshop Should users be pushed or pampered?

    The team here at Freeform Dynamics has reviewed a lot of projects and gathered a lot of feedback from organisations implementing mobile technology over the years. One of the things we hit on in a report we put together earlier this year was how importance it is to engage and train users to minimise mobility related security …

    Workshop 27 Jun 2007, 15:43

  • Tiscali TV reaches for Sky channels

    Murdoch pulls a moonie at Virgin

    Sky has agreed to supply Tiscali's TV service with the same package of channels it took away from Virgin Media in a dispute over charges earlier this year. The deal for the satellite broadcaster's "Basics" package will make Sky One shows such as Lost and 24 available to Tiscali's 50,000 TV customers. The ISP bought south east- …

    Broadband 27 Jun 2007, 15:50

  • Asus shows off bamboo-clad 'eco' laptop

    Wood-n't you want one too?

    Now, laptop maker Asus is well known for its willingness to bring all sorts of hi-tech compounds into the manufacture of its notebook computers, but it hasn't ignored more traditional materials. It's already released a leather-clad laptop and has now begun touting what it claims is the world's first bamboo computer. Asus' …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 15:51

  • Fujitsu sharpens blade server

    On guard

    Fujitsu Computer Systems flashed its latest energy-efficient, better I/O performance blade server and chassis in the hope of cutting customers loose from market leaders HP and IBM. The Primergy two-socket BX620 S4 server comes loaded with either Intel's dual or quad-core Xeon processors. The chassis (BX600 S3) features a new …

    Servers 27 Jun 2007, 16:01

  • Toshiba readies Class 4 4GB Micro SDHC card

    Toshiba has followed SanDisk to become the latest memory card maker to unwrap a Micro SD card that adheres to the high-capacity SDHC spec. Toshiba's offering, like SanDisk's - reviewed here - is a 4GB boy. Unlike SanDisk, Toshiba doesn't have a downer on the SDHC classification system, happily highlighting the card's …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 16:05

  • Kodak models silver snappers

    Kodak's production line must be hot to the touch now, following its roll out of four "fashionable" compact cameras - the M series - and the addition of two models to its existing high-end Z series. The M series consists of the M753, M853, M873 and the M883. The range is designed to offer compact and stylish cameras on the one …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 16:22

  • Google searches for computer dealers

    Hard Times with Ingram Micro

    Is there no end to this company's ambitions? Google has signed up Ingram Micro, the world's biggest IT wholesaler, to distribute its hardware search appliance box in the US. Distributors are useful for credit, delivery and product returns. They are used to making next to no money and love new products where the margins flow …

    The Channel 27 Jun 2007, 17:49

  • Microsoft to hawk PCs to India's kids

    Will it sell? That's the 40,875,000 rupee question

    Microsoft plans to sell a PC for kids and launch an educational channel on its MSN portal in India as the next step in a worldwide "Unlimited Potential" program. Aimed at school students, Microsoft's new IQ PC will be built on AMD hardware and vended by Zenith Computers. The computers will put tykes out 21,000 rupees ($514 …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 18:28

  • Worms 2.0!

    Interview The Metasploit menace inside your firewall

    Wade Alcorn recently published a paper explaining the technical details behind Inter-protocol Exploitation [PDF, 120kb]. In his research he focused on using a web browser as a beachhead to launch Metasploit-style attacks. What this means is that any Javascript enabled web browser might be used to launch an attack against a …

    Security 27 Jun 2007, 18:34

  • RIAA tried to shake down 10-year-old daughter, suit claims

    Oh Grandma, what pigopolist eyes you have! All the better to sue you with, my dear

    An unemployed single mom with health problems has renewed her legal challenge of the Recording Industry Ass. of America (RIAA) with unseemly new details. They include accusations that the cartel's goons tried to contact the woman's 10-year-old daughter at school by impersonating the girl's grandmother on the phone. RIAA agents …

    Law 27 Jun 2007, 18:45

  • ICANN goes native, as new TLDs proliferate

    ICANN San Juan 2007 .cat for the Catalans?

    Tuesday brought more on the expansion of the top-level domain (TLD) landscape - namely a discussion of what are referred to somewhat jokingly as geoTLDs. These are really two distinct kinds of TLDs - one for information about cities or purely geographic regions, and another for linguistic and cultural preservation. As always …

    Broadband 27 Jun 2007, 19:04

  • SGI's ICE, ICE bladey

    By the power of Xeon

    SGI's dash away from cruel mistress Itanic continued this week in earnest with the delivery of the Xeon-based Altix ICE blade. ICE doesn't stand for Itanium Cills Eams as you might expect but rather Integrated Compute Environment. And so you'll find the Altix ICE 8200 blade integrated with either dual- or four-core Xeon chips …

    The Channel 27 Jun 2007, 19:25

  • Spacesuit entrepreneurs plan parachute jumps from orbit

    The ultimate in high fashion

    A former Nasa flight surgeon who lost his astronaut wife in the Columbia space shuttle disaster has teamed up with a self-described "bad boy" space commentator to mount trials in which humans would descend from orbit skydiver-style. Laurel Clark, a mission specialist, died along with her fellow crew members when the shuttle …

    Science 27 Jun 2007, 20:29

  • Music biz agrees: stop shooting self in foot

    Users are not our enemy

    At the Norwegian summer resort of Kristiansand in Norway last week, representatives of all corners of the British (and global) music business came together to think the unthinkable. That's unusual in itself. What's generally called the "music industry" consists of violently opposed parties: small labels against big labels; …

    Media 27 Jun 2007, 20:41

  • Intel releases Core 2 chip Bios fix

    Is your microcode as reliable as it could be?

    Intel has released a BIOS patch for Windows machines running Core 2 and Xeon 3000/5000 chips that addresses potential unpredictable system behavior. The update is recommended for users running an Intel Core2 Duo E4000 and E6000, Intel Core2 Quad Q6600, Intel Core2 Extreme X6800 and QX6700, Dual-COre Intel Xeon 5100 and Quad- …

    Hardware 27 Jun 2007, 21:02

  • Eclipse tools up for Europa release

    Is that a download package, or...

    Eclipse gets its biggest update on Friday. The Europa update to the Eclipse Framework will wrap in 17 million lines of code spanning 21 projects, more than doubling last summer's first synchronized release, Callisto, with a mere seven million lines and 10 projects. Headlines will focus on new projects such as the dynamic …

    Developer 27 Jun 2007, 22:08

  • HP fires up Multi-Core Aid effort

    MOP to the rescue

    HP has located a few friends, including Intel and AMD, to help it deal with the multi-core processor morass. The hardware vendor has invited chums to join its new Multi-Core Optimization Program (MOP), which will support work that makes software run better across chips with numerous processor cores. HP's interest in this area …

    Data Center 27 Jun 2007, 22:49

  • Red Hat spreads its JBoss in Q1

    Microsoft invited to improve

    Red Hat turned in a healthy first quarter amid signs it's evolving into a multifaceted operation, thanks to growing sales of JBoss and use of channel partners. The Linux vendor saw net income grow 18 per cent to $17.1m on revenue that increased 41.5 per cent to $118.8m, and earnings per diluted share that increased a penny to $ …

    Applications 27 Jun 2007, 23:22