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4th July 2007 Archive

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  • AT&T rigs net neutrality study

    All hail the tiered internet

    A new study from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the University of Nevada Reno says that net neutrality is a bad idea. Of course, that's what you'd expect it to say. It was paid for by AT&T. For years, AT&T has called for a "tiered Internet," which would abandon net neutrality in favor of a system where high-bandwidth …

    Telecoms 4 Jul 2007, 01:12

  • Floristry giant slams Oracle 'indifference', cosies up to EnterpriseDB

    You don't bring me flowers anymore

    International florist FTD is calling on fellow Oracle users to switch database vendors. It dumped the company in favor of EnterpriseDB in its latest project, after meeting with "indifference" from the enterprise giant. Oracle is also being downgraded as a potential supplier on future projects at FTD - and could see itself …

    Applications 4 Jul 2007, 01:35

  • Fidelity employee steals 2.3 million consumer records

    Database administrator hustles info to marketeers

    Fidelity National Information Services, the major US financial processing company, said today a senior level database administrator at one of its subsidiaries stole 2.3 million consumer records containing bank account and credit card information as well as other personal information. The data was commandeered by an unnamed, now …

    ID 4 Jul 2007, 01:42

  • Security consultant's blog found pushing crudware

    A warning for us all

    A prominent IT security consultant has issued a mea culpa after learning a blog he set up on Blogspot and later abandoned is being used to push crudware. "If I'm supposed to know what I'm doing, what about the 299 million people out there who don't know better?" said Winn Schwartau, an expert in information warfare and …

    Security 4 Jul 2007, 01:50

  • Developers diss Windows client

    Going niche

    The Windows client hegemony is breaking down with developers targeting different operating systems and multiple client devices. The latest Evans Data Corp poll of North American developers found 12 per cent fewer building applications for Windows than a year ago. According to EDC 64.8 per cent of developers are targeting …

    Developer 4 Jul 2007, 01:54

  • Evolutionary database design

    'Technically trivial'

    Evolutionary Database Design (EDD, aka database refactoring) is a controversial topic in the software development world. It’s a sore point among some DBAs because it promotes the making of changes to schemas that contain live customer data, sometimes with more than one application using the same database. Given this controversy …

    Developer 4 Jul 2007, 07:02

  • Calyx shareholders approve MBO

    Healy gets the nod

    Shareholders in the IT services firm Calyx have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a management buyout by chief executive Maurice Healy and his management team. The buyout is worth €103.8m. Healy currently owns 19.3 million shares in Calyx, representing almost 28 per cent of the company. Under the terms of the buyout, he will …

    Channel Register 4 Jul 2007, 07:02

  • Incoming EPO president reopens software patent debate

    All change, please

    New head of the European Patent Office (EPO), Alison Brimelow, has signalled her intentions early, calling a public meeting to discuss the policy vacuum left by the rejection of the Directive on Computer Implemented Inventions. Purists will argue that there is no such vacuum, of course, because a treaty drawn up in the '70s …

    Law 4 Jul 2007, 07:02

  • Vista aligned with good IT practice

    Comment Has Microsoft really hit the mark with forward thinkers?

    A recent management-level survey on IT service delivery threw up the question, "when do you think you are likely to roll out Windows Vista in your organisation?" At a summary level, the responses to this question were not particularly interesting. Just under a quarter of organisations said they would adopt within the next year …

    IT Director 4 Jul 2007, 08:02

  • Catherine Tate to accompany Doctor Who

    Runaway bride confirmed for series four

    Catherine Tate has been named as Doctor Who's new companion for the fourth series of the cult sci-fi show, reprising her role as Donna in last year's Xmas special The Runaway Bride, the BBC reports. Donna will accompany the good Doctor for the entire series, while Freema Agyeman, who plays Martha Jones, is off to Torchwood for …

    Entertainment 4 Jul 2007, 08:45

  • Plain chocolate could help your heart

    Not a license to chow down

    A tiny helping of dark chocolate could help keep your heart healthy, a study suggests. Researchers from the University of Cologne studied the effect of a very small amount of chocolate, eaten every day, on the blood pressure of four adults with borderline high blood pressure. Each participant was given a square of dark …

    Biology 4 Jul 2007, 08:47

  • Chinese women crave Bill Gates' sperm

    Give me a baby, big fella

    There's some good news this morning for Bill Gates: if he ever finds himself fallen on hard times he can always make a few quid offloading his sperm on eager Chinese female recipients. That's if China's Self magazine is to be believed, because the IT potentate secured second spot in a poll which asked 1,000 women from 15 cities …

    Biology 4 Jul 2007, 08:50

  • LG dials up YouTube-enabled handsets

    Jumps on Google bandwagon

    Electronics giant LG and search giant Google have announced a deal that will see "YouTube-enabled" LG mobile handsets hit the markets by the end of the year. "This new service will connect people like never before," said Dr Skott Ahn, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company in a statement. "For the …

    Mobile 4 Jul 2007, 08:52

  • Chilean scientists crack lost lake mystery

    Went down the plughole, as suspected

    Chilean scientists have confirmed suspicions that the missing lake which went awol in the Magallanes region of Patagonia simply drained away though a crack, Reuters reports. The lake, when last seen back in March, boasted a surface area of around four to five hectares (10-12 acres or around 10 soccer pitches). When a team from …

    Science 4 Jul 2007, 08:59

  • UK health ICT spend looking healthy

    Off-the-shelf software and NPfIT fuel growth

    New Kable research shows that national initiatives will underpin a steady growth in ICT spending by healthcare organisations around the UK. Spending on off-the-shelf software and large outsourcing contracts is expected to fuel an increase of three to four per cent per year in the UK market for ICT in public sector healthcare up …

    Public Sector 4 Jul 2007, 09:03

  • National Archives and MS strike preservation deal

    Shining light on the 'digital dark age'

    The National Archives (TNA) and Microsoft have come to an arrangement to support long term access to digital documents. Under a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Microsoft will provide TNA with a system that combines previous versions of Windows and Office to help solve problems of managing historical records based on …

    IT Director 4 Jul 2007, 09:16

  • T-Mobile wins iPhone Germany exclusive, paper claims

    Vodafone to be the UK provider?

    A German newspaper has claimed that Apple's iPhone will be coming to Europe through a deal with local carrier T-Mobile. The Rheinische Post yesterday said T-Mobile will offer the handset in Germany on 1 November, pricing it at around €450 ($613/£304), though it's not clear whether that's for the 4GB model or the 8GB version …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 09:46

  • How hot is your Xbox 360?

    If you're the type of gamer who thinks dangers lurk behind every corner, then a heat-sensitive casing for the Xbox 360 should go a little way to allaying your fears about it spontaneously combusting. Xbox 360 Hot Rock case: what colour is yours? While the Xbox 360 Hot Rock Case may not actually cool your Xbox during game …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 09:58

  • Panasonic spins 'first' 4x recordable Blu-ray Discs

    Panasonic has introduced what it claims is the first Blu-ray recordable media capable of burning data at 4x speeds. It will bring the first 4x products to market later this month, it said. Panasonic's LM-BR25LDE: single layer Alas, only in 25GB, single-layer BD-R discs - for 50GB, dual-layer media, you'll have to wait …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 10:19

  • Google Mashup beta goes out to world+dog

    Persistence is its saving grace

    Software as a Service (SaaS) is one of this year's biggest trends. It's one that's also moving away from simple applications to whole hosted development platforms. Google's Mashup Editor is the latest online development platform to appear. Like Microsoft's Popfly and Yahoo!'s Pipes before it, it's a tool for building hosted …

    Developer 4 Jul 2007, 10:24

  • Judge knocks back NYT wiretap documents suit

    Details of Bush-ordered NSA eavesdropping stay secret

    A US federal judge has ruled in favour of government agencies' refusal to release classified information related to a controversial surveillance programme. AP reports that a lawsuit filed against the Defense and Justice departments by the New York Times was dismissed, on the grounds that the information withheld was exempt from …

    Law 4 Jul 2007, 10:45

  • LG sues Quanta... again

    DVD patent spat

    LG yesterday formally accused Taiwanese notebook manufacturer Quanta of using its DVD technology without permission and asked for a ban on the sale of laptops made by Quanta that incorporate LG intellectual property. Since Quanta makes machines for many of the industry's biggest names, the impact could prove widespread if LG' …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 11:22

  • Oz boffins tout Trekkier-than-thou teleportation system

    Our transporter is more Star Trek than yours

    Australian physicists are working on a new method of quantum teleportation which they say is closer to the visions of instant transport popularised by Star Trek. Boffins at the University of Queensland have proposed a scheme, which unlike previous experiments would not rely on the phenomenon of quantum entanglement to teleport …

    Physics 4 Jul 2007, 11:22

  • Dell's SEC deadline looms

    File by 16 July or risk de-listing

    Dell has said its conditional listing on Nasdaq will come to end on 16 July, effectively forcing the computer maker to file its late financial reports with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Failure to do so on time could result in the firm being de-listed from Nasdaq. Nasdaq's listing and hearing review …

    Channel Register 4 Jul 2007, 11:24

  • Nokia sheds light on Prism fashion phone

    Nokia fans worldwide will now be paying closer attention to the vendor from all angles, following the unveiling of its latest handset, the 7500 Prism, at a fashion show in China this week. Nokia's Prism: diamond life? The "avant-garde" handset features a two-megapixel camera; DVD quality video playback; support for a range …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 11:47

  • Nokia picks up good vibrations license deal

    All a-buzz for Immersion's haptics

    Nokia has obtained a worldwide licence for the use of Immersion's VibeTonz feedback technology, bringing interaction-through-vibration to Nokia handsets. The field of buzzing interfaces, known as "haptics", is based around recreating the vibrational pattern of pushing a button, or sliding a control, then recreating that pattern …

    Mobile 4 Jul 2007, 12:02

  • TomTom files patent for camera sat nav

    What you see is where you drive

    TomTom is attempting to move up a gear in the in-car sat nav biz. It recently filed a patent for a GPS device that incorporates a camera to show the driver exactly where to turn off the road ahead. TomTom's real-view GPS concept The European patent application describes a device that's based on the idea that instead of …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 12:20

  • SanDisk Cruzer Pro, Enterprise secure USB Flash drives

    Review Pay a premium, get password protection

    Hands up who doesn't own a USB Flash drive, purchased or acquired as a freebie? No one? We're not surprised. These things are everywhere, leaving manufacturers keen to come up with novel ideas to sell us more. SanDisk's approach: push data security with a pair of password-protected products. For the security minded, we have …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 12:23

  • Asus overclocks graphics card for 37% performance boost

    And prepares to split into three separate companies

    Gamers might want to hold tightly onto something at this point, because Asus has launched an Nvidia GeForce 8500 GT-based graphics card capable of running at 600MHz. Asus' latest offering, the EN8500GT TOP, boosts the GPU's clock frequency from a standard speed of 450MHz. That, in turn, increases the 3DMark06 benchmark …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 12:43

  • iPhone hack bypasses AT&T

    DVD Jon strikes again

    Famed reverse engineer Jon Lech Johansen claims to have discovered a way to "activate" an iPhone without signing up for a contract with AT&T. The hack allows users to use the iPod and Wi-Fi capabilities of the devices, but doesn't allow use of its phone features. DVD Jon - who's been something of a thorn in Apple's side for …

    Security 4 Jul 2007, 12:43

  • Exploding mobile battery kills Chinese welder

    Motorola investigates fatal blast

    Motorola and Chinese authorities are working together to discover just how an exploding mobile phone battery claimed the life of a welder at Yingpan Iron Ore Dressing Plant in Gansu's Jinta county. According to state news agency Xinhua, Xiao Jinpeng died on 19 June after "a Motorola cell phone in [his] chest pocket suddenly …

    Mobile 4 Jul 2007, 12:45

  • EC wants to suppress internet bomb-making guides

    Eurocrats, terrorists vie for techno-dunce supremacy

    The European Commission (EC) has announced plans to frustrate terrorism by suppressing online guides on bomb-making. "It should simply not be possible to leave people free to instruct other people on the internet on how to make a bomb – that has nothing to do with freedom of expression," EC vice president Franco Frattini said …

    Government 4 Jul 2007, 13:49

  • ASA slaps Vonage over price comparison ads

    Unfair to BT

    VoIP provider Vonage unfairly compared its own prices to BT's in regional newspaper adverts, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled. The advertisement claimed that BT had increased its line rental and then showed the savings possible with Vonage's service. The ads attracted nine points of complaint from BT, eight …

    VoIP 4 Jul 2007, 14:08

  • Storm Trojan feeds on Independence Day

    Heavy spam squalls herald malware blitz

    Hackers have launched a malware blitz that poses as a 4 July greeting card. Malicious emails, distributed worldwide, claim prospective victims have been sent an email greeting card, which they can view by clicking a link online. Varied subject lines based on US Independence Day are used to bait the ruse. Users duped into …

    Security 4 Jul 2007, 14:16

  • Solar-powered ion drive asteroid probe set for launch

    Not much va-va-voom, but very economical

    NASA has confirmed that the "Dawn" space probe to the asteroid belt will indeed launch on Saturday, ending speculation that the mission might be delayed. After launching, Dawn will spend four years in transit to the asteroids, circling the Sun twice and gaining a "gravity assist" on the way by making a close approach to Mars …

    Space 4 Jul 2007, 14:33

  • McLaren suspends top F1 engineer

    Ferrari wants technical documents back

    The McLaren Formula One team has suspended one of its top engineers following an investigation into allegations that the engineer had a stash of high-level technical information from rival F1 team Ferrari. McLaren has declined to name the employee at the centre of the allegations but Ferrari has accused its former technical …

    Business 4 Jul 2007, 15:01

  • Mobile handset selection

    Mobile Clinic Function, features, features and functions

    Choosing mobile handsets that keep the increasingly pushy and tech savvy user base in the organisation happy – without destroying the hard work put in to keep networks and data secure – is one of the most emotive issues we've had to deal with in this month's Mobile Clinic. Fortunately, we once again have the old industry sages …

    Workshop 4 Jul 2007, 15:13

  • Brown calls for e-petitions to get debated in Parliament

    Blogocracy is go

    Gordon Brown has thrown caution to the web, and called for a new e-petitions system which would force Parliament to debate issues popular with internet users. Buried in a wide-ranging parliamentary statement on constitutional reform yesterday, he said: "I also encourage this House to agree a new process for ensuring …

    Government 4 Jul 2007, 15:22

  • CeBIT reinvents itself for 2008

    Scrub down and spruce up

    Deutsche Messe AG yesterday outlined the restructuring of its CeBIT 2008 trade fair in Hanover, which next year will focus more on B2B and less on novelties. Although CeBIT 2007 enjoyed overall attendance of 480,000 (an increase of more than 10 per cent compared with 2006) and deals worth around €11bn, the world's largest …

    Servers 4 Jul 2007, 15:27

  • Linux media centre integrates YouTube

    Open source advantage

    Neuros Technology has rolled out pre-release firmware for its Linux-based OSD networkable set-top box that allows the gadget to suck down and show YouTube content. The firmware allows the OSD to be used to browse and play the entire YouTube video collection on any standard-definition or HD TV. The software supports keyword …

    Reg Hardware 4 Jul 2007, 15:35