28th August 2007 Archive

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TorrentSpy shuts doors to America

Beats judge to punch

Unwilling to compromise the privacy of its users, TorrentSpy has shut its doors to American file sharers. The move came just hours before a U.S. judge denied an appeal from the company, insisting - once again - that it turn over server logs detailing user behavior. The Dutch file-sharing service announced its U.S. shutdown with …

Music and Media 28 Aug 2007, 00:37
Gear6 satiates hungry apps with 500GB RAM monster

I'll take a rack of memory, please

Gear6 fits into that elite, blissful class of start-ups that have an easy to digest premise and infrastructure-friendly gear. The Silicon Valley-based firm ships a pair of caching appliances. These RAM-based boxes plug right into existing Ethernet networks and work as complements to disk-based shared storage systems. As a …

Servers 28 Aug 2007, 01:15
The Return of iTuneski

AllOfMP3 defies Western superpowers

Little more than a month after it collapsed under pressure from several superpowers of the Western world - including the US government and three major record labels - Russia's AllOfMP3 is making a comeback. The music download service has already relaunched its website, and a new blog post claims that cut-rate tunes are close …

Music and Media 28 Aug 2007, 01:40
As US threatens to trash GATS, Antigua responds

Tiny Antigua to bareback Uncle Sucker for cool $7bil

Little Antigua just can't be bullied. Like the weakling in some Hollywood teen summer flick, the tiny island nation keeps coming back. The world's most incomprehensible trade dispute seems poised to set a rather nasty precedent for America, as reports out of the tiny island nation indicate that its demands for compensation …

Law 28 Aug 2007, 02:46
SanDisk targets iPod Shuffle with Clip music player

SanDisk's new Sansa Clip may lack the iPod Shuffle's cool metal casing, but this diminutive digital music player does pack an OLED screen, a mic and an FM radio, all missing from the Apple product. SanDisk's Clip: cross my palm... The Clip will come with a choice of 1GB or 2GB song storage, and in a variety of colours: …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 08:56
The Great Register Salary Survey

Reg Technology Panel How much are you getting ripped off?

Work. Unless you're a land-owning toff or an obscenely overpaid Register reporter, we all at some stage have to knuckle down and do some, albeit with varying degrees of resentment and cack-handedness. Generally, this racket takes up quite a large chunk of our daily lives, and although not always welcomed, becomes the topic for …

Reg Technology Panel 28 Aug 2007, 08:58
Nashville strippers finger net forger

Fake $100 bills fail naked lady test

A Tennessee man who downloaded an image of a $100 bill from the internet, printed himself some instant cash and proceeded directly to a Nashville strip joint was cuffed after suspicious staff called in the cops, AP reports. Damon Armagost, of Smyrna, allegedly splashed $600 in fake currency at the Deja Vu club on 16 April. When …

Bootnotes 28 Aug 2007, 09:03
Restored Dam Busters fly again

Big screen outing for 1954 classic

Film buffs across the UK will next week be able to enjoy a big-screen outing for a digitally restored version of classic 1954 movie The Dam Busters. According to the Telegraph, technicians spent over two months down at Pinewood Film Studios "cleaning and enhancing" the original neg, using specialist kit to "correct flaws, …

Entertainment 28 Aug 2007, 09:09
Manhunt 2 tweaked to beat US sales ban

Halloween debut

Ultra-violent videogame Manhunt 2 has beaten the ban and will hit store shelves in the US at Halloween, publisher Take-Two Interactive has said. Take-Two said that the game has been altered to achieve a lower age-rating than it was previously granted in the States. The US Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has now …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 09:15
Public info office throws out data reuse complaint

Zero-Now loses fight for Milton Keynes data

A company has lost its fight to gain access to data about public services in Milton Keynes for use on its website. Web design company Zero-Now has spent four years trying to win access to information held by Milton Keynes Council for reuse on its own website about the town. The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) has now …

Public Sector 28 Aug 2007, 09:15
Power corrupts, says workplace bullying survey

Misuse of power is the biggest issue

Two-thirds of UK managers believe that lack of management skills is the major factor contributing to bullying at work, according to new research. Misuse of power was listed as the most prolific type of bullying used within the workplace. A survey by the Ban Bullying at Work campaign questioned 512 senior managers across the UK …

IT Director 28 Aug 2007, 09:18
Sun pushes integration with UltraSPARC T2

Latest and greatest processor offers substantial advances

Sun has announced the UltraSPARC T2, which it has dubbed the world's fastest commodity microprocessor. Formerly known as the "Niagara 2" project, the UltraSPARC T2 processor features eight cores and eight threads per core; dual, virtualizable, multithreaded 10 GBps Ethernet ports with built-in packet classification; eight …

Servers 28 Aug 2007, 10:24
Google Germany slammed for Neo-Nazi YouTube clips

Touchy subject

The German public broadcaster has decided to "do a Panorama" by highlighting YouTube's hosting of Neo-Nazi clips and World War II propaganda films. Reuters reports that tonight's Report Mainz on the SDR channel will go big on banned footage of Nazi rock band Landser and excerpts from 1940s race hate film Jud Suess, among others …

Law 28 Aug 2007, 10:39
Tropics getting extra rainy, NASA boffins say

Mind the wet spot

This summer was a bit of a washout for the UK*, but globally, rainfall levels have stayed roughly the same for the last thirty years. But NASA researchers now say they have good evidence that the tropics are getting wetter, with more rain falling over the oceans, than on land. According to a study, published in the August 1 …

Science 28 Aug 2007, 10:51
Hi-Media snaps up Fotolog

Gunning for a bite of the photo-sharing cherry

Fotolog has joined the long list of photo-sharing social [cough] networking websites to be snapped up by a media company hungry for a slice of the Web 2.0 pie. European interactive advertising agency Hi-Media Group has bought Fotolog for a combined stock and cash deal of $90m. The deal comes hot on the heels of News Corp's …

Financial News 28 Aug 2007, 10:53
Vodafone cranks up 3G data rates for autumn

IF you're in Central London or an airport

Vodafone will be pushing its HSDPA network to a possible 7.2Mb/sec download speed and introducing HSUPA to increase uploading to a possible 1.44Mb/sec, during the autumn as it tries to boost corporate data usage. HSUPA (High Speed Upload Packet Access) is the partner to HSDPA, and has been promised for a while. T-Mobile and 3 …

Mobile 28 Aug 2007, 10:59
EnGenius SI-680H Wi-Fi VoIP phone

Review Have Wi-Fi, can call via VoIP

VoIP may be revolutionising the telecoms industry by allowing us to make free calls with little more than a broadband connection and computer, but it's also tying us to our PCs. If you'd rather spend more time talking than being tied to a machine, a Wi-Fi phone like the EnGenius SI-680H will help you cut the cord. EnGenius …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 11:02
Chinese tech firm flirts with Seagate

Updated Could Lenovo be muscling in on US-dominated HDD industry?

Rumours are circulating in the heady world of hard disk drives (HDDs) that a Chinese tech firm wants to buy Seagate Technology. The New York Times reported on Saturday that an unnamed Chinese technology company, widely believed to be computer maker Lenovo, had approached Seagate, the world's number one manufacturer of HDDs. …

Storage 28 Aug 2007, 11:54
Finns dominate mobile-chucking contest

Winning lob of 2.77 Campbells

Finn Tommi Huotari took gold at the eighth Mobile Phone Throwing World Championships in Savonlinna over the weekend by projecting his device a creditable 2.77 Campbells, or 89.62 metres in old money. According to the Evening Standard, the 28-year-old engineer admitted: "I have never thrown a phone before but have been …

Mobile 28 Aug 2007, 11:56
Sony integrates 'super 3G' into laptops

High-speed internet on the move

Sony has upgraded six Vaio notebooks to include High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) connectivity. It claims the SZ6 and TZ20 series, which consist of six notebooks in all, will eventually provide users with download speeds of up to 7.2Mbps while on the move. Sony's Vaio: 3.6Mbps HSDPA downloads next month Released …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 12:05
Shattered teens subsisting on 'junk sleep'

Gadgets to blame for lack of kip

Researchers have fingered electronic gadgets as the primary cause of the UK's kids simply not getting enough kip, the BBC reports. The Sleep Council polled 1,000 teenagers, and almost a quarter 'fessed up to falling asleep" watching TV, listening to music or with other equipment still running, more than once a week". Pretty …

Biology 28 Aug 2007, 12:27
Buffalo flies the flag for Blu-ray format

The shape of drives to come?

Buffalo appears to be throwing its weight behind Blu-ray Disc, sort of. The manufacturer has announced that it plans to release a drive capable of reading both Blu-ray and HD DVD, but which is only able to write to discs in the Blu-ray HD format. Buffalo's BRHC-6316U2: reads HD DVD, writes Blu-ray The drive, which will be …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 12:34
Boffins bend space and time to measure neutron star

Einstein shouts 'told you so', through tear in space-time

Astronomers have caught three neutron stars in the act of distorting space-time, just as Einstein predicted. Bendy space-time has been seen around black holes before, but this is the first time astronomers have seen it around any other body. Sudip Bhattacharyya and Tod Strohmayer, both of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, …

Space 28 Aug 2007, 12:36
LG claims DVD optical rewriters are sexy

The IT crowd has known for years that DVD drives can be sexy, and now LG is looking to push this message out to fashion-conscious consumers. It has developed two external drives that, it claims, blend portable functionality with a dash of style and, ahem, sex appeal. LG's GSA-E5ON and GSA-E5OL DVD writers The GSA-E5ON and …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 13:12
Your one-stop shop for Photoshop

Books Get photorealistic

Photoshop Creative Suite 3 (CS3) is the latest instalment from the hugely popular image manipulation program by Adobe Systems. Photoshop has been the market leader in this field for a number of years and this latest version, CS3, is the 10th iteration. The 3 main components for improvement, as marketed by Adobe themselves, are …

Site News 28 Aug 2007, 13:19
Old timers boozing themslves into oblivion

The rise of the sozzled 'Saga Lout'

British old timers are eschewing the delights of a nice cup of tea in favour of a drop of the hard stuff, an alcohol abuse expert has claimed. Dr Peter Rice has dubbed the binge-drinking grey panthers "Saga Louts", the Evening Standard reports, and warns that "drink problems in the over 65s are on the increase". Accordingly, he …

Bootnotes 28 Aug 2007, 13:37
Register Hardware competition Win an Xbox 360 Elite worth £300

Register Hardware and Microsoft have got a brand spanking new 120GB Xbox 360 Elite to give away... plus six copies of Forza Motorsport 2 as seriously respectable runner-up prizes... The Elite is the newest addition to Microsoft's growing Xbox 360 console range. It's more or less the same as the existing Xbox 360 aside from …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 13:45
HTC slides out TyTN II 'super 3G' smartphone

Orange, T-Mobile, Vodafone signed up to sell it

Smartphone specialist HTC has revamped its TyTN handset, packing in not only Windows Mobile 6 but integrating support for high-speed 3G downloads and a GPS receiver. HTC's TyTN II smartphone The sequel's unsurprisingly called the TyTN II. Like the original, it comes in a tablet form factor based around a 2.8in, 240 x 320 …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 13:48
Thieves swipe biker's prosthetic hand

'No good to anyone else', insists semi-armless victim

A disabled biker who left his prosthetic hand gripped to the handlebars of his Suzuki faces a bill for £450 for a new mitt after thieves made off with the original, the Sun reports. Jack Baker, 19, lost an arm back in May after a head-on collision with a bus in Bristol. He got an artificial hand to allow him to carry on riding …

Bootnotes 28 Aug 2007, 13:51
Sony preps HD-ready Vaio all-in-one iMac-alike

CableCard required

The latest model in Sony's L series of all-in-in desktop Vaio PCs is the first machine in the line to feature not only a Blu-ray Disc drive but also a TV tuner capable of receiving HD programming. Sony's Vaio LT: CableCard required The Vaio LT HD PC/TV VGC-LT19Uis based around a 22in, 1680 × 1050 (WSXGA+) widescreen …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 14:02
New underclass dossing in Japan's net cafes

5,400 'refugees' seek cybersanctuary

Japan's health and welfare ministry says it has identified 5,400 "Net cafe refugees" - a new underclass driven by hard times to doss down in 24-hour cybercafes, the Telegraph reports. These unfortunates are the fall-out from Japan's economic slump following the 1980s boom years. Despute the current rise in Japan's fortunes, …

Bootnotes 28 Aug 2007, 14:17
Aussie gov anti-porn filter 'useless', says teen

'It'll take more than that to stop me'

The anti-pornography filtering software dished out by the Australian government at a cost of AUS$84m has been broken in minutes by a teenager, according to reports. "I downloaded it on Tuesday to see how good it was, because for 84 million dollars, I would have expected a pretty unbreakable filter," 16-year-old Melbourne …

Security 28 Aug 2007, 14:29
Ex-astronaut offers apologies, Huggies to 'love-rival'

Sorry for frightening you in any way

Lisa Nowak, the former NASA astronaut now most famous for facing changes of attempted kidnapping, and accusations of nappy-wearing, has apologised to the woman she is accused of attacking. She also asked the court if she might have her GPS ankle bracelet removed, promising to tell officials if she travels anywhere near Brevard …

Space 28 Aug 2007, 14:43
AT&T turns screws on iPhone unlocker

Scary late night caller

UniquePhones has pulled its iPhone unlocking service after receiving calls from lawyers claiming to represent AT&T and threatening to sue the Belfast-based firm for copyright infringement and illegal software dissemination. The call apparently came in the middle of the night, UK time, within hours of the intended launch of the …

Mobile 28 Aug 2007, 14:56
HP writes big fat cheque for 'Print 2.0' ad jamboree

Beyond the paper dome

Hewlett-Packard (HP) is bigging up its web-based printer offerings in a pricey $300m marketing campaign. The printing giant said that the campaign, which kicks off today and will be shown across traditional media, outdoor ads and online content, will promote HP's so-called "Print 2.0" strategy which was first announced in May …

Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 15:01
Crytek names Crysis demo release day

Ready for DX10?

Eagerly anticipated first-person shooter Crysis will debut in a single-player demo form on 25 September, the company's developer, Crytek, has revealed. Crytek's Crysis The demo is set to feature the game's entire first level. Crysis has been drawing the attention of PC gamers not only because it's the follow up to Crytek' …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 15:10
Orange sulks at Nokia

Hissy fit party spoiler

Nokia's share price fell today after Orange threw a spoiler at the Finnish handset giant. In London tomorrow, Nokia is expected to unveil its digital media and gaming strategies - as well as new hardware to support them - in the first major event since the company abolished its Multimedia and Enterprise business units in a June …

Mobile 28 Aug 2007, 15:15
Light sabre on cargo manifest for next Shuttle mission

The force is with NASA

Star Wars is 30 years old, and Hollywood props cupboards are full of useless (but very cool) old tat. What better way to highlight both these facts than to announce that the original "light sabre" from the Star Wars movies, as wielded by Mark Hamill, is to be sent to space on board the next space shuttle mission. So, when …

Space 28 Aug 2007, 15:25
Amimon ships wireless HDMI chipset

High Definition wireless

Your next TV and DVD player may prove capable of connecting wirelessly, according to chip manufacturer Amimon. The company has just started shipping a chipset based on its Wireless High-Definition Interface (WHDI) standard, that allows wireless streams of uncompressed HD video and audio to be broadcast around your home. The …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 15:35
Wii tops US July console sales chart

Outsells PS3 and Xbox 360 combined

Nintendo shifted 425,000 Wii consoles in the US in July, 11.3 per cent more than it did in June and way more than Microsoft and Sony together managed with the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, the latest market stats reveal. The numbers come from market watcher NPD, which recorded Xbox sales of 170,000 and, coming up close, PS3 …

Reg Hardware 28 Aug 2007, 16:04
IBM does iSCSI storage on the cheap

Low-end DS3300 gets virtual protocol

The latest wave of data center virtualization has made the iSCSI protocol an increasingly appealing prospect for the SMB market, and naturally vendors are obliging customers with fresh gear. IBM is jumping aboard the bandwagon today and unveiling its first entry into the iSCSI storage space since parting ways with Adaptec nine …

Storage 28 Aug 2007, 18:45
Yahoo! seeks dismissal of China human rights lawsuit

(!!!!!!!) Add them in yourself

Yahoo! has asked a US court to dismiss a lawsuit accusing it of "aiding and abetting" acts of torture and other human rights abuses against Chinese dissidents. The company handed over information about its users to the Chinese government, which led to the arrests of the dissidents. Yahoo! is fighting a suit was filed by the …

Law 28 Aug 2007, 21:35
Hey Mr Policeman - this car is stolen!

Windows Genuine Advantage is broken - again

I’m sure you’ve heard that old joke which contrasts the development of the car with the astonishing rate of progress in digital electronics. The story goes that if automobile technology had advanced at the same pace as desktop computers in the last couple of decades, we’d all be driving cars that can circle the globe on a …

Verity Stob 28 Aug 2007, 21:52
Pesky hack divulges Intel's 'Project Copy Hypertransport'

CSI Mountain View

Intel's plan to unveil its copy of AMD's Hypertransport technology at next month's Intel Developer Forum (IDF) has been spoiled by a rather thorough analyst. Back in June, Intel confirmed some dates around its CSI interconnect for the first time, saying the technology will appear with products that ship in 2008. CSI, which will …

Servers 28 Aug 2007, 22:07
Seagate raises financial outlook

In brief High prices don't drop demand

Disk drive behemoth Seagate is giving a notably large bump to its fiscal first quarter revenue forecast today, citing strong demand, favorably high prices and a better product mix. The world's largest hard-disk maker increased its forecast for the three moths ending September 28 to a range of $3.15bn to $3.25bn. During its …

Storage 28 Aug 2007, 23:47