6th September 2007 Archive
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ADVISE data-mining program cut by Homeland Security
We advise skepticism
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is ditching a controversial data-mining program, the Associated Press revealed today. The Analysis, Dissemination, Visualization, Insight and Semantic Enhancement program (ADVISE), a massive data-mining system under development at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory since 2003, was capable of …
Government 6 Sep 2007, 02:03
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Apple slashes iPhone prices
Slaps 1 million idiots
No, Steve. We didn't miss that last bit. This morning, after announcing a boatload of brand new iPod and iTunes gizmos, Steve Jobs had one final piece of news for all you Apple lovers out there: He was dropping the price of the iPhone. Little more than two months after it debuted at $599, the 8GB status symbol is now available …
Mobile 6 Sep 2007, 02:04
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Master crim leaves vital clue at scene of burglary
'Peter Addison was here!'
An 18-year-old burglar spectacularly avoided elevation to the league of master criminals by writing "Peter Addison was here!" at the scene of a break-in, the Sun reports. Addison and Mark Ridgeway, 18, both subsequently admitted burglary at Macclesfield magistrates' court after a short police investigation into the raid on …
Crime 6 Sep 2007, 08:04
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MPs slam Defra over rural payments system
'A master class in bad decision making'
Rushed testing of IT and poor management led to the failure of the single payments scheme for farmers, says a parliamentary report. The chair of the House of Commons' public accounts committee, Edward Leigh, has condemned the government for its failure to implement the single payments scheme to farmers effectively. Leigh …
Public Sector 6 Sep 2007, 09:35
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Intel schedules quad-core mobile CPUs for H2 '08
Specially designed laptops required?
Intel looks set to release a quad-core microprocessor for notebooks at long last, but you're not likely to get your hands on a laptop containing the chip for the best part of a year. Unsurprisingly, the mobile quad-core is based on Intel's 45nm chip design, 'Penryn'. Intel has admitted as much in the past, and said that four- …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 09:41
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Large databases are not safe enough, says stats boffin
'Identity reconstruction' still possible
Large databases do not adequately protect sensitive personal information, according to a statistics professor in the US, who says that individuals can still be identified despite attempts to anonymise them. George Duncan is a statistics professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He writes in the …
ID 6 Sep 2007, 09:49
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Facebook was my idea, says yet another ex-Harvard student
No legal action yet
Another former Harvard student has come forward claiming to have invented a precursor to social networking giant Facebook. Aaron Greenspan has written an unpublished book detailing his claims. Mark Zuckerberg is the founder of Facebook, a company based on a social networking website that was originally open only to college …
Financial News 6 Sep 2007, 09:55
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Dino-killing asteroid traced back 160m years
T-Rex was history before he was even born
The dinosaur-busting asteroid that slammed into Earth some 65 million years ago has been traced back to a collision between two monster chunks of rock 160 million years ago, out in the main asteroid belt. According to researchers at the Southwest research Institute (SwRI) and the University of Prague, the dino-killer most …
Space 6 Sep 2007, 10:17
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Sony adds HD to TV-via-net box
HD streaming for the masses
Sony's LocationFree media streaming system has been upgraded to HD. The new LF-W1HD device will now support streaming for HD - and Blu-ray content, apparently - around the home, at up to 1080i resolution. Sony's LocationFree: HD streaming around the home the future? The original, standard-definition LocationFree was …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 10:43
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Archos 605 Wi-Fi personal media player
Review The acme of PMPs?
Archos' 605 Wi-Fi represents the flagship model of the French manufacturer's fifth generation of Personal Media Players (PMPs). And although it may not look entirely dissimilar to its predecessors, the 605 brings plenty of new features to the table. Archos' 605 Wi-Fi: hugely capacious Arriving in reasonable 30GB, 80GB and …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 11:02
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IBM and Novell push out new SLED
A viable Vista alternative?
IBM and Novell have announced an integrated open collaboration client for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop that includes IBM Lotus Notes, IBM Lotus Sametime and IBM productivity tools to deliver advanced email and calendar capabilities, unified communication & collaboration and lightweight yet powerful word processing, spreadsheet …
Applications 6 Sep 2007, 11:03
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Vodafone takes one on the chin for billing problems
Not our fault, but we'll take the blame anyway
Vodafone has blamed recent changes to its billing system for a litany of problems affecting its UK network, from inaccurate bills to disconnected calls, but is refusing to say who's responsible for the debacle. Billing systems are integrated into every part of a mobile network, often in a badly documented fashion, so a failure …
Mobile 6 Sep 2007, 11:04
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Seagate targets sensitive customers with encrypted HDDs
Standing in the way of control
Hard disk drive (HDD) giant Seagate Technology is to start flogging HDDs with built-in encryption chips in an attempt to secure sensitive data on home PCs. The firm said that, given the explosion in sales devices that hold digital content within the consumer market, securing stored data was becoming an increasingly important …
Storage 6 Sep 2007, 11:15
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Toshiba boffins ready next-gen iPod hard drive
120GB per 1.8in platter
Toshiba has taken the wraps off a new hard drive recording technology it claims will dramatically increase the capacity of the 1.8in drives used in portable media players like Apple's newly announced iPod Classic. Dubbed Discrete Track Recording (DTR), the technique, as its name suggests, separates out parallel magnetic data- …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 11:22
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Orange promises rethink on deleted email accounts
Updated Annoyed punters may force U-turn
Orange is contemplating a U-turn on its trashing of old Freeserver accounts following a storm of criticism from hacked-off users. Last month Orange started deleting inactive email accounts which were not associated with broadband or dial-up internet access accounts. Many were old Freeserve accounts that had been migrated to …
Networks 6 Sep 2007, 11:24
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Government warns parents of food-colouring danger
Chemicals: bad for kids
Parents are being warned of a link between disruptive behaviour and hyperactivity in children and certain food additives. Research conducted by the Food Standards Agency established that children behave impulsively, and lost concentration after drinking a cocktail of additives and preservatives. Some 300 children were involved …
Biology 6 Sep 2007, 11:33
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PRC forces also ravaging UK gov nets, insist Brits
Analysis Flimsy bandwagon collapses as dunces crowd aboard
In the wake of Pentagon leaks suggesting that the Chinese military has conducted network attacks against US military systems, some in the UK are clearly feeling left out. The Guardian yesterday said its anonymous Whitehall sources had confirmed that: "Chinese hackers, some believed to be from the People's Liberation Army, have …
Government 6 Sep 2007, 11:41
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Mobiles can upset hospital equipment, after all
Lifeline for Patientline
A new study published in Critical Care indicates that the signal generated by mobile phones can interfere with hospital equipment, even to the point of inhibiting its function, from a range of up to three meters. The UK Government has suggested mobiles should be allowed in hospitals, though many trusts have maintained their ban …
Mobile 6 Sep 2007, 11:46
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If you can fix a 757 with two goats, how many do you need to fix an OSI vote?
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For a story that had more than its fair share of drama this week, it was hard to look further than Microsoft's efforts to get its Office Open XML (OOXML) specification fast-tracked as an ISO standard. Ordinarily, stories about Microsoft and standards tend to be the preserve of bearded men of a particular age, but the OOXML saga …
Channel Register 6 Sep 2007, 13:04
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Horizon's Irish revenue falls
Down nearly nine per cent
System integrator and IT distributor Horizon Technology Group said overall first-half revenue rose by 11 per cent to €146,305, but it saw profits tumble in Ireland. Horizon's Irish revenue was down 8.9 per cent to €27.9m compared to the same period of 2006. Despite the profits drop, the firm said it expected prospects to …
Channel Register 6 Sep 2007, 13:36
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Church hall bans 'unchristian' yoga for nippers
Young minds saved from spiritual perversion
A Somerset church has banned toddlers from practising yoga in its hall because the "unchristian" practice "promoted other spiritualities", the BBC reports. Teacher Louise Woodcock from Taunton got a nasty shock when she applied to rent Taunton's Silver Street Baptist Church hall for her Yum Yum Yoga classes. She explained: "I …
Bootnotes 6 Sep 2007, 13:38
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Slave kids working UK cannabis farms
Vietnamese criminal gangs cash in on child labour
UK drug information organisation DrugScope has highlighted the plight of child "slaves" forced to work in illicit UK cannabis farms. According to the organisation, the mainly Vietnamese victims are trafficked into Britain and "coerced into working as 'human sprinkler systems' to water and tend plants in UK cannabis farms" - two …
Law 6 Sep 2007, 13:45
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Cassini closes in on Iapetus
Fly-by of an odd-ball moon
Saturn watchers on the Cassini mission are preparing for another fly-by, this time of the oddly shaped moon Iapetus. The Cassini probe is set to pass within 1,600 kilometres of the moon, roughly 100 times closer than the last encounter in 2004. It is also the last time the probe is scheduled to fly past the moon, and mission …
Space 6 Sep 2007, 13:52
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Cursing senior plod samples electric justice
Video 'Aagh - bloody hell': top cop zap vid shocker
A top Welsh cop has posted video of himself being zapped with a Taser cattleprod stun gun. With a strangled cry of "Aagh - bloody hell," North Wales chief constable Richard Brunstrom tastes electric justice and pitches to the deck, towards the end of this Flash vid: The stunt was intended to back up Brunstrom's decision to …
Bootnotes 6 Sep 2007, 13:59
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Aussie bin Laden penetrates APEC security
Police decry TV comedy stunt
A crack squad of Oz TV comedians - one dressed as Osama bin Laden - today succeeded in penetrating tight defences around the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Sydney, Reuters reports. The Chaser team drove three cars, complete with motorcycle escorts, unchallenged through two checkpoints and were only detained …
Entertainment 6 Sep 2007, 14:00
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HP revives iPaq range
Five new devices arrive all at once
It's been quite a while since there were any shake-ups in the world of the HP iPaq, and suddently here come five new iPaq devices all at once: the 110, 210, 310, 610 and 910. HP's iPaq 110 (left) and 210 The 110 Classic Handheld has a 3.5in, 320 x 240 display, runs Windows Mobile 6 and incorporates a 624MHz CPU with 64MB …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 14:12
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TV's iPod moment?
Column Watching the Defectives
Last month, the British television industry belatedly joined in a ritual that has been performed by a variety of industries over the past decade. Pointing manically at the rising tide of digital technology, it shook itself awake, and demanded a little more panic. The occasion was the annual Edinburgh International Television …
Music and Media 6 Sep 2007, 14:24
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Sony adds HDMI port to Alpha snapper
With the increasing proliferation of HDMI-enabled devices, we knew it wouldn't be long before HDMI ports begin appearing on digital SLR cameras: Sony's 12.2-megapixel Alpha 700 features an HDMI jack for instant connection to a telly. Sony's Alpha 700: HDMI equipped The 700, which expands Sony's Alpha range to five models …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 14:42
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Asus backs Blu-ray
DVD burner/Blu-ray reader launched
Asus has rolled up its sleeves and jumped into the next-generation optical disc format fight on the side of Blu-ray Disc. This week it announced a multi-format DVD writer with the ability to play BD media. Asus' BC-1205PT Blu-ray Disc drive The BC-1205PT Blu-ray Drive is an internal SATA drive for PCs. It'll burn DVD±R/RW …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 15:04
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Acer joins HD DVD spin team
If you thought Acer's move, announced last week, that it will support the Blu-ray Disc optical disc format was a sign it had hopped off the fence, think again. The computer maker - soon to be the world's third largest - today reiterated its support for HD DVD. Acer's Aspire 5290: HD DVD here Acer said it has joined the HD …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 16:14
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Boffins develop quantum-computer building block
No faster-than-light kit on offer, sadly
US boffins have made two widely separated atoms communicate their properties to one another in a phenomenon famously referred to by Albert Einstein as "spooky action-at-a-distance" and by others as "quantum teleportation". In a paper published today by prestigious boffinry journal Nature, a crack team of eggheads, led by …
Physics 6 Sep 2007, 16:22
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HP turns to Voodoo to conjure up gaming PC
Blackbird
Exactly a year after HP acquired Voodoo PC, the two have collaborated to create a high-end gaming desktop to go out with an HP badge. The Blackbird 002 sports a stylish aluminium chassis and an impressive range of build options for the avid PC gamer. HP's Blackbird 002: will it settle in your gaming nest? At its most basic …
Reg Hardware 6 Sep 2007, 16:27
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Mac, Linux BBC iPlayers in the offing, says PM
Not that I control the Beeb or anything
The Beeb's controversial decision to roll out its iPlayer TV-over-IP platform on Windows only seems to have been overruled, presumably by its own governing body. More than 16,000 people (or accounts, anyway) signed up to a petition posted on the Prime Minister's e-Petitions site, saying that: "We the undersigned petition the …
Applications 6 Sep 2007, 16:37
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Rick Rubin: Right idea, Wrong Price?
Subs can save us
The record producer and co-founder of Def Jam has only been "co-head" of Sony's Columbia Records since May, but he's already setting about destroying the old business so a new one can be built in its place. It remains to be seen how effective he will be, but for now Rubin is prepared to say what seasoned executives think, but …
Music and Media 6 Sep 2007, 17:53
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UK and US team-tag to speed patent prosecution process
Dupe, dupe, de-dupe
The US and UK patent offices have agreed to share and recognise each other's patent examination reports under a new deal. The offices hope the deal could save significant application time for would-be patent holders. The 12-month pilot deal creates what the offices are calling a Patent Prosecution Highway. It means that someone …
Law 6 Sep 2007, 18:43
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Michael Dell 'not involved' in accounting fraud
Buck, what buck? Must have passed it along...
Michael Dell, CEO of Dell Computers said Wednesday he was not involved in any of the accounting monkeyshines uncovered during an internal probe at the company. Dell's remarks at the Citigroup technology conference in New York is the first time he has publicly commented on his participation — or lack of participation — in the …
PCs & Chips 6 Sep 2007, 19:14
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Apple lobs $100 credit at iPhone buyers
El Reg demands an apology
Much to our surprise, Apple mavens have revolted against Steve Jobs. And he's trying to appease them. After receiving hundreds of emails from iPhone buyers upset that Apple lopped $200 from the price of its handheld status symbol just 68 days after its debut, Jobs has offered an olive branch. According to a letter posted …
Mobile 6 Sep 2007, 21:17
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Microsoft readies Virtual Machine Manager 2007
Availability, licensing and promises revealed
Microsoft's virtualization team has finally stirred as the market gears up for VMworld next week. A bundle of announcements today include a virtulization management software released to manufacturing, solidified pricing and licensing, and promises for future versions. Let's dive in: Virtual Machine Manager 2007 After two …
Servers 6 Sep 2007, 23:14
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Google leaps on patent reform bandwagon
If reform is the right word
Today, some of the biggest names in high-tech have their eyes on the nation's capital, where lawmakers are babbling about an overhaul of the U.S. patent system. After years of lobbying from companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Intel, the Senate Judiciary Committee has pulled together a very official hearing called " …
Law 6 Sep 2007, 23:21
