18th September 2007 Archive

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Samsung, Toshiba join SanDisk in US antitrust probe

NAND flash market goes under the scope

The US Justice Department is busy handing out more RSVPs to NAND flash memory makers, cordially inviting them to a new market-wide price fixing investigation. On Friday, SanDisk revealed the company and its CEO, Eli Harari, received a grand jury subpoena from federal district court in regard to possible antitrust violations. …

Storage 18 Sep 00:10
Uber-hacker Max Vision misses the killswitch

Cohorts unravel secret life

Having already done time in prison, Max Butler - aka Max Vision - went to great extremes to cloak his new and allegedly-illegal activities from prying eyes. But court documents filed in a case charging him with five new counts of fraud suggest that despite the care he took, much of his undoing came at his own hands - and the …

Security 18 Sep 00:35
iPhone unlocking for pleasure and profit

Cutting class at IDF

Today, I successfully unlocked two iPhones, and they weren't even mine... Hexus.net head, card carrying gadget freak David Ross, nipped out during a pre-Intel Developer Forum presentation here in San Francisco, and came back with a pair of iPhones. Yes, the European version's going to be announced in London tomorrow, but it's …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 01:06
Sun to virtualize boxes, storage and NICs with 'Project Virginia'

Wait till you see Baked Alaska

Sun Microsystems will soon extend its virtualization ambitions via something code-named Project Virginia. CEO Jonathan Schwartz has hinted at Project Virginia a couple of times without providing any real detail on the technology. Sadly, we can't make up for Schwartz's reticence with any grand information revelation. But we are …

Virtualization 18 Sep 01:57
US mercenary outfit shoots 11 Iraqis - and self in foot

Is outsourcing military force the wave of the future?

The Cheney administration's lust for outsourcing work formerly performed by the government - and for favored contractors to profit handsomely thereby - is well-known and insatiable. But one of those pampered contracting firms is now in a bit of hot water, the AP reports. Lust, of course, can be blinding. Those favored …

Public Sector 18 Sep 04:43
What does Microsoft's European defeat mean?

Lawyers speak

Microsoft today lost the majority of its appeal against the European Commission anti-trust decision. Microsoft will have to open up access to its server protocols, continue selling a version of its Windows operating system without Media Player, and pay a fine of at least €497m. But Microsoft did have the imposition of …

Software 18 Sep 08:06
NASA names the day for Dawn raid on asteroid belt

Launch date pencilled in

NASA has confirmed the launch date for Dawn, its mission to the asteroid belt. The space agency is aiming for a launch window that opens at 07:25 (EDT) on 26 September, and closes again 29 minutes later. Artist's impression of Dawn flying past the dwarf-planet Ceres. The agency gets three chances. Although each window is …

Space 18 Sep 09:04
NHS looks to prevent Mtas repeat

Starts consultation on not screwing up

The NHS has published a consultation document on the use of a national computer system to manage recruitment of junior doctors, in a bid to avoid a repeat of this year's debacle. The computerised Medical Training Application Scheme (Mtas) was aimed at modernising the process for junior doctors to apply for training, but …

Public Sector 18 Sep 09:15
Yahoo! hopes Mash will be a monster

360! take! two!

Yahoo! has launched a new social networking site, its second such foray into the field. Mash is a new service from Yahoo! currently in beta mode. The social networking project can only be accessed by invite at present, and opened to a handful of users on 14 September. The new project follows the failure of Yahoo! 360, the …

Financial News 18 Sep 09:36
Kazaa tech chief joins BBC future technology team

Heads up next generation iPlayer

The shakeup of the BBC's iPlayer team we revealed last week was officially announced yesterday with the appointment of Kazaa CTO Anthony Rose as head of digital media technology. Rose will be in charge of the next generation iPlayer group, which will include ex-Microsoft man Jon Billings. Rose in turn will report to the …

IT Director 18 Sep 09:40
Europe claims UK botched one third of Data Protection Directive

Act 'doesn't implement European law properly'

The UK's Data Protection Act (DPA) does not implement European law properly, according to the European Commission which is investigating problems in the UK's implementation of 11 of the Data Protection Directive's articles, almost a third of the entire directive. Using freedom of information legislation, OUT-LAW.COM has learned …

Law 18 Sep 09:42
Security to drop out of CIO spending top ten

Gartner performs Security 3.0 conjuring trick

Security pros need to get more proactive about dealing with threats and adopt strategies to persuade their colleagues to take on security spending as part of their projects, according to analysts Gartner. The changes in roles for security specialists come as the internet security market enters what Gartner described as the …

IT Director 18 Sep 09:44
Orange speaks out with new voice

Tha's wanting a top up, lass?

In between sulking with Nokia and billing customers for imaginary debts, Orange UK has changed the voice used for its menus and automated systems, opting for something a little more matey and a little less BBC. While other operators test femtocells, broadcast video, or prepare to do battle with the imminent iPhone, Orange has …

Mobile 18 Sep 10:07
Google punts ads on the move

All your ads are now mobile

Google has expanded its AdWord product to mobiles, allowing creators of mobile content to embed Google advertisements into their pages and receive revenue on click-throughs. But advertisers expecting a desktop browser may be disappointed when their beautiful landing page is rendered on a two inch screen. Advertisers pay for …

Mobile 18 Sep 10:26
uSwitch cans IT workers

'You gotta switch!'

Price comparison site uSwitch.com has made around 10 of its IT department redundant in a bid to cut costs. Marketing boss Alan Tattersall said the job losses were part of a reorganisation after the firm moved to new offices and combined IT departments with sister site Shopzilla.com. He said: "It's a minor restructure. Like …

IT Director 18 Sep 10:30
Barracuda snaps up firewall firm

Deep packet inspection

Anti-spam appliance firm Barracuda Networks has bought application firewall firm NetContinuum. Financial terms of the deal, announced Monday, were not disclosed. NetContinuum markets a range of appliances that protect the websites of enterprises from web-based threats such as cross-site scripting or SQL injection attacks. …

Security 18 Sep 10:43
Space watchers spot pulsar eating a star

Skeleton star gets gobbled

Astronomers using NASA's Swift and Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) satellites have discovered a stellar skeleton, a remnant of a dying star that is being consumed by its pulsar companion. So little of the star's original material is left that it now barely masses more than Jupiter. Artist depiction. A pulsar tears into a …

Space 18 Sep 10:59
Orange kneecaps Nokia

And good luck with the portal, guys...

Orange UK disclosed the details of its Christmas range of handsets last week - giving the bum's rush to two of the biggest phone manufacturers. Nokia and Motorola are both conspicuously absent from the new line-up (details here). Sony Ericsson is favoured with three Walkman-branded phones, the W910i, W580i, and the budget W200 …

Mobile 18 Sep 11:27
Mozilla creates start-up to recruit email developers

Thunderbird is go

Mozilla plans to replicate the success of its Firefox web browser in the email and communication market with the creation of a new firm. The as-yet-unnamed business will develop internet communications software based on the Thunderbird product, code, and brand. The new initiative aims to nurture an open source developer …

Developer 18 Sep 11:37
Galileo scepticism rife even in Brussels

Only satellite builders truly enthusiastic

Reports from Brussels suggest that European and national officials are beginning to acknowledge the lack of any firm consensus regarding the funding - or even the need - for the planned Galileo Europe sat nav constellation. At a conference organised by French international-relations think tank IFRI, various government and …

Space 18 Sep 11:39
Google's PowerPoint ~~beater~~ beta is go

Google run by druids shocker

Google's attempt at a net-based PowerPoint slayer has gone live just in time for the firm's web-worshipping warlocks to celebrate the autumn equinox. The cursed "& Spreadsheets" suffix has been dropped from the online office suite too. The PowerPoint, Word and Excel copies are now collectively known by the snappier title …

Software 18 Sep 11:48
Jobs hits London to announce O2 iPhone deal

Steve claims 3G is a battery drain

Apple has finally confirmed that O2 has won the exclusive rights to carry the iPhone over its UK network from next month. Steve Jobs made the announcement at its flagship UK store in London this morning. The firm added that the must-have handset will also be available from Carphone Warehouse, in addition to Apple and O2's own …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 12:20
Like Mars, 3 needs women

Blokey stores in need of feminine touch

With the dash for growth over, UK mobile operator 3 is settling into the business of consolidation. 3 has opened 200 new UK stores in the past year, but there's one slight problem - they're a bit blokey. So Marc Allera, 3's UK sales chief, told us when we caught up with him recently. "We want to appeal to everyone. The stores …

Telecoms 18 Sep 13:09
International media firm pays $3.5m over pirate software

Keel-hauled outfit suffers biggest-ever settlement

An unnamed international media firm has agreed to pay a record fine of €2.5m ($3.46m) for being found to have "significant shortfalls in software licenses". The record damages penalty was agreed following a criminal complaint made by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) on behalf of Adobe, Autodesk, Avid, and Microsoft. This …

Channel Register 18 Sep 13:17
AMD to try to take on Intel Core 2 with tri-core Phenom

IDF It's the multi-blade shaver war all over again

AMD's upcoming Phenom desktop processor family will include CPUs with three processing cores, the chip maker announced last night. Now that dual-core products are commonplace and four-core chips becoming more so, why not tri-core too? AMD didn't provide any details of the Phenom series members' speeds and feeds, but it did …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 13:18
Warner punts Blunt on MySpace

~~Annoys~~ Teases US fans with ex-soldier's new album

Not wanting to go back to bedlam, James Hillier Blount aka James Blunt is to see his latest album sold to US fans through MySpace. Warner Music Group (WMG), which has the artist signed up to its roster, appears to be hoping to cash in on social [cough] networking sites by making Blunt's entire album, All the Lost Souls, …

Music and Media 18 Sep 14:00
Zombies flood broadband networks

Resident Evil

Zombie compromised PCs are as fond of eating bandwidth as their counterparts are of munching through brains, according to a new study. Arbor Networks' third annual worldwide infrastructure security report found that, for the first time, botnets surpassed distributed denial of service attacks as the top operational threat …

Security 18 Sep 14:08
New bird takes to the skies for Digital Globe

Better images for Google Earth

Satellite imagery provider Digital Globe is launching its second imaging bird this evening. World View-1 will provide greater resolution, and more frequent updates, to customers including Google Earth. Digital Globe currently has one satellite, QuickBird, which photographs great swathes of the planet as it circles, but is …

Space 18 Sep 14:14
Subterranean mole-bot under development

No plan to seek out underground civilisations, though

British boffins are developing a mechanical, mole-like robotic system which could dig its way through debris or rubble. The technology could be used to build burrowing rescue machines able to retrieve people trapped by collapsing buildings or tunnels. New Scientist reports that the men behind the new kit are Robin Scott and …

Physics 18 Sep 14:32
Boffins challenge shape of neutron neutrality

Pick a team, dammit

Neutrons. You might very well think (unless you are a physics buff, or associated geek) they are neutral, that is to say, without charge. After all, they even sound like the word neutral. Well, yes, and no. Back in 1947, Enrico Fermi proposed that in fact neutrons do have charge, but that it cancels out, so the overall effect …

Physics 18 Sep 15:14
Facebook's marketing goldmine may be crock of shite

Just add the Disappointment Widget

Several times a year I receive emails congratulating me on my age from websites. It's very thoughtful of them to do this - but then it's not often they get the opportunity to market to a genuine silver surfer, like me. You see, I'm actually 112 years old. Or 103. Or 107. And several ages in-between. Yes, I'm one of those people …

Software 18 Sep 15:28
Ditch the desk phone? Yes please

Reader Poll But is this representative?

The feedback we received in this week’s mobile workshop about the merits of ditching the desk phone and going purely mobile was overwhelmingly positive, with comments such as... The company I work for has only got 1 normal land-line in. We've also got about 10 VOIP numbers, apart from that we all use mobiles and chat over …

Workshop 18 Sep 15:29
Halo 3 Legendary Edition stocks blown away

Microsoft confirms pre-order rush

British gamers hoping to get their paws on a special edition of the upcoming Halo 3 are set for a big disappointment. Microsoft has confirmed that all Legendary Edition versions of the game allocated to the UK have already been snapped-up through pre-order, and almost all its Limited Edition version reserves have been reserved …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 15:33
Top US boffin plans jizz-based LEDs

US forces to benefit from spunktronic performance

One of America's top light-emitting-diode boffins plans to develop improved LEDs made from sperm. Salmon sperm, to be precise - for now at any rate. According to a tongue-in-cheek University of Cincinnati release dated last week, Prof Andrew Steckl is quite forthright about his plans. "Biological materials have many …

Biology 18 Sep 15:33
Staying connected?

Reg Technology Panel Introducing the always-on generation

In a recent article we reported on how social networking tools were having an increasing impact on corporate life - for better or worse! No doubt the debate will run and run, and no doubt, like so many new technologies (the Web, anyone?), we shall arrive at a happy medium where such tools become part of the business fabric. In …

Mobile 18 Sep 15:58
Feeling the heat at Neptune's south pole

Long, hot, summer at -190°C

The south pole isn't where you'd ordinarily think of going for your summer holidays, but that is because you are from Earth, not Neptune. Thermal images of Neptune's hot south pole. Neptunians looking to catch a little heat are all heading south, where according to new images from the European Southern Observatory, …

Space 18 Sep 16:01
Cisco tries to save kids from careers in the arts

Partners with Institution of Engineering and Technology

Networking giant Cisco Systems has teamed up with the UK's Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) in the hope of luring young whippersnappers away from the clutches of Media Studies and into the loving arms of the IT profession. Addressing a global shortage of accredited professionals within the IT industry, the firm …

Data Networking 18 Sep 16:14
Embarcadero brings discipline to XML schema

ER/Studio upgrade to standardise SOA data

Database tool builder Embarcadero wants to make life easier for data modellers involved in building Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) applications. Version 7.5 of its ER/Studio data modelling tool, announced last week, includes features to generate XML schemas based on traditional database modelling techniques. Embarcadero …

Developer 18 Sep 17:06
Hitachi injects hypervisor into Xeon blade

IDF Virtual Virtage

Hitachi will continue carving out its own place in the virtualization market with a Xeon-based blade server that includes a built-in hypervisor. In the first quarter of next year, Hitachi America – a subsidiary of the big guy – will ship a Xeon version of the BladeSymphony 1000 system outfitted with homegrown Virtage technology …

Virtualization 18 Sep 17:10
Intel 'Nehalem' design completed, boots Mac OS X

IDF Windows XP too

Intel has booted Apple's Mac OS X operating system on its next-generation 45nm microarchitecture, 'Nehalem', the chip giant's CEO, Paul Otellini, mentioned at IDF this morning. Nehalem is due to debut next year, around 12 months after the first 45nm Core 2 chips, based on the 'Penryn' architecture, arrive. Penryn's the focus …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 17:27
Chinese bloke games himself to death

Three-day marathon man joins his ancestors

A Chinese man who indulged in three-day marathon gaming session joined his ancestors after succumbing to exhaustion, the Beijing News reports. The unnamed 30-year-old from the province of Guangzhou collapsed in a net cafe and later died in hospital despite doctors' efforts to revive him. The authorities have "ruled out the …

Entertainment 18 Sep 17:42
Next-gen Centrino to ship 'May 2008'

IDF CEO lets slip launch window

Intel will ship 'Montevina', the next major incarnation of its Centrino platform, in May 2008, CEO Paul Otellini let slip today. He also announced a 25W version of the platform's Core 2 Duo processors, based on the 45nm 'Penryn' design. To date, the chip giant has simply spoken of an H1 2008 launch window for Montevina. …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 18:01
Intel Developer Forum: complete coverage

Register Hardware once again brings you the best coverage of the Autumn 2007 Intel Developer Forum. Check back regularly, as we'll update this page with all the event's key announcements and stories. Desktop Next-gen Intel vPro platform to get hardware encryption Yes! It's the Intel 'Penryn' codename decoder Nvidia …

Bits 'n' Chips 18 Sep 18:08
Intel CEO dishes discrete graphics return

IDF Whoops

Intel CEO Paul Otellini has finally confirmed the company's plan to return to the discrete graphics chip market, although the confirmation did not come easy. During a keynote at today's Intel Developer Forum here, Otellini gave a detail-thin update on the multi-core Larrabee effort. The CEO did little more than repeat past …

Bits 'n' Chips 18 Sep 18:11
Big-name vendors lined up to offer WiMAX laptops

IDF But not the biggest

Acer, Asus, Lenovo, Panasonic and Toshiba have all committed themselves to offering 'Montevina' Centrino laptops with on-board WiMAX wireless broadband support, Intel said today. Intel will ship Montevina in May 2008, the chip giant's CEO, Paul Otellini, revealed today. He also re-stated the company's belief that WiMAX, not …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 18:48
Beethoven's barnet fused into diamond

10 strands of hair become $1m charity gem

A synthetic diamond company has transformed 10 strands of Beethoven's hair into a "Fancy Blue" 0.56 carat gem expected to sell for up to $1m on eBay. According to the Telegraph, LifeGem obtained the sample of the composer's locks from the University Archives in Connecticut, which boasts barnet samples from a raft of celebs …

Science 18 Sep 19:09
Intel names 'Penryn' launch date

IDF Desktop chips roadmapped

Processors based on 'Penryn', Intel's 45nm architecture, will be formally launched on 12 November, the chip giant's CEO, Paul Otellini, revealed today. But what CPUs will the company announce? Otellini wasn't expansive: "server and high-end desktop products," was all he would say at Intel Developer Forum (IDF) today, noting …

Reg Hardware 18 Sep 19:23
NEC ships HydraStor grid storage platform

Consolidated backup and archiving not a Herculean effort

NEC of America is rolling out the first product based on its HYDRAstor grid storage platform this week, offering a high-tier system for businesses looking to cram backup and archive data into a single system. With the HYDRAstor HS8, the company aims to contend as a heavyweight in the external storage marketplace. NEC is outing …

Storage 18 Sep 19:57
BitTorrent-busters busted by BitTorrent

Email leak exposes stealth P2P honeypot

MediaDefender vows to protect the big-name movie studios and record labels from attack by P2P file sharers. But it seems to have trouble protecting itself. Over the weekend, what looks like nine months of internal MediaDefender email messages turned up on BitTorrent sites across the net, in an apparent exposé of the company's …

Enterprise Security 18 Sep 20:56
Adobe reports record revenue in Q3

Prints money with Creative Suite 3

Creative Suite 3 has been putting bread on Adobe Systems' table this quarter. During its fiscal third quarter ended 31 August, the company reported a record revenue of $851.7m, compared to $602.2m in Q3 2007. GAAP net income rose to $205.2m, compared with $94.4m in the same quarter last year. GAAP operating income was $225m in …

Financial News 18 Sep 21:03
Fossett search 'downgraded'

Some aerial missions suspended

Nevada Civil Air Patrol has "downgraded" the search for missing adventurer Steve Fossett, suspending aerial missions while keeping two aircraft on standby to follow up any possible leads as to his whereabouts. Nevada State police spokesman Chuck Allen told AFP news agency: "The Civil Air Patrol feel that they have completed …

Science 18 Sep 21:31
Florida uni cops taser shouty student

John Kerry forum degenerates into farce

A Florida university student who overran his allotted time while quizzing John Kerry on matters of national import at a forum graced by the Democrat senator for Massachusetts received a solid tasering for his trouble, quickly followed by the now-obligatory YouTube martydom: As you can see, Andrew Meyer, 21, was pretty …

Law 18 Sep 21:35
California returns once more unto the breaches

Breach and tell to include credit card info

Any business that takes card payments from residents of California will face strict new duties on the security of card data under proposals that are just a signature away from becoming law. A breach would trigger unprecedented reimbursement provisions. Final amendments to the measure, called Assembly Bill No. 779, were approved …

Enterprise Security 18 Sep 21:58
ICANN celebrates ninth anniversary as master of your domain

Here’s to you, internet overlords

Today is the ninth anniversary of ICANN as the master of the internet universe, and on that note, the controversial organization that controls the technical standards of internet seems to merit a salutation of sorts. ICANN was created by the American government to manage the backbone of the internet, and it assumed official …

Telecoms 18 Sep 23:01
T-Mobile penetrates Virgin Islands

US cellco yields to the mighty Euro

T-Mobile USA has gobbled up SunCom Wireless, looking to expand the country's fourth-leading cell phone network into Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the heart of the Southeastern United States. You know, the former confederacy. T-Mobile, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, will pay $1.6bn in cash for the regional …

Mobile 18 Sep 23:13
Peruvian 'meteorite' strike provokes noxious gas attack

600 ill as authorities probe mystery buried object

The Peruvian authorities are warning people not to visit the site of a suspected meteorite strike in a remote area of the Andes after 600 people succumbed to "headaches, vomiting and nausea" caused by inhaling gas at the scene. According to the BBC, the impact occurred on Saturday night near Carancas in the Puno region, around …

Space 18 Sep 23:40
World of Warcraft smites den of orc and elf sexual delinquency

Is that a vorpal sword in your pocket or...?

Nothing ruins a quest to smite the dreaded Talon Lord of Sethekk Halls like seeing an troll and an orc simulating childbirth and peeing on each other. No, really - this is a problem. At least for Blizzard Entertainment, who must arbitrate over such unusual circumstances in the astoundingly popular massive multiplayer role …

Music and Media 18 Sep 23:45