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12th November 2007 Archive

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  • Oracle 'cheated' in TPC benchmarks

    Myths and legends Denies wrong doing

    When database folks gather to sup ale and chat, as they invariably will at Oracle's OpenWorld in San Francisco this week, talk occasionally turns to benchmarking. As soon as it does, someone will say: "Of course the trouble is you can't trust the vendors. Wasn't Oracle caught cheating at the TPC benchmarks?" The public has a …

    Software 12 Nov 2007, 00:02

  • Reg Dev gets Monkish

    Manual backup

    This week, Monk and His IT Junk join Register Developer. Illustrated by cartoonist Jason Slater, Monk and fellow Brothers Mouse Matt and Norris do their best to come to terms with IT's ironies and frustrations. Copyright © Jason Slater. Originally published at Monk and his IT junk.

    Bootnotes 12 Nov 2007, 00:02

  • Sun throws new servers, switch and storage gear at HPC set

    SC07 Constellation finally spotted

    Sun Microsystems will use this week's Supercomputing conference in Reno to make good on delivering a number of products aimed at the high performance computing crowd. When all the product releases are taken as a whole, Sun ends up with a lineup that could help it regain ground lost to IBM and HP. Regular Sun watchers will have …

    Servers 12 Nov 2007, 05:26

  • HP spreads Virtual Connect to 1,600 servers

    Pops out power management monster

    Managing the ties between virtual servers and storage systems strikes most admins as a real pain. So, customers should welcome the arrival of an addition to HP's Virtual Connect technology that allows them to set up flexible relationships between a large number of virtual servers and physical storage boxes. Since February, HP …

    Servers 12 Nov 2007, 05:39

  • Dell welcomes new Xeons with something old and new

    Hear the R900 roar

    Dell has grabbed hold of Intel's latest Xeon release and upgraded its mainstream server line, but the vendor would prefer you focus on the new PowerEdge R900 running on older chips. The four-socket R900 server eats up 4U of rack space and stands as Dell's top performing box of all time. The server runs on Intel's four-core 7300 …

    Servers 12 Nov 2007, 06:31

  • Toyota ponders plug-in hybrids

    C'mon baby don't light my fire

    Japanese motor mammoth Toyota signalled a cautious move forward in the "green*" motoring revolution, announcing plans for studies into "plug-in" hybrid vehicles on Friday. Reuters reports that Toyota will supply a brace of modified Prius vehicles to the University of California, Berkeley, and UC Irvine, for use in the studies …

    Science 12 Nov 2007, 09:44

  • A simple unit test for GUIs

    Hands on Part 2: Server envy

    Last time I described why GUI code is difficult to unit test, and why it's generally better to avoid doing so. But that doesn't mean GUI-related code shouldn't be tested - you just need to separate out the logic. Easier said than done? The number of times I've spoken to Java GUI coders who've said: "Swing code can't be unit- …

    Software 12 Nov 2007, 10:02

  • Intel rolls out 45nm 'Penryn' gaming, server chips

    Sneaks out more 65nm Xeons too

    Intel yesterday rolled out its first 45nm 'Penryn' processors, including a new top-of-the-line gaming chip, the Core 2 Extreme QX9650. The other 45nm neophytes were Xeon-brand server chips, though Intel also used the opportunity to roll out a set of 65nm Xeons too. The 45nm, LGA771 Xeons split into two groups: the 65/80W …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 10:18

  • Watchdog issues voluntary public data standards

    Best practice

    The Audit Commission has launched a set of voluntary standards to help public bodies improve the data they use to report their activities. Introducing the guidelines, the Audit Commission said they were designed to be flexible and allow public sector organisations to take into account local risks and resources. …

    Public Sector 12 Nov 2007, 10:24

  • ESO spies warped, star-forming spiral galaxy

    As seen by an EU commissioner

    The European Southern Observatory has released a new image of nearby spiral galaxy NCG-134, revealing a place very similar to our own galaxy, but with a significant difference: the galaxy's spiral disk is twisted. ESO picture of galaxy NGC-134. Our own galaxy does have a small warp in it, but the distortion in NGC-134 is …

    Space 12 Nov 2007, 10:31

  • Passenger data deal based on plan opposed by privacy regulator

    But it'll help fight terrorism, apparently

    The European Commission has published a plan (pdf) to compel EU members to gather more information on air passengers travelling in and out of the EU in what it says is an attempt to combat terrorism. The proposal depends on a soon-to-be adopted data sharing policy which has been opposed by Europe's privacy regulator the …

    Government 12 Nov 2007, 10:37

  • Privacy laws should be overhauled, says European regulator

    Locks horns with Google

    Europe's top privacy regulator has said European privacy laws will need to be overhauled in just five years' time. He also said the rules governing which countries can be sent Europeans' data could be improved. Speaking at a European think tank debate on privacy and featured in technology law podcast OUT-LAW Radio, European …

    ID 12 Nov 2007, 10:59

  • Squaddies warned off Facebook

    Don't be a 'soft' target

    British servicemen and women are being warned off social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace. Advice circulated in mid-October warned service staff not to post "your service connections on chatroom and dating sites". Military bosses are worried that terrorists will use social networking sites to identify and target …

    Government 12 Nov 2007, 11:13

  • Airbus scores whopping £16.7bn Emirates deal

    70 A350s and 11 A380s

    Airbus yesterday used Dubai’s annual air show to announce a whopping £16.7bn deal with Emirates to supply 70 A350s and 11 A380s - described by the Times as "the largest-ever single-aircraft order". The deal is a serious blow to Boeing, which inked a paltry $6.1bn deal with Qatar Airways for 30 787 Dreamliners and five 777 …

    Science 12 Nov 2007, 11:15

  • DCC sees PC market deflation

    And profits slide on banana settlement

    DCC Plc today reported interim figures that showed its IT distribution businesses being hit by deflation. Total revenue at Ireland-based DCC was up by a quarter to nearly €2.3bn year on year. Operating profit, excluding exceptional items and amortisation, rose to €51.6m in the six months ended 30 September 2007, compared to € …

    Channel Register 12 Nov 2007, 11:31

  • Prince sends army of lawyers to take on Pirate Bay

    Wave after wave

    Prince is lining a flotilla of lawyers to take on the Pirate Bay, in the latest stage of his crusade to stamp out web piracy of his stuff. The small big star sent his hard core fans reeling last week, when he fired "cease and desist" notices at unofficial fan sites and demanded "details of the means by which you propose to …

    Law 12 Nov 2007, 11:32

  • Cyber-jihad fails to materialise

    Bruce Willis stood down

    A much hyped cyber-jihad by Islamist s'kiddie hackers on Western websites failed to materialise on Sunday. The SANS Institute's Internet Storm Centre reports that 11 November passed off normally. So Bruce Willis, fresh from a cinematic outing battling cybergeddon in Die Hard 4pointless.0 can hang up his miraculous colour- …

    Crime 12 Nov 2007, 11:35

  • Bangkok vigilante 'wipes out' sleeping security guards

    Ten victims 'did not deserve to be paid'

    A Thai security guard who took exception to fellow operatives sleeping on the job because they had "taken advantage of their employers and did not deserve to be paid", duly beat 10 of the men to death, the Telegraph reports. Witaya Jaikhan, 30, clubbed his victims with an iron bar or wooden stick after initiating his Bangkok …

    Bootnotes 12 Nov 2007, 11:36

  • Galileo slammed by UK politicians

    'Stop this folly'

    British MPs have expressed their concern over plans from the European Commission aimed at advancing the troubled Euro-collaborative sat nav project Galileo. The Transport committee of the House of Commons warned that Europe (and in particular the UK) was "sleepwalking" into a multibillion-pound commitment without any proper …

    Space 12 Nov 2007, 11:51

  • Nintendo DS fans plan Children in Need charity game-in

    Play games, raise cash

    Jumping into baked bean-filled baths or men wearing dresses into the office are tried and tested ways of raising cash for the annual BBC-led charity telethon Children in Need. However, one group of Nintendo DS fanatics are using their love of the handheld console to raise some money for the cause. No video? You'll need to …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 11:55

  • New York State takes on the DOJ over e-voting

    We don't want no stinking voting machines

    The US Department of Justice is going to the courts in a bid to force New York State to buy its preferred voting machines in time for the 2008 election. New York State's Board of Elections has declined to hold an open discussion on how to respond. New York State has so far refused to buy the voting machines approved as part of …

    Government 12 Nov 2007, 11:56

  • Wannabe US bank robber fails intelligibility test

    Teller can't understand demands for cash

    A wannabe US bank robber failed dismally to relieve an Alabama bank of its cash since the teller simply could not understand what on earth he was saying. According to The Birmingham News, the blagger entered the Compass Bank in eastern Birmingham last Friday lunchtime, "walked up to a teller and tried to explain that he wanted …

    Bootnotes 12 Nov 2007, 11:57

  • Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT graphics chip

    Review Nvidia's bang-for-buck winner?

    Nvidia’s new 'G92' graphics chip is based on the 'G80' used in the GTS, GTX and Ultra versions of the GeForce 8800, and is a die-shrink that moves from the part from its predecessors' 90nm fabrication process to 65nm. There are other changes inside the chip, which gains the VP2 video engine and bitstream processor used in the …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 12:10

  • Businesses put their weight behind web-enabled apps

    Quocirca's changing channels It's not all about SaaS

    For a growing number of organisations, web browsers are becoming the primary interface for accessing certain business applications. This enables easy access to widely distributed groups of users, not just employees on the move, but also individuals in external organisations; customers, suppliers, partners, and so on. This is …

    Channel Register 12 Nov 2007, 12:13

  • Amnesty calls for internet rights for all

    Gov action required

    Amnesty International is repeating its call for companies and governments to take action to protect human rights online. Ahead of this week's Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Rio de Janiero, the pressure group said restrictions on freedom of expression are increasing around the world. It is calling for governments to stop …

    Law 12 Nov 2007, 12:15

  • Orange shines on world's first solar-powered Bluetooth headset

    Keep it under your hat - not

    UK carrier Orange has brought what's claimed to be the world's first Bluetooth headset that draws its power from the sun. Iqua's Sun: solar powered First unveiled at the 3GSM event, held in Barcelona earlier this year, the Iqua Sun headset looks like most other headsets on the market - well, apart from the unit's solar panel …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 12:23

  • TV villain talks into wrong end of iPhone

    Bionic Woman outrage rocks blogosphere

    We are (we think) much obliged today to eagle-eyed reader Seth Fogie who has spotted what is indisputably this week's big news event: some bloke in The Bionic Woman talking into the wrong end of Apple's paradigm-redefining iCon iPhone: To be honest, we're not sure if that's the right end or not, having not yet had the …

    Bootnotes 12 Nov 2007, 12:28

  • Rival iPhone unlock teams hint at 1.1.2 success

    Clear as mud

    Hackers have worked out how to unlock the latest iPhone firmware, 1.1.2, to allow handsets running it to operate on any GSM network. Yet confusion reigns - one popular unlocking app may have been updated 'unofficially'. Firmware 1.1.2 was released this past Friday, just ahead of the UK and German iPhone launches. New European …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 13:15

  • Massive fire on Olympic site

    Exclusive pic There's the fire, son

    A massive fire on the disused industrial estate where the 2012 Olympic park will be built has created a plume of smoke visible across London. Firefighters were called to the blaze just after 12:00, and eight appliances are now said to be in attendance. During the early stages of the blaze, large fireballs characteristic of …

    Physics 12 Nov 2007, 13:27

  • Government staff sacked for web breaches

    Big Brother watches Big Brother

    Over 130 UK public servants have lost their jobs due to breaches of IT policy over the last three years, government figures show. The Guardian used a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to get the figures, which showed some 1,700 civil servants have been disciplined or lost their jobs for misuse of email or internet access in …

    Government 12 Nov 2007, 13:51

  • Woman bites boyf in wedding tackle

    Sometimes attack with a dog figurine just isn't enough

    A word of warning this fine autumn afternoon: do not mess with 49-year-old Constance Marie Manning of Fort Wayne, Indiana, who is as far as we're aware still in Allen County Lockup on a "felony count of criminal recklessness and a misdemeanour count of domestic battery". This follows her attacking her boyf with multiple weapons …

    Bootnotes 12 Nov 2007, 13:53

  • Microsoft sells Windows twice

    But it's all for a good cause, apparently

    Microsoft has started a new refurbishment programme to help companies breathe life into dusty old computers by providing a copy of Windows – at a cost. The new Microsoft authorised refurbisher (MAR) programme, which launched last Friday, is aimed at resolving a growing problem among businesses which have defunct kit lying …

    Channel Register 12 Nov 2007, 13:56

  • Fake smut codec ruse used to punt Google Pack

    Malware loaded on kosher tool

    Disguising Trojan horse malware as video codecs has became a favourite trick for hackers. The ruse allows malware authors to bait their enticement with the promise of free porno clips or the like. Last week, the approach was used by a rogue affiliate to offer Google Pack. The site has since been pulled. Anti-spyware firm …

    Enterprise Security 12 Nov 2007, 14:01

  • Firm pledges first 400Mb/s powerline product early '08

    DS2 offering to outstrip HomePlug rival?

    European networking hardware company Comtrend has pledged to begin selling powerline Ethernet adaptors capable of a maximum throughput of 400Mb/s - double the speed of today's offerings - "early next year". Comtrend's kit uses technology developed by European semiconductor maker DS2 and is compatible with DS2's 200Mb/s chips, …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 14:34

  • HTC intros satnav enabled Touch Cruise

    The Touch Cruise

    HTC has beefed-up its Touch handset range by launching the Cruise, the first model to incorporate GPS navigation. HTC's Touch Cruise: find your way with its GPS HTC said it has teamed-up with TomTom to give users access to trial versions of the satnav specialist's European mapping service. The handset’s older siblings, the …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 14:39

  • Xbox 360 outsells PS3 in Japan

    Sony's foundations rocked?

    The Xbox 360’s Japenese sales figures have finally overtaken those of the Sony PlayStation 3 - by a margin of just 239 consoles, according to market watcher Media Create. Figures from the company show that 17,673 Xbox 360s were sold during the seven days up to 4 November. Some 17,434 Sony PS3 consoles were in the same time. …

    Reg Hardware 12 Nov 2007, 14:43

  • IBM buys Cognos for $5bn

    Denies copying SAP, Oracle

    IBM has denied it's a copycat after it joined Oracle and SAP with its own business intelligence software buy. Today it announced plans to buy Canadian outfit Cognos for $5bn cash. IBM's move comes as little surprise, however, after SAP bought Business Objects and Oracle snaffled Hyperion earlier this year. Cognos was already …

    Software 12 Nov 2007, 14:48

  • Mobile games not bringing in the bucks

    Worldwide revenue dips

    Revenue from mobile games slipped nine per cent during the second quarter to 30 June 2007, compared to an 11 per cent rise during the first - bad news for a market which constantly portrays itself as under-exploited. The figures come from market analyst firm iSuppli, which attributes the drop to the fact that only a small …

    Mobile 12 Nov 2007, 15:00

  • Cambridge computing profs 'desperate' for applicants

    Increasingly generous percentages grudgingly considered for acceptance

    The computer sciences department at Cambridge University has said it is "desperate" to attract more students to its courses, despite the fact that it currently turns down two applications in three. The Guardian quotes Jack Lang, a lecturer at the Cambridge computer laboratory, as saying that: "People seem to think computer …

    Business 12 Nov 2007, 15:19

  • Readers reflect on iPhone launch

    Letters Much ado about GUIs

    Two of the country's biggest retail chains closed down on Friday afternoon in preparation for mayhem. In the end, tear gas wasn't needed to fight back the hordes when the stores reopened, and the iPhone went on sale in the UK. Not withstanding a few exhibitionists who'd queued up overnight on London's Regent Street so they …

    Mobile 12 Nov 2007, 15:27

  • Mass. firm sues Google over 1997 patent

    Off to Eastern District of Texas - again

    Google is the latest tech firm to book a flight to the Eastern District of Texas, after a Boston-based firm launched a patent infringement suit at the search giant. Jarg Corp has filed papers accusing Google of violating its 1997 patent number 5,694,593 for "Distributed Computer Database System and Method". The patent credits …

    Law 12 Nov 2007, 15:31

  • 21st century travel: building your own warp drive

    Better than a bendy bus

    There is to be a gathering of boffins in London next Thursday (15 November), at which the future of intergalactic spaceflight will be discussed. Not content with merely watching Star Trek re-runs, the good folk of the British Interplanetary Society (BIS) have organised a conference to discuss how to make faster-than-light …

    Space 12 Nov 2007, 16:20

  • Music biz sues Robertson again

    EMI goes after Sideload

    MP3.com founder Michael Robertson is on the receiving end of another lawsuit - from EMI - this time against his MP3tunes.com and Sideload.com services. Robertson told Reuters it was retaliation for a suit his Sideload.com service had filed against EMI in September. MP3Tunes is a service that enables the user to back up their …

    Music and Media 12 Nov 2007, 16:23

  • Firefox broken Jar vuln. menaces Gmail

    Jar Jar links peril

    Security watchers are concerned that a protocol handling flaw in Firefox could have implications for the security of data held within Google and, possibly, other web applications. The flaw, involving the handling of the "jar:" protocol by Firefox, gives rise to cross-site scripting attacks. No patch is available through there …

    Security 12 Nov 2007, 16:45

  • How a bread truck invented the internet

    With thanks to Vint Cerf’s hearing aids

    On November 22, 1977, as it motored down the street somewhere south of San Francisco, a souped-up delivery van sent some information to a computer lab at the University of Southern California, 400 miles away. No one can quite remember what the information was, but that really doesn't matter. What matters is the way it travelled …

    Telecoms 12 Nov 2007, 18:46

  • US eggheads in spurious va-voom/intelligence linkage

    Backhaul-v-middleware 'Allsopp ratio' is key stat

    American evolutionary-psych researchers have produced eye catching research suggesting that women whose hips are significantly bigger than their waists are more intelligent, and tend to produce more intelligent babies. They believe that this might explain why men tend to be attracted to women with this type of physique, …

    Biology 12 Nov 2007, 19:25

  • Windows Server 2008 to come in 8 flavors

    Viridian gets a name and a $28 price tag

    Microsoft is hashing out the finalized details today on the oft-delayed Windows Server 2008. Most notably, Microsoft will release eight SKUs of the platform when it ships in late February 2008. Only some will include the Viridian hypervisor — which has been renamed Hyper-V. Users can choose to go with or without the hypervisor …

    Servers 12 Nov 2007, 19:40

  • Chinese Trojan on Maxtor HDDs spooks Taiwan

    Ghost in the machine

    Confirmation that a Maxtor hard disk drive was infected with a Trojan by a manufacturing sub-contractor in China is spooking Taiwanese authorities, one of the countries where examples of the infected kit have begun to appear. As first reported by El Reg in September a pre-installed Trojan named AutoRun-AH was discovered by …

    Channel Register 12 Nov 2007, 20:17

  • Google puts $10m on the table for Android apps

    Develop applications for non-existent phones and win $275K

    Understanding that developers need to be bribed to create applications for a new mobile platform, Google has put up $10m in prizes for the best Android apps. The Android Developer Challenge comes in two parts: the first runs until March 2008 and awards $25K apiece to the best 50 applications. The second leg kicks off only when …

    Mobile 12 Nov 2007, 20:18

  • Diversity attacks Top500 supercomputer list

    SC07 While IBM keeps gloating

    The latest Top 500 Supercomputer list has arrived, reflecting a rather vibrant market for the highest performing systems. A refreshed version of IBM's BlueGene/L system at Lawrence Livermore National Lab remains the top overall machine. It's been number one since 2004, which must be a source of endless joy at both Big Blue and …

    Servers 12 Nov 2007, 21:26

  • Microsoft animates FlickrYouTubeDotMac -enstein

    'Will be loved by millions'

    Microsoft is preparing some sort of photo and video sharing web 2.0 monster. Naturally, it will be called Windows Live Something or Other. And the Ballmerites are sure it "will be loved by millions." Over the weekend, Microsoft-obsessed blogger Mark Liron let us know that the Redmond giant is looking for a product manager who …

    Music and Media 12 Nov 2007, 21:29

  • eBay glitch wipes out 11 year-old account without a trace

    Updated Reps couldn't help owner because he wasn't a valid user

    eBay users on both sides of the Atlantic are reporting potentially serious site glitches that have confounded customer service representatives trying to diagnose and fix the problems. The glitches, while unrelated, both appeared to involve database problems that prevented users of the online auction house from carrying out basic …

    Small Biz 12 Nov 2007, 22:00

  • Symantec begins round of layoffs

    Unspecified number to get axe this week

    Symantec is laying off an unspecified number of employees this week, the security software company has confirmed. The security firm would not specify the number of jobs to be culled, or the departments targeted for the cuts. "Symantec continues to have a strong focus on controlling its costs and has set cost savings targets …

    Channel Register 12 Nov 2007, 23:10

  • Holiday debut for Oracle 11g middleware bundle

    OpenWorld Relative promise

    Oracle will take a step closer towards launching its next major middleware suite - Fusion - in the next few weeks by releasing a preview that targets developers. The database giant promises a preview edition of Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g for seven million members of the Oracle Technology Network (OTN) "before the Holiday …

    Developer 12 Nov 2007, 23:48