6th February 2008 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

Potential suitors throw Yahoo! to the wolf

Forrester eats its research

Yahoo! can marry Microsoft or remain an old maid with a less than rosy financial outlook. Those are the options. And we're being kind including one of them. In the wake of Microsoft's $44.6bn bid for the struggling web giant, many asked whether other mega corporations might jump in with their own bids. In fact, the issue was …

Financial News 6 Feb 2008, 00:39
Cruise.co.uk stumps £560k to add 's' to domain

Pays record price for cruises.co.uk

British "cruise community" website cruise.co.uk has set a new price record for a .co.uk domain, stumping a cool £560k to secure cruises.co.uk from German travel outfit Nees Reisen, the company announced today. The previous league leader in expensive Brit domains was domain recycle.co.uk, snaffled last October by ASAP Ventures …

Financial News 6 Feb 2008, 01:02
Sun cheers Rock delays

Doesn't want to scare customers with performance

Hopefully someone at Sun Microsystems can still explain why the Rock processor is still a good idea. Today, Sun confirmed what we told you long ago - it's delaying Rock-based servers until the second half of 2009. The company made this admission at its analysts conference in San Francisco. We didn't hear a single question from …

Servers 6 Feb 2008, 01:14
US expat casts ballot from Vienna, wonders if anyone got it

On the internet, no one knows if you're a voter

This story was updated to correct the location US expatriate Joanna Bryson voted from. By now, you've most likely heard of Democrats Abroad, the organization that for the first time in history is allowing US citizens to use the internet to cast ballots in a presidential primary. It acts almost as a 51st state that allows US …

Government 6 Feb 2008, 03:12
Intel's cache gigantism results in 2bn transistor Tukwila

Only twice as fast? Come on, guys

What with being the keeper of Moore's Law and all that, Intel found its rightful place as the first revealer of a 2bn transistor chip this week at the sausage fest that is the International Solid State Circuits Conference in San Francisco. The chip goes by the name Tukwila, and it's a four-core version of Itanium due out in …

Servers 6 Feb 2008, 08:00
Apple iPhone storms world smartphone biz

Beat all Windows Mobile devices combined in US

Apple squeezed itself into third place in the list of world smartphone makers during Q4 2007, pushing ahead of Motorola and Palm and all the Windows Mobile device suppliers. The iPhone itself may divide opinion but there's no questioning its success. According to market watcher Canalys, Apple shipped 2,320,840 iPhones in the …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 09:05
Israel gets kosher phone service

While bidding opens on adult.mobi

Bezeq Israel Telecom has launched a phone service which will block connections to "improper" destinations, Reuters reports. The blocking will presumably cover "www.porn.mobi", which comes up for auction next week along with a dozen adult-orientated domain names. Bezeq's new service is aimed at the ultra-Orthodox customer. It's …

Mobile 6 Feb 2008, 10:04
iPod meets Lego

Lego speakers for the iPod

Are you still a kid at heart? Then brighten-up your iPod with a Lego brick-shaped speaker. Lego-style iPod speakers: really retro The colourful building blocks first appeared as toys called Automatic Binding Bricks in the late 1940s and have been a hit with kids ever since. These ones aren't made by the Danish company, …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 10:13
The handset that's more diamond than phone

Takes bling to a new level

If you’re hoping to save a few bucks on this year’s Valentine’s Day gift, then make sure your missus doesn’t find out about the latest gem-encrusted handset from Japanese carrier Softbank and breakfast-friendly jeweller Tiffany & Co. Softbank's handset has 400 diamonds stuck on With a jaw-dropping price tag of ¥10,000,000 …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 10:16
Cost of pan-European patent protection to plummet in May

Full English translations no longer required

The cost of pan-European patent protection will be slashed on 1st May this year, the date when a new agreement on translations comes into effect. Full translations of applications filed in English will no longer be required. The London Agreement (pdf) will halve the cost of European patents, according to the Chartered …

Small Biz 6 Feb 2008, 10:46
Adobe hands Kevin Lynch keys to CTO door

Macromedia man to head up 'rich' web offerings

Adobe Systems said yesterday that it has promoted Kevin Lynch to chief technology officer. Lynch will head up the firm's experience design and core technology across a number of business divisions, which includes work on Flash Player, Flex development tools and Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR). Lynch had previously served as …

Applications 6 Feb 2008, 10:49
SCO details bleak future

Reorganisation may kill it

SCO has filed its latest annual report with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and it makes grim reading. The company warns that its shareholders could end with nothing because: "A plan of reorganization could result in holders of our stock receiving no distribution on account of their interests and cancellation of their …

Channel Register 6 Feb 2008, 10:55
Official: Linux buffs lay out more on marital aids than Mac users

NSFW And HPUX users way more randy than Xbox boys

Mac owners spend more money on sex toys than Windows users do, but Linux buffs outspend both of them, even though they visit less pages on pervy product producers' websites. That's the claim of one such, UK dildo deployer Lovehoney, which has published its Google Analystics logs in a shamelessly self-promotional plug. Or …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 10:59
Turning a Nokia phone into a hotspot

Free app shares your connection with the world

A new piece of freeware can turn a Symbian S60 handset into a Wi-Fi hotspot, removing the need to muck about with Bluetooth connections to get connected when on the move. Just don't tell your service provider. JoikuSpot installs on a S60 handset with Wi-Fi and, when activated, turns that handset into a hotspot for any, and all …

Mobile 6 Feb 2008, 11:04
Brown plans to admit wiretap evidence in court

Updated Let the espionage masterclass commence

Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to announce plans for at least a partial lift of the British ban on use of wiretap evidence in court, according to reports. The conclusions of the government's deliberations following the seven-month Chilcot Review into the policy have leaked to the media ahead of the planned announcement …

Government 6 Feb 2008, 11:12
Intel says X48 will ship mid-March

Delayed chipset's debut defined

Intel's upcoming gaming-centric chipset, the X48, could finally make it to market by the middle of March, the chip giant has apparently told its mobo-maker customers. Perhaps co-incidentally, Asus yesterday announced a pair of X40-based boards, adding its name to the list of vendors who've unveiled such products, a list that …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 11:21
HTC Magnum rumours rife following giant phone gag

Putting the 'mock' into 'mock-up'

A group of self-confessed pranksters have admitted that their mock-up of a monster HTC tablet, dubbed the Magnum, doesn’t signal the manufacturer’s release of a super ‘pocket’ PC. However, the web’s now clogged with rumours to the contrary. The pranksters' HTC Magnum mock-up Image courtesy of Pocketpt.net Portuguese …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 11:44
Exploding Flash catalogue rocks Dutch e-commerce site

Warning: Contains traces of nuts

Those of you who are not great fans of Flash are advised to stay away from the website of "international retail organisation" HEMA, which features what must rate as the most extravagant abuse of the world's "leading interactive content creation tool": To be honest, the above grab doesn't come anywhere close to doing this …

Bootnotes 6 Feb 2008, 11:53
Pentax Optio S10 compact camera

Review Small and perfectly formed

Some products' claims to be pocket-sized often stretch the imagination - and the material. Pentax describes the Optio S10 as being “ultra compact” but this time it's dead right. This camera isn’t just pocket-sized, or even palm-sized – it’s diddy. Soon to complemented by the newest addition to Optio range - the S12, the S10 …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 11:59
Sony shrinks its Bravia TVs

Take your TV with you

If you can’t afford a super-sized Sony Bravia HD telly for your living room, then how about a pocket-sized model? The Japanese manufacturer has unveiled two portable TVs featuring dinky versions of its Bravia displays. Sony's XDV-D500: a 3in display and internal storage The 3in, 432 x 240 resolution XDV-D500 LCD pocket TV …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 12:06
Skype squishes cross-zone scripting bug

Underlying weakness nixed

Skype has fixed a cross-zone scripting weakness in its voice over IP client software which spawned a couple of security bugs over recent weeks. Problems have arisen for Windows users because Skype uses Internet Explorer web controls to render internal and external HTML pages. Skype is running these web controls in Local Zone …

Enterprise Security 6 Feb 2008, 12:10
Freecom Data Tank Gateway WLAN 2TB router and NAS box

Unwired Video Review Rugged and capacious

This chunky bit of kit is is Wi-Fi router, USB print server and 2TB NAS (Network Attached Storage) device. It costs a stonking £680. But is it any good? Can't see the video? Download Flash Player from Adobe.com

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 12:24
AOL scoops up online marketing network

Buys Buy.at

America Online (AOL) moved to prop up its web ad operation yesterday with the purchase of online affiliate marketing network Buy.at. AOL, which is owned by media giant Time Warner, said it had bought the network to help beef up ad sales and other transactions. Terms of the financial deal were kept secret. The purchase, the …

Financial News 6 Feb 2008, 12:31
Ton-up electric Reliant Robin offered for '09

Del Boy would be selling it, not driving it

Californian electrocar firm ZAP has brought down a veritable ink storm in the British press lately regarding its planned new 156mph Alias electric sports "car". The Blighty-side hackswarm could be accounted for by the facts that the car is a) a three-wheeler, allowing (nay, necessitating) Trotters Independent Traders references …

Science 6 Feb 2008, 12:51
HP gives retooled low-end SAN boxes a virtual touch

MSA line gets makeover

Hewlett-Packard has reworked its low-end storage line to make some new systems more virtualization friendly for SMBs and remote offices. The fresh StorageWorks MSA2000 SAN storage systems will be a direct replacement for the existing MSA1500cs and MSA1510i systems. And like their predecessors, the 2U arrays come in either …

Storage 6 Feb 2008, 13:02
eBay gets negative feedback about ban on negative feedback

Compulsory registrations unpopular too

Online tat-house eBay has enraged some of its regular users by banning negative feedback about buyers and a demand that anyone flogging more than a certain amount from the UK must register as a business. So called "PowerSellers" will be targeted first and must register business accounts by the end of the month. eBay will also …

Music and Media 6 Feb 2008, 13:09
BT Fusion is alive and well

Rumours of death ~~greatly~~ slightly exaggerated

Despite reports to the contrary, BT assures us that their Fusion product is alive and well. Still, they do admit that it's been something of a learning experience, and that they're testing a revamped service. The idea behind Fusion was solid enough; a mobile phone which connects over Bluetooth to use the fixed line when in the …

Mobile 6 Feb 2008, 13:17
Egg scrambles to fix network outage

Website blackout 'nothing to do with credit card cull'

Egg has returned its website to normal operation after a "serious network outage" forced it to temporarily suspend services on Tuesday. The UK-based online bank took its website down following an "internal network failure" at around 1100 GMT on Tuesday. Services weren't fully restored until around 1200 GMT on Wednesday. A …

IT Director 6 Feb 2008, 13:19
Unbundling could cost you £125

Update BT ~~thanks~~ blames IT system for extra revenue stream

Unbundled ISPs are more popular than ever with Sky announcing rapid growth of its broadband service. What they don't tell you is that you could be stung with a £125 charge if you opt for a fully unbundled service. In some cases, if a customer wants to switch back to a BT reseller ISP, or to another fully unbundled ISP*, BT …

Telecoms 6 Feb 2008, 14:35
Northgate lands mobile deals

The house that Jack built

Northgate Information Solutions confirmed yesterday that it had won mobile services contracts worth a combined total of £1.2m. The Hemel Hempstead-based firm, which late last year was snapped up by private equity firm Kholberg Kravis Roberts and Company in a £593m deal, said it had inked two housing organisation agreements. …

Channel Register 6 Feb 2008, 14:37
Mobile phones and cancer - the latest

Mobile phones 1, cancer 0

If you ever needed more reassurance that endlessly chatting on your mobile won't damage your health, here it is. Two separate studies have found that mobile phones don't increase your risk of developing cancer. The Tokyo Women’s Medical University recently studied 322 people with various forms of brain cancer and 683 people …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 14:41
Create your own mouse

Knead it into shape

The computer mouse already has had many, many incarnations, including types optimised for gaming, covered with an anti-bacterial coating, VoIP-enabled and even inflatable. Until now though, users have been unable to shape a mouse precisely to the contours of their palm. Lite-On Technology's Moldable Mouse: whatever shape you …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 14:46
IBM and EU get together on a cloud

EU seeds cloud computing with €17m

IBM is working with 17 European organisations to develop its cloud computing initiative. Partly funded by a European Union €17m grant, the project will look at managing IT services across domains, IT platforms and geographies. The project is called RESERVOIR - Resources and Services Virtualisation without Barriers. A release …

Servers 6 Feb 2008, 14:50
Google gets involved in Kenya, fights back in China

I'm feeling scrappy

Not even a bloody ethnic conflict can dampen Google's burning lust for world domination. Kenyan news sources say that the search juggernaut is building up its African headquarters in Nairobi. The office is recruiting five senior executives in preparation for a "looming market share battle on the continent", Business Daily …

Applications 6 Feb 2008, 14:51
Nintendo patent profers wacky Wii add-ons

Scatter-gun peripheral design protection?

A European patent application filed by Nintendo has reveals a raft of ways the console giant could extend the use of the Wii Remote, ranging from the strange to the downright ridiculous. Nintendo's Wii Remote patent: buy one, or the teddy gets it Each of the designs detailed in the application focuses on fitting the Remote …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 15:50
Bunker-nobbling US megabomb test delayed

Too heavy for the bomb racks, apparently

The World War II style 14-tonne conventional bunker-busting penetrator bomb being developed for the US air force has hit development snags, according to reports. Entry to service will be delayed, and costs have risen. Flight International reports that the Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) will now be dropped for the first time …

Science 6 Feb 2008, 16:01
Wikipedia ruled by 'Lord of the Universe'

Exclusive When is a cult not a cult?

Think of it as Wikipedia’s police department hotline. The "encyclopedia anyone can edit" includes a page where you can instantly alert the site’s brain trust to foul play. It’s called the "Conflict of Interest Noticeboard." If you suspect someone has rigged the system, using the encyclopedia to push their own agenda, this is …

Music and Media 6 Feb 2008, 16:02
Seven per cent of doctors are mad: Official

Don't trust NHS IT

British doctors are almost unanimous in not trusting the government to adequately secure patients' medical records. A survey from the British Medical Association found that 93 per cent of doctors are "not confident patient data on the proposed NHS centralised database would be secure". Which makes you wonder which newspapers …

Public Sector 6 Feb 2008, 16:04
BBC excludes Grange Hill after 30 years of misbehaviour

Lost its Gripper years ago

The BBC has finally expelled Grange Hill, the school-based drama that for the last 30 years encouraged conscientious school kids to become stroppy little hooligans at best and soap actors at worst. After three decades of snot-nosed caperings both the Beeb and the show’s creator Phil Redmond have decided the school saga has …

Music and Media 6 Feb 2008, 16:24
Time Warner splitting up AOL

America Off Line

Time Warner is to split up AOL - the ailing internet service provider and ad platform which paid $165bn for the film studio in 2001. In 2006 AOL announced free access to its portal and email services as it tried to move away from the declining internet access business and into the online ad sales business. AOL Time Warner's …

Telecoms 6 Feb 2008, 16:48
Archos TV+ launched in UK

Time to take on the likes of Apple TV

First seen at CES in January, the Archos TV+ launched in the UK this afternoon and will be available in two variations: the 80GB and 250GB model, priced at £180 and £250, respectively. It combines a Wi-Fi media player with a hard drive to allow you to stream or store movies, music, photos, podcasts and web video, while the …

Reg Hardware 6 Feb 2008, 17:18
From crunching cans to TechCrunch

Comment Beer money for Arrington

Long before he was stroking our collective Web 2.0 consciousness, Michael Arrington, a Young Republican-type of guy from an affluent part of Orange County, studied economics at Claremont McKenna College in Southern California, and generally enjoyed the life of the beer-swilling collegian that many of us led. I know this because …

Music and Media 6 Feb 2008, 18:11
SanDisk readies 43-nanometer NAND Flash bash

Doubles density of its chips

SanDisk is ready to begin mass-production of commercial flash memory using 43 nanometer process technology. Its latest shrinkage of chip features can double the density per chip compared to the previous 56nm process. Shipments will start in the second half of 2008 with multi-level 16 and 32 Gb configurations. They'll be …

Storage 6 Feb 2008, 19:14
Parallels makes nice with Red Flag and Ubuntu

Embraces all communists

Parallels - aka the artist formerly known as SWsoft - will continue its march through China in tandem with Linux maker Red Flag Software. Red Flag and Parallels will offer a bundle tying Virtuozzo Containers 4.0 together with Red Flag Linux Server Version 5.0. This gives Red Flag's customers a direct path to the container …

Servers 6 Feb 2008, 19:35
Green Grid pollutes environment with more white papers

Comment Actual work remains top secret

The Green Grid has been flopping around for about two years and continues to flop. The organization, backed by some of the biggest name vendors in the technology game, held a conference this week in San Francisco to release - you know what's coming - more white papers. How many white papers? Oh, who cares. The Green Grid …

Servers 6 Feb 2008, 21:58
Intel nets parellel programmer top picks

Small poll, big systems

What's occupying the minds of developers in systems engineering? Scalable server technology and web development frameworks, according an Intel straw poll. Developers expect progress in both these areas according to Intel's pulse taking of 49 individuals on the company's Thread Building Blocks (TBB) site. Around 30 per cent of …

Developer 6 Feb 2008, 22:55