19th August 2008 Archive

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Red rag, meet bull: The software resilience gamble

New research alert This topic really got you going

You, the fine Reg readers, recently regaled us with the gory details of your application failures - and it ain't too pretty. It turns out that a large majority of you find business is disrupted by app failure way too often. Of the 1200+ readers who took part in the research, a whopping 84 per cent said their business suffered …

Applications 19 Aug 07:02
NASA to brief on manned spaceship 'concerns'

Shuttle/Soyuz replacement looking peaky?

NASA will map the future of manned spacecraft later today, following long-running rumours of possible delays to the programme and increasing worries of over-reliance on Russian technology to support the International Space Station. The US space agency will soon retire its fleet of Shuttle orbiters, after which America will …

Space 19 Aug 07:41
Intel adds 22nm octo-core 'Haswell' to CPU design roadmap

IDF tock follows tick follows tock etc.

Intel's 'Tick, Tock' model of chip development is now well established and mapped out through the transition from 45nm to 32nm. Now we know what's happening at the 22nm. The 22nm era, for Intel, runs through 2011 and 2012. The first of those years will see the arrival of 'Ivy Bridge', the 22nm die-shrink of the brand new, 32nm …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 08:56
Game sharer gets £16K fine

Lawyers have thousands more names

A woman who put a copy of Dream Pinball 3D on a file-sharing network must pay £16,000 to the games maker and its lawyers. Games maker Topware Interactive was awarded £6,086.56 in damages and £10,000 in lawyers' fees by the Patents County Court in London. Lawyers Davenport Lyons said there are more cases to come - the firm …

Law 19 Aug 08:59
Vodafone jacks up UK prices

By as much as 40 per cent

Vodafone will jack up its prices next month, it said today. Standard call charges will rise from 15p to 20p per minute for pre-pay customers and contract minutes outside monthly inclusive packages. Calls to non-geographic 0871 numbers will cost 35p per minute from September, compared to 25p currently. Non-geographic 0870 lines …

Mobile 19 Aug 09:25
Japanese photographers offered recyclable camera

Snap, bin, reuse

A Japanese electronics store has begun selling a digital camera that will definitely be recycled - because otherwise you won’t get a copy of your photos. Eco Digi Mode forces photographers to recycle The Eco Digi Mode camera doesn’t accept Micro SD cards or USB cables. This prevents users from accessing the images and …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 09:37
Skinny ThinkPad X300 gains Centrino 2 tech

DisplayPort added too

Lenovo has revised its ultra-skinny ThinkPad X300 notebook for the Centrino 2 age, revamping the machine's spec and renaming it the X301. The new model comes with a choice of one of Intel's latest 45nm ultra-low voltage Core 2 Duo processors clocked at 1.2GHz and 1.4GHz. Both have 6MB of L2 cache and sit on a 1066MHz frontside …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 09:38
Symantec nabs PC Tools for added street cred

G'day to added anti-spyware

Security and storage giant Symantec has agreed to buy specialist Australian-based anti-spyware firm PC Tools. Terms of the deal were undisclosed in Monday's announcement. Subject to regulatory approvals, privately-held PC Tools will join Symantec's consumer security division. Symantec already has PC utilities and anti-sypware …

Security 19 Aug 09:48
Nokia rolls in sportscar-styled Arte phone

You won't get this phone free on contract

Nokia has extended its high-end Arte mobile phone range with a model that sounds as though all the materials were nicked from a luxury sports car. Nokia's 8800 Carbon Arte: motor car materials The 8800 Carbon Arte is crafted from a mixture of carbon fibre, titanium, polished glass and stainless steel to give the handset a …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 09:54
Teachers give toilet CCTV top marks

Just so long as it isn't watching them

As schools increasingly opt to install cameras in their pupils’ toilets, a survey this week shows the message from some teachers is “do as we say, not as we do”. This week, the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) released the results of a preliminary survey of CCTV usage in schools. 85 per cent of teachers say that …

Law 19 Aug 10:10
Apple tops customer satisfaction poll as rivals' ratings slide

Windows Vista to blame?

Apple has been named the computer maker that most satisfies its customers after it scored a personal best of 85 out of 100 - ten points above its nearest rival, Dell - in a key US customer satisfaction index. The figures comes from the American Consumer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), a survey that's been run by the University of …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 10:39
Intel slings sue ball at N-Data

Ethernet patent skirmish

Intel has filed a lawsuit against Negotiated Data Solutions, LLC (N-Data) in a royalties dispute about the industry standard for Ethernet computer networking. Chipzilla wants a court to rule that N-Data's patents are invalid or were already paid under an agreement with National Semiconductor Corporation, which originally owned …

Data Networking 19 Aug 10:43
Alienware Area-51 m15x gaming laptop

Review Out of this world - or the laptop that fell to Earth

Alienware claims that its Area-51 m15x gaming laptop is the "fastest 15.4in notebook ever". Not true if you opt for the basic m15x with Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 processor however. You can get a comparable Sony Vaio BZ11 for £850, and it’s safe to say that any time Sony is being used as a comparison, the value-for-money part of …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 11:02
Googlephone is coming soon

T-Mobile confirms Googlephone launch. Ish

T-Mobile will launch an Android phone this year and with Google allowing developers access to version 0.9, we'll soon see if it has managed the finesse of an iPhone with Nokia-grade functionality. Version 0.9 of Google's platform is now available for download, with a redesigned user interface and some significant improvements …

Smartphones 19 Aug 11:03
Vodafone exec stabbed to death in country home

Man questioned

Police are questioning a man following the murder of a senior Vodafone UK executive on Saturday. Sally Sinclair, 40, head of business analysis at the mobile phone firm, was stabbed to death at the home she shared with her 47-year-old husband and ten-year-old twin boys near Andover in Hampshire. A 47-year-old man is assisting …

Crime 19 Aug 11:05
ICANN backs auction of disputed domains

Gavel to break ties

The body behind the internet's addressing systems has said that it will settle disputes over who wins the right to new generic top level domains (gTLDs) by auction. ICANN (International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) has said that auctions will be used if two organisations vying for the right to a gTLD are tied on …

Law 19 Aug 11:14
Surveillance Teddy nabs granny-bag robber

Part soft toy, part robot - all cop

An NHS care assistant who stole from a grandmother dying of cancer was nabbed in the act by an electronically enhanced teddy bear, according to reports. The Guardian brings us the news that Yvonne Allen, 28, of Halewood, Liverpool, admitted two counts of theft last week and agreed to pay back the stolen £60. The larcenous …

Policing 19 Aug 11:15
Another 60 days' free MobileMe service, madam?

You just can't give it away

Apple has added 60 days onto the end of every MobileMe subscription, in another attempt to pacify punters still unhappy with the online synchronisation service. This latest offering is in addition to the free month all users received when the system first failed, and the month given away to those Apple accidentally charged for …

Mobile 19 Aug 11:17
Is Zune finally coming to Europe?

FCC documents leak 120GB model

Many European iPod haters have prayed for the Zune’s arrival. Now US Federal Communications Commission documents have revealed that if it does land this side of the Pond, we could be in for a storage treat. The US regulatory body’s conducted a series of emissions tests on a 120GB Zune – the largest capacity model ever seen. …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 12:08
The Terminator's back - as a DVD player

Terminator's head used to play DVDs

The Terminator said he’d be back, but we didn’t know he meant as a consumer gadget. But the robot that once tried to destroy the human race has been recycled, into a DVD player. The 600 series had rubber skin. We spotted them easy, but this is new... Pics courtesy Myvoi.com Lift up the robot’s silver skull and a DVD player …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 12:17
Duke Nukem to make Xbox debut

"Let's kick ass and chew bubble gum"

If aliens recently invaded your home to enslave your womenfolk, then don’t fret. Simply log onto Xbox Live and call up the ultimate cigar smoking hero, who’s all about alien bashing and leering at ladies. Duke's said to be part Arnie, part Stallone and part Bronson Yes, that’s right, Duke Nukem 3D has finally been approved …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 12:29
iPod Nano trouser fireballs sweep Japan

They knew the risks

The long dry* summer wears on, rendering habitats parched and flammable as tinder. Pockets containing iPods are one such habitat and the annual outbreak of gadgetry-related conflagrations is under way. A particularly severe pocket wildfire epidemic is raging at this moment in Japan, where Reuters reports that roaring infernos …

Bootnotes 19 Aug 13:01
Dell extends laptop warranties to cover duff Nvidia GPUs

12 months more added

Dell has extended the warranties on certain laptops that incorporate Nvidia GPUs by a further 12 months. The scheme, announced yesterday, covers owners of Precision M65, M2300 and M4300 workstations; the Inspiron 1420; Latitude D620, D630, D630c, D820 and D830; Vostro 1310, 100, 1510 and 1710; and XPS M1330 and M1530. All of …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 13:07
A third of Vista PCs downgraded to XP

Microsoft pins hopes on lucky number 7

Vista’s death march picked up some pace yesterday, after a metrics researcher revealed that nearly 35 per cent of PCs built to run the Windows operating system have been downgraded to XP. In a survey of more than 3,000 computers, performance testing software developer Devil Mountain Software estimated that more than one in …

Operating Systems 19 Aug 13:16
Palm to unveil Treo Pro today?

Company agent says as much

Palm looks set to announce the Treo Pro today, according to an email sent out by one of its media agencies. Alas no specifications were provided, but the email did confirm that the device "features a one-touch Wi-Fi button, GPS, Windows Mobile 6.1 and a high-resolution flush color touchscreen". Palm's Treo Pro At the time …

Mobile 19 Aug 13:30
Goldfish customers sent wrong bills

'We're sorry about that. We're sorry about that'

A printing mix-up resulted in thousands of Goldfish credit card customers receiving other people's bills. Tony Jacob, 58, a Goldfish cardholder told UK tabloid The Sun that he was shocked to discover a statement for another credit card holder when he opened his monthly bill. "I was worried when I saw I was £10,000 in debt — …

ID 19 Aug 13:34
Network Solutions falls off the web

.ohdear

Network Solutions - the company that resells top level domains like .com and .net - seems to have misplaced its own website. The company's website, networksolutions.com, is unavailable and has been for some time. Trying to visit the site right now just results in an embarrassing "Operation timed out" message. Bad news for …

IT Director 19 Aug 13:34
Red Devil assaults Burnley FC's stadium roof

Pre-match entertainment ends in 'major embarrassment'

Burnley FC has suspended all pre-match entertainments at its Turf Moor stadium after a member of the elite Red Devils parachute team performed an unscheduled assault on the roof of the ground's David Fishwick stand, the BBC reports. In what Burnley described as a "major embarrassment", kick-off of Saturday's clash with Ipswich …

Bootnotes 19 Aug 13:37
3 launches second-gen Skypephone

Call for free, in style

Skype and network operator 3 obviously think they’re onto a winner with the Skypephone, so the duo’s teamed-up again to launch the brand’s second handset. The Skypephone S2 has a higher resolution screen and HSDPA Although the new handset features the same Skype connectivity as before, the new Skypephone S2 builds on the …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 13:59
Russell Crowe to play Bill Hicks?

Oz thespo working on draft script

It appears we have the leaves of Sherwood Forest to thank (or blame, depending on your viewpoint) for a possible outing of Aussie thespo Russell Crowe as legendary US comedian Bill Hicks. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, filming on Crowe's latest project Nottingham has been postponed until at least March next year " …

Entertainment 19 Aug 14:00
UK.gov to spend hundreds of millions on snooping silo

Exclusive Überdatabase pork barrel ahoy

The government is pressing ahead with plans to spend hundreds of millions of pounds on a massive central silo for all UK communications data, The Register has learned. Home Office civil servants are working on plans for the database under the banner of the Interception Modernisation Programme (IMP). The team has recently been …

Government 19 Aug 14:27
Free the airwaves, cries Google

FCC to consider petitions, analysis and dancing phones

Google has launched another round in the PR battle over American white space, with a new website asking visitors to sign a petition to convince the FCC to allow unlicensed use of the spaces between TV channels. This isn't the first website Google has set up to fight its corner. The Wireless Innovation Alliance was set up to …

Telecoms 19 Aug 14:33
Spice up your Apple applications

Mac Secrets Splash of Aqua

Apple's "Professional" range of applications such as Final Cut Studio, Aperture or Logic Express have a completely different look to the standard Aqua color scheme. This comes courtesy of a private framework called ProKit.framework, intended to make Apple's professional software stand out from the crowd. And stand out it does …

Developer 19 Aug 15:02
Microsoft slackens VM licensing rules

Give 'em enough rope...

Microsoft will relax its virtual machine licensing policy to make it easier for businesses to move a VM freely about physical servers. The widely expected change will be implemented at the start of next month. It will apply to 41 server applications on the MS roster, including the enterprise version of SQL Server 2008, …

Virtualization 19 Aug 15:11
Mystery Fedora disruption prompts security fears

Did security breach prompt ground-up rebuild?

The majority of servers supporting the Fedora Linux distribution were back online on Tuesday following a mystery disruption. Last Thursday (14 August) Fedora project leader Paul Frields took the unusual step of advising users not to download or update their software, as a precaution while the Fedora team responded to an …

Security 19 Aug 15:54
Nokia travels Lonely Planet

Guide books comes to handsets

Visiting cities with a copy of Lonely Planet is like carrying a big sign saying 'tourist'. So Nokia’s teamed up with the travel guide publisher to create more discreet handset-based editions. Global travellers can now download Lonely Planet content from Nokia’s website for around €8 ($10/£5) a city. Lonely Planet downloads are …

Reg Hardware 19 Aug 15:58
Sun double teams Xeon chip

IDF Makes grunty boxes

No server vendor worth its hot swappable fans will let an Intel Developer Forum go by without announcing some new kit. So here's Sun Microsystems doing its part for the epic Intel ecosystem with a pair of new servers. The Sun Fire X2250 and X4250 machines are your go-to units for a wide variety of jobs, including hardcore …

Servers 19 Aug 16:37
Microsoft dashes hopes for 'major' Windows server upgrade

2008 sticking around

Microsoft has re-committed itself to an interim release of its Windows server operating system, countering reports it had planned to go straight to a major release instead. Group product manager Ward Ralston has blogged Microsoft is sticking to its plan for an "R2" version of Windows Server 2008 and is not skipping to Windows …

Servers 19 Aug 17:10
Intel's Barrett goes for Washington on education, innovation

IDF 'Teachers are the ultimate tools'

Intel chairman Craig Barrett got political at the opening of the Intel Developer Forum this morning, taking aim at the US’ records on education, healthcare and investment in R&D. Intel billed Barrett as the world’s ambassador for IT, but he was decidedly un-diplomatic in his opening keynote, excoriating the US government for …

Government 19 Aug 19:56
WiMax to cover 1 billion by 2012, says Intel

IDF A truly olympian task

Craig Barrett banged the drum for WiMAX in the opening keynote of IDF today. But only quietly, and not for very long. In a speech that dwelled on socio-economic issues more than hard technology, Barrett slipped out a couple of predictions for takeup on the to-date unloved mobile data standard. “We should see 50 million people …

Wireless 19 Aug 21:23
Intel does SSD flash dance

IDF Now with Dynamic Wear Leveling

Full of what we call "self mettle," Intel has championed its "highly anticipated line" of big daddy solid state drives (SSDs). Units for laptop and desktop systems will ship in the next 30 days with Intel offering up both 1.8-inch and 2.5 inch gear. The X18-M and X25-M products come with all the associated miracles of SSDs, …

Storage 19 Aug 21:32
Gag order lifted for students who hacked subway card

MIT students free to discuss gaping holes

Three Massachusetts Institute of Technology undergraduates are once again free to publicly discuss gaping security holes in the Boston subway system after a federal judge refused to renew a gag order requested by transportation officials. US District Judge George A. O'Toole rejected arguments by the Massachusetts Bay …

Security 19 Aug 22:46