2nd December 2008 Archive

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Apple swings DMCA at Hackintosh maker

Copyright one-two punch

Just two weeks after US District Judge William Alsup threw out wannabe Mac-clone vendor Psystar's countersuit against Apple, the One True Mac-Maker has un-holstered another weapon in its campaign to crush the Florida-based upstart. It was revealed today that Apple has amended its complaint against Psystar, first filed back on …

PCs & Chips 2 Dec 2008, 00:01
VMware to cut desktop storage by 80 per cent

The VM that follows you

VMware is rebranding its Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) technology as VMware View, and having virtual desktops built from a generic golden master and user-specific files that cut VDI storage space by up to 80 per cent. According to Jocelyn Goldfein, VMware's global manager for its desktop business, the vClient initiative …

Virtualization 2 Dec 2008, 00:02
Study spanks Adobe Flash for abuses of power

Think green, block ads

We've known for years that graphics based on Adobe Flash and other third-party programming software can be clunky, time-consuming affairs that put our security at risk. Now comes new research suggesting they needlessly consume more power too. According to a paper published Monday, content that uses asynchronous javascript and …

Music and Media 2 Dec 2008, 00:25
Apple shares mobile display plugs with outside world

Invests in self

When Apple gives something away, you can be sure that they're investing in their own best interests. Today, the company announced that it will freely license the specs for their Mini DisplayPort display-connection scheme, which it introduced in the new MacBooks, MacBook Pros, and the updated MacBook Air. By doing so, they …

Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 01:32
Windows internet share drops below 90 per cent

Thanksgiving blamed

The number of Windows users surfing the web fell below 90 per cent for the first time, making for Microsoft's biggest market share drop in the past two years, according to new statistics. Net Applications, which compiled the November data based on the sites it monitors, reports systems running Windows during the month was 89. …

Operating Systems 2 Dec 2008, 02:27
Microsoft's C# to converse with dynamic languages

COM recycled

The next version of Microsoft's C# will see interoperability between languages for the enterprise and web, and with Microsoft's legacy COM architecture. C# 4.0, expected with the next version of Visual Studio, will support something called dynamic look up in order to call dynamic languages like JavaScript, Python and …

Developer 2 Dec 2008, 02:28
Microsoft search bribery machine in ~~Black~~ Friday breakdown

Apologies, but no shame

Microsoft's search bribery machine shut down for several hours on Black Friday, continuing to exhibit a unique talent for online comedy. In May, as part of a desperate bid to boost traffic, Microsoft began bribing people to use its second rate search engine. If you use Live Search ads to find and buy certain stuff, Redmond …

Applications 2 Dec 2008, 03:00
'Bitch of a Survey' Regcast is LIVE 2pm GMT today

RegCast All about the applications platform layer

Tune into our webcast at 2PM GMT today and check out the Reg panel of experts as they explore the results of The Reg Tech Panel's epic “Platforms & Operations Survey”. They also tease out the potential benefits and pitfalls of the application platform layer. Freeform Dynamics Research Director Martin Atherton and Microsoft UK …

Systems 2 Dec 2008, 07:47
Bamboo PC en route to Blighty

Panda not included

We’ve had some angry emails from Pandas today, because the Asus bamboo-clad laptop will go on European sale soon, it's emerged. Asus' bamboo laptop First seen back in 2007, the machine will be available to buy for NT$59,900 (£1174/$1802/€1409) in Taiwan next month. A European launch date is expected soon after, according to …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 08:02
Orbitsound T3 mobile 3D stereo speaker

Review Get a 3D music soundscape wherever you go

Music production has quite an armoury of spatial effects to tease the ears with but, typically, for the best experience, the listener needs to sit in the sweet spot. The Orbitsound range is designed to deliver a spatial soundfield anywhere in the room and now, with the T3 mobile stereo speaker, you can take that soundscape …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 09:02
Mandy writes cheque for UK tech biz

Funds for small biz

Lord Mandelson of Foy has announced a £30m fund to invest in small and medium UK technology firms. The money will be managed by TTP Ventures. Development money is available to small and medium-sized IT, electronics and instrumentation firms. The money, part of the Enterprise Capital Funds scheme, is aimed at high-growth firms …

Small Biz 2 Dec 2008, 09:23
Asus to downgrade Eee Box CPU?

Fancy an Atom-based Asus Eee Box desktop? You'd better hurry - reports coming out of Asia claim the company may be about to ditch the PC's processor for a Celeron CPU. There's no official word yet from Asus, but according to industry insiders allegedly quoting from Asus' own price sheet, the Box is going to get a 1.2GHz …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 10:22
Road-legal 125mph prototype electric superbike demo'd

'Leccy Tech Range limited

An electric motorbike capable of a 125mph top speed has made its debut. Designed and built by British engineers, the TTX01 was commissioned by the organisers of the world's first emissions-free grand Prix for motorbikes, the TTX GP, which will be held on the Isle of Man's TT circuit on 12 June 2009. TTX GP's 'leccy racer: …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 10:40
Hitachi GST to OEM Intel-based SSDs

Intel bags Japanese disk drive giant

Intel has won Hitachi Global Storage Technologies as an OEM seller of its flash-based solid state drive technology. The two companies will jointly develop and deliver enterprise-class SAS and Fibre Channel interface products for sale to storage and server suppliers. Up until now STEC has made the running in supplying SSD …

Storage 2 Dec 2008, 10:42
BSI consults on first British Standard for accessible websites

Accessibility AND enjoyment

A British Standard will give business owners and marketing managers new guidance for building and maintaining web content that is accessible to disabled people. A draft version of BS 8878 was released for public comment today. Julie Howell, chair of the cross-industry committee responsible for the draft Standard, said that …

IT Director 2 Dec 2008, 10:49
Teen-bothering sonic device now does grownups too

Liberty: We need an urgent government crackdown

The controversial "Mosquito" noise device, originally designed to move on groups of tiresome youths by emitting high-pitched sounds only they could hear, has been upgraded. The annoyance machine can now target all ages, and has drawn further protests from concerned groups. The new Mark 4 Mosquito puts out noise "at 100 …

Policing 2 Dec 2008, 10:58
Nokia launches latest flagship 'superphone'

Communicator reborn

Nokia has unveiled its latest flagship handset: the N97, which it claims is the “world’s most advanced mobile computer”. Nokia's N97: flagship It may look like the old Communicator series, but the N97 is no clamshell. It sports a 3.5in, 16:9 widescreen touch-sensitive display with a slide-out Qwerty keyboard underneath, …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 11:01
EC to amend VAT Directive

Battles 'missing trader' fraud

The European Commission has proposed (pdf) a series of measures, including changes to the VAT Directive, to prevent and detect VAT fraud. The Commission today adopted a Communication (pdf) presenting a short-term action plan with a list of future legislative measures to enhance the capacity of tax administrations to prevent or …

Small Biz 2 Dec 2008, 11:03
Top transport plod to probe Tory leaker's arrest

'Erm, whose idea was this?'

The country's top transport police officer has been appointed by the Met to investigate the decisions that led to its arrest of Tory front bencher Damian Green last week for leaking Home Office documents to the media. British Transport Police chief constable and ACPO crime committee chairman Ian Johnston will report interim …

Public Sector 2 Dec 2008, 11:06
Hands on with Nokia's iPhone killer

Updated Widget fiddlers rejoice

Nokia's iPhone rival for 2009 will have a familiar feel to it - the phone giant is borrowing designs first brought to market by rivals such as HTC with its N97, announced in Barcelona today. However, Nokia's superior engineering means that it's considerably smaller than devices from its Asian competitors, weighing in at 150g and …

Mobile 2 Dec 2008, 11:08
Manufacturers recall fire-risk projectors

Old kit no longer safe

Panasonic, JVC and Sharp have asked Japanese punters to return 16,500-odd LCD projectors in case the machines catch fire. Apparently, one did, and to prevent anyone being caught in a future projector pyrotechnics, the three companies today told owners to unplug the machines and contact them for a replacement. How many will …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 11:30
Apple tells Mac users: Get anti-virus

Bragging rights diminish by 12% in face of growing threat

For the first time, Apple is recommending the use of anti-virus tools to protect Mac systems. Long something of a phantom menace, strains of malware capable of infecting Mac machines have gradually been increasing in prevalence over recent months. In addition, VXers are making more use of web-based attack and applications …

Malware 2 Dec 2008, 11:33
Nokia! won't! buy! Yahoo!

Doesn't need the aggro

Nokia has enough on its hands without acquiring a basket-case internet company. CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo ruled out a purchase of Yahoo! here in Barcelona today, saying Nokia can do just as badly in web services on its own, with its Ovi strategy. Of course, he didn't quite put it like that. "We have not articulated a number as …

Mobile 2 Dec 2008, 11:38
PS3 prices slashed by ~~Sony~~ SonyStyle

Franchise model results in lower prices

PlayStation 3 price cuts have appeared on SonyStyle’s UK website, but Sony Europe has denied that it’s not responsible for the move because the website is a franchise. David Wilson, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe's spokesman-in-chief, told gaming website Spong that SonyStyle is free to “independently choose its own …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 11:48
Hands-free kits make drivers even more dangerous

But having a ~~meatshield~~ passenger reduces the risk

Another study coming out of the University of Utah Applied Cognition Lab has concluded that driving while talking on the phone is a really bad idea, even if using hand-free kit. The study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology (PDF), concludes that driving while talking on the phone is significantly worse than …

Mobile 2 Dec 2008, 12:21
Nokia seeks Control Center cronies

No place like home hub

Nokia wants applications for its smart home box, but it's also sniffing around for companies interested in selling the Linux-based home-automation gateway with their own branding. The Nokia Home Control Center (NHCC) is a Linux-based box incorporating a swath of wireless technologies, with room to add more, in the hope of …

Music and Media 2 Dec 2008, 12:24
IAEA calls for mutated supercrops to feed world's hungry

A Triffid a day keeps starvation away

The UN nuke agency has called for the world to make greater efforts to feed its starving millions, by increased efforts to produce enhanced, mutant super-crops developed using gamma rays. “The global nature of the food crisis is unprecedented. Families all around the world are struggling to feed themselves,” says Mohamed …

Biology 2 Dec 2008, 12:31
Samsung Pixon M8800 8Mp cameraphone

Review Worth a ponder if imaging performance is a priority

Samsung is getting serious with its cameraphones. Having recently landed its first eight-megapixel phone in the UK, the i8510, it's now doubled its tally with the Pixon M8800, its debut 8Mp touchscreen phone. Jostling for position among a small but growing band of eight-megapixel new-wavers, including the Sony Ericsson C905 …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 12:45
Nintendo in profit on each Wii sold

Its rivals aren't

Every Wii nets Nintendo $6, but the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 don’t produce any profit for Sony and Microsoft, a market analyst has claimed. David Gibson from Macquarie Securities said in a Forbes magazine report that – unlike its competitors – Nintendo has “figured out how to make money from its console sales”. That's …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 12:54
Red Hat searches for mainstreet in the City of London

Desperately seeking salesmen

Red Hat's CEO said the firm has put together a five-year strategic plan for the first time in its history, which will see it jack up its sales management as it looks to expand beyond its traditional markets. Jim Whitehurst is currently doing the rounds in Europe, as the firm gets ready to close on its fourth quarter and round …

Virtualization 2 Dec 2008, 13:15
BT sees Wi-Fi usage double

Who needs a mobile network anyway?

BT is trumpeting figures that show Wi-Fi usage has doubled since last year, with users clocking up more than a million minutes a day during September - but all is not quite what it seems. Access to BT's wireless network topped 10m minutes on one day during September, and average figures for the month are twice what they were …

Wireless 2 Dec 2008, 13:16
French courts tighten iPod tax loophole

Un peu

A French court has ruled that foreign retailers must warn consumers to pay the country's so-called "iPod tax" copyright levy on MP3 players ordered online. The levy, designed to compensate rights holders for digital copying, means that an iPod bought from a French seller is about €40 more expensive than from an websites based …

Law 2 Dec 2008, 13:19
Asus: $200 netbooks next year

OLPC rival?

Asus is to take on the $199 OLPC XO laptop with a $200 Small, Cheap Computer for the developing world. The company's keeping mum about the details of the machine, saying only that it'll debut in Q1 2009 for $200 (£134/€159). Asus Eee PC and friend: even cheaper next year Asus is scheduled to once again host a big launch …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 13:21
Game Group growth slows

Fewer customers through console door

Game Group saw sales growth slow to 11.4 per cent in the 44 weeks ended 29 November, down from 44.1 per cent in the same period last year but recent trading has been substantially worse - for the last 18 weeks of the period like-for-like sales fell to just 1.5 per cent. Game's international sales were even worse with like-for- …

Financial News 2 Dec 2008, 13:45
Which is the best mainstream gaming GPU?

Q&A

I'm planning to buy a graphic card, but I'm really confused on which one to buy. I've come up with two choices: the Nvidia GeForce 8600 GT and the AMD ATI Radeon HD 4670. I'm planning to play games like Farcry 2, Fallout 3, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Crysis: Warhead and GTA IV. My PC's an Acer desktop with a 2.2GHz Intel …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 13:56
Triple data centre capacity without new servers

Recycle what you've got for cheap, green fun

The trick to avoiding spending millions of dollars on new data centres is to make do and mend the existing ones, according to Dell. Dell reckons there is a huge amount of fixed cost in IT that can be recovered by running data centres more efficiently. Optimising existing data centres can be so beneficial that customers would …

Environment 2 Dec 2008, 14:19
What have we learned about managing outsourcing?

Keeping the balance of power in-house

A few years ago, I was talking to a quite senior chap in a well known IT outsourcing firm. “Trouble we have,” he said, “is that we’ve got all the good people.” Seeing the flummoxed expression on my face, he went on to explain. “It meant there was nobody left inside the organization to work with, who had any clue what we were …

Productivity 2 Dec 2008, 14:31
An information delivery pipedream

Is delivery at the point of need a step too far?

According to the findings from our recent Platform and Operations monster survey, most organisations told us they ‘get’ the notion of an application platform. Around a quarter of respondents told us they have formally adopted one, and over a third said that they had adopted one in the sense of having a natural tendency to re-use …

Systems 2 Dec 2008, 14:34
Frame turns prints into digital artwork

Frame with integrated scanner

If you’ve got a stack of photographs at home and not enough wall space to hang them from, then check out this digital photo frame with integrated picture scanner. Skyla's frame lets you scan in physical photographs Skyla, manufactured by storage firm LiteOn, has a built-in scanner that lets pictures measuring up to 4 x 6in …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 15:05
Gov beta test for grid-friendly, carbon-saving smart fridges

'Dynamic demand' could save you several pounds a year!

Dynamic demand technology, in which domestic appliances adjust their drain on the national grid so as to smooth out collective spikes and dips, is to get a widespread UK trial next year. The Guardian, reporting on the new initiative from the Department of Energy and Climate Change, says that three thousand intelligent demand- …

Environment 2 Dec 2008, 15:06
Boffins build omelette-making android

Egg-citing development in robotics?

A robot’s been cooking up a storm in Japan, where its maker – Yaskawa Technology – has taught the drone to bake the perfect Japanese omelette. What do you mean it tastes machine made? Images courtesy of AFP BB News The firm’s MotoMan SDA10 robot was shown cooking an Okonomiyaki cake in front of crowds at a recent robot …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 15:15
Code generator card fights fraud

Plastic power

A new hi-tech credit card from CryptoCard bundles two-factor authentication onto the plastic in a bid to clamp down on phishing and other forms of banking fraud. The CD-1 Credit Card Display token, launched on Tuesday, is designed to combat fraud in online and telephone banking. Looking further ahead, CryptoCard hopes to use …

Security 2 Dec 2008, 15:21
Danish IT chief 'on the run', suspected of fraud

Mystery over brutal attack on business partner

Interpol is seeking the missing boss of a bankrupt Danish IBM reseller IT Factory, who is suspected of frauds totalling $85m. Local police are also investigating a brutal attack on a reported business partner of Stein Bagger days before his disappearance. Danish daily Berlingske Tidende reports that Bagger left his wife last …

Policing 2 Dec 2008, 15:30
Plod pioneers painless data collection

But poor back-up could blow breathalyser testing

The Department for Transport (DfT) this week gave police, and motorists, an early Christmas present in the form of new equipment and software to support the annual drink drive campaign. The new kit will both improve the quality of roadside statistics and reduce the amount of time required to gather them. Unlike other database …

Policing 2 Dec 2008, 16:34
Cell supers rule the Green 500 HPC rankings

Just don't ask what the price would be for a petaflops

Back in November, at the annual Supercomputing event that was held in Austin, Texas this time around, a bunch of supercomputing researchers released the semi-annual Top 500 rankings of the fastest supercomputers in the world. Now, another set of nerds has added power metrics to the list and done a sort on how efficiently the …

Environment 2 Dec 2008, 16:51
Malware authors play Mario on Daily Mail website

Updated Cue the outrage

Tainted banner ads are being served up onto the Daily Mail's website. We passed on a reader tip about a possible infection on DailyMail.co.uk to anti-virus firm Sophos, which confirmed that script served up through the site was redirecting surfers to a server linked to the spread of the strain of the Mario family of worms. …

Security 2 Dec 2008, 18:26
Adobe adopts Alchemy for Microsoft .NET mindshare

Adobe MAX Europe Feel the burn

Adobe Systems has provided more details on a research project that converts and compiles C and C++ to ActionScript and brings raw speed to the Flash virtual machine. Alchemy enables re-use of existing C libraries within the Flash runtime. Examples shown here at MAX Europe include OpenSSL encryption code, code to generate image …

Developer 2 Dec 2008, 18:32
IDC sees 2009 European IT slowdown

Global sluggishness

Only a few weeks ago, we told you how the analysts at IDC had trimmed their forecasts for global IT spending. Well, now IDC is providing a little more detail about the IT spending situation across the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region, and the news is not exactly good. Blame the economic meltdown, which started off with …

Financial News 2 Dec 2008, 18:46
IT exec accused of $10m backup tape theft

800,000 virtual wallets

A former IT executive for a Canadian marketing firm has been accused of taking a computer backup tape containing personal information of 3.2 million customers that could net as much as $10m on the black market, according to court records. Nick Belmonte, who earned $150,000 as vice president of IT for Vancouver-based C-W …

Storage 2 Dec 2008, 19:06
Apple unleashes not-crap ~~iPhone~~ iPod earbuds

No mic for Jesus

Three months after they were said to be on the horizon, Apple today announced availability of the dual-driver in-ear headphones with remote and mic ($79) and single-driver earphones with remote and mic ($29). "Availability," however, is a wee bit of a squishy term: Apple's web store says that the higher-end model will ship in …

Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 19:45
gOS intros OS cloud for netbooks

Light-weight web 2.0 gumbo

Another browser-based operating system is joining the netbook gold strike. On Monday, Good OS — maker of the Google gadget–heavy gOS — unveiled a new quick-starting cloud OS at the World Netbook Forum in Paris. Rather unimaginatively dubbed "Cloud," the OS will first arrive pre-installed alongside Windows in Gigabyte Touch …

Operating Systems 2 Dec 2008, 20:33
Tesla exec quits as rival clocks up major deals

'Leccy Tech Sparks, Fisker fly

More signs that all is not well at Tesla, maker of the leccy Roadster. Posting on his own blog Tesla Senior VP Darryl Siry has revealed he is parting company with the Silicon Valley-based car company immediately “due to some disagreements in strategy”. Coming on top of nasty little war of words between Tesla CEO Elon Musk and …

Reg Hardware 2 Dec 2008, 20:44
Web 2.0rhea outbreak bought, killed

Pownce no more

Blogging software maven Six Apart has acquired and killed a minor outbreak of Web 2.0rhea. In announcing its purchase of the Twitter-like Pownce, Six Apart also announced that the micro-bogging app would disappear in thirteen days. "As of today, Pownce will no longer be accepting new users," read an email sent to Web2.0rhea …

Applications 2 Dec 2008, 21:21
Oracle, Emulex grant Linux data integrity

A cure for silent corruption

Database maker Oracle and host bus adapter maker Emulex today announced that they have contributed code to eliminate silent data corruption to the open source Linux operating system. The two also said this code has been accepted in the 2.6.27 kernel, which is the latest stable release. Back in April 2007, Oracle, Emulex, disk …

Storage 2 Dec 2008, 21:39
New York serves AMD free Foundry lunch

Empire State fab a go

As state and local governments across the U.S. starve for revenue during the ongoing financial meltdown, AMD and its Abu Dhabi-based partner, Advanced Technology Investment Co., were yesterday unanimously voted $1.2bn in tax and cash incentives from New York's Empire State Development Corp., according to a report published in …

PCs & Chips 2 Dec 2008, 21:47
Intel denies Core i7 glitch

Bug rumors greatly exaggerated

Intel was tilting at the internet rumor mill this morning as word circulated that its newly-launched Core i7 chips suffer from a technical glitch similar to the one that previously dogged AMD's Phenom and Opteron cores. A recent Core i7 software programmer's manual update seems to indicate the chips have some Translation …

PCs & Chips 2 Dec 2008, 21:51
Battlestar Galactica prequel shuns space, spaceships

Kinder, gentler Cylons

Battlestar Galactica, the hit sci-fi thriller about humans searching the galaxy for a planet to call home, will be spun off into a prequel that is set 50 years before androids rebelled against their makers and destroyed civilization as it was known. Caprica, which is scheduled to air in early 2010, will focus on the events …

Odds and Sods 2 Dec 2008, 22:20