5th January 2009 Archive
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Nikon D90 digital SLR with HD video recording
Review A DSLR and an HD camcorder
Life can be a confusing business. You’ve got mobile phones that double up as cameras, and cameras that record video. Well, prepare to be even more confused as cameras begin to capture HD video. Nikon’s D90 proudly claims to be the world’s first DSLR to record HD video. So does this mean the end of the camcorder as we know it …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 09:02
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UK sportscar makers announce electric models
'Leccy Tech Lotus doing it for itself, for a change
British sports car makers Lotus and Ginetta have both announced they are to build road-going electric cars. As announcements go, we reckon there are worse ways to start a new year. The Lotus news isn't that much of shock as the Hethel-based outfit already makes the rolling chassis for the Tesla Roadster – in effect a 'leccy …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 10:09
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Wiinoma: TV for your Wii
Gamers to get more entertainment
Gamers growing tired of the Wii’s videogame selection will soon be able to shun gaming altogether, because more details about Nintendo’s upcoming Wii TV service have emerged. Rumoured to be called Wiinoma, according to a report by The Times, the free and on-demand service will allow Wii owners to access TV programmes through …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 10:19
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BT to be freed from service obligations
Government flies kite
Communications minister Lord Carter is to free BT from its universal service obligations - its legal duty to run a phone line to every home in the country, as well as provide payphones and other basic services available at a reasonable cost. Instead Carter is expected to call for universal broadband access, wireless or wired, …
Telecoms 5 Jan 10:32
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MSI unwraps netbook with SSD and HDD
Wind U115 blows into Taiwan
MSI has introduced its anticipated Wind U115 - a netbook that incorporates an SSD and a hard drive. It's also equipped with Intel's 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor, a palmtop-oriented processor that's nonetheless finding favour with netbook makers, including Dell, which uses the part in its 12in Inspiron Mini notebook-not-netbook …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 10:36
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EMC adding open sauce to Decho mix
Update Snapping up SourceLabs?
Storage giant EMC is rumoured to have bought SourceLabs, a Seattle-based open source startup with nifty software technology for identifying developer problems and finding answers, for its Decho 'digital echo' business unit. Decho was formed late last year by combining EMC's Mozy online backup product and Seattle-based Pi, the …
Storage 5 Jan 10:45
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Beeb names new Doctor Who
Matt Smith handed keys to Tardis
The BBC has announced that 26-year-old Matt Smith will be the 11th Doctor Who, hitting screens in the fifth series in 2010 as the youngest actor* to tackle the role. According to Piers Wenger, head of drama at BBC Wales, Smith's audition immediately marked him as the next Time Lord. He said: "It was abundantly clear that he …
Entertainment 5 Jan 11:03
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NASA rovers survive five years on Mars
Opportunity and Spirit demonstrate the right stuff
NASA's Mars rover Spirit last Saturday passed the fifth anniversary of its arrival on the Red Planet on 3 January 2004 - an achievement which will be matched on 24 January by its twin Opportunity. During their epic Martian jaunt, the pair have "returned a quarter-million images, driven more than 21 kilometers (13 miles), …
Space 5 Jan 11:04
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LG to show super-slim set at CES
...with 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio!
LG is gunning to make itself one of the tech firms to watch this year, following its release of details concerning an upcoming super telly: the 55in LH9500. LG's LH9500 is just 24.8mm thick The LH9500 LCD, which has been spotted by several online sources, is a meagre 24.8mm thick, yet still boasts 1080p and a 2,000,000:1 …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 11:12
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Deals inked on DARPA's Matrix cyberwar VR
Cyber RangePandora's Box goes live in '10Pentagon plans to develop a Matrix-style simulated computer world in which to try out the cyber WMDs of tomorrow appear to be moving forward. Reports indicate that the ambitious plans for a "National Cyber Range" - in which weapons-grade government malware would be test-fired much as missiles are on a normal firing range - have …
Government 5 Jan 11:14
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Fujitsu tells WD the deal's off
Zero chance of WD buying Fujitsu's hard drive business
Fujitsu did not give Western Digital a Christmas present - in fact it said 'No deal'. The two companies have been talking about Fujitsu selling its loss-making hard disk drive business to Western Digital. Fujitsu's president Kuniaki Nozoe said there was zero chance of a deal because Fujitsu wished to sell its Japan-based and …
Storage 5 Jan 11:25
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NEC breakthrough paves way for powerless standy-by modes
Flip-flop fiddling
NEC has announced the development of a memory circuit element that, it claims, will allow chips to consume no power when they're put in stand-by mode. The circuit component is a non-volatile magnetic flip-flop (MFF) - not a reference to cheap footwear but to a transistor-based circuit of the type assembled by schoolboys to …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 11:28
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MoD tops lost security pass league
But Cabinet minister goes for individual title
Ministry of Defence staff are responsible for the vast majority of security passes that have gone AWOL since 2001, research by the LibDems has revealed. Still, Work and Pensions Minister James Purnell is doing his bit, managing to lose his pass over the Christmas break - in November he left confidential documents on a train. …
Government 5 Jan 11:56
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Blu-ray boom prompts festive cheer
DVD sales still in the lead, though
The Blu-ray message is steadily creeping in consumer conscience, it seems. Why? Because sales of Blu-ray films in the UK rose by almost 400 per cent last month, compared to the same period in 2007. The Dark Knight led December's Blu-ray sales in the UK According to figures from industry body the British Video Association ( …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 12:06
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Adobe gets tellybox Flash with Intel
Plans to ship CE3100 with Flash Lite support by mid-2009
Adobe has teamed up with Intel to port the software giant’s Flash platform to Chipzilla’s Media Processor CE 3100. Both firms are bigging up the collaboration as a way of bringing “richer and more seamless web-based and video viewing experiences” to the masses. The technology will be plugged into Intel-based cable set-top …
PCs & Chips 5 Jan 12:06
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Fence plan to save Tasmanian Devil
Cancer corral considered
Aussie nature-boffins have a new scheme to prevent the extinction of the Tasmanian Devil by the simple means of a great big fence. The proposed barrier would aim to separate infected from healthy animals and stop the spread of the rampant face cancer which is destroying the species, reports the Beeb. The beleaguered beastie, …
Biology 5 Jan 12:08
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Don't shout at your disk drives, warns Sun engineer
Have a heart for your hardware
Those among you who are prone to vocal outbursts of rage at cantankerous kit should be aware that hardware has feelings too, and directing your ire at disk drives can provoke "unusually high disk I/O latency". That's according to Sun's Fishworks engineer Brendan Gregg, who explains just how to upset your drive on his blog and …
Storage 5 Jan 12:13
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Windows for Warships™ reaches Royal Navy frigates
Redmond working on seawater-proof product key sticker
The Royal Navy's plan to fit most of its fleet with command systems based on Windows boxes continues, with the commencement last week of a programme intended to replace the existing commandware of the Service's Type 23 frigates. The Type 23s will make up the majority of the British surface fleet for the foreseeable future. …
Government 5 Jan 12:27
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Council to crack down on Cracknuts Lane
4 Corfe Close also for the off
Lewes District Council has attracted the attention of the Daily Mail with a proposed new street naming and numbering policy which, if agreed tomorrow, could see the end of "names which encourage defacing name plates", such as Cockshut Road, Cracknuts Lane and Juggs Road. Also for the chop are 'names capable of deliberate …
Bootnotes 5 Jan 12:33
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Logitech launches earphones for gym freaks
Spandex model not available
Many resolutions will focus on weight loss and fitness this year. So, Logitech has launched two pairs of earphones designed with exercise in mind. The MetroFi 170 and 220 in-ear cans create a “magic seal” between your lughole and the world around you, according to Logitech, to ensure that irritating external noises won’t spoil …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 13:01
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China rattles sabre at Google
New clampdown on 'vulgar' content
China has announced a new clampdown on websites accused of "threatening morals by spreading pornography and vulgarity" - including Baidu, Google and Sina.com. China's Ministry of Public Security and six other government agencies today launched a "nationwide campaign to clean up a vulgar current on the internet and named and …
Government 5 Jan 13:08
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Obama may militarise NASA to save money
Or NASA-ise the military
President-Elect Barack Obama may seek to save money and advance America's space presence by promoting closer cooperation between the US military space programme and NASA, according to reports. Bloomberg News, in an exclusive report, claims that "Obama’s transition team is considering a collaboration between the Defense …
Space 5 Jan 13:15
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Confusion over Indian parliamentary rights-grab
Big IT bill sweeps through - or does it?
Chaos in India’s Parliament – the Lok Sabha - shortly before Christmas saw the passage, without debate, of a major new bill designed to sweep up a number of outstanding IT issues from cybercrime to online porn. At least, that’s what we believe happened. Such was the level of confusion, that at least one well known IT news site …
Government 5 Jan 13:23
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Home Office denies remote snooping plan
No change to police rules...yet
The Home Office has denied it has made any change to rules governing how police can remotely snoop on people's computers. Any such remote hack - which normally requires physical access to a computer or network or the use of a key-logging virus - is governed by Ripa - and the rules have not changed. But European discussions on …
Policing 5 Jan 13:38
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ITV to write down Friends Reunited value, says report
There's no such thing as a free, chummy lunch
Friends Reunited could see its carrying value slashed by ITV when the television channel releases its year-end review of past acquisitions. The Sunday Times reported that the review, which is undertaken by ITV CEO John Cresswell, is expected to conclude that Friends Reunited is worth less than when the firm bought it in …
Financial News 5 Jan 13:39
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Iomega unveils 'so simple' network storage
From box to back-up in five minutes
Iomega has launched an easy-to-use network storage drive, designed to back-up the precious memories of PC users, gamers or anyone with portable digital devices. Iomega's Home Media Network: network storage, put simply The Home Media Network (HMN) plugs into your router and is designed to act as a central storage unit for …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 14:40
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Steve Jobs dismisses death rumours
Letter explains hormone imbalance
Ever since Steve Jobs said he would not be giving the keynote speech at MacWorld, there have been lurid rumours that his health had taken a serious turn for the worse - but the Apple bigwig has finally had a go at putting the world straight. Jobs said today that his weight loss during the year is the result of a hormone …
Financial News 5 Jan 15:08
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UIQ 'files for bankruptcy' in Sweden
First tech casualty of 2009?
UIQ has finally thrown in the towel and reportedly applied for bankruptcy in the Swedish courts. The mobile interface developer's employees were warned their jobs were on the line back in November. Back then Sony Ericsson, one of its few remaining backers along with Motorola, said it would fund the firm's wages while it …
Mobile 5 Jan 15:26
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$400m US space interceptor deal inked
Last orders at the Missile Defence saloon?
Rumour suggests that some parts at least of the controversial US missile-defence programme are doomed, with the axe set to fall as soon as President-Elect Obama takes office. Nonetheless, the last days of 2008 saw a $400m contract award to one of the most controversial missile-defence weapons of them all - the Groundbased …
Space 5 Jan 15:27
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Kodak unwraps CES cameras
This season's must have shooters
Kodak is poised to kick off the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show with the unveiling of the latest additions to its snapper family. Kodak's Z980 shooter First up is the 12-megapixel Z980, which comes equipped with a 26mm wide-angle lens and 24x optical zoom capability. The shooter also has a vertical shutter release and …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 15:33
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LG readies 480Hz LCD TVs for late 2009
Picture interpolation plus flashing backlight
LG is to released LCD TVs with a whopping 480Hz refresh rate, thanks to a clever flashing backlight. The company's panel uses standard 240Hz interpolation technology, which seeks to eliminate the juddery look of old LCD TVs by creating extra picture fields and frames on the fly. The upshot is smoother motion with no ghosting …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 16:25
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Iomega aims at TVs with home server
Backs up PCs and plays digital media files
Iomega has announced a home storage and media server that backs up files on connected PCs and plays digital media content to connected output devices. The Home Media Network Hard Drive (HMNHD) is a 500GB or 1TB hard drive, plus embedded processor running Linux and EMC's LifeLine software. It connects via gigabit Ethernet to a …
Storage 5 Jan 16:42
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Kodak updates pocket camcorder range
Is that a pocket camcorder in your trousers, or...
Kodak has unveiled the Zx1 as the latest addition to its expanding portfolio of pocket camcorder devices. Kodak's Zx1 pocket camcorder The firm launched the bulky Zi6 back in July, but the Zx1 sports a slimmer and sexier profile – even if the specifications of both camcorders are largely the same. The Zx1 can capture video …
Reg Hardware 5 Jan 17:07
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Safari enjoys 'unusually residential' December boost
Suggests OS X adoption
Use of Apple's Safari browser grew in December to 7.93 per cent, up from 7.13 per cent in November, suggesting a parallel growth in adoption of Mac OS X, according to browser-usage figures released today by internet-analyst Net Applications. While use of Apple's browser is growing, Microsoft's Internet Explorer is sinking: …
Software 5 Jan 18:44
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Boffin brings 'write once, run anywhere' to Cisco hijacks
Curse of the ROMmon
A researcher has discovered a way to reliably exploit a known security vulnerability in a wide class of Cisco System routers, a finding that for the first time allows attackers to hijack millions of devices with a single piece of code. The discovery by Felix "FX" Lindner of Recurity Labs in Berlin brings the write-once-run- …
Enterprise Security 5 Jan 19:06
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Linux: this year's silver lining?
Watch out Windows and Solaris, says Zemlin
With the new year under way and all of the problems in the old year still largely unsolved, people in the IT sector are looking around for a little good news and some prospects for growth. There are a lot of clouds out there right now, and Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation, thinks the rain is going to be …
Operating Systems 5 Jan 19:27
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IT salary survey says: ‘You’ve never had it so bad’
Dot-com crash a 'cake walk'
Compared to the current job market, IT professionals should recall the collapse of the dot-com bubble with a fondness for the good ol' days. That's according to the latest bi-annual IT salary survey from management consultant Janco Associates, which has painted a dreary picture for tech workers. The firm called current …
Financial News 5 Jan 19:51
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Companies burying themselves in IT gear
Doesn't virtualization fix this?
The religion of virtualization may be all over the IT trade press, but apparently the data centers of the world haven't heard the good news yet and have been buying up PCs, servers, and storage gear like crazy to support their application and data loads. And if data from British IT consultancy Compass is any guide, IT budget …
Financial News 5 Jan 22:02
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PS2 the most played console of 2008
Xbox beats PS3 to second slot
Nintendo may have cleaned up in console sales in 2008, but more US gamers spent their free time time playing Sony's "last-gen" Playstation 2, according to Nielsen Media Research. The PS2's leading numbers aren't terribly surprising considering Sony sold more than 140 million since the console's launch in 2000. Obviously those …
Music and Media 5 Jan 23:36
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VCs still pump dough into green tech, renewable energy
Q4 takes a bit of a haircut
The economic meltdown has put a damper on a lot of things, but it seems to have been less of a wet blanket for investors in startups in the green technology and renewable energy in 2008 - if you exclude the final quarter of the unusually dismal year. According to a report called The Venture Power Report put out by Greentech …
Hardware 5 Jan 23:43
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Sun offers free GlassFish education
Repeats download model
The secret to business according to Sun Microsystems' chief executive Jonathan Schwartz is to first build volume and then figure out how to make money from the audience you've created. That's what he told a small audience attending last November's long-awaited JavaFX launch, and it's the mantra driving Sun's software strategy …
Applications 5 Jan 23:49
