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21st July 2009 Archive

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  • Barnes & Noble chases Amazon with ebook second coming

    No Plastic Logic. Yet

    Chasing Amazon and its Orwell-deleting Kindle, US retail giant Barnes & Noble has returned to the digital book business. The company that bills itself as the world's largest book seller announced what it calls the world's largest ebookstore. But unlike Amazon, B&N hasn't backed its ebookstore with its very own handheld ebook …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2009, 01:02

  • Microsoft set for open source outpouring?

    Next up: Office, Red Hat, and Fedora

    Microsoft's massive code drop to the once-hated GPL looks like the first in a series of open source moves from the Redmond software giant. Today, the company will announce a set of plug-ins for Microsoft Office for scientific discovery, chemical equations, and formulas built by Microsoft, and the plug-ins look like they will …

    Software 21 Jul 2009, 01:10

  • LG GC900 Viewty Smart

    Review Hi-res camphone at not so high a price

    LG's latest cam phone is an extremely sleek and suave looking device with a feature-packed 8Mp camera, multi-touch screen, Wi-Fi, A-GPS and motion sensor. Despite the name, this isn't a smart phone, and isn't intended to be all things to everyone – it's focus (sorry) is very clearly on photography. LG's Viewty Smart At …

    reghardware 21 Jul 2009, 08:02

  • Tasered Oz man bursts into flames

    Petrol-sniffing incident ends in third degree burns

    A 36-year-old Western Australia Aboriginal man is in a "critical but stable condition" after bursting into flames following a police tasering, ABC News reports. Officers were attempting to arrest Ronald Mitchell for sniffing petrol at the Goldfields Aboriginal community of Warburton when he "turned violent" - threatening …

    Policing 21 Jul 2009, 08:48

  • NZ council to scrub Muff Road

    Souvenir hunters target tasty signage

    Weary residents of Muff Road in Orari, New Zealand, have requested a name change after repeated thefts of its road signs by muff-hungry souvenir hunters. According to the Timaru Herald, Muff Road has rarely enjoyed secure signage, and operatives apparently gave up replacing the signs after the last set went AWOL around 18 …

    Bootnotes 21 Jul 2009, 09:03

  • Vodafone and T-Mobile: 1800MHz bad, 900MHz good

    Your thoughts on the big buy-up

    Our recent opinion piece on the possible takeover of T-Mobile by Vodafone generated considerable comment. Given the strength of feeling, we thought we'd present some of our thinking. The piece was intended to present an argument that spectrum ownership was key in understanding why Vodafone, or anyone else, would be interested …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 09:41

  • Intel to launch Core i5 on 6 September

    Minus HyperThreading

    Roadmap details have emerged revealing Intel's desktop-processor launch plan for the coming months. September will see the debut of the Core i5 mainstream Nehalem-class processor, along with a pair of new Core i7 parts. The i5-750 will run at 2.66GHz, though its auto-overclocking ability can push that to 3.2GHz when apps …

    reghardware 21 Jul 2009, 10:02

  • Swine flu malware poses as pig plague update

    Telling porkies

    Wrongdoers have created a new strain of swine flu-themed malware. A Trojan, containing backdoor and keylogger functionality, poses as a Word document from the US Centre of Disease Control giving information about the disease. The infectious file - Novel H1N1 Flu Situation Update.exe - appears with an icon that makes it look …

    Spam 21 Jul 2009, 10:03

  • Mobile Broadband just not fast enough

    Although 11.5% of users perfectly happy

    64 per cent of users polled by Broadband Genie reported themselves unhappy with the speed of their mobile broadband, in a result that the comparison service describes as "damning". Given the question "Is your mobile broadband fast enough?", 63.8 per cent of the 1,160 people polled said it wasn't. More surprising were the 24.7 …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 10:27

  • Deutsche Bank sacks two for spying

    Lives of Others lives on

    Deutsche Bank has sacked two senior executives for spying on its board of directors and two other people. Prosecutors, data protection officials and financial regulators are all investigating the bank for allegedly spying on its own chief operating officer, a board member, an activist shareholder and a media mogul. The bank is …

    Enterprise Security 21 Jul 2009, 10:31

  • Astroplumbers fix US space superloo

    ISS deluxe dunny reopens for business

    The US's $19m space superloo is once again accepting customer input following a successful repair yesterday by the International Space Station's Expedition 20 commander Gennady Padalka and flight engineer Frank De Winne. The Destiny laboratory dunny, aka the "Waste and Hygiene Compartment", clapped out on Sunday, obliging the …

    Space 21 Jul 2009, 10:34

  • Intel's 32nm desktop CPU speeds and feeds revealed

    Dual-core 32nm Core i5 and Core i3 in early 2010

    Intel's first Core i5 - the chip bringing the giant's Nehalem technology into the mainstream desktop processor market - is due early in September. Further out, the company has roadmapped additional members of the family, the 32nm 'Clarkdale' chip. It's also added the low-end Clarkdale Core i3 to its proposed line-up, assorted …

    reghardware 21 Jul 2009, 10:41

  • Wrinkly rockers prosper from music boom

    Heritage acts hear cash tills

    Oldies or "heritage acts" are benefiting the most from the rise in demand for music, with the gap between the established and other acts getting wider, according to the annual music industry economic survey. But the wrinkly rockers, tempted out of retirement for another pay day, are snatching money that used to go on mid-level …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2009, 10:53

  • Jupiter takes a serious knock

    Object slams into gas giant

    Astronomers using the Keck Observatory in Hawaii have captured the aftermath of an object slamming into Jupiter - material thrown up into the atmosphere by the impact and posing for the camera in the infrared: The event was spotted by amateur OZ astronomer Anthony Wesley in Murrumbateman at around 13:30 GMT on Sunday, New …

    Space 21 Jul 2009, 10:54

  • Yahoo! bites! Web! 2.0! apple! with! homepage! relaunch!

    US first, then the rest of us

    Yahoo! is poised to push out a new homepage in the US today that will come with direct access to the likes of eBay, Twitter and Facebook, for users keen to flock to those sites. The revamp will be launched a month ahead of schedule, while tweaks to its search page will follow in August. Users interested in accessing it will be …

    Music and Media 21 Jul 2009, 11:14

  • Nissan ponders Pré-like cordless charging for e-cars

    Leccy Tech Top up your battery while you drive...

    Along with its plans to sell a leccy car to World+Dog, Nissan now reckons it has cracked the problem of wireless e-car charging. Well, almost. According to reports, Nissan has lashed up an electromagnetic inductive charging system in a prototype of the new e-car it plans to unveil later this year. Sadly, Nissan is keeping …

    reghardware 21 Jul 2009, 11:28

  • IBM lifts the veil on Power7 chips

    Promises upgrades from Power6 boxes

    With every new server processor generation, there is always the possibility that the chip and its associated chipsets and system components are so different that both the chip and the server platform have to change at the same time. This will not be the case for the Power7 processors due next year, says IBM. IBM is in no hurry …

    PCs & Chips 21 Jul 2009, 11:49

  • BenQ Joybee GP1 mini projector

    Review Palm-sized portable projector with a lifetime lamp

    We’re all used to being able to take videos and movies with us when we go out, whether it’s on a phone or a portable media player. Some of these devices boast pretty decent widescreen displays too, but with the Joybee GP1 mini projector you can carry an 80in widescreen display around in your handbag. BenQ's Joybee GP1 mini …

    reghardware 21 Jul 2009, 11:51

  • Switch to SSD 'for free'? Sandforce explains how

    Comment Lower power bills pay the tab

    Fabless flash controller developer SandForce has let a pricing hint slip. It will reveal more of its plans and situation at the August 11-13 Flash Summit in Santa Clara. It may also be about to reveal its first supply deals. SandForce emerged from stealth in April with NAND flash solid state disk (SSD) controller technology …

    Storage 21 Jul 2009, 11:57

  • Auditors slam MoD over failure to keep track of radios

    NAO subject stock and payroll systems to unfriendly fire

    Government auditors have accused military planners of running wasteful and inefficient systems that have cost taxpayers millions. A report from the National Audit Office said the Ministry of Defence was unable to account for £155m earmarked for a radio communications system for British troop in Afghanistan. MoD officials told …

    Government 21 Jul 2009, 12:00

  • Broadband for all soundbite trumps content, quality

    Media luminaries unpick the Carter Report

    By now you probably have a pretty good idea of what is in Lord Carter’s "Digital Britain" Report. There’s the government drawing back from a clampdown on internet piracy, the switching off of FM radio, preserving the BBC licence fee – and instituting a 50p a month stealth tax to provide megacorps such as Vodafone and BT with " …

    Government 21 Jul 2009, 12:02

  • Dell hacks £10k off deal registration pricing

    Take your partner by the hand

    Computer maker Dell has slashed its PartnerDirect Deal Registration (PDDR) threshold by a hefty sum in a clear move to attract more UK partners to its programme. The company confirmed today it had permanently cut the cost of its PDDR by £10,000, which covers desktops, notebooks, servers and imaging products. Dell had been …

    Channel Register 21 Jul 2009, 12:02

  • 'No more CCTV', cries top CCTV cop

    Shetlands crime wave under control

    The man in charge of the Met's CCTV unit has criticised the way police use surveillance and called for no more cameras to be installed. Detective Chief Inspector Mike Neville said footage from cameras was often not used because forces do not have systems or staff to retrieve images. He added that serious crime that could be …

    Policing 21 Jul 2009, 12:06

  • Google aims at mobile operators' money supply

    Ringtone ads to power latest value suction proposition

    Google's voice telephony service is opening up to more users and revealing how it intends to make the operation pay, while operators are starting to consider what their future holds when everything goes through Google. Google Voice is a telephony service that provides a single phone number forwarded over existing mobile and …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 12:09

  • LIVE: Application Security Regcast

    Regcast Resources and useful destinations

    The Register’s Application Security Regcast is live now, Sign up and join our expert panel as they deliver practical advice and answers for tackling application security with limited budgets and looming deadlines. The panel kicks off with an overview, based on recent Register reader surveys, of the state of business and IT in …

    Site News 21 Jul 2009, 12:35

  • German cops cuff Brit potato iPod scammer

    Bag of spuds conman has had his chips

    German police have cuffed a British conman for fleecing Germans with the classic "bag of spuds" electronic device scam. According to the Sun, the unnamed* man and an accomplice ingeniously posed as skint tourists in Dusseldorf, offering laptops, iPods and cameras in return for quick cash. When the "gullible" locals took …

    Bootnotes 21 Jul 2009, 13:24

  • IT workers grumble about lack of career path

    More to job than shoot 'em ups and doughnuts, y'know

    IT workers feel frustrated by the lack of career development opportunities on offer, a new survey has found. More than half (54 per cent) of the 693 IT employees and contractors in the UK surveyed by recruitment agency Hays expressed dissatisfaction with their career path. Unsurprisingly, their response was markedly different …

    IT Director 21 Jul 2009, 13:28

  • NZ nude mum snap auction a hoax

    NSFW Student media project to 'get people chattering'

    The man behind NZ tat bazaar Trade Me's first "photos of a mother in underwear" auction has revealed the whole thing was a college project, designed to "get people chattering". Auckland design student Michael Chal, 22, posed as a disgruntled son who'd punted mum in her smalls to get revenge for being ordered to clean out the …

    Bootnotes 21 Jul 2009, 13:31

  • Seven 32nm Intel mobile Core ix CPUs queued for Q1 2010

    But which one has the built-in GPU?

    It's well known that 32nm Intel Nehalem-class mobile CPU+GPU goodness will debut in Q1 2010, but what notebook-oriented processors will the chip giant introduce? We're anticipating around seven 'Arrandale' processors to be launched early next year with both Core i5 and Core i7 branding. Members of both families will target …

    reghardware 21 Jul 2009, 13:37

  • RIM fights BlackBerry snoop gaffe

    Denies involvement in half-baked Etisalat scheme

    RIM, maker of the BlackBerry mobile phone, has told the Reg that Etisalat is talking tosh and the BlackBerry remains a secure platform, after the United Arab Emirates operator "patched" the device with surveillance software. The "patch" which Etisalat sent out last week was actually a surveillance application, designed to make …

    Malware 21 Jul 2009, 14:06

  • NotW bosses fight back over hacking claims

    Never done nothin' or nothin'

    Tory communications boss Andy Coulson has assured MPs that he played no part in either condoning or facilitating phone hacking while editor of the News of the World. Coulson quit as NoTW editor in 2007 after the paper's royal correspondent, Clive Goodman, and a private investigator accomplice, Glen Mulcaire, were jailed for …

    Enterprise Security 21 Jul 2009, 14:34

  • Wheels come off O2's data network

    We'll just have to start talking to each other

    UK operator O2 is having data network problems that are making it impossible for most users to access the internet, as well as preventing data-based applications such as MMS. Despite initial reports that the problem was down to congestion in the London area, it now seems that the whole network is refusing to carry packet data …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 15:25

  • Erin Andrews peephole footage spreads Trojan

    Updated Malware risk to the unwary horny

    Supposed hidden camera footage of US sports reporter Erin Andrews on offer online often leads to malware, security firm Sophos warns. Websites claiming to provide nude video of glamorous ESPN reporter Erin Andrews are in reality a trick designed to trick both Windows and Mac surfers into installing malware. Hackers are taking …

    Malware 21 Jul 2009, 15:48

  • Visa turns to txt

    ur broK, nd mor crdt?

    Credit card provider Visa is to start trials of an SMS notification service, alerting you by text message every time your card is used, to reduce fraud and help money management. The idea of sending a text every time a card is used isn't very new - First Direct has been offering such a service to UK punters for several years …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 16:00

  • Big Blue animates VM control freak

    Taming the hypervisor sprawl

    Look out, VMware. And Citrix Systems. And Microsoft. And Red Hat. And Novell. And Oracle. Here comes IBM crashing the server virtualization management party. IBM could have - and, some might argue, should have - done its own x64 hypervisor to be a serious software player in the server virtualization racket. Up until now, the …

    Virtualization 21 Jul 2009, 17:17

  • Intel in (halfhearted) SSD boost

    Faster. Cheaper. And, well, that's it

    In a limited announcement that wrong-foots expectations, Intel has moved just one of its solid state drives to a 34nm process technology, making it faster and cheaper without increasing capacity. Intel's existing X25-M and X18-M products come in 80 and 160GB capacities and use 2-bit multi-level cell technology on a 50nm …

    Storage 21 Jul 2009, 17:34

  • Adobe peels off Flash layers for open source

    Money move

    Adobe Systems has open-sourced two pieces of Flash technology to build community buy-in around its media player. Today, the company announced the release of the Open Source Media Framework (OSMF) and Text Layout Framework (TLF) under version 1.1 of the Mozilla Public License. TLF is an ActionScript library that's been built …

    Developer 21 Jul 2009, 17:46

  • iPhone push hack shoves IMs to complete strangers

    You talkin' to me?

    A German developer has discovered that sending an AIM message to someone who has both jailbroken their iPhone and installed a hack that enables it to receive push notifications may result in your message being read by anyone else who has installed the push-enabling hack. Till Schadde, founder of equinux, tells The Reg that he …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 18:13

  • Canadian privacy chief flunks Facebook

    Lax data policies in sharp detail

    Facebook does not protect personal information well enough to comply with Canadian data protection law, the Canadian Privacy Commissioner has said. Jennifer Stoddart's office has investigated the social-networking website's use of personal information and has found that Facebook is not clear enough about how users can control …

    Security 21 Jul 2009, 19:20

  • Open-source firmware vuln exposes wireless routers

    Back door to complete control

    A hacker has discovered a critical vulnerability in open-source firmware available for wireless routers made by Linksys and other manufacturers that allows attackers to remotely penetrate the device and take full control of it. The remote root vulnerability affects the most recent version of DD-WRT, a piece of firmware many …

    Security 21 Jul 2009, 19:33

  • Engineer commits suicide after losing iPhone prototype

    Leaps from open window

    A Chinese engineer committed suicide after he was allegedly roughed-up by company security services when one of the iPhone 4G prototypes entrusted into his care went missing. Twenty-five-year-old Sun Danyong, a recent engineering graduate, was employed by Foxconn, manufacturer of Apple's iPhone and iPods. According to reports …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 19:50

  • Apple profits up 15 per cent (again)

    5.2 million iPhones sold

    The global economic Meltdown may be tightening belts worldwide, but they're not feeling the squeeze in Cupertino. Apple announced Tuesday that its third fiscal 2009 quarter, which ended on June 30th, saw the company's year-on-year quarterly revenue rise to $8.34bn and its net quarterly profit to $1.23bn. That's up from $7.46bn …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2009, 20:59

  • AMD records 11th straight loss

    Intel not feeling its pain

    To appreciate the woe that comes when you're Advanced Micro Devices, look no further than the No. 2 PC processor maker's second-quarter financial results, which were announced Tuesday. While Intel and Texas Instruments are widely believed to have stabilized during the same period, AMD remained mired in a deep funk that saw the …

    Financial News 21 Jul 2009, 23:18

  • Apple admits iPhone 3GS in short supply

    The next 1.3 billion must wait

    Apple has admitted what's been rumored for weeks: It can't make enough iPhone 3GS smartphones to keep up with demand. Early in his prepared remarks that opened Tuesday's conference call with reporters and analysts detailing Apple's quarterly financial results, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer said: "We are current unable to make …

    Mobile 21 Jul 2009, 23:52