11th September 2009 Archive

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IBM claims patents promote open-source love

Hits factory spin

Open source and software patents are generally regarded as two things that go together like peanut butter and a punch to the face*. Open-source advocates talk of vague, badly written US patents lurking in the system, waiting only to pounce on unsuspecting devs and condemn them to 1,001 years litigation. Open sourcers actively …

Software 11 Sep 00:16
Apple unloads 47 fixes for iPhones, Macs and QuickTime

Monster security patch batch

Apple has issued fixes for more than 47 security bugs in the Mac, iPhone and QuickTime media player, some that allowed attackers to take complete control of the underlying device. The patches, which were released over a 24-hour period starting Wednesday, fix critical vulnerabilities in a variety software made both by Apple and …

Security 11 Sep 00:41
Android bandwagon picks up INQ

Mobilize 09 Facebookphone meets Googlephone

Android has won another convert. The boutique mobile handset manufacturer INQ announced that it's now developing on Android, Google's open source mobile stack. INQ chief executive Frank Meehan said his mystery Googlephones would "definitely" arrive sometime in 2010, but at this point, the devices seem to consist of little more …

Mobile 11 Sep 00:47
Met shops self to IPCC over terror toddlers

We're nicked. But you're still awfully suss, shorty

The Met Police was today taking a firm line with, er, the Met Police as it referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) over allegations of misuse of its powers. Today’s referral follows an incident claimed to have taken place on the morning of Wednesday 29 July 2009 when two men approached a 43-year- …

Policing 11 Sep 07:02
Microsoft tightens open-source links with server biz

Productization, ahoy

The Microsoft group dealing directly with open-source projects is joining the company's server business. The Open Source Technology Center is to work more directly with Microsoft's Windows server and solutions division under corporate vice president Bill Laing. The move comes as the person who oversaw OSTC, Microsoft's …

Software 11 Sep 07:12
Disgruntled parrot lays into copper

Pirates of the Caribbean star gives rookie some stick

A rookie police officer suffered scratches and bites to his hands and arms after being asked to escort a celebrity parrot to a Dover police station, the Telegraph reports. The owner of the 3ft wingspan macaw was pulled at Dover ferry dock after an officer spotted the bird loose in her vehicle. She was cuffed after checks …

Bootnotes 11 Sep 09:31
Disney sued over Pixar lamp 'copy'

Original cute lighting makers incandescent

A Norwegian company that invented the inspiration for cinema's best-loved light fixture is suing The Walt Disney Company and animator Pixar for alleged trade mark infringement. Luxo makes swivel table lamps that Pixar founder John Lasseter has said were the inspiration for his company's logo. A pair of Luxo lookalike lamps …

Law 11 Sep 09:36
Brown apologises for 'appalling' treatment of Turing

Petition precipitates posthumous penitence

The Prime Minister has apologised for the "appalling" persecution of World War II code breaker Alan Turing. Gordon Brown's words of contrition came in response to a petition on the No 10 website calling for a posthumous government apology to the wartime hero and computing pioneer. The petition has received thousands of …

Government 11 Sep 09:50
WD toughens portable, desktop HDD security

Auto-encrypting My Book, My Passport drives

WD has tweaked its portable hard drive line-up, rolling out new, smaller My Passport drives with "military grade" hardware encryption. WD's My Passport Essential: smaller size, bigger capacity, tougher security The new Essential and Mac drives auto-encrypt data using 256-bit keys, and the drives can be password-protected …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 10:22
Motorola makes first Android phone

Integrates Twitter, Facebook, MySpace etc

Motorola has officially joined the Android revolution, launching its first mobile phone running the Google OS. Dext, a Qwerty slider, offers a 3.2in touchscreen display and reasonably decent integrated 5Mp camera - images from which can be stored on Micro SD cards of up to 32GB capacity. The phone’s lens will also happily …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 10:26
No UK Zune HD, says Microsoft

Only North Americans need apply

Microsoft’s existing line of Zune players may finally be available in the UK - at least from unofficial suppliers - but the software giant has confirmed that its new HD model won’t arrive in Blighty anytime soon. “For the time being the Zune HD device will remain US only," a spokesperson for Microsoft said this week. But the …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 10:33
Todger-chop woman's sentence depends on hard evidence

Turkish court waits to see if victim regains wood

A Turkish woman who cut off her lover's penis is now anxiously awaiting the result of a todger-reattachment op which will determine the length of her prison sentence*, Reuters reports. The 39-year-old woman claimed she was prompted to separate her 28-year-old boyf from his manhood after he "had broken his promise to marry her …

Bootnotes 11 Sep 10:41
Boffins: Stop trying to monetise us, you don't know how

Bitchslap for gov profitable-science plans

British boffins have cast doubt on government plans to reorient the nation's scientific and technical research so as to benefit the economy. They say that the connection between research and economic impact is poorly understood, and suggest that the government resists the temptation to meddle until it knows what it's doing. …

Science 11 Sep 10:57
Depilatory Dell debuts beard-busting laptop?

Braun sensation

Dell is to enter the male grooming market and offer an electric shaver with its new Z-series Inspiron laptops, it would seem. Dells signals move to become the Boots of IT How else can we explain the headline on the company's website: "Dell's New Inspiron 'Z' laptops prove beauty and Braun go together." The new notebooks …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 10:57
BOFH: Trussssst in me

Episode 11 Beancounters and bricks don't mix

Things have taken a strange turn - the Boss is trying to broker some form of peace between us and the Beancounters... "I'm just trying to understand the animosity," the Boss says. "It's historic," I say. "It goes back centuries." "It can hardly go back centuries - computers have only been around for half a century, and you …

BOFH 11 Sep 11:02
Sky News election petition defaced by prankster hackers

Windbag windup

Computer hackers with a grudge made merry at the expense of Rupert Murdoch after infiltrating the Sky News website. The scamps tampered with a petition in support of Sky's campaign to stage a debate between the leaders of Britain's main political parties in the run-up to the next general election. A picture of Brown, Cameron …

Enterprise Security 11 Sep 11:16
Nokia dumps candybar phones for squares

It's hip to be square, apparently

Nokia has finally proven how square it really is, with the launch of a square-shaped mobile phone. Nokia's 7705 Twist is square, but well designed But instead of choosing an equally square name, like Colin or Raymond, Nokia has bestowed the cell-phone oddity with the moniker 7705 Twist messaging mobile. Apparently a “bite- …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 11:21
Moondreams, engineers and bureaucracies

Andrew's Mailbag We're not going back (very) soon

With world+dog celebrating the Apollo program this summer, we thought we'd try something different. So a few weeks ago, I looked at the Lunar Orbiter, a fascinating tale of technology improvisation that brought in some cracking mail. Here are some thoughts on technology, optimism and bureaucracies. Before we get going, I want …

Letters 11 Sep 11:39
RBS WorldPay downplays database hack reports

Updated 'No access to either merchant or cardholder accounts'

RBS WorldPay and a hacker are at loggerheads over the seriousness of a supposed breach on websites run by the payment processing firm. Security shortcomings - since blocked - on RBS WorldPay website exposed confidential information, including admin passwords and the contact details of partners, according to blog posts by …

Enterprise Security 11 Sep 11:50
Spotify reintroduces waiting list, nudges you to paying

Don't be tardy, skip the queue

Citing "huge demand", Spotify has reintroduced a waiting list for the Spotless. Temporarily, it says, it's not taking new signups from the public and reverting to "invite only" mode. If you have invites, they'll still work. You can join a waiting list, Spotify explains - or skip the queue and pay a tenner a month and join …

Music and Media 11 Sep 11:56
Ricoh GR Digital III compact camera

Review For those who take their image seriously

Sometimes, less is more. Take Ricoh’s GR Digital III. It’s a compact camera costing more than £500, but if you’re looking for masses of megapixels, countless scene modes, HD movie recording or even an optical zoom, then forget it. This is the digital camera equivalent of the fixed-gear bicycle; a product for enthusiasts who …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 12:02
Cruises on ex-Soviet space warships offered

Virgin Galactic? Pah - it's for poor people

A radical space company which counts an ex-NASA space station commander among its executives says it will offer week-long tourist trips in space from 2013 for just $35m. Apart from basic capsules the company has acquired - and may in future deploy - a fleet of 1970s Russian military-surplus armed orbital spacecraft. Cruise in …

Space 11 Sep 12:57
Vodafone's Access Gateway denies access

Tiny cells, big problems

Vodafone's femtocell deployment, termed the Access Gateway, has been plagued with issues prompting users to think fondly of the days when they had no coverage at all. The Access Gateway is a 3G cell which plugs into the punter's broadband connection and provides 3G coverage for voice and data. At least, it does when it's …

Mobile 11 Sep 12:59
Ryanair faces ban on luggage charge auto-opt-in

Stealth tactics to be stopped

Budget airline Ryanair is on a collision course with the European Commission over a proposed ban on opting web customers in to extra luggage and insurance charges by default. Brussels plans to outlaw such practices for all e-commerce websites. Ryanair - well known for charging extra to carry hold luggage, and for its websites …

Law 11 Sep 13:17
Scareware scumbags exploit 9/11

Updated Obviously an inside job

Fraudsters have set up websites supposedly containing info about 9/11 but actually geared towards running fake anti-virus (scareware) scams. Net security firm Sophos reports a number of "9/11-related" webpages that actually host malicious code are using search engine manipulation techniques to boost their rankings on Google. …

Crime 11 Sep 13:55
Cobain band mates denounce dead rocker's Guitar Hero gig

Activision and widow dispute rights

Guitar Hero 5 has failed to hit the right note with the surviving members of grunge band Nirvana. Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl – now the Foo Fighters' frontman – are reportedly “dismayed and very disappointed” that a digital Kurt Cobain can be used by gamers to play songs by other bands in the latest incarnation of …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 14:15
Halo everyone! Twitter's yuppie fundraiser returns

Aren't we virtuous?

It's flattering - and clearly a bit nuts - to discover I'm now as much a part of "Twestival" story as the organisers. But when Sky News wanted to cover this week's halo-polishing, conscience-saving fundraisers, they twigged that there's another point of view other than "new media yuppies save the world". Would I like to take …

Music and Media 11 Sep 14:38
Germans satisfy latex desire with GM dandelions

No more uncomfortable rashes - fungus plague forestalled

German boffins have worked out a much improved method of making latex using the sticky white fluid which comes out of dandelion stems. The new breakthough could mean more comfortable body-cavity searches, an end to itchy condoms, and might free humanity from the threat posed by a global rubber fungus epidemic. According (pdf …

Biology 11 Sep 14:48
Lobbyists urge FCC to loosen up

Ofcom research used to show sexiness of deregulation

US wireless lobbyist The CTIA is drawing on UK regulator Ofcom's research to convince the FCC that an unregulated market is a competitive market. In a letter addressed to FCC secretary Marlene Dortch, and seen by El Reg, the lobbyists draw from Ofcom's "Mostly Mobile" consultation to conclude that the USA is even more …

Mobile 11 Sep 15:11
SpinVox up for sale - investor

We're outta here

A minor SpinVox investor says the beleaguered voice-to-text services company is up for sale. Invesco Perpetual says it's cashing out, and it's written down its investment by 90 per cent. In a financial statement this week, Invesco disclosed: More disappointingly amongst the unquoted investments, since the year end, the …

Telecoms 11 Sep 15:14
Home Office shifts feet as vetting database looms

Doesn't look good, does it?

With just one month to go before the new vetting database goes live, the public appear finally to be waking up to the threat to civil liberties implied – and they are not happy. Well, Home Office... we did warn you. It was just over a year ago that we did, in fact. Although the scale of the disaster about to hit the buffers is …

Government 11 Sep 15:46
Acer unwraps Ferrari One notebook

Red? Check. Ferrari logo? Check. AMD Vision mention? Er...

Acer is determined to snare pole position in the notebook market and so has once more turned to Ferrari for inspiration. Acer's Ferrari One boasts a dual-core AMD Athlon X2 L310 CPU The new Ferrari One sports an iconic ‘racing red’ lid – complete with prancing pony Ferrari logo, of course – and a carbon fibre-look …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 15:49
Boxer sets lawyers on Facebook

Below the belt

Boxer Amir Khan and promoter Frank Warren have threatened to sue Facebook for libel over allegedly "defamatory and racist" content on the social networking site. The WBA light welterweight champion and Warren are angered that their names and images have been used in unofficial groups on the site that are full of racist abuse. …

Law 11 Sep 16:00
Virgin cops to bad routing

Leeds users get nothing at all

Multiple problems are afflicting the Virgin network this week, with some customers in Leeds lacking connectivity completely, while the rest are just missing the popular parts of the net. The Leeds problem is still under investigation, but it has left customers without broadband, TV, or even telephone services, which puts the …

Networks 11 Sep 16:32
AMD Eyefinity promises 'six panel, one GPU' gaming

Nurse, the screens

AMD's marketing team is obsessed with optics, it seems. No, not the devices used in British bars to accurately dispense measures of spirits, but the transmission and detection of light. Yesterday, we had AMD Vision, the chip maker's new brand that PC makers can use to indicate 'good', 'better' and 'best' laptops, and today we …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 16:33
Apple open sources Snow Leopard's multicore code helper

*nix train boards at Grand Central

In a surprise move, Apple has open-sourced its Grand Central Dispatch (GCD) technology under the Apache 2.0 public license. Baked into the recently released Mac OS X 10.6, aka Snow Leopard, GCD eases the programming challenges that developers face when coding for multicore processors. You can download a PDF of Apple's half- …

Developer 11 Sep 17:33
DoJ cranks up Microhoo review

Just what Redmond expected

The US Department of Justice has expanded its review of the Microhoo search pact. According to Bloomberg, the DoJ has asked Microsoft and Yahoo! for more details on their Google-battling search deal, which still requires the agency's approval. Both Yahoo! and Microsoft confirmed the news with The Reg, with Redmond saying that …

Music and Media 11 Sep 18:20
Ballmer garnishes Bing 2.0 with iPhone 'stomp'

Return of the Kool-Aid kid

Microsoft has unveiled an upcoming date to Bing - and the first in an anticipated series of TV ads pimping Windows 7. Both were on display at yesterday's annual day out for Microsoft's 90,000 or so employees in Seattle, Washington. The third highlight of the employee meeting, according to reports and Tweets from the event, …

Music and Media 11 Sep 18:31
International hacker buried $1m in backyard

Albert Gonzalez fortune forfeited

The international hacker who confessed to stealing tens of millions of payment card numbers amassed a fortune worth more than $2.7m, including more than $1m in cash buried in his backyard in Miami. Albert "Segvec" Gonzalez agreed to forfeit the ill-gotten booty in a guilty plea that was formally entered in federal court in …

Crime 11 Sep 18:50
NASA fingers crash site for moon-impacting probe

'A nice flat, fluffy place'

NASA found the ideal spot to crash its moon-impacting probe this October. The mission team announced Friday that Cabeus A will be the target crater for the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) and its spent Centaur rocket. The permanently-shadowed crater at the lunar south pole was selected for its flat …

Space 11 Sep 19:59
TomTom goes Jock to abuse English 'bas'

Casts aspersions on reader's legitimacy

We're very much obliged this afternoon to the shocked Reg reader who got an email from TomTom regarding a map update and addressed to "Dear English Bas". Helpfully, TomTom directed Mr English Bas to an online confirmation of his good fortune: For those of you not up to speed on slang from north of the border, "Bas" is a …

Odds and Sods 11 Sep 20:03
Sun's Sparc server roadmap revealed

Exclusive Well, what's left of it

For those of us on the outside of Sun Microsystems, the future of the Sparc processor and its related server platforms has been the subject of much speculation and debate. But for Sun's largest customers, the mystery has been over since sometime in June. That's when Sun's execs made the rounds to the biggest Sparc shops in the …

Servers 11 Sep 20:51
Space shuttle Discovery lands after detour

Updated California touchdown

Space shuttle Discovery has successfully landed at Edwards Air Force Base in north of Los Angeles, California, after bad weather ruled out a landing at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The shuttle touched down at 5:53pm Pacific, ending a 14 day-mission to the International Space Station. "Welcome home, Discovery," shuttle …

Space 11 Sep 20:58
Naked iPod touch dangles its FM radio

And some 802.11n

Apple's new iPod touch includes a wireless chip capable of handling 5GHz WiFi networks and FM radio signals. In tearing open a third generation touch - a device unveiled just this week by a "vertical" Steve Jobs - our friends at Ifixit discovered a Broadcom BCM4329 chip, which supports the 802.11n WiFi standard as well as an …

Reg Hardware 11 Sep 22:14