27th November 2009 Archive

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Sun's Open Storage roadmap revealed

New high-end and entry-level products

Sun will introduce a new high-end 7000 series storage product in the second quarter of next year. According to an Australian report the device is codenamed "Anago", a Japanese term for a congor eel, and will have up to 384 3.5-inch SAS hot-swap hard drives and a 6Gbit/s SAS 2 switch fabric. An expansion rack can double …

Storage 27 Nov 00:02
Vodafone offers free mobile internet

Strings attached

If you aren’t already on an all-you-can-surf mobile web package and can’t find an unsecured Wi-Fi network nearby, save some pennies today by logging on with Vodafone. For one day only – today – the network carrier has promised to waive all costs associated with surfing the web from your mobile phone, letting you experience the …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 06:02
iPhone upgrades - a one-way control-freak street

Comment Destroying the past for your own damn good

For over 30 years, your personal computer has been, well, your personal computer. You could install whatever software you liked - provided it was compatible. After installing an app or an operating system, if you then decided you preferred the previous version, you were free to uninstall the new and revert to the old. But …

Mobile 27 Nov 07:02
Super Micro primes 'Magny-Cours' Opterons

SC09 Intel Nehalems too. And, yes, Tukwilas

Super Micro may not be a name-brand, tier-one server maker, but it's the motherboard and whitebox maker behind scads of tier two, three, and four server sellers around the globe. And that's because Super Micro gets out in front - and stays there - whenever a new technology is coming to market. A year ago, at the SC08 …

Servers 27 Nov 07:02
Acer Aspire 1810TZ 11.6in CULV notebook

Review Small laptop, enormous battery life

So you want a small notebook, but you're put off by the average netbook's puny graphics, relatively low res screen and limited-horsepower Atom processor. What do you do? Acer's Aspire Timeline 1810TZ: big name, small notebook We think you could do a lot worse than Acer's Aspire 1810TZ. Sony's skinny and compact Vaio X is …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 08:02
Google, Microsoft, and Amazon - the cloud dating game

Why you need a cloud (whatever that is)

What's a cloud? The likes of Amazon, Microsoft, and Google can't agree on an answer to that question. But they insist it exists. And they're sure it's the answer to all your problems. Which means there's also a difference of opinon when it comes to your problems. But, really, all will be well if you just move to the cloud. …

Software 27 Nov 08:02
O2 gives birth to GiffGaff in gust of gabble

Commentard customers create great ignorance cache

GiffGaff, O2's venture into democratic MVNOs, has launched, and its forums are already groaning with customers asking inane questions that other customers struggle to answer. GiffGaff is supposed to be run by its customers, who can earn credit or cash by answering other customers' questions, signing up more people, or …

Mobile 27 Nov 09:02
Carphone credits Tiscali for growth

Ringing up profits

Carphone Warehouse said today it is on track to split its business into retail and telecoms arms by early next year, and it expects profits to be higher than previously predicted. For the six months ended 30 September the company made sales of £789m, up 13 per cent on last year. Profit after tax was £20m and CPW now expects …

Telecoms 27 Nov 09:45
Half of Sony tellies to go 3D by 2013, says exec

Vaio PCs and PS3s too

Half of the new TVs Sony releases will be 3D capable by 2013, the electronics giant has claimed. But it admitted that hardware sales will be governed by the availability of content. Speaking earlier this week in Japan, Hiroshi Yoshioka, Executive Deputy President of Sony, revealed that 3D sets will account for between 30 and …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 09:55
Splinter Cell hack smells more like publicity stunt

Pwn or PR?

Ubisoft said that the website of its popular video game Splinter Cell had been hacked on Thursday. However circumstantial evidence suggests the hack is more likely to be a publicity stunt than a genuine cyber assault. Visitors to the Splinter Cell website are been greeted by a message in Russian. This is followed a bit.ly link …

Enterprise Security 27 Nov 10:02
Gov net disconnections could breach EU law

May scupper free Wi-Fi too

The Government's Digital Economy Bill could be in breach of EU laws, according to an internet law expert. Professor Lilian Edwards has also warned that the Bill could make it impossible to operate a free wireless network legally. The Bill, published last week, contains an outline of the Government's plans to terminate internet …

Wireless 27 Nov 10:15
Uni seeks 'research officer' for sex trade 'fieldwork'

Experience of lapdancing and vice girls? Apply here

It's well known that the online revolution is slowly but surely killing off the treepulp press. The chattering classses worry more about losing their broadsheets, but the syndrome is just as deadly for more downmarket papers. However, there's at least one ray of hope out there for distressed tabloid journos, where they can use …

Biology 27 Nov 10:19
MSI intros AMD 'Congo'-based thin'n'light laptop

New Wind

AMD's answer to arch-rival Intel's CULV - Consumer Ultra-Low Voltage - processor series is making its way into laptops. MSI has just taken the wraps off the Wind 12 U230, a 12in machine based on two of AMD's 'Congo' chips. The parts' go-to-market name are the Athlon Neo MV40 and the Athlon Neo X2 L335, being single- and dual- …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 10:25
Juggling server virtualisation and database workloads

Lab Bananas and chocolate, or chalk and cheese?

As the conversation moves from generic virtualisation of ‘quick win’ workloads such as web servers and print servers, development and test environments, one-off applications and so on, the question arises – where does server virtualisation go next? One potential area is to see virtual machines as a target for database …

Virtualisation Lab 27 Nov 10:27
How can I make an old CPU SSE 2 compliant?

Q&A Chip conundrum

I’ve an old desktop that runs on an AMD Athlon XP2500+ and recently found I couldn't install new software because the CPU is not SSE 2 compliant. Barring changing the processor is there anyway of getting around the problem, perhaps with software?

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 10:34
IPPR calls for National Policing Agency

Cop IT cops it

Existing national police organisations and their IT systems should be transferred to a new body, according to a report. The National Policing Agency would be created by merging the National Policing Improvement Agency and those parts of the Association of Chief Police Officers that currently coordinate or deliver national …

IT Director 27 Nov 10:44
Sony Ericsson admits 'PlayStation phone' woes

Touchscreens Aino workin'

Sony Ericsson has been hit by a second high-profile smartphone setback this week, admitting that its Aino "PlayStation phone" has run into technical troubles just days after its Satio phone was withdrawn from sale in the UK. Sony Ericsson has admitted touchscreen troubles with Aino The company told Register Hardware today …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 10:50
McKinnon family 'devastated' by Home Sec's latest knock-back

Options running out for 'suicidal' Pentagon hacker

Solicitors for Pentagon hacker Gary McKinnon are planning a 11th-hour judicial review after Home Secretary Alan Johnson decided new medical evidence was insufficient reason for him to step in and block US extradition proceedings. McKinnon's mother Janis Sharp told the BBC she was "devastated" by the ruling. "Gary has been in …

Enterprise Security 27 Nov 11:22
Alternative perspectives on business productivity

Webcast Measure, consider, action

On the December 3 at 10am we’ll be streaming a live event into your PC that pulls together a rack of business productivity experts to give you some free, actionable advice on driving productivity gains from your operations. To some, the word 'productivity' just means squeezing more out of an already-overstretched workforce. To …

Tech Panel 27 Nov 11:36
Toshiba worker arrested for selling copy limit busting SW

You can't do that in Japan

A Toshiba employee in Japan has been arrested for selling copy limit breaking software, letting buyers copy digital TV programmes on Japanese recording and playback products as much as they liked. The copy limit software is called Dubbing10 and lets digital media device users copy a recorded digital TV programme up to ten …

Crime 27 Nov 11:38
Pentagon world-sim tool making good progress, say profs

Computer suggests a savage bombing campaign, Mr President

Computer boffins in America report that their plans to create a lifelike virtual Matrix-style simulation of the entire world and human race are proceeding well. Rather than a sinister yet totally implausible plan to farm people in tanks for electric power, the idea here is that America might try out various national-security …

Government 27 Nov 11:48
Vendors to push 12in netbooks in 2010

As 10in models get cheaper to battle smartbooks

Having steered us first from 7in netbooks to 9in models, and then from those to 10in machines, it now seems Asus, Acer and co. will next year be encouraging us to upgrade to 12in laptops. Recent research from market watcher Canalys showed that, during 2009, the 10in screen became the de facto standard for new netbooks. Rather …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 11:56
BOFH: Made of win

Episode 16 Pushing the gold envelope

“We should enter one of those Innovation in IT awards!” the Boss burbles one day, sidling up to the PFY and myself in a pseudo-ingratiating manner. “We should what now?” the PFY asks. “IT awards. We should enter one – it’s a great way of raising the company’s profile.” “Oh, the company’s going to some awards?” I ask. “No …

BOFH 27 Nov 12:02
Apple tweaks T&Cs for Blighty customers

Famed code of silence (somewhat) broken by OFT

Apple has agreed to rejig its terms and conditions to make them "clearer and fairer" for UK consumers, after the Office of Fair Trading raised concerns about them. The OFT confirmed in a statement this morning that it had identified a number of areas where the Mac, iPod and iPhone vendor's contracts of agreement with its …

PCs & Chips 27 Nov 12:12
Green politician says oral sex is part of being Swedish

Free speech comes naturally here

A Green Party politician has declared that part of being Swedish is the opportunity to swing both ways during the course of a single day in the interests of free speech. Sofia Bothorp delivered that could well be the Swedish tourist board's new slogan during a local council debate on Swedishness. According to The Local, …

Bootnotes 27 Nov 12:31
Oracle talking turkey to Eurocrats

Hearing in two weeks

Oracle and the European Competition Commission will meet 10 December to try and thrash out an agreement that will let its takeover of Sun go ahead. The deal has already been approved by US regulators, leading some US senators to accuse the Commission of deliberately dragging its feet in order to benefit Oracle's European …

Applications 27 Nov 12:32
It's here at last: The Evolution of x86 Server Estates Report

Tech Panel Modernisation drivers and practicalities

First of all, a big thank you to all the Reg readers that took the time to fill in our monster survey on x86 server environments, drivers and plans. A full 979 of you responded, which gave us plenty of material to crunch. We now return the favour, in the shape of a report which we hope provides a comprehensive view of what …

Server Management 27 Nov 12:43
'Alienated' gamer sues WoW for ruining life

Industro-pop muso subpoenaed in terribly sad case

An obsessive World of Warcraft player is suing the makers of the game for ruining his life, quoth a gleeful Grauniad this week. Erik Estavillo is seeking $1m (£600,000) in damages, claiming the orc-tastic roleplaying game has turned him into a blank-eyed basketcase who can no longer function in the real world (as the lawsuit …

Bootnotes 27 Nov 12:44
Google and Murdoch - a divorce made in heaven?

Analysis It's about money, but not bribes from Bing

Microsoft is known for its robust methods, but the widespread belief that it is attempting to 'buy' the news, offering to pay Rupert Murdoch's News Corp to de-index its news sites from Google speaks of extreme brutality, even by the Borg's standards. And think, people - if Microsoft really is offering to bribe major publishers …

Music and Media 27 Nov 13:02
IBM shows off Power7 HPC monster

SC09 Big Blue unveils big box: Crowd goes wild

IBM likes to go on and on about the transaction processing power and I/O bandwidth of its System z mainframes, but now there is a new and much bigger kid on the block. Its name is the Power Systems IH supercomputing node, based on the company's forthcoming Power7 processors and a new homegrown switching system that blends …

Servers 27 Nov 13:02
Panasonic DMC-GH1 Micro Four-Thirds camera

Review HD video with a super smooth lens, what's not to like?

Are we at the point where people will only buy one product to film and take great stills? Instead of camcorders that can take the odd sub-10Mp image, camera manufacturers are coming at it from the other side and offering HD video on models previously only equipped for stills. The Lumix DMC-GH1 is the camera that Panasonic left …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 13:02
India plans its own net snoop system

Indian IMP pilot for mid-2010

On the anniversary of the Mumbai terror attacks, the Indian government has announced its own version of the UK's Interception Modernisation Programme (IMP) - a massive expansion of communications surveillance for the internet age. A pilot of the Centralised Monitoring System (CMS) will begin by June next year, communications …

Government 27 Nov 13:15
Reg readers lay out their selection criteria for app packages

Poll results It's not just about business functionality

While software sales and marketing people often try to convince business people that the technical stuff doesn’t matter that much when selecting an application package, Reg readers beg to differ. Indeed, over a hundred of you participating in our recent mini-poll were clear in what matters from an IT perspective to ensure …

Evolving Apps 27 Nov 13:39
FreeBSD version 8.0 lands

I trust you can handle this contraption, Q?

FreeBSD has released version 8.0 of its beefy Unix-like operating system. The outfit has published a long list of improvements and new features that have been added to the OS. Notable highlights in the latest release include binary compatibility with Fedora 10 Linux software and network stack virtualisation. Version 13 of the …

Operating Systems 27 Nov 13:50
British laggards told to embrace their digital futures

Dad's tech army limbers up

The BCS has launched a website for technology laggards who are failing to do their duty by not feeling the benefits of an information-driven society. The Chartered Institute for IT, formerly known as the British Computer Society, reckons only 20 per cent of the UK population are "information-savvy citizens". BCS president …

IT Director 27 Nov 14:09
Head-cam video used to OK Arkansas cop kill

Vid 'This will make for more polite encounters with police'

In a case which may offer a glimpse of the future of law enforcement, an American policeman has been cleared of wrongdoing after shooting a man dead - with the aid of video and audio from a headset recorder he wore during the incident. After the decision, the video was released to the public. KFSM 5 News broadcast this report …

Policing 27 Nov 14:09
(Back) into The Valley

Forgotten Tech Remembering a BASIC coding classic from 1982

I first explored The Valley late in 1982. My method of entry: a Research Machines 380Z. I loved it and didn't want to leave. But the school lunch period ended at 1.30 and the computer room was locked then, so I had to wait a day or two until I could get time on the RM again. The Valley had been hacked onto the 380Z by a guy …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 14:19
Just how political is your IT organisation?

The impact of the non-technical

For this week, the last in this workshop series, we were looking at the near-future, with particular focus on how we deliver server resources and a central question – are we any closer to the nirvana of dynamic IT delivery? I’d love to say we’ve learned a lot from your feedback. What we can say is this is not an area that …

Server Management 27 Nov 15:07
Generators and UPS fail in London datacentre outage

Tatasup

Tata's datacentre in the east end of London went titsup for two-hours on Thursday evening, following a power cut. Backup power systems also failed, downing servers belonging to hosting providers throughout three floors of the Stratford facility at about 5.20pm. Firms including C4L, ServerCity and Coreix were hit by the outage …

Servers 27 Nov 15:12
Smut-ladened spam disguises WoW Trojan campaign

Pwned and porned

A malicious spam campaign that attempts to harvest online game passwords under the guise of messages containing smutty photos is doing the rounds. The tainted emails have subject line such as "Do you like to find a girlfriend like me?", and an attached archive file called "my photos.rar". The archive contains photos of young …

Malware 27 Nov 15:12
Sh*t the bed, it's Comment of the Week

CoTFW Or feel free to read a storage story instead

It's Friday, and across the internet is heard the thin cry from a thousand (OK, maybe a couple of hundred) hapless souls forced against their will to read Comment of the Week. O cruel fate! If only they were given choice as to what to click on. Well, too late now, bozos. It'll look like you've read it in the stats even if you …

Bootnotes 27 Nov 15:33
Royal Navy sailors given PSPs as study aids

Tar very much

The Senior Service has begun issuing PlayStation Portables to its sailors in an attempt to make them... er... study. Under the PSP-per-sailor scheme – conceived at HMS Collingwood, a maritime warfare school in Hampshire - the handheld console will used by Navy personnel for reading coursework on while away at sea. As part of …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 15:53
Web host Daily recovers after Tux-themed defacement

Lock-down follows cartoon penguin attack

UK-based web host Daily has largely restored services following an apparent hack attack on Thursday that replaced content on some sites it hosts with pictures of cartoon penguins. The images of Linux penguin Tux parodied the 'hear/see/speak no evil' monkeys". Text included on the defacements claimed the hack in the name of ' …

Enterprise Security 27 Nov 15:56
Cyborg MIT prof touts iPhone-controlled power-jumping legs

Other bionic plugins offer 7' height, climbing claws

A cyborg MIT professor has developed and tested innovative lithium-ion powered prosthetic feet which can thrust a wearer off the ground just as normal biological ones can - or be adjusted (using an iPhone app, of course) for greater power, perhaps allowing remarkable leaping and running performance. Professor Hugh Herr is …

Science 27 Nov 16:07
Asus' tablet Eee takes on multi-touch

More fingers and more storage

Asus has added a multi-touch display to its touchscreen T91, apparently resulting in the world's first convertible tablet netbook featuring a multi-touch screen that supports Windows 7 many-finger gestures. Asus' T91 - now with multi-touch The 8.9in display on Asus’ T91 – released in Blighty during July – could only cope …

Reg Hardware 27 Nov 16:09
Fujitsu gung-ho on eight-core 'Venus' Sparc

SC09 Tofu super glue

Is Japan's 10 petaflops supercomputer on the chopping block? Fujitsu won't say. But it's still bullish on the Sparc chips meant to drive the thing. The word out of Japan last week was that a budget-cutting panel was recommending that the government cut back on its supercomputer spending habit, with the $1.2bn "Project Keisoku" …

HPC 27 Nov 18:02
What ever happened to storing pics with electron cannons?

This Old Box Blue Blue's digital photo beam

Features make the system. After all, what good is a gaming rig without superfluous neon-blue lights, an iMac without the almost-matronly lack of sharp edges, or a Verizon phone not forged by the souls of the damned upon an altar of bones?1 This simple and self-evident truth carries over to storage systems as well. Normally, …

Storage 27 Nov 20:03
Pitchfork-wielding mobs encircle smart meters

'Fraud meter' fear

A push by California's electricity provider to modernize its power grid is turning into a public relations disaster, as allegations mount that it's responsible for stratospheric overcharges. At issue are the 10 million smart meters Pacific Gas & Electric, or PG&E, is rolling out to customers throughout the state. The digital …

Science 27 Nov 22:02