24th December 2009 Archive

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Google Chrome OS goes native (code)

We hate plug-ins. Except our own

Google's Chrome OS does not run local applications or store local data. Everything is handled inside the browser. But when the much-hyped operating system debuts on netbooks at the end of next year, you can bet it will execute native code on behalf of online Google applications such as Gmail or Docs and Spreadsheets. In other …

Operating Systems 24 Dec 00:05
Apple iPad to launch January 26 (maybe)

Wanna bet?

We've got a fiver to wager on Apple's intensely rumored iPad being launched on Tuesday, January 26. Being journalists, we're not exactly rolling in cash, so why are we suddenly so profligate with our coin? Three reasons: Item #1: "Very connected sources" who have "been amazingly accurate" in the past have told The Boy Genius …

Music and Media 24 Dec 00:25
Publisher asks Google, AT&T to unmask network intruder

Judge says OK

A federal judge has cleared the way for the publisher of GQ magazine to subpoena Google and AT&T in an attempt to learn the identity of a computer intruder who stole unpublished editorial content and posted it online. Sometime in September, an unknown thief accessed the computer network of Conde Nast and made off with more …

Law 24 Dec 01:00
Ofcom proposes squeezing £4m out of airlines

Not about the money, of course

UK regulator Ofcom is again consulting on charging airports for the frequencies they use, even if the spectrum can't be used for anything else. Ofcom's proposal (pdf) sets fees ranging from £75 to £19,000 which will be charged to airports operating radios in the 118.975-147MHz band, with discounts for those operating in the …

Wireless 24 Dec 07:02
Facebook boss joins Disney

Who said it was a Mickey Mouse business?

Facebook's chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg is to join the board of Walt Disney. Disney's boardroom is already graced by Apple boss Steve Jobs and presumably the company hopes Sandberg will help it improve its online and interactive offerings. Robert Iger, Disney's President and CEO said: "Sheryl has been at the …

Financial News 24 Dec 09:54
UK government considers open source Ordnance Survey data

Can you tell me how to get from A to B, please?

The government has released a 91-page consultation paper on how UK citizens could get more access to Ordnance Survey mapping data from next year. "We are now consulting on proposals to make certain products from Ordnance Survey freely available so it can be used for digital innovation and to support democratic accountability …

Government 24 Dec 10:43
Micron's near billion dollar turnaround

Sails serenely into profit after restructuring

DRAM and NAND flash manufacturer Micron recorded a $204m million profit in its first fiscal 2010 quarter, contrasting vividly with a $718m loss in the year-ago quarter. Revenues were higher at $1.74bn, compared to $1.4bn in the first fiscal 2009 quarter but costs were sharply down as well. The cost of goods sold went from $1. …

Storage 24 Dec 10:44
Twitter buys geo-firm

We know where, just need a why

Twitter has bought Mixer Labs - the makers of GeoAPI - a tool kit for developers of geographically-aware applications. The over-hyped micro-blogging firm said: "When current location is added to tweets, new and valuable services emerge — everything from breaking news to finding friends or local businesses can be dramatically …

Mobile 24 Dec 10:53
Nominet legal boss quits

.bye

Emily Taylor, Nominet's long-serving legal and policy director, has resigned. The non-profit company in charge of the .uk domain registry declined to explain her departure. It sent this statement: "We can confirm that Emily Taylor has resigned from Nominet. We thank Emily for her long and loyal service to company and the …

IT Director 24 Dec 10:56
Tiny TV could make billions for FCC

It's a seasonal miracle

The CTIA and CES have produced a white paper outlining how to extract 180MHz of TV-broadcast spectrum without impacting TV quality or coverage, and it's worth reading. The Cellular Telephone Industries Association (CTIA) and Consumer Electronics Association (CES) co-authored the paper (pdf) which proposes replacing centralised …

Networks 24 Dec 11:10
Top Gear tops iPlayer hit list

Streaming success

The Beeb's Top Gear was the most watched show on the corporation's iPlayer during 2009, with the first episodes of series 13 and 14 clocking up 1.7m and 1.3m hits, respectively. According to the BBC, the year's total "requests for content" was 729.2m, with November marking "a record 88.2m requests for BBC TV and radio …

Music and Media 24 Dec 11:13
Santa sticks up bank to 'pay elves'

Nashville cops hunt rogue Saint Nick

Nashville cops are hunting a rogue Saint Nick who on Tuesday robbed a SunTrust Bank because "Santa needed to pay his elves", as the perp explained to staff. According to AP, a bank clerk asked the seasonally-costumed customer to take off his sunglasses, but instead he "reached into his sack and pulled out his gun". Santa …

Bootnotes 24 Dec 11:36
Software fraudster 'fooled CIA' into terror alert

Spooks 'f*cking livid'

A con man fooled US spooks into grounding international flights by selling them "technology" to decode al-Qaeda messages hidden in TV broadcasts, it's claimed. A long and highly entertaining Playboy article explains that in 2003, 50-year-old Dennis Montgomery was chief technology officer at Reno, Nevada-based eTreppid …

Crime 24 Dec 11:58
DDoS attack scrooges Amazon and others

UltraDNS California facilities targeted

Service to Amazon, Wal-Mart and several other shopping sites was briefly blocked on Wednesday evening when their DNS provider was hit by a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack. Neustar, which provides DNS services to high profile website addresses under the UltraDNS brand, said the flood of malicious traffic, just two …

Security 24 Dec 18:54
Inmate gets 18 months for thin client prison hack

HR network jailbreak

A former prison inmate has been ordered to serve 18 months for hacking the facility's computer network, stealing personal details of more than 1,100 of its employees and making them available to other inmates. Francis G. Janosko, 44, received the sentence earlier this week in federal court in Boston after pleading guilty to …

Security 24 Dec 18:57