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15th February 2010 Archive

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  • Google backpedals (again) on Buzz privacy

    We don't auto-follow. We auto-suggest

    For the second time since the launch of Google Buzz last Tuesday, Mountain View has announced changes to its Tweetbookish Gmail add-on in an effort to answer complaints over user privacy. "We've heard your feedback loud and clear, and since we launched Google Buzz four days ago, we've been working around the clock to address …

    Music and Media 15 Feb 2010, 07:13

  • Android first to host Adobe's AIR for smartphones

    MWC Takes bite out of Apple

    Adobe Systems is bringing its Flash-based AIR runtime to mobile devices, with Google's Android the first potential host. Adobe will show a preview running on Motorola's Droid and Milestone phones at the Mobile World Congress today in Barcelona, Spain, with general availability promised later this year. AIR combines Flash with …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 07:17

  • Weeny SIM Wi-Fi hotspot is here! But why?

    MWC Er... look how tiny!

    Another attempt to add value to the diminutive GSM SIM sees Sagem Orga squeezing an entire Wi-Fi hotspot into a SIM card - we're just not sure why. SIMFi, as the product has been named, is a normal SIM card usable in any handset, but it also packs 802.11 Wi-Fi that can enable any 3G handset to operate as a hotspot sharing its …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 08:02

  • Shell hit by massive data breach

    Green hackers or angry ex-staff?

    Shell has been hit by a massive data breach - the contact database for 176,000 staff and contractors at the firm has been copied and forwarded to lobbyists and activists opposed to the company. John Donovan, an activist who received the database, said he had voluntarily destroyed the files. But he warned that other copies were …

    CIO 15 Feb 2010, 09:20

  • Jumbo-jet ray cannon in missile-vape success

    Sidelined sky-blaster finally gets some

    The US Missile Defence Agency's mighty, jumbo-jet-borne energy cannon, the Airborne Laser Testbed (ALTB), finally made good on decades of promises last week as it blasted a test missile out of existence above the Pacific. However the ALTB and its chemical laser technology have been relegated almost to the status of a curiosity …

    Physics 15 Feb 2010, 09:26

  • Samsung unveils Bluetooth 3.0, 802.11n smartphone

    MWC Wave first for Bada OS too

    Samsung has taken the wraps off the first phone to be fitted out with its Bada operating system. It also has 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 3.0. Called the Wave, the handset sports a 3.5in, 800 x 480 OLED touchscreen. While Bada runs behind the scenes, users interact with the third incarnation of Samsung's established TouchWiz UI …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 09:52

  • Super Talent's Superspeed super cheap flash

    Express Drive arrives at under $70

    Flash product supplier Super Talent is putting together a de-featured RAIDdrive to deliver USB 3.0 speed for less than $70. The new USB 3.0 Express Drive will come in 16GB and 32GB capacities and measure 62 x 37 x 7.5 mm, like two USB thumb drives packed side by side in a smaller version of Super Talent's RAIDDrive. The new …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 09:53

  • Rootkit blamed for Blue Screen patch update snafu

    Malware is probable cause of Win XP freeze, MS confirms

    The presence of a hard-to-detect rootkit may have caused Windows XP machines to freeze up after applying a patch from Microsoft last week, according to preliminary analysis of the problem from Microsoft's security team. Microsoft's users forums filled up with reports of Windows XP users experiencing the dreaded Blue Screen of …

    Enterprise Security 15 Feb 2010, 09:53

  • Microsoft to cough up surprise SQL Server 2005 SP4 furball

    Put that in your database cakehole and eat it

    Microsoft has pricked up its ears over customer demands for a fourth service pack for its aged SQL Server 2005 database, and confirmed SP4 will be pushed out before the end of this year. "You overwhelmingly requested another servicing release for SQL Server 2005. Given your feedback Microsoft targets now such release in Q4/ …

    Applications 15 Feb 2010, 10:09

  • Sony Ericsson adds Qwerty keyboard to Vivaz camphone

    MWC And 'Pro' to the handset's name

    Sony Ericsson has added a slide-out Qwerty keyboard to its Vivaz touchphone, allowing it to append the new handset with the 'Pro' moniker. Like the Vivaz, announced in January, the Vivaz Pro sports a 3.2in, 16:9 display. It can connect over three HSDPA 3G and four GSM/GPRS/Edge bands. Sony Ericsson's Vivaz Pro: 'Pro' means ' …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 10:18

  • Yahoo! Nectar deal to link online ads to offline buys

    Peeking at your purchases, for real

    Shoppers will have internet adverts displayed to them based on their offline shopping habits in a new scheme being developed by internet publisher Yahoo! and customer loyalty scheme Nectar. The two companies will link their databases in a bid to better target consumers with relevant adverts and to improve the tracking of ads' …

    Music and Media 15 Feb 2010, 10:31

  • Moto shows off eighth Android 'andset

    MWC Cliq XT revamped for Europe

    Motorola today took the wraps of yet another Android smartphone, this one called Quench and based around a 3.1in touchscreen. If the Quench seems familiar, it's because its already been annouced, kind of. Recently, Motorola unveiled the Cliq XT in the US, and the Quench is the same handset, tweaked for the European market just …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 10:35

  • Orange goes a bundle with euro roaming

    Daily safety net

    Chewing up data by phone or 3G data card when abroad is a reliable method of chewing up money. Even with a roaming plan in place, even when travelling within the EU, it is all too easy to clock up punitive charges. That may not be so important to people who travel abroad a lot. These profitable customers tend to have employers …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 10:48

  • Humax ships Freeview HD box

    HD-Fox T2 on sale now

    Set-top box maker Humax has begin shipping its HD-Fox T2 Freeview HD receiver to shops. Priced at £179, the box incorporates the DVB-T2 tuner necessary to pick up Freeview HD broadcasts and the MPEG 4 decoder needed to convert data stream into pictures. Humax HD-Fox T2: in the shops now Programming is fed to your telly …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 10:56

  • Now IPCC hurricane data is questioned

    Open science: Got Excel? Debunk this

    More trouble looms for the IPCC. The body may need to revise statements made in its Fourth Assessment Report on hurricanes and global warming. A statistical analysis of the raw data shows that the claims that global hurricane activity has increased cannot be supported. Les Hatton once fixed weather models at the Met Office. …

    Environment 15 Feb 2010, 11:00

  • Putting an iPad through the Motions

    What existing slate maker thinks of the upstart...

    Apple's iPad might be the latest thing, but Motion Computing has been selling tablet devices for more than a decade - long enough to work out what punters want from a slate. Based in Austin, Texas, Motion Computing designs and makes computers in the slate form factor. Eschewing keyboards for a pen-based interface and still …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 11:01

  • Socitm 'disappointed' over government IT plans

    Rest of world 'unsurprised' at disappointment

    The Society of IT Management has criticised the government's IT strategy for wanting to cut IT costs rather than deploy technology more effectively. In a policy paper (pdf) responding to the government strategy published in January, Socitm argues that the government has failed to demonstrate wider opportunities for cutting …

    CIO 15 Feb 2010, 11:10

  • Paris Hilton canes the Brazilian lager

    Down on all fours for 'Libertine' promotion

    El Reg's numero uno celebutard "One night in" Paris Hilton spent the weekend enthusiastically promoting Brazilian lager "Devassa Bem Loura", which brewer Schincariol is punting with a £34m campaign featuring the highly-talented socialite: Hilton was apparently informed before she accepted the cheque that "Devassa" means " …

    Bootnotes 15 Feb 2010, 11:12

  • Toshiba unwraps second-gen WinMo touchphone

    MWC Shows keyboard version too

    Toshiba has extended its line of Windows Mobile smartphone with an upgraded version of last year's TG01 handset and a new slide-out Qwerty keyboard model. Toshiba's TG02: like the TG01, only more curvaceous The TG02's key features are its 4.1in, 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreen and 1GHz processor. The snag: the TG01 had …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 11:40

  • iPhone must-have crowd inflates UK gadget insurance claims

    Insurer reckons new models push up fraud

    Apple gizmo fans are committing more insurance fraud in a move to upgrade their iPhones to the latest model, a UK insurer has claimed. Supercover Insurance said claims for iPhones would typically shoot up 50 per cent during the month in a which a new model was released. It said that four out of 10 claims made during such a …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 11:43

  • IBM super is Met Office's 'chief weapon against British cynicism'

    Losing battle?

    In the UK these days, everyone loves to hate the Met Office, sometimes for getting long-range forecasts wrong - it predicted a barbecue summer and a warm winter for 2009 - but mostly because they don't make the weather right. Following the coldest winter for many years, the Met Office "appears to be in a losing battle with …

    HPC 15 Feb 2010, 11:52

  • UK jobs go at Getronics

    Outsourcers insourced and incensed

    IT services giant Getronics is cutting jobs in the UK after losing several contracts. A spokeswoman for the firm confirmed that revised customer requirements meant there was a need for restructuring. She refused to give details while negotiations were continuing. Insiders who have emailed The Register suggest that up to 100 …

    Channel Register 15 Feb 2010, 11:55

  • Archos 9

    Review The Windows 7 iPad alternative?

    If you are Chinese then 2010 is the year of the tiger, but if you are a geek then it is the year of the slate or tablet. Obviously, most people are thinking about the iPad when they start banging on about such things, but the newest consumer targeted device of this ilk to hit the shops is the 9, the first attempt at a genuine …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 12:02

  • Where does Mozilla go when the monopoly witch is dead?

    After MS, after browsers - we talk to Mozilla head Mitchell Baker

    So what would Mozilla do if it ever won? The question, which The Register asked of Mozilla Foundation head Mitchell Baker a couple of weeks ago, may be slightly premature, but Mozilla most certainly isn't losing, and The Beast, while still gripping hold of a goodly chunk of the browser market, is bloodied and reeling. Scarcely …

    Applications 15 Feb 2010, 12:02

  • Apple ambushed in Barcelona

    MWC (Rest of Mobile) world tries to storm App Store

    The mobile industry - most of it - has finally got its act together to challenge Apple's dominance of mobile applications. The "Wholesale Applications Community" can certainly claim wide support - three handset makers, LG, Samsung and Sony Ericsson, along with dozens of carriers and operators including China Telecom, AT&T, …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 12:03

  • UK.gov invests £4.3m in cyber-scam crackdown team

    Updated Scam sites targeted by e-Untouchables lite

    The UK government has launched a specialist cyber-enforcement team and allocated extra funding for Trading Standards as part of a campaign designed to clamp down on online scams. OFT figures suggest online scams claim 3 million UK marks every year and result in losses of £3.5bn. Approaches most often arrive in the form of scam …

    Crime 15 Feb 2010, 12:05

  • IBM packs 'em in vertically

    SONAS future is looking up

    IBM is achieving Copan-like packing densities with the 60-drive DCS9900 disk shelf. The DCS9900 drive box is designed for high-performance, streaming I/O and packs its drives in vertically, in 12 front-to-back rows of five drives. These are organised into ten-packs, meaning in the SATA drive case, eight drives plus two parity …

    Channel Register 15 Feb 2010, 12:12

  • Sony Ericsson preps compact Android pair

    MWC Credit-card sized smartphones inbound

    Not content with releasing one Xperia X10 smartphone, Sony Ericsson is planning to offer two more. The two additions to the Android phone family are the X10 Mini and the X10 Mini Pro. Both were said by SE to be "smaller than a credit card" and to sport an "intuitive four-corner touchscreen user interface". Sony Ericsson's …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 12:15

  • Doctor Who attempted to overthrow Thatcher

    Sylvester McCoy in shock subversion claim

    Former Time Lord Sylvester McCoy has sensationally claimed that during his tenancy of the Tardis he and left-wing scriptwriters attempted to otherthrow the government of Margaret Thatcher. According to the Sunday Times, both McCoy (pictured) and script editor Andrew Cartmel admitted the sinister scheme, which was hatched when …

    Entertainment 15 Feb 2010, 12:15

  • Nokia, Intel merge mobile Linux offerings

    MWC Maemo + Moblin = MeeToo MeeGo

    Intel has tightened its alliance with Nokia by merging its Moblin mobile Linux platform into the Finnish phone giant's built-on-Linux Maemo OS. The combined platform will be called MeeGo - which will undoubtedly be satirised as 'MeeToo', given its clear intention to fight the rise of Android and iPhone. The two companies said …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 12:34

  • Google co-founder: Maybe we'll stay in China after all

    Brin Preaches to the unconverted

    A month after storming the moral high-ground over China's hacking activities, Sergey Brin has declared the firm is happy to get off its high horse and kick its heels in the country a little longer. Google co-founder Sergey Brin told the TED conference last week he hopes the search giant can sort out its differences with China, …

    Enterprise Security 15 Feb 2010, 12:40

  • Chips make you chipper: Official

    Fried spuds alleviate effects of Hiroshima fallout

    It's official: if you're feeling a bit down in the dumps, then filling your face with chips will cheer you up, according to boffins at Aston University’s School of Life and Health Sciences. The team, led by Dr Mike Green, showed 60 adults a short film on the aftermath of the Hiroshima atom bomb, which unsurprisingly induced " …

    Biology 15 Feb 2010, 12:54

  • Intel joins Nokia in Android attack

    MWC Corpses of Moblin and Meamo line route

    Intel and Nokia have joined forced to create a new platform to take on Google's Android - MeeGo. MeeGo, announced this morning, is to be constructed from the best bits of Maemo and Moblin: Nokia and Intel's existing Linux-based platforms respectively. It will be available later this year with the avowed intention of taking on …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 13:12

  • Too fat to fly: Kevin Smith and OpenOffice

    Yo lunchbox, hurry it up

    News has surfaced of humiliation for two oversized geek icons. Director Kevin Smith has been deemed too fat to fly by SouthWest airlines, who turfed him off an Oakland to Burbank flight just as he'd buckled himself in. Meanwhile, OpenOffice has been deemed too fat for Ubuntu's NetBook distribution. "I'm way fat... But I'm not …

    Applications 15 Feb 2010, 13:13

  • Voda goes ultra-cheap with handsets for the developing world

    MWC Easy to use

    In rich countries, the consumer buzz around mobile phones is all about iPhones and data and internet. But for cellcos, rich countries equal saturated markets, fierce competition and stand-still sales. They rely on the developing world for just about all their growth. That means cheap phones, cheap enough pre-paid plans and …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 13:21

  • Scareware scams switch to social network smut lures

    One stop shops for info theft and scareware fraud

    Scams which attempt to trick users into volunteering personal credentials in return for free pornography have moved over onto social networks. More than nine out of ten (92 per cent) of such adult phishing scams recorded in January took place on social networking sites such as Facebook and Bebo, according to the latest monthly …

    Crime 15 Feb 2010, 13:34

  • Westminster politicos told to grasp Vista nettle

    Computer upgrade hazard ahead

    MPs hoping to have their House of Commons' computers upgraded to Microsoft's Windows 7 OS were hit with a nasty Vista setback last week. Westminster's IT support team, AKA the Parliamentary Information and Communication Technology (PICT) service, has decided to go completely against the trend of businesses and organisations …

    Operating Systems 15 Feb 2010, 13:36

  • Holy Father turns on to Dad Rock

    Vatican playlist swaps choirs of angels for Oasis

    The Vatican has prescribed the perfect iPod playlist for Catholics looking to spend their summer trailing between carefree rock festivals rather than scouring their soul on foot-lacerating pilgramages. The playlist can safely be filed under Dad Rock, encompassing artistes from The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Fleetwood Mac, to Paul …

    Music and Media 15 Feb 2010, 14:32

  • Topfield Freeview HD set-top announced

    Coming to UK under Icecrypt brand

    The latest in this spring’s crop of Freeview HD receivers, the Icecrypt T2200, has just been announced. A standard ‘zapper’ box, it supports the new DVB-T2 standard, and will receive both SD and HD terrestrial channels. The HDMI output supports resolutions up to 1080i, and the box also sports twin Scarts for connection to …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 15:26

  • MSI pitches all-in-one PC at audiophiles

    Wind Top to hit the right notes?

    MSI has introduced an all-in-one touchscreen desktop its claims is the bee's knees for PC audio. The Wind Top AE2220 Hi-Fi packs in a pair of "full range" 5W speakers whose output is processed through a noise cancelling system to eliminate ambient audio interference. MSI's Wind Top A2220 Hi-Fi: the audiophile's all-in-one …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 15:41

  • CardersMarket hacking kingpin jailed for 13 years

    Iceman slung in cooler

    Prolific malicious hacker Max Ray Vision was jailed for 13 years over a series of massive credit card scams that cost US banks an estimated $86 million. Vision (aka Iceman), 37, was also ordered to pay $27.5m in compensation to his victims by senior US District Judge Maurice Cohill Jr during a sentencing hearing last on Friday …

    Crime 15 Feb 2010, 16:04

  • Microsoft re-tiles mobile platform for Windows 7 era

    MWC Get excited now! Or in a few months

    Microsoft has rewritten its mobile platform at last, but the competition still has eight months before Windows Phone 7 Series handsets slip into pockets. Microsoft had to do something spectacular at Mobile World Congress; after last year's embarrassing tweaks and another 12 months of losing market share, the company would have …

    Operating Systems 15 Feb 2010, 16:47

  • Windows Phone 7 Series launched

    MWC Zune, Xbox combined into all-new smartphone platform

    Windows Mobile, farewell. Welcome, Windows Phone 7 Series. Yes, a unnecessarily long name, but one that's make or break for Microsoft's mobile phone ambitions. As expected, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmet unveiled the new OS at the ongoing Mobile World Congress in Barcelona today. Equally anticipated was the news that the …

    reghardware 15 Feb 2010, 17:11

  • Scenic overlook bolted onto ISS

    Endeavour mission extended a day

    The premier - and most exclusive - place to observe Earth has been successfully latched and bolted to the planet-side port of the International Space Station's new Tranquility node, NASA said on Monday. The Tranquility node was initially installed onto the ISS on Friday, with its cupola observation deck reattached from its …

    Space 15 Feb 2010, 19:33

  • Vendors applaud fanboi-lite Macworld

    'Good riddance, Apple'

    The first Macworld Expo without Apple at its core wrapped up over the weekend in San Francisco. And despite the, shall we say, "more intimate" nature of the event, vendors with whom The Reg spoke were uniformly positive. Attendance was down - way down, to around 20,000 compared to previous years' 50K. And joining Apple in …

    Business 15 Feb 2010, 21:25

  • Juniper readies Pulse security for mobiles

    SSL VPN on enterprise smartphones

    Juniper Networks has unzipped several new products for wireless devices this weekend as a counterpoint to Cisco's own ambitions in the mobile space. The networking kit, announced Sunday, builds on Juniper's newfangled "Project Falcon" mobile push that it has been somewhat belatedly fleshing out for the Mobile World Congress …

    Mobile 15 Feb 2010, 22:28