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4th October 2010 Archive

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  • Google Earth 'Liquid Galaxy' open sourced*

    * source code does not include $80,000 construction fee

    The enterprising Googlers who created an immersive setup that uses eight 55-inch HD displays to surround you with a near-360° Google Earth fly-through have open sourced the code and mechanical plans for what they call their "Liquid Galaxy". "With the Liquid Galaxy, we ... fly through the Grand Canyon, leap into low-Earth orbit …

    Applications 4 Oct 2010, 03:01

  • Budget Mono Laser Printers

    Group Test Low cost page churners to keep you in the black

    A trip round PC World or Staples could easily convince you the only printers available for personal use, in home or small office, are inkjets. That ain’t so, with a good range of mono lasers still around from impressively low prices of well under £100. Now, you may not need the squeezy wonders of coloured inks or may already …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Buyer's Guide: Budget Mono Laser Printers

    Group Test The choices in black and white

    If you can have a printer which can print black text on plain paper, as well as full colour on plain and glossy photo paper, why would you want to buy one which can only print black and only on photocopy paper? What does a laser printer offer over an inkjet? The first feature is speed. While entry-level inkjets are rated at …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Best Buys: Budget Mono Laser Printers

    Group Test The fine print

    All six of these printers do a more than passable job of printing a page of text and in most cases you won't notice the difference between these machines and mono lasers costing three times the price. They are also pretty similar on speed, offering between 12 and 16ppm. The factors that split them are running costs and extra …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Review Brother HL-2035

    This squat, square printer has a surprisingly good specification and can be found for a very reasonable asking price. The slide-out paper tray at the bottom of the front panel holds a full 250-sheets and is fully covered when closed, so you don’t need to remove paper to avoid spills when not printing. There’s a single-sheet feed …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Review Canon i-Sensys LBP3010

    Canon i-Sensys LBP3010 | If you like white, you’ll love the look of Canon’s entry-level laser, about the size and shape of a large tin loaf. The top panel flips open to become the output tray and the front panel does likewise to become a 150-sheet feed tray. A very nifty little tray cover folds down from inside the front panel, …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Review Dell 1130

    Dell’s diversification into printers has proved very successful for the company and though what’s on offer are all variants of printers from other manufacturers, there’s sufficient difference in features and costs to rack them up against the competition. Looks like a Samsung, but with low Dell cartridge prices The 1130 is a …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Review Epson Aculaser M1200

    Epson’s baby laser printer looks something like Canon’s with its bread loaf shape, though here the case is all black and the printer’s bigger in all dimensions, noticeably in height. Super-breadloaf design would benefit from a paper tray cover It opens up for printing in much the same way, too, with the top cover folding …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Qualcomm's ultralow power tech targets body area networks

    Peanut power listens to your heart wirelessly

    "Body area network" sounds like something from a 1970s sci-fi movie, but is actually the subject of serious R&D by major players. Biosensors that collect and wirelessly transmit data from human bodies have clear applications in healthcare and other areas, but the need for ultralow power is even more of a challenge than in …

    Broadband 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Review HP LaserJet P1102w

    HP’s entry-level laser is available with and without a wireless connection. The LaserJet P1102w has one and the asking price reflects this. This is another extended bread loaf-shaped printer, with the main feed tray folding down from the front panel. The output support is a clip-in fixture at the front, though, which is less …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • Review Samsung ML-1665

    Samsung’s entry-level mono laser, the ML-1665, is small and inexpensive. The black-cased machine has a bulge at the back, but still uses a fold-down front panel as its paper input tray and a fold-over top cover to take the output. This gives it quite a large footprint overall, when printing. Small when closed, but a big …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 07:00

  • LG holds back Android tablet for Gingerbread

    Awaiting a less smartphone-centric OS

    LG has delayed the release of its anticipated Android-based tablet having decided that the current version of the Google OS isn't up to snuff when it comes to such devices. "We plan to introduce a tablet that runs on the most reliable Android version," a company spokesman told the Reuters newsagency today. "We are in talks …

    Tablets 4 Oct 2010, 08:45

  • Western Digital gearing up to sell 3TB drives

    Isilon to sell itself

    Western Digital is tipped to barge into the 3.5 inch 3TB drive market as early as this month. Techarp has been told WD will launch a set of 3TB 3.5-inch hard disk drives (HDD) later this month. Currently only Seagate ships a 3TB dive, a 5-platter unit available as an external drive or included in its BlackArmor NAS desktop …

    Storage 4 Oct 2010, 08:58

  • IAB retracts 48-hour retargeting cookie advice

    Oh behave

    Online advertising trade body the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has withdrawn a code of practice which recommended that behavioural advertising retargeting cookies should expire after 48 hours. The IAB's Affiliate Marketing Council (AMC) published the code last week. It applied to the practice of 'retargeting' web users …

    Media 4 Oct 2010, 09:00

  • Ministry of Sound floored by Anonymous

    More payback for file-sharer harassment

    Ongoing denial of service attacks spearheaded by Anonymous have knocked out the website of the Ministry of Sound, as well those of its payment provider and solicitors, Gallant Macmillian. Macmillan is attempting to identify and sue individuals who allegedly uploaded music from the Ministry of Sound's music catalogue. Slyckr …

    Security 4 Oct 2010, 09:16

  • Toshiba outs no-glasses 3D LED TV

    OLED over again?

    Toshiba has taken the wraps off what it claims is the "world's first" 3D TV that doesn't foist special glasses on its viewers. Today's announcement confirms past reports that the company plans to release such a set this year - despite industry scepticism. The two models unveiled today will be out by the end of December, …

    Hardware 4 Oct 2010, 09:21

  • NetApp product refresh time

    Your three years is up

    The NetApp part of the twitterverse has been full of scarcely suppressed excitement about WAFL and solid state drives (SSDs). Could NetApp be about to open its SSD kimono at SNW Dallas on October 11th? NetApp has been sending out pro-SSD messages and then not fulfilling them for a couple of years. In November 2008 it …

    Storage 4 Oct 2010, 09:37

  • Reseller touts cheap-as-chips 7in Android tablet

    Yours for 85 quid

    Shocked by the high price of Samsung's Galaxy Tab? Rather spend considerably less than that? How about 85 quid? Yes, that's what bargain basement seller Morgan Computers - Somerset-based Bentham Ltd snapped up the name in November 2009 after the original went titsup - wants for the "7 inch Google Android tablet with …

    Tablets 4 Oct 2010, 09:40

  • Met chief fears Brit cybercrime gangs

    Swapping drugs for bugs

    Britain's most senior police officer has raised fears that home-grown organised gangs are waking up to the low risks and high rewards of cybercrime. Sir Paul Stephenson, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, issued the warning in a Sunday newspaper article highlighting the importance of specialist officers. Debate around …

    Security 4 Oct 2010, 09:41

  • Hundreds of Americans, bystanders injured playing video games

    Mostly normal sofa-spuds, too, not Wii jiggy-gamers

    Shocking news from America today, as it has been revealed by paediatricians there that playing video games is tremendously damaging to that nation's youth: not so much in terms of warping fragile little minds with scenes of graphic violence'n'nookie but in terms of actual, physical injuries. No, really. According to research …

    Games 4 Oct 2010, 09:43

  • Brazil welcomes Street View with open coffins

    Graphic content Google pulls body from Rio street

    The good burghers of Brazil were last week welcomed to the wonderful world of Street View, and it didn't take citizens long to spot some local colour, like this dead body in Rio de Janeiro's Avenida Presidente Vargas: Gizmodo's Brazilian tentacle notes that this piece of unpleasantness has now been pulled, as has this lively …

    Bootnotes 4 Oct 2010, 10:00

  • Three intros pay-per-day mobile broadband

    Cheaper data for casual connectors

    Three has introduced a one-day internet access package for punters who only need casual 3G data connectivity. The Pay Per Day deal costs £2 and provides 500MB of data transfer for the 24-hour period. You can buy online or pick up a voucher in shops. There's no time limit on the vouchers, Three indicated. Buy £10 worth and you …

    Mobile 4 Oct 2010, 10:27

  • Google bags Blind Type

    Touch-type-tastic Android keyboard coming

    Google has snapped up soft-keyboard developers Blind Type, bringing the promise of touch-typing on Android to the sloppiest of fingers. Neither company is saying how much the deal is worth, but Blind Type is only a couple of developers and a handful of demonstration videos - not even a product as yet - so can't have cost more …

    Mobile 4 Oct 2010, 10:28

  • HTC intros new-look Legend, Desire

    Black and white

    Apple, meet HTC. It has made use of the same production technique you use for your "unibody" Macs: milling the casing out of a single block of aluminium. New-look Legend The first HTC handset to get a unibody of its own is the Legend, but to help avoid invidious comparisons it has finished the phone off in "phantom" matte …

    Phones 4 Oct 2010, 10:31

  • Larry Ellison comes out fighting against HP Apotheker 'madness'

    'Speechless' for a nanosecond. Oracle boss lashes out (again)

    Oracle boss Larry Ellison was uncharacteristically lost for words, after Hewlett-Packard hired ex SAP CEO Leo Apotheker as its new chief late last week. But the silence didn't last long. “I’m speechless,” he told the Wall Street Journal, before quickly sharpening his tongue and adding that HP had selected a man “who was …

    Applications 4 Oct 2010, 10:40

  • BT bids bumpkins to beg for better broadband

    Fibre competition

    BT has invited villages nationwide to compete to convince it to reverse the decision not to upgrade their broadband infrastrucure. The firm today promised to bring its faster broadband services - a mix of fibre-to-the-cabinet and fibre-to-the-premises - to five areas where local people show the most interest. BT Retail will …

    Broadband 4 Oct 2010, 10:42

  • Official: Windows Phone 7 to launch next week

    Taking place too Zune?

    Microsoft has confirmed that Windows Phone 7 will be launched globally on 11 October. That the company is hosting an even on that day was well known, but so far the reason for it was not. Some pundits said company insiders insisted that the launch was nothing to do with MS' alternative to Android and iOS, but an online …

    Phones 4 Oct 2010, 10:53

  • Which Ethernet SAN storage protocol is best?

    You the Expert iSCSI easier choice for IT shops with no Fibre Channel

    looks at Ethernet block access storage protocols, with the candidates being AoE (ATA over Ethernet), FCoE (Fibre Channel over Ethernet) and iSCSI. As well as consultant Chris Evans, there are three Reg reader experts here: Geoff Barnett, Evan Unrue and "Mike1", all asked to contribute because of the high calibre of their …

    Storage 4 Oct 2010, 11:00

  • Iran boasts of Stuxnet 'nuclear spies' arrests

    But astrologer-botanists fingered by security researchers

    Iran claims to have arrested spies it blames for planting the infamous Stuxnet worm on its network and attempting to clobber its Bushehr nuclear power plant. Heydar Moslehi, Iran's intelligence minister, told the semi-official Mehr news agency that the country had arrested an unspecified number of "nuclear spies" (nationality …

    Security 4 Oct 2010, 11:06

  • London Transport plans Oyster bypass

    Pay at turnstile coming in 2012

    Transport for London plans to start accepting credit and debit cards at the turnstile, reducing Oyster's cut and removing the requirement for pre-paid tickets. Instead of charging an Oyster card with credit, and then using that credit to pay for buses, tubes and trains, Londoners will be able to pay instantly at the turnstile …

    Mobile 4 Oct 2010, 11:48

  • Good clowns battle evil at the 'Carnival of Screams'

    Zippos and Alton Towers trade Halloween custard pies

    The battle lines are being drawn up for the ultimate pratfall showdown: between the loveable, kiddy-friendly clowns of Zippos Circus and their evil alter egos from Alton Towers’ Carnival of Screams. Zippos' clowns are none too impressed with the theme park's forthcoming dark side clownery, part of its Scarefest 2010, which …

    Bootnotes 4 Oct 2010, 11:57

  • Microsoft secretly scoops up 15 companies

    Just doesn't like to talk about it

    Microsoft claimed late last week that it quietly bought 15 companies over the past 12 months – but declined to name names. According to Tech Flash, Redmond biz development MD Marc Brown said that the acquisitions each cost the firm less than $75m, involving relatively smallfry start-ups. "Typically it will be 20 to 30 people …

    Applications 4 Oct 2010, 12:02

  • Samsung Q430 14in notebook

    Review Do ya think I'm sexy?

    There was a time when plastic sprayed sliver and moulded with a brushed metal-like texture was cool. The problem for Samsung, which has decked out the interior of the Q430 this way, is that such decor hasn't been hip for more than 30 years. In fact, all this laptop needs to bring back that ye olde home music centre look is a …

    Laptops 4 Oct 2010, 12:05

  • Bungie blasts 15,000 credit snaffling Halo:Reach gamers

    Server glitch exploit

    Bungie this weekend hit 15,000 Halo:Reach players who it claimed were "the most egregious abusers" of a glitch that allowed players to up their game credits. The trick yielded 50,000 free credits and involved yanking your Xbox from the network at just the right moment to fool Bungie's game servers into assuming you had a game …

    Games 4 Oct 2010, 12:08

  • US navy to battle Iranian mini-ekranoplan swarms with rayguns

    Laser energy cannon vs 'stealth' WIG-ships

    The US military-industrial complex has unveiled its answer to the much-vaunted "swarm" tactics of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard naval forces, which might see squadrons of "stealth" flying boats and attack craft overwhelming the defences of US warships in the Persian Gulf. The US Navy will deal with this, apparently, using …

    Science 4 Oct 2010, 12:09

  • Texan smut baron spanked over UK schoolgirl snap

    Florida court breaks new ground in copyright claim

    A porn baron was served with an expensive reminder last week that the courts take a dim view of companies ripping off other people's creative work. A court in Tampa, Florida ruled against Texan pornographer Robert Burge and his company TVX, and gave almost $130,000 in damages to 21-year-old UK fashion photographer Lara Jade …

    Law 4 Oct 2010, 12:41

  • Anti-virus vendor trio plug website flaws

    XSS marks the spot

    White-hat hackers have uncovered vulnerabilities on the websites of anti-virus firms that created a phishing risk. Cross-site scripting (XSS) bugs of varying severity were found on the websites of Symantec (here), Eset (here) and Panda Security (here) by Team Elite, the white-hat hackers who discovered the flaws. We notified …

    Security 4 Oct 2010, 12:52

  • Andrew grapples with Android in readers' Mailbag

    Andrew's Mailbag Our most-rated story ever produces an unseemly bulging inbox

    Are we all missing Anssi Vanjoki yet? I am, and he's still got six months to go before he leaves Nokia, after missing out on the top job. Speaking to the FT recently, Vanjoki compared to plight of manufacturers who adopt Google's Android to Finnish boys who "pee in their pants" to keep warm. If you haven't heard that one …

    Mobile 4 Oct 2010, 12:53

  • Microsoft's Ballmer dances with Spotify in Windows Mobile deal

    Redmond boss descends into mosh pit

    Microsoft has inked a deal with Spotify to provide a free app for the Windows Mobile platform. Redmond announced the agreement, financial terms of which were kept secret, as the company’s boss Steve Ballmer kicked off the start of a five-day European tour in Sweden. Microsoft said the app was available for punters using …

    Phones 4 Oct 2010, 13:48

  • India claims access to BlackBerry comms

    Long way from resolution, with only weeks to go

    The Indian government is claiming that RIM has offered it access to instant messaging conversations within hours of a request, though access to email remains unresolved with time running out. India told Reuters that RIM has offered to provide transcripts of instant messaging sessions, with real-time interception available by …

    Mobile 4 Oct 2010, 14:14

  • UK to make FoI data machine readable

    New law will make information more accessible

    The government is to change the law so that all data released under the Freedom of Information Act will be fully accessible to computers. Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude told the Conservative party conference in Birmingham that the Freedom of Information Act will be amended so that all data released through FoI must be in …

    Government 4 Oct 2010, 14:20

  • Flakey scales brand Commonwealth boxers bunch of blobs

    'One at a time please sir'

    The Commonwealth Games boxing tournament collapsed into farce today as official scales delivered wildly inconsistent readings and declared virtually every fighter overweight. Fighters who had been given readings above their weight class at the Delhi weigh-in rushed to sweat off extra pounds, with frantic runs, gym sessions or …

    Bootnotes 4 Oct 2010, 14:23

  • Google's Schmidt: We know what you're thinking

    Human autonomy is just a bug, basically

    Google's CEO Eric Schmidt continues his crusade to make a creepy, machine-driven future palatable, with two contributions of startling cybernetic idiocy within a week. "We don't need you to type at all. We know where you are. We know where you've been. We can more or less know what you're thinking about," he reminded users at …

    Applications 4 Oct 2010, 14:47

  • Chip sales continue modest gains, SIA holds steady

    But iSuppli cuts back 2010 semi forecast

    The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) has released its stats for chip sales in August and says that they grew sequentially by 1.8 per cent from July. The SIA is also holding pat with its forecast for 2010. But semi market watcher iSuppli has trimmed its chip forecast a bit because of reduced demand from consumers for …

    The Channel 4 Oct 2010, 15:01

  • Fruitcake profs demand strict curbs on killer robots

    Noel Sharkeys of the world, unite!

    Blighty's most famous automatamageddon media-Cassandra, Professor Noel Sharkey, has allied with like-minded profs around the world to issue yet another warning of the coming rise of killer robots. You thought the robots were scary. Sharkey, who is professor of AI, Robotics and Public Engagement at Sheffield uni, has warned …

    Science 4 Oct 2010, 15:13

  • Hybrid drives: the next generation

    A new flashy optical drive from HLDS...From who?

    Would you fancy using a hybrid optical drive with embedded SSD as your single netbook/notebook disk drive? That's what HLDS is proposing. HLDS is a 10-year-old joint venture between Hitachi and LG Data Storage, and is an OEM manufacturer of optical disk drives (ODD), CDs and DVS first and, from 2006, Blu-ray drives. It …

    Storage 4 Oct 2010, 15:55

  • Goldman downgrades Microsoft stock to 'neutral'

    Dear Ballmer, is cloud computing nature or nurture? You decide

    Pre-packaged software giant Microsoft saw its stock rating lowered to neutral by Goldman Sachs today, in response to the company’s sluggish entry into the tablet and smartphone market. The brokerage’s concerns reflected those of Microsoft’s own board, which last week put a cap on CEO Steve Ballmer’s bonus payout because of his …

    Financial News 4 Oct 2010, 16:04

  • Skype taps Cisco vet as chief exec

    Hello, IPO

    Skype has named Cisco veteran Tony Bates as its new CEO. As first reported by TechCrunch, Bates will take over as chief exec at the end of the month. Current CEO Josh Silverman is leaving the company, and until Bates grabs the reigns, CFO Adrian Dillion will serve as acting CEO. Bates is the senior vice president and general …

    Business 4 Oct 2010, 18:26

  • Web marketers pledge easier targeted ads opt-out

    'No thanks' button coming to website near you

    Online advertisers have pledged to make it easier for people surfing the web to opt out of targeted advertising that closely monitors viewing habits and other personal information. Under a program announced Monday, participating websites would display an advertising option icon next to ads that collect user data that explains …

    Media 4 Oct 2010, 18:31

  • Verizon to refund $30-$90m in 'mystery fees'

    As FCC investigation continues

    Verizon will refund between $30 and $90 million to customers for "mystery fees" charged to their wireless accounts — but the US Federal Communications Commission says that the paybacks won't end their investigation into the US's largest wireless provider's billing practices. "As we reviewed customer accounts," said Verizon …

    Broadband 4 Oct 2010, 18:39

  • AT&T to lead Windows Phone 7's US touchdown

    T-Mobile eclipsed by politics

    Microsoft is teaming up with premier partner AT&T for Windows Phone 7's US coming-out party next Monday. Chief executive Steve Ballmer will host the press event at its New York City technology center along with AT&T mobility and consumer markets CEO Ralph de la Vega, where they will preview Windows Phone 7 devices from …

    Mobile 4 Oct 2010, 19:11

  • SGI bags vanishing stimulus dough

    Two supers and 100 teraflops for Los Alamos

    The Obama stimulus money may be running out, but the US Department of Energy has just kicked a chunk of it over to Silicon Graphics to buy two new Altix XE parallel clusters. The DOE already has a petaflops-class hybrid blade supercomputer: the IBM "Roadrunner" Opteron-Cell super that reported for classified nuke duty at Los …

    HPC 4 Oct 2010, 19:31

  • Twitter co-founder Williams steps down as CEO

    Laser focused on 'product strategy'

    Twitter co-founder Evan Williams has stepped down as the company's chief executive, but he will remain with the micro-blogging outfit in a new role "completely focused on product strategy." "I am most satisfied while pushing product direction. Building things is my passion, and I’ve never been more excited or optimistic about …

    Media 4 Oct 2010, 20:46

  • Rogue Wave eats Acumem

    Lifting HPC multicore performance

    Rogue Wave Software, a niche provider of compilers and programming tools for HPC shops, has acquired Acumem AB, a maker of performance tuning tools for single- and multi-threaded applications. Parallel programming is so hard that even the smartest techies in the world have trouble with it, and that's why programming tools that …

    HPC 4 Oct 2010, 21:01

  • iPhone apps put user privacy at risk

    Unique IDs free for the taking

    A large number of applications that run on Apple's iOS collect serial numbers that uniquely identify the hardware device, according to a study that warns the practice could compromise users' privacy. Apple bills the UDID, or Unique Device Identifier, as a tool for developers to identify iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches when …

    Security 4 Oct 2010, 21:54

  • Comcast to notify subscribers with infected PCs

    Bot alert program goes nationwide

    Comcast, the biggest US residential internet service provider, has begun offering all its subscribers a service that warns them when their PCs are infected with botnet software that steals banking passwords and carries out other nefarious deeds. Over the next few months, the Philadelphia-based internet provider will roll out …

    Networks 4 Oct 2010, 23:41

  • Twitter turns entire accounts into ads

    'Promote' anything

    Twitter has unveiled another effort to make money from its micro-blogging service. With its latest advertising program, dubbed "Promoted Accounts," advertisers can pay the company to promote their Twitter accounts to certain users. Currently, from a sidebar on the right-hand side of its homepage, Twitter offers a list of …

    Media 4 Oct 2010, 23:42

  • OpenStack infiltrates Ubuntu's cloud diet

    Exclusive Amazon not the only fruit

    A new cloud is descending on Ubuntu - OpenStack, an alternative to its current preferred favorite, Eucalyptus. APIs for the OpenStack cloud architecture – lead by Rackspace – are being built into the Linux distro's server side, The Reg has learned. Developers have already added the Nova cloud-compute framework, written using …

    Operating Systems 4 Oct 2010, 23:53