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12th July 2011 Archive

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  • Website FAIL flings freebies at Kiwi punters

    Dick Smith coughs up free tech gear

    The Australian tech retailer Dick Smith unexpectedly gave its New Zealand online customers a massive discount when its ecommerce system failed and allowed transactions to be processed for zero dollars. Delighted customers yesterday reported their booty stashes via Twitter, with one buying a 27inch iMac for free but charged NZ$ …

    Business 12 Jul 00:00

  • Quickflix hires another ex-Telstra exec

    Readies for digital

    Quickflix has made its second high profile appointment in less than a week, snaring the former director of Telstra Media, Chris Taylor as its new CEO. Last week, the online DVD rental company announced that Justin Milne, the former head of Telstra Big Pond and Telstra Media, had joined the company as deputy chairman. The …

    Business 12 Jul 01:00

  • ACCC calls for input on wholesale rules

    Define ‘discrimination’

    The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is pushing on with its frenzy of National Broadband Network-related activity with a consultation paper looking at the question of discrimination between wholesale customers. The general principle underlying the interaction between the NBN and its retail customers is that …

    Telecoms 12 Jul 03:38

  • Data centres become carbon tax scare-story

    Your rackspace will cost you more!

    Given that the IT business swallows nearly three percent of Australia’s power output, it’s hardly surprising that the industry is viewing the country’s coming carbon tax with some trepidation. All IT users should at very least count up their kilowatt-hours and look at actually using the power-saving technologies that come free …

    Infrastructure 12 Jul 04:00

  • IBM heaves new System z minis at mainframe shops

    Hooking fat Xeon blades into 'system of systems'

    In the hope of continuing the System z upgrade boom that started last summer, Big Blue has rounded out its lineup with a midrange – what IBM calls "Business Class" – mainframe, the System zEnterprise 114. The machine is more or less what the rumors of two weeks ago hinted it would be – although it turns out there are two …

    Servers 12 Jul 04:01

  • Contour GPS Bluetooth camcorder

    Review Extreme sports shooter with iPhone viewing

    Contour has been making a lot of noise recently about the new wireless viewfinder feature for its HD range of helmet cameras. With these units being necessarily small, the idea is that the viewfinder bulk is taken care of by using your phone's display, with a Bluetooth connection streaming the pics and video. Simply download a …

    reghardware 12 Jul 06:00

  • UK court dishes out 13 years' porridge to e-fraudsters

    Cyber-cops: £1m phishermen had 40 bogus bank sites

    Three fraudsters have been jailed for a combined total of 13 years and six months over their involvement in a sophisticated phishing fraud against UK and international banks. Ayodeji Kareem, 38, Vincent Alonge, 31, and Babatunde Fafore, 41, were all jailed at a hearing at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday. All three defendants …

    Crime 12 Jul 08:01

  • Putting the Square Kilometre Array on a Cloud

    Should be enough to get free Amazon shipping, anyway

    By now, you may have heard of the Square Kilometre Array: it is to be the world’s biggest radio telescope, assembled from 3,000 15-meter dishes into a collecting area of, yes, one square kilometer. The Southern Hemisphere has less light pollution and radio interference than the North. And so South Africa and Western Australia …

    Infrastructure 12 Jul 08:24

  • ISS and Atlantis crews face 'daunting' box-shifting job

    'Nauts must shift 4 tons of shopping, 2½ tons of station bins

    The combined crews of the International Space Station and space shuttle Atlantis are facing a "daunting" box-shifting job, following the successful transfer of the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module from the space shuttle's cargo bay to the orbiting outpost's Harmony node. Astronauts Doug Hurley and Sandy Magnus moved …

    Space 12 Jul 08:25

  • BBW: Over 900 police staff caught misusing databases

    Cops check squeezes, neighbours, pass info to crims

    More than 900 police personnel were disciplined for unlawful data protection practices in the past three years, privacy campaigners have said. Figures released by 36 police forces in England and Wales under freedom of information (FOI) requests by Big Brother Watch (BBW) stated that 904 police officers and civilian employees …

    Policing 12 Jul 09:27

  • Go Daddy no-no means No Daddy is no-go

    High-ranking gripe nemesis nabbed by target

    Go Daddy has managed to effectively gag its fiercest critics by acquiring and then shutting down the high-ranking Go Daddy gripe site: NoDaddy.com. For over four years, No Daddy hosted a forum detailing a range of "horror stories" submitted by Go Daddy customers and disgruntled current and former employees. Insecure.com …

    Hosting 12 Jul 09:34

  • Dinner Spinner

    Android App of the Week Bring me vicious mustards to pierce the tongue like Cardigan's lancers

    Dinner Spinner is a classic example of the slick and inventive apps that have made the iOS App Store what it is today. It’s also a good example of the way those same apps are now migrating to Android. The idea is blindingly simple and perfect for anyone who - like me - thinks that cooking involves a telephone and knowing the …

    reghardware 12 Jul 10:00

  • Assange™ in court to fight extradition order

    WikiLeaks' boss appeal hearing begins

    WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange™ arrived at London's High Court this morning to begin his challenge against an extradition order that relates to allegations of rape and sexual molestation brought by two women in Sweden. In February this year, Assange was told by Judge Howard Riddle at South East London's Belmarsh magistrates …

    Law 12 Jul 10:08

  • Brussels acts to ensure arrival of new, unknown legal highs

    Crackdown should mean boost for Chinese synthi-drug labs

    The European Commission is promising tighter rules on 'legal highs' despite surveys indicating that most people think such action should be based on medical evidence. Synthetic drugs - the most infamous was labelled meow-meow by the tabloids - mimic the effects of illegal substances like ecstasy and speed. Sold online or …

    Government 12 Jul 10:21

  • MS to WinXP diehards: Just under 3 more years' support

    'Eventually, there comes a time to give us more money'

    Microsoft continued its campaign yesterday to convince stuck-in-the-mud Windows XP customers to upgrade to Windows 7, the company's current operating system. Windows XP is now 10 years old, and for some, it's still going strong. So Microsoft has reminded those users that support for the OS that refuses to die will end in less …

    Operating Systems 12 Jul 10:33

  • Computacenter Germany pips UK operation in growth stakes

    But for you, Fritz, the glory will be short-lived

    Computacenter's (CC) UK operation fell under the shadow of its German counterpart – for the first time in history – during H1 following steep declines in product reselling. The services-based reseller today issued a trading statement for H1, showing that group revenues were up 6 per cent year-on-year. In constant currency and …

    Channel Register 12 Jul 10:35

  • 'Being cyber-stalked is as bad as being raped, or in a war'

    Amazing claim from, erm, a new cyberstalk research centre

    A new survey into the phenomenon of cyber-stalking has made the remarkable claim that many victims of online or other electronic harassment suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in very much the same way as soldiers who have been in combat or people who have been raped. The new report, "Cyberstalking in the United …

    Bootnotes 12 Jul 10:56

  • Sunday Times accused of blagging Gordon Brown's records

    Murdoch's troubles fail to die with NotW

    News International journalists from multiple papers persistently tried to get gossip on the former prime minister Gordon Brown by "blagging" access to his bank account, legal documents and even his son's medical records, it has been alleged. Previously, allegations of phone hacking and other illegal activity have centred upon …

    ID 12 Jul 11:05

  • Sony pitches portable HDD for TVs, PS3

    SuperSpeed spinner

    Sony took the wraps off an external hard drive this morning. The spec's nowt to get excited about - USB 3.0, 500GB capacity - but here's a unit being pitched not at PCs but at PS3s, camcorders and tellies. No question, it's a stylish boy. Sony hopes you'll want to plug into your Bravia telly, if it's one of the models will …

    reghardware 12 Jul 11:08

  • 'I caught a virus from Murdoch's organ' – famous secret hooker

    Malware de Jour also hit Girl With One-Track Mind

    Two prominent sex bloggers suspect the Rupert Murdoch owned Sunday Times of hacking into their computers using Trojan horse malware. The fears are not based on any hard evidence but are nonetheless sure to add further grist to the mill of the escalating News International hacking scandal. Zoe Margolis, author of the celebrated …

    Security 12 Jul 11:18

  • Netflix Europe debut set for January 2012

    Spanish movie industry exec spills beans

    Netflix's long-awaited European debut may have been scheduled for January 2012, if claims from Spain are to be believed. According to a variety of local papers, that's when Netflix will launch in Spain, offering Spaniards around 3500 movies and TV shows to stream. The claim apparently comes from Pedro Perez, president of the …

    reghardware 12 Jul 11:32

  • Virtualising your critical apps

    Broadcast: 1500BST Experts line up to offer help

    Today at 3pm UK time we have a team of experts in our studio to talk about how and why you would virtualise your mission critical apps. The Register’s Tim Phillips is your host for the hour. With him are Andrew Buss from our friends at Freeform Dynamics, Andrew Fryer from Microsoft and Alun Rogers from Risual. Between them, …

    Data Centre 12 Jul 11:33

  • Cisco may slash 10,000 jobs

    Company-wide axe massacre set for next month

    Cisco may be bigger and bolder in its cost-cutting plans than first anticipated: it has been revealed the firm is getting rid of close to 10,000 staff worldwide. The initial figure touted by Gleacher & Co analyst Brian Marshal yesterday was half that, which he estimated would cut the networking behemoth's annual expense base …

    Data Networking 12 Jul 11:36

  • HP TouchSmart 610 touchscreen all-in-one PC

    Review Quite literally, laid back

    This is going to be good. I reviewed the first TouchSmart 600 all-in-one home desktop computer in January 2010, and loved it, frankly. I fondly remember Reg Hardware readers expressing their admiration for my gushing praise at the time... That was sarcasm. Enough, I’m over it. Finger friendly: HP's TouchSmart 610 The …

    reghardware 12 Jul 12:00

  • 'Unconvincing' Met top cop Yates: My phone was hacked

    But I didn't think it was worth investigating

    John Yates, Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner, claimed today at a parliamentary hearing into the ongoing phone-tapping allegations against News International publications that his voicemail had been illegally intercepted too. He told the Home Affairs select committee, chaired by Labour MP Keith Vaz, that he was "99 …

    Policing 12 Jul 12:31

  • Zycko flogged to management team

    Networking distie founder Sweet cashes in

    Zycko group managing director Nick Moglia has spearheaded a management buy-out of the networking and comms distributor from founder Rory Sweet. The Cirencester-based business has a dozen years of trading history under its belt, with 13 offices across four continents. Moglia, a former director at UB Networks and Comstor, …

    Channel Register 12 Jul 12:55

  • Citrix swallows OpenStack ally Cloud.com

    Cross-platform promise

    Citrix Systems has purchased Silicon Valley startup Cloud.com as part of its effort to help customers build, deploy, and manage Amazon-style "infrastructure clouds". On Tuesday, Citrix announced the purchase of the three-year-old, 50-person, venture-funded startup for an undisclosed sum. The deal is believed to be worth $500m …

    Infrastructure 12 Jul 13:00

  • 'Meltdown Monday' Anonymous hackers leak military mails

    AntiSec hacktivists blasted for breaking own manifesto

    Anonymous uploaded 90,000 military email address and associated password hashes onto a file-sharing network on Monday as part of an operation it christening Military Meltdown Monday. The sensitive data came from a hack against military contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, which Anonymous hinted had yielded further sensitive …

    Enterprise Security 12 Jul 13:08

  • US Marine gets date with Meg Griffin on YouTube

    'Do it for your country', Justin Timberlake urges

    A US Marine serving in Afghanistan has successfully obtained a date with Hollywood star Mila Kunis by asking her out in a YouTube video. Sergeant Scott Moore can be seen below making his digital move on the actress, famous as the voice of Meg Griffin in Family Guy and as Mona Sax in gamebased offering Max Payne. Kunis was also …

    Entertainment 12 Jul 13:23

  • Hunt splashes £56.9m broadband cash on Wales

    'Frustrated? Urge your member to fatten up your pipe'

    Wales has won broadband funds of £56.9m from the Coalition's £530m investment pot, following a successful bid for the cash from the Welsh Assembly. However, the Welsh government needs to match the investment if it hopes to achieve its "superfast" broadband upgrade plan to reach 90 per cent of homes and businesses in Wales. " …

    Government 12 Jul 14:03

  • Elpida aims to issue $1bn of paper to fund re-tooling

    DRAM it, we've been left behind

    Elpida needs to raise nearly one billion dollars to fund a transition into making memory for smartphones and tablet PCs, relying less on PC DRAM in the future. Revenues from DRAM have fallen short of what's needed and Elpida will issue new shares and convertible bonds to pay for the direction change. It's a massive amount of …

    Storage 12 Jul 14:26

  • McAfee head vanishes, replaced by two more

    Security management à la Lernaean hydra

    McAfee has decided that it needs two presidents – namely Michael DeCesare and Todd Gebhert – to replace David DeWalt, who is quitting the firm. The Intel-owned vendor said it is creating an office of the president for the duo, who will report to Renee James, senior veep and GM at Chipzilla and chairman of McAfee. In a blurb …

    Business 12 Jul 15:31

  • Interwebs IDE hits the mother Node

    Joyent on Cloud9

    Cloud9 – a startup offering developers an IDE that runs entirely on the web – has announced that its creation now plugs directly into the Node.js service run by Node chief steward Joyent. You can now build a Node app, debug it, and deploy it without leaving the the web-based IDE. Unveiled this past March, Cloud9 is an online …

    Platform 12 Jul 16:00

  • BlackBerry-style LG Android phone outed

    An Optimus for pros, apparently

    Why does slapping a BlackBerry-style micro Qwerty keyboard make a smartphone professional? It doesn't, but vendors continue to pitch handsets that way, the latest being LG. To whit, the Optimus Pro, a standard Qwerty canbybar phone, all done up in black and running Android 2.3 Gingerbread. The CPU is clocked at 800MHz, and the …

    reghardware 12 Jul 16:08

  • Heat sink breakthrough threatens ventblockers

    Death to dust, curtains for crud

    A US government lab has opened for licensing a novel way of improving the cooling technology used in everything from CPU and GPU coolers to air-conditioning units: make the fan the heat sink, and the heat sink the fan. "We describe breakthrough results obtained in a feasibility study of a fundamentally new architecture for air …

    PCs & Chips 12 Jul 18:51

  • VMware launches vSphere 5 into the clear blue sky

    'We run 50 per cent of everything'

    VMware has unveiled the latest version of its vSphere hypervisor – vSphere 5 – along with a suite of additional technologies for building what the world insists on calling "infrastructure clouds". The Cloud Infrastructure Suite includes new versions of the company's vShield security platform; its vCenter Site Recovery Manager, …

    Cloud 12 Jul 18:53

  • Microsoft: HP, eBay polishing Azure cloud-in-a-box (honest)

    WPC 2010 Deadlines reset, evaluations ongoing

    A year after they were announced and six months after they were to be delivered, Microsoft has offered a fleeting glimpse of its Windows Azure cloud-in-a-box appliance parnerships with HP and eBay. At its Worldwide Partners Conference (WPC) in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Microsoft said that HP has a Windows Azure appliance running …

    Cloud 12 Jul 19:25

  • NASA 'nauts wrap last spacewalk of shuttle era

    Clapped-out ISS ammonia unit stowed aboard Atlantis

    NASA 'nauts Mike Fossum and Ron Garan have wrapped the last spacewalk of the shuttle era, during which they successfully stowed a clapped-out International Space Station ammonia pump in Atlantis's cargo bay. The pump is the same unit which failed at the end of July last year, knocking out half of the ISS's cooling system. …

    Space 12 Jul 20:13

  • Ruby daddy Matsumoto joins Heroku Rails crusade

    Some time in cloud land

    Ruby creator Yukihiro Matsumoto has joined Heroku, the San Francisco outfit that cut its teeth with an online service for building, deploying, and readily scaling Ruby on Rails applications. In recent weeks, Heroku's "cloud" service has expanded beyond Rails to Node.js and Clojure and it intends to embrace additional languages …

    Platform 12 Jul 21:14

  • HTC 'dismayed' by Apple's bizarre patent allegations

    Assertions only a lawyer could love

    HTC has snapped back at Apple's second patent-infringement complaint over the Taiwanese manufacturer's Android-based smartphones and tablets. "HTC is dismayed that Apple has resorted to competition in the courts rather than the market place," HTC general counsel Grace Lei said in a canned statement. The statement notes that …

    Mobile 12 Jul 21:42

  • New NZ copyright law means ISPs could cash in

    Illegal downloaders on your network? Charge the content owners

    New Zealand ISPs could have a tidy new revenue stream courtesy of their illegal downloading customers as new copyright laws take effect in September. New Zealand Commerce Minister Simon Power yesterday announced that a NZ$25 fee will be charged by ISPs to rights-holders, such as movie studios, for processing each allegation of …

    Hosting 12 Jul 23:00