The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

22nd February 2012 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

  • Dell misses profit goals in fiscal Q4

    Revenues up a bit, though

    Despite growing sales in all six of its product categories and all four of its business units, and despite having an extra business week in the quarter, hardware supplier and software wannabe Dell was not able to pull the profits it expected down to the bottom line in its fourth quarter of fiscal 2012, which ended on February 3 …

    Financial News 22 Feb 2012, 00:09

  • NASA seeks cooks for Mars trip simulation

    No bean or cabbage recipes, please

    NASA is looking for volunteers to prepare foods during a simulated Mars mission that will see six lucky people locked in close proximity for 120 days. Researchers from the University of Hawaii and Cornell University are looking for volunteers for the simulation, dubbed the Hawaii Space Exploration Analogue & Simulation (HI- …

    Science 22 Feb 2012, 00:35

  • SanDisk daddy: Flash to 'checkmate' hard drives by 2020

    ISSCC Next on the hit list: DRAM

    Although some industry observers – as The Reg recently noted – say that flash memory is approaching a technical brick wall, the cofounder and former CEO and chairman of SanDisk sees things differently. "Industry experts – even the best ones – are often shortsighted, and sometimes outright wrong," said Eli Harari at ISSCC on …

    Storage 22 Feb 2012, 02:01

  • IBM arms robo-sysadmin QRadar with virus know-how

    X-Force gear combs through 13 billion threats a day

    IBM is beefing up its enterprise security offerings by creating a security platform that is aware of real-time virus information, meaning that the system will be much quicker at recognising new threats. Marketing its updated QRadar Security Intelligence Platform as a comprehensive security solution, IBM argue that the platform …

    Security 22 Feb 2012, 05:00

  • Ten... sub-£100 mono laser printers

    Product Round-up Read the fine print

    Mono laser printers still produce better black text than any inkjet. If you want clean, pin-sharp characters on the page and don’t print colour, buy a laser. If you have a limited budget, look for one at under £100. Here are 10 you should consider, which can print fast, don’t take up much room on the desk and are very easy to …

    Hardware 22 Feb 2012, 07:00

  • ICO 'enquiring' about Google's serving of tracking cookies

    Questions after Microsoft slams Chocolate Factory on privacy

    Microsoft has claimed that Google has been serving third-party cookies capable of tracking users' online behaviour even when those users have adjusted settings in the Internet Explorer browser to prevent it happening. Dean Hachamovitch, corporate vice president of Internet Explorer (IE) at the software giant, said Google had " …

    Law 22 Feb 2012, 08:01

  • Ericsson flashes wallet, beds hot Wi-Fi and billing bizes

    MWC 2012 Now it's spoiling for a fight against Chinese rivals

    Ericsson, freed from Sony and getting in its retaliation first, used a Mobile World Congress pre-event briefing to set out its Far East battle plans - which included mobile wallet payments and buying billing biz Telcordia and carrier-cosy Wi-Fi company BelAir Networks. There was a time when the mobile infrastructure companies …

    Phones 22 Feb 2012, 08:26

  • Toy Story: Mystic Met needs swanky new kit, swoon MPs

    Analysis Media to blame for believing us reporting our forecasts

    The Mystic Met has bewitched MPs who have recommended the forecasters are given the swanky new supercomputer they want. Despite the meteorologists getting 10 of their last 11 winter forecasts wrong, MPs say the Met needs to improve its communication and PR, rather than its scientific methodology. Amazingly, MPs even blame the …

    Government 22 Feb 2012, 09:02

  • Councils spunk £515m in 4 years on CCTV

    Hey big spender, Birmingham

    UK local authorities spent a total of £515m installing, operating and maintaining CCTV between 2007-11, according to the privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch. It has released figures obtained from freedom of information (FoI) requests showing that Birmingham was the highest spender on CCTV with more than £14m, while …

    Government 22 Feb 2012, 09:32

  • Crap PINs give wallet thieves 1-in-11 jackpot shot

    What are the odds? Cambridge boffins work it out

    Four-digit banking PINs are almost as insecure as website passwords, according to a study by Cambridge University computer scientists. The first-ever quantitative analysis of the difficulty of guessing four-digit banking PINs estimates the widespread practice of using a date of birth as a PIN code and other factor means that …

    Security 22 Feb 2012, 10:02

  • Wang charged in inappropriate electricity socket use

    Battery top-up threatened metro station's power supply

    Electricity thieves beware: if the battery charge in your phone or laptop is getting a little too low for comfort, don’t just stick your tech gear into the first available plug socket or you could find yourself in the back of a police van. The warning comes from Taipei, where a man by the name of Wang was prosecuted this week …

    Bootnotes 22 Feb 2012, 10:19

  • We're! not! a! social! network! yells! Yahoo!

    Doesn't want to be lumped in with riffraff like Facebook, Google

    Despite spending most of the past few years trying to make its services more social, Yahoo! is now claiming that it is definitely NOT a social network - and resents being lumped in with Google and Facebook to face charges in India of hosting “objectionable content” online. The faded web pioneer filed a strongly worded …

    Networks 22 Feb 2012, 10:41

  • Proview offers Apple peace talks amid Shanghai iPad ban bid

    Tech titan faces tablet knockout in dozens of China's cities

    In a predictable move, Asian monitor minnow Proview has decided that it is in fact now ready to hold talks with Apple over the IPAD trademark dispute which threatens to throttle global supplies of Cupertino’s shiny fondleslab. As Shanghai's Pudong district court prepares to decide whether to accede to Proview’s request and …

    Small Biz 22 Feb 2012, 11:02

  • NASA sniffs little black hole's 20-million-MPH wind

    Flatulent fallen star farts supermassive-grade hurricane

    NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has caught a whiff of the fastest ever wind blowing from the gases around a stellar-mass black hole. Illustration of high-speed winds from the stellar-mass black hole. Credit: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss The wind, which is moving at an awesome 20 million miles per hour, is nearly ten times faster than …

    Science 22 Feb 2012, 11:17

  • Distie vet Low to head new public sector biz at C2000

    'New challenge' found at old employer

    Channel veteran Cathi Low has returned to her old stomping ground at Computer 2000 to head up a newly assembled public sector team, months after quitting arch rival Ingram Micro to seek out a "new career challenge". Low, who is set to become director of the public sector business unit, left C2000 in 2006 after 12 years on …

    The Channel 22 Feb 2012, 11:32

  • Cameras roll on 'blockbuster' new Who series

    'Our craziest adventures yet,' promises Amy Pond

    The BBC's spinners have worked themselves into a right state over the news that filming has kicked off on the seventh series of Doctor Who. Viewers are promised 14 "blockbuster-movie episodes" as Arthur Darvill and Karen Gillan embark on "their final, rollercoaster voyage" with Matt Smith's Time Lord. Smith described his …

    Bootnotes 22 Feb 2012, 11:42

  • Freedom-crushing govts close to ruling our web, fears FCC boss

    Baffled ITC denies plotting internet land-grab

    Foreign governments are lining up to wrest control of the internet from freedom-loving hippies, thunders FCC commissioner Robert McDowell in a call to arms in the Wall Street Journal. In the piece the commissioner claims the International Telecommunications Union is planning to make a play for control as soon as next week, …

    Hosting 22 Feb 2012, 12:03

  • Fujitsu flaunts Tegra 3 for future phones

    High five core

    Fujitsu aims to blow the roof off Mobile World Congress (MWC) next week when it formally launches its latest smartphone, which packs the five-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor - the best a man can get. The quin-blade razor five-core handset has yet to be officially named, but Fujitsu has followed competitors' suits and prematurely …

    Phones 22 Feb 2012, 12:09

  • Spam crashes to historic low as malware explodes on mobiles

    Android Trojans soar, Mac viruses fall off a cliff

    The volume of malware samples detected by McAfee passed the 75 million milestone late last year, the Intel-owned security firm reported this week. Although the release of new malware slowed in Q4 2011, mobile malware continued to increase albeit from a low base. Android was by far the most targeted platform with 400 new …

    Security 22 Feb 2012, 12:21

  • Samsung Series 9 skinny laptop priced for Blighty

    'World's thinnest' claim

    Samsung's refreshed Series 9 laptop has been given a release date, with the compact notebook set to land on consumers' laps as early as next week. The second-generation Series 9 returns to the fray as the world's thinnest premium notebook, the company claims. The unibody 13in device is just shy of 13mm in height and weighs a …

    Laptops 22 Feb 2012, 12:32

  • Logica profits slump in 'much more difficult' 2011

    2012? Could be up, could be down

    Logica said its 2012 revenues could go up or down as it turned in full year 2011 figures that showed a massive drop in profits. The services giant reported full year consolidated revenues of £3.92bn for the year to December 31, up 6 per cent on the year. Consolidated pre-tax profits were £32.7m, a dramatic fall on the previous …

    The Channel 22 Feb 2012, 12:39

  • Top Euro beaks to probe ACTA for rights breaches

    Reding wants court to check anti-counterfeiting treaty's small print

    Europe's Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding has asked the European Court of Justice to peruse the small print of the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) to ensure that it is "fully compatible" with fundamental rights. The international treaty to combat counterfeiting and piracy lost its digital copyright …

    Government 22 Feb 2012, 13:01

  • Will Windows 8 sticker shock leave Microsoft unstuck?

    Metro and ARM threaten Vista-like compatibility badges

    "Sticker shock" is a US phrase that denotes a shopper’s surprised and generally disgusted reaction upon discovering the true price of an item they’re buying. Microsoft experienced a different kind of sticker shock a few years back with Windows Vista: such a memory and CPU hog was Windows Vista that most PCs of that time …

    Windows 8 22 Feb 2012, 13:23

  • Court claim slapped on bloke via Facebook in landmark case

    Solicitors' messages - another reason for an unlike button

    Facebook messages will become a common way to serve court documents, reckons lawyer Jenni Jenkins, after a judge allowed a legal claim to be sent to a bloke via the social network. Mr Justice Teare granted brokerage firm Traditional Financial Services (TFS) permission to serve a court notice to one of their former employees …

    Law 22 Feb 2012, 13:43

  • VCE EMEA gaffer cheeses it after seven months

    Enterprise sales veep Adran Carr departs vendor coalition

    VCE enterprise sales veep for EMEA Adrian Carr is no longer with the business just seven months after joining from Juniper, The Reg can reveal. Carr was EMEA enterprise veep at the networking firm until August but a spokesman at VCE confirmed that he has left the firm: "VCE is searching for a new head of EMEA sales to drive …

    The Channel 22 Feb 2012, 13:59

  • For those thinking Private Cloud

    Live event Here’s your project check list

    Our very own Tim Phillips is dragging some clever sorts from the industry and beyond into a studio to talk about building private clouds. They’re remit is ‘be helpful’ and to give us a, ‘check list for building a private cloud.’ We’re hoping by the time they're finished you'll have something of a weighty steer on what it takes …

    Cloud 22 Feb 2012, 14:00

  • Finally a use for PlayBook: Tab bodged into Windows, PS3 remote

    RIM's fondleslab needs all the love it can muster

    The updated OS pushed out to PlayBooks yesterday can turn a BlackBerry handset into a remote control for Windows 7, or even Android, thanks to the wonders of Bluetooth. The feature was spotted by the chaps over at the RIM-obsessed CrackBerry blog, who wasted no time demonstrating how a BlackBerry handset, prompted by linking …

    Operating Systems 22 Feb 2012, 14:29

  • Biz bazaar Alibaba goes private, watches shares soar

    Firm exits market while mulling Yahoo! stake slurp

    Shares in China's Alibaba.com jumped 43 per cent today when it announced it was going private. Parent company Alibaba Group said it was going to pay shareholders HK$13.50 for their stocks, a premium of around 46 per cent on the last closing price before the announcement of HK$9.25. Shares have since spiked to HK$13.20 as …

    Small Biz 22 Feb 2012, 14:46

  • Nekkid Tech: I am Virtual Man

    Podcast Slicing and dicing, virty tech, Symantec's sueball and more ...

    This week Greg Knieriemen and trusty sidekick Ed Saipetch (@edasi) go virtual, chatting to special guest Steve Kaplan – Vice President Data Center Virtualization Practice at Presidio (@roidude) – about everything from Nix's rib-cracking antics to VMWare's push into the cloud. This week we discuss: Fred Nix taking a spill; …

    Virtualization 22 Feb 2012, 15:07

  • Inside Apple

    Review More than just a Jobsworth

    While Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs was notable for the contribution, by way of hours of interviews, of the man himself, it could hardly be described as revelatory. The darker side of the way Apple was run by Jobs, for example, was glossed over. By contrast, Adam Lashinsky’s Inside Apple aims to get under the skin of …

    Hardware 22 Feb 2012, 15:13

  • Sony's 'Dot Switch' unveiled as interactive Android app

    Don't bereave the hype

    Sony's Dot Switch technology was revealed this week to be an Android app which allows users to interact with live events. Its first use will be in conjunction with American pop group Karmin, set to make an appearance on Japan's TBS network. Those who tap into the app during the performance will help create, ahem, "an …

    Phones 22 Feb 2012, 15:16

  • Labour targets Tories' Google problem

    What's good for the Chocolate Factory is good for us

    Labour has chastised the Conservatives for digital economy policies - and is targeting what may be the Conservatives' closeness to Google. In addition to calling for more innovation from the entertainment industries, shadow culture secretary Harriet Harman called for greater corporate social responsibility from Google. "If …

    Government 22 Feb 2012, 15:38

  • GPS jamming rife, could PARALYSE Blighty, say usual suspects

    'Sometimes a jammer goes by EVERY FEW DAYS'

    Technical experts are once again predicting imminent doom caused by interference with Global Positioning System (GPS) sat-nav receivers. A nationwide UK network of detectors has reportedly discovered widespread employment of GPS jammer devices, and calls are being made for a harsh crackdown on users of such devices. "Today's …

    Government 22 Feb 2012, 15:57

  • Microsoft blasts 'web video killer' Motorola Mobility in EU gripe

    Updated Googorola patents complaint probe launched

    Microsoft filed a formal antitrust complaint against Motorola Mobility this morning in Brussels, following the European Commission's decision to clear Google's takeover of the mobile biz earlier this month. Redmond's beef with Google relates to "standard essential patents" that MS rather hysterically claimed could be used by …

    Law 22 Feb 2012, 16:29

  • India seeks new supplier for $35 Android tablet

    Performance grumbles

    The Indian Government is seeking extra manufacturers for the Aakash, the $35 Android tablet that launched in the sub-continent in 2011. The Aakash, built by British company DataWind to an India Institute of Technology spec, has been blasted for its slow processor speed, low battery capacity and unresponsive touchscreen. Mind …

    Tablets 22 Feb 2012, 16:47

  • Planet-wide cloud dream burst by nations' laws - BSA

    Report huffs at privacy safeguards and trade rules

    A US software industry report has warned that certain countries are threatening the future of cloud computing with regulations and policies that stifle the fluffy atmosphere. The Business Software Alliance published a Global Cloud Computing Scorecard, which noted that countries including India, China and Brazil would need " …

    Cloud 22 Feb 2012, 17:32

  • Grumble-flick chat site exposes flirts' privates

    Oh, put it away - no, too late

    The email addresses and passwords of more than a million users of the YouPorn sex chat site were exposed to all and sundry this week following a coding error that went undetected for years. The data - which identifies customers of the smut site, exposing them to potential embarrassment as a result - might also be used in …

    Security 22 Feb 2012, 18:31

  • CIA tells big biz to serve up bite-size software

    Spies want latest shiny tech on pay-as-you-go

    The CIA has told big software firms that it plans to ditch long-term licenses in favour of a slurp-as-you-go approach to new technology. The US spy service said it didn't want to splash out on enterprise licensing agreements and then getting stuck with old technology, but wanted to buy bits and pieces of software on a metered …

    Applications 22 Feb 2012, 19:28

  • Global DNS takedown plotters disowned by Anonymous

    Alleged power grid threat also cobblers, say hacktivists

    Anonymous has distanced itself from a plot to knock out critical systems in the backbone of the internet. Documents posted on Pastebin and elsewhere warn of a planned attack against the main DNS root servers on 31 March as part of a protest against SOPA and other hated copyright enforcement measures. If successful, the attack …

    Security 22 Feb 2012, 20:19

  • OPERA grabs spanner, fixes kit, and slows down neutrinos

    Ye canna break the laws of physics, it seems

    According to a breaking report from Science, last year’s famous faster-than-light neutrino finding has been attributed to a cable fault. The report says insiders at the OPERA collaboration have found that “a bad connection between a GPS unit and a computer may be to blame”. The experiment last year seemed to identify …

    Science 22 Feb 2012, 20:59

  • Spitzer spots first solid buckyballs in stellar disc

    Stacks the size of 10,000 Everests found

    The first solid “buckyball” Carbon-60 molecules have been spotted forming a ring around a star 6,500 light-years away, according to data from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope. A new paper reports a pair of stars called "XX Ophiuchi," with what looks like a disc of the molecules - dubbed Buckminsterfullerene after the architect …

    Science 22 Feb 2012, 21:02

  • HP earnings fall 44% on Whitman's debut quarter

    Revenues crash in key markets

    Meg Whitman’s earnings statement from the first quarter of 2012 doesn’t look good, as she tries to clean the Augean stable left by Léo Apotheker. In her first full quarter as CEO earnings for the company were down 44 per cent on the previous year, with the company getting hammered on revenues in the fast-growing Asia Pacific …

    Financial News 22 Feb 2012, 21:50

  • Harvard boffins cause buzz with robot bee

    Our new insect overlords will come in a flat pack

    Instead of building a robot, why not print it? That’s more-or-less the approach demonstrated by Harvard engineers with an ingenious and attention-grabbing miniature robot bee. The process, which allows fixed and flexible joints to be created by layering materials in fabrication rather than assembling them, and allowing them to …

    Science 22 Feb 2012, 22:00