7th June 2012 Archive

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Cable cut didn’t send Oz Transit of Venus feed dark

Network config, not backhoe mayhem

As the world readied to spent hours cyber-slacking to watch the Transit of Venus yesterday, a careless backhoe was being accused of sending NASA’s Alice Springs feed offline. The cable cut, 20 Km south of the Territorian town of Mataranka, knocked a large slab of the largely-empty state offline, including Alice Springs and …

Science 7 Jun 00:45
Oracle's big cloud announcement, again

Digs at SAP and Workday, better SLAs for tech support

If you didn't have much to do this afternoon and tuned into the much-pumped Oracle cloud announcement, you probably were left scratching your head about an hour and a half later if you stuck around (as El Reg is paid to do), wondering what, exactly, Oracle announced and why it took so long to do it. Oracle did not "round out" …

Cloud 7 Jun 00:59
How to put "Stuxnet author" on your CV

"Malware is a legitimate occupation," suggests analyst

With Stuxnet outed as a government-sponsored project by none other that one B. Obama of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the world has concrete evidence that states commission the coding of malware. That evidence led Anton Chuvakin, a research director in Gartner's IT1 Security and Risk Management group, to ponder just what the …

Jobs 7 Jun 01:43
AMD crashes Windows 8 tablet party with ultrathin hybrid

Trinity-based not-quite-ultrabooks could sell for US$500

AMD struggled to make itself heard above all the Intel Ivy Bridge noise at Computex this week, but did manage to introduce new E-Series APUs for the budget notebook and desktop market and show off a solitary Windows 8 tablet hybrid prototype running its new Trinity architecture. The firm said its 2012 E-Series APUs – the chips …

reghardware 7 Jun 03:43
HDD oligopoly to keep post-flood prices high till 2014

Surging demand and vendor lock-in delays return to 2011

Hard disk drive prices are unlikely to return to pre-flood levels until 2014 despite rising production levels, thanks to surging demand, vendor lock-in and a market dominated by just two suppliers, according to analysts. IHS iSuppli’s latest Memory & Storage Market Brief report revealed that the average selling price (ASP) for …

Data Center 7 Jun 04:32
Salary packager plans cloud boomerang

Hosted CRM to go on-premises, then off to cloud

Am Australian company has just deployed hosted CRM but plans to bring it back on-premises, before sending it back out to the cloud in future. The company in question is called Remunerator Group, and last year it plumped for a new Microsoft Dynamics system to beef up workflow for complaints handling. That project went well and …

Cloud 7 Jun 04:45
Dinosaurs on a diet shed tonnes

Boffins revise sauropod weight estimates downwards

Dinosaurs were probably skinnier and lighter than previously imagined, according to a new paper in Biology Letters. Minimum convex hull mass estimations of complete mounted skeletons says “Volumetric methods are becoming more common as techniques for estimating the body masses of fossil vertebrates. However, they are often …

Science 7 Jun 05:41
Dating site eHarmony plays data-breach me-too

‘Security of our users is important’

Along with the LinkedIn password dump, dating site eHarmony has confirmed that some of its users’ passwords have also been published online, possibly by the same attacker as that obtained the LinkedIn data. The company has responded with the usual “the security of our users” bromide here. It says all affected user passwords …

Security 7 Jun 05:51
AMD and Nvidia extreme GPUs workout

Extreme PC Week Visual feast

At the very extreme end of desktop graphics are the dual GPU, frame crunching, power hungry monsters that you won’t give you much change from a grand. The extreme offerings can be a little difficult to find too, as most card vendors only produce a limited range. Instead, they prefer to concentrate on the next rung on the …

reghardware 7 Jun 06:00
Apple taunts Proview with new store plans

Job ads point to Shenzhen and Chengdu stores

Apple looks set to inflame its already tense relationship with IPAD trademark rival Proview by opening a retail store in its home town of Shenzhen, as well as a separate outlet in the western city of Chengdu. The shiny toy maker was invited by Chengdu mayor Ge Honglin to open a store in the city, the capital of Sichuan …

Business 7 Jun 06:30
HP gets smart on storage with workload-aware caching

Gen 8 ProLiants caching 3PAR arrays

HP says its Gen 8 ProLiant servers use real-time analysis to build "the future of converged storage". But what does it mean? Gen 8 ProLiant servers include workload-aware intelligent caching for virtualised and non-virtualised environments. The server's Smart Storage analyses different types of workload data and dynamically …

Storage 7 Jun 07:01
Vint Cerf: 'COMMUNISTS want to seize the INTERNET'

Comment Actually 'meritocratic democracy' is the True Way

No less a figure than Vint Cerf has been addressing the US Congress on why the UN can't be allowed to control the internet, whipping up sentiment against a supposed takeover bid and at the same time advocating something at least as controversial. Testifying to the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee, on …

Broadband 7 Jun 07:32
Gov not using 6 MILLION of its software licences

Plans 'dynamic' transfer after premature PIN push

The government's recent end of first year ICT strategy report revealed that in the 12 months from April 2011 to April 2012, the total number of software licences held in the government's assets and services register was 18.4 million. But the total number used was around 12 million, suggesting that 6 million software licences are …

Government 7 Jun 08:02
Android Academy cashes in on tests for well-off devs

Remember the Symbian Academy? Thought not.

Developer portal The Android Academy has started issuing certificates to those who know their Nexus-6 from their Max 404, and are prepared to pay £150 to prove it. The Android Academy is a spin-off from software development house OTAMate, and has been offering registration and hookup services for Android developers since 2009 …

Developer 7 Jun 08:32
We'll pull the plug on info-leak smart meters, warns UK.gov

Lose customer data and lose your licence

The government plans to place a specific obligation for data security on the suppliers of smart meters as part of its conditions for granting licences to install the technology and use it to monitor customers' energy supplies, it has confirmed. In its latest consultation [18-page/118KB PDF] on use of the technology, the …

Science 7 Jun 09:04
Facebook techie strokes STEC's hot data flash drive

That's a Like for server-side caches

SSD supplier STEC has built software to bump hot data on disks into server flash caches to get I/O-bound apps running faster. It's called EnhancedIO SSD Cache Software and is available for Linux and Windows. A particular Linux version, based on Facebook's FlashCache module for its cloudy data centres, will be available under …

Cloud 7 Jun 09:22
Vodafone and O2 to merge mobile networks

And then there were two

O2 and Vodafone will pool their mobile phone masts and antennas to slash costs and reduce the number of physical networks in Blighty to two. The pair will compete as separate operators, using different radio frequencies, but by 2015 those signals will be received by jointly-owned antennas and backhauled over shared cables. The …

Mobile 7 Jun 09:44
LinkedIn admits site hack, adds pinch of salt to passwords

Biz network says it has upped security

LinkedIn has confirmed that the list of 6.5 million user passwords leaked yesterday is genuine. The social network for suits said it was still investigating the situation, but it said the SHA-1-hashed password list posted on a Russian Dropbox-alike site contained real user data. LinkedIn has chucked compromised users' …

Security 7 Jun 10:03
Code glitch floored Reg reader altimeter

LOHAN barometric kit off for reprogramming

Reader Neil Barnes says he's nailed the reason his barometric altimeter failed the Rocketry Experimental High Altitude Barosimulator (REHAB) test last week, and is poised to reprogram the device for another pop in our shed-built hypobaric chamber. To recap, Neil kindly sent over an altimeter he put together a few years back, …

SPB 7 Jun 10:21
Microsoft takes on the private cloud

Feature Trevor Pott's take on Microsoft

To many, private cloud is simply virtualisation plus management. But there is more to it than that. There is an awful lot of misunderstanding surrounding such an important design concept, in part stemming from a lack of exposure to what is possible with today's technology. Different vendors say different things based upon the …

Cloud 7 Jun 10:30
'iPhone 5 case' sparks supplier fondle frenzy

Rumour with a view

Whispers surrounding Apple's next iPhone show no sign of slowing, with the prospect of a 4in display model gaining traction following video of a supposed iPhone 5 backcover that surfaced on the web this week. The clip – snapped by the guys at eTradeSupply – shows the unibody plate design we've already been introduced to …

reghardware 7 Jun 10:45
O2, Be Broadband axe Pirate Bay access

Blockade to appear overnight

Telefonica, which owns the O2 brand and fixed-line provider Be Broadband, is implementing a High Court order to block conventional web access to file-sharing search engine The Pirate Bay. O2 confirmed to The Register that it will join BSkyB, Virgin Media and Everything Everywhere by cutting off www.thepiratebay.se from its …

Networks 7 Jun 10:46
HMRC Tax Calc

iOS App of the Week The money program

The Inland Revenue’s latest on-line tax calculator fell flat on its face when it was launched last week – swamped, no doubt, by starving millionaires desperate to know how much their 5 per cent tax cut was worth. Quick input and summary calculation And even when it was up and running again the on-line calculator didn’t …

reghardware 7 Jun 11:00
Intel phone boss: 'Multi-core detrimental to Android mobes'

But if you want Windows 8, you need to be rolling in cash

Intel’s head of mobile has dissed handset-makers that have already adopted multi-core processor architectures, saying that most implementations so far are actually “detrimental”. Mike Bell, general manager of Intel’s Mobile and Communications Group, also said that smartphone users who buy into Chipzilla's platform can expect …

Hardware 7 Jun 11:18
NASDAQ offers $40m to Facebook IPOcalypse investors

Cash apology after gremlins hit trading

NASDAQ has offered Facebook investors a $40m apology pot for technical glitches that messed up the public sale of the social network's shares - much to the annoyance of rival exchanges. The stock market giant needs a thumbs up from regulators before it can hand over $26m (£16.7m) in trading discounts and $13.7m (£8.8m) in cash …

Financial News 7 Jun 11:43
Ambulance-chasing resellers will die on life support

Trend Micro's Tim Ayling on value versus fast bucks

In challenging economic times it’s fair to say that every company’s primary job is to stay afloat. Even in the information security industry, which was shielded better than most from the worst effects of the global recession, the survival instinct is still clearly visible. In the channel, however, the complex relationships …

Channel Register 7 Jun 12:02
Touchscreens to get finger friendly

Haptic humping points the way

Haptic technologies are so advanced these days that we will soon see feel touchscreen displays make physical buttons appear and disappear when needed. Well, those are the claims of Tactus Technology, which has such a product in the works that it hopes to see fitted in devices as early as next year. The company utilises …

reghardware 7 Jun 12:15
Windows 8: Not even Microsoft thinks businesses will use it

Analysis An entire enterprise cycle binned in Metro madness

Like Thelma and Louise, executives at Microsoft's Windows division have no doubts about which direction they want to point the car. It's pedal to the floor, and over the cliff as fast as they can drive. Last week the latest Windows 8 public preview confirmed what many had expected and feared: there will be no compromise on the …

Channel Register 7 Jun 12:29
Hungry reseller bags HMRC big cheese as COO

Steve Lamey brings bulging contact book to Kelway

Kelway has poached HMRC bigwig Steve Lamey to take on the role of chief operating officer to oversee services transformation at the acquisitive London-based reseller. Lamey joined HMRC as CIO in early summer of 2004 and was made COO a little over three years later. Most recently he was director general for benefits and credits …

Channel Register 7 Jun 12:51
1,000 Foxconn iPad workers trash dorms in riot against guards

Nothing to do with us, says just-slap-an-Apple-sticker-on-it giant

A riot broke out at a Foxconn workers' dormitory in Chengdu after hundreds of workers got involved in a clash with security guards, according to reports from Chinese human rights website Molihua [English version in the Want China Times here]. The incident at the dorm started at about 9pm on Monday and escalated into a full- …

Security 7 Jun 13:11
Molyneux chisels away at social experiment

Curiosity is the name of the game

Peter Molyneux's new studio 22Cans is ready to launch its first game, Curiosity, an app that looks at how social media is used to spread information, apparently. The Bafta fellow revealed details about the unique game, in which players contribute towards chiselling away at a black cube in a virtual room, causing it to fracture …

reghardware 7 Jun 13:25
Hackers, bloggers 'bunged cash to spin for Iran 2.0'

CyCon 2012 Put in a good tweet for us, says Revolutionary Guard

The Iranian government is investing heavily in hacking expertise and online propaganda in order to promote its way of life under the country's post-Islamic Revolution regime - as well as using its new resources to tighten up control and surveillance of its citizens. This is according to Jeff Bardin, chief intelligence officer …

Security 7 Jun 13:38
Space shuttle Enterprise makes final voyage – to New York

Final destination: Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Musuem

Crowds of locals and tourists turned out yesterday to see space shuttle Enterprise come to her final rest at her floating museum home. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls After a day's weather delay, the shuttle set out from New Jersey port on a barge, passing the Statue of Liberty on her way north to the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space …

Science 7 Jun 14:05
Microsoft 'hardens' Windows Update from Flame penetration

How the hot malware burned a new hole in Redmond's backside

Microsoft has "hardened" its Windows Update system after researchers discovered the Flame virus can infect PCs by offering itself as an update masquerading as official Microsoft software. The sophisticated worm has been hurtling through computers in the Middle East and beyond for up to two years before being unearthed by …

Security 7 Jun 14:29
New London Bus API arrived at approximately ... 15.00

TfL's bus ticker reveals how late you'll be

This afternoon, Transport for London opened up an API to share the data normally displayed in bus shelters with one and all, so expect a deluge of route-planning apps just in time for the Olympics. The API joins up existing data feeds for Boris-bike availability, vehicle traffic and waiting times for trains, and is already …

Cloud 7 Jun 14:56
10m years ago there was less CO2 - but the Earth was WARMER

Warmth and carbon 'decoupled': 'A surprising finding'

Scientists are puzzled today by the discovery that millions of years ago levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere were lower - and yet, temperatures were higher than today's. The revelations come in a new paper just published by hefty boffinry mag Nature, in which geoscientists probed the temperatures experienced by the …

Science 7 Jun 15:32
Samsung 'to launch Galaxy S III in US', snubs Apple's ban bid

Pre-sale numbers have Cupertino worried

Samsung has said that its Galaxy S III smartphone will launch in the US, despite Apple's attempts to get it banned. The fruity firm moved to tack the S III onto its preliminary injunction request against the Galaxy Nexus smartphone on Tuesday in its second California court lawsuit. A hearing on the Nexus is scheduled for today …

reghardware 7 Jun 16:01
HTC torches forecasts as stock tsunami floods skint Europe

Eurozone meltdown as smartphones pile up in Q2

HTC has slashed its Q2 top and bottom line estimates as it clears the glut of stock in the supply chain and acknowledges weakened demand in Europe. The Taiwanese firm revealed revenues for the period are expected to be NT$91bn (£1.9bn) or some 13.3 per cent lower than the NT$105bn it forecast in April. Operating margin was …

Channel Register 7 Jun 16:28
Bill Gates' used car sells for $80,000

Billionaire philanthopist's old Porsche 911 tops auction estimates

Proving that the pixie dust of fame can enhance the value of most anything, a 33-year-old Porsche 911 Turbo once owned by Bill Gates was sold at auction for far above its estimated value. "There was enormous interest in this item from all over the world," Wolfgang Humer, spokesman for the Viennese Dorotheum auction house that …

Bootnotes 7 Jun 16:49
Samsung plunges $500k into Linux Foundation

P-p-p-picks up a different penguin in Apple struggle

Samsung has opened a new front in the mobile wars against Apple by upping its investment in Linux and its mobile software. Samsung will plough half a million dollars into the Linux Foundation and get a seat on the not-for-profit's board of directors by becoming a Platinum member of the Foundation, it has been announced. Linux …

Developer 7 Jun 17:06
Bradley Manning in court as lawyers wrestle over secret docs

Pre-trial hearing for soldier accused of WikiLeaks dump

Bradley Manning, the US soldier charged with leaking confidential government and military documents to whistleblowing platform WikiLeaks, returned to court yesterday for the first day of a pretrial hearing as lawyers argued over what documents were relevant to his case. The 23-year-old has been in jail since May 2010. Manning …

Law 7 Jun 17:27
MPAA sympathetic to returning legitimate Megaupload files

Court documents reveal conciliatory tone

The Motion Picture Ass. of America has indicated it wouldn't oppose users of the now-defunct Megaupload file-sharing service retrieving their data – if it isn't pirated. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed a legal suit with Megaupload user Kyle Goodwin for the return his files from the service, which was shut down …

Media 7 Jun 17:52
LinkedIn users buried in spam after database leak

Hackers go phishing with their new bait

LinkedIn users are being bombarded by spam emails after the social network was hacked and hashed passwords of users dumped online. Members of the business network told The Register that they had received scores of invitations to "link in" with new connections, often flagged with warnings from their email provider that the …

Security 7 Jun 18:04
Samsung slams down $1.9bn for mobile chip fab

Names top chip-head CEO

Memory and processor chip maker Samsung Electronics is plunking down 2.25 trillion Korean won (about $1.9bn) to beef up its chip-making capacity, and rumors are doing the rounds that it has tapped the head of its semiconductor ops to be the new CEO of the company. In a brief statement, Samsung said that its management …

Hardware 7 Jun 18:32
US Navy uncloaks stealthy underwater solar cells

Energy capture up to nine meters down

Scientists at the US Navy Research Laboratory (NRL) are developing solar cells that can work effectively up to nine meters underwater, powering marine systems for long periods of time. Big data is not just for the boardroom, but for the battlefield as well, and military planners are working on using a lot more stealthy sensors …

Science 7 Jun 19:35
SUSE Linux and Canonical invade ~~Windows~~ Azure

What about a Linux platform cloud, Microsoft?

There's more to Microsoft's announcement that it will support Linux on its new Azure infrastructure cloud than sleeping with the enemy. While Red Hat Enterprise Linux is conspicuously absent from the list of supported Linuxes, the fact remains that Red Hat doesn't exactly need any help from Microsoft, and that SUSE Linux and …

Cloud 7 Jun 21:48
Last.fm tell users to change passwords IMMEDIATELY

Jumps before the Pastebin post

Last.fm users are the latest internet community to get the “change your password” message as the music streaming site investigates a “leak of some user passwords”. However, unlike LinkedIn or eHarmony, Last.fm has jumped on the suspicion that something’s wrong, rather than waiting for user passwords to appear on the Internet. …

Security 7 Jun 22:41
Flame gets suicide command

Symantec honeypot spots ‘flame-out’

The controllers of the Flame malware have apparently reacted to the publicity surrounding the attack by sending a self-destruct command. According to Symantec, some command-and-control machines have sent a command designed to wipe Flame from compromised computers. The command, which Symantec has dubbed “urgent suicide”, was …

Security 7 Jun 22:43