The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

11th April 2013 Archive

Browse by publication date, or search the site.

  • Chemical-dipped TRANSPARENT BRAINS bare all for science

    See-through cerebrums leave neural structures exposed

    A team of neuroboffins at Stanford University have a developed a chemical process that can render grey matter transparent, a trick they say will fundamentally change our scientific understanding of the brain. "This feat of chemical engineering promises to transform the way we study the brain's anatomy and how disease changes …

    Science 11 Apr 01:09

  • Researcher hacks aircraft controls with Android smartphone

    This may give the TSA some ideas

    A presentation at the Hack In The Box security summit in Amsterdam has demonstrated that it's possible to take control of aircraft flight systems and communications using an Android smartphone and some specialized attack code. Hugo Teso, a security researcher at N.Runs and a commercial airline pilot, spent three years …

    Security 11 Apr 01:12

  • Bitcoin gets a $100 haircut on rollercoaster trading run

    Cointards perplexed as rampant speculation leads to crash

    Virtual currency Bitcoin lost $100 in value relative to the US dollar on Wednesday due to panic selling by its devotees. The currency began tumbling from a high of $260 on Wednesday after major Bitcoin exchange MtGox started getting hammered by many micro trading requests per second. This bout of high-frequency Bitcoin trading …

    Business 11 Apr 01:15

  • Planes in thunderstorms cop gamma ray bursts

    Only little ones, fortunately

    It's long been known that flying exposes people to more cosmic rays than land-lubbers, but new research suggests another source of airborne irradiation: high-energy “dark lightning” that gives rise to gamma radiation. Florida Institute of Technology researcher Joseph Dwyer outlined the idea at a meeting of the European …

    Science 11 Apr 01:16

  • SSH an ill-managed mess says SSH author Tatu Ylonen

    IETF draft a first step to new version

    Tatu Ylonen, author of the SSH protocol, isn't afraid of criticising his own work: he's calling for a new version of the Secure Shell to make it more manageable and get rid of the problem of undocumented rogue keys. In this IETF Draft, Ylonen proposes a regime for key management, including key discovery, to overcome the …

    Security 11 Apr 01:56

  • Oracle embraces NetApp and Cisco's FlexPod

    Oracle virtualisation, Linux and apps coming to rivals' stack-in-a-box

    A couple of weeks back, Gartner told The Reg that Oracle has more room for growth in virtualisation than just about any other player, perhaps including Microsoft. That prediction looks a little sounder today, after LarryLand let it be known it has teamed up with NetApp to create an Oracle-centric of the storage vendor's …

    Cloud Infrastructure 11 Apr 02:33

  • StreetView spots possible roadside nookie down under

    NSFWish A boy, a girl, Google, suspiciously-placed pants and a national highway

    Google's privacy-invading StreetView machines may have captured their most embarassing moment yet, after images of what looks an awful lot like a couple indulging in some horizontal folk dancing on the hood of a car emerged on Reddit. The photograph was taken here, on the Dukes Highway in the Australian State of South …

    Networks 11 Apr 04:31

  • The gloves are on: Nokia emits super-sensitive £99 Windows Phone

    Along with svelte sibling

    Nokia's sub-£100 Lumia 520 has rolled out in the UK this week, alongside a keenly priced and attractive unibody sibling, the Lumia 720. Both were announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February. The Lumia 620 put a modern Nokia at a price point under £150, but now the slightly larger size has made it even cheaper. …

    Phones 11 Apr 05:00

  • AMI PC firmware upgrade scare: The global security meltdown that wasn't

    Analysis Although someone did 'open source' its code

    A computer hardware maker that leaked the source code to American Megatrends Inc's PC firmware did not reveal private keys for signing firmware updates - contrary to early reports. The blueprints for AMI's UEFI firmware were found by a security researcher on a wide-open Taiwanese FTP server along with what appeared to be …

    Security 11 Apr 06:00

  • IBM Australia on the stand over $1bn blowout

    Inquiry asks why ex-IBMer wanted Big Blue in the race for payroll system

    In 2007 the Australian State of Queensland decided it needed shared services arrangements to streamline its affairs and reduce costs. One shared service was a new payroll system that would be used, in part, by the State's health department. IBM won a deal to do the job for an initial payment of $AUD6.19m. But by the time the …

    Government 11 Apr 06:17

  • Another 170,000 Freeview homes to be freed from reality TV - possibly

    4G broadband in telly bout dann sarf

    170,000 London homes will get letters in the next day or two, telling them they're in the next phase of 4G testing and offering telephone support for anyone who sees Freeview disappear on Monday. The testing follows a 22,000-home trial in the Midlands, which went remarkably well, if you're a network operator worried about …

    Media 11 Apr 07:00

  • Industry upstart: You know what high-end HPC needs? More DAY-GLO

    HPC blog Thought we were going to say faster compute, dintcha?

    One of the best things about industry events like the GPU Technology Conference (GTC 2013) is walking around the trade show floor. It gives me a chance to talk to smaller, niche companies who don’t get the media coverage given to the titans of the high-performance computing industry. (Or to Titan the supercomputer, for that …

    HPC 11 Apr 07:30

  • Aruba battles BlackBerry to protect biz from staffers' nasty iPhone apps

    This time with network support too

    Aruba Networks has joined the mobile container fray with WorkSpace, providing enterprises with a secure BYOD platform which can be distributed to untrusted devices - and taking on BlackBerry and Samsung in the process. Aruba's container integrates with its existing authentication system, ClearPass, and can make use of the …

    Mobile 11 Apr 08:00

  • HGST straps Intel Thunderbolt onto uber-pricey drives, docks

    Go-faster interface tech, but it'll cost you...

    The first external hard drive with Intel's extremely pricey Thunderbolt fast cabling system has been announced by HGST, along with a Thunderbolt interface 2-drive dock supporting 2.5-inch disks. G-Technology is HGST's branded line of external drive products and HGST is a WD operating unit. Intel's Thunderbolt runs at 10Gbit/s …

    Hardware 11 Apr 08:30

  • Shaky liftoff for Sputnik: Dell's Linux lappie runs its own cloud, ish

    Review In 8GB of RAM and 256GB flash. And don't mention the Bluetooth

    Want a laptop running Linux? You could do worse than Dell's XPS 13. This svelte model began life a year or so ago as a Windows Ultrabook. More recently it was updated with Intel Ivy Bridge processors and a 13.3" 1080p screen. The XPS 13 Developer Edition - because only software developers use Linux, right? - uses a high-end …

    Laptops 11 Apr 09:00

  • Sanbolic reveals flashy server goodness with Melio 5

    Ships server-side scale-out SSD-supporting services

    That's right: storage software supplier Sanbolic is shipping server-side scale-out services supporting SSDs. But what does it mean? Sanbolic's Melio 5 software turns a server's directly-attached flash, SSDs and HDDs into a SAN, combining multiple server's storage resources into a single resource pool. Sanbolic says it " …

    Storage 11 Apr 09:25

  • WTF is... H.265 aka HEVC?

    Feature Ultra-efficient vid codec paves way for MONSTER-res TVs, decent mobe streaming

    When Samsung unveiled its next-generation smartphone, the Galaxy S4, in March this year, most of the Korean giant’s fans focused their attention on the device’s big 5-inch, 1920 x 1080 screen, its quad-core processor and its 13Mp camera. All impressive of course, but incremental steps in the ongoing evolution of the smartphone. …

    Phones 11 Apr 10:05

  • Google U-turn DID preempt ICANN's block on corporate gTLD-snatchers

    .search, .blog, .cloud and .app safeguarded for 'public interest'

    It's official - Google did indeed correctly judge that ICANN would halt corporate attempts to exclusively snatch generic top level domain names for commercial use. The internet overlord, which is charging companies to take control of new suffixes to supplement the established TLDs such as .com, .org and .uk, said (PDF) at a …

    Hosting 11 Apr 10:27

  • BizNAS at the front, party at the back: Tandberg adds Dropbox to NAS crate

    Stripped-down Linux storage box for biz types

    BizNAS is Tandberg Data's latest offering - a small business NAS box with iSCSI block access and integrated Dropbox support plus backup to removable disk. The system, available in 1U rackmount and desktop configurations, is powered by Debian Linux running on dual-core Intel Atom processors. It boasts four drive bays and …

    Storage 11 Apr 10:38

  • Software defined networking works up a head of steam

    Automation takes over the data centre

    Software-defined networking (SDN) represents a revolutionary tide flowing through the fusty, slow-moving halls of data-centre networking, bringing speed and dynamism to network connectivity management.. The idea that computer data network connectivity can be automatically set up to have its characteristics changed as needs …

    Data Networking 11 Apr 11:00

  • Hey Intel, Microsoft: Share those profits with your PC pals, eh? - analyst

    Toppling tower of PC weaklings could bury giants, Gartner warns

    Tech research analyst Gartner reckons profit-hoggers Intel and Microsoft need to give their PC-producing pals a shot in the arm. This may be a radical solution proposed by the beancounter, but such is the perilous state of the classic PC market that something has got to give. At least, that's what Gartner reckons. "Microsoft …

    The Channel 11 Apr 11:24

  • Google asks Blighty to slave over its Maps for FREE

    OK, OK, it's a crowd-sourced map-editing tool

    Google is extending its Map Maker editing tool to users in Blighty, so they can help the Chocolate Factory get its maps right. Googlers in the US, France, Australia and over a dozen other countries have been able to add detail to Maps on the browser-based software for as long as five years now, as the tool has spread since its …

    Applications 11 Apr 11:39

  • Sonic the Hedgehog

    Antique Code Show Sega's spikey blue erinaceinus across platforms, across time

    Pocket-money saved, game ordered, wait for the postman and... nothing. A friend had the game already – rubbing salt into the wound – yet my journey of anticipation home from school each day still arrived at a big hole of spiky blue hedgehog nothingness. The original Sonic the Hedgehog was especially hyped throughout its long …

    Games 11 Apr 12:00

  • P2P badboys The Pirate Bay kicked out of Greenland: Took under 48 hours

    Arrrrr... But we only just got here

    The Pirate Bay has been torpedoed after telecoms companies from two countries blocked the website’s dual domains. The world’s largest file-sharing site moved a Swedish .se domain to a Greenland-based .gl address between late Monday night and early Tuesday morning after apparently being tipped off that the Swedes were planning …

    Hosting 11 Apr 12:19

  • Dinosaur embryos FOUND: Resurrection 'out of the question'* - boffin

    Fast-growing bones point to SUPER-SHORT incubation period

    Dinosaur embryos wiggled around in their eggs just like the embryos of modern birds, scientists have found. The boffins made the discovery after a cache of fossilised dino bones and eggs were dug up in southwest China. The scientists are hoping to find out more about the Jurassic-era creatures by analysing remnants of complex …

    Science 11 Apr 13:28

  • Foot-long slab too big? Microsoft 'has a 7-incher' to stroke

    Smaller Surface tab rumoured to chase iPad Mini sales

    Microsoft will put a smaller, 7-inch Windows 8-powered Surface laptop-cum-tablet into production this year, according to insiders. Shrinking the touchscreen slab wasn't part of Microsoft's strategy when the then-Windows chief Steven Sinofsky unveiled Redmond's own 12-inch Surfaces and similar-sized Windows 8 devices from PC …

    Tablets 11 Apr 13:46

  • There's more to cloud computing than just hosting

    It's all about choice

    There’s a trick we use at Freeform Dynamics when trying to figure out the true significance, if any, of the latest Big Thing being promoted by IT vendors and pundits. We ask ourselves what will be left when the marketers get bored with the current buzz words and move on to the next Big Thing, as they inevitably will. As an …

    Cloud 11 Apr 14:00

  • Remember Streetmap? It's suing Google in a UK court

    Files complaint to 'protect its business'

    Google is being sued by UK-based website Streetmap, which is also one of the complainants in the lengthy European Union investigation into allegations that the ad giant is "abusing its dominance" in the online search business. Streetmap said it had filed a complaint against Google in Britain's High Court in a defensive move to …

    Law 11 Apr 14:07

  • Google submits 'formal commitments' to EC over search

    Now will you pull out the probe?

    Google has submitted a formal concessions package to the European Commission's competition chief. Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said earlier this week that Google was set to put forward proposed changes to its business practices in the hope of avoiding sanctions over allegations it abuses its dominant position in the EU's …

    Law 11 Apr 14:25

  • Microsoft crowns Barclay as new queen of UK channel

    Unthroned Ridgway heading to Latin America as veep

    Microsoft veteran Clare Barclay has confirmed that she is to head up the UK and Ireland channel as current incumbent Barry Ridgway heads off to Latin America. Channel oldtimer Barclay has been director of SMB for a number of years and knows the UK partner network well. She told The Channel that Ridgway is heading off to …

    The Channel 11 Apr 14:30

  • Mozilla CEO exits just as Firefox mobiles roll out

    Two years a long stint in Mozilla time

    Mozilla's chief executive is stepping down amid a re-positioning of the managerial brass after barely two years into a mission to take Firefox mobile. Gary Kovacs, appointed Mozilla's third CEO in November 2010, will vacate his position "later this year" with the Firefox shop now beginning a search for a brand-new chief …

    Media 11 Apr 15:05

  • Administrator: 2e2 owed £412m to creditors when it went titsup

    Well-known channel firms owed MEELLIONS

    2e2 Ltd crashed out of business owing creditors a little over £412m, the firm's administrator FTI Consulting has confirmed in its statement of affairs. The document, seen by The Channel, revealed debts secured by floating charges of £161.5m pertaining to the integrator's banking syndicate, and unsecured non-preferential claims …

    The Channel 11 Apr 15:32

  • Microsoft Xbox exec quits after ENRAGING the INTERWEBS

    'Always-on' Twitter gaffe provoked wrath of gamers

    A high-flying Microsoft creative director has quit after enraging Xbox owners with a widely publicised tweet saying they should get used to consoles being constantly connected to to the internet. A week ago, Adam Orth provoked the wrath of bedroom-bound gamers and industry experts alike after sharing his thoughts on the always …

    Games 11 Apr 16:05

  • Malware-flinging Winnti crew has been RIPPING OFF gaming firms for YEARS

    Researchers: Cyberespionage campaign still targeting vid game vendors

    Security researchers have discovered an active cyber-crime campaign that targets online gaming companies worldwide. According to Kaspersky Lab, the Winnti crew has been attacking companies in the online gaming industry since 2009, stealing digital certificates signed by legitimate software vendors in addition to intellectual …

    Security 11 Apr 16:53

  • Obama boosts military, 'black' and spook cyber forces

    Tanks? Feds? Pah! I want NERDS

    US President Barack Obama wants to increase spending on cyber security in his proposed budget for the fiscal year 2014, which starts in October. Obama said that he wanted to increase the military cyber forces led by the US Cyber Command and bump up funding for cyber security information sharing in the Department of Defense ( …

    Government 11 Apr 17:34

  • Intel demos inexpensive 100Gb/sec silicon photonics chip

    Breakthrough will speed system-to-system data center links

    Intel has demoed what it says it "believes" is the world's only silicon photonics module that uses a hybrid silicon laser – a breakthrough that should allow such advances as vastly improved system-to-system interconnects in the data center. The demo of the 100Gb/sec module was presented via a video during Intel CTO Justin …

    Data Networking 11 Apr 17:49

  • Cisco ports Nexus 1000V virtual switch to Microsoft's Hyper-V

    Hooks UCS servers into Systems Center, fast-tracks Windows infrastructure clouds

    Upstart server-maker Cisco is bounding around the Microsoft Management Summit this week in Las Vegas to talk about how it is plugging its technologies into Redmond's cloud stack. First up, as it promised it would do back in the summer of 2011, Cisco has ported its Nexus 1000V virtual switch to run atop Microsoft's Hyper-V …

    Cloud Infrastructure 11 Apr 18:03

  • Judge scolds Apple, Motorola for using court as 'business strategy'

    Fed up with 'obstreperous and cantankerous conduct'

    The judge responsible for the painfully complex patent litigation between Apple and Motorola Mobility has had it up to here with the legal machinations of the two companies, and has denied a request to step in and whittle the case down to a manageable size. "Most parties that come before the Court are trying to resolve their …

    Law 11 Apr 18:54

  • Tech titans team up to push immigration reform

    Analysis Zuck calls for changes in H-1B, education, patents

    Some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley have formed a political lobbying organization, dubbed Fwd.us, to press for more H-1B visas for industry, a comprehensive revamp of the US education and patent systems, and a pathway for talented people now in the US illegally to gain citizenship. "In a knowledge economy, the most …

    Policy 11 Apr 19:06

  • Google tool lets you share data from BEYOND the GRAVE

    'If you're reading this, I must be dead'

    Between Google search, GMail, YouTube, and other sites, a vast number of internet users now access Google services every day. So it makes some sense that the Chocolate Factory has implemented a new system that lets you tell it how long you need to have stopped Googling before it assumes you must be dead. Dubbed the Inactive …

    Security 11 Apr 20:19

  • SUSE updates Studio server appliance maker with native KVM

    Prepping SUSE Cloud OpenStack for Grizzly attack

    SUSE Linux, like everybody else, wants to build your cloud. And the German software company, which is part of the Attachmate collective, thinks the combination of its chameleon-colored Linux operating system, its SUSE Studio server appliance fabrication tools, its SUSE Manager system management tools, and its SUSE Cloud …

    Cloud 11 Apr 23:33

  • Rotten spam causing more infections than ever – study

    Indian and Vietnamese kinds are the worst

    Anti-spam tools have evolved to a degree where many of us hardly see much spam anymore. But when we do, the threat posed by those messages is greater than it has ever been, according to a new report from independent security firm AV-Test. The report, entitled "Spam – More Dangerous than Ever Before," was based on an 18-month …

    Security 11 Apr 23:46