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The Register has been running hardware and software reviews for some years now, mainly though not exclusively through its sister-site, the written-for-consumers Reg Hardware.
We're planning to make some improvements, but before we put them in place, we'd like to hear what you, the reader, would like to find when you click to …
4GEE data marketing campaign accidentally gets Irishmen salivating
Jaysus that's a startlin' reasonable price, so it is
A Reg reader has pointed out a little cultural snafu in Everything Everywhere's campaign for its 4G service.
Everything Everywhere has naturally gone for EE as a moniker, making the campaign's logo, and Twitter hashtag, 4GEE. Unfortunately, the word 'gee' has a number of connotations that Everything Everywhere might not be …
Microsoft rolls out always-on Skype for Windows Phone 8
Yet another way to let people contact you ALL THE TIME
Microsoft has dropped Skype for Windows Phone 8 into its app store, the pocket-sized version of its desktop counterpart.
Once you've sorted out your account, you'll be able to see which of your friends have Skype and then make a Skype call, regular call, text, email or Facebook from the "People Hub". The People Hub in Windows …
Prime Minister on Twitter: Me and Obama, we're like THAT
Pic You mind if I call you Barack? Oh, OK. Sorry
British Prime Minister David Cameron couldn't resist tweeting a cheesy picture of him apparently having a telephone conversation with the re-elected US president Barack Obama on Thursday afternoon.
So, Barry-o, tell me about this Reddit thing. Where does one read it? How does one write it?
The frankly embarrassing image was …
Office for Android, Apple iOS: 'REALLY REAL this time' - report
O please please let us fondle our spreadsheets
Microsoft still hasn't made any official announcements regarding when it will be debuting Office Mobile apps for Google and Apple slabs and devices, but it has been reported that versions of the software will be released in early 2013.
Readers may recall that the same thing was said last month.
Now The Verge's Tom Warren, …
Brussels looks set to OK Apple e-book collusion deal, sources say
Alleged price caper put to bed after Amazon reads a story
Brussels officials have reportedly indicated that a settlement deal proposed by Apple and four of the publishers in Europe's competition probe into ebooks price-fixing with be accepted by the Commission.
According to Reuters, which cites two unnamed sources, an offer from Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, the Hachette …
Speaking in Tech: VMware $billion buy - brilliance ... or blunder?
Podcast Also, how many bods needed to fit an SDN lightbulb?
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
This week's techcast delves into all the latest technology in the storage and virtualisation sector. Your hosts Greg Knieriemen and Sarah Vela (Ed Saipetch is away on a secret mission) are talking to the Man Who Knows - special guest J Metz (@DrJMetz), who is strategic …
US gov advised to SUE GOOGLE by FTC over patent trade wars
No decision until after election, say sources
The US government has reportedly been advised by the Federal Trade Commission to sue Google for breaching competition law, because of the ad giant's requests to US courts to prevent the sale of goods it claims infringe its essential patents.
According to Bloomberg, which cites anonymous sources, the five-member Federal Trade …
Lab mice drown in their THOUSANDS as Hurricane Sandy fills NYU basement
Boffin: It's a tragedy - rodents are the culmination of years of work
New York University's collection of thousands of laboratory mice and rats drowned during Hurricane Sandy's ferocious storms.
The rodents were trapped in the basement of the institution's Kips Bay Smilow research centre, where they perished, the New York Times reported.
Staff were unable to rescue the creatures, which had been …
Speaking in Tech: The ARMs race, Commander Data and Larry’s evil empire
Podcast And... Chromebook: An outstanding laptop for mum
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
It's another enterprise techcast hosted by Greg Knieriemen and Sarah Vela. Greg and Sarah host special guest Mark Twomey (@Storagezilla) from EMC, who brings them the low-down on everything we all want to know about ARMed server chip revolution. They also inspire Trekkie …
Speaking in Tech: What's it LIKE to be snarfed by Microsoft?
Podcast Plus: When lightning actually strikes, UPS is kind of bullshit
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
This week on Speaking in Tech, there's something for everyone: from electronics, storage and OpenStack playas to tape-heads and enterprise biz types. Tune in to hear Ed Saipetch, fresh from Structure Europe 2012, and Greg Knieriemen with another of El Reg's enterprise tech- …
Head of Facebook EMEA tentacle to become Tech City UK chief
Former Bebo-ite to queen it over digital Shoreditch
London's Tech City has poached a top Facebook VP to become its new CEO.
In what is seen as a coup for the Tech City Investment Organisation, Joanna Shields, VP and Managing Director of Facebook Europe, Middle East and Africa has now taken up the £115,000-a-year CEO job. The work will involve her pushing forward Tech City's key …
Twitter censors bow to police, suppress Nazi tweets
First they came for the national socialists ...
Twitter has blocked access to a banned Neo-Nazi group in Germany after a request from the local police.
Hannover police asked for the ban after disbanding the far-right group and seizing its assets during an criminal investigation into it.
"All its accounts in social networks have to be closed immediately," the police wrote to …
Speaking in Tech: 'Calling it a cloud doesn't make it so'
Podcast Software Defined Bullsh*t, cloudy judgment and more
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
In this week's enterprise techcast, Ed Saipetch is steering the ship solo - live from Amsterdam. The lucky sod is in North Holland for Structure:Europe 2012, and has left Greg Knieriemen and Sarah Vela languishing in the States while he tears up canal-lined streets in the …
Speaking in Tech: The worst PR in the tech industry
Podcast Huawei gets hammered by Congress – why is no one defending it?
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
It's another one of El Reg's enterprise tech casts, where we get into the nitty-gritty of everything that went down in the past few days in the world of electronics, mobile, services and more. This week your hosts are Greg Knieriemen and Sarah Vela as Ed Saipetch is playing …
Lancashire man JAILED over April Jones Facebook posts
Three months' porridge for 'grossly offensive' trolling
A young man was jailed for 12 weeks today, after confessing to posting "grossly offensive" comments on Facebook about missing five-year-old April Jones.
He posted some bad taste jokes culled from Sickipedia on a support group for April Jones's family and friends, according to press reports.
Among the comments was: "I woke up …
Google settles epic US book-scanning battle with 5 publishers
Digitised deal agreed with big name book-pushers
Google has settled a seven-year-long dispute with publishers in the United States, bringing to an end a copyright infringement lawsuit first filed against the company in October 2005.
Under the deal, the rights of the copyright-holders have been acknowledged by the search and ad giant.
Five members of the Association of …
Speaking in Tech: GoDaddy kills its cloud... GoDaddy had a cloud?
Podcast Plus: Oracle Open World, Cisco switches, bad telly updates and more
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
We invite you to enter the Techcast Enterprise, where Captain Greg Knieriemen, Commander Ed Saipetch and Commander Sarah Vela are waiting to take you on a journey across the tech universe. This week, it's just the three of them again as they toss around the latest tech on …
Beached whale on Suffolk coast - Reader snap
Pic Unfortunate cetacean's final resting place
The UK media is giving some big play to the unfortunate whale which has trapped itself on a beach in Suffolk. We can't normally spare cross-platform media operatives for tasks of this sort: but even so the Eye of the Vulture misses little, and in this case we have a picture from the scene.
A sad day on the beach at Shingle …
Tim Cook: 'So sorry for Apple's crap maps app - try Bing or Nokia'
Or something else that isn't Android
Apple CEO Tim Cook has, out of the blue, apologised for the crap Apple maps app in iOS 6 - and suggested punters turn to rivals Microsoft, Google and Nokia.
The letter published on Friday on Apple.com states that everyone at Apple is "extremely sorry" for "the frustration" that the new satnav-like software caused for loyal …
Google axes YouTube attack vid after Brazilian fuzz uncuff chief
Appeal against judge's banning order fails
Google's chief in Brazil has been forced to take down the YouTube video that got him arrested on Wednesday.
Fabio Jose Silva Coelho, who did not make the video, was briefly detained for questioning by police for "disobedience" after Google refused to remove the piece. The vid broke the country's strict election laws by taking a …
Cops cuff Google exec over YouTube Brazilian whack vid
Web giant refused to pull attack piece on wannabe mayor
Google's senior exec in Brazil was detained by police for questioning yesterday after the firm refused to take down YouTube videos attacking a mayoral wannabe.
Brazil has stringent election laws that prevent any campaigning that might "offend the dignity or decorum" of candidates. The two videos in question "slander, insult and …
Hobbyist star-gazer cops amazing eyeful of Jupiter's space ball
Anyone can do it with the right kit, enthuses amateur astronomer
An amateur astronomer has captured stunning images of Jupiter's moon Ganymede.
Emmanuel Kardasis used computer kit, a "hobby" telescope, an off-the-shelf camera and his own observing skills to snap the heavenly body, and produce a rough-round-the-edges albedo map of it:
Nothing amateurish about this majestic image. Pic credit: …
Speaking in Tech: Watching Downton Abbey on your Kindle Fire?
Podcast No, um, neither are we... Plus: all the latest in enterprise tech
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
It's another enterprise techcast with hosts Greg Knieriemen, Ed Saipetch and Sarah Vela. This week, we slow it down with everyone together for the first time in weeks. You'll also hear about Kindle Fire fights, The New York Times data centre and what went down at the Storage …
Google exec faces arrest after vid tears strip off Brazilian
Judge wants YouTube mayoral brickbat removed - or else
A judge in Brazil has ordered the arrest of a Google exec after the company refused to remove YouTube videos that hit out at a mayoral candidate in the Latin American country.
Google is fighting attempts by the authorities to cuff Fabio Coelho, who lives in San Paulo and is the firm's director in Brazil. His LinkedIn profile …
Speaking in Tech: We infiltrate Hitachi Data Systems' secret labs
Podcast How to keep data doubloons out of Davy Jones' bitlocker
It's that time again for the Speaking in Tech podcast hosted by Greg Knieriemen, Ed Saipetch and Sarah Vela - although she's taking the week off while Ed and Greg are live at the Hitachi Data Systems Day in Santa Clara, California.
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
Our special guests this week are Ken Wood, …
Google to axe IE 8 support, cuts off Windows XP lifeline
Waves goodbye to old Microsoft browser on 15 November
Google confirmed late last week that it would soon be killing off support for Microsoft's now aged browser, Internet Explorer 8, which also means it no longer gives a stuff about Windows XP hold-outs.
The company said in a blog post on Friday that it would discontinue support for IE 8 on 15 November, claiming the move was …
Apple 'hasn't really run out of iPhone 5s AT ALL'
'They're in there playing Jenga with them', whispers mole
In a revelation that seems set to shake the technology world to its very foundations, a clandestine Register source has informed us that secretive shiny-stuff behemoth Apple could easily supply more than enough iPhone 5s to meet initial demand: but that it deliberately chose not to.
Our source, known to us only by the codename " …
Speaking in Tech: In the cloud biz? Cut through the waffle and listen up
Podcast Experts discuss real world issues in the enterprise
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
Live from Chicago, it's a phenomenal techcast with some of the biggest brains in the cloudy business. Cloud and storage guru Ed Saipetch is manning the ship, live from Cloud Connect in Chicago, while Greg Knieriemen and Sarah Vela take the week off. Special guests this week …
iPhone to account for half of US economy by 2030 - projection
America to get rich selling Foxconn gizmos to itself!
Strange, terrible, yet curiously inevitable news today - the day before iPhone 5 day. Analysis based on figures from hefty Wall Street brains appears to show that the Jesus Phone is set to account for a large chunk - perhaps the majority - of US economic activity within a matter of decades.
The Register's elite economic …
'Natural health' website apparently hacked by sinister forces
Oh no
A two-man "natural health" website claims to be the victim of a DDoS and hacking attack after it mounted an attack on a scientific paper outlining the health benefits – or lack of same – of organic foods.
At the start of the week scientists at Stanford University published a peer-reviewed study suggesting that organic foods …
Speaking in Tech: Lawyers are the enemy of the cloud
Podcast Plus: VMware still hard at work on the Death Star
Enterprise tech guru Greg Knieriemen, cloud and storage expert Ed Saipetch and web2.0 ace Sarah Vela have wrapped it up at VMworld and are back to the grindstone, replete with tales of vOdgeball glory, San Fran's dice dives and more.
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
This week they take a look at the life of …
'Picture of Dorian Gray' borrowed in 1934 is finally returned
Intriguing case of immortality work lost for generations
A rare book telling the story of a young man who sells his soul in a bargain whereby he stops ageing has been returned to a library after having been taken out in 1934.
The tome in question is a valuable first edition of The Picture of Dorian Gray, the novel written by noted 19th-century writer, wit and theatrical luvvie Oscar …
Obama Q&A on Reddit briefly knackers entire site
You nerds like space stuff, right?
US President Obama has his fingers crossed for another four years in the White House - and to bolster support for a second term, the Democrat took to Reddit.com for a cosy chat with left-leaning cat-worshipping netizens.
The 30-minute "ask me anything" session ended up being fairly pedestrian even though it garnered 23,000 …
Yahoo! bureau! chief! sacked! for! Mitt Romney! racism! jibe!
'Black people drowning' shot deemed off-colour
Yahoo! News' Washington bureau chief has been sacked after he joked that Republican US presidential wannabe Mitt Romney was "happy to have a party with black people drowning".
The quip was made as the right-wing party held its National Convention and Hurricane Isaac barrelled across the southern state of Louisiana, bringing days …
Speaking in Tech: VMware vNerds drop it like it's hot – LIVE
Podcast The usual suspects at our enterprise tech-cast broadcast from the centre of the action
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
Today we bring you a special live episode of our enterprise and consumer tech-cast, hosted by The Dude of enterprise tech, Greg Knieriemen, and cloud and storage master Ed Saipetch. Live from VMworld, they crash HP's customer appreciation reception.
Today's special guests …
Speaking in Tech: Can you sell technology without having AWESOME HAIR?
Podcast We chat about this and other erm, storage and virtualisation puzzlers...
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
It's all about virtualisation and the cloud this week at our enterprise techcast, hosted by Greg Knieriemen, Ed Saipetch and Sarah Vela. Our special guest this week is Vaughn Stewart, director of cloud computing and virtualisation evangelist at NetApp, who gives us the …
Sacrebleu! Googleplex insists Bush is still le président américain
Google in, garbage out
Google wonks beavering away at translating snippets of French into the English language might wish to take note of the following fact - their system thinks "le président américain" is "Bush".
That's George W Bush, we suppose.
Reg reader Robert spotted the amusing cockup when he tried to translate an article from daily French …
Speaking in Tech: The rock'n'roll lifestyle of VMware vNerds
Podcast From screaming at the cloud to screaming babies on flights
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
The stars of our enterprise tech-cast are back and ready to speak their brains on everything from OpenStack noise to noisy babies on aeroplanes.
Hosted by Greg Knieriemen and Ed Saipetch, this week's podcast features special guest Stephen Spellicy, director of enterprise …
Climate change blamed for rise of LIFE-DRAINING HORRORS*
* Probably, anyway
Climate change could help parasites get nastier and nastier preceding a terrifying global epidemic, possibly.
A study on frogs - yes, frogs - showed that they were more vulnerable to deadly fungus if the temperature changed unpredictably, which the researchers said could have a big impact on biodiversity and humans.
"Given that …
Speaking in Tech: Virtualisation, storage and flying balls
Podcast V is for, er, vOdgeball...
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
The crew at our enterprise tech-cast have brought you another storage and virtualisation scoop with the second part of their interview with Chad Sakac, senior vice president at EMC. Your hosts Greg Knieriemen, cloud and storage expert Ed Saipetch and new media ace Sarah Vela …
Devon NHS trust left data of 1,373 staff online for MONTHS
Must cough £175k for opening employees to ID fraud, ICO sniffs
A painful £175,000 fine has been slapped on a health trust in Torquay, Devon, after it published sensitive details of nearly 1,400 employees on its website.
The Information Commissioner's Office issued the penalty, following the embarrassing incident that took place in April 2011.
A spreadsheet containing the information was …
The Curiosity Show - Mars rover touches down at 5:31 GMT
Watch Mars rover Curiosity touching down from the comfort of a Reg story
NASA's biggest rover yet, Curiosity, is hours away from boldly going where no semi-autonomous vehicle has gone before.
El Reg's Iain Thomson is shoulder-surfing real, live, space boffins at NASA's Pasadena facility to get as close to the action as was possible after our bid to travel aboard the craft was rejected on the grounds …
Daily Mail group in screeching U-turn on parody tweet persecution
Oh, we weren't that bothered, really
The Daily Mail group has dropped its legal action against a Twitter user who sent up one of its executives - just three days after news barons attempted to slap four criminal charges on the twit.
The retraction of the writ was revealed by the spoof tweeter, UnSteveDorkland, who parodied Steve Auckland, the CEO of the Daily Mail …
Speaking in Tech: We grill EMC's Mr VMWare
Podcast Virtual geek Chad Sakac talks SDNs, Oracle's Xsigo, CloudFoundry and more...
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
It's another enterprise and techcast with Greg Knieriemen, Ed Saipetch and Sarah Vela. This week, your hosts are grilling a special guest: EMC's Chad Sakac. Last night they spoke to the storage guru, prolific blogger and virtual geek – who become a senior veep at EMC in …
@UnSteveDorkland Twitter satirist faces 4 charges in US court
Daily Mail group heads to Cali to pin down exec parody
The anonymous satirist behind spoof Twitter account @UnSteveDorkland faces four criminal charges in a Californian court for making fun of a Daily Mail group executive.
@UnSteveDorkland has been charged for computer fraud and abuse, data access and fraud and for defamation and online impersonation - all for a series of tweets …
Google snaps bird's eye view of Olympic Village
Forget relying on realtime GPS data. Look at this pretty picture instead
Twitter fanatics and texting-obsessed supporters of Team GB may have hampered the GPS units of competitors taking part in the Men’s Olympic Cycling Road Race on Saturday, but no bother as Google has added a pretty picture of the London 2012 village to its Maps service.
The search and ad giant updated its high resolution aerial …
Daily Mail group boss spoof tweeter fights to protect anonymity
@UnSteveDorkland lawyers up after publisher sues Twitter
An anonymous wag who lampooned a Daily Mail group boss using a spoof Twitter account has six days to prevent his unmasking.
The publishing giant launched legal action in California to compel the social network to reveal the identity of whoever's behind the @UnSteveDorkland handle. The account sends up Steve Auckland, the former …
Speaking in Tech: VMware is building the Death Star
Podcast The Empire strikes back
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
The "Stack Wars" are on and VMware is adding the final touches to its ultimate weapon ... Your hosts Greg Knieriemen, Ed Saipetch and Sarah Vela chat to special guest Dave Graham of Juniper Networks this week and discuss VMware's latest moves, Cisco's reactions, Google's …
Speaking in Tech: Did Yahoo! suddenly get ... interesting?
Podcast Plus: Post-Katrina IT culture in New Orleans
speaking_in_tech Greg Knieriemen podcast enterprise
Host Greg Knieriemen – sans trusty sidekicks Ed Saipetch and Sarah Vela – brings you a piping hot, brand spanking-new podcast wrapping up all the latest in enterprise tech in an easy-to-digest chat with a squirt of social media, lettuce optional.
This week he chats to …
