» dell hit with patent infringement lawsuit
a company that creates touch-screen technology has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against pc maker dell inc. and motion computing, inc., a developer of tablet computers. the complaint, filed by typhoon touch technologies, inc., seeks an unspecified amount of damages and a permanent injunction enjoining dell and motion computing from continued alleged infringement. the suit was filed wednesday, dec. 5, in u.s. district court in the eastern district of texas.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,140463-c,legalissues/article.html

» at&t lights up coast-to-coast 40 gbps network
the company said the network is the first of its kind and doesn't need multiplexing capability on its 50,000 wavelength miles. the network connects major u.s. cities and includes 18,000 miles of optical ultra-long- haul routes that eventually will be able to carry customer voice and data traffic at speeds of up to 100 gbps. at&t competitors verizon communications and qwest communications are also building and enhancing 40 gbps networks.
http://www.informationweek.com/hardware/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=204800411

» farewell vista, hello xp
after exploring windows vista for about six months on my test-bed pc, i decided two months ago that, along with upgrading the motherboard and cpu in my main work machine, i'd "upgrade" to microsoft's latest operating system...
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,140283/article.html

» windows vista users hit with 'purple screen of death'
the lockup occurs when there's a conflict between certain system drivers and windows vista's desktop window manager. one poster on the neosmart blog said he was hit with the 'purple screen of death' while his computer was equipped with nvidia graphics drivers that had not yet been optimized for vista. "it creeped me out... i mean, why purple, of all colors!?," wrote mark anders.
http://www.informationweek.com/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=204701109

» western digital blocks media file sharing from storage device
some consumers are up in arms, but western digital said it chose to stay clear of any capabilities that could be seen as challenging the rights of copyright holders.
http://www.informationweek.com/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=204702710

» verizon hit with gpl copyright lawsuit over router software
the sflc has sued the telecom giant on behalf of the developers of busybox, a set of unix utilities typically used in embedded systems. one of the devices it's found in is the actiontec mi424wr wireless router, which verizon distributes to its fios customers. under the terms of version 2 of the gpl, verizon must include the busybox source code to its fios customers, which the lawsuit alleges the company has failed to do.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071207-verizon-hit-with-gpl-copyright-lawsuit-over-router-sof...

» seagate snubs linux
latest drives show no visible means of support
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2007/12/06/seagate-snubs-linux

» compusa goes titsup
compusa has thrown in the towel on the hypercompetive us electronics retailing scene.
http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2007/12/10/compusa_shuts_down/

» 999 comes to voip
anything that looks like a normal phone should be able to dial the emergency services by september 8, 2008. just make sure you're not downloading the latest bittorrent when you need to make that call.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/12/05/emergency_voip/

» got a supercomputer in the closet?
when we think of supercomputing we think of water-cooled crays and deep thought, but features that once used to be reserved for lab-coated researchers are today often found in the most unexpected of places.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/12/10/supercomputer_poll_200712/

» and the best community linux is…
opinion: the three biggest community linuxes are fedora, opensuse and ubuntu. they're all popular. they're all good. but which is the best? desktop linuxes are improving so quickly that it's hard even for someone like me, who tracks operating systems the way some people track their favorite nfl team's game match-ups, to keep tabs on what's what with the latest distributions. that's even true for the major community linux distributions: fedora 8, opensuse 10.3 and ubuntu 7.10.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2223115,00.asp

» quick booting sbc runs debian linux
technologic systems has announced a single-board computer (sbc) claimed to boot linux 2.6 in under two seconds. the ts-7800 is equipped with a marvell 500mhz arm9 cpu running a full debian implementation, and includes a user-programmable on-board fpga (field-programmable gate array) with 12,000 luts (look-up tables).
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS3219821348.html

» bitdefender approved to defend redhat & novell linux
bitdefender's security products for mail servers and for samba have been approved for compliance with red hat's and novell's suse linux operating systems. under agreements with red hat and novell, bitdefender security for mail servers and bitdefender security for samba will be available on red hat's isv catalogue and on novell's technology partners website.
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/15302/53/

» what sun's opensolaris means for open source
sun microsystems has turned its solaris operating system, which uses the next-generation zfs file system, into an open-source project; free downloads are now available. while linux and all of its various incarnations have seen a great deal of breakthrough attention during 2007, another open-source operating system has been slowly gaining ground: opensolaris, sun microsystems (nsdq: java)' remarkable revamp of its flagship server-level operating system.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=202802683

» samsung samples sata ii 2.5in ssd
samsung has begun sampling a 2.5in notebook-oriented 64gb solid-state drive the connects to a host computer using a 3gb/s sata interface, the electronics giant said today. comparing the product with an equivalent, 80gb 2.5in hdd, samsung highlighted the ssd's superiority in weight, performance, power consumption, shock resistance and noise.
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/11/05/samsung_samples_sata_2_ssd/

» savetheinterneters to save the internet from comcast
members of the savetheinternet.com coalition hope to save the internet from comcast. joining forces with a few internet-savvy legal scholars, several of the coalition's spunky public advocates have formally asked the us federal communications commission (fcc) to prevent america's second largest isp from secretly throttling peer-to-peer traffic.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/11/02/savetheinternet_tells_fcc_to_slap_comcast_for_bittorrent_bag...

» linux community faces new uncertainty
linux vendors and developers didn't get to relax for long after an august court ruling had the effect of ending sco's copyright lawsuit against ibm and novell over their distributions of linux. last week, ip innovation llc filed a patent claim against novell and linux vendor red hat. in the complaint, ip innovation asks the court to award both damages and an injunction prohibiting the two companies from continuing to distribute linux.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2007/oct/18/news.linux

» dell ceo says linux server sales increasing faster than windows
speaking at a gartner symposium/itxpo in orlando, michael dell says that his company is seeing linux update on the server end increasing faster than windows. recent claims by microsoft alleging software patent infringements have also not affected linux-based hardware sales.
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/tech-news/?p=1386

» citywide wi-fi isn't dead yet
despite the recent onslaught of bad press, citywide and regional wi-fi networks are not dead.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6209837.html

» suit accuses apple, at&t of monopoly
complaints over apple inc.'s use restrictions and recent software update for the iphone have erupted in two lawsuits alleging apple and its carrier partner, at&t inc., engaged in illegal monopolistic behavior.
http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/apple_at_t_iphone_lawsuit;_ylt=AsC5AbSQct6._F92gAkY63D6L5A5

» gateway one pc: look, ma, no wires
the guts of this glossy computer are crammed inside a trim and easily tilted 19-inch wide-screen flat-panel lcd monitor. the keyboard and mouse are wireless. the invisible stereo speaker is behind an acrylic front panel. a slot-loading dvd burner is on the right; disk ejection is handled by pressing the keyboard. only a single power cable emerges from the rear bottom of the machine.
http://tech.yahoo.com/news/usatoday/gatewayonepclookmanowires;_ylt=AhY5fpFhlqXf7c1RChy._Jn6L5A5

» sun farms out network to at&t
terms of the contract were not disclosed. under the terms at&t (statement) will provide all maintenance, management and virtual private network (vpn) capabilities for sun (all resources). at&t will provide services for sun’s operations across the globe, including wide area and local area networks and voice infrastructure. at&t will also manage all other network service providers for sun.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=6296

» nintendo wii firmware update supports usb keyboards
if you or your kids surf the internet using your nintendo wii game console, you might be interested in a new firmware update — version 3.1 — released on wednesday that enables you to use a usb keyboard with it. the update is free.
http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/10/11/wii/index.php

» dell launches thin client alternative to traditional desktops
dell unveiled its on-demand desktop streaming technology at the gartner it expo in orlando, fla. the computer maker claims its new alternative to conventional desktops can reduce it labor costs by 56%. the new product is targeted at large and midsize commercial and institutional organizations, such as call centers and education computer labs. the dell package includes optiplex 745 and 755 desktops, both without hard disk drives and scheduled for release in november; a poweredge 2950 server, a powerconnect gigabit switch, citrix provisioning sever for desktops software, and a poweredge 2900 storage server. dell is the single supplier for all the components, and also offers deployment services and ongoing support.
http://www.informationweek.com/hardware/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=202401062

» microsoft-zend pact bears php fruit
microsoft may make a habit of attacking open-source programming, but don't make the mistake of assuming the company has a monolithic loathing for the collaborative programming movement. on tuesday, microsoft revealed some fruits of a partnership that that was announced a year ago with zend, which develops and commercializes the open-source php scripting language for creating dynamic web pages. bill staples, a microsoft product unit manager, announced four moves at the zendcon conference here
http://www.news.com/8301-13580_3-9793871-39.html

» china mobile connects top of the world
china mobile has asked huawei, wannabe owners of 3com, to install a gsm base station 6,500 metres up mount everest. this will create a cell which will cover the main route to the summit.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/10/04/everest_gsm/

» seagate combines flash memory, hard disk for notebook storage
seagate technology on monday launched its first combination disk storage and flash memory hard drive, joining rival samsung electronics in offering hybrid drives that manufacturers say speed the boot-up time of pcs and significantly boost battery life. the seagate momentus 5400 psd, which stands for "power savings drive," offers 160 gbytes of traditional rotating disk storage and 256 mbytes of flash memory. sony is the first pc maker to offer the new product, making it available in its vaio sz650, melissa johnson, product-marketing manager for seagate, said. three other pc manufacturers also plan to offer products with the new drive, but johnson declined to name them.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=202400049

» users split over naked pcs
a european thinktank's recent recommendation that computers should be sold without an operating system — so-called "naked pcs" — in order to tackle microsoft's dominant position and foster competition in the operating-system marketplace has got readers fired up.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,1000000121,39289744,00.htm?r=2

» microsoft shouts 'long live xp'
microsoft’s dream of a vista only world moved farther out on the horizon yesterday as the software firm admitted it would extend sales of windows xp by another five months.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/09/28/microsoft_xp_deadline/

» linux users no longer have an excuse to pirate mp3s
online retail giant amazon.com has - as our charlie d reported - surprised everyone with its mp3 store. so how would it work for a drm-free linux user?. it turns out that very well.
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2007/09/26/linux-users-longer-excuse

» open source, microsoft models both wrong, simonyi said
using scrambled eggs as a metaphor for a finished software application, simonyi said the current crop of developers tinker too much, almost in “obsessive compulsive” fashion, on tweaking and rearranging applications to fix or improve them, instead of finetuning the process by which they are created.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1469

» osi calls for major revisions to microsoft permissive license (mpl)
the microsoft permissive license, one of two licenses the software maker submitted to the open source initiative for approval as open-source licenses in august, is unlikely to be approved in its current form. there have been two principle objections to the license from the open-source community, michael tiemann, the president of osi, told eweek in an interview here at the annual gartner open source summit on sept. 20.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2185919,00.asp

» cell phones = bad news in hospitals
a new study from amsterdam contradicts earlier findings and details how newer cell phones negatively interfere with bedside medical equipment.
http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/09/cell_phones_bad.html;jsessionid=CHVUDZYF0W...

» will amd barcelona kill off high-margin amd cpus?
amd was riding high a year ago dominating sales in the dual-processor server market and virtually owned the multi-processor (4+) server market. then intel launched the core micro-architecture on the desktop and dual-processor server market and momentum swung from amd to intel overnight in both of those markets.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/?p=732

» fcc to fine network operators who can't find customers
us network operators who can't locate their customers in the case of an emergency are facing fines of over $2m, having already been given 18-months grace to comply. the federal communications commission is proposing to fine sprint nextel, alltel and united states cellular, for failing to provide exact locations of customers making a 911, emergency, call, as specified in the e911 legislation.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/08/31/e911_fine/

» microsoft's open source trashware
opinion: i recently took a look at microsoft's most active open-source projects and—there's no polite way to say this—they are all junk.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2174730,00.asp

» why people don't switch operating systems
i was a bit amazed last week to note that someone who wrote that the continued piracy of windows was affecting the spread of linux on the desktop was described as raising an "unusual" argument. no guessing where this kind of non-logic gained its mileage - it appeared on the site that provides "news for nerds, stuff that matters."
http://www.itwire.com/content/view/14088/

» businesses having second thoughts about vista
fewer businesses are now planning to move to windows vista than seven months ago, according to a survey by patch management vendor patchlink corp., while more said they will either stick with the windows they have, or turn to linux or mac os x. in a just-released poll of more than 250 of its clients, patchlink noted that only 2% said they are already running vista, while another 9% said they planned to roll out vista in the next three months. a landslide majority, 87%, said they would stay with their existing version(s) of windows.
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9028478&source=NLT...

» microsoft not so 'open' after all?
the head of the open-source group that will decide whether to certify microsoft corp.'s "shared source" software licenses as open-source licenses said that more than half of redmond's licenses appear to automatically fail the group's rules. michael tiemann, president of the non-profit open source initiative, said that provisions in three out of five of microsoft's shared-source licenses that restrict source code to running only on the windows operating system would contravene a fundamental tenet of open-source licenses as laid out by the osi. by those rules, code must be free for anyone to view, use, modify as they see fit.
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9028318&intsrc=new...

» torvalds rebukes desktop critics
linus torvalds, creator and maintainer of the linux operating system kernel, has reacted angrily to suggestions that the kernel's development process is skewed in a way that prevents improvements on the desktop. torvalds was responding to criticism by programmer con kolivas, who had developed a patch designed to improve the performance of specific linux desktop features.
http://www.techworld.com/opsys/news/index.cfm?newsid=9652

» microsoft submits photo file format for standardization
microsoft hopes its new digital-photo file format will one day replace the widely used jpeg format as the industry standard for electronic photography and digital imaging. the joint photographic expert group has agreed to submit formal balloting of hd photo to jpeg's national delegations for approval by the fall. the tentative name for the spec is jpeg xr.
http://www.informationweek.com/windows/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201202148

» virgin pulls the plug on mobile video
the announcement comes less than 10 months after the service was launched, and is a result of bt movio (the bandwidth provider) cancelling its contract with gcap media, which owns the frequency.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/07/26/virgin_pulls_mobile_video/

» congress and the feds should clean up their own act
why pick on lime wire?
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/?p=633

» p2p networks harm national security
politicians charged on tuesday that peer-to-peer networks can pose a "national security threat" because they enable federal employees to share sensitive or classified documents accidentally from their computers.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-6198585.html

» ibm releases over 150 patents
ibm is granting universal access to over 150 patents, mostly for web services, in what it believes is the biggest-ever release of this kind of intellectual property.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,1000000121,39287971,00.htm

» internet radio royalty hikes delayed
soundexchange has offered to extend 1998 royalty rates for small commercial internet radio companies, just days before higher rates were scheduled to take effect. the group announced the move thursday, after promising during congressional hearings that it would postpone rate hikes, at least temporarily. the promise came after the u.s. court of appeals for the district of columbia denied motions to force a postponement.
http://www.informationweek.com/internet/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201001335

» number of online chinese poised to surpass u.s. internet users
the number of internet users in china has reached 137 million, and with double-digit annual growth projected, the country is poised to overtake the united states in total number of users within a few years, a researcher said.
http://www.informationweek.com/internet/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201001379

» broadband access moves into half of u.s. homes
nearly half of all americans have broadband internet connections in their homes, largely because of increasing use among minorities and the poor, according to an annual survey by the pew internet & american life project.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,134202-c,broadband/article.html

» now three linux vendors won’t sign patent deals with microsoft
novell, xandros and linspire all have signed deals that microsoft and those companies say will protect linux users .... executives at red hat, canonical/ubuntu and now mandriva all say they have decided against signing similar deals.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=529

» microsoft says it is not bound by gplv3
microsoft cleared the air july 5 on its obligations to gnu general public license version 3 support, declaring it will not provide support or updates for gplv3 under the deal it penned in november with novell to administer certificates for the linux distribution. microsoft also said july 5 that its agreement with novell, as well as those with linux rivals xandros and linspire, were unaffected by the release june 29 of gplv3 by the free software foundation. for its part, novell said it will support customers with a regular suse linux enterprise server subscription, regardless of the terms of the certificates provided by microsoft.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2155119,00.asp

» at&t rigs net neutrality study
a new study from the rensselaer polytechnic institute and the university of nevada reno says that net neutrality is a bad idea. of course, that's what you'd expect it to say. it was paid for by at&t. for years, at&t has called for a "tiered internet," which would abandon net neutrality in favor of a system where high-bandwidth sites like youtube are forced to pay higher fees to isps like, well, at&t. now, the telecoms giant has commissioned a study that supports its own argument. conducted by researchers at at&t labs as well as rensselaer and nevada reno, the study claims that an internet where all traffic is treated equally would require much more capacity than a tiered infrastructure.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/07/04/att_net_neutrality_study/

» red hat, microsoft talk tux
on july 3, according to paul cormier, red hat's executive vp of engineering, said that red hat wants to work with the microsoft to improve linux/windows interoperability. "i want to talk to the folks at microsoft about our two operating systems and how we can work together to solve real customer problems without attaching any unrelated strings, such as intellectual property," cormier told peter galli of eweek.
http://www.linux-watch.com/news/NS5620044582.html

» what the new gpl means for enterprise it
after two years of consultation, the free software foundation has published version 3 of the gpl (gnu general public license gpl), its first update in 16 years. since then, gpl-licensed software has become a part of most enterprise it installations (and a lot more besides), so its revision could have a major impact. the linux kernel itself is unlikely to adopt gplv3, as copyright on it is held by many different contributors and all would have to agree to any licensing change. however, all major linux distributions also require the fsf's gnu code, so in practice the license will eventually apply to most enterprise linux users.
http://www.networkcomputing.com/channels/appinfrastructure/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=200900256

» fcc chairman says ‘broadband for all!’
u.s. federal communications commission chairman kevin martin urged telecom leaders to provide the entire country with broadband access. in an effort to promote investment in broadband infrastructure, the fcc has worked to deregulate both cable and dsl services, so that providers are no longer required to lease their lines to competitors.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/06/19/fcc_chairman_broadband_for_all/

» say goodbye to office 2003, microsoft tells pc builders
microsoft is making office 2007 its default productivity suite for system builders, less than five months after the suite's full-scale launch. microsoft will stop supplying oem microsoft office 2003 from june 30, microsoft exec eric ligman wrote yesterday on the company's blog for small businesses.
http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2007/06/19/microsoft_office_2003_oem/

» red hat linux gets top government security rating
red hat linux has received a new level of security certification that should make the software more appealing to some government agencies. last week ibm corp. was able to achieve eal4 augmented with alc_flr.3 certification for red hat enterprise linux, putting it on a par with sun microsystems inc.'s trusted solaris operating system, said dan frye, vice president of open systems with ibm.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,132978-c,redhat/article.html

» torrentspy ruling a 'weapon of mass discovery'
it was a pro-copyright ruling that stunned nearly everyone dealing with the issue of online piracy. in a decision reported late friday by cnet news.com, a federal judge in los angeles found (pdf) that a computer server's ram, or random-access memory, is a tangible document that can be stored and must be turned over in a lawsuit.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6190900.html

» how microsoft-xandros compares to novell pact
microsoft this morning announced a collaboration agreement with linux vendor xandros that's similar, in some respects, to the novell deal. but not in others. most significantly, the xandros deal includes a promise by microsoft to refrain from pursuing patent claims against xandros customers. that's similar to the most controversial provision of the agreement between microsoft and novell.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft/archives/116174.asp

» open source does the good-cop, bad-cop routine
one of the great frustrations in dealing with microsoft on open source questions is its tendency to play “good-cop bad-cop” games.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1096

» google plays cat and mouse with regulators
google has faced down one european probe into what it does with people's personal information, only to be challenged with another.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/05/25/google_privacy/

» china crafts cyberweapons
the people's liberation army (pla) continues to build cyberwarfare units and develop viruses to attack enemy computer systems as part of its information-warfare strategy, the u.s. department of defense (dod) warned in a report released on friday.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,132284-c,onlinesafety/article.html

» nudity in 'halo 2' escapes microsoft's notice
nudity in the videogame "halo 2" for windows vista has pushed back the long-awaited title's official release to the end of the month, microsoft said friday.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,132265-page,1/article.html

» how much do you save when you buy a dell with linux?
the answer: less than you'd expect. dell today will start selling its first three models preloaded with ubuntu linux: the inspiron e1505n, a 15-inch notebook; the dimension e520n, a middle of the line desktop; and the xps 410n, a desktop that starts out with virtually identical specs to the dimension, but can be customized with more gaming-centric hardware (though you hardly need hardcore gear to play the games available for linux).
http://blogs.pcworld.com/staffblog/archives/004474.html

» pirates trojan keel-hauls surfers
spam messages exploiting the publicity surrounding the release of the latest instalment of the pirates of the caribbean film franchise are being used to trick users into installing trojan horse malware. the junk mails feature a message that resembles promotional material for the film alongside links that supposedly point users towards trailers for pirates of the caribbean: at world’s end. prospective marks are also offered the chance to win “free tickets”.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/05/25/pirates_trojan/

» how dumb does microsoft think we are?
you can't make this stuff up. top microsoft blogger mary jo foley asked, "what kinds of tools/processes did microsoft use to determine which open-source code allegedly infringes on microsoft's patents?" their answer: "no further details are available at this time." so, microsoft asks businesses and developers to not only take it on faith that linux and open-source software violate its patents, it won't even give us a hint as to how they found out! amazing. simply amazing.
http://www.linux-watch.com/news/NS3222586327.html

» fcc to reveal spectrum auction plan
the 700mhz band of spectrum, which has been used to provide analog tv service, is considered the last piece of prime real estate left in wireless spectrum. and mobile operators, as well as companies in other industries such as cable and satellite tv, are expected to bid on licenses. the auction is likely to generate between $10 billion and $15 billion in revenue for the government.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6178977.html

» digital tv changeover suggested for 2009
millions of american television sets that receive only analog over-the-air broadcasts could go dark if not upgraded by jan. 1, 2009. that deadline was suggested in a pair of hearings here tuesday by members of the u.s. senate's commerce, science and transportation committee.
http://news.com.com/Digital+TV+changeover+suggested+for+2009/2100-1028_3-5785519.html

» apple profits soar on mac, ipod sales
apple on wednesday reported that profits in its fiscal second quarter soared 88% on strong sales of the ipod media player and intel-based macintosh computers.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=199201631

» optical link hacking unsheathed
optical links are not as secure as might be assumed. techniques for extracting data flowing over fibre optic links are evolving to make the technique easier to apply. instead of breaking a fibre and installing a device (splicing), an approach that might easily be detected, off-the shelf equipment makes it possible to extract data from an optical link without breaking a connection.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/04/25/optical_hacking/

» microsoft's anti-linux whisper game
well, microsoft never committed to play fair. the company has entered into two more patent agreements with fuji and samsung, as reported by matthew aslett. as ever, microsoft doesn't actually say there are any ip infringement problems with linux (there aren't, at least, no more than microsoft has in its own products), but rather uses these cross-licensing deals, innocuous and common in and of themselves, to hint at ip infringement.
http://weblog.infoworld.com/openresource/archives/2007/04/microsofts_anti.html

» fsf releases new draft of lgplv3
on the heels of releasing the latest draft of the gplv3 (general public license version 3), the free software foundation on april 3 released a new draft of the lgplv3. the lgpl was first released as version 2.1 in february of 1999. it was the follow-up...
http://www.linux-watch.com/news/NS5118371808.html

» microsoft sued over windows vista marketing
a lawsuit alleges that microsoft corp. engaged in deceptive practices by letting pc makers promote computers as "windows vista capable" even if they couldn't run the new operating system's "signature" features.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/310004_msftsued03.html

» apple announces octo-core mac pro
it doesn't come cheap. the basic mac pro costs $2,200. replace the two dual-core 2ghz cpus with the two quad-core chips and the price almost doubles to $3,997. buy 16gb of memory and the price rises by a further $4,499. phew.
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/04/apple_updates_mac_pro_to_eight_cores/

» amd kicks dual-core opteron to 3ghz
amd has started handing customers its fastest dual-core opterons to date. server makers and channel sellers have gained access to the 3ghz model 2222 se and model 8222 se chips, which will slot in just above the already shipping 2.8ghz processors. a similar 3ghz chip for the 1000 series line should arrive in a few weeks.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/04/04/amd_opteron_2222se/

» judge oks telecom merger
giant sbc-at&t, verizon-mci deals draw concern but get formal approval from court. - a judge has approved u.s. department of justice conditions attached to two major telecommunication mergers that closed in late 2005 and early 2006.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,130291/article.html

» will the riaa kill net radio?
if this movie looks familiar - it's because it is. a royalty increase for songs played over internet radio stations is declared, followed by doomsday predictions that the increase will bring about a cataclysmic collapse of the entire industry. it's like 2002 all over again. that was when copyright royalty board first set royalties for music played on internet radio stations. webcasters would pay royalties to a new collection agency, soundexchange, established by the recording industry ass. of america (riaa).
http://www.theregister.com/2007/03/30/webcasting_royalties_analysis/

» research reveals mislaid microprocessor megahertz
it's no wonder we need to upgrade our computers on a regular basis. not only are chip companies regularly releasing ever-faster microprocessors, but new research has revealed that modern cpus actually lose megahertz over time. this startling conclusion follows a five-year research programme carried out by the illyria university's information technology department.
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/01/cpu_time_dilation/

» motion-sensing comes to mobile phones
the same technology used in nintendo's popular wii video game console that lets you bowl strikes and hit tennis volleys like you're venus williams is also making its way into mobile handsets. responding to a flick of the wrist or sweep of the arm, tiny sensors called accelerometers, which measure linear acceleration in the wiimote game controller, translate motion into action on the screen.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6169697.html

» skype hampered by new trojan horse
dusseldorf, germany -- another trojan horse is spreading through the internet telephone network of skype. the malicious code, known as both warezov and stration, is similar to an earlier version detected in february, but with a new url (uniform resource locator) and a new version of the malicious code, according to an alert posted thursday by websense.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,130098/article.html

» novell apologizes for false free software funding claim
novell inc's head of marketing for linux and open source has apologized to the free software foundation and the open source community after making misleading statements about the company's financial contribution to the fsf. justin steinman, director of marketing for linux and open platform solutions at waltham, massachusetts-based novell, made the apology after it was pointed out that his claim that novell is "a significant financial contributor to the free software foundation" was incorrect.
http://www.cbronline.com/article_news.asp?guid=DFD1A947-76D2-4791-BC6A-E31CB53F5EEB

» oracle sues sap for allegedly behaving like it has toward linux
having spent a few years in law school, i'm not a big fan of lawsuits. or legal maneuvering, generally, that replaces head to head product competition. so it should come as no surprise that my gut reaction to oracle's lawsuit against sap is, "what a waste."
http://weblog.infoworld.com/openresource/archives/2007/03/oracle_sues_sap.html

» ‘microsoft sucks’, says top blogger
microsoft’s formerly tame blogger has bitten the software company that made his name when it employed him as a “technology evangelist”. robert scoble writes the scobleizer web log, one of the most-read sources of technology commentary on the internet.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article1529988.ece

» sco forced to show hand
according to groklaw, 326 lines represents the "mountain of code" that sco's ceo darl mcbride has been banging on about since 2003.
http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=38312

» at&t to spend $750 million this year on global network expansion
u.s.-based telecom giant, at&t inc., is planning to spend $750 million this year on expanding the geographic reach of its global ip backbone and bolstering its portfolio of business communication services for the international market. at&t intends to expand its ip mlps network in a number of countries, most notably vietnam, pakistan, morocco, and india, according to the carrier’s senior vice president of product management, bill archer. by the end of the year, at&t also aims to extend its dsl and ethernet networks to serve 34 and 31 countries, respectively.
http://www.teleclick.ca/2007/03/att-to-spend-750-million-this-year-on-global-network-expansion/

» 1-terabyte-drive pcs coming from dell
dell is the first computer system supplier to ship 1 terabyte (1,000 gigabytes) hard drives targeted at users needing to store large amounts of digital media. the higher capacity is particularly needed for storing video content, such as high-definition video. this will affect consumers first but then business, particularly media-related businesses and applications. it is a reversal of normal practice where business received higher-capacity disk drives first.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,129924-c,harddrives/article.html

» hackers promise month of myspace bugs
...but two hackers going by the names of mondo armando and müstaschio promise to begin disclosing security vulnerabilities in myspace, news corp.'s popular social networking site, every day next month. "the purpose of the exercise is not so much to expose myspace as a hive of spam and villainy (since everyone knows that already), but to highlight the monoculture-style danger of extremely popular websites," wrote mondo armando in an e-mail interview.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,129933-c,onlinesecurity/article.html

» amd’s no angel, but intel’s public usage of benchmark data is feloniously misleading
both presentations contain slides prepared by intel that would probably horrify a professional statistician. as the former director of pc week's testing labs (now eweek), i simply can't imagine presenting benchmark data the way intel presents it in some of these slides.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Berlind/?p=366

» will net neutrality kill web 2.0?
networks need to get smarter, says packetexchange's kieron o'brien, in a sharp counterpoint to the "net neutrality" hysteria.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/03/16/packetexchange_net_futures/

» researchers take internet back to the drawing board
the internet as it stands has numerous shortcomings, so researchers at stanford university have gone back to the drawing board in an effort to design a better system of communications. in an overview of the project, the researchers explain: "we believe that the current internet has significant deficiencies that need to be solved before it can become a unified global communication infrastructure.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/03/16/clean_slate/

» torvalds talks about gplv3
that linus torvalds, creator of the linux operating system, prefers the current version of the general public license, gplv2, over the version in development, gplv3, is no secret. but in a lengthy e-mail response to questions from informationweek, he offers a full explanation of what he thinks is superior about gplv2.
http://www.informationweek.com/management/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=198001445

» calif. school district aims 5,000 desktops at linux
a school district technology director is making wholesale changes in her employer's it system by migrating most of 5,000 windows desktops to a new setup based primarily on linux-powered desktop pcs and thin clients. the change aims to reduce annual costs, offer many more applications, and use less energy.
http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS4958455863.html

» preparing your linux systems for the new dst
analysis -- "spring forward; fall back," that's the way the saying goes. some years i get it backwards, but i eventually catch on. i've never had to worry about my pcs getting it wrong before, though. now, with the recent changes in the daylight savings time (dst) rules, i do. fortunately, there are ways to make sure that both my linux computers and i get the new rules right.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS6300956032.html

» amd to miss q1 sales target
amd today smacked investors with a sales warning. the chip maker no longer expects to hit a first quarter revenue target between $1.6bn and $1.7bn. ceo hector ruiz will explain amd's revenue miss at a financial analyst conference later today. hopefully, he has already found a pound of flesh that can be spared.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/03/05/amd_revenue_warn/

» man sues ms after fbi uncovers smut surfing habits
a us man awaiting trial on firearms offences is suing microsoft after fbi technicians found self-made sex videos and evidence that he frequented porn sites on his pc.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/03/06/firearm_supect_privacy_lawsuit/

» us yawns at wi-fi enabled phones
market watcher ovum reckons that only one us mobile phone subscriber in 50 will have a wi-fi enabled phone by 2010. dual-mode phones that support both wlan and cellular are already a familiar sight in the europe and asia markets. most of nokia's e series, and its n80 consumer smart phone, feature both standards.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/02/28/us_wifi_phone_apathy/

» faa may ditch microsoft's windows vista and office for google and linux combo
faa chief information officer david bowen said he's taking a close look at the premier edition of google apps as he mulls replacements for the agency's windows xp-based desktop computers and laptops.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=197800480

» microsoft patch stops linux on xbox 360
microsoft has quietly released a fix for a security vulnerability that could let xbox 360 owners run their own applications or operating systems on the console. the update corrects a problem with a tamper-protection mechanism on the xbox 360. hackers had discovered a way to break through the shield and run their own software, including operating systems such as linux, on the games console.
http://news.cnet.co.uk/gamesgear/0,39029682,49288221,00.htm

» microsoft readies public beta test of voip server
microsoft will release a public beta of new voice over internet protocol (voip) server software by the end of march. the software smoothly integrates with legacy phone networks and its office application suite, the company said.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,129663-c,webtelephonyconferencing/article.html

» hp beats dell in pc sales
hewlett-packard co. (hp) continued to pull ahead of dell inc. in global pc sales during the fourth quarter of 2006, according to an industry report released tuesday. dell was the only top-five vendor to ship fewer pcs in the fourth quarter of 2006 than in the same period of the previous year, reporting a decline of 8.6 percent to 9.6 million units, according to isuppli corp. in contrast, the global pc market grew 6.3 percent to 66.7 million for the quarter.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,129656-c,researchreports/article.html

» microsoft to blast google over copyrights
microsoft is set to launch a blistering attack on rival google on tuesday for what the software giant argues is the web search leader's "cavalier" approach to copyright protection.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6164568.html

» core 2 duo mini systems run linux
online retailer and embedded supplier logic supply has added two small, intel-based systems to its catalog. aopen's minipc mp945 and digital engine de945 support intel core 2 duo processors clockable up to 2ghz, run linux, and target embedded and small form-factor computing.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS6881598818.html

» reverse-engineering tools analyze open-source software
an australian consulting company specializing in software reverse engineering is demonstrating its capabilities by analyzing popular open source projects, such as the linux 2.6.20 kernel. arian systems's "silverbullet" generates detailed program information and graphics offering a "clear view" into undocumented legacy software, according to the company.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS3676147041.html

» california may adopt opendocument
california may follow massachusetts in making the opendocument format the required standard for state agencies. the opendocument format (odf) is a standard xml-based file format used by openoffice, an open-source application program supported by ibm and sun microsystems among others.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595_22-6163186.html

» microsoft hit with $1.5 billion patent verdict
a federal jury in san diego has ordered microsoft to pay $1.5 billion to alcatel-lucent in a patent dispute over mp3 audio technology used in windows.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-6161480.html

» linux-powered gateway crams into usb key
a tiny, linux-based gateway has won an award for hardware innovation at the 2007 embedded world conference in nuremberg this week. ssv embedded systems's "tux/stick" interfaces between usb-enabled pcs and various industrial and embedded networks, including lans, wifi networks, wireless sensor networks (wsns), and in-car networks.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS4837503255.html

» broadband routers welcome drive-by hackers
still using the default password that came with that nice broadband router you installed at home? time to get off your butt and change it: visiting the wrong website is enough to have key settings changed on the most popular models.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/02/15/router_vuln/

» microsoft probes new office vulnerability
just when the world thought it was safe to resume use of microsoft office, there's word that a new zero-day attack may be targeting the popular productivity package. like so many of the others, it's capable of all kinds of mischief, including the execution of malicious code on a victim's machine.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/02/15/office_vuln/

» 'world first' quantum computer set to debut next week
a canadian start-up says it will demonstrate a working commercial quantum computer in mountain view next week, years ahead of many experts' predictions. venture capital-funded to the tune of $20m, vancouver-based d-wave says it has built a quantum computer with 16 qubits - the quantum world's version of a digital bit, but which simultaneously encodes 1 and 0, so can carry more information and solve problems more quickly.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/02/09/quantum_first_demo/

» simon says: let me hack your vista pc
microsoft is playing down the possibility that the speech recognition system in windows vista could be hijacked to delete files or perform other unauthorised actions.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/02/01/vista_voice_recognition_attack/

» ask and ye shall receive linux drivers
greg kroah-hartman, a programmer at novell, announced the linux driver program on his blog monday. the "linux kernel community is offering all companies free linux driver development...all that is needed is some kind of specification that describes how your device works, or the e-mail address of an engineer that is willing to answer questions every once in a while," he said.
http://news.com.com/2061-10795_3-6154812.html

» research group sues electronics giants over bluetooth patents
the washington research foundation claims that nokia, matsushita (panasonic), and samsung have been using the patented bluetooth technology in mobile phones and other devices without paying any royalties. the wrf, in addition to seeking monetary compensation, is asking for a court order barring the sale of products that use the technology.
http://www.mobile-tech-today.com/news/Electronics-Giants-Sued-over-Bluetooth/story.xhtml?story_id=13...

» ieee 802.11n working group approves draft 2.0
after much debate and a lot of contention among the overall ieee membership, the all-important ieee 802.11n working group has given its stamp of approval to the next draft version of the specification. final approval, called the publication date, is expected by october 2008.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/01/22/HN80211n_1.html?source=rss&url=http://www.infoworld.com/ar...

» so long, sonet
this could well be the last year of significant sales of sonet and sdh transport gear, according to industry analysts and vendors. particularly as the volume of internet protocol-based video grows, the telecom industry is moving more quickly to replace its existing transport gear with more flexible, higher-bandwidth carrier ethernet and wavelength division multiplexing technology.
http://telephonyonline.com/ethernet/news/sonet_wdm_ethernet_011807/

» ibm, cisco soft launch iptv
ibm corp. and cisco systems inc. have "soft launched" an iptv (internet protocol tv) with hd, video-on-demand and other capabilities at a demonstration center at the ibm industrial solutions center in la gaude, outside nice, france.
http://www.itworld.com/Tech/5051/070131iptv/

» 3com adds linux blade to routers
interoperability and openness will be the keys to the network in the future, 3com claimed, as it announced linux-based blades for its 6000-series routers that will let them run third-party apps. the vendor also unveiled a technology partner programme to help others make their hardware and software interoperate with 3com's.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/31/3com_app_blade/

» blu-ray discs now crackable too
the group hacking effort, lead by an anonymous programmer going by the alias "muslix64", claim to have been able to decrypt and play commercial blu-ray media as well as hd-dvd discs.
http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=229

» judge allows music industry to sue xm satellite
a judge has ruled that the music industry is free to go ahead with a lawsuit against xm satellite radio, the company accused of allowing customers to store songs without paying for them.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6151695.html

» cell phone didn't ignite california man
fire investigators in california now say a cell phone did not cause a fire that severely burned a man last weekend.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6151175.html

» 802.11n could hit milestone for approval this week
task group n in the 802.11 working group is expected to approve a draft for balloting this week
http://wifinetnews.com/archives/007304.html

» hp claims big move for small chips
today, hp scientists intend to announce they have created a new computer-chip design enabling an eightfold increase in the number of transistors on a chip, without making the transistors smaller.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/16470189.htm

» mcbride: sco is not done yet
in a letter sent to sco (quote) customers, sco president and ceo darl mcbride assured his customers that the company is still doing all right. in the letter, written in advance of sco's jan. 17 fourth-quarter earnings report, mcbride assures customers that sco is not done yet.
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3653771

» open source is good for the economy: report
the ec commissioned netherlands based unu-merit to investigate the "economic impact of "floss"* in europe". the researchers found open source software is worth around €2bn every year to the european economy.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/15/open_source_2bn/

» could invisibility beat encryption?
pcmesh has unveiled software which it claims can hide any windows file or directory, not only from other users - or thieves - of the same pc, but even from the operating system or a virus.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/15/hide_files_folders/

» pci express 2.0 released
pcie 2.0 remains compatible with pcie 1.1, until now, the latest version of the specification, so older cards will be able to operate in machines equipped with the new version. intel is expected to release its first pcie 2.0 supporting chipsets, members of the 'bearlake' family, next quarter.
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/01/15/pci_sig_releases_pcie_2/

» us warns on spooky canadian coins
the us defence department is warning contractors of the danger of canadian coins containing tiny radio transmitters being used to follow their movements.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/11/canada_coins_spying_on_yanks/

» dell's secret linux fling
dell's love affair with linux is a clandestine affair these days, conducted in secret, away from disapproving eyes. but now the pair have been spotted in china.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/01/09/dell_linux_china/

» pc x-server runs from usb key
starnet is shipping a usb-based pc x server that lets windows pc users run graphical applications that reside on remote linux systems, and carry their sessions with them. the x-win32 flash launches an x window server application when plugged into a host pc running microsoft windows, according to the company.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS7845417909.html

» cisco touts the networked home of future
cisco systems ceo john chambers took the stage at the consumer electronics show in las vegas tuesday to outline his company's vision of the networked home of the future and say how through partnerships and acquisitions cisco will become a top player in the market.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6148728.html

» 'pay with paypal and you're covered'
paypal is doubling payment protection in the us and canada for most ebay transactions to $2,000. buyers can claim if the goods they buy do not arrive or are "significantly not as described". which is nice, but a few get-outs remain for paypal.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/10/paypal_improves_protection_terms/

» the apple iphone: advantages and disadvatanges
steve jobs, apple's ceo, on tuesday introduced their hotly awaited mobile phone, still named iphone although cisco, through linksys had previously launched an internet phone with the same name.
http://www.playfuls.com/news_05822_The_Apple_iPhone_Advantages_and_Disadvatanges.html

» conference encourages linux in the bathroom
australia's biggest linux conference will kick off next week and the organiser has promised that attendees will get a lesson in how to control and monitor everyday objects -- including a toilet flush -- using the open source operating system.
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Conference_encourages_Linux_in_the_bathroom/0,130061733,33...

» at&t to phase out cingular brand
at&t will begin to extinguish next week the brand of cell phone operator cingular, built up with billions of dollars over a few years, to imprint its more-than-century-old name firmly across its services.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6149743.html

» wiki ordered to remove link to drug documents
a wiki about a controversial prescription drug has been ordered by a us court to remove a link to documents which originated with eli lilly, the drug's manufacturer.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/10/wiki_ordered_to_remove_link_to_drug_documents/

» linux powers portable digital tv, divx player
samsung electronics used linux and a divx-accelerated mips-based soc (system-on-chip) to build a portable digital tv. the lmd10a-51w mobile digital multimedia broadcast tv (dmb-tv) has a 10-inch wvga (800x480) screen, and supports t-dmb broadcasts as well as divx, xvid, wmv, and mpeg files.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS3060217360.html

» how at&t chewed up, and spat out net neutrality
analysis it sure would be nice, but it doesn't have much chance of happening because of market power, size, etc. i think it would be real hard to do. i don't think the regulators would let that happen, in my judgment." - ed whitacre on the possibility of taking over bellsouth, 2005. the definition of a southern gentleman, it's said, is someone so charming they can hand you your guts back on a plate - and you thank them.
http://www.theregister.com/2007/01/10/whitacre_wins_big/