Channel Register

31st March 2008 Archive

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  • Elpida hikes DRAM prices 20 per cent

    Will others follow?

    The last time DRAM chip prices fell into a money pit, in 1999, the big four memory makers dug themselves out by working as a team over the next three years. OK, so it was price-fixing: understandable, but illegal. Samsung, Elpida, Hynix and Infineon were caught out - and in 2005 had to cough up $730m in fines. Later they …

    PC Builder 31 Mar 06:02

  • Adware slips between pages of e-book

    Iliad reader carries unwelcome surprise

    An adware package has turned up on the latest e-book devices from iRex, and will install itself automatically onto a connected PC if it gets the chance. The infection appears to be the imgInSOY worm, which copies itself between removable media and uses autorun.inf to infect any Windows system it comes across. In addition to …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 06:02

  • Build and manage large-scale C++ on Windows

    DLLs versus shared objects

    John Lakos wrote the book on Large-Scale C++ Software Design more than 10 years ago, but it remains a must read for any serious C++ developer today. It doesn't go much into the language. For instance there isn't anything inside regarding dynamic casts and virtual inheritance. Neither will it tell you how to calculate the …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 06:02

  • Euro 2008 sales site in drive-by download attack

    Caught offside with Trojan downloader code

    Hackers have successfully planted malware on a website selling tickets for the upcoming Euro 2008 Championships. The site of European ticket re-sale firm euroticketshop.com was infected by Trojan horse malware in a bid to infect soccer-loving surfers with insecure PCs. This drive-by malware style of attack is growing …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 08:59

  • Poisoned websites staying contaminated longer

    Booby trap threat

    Compromised websites are staying infected longer. Some infected sites stay up and running for as long as two months, according to an annual report from web security firm ScanSafe. ScanSafe's Annual Global Threat report (published on Monday) also revealed that web threats including viruses, Trojans, and password stealers are …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 09:01

  • Apple lags MS in security response

    Fear of a Black Hat

    Apple is trailing way behind Microsoft in security patch responsiveness, according to a study by security researchers. Stefan Frei and Bernard Tellenback of the Computer Engineering and Networks Laboratory (TIK) at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, analysed several years of vulnerability disclosures and patching …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 09:16

  • Credit crunch hits finance sector - small biz next?

    Bankers slash IT spend

    The much-embarrassed finance sector will keep a tight rein on IT spending this year as it prepares to jettison as many as 10,000 workers, according to the latest research from the CBI. The business bigwigs group’s latest forecast shows the credit crunch starting to bite hard in many parts of the finance sector in the three …

    IT Channel 31 Mar 10:14

  • OOXML approved as international standard?

    But voting process slammed

    Microsoft looks almost certain to have got its Office Open XML (OOXML) file format passed as an international standard but the ballot has been tarnished by accusations of voting irregularities. There’s no official word as yet from the International Standards Organisation (ISO), the body responsible for overseeing the ballot, …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 10:37

  • Sage annexes construction software firm

    Tekton lays new foundations

    Biz management software provider Sage Group PLC has bought construction software company Tekton Group Ltd for £21m. The cash-only deal is the latest in a series of buy-outs made by Newcastle-based Sage, the only British software firm listed on the FTSE 100. Tekton provides specialist construction software, implementation and …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 11:05

  • Exec sounds death knell for games consoles

    R.I.P.

    A former Xbox executive has boldly declared that dedicated games consoles, such as the Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, will become technological relics within 10 years. Sandy Duncan, who worked in Microsoft’s European Xbox division before leaving to co-found an online gaming business, recently said that “dedicated games …

    Reg Hardware 31 Mar 12:33

  • HSBC e-payments system goes titsup

    Banking bamboozled for whole weekend

    Angry retailers have launched a tirade against HSBC after its e-payments system fell over on Friday and stayed down for the whole weekend. Retailers were unable to sell anything online for over 48 hours, and have started calling for compensation. HSBC's e-payments system has proved particularly attractive for retailers …

    Enterprise 31 Mar 14:41

  • Blighty's Museum of Computing forced to go mobile

    Down and out and about in Swindon

    The UK’s first museum dedicated to computing could be homeless by the summer if it doesn’t find a generous donor with a large, empty building in Swindon going spare. The Museum of Computing currently resides at the University of Bath’s Oakfield campus. However, plans are afoot for the academic bods to up sticks and move on in …

    PC Builder 31 Mar 14:47

  • Creative threatens developer over home-brewed Vista drivers

    Fans say 'give the man a job'

    Creative Labs has enraged customers by threatening a developer with legal action after he wrote drivers that allowed its products to run smoothly on Vista. Soundcard maker Creative accused the developer, known only as daniel_k, of theft and warned him not to infringe its intellectual property. Daniel_k has created a number of …

    PC Builder 31 Mar 16:07

  • Adobe cuddles up to Linux Foundation

    Slings out AIR test version

    Adobe Systems has climbed into bed with the open source developer community by joining the Linux Foundation. The software firm also announced today that it has released a pre-release alpha version of its Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR) for rich web apps on Linux. "Adobe's decision to join the Linux Foundation is a natural …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 16:25

  • Shell waves goodbye to 3,000 IT staffers in $4bn outsourcing gig

    Oil-y company

    Royal Dutch Shell today inked three outsourcing deals – worth $4.2bn over five years – to spin out IT and telecoms operations. In January, a leaked memo to staff revealed the oil company was in outsourcing talks with EDS, AT&T and T-Systems. Today, Shell sealed separate agreements with those companies and said most of its 3, …

    IT Channel 31 Mar 17:31

  • Early calls to simplify Eclipse

    Do it or lose it to NetBeans

    Improved usability and integration with other integrated development environments are the first features being called for in response to a request for feedback on the future Eclipse. Detailed suggestions include improvements to scripting, better on-line documentation to help plug-in developers and the introduction of a value …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 18:21

  • Snitching is less than golden for piracy informers

    We're in the money. Not really

    The SIIA (Software & Information Industry Association) calls it "whistleblowing." And we call it "disgruntled peons ratting on their bosses." But whatever label you use, dobbing on your own company for cutting corners on software licenses can be a lucrative sport. But not for seven American grasses paid up by the SIIA in March …

    Software & Security 31 Mar 18:43

  • Citrix debuts XenServer 4.1 with simpler pricing

    Per server pricing outpaces punctuality?

    After what would appear to be months of dragging its feet with the XenSource code, Citrix Systems today marched out the final version of XenServer 4.1. The last time upgrade to the virtualization package was in August - around the time Citrix bought Xensource for $500m. The upgrade has some 50 features added to the software …

    Enterprise 31 Mar 20:25

  • Microsoft EULA lands it with $175m Indian tax headache

    Words are cheap, until the lawyers get to work

    "The Product is licensed, not sold." Those six words just cost Microsoft's Indian operation $87.5m (350 crore) in tax payments and the same again in interest. Basing its ruling on the terms of Microsoft's own EULA (end-user license agreement), an Indian court has ordered the company to pay tax on royalty income generated in …

    IT Channel 31 Mar 21:24

  • HP intros midrange, easy-on-the-grid servers

    Energy efficient rack and blade, plus Linux love

    Hewlett-Packard is expanding its midsection today, with various hardware and software additions made to its wares for those companies sized between the fantastic and wee. The mid-market courting is composed of HP's two new power-efficient ProLiant servers — a blade and a rackmounted server. There's also some penguin love, with …

    Enterprise 31 Mar 22:30

  • IBM blackballed in US federal ambush

    One way to find out your customer has an issue

    IBM has been temporarily barred from bidding for new contracts with US Federal government agencies. The company blames the suspension on a dispute with the Environmental Protection Agency - of which it had no knowledge, until it read about the ban on a government website. The US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of …

    IT Channel 31 Mar 23:17