CEO Jim Whitehurst pilots Red Hat into future

When Matthew Szulik left Red Hat abruptly for family health reasons in December, many people were scratching their heads over the company's new choice of CEO -- a young executive from Delta Airlines, Jim Whitehurst. But Whitehurst's chief operating officer title at Delta and position outside of the technology industry are misleading; a peek into his past reveals a computer science degree and a passion for open-source technology, not to mention a smooth operator who helped bring a struggling airline out of bankruptcy. In this interview, Whitehurst talks about his first month on the job and where he thinks Red Hat should focus its attention to evolve at a sustainable pace. ...continue reading 'CEO Jim Whitehurst pilots Red Hat into future'

Mozilla patches three critical Firefox flaws

Mozilla issued 10 patches on Friday for its Firefox browser, including three for critical vulnerabilities. The latest version of Firefox is now 2.0.0.12. ...continue reading 'Mozilla patches three critical Firefox flaws'

Alcatel-Lucent suffers Q4 loss on writedown

Alcatel-Lucent reported higher sales but a net loss for the fourth quarter due to a big writedown in its CDMA (code division multiple access) and IP (Internet protocol) multimedia services businesses. ...continue reading 'Alcatel-Lucent suffers Q4 loss on writedown'

Samsung shows latest Ultra-edition handset

Samsung Electronics will present the latest model in its popular Ultra edition range of cell phones at the Mobile World Congress exhibition in Barcelona next week. ...continue reading 'Samsung shows latest Ultra-edition handset'

Barclays sells US call center to Indian outsourcer

Barclays' credit card business in the U.S. has struck a five-year deal with Indian outsourcer Firstsource Solutions to run a call center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. ...continue reading 'Barclays sells US call center to Indian outsourcer'

Microsoft buys 3D company for Virtual Earth

Microsoft has bought Caligari, a developer of 3D modeling software, in a move that could help enrich the graphics experience in Microsoft's Virtual Earth mapping system. ...continue reading 'Microsoft buys 3D company for Virtual Earth'

Antivirus company's Web site serves up malware

The Web site for Indian antivirus vendor AvSoft Technologies has been hacked and is being used to install malicious software on visitors' computers, security researchers said Thursday. ...continue reading 'Antivirus company's Web site serves up malware'

Microsoft preps 7 critical security updates

After kicking off 2008 with just two security updates in January, Microsoft plans to release one of its largest bundles of patches ever next Tuesday. ...continue reading 'Microsoft preps 7 critical security updates'

Major vendors join OpenID board

IBM, Google, Microsoft, Verisign and Yahoo have joined the corporate board of the OpenID Foundation, giving a boost to the group's efforts to simplify the process of signing into Web sites. ...continue reading 'Major vendors join OpenID board'

Patent reform debate heats back up

Some tech groups are beginning to worry that major IT industry priorities, including patent reform, may lose out to other priorities in the U.S. Congress this year. ...continue reading 'Patent reform debate heats back up'

Microsoft responds to Save XP petition

Microsoft's decision to discontinue OEM and packaged sales of Windows XP at the end of June - leaving businesses and consumers with the less-than-celebrated Vista as their only choice of Windows operating system on new PCs - has drawn considerable criticism and led to an outpouring of support for the continuation of XP sales. Microsoft's response: We will continue to respond to the needs of our partners and customers. ...continue reading 'Microsoft responds to Save XP petition'

Yahoo still mulling Microsoft bid

Yahoo has not reached a decision about Microsoft's acquisition offer and is considering "a wide range of potential strategic alternatives," Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang said in an e-mail to employees on Wednesday. ...continue reading 'Yahoo still mulling Microsoft bid'

Flag Telecom: Middle East cables will be repaired by Sunday

Breaks in the Flag Telecom Europe-Asia cable that disrupted Internet and other communications to the Middle East and India last week will be repaired by Sunday, Flag Telecom said in a bulletin. ...continue reading 'Flag Telecom: Middle East cables will be repaired by Sunday'

Windows Vista driver malfunctions not just Microsoft's fault

Microsoft Corp.'s debacle with Windows Vista device drivers malfunctioning after an upgrade to Service Pack 1 is an expected, almost inevitable result of the strategic path it took with Windows' initial release more than two decades ago. ...continue reading 'Windows Vista driver malfunctions not just Microsoft's fault'

Facebook links up with Vodafone on mobile platform

Facebook took a new step into the mobile realm on Thursday, launching a platform for operators designed to make its social networking application work better on portable devices. ...continue reading 'Facebook links up with Vodafone on mobile platform'

India targets $15 billion from infrastructure management

Indian outsourcers already have a large share of outsourced application development and maintenance and are dominant in business process outsourcing. The country is now targeting a larger share of the market for remote infrastructure management services (IMS), and is planning to more than double revenue from these services to $15 billion by 2013. ...continue reading 'India targets $15 billion from infrastructure management'

Google intros Apps edition to bypass the IT department

Google is releasing a new edition of its hosted applications suite that end-users can bring into the workplace without the involvement of their IT department. ...continue reading 'Google intros Apps edition to bypass the IT department'

Apple fixes critical QuickTime bug

Apple has released a security fix for its QuickTime media player software, fixing a critical bug that had been worrying security experts for nearly a month. ...continue reading 'Apple fixes critical QuickTime bug'

Woman charged after killer Craigslist ad

A Michigan woman has been charged with using the Craigslist classified-advertisement Web site to find a killer for a romantic rival. ...continue reading 'Woman charged after killer Craigslist ad'

Access shows browser widgets for cell phones

Japan's Access, the company behind the NetFront browser that is used in hundreds of phones on sale worldwide, has developed a widget system for the latest version of the browser and will demonstrate it next week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. This article contains a video preview. ...continue reading 'Access shows browser widgets for cell phones'

Top 10 useless inventions

Just because you can get a patent on it, doesn't mean it's a good idea. Still, sometimes I feel I could use some mustache or lip guards. ...read more

Unix tip: How-to rename an oddball file

By Sandra Henry-Stocker

Every now and then I come across a file that just doesn't display properly in a file listing. In fact, it can be a little tricky to determine the name of a file that contains odd characters. You might think a file's name is "myfile.txt" only to find out that it's really "myfile.txt " (note the extra blanks). Here's a way to rename it. ...continue reading 'How-to rename an oddball file'

IBM unveils business intelligence services

IBM announced the first results of its recently closed acquisition of business intelligence vendor Cognos, unveiling an array of product offerings and services that tie into its information on demand strategy. ...continue reading 'IBM unveils business intelligence services'

Danish ISP may fight order to fence in The Pirate Bay

One of Denmark's largest ISPs is considering fighting a court order to shut off its subscribers' access to The Pirate Bay, the embattled file-sharing search engine. ...continue reading 'Danish ISP may fight order to fence in The Pirate Bay'

Adobe fixes undisclosed vulnerabilities in Reader

Adobe released on Wednesday an update that fixes vulnerabilities in its widely used Reader document viewing program. ...continue reading 'Adobe fixes undisclosed vulnerabilities in Reader'

Time Warner to split AOL Internet business

Time Warner plans to split up the Internet access and audience businesses of its AOL segment to run them each independently, Time Warner CEO and President Jeff Bewkes revealed Wednesday. ...continue reading 'Time Warner to split AOL Internet business'

IT pros, remote workers fess up to security lapses

Two separate security surveys this week on network access control reach similar conclusions: Employees have immoderate access rights, and management should face up to the challenge of reining in out-of-control access without sacrificing productivity gains. ...continue reading 'IT pros, remote workers fess up to security lapses'

Tech CEOs push for green computing

IT vendors can play a major role in reducing the world's energy consumption, but information about the benefits of technology has been lacking in an ongoing environmental debate in Washington, D.C., three tech CEOs said Wednesday. ...continue reading 'Tech CEOs push for green computing'

IBM and EU launch cloud computing initiative

IBM and the EU have launched a joint research initiative to develop new virtualization and grid technologies for cloud computing, which will enable the sharing of IT services. ...continue reading 'IBM and EU launch cloud computing initiative'

8 signs it's time to look for a new job

By Tom Hoffman, Computerworld

A variety of career experts, headhunters, recruiters, CIOs and IT staffers share their takes on when it's time to move on from your job and when to stay put. ...continue reading '8 signs it's time to look for a new job'

Adobe fixes undisclosed vulnerabilities in Reader

Adobe released on Wednesday an update that fixes vulnerabilities in its widely used Reader document viewing program. ...continue reading 'Adobe fixes undisclosed vulnerabilities in Reader'

Sony preps handheld Bravia digital TV

Sony is packing its Bravia technology into a new handheld TV it plans to put on sale in Japan in April. ...continue reading 'Sony preps handheld Bravia digital TV'

Fujitsu launches global WiMax business

Fujitsu entered the WiMax market on Wednesday with the global launch of its BroadOne brand and three base stations. ...continue reading 'Fujitsu launches global WiMax business'

Apple beats Microsoft, Motorola in mobile phone sales

Even after being on the market for less than half a year, more iPhones sold in the fourth quarter than Windows Mobile phones in the U.S., according to research from Canalys. ...continue reading 'Apple beats Microsoft, Motorola in mobile phone sales'

Attackers zero in on Yahoo Jukebox ActiveX flaw

Just one day after hackers showed how to exploit a number of flaws in the ActiveX software used by Internet Explorer, Symantec has spotted online criminals using one of the attacks. ...continue reading 'Attackers zero in on Yahoo Jukebox ActiveX flaw'

One year after Mac hack contest, Linux & Vista may be tested

One year after launching a controversial Macintosh hacking contest, the promoters of the CanSecWest security research conference are thinking about giving hackers another shot at cracking the Mac. Only this time, they're looking to broaden the field. ...continue reading 'One year after Mac hack contest, Linux & Vista may be tested'

Microsoft offers subscription licensing for small businesses

Microsoft is offering a new subscription model to small businesses that will allow them to use the company's software for less cost than the currently available licensing model. ...continue reading 'Microsoft offers subscription licensing for small businesses'

Nokia invites users to N-Gage

Nokia on Tuesday invited some phone users to start playing with its delayed new N-Gage gaming service and rebranded its video- and photo-sharing service. ...continue reading 'Nokia invites users to N-Gage'

Dell suit reveals lucrative trade in domain names

A civil suit filed in Florida by Dell and its Alienware subsidiary is giving insight into the enormous sums of money that can be made by creating Web pages full of advertising links. ...continue reading 'Dell suit reveals lucrative trade in domain names'

FCC approves sale of nationwide spectrum to AT&T

The Federal Communications Commission has approved the purchase by AT&T of 12MHz of wireless spectrum that covers 60 percent of the U.S. ...continue reading 'FCC approves sale of nationwide spectrum to AT&T'

New iPhone, iPod touch models double storage

Apple Inc. added new iPhone and iPod touch models to its lineup of phones and music players Tuesday by doubling the maximum amount of storage space in each to 16GB. ...continue reading 'New iPhone, iPod touch models double storage'

Skype plugs critical cross-zone scripting hole

Skype Ltd. Tuesday patched a critical vulnerability that forced it to dump several features from its VoIP and chat software to prevent attackers from hijacking Windows PCs. ...continue reading 'Skype plugs critical cross-zone scripting hole'

Why Wi-Fi may be a possible substitute for RFID

Given that many companies already have Wi-Fi networks, Wi-Fi Real Time Location Systems (RTLS) may be a cheaper alternative to some more expensive radio frequency identification (RFID) technology applications, according to one analyst. ...continue reading 'Why Wi-Fi may be a possible substitute for RFID'

How to get the best Oracle licensing deal

Eliot Arlo Colon, president of Miro Consulting, offers advice for Oracle customers looking to get the best deal and protect themselves while licensing software from the enterprise software giant. ...continue reading 'How to get the best Oracle licensing deal'

MySpace readies developer Web site

MySpace will open the doors of its developer Web site on Tuesday and make available there the necessary tools to build applications for the world's most popular social-networking site. ...continue reading 'MySpace readies developer Web site'

eBay sellers split on changes

The significant changes that eBay announced last week have merchants abuzz as they analyze and react to the impact that the restructured fees, modification of the search and feedback functions, and other changes will have on their sales and profits. ...continue reading 'eBay sellers split on changes'

HP user groups plan merger to increase clout, lower costs

Three independent Hewlett-Packard user groups said Monday that they plan to merge into a single organization with more than 50,000 members in an effort to increase training opportunities and their clout with the IT vendor. ...continue reading 'HP user groups plan merger to increase clout, lower costs'

Nvidia gets physical with Ageia acquisition

Nvidia on Monday announced that it had agreed to acquire graphics vendor Ageia Technologies for an undisclosed amount. ...continue reading 'Nvidia gets physical with Ageia acquisition'

Microsoft-Yahoo deal: What about developers?

While observers believe that Microsoft is willing to pay Yahoo $44 billion primarily for its users and advertising base, Microsoft's chief software architect, Ray Ozzie, wants to grow its developer community as well. ...continue reading 'Microsoft-Yahoo deal: What about developers?'

Dell announces first arrays from EqualLogic acquisition

Acting immediately on its recent EqualLogic acquisition, Dell on Monday announced a new line of network storage products that the company claims are easy to install and manage. ...continue reading 'Dell announces first arrays from EqualLogic acquisition'

The Internet's strangest communities

"There's a lid for every pot," the old saying goes, and the Internet sure allows the oddest-shaped lids and pots to find one another and discuss lid-pot relations at great length. Many of the communities discussed here will probably be old hat to you by now (Second Life? please) but then there are the ice chewers -- and the "boytaurs." Not for the faint of heart! ...read more

IPv6 internet overhaul begins

As the pool of unallocated addresses rapidly dries up, the Internet's master address books are being updated to include records in IP version 6 (IPv6), a new format which forms part of a major overhaul of the net's core address system. ...continue reading 'IPv6 internet overhaul begins'

Oracle launches data integration suite

Oracle on Monday launched Oracle Data Integration Suite, which combines traditional data integration capabilities with an array of middleware and tooling for constructing a service oriented architecture. ...continue reading 'Oracle launches data integration suite'

Microsoft finalizes Vista SP1 code for mid-March release

Microsoft has finalized the code for the first service pack for Windows Vista, but won't release the code via its update services to customers until mid-March, the company said Monday. Moreover, some devices may not work with the initial version of the software because of driver issues that continue to plague the OS. ...continue reading 'Microsoft finalizes Vista SP1 code for mid-March release'

Software sucks on purpose

James Gaskin, ITworld

The sad state of software - full security holes and bugs, yet thrown into the market anyway, where consumers are expected to pay for upgrades that should by right be considered patches is well known. One solution is something that might be unpopular in traditionally libertarian tech circles: Stronger consumer protection laws for software. ...continue reading 'Software sucks on purpose'

When the economy gets tough, do you get going?

Joel Shore, ITworld

When there no money to spend, there is always money to be saved. Consider IBM's actions after the oil embargoes of the mid 1970s: When the outlook for sales were growing dim, the company put more shoe leather on the street, revving up the sales machine, knocking on doors, calling on dormant accounts, finding ways to help customer boost productivity in the MIS departments (long before anyone called it IT). ...continue reading 'When the economy gets tough, do you get going?'

Ballmer rebuffs Google's anticompetitive rant

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer rebuffed Google's accusations that an acquisition of Yahoo would be anticompetitive. ...continue reading 'Ballmer rebuffs Google's anticompetitive rant'

Torvalds: Microsoft is bluffing on patents

Microsoft's aggressive defense of its intellectual property, which includes claims that Linux violates a number of its patents, is nothing more than 'a marketing thing,' according to Linus Torvalds, creator of the Linux kernel. ...continue reading 'Torvalds: Microsoft is bluffing on patents'

Intel lifts veil on Silverthorne processor

Intel will offer a first look at technical details of its low-power Silverthorne processor during a presentation at the International Solid State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) this week, setting the stage for a concerted push into the market for ultraportable devices. ...continue reading 'Intel lifts veil on Silverthorne processor'

Forgotten IT chores may have led to bank meltdown

The huge losses reported by French bank Société Générale, apparently caused by a rogue trader with inside knowledge of the bank's procedures, don't necessarily point to an IT systems failure but rather to poor management of those systems, analysts say. ...continue reading 'Forgotten IT chores may have led to bank meltdown'

Intel details upgrade to Itanium processor

Intel on Monday is expected to detail Tukwila, its next generation of 64-bit Itanium processors that are used in enterprise servers. ...continue reading 'Intel details upgrade to Itanium processor'

Google, Microsoft trade barbs over Yahoo bid

Google has made its first official comments on Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Yahoo saying that the deal raises 'troubling questions' and that the underlying principles of the Internet stand to be tested by the proposed deal. ...continue reading 'Google, Microsoft trade barbs over Yahoo bid'

LiMo's Linux phone platform nears launch

The LiMo Foundation plans to release the first version of its Linux software platform for mobile phones in March, with handsets running the software due soon. ...continue reading 'LiMo's Linux phone platform nears launch'

Storm worm dethroned by sex botnet

Romance is out and sex is in, according to security experts who said the Mega-Dik botnet has ousted the infamous Storm as the most prolific sender of spam. ...continue reading 'Storm worm dethroned by sex botnet'

Antivirus companies aim to set standards for testing

Antivirus software companies and software testers created a new organization Monday with the goal of providing consistent information about the effectiveness of antivirus products. ...continue reading 'Antivirus companies aim to set standards for testing'

Mayor faces recall over sexy MySpace pics

Carmen Kontur-Gronquis, mayor of a small Oregon town, caused quite a stir when she posted pics of herself on her (public) MySpace account posing on the town's fire engine wearing nothing but her bra and panties. Now she's facing a recall election -- though most observers think the real motivation has less to do with Internet naughtiness and more to do with boring political questions like water issues and the town golf course. ...read more

Poll: What's the dumbest thing you've ever done with your cell phone?

- Dropped it in the toilet
- Accidentally hurled it across the room
- Found out the hard way that it was still on during a movie or play
- Stepped on it
- Ran over it
- Drunk-dialed
- Bought one in the first place -- I used to have privacy!

Vote now!