MS hopes for Xbox Japan boost with Live gaming ... Semiconductor industry looks to 18-inch wafers

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Microsoft hopes for Xbox Japan boost with Live gaming
News: Semiconductor industry looks ahead to 18-inch wafers
News: AMD looks to raise $2.2 billion through debt sale
News: U.S. Army team wants second chance at hacker contest
Opinion: The mashup approach to application integration
ITwhirled: eBay auction of papal Volkswagon flops
Podcast: U.S. government targets ID theft .... Number of telephones grows in India ... DoCoMo to sell motion-sensing handsets for games


NEWS UPDATES

Microsoft hopes for Xbox Japan boost with Live gaming
Microsoft Corp. hopes the launch in May of a gaming platform that ties together Windows PCs and the Xbox 360 console will give PC gaming a boost in Japan and in turn mean better business for its console.

Semiconductor industry looks ahead to 18-inch wafers
The world's largest contract chip manufacturer is part of a group of companies exploring the use of 18-inch (450 millimeter) silicon wafers to drive down chip costs, but the technology faces a major hurdle: nobody can afford an 18-inch wafer factory.

AMD looks to raise $2.2 billion through debt sale
Less than one week after disclosing a $611 million first-quarter loss, chip maker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) Monday said it hopes to raise up to $2.2 billion through the sale of convertible notes to institutional investors.

U.S. Army team wants second chance at hacker contest
A team of U.S. Army hackers will attend the Hack In The Box (HITB) Security Conference 2007 in Kuala Lumpur later this year, seeking redemption after falling short at a hacker competition in Dubai earlier this month, the conference organizer said Tuesday.

Alcatel-Lucent sales, operating profit dip in Q2
First-quarter operating profit dipped at telecoms equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent SA on weak sales of the company's products for wireless and core networks.

EnterpriseDB upgrade aims at Oracle
EnterpriseDB is releasing an upgrade to its database software next month, hoping to lure customers away from Oracle Corp. with the promise of lower license fees and compatibility with applications written for Oracle's database.

Report: Former Apple execs may be charged this week
Two former executives of Apple Inc. may face legal action this week by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for their roles in the stock options backdating scandal at the computer company.

Apple product hazards put to shareholder vote
Apple Inc. shareholders will vote on a resolution at the company's annual meeting May 10 on a proposal to remove certain hazardous chemicals from their products.

AT&T to target iPhone to enterprise
AT&T Inc. plans to market the iPhone to business users in addition to consumers but analysts aren't recommending that enterprises supply workers with the phones.


OPINION

I'll push and you pull. The mashup approach to application integration
By Sean McGrath, ITworld.com

The phenomenon of mashup applications on the web intrigues me. The applications themselves are fascinating enough but on top of that you have the richly painted canvas of reaction and opinion from the IT community. In a scene reminiscent of a busy Hieronymus Bosch painting, many voices speak at once. Many reactions take place all at the same time, evidencing delight, horror, exacerbation in equal measure.

Read the full article here.

Subscribe to E-business in the Enterprise - Observations about business, the Internet, and cool technologies.


ITWHIRLED

eBay auction of papal Volkswagon flops
A hatchback car that Pope Benedict XVI owned before his elevation to the papacy was auctioned off on eBay, but failed to meet the reserve price. You might be forgiven for thinking the owner was being a little greedy: That reserve price was apparently more than $204,400.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
U.S. government targets ID theft .... Number of telephones grows in India ... DoCoMo to sell motion-sensing handsets for games

More podcasts

Motorola buys Terayon for $140 million ... HP files second patent lawsuit against Acer

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Motorola buys Terayon for $140 million
News: HP files second patent lawsuit against Acer
News: Court filings: Kickbacks on gov't contracts widespread
News: Microsoft hit with patent suit over .Net
Unix Tip: Taking notes the easy way
ITwhirled: Researcher records life in detail
Podcast: HP files another lawsuit against Acer ... Singapore Exchange plans new order system ... Intuit offers refunds for e-filing problems


NEWS UPDATES

Motorola buys Terayon for $140 million
Motorola Inc. will buy Terayon Communication Systems Inc., a digital video processing and networking software maker, for $140 million, the companies announced on Monday.

HP files second patent lawsuit against Acer
Hewlett-Packard Co., the world's largest PC vendor, has filed another lawsuit against its fastest growing rival, Acer Inc., as competition in the PC industry continues to heat up.

Court filings: Kickbacks on gov't contracts widespread
An alleged multi-million-dollar kickback scheme involving work on numerous U.S. government contracts touches dozens of IT vendors and systems integrators, according to court documents unsealed Thursday.

Microsoft hit with patent suit over .Net
Vertical Computer Systems Inc. is suing Microsoft Corp. for patent infringement related to Microsoft's .Net framework for building Windows-based software.

Barclays merger will move 10,800 jobs to India
U.K. bank Barclays PLC will move 10,800 jobs to India following a giant merger announced Monday with ABN Amro Holding NV, part of an effort to generate billions of euros in annual savings.

Europe considers network security portal for SMBs
The European Union is considering a system that would alert small and medium-size businesses to network and information security threats.

RIM readies software client for non-Blackberry devices
New software from Research in Motion Ltd. (RIM) will enable all BlackBerry wireless applications to run on smartphones from rival handset makers.

Business Objects to buy financial software vendor
Business Objects SA has agreed to buy Cartesis SA, a maker of finance and performance management software, for €225 million in cash, or about $300 million, the companies announced Monday.

Google looking to expand geo-tagged information
Google Inc. is looking to increase the range and variety of information with a geographical element that it offers, and hopes its users will play a big part in the expansion.


UNIX TIP

Taking notes the easy way
By Sandra Henry-Stocker

If you ever find yourself cutting and pasting Unix commands and their output into a file in order to create a record of some anomaly you have encountered on a system you manage or to document a procedure so that someone else can take charge while you are on vacation, you may have overlooked a handy command that takes all the fuss out of recording the content of your online session -- the script command.

Read the full article here.


ITWHIRLED

Researcher records life in detail
Gordon Bell records everything about his life: He saves every e-mail and walks around with a digital camera and audio recorder. It's a bit cumbersome at the moment, but he's working on a system for Microsoft that will make it all simple!

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
HP files another lawsuit against Acer ... Singapore Exchange plans new order system ... Intuit offers refunds for e-filing problems

More podcasts

Protecting the Earth and the bottom line

HIGHLIGHTS

News: Protecting the Earth and the bottom line
News: RIM finally breaks silence on BlackBerry outage
News: EPIC, CDD ask FTC to block Google-DoubleClick merger
News: Mobile phone sales to slow in 2007, says IDC
News: Google buys Marratech video conferencing company
News: SAP first-quarter profit climbs 10 percent
ITwhirled: UFOs invade Canada



NEWS UPDATES

Protecting the Earth and the bottom line
As the 27th anniversary of Earth Day approaches on Sunday, more companies are realizing that embracing energy conservation is good business, not just good public relations. "It's not just about pictures of little kids holding balloons, running across green fields," said Larry Vertal, senior strategist in microprocessors at Advanced Micro Devices Inc., which hosted an energy summit at its Sunnyvale, California, headquarters on April 9.


RIM finally breaks silence on BlackBerry outage
The addition of a new software routine caused the multi-hour failure of Research in Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry messaging service in North America earlier this week, the company said Friday.


EPIC, CDD ask FTC to block Google-DoubleClick merger
Three U.S. online civil rights groups have filed a complaint asking the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to block Google Inc.'s planned US$3.1 billion acquisition of DoubleClick Inc. unless the company agrees to stop tracking its users.


Mobile phone sales to slow in 2007, says IDC
Global sales of mobile phones, while still buoyant, are growing at a slower rate as the market for first-time owners shrinks, according to market research released Friday by IDC.


Google buys Marratech video conferencing company
Google Inc. has bought Marratech AB, a Stockholm-based developer of video conferencing software, taking it further into the sphere of collaborative work tools.


SAP first-quarter profit climbs 10 percent
SAP AG has posted its financial results following a turbulent quarter for the company, reporting a 10 percent jump in profit on increased sales of its software and support services.


ITWHIRLED

UFOs invade Canada
Do aliens beings from beyond our solar system have a thing for ice hockey? Poutine? Bryan Adams and/or Alanis Morissette? It's impossible to know exactly what is going on in their pulsing, veiny, oversized skulls, but 736 of their spacecraft were spotted flying above the Great White North in 2006.

Microsoft, Samsung sign patent accord ... HP expands lead over Dell ... Mozilla releases Thunderbird 2

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Yahoo sued over jailing of Chinese dissident
News: Nokia phone sales drop in Q1 as prices fall
News: Gates launches developing world tech initiative
News: Microsoft, Samsung sign broad patent accord
Windows Tip: Forcing a remote reboot
ITwhirled: Physicist needs $20K to test time-travel hypothesis
Podcast: BlackBerry services resume after outage ... HP expands lead over Dell ... Microsoft, Lenovo join forces for R&D


NEWS UPDATES

Yahoo sued over jailing of Chinese dissident
The wife of an imprisoned Chinese dissident has sued Yahoo Inc. for divulging information about her husband's Internet activity, which allegedly led to his arrest and torture.

Nokia phone sales drop in Q1 as prices fall
Sales in Nokia Corp.'s core mobile phone business dropped in the first quarter as competition intensified in the global handset market, particularly from Asian vendors.

Gates launches developing world tech initiative
Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates launched an initiative in Beijing Thursday aimed at bridging the digital divide between technologically advanced and developing countries.

Microsoft, Samsung sign broad patent accord
Microsoft Corp. entered into a broad patent licensing agreement with South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. aimed at speeding product development efforts for both companies, they said Thursday.

Mozilla releases Thunderbird 2 e-mail client
Mozilla Corp. unveiled the final version of its open-source Thunderbird 2 e-mail client on Thursday, improving how users can organize and label their messages.

HP extends market lead over Dell in PC sales
Hewlett-Packard Co. (PC) has extended its lead over Dell Inc. in personal computer sales according to two industry reports released Wednesday.

New legislation would overhaul U.S. patent system
A group of U.S. lawmakers have introduced legislation that would overhaul the U.S. patent system, earning them praise from a number of technology groups.

Next OpenOffice release to include Pentaho BI
Open-source business intelligence software vendor Pentaho Corp. is hoping a new tie-up unveiled Thursday with the OpenOffice.org community and Sun Microsystems Inc. will bring its BI offerings to the attention of many more new users.

MS Antitrust: Iowa judge approves class-action settlement
A judge in Iowa's Polk Country District Court Wednesday granted preliminary approval to a settlement in one of the last class-action lawsuits faced by Microsoft Corp. in the wake of the antitrust case brought by the U.S. government in the 1990s.

Ballmer: SAAS shouldn't threaten IT jobs
While the movement toward SAAS (software as a service) and away from client-based software may change the role of the IT professional, it shouldn't signal a widespread loss of jobs, experts speaking during Microsoft Corp.'s IT Pro Town Hall in Redmond said on Wednesday.

Red Hat creates global services center in India
Red Hat Inc. has set up a global services center in India that will assist its customers with deploying open-source technologies. The center will hire about 100 staff over the next 12 months.


WINDOWS TIP

Forcing a remote reboot
Mitch Tulloch, MTIT Enterprises

You've probably heard that old saying, "When in doubt, reboot." There
can be many reasons why you might need to reboot a system from
applications that leak memory to problems caused by patching. And
while rebooting a system to fix an issue isn't an elegant solution,
well if it works, it works. Right?

Unfortunately sometimes when you try and reboot a remote system it may
not behave as expected. For example, one business I know has scheduled
reboots for one of their servers using Task Scheduler and the
shutdown /r, but from time to time the reboot fails for no apparent
reason, even when using the /f (force) command. How can you make sure
your server reboots when you tell it to?

Subscribe to Windows in the Enterprise - Tips for how to maximize Windows safely and securely.


ITWHIRLED

Physicist needs $20K to test time-travel hypothesis
Always wanted to meet Abraham Lincoln or James Dean? Got $20,000 burning a hole in your pocket? Talk to physics prof John Cramer, who has some interesting ideas on time travel but can't get the funding needed to test them out.

Subscribe to the ITwhirled alert - weird tech news direct to your inbox.


PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
BlackBerry services resume after outage ... HP expands lead over Dell ... Microsoft, Lenovo join forces for R&D

More podcasts

BlackBerry suffers widespread outage ... Intel's Centrino to get WiMax next year

HIGHLIGHTS
News: BlackBerry suffers widespread outage
News: Intel's Centrino package to get WiMax next year
News: Oracle updates leave critical Windows flaw
News: Intel has big plans for little devices
Unix Tip: Rejecting email from outside
ITwhirled: British scientists determine formula for perfect bacon sandwich
Podcast: BlackBerry service has widespread outage ... Oracle patch delayed for Windows customers ... Intel to put WiMax in Centrino ... Via picks Intel for ultramobile PC


NEWS UPDATES

BlackBerry suffers widespread outage
The BlackBerry wireless e-mail service from Research In Motion Ltd. appears to have suffered a widespread outage starting Tuesday evening in the U.S.

IDF: Intel's Centrino package to get WiMax next year
Intel Corp. said Wednesday it plans to next year add WiMax to its Centrino platform, a long-expected move likely to boost demand for wireless broadband services.

Oracle updates leave critical Windows flaw
Some Oracle Corp. customers using the Windows operating system will have to wait another two weeks to receive a critical software update to their database software, thanks to a glitch that came up in testing the company's latest patches.

IDF: Intel has big plans for little devices
Intel Corp. Wednesday unveiled its Ultra Mobile platform, also known as McCaslin, designed for ultramobile PCs and other handheld devices, and outlined plans for increased Linux support and a new chip for ultramobile PCs due in 2008.

Virginia Tech students hit social sites after shooting
Many students at Virginia Tech on Monday turned to message boards and social networking sites to try to find out what exactly was happening on campus during a shooting spree that ended with 33 dead.

Oracle sets out content management road map
Building on its December acquisition of Stellent, Oracle Corp. Wednesday began to flesh out its content management software strategy.

SAAS is hitting its stride
Delivering software as a service (SAAS), accessed from the Internet rather than installed on a computer, is rapidly becoming the way for businesses to use software, said experts attending a conference Tuesday called SaaScon in Santa Clara, California.


UNIX TIP

Rejecting email from outside
By Sandra Henry-Stocker

If you would like to generate email on a server, but don't want to put up with email from the outside, you can configure sendmail to do this for you.

Subscribe to Unix in the Enterprise - Tips and tricks for managing your Unix systems.


ITWHIRLED

British scientists determine formula for perfect bacon sandwich
Totally not wanting for cash are a group of Brits who managed to quantify the deliciousness of a bacon sandwich (or "bacon buttie" in UK parlance). The formula is N = C + {fb(cm) · fb(tc)} + fb(Ts) + fc · ta, if you're interested.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
BlackBerry service has widespread outage ... Oracle patch delayed for Windows customers ... Intel to put WiMax in Centrino ... Via picks Intel for ultramobile PC

More podcasts

Adobe CEO responds to Microsoft's Silverlight ... Microsoft releases Media Player plug-in for Firefox

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Adobe CEO responds to Microsoft's Silverlight
News: Microsoft releases Media Player plug-in for Firefox
News: Intel processor hits speedy 2 teraflops in demo
News: Sun, Fujitsu and Hitachi freshen server lines
Security Tip: Three inexpensive ways to increase security
ITwhirled: 10 years of blogs: An incomplete timeline
Podcast: Intel developing x86-compatible terascale chip ... New servers from Sun, Fujitsu and Hitachi ... Adobe questions Microsoft plans with Silverlight ... Oracle releases integration software


NEWS UPDATES

Adobe CEO responds to Microsoft's Silverlight
Silverlight, which is seen as Microsoft's challenger to Adobe's Flash format, was unveiled Monday at the National Association of Broadcasters trade show in Las Vegas. The head of Adobe has questioned Microsoft's commitment to keeping its new Silverlight platform compatible with other operating systems besides Windows.

Microsoft releases Media Player plug-in for Firefox
Microsoft, as part of its outreach to the open-source community, has released a new official Windows Media Player plug-in for Firefox 2.0 that resolves problems with the older one.

IDF: Intel processor hits speedy 2 teraflops in demo
Intel Corp. demonstrated its fastest multi-core processor yet at the Spring Intel Development Forum (IDF) in Beijing on Tuesday, an 80-core processor that hit a speedy 2-teraflops (trillions of floating point operations per second) in a demonstration.

Sun, Fujitsu and Hitachi freshen server lines
Sun Microsystems Inc. and Fujitsu Ltd. are introducing new servers Tuesday that they jointly developed, while another server maker, Hitachi Ltd., is unveiling new blade servers. They each aim to address buyers' dual needs for computing power and energy efficiency.

Amazon Web Services losing money
Amazon.com Inc.'s Web services business isn't profitable, but it's growing very rapidly and the company expects it to make money eventually, Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos said Monday.

IDF: Intel plans powerful x86 chip with many cores
Intel Corp. is developing a programmable processor with many cores that is compatible with the x86 instruction set and capable of performing 1 trillion floating-point operations per second, a senior company executive said Tuesday at the Intel Developer Forum in Beijing.

JotSpot chief: Google is a nerd paradise
JotSpot agreed to be acquired by Google Inc. partly because the search engine giant is "a nerd's paradise," JotSpot co-founder Joe Kraus said Monday. As a self-described nerd leading a startup of nerds, Kraus "couldn't think of a better company" to be acquired by in Silicon Valley, he said at the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco.

Vonage admits it has no workaround
Vonage Holdings Corp. has acknowledged it has no workaround for technology that was found to infringe Verizon Communications Inc. patents and does not know if one is feasible.

Yahoo expands ad deal with newspaper partners
In a win for its online advertising strategy, Yahoo Inc. Monday extended a deal that makes it the exclusive online distribution site for U.S. newspapers from a consortium of 12 newspaper companies, enabling the Web portal and search vendor to share and earn online advertising revenue with them.


SECURITY TIP

Three inexpensive ways to increase security
By Brent Huston, ITworld.com

Want to increase overall security of your small to mid-size business network without spending much time or money? These three inexpensive ideas will help bring more security and less hassle to your environment.

Subscribe to Security Strategies - Tips and technologies to protect your enterprise.


ITWHIRLED

10 years of blogs: An incomplete timeline
Hard to believe it, but the now-ubiquitous weblog turned 10 this month. Here are a few of the milestones -- minus any incidents of people being fired for blogging, bloggers getting people fired, or famous bloggers being fired -- needless to say, it's a short list.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Intel developing x86-compatible terascale chip ... New servers from Sun, Fujitsu and Hitachi ... Adobe questions Microsoft plans with Silverlight ... Oracle releases integration software

More podcasts

Google to sell radio ads through Clear Channel ... Microsoft unveils Silverlight as Flash killer

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Intel offers a look beyond Santa Rosa
News: Google to sell radio ads through Clear Channel
News: Microsoft unveils Silverlight as Flash killer
News: HD DVD, Blu-ray protection in question after attacks
Security Tip: Don't be seduced by penetration testing certifications
ITwhirled: 21 biggest tech flops
Podcast: Microsoft and Adobe unveil new desktop software products ... Intel will give its first demonstration of PRAM this week ... Google strikes deal Clear Channel to sell radio ads


NEWS UPDATES

Intel offers a look beyond Santa Rosa
The next version of Intel Corp.'s Centrino notebook platform, called Santa Rosa, will hit the market next month, but the company is already looking ahead to other products, including an updated "Santa Rosa refresh" and a quad-core mobile processor set for release next year.

Google to sell radio ads through Clear Channel
Google Inc. has struck a deal with Clear Channel Communications Inc. to sell 30-second audio ads on its AM and FM radio stations, reinforcing Google's advertising sales business beyond the Web.

Microsoft unveils Silverlight as Flash killer
Microsoft Corp. this week will reveal new technology to deliver rich media applications on the Web, part of a broader strategy to go head to head with Web and design tools powerhouse Adobe Systems Inc.

HD DVD, Blu-ray protection in question after attacks
Next week, new HD DVD movies will hit the shelves that won't play on some players, the first countermeasure by the content and software industries to combat intensive efforts by hackers to break copy-protection technology.

CA to pursue co-founder Wang for fraud
A special committee at CA Inc. Friday released a report blaming co-founder Charles Wang for accounting fraud at the company and recommending suing him for damages and the value of company stock he received.

Google to pay $3.1B for DoubleClick
Google Inc. has agreed to buy DoubleClick Inc. for $3.1 billion in cash, an acquisition that strengthens Google's status as an online advertising powerhouse.

Microsoft targets SAAS program
Microsoft Corp. has consolidated some of its efforts to help Web hosting companies offer software-as-a-service (SAAS) into a new program tailored for offerings to independent software vendors (ISVs).

Coming soon: a Microsoft fuel-cell charger
A New York-based company that is one of a handful developing fuel cells for consumer electronics devices says it has started commercial production of a fuel cell-based recharger for Microsoft Corp.

Adobe to show off media player
Adobe Systems Inc. has developed its first desktop media player and plans to give the industry an early peek at it at the National Association of Broadcasters trade show in Las Vegas this week.

New worm wriggles around on Skype
A worm targeting Skype Ltd.'s VOIP (voice over Internet protocol) application is harvesting e-mail addresses and directing users to a range of sites hosting other malicious software, security vendors said Monday.

IBM and Yahoo upgrade enterprise search app
IBM Corp. and Yahoo Inc. have enhanced their joint enterprise search product, a free competitor to Google Inc.'s Mini device.


SECURITY TIP

Don't be seduced by penetration testing certifications
By Brent Huston, MicroSolved, Inc.

There's been a lot of recent talk about certifications for penetration testing, but don't be swayed. You must continue to carefully vet your security partners when it comes to protecting your perimeter.

Here's why.

Subscribe to Security Strategies - Tips and technologies to protect your enterprise.


ITWHIRLED

21 biggest tech flops
There's a curious urge in the tech community to make lists of our most notable failures. Here's another batch, ranging from products too beautiful for this world (the Newton) to those killed by circumstances beyond their control (digital audio tapes) to just plain bad ideas (DIVX).

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Microsoft and Adobe unveil new desktop software products ... Intel will give its first demonstration of PRAM this week ... Google strikes deal Clear Channel to sell radio ads

More podcasts

Microsoft warns of dangerous flaw in DNS server ... Apple delays Leopard, blames iPhone

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Microsoft warns of dangerous flaw in DNS server
News: Apple delays Leopard, blames iPhone
News: CBS shows coming to MSN, Joost and others
News: Samsung to launch dual Blu-ray HD DVD player
Storage Tip: Increase energy efficiency of stored data
ITwhirled: Geek Comic of the Week: Isotown
Podcast: Qualcomm refuses $20 million payment from Nokia ... Microsoft hunts source of leak ... Intel readies new ultramobile PC platform


NEWS UPDATES

Microsoft warns of dangerous flaw in DNS server
Attackers are trying to take advantage of a newly-disclosed vulnerability in several of Microsoft Corp.'s server products that could alow them to run unauthorized code on affected computers, the company has warned.

Apple delays Leopard, blames iPhone
Apple Inc. said it won't release Leopard, the next version of the Mac operating system, in early June as planned, blaming the delay on the iPhone.

CBS shows coming to MSN, Joost and others
CBS Corp. will distribute its television programs more widely over the Internet, adding new deals with Joost, Microsoft Corp.'s MSN and AOL LLC to existing agreements with Apple Inc.'s iTunes and Google Inc.'s YouTube.

Samsung to launch dual Blu-ray HD DVD player
Samsung, one of the main backers of the Blu-ray Disc format, plans to release an optical disc player this year that will play both Blu-ray Disc and the rival HD DVD format, the company said Friday.

Microsoft pressures testers after software leak
Microsoft Corp. is taking tough measures to find out who leaked a Community Technology Preview (CTP) of Windows Home Server to The Hotfix.net blog after the software preview was posted on the site by a user named "Richard" soon after it was released to a small group of testers.

Infosys' revenues to reach $4 billion this year
Infosys Technologies Ltd., India's second largest software and services outsourcer, announced Friday that it expected its revenue to grow by 28 to 30 percent to about $4 billion in its current fiscal year ending March 31 next year.

Nokia insists that Qualcomm is using its patents
The patent license fight between Qualcomm Inc. and Nokia Corp. has gone into another round. Just hours after Qualcomm refused to accept a $20 million payment from Nokia for royalties on patented Qualcomm technology, Nokia rejected Qualcomm's claims that it doesn't use Nokia patents.

Sun buys mobile phone software maker SavaJe
Sun Microsystems Inc. said Thursday it plans to acquire the intellectual property of SavaJe Technologies Inc., a provider of Mobile Java application development tools.

Cisco fixes wireless security holes
Cisco has patched a number of security flaws in the software used to manage its wireless networking products.

Taiwan's Via scores big win with HP
Intel Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. may be locked in a vicious price war over desktop and mobile chips, but that hasn't stopped Taiwan's Via Technologies Inc. from gaining ground in the market with its focus on low-cost processors that don't draw much power.

IBM puts blades on a low-carb(on) diet
IBM Corp. is adding to its server lineup with new models featuring lower-wattage processors and flash memory instead of disks, all in the name of energy conservation.


STORAGE TIP

Increase energy efficiency of stored data
By David Hill, Mesabi Group

One approach to increasing energy efficiency is to get more out of the storage that you already have by increasing the utilization factor over time. One way to accomplish this is to consolidate underutilized disks into fewer, but on-average, fuller disks. You can then either idle some disks that are not used and take an immediate power savings or you can wait and fill them up over time with new data without increasing power consumption.

Here's what you need to know.

Subscribe to Storage Strategies - Tips for effective storage management, technology updates and best practices.


ITWHIRLED

Geek Comic of the Week: Isotown
For everyone who's ever stayed up late playing Sim City, there's this weirdly hypnotic comic that mainly consists of an isometric city being built, one pixel at a time.

Subscribe to the ITwhirled alert - weird tech news direct to your inbox.


PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Qualcomm refuses $20 million payment from Nokia ... Microsoft hunts source of leak ... Intel readies new ultramobile PC platform

More podcasts

Vonage CEO resigns, cost-cutting moves planned ... IBM designs stackable chips

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Vonage CEO resigns, cost-cutting moves planned
News: Microsoft's top lawyer happy with Vista Ready info
News: IBM will stack chips for more efficient processing
News: Sony plans OLED TV launch this year
Windows Tip: Troubleshooting Group Policy processing on terminal servers
ITwhirled: Killjoy eggheads debunk Joan of Arc rib
Podcast: Less spam coming from China ... Microsoft doubts reported Word vulnerabilities ... IBM designs stackable chips


NEWS UPDATES

Vonage CEO resigns, cost-cutting moves planned
Vonage Holdings Corp. CEO Michael Snyder resigned, the company said Thursday, at the same time announcing plans to cut its costs by $140 million.

Microsoft's top lawyer happy with Vista Ready info
Microsoft Corp.'s top lawyer said Thursday that he is happy with the information the company provided about its Vista operating system, and its compatibility with existing PCs, ahead of the software's launch in January this year.

IBM will stack chips for more efficient processing
IBM Corp. announced plans on Thursday to build smaller, more efficient chips by stacking a processor on top of its memory or power components, then drilling holes through the chips to connect them.

Sony plans OLED TV launch this year
Sony Corp. hopes to steal a lead on its rivals this year by launching televisions that use OLED (organic light emitting diode) displays, it said Thursday.

Time is running out for Windows XP
Microsoft will force PC makers to stop selling machines running XP by the end of this year, despite ongoing compatibility problems and demand for XP from users.

Oracle announces Siebel Wireless for BlackBerry
Enterprises using Oracle Corp.'s CRM software will be able to extend the application to workers with BlackBerry smartphones.

U.S. military plans to put Internet router in space
The U.S. military plans to test an Internet router in space, in a project that could also benefit civilian broadband satellite communications.

Microsoft, Google trade barbs on enterprise search
Officials of Microsoft Corp. and Google Inc. traded comparisons of their enterprise search products to their rival's during a technology conference in San Francisco Wednesday.

Sophos: China fixing spam problem; U.S. is not
The amount of spam pumping out of China dropped precipitously in the first three months of 2007, security vendor Sophos PLC reported Wednesday. A year ago, computers in China were sending out 21.1 percent of all spam messages, but that number has steadily dropped over the past year, totalling just 7.5 percent in the most-recent quarter, Sophos said.


WINDOWS TIP

Troubleshooting Group Policy processing on terminal servers
By Mitch Tulloch, MTIT Enterprises

Here's a tip concerning troubleshooting Group Policy application when you have Windows terminal servers on the back end of your Windows clients. User Configuration policy settings will usually be applied when a user logs on to a terminal server, with one main exception: when the terminal server is configured to use loopback processing with replace mode.

Subscribe to Windows in the Enterprise - Tips for how to maximize Windows safely and securely.


ITWHIRLED

Killjoy eggheads debunk Joan of Arc rib
The good news: That rib bone that's been deemed a relic of St. Joan of Arc for more than a century really is an ancient historical artifact. The bad news: according to a group of researchers, it's from a little before Joan's time -- more than 1,700 years, to be exact. The rib is actually from an ancient Egyptian mummy.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Less spam coming from China ... Microsoft doubts reported Word vulnerabilities ... IBM designs stackable chips

More podcasts

Microsoft investigates reports of new Office flaws ... Google plans worldwide developer day

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Microsoft investigates reports of new Office flaws
News: Google plans worldwide developer day
News: 37 Oracle security fixes coming next week
News: Get the iPhone look - on your Pocket PC
Opinion: April's coolest gadgets
ITwhirled: Top 10 tech uses for Girl Scout cookies
Podcast: Palm OS to run on Linux kernel ... Oracle readies security updates ... Yahoo signs ad deal with Viacom


NEWS UPDATES

Microsoft investigates reports of new Office flaws
Security experts have discovered more vulnerabilities in Microsoft Word and other software, although hackers do not appear to be exploiting them yet. The flaws have been reported just as Microsoft Corp. releases its latest round of security patches.

Google plans worldwide developer day
Google hopes to woo more developers to its Web services software platform with a 27-hour-long "Developer Day" on May 31. Topics to be covered will include developing location-based services with Google Maps, Google Earth, and SketchUp; creating mash-ups with AJAX and Google Gadgets, and developing with the Google Web Toolkit.

37 Oracle security fixes coming next week
Oracle Corp. will fix a number of products, including the Oracle Database, Application Server, and E-Business Suite, next week as it releases its quarterly batch of security patches.

Get the iPhone look - on your Pocket PC
Despite efforts by Apple Inc. to block it, a small software program that gives Microsoft Corp. Pocket PCs a user interface that looks much like the iPhone's is still available online.

HP, IBM make new plays for the SMB market
IBM Corp. and Hewlett-Packard Co., in separate announcements Tuesday, each used words like "simple," "reliable" and "affordable" to describe how each of their new products serves the small-to-medium business market.

Microsoft: Vista Capable site description unchanged
Despite reports to the contrary, Microsoft Corp. said Tuesday it has not changed wording at its Web site to explain more clearly how hardware with a "Windows Vista Capable" label will perform when running the OS, in light of a class-action lawsuit filed against the vendor last week.

Palm prepares Linux platform for future smartphones
Palm Inc. will unveil a platform before the end of 2007 that runs the Palm OS on top of a Linux kernel, allowing the company to improve the performance and stability of its handhelds and smartphones, CEO Ed Colligan said Tuesday.

Yahoo to serve ads to Viacom sites
Yahoo Inc.'s new search marketing system continues to gain momentum with an announcement that Viacom Inc. plans to use the system on all of its 33 Web sites.


OPINION

April's coolest gadgets
By Martyn Williams

If you're like me then no matter how many new gadgets you see some still make you say "wow" when you first see them.

This month it's an impressively small digital TV tuner that's doing the trick. It's hard to believe but the Telebit tuner card has everything you need to receive mobile digital TV all built into a little box on the end of an SDIO card.

Subscribe to Gotta Gadget - The latest gadgets, gizmos and tech toys.


ITWHIRLED

She's a 10
Top 10 tech uses for Girl Scout cookies ... 10 Worst games of the past 10 years ... Top 10 computer books for the complete nerd ... Top 10 reasons people learn the piano

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Palm OS to run on Linux kernel ... Oracle readies security updates ... Yahoo signs ad deal with Viacom

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Sohu threatens to sue Google over copycat software ... Debian 'Etch' finally sees light of day

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Sohu threatens to sue Google over copycat software
News: Nokia keeps selling despite patent dispute
News: IRS head: All laptops to be encrypted in weeks
News: Salesforce.com wants to be a content management player
Unix Tip: Mail loops back to me
ITwhirled: Runaway python terrorizes Google offices
Podcast: U.S. to bring WTO complaint against China ... Google apologizes to rival Sohu ... Intel gets more time to explain missing e-mails


NEWS UPDATES

Sohu threatens to sue Google over copycat software
Sohu.com Inc. Tuesday threatened to sue Google Inc. for violating its intellectual property rights, and renewed a demand for the company to stop downloads of a Chinese software tool based, in part, on one of its own databases.

Nokia keeps selling despite patent dispute
An end to the heated patent licensing dispute between Qualcomm Inc. and Nokia Corp. is nowhere in sight, with both companies still far apart in their positions to renew terms of a licensing pact, which expired Tuesday.

IRS head: All laptops to be encrypted in weeks
After an auditor found serious security problems in the way it handled sensitive data on laptops, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service said it will have all laptops encrypted within the next few weeks.

Salesforce.com wants to be a content management player
On-demand software vendor Salesforce.com Inc. Tuesday announced plans to enter the content management market via the acquisition of Web 2.0 content collaboration startup Koral Inc.

Debian 'Etch' finally sees light of day
After several months of delays, Debian developers have released Debian 4.0, code-named "Etch."

LG, Volkswagen tie on Beetle MP3 player
LG Electronics Inc. is teaming up with car-maker Volkswagen AG on a digital media player styled along the lines of the New Beetle car.

DRAM prices continue to plunge
Prices for the most popular DRAM (dynamic RAM) chips continue to fall in the first half of April, DRAMeXchange Technology Inc. reported Tuesday, and have dropped below the cost of production for many manufacturers.

Over 2,000 sites now exploit .ani security flaw
More than 2,000 unique Web sites have been rigged to exploit the animated cursor security flaw in Microsoft's software, according to security vendor Websense Inc.

Krugle powers SourceForge search
SourceForge hopes to make it easier for developers to find existing open-source projects through an agreement with Krugle Inc. that boosts the search capabilities on SourceForge.net.

Apple offers AirPort Base Station security fix
Apple Inc. has published a firmware update for its Airport Extreme Base Station that fixes two security flaws in the Wi-Fi router.

AMD hits Intel with price uppercut
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. announced further price reductions on some of its best desktop PC microprocessors on Monday, a sign there is still no end in sight to its price war with rival Intel Corp.

Sony launches its first laptop with a flash drive
Sony Corp. is refreshing its lightweight Vaio Type-G laptop and has begun offering a solid-state flash drive as an option.


UNIX TIP

Mail loops back to me
By Sandra Henry-Stocker, ITworld.com

Many systems administrators have run into errors in their syslog files that complain that mail is looping back, suggesting a possible MX problem. The common cause of this problem is that a server is receiving email for a domain that it doesn't recognize as its own. Then, when the server looks up the MX address for the intended target (in order to send the mail on its way), it notices that the MX record is one that identifies the mail exchanger as the system itself.


ITWHIRLED

Runaway python terrorizes Google offices
Even Google's notoriously laid back office culture got a little ruffled by a runaway giant snake. The python -- an employee's pet that managed to slither away -- roamed around the search giant's Manhattan offices for a while before being recaptured. Fortunately, nobody was eaten.

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PODCAST

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U.S. to bring WTO complaint against China ... Google apologizes to rival Sohu ... Intel gets more time to explain missing e-mails

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Google apologizes for using rival's software ... Intel launches quad-core chip for desktop gamers

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Google apologizes for using part of rival's software
News: Intel launches quad-core chip for desktop gamers
News: Google fixes security hole in Chinese software tool
News: India faces hurdles in winning chip factory investments
Security Tip: ID theft in under 15 seconds
ITwhirled: British jerk to ruin last unspoiled place on Earth with cell phone call
Podcast: Google admits it used third-party database in Chinese software ... Hacked HD video keys expired ... Intel releases quad-core desktop chip for gamers


NEWS UPDATES

Google apologizes for using part of rival's software
Google Inc. Monday issued a brief apology for using part of a software application developed by rival Sohu.com Inc. in a recently released Chinese software tool of its own.

Intel launches quad-core chip for desktop gamers
Intel Corp. is launching a quad-core chip for desktop gamers on Monday, continuing a barrage of new products the company has announced in the past week.

Google fixes security hole in Chinese software tool
Google Inc. has closed a security hole in a recently released Chinese-input software tool that lies at the heart of a dispute with Chinese Internet company Sohu.com Inc.

India faces hurdles in winning chip factory investments
A decision by Intel Corp. to build a $2.5 billion chip factory in China represents a key loss for India, which won't likely see any chip factory projects from major companies this year due to its poor infrastructure, a Gartner Inc. analyst said in a report Sunday.

SanDisk, Yahoo release Wi-Fi MP3 player
SanDisk Corp. and Yahoo Inc. are the latest companies attempting to take on Apple Inc.'s iPod, Monday releasing the Wi-Fi-enabled Sansa Connect.

PG&E extends rebate program to storage
Pacific Gas & Electric Co., a California-based energy utility, is extending an energy-savings rebate program, already available for servers, to disk storage equipment.

Microsoft releases IM for XBox 360 online
Microsoft Corp. Monday announced Windows Live Messenger instant messaging software for the XBox 360, in another step towards making the game console a home Internet access device.

Sparring begins over high-def movie hacks
A cat-and-mouse game between the guardians of the copy-protection system on next-generation DVDs and those intent on hacking it has kicked off with the first revocation of a descrambling key used in a popular software application.

Shops, including SonyStyle, drop cheaper PlayStation 3
The cheaper of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.'s two PlayStation 3 consoles is getting harder to find in the U.S. The 20G-byte version, which costs $500, has been taken off-sale by retailer BestBuy and Sony's own online store displays an error message when the page for the model in question is requested.


SECURITY TIP

ID theft in under 15 seconds
By Brent Huston, MicroSolved, Inc.

I just attended a conference for payment system security and identity theft, and two themes were clear. One, identity theft is easier, faster and more profitable than ever, and two, attackers are more organized, capable and technology savvy.

Subscribe to Security Strategies - Tips and technologies to protect your enterprise.


ITWHIRLED

British jerk to ruin last unspoiled place on Earth with cell phone call
The movies, the subway, fine restaurants -- it seems like there's nowhere that you can avoid the constant tinkle-tankle of cell phone rings. It's almost as if you'd have to climb the 28,000 feet to the top of Mount Everest to get away from it the annoying chatter! Oh, wait.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Google admits it used third-party database in Chinese software ... Hacked HD video keys expired ... Intel releases quad-core desktop chip for gamers

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Qualcomm talks tough on Nokia ... Microsoft to release more critical patches

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Acer takes the number 3 spot in mobile PCs
News: Qualcomm says it doesn't need Nokia patents
News: Qualcomm document talks tough on Nokia
News: Microsoft releases SDK for Windows Home Server
Blog: An iPod virus?
Geek comic of the week: f8d
Podcast: Qualcomm threatens to keep Nokia from using its patents ... New Google software bears striking similarities to rival ... Microsoft to release more critical patches next week


NEWS UPDATES

Acer takes the number 3 spot in mobile PCs
Acer Inc. unseated Toshiba Corp. from its third-place spot in worldwide mobile PC sales during the fourth quarter of last year, according to market researcher iSuppli Corp. Hewlett-Packard Co. saw the strongest year-on-year growth and retained first place.

Qualcomm says it doesn't need Nokia patents
Qualcomm Inc. threatened to forbid Nokia Corp. from using its patents forever, the strongest blow yet in the ongoing battle between the mobile technology companies. At the heart of this threat is a new assertion by Qualcomm that turns the current negotiations between the companies on its head.

Qualcomm document talks tough on Nokia
Qualcomm Inc. is using its Web site for the latest shove against Nokia Corp. in the companies' ongoing legal dispute. A document on Qualcomm's site presents what the company calls contradictory statements that Nokia has made regarding technology licensing.

Microsoft releases SDK for Windows Home Server
Microsoft Corp. on Thursday released a beta of documentation for a free software development kit (SDK) that helps developers build applications for its forthcoming Windows Home Server product.

Google evades question about software similarities
Google Inc. has commented on a new software tool it released in China this week, although it did not address allegations that the software bears more than a passing resemblance to a rival's product.

After emergency fix, more Microsoft patches ahead
Microsoft Corp. isn't finished with its security fixes for the month. Next week the software maker plans to release five more sets of patches fixing critical flaws in Windows and the Microsoft Content Management Server.

Vendors push Fibre Channel on Ethernet
A group of data-center vendors has proposed a standard for putting Fibre Channel traffic on Ethernet networks, saying it could simplify management and cut costs.

Consumer groups call for spectrum auction conditions
A coalition of consumer groups wants open access for a portion of valuable wireless spectrum to be auctioned by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission in early 2008.

Not always encrypted, but IRS PCs do phone home
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may not be doing a very good job of encrypting data on its laptops, but it does have a way to recover its lost equipment.


BLOG

An iPod virus?
By Robert McMillan

Kaspersky Labs says it's discovered the first virus written for the iPod. A great headline, but a really lame virus.

It's called Podloso, and even Kaspersky admits it "does not pose a real threat." It has no malicious payload and cannot be launched automatically, heck it can't even spread, Kaspersky says.

Subscribe to Blog Insights - A weekly recap of what bloggers are saying about information technology.


ITWHIRLED

Geek comic of the week: f8d
Have you ever wanted to use Courier New or a similar fixed-width font on your tombstone -- you know, so you could include some ASCII art? Do you try to stave off the day when you'll issue the commands rm -f hopes; rm -f dreams on your life? Then we think you and f8d will get along just fine.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Qualcomm threatens to keep Nokia from using its patents ... New Google software bears striking similarities to rival ... Microsoft to release more critical patches next week

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Software AG to buy webMethods ... Nokia makes $20M payment to Qualcomm

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Software AG to buy webMethods for $546 million
News: Nokia makes $20M payment to Qualcomm for patents
News: Microsoft e-mail upgrade glitchy for some
News: Google delivers maps mashup tool for non-techies
Hot jobs: Program manager
ITwhirled: Giving due praise to famous pranks
Podcast: Apple offers quad-core 3GHz Xeon systems ... Microsoft wanted Vista SP1 details removed from site ... AMD to ship 3GHz dual-core Opteron chips


NEWS UPDATES

Software AG to buy webMethods for $546 million
Software AG has agreed to buy SOA vendor webMethods Inc. for $546 million in cash, the companies announced Thursday.

Nokia makes $20M payment to Qualcomm for patents
Nokia said Thursday that it has paid Qualcomm $20 million to license some of its patents related to 3G mobile phones through the second quarter of 2007. The two companies are in the process of renegotiating a patent licensing agreement that expires on April 9.

Microsoft e-mail upgrade glitchy for some
Some of the beta testers for Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Live Hotmail service are getting an increase in storage, but the extra capacity isn't being introduced as smoothly as some of them might hope.

Google delivers maps mashup tool for non-techies
Google Inc. has created a tool to let non-technical users create Google Maps mashups, extending this capability beyond the realm of software developers.

Google to build $600M data center in South Carolina
Google Inc. plans to invest $600 million in a new data center in South Carolina, the state government said on Wednesday. The new data center will be built on a 210 hectare site at the Mt. Holly Commerce Park in Berkeley County near Charleston.

Researcher has new attack for embedded devices
Barnaby Jack, a security researcher at Juniper Networks Inc. says he plans to demonstrate a new class of attack that can be used to compromise electronic devices like routers or mobile phones.

Nintendo again revises earnings outlook higher
Japan's Nintendo Co. Ltd. has revised its full-year earnings outlook higher for the second time. The Kyoto-based company said strong sales of its Nintendo DS handheld game device and software for the machine would help push sales for the year to ¥966 billion.

Video of Thai King removed from YouTube
The government of Thailand blocked access to the YouTube Web site on Wednesday because of a video that it deemed insulting to the nation's revered monarch.


CAREERS

Hot jobs: Program manager
A decade ago, most IT initiatives could be undertaken as single projects. Not anymore. The reason: the complexity of IT resources and assets and their impact on a company's business operations. IT initiatives today often require a programmatic approach to ensure proper execution and coordination. This is where the program manager steps in. Program managers are experts in structured frameworks for provision of IT services and in methods for managing processes. Using a disciplined approach, they define needs, establish budgets and manage progress.


ITWHIRLED

Giving due praise to famous pranks
Did the Swedes really believe that their black-and-white televisions could be turned into color sets by the use of pantyhose? Did the Brits believe that spaghetti was grown in Switzerland? Celebrate April Fool's day by reading more.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Apple offers quad-core 3GHz Xeon systems ... Microsoft wanted Vista SP1 details removed from site ... AMD to ship 3GHz dual-core Opteron chips

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Borders fracture iTunes offerings in Europe ... Microsoft issues emergency Windows patch

HIGHLIGHTS
News: Borders fracture iTunes offerings in Europe
News: Intel looks to bury AMD's 'elegant' Barcelona chip
News: Don't use WEP, say German security researchers
News: Microsoft issues emergency Windows patch
Opinion: Storage Survey
ITwhirled: You can always build a better mousetrap -- or Post-It
Podcast: Microsoft releases emergency patch ... EEye replaces CEO ... US H-1B visa limit reached in record time


NEWS UPDATES

Borders fracture iTunes offerings in Europe
The European Commission's complaint against Apple Inc. and the major record labels over a possible violation of European rules on cross-border trade has served to highlight the inconsistencies in how music is released and priced online.

Intel looks to bury AMD's 'elegant' Barcelona chip
Intel Corp. is betting on a combination of manufacturing prowess and pragmatic chip design to outsell Advanced Micro Devices Inc.'s upcoming quad-core Barcelona processor.

Don't use WEP, say German security researchers
The Wi-Fi security protocol WEP should not be relied on to protect sensitive material, according to three German security researchers who have discovered a faster way to crack it. They plan to demonstrate their findings at a security conference in Hamburg this weekend.

Microsoft issues emergency Windows patch
With attackers finding more ways to exploit a critical flaw in its Windows operating system, Microsoft Corp. has published an emergency software patch. The update, released as expected Tuesday morning, actually fixes seven separate Windows vulnerabilities, but security experts are most concerned about a bug in the way Windows processes .ani Animated Cursor files.

Cisco targets SMBs with unified communications products
Cisco Systems Inc. is aiming ever lower with its network gear for small businesses, rolling out a set of products on Tuesday to meet growing demand in that segment for unified communications.

Sun gives UltraSparc a power boost
Sun Microsystems Inc. has brought new, faster UltraSparc IV+ processors to market, continuing to promote its homegrown chips even as it sells servers with processors from rivals Intel Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

Security vendor eEye drops CEO
EEye's board of directors has asked CEO Ross Brown to leave the company after just over six months on the job, replacing him with Kamal Arafeh, the company's senior vice president of sales and marketing.

BT to help SMBs build online presence
BT Group PLC is testing an online service to help small and medium-size businesses build an online presence with nifty features such as blogs, podcasts and click-to-call capabilities.

Licensing deal with Marvell a first for Sun's new unit
Sun Microsystems Inc. is licensing its multithreaded 10G-byte Ethernet networking technology to Marvell Technology Group Ltd. in Sun's first deal since the creation of a separate Microelectronics group within the company one week ago.


OPINION

Storage Survey
By James Gaskin, ITworld.com

HP just paid for a survey of 1,200 mid-sized firms with between 100
and 1,000 employees spread across seven countries. According to the
executive summary, respondents want to improve customer satisfaction
(86 percent) and improve product quality (81 percent). How storage can
do that, I don't know, but companies also worry about business
continuity, upgrading servers, and price. But the details between
countries in the survey surprised me.

Read the full article here.

Subscribe to Enterprise Networking - Strategies for designing, implementing and securing enterprise-level networks.


ITWHIRLED

You can always build a better mousetrap -- or Post-It
A group of freshman engineering students, working in a competition to improve an everyday object, took something seemingly perfect -- the sticky note -- and made it better: you can write on their version without using a pen or pencil.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Microsoft releases emergency patch ... EEye replaces CEO ... US H-1B visa limit reached in record time

More podcasts

Blog details Vista SP1 plans ... E.C. sues Apple, others over pricing

HIGHLIGHTS
News: European Commission sues Apple, others over pricing
News: British UFO hacker loses extradition appeal
News: Microsoft sues over resold school software
News: Blogger posts Windows Vista SP1 fixes on Web site
Storage Tip: Choosing what data to protect with encryption
ITwhirled: Driving while intexticated
Podcast: Blog details Vista SP1 plans ... EMI to offer DRM-free music ... JavaScript attack code gets out


NEWS UPDATES

European Commission sues Apple, others over pricing
The European Commission has charged Apple Inc. and several big record companies with restrictive pricing practices in the European Union, a spokesman for the Commission confirmed on Tuesday.

British UFO hacker loses extradition appeal
A British hacker who broke into U.S. military computers looking for evidence of UFOs lost another extradition appeal on Tuesday in London's High Court.

Microsoft sues over resold school software
Microsoft Corp. has filed nine lawsuits against companies for allegedly reselling software that was originally sold under discounted educational licenses for schools in Jordan.

Blogger posts Windows Vista SP1 fixes on Web site
The owner of a blog dedicated to software patches has posted online more than 100 fixes he said are expected to be included in Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1), Microsoft Corp.'s first major update to its latest Windows client OS.

XenSource expands its virtualization capabilities
A new version of the XenSource Inc. virtualization hypervisor, released Monday, now works on servers running the Windows 2000 operating system from Microsoft Corp.

FCC strengthens rules against pretexting
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has prohibited telephone and mobile phone carriers from releasing customer records over the phone without a password in an effort to protect against the practice of pretexting.

Jobs unlikely to push for lift of video DRM
Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs may be pushing for music labels to lift copyright protection on digital music but he doesn't appear so eager to do the same for video content, despite his position as the largest shareholder in Walt Disney Co.

JavaScript botnet code leaked to Internet
Software that could be used to turn a Web browser into an unwitting hacker's tool has been posted to the Internet, after it was downloaded by a quick-thinking attendee at last month's Shmoocon hacker conference.


STORAGE TIP

Choosing what data to protect with encryption
By David Hill, Mesabi Group

Planning what to do about encryption should be part of an overall data governance planning process that can also address issues such as data quality and master data management as well as how to meet requirements for responding to the changes in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for civil litigation. Here's what you need to know.

Subscribe to Storage Strategies - Tips for effective storage management, technology updates and best practices.


ITWHIRLED

Bad idea of the week: Driving while intexticated
Never mind talking on your cell while you drive; that's old news. Does the idea of trying to send a text message from your phone while operating a car strike you as kind of insane? Nationwide insurance estimates that 20% of Americans do it -- 33% of those between 18 and 34. New Jersey is moving towards being the first state to outlaw the practice.

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PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
Blog details Vista SP1 plans ... EMI to offer DRM-free music ... JavaScript attack code gets out

More podcasts

EMI to offer DRM-free music through iTunes ... MySpace bug hunt off to a slow start

HIGHLIGHTS
News: EMI to offer music without DRM through iTunes
News: MySpace bug hunt off to a slow start
News: AT&T wants $3.5 billion Telecom Italia stake
News: With attacks increasing Windows patch coming early
Tip: "Risk" is the next new security label
ITwhirled: Ten ways being a geek makes you more attractive
Podcast: eEye releases Windows patch ... ICANN rejects .xxx domain ... New version of Minimo browser released


NEWS UPDATES

EMI to offer music without DRM through iTunes
EMI Group has announced a plan to sell its music through online retailers without copy protection technologies, a significant move that should give consumers greater freedom in the way they can listen to music purchased online.

MySpace bug hunt off to a slow start
A group of hackers has kicked off its month of MySpace vulnerabilities, which it hopes will make more of a splash than January's month of bugs for Apple Inc.'s software.

AT&T wants $3.5 billion Telecom Italia stake
AT&T Inc. announced Sunday its intention to take an indirect stake in Telecom Italia S.p.A. The company plans to buy one-third of holding company Olimpia S.p.A, which holds 18 percent of Telecom Italia's shares, pending regulatory approval, AT&T said.

With attacks increasing Windows patch coming early
Microsoft has decided to rush out a fix for a flaw in its Windows operating system, saying that the problem has become too serious to ignore.

AMD releases M690 chipset for embedded designs
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. introduced its M690 chipset for embedded devices on Monday, rounding out the company's first chipset line that integrates technology from ATI Technologies Inc.

Intel got its new China fab for a bargain, analyst says
Intel Corp. may have received up to $1 billion in incentives from the Chinese government to build its new chip factory in the country, a Gartner Inc. analyst said on Monday.

Microsoft offers new Vista enterprise licenses
Microsoft Corp. is offering two new licensing options for Windows Vista enterprise customers that want to take advantage of emerging scenarios for large data centers. The first gives enterprise users the ability to run the Windows Vista Enterprise client on a diskless computer. The second option, called the Vista Enterprise Centralized Desktop, lets users run a client version of Windows on servers in a data center so the OS can run locally via virtual machines.

Acquisitions quadruple size of Brocade's market
Executives of Brocade Communications Systems Inc. say their acquisition strategy has given the company access to an estimated $7.2 billion market in 2008 for its storage hardware, software and services technology, four times the market it serves today.


TIP

"Risk" is the next new security label
By Brent Huston, MicroSolved, Inc.

As I look into the blogosphere and other areas of forthcoming knowledge and expression -- I see that "risk" is the next label to be applied to every new and old security product. Suddenly products will be re-branded as "risk reducing", "risk mitigating" or "risk strategy compliant".

Subscribe to Security Strategies - Tips and technologies to protect your enterprise.


ITWHIRLED

She's a 10
Ten ways being a geek makes you more attractive ... Top 10 useless sports traditions ... Top 10 Skype hacks ... The top ten most expensive board games in the world ... The top 10 beat-em-up games of all time

Subscribe to the ITwhirled alert - weird tech news direct to your inbox.


PODCAST

Daily IT News Audio Update
eEye releases Windows patch ... ICANN rejects .xxx domain ... New version of Minimo browser released

More podcasts