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HP-Compaq Deal not likely to scare Dell
Does the merger of Hewlett-Packard and Compaq Computer scare Dell Computer? Probably not, say analysts. Although the combined company will command a whopping 81 percent of the U.S. retail PC market, the merger won't erase the problems that drove HP and Compaq to combine -- namely, that Dell can make PCs for less than either company. The merger, ideally, will make HP-Compaq more efficient by cutting duplicative costs, but Dell will likely be able to undercut that. In addition, HP will have its hands full trying to integrate two huge bureaucracies and two very different strategies for manufacturing PCs. In short, the combined company will be about as big in PCs as Dell is, but not as profitable.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02
Stephen Hawking: Humans will fall behind AI 
Renowned British scientist Stephen Hawking has claimed that humans should be genetically engineered if they are to compete with the phenomenal growth of artificial intelligence. In an interview published on Saturday by the German magazine Focus, Professor Hawking argues that the increasing sophistication of computer technology is likely to outstrip human intelligence in the future. He concedes that the scientific modification of human genes could increase the complexity of DNA and "improve" human beings. "In contrast with our intellect, computers double their performance every 18 months," says Hawking. "So the danger is real that they could develop intelligence and take over the world."
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02
GM to incorporate satellite radios
General Motors plans to offer XM Satellite Radio's service in more than 20 car and truck models next fall in its 2003 lineup, the two companies said Tuesday. GM's commitment marks an expansion of an agreement announced earlier this year in which the automaker said it will offer XM's satellite radio service as a factory-installed option on 2002 Cadillac DeVilles and Sevilles this fall. GM said it will announce the more than 20 models closer to introduction next year. The news comes two weeks after rival Sirius Satellite Radio said it signed a deal with BMW of North America to offer its satellite radio service to new car buyers in select BMW 3 series, 5 series and X5 vehicles.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200...html?tag=mn_hd
Bertelsmann steps up CD security efforts 
Israeli security company Midbar said Tuesday that it has inked a deal with a Bertelsmann-owned CD manufacturer to provide copy protection for albums. Under the agreement, Bertelsmann's Sonopress will use Midbar's technology, dubbed Cactus Data Shield, to thwart potential pirates attempting to illegally reproduce music. The technology comes in three versions. Albums containing CDS-100 can only be listened to via traditional CD players, while those with CDS-200 can be played on CD players and PCs. The third version, CDS-300, can be played on both types of devices; it also lets people download music stored on the CD to a computer hard drive.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=mn_hd
New e-mail worm spreading slowly
Antivirus experts have warned about a new e-mail worm that uses Microsoft Outlook to spread. "Troj_Apost.A" is a worm rather than a Trojan horse, as its name suggests. The malicious e-mail arrives with the subject line "As per your request!" with the message, "Please find attached file for your review. I look forward to hear from you again very soon. Thank you." When the attached file entitled "Readme.exe" is executed, it will try to copy itself to the floppy drive. It will then self-propagate by e-mailing itself to all addresses listed in the infected user's address book.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=mn_hd
Big Brother Logs On
The door to paranoia opens benignly — and early. Just think of Santa. He knows when you are sleeping. He knows when you're awake. He knows if you've been bad or good, for goodness' sake. And he knows these things all the time, even though you can't see him. Millions of kids all over the world happily and wholeheartedly believe in ubiquitous surveillance as a de facto piece of the annual Christmas present-getting machine. Parents just shake their heads in adoring wonder. But those same parents might be shocked to learn how short the journey is from the pleasant surveillance fantasy of Santa to the freedom-squashing invasion of Big Brother.
http://www.techreview.com/magazine/sep01/amato.asp
Uncle Sam using Web to find fresh faces
The Army and Navy have found a new battlefield -- both are turning to the Web in their fight to sign up new recruits. The two branches of the U.S. military are taking similar integrated approaches to online and traditional advertising by using their two TV campaigns to draw potential recruits to their online ads and their Web sites, according to a new study by Internet researcher Jupiter Media Metrix. "The Army's new campaign is created around being an army of one," said Marc Ryan, Jupiter's director of research. "They have really worked on this campaign about individualizing the army. They pointed people to the Web site to get more information...They are pushing people to the Web to make it more interesting."
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200...html?tag=cd_mh
Nazi crackdown turns to portals
A French judge launched hearings Tuesday into whether Internet service providers should censor portals accessible on their networks to keep French citizens from viewing links to neo-Nazi Web sites. Jean-Jacques Gomez, who last year made headlines with his controversial ruling that Yahoo must block French citizens' access to its U.S.-based auction site featuring Nazi memorabilia, is expected to make a ruling in the coming months. The case pits the companies that provide Web access against those concerned with Web content, and is seen as another test of evolving rules governing the Internet, national jurisdiction, free speech and online commerce.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh
Trademark law clashes with domain rights
Celebrities such as Madonna and companies such as Microsoft have already proved they have a commercial interest in protecting their names from cybersquatters who set up Web sites using their famous monikers. But what about untrademarked people and places, such as President Bush or Champagne, France? A new U.N. study says little can be done to protect such people, places or brand names because they don't have the advantage of trademark law. For now, that means the rights to Tunisia.com are owned by a U.S. company, and Afghanistan.com is based in the Caribbean.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh
NEC, Sony see promise in fuel cells
Consumer electronics giants NEC and Sony assert that a battery technology they are separately developing will offer more power for portable devices. Both companies say they are working on fuel cells that can turn methanol directly into electricity and could have many times the capacity of current lithium-ion batteries. Although the basic physics is not new, both companies are turning to nanotechnology to overcome some of the issues that have thus far prevented fuel cells from becoming commercial products. The basic innovation is the use of forms of carbon called fullerenes, in which the atoms form geometric meshes that can be molded into different shapes.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200...html?tag=cd_mh
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