The Newspaper Shop -- Wednesday edition

[walktalker]

Why the RIAA owes us all an apology
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) should issue a public apology for its attempt last week to lump music swappers together with terrorists -- criminals worthy of special efforts and restrictions on civil liberties in order to bring them to justice. What the RIAA did was attempt to get language added to the PATRIOT anti-terrorism law that would have opened the door for a full-frontal technological attack on music swappers. This despicable action trivializes the victims of terrorism, as well as the men and women who have placed themselves in harm's way to fight the terrorist menace.
http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/stor...818346,00.html

Microsoft: Stop leaking bug code!
Microsoft, whose software has been at the center of several recent high-profile security incidents, has decided to turn up the heat on those the company considers at least partially responsible: security firms and hackers who release sample programs to exploit software flaws. This week, Scott Culp, manager for Microsoft's security response center, published an essay on the company's site decrying the information and example code released by some companies and independent security consultants as "information anarchy." Such information led directly to many of this year's most vicious worm attacks, he said.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp01

Windows XP: Battle over the Internet
If there is any doubt about Microsoft's determination to expand its Internet strategy through Windows XP, consumers may be reminded of it no fewer than five times as soon as they try the new operating system. In the second through sixth attempts to connect to the Net, Windows XP will implore consumers to sign up for something called Passport -- an identification technology that, in many ways, is a key to Microsoft's future.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

Watchdog scuttles Warez pirate site
An Austrian-based Web site that allegedly became a popular online exchange for software pirates around the globe has been shut down by an industry watchdog group, officials said Wednesday. Technology watchdog group Business Software Alliance (BSA) announced it had shut down Warez.at, a site that's become a sort of gateway for pirates to distribute the spoils of their hacking endeavors.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

Apple hints at 'breakthrough' device
Apple Computer may be looking to trump Microsoft's Windows XP launch by unveiling a new product of its own. As Microsoft prepares for the Oct. 25 liftoff ceremonies for its new operating system, Apple will gather journalists and industry analysts for "the unveiling of a breakthrough digital device," according to invitations received Wednesday. Apple will unveil the new device -- "hint: it's not a Mac," according to the invitation received by CNET News.com -- during an Oct. 23 event at Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

Errors prevent growth of anthrax worm
A new computer worm that attempts to ride on the coattails of the anthrax scare emerged Tuesday, but numerous errors on the part of the program's author seem to have scuttled any chance the worm has to spread. The worm is technically known as VBS.VBSWG.AF, or more colloquially as "Antrax." It was discovered in an e-mail with a subject line that used the Spanish spelling -- "Antrax" -- of the name of the deadly anthrax disease. The e-mail body also contains a message written in Spanish.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

Museums put art on high-tech canvases
The Guggenheim Foundation is adding cyberspace to its notable list of addresses, alongside celebrated architectural landmarks in cities such as New York and Bilbao, Spain. Guggenheim.com this month launched a preview of its new Web site featuring two interactive online exhibitions: "The Art of the Motorcycle" and "French Art and Russian Collectors." The site from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation also offers a peek at The Guggenheim Las Vegas Museum, which opened last week.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=mn_hd

The spam spoils of war
Rubble from the World Trade Center. Piñatas in the shape of Osama bin Laden. Cipro pills to fight anthrax. "One of a kind patriotic lapel pins!" "Gas masks that are 100 percent certified by the Israeli Army." Mugs, T-shirts, hats, sweatshirts, posters -- all with bin Laden's face behind a target or under the label "Wanted: Dead or Alive." Welcome to the "war on terrorism" shopping mall. Individual Americans may be feeling nearly paralyzed with anthrax paranoia, and unemployment is rising while industrial output continues to fall, but at least one sector of the entrepreneurial American machine is kicking itself back into gear. It's time to cash in on the crisis...
http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/20...pam/index.html

Worm scares lift Symantec software sales
Security software maker Symantec on Wednesday reported a loss for the second fiscal quarter after charges but beat analyst expectations, citing increased awareness of the need for computer security among corporations and individuals. The company posted a net loss of $11.8 million, or 16 cents a share, for the quarter ended Sept. 28. However, excluding the amortization of charges related to the acquisition of Axent Technologies, Symantec posted earnings of $42.3 million, or 56 cents a share. In the year-earlier quarter, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company had earnings of $47.9 million, or 61 cents a share.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Sony teams to develop two-way satellite dish
JSAT, Japan's biggest communications satellite operator, said on Tuesday that it has jointly developed with Sony a compact, inexpensive antenna for two-way satellite communications. JSAT said the antenna, 45 centimeters in diameter, would be as little as one-third as expensive to make as its 75-centimeter dish, currently its smallest, while substantially cutting installation costs. A JSAT spokesman said the company has no target date for launching commercial services with the new compact system, although it could begin as early as next year.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1004-200...html?tag=ch_mh

Ring tone firms see U.S. as next frontier
Several European and Asian sellers of customized cell phone ring tones are set to begin jingling their way into the U.S. market -- a potential test of whether using handsets for more than just talking will ever catch on. The blitz in the next few weeks will include some of the biggest names in the ring tone business, an industry that generated $300 million last year in Japan alone. The concept: For as little as 99 cents, cell phone owners can replace their standard ring selection with snippets of tens of thousands of different songs.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1004-200...html?tag=ch_mh

Microsoft in video-on-demand deal
Microsoft and an entertainment broadband company launched a video-on-demand service Wednesday, leapfrogging efforts by AOL Time Warner and Hollywood studios to launch extensive online distribution of films. Culver City, Calif.-based Intertainer is offering 70,000 hours of content, including films and TV programs, through a video-on-demand subscription service in the top U.S. broadband markets. The service, which launched Wednesday at the privately held company's Web site, is available in markets including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_pr

California airport to use facial ID system
A facial recognition technology used by police east of San Francisco will soon be working at the Oakland International Airport, said Imagis Technologies, the system's developer. Vancouver, British Columbia-based Imagis Technologies said Wednesday that the Oakland Police Department, one of 32 local police departments using the company's technology, was linking the airport to its facial identification system. "It's there for people who refuse to give a name or give a clearly false name," Iain Drummond, president and chief executive of Imagis, told Reuters.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

E-mail a savior amid anthrax scare
Use of e-mail could skyrocket as an ever-widening anthrax investigation turns "snail mail" into a suspicious and potentially lethal form of communication. From corporate America to Congress, executives and regulators concerned about the growing number of letters infected with the deadly bacterium are urging people to communicate through e-mail instead of sending letters through the U.S. Postal Service. On Tuesday, the Arizona Daily Star announced that the Tucson newspaper would no longer accept regular postal mail addressed to "Letters to the Editor" and other popular feedback forums.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Pressplay adds meat to music menu
Pressplay, a joint venture between Sony and Vivendi Universal, said Tuesday that it has licensed a database filled with songs, albums and artist information for its upcoming online subscription service. Alliance Entertainment said Pressplay will be able to choose songs from Alliance's All Music Guide, which contains 3.5 million tracks and more than 495,000 album listings. The database also includes artist biographies, album reviews, genres, and discographies with album ratings, similar artists and influences.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

China eases online restrictions
China has lifted Internet blocks on foreign news organizations, including Reuters, CNN and the BBC, in a move that coincides with a high-profile Asia-Pacific meeting. Without any public announcement, Internet sites of news organizations that have been permanently blocked were accessible Tuesday to Chinese Internet surfers. Reuters and the BBC are among media groups that have lobbied for their sites to be unblocked, until now with no success.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=ch_mh

More news later on

"Why the RIAA owes us all an apology" -great peice,

thanks wt. hey, aren't you supposed to be doing homework?

- js.

[walktalker]

Originally posted by JackSpratts
"Why the RIAA owes us all an apology" -great peice,

thanks wt. hey, aren't you supposed to be doing homework?

I was, but I stop working
I'll put an end to this tomorrow