The Newspaper Shop -- Friday edition

[walktalker]

Overture to a patent war?
Dominance in Web search may be determined by the scope of a company's patent portfolio, rather than its ability to shuttle people to Internet sites. At least, Yahoo Chief Executive Terry Semel seems to think so. With the Web portal's proposed $1.63 billion buyout of commercial search specialist Overture Services on Monday, Yahoo would acquire 60-plus patents related to technology and processes for indexing the Web, as well as for pay-per-click and bidding systems to grant sites higher placement in search results. In his brief comments to investors Monday, Semel highlighted the role intellectual property (IP) played in his decision to buy Overture instead of building a rival system to replace its two-year partner.
http://news.com.com/2100-1024_3-1027...g=fd_lede1_hed

Judge OKs $1.1 billion Microsoft deal
A California judge on Friday gave preliminary approval to a landmark settlement under which Microsoft will pay $1.1 billion to settle a class-action suit that claimed it overcharged consumers for Windows. The ruling by San Francisco Superior Court Judge Paul Alvarado allows the settlement to proceed to the next step, during which consumers and corporations in the state will be notified that they may qualify for vouchers ranging in value from $5 to $29. The vouchers can be used to buy most hardware or software products from any manufacturer. Townsend and Townsend and Crew, the law firm that filed the suit, described Friday's ruling as "the largest recovery of a monopoly overcharge ever achieved in the United States and the largest recovery ever achieved under the antitrust laws of California." Eugene Crew, a partner at the San Francisco-based law firm, said that the ruling means consumers will start to be notified.
http://news.com.com/2100-1012_3-1027598.html?tag=fd_top

P2P caching: Unsafe at any speed?
Peer-to-peer traffic is one of the biggest headaches for Internet service providers, but now a Swedish company says it has developed technology that can help handle the load. Last week, Stockholm-based Joltid said three major service providers in Europe licensed its PeerCache technology -- software designed to reduce costs of network traffic by caching frequently traded digital files within file-swapping systems. PeerCache is built to work for FastTrack, one of the most widely used P2P protocols and the underpinnings of such popular applications as Kazaa and iMesh. Joltid said its traffic on FastTrack protocols can account for nearly 70 percent of the network's total bandwidth. PeerCache plugs in to the ISP network and temporarily caches FastTrack P2P traffic, helping to lessen the bandwidth burden. But the technology could prove controversial, by putting ISPs in the hot seat in the Internet piracy debate.
http://news.com.com/2100-1025_3-1027508.html?tag=fd_top

The next big Linux controversy
It's the next big Linux controversy: Who should be liable if customers wind up using software that was created from misappropriated intellectual property? Linux resellers are not especially eager to tackle the question, but they know it lurks just over the horizon, thanks to the filing of the SCO-IBM lawsuit earlier this year. Ever since then, chief information officers have been reading that they could be vulnerable to future litigation for using open-source software. None of this has escaped the attention of Microsoft and other like-minded suppliers of proprietary software. They are making sure customers know all about the protection plans they offer in the event that a company winds up in this sort of legal bind. But when it comes to the indemnification question, the Linux crowd is ducking the issue. Not SuSE Linux, not Red Hat -- not even IBM, the biggest Linux reseller of them all -- says it plans to extend an indemnification umbrella to its customers.
http://news.com.com/2010-1071_3-1026...ml?tag=fd_nc_1

Information in the Holographic Universe
Ask anybody what the physical world is made of, and you are likely to be told "matter and energy." Yet if we have learned anything from engineering, biology and physics, information is just as crucial an ingredient. The robot at the automobile factory is supplied with metal and plastic but can make nothing useful without copious instructions telling it which part to weld to what and so on. A ribosome in a cell in your body is supplied with amino acid building blocks and is powered by energy released by the conversion of ATP to ADP, but it can synthesize no proteins without the information brought to it from the DNA in the cell's nucleus. Likewise, a century of developments in physics has taught us that information is a crucial player in physical systems and processes. Indeed, a current trend, initiated by John A. Wheeler of Princeton University, is to regard the physical world as made of information, with energy and matter as incidentals.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?cha...AE80A84189EEDF

Nonprofit takes hold of blog tool
The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School is the new keeper of the specification for a popular Web log tool.
The Berkman Center took over ownership of the Really Simple Syndication (RSS) 2.0 specification this week after UserLand, a company owned by RSS 2.0 author David Winer, transferred the copyright to the center. RSS, also known as rich site summary, is an XML-based format for content distribution that is becoming increasingly popular tool in creating online personal journals known as Web logs, or "blogs." The technology allows people to create, and Web users to access, content such as news and observations that can be automatically syndicated to other Web sites. Jon Udell, a member of the Berkman Center's newly established advisory board for the specification, said he hopes the board can spread the word about RSS. "It hasn't really gone as far as it could have and should have by now," said Udell, who is also a columnist for O'Reilly Network.
http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-1027409.html?tag=cd_mh

E-mail? The French beg to differ
The latest Anglicism to fall out of favor in France is the word "e-mail," now banned from use by government employees. The word "e-mail" can now no longer be used in French official communication, including documents, memos, the internet and even e-mails themselves. The General Commission on Terminology and Neology, part of the French Culture Ministry and affiliated to the Academie Francaise -- which outlawed the word "Walkman" in favor of "baladeur" some years ago -- prefers the French alternative "courriel." The edict on "courriel," a shortened version of the phrase "courrier electronique," or electronic mail, is not expected to make a lot of difference to the common parlance of French technophiles.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-1027357.html?tag=cd_mh

Is spam here to stay?
Is spam becoming just another annoying fact of life for most people, like congested freeways or telemarketing calls during dinner? Yes, according to a new Harris Interactive study. Harris researchers found that fewer people are rating spam as "very annoying." Just 64 percent said so in the company's latest study, a decline from 80 percent in December of last year. The study, released this week, is the result of two polls of U.S. adults who are online, one that surveyed 3,462 people between May 19 and May 27 of this year, and another that surveyed 655 people between June 10 and June 15. In the study, author Humphrey Taylor said people may find spam less annoying because they're better equipped to deal with it.
http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-1027252.html?tag=cd_mh

AOL unloads its CD division
AOL Time Warner will sell its DVD- and CD-manufacturing operations to Canada's Cinram International for $1.05 billion in its latest attempt to whittle down its massive debt. Under the deal announced Friday, Cinram, which specializes in CD- and DVD-manufacturing, will take over operations for Warner Music Manufacturing Europe, Ivy Hill, Giant Merchandising, and the physical distribution operations of Warner-Elektra-Atlantic (WEA). WEA's sales and marketing will remain under Warner Music Group, AOL Time Warner's recording division. AOL Time Warner's Warner Home Video and New Line Cinema movie businesses also have agreed to use Cinram for its DVD- and CD-manufacturing and distribution in North America and Europe. The sale highlights AOL Time Warner's ongoing campaign to sell off peripheral businesses to reduce its mountain of debt, pinned at $26.3 billion as of April. Company CEO Richard Parsons has put debt reduction at the top of his priority list. The company's planned public offering of Time Warner Cable is slated for later this year.
http://news.com.com/2100-1025_3-1027222.html?tag=cd_mh

White House e-mail system becomes less user-friendly
Do you want to send an e-mail message to the White House? Good luck. In the past, to tell President Bush -- or at least those assigned to read his mail -- what was on your mind it was necessary only to sit down at a personal computer connected to the Internet and dash off a note to president@whitehouse.gov. But this week, Tom Matzzie, an online organizer with the AFL-CIO, discovered that communicating with the White House had become a bit more daunting. When Matzzie sent an e-mail protest against a Bush administration policy, the message was bounced back with an automated reply, saying he had to send it again in a new way.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-1027156.html?tag=cd_mh

Videocams Record Airline Flights
Southeast Airlines said it plans to install digital video cameras throughout the cabins of its planes to record the faces and activities of its passengers at all times, as a precaution against terrorism and other safety threats. In addition, the charter airline, based in Largo, Florida, will store the digitized video for up to 10 years. And it may use face recognition software to match faces to names and personal records, the airline said. "One of the strong capabilities of the system is for the corporate office to be able to monitor what is going on at all times," said Scott Bacon, Southeast's vice president of planning. "From a security standpoint, this provides a great advantage to assure that there is a safe environment at all times." The Federal Aviation Administration and the newly created Homeland Security Department do not require airlines to take such security measures.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59652,00.html

Porn Sites May Stream No More
Acacia Media Technologies, a company that claims to have a patent on streaming video, declared a major legal victory Wednesday against several Internet pornographers it says are infringing on its intellectual property. The U.S. District Court in Orange County, California, issued preliminary injunctions against five online smut houses, barring them from sending out nudie flicks from their sites. But patent experts and other Internet adult firms say the ruling isn't all that it seems. The five porn sites didn't bother to respond to Acacia's legal attacks, so they're more guilty of sloth than patent infringement. Judge Alice Marie Stotler prohibited Extreme Productions, Go Entertainment, Lace Productions, WebZotic and Wild Ventures from transmitting compressed digital video from any of their websites. The companies were also barred from posting any advertisements or links to other sites that use Acacia's patents, said Acacia senior Vice President Rob Berman.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59666,00.html

Fuel Efficiency Trumps Fuel Cells
Two U.S. energy experts cast more doubt Friday on a push to develop hydrogen-powered cars as a means to cut air pollution and reduce oil imports. Cheaper and faster ways already exist to achieve the same effect, including raising fuel efficiency and toughening environmental standards, David Keith and Alexander Farrell wrote in Friday's issue of the journal Science. "Hydrogen cars are a poor short-term strategy, and it's not even clear that they are a good idea in the long term," Farrell, assistant professor of energy and resources at the University of California, Berkeley, said in a statement. "Because the prospects for hydrogen cars are so uncertain, we need to think carefully before we invest all this money and all this public effort in one area."
http://www.wired.com/news/autotech/0,2554,59687,00.html

Lawmaker Seeks Greater FBI Role in Online Piracy War
Legislation designed to provide law enforcement more tools to fight online copyright theft met a warm reception Thursday afternoon by those invited to testify at a Congressional hearing and harsh words from those who weren't invited. The Piracy Deterrence and Education Act of 2003, introduced by Rep. Lamar Smith, calls for greater FBI and Department of Justice involvement in Hollywood's ongoing war against file swappers. The legislation mandates the FBI to "develop a program to deter members of the public from committing acts of copyright infringement," including increased information sharing of suspected online copyright violations among various law enforcement agencies, copyright owners and Internet service providers (ISPs).
http://dc.internet.com/news/article.php/2236971

US broadcasts 'jammed by Cuba'
The United States is investigating a rogue signal detected from Cuba which is thought to be blocking its satellite broadcasts into Iran. The jamming was first discovered on 6 July when the government station Voice of America launched a daily Persian-language programme aimed at Iran's domestic audience. The Los Angeles-based Iranian television network National Iranian TV (NITV) - which promotes reform in Iran - has also had its signal blocked. "We are looking into the source of interference of these broadcasts and we'll be taking up with the Cubans the question of whether or not this interference is coming from Cuba," said US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3077303.stm

Implantable tracking chip launched in Mexico
Borrowing from technology for tracking pets, a U.S. company on Thursday launched Mexican sales of microchips that can be implanted under a person's skin and used to confirm health history and identity. The microchips, already available in the United States, could tap into a growing industry surrounding Mexico's criminal concerns. Kidnappings, robberies and fraud are common here, and Mexicans are constantly looking for ways to protect themselves against crime. The microchip, the size of a grain of rice, is implanted in the arm or hip. Hospital officials and security guards use a scanning device to download a serial number, which they then use to access blood type, name and other information on a computer.
http://www.globetechnology.com/servl...ry/Technology/

Exhaust condenser allows drinking and driving
Parched soldiers could one day drink from the exhaust pipes of their jeeps, trucks and tanks, thanks to a gadget being developed by a British defence lab. It harvests water and then filters it until it is drinkable. The idea comes from Mel Scott and his team at the defence research company Qinetiq in Gosport, Hampshire. Instead of arranging for thousands of bottles of water to be supplied in areas where the pumping, treatment and supply of water has been disrupted by conflict or drought, troops will produce their own water as they motor around. The combustion products of diesel are made up mainly of carbon dioxide and large amounts of admittedly filthy water.
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993945

Korea's Weird Wired World
Strange things happen when an entire country is hooked on high-speed Internet. Dear Abby has yet to receive a letter on this one. Last September Han Sang, a 14-year-old boy in Seoul, stole $35 from his parents to buy sunglasses and other accessories. The petty thievery was bad enough, but what really irked his dad, Kim Sung Bae, was that none of the stuff he bought was real. They were for the animated character, or avatar, the boy used as a stand-in for himself on the Internet. Han was spending four hours each night hanging out online with his friends and wanted his virtual stand-in to look as cool as possible. Kim punished his son with an Internet curfew: No more surfing after midnight. Every Sunday afternoon would be Internet-free family time, and Han Sang would have to watch TV with his parents for a few hours a week. His parents, in return, promised to visit Han's virtual worlds with him.
http://www.forbes.com/technology/fre.../0721/092.html

Bush's e-mail faces DoS attack
The President's revamped mailbox has been hit with a denial-of-service attack, as users rushed to see if the White House's e-mail system is as awful as billed. John Markoff at The New York Times wrote an article describing the new "hide the e-mail" policy instituted by the White House, and users have reacted in force. In the good old days, citizens could make a simple plea to president@whitehouse.gov. Critical times, however, call for more complicated measures, and the White House has now set up a multi-stage process to e-mail the President. Markoff does a nice job of explaining the difficult communication system.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/28/31829.html

Linux Ranks No. 2 On Microsoft Risk List
Microsoft is taking the Linux threat seriously. So seriously, in fact, that open-source software comes in at the No. 2 spot on the company's top five list of risks. In a teleconference to go over the Redmond, Wash.-based developer's fourth quarter and fiscal 2003 results on Thursday, CFO John Connors detailed the five biggest risks to his company's business. "The general economic environment is risk and driver No. 1," he said. "Linux and non-commercial software is risk No. 2." The rest of the top five, Connors said, are growing the installed base in today's tight-spending climate, litigation, and executing plans on multiple fronts. "I'm a bit surprised that Linux comes in at number two on their list," said Michael Cherry, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, an independent research firm that tracks Microsoft's products and strategies. "I might have flipped Nos. 2 and 3. But when you think about it, Linux falls in the same category as the attempt to grow the installed base," he said, going on to lump the two into what he calls "just good enough."
http://www.informationweek.com/story...cleID=12800942

Music Industry Wins Approval of Subpoenas
The music industry has won at least 871 federal subpoenas against computer users suspected of illegally sharing music files on the Internet, with roughly 75 new subpoenas being approved each day, U.S. court officials said Friday. The effort represents early steps in the music industry's contentious plan to file civil lawsuits aimed at crippling online piracy. Subpoenas reviewed by The Associated Press show the industry compelling some of the largest Internet providers, such as Verizon Communications Inc. and Comcast Cable Communications Inc., and some universities to identify names and mailing addresses for users on their networks known online by nicknames such as "fox3j," "soccerdog33," "clover77" or "indepunk74."
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Entertain...0718_1322.html

Bertelsmann: Dismiss Napster Suits
Former Napster backer Bertelsmann AG has filed a motion in a New York court to dismiss three massive lawsuits filed by record labels alleging its financial support of the defunct P2P network contributed to widespread piracy of copyrighted works. The $17 billion suit, filed by a group of songwriters and two independent music publishers and later joined by EMI, claimed evidence in Napster's bankruptcy proceedings show Bertelsmann knew the company was breaking the law but decided to keep the service running while it worked on a legitimate version. Now Bertelsmann has lashed back in a motion, arguing that the lawsuits "reflect groundless and cynical efforts by music publishers" to seek recovery from a third-party lender for damages the plaintiffs failed to recover from the bankrupt Napster.
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news...le.php/2237311

More news later on

[SA_Dave]

The next big Linux controversy
http://news.com.com/2010-1071_3-102...tml?tag=fd_nc_1

Please keep in mind while reading this FUD-ridden, one-sided "opinion piece" that Microsoft, the darling of Pointy Haired Bosses worldwide, doesn't provide any indemnity to its customers either! It has been proven in court that MS has misappropriated copyrighted materials from many of its former competitors and "partners", while SCO has revealed no evidence whatsoever that incriminates the Linux kernel. (The Linux kernel is so well documented that it'd be easy to determine who introduced the contoversial code and when. Plus, SCO has no claim over SystemV either, as that's been tainted with BSD code.) Also remember that IBM has more patents and a larger legal department than most other countries combined! I definitely know which side I'd bet on if I were a betting man...