The Newspaper Shop -- Monday edition

[walktalker]

Microsoft changes course on licensing
Microsoft on Monday announced licensing changes for Windows .Net Server 2003, which moves to a second release candidate sometime this week. The licensing modifications could radically change how businesses obtain client-access licenses (CALs) for future Microsoft products. The company until now has required businesses to buy a separate "per seat" license for each computer or device connecting to one of its server products. Starting with Windows .Net Server 2003, which is slated for release in April, businesses also will have the option of purchasing CALs per user, rather than just per machine. Microsoft also changed licensing for terminal services -- that is, methods for accessing Windows desktop and server applications through terminal emulation -- and access to a Web server over the Internet.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-975694.html

Royalty-free standards take charge
A sea change in the views on patented technologies is affecting a broad range of high-tech standards organizations, forcing caps, thresholds and outright bans on royalties. The news in recent weeks and months has not been good for patent-holding members of standards groups, as one industry consortium after another has put the brakes on licensing plans. "They're on the ropes," Carl Cargill, director of standards for Sun Microsystems, said of the patent holders. "But if you're willing to play in what we're calling the Web-based e-environment, it's pretty damn cool." In aggregate, the news during the past year has put patent holders on the defensive as they fight to have their technologies adopted throughout the industry as a standard, while preserving the right to charge for the use of those technologies.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-975587.html

Mozilla pulls latest browser downloads
Mozilla has pulled downloads of its open-source Web browser after discovering a bug that cripples dynamic HTML coding on some sites, according to the AOL Time Warner-backed group. The bug surfaced on Mozilla 1.2, the latest version of the AOL-supported browser that was released Nov. 26. The notice on Mozilla.org was brief, noting developers would release Mozilla 1.2.1 with a software fix "shortly." An AOL representative did not immediately return calls for comment. Just last week, Mozilla released version 1.2 of its Web browser, with more than a dozen new advancements. Among its updates, Mozilla 1.2 improves support for the programming language Java with Mac OS 10.2 (code-named Jaguar) and adds tools to browse the Web in clusters of related pages, or tabbed browsing.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-975724.html

Bugbear remains top virus threat
Bugbear has claimed a second month at the top of the virus charts. Bugbear accounted for almost 30 percent of all reports of viruses to antivirus Sophos in the last month -- well ahead of former top spot incumbent Klez which now only accounts for around eight per cent of all reports in third place. Also making headlines, straight in at number two, is the Braid worm with 8.5 per cent of all reports. Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, said: "Bugbear dominates the chart for the second month as it continues to out-fox users with its dual mode of attack. This worm can spread via email and network shares."
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-975673.html

State to appeal MS antitrust ruling
Massachusetts officials said Friday they will appeal a recent ruling in Microsoft's long-running antitrust case, while seven other states intend to drop their opposition. "We are going to appeal," state attorney general Tom Reilly said Friday during a conference call. "This appeal is necessary to protect consumers." Massachusetts delivered its decision ahead of a Monday deadline. The nine plaintiff states have 30 days from U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly's Oct. 1 ruling to decide whether to file an appeal. But Massachusetts is not being supported by most of the other states that have previously criticized the settlement as inadequate. “We are going it alone," Reilly said.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-975656.html

File swappers take their last stand?
A federal court on Monday will hear arguments that could derail Hollywood and record labels' lawsuit against popular file-swapping companies -- or result in an order to shut them down.
The hearing could be the most critical legal skirmish since the closure of Napster, focusing on the Morpheus and Grokster file-swapping networks, and potentially affecting the more popular Kazaa network as well. Attorneys for movie studios and record labels are asking that their copyright lawsuit against the file-swapping companies be brought to a near-immediate close, and the companies found guilty of massive copyright infringement. The file-trading companies are asking that the case be dismissed and that they be allowed to distribute their software unmolested.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-975618.html

Software license protects privacy rights
Move over, free software. Step aside, today's open-source licenses. Software distributed under an "enhanced source" license released this week will be legally prohibited from censoring or spying on users. Crafted by Hacktivismo, a hacking group organized by the Cult of the Dead Cow, the Hacktivismo enhanced-source software license agreement says that anyone using code released under it must respect privacy, free expression, due process and other human rights. HESSLA comes as concern is growing over governments using technology such as blocking software to restrict what their citizens can do or say online. In September, House Republicans released a report titled "Tear Down This Firewall," and this week, Amnesty International published a report highlighting China's crackdown on Internet use.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-975638.html

Report: Chernobyl virus rises again
Antivirus company Panda Software has detected a new strain of the W95/CIH10XX virus -- commonly known the Chernobyl virus -- which can be so damaging to some computers that it will render some BIOS chips, and even entire motherboards, unusable. Panda, which is based in Spain, somehow obtained a copy of the new strain, although it has not been seen "in the wild" or known to be starting to spread. The variant activates its payload on the second day of every month. The original strain, first detected in 1998, activates its payload on April 26, the anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Another antivirus company, while acknowledging the dangers posed by infection, urged calm. Allan Bell, Network Associates' marketing director for the Asia-Pacific region, said that "unless the virus is being seen in the wild, there is a danger of crying wolf."
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-975695.html?tag=fd_top

Perspective: Hollywood raising a victory flag
Hollywood appears to be nearing a victory in its latest maneuvers in the copyright wars. The Federal Communications Commission is weighing a plan to forcibly implant copy-protection technology in digital television receivers. Comments on the proposal are due Friday. This is a worrisome plan that, if adopted by the FCC, could lead to increased government regulation of technology and reduced fair use rights. The idea is that digital TV transmissions will include a "broadcast flag" designating shows that may not be copied freely. Here's the rub: To accomplish this, manufacturing TVs and tuners that do not recognize the broadcast flag must be verboten. Because no sane person would buy crippled hardware -- probably at a higher cost -- if given a choice, new laws or regulations will be necessary.
http://news.com.com/2010-1069-975580.html?tag=fd_nc_1

EverQuest battles cheat software
A war is raging for the heart of the popular online fantasy game EverQuest. But this battle is not being fought between players and marauding hordes of monsters. Instead the fight is between Sony, who run the game, and an anonymous group of programmers who have created software that makes the game almost too easy to play. So far the helper program has only been available to a small number of EverQuest regulars. But the escalating conflict could mean that it will be made available to almost any player that wants it.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2534061.stm

A Few Good Toys
As the U.S. Army prepares for war in Iraq (and beyond), it has been moving fast to transform itself from a Cold War relic into a deadly, rapidly deployable force. The last two major U.S. conflicts, Desert Storm and Kosovo, were largely won by the U.S. Air Force before the Army's lumbering tanks ever got there. The Army used to be a sledgehammer; now it needs to be a cordless drill. Technology will play a big role in this evolution, and that is the purview of A. Michael Andrews, the Army's 56-year-old deputy assistant secretary for research and technology. Andrews, a civilian electrical engineer with the rank of a two-star general, oversees 21 labs, 8,600 scientists and engineers and a $1.5 billion-a-year budget. "We explore the realm of what's possible," says Andrews, who was recruited by the Defense Department after 25 years at Rockwell International. He holds five patents in infrared technology, one of which is the basis for the guidance system on the Army's Javelin shoulder-fired antitank missile.
http://www.forbes.com/technology/fre...artner=newscom

Camera-print standard comes into focus
In a move contrary to current proprietary practices, six companies are now rooting for an industry standard to allow photos to be printed through a direct camera-to-printer connection. The common standard, tentatively named DPS (direct print standard), is endorsed by Canon, Fuji Film, Hewlett-Packard, Olympus, Seiko Epson and Sony. Prior to the announcement, each vendor had its own unique solution for direct printing. The practice meant that consumers who wanted to print their pictures without PC intervention had to buy a printer from their camera maker. The situation has proven to be limiting to consumers because of the inability to combine products of different brands, the companies said in a joint statement.
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-975696.html

The Games Wal-Mart Doesn't Play
Two years ago, a video game called Giants: Citizen Kabuto underwent plastic surgery right before its release. The blood -- shed liberally by characters in the action-strategy game -- was changed from red to green, and a female character suddenly sported a bikini top after appearing topless in pre-publication screenshots. These changes were made to satisfy content restrictions imposed by Wal-Mart, the nation's largest mass retailer of video games. "It became clear that we would lose mass distribution if we didn't give her a top," said Bob Stevenson, CEO of developer Planet Moon Studios. "No one wanted to take that gamble." Wal-Mart sells 25 percent of the computer and video games purchased annually in the United States, a share worth $1.58 billion in 2001, according to the Interactive Digital Software Association and NPDFunworld, the industry's data clearinghouse. With that kind of clout, the discount retailer can exercise considerable influence over the kinds of titles that find their way into consumers' hands, simply by determining what goes on its shelves.
http://www.wired.com/news/games/0,2101,55955,00.html

Lax Security: ID Theft Made Easy
The people charged last week with stealing the identities of at least 30,000 Americans weren't criminal masterminds. They simply took advantage of sloppy security practices that allowed them easy and unrestricted access to sensitive data. Security experts worry that the slipshod safety measures haven't been corrected, and warn that unless companies get serious about security, identity thefts will continue to rise. Investigators in Manhattan said they have identified about 12,000 additional people whose credit reports may have fallen into criminal hands during the almost three years that the New York-based identity fraud ring was active. The scam was first detected eight months ago. But victims and potential victims wonder why it took authorities so long to nab the criminals, whom federal prosecutors described as "brazen" and "sloppy." Consumers suggest the credit bureaus that failed to protect their personal data from the criminals are equally at fault.
http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,56623,00.html

Mac Loyalists: Don't Tread on Us
There are 25 million people around the world who use Macintosh computers, according to Apple. But unlike ordinary personal computers, people don't simply use Macs, they become fans. They develop a passion for the machines, which can sometimes turn into an obsession. "Apple is like a strange drug that you just can't quite get enough of," the musician Barry Adamson told the Guardian newspaper. "They shouldn't call it Mac. They should call it crack!" Mac loyalty is so well-known, it's a cliché. Mac users are routinely referred to as Apple's faithful, Mac zealots, members of the cult of Mac, Appleholics, Macheads, Maccies, Macolytes and Mac addicts. The biannual Macworld conference is often compared to a religious revival meeting, where Steve Jobs is worshipped like a rock star, or a charismatic cult leader. The Mac community is arguably the largest subculture in computing. Mac enthusiasts -- as a group -- are probably more loyal, more dedicated than users of any other computer, perhaps even Linux. Linux and Unix users are, in fact, switching to Macs in droves.
http://www.wired.com/news/mac/0,2125,56575,00.html

Students Can't Get No Privacy
A little-noticed provision in a new federal education law is requiring high schools to hand over to military recruiters some key information about its juniors and seniors: name, address and phone number. The Pentagon says the information will help it recruit young people to defend their country. But the new law disturbs parents and administrators in some liberal communities that aren't exactly gung-ho about the armed forces. Some say the law violates students' privacy and creates a moral dilemma over the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays. "I find it appalling that the school is sending out letters to do the job of the military," said Amy Lang, the parent of a student at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, where Coke was once banned in a protest against the soda giant's investments in apartheid South Africa.
http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,56665,00.html

Total Info System Totally Touchy
Can a massive database of information on Americans really preempt terrorist attacks? That's what industry experts are asking about the Pentagon's proposed Total Information Awareness System, which, according to the proposal (PDF), would aggregate on "an unprecedented scale" credit card, medical, school and travel records. Critics say looking for terrorists by rooting around in private, commercial databases of Americans' personal information violates the Fourth Amendment -- not to mention citizens' privacy. Some in the industry even refuse to work on the project on ethical grounds. While the proposal makes clear that designing such databases would require "revolutionary new technology," its goal is to create a working system to hand to law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,56620,00.html

Dear Santa: You've Got E-Mail
They pile up year-round at the North Pole post office: letters to Santa from all over the world. But more and more kids are opting to e-mail their Christmas wishes instead. "You see all the different mail coming in here, and you wonder how," said Donna Matthews, manager of the North Pole branch of the post office, on Candy Cane Lane. This is where letters end up when you write "Santa, North Pole" as the address -- some 500,000 a year. Most Santa websites issue some form of automatic response, but replies with a personal touch are less common. A German market-research company called Mummert Consulting has been evaluating Santa sites for the last two years -- and has found some less than favorable results. Last year, for example, the Hamburg-based firm sent e-mails to 19 different Santa sites from all over the world, writing and configuring the e-mails as though they were from children. Each of the e-mails, sent in early December, asked for a reply within two weeks.
http://www.wired.com/news/holidays/0,1882,56609,00.html

At Justice, Freedom Not to Release Information
Today, at the Justice Department, some laws are more equal than others. One 36-year-old U.S. law can be broken, it seems. Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, who is sworn to enforce all laws, has told federal employees that they can bend -- perhaps even break -- one law, and he will even defend their actions in court. That law is known as the Freedom of Information Act. Last October, the Justice Department cited the Sept. 11 attacks in a memo to federal FOIA officers that stated, "When you carefully consider FOIA requests and decide to withhold records, in whole or in part, you can be assured that the Department of Justice will defend your decisions."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2002Nov30.html

Russian expected to take stand in Adobe E-book code case
After a year of delays, the government is finally set to try in San Jose this week the first criminal case stemming from a law designed to bring copyright into the 21st century. The United States of America vs. ElcomSoft Ltd. pits the need to protect intellectual property in the age of Internet file-trading and CD burning against the public's traditional right to use media they buy any way they want to. The defendant, ElcomSoft, is a Moscow softwaremaker accused of violating Adobe Systems' intellectual property rights, by writing a computer program that disables the copy protection on the San Jose company's electronic books. When the case was first brought in July 2001, it garnered international attention because it was the first criminal test of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, a 1998 law eagerly sought by entertainment and software companies and bitterly opposed by cryptography researchers and free-speech advocates.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...2/BU206051.DTL

UK Govt to post UFO sightings on Net
The UK government is to post documents on UFO sightings on the Net. Britain's X-Files are to be published as part of a government move to apply laws on freedom of information, according to wire report. Among the files to be released are documents dealing with Britain's most high-profile recentish close encounters, UFO sightings in Rendlesham Forest, Suffolk in 1980. The story goes that eye witnesses including officers at a nearby US military base saw a "brilliantly lit spaceship land in the forest" on two consecutive nights. Doubters say all they saw was a nearby lighthouse (or possibly a weather balloon). Before this week, the file was available to the public but only at the discretion of the Ministry of Defence - so few have seen it.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/28363.html

Digital image stored in single molecule
An image composed of over 1000 of bits of information can be stored in the atoms of a single molecule, US researchers have shown. Bing Fung and colleagues at the University of Oklahoma found that the 19 hydrogen atoms in a lone liquid crystal molecule can store at least 1024 bits of information. The data are stored in the complex interaction of the protons' magnetic moments. Fung hopes the technique, dubbed "molecular photography", could one day be used to pack massive amounts of digital information into a tiny space but admits that the process is currently experimental. "It's a very, very first step towards using nuclear spins for molecular information processing," he told New Scientist. In their experiments, the researchers used a molecule to store a black and white image, 32 pixels square. The image was encoded in binary 1s and 0s that can easily be processed by a computer.
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993129

Fraud detection software catches Pentagon's eye
When their prototype fraud-detection software sounded the alarm over the financial statements of a high-profile technology company, programmers at Crystaliz Corporation thought little of it. But later that day, a Wall Street watchdog launched an investigation into the very same company's affairs. "It was just a coincidence that it was the same day," says Sankar Virdhagriswaran, chief executive of Crystaliz, based in Massachusetts. But their probing software did not stop there, he says. "It then found a cluster of companies and three out of four were eventually investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission." That was validation enough for the Crystaliz crew. Their software could successfully analyse "semi-structured information". This includes large amounts of free text surrounding just a handful of key numbers such as the real operating profit and bad debt figures buried in a long, complex report.
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993111

Introducing...self-destructing DVDs
On a dismal, rainy day after watching Mel Gibson battle the English in "Braveheart," wouldn't it be nice to simply throw away the DVD instead of slogging the rental back to Blockbuster? Technology that makes DVDs self-destruct in a few hours or days has already been developed, raising the prospect of a world without late fees. In one recent promotion, Atlantic Records made a limited run of DVDs containing footage of the hip-hop group Nappy Roots that was viewable only for a few hours before the disc "expired." MGM Studios used self-destructing DVDs with music videos and trailers to promote the new James Bond movie, "Die Another Day." Movie critics were told the DVD would self-destruct in 36 hours -- a nod to 007's gadget-providing character Q.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/TechNews...7/5787-ap.html

More news later on

[TankGirl]

Yet another great issue - but why is the newsman doing ?



- tg