The Newspaper Shop -- Wednesday edition

[walktalker]

Advocates form open-source trade group
A new trade group is on the horizon for open-source advocates hoping to dispel myths about the software and drive its adoption. Organizers of the Open Source And Industry Alliance (OSAIA) dropped by the LinuxWorld conference on Tuesday, appealing to attendees to join and contribute to the group, which is designed to fight efforts by proprietary software makers to quash open-source products. "We really do believe that open source is a very important part of the industry, now and in the future, that it is not well-understood, that it is in need of protection and advocacy," said Ed Black, a Washington insider and CEO of the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), which is helping to start the group. The CCIA, which whose members include Sun Microsystems, Oracle and Yahoo, has been an active critic of Microsoft, challenging its court settlement with the government and supporting open standards. But Black said the new lobbying group isn't necessarily about taking on the Redmond giant.
http://news.com.com/2100-7252-5060512.html?tag=nl

IBM: Linux legal troubles will fade
The legal challenge the SCO Group has mounted against Linux eventually will become a forgotten chapter in the operating system's history, an IBM executive told attendees of a Linux trade show on Wednesday. "I fully expect the current legal issues around Linux will be eventually resolved and forgotten," said Irving Wladawksy-Berger, general manager of IBM's e-business on demand group, in a keynote address at the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo. "Successful technologies are remembered, but few remember the inevitable bumps in the road we all have to resolve." SCO has sued IBM for $3 billion, alleging that Big Blue moved proprietary Unix code into Linux against the terms of its Unix license with SCO.
http://news.com.com/2100-7252-5060817.html?tag=nl

Navy to draft Linux-powered Macs
A company that specializes in running Linux on Macs said Wednesday that it has landed a deal to supply the U.S. Navy with 260 Apple Xserve servers. Terra Soft Solutions said the machines will be used as part of a sonar imaging system that defense contractor Lockheed Martin is building for the Navy. Rather than using the Mac OS, the Apple servers will run Terra Soft's Yellow Dog Linux operating system. Terra Soft is one of a handful of Linux companies that is authorized to sell Apple gear. "This brings to fruition two years of effort with an intense recent six months of research, coordination, prototype development and testing," Terra Soft CEO Kai Staats said in a statement.
http://news.com.com/2100-1040_3-5060885.html?tag=fd_top

Macromedia tests new Flash Player
Macromedia has begun public beta testing of a new version of Flash Player, its widely used Web software. The new version is the first major revision of the software since Macromedia introduced Flash MX last year, along with a dramatically expanded concept of the utility of Flash. Instead of pushing Flash as an animation format to serve up blinking and moving online ads, Macromedia repositioned the format as a broad base for developing entire Web pages and delivering Web applications. The new version of the Flash Player, available for download from Macromedia, concentrates on performance improvements that allow the software to process some types of Flash content as much as 10 times faster, said Lucian Beebe, Macromedia's product manager for Flash.
http://news.com.com/2100-1046_3-5060835.html?tag=fd_top

Ex-Intel worker guilty of aiding terror
A former Intel engineer accused of aiding terrorist organizations pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy to supply services to the Taliban. Maher "Mike" Mofeid Hawash, 38, faces between seven and 10 years in federal prison after admitting that he traveled to China with five suspected terrorists and attempted to enter Afghanistan in order to fight against the United States in 2001, according to the guilty plea. In the 13-page plea agreement released on Wednesday afternoon, Hawash admitted to the charges brought against him by the Justice Department in April. "Hawash and others in the group were prepared to take up arms as martyrs if necessary to defend the Taliban government in Afghanistan," said the plea agreement, which Hawash signed.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-5060859.html?tag=fd_top

Ticketmaster privacy policy slammed
People buying tickets online through Ticketmaster may be surprised to find themselves receiving spam as an encore. The ticket service, which holds a lock on advance ticket sales for most major entertainment events, is taking heat from consumers for a privacy policy that does not let online ticket buyers opt out of receiving e-mail pitches from an event's producers and other businesses associated with it. That, Ticketmaster critics say, means that the company has made receiving spam part of the price of admission. "I have only bought a single ticket from Ticketmaster, many years ago," wrote one customer on an online discussion board devoted to the privacy policy.
http://news.com.com/2100-1026_3-5060827.html?tag=fd_top

Lindows chief hears Net phones calling
MP3.com and Lindows founder Michael Robertson is once again launching a new start-up aimed at shaking up the old technological order, focusing this time on providing free Internet-based phone service. Robertson's new self-funded venture, called SIPphone, was unveiled Wednesday morning after nearly a year of preparation. SIP stands for "Session Initiation Protocol," a technology that lies at the heart of the fast-growing Internet voice business. The new company is selling phones that allow customers to make Internet-based calls for free, anywhere in the world -- but there's a catch. They can only call other phones that use the same technology, leaving most of the world's regular telephones out of reach. Still, Robertson believes that over time, the technology can provide serious competition for traditional telephone companies.
http://news.com.com/2100-1037_3-5060748.html?tag=fd_top

Congress, the new copyright bully
Congress has become exasperated with its inability to get Americans to stop engaging in copyright infringement. So Rep. Howard Berman jokes that he "probably" does not favor the death penalty for infringers, Sen. Orrin Hatch half-jokes that he would like to blow up the computers of infringers and Rep. John Carter wants to see infringing college kids thrown in jail for 33 months. However, in more candid moments, members of Congress admit that they don't know what to do next, from a policy standpoint, to combat infringement. A prime example of this policy vacuum is Congress’ proposal du jour, the Author, Consumer and Computer Owner Protection and Security (ACOOPS) Act.
http://news.com.com/2010-1071_3-5060347.html

Out, Out, Damned Spam
It was May, 1978. Lauren Weinstein was among those developing an early version of the Internet when an e-mail popped into his box. It was the first spam ever -- a pitch from Digital Equipment Corp. sent, literally, to everyone on the fledgling Net. "People thought it was a little bit annoying but sort of amusing," Weinstein says. It's not amusing anymore. Junk e-mail accounted for an estimated 49% of network traffic in June, according to Brightmail Inc., a San Francisco manufacturer of anti-spam software. These days, spam attacks Weinstein's computer every two seconds. And the Internet pioneer, founder of the Privacy Forum in Woodland Hills, Calif., is trying to save the revolutionary communications medium he had a hand in creating 25 years ago. The open architecture that made the Internet a transformative technology also has spawned the rapidly growing junk e-mail menace.
http://businessweek.com/magazine/con...2/b3845079.htm

'Fritz' calls it quits
Technology advocates this week cheered the impending retirement of Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings, a longtime adversary of computer companies and unabashed champion of intrusive new copyright laws. As chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee until the midterm elections last year gave the Republicans control, Hollings, a South Carolina Democrat, was in a position to advance protectionist legislation, impose Internet filtering software, and assail video-game makers. Most memorably, Hollings sided with Hollywood over Silicon Valley when introducing a bill to forcibly implant copy-protection technology in all consumer-electronics devices, a proposal that opponents derisively nicknamed the "Fritz Chip". Hollings' legislation, formally called the Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion Act (CBDTPA), united the often-fractious technology community -- whose members viewed it as an attempt to hamstring an entire industry in the name of fighting piracy.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-5060660.html?tag=cd_mh

Survey: Users want DSL but can't get it
Dial-up Internet users are more willing to upgrade to digital subscriber line (DSL) service than to cable modem service, according to a study. If they can actually get DSL, that is. In a survey of 7,700 dial-up Internet service customers, 52 percent of the respondents said they would prefer to upgrade to DSL rather than cable service. By contrast, 38 percent said they would prefer cable. The study was conducted by J.D. Power and Associates. The main reason for switching is price, the survey found. DSL providers, namely the Baby Bells, have been discounting their prices throughout the summer. But availability of service is a major stumbling block for DSL. That has helped cable modem providers continue to have nearly twice as many subscribers as DSL, the study said.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023_3-5060701.html?tag=cd_mh

Swollen Orders Show Spam's Allure
A security flaw at a website operated by the purveyors of penis-enlargement pills has provided the world with a depressing answer to the question: Who in their right mind would buy something from a spammer? An order log left exposed at one of Amazing Internet Products' websites revealed that, over a four-week period, some 6,000 people responded to e-mail ads and placed orders for the company's Pinacle herbal supplement. Most customers ordered two bottles of the pills at a price of $50 per bottle. Do the math and you begin to understand why spammers are willing to put up with the wrath of spam recipients, Internet service providers and federal regulators. Since July 4, Amazing Internet Products would have grossed more than half a million dollars from Goringly.biz, one of several sites operated by the company to hawk its penis pills.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59907,00.html

I'm Not a Doctor, But I Play One
The vitamins and organic produce there may be fine, but a new study suggests that consumers should be wary of medical advice they receive at health food stores. The clerks at such businesses usually are not trained health care practitioners, but in a Canadian study of health food stores many recommended expensive products with no proven benefits and potentially harmful side effects. Eight research participants visited 34 stores, posing as the daughters of breast cancer patients seeking alternative treatments for their mothers. The store clerks recommended 33 different products, but none had scientific evidence supporting claims that they were effective in treating breast cancer.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59900,00.html

Forums Point the Way to Jihad
With the Taliban out of Afghanistan and governments around the world restricting access to al-Qaida-linked websites, would-be militant Islamic holy warriors are turning to low-tech electronic message boards to find out where to fight. The message boards, hosted by such domains as Yahoo and Lycos UK, are proving a free, unrestricted and largely difficult-to-track forum for would-be fighters to hook up with those coordinating operations, say terrorism experts and intelligence officials. Whereas once Islamic militants needed to pass through training camps in Afghanistan to be groomed for jihad, now they are announcing their desire to fight in Muslim holy wars and martyr attacks from cybercafes and home computers in Malaysia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59897,00.html

Microsoft EU Monopoly on Last Leg
Microsoft is still trying to monopolize new markets even after settling the landmark antitrust case in the United States, the European Union charged Wednesday as it prepared to demand its own concessions from the U.S. software giant. The EU's antitrust watchdog, the European Commission, said recent surveys of more than 150 businesses that use Microsoft products showed that "Microsoft's abuses are still ongoing." The commission offered the company a "last opportunity" to defend itself or agree to open up the two markets under scrutiny: low-end servers, which tie desktop computers together, and media players, vital software as both digital video and audio distribution expand on the Internet. "We have reserved the possibility to levy fines," said EU spokesman Tilman Lueder. The EU can fine violators up to 10 percent of their worldwide sales -- a figure that could reach into the billions for Microsoft.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59923,00.html

U.S. Backs Florida's New Counterterrorism Database
Police in Florida are creating a counterterrorism database designed to give law enforcement agencies around the country a powerful new tool to analyze billions of records about both criminals and ordinary Americans. Organizers said the system, dubbed Matrix, enables investigators to find patterns and links among people and events faster than ever before, combining police records with commercially available collections of personal information about most American adults. It would let authorities, for instance, instantly find the name and address of every brown-haired owner of a red Ford pickup truck in a 20-mile radius of a suspicious event.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp...nguage=printer

The Great Debate Over Software Patents
Now that the courts have begun respecting software patents, big software companies have rushed to patent everything they have. Some argue that this stampede, rather than protecting innovation, actually harms it, reducing choice and raising costs for the CIO. They say the software industry is so complex and ubiquitous that our patent system isn't equipped to protect software developers and CIOs. Instead, it rewards big companies that acquire broad software patents, charge competitors hefty license fees, bleed the market dry of choice and use their deep pockets to defend their vast patent portfolios in court.
http://www.cio.com/archive/080103/debate_intro.html

Should E-mail Still Be Free?
Vipul Prakash makes many good points. I do, however, take exception to his point eschewing payment systems as one possible response to the problem of spam. For starters, nothing is free. So, to say that e-mail should remain free is already starting out on the wrong foot. The cost may be built into your monthly service fees, but it's not free. What spammers are doing is breaking the model that led to those all-you-can-eat pricing models. Spammers are increasing costs to service providers and end-users, particularly companies who manage their own e-mail. These are costs which, for example, generate Cloudmark's anti-spam product revenue stream.
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/dialog0703.asp

Laser lights renders radioactive waste safe
Dangers associated with radioactive waste, and the problems and huge expense of its disposal could soon end after a Scottish researcher discovered how to neutralise its harmful effects using light. New research by a leading scientist at the University of Strathclyde could revolutionise the waning fortunes of the nuclear power industry - restoring both political and public faith in an energy source that was once hailed as the future of clean, green energy. Using a laser, Professor Ken Ledingham has successfully transformed one of the deadliest products of nuclear fission into inert matter in minutes. The Vulcan laser, housed at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory near Oxford, has enabled Prof Ledingham and his team to use nothing more than the focused energy contained in light to excite the nucleus of the iodine 129 isotope, with a radioactive half life of 15.7 million years. When hit with laser light the isotope becomes totally inert and safe to handle in less than an hour.
http://www.news.scotsman.com/scitech.cfm?id=849072003

The nostalgic yet progressive appeal of wizards, hobbits, and Jedi knights
When the current generation of American children looks back on the first decade of the 21st century, it is possible that the three names it will most readily recall will be not Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden, and George W. Bush but Harry Potter, Frodo Baggins, and Luke (or Anakin) Skywalker. Never before have three ongoing series of films -- the Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Harry Potter franchises -- proved so fabulously profitable and internationally popular. The original Star Wars (1977) grossed $513 million worldwide, and its 1997 re-release earned $460 million. International theatrical rentals of the film swelled the total by an additional $779 million. (Not bad for a film that cost $11 million to produce.) The Fellowship of the Rings (2001) has proved fabulously popular, with worldwide grosses totaling $860 million and worldwide rentals $500 million.
http://www.reason.com/0307/cr.mm.back.shtml

KaZaA CEO Speaks Out
Her company's technology may be dragging the entertainment industry, kicking and screaming, into a future of file swapping, but the entertainment industry would rather drag Nikki Hemming and her company into court. Such is the pitched battle shaping up between recording companies and the tiny, Australian software company. Maybe you've heard of it: Sharman Networks, the company that owns and operates KaZaA. In a rare television interview -- she's sat for only one other interview, which apparently never aired -- Sharman CEO Nikki Hemming answered a host of questions about the challenges she faces running such a controversial company. Tonight, "Tech Live" gets personal with Hemming for a first-hand look inside the company rocking the world with KaZaA. On Thursday and Friday's "Tech Live," tune in for more with Hemming, including a look at the future of her embattled company. It's an interview you won't see anywhere else.
http://www.techtv.com/news/culture/s...492869,00.html

'Golden Age of Free Music' vs 'Copying is Stealing'
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has launched an advertising campaign using the slogan "copying is stealing" to convey to the public the message that digital copying (eg. over peer-to-peer (P2P) networks) is as serious and criminal as stealing a CD from a record shop or a DVD from a video shop. This article considers "copyright theft" in the context of developing technology both in the UK and the US, and the intense battle of rights holders against technology suppliers and consumers, some of whom are harvesting the benefits of this "golden age of free music".
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/32199.html

More news later on