The Newspaper Shop -- Tuesday edition

[walktalker]

It's daytime story
FBI nabs Russian expert at Def Con
The FBI took a Russian encryption expert into custody Monday at his hotel in Las Vegas for allegedly publishing software that cracks a variety of methods used to secure e-books. The bureau acknowledged Tuesday that it had arrested security researcher Dmitry Sklyarov for what it said was a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The arrest came a day after Sklyarov outlined the problems plaguing e-book formats and Adobe's PDF format at the Def Con hacking conference. "He is being held pending extradition back to San Francisco," said Daron W. Borst, a spokesman for the FBI's Las Vegas office. According to Borst, the warrant for Sklyarov's arrest was issued in the Northern District of California. If convicted, Sklyarov would face a maximum penalty of a $500,000 fine and five years in prison.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...094266,00.html

Intel, Linksys are down with UpnP
Intel, Linksys and other network equipment makers announced Tuesday they are supporting Microsoft-backed software that connects consumer electronic devices together. Microsoft's Universal Plug and Play (UpnP) software uses Internet protocols to allow devices, such as computers, scanners and printers, to automatically discover each other so they can communicate. Sun Microsystems builds rival software called Jini that is based on the Java programming language. Six companies, including Intel, Linksys and Nortel Networks spinoff NetGear, say they will support UpnP in their future family of home networking devices, called "gateways," that allow consumers to connect electronic devices, such as PCs and kitchen appliances, together and share Internet access. In the future, for example, people can use their computers in their bedrooms to turn off the oven in the kitchen.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...094283,00.html

HP wins new molecular circuit patent
Hewlett-Packard scientists have received a patent on connecting a new type of super-small computer circuit to the outside world, dealing with a key obstacle in making such new circuits useful. In 1999, researchers from HP and the University of California at Los Angeles took a major step in a new lineage of computing called molecular electronics, creating a molecule called rotaxane that could be switched on chemically. In 2000, UCLA researchers led by J. Fraser Stoddart advanced the research, creating a molecule called catenane that could be switched off as well, laying the foundation for molecular-scale computer memory. The new technology has the potential to extend the current trend in computing that leads to new generations of chips twice as powerful as the preceding generation every 18 months, a march of progress called Moore's Law.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...094262,00.html

Moviemakers split on anti-piracy standard
Two major film studios have agreed to license a technology standard that protects copyrighted movies from being digitally copied en masse for illegal distribution. The agreement underscores the tension within the entertainment industry, which embraces and fears the digital living room. While new products such as digital video recorders and DVDs have sparked consumer demand, the digital transmission of movies raises fears of piracy and illegal dissemination of works. In response, Sony Pictures Entertainment and AOL Time Warner's Warner Bros. movie studios Tuesday agreed to license the Digital Transmission Content Protection (DTCP) system. DTCP is a standard that prevents people from intercepting and re-broadcasting movies delivered digitally to home viewers.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...094265,00.html

Search engines accused of hiding ads
Eight major Internet search engines have been accused of deception after a consumer group demanded that the Federal Trade Commission investigate whether they are coughing up "ads in disguise" in response to user queries. Commercial Alert, a Portland, Oregon-based group founded by consumer activist Ralph Nader, told the FTC that search engine results frequently "look like information from an objective database selected by an objective algorithm. But really they are paid ads in disguise." Named in the complaint were AltaVista, AOL Time Warner, Direct Hit Technologies, iWon, LookSmart, Microsoft and Terra Lycos.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...788908,00.html

Bush plan would revamp Net security
President Bush is weighing a markedly different approach to protecting the nation's technology backbone from terrorism -- one that would replace the high-profile security job his predecessor created with an advisory board of federal officials. The job currently held by national security expert Richard Clarke would be replaced with a board of about 21 officials from all major federal agencies, according to a draft executive order obtained by The Associated Press. The board would report to National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. Among the agencies that would participate are the departments of State, Defense, Justice, Energy and Treasury, as well as the National Security Agency, CIA and FBI.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=mn_hd

Net music's Groundhog Day
Big record labels and other music powerhouses are finally beginning to thaw to new kinds of Internet music services, but those emerging so far may be a big disappointment -- to both consumers and the companies offering them. On Monday, start-up FullAudio announced it won rights to the EMI Recorded Music catalog--not long after winning associated rights from EMI Music Publishing. The deal marks the furthest any independent company has come in navigating the tortuous set of rights needed to create a download subscription service. Getting those sets of rights is critical for launching any kind of legal music-subscription plan.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=mn_hd

Do you make these 10 stupid PC mistakes?
Whoops, your PC just died. What happened? And how do you fix it? Here's my rundown of 10 common mistakes that seem embarrassingly obvious--but cause more havoc than you'd expect. If you're an expert, save this list for the next time someone calls for help. Everyone else: Make it your first stop on the troubleshooting trail.
http://www.zdnet.com.au/products/har...0241156,00.htm

Sleeping policemen
One form of driver assistance which is sure to create a fuss is intelligent speed adaptation (ISA) — a technology for forcing the motorist to observe the speed limit. This works by building into the car a digital map marked with local speed restrictions. The addition of GPS (global positioning system) navigation tells the car what the maximum speed on any given stretch of the road should be. Cars are then slowed down , or prevented from accelerating, whenever they are at or above the speed limit. One way to do this is to starve the engine of fuel. Another is to add a measure of play (ie, slack)to the accelerator pedal. A third is to make the accelerator harder to push down. In future drive–by–wire vehicles, the software would refuse requests from the accelerator pedal when above the speed limit.
http://www.economist.com/science/tq/...tory_ID=662350

Microsoft to settle license tiff with charity
Microsoft is trying to solve a licensing dispute with a children's charity that it last week threatened with legal action for distributing recycled computers to disadvantaged communities without paying the Windows license fee. The Australian charity "PCs for Kids" received threatening telephone calls from Microsoft's Australian legal counsel, according to reports on the technology mailing list Polytechbot. The charity -- which was set up in Victoria to refurbish old computers for the benefit of disadvantaged children and nonprofit organizations -- was in trouble for distributing PCs without paying Microsoft about $85 per machine for the use of its Windows operating system. But the software giant -- facing dozens of public and private antitrust suits -- now wants to resolve the issue outside of the courts.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=ch_mh

Borland to offer Web-based software for rent
Software maker Borland will soon rent out Web-based tools for software developers to write and build their programs. The Scotts Valley, Calif.-based company said Tuesday it will offer Web-based software and services for rent by September that will allow software programmers to collaborate on their projects and communicate via the Internet. The software development toolmaker joins Oracle, Merant, Mercury Interactive and others in becoming an application service provider (ASP), or a company that rents out software over the Web. The companies hope to boost sagging sales in the development tool market by offering their software and services online. That way, they say, their customers can save time and money because they do not have to install and manage the software themselves.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=ch_mh

GM, Disney take Net content on the road
General Motors announced an agreement Tuesday linking its satellite communications division with the Walt Disney Internet Group to deliver ESPN.com, Disney.com and ABCNews.com content to subscribers' car stereos. OnStar's 1.3 million subscribers will now have access to select Disney content, such as ESPN.com's Sports Center Update, by saying "Get my Sports Center Update" into speakers tucked into a vehicle's headliner, the material tucked beneath the car's roof. They may also fill out an online form to receive updates at specified intervals.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Web advertising: It's not dead yet
Internet advertising remains an effective marketing channel, particularly for fast-moving product categories, despite the death knells now being sounded for the medium, new research showed on Wednesday. Business information group Datamonitor said its Impact 2001 survey of 6,000 European respondents was evidence of a positive reaction to promotions using new media -- primarily the Internet -- and particularly from those shopping for food, drink or personal care products. Almost 80 percent of surfers looking specifically for information on such consumer packaged goods (CPGs) had responded positively to new media advertising, compared with just 64 percent for the sample group as a whole, the report said.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Webcasters dodge copyright bullet
Federal regulators have handed online "Webcasters" a small victory, allowing several controversial services to stay in negotiations with the record companies despite lawsuits against them. At issue are several online radio-like services offered by companies including MTVi, MusicMatch and others, which allow listeners some small degree of control over what type of music they hear at any given moment. In part because these services go beyond what a traditional radio station offers, in which listeners have no control over what they hear, the record industry has said the companies are violating copyright laws.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Deadline set in Napster appeal
Napster has until Aug. 9 to file an emergency federal appeals court brief that would give the song-swapping company the opportunity to come back online. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued the schedule for briefings Monday in the legal battle between the file-sharing service and the recording industry. Napster has been offline since July 2, when it sought to upgrade its filtering technology to keep copyrighted music off the system. U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel told Napster at a closed-door hearing last week to stay offline until the company had done everything it could to prevent online music piracy.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Toshiba boosts PC Card drive capacity
Toshiba continues to pack capacity into its PC Card hard drives. The hardware giant will begin selling its 5GB Type II PC Card HDD hard drive at the end of the month for $499, Toshiba said Monday. The 1.8-inch card will be able to hold the equivalent of 3,472 floppy disks or 7 CDs worth of data for notebook PCs. The company has had a $350 2GB version of the same card available since July 2000. However, the new 5GB version should generate more consumer interest because of its higher capacity, IDC analyst Dave Reinsel said.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200...html?tag=cd_mh

More news later on