The Newspaper Shop -- Friday edition

[walktalker]

Gazdet's back !! (Better get my birdie ready)

Amazon suits up algorithm chief
Amazon.com has named a former chief scientist at Yahoo as its chief algorithms officer. Udi Manber, who will also become a vice president at the online retailer, worked at Yahoo for four years and previously taught computer science at the University of Wisconsin and the University of Arizona. Manber, who has focused on search technology and algorithms, is the author of "Introduction to Algorithms -- A Creative Approach." The appointment comes as Amazon heads into the holiday season, a key time for the online retailer. Jeff Wilke, the company's head of worldwide operations, held a conference call with analysts Thursday to brief them on preparations for the upcoming season.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-965068.html

Ericsson caught in espionage web
Telecom equipment maker Ericsson said Friday it suspended two more employees in relation to an industrial spying case in which three current or former workers have already been detained by police. "At this time the two are not suspected of any crime, but they could have broken Ericsson's internal security or secrecy rules,'' the Swedish company said in a statement. Police said Wednesday they had detained three Swedes on suspicion of passing secret documents to a foreign intelligence service, which they did not identify. A source at Ericsson alleged that a Russian was involved.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-965047.html

IBM plugs more power into Energy Dept.
The Department of Energy is tapping IBM for more computing power. The department's National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) said this week it has contracted with IBM to upgrade its IBM RS/6000 SP supercomputer and double the computer's processor count from 3,328 to 6,656. The system is used for non-classified research. Supercomputers are vast machines that focus the power of hundreds or thousands of processors to run simulations and test scientific theories. The upgraded RS/6000 SP will be able to deliver 10 teraflops, or 10 trillion mathematical calculations per second, to about 2,100 scientists affiliated with the Energy Department's Office of Science. These scientists are working in fields ranging from climate modeling and biology to physics and chemistry.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-965060.html

Sonicblue, TiVo settle patent spat
Sonicblue and TiVo announced late Friday that the two companies will dismiss their patent infringement claims against one another. The two companies filed lawsuits against each other in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California late last year and earlier this year. Both cases were pending. Both suits were for infringements on patents dealing with capabilities associated with digital video recorders (DVRs). "We believe our energies are better spent expanding the market for digital video recorders (DVRs) rather than fighting each other. Both sides believe in the merits of their respective positions, but the overall success of the DVR category is what is most important to the companies at this time," the two companies said in a joint statement.
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-965166.html?tag=fd_top

E-mail virus alert carries own worm
A Russian antivirus company apologized Friday for an e-mailed virus alert that was infected with the very worm the message was supposedly designed to warn against. Kaspersky Labs said the message, sent Thursday to subscribers of the company's "Virus News" e-mail dispatch, had actually been sent by hackers masquerading as the company. The hackers had managed to break into Moscow-based Kaspersky's computer system and steal the mailing list for the newsletter, the company said. "We are conducting an investigation to reveal the sources of this attack and are taking the necessary measures...to ensure that this type of attack will never succeed in the future," Eugene Kaspersky, founder and head of research for the company, said in an advisory about the e-mail.
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-965130.html?tag=fd_top

Mattel loses cybersquatting challenge
A federal appeals court has rejected a legal shortcut aimed at slashing the costs of battling trademark infringement on the Net. In a ruling Thursday, the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in New York found that the Anti-cybersquatting Protection Act (ACPA) does not allow plaintiffs to consolidate in a single venue cases affecting domain names registered with services operating in different states. The decision for now ends a bid by toy maker Mattel to file a consolidated suit in New York federal court to invalidate in one fell swoop dozens of domain names that allegedly infringe its Barbie and Mattel marks, among others.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-965184.html?tag=fd_top

Cybersecurity bill nears House vote
American universities may receive a nearly $1 billion windfall next week, when Congress is expected to approve a massive new spending program for computer security. On Tuesday, the House is scheduled to vote on a bill that would spend approximately $900 million over the next five years to recruit graduate students and faculty members in computer security and create research centers at colleges and universities. The measure, which already has been approved by the Senate, also requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to create checklists for government agencies to help them with common computer security woes. Agencies are not required to abide by the checklist, but they must report whether it was followed.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-965164.html?tag=fd_top

AltaVista searches for a new image
In the current world of search engines, less is more -- and AltaVista is angling for both. The struggling company is trying to recapture its former glory as a search engine heavyweight with a newly redesigned Web site, featuring a sleek, spare look that takes a cue from current search champ Google. The new site is scheduled to launch Tuesday. Among other tweaks, AltaVista said, the new site will feature an ad-free home page; "fresher" search results, updated navigation for news publications and new tools for pinpointing relevant pages.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-965178.html?tag=fd_top

Fighting Microsoft the Open-Source Way
While the appeals court ruling last week upholding Microsoft's (MSFT) settlement with the Justice Department was a molar or two away from being toothless, Microsoft faces a bigger potential check to its dominance today than it did at the height of the browser wars five years ago. This comes not from an ever-vigilant judiciary but (more fittingly) from an ever-adapting market. And it is taking the form of Linux and other types of open-source software being developed by swarms of volunteer programmers around the world. The term "open-source" means software code that's available for all to see, use, or modify. Any programmer can make changes, but those changes are subject to the court of public opinion -- the best ones stay, while the worst draw jeers.
http://www.business2.com/articles/we...,45073,FF.html

Life lessons for net users
The internet is not over and done with despite the demise of many dot.coms and collapsing confidence in technology firms and net businesses. So said many speakers at a major conference in London that debated the net's effect on society and how best to shape this powerful force for change. Speakers said that the net has potential to do much more than make businesses more efficient and let people download cheap music. Others warned that leaving net policies in the hands of self-interested and blinkered minorities could cause grave social problems for decades to come.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2420249.stm

Armor-plated Linux gets backup
Two companies announced Friday a new version of Security-Enhanced Linux, in a bid to build business from additions to the bare-bones operating system. The Open Source Development Group (OSDgroup), a Linux training firm, and Houston-based network consultancy Westcam have teamed up to release a package that adds a graphical installer and new security settings to the OS released by the National Security Agency almost two years ago. The changes are designed to make the armored operating system more user-friendly for companies that are considering employing the software, said Mark Westerman, founder and managing partner of Westcam.
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-965179.html?tag=cd_mh

ST builds chips for gene detection
STMicroelectronics has created a prototype of a chip that, if released commercially, could substantially cut the costs for scanning for genetic diseases. The chip, technically called a MEMS (microelectromechanical system), essentially performs several of the tasks involved in scanning DNA for genes, a process that normally requires a battery of laboratory equipment, according to Barbara Grieco, business development manager in ST's printhead and microfluidics business unit. Additionally, the chip needs only few drops of blood to conduct tests, less than current testing procedures, and performs tests more rapidly.
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-964616.html

Panama cracks down on Net telephony
The Panamanian government has ordered local Internet service providers to take steps aimed at blocking Internet telephone traffic that passes through the country. The Oct. 25 decision requires ISPs to begin blocking 24 UDP ports, including the gateways most commonly used to shuffle so-called VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) telephone calls. VoIP is currently banned in the country, whose phone services are provided under an exclusive contract through January 2003 with Cable & Wireless Panama, a joint venture between the government and the U.K.-based phone giant Cable & Wireless. Analysts predict VoIP will take a big bite out of traditional phone services in the coming years as technical glitches are put to rest.
http://news.com.com/2100-1033-965073.html

Want some Wi-Fi with that sandwich?
Hoping people will drop by for free Web access and stay for a sandwich, Schlotzsky's Deli is offering no-cost wireless access at some of its eateries. The company on Saturday will officially launch its Schlotzsky's Deli Cool Cloud network, which will allow people with Wi-Fi wireless setups on their computers or handhelds to get online for free. Wi-Fi, also known as 802.11b, is a technology that allows the creation of wireless networks with a radius of around 300 feet. "Free Internet access just makes sense to us," said John Wooley, Schlotzsky's CEO. "Now that we have the signal in our restaurants, we'd like to share it with the neighborhood and communities where we operate."
http://news.com.com/2100-1033-965070.html?tag=cd_mh

Magazines to publish on tablet PC
Six major magazine publishers, including Forbes and the New Yorker, plan to don a new image for tablet PCs, creating digital facsimiles of their periodicals and pushing the fold on Web advertising. As Microsoft heralded its vision for pen-based computing this week, it also said it signed deals with these top publishers to help transform the tablet PC into something people will pick up, take with them and read. To do this, Microsoft is working with Forbes, the Financial Times, the New Yorker, Slate and two foreign economic magazines, France's Les Echoes and Germany's Wirtschafts Woche, to build tools for publishing a trial set of electronic magazines that will available for download sometime in 2003.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-965026.html?tag=cd_mh

Crooked Path Ahead for Digital TV
The future of digital television remains fuzzy. Even with one political party -- in this case, the Republicans -- set to control both Congress and the White House, the only foreseeable change in the arduous transition to digital TV is a new Senate committee chairman. In January, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) will take over the reins of the Senate commerce, science and transportation committee, which oversees legislation related to DTV, from Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-S.C.). "The goals will be similar," said Andy Davis, spokesman for Sen. Hollings. "The details will be different." In 1998, Congress mandated that TV broadcasters switch from analog to digital programming, which promises viewers crystal clear pictures and a windfall of interactive capabilities on their TV sets, by 2006.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,56244,00.html

Diamonds? Who Cares? Give Me HDTV
In the digital age, a diamond is not a girl's best friend. A high-definition television set is. After interviewing 1,000 men and women, the Consumer Electronics Association found that 58 percent of women would prefer to own a HDTV set than a 1-carat diamond ring. CEA's study, which was released on Tuesday, said that 64 percent of women would rather have a digital camera than a pair of half-carat diamond stud earrings. The study confirmed that women like digital toys just as much as men, who are generally believed to be the main purchasers of electronic gear in the home, said a CEA spokesman.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,56245,00.html

Los Alamos on Hot Seat Again
The FBI is investigating two Los Alamos National Laboratory employees for illegally charging tens of thousands of dollars worth of goods to government accounts. Peter Bussolini and Scott Alexander, who work in the lab's building and repair unit, have been accused by five co-workers of "theft of government property," according to search warrants (PDF) obtained by the FBI from the U.S. District Court in Albuquerque. The two "abused their respective positions ... by improperly purchasing various items with (Los Alamos) funds and (keeping) the items for personal use," Special Agent Jeffrey Campbell wrote in his Oct. 30th warrant request.
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,56270,00.html

FDA Approves Quick HIV Test
The government on Thursday approved a 20-minute HIV test that AIDS experts say is so easy to use it will greatly cut the number of people who unknowingly carry and spread the disease. It's not the first rapid HIV test. A competing version has been sold since the mid-1990s, but it is so difficult to use that hardly any clinics offer it. Today's routine HIV tests take up to two weeks to provide results and at least 8,000 people a year who test positive at public clinics never return to get the news. The new OraQuick test should slash that number and encourage even more of the almost quarter-million Americans who don't know they're infected to seek testing, federal scientists said Thursday in announcing Food and Drug Administration approval of OraQuick.
http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,56277,00.html

Internet2 Pumps Streaming Media
For most Internet users, streaming media means sound that cuts in and out and a choppy picture viewed in a window the size of a deck of cards. But for Internet2 users, it's a different story. On a lightning-fast network like Internet2, the streaming media experience can take place at 70 Mbps, blaring from a 12-speaker surround-sound system and sharp video on a 30-by-17-foot screen. In a demonstration of futuristic streaming media capabilities at the University of Southern California, Internet2 Member Meeting attendees were treated to a satellite-quality audio and video feed streamed over the Web. Of course it's not the Web most people are used to.
http://www.wired.com/news/technology...,56110,00.html

New discs: Unfriendly but better sound
They're engineered to be copy-proof. The proposition thrills digital piracy-fearing record executives. But many audiophiles are cool to the virtual padlocks, which could prove the undoing of one or both formats. About 1,000 recordings are now available in Super Audio CD or DVD-Audio. Both require special new audio components and produce five-channel sound with superb clarity and definition. Yet each format contains digital watermarks -- extra encoding designed to lock the recordings on the disc. The intent is to foil digital duplication and ripping to MP3 files. Moreover, there are no digital outputs on any SACD or DVD-Audio players now available, making them a tough sell despite the discs' higher tonal quality and fuller audio range.
http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/ptech/1....ap/index.html

Vietnam jails internet dissident
A Vietnamese dissident has been jailed for four years for publishing criticism of the Communist government on the internet. Le Chi Quang, a 32-year-old lawyer, was convicted of "acts of propaganda" against the state during the one-day trial in Hanoi, a court official said. Foreign journalists were not allowed to attend the trial. The conviction came as Vietnam's internet service providers (ISPs) confirmed that the authorities have blocked access to the BBC's Vietnamese language website. Le Chi Quang was arrested and detained in February after being accused of posting several essays on the internet which condemned the government for its land and sea border agreements with China.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2418791.stm

Mars to Get Closer than Ever in Recorded History in 2003
Mars recently emerged into the morning sky and has begun an orbital dance with Earth that will, over the next several months, lead to the best viewing opportunity since Neanderthals looked skyward. We’re not kidding. To get ready for this momentous skywatching event, now would be a fine time to reacquaint yourself with the Red Planet. All during the summer of 2002 Mars was pretty much out of view because of its proximity to the Sun. But during the latter part of September it began to emerge back into view in the morning sky and is in full view, though for now it appears rather small in the sky and low on the horizon. However, this is only the beginning of what will turn out to be the most dramatic and spectacular Mars apparition you or any of your ancestors has ever had a chance to see.
http://www.space.com/spacewatch/mars...ew_021108.html

Conservation Groups Fear Republican Congress
Forest protection groups are holding rallies and other events across the country today to protest Bush administration plans for fire management on public lands. The groups fear that Tuesday's elections, which boosted Bush's power to make policy, will lead to the undermining of forest protections - a fear shared by many environmental groups as Congressional power shifts away from some of conservation's strongest advocates. Today's demonstrations, planned before Tuesday's elections, challenge the Bush administration's so called Healthy Forests plan, which critics charge would increase logging in national forests and reduce public and scientific oversight of projects intended to reduce wildlife risk. But many environmental groups are concerned that risks to national forest health are just the tip of the iceberg now that the Republican Party controls the White House and both chambers of Congress.
http://ens-news.com/ens/nov2002/2002-11-07-06.asp

And a special anti-RIAA opinions edition:

What the 2002 US Election Results means to P2P: A Peer2Politics Special Report Royale With Cheese
The Republican Party now owns control of both government houses, and with Bush as president and a judiciary many pundits precieve as being Republican in viewpoint, the GOP now, for all intents and purposes, control the federal government. Is that a good or a bad thing for P2P? From here on out, everything I say is just conjecture from a poliical junkie, but I do believe most of what I say makes some kind of sense. One of the most important reasons why control of a government house is so important is that the party in control gets to have its members head up the various committees. For instance, James Sensenbrenner (R-WS) is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and he will continue in that regard, at least for the next 2 years. But the Senate Judiciary Committee, which was run by Pat Leahy (D-VT), will now be taken over most probably by Orrin Hatch (R-UT), who has been a long time supporter of peer 2 peer services. If Hatch is installed as Chairman, it will be much more beneficial than detrimental to peer 2 peer.
http://www.zeropaid.com/news/article.../11082002f.php

Tom Petty Is Pissed And he's got plenty of good reasons
The man who told the world "I Won't Back Down," "Don't Do Me Like That" and "Don't Come Around Here No More" doesn't need any assertiveness-training course. Tom Petty's determined, sometimes defiant attitude has collided with the music business throughout the years. For instance, in 1982 Petty recorded Hard Promises with the Heartbreakers, only to find that his then-record company had plans to use his name to initiate a new, higher $9.98 list price for albums. Petty withheld the tapes and threatened to retitle his record $8.98 in protest. That same spirit is alive and well on Petty's latest album, The Last DJ, which takes a hard look at the lack of moral grounding in the music business. The title track has kicked up considerable controversy, with some radio stations seeing the song as a slap in the face and banning it. But Petty is not just biting the hand that feeds him. Music is only the beginning of what's pissing him off these days.
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/new...d=16913&cf=399

All CDs will be protected and you are a filthy pirate
One mad consumer relations team might be an isolated incident, two begins to look like a trend. The dismissive response Bertelsmann Music Group's copy protection team recently issued to a consumer's query essentially boiled down to, 'all Cds will be copy protected, it's not our problem that they won't play on some devices, so tough.' But apparently, it's a competition. EMI Germany is taking pretty much the same attitude, and its humorously-tagged Consumer Relations team is calling the customers pirates while it's about it.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/28009.html

Consumer attitudes and the record industry
The record industry's handling of their audience has not been much better than the auto manufacturers and their public image since Napster has suffered a decline considerably worse that Martha Stewart's. Rather than listen to CD buyers, they went on the attack. They called their patrons thieves for trading online. They released PC disabled CDs in a world where many people's computer systems sub for their stereo. They raised prices three times in three years. They dismantled personal Net radio, a popular destination for many office workers chained to their PC in the office. Much of the actions of the industry have shown a complete disregard for the fans who spend their hard earned dollars on their wares. But according to industry logic their patrons are stealing from them. Why should they listen? This is what Rolling Stone's recent half-page ad (on the right) in the NY Times is leveraging - a disconnect between the Big Five and what the consumer wants. This is also the root of Hilary Rosen's unfavorable performance at the Oxford Union Debate as described by P2Pnet and here.
http://www.mp3newswire.net/stories/2002/reflect.htm

Who said I would write a paper tomorrow ?!

[multi]

the new saturday edition?
i have to get thru that lot first..heh..

[HellBound]

Interesting article on Tom Petty.

this was just one of the 10 things he is pissed about....

3 It's ridiculous to make people pay twenty dollars for a CD
"It's funny how the music industry is enraged about the Internet and the way things are copied without being paid for. But you know why people steal the music? Because they can't afford the music. I'm not condoning downloading music for free. I don't think that's really fair, but I understand it. If you brought CD prices back down to $8.98, you would solve a lot of the industry's problems. You are already seeing it a little -- the White Stripes albums selling for $9.99. Everyone still makes a healthy profit; it might get the music business back on its feet."


Damn, a smart man...who would have thunk it.....

HellBound