The Newspaper Shop -- Monday edition

[walktalker]

West Virginia takes Microsoft to court
West Virginia's attorney general filed suit against Microsoft Corp. in state court on Monday, alleging the company's business tactics violated state antitrust and consumer protection laws. State Attorney General Darrell McGraw filed the suit on behalf of West Virginia consumers and state agencies, asking the court to impose unspecified damages and sanctions against the company, an attorney representing the state said.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp01

Apple gets bitten by 'free' OS X
Apple Computer has been turned into an unwitting Santa Claus after some Mac diehards discovered a way to turn a complimentary Mac OS X upgrade CD into a free copy of the operating system itself. In October, Apple gave away thousands of free CDs that offered owners of Mac OS X a free upgrade to version 10.1 -- the first major update to the new OS and a key enabler for tasks such as playing DVD movies and burning files onto DVDs. However, what was designed to be a nice perk for early adopters of the new OS turned out to be a way for holdouts to get a free version of Mac OS X, which normally costs $129.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

Ximian clones Outlook for Linux, Unix
Ximian, long an open-source software company, will do business the proprietary way with a new software package that lets Linux computers connect to Microsoft Exchange e-mail servers. Ximian has supported the open-source Gnome desktop software project for Linux computers for some time; indeed, Ximian co-founder Miguel de Icaza was the founder of Gnome. And in a culmination of its open-source efforts, Ximian on Monday released Evolution 1.0, a clone of Microsoft Outlook that has support for e-mail, contact lists and calendars.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

IBM feels the need for speed
IBM will describe a new type of transistor this week that it says will vastly increase the performance and reduce the power consumption of chips in the coming decade. In a presentation at the International Electron Devices meeting that starts Monday in Washington, D.C., Big Blue will show off what it calls a Double Gate transistor. Transistors, which are microscopic on-off switches inside semiconductors, channel electronic signals that eventually get orchestrated into higher commands.
http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/ne...kpt=zdnnp1tp02

HP philosophy gets political in Compaq deal
Already faced with the economic downturn and shareholder dissent, Hewlett-Packard executives may find that the toughest challenge in their acquisition of Compaq Computer is purely philosophical. As one entity, the companies want to create "one strong new culture," Susan Bowick, senior vice president of the combined companies' human resources division, told high-level managers at a recent meeting.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=tp_pr

MSNBC.com tightens purse strings
MSNBC.com, an Internet news unit owned by Microsoft and General Electric's NBC, said Monday that it is laying off 9 percent of its roughly 200 staffers as it cuts costs amid the economic downturn. The cuts in MSNBC.com's staff -- most of whom are based at the Redmond, Wash., headquarters of Microsoft -- would be across the board, MSNBC.com spokeswoman Cherylynne Crowther said. "We have done a staff reduction as part of some cost cuts across the company," she said. "Every area has been affected."
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=mn_hd

IBM hangs onto top spot in Hong Kong
IBM maintained its position as Hong Kong's No. 1 PC seller for three years running when it clinched the top spot for the most recent quarter. Big Blue's market leadership for the third quarter is by both revenue and shipment, according to market researcher IDC Asia Pacific. The Armonk, N.Y.-based company shipped 41,789 PCs there, generating revenues of $66.4 million. IBM's market share for the period was 23.9 percent. However, IBM could not establish the same lead for the entire Asia-Pacific region.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200...html?tag=mn_hd

Bus ride to the future
Riding a red double-decker bus through the streets of London, UK, may seem an odd way to look into the future of technology. But this is what researchers at Intel are doing. The aim of the project is to give the world's largest chipmaker an insight into how people interact with technology and help them design products that meet the needs of everyday life. "One of the things that makes a successful technology is a technology that supports experiences that people want to have," explained Ms Genevieve Bell, senior researcher and design ethnographer at Intel.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci...00/1684773.stm

IBM: New transistor to boost chip speed
IBM will describe a new type of transistor this week that it says will vastly increase the performance and reduce the power consumption of chips in the coming decade. In a presentation at the International Electron Devices meeting that starts Monday in Washington, D.C., Big Blue will show off what it calls a Double Gate transistor. Transistors, which are microscopic on-off switches inside semiconductors, channel electronic signals that eventually get orchestrated into higher commands.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200...html?tag=ch_mh

Holiday goodies don't seem so sweet
One of the oddest presents that Michael Cloutier received last year was a gift basket featuring a one-pound box of Peet's coffee. It's not that Cloutier didn't appreciate the sentiment or dislike the idea of gourmet java. But the chief technology officer for Peet's Coffee & Tea had access to all the coffee he could stomach and didn't necessarily need a vendor to supply more beans. He left the basket in a public space for grazing co-workers. "I wish all of these gifts would go away," Cloutier said
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200...html?tag=cd_pr

Visa offers online password protection
Credit card company Visa USA on Monday announced a new online-payment service that offers greater security to consumers who use their credit or debit cards to pay for products they purchase on the Internet. While most online shoppers simply have to punch in their credit card numbers in order to make a payment via the Web, Visa now enables participating retailers to prompt shoppers for a password when they enter their information, preventing the possibility of having credit card information used illegally. Called "Verified by Visa," the program allows participating banks to immediately validate a cardholder's identity through the use of a password during the online checkout process.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Orbitz tacks on $5 fee to e-tickets
Orbitz, the Web travel agency formed by five major airlines, has started charging a $5 service fee on all electronic airline tickets. The new fee, previously reported by CNET News.com, was implemented Saturday. Orbitz had said Friday that the fee is necessary to keep the company independent from the airlines, hotel and rental car companies that make up their offerings. The alternative would be to get into financial arrangements, such as commissions, with those companies, which could appear as a conflict of interest, said Roland Jacobs, chief marketing officer for Orbitz.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Identity crisis: Birth records online
People-search and family history Web sites have come under fire from California lawmakers, residents and privacy advocates concerned that personal data available online can be used to aid identity theft. Genealogical Web site RootsWeb.com removed databases of California and Texas birth records from its site Friday after receiving a blitz of phone calls from frantic state residents worried that data contained in the public records could be used for malfeasance. The data -- birth records dating from 1905 to 1995 on more than 24 million Californians -- included names, birth dates, places of birth and mothers' maiden names, a key ingredient to accessing customer financial information at many banks and credit card companies.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Digital rights company buys ID card unit
Digimarc, a developer of anti-counterfeiting systems, on Monday said it has agreed to buy Polaroid's identification card-making business for $56.5 million in cash plus the assumption of liabilities and expenses. Through this acquisition, Digimarc said it will use its patented digital watermarking technology to enhance the security and usefulness of driver licenses and other products. Cambridge, Mass.-based Polaroid, the beleaguered instant camera and film icon, filed for bankruptcy protection in October and is working to sell off parts of the company or all of its assets.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Webnoize quietly suspends its operations
Webnoize, a Web publication and event planner that focused on the online entertainment industry, has suspended operations in an attempt to restructure its business, according to a notice on its Web site. The company will "re-emerge in early 2002 with new and improved events, products and services," the notice read, without offering a definitive date. A representative for the company could not be reached for comment. Webnoize's decision signals another casualty in the contracting arena for online music.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Listen.com to tune in new music service
Music service provider Listen.com is set to flip the switch on its new music subscription service Monday, connecting consumers to legal, digital versions of tunes ahead of long-awaited efforts from the major labels. Listen.com said its new digital music service, dubbed Rhapsody, will offer music fans features such as unlimited streams of music, access to more than 50 commercial-free Net radio stations, and a playlist-sharing program that lets people create mixes and send them to friends. But for now, Listen.com says it lacks major-label content that would give it a broad mix of songs from well-known musicians.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Macromedia to aid the disabled online
Macromedia on Monday plans to launch a new product that helps designers and developers create Web content accessible to everyone--particularly those with disabilities. The San Francisco-based software developer said it will offer an Accessibility and E-Learning Solutions Kit that includes templates, an online course on accessibility, and other tools and resources. The launch comes as U.S. government departments and agencies work to conform to Section 508, an amendment to the Rehabilitation Act that requires them to use technology that accommodates the needs of disabled workers.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200...html?tag=cd_mh

Sonicblue wins patent for DVR technology
Sonicblue has received a U.S. patent for portions of its digital video recording technology used in TV set-top boxes, the consumer electronics maker said Monday. The company said the patent contains "50 claims describing fundamental properties for implementing" a digital video recorder (DVR), which allows viewers to customize TV viewing by automatically recording shows on a computer hard drive for playback at a later time.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200...html?tag=cd_mh

The mystery of Ginger ends: it's a scooter
The ultrasecret invention that has kept the high-tech world abuzz for nearly a year turns out to be a self-balancing, motorized scooter that costs less than 5 cents a day to operate, according to the company developing the device. The machine, previously known as "Ginger" and "IT" but officially called the Segway Human Transporter, could replace private cars in crowded city centers and could also prove useful on factory floors, said Tobe Cohen, marketing director of Segway.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200...html?tag=cd_pr

Terrorism bill 'biggest threat to competition since RIP'
The UK ISP Association (ISPA) has raised several strong reservations about new laws introduced in the new Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill, created in response to the 11 September attacks and currently going through the Lords. When the measures were first announced - just two days after the terrorist attacks in America - the ISPA supported them. At the same time though, Nicholas Lansman, Secretary-General for the ISPA, told us: "We are behind this Bill... but, as ever, the devil is in the detail."
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/23161.html

Mobile phones name that tune
Philips has developed an m-commerce app which lets mobile phone users identify and buy a song playing on the radio. It works like this: dial a service provider, put your handset near the source of the music for a few seconds and then receive the track title - with an offer to buy - via text message. Developed by CryptoTec, a division of Philips Digital Networks (part of the company's consumer electronics group), the system uses a technique called Waveform Matching (also known as hashing or fingerprinting) to identify the tune.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/23/23152.html

Israeli forces enter Palestinian airport
Encroaching on a key symbol of Palestinian autonomy and pride, Israeli forces moved into the Palestinian-run Gaza Airport early Tuesday, after launching airstrikes in the West Bank and elsewhere in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a wave of suicide bombings, a Palestinian security source said. Echoing the words of President Bush after the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced Monday that Israel was declaring its own war on terror after weekend attacks left 26 people dead and more than 200 injured.
http://www.msnbc.com/news/468764.asp

More news later on

[walktalker]

Who EU Calling a Terrorist?
European lawyers have denounced a European Union proposal to establish a definition of terrorism so broad that it could include workers' strikes or protests against globalization. More than 200 lawyers from nearly every country in the European Union (EU) have signed an appeal urging European Parliament and EU governments to reject a broad definition of terrorism.
http://www.wired.com/news/conflict/0,2100,48807,00.html

Sega Game Delivers Virus
Even game consoles aren't safe from computer viruses. In what appears to be the first reported incident of console-to-computer virus crossover, the Japanese-language version of "Atelier Marie," a role-playing game for the Sega Dreamcast games console, is infected with a highly destructive computer virus. Sega Dreamcast games come on CD-ROM discs that can include files readable on a computer's CD drive. The Atelier Marie game includes a screensaver that, once installed on a computer, attempts to infect the user's PC with the W32/Kriz virus.
http://www.wired.com/news/games/0,2101,48806,00.html

NASA Mulls Shuttle Shuttling
NASA is planning something that would have been unthinkable a decade ago: selling its fleet of space shuttles to a private company. While insisting that no decisions have been made yet, NASA appears to be following the lead of the Russians, who privatized their Mir space station by selling it to a private firm called MirCorp.
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,48743,00.html

The Great MS Patch Nobody Uses
A free, downloadable update that transforms Microsoft's Outlook into a significantly more secure e-mail application has languished virtually ignored on Microsoft's website for more than a year. Although the majority of recent viral attacks have come compliments of worms that don't rely only on e-mail to spread, the Outlook E-mail Security Update (OESU) can stop or greatly lessen the impact of most malicious code, such as BadTrans and SirCam, if only people would download and install it.
http://www.wired.com/news/technology...,48756,00.html

Oh Boy, an Indian Controversy
A company, which advertised its product as "new from the United States" in a leading Indian daily, has infuriated many people here, especially women's groups. The firm Gen-Select operates through its website and offers two kinds of kits that claim to help a couple decide the gender of its child: a blue kit, if a couple wants a boy and a pink one if a couple wants a girl.
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,48764,00.html

Wheaton's Trek to Respectability
Wil Wheaton's years of torture appear to be at an end. Wheaton has long been one of geekdom's favorite whipping boys, taking unending abuse for his role as Wesley Crusher, the whiny, know-it-all teenager on TV's Star Trek: The Next Generation. But now, thanks to a self-coded, shamelessly dorky website, many of the same folks who loathed Wheaton on the show are finding out he's a whole lot like them in real life.
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,48586,00.html

Data protection prosecutions 'unlikely'
Enforcement of the Data Protection Act is unlikely to be through prosecution, but the Information Commission will be seeking out firms that break the law. Firms breaching the Data Protection Act 1998 are unlikely to be prosecuted, said David Smith, assistant commissioner at the government's Information Commission, last week. This news will comfort those struggling to get to grips with the new law, which came fully into effect in October, and suggests the commission is now taking a more relaxed view of enforcement.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2100239,00.html

Ground Zero's fires still burning
Almost 12 weeks after the terrorist atrocity at New York's World Trade Center, there is at least one fire still burning in the rubble - it is the longest-burning structural fire in history. Deputy Chief Charles Blaich of the New York City Fire Department would not predict when the last fire might be extinguished. But compared to the situation at the end of September, when aerial thermal images showed the whole of Ground Zero to be a hot spot, conditions today are much safer for the workers clearing the rubble.
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99991634

Lord of the special effects
Weta crowd supervisor Stephen Regelous has created software, dubbed Massive, that creates realistic crowds. Every individual in the crowd moves in response to stimulus such as terrain, and to the actions of others. The battles in The Return of the King will see hundreds of thousands of these intelligent agents in frame at the same time, Mr Labrie says, stretching the software to its limits. Massive was developed on SGI operating system Irix and has since been ported to open source operating system Linux.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/index/0,1...220a28,FF.html

"Bear-proof" suit to be put to the test
A Canadian man and a three-metre, 585-kilogramme Kodiak bear will face off on 9 December, in an attempt to test a handmade, purportedly bear-proof suit. The suit and its maker, Troy Hurtubise of North Bay, Ontario, won a 1998 Ig Nobel prize for Safety and Engineering and an entry in the 2002 Guinness Book of World Records for the most expensive research suit ever constructed.
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99991637

Global IT Services Revenue To Hit $554 Bil In 2001
The current recession and the campaign against terrorism are causing a temporary slowdown in spending on IT (information technology) services, but according to a new study the industry will enjoy double-digit growth from 2003 to 2005. The study, by Gartner's Dataquest unit, estimates worldwide revenue from IT services will total $554 billion this year, a 7.1 percent increase from 2000. The company said the sector's growth will remain in single digits in 2002, but will explode to $865 billion by 2005.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172646.html

Alleged Child Pornographer Not A Terror Suspect
The FBI said it discovered child pornography on the computer of a Saudi man detained last September in the government's terrorism investigation. But the U.S. has since acknowledged that it has no evidence connecting Abdurrahman Koshak to terrorism. Koshak, a citizen of Saudi Arabia currently residing in western Pennsylvania, was among hundreds of people detained by the U.S. as part of its investigation of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172645.html

Microsoft, White House Mum On Security Advisor Post
Neither the White House nor Microsoft Corp. would confirm rumors today that Microsoft Security Chief Howard Schmidt may be leaving his position to serve as a electronic security advisor in the Bush administration. "We've heard that his name is being mentioned for a possible White House position (but) until we hear an official confirmation, he remains very busy in his role as our security chief," Microsoft spokesman Jim Desler said today. A White House spokesman would not comment on Schmidt.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172642.html

Bills Would Boost Electronic Security Research Funding
Led by the heads of the House Science Committee, a cadre of lawmakers on Tuesday plan to introduce a pair of bills that would substantially boost federal spending on information-technology (IT) and cyber-security research. "Research is under-funded," Science Committee Communications Director Heidi Tringe said today. "There are very few professionals in the field working specifically on computer security research and this is our (effort) to remedy that."
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172635.html

BadTrans Has AOL Written All Over It
Besides carrying a potent password-stealing payload, the thousands of e-mails infected with the BadTrans.B worm that are received by Internet users every day have another thing in common. They all appear to originate from America Online. Look closely at the detailed headers of a BadTrans.B-infected message - whether the visible "from" line shows the Yahoo.com address of your uncle in Utah or some total stranger's Hotmail address - and you will note that the "received from" header buried in the message almost invariably contains AOL.COM.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172629.html

Standard, Plain-English Privacy Policies Wanted
Only a tiny fraction of Web-wise consumers take the time to read the privacy policies of the Internet sites they frequent, according to two separate surveys released today. The studies show, however, that a majority of consumers would read the notices if they were made more succinct and easier to read. One of the surveys was conducted on behalf of the Privacy Leadership Initiative, a trade group whose members include the Direct Marketing Association, IBM, Dell Computer, Web banner ad giant DoubleClick, and some of the nation's largest credit reporting agencies.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172628.html

Internet Pedophile Warning Campaign Launches In U.K.
The British government has launched a 1.5 million British pound ($2.15 million) ad campaign to tell parents about the dangers of Internet pedophiles. The campaign will center on national newspaper and magazine advertising to encourage parents to "Wise up to the Net." Announcing the campaign this morning, British Home Office Minister Beverley Hughes said that the campaign aims to improve child safety in Internet chat rooms. "Pedophiles are dangerous - not Internet chat rooms," she said.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172620.html

Watchdog Group Launches Web Site To Monitor FEC Enforcement
The non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics announced today that it is launching a new Web site designed to keep pressure on federal regulators to aggressively enforce the nation's campaign finance and lobbying laws. The CRP's new FEC Watch project will monitor the enforcement activities of the Federal Election Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice, and congressional ethics committees.
http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172638.html

New Threats for America
A flood of new terrorist threats prompted the White House today to put the nation on alert for a third time since the Sept. 11 attacks. At White House news conference this afternoon, Office of Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge alerted the public that U.S. intelligence sources have picked up an "increased volume and level of activity involving threats of terrorist attacks."
http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/u...ert011203.html

Future Power From an Old Engine Idea
In order to develop more fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly power sources of the future, some researchers are turning to a technology of the past. Several companies and developers have begun touting new uses for an engine first developed in 1816 by a Scottish clergyman named Robert Stirling. Although Stirling's engine was initially developed as a safer replacement for the cranky old steam engines of the 19th century, proponents believe that the engine's radically different design will help it become a 21st century wonder.
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/scite...dge011130.html

More news later on...

[TankGirl]

Thank you very much for the first copy, Mr. Walktalker. A quality news package once again!

- tg