RSS FeedNews Many Will Buy The Microsoft Zune
2006
Many prospective buyers of digital music players, including those who currently use Apple's iPod, would be likely to choose Microsoft's upcoming Zune player, a market research firm said Wednesday.
A survey of 1,725 U.S. teenagers and adults found that of those who planned to buy a digital music player in the next 12 months, 58% who owned iPods and 59% who owned some other brand were either "somewhat likely" or "extremely likely" to choose a Zune, ABI Research said.
Microsoft Releases Vista Launch Day
2006
Microsoft has announced the date on which Windows Vista will be made available to businesses.
From 30 November corporate customers of the software giant will be able to get their hands on the next version of the operating system.
Also on that date Microsoft will make available Office 2007 - its suite of business programs.
Home users will have to wait until January 2007 to get hold of a copy of the Vista software.
Google buys YouTube for $1.65bn
2006
Google is buying video-sharing website YouTube for $1.65bn (£883m) in shares after a weekend of speculation that a deal was in the offing.
The two companies will continue to operate independently, Google said as it announced the news on Monday.
'Invisible' microphone headsets
2006
A new microphone which fits inside the ear could make mobile phone and media player headsets almost invisible in future.
The microphone relies on a sophisticated signal processing chip developed by Sanyo in Japan, which revealed the new concept at the weekend.
Sanyo's LC70700W chip is designed to drive a tiny earphone and microphone combination that inserts directly into the ear.
Deal lets retailers download, sell DVDs
2006
Two Bay Area software companies -- Macrovision and Sonic Solutions -- said Monday that they will offer retailers technology to download and sell DVDs on demand, freeing up warehouses and shelf space.
Macrovision, a Santa Clara maker of encryption technology, and Sonic, a Novato maker of DVD and CD copying programs, are the first to offer software that uses digital downloads of films from Hollywood studios to create copy-protected DVDs with artwork and bonus features.
Unlike download services such as Apple Computer's iTunes, buyers would get a physical copy that can be played in home DVD players.
Windows Live Is Top Microsoft Priority
2006
Windows Live is the most important initiative at Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO, told the audience at the annual Gartner Symposium and IT Expo here on Oct. 10.
We're in a transition to software that is live. It will be click to run, like a Web site, said Ballmer. "We believe in evolving to click to run."
Windows Live is a growing collection of service add-ons for Windows. Some of the services are shipping, such as Windows Live Messenger and Windows Live Expo online classifieds. Nearly a dozen services are currently in beta test on the Windows Live Ideas Web site.
Dell to Expand Engineering Employment by 500
2006
Dell plans to hire an additional 500 engineers to work in its Central Texas product development operations as part of its dedication to providing customers the broadest and best product and services portfolio available, the company announced today. Dell will begin hiring immediately.
This year Dell will have the most technically advanced product line in our company's history, said Chairman Michael Dell. "The additional development expertise we're announcing today for our Austin Design Center reflects our concept of Dell 2.0, an initiative to revitalize every part of our business with engineering excellence at its core. No other company in our industry has a greater commitment to innovation in computing," Mr. Dell said.
Internet crime to hit homes hard
2006
Home computer users are now the favourite targets of hi-tech criminals, reveals research.
The report by security firm Symantec found that cyber criminals are targeting home PC owners because they are the easiest to catch out.
It saw an 81% rise in phishing messages which attempt to trick people into handing over personal details.
Another study by a banking industry body shows many home users do not take basic steps to stay safe online.
Top OEMs and ISVs Unwrap Linux Offerings At LinuxWorld
2006
Top OEMs and ISVs are embracing Linux more tightly as the open-source platform proliferates across the business sector.
At the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo in San Francisco, Hewlett-Packard announced it would develop and support Debian, a top-ranked Linux distribution, along with Red Hat and Novell commercial Linux distributions on select hardware.
With that, HP now enables Debian Linux across HP ProLiant and HP BladeSystem servers. In addition, HP unveiled the first customizable Linux thin client from a tier-one vendor, the HP t5725.
Lenovo, too, is forging stronger ties with Linux software vendors. At LinuxWorld on Tuesday, Lenovo unveiled the ThinkPad T60p Linux Mobile Workstation, which supports Novell's recently released SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 10 operating system. Coming in 14-inch and 15-inch models, the new ThinkPads are available now.
Linux on Motorola Cell Phones
2006
Cell phone giant Motorola said Tuesday it plans to power its midrange mobile phones with the Linux operating system in a bid to penetrate the price-sensitive North American and European markets and offer consumers a greater choice of smartphones.
Motorola, which embarked on its open-source strategy for mobile phones six years ago, has been successful in introducing Linux-powered phones in Asia, especially China, but the company has faced a much tougher time in breaking into the United States and Europe with these phones.
Portable Hacking Device in the Palm of Your Hand
2006
A portable hacking device equipped with hundreds of exploits and an automated exploitation system will go on sale in the United States in October.
The wireless handheld, called Silica, is the latest product to be developed by Immunity, a Miami-based security company that sells penetration testing products and services.
An early version of Silica, which supports 802.11 (Wi-Fi) and Bluetooth wireless connections, has been fitted with more than 150 exploits from Immunity's Canvas product to allow security professionals to conduct pen tests while walking through office cubicles.
Real Player will offer Windows Media on Linux by December
2006
Real Networks by December is preparing to launch a Linux version of its Real media player for Linux, enabling the users to play audio and video files in the Windows Media format.
The company's Helix player for Linux currently supports Windows Media, but the upcoming Real player has more advanced features, said Jeff Duchmann, Real's general manager for client and digital rights management technologies told vnunet.com.