Friday 31 August 2012

Gearbox grid penalty for Webber

Mark Webber will drop five places on the grid for Sunday's 2012 Formula 1 Shell Belgian Grand Prix thanks to an unscheduled gearbox change on his Red Bull. It means Webber, currently second in the driver standings to Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, will start the Spa-Francorchamps race no higher than sixth

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13722.html

FIA Friday press conference - Belgium

Team representatives - Paul Hembery (Pirelli), David Greenwood (Marussia), Mattia Binotto (Ferrari), Ross Brawn (Mercedes), Paddy Lowe (McLaren). Q: Paul, are these ideal conditions and temperatures for you at Spa? Seriously, looking at temperatures though, this combination of dry tyres is the same as we had in Malaysia and Monza

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13719.html

Friday practice - selected team and driver quotes

A dank and dismal Spa-Francorchamps awaited the paddock when they arrived on Friday morning and, aside from the briefest burst of sunshine, the conditions failed to improve for the entirety of the day. Although the rain didn't completely stop play it rendered any real running useless and mixed up the timesheets with Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi on top in the morning and Marussia's Charles Pic leading the way in the afternoon. The drivers and senior team personnel report back on a frustrating day…

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13717.html

Practice Two - Pic and Marussia lead Belgian washout

It tells you all you need to know about a washed out second practice session at Spa on Friday afternoon that the first timed lap came three minutes after the chequered flag fell. After the majority of drivers had restricted themselves again to out and in laps, a few gathered finally to post some lap times with five minutes left, after continuous rain left rivers all over the track and discouraged serious attempts to go fast.

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13716.html

Wired.co.uk Podcast 91: Neil Armstrong, IFA, Pendle witches, Shenzen payrise

Wired podcast

This week we talk about Neil Armstrong, find out about the tech trends from IFA, sleep learning, the link between 17th century witchcraft and the London riots and the rest of the week in Wired news


By: Nate Lanxon,


Continue reading...



via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/podcast/episode-91

Cheer up, Samsung: Tokyo judge bins Apple's sync patent claim

South Koreans didn't nick music transfer idea


A Tokyo court took a few minutes today to rule that Samsung's Galaxy gear does not infringe an Apple software patent. It hands the South Korean giant a small win after its $1bn thrashing by Apple in an epic US mobile phone patent trial that concluded last week.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/tokyo_court_samsung_win/

Japan prepares second mission to explore asteroid

Hayabusa 2

Little more than two years ago, in June 2010, one of the most astonishing space missions of recent times ended when Japan's Hayabusa mission landed samples of an asteroid in the Australian outback.


The successful outcome had beaten all the odds. The robot probe suffered engine failures, a loss of fuel and communication breakdowns on its seven-year, six billion kilometre trip to explore an asteroid called Itokawa.


By: Paul Sutherland, Sen.com, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/31/japan-asteroid-mission

Practice One - Kobayashi on top at sodden Spa

It was fitting that Kamui Kobayashi and Sauber were fastest in a very wet opening practice session for the 2012 Formula 1 Shell Belgian Grand Prix on Friday, since they were one of the few combinations that ran for most of the 90 minutes. Heavy rain discouraged many from venturing out and it was not until the closing minutes that the track became really busy. Ferrari's Felipe Massa was the only driver who failed to set a time but the Lotuses of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean and Massa's team mate Fernando Alonso only completed sporadic out and in laps throughout the morning.

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13715.html

Signing forms at the top, not the bottom, may make people more honest

Signature

Simply by signing documents at the start rather than end, people might be encouraged to behave more honestly.


The effect was demonstrated in a series of staged and real-world experiments, which included moving signature lines from bottom to top on car insurance reports.


By: Brandon Keim, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/31/signing-forms-honesty

O2 looses legal torpedo at Everything Everywhere 4G monopoly

Let us have something somewhere, pleads spurned telco


Mobile phone operator O2 will appeal against Ofcom's decision to allow a rival firm to launch superfast broadband services later this year using its existing network capabilities, according to media reports.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/o2_4g_appeal/

Readers: Choose the proper new name for Everything Everywhere

Nothing anywhere, something somewhere, Omnipulant ...


Everything Everywhere is looking for a new name, and El Reg readers haven't been backwards in coming forwards with suggestions so we present a poll from which you can pick the best.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/ee_name_poll/

NFC tap-to-pay kit spreads its wings at IFA: Now used for audio

It's not just good for bonking


NFC is finally sneaking into a range of hardware, with Sony and Nokia emphasising the audio-pairing capabilities while everyone else is just sticks it in there for laughs.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/nokia_sony_nfc/

BYOD turns sysadmins into heroes

Intel China's IT boss on consumerisation


Bring Your Own Device programs can help to keep staff happy and turn IT bods into "heroes" but the hard RoI from spikes in productivity is unproven, according to Intel’s IT manager for China.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/byod_intel_productivity/

Huawei picks Android for new tablets and smartphones

Asks users to second its Emotion


Huawei is betting on Android with its launch of four new smartphones and two tablets all running Google's OS, albeit with a customizable interface dubbed "Emotion" that the Chinese networking giant is opening up for customer's suggestions.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/31/huawei_emotion_tablet_smartphone/

Oracle rallies PaaS providers to float cloud interop spec

Aims to help customers swap platforms more easily


A consortium of seven technology vendors, including enterprise software heavyweights Oracle and Red Hat, have teamed up to produce an industry standard that they say will make it easier for customers to manage applications deployed in platform-as-a-service (PaaS) environments.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/30/oracle_camp_paas_interop_spec/

Thursday 30 August 2012

FIA Thursday press conference - Belgium

Drivers - Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso), Charles Pic (Marussia), Vitaly Petrov (Caterham), Pedro de la Rosa (HRT), Michael Schumacher (Mercedes), Jenson Button (McLaren). Q: Jean-Eric, this is a new circuit for you in Formula One but I understand you've raced here before? Jean-Eric Vergne: Yeah, I think it's my favourite track. I'm really happy to be here in F1, to learn this track in and F1 car

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13710.html

Love vSphere? You're going to have to love Flash too

Trevor Pott gets hands-on with vSphere's new web client


If you're considering building your cloud infrastructure on the latest version of vSphere, you probably weren't banking on Adobe Flash being part of your set-up.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/30/vmware_new_interface_hands_on/

Schumacher to celebrate his 300th Grand Prix at Spa

Mercedes' Michael Schumacher will join a very exclusive club in Belgium this weekend when he makes his 300th Grand Prix appearance. Only one other driver has been in attendance at more Formula One races - Rubens Barrichello, who had made 326 appearances when he bowed out of the sport at the end of the 2011 season. Schumacher debuted with Jordan back in 1991 and then won back-to-back drivers' titles in 1994 and 1995 with Benetton. He moved to Ferrari in 1996, scoring five further driver championships and leading the Scuderia to six successive constructors' titles. He retired at the end of 2006 but just three years later decided to return to the sport in 2010 with Mercedes.

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13708.html

FIA press conference schedule - Belgium

McLaren's Jenson Button and Mercedes' Michael Schumacher join four of their rivals to answer the media's questions on Thursday, whilst Pirelli's Paul Hembery and Marussia's David Greenwood are amongst the personnel taking to the stage on Friday. The line-up in full…

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13707.html

Mobe-maker flogs self-designed phones ... to your KIDS

Custom phones for custom people


MVNO OwnFone is pitching a £55 handset which can only call up to 12 pre-programmed numbers, betting that the ability to create your own buttons and colour scheme will blind users to the price.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/30/ownfone/

The failure to create a unitary European patent is holding SMEs back

European Commission

One of the most famous boxers of all time said that it isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe. For small and medium size enterprises (SMEs), like mine, who are driving ICT Innovation in Europe, failure to create a unitary patent has been wounding our feet for too long, way too long.


Innovation is a risky business. European start-ups and tech entrepreneurs -- myself included -- need an overall environment that encourages us to take those risks and rewards us for doing so successfully. We need an efficient and standardised regulatory framework that provides us with flexibility and enables us to grow. After all, my success is based solely on my product, and what's its value if I am not able to protect it?


By: Guest Author, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/30/eu-patents

Customers dumping Samsung phones in wake of Apple suit

Prices of used kit plummet on sudden oversupply


Apple CEO Tim Cook might be pleased with the verdict in his company's recent patent legislation against Samsung, but Samsung customers are definitely not, according to the market watchers at mobile phone trade-in firm Gazelle.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/30/customers_selling_samsung_phones/

Wednesday 29 August 2012

Republican manifesto calls for internet freedom but no net neutrality

Trust the corporate sector to do you right


The Republican Party has decided on its official platform for the coming presidential election, and where tech is concerned, it's running on a ticket of reforming the FCC, dumping net neutrality, and selling off wireless spectrum as fast as it can find it.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/29/republican_2012_election_platform/

Intel adding wireless power sharing for smartphones and laptops

Dump the cords in 2014


Intel has said it'll start shipping laptops and smartphones that can share power wirelessly towards the end of next year.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/29/intel_wireless_power_idt/

Sony Xperia Tablet S goes quad-core, still looks like slice of glossy cheese

Sony has revamped and upgraded its iPad competitor, the Tablet S, giving it a speed boost, a redesigned chassis and a rack of other upgrades.


The new Android-powered Tablet S was announced at IFA 2012 by cheerful CEO Kazuo Hirai. It's now positioned under Sony's Xperia brand rather than Vaio, meaning Sony is pushing this as a mobile device, not a little PC.


By: Nate Lanxon,


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/29/ifa-sony-tablet-s

Silicon Drinkabout organisers bring together artists and coders for hackathon



3beards, the company that organises the weekly Silicon Drinkabout networking events, has partnered with the Whitechapel Gallery to create an hackathon that will unite artists and coders.


The event -- called Art Hack -- aims to bring together 50 hackers and 50 digital artists and musicians for 48 hours to create whatever they like from publicly available data. The teams will be able to use a number of different datasets, including social data from Brandwatch, music data from Echonest as well as publicly available open data, such as TFL's live transport data. The brief is simply to "create something amazing" that will reframe the way we think about the data that surrounds us every day. The results will be showcased at a celebratory Digital Sizzle party at the Gallery on 26 September 2012.


By: Olivia Solon, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/29/3beards-art-hackathon

Samsung chucks 'free' Galaxy SIII at dragon sketcher

It's paid for itself in publicity


A Canadian who adorned his request for a free phone with a sketch of a dragon, and received a kangaroo in response, has now been rewarded with a custom SIII as Samsung spots some good PR.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/29/samsung_dragon/

Apple: You'd want hi-fi streamage from us, not poor-people Wi-Fi audio

Admit it, you want everything to be shiny and swanky


Apple is reportedly working with hi-fi manufacturers to stream music over-the-air directly to audio equipment - without the need for Wi-Fi.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/29/apple_dac/

More of Kim Dotcom's booty released by court

Lord of uploads outlines even more mega upload service


The New Zealand High Court has unleashed some of Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom's considerable assets in order to help the contentious entrepreneur cover his legal fees in New Zealand.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/29/dotcom_gets_money_from_court/

Windows Azure adds code-free data services for mobile apps

Cloudy database backends in less than five minutes


Microsoft on Tuesday launched a preview of Windows Azure Mobile Services, a new capability for Redmond's cloud platform that allows software developers to deploy backend services for mobile applications without any server-side coding.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/29/windows_azure_mobile_services/

Tuesday 28 August 2012

Bluetooth 4 pulls on pair of profiles, hits the track

Standard still has a long way to run


Two new Bluetooth profiles will measure how fast the user is running or peddling, creating interoperability, but are also aimed at proving that the standard isn't slowing down.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/bluetooth_profiles/

Official: Google's brazen domination of Earth nearly complete

TLDs, gotta catch 'em all


The word “google” is the top domain name on the internet, in terms of registrations, according to new research.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/google_most_popular_domain_in_world/

Apple demands a quickie, aims its torpedo at 8 Samsung mobes

Judge Koh urged: Wham, ban, thank you ma'am


Apple is seeking quick bans on eight of Samsung's phones after beating the South Korean firm to a bloody pulp in its US patent super-trial. Yet legal experts are unsure the verdict can hold up.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/apple_seeks_samsung_bans_now/

UK ISPs crippled by undersea cable snap

Many quickly re-routed but slowcoaches O2, Be slapped


A major internet routing outage struck UK telcos over the bank holiday weekend - knackering access to the World of Warcraft website*, the BBC, Amazon, Facebook and other sites for more than 24 hours.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/cut_underseas_cable_cripples_networks/

MasterCard beds Everything Everywhere for exclusive pay-by-bonk

Friends with benefits


MasterCard has signed an exclusive deal to develop a pay-by-wave platform for Everything Everywhere over the next half decade – hopefully one with greater impact than the existing QuickTap service.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/ee_mastercard_nfc/

How to improve your golf skills



Europe and the US tee off soon in the Ryder Cup. Whereas pros have unbridled talent on their side, you have science on yours. These tricks will help you bag an albatross or two.


By: Brian Mossop, Edited by: Ian Steadman


Continue reading...



via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/09/how-to/improve-your-golf-skills

For weight loss, half an hour of exercise daily may be all you need

Jogging

If you're looking to shape up, researchers at the University of Copenhagen say 30 minutes of rigorous exercise can be as effective as an hour when it comes to shedding weight.


The team studied 60 heavy but healthy men between 20 and 40 years old who wanted to lose weight. Twenty-one were directed to get 30 minutes of aerobic exercise -- running, cycling and rowing -- daily. Twenty-one were told to get 60 minutes, and 18 were assigned to a control group that remained sedentary. The results showed that exercising for 30 minutes at a pace hard enough to break a sweat was sufficient to promote weight loss.


By: Chuck Squatriglia, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/28/exercise-less-is-more

Hong Kong beauties stiffed by hackers' enormous poll attack

Miss HK wannabes 'hosed in web flood'


Fans of simpering scantily clad vixens are furious after the online voting system to pick the next Miss Hong Kong was demolished by hackers, allegedly. The winner of the much-hyped beauty pageant, held on Sunday, was instead decided by a panel of judges.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/hong_kong_beauty_ddos/

Facebook's new app bazaar 'violates' punters' privacy – lobbyists

Sort it out or we'll see you in a German court... bitches


Facebook stands accused by a consumer lobby group of breaching Germany's privacy laws with the recent launch of its App Center.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/facebook_app_centre_violates_german_privacy_laws_says_consumer_lobby_group/

Telstra to extend reach of 4G network

Clickity click says big T, as it plans to reach 66% of Australia


Telstra has outlined plans to extend the reach of its 4G network, revealing today it will bathe “approximately two-thirds” 66% of Australia's population in fast wireless in the next ten months.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/28/telstra_extends_4g_network/

Monday 27 August 2012

NBN zealotry in the ultra-high definition age

Do anti-FTTP NBN arguments stack up against the reality of UHDTV and Terabit Ethernet?


Australia’s Shadow Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull recently declared the IT media includes a number of “zealots” who won’t, such is their/my fanaticism, report fairly on his alternative National Broadband Network (NBN) plans.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/nbn_in_terabit_age/

Office 2013 to offer one-off apps on demand

Close your file and the application vanishes


As part of its ongoing bid to convince Office customers to switch to a subscription-based pricing model, Microsoft has announced that Office 2013 subscribers will be able to access temporary copies of the desktop Office applications on any computer, delivered via internet streaming technology.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/office_on_demand_streaming/

Dropbox joins the security two-step party

Spamming stimulates the system


Dropbox has followed through on an earlier promise and is rolling out two-factor authentication for its Windows, Mac, and Linux users.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/dropbox_security_two_factor/

China Mobile to roll-out 16GB MEGA-cloud platform

Store your data in China. We dare you


The world’s largest mobile operator by subscribers, China Mobile, is finally jumping on the cloud computing bandwagon with its own iCloud rival, which will also be available to internet users outside the People’s Republic.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/china_mobile_cloud_icloud/

China Mobile to roll-out 16GB MEGA-cloud platform

Store your data in China. We dare you


The world’s largest mobile operator by subscribers, China Mobile, is finally jumping on the cloud computing bandwagon with its own iCloud rival, which will also be available to internet users outside the People’s Republic.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/china_mobile_cloud_icloud/

UK kids' charity lobbies hard for 'opt-in' web smut access

Parenting fail or p0rn0 too easily available? Esther Rantzen says it's the latter


The founder of British charity ChildLine is calling on the government to take a hardline approach against what some consider to be hardcore pornography online - by enforcing an opt-in system for adults to protect kids from being traumatised by the images.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/childline_calls_on_opt_in/

Rackspace, MacTel snipe in the cloud

Patriot Act does/does not apply, take your pick


Rackspace’s arrival in Australia last week – complete with a swipe at local player Macquarie Telecom – has brought a response back from MacTel.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/27/mactel_snipes_back_at_rackspace/

Saturday 25 August 2012

Samsung loses trial against Apple, ordered to pay over $1bn in damages

Apple

A jury of seven men and two women has just read the Apple v. Samsung verdict to a packed courtroom -- and it was all bad news for Samsung. The Korean electronics giant has been found to infringe all of Apple's utility patents and all but one of the four design patents asserted, and was ordered to pay $1.05 billion (£665 million) in damages to Apple.


That's less than the $2.75 billion (£1.4 billion) Apple asked for, but still a huge sum. If it holds up on appeal, it will stand as the largest patent verdict of all time. More importantly, it gives Apple a huge leg-up in the corporate patent wars, and immeasurably strengthens the company's negotiating position with regard to the Android phones it is struggling against.


By: Joe Mullin, Edited by: Nate Lanxon


Continue reading...



via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/25/samsung-apple-defeat

Jury awards Apple $1bn damages in Samsung patent case

Zero for Samsung's counter-claims


The nine-member jury in the closely watched patent litigation between Apple and Samsung has returned a verdict decidedly in Apple's favor, awarding the fruity firm a whopping total of $1.05bn in damages.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/apple_patent_victory/

Friday 24 August 2012

Longfin squid's camouflage cells dance to Cypress Hill

Squid

A neuroscience company called Backyard Brains made a Longfin Inshore squid dance along to Cypress Hill, by stimulating its chromatophore cells to the tune of Insane in the Brain.


The firm -- founded by University of Michigan graduates -- used a microstimulation system that was last used to make cockroach legs wiggle as researchers whistled into a speaker (which essentially works like a microphone, but in reverse).


By: Mark Brown, Edited by: Duncan Geere


Continue reading...



via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/24/squid-dance

Why the Wired.co.uk Podcast went video in our latest special edition

Wired Podcast

The Wired.co.uk Podcast has been running for almost two years. Every week, tens of thousands of people enjoy it -- but only ever in audio. Until now.


We're presenting episode 90 as a live video edition. It's identical to the audio version, but you get to see us record in the trinket cupboard as well as see the things we're talking about.


This is a trial. It's something I've wanted us to experiment with for a while, but video production is much more demanding on resources in order to do properly. We've always been quite proud of the fact that we produce a polished weekly programme from -- as you can now see -- what is quite literally a storeroom in our Bond Street office. But before we move into producing regular video content created to the same standard we want to make sure we get the facilities in place that such an endeavour requires.


For now, this is a bit of a test as well as an opportunity to watch how we produce the show every week. Maybe it's something we'll do more often, maybe it's something we'll never do again. But your feedback is welcome in terms of helping us make that decision.


By: Nate Lanxon,


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/24/watch-wired-podcast

Wired.co.uk Podcast 90: Mating plugs, space shields, game death, #byeduncan

Wired podcast

It's the end of one era and the start of a new one. This week's show is Duncan's last, as he prepares to up sticks and leave Wired for Sweden. But to celebrate we are presenting episode 90 as a video edition too -- watch us record live in the trinket cupboard for the first time.


On the show this week we discuss the sexual mating plugs of mosquitoes, how the ISS is getting shields to protect it from space debris, the closure of Lemmings-publisher Psygnosis and the rest of the week in Wired news.


You can stream and download the show as normal or watch the show on Vimeo in this story. You can also download a DRM-free high-definition version for free to watch on your TV, computer, tablet or phone.


By: Nate Lanxon,


Continue reading...



via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/podcast/episode-90

iPhone's market share in China sliced in HALF

Apple's mobe grabs just 10% of coveted millions of subscribers


Apple's piece of China's smartphone market has almost halved to just 10 per cent in the second quarter as fanbois wait for the next iPhone model or even, gasp, switch brands.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/apple_china_market_share/

Vodafone phone and mobe biz service goes titsup

Hello? Hello? Is anyone there?


Vodafone's One Net service has gone down, leaving businesses with no working phones.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/vodafone_one_net_service_outage/

Three beds Samsung for its own LTE mobe broadband kit

Huawei's advance misses a beat


Samsung will be supplying Three's 4G network, squashing ideas that the network-sharing deal with EE would simply be extended and giving Samsung a significant foothold in an increasingly competitive market.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/samsung_three/

Shove off Prince Harry, now Norway's teen royal in fresh photo uproar

Blue-blood's Instagram splurge sparks tabloid row


Blighty's playboy Prince Harry isn't the only royal hitting tabloid headlines for inappropriate snaps: Norway's monarchy has defended one of its own blue-blooded teens after his web photo uploading spree supposedly sparked a security scare.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/instagram_norwegian_royals_security_rumpus/

Microsoft unveils first new logo in 25 years

Microsoft Logo

As Microsoft prepares to roll out Windows 8 and its Surface tablet, the company has changed its corporate logo for the first time in 25 years.


The revamped design has a sleek new font (Segoe), and incorporates a colourful Windows-like symbol directly into the logo.


It's all part of Microsoft's plan to offer a seamless visual style across all of its software and operating systems. Soon enough, everything from Windows Phone 8 to Xbox will feature that colourful tile-based interface that used to be called "Metro".


By: Mark Brown,


Continue reading...



via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/24/microsoft-logo

Belgium preview quotes - Sauber, Lotus, HRT, Mercedes

With the August summer break complete, the Formula One paddock returns to race action next weekend at one of the sport's most iconic venues, Spa-Francorchamps, beloved of teams, drivers and fans alike. Those involved in the 2012 Formula 1 Shell Belgian Grand Prix discuss their prospects

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13698.html

Facebook updates iOS app, still poking around for mobile dollars

Time to speed things up... bitch


Facebook is yet to crack the mobile revenue conundrum as its stock continues to be hammered on Wall Street, but in the meantime the company has finally updated its dog of an iOS app.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/facebook_ios_app_update/

South Korea bans Apple's AND Samsung's ageing phones, tabs

Patent court dishes out pocket-change fines too


Both Apple and Samsung got teeny fines and had some of their products banned in South Korea, after a court in Seoul found they infringed on each other's patents.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/apple_samsung_seoul_ruling/

Sing when you're gibbon: helium-breathing gibbons sing like human sopranos

Gibbon

We're not the only singing simians. Not only do gibbons sing, but a new study of one singing, helium-breathing gibbon shows they use the same vocal technique as human sopranos.


"This is the first study to show a non-human primate using a mechanism similar to humans to make the very distinct vocalisation of songs," said primatologist Takeshi Nishimura of Japan's Kyoto University.


By: Tanya Lewis, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/24/sing-when-youre-gibbon

Three teams to test young drivers at Magny-Cours

Formula One teams will return to France's Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours next month when Ferrari, Mercedes and Force India conduct their annual young driver tests at the historic French venue on September 11-13 in the week following the Italian Grand Prix. The 17-turn, 4.4-kilometre track will provide the teams' aspiring F1 stars with a suitably demanding challenge...

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13697.html

Coming to a cloud near you: dirty laundry

Panasonic Android app will control whitegoods


Panasonic has announced an Android application to control home appliances. The only catch: users also have to be prepared to shuffle their data through a cloud service for it all to work.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/24/panasonic_android_for_appliances/

Thursday 23 August 2012

Aerofex hoverbike is controlled by your knees

Aerofex

California-based Aerofex claims that it's built a hoverbike with a novel, but intuitive, control system -- you swerve it left and right with your knees.


The pilot of Aerofex's hoverbike grips a pair of control bars and leans left and right to control balance. "It essentially captures the translations between the two in three axis (pitch, roll and yaw), and activates the aerodynamic controls required to counter the movement - which lines the vehicle back up with the pilot," Mark De Roche, Aerofex founder, told InnovationNewsDaily.


By: Duncan Geere, Edited by: Liat Clark


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/23/hoverbike

Mathematicians will lead the next consumer tech market disruption

Maths

When we think of how the best consumer technology is developed, the devices that make major breakthroughs in consumer experience, we tend to think of engineers or product designers -- whether it is the Jonathan Ive-designed iPod or James Dyson and his vacuum cleaners.


What we won't think of is a mathematician. However, as we look to the near future of consumer technology, mathematicians are going to be behind the next generation of 'must have' devices and services.


By: Guest Author, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/23/mathematicians-disruption

OFT makes special exemption for bumpkins' wayleave charges

Milking the cows of industry BT to speed up broadband rollout


Getting faster broadband connections in rural areas remains a bugbear for many of the locals who live in the harder-to-reach parts of Blighty. So clarification from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on competition law relating to wayleave rates has been unsurprisingly welcomed by landowners in the countryside today.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/oft_rural_broadband_wayleave_charges/

Nokia, Samsung and pals team up to map malls, stations

Alliance aims to develop standard for mobile floor plans


Nokia and Samsung have teamed up to try to standardise the technology used to for indoor location services.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/in_location_alliance_launched/

LG making thin screens POSSIBLY FOR THE NEW iPHONE

New touchscreens churned out for mysterious 'customer'


LG Display has fuelled rumours of the imminent arrival of the iPhone 5 as its CEO announced the production on a new, thinner display.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/lg_display_starts_new_touchscreens/

How to make electric Play-Doh

Playdoh

Want to introduce your kids to electronics? Ditch the circuit boards and go with that sticky staple of early childhood: Play-Doh. The off-the-shelf variety isn't conductive enough, but adding the right amount of salt and cream of tartar to your homemade version lets you create circuits, illuminate LEDs and even make motors spin.


By: Christina Bonnington, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/09/how-to/make-electric-play-doh

Sony Mobile withdraws from Sweden, retreats to homeland

Ericsson breakup leaves 1,000 redundancies in its wake


Sony Mobile is moving its headquarters from Sweden to Tokyo, where parent group Sony Corporation is headquartered, and laying off 1,000 people as it reshapes the company it took total control of back in February.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/sony_cuts/

Antibiotics may be contributing to obesity epidemic

Antibiotics

Expanding waistlines may be caused by more than bad diets and sedentary habits. Antibiotics could be disrupting our gut bacteria, helping people pack on fat like farm animals.


This scenario is, for now, a hypothesis, but one that's fleshed out convincingly in two new studies. In the first, mice given antibiotics experienced profound changes to internal microbe communities that process food and regulate metabolism. In the other study, body weight in children rose with antibiotic exposures as infants.


By: Brandon Keim, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/23/antibiotics-obesity

Hunt vows: 'UK will have fastest broadband in Europe by 2015'

Did I say best? I meant fastest - it's the same thing, right?


The government's pledge to provide countrywide broadband access by 2015 has received another boost from the Culture Secretary, who has promised the "fastest broadband of any major European country".…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/uk_superfast_broadband_hunt/

Hong Kong, not China keeping Syria online

PCCW carries lion's share of traffic to war-torn land


Hong Kong telecoms giant PCCW (sometimes known as Pacific Century CyberWorks) is all-but-single-handedly keeping Syria online as US sanctions and probable infrastructure issues hit the war-torn country.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/pccw_keeps_syria_online/

Australia threatens telcos with mobile roaming price laws

Roaming profit margins fall from 1000% to 300% git governments want more


Australia and New Zealand are considering legislation to prevent mobile carriers gouging customers when they use their phones overseas.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/23/telco_roaming_down_under/

Wednesday 22 August 2012

T-Mobile USA: Our new unlimited data plan is actually unlimited

Carrier compensates for iPhone-less inadequacy


Wireless carrier T-Mobile has what it describes as a "bold" new feature in store for its upcoming unlimited data plan: This time, it's actually going to be unlimited.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/tmobile_usa_unlimited_data/

Ofcom vows to smooth out ISP complaint complaints

'Inconsistencies' found in dispute handling


Pissed-off punters can now benefit from what communications watchdog Ofcom has described as "an improved experience" when complaining about mobiles, landlines and broadband.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/ofcom_middleman_dispute_shakeup/

Everything Everywhere to be Nothing Nowhere in rebrand

Reg readers! Suggest new name for mobile telco NOW


Everything Everywhere will change its identity before the end of 2012 - but will NOT merge its Orange and T-Mobile brands, which will continue to confuse punters indefinitely.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/ee_ends/

Amazon announces Glacier, for long-term cloud storage

Glacier

Amazon has opened a new cloud backup service called Amazon Glacier, that's designed to hold onto data for decades. Costs start at about a penny per month, but there's a catch: it can take up to five hours to retrieve your data.


Amazon says it's designed for "data you don't need to get to often" like database backups, image archives, digital preservation and a replacement for old fashioned magnetic tape-based storage. Anything where "retrieval times of several hours are suitable."


By: Mark Brown, Edited by: Duncan Geere


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/22/amazon-glacier

Everything Everywhere flogs 4G hand-me-downs to Three

But what's this? 'Do not open until September 2013'


Everything Everywhere has flogged its excess 1800MHz radio spectrum to rival mobile operator Three with one rather important condition. The sale briefly raised the possibility of the UK having competing 4G networks this year until EE crushed that dream by failing to relinquish the bands until September 2013.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/three_ee_spectrum_sale/

Facebook ordered to unmask anonymous trolls by beak

Name and shame web pests... bitch


Facebook was given 24 hours to supply a court in Northern Ireland with the email addresses of account holders who used the site to post abusive messages about a Belfast company, according to press reports.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/facebook_must_give_ni_court_abusive_users_email_addresses/

Apple, Samsung blast away in patent case closing arguments

Jury decision 'could change the way competition works' in US


They're done. Apple and Samsung have each given their closing arguments in the epic patent trial over whether the South Korean mobile maker infringed on Cupertino's iPhone patents. For the nine members of the jury, however, the next phase of the ordeal has only just begun.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/apple_samsung_final_arguments/

The problem with Foxtel’s call for NBN copyright cops

Destroy the network to save the content


Kim Williams of Foxtel has become the latest high-profile executive to demonstrate a complete misapprehension of what the NBN is.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/foxtel_wants_nbn_copyright_cop/

Rackspace lands in Australia

Takes hall in Digital Realty's local bit barn


Rackspace will take possession of one data hall in Digital Realty's new Sydney data centre, and pack it full of kit to serve Australian customers.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/22/rackspace_australia/

Tuesday 21 August 2012

Do Telstra’s call centre cuts add up?

Analyst says web self-service doesn’t always mean fewer calls


Telstra has announced it will close call centres in Lismore and downsize another in Townsville, and cut other jobs around the nation.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/telstra_call_cetnres/

RIM reshuffles UK and European team ahead of new OS

Could lose government monopoly position


RIM is reshuffling its European management team ahead of the launch of BlackBerry 10, with a new UK boss and the creation of a new, EU-wide managing director.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/rim_uk_reshuffle/

Diagnosis murmur: how 'intelligent' ultrasound could benefit medicine

Ultrasound

If you have ever seen the heart of a baby pulsating away on the screen of an ultrasound scanner you will also have noticed how much the success of the scan depends on the skill -- or luck -- of the operator to jiggle the probe to get the best image and then measure a skull or a limb lurking somewhere in that confusion.


With this in mind, Professor Alison Noble is working to improve the image quality and diagnostic power of this most widely used of medical imaging tools through her Oxford University spinout, Intelligence Ultrasound.


By: Mark Piesing, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/21/alison-noble-diagnostic-tools

My horse is immortal: 'free-to-play' is killing death in gaming

Death Horse

Before Moshi Monsters, before FarmVille, even before Neopets, there was one name that to this day remains synonymous with the term "virtual pet": Tamagotchi.


Hatched in Japan during 1996, the Tamagotchi became a historic success story. In its first five months on sale in Japan, it sold 1.5 million units. When it launched in the UK the goal was to sell another million to Brits by that same year's end. Today, the total sales are in the tens of millions and the franchise continues to be exploited by creator Bandai.


Yet there was something dark about the Tamagotchi pets: they could die. In fact death was a chief marketing hook. For the UK launch, journalists invited to a party to pick up a Tamagotchi were warned that if they failed to attend they would be sent a funeral bill. Children, afraid that neglecting their pet during school hours would cause it to die, started having to literally send the toys to daycare -- a cottage industry of "Tamagotchi creches" rose to accommodate this need, and it achieved mainstream TV documentation. Stories about bereaved children needing counselling as a result of a dead Tamagotchi helped keep the toys in the public eye.


By: Nate Lanxon, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/21/death-in-games

Nasa sets 2016 launch date for mission to probe Mars' core

Mars 2016

Nasa is set to take a good look at Mars from the inside out with a 2016 launch mission designed to uncover the secrets of its evolution and "lay the groundwork for a future human mission".


The two-year long InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission will be a collaborative effort between Nasa's Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL), the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) in France and Germany's Aerospace Centre, who will each contribute instruments set to probe the rocky planet's interior. InSight's priority will be to answer questions about the make-up of Mars' core and crust -- does it have a liquid centre like here on Earth, and why does it lack mobile tectonic plates?


"InSight will get to the 'core' of the nature of the interior and structure of Mars, well below the observations we've been able to make from orbit or the surface," explained pun-loving John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at Nasa.


By: Liat Clark, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/21/mars-insight-2016

Jeremy Hunt wants UK to have fastest broadband in Europe by 2015

Broadband

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said he wants the UK to have "the fastest broadband of any major European country by 2015".


That's slightly different from his original pledge to have the "best" superfast broadband network in Europe by 2015. Hunt explains that while best also include factors like price and coverage, "to be the best you need to be the fastest."


By: Mark Brown, Edited by: Duncan Geere


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/21/jeremy-hunts-broadband-pledge

Amazon tries to freeze out tape with cheap 'n' cloudy Glacier

Cloud giant rolls over earthly archives


Amazon is digging deeper into the enterprise with a data back-up and archival service designed to help kill off tape.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/amazon_data_archival_glacier/

Apple, Samsung brass hats' patent spat chitchat falls flat

Cook and Kwon agree to disagree, place fate in jury's hands


Apple and Samsung's chief execs have discussed their US patent trial but they weren't able to sort out their differences, a lawyer for the South Korean chaebol said yesterday.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/apple_samsung_ceos_talk_fails/

PayPal drops into McDonalds, begs meat-guzzlers to give it a bonk

Would you like NFC with that?


Thirty McDonalds outlets* in France will be accepting PayPal, using the eBay-owned processor's mobile client, as companies race to become the default mobile payment platform whether customers want it or not.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/mcdonalds_paypal/

Ofcom gives Everything Everywhere approval to launch 4G ahead of rivals

4G

Ofcom has given Everything Everywhere approval to use its existing 1800 MHz spectrum to deliver 4G internet in 2012. It's a contentious decision, which will give child companies Orange and T-Mobile a huge head start over its rivals.


The telecoms regulator says that letting Everywhere use its 1800 MHz licenses now will "deliver significant benefits to consumers". It says there is no "material risk that those benefits will be outweighed by a distortion of competition," and argues that delaying the 4G rollout would be "to the detriment of consumers."


By: Mark Brown, Edited by: Duncan Geere


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/21/ofcom-ee-4g

Everything Everywhere bags 4G monopoly in UK - for now

Competition? What competition?


Everything Everywhere, the UK's largest mobile operator, will get a monopoly on 4G services in the UK, starting on 11 September and lasting at least until next year's spectrum mega-auction.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/4g_ee/

News Ltd's Australian chief demands copyright overhaul

Wants anti-piracy role for National Broadband Network


The head of News Ltd's Australian outpost has urged for an overhaul of copyright laws to take on the “copyright kleptomaniacs” and “digital suckers” that are robbing the Australian economy of AUD$1.37 billion annually in pirated film and TV content.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/21/news_ltd_in_digital_download_fury/

Monday 20 August 2012

Networking industry to collaborate on TERABIT Ethernet

Network traffic projected to increase tenfold by 2015


Sensing mounting frustration that movies Linux ISOs aren't downloading fast enough, the IEEE has announced a new group that aims to bring wired Ethernet speeds up to 1Tbps by 2015 and as fast as 10Tbps by 2020.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/ieee_terabit_ethernet_group/

Apple's response to iPhone SMS spoofing flaw: use iMessage

SMS on iPhone

Apple has responded to the discovery of a flaw in the iPhone's operating system, which lets users manipulate outgoing text messages and claim they've been sent from any phone number they desire. Apple's solution? Use iMessage.


Security researcher pod2g revealed the flaw on its blog. The site says that the flaw has existed since the iPhone's debut, "and is still there in iOS 6 beta 4." The writer urges Apple to fix the issue before the final release of iOS 6.


By: Mark Brown, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/20/apple-on-sms-spoofing

We need a data science revolution in our universities

Data revolution

"Data scientist" is a term that, if not yet in common parlance, is certainly being used more and more as a way of describing a new type of role in business today. The people that fill these roles tend to be graduates with a Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) qualification and a talent for analysing large datasets to uncover patterns and correlations that may previously have remained hidden. Depending on what that data is -- for instance, customer buying behaviour or market conditions -- companies can potentially gain a significant competitive advantage by integrating the power of hard science into their operations.


On the face of it, this sounds like great news for Stem graduates. Traditionally, students in these disciplines were marked for jobs in scientific industries, engineering and academia. But today, mathematicians and scientists find that their skills are in high-demand across multiple industries. While the financial sector has tapped graduate talent for some time, a much wider range of businesses are now looking to recruit data scientists to solve a host of different problems.


By: Guest Author, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/20/data-science-revolution-sham-ahmed

Phone-flingers flock to Finland for World Championships

Not Nokia staffers... we hope


No, they weren't Nokia employees – we think – but on Saturday Finns gathered to hurl mobile phones into some concrete.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/phone_throwing_competition/

White hat warns against iPhone SMS spoofing bug

Apple: It's not US, it's the technology...


Security researchers have discovered an iPhone bug that allows for spoofed SMSes with bogus return addresses to be sent to fanbois.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/iphone_bug_sms_spoofing/

Google loads Moto Mobility cannon, fires patent shells at Apple

Siri, is this Mountain View's back-up plan?


Google's Motorola Mobility has filed a fresh patent infringement case against Apple over features on its phones, including the iPhone's voice assistant, Siri.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/motorola_files_new_patent_case_at_apple/

Pea aphids may be able to harvest energy from the Sun

Aphid colony

Pea aphids may have an unprecedented ability to harvest sunlight, and use the energy for metabolic purposes. It would make it the only species of animal known to have photosynthesis-like powers.


It comes down to carotenoids, which are a type of pigment used in animals for crucial functions like vision, bone growth and vitamin production. All known animals obtain these by eating the plants, algae and fungi that naturally synthesis the orangey-red compounds.


By: Mark Brown, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/20/pea-aphids

Welcome to the new reputation economy

The New Reputation Economy

Imagine a world where banks take into account your online reputation alongside traditional credit ratings to determine your loan; where headhunters hire you based on the expertise you've demonstrated on online forums such as Quora; where your status from renting a house through Airbnb helps you become a trusted car renter on WhipCar; where your feedback on eBay can be used to get a head-start selling on Etsy; where traditional business cards are replaced by profiles of your digital trustworthiness, updated in real-time. Where reputation data becomes the window into how we behave, what motivates us, how our peers view us and ultimately whether we can or can't be trusted.


Welcome to the reputation economy, where your online history becomes more powerful than your credit history.


By: Rachel Botsman, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/09/features/welcome-to-the-new-reputation-economy

Curiosity rover blasts a first Martian rock with its laser

Curiosity using its laser (render)

A small, flat rock known as Coronation suffered the wrath of Curiosity's laser when the Mars rover finally fired up its ChemCam instrument and delivered 30 pulses of energy at the rock over a 10-second period.


The laser pulses, each delivering more than 1 million watts of power for around 5 one-billionths of a second, turn some of the rock's atoms into a glowing, ionised plasma. By analysing the light from the plasma, the ChemCam's three spectrometers can determine what elements are in the rock.


By: Betsy Mason, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/20/curiosity-fires-laser-at-rock

Assange uses balcony speech to call for end of US 'witchhunt'



Standing on a first-floor balcony of the Ecuadorian embassy in London, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said the United States must "renounce its witchhunt against WikiLeaks."


"The United States must dissolve its FBI investigation, the United States must vow that it will not seek to prosecute our staff or our supporters. The United States must pledge before the world that it will not pursue journalists for shining a light upon the secret crimes of the powerful."


By: Kim Zetter, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/20/assange-balcony-statement

Massa returns to track action at Interlagos

With Formula One racing's summer break in full swing, you'd expect most drivers to be relaxing on a well-deserved holiday. Ferrari's Felipe Massa, however, had other ideas over the weekend and got back behind the wheel at his local circuit of Interlagos for the fourth round of Brazil's Copa Fiat series. Massa took to the track for two practice sessions of the series, which was previously known as the Trofeo Linea. Although as a guest driver he was entitled to have one more set of tyres than the rest of the competitors, the Brazilian impressed, setting times of 1m 51.411s and 1m 52.005s in the first and second sessions respectively.

via Formula1.com - Latest Headlines http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/8/13690.html

PLT chair: UK Radio Society is 'living in a dream world'

UK hams face down EU over powerline networking kit standard


The chair of the EU committee on powerline networking has responded to the Radio Society's call to arms, claiming that every minute of filibustering pollutes the radio spectrum more.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/plt_rsgb/

Cloud-puffing Iomart goes south - to gobble Manc biz Melbourne

Data centre tentacles spread across Blighty


UK biz Iomart is spreading its cloud south and bolstering biz services by buying up Manchester-based Melbourne Server Hosting, in an acquisition announced last week.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/cloud_biz_iomart_manchester_acquisition/

Indian gov bans bulk texts as workers flee Bangalore

North-easterners panicked by rumours of violence


The Indian government has been forced to ban the sending of bulk SMS text messages over concerns migrant workers from the nation's north-east will be targeted by Muslims.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/india_bans_bulk_texts/

China and Taiwan complete historic undersea cable

Small cable is hugely significant


China and Taiwan have edged just a little bit closer with the completion of the first submarine telecoms cables between the two nations.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/taiwan_china_undersea_cable_complete/

Better onion anonymity possible: researcher

Boost to reliability as well


Onion routing – which in spite of its DARPA genealogy are disliked by national security types – could be made more anonymous, according to a an Iranian researcher now working on a PhD at Concordia University in Montreal.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/20/making_onion_networks_more_secure/

Apple impasse sees China Mobile buy own speech tech

How can we bring the iPhone to China's largest 3G carrier, Siri?


China Mobile has made a defensive move against Apple’s plans to launch a Chinese version of Siri by courting its own speech recognition investment.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/19/china_mobile_to_get_its_own_siri/

NBN could cut $AU600m+ from telco maintenance bills

BIS Shrapnel tags the cost of caring for copper


Property researcher BIS Shrapnel has shone a torch into one of the dark corners of the NBN debate: the cost of maintaining Australia’s copper network.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/19/cost_of_caring_for_copper/

Sunday 19 August 2012

ZTE gives LTE a lift with multi-mode data card

Biz travellers to China will be happy


Chinese telecoms kit peddler ZTE has unveiled what it claims are the world’s first USB modem and portable hotspot devices to support both versions of LTE, FDD and TDD, in a move which could be welcomed by international business travellers keen on sniffing out the fastest local networks.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/19/zte_multi_mode_modem_lte/

Saturday 18 August 2012

HP to take one more stab at consumer tablets

Taps former Nokia exec to head new fondleslab division


If you thought HP's decision to spin off its webOS division into a new subsidiary signaled the end of its adventures in the mobile market, think again. According to reports, the PC maker is reshuffling its Personal Systems Group to launch a new business unit aimed at getting HP back in the tablet race.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/18/hp_tries_again_with_tablets/

Friday 17 August 2012

UK drug user dies from anthrax-laced injection in eighth European case

anthrax

A drug user in Lancashire has become the eighth person in Europe to fall victim to an anthrax-laced heroin injection in recent months, with experts suggesting the outbreak is far from over.


The death, reported by the Health Protection Agency (HPA), occurred in Blackpool just a few weeks after another incident in Lanarkshire some 273.5km away.


The case is a warning signal -- this deadly Bacillus anthracis bacteria infection is on the move and, as demonstrated by its location jump, tracking it will unfortunately be no easy matter.


By: Liat Clark, Edited by: Olivia Solon


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/17/anthrax-death-lancashire

Apple deal points to NFC iPhone - eventually

But new pay-by-bonk kit probably won't need fingering first


SEC filings from Apple-acquisition AuthenTec state that fingerprint and secure-element technology is coming to Apple devices, and soon, but it still might be too early to call the NFC iPhone, and probably wrong to imagine the pay-by-bonk tech will use digit-scanning for authentication.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/apple_authentec/

Wired.co.uk Podcast 89: Amazing toilets, hottest heat ever, drunk snakes

Wired podcast

This week we discuss how scientists have created the hottest heat ever created on Earth, the winner of the Bill and Melinda Gates' toilet initiative, why some snakes appear to be drunk, and the rest of the week in Wired news.


By: Nate Lanxon,


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/podcast/episode-89

No way Moto: Chinese workers protest Google job cuts

Employees claim Motorola violated their contracts


Motorola employees in Beijing and Nanjing were out this morning protesting the job cuts announced by Google earlier this week.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/china_workers_protest_googorola_cuts/

Facebook finally begins deleting photos when you ask it to



It has been more than three years since Ars first started covering Facebook's inability to remove "deleted" photos from its servers, but this particular saga appears to be coming to an end. The company told Ars that its new photo storage systems are in place and are now deleting photos within a reasonable period of time, which we were able to independently confirm.


But this doesn't mean Facebook's privacy problems are gone. There are plenty of other issues that Facebook users have run into in recent years. As the company moves forward into its new role as a public entity, those issues will have to be addressed if Facebook wants to remain on top.


By: Jacqui Cheng, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-08/17/facebook-deleting-photos

Nominet 'sought govt protection from takeover by domain hawkers'

'Plan G' revealed at ex-policy chief's tribunal


Nominet, the .uk address registry, sought government help to protect its board of directors from a takeover by domain name speculators, according to its former policy chief.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/nominet_takeover_gov/

Nokia S40 budget blowers bunged Zynga doodle, poker games

Draw Something on something more basic


Two of Zynga's top titles, Draw Something and Zynga Poker, are coming to Nokia's Asha range of budget blowers, showing that there's life in the old platform yet.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/nokia_s40/

Twitter API outrage: Break our rules and we'll break app kneecaps

Nice client you got there, be a shame if anything 'appened to it


Twitter is tightening the rules for building applications that use its messaging platform, sparking outrage from twits and developers.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/twitter_api_rules/

Samsung: 'You want $2.5bn? WRONG, Apple, you OWE us $420m!'

iFruit biz 'overstated' damages bill in patent trial


An accountant on the stand for Samsung in its epic patent trial has said Apple overstated Sammy's mobile gadget margins, effectively inflating a potential payout for the iPhone maker.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/samsung_expert_apple_exaggerate_damages/

How to make your own stop-motion film

Stop-motion film

Want to emulate Aardman Animations? Here's how to make your own stop-motion film on your computer. You'll need imagination, a tripod, a camera, patience and probably the charmingly named GIMP software.


By: Jeremy Cook, Edited by: Ian Steadman


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via Wired.co.uk



http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2012/09/how-to/make-your-own-stop-motion-film

Verizon wins approval for $3.6bn cable spectrum swap

Modified terms allay regulators' objections


Verizon looks to have the green light to acquire around 20MHz of wireless spectrum from a consortium of four of the US's largest cable companies, with two government agencies having voiced approval of the deal, albeit in modified form.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/17/verizon_spectrum_deal_approved/

Boundary punts freebie app monitoring from the clouds

Pockets $15m in VC cash, hooks into Engine Yard


Application monitoring tool provider Boundary, which only peddles its wares as a service running on a cloud, is offering potential customers a freebie version of the service to scare up some business.…






via The Register - Cloud

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/16/boundary_app_monitoring/

iiNet’s happy dance

What’s a quarter-million BoB worth?


The high points are easy: iiNet’s profit is up by 11 percent, the company is claiming 15 percent of the broadband market in Australia, and its revenue is well over the $AU800 million mark.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/16/iinet_bob_and_churn/

Thursday 16 August 2012

Apple lawyer: 'I promise I am not smoking crack'

Judge Koh not so sure


Judge Lucy Koh has grown increasingly irritated with lawyers on both sides of the ongoing lawsuit between Apple and Samsung, but she hit a new boiling point on Thursday when Apple presented her with a 75-page list potential rebuttal witnesses for the four hours it has remaining in the trial.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/16/apple_lawyer_not_smoking_crack/

Best Buy, Target, Walmart, others to take on Google Wallet

Big box retailers cozy up for mobile payment scheme


In a move that opens a new front in the ongoing bricks-and-mortar versus e-commerce struggle, a group of fifteen major retailers have joined forces to develop a new mobile payment system to challenge Google Wallet.…




via The Register - Networks

http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/16/retailers_cozy_up_mobile_payment/