2002 November

“Hewlett-Packard Laboratories has hired Alan Kay, an industry luminary behind major computing technologies such as object-oriented programming and the predecessor to modern graphical interfaces, the company plans to announce Tuesday.” Kay invented things such the concept of overlapping windows on a screen, and a graphical representation of the different computing tasks on which […]

“That nemesis of application security, the buffer overrun, has found its way into media players from RealNetworks.”

“Now many of the biggest high-speed ISPs are considering capping the amount of bandwidth that their subscribers can use per month, a move that could undermine subscribers’ free swapping ways–something that many lawsuits have not yet been able to achieve. If people know they have a limited amount of bandwidth available, the thinking goes, they’ll […]

“Because of its comparatively small size, the Mini-ITX–a circuit board complete with the processor and many of the other components necessary to build a PC–is altering what desktops look like.” Build your next computer out of your bread bin or favorite stuffed animal.

“Militant Islamic groups are urging their followers to conduct ‘electronic Jihad’ on Jewish websites, according to the Simon Wiesenthal Centre.”
“Rabbi Abraham Cooper, an associate dean at the Los Angeles-based Jewish organisation, told Reuters that one of the centre’s researchers had come across two websites in Arabic referring to a three-day campaign of hacking into Jewish […]

The boss gives a glowing report.
“THANKSGIVING IS upon us, and I’m already counting my blessings despite a tough year for IT. Although 2002 has been a difficult year, there are plenty of things to be thankful for in the world of IT. As I reflect on the past year, I am grateful for several things.”
“I […]

Looking to get into the security field with computers? On Monday you can sign up to take the newly released Security+ exam. This exam is backed by the industry and the government and was the brainchild of the Computing Technology Industry Association

A big company gets bigger.
“Internet backbone provider Level 3 Communications Inc. has agreed to acquire the bulk of the assets of network provider Genuity Inc., which has filed for bankruptcy, the companies announced Wednesday.”

Wow! $75 million in illegal software. : o
“A 52-year-old Taiwanese woman who pleaded no contest in one of the largest software piracy cases in the U.S. was sentenced to nine years in prison Friday, one of the longest sentences ever in this country for a case involving software piracy.”

In a move that has to make you wonder what the real job was, two employees hired to route out thieves and other criminals in Los Alamos National Laboratory, the birthplace of the Atom Bomb, were fired shortly after an investigation showed major theft. Their long investigation, which led to a lot of bad publicity […]

The next Intel Itanium chip will run at 1.5 GHz, a 50% increase from the previous processor. Intel will be showing the processor at a processor show in February. For more information on dates, go to the ISSCC web site.

A new version of Mozilla has been released. You can find a list of new features here. For those of you who still haven’t checked out Mozilla, now is the time. A few months ago I decided to give it a try and within a week it was my default browser, and I haven’t looked […]

Ok. I know this has absolutely nothing to do with technology. But I like nuts, and it’s good to do healthy things. Humans can rationalize anything, can’t they?

I was thinking about getting a blackberry, but this makes me reconsider.
“February 13th could be a black day for BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM). On that day NTP will file an injunction to bar the BlackBerry from being sold by RIM in the United States. Jim Balsillie, Co-CEO of RIM, downplayed the chance that […]

Make sure those AV Defs are up to date!
“Anti-virus software maker F-Secure has reported the presence of a new email worm called Winevar. The company has ranked it as a level 2 alert - a new worm causing large infections which might be local to a specific region.”

This article nicely sums up the history of Rambus and why everyone seems to hate them so much. It manages to get the whole story across without having to rehash every little detail and seems fairly balanced in its presentation (to me at least).

In this article, the CIO relates the installation of a network intensive application, and it’s effects.
“The healthcare industry is sitting up and taking notice after one of Massachusetts’ best-known hospitals suffered network slowdowns and interruptions for more than three days earlier this month.”

As if a Help Desk worker’s reputation didn’t suffer enough, “In a massive case of identity theft, a computer help-desk worker was accused Monday of stealing the private credit histories of thousands of people nationwide and allowing millions of dollars to be run up in fraudulent charges.”

“The number of Internet users worldwide is expected to reach 655 million by the end of 2002, representing 30 per cent growth over the same period last year, according to the yearly ‘E-Commerce and Development Report,’ issued Monday by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).”

“In the Steven Spielberg film “Minority Report,” futuristic billboards recognize customers on sight and tailor their sales pitches to an individual’s shopping patterns. As it turns out, the future is just around the corner for motorists in the Sacramento area. Starting next month, two freeway billboards will be able to tell which radio stations passing […]