19265252
submission
jhernik writes:
Cyber-war stories from the defence industry may be a distraction, pundits told the RSA conference
nternational cyber threat initiatives are in danger of becoming overblown, the US government’s security chief told the RSA Conference in San Francisco.
” Cyber war is a terrible metaphor,” said the US government’s cybersecurity czar Howard Schmidt. Don’t make it something it’s not.” Internet attacks from hackers, spies and terrorist groups deserves serious attention, he said, but this should not be “to the extent of mass hysteria”.
Cyber-war hype is a distraction
Other thinkers seemed agreed on this. Bruce Schneier, security chief at the BT Group, said that this mass hysteria is being stoked up by government initiatives creating the impression of a “cyber arms race”. He does not believe that a cyber war is raging but that heavy-handed responses to issues such as the Stuxnet attacks are creating that impression.
19227274
submission
jhernik writes:
Samsung unveiled its Galaxy S II over the weekend, during the run-up to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, touting it as “the world’s thinnest smartphone”.
On the second day of the show, eWEEK Europe paid a visit to Samsung’s stand, to get some hands-on time with the device and see if it lived up to the hype. The verdict: we liked what we saw.
Sleek and well designed
At less that 8.5mm thick and weighing in at just 116g, the Galaxy S II is a very sleek device, and surprisingly comfortable to hold. With a dual-core 1GHz processor and generous 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus display, the graphics appear particularly bright and colourful.
With this latest addition to the Galaxy S range, Samsung has opted for Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), which the company claims offers a faster, more user-friendly experience.
The Galaxy S II comes with version 4.0 of TouchWiz, Samsung’s proprietary Android user interface. Content on the device is organised into four new ‘Hubs’ – the Readers Hub, Music Hub, Social Hub and Game Hub – designed to increase user interactivity. Users can organise their media files as they wish, for example searching music tracks, listening to previews and creating playlists.
The Social Hub also allows users to combine their contact lists from different sources such as GTalk, Yahoo and Windows Live, and categorise them into groups. In this way they can send group updates to friends about a heavy night on the town without having to suffer the dispproval of work colleagues the following day.
The Readers Hub seems particularly intuitive, and the large screen makes reading text a relatively pleasant experience. Texts are divided into news, books and magazines, and allow users to access media from all over the world. They can even access a newspaper before it is fully downloaded, and the file will continue to download as the user reads.
19208506
submission
jhernik writes:
A new SIM-based application will allow basic handsets to access Facebook without the need for a data connection
At the Mobile World Congress on Monday Gemalto announced a SIM card-based application that allows any GSM-based mobile phone to interact with Facebook using SMS messages, without the need for a data connection.
The application potentially extends Facebook’s reach far beyond the more than 200 million users who already access the social network via relatively advanced handsets, according to Gemalto.
Basic technologies
It was built for wide compatibility on simple GSM handsets, according to Gemalto, using two basic technologies. It uses Class 2 SMS messages, a type of message which is stored and used on the SIM card, not the phone, and it also uses the GSM SIM Toolkit, which is part of the GSM standard and available on all GSM handsets..
The service works for prepaid as well as monthly subscription customers, Gemalto said. Users will however need to pay for a separate subscription to the application, buying a pass for unlimited usage of the service for a given period of time, according to the company.
Users can access Facebook features such as friend requests, status updates, wall posts or messages via text-based menus, with updates passed back and forth between the handset and the web via SMS. Users can sign up for the service and log in directly from the SIM application. Users can also search for friends and send them requests via the SIM phonebook.
19158898
submission
jhernik writes:
The readers have spoken, and to our relief we can talk about phones at MWC. Next, tell us what tablets to like
We’ve had a worrying time at eWEEK Europe, planning our Mobile World Congress (MWC) coverage. For a few days, it looked like you, our readers, would prevent us from reporting on phones, from an event which is all about phones.
It seemed simple enough. We gave some free MWC tickets out to those of you we’ve met on our Facebook page, and we asked you all what you most want to hear about from the show.
It was a risk of course. When Justin Bieber asked where the Internet wanted him to perform next, the result was North Korea. What if our mischievous readers consigned us to the mobile porn ghetto or the billing systems section of the mobile industry’s Barcelona trade show?
Poll not slanted enough?
We thought we were safe. After all, we didn’t give you porn or billing as an option, and we put the word “cool” by the phone option, which we thought was a big enough hint.
19158830
submission
jhernik writes:
Microsoft gets big backing for Windows Phone 7, Nokia gets a fire extinguisher
Nokia will use Windows Phone 7 on future smartphones, pushing Symbian to one side, and working with Microsoft in a partnership the companies hope can rival the iPhone and Android platforms.
The widely-predicted deal puts Windows Phone at the centre of Nokia’s future plans and give the phone company a role in its development. It is designed to boost the poor market share of the Microsoft operating system, and solves Nokia’s strategy crisis, which was likened to a burning oil rig in a leaked memo from Nokia CEO Stephen Elop earlier this week.
Windows Phone 7 – time to market?
Nokia and Microsoft will “use their complementary strengths and expertise to create a new global mobile ecosystem,” according to the joint release, which also promises to address a key criticism of both companies: speed of execution.
“The partnership would create the opportunity for rapid time to market execution,” said the release. New smartphones on the joint platform will use Windows Phone 7, and Bing search from Microsoft, along with Nokia’s Maps, and Nokia’s strengths in imaging and hardwre design.
Nokia-Microsoft phones could reach a “larger range of price points, market segments and geographies,” said the release, pointing out that Nokia’s operator partnerships help it to do well in countries where credit cards are not widespread.
they will also have adverts served by Microsoft AdCenter.
19143432
submission
jhernik writes:
The Open University is helping potential CIOs towards their chosen career and a seat in the boardroom
The Open University has licensed the International Data Group (IDG) CIO Executive Council’s Pathways competency framework to give potential /it managers a route from IT staff to board level.
Kevin Streater, executive director for IT and telecom at the Open University, unveiled the new programme, designed to create new chief information officers (CIOs) at the Westminster Skills e-forum event on 9 February.
Addressing The Growing Shortage Of IT Professionals
“It’s not one specific course for CIOs,” he told eWEEK Europe UK. “The Open University has mapped its current courses, across its computing and business faculties, to stack up with competencies identified by the CIO Executive Council. It’s a case of taking units and modules from other courses and showing how relevant they are to this particular audience.”
The programme has been adopted to address the rapidly growing need for qualified IT managers. Reed’s annual job index showed that the UK’s need for IT professionals has risen by 23 percent over the past year. In addition, e-Skills UK estimates that the number of IT and telecom professionals will grow at four times the rate of other sectors. According to the Open University, this demonstrates that the educational opportunities are there if candidates can be directed to the correct courses.
19118918
submission
jhernik writes:
TalkTalk had a bad quarter, with a shrinking customer base and job cuts on the cards
Internet service provider TalkTalk lost 25,000 customers to rival broadband providers during its third fiscal quarter, due to problems migrating former Tiscali customers onto its billing system.
In the final three months of 2010, TalkTalk’s total broadband customer base shrunk from 4.3 million to 4.2 million. While broadband revenue rose 7.5 percent, total group turnover also slipped down from £446 million to £444 million.
The company admitted that the loss of customers reflected “continuing churn in the former Tiscali base, as the network and systems migration processes continued to create disruption for some customers”. However, it claims that the losses were offset by higher spending by remaining customers.
TalkTalk absorbs Tiscali
The Carphone Warehouse, former parent company of TalkTalk, acquired Tiscali UK in May 2009 for £236 million. In January 2010 it ditched the Tiscali brand name and began integrating the two companies. TalkTalk broke away from Carphone Warehouse and became a publicly listed company in March 2010.
The merger with TalkTalk raised concerns that many of Tiscali’s customers would face larger bills, after Tiscali’s broadband-only users were warned that they would see a price rise of £5 per month if they did not take the TalkTalk phone line rental service, and many disgruntled Tiscali customers were lured away by rival ISPs.
19093108
submission
jhernik writes:
As WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange faces possible extradition, his supporters attacked an FBI informer online
The extradition hearings for WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Julian Assange began yesterday, 7 February, and from early morning a crowd of protesters staked out the court, dressed in Guantánamo Bay yellow.
The decision to wear the coloured uniforms of the US prisoners held on the Cuban mainland was made because WikiLeaks supporters believe that the extradition will lead to a further move for Assange to face trial in the US.
A Minor Case To Answer
Assange is accused of sexual misconduct by two Swedish women he met during a visit to Stockholm last year. Although the accusations cite rape as a general heading , the alleged offence could be classed more as a misdemeanour, relating to the practice of gaining consent for unprotected sex. He has not yet been charged by the Swedish authorities because the prosecutors have yet to assemble their case against him.
This was a point made by Assange’s legal representative Geoffrey Robertson QC. He said that the charge of “minor rape” was not acknowledged by European courts and that the fact that it would be heard in secret violated European laws governing court hearings.
19077168
submission
jhernik writes:
LG will introduce the world’s first smartphone with a glasses-free 3D display at Mobile World Congress
LG has announced it will introduce what it calls the first smartphone with a glasses-free 3D display at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona next week.
The move follows on from LG’s announcement of the Optimus 2X, the first dual-core smartphone, and the Optimus Black, which includes a super-bright LCD screen. Both devices run Google’s Linux-based Android operating system.
Dual-lens camera
The Optimus 3D will include a dual-lens camera for 3D recording, a LCD panel capable of displaying 3D images that can be viewed without special eyewear, and connectivity options including HDMI and DLNA for sharing 3D content, according to LG.
Rumours published on the website Mobile Smug said the smartphone will use a dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex A9 processor and an eight-megapixel camera with autofocus, stereoscopic support and geo-tagging.
The device will run Android 2.3 “Gingerbread”, according to the same report. LG also distributed a video of the 3D device.
The device will debut on the networks 3 and Vodafone in the UK, according to rumours.
LG is also planning to display a 3D-capable, Android-based tablet at Mobile World Congress, according to widely circulated rumours.
19026050
submission
jhernik writes:
Will iPads and smartphones inform or distract in Britain’s upper chamber of government?
Peers of the realm will be allowed to use iPads, tablets and smartphones in the House of Lords, despite fears that those who can access real information during debates might have an unfair advantage.
Smartphones, tablets and other iPhones are to be allowed in the Lords chamber and grand committees, according to a paper published by the The Lords Administration and Works committee. Meanwhile, the House of Commons will decide later this month whether it would be seemly for MPs to brandish tablets instead of order papers.
iPads, not laptops, because they are quiet
“You won’t believe how much debate there was about whether it would be seemly to be engaged in debate where members can get information from the outside world,” said Joan Miller, director of ICT at the Houses of Parliament. “It might be unfair because they could pose questions that were more clever than the questions they usually ask.”
19025364
submission
jhernik writes:
Nokia should demote Symbian and dump Meego, in favour of Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7, says an investment analyst
An investment banker has called on Nokia CEO Stephen Elop to adopt Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7, at the Finnish giant’s investor day next week, on the eve of Mobile World Congress (MWC)
The letter from London-based Berenberg Bank analyst Adnaan Ahmad, also reportedly urged Nokia to abandon its Linux-based operating system MeeGo, which it is developing in conjunction with Intel.
A copy of the tongue-in-cheel letter, dated 2 February, was obtained by the Financial Times and can be viewed here.
Time For Change
Ahmad suggests that if the two companies teamed up, they could mount a stronger challenge to the likes of Android and Apple. Ahmad also warned about the dangers facing “slow moving incumbents”.
18999296
submission
jhernik writes:
The whistle blowing website Wikileaks has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize by a Norwegian MP
A Norwegian politician has nominated the whistle blowing website WikiLeaks for a Nobel Peace Prize.
Just days before founder Julian Assange is to face an extradition hearing in London over allegations of sexual assault in Sweden, the website stands to potentially win a prize of $1.6 million (£988,000).
However WikiLeaks has to compete with around 200 other submissions, which can be made by previous winners, members of parliament (globally) as well as some academics.
It is understood that submissions for the Nobel prize closed on 1 February and the Nobel Peace Prize committee is ready to begin its deliberation before actually awarding the prize in October.
