Saturday, December 29, 2007

Program uses Google to find website flaws

A program named "Goolag Scanner" enbales people to use Google to scan websites for security flaws, media reported Monday.

Infamous computer hacker group Cult of the Dead Cow (CDC) said the software tool based on work done by a hacker using the name "Johnny I Hack Stuff" is available for free download at its website.

The tool lets people with fundamental programming skills check websites or Internet domains for weaknesses that could be exploited by hackers, according to CDC.

The group said it uncovered "some pretty scary holes" through random tests of the tool in North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

CDC advised website operators to use the tool to find and patch vulnerabilities before hackers use it for crime or mischief.

"If I were a government, a large corporation, or anyone with a large web site, I'd be downloading this beast and aiming it at my site yesterday," CDC spokesman Oxblood Ruffin said.

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Judge OKs class action lawsuit vs. Microsoft

A federal judge in Seattle said on Friday consumers may continue a class action lawsuit against Microsoft Corp. because of how it advertised computers loaded with Windows XP as capable of running the Vista operating system.

The lawsuit claimed Microsoft's labeling of some PCs as "Windows Vista Capable" was misleading because many of those computers were not powerful enough to run all of Vista's features, including the "Aero" user interface.

U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman certified the class action suit but scaled down its scope to focus primarily on whether Microsoft's "Vista Capable" labels created artificial demand for computers during the 2006 holiday shopping season, and inflated prices for computers that couldn't be upgraded to the full-featured version of Vista, which was released at the end of January 2007.

Neither of the two people who filed the original lawsuit participated in a program Microsoft devised to help people who bought new computers before Vista's launch upgrade later to the new operating system, but they argued nonetheless that people who bought "Vista Capable" computers were harmed because they could only run a basic version of Vista.

The judge said if they added a named plaintiff who did take part in Microsoft's "Express Upgrade" program, they could pursue that claim as well.

Microsoft said it was reviewing the ruling.

Friday, December 21, 2007

Microsoft to stop making HD DVD players

Microsoft said it will stop making HD DVD players for its Xbox 360 video game system and said the move won't have a material impact on its video game business, media reported Monday.

Toshiba Corp. ceded the high-definition video format battle to Sony Corp.'s Blu-ray. Toshiba President Atsutoshi Nishida last week estimated about 300,000 people own the Microsoft video player, sold as a separate 130 U.S. dollars add-on for the Xbox 360.

Microsoft said it would continue to provide standard warranty support for its HD DVD players and is looking at how the HD DVD technology it has developed, such as HDi, which adds interactive features to HD DVDs, and its VC-1 video encoding technology, can be applied to other platforms.

"HD DVD is one of the several ways we offer a high definition experience to consumers and we will continue to give consumers the choice to enjoy digital distribution of high definition movies and TV shows directly to their living room, along with playback of the DVD movies they already own," Blair Westlake, a corporate vice president of Microsoft's media and entertainment group, said in a written statement.

Microsoft was one of HD DVD's main backers, along with Intel Corp. and Japanese electronics maker NEC Corp., and its support for the format was seen as a big win for Toshiba's format.

But support for the HD DVD waned as major movie studios — Sony Pictures, Walt Disney Co., News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox and Warner Bros. Entertainment — picked blue-ray to distribute high-def DVDs.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Battery of Samsung laptop P10 model melts

A battery in a Samsung notebook computer P10 model melted in South Korea's capital Seoul, but no people were injured or killed, media repored Monday

"After being used for about three and a half hours on a pillow on Sunday, the laptop battery emitted smoke," a fire department official in Seoul said. "The battery burned a bed and a floor a bit, but did not cause a big fire."

A Samsung's spokesman James Chung said the notebook was the P10 model, which was produced in 2002 but did not give further details such as a producer of the battery.

"We are checking details of the incident," said James Chung.

Last month, a battery pack in a LG Electronics Inc's notebook computer exploded while in the sleeping mode.

Friday, December 7, 2007

China's major websites pledge to boycott 4 categories of Internet unpleasantness

China's eight leading online media officially sanctioned to publish news signed the "Chinese Pact on the Self-discipline on Visual-Audio Programs and Services of the Internet" Friday, urging all domestic websites to spread positive, healthy programs and boycott corrupt, outdated ones.

It urges all the signers to abide by the country's laws, regulations and policies on the development and management of the Internet culture and boycott programs, including films, teleplays and cartoons that advocate elements in the catch-all categories of violence, pornography, gambling and terror.

It also calls for respecting and protecting the legal rights and interests of the copyright holders and service providers of visual-audio programs. An information-sharing and mutual assistance mechanism should be set up for visual-audio programs online, it says.

The pact is open to all domestic service providers of on-line visual-audio programs as all of them can apply for its entry, if they accept the conditions set by the pact.

The eight signers are the official websites of Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, the State Council Press Office, China Radio International, China Central Television, China Youth Daily, China Economic Daily, and the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.

In recent years, the Authorities have taken a series of measure to deal with pornographic and illegal activities on line, and many domestic websites have been closed down for involvement in illegal publications or services.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Microsoft to offer community-created games on Xbox 360

Microsoft Corp. announced Wednesday that it will offer games developed by hobbyist game developers on the Xbox Live online network.

Seven games, created using XNA Game Studio 2.0, will be available immediately for Xbox 360 users to download from the Xbox Live marketplace. New community-created games will soon be playable by Microsoft's 10 million Xbox Live members.

The games, expected to exceed 1,000 by the end of 2008, would double the size of the Xbox 360's game library.

To distribute a game on the Xbox Live service, game creators must use Microsoft's XNA Game Studio software, which requires a 99 U.S. dollar per-year subscription, or be an XNA Creators Club member. Each game will be vetted for quality and appropriateness by the online community itself.

In addition, Microsoft announced that game developers also will be able to build games for the software maker's Zune digital media players.

The announcement heralds a new push by Microsoft to bring the community closer to the development process. Neither Nintendo nor Sony has announced a similar program for their respective next generation consoles.

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Toshiba officially quits HD DVDs, concedes defeat

Japan's Toshiba Corp. on Tuesday officially announced it will give up on its HD DVD format, conceding defeat to rival Sony in a long-running DVD format war.

"This was a very difficult decision to make ... but when we thought about the trouble we would cause to consumers and our partners, we decided it was not right for us to keep going with such a small presence," Toshiba Chief Executive Atsutoshi Nishida told a news conference in Tokyo.

The electronics maker said it would stop selling its HD DVD machines by the end of March. But it will continue to provide after-sales support for people who have already bought its next-generation DVD players and recorders.

The decision ends the battle with a consortium led by Sony over who would set the standard for the next generation of discs, a fight that confused shoppers and stalled a move to the new technology in the 24 billion U.S. dollar home DVD market.

Analysts say the end of the format war will reduce consumer confusion and should encourage the Hollywood studios to bring out more movies on Blu-ray.

Blu-ray and HD DVD both offer cinematic-quality images and multimedia features, but the movie studios were eager to see the emergence of just one standard, while many consumers had been reluctant to buy a machine that might become nearly useless.

The death knell for HD DVD was the last month's decision by Warner Bros. Entertainment to drop the format and release only Blu-ray discs and DVDs.

"That had tremendous impact," Nishida said. "If we had continued, that would have created problems for consumers, and we simply had no chance to win."

Warner joined Sony Pictures, Walt Disney Co. and News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox in shunning the HD DVD, leaving Universal and Paramount Studios in the HD DVD camp. Universal on Tuesday said it would "focus" on releasing Blu-ray discs, but did not say if it would cease putting out HD DVDs.

Toshiba has sold 700,000 HD DVD players globally, while 300,000 more HD DVD drives have been sold for Microsoft's next-generation Xbox 360 video game console. Many more have been put into laptop computers.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Microsoft to offer community-created games on Xbox 360

Microsoft Corp. announced Wednesday that it will offer games developed by hobbyist game developers on the Xbox Live online network.

Seven games, created using XNA Game Studio 2.0, will be available immediately for Xbox 360 users to download from the Xbox Live marketplace. New community-created games will soon be playable by Microsoft's 10 million Xbox Live members.

The games, expected to exceed 1,000 by the end of 2008, would double the size of the Xbox 360's game library.

To distribute a game on the Xbox Live service, game creators must use Microsoft's XNA Game Studio software, which requires a 99 U.S. dollar per-year subscription, or be an XNA Creators Club member. Each game will be vetted for quality and appropriateness by the online community itself.

In addition, Microsoft announced that game developers also will be able to build games for the software maker's Zune digital media players.

The announcement heralds a new push by Microsoft to bring the community closer to the development process. Neither Nintendo nor Sony has announced a similar program for their respective next generation consoles.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Battery of Samsung laptop P10 model melts

A battery in a Samsung notebook computer P10 model melted in South Korea's capital Seoul, but no people were injured or killed, media repored Monday

"After being used for about three and a half hours on a pillow on Sunday, the laptop battery emitted smoke," a fire department official in Seoul said. "The battery burned a bed and a floor a bit, but did not cause a big fire."

A Samsung's spokesman James Chung said the notebook was the P10 model, which was produced in 2002 but did not give further details such as a producer of the battery.

"We are checking details of the incident," said James Chung.

Last month, a battery pack in a LG Electronics Inc's notebook computer exploded while in the sleeping mode.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Program uses Google to find website flaws

A program named "Goolag Scanner" enbales people to use Google to scan websites for security flaws, media reported Monday.

Infamous computer hacker group Cult of the Dead Cow (CDC) said the software tool based on work done by a hacker using the name "Johnny I Hack Stuff" is available for free download at its website.

The tool lets people with fundamental programming skills check websites or Internet domains for weaknesses that could be exploited by hackers, according to CDC.

The group said it uncovered "some pretty scary holes" through random tests of the tool in North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

CDC advised website operators to use the tool to find and patch vulnerabilities before hackers use it for crime or mischief.

"If I were a government, a large corporation, or anyone with a large web site, I'd be downloading this beast and aiming it at my site yesterday," CDC spokesman Oxblood Ruffin said.


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Thursday, September 27, 2007

YouTube banned in Turkey second time

One of the world's most popular video websites YouTube has been banned in Turkey for the second time because it allegedly insulted Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, according to media reports Monday.

On Friday, internet users in Turkey found the website replaced by a notice saying: "Access to this web site has been suspended in accordance with decision no: 2008/55 of T.R. Ankara 12th Criminal Court of Peace."

It still remains unclear which video exactly is to blame, but some media sources say that a problem video compared Ataturk with a monkey.

It is illegal in Turkey to insult the revered figure, whose portrait still hangs in nearly all government offices nearly 70 years after his death.

It is not clear how long the current ban would last. The state-run Anatolia said YouTube officials issued a statement saying the company hoped access would be re-established quickly.

In March 2007, YouTube was banned for the same reason for two days until offending videos were removed from the website.

Turkey is not the first country to block YouTube however. In 2007, the Thai government blocked access to the popular site for 4 months because of clips the government deemed "offensive" towards the Thai monarch King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

Friday, September 21, 2007

Microsoft discloses virtualization move

Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, Monday disclosed its plans to allow more versions of the desktop OS to be virtualized in order to become a major player in a hot field called virtualization.

Microsoft has purchased a start-up called Calista Technologies, which was founded in 2006 and is based in San Jose, California, for an undisclosed sum. It also expanded its partnership with Citrix Systems, according to media reports.

"This is Microsoft coming out and staking the claim that they are serious about virtualization," said Forrester Research analyst Natalie Lambert. "When you think of VMware, you think virtualization. That is going to be a hurdle for Microsoft."

Virtualization is one of the most important developments in the software industry, because it disrupts the traditional business model, which marries one machine to one piece of software, such as an operating system.

The technology allows companies to save on hardware costs by running existing equipment more efficiently, while allowing companies to deploy applications faster without worrying that certain pieces of software will clash with one another.

Microsoft is also relaxing some of its licensing policies to allow use of virtualization software with more versions of its Windows Vista operating system and lowering some fees associated with using the technology.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Yahoo looks to launch free MP3 download service

Yahoo Inc., is continuing discussions with major record labels over offering unprotected MP3s either for sale or for free as part of an ad-supported service, and hopes to launch the service this year, two record company executives familiar with the talks said Wednesday.

The talks, held as recently as last month, were preliminary because Yahoo is still working out the details, said the executives, who requested anonymity because of the discussions were confidential.

Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group Corp., and EMI Group PLC have in recent months begun licensing their music for sale as MP3 files online through retailers like Amazon.com.

Unlike music files that come with copy protections embedded, MP3 files are compatible with most portable music devices, including Apple Inc.'s market-leading iPod media players, Microsoft Corp.'s Zune and mobile phones that play music.

Carrie Davis, a spokeswoman for Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Yahoo, said the company has often said it wants to offer music without copy protections and the subject has been part of its ongoing talks with record labels.

But Davis denied that discussions with record labels on the matter have stepped up in recent weeks or that anything is imminent.

Representatives for the labels declined to comment.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

All YouTube videos available on cellphones

Google-owned YouTube on Thursday began making all of its videos available on the latest-generation cellphones, hoping to widen its sway on pop culture.

YouTube began making videos available to "smart phones" in 2006, but only a small portion of its huge trove of user-contributed material could be viewed on the devices.

YouTube for Mobile lets people view any of the popular website's videos, provided their cellphones can stream the data and are linked to a 3G network that incorporates high-speed internet access.

"Creating the best possible mobile video experience for users involves allowing the community to engage with YouTube whenever they want, wherever they are," YouTube said in a written release.

"The latest enhancements to YouTube for Mobile will give users access to the largest repository of mobile video content available, on over 100 million devices worldwide, and more tools to personalize their experience."

YouTube's mobile service, reachable at http://m.youtube.com, is being offered in 16 other countries and regions besides the United States and 10 other languages besides English.

The other languages are: Japanese, Italian, French, Spanish, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Chinese, German and Russian.

Sunday, September 9, 2007

Google opposes Microsoft's bid to buy Yahoo

Internet search giant Google Inc. Sunday voiced opposition to Microsoft's bid to buy Yahoo Inc.

"Microsoft's hostile bid for Yahoo raises troubling questions," David Drummond, Google's chief legal officer, said in remarks posted online.

Microsoft has offered 44.6 billion U.S. dollars to buy Yahoo Inc. in a bid to gain ground on Google in the Internet's booming search and advertising markets.

If the acquisition materializes, Microsoft and Yahoo would have about 16 percent of the worldwide Internet search market - still far behind Google's 62 percent share, according to comScore Media Metrix.

"This is about more than simply a financial transaction, one company taking over another. It's about preserving the underlying principles of the Internet: openness and innovation."

This was Google's first official reaction to Microsoft's acquisition bid. Google views the possible acquisition as Microsoft's attempt to gain illegal control over the Internet.

"Could Microsoft now attempt to exert the same sort of inappropriate and illegal influence over the Internet that it did with the PC?" Drummond wrote.

He was referring to Microsoft's previous practice of using Windows to help extend the reach of its web browser and other applications - a strategy that triggered a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit alleging that the software maker illegally used its operating system to stifle competition. The dispute ended with a 2002 settlement that required Microsoft to abandon some of its past practices.

Drummond's remarks underscored the online search leader's worries about its two biggest rivals teaming up.

Brad Smith, Microsoft's general counsel, tried to justify the proposed acquisition, saying that preventing Microsoft from buying Yahoo would undermine competition by allowing Google to become even more dominant than it already is on the Internet.

"Microsoft is committed to openness, innovation, and the protection of privacy on the Internet," Smith said. "We believe that the combination of Microsoft and Yahoo will advance these goals," he said.