UPI Hi-Tech articles from June 2006

UPI Hi-Tech archives from June 2006

Nano World: Nanotube toxicity exams differ.
June 1, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 1 (UPI) -- How toxic carbon nanotubes are on cells apparently depends on what lab tests are used to examine them, experts told UPI's Nano World. Carbon nanotubes are pipes mere nanometers or...

Broadband Report: Bravo goes alternative.
June 1, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, June 1 (UPI) -- In the last two weeks the folks at Bravo have made some interesting moves with the launch of two brand new broadband sites, BrilliantButCancelled.com, which features one-hit wonder TV...

NTT DoCoMo expands i-mode to Hong Kong.
June 1, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 1 (UPI) -- A decade ago NTT DoCoMo was the mobile arm of Japan's single-biggest phone carrier, which dominated the domestic market that it more or less focused on exclusively. These days, the company...

Globe Talk: Enron's broadband debacle.
June 2, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 2 (UPI) -- Enron was nothing if not flamboyant and eager to pursue the latest business trends. While its focus was on energy trading, it had expanded into telecommunications among other industries as...

YouTube rises above video competitors.
June 2, 2006... Byline: CHRIS BARYLICK WASHINGTON, June 2 (UPI) -- It's the goal of every Internet startup: become the next cool thing. And despite the planning, the focus groups and the cool perks for customers, it either happens or it doesn't. In...

3G TV goes interactive.
June 2, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, June 2 (UPI) -- First there were Web cams. Then there were camera phones and 3G television streaming. Now there's BLOGTV, a kind of cable access for the 21st century. "User-generated content is a...

Sinophobia grips India's telecom.
June 2, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, June 2 (UPI) -- Worried by the potential security threats that could rise from allowing Chinese telecom companies' to become deeply involved with the country's telecom sector, the Indian government is...

Wireless World: PDAs reduce medical errors.
June 2, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 2 (UPI) -- Medical errors are declining dramatically at hospitals and healthcare centers that are using sophisticated wireless technology to let physicians communicate with nurses and other medical...

Networking: Y2K hangover finally ending?
June 5, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 5 (UPI) -- Remember the Y2K panic back in 1999? That was the largely unfounded and shamelessly hyped by rapaciously greedy computer companies fear that all computers would cease functioning on Jan. 1,...

Eye-catching mobile security on its way.
June 5, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- The mobile phone may soon be equipped with a higher level of security thanks to Leeds, United Kingdom-based technical solutions company xVista and its iris-scanning technology. The...

EU revises position on software patents.
June 5, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, June 5 (UPI) -- Is software patentable in Europe? Following questioning from a member of the European parliament, the European Commission recently released a statement containing strong implications that...

HTC's Dopod deal seen as positive for IPO.
June 5, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- There may be a surge in multi-tasking personal digital assistant phones across Asia, or so there would be if High Tech Computer's plans pan out. The Taiwanese group designs and...

Apple launches U2 iPod.
June 6, 2006... CUPERTINO, Calif., June 6 (UPI) -- Apple Tuesday launched a special-edition iPod featuring Irish band U2. The latest MP3 player has custom engraving signatures of all four band members, and buyers will also receive 30 minutes of exclusive...

Opposition likely to NTT breakup proposal.
June 6, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 6 (UPI) -- Even as U.S. telecom behemoth AT&T presses to reunite with former Baby Bells and solidify its position as the country's single-biggest carrier, Japan is considering breaking up its dominant...

Software industry's 'patch culture' attack.
June 6, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, June 6 (UPI) -- An attack from the security chief of software giant Oracle on the so-called culture of patching and bug-ridden products in the software industry has drawn fire from industry observers, citing...

Nano World: Water harvesting surfaces.
June 6, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 6 (UPI) -- Beetles that harvest water from desert air have inspired the creation of printable surfaces that improve on nature with the aid of glass nanoparticles. These surfaces could also help...

GPS phones to streamline, add content.
June 6, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, June 6 (UPI) -- By 2007, cellular customers in the United States and Europe will be able to use their phones to get to the nearest restaurant, find out if it's open and see the daily specials,...

Robotic technology lowers military risks.
June 6, 2006... Byline: LISA CHUN WASHINGTON, June 6 (UPI) -- With suicide bombing and improvised explosive devices escalating violence in Iraq, engineers are working to advance robotic technology to counter these deadly military problems. At a...

The Web: Social networking searches.
June 7, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 7 (UPI) -- Media mogul Martha Stewart is launching an online social network for women -- joining other entrepreneurs who are starting similar projects and are collectively propelling social networks...

TiVo launches broadband vid service.
June 7, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 7 (UPI) -- Broadband video content and IPTV may have just gotten their largest push into the living rooms of mainstream America, now that TiVo will deliver broadband content to subscribers. The...

BellSouth among IT social-service winners.
June 7, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 7 (UPI) -- Profit is what ultimately drives companies to develop new products, but sometimes innovations can lead to goods that can better society at large. Earlier this week Computerworld honored just...

Using technology against technology.
June 7, 2006... Byline: ELIZABETH NEWELL AND STEPHANIE SONNTAG WASHINGTON, June 7 (UPI) -- Media-industry experts stress the value of using technology to allow parents to control their children's media intake. At a New America Foundation seminar...

RIAA objecting to free vid sites.
June 8, 2006... Byline: CHRIS BARYLICK WASHINGTON, June 8 (UPI) -- In the realm of copyright conflicts, only the skirmishes change; the core issues remain the same. Several years after its heightened battle against music-file swapping over...

Web giants debate dot-com agreement on Hill.
June 8, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 8 (UPI) -- Arguments over the details of an agreement on the price of domain names reached Congress Wednesday, with Internet powerhouses squaring off. The agreement, between the International...

Chipmakers shrug off economic worries.
June 8, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 8 (UPI) -- Oil prices continue to go up, and there is growing concern about inflation putting a damper on economic growth across the globe. Yet while it may be easy enough to be wary of global growth...

Pakistan leaps ahead with WiMax.
June 8, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, June 8 (UPI) -- Pakistan has leapt ahead of the United States and Europe in launching WiMax, a super-fast wireless technology targeted at both cell-phone and WiFi users. Motorola announced it would be...

Broadband Report: Web video on your TiVo?
June 8, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, June 8 (UPI) -- TiVo announced Wednesday that customers will be able to view Web video on their TiVo-based DVR devices. The new service dubbed "TiVoCast" will work with the company's new Series 2...

Wireless World: Mobile maps.
June 9, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 9 (UPI) -- You're on vacation, and, after a brief walk about town, you realize you can't find your way back to the hotel. Relax. You're not going to be lost for long. Sources tell United Press...

Globe Talk: Don't brush off satellite radio.
June 9, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 9 (UPI) -- How does one decide on whether a risk is worth taking? There's obviously no set formula to that question that is asked by any shrewd investor or entrepreneur. At first blush, the risk...

Nano World: Advanced circuits.
June 9, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 9 (UPI) -- An international team of university and industry scientists has discovered a way to improve nanoparticles used to make advanced circuits. These findings could help improve the reliable...

Public Net channel under consideration.
June 9, 2006... Byline: ALECIA DARM WASHINGTON, June 9 (UPI) -- Government officials along with the non-profit One Economy Corporation are launching a 24-month campaign for the first Public Internet Channel to aid the nation's economic disparities. ...

Unilever sheds HR dept., not all its jobs.
June 9, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, June 9 (UPI) -- The outsourcing world is agog with rumors that Unilever, the Anglo-Dutch consumer products multinational, may shed a major portion of its global human-resources department as a result...

Networking: Investors eye power-line trend.
June 12, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 12 (UPI) -- Institutional and individual investors are eagerly examining prospects in the so-called broadband over power line (BPL) market and are helping finance proof-of-concept projects in the field,...

'Cool girls' valuable online ad targets.
June 12, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 12 (UPI) -- In the social hierarchy of high school, the cool girl reigns supreme, with those around her trying to be like her. This common imagery is not only true but is valuable information...

Qualcomm's dispute with Nokia heats up.
June 12, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 12 (UPI) -- The legal team at Qualcomm is gearing up for a battle on multiple fronts. On one hand, the San Diego-based mobile communications group has filed yet another lawsuit Monday against...

Adobe Production Suite is rock solid.
June 12, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, June 12 (UPI) -- Adobe seeks to reclaim the title of best of breed PC Video application with the release of their new Adobe Production Studio Premium -- an almost dream suite of applications, but at...

Robots duke it out in Germany for RoboCup.
June 12, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 12 (UPI) -- In 2050, soccer and robot fans may soon be rooting for their favorite teams in a Cup game of human world soccer champion teams vs. a team of fully autonomous humanoid robots -- that's at...

Value user over technology, new book says.
June 13, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 13 (UPI) -- Brilliant technological innovation is good, but only as good as the market. New technologies fail financially when they fail to take into account how users will react to them. ...

Nano World: Finger-sensitive sensor films.
June 13, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 13 (UPI) -- Devices comparable in sensitivity to human fingers, enabled by a novel film embedded with nanoparticles, could offer the first step toward giving robotics hands the delicacy of the human...

Microsoft's Vista, patch challenges.
June 13, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 13 (UPI) -- Hopes have been high for Microsoft's upcoming version of its blockbusting Windows system, but so far, Vista seems to be providing more headaches than praise from industry analysts and users...

The Web: 'Reality TV' online for World Cup.
June 14, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 14 (UPI) -- From online "reality TV" to sporting blogs to fantasy soccer games, the Internet is emerging as the new way that FIFA World Cup 2006 fans are keeping in touch with the doings on -- and off...

eBay takes outward step with AdContext.
June 14, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- This week eBay threw a new twist in the contextual advertising industry, with their unveiling recently of AdContext service, which will place contextually appropriate ads for eBay...

Drumroll for eBay's Skype debut.
June 14, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- Having paid a small fortune for Skype, eBay is finally prepared to make use of its purchase. The online auction house will debut its Internet calling service provided by Skype from...

Net-neutrality debate reaching tempest.
June 14, 2006... Byline: MEGHAN A. O'CONNELL WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- Internet users could soon feel the aftershock of a decision the Federal Communications Commission made last August. The FCC placed phone companies in a class with cable services,...

Webbys signal changes in Internet.
June 15, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 13 (UPI) -- You know you're at the Webby Awards, when winners and nominees armed with their digital camera, camera phone, Palm Pilot camera, and other electronic recording device are crowded around...

Nano World: Metal foams for catalysis.
June 15, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 15 (UPI) -- Metal foams made of grains and pores only nanometers or billionths of a meter wide are lighter than Styrofoam, enough to float on water. The extraordinarily high surface areas these...

Web sites get cool with Ajax or die.
June 15, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS TEL AVIV, Israel, June 15 (UPI) -- By this time next year, Web sites not developed using the Ajax technique "will simply not be cool enough to use," an Internet analyst said Tuesday. "(Ajax is) the latest fashion in...

Broadband Report: Dixie Chicks' new home.
June 15, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, June 15 (UPI) -- Being vocal against the Iraqi War and President Bush and subsequently having country music stations throughout the heartland ban their music, the Dixie Chicks are having a little...

Vodafone executive pays raise eyebrows.
June 15, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 15 (UPI) -- It's been a tumultuous few months at the world's biggest mobile phone group, as Vodafone executives dealt with a very public dispute amongst themselves earlier this year, while the company...

NSA looking at social-networking spaces.
June 15, 2006... Byline: CHRIS BARYLICK WASHINGTON, June 15 (UPI) -- Amidst the political firestorm generated by revealed wiretapping of domestic phone calls, the National Security Agency has recently been revealed to be funding research to ramp up...

Survey finds internal security a concern.
June 15, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 15 (UPI) -- While outside attacks are still a primary concern for security officers, internal network security is becoming more of a concern, according to a study by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. ...

Globe Talk: Mobile banking as aid tool.
June 16, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 16 (UPI) -- Mobile phones are becoming commonplace enough in some of the remotest parts of the world, much to the delight of both private companies and public policymakers. For phone manufacturers and...

Shopping with a sense of humor? woot!
June 16, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS Not many shopping Web sites will call you a "poor, naive, deluded little fool" to your face. But then again, not many shopping Web sites are as irreverent as woot.com. "For someone who writes marketing copy, I hate...

Analysis: Offshoring getting more costly in India.
June 16, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, June 16 (UPI) -- Not many global IT majors have started recoiling yet, but the recent decision of Apple Computers to shut down its new Bangalore center and local news about Intel planning to lay off a...

Online networking site aimed at moms.
June 16, 2006... Byline: LISA CHUN WASHINGTON, June 16 (UPI) -- Social-networking Web sites such as MySpace, Facebook and Friendster have gained massive popularity with the under-30 crowd. Now there is a similar site aimed at a different audience: moms....

Wireless World: Next-generation tracking.
June 16, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 16 (UPI) -- The second generation of wireless package tracking technology -- radio frequency identification (RFID) gear -- is emerging rapidly, changing the way manufacturers monitor shipments. ...

Wariness of U.S. tech lag on the rise.
June 16, 2006... Byline: ALECIA DARM WASHINGTON, June 16 (UPI) -- In order to successfully compete with other nations in the 21st century, the United States must integrate the advancements of technology in to all public institutions, according to experts....

Networking: Syndicated online content.
June 19, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 19 (UPI) -- The cost of online content continues to climb, but Internet retailers are not paying the full price for producing it, sources are telling United Press International's Networking column. ...

More questions than answers over the Net.
June 19, 2006... Byline: JOCELYN HANAMIRIAN WASHINGTON, June 19 (UPI) -- As Congress debates whether to adhere to network neutrality, the consensus within the technology realm is as elusive as a definition of the issue itself. Policymakers continue to...

Nokia, Siemens telecom deal shakes market.
June 19, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 19 (UPI) -- The global telecom industry is heating up further as Finnish mobile giant Nokia and Germany's electronics group Siemens announced over the weekend that they will merge their communications...

Tech File: Pinnacle Systems.(Interview)
June 19, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, June 19 (UPI) -- Jeff Hastings, general manager for Pinnacle Systems, spoke with Tech File about his company and the current digital-video-editing industry. As a 20-year provider of...

NTT cash card falls victim to hacking.
June 20, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 20 (UPI) -- From taking to prepaid cards from their early years to encouraging people to use mobile phones to purchase everything from train tickets to coffee, Japan has been quick to embrace the...

Nano World: Self-powered hydrogen sensors.
June 20, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 20 (UPI) -- Nanotechnological, inexpensive sensors that can detect invisible, odorless hydrogen leaks and sound the alarm wirelessly could help safeguard future vehicles and refueling stations based...

Nokia furthers commitment to India.
June 20, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, June 20 (UPI) -- While the merger of telecom network businesses by the Finnish mobile giant Nokia and the German electronics group Siemens announced over the weekend may still be the talk of the...

System wages war against movie piracy.
June 20, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 20 (UPI) -- Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have come up with a prototype device that could be the answer to movie piracy. The team, which is part of the interactive and...

Price question looms for Apple iTunes films.
June 20, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 20 (UPI) -- As Apple negotiates with movie executives about the possibility of offering full-length films on iTunes, one looming question will be finding a suitable pricing model, experts agreed....

Cyber-protests grow over soccer sex slaves.
June 21, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 21 (UPI) -- The international campaign against sex-slave trafficking in Germany at the World Cup is gaining momentum online, where one group has generated a petition with 20,000 signatures of protesters...

Lycos announces online TV deal.
June 21, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 21 (UPI) -- In an effort to diversify its portfolio further, Internet group Lycos signed a deal with online television platform PermissionTV to deliver a variety of video content to Lycos users....

Israel to decide on VoIP soon.
June 21, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS PETAH TIKVAH, Israel, June 21 (UPI) -- Israel, which is the world leader in Skype users per resident, hopes soon to finally set regulations for VoIP and voice over broadband, according to the Ministry of Communication....

SK Telecom's China bet with Unicom.
June 21, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 21 (UPI) -- China is where the action is at for South Korea's biggest mobile group. SK Telecom said Wednesday it will buy a stake in China Unicom, which is the country's second-largest cell-phone...

Qualcomm urged to cut royalty in India.
June 21, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, June 21 (UPI) -- Qualcomm, which dominates as the global patent holder of the code division multiple access digital wireless technology, is under pressure in India to cut the royalty it charges from...

MySpace adds safety checks for young users.
June 21, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, June 21 (UPI) -- Social-networking Web site MySpace has increased restrictions designed to prevent predation on younger users of the site, but already there is cynicism about their effectiveness. ...

Social music lovers become 'Moggers'.
June 21, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 21 (UPI) -- The launch of a site intertwining music blogging into a social network could be an opportunity for MOG to segue into a deal with major players in the music industry including music labels...

Supercomputers may be key to stay ahead.
June 22, 2006... Byline: LAUREN MCDERMOTT WASHINGTON, June 22 (UPI) -- The technology used in aerospace engineering and weather forecasting is being used these days to produce better laundry-detergent bottles and animated movies too, thanks to...

Broadband Report: TiVo on PlayStation?
June 22, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, June 22 (UPI) -- TiVo and Sony Computer Entertainment are teaming up to let subscribers watch TV shows on their PlayStation Portables. Users can transfer content from a TiVo digital video recorder to...

AT&T claims ownership of customer data.
June 22, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 22 (UPI) -- AT&T has been charged with violating the privacy of its customers by handing over data to the National Security Agency, a charge that it has hitherto denied. Now, though, the U.S....

IT keeping U.S. military ahead of game.
June 23, 2006... Byline: LISA CHUN WASHINGTON, June 23 (UPI) -- As contractors Lockheed Martin and Boeing compete for deals with the U.S. military to create a joint tactical radio system, while IBM and Sun Microsystems work together for thin clients,...

Globe Talk: Web not answer to all just yet.
June 23, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, June 23 (UPI) -- Make no mistake. There's no turning back on the Internet. But while shopping, dating or watching videos online is fast becoming the norm, some people are realizing that there's a limit...

Nano World: Black silicon for solar power.
June 23, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 23 (UPI) -- Silicon surfaces rendered black by pits and bumps only nanometers or billionths of a meter large could in the future help make solar power cells more efficient. Flat silicon surfaces...

Israel getting show on the road.
June 23, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS NETANYA, Israel, June 23 (UPI) -- Mobile broadband is making watching television anytime, anywhere, much more of a reality, and one Israeli company is committed to that vision of TV all the time. "Our motto is...

Wireless World: Lifestyle now for boaters.
June 23, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, June 23 (UPI) -- Captain Roger Sardina navigates the Sea Ray Run, a 40-foot-long Sundancer motor boat made by Brunswick, through the "Danger Spot A" of Burham Harbor on Lake Michigan, using the wireless...

Google, Adobe in distribution deal.
June 24, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 24 (UPI) -- Google's move to sign a multi-year distribution deal with Adobe to include the Internet group's toolbar in the installation process of Adobe products for Windows is raising eyebrows in the...

Nano World: Stabilizing explosive elements.
June 26, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, June 26 (UPI) -- Capsules only nanometers or billionths of a meter wide that stabilize extremely dangerous compounds normally prone to igniting or exploding can safely generate more than enough hydrogen...

Microsoft's Office 2007 vision.
June 26, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, June 26 (UPI) -- Microsoft Office applications are getting a multimedia tech facelift, which will incorporate voice, instant messaging and multi-faceted conferencing in its new 2007 Office system products....