UPI Hi-Tech articles from May 2006

UPI Hi-Tech archives from May 2006

The Web: Mobsters extinguish firewalls.
May 3, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 3 (UPI) -- Firewall? Forgetaboutit. Cyber-criminals, including the mafia, are now so savvy they can penetrate past these supposedly sturdy security measures and hack your computer network, whether you...

Web site allows fans to relive history.
May 3, 2006... Byline: BURGESS EVERETT WASHINGTON, May 3 (UPI) -- It is the bottom of the ninth inning, the ballgame is tied, the bases are loaded, and Randy Johnson is on the mound. Johnson readies his next pitch, and Babe Ruth steps up to the plate and...

Apple sways potential users with Boot Camp.
May 3, 2006... Byline: CHRIS BARYLICK WASHINGTON, May 3 (UPI) -- Offer a choice and they will come. This appears to be the situation with Apple Computer's Intel-based computer line, released this year as part of the company's conversion to Intel...

Iraqi libraries get digital makeover.
May 3, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 3 (UPI) -- The first phase of an initiative to modernize Iraqi libraries into the digital world is complete thanks to a team from the American Association for the Advancement of Science at the U.S....

Longer battery life for wireless devices?
May 4, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, May 4 (UPI) -- Those worries about what happens when you need to make that urgent phone call on a dying cell phone, or having your laptop go blank mid-document could soon be lessened. Researchers at the...

Rep. Markey introduces Net Neutrality Act.
May 4, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 4 (UPI) -- In response to his net neutrality amendment dumped from the House telecom reform bill last week, Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., introduced the Network Neutrality Act of 2006. The act hopes...

U.S. Internet cos' policy rancor in Qatar.
May 4, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO DOHA, Qatar, May 4 (UPI) -- U.S. Internet giants have double standards when it comes to complying with government regulations, according to some analysts in both the United States and the Middle East. At a...

Globe Talk: Calling up African deals.
May 5, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 5 (UPI) -- There is renewed enthusiasm for the mobile-phone industry in developing countries following the announcement earlier this week that Africa's biggest mobile company will buy out a Dubai-based...

Wireless World: What women want.
May 5, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 5 (UPI) -- Every year U.S. women spend $5 billion on magazines, movies and other lifestyle "content." Now, marketing experts tell UPI's Wireless World, the mobile-phone industry is eyeing the women's...

W. Va. leads nation, A in school tech.
May 5, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 5 (UPI) -- West Virginia leads the nation with an "A" in school technology, according to a recent study from Education Week. But as a whole, the nation received a "C-." The report "Technology...

Networking: The network is 'aware'.
May 8, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 8 (UPI) -- Integrating disparate data and voice networks -- broadband, mobile phone and WiFi -- into one unified network is promising to be a foremost technology trend in the next few years, one that...

N.Z. minister downplays broadband changes.
May 8, 2006... AUCKLAND, New Zealand, May 8 (UPI) -- New Zealand's communications minister says he is confident Telecom New Zealand can compete under new broadband access rules. The government recently ordered Telecom to open up its national...

Singapore's outsourcing aspirations.
May 8, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, May 8 (UPI) -- When First Data Corp., the U.S.-based global back-office service provider of electronic commerce and payment systems, decided to establish a regional hub for its South and Southeast...

VCU to lead U.S. in Microsoft's Imagine Cup.
May 8, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 8 (UPI) -- Four Virginia Commonwealth University students were chosen Friday to represent the United States in the Software Design Invitational of Image Cup 2006. Microsoft's Imagine Cup...

Interview: LG Electronics.
May 8, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, May 8 (UPI) -- United Press International recently caught up with JM Lee, president of LG Electronics USA Inc.'s Consumer Electronics Brand Division, to get some insight into what makes the $45...

NTL's pending job cuts strike fear.
May 8, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 8 (UPI) -- NTL has been on a buying spree in recent months, but the time seemingly has come for the company to get its house in order and start getting leaner and meaner. The British digital...

MySpace, Google among '06 Webby winners.
May 9, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 9 (UPI) -- The winners of the 10th Annual Webby Awards were announced Tuesday; among them were Myspace.com, The Onion, Google, and the BBC. The Webby Awards from the International Academy of...

'Cyberblackmail' on the rise.
May 9, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, May 9 (UPI) -- As illegal moneymaking schemes go, it's certainly not a new one: Crooks steal something of value from their victims and then demand ransom for its safe return. The 21st-century twist in the tale...

RAZR competes with flowers on Mother's Day.
May 9, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 9 (UPI) -- Tired of taking mom out to the same neighborhood restaurant for brunch each Mother's Day? Or maybe she's getting bored of getting a bunch of lank carnations or a bottle of perfume from a...

TiVo brings ad search to subcribers.
May 10, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 9 (UPI) -- DVR vendor/service provider TiVo launched Monday "TiVo Product Watch," offering subscribers searchable advertising and content. Some 70 advertisers and 100 leading brands are...

Nano World: $30 billion in nano goods.
May 10, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 10 (UPI) -- Emerging nanotechnology made its way into more than $30 billion in manufactured goods in 2005, more than double the year before, experts tell UPI's Nano World. "The overall story that...

'Virtual mirror' tech used to sell makeup.
May 10, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BNEI BRAK, Israel, May 10 (UPI) -- Now that an Israeli company has developed "virtual mirror" technology for trying makeup on using a digital picture, ladies, it's going to be a lot harder to keep yourselves from...

The Web: Reaching an inflection point.
May 10, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 10 (UPI) -- Is the Web becoming "disruptive" once again? That is, is it vigorously stirring things up as it did when it first came on the commercial scene back in the mid-90s? Experts tell UPI's The Web...

U.S., British hackers face the music.
May 10, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 10 (UPI) -- Only two days after U.S. federal authorities sentenced a 21-year-old to five years in prison for hacking computers, the British government ruled that one of its citizens should be extradited...

DoCoMo's promise of a beyond-3G phone.
May 11, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 11 (UPI) -- For some, having a MP3 player, camera, video player, organizer and Internet access on a single mobile phone simply isn't good enough. The picture quality must be better, as must the sound....

Indian tech teachers prefer hot jobs.
May 11, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, May 11 (UPI) -- The deans of hundreds of technology institutes in India are spending much of their time trying to fight the flight of their teachers from classrooms for lucrative hot jobs in Indian IT...

Congress may clamp down on MySpace.
May 11, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 11 (UPI) -- New legislation from Congress would block access to social-networking sites like MySpace and Facebook in schools and libraries, including instant-messaging services. The bill known as...

Broadband Report: Gametap expands.
May 11, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, May 11 (UPI) -- The online video-game service GameTap is expanding its service offerings by launching broadband video content. UPI recently caught up with Stuart Snyder, senior vice president and...

Nano World: Nanofibers for heart cells.
May 12, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 12 (UPI) -- The heart function of rats following heart attacks can be improved using heart cells wrapped in organic fibers only nanometers or billionths of a meter long that are impregnated with growth...

Wireless World: Love, Mom.
May 12, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 12 (UPI) -- This Mother's Day, show mom you really care. Send her a text message -- with love. Experts tell UPI's Wireless World that increasingly, moms are using text messaging and mobile phones to...

Company offers a new kind of outsourcing.
May 12, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, May 12 (UPI) -- Outsourcing call centers and software programming has become standard practice for businesses worldwide. Less common is companies outsourcing their R&D. One Israeli company,...

O2 eyes wireless, fixed-line convergence.
May 12, 2006... LONDON, May 12 (UPI) -- British wireless operator O2 has indicated it is considering branching out into the U.K. fixed-line telephony sector. Chief Executive Officer Peter Erskine told reporters on a conference call Thursday that European...

Globe Talk: The not-so-neutral Internet.
May 12, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 12 (UPI) -- Pornography and gambling may be flourishing online, but despite making it easier for such evils to rake in big bucks, few would argue that the Internet is a great tool. In fact, it may be...

Diamonds offer new online security.
May 15, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, May 15 (UPI) -- Researchers at the University of Melbourne, Australia, have found a glamorous solution to the problem of communications systems being hacked by eavesdroppers -- diamonds. The School of Physics...

Networking: Picking the next Dickens.
May 15, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 15 (UPI) -- Charles Dickens serialized his novels -- "Oliver Twist, David Copperfield," amongst others -- in weekly newspapers and monthly magazines before they were published as books. Today, would-be...

Rural Net access a new market in India.
May 15, 2006... Byline: AMBIKA BEHAL NEW DELHI, May 15 (UPI) -- Taking India to the next level is going to be a major part of the discourse during the World BPO Forum to be held here in September, and rural wireless initiatives are set to steal the show....

Broadband seen feeling O2 heat soon.
May 15, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 15 (UPI) -- When it comes to phone services, European markets are often ahead of the curve, particularly when it comes to making the most out of mobile phones. Paying for parking or getting a drink from...

Bill tackles so-called new piracy frontier.
May 15, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 15 (UPI) -- A new House bill seeks to further protect the music industry from piracy by limiting the ability to record digital radio broadcasts, singling out satellite radio industry competitors XM...

Nano World: Blood-compatible nanomaterial.
May 16, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 16 (UPI) -- Artificial kidneys and other medical devices could soon employ carbon nanotubes and other structures only nanometers or billionths of a meter wide made highly blood compatible via...

Flash memory gets boost from x4 technology.
May 16, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, May 16 (UPI) -- Memory cards, USB ports and iPods are about to get smaller and cheaper to produce, according to a company that has just unveiled 4 bit per cell NAND flash technology. NAND flash is...

Bono rallies telecoms in anti-AIDS wave.
May 16, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 16 (UPI) -- Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have taken up the plight of children in Africa as their cause, while George Clooney has banded with his father to boost the profile of the conflict in Darfur to...

The Web: Math reshapes online marketing.
May 17, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 17 (UPI) -- A significant shift is under way in online marketing -- one that is finally enabling major brand advertisers to more accurately measure the value of their Internet traffic, and even cleverly...

India, the e-wasteland.
May 17, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, May 17 (UPI) -- "It's cute, it has Intel inside, and it is cheap; at less than $150 a piece with a color monitor." Advertisements like this inserted by the friendly neighborhood personal-computer...

Video headsets join gadget market.
May 17, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, May 17 (UPI) -- Video sunglasses could soon be joining camera phones and BlackBerrys as the latest must-have portable gadgets. An Israeli technology company has developed a personal video display device that...

Mac's Boot Camp spawns security worries.
May 17, 2006... Byline: CHRIS BARYLICK WASHINGTON, May 17 (UPI) -- Growing up, we looked forward to the idea of increased responsibility. Once these responsibilities had been bestowed upon us, we wondered what the hurry to grow up had been about. ...

RIAA sues XM over recording device.
May 17, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, May 17 (UPI) -- XM Satellite Radio is prepared to fight a lawsuit from the Recording Industry Association of America regarding the recording of satellite radio onto electronic devices. The suit,...

Lawmakers brace for telecom reform.
May 17, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 17 (UPI) -- As U.S. legislators continue to debate whether the current system of providing Internet access should be changed, all agree that the development of the World Wide Web has revolutionized...

Legislation on privacy laws a sticky issue.
May 17, 2006... Byline: STEPHANIE SONNTAG WASHINGTON, May 17 (UPI) -- Though the federal government's current use of spying techniques has irked many Americans, statistics from polls show many citizens are willing to give up some privacy for increased...

Mine-safety bill sent for Senate vote.
May 18, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 18 (UPI) -- New legislation sent to the Senate floor would require all mines to have state-of-the-art two-way wireless communications and tracking systems in place within the next three years. The...

'Da Vinci Code' protesters organize online.
May 18, 2006... Byline: STEPHANIE SONNTAG AND LISA CHUN WASHINGTON, May 18 (UPI) -- As the box-office release of the summer blockbuster movie "The Da Vinci Code" nears, many protesters and boycotters are discussing their objection to the film through...

Vodafone stays in Japan with Softbank.
May 18, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 18 (UPI) -- Having washed its hands of one of the world's most competitive telecommunications markets, Britain's Vodafone is prepared to take the plunge into Japan once again, but this time with a...

Broadband Report: Urge opens.
May 18, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, May 18 (UPI) -- This week Microsoft released its brand new beta of Windows Media 11, the beta will come bundled with the beta test of Microsoft's brand new URGE venture, which is Microsoft's long...

Globe Talk: Money power vs. the NSA.
May 19, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 19 (UPI) -- Outraged that some telecom companies are selling out their customers to the government? Then vote with your wallet, or so argues one activist group. But the seemingly good idea may be rather...

Nano World: Fast flow through nanotubes.
May 19, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 19 (UPI) -- Surprisingly, gas and water flow far more rapidly through membranes that use carbon nanotubes as pores than through conventional membranes with pores 10 times or so wider, experts tell...

Wireless World: Never lost at sea.
May 19, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 19 (UPI) -- Your wireless Internet connection -- dear workaholic -- will never be lost at sea. Whether you are sailing the Caribbean, the Mediterranean or the open ocean, your wireless broadband will...

Computer IDs problematic on networks.
May 19, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, May 19 (UPI) -- IT managers can only identify between 55 percent and 65 percent of the computers connected to a network, according to a recent Gartner study. The unknown 35 percent to 45 percent of...

'Wireless home' becomes a reality.
May 22, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, May 22 (UPI) -- The wireless home, where multiple gadgets share an online connection, is moving from sci-fi speculation to reality for millions of WiFi users. According to reports from StrategyAnalytics, 20...

Networking: Small firms struggling.
May 22, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 22 (UPI) -- Small and medium-size enterprises are lagging on IT security, and many still utilize first-generation security solutions that are now ineffective against significant threats that may sabotage...

Microsoft pushes for PCs in poorer nations.
May 22, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 22 (UPI) -- They're becoming more powerful and cheaper each year, but for many in poorer countries, personal computers remain an unaffordable luxury. Yet making it easier for middle-income earners...

Google leads in search, trails elsewhere.
May 23, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, May 23 (UPI) -- While recently released numbers show Google continuing to dominate the search-engine market, statistics from industry researchers Hitwise suggest other Google products and services have...

Nano World: Nano-loaded wireless sensors.
May 23, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 23 (UPI) -- Devices the size of a dime armed with reprogrammable sensors, laden with nanoparticles and wirelessly networked with each other could help sniff the air for bombs and toxins on...

Latest weapons in spam battle are images.
May 23, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, May 23 (UPI) -- Like all wars, the campaign against junk e-mail -- spam -- is marked along the way with victories and casualties. It's an "ever-escalating battle," the senior director of...

AT&T's NSA legal woes continue to grow.
May 23, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 23 (UPI) -- AT&T has flatly denied the allegations, but the telecommunications giant continues to be mired by reports that it and other major carriers have gone out of their way to cooperate with the...

The Web: IPTV in 10 percent of homes soon?
May 24, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 24 (UPI) -- Major venture-capital investors -- like Daniel Rosen, who spoke at last week's "Future in Review" conference -- are now saying that Internet TV will be in 10 percent of homes in the next five...

Microsoft partners with NEC in patent deal.
May 24, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 24 (UPI) -- Microsoft solidified its position as the world's biggest software manufacturer Wednesday as it announced a tie-up with Japanese computer giant NEC. Through the agreement, the two...

Managing Indian e-waste.
May 25, 2006... Byline: AMBIKA BEHAL NEW DELHI, May 25 (UPI) -- A combination of greater affordability and a constant turnover in new computer technology is contributing to an e-waste problem never before encountered in India, leading to some serious...

India clicks on online travel bookings.
May 25, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, May 25 (UPI) -- For many in India these days, the journey to the next vacation or that quick business trip does not start with frantic phone calls to a travel agent or waiting in the queues of...

Vonage IPO points to VoIP weaknesses.
May 25, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 25 (UPI) -- So much for thinking telecoms might be going back to the heydays of 1999. After much fanfare, Internet telephone provider Vonage launched its initial public offering Wednesday, only to...

Nano World: Invisibility through nano.
May 25, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 25 (UPI) -- Invisibility cloaks that bend light might develop using nanotechnology, experts tell UPI's Nano World. "There are probably quite a number of useful things you could do with stealth for...

Broadband Report: MS surveys consumers.
May 25, 2006... Byline: MICHELLE ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON, May 24 (UPI) -- Microsoft's Windows Live is conducting an educational Tech Buzzwords 101 program to teach consumers about today's latest jargon, and, to show that while these buzzwords may sound...

PC game industry continues to grow, expand.
May 25, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, May 25 (UPI) -- The video-game market for personal computers continues to grow into a key market in the computer industry. Users in the United States spent $1.4 billion on video games for PCs in...

NSA datamining pushes tech envelope.
May 25, 2006... Byline: CHRIS BARYLICK WASHINGTON, May 25 (UPI) -- Amid the political firestorm surrounding the National Security Agency's use of wiretapping for domestic phone calls, inquiries as to technology as well as legality have become prevalent....

Text messaging partners mobile and TV.
May 26, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 25 (UPI) -- With more than 64.5 million text messages throughout Fox's fifth season of "American Idol," LogicaCMG gave United Press International a behind-the-scenes look at how text messaging is...

Globe Talk: Intel's WiMax push.
May 26, 2006... Byline: SHIHOKO GOTO WASHINGTON, May 26 (UPI) -- From being able to go online at the local Starbucks to surfing the World Wide Web from an airport, there's no denying that once you get connected wirelessly, there's no going back. But...

Convenience stores get more convenient.
May 26, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, May 25 (UPI) -- A deal between an Israeli business software company and a convenience store chain is set to save time and ease the pressure of ordering a sandwich. "Instead of waiting in line to...

Wireless World: A marketing malfunction?
May 26, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 26 (UPI) -- The music industry's latest lawsuit -- this time against XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. over its new player -- is generating a lot of poor publicity. Still, experts tell UPI's Wireless...

Booming business for call centers.
May 26, 2006... Byline: AMBIKA BEHAL NEW DELHI, May 26 (UPI) -- With a booming call-center business in India, technology companies are focusing on complying with U.S. rules for offshore dialing and are finding themselves expanding into other countries --...

China, India winning the piracy war.
May 26, 2006... Byline: INDRAJIT BASU CALCUTTA, India, May 26 (UPI) -- Although software piracy refuses to go down globally and even continues to thrive in the rest of Asia, efforts by China and India to fight their computer users' desire for using stolen...

Home broadband users up 40 percent.
May 30, 2006... Byline: STOKELY BAKSH WASHINGTON, May 30 (UPI) -- More Americans are adopting broadband in their homes, according to a report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, finding that the adoption rate grew by 40 percent from March 2005...

Israeli firms market to cellular niches.
May 30, 2006... Byline: LEAH KRAUSS BINYAMINA, Israel, May 30 (UPI) -- In a country with more cell phones than people, it's not enough to try to sell regular handsets and content. Since most of the Israeli population is covered by the three large...

Networking: Old hardware, new applications.
May 30, 2006... Byline: GENE KOPROWSKI CHICAGO, May 30 (UPI) -- The market for virtual servers -- software that lets computer users employ more than one operating system, whether it is Windows or Linux, on a single server -- is surging. Experts tell UPI's...

Nano World: Superior nanowire transistors.
May 30, 2006... Byline: CHARLES Q. CHOI NEW YORK, May 30 (UPI) -- Transistors made with semiconductor wires just nanometers or billionths of a meter wide can exceed the performance of current state-of-the-art silicon transistors by three or four times,...

Text chat becoming useful customer service.
May 30, 2006... Byline: ELLIOT SMILOWITZ WASHINGTON, May 30 (UPI) -- Though it's long been thought that customer service by means of online text chat is too expensive and inefficient to deploy, it's starting to become a useful business tool, according to...

'Vigilante' virus wipes out porn.
May 30, 2006... Byline: GEORGINA VOSS LONDON, May 30 (UPI) -- They've told you they loved you. They've offered you verses from the Koran in place of racier pictures. Now a new breed of computer viruses are going one step further into the love (and lust)...