Symbian launches 2.5G platform

Symbian has unveiled version 6.1 of its operating system - the Symbian 2.5G platform - for GPRS-enabled Smartphones and Communicators. ...more

Taiwan chipset vendors wax as Intel wanes

Taiwan chipset makers - Silicon Integrated Systems (SiS), VIA Technologies and ULi Electronics - reported slight sequential growth in their July revenues and the vendors expect revenues to continue increasing through the end of the year, as Intel reduces its presence in the entry-level chipset market, according to market sources. SiS, a chief supplier of entry-level chipsets for the Intel platform, may enjoy revenue growth of more than 30 per cent in the third quarter, whereas VIA and ULi may see growth of more than 20 per cent, the sources expect. In the first half of this year, SiS posted pre-tax profits of NT$434 million and NT$0. ...more

Friends of Firefox scheme aims to encourage new users

The Mozilla Foundation is offering to allow its users to become immortalised on the wall of its headquarters in California. Starting last Saturday, dubbed World Firefox Day, in honour of the third birthday of the Mozilla Foundation, the organisation is giving people the chance to become a 'friend of Firefox'. If someone convinces another person to download Firefox, they become a 'friend of Firefox'. ...more

Abit dual AMD 64-bit Opteron SU-2S shows prowess as UT2K4 game server

Abit has now unveiled its latest server board for the gaming community, its SU-2S dual-AMD-Opteron server, which, according to the director of marketing at Abit, Scott Thirlwell, has now been running Unreal Tournament 2004 (UT2K4) game server for six weeks straight, with no problems. The server is using the AMD Opteron 246 series CPU and is running under Red Hat Linux Advanced Server edition, said Thirlwell. Currently, the company is working with a local Taiwan ISP that has two servers online, and Thirlwell expects a US server to be set up within the next few weeks. ...more

Privateering proves counterfoil to pirates

Internet file sharing reduces the demand for counterfeit CDs and DVDs, according to a US academic, who believes that suing p2p users is counterproductive and can actually reduce record label and movie studio profits. Tunay Tunca, assistant professor of operations, information and technology at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, together with student Qiong Wu found that increased file sharing has reduced demand for commercially pirated products sold on the black market. They believe that a combination of sharing and 'strategic pricing' could suppress counterfeiting and increase profits. ...more