UK understates the knowledge economy

The UK government is holding back the development of the knowledge economy in Britain because its economic measurements are still based on old assumptions according to a new report by the IT trade association Intellect. The report, entitled Navigating the New Economy says that the Government should take a fresh look at and, where necessary, update the measurements that form the basis of policy development if Britain is to prosper in the 21st century. According to Intellect, the UK must learn to measure the value of intangibles such as creativity, services and innovation rather than the number of widgets produced as a measure of the success of the economy. ...more

Nokia 'pleased' with N-Gage launch

Nokia has stated that it is pleased with demand for its N-Gage mobile phone/handheld console hybrid, which launched at the beginning of October to a string of hostile reviews and reportedly dismal sales. Though the Finnish company says it has shifted 400,000 N-Gages to retailers, analysts suggest that consumer sales are a fraction of the units shipped to retailers. The price of the phone was temporarily cut by a third only two weeks after launch in two major retailers in the US, while here in the UK the mobile device has been changing hands for as little as 1 pence per unit (subject to additional line rental fees, naturally). ...more

Time restarts again

TIME branded computers are set to reappear, with Time UK Factory Ltd due to begin trading next month. Previously, Time Computers not only sold TIME systems by mail order - often through full page advertisements in the national press - but also later through a chain of high street shops. However, while its machines offered high specs and low prices, it often performed badly in customer satisfaction surveys, which in part led to its eventual demise. ...more

Microsoft Exchange 12 goes beta

Microsoft has released the first beta of Exchange 12, the next-generation of its messaging and collaboration server. Beta 1 is a closed release in that a pre-selected group of testers - picked from Microsoft partners - will have access to the code. Features of the system include a rewritten graphical management console, built-in anti-spam protection, improved Outlook Web Access, a unified messaging system and a scriptable, command-line shell based on the powerful Monad technology (which supports Unix-like piping of commands only incorporating data objects). ...more

HP to 'push Linux onto the desktop'

Hewlett Packard has extended its deal with Novell to support SuSe Linux across its range of desktop PCs and notebooks, according to a report by Reuters. The deal is said to mean that HP will be offering support and testing for companies wishing to deploy Linux on end-user machines. HP already had a relationship with SuSe to provide Linux for its servers. ...more