Seagate builds 160GB notebook disk

Hard drive builder Seagate has announced the industry's first 2.5in perpendicular hard disk drive. The technology is being pursued by many in the industry as it packs in a far greater capacity on a disk's platter than current technology. ...more

Google lands contract to build wireless San Francisco

Search engine Google along with partner ISP EarthLink has landed the contract to provide a wireless network to cover the whole of the City of San Francisco. The 'Goolink WiFi' network will provide a 300Kbps free service, which will be subsidised by advertising. Alternatively, the network will offer a 1Mbps ad-free subscription service costing $20 a month. ...more

Major investor reveals why it wants its $20mn SCO investment back

BayStar has revealed why it asked SCO to redeem its $20mn investment in the Unix company. Although a letter to SCO a week ago alleged the company had breached terms under which the investment was made, a BayStar spokesperson told Cnet that the company wanted to turf out senior management and cull its Unix product line. The spokesperson said that BayStar wants SCO to concentrate solely on the litigation it is pursuing over its claimed Unix intellectual property against the likes of IBM, Novell and Linux-using companies and that it does so in a business-like manner. ...more

VIA powers raft of tiny UMPCs

A range of new Ultra Mobile PCs (UMPC) based on VIA's ultra-efficient processor has been unveiled at Computex. The 2GHz VIA C7-M processor consumes only 20W under full load, making it ideal for the portable PCs. A number of devices were on display, from manufacturers such as Samsung, OQO and Gigabyte, and all the models would fit in a trouser or jacket pocket. ...more

1-12-2001 Essential news of the week

Brought neatly together and presented on a plate, here is a roundup of some of the week's main news stories from the world of IT. Government campaigns for an online Christmas Labtec's audio lovelies Music subs service geared for a festive roll out JBuilder 6 is brewed Lawyers reject Microsoft deal Keystroke-tapping worm runs riot Creative marches on the lounge Intel reinvents the transistor Don't forget, we welcome your comments. Just fill out the 'Comments' fields on the right-hand side of the screen. ...more