Hackers claim to have cracked new "secure" Xbox

Two competing teams of hackers claim to have cracked the new 'secure' Version 2 of the Xbox in under a week. The teams claim that their modifications opens the door to allow the Xbox to perform a number of tricks that Microsoft and graphics chip designer Nvidia would prefer it didn't. Team Xecuter say that their device, which they expect to be selling shortly at around $45 will enable modifiers to run alternate operating systems like Linux and play 'homebrew' code as well as imports and code from all regions. ...more

French MEP proposes 'email tax'

A French politician has come up with a new idea to help solve the European Union's budget problem. MEP Alain Lamassoure has suggested that the EU put a tax on emails and mobile phone text messages. The centre-right MEP says that all 25 EU national parliaments and governments should make computer users pay a tax of €0. ...more

Polaroid launches independent camera

The company famed for bringing us instant photography has thrown its hat into the digital photography ring. At Comdex 2000, in Las Vegas, the company demonstrated a prototype of a digital camera that can be operated independently of a PC. The secret to the new device is a built-in modem so that you can upload images to the Internet without the need of connecting it to a computer. ...more

Vodafone launches GPRS

Vodafone launched its GPRS service on Friday with a similar pricing structure to BT Cellnet. The network operator has only one handset available, the Motorola Timeport T260, at a price of ?99. This beats BT's ?199 for the same phone, but the monthly charging structure is pretty similar. ...more

Apple Corps to appeal ruling

Apple Corps has announced that it will appeal yesterday's ruling that Apple Computer's use of the apple logo in connection with its iTunes Music Store does not violate a 1991 trademark agreement between the two companies. 'With great respect to the trial judge, we consider he has reached the wrong conclusion,' Neil Aspinall, Apple Corps' manager, said in a statement. 'We felt that during the course of the trial we clearly demonstrated just how extensively Apple Computer had broken the agreement. ...more