Spring IDF 2006: Intel reveals reign of Tera

Intel today announced its ambitious Tera-Scale Computing Research Program, as part of its build-up to the spring 2006 Intel Developer Forum (IDF). According to Justin Rattner, Intel chief technology officer, this research could one day lead to software with human-like characteristics and cars that drive themselves. 'It doesn't take a lot of arithmetic to realise that the ongoing progress of Moore's Law will lead to a time when cores are counted in the tens and possibly the hundreds per die,' said Rattner. ...more

A third way for the NET?

A new PPP for the Internet? Net chief calls for public-private partnership for managing the Internet. Stuart Lynn - president of ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) - has proposed reform of the three-year-old body that replaced previous US government control of the Internet. He speaks of ICANN's mission as being 'incredibly ambitious' - the hope was to have a private body that would be nimble enough to react to the fast changing world of the Net. ...more

RAR vulnerability reported for antivirus software

A 'critical' vulnerability has been discovered in Symantec's antivirus software, according to independent security researcher Alex Wheeler. The problem, he believes, could mean that the anti-virus software could actually let in the very malware that it is designed to identify and block. Security firm Secunia has labelled the vulnerability as 'highly critical'. ...more

Mobile Phone penetration to exceed 100 per cent in Europe

The mobile phone market in Western Europe is already beyond saturation in some countries according to a new survey by market research company Analysys. Italy, Sweden and the UK have already seen their market penetration exceed 100 per cent in 2004 and the rest of the continent is likely to follow suit by 2007. However, rather than indicating that more than all of us have a mobile phone, the apparent statistical anomaly is due to many people buying multiple phones or SIM cards. ...more

HP gets all molecular

One for the futurists. HP is boasting the award of a molecular-level patent. And it's nothing to do with gene sequences or the Genome project. ...more