Laptops drive global computer sales

Worldwide computer shipments rose by 17.1 per cent in the last three months of 2005, totalling 61.1m, according to research firm IDC. ...more

Microsoft adopts alternative DVD standard

Microsoft has decided which of the two re-writable DVD standards Windows will support, opting for DVD+RW rather than DVD-RW. Next week's Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) will include a presentation explaining how, 'support for DVD+RW in Windows has been designed to become the standard storage solution for the PC and Consumer Electronics environments.' By integrating DVD+RW into Windows, Microsoft will be able to offer the same degree of DVD support that users can currently get from the Mac - DVD recording for playback in consumer DVD players and DVD data burning from the desktop. ...more

The world signs up to 100m broadband lines

Broadband connections have topped 100 million this year, according to analysts Point Topic, beating even the phenomenal growths trends shown by the mobile industry in the 1990s. The number of connections has risen from 10 million to 100 million in little more than three years, with China rapidly becoming a major contender. All the G7 countries now feature in the top ten for the numbers of lines, but Point Topic says China is already leapfrogging these and will overtake Korea, Japan and even the USA in time. ...more

Australian legislators call for Internet censorship

Australian legislators have called for all Internet content to be filtered by ISPs before it is relayed to their customers. Sixty-two members of the ruling coalition have signed a letter calling for a restriction on pornographic, violent and other 'inappropriate' material. Internet users would have to opt in, by applying to their ISP, to receive the blocked content. ...more

Missing M&S laptop poses ID theft risk to staff

Following the theft of a laptop containing salary details, addresses, dates of birth, and National Insurance and phone numbers of staff, Marks and Spencers has written to 26,000 employees telling them they may be at risk of identity fraud. The news comes just days after we reported a laptop stolen from a hospital in Cornwall. The retailer warned workers they were at risk if criminals accessed and used the data on the laptop, which was stolen from a printing firm on 18 April. ...more