A new way to program the Web

Yet another programming language? Well the publicity devoted to Curl - the new hybrid of HTML and Java for generating Web content - is explained by one of its backers being none other than Tim Berners-Lee. The man who effectively created the World Wide Web is one of financial backers of the project and $52 million has already been raised as capital by Curl (the company). The language itself emerged from the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) on a government funded research project, and 12 of the original founders are MIT-connected. ...more

Microsoft withdraws from Novell slur

The company will cease sending anti-NetWare 6 letters to Novell customers, and retracts previous statements. Earlier this month Novell filed a suit against Microsoft, claiming false advertising, after Microsoft was discovered to have mailed Novell customers last month with thousands of leaflets. These claimed that Novell did not plan to fully support NetWare, that the nearly-obsolete product would be expensive to maintain, and that the software had an expiration date. ...more

Nokia to buy push-email specialist Intellisync

Nokia is to buy push-email specialist Intellisync for $430mn. The acquisition will provide the phone giant with its own technology for automatically delivering email to handhelds. It will no longer have to rely on BlackBerry Connect technology licensed from push-email pioneer RIM, although it will continue to offer this as an option on its devices. ...more

Apple responds to Safari furore

Apple has explained to MacUser why the most recent update to Safari is available only for Mac OS X 10.3. Forums both on Mac-oriented websites and Apple's own discussion boards have been busy with the complaints from users of pre-Panther versions of OS X who feel they are being forced to upgrade to Panther by Apple's update policy. ...more

mobile phone virus gets more mobile

A mobile phone virus has been found in the wild in the US and South Africa, eight months after it was released in The Philippines. Cabir has now spread to 13 countries including the UK but only reached the US today, when it was discovered in a gadgets shop in California. A passing techie recognised a telltale image on the infected phone's screen. ...more