National Trust builds Mass Observation blog

As if blogging isn't already popular enough, heritage organisations including the National Trust and English Heritage are corralling anyone able to type to record a diary of their activities today, and upload it to the History Matters blog. The bodies have even commandeered celebs to motivate people to submit even the most mundane details in an attempt to create the 'the biggest blog ever'. Celebrity bloggers include everyone from professional writers such as Sebastian Faulks and Bill Bryson, to Bob Geldof. ...more

3 concentrates on voice customers

3G operator 3 has announced special offers on voice calls to tempt customers on to its multimedia network. 'Open your eyes to 3' reads the slogan, but its your ears that 3 is hoping are the fastest way to a mobile user's wallet. Instead of the eye-candy of video calls and multimedia data services, 3 is concentrating on the traditional use for a phone with VideoTalk 500 and VideoTalk 750. ...more

Companies face data theft from old computers

According to a new survey, less than half of UK companies bother to take precautions when disposing of old computers containing sensitive data. The study of 329 large UK companies, employing 2,000 staff or more, found that most companies sold old computers onto second dealers or to staff instead of using professional disposal companies. The survey, carried out by encryption company Pointsec, found that only 17 per cent of respondents destroyed data stored on hard disks on-site. ...more

Iceland backs lower sales tax on music

The Icelandic government has announced that it will cut the tax on recorded music from 24.5 to seven per cent from March 2007. Iceland currently has the second highest rate of sales tax on recorded music in the world, lower than only Hungary and Norway, who both levy rates of 25 per cent. ...more

Microsoft spotlights HD DVD at tech show

Microsoft has been banging the HD DVD drum at its Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) 2006 in Seattle. With the likes of Sony, Samsung, Philips and Apple lined up behind Blu-ray as the next-generation of optical disc technology to replace DVDs, Microsoft - along with NEC and Intel is backing the Toshiba-driven rival format. At the conference, Microsoft trumpeted the various PC manufacturers, independent hardware vendors (IHVs) and independent software vendors (ISVs) that are lining up under the HD DVD banner with their products. ...more