Network World

Proctor & Gamble outsources security to IBM, but keeping security staff

Proctor & Gamble has selected IBM ISS to provide managed security services worldwide under a 5-year contract in which IBM ISS will manage internal- and perimeter-based... 1

Updated management appliance corrals Apple iPhone

If you've been wondering how to manage the Apple iPhone 3G smartphones mushrooming on your network, wonder no more. Kace has updated its systems management appliance with...

Critics question Comcast broadband caps

Comcast's decision to put a 250-gigabyte cap on monthly bandwidth use for its residential customers may look like a generous number, but some critics suggested the cap may...

Privacy feature in IE8 leaks private data

A privacy feature built into the second beta version of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 browser isn't as private as advertised. 1

Wireless LANs face huge scaling challenges

Wireless LANs are facing big scaling challenges as the number of clients and the multimedia content they consume surges, according to network professionals. Universities are...

Banks mining cash from their computer gear

In another sign of a tight economy, even those that have the money are getting creative with their IT resources in order to find a little financial wiggle room.

Industry mourns slain Cisco exec

A Cisco exec who was shot to death in Detroit last week is being mourned this week as a gentle family man, a "gifted techie" and a voice of reason. 6

IBM flash memory breaks 1 million IOPS barrier

An IBM flash-storage research project is delivering speeds 2.5 times faster than the world's fastest disk storage. 6

Microsoft virtualization tools reinforce user's data center plans

Hosting provider RackForce Networks expects that Microsoft's just released Hyper-V virtualization technology will give it a chance to take a major step in its business... 1

Novell revenue up, net income loss at $15 million

Novell Thursday posted a net income loss of $15 million for its fiscal third quarter fueled by a charge related to its “auction-rate securities.”

Watch Out! Firing IT Workers Can Cost You

When IT employees are dismissed, watch out! A new survey by Cyber-Ark Software, a provider of identity management products, reports that theft of sensitive information by...

Microsoft buys European comparison shopping site for $486M

Microsoft has agreed to buy comparison shopping business Ciao in a deal worth around $486 million, and plans to integrate the service into its Live Search sites, it announced...

Steve Jobs' death greatly exaggerated; obit a mistake

Take heart, Apple fans, it's not true.

Sprint brings more partners aboard for WiMAX rollout

Sprint Nextel has signed on several companies to help deliver location-based services for its impending WiMAX rollout next month that the carrier hopes will differentiate it...

Samsung stained by ink cartridge suit

Electronics giant Samsung has been slapped with a lawsuit alleging that it "rigs" its printers to tell users falsely that they need to replace their ink cartridge even if...

Unified communications takes center field at ballpark

The New York Mets will have new networking and unified communications systems in their new home, Citi Field, when they start playing baseball there next spring. 1

Microsoft invests in Move Networks

Microsoft made an undisclosed investment in Move Networks, a company that supplies streaming video technology, in an attempt to boost its online video presence.

Moves show telepresence's stellar progress

It's no great surprise that Tandberg is the subject of acquisition attempts. Any company that has made inroads in to the market for telepresence should be looked at by stock...

YouTube to carry Olympic videos in some countries

The International Olympic Committee is launching its own video channel for the games in cooperation with YouTube, to territories in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, the IOC...

AT&T launches voice for U-Verse

AT&T is testing out its new U-Verse voice services by making them available to all current U-Verse customers in the San Antonio area. 1

Unified comms boost for customer satisfaction

Early users of unified communications systems have found that improved customer satisfaction scores higher than cost savings when it comes to assessing the benefits. That's...

Enterasys users should welcome Siemens deal -- for now, analysts say

Enterasys Networks customers should be encouraged that the joint venture between Enterasys owner Gores Group and Siemens strengthens the vendor's product portfolio and... 5

What are critical issues with VoIP service?

A look at the VoIP industry's most pressing issues, including SIP interoperability, TDM-to-SIP transition services and VoIP security issues. 1

Skype won't say if it decrypts VoIP calls for law enforcement

The encryption of Skype VoIP phone calls might not be as secure as you think. 4

IBM/Lotus sharpens weapon for unified communications battle

IBM/Lotus is banking on the integration of its Sametime platform and collaboration software with tools from telephony partners to fuel its climb up the ranks of unified... 2

China's video site back online after more than a month

One of China's top three online video sites resumed service Friday, after an unexplained interruption of over a month.

Sick of travel costs, Deloitte embraces Nortel telepresence

Nortel this week said professional services firm Deloitte has selected it to provide global telepresence, video conferencing and associated multimedia services. 6

Avaya, Cisco address VoIP vulnerabilities

Avaya and Cisco have addressed a VoIPshield Laboratories report that their VoIP gear is vulnerable to a variety of attacks. The vulnerabilities also impact certain Nortel... 1

Avaya, Cisco and Nortel face VoIP vulnerabilities

VoIP customers of Avaya, Cisco and Nortel should look Wednesday for patches that correct newly found vulnerabilities that, if exploited, can result in remote code execution;... 6

Telepresence system takes aim at the low end

Tandberg is announcing what it calls an instant telepresence system and a new video phone, both of which attempt to make high-quality videoconferencing accessible to more...

Video games poised to boost corporate training

Technology first made popular in the video gaming landscape is poised to enter the enterprise by powering training and other tools that can help companies cut costs, meet the...

20 tech habits to improve your life

Technology is supposed to make life easier, but it doesn't seem that way when you're struggling to wrangle 289 new e-mail messages, dealing with a hard-drive crash, or...

Target agrees to $6M settlement of accessibility lawsuit

Target has agreed to a $6 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit filed in early 2006 by the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) and others charging that persons who... 1

Grim outlook for U.S IT spending, study says

U.S. companies are pulling back hard on IT spending as the economic downturn continues, a new study by ChangeWave Research has found.

Kenyan techies launch Skunk Awards

Kenyan techies have launched the Skunk Awards 2008 to recognize top IT companies and individuals. The awards were created through the skunkworks list serve, a forum where...

Uganda power utility readies self in new IT age

Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited is set to engage an independent consultant to advise it on the IT investments necessary to better serve Uganda.

20 ways to survive a layoff

Tips for getting back on your feet and into the IT job market from someone who's been there and back

20 ways to survive a layoff

On Feb. 20, IT manager and Network World columnist Ron Nutter was called into his boss's office and told he was being let go - that day. Once the initial shock wore off,... 13

Connecting with hiring managers

You've probably grown tired of hearing about the importance that connections play in finding a new job. It can be frustrating advice if you don't have a robust network that...

Alternative careers for tech workers that aren't in IT

If you're a tech worker, now's a good time to consider getting out of the IT profession. For good. 3

College dropout is one-man IT shop — at college lab

A college dropout is the sole system administrator for a groundbreaking college lab. 5

Fluke Networks acquires Viola VoIP management assets

Fluke Networks' acquisition will enable the vendor to broaden its VoIP analysis capabilities and provide customers with pre-assessment, active network-performance and...

Gartner says IT spending growth to slow across board in 2009

Research firm Gartner projects that worldwide IT spending growth will slow down to 6% in 2009, though the firm says this will represent fairly robust growth in a challenging... 1

Gartner: India's top outsourcers will win bigger deals

India's top outsourcing companies will likely become the next generation of "megavendors" for IT services by 2011, competing for deals worth more than $1 billion, analyst...

Fair Labor Standards Act: What IT workers need to know

The class-action lawsuit that a former Apple network engineer filed last Monday has put tech workers' relationship with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) into the...

Wider implications of the Red Hat breach

Reports of data losses and system breaches are almost becoming passe but from time to time events happen that take on a life of their own and have effects far beyond what the...

New Orleans IT departments brace for Tropical Storm Gustav

As Tropical Storm Gustav approaches the Gulf Coast this weekend and threatens to become a hurricane, the IT lessons learned from the devastating Hurricanes Katrina and Rita...

Kaminsky flaw prompts DNS server overhaul

One of the companies most at risk from the notorious DNS cache poisoning vulnerability has overhauled security in the latest release of its DNS server software in what looks...

Privacy feature in IE8 leaks private data

A privacy feature built into the second beta version of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 browser isn't as private as advertised. 1

Proctor & Gamble outsources security to IBM, but keeping security staff

Proctor & Gamble has selected IBM ISS to provide managed security services worldwide under a 5-year contract in which IBM ISS will manage internal- and perimeter-based... 1

European court won't stop UK hacker's extradition to US

The European Court of Human Rights has refused U.K. hacker Gary McKinnon's appeal against demands for his extradition to the U.S. 1

New security rules on tap for credit-card handlers

The PCI Security Standards Council is set to release a revised version of its 12-part Payment Card Industry standard, which tackles systems related to storage and processing...

Security the key for IE 8 in beta version 2

Microsoft's updated browser, Internet Explorer 8, promises an assortment of new features, with the goals of making Web browsing with IE safer, easier, and more compatible...

Watch Out! Firing IT Workers Can Cost You

When IT employees are dismissed, watch out! A new survey by Cyber-Ark Software, a provider of identity management products, reports that theft of sensitive information by...

Apple promises September fix for iPhone security flaw

A recently discovered security flaw that would allow access to a locked iPhone will be fixed next month, Apple said on Thursday.

Locked iPhones can be unlocked without a password

Private information stored in Apple's iPhone and protected by a lock code can be accessed by anyone with just a few button presses. 6

Build your own free security suite

Do-it-all suites are the name of the security game these days. Sure, you can gather free programs that cover the bases much as a suite would, but who wants to bother with... 1

595 immigrants arrested at electronics plant

Special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have arrested approximately 595 people suspected of being illegal aliens in the U.S., some with alleged... 43

Mt. Sinai Medical Center looks to open standards for patient smartcards

New York City's Mt. Sinai Medical Center, which a few years ago began a project to give patients a smartcard storing identity and health records, is realigning its focus with...

12 Sly Web Tricks That Put You in Control

So it's Friday afternoon, the weekend is just around the corner, and you're up to no good. Rather than waste your time turning monitors upside down around the office, why not...

Cellular operators say they're ready for Gustav

With threats that Tropical Storm Gustav will clobber the U.S. Gulf coast, the nation's major cellular network providers say they are prepared, having learned from the...

iPhone photo scavenger hunt is afoot

You know, our high school used to have an unofficial scavenger hunt run by seniors, but it eventually got shut down after it took a turn for the...er...inappropriate. Still,...

Updated management appliance corrals Apple iPhone

If you've been wondering how to manage the Apple iPhone 3G smartphones mushrooming on your network, wonder no more. Kace has updated its systems management appliance with...

6 hacks for your mobile gear

We'd be lost if we ever left the house without our arsenal of mobile tech gear, but we're also sick of being hamstrung by gadget makers who leave out important features or...

MTN posts increased revenue, subscriber base

MTN, Africa's largest mobile phone provider, has posted its half year results, recording a 35 percent increase in revenue and a 53 percent increase in subscribe base across...

Kenya WiMax network gets $3.5M investment

AccessKenya has invested US$3.5 million to build a WiMax network targeting Kenyan homes with an initial deployment of 35 base stations in Nairobi and Mombasa.

Sprint's WiMax service to include local features

Sprint Nextel will put location-based services front and center on its Xohm WiMax service, offering a portal with widgets for local weather, traffic, events, reviews and...

Zambian regulator calls meeting with service providers

The Communications Authority of Zambia has called for a meeting with mobile service providers and consumer groups to address difficulties in completing international calls. 1

Sprint brings more partners aboard for WiMAX rollout

Sprint Nextel has signed on several companies to help deliver location-based services for its impending WiMAX rollout next month that the carrier hopes will differentiate it...

Zambians use SMS to mourn president's death

A number of SMS (Short Message Service) codes have been set up at radio and television stations in Zambia to allow thousands of people to send text messages mourning the... 5

Steve Jobs' death greatly exaggerated; obit a mistake

Take heart, Apple fans, it's not true.

Yelp for iPhone

You'd be hard pressed to find a more opinionated, verbose, and downright catty group than the citizen reviewers on Yelp.com--which is one reason this user-driven business...

Google introduces Android apps store

Google unveiled on Thursday its plans for a store where mobile users can find Android applications, a concept similar to the iPhone's App Store.

Wireless LANs face huge scaling challenges

Wireless LANs are facing big scaling challenges as the number of clients and the multimedia content they consume surges, according to network professionals. Universities are...

China Mobile says music users top 80M, touts temblor efforts

China Mobile, the world's largest mobile phone service provider, on Wednesday said it had mostly recovered from the earthquake that hit Sichuan, China earlier this year. 1

Humax looks into set-top box future

Humax showed off some of what it has in store with a demonstration of the forthcoming iCORD Hybrid set-top box at the IFA electronics show in Berlin.

Bracing for Gustav, Oracle and Google woes

This is typically one of the slowest weeks of the year for IT news, but the approach of Hurricane Gustav has Gulf Coast IT departments in full-out preparedness mode and the...

Glossy black finish dominates consumer electronics

One trend more obvious than any other at the IFA electronics show is how glossy black has taken over the consumer electronics market as the color and finish of choice.

iPod touch case roundup: Two grips and a shade

Back in May I took a look at three silicon skins for the iPod touch. This week, I have three more skin-like cases that offer snug protection for your iPod touch.

One For All launch rubber protected remotes

One For All has launched a new family of programmable remotes that are covered with circular stripes of rubber, which work both as buttons and shock protection, it announced...

Panasonic to bring Blu-ray Disc burners to Europe

Panasonic will soon begin selling Blu-ray Disc-based video recorders in Europe, it said Thursday at the IFA electronics show in Berlin.

Panasonic shows larger thin-PDP prototypes

Panasonic unveiled its largest-yet slimline PDP (plasma display panel) at the IFA electronics show in Berlin on Thursday.

Toshiba pushes tech that upscales content to HD

Toshiba promoted its two technologies, Extended Detail Enhancement (XDE) and Resolution+, for turning standard definition content into high definition, at the IFA electronics...

Sony to launch centimeter-thin LCD TV this year

Pushing new boundaries in LCD (liquid crystal display) TV size, Sony will launch later this year a set that's considerably thinner than others on the market, it said at the...

Philips promises better black levels with latest LCD TV

Philips has introduced a technology called LED LUX, which promises black levels that rival the best plasma sets, at the IFA electronics show on Thursday.

LaCie d2 DVD±RW with LightScribe

Even if you have a Mac with a dual-layer DVD burner, there are good reasons for buying a newer external burner. For example, MacBook users might be fed up with the pokey...

Philips aims compact home theater at smaller spaces

Philips launched the CinemaOne for people who want a compact home theater, at the IFA electronics show on Thursday.

Sharp unveils its thinnest LCD TVs yet

Sharp has developed a new range of LCD (liquid crystal display) TVs that are thinner and have larger screens than its previous thinnest televisions.

Sony unveils slimmest yet Walkman

Sony launched three new models of Walkman players on Thursday at the IFA electronics show in Berlin, including the new S-series that are the slimmest yet.

Toshiba's XD-E500 DVD player

Toshiba has been hyping the heck out of its new upconverting XD-E500 DVD player but has also been careful not to declare it an equivalent to Blu-ray, the high-definition... 1

Critics question Comcast broadband caps

Comcast's decision to put a 250-gigabyte cap on monthly bandwidth use for its residential customers may look like a generous number, but some critics suggested the cap may...

Industry mourns slain Cisco exec

A Cisco exec who was shot to death in Detroit last week is being mourned this week as a gentle family man, a "gifted techie" and a voice of reason. 6

Novell revenue up, net income loss at $15 million

Novell Thursday posted a net income loss of $15 million for its fiscal third quarter fueled by a charge related to its “auction-rate securities.”

Comcast sets monthly bandwidth limit for customers

Comcast, the largest provider of cable-based broadband service in the U.S., will limit residential customers to 250 gigabytes of bandwidth a month beginning Oct. 1, the... 5

Air traffic network glitch cleared-up for now

As of this morning, the FAA said flights around the country were not longer being delayed after a massive communications malfunction Tuesday.

Baseball's video and secure telephone links ready for instant replay

Major League Baseball has installed a video setup and secure telephone links in all 30 stadiums in preparation for Thursday's debut of instant replay. 1

Expand Networks secures $8.5 million in venture capital

WAN optimization vendor Expand Networks taps $8.5 million for R&D 2

Alcatel-Lucent intros Gigabit Ethernet switches

Alcatel-Lucent is delivering a new family of Gigabit Ethernet switches that fit into its architecture for blending data, voice and wireless connectivity and are designed for... 6

Zambia women's organizations get trained in Web 2.0

The Zambia Association for Research and Development is aiming to help women's organizations by training them in the use of Web 2.0 technologies. 1

Network failure delays flights across U.S.

A network failure at a Georgia facility is being blamed for multiple flight delays across the eastern United States, including flights departing from major Northeastern... 3

Foundry unveils line of Carrier Ethernet switches

Foundry Networks this week unleashed a series of Carrier Ethernet edge/aggregation switches designed to scale Ethernet services while reducing the burden on MPLS routers.

Adtran switches on SMBs

Adtran rolled out a series of Ethernet switches for the SMB market that are more power efficient, higher density and Wi-Fi "friendly" than previous generation platforms.

African telecoms refuse to share infrastructure

MTN and Zain Zambia have refused to share infrastructure in a quest to expand to rural areas of Zambia, claiming it would be difficult to maintain quality assurance.

East Coast Web connections run laps around rest of U.S., study says

A new study claims that states on the East Coast have significantly faster median download speeds than the rest of the country, with the top states doubling or nearly... 2

Comcast: No new traffic-management plan yet

Comcast has made no final decisions on how to manage network congestion, despite news reports Wednesday that it will slow traffic for heavy users for up to 20 minutes during...

Telepresence promises productive meetings

The travel budget needs cutting, says the CFO. The corporate -social responsibility people say we have to take this green agenda seriously. HR reports that the latest polls...

Two gaming powerhouses from ATI

ATI is on a bit of a roll these days. Last month, they launched their new Radeon HD4850 GPU, which really shook up the market. It won the price performance crown handily, but...

Profile: DriveSavers stays true to data-recovery roots

DriveSavers takes data recovery seriously. So seriously, in fact, that the company recently installed a $2 million cleanroom complex in its Novato, Calif., headquarters. In...

Atom demand still stymied by testing bottleneck

Demand for Intel's Atom processor is strong, with computer makers clamoring for more chips to plug into the small, portable laptops called netbooks, but the chips remain in...

How to buy a mini-laptop

Mini-laptops are among the hottest new products this year and with the back-to-school sales season upon us, I created a list of items to help you choose the right one.

Toshiba's XDE DVD players won't hurt Blu-ray Disc

When Toshiba announced its new XDE DVD player promising it could convert the picture quality of standard DVDs up to the high definition, industry watchers took note. 1

As inflation climbs, Vietnam's PC market on shaky ground

Vietnam posted its highest inflation rate in 17 years this month, reporting a 28.3 percent increase in prices as concerns grow about the impact on the country's PC market.

Kenya judiciary embraces IT to tackle corruption

The Judiciary of Kenya has initiated IT reforms calculated to reduce corruption and improve service delivery.

African bank increases e-banking services

Ecobank Sierra Leone recently launched a set of online banking services, including real-time transaction notifications via e-mail and SMS (Short Message Service).

Sierra Leone telecom gets $30M boost from Indian gov't

The Indian government has provided US$30 million in aid to Sierratel, Sierra Leone's national telecom carrier, to revamp its landline services in Freetown, Kono, Port Loko,...

KENIC embarks on aggressive .ke marketing campaign

Kenya Network Information Centre (KENIC), the administrator of .ke top-level domains, has embarked on an aggressive marketing campaign to promote the local domain name.

Akhter announces frugal 55 watt PC

British PC maker Akhter Computers has launched a computer that can run at 3GHz, yet consumes just 55 watts when in use, less energy than a light bulb.

Toshiba to launch Cell-based TV in 2009

Toshiba is planning to bring the powerful Cell processor into consumer electronics and launch a TV based on the chip in the second half of 2009, it said Friday at the IFA...

Samsung aims at Apple with slim laptop

Samsung came out all-guns-blazing at this week's IFA electronics show in Berlin with its lightweight X360 laptop that appears targeted at Apple's Macbook Air.

Microsoft reduces Office price to combat Kenyan piracy

Microsoft East Africa announced a 40 percent reduction in cost of its home and student office suite amid complaints of rampant software piracy in the Kenya.

Quick fix for Firefox 3 bug with Yahoo Mail

If you use Firefox 3 and Yahoo Mail (the nice new interface, not Classic), you might be dealing with a bug I've noticed where the message pane scrollbar doesn't display. ... 1

Microsoft buys European comparison shopping site for $486M

Microsoft has agreed to buy comparison shopping business Ciao in a deal worth around $486 million, and plans to integrate the service into its Live Search sites, it announced...

IE 8 hits Beta 2, privacy features added

Microsoft Wednesday released the second beta of Internet Explorer 8 and introduced new features focused on privacy, including one users are referring to as "porn mode." 5

Google extends Apps Premier credit for Gmail outages