Comment: A wrong message from the top

Tony Blair is a self-confessed technophobe, so imagine my surprise when I received an email from the Prime Minister in March. My first suspicion was that this was some sort of spoofing scam, but I was sufficiently intrigued to read on. 'For Mr Howard to take one case and use it to undermine the whole of the NHS is typical and wrong. ...more

BBC opens RSS to third-parties

The BBC has relaxed its rules on RSS feeds, allowing websites and blogs to carry BBC headlines without a licence. The BBC began supplying feeds in 2003, when the policy of strict licensing was designed to encourage people to access them for personal use via a news feed reader. BBC News website editor, Pete Clifton, said the change is partly a result of the increased popularity of feeds which led to 18 million click-throughs to BBC news and sport in April alone. ...more

The fibre of the future

German scientists have developed fibres that have photo-electrical capabilities, which could theoretically power electronic items such as mobile phones or electronic organisers. The New Scientist reports on how these fibres could be woven into regular material to make machine-washable clothes with this power-generating property. There are a number of applications for the new technology, from developing a power source for wearable computers to sailing boats with solar-powered sails made from this wonder fibre. ...more

Yahoo! streams ahead with broadcast site

Yahoo! is trying to keep its position as the world's favourite portal by launching a new multimedia site called Yahoo! Broadcast. The new site will include content from partners such as ABCNews.com, Adventure TV. ...more

BenQ brags of Blu-ray first with new drive

BenQ is the first of the major peripheral manufacturers to announce a high-definition optical drive. Its Blu-ray unit was developed jointly with Philips and was unveiled at CeBit, Hannover. It will be available in the second half of this year. ...more