Socket surfing

56K modems? Pah. ADSL? Too slow. No, to really 'connect' you want to plug in to a domestic electric socket and enjoy always-on bandwidths of up to 3Mbits/sec, 20-30 times faster than ISDN, according to companies involved in powerline technology. ...more

Gartner predicts SCO will be forced to let lawyers call the shots

Gartner has predicted that the 20 per cent cut SCO is giving its lawyers will channel power into the legal firms' hands as they seek to make the most of the deal. SCO's recent announcement that it would deploy Boies, Schiller & Flexner to pull its targeted top 1,500 commercial Linux users through the courts will add to the pressure SCO faces in coming up with settlements with which to pay off its lawyers, according to George Weiss, of Gartner Research. He advises Linux users to 'keep a low profile', not to 'divulge details on Linux deployments' and not to 'permit SCO to audit your premises without legal authorisation. ...more

Freeserve deals connection and content bundle

Premium content and broadband connection for ?27.99 a month Freeserve has chopped ?2 off the price of its broadband rate and bundled in premium content for free. From today, customers get 150 free text messages, 20 photo prints from its digital photography service and two month's membership of its music download service for free - goodies that Freeserve reckons to be worth ?25. ...more

IBM breathes life into autonomic computing

IBM has unveiled details of software that can automatically manage spikes in processing end-user demand. The new initiative comes under the umbrella of 'autonomic computing', which is where a computer system manages its own operation - often referred to as self-healing software. The three technologies, in sequence, are 'Adaptive Forecasting', 'On-line Capacity Planning' and 'Rapid Reconfiguration'. ...more

Sony launches portable Net and TV device

Sony says it has produced the Walkman of the new Millennium - the Airboard. The gadget allows you to surf the Net, send e-mails and watch TV from a 10.4 inch screen, which incorporates a touchpad. ...more