How to be safe online

A new Web site bids to make the Internet a place safe for kids. The website BeSafeOnline.org offers advice for safe surfing, reports the BBC. ...more

Billy Bragg sings the praise of MySpace reversal

Billy Bragg has praised MySpace's decision to change its terms and conditions, after he withdrew his music from the site. The singer-songwriter was concerned that the T&Cs gave MySpace complete rights over any music that had been uploaded to the website. Previously MySpace claimed a 'non-exclusive, fully-paid and royalty-free, worldwide license' for all its content. ...more

BT wins ?620 million NHS contract to put medical records online

The familiar cabinets of buff coloured folders containing medical records will be no more by 2010, the Government has announced. Instead it has awarded a ?620 million contract to BT to store all 50 million NHS patients 'Care Records' in a secure central database and available to all 30,000 GPs and 270 NHS trusts. The care records will contain all relevant information and medical history of the patient and can be called up from anywhere instead of the current situation whereby if someone is admitted to hospital, the doctors have no immediate access to their local GP's records. ...more

Google, Apple, Napster target of online video patent suit

According to the New York Times, Google, Apple and Napster have been named in a patent suit filed by the now defunct Internet video service Intertainer in a federal district court in Texas. The company, which holds nine patents, alleges that the tech giants have infringed on its intellectual property covering the management and distribution of digital media. Intertainer is no stranger to the courtroom. ...more

Final call for old numbers

Well, if you've so far managed to ignore the Big Number campaign and carried on life using the old mobile numbers that have been kept on, it's time to wake up and smell the digits, because, as of Saturday, they'll all be switched off. Old numbers for mobiles and pagers have been kept on, running alongside the new numbers since the campaign began in September 1999. However, users trying to dial outdated numbers after Saturday will not be connected and receive a recorded message. ...more