E-mails banned on Friday

I don't know about you but when it comes to e-mail, I'm a real Norman No-Mates with my mailbox just visited by the usual selection of pornographic spam. But electronic mail has caught on faster than SMS messaging and some companies believe that it is affecting productivity and actually stifles creativity. Already companies such as Nestle Rowntree and Camelot have told their employees not to read their e-mails on Fridays. ...more

Sun's Scott McNealy squashes idea of Java becoming open source

Sun's CEO Scott McNealy has squashed hopes that its Java programming language could be made open source, and cast a shadow over Sun COO Jonathan Schwartz's statement yesterday that the Solaris operating system was to go the same way. At a news conference during the public sector technology showcase FOSE 2004, McNealy said he couldn't understand how open sourcing Java would solve anything. In February, Eric Raymond, President of the Open Source Initiative, published an open letter to Sun in which he called on Sun to make its Java platform Open Source, describing the company's Open Source strategy as 'spotty' and 'confused'. ...more

Lawyers claim Apple's iPod update is admission of volume problems

Lawyers representing iPod owners who are suing Apple for alleged damage to their hearing have said that the company's decision to enable volume limiting on the portable music players is an acknowledgement that they are flawed. 'It is good to know that Apple finally acknowledges that there is a serious flaw with its iPod product, and is giving US purchasers the same protection it has been giving French purchasers since 2002,' said attorney Steve Berman. 'Unfortunately, this patch doesn't help the millions of people who own older models - it is a jack-legged workaround that falls well short of what consumers demand and deserve. ...more

Netsky-C prompts red alert

A C variant of the Netsky virus has been discovered, prompting AV experts Trend MIcro to issue a Red Alert. The company says it has received reports of high numbers of infections from around the globe. David Kopp, Head of TrendLabs EMEA for Trend Micro, told us: 'Trend Micro rarely takes the step of issuing a red alert for security threats, but the number of reports we have received worldwide has made this measure advisable to convey the potential seriousness of this outbreak. ...more

CallNet hangs up

It looks like controversial ISP CallNet 0800 is doomed as creditors take legal action to retrieve their money. The totally free ISP, launched in November last year to much scepticism, is being taken to court by its PR company Mulberry and other creditors such as Cable and Wireless over outstanding invoices. The firm closed down its 0800 and 0845 lines last Wednesday and a service report on the company's site, at www. ...more