News

Microsoft completes Small Business Server 2008

Built on Windows Server 2008, long-awaited server ships Nov. 12 and includes Exchange Server 2007, SharePoint Services 3.0, and more

Hoping to get SOA off the shelf

Designed right, SOA automatically adapts to the subset of data and functions any given customer may need

Olympic tech’s winners and losers

The 2008 Olympics are closed, but a few awards have yet to be given out: those for the winners and losers when it came to the games' technology

Microsoft lists Windows 7 in patching tool

Microsoft has already seeded its most popular patching tool for corporate users with a reference to Windows 7, its planned successor to Windows Vista.

IT outsourcing horror stories

Gartner sees chip industry slowing

Even emerging markets, which have bolstered PC and mobile phone sales this year, will slow, according to Gartner report

Keeping MacBooks snug at security

The wafer-thin design of Apple's MacBook has created hassles at airport security, but new 'checkpoint-friendly' laptop bags can help

Mainsoft backs Visual Studio 2008 in tools

Cross-platform development products leverage Windows skills for deployment on Java, Linux, and Unix

Mozilla boosts JavaScript performance

Placed in Firefox 3.1 development tree this week, TraceMonkey adds native code compilation to JavaScript engine and speeds up Web apps

Three plead guilty to online sale of pirated software

Men sold the software through downloads from Web sites without authorization from copyright owners

Bluetooth will be missing from Google Android

Developers are left to wonder what a lack of "comprehensive" Bluetooth API really means

Microsoft confesses to posting a flawed update

The admission was the third time in the past two months that Microsoft has had to re-issue a security-related update

Top 10: SAP makes a pitch, Apple gets the ditch

This week's roundup of the top tech news includes the upcoming debut of the new Google Android, warnings about SSD security risk, and Microsoft's plans to alpha test Office 14 before year-end

Red Hat admits breach of its servers, Fedora

Though execs "confident" that hackers did not obtain necessary passphrases, company has converted to new Fedora signing keys

Intel: WiMax to slash device’s time to market

By taking major role in approving components and devices, WiMax Forum industry group will ultimately cut time to market down to about a month

Five ways to drive your best workers out the door

Your top workers can almost always get another job, even in a shaky economy. Consider these cautionary tales that can help you avoid losing your own top talent

Update: Google adds geolocation to Gears offline plug-in

Knowing where a user is located opens the door to entirely new types of apps and allows developers to build additional functionality in existing Web apps

InfoWorld News Quiz

Dell gains, Sun loses in worldwide server market

IBM and Hewlett-Packard retain the top spots, but Dell posts the biggest Q2 gains in server revenue to nudge Sun out of third place

Brazilian charged in botnet scheme, will be extradited to U.S.

Network of 100,000 hacked computers used to send spam was a botnet spread entirely through social engineering

SSDs are hot, but not without security risks

SSDs do not completely erase data and are vulnerable to physical hacks from light sources like an ultraviolet laser

Recent reviews from the storage lab

Firefox SSL-certificate debate grows

Among the gripes: Web site operators are forced to do business with specific vendors of SSL certificates or risk the appearance that their Web sites are broken

Amazon launches persistent EC2 cloud storage

Elastic Block Store allows users to choose to allocate storage volumes that persist independently from EC2

Update: Groups ask court to lift gag order in Intel antitrust case

Disclosure of subpoenaed evidence would not cause competitive disadvantage, argue CCIA and others

Paying the community to test your software

Comcast: No new traffic management plan yet

Some reports suggest that Comcast will slow traffic for heavy users for up to 20 minutes during times of peak network use

Daily news beat for August 21, 2008

Legal group releases guide to GPL compliance

Software Freedom Law Center says most GPL compliance violations stem from a few common mistakes that can be easily avoided

Update: Did Nokia pay for vulnerability information?

Nokia is evasive on whether it paid a Security Explorations researcher for his effort spent finding flaws in its Series 40 OS

InfoWorld’s bozo of the month

Dell links up with Salesforce’s development platform

Dell to use the Force.com platform to build software for its "entire global workforce" in largest-ever deal for Salesforce.com

Was JavaScript a mistake?

Amazon adds persistent storage to compute cloud

Adding persistent storage to EC2 Elastic Compute Cloud should enable developers to use Amazon's hosted computing services for a broader range of apps

Embarcadero to upgrade Windows RAD tools

Products bring together CodeGear and Embarcadero's DatabaseGear functionality into a single offering featuring support for Microsoft's Silverlight

How to turn a software pirate into a paying customer

Startup V.i. Laboratories' CodeArmor Intelligence collects data on the unauthorized use of software and stealthily sends it back to the software's maker

More cores, bigger cache give boost to Dunnington

Intel's six-core Xeon server processor will launch next month

Intel confirms: OQO to use Atom in handheld PC

Intel's design win means it could take a major customer away from rival Via

Asustek turns to Celerons amid Atom shortage

Exec says a 'serious shortage of Atom microprocessors' is causing Asustek to turn to Celeron M 353 chips for its cheaper new Eee PCs aimed at developing nations

Microsoft hires Seinfeld to bite Apple

Microsoft reportedly will spend $300 million on ads designed around its 'Windows Not Walls' slogan that will feature comedian Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates

Intel will ship dual-core Atom processor next month

New dual-core Atom processor will be part of a motherboard package designed for low-cost desktops

Update: Ericsson, STMicro to form mobile chip venture

Joint venture will build guts of mobile devices for current 2G and 3G mobile networks, as well as faster, emerging LTE technology

Nokia admits security flaws in Series 40 OS

Sun for sale? Dropping profits, stock price fuel speculation

Fujitsu, HP leading candidates if Sun is open to acquisition

Update: Online encyclopedia lists internal network security threats

Promisec includes popular Web-based applications among possible data-loss threats

Palm Treo Pro steps into the smartphone ring

Running Windows Mobile 6.1, Palm's newest release will give enterprise users an operating system they are comfortable with

Real time drives database virtualization

Database virtualization will enable real-time business intelligence through a memory grid that permeates an infrastructure at all levels

IBM commits $300 million to disaster recovery build-out

New datacenters to store data in cloud-based storage model

Palm plans to sell unlocked Treo Pro

Palm's decision to sell its newest smartphone could be start of a new trend or a sign of harder times to come for the company

Why SaaS could make your IT skills irrelevant

Rise of cloud computing and software as a service forcing IT professionals to rethink their skill sets and the value they bring to their companies