GWeekly_September_15.txt
The Project Gutenberg Weekly Newsletter For Wednesday, September 15, 2004 PT1
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From NewsScan:
ORACLE AND PEOPLESOFT: LET THE TAKEOVER BEGIN [Merger Mania Continues! More below in Edupage section] A federal judge in San Francisco has ruled that the Department of Justice Department failed to show that Oracle's takeover designs on PeopleSoft would harm competition and violate antitrust laws. Saying that the Justice Department used a too-narrow definition of the market for high-end human resources and payroll software, the judge added that there would be enough remaining rivals after a merger to assure healthy competition. The decision is a major victory of Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison, whose decision to challenge the Justice Department in court was seen by many analysts as an exercise in futility. (Washington Post 9 Sep 2004) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A9718-2004Sep9.html IBM GIVES SPEECH RECOGNITION CODE TO OPEN SOURCE GROUPS In a shrewd move intended to outmaneuver rivals, IBM is contributing some of its proprietary speech-recognition software to two open source groups. One application that handles basic words for dates, time and locations will go to the Apache Software Foundation, and another that targets speech-editing will be donated to the Eclipse Foundation. "We're trying to spur the industry around open standards to get more and more speech application development," says IBM senior VP Steven Mills. "Our code contribution is about getting that ecosystem going." The move reflects IBM's strategy to broaden its software business opportunities by giving away various pieces of code to open source software developers. IBM has been an avid support of open-source projects like the Apache Web server and the Linux operating system and last month it contributed Cloudscape, a database written in Java, to the Apache Foundation. "This whole speech world is going in the same direction as the rest of the information technology industry, and that would drastically reduce the cost of building speech applications," says one market research analyst. (New York Times 13 Sep 2004) http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/13/technology/13speech.html PRIVACY COMPLAINT AGAINST AIRLINE DISMISSED Dismissing a complaint filed by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and the Minnesota ACLU, the Department of Transportation has ruled that Northwest Airlines did not violate its own privacy policy when it shared passenger records with the government as part of a secret airline security project after the terrorist attacks in September 2001. EPIC and the ACLU had argued that Northwest committed unfair and deceptive trade practices when it shared the information with the NASA without informing its customers, but the Transportation Department ruled that the language of the policy says only that the airline won't sell the information and it did not address sharing information within the government. (Washington Post 15 Sep 2004) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21559-2004Sep14.html SPYCAM MAY BE WATCHING YOU WORK If you have a webcam and a microphone on your computer and a broadband connection to the Internet, a hacker could be watching you from that PC in your bedroom. Computer security experts are warning that a series of Windows viruses released to the Internet are capable of taking control of the audio and video accessories to spy directly on people at home or work. The worm, dubbed W32/Rbot-GR, is "the equivalent to a Peeping Tom ... peering through your curtains" says Graham Cluley of Sophos, the British-based anti-virus company. Worms such as Rbot-GR can be neutralized by any of the several anti-virus software packages available but these must be regularly updated. Cluley warns: "If you are not using your webcam, unplug it." (The Age 14 Sep 2004) Rec'd from J. Lamp <http://theage.com.au/articles/2004/09/13/1094927508372.html QUANTUM ENCRYPTION Researchers at Harvard, Boston University, and BBN Technologies are developing a quantum encryption system that uses light particles called photons to lock and unlock information. Project scientist John M. Myers from Harvard says, "It is really a futuristic technology. Its applications are going to be a lot like the laser and the transistor, in that early people could not think of all the possible applications and uses of it." Quantum cryptography is based on the discovery that photons will be changed simply by observing them; as a result, eavesdropping on the photons (e.g., by setting up a photo detector to read the code) disrupts them, making the codes unusable and alerting the network to the snooper. BBN chief scientist Chip Elliott quips: "This is what every teenager wants: Instant messaging protected by quantum cryptography. Don't tell my daughter." (AP/USA Today 15 Sep 2004) www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/2004-09-15-quantum-crypto_x.htm You have been reading excerpts from NewsScan: NewsScan Daily is underwritten by RLG, a world-class organization making significant and sustained contributions to the effective management and appropriate use of information technology. To subscribe or unsubscribe to the text, html, or handheld versions of NewsScan Daily, send the appropriate subscribe or unsubscribe messages (i.e., with the word 'subscribe' or 'unsubscribe' in the subject line) to: Text version: Send message to NewsScan@NewsScan.com Html version: Send mail to NewsScan-html@NewsScan.com NewsScan-To-Go: http://www.newsscan.com/handheld/current.html *
From Edupage
IBM TO GO OPEN SOURCE WITH SPEECH RECOGNITION In an effort to encourage growth in speech-recognition technologies and to outpace competitor Microsoft for such tools, IBM will contribute speech-recognition software to two open-source groups, the Apache Software Foundation and the Eclipse Foundation. IBM said the software cost about $10 million to develop and that the move is designed "to spur the industry around open standards to get more and more speech application development." The announcement is the latest in a series of decisions by IBM to support open-source groups with donations of technologies it has developed, including the Cloudscape database. For its part, Microsoft has developed free tools for building speech-recognition applications using the company's .Net architecture, and more than 100,000 developers have reportedly downloaded those tools. New York Times, 13 September 2004 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/13/technology/13speech.html CALIFORNIA JOINS SUIT AGAINST DIEBOLD The state of California, as well as the state's Alameda County, this week joined a lawsuit filed by a computer programmer and voting rights advocate against Diebold Inc. for selling faulty hardware and software for electronic voting. The original plaintiffs, Jim March and Bev Harris, are asking the courts to force Diebold to refund all of the money paid to it for the state's electronic voting machines. Problems with Diebold's products caused more than half of the polling places in San Diego County to open late for the state's March primary, and at least 6,000 voters in Alameda county had to use paper ballots instead of Diebold's electronic voting machines. Lowell Finley, attorney for the original plaintiffs in the case, said the decision to join shows that the "state clearly believes there's merit to the case." Meanwhile, the state decided not to file criminal charges against Diebold, a move state voting officials considered after California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley decertified one Diebold system for being unreliable and jeopardizing the state's elections. San Jose Mercury News, 8 September 2004 http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/9608838.htm WI-FI POLICY SPARKS CONTROVERSY AT UT DALLAS A new policy covering Wi-Fi access points at the University of Texas at Dallas has led to a standoff between university administrators and students claiming the right to have their own wireless access points. The policy forbids students from operating their own access points on campus because of interference with the university's wireless network, which is slower than what the students have set up, and because of security concerns over the unregulated "hot spots." Students argue that the airwaves for wireless Internet access are available to anyone who wants to use them. Bill Hargrove, executive director of information resources at the university, compared the situation to that of a student who brings a stereo system to campus. The stereo is fine, he said, "until the point where you turn it up and it bothers your neighbors." Administrators and students are at an impasse now, with neither side ready to concede. CNET, 9 September 2004 http://news.com.com/2100-7351_3-5360510.html ORACLE WINS ANTITRUST CASE A federal judge has ruled against the Department of Justice in its attempt to block Oracle's hostile takeover of PeopleSoft. In his decision, Judge Vaughn Walker said that the government failed to prove that the merger would lead to less competition and higher prices in the business software market. Walker said the small and midsize companies that play a part in the business software market represent a valid alternative to the big three--Oracle, PeopleSoft, and SAP. Walker stayed his decision for 10 days to give the Department of Justice an opportunity to file an appeal if they so choose. The PeopleSoft board has consistently rejected Oracle's takeover offer, arguing in part that the merger violated antitrust laws. Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle, said the court's "decision puts the onus squarely on the board of PeopleSoft to meet with us." The takeover is still subject to approval by European regulators. Wall Street Journal, 10 September 2004 (sub. req'd) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109476549979113989,00.html MICROSOFT DOUBLES GRACE PERIOD FOR SP2 UPDATES Microsoft this week agreed to extend the term during which customers of its Automatic Update or Windows Update services can block the automatic installation of Service Pack 2 (SP2). The company released SP2 in August to address many security issues with its Windows XP operating system, but the update may not work properly with certain applications. Some corporate customers had asked for time to test SP2 and resolve any conflicts, and Microsoft initially agreed to allow users to block SP2 from their automatic updates for 120 days, after which the service pack would be installed through the update services. That period has now been extended to 240 days, starting August 16. At that point, in mid-April, Microsoft's update services will ignore any users' instructions not to install the service pack. CNET, 8 September 2004 http://news.com.com/2100-1016_3-5355050.html You have been reading excerpts from Edupage: If you have questions or comments about Edupage, http://news.com.com/2100-1040-958352.html or send e-mail to: edupage@educause.edu To SUBSCRIBE to Edupage, send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.EDUCAUSE.EDU and in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName *** More Headline News Avoided By Most Of The Major U.S. Media POLICE PROTECT THE BURGLARS BUT NOT THE BURLARIZED A man was reported to have called his local police when he spotted burglars removing property out his garage doors. The police responded that they were not going to be able to respond very soon, as they didn't have any units in the area. The man called back a short time later and told an official representative that there was no longer a need for a swift response, since he had shot those who were burglarizing his garage. A few minutes later a half-dozen police cars and a helicopter were on the scene and easily rounded up the alleged burglars who were apparently unharmed. The police commander is reported to have said: "I thought you said you had shot them?" The man is reported to have replied: "I thought YOU said there were no officers available." Apparently the police had many more officers there on call to defend burglars from being shot than to protect the man who was being burglarized. LEADING ISP AGREES TO END SERVICE TO SPAMMERS Under pressure from antispam organization Spamhaus, Savvis, one of the world's largest ISPs, will stop serving nearly 150 known spammers. Though not a commonly known name, U.S.-based Savvis serves such high-profile customers as the New York Stock Exchange and 75 of the world's largest 100 banks. In January, Savvis bought C&W U.S., which had 95 spammers among its 3,000 customers. That number grew to 148, and revenue from those customers rose to $2 million a month, according to Alif Terranson, a former employee of Savvis. Terranson contacted Spamhaus after reportedly being told by executives of Savvis that the company would take no action against those customers found to be sending spam. Spamhaus, which provides antispam protection by publishing a list of sites that send spam, persuaded Savvis to end service of its spamming customers after threatening to block all e-mail from Savvis. Rob McCormick, the CEO of Savvis, rejected Terranson's revenue estimate from the spammers and said his company is committed to working against spam. Steve Linford, operator of Spamhaus, commended Savvis for its quick decision to cut service to the spammers. BBC, 8 September 2004 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3634572.stm RACIAL PROFILING MOVIE CENSORED BY CITIES WHERE FILMED An independent documentary movie detailing incidents of racial profiling by local police is under attack by both city and police officials saying that the police who appear on film were not given the proper "advise and consent" procedures before being recorded on film. At present this film is not being allowed on the local public access channels, and the police appear to be suing the filmmaker[s] for filming without permission, when heavy police presence was recorded at establishments frequented by black members of the community, but recordings at similar establishments white people gathered at failed to show any police presence. Additional research yesterday indicated that that the official charges might be made under an "eavesdropping" law that the police want to say makes it illegal to record any conversations without permission, even in a public place by a public official in a public capacity. The example I was given was that it would thus be illegal to even tape your kids playing baseball with other kids without permission, which also included possible taping of comments by fans, bystanders, etc. *ODD STATISTICS OF THE WEEK In an Echo Poll in Moscow 93% of Russians said they did not believe President Vladimir Putin could stop terrorism after he declared that Russia will strike terrorists wherever they are in the world. * New cellphones are equipped with one inch 1.5G hard drives, MP3 players, cameras, and 2.2" displays. *ODD QUOTATION OF THE WEEK It seemed quite more than strange when some quotes from the Russian child who escaped the school that had been taken over took so long to appear. Once they did appear, they seemed to appear world- wide, all that the same time, very well translated and very well spoken for a grade school child just escaped from an incredibly traumatic incident, [in all the senses: emotional, mental, physical]. *Information About the Project Gutenberg Mailing Lists About the Project Gutenberg Weekly Newsletter: Goes out approximately at noon each Wednesday, but various different relays will get it to you at different times; you can subscribe directly, just send me email to find out how, or to subscribe directly by yourself, go to: http://gutenberg.net/subs.shtml and About the Project Gutenberg Monthly Newsletter: Goes out approximately first Wednesday of each month. 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