2008 May: Computing

2008 May: Computing

Anchor: Base Index
Other months: April June
Other areas: Business climate education health international Internet science social technology Others
Topics: Companies data storage embedded predictions history machinery modelling operating systems patents prediction projects robots security simulation skills software speech systems translation video gaming

Companies

(see also in Internet)

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Hewlett-Packard: Now services, Economist, 2008 May 17 (having bested Dell for the time being, Hewlett-Packard takes on IBM)
Microsoft and Yahoo!: No deal, Economist, 2008 May 10 (Microsoft walks away from Yahoo!, and both companies lose)

Embedded Computers and Robots

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Monkey's brain controls robot arm, BBC, 2008 May 28 (monkeys are taught to control robotic limbs using only their thoughts, Nature journal reports)
Ed Pilkington, Robot at podium gets with program, The Age, 2008 May 16 (this android conductor with a head for music is not exactly all heart and soul)
Jasper Copping, Insects steeled for battle of the bots, The Age, 2008 May 6 (a swarm of robotic insects is being developed for the military to hunt down enemy fighters in buildings and caves, carry mini-bombs and identify chemical, nuclear or biological weapons)

History and Predictions

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Graeme Philipson, A surge has emerged in the urge to merge, The Age, 2008 May 27 (one big company acquiring another has become routine, there are fewer and fewer companies in the industry)
Graeme Philipson, The ascent of IT: history at warp speed, The Age, 2008 May 22 (Byzantium lasted a millennium but computing empires rise and fall before our eyes)
AFP, Spam turns 30, The Age, 2008 May 2 (this week, the world marks an anniversary that has changed the face - and other anatomical regions - of email inboxes everywhere: the first known spam email was sent 30 years ago on Saturday)

Machinery and Data Storage

(see also in Technology)

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Jack Schofield, Technophile, Guardian, 2008 May 29 (the latest Eee PC minibook packs in a bigger screen and Windows XP, but it still has some limitations)
Computers and the environment: Buy our stuff, save the planet, Economist, 2008 May 24 (the internet could become as ungreen as aviation; a self-serving solution beckons: technologies including multi-core processor chips, more efficient power supplies and smart cooling systems are already available; so too is software that allocates computing resources more efficiently)
Down on the server farm: The real-world implications of the rise of internet computing, Economist, 2008 May 24 (America alone has more than 7,000 data centres, according to IDC, a market-research firm; and each is housing ever more servers, the powerful computers that crunch and dish up data)
AP, $100 laptop makers plan cheaper second version, The Age, 2008 May 22 (the One Laptop Per Child project has announced plans to plans to bring out a second generation of the "XO" computers later this year)
Design revamp for '$100 laptop', BBC, 2008 May 21 (future versions of the OLPC laptop will be a dual-screen, e-book device that will cost just $75)
Louisa Hearn, The future of gaming, The Age, 2008 May 19 (the days of big-bang launches from the likes of Sony and Microsoft may be numbered as console makers devise new ways to spin out the lifespan of their hardware)
Asher Moses, Low-cost laptop group lands in Australia, The Age, 2008 May 7 (the One Laptop Per Child initiative has set up shop in Australia with a local board planning to lobby State and Federal governments to fund a roll-out into local communities)

Operating Systems

(see also Software)

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Maggie Shiels, Microsoft demos 'touch Windows', BBC, 2008 May 28 (software giant Microsoft gives a sneak peek of its next operating system, Windows 7, at a conference)

Projects and Systems

(see also in Business)

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Simon Bowers, NHS bosses may not replace contractor after Fujitsu's walkout, Guardian, 2008 May 30 (disaffected trusts across the south of England want to pick their own IT systems suppliers)
Richard Wray, Second contractor drops out of £12bn NHS computer upgrade, Guardian, 2008 May 29 (world's largest non-military IT project suffers setback as Fujitsu has its contract terminated)
Jason Dowling, Travel card faces more costly delays, The Age, 2008 May 26 (trouble-plagued Myki ticketing system faces yet another delay, possibly until 2012, at a cost of $216 million to taxpayers)
David Rood, $60m school software plan faces costly delays, The Age, 2008 May 24 (a new $60 million school software system faces delays and cost blowouts after the State Government fails to find a company to deliver the project)
Julia Medew and Jill Stark, Hospitals creating ghost wards, The Age, 2008 May 18 (overcrowded Victorian hospitals are altering computer data and admitting emergency patients to non-existent "virtual wards" to meet State Government targets for bonus payments)
Doug Travis, Hospital ICT deathly ill, The Age, 2008 May 6 (there are myriad problems in the delivery of much-needed infrastructure)

Security

(see also in Internet and Technology)

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Number keys promise safer data, BBC, 2008 May 21 (sensitive computer files are to become both more secure and more flexible thanks to advanced mathematics)
Henry McDonald, Lost disc held data on march campaigner, Observer, 2008 May 18 (Rosemary Nelson inquiry loses sensitive information about former republican prisoner)
Reuters, Criminal data trove discovered on server, The Age, 2008 May 7 (a web security firm says it has discovered a huge trove of stolen business and personal data amassed on a server in the space of just three weeks)

Simulation and Modelling

(see also Video Gaming)

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'Virtual bike' improves safety, BBC, 2008 May 22 (researchers unveil a motorcycle simulator to study rider behaviour and improve road safety)
Proteomics: Return to the fold, Economist, 2008 May 10 (for the world's obsessive problem solvers, a three-dimensional Tetris which allows them to help design a new life-saving vaccine seems certain to be a hit)

Skills

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Margaret Robertson, How games will change the world, BBC, 2008 May 28 (can video games make the workplace more productive?)
Web worlds 'useful' for children, BBC, 2008 May 23 (virtual worlds can be good places for children to learn many useful social skills, reveals research)

Software

(see also Operating Systems)

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Sceptics question Microsoft move, BBC, 2008 May 22 (open source advocates question Microsoft's pledge to using open document standards in the future)

Speech Processing and Translation

(see also in Social)

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Video Gaming

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Alexander Gambotto-Burke, Why are MMOs having a population crisis?, Guardian, 2008 May 29 (World of Warcraft dominates the online gaming market, so there is not a lot of diversity out there; but an alternative is on the horizon)
Jason Hill, Review: Boom Blox, The Age, 2008 May 22 (this is a wacky, addictive puzzle game with precious little story and bland characters)
AP, Toxic chemicals found in game consoles, The Age, 2008 May 22 (the world's most popular electronic game consoles contain high levels of hazardous chemicals, according to a Greenpeace report)
Louisa Hearn, The future of gaming, The Age, 2008 May 19 (the days of big-bang launches from the likes of Sony and Microsoft may be numbered as console makers devise new ways to spin out the lifespan of their hardware)
Reuters, US game sales jump, The Age, 2008 May 16 (big selling Grand Theft Auto 4 and Nintendo's Wii console sales give US games industry a boost)
Asher Moses, New game gizmo uses mind control, The Age, 2008 May 7 (an Australian company is gearing up to release a computer headset that allows people to control video games using only the power of their minds)
Darren Waters, PlayStation 'will reclaim lead', BBC, 2008 May 5 (PlayStation 3 will help Sony reclaim its spot as the leading console maker, says the head of the firm's games division)