Bright Future Predicted for Solar Power

The United States of America, which depends heavily on foreign imported oil to satisfy it's energy demands, may have found an alternative in the form of solar power: a report released today has suggested that the booming photovoltaic (PV) cell industry could supply up to 20% of America's energy needs. Of particular interest is the thin film photovoltaics (TFPV) market, which accounts for five per cent of production today, but could make up 35 per cent of the market by 2015, according to analysts NanoMarkets."Because worldwide energy prices are rising fast and PV prices are falling fast, PV will carve off a big slice of the energy market and could eventually account for as much as 20 per cent of the US market's energy needs," said Robert Nolan, analyst at NanoMarkets. "Because TFPV costs less than conventional PV, TFPV is most likely to take off first. PV also offers predictable pricing, something that fossil fuels cannot do."Analysts predict the total market for TFPV will be worth $7.2 billion by 2015, up from $1 billion today. One primary advantage of TFPV is easier production as compared to standard PV cells; TFPV cells can be printed out of adapted printers rather than built like computer chips. Manufacturers are already building large power plants to use the technology, with First Solar, Fuji Electric, Nanosolar, Sanyo, Uni-Solar and G24i all building plants with more than 100MW in capacity. Additional advantages inclue TFPV's ability to be printed in flexible strips, making it possible to attach to most devices and structures, and improved efficiency in lower light conditions. View: Full Story on vnunet.com Read full story...

 


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Lenovo Eyes Packard Bell for Acquisition

Chinese computer giant Lenovo Group, which acquired IBM's PC division in 2005, is now planning for further expansion, announcing today that it is in exclusive exclusive discussions about a potential acquisition of Packard Bell. Lenovo said it has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with an independent third party to explore the possibilities of acquiring the European PC company, which was bought out last year by Hong Kong entrepreneur John Hui. Lenovo is currently continuing negotiation with the works council and said it is undertaking the necessary enquiries with all concerned parties and government bodies in preparation for entering into definitive agreements for acquisition. Should all the necessary checks and balances be met, the deal will be conducted under the Hong Kong Stock Exchange listing rules. However, Lenovo is still warning shareholders and potential investors that the proposed acquisition may or may not materialise. Further announcements will be made as and when appropriate to comply with requisite listing rules and procedures. View: Full Story on vnunet.com Read full story...

 


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Websites could be required to retain visitor info

A series of legal events means that companies that have no business reason to retain documents or records may be compelled to create and retain such records just so they can become available for discovery.Companies routinely create, maintain and store electronic records. Some records are consciously created - like memoranda, letters, spreadsheets, and even e-mails and chat or instant message communications. Other records are created inadvertently, like meta data, log records, IP history records and the like. Some information is useful to the company, and it wants to retain it, and other information is of little use, merely takes up space, creates potential liability, and represents an unwarranted threat for attack or violation of privacy. The problem for most companies in developing or maintaining a document retention/destruction policy is identifying the documents and records it wants to keep and effectively purging the ones it doesn't want. Some recent legal events have made the problem of document retention and destruction even more complicated. View: The full story News source: The Reg Read full story...

 


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IBM and Novell gang up against Red Hat

IBM and Novell have signed a bundling and support agreement that will bundle IBM's open source WebSphere Application Server Community Edition (WAS CE) software with Novell's SuSE Linux Enterprise Server. The partnership is an attack against JBoss, Red Hat's suite of middleware applications including an application server. Both firms promised to assist customers in migrating off JBoss software.Red Hat acquired JBoss for $420m last April. Based on the Apache Geronimo application server, WAS CE has logged more than one million distributions. Users looking for more advanced features are steered towards paid WebSphere products, which offer more advanced features. View: The full story News source: vnunet Read full story...

 


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Microsoft's IIS may catch Apache in Web server market

Microsoft's Internet Information Services (IIS) continues to narrow the gap with the open-source Apache Web server, with a survey firm suggesting that the longtime second banana could surpass Apache as early as next year. Microsoft, which added 2.6 million Web sites in the last month, grew to 36.2 percent of all active Web sites, according to figures released Monday by U.K.-based research firm, Netcraft. Apache lost nearly a million Web site names, as its share of active Web sites fell to 48.4 percent. Apache now leads IIS, which is bundled with Windows Server, by 12.2 percent among active Web sites, a list which excludes registered domain names that are not yet in actual usage. "But if Microsoft continues to gain share at its current pace, it could close the gap on Apache sometime in 2008," said the Netcraft posting accompanying the survey results. That's a major turnaround in two years. Apache has led the Netcraft survey since its inception in 1995. By November 2005 it was running 71 percent of all Web sites. That gave Apache a greater-than 50 percent lead over IIS's 20.2 percent share, and caused commentators such as Oracle executive Larry Ellison to declare that IIS had been "wiped off the face of the earth" by Apache.  View: The full story News source: InfoWorld Read full story...

 


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Microsoft Releases Service-Pack Previews for Vista, XP

Microsoft Corp. has quietly released pre-beta code to two forthcoming Windows service packs to testers in the past week, but the company continues to remain vague about when the final code for Windows XP Service Pack 3 and Windows Vista SP1 will make it to end users. Microsoft confirmed Tuesday that it released preview code for both XP SP3, but still would not say directly when the updates to each OS will be released in their final versions.While Microsoft said it will have a beta of Vista SP1 available "sometime this year," it won't commit to a more firm date or speculate when the final release will be available. Some insiders had expected a beta to be available by now, though one has yet to materialize. As for Windows XP SP3, Microsoft said it is shooting for the first half of next year, but called that date "preliminary" and declined to disclose more details View: The full story News source: PCWorld Read full story...

 


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Microsoft Says No Windows Virtualization on Top of Linux

Microsoft will not allow Windows Vista or Windows XP to be virtualized on top of Linux, Sam Ramji, the director of Microsoft's open-source software lab, said at the annual LinuxWorld Conference and Expo here Aug. 7. "What we have heard predominantly from customers is that they want to be able to mix and match their data center applications, but we haven't seen significant demand for Linux applications on the desktop or for desktop virtualization on top of Linux," Ramji said in an address titled "Linux and Windows Interoperability: On the Metal and on the Wire." But, he said that while he does hear a lot of requests for this from developers in the Linux community, the feedback Microsoft is getting from customers and its Interoperability Executive Customer Council with regard to the desktop is that they want .Net and Java interoperability.  View: The full story News source: eWeek Read full story...

 


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Toshiba to launch three 3G HD DVD players in Sept/Oct

Toshiba, in continued efforts to promote the HD DVD format, will launch three third-generation HD DVD players for sale in the US soon. The mid-range HD-A30 will launch in September at a recommended retail price of US$399 while the entry-level HD-A3, priced at US$299, and high-end HD-A35, priced at US$499, will follow in October, according to a company press release.The HD-A35 and HD-A30 both feature 1080p playback at 24 frames per second and support a two-way connection between the player and TV over HDMI, dubbed CE-Link by Toshiba. The HD-A3 supports 1080i only. The three models will be 5.95cm high which is approximately half the 10cm height of first and second generation models. View: The full story News source: DigiTimes Read full story...

 


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Photo Tool Could Fix Bad Images

Digital photographers could soon be able to erase unwanted elements in photos by using tools that scan for similar images in online libraries. Research teams have developed an algorithm that uses sites like Flickr to help discover light sources, camera position and composition in a photo. Using this data the tools then search for objects, such as landscapes or cars, that match the original. The teams aim to create image libraries that anyone can use to edit snaps.James Hays and Alexei Efros from Carnegie Mellon University have developed an algorithm to help people who want to remove bits of photographs. The parts being removed could be unsightly lorries in the snaps of the rural idyll where they took a holiday or even an old boyfriend or girlfriend they want to rub out from a photograph. To find suitable matching elements, the research duo's algorithm looks through a database of 2.3 million images culled from Flickr. View: Full story News source: BBC News Read full story...

 


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Spinning Particles Promise Unlimited Computing Power

When engineers flick the switch to turn on the world's fastest supercomputer later this year it will be capable of chewing its way through 1,000 trillion calculations every second. But this speedy number cruncher could soon look like the equivalent of a dusty abacus if scientists who have gathered in York deliver on their promises.Nearly 150 of them have convened in the medieval town to explore the future of spintronics (spin-based electronics), an area that could have profound effects on areas as diverse as data storage, microelectronics and quantum computing. "With quantum computing you are able to attack some problems on the time scales of seconds, which might take an almost infinite amount of time with classical computers," said Professor David Awschalom of the University of California, Santa Barbara. View: Full story News source: BBC News Read full story...

 


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Digital Art Aids Health Checkups

Doctors are turning to graphic artists to help patients better understand their illness and course of treatment.The artists turn medical images from 3D anatomical scans into less formidable forms, suitable for patients. Trials of the system have shown it can aid understanding and deepen dialogue between patients and their care givers. The system is also being used as part of a project to raise awareness among diabetics of some of the most serious side-effects of their condition."Doctors talk shop, which can be difficult for patients to penetrate," said John McGhee, a PhD student and 3D computer artist from the University of Dundee, who helped to direct the visualisation project. The tools and methods used to pass on information about illnesses and cures were as various as the doctors themselves, [sic] Mr McGhee said."None are that great," he said. But, by producing simplified images from detailed MRI scans, for example, patients can get a far better grasp of what is happening inside them, how it came about, and what is being done about it, [sic] he said. News source: Full story News source: BBC News Read full story...

 


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Dell outlines UK Linux plans

Dell has outlined its plans to sell Linux computers in the UK. The company will offer the Inspiron 6400n and the Inspiron 530n with Ubuntu 7.04 installed at the factory. The computers will be priced at £399 and £329 respectively, meaning that British buyers will be charged over £100 more than European consumers.A spokesperson from Dell could not be reached to comment on the pricing at the time of going to press. The company started selling computers with Linux preinstalled in the United States this year after 30,000 members of its IdeaStorm forum requested the change. Over 100,000 people took part in follow-up testing and the company claims demand is strong.  View: The full story News source: vnunet Read full story...

 


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Broadband claims mislead on speed

There is a huge gap between advertised broadband speeds and the actual speeds users can achieve, new research from consumer group Which? has shown. A survey by the organisation found that broadband packages promising speeds of up to 8Mbps (megabits per second) actually achieved far less. Tests of 300 customers' net connections revealed that the average download speed they were getting was 2.7Mbps. As a result, Which? has called on regulator Ofcom and Trading Standards to launch a fresh investigation into UK broadband.The speed tests were prompted by complaints from members of the public, unhappy with the speeds of their broadband connections. In the last 12 months more internet service providers (ISPs) have offered services, promising speeds of "up to" 8Mbps. The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has investigated several cases of misleading promotions, most recently asking Bulldog to make it clear in its adverts that speed was dependent on how far away from the exchange people lived. View: The full story News source: The Reg Read full story...

 


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Dell outlines UK Linux plans

Dell has outlined its plans to sell Linux computers in the UK. The company will offer the Inspiron 6400n and the Inspiron 530n with Ubuntu 7.04 installed at the factory. The computers will be priced at £399 and £329 respectively, meaning that British buyers will be charged over £100 more than European consumers.A spokesperson from Dell could not be reached to comment on the pricing at the time of going to press. The company started selling computers with Linux preinstalled in the United States this year after 30,000 members of its IdeaStorm forum requested the change. Over 100,000 people took part in follow-up testing and the company claims demand is strong.  View: The full story News source: vnunet Read full story...

 


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