Monday, April 1, 2013

TechEye

TechEye

Link to TechEye - Latest technology headlines

AMD's Steamroller might be a year early

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 06:20 AM PDT

AMD has released a presentation in which it hinted that Steamroller might come out nearly a year early.

The presentation, meant to be seen by investors, puts the launch of the new Steamroller micro-architecture as taking place this year instead of next year.

AMD did not unveil which chips will feature Steamroller high-performance x86 cores this year, but it should have been rolled out to server-class Opteron chips first.

In a slide with the catchy title "AMD Opteron Technology: Delivering multiple generations of greater functionality and improved performance", it was revealed Steamroller will be released in 2013. Previously it has said that Opteron Abu Dhabi powered by Piledriver high-performance x86 cores will be its focus for 2013 and 2014. It also claimed that the next-generation of Opteron processors would appear in the second half of 2014.

According to X-Bit labs it appears that AMD has pushed forward its Opteron plans.

If this is the case it means that there will be compatibility with current sockets or means that AMD intends to unveil a new platform for server microprocessors with support for PCI Express 3.0 and improved functionality.

If AMD has not pushed forward its Opteron plans then it means that it has abandoned plans to put Steamroller under the bottom of Opertons first.

HTC said to be working on Windows tablet

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 06:14 AM PDT

NPD DisplaySearch seems convinced that HTC is planning to get back into the tablet game with a Windows tablet.

HTC already gave tablets a go a couple of years back. However, its Android based 7-inch Flyer tablet crashed and it was killed off, without a successor. It also tried its luck with a 10-incher in some markets, but to no avail. This time around HTC might be gunning for a different market altogether.

NPD reckons HTC is likely to unveil a 10.1-inch tablet with a 1080p screen, manufactured by LG.

The new Windows tablet should be assembled by Pegatron and some observers believe it is already in mass production, the China Post reports.

However, details are sketchy and it is still unclear what sort of Windows flavour HTC went for.

Although the resolution seems to point to a Windows 8 device, HTC did not dabble in desktop operating systems in the past, so it might be looking at Windows RT. 

Skype faces tough laws in Saudi Arabia

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 04:52 AM PDT

Saudi Arabia’s watchdog has claimed that Skype and Whatsapp flout Saudi Arabia's telecom laws.

The kingdom's Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) has ordered telecom operators that use these services to quickly ensure they comply.

Unlike western countries were such warnings are usually bogged down in lots of legal cases, in Saudi justice is swift with bits of a company being lopped off in a public square in front of a cheering crowd.

Skype received a warning last week when the local press claimed the government had asked telecom companies to look at ways to monitor or block these services.

CITC said in a statement on its website that it had become evident that some communication applications through the Internet don't meet regulatory requirements.

Basically, if Skype cannot conform to Saudi laws then things will look grim for the service in the kingdom.

In a typically Kafkaesque move, neither the CITC nor the Saudi government have said what law has been broken.  While it is likely to be something involving censorship, it is up to Skype to confess and conform.  The government or the CITC did not say how long Skype had to fix the situation either or which body part will be lopped off if they don’t do it.

The CITC said it was acting to "protect society from any negative aspects that could harm the public interest".

Saudi is making a greater push for greater control over cyberspace as internet and smartphone usage soars.  It is worried that people might mix and talk.  This of course is a dangerous thing for a monarchy.  If subjects start communicating they might become informed and start to wonder what the hell they are doing with their lives and why they are ruled by people who only got the job by shagging.

Over the weekend the English-language Arab News daily said Saudi Arabia may try to end anonymity for Twitter users in the country by limiting access to the site to people who register their IDs.

Russia starts blocking suicide websites

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 04:47 AM PDT

The Soviet government has started enforcing a new law that gives it the power to block internet content deemed illegal or harmful to children. 

Regulators have asked Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to take down content deemed objectionable by party officials, reports The New York Times. YouTube resisted the effort, after authorities asked it to remove a video that supposedly promoted suicide. 

Supporters of the law claim that it is focused on controlling child pornography and sensitive content, such as sites that promote drug use and suicide. They believe that nobody in Putin’s Russian utopia has a reason to take their own life or the urge to take drugs. 

However, opposition leaders have raised quite a few questions about the law, which seems to be rather vague and leaves the door open to broader censorship. They expressed fears that social networks used to organize protests against Putin might be stifled. The measures could also negatively reflect on Russia’s image abroad, they argue. 

Facebook already agreed to take down a group called Club Suicid, while Twtitter deleted posts related to illegal drug deals, as well as three posts promoting “suicidal thoughts,” which for some strange reason seem to be quite commonplace in Putin’s paradise. 

Top chipmaker logs off

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 04:32 AM PDT

Chipmaker Analog Devices has announced that its long-time Chief Executive Officer Jerald Fishman had a heart attack and died. He was 67.

Fishman joined Analog Devices in 1971 and rose through the ranks to become its chief executive Officer in 1996. In 1980, Fishman was elected Vice President and then again in 1988 as Executive Vice President. In 1991, he became President and Chief Operating Officer and in 1996, he was elected as President and Chief Executive Officer.

During his reign, the company's revenue more than doubled and its share price grew more than threefold. And in 2004, Fishman was named "CEO of the Year" by Electronics Business.

The company makes microchips used in automobiles, industrial machinery and communication equipment.

Ray Stata, chairman of the board issued a statement saying that it was a terrible loss for him and the company.

"Jerry dedicated his entire career to building ADI into a great company one of which we all are enormously proud, he said.

Analog Devices has named President Vincent Roche as its interim CEO. 

Apple loses bid to trademark yet another word

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 04:27 AM PDT

Apple’s bid to trademark the iPad Mini has failed, quite spectacularly. The US Patents and Trademarks Office kindly told Cupertino lawyers that they cannot have a trademark on “iPad Mini” since the law doesn’t really allow anyone to trademark a description of the product, reports Forbes. 

However, a few years ago Apple decided to stop innovating and start patent trolling, so common sense and legal standards went out the window. Luckily even the hopelessly broken USPTO still has some dignity and it won’t stand for it.

“The term “MINI” in the applied for mark is also descriptive of a feature of applicant’s product.Specifically, the attached evidence shows this wording means “something that is distinctively smaller than other members of its type or class,” said the USPTO. “The word “mini” has been held merely descriptive of goods that are produced and sold in miniature form.”

In other words, no Apple, not even you can go around patenting words.

Additionally, the USPTO pointed out that even “iPad” can be viewed as a descriptive term rather than a trademarked brand. 

“The term “IPAD” is descriptive when applied to applicant’s goods because the prefix “I” denotes“internet.” According to the attached evidence, the letter “i” or “I” used as a prefix and would be understood by the purchasing public to refer to the Internet when used in relation to Internet-related products or services. Applicant’s goods are identified as “capable of providing access to the Internet”. When a mark consists of this prefix coupled with a descriptive word or term for Internet-related goods and/or services, then the entire mark may be considered merely descriptive.”

The iPad, however, is a registered trademark of Apple in the US, along with rounded rectangles and various UI features and designs. The fact that most of them have been around for years didn’t seem to bother the USPTO in the past. Perhaps it just got sick and tired of Apple trying to patent vowels and descriptive terms like “mini”. 

CloudBee boss fears Oracle Java stranglehold

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 04:15 AM PDT

The CEO of CloudBees has warned that Oracle has a stranglehold over the Java community which it believes will do its bidding.

Sacha Labourey, who was also the former CTO said that Oracle's quest for a legal stranglehold on the Java API has nothing to do with compatibility and everything to do with cashing in on Java at the expense of the community.

Writing in Techcrunch, Labourey said that this was becoming more important as the IT industry shifts from packaged software to a cloud-based service model.

Companies are increasingly investing in SaaS, PaaS and IaaS and their operations will depend on third-party APIs. Oracle's attempts to add FUD over the legal standing of API usage in the meantime is going to place a drag on the industry.

Oracle lost its case when it took its strategy to court. A well informed Judge Alsop ruled that third-party APIs were not something that could be patented. However Oracle is appealing. Not only are their fears that Oracle might win, but also that the fact it believes this could stuff up the whole Java development process.

Labourey said it is time to decide who should hold the knife by the handle.

The economy will thrive and be more competitive because companies can easily switch from one service provider to the other by leveraging identical APIs, he said.

However if Oracle gets its way, it could be throttled by allowing vendors to inhibit competition through API lock-in.

Any ruling in favour of Oracle's philosophy will only help a handful of legacy software vendors who want to protect their franchises for a few more years, Laboury added.

What is being decided at the moment will impact software companies for decades as it will apply to the cloud.

What worries Labourey is that the decision is being made now amid heavy lobbying by legacy vendors who are struggling to survive in this whirlwind of change. 

Roadrunner finally dispatched

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 04:07 AM PDT

One of the more successful supercomputers, the Roadrunner, was finally switched off, yesterday meaning that Wile E Coyote can finally cancel his subscription to Acme Computers.

Roadrunner was once the world's fastest supercomputer and looked after the US's nuclear weapons research laboratories at Los Almos.

Although it's among the 25 fastest supercomputers in the world, the researchers who look after it say that there are faster and more power efficient ways of doing the same thing.

But Roadrunner did change the way people thought about building and use a supercomputer.

In 2008, Roadrunner was first to break the elusive petaflop barrier by processing just over a quadrillion mathematical calculations per second. But that was less interesting than the fact that IBM built Roadrunner from commercially available parts.

It took up 278 refrigerator-size racks and these were filled with two different types of processors, all linked together by 55 miles of fibre optic cable.

For the last five years it has modelled viruses and unseen parts of the universe and helped to understand lasers and nuclear weapons work. It ran simulations aimed at ensuring the safety and reliability of the nation's aging arsenal.

Los Alamos is using a supercomputer dubbed Cielo. Installed in 2010, it's slightly faster than Roadrunner, takes up less space and cost half the price.

There was no ceremony when Roadrunner is switched off Sunday, but according to NBC  lab officials will spend the next month experimenting with its operating system and techniques for compressing memory before dismantling begins.

A spokesman for Wile E Coyote said that he has no plans to retire and will probably look for something else just as unobtainable. 

Dell sees the writing on the wall

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 03:44 AM PDT

“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Might, and despair!”
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.  Ozymandias, Shelley

Dell issued an SEC filing late Friday that underscores the challenges it faces. And it also underscores the challenges Intel, Microsoft,  and other companies that made their pile in the X86 market face too.

In the lengthy filing, it appears that last September the special committee, set up to consider Dell going private, said: “…as a result of the Company’s second quarter fiscal year 2013 financial performance and macroeconomic changes affecting the Company’s PC business, including projection for decreased revenue relating to the introduction of the Windows 8 operating system, an unexpected slowdown in Windows 7 upgrades, the growth of tablets, which are sold by the Company in limited quantities, and the growth of smartphones, which the Company does not manufacture, as alternatives to the Company’s core inventory of desktop and laptop PCs.”

The lengthy filing must dismay Dell shareholders and, even worse, dismay the Dell corporate workforce.  Just how can you go pitch for a big win at a large enterprise, knowing that your customer is aware that the future of your company is on the line.

And the filing must also dismay other players in the PC market – all of which have been forced in recent months to closely examine their own navels and to wonder just how they are all going to dig themselves out of this almighty Microsoft-Intel hole.

The proxy filing is here. 

Nvidia’s CEO approached by Intel headhunters

Posted: 01 Apr 2013 02:41 AM PDT

It’s an unlikely thing, we know, but we don’t do April Fool’s jokes. Sources at Intel Santa Clara have assured us that the CEO of Nvidia, Jen-Hsen Huang was approached by headhunters seeking for a replacement for Paul Otellini, who stands down at the chip giant at the end of May.

Jen-Hsen, who worked for AMD in a former incarnation, is on record as saying that if he worked for Intel it would only be as the head of the corporation.

Noted for his incredible work ethic, Jen-Hsen built Nvidia up more or less from scratch. But its unclear how far the approaches went – Intel’s head hunters are more or less scrabbling around trying to find the successor for Otellini.

Pat Gelsinger, chief technology officer at EMC, has signalled that he’s not interested in the job.  Internal candidates include Dadi Perlmutter.

The future CEO of Intel, whoever she or he is, faces a daunting task.  Faced with the fact of convergence and people moving in droves to use smartphones and tablets without any X86 device inside, Intel, basically, needs to be completely re-engineered.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)