Technology

Microsoft Deutschland seems to have accidentally pirated itself by shipping the same copy of Windows XP over and over again. Sort of, anyway. German sites 3Dwin.de and Heise Online report that numerous copies of XP with the same product key have been turning up, and naturally these won’t activate, because they’ve been activated already

Iridium, the US$8 billion low orbit satellite telephony system that collapsed under a mountain of debt in 1999, has been relaunched in Australia and Asia under new ownership

IBM’s eLiza project — short for eLizard — believes that computer systems should be able to work the same way that lizards do. They ought to be able to self-monitor, self-regulate, self-adjust, self-heal and self-optimise. Moreover, such capabilities should span the hardware, storage, operating system, network, messaging and application software environment

Telstra recently announced a shake-up of its residential broadband service, launching a range of pricing plans costing up to $446 per month

Complaints from Sony have led to the removal from the web of unauthorised computer programs that teach the Aibo robot dog to perform new tricks. However, the move has upset many Aibo enthusiasts

Microsoft has told members of its free Hotmail service that their e-mail accounts will be closed if they do not use them at least once a month

Attempts to make Windows XP pirate-proof seem to be failing. Only days after Microsoft launched the new version of its Windows operating system, pirate versions of the software are circulating online and in Asian street markets

A Queensland court has sentenced a local computer hacker to two years jail for breaking into the computer-controlled sewerage system of the local council and deliberately releasing raw sewerage into local creeks and parks

The model train has met the microprocessor. A new generation of digital model trains are helping engineers share the rails, and a more realistic ride

Microsoft’s blockage of competing Web browsers from MSN.com has been good news for some plucky rivals: They are experiencing record traffic and downloads, and a leading Internet authority is heaping scorn on the software giant

Google has been quietly testing a new feature that offers snapshots of Web pages alongside ordinary search results

Some people trying to access Microsoft’s MSN.com with a non-Microsoft browser are finding themselves locked out. Although the software leviathan’s Internet Explorer easily reaches MSN, other browsers — such as Opera, Mozilla and some versions of Netscape — run into trouble

The cookie, a simplistic identification tag that most Internet users unknowingly carry when surfing the Web, runs the risk of being outlawed under a proposed privacy directive from the European Commission

Opponents of junk e-mail are claiming victory in a high-profile spam case this week, saying recent action in the US Supreme Court effectively grants states the right to rein in spammers in the absence of federal anti-spam laws

Online retailer Amazon.com shaved millions of dollars from its technology costs last quarter by switching to the Linux operating system, a disclosure that could provide some guidance for other companies seeking to cut expenses in a stagnant economy

Case studies presented in this year’s Australian Banking Industry Ombudsman annual report could serve as warning of the potential hazards online banking creates for consumers