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O.T. Calif. laptop with personal data of 98,000 recovered
Thu Sep 15, 2005 04:00 PM ET
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A stolen laptop computer holding personal information of more than 98,000 California university students and applicants has been recovered, but it uncertain whether the information had been tapped, the University of California, Berkeley said on Thursday.
The laptop, which stored names and Social Security numbers, disappeared in March from a restricted area of the university's graduate division offices, forcing the university to alert more than 98,000 students and applicants of the theft.
The university said in a statement that a San Francisco man has been arrested and charged by the Alameda County district attorney with possession of stolen property after investigators discovered the laptop had been bought over the Internet by a man in South Carolina.
"UC police note that while a lab analysis could not determine whether the sensitive campus data was ever accessed, nothing in their investigation points to identity theft nor individuals involved in identity theft. It appears ... that the intent was simply to steal and sell a laptop computer," the university said in its statement.
Forensic tests showed files on the laptop had been erased and written over with a new operating system installation, leaving only residual data and making it virtually impossible to determine whether password-protected files had been breached, the university said.
"The San Francisco man who was arrested told police it is his practice to install a new operating system or erase and wipe clean old data from a computer before posting it for sale online," the university said.
dude_danny
Thanks Unclevername! This quote by Steven really caught my eye.
Sprague: Really, the benefit is an embedded security capability that's the same on everybody's computer, because this is an industry standard that's in the process of being deployed on really every manufacturers machine out there. So the probability that ultimately someone like an eBay or Citibank or the major corporations in the world would use it, I think is very high. And so the ability for me to have a machine that I carry with me, and I can certainly populate my credentials to multiple computers, the opportunity is to provide my relationship across a very broad level of services.
dude_danny
Steven Sprague is Guest on Nationally-Aired Business Talk Radio Show
http://www.wave.com/news/press_archive/05/050908_businesstalkradio.html
Lee, MA - September 08, 2005 -- Steven Sprague, president and CEO of Wave Systems Corp., will be a guest on the Computer America radio show on the Business Talk Radio Network aired nationally on Friday, September 9 from 10:00 PM to 11:00 PM. He will be interviewed by Carey Holzman and Craig Crossman, both nationally known business and high-tech journalists.
To find a local radio station which will be carrying this show and for more information please visit http://www.businesstalkradio.net/zipsearch.shtml.
dude_danny
Thanks Barge for the post...Interesting...how this will all unfold...Wave is definitely in the SWEET spot...
dude_danny
Infineon chips in with Xbox 360 security part
Tuesday, August 30 2005
by The Register
Sorry if posted
http://www.enn.ie/frontpage/news-9634362.html
Infineon will provide memory chips and a wireless controller for Microsoft's Xbox 360 console, the two companies both said yesterday, but it's the "advanced security chip" it will also produce that will cause more controversy.
Infineon said the security chip was "a custom implementation of Infineon's proven authentication technology".
That comment is likely to refer to its Trusted Platform Module (TPM) -- the chip which, incidentally, was located within Apple's developer-oriented Intel-based Power Macs and suggested as the foundation for Apple's scheme to stop PC owners installing Mac OS X on non-Apple hardware.
Microsoft may be looking to Infineon's TPM technology to provide comparable protection for the 360. Infineon's TPM 1.2 chip supports the Trusted Computing Group's trusted platform 1.2 specification, but it also delivers a variety of security features, including ACE with RSA support for 2048-bit keys, hardware acceleration for SHA-1 hashing, true random number generation -- useful, we'd suggest, for gameplay as much as it is for security -- and support for Intel's upcoming LaGrande Technology, though that's less useful for the PowerPC-based 360.
How many of these features make it to the custom 360 TPM chip remains to be seen -- certainly neither Infineon nor Microsoft provided any guidance on functionality. Nor would they say anything about the financial side of the agreement.
The Xbox 360 is set to ship in the US in October for USD300-USD400, followed by a European launch in November priced at STG210-280/EUR300-400.
dude_danny
Nokia/OS
Sorry if posted.
http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kraatika/Slides/Kimmo@IWWAN2005.pdf
http://www.cwc.oulu.fi/iwct2005/slides/RaatikainenIWCT2005.pdf
dude_danny
Vista Feature Protects Data from Reboots
By John Pallatto
September 1, 2005
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1855330,00.asp
A new technology built into Windows Vista that automatically saves unstored documents when IT managers run patch installations will be a boon to PC users who never turn off their PCs, industry analysts said Thursday.
ADVERTISEMENT The technology, which Microsoft has code-named Freeze Dry, is designed to save data and application states when IT runs patching routines overnight and on weekends.
Users who leave their machines on constantly are in danger of losing data if a patch routine requires a reboot. Freeze Dry will ensure that users will be able to recover the saved data when they go back to work.
The "Freeze Dry" feature "will take advantage of the restart manager in Windows Vista," said Neil Charney, public relations director in Microsoft's Windows Client Division in a prepared statement.
"Windows Vista's restart manager reduces the number of locked files during the patch process and reduces reboots by releasing files that need to be updated during OS and application patch installation," Charney's statement said.
One of the new reliabililty features built into Vista frees users from having to restart Windows Vista when installing or updating an application.
"Some updates can install a new version of an updated file even if the old file is currently in use by another application," Charney said. "Windows Vista automatically replaces the file the next time the application is restarted," he said.
Furthermore, Windows Vista is smart enough to "determine which application is using a file that needs to be updated, save the application's data, close the application, update the file, and then restart the application," Charney explained.
"It sounds like a very good idea," said Ed Bott, author and Windows pundit who is the editor of www.edbott.com, a news and blogging site that covers Windows and other Microsoft applications.
"The infrastructure already seems to be there in the Hibernation feature included with all versions of Windows XP," Bott said.
However, Bott contends it's not just for organizations that have an IT department that can manage the patching process.
Click here to read about the early beta version of the WinFS file system that was originally intended to be built into the production release of Windows Vista.
"I'm surprised they're positioning its benefits in managed corporate environments, because it seems equally useful for home users and small businesses," he said.
The Freeze Dry technology appears to be applying the restart manager technology in a way that will appeal to PC users, noted Mike Cherry, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft research firm.
"People are concerned about the number of times their system has to reboot. That's because there are a substantial number of people who want to leave their systems running all the time," Cherry said.
Such technology would seem to be even more valuable for servers, Cherry said. But he believes it's just as valuable for desktops and any PC that is subject to the automatic update service that Microsoft has initiated this year.
Microsoft plans to ship Windows Vista, the successor to the current Windows XP version, by the end of 2006.
Requiring at least 50 percent fewer reboots was one of the key design goals that Microsoft announced for Windows Vista.
Some of the other design goals include the ability to launch applications 15 percent faster than Windows XP does, enable PCs to boot 50 percent faster than they currently do, and make it as easy as possible for companies to upgrade to the new Windows version.
dude_danny
RE: xxxxcslewis, Great find!... EMBASSY TRUST SUITE: UNSURPASSED SECURITY ...AWESOME...
Thanks,
dude_danny
Doma: Great find! Display looks great!
Thanks,
dude_danny
PS2 vs. XBOX (security features)
http://www.joystiq.com/entry/1234000620030488/
Will Sony Kill the Cell Chip with Security?
Posted Feb 5, 2005, 3:28 AM ET by Ben Striegel
Related entries: PlayStation 3
The link takes you to an article on ZDNet concerning the fundamentals and incredible potential of the PS3’s upcoming Cell chip. Apparently the Cell chip can not only be used in computers and gaming consoles, but in such things as televisions, cell phones, web servers, refrigerators, milk cartons, cybernetic assassins, William Shatner, and the like.
However, at one point the article briefly discusses the security measures that Sony has passed on into its young prodigy. Most of these security measures are in place to prevent — surprise surprise — piracy. The article goes on to say:
”A lot of (piracy) techniques rely on one application being able to access the same memory region as another application,” Halfhill said. “With Cell, you can’t do that because memory regions are locked down by the application.”
The trick, Halfhill said, will be finding a way to implement such security measures without drastically undercutting chip performance. “What they’re doing to fence off this memory requires a lot of memory access,” he said. “It looks to me like a pretty cumbersome system. There’s got to be some performance hit, and they’re going to have to optimize the final design to get around that.”
The keyword here is “drastically.” Now, let’s not be naive. Sony’s been an all-around prick about security in the past, and just recently have they begun to open up their technology to more widely accepted formats (the ATRAC vs. MP3 argument readily comes to mind). Now certainly, with all the recent incredible estimations of the Cell’s PS3 capabilities popping up, Sony wouldn’t be willing to risk being called a liar again by restricting its fundamental hardware with security measures, would they? And even if they did, is the Cell so uber-powerful that it wouldn’t even matter?
http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/08/10/news_6130691.html
Microsoft is looking to squeeze a profit out of the gaming market with a new royalty program tied to the release of its next Xbox console.
Only accessory makers that get Microsoft's blessing--by forking over a slice of their sales to the software maker--will be able to produce Xbox 360 gamepads, steering wheels, joysticks, and other controllers.
In addition, to ensure that only authorized products connect to the new console, Microsoft is adding a security mechanism that will be available exclusively to those who sign a deal with the company. The Xbox 360 console, announced in May, is slated to go on sale this holiday season.
The new royalty program could be part of Microsoft's goal of turning a profit with the Xbox 360, something the company was not able to do with the prior generation console, said IDC analyst Schelley Olhava.
"Microsoft has made it very clear that it's all about profitability" with this generation of console, Olhava said. "Maybe this is a way they are looking to make additional revenue off of the Xbox [360]." But, she said, the move could also be intended as "a way to ensure quality products make it out the door," reasoning that makers willing to pony up a share of the proceeds would be the kind of companies that make more-reliable gear.
Microsoft declined to comment on the royalty structure for the program or outline how it compares with the logo-only program for the original Xbox. "We want to make sure the customers are getting the best experience possible," a company representative told CNET News.com.
According to a contract between Microsoft and Mad Catz Interactive, the software giant will get a share of the wholesale revenue generated by the accessory maker's Xbox 360 add-ons. An edited version of the contract was filed by Mad Catz as part of the company's annual report to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The edited document does not state the percentage cut that Microsoft will get from the accessory sales.
The decision to seek royalties from console controllers is not unlike a move Apple Computer made earlier this year in which it sought to get as much as a 10 percent cut from iPod accessory makers that wanted to display Apple's "Made for iPod" logo. The move was referred to by some analysts as tantamount to a "tax" on the iPod economy.
The Mad Catz agreement, which refers to the Xbox 360 console by its Xenon code name, also hints at the type of security that Microsoft may use to ensure that third parties work with it to produce Xbox 360 add-ons.
"'Security Feature' means Microsoft's proprietary protocol used to validate authentic devices on the Xenon platform as implemented in a Xenon Chip or other implementation method designated by Microsoft in writing," according to the Mad Catz agreement.
Programs that seek royalties from accessory makers are not unprecedented. Indeed, game console makers make most of their money off of similar royalties charged on sales of the game software that runs on their machines. Nintendo pioneered the "Seal of Quality" years ago as a way to nail down game-related revenue. But the moves from Apple and Microsoft appear aimed at expanding the concept.
At the same time, the software maker's move carries some risk, Olhava said, noting that some of the appeal for third parties is the ability to offer controllers cheaper than the official Microsoft-branded accessories.
"There could be less opportunities for third-party peripheral makers, just because the market opportunities may not be there, because they cannot bring out products that are priced low enough," Olhava said.
It's unclear whether Microsoft's licensing plans will affect the market for third-party devices. The Microsoft representative would not say how the company expects the more stringent requirements to impact the market for third-party accessories.
Companies that have made accessories in the past have not outlined any plans for the Xbox 360. A representative for Logitech declined to comment on the company's policies, but said, "We plan to have at least one product at launch."
A Radica Games representative declined to comment, while representatives for Thrustmaster and Mad Catz did not return calls seeking comment.
However, Mad Catz has said in regulatory filings that developing accessories for the new Xbox console is one of the company's "key initiatives" for the coming fiscal year.
The Mad Catz license agreement also puts limits on the type of controllers that third parties can make. Most notably, the add-on products can only be of the corded variety, while Microsoft itself is supporting wireless controllers.
In addition to the restrictions on wireless products, the Mad Catz contract excludes light guns, memory units, hard drives, and cheat cards. Licensed peripherals include gamepads, steering wheels, arcade sticks, flight sticks, and dance pads.
Microsoft declined to say if others might be licensed to produce such things or whether the company had separate deals for wireless add-ons.
dude_danny
3rd International IEEE Conference on Industrial Informatics
INDIN’05
Sorry if posted...
http://www.indin2005.curtin.edu.au/docs/050309%20-%20Call%20for%20Papers_20.pdf
Track 8 - Trust, Security, Risk and Privacy for
Industrial Informatics
Chairs: Professor Elizabeth Chang Curtin
University of Technology, AUSTRALIA
Ernesto Damiani, University of Milan, ITALY
- Security systems, Trusted systems
- Privacy safeguarding and policies
- Risk and safety management
- Mobile communications security
- Secure commercial applications
- Cyber security
- Privacy and anonymity
- Public key crypto applications
- Secure e-commerce protocols
- Secure service access and delivery
- Authentication and authorization
- Computer forensics and fraud detection
- Trust, trust models and reputation models
- The Trust Ontology
dude_danny
RE: OKnPV and Doma, hopefully we will hear more details from Gateway in the very near future...
Thanks,
dude_danny
RE: Vacationhouse, thanks for the url. It's spreading like wildfire...I believe that major univeristies like Penn State will be offering degrees in Trusted Computing very soon...Regards, dude_danny
More from China/Tsinghua University/TCG/TPM stuff
Pages 26-
http://www.jaist.ac.jp/jaist-coe/eng/activities_report/seminars_list/coe_seminars/COEseminar050720.p...
Tsinghua University was established in 1911 originally as "Tsinghua Xuetang," a preparatory school for students who would be sent by the government to study in universities in the United States. The school was renamed "Tsinghua School" in 1912. The university section was instituted in 1925 and undergraduate students were then enrolled. The name "National Tsinghua University" was adopted in 1928, and in 1929 the Research Institute was set up.
dude_danny
TPM news spreading in China...
The credible computation leads the entire profession.
Author: Yang A ZhaoSource: Chinese computer newspaperChief-editor: Wang Dan [ 2005-08-01 11:41 ]
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=zh-CN&u=http://biz.chinabyte.com/365/2052865....
The recommendation reading newest renewal continues to read the correlation subject edition newly does reading rank discussion this article discusses this article correlation product
[ Leads reads ] the computer profession thinks TPM (Trusted Platform Module, credible platform module) is one kind of essential security module, it may cause the computer to exempt virus's harm.
数码精品,购物零风险 同方笔记本新品体验
“90天”征服女人! 性感女鞋挡不住的诱惑
At present, the entire PC industry all joined Trusted the Computing work team, most plans at first all were propose by Microsoft, however started from the year before last, Intel walked in the front row. The computer profession thinks TPM (Trusted Platform Module, credible platform module) is one kind of essential security module, it may cause the computer to exempt virus's harm. All includes V chip on like each television which one uses in to inspect same, most enterprises' PC machine all should include one TPM chip, uses in to save adds the dense key and the foundation numeral signature. But, Microsoft postponed the TPM promoted plan.
The last month, Intel promoted AMT (Active Management Technology, active management technology), the IT department used this kind of technology even may carry on the control to the close machine computer. Next year, Microsoft's Longhorn will increase Secure Startup, this will be one kind based on the TPM method, might prevent the loading not essential procedure. To 2007, Intel and AMD CUP all will contain the hardware hypothesized technology, this kind of technology will establish the safety zone periphery the not safe application, finally will contain the Windows operating system.
The TPM appearance reason is because is not reliable based on the software security dense key. Looks from certain aspects, the dense key must increase to the memory or the memory on the hard disk, this makes them to be very easy to receive viral, Trojans and other malicious procedures attacks. The corresponding solution is downloads the encryption and the decipher and concentrates it on the TPM chip. Cooperates besides the processor except the secret cipher, TPM also includes founds the dense key the random number generator, as well as uses in the dense key to save above the chip dodges saves. Theoretically looks like, this kind of security dense key may resist any software attack, because explains their only method is the chip physics separation. Only has works as when the secret cipher, the fingerprint or the examination other methods are correct, TPM only then can confirm some user and carry on the decipher. But, it also may carry on the confirmation to certain procedures, namely it may according to carry on the encryption by some method logarithm and cause it not to be possible mutually to use.
TPM uses in when signs one's name, function is more formidable. Is called in one kind " proves " in the process, it may examine the PC machine hardware and the software condition, confirms one special procedure whether moves. The long term plan is uses in the network it turns on the control, this and the existing some software system structures are similar, but it will be safer.
Although had TPM the PC machine appearance already has three years long time, but most applied still maintains at the theory stage. But, IBM, HP and other some PC merchant product TPM has taken in Windows XP the document and the folder encryption substitution plan, or carries on the encryption to the secret cipher visits the network resources.
But, used TPM or the encryption software user very are still few, its part of reason was because this technology did not have prepare, the early chip speed was obvious slowly to Pentium or the Athlon chip, moreover one year ago promoted many chips do not conform to now standard TPM 1.2. The newest edition includes some improvements, the most important improvement is it may carry on the backup on another TPM to some personal dense keys. (Dense key itself already carried on the encryption in the transmission process, therefore also could not read out these dense keys through software.
Although Microsoft already started to develop Palladium, but the now does not have any product to be published. The estimate promotes in 2007 new version Windows in product Longhorn will include to the local TPM support, but will plan the most characteristics will not all have contained in Palladium. Later, Palladium will change the name is NGSCB (Next Generation Secure Computing Base, next generation of safe computation foundation), and the plan will surmount TPM in two main aspects, namely procedure isolation and I/O encryption. Encryption I/O will need the new hardware and turns on through Nexus, Nexus will be one kind the operating system which together will move with Windows.
dude_danny
AMD leaves Lenovo out of anti-trust complaint
By Sumner Lemon, IDG News Service, 06/29/05
Sorry if posted.
Advanced Micro Devices' 48-page anti-trust complaint against rival Intel reads like a list of major players in the global PC industry, with one glaring exception: there's no mention of China's Lenovo Group.
Advertisement:
Filed on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, the AMD complaint alleged that Intel used its monopoly position to stifle competition and maintain its dominance of the microprocessor market. Intel has denied the allegations.
To make its case, AMD alleges that Intel repeatedly used discriminatory financial incentives and threats - which AMD called "knee-capping" - to keep PC makers from doing business with AMD. The allegations involve some of the biggest names in the PC industry, including Dell, HP, Acer, Sony, Gateway and IBM, among many others.
But the omission of Lenovo from the complaint - apart from the references to IBM's PC business, which Lenovo acquired earlier this year - stands out because AMD has done slightly better in China than in other countries, and Lenovo is its most prominent customer there.
AMD had a market share of around 10% in Asia during 2004, compared to 11% in China, according to Kitty Fok, vice president of IDC Asia-Pacific Ltd.'s Central Research Group. AMD sold 1.7 million processors in China during 2004, making the country its largest Asian market, she said.
AMD executives were not immediately available to comment on why Lenovo was not mentioned in the complaint or whether it will be subpoenaed to provide details of its relationship with Intel in China. But the history of Lenovo in recent years demonstrates that AMD can win significant business from an important Intel customer under the right circumstances.
Lenovo, which was once known as Legend Holdings, is China's largest PC maker and the third-largest PC vendor in the world. The company started selling PCs in 1990 and introduced the first Pentium-based PC made by a Chinese company in 1993. By 1998, Lenovo had become Intel's biggest customer in China and relations between the two companies were strong.
"Lenovo has always had a very good relationship with Intel," said Helen Lau, an analyst at Celestial Asia Securities Holdings, in Hong Kong.
Things were so cozy that when Lenovo produced its millionth PC in 1998, former Intel Chairman Andy Grove attended a ceremony to mark the occasion and took the PC back to Intel, where it became part of the company's museum collection.
Throughout this period and beyond, Lenovo exclusively sold PCs based on Intel processors and was widely considered to be one of Intel's most important customers because of its leading position in China. The strength of that relationship was likely based on the volume of sales that Intel did with Lenovo, and could be compared to relationships between Intel and other large PC vendors, Fok said.
However, Lenovo broke with its long-standing practice of selling only Intel-based computers in June 2004 and introduced a line of consumer PCs based on AMD's Athlon XP and Athlon64 processors. Over time, that has expanded to include a line of desktop PCs designed for corporate customers.
Lenovo's initial decision to use chips from AMD came during a difficult period for both companies. Lenovo was in the midst of a corporate restructuring plan to recover from a failed attempt to diversify its business scope. At the same time, HP and Dell were gaining market share on Lenovo. Meanwhile, Intel was scrambling to deal with a series of product missteps and its product roadmap was in disarray.
In the midst of these developments, Lenovo opted to use chips from AMD because they were less expensive than processors from Intel, according to Lau. "It let them go after the low end of the market," she said.
The decision to offer AMD-based computers gave an immediate boost to Lenovo, particularly in small cities and rural areas where PC sales are rising fastest in China and customers are particularly price-sensitive. At a press conference in Hong Kong during November 2004, Yang Yuanqing, Lenovo's current chairman, told reporters that AMD-based PCs accounted for around 20% of the company's total PC shipments. "That's quite a lot," Lau said.
While Lenovo has had success with low-end PCs based on processors from AMD, Lau doesn't expect to see the company start using AMD chips in high-end PCs or servers. "They will still rely on Intel, their long-term partner, for their high-end products," she said.
Whether or not AMD will claim that Lenovo faced retaliation from Intel for selling AMD-based PCs is not clear. AMD's complaint makes no mention of any such incident. However, the complaint does allege that other major PC vendors, including Gateway and HP, faced threats of retaliation from Intel for doing business with AMD.
Lenovo declined to comment on how Intel executives reacted last year when informed that the company planned to introduce a line of AMD-based PCs.
dude_danny
O.T.Trusted Grid and P2P Computing:
http://gridsec.usc.edu/hwang/TalksandPresentations/ChinaVisitHwang_June2005.pdf
dude_danny
Re: Foam, Good find!
Thanks,
dude_danny
http://www.hardmac.com/niouzcontenu.php?date=2005-08-10
Interesting...
Initial problems
Several system prevent running OSX x86 on any PC:
1. TPM chips from Intel
2. SSE3-enable processor
3. GMA900-based graphic card to natively support Quartz.
First solution: VMWare
simply install VMare on ANYPC, and this application will emulate what needs to be (GMA900, SSE3 ...)
Of course this is only a short-term solution, since it is rather instable, and particularly slow.
since this morning one can find on P2P network an already configures VMWare image OSX x86.
Patches
Several solution have been found. The TPM is cracked, and no one needs it anymore. The SSE3 requirement, can be bypassed via quite complex modifications, and this case several kernels will not work since they REALLY need SSE3. A patch for those kernels is being prepared allowing SSE3 instructions to be translated into their corresponding SSE2 ones.
GMA900 can be avoided by modifying CoreGrapics, patches are also available.
the best solution: the right hardware
best and the most secure solution is a motherboard from Intel: D915 GA, GL or GU :
http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/ux/
Excellent results have been obtained with Gigabytes GA-8I915P motherboard card:
http://www.giga-byte.com/Motherboard/Products/Products_GA-8I915P%20Duo-A.htm
Users with such a motherboard and a Pentium 4 will be able to install MacOSX x86 with the patch for Rosetta (without the patch if you choose a SSE3-enable Pentium4).
Be careful not to use any HD in RAID settings, otherwise it will crash your system.
Use a USB keyboard, PS2 port is not really well supported.
First tests
First tests have shown that MacOSX x86 on PC is very reactive, no crash, iTunes is running perfectly, with Rosetta.
Digital camera work perfectly with iPhoto, as well as digital camcorder with iMovie.
Another solution
The last solution is based on installation of Darwin 8.1 on an HD from a PC.
Then, install the HD in a Mac, then installed all packs from the installation CD of MacOSX x86 via a software such as pacifist.
Then apply all patched, and place back the HD in the PC and reboot.
This method seems to work well on most Dell Dimensions.
dude_danny
RE: OknPV
Other expected details at the show include further disclosures about the next-generation Centrino platform, expected in early 2006, and updates to Intel's plans for home-entertainment PCs.
It'll be interesting to see how/if this involves trusted computing and how much Apple may be involved with intel's plan for entertainment PCs.
Thanks,
dude_danny
Peer to Peer
Access Control Architecture
Using Trusted Computing Technology
http://www.list.gmu.edu/confrnc/sacmat/2005-tc.pdf
Sorry if posted.
CONCLUSION
"We present an architecture with trusted computing technology to
support peer-to-peer based access control. Different from most traditional access control models and systems that focus on user property based policies, our approach considers the integrity and trust of platforms and applications that are used by a user to access an object,which is vulnerable from increasing software-based attacks inclient platforms. By using proposed trusted computing technologies,a reference monitor in a platform can act as an agent of an object owner to enforce access control policies, which states that an object can only be accessed in a genuine platform with applications in valid states, such as integrity and configuration. General policies with user security attributes such as role-based access control
can also be supported in our architecture by binding identity
and attribute in a certificate and being protected by trusted hardware Applications of the architecture in various domains show flexibility of deployment and enhancement of overall security in client platforms."
dude_danny
Application of Trusted Computing to
Secure Video Broadcasts to Mobile
Receivers
Technical Report
RHUL–MA–2005–8
14 June 2005
Sorry if posted...first time reading this...Very interesting, indeed.
http://www.ma.rhul.ac.uk/techreports/2005/RHUL-MA-2005-8.pdf
dude_danny
O.T. OS X for Intel Hacked
http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/announcements/os-x-for-intel-hacked-116977.php
After our previous Goatse-tastic encounter attempts to install OS X on an Intel we decided to leave the hax0ring to the pros and eagerly await a confirmed functional install.
The good news is that there is a confirmed hack of the Intel authentication scheme that is used in the new Mac OS X for Intel. Basically the new OS X for Intel has some special electronic gizmos that allow for OS X to be installed on those Mactel machines and not any other x86 machine. The big news is that some people managed to crack the authentication scheme to allow for the OS X for Intel to be installed on any x86 machine. And the word on the street is that it was installed on a PC notebook.
dude_danny
Dell profit rises on notebook strength
Thu Aug 11, 2005 05:52 PM ET
http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=9352555&src=rss/businessNe...
By Duncan Martell
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Dell Inc. (DELL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , the world's No. 1 personal computer maker, on Thursday forecast quarterly revenue below market expectations on weakness in U.S. government sales and low-priced consumer PCs, sending its shares tumbling 8 percent.
The disappointing forecast overshadowed a 28 percent increase in second-quarter profit, helped by a surge in U.S. notebook computer demand and market share gains.
The drop in Dell shares was the largest single session decline since September 2001.
Dell Chief Executive Officer Kevin Rollins said its results and the current quarter forecast were hampered by weakness in two U.S. segments -- government and the low-end of the consumer PC market, where it had been too aggressive in cutting prices.
"That is taking the edge off of what we were expecting in terms of higher growth rates," Rollins told reporters in a conference call after the quarterly report.
In addition to Dell, shares of Intel Corp. (INTC.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , which counts Dell as its largest customer, fell by 2 percent in after-hours trade. Dell's comments about a slow government market echoes those made by Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , which earlier this week also cited slower federal government spending.
"The guidance is a disappointment," said Cindy Shaw, an analyst at Moors & Cabot Capital Markets. "They're apparently not expecting revenue growth really to pick up."
Dell, based in Round Rock, Texas, forecast revenue growth of 13 percent to 16 percent year over year in the current quarter, lower than the 17 percent growth currently expected by Wall Street analysts, according to Reuters Estimates.
Net income for its fiscal second quarter ended July 29 rose to $1.02 billion, or 41 cents per diluted share, compared with $799 million, or 31 cents, in the year-earlier quarter. Excluding a tax benefit, Dell said it earned 38 cents per share.
Analysts on average were looking for a profit of 38 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.
Revenue for the second quarter rose 15 percent to $13.4 billion from $11.7 billion. Analysts were looking for revenue, on average, of $13.71 billion, an increase of 17 percent. Continued ...
dude_danny
O.T.Intel's CFO tells analyst he's upbeat on business
Thu Aug 11, 2005 02:07 PM ET
http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=9350417&src=rss/technolo...
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Intel Corp. (INTC.O: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Financial Officer Andy Bryant is "upbeat" on the technology market and believes the company's cash holdings are "a little high," according to an interview with Citigroup published on Thursday.
"We have a board meeting coming up," Bryant said, according to the research note, adding that "cash is a little high ... we'd like to see some continued growth in dividends using buybacks as a balancer."
Bryant also said that he believes the technology market is "still strong" and that "I don't see signs of weakness. I don't see a trouble spot."
In a note to clients, analyst Glen Yeung said the comments were made during an interview with Citigroup Investment Research on Aug. 9. An audio recording of the interview was made available online, but accessible only to Citigroup clients.
dude_danny
O.T. AMD's Ambitious Growth Goals
August 10, 2005
By David Needle
Remember the TV show "thirtysomething"? That might be an appropriate name for AMD's longterm goals. The chipmaker aims to improve its share of the market for business desktops and servers to 30 percent by 2009, according to AMD's vice president of commercial business, Ben Williams.
AMD (Quote, Chart) believes market share figures from IDC due later this month will show its share of the server market has already grown to about 10 percent, more than double what it was a year ago. Mercury Research reported last month that AMD had an 11.2 percent share of the x86 market for servers in the second quarter (the research firm did not include servers based on other processors such as Sun's Ultrasparc).
Still, a jump from 10 percent to 30 percent by 2009 is ambitious since AMD will have to go through Intel to get there.
To reach its goal, AMD will have to enlist more partners like HP. IDC's server report in May showed HP was able to sell enough servers based on AMD's Opteron chip to become the only top systems vendor in the 4-way x86 server space to grow revenue year-over-year.
Another factor will be the expected growth in server blades (define). In an interview with internetnews.com, Williams, said AMD is poised to take its market share for blades above the 18 percent it currently holds worldwide. HP, IBM and Egenera offer AMD-based blades. Egenera has established itself with sales to Wall Street companies.
IDC believes blades, which cost less, and consume less power than traditional box-based servers, could account for as much as 20 percent of the overall server market by next year. Williams said Operton-based blades stack up well versus Intel alternatives. In one case he said a customer compared installing AMD Opteron-based blades versus blades based on Intel's Xeon and found it took 600 Xeon blades to match the performance of 400 Operton blades, he said.
Part of AMD's growth strategy is to focus on specific markets. "We already are known in the oil and gas and digital media industries," said Williams."Now we are going after transportation, telecommunications and manufacturing."
Williams said AMD will work with experts in these areas to get AMD a bigger presence and mindshare and also invest more with system integrators that sell to those markets. This is the latest move in AMD's quest to garner more of the lucrative enterprise space after years of largely focusing on the desktop consumer market.
In other AMD news, AMD announced SimNow, a 64-bit simulator that provides software developers with access to features of AMD's next-generation processor technologies, including AMD's virtualization technology, code-named Pacifica. The news came out of the LinuxWorld trade show.
Pacifica is AMD's plan to run software in its computer chips to forge virtual partitions that can render multiple operating systems and applications on one computer.
SimNow is designed to enable software developers to emulate single- and dual-core AMD Athlon 64 and AMD Opteron processor -based systems that run commercial operating systems and applications, and to allow them to write and test software in advance of the commercial availability of processors implementing the features.
"The SimNow simulator is a significant factor behind superior SUSE Linux support of the AMD Athlon 64 and AMD Opteron processors," Eric Anderson, vice president of engineering for Novell, siad in a statement. "Not only does it allow us to develop for new chip designs prior to their physical creation, it also provides us with important debug capabilities, accelerating the process."
Pacifica is not expected until the first half of next year. SimNow is slated to be available for download August 22. AMD's chief competition in hardware virtualization is Intel, which will offer its own brand of Virtualization Technology (formerly called Vanderpool) later this year ahead of AMD.
dude_danny
RE: Pickle Power, Yes, that line was classic. I was thinking the same thing.
dude_danny
O.T. Cisco buying Nokia?
Nokia Shares Up on Takeover Plan Report By MATTI HUUHTANEN, Associated Press Writer
2 hours, 15 minutes ago
HELSINKI, Finland - Nokia Corp. shares rose Monday after a report that Cisco Systems Inc. was interested in an acquisition in the wireless market and that the Finnish mobile phone maker might be a target.
ADVERTISEMENT
Shares shot up 3.3 percent to 13.35 euros (US16.51 euros) and closed at 13.06 euros ($16.15), 1 percent higher than Friday, following the report on Sunday in The Business paper in Britain.
The paper, without citing its sources, said that San Jose, California-based Cisco was considering buying a wireless company, and that Nokia had been identified as the most likely target. Both companies declined to comment to The Associated Press on the report.
"We don't comment on any sort of rumor, ever," said Cisco spokeswoman Elizabeth McNichols.
Speculation about takeovers and possible mergers have been rife since Nokia became the world's largest mobile phone maker in the mid-1990s. Nokia watchers in Helsinki dismissed the latest report.
"Most likely, it's just a rumor ... based on unfounded market rumors circulating on the Internet," said Erik Suckdorff, an analyst at FIM Securities.
Hannu Rauhala from Opstock said such an acquisition was unlikely.
"It's difficult to see that any other company would be able to get more efficiency out of Nokia than the company itself," Rauhala said. "The markets and products are so different (for the two companies) that it's difficult to see any possible synergy benefits."
Nokia announced last week that its longtime CEO Jorma Ollila, who steered the company from making consumer electronics and cables to become the world's No. 1 mobile-phone maker, would retire on June 1. In a move that signaled continuity, Nokia said he will be replaced by Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, the head of its mobile phones unit, who belonged to Ollila's core team that transformed the small Finnish company into an international player.
Nokia, based in Espoo just outside Helsinki, has sales in 130 countries and about 55,500 employees.
dude_danny
OknPV: Very interesting indeed!
Thanks,
dude_danny
Google Video + TVTonic
Sorry if posted.
http://www.eirikso.com/2005/06/27/google-video-and-media-center-edition/
Now, I have some suggestions on this one! John Battelle just announced that Google will launch an in-browser video playback feature based on the open source VLC media player. That should be very interesting for both content creators and the people making media center software.
Google have some plans
They have already launched their video search function and made available a video upload function. They are working on a payment system and now they will announce a player. According to John Battelle they will also include their player in the open source program called Google Code. In other words, the system will be open for people to make all kinds of players and boxes utilizing the content that builds up in the Google video archives. That will also lead to systems that can read video from both Google and other video distribution systems.
Considering the way a media center has accelerated my use of high quality video from my computer, a media center front end to Google Video would be very interesting. Because of Google’s open approach, I guess someone will make that kind of frontend for Google Video quite fast. Including a plugin for Microsoft’s Media Center Edition.
VLC Media Player is by far the most platform independent media player out there. The only problem is the fact that it could seem slightly difficult to set up and the GUI itself a bit too complicated for the average user. A version from Google could fix this. Use the very powerful core in the VLC Player and build a user friendly interface on top of it.
The fact that the VLC player is platform independent should also make it very interesting for large content producers and public broadcasters. Quite a bit of the dedicated set top boxes for TV out there run Lunix as the operating system. To make a frontend for Google Video on a cheap set top box seems to be an interesting option as well.
But what about content?
Huge amounts of crap from individuals all over the globe is not something that will draw a big audience. Considering the quite paranoid approach the big studios have when it comes to online content I think this will be a big challenge for this project. Of course it could be a big oportunity for indie and long tail content, but what about Hollywood and the block busters? Could this at some point help prevent situations like this? The question of DRM will be interesting in this setting.
The ultimate solution
Now, let’s combine some solutions. We know that bandwidth will be a problem. Even for Google. Unicast streaming of high quality video to huge amounts of people is expensive and difficult. And, even if Google could make the fattest pipe ever out of their servers and distribute mirrors all over the world, they will still face parts of the network that they can not control. An option where you actually download the clip and watch it from your hard drive would be interesting. In other words:
Google Video + TVTonic
Then, having Google Video nicely integrated with the rest of my content would be nice. As already mentioned, a media center frontend will show up sooner or later. Fine. Google Video from the remote in the living room. But I have been writing about placeshifting here before. I want the Google Video content available fast and easy from the interface I use when travelling. Today I use ORB to reach my content from all my devices. So:
Google Video + ORB
…or… the VLC Player also includes a streaming server. Could this be some serious competition for ORB? I have Google Desktop Search already installed on my computer. So, what if Google expands desktop search to help me get my content available on other devices. And I repeat: VLC Media player is multi platform already…
I will follow this closely. Both because of my general interest for these issues and because of my profession as a project manager for the development department of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation.
Update:
This news story from John Battelle has also reached BoingBoing, and Thomas Hawk has an interesting addition: he wants the Internet Archive in his Media Center as well. And he is not alone! That would be great. What if Google added all the content from the Internet Archive in their system?
This entry was posted on Monday, June 27th, 2005 at 3:45 pm and is filed under Windows MCE, Media, Movies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
dude_danny
O.T. EU seeks to regulate television on the net
By Dan Sabbagh, Media Editor
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9071-1690352,00.html
EUROPE wants to begin to regulate the internet for the first time by introducing controversial rules to cover television online.
Brussels is considering regulating areas such as taste and decency, accuracy and impartiality for internet broadcasters. More broadly, it is thinking about relaxing rules governing the frequency and amount of advertising on television.
The proposals are expected to prompt an immediate battle because Ofcom, the media regulator, believes that traditionally strict broadcast regulations should not be extended to the internet.
Viviane Reding, the European Information Commissioner, will set out the idea today as part of the biggest revision of European television regulation since 1989.
She will unveil five “issues papers”, one of which will discuss the impact of technological change since then, and conclude that “non-linear audio-visual content” — television downloads — needs to be subject to regulation.
Some of the changes mooted, such as the extension of rules governing the protection of children, are unlikely to be controversial, but others, such as the need for internet broadcasters to provide a statutory right of reply, are likely to provoke fierce debate.
Tim Suter, Ofcom’s partner for content and standards, said: “Whatever happens, it is not appropriate to take the set of rules that apply to television and apply them to other media. Where possible, we should be looking at self-regulation or co-regulation, because that is something that can deliver the goods.”
The idea is that any website trying to make money from broadcasting television — perhaps by providing video clips in addition to text — could be brought into the net. However, Commission officials say that the rules for websites will be less strict than those currently applying to the BBC.
Today, television delivered via the internet is unregulated in Britain. There is, therefore, nobody with legal power to force an internet broadcaster to respect rules governing accuracy and impartiality or taste and decency that apply to all other analogue and digital broadcasters.
Home Choice, the leading internet television broadcaster, has formed its own self-regulatory body, which mirrors most of the existing rules. Ofcom believes that this approach is sufficient for responsible broadcasters, while any others are likely to operate offshore from jurisdictions beyond the European Union’s reach.
The new rules will come out of a rewrite of Television Without Frontiers, the 1989 European directive that set the benchmark for television regulation.
Although the issues papers to be published tomorrow will not contain firm conclusions, broadcasters will have until September 5 to respond in writing. A draft directive will be produced at the end of this year.
As well as covering internet regulation, the consultation documents will signal a liberalising of the prescriptive regulations covering the amount of advertising that a TV channel can show — an existing limit of 12 minutes an hour is likely to be scrapped.
dude_danny
Re: xxxxcslewis
In the scheme of things that seems to be nominal to STM, yet it warranted a PR. I welcome the PR, but from STM's perspective it just seems a bit odd to me that it was issued. I don't know what point I'm making, except that from STM's perspective the event isn't very significant, so I guess I am just wondering out loud what the purpose of the PR might be.
I guess STM wanted to get word out that they are in the forefront in this arena. They know that trusted computing/TPMs are in demand and they have the potential to make huge profits from this. The next couple of months is going to get really interesting IMO.
dude_danny
http://thomashawk.com/2005/01/rumors-out-on-mce-2006-beta.html
Sorry if posted.
Chris Lanier links a Neowin post with some of the first leaks on where MCE 2006 is headed. Although the content of Neowin's post is still on Chris' site, it appears that Neowin has already taken down the post for reasons that are unclear at present. Just to make sure that the content is out there in case Chris also pulls it off, here goes:
In the third look at the future of current Microsoft technologies we take a look at where Windows Media Center Edition is heading.
This year will see the release of a small update for Windows Media Center Edition 2005. Bringing the Media Center Edition version up to v4.0. The update is due to beta in March and last approximately 4 months until it RTMs. There will be a Beta 1, Beta 2, RC0, RC1 before Release to Manufacturing.
The update is currently at M1 stage awaiting escrow for Beta 1. Code named Emerald the update is expected to Improve the following:
Premium TV
* Native digital cable
* Content Protection
* HD on Xenon
* Improve burning (DRM, network, Hi-def, DVD-RAM)
Scale-up MCX
* MCX integrated into Xenon
* UI Parity w/ PC (remote rendering on Xenon)
* MCX on WinCE clients (Babylon, TV2 as stretch goal)
* Bobsled feature parity integrated into 1 partner device (e.g. Linksys, Dlink)
Reliability
* Playback reliability
* Running 3rd party apps out of proc
* Address top usability issues
* Platform Security
More Locales
* Additional languages and locales
Looking deep into the future for 2006, Microsoft are planning a Media Center v5.0. Currently code named Diamond the release will rely upon Longhorn Premium and Longhorn Ultimate. These two editions of Longhorn are expected to include v5.0 of Media Center. Current dates are following the same pattern as the Longhorn schedule I posted recently.
dude_danny
Monday, July 11, 2005
New Microsoft Hardware Set to Debut
By Mary Jo Foley
Monday, July 11, 2005
http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,2180,1835912,00.asp
Microsoft is expected to roll out this week two new specialty keyboards for home PC users.
Microsoft is expected to roll out on Tuesday two new hardware bundles aimed at home users.
The first is a three-in-one control center for Windows XP Media Center PCs, sources close to the Redmond software vendor said. Microsoft is expected to christen the new model as the "Microsoft Remote Keyboard for Windows XP Media Center Edition." It will support in a single device remote, keyboard and mouse capabilities, sources added.ADVERTISEMENT
Microsoft's goal is to target the sleek, all-in-one unit as well suited for living rooms, rather than just home offices.
The other hardware model due out Tuesday is a bundle tailored for digital camera owners, consisting of a mouse, keyboard and digital-imaging software (Digital Image Standard 2006), sources said. The "Wireless Optical Desktop 5000" is designed to "turn any desktop into a virtual dark room," said sources claiming familiarity with Microsoft's positioning.
Both products are slated for mid-September availability, sources said. And each model is priced at $99.
The new keyboards fit into Microsoft's strategy to emphasize both its Media Center PC and its digital-photography-related software and community sites.
Microsoft is expected to announce in the next couple of months the release of its latest version of the Windows XP Media Center Edition platform, which is code-named "Emerald."
Microsoft's XP Media Center Refresh Getting Closer
XP Media Center 'Emerald' Nears the Finish Line
Microsoft Keeps the Focus on Digital Imaging
Microsoft's 'Acrylic' Has Got People Talking
Microsoft Looks to Build Up the Windows Community
Last month, Microsoft launched a digital-imaging Web site aimed to attract professional photographers. The company also unveiled a public beta of that is designed to compete with Adobe's PhotoShop and Illustrator products.
Microsoft announced on June 1 that all current and future versions of the Windows operating system will be enhanced to enable users to work easily with Raw files, in response to a sharp rise in the popularity of digital photography editing on Windows.
This article was updated on July 12, 2005, to reflect the final $99 per keyboard price.
(This is an updated version of an article which appeared in the
dude_danny
Niveus Media and AVerMedia Team Up to Release the First Commercially Available, 4 Tuner Windows® XP® Media Center Edition System with up to 1 Terabyte of Storage
http://www.niveusmedia.com/collateral/PR071205_NIVEUS_DENALILE.htm
Record more, store more; the Niveus Media Center - Denali Limited Edition is now available.
Santa Clara, CA, 12 July 2005 – Niveus Media, Inc., manufacturer of media entertainment devices for the high-end audio/video market has announced the availability of the Niveus Media Center - Denali Limited Edition; the first commercially available Windows® XP® Media Center Edition system to support both dual NTSC and dual ATSC tuners.
We’re pleased to announce that our collaboration with AVerMedia has resulted in our ability to bring to market the first Windows Media Center system that includes a total of 4 tuners; dual analog tuners and dual high definition tuners, allowing a user to record up to 4 programs simultaneously” said Tim Cutting, CEO of Niveus Media. “The Denali Limited Edition’s 4 tuners will provide Niveus Authorized Dealers with an opportunity to offer their clients the most advanced media center on the market.”
Niveus Media co-developed this 4 tuner solution in conjunction with AVerMedia , the leading provider of digital multimedia and presentation technology. AVerMedia’s AVerTVHD MCE A180 cards are utilized in the Denali Limited Edition and enable Niveus to implement the first 4 tuner solution. The AVerTVHD MCE A180 card is a full height PCI ATSC HDTV card designed for free over-the-air digital TV and full quality free over-the-air HDTV reception.
"AVerMedia is pleased to have the AVerTVHD MCE A180 card power the HD capability of the Denali Limited Edition,” said Allan Yang, CTO of AVerMedia Technologies. “Niveus is known as an innovative company and we’re glad to help them continue this tradition with their latest first-to-market offering.”
In addition to 4 tuners, the completely fanless Denali Limited Edition includes 1 Terabyte of Storage (1000GB = 1000 hours of analog television or 100 hours of HDTV), and a high performance system built around the proprietary Niveus Passive Cooling System: passively cooled Intel 3.4 GHz processor, 2GB of RAM and a passively cooled ATI X850 XT graphic card; ATI’s top-of-the-line graphics solution.
Availability
The Niveus Media Center - Denali Limited Edition is now available through authorized Niveus dealers. For assistance locating a dealer or for further details, call 866-258-2929 or visit the company website at:www.niveusmedia.com
About Niveus Media, Inc.
Founded in 2002, Niveus Media, Inc. is a Santa Clara, California OEM manufacturer, specializing in media entertainment devices for the consumer electronics market. Niveus Media is dedicated to delivering innovative, integrated consumer electronics devices for the networked home. Additional information can be found at: www.niveusmedia.com.
About AVerMedia Technologies
AVerMedia is the technology leader in Digital Multimedia Video Convergence Technology. Aside from its full line of TV Tuners/ Personal Video Recorder products, AVerMedia provides Document Cameras, Digital Video Maker, TV Photo Viewer and PC-to-TV Converters for consumer and corporate/ educational markets. AVerMedia also partners with OEMs for the development of AVerMedia’s technologies for integration applications.
dude_danny
C.M. You maybe on to something... LOL
dude_danny
O.T. USC: Applicants' Files May Have Been Read
Sat Jul 9, 9:24 AM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/
LOS ANGELES - Officials of the University of Southern California said they will contact everyone who used the school's online application system in the past eight years to warn them that a hacker may have been able to read their files.
School security officials said they plan to contact about 270,000 people although they believe the hacker looked at only about 10 files.
"Although we believe that the scope of this is pretty small, we're taking it very seriously and we are taking great care to notify every single person where there is even the potential that their records might have been viewed," said L. Katharine Harrington, USC's dean of admission and financial aid.
The hacker took advantage of a security flaw he discovered while trying to use the USC Web site on June 20, said Robert M. Wood, USC's information security officer.
However, the hacker then reported the flaw to an online security magazine, SecurityFocus, and the publication informed USC.
Wood said the FBI was notified but he doubted that any criminal case will be pursued because there didn't appear to have been any malicious attempt to obtain private information.
FBI officials would not comment.
Since the middle of last year, computer security lapses have been reported at several other schools.
Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University all rejected dozens of business school applicants who tried to access admissions Web sites earlier this year in hopes of learning their fate ahead of schedule.
A former University of Texas student was indicted last fall on charges he hacked into the school's computer system and stole Social Security numbers and other personal information from more than 37,000 students and employees. California State University, Chico, had a similar incident in March.
dude_danny
O.T. Flaw Found in Adobe Acrobat
Matthew Broersma, Techworld.com
Wed Jul 6,11:00 AM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20050706/tc_pcworld/121715
Adobe has warned of a serious flaw affecting one of the most widely distributed client applications, Acrobat Reader. The flaw leaves users open to attack via maliciously crafted PDF files, which can be spread via e-mail attachments web page links, and can be used to take control of a system.
"Remote exploitation of a buffer overflow in Adobe Acrobat Reader for Unix could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code," says security firm IDefense, which discovered the flaw, in an advisory.
A number of bugs in Acrobat Reader have emerged in recent weeks, but none were particularly serious. The last serious flaw to affect Acrobat Reader was in December 2004, when Acrobat Reader 5.x and 6.x were hit by several vulnerabilities allowing remote attackers to execute malicious code.
Affected Versions
The flaw affects Acrobat Reader 5.x for Unix and Linux, which has a large installed base despite the availability of newer versions. PDF is widely used as a platform-independent file format, and unlike Microsoft Office document formats, has full support on Unix and Linux.
The bug is in the function UnixAppOpenFilePerform(), which is called by Acrobat Reader while opening certain documents, IDefense says. User-supplied data is copied into a fixed-sized stack buffer, which leads to a stack-based buffer overflow and the execution of arbitrary code, IDefense says. A remote attacker can easily choose data to exploit the hole without needing to know stack addresses, says the firm.
The bug is made somewhat less dangerous by the fact that two error messages appear before the exploit takes effect, but closing the message windows doesn't stop the attack from taking place, IDefense says.
IDefense and Adobe recommended caution when opening attachments or following links, and says users should upgrade to an unaffected version, such as Acrobat Reader 7.0.
dude_danny
Gates Reiterates Support for Tablet PCs
Elizabeth Millard, newsfactor.com
Tue Jun 28, 1:16 PM ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20050628/bs_nf/36867
Despite sluggish adoption rates and indifference from mainstream consumers, the tablet PC still has a chance to succeed, noted Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT - news) chairman Bill Gates.
In a joint press conference with Toshiba (PNK: TOSBF.BK), Gates said that there should be continued investment in both the hardware and software sides of tablet computing.
Microsoft and Toshiba are collaborating on several projects, including tablet PC platforms that are based on the upcoming release of Longhorn.
"I totally believe in the tablet," Gates said at the conference.
Continued Devotion
Gates first showed off a prototype of a tablet PC in 2001, a year before its official launch, and predicted then that it would be the most popular form of PC sold in the U.S.
Although there was a flurry of interest following the tablet's launch, that interest did not translate into sales.
Tablets accounted for only about 2 percent of the global portable PC market in 2004, according to IDC, which noted that adoption of the technology will continue to be slower than anticipated.
Tablet PCs are the same as regular PCs in most respects, except their screens are touch-sensitive and they sometimes don't have keyboards, requiring instead that their users rely on a stylus for text input.
New Spark
Interest in tablet PCs was rekindled somewhat in early June when Lenovo announced it would be releasing the Thinkpad X41 Tablet.
Microsoft immediately declared its support, and noted that it would provide the machine's operating system.
The X41 will include the Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005, which has an enhanced security infrastructure and increased manageability, according to Microsoft.
Broad Appeal
In rolling out the X41, Lenovo and Microsoft expressed optimism that the tablet platform could be broadened to appeal to more users.
It is a sentiment that has been expressed many times in the past by various manufacturers and software providers, as tablet PC vendors look to expand the hardware's reach.
Currently, tablet PCs tend to be used only in vertical markets like real estate and health care, which have particular emphasis on workforce mobility. Whether a renewed focus from Microsoft will change its market presence remains to be seen.
"Tablet PCs have gone through many iterations, but many mainstream consumers still aren't interested," said IDC analyst Roger Kay. "There are some great models out there, but for now the technology will stay with its niche buyers."
dude_danny
AMD Desktop CPUs Roadmap Updated
http://www.vr-zone.com/?i=2328&s=1
dude_danny