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Windows 7 problems blamed on Malware
In response to rumours that the 'black screen' effect plaguing some Windows 7 users was caused by a security update, Microsoft said that malicious software was the likely cause of the problem. 'We've conducted a comprehensive review of the November Security Updates, the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, and the non-security updates we released through Windows Update in November. That investigation has shown that none of these updates make any changes to the permissions in the registry. Thus, we don't believe the updates are related to the 'black screen' behaviour described in these reports.
Intel to produce 48 core research chips
Intel has shown off an experimental version of a 48-core microprocessor that it has dubbed a "single chip cloud computer", ZDnet has reported. The chip, previously code-named Rock Creek, has 1.3 billion transistors, uses up to 125 watts of power during operation and will be made available to researchers on a standard motherboard in the first half of 2010. Intel believes it can sign up dozens of academic partners, who will receive the CPUs for research, including Microsoft's research division. At Gitex in 2008, Intel displayed what it called a super computer on a chip, running an experimental 1 terraflop, 80-core CPU that drew 84 watts.
Global semiconductor sales up in October
The US-based Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) has said that global semiconductor sales rose 5.1% in October, Reuters has reported. The increase is attributed to electronic equipment manufacturers boosting production for the holiday season. For the month, worldwide semiconductor sales rose to $21.7bn from $20.6bn in September. However, sales for October fell 3.5% from a year earlier, SIA said. "Inventory management throughout the supply chain has been very tight, and this may extend the fourth-quarter build season by a few weeks," it said in a statement.
Windows 7 gains market share
According to Internet metrics vendor Net Applications, Microsoft's Windows 7 has passed the 5% market share milestone last weekend, which put it above the total market share of all versions of Apple's Mac OS X, PC World magazine has reported. The first week after its launch, the new operating system had accounted for 2.7% of all operating systems used worldwide; it climbed to 3.3% in the second week, to 3.7% in the third and to 4% during the fourth week post-debut.
View Systems announces orders in UAE, Saudi
US-based View Systems, a security and tele-data solutions provider, said its business partner, Belcom, a Belhasa International Company, has received a second round of orders for ViewScan units and other View Systems products from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bangladesh, and India. The orders have been placed by a mixture of government and corporate clientele, the company said. ViewScan is a computer-based system that can scan up to 1200 people per hour. As a person passes through the portal, a photograph is taken and stored on the laptop computer that comes with the unit. Threat objects are visually located on the computer screen and an audible alert can be set to sound.
PC shipments will climb in 2009, says report
Global PC shipments will climb nearly 3% in 2009, but declining prices will mean that revenue will dip nearly 11%, according to IT research and advisory firm, Gartner Inc. Worldwide personal computer shipments will total 298.9 million units in 2009, up 2.8% from 2008, the firm said. A surge in PC sales during the third quarter of the year has forced Gartner to reassess its earlier predictions that shipments would fall 2% this year. 'The unexpected increase is most likely due to a reduction in the price of PCs, something that will also have an impact on revenue for the year,' Gartner said.
Microsoft steps up anti-piracy efforts
Microsoft Gulf has filed criminal complaints which had resulted in five anti-piracy raids on resellers in the UAE last month. The raids, which were conducted in Dubai and Sharjah, had resulted in the confiscation of pirated software CDs and personal computers and laptops loaded with pirated copies of Microsoft software, the company said.
Google unveils Chrome
Internet search giant, Google has unveiled its open-source Chrome Operating System which will initially be available on netbooks only, according to Computer Business Review website. The browser-based OS will enable users to access all the usual online applications, such as email, social network sites like Twitter and Facebook and Google Docs with users' data being stored on Google's servers. Google has released an early version of the code to developers to work on is looking for feedback from the open source community.
Mobily offers free WiFi for Hajj
Saudi Arabia's Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) has announced the launch of a free WiFi service in the holy sites in Makkah to enable pilgrims to access the internet during this year's Hajj season. The free service will be available through Mobily's data arm Bayanat Al-Oula, and will enable anyone with a laptop, PC and WiFi enabled mobile phone to connect wirelessly to the internet without charge.
Cisco offer free security alert app
Cisco is offering a free iPhone application that will allow people to get customized alerts on new security threats and other information for safe internet browsing, CNET wesite has reported. The Cisco 'SIO To Go' iPhone application gets its information from the company's Security Intelligence Operations (SIO) system which gathers information in real time from 700,000 sensors located at customer sites, ISPs, and other sites around the world.
Intel Capital invests in Jebel Ali-based NeuString
Intel Capital has made a $25m investments in 10 companies worldwide, which include Jebel Ali-based NeuString, Gulf News has reported. Incorporated in 2008, NeuString makes software that analyses pricing for telecommunications companies. The investment will be used for sales and marketing as well as new product development, the company said.
Juniper unveils T1600 Card
Juniper Networks has unveiled a new 10 port, 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) Physical Interface Card (PIC) for its T1600 Series Core Router. The new 10x10GbE PIC promises to deliver the highest density of 10GbE interfaces on a core router, as well as unique Intelligent Oversubscription capabilities, enabling customers to reduce costs and increase efficiency.
IBM, KACST ink multi-year deal
Saudi Arabia's King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) has signed a multi-year agreement with IBM Middle East for the collaboration on advancing machine translation technologies, advancing intellectual property development and establishing a National Women Software Development Centre. According to the agreement, KACST will purchase an IBM Blue Gene supercomputer to enable its researchers to perform complex simulations and computational modelling, while an IBM team will design, construct, and test the machine translation application based on the existing IBM Translation Engine tool.
Egypt applies for Arabic domain name
Tarek Kamel, Egypt's information technology minister has said that the country had filed an application to register the domain '.masr', written entirely in Arabic, the Associated Press has reported. The move will make the internet accessible to the millions in the region unable to access an internet dominated by Latin characters, he said.
IT budgets levels expected to return
According to a survey conducted by the SAP Users Group Mena (SUG-Mena), IT budgets are expected to return to pre-downturn levels and companies are viewing IT as an important asset to thrive in the current economic conditions, Emirates Business has reported. Some 92% of the executives polled believe that strategic IT investments can help companies survive and prosper during the economic downturn, the survey showed. Executives also felt that IT vendors could help by becoming more proactive in helping to justify IT investments. Key areas identified were demonstrating return on investment and preparing board-ready business cases.
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