News For Saturday Aug 30, 2008 News For Saturday Aug 30, 2008

Science & Technology Science & Technology

NASA destroys rocket after failed launch - Added 1 week ago

NASA destroyed an unmanned experimental rocket carrying a pair of research satellites Friday when it veered off course shortly after an early morning liftoff. There were no injuries or confirmed reports of property...

Internet provider's usage cap raises questions - Added 1 week ago

Three months ago, Guy Distaffen switched Internet providers, lured from his cable company to his phone company by a year of free service on a two-year contract. But soon the company quietly updated its policies to say...

iTunes blocked in China; Tibet album suspected - Added 1 week ago

Customers in China of Apple Inc.'s iTunes online music store were unable to download songs this week, and an activist group said Beijing was trying to block access to a new Tibet-themed album. In Internet forums,...

Following US, Japan lowers Hynix duty - Added 1 week ago

Japan decided Friday to end most of its punitive tariffs slapped on South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor Inc., following a similar U.S. decision and orders from the World Trade Organization. Japan will lower its 27.2...

Oracle's Ellison grabs top spot on best-paid list - Added 1 week ago

Oracle Corp. founder Larry Ellison, a longtime fixture on the list of the world's richest people, is now ensconced atop The Associated Press' rankings of the top-paid chief executives in the United States. Never shy...

At top of Greenland, new worrisome cracks in ice - Added 1 week ago

In northern Greenland, a part of the Arctic that had seemed immune from global warming, new satellite images show a growing giant crack and an 11-square-mile chunk of ice hemorrhaging off a major glacier, scientists...

ShoreTel swings to 4Q loss, beats Street view - Added 1 week ago

Internet-based telecommunications provider ShoreTel Inc. on Thursday said it swung to a loss in the fiscal fourth quarter as expenses climbed. For the three months ended June 30, ShoreTel posted a loss of $47,000, or...

Intel shows how to send power wirelessly - Added 1 week ago

THE PROMISE: Using wireless power transmission, one day people might be able to recharge their laptops or cell phones or other gadgets without plugging them into an electrical socket. The technology makes use of some...

9 polar bears observed on risky open ocean swims - Added 1 week ago

Nine polar bears were observed in one day swimming in open ocean off Alaska's northwest coast, an increase from previous surveys that may indicate warming conditions are forcing bears to make riskier, long-distance...

Seinfeld to be pitchman for Microsoft - Added 1 week ago

Junior Mints, Yoo-hoo, Drake's Coffee Cakes, puffy shirts: These are all things Jerry Seinfeld has endorsed _ at least in his alter ego on his classic sitcom. Now, add Microsoft software. Seinfeld will be a key...

AP's list of the highest-paid CEOs in 2007 - Added 1 week ago

The 10 highest-paid CEOs for 2007 at Standard & Poor's 500 companies based on calculations by The Associated Press. The total pay figures are rounded, and are based on the AP's compensation formula, which adds up...

IAC completing split into 5 publicly traded parts - Added 1 week ago

Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp completed its split into five publicly traded companies Thursday _ a move intended to give each business more focus and value than the previously cluttered whole. With the split, home...

New Microsoft photo site spends first day offline - Added 1 week ago

Microsoft Corp.'s new digital photo sharing site spent most of its first day offline as its servers strained to handle a flood of traffic. The site, called Photosynth, stitches together a set of related digital photos...

Saber-toothed cat fossils discovered in Venezuela - Added 1 week ago

An ancient tar pit exposed when Venezuelan oil workers laid a pipeline has yielded a rich trove of fossils, including a type of saber-toothed cat that paleontologists had never found before in South America. Scientists...

Intel demonstrates powering up without plugging in - Added 1 week ago

Imagine juicing up your laptop computer or cell phone without plugging them into an electrical socket. That's a luxury that could be provided by wireless power transmission, a concept that has been bandied about for...

Founder Gupta resigns as CEO of InfoGroup - Added 1 week ago

Database provider InfoGroup Inc. said Thursday its founder Vinod Gupta has stepped down as chief executive. Gupta's resignation Wednesday was part of a proposed settlement of a shareholder lawsuit, documents filed with...

Study: Seismic has little effect on Gulf whales - Added 1 week ago

Powerful acoustic devices used by oil companies searching for new sources of hydrocarbons in the Gulf of Mexico have had no discernible effect on endangered sperm whales living in those waters, according to a federally...

AT&T expands tech support to cover other gadgets - Added 1 week ago

Phone companies have been expanding their technology-support offerings, and AT&T Inc. took that trend one step further Thursday by introducing a tech-help plan that's even available to people who don't subscribe to...

A look at the companies resulting from IAC's split - Added 1 week ago

Internet conglomerate IAC/InterActiveCorp finished its split into five publicly traded companies on Thursday. Here is a look at what each of the companies will focus on: _ Ticketmaster. Sells entertainment event...

Microsoft site makes digital photos into panoramas - Added 1 week ago

Digital cameras have liberated awe-struck travelers and proud parents from worrying about the price of film processing. But showing off those megapixels of memories is still reminiscent of tedious living room slideshows...

IAC completing split into 5 publicly traded parts - Added 1 week ago

Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp completed its split into five publicly traded companies Thursday _ a move intended to give each business more focus and value than the previously cluttered whole. With the split, home...

IAC enacts reverse stock split with spinoffs - Added 1 week ago

IAC/InteractiveCorp, which finished its division into five publicly traded companies Thursday, also enacted a one-for-two reverse stock split. The reverse split means that for every two shares of IAC held before the...

Iran's space agency says it will send man to space - Added 1 week ago

State TV says Iran's space agency aims to send an astronaut to space within 10 years. The report Thursday quotes Space Agency chief Reza Taghipoor saying the mission's timing will be decided over the next year. It...

US company sues Nintendo in Wii wand patent suit - Added 1 week ago

Nintendo's hit Wii console with its wandlike remote controller has been targeted in patent infringement complaints by a U.S. technology company. Hillcrest Laboratories, based in Rockville, Md., has filed a complaint...

Microsoft site makes digital photos into panoramas - Added 1 week ago

Digital cameras have liberated awe-struck travelers and proud parents from worrying about the price of film processing. But showing off those megapixels of memories is still reminiscent of tedious living room slideshows...

IAC completing split into 5 publicly traded parts - Added 1 week ago

Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp is completing its split into five publicly traded companies Thursday _ a move intended to give each business more focus and value than the previously cluttered whole. With the split,...

Judge: 'Dancing baby' lawsuit can proceed - Added 1 week ago

A federal judge is allowing a Pennsylvania woman to sue Universal Music Corp. for forcing YouTube to take down a video clip of her baby dancing to Prince's "Let's Go Crazy." Universal Music demanded the removal of the...

Salesforce.com stock drops on cautious outlook - Added 1 week ago

Salesforce.com Inc. kept its financial guidance within the range of analyst estimates Wednesday, disappointing investors who expected a more bullish forecast from one of the Internet's most popular software services. ...

Semtech 2Q profit up 29 pct, topping analyst views - Added 1 week ago

Semtech Corp.'s second-quarter profit increased 29 percent to top analyst estimates on rising sales of the company's chips, which help manage power and protect circuits in computers, cell phones and other high-tech...

Climate negotiators reconvene this week in Ghana - Added 1 week ago

Negotiators meet in Ghana this week to resume work on a new climate change treaty and discuss ways to prod developing countries to join the fight against global warming. But the latest round of talks comes at an...

Sony introduces updated portable unit, new keypad - Added 1 week ago

For PlayStation 3 fans who want to do more than mash buttons when playing games on the console, Sony Corp. is introducing a wireless keypad that can be attached to the system's controller for typing and Web browsing. ...

China limits use of Olympians' names online - Added 1 week ago

China has banned the use of its Olympic gold medalists' names as Internet addresses by anyone but the athletes themselves. However, the Chinese government controls only Web sites with the ".cn" suffix and has no power...

Intel, Yahoo partnering on Internet TV concept - Added 1 week ago

Hoping to plant their flags on the screens of Internet-connected television sets, Intel Corp. and Yahoo Inc. unveiled a new project Wednesday to populate those screens with tiny programs called widgets. Depending on...

Review: 2 new devices mix learning with games - Added 1 week ago

Your kids can learn math, how to tell time and other skills needed for school _ and you don't have to pry them away from video games. That was the appeal of two new handheld devices my three boys recently tested: the...

Microsoft, Novell expand alliance with $100M deal - Added 1 week ago

Microsoft Corp., expanding on an alliance with Novell Inc., has agreed to buy as much as $100 million more for subscription certificates for Novell's Linux products, Novell said Wednesday. That comes on top of the $240...

Palm to launch Treo Pro without US carrier - Added 1 week ago

Palm Inc. announced Wednesday it will sell a new smart phone aimed at business users this fall, but it won't have the backing of a U.S. carrier. The Treo Pro, a slimmer, redesigned phone similar in features to the Treo...

Ericsson, STMicroelectronics form joint venture - Added 1 week ago

Swedish wireless equipment maker LM Ericsson AB and Swiss chip-maker STMicroelectronics NV unveiled plans Wednesday to create a 50-50 joint venture that will make a key component known as chipsets for mobile phones. ...

Some eBay sellers frustrated with rule changes - Added 1 week ago

Some people who sell things on eBay are fed up with new rules the company has been imposing in hopes of making the auction site more attractive to online shoppers. Now even more changes are coming in the next few weeks,...

HP posts 3Q profit jump; faces stiff competition - Added 1 week ago

Hewlett-Packard Co. weathered economic turbulence remarkably well in the fiscal third quarter but the technology bellwether faces another big challenge _ stiffer personal-computer competition _ that threatens to slow...

China limits use of Olympians' names online - Added 1 week ago

China has banned the use of its Olympic gold medalists' names as Internet addresses by anyone but the athletes themselves. The move announced Tuesday came after companies registered the names of winning Chinese...

IBM to spend $300M to expand data-recovery service - Added 1 week ago

In a sign that political instability and natural disasters can fuel technology spending, IBM Corp. plans to invest $300 million building new centers that can store companies' sensitive data and deliver it remotely in...

Summary Box: HP 3Q profit jumps 14 pct - Added 1 week ago

THE RESULTS: Hewlett-Packard Co. said Tuesday that its fiscal third-quarter profit jumped 14 percent while sales rose 10 percent _ 5 percent if adjusting for currency fluctuations _ as strong laptop sales and a robust...

Judge lifts gag on students over transit security - Added 1 week ago

A federal judge Tuesday lifted a gag order on three MIT students who were barred from talking publicly about security flaws they discovered in the state's automated mass transit fare system, even as a lawyer for the...

NASA fixes moonship shaking with shock absorbers - Added 1 week ago

A space-age version of the rusty springs under old pickup trucks will help NASA fix the most pressing technical problem with its high-tech new rocket to send astronauts back to the moon. NASA is going to use 17...

Apple releases fix for iPhone 3G connectivity woes - Added 1 week ago

Apple Inc. has released an iPhone software update it says improves communication between the smart phone and wireless networks. The iPhone 3G, which went on sale July 11, connects to cellular providers' speedier...

Intel unveils new chip design to challenge AMD - Added 1 week ago

Intel Corp. cracked the lid Tuesday on a new chip design that is at once a big challenge to smaller rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and an admission that AMD nailed a key design feature before it slipped into a severe...

Hewlett-Packard 4Q guidance tops estimates - Added 1 week ago

Hewlett-Packard Co. offered a fiscal fourth-quarter outlook Tuesday that surpassed Wall Street's estimate. The Palo Alto, Calif.-based company said it expects to turn a profit of between $1.01 and $1.03 in the...

Apple says battery problem caused iPod overheating - Added 1 week ago

Apple Inc. said Tuesday that batteries from a single supplier are to blame for the meltdown of some models of its tiny iPod Nano digital music player. The company's written statement came in response to a Japanese...

Modesto Bee offers buyouts to all full-timers - Added 1 week ago

The Modesto Bee is offering buyouts to all its full-time employees, the newspaper's second round of buyout offers this year. Bee publisher Margaret Randazzo said the offer was extended Monday to about 200 full-time...

Friendster supports applications for rival sites - Added 1 week ago

Friendster, an early online social network that has faded in the United States but remains strong in Asia, has begun letting programmers create photo-sharing applications and other programs that work on Friendster as...