News and Analysis to 19th February 2004
Windows virus on loose
The FBI is on the look out (Outlook backwards, eerie!) to
establish how part of Microsoft’s Windows source code has escaped into the
wild. Eyes are on Mainsoft, Microsoft’s Unix platform partner, which has access
to its Windows source code. This will do little to enhance Microsoft’s
reputation re security, should the code end up in the wrong hands. Maybe this
is Microsoft’s first foray into the open source market and what we have
witnessed is an unscheduled pre release.
PC – Full steam ahead
Research firm Gartner predicts that PC shipments will be
over 13% in 2004, much of this consumer driven. Looking back on last year, HP
led the way, followed by Dell and Fujitsu. Look out for Taiwan-based Acer who
was the fastest growing player, even outshipping IBM.
Go on go on go on
In a last ditch attempt to woo PeopleSoft’s shareholders,
Oracle sent a letter encouraging them to accept the $26 per share offer. They
also took the opportunity to highlight seven actions taken by the PeopleSoft
board that were not in the interest of their shareholders, most notably that
CEO Craig Conway stated that he could imagine no price or combination of price
and other conditions that would cause him to recommend the offer. He must know
that every shareholder has their price.
DoJ (Dodgy?) decision
Another nail was positioned on the Orasoft coffin as
Department of Justice lawyers made a preliminary recommendation that Oracle’s
acquisition of PeopleSoft should be blocked on anti-trust grounds. Given that
neither party dominates the enterprise applications space, it seems
unreasonable to not let market forces drive the outcome.
Project Edam – New hole found
Microsoft has just announced the discovery of a critical
security vulnerability in its latest version of Windows that could enable
others to remotely take control of your PC. Unfortunately this is not a feature
designed for offsite desktop support staff, but a flaw that can enable hackers
to bring down your network.
Telecoms Sector rings changes
Remember the Telecoms Sector? It’s back. According to IDC it
is on an upward path with projected growth of 4.4% this year. Spending last
year exceeded the $1 trillion threshold. The recent battle for AT&T
Wireless, in which US player Cingular outbid UK Vodafone for a very significant
price of $41bn suggests that the telcos have already built this good news into
their plans.
6,000,000,000gle
That’s how many entries are in Google’s web index database.
Apparently 70% of us use its search engine. These facts will do no harm to
their forthcoming flotation. But is Google really worth circa $1 per database
entry?
Asimo – Stairmaster
It wasn’t just the half term hordes that turned a tour of
London’s Science Museum into a slo-mo nightmare. As my irritation levels
started to rise, I realised that the person in front of me, tentatively making
his way down the stairs, was in fact a robot developed by Honda. Asimo (Guess
where its name came from?) was
demonstrating the latest advance in robotics, tackling stairs, which is
something that most of us would not regard as a hi-tech problem. Nonetheless it
does provide some visual and spatially related challenges, which Asimo handled
with dexterity, albeit with a Robocop like gait. Things became a little hairy,
when an excited youngster, trying to draw his parents’ attention to Honda’s
creation pointed towards Asimo. The basement of the Science museum fell into
silence as the robot turned to face the animated and beaming youngster and
ordered him to drop the gun. Anyone who has seen the film Robocop will
appreciate that what looked like a programming error could have fatal
consequences. Fortunately Asimo had
also seen the film and with a mischievous wink, turned and carried on down the
stairs.
