OpenOffice 2.0 beta candidate and features list now out. Improved standards
support and Microsoft compatibility, database included, much more:
http://marketing.openoffice.org/2.0/featureguide.html
Microsoft SQL now needs a more expensive server license to move between
Workgroup and Standard editions, and a new expensive CAL:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1770988,00.asp
Sun Wah and VA Linux Japan to target telecom and enterprise markets in Japan
and government customers in China with Debian Linux:
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3486921
Firebird 1.0.1 is released, fixing 17 security vulnerabilities and changing the
way URLs are displayed to prevent fake websites concealing themselves:
http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/holes/story/0,10801,100060,00.html
The Open Source viruus checker Clam Antivirus is now available for the Windows platform as well as Linux, and becomes Sourceforge's "project of the month": https://sourceforge.net/projects/clamwin/
Sony Ericsson unveils four new phones, including two with autofocus cameras and
one with a Walkman-branded portable music player:
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyID=2005-03-01T145310Z_01_N01354564_RTRIDST_0_TECH-TECH-SONYERICSSON-WALKMANPHONES-DC.XML
IBM Will not be supporting Intel's dual-core Itanium chips, due later this
year, in their servers. With the Cell CPU due, they don't need to:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/chipsets/display/20050225034030.html
MIPS Opens a Chinese subsidiary to do R&D and educate Chinese engineers as well
as to promote sales.
http://www.eetimes.com/semi/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=60404256
Freescale Semiconductor Inc. joins with China's government software centre to
promote PowerPCs running Linux:
http://www.eetimes.com/semi/news/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=GK44C5IVV1EKUQSNDBCCKH0CJUMEKJVN?articleID=60403939
And finally. German engineers are working on a way to make ocean travel more
efficient - by tying kites on cargo ships:
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/mech-tech/mg18524881.600
News collated from various sources by Vik Olliver for Diamond Age Solutions Ltd. The views presented in this document are the personal opinion of the collator, and should not be taken as any more than that.