Blending silicon chips with lasers

Intel researchers have made an important advance in blending silicon chip technology with optical lasers, reports NYTimes.

The new approach could lead to a significant cost reduction in high-speed communications systems by the end of the decade.

Researchers described the construction of a silicon laser that generates a "Raman effect"- where light is amplified when it passes through a transparent material - that greatly increases the power of a laser.

The new Intel process miniaturises the Raman effect so it can be produced within a single silicon chip rather than requiring strands of glass fibre that stretch for miles. The Intel researchers were able to demonstrate that the effect is 10 000 times as strong in silicon as has been achieved in glass fibre.

Red Hat yesterday announced plans to release a software management module that allows its users to manage both Solaris and Red Hat Linux systems using the same interface.

According to LinuxWorld, the software will allow users to group systems, set permissions and schedule specific management actions, all using the Red Hat Network. The Network is a system for managing and updating the Linux operating system that uses the Internet to deliver bug fixes and security enhancements to the operating system.

Red Hat is hoping that the new Red Hat Network module will help attract Sun`s customers to Linux, says company spokesman Leigh Day. "We`re using this as a tool to help people migrate off Solaris."

Wireless companies are under pressure to monitor the services they offer as mobile pornography and gambling continues to grow, reports AP.

Some operators are now taking action to restrict such content to over-18s, says Vodafone content services head Al Russell. "We`ve learned from fixed-line [Internet] that if you leave it too late, the genie gets out of the bottle."

Parent Vodafone Group PLC has backed voluntary age checks and content filtering in Britain, and is urging partners and rivals to avoid heavy-handed regulation by supporting similar moves elsewhere in the world.

Kaspersky Labs is opening a US office, saying it sees plenty of opportunity for future growth - despite Microsoft`s increased focus on selling security products.

According to InformationWeek, security companies have already achieved healthy profits in the online environment. Despite Microsoft`s growing focus on security, CEO Eugene Kaspersky says there is still plenty of business to go around.

"Microsoft will have pre-installed protection against a lot of threats but not against all of them. In the modern Internet environment, which is very aggressive, that`s not enough."

Kaspersky Lab revealed plans last week to open an independent US entity. The company has had a presence in the US for years though original equipment manufacturing partners such as F-Secure and MailFrontier, which use its anti-virus engine in their products.

Now Kaspersky sees an opportunity to directly profit from the booming anti-virus and security market in the US.

Aircraft manufacturer Airbus plans to include an optional voice and data system that will enable passengers in its new Superjumbo A380 planes to use their mobile devices in flight.

The service includes onboard mobile telephony and Internet access for passengers, and will be offered through the OnAir joint venture to airline companies purchasing the A380, reports PCWorld.

The service should become commercially available in 2006, and the system could be fitted on other models from Airbus as well as on planes from US rival Boeing, says OnAir.

Airbus last year successfully completed an in-flight trial of mobile phones and infrastructure equipment based on GSM technology using an Airbus A320 flight-test plane.