Nokia, Apple develop open source browser

Nokia is working with Apple to develop an open source Web browser for advanced cellphones, reports InformationWeek.

The browser is expected to be available to licensees of Nokia`s series 60 platform in the first half of 2006.

The software uses the same open source components, WebCore and JavaScriptCore, that are found in Apple`s Safari Web browser.

"Open source software is an ideal basis for development since it enables Nokia to leverage and contribute to speedy software innovation and development," says Pertti Korhonen, CTO at Nokia.

Red Hat has released Fedora Core 4, a free version of Linux the company is using to advance virtualisation, programming tools and other software, reports CNET.

Among other features, Fedora Core 4 comes with the Xen virtualisation software, which lets multiple operating systems run on the same computer.

Red Hat launched the Fedora project in 2003 to help mature Linux and higher-level software more quickly and to feed enthusiasts` appetite for the latest features.

However, for extended support from the company, customers must purchase Red Hat Enterprise Linux, which involves an annual subscription fee.

IBM has released a companion to its fastest supercomputer that boasts a top speed of 91.29 teraflops and runs at the Thomas J Watson Research Centre in New York.

The Watson Blue Gene system (BGW) comprises 20 refrigerator-sized racks, is less than one-half the size of systems of comparable power and offers three times the performance, reports Internet News.

IBM will use the system in a variety of science fields, including life sciences, hydrodynamics, quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics, says Eric Kronstadt, director of Deep Computing systems at IBM research.

The BGW is the little brother to Blue Gene/L, which runs at 135.3 trillion teraflops.

Microsoft has reached a deal with Indonesia over the tens of thousands of pirated versions of Windows programs used in government departments, reports the BBC.

Indonesian ministers said Microsoft had agreed to an amnesty under which a token sum of $1 will be paid for every computer found to be using illegal software.

In exchange, the government has promised to buy Microsoft merchandise legally in the future.

Indonesia has one of the world`s highest rates of pirated programs.