Sony`s anti-piracy tactics slammed

Sony`s music division has been accused of using guerrilla tactics to stop its CDs being copied illegally, reports BBC News.

The report says one of Sony`s copy protection system uses cloaked files to hide deep inside Windows, similar to files used by computer virus writers to hide code from anti-virus scanners.

Although resembling a virus, the hidden files are generated by an anti-copying system called Extended Copy Protection (XCP), which has been criticised for being poorly written software that cannot be uninstalled. However, Sony says there are ways of removing the software and says the latest versions of XCP have moved away from using hidden files.

IBM and Sun Microsystems will host a private meeting today to get industry support for OpenDocument, a specification for standardising documents that supporters hope will promote adoption of software that competes with the Microsoft Office productivity suite.

PC World says the meeting is aimed at discussing with other technology companies ways to advance the adoption of OpenDocument with a view to forming a foundation around the technology.

They may also create a reference implementation that companies can use to test their software for compatibility.

The Mozilla Foundation has released another preview of the next version of its Firefox browser, showing off the application`s improved pop-up blocking, enhanced navigation and added support for Web standards, reports Computer World.

Mozilla says Firefox 1.5 Release Candidate 1 has been made available to enable testers to make any last-minute fixes before the final code is released.

The full release of Firefox 1.5 is expected to be available by the end of the year, with one more preview to be available around mid-November.

IBM researchers have found a way to slow light with a silicon chip, which Information Week says could lead to ultra-compact optical communications circuits being integrated into computer systems to enable faster data delivery in electronic systems.

The IBM scientists slowed light to less than1/300th of its usual speed, by channelling it through a silicon photonic crystal waveguide that scatters the light and makes it highly refractive.

Researchers said complex light-based circuits could one day be used to create nanophotonic components like optical delay lines, optical buffers and optical memory, all of which could be used to build computer systems linked by powerful optical communications networks.

The British Library is to begin digitising its collection to make parts of it available online, reports News Telegraph.

According to the report, fierce rivalry between Microsoft and Google to boost archives on their Web sites has led to Microsoft pledging lb1.7 million a year to pay for the project.

The library, which holds 13 million books, now plans to digitise 25 million pages from its collection, which will be available free on Microsoft Web sites.

Greg Maffei is resigning as chief financial officer of Oracle just four months after joining the organisation, reports News.Com.

The report says Oracle plans to appoint Safra Catz, an Oracle president, to the CFO post and will seek no other replacement.

Maffei, who is leaving to accept a position at another company, said in a statement that his resignation was not a reflection on the company, its executives or employees. He is the second CFO to leave the company after serving for less than a year.